I can't believe the day arrived, but alas it did. Friday was my last day of employment for at least four months. Earlier in the pregnancy, as I fought off exhaustion and nausea in the afternoons sitting behind my computer I thought the day would never come. I have to admit that as "prepared" as I always think I am, this too has caught me by surprise. I actually teared up when I walked in the house on Friday evening and Tim asked me how my day went and if I was excited.
It isn't that I'm not excited or that I would even want to go back to work on Monday. It is more that this is another time of transition and with that, for me, comes a bittersweet reality. I have basically grown up professionally with the same very supportive and invested company and coworkers. The last six and a half years have had plenty of ups and downs (as Tim will testify to), but in the end the good far out weighs the hard. As I look back I am very thankful for my job and the people I have been able to work alongside and learn from.
I am also thankful that Tim is so supportive of me taking time off before the baby comes. He insists that my "job" now is to rest and relax (even though he knows I'll probably have a hard time sitting still). I'm one day in and I have to admit that I laid down for a few minutes mid morning and took an hour nap in the afternoon - lovely. I'm looking forward to this time of transition and reflection. As my mind clears from work matters, my thoughts turn to Little Whit and the proximity of his arrival. My excitement is building as the nursery comes together and I fold onsies and hang up sleepers in the closet.
Tonight my heart is full - Full of thankfulness for the things that have been and full of excitement (and nervousness) for the things that lie ahead. Maybe that is why I can't sleep and instead I am blogging:)
Fumbling through life's adventures by the grace of God.
Monday, August 31, 2009
Sunday, August 02, 2009
Blessed by a Baby Shower
We are blessed to be surrounded by friends and family. In July a few college friends threw us a baby shower. It was so fun to be spoiled, but most of all to see people I feel like I hardly see anymore.
My Mom, Nana, and Sister Kristy also came into town for the weekend. It was blazing hot and I don't think our air conditioner did a darn thing for the house. They suffered through with me and it was great to have them in town. To put a perspective on how hot it was my Mom and I were attempting to sleep in Tim's and my bed on Saturday night. By 11:30pm, we were both out in the living room sprawled out on the tile floor trying to stay cool. There would be no good night sleep in that kind of heat.
On Saturday evening, my family and I went to dinner with Kelly and Kristin. Yeah for amazing Thai food in Paso. Kelly, Kristin, and I were a bit of a three musketeers kind of crew back in college (oh, so long ago). It was so great just to have them around. I think one of the things I love most about showers is the fact that it ends up being a bit of a reunion.
The shower was set for Sunday afternoon. We decided to play hooky from church and go to the movies instead. What can I say? The movies are air conditioned. We saw The Proposal with Kelly and Kristin. It was the perfect movie for a girls weekend. My Nana and I were sitting by each other and laughing about how much we were crying (total suckers for a it-would-never-happen-in-real-life romantic plots).
Then it was off to the shower. Like I said, I think my favorite thing was having so many friends in one place. The shower had a surfer theme and the favors were the most adorable white chocolate suckers that Kelly had made that were of a Little Dub surfing a wave. Of course, because the ladies are all very talented, the food was delicious, the games were fun and low key, and the whole thing was very special. Another great part, was that everyone who has a baby brought their baby - so fun:) We were unbelievably blessed by all the gifts. A couple highlights for me were the bedding from my mom, a hand-knit blanket from Nana, a swing from my sisters, and the Ergo from friends. Seriously, though all of the gifts were amazingly thoughtful and so useful (which you know I like).
I can't close without also mentioning that two of the gifts were especially for Kona and Asia. We know our friends know us when they buy gifts for the animals that we absolutely consider part of the family. We call them our little zoo. Kona got a bone and a chew toy. Asia recieved a cat nip mouse - who could ask for more?
With that, I want to give a special shout out to Stephanie, Nikki, Kelly, Kristal, and Kristy for being such sweet and giving friends (and sister). I know that showers take a lot of time and effort. Thanks for blessing Tim, Little Dub, and I with your mad showering skills. You are all loved very much (and not for showering as much as for being who you are in our lives).
I'm hoping to get a few shots of the shower itself to post later.
My Mom, Nana, and Sister Kristy also came into town for the weekend. It was blazing hot and I don't think our air conditioner did a darn thing for the house. They suffered through with me and it was great to have them in town. To put a perspective on how hot it was my Mom and I were attempting to sleep in Tim's and my bed on Saturday night. By 11:30pm, we were both out in the living room sprawled out on the tile floor trying to stay cool. There would be no good night sleep in that kind of heat.
On Saturday evening, my family and I went to dinner with Kelly and Kristin. Yeah for amazing Thai food in Paso. Kelly, Kristin, and I were a bit of a three musketeers kind of crew back in college (oh, so long ago). It was so great just to have them around. I think one of the things I love most about showers is the fact that it ends up being a bit of a reunion.
The shower was set for Sunday afternoon. We decided to play hooky from church and go to the movies instead. What can I say? The movies are air conditioned. We saw The Proposal with Kelly and Kristin. It was the perfect movie for a girls weekend. My Nana and I were sitting by each other and laughing about how much we were crying (total suckers for a it-would-never-happen-in-real-life romantic plots).
Then it was off to the shower. Like I said, I think my favorite thing was having so many friends in one place. The shower had a surfer theme and the favors were the most adorable white chocolate suckers that Kelly had made that were of a Little Dub surfing a wave. Of course, because the ladies are all very talented, the food was delicious, the games were fun and low key, and the whole thing was very special. Another great part, was that everyone who has a baby brought their baby - so fun:) We were unbelievably blessed by all the gifts. A couple highlights for me were the bedding from my mom, a hand-knit blanket from Nana, a swing from my sisters, and the Ergo from friends. Seriously, though all of the gifts were amazingly thoughtful and so useful (which you know I like).
I can't close without also mentioning that two of the gifts were especially for Kona and Asia. We know our friends know us when they buy gifts for the animals that we absolutely consider part of the family. We call them our little zoo. Kona got a bone and a chew toy. Asia recieved a cat nip mouse - who could ask for more?
With that, I want to give a special shout out to Stephanie, Nikki, Kelly, Kristal, and Kristy for being such sweet and giving friends (and sister). I know that showers take a lot of time and effort. Thanks for blessing Tim, Little Dub, and I with your mad showering skills. You are all loved very much (and not for showering as much as for being who you are in our lives).
I'm hoping to get a few shots of the shower itself to post later.
Fourth of July
We are way behind on our posts, but honestly did anyone expect it to be any different? Probably not.
The Upper Barn at Kimmel Vineyards
We were in Nor Cal for fourth of July with my (Jill's) family. It is a tradition to spend the weekend of the fourth at the family (Kimmel) ranch in Mendocino County. I grew up there until I was about ten and it is one of those places that will always be "home" for me no matter where I am. It holds an amazing sense of place with loads of open space and habitat surrounding about 40 plus acres of vineyards; we recently released our first vintage of the family label, Kimmel Vineyards. When we were younger (not long ago) and spent way to much time in the sun, we used to spend whole days swimming in and reading beside the two "lakes". They aren't lakes. One is a resevoir and the other is more of a large pond. This trip was much more about sitting around talking and eating, two of my favorite things.
The Fourth of July Crew
We arrived on friday afternoon. It was in the nineties so we promptly changed into our swimsuits (thank you, Nikki, for letting my borrow) and walked to the closest lake for a swim. It was probably quite a site because we only had one floating reclining chair thing, but we all wanted to use it so we all held on to the sides and chatted. I kept freaking out because the reeds on the side of the lake are creepy and if we got close everyone kicked to get back to the middle. Good times. Of course, Kona and Molly (Kimmel Padre's dog) had a great time playing keep away with the ball and swimming in the lake as well.
Kristy (sister) and I
Because the weather was so nice, Tim and I ended up sleeping under the stars in the back of the truck. It was serene to fall asleep with so many stars overhead. Actually, it was almost serene except for the fact that Kona slept with us us well (and by slept with us, I mean she slept on my legs and made it really uncomfortable).
Saturday was very relaxed. Tim and I took a walk to the back "lake" and threw the ball for Kona. She loves the ranch, but what dog wouldn't. The afternoon was consumed with napping and browsing through magazines - excellent. That evening was the Fourth of July so in typical Kimmel style we BBQed and hung out on my grandma's patio.
Nikki & Kona representing Saturday Afternoon at the Ranch
Sunday was a "get-r-done" kind of day. We recently grafted Sauvignon Blanc onto a small part of the vineyard, so we went to check it out. It was bit out of control with lots of shoots coming out of rootstock. Seeing work that needed to be done, we all jumped in and cleaned up the vines: Dad, Mom, Nana, Uncle Jim, Aunt Debby, Tim, myself, and the three dogs. Next, we checked fences and decided to raise a few of the wires because there were corners of the vineyard where deer were getting in and eating the leaves (difficult for photosynthesis if there are no leaves). My Dad was showing Tim what he wanted them to do by lifting the wire over his head and P-O-P! His shoulder popped, he winced, grimaced, and slouched. It was not a good sign. We took him back and set him up with ice for his shoulder. Tim and I went back to mend fences. We almost finished when my uncle came and told us that we needed to take my Dad to the ER. We did and it ended up being a very eventful Sunday. My Dad tore his rotator cuff - poor guy.
Tim and I stripping the unwanted shoots. Unfortunately there are no pictures of us fixing fence.
We finished our weekend by eating pizza with my family in Santa Rosa and hitting the road for home. It started out as a relaxing, easy does it kind of weekend and then ended up going out with a bang...or maybe it was a pop.
The Upper Barn at Kimmel Vineyards
We were in Nor Cal for fourth of July with my (Jill's) family. It is a tradition to spend the weekend of the fourth at the family (Kimmel) ranch in Mendocino County. I grew up there until I was about ten and it is one of those places that will always be "home" for me no matter where I am. It holds an amazing sense of place with loads of open space and habitat surrounding about 40 plus acres of vineyards; we recently released our first vintage of the family label, Kimmel Vineyards. When we were younger (not long ago) and spent way to much time in the sun, we used to spend whole days swimming in and reading beside the two "lakes". They aren't lakes. One is a resevoir and the other is more of a large pond. This trip was much more about sitting around talking and eating, two of my favorite things.
The Fourth of July Crew
We arrived on friday afternoon. It was in the nineties so we promptly changed into our swimsuits (thank you, Nikki, for letting my borrow) and walked to the closest lake for a swim. It was probably quite a site because we only had one floating reclining chair thing, but we all wanted to use it so we all held on to the sides and chatted. I kept freaking out because the reeds on the side of the lake are creepy and if we got close everyone kicked to get back to the middle. Good times. Of course, Kona and Molly (Kimmel Padre's dog) had a great time playing keep away with the ball and swimming in the lake as well.
Kristy (sister) and I
Because the weather was so nice, Tim and I ended up sleeping under the stars in the back of the truck. It was serene to fall asleep with so many stars overhead. Actually, it was almost serene except for the fact that Kona slept with us us well (and by slept with us, I mean she slept on my legs and made it really uncomfortable).
Saturday was very relaxed. Tim and I took a walk to the back "lake" and threw the ball for Kona. She loves the ranch, but what dog wouldn't. The afternoon was consumed with napping and browsing through magazines - excellent. That evening was the Fourth of July so in typical Kimmel style we BBQed and hung out on my grandma's patio.
Nikki & Kona representing Saturday Afternoon at the Ranch
Sunday was a "get-r-done" kind of day. We recently grafted Sauvignon Blanc onto a small part of the vineyard, so we went to check it out. It was bit out of control with lots of shoots coming out of rootstock. Seeing work that needed to be done, we all jumped in and cleaned up the vines: Dad, Mom, Nana, Uncle Jim, Aunt Debby, Tim, myself, and the three dogs. Next, we checked fences and decided to raise a few of the wires because there were corners of the vineyard where deer were getting in and eating the leaves (difficult for photosynthesis if there are no leaves). My Dad was showing Tim what he wanted them to do by lifting the wire over his head and P-O-P! His shoulder popped, he winced, grimaced, and slouched. It was not a good sign. We took him back and set him up with ice for his shoulder. Tim and I went back to mend fences. We almost finished when my uncle came and told us that we needed to take my Dad to the ER. We did and it ended up being a very eventful Sunday. My Dad tore his rotator cuff - poor guy.
Tim and I stripping the unwanted shoots. Unfortunately there are no pictures of us fixing fence.
We finished our weekend by eating pizza with my family in Santa Rosa and hitting the road for home. It started out as a relaxing, easy does it kind of weekend and then ended up going out with a bang...or maybe it was a pop.
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