Baby Shower Florida Style

We have a date… other than the due date! As most of you know the baby shower is going to be in Florida on July 28^th. Friends from Gainesville, Ilicia and Suki offered to throw me a shower and my mom is helping too! I’m hoping that most of my out of town loved ones can make it down for the weekend. Now, I know a baby shower is a hard sell to make someone get on a plane, and the lure of Florida in the middle of its hottest time of year is even MORE tempting, but I offer the promise of a good time and an abundance of frozen alcoholic (an non-alcoholic for me) drinks! Oh yeah, and a pool, that should be somewhat tempting for those of you living in the concrete jungle. Either way I know those of you who cannot make it will be here in sprit.

As far as planning goes, it’s still in the works but I’ve been slowly adding items to my baby registries at Amazon.com and Buybuybaby.com. Surprisingly, I’m actually more afraid of the registry than I am of actual labor and delivery. I think this is because there is a lot of stuff that people try to make you believe you absolutely need for the baby and these things also happen to cost hundreds of dollars. I have yet to fall for the trap… at least I think I haven’t ….and I’m trying to make sure I get the stuff that will be useful and not just expensive. I can’t help it; it’s my practical side coming out. Weeding through the million and one baby items is not all bad though, as it also gives me something to focus on that isn’t my dissertation. If you want to talk scary…..just ask me how my dissertation is going! If Anabelle ever tells me she wants to get her PhD I will suggest she re-evaluate! Anyway, baby stuff is a happy distraction from the chaos of research and department politics so I’m happy to be navigating the wonderful world of baby burp cloths, strollers, breast pumps and more!  

Totally unrelated pic of Lola on her birthday! 

What's in a name?

It seems I fell off the blog bandwagon for a while but I’m back with a fun update. Moncho and I decided on a name for our little girl. We can now add an official name to the list of cute names issued as place savers until a real one came along. No longer will she need to be called baby Vilaro, mini-Melissa or little lady V! She is officially Anabelle Grace Vilaro! So, you probably should know that while we love the name it took me a while to put it in writing because I was having some commitment issues obligating myself to a spelling- one N vs. two N’s, belle vs. bel. Another reason why it has taken me so long to put the name in writing is that our initial name was Ana-Lucia and we were totally committed to that name until we realized the logistics with the name, #1 being pronunciation. When I first told my mom we were considering Ana-Lucia and Anabelle, she kept saying “oh, Ana-Lucile…that’s cute!” Even when I corrected her with “no, it’s Lucia!” she replied, “oh LUCILE” very pretty. All I could think of was Lucile Ball and the scene where she is stomping grapes with her bare feet! The second issue with Ana-Lucia was spelling, dash vs. no dash, capital L vs. little l, and the N issue again. The third issue was the middle name; would people think Lucia was the middle name and call her Ana? Answer: probably yes! Was there a short middle name that we both liked? Answer: Not really! So we ditched Ana-Lucia in favor of Anabelle and we couldn’t be more pleased.

Another update is that I’m starting to look and feel very pregnant. I’m 25 weeks and apparently my uterus is now the size of a soccer ball. That explains a lot! I’m still trying to stay active, using the elliptical machine in the event that I actually make it to the gym and wearing out my prenatal workout DVD’s. Actually, the DVDs are quite amazing and a really good workout! After, doing a little research I found these DVD’s created by two twin sisters, former Cirque du Soleil performers. The first one, called the “Perfect Pregnancy Workout vol. 1: Sculpting” is quite perfect. In fact, the first time I did it my legs were really sore the next day…the good kind of sore that lets you know you were productive! The second DVD is “Perfect Pregnancy Workout vol. 2: Yoga” and this one is less of a workout but still is great for flexibility and overall strength.  

Otherwise, I’m feeling good, dealing with the rising Florida heat by keeping the house a little cooler. A fact that Moncho LOVES because he is always hot and I’m usually always cold. Now we are on the same internal temperature setting and life is good! 

Message to my hormones and other pesky players this week

Dear Prolactin¹,

     Can you please stick to your job of making my boobs grow and leave my tear ducts alone?

Sincerely,

                Tired of awkward crying for no reason

                     ¹ Prolactin is a hormone that increases during pregnancy and increases to its peak levels post-partum when it                          stimulates lactation. Prolactin facilitates crying because higher levels lower the threshold for tearing (Frey,1985)

Dear Dissertation Committee,

     Would you consider actually reading the proposal I spent months putting together before you start haphazardly making changes. I know you are experts in your field but you are starting to sound like crazy people and my hormones and “crazy” have not been getting along lately.

Sincerely,

                Pregnant PhD student who would rather stick a pencil in 

                her eye than make another change to her research

Dear Neighbor Kids,

     Please get out of the street when I’m driving past your house to get home. I don’t want to hit you with my car…not even when you point your water guns and Nerf shooters at me. It’s just that my bladder is full and there is a baby sitting on it and I have to pee so just get out of my way. Also, while I appreciate your enthusiasm, butt-head is not a nice thing to yell at random strangers.

Sincerely,

                Pregnant girl who lives down the street and looks forward to the day

                when she can teach her daughter not to call people “butt-head”

Dear Insomnia,

     Thank you for your frequent visits this week. This blog post would not have been possible without you.

Sincerely,

                Awake