The Kid's Got a Face

It was the best of times. It was the worst of times. I finally understand what Dickens was talking about. No but seriously yesterday was a really great day and a ridiculously hard day. I don't have a legitimate excuse for my poor performance at work lately except for that being a receptionist just plain sucks. Most days not only do you feel like the bottom of the totem pole but you feel like the dirt that the totem pole is stuck in. Combine that with the constant nausea and entire lack of energy that the first trimester brings, and you get a giant dump of yesterday. My slacking was brought to my attention pretty bluntly by 3 people to be exact, one super intimidating boss, one arch enemy and one girl I actually really like. :(

I've been trying to schedule a "hey boss, I'm pregnant, thought you should know" meeting and she's been trying to schedule a "what's going on with you lately" meeting, the two collided into one ultimate disaster. She asked "what's going on with you?" and I said, "well actually I've been wanting to talk to you, I'm pregnant." And she said..... "Oh Shi*! Are you serious?! Well you won't get salary while you're gone" and utter disappointment flooded her face. Not the greatest first reaction to the greatest news I've had in a long time but anyways, we carried on an awkward, uninteresting and quite annoying five minute conversation and then da da da daaaa....

 I got to go see this:

And everything was okay again.

Second Trimester!

If you’ve been around me as of late, then you can testify that hanging out with a pregnant lady in her first trimester is nothing short of an absolute roller coaster. Kimball can attest to this the most though because really, we try to avoid other people when I’m feeling like I am going to puke all over those brand new shoes you’re showing me. I think we’ve done a pretty good job of concealing it with a lot of lies and Kimball actually holding me back from snapping at certain people during Sunday School, (trust me, pregnant or not, you would have wanted to deck this guy in the face for chewing his gum that loud, too). It amazes me how much I’ve already changed and still I can’t grasp the fact that we are really going to have a baby. A BABY. A little human. A perfect little combination of Kimball and I. With skin and bones and a heartbeat and I’m sure a handful of attitude; regardless of gender. I had my first mommy cry last night as we were watching American Idol. Really? That’s what it takes for reality to set in? It wasn’t after we saw the ultrasound, wasn’t after we heard the heartbeat. But American Idol? How ridiculous, yet fitting. Anyways, it was just a mom kneeling down by the tub, with her two little boys splashing together in the bathtub and I realized, that is my future, my very very near future. We’re a couple days away from the second trimester and it’s starting to feel safe to accept and believe and hope that this is really happening for us. I’m just barely opening that gate of excitement so I’m sure it will kick in full blast sometime soon.

This past month has been challenging. I’ve been a pretty sick girl. I’m lucky that I have such a patient and loving husband who lets me crawl straight into bed from work and not lift a finger once I get home. Seriously, he treats me like a pregnant princess. It has been nuts to watch my body transform. Super weird. First thing we (Kimball and I) noticed was the swelling of my mosquito bite boobs. I know most of you haven't seen me in awhile, what with us living in California and such but it really happened, this is actual factual news. I. Grew Boobs. Thank you baby! But.... about a week later I started to grow a stomach as well, so the flattering new look has become an over-all bleh and we all know it's just going to get worse. I don't want to sound like I'm complaining because in 7 months, I will have me a precious baby and so all of this is totally worth it and fantastic and quite beautiful but I did want to document my symptoms and changes for future reference.

We didn't find out we were pregnant til we were about 7 weeks along. An irregular cycle, Christmas vacation and a little bit of denial had a lot to do with that. But I swear the day after we found out I was sick as a dog. Kimball actually said to me, "I'm pretty sure this might be all in your head" and I believed him because none of it felt real. At first I was starving all of the time. I ate everything I could see for about two weeks. I was always eating and it made me feel great!  So I pretty much just ate all day long. And I actually think I lost a little weight; crazy I know. Then the nausea hit. That lasted about a month. I was constantly googling "can pregnant women eat _____" and on occasion, pictures would pop up that just the sight of would make me throw up. My first case of morning sickness at work was interrupted by the janitor knocking on the door and standing outside of it for the whole 15 minutes it took for me to feel comfortable walking away from the toilet. I actually said, "ha, sorry that took so long!" and kept on walking. Ew. Awkward. But not as bad as my 4th or 5th time when I decided to have a raspberry crystal light to wash everything down with right before it all decided to come back up and of course it stained everything inside of me red. What a fun sight it was for the lady that walked in on me, bent over the toilet appearing to vomit my actual intestines, all stained a very horrifying shade of dark red. Too much? I'm sorry. It's the truth and this blog isn't even public yet so I don't care. I think the worst/most unfortunate/funniest aversion I've had yet though has got to be that I can't see my husband naked without gagging and running for the toilet. I think my subconscious knows exactly who got us into this sick-mode and has decided to stay as far away from him as possible. Ha. Poor guy.

Luckily things are starting to get better with the beginning of the second trimester. For starters, I'm beginning to believe that there is a baby in there. I'm absolutely ecstatic about getting to go home and tell our families and soon after, our friends. Two weeks! Second, Subway and Saltines have been the only thing I could consistently eat that didn't make me sick this last month but now I am starting to eat and I don't even gag every morning when I get out of bed. But seriously I just need to know, why doesn't anyone ever warn you about the awful case of the pregnancy gas/burps? This needs to be discussed more openly. Not by me of course, but it should be right up there with morning sickness on the list of well-known and common pregnancy symptoms. Geeze!

Oh Christmas Tree!

Christmas is so close, I can practically taste it. This weekend we finally put up our Christmas tree. Our very first family Christmas tree. This week is finals for Kimball and we played a lot harder than we should have. Kimball neglected his studies a bit and spoiled his wife with some one on one time. He took me to a surprise dinner at a new cheese steak joint but when we got there and saw the menu we decided to go to our usual cheese steak place just two blocks away (well one of us decided to stay loyal, the other couldn’t have cared less). Saturday rolled around and proved to be very eventful; much more than I expected for a pre-finals weekend. We sang Christmas songs, took pictures with a glitter fairy, attended the ward Christmas party, tricked the 2nd counselor into eating a slap of butter shaped like cheesecake, destroyed the car, threw watermelons from a cliff into the ocean, got ice cream, made some very cheesey potatoes, went shopping at union square, babysat and of course, watched football. We don’t really need to talk about that very middle event that has to do with the car, but if you must know, I rubbed the Intrepid up against someone’s stupidly small San Francisco garage. Pictures attached. L But the best part, Kimball wasn’t even mad. A little surprised that what I called a tiny scratch actually was 3 feet long, but not mad! A wonderful weekend indeed.

Sleep Much?

Life has been pretty good lately. Work has gotten a bit better. The weather is phenomenial, 65 degrees on the last day of November to be exact and best of all... I discovered sleeping for 12 hours straight. I came home about a month ago and Kimball was home taking a nap, he earns those midday power naps though, the kid stays up til 2 or 3 in the morning just to be prepared for the next day of school. Anyways, I laid down next to him right when I got home from work around 6pm and although he woke up an hour or two later to study, I didn't wake up until the next morning at 6am when my alarm was going off. I woke up pretty disappointed that for 36 hours all I had known was work and sleep so I told Kimball we couldn't let that happen again.

It's happened at least once a week since that day. Including last night. One of the nights I woke up in the middle of it to Kimball laughing out loud and burying his knees in my back. I guess, in my sleep I had refused to move my legs/feet from Kimball's pillow and everytime he pushed me back to my side I'd kick right back onto his. And the best way he found was to knee me in the back as I was yelling, "Ouchy, ohhh ouchy, that really hurts. Stop it! Ouchy!" FYI ouchy is not a part of my daily vocabulary, just when Kimball touches me in my sleep.

I'm going to look fondly back on our years in dental school and think to myself how I caught up on 22 years of missed sleep. Kimball will be catching up on these 4 years of missed sleep for the rest of his life. :) He also likes to give me a recap of the nights that I turn into zombie Tess. This morning I woke up to this notecard:

K: Tess are you ready to get into bed?

T: No I'm telling a story.

K: Okay well are your toes cold?

T: No. Is your vagina cold?
Then you shot me with your finger-gun.

Ha. What a great way to start the day. Ps sorry I said the v word. In my defense, I was asleep.

Surprise for Kimball... HOVA

Can you keep a secret? Cause I sure can't. I don't know why but I am sooo excited for this. I bought Kimball birthday tickets to go see Jay-Z and Kanye West perform in San Jose in a month. And every single day there is at least one moment where I almost just blurt it out to him, so maybe if I type it out and feel like I'm telling someone than it will help me to not tell Kimball. Cross your fingers.

Kimball loves Jay-Z and he loves Kanye West. We don't listen to the ipod very often, but just last night Kimball came into the room and scrolled through everything to find the one Jay-Z and Kanye song we have on there and that's what he picked to listen to and his next choice was the Kanye West playlist. :) My wife job is just too easy sometimes. When we first started dating Kimball invited me on a road trip to Seattle to go see Jay Z in concert and then head up to Canada. It was on that trip that Kimball popped the big question, he was so nervous to ask me to come to Thanksgiving dinner. Kinda a big deal right? Especially since Thanksgiving was still a month and a half away. One could say that Jay Z brought Kimball and I together, yeah, one could say that.

Wednesdays Get Whacky

The Good: Look at her face! Is that not priceless. In the good today, I came across this picture that just melts my heart:

This adorable couple, Ann Thayer, 87, and Paul Walker, 88, got married at the Marshwood Center in Lewiston, Maine. The couple met at church and have dated for 17 years until some nurses in the nursing home where Walker is rehabilitating teased the couple about getting married. Thayer said their conversation went like this, "All those nurses said, 'You've been together how long? Why didn't you ever get married?' Paul looked at me, 'You want to do it?' I said, 'OK, well, when?' 'Right now,'". I just love how you can see happiness all over her face.

The Bad: In Lexington, SC, a six-year-old first grader came home from school telling her Grandma how tired she is of rubbing her teacher's feet. After hearing this, the Grandmother called the school and reported it on facebook and immediately received at least 6 other parents who had heard similar stories from their children. The teacher admitted to making the kids rub her feet during the school day and upon her confession was sent home for the day, only to return the next morning!! WHAT? "Does she take off her socks and shoes?" the Grandmother asked,"Grandma, she wears flip-flops." Ew. If you ask me this should be just as punishable as physical or sexual abuse.

The Ugly: Pretty sure the headline of this news article tells us all we really need to know, "He's no Santa: Burglary suspect stuck 10 hours in chimney". Apparently this 17 year old kid needed $500 to pay his taxes and after stealing it from an Atlanta resident, his best escape route was up through the chimney. A neighbord heard cries from the chimney calling out, "Help me! Help me!" and when asked what he was doing down there, "Ahhh... I'm stupid" was all he could say. I'm sure Antoine Dodson will be happy to hear that they finally caught him! So hide your kids, hide your wives and hide your Christmas presents cause they climbing through your chimneys!

And in my own news report, we had Thanksgiving dinner for lunch at work today :) Pumpkin pie and stuffing and everything. I even saved a dallop of whipped cream to put in some apple cider. I'm sitting pretty at this little desk of mine, yes siree. And later Kimball and I are going to head down to the Mission district to go thrift shopping, a bit sketchy at night but definitely has the best thrift stores around. Specifically, we are on the hunt for a new headboard and bed frame. Our little dorm room is lacking in decorative spirit, don't worry though, it's nothing some cheap furniture can't fix.

Wednesdays Get Whacky

Since getting a new job that requires me to be in my car and on the road by 7am, I have found a radio talk show that is entertaining enough to keep me awake and alert for the hour commute (as if the traffic didn't already do that). Anyways, my absolute favorite part of their morning show is when they feature 3 news articles and categorize them as the good, the bad and the ugly. So funny! Well lately since I figured out that I could leave by 7:10 and still make it on time to work, I've been missing my favorite news articles so I figured maybe I could find some myself. Fun little challenge and if not, I can always just post the link to Greg and Fernando's articles and I know they're guaranteed to pull through for me.

The Good: Rocky start I guess because I'm not quite sure how to categorize this article but it was just too interesting to not post. CBS reported here that 26-year-old Chris Birch suffered a stroke after he attempted a back flip and landed on his neck. His then-fiancee and family stayed with him in the hospital but when he woke up, they found a very different person. Chris awoke and immediately knew that something was different, he says, "Suddenly, I hated everything about my old life. I didn't get on with my friends, hated sport, and found my job boring". He quit his job, trained to be a hair dresser and started dating a man. The doctor interviewed said that he's never personally heard of a stroke changing some one's sexuality, but he doesn't doubt the stroke had some impact on Birch's life. Hmmm.... that's why my mom would never let me do flips on the trampoline.


The Bad:: About 15 miles away from my front door, this is going on:


Occupy Oakland, inspired by the Occupy Wall Street Movement has made quite a name for themselves. The Movement began about 7 weeks ago in light of the struggling economy and the many people who have suffered. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe they are targeting Wall Street in direct relation to the many CEOs who have ridiculous Christmas bonuses and are getting paid well over Over the last couple weeks, Kimball and I will turn on the news to hear at least one 'Occupy Oakland' story. The stories has progressively gotten more and more violent. This article here details the latest action. Thousands of people successfully blocked off one of the nation's busiest shipping ports, their main objective being "to stop the flow of capital". They also prevented any trucks from getting in or out by surrounding the vehicles and climbing on top of them. An update shows that the camps in Oakland were raided by hundreds of police, but very few people remained to stay and protest. I wish they would organize themselves a bit, become more united across the nation and transcribe their list of demands because I don't know how they aim to get whatever it is they are fighting for. Empty camps = surrendered?

The Ugly: Andddd the ugly, a South-African couple, soon to be married and give birth to their baby, found out this weekend they are brother and sister. I guess Mom and Dad split when they were little. Dad took the son and Mom kept the daughter and they agreed to not speak of each other. The two families ended up living 50 miles apart until the son and daughter met at the local university and instantly had a connection. They fell in love and have been inseparable for the last 5 years. Now she is 8 months pregnant with their baby and they have called off their engagement after introducing their parents to each other and finally being told the truth about their past. Holy moly, this is like Oliver Twist mixed with Anastasia mixed with a handful of significantly high-risk deformed DNA. My heart is breaking for these two. What in the world would you do if you found out your husband was your brother, I can't even imagine what kind of emotions come with that.

And that'll do it for Wednesday's good, bad and the ugly. Stay Classy readers.