Liebster Love!

 

 

I am proud to report that I have been nominated by my cherished followers for a Liebster Award on my blog! The Liebster Award is given to new or up-and-coming bloggers who have fewer than 200 followers. In order to accept the award, you must post about it, answer some questions, and nominate more blogs and help spread the word!

 

If you receive a nomination, there are a few rules to follow:

 

1. Each nominated blogger must post eleven facts about themselves.

2. Each nominated blogger must then answer the eleven questions that the tagger asked.

3. In the post, the blogger should then create eleven questions of her own to ask the bloggers whom they have nominated.

4. The blogger chooses eleven more bloggers to nominate and links them in the post.

5. Notify the nominees on their blogs of your nomination.

6. No tagbacks!

 

Here are eleven facts about me:

 

1. I collect figurines and pictures of owls because owls are the unofficial symbol of my alma mater, Bryn Mawr College. BMC has four secret tradtions each year and I still send owls to my college friends for each tradition.

 

2. My husband and I met when we were 15 and we have been together since we were 16. We met in a group of high school metalheads and to this day, my husband plays bass guitar in a thrash metal band.

 

3. In our house, we currently have two dogs, two cats, six leopard geckos, thirty-some fish and a pacman frog.

 

4. I have five complete sets of china and three complete sets of flatware. Needless to say, our dining room china cabinet is overflowing...

 

5. I have been to Ireland nearly fifteen times, but I have only been in thirteen states.

 

6. I have never had jury duty.

 

7. I was born on Christmas Day, and it happened to be coldest December day in recorded Philadelphia history.

 

8. I also maintain two other blogs -- a teaching blog and a crafting blog -- with my other, "non-anonymous" Blogger account.

 

9. I hate when food mixes on my plate. At a barbecue, everyone knows that I like a separate bowl for my baked beans so the sauce doesn't touch the hot dog or hamburger buns! ;)

 

10. I have been keeping a five-year journal for over a year and I write in it every night. (If you have never seen a five-year journal, I highly recommend that you look into it!)

 

11. Most of my immediate family lives within a two-mile radius of our house and I love it!

 

Here are the eleven questions specified by the blogger who nominated me:

 

1. What is your favorite color? I love green and purple.

 

2. What is your favorite sports team? We are Phillies phanatics, but we are also devoted Eagles and Flyers fans!

 

3. Are you closer to your mom or dad? Why? I am close to my dad, but definitely closer to my mom. My mom and dad were never married and separated when I was just a few months old. For my whole life, I lived with my mom, so we are super close.

 

4. What is your favorite breakfast food? Whether it's pancakes, waffles or French toast, I am a Philly girl after all and I love a side of scrapple with my breakfast!

 

5. What is your favorite TV show? Right now, I am totally addicted to Downton Abbey. We also like to watch competition shows like Ink Master, and we got really into Grimm when it was on.

 

6. Coffee or hot chocolate? Definitely hot chocolate. I don't care for coffee at all.

7. What is your favorite memory as a young adult? When I was in college, I spent a summer at the National University of Ireland at Galway. It was the first time in my life when I could really let loose, meet new people and party like a college student. It was a really fun experience.

8. What is your favorite place to live? Sometimes I think it would be fun to have more land and to keep a few chickens and pigs, but no matter what, I would never want to leave the Philadelphia area.

9. What is your favorite thing to do on the weekends? I love shopping and going out to lunch with family and friends. I also love crafting and supporting my husband at his shows.

10. What is your favorite place to shop? I love Ikea. I love that the stuff is relatively affordable and I always feel inspired to make something or work on some project when I leave there.

11. What is your favorite charity? My family and I are very involved with animal rescue and stopping puppy mills. I give to the ASPCA and various rescue groups every year. I also like lending through Kiva and the World Wildlife Fund.

Here are the questions I have for my nominees:

1. Who was your favorite teacher? Why?
2. What is your favorite kind of movie to see in the theater?
3. What dish do you cook that everyone just loves?
4. What is your ideal "night in?"
5. How would you describe your home decor style?
6. What do you do for a living? Do you like it?
7. Describe your everyday handbag. Is it huge and filled with tons of stuff or small and neat?
8. Mac or PC?
9. What is your favorite season? Why?
10. Do you have a special talent? Is there something unusual that you know how to do?
11. What is your favorite way to waste time on the internet?

Finally, here are my nominees:
Alt-IF: Alternative Infertility Voices : http://altif.tumblr.com/
Impregnable! : http://goonduponnu.blogspot.com/
There's No Crying in Baseball : http://theresnocryinginbaseball-rachael.blogspot.com/
Trying to Get a Bun in My Oven : http://tryingtogetabuninmyoven.blogspot.com/
Baby Talk : http://sarah-babytalk.blogspot.com/
The Life I Have Imagined : http://thelifeihaveimagined.blogspot.com/
Project Make a Baby : http://ourprojectmakeababy.blogspot.com/
Maybe If You Just Relax : http://www.jennepper.com/
It Takes a Village : http://babyeckhardt.blogspot.com/
Infertile Myrtle : http://meganswishingwell.blogspot.com/





The Big Gender Reveal (continued...)

I am a bit late in posting this, but my normal routine has been quite crazy lately between Christmas, the ultrasound drama, a second Christmas celebration, and a New Years Eve birthday party for my dad's wife. Anyway, the gender is finally in!

As I said before, the ultrasound technician at our official 20 week scan was unable to determine the gender, but she said that it was most likely a girl. We had planned a little gender reveal party for family and close friends the following evening, so the time crunch was on! Unless we were to cancel the party and just hope for another scan, we would have to do an elective ultrasound. As soon as I finished writing last week's post and the reality of gender-neutral planning set in, I started researching elective ultrasounds.

The very first search result in Google turned out to be the closest and least expensive place around, so I went ahead and called InnerView Ultrasounds in Malvern. I explained that we had already done the 20 week scan and that it was inconclusive. I said that I was really itching to find out what it is and that I would love an appointment in the next week or so before I go back to work and my schedule becomes much less flexible. She responded, "How about tomorrow? Twelve noon?"

I immediately called C at work and told him that I had good news, but I hoped he wouldn't be disappointed. I had made the appointment for noon, but it looked like he wouldn't be able to come because he was working. He was still happy to know that we would be finding out and went back to work. As soon as he told his boss, however, that we were able to schedule a second scan, but that it was tomorrow during the work day, his boss freaked out, but in a good way. He insisted that C was not to miss this appointment under any circumstance and told him to come in early, then take another long lunch. It was all set!

In the past few days, I have basically become a walking commercial for this place. Both the husband ultrasound technician and the wife receptionist are super pleasant and our DVD, ultrasound and prints package was $99. Whereas during the 20 week scan, I laid on a metal rack with nowhere to put my arms other than crossed on my chest in a freezing cold room, this place has full ultrasound suites with a leather sofa for family, a comfy chair for Dad and a real reclining twin bed for Mom. They also project the entire hour-long scan onto a movie screen in front of you instead of sitting with your neck turned at the little machine for an hour.

When we arrived, there was no one else there and it seemed like the technician took some extra time for that reason. The room was lovely and warm with ambient music playing, like I said before, a vast improvement over the previous experience. After a few minutes of scanning and friendly conversation, he asked us if we had any names picked out. We said that a girl would be called Helen Carey and a boy would be Charles "Charley" Everett. He responded, "OK, good. Well, I only ask for names when I know the gender. I like to introduce your baby by name."

Just then, he froze the image on the screen and introduced us to our son, Baby Charley. It's a boy! He showed us dozens of angles and pictures of the head, face, hands and feet. He told us about the way he was sitting and captured video of his squirming and even sucking his thumb. It was really an awesome experience.

I whisked C back to work, then I promised my mom that I would tell her as soon as that afternoon. I went to her house and showed her the DVD, then we went to the grocery store and party supply store to get food and decorations for our little party. Within a few hours, I had pizzas and a baked ziti in the oven, salads and snacks on the table and I whipped up some special cupcakes with a hidden blue center. At the right moment when everyone was there, everyone was allowed to bite into their cupcake and find out! It was a really good time and I can't remember the last time I saw C so happy. <3

This weekend, we did another of those big milestones to which I have been looking forward for a long, long time -- we went to Babies R Us and started our registry! C normally hates shopping, but we went through that store for a little over two hours and he never complained once. He was even patient and helpful as I weighed the options and looked up online reviews and even pushed the cart around with the bedding set in it as I painstakingly matched the colors. (Did I mention I am a little compulsive when it comes to things matching?) It was yet another wonderful experience -- better than I ever imagined.

Ever since finding out, we are both so excited! Not that we ever had real marital problems before, but this experience has really bonded us closer and really made us share in mutual joy unlike any graduation, promotion or accomplishment ever has before. We are truly so happy! <3