Brought to you by adidas

If you are checking this blog today or this weekend you are probably looking for an update on the baby. You will be disappointed. I'm 39 weeks pregnant today and this baby is in no hurry to come out. I bet you I will probably be here next week posting my 40-week belly pic.

So, instead I'll update with pictures and stories of some of the material goods we have acquired that have amused us as we dream about what kind of person this baby will be.

Matt is an adidas fan. He has more pair of adidas shoes than I have black shoes, which is saying a lot. So imagine how delighted we were when Seniye, my manager, gave us these little adidas trainers:


How sweet are they? I still can't imagine the little feet that will go in them, even though these very real little feet poke me in the sides almost every night.

Matt could not resist and for one of my Valentine's Day presents bought this little red adidas track suit at the adidas originals store in downtown Portland:


How very cute. Again, I still can't imagine the little body that will fit into this track suit, but boy or girl, our baby will be outfitted in the coolest clothes. Part of the fun of having a baby is dressing it up in clothes you find funny, cute, amusing and then taking pictures of it. If you've seen the movie the Royal Tenenbaums you will understand the ironic reference to the red track suit.

38-Week Appointment

We went to our 38-week appointment yesterday. Everything is looking good but no progress toward labor was made since last week. The doctor said, "You'll be pregnant for at least another week."

Two More Weeks?

I officially made it to 38 weeks on Friday. Here is the picture from yesterday:

Maybe you can tell from the picture, but I feel that the baby has definitely dropped lower. It's very uncomfortable to sit and I've been feeling cramps for the last few day. I know these are just normal pre-labor discomforts and are not real contractions. I'll have my 38-week check-up tomorrow to see if there are any signs that true labor could be coming soon.

Matt also finished the nursery construction yesterday, and now today I can decorate!

Look at how beautiful the floors and crown moulding turned out. We have brother Matt to thank for helping with the crown. And also for putting in our brand new doors.

I don't think I have pictures of the doors that the previous owners installed, but they were cheap, hollow, contemporary doors from Lowes. We replaced them with five-panel doors in a style more consistent with the age of the house. We still have to paint them, but there's no rush. (Also in this picture you can see a bit of the pergola that Matt worked on last summer!)

37-Week Appointment

We had our 37-week appointment yesterday. Everything is looking good. My blood pressure and the baby's heartbeat are measuring just right and I gained a pound and a half. The baby is still head down and has shifted his/her backside from my left side to my right. The baby still moves a LOT! The doctor says I am not dilated yet, but am soft. She also said I was carrying lower. Looks like things are progressing as they should!

37-Week Photo

The Nursery: Part 3

Matt has been working very hard to finish the nursery. Here's what the room looks like at the moment.


The floor has been finished and looks great, but we've covered it so we can work in there without worrying about scratching it. Matt has framed out all the windows and doors and installed the baseboard mouldings. And look at the new ceiling fan! Loads better than the old one.

Below is a different view from the opposite corner. Roosevelt has been very impressed with the work we've done so far:

You can see in the closet the original yellow color we bought for the whole room. It looks nice in small doses but just did not work for the whole room. We plan on using the closet as an extension of the room by putting the changing table in there. I have a small armoire I bought on Craig's List a couple years ago that will be perfect for the baby's clothes and things.

What is left to do:

• Paint and install crown moulding.
• Caulk, sand, prime and paint the door and window mouldings and baseboards.
• Install the shoe moulding.
• Paint and install the door.
  

Then comes the fun part-- decorating! I can't wait to move in all the furniture and beautiful presents we've gotten and organize the room. For example, here's a picture of a little cat lamp I saw on a nursery design blog and ordered from a Web site called Uncommon Goods:

It's made of paper and lights up with a little candle light bulb. Very cute! Check out the link above. They have other little animal lamps, too.

36-Week Photo

I turned 36 weeks on Saturday. Here's the evidence:


The pregnancy Web site I go to has this to say about the baby this week: "Your baby is now considered full term. He weighs approximately 6.5 lbs and his total length is about 21 inches. Your baby's crown to rump measurement is about 14 inches." This is for an average baby. I've had two separate doctors say it looks like our baby is measuring average.


I have my weekly appointment later today. I'll post about it later.

UPDATE: The appointment went well. I'm measuring just right and the baby's heartbeat was good.

Welcome Lucy Meejie Kim!

My good friend in Chicago, Injung, gave birth to her daughter last week. She's so sweet and adorable!


Injung and I have been going through the whole pregnancy thing together, with Injung always 5 weeks ahead to warn me about what was coming. I've been pretty patient about waiting, but seeing Injung's sweet little girl really makes me excited and anxious to hold my own baby!

Portland Baby Shower

My friends, Ann and Alla, co-hosted a baby shower for me in Portland on Sunday. Here are some pictures from the shower.

Alla, Sung Hee, Oksana, Ann and Allison guessing how many M&Ms are in the jar. Ann won!

Opening presents in the round. From left to right: Angela, Sara, Shannon, Alla, Julie and Dillon, Seniye and Carli.

A cute onesie from Matt and Zoe's dog, Olive. It says, "Puppy Love."

Oh, good! A Diaper Genie from Alla and Daniel.

Thank you to everyone who came. It really meant a lot to me!

35-Week Photo

Time is going by fast! Only 5 more weeks to go, assuming Baby Siorek chooses to hang out in my belly for the full 40 weeks. Here are selections from the 35-week photo shoot from yesterday. I realized I didn't have any photos that didn't show belly skin, so here is a rare full-frontal, fully clothed shot.

See, I'm really not that big. It's just a nice little ball all up front.

And now here's the belly close-up. I've got crease lines on my skin from lying down in my robe. No stretch marks yet!


To see the 34-week photo and the full progression to date, you can click on the Flickr Slideshow link over on the left.

Matt was the guest of honor at a baby shower held in St. Louis last Saturday. Thank you to everyone who came and for all the great presents! I wish I could have been there. If anyone has pictures from the shower, please send them. I'd love to see a picture of Matt opening baby presents.

Today is a baby shower here in Portland being given for me by my friends Ann and Alla. I'll post some pictures later.