A Name...

We've decided on a name for our darling boy...Andrew Thomas Snodgrass!

He'll be named for his daddy and his great-grandfather. Andrew is Jacob's middle name, and Thomas is Jacob's maternal grandfather's middle name. I am so pleased Baby Andrew has two such wonderful men to be named after, and two Apostle Saints to learn about as time goes on! Andrew means "strong, manly, and courageous," so that's pretty good, too!

I'll be absent from Bloggerville for a while, as we're headed down to Florida to live it up with Gustav this week! Have a happy and safe Labor Day, everyone!

24 Weeks Down, 16 To Go!

This week from babycenter:

"Your baby's growing steadily, having gained about 4 ounces since last week. That puts him at just over a pound. Since he's almost a foot long (picture an ear of corn), he cuts a pretty lean figure at this point, but his body is filling out proportionally and he'll soon start to plump up. His brain is also growing quickly now, and his taste buds are continuing to develop. His lungs are developing "branches" of the respiratory "tree" as well as cells that produce surfactant, a substance that will help his air sacs inflate once he hits the outside world. His skin is still thin and translucent, but that will start to change soon."

Yay! Plump right on up, Baby Snograss!

Congratulations to Kimberly and Charles!

My brother Charles and his wife, Kimberly, have been married for a while now, but last Saturday we were invited to witness the Sacramental blessing of their marriage. It was just wonderful! There was a beautiful ceremony at our church and then a family party at home. What a happy day it was!

The cute couple:

With some sweet cousins (if I'm figuring it up correctly, I think 19 of my Sullivan and Bromberg cousins were able to make it--I love big family events!):

And with my beautiful Aunt Buffy, who is bringing the Bromberg cousin total to 22 this November!
Jacob had the honor of doing a reading for the ceremony! I guess he had passed his reading out loud test with the Declaration of Independence on the 4th of July!

Congratulations, Charles and Kimberly! We are so happy for you and so very proud of you both!

Dear Gustav,

Please, oh please, turn around and die out. Take mercy on the two pasty-white lawyers from Washington who just want to make it to the Gulf Coast to enjoy their first vacation in a year. Blue skies and white sands are beckoning!

With gratitude,
one sun-deprived lawyer from Washington

Congrats, D3!

My cousin David III married his beautiful bride, Brittany, last week! Congratulations to the happy couple! David bravely serves our country in the Navy and Brittany, in the Marines. We wish them all the happiness in the world!!!

These are a few of my favorite things...

Five, to be exact, ranked from favorite to favoritest.

#5: Vaseline Cocoa Butter Vitalizing Gel Body Oil

Is it a butter, a gel, or an oil? Who knows and who cares-it's great! This stuff became part of my nightly, multi-step mositurization routine a few weeks ago and it's here to stay. A good dose applied to my tummy before bed stops my skin from screaming and I wake up with that just-applied-lotion feeling. And, with luck, it will ward off the stretch marks that babycenter.com so kindly reminds me with each sign-on "may begin to appear in the next few weeks."
# 4: Claussen Kosher Dill Spears

Cliched, I know, but you can't help what you love. If I had composed this list five weeks ago, this pickle would have been #1 without a doubt. Back then, I was plowing through 3-5 of these spears a day. Now, I'm content with a delicious, crispy pickle snack just every few days, but they're still great!

# 3: Crocs flip flops

I love to wear flip flops (much to Jacob's shagrin, since he thinks they're beach-only attire), but carrying a baby proved far too mighty a task for my ordinary thin-soled flops. Enter the Croc flop! It's not as cute as the wafer-thin, suede variety, but it's cushy, it's squishy, and it provides way more support.

#2: Carbs

Bagels and 'taters and pastas, oh my! I'd be the worst ever Atkins-dieter right now. For months now, vegetables have been hard on my stomach, I've had aversions to many meats, and dairy products have been a surefire way to get sick. So...I've been eating carbs and fruit. It's what gets me through. Thank goodness Baby Snodgrass gets the benefit of a prenatal vitamin each morning! (Don't worry, my doctor said trusting my body as to the limits of what I can eat is just fine for Baby.)

#1: The Snoogle maternity pillow

This tops my list of favorite things because without a Snoogle to snuggle, I am a sleepless, pained woman. Plus, it comes with a chart of about 12 Snoogle formations to try! The pictures below show the extended formations, but last night, when all else failed, "The Nest" (where the Snoogle is rolled up in a swirl and placed behind your back and head to allow for sleeping upright) was a real lifesaver. I would recommend the Snoogle to any and all with a baby on the way (or anyone with joint pain)! The only drawback is that in order to reposition, you pretty much have to unmake the bed (with you out of it) and flip the thing around. This is not so much fun at 3 AM, but it does a good job of keeping you from accidentally falling into the pregnancy no-no positions of back or stomach sleeping. The Snoogle also doesn't leave your husband much room on his side of the bed, but, hey, you're sleeping for two!

Jamie's Visit!

Work and this whole baby-growing thing have kept me fully occupied the last couple of weeks, so I've fallen woefully behind on my blog posts. And so much has gone on! I'll catch up chronologically.

The weekend before last, we had the most lovely visit from Jamie, my dear friend and college roommate. It was such fun! Jamie had said she didn't care about doing much sightseeing, since she had been to DC several times before. Instead, she just wanted to do funsy things and catch up. Just my style of visit at the moment!

Jacob had been interested in going up inside the Washington Monument, though, so we did decide to do one tourist activity. He went out Saturday morning at 7 AM and waited in line for 1.5 hours to get us tickets for the tour!

Jamie and me at the base of the Monument:

From the top of the 555 foot Monument, you can see DC, Virginia, and Maryland. It was the perfect one-stop sigtseeing tour because we gave a good (air-conditioned) look to the White House, the Capitol, the Jefferson Lincoln Monuments, the World War II Memorial, and even the National Cathedral and the Basilica. Can't beat that in the August heat!

After our Washington Monument tour, Jacob dropped Jamie and me in Georgetown for lunch and some shopping. I got this ever-so-comfy dress!

And then we went to dinner at Jaleo, which is in the main floor of our building and serves the best, most authentic Spanish tapas around!

After dinner, we took a little stroll through Penn Quarter and Chinatown, to show Jamie our 'hood.

Goodbye-time came way too soon! Next time, Jamie, you'll have to bring Alec and stay longer! Thanks for a wonderful visit!

23!

I always thought that, after 17, 23 was the perfect age. Must be related to my nerdy love of prime numbers. Anyway, this week Baby Snodgrass is 23! Yay! From babycenter:

"Turn on the radio and sway to the music. With his sense of movement well developed by now, your baby can feel you dance. And now that he's more than 11 inches long and weighs just over a pound (about as much as a large mango), you may be able to see him squirm underneath your clothes. Blood vessels in his lungs are developing to prepare for breathing, and the sounds that your baby's increasingly keen ears pick up are preparing him for entry into the outside world. Loud noises that become familiar now — such as your dog barking or the roar of the vacuum cleaner — probably won't faze him when he hears them outside the womb."

Thankfully, there are no dogs barking anywhere near this Baby (I love prime numbers, but dogs? Not so much.), and I am embarassed to admit that Baby Snodgrass has not had quite as many up close and personal encounters with the roar of a vacuum cleaner as he likely should have by now, but who's counting dust specks?!

But he is definitely squirming and kicking away--such fun!

Happy birthday, Joe-fish!

My cousin Joseph has hit the ripe old age of 22! Jacob and I were very sorry to miss the family party last night, but send all our good wishes for a wonderful year. The fam celebrating, Otey's-style:

And the man himself:

Happy birthday, Joseph!

*Thanks to Uncle Kent for always being a source of great pictures!

And another week bites the dust...

Moving right along to 22 weeks! Babycenter informs us:

"At 11 inches (the length of a spaghetti squash) and almost 1 pound, your baby is starting to look like a miniature newborn. His lips, eyelids, and eyebrows are becoming more distinct, and he's even developing tiny tooth buds beneath his gums. His eyes have formed, but his irises (the colored part of the eye) still lack pigment. If you could see inside your womb, you'd be able to spot the fine hair (lanugo) that covers his body and the deep wrinkles on his skin, which he'll sport until he adds a padding of fat to fill them in. Inside his belly, his pancreas — essential for the production of some important hormones — is developing steadily."

If you're like me, the spaghetti squash comparison required a little Google research. I was expecting a long, skinny, noodle-looking gourd, but it's not like that at all! Ta-da:

Apparently, when this variety of squash is cooked, its flesh separates into strands that look like spaghetti. It seems to be served with yummy sauces and cheeses most commonly. My vegetable-hating husband loves spaghetti, so this just might be a success in our household! I think I need to try it. Thank you, Baby Snodgrass, for inspiring culinary curiosity!

We headed out of town again this weekend for the wedding of law school friends Melissa and Nathan. What a beautiful event!

Jacob and I left DC for Philadelphia with at least 2 hours of cushion time in our travel plans, to make sure we could be comfortably settled in the hotel before the wedding. But...in this part of the country, even 2 hours of cushion can easily not be enough! After encountering loads of terrible traffic, we had about 15 minutes to make a presto-change-o. We slipped into the church just ahead of the bride (hey, we made it!). So, in all the madness, I unfortunately forgot our camera. Luckily, my friend Lindsay posted a few photos I can poach.

The newlyweds on the golf course at the club where the reception was held. Such a beautiful day, especially for August. Not really hot at all, just pleasantly warm!

We got to see lots of UVA Law friends, which was wonderful. I love getting to see people in their new life situations--new girlfriends, new jobs, newly engaged, etc. Everything changes so quickly at our age! Enjoying the cocktail hour (I had the bartender mix me up a fruit juice cocktail, which was delicious!):

And at our very fun, extra lively dinner table!

The band was really great, and everybody danced all night! Such a good time! Congratulations to Melissa and Nathan!!!

08.08.08

Anyone who knows me well enough to be reading this blog knows that I'm certainly no athlete and not even very much of a sports fan, but there is just something about the Olympics that makes me so happy. Maybe it's the mix of patriotism and supreme talent. Whatever it is, it's definitely awe-inspiring!

Happy Olympics, everyone! Hope you're watching!!!

Happy 21st!

Baby Snodgrass is now 21 weeks in gestational age:

"Your baby now weighs about three-quarters of a pound and is approximately 10 1/2 inches long — the length of a carrot. You may soon feel like he's practicing martial arts as his initial fluttering movements turn into full-fledged kicks and nudges. You may also discover a pattern to his activity as you get to know him better. In other developments, your baby's eyebrows and lids are present now."

Sure enough, I'm feeling our baby boy kick quite frequently now, and am really enjoying it! The harder kicks surprise me sometimes--it's such a funny sensation. Just this week, Jacob felt a kick from his son for the first time. He was so proud of his little powerhouse!

And we are really moving along here, size-wise! The portable playground that is my tummy is definitely keeping up, though. Now it's a regular thing for people I don't know to ask when the baby is due or how far along I am!

We got to take another look at Baby today by ultrasound, and it was just wonderful. I can't wait to hold his tiny hand--it looked so sweet on the screen! Unfortunately, no take home pictures this time, so you'll just have to take my word for it.

Birthday Girl!

Happy birthday to my fabulous sister-in-law, Jen, who celebrated another year yesterday. Hope your birthday was as wonderful as you are! We are so thankful to have you as a Sullivan now!

31 Wonderful Years

My parents celebrated 31 years of marriage this week. I have always known their marriage was extra special--the love they show each other every day is awe-inspiring. I am so thankful to have the two of them as my parents, and so happy they have already had 31 years together in wedded bliss. And many more to come! I love you, Mama and Daddy! Thank you for being such a good example of marriage--Brian, Charles, and I are fortunate to be witness to it.

AWP

Warning: Lawyer joke ahead!!!

HA! This hilarious onesie came in yesterday's mail from our friends Kana and Richard, both lawyers themselves. Too funny! Thanks, guys--I know Baby Snodgrass will love it!