Happy Birthday & Happy Anniversary

The anniversary of my labor pains. 53 weeks ago waddled into a hospital, moaning and groaning, not sure what to expect, excited and anxious. Labor pains which changed my life (and the life of G's) forever. In the span of 24 hours, my heart suddenly latched itself to another being in a way thoroughly unlike the way our heart attaches to our family or spouses.

Labor pains which resulted in this squishy cheeked sweet smelling eyelash envy wonder:

Happy First Birthday to Om.

And Happy Labor/Delivery Anniversary to me.

Meme

Got this from chubbymummy's blog at www.chubbymummy.wordpress.com... feel free to copy and make your own list to share!

8 TV Shows I Love to Watch:
I don't watch much TV, hate being addicted to shows! I'm a random channel surfer. But if I must list some:

- Seinfeld
- Simpsons
- South Park (hilarious)
- Project Runway
- Top Chef
- Oprah
- The Office
- Random shows on TLC


8 Favorite Places to Eat:

- My Mom's house
- My own kitchen
- Cheap Mexican places (Chipotle, Taco Bell, etc)
- Gas Stations (yes, seriously...I love cheap coffee & slushies)
- I'm not very creative in this section...I'm usually open to eating most places!


8 Things That Happened Yesterday:


- 45 minutes on the elliptical trainer
- Grocery shopping (how I hate thee)
- Got through 2 hours of a lecture DVD on a home study course for the patent bar exam.
- Gave Chipmunk a bath
- Ate too much random stuff
- Forgot to call Chipmunk's doctor (again)
- Blogged
- Vented my feelings about motherhood to a fellow Mom for an hour on the phone.


8 Things I Look Forward To:



- Sleeping straight through the night (both me and Om)
- Sleeping in the same bed with G on a regular basis.
- Becoming a nuclear family again. (Extended version at the moment)
- Chipmunk holding his head up ALL the time with ease
- Chipmunk being able to wear the brace for only 12 hours a day (down from 23 hrs).
- Warm weather
- Passing the patent bar exam
- Starting work again



8 Things I Love About Fall:



- The color of the trees
- Pumpkins and Squashes
- Socks
- The fireplace
- Hot chai
- Hot coffee
- Charlie Brown TV Specials
- Fallen leaves

8 Things on my Wish List:


- Housekeeper
- A daughter
- A huge brick home with seperate living quarters for visiting parents
- Weekly Massages
- Chipmunk's feet no longer needs the brace.
- Laser surgery for permanent body hair removal
- Job that I can work from home
- A house in India



8 Things I’m Passionate About (not in specific order):

- My independance (generic, I realize)
- Getting my nails done (hehe)
- Fairness (no one getting the short end of the stick)
- My baby
- My husband
- Dogs and small furry creatures
- Being a helpful person

8 Words or Phrases I Use Often:

- Okay
- I don't know
- I guess
- So...
- ...But...(ending sentences with the word)
- f***!
- Cool
- Eh.


8 Things I Have Learned From My Past:

- Memorize...Memorize...Memorize.
- Time heals all wounds.
- Get it in writing.
- Write that email, and then delete it.
- You plan, God laughs. Hard.
- Be appreciative, (through words or actions).
- Thank God for unanswered prayers.
- Help others.



8 Places I Would Love to Go or See or Visit:


- Ireland
- Hawaii
- Alaska
- Australia
- African Safari
- The Moon
- The Past
- The Future


8 Things I Currently Need or Want:

- naps
- lose 30 lbs
- privacy
- more exercise clothes
- a trip to the salon for various things
- for chipmunk's doctor to return my call
- hubbie to return from work trip to China
- a massage

Just a year ago...

I was living in my parents house in MN. Everyday I would go to work 20 minutes away at an ecommerce company. I loooved working...discussing problems and challenges with my manager, interviewing engineers about their inventions, researching new technology, and ultimately prosecuting patent applications. I especially liked managing my own time and choosing which project I felt like working on at the moment.


I would come home fairly late since I preferred arriving at the office later in the day and staying late. I would eat dinner on my own and then go excersise, usually run around my parents neighborhood. Sometimes I'd call up my friend George and we'd run in his neighborhood or we'd use his punching bag in his steamy garage.


I'd probably get a phone call from G on his way back from work (due to different time zones). I'd lay on my bed and chat with him about our day. Then I would get ready for bed and go downstairs to the basement to do 500 jumprope.


It was a simple relaxing time, full of excitment for planning a trip to India for our wedding and the trip to London to see relatives. Lots of shopping, planning sessions with parents and friends, etc. I was physically full of energy and healthy. I was also planning a trip to Baltimore to see a college friend.


I was looking forward to moving to Washington, spending time with my new husband, and eventually going back to work for the same company in Minnesota (either by remote work or by traveling every week to MN). My goal was to take salsa lessons and do lots of experimental cooking, and go travel with my husband.


Then we got pregnant. :-) And now I'm always tired, have odd aches in my body, 30 lbs heavier than I was, living with a mother in law along with a new husband (no privacy), pressured to finish one more exam so that I can find a good job, just getting out of a post partum funk (baby blues) and have a 9 lb mini-me sleeping in the bassinet next to me.

Life is full of surprises. I'm just glad that they are happy surprises.

100th post and Birthday

This is my 100th post...yippee! I also turned 29 today...woot woot one year away from the big 30!

Let's see...what have I accomplished in 29 years? How about a fun list?:-) Time to brag and remind myself of what else I need to finish before turning 30! (This list could be VERY long, if you add all my failures, missteps, and learning experiences...so we'll just keep it simple).

1. Bachelor's of Science in Bio/Chem

2. Juris Doctor (JD) of Law (finished law school)

3. Admitted to the Washington State Bar

4. Got married.

5. Had a kid.

Before next September I want to pass the patent bar exam. I don't have any other goals, but I could easily add finding a job and losing 30 pounds of pregnancy weight here. I'm going to play that by ear, right now I'm in my first month post partum so it's hard to think that far!

One year ago I would never have guessed I would be living in a house with my CHILD, hubby, and mother in law. Ack!

We had a low key day for the birthday. I went to the temple with my mom in law (more for her than for me) and then had lunch at home. Later G took me for a couple's massage at a spa in Bellevue...it was relaxing, post partum you definetly need a massage! Thanks to the silly goose hubby for the gift! Muah I love you.

Remembering 9 / 11

I was in my senior year of undergrad, and I woke up late in the morning in my shared co-ed apartment. I walked into our shabby living room and turned on the TV to see the news on every channel, scenes of people falling off the buildings.

Was freaky ...

Prayers (or positive energy) go out to those who lost someone they loved.

How I love lists

Items purchased for new home (with links for viewing pleasure)

• Sectional Couch
• flat screen TV
• Master bedroom set (that makes me feel all grown up)
• Mattress
• Window fan
• Pregnancy belt (yeah it's part of new house, the only way I'll be able to keep functioning and moving stuff up and down the stairs!)
• Tons of miscellaneous items like bathroom rug sets, etc.

Items still coming:

• Slipcovers for old couch set
• Coffee table for family room
• lamps for master bedroom
• Crib, changing table, glider, and pack and play
• Either a tv stand or something to hook the tv to the wall
• Reciever/speakers for TV

Areas still needing work:

• Guestbedroom needs to be set up for guests, right now we are sleeping in it while we wait for mattresses to be delivered.
• Office/bedroom still has tons of boxes that need to be emptied/arranged.
• Baby's room ('nuff said)
• Family room needs to get the TV situation sorted out (where to put TV etc)
• Living room needs to have old coffee tables polished and then slipcovers added, and all clutter items transported upstairs.
• Kitchen is done, except need to organize pantry so I can actually move my whale sized body in and out of it.
• Garage has tons of boxes and garbage from recent purchases. Need to figure out what to do with those.

Things to do before baby arrives:

• Purchase crib, changing table, and glider. Set up changing station and nursing station.
• Tour the hospital and ask doc lots of questions.
• Finish all of my work projects.
• Finish setting up the new home.
• Make sure nails are done, toes painted, hair is freshly trimmed (err & I mean hair everywhere)
• Battery in video camera ready to go? Camera ready?
• Make hospital bag and list of important phone numbers. Make sure no rotting foods in fridge. Stock up on food in fridge.

Why the title?

Okay so the reason the address is "refriedbeansandsalsa" is because well...I'm not that creative and every other thing I came up with was already taken (everything I tried within 5 minutes). And, (at the exact moment of birth of the blog and post) I am consuming vegetarian refried beans smothered with hot salsa and reduced fat sour cream, all nestled in a huge coffee mug (yep I'm fancy!). I'm newly pregnant, newly married, and newly moved into a shared apartment with hubbie. And, I have occassional cravings for spicy food, especially if it has salsa slathered on top.

The title is "great expectations" because I have great expectations about life...Yet God laughs when I plan.