Trekkie baby

April 4th, 2008

Esther and I have been watching a lot of Star Trek: Voyager, particularly since we got pregnant. Esther made an observation tonight: The baby will probably only be soothed by the theme music to the show.

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Lifesavers

April 4th, 2008

Last night, Esther and I went to our second-to-last babies and birthing class. When we showed up, one of the couples that we started the class were their with their new baby. He was adorable, and I feel comfortable in my manliness saying that. He had a full head of dark hair and was a beautiful little boy. It was also very nice to hear from a father who was a little squeamish about the birthing process, and I think Esther got something from hearing how she got through birthing.

Back to the class, Esther and I were the only ones there, which felt like Survivor. I was waiting for Jeff Probst to walk out and tell us that we had out played, out witted and outlasted everyone else. Last night was the CPR class, which I thought would have brought people out of the wood work, but we got a private CPR lesson.

It was nice to have the one-on-one attention, I think Esther and I are both super ready should something happen, but we always hope to never have to use those skills.

One step closer

April 2nd, 2008

Today I got one step closer to finishing my comprehensive process before Uni arrives. I took my written comps in February and since then have been working on my candidacy paper (essentially the first two chapters of my dissertation). After a very productive meeting with my advisor today I was able to make the necessary edits and turn in my paper. I should find out in two weeks whether or not my paper is sufficient- at that point it will be time for my oral exam. The oral comprehensive exam is a presentation of my candidacy paper and a defense of that paper in front of my committee. As of today, my oral comprehensive exam date is set for April 18th!!!

This is exciting news for a few reasons. When we found out we were pregnant, one of the things that was really important for both Jered and me was that I continue to move forward with school. I knew that the comprehensive process would be grueling, but I also knew that getting it done before Uni gets here was important. Fortunately, I’ve had a relatively comfortable pregnancy, and I’ve been able to stay right on schedule with school and the comps process. Turning in my paper and setting my oral comps date today was a fairly big milestone for me- it looks like I will be a candidate (if all goes well!) before the baby gets here, meaning I can start my research on time in the fall and still take the summer off to be with the baby.

I realize this isn’t a very baby related post, but I thought it was important to post it here because finishing all of my course work and comprehensives up before the baby comes have been so important to me. After turning in the paper this afternoon I am absolutely exhausted! I’ve felt more tired this week than I have in a while and I’m starting to think that my growing belly (and trust me, it’s getting BIG) is really wearing me out. Uni now weighs 3 pounds and will gain roughly half a pound a week from now until delivery (in less than 10 short weeks!). Aside from being overwhelmingly tired and wanting to drink gallons of milk I am still a contently comfortable Uni incubator!