Totally off topic

I cannot believe the Cavs hired Danny Ferry to be their general manager. Not that he'll be a bad one - he was VP of Hoops Operations for the Spurs, who had a pretty dang good season this past year. (They also have Duncan and Parker and Ginobili.)

I just can't believe that Cleveland hired him. Wow. That's either loads of guts or just total complete blissful ignorance.

Oh, by the way

Tom Cruise is a bleedin' moron.

Here's a guy whose entire career is based on looking good and saying things other people have written for him, pretending to be fictional characters other people have created. So he's a perfect Scientology victim - he's used to being what other people make up and tell him to be. Why anyone asks his opinion on anything baffles the mind. He hasn't demonstrated a single bit of intellect in his entire life - why should anyone expect him to know the first thing about anything?

The topper of it all - he's the guy who divorced Nicole Kidman. I mean this dude was married to Nicole Bleedin' Kidman and decided, "Um, hello, no, she's not quite perfect...somehow...there's just got to be someone else better for me. Oh yeah, how about some chick I make a movie with? No, she's not it. There's this chick who'll join my cult. Yeah, that's what I need." (Maybe he can get commissions on her "donations.") Uh....er? After that bit of genius, should we take his advice on one single thing? And how many women are going to marry this dude?

Hollywood wonders why box office is down. Maybe it's because the real world is finally getting tired of you idiots? Tina has decided that our family will never ever ever see another Tom Cruise movie again. Ever. I also put Brad and Angelina on that list. That homewrecker. Not that I have any great feelings for Jennifer Aniston, but really.

Vacation time

In July we're heading Up North, to Bay City (near the thumb) and Mackinac. Probably the last vacation we'll have for the next few years, so we'd better bloody well enjoy it.

I guess we'll have to take a horse & buggy ride around the island. Tina probably can't walk too far. If she does, her ankles will swell up so much they won't fit into the car anymore.

Food update

Arby's is out (see prior post about carsickness). Homemade or Bob Evans pot roast with mashed potatoes is in. Pasta (without garlic) has made something of a comeback.

Milkshakes are on and off. Ice cream generally is in.

Sour candy is in. Chocolate has been out for months (surprisingly). Chocolate milk, however, is back in bigtime. Nesquick, not syrup.

Long John Silver's is out, probably because it has to have vinegar, and vinegar (being acid) gives her acid reflux. Claddaugh's fish & chips seems on the way out - we haven't been there after church for at least a month.

Donuts, of course, still rule the roost.

Hee-hee-hah-hah-hee-hee

We've done the first of three birthing classes...everyone calls them Lamaze classes but anymore they're really generalized "how to have a baby" classes with some breathing stuff thrown in. No more noisy huffing and puffing, though. It's more civilized, just deep breathing in an out. At least that's what they do here.

Things are OK; Tina's been a bit glum. Probably the heat (90 degrees and humid) and not sleeping well. I've been doing alright...I'm getting tired of studying for my big exam this August, and just want to get it over with.

And I'm getting impatient about having the baby. Our doctor appointments will be every other week now, so I guess that's a sign that things are moving along. Otherwise, not that much happening.

Feelings...nothing more than feelings....

Tina said the other day that she has a "feeling" the baby's a boy. I asked what that felt like. I mean, something physical, what? I have no idea.

She said it was more of a thought or an inkling than anything physical. I'll have to take her word.

Of course, I've assumed all along we're having a boy. But I have about a 50% chance of being wrong.

More of the same, mostly

Big thanks to Chang and Jihyun for the stroller. And to Han and Kyoung-Hwa for the crib sheet set. And to all the PhD students who chipped in for a gift card and stopped by Alex & Renee's place on Sunday. We have had three weekends in a row of getting baby stuff.

I got the crib assembled, so that's done. All's I need is to paint a few animals on the wall and we'll be ready for a baby.

Tina had a little incident in my car...apparently she still gets carsick if she hasn't had her pill and is riding around. On the bright side...well, there's no bright side for that one.

We did buy a new fridge - the old one still worked, but wasn't all that big and was missing a few shelf-rails, so if we used the shelves, things would fall off when we opened the door. Plus, the new one has a huge freezer, which is good because we buy lotsa bulk stuff. Wait...why am I telling people so much about my fridge?

Still no change in the names. Yea!

Stuff and stuff and more stuff

Well, we got back from the shower in Cinti, and we now officially have a lot of baby stuff. My quickie estimate is over 500 diapers (Tina's sis Kathy works at Procter & Gamble and gets lots of samples), several thousand butt-wipes, plus a bunch of clothes, toys, etc. etc. etc.

It's all nice to have, and Tina says it makes life easier. And someone else will be moving us when we get out of here (assuming a moving allowance, which is fairly standard practice in the world of academic accounting) so I guess it's not too bad to have all that stuff.

I always wonder what people did before all this plastic stuff was invented. Did without, I guess. But I can't imagine how anything ever got done without copiers and faxes, so I'm spoiled in my own way. Well, here I am writing a blog rather than sending telegrams or *gasp* letters!

Anyway, thanks to all for donating such great stuff to our worthy cause.

Names again?

Yeah, names again. Sort of out of the blue, Tina up and says it's OK to use Josiah Reagan if we have a boy. We had been to see my family and had heard some horror stories about bad names, and I think the whole idea of Josiah didn't seem so bad any more.

I'm still kicking around Josiah Walker, but I think it'll be J.R. Well, it'll be "Josiah" because Tina will behead me if I call a kid J.R. But you knew that if you've been reading along.

Pill progress

Tina's been down to a pill every other day for the last week or so. Seems to be going tentatively but so far, successfully (read: no puke).

However, on a down note, her navel is getting to the point where it's about to start sticking out. She's really rather disturbed about that prospect. (She's probably also disturbed by the idea that I'm writing about it. If she makes me take this down, I will of course do so.)

We got a great crib from my cousin Lisa - many thanks to her.

The shower in Cinti is this weekend. I'm sure we'll load up the momi-van with all sorts of neat stuff. I should probably clean out the closet in the kid's room, huh?

Unclear on the concept

So the other day I was cutting the grass with my old-time-style push-mower when this guy comes walking down the street raising money for something.

He: Hey, I haven't seen one of those lawn mowers in a while.
Me: Yeah, I like it, it's cheap and quiet.
He: And it doesn't pollute anything!

I gave him a coupla bucks, accepted his freebie token gift (a giant Pixy Stik) and watched him walk down to the corner...

...and light up a cigarette.

Um. Yeah. Good thing I don't pollute, dude.

Baby room progress

I'll have pictures up when it's done, but I'm making some progress on putting the Old McDonald scene in the baby's room. The sky and clouds were really easy - I was reminded of the Far Side with God rolling snakes out of clay, saying "Boy, these things are a cinch!"

Grass, rolling hills and trees were a little less easy, but the cartoony appearance I'm going for means there aren't...well, "mistakes." In the world I'm drawing, anything can happen!

I have pictures of animals on transparency that I'll project on the wall and trace, then paint. It should be pretty simple to finish. But for now, all you get is a teaser.

Not much going on lately

We've been mostly on autopilot lately. I've had some flu-like symptoms, so Tina's been taking care of me for a change. I don't like it. It's my job to care for her.

Tina did go all day yesterday without her nausea pill and seemed to make it OK. So maybe there has been some progress. She's still asleep this morning so I don't know her plans for today. I'm thinking she'll try an every-other-day weaning off the pill. That would be a good thing.

Amanda (friend and prior owner/beautifier of our beautiful home) brought over some maternity clothes...Tina was overjoyed that some of the cute pieces fit. So thanks to Amanda for that...very thoughtful.

And Tina was able to take apart a bit of prime rib for our anniversary at Lonestar. Odd thing: apparently Lonestar has some sort of automatic cooker that was putting out medium-rare prime rib and we couldn't have it any other way. But it was good stuff - not chewy at all, even though it was quite pink. Well-seasoned, too. Mine ended up slightly crusted with the cup-and-a-half of cinnamon sugar they poured on my sweet potato. Not bad, really.

Overheard at Olive Garden

The worst snippet of conversation I can imagine coming from a woman (and this not a week after Mother's Day):

Self-centered vainglorious middle-ager 1: "When my ex-husband left me, my son was six years old and he couldn't sleep for three years. He kept calling out for his Daddy all night long."

Self-centered vainglorious middle-ager 2: "That must have been traumatic for you, too."

Self-centered vainglorious middle-ager 1: "Well, I got the house."

All: Laughter, of the "you're-so-naughty-clever" type.

Me, under my breath: "Ever wonder why he left you?"

Now, the issue isn't whether she got the house from him. That's just stereotypical divorcee stuff. The issue is that she completely totally ignored the opportunity to express even the slightest bit of distress that her young son suffered. Instead, it was an opportunity for her to focus on the one thing that matters most to her: her.

Dear Father in Heaven, I beg of you that I never ever ever act or think that way.

Not to say "I told you so," but...

Tina's first trip to the chiropractor was something of a success. One of her two pelvic pains seems to be gone, and her ever-tense neck seems to be somewhat looser.

For the record, I have never, ever, ever suggested she see a chiropractor for her back and neck issues. Never. Ever. Um, yeah.

Seriously, I'm just happy she's feeling better. She has a followup on Monday to see the results of a computerized exam thingy she took and to get a readjustment. I guess the first one is sort of preliminary and then they see how it worked.

Our Bible study group prayed for healing and it seems to be on the way.

Chiropractor

Tina's been having some lower-back sort of pain, so on Friday she's going to a chiropractor for some misalignment-readjustment stuff. Should help. She's been shuffling lotsa books around at the library and generally suffering quite a bit.

On the positive side, the baby's been kicking up quite a placental storm. (I'm not sure what sort of visual that brings up...sorry.) And her first Mother's Day is approaching. That'll be fun for her. (I bet something makes her cry. Not sure what, but something will.)

Not too much else going on here. She's pretty tired and sometimes gets a bit...well, sharp. The doctor said the second trimester brings a boost of energy. I'll let y'all know if it happens.

But there are some periods of happiness. The thought of a donut brings smiles. (Thanks to Todd & Amanda for the gift of Dunkin' Donuts! and the tulips. Quite thoughtful, those folks.)

Also, we're slowly getting around to painting the baby's room. We're reprising the Old McDonald theme I put up in the room in our house in Lansing. (The Yi family is enjoying that room now.) If we ever disappear, investigators will be able to track us by the trail of farm scenes in bedrooms.

See ya...God bless.

Ultrasound pics

Following are some of the ultrasound pics. We got a few more of the side view and one with a foot that isn't all that clear. We could clearly see the heart beating. We got a videotape too. Didn't see anything that would have given away the sex. I'm sure the nurse woulda tried harder had we wanted to know.

It was nice to see two of each limb and only one head. Not that we expected anything different, but things happen and it's nice to know that big-picture stuff looks OK.

This is amazing stuff, y'all. I mean, I know everyone else in the world has babies too. But still, it's amazing stuff.

Here's an annotated pic of the face, just because I felt like it. 

Here's a close-up of the face. 

Here's another picture of the side view. You can see the thigh bone really clearly at the left.

Here's the baby. His (her, whatever) right hand is up by his face.

Names

Boy's name du jour: Isaac Walker. Walker is a family name (Tina's grandmother's name when she got adopted, I think), which is fair enough. We're traditional folk who believe in a family having one clearly identifiable family name, rather than hyphenated names or two last names or different last names. So Tina's taken my last name but by using her family's names in the middle we can keep them around. So that's cool.

Plus...well, George W.

I'm still holding out on Reagan as a first name for a girl. Tina thinks it'll be mispronounced "Ree-gan" but I really doubt it. Look, our last name is Mastilak. I think we just need to give up the idea that we'll have an easy time with names.

I've given thought to changing my last name to Matthews. Not really. Usually when I've just ordered a pizza or something.

UPDATE: Walker was Tina's grandma's birth name. Davis was her adopted name.

Sickie pills, part 4,578b

Well, Tina still needs her sickie pills. She had a pretty rough time of it Saturday - had to come home from work. She learned two things that day: first, she still needs the pills. Second, next time she tries to go without them, she should still have some on hand in case she needs them.

She actually figured out on Friday (the day she tested) that she needed them, but we didn't have any of her regular pills and she wouldn't let me get them. So she tried some of the pills she'd gotten earlier, which were only human-strength instead of buffalo-strength. Those didn't do anything except knock her totally loopy. So she was sick in the belly and woozy in the head. Fun for all involved.

Anyway, she's back on the pills and is doing fine. She actually came to see me play guitar and mandolin at all 3 services in church today. That was cool to do - and really great to have her there for it.

Ultrasound this Friday. Updates as they happen. Thanks for reading!

Boy's names

We're still thinking about names for a boy. Isaac ("he laughs") seems to have entered the fray.

Tina wants a name that sounds like a baby's name as well as one that fits a man. I tend not to worry so much about whether a name sounds like a baby's name. Assuming the regular course of life, he'll be a baby for a few years, then a child, then a teenager - then an adult for three or four times as long as all that time (baby-through-teen) put together. So 75-80% of his life will be adulthood.

When I think of kids, I think of them as future adults. So every minute ought to be preparation for a life of adulthood, responsibility for others, etc. Maybe I shouldn't do so much of that, so I can help my kids enjoy being a kid. I never really enjoyed being a kid, because it seemed like all it was was restrictions and having to wait. It doesn't have to be that way, and I don't want it to be that way. I suppose I'll just have to learn to balance preparation for adulthood with protection from the evils of the world and with immersion in the joys of the world.

And boy, do I want to home-school. But that's a whole 'nother argument.

No major news lately

Blogger has eaten a couple of posts lately, so I've been annoyed at it. But really, not too much has happened. Tina has some aches and pains and refuses any sort of medical treatment, preferring to hobble around like a hobbling person.

Our ultrasound is next Friday.

We also registered at Target for baby shower stuff. (Click on the Baby menu at the top, then Target baby Registry at the bottom of the Baby menu.)

And Tina tries the no-anti-puking-medicine thing again this Friday. We'll hope it works, of course, but we have no idea.

New wheels

Well, Benjabeth has a new ride. We just signed a too-good-to-pass-up lease deal on a Toyota Sienna LE. (I think the one on the picture is exactly the same as ours - same light blue, 8-passenger seating, LE model.)

It's really amazing the cool stuff they put into cars these days: Lotsa power, 5-speed auto, traction control, 3rd-row seats fold into the floor or come out, 2nd-row bucket seats that flop forward or come out. The middle seat slides up real far, just behind the first row, so you can smack...uh, feed the baby when he cries like a baby.

A little pop-down mirror so you can see the people in the car like a school bus driver.

Tire pressure monitor.

Snazzy adjustable armrests.

Folding table between the front seats.

Eight cupholders just for the front seats. More in back. Many more. (OK, I'm a little tired of all the cupholder nonsense.)

Separate radio for the back seat - with remote. (I bet those never get lost.)

Plus, Toyota-smooth engine and quality. All that for $269 a month. Really really amazing.

Experiment failed again

Tina can't go without the anti-barf pill. So say results this morning. Specifically, so says barf this morning.

Latest cravings updates

Hawaiian Punch is definitely in.

Pasta back from banishment, but not too terribly often.

Oatmeal: out.

Milkshakes still in.

The occasional salad is in.

Roast beef is in, sliced and on a sandwich.

Big ol' hunks of meat: out. Meat sliced up and mixed in rice: OK.

Sausage McMuffin with Egg: in. Hashbrown: iffy. Hot tea: in.

Heartburn pills: good.

Stouffer's grilled veggie French bread pizzas: probably out, and she's not taking any chances.

Nick-naming nonsense

So we got a thank-you card from our nephew Nicholas today, for a birthday gift we got him (he just turned 5, I think). Kathy (the tyke's ma) had him sign his own name. He signed it, in large, cautious and somewhat unsteady script...

"Nick."

Tina was apoplectic. Just absolutely bonkers. She rationalized that it was probably just easier for his little brain to write four letters than eight, but deep inside (OK, not so deep) she was fuming at the poor little guy - well, more at his poor mum.

I just kinda giggled.

See ya...

UPDATE: I don't think there's acutally anything on here about Tina's hating nicknames. Well, Tina hates nicknames. Absolutely hates them. So that's why this was funny. Or wasn't. Sorry if this makes no sense. It was funny for me and that's all I know.

No news is good news

We had an appointment this morning. Nothing significant happened, other than the obvious fact that we got one day closer to having our baby.

We heard the heartbeat again, about 150 beats per minute. We're gonna switch the kid to decaf.

Tina's going to try the experiment again where she doesn't take the anti-nausea pill on Friday. We'll see how that works. The doctor said one of those doctor things: the pill's totally safe, but we'd prefer you didn't take any medication.

Um. How can those both be true?

Anyway, we'll do an ultrasound in 3 weeks. Pictures to follow online somehow. NO finding out the sex, that's for dang sure.

Friday will also be a day of minivan-shopping. Now we gotta baby on the way, so we gotta getta minivan.

Talk at ya later.