Reflections Along the Way

Countdown – less than 11 weeks til April 2nd!  Since the holidays we have been busy bees trying to figure out all the stuff that needs to get done between now and then.  It seems like just when we get a few things crossed off of our list, we realize something else needs to get added to it!  However, the things we have checked off are definitely worth showing off, so I thought I would share some pictures!  (And in case you want more detailed pictures, I put loads more up on facebook)   

J-BEAN’S ROOM – As you might recall, my mom came down while Steve was out of town this past October and got things rolling by painting our walls a medium shade of blue (NOT Carolina Blue!!!).  Over the past couple of weekends, my good friend and co-worker, Kim Maples, has been working hard painting some absolutely AMAZING rainforest scenery and animals on the wall.  We scavenged children’s books as well as the internet to find ideas that we liked, in addition to using some of the cute little bugs that were on the fabric we chose for the crib skirt and bumpers.  So, here’s what we ended up with!!!

Kim filling in the vines.

Kim working hard while her daughter Cameron plays with the baby rat (aka HazMat's dinner...)

GLUCOSE TOLERANCE TEST AND ULTRASOUND – In other news, I had to go for my 3rd trimester glucose test this past week.  For those of you that don’t know, it is a routine test that makes sure my body is processing sugar correctly and that I don’t have gestational diabetes.  I was allowed to eat a light breakfast no sooner than 3 hours before the test, but was advised to keep it to protein and very low-carb.  (which I guess meant my gigantic bowl of cereal and fruit was out…).  I woke up early so that I could down a protein bar, but was helplessly hungry not more than an hour later.  Thankfully my appointment was at 10 so I didn’t have to wait too long.  I drank 10 ounces of a fruit punch flavored glucose solution (which I had heard a wide range of stories about, some of which scared me…) but surprisingly, it wasn’t that bad – I actually almost liked it! 

Matching bugs from the fabric swatch!	View from the wall opposite the main door (door in the picture is a closet)
Close-up in b/t closet and main door	Close-up of leaves above changing table

Although our doctor had originally said we wouldn’t get any more ultrasounds, at our last appointment she had said that since we had good insurance, and were waiting around for an hour to finish the bloodwork for the glucose tests, we could have another ultrasound just to make sure little J-Bean is growing okay.  I was informed that for insurance purposes, my paperwork would be coded to say “Insufficient Weight Gain”.  This key fact is important later on in the story…

My favorite part!!!

View from the door - also on display is the gorgeous blanket my bro and sis in-laws got us!

So we get into the ultrasound room, and of course J-Bean’s big ole head pops up immediately.  The sonographer begins searching for body parts to measure, and keeps saying things like, “wow…very healthy…no growth problems here…”  As it turns out, our little guys is not very little AT ALL!!!  According to the measurements, he is estimated to weigh 3.8 pounds ALREADY!!!!!  He is in the 81st percentile for weight…The sonographer also appreciated the irony of our coming in based on my low weight gain (although me personally would hardly call 15 pounds insignificant…) only to find out that we have a monster in there!  At this point we began to get a little worried about thte logistics of labor with an 81st percentile baby and a significantly less than 81st percentile mom…but the doctor just laughed and said not to worry about it at all.  He said everything looked fantastic and that our little monster looked very healthy! 

So J-Bean’s new nickname is “The C-Squatch,” which seemed a little more size-appropriate at this point than Jellybean…So of course the “squatch” part comes from “sasquatch”, but why the “C” you might ask?  Well…..we have picked out a name!!!  Drum roll please…our new arrival will be named Canaan Ray Lineberry!  Canaan = the land that God promised to the Israelites in the Old Testament.  However, it took them a while to be able to get to it.  They had to work through a bunch of things and did a lot of wandering around before they were ready to enter it – kinda like how we wait on God’s perfect timing and did some globe wandering of our own before we felt like we were ready to expand our family.  Ray = a family name…on both sides!!!  Steve and I both have a grandfather and an uncle named Ray – only on my side, its actually “Raymond”, and on Steve’s side, its “Rayford.”  We felt like “Ray” would be a great way to honor both sides of the family!

The C-Squatch - Check out those cheeks!!!

Our Thanksgiving holiday was a whirlwind of fun, filled with some traditions, a few new tricks, as well as some unexpected surprises!  I guess I’ll start at the beginning.  On Wednesday, me and the Bean had a prenatal appointment in the morning.  I peed in a cup, got my vitals taken, my belly measured, and then we got to listen to J-bean’s heartbeat on the Doppler.  For those of you that don’t know, the doppler is a nifty little piece of machinery that probes around the belly to detect the fetal heartbeat – once the doctor finds the right spot, he leaves it there for long enough to record the beats per minute.  Well, evidently J-bean wanted no part in having his heartrate measured, so he decided to kick the doppler probe, which I of course felt, and caused the doppler to blip and the doctor to have to start over his count.  It is starting to look like we’ve got a feisty one on our hands…he must get that from his dad   After the check-up, we drove down to Winston-Salem to stay with my parents for a few days.  We spent the afternoon at Babies R’ Us, where we picked out a crib that my parents were gracious enough to purchase for us!  Best of all, it didn’t cost any extra to have it shipped right to our door in Raleigh!  We decided to mix it up a bit on Thursday, so rather than eating a big lunch, we went to the movies and then had a big Thanksgiving dinner.  We saw The Blind Side , which was fantastic, and especially fun since it was based on a true story.  For dinner we had all the usuals, and everything was yummy with the exception of the pie fiasco, which I don’t have the time to go into here, but you can read about on my mom’s blog.  We had quite a laugh…

BUGS!!!

On Friday my mom and I drove down to Gastonia, home of our favorite fabric store.  We were on a mission to find fabric to make the bedding/other decor for the nursery, since I was completely uninspired by anything I had seen at any of the stores or online.  Surprisingly, it took us no time at all to find the PERFECT mix of fabrics!  I can hardly wait to see what it looks like after we’ve made everything and it can be put together, along with the rainforest animals my friend Kim is going to paint on the walls over the holidays!

So what were the guys doing while we were hunting for fabric?  Hunting for CARS of course!  We’ve known for a while now that my old Eclipse has been in desperate need of replacement for a couple of years now, and that there is NO way we could get a car seat to work in the back of it, so the clock was ticking.  Our plan was for me to inherit the Element since my commute to work is less than 4 miles, and since its the perfect baby-mobile – then we would get Steve something fuel-efficient that he could use to commute to work and on his monthly trips to Charlotte, which would balance out the mileage on both cars pretty nicely.  Steve’s intent was just to scope things out and take a few test drives on Friday, but he ended up finding a deal that was too spectacular to pass up, so he waited for us to get back, and then we went down to the dealership so I could check it out.  We are now the proud owners of a 2007 Toyota Camry Hybrid!!!

Our new vehicle!

We originally had plans to climb the rest of the weekend wherever it was the warmest, but with adding an unexpected car to the mix, we felt like it would best to just to day trip it and then head back to Raleigh that night, so we ended up at Pilot again.  The morning was FRIGID, but once the sun got up nice and high the wind stopped and it turned into a beautiful day!  We had a very relaxing, casual day – we did 2 new routes we’d never done before, followed by 2 old stand-bys that we always like, and ended on 2 old routes we hadn’t done in years. 

22 weeks and proud of it!

Duracell – 5.8 – probably would have been more enjoyable had I been able to feel my fingers…
Oscar Mayer – 5.10 - really fun layback moves at the bottom led to juggy face climbing up top
Body Surfin’ – 5.7+
Hawaii-Five-0 – 5.11a – I’d only gotten this clean a couple of times before b/c it is so pumpy and sustained, so my hopes were not too high for this one, but I ended up feeling really good on it!  I actually made it past the crux and got 20 feet or so from the top before I had to stop and hang for a bit.
8-Ball – 5.8 – this used to be Steve’s nemesis b/c of the overhanging start, and it was fun to see him storm up it this time like a champ
9-Ball – 5.9 – amazingly steep for a 5.9, I surprised myself by flying right up it without any trouble – clean for the first time!

Burly start to Hawaii Five-0 (5.11a)

Steve on the moves after the start

It was getting really crowded by mid-afternoon, so we decided to call it an early day and hike out.  We made it back to Raleigh and had a celebratory dinner at Five Guys Burgers and Fries, a new and yummy addition to the restaurants on the post-climbing circuit.

Steve finishing the roof with style!

Just over 4 months ago, I saw two pink lines on a pregnancy test.  An hour later, I didn’t believe it so I tested again.  Then also the next day, and then even a week later, just to make sure.  Now, several months later, I’m feeling my litte jellybean kick even as I type this out, and my ever-expanding belly is leaving no doubt to the entire world that my body is producing something amazing on the inside! 

So I am officially 20 weeks pregnant, which marks the halfway point (b/c everyone knows you deliver at EXACTLY 40 weeks, right?)  This stage seemed like a good time to take a break and reflect on all the changes that have been going on lately. 

Me at 20 weeks and 1 day

Now that I actually have a clearly defined baby “bump,” I have a newfound confidence in my body.  Rather than hiding behind flowy, ambigously shaped clothing, fearing that the uninformed observer might assume that I’ve indulged in a little too much Halloween candy, I’ve begun sporting my pre-preggo tops with pride.  Of course I’ve had to invest in a few long tank tops to layer underneath my old shirts to keep my belly from hanging out, but am still savoring the last few weeks that they will still fit.  Almost all of my pre-preggo pants still fit (although a few need to be held together with a rubberband rather than a button).  I’ve purchased one pair of maternity pants which are still way too big to wear, along with a few maternity tops, which I’ve worn enthusiastically a few times, but trying to hold out as long as I can, b/c realistically, I know I’ll get sick of these clothing items long before April rolls around. 

I go back and forth between enjoying being treated like a delicate flower, and disgusted at being treated like I am disabled or handicapped in some way.  While it feels good to have people constantly inquire about how I’m feeling and offer to carry things for me, it is annoying when people assume that I should be laying around in bed all day doing sudoku.  My friend and coworker Heather (who is currently about a week behind me with her second child) warned me to enjoy the coddling while I could, b/c once the baby came, no one would be paying any attention to me anymore.    So I’m trying to take in all of the unsolicited advice with a grain of salt and a smile on my face, understanding that the majority of the people are commenting b/c they care about me, and are only trying to be helpful – and often times the advice is actually useful! 

Trying out my super cool CAMP full-body harness at 19 weeks!

I’m still climbing (toproping only of course) and have managed to complete at least one 5.11 clean per week of pregnancy.  It will be interesting to see how much longer I can keep that up.  I’m still running, although I now mix in a few walk breaks and I’ve gotten a good deal slower.  The funny thing about that is that since I don’t keep track of my pace or mileage or anything like that, the only time I notice that I’m slow is when Steve and I jog together.  If I only ran alone, I would be blissfully unaware of my subtly slowing pace!  I’m also still biking (only on the greenway, no more mountain biking) and feeling pretty good, although hills take a lot out of me and just this week I have had to humble myself enough to get off my bike and walk a couple of times.  But all in all – I’m feeling fantastic!  Aside from the many new and weird things going on in my body (most of which are not appropriate to discuss in this blog…)  I feel as good as new! 

IT'S A BOY!!!!

As far as the jellybean goes (or J.Bean, as Steve and I have nicknamed him), we found out that he is indeed a boy a couple of weeks ago!  He was not shy at all, and had no qualms about raising his legs high in the air the entire time the nice lady was trying to measure his abdomen, femur, head, etc.  I guess he wanted to make sure we saw it.   We were amazed at how clear of a picture we were able to see on the ultrasound machine, and how much he was moving around (especially considering that at that point, I hadn’t felt any kicks for sure yet).  The funniest part was when the sonographer actually caught a picture of him sticking his tongue out!  This is especially cute, since Steve is well-known for sticking his tongue out when he is really focused, either mentally or physically.  We call it “the concentrating face.”  JBean is evidently concentrating very hard on growing these days, b/c according to one of my many pregnancy books, he is about the size of a cantaloupe!   

JBean's concentrating face

Steve's concentrating face in action!

We’ve made our first round of visits to Babies R Us to get our registry started (an overwhelming process to say the least…), and my mom was kind enough to paint the nursery for us while Steve was in Vegas (just the background – my friend Kim is going to paint rainforest animals all over the walls over Christmas break!) 

We have done some name research and come up with a name that we both really like, but we will most likely keep it a secret   So that leaves us with a to-do list of replacing my car, finishing the registry, moving a bunch of furniture around in the soon-to-be nursery and guest bedroom, taking birthing classes, and about a million other things – not to mention all the things I’m sure will come up last minute! So thats the latest update for now!  Time sure is going by fast and I’m sure it will only get faster as the holidays approach.  Our little guy will be here before we know it! 

After we said sticking your tongue out is rude....

Little feet

Earlier in the summer, my favorite mother-in-law Beth offered to come up for a couple of days to help me with any “projects” I might have going on around the house.  Now, Steve and I are not really known for projecting around the house.  I feel like we’re not even really in our house that much to make it worth the time and effort.  However, upon further reflection, I realized that there indeed were many things that could make for a nice day and a half project. (translation= things that desperately needed to be done)

The "Zen Room" in an anything but zen state

The Back Porch - note the bar area with the swivel screen to the left

Beth came up last Tuesday around lunctime and we plotted our course (Thank you Manuela for getting me hooked on “Greek Fiesta”…)  Our plan was to attack the back porch/screened in porch area.  The screened in porch used to be referred to as the “Zen Room,” b/c when it looks nice, it is a very relaxing and peaceful place to hang out and have breakfast, read, nap, etc.  But when it does NOT look nice….it feels about as “zen” as lying down for a nap in a fire ant nest!  The problems start by the fact that the screen goes from floor to ceiling.  For many months out of year, the white tile floor is tinged an ugly shade of yellow-green from the pollen that is blown in to the room, but unfortuantely b/c of the screens, cannot be blown back out.  It’s really hard to keep it clean, and its easier to just ignore it and pretend it doesn’t exist until the one time of year that we actually use it – my birthday party in August…

No more screens, but still some rotten, dingy, wood that needs to go!

After surveying the porch and getting a vision for what we wanted the end product to look like, it was time to go get some furniture.  I didn’t realize this, but evidently August is the best time of year to get patio furniture, b/c everything is on sale!  We checked out Target, Bed, Bath, and Beyond, Pier 1, World Market, and Home Depot, but ended up getting some fantabulous deals at Lowe’s.  I found 4 wrought iron chairs as well as a table, and 4 tan patio chairs (they were only $12.50!!!)

Open Sesame!!! Good time for a lunch break!

After Beth helped me figure out the things I liked and didn’t like about the porch area, and we decided to make some drastic changes.  For starters, we took all the screens OFF completely.  It is now merely a “covered” porch.  Secondly, we totally destroyed the bar area, which used to have a cute screen that flipped up with the idea that folks on the screened-in side could hi-five folks on the back porch side, but functionally, it wasn’t much more than a bunch of rotten wood.  That took a lot of hard work, let me tell you.  I would bet my paycheck that we took out close to 100 screws a piece – ALL by hand, many of them being bent or rusty.  When we finished, we had a nice open space, connecting both porches, making if feel like one giant porch!

The new view from the back porch looking in!

At this point we began putting furniture together and hosing off the 3 inch layer of pollen from the tile floor.  We managed to make a mess of catastrophic proportions that I’m still trying to figure out the best way to get to the dump – but at least we moved it all to the side of the house so its not in plain view anymore!  Our grand finale was the most brilliant idea of all – we took the vertical rail pieces from the demolished bar area and fit them in to the empty slots where the two doors used to be – unless you knew otherwise, it would look like it was made that way! 

The new view from the Zen Room looking out!

I think the new set up will be a lot easier to keep clean and will be a lot more practical and functional.  I can’t wait to have folks over for my birthday party in a couple of weeks to test it out – we’re doing a cookout of course to encourage everyone to linger outside   Beth and I both worked really hard and were completely wiped out when we were finished – we may not have been the most efficient Demolition Divas, but we certainly got the job done! I realized later that the only thing we forgot was to take an after picture of how WE looked after working all day!  Beth – thanks so much for your wonderful ideas and for being in charge of the saw   Everyone else – feel free to stop in and have some tea on the back porch!

Notice the beautiful new rails where the doors used to be!

If you have ever been camping with me, you have heard me sing high praise  for the Jetboil system.  For those of you unfamiliar with the term, the Jetboil is NOT a communicable skin disease transmitted on airplanes, but rather, a portable, personal cooking system.  According to their website, the Jetboil is a “complete food and beverage multitool.” 

Steve cooking ramen noodles by moonlight (and headlamp) on our chickee in the middle of the Everglades.

Steve and I received our Jetboils for Christmas in 2006 in anticipation of a backcountry canoe/hiking trip to the Everglades for New Year’s 07.  Since then, we have never been camping without it!  For a long time we stuck to the tried and true classics – oatmeal and grits, tea, hot chocolate (MUST HAVE items when the nighttime temps on a climbing trip hover in the 30’s), ramen noodles (PERFECT backcountry food!), and boxed mac n cheese (when is this NOT a good option?!?).  Then we added some ultralite camp pots and pans to our setup.  We got a little more adventurous, adding in the occasional fried egg sandwich, and boiled corn on the cob.  I even tested out the pancake waters once while on a bike trip with my old college roomie (the pancakes didn’t work out so hot, but it was the wind’s fault, not the JetBoil…). 

Lundon and I trying to warm-up with some oatmeal on a chilly morning in the Outer Banks.

But recently, we’ve found ourselves back at the tent after climbing all day either too lazy, too cheap, or too remote to go out to eat.  We wanted something that was tasty and filling, not breakfast-y, easy to pack with minimum waste, and most importantly, able to be safely eaten after sitting out in the sun all day.  Our answer – (drum roll please) – PESTO PASTA!!! 

Grits were no where to be found in Utah, so Steve settled for oatmeal on a sunny morning in Maple Canyon.

Here’s what you need – (for 2 people)
- a big “pouch” of chicken, salmon, tuna, or whatever you want for protein (You can find the pouches in the same aisle as the canned tuna.  In fact you could use the canned tuna if you want, but I think all the juice in the can is gross, plus its a lot more trash.)
- a small to medium jar of pesto sauce (Buitoni’s is my favorite, but you need to have a cooler for that one)
- a small to medium bag of penne, rigatoni, or your favorite pasta.  (If we don’t have meat, we go for a cheese-filled tortellini or ravioli…or sometimes we splurge and do it even if we do have meat.  ). 

Enjoying some hot tea on a rainy morning in Squamish, British Columbia.

Directions -
1.  Bring water to a boil in a pot.  Add pasta and cook until it is ready.  During the last couple of minutes or so, add the chicken or fish.
2.  Using the lid for the pot, drain the water from the pasta and and split the pasta evenly into 2 bowls.
3.  Mix half the pesto into one bowl, and half in the other. 

Pesto Pasta after a great day climbing at Hawksbill Mountain in the Linville Gorge

And there you have it!  Three ingredients are all you need for a simple and fast way to satisfy your hunger and feel sophisticated even in the backcountry!

Yum Yum, PESTO PASTA!