The L.A. Dime

I hit my 20th week of pregnancy yesterday and am feeling pretty good. The nausea is gone and although I get tired pretty easily, I am now able to really enjoy this pregnancy. Our little person is quite active, especially at night. It’s not yet hard enough for Brad to feel the kicks or movements on the outside but he does talk to the belly often. Even though we’d decided on some names, we now seem to be back to square one on that but luckily there are still a few months left. If you have any suggestions, feel free to pass them along! We (well, really it was me and Brad seems to have given in) decided to not find out the sex of the baby. We originally wanted to do that with Sophie as well but due to some unforeseen circumstances, we did find out and Brad really enjoyed knowing that this little person I was carrying, was now someone he could start to call by name and form an even closer bond with, even outside of the womb. This time though, we are going to wait to hear our dear friend and wonderful doc Karyn call out: “It’s a _____” sometime in the middle of July. I feel like it’ll be a really nice surprise after the work of bringing her or him into the world.

This weekend we are planning to make a big push on starting the room switch/transition. Brad is going to move into what is currently Sophie’s room and we are going to turn the current office/guest room into the kids room. Our plan is to have Sophie get used to her new room (and new twin bed which we picked up this past weekend but have yet to put together) for the next few months before the baby arrives. We are doing all we can to not make her feel like the baby is going to take over all of her things and she’s being pushed to the side (one of my biggest fears but more on that later). Our pediatrician even recommended covering up the crib so when the baby starts to sleep in it, it’ll seem like it’s brand-new and not Sophie’s old bed. We’re not going to go that far but are planning on having the baby either sleep in the crib in the office (at least at night when Brad’s not working) or in a basinet in our room until it sleeps through the night, and doesn’t disturb Sophie. At some point though, hopefully sooner rather than later, they will share a room.

Lots of you have asked us what Sophie thinks about getting a baby sister or brother but we are not sure yet she fully grasps what’s going to happen. She seems to know that I have a baby in my belly and “it’s not time yet” for it to come out and meet us. She goes back and forth on wanting a brother or sister but does seem to get excited when I tell her that she’ll be able to help me take care of the baby and that the baby is going to stay with us. She is a very caring and loving little girl - just tonight she was feeding her bears a home-cooked meal from her kitchen, changed them, let them watch a little tv and then put them down for naps - so we hope that she’ll share that love and attention with her little sibling once he or she joins us sometime in July.

Below are some belly shots for those of you wanting to take a peek at my ever-expanding waist line:)

…to a hotel for the weekend a finish his script. He wrote 40 pages in 2 days and while it’s not quite ready to be sent out for feedback, it’s very close. Getting paid assignments now-a-days is becoming less and less so I thought it was important to give Brad some uninterrupted time to focus, get in his writing zone and finish off this creative endeavor of his.

We didn’t want to spend too much money on the hotel room but also needed him to be comfortable so a friend suggested we use Priceline.com. It was a bit nerve-racking since you just put in the dollar amount you are willing to pay and the level of stars (quality of hotel) you expect, and they then tell you if your offer was accepted in the area you requested. After having to scale back our expectations a little on the location of the hotel, Brad ended up in a nice Marriott in Camarillo. He’d asked for a quiet room and got the handicapped suite which had an extra large bathroom and a funny shower - but all in all, he said it all worked out and getting that much writing done certainly is proof positive!

We’re now thinking of using Priceline to find a place for a weekend “babymoon” but don’t know where to go. It’d have to be in driving distance…..any suggestions? Oh yeah, and if you’re willing to babysit Sophie, let us know that too:)

That’s the statement made by Chad after his lovely wife Mandee made him a loaf of homemade bread a few weeks back. Thanks to Marion & Manfred who gave Brad a breadmaker for Christmas, Brad now too can enjoy a whole new bread experience. Below are some pics of last night’s efforts….it was fun to watch the ingredients that we just poured in, become kneaded, then expand and turn into a beautiful light brown loaf of bread. Brad enjoyed his first slice as soon as the bread cooled down and the whole family had some “Egg & Bacon Breakfast Sandwiches” this morning!

We met the Shepherd clan at the Skirball yesterday to check out the Noah’s Ark exhibit. It was an experience full of sounds, wonderful visual sights and a ton of hands-on opportunities for our little ones.
What we were probably most impressed with the use of materials to make these enormous animals. For example, an old violin case served as the head/mouth of an aligator and drums serves as the feet of an elephant. The last piece of the exhibit allowed the kids to play a variety of instruments to make various animal sounds and pretend to jump in the water puddles left behind after the rain storm. Oh, while Sophie enjoyed all the touch-n-feel stations, her favorite part was most likely climbing up a net (that was really only supposed to be for kids 4 & up) and then running above our heads in the “jungle tunnel”.

…..another Baby Riddell will be joining the family around July 19th!

12 Weeks

We arrived in KY on Christmas Eve and had a chance to see the immediate Riddell family within a few hours. Mom-Mom Saundra cooked up a yummy pork chop meal with lots of veggies and of course a lovely selection of desserts.
The next few days were filled with quality family time (cousin Sawyer and Sophie explored the Newport Aquarium together) and enjoyed many hours of running after each other and playing together. I got to spend some time with my two best friends in the world and we celebrated New Years Eve with a large group of UK Lambda Chi’s in Louisville. There was a bit of snow and even though it wasn’t enough to make a snowman (or even a snowball for that matter), I loved every minute of the clean, crisp, cold (it got down to 7 degrees!!!) weather. We also checked out the Cincinnati Children’s Museum which we were extremely impressed with.
I know I’ve said this before but I just love being home. I realize that it probably has a lot to do with the fact that when we’re there, we’re usually on vacation, everyone makes themselves available to see us and we don’t have to worry about making dinner, doing laundry or any other of those life responsibilities. But beyond that, it’s where I feel truly at peace and I was so happy to have seen Sophie play with her cousins and have a chance to catch up face to face with family and life-long friends. We are also very grateful for the effort Mom-Mom and Pops puts forth to make our stays memorable and enjoyable.

This year was a lot different. Sophie seemed to get a lot more into the holiday season - she loved singing “Frosty, the Snowman”, always pointed out all the lights on houses and loved turning on our tree as soon as it got dark outside. Of course, not touching the presents under the tree or taking off the decorations continued to be a little challenge but she eventually understood and waited patiently until we had our little Riddell family Christmas on the 22nd. With Nana & Opa right there with us (although on the computer, via Skype), we opened presents and tried to slow down time as these moments always seem to fly by too quickly.

It seems that after you’ve been dating your significant other for a while, people start to ask “so, how did you two meet”. Every couple has their own story and ours began on Thanksgiving Day, thirteen years ago. I won’t bore you with the details but for all that know us, you know that it’s what we call our “typical KY story”, which we then follow with a chuckle and a big smile. So every year, I am reminded of that cold day at the Walters’ annual Turkey Bash, where a college freshman was standing in the kitchen getting a drink, when her tall, handsome “all american boy” walked in…and into her heart.

But enough about that….Thanksgiving is Brad’s favorite holiday. I believe it is because he has many, many years of fond memories which include an amazing meal, every family member surrounding multiple tables, all the cousins making fun of each other, lots of football watching and maybe even a quick nap on a well-loved couch.

Moving to LA 10 years ago meant that we’d start our own traditions and memories. It began with us hosting Turkey Day at our apartment in Hollywood and inviting anyone that didn’t have a family close by….which was mostly Brad’s USC friends. Over time, that group expanded to and include dates, girlfriends/boyfriends and eventually spouses. While there certainly is a bit of preparing and trying to figure out where to seat everyone, the actual task of making the turkey is one that I don’t find that hard and actually quite enjoy. I’ve done it since my college years at Xavier and very much look forward to it. Back then, I’d get up early to put the bird in the oven and then sleep for a few more hours. Today, our little Sophie doesn’t allow for a lot of sleeping in but she sure was excited this year (it seems that she’s starting to understand the anticipation and then happening of big events).

A few years back, we started taking turns with our dear friends Mark & Faleena. This year, it was their turn to host and we were so looking forward to having it at their new house, with their new baby Caitlin. They did an amazing job with the food, decorations and making everyone feel right at home.

I am thankful to have the opportunity to be with our little family; to be surrounded by our dear friends who are there for us when and where ever; family that supports our adventures; to have our health (and that includes having figured out about Brad’s Celiac disease); to have a job that helps provide for us; and the moments of happiness that come from simple things like hearing Sophie call for me and Brad smiling at me for no reason at all.

To kick off this year’s Halloween festivities, we dressed Sophie in a lion costume (Thank you Wilsons!!) and headed to CA Adventure for Mickey’s Trick-or-Treat event. Sophie tolerated the costume ok and seemed intrigued by her tail but wasn’t too thrilled about the furry mane so we were lucky to get just a few pics of her with it on her head. She was very excited about all the music, lights and entertainment throughout the park and we certainly got a lot of exercise trying to keep up by running after her. She did a few rides, collected some candy and ended the night with watching the parade.

While we were home for Julie and David’s wedding, we also enjoyed some much needed Riddell family time. Seeing all the cousins play together, meeting little Jack & Bishop for the first time and having even just a few minutes to catch up face to face with everyone was the best. Even though we stay in email communication, talk on the phone and even Skype frequently, there’s nothing better than all being together.

Pops & Mom-Mom took Sophie and cousin Sawyer to a pumpkin patch. That must have really left an impression with our little girl because she still talks about going to the “punkin patch” and every time we talk to or about Pops & Mom-Mom, she brings it up. Interestingly enough, every time we talk about birthdays or presents, she asks for Nana & Opa (who were here for her birthday not too long ago). It’s amazing to see how those little brains work.