Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Where We Eat. A Lot.

JFC its cold out here. Dipping into single digits with the wind chill. No lie.

I did tell you neither of us packed coats, right?

We've got sporty little down vests. Great for long car rides. Sucky for walking icy, windy streets. We packed thinking we would be heading straight to a hospital and hanging out there for a few days. Heavy on sweats and hoodies and slip on shoes. Light on everything else. The good news is that folks are so bundled up here, its hard to tell what anyone's wearing anyway. I don't feel too terribly self conscious going out in my casual wear. Except for when M shows me up with the one button down shirt he packed. Damn him.

Better news: I finally realized we don't have to spend an extra $10 a night renting a fridge at the hotel. I did the first few nights until I realized, heywaitaminute.....the coffee in our mugs that we left in the car froze solid overnight, so why not keep my breast milk in the cooler out there too.

Oh yeah. Duh. Who brought the smart girl? It's rock solid. Solid as a rock.We'll need an ice pick to get through the ice to the actual milk.

We've bounced between 3 hotels in our week-long stay - that's what happens when you're bidding one night at a time via Priceline. Because the moment you commit for a week will be the day we get a call to pack up and go. So far, every place has been great. We're back in one of our favorites, complete with a free shuttle that will take us anywhere and shuttle drivers that have warmed to us.

"So, what brings you two to _____?"
"We're, uh, waiting for our son to be born."
"Wow! Wow! (quick glance in the rear-view mirror to make sure he didn't miss something) that is so cool. Are you guys adopting or using a surrogate or something?"
"Yep. A gestational surrogate. And this might be our last night here, it might not. So, where should we go to dinner? Where's a fabulous place to be?...."

We're getting pretty good at this conversation the more we have it. (And having some great meals.) We're waiting for our son to be born. Wow.

Most of the texts and emails from family assume we are biting every nail from our fingers and sitting on the edges of our seats at all moments. The truth is far more boring. M is dialing into his daily 9 am meeting and cursing at his computer. I'm pumping and finishing up some documents for work. We're getting bagels and coffee every morning and trying out a new place for dinner every night. We're trying to enjoy these "last moments of freedom" as the doctor described it this morning. But there comes a point when even going "out on the town" starts to feel mundane and routine. Especially when its ten degrees outside.

Especially when you'd rather be doing something else.

But we sit and we wait and we try not to think about things too much. There is only so long you can maintain an OMG OMG OMG OMG! state of mind, right?

But back to the news you want to know: we accompanied L to her doctor's appointment today. All is well. BBB is good. ETA is still set for Monday.

BBB's heartbeat is strong. And he even entertained us with a few kicks after lunch. He's still head down, butt jutting out. L says she feels great. She looks great. All healthy and aglow. This morning's appointment gave us a chance to go over some logistics.

"Can we talk about where you want us to be, and not be, in the delivery room?" I ask the doc.
"Oh yeah, that's would be great since this is a new thing for me too," He says.

We walk through the day starting from induction and how things might progress from there. Where we'll be, where he'll be, what's to be done after delivery, who gets to do what.

It all sounds pretty awesome.

So, we're here. Chilling. Literally. In search of some live trivia this evening. Because that sounds like a fun distraction. 

9 comments:

Lollipop Goldstein said...

Wow wow wow. Smiling through the whole update.

~Hollie said...

So excited. Keep the updates coming!

Monique said...

Wonderful news - and as a prairie dweller, I can tell you nobody cares what you're wearing when it's this cold outside. Hang tight and stay warm!

Em said...

Oh my goodness...this could not possibly be more excited. I'll definitely be staying tuned!!! So happy for you.

Heather said...

It's been so cold. Even the locals are saying, JFC! WTF?

Those days before you finally meet your child are so very strange and full of wonder. In a way they are normal, like any other day. But then you catch yourself thinking about this brand new person; a person who will become one of the MOST important people in your life, yet you don't even know who they are yet. Amazing.

People say that once you have a kid you can hardly remember what life was like before them. I don't find that to be true at all. Almost 9 years later I can definitely remember living life on my schedule and not having these little beings depending on me all.the.time. But I most certainly cannot remember ever not knowing them. It is as if I've known them forever. Then I'll get a memory of those days just before....

These days will go slow, as will the sleepless days after BBB is born. But then you blink and he'll be one, and you blink again and middle school doesn't seem so far away. It is all so cool and fun and hard and amazing.

Thinking of you lots and lots.

luna said...

just wow, stage directions for the birth and everything! so freaking exciting.

you probably never even had a chance to do so many things before you left -- eg sterilize the SNS? -- but you know what? it doesn't matter. soon you'll bring your son home. and the rest can wait. yay!

Heather said...

TOMORROW!!!

oh so excited for you!

Paz said...

AmAAAzing. Crazy happy.

Julia said...

Just saw the update! Congratulations!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! So, so, so happy for you.
(And just exhaled-- was holding my breath for you for a bit there...)

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