Out of Touch. But STILL Rocking Out!

The other day my friend, Tony, posted this link to his GChat status. Tony generally posts interesting news articles to his status, so I checked it out. It's a fairly comical mash up of three different movies to a song by Cee Lo. I have never heard of Cee Lo and I have never heard this song: Fuck You and Fuck Her Too. Based on the title, though, I was intriguied. What is it about expletives that make things infinitely more cool?

I couldn't get the song out of my head. Don't let the title disuade you. Check the song out. It's so good and not at all what you would expect.

Thinking about the song, I wondered why it was so great. It's sort of a contradiction: Upbeat music, not-so-upbeat lyrics. It's completely unexpected. On my way home last night, NPR's All Things Considered, ran a piece on the song. It hasn't been released yet, but Cee Lo put it on YouTube to get more publicity. The reporter mentioned that Cee Lo will also be releasing a radio-friendly verson of the song called "Forget You and Forget Her Too." It doesn't have the same pizazz or punch. When you hear the song, you'll understand.

Here's the NPR piece, in case you'd like to hear the commentary.

I guess the point is: I am woefully out of touch with pop culture. I get most of my news from my friend Tony's postings and NPR. I wonder how long this song has been viral. It may be completely old news to all of you. But I will rock. I will most certainly ROCK OUT to this song - pregnant belly and all.

The Tale of Two Pregnancies

Picture 1. Me at about 35.5 weeks with Baby Girl L.

Picture 2. Me at about 36 weeks with Benny.

Same dress. Same size belly. That's pretty amazing. I warned everyone that I would get big, like really BIG. And here I am. However, my boobs are MUCH bigger this time around. Holy moly. I like my hair way better in the 2007 picture. Must grow it out!

Showered

I am one lucky pregnant lady. I had a great weekend with the ladies. My mom drove up to help me clean the house before Little Lady arrives. We washed windows and organized the basement. My mom is the best!

Yesterday, two friends threw me a baby shower at Bistro Vendome - a great little French restaurant downtown. It was so nice to see most of my friends from Denver in one place. They made me feel showered with love and friendship. And they showered me with some great baby gifts: like eight weeks' worth of service from the cloth diaper service, some great clothes, a breastfeeding cover up, and other helpful stuff. This little lady is going to have some great role models! My mom wasn't able to come to my shower when I was pregnant with Benny, so this one was extra special because she was there.

More Preggers Pictures

I finally worked on some pictures this weekend and posted them to our Picassa account. Here is a summary of my pregnancy. I have been big for awhile! The first photo is from Benny's birthday party. Nate was making weird gestures around my belly and you can tell how entertained I am! The second photo is from June - on a weekend when we were potty training. Benny is on his toilet, watching a movie. I am engrossed. The third photo is from a short hike on Mother's Day in May.

Birthday #3!

Preggers: 32 Weeks

These aren't the best pregnant shots ever, but you get the picture. In this picture, you can't really tell how big my belly is, but you can trust that it's like a shelf for Benny to sit on!

Preggers: 31 Weeks

Book Review: The Year of the Flood

Another book bites the dust. After nearly a year of thinking about reading The Year of the Flood, I finally finished it! It's the second in a trilogy about the post-apocalyptic world created by Margaret Atwood. The first was Oryx and Crake. Atwood hasn't written the third book yet.

If you remember, I thoroughly enjoyed Oryx and Crake. The first book set the scene for the apocalypse. It told the story of how Crake (Glenn) had created a plague that he distributed via sex pills. By the end of that book, Atwood made it clear that at least a few humans had survived.

In The Year of the Flood, Atwood writes about other humans who have survived the "Waterless Flood." She follows two women who had once belonged to a sort of enviro cult called the God's Gardeners: Toby and Ren. By the end of this book, we see that a handful of people have survived the waterless flood, including many of the God's Gardeners.

Atwood has the ability to weave stories together seamlessly. Even though it is improbable that things in this book could ever happen, Atwood makes it believable. Her writing is also amazing. She is able to tell a story from many points of view. Toby's chapters are written in the third person while Ren's chapters are written in the first person. By doing this, Atwood helps create believable characters.

I still have one more gift card left over from my birthday. I'm going to pick up The Russian Debutante's Handbook this morning.

Preggers Faux Pas

As I get bigger and bigger with child, it's amazing to sit back and listen, really LISTEN to what people say to me as a pregnant woman. Of course, I try to take compliments well and other comments with grace, but sometimes I wonder what people are actually thinking when they comment on my appearance. Because I think most people are well-meaning, I thought I'd include some inappropriate things to say to a pregnant woman as well as some flattering comments (even if they're not true).

When a woman is pregnant, she knows how big she's getting. She's perfectly aware that her body is being contorted in ways that seem impossible. So, saying things like "You're getting so big!" "Are you sure you're not having twins?" or "Wow, you seem to have gained some weight" are all bad options. Also, don't try to guess a pregnant woman's due date. I can't tell you how many people guessed - at 8 months - that I was due any day. And then, to add insult to injury, they would often follow up with, "You're not due for another eight weeks, wow. Are you sure?" Yes, we're sure, people. We are most definitely sure.

I love, love, love the people who recognize that expressing disbelief at my body size is probably inappropriate. Rather, they focus on the positive: "I love the way you carry - it's all out front!" "You're all belly," and the like will go a long way to make a pregnant woman feel good about herself. The best compliment yet: "You look great! A lot of pregnant women would be envious of you." It might not be true, but those words certainly are nice to hear.

The Redeemer

Over the past year I have had the privilege of giving Nate some major crap about my birthday last year. Not only did he not acknowledge it with a card, gift, or dinner, but he went into work ... on a Sunday! I've been able to hold that over his head in some major ways.

But, he has redeemed himself this year. And I can no longer give him crap. Last night he had Benny surprise me with The Year of the Flood, a book I've been wanting to read for a long time. Then he gave me lessons to water color painting at Denver Free University. And he signed me up for a class three weeks after Baby Girl is due. So, not only did he do something to encourage a creative outlet, he offered to take care of TWO kids for four hours on a Saturday. I feel very, very lucky.

Nate wanted to take me out for dinner, but I opted for a night in. We made quinoa salad and had cherry pie. Nate and Benny sang me happy birthday and then I watched them laugh and wrestle on the bed. It was the perfect birthday. The best in recent years.

Best Birthday Present ... EVER!

A very thoughtful co-worker created this very entertaining photo for me. I have a healthy crush on Timothy Olyphant (and have since his Go days). The ladies I work with have to hear about him on a regular basis. The photo is hanging outside of my cube at work.

That's not to say that I'm not enjoying my other amazing gifts, like a new picnic blanket, TWO new necklaces from Lauren Haupt jewelry, and a B&N gift card. People must read my blog :).

Check out one of my new necklaces (I'm wearing it today!):