13 Days, and a great visit from great friends!

Today was a really great day.  Our dear friends, Chelsea and Dave came to visit from Vermont.  We had a wonderful afternoon, and were very blessed when they cooked us two meals for the week.  Chelsea seemed so astonished at how much smaller Palesa looks in person than in the photos.  So, we took this picture to give a sense of scale.  I guess you could say she is still pretty tiny.  

Daddy likes to blow kisses on her.  We were actually trying to keep her awake, with the grand idea that if she stays awake in the evening, she'll sleep during the night.  Unfortunately, we were far from successful, and Palesa and I were both up since 4:30 am.

Chelsea, Amy, and Palesa

Little Palesa

34.5 weeks

Hello all,

For the second weekend in a row, I was back in Vermont this past weekend. This time, I was there for a Childbirth Educator Training course in Montpelier, which was a great time! It was extra special as well to see a very special newlywed couple, who was gracious enough to host me!

Osei spent the weekend representing the May family in NYC at our Goddaughter's 3rd birthday. I wish I could share the video of her enthusiastic WOW reaction to the floor puzzle (a map of the USA) he gave her! I got choked up when Osei told me about the gift, mainly thinking how much I loved my nerdy husband for selecting such a cool educational toy. Thinking about it makes me very excited to see Osei with his own daughter or son.

Pregnancy is chugging along at an alarmingly quick rate. It is shocking to think that I'll be considered "full term" in another 2 weeks (but full term means the baby will likely be born anywhere within the next 2-7 weeks, but hopefully closer to about 5 weeks). Osei and I are planning on a homebirth and slowly preparing to get ready for birthing.


Finally, I wanted to share an interesting pregnancy tidbit you all might want to know! Even if you're not a Patriots fan, you have to admit that Tom Brady is an amazing quarterback. In fact, he and Osei definitely have a lot in common (especially the good looks). Tom Brady and his wife (who happens to be supermodel Gisele Bundchen) also live in the Boston area and also had a homebirth. Just thought you would enjoy knowing how much Tom has in common with Osei!

Hugs and blessings to all!

XOXO,

Amy, Osei and baby Omee

33.5 weeks

Hello all,

We are happy to report another big adventure for this past week!

Last Wednesday, we had a wonderful visit with Osei's parents (who are both extremely excited to meet their first grandchild). After work on Thursday, we headed up to Vermont for a weekend of wedding festivities and to celebrate the marriage of my dear dear friend (and my oldest friend!) Chelsea to her now-husband, Dave.

Osei, Omee, and I also spent 3 days camping at a pond recreation area. Our new tent is a massive barn of a tent- it sleeps 8 people and was big enough to stand up in. We had an air mattress, and the ground itself was incredibly soft to begin with. We brought a few extra pillows, and it was remarkably comfortable. We both slept so well that we hardly even heard the team of college rugby players (at least 30 of them!) crammed into the campsite next to us!

We probably also slept so well because we were so exhausted from all of the fun wedding activities! The bachlorette party was breakfast and a hike, followed by a day of working on the farm where the wedding was to be held. I was first in line to volunteer for picking blueberries (and actually picked more than I ate this time). Saturday we all went orienteering. This took place in the woods, and we were given a topographical map with little controls located all over the map area (1 square mile). Each team had to navigate and find as many of the controls as possible, competing against the clock and other teams. We certainly weren't the fastest team, but we were far from last! Saturday night we all went Contra dancing, (which is the New England version of square dancing), and I can't honestly remember the last time I had so much fun. I would highly recommend trying it!

The wedding on Sunday was beautiful, and it was an honor to see two people I care about so much get to marry their best friend. I know from experience that there is nothing greater than being married and getting to spend the rest of your life with your best friend! The wedding was on a beautiful hilltop meadow, overlooking lush Vermont mountains and surrounded by foggy forrests. Due to the wet grass, I opted to go barefoot for the ceremony (I was a bridesmaid). The sun emerged just as the ceremony ended, and I think I will always remember standing in a beautiful field that looked like something from the Sound of Music, barefoot, pregnant, and with the sun now shining. And as if it couldn't get any more perfect, little kids carrying bowls of blueberries and blackberries ran around feeding us delicious treats grown on the bushes around us.

After all the fun we had this weekend, I also realized that I'm definitely not finished being pregnant yet! Which is a good thing, because I have about 6 more weeks to go, but right now I am enjoying this pregnancy so much that I'm not ready for it to be over!

Hugs and blessings to all,


Amy, Osei, and Omee

28.5 weeks- Third Trimester!

Hello all,

This picture is from nearly a week ago, at 28.5 weeks, taken last weekend in Canada.

Osei and I spent a very romantic weekend in Quebec at a little mountain lake (Lac Morency) in a town called Saint Hippolyte, about an hour north of Montreal. We stayed at a timeshare, given to us by my very fabulous in-laws as a wedding present. It was the perfect blend of staying in a nice resort (hello- jacuzzi in our room! I'm sold), and being outdoors in an incredibly beautiful and natural setting. We envisioned using a timeshare for a honeymoon, but then life got too busy and it never happened. So instead we had a babymoon! Osei and I had a wonderful time- canoeing in the lake, hiking in the mornings, swimming in the pools, and of course, wonderful time spent together. We love getting to visit friends and family all over the country (and we love using that as an excuse to travel), but this was the first time when we traveled just for us, with no errands to do, people to see, or activities to attend.

We had a perfect blend of cooking meals ourselves in our condo and enjoying some delicious meals locally as well. It is possible that each of us are still full from the amazing brunch we had last Sunday. On Monday, we also spent the day in Montreal before driving back to Boston (only about 6 hours away). We made a slight detour on the way home to visit the Ben & Jerry's ice cream factory in Vermont. Though we didn't take the tour, we certainly enjoyed some ice cream!

Baby Omee is doing very well. We had our prenatal this week too, and baby is growing and moving as much as ever. I love seeing my belly move from the outside, and the movements have become so much more defined that sometimes I feel like I'm being tickled from the inside- it makes me jump!

I hope everyone is doing well too! We are thinking of all of you!

Hugs and blessings to all,

Amy, Osei, and baby omee.

A little cottage in the woods

Just before driving back to New York.  

The pretty red roof

Our cottage in Vermont sat on a peninsula

I used to build (less elaborate) versions of the neighbor's house when I was a kid with Lincoln Logs

What could be more fun than this?

17 degrees outside.  Just past 4:00 am, post 8+hour drive (thanks, holiday weekend traffic).  One hill.  2 wheel drive.  4 brave guys.  

We would have hitch-hiked the last 2 miles to the house, except our stuck car was kind of blocking the road.  Not that dirt roads in Vermont get much traffic at that hour.  

We made it!  Champagne toast!  

Let's cook breakfast!

Our cottage in Vermont had an amazing gourmet kitchen.  

We had our own gourmet chef.

I got to be the sous chef!

We're not in Kansas anymore...

Saturday in Vermont I planned on doing a 14 mile run.  I used my favorite website, mapmyrun.com to plan out a route exactly from our cottage.  Just after 9 miles into the run, I knew something was amiss, because I couldn't seem to find the turnoff to the road that would take me back home.  

I doubled back to read the sign I'd ignored: "GPS Wrong.  Season Road. Turn around."  Ouch, painful.  The run ended up being 18.4 miles.  

The elevation profile says it all too... the red lines are 5% grade up-hills.  That is steep.  I was suffering on the outbound run, but paced myself, because it was only (supposed to be) 14 miles.  The downhill was so steep too I that I had to break myself from flying forward into the muddy/icy roads.  On the return journey, those hills hurt even worse... especially because it lasted over 2 miles.  I don't think I've experienced that run that intense...ever.  If a human emotion could be experienced on a run, I felt it.  Except, great running wisdom will tell you it is pretty impossible to both cry and run at the same time, and going up a 5% grade, breathing is more important.  

At one point, I turned to look at a farm next to the road, where the horses all stood next to the fence watching me (perplexed, if a horse can look perplexed).  Maybe this falls under the hallucination category, but I swear the horses whispered, "Go Amy!  You can do it!  Keep going!"  

Despite a little more adventure than I bargained for, this was one of the most beautiful runs ever.  Though chilly in the shade, the weather was sunny and perfect (especially for mid February, Vermont).  And those hills...?  Bring 'em!!

Come Visit us in Vermont!

Though I should be packing to go to Vermont, I'm doing the next best thing and writing about it!  We'll drive up from Serge's house tonight (it should take almost 7 hours!)

Funny thing too, because I've been listening to several different Russian language tapes and podcasts, and they all mention Vermont in the dialogues and vocabulary lists.  

For example, Christy tells Alseski that she is from Vermont.  She was born there and her family lives in Vermont.  She then goes on to say that her family has a house in the country (but not a dacha), but that she lives in an apartment.

Aleski asks Christy, "Does your apartment have all the modern conveniences?"  

"Yes," she says, "We have hot water, a bathroom and a toilet in our apartment!"  

"How interesting!" says Aleski.

"Come visit us in Vermont!"