Update

My husband has been in full-on 'Babygate '08' mode. Nevermind the fact that we don't have a name picked out for the child. (Seriously. Not even a 'if they're kicking us out of the hospital and we need something for the birth certificate' name.) Instead of figuring out what we will name the bugger, my husband has moved on to his own version of nesting. He wants to have the nursery ready by March 1 (yes, this Saturday) and has been burning through child-rearing books at a pace usually reserved for Sports Illustrated or home theater magazines. He even tore open the car seat base (one of the gifts from my parents for our shower on March 15 that was delivered to our house with explicit instructions that it not be opened until the shower) and spent most of Saturday figuring out how to install it in our cars. Every five minutes he'd run back in the house with an update and a look of pride in his ability to figure out the mess of hooks, belts and fasteners.

I've been busting my butt on little one's bedding and associated nursery goods and while I doubt I'll hit the March 1 husband-imposed deadline, it's been fun planning everything. I'm excited to get it done so I can show it off but until then, sneak peeks of the planning process will have to suffice.

About a week ago, I put aside my other work and whipped out a few appliqued onesies for a friend that's having triplets. I always enjoy making gifts for multiples - finding ways to make items that are similar enough to be part of a set but different enough to avoid the dreaded matching outfit syndrome - and think these came out particularly cute. I hope nobody ever figures out how easy it is to make these onesies (I think I finished three onesies in under 45 minutes) - by far one of my favorite baby gifts to make and give.

Between childbirth classes, infant CPR training, pediatrician appointments, the every-other-week (soon to be every week) doctor's appointments, a few trips to the UGA Small Animal Teaching Hospital (another story for another time) and lunches with friends who I know I won't have time to see once the kid makes an appearance, I managed to accomplish two things off of my 101 list.

Earlier this month I visited my friend Stew's opening of his Painted Flower a Day project. I loved reading about it and seeing him give away flowers as the year progressed - the show was the proverbial icing. He did a great job of putting it all together and, at the risk of sounding patronizing, I'm damn proud of him. My flowers (the original flower he gave me in August and the new flower I cut out at the show that night) are hanging from the shelf in my studio, just waiting for the next time I need a little boost of inspiration.

Although I'm not running now (the basketball lodged in my abdomen makes it a little difficult), my husband has been enjoying his Christmas present and I plan to join him in hitting the pavement once little Tito makes his appearance and my body returns to its non-freaklike state. Although we both know we should carry identification while running outside, neither of us ever goes through the effort of pulling our license out of our wallet and finding a place to hold it that won't cause chafing of very sensitive body parts. (Plus, if you've ever been to the DMV in Atlanta, you know that the idea of losing your license and having to wait for a new one is enough to make a person lock their license in a vault and only remove it in case of an emergency.) The answer to this dilemma? Road ID. For less than the cost of a new license, I have my very own Road ID complete with vecro strap and 4 'in case of emergency' numbers. I was impressed with how quickly it arrived and how light it really is (a consideration for my husband who already has the Nike kit attached to one shoe). Good peace of mind - especially since my husband is often running by himself while traveling in towns where he doesn't know a soul.

Other than that, life is pretty darn normal. I'm still wearing my 4" heels, going to yoga twice a week and feeling great. I'm finally at peace with the fact that I'm huge and while I'm told that there will come a point when I'll want to serve the child an eviction notice, for now I'm fine with him hanging out and making his presence known every once and a while with a kick in the ribs.

I'm alive

"How long do you have to go?" a co-worker asked the other day.

I did a little math in my head and immediately freaked out. "Two and a half months," I answered. I will have a child in two and a half months. Holy shit.

I've been busy - some of it baby related, most of it not. But, I got a pretty new toy for Christmas so hopefully the posts - complete with pretty pictures - will resume in fierce action.

Anyone who knows me knows I'm a compulsive list maker - I'm of the 'if I don't write it down I'll forget it' school of thought which leads to a big purse full of notecards and notebooks full of various lists.

I've been reading Zandria's posts about her list for a while. When I swore off television for a week and thought about taking on a new challenge each week for a year, she suggested creating a list of my own; I wasn't ready then but earlier this week when I looked at my growing 'things I want to do' and 'long term projects' lists, I decided I'd give it a shot.

Although the organizers of the challenge have their own rules, I created some of my own. Each task had to be something that had a purpose - to push me outside of my comfort zone, do something I've always wanted to do but haven't made the time to do, better the community. I also had to have control over accomplishing them - while I'd love to do a ton of travel over the next 1,001 days, I know that scheduling, the baby, and finances may not permit me to take all of the trips I'd like to.

I stole a few items from Zandria and others who are taking the challenge and came up with a list of my own. I'm very excited about the results - it will take some work but it's totally attainable. It made me think about what is important to me - what I really need and want to accomplish - and has helped me cut down the amount of stuff in my purse.

My last day will be October 29, 2010 (I'll have a 2-year-old by then!) Maybe I'll plan a big Halloween party to celebrate! Wish me luck!

101 Things in 1,001 Days

My 101 things in 1,001 (February 1, 2008 - October 29, 2010) Days.

Wanna know how this started?

Wanna make your own?

Health/Fitness:
1. Run a 5K in under 29 minutes
2. Run a half-marathon in under 2:30
3. Do at least one session with a personal trainer
4. Do 5 unassisted pull-ups
5. Take a spinning class
6. Do at least 1 Pilates session or class
7. Do yoga every day for one week
8. Complete all of the iTrain workouts on my iPod at least once
9. Make and drink my own vegetable juice every day for one week
10. Eat raw for 3 days in a row
11. Keep a food journal for one month

Projects:
12. Organize basement
13. Finish and hang keepsake handkerchiefs frames
14. Clean windows
15. Organize spice jar and throw away any spices older than a year old
16. Organize pantry
17. Get bikes tuned-up and repaired
18. Visit pottery supply store and buy supplies to make something with kiln
19. Get grandmother’s singer sewing machine serviced
20. Get artwork framed and/or buy portfolio in which to store it
21. Get car rims repaired
22. Finish Mark’s band scrapbook
23. Create wedding scrapbook
24. Create baby scrapbook
25. Organize photos (put hard-copy photos in albums, make CDs of digital photos and order prints/albums of photos from trips)
26. Organize magazine clippings in moleskine notebooks
27. Rip all CDs to computer and transfer music from old computer to hard drive
28. Buy furniture for TV and components
29. Create landscaping plan for house

Creative:
30. Learn to play ‘Have a Little Faith’ on piano
31. Learn to play one song on guitar
32. Take a photography class or workshop focusing on people, flash or technique
33. Build photography portfolio by photographing at least 3 friends’ children; send each friend at least one framed print from the session as a thank you
34. Take a photo every day for 30 days
35. Make 3 pottery gifts using kiln
36. Take a pottery class

Business/Professional:
37. Get Jigabug products featured in at least one bricks and mortar store
38. Participate in at least 2 craft shows
39. Post to my blog 4 times a week for 2 weeks in a row

Sewing:
40. Make t-shirt quilt
41. Finish polka dot quilt
42. Finish Asian quilt
43. Make dining chair covers
44. Finish all of the projects currently started and all of those on my ‘projects’ list

Personal Development:
45. Finish novel
46. Read 24 books in 12 months
47. Read at least 5 books off of my bookshelf
48. Read at least 4 non-fiction books
49. For at least 5 days a week for 2 weeks in a row, wake up 60 minutes early and write for at least 45 minutes
50. For at least 5 days a week for 3 weeks in a row, spend at least 30 minutes each night writing, reading or sewing
51. Spend 2 days without spending any money
52. Go 30 days without buying anything other than food or essentials
53. Learn elementary Italian (through a class or tapes)
54. Each day for one week, write down 3 things that day that made me happy or thankful
55. Identify 100 things that make me happy
56. Go 3 days without saying anything negative
57. Leave a 100% tip
58. Pay for someone behind me in the drive-through line
59. Get rid of 20 useless items
60. Get rid of 20 useless pieces of clothing
61. Learn to cook at least 2 Indian dishes
62. Make homemade pasta and tomato sauce for dinner one night
63. Go to the movies alone
64. Teach someone how to do something I know how to do
65. Find 3 ways to be greener and put them to use

Community:
66. Volunteer for at least 8 hours with an organization I believe in
67. Find two charities I support and give them each a donation
68. Sew or knit something or someone less fortunate (Project Linus, hospital gown, etc.)
69. Buy only local fruits and vegetables for one week
70. Learn to identify 10 native trees, plants or flowers
71. Go to at least 2 art, photography or other exhibits
72. Visit the Martin Luther King, Jr. Historic Site
73. Visit Oakland Cemetery
74. Visit the Atlanta Zoo
75. Go to a flea market
76. Walk or use public transportation for 2 days in a row

Friends and Family:
77. Host a wine and cheese tasting
78. Host ‘guilty pleasures’ party
79. Bake or cook something for my neighbors ‘just because’
80. Send a random ‘just because’ card to someone once per week for 4 weeks in a row
81. Do a family picnic
82. Take at least one good picture of the baby each week
83. Give Mark a 30 minute massage
84. Go support a friend at a concert, reading, race or other event Done 2/08
85. Give only handmade gifts for one occasion
86. Send 5 postcards from vacation
87. Take a trip somewhere exotic or fun for Mark’s 40th birthday
88. Ski Whistler
89. Create a will

Random Fun Things:
90. Ask for input from friends and, using feedback, compile a list of the 20 ‘essential’ albums and, if I don’t own them, buy them
91. Ask for input from friends and, using feedback, compile a list of the 100 ‘essential’ songs; if I don’t own them, buy them and create a playlist of the songs.
92. Grow a vegetable garden
93. Grow an herb garden that can be moved inside during the winter
94. Wear makeup every day for a week
95. Wear jewelry every day for a week
96. Whiten teeth
97. Get laser hair removal
98. Buy a fire extinguisher, first aid and emergency kit for home
99. Order a road IDs Done 2/08

100. Donate $5 to charity for each task not complete
101. Make a new list of 101 things before October 29, 2010