Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Chi Tri 2013

Augy and I watched Neal swim in the Chicago Triathalon this past weekend, woo, woo!
It was a hot 90 degrees and a big Chicago weekend for our little babe!
I love race environments and so even though it was a hard day with a newborn, the fun of the day was worth it to me.
Augy did great especially with the extra hands of my mom and sister; he's such a flexible baby.
I was grateful though for a little validation from a triathlete who walked by with her bike and saw me with Augy.
"That is way harder than this" she said with a good natured laugh.
Thanks, lady!

Augy took his first L ride, first taxi cab ride, went to the race Expo in the Loop,
watched the race at Lake Michigan and Millennium Park, and joined my family at classic Chicago restaurants Maggiano's and Portillo's.
His Chicago onesie turned out to be a blast of a wardrobe choice.

Neal completed the one mile swim leg of the triathalon, while my brother Parker biked and my brother-in-law Paul ran.  They were a serious team and ended up getting 10th out of all the men's teams, what what!

You made us proud Neal!

Tuesday, August 27, 2013

First Road Trip Home

I started writing August's birth story (read Part I here), but after waiting almost six weeks for time to write it, I finally came to the realization that I'll have to work on it in little bits at a time.
(This is just a small example of the huge learning curve of parenthood I'm on.)
This might violate some of your sense for order and chronology (and most of all, mine) but there will be daily life posts scattered between the birth story since I don't want to lose too much of life along the way just because I'm still writing the birth story.
Probably when I'm done I'll go back and paste the whole story together.
Until then sorry in advance, and here's to hoping Augy takes a few good naps so I can write!

In the meantime, here is a collection of photos from Augy's first road trip home.
He and I made the trip alone the weekend he turned one month old while Neal was out of town for work.  That drive was so scary and so liberating.
He was welcomed by country air, all four great grandparents, Grammy and Big Papa, aunties, uncles, and cousins, score!
The weather was absolutely gorgeous, and Augy took all his naps and bottles outside swinging on the porch swing or under the back pergola.
It seems like my Augy is a little country mouse, because he soaked. it. all. up.
As for me, I ate peach pie every day and got some naps in while my mom and sister snuggled Augy.
Being that I'm some combination of so tired, so happy, and I-don't- know-what-I'm-doing, the support of family has never felt more important, special, and needed to me than in these first days and weeks of motherhood.
It all felt so good that I ended up delaying my return to the city and staying for a few more days (Hello maternity leave, I love you!).
Can't wait to go back this weekend as a family of three for Labor Day!

Monday, August 26, 2013

August Wells: A Birth Story, Part I

Thursday night July 18th, the movie Sleepless in Seattle played in the quiet space of our corner apartment.  It was an unusual quiet in our home that evening, a rare ceasing of activity and errands and obligations and rushing.  Read: A rare ceasing from the neurotic nesting that had overtaken me in the past couple months.  Neal and I had just come home from Chipotle where I sat across from him in that ever-familiar line of booths, gulping down an icy fountain Coke (my irresistible craving of the third trimester) and tried to breathe.

Earlier that evening Neal picked me up from my 39 week OB appointment.  When I slid into the car in my coral maxi dress, dressed up as I always did for my baby appointments,  he asked "So?  Anything?"  Feeling shaky and excited that I actually had news to share, I told him that our doctor said she thought I'd have the baby this weekend, a week before my due date.  I was thrilled to have news about dilation and effacement and all those words that you begin hoping for in those last weeks but I also felt panic rise, mixed with doubt.  Mentally, I wasn't ready yet.  I felt normal, good even.  I wasn't feeling "done" with pregnancy the way I hear women feel at the end.  The next day was to be my last day of work before maternity leave and after that, I had planned a week to prepare for baby, for birth, for motherhood, for change.

In the car on the way to dinner I didn't call anyone with the news from the doctor appointment.  Calling my bestie Kirra would just upset her for nothing; she was in CA and would worry that she wouldn't make it home in time.  Calling my mom and Tiff would just create agitation and excitement needlessly, since I really didn't feel like the baby was coming.  But at the same time, somewhere somehow in some part of me I must have known, because when Neal asked what errands I wanted to do after Chipotle I said, "Nothing.  Let's just go home and watch a movie."  Strange for me to suggest it, strange for him to agree to it, but it's what we did.

While I watched the lights of Seattle light the screen of the movie, I remember noticing the lights of Chicago slowly come on through our floor-to-ceiling corner windows in a sky not yet dark, but lit in a summer twilight kind of way.  We never watch movies that early, and almost never on week nights.  But there we were, and I will always remember how that night felt.  Like our life took a slow, deep inhale while we held each other in the quiet of our home.

To be continued...

Tuesday, August 13, 2013

August Wells

City Lights is thrilled to announce the arrival of 
August (Augy) Wells Anderson
born July 20, 2013 
at 4:32am
8 lbs, 10 oz
21 inches

August means "great, mighty" 
and is the name of his great, great, great grandfather.
Wells is for Wells Street, the street in Chicago where Neal and I met.

I'm working on writing his birth story, but mostly we are enjoying him, our family & friends, and these gorgeous days out and about when we're not too tired!
Welcome to the world, Augy.
In three weeks of knowing you, we can tell you're ready for it all!