The Secret Is Out!

Boy? Girl? Mermaid?

Well, I don't think it was that much of a secret. I have a feeling my lack of drinking and dropping off the face of the earth for a while kind of started rumors. Not to mention the "thing to do" right now is be preggers, so really I'm just following it "It"crowd. Or maybe I just really want to get a good jump on crossing things off my 40 before 40 list! In fact I'm killing two birds with one stone, because becoming a mother (#1) has forced me to finish a regimen of vitamins! I have been a Nazi about my prenatal vitamins and I think I have only missed 1 or 2 days in over 13 weeks! So I can go ahead and cross #10 off my list too.
Seriously though it feels really good (and Uber strange) to have it out in the open. It's like we can't take it back (not that we could) and it's all over (Even though it's just begun). It's a very strange feeling that I'm only just starting to embrace.
Unfortunately with friends and family there have been allot of miscarriages around and it was always in the back of my mind, it still is. It never really occurred to me that a woman could just get pregnant, and have a baby. Just like that without a miscarriage. I forget that a healthy pregnancy is the Norm, not a miscarriage. Even after our second ultrasound and hearing the heart beat we were still a little apprehensive about telling the world. By then our family and close friends knew but it felt scary to put it out into the universe. And by universe I of course mean Facebook.
There will always be things to worry about, I know that will never stop. But if I don't sit back and enjoy the ride I will miss all of the fun!! So far everything is looking perfect and they say we are right on track so that is what I will focus on!
It was an easy first trimester especially compared to some of my poor friends. I heard so many horror stories that I was convinced something was wrong because I wasn't living with my head in a toilet! I think I was just lucky and I am so grateful for that! I've said it before, I never win anything and nothing really ever seems to go my way the first time around so I really beat the odds with not being sick! I mean it was no picnic. I constantly felt hungover, I couldn't stand the smell of ANYTHING, I always thought I was going to throw up but never did, I didn't poop for weeks, I couldn't sleep at night and I had ZERO appetite. The only thing that made me feel better was seltzer water and watching Ellen Degeneres. Seriously, who knew she was cure for morning sickness??
Pete has been beyond amazing. So supportive and encouraging. He is reading up on his Daddy books and trying to learn as much as he can. Even though I have raised children for the last 10 years, I still need to brush up on the basics. How much do you want to bet that my Mary Poppins Nanny magic will disappear when it comes to my own child. All this time people thought I had the magic touch, but maybe it only works on children not of my womb!! Can't think like that...
We are going to find out the sex. A. I'm such a planner I really don't think I could just wing it when the baby gets here. and B. I wouldn't want even a second of disappointment when I see my baby for the first time. I fear that my "mothers intuition" would take a wrong turn and I would be convinced it was a boy and start bonding with my son. Then when "he" finally arrives and they tell me it's a girl, I just know there would be that split second heart brake and I can't take that. So for our first child at least, I definitely want to know the sex. I'm sure everyone has their own feelings about it and I'd be really interested to find out why you did what you did and for what reason!
I feel like I am training for a marathon now. I am just an information junky and would love to hear any stories (Only the good ones. Yup - No more horror please) about the birth of your children or your pregnancy! As soon as I get my energy up it's off to prenatal yoga and our first childbirth class. Can't wait to see Pete with that Sympathy belly on! He's going to be such an amazing father and I am so grateful to have him with me on this journey!! We are 13 weeks down and the clock is ticking until June. I always look forward to summer, but this summer will be like no other!

Thirties Shmirties

I have been meaning to get this post up for some time now, about 10 months to be exact. Maybe I was too busy crossing things off my list! You see, when I turned thirty I didn't feel the Grim Reaper on my shoulder or a pain in my chest caused by all the things I have yet to achieve. Instead I felt hope and excitement for what is to come.
I loved my twenties! I graduated college, fell in love, moved out on my own, starred in numerous plays and movies, traveled the world, found my soul mate, got married, adopted a dog... But most of my twenties were about reclaiming my youth. They were about pure gluttony and partying until 3am and getting up at 8:00am for work 6 days a week. They were about squeaking by in every sense of the word and burning the candle at every end possible. I wasn't really concerned with things like settling down, having a career or starting a family. But towards the end of the decade those things started to become more clear, as the image I had of myself became more clear. Dreams and desires became more defined and I had a better image of what kind of life I wanted to live.
I turned thirty on a cruise with my husband and some great friends. Instead of wanting to throw myself off the boat for feeling "old" I went zip lining and promised to embrace as much of my thirties in a positive way as possible. Now that the gluttony was out of my system, I vowed to take everything I learned in the last thirty years and apply it to a new life!
My best friend and her husband decided to make "40 before 40" lists when they turned 30. I love this idea, it shows that they are embracing their thirties and want to make sure they are really living life. Well I love lists, sometimes I make lists of lists I have to make! It's so satisfying to cross of each item!  I figure by making it public, it will make it harder to ignore. It's not all about doing huge, world changing things like curing AIDS, it's about doing things that you have never done before. It's about living the way you always dreamed you could. Each item you cross off your list, is confirmation that you are living the life you want and it's a great reminder to live life to the fullest.
So here is my list, though I have had to tweak it a million times, the first three lists looked like a travel channel line up. I had to really search for things that involved more than traveling - that's a list of its own! But the good news is, that I have already started to cross things off. My plan as the days, months and years tick by is that I complete AT LEAST 32 of these items before I'm 40. It's a good number. And who knows, the list may change and I'm sure I'll add more but for now I like the looks of it. The travel list may take a bit longer, but that's okay.

Katie's 40 before 40 List

1. Be a mother
2. Own a house - CHECK BITCHES!
3. Bake something from scratch by actually following a recipe to the T
4. Run a 5K (though its awful for my knees)
5. Cut down my own Christmas tree
6. Host a big Thanksgiving meal
7. Have my writing published
8. Own my own successful business
9. Get into a REAL exercise routine. One that becomes a way of life as opposed to doing it when I can.
10. Follow a regimen through, whether it is a bottle of vitamins or a tooth whitening kit, JUST FINISH IT!
11. Take 1-2 classes in interesting things every year i.e. photography, cooking, writing, pottery...
12. Learn another language enough to hold a real conversation.
13. Try snowboarding
14. Meet Tom Hanks, Chris Martin, Ellen Degeneres or Mandy Patinkin, hug them and say Thank You.
15. Learn how to knit or sew
16. Volunteer with endangered animals
17. Learn how to play Black Jack - like for real not just yelling HIT ME and crying when I loose $5.00
18. Get certified in SCUBA
19. Learn to horseback ride
20. Sing at an open mike night
21. Learn how to play the Ukulele
22. See the Aurora Borealis
23. Put together a real family tree for both sides
24.  Blog at least 3 times a week for at least 6 months - What What this is two for the week!
25. Write a Children's Book Series
26. Learn to drive stick - it's important for emergency escapes
27. Take a spontaneous last minute vacation
28. Watch the AFI top 100 Movies

29. Complete all my old scrap books that are lying around and then remain up to date on photo albums.

30. Be on Wheel Of Fortune

31. Enter at least one contest a week. I never win anything, but I never play either.
32. Be more computer Savy
32. Commit and study to be REALLY REALLY good at something not just skate by on being kinda good at a bunch of things

33. Get back into Dancing and explore different kinds beyond Modern and Hip Hop.

34. Plant a real vegetable Garden

35. Learn how to take a compliment

36. Be an extra in a major movie - with actual screen time
37. Order at least one new thing when eating out, instead of going to the old standbys!
38. Be at an ideal weight and stay there

39. Get rid of all the hidden crap in my closets, basement, sheds that we don't use but hold onto.

40. Learn how to rock climb

Katie's Travel/Adventure List

1. Go to our homelands and hunt down old relatives

2. Spend Christmas in Europe

3. Ride a gondola in Venice and be there for Carnival
4. See the Grand Canyon
5. Drive Cross Country

6. Visit AT LEAST 5 more states that I have never been to.

7. Climb The Eiffel Tower and read a book in a café in Paris

8. Revisit the Vatican and see the Sistine Chapel (I purposely didn't go in when I was there to insure that I would return)

9. Go to Churchill and See polar bears in their natural habitat
10. Take a cruise to Alaska and kayak next to a glacier
11. Explore Machu Pichu
12. See the pyramids in Egypt
13. Go on an African Safari
14. Swim with great white sharks in South Africa - or lets be completely honest, maybe be on a boat, safely away from the side, in water that is near where a great white shark might be sleeping…
15. Spin a globe with my eyes close, point and go there.
16. Ride an elephant in Thailand maybe hit a full moon party and see the Grand Palace
17. Scuba the Great barrier Reef
18. Pet some sheep in New Zealand maybe go zorbing and see whales in Kaikoura
19. Go to an Ice Hotel in Sweden
20. Float in the Dead Sea
21. Visit a concentration camp
22. Wear a fuzzy hat in front of the Kremlin.
23. Revisit India and do all the things we were too scared to do and be there for Holi
24. Blow Bubbles on the Brooklyn Bridge
25. Live like a local somewhere for at least a month
26. Trek along the great wall of China
27. Be in Spain for La Tomatina
28. Stay in a hotel room on stilts on the ocean in a place like Bora Bora or Bali
29. Visit Stonehenge
30. Spend the night in a castle in Scotland or Ireland
31. Make a phone call in a London Red Phone Booth
32. Visit the Temples of Angkor in Cambodia
33. Visit Easter Island and see the Moai
34. Go Camping
35. Visit the Croatian coast and Islands
36. Go to Martha’s Vineyard or Nantucket
37. Hit at least 5 American random festivals or large food factories
38. Trek through the Amazon - when all the bugs have been removed
39. Take a super fancy train ride through the Alps
40. Swim with dolphins, whales or manatees

Do you have a list? Cause you should...
Cheers - here's to a life of adventure and living each day to it's fullest!