Because we couldn’t go to the Coachella Music Festival this year, the regrettably human and therefore illogically petty part of my brain wants to believe it has already jumped the shark. So why am I sitting here anxiously waiting for the live webcast to start?

Earlier today I was on ROFLCon watching this session‘s live webcast. The online chatters who were watching the discussion with me were all being “extra special,” especially once the live Q and A turned to issues of gender and race, so I left. I guess I could have tried to challenge my fellow chatters, but I really wasn’t in the mood. Now I wish I had watched the LOLCATS session. At least they were willing to address the gender issue.

A couple of friends suggested that I update my Facebook profile with the progress of my labor. (Not that it’s started yet.) My response? So not gonna happen! But I offered to text them when I head to the hospital.

Categories: music, news, pregnancy
Comments Off

Monday morning, while I was still struggling to get out of bed, Kevin went to the kids’ room. By the time I finally got up, they were already out of pajamas and in their school clothes. Kevin pointed out that he had dressed them both in green.

“That’s nice,” I said absent-mindedly. Meanwhile I dressed myself in blue. It wasn’t until I got to work that I realized it was St. Patrick’s Day. Duh.

I’m in the 34th week now. For some reason my weight hasn’t changed. I’m still at +20, but it feels like +100. My backaches come and go with no apparent cause other than the fact that I’m in the 3rd trimester. When I sit too close to or on the ground, it takes me a long time to get up on my feet. And forget about climbing stairs. You might as well be suggesting I climb Mt. Everest.

The baby’s movements have been intense. Sometimes she’ll jab or kick so hard that you can actually see her fist or foot against my skin, stretching it several inches out. Kevin has been taking video. I’m too self conscious to share them at this moment. Maybe I’ll change my mind later.

We’ve had American Idol Encore for 5 days now and we’re still singing our hearts out. Alex has almost mastered “Black Hole Sun” and “Rio,” and tonight he started learning “I Just Died in Your Arms.” Kevin’s been getting great scores on pretty much every song he tries, even ones with female vocals, like Madonna’s “Holiday” and Fergie’s “Glamorous.” My (now not so) secret ambition is to get 100% on “Midnight Train to Georgia.” You can stop laughing now…

Categories: kids and parenting, music, pregnancy, toys
Comments Off

Last night was Alex’s last piano lesson. During the last 15 minutes he and his classmates performed a mini recital for the parents. It was adorable. I asked Alex if he wanted to sign up for another round of classes, and he said sure.

That picture up there is among the first I’ve taken since Ana’s birthday party. I haven’t been in a picture taking mood lately. In fact, I haven’t been in a mood to do much of anything lately. The third trimester is taking its toll on me. I’m at +20 lbs but it feels like +50 lbs. For the last week and a half I’ve been coming home from work exhausted every evening with my back feeling wretched. The only recent day when I’ve felt good was during my last checkup, when my doctor expressed shock at how well I was doing. As he put it, this is usually when pregnant women feel the most miserable. Ah, the irony!

Meanwhile, the only thing that’s been cheering me up is watching Youtube videos. Check out this hilarious interview with Daniel Radcliffe on the Ellen Degeneres Show. Hee! This interview with Emma Watson and Rupert Grint on French TV is pretty cool too (:

Categories: famous people, harry potter, kids and parenting, music
Comments Off

Two examples:

Today my sister came over and brought the kids Ratatouille on DVD as a belated Christmas gift. When we got to the scene where the food critic took a bite of his food and experienced the flashback, I started bawling.

Also, I’ve always appreciate opera, but I didn’t LOVE it until a few months ago, when I caught Paul Potts‘s performance on Britain’s Got Talent via Youtube. It turned me into a sobbing mess. Now I listen to the opera channel on Yahoo Radio.

Categories: famous people, food, music, pregnancy
2 Comments »

I’m having a rough week. Somehow I managed to mess up my back. Yesterday I was in so much pain I had to take the afternoon off. After an hour of sitting on the massage chair and a good night’s sleep, I’ve almost recovered, but there’s still a huge tender spot on my back. Kevin thinks it’s a pulled muscle.

Tuesday was Alex’s 8th birthday. The party with family and friends isn’t for another week, but we did have a cake for him to make a wish on and a present for him to open. I had to work late, so I didn’t get to have dinner with the birthday boy, but I did get home in time to hear all about his day, eat cake with him, and watch his eyes light up when he opened the present.

Wednesday was Alex’s first piano lesson. Kevin reported that there are four other kids in his group lessons. Also, the teacher seems to be really good at keeping the kids interested.

I’m thrilled. Music isn’t supposed to be punishment, and if Alex told me tomorrow that he’d really rather not take piano lessons, I’d say fine, let’s stop and find something better to do. But so far he likes it.

I asked if he’d want to play a band instrument when he hits 4th grade, and he said yes, he’d like to play the drums. (Yay for my wallet! Drumsticks and drum pads are cheap, haha!)

In other news, I’m a Second Life tard. A couple of friends and I got interviewed for an article about SL for a campus magazine, and the photographer wanted to take a picture of us with our avatars. Before we could get shooting, someone asked why my avatar had sticks for arms. I swear, I have no idea how they got that skinny. After much effort I found the setting for fattening up my arms, and in the process I managed to enlarge my hands until they looked like “man hands.” By then we had to get going, so I ended up taking pictures with my avatar as is. I must be the only person in SL with an avatar that’s uglier than I am in real life. How brilliant is that?

Categories: kids and parenting, music
1 Comment »