this blog shall hence be known as the "Birthdays and Babies Blog"

is

and

.

just because

just because this is one of my favorite pictures, and just because nothing says Christmas like someone's bum in a pole meant for a salvation army collection bucket.

awooka's a'comin'

in 10 DAYS OR LESS.

in no more than 240 hours, this smooshy little face will be in my arms.

and just like that, we'll be a family of four.

:)

oh, if laughing could induce labor...

...awooka would have been born on wednesday night.

the aunt that always has treats

Happy Birthday, Mary!!

KATIE!

dear katie,

no one takes credit for a sand castle they didn't build quite like you do.

happy birthday!!

still funny

This site has made me laugh. all. day.

thank goodness we took the pacifier away

i will admit that the duck is the tastiest of the puzzle pieces.

welcome back, me

hi! it's been a few short months since i last checked in (unless you count all the times i've talked to ya'll for real, like in person or on the phone or in e-mail or on myspace or facebook or in a text message...).

here's what we missed:
happy easter, maeve dipped her toes in the ocean, mother's day, father's day, mike passed all his exams, i got pregnant, we welcomed a new nephew, friends came to visit, julia turned two, maeve turned one, katie moved home (!), mike started school again, i found some fun new blogs, and i wound up 6 months pregnant.

now that we're up to speed, i'll see you in 5 months. or tomorrow.

found

this is neat.

you've gotta teach 'em young

my birthday's coming up...

hey! so, esther got to this before i could, but i've been meaning to post this for a while. my birthday is coming up (march 22nd), and i would be elated if anyone available could join the bone marrow registry. how, you may ask? excellent question! it generally costs about 50 bucks to join (yes, you have to pay to donate...), but on March 24th there will be a free drive at St. Andrew's in Kenmore. all it takes to join the registry is a swab of the inside of your cheek. from that, they can run some tests and see if you are a "match." for so many people that have leukemia and lymphoma, this is there ONLY shot. and if it works, it can be a cure- an honest to God cure for their cancer. the likelihood that a patient will find a perfect match is pretty rare, so many times patients will settle for a mismatch. in these cases, the patient still has a chance, but the likelihood of it working is significantly less.

i see these patients every day. the day they find out there's a match for them is one of the happiest days of their lives. it gives them hope, because for now, this is their best, and sometimes only, chance of survival.

if you are found to be a match, the donation process goes one of two ways. either you will be asked to donate some blood, and the stem cells from that blood will be transfused into the patient, or you will be asked to donate actual marrow. in that case, it is a small surgical procedure you would have done at the hospital. you would not be in the hospital more than one day, but it would require a couple days of recovery at home. because this is an option, please make your decision to become a donor carefully - i've never seen disappointment like that of a patient when they find out their donor has backed out.

so! if you can become a donor, happy birthday to me! if not, you can buy me a beer. or peeps.

here's the nitty gritty:

SATURDAY, MARCH 24, 2007

ST. ANDREW'S PARISH in McNULTY HALL

1525 SHERIDAN DR, KENMORE, NEW YORK 14217

11:00 AM-2:00PM

also, there's more info here.

also, here's a picture of my baby and her daddy.

seriously, mom? with the bow?

i'm over you, blogger.

hi! i'm not blogging for a while. big shock, right? i have pictures to frame and cheeks to smoosh. so you'll just have to call me, mom, if you want to know what's going on. ta!

my new camera?

i LURVE it.