Some Graduation Pictures

Yesterday, I received a fun package in the mail from my master's professor, Dr. Reynolds. She sent me a CD-Rom of photos from my master's graduation back in May.

Why did she have pictures of my graduation to send me? Because Karl and I, despite our repeated promises to family, forgot to bring our camera to graduation! Fortunately, Dr. Reynolds had her camera and was kind enough to lend it to us for the afternoon and share the pictures. She's been trying to pass them to me since the end of May, but with moving and such it just didn't work out. So she generously mailed them to me.

Temple tuition dollars at work: large balloon displays.

My mom and I in front of the bust of Russell Conwell, Baptist minister and founder of Temple (formerly College) University. More balloons.

Resting comfortably and proud that no one can tell that I'm 5 months pregnant under my gown. Can I wear this thing to work tomorrow?

After 6 years, it's finally time to get my diploma now! They're going to read my name! I can't wait to get home and put my diploma in the expensive frame I bought at the bookstore!

What's this? No diploma? Despite the deceptive name "diploma ceremony," all they handed the graduates were empty diploma covers with a note that we could come to the office the following day to get them. My actual diploma ceremony occurred almost a week later. It consisted of me begging an old friend to let me in the office to get my diploma because whoever ran that office had left work early that day. A little anti-climatic perhaps, but I'll never forget it. To the right is the lovely Dr. Reynolds.

Karl's Birthday Celebration

Yesterday was Karl's birthday, so we went out to celebrate. I took Karl to Ted's Montana Grill, a steakhouse chain that we first visited in Philadelphia. The restaurant specializes in bison meat, which is much like beef but sweeter and (supposedly) healthier.

The closest Ted's to us is in Crystal City, Arlington. I picked up Karl from work downtown and we drove there. Someone gave me a substantial gift card to the restaurant as a thank-you gift, so I encouraged Karl to go ahead and get the bison filet mignon steak. He really enjoyed it! I had a chicken "sandwich" that was too big to eat as a sandwich. It was served on grilled sourdough and covered in monterey jack cheese, onions, and mushrooms. It was so big that I ended taking half of it home.

After dinner, we walked around the shops in crystal city, many of which were closed. But it was good to walk around after that big meal.

Happy Birthday, Karl!

Karl is 29 years old today. He was hoping for a baby as his birthday present, but it looks like that is not going to happen today. Well there is still 10 hours left in today, but I don't feel anything yet!

Another Susan Russo

I googled myself with the word "blog" today to see if this blog would come up or not. It did, but it was the 3rd hit on the list.

The first one is some other Susan Russo with her own blog. I only looked at it a little bit but it seems a little strange and infomercial-like. She defines professional sucess as moving into a prestigious golf community. hmmm....

http://www.susanrusso.com/power/index.php?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=38

"Mommy, look at that big girl!"

That's what I heard as I walked into a local mall last week.

I looked around for the source of the exclamation and for whoever the voice was referring to. My eyes came to rest on a six-year-old girl, mouth hanging open, hand outstretched, and finger pointing.... to me.

I'm not sure who was more embarrassed, me or her mother. I suppose I should have said something nice to make her feel better, but I just couldn't. Not out of malice, but because I was still in shock. My belly is nice and round now, but I don't really think of myself as a "big girl." Now I think the whole scene was hilarious. I'll have to post an updated pic of my big belly. I'll get Karl to take a picture of me tonight if I can remember.

I am 38 weeks pregnant today. I saw the doctor on Friday and her comment was "You could have the baby tomorrow, or we could be sitting here in 3 weeks talking about induction possibilities." Well he's still in there.

A lot of people ask me how I'm feeling. The answer is that I'm feeling good! I have a decent amount of energy, considering that it's difficult to sleep through the night due to lack of comfortable positions available. I'm not experiencing any of the common late-pregnancy ills such as heartburn or high blood pressure, which is a blessing. I do have occasional sciatic nerve pain. Apparently it is caused by the baby pressing against a nerve in my spine. I'll be walking normally, and out of nowhere I feel a lightning bolt of pain down my leg! It lasts only a moment and comes infrequently, but it is annoying for sure! But really I can't complain.

So if baby does want to stay in another week or two (or three) that's fine with me. But I am anxious to meet him and would be very excited if I went into labor as soon as I finish typing this post.

Speaking of which, Karl and I plan to bring my camera and laptop to the hospital with us for the birth. The hospital has a free wireless connection, so we could theoretically post pictures of the baby here within hours of birth. (There will be no "birth" pictures either taken or shared!) You can hedge your bets now regarding whether 1) We will actually remember to grab the computer, camera, cord, and batteries when it's time or; 2) if we have any energy or concern to follow through with all that after the birth.

More Visitor Fun!

Last weekend, our good friends Andrew and Heidi came for a visit. Besides bringing the cookie sheets we forgot to pack when we moved, they brought us their energy and excitement!

On Saturday, we took the metro to the mall and saw some sights. Behind us here is the Smithsonian castle, where James Smithson himself is entombed. It's also a cafe and visitor center.
Next, we walked through the Smithsonian sculpture garden. No, correction: Andrew, Heidi and Karl browsed the sculptures while I sat my pregnant self on a bench in the shade. I watched Karl take this picture from across the fountain.
Next we took the metro to the Kennedy center. Andrew met a very friendly outside the Saudi Arabian embassy. A very friendly squirrel, indeed!
We also walked by the infamous Watergate hotel. We later sent Karl back there to buy us Junior mints and Red Fish (they weren't the brand name "Sweedish Fish," but pretty close!) Who knew that there is both a CVS and a Safeway grocery store in the basement of the Watergate?

The Kennedy Center was the real reason for Heidi and Andrew's trip: a concert. But not just any concert! This was a free concert performance by four of the winners of the annual Accordian Society International Competition. I must admit that I wouldn't have gone on my own. But once I heard the performers, I was impressed! They played a repertoire from Classical to Modern, from contemplative to humorous. I didn't know the accordian was capable of such dynamic sensitivity. If you ever have the opportunity to hear a good accordian player, I mean a really good accordian player, don't miss out!

















On Sunday, after church, the guys walked to the Longworth buiding, next to the US Capitol, where Karl works. Meanwhile, the ladies sat in the shade at Starbucks.

Our house

Some people have asked to see a picture of the front of our house. Here it is, courtesy of my Dad. No that's not our minivan, it's his. Our little Ford is hiding behind it.

Next spring, I hope to do a little landscaping. I'm thinking a few hydrangeas and other bushes under the front windows, and a weeping Japanese maple or crepe myrtle in the center of the front yard, with a raised mulch bed bordered by flagstone. Anything to cut down on the amount of grass to mow! I'd also like to put a small pond to the right of the path. It will have to be less than 24" deep as per community regulations. Any deeper requires a 6-foot fence. And fences aren't allowed in the front yard. So it will be shallow if it makes it into the plan at all.

Or if you have a better landscaping idea, please leave it in the comments.

A downtown tour

Thanks to Dad for emailing me these pictures...I forgot my camera once again!

On Thursday, my dad and three sisters came for an overnight visit. After lunch on Thursday, we took what was meant to be a quick driving tour of downtown. But as we approached the Capitol Building and Supreme Court, the girls became excited and asked if we could go inside one of them. Fortunately, we found a free two-hour parking space only a few blocks away. We decided to visit the Supreme Court building, which was the closest to where we were. You can see in this picture how excited the girls were to be there! They ran up the stairs with amazing energy.
Court was not in session, so we got a generous glimpse of the courtroom. At the suggestion of the security guard in the main Supreme Court hall, we also went downstairs to the exhibit and gift shop area. We were so glad we did. We had no idea that there were so many paintings, sculptures, and documents down there. One was a statue of John Marshall, a former Chief Justice. Brooke took this picture of Dad and I.
We also were amazed with this beautiful circular staircase. It's closed off to foot traffic, but there is a landing for viewing. It is made of marble and is particularly special because the design needs no central railing or support.
Next, we got back in the van and headed towards the White House, which was requested by Brooke. Sadly, due to my lack of knowledge of downtown, it took us a while to find it. (The security blocking off a lot of vehciular traffic near it didn't help either.) But we saw lots of sights along the way, including this great view of the capitol.
But finally, we found the White House. First from the back, and then from the front. We pulled over in the van for less that a minute, enough to get a nice look and snap this picture.
It was a fun afternoon. The next day, Dad and the girls took me to my weekly doctor's appointment (baby is doing very well). Then Dad helped us with some household constuction projects before leaving in the afternoon. It was a great visit.

Three Years and Counting

Yesterday was our 3rd wedding anniversary. We celebrated by going to Olive Garden for dinner.

Weekend Fun

On Saturday, my mom and Gepi came down for a visit. They brought us some delicious produce from Lancaster County, some more baby items, and a few other things that I had been storing around the house.

Mom and I spent a lot of time in the nursery, mostly getting clothes organized. I have so much now that it is too much to hang in the closet. (Newborn through 12 mos sizes). The room is too small for a dresser, so we bought some Rubbermaid stackable drawers for inside the closet. So now things that are not easy to hang, like pants, onesies, blankets, and sleepers are stored in the drawers. That really helps!

Gep and Karl spent time together installing a "whole house" water filter, to reduce the chlorinated taste in our water. It worked! Karl and I are still so amused that we needed a filter in this home but not in downtown Philadelphia. Then Karl and Gep got the mower up and running. Gep even mowed the lawn for us. It needed it badly, even though the heat has kept the grass from growing too much since we moved in.

Since it was such a beautiful afternoon, we packed a picnic dinner and hopped on the metro to D.C. We visited the relatively new WWII memorial and well as the Vietnam Wall Memorial. I forgot to bring my camera and I'm so sad that I don't have a picture with us in it to post here. The WWII memorial is very beautiful. It's located on the mall between the Lincoln memorial and the Washington monument. It's sunken below grade for a very nice effect. There are two gates, one each for the Atlantic and Pacificconflicts. There are pilliars for each state and US territory from which a soldier came. In the center is a beautiful pool with fountains.

I didn't take these photos. I found them on Google images. Isn't it beautiful?


Yesterday, we all went to church together, then came home for a quick lunch before Mom and Gep left to go home.

Book Bargains

We also found a nice thrift store near our house. They sell children's books for 30 cents a piece on Saturdays. We found 9 books that we liked in mint condition! We could be very picky. There were many, many more, but we won't have any use for them for several years.

Three of them are brand new board books. I like the one with the sparkles in the flowers on each page. It should be very entertaining for baby!


We can't believe the selling price for this Disney book was only 30 cents! It's a very thick hardbound with many beautiful illustrations. It will make fun bedtime stories. There is also information about the making of each film. We have had fun looking through it ourselves!

A Day at the Museum

On Saturday, we hopped onto the metro and visited the National Air and Space museum. Free fun! It was a hot day, but the metro and museum are air conditioned. The museum is only about two blocks from the metro station.

Karl on the metro. It's a very pleasant, short ride.
We spent some time in the "beginnings of flight" area, and learned about record-breaking flights of .6 miles.
We spent the most time in the "space exploration" section of the museum. It's funny how the museum has changed since Karl and I were children. The US/Russian "space race" is more downplayed now. They removed the nuclear warheads that used to be so prominent. In their place is part of a collaborative space station between the US and Russia. I did notice that the US side (left) is bigger, though.
Karl remembers being amazed by this lunar module as a child. "They landed on the moon...in that???"

Phone is back up :)

Apparently the Verizon issue was a regional problem. We were without phone for a few days, and DSL for about 24 hours, but everything appears to be normal again! They're going to credit out bill appropriately.

It's a sad day for Verizon when I'm considering a switch to the notoriously un-reliable Comcast phone service in order to get more reliable service!

Good Old Verizon

Our phone service is out again. We're not sure how long it's been out, but we think it may have been as early as Saturday. For some strange reason, our DSL still works. I did see some Verizon trucks in our neighborhood today...maybe someone cut the wrong line or something.

Our apologies if you've been trying to reach us. You may have left a message on our Verizon voicemail, which we can't access either.

So if you need to reach us or left a message since Saturday the 4th, please email us.

The Living Room

This is our living room. We ordered the furniture from Thomasville before we moved. It arrive a few weeks ago. We're still looking for a nice pair of lamps for the end tables. Maybe soemtime I'll make some pillows, too. The couches are identical. Sorry about the glare in the picture below!


The wall that the clock is hanging on is entirely cosmetic. It creates a small foyer area which was used to break up the house into two rental apartments. Sometime, we'd like to have the wall removed, which will open up the room considerably. At the same time, we will probably replace the current front door, which is solid. A door with window panels would let in a lot more natural light.

Here you can see the light from the open front door (there's a glass storm door). Imagine how bright the room will be someday without that foyer wall!

Cloth diapers!

I know, I know...cloth diapers??? Is Susan nuts? Perhaps. But I've talked with many moms who have done this and researched it online and I think it will work really well for us.

Why cloth diaper? Well for one, it saves a lot of money. The diapers get washed and reused, so besides the cost of operating the washer, all of the money outlay is on the front end. But it's also supposed to reduce diaper rash and encourage earlier potty training. It also reduces landfill waste. But I've also discovered that they are very cute! I got the basic models (from fuzzibunzstore.com) but the cloth diaper industry has come up with adorable prints and designs that are as cute as baby clothes! Maybe someday I'll branch out into those.

So this is how they work: The diapers are waterproof on the outside (the colored part) and really soft fleece on the inside. There's a pocket in the fleece in which you tuck a liner, made out of absorbent hemp. When baby wets, the liquid goes through the fleece to the hemp, keeping baby dry. When it's time for a change, you just put the whole thing in a diaper pail until laundry day (probably every other day). Then you just dump the pail liner with all of the diapers right into the washer, and do a heavy duty hot water load with a special soap powder designed for diapers.

Here are the diaper pail liners. I got two so I have one to use while the other is in the wash. The little bottle is of something called "tea tree oil." There is a little patch of absorbent material inside the liner on which you put a few drops of the oil. It has a pleasant smell which masks odors.













Cloth wipes make sense with cloth diapers. They get washed with the diaper. You can use water to wet them, make a solution out of baby wash, or buy a "natural wipes spray." My package came with the spray, so I'll try that.











The little white dots on the diaper are snaps. Some cloth diapers have velcro tabs like disposables, but the snaps can keep older babies from stripping off a dirty diaper and making a mess. There is elasitc around the legs to prevent leaks.










I also got some "super soaker" hemp liners deisgned for overnight diapers. They are extra thick and absorbent.














Last, but not least, a fun tote for my diaper bag. It's waterproof on the inside for used diapers on-the-go. The top zippers shut.