I totally love my new glasses.

It is truly awesome to be able to see without my contact lenses in. Finally, I have adorable glasses, with my most recent prescription, for an affordable price. (They were less than $30. Really. A friend recommended the company, who happen to be just south of us in Marin County.) Yes, we have vision insurance. No, I couldn’t find any frames that I liked for less than $300 at our local vision shop (had the same problem last year). And you know what? I like these more than those Versace ones I was totally digging. It’s not like I ever leave the house with my glasses on. (Hello, I live in California where it’s sunny even when it’s raining! Love my contact lenses and sunglasses.) These have been a long time coming.

Drinking out of bell jars. They just hold so much more than our regular drinking glasses.
Eating latkes. I think we may have to celebrate Hannukah for a few more weeks.

Digging California winters. Rain here and there with some sprinklings of sunshine. Just gorgeous.

Hanging with awesome mamas and babies. I love making new friends.

Selected recent twitter updates:
+ The baby kept me up most of the night kicking and moving around.
Preview of things to come! I think we’re gonna have a night owl. 12/15
+ Feeling a bit cold. Perhaps I should put real shoes on rather than flip flops. 12/14
+ The best part of our Harry Potter 5 movie party? Hanging with our awesome friends. 12/11
+ Heading to the library with two bags worth of books to return. Love that they are open late. 12/10
+ Wearing matching pjs and being super cozy on the couch.
Love Saturday nights with the husband and California winter weather. 12/8

Final Reminder!

If you want to submit photos to our Photo Matching Game, please email in a photo of yourself when you were a baby and a photo of you taken recently.

Then we will all get to guess which baby photo belongs to whom.

I hope you will join us! The more the merrier!

Photos are due by December 21st.
Thanks for participating!

I find it hard to remember to take out my camera and take casual snapshots. I think part of the reason why is that my beautiful camera is so cumbersome, but I also find it hard to take nice portraits inside with artificial light. I much prefer taking outdoor shots with this particular camera. Is it the camera body, the lens, the settings I use? I’m not really sure.

I just know right now I’m finding it hard to 1) get motivated to take pictures and 2) remember to stop, grab the camera, and shoot.

Some recent events at our house that I did not take pictures of (and, of course, wish I had):
+ Poker night tournament (with two types of quiche and banana bread)
+ Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix DVD release party (popcorn and hot apple cider)
+ After work dinner party (enchilada casserole and ice cream sundaes)

While I hope to take beautiful “posed” photos of the baby when s/he arrives, I am worried about missing all those wonderful spontaneous moments that I’d love to capture because they make for great memories. I think we need a camera that takes superior pictures, but is compact enough to fit in the diaper backpack. (At the same time, we’ve been talking about getting a digital video camera… We’ll see which purchase happens first or if we can roll the two together. I’m really hesitant to spend any extra money right now… thought I am tempted by Flip Video.)

What are your thoughts on my camera conundrum?

Tonight my friend Natalia is coming to visit. I hope I do better and get at least one shot of us together.

UPDATED: David took a photo of us together! I’ve included the shot from last year for comparison purposes. (Thank goodness my new “softness” is the result of pregnancy!) We had a great time together. (As always.)

I have a feeling this is just the first of many such posts.

David assembled the baby dresser, evidently THE expectant parents evening activity.
(He even safe-sealed all the formaldehyde in! Thank you, honey!)

We’re now ready to start filling it up with beautiful baby clothes! (Thank you, Grandma!)

Our cloth diapers and wool diaper covers arrived the other day — they fit perfectly together (phew!). I find it amazing that in less than two months we’re going to have a little Spritzer Leyba that not only fits in them, but will be going through 8-12 diapers a day. Our washer and dryer are going to be in constant motion!

We also had our last childbirth education class on Sunday. Picture mamas and papas sitting on the floor snacking. And getting up to pee. Of course, it wasn’t all fun and games. We discussed our birth fears, ran through an emergency cesarean scenario just in case (we’re all planning home births), and practiced pain-coping techniques with our hands immersed in ice water. (I had no idea how uncomfortable wet and cold could be.) David and I are both feeling pretty prepared now about the birth. And after watching the remaining stack of home birth DVDs our midwives lent us (our plan for this weekend), we should be all-set to go.

Or, at least, as all-set as I think first-time parents can be.

We’re so excited! Bring it on.

Did you hear that Blueprint magazine is closing? While I don’t have a subscription (I so prefer Domino), every now and then I splurge and pick it up at the grocery store. This past issue — the Holiday one — was especially fun. These peppermint swirl sugar cookies, from that issue, look so tasty and tempting. Here’s the recipe so you can try them out. I can’t wait to give them a whirl (love those peppermint candies!).

It’s a good thing we’re not planning on spending any extra money this holiday season (hello, baby just around the corner!) or I would be all over these items. Instead perhaps you’ll enjoy them. I threw in a flew splurge items to shake things up too.

Organic Pussy Willow Wreath, VIOlight Toothbrush Sanitizer, Flor Modular Carpet Tiles

Ceramic Measuring Cups, Hand-Spun Lambswool Wrap, Mary Jane Crocs

Tree House Print, Heather Bailey’s Trash Ties, Ripple Ring

24-7 Reusable Bags, Rock Solid Tipi, LOMO blue supersampler camera

Le Creuset Caribbean Round Dutch Oven, Tiffany Signature Ring, Domino Magazine, Jagged Flower Silhouette Note Cards

We also have a ton of holiday gift ideas over at our Blog Tribute to Audrey Hepburn.

In a related shopping vein, does anyone have a comfy backpack to recommend? We’re planning on forgoing the typical diaper bag in lieu of a diaper backpack and would love some suggestions! (Ditto for a digital video camera! We’re saving up for one of these!)