Happy Valentines Day, my dear wife.
Usually I draw little cards to commemorate special occasions, but for quite some time this blog post has been swirling in my head, so I figured today would be a good time to write it.
I wanted to write a tribute to Katrina, one inspired by the following picture:
Here you see a gorgeous, striking young woman on that most special day of her life--her wedding day. Now, this particular girl is beautiful, stable, friendly, talented--in short, she has many qualities that could snag her pretty much any guy she wanted. And I happen to know for a fact that there were several of such guys who were interested in her... men who could offer her lives of financial and emotional stability and all sorts of things that the typical girls wants.
But this is not the typical wedding picture. In addition to the lovely bride and lucky guy are three precious children, fitting symbols for the complexity of the life Katrina has chosen. My heart fills with wonder and gratitude as I reflect on how much Katrina has accepted and loved these cherished friends and charges of mine. I am already a better father because of her influence, and I am so excited to have a fresh start and bring a baby into our family. I know that Katrina will do an exceptional job as a mother. As those of you who know Katrina well are aware, marrying me has added complexity and challenge to Katrina's life that she otherwise would not have known. What you cannot know fully is the degree to which she has handled these challenges with admirable grace, patience, and love. I honor her for it.
I joke that God finally slapped me upside the head and interceded by bringing Katrina into my life, because I certainly wasn't getting it before her. She is the kind of person I would have been looking for had I been wiser... she is an ideal match for me. For almost anyone, I feel, and I am so grateful she chose me to share her self and life and love.
As I have said before, Katrina has so many of those traits that are so foundational they risk being taken for granted. She loves exceptionally. She is an amazing friend. She is wise and stable and caring. And then there are those traits that too often do not inhabit the same soul...purity of heart and openness of mind, emotional stability and artistic creativity. She drinks in life with a childlike wonder--savoring all that delights the senses--good food and stirring music and beauty captured by the eye and camera. Plus she is gorgeous and sexy and interesting and fun!
Katrina, you are my Angel. I love you.
How your baby's growing: Your baby weighs 5 ounces now (about as much as a turnip), and he's around 5 inches long. He can move his joints, and his skeleton — until now rubbery cartilage — is starting to harden to bone. His sense of hearing is also developing. The umbilical cord, his lifeline to the placenta, is growing stronger and thicker.
We also took a little trip to Costco last night and splurged on a couple things. I will have pictures of those tomorrow. And...I went to Motherhood Maternity to try on their "Secret Fit Belly" jeans. Let me tell you, if you are pregnant you must try on these pants! They are the most comfortable things ever! It seriously feels like you are wearing nothing. They didn't have a huge selection at the store so I ordered some online. The best part is I can wear them now and even after the baby because of how they fit. Motherhood maternity has them for very reasonable prices. Mimi Maternity also them but they are more expensive. I can totally still wear most of my pants but it is like heaven to have nothing pressing on your belly, which is how these pants feel. The stretchy part over the tummy is quite thin and soft and feels delicious.
We really liked this one. It's trippy and weird but has a cool Moulin Rouge-esque thing about it. And it's a musical using all Beatles songs! What is not to love about that?
Although I do think the movie poster is rather cool, I did not much like this movie. It's a thriller so it was cool trying to figure stuff out, but it left me feeling depressed and not in a good way. The basic premise is a woman's husband is killed in a car accident but she lives the days of the week it happens out of order, so she knows he is dead but then wakes up and it's two days earlier and he's not dead and then it's two days later and it's his funeral, etc.
I quite liked this one. It moves a bit slowly but it's a really sweet story about a widower who decides to adopt an eccentric little boy that happens to think he's from Mars. The best part is that it is based on a true story. Also, it has Amanda Peet in a supporting role, and I have a girl crush on her.
Jared put this on our queue and when it arrived I wasn't all that excited about watching it. It's long and I had heard it moves pretty slowly. So I was very pleasantly surprised to find that I really enjoyed it. It is long and it doesn't have the usual arc and climax of most stories, but I was never bored once. It is based on the true story about a serial killer who called himself Zodiac. The three main characters are a reporter (Robert Downey, Jr.), a cartoonist who went on to write a book about the case (Jake Gyllenhaal), and a detective (Mark Ruffalo). Great acting all around and a very intriguing story.
How your baby's growing: At 4 1/2 inches long (head to bottom) and 3 1/2 ounces, your baby is about the size of an avocado. In the next three weeks, she'll go through a tremendous growth spurt, though, doubling her weight and adding inches to her length. Her lower limbs are much more developed now. Her head is more erect than it has been, and her eyes have moved toward the front of her head. Your baby's ears are close to their final position, too. Some of her more advanced body systems are working, including her circulatory system and urinary tract. Her heart is now pumping about 25 quarts of blood each day, circulating her total blood volume through her body many times. (By the end of your pregnancy, this will increase to about 190 quarts.) The patterning of her scalp has begun, though her hair isn't recognizable yet. Although closed, her eyes are moving (slowly), and she's even started growing toenails.
photo from birth.com
Lovers Running by Brian Kershisnik
Here you see a gorgeous, striking young woman on that most special day of her life--her wedding day. Now, this particular girl is beautiful, stable, friendly, talented--in short, she has many qualities that could snag her pretty much any guy she wanted. And I happen to know for a fact that there were several of such guys who were interested in her... men who could offer her lives of financial and emotional stability and all sorts of things that the typical girls wants.
Isn't it just like creative writer types to end their strike on exactly the 100 day mark? It has such a poetic ring to it. All I can say is WAHOO!!!! Now hurry up and bring back some shows people! I miss Seattle Grace and the Pie Hole. And now I've forgotten what other shows I liked because it's been... so... long!!! Sadly I read that a lot of shows, such as Pushing Daisies, probably won't be coming back this season at all. Tragedy. At least I have CNN with all the political shenanigans still ongoing. By the way, Obama is on a roll!
