Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day isn't usually an important holiday to me. Maybe I'm just a little bitter from all those Valentine's Days that I didn't have a special someone to spend it with. Also, the commercialization and social pressure that makes people feel obligated to buy silly cards or overpriced flowers for someone really annoys me. In the many years I've been with Dan, on more than a couple occasions, Valentine's Day has inadvertently meant an overpriced meal at a small table stuffed in front of the restaurant's kitchen door with a waiter who can't make us eat fast enough to get that next customer in to pay a crazy amount for food, too. It left us wondering why we paid so much just to sit on plastic patio furniture.

February 14th, however, is Dan's birthday, and that's definitely an important holiday, as I enjoy another excuse to find something fun that he really wants or needs, but hasn't had the time to research and get for himself. I like to spoil him a little.

I do like it that, for Valentine's Day, Dan makes a point to make dinner plans with me or get me a little small bunch of flowers (sometimes I do get the big bunch of flowers, too!) or something. I don't require much, and I always value the time we spend together more than anything.

The part of Valentine's Day that I really look forward to is a box of chocolates from my dad. Not just any box of chocolates, but a one pound box of See's mint truffles. Every year, he gets three of these special boxes, one for me, and one for each of my sisters. Every year, the See's Candy salespeople ask him if he really wants three boxes of just the one kind of chocolates, and suggest that maybe he might want a mixed variety, and every year, he tells them no. Every year, he makes sure we get our boxes of our favorite candy, on time, no matter where we are, even if we're on an out-of-state trip or in an international country! My dad is really the best Valentine!


But I'm sorry to say, Dad, that this year, Dan has trumped that special box of candy.

It all started with the goal to have a nice quiet weekend together. No fancy restaurants with overpriced meals. No silly cards or big bunches of flowers. Dan had the idea to have a little getaway weekend in Big Bear. Dan's brother has a cabin up there that we use sometimes. We brought the dogs with us, and they enjoyed running around in the snow, of which there was a lot, for Southern California standards. It was really nice to get away from the house and work, especially because with a home business like ours, work is at home. I also appreciated the opportunity to have a little getaway that wasn't too far away, because we're fast approaching the time when we should be staying close to home, in anticipation of the arrival of the baby.

We were both excited about gift giving. Usually I get Dan two things, one for his birthday and one for Valentine's Day. But this year, I only focused on the birthday gift. I was excited about his gift, because I was able to keep it a surprise (which is always hard for me), and I knew it would be something he wanted and liked. For Christmas, Dan received a new digital SLR camera, but because we're amateur photographers, we didn't really know how to use the camera and all its gizmo settings. Dan's been really excited about learning more about photography and the proper use of an SLR camera. However, the more he read about apertures and ISOs and exposure lengths, the more confusing it all became. Dan really wanted some more advanced camera lenses than we had, and some books that explained all the ins and outs of digital SLR photography. I did a bunch of research on the Internet for a couple of good lenses for the camera and a couple of good intro to digital photography books. I knew it would be just the right combination of things to get him started on his new hobby.

Dan surprised me, and had a gift for me for Valentine's Day. We have been so busy at work, that I was sure that the relaxed getaway weekend together was our Valentine's present to each other. Of course, I really appreciated the extra effort I knew Dan had to take out of his recent busy schedule in order to get me something special. Little did I know how much extra effort he really put in to finding me the perfect gift and making it a surprise for me.

Upon presenting me with the gift box, Dan triumphantly announced that he knew I would like the present and it was definitely something I had thought about and wanted. It was fun to see the excitement in his face, and I was surprised at how confident he was in his gift. As I opened the box, I truly had no clue what was inside. The first thing I saw was a beautiful wooden basket wrapped in cellophane. I was confused. A gift basket? Dan's not normally the "gift basket" type. What could be inside? Dan laughed at my confusion at seeing the gift basket. As I unwrapped the cellophane, Dan admitted that he didn't really know what exactly was in the basket. I was even more confused. Dan was so certain that I would love the gift, yet here he was, admitting that he didn't know what was in the basket? Was it a spa package or something? I started taking items out of the basket, poking around, trying to figure out what Dan had been so excited and confident about. Dan put his hand in the basket, pulled out an envelope, and handed it to me, saying, "This is the gift I got for you." I opened the envelope, and Dan has arranged for a photo sitting package for Professional Belly Pictures and Professional Newborn Pictures! Dan had researched professional maternity photographers, taken the time to sneak out of the house and purchase the photography package and hide the gift basket from me. Of course I loved it! How could I not?

I am so excited about Dan's surprise for me, his enthusiasm about Fatherhood and his willingness to get it documented in photos. It's incredibly sweet how much effort he put into this gift, which is meaningful well beyond just the holiday. I love my husband very much!

Dangers Abound

We recently purchased a car seat in anticipation of our new arrival. I have to admit, these things have always been a bit of mystery for me. A complex gizmo with tethers, latches, straps, and snaps. I braced myself for what I expected to be a important lesson in understanding this critical safety device. What I didn’t count on was how horribly dangerous this thing really was. I counted 16 various ‘warning’, ‘caution’, ‘danger’, ‘don’t ever…’ on the thing. There is no other item in our household that requires this many notices of potential injury. I had a lawn mower that had a single warning label. A circular saw that has only a grounding label on it. An all-saw, a true instrument of boundless destruction, just mentioned you shouldn't change the blade while it’s still on. When I got into my car, I saw even more infant seat warnings regarding the airbag. I’m sure that these would have also been included on the car seat itself if there was a spot left without a sticker or tag already attached. I’m still scratching my head as to how in the world is a newborn even expected to read all of these labels?

This is Easy!

Well I suppose I should contribute something to this blog my better ¾’s (and growing) has begun. My perspective isn’t quite as close as my wife’s as she carries a 15lb+ every day. A convex reminder that we are closer to having a young ‘un under our roof.

I can’t say that I’m that nervous. Having had almost all my friends and 2 of my brothers go through the experience on several occasions has really helped to ease the fear of entering into fatherhood. All represent great examples of parenting, albeit vastly different. However, one thing they all have in common is their constant and consistent presence with their kids. I’m a firm believer that the more time you spend with your kids, especially early in life will really help both child and parent have a more stable relationship. A child will better realize the importance of a parent’s direction, while a parent will learn to understand the unique personality traits that make them into people. One thing is for certain...parenting is a lot easier before the kid comes.

How Are You Feeling?

Pregnancy is a mysterious process and, at least from what I've heard and read, it affects every woman a little differently. The biological development appears to be the same over the 9 month duration, but each pregnancy seems to affect a woman with a whole slew of varying symptoms and emotions.

I was fortunate enough to not experience the Dreaded Morning Sickness, usually associated with the first trimester. On one hand, it was great, because I could easily go along normally with my daily life and work routine. On the other hand, it was a bit disconcerting. The lines on the pregnancy test said I was pregnant, but since I didn't really feel anything, I would be constantly concerned that maybe something was wrong with the pregnancy. When I finally made it public to family and friends that I was pregnant, people would inevitably ask how I was feeling. It was hard for me to smile and tell people that essentially I felt nothing, without that nagging worry that maybe something was wrong. We were excited to pass through that stage with reassurances from the doctors that Baby was growing as it should and all the test results were satisfactory.

In the second trimester, my body was changing faster than I could send out blog updates. (Also, some of the changes are rather personal, and my practical husband tells me that sometimes people don't need to know all the gorey details.) I, personally, find the natural bodily changes fascinating. I've been taking my pregnancy as a science research project and I am constantly reading articles on the Internet and books about pregnancy, and talking to experienced moms to find out what biological and psychological changes are supposed to be happening, and comparing my findings with my own experience.

Pretty much every week, or even every couple of days, something is different or new to me. Now, when people ask me how I'm feeling, I always have something to say. Because of my comfort and fascination with the medical and psychological processes, I could happily yap away with great detail about all the strange changes in my body and in my head. However, I usually politely try to bite my tongue, because I know that to many people's dismay, especially my husband's, I am often the purveyor of TMI (too much information). I think people just generally want to know if I'm feeling sick or uncomfortable, which I really haven't been.

Don't get me wrong. It's not like all the changes are no problem and everything is hunky-dory over here. I definitely don't feel "normal." I'm tired, a LOT, because apparently making a baby drains all of your body's energy. I can't get a good night's sleep in a nice, flat, comfy bed, because the distribution of weight and hormones in my body is all screwy. Teaching in the computer lab at school is difficult, because I can't breathe well, because Someone is pushing up on my diaphragm. (This one is particularly difficult, because I like to talk a lot.) I can't do more than one or two errands at a time, because I become so ravenously hungry to the point that it is difficult to concentrate on doing the errand or even drive. (Beware of the crazy, hungry, pregnant Asian female behind the wheel in her new SUV!) But They tell me that all of these things are "normal" for pregnant women. So, how am I feeling? I feel "fine," I guess.

We are in the home stretch, in the third trimester! Time has passed so quickly! This is where the psychological twist kicks in. In a couple of months, Dan and I are going to be responsible for another human life, 24/7. We are getting the room ready and the hospital bag packed. We're signed up for Childbirth Preparation, New Baby Care and Breastfeeding classes in March. We are nervous and excited and we both know what we have no idea how much our lives are going to change. Yet we are looking forward to this next big adventure in our lives, and meeting this half-Henjyoji, half-Burnett new human being, who will no doubt be as entertaining and interesting as we both were as kids.... Oh, dear! What have we gotten ourselves in to?

February 2009 Belly Pics

Here is a picture of me from this past weekend (January 31, 2009). Dan took a picture of me and my belly, in front of the house, in a similar spot as the December 30th picture. I'm feeling healthy and my appetite is growing, too! My belly is getting bigger, but I still don't think it's crazy huge yet. But it seems to be growing faster every day! Belly seems VERY active on a daily basis and he checks out okay at the doctor's appointments, so I take all of those as good signs!


Here is a picture of me and Dan. Yes, I still let him hang around me sometimes. I thought he should have at least one picture on this blog. After all, he is the Bringer of Food and the Carrier of Heavy Things. Plus, he's kinda cute, too! I guess I'll keep him.


My mom came down to visit to bring me some maternity clothes (the generous donation from a good friend) and also to see for herself that I actually cleaned out the Baby's Room. She remembers when it was full of boxes, so she was pretty impressed!


Here is a picture of the room, reflected in the closet doors. It's not a bad blue. We've both been keeping busy at work and everything, so Dan and I doubt that we will have time to discuss AND agree on a color, AND paint, so we think we'll keep this color. The bookcases along the one wall are Ikea birch color, so a light wood.

My belly picture, reflected self portrait in the Baby's Room.