A look at how the baby's grown!

We had another slow day at work, so I couldn't resist the chance to take another look at the baby. I can't believe how much bigger it looks!


In this video the baby is showing of its amazing acrobatic skills and doing a head/handstand. Just as I was about to shut off the machine the wand caught the baby in an angle where I could actually see the little valves in its heart beating! I couldn't see that 4 weeks ago when I did the last one. It was so neat being able to see inside its heart! I wish I could feel it moving in there. You are supposed to be able to start feeling it at 18weeks and as of tomorrow I'll be 15weeks and the baby is about the size of a navel orange.

Brief Foray into Cool

Depending on who you ask, actually.. strike that. It doesn't matter who you ask. I have never been "cool" with the 10-18 year old crowd. Especially when it comes to music. (I mean, I grew up with Cajun Alligator Stomp and I got a cow that slobbers bad from the Ozarks.) But as the music teacher of several very cool kids, I am having to learn to stay relevant.

I suppressed a chuckle when an 8th grader requested to learn a Nick Jonas tune, but I dug in and learned it too. Shortly after she brought in her Justin Bieber CD, we ordered sheet music, and now I find myself randomly humming his song as I walk down the street. Several elementary students have begged me to let them learn a Lady Gaga tune, so I have now learned Poker Face and Bad Romance.

Way to go, me. I thought. You are successfully crossing the generational divide to make music accessible to these kids. AND YOU ARE COOL.

And then last week, a 5-year old student was chanting/singing, "Boom, boom, boom. Even brighter than the moon, moon, moon." And I beamed at her. "Elise!" I said. "Did you make that up?" Her brother rolled his eyes at me. "That's Katy Perry."

In this day and age, you can only be cool for a second. At least that's what I'm telling myself.

Lost in Translation

This weekend I had the pleasure of a visit from one of my Spanish professors in college. Claudia was my Spanish teacher in Chile while I was studying abroad, and this past weekend she stopped over in Chicago before heading to a forum in Boston. We hopped from sight to sight along the grand-Chicago-tourist route, while I tried to clear some of the fog that has settled over the Spanish-speaking regions of my brain.

While walking through Millennium Park I spotted a robin. I pointed to it and asked Claudia what the name of that kind of bird is in Spanish. She turned slowly towards me and raised one eyebrow. "Catalina," she grinned, "listen. Yes, I teach Spanish, but remember who you are talking to! For ME, if it flies, it is called un pájaro (a bird). If it is green and grows from the ground, it is called una planta (a plant). Unless it is colored, in which case, it is called una flor (a flower). Any questions?"

There's a baby in there!

It was a slow day on labor and delivery today, so after stocking all the rooms, my orienter for the day said let's take a look at your baby and fired up the ultrasound machine. We just had our first prenatal appointment on Thurs but because of insurance, they didn't do an ultrasound. So we did it ourselves! Pretty amazing. The baby is about the size of a lime at this point! I'll put up some pictures after we get them scanned!

Umbrella?

I read about this website. Do I Need an Umbrella? Nice and simple!