Good Things Come to Those Who Wait

This is what I envision our baby girl is going to be like (all diva) seeing that she's making a fashionably late appearance into this world.*


But this is what I envision our baby girl is going to look like (geeky) seeing that she will possess genes from both me and Josh.**

Yeah, I'm going mad. I've been popping up in bed awfully early for the past few weeks in hopes of greeting a slimy coneheaded baby girl, but gosh, it's three days past her ETA, and still no contractions (false o real). Friends and family (and strangers, for that matter) keep asking, "Is the baby here yet?!?" But my answer (and Josh's answer) up until now has been a resounding, disappointing "NO." I'd be lying if I were to say I weren't disappointed that the kiddo didn't arrive early or on time on Christmas Day. It's not that I mind housing her. But with each day that passes, she's just getting more and more massive. Kiddo needs to check out of my "Four Seasons womb" (as my friend Rebecca likes to put it) asap because I'm going to feel like such a failure if I can't squeeze her out.***


I really do understand that good things come to those who wait, but must le cub and I start greying before our baby girl's appearance?****

Baby girl, everyone's excited to meet you. We promise you'll love life outside of the womb. There's so much to do and so much to see.


See? Yes, well... I truly hope we get to meet sooner than later, kiddo. You have no idea...*****

* Caption that would best enhance this pic: "Have your people call my people."
** Childhood prereq. Hair cut that consumes over half of their head.
*** I'm really proud when I make a big doo doo. For some odd reason, I've decided on my own that giving birth to a baby is going to be similar, and I'd love to experience the satisfaction of "dropping off" a package as large as an infant. I know. I'm demented.
**** A somewhat irrelevant side note: Old folks in love make me happy. And sad.
***** All photos plucked from Pinterest or FFFFOUND.

HOHOHO

May Your Days Be Merry & Bright...

Performance Anxiety

With only 2 days to go til her eta, I think the womb raider is experiencing performance anxiety.

Growing Pains

Went in for a check-up with the doc yesterday afternoon, and it's starting to look like our baby girl may be arriving later than her ETA of Christmas Day. With each day that she chooses to delay her appearance, her cranium's just getting bigger and bigger! Dammit. She's probably gleefully polishing her massive head this very moment. You know. The head I have to squeeze out of my little bits? Am starting to feel anxious. Perhaps it's time to start reasoning with her. Extra presents if she arrives early or on-time. Lump of coal if she arrives late?

It's Beginning to Smell a Lot Like Christmas

Our 7 foot tall noble fir. Smells so good...

Womb Raiders

Olive consults Avery on the subject of post-birth head shape.
Olive: Avery, will my vajayjay-squeezed cone head ever go away?
Avery: Olive, I was born with a unibrow and hair on my back. Now look at me! Have your people call my people.

When Life Gives You Lemons

According to my friend Robby Puro, the difficulty and pain involved in squeezing a full-sized baby out of one's female bits can best be equated to squeezing a Sunkist lemon out of a dude's urethra. It's stuff like this that keeps me up at night...

Help!

I could Pinterest all day. That's how I found this panda. May be in need of an intervention...

Follow me HERE. *teehee*

Occupy Movement

Have been trying to entice the face of the Occupy movement in my belly to surrender herself in time for the holidays. Marching about with a 36 lb beer belly is exhausting. Does pineapple work?

He Knows When You Are Sleeping

He knows when you're awake... (creepy much?!)


Christmas tree is all decorated, and my favorite ornament of 2011 is our one-balled santa. Tah-dah! I rescued him from the Pasadena Rose Bowl Flea...



Beans' favorite ornament is our booby santa. Also rescued from the Rose Bowl Flea. Needless to say, le hubby and I are collectors of homely ornaments.

Hot Bath

Beans has been an angel in the presence of my in-laws. We had warned him that Grandpa Huang would turn him into soup if he weren't well-behaved. Goofy pup took our advice to heart and has steered clear of the pot. Whew.

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

What's the difference between snowmen and snow women?

Snowballs.

Doodling while on maternity leave!

Fleas

Spotted at the Rose Bowl Flea.

Awesome.

Training Baby

women-to-be need training bras.
mamas-to-be need training babies.

ooh, credit needs to be given where credit is deserved. my hubby built that bassinet :)

Others

Salon of Beauty from Mark & Angela Walley on Vimeo.

Tah-dah! A look at Rice University Art Gallery's current exhibition "Salon of Beauty".
LA-raised artist Ana Serrano loves cardboard more than I do!
Love her charming color combos.

Old Maid

I am strangely comfortable being one.

Spent my 32nd birthday indoors, rotting at the St. Regis at Dana Point with le hubby. (Thank you, cub.) T'was a most divine weekend filled with good eats. Michael Mina lobster pot pie, root beer floats, warm chocolate-chip cookies. My hubby knows how to treat a fat lady. Sure beats the meals of McNuggets I'd been ingesting the week prior!

Le hubs and I imagine we won't be able to easily pick and go for spontaneous getaways once the womb raider decides to make her much-anticipated grand appearance. That said, we've been savoring each and every minute of alone time we could...

Fluff

in celebration of my 32nd birthday, le hubby bought me the robe of my dreams.

it's completely age-appropriate.

baby-blue goodness covered with smiley clouds.

i wish i could wear it to work.

Nice View

i don't care what the doctors say.
my baby is peeking at all of you through my belly button.
fyi, my belly button is at crotch level.

more doodles from my crash-course birthing class.

Crash Course

Because le hubby's work schedule is very demanding, we have not been able to attend couples' birthing classes that so many other concerned, caring parents do. Luckily, the hospital at which we plan to squeeze our peanut out at had the option of a one-day "crash course" birthing class... We attended it last weekend with glee and left having learned way too much, yet still not enough.

Not wanting to miss out on the gems dispersed by our teacher, Magda, I took a copious amount of notes. Ahh...

Yes We Can

Um, believe it. I just ordered these crazy-cute leggings online for Ankle-Biter Huang. Baby girl needs Stella McCartney pants. STAT.

Monster Mash

Oh-em-geeeeeee. Our new (actually old) Paul McCobb nightstands have arrived! They were selected because they resemble grouchy monsters...

Next Year

I LOVE little people in costumes and am really looking forward to dressing Munchkin Huang for Halloween next year.

Speaking of munchkins, my bff, Hammy welcomed a beautiful baby girl into the world last Sunday! Ever the punctual baby, Avery came early - four weeks early to be exact - and emerged from Pammy's uterus with a head covered with hair AND a back covered with fuzz. Hahaha. Hammy and I have been referring to Avery as "Hairy" ever since. It's probably a good thing Avery's incapable of reading this blog...

Am two months away from my due date. My how time flies...

Boo.

Carved pumpkins alongside fellow animators (Jeff, Alexis and Mary). SO MUCH FUN!

The dim lil' guy (bottom left) is the work of my talented hubby. His first jack-o-lantern ever...

Bow Wow Wow, Yippee Yo, Yippee Yay

Commissioned the uber-talented illustrator Happy Menocal to paint a portrait of my cousin's "puppy" Max for her birthday, and look how great it turned out! So whimsical! So cheerful! So EVERYTHING WONDERFUL! (Um, Max is a Rhodesian Ridgeback with a sprinkling of Dane. Just in case you were wondering. And if you weren't, disregard the line you just read.) Imagine this baby framed...

Happy Feet

Woke up and bought myself a new pair of sneakers this morning. Good-bye silver Toms, and hello Chuck Taylors! Ones encrusted in JOY, I might add! Haven't worn heels very often these past 7+ months and am hoping the sparkle from these sneakers will up my pregger-lady glam factor.

WANT

40 "beans" stickers with which I can label 40 non-bean items. Available HERE. Must have.

Ooga Booga

Why hello, stranger.

Alas, it's true. I have been an awful blogger these past few weeks... and while it isn't the least bit fair, I'm going to blame the lack of updates on the lil' munchkin who has yet to arrive. (She doesn't mind taking one for the team. What a sweetheart. Mommy owes you one.)

So much to share, and intend to post scans and photos of EVERYTHING.
But one step at a time.
Baby steps.
First things first.
UPDATES.

(genichiro's other highly-educational books are available via amazon.)

My pregnancy bod. Everyone around me is fascinated by my ginormous belly. Yup. I'm looking like a total tub o' lard. But what I find most fascinating are my newfound breasts, er, UDDERS. I've gone from an A-cup to a C-cup, and no, my boobies aren't the least bit sexy because my areola have expanded to the size of large pepperoni slices and the actual nips stand erect like No.2 pencil erasers. Eew, eew, eew. I disgust myself. But you know what? It'll all be worth it when the munchkin arrives. Anything that can pull of the following look can't be that bad...

(romper available via www.smallable.com)

Patience

drop-dead-gorgeous embroidery by jazminberakha

Starry Night

Was hunting down items to stage a LocalConstruct property earlier today when I spotted these amazing light fixtures in the window of my go-to vintage furniture haunt, Casa Victoria. I gasped when I saw it. Turquoise bakelite pieces dangle surround a cloud of lit beads hanging a little over three-feet long. So very unique, so very whimsical, and priced kindly for the discriminating (WEIRD) buyer. Without hesitation, I seized one of the two pieces for our munchkin's room. We'll hang it in a corner! Like a Yoshitomo Nara creation come to life (see Dizzy on Wheels, 2002-2004 and Guitar Girl, 2003)... without having to pay the price.

While You Were Sleeping

Dear Munchkin,

Babies incubate for 9-months because that's exactly how long it takes for mamas and papas-to-be to get their "caca" together.

Over these past 2 weeks, I have been researching all sorts of baby "caca." CRIBS, for example. We got you this one. With the most important baby item down, your pop and I are now gearing up to plan your munchkin sleeping quarters. Though usually partial to a muted palette of grays and beige *yes, your parents are boring* we hope to offer you, munchkin, something brighter, bolder, and happier. A little color never hurts anyone. While you were sleeping, I saved a couple of reference images. Baby girl, I hope you "likee" the direction we're going...

Le color palette: a little bit of everything. Was inspired by the suite we stayed at last weekend at The Parker in Palm Springs:


I'd like to bring some much-needed color into your soon-to-be big life. Baskin Robbins' Chocolate Mint green could make for a delicious wall color. Wouldn't you say?

(laybabylay)

Not feeling it? How 'bout a calming sky blue?

(dwellstudio)

Now, in order to keep your space edgy, we'll need to incorporate RED. HOT PINK. BLACK. Check out this shot of the Kate Spade store in San Francisco. Fierce, huh? *Beans nods head*

(architizer)

I'll be posting a mood board soon...

(Ooh. Letterpress print featured above is by Sycamore Street Press available via Etsy.)

My Big Boy

A Very Merry Birthday to my beloved puppy, Beans. You're five today, buddy! Somebody's getting an extra-helping of peanut butter... *wagwagwag*



Seems like it was just yesterday when I brought our little farter home. *LOVE*

Neapolitan

Gah! I want these. Like a Neapolitan ice-cream sandwich, these Pierre Hardy kicks are perfection. But since getting knocked-up, I've worn heels a grand-total of 2 times. Will have to admire from afar...

LOLIHAZAPROBLEM

Le hubby and I are gifting two sets of friends who recently became new parents with these fantastically amusing knit "coveralls", er in plain English, knit hats. I first spotted them HERE and ultimately followed through and purchased them HERE. Do you feel the force? Of cuteness, that is...

She Works Hard for the Money

Have finished restoring yet another old Spanish complex. This one's in Atwater Village - an area in Los Angeles, conveniently sandwiched between Glendale and Silver Lake. Two beds, one bath. Fantastic light and a lush yard put in by us good folks at LocalConstruct. It's got a kick-ass avocado tree at back that will make you gasp. (I'm totally staging that baby with a tree swing.) It's not yet listed on the MLS, but here's a lil' preview of what's to come...