From left to right Alice with Leroy, and Carrie with Ruby
I am going to cheat a little here and let Alice take this one...
"Okay, it's not Batman and Robin, but I think it's a great duo! Carrie S.and I have met a few times since both of us met on the September Moms mailing list. The first time, I taught her how to knit a baby blanket. I think that project is still under construction, lol, and so is our friendship I'm happy to say! I know that my knitting lessons might not have been worth much, but I've found Carrie's easy manner, and practical advice to be invaluable during my roller coaster pregnancy and the earlymonths as a first timer.
"The First Time is Nice...
The first meeting was sometime in May or June. We had a grad student lunchof stuffed baked potatoes (heh, it's cheap and filling!) and went on to do a S.E.X. (stash enhancement expedition to the non-crafty folks) at Straw Into Gold (a really great yarn store if you're ever in the S.F. Bay Area).I showed her my quick and easy baby blanket pattern and taught her the stitches. We exchanged some views on the list and shared our opinions. For those of you who haven't met or talked to us, Carrie has a wonderful syrup like drawl from her Lousiana childhood. I, of course, talk just as fast as I type on chat (pretty quick) and have been mistaken for a New Yorker for years in my native California. In spite of that we managed to have a great kvetching session. Carrie noticing the rather profound differences in physical comfort between the first and second pregnancy, and Alice still moaning about her long dark bought with morning sickness (talk about FALSE advertising!).
The Second Time was Paradise...
Okay, it took awhile to meet again, and in the meantime we all dealt with some curve balls. It was August, I had started insulin for my nasty case of gestational diabetes. Carrie had changed doctors midpregnancy because of problems with insurance reimbursements. Before that meeting, there were lots of phone conversations back and forth. Carrie shared stories from her March Moms list and listened to me b****. We got together to tour Summit Hospital where we both planned to deliver our babies. Carrie was trying to get familiar with her new delivery arrangements. I was just hanging around (I already did the tour earlier)and trying to get a look at the delivery area (it was too full for a look on our last tour). We brought spouses (Karl and Terry) and Stella (Carrie's toddler) put in an appearance. Afterward we went out for lunch. It was fun to find someplace where I could do exchanges and Karl and Carrie could get vegetarian, lol! That meeting was a little rushed cause folks needed to get back to work for the afternoon, but it was nice to meet the soft-spoken Karl. Carrie had briefly met my more loquacious spouse Terry over baked potatoes at our last meeting.
This was our last meeting before we delivered our respective babies. In the meantime, there were more phone conversations. I can't for the life of me,think what I've done to help Carrie, but all I can say is she was wonderful for me during my challenging last trimester.
Never a Second Without a Third...
Okay, the babies are here and things are approaching what will now pass for normality in both our lives. We decide to visit each other. First, I bring Leroy and my sister Susan over to Carrie's apartment. Carrie's family lives in a the rabbit warren of Married Student Housing at UC Berkeley. This complex is the size of a small town! We had a delightful time just shooting the breeze. Now for some people this would be a bore, but Carrie and I seemed to be happy, just sitting around and talking and looking at the babies. Unfortunately, at this point, Leroy was developing some problems with gas and was pretty pissy for the entire visit. Ruby, was placid and quiet for most of the visit. A darling little (hah!) girl. I like holding Ruby, cause she has a wonderful solid feel to her, unlike my long wiggle worm of a boy. I am sure at this visit that I looked a wreck with Leroy crying and hardly able to do anything without my sister assisting me. Did I tell you I left the now necessary Mylicon at her apartment and had to go back that night with my husband to pick it up?
The Latest Visit
The rainy season in the Bay Area with a drenching storm the day Carrie came to my house. We had planned on going used baby clothes shopping, but opted to sit around my house with the babies shooting the breeze. I went out for some seafood, which Carrie (the former Gulf native) judged adequate. I showed off pictures of Leroy and we played with each others babies. Not exciting, but a welcome change from doing laundry (my new full time occupation, lol)." |
