Bachelor Party

Last weekend, Joshua and I went down to South Riding (a.k.a. Fairfax), Virginia for Patrick's bachelor party. Since I'm a groomsman, I got to tag along on the day's activities as well, which was awesome. We spent Saturday playing frolf, eight million innings of kickball and going out to dinner. That night, the boys reverted to the college days by tapping a keg, playing beer pong and taking off their pants ("Because it was hot in the kitchen!").

The next morning, the remaining revelers had a big breakfast. It was a fun weekend.
The one disappointment that happened was The Tragedy of the Boob Cake. On Saturday morning before leaving for the party, Joshua and I were looking at old photo albums and we came upon the scarily realistic boob cake that Joshua made for his friend Gerardo's bachelor party. We decided to make another one for Patrick's party. However, even though the cake was awesome, we used butter cream icing. The icing started to separate and melt immediately since it was so hot that day. We quickly realized that the cake wasn't going to make the four hour drive. Joshua was totally bummed.
However, not all is lost, because the cake is delicious and has made a great desert for us! Plus, since Joshua made me a great cake for Mother's Day, this became his Father's Day cake. We never claimed that we were conventional.

Belly Belly

During one of my graduate classes, a fellow female student used to sit in class and rub her belly. I couldn't figure out why she would bring so much emphasis to her mid-section. As the semester continued, I realized that her belly was growing. Eventually, I realized that she was pregnant. It took me longer than I would like to admit to realize this simple fact.

Now that I have a growing belly, I've been finding that I spend a majority of my day rubbing my belly. I like the idea that I may look like a have a little beer belly these days.

(Photo stolen from AwkwardFamilyPhotos.com)

Baby Names

Joshua and I made a pack a long time ago not to share the potential names we had set aside for future children. And, while we are still doing that (for the most part), we have recently realized that some of the names we really like are fatally flawed when paired with our last name.

For example, I love the name Flynn for a boy because it is my maternal grandmother's maiden name. But paired with our last name (Chisholm, pronounced Chis-um), you get Flynchism, which sounds like a disease of flinching! I also like the names Leigh or Lynn for girls but they lead to more diseases: Leechism and Lynchism, the disease of leeches or the disorder of lynching people. No good at all. Ha ha ha.

What's funny about it is that Joshua does not hear these oddities in the names at all and thinks that I'm making it up. But when I tell friends, they immediately exclaim "oh no!" so I know I'm not too crazy.

All this being said, maybe some of these names will be used as middle names. And then, when we need to use stern voices with our children, using both their first and middle names, we will also be insulting them. Two birds. One stone.

New (to us) Car

Joshua and I are slowly realizing that we are totally creatures of habit. For example, when we want a break from cooking, one of us will suggest that we go out to eat. Then without discussing details, we walk to the same restaurant, sit at the same table and often eat the same meal. It's comfortable and easy. Sure, we could try new restaurants -- we live in the mecca of eateries -- but eating out for us is more about sitting down and chatting for an extended amount of time without having to worry about the dishes.

With the coming of a little one and the fact that our current vehicle was too small to fit a car seat comfortably, we decided to invest in a second vehicle. Not surprisingly, it is a near replica of our current vehicle, just an extra two doors and hatchback. Take a look.

Our current car, a red Toyota Echo Our new car: a red Toyota Matrix The three years as a one-vehicle family was great but certain priorities made getting a second vehicle more appealing. Mainly, since I am planning on staying home with the baby full time, it will be nice to be able to drive up to Brian and Bridgette's house to visit during the daytime, go to some of the larger parks in the area for longer (and less trash-filled) walks and go to some of the museums/the zoo. Plus, with the hatchback, the dog won't have to sit on the babies lap, which is always a plus.

We were lucky that our friends, Dawn and Jason, just happened to be moving to Birmingham for the next two years and needed to sell their car. They gave us a great deal on it. They really loved the car and took good care of it. We can already tell that it is going to be a great addition to our family.

Side story: When we were test-driving it, Joshua kept telling me to imagine a screaming child in the backseat and then asking me if it was still a comfortable ride. He's a nut, which is why I love him so much.

Photo update

Patrick and Carrie, who are getting married in just over a month, stopped by a few weekends ago for a visit. We were able to have an impromptu bbq with them, our former apartment neighbors Robin and Bobby and our current neighbors Erin and Randy, which was super fun. Patrick and Carrie gave us our first baby gift. It was wild how overwhelming this gift felt to both Joshua and me. It just seemed unreal that, in less than six months, we will have a little body to put inside that baby outfit. What a wonderfully mind blowing thought.

On Memorial Day, we were able to attend my cousin Peter's chili cook off and beer fest. Joshua made a big batch of chili and we had a fun time hanging out with Peter's family and neighbors, including the adorable and dinosaur-growling Sine, pictured below.

One recent evening, around 8 at night, we were suddenly plagued with the burning desire to build a trellis for the flowers and ivy that have been booming in the planters I built last summer. We are excited for the ivy to grow up (literally) and cover the wall with foliage.

Lastly, some folks have been excited to see my pregnancy bump. Even though I'm now 15 weeks along, I'm not showing much. Here's me showing Shanti my belly after I went on an enjoyable walk in the rain with Joshua and Simon. She was unimpressed.

More Good News!

In other news, I was offered and accepted the Fels internship position with Project H.O.M.E., a local non-profit with an amazingly holistic approach to making long-term, sustainable changes in the city. The project I will be designing and implementing deals with a recent calculation of the cost of homelessness in Philadelphia which was done in order to show the cost-effectiveness of permanent supportive housing. Basically, in a similar fashion to Malcolm Gladwell's examination of "Million Dollar Murray", who cost Reno over a million dollars to not help him out, this new report from the University of Pennsylvania will be used to make an argument that transitional housing in neighborhoods not only increased the value of the housing but has tons of other secondary benefits as well. Not exactly sure which way the project will head, but I'm excited for the process!

Landing this position was a blessing. Being pregnant and looking for employment wasn't exactly the situation I wanted to be in when I graduated from my master's. I just hated the idea of starting a job and possibly being introduced as "that new girl who is already 4 months pregnant." There has been a position at The Reinvestment Fund which I have been eyeing for a while now (maps + economic policy = totally up my alley). However, I couldn't get over the fact that I would be applying for a full-time position knowing full well that I would not be willing to work there past November. Maybe a similar TRF position will be available once all the kids are reared!

But in the meantime, I'm excited to begin working with Project H.O.M.E. and to finally tell people more openly that I'm expecting. I was so worried that telling people would come around to bite me in the butt. Actually, during the interview, I told the Project H.O.M.E. interviewer that I was pregnant because she asked, "Why are you applying for an internship when you already graduated and could be applying for full-time positions?" After I told her, she said, "Whoa, that isn't something people usually share, but I understand because I have been in the same situation of applying for a job while pregnant." Then we talked about when I was due and other little things about pregnancy. She seemed totally supportive and understanding. But, more than anything, she seemed to appreciate my honesty. This seems to mean that I'll be going into a supportive environment, which makes me exceedingly happy. And maybe they will be able to hire me on a little longer for other projects after the Fels position ends ... at least until the baby comes. That would be ideal.

Plus, Project H.O.M.E.'s co-founder and Executive Director, Sister Mary Scullion, has just been named to TIME Magazine’s list of “The 100 Most Influential People.” Impressive.

Most Exciting News Ever

We are expecting a baby at the end of November!


Joshua is excited to wear this shirt. He surely will make a fantastic father. He has been the most wonderfully supportive husband these first three months of pregnancy.


Our families were super excited with the news. My brother and sister-in-law are also expecting, along with three of my cousins. They are all due between now and November when we are due. Baby boom!

We told the Thompson parents the good news with shirts that say "Fantastic Nana" and "Fantastic Padre," which are their chosen grandparent names.


Joshua made me a great Mother's Day cake to celebrate the coming of motherhood. I could not be more excited about my upcoming new role in life.

In the meantime, I've been excited by the pregnancy process. Luckily, after over a month of feeling off with morning sickness, it has started to lessen. I have to admit that I felt like it was never going to end.

This past weekend I purchased some pregnancy pants, which was exciting. Even though I'm not "showing," I'm slowly getting bigger. In pregnancy clothes, I look pregnant. Funny how that works. I'll be sure to post belly photos in the coming months.