Monaloca

For those keeping tabs on Baby Rapoza’s arrival, my water broke this morning around 7:30. Baby’s on her way! Well, kinda. Alas, still no contractions. We’re hoping I go into labor on my own sometime today so the doctors don’t insist on inducing. And we’re still at home for now.

We may have a May baby after all!

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When visiting my parents over the weekend my mom pulled out her and my dad’s baby books. I hadn’t even known they existed, and had a great time looking at all the photos and notes from my two grandmothers. The gem, though, was a Baby Record booklet for my mom, who was born in January, 1941 at Saint Francis Memorial Hospital in San Francisco.

Any mom or soon-to-be-mom knows how hard it is to sift through various child-rearing advice and keep up with the latest rainbow of recommendations, professional and otherwise.

But my, how things have changed since 1941!

The booklet devotes half a page to “how to give baby his sun baths,” which entails exposing the infant to increasing amounts of sun on a daily basis. Apparently my grandmother also followed the booklet’s (and doctor’s) instructions to feed her baby (my mom) orange juice starting at six weeks, and raw egg yolk mixed into her cereal at five months. Yup, all the exact opposite of what we’re told to do today, yet somehow most of these babies turned out just fine.

I’ve included scans of a few pages from the booklet. Definitely read the Sun Bath entry (second image), it’s hilarious given what we know today. Another great line not shown in the scans: “Your baby is not a toy to be showed off to family and friends.” Really?

Back in Berkeley, we’re still waiting to meet our own baby. She’s either very stubborn or very patient, and in any case is now taking her sweet time. We celebrated her day-after-due-date (yesterday) with a trip to SF, complete with yummy brunch on Clement Street, a visit to Green Apple Books, and a walk along the coast near Sea Cliff. Good fun, but we’re soooo ready to welcome our little one!

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And really trying to appreciate the peace and quiet of these last few weeks(?) days(?) before Baby arrives. Relaxing is difficult for a planner like me who is usually always on the go. Carrying around a seven-pound-plus baby (yes, the doc estimates she’s already that big!) definitely leads to easy fatigue and forced down-time.

I wish I could take some short hikes up in Tilden Park but know I wouldn’t make it more than 15 minutes without needing a break. Instead I fill my days with shorter walks, errands, reading (ah, the luxury…), and hanging out at cafes either alone or with friends. Even though my mind and energy are half-shot, it’s not a bad life!

The house is also as ready as it will be for the arrival of our little one. We painted the kids’ room two colors (light blue and yellow for the sky, moon, and sun – and cuz we like them – not for boy and girl as my mom likes to think), installed Kai’s “big brother” bed (ie, we downgraded him from a full to a twin, and he loves it!), and have the room stocked with both diapers and blankets and a huge, closed toy box full of Kai’s toys – his favorite of which are still little pieces of plastic and wooden food. Hopefully his little sister will like to cook as much as he does!

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Those who know me well know my passion for travel, and especially for Latin America.

Nearly five years ago I embarked on what ended up to be a year-long journey (I’d intended to be gone for just six months) through Central and South America. Volunteer work, mingling with locals, trekking volcanoes, swimming in the Pacific, and improving my Spanish all filled my days – plus so much more.

With a little one on the way (any week now!), I don’t know when I’ll have such a vision-altering experience again. Ok who am I kidding, I know a baby will alter my outlook quite a lot, just in a different way…

I hope one day to instill in my child a similar sense of wonder, adventure, and awe, and an active interest in the world’s diversity. It has so much to teach and inspire in us.

I had been wanting for a while to post my collection of favorite Latin American photos online. The baby-wait has given me that opportunity (read: time), and I’m happy to say they’re now live!

Take a look and enjoy the journey.

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The countdown is on! My last day at work was Tuesday, so from now until baby’s arrival I have time for nothing but peace, quiet, and tackling all my personal projects – not to mention final prep for wee one, though we’re almost as ready as we’re going to be.

About a month ago I made a conscious decision to put my writing on the back burner until later this year. Ironically, I’ve since been inspired to pick it up again. Turns out my wedding essay the local magazine really liked wasn’t a good fit for any upcoming issues (yes, I was very bummed) but the editor encouraged me to submit anything I might have to both a parenting anthology and an upcoming issue on summer days. I’m working on a step-parenting piece right now (which is a bit of a scary internal endeavor, but turning out quite well), and just submitted a new piece on a childhood memory from summertime in Yosemite.

I’ve decided to post that piece, Bubble Fairies, on this site. As I re-read and proofed the essay on Tuesday, I teared up each time I got to the last paragraph. This seems incredibly self-indulgent, to cry at my own writing, but it all ties back to the passing of generations and having my own baby very soon. You’ll have to read it yourself to understand why.

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