Basketball-shaped belly

I am now posting my latest belly-progression shot, at 35 weeks. I look like a am carrying a basketball around my mid-section, which I guess is appropriate, being that we're in the middle of March Madness (go Heels!!!).

All other things pregnancy-related are going pretty well. We had a doctor's appointment yesterday, and Ally is head-down, which is good. That means that all the movements and body parts I've been feeling are likely her elbows, feet, knees, and backside. I am having some trouble sleeping, and my feet and ankles are swollen pretty much all the time, but that's to be expected. I now get to go to the doctor every week. It is hard to believe that she is almost here!

Spring Break! Part 2

It is now Ben's turn to be on spring break, and he couldn't be happier. This means he can now take a little break from planning classes and sleep in.

Did I already mention that he couldn't be happier?

Another Singing Scientist

Ben listens to books on CD during his commute back and forth from Chapel Hill to Elon. His current "read" is called "My Stroke of Insight" by Jill Bolte Taylor, PhD. Dr. Taylor is a neuro-anatomist affiliated with Indiana University and Harvard, and she had a massive stroke in 1996 when she was 37 years old. Her book details her memories of having the stroke and her subsequent 8 years of recovery. I've caught a few snippits of the book while in the car, and I have to say that it is extremely interesting.

Another thing I found interesting about Dr. Taylor is that she travels around as the Singin' Scientist to recruit donations for the Harvard Brain Bank. She has even written a jingle that she sings about her work as a "Brain Banker." To listen to it, and to find out more about Dr. Taylor and her work, visit her website: http://drjilltaylor.com/about.html

New Poll: Which board game is nerdier?

A couple nights ago, Ben and I pulled out our chess set for the first time in at least 5 years. We played 3 games (all of which Ben won), and so after my 3rd loss, I declared that I would never play him again in chess (of all the times we've ever played, I've only won once). However, I have since decided that if I'm going to improve, we should play more often.

Another board game we both like to play is Scrabble, and I think with that one, each of us has won a fair number of times. A couple summers ago, we really got into playing a lot of Scrabble, mostly at my request because Ben was on a winning streak, and I really felt that I needed to do something about it :) We even went so far as to taking our Scrabble board with us to coffee shops and playing, and at one point, we considered buying a Scrabble dictionary.

So anyway, Ben and I were talking about Chess and Scrabble, and we were trying to decide which board game is nerdier. Ben said he thought it was Scrabble, since Chess Grand Masters command a certain respect. I thought it was Chess because I tend to group regular chess players in with the math nerd crowd. Now, I'm curious what others think. I've created a poll on the right side of my blog: which is nerdier? Chess or Scrabble? Tell me what you think!

Spring Break!

Finally, it is here, my favorite part of the spring semester. In reality, UNC spring break doesn't start until Monday, but since my physiology class was cancelled this morning, I'm starting my break today. Now, I do still have schoolwork I have to get done, but at least classes aren't meeting so no actual assignments are due next week. That makes me very happy because the last 3 weeks have been absolutely crazy.

In any case, my spring break plans are really not that exciting. I need to start getting my documents ready for my first year review (a requirement that all the PhD students in my program have to do), preparing similar documents for an upcoming meeting with my PhD committee, sorting through the hand-me-down baby clothes we've received so far, and getting the nursery ready. At least these are all things I can do in the comfort of my own home and in the comfort of my pajamas :)

An updated look

I've had my blog for over 2 years now, and I felt like it was time for a new look (the whole black background was getting a bit drab). So in honor of UNC basketball and March Madness right around the corner, my blog is now decked out in a Carolina blue theme. GO HEELS!!!

I'm getting to that part of pregancy where. . .

For example:

My feet and ankles swell.
My midsection feels like an over-inflated basketball.
Bending to put on socks and shoes, to paint toenails, or to shave is a challenge.
I get out of breath a lot easier than I used to.
Things (or people) that didn't used to bother me now seem especially annoying.

Snow! Again!

Yes, we had our second snow of the season on Sunday night. The weather forecasters got this one right! And it's the month of March too! Monday morning, we woke up to about 3-4 inches of snow, and it was great. Ben didn't have to go into work yesterday because Elon's classes were cancelled. I think his intro physics students were even more happy because that meant that their test is now postponed until tomorrow. UNC was on a 2-hour delay, so my one class for the day was cancelled; however, I still went to school to get work done. I am guessing though that this is probably the last snow we'll see for the year. I should probably take pictures. . .