Halloween treats

We have been having fun making Halloween Treats. I know there will be plenty of treats to come but I want healthy, homemade, vegan treats. For me.

I saw a Groupon-type thing for (orange) white chocolate covered strawberry jack-o-lanterns. I thought, "I could make that!". So we did, last night.

First, melt the white chocolate and color it orange, dip the strawberries and place on cookie sheet, put in the fridge until chocolate hardens.

Then, draw on faces with black gel writing frosting. And, voila!

Also, I had a gigantic bag of kettle corn left over from the pumpkin patch. I added Trader Joe's coconut and melted chocolate for another yummy treat.

Big sister Sofia

Sofia's going to be a big sister, and she can't wait! It could happen any day now, as I'm 11 days from my due date (guess date). I'm ready! Sofia is going to be the best big sister! She tells me every day how anxious she is to meet the baby, she talks to the baby an kisses my belly all the time. She holds the door open for me and says, " you go first, you have a baby in your belly" but also tells me I should take the stairs for more exercise. Walking a block right now is plenty of exercise for me. Climbing stairs has been reason to reroute on the train. Seriously, I'll go 7 extra stops to get to the station with the escalator rather than climbing over 100 stairs. Now, AFTER the baby, I'll be walking all over the city, no problem. I hope I stay in as good of shape after the baby as I have during the pregnancy.

Last week we had a "becoming a big sister" tea party with a few of Sofia's friends. I made a special book for Sofia that's all about her. And a T-shirt that says "I'm the big sister". The kids played, had cucumber tea sandwiches and chamomile tea, then chocolate fondue with fruit for dipping. We ended with a trip to the park. Sofia even got gifts, which I was not expecting but she got a couple cute books about being a big sister. Very cute!

I just hope she will stay excited after the baby comes! I hope she'll be the big help she claims she will be and how I see her with other babies. I know she will also need extra love and attention.

We will soon find out.

Boy or Girl?

We have decided to wait. We are not going to find out until the baby is born.

With Sofia we found out. I wanted to wait but not as much as I wanted to know. On my side, we hadn't had a girl in our family since 1988. My 2 nieces are girls - big space - then 5 boys. Then Sofia. (And another boy.) I had a feeling it was a girl.

This time around, I can honestly say I do not have a preference. This time, I have a feeling it could be a boy. But either way, it's all good. I only see the positive if it's a girl or a boy. Win-win.

My husband is not even secretly hoping for a boy. And a lot of other people are too, surprisingly. I find it funny that so many people have told me that they hope I have a boy. Are they going to be disappointed if I have another girl? What is their investment in the gender of our offspring? Maybe its because we've been waiting so long to be blessed and it will most likely be our last (I turn 44 just 2 weeks before the baby's due date). Maybe it's because my suegros (in-laws) had 7 girls before they had their first boy.

Sofia was verbal about wanting a little sister initially. We have talked to her about not getting to choose what we have and she seems to be able to understand and accept that. So she has asked some school friends to be her sisters. Now she has lots of sisters and says she wants a brother. I think she'll be fine either way.

When someone tells me they hope we have a boy, I just picture this 1950's image of a family: a mother, a father, one girl and one boy, like Dick and Jane books or a Norman Rockwell painting. Not that there's anything wrong with that. If that's what we get then we'll be thrilled with our own 2012 modern version.

If we do have a boy, we will be the first on my side to have both a boy and a girl. All of my siblings have either all girls or all boys.

I've heard moms (and others) talk about being afraid of not loving the second as much as the first. That just seems like a foreign concept to me. I am looking forward to seeing the differences and similarities. Not judging and comparing. I love the idea of each child having their own looks, qualities, interests, personalities. He or she will be different than Sofia whether girl or boy...and I can't wait to meet this little being.