Ava a passing fad?

Well I did some research on the popularity of Ava yesterday, and it is quite a phenomenon! I'm trying to decide if this is a good or bad thing. The Social Security website has it as the #9 name in 2005 (06 numbers aren't out yet), while it was still only #24 in Oklahoma in 05. Nationally, it skyrocketed between 2000 and 2005, from 180 to top 10! I think part of the explanation could be that Reese Witherspoon and Ryan Phillipe's daughter, whom they named Ava Elizabeth, was born in 1999. Unfortunately, Babycenter.com's 06 poll, which includes more than 350,000 BabyCenter members, ranked Ava as the #3 name. Yikes! I've been saying all along that I don't want a name that is trendy or or so popular that she'll run into other little girls with her name all the time. However, Ava seems the perfect combination of the traditional, two-syllable, "a" ending names I like, Hannah and Anna, with a bit of the spunk and sweetness of more "now" names like Olivia and Claire.

Still thinking...

My belly made the news!

So I attended an on-campus meeting yesterday about the search for our new university president, just minding my own business, right? Well, my belly business became public last night when Channel 12 ran a package about the meeting, complete with a shot of the audience that included my co-workers, and...my belly! That's right, a profile shot that did not include my face, just my belly. How embarrassing (but funny)! Go here to watch it and click on the video icon (I don't know how long they'll leave it up on this site).

We decided on a new favorite name last night, which doesn't guarantee it will be our favorite next week, but hey, we reached an agreement, and that's important! It's Ava Claire. Jay does not like the name Eva, which I really like, but he likes Ava. ??? I'm really liking the sound of a two-syllable first name and a one-syllable middle name, although I still like Claire as a first name also.

6 months dr. appointment

My Six Months Dr. appointment was Friday, and everything looks just fine. I drank the not-so-bad blood-sugar test drink, glucola, and got my blood drawn for gestational diabetes and anemia. Not so fun, but hearing my hyperactive baby girl's heart beat was a thrill, as always! I don't mean her heartbeat was unusually fast; she just moved away from the ultrasound thingy before the doc could listen for very long at all. My weight gain as of now is still normal, at 15lbs, so I'm still okay with broadcasting it. If I become silent on the subject, don't ask! The baby is about a pound and a half.

For now, she is still Baby Girl or Little Miss Mauck; no name decisions yet! Ones we agree on right now are Claire Elizabeth, Hannah Claire, Annika Claire, and Katy Diane. I really like Eva Claire, and call her Claire, but J insists that Eva just reminds him of the word "evil," and says it with a weird, demonic intonation. Anyway, I'm working on him. The name suggestions just keep pouring in from people at church and work, and I just keep on smiling and saying noncommittal things like "Oh yeah?" or "That's cute/sweet/unusual."

Tonight's the big SOSU/ECU game; bring on the cheer-offs, the halftime shows, and out-of-control fans! We're so there. Little Miss Mauck is building up her noise resistance while in the womb, did you know? So Shadow and Ranger's barking at a change in temperature or the occasional stray dog won't bother her when we bring her home.

Felicity and me are pregnant!

Okay, those of you who knew me in college knew that my best friend on TV was Felicity, a college student at the University of New York. The show started as I began my junior year in high school, and I was convinced I was also meant to go to college in New York. I decided on OU, but pursued a college career with my friend Felicity on the WB (RIP!). Now I find out we're still living the same life: Keri Russell is pregnant! And the baby's daddy (her fiancee), is a contractor! *Cue the twilight music*

Ice Storm!

Okay, I'll try to have pics of our ice-encrusted world later on--for now, here's a true picture of what I've been doing the last few days during our below-freezing temps and inclement driving conditions. We decided to dress Shadow and Ranger for the weather last night, and since J and my brother think any attempt to treat big dogs as humans is hilarious, they got a kick out of this.

I've pretty much been curled up on the couch, watching movies and reading, and cooking and eating the last three days straight. My family in Coleman have been out of electricity during that time, so my brother Kyle and their Italian foreign exchange student Angelica stayed at our house the last two nights. Kyle keeps her entertained with his earnest attempts at speaking Italian ("Did you tell your mom I was bellisimo?"), and she keeps us entertained with her periodic Italian tirades when she can't find English words to communicate her frustration or excitement (like when Kyle's having her try out a PS3 game, or when she gets through on the phone to her Mom in Italy.) The roads are clear enough to drive today, but temps remain around 20 degrees, not counting wind chill. Hooray for today being my first day back at graduate classes! I always say I learned how to dress for the weather when I was in college, having to walk to classes, to the dorm, to my car, etc., all day everyday. So I am layered up today!

Happy birthday, Hubby!

Jay turned the big 2-9 Wednesday! He's had a great birthday week so far, and we'll probably go out to eat with my mom this weekend to celebrate again! On Wednesday, Jay came home a bit early, so my grand birthday plan got accelerated a tad: I had written 29 things I love about him on Post-It notes, and so I had to run around posting them when he pulled into the garage. He enjoyed hunting around the house for different things, some silly, some serious. Some examples: Posted on the TV in the living room: I love when you say, "Let's watch a movie, babe," even when you fall asleep 10 minutes after I push play. Posted by the back door: I love that you share the dog responsibilities with me, feeding them and helping clean up Ranger's messes. Posted on the bathroom mirror: I love when you sing in the morning, especially when you make up words to fit how you're feeling or what's going on. It reminds me of my mom!

Go to my cooking blog to see the fabulous birthday meal I made for him! Then we got to church, and his mom had brought hot cocoa and cookies for our class to enjoy on Jay's behalf! Last night, we had his birthday dinner at Paul and Diane's house, which was great, as usual: barbecue ribs and banana pudding! Can you tell Diane has become a huge Paula Deen fan lately? She's always been a cook after Paula's own heart, though.

Name collage!

Here's how I'm thinking about names now. I used the May pages from last year's Mary Engelbreit calendar, put them on squares of cork board I found in my closet o' scrapbook stuff, and grouped our current faves by first and middle name ideas.

Six month bump!

My tummy has popped right out in the last month! At church yesterday, one lady said, "I finally believe you now, Kim!" Sleeping is becoming more difficult, as turning over is much more of a challenge with this protruding belly to maneuver around. However, I feel great in every other aspect: plenty of energy. I need to start applying that energy toward prepping the nursery.

Several people have asked me, "Do you have the room all fixed up?" That's like asking me in October if I have all my Christmas shopping done, people! Not to mention I just finished the money-spending frenzy that was Christmas shopping, so I couldn't even think about spending money on big things like a glider, or making big decisions like paint color. My idea so far is to do a kind of garden theme: bright colors, primarily pink and green and yellow, with lots of daisies. I'm even considering painting tall daisies on the wall, stretching from baseboard to mid-wall. This will really be up to my lovely mom and sister, who so graciously volunteered to paint the nursery! I also really like the idea of finding some kind of vintage storybook-like pictures of children in gardens, with flowers, etc. I have no idea where to find these images though. Any ideas, resourceful readers?

The name debate continues on, with me searching popularity charts (for not-so-popular choices), the Baby Name Wizard book, and babycenter.com message boards for ideas. Thanks very much to everyone who voted in my name poll on babycenter. My current faves are not necessarily the same as Jay's, but they are Hannah Claire, Katelyn Claire, and Harper Elizabeth. He likes these, but they're not necessarily his tops. You've probably noticed that my mind has changed slightly since I set up the poll. A new fave of Jay's is Annika, and we haven't decided which middle name goes with that yet. Perhaps Annika Claire or Annika Diane. I made a baby name collage over the weekend in an attempt to give myself a visual representation of my mind's frantic circles. It's posted on the fridge, and I move around the names, take down ones we no longer like, and add new ones daily. I'll try to post a pic of it tomorrow.

Vote for your favorite baby girl name!

Hey readers, I need your help! I created a baby name poll on babycenter.com, and I'd like you to vote on your favorite name! It helped me organize my thoughts to create the poll, and maybe your votes will help steer us in choosing our baby girl's name. I've been hesitant to share my name choices with people, but you, dear readers, are not just people. You're my loved ones, and I'd like your votes. Click here to see my poll! Please leave comments after you've voted explaining your choice, and other ones in the poll you like, also. Suggestions are welcome, also (again, because if you're here, you're probably someone who is close to Jay and I and knows us pretty well).

Thanks for your help!

Back to the daily grind...

What a grand week it's been, but now it's back to work! Monday was my mom's family's big Christmas/New Year's/OU game get-together. Go to my cousin's blog to see my new Chinese cousin, Amelia LiJin (Allie)! It was so much fun getting to spend time with Allie, my cousin's baby Emma, and of course all the old cousins, too! Caleb and Theresa put us to shame at the Nertz table a couple times, but the Okies showed up eventually.


I got one of my favorite Christmas gifts, a pink Chinese silk backpack/diaper bag! My aunt and uncle brought back souvenirs for EVERYONE (and that's a lot of people!) from China, including Faux-lexes for the boys and a T-shirt and hat for Nana and Grandad with their Chinese grandparent names on them! Tyler really enjoyed his Chinese warrior hat, a red silk cap with a long black braid coming out the back!


Then it was time to settle down for the OU game--if we're going to lose to Boise State, at least it's in a game people are saying might be the best of the century! What a roller coaster!



Happy birthday to my sis, who turned 23 yesterday!

My poor fam though; they're all sick with a head cold of some sort. Hope they feel better soon, as their Italian foreign exchange student is set to arrive today!