Bumblebees, but no babies

Well, I've officially reached my due date set by my obstetrician. I'm hoping that we will have a baby soon, but in the meantime, must keep self busy!! So I thought I'd give a quick update of our July activities thus far.

Some girls from our small group at church threw a baby shower for me. This is me, cutting the cake. (Who's ready to pop?!!)

This was the party favour that a friend made. I was so impressed.

I've been busy sewing some baby stuff. This is my recent project, a baby quilt. Can you guess the theme of our nursery? That's right, bumblebees! If you look closely, very closely, you will see that some of the yellow squares have little bees on them.


We also went into Manhattan, baby-free for the last time. I wanted to go to another Mets game (who knew baseball was so much fun to watch live). This is Jason and I in Washington Square, it's in the NYU area. It's a cool place to hang out (and people-watch of course).

Here's pictures from the Mets' game. They won. Yaaah! It was the perfect way to spend a summer's evening.

Our friend Jeung-Hoon.

Shaun and Jason, enjoying the game.

Well, that's about it. Now, the nesting begins. Apparently, now I'm suppose to want to clean my house to perfection. I have a hard time imagining that I will every feel like that.

New Apartment, Awaiting Other Big Changes

We just moved into a new apartment about a week ago. We decided it was time to get a two bedroom apartment so we had room for the new Olfert whose expected in two weeks and for all our family and friends that want to see us and New York City. We have only been here a week and already we have had two sets of guests that stayed overnight. Lots of fun!

Jason came back a day early from Oklahoma and surprised me with his early arrival. That was fun and even better was the help he was in our packing to move.

We celebrated our first 4th of July here. It was a grey, rainy day but we managed to make the best of it. Here's a picture of Melissa and me at our Independence Day party. She's due three weeks after me. The ladies in red!



This is a baby present that I got today from a friend who just returned from Korea. Can't wait to use it!


My friend Helen came for a week at the end of June. We had a great week, going into the City three times. We went to a Mets game, spent a day on the beach, had a picnic at a vineyard, and hung out at the local pool. Here's a shot of me from Queens, what a great skyline!!


Here's Helen in Times Square, after our Broadway show.

A Broken Bodum

I am making it through my month without Jason quite well. I haven't really missed him until about now. Hoping the next two weeks go fast, but not too fast because I have to do all the packing before we move into our new apartment.

This morning was eventful. As I was taking a container with coffee out of the cupboard, my stainless steel travel mug decided to hitch a ride with it and the mug came crashing down on my Bodum tea pot that I got for my birthday. I'm a little sad about the fate of my poor tea pot. I think the coffee feels that I have been neglecting it because I have been drinking tea almost everyday. So, obviously, it saw it's time to strike back at the tea pot and killed the little tea pot, hoping that that would switch my alliances back to coffee. I'll include a picture of the final fate of the tea pot (warning: graphic image).

Last weekend, my friend Tara came for a visit. We had a rainy, lazy Saturday together on Long Island and then we went to New York on Sunday and got some sun and excitement.

We walked over the Brooklyn Bridge from Manhattan. Some nice New Yorker (yes, that's right, a NICE New Yorker- they do exist) helped us out on the bridge. She directed us towards a pizza place so we could experience Brooklyn-style pizza in Brooklyn and then told us where to get the best ice cream.

Brooklyn Bridge

Me, with child, on the Bridge

Tara, showing us how to eat pizza "Brooklyn Style"

A great ice cream place

Look at that skyline! (oh and there is a bride in the background)

The rest of the day involved more food, as we went to Alice's Tea Cup to get some scones to-go and then we some how got in the middle of the Puerto Rico Pride Parade. It was very loud and crazy.

I also got to see Shaun and Marla while I was in New York and was introduced to the newest member of their family- Dixon. He is a very cute little dog and certainly gets a lot of attention on his walks.

Well, last week, I gave into the pressure and went onto Facebook. It's been fun and time-consuming, but I hope it doesn't take me away from blogging.

Muffins and Rainy Days

Today is a rainy day, which is actually a nice break from the heat and humidity that we were experiencing. I love the warm days but I always feel like I should be outside- DOING something. When it rains, well, I can just stay inside ALL day long, read, bake and watch movies. Which I'm doing today, well, the baking part at least.

Jason left for Oklahoma this weekend. He has gone down there to do research for a month with his work group. I know- nice! Leave the pregnant wife at home. But he didn't really have any say in the matter, the group does this sort of thing every year. Next year, they are going to Chile-now you're talking! So, maybe next year, I'll tag along and spend some time on the beach in Chile, learning Spanish and having my baby pick it up by immersion. We will see!

Now that I'm single, even though there is another person inside me (weird/cool at the same time. Beans does keep me from talking to myself. I can have conversations with Beans and not call it "crazy" just "bonding"), I'm having to find ways to fill my time. I've made my list of "June Activities" and so hopefully that will give me some structure so I don't spend the whole month watching "Pride and Prejudice" and marathon runs of "America's Next Top Model".

Nope, once the rains clear, I will be hitting the beach with my new maternity bathing suit from Target. V.cute. And no, you won't be seeing a picture of it on me either. I have found the beach to be the perfect place for a preggo- I can dig into the sand and bury my stomach down into it, so that way I can lie on my stomach. (Then people walk by and just feel mildly sorry for the beached whale!)

I'm also hoping to make a quilt for my baby. I made one for a friend (see my blog "Exams, excuses, etc.") and I was thinking of making one for myself. Since this one will be asexual, I'm limited to what colors to use, but I have an idea. I'll post the finish product.

My friend, Helen is coming at the end of June from England! We have already bought tickets for a Broadway show and it should be fun to show her around NYC and Long Island. Granted, I won't be up for pounding the pavement too much but it will still be fun.

Also, we are moving into a two bedroom apartment in July (well needed! The second bedroom will probably host our guests, while our baby sleeps in our room!) So, that means that I will get to have the joy of packing everything up again. But this time, I won't have to do any of the lifting- I can live with that.

Well, my low-fat Chocolate Chip Muffins are nearly finished, so I should run. Hmmm... they actually taste low-fat as well!

Beautiful Days!

We have been having the best weather here this past week. It's been great. It's so warm, in fact, that we went to the beach on Saturday. We didn't go into the water past our ankles, but that's 'cause it's the Atlantic and it's COLD!!

It's been so nice and warm that I made a batch of home-made strawberry ice cream! It turned out very good (I think). I bought the strawberries from our local farm stand and I milked a cow for the cream (just joking- about the cow). This could be a bad combination though: pregnant woman with ice cream maker. I'm considering what my next flavor should be, either peanut butter with peanut butter cups OR peach. Any suggestions?

We had a great Memorial Day weekend. Like I've mentioned already, the weather's been great, so we spent most of it outside. We watched "Pan's Labyrinth" on Friday (not for the weak-hearted) and then Saturday, we headed to the West Hampton beach to enjoy the sun and sand. Sunday, we went into New York to meet up with our friend, Liz. We had a great day there. We went to MoMA for the afternoon for FREE!

Here's Liz and Jason in the garden at MoMA.

One of the displays in the Design and Architecture section of MoMA.

Just a picture of the Empire Building.

Monday, we helped out at our church, giving out free pop (out here- it's called "soda". I guess people in the Mid-West call it "pop") to people who were marching or watching the Memorial Parade.

We just bought our first BBQ. So, we have been cooking on it regularly, it's great. I think it's a necessity for the summer.

Other necessities for the summer:
-Body Shop body butter KEPT IN the fridge
-home-made ice tea
-a fan
-ice cubes, lots of ice cubes
-a nearby beach/body of water
-sunglasses
-flip flops
-ice cream (in any form, on a stick, in a cup, on a cone)

Big Changes and Little Changes

Well, I know that I have been pretty bad about blogging lately. We recently had Jason's mom and dad out visiting us. We also had some friends from Cambridge visiting. Finally, I was in Alberta for 10 days, visiting friends and family.

As the title suggests, there has been some big changes and some smaller changes as well... the biggest (and smallest) change is that I have a new neice! Her name is Emery Janae and she was born on May 6th. Here's her picture.


I was able to meet her five hours after she was born! I flew to Calgary and drove up with my mom the day before her birth. My welcome to Alberta? Driving through a snow storm on the way to Edmonton. Unbelievable.

Another change that we have experienced at the Olfert house is the shaving of Jason's beard. He has had that thing since September and now with the warmer temperatures and his favorite teams out of the NHL playoffs, he decided it was time to shave...

Before

After

And in between...

Here are some pictures from our trip to Washington, DC with Jason's parents. Here we are at Arlington National Cemetary. It's the cemetary where JFK is buried and the Unknown Soldier's memorial is here as well. We had great weather in Washington and saw lots of cherry blossoms on the trees.

Here's a picture of the White House. We couldn't go inside but we were able to tour the grounds and see the gardens.

At the WW II war memorial.

There were so many beautiful flowers there.

There's Abe.

Korean War memorial.

Iwo Jima memorial.

Capitol Hill.


An artistic attempt.


Here's a picture of Jason, working in an airplane. See kids what you can do after you get your PhD! This is Jason testing out his sensor that he has been working on. His research group is going to be flying over Oklahoma City this June, gathering air samples. This is a test run.

The Cheap Train Ride

On Saturday, we caught the train into NYC to spend the day with our friends Chris and Tara. We got a deal on our train tickets and thanks to Jeong, who lets us know about this discount, our tickets were only $6.50 each (normally $19.00).

The weather was great on Saturday, sunny and mild. We were lucky and beat the Nor'Easter by a day. You may have heard of the big storm that hit New York and the North Eastern coast over the weekend. The storm was apparently a 'Nor'Easter', which I am going to assume means a North Eastern wind was causing the storm. It's certainly took on a life of it's own. There was so much flooding in this area.

Here are some pictures of our day with Chris and Tara. These ones are all taken in Central Park.





I finally got into this tea shop that I have been trying to get in to everytime I've gone in to NYC since Christmas. There was always a 45 min. wait to get a table. So, finally, this time we got in after waiting 10 mins. It's kind of a girly place, so a big thanks to Chris (and Jason) for allowing me to drag them into a place that serves finger sandwiches and was hosting a bridal shower in the back room. This place serves the best scones, so I know they didn't suffer. Warning, if you do come to visit me, I may drag you to Alice's Tea Cup.

From tea to hockey....

On Monday, we went to an Islanders playoff game. They lost, but it was still pretty fun to be in an atmosphere like that. The fans got a little out of control at the end of the game. Due to a bad penalty call, the fans were littering the ice with bottles and cups to show their disagreement with the call. I think we will stay away from going to anymore games this season because every game we have gone to, the Islanders have lost.

My obstetrician is a big hockey fan so I am now having dreams (or maybe nightmares) about him and Jason discussing hockey while I'm in labor. At least the playoffs with be done then.

Easter Birthday

That's it- I'm officially 29 years old. This year, I celebrated the date of my birth on the same date as the celebration of the resurrection of Jesus. Obviously, one event had significantly more of an impact on the world than the other event, but it was still a good birthday. Not a GREAT birthday though. No, unfortunately, last year's birthday is still overshadowing this year's celebration. Last year, I was in Egypt, exploring ancient temples and relaxing by the pool in the desert sun. This year, I spent the morning at church and the afternoon, studying in my kitchen.

Here's a picture from last year's birthday in Egypt. We went to a Korean restaurant for dinner.


But, the afternoon of studying paid off, because I passed my nursing exam! I just got the "unofficial" results today. I am so relieved. There still may be a chance that I will work in this country before I have this baby! I didn't feel so confidant when I left the exam on Tuesday. I had left my house with PLENTY of time to get there, but of course, traffic was horrible and then I missed my turn, twice. So I showed up with pink cheeks and out of breath. Then, the exam went really quickly. The length could range from 75 to 265 questions (depending on how you answer your questions) and you have 6 hours to write it in. Well, I was out of there in 1 1/2 hours and my brain was spinning. I thought I would have an idea of how I did, yet I felt completely confused and unsure of how I did.

Other exciting news- I got tickets for "Live with Regis and Kelly" at the end of the month! I had applied to go with Irene and Esther, when they were visiting. But, only two dates worked when they were here, so the third date I gave was a date in April, when Jason's parents are here. So, it's going to be me, Jackie and Irwin in the audience on April 26th. Make sure to check it out, spot us in the audience and listen for Irwin's laugh!

Colds and Friends

Well, all my visitors have left and now I am trying to study for my exam. We had a great time with our friends who came to visit. Carin and Marcus arrived last week from Sweden and stayed with us for a few days. We had the nicest day in spring so far, which we spent in Southampton, walking on the beach and looking at all the nice houses there. I think I even got a few more freckles. Here's a picture of the cute couple. They are on their way to Guatemala to visit Marcus' dad and take in Holy Week down there. That should be an amazing experience.


After Marcus and Carin left, my friends Irene and Esther arrived from Lethbridge. But (as the title of this blog suggests), I came down with a wicked cold, I even lost my voice for a day! Luckily, there was a day and half break in between our friends coming, so I was able to rest my body and my voice and somewhat recover. What a pain! I haven't been sick all winter and the week that I need to be well, I get sick! Isn't that how it always goes?! Now, we are looking forward to Jason's parents coming for a visit in two weeks. Our spring seems to bring friends and family, which is great.

Here is a pregnant picture of me. As you can see, everything has GROWN, not just my belly. Oh well!


As for a name for the little fetus, we are going with the name "Beans" (only while it's inside me!) Beans? you ask. Well, there is a bit of a story behind it. First, the kid DID look like a little bean in the first ultrasound that we saw. Second, we took the name from this children's tv show called "Even Stevens", where one of the characters gets the nickname "Beans". Jason and I laughed so hard during that episode (it must have been EARLY Saturday morning) that it made an impact in our minds. So, when we were thinking of nicknames, "Beans" jumped into our minds (and into our hearts!).

Exams, excuses. etc.

New Baby!!

First of all, a big congratulations for Lisa and Nathan on the birth of Sadie Jane! Here is a cute picture of her at home- I can't wait to meet her!



First Excuse

It's been awhile since I've posted. My excuses? Well, I finally got a date to write my NCLEX (nursing exam). This is the last step in my pursuit of my nursing license in the States. So, I'll write my exam in the beginning of April and my excuse is that I'm now busy studying. Not that I am always busy studying, but it's easier to justify reading other people's blog while I eat breakfast than taking time to write in my blog.

Second Excuse

My second excuse is that we had some visitors last week stay with us. My friend, Sarah from university, and her husband and little girl. Looking back at my pictures that I took while they were here, I noticed that I didn't get one of Sarah, but all of the pictures have Lily in them!
We went to Southamptom for lunch one day and walked around the town. Sarah and I got immense pressure from one boutique to buy some "couture" baby clothing, which consists of baby clothes that cost way more than I would even spend on clothes for myself. We broke out of the store once we got a chance!


Here's a picture of Lily at bathtime.



We also ventured into New York on Friday, which is the day when we had a whole bunch of snow! I think it was one of the worst days that we have had this winter. But, we made it into Manhatten, popped up from the subway into Times Square, look at the Empire State Building, had a long lunch in a great Italian restaurant and took a long coffee break in Starbucks. It wasn't the best weather to see New York in, but Luc, Sarah and Lily were real troupers!

Third Excuse

I made my first baby blanket. It didn't turn out perfect, but I think it looks pretty good from far away! Here's a picture of it. (There are a few bunnies on it, just in time for Easter).



So, that's what I've been up to. We are getting more visitors next week, so there may be another break in my blogging, but after, I will post all of our adventures. My mom wants me to post a picture of me, showing off the pregnant belly. I haven't taken a great picture yet, but I'll post a pic soon. If you need a dose of adventure, check out Marc and Kylie's blog (link is on the right hand side). They have just moved to Kenya and they have been so good about writing about all their new experiences and new adventures! Enjoy.

The Passport

I have recently sent Jason's passport to Canada because it will expire soon. I had to send it to Jason's mom first. I decided to be wise and send it registered. Well, that decision resulted in a lot of stress. The passport package went missing for THREE WEEKS. Canada Post, USPS, nobody could tell me where the passport was. Finally, it showed up in Vancouver! I have a theory that this passport has done some travellin' around the world on it's own.

Ah, Ryan Smyth. Jason and I have been enjoying the recent addition to the Islanders' team. Jason received many unhappy emails from Edmontonian friends upset with the Oilers' loss. But, we have been encouraged by Ryan's arrival as the Islanders may now have a chance at the Playoffs. We got tickets for a game at the end of March- can't wait.

It's a baby!

Well, I know my sister-in-law has been waiting for me to blog this... we have a baby on the way! That's right, Jason and I are expecting to have a bundle of joy arrive on our doorstep in July. I had an ultrasound on Wednesday and I thought I would introduce you to our future family member by showing you a picture of him/her.



I'm a little partial, but I think he/she looks pretty cute. We aren't finding out the sex of the baby, so I think I'm going to have to figure out what I'm going to call "it" while it's in utero.
'He/she' is a bit of a pain to use constantly. Any suggestions?

Waiting for Spring

I am hoping March brings nice weather. I'm ready for it. The spring flowers in the stores have been catching my eye. These daffodils were beautiful (they didn't last very long though). I just bought some tulips on the weekend and they are cheering up my little home now.

I went to my first Pampered Chef party on Saturday. I was planning on buying very little, but ended up buying more than I had planned (I think this is why these parties do so well). My friend planned a Chinese New Year theme, so I learned a bit more about the culture and we got some Chinese food as well! The boys had their own party in the basement, with beer and darts. Very manly.

Yesterday was Presidents' Day down here and so we had the day to spend together. I think traditionally, you are supposed to go shopping. That's assumed from all the advertising on tv for Macy's, J.C. Penney's and every furniture store around. We had thought about venturing to IKEA but changed our minds when we noticed that they didn't have some tables we wanted (you can check their stock online- it's great!). So, we hung out at home and watched the Islanders' hockey game. It was probably the most exciting game they have played in awhile and they scored the winning goal with 30 sec. left on a breakaway. Yah! They might squeak into the playoffs still.

Fruit Salad and Friends

Well, I have good news, that my nursing application in finally moving along in it's process. Finally! It's on step two of three, so I'll keep you posted on the progress.

We had a great time on Sunday. Our small group got together at a couple's house for brunch. We had a great spread of food. I made a fruit salad with every fruit that I could find. Just a tip: the strawberries are disappointing right now. Just wanted to let you know if you are planning on a chocolate fondue anytime soon. The big hit at our brunch was Scotch Eggs. Keith made them from scratch. They were lo-ve-ly! I've had them before in England but never homemade. They are essentially hard boiled eggs, wrapped in ground beef and Italian sausage, then dipped in breadcrumbs and beaten egg and baked until golden.

On Saturday, we got together with some new friends and played Settlers. It's been MONTHS since we had played that game. Our last game was with our Aussie friends in England. Needless to say, Jason and I didn't win either of the two games that we played, so we will relentlessly play until we win again.

Here is a cute little picture of my nephew Lewis that Michelle just sent me. He is such a happy baby.

Superbowl Sunday

We had a fun weekend and the Superbowl on Sunday was the peak event. On Friday, we went out for dinner with some new friends. It was almost a blind date, because we hadn't met Kyle's wife and we had just met Kyle once. But, it was a lot of fun and we had a lot to talk about. They introduced us to a lively restaurant nearby and we discovered that they like playing board games, so we may have found some new Settlers partners.

Saturday, I went to a movie with a friend. We saw "Notes on a Scandal". It was interesting, there is a twist in there that I didn't know about before hand.

Sunday. The Superbowl. This is the first time I watched the Superbowl in the States, so I was excited to see the commercials. We had some friends over from church to watch it. This picture below is of Crystal, Louise and Sharon (Left to right). Sharon introduced herself to me at church, the first Sunday I was there and we just clicked. I've been really blessed to have met her.

This is a picture of Jason and Josh. Josh had a little "accident" on our couch.

This is Brian drinking mate. A big thanks to Stephen for supplying the special mate horn to drink out of. It's a cool Paraguayan thing that the Friesen family shared with us. And we are sharing it with our Long Island buddies.

I made these great pizza twists that were a big hit. Thanks, Rachel Ray! Writing about this weekend has made me realize how much God has blessed us with in our new lives in New York. The first few months after a move is always difficult, figuring out where everything is, finding new friends, setting up a new home. But, this last month, I've been realizing how many great people we have met and how this place is starting to feel familiar (in a good way).