Hello, how do you do?

Dear Noodle,

Yes I have taken to calling you that until we find out if you are a girl or boy (a grueling 14-18 weeks to go). The good news is that Daddy and I finally agreed on a name if you are a boy: Jonah. We had thought of that name a while back but it had gotten lost along the way. Jonah was swallowed by a whale...which is not dissimilar to your floating in my bloated belly at the moment.

Tomorrow is our first doctor's appointment. In a little over 12 hours there is a good chance that we will see you for the first time. You won't look like anything more than a little bean, but it's a legume we are excited to see. Right now your father and I are settling down to a chicken pasta dinner. The cats are outside terrorizing bugs after their daily "can." And Miette is stripping for food. Business as usual. I was thinking that in order for you to have a better idea about who these "parents" of yours are, you might like to learn little snippets about us:

Kelly:
1) Name is Irish"warrior woman" and I wear it well.

2) Grew up in a tiny town in Florida called Ozona, on December 5th, 1979 at 9.33 am. I was born with my eyes open. FL was an incredible place to grow up, the ocean was in our backyard (actually I think it's a "pass" but whatevs), and there is a wonderful humid sense of danger in FL. I can't really put my finger on what it is but maybe it is how teeming with life the environment is. While danger is to be avoided at all cost, sometimes the illusion of danger, like a roller coaster, can be quite satisfying. I caught lizards in the backyard and sometimes would imagine they watched my spectacular array of dives into the pool.

3) I've traveled to many places in the US, to Mexico, Virgin Islands, Canada, and England, and have lived in WA, GA, FL and TX. I never ever would have thought that I'd live in Texas but I am so glad that I moved here, met your dad, and decided to go back to school for something I love. It is our dream to eventually buy a house in NC- the most beautiful place in the world.

4) One of my greatest loves is writing and I like to think I do it well. I also like to sing and your dad and I are in a little makeshift band. Ask you father for karaoke stories one day and see what he says! I am sure we will sing and dance for you many a sleepless night.

5) You are entering into two wonderful families. My parents, sister and brother are going to adore you. My sister actually has three kids of her own, so you will have cousins! They live in FL. Chris's parents live in New Mexico (not to be confused with Old Mexico, mind you), and they are going to spoil you rotten. He has half siblings in TX and NY.

6) I love animals nearly as much as I do writing. And we currently have two cats, one dog and two fish. You will never ever be starved of the joys of playing with animals.

7) Your dad and I are big readers and we always have a book that we read to each other each night before bed. We tend to gravitate toward horror novels for some odd reason, and our favorite author in this genre is Dan Simmons. If you are a horror buff like your mom or a sci fi nerd like your dad Dan has got you covered. One super bonus is that Chris does the voices! In our current book there is a Romanian feller and he does an incredible Transylvanian lilt.

For some background, here are some pictures to acclimate you to what you're getting yourself into:


Sprout and Onion. They love each other so.


Your big sister, Miette. She has conflicting feelings about being usurped once again (she once was the only child of the family before the cats and fish) but she is excited to watch over and guard you with all her chihuahua ferocity!


Like the animals above, I do love to dream! I've been dreaming of you so much!


Your Dad can look so vulnerable and lovely! Here he was most likely vulnerable because he spending too much again on fondue for me- the fondue monster.


Ok so it is getting late and we have our big day tomorrow. I will tell you about your dad tomorrow. I hope I get to see you! Warm belly wishes and bubbles of love,

Mom