When Jason and I were in grad school we made no money, I mean…seriously we would be super excited if we could get to the end of the month with 10 dollars because we could usually find  bar that had a 4 dollar beer and we would go celebrate making it to the end of the month and each have one beer (although we each always wanted more). At that time we lived in a shitty little apartment in the Ukrainian Village and while we liked the neighborhood (kind of), and the commute to Fermilab was easy (this was a huge plus), the apartment was a piece of shit. There was barely any heat in the front of the apartment (seriously how the hell was that even legal?), the previous owner had cats that I think sprayed everywhere so for 2 years I lit candles and would always get a whiff of cat urine smell (although I’m 99% sure that it was my lunatic imagination), the kitchen had no counter tops, but was huge so that was weird. But it was a cheap roof over our heads and that counted for something.

Somehow we made it through those days. And they weren’t all bad. The money thing was always a monkey on our back but we learned how to do things on the cheap. Do you know training for a marathon is quite cheap? Just get some running shoes and go run. So we did a lot of running. We had a lot of fun and traveled a lot (work paid the way to Europe twice).

Since then Jason has gotten a “real job” and I have moved up to the postdoc world which isn’t so bad moneywise where I am. Although my job will probably change in 2-3 years.

During those Ukrainian Village days, Jason and I would wonder if we would ever own a condo in the city. We never even talked about owning a house because that possibility was just never going to happen. I knew I didn’t want to leave the city. I’m a city girl through and through (I always thank my lucky stars that I found someone that loves it and appreciates it as much as I do!) and the thought of living in Schaumburg, Naperville, Berwyn or any other suburb makes me cringe. I get why people live in the suburbs, I really do…but it’s just not for us.

From the Ukrainian Village (before that we were in a shitty apartment in Wrigleyville and before that a cute apartment in Bloomington and before that a shitty apartment in East Lakeview…but really that one was like 2 blocks from the lake so that was a lot of win…my point is a lot of apartment living) we moved to a great apartment in Lakeview where we have been for the last 3.5 years. Great landlord, great neighborhood, great location. But then we started to look at our savings account which has grown over the years, and we started going to open houses. We saw lots of condos in Lakeview and then widened our search to Lincoln Square. And what do you know…houses there were just a little more than condos on our block. And so more open houses. A Redfin tour. Some more houses with our landlord (who is a realtor).

We found a place we liked that would have been awesome “in a few years” since we would have put an extension on it, changed a staircase, landscaped the yard, added a garage and so on. We were planning on putting an offer down on Sunday but on Friday night we went for a walk around the neighborhood and I had a panic attack about the neighbor that had a coach house on the back. There was some bright ass light on the porch and it lit up the entire yard of the house we were interested in. Yes I am sure we could have talked to the owner and changed it and yes I’m sure with a garage, landscaping, a fence, and a deck in the back yard it wouldn’t even have been an issue. BUT I still went into a panic and at midnight on Friday night emailed our realtor that I wanted to see three other properties in our price range before putting an offer down.

He was able to get us into two of the others (the third was probably too expensive and too far away anyways). The first one was on the el track and while that wasn’t a deal breaker necessarily, the condition of the house was. It would have needed *a lot* of work. Then we went to view the original house we wanted (this was the 3rd viewing) and spent a lot of time talking about possibilities etc etc. Then it was off to the third one. Jason and I were so high on the house we liked that we were just kind of walking through not really looking. At one point my Dad came up to me and said, “Leah…do you realize this house is done.” I said, “Sure…wait, what do you mean?” He said, “I mean you can move in and not be thinking about renovations for the next 10 years of your life.” I started to look closer at this cute little house. And harder and harder…and Jason and I started looking at rooms a second and third time and we started to feel at home.

Not that any house is really done, you have to put time and effort into it to keep it nice. These owners have done that making little improvements here and there every year and there are still things to be done. But it’s not like a monkey on our backs that will be, “This house will be nice, when we finish that addition (and deck, and basement, and family room)”. If we had more money that could have been fun because we could have moved in and started with all of those things immediately…but we don’t and so it would have been a long time coming.

We put in a low offer on Monday night and went back and forth and by Wednesday we had an agreement. Thanks to our realtor for being a bulldog in the negotiations. We close on the 22nd of March. Obviously still a few major hoops to jump through (inspection and finalizing the mortgage), but it from where we stand things look to be pretty solid.

The house is 2 blocks from a great school, 2 blocks from an el stop and 6 houses down from good friends of ours (which is funny because when went to their house warming party we said, “Wouldn’t it be awesome to have a house like this someday.”). Turns out the two houses have the same floor plan although theirs does have an addition on the back.

So we are on to the next phase it seems like. With all the excitement sometimes I forget that I’m pregnant. 12 weeks till this little guy/gal comes out. And we have *nothing* ready. With a big move happening, we won’t be doing *anything* until we get into our new house…which will be about 4 weeks before the due date. So that’ll be exciting. Although I’m sure I won’t go early given my previous experience so I should be knowing exactly when things have to be ready!

Exciting times ahead.

2012 is shaping up to be one of the most exciting years I think we’ve had yet!

• We are expecting baby Rocky (Lucy says the baby’s name is “Rock a baby in the treetop” and so we have nicknamed it Rocky) on April 30th.
• Jason and I have started a joint creative project that I’m excited to watch grow as the weeks go on. More on this in the upcoming weeks.
• I’m planning on doing more professional photography work as well as just *more* photography. I *have* to make time for this. I really enjoy it too much to let it starting slipping.
• By the end of the year I hope to be back to consistently running with a plan for the 2013 Chicago marathon. I know that I have a hard time running far while nursing and as I plan to do that for a year again, there won’t be any “real” distance added until April of next year. Which if I’m in some kind of shape will be good timing.
• Making a run for a house before the new baby comes? Waiting until next year? We don’t know yet.

Those are the big things this year with the usual suspects with work and city living thrown into the mix.

With that The Lucille is up and I must go play with her before taking her to school!

For this baby I was sure that it would be different. I was sure that I would know what the baby moving felt like, as maybe I had missed it the first time. And I would already be all stretched out and so the baby would have an easier time moving and so on and so forth.

While I am feeling little tiny kicks maybe like once a day (if that more like every other day), it’s not anything dramatic. The baby didn’t do much for the ultrasound and so we were done really quickly. Stories from friends and family of the baby going crazy during the ultra sound or their bodies being used as a punching bag have me a little jealous (well not for the painful part of the punching bag scenario but just to have nice big movements goign on). Maybe it’s because I’m tall (I’m almost 6 feet) and so there is more space in there so I won’t feel it as much as someone who is short. Maybe I just have calm babies in utero. But because the baby doesn’t move that much I tend to worry a little bit that everything is ok. At one point when I was pregnant with Lucy, Jason suggested that she had yarn arms. I suggested she was a weeble wobble and didn’t have any arms or legs. Yes even after the ultrasound. I didn’t say I was rational when it comes to pregnancy.

Yes I realize I’m only 20 weeks pregnant and so it’s still early. That doesn’t mean I can’t have irrational fears.

Spread it did and when we went back at 15 months (and 18 months) there was no improvement but the same story from the doctor. Super common, it’ll go away etc etc.

This whole time Lucy has been at her daycare, no questions about it. Nothing.

Last week they told Jason, “We think maybe it spread to her butt.” Jason got worried, took a peek into the diaper and said, “Um. That’s diaper rash. It’s clearly not the same thing.”

The doctor warned us also that as her little body fights the infection the little bumps would pop as they “end their life.”

Yesterday one of these little bumps popped and Lucy came home with a bandaid on because they were “worried that when they were open they would be contagious.” That’s not how this works. It’s a contact thing. It’s not like if they open all of a sudden it’s in the air.

Anyways.

This morning the teacher is like yeah we really need a note from her doctor just saying what it is. And again this teacher said, “You know we were worried because it looked like it was in her toosh.” I again told her that was diaper rash as it was already gone. (I don’t know why they don’t know what diaper rash is…we think this set of teachers were all with older kids the last few years).

So now that the virus is almost completely cleared up, she only has a few of these spots on her stomach left they need a note. Even though in 10 months no teacher or kid or Jason or I or my Dad or Stepmom or Mom or anyone else that has been around Lucy has broken out in anything.

I know. I know. It’s just a policy they have and they have to check all the kids. And I do appreciate the careful because I know they will be that vigilant with other kids if they are sick. It’s just annoying because everyone is so scared of every little thing. So I had to track down the doctor today. Then I got another call from the afternoon teacher saying there was some confusion and so on and so forth.  I WAS LIKE, IT’S COMPLETELY NOT HARMFUL IF ANYONE ELSE GETS IT EVEN IF THEY DID GET IT WHICH THEY WON’T. They get some bumps. They go away eventually. It’ll look ugly in the process.

It’s just a pain in the butt with the back and forth on what it is that she has and what it “means” and if it’s contagious. I mean it’s not like it’s Contagion on her little body. I’m glad I’m not picking her up today because the whole situation is making me nuts.

When I talked to the doctor today she said, “If they kept kids out of daycare because of this there would be no kids left in daycares.”

Jungle gardens was fun, but it didn’t take as long as I had planned. She was super overheated and so we were only there an hour. She did walk right up to one of the Flamingos and looked it in the eye like, what the heck (oh….right. Lucy repeats *everything* we are saying now…like when I might have called one of the flight attendants a b*tch and I’m pretty sure she repeated that…so right, more careful with the language!) are you all about. We went to Panera for lunch and then just decided to go the airport from there. So we got to the airport at like 2:00 for a 7:00 flight. I know, I know…..seriously though I thought Jungle Gardens would be more like a 3 hour deal. It wouldn’t have been that insane if that had been the case.  I do think Lucy had just as much fun running circles around the airport as she did looking at the Flamingos.

So we know there is weather coming to Chicago, but our flight is barely delayed and we are looking forward to some Sweet Home Chicago. You would think that a 40 minute nap followed by 5 solid hours of running and climbing and running and then some more climbing would tired out a 16 month ould. And you would be wrong. Lucy was completely manic on the plane. She would lay down and squirm and change positions and cry and squirm and repeat. She finally fell asleep about 30 minutes from Chicago. Or so I thought.

The captain came on and said, “Hey there folks. Well it looks like it’s going to be a bumpy ride. There is weather down there but the air traffic controller thinks we can make it no problem.” It doesn’t look good when the flight attendants say things like, “Hey folks we are going to clean up the cabin a little earlier than usual because we really want to be strapped in for this one.” So 8:55 (our original landing time) comes and goes with no sign of the ground. At 9:15 or so the captain comes back on the intercom with a, “Well I’m really sorry folks but this plane cannot land in Chicago and we are rerouting to Columbus to refuel.”

Awesome.

I hate flying anyways so I am viewing this situation as clearly in the bad column (air travel rarely makes the good column). Lucy wakes up part way to Columbus and starts crying. I’m having a mild panic attack because, I’m sorry but those red and orange running lights when flying through clouds look like flames shooting out of the airplane (I’m nothing if not dramatic). We land in Columbus (yay!) but then due to a medical emergency on another plane we have to wait and can’t get to a gate. I wanted to tell them that there would be a medical emergency on this plane if Lu got any more agitated. We finally get to go to the gate and we have deplane the plane because they need to do some service work on the plane along with refueling.

In the meantime Jason and I were cursing ourselves because in a moment of brilliance earlier in the day I said, “Hey I’m just going to put the chargers in the checked luggage because they I hate having all the cords in the bag and this way we’ll have some more room in our carryons.” Excellent idea Leah! Except when you are rerouted to Columbus and you have no way to tell the people (Hi Dad and Sue!) picking you up what is going on. I wish I had been flying with either my friend Mandy or my sister-in-law both of whom always seem to be prepared for anything. I on the other hand was only prepared to land in Chicago at 9pm.

We borrowed a charger from Mr. IThinkImAwesomeWithMyBackwardsHat who I was making fun of on the plane for his utter doucheiness. Thankfully he didn’t notice and lent us his charger so we could get phones juiced.  Sidenote: he had his pack of friends were sitting across from us watching South Park on an iPad and I’m sorry but that show makes me laugh even just listening to it.

Ok. Anyways. On with the story.

Lucy in the meantime has passed out in her stroller. I hear an announcement that says something to the effect of, we are going to board the flight that had come in from Tuscon and if there are any seats left over the people that were on flight 31 (that’s us!) will be able to board. There were like 5 planes that were going to Chicago that were rerouted and grounded in Columbus and they were consolidating those 5 flights into 2. We ran over to the gate area and pushed to the front of the line. Me claiming the 16month old I needed to get home. Everyone else can suck it. Oh great! The computers are down, so they are (I’m not kidding about this) writing down our names and how many people are in our party on a scrap of paper since they can’t get us paper boarding cards. I was like, for serious? We are standing in just a mob of people trying to get on a plane with a woman saying, “Ok what is your name, wait how do you spell that?” It was *insane*. So we get onto the jetway, and have to yank sleeping baby girl out of her deep slumber.

Which then brings us to the high point of the trip.

We were those people with that screaming baby. She was *hysterical*. I mean I have never seen her so agitated in her 16 month life so far. I mean she had the whole thing going, she was going boneless, crying so hard she couldn’t get her breath. The people around us looked at us with eyes of sympathy. I apologized profusely. The woman in front of me offered her an oatmeal cream pie which I declined although I would have liked to eat it as those things are delicious! About 10 minutes later I think Lucy just gave up and passed back out. The lights in the cabin went off, we took off. Jason and I both closed our eyes for the bumpy 45 minute flight.

We got to Chicago where my Dad and Stepmom were waiting (seriously they went back home and then came back to the airport at like 2:30 in the morning. Honestly though I think my Dad lives for this kind of thing (notice I didn’t say sh*t), I do believe at one point he said he would drive to Columbus to pick us up….I think he might be kinda sad that didn’t have to happen). Of course then getting our luggage was a pain because it was on the other flight that left Columbus so we had to wait for like 45 minutes. I honestly would have just left it but we needed the car seat to get Lucy home.

We got home at 3:30 in the morning after leaving my mom’s house at about 9am Chicago time. Next time I think we’ll drive. Then if we are those people with that screaming baby it will only be us she’s screaming at.

But in all seriousness, air travel isn’t fun anymore. I traveled a lot as a kid and my mom’s mom (my Baba) loved air travel. I mean I think the woman just lived for it. She loved to look at all the people and loved the experience. I wonder how she would feel about air travel in this day and age. With the xray machines, and the waiting, and the unfriendly and miniature glass of pop on the flight. I like the fact that when you fly you end up somewhere different in not that much time, but it’s the time surrounding the flight that is becoming so horrible that I am hoping we can find a way to skip it next year if we can make a trip to Florida. There are obviously times when you can’t get around it but man alive was that a bad experience.

Although I think the crazy that is Leah has calmed down a bit. While sitting in the airport in Columbus wishing I had a phone charger and realizing I wasn’t Mandy or my sister-in-law I was trying to channel my cousin Lisa who just makes the best of the situation she’s in. I think I did pretty good on that front as the yelling and swearing was at an all time low.

I think Lucy is awake, perhaps we’ll have to go out to breakfast.

The next day on the way to visit Jason’s grandmother before going to run super exciting errands at Target and Kohls, I said, “What if we drive home in a new car?” Jason looked at me like what? I have been going back and forth about buying a new car. Our car was “fine” but not super safe and pretty small. It’s fine for going to Fermilab but uncomfortable and as soon as we go somewhere for the weekend we have bags filling the tiny tiny (seriously..wtf Mitsubishi how can you even make a trunk that small?) and inevitably bags would overflow into the back seat.

Anyways, I got out my trusty iPhone, searched for Subaru found a dealer. Found a 2010 Forester which we have named Blue Steel because…well I don’t know, I guess it’s kinda blue looking in the sunlight. And went home on Sunday in a “new” car.

We had a great drive home and are pretty geeked out. We haven’t ever purchased a car (thanks Dad and Sue for the cars over the years!), and so it was kind of exciting to make our first grown up purchase.

Here are some pictures. Because who doesn’t want to look at pictures of someone else’s new car:

Blue Steel. The newest member of the family. Yes I realize it looks black here. The sun wasn't making it sparkle yet!

Ok see I'm not crazy, it looks a bit blue here.

Go Go Subaru Tires!

Look at that! A place to tie on a christmas tree! Or bike racks! Or a kid...you know when they are bad. I'm kidding.

A real trunk. In other words Baby Got Back.

This was taken with my wide angle lens. However, the moon roof on this car looks to be about 2 times as long as the other sunroofs I see on my block. It's like a double wide

Perhaps a better view of the moon roof....see how big it is. That's. What. She. Said.