Baby Shower!

While I was home in Montgomery, the MA girls (and a few other dear friends and family) threw Baby Harvey a magnificent shower at Susie Pearson's home. We had a delicious brunch, and Baby Harvey was lucky enough to receive some beautiful clothes and lots of fun toys and gear. I loved having a chance to spend time with so many Montgomery friends and family.

Thanks to... Katherine, Lauren, Allie, Stacy, Susan, Andrea, Ashley, Amy, Meredith, Susie, and Nee Nee!

Holly Jolly Christmas

Thomas and I traveled to Montgomery to spend our last babyless holiday season with the Neeland family. We hit all the highlights like Old Fashioned Christmas at the Country Club and the candlelight ceremony at First United Methodist. Liz and Dave were there to join the fun. We celebrated our very first Christmas this year at Ed & Nee Nee's home in Wetumpka instead of the usual location at Granny's house. It was a fabulous country Christmas with all the fixings, courtesy of Nee Nee!

Christmas is coming...

And Leslie's getting fat!

Seriously, though, the past two weeks have been pretty overwhelming in terms of my belly growing. Cutting down on the Christmas cookies would help, but I know that Baby H is just getting a lot bigger too.

We attended a very fun holiday party courtesy of Thomas's father's law firm last night. They hired one of those guys who does caricatures, and we asked the artist to make sure to include Baby Harvey in the picture. We didn't expect that he would have such a fantastic sense of humor, though....

Here we are enjoying the festivities:

25 Week Appointment

Thomas and I went to my 25 week appointment today and all is well. Baby Harvey put on quite a show for our OB, moving around the entire time and making it really difficult for the doctor to keep the Doppler machine in range to detect her heartbeat. As soon as the doctor got the wand in the right place, Baby Harvey squirmed again! Our doctor was a little amazed by how active she is...

I'm generally feeling very good these days and have lots of energy. Baby Harvey is starting to give me a little pain in my ribs though. She is big enough that she is pushing my other organs up into my ribcage and putting too much pressure there. But I don't have any other aches and pains yet, so I'm doing okay for now.

Thomas and I are looking forward to the next week as Christmas approaches. We will be going home to Alabama to show off my round belly to the Neeland clan and to see Liz & Dave for one last visit before their big wedding weekend in February. I am also getting so excited about the baby shower that my friends are going to throw on the 27th!

Rounding out

The past few weeks, Baby Harvey has continued to make her presence known. She kicks after every meal and also late at night right before I go to bed. And sometimes she kicks for no reason - just to remind me that she's there and that she's way more important than whatever else I am doing at the time!

I'm finally starting to look truly pregnant and not just "thick." I can still fit into one or two of my bigger regular sweaters, but I'm pretty much in all maternity clothes now. I'm nearing the 24 week mark, so I will soon be at the end of the 2nd trimester. Hard to believe how the time is flying.

As stuffed as a Thanksgiving turkey...

We celebrated Thanksgiving with the Harveys in the East Bay this year. It was a small gathering this year - just Peter, Susan, Biggie, Thomas, and me - but we had enough food to feed 25! I made cheese straws, sweet potato casserole, and corn pudding this year. I was particularly proud of my sweet potato casserole. So proud, in fact, that I took a picture.

Baby Harvey has been growing so fast these days... I feel like my tummy cannot stretch any more, but it has such a long way to go! Here I am "recovering" from the big Thanksgiving meal. I was just so full, even though I didn't eat anywhere near the volume I usually do. Baby Harvey is taking up all the real estate in my stomach.

Boola Boola!

This week, Thomas and I watched Yale's annual embarrassing loss to Harvard in "The Game." Yale hasn't managed to pull off a victory since we've lived in San Francisco, so it was more of the same for us. We had a great time hanging out with old friends at the Elephant & Castle Pub in SF, though, so the Saturday morning was well worth it despite the loss.

Here we are grinning through the pain with Devin & Eddie, two of Thomas's fellow Spizzwinks:

This weekend was a big one for other reasons as well... Thomas finally got to feel Baby Harvey kick! She is the most active right before I go to bed, and he put his hand on my tummy at just the right time. I was at exactly 20 weeks into the pregnancy, so we weren't expecting her to be so strong so early. Watch out - we have a kicker!

Baby Gear

Now that we know we're having a girl, Leslie and I can begin in earnest our search for the coolest in baby gear. The question is: where do we begin? There are so many awesome baby items out there, so many would-be essentials for the discerning cool baby, that it's hard to prioritize. Selecting these items, and in doing so reflecting one's own values, is a delicate balancing process, full of parental hand-wringing. What stroller will you choose: the fashion-forward status of the Bugaboo, the regal and functional refinement of the Maclaren, the run-of-the-mill sensibility of Graco or Chicco, or the self-expressiveness of one of the quirky new brands? Will you buy a fancy Italian changing table, an Ikea special, or something off eBay? Will your baby wear only organic cotton and cloth diapers, or will hand-me-downs and Huggies do? As you make these choices, other people are definitely watching. And judging.

The easiest way for me to get involved in the value-laden decision-making process for baby gear purchases is through onesies. Onesies are a baby staple; I am told that young babies go through several of them a day. Because you need a lot of them, it's easy to take a flyer on fun ones. And because you can buy a onesie with essentially anything you want printed on it, onesies provide a convenient forum to express whatever values you want to convey. What are your aspirations for your child? What influences prevailed upon your own childhood? What is your vision for the world? All of these topics are ready material for onesies.

Thus, my personal hunt begins for the finest onesies, the onesies that will distinguish and identify Baby Harvey as my own. My first fatherly act was to buy a 3-pack of Oakland A's baby jerseys. What's next? Guns N' Roses? Pee Wee Herman? Ghostbusters? Barry Goldwater in '64? I welcome your suggestions.

Trip to DC

Last weekend, Thomas and I went to Washington DC courtesy of my new firm, Covington & Burling. On Thursday and Friday, I attended a new associate orientation at the main office of the firm. Thomas flew out on Friday evening and joined me for a weekend of visiting old law school friends and seeing the sights. We had a fantastic time seeing Sarah Citrin and meeting her boyfriend, Matt, and also seeing all of the UVA law crew again - Annie & Andy Rucker, Yancey & Steve Haas, Julie & Jim McLaughlin, and Dan & Lisa Bress.

We especially enjoyed getting to meet Yancey and Steve's 10 month old girl, Finley. She is absolutely precious and happily enjoyed our walking trip on the National Mall and to see the World War II Memorial. Yancey also gave me all sorts of useful baby tips during our visit... thank you Yancey!

Thomas with Matt & Sarah:

The UVA law gang in front of the Washington Monument:

Our Little Kickboxer

I'm finally convinced that I'm feeling Baby Harvey move, and she is ACTIVE! I began feeling little tickles at about 18 1/2 weeks, but I wasn't certain whether they were baby or just my stomach's regular rumblings. Now that I'm a day shy of the 20 week mark, there is no mistaking it. She is starting to punch, jab, and kick. Judging by the flips she did during her ultrasound, we will have a little squirmer on our hands in 20 weeks time.

Baby H seems to be the most active when I'm sitting still after a meal. So far, she has responded the most positively to macaroni & cheese and regularly seems to respond to desserts. Like mother, like daughter!

More Ultrasound Photos

Our baby is so photogenic that we thought we'd share a few more photos from our 18 week ultrasound!

Thomas thinks this next photo looks like me when I fall asleep in the car....

We have a winner...

It's a . . .

GIRL!!!!

Magical Mystery Tour

Yesterday, Leslie and I got into the Halloween spirit with a tour of two "mysterious" Bay Area sites: the Winchester Mystery House in San Jose and the Mystery Spot in Santa Cruz. Both were lots of fun.

The Latest Baby Harvey News

It has been far too long since I've posted, but it has been a busy three weeks or so. My law firm dissolved, I changed jobs, and then I immediately began traveling all over the country! About a week ago, I was in North Carolina to defend a deposition for work, and I also had the chance to go visit the extended Neeland family in Wilson. I had a great time eating BBQ and going to church with Nanny, Lynn, Beth, and Uncle Ray. I then was back to San Francisco for two days, and immediately left again for a weekend trip to Montgomery for Liz's bridal shower. It was a very fun week, but was very exhausting.

On the pregnancy front, all is going well for Baby Harvey. Thomas and I had a checkup yesterday and we have now scheduled our big 18 week ultrasound. Our OB calls this ultrasound "yuppie bonding." Anyway, stay tuned... on election day (November 4), not only will we find out who our next president is, we will also find out whether Baby Harvey is a boy or a girl!

Here is my latest belly photo. Getting a big bump now for sure now that I'm at 16 weeks!

Fleet Week 2008

Fleet week this year was, as usual, awesome. The weather was beautiful, and even though Leslie was out of town (visiting family in North Carolina), I had a good time hanging out with folks up on the roofdeck (upstairs neighbor Suzanne was throwing her usual party) and taking pictures of the Blue Angels. The boats were all out on the bay and I saw sailors walking around town all weekend. Nice to have my new Nikon for this day.

Here are a couple pictures taken from the roofdeck of our apartment. Look carefully at the second photo, and you'll see a group of six jets in tight formation screaming low across the bay and leaving a vapor trail.

Yosemite Pics

It's been a while since the trip, but since we recently uploaded the photos onto Leslie's computer, I thought I would post a few of them here.

The Yosemite high country was spectacular while we were there: great weather (75 during the day), few crowds, and an abundance of beautiful views. Whit and I did the Ten Lakes-to-May Lake trip, which is about a 22 miler. While the vertical climb is signficant, the real work is in climbing up and down the numerous peaks and valleys along the way. We left from the Ten Lakes trail head around 5:30 on Friday night, and after 6 miles of climbing, dropped down into the Ten Lakes valley around 8:30pm, picking our way through the rocks by moonlight. The next day was serious: 17 miles of vertical rises and drops through the peaks around Tuolomne Peak, all the way up to May Lake. We stopped for a late, late lunch around one of our favorite spots, Raisin Lake. Ultimately, we made into the May Lake campsite right at 6:30 as they were ringing the dinner bell for the last night of the season.

Whit and I camped up on the May Lake ridge and were up just in time to see the sunrise Sunday morning. We picked our way down the hill to the May Lake trailhead and caught a ride from some good folks back to our car at the Ten Lakes trailhead.

What a great trip. Can't wait to get back there.

The End of an Era

We've felt so blessed to have ongoing great news about Baby Harvey's progress this week, because it has been a tough week professionally for me. Yesterday, my law firm (Heller Ehrman) voted to dissolve after 119 years in practice. Heller was truly a San Francisco institution. More than 1000 good folks in our multiple offices around the country will be out of a job in just a short time. Here is some news coverage of the closing:

• San Francisco Chronicle


• New York Times


• Above the Law Blog


• Wall Street Journal Law Blog

I feel very lucky that I already have one job offer with a fantastic firm, Covington & Burling, that I'm seriously considering. I work with the intellectual property litigation practice group, and a large number of partners in this group are moving to Covington on October 1. Wish me luck as I make this big decision in the coming days.

Passing the First Big Test

We had our nuchal translucency test yesterday and got the news that Baby Harvey is "all clear" for the major chromosomal abnormalities like Down's Syndrome. Although we weren't too worried about this test due to my age, it was still such a relief to get our first major assurance that Baby Harvey is right on track. It also means we will not need any invasive procedures like amniocentesis.

The best part of having this test done was that we got lots of great ultrasound videos and photos of Baby Harvey, who was quite active during the test. He/she was waving his/her little hands all around and then kicking up quite a storm. We could also see the baby opening his/her mouth and also witnessed a couple of hiccups!

A Heartbeat Away

Thomas and I had our 12 week appointment yesterday, and all is well with Baby Harvey! Our OB used the little Doppler machine to check for the baby's heartbeat and was able to find what she called "a good, strong heartbeat." She initially told us it was a little early to locate the heartbeat successfully in all cases, so we weren't expecting much. But Baby Harvey is definitely going strong!

As of today, we are officially at the 12 week mark and are happy to finally be able to reveal the news to all of our friends. It is just in time too - I'm finally showing a little bump through my clothes.

First Belly Photos: Weeks 8, 9 & 10

After hearing all the stories of my mother's problem-free pregnancies, I always thought I would have a similarly easy time. No such luck. From Week 6 until today, I have been having quite a lot of nausea, often all day long. Strangely, the worst of it has been in the evenings. So much for "morning sickness." There have been days I literally subsisted on Ritz crackers and plain pasta. Being the Type A personality that I am, I was initially worried about the fact that I wasn't getting the proper nutrition that I always thought I would be fastidious about! But my doctor assures me that it is okay to do whatever it takes to just get through the day during these times.

The nausea has been so overwhelming that I often didn't feel like eating very much and up until my tenth week, I had yet to gain any weight. We took photos of these weeks anyway just to document what I look like before my tummy really starts expanding. These are weeks 8, 9 & 10.

I just hit 11 weeks today and I'm happy to report that I'm feeling a lot better. The all-day sickness appears to be subsiding, and my appetite has returned (perhaps a little too much).

9 Weeks	10 Weeks

Yosemite or Bust

This weekend, Whit and I are headed up to Yosemite for some hiking in the High Country. Whit and I pulled this trip off last year around this time, so hopefully it's becoming a tradition.

Last year, we were in Yosemite for the third weekend in September, with the idea that we'd camp at our old stomping ground, May Lake. We did not plan for the fact that a random snowstorm would pass through the park and put a dusting of snow all over the campground. The hiking conditions were obviously nice and cool, but lacking any meaningful camping supplies for those conditions, we bailed from staying the night there. That weekend, Yosemite was also shutting down all of the concessions along Tioga Pass Road, including the Tuolummne Meadows tent cabins, the Ranger Station, and the general store. So we ended up driving outside of the park, hitting the hot springs near Mammonth Lakes, and heading to June Lake, where we stayed in an old motel with more than its fair share of Tibetan prayer flags decorating the front entrance. Definitely fun, but not the backpacking weekend we had planned.

This year, it's backpacking or bust. The current plan is drive up Friday stay at May Lake for the night, then to do the Ten Lakes trail.

Our Awesome Vacation

Last month, Leslie and I took a big vacation to Scandinavia. It was a cruise that took us from port to port in the Baltic Sea. We visited Stockholm, Riga, Helsinki, Gdansk, St. Petersburg, Tallinn, Copenhagen, and Oslo. We were gone from work for over two weeks. It was awesome.

By far, our favorite experiences were the ones in which we had a chance to meet and talk with local folks. In St. Petersburg, we had lunch with a Russian couple in their apartment. In Helsinki, we met up with guy we met on the City Sherpa website, who, just because he was cool, drove us around town for early morning tour of the city and its outskirts. I also went to a Finnish sauna. And in Copenhagen, we rode free city bikes all over town and hung out in Christiania with a couple young dudes playing backgammon at an outdoor cafe.

Here's a couple cool pictures from our trip.

Baby Harvey Cometh!

Welcome to our family's blog! We are excited to announce that we will be welcoming a third Harvey on April 3, 2009. Stay tuned for updates.