sublimatedangel | Life, Mid-March edition

Let's start with recent-ish stuff, just because that seems easiest.

My sweetestheart turned 33 this week. We had cake and presents and going out to dinner goodness on Tuesday, and a family party type thing today. House FULL of people... all people we love and don't see often enough, so that was a good thing. Lots of little ones, and I think everyone had a good time. Mostly easy food since Nate didn't want me to overdo it. I made a diabetic-friendly version of a cheesecake I've been wanting to try. Limited success - I think the crust was too sweet, and it was very rich... needed either something (sauce/topping) to cut it or to have a lighter touch with the flavorings, or both. Still, turned out very well for my first time fussing with the recipe, and it'll be easy to make the modifications next time so it'll be even nummier.

Also this week, my computer died a bit. Usually when that happens, it's able to be patched up and revived, but no such luck this time. On the bright side, it was a good time if it had to happen... our lovely tax return means we were able to go out and replace it without too much trouble. Amy now has a shiny, pretty laptop. It's kind of huge... I didn't realize how big in the store, but that's not really an issue I'm worried about since I won't be toting around much on a daily basis or anything. And since my old computer was such a trooper, the level of technology is all happy and exciting and so it's like getting a new laptop and a significant upgrade all at once. And data (and possibly a couple things) are salvageable so... happy making.

My life continues to revolve heavily around the medical industry and the pregnancy. I'm showing quite a bit at this point, with doctor visits and diabetes consultations both running about every two weeks, and ultrasounds once a month to monitor health/growth of the baby. So far everything is wonderfully healthy on his side, which is very reassuring. We'll probably be sorting through what we have (from when Alex was wee) and determining what we need to get ready for his arrival. We've decided on Ryan Joseph for the name, and I'm pretty sure I'm going to forego the baby shower thing... as much fun as they are (and I love excuses to throw parties), we don't need much. I'll probably follow my cousin's example and just have a few meet-the-baby receptions once the little guy and I are recovered. We're also hoping to make a trip out to the east coast sometime (maybe early fall?) to see all our loved ones out there. Missing them (and our Portland folks) quite a bit these days.

Doing a bit better with the local friends. Got to see a bunch of the girls at

varkelton's housewarming, which was lots of awesome, and we're seeing Tom & Leslay & baby Lucia tomorrow (yay, park goodness!). Tentative plans with a few other people... feeling a lot better because of that.

Alex has had lots of fun stuff going on lately. The rounds of classmate-birthdays have started with his two favorite friends. He had a good time at the bowling party; I wasn't sure if it would be too loud/strange, but he was fairly into it... we may go back some time as a family. While he still has some trouble expressing himself clearly at times, he's made great strides and it's awesome to be able to see more and more of what's going on inside with him. He's so resilient and imaginative and engaging... it goes without saying that I love my son, but I really *like* him too, which is just... amazing and wonderful.

Have been having a lot of challenges with my mom... I don't recall if I posted about the health concerns stuff? That part has at least cleared up... the artery check thing for clots came back fairly positive, and with the help of lots of antibiotics, she's recovering from all the respiratory stuff as well. I've still got a headache of paperwork to figure out - current/future finances, several years of unfiled taxes, medicare/medical/social security bureaucracy. It can be kind of overwhelming, and I have to be careful not to get too caught up and stressed out over it (since stress is really, physically bad for me at the moment) and just take it a bit at a time. She's not doing too badly right now, which is a great help in and of itself. I feel like my relationship with her is in a really great place. The more time goes by, the more we're able to relate to each other as adults and equals; we're very different people, and I think it's been hard for her as a mother to let go of the image and hopes she had of me in the past, and to discover and understand who I am, but we seem to be finding that. It's such a hard thing for her to show vulnerability and ask/allow help... it means a lot to me that she trusts me with everything that she does. It could be argued that she didn't have much of a choice, but I still recognize it for the huge step that it is.

Anyhow, I suppose that is enough for now. Need to get some pictures up... the usual springtime flowers & growth stuff, pics of the kitties and us, all that good stuff. Hopefully will be a bit better at updating here on LJ; I'm trying. I do manage to get up (largely inconsequential and fluffy) updates regularly on Facebook, and I keep up with reading everybody's entries (working on better commenting, as that's still sporadic). *sends hugs to friendslist* Thanks for being patient with me.