sweets, this is for you on your special day.  instead of writing it in a card or handing it to you in a note, i thought i would make it a post so everyone else could read and see how beautiful this poem is.

“Our Union” by Hafiz:

Our union is like this: You feel cold, so I reach for a blanket to cover our shivering feet.
A hunger comes into your body, so I run to my garden and start digging potatoes.
You asked for a few words of comfort and guidance, and I quickly kneel by your side offering you a whole book as a gift.
You ache with loneliness one night so much you weep, and I say here is a rope, tie it around me, I will be your companion for life.

i love you.  happy birthday!  xxoxo- s

i haven’t posted any quotes in a while…this one has inspired me to search again for quotes to share:

“once upon a time there was a boy who loved a girl, and her laughter was a question he wanted to spend his whole life answering.”

this is too cute not to share…

two weekends ago, a couple took a fall drive to mount sugarloaf in deerfield, massachusetts.  at the top of the mountain, they looked down onto a field where the cute boyfriend spelled out “ari, please marry me” with 1000 pumpkins.  i love it—this is a great proposal story!  read the full story here.

these photos are adorable!

ahhh…these pictures make me so excited to see sadie with jack!

(photos via a dirty blonde)

have you ever heard the legend that eggplant parmigiana induces labor?  this method of self-inducing labor began circulating after a restaurant in the atlanta-area named scalini’s made the claim that mothers of over 300 babies have gone into labor in the past 23 years, within 48 hours of eating their eggplant parmigiana. 

if i believed in the myth at all, i assumed that it was the eggplant that induced labor.  however, oregano and basil have been singled out as having properties that may cause contractions, though it is unknown how or in what quantities.

since we may not live in atlanta for another pregnancy, we thought we’d indulge ourselves this weekend and go to scalini’s and give it a shot.  it worked for some of our friends…who knows maybe it will work for us to!  if not, at least it’s a good story and hopefully a yummy meal!

i just stumbled upon this amazingly applicable blog, 1001 rules for my unborn son: let’s get some things straight before i get old and uncool!  it’s a blog revealing everyday maxims about how to be a great man, such as:

* eat lunch with the new kid.

* ask your mom to play.  she won’t let you win.  (i love this one in particular since david and i joke (well, i joke, but i think david is actually worried) that because i am so competitive, i will probably be the hardest critic and biggest fan of my children (and hubby!)).

* all drinking challenges must be accepted.

*bring your mitt to the ballpark.

*never underestimate your fertility.

* feel free to crash a tailgate.  (our baby boy already has a onesie that says “future tailgater”)

*make time for your mom on your birthday.  it’s her special day too.

*learn to pronounce french words correctly.

and, i could go on and on.  it’s a great site that is heartbreakingly sweet and wise and the best news of all is that the blogger has now written a book about his blog that comes out october 27th! 

i am dying to have it!  it couldn’t be more appropriate.

we have embraced autumn by happily adapting our nightly menu to include the yummy produce of the season.  often, we just bake sweet potatoes or butternut squash to have with our meal (both of these are BIG cravings of mine right now!), but we have also been cooking some delicious new recipes that showcase the tastiest fall fruits and vegetables (thanks to some inspiration from the october issue of real simple).  here are just a few of the recipes we have made: 

cheese ravioli with apples and pistachios:

sadly, this headline can now be written daily.  but, this particular story has touched me deeply, since it was our friend.  he was killed in afghanistan on friday.  the scenario is devastating and hard for me to wrap my head around.  please read below for some details and please consider donating to his nonprofit organization, in his memory and to remember all those who sacrifice their freedom each day.   i don’t ever solicit, but this means a lot to me.

benjamin sklaver, 32, an army reservist, was on patrol friday in muscheh, afghanistan, when his unit was ambushed, possibly by a suicide bomber. after spending 2007 building water infrastructure in africa with the reserves, sklaver returned to atlanta energized to do more.  he started a nonprofit group called the clearwater initiative that has provided clean drinking water to populations affected by natural or man-made humanitarian emergencies.  the projects are focused on conflict-affected areas of northern uganda.  the company had brought clean drinking water in the form of wells to more than 6,500 people since 2007.  the company’s goal is to “directly impact the lives of more than 10,000 people by 2012.”  it doesn’t cost very much money, $1,000 or $2,000, to build a well … that supports a village for an indefinite period.  and, this is what he was passionate about.

he was called for his second tour of duty in the spring and was deployed to afghanistan where he was also working on building infrastructure, enabling villagers to resist the insurgency.  villagers could return to their old village if they had clean water there.

please consider donating here in his memory and to continue his work and passion.

information adapted from an AJC article reporting on Ben’s death

tah-dah!  we are all finished decorating and putting all the last details in place.  here is baby jack’s room:

the crib corner with jack’s rocker and elephant toy bin.  a “j” decal decorates the wall behind the crib.

paper lanterns hanging above the crib

and the rest of the room- the hamper, his navy shelf, changing table/dresser, family baby photo wall, the rocker, and the book shelf.

rocker with the boppy pillow and a closer look at his book shelf stocked full of frames, wooden animal toys, stuffed animals, piggy banks, and a basket for all the nursing stuff.

an up close of the changing table/dresser

family baby photos- jack will be able to see these when he is being changed and dressed.

our guest bed- keeping this in the room.  david and i are planning to use it for the first week or so.

we are all ready and waiting…!

that’s right.  ONE hand.  i’m at 35 weeks today!  FIVE more weeks until my due date.  i have spent hours decorating his room, washing and folding his tiny little clothes and blankets, organizing his bottles and bibs,  and writing in our belly book.  when i forget for a moment that all i am working on is just periphery, jack moves around inside me turning and poking, and i remember again what this is all about… how everything i’ve done since that morning in march… when two pink lines popped up on a stick and my heart climbed up into my throat… has been for him, for us.

and yet, the truth is, i have no idea what i’m doing.  and, while all the unknowns terrify me, i am so excited for it all.  i can hardly wait to hold him in my arms and watch everyone meet him for the first time.  and, baby jack, know that while we will surely be parenting with mistakes, i already love you more than i thought humanly possible and i promise to do my best taking care of and loving you.