TENNIS - I love this sport!

I am definitely getting my fill of watching tennis this summer with both French Open & Wimbledon! I told Jai that I looked forward to week 2 of Wimbledon as there is less tennis. : )

Wimbledon is my favorite. It is cool to watch the coverage and see the grounds and remember walking around the place last year. I love it when Julia wears her Wimbledon sun hat. I tell her sometimes "last year WE were there" since I was 4 months pregnant in late-June.

In a way I’m bummed that we won’t see a Federer-Nadal final again. I am excited the Williams sisters made it a repeat final!

Favorites:
1. Wii commercials showcasing the non-famous players beating the famous sports people, especially the images of the tennis players

2. US Open series commercials:

a. Federer: “Rog”
b. Venus’ dog Henry doesn’t really like tennis.
c. Serena’s dolls (look like Williams sisters!) fighting – “victory is mine!”
d. Andy Roddick’s one not as funny as I expected; I really enjoy his post-match press conferences!

In the his press conference yesterday about playing Andy Murray in the semi-final, A.Rod said 2 funny things:

1) holding up his hand he says he can count how many supporters he'll have in the crowd
2) when he hears the cheers "come on, Andy" he's going to pretend and tell himself that they mean him ... he's funny! : )

3. outfits:

a. loved Maria S’s dress, too bad she lost so early
b. hated Petrova’s dress, glad she lost so I didn’t have to see it again
c. Safina’s top is too small – “not appropriate for Centre Court” a commentator said; I agree!
d. I like Serena’s dress, similar to Maria’s

4. 38 year old player (Dante Grumm I think are her last names correction: Kimiko Date Krumm) – same age as me! Playing in Wimbledon after 13 years hiatus (think she got married and had some kids). She played Caroline W. who wasn’t even born yet when Dante Grumm played in her first Wimbledon! CRAZY!

5. Quote on Serena’s T-shirt one day this week: “Strong is the new Beautiful.” LOVE it!

I really like the Wimbledon towels this year, too!

I love tennis so much. : )

Wellesley College Baby Grand Slam

This year 4 babies (3 girls and 1 boy) were born - hence the Grand Slam reference - within my group of college friends. The current tally is 9 babies. Now we have 6 prospective Wellesley College students for the classes of 2026-2031! : )

When I announced my pregnancy to them, Christine's January baby was here and I knew of Deidre's impending July baby, so I framed our baby news in the sports context of a hat trick. Then Nancy emailed us all and said a Grand Slam was more appropriate since she was also pregnant, due in November. The Grand Slam analogy is more apropos because Pauline (my original tennis camp buddy) actually completed the tennis Grand Slam by attending all 4 tournaments: Australian Open in January with Pete (a friend who we met in college), French Open with Lisa, Wimbledon with Tara and US Open with Lisa & Pete (I went with P & P in 2007).

7 of us lived in the same dorm (Munger) our first year at Wellesley College, actually 4 of us (Tara, Elizabeth, Nancy, Deidre) lived on the same floor. We've stayed in consistent contact for the past 20 years. It is a joy to see one or more of each other during the year. Sometimes they are spontaneous opportunities & more join the reunion, like with tennis camp & GS tournaments.

In addition to attending our class reunion every 5 years (most of us go), we usually try to create mini-reunion moments every 2 years.

2002 we rented a house on Martha's Vineyard for a week - last reunion with no children born yet
2003 we went to PA for Nancy's first baby shower
2005 my wedding in Nashville!
2006 we rented a house in North Carolina's Outer Banks for a week (17 total =7+5 spouses+5 children
2007 photo above is WC reunion: Lisa, Christine, Tara, Elizabeth, Pauline (Deidre left early, Nancy's husband's college reunion was same weekend)
2008 Pauline, Lisa & Tara (plus Susie) went to tennis camp together
2009 where will the group go...other than tennis camp! Elizabeth might join us plus HER sister. :)
2010 we've discussed a women-only reunion ... we all turn 40!
2012 our next WC reunion

There have been interesting connections with all the babies.
2 natural, 2 C-sections
2 to start & end the year - 1 baby in January, 1 in December
2 first time babies, 2 additions
2 "same" middle names - Francis (the boy) & Frances (Julia - obviously)

What a bountiful year of Wellesley babies! : )

If Ethel Kennedy can do it, so can I! : )

Susie was in town the first week of October (her school has this brillant calendar of 9 week quarters with 2 weeks of break - awesome!) and we had a great time visiting. When she first saw me, she said "that is not a food baby!" She followed it with "and if it was, we have a problem!" We laughed and laughed - she taught me that phrase so it has special meaning.

As I wrote in an earlier post, Susie asked if we were going to play tennis and I said of course. Well, I didn't know how tired I would be in this trimester. Also I played tennis earlier in the week with a co-worker, Jeanie, and wondered how I'd feel by the weekend. All was fine, but I definitely had to be careful and try not to run or move too quickly - instinct and competitiveness kicks in despite a 7 month pregnant belly!

Another semi-regular tradition when Susie is in Nashville is we play doubles tennis with 2 male friends of ours. Usually we play mixed doubles, but for some reason Susie & I teamed up to play against them. It was fine, I really didn't think we'd play too long (Jeanie and I had only hit for 30 minutes on Monday). Susie & Tara together are uber-competitive and so are the guys; I felt good so we played one set (we won 6-4), then started a second set. The weather was pleasant, not too warm, nice breeze. I really didn't think we'd play long, but they were leading 3-1 and so we kept at it and pulled ahead to 5-3. Then we went back and forth until we tied at 6-6 ... tiebreaker time! The men started off well, got a lead of 5-1. Then I served some good points and amazingly we rallied to get to 6-6 and we finished with 8-6.

Final score: 6-4, 7-6. They were slightly bitter - "it really is not fair that the THREE of you beat us." : )

I'm not sure how much tennis I'll play as the weeks progress. I doubt much, but I look forward to the spring league starting in April and doing some clinics in February and March to prepare. It definitely will help with getting back in post-baby shape.

Jai adds: Tara forgot to mention that the story goes that Ethel Kennedy played tennis all nine months of at least one of her pregnancies and this is a reminder Bonnie (Tara's Mom) uses often.

Exercise during pregnancy

I love to exercise. I know that makes me somewhat of a freak. : ) However, I truly enjoy working out, getting sweaty, feeling the adrenaline and endorphins course through my body. I exercise for a variety of reasons - overall health, weight management, competitive spirit as well as solitary time. Also I love muscle tone (on me and others) - for example, Serena Williams ... amazing!

Usually I ride my stationary bike for 30-45 minutes every morning when I don't go to the Y for my aerobics classes. In April and May that wasn't happening - sleep triumphed. However, I still attended my Zumba class 2 mornings a week and went to water aerobics 2 afternoons a week. I like routine and even being pregnant I made some of it happen.

I already mentioned the beginning of the pregnancy and the spring tennis league. Playing tennis was my savior. In June the summer tennis league started. I decided to be ambitious since I'd been undefeated in the previous seasons and I went to tennis camp and thought it'd be good for my tennis "growth." So I signed up for the 3.5 league. However, I didn't consider a few factors in my decision-making process. I was going to be 14-20 weeks pregnant, 10 pounds heavier, it's HOTTER in June & July and the players are much better. Lastly I hate to lose and lose I did. My record was 2-4 with one default so technically I could say I was 3-4. I still had fun and played some great matches. Also I learned a lot about my game and some skills I desperately need to improve in order to be more competitive at the 3.5 level. My goal is 4-3 for spring '09!

Sadly I haven't played tennis in weeks and as my baby bump grew, I thought all that bouncing around would be uncomfortable plus I don't have a regular tennis partner (that's why I love the league). Recently I was talking with my sister who is coming to Nashville for a week's visit in early October and she asked if we were going to play tennis. We always play tennis when we get together whether in Phoenix or Nashville or one of our sister trip destinations. I answered "oh, yes" even though I haven't played in awhile and told her what our mom is always saying. "Ethel Kennedy (married to RFK I think) played tennis up until she delivered all of her babies" (I think she had 9-10 kids). I'm no Ethel Kennedy, but I hope I can move around and hit a few balls, maybe some games.

I stopped going to Zumba class in early August - too jarring - and I miss the fun dance moves. I still ride my stationary bike (only 20 minutes in the morning) and use my hand weights (a few reps). I still have water aerobics class, too. It's nice to be weightless in the water and also it is gentle on my joints. Thankfully I haven't had any swelling of the ankles so walking to and from the Y continues to be possible and good exercise, too.

Second Trimester - the beginning weeks

June started the beginning of trimester #2 and am I glad. I almost literally to the day of ending the first trimester started to feel better! Partly psychosomatic I'm sure as well coinciding with the beginning of my school's summer break, but I felt much more energetic. Lucky for me since I would need it as I embarked on a month of traveling that took me from Nashville to New England to London, ENGLAND!

I visited friends in Rhode Island and Vermont and Maine as well as a family reunion in New Hampshire. Also during the NE trip I was at tennis camp for 3 days during an unusual heat wave that took down non-pregnant people. I had a great time with my sister and 2 Wellesley friends, Pauline and Lisa. Thankfully they checked on me often and made sure I rested and rehydrated. I also enjoyed the carbo-loading necessary to play tennis 5 hours a day in the SUN! Ahh, I'm loving the eating part of pregnancy. : )

THEN Pauline and I headed to England for a week and went to Wimbledon to watch TONS of tennis for 3 GREAT days. We saw the Williams sisters play doubles TWICE, one time on Centre Court! Jet lag and pregnancy sleepiness seem to be interchangable, almost indistinguishable actually, and we made the most of our trip abroad. Also I got the cutest baby hat with the Wimbledon emblem!

When I returned to Nashville after a harrowing journey via Chicago's O'Hare airport (never again!), I was done with travel. Or so I thought since Jai & I already had travel plans to Seattle for July 4-8 and off I went again to the beautiful and green Northwest. Thank goodness for summer vacation - I was able to rest without having to go to work between these wonderful trips.

Ultrasound #1 (14 weeks)

In between trips in June, Jai & I went to see my midwife for visit #2 and it happened to be on our anniversary (Jai was off as we traveled back from Providence that morning). We were excited for the opportunity to hear the baby's heartbeat with the Doppler machine. However, it wasn't to be that day. It was scary because the midwide (not Soheyl) said there were 2 possibilities. One was that there was something blocking access to the baby, like the placenta. Finally she said the other possibility ... NO HEARTBEAT. Oh, my gosh, now this thing got real! Prior to today the pregnancy hadn't seemed quite real. Basically I felt OK, I hadn't grown out of my regular clothes, and miscarriage was a lower risk at this point. However, the possibility of baby no longer living made me/us really sad, especially on our 3rd wedding anniversary and in anticipation of hearing an exciting sound. This baby was a real part of us and our lives now.

Jai would like to add

at that moment my heart sank, my stomach knotted, I wanted to cry, I wanted to be hopeful. I really hadn't thought much about the baby for many of the same reasons Tara explains but I just didn't know what to think.

Fortunately, Tara had a tennis match and we had Johnders with us so Tara went to play, Johnders and I went to the dog park at Centennial (btw, this is the crappiest of the dog parks in Nashville). This gave us a little time apart and a little time to focus on something else so we could come back together and be supportive and optimistic.

The suggestion was we have an ultrasound to confirm the baby's status. Unfortunately we had a late afternoon apppointment and wouldn't be able to check until the next morning and hopefully get an appointment. UGH! Talk about a bummer. To top it off, I had a tennis match in an hour and I was leaving for England in 2 days. Summer league (3.5 level) started in mid-June while I was out of town and I had many matches to reschedule and play. I guess it was a good distraction though I lost the match - the other woman was good! Neither of us said much that evening - we didn't know what to do or feel - be sad or scared or both. I'd read that sometimes you don't always hear the heartbeat with the Doppler machine even at 14 weeks. We didn't want to prepare ourselves for something still unknown.

The next morning Jai went to work and I called for an appointment as soon as possible. Fortunately I got an appointment at 1:00pm and arrived early ready for an answer. Once in the ultrasound room I hopped on the table/bed and the tech got started. Almost immediately there were images on the screen though I'm not sure what I'm seeing. However, the tech pointed out a blinky thing and answered my question of "what's that?" with "your baby's heartbeat." WHEW! I got a little teary eyed because again this was a reminder that this alien as I fondly refer to the fetus was REAL and alive. I have an anterior placenta which can cover the baby from foreign objects wanting to bother she or he.

Jai's lunch hour is 1-2pm so I left him a quick voicemail message and then called him again at 2pm to share the happy news. What a relief! The tech printed a few photos for us - they are fascinating to examine. You see such clear parts of the fetus yet still there are kind of fuzzy parts. It definitely looks more like a baby than not.

I didn't plan on having more than the one ultrasound at 20 weeks, but it felt good to see my alien's heartbeat.

First Trimester

During most of April and May, pregnancy exhaustion has been the norm for me. Ironically the week I discovered I was pregnant, the spring tennis league (3.0) started - weekly matches for 7 weeks. I signed up in March, before I was even pregnant! Luckily I felt great once I was playing tennis - wish I could have played tennis all the time. Another positive is that I had another winning season!

Yesterday I went for my first prenatal visit at the West End Women's Health Center affliated with Vanderbilt Hospital which is where I will Labor & Deliver. I researched my OB/GYN options last year and knew that a midwifery practice is a good match for my personality and values about health care. My primary midwife is really cool, a woman named Soheyl who is of Persian descent and has lived in the United States for the past 20+ years. I enjoyed conversing with her about my outlook and questions about the pregnancy/birth process as well as her philsophy. I plan to go natural child birth yet know that the connection to a hospital gives us options in case an alternative is necessary.

I am learning that flexibility is key to this process as well as future parenthood. Also daily naps are a must!