Today was a lazy day. We slept in - until about 9:45. That was too much sleep for me – the last few hours I was just tossing and turning trying to get comfortable. Eriko made breakfast while I checked my email. I got a note from mom with a bunch of addresses, so I started to fill out postcards with all the addresses. After breakfast, I continued until I had close to 20 postcards waiting for notes. I did some homework, filled out some postcards, and worked on the computer. Pretty soon it was time for lunch. After lunch, Eriko took a nap and I installed Skype (an Internet phone) on the computer. Her dad sent us and email and asked us to join. Then I started reading a textbook… but before I knew it, I was falling asleep. I moved to the couch and took a nap. 2 hours later, we both woke up. Wow, talk about lazy! Eriko wanted to go shopping at Uwajimaya, so off we went. Afterwards, she made dinner and I finished with the 10th postcard. We watched a little TV, I played a little computer, and I tried to get her SIM card (for her phone) working in mine. Her dad is going to stop paying the roaming charges on her phone and I was hoping she would be able to continue using it. I didn’t have any luck, but some research on the Internet says it is possible. Before I knew it, it was bedtime.

I did not sleep well, or more accurately, I did not sleep well before waking up. I was uncomfortable and couldn’t get comfortable. Eriko being pregnant prevents me from cuddling with her; I like to put my arm around her tummy but she doesn’t like the pressure. Trying to cuddle without being able to hug is next to impossible. ;P When I finally “wake” up, my body (especially my back) is sore from the many odd positions I tried to sleep in. Eriko has become more introverted and doesn’t really acknowledge me as she gets out of bed. I lay there for a little longer, hoping to feel relief, but to no avail. Eventually I do some stretching and get out of bed. Eriko went to Uwajimaya yesterday and has bought some kind of bread which we eat for breakfast. I’m not so hungry again today but my stomach feels fine. I work on my Japanese homework for a little bit, write some emails, make some coffee, pick up around the house, and then dive back into my vim manual. Eriko takes a nap. After waking up, she avoids me due to the coffee smell. I put in some gum, but it was mint so she didn’t want me close then too. She started to nap on the couch but soon moved to the bedroom. I let her sleep for a while and then asked whether she still wanted to go the wedding we had been invited to. It started at noon and it was now 10:45. I let her know that it would be OK if we didn’t attend and I started thinking about who I would call to send along our wishes. After a few minutes she lamented that she was all prepared for the wedding, gathered herself up, and began putting on her outfit. I moved to put on my suit and we were leaving the house at 11:20 (5 minutes later than I had originally intended, but great considering the late start). We arrived in Capitol Hill about 11:35, found a nice parking spot, and then found that there was a slight delay due to pictures. We waited outside in the hall (at the Century Ballroom) and I observed a dance class for a bit until Eriko told me she’d like to sit down. We wandered about looking for a chair and I spotted my co-worker, Brian, who has three small boys. We began to chat and he found a chair which was broken but still sufficent for sitting. I was relieved and Eriko sat down. Brian and I chatted a while and I asked him questions about how his life changed, specifically when it came to his career. He shared his valuable experiences with me until the doors opened. We met up with Miki (native Japanese) & Todd (my co-worker) and decided to sit together on the 2nd floor balcony. There were only three tables up there (compared to over 20 below) but I was happy to have Eriko sit with Miki so they could speak in Japanese. We were joined by our co-worker Bret and close by were my co-workers Danny and Scott (and his wife, Judy). Of course, we were hungry – and the appetizer was sushi. Todd and I got sushi and water for our ladies as well as drinks for ourselves. That satisfied Eriko for a little while but soon she was hungry again… I wandered downstairs just in time, for the food line began! I signalled for Eriko to join me and we stood in line for … Indian food! It was great and I heaped my plate full. The wedding ceremony (which actually occurred before the food) was very short (about 5 minutes) and everyone had a good time. Eriko and I arrived back at home around 3. While she checked her email I began to read one of my textbooks on the couch. I was excited about reading it until … I yawned. The next thing I knew, I was waking up from a 2 hour nap (Eriko was also napping in the bedroom) to the phone ringing. It was the Nadeshiko Clinic confirming Eriko’s appointment on Monday. The noise woke Eriko up as well and we congregated on the couch. To my dismay, she doesn’t really like me kissing her face so the only part of her body not off limits at this time is her feet. Eriko began to eat some bread and I resumed reading on the computer. Next, Eriko wanted to watch some more of the movie Oliver (which she had already watched once a few days ago). I watched a little too. ;P I went ahead and ordered a land-line from Qwest. Not something I wanted to do, but the poor reception of the cellphone doesn’t make me comfortable with Eriko pregnant. After retrieving a phone (which apparently doesn’t work) from our storage closet, I found out that we had a letter waiting for us (in the exercise room, the overflow mailbox). Eriko’s mother had sent her some paperwork required by the Japanese government (to change her name) as well as a baby magazine! Eriko spent the next two hours reading the magazine and occasionally relaying a tidbit of information. I watched a bit of the Mariner’s game (the lost), continued reading the vim manual, and made myself some dinner. The smell from the dinner was a bit overwhelming to Eriko, so I had to open the window & door, turn on the fan, and eat on the counter. Eriko and I switched positions; her to the computer and me to the couch, where I watched some TV and looked through my textbook. Then it was time for showers & bed. We had several minutes of levity before sleep was upon us.

More crackers. Eriko is more tired these days, so she doesn’t wake up until the alarm goes off, at 6:30. We get out of bed about 7, when we hear the computer turn on. She isn’t any mood to make breakfast, so I fix myself something small. I’m afraid my health is going to suffer if I continue to be left in charge of my own meals. ;) We walked to work, and I got busy right away. Soon it was time for lunch. On the way home I returned a call to Carol, Aaron’s wife. She told me that Bailey had caught a mouse while she watched. Not only that, but Bailey was having a great time toying with it. Eriko surprised me with a meal, which was delicious. After work I was not so productive – I had frequent interruptions. I received a call from the condo manager informing me that Eriko had a package and so I passed the word along (via email). When I got home, there was a package (she had been expecting) from her friend, with lots of goodies. Eriko made dinner as well, which was also yummy. She wasn’t feeling well (tired and uncomfortable) so we watched The Terminal. She laid on my lap and eventually got up for a shower, so she missed part of it. I enjoyed it though. She went to bed a bit earlier than I, as I had to shower (and then cool off from the shower).

It is 6:30 and the alarm goes off. This morning I feed Eriko crackers, because it is better than lying there trying to stay in slumber land. My stomach was a little uncomfortable (because of the ice cream?) so I didn’t fix much of a breakfast. I spent a little time preparing the AOS and finding headphones (the ones at work were reclaimed by my co-worker) before we headed out to work. At work I had to review a document (I had agreed to complete by review by Friday morning) and then I had an hour-long meeting to discuss candidates. By this time, I was hungry. Since none of the regulars were around to go to Shiki, I cancelled the Shiki train and went home (a change in plans) early. I was glad I did that, because my sandwich was yummy and Eriko was in good spirits. We returned and I brought my co-worker an interview book he’s been asking me about. The afternoon wasn’t real productive either; I had a meeting from 2 - 4:30 and didn’t get much accomplished before or after. At home, Eriko was not in the best of spirits, although she did prepare dinner, which was quite delicious. In the box of goodies her friend sent her were some Nagoya style noodles and she was quite pleased to eat them. After dinner we watched Seinfeld, and then some of the Arts Showcase. I worked on my Japanese homework while she laid down. She was tired and ready for her shower, so I ate some ice cream and played on the computer. I’ve decided to try and read the vim manual from start to finish. I took a probotic acidophilous pill tonight, so I’m curious to see how I’ll feel in the morning. Normally I take one of those pills in the morning after breakfast (not because I “need” it, but just to make things easier on my body). Halfway through Seinfeld I started my shower, as Eriko was looking quite tired. She was in bed by the time I took my shower, so I followed.

I awoke to more crackers being munched on. I think I’m going to have to get used to this. ;) Eriko wasn’t up for much of a breakfast, so I ate some cereal. We walked together to work, and my day began. I had a tough time with a problem at work, so I had to do a lot of fruitless investigation. This particular problem forced me to go to the lab to do testing, so I had to frequently leave my desk. My research required me to reboot the computer I was testing on, so that gave me time to look for an OB doctor. I got some recommendations from co-workers and printed out quite a few (to show Eriko) before I got the idea to search for a Japanese one. I located a Japanese birthing center in Kirkland (about 30 minutes away). I knew Eriko would be excited about that and printed out some information. At noon I came home and Eriko had prepared a yummy meal. I showed her the literature I had printed out and she was very happy. After the meal she called the clinic and made an appointment for Monday @ 3. She was feeling OK so she walked with me to work. After lunch I had a few meetings at work, so producitivity was sporadic – but I finally solved my problem. Zack and I went out for coffee (because we hadn’t talked much I gave him the news) and ended up chatting for about an hour. After that, it was time to go home. ;) Neither Eriko and I were that hungry, so we decided to goto blockbuster instead. She wanted to get some movies to watch and we wound up with four: The Castle in the Sky, Tokyo Godfathers, Oliver, and The Terminal. She made a yummy dinner and then we started watching The Castle in the Sky. At first it was quite dissappointing, because the screen would switch into reverse video every few minutes, sometimes only seconds apart. Finally I decided to investigate. I paused it while it was on reverse video and pulled out some of the S-Video cables when all of a sudden Eriko told me it was working. I guess the DVD player I borrowed from Zack can’t handle the input from my TV correctly. Thrilled, we resumed watching. After a little bit, I switched the language to Japanese and put on the English subtitles and we both enjoyed it more. Eriko has seen the movie many times and wanted to hear the original Japanese voices which she liked; I don’t like to watch Japanese anime in English. The Japanese practice is good for me and I even recognized a word or two from my current lesson. After the movie we took showers and went to bed.

I was woken up several times by Eriko going to the bathroom. Each time, I wondered if she had done the pregnancy test. I worried that the lack of urine in her bladder would give us inaccurate results. Sometime far before the alarm clock went off, I was woken by the crunching of crackers. Eriko ate for a while and eventually we got out of bed about 6:30. She went in and took the pregnancy test. After a minute or two, I sauntered in and checked out the result. Two lines, one much brighter than the other. After reading the directions, I knew it had been confirmed. Eriko is pregnant. She didn’t feel like cooking (she wasn’t real hungry), so I made myself breakfast. As we were leaving the building, Melissa called. She wanted to know why we hadn’t called her sooner! I spoke with Melissa as Eriko and I walked to work and she gave us advice and answered our questions. The morning was productive in the morning but also anxious; of course, I couldn’t help but think about Eriko and the new life growing inside her. I let it slip to a few of my co-workers, and I heard something that would be repeated many times: “you didn’t waste any time, did you?” Melissa called a few minutes to noon and interrupted me from work so I took the opportunity to walk home and talk to her. She recommended that we cancel the GYN appointment we made since we needed an OB and they would end up duplicating some uncomfortable tests. She also wanted to reiterate her email and encourage me to move to Pennsylvania. Eriko didn’t prepare any lunch, so I made myself a sandwich and she made herself some oatmeal. We walked to work, talking about where the baby would sleep, how long we would be able to live in our current condo, and what kind of car we should get . Back at work, I spilled the confirmation to Zack and some other co-workers in the vacinity. I was given very enthusiastic responses. I had a little time on the computer before it was time to interview a candidate for a position on a different team. After that, I was surprised to find out that my co-worker had been terminated due to a violation of the employment agreement. It was sad, he was a good worker and a good guy. My team also heaped congratulations on me; apparently Zack had spilled the beans and the word had travelled. I was a little late to my Japanese lesson due to the fuss but Hideki wasn’t too upset. I also revealed to him the news and so I learned a lot of words about pregnancy, feelings, etc. The lesson was good, and the two hours went fast. Melissa interrupted with another phone call but I told her I’d call her back, which I did at 5. She recommended that Eriko take a list of vitamins. We spoke about the pregnancy in general before I returned to work and wrote down what Melissa told me. After 30 minutes at work, I was ready to go home. Scott and I walked together, talking about teh changes at Isilon and in my life. Eriko was waiting with a simple meal, which was nice. She was feeling pretty good except her mouth tasted poorly from eating all day. We walked to the library after dinner to return some books she didn’t quite finish in time, talking more about the little miracle that was growing inside her. She was concerned of the fragility of the baby and nervous about the pregnancy, but confident about raising the child. I’m the opposite; confident about the pregnancy and nervous about the raising. We stopped off at Trader Joe’s to purchase the vitamins Melissa suggested. At home, Eriko began to feel a little poorly and she became tired rapidly. I worked on the AOS paperwork and thought I was complete before realizing a few supporting documents were missing. Eriko took a shower and went to bed early. I stayed up – I worked on the computer, watched Seinfeld, and ate some ice cream.