FINAL ANSWER

Well, ladies and gentlemen, the phone call I've been waiting for came today. Of course, I didn't have my phone with me, but "Who Wants To Be a Millionaire" was kind enough to leave a message!!! Yep, I'm going to be on the show!!! I still can't believe it, even now after finishing a seven-page questionnaire where they wanted to know almost everything there is to know about me. My scheduled tape date is August 7, right between our two big vacations, so it couldn't have worked out more perfectly. The production assistant I talked to said the show most likely wouldn't air until the week of October 29. Can you imagine if I give birth on the day that my show airs? To say I'm excited would be an understatement. I'm in a state of shock, but I need to snap out of it soon so that I can get to studying. And picking out my phone-a-friends. And picking out my outfit. And...

CYCLOPS

Right when we left the house yesterday, something either flew into my right eye or just did something to irritate it. I thought it was an eyelash lodged way up under my eyelid, but after much blinking and intentional tearing up, it was still hurting. I went to a doctor's appointment, lunch, and then a training session and nothing would abate the pain - not Mexican food, not sweat. When we finally got home, Adrian took a flashlight and examined under my eyelid as best he could. His diagnosis was that something had caused a small portion of my eyelid to get inflamed so that every time I blinked the bump (or whatever it was) would pass over my eye and hurt. He instantly called for me to rest with my eyes closed. Well, this is easier said than done. Here are some of my favorite things to do at home: watch television, read the internet, read magazines, read a book. It was only 6:30 at night. I wasn't tired, so what was I to do? Adrian, being the bearer of my eyes-closed therapy, came up with a great solution. Find a tv program that only requires you to listen. So we started with Jeopardy - which was quite fun to listen to actually. Then Adrian tuned into Entertainment Tonight because he knows how much I like pop culture, but that one didn't work as well. They started to show a ton of photos and Adrian knew I wasn't that good of a patient to not open my eyes to see. So then he found Last Comic Standing - which is really all about listening. After that, we turned the tv off and put on music. Adrian even went so far as to let me listen to a constant shuffle of my country iTunes - for over two hours. He is such a wonderful husband. After a good night's sleep, my eye is much better and I'm back on track with my daily enjoyments.

REACTION

I've been feeling the baby kick now for some time, but it's never been consistently in the same spot or even continuous in its movement. Tonight for the first time, the baby kicked in the same spot for about three times and I put my hand over it to see if I could also feel it from the outside. When it kicked again, I felt it, but I was still a bit wary as to whether or not I really felt it with my hand or if I was projecting the feeling from the inside to the outside. I thought it was as good a time as any to see if Adrian could feel it. I placed his hand on my stomach and since we were watching the ever engrossing "Hell's Kitchen" he wasn't paying total attention. So you can imagine his reaction when the baby kicked right into his hand - he freaked out! He made a face and said, "Aahhh...that's like 'Alien' popping out of your stomach...next time, let me be ready!" I had a different reaction. I was trying to hug him and make this a magic, special moment, but he wasn't having any of it. His face was all scrunched up and I think he wanted to be far away from my stomach all together. (Hmmm, maybe we'll name the baby Gordon or Ramsay in honor of the moment...or else Ripley.)

HANDS-FREE

I recently bought a headset for my cellphone and I couldn't be more in love. (Katie bought me a headset a long time ago since she had already learned the value of hands-free chatting, but it broke after one usage.) It's so great to be able to talk on the phone, especially since we don't have a landline, and go about normal household activities like laundry and dishes. Plus, I was starting to worry about all the bad energy that was being emitted from the cellphone to my brain and then somehow getting down to the baby. Not that that was my biggest worry, being that I know the baby's father and with my luck the baby will come out of the womb already proficient in object-oriented programming and up-to-date on all technologies (with a possible side talent for doing card tricks).

CS/16

Leaving the excellent Broadway musical we saw last night ("The Drowsy Chaperone" - I highly recommend it), we walked by the theatre currently showing "Deuce," a production showcasing Angela Lansbury's return to Broadway after a two decade absence. The show was long over, but many people stand around the stage door waiting to see the actors leave, and we had come upon the scene right at the moment that the Tony Award-winning actress was outside posing for photos and signing autographs. I turned around and told my parents who were behind us, since they were huge fans of "Murder, She Wrote" back in the day. I was happy that they got to see a celebrity on their trip to New York, and one who was less than three feet away at that.

TIME TO SAY FAREWELL?

Some updates on my book club: I missed the last meeting because instead of being held on the first Sunday of the month like it's supposed to be, it was moved to the second Sunday and my parents were in town. I had read (or I should say reread the selection) and though I liked the book enough, I wouldn't have read it again if I wasn't going to make the meeting. The big thing about missing this particular meeting was that the selection of the next six books was going to take place and I didn't want to miss that. There were a few other members who were also going to miss the meeting and, for a long time, I didn't understand why the founder didn't just take our selections over email and have us vote that way too. Well, surprise, surprise, when I did eventually get an email with 27 selections to choose from - and only 6 votes to cast. Not to get into the specifics, but the majority of books I'd already read (ugh) and after all votes were cast, none of my books were ultimately selected. The amazing thing is out of the six books chosen, I've only read one - whew. The newest aggravation is that the July meeting will most likely be held on the 8th...the second Sunday of the month (again). Well, I'll be in Europe and guess when I'm leaving. On the 2nd. The Monday after the first Sunday in July. You can guess whether or not I planned it that way and whether or not I'm a little upset right now. I need to do some serious thinking about whether I want to stay with this book club or say "so long, thanks for making me reread a ton of books I didn't want to, while also introducing me to some great ladies..." I'll let you know what I decide once I decide.

C/S 15

While walking with my parents today near Rockefeller Center, I noticed a group of what looked like cameramen and a single woman standing outside of the clothing store Tristan. As we passed them, I made a point to turn around, since anytime I see cameramen or cameras, I make a point to check if it's worthy. I couldn't believe it when I saw that it was Stacy London from TLC's "What Not to Wear." Some of you not familiar with the show may not think of Stacy as a celebrity, but in my book, she is all that and more. I made my parents stand with me about five feet away from her just so I could take in as much about her as possible. As people always say, she looks just like she does on the show. She was smoking, which shouldn't be surprising, but there's still that part of me that goes "ew" anytime I found that out about a celebrity. I kept waiting for her sidekick, Clinton, to show up, but he never did. I probably could have gotten a picture with her - nobody was taking any notice of her, but I didn't want to be that fan. Instead, I just ogled her from afar.

BORING, I KNOW

We're three days into my parent's visit. Things are going great. I'm also starting to show - I guess you could say I've popped. Other than being tour guides and scouring the internet for maternity clothes, our lives go on as normal.