40 Weeks...

Can you imagine the anticipation?

We can hear the several ticks and tocks of the clock as they count down the moment of a new person's entry into this world, our new person's birth. In my office, a promotional SkiNet clock ticks incessantly between 11:03:33 and 11:03:34, toying with my patience. Add to this high-90 degree temperatures, Jamie's burgeoning belly and subtle twinges of anxiety, and you can imagine this is the first time either of us has so desperately wanted to visit the hospital.

To my knowledge at least 90% of the people who read this blog have been through the near-maternity ward wringer at least once. You don't need to imagine our anticipation. You have it stowed away in the back of your mind, resting on a purposefully dusty shelf somewhere between the awkward middle school years and the taste of brussel sprouts.

This entry isn't for you. It's for the 10% who have not experienced this particular waiting game.

Jamie is at full term, 2 days shy to be exact. Her belly has gone global. With all the activity inside, our baby is sure to come out vying for a world title in mixed martial arts, though we won't sign the consent form for another few years, lest the Good and Great Grandmas and -pas fret. Her energy levels are slowly depleting, though a 3-sale week last week has put a little more pluck in her step. We're starting to implement all the natural labor inducers we can think of: long walks, habanero eating contests, mechanical bull rides, pogo sticking, hip hop dancing, cherry picking, baking, procreation and acupressure. (If anyone has suggestions, we're listening.) The bases for our car seat are installed in each of our cars and the nursery is assembled, awaiting its tenant. Our hospital bag is packed complete with contraband snacks and "Music to Have Your Baby By." Rita arrived last night and is as anxious for Baby Benjamie as we are.

Work seems to take our minds off the waiting. Jamie should be closing another deal today and I'm sending out orders and inquiries with my left hand as quickly as my right can write them. Rita is finishing a book and practicing her putting in our living room. Mother Nature herself plans to invite Jamie's labor with a respite from the hot temps for the next day or two - 75 seems the perfect temperature for dilating, effacing and pushing.

Stay tuned.

36 Weeks - Getting Close!

The past couple weeks have been busy for us. Ben went to SF for some business and a little debauchery with the boys for the 96th Annual Bay to Breakers race, then Steve came to visit us and we had a tremendously busy and fun 36 hours. We spent Memorial Weekend (post-Steve) adding some landscaping to the yard after an inspirational visit to the Denver Botanic Gardens, all of which was promptly damaged by a freak thunder/hail storm.



Steve and Jamie in front of Coors Field. We met a very informative and talkative gentleman who regaled us with stories of Coors' past and birth stories for each of his siblings (somehow, his mother went into labor at a ballpark with all of them!). We walked all over LoDo in Denver, from Union Station and the ballpark all the way up to the Capital building. We had a superb lunch/brunch at Rioja (don't miss it if you are in Denver).




A poppie in the Denver Botanic Gardens. The colors were fantastic!

This was our first visit to the gardens...



...as evinced by Ben and Steve getting lost near the Japanese Gardens.



Beside beautiful flowers of all varieties, there were incredible insect sculptures scattered and integrated throughout the gardens. This ant was one of our favorites - it was probably 15 feet tall and 40 feet long.



After the garden we stopped home for a quick rest and then went to Dick's Sporting Goods Park for an MLS game between the Colorado Rapids and the LA Galaxy.



We were part of a record crowd and the Rapids controlled most of the game, winning 1-0. Oh, we should mention our seats: we were in the first row, just off the field at the top of the goal box. Amazing!

We ended our day with dinner at Cafe Brazil, which is always a sensory journey and a pleasure.

This past week flew by and culminated in a Friday evening and Saturday all day attending a birthing class at Rose Medical Center. We learned a few things and had a tour of the labor and recovery rooms at the hospital. Should be a pretty posh stay...



The nursery is almost ready. We received the crib and dresser this week, bought a mattress and are just waiting for our car seat/stroller. Now all we need is a baby...

As a special inclusion to this entry, check out a video of the baby kicking.

Ben is going to NYC for a few days at the end of this week to attend an online advertising conference and Jamie promises not to go into labor!

New Garage at 26 Weeks

It was a promise Jamie made me make upon conceiving our little pea in the pod - "If I'm going to eat only pickles and ice cream for 10 months, I want a red garage." What's a guy to do, but paint. I have to admit, painting the garage was the lowest "home improvement" project on my priority list, but now that it's finished I think it is the nicest asthetic change we could have made (besides re-siding our entire house). It looks awesome. Every morning when we make breakfast in the kitchen, we have a nice view of our freshly pruned trees backed by a bright red garage. You can't help but smile. Jamie says, "Now all we need is a privacy fence..." To be continued...







If you aren't too good with depth perception and mass judgement, you might not have noticed that Jamie is growing.









I've never seen a more beautiful pregnant woman (not that I'm looking) - Jamie takes the cake, er cupcake. In and around town people actually turn their heads to catch a glimpse of the cutest little pregnant lady in a neighborhood full of little pregnant ladies.

Jamie has begun a strict regimen of bringing home the bacon all week, eating all the bacon (uncured and un-smoked, of course) in the house on the weekends and going to prenatal yoga on Saturday mornings. Every American should be proud.

Recent Utah Powder Extravaganza

Taking a break at Snowbasin on a bluebird day after 20 inches of new snow.













Jamie standing on the patio at Wahso, an excellent (though stuffy) Park City eatery.
















The belly...before dinner.




















Michael's "secret 'stache" is epic even by local standards at Snowbird.
















Ben and Michael after a short hike into the Deer Valley wilderness.















Michael goes DEEP on Snowbasin's Strawberry Peak.

















Jamie gets a few more powder turns before hanging up the skis for the third trimester.

Vail Getaway

This week in Rifkinland...

Jamie and I headed to Vail, after a last minute invitation from an old co-worker to sample the newly renovated Tivoli Lodge. It was a great chance to get to Vail, which we haven't done yet this year, and also a nice opportunity to relax away from home, which I'm sure we won't be doing too much in the near future.

We had a late dinner at one of our favorite Vail restaurants, Sapphire, on Friday night, skied all day Saturday, met some friends for drinks on Saturday afternoon and then went to Campo di Fiori for some excellent Italian cuisine on Saturday night - Jamie had cappellini with a pesto sauce and I had osso bucco, because really, how often do you get to have osso bucco?

Before going to Vail on Friday we had our 20 week appointment with Jamie's obstetrician. Here are a couple pics of the little bambino/a.

Profile of the head, spinal column, etc.
















Prone view of our baby's little face...















Jamie's been working on a huge RFP all last week and this past weekend and she's ready to submit it tomorrow, after a big visit to Office Depot and her new office moniker, The Collating Queen. While Jamie's bringing in the big bucks, Ben will be in Snowbird testing the latest powder skis on behalf of Ski Magazine. Life is hard here in Rifkinland, but at least Jamie will have a big dish of no-bake lasagna to keep her company this week.

20 weeks

Well, folks, if you had to see it to believe it, here it is. Ladies and gentleman, I present Jamie's Belly at 20 Weeks. On Friday Jamie has her 20 week appointment and we're estimating that the little Rifkin is now about 6 inches long and weighs about 9 ounces. Jamie can't wait for the baby to grow by 10 times his/her present weight in the next 20 weeks.

We did our first round of maternity shopping this past weekend, grabbing a couple workout shirts and a new belt from Old Navy. Our friends, Keith and Stephanie, dropped off a box of maternity-wear for Jamie to sift through before we go buy a new wardrobe.

We got the chance to play with 12-month-old Abby, daughter of our friends Dave and Stacy, last Saturday. Got a quick lesson in changing diapers and roasting golden beets. On Sunday we went to Loveland for a few turns in 40mph wind before going to watch the Superbowl with the Buddes.

Jamie's back on track for spicy foods and meat now - she threw back a few chicken wings during the Superbowl and we've both been enjoying a broader range of food in the past week.

Two weekends ago, the last time it snowed in metro Denver (for the 7th straight week), we went to Chataqua Park in Boulder with the Coynes and there dog Mia for a romp in the powder. Nice to get some fresh air.

Stay tuned - more belly pics to come.

17-ish Weeks

We've got a bit of catch up to play on this post.

Jamie's about 17 weeks into her pregnancy. She's got a little baby bulge (no pun intended) and a few of her pants are tightening around the waist. After a several month aversion to meat and anything with a smell stronger than mild cheddar, she's begining to come back into her old self - semi-spicy foods and pickles are back on the diet! She's still not as spicy-spicy as the old days but I've been adding a little Sriracha and a few jalapenos to everything we eat, hoping that little Benjamie will come out at least half the fireball as his/her mom.

We've gotten to see two ultrasounds and heard our baby's heartbeat a couple weeks ago. Swoosh SWOOSH SWOOSH - sounds like a lively one. I wouldn't be surprised if Benjamie comes out trying to hold a mute grab with one hand and the other pumping a victorious fist - let's hope not for Jamie's sake.

We've been incredibly busy lately, not letting "the bulge" slow us down at all. Jamie was in Vancouver for work last week and then went to Whistler with a few friends in search of Pacific Northwest powder. I was in Sun Valley last week/weekend for the first stop of the Honda Ski Tour and a few client meetings. The festivities were great (lots of bands, film screenings, etc) but the weather (5 degrees as the daytime high for my entire trip) and the skiing (eastern hardpack - sorry mom and dad) weren't exactly optimal. Still, a fun town (Ketchum) and beautiful area.

This weekend we're off to Copper for the US Freeskiing Open, an event which Jamie won a few years ago. Saturday night is the Big Air event and Sunday is the Halfpipe finals. On Monday I have to run to Vegas for a couple days of the SnowSports Industry Association convention and then hopefully life will slow down a bit.