"Close" is just a five letter word that means not yet

So we've finally reached the stage of preggers where we're pretty sure it isn't wise to wander too far from where we'll need to be come baby-time. We don't really know what we're doing but we know what we shouldn't be doing. It's a pretty long list. There's probably about a million things we should be doing in preparation for the new oxygen and time consumer but ignorance is bliss and we prefer bliss over well-prepared any day.

June's about ready to burst but manages to smile all day long and only grunt a little at night, mostly when she tries to roll over. Le bebe's room is pretty much as it should be (meaning altered to be cute and useful but not transformed into a damn money pit as the tradition requires), and we've got bags packed. The car seats are getting strapped in and there are odd hand me downs still trickling in from cool and kind folks. We're pretty much good to go. All we need now is a baby.

A quick summary of the latest...

Our midwife said that she won't be surprised if June goes early...there's not much room left in there.

Scooped an uber-cool "Flip" camera for the mandatory video demands of new parenthood.

Grabbed this crazy Uppababy stroller thingy...well, stroller, that's rockable until le offspring is like 40lbs or somethin'. That's good I'm told? The thing's straight black & tough lookin' (for the conscientious father) and sports a bassinet jobbie and seat thing and it flips all around and fits car seats and stows away like a groupie backstage at a Crue concert. It's awesome...'course, you could probably go see 46 concerts for the price of it but whatever.

Almost dad scored what turns out to be a $100 diaper bag (also in extra tough lookin' straight black)...Skip Hop?? I dunno...but nailed the bugger at TJ Maxx for a cool $15 and can now look tough and economically frivolous at the same time even if he's neither.

June has only two and a half more days of work and then that tramp is off for a year!

Brian has about a billion and a half days left of work between now and this summer when he says "screw it, I'm leaving to be a Dad for a little bit," and then actually does just that.

We're tossing around March Break adventure destinations while waiting to see if le bebe is high or low maintenance and if either of us has an emotional breakdown before then...So far the very limited list is down to Red Sox Spring Training in Florida, the SXSW Music Festival in Austin, TX or someplace that demands air travel if this little funster allows it. Oh yeah, start out big or be satisfied with Ontario Provincial Parks for the rest of your life.

Brian has decided to officially name Pete Carroll the baby's godfather.

We ditched our Tigers season tickets because:
A/ They suck
B/ We'll be moving out of our humble abode once again this summer and entertaining a road trip of heart warming magnitude.
C/ They suck

Avoiding any complications or fun new ideas we'll be back in Los Angeles from mid-July until the last weekend of August, so don't try to find us. Only grandparents and uber-pals will be kept abreast of our whereabouts, although if you know us at all you'd be able to find us.

Brian has a new record player and plans to brainwash the baby with old vinyl or new Ray LaMontagne vinyl, whichever.

June has plans to sew the world back together while she's off and at the same time maybe make some cool things to sell and keep for herself.

Both almost Mom and almost Dad have launched a huge new plan for world domination that won't be revealed until it's much too late and you've become a part of the new regime of peasants who will bow down to us in the not too distant future.

Brian has become almost too creative and is starting to look the part of a savant. At the very least he's got OCD and just happens to be pretty talented on the side.

Elli officially has more books, stuffed elephants, and clothing emblazoned with elephants than any pre-born ever...perhaps in the history of pre-born people. Of course that assertion is incredibly hard to nail down because as you may very well know there's really never been any real attempt to accurately record the history or pre-born peoples. We're hoping that Howard Zinn tackles that one next.

Brian's Mom, Cathy, keeps calling almost-Elli by her very first notion of a name, Ella, and we believe it's because we have yet to scan her into the PEOPLE YOU SHOULD KNOW sidebar on this blog. Our excuse is that we don't have any good photos, or at least photos that Grandma would approve of, and so we'll get it done as soon as we can. In the meantime Elli will continue to be called 'Ella' by her paternal Grandmother. It's rough but there are FAR worse things for a pre-born to endure.

There you have it...a relatively up to date and semi-accurate synopsis of what's happening with a little over two weeks to go before June loses her bump and Brian gets to act like a 2 year old ALL the time.