PINK!

Well, we're having a girl!  February 10th is still our date, and the plan is for me to have the baby near my parents in the DC area.  Sorry for the lack of blogging, my mom says people will think I've been on bed rest, but to the contrary -- we have been so busy because I feel so great!

In other PINK news, I recently did a women's 5K here in Buenos Aires.  I'm really glad my friend Megan decided to come along and walk with me, because the other 12,000 motivated ladies left us in the dust!  It was really fun to get to know the racing culture here in Argentina.  My Grandpa Epps has run dozens of marathons, and I tried to stick to his rules as best I could (which meant I stuck out a little bit :)  I did NOT wear the race shirt until after I finished the race, but I only saw one or two other girls who didn't wear theirs.  At least I wore pink, I was afraid they were going to kick me out.

Speaking of getting kicked out, let me tell you a little about being pregnant in Argentina.  When we went to pick up our race packets a few days before, I was terrified they weren't going to let me participate in the race because I was pregnant.  There were all these notices on the website about how each runner had to bring a doctor's certification etc etc.  So, when we were standing in line, I tried to wrap my sweater around myself and hunch over so they wouldn't notice my belly.  Ha, yeah right.  They spotted me, and immediately moved me to the front of the line.

Being pregnant here has taken some getting used to -- the Argentines are very forceful about "You shouldn't be standing/You shouldn't be carrying that/You shouldn't be bending over."  I get yelled at several times a week for something I'm doing wrong.  I was waiting in line at the airport once, and an entire family behind me started pushing me towards the front of the line, "Pregnant women NEVER wait in line!" I tried to explain them that I couldn't go to the front of the line because I was waiting for my husband to buy me a bottle of water, but they just kept whispering to themselves about how pregnant women should never have to wait in line.  It was kind of funny.  I also got yelled at on the city bus when I got on by myself and stood by the front for a few minutes because all the seats were full (the bus was completely packed).  That time I cried, the scolding always surprises me, and I'm so shy about parading myself around like "Give me priority, I AM PREGNANT!" especially when I'm feeling so good.

Megan hosted a baby shower for me this past weekend, and it was so much fun!  Another friend Tanya helped out, and they really went above and beyond.  Salmon mousse on cucumbers and pink and purple macaroons, fun games and good company.  One of the ladies made a diaper cake (see below) with little finger puppets on top, which I love (and will use!).  Thanks for reading, more later!