In Which Kanga Realizes She Missed February

Nary a blog post in February...an indicator of how work, home life and preparations for Roo #2 have all stepped up considerably.

Here we are in March, exactly two months from when my maternity leave begins. A co-worker sent me a fascinating article written by another librarian who was, shall we say, quite well-prepared for her own 12-week FMLA leave.

Though there's more than a whiff of OCD about this woman, she wrote a fantabulous manual of her job's duties, set up an FAQ to guide those who were assisting in her absence, and said in all seriousness that no work piled up in her absence.

I definitely plan to take snippets of her recommendations. The list of frequently asked co-worker questions seems valuable, as does a full list of database passwords, clear access to previously performed secondary research results, and a basic how-to for much of what I do each day.

In other news, we have named Roo #2! Thanks to all those who offered suggestions. We feel really good about our choice and are now "settling in" with it to allow it to attach itself to our second little girl.

In Which Kanga and Roo Make Room For...

...a baby sister. Roo #2 will be a girl, as evidenced today by our ultrasound.

By the way, Portland residents -- if you can get Susannah the sonographer at NW Perinatal, do it. She doesn't, of course, promise specific boy or girl babies, but she's got a darn good prediction track record and an excellent bedside manner.

I had, of course, approximately 25 boys' names and only two or three girls' names that even piqued my interest. Any suggestions, esteemed readers?

(Suggestions of "Dewey" or "Marian" -- as in librarian -- will be duly ignored.)

In Which Kanga Muses on the Year Past and Yet to Come

As we approach December 31, I wanted to jot down some of the ups and downs of 2008, while looking ahead to 2009.

2008 was first and foremost the Year of the Baby. J grew from a nine-week-old meatloaf-esque lump into a walking (running!), semi-talking, food-and-toy-throwing delight. She makes us laugh many times every day, and just smelling the top of her head is enough to strengthen me for the day.

Alan and I went from bumbling first-timers to generally relaxed parents of a toddler. Not yet required to shift to a man-to-man defense (foreshadowing!), we found that we could be good parents while still retaining time for the things we like to do for ourselves.

What could I have done better? I could have carved out more time to read and exercise. I probably could have focused on my work more. But what kind of tool lies on their deathbed saying, "Yeah, I wish I had worked more?"

As for reading and exercise, the busy nature of this year meant that Hood to Coast and most of my book groups' activities were laid aside in favor of family time. I picked up water aerobics, which I really enjoy and which are totally harder than you'd think.

Then, just as we were headed into the autumn home stretch, I'd given away all my maternity clothes and things seemed destined for the normalcy inherent to a single-child family...bang.

No pun intended.

Our second pregnancy has left us alternately shocked, surprised, angry, giddy, joyful, nervous, at each other's throats and, ultimately, eager and with a strange peace. The first few months will be difficult, and I am thankful in advance for the knowledge that I am unlikely to remember them clearly (if J's first months are any indicator). Beyond all else, I am completely confident in our ability to juggle two kidlets, love them with complete abandon, recognize their differences as people and hold them close to our hearts. I am also confident that, several years from now -- three? four? -- we will look back and say that this was the wonderful redirect that I believe it to be.

I am getting some kicks now; I'll take that as a sign that I should end here, wishing all four readers of Design Librarian -- and everyone else -- a peaceful and prosperous 2009.

In Which Roo and The New Roo Make Two

Although most readers of this (barely read) blog know this already, Roo II will make his or her much-vaunted appearance on or around May 15, 2009.

I am mildly curious as to how J will react. I say "mildly," because I pretty much KNOW what will go down.

I may sell tickets.