Thank You
To all the amazing Martin women and my adorably sneaky husband for a fabulous baby shower


Now events that occurred the night before finally make sense.

Task 1: Bringing Home the Box of Gifts
I thought it was a bit odd that it took Bill longer than usual to come in the door when he got home last night. I also thought I heard a thump somewhere. But these weren't things one would think to ask about. Plus, I was in front of the stove with sweat dripping down my entire body and all I could think about was finishing making dinner as quickly as I could so I'd be able to rinse off before we sat down to eat. Had I gone to greet him at the door, I might have been able to spot the box he brought back in the entry way.

Task 2: Preparing to Make Pancakes that Shape like Babies
The second weird thing was when he said he wanted to go shopping so he could make breakfast the next morning. Remember the weekly weather forecast of Taipei that Bill Sr. put on the family site? Small pockets of tropical storm systems from the Philippines were passing through Taiwan on their way to Japan, bringing in intermittent thunder, lightening, and torrential rain.* Last night was no exception. Now imagine how weird it was when Bill said after dinner that he was gonna run to the supermarket to get some food for breakfast when it was pouring rain out. I told him I was planning to make some cinnamon pancakes and we had all the ingredients anyway, but he said he also wanted sausages and bacon. I thought he simply had strong cravings for a full-on Western-style breakfast, so I suggested that we go together. He paused for a moment (and all we heard was the sound of raindrops pounding on the roof) and said "Forget it. I don't wanna go out in the rain."

As a side note, we never had pancakes this morning. I tossed the idea of making cinnamon pancakes out the window as soon as Bill said he was going to get some food from Starbucks.

*For those who're concerned, I think the storm system has completely passed through Taiwan by now (you saw how bright it was outside on the video this morning), so Joey and Genevieve's flight tonight will not be affected. Don't worry.

Task 3: Test running the Systems
After dinner, Bill spent a few hours dinking around on the computer and I dozed off on the couch. Next thing I knew, I heard a baby screaming. I immediately put my hand on my belly and was puzzled by how close the baby sounded. Then Bill came into the living room with his laptop and asked if I wanted to say hi to Juli. "Oh~~ it's Maggie," I thought as I rubbed my eyes, "Man... are all babies this loud?!" (This was when Juli chuckled and said something along the lines of "be prepared to get used to hearing this" or something like that. You read my mind, Juli).

As Bill continued to fine tune the video conferencing function with Juli at the kitchen table, I sleepily wandered around the apartment. I was a bit peckish but I wasn't sure if having a snack this late was a good idea, so I poured myself a glass of milk and went back on the couch. Moments later, Bill came in and told me to GO TO BED. As I slowly mozied toward the bedroom, I thought he sounded a bit too annoyed or impatient than he needed to be, but I was too sleepy to ponder.

Bill said he finally had to tell me to "go. to. bed" because he needed to talk to Lisa on Skype at normal volume, but he couldn't have done that with me in the living room.

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All this coordination and planning worked out beautifully! I'm sorry if I looked lost and had no idea what to do this morning. It was the very first baby shower I ever attended (and it was my own, ha)! Hours later, as I'm typing this post, I can still hear your voices and the explosive laughter.

Lisa, I'm so glad that you were there and that you got to "meet" the Oregon Martins. Did I ever tell you that Bill's dad was actually born in Montreal? Though I think he's completely lost his Quebecois-ness.
Scott, you look veeeery hhhhot without your usual mop head. I think you should keep it short for a while. And Jordy is such a funny little man. I love his "Jordism" and blindingly blond hair.

To all my in-laws: Thank you so much for all the cards, gifts, suggestions, and advice. The gifts you sent are very helpful, and honestly I feel a lot more confident knowing that you're here for us (and now that we're armed with all the real, useful baby stuff). After all, aside from clothes and diapers, Bill and I had no clue what we'd need that can make our life easier (like the handy scented diaper bags with a cute little dispenser from Diane) or the things that make Peanut a happier baby (the rattle/teething ring and the vibrating hanging toy from Juli). We were planning on just stuffing all the dirty diapers in the diaper pail and emptying it maybe every couple of days. As for toys, we didn't think babies need toys. I was gonna give him a couple of empty water bottles to bang around with. I figured that ought to keep him entertained at least until he's 6 months old.

Also, thanks to Mom, we feel much better prepared now that we have all kinds of towels and lots of receiving blankets (Thank you for explaining what each kind is for. It was much needed, as you witnessed how we cleverly identified a burp cloth as a receiving blanket). Thank you, Debbie, for demonstrating how to make a baby burrito. I just hope Peanut's as easygoing as Jack Jack. And Shellee, did you conspire with Bill and he told you I'd been wanting to get some books for Peanut? I wrote "From Aunt Shellee" and dated the back of those books. These are Peanut's first books, and we'll hold on to them for as long as we can.

We're keeping all the cards in Peanut's "time capsule" box. Juli, I also taped your notes inside the covers of the book of the Family Tree and the Baby Food Recipe Book. And yes, you've inspired me to make my own baby food (I hope we'll be back in North America by the time Peanut starts on solids). The only thing I'm worried about now is that I won't be able to give away any of Peanut's clothes even after he grows out of them. They're just too cute, and each one is attached to an important person in the family.

Bill just checked online and Joey and Genevieve's flight is arriving on time. He's on his way to pick them up at the airport, and I really should get off my butt and do some last-minute tidying up. Thank you, everyone! I feel truly blessed to be a part of this loving family.

We love you!