There was a gal who had just gone into mutterschutz at Patrick's birthday party last night. She was tiny, with a big round tummy and a black t-shirt that said 'Mutterschutz' in bright orange letters across the front. She looked like one of the lucky few who have an easy, care-free pregnancy behind them. I mean, come on, I'm fatter than she is, and she must be due in 6 weeks!

I was sitting across from her, trying not to stare, not to be jealous (especially when all those around her suddenly had their hands on her belly and were oohing and ahhing and gigling). I thought to myself: "she might be further along than me, and get to feel movement, and be tiny and cute, but has she ever gone through labor before? Because I've got her on that one..." Small things, but jealousy isn't usually logical.

I woke up this morning to brilliant sunshine. The day just felt good, you know? I had slept in until 10am! Got up, made blueberry bran muffins, grapefruit, bacon...and suddenly knew that today was the day to get out the old baby things and take stock: what do I already have? What do I need to get?

Sven took off on his bike to Aying in hope of catching the 'Odtimers' get-together and so I printed off that silly New Parent's Checklist' you can get from Babysrus, got out the box of hidden-away baby things and started counting. At first, I fought back tears, and then I just smiled, as I went through one adorable onesie after the other. Such cute little clothes, just for boys. Blue dogs, green frogs, dump trucks and pickups, and all the while I'm wondering whether or not I'm jinxing myself by opening up this box? What's better anyway? Waiting until baby is safely here before we start thinking about the things we'll need, or taking a chance and preparing now?

I managed to convince Sven to put up the light in the nursery before he left, and once that was done, I had to open the box. Now I need to hurry and clean up the mess before Sven gets home. He is not yet ready to see the contents of the box.

I don't care how much cheaper it is, buying generic brand printer inks is a bad idea. Period. I have wasted at least 30 minutes trying to get the printer heads cleaned up enough to lose the streaks. I have wasted enough ink and paper in the process, to make the generic ink as expensive as the Epson brand would have been. And on top of that, I don't have the 100 year guarantee that the colors will last, that I have with the Epson inks.

No, I did not buy the generic ink. I have refused time and again to buy it. When I need ink, I send Sven off to Saturn for Epson T027 and he asks every time, whether I don't want to try Pelican or KMP? No! is always my answer. Of course, I was saying no because I wanted the long-lasting gurantee, that I'd have a million problems getting the generic brand to print in the first place is something I didn't realize.

What happened? Sven was able to order some ink in bulk through a coworker. He ordered 3 cartridges of Epson T027 and just for kicks...one cartridge of KMP. I just ran out of Epson ink. I can't justify buying a new cartridge when I plan on getting a new printer in the very near future. I installed the KMP cartridge. Hell insued.

Lesson learned: never, ever, ever, buy the generic printer ink cartridges, ever. No matter how much cheaper it is than the brandname. It's not worth it!

Kereth came and took me shopping. Well actually, she came by to pick up the album I made for Andy's 40th (and she loved it, I'm so glad!) and then she took me shopping, but only after we sorted through the fun box I got today from T. (love you girl!).

See, Mr. DHL came by right when Kereth did. So I was down opening the gate to let her in and waving to Mr. DHL who was across the street in his big, bright yellow van. Kereth asks, "is he coming for you?" Yes, he was! So while Kereth is playing 100 questions with me about the box, I am trying to answer, sign for it and figure out who it is from. All this excitement, plus my May CK finally showed up. It came with hermes this time, instead of the regular postal system. No idea why that happens!

So anyway, the happiest thing about this package was not the goodies that she gave me, no it was the gorgeous birthday card that she made me months and months ago. I'd seen it, as you can below, but I had no idea just how gorgeous it was, until I was holding it in my hands. T., you are the best! Thank you, thank you!

Now, after the fun of going through more and more goodies and hearing Kereth ooh and ah over the album (such a good thing to hear since it was going to her husband for his birthday!) she took me shopping just to get me out of the house.

Edeka has Cherry and Vanilla Coke. I'm not totally over my coke craving yet, so I got myself coked up....ahem. You know what I mean, 1 liter cherry, 1 liter vanilla and 1.5 liters regular coke (because I still have tons of cherry syrup). Edeka does not have gingerale however.

Well, what do you know? Regular coke with cherry syrup is cherrier than Cherry Coke. That's right. So I guess I shouldn't be bummed that Mini Mall does not carry it, because Mini Mall does carry coke and cherry syurp and gingerale. I think it's all good!

Pregnancy comment of the day: "You look pregnant, you're spreading..." Thanks SO much, Kereth!!

Just some fun today while I wait for Kereth to arrive...

So the end result is only half-so interesting, taking the quiz is a blast, I had to laugh. I think my results are skewed due to living in the Southwest, Northwest, and Midwest and having family from Texas. Nevermind how your whole language world flips upside down when you learn a new language!

Still fun, stuff. "You say tomato, I say "tomahto..."

I know, those words don't belong in the same paragraph, let alone the same sentence, but there you go. This is my newest complaint. How can I have skin so dry it is cracked and flaking off like baked desert earth, and still be covered in zits?

I'm serious, when the weather finally gets warm enough to wear sleeveless tops and I can shed the turtlenecks, I will have two choices: roast slowly but surely like a chicken on the grill, or send people screaming at the site of my bumpy arms and chest.

Okay. Face I can deal with, had it all my life, right? moisturize and ignore the zits until it's time to go in public, then grab that old 'shinefree' stick I've had since highschool and start dabbing. But my arms and chest, now they are starting to really bother me. How do I shed the scales and bumps?!

And on the subject of pregnancy-related comlaints, maternity pants suck when you're not quite 'maternal' enough to fit in them. They make you look more like a whale than you should at 15 weeks, and they slide off your butt at the most inoppurtune times. Stupid pants.

Panic attacks will come and go. Thank you for the kind words yesterday. I am now in less-panicky mode and somewhat determined to find a cherry coke, or make my own if I must. Thanks for the addy, Cynthia!

While sitting on the couch today with Sven, watching the news, he leaned over and placed his hand on my bit of a belly and said, 'I don't feel anything.' I freaked. Silently, and inwardly, but still I freaked while calmly explaining to Sven that it wasn't likley to feel anything until week 17 at least.

"Well, was it week 23 that we found out about the tumor?"

"No, I think it was between weeks 20 & 22." (I could look it up, but why help the terror along?) "We went in for the 30-minute ultrasound between weeks 20 & 22 and that is when they discovered the hydrocephalus"

"Oh."

That was more or less the end of the conversation, but afterwards, mind kept racing. There was the week Joy, who was about 2 weeks behind me in her pregnancy, announced that she and her husband had felt movement together at the doctor's that week. "What? She's earlier than me and already feeling the baby? I haven't felt anything yet!" I remember thinking worriedly, and with some jealousy. Then there was the doctor's appointment where they asked if I had felt movement yet. I hadn't. Well, no worries, it takes longer in some people...and more people asked, and more, and week 23 rolled around and I still hadn't felt anything and week 27 rolled around and Zane died, and I had NEVER FELT HIM.

So I'm sitting there panicking. What about week 20 this time? What will happen at that 30-min ultrasound appointment? Will they again discover hydrocephalus? Will I again miss out on feeling my baby? Will I have to go through the whole horror of a stillbirth again?

Breathe. Breathe. Breathe.

I'm breathing again. Suffering from a rather uncomfortable bout of indigestion and my stomach won't be satisfied while eating, nor after eating, but feels bloated and starved all at the same time. I'm about to hit week 15 (or 16 if you listen to Dr. T.) so why oh why don't I feel better?

But I am breathing again.

And I suddenly and irrationally crave a cherry coke. A big tall glass of iced cherry coke. RIGHT NOW. I don't drink coke. Ever. But what wouldn't I give for a glass of some right now?

I made pineapple popsicles instead. They should be ready by tomorrow. Gotta take what you can get, I guess. Do they even make cherry coke in Germany?

Went to Marienplatz in the pouring rain yesterday, urine sample in hand (gross) and dropped it off at Dr. T's. The gal behind the desk expected me to walk back out again and call for results. I looked at her and basically refused. She tried to tell me it would take a while to get the results back (BS!!) and after interrupting my attempts to explain why I was even there and what had happened about three times, she finally asked me what had happened. Duh. I hate it when strangers are working.

Anyhow, I got my way. They did the sampling immediately. I just barely had time to use the bathroom and was about to get cozy with my book when I was called back up front with the news that everything was good. NO UTI! yay!

Now the funny thing in all this. Last week when Dr. T. informed I might have a UTI and asked if I was having any symptoms, I wasn't, not a one. No concern on my part. I was told to drink plenty of fluids and come back again the following week.

Well, I did good until Friday when I knew we'd be driving to Vienna and I didn't want to make our driver stop every 20 mins for a bathroom, so I drank very little on Friday and only had to stop twice. I then proceeded to drink a liter when we arrived and spent the whole night in the bathroom. On Saturday I drank moderately, but not as much as I should have and on Sunday again, too little because of the trip back.

Where am I going with this? When I woke up Monday I thought my bladder might burst only to find it somewhat full. Empty, sit back down, aaaaah! I thought, oh no. Now I have the UTI for sure!! Drank tons Monday and Tuesday, but following the advice of 'What to Expect when you're Expecting' stopped drinking after 6pm. Well, obviously, no UTI this time either, but my bladder is still bugging. So I'm guessing, like Zane, this baby finds it comfy on top of my bladder. Not that the baby is all that big or heavy yet, all of 60g? Well, maybe somewhat heavier now, it must have been 60 a week ago and is bound to have gained some since then, right?!

Do I have any other pregnancy-related news? Nope - ciao!

I meant to do this last night, but was too tired to figure it out. I got it down today, let's hope that all the pics and links cooperate. Most pics are of the Hundertwasserhaus, remember that was my #1 goal for the trip...

If you can't see the photos, it is because Geocities only allows a certain allocation of data transfers per hour before shutting down. It is usually up again in an hour. So please check back!

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"Vienna, Vienna, you alone shall be the city of my dreams..." This old Viennese folk song is mainly about one fact - that Vienna is fantastic, as beautiful as a dream.

Vienna....what an amazing, culturally and historically rich city. I think I am in love. I need one of those "I {heart}Vienna" T-shirts...no really. I think I could live there. Of course, they talk kind of funny, and the city is a bit dirtier and more run down than Munich, but the culture and the atmosphere (and the food!) totally make up for it.

Friday

Right, so the plan was to leave at 13:00 sharp on Friday, right? At 12:45 I was getting worried, Sven wasn't home yet. Great. All was good though, as Pavel didn't show up until 13:30 or so - oops! about a 4 hour drive to Vienna add a bit of time due to the preggo-lady's need for bathroom breaks. No food problems, I was well-stocked for the ride over and just as long as I got my dinner when we arrived, all was good.

Pavel dropped us off at Hütteldorf, a Pasing-sized bahnhof and we caught the U4 into the city center, changed at Karlsplatz to the U2 and on to the Museums Quartier (MQ) and our stop: Volkstheater. Seriously cool, stepping out of the underground and seeing all these huge, glorious buildings, including thV olkstheater itself and thinking, this is where we are staying...! Looks can be deceiving though, in more than one way! We walked up a bit to our street and as soon as we turned the corner, the state of the buildings took a turn as well. Our hotel, Hotel Viennart, had been rennovated and was quite funky, sharing space with a rug store...the building next door was empty and bits were falling off the facade, and the building next to that was selling designer furniture!

Checked-in, had a mini-room (seriously!) but were on the 5th floor and the window opened to let in fresh air. Plus, non-smoking! We'd barely walked in, Sven had the TV on and I was nagging to go and find fooooooood! His suggestion, walk out to the Mariahilferstrasse and look for a restaurant. Well, turns out, the Mariahilferstrasse is home to all the fast food in Vienna! We turned up a side-street and found a Beisel, too a quick glance at the Menu (they hang so conviently outside the restuarant in Euope) and seeing decent prices and turkey, we walked in only to see that every last table in the teeny place was reserved. The waiter let us stay as long as we promised to be out by 8:30. Fine, just give me food! The menu told me they had putenfilet with salad, so I ordered that. I confused the poor waitress who I saw looking it up behind the counter after. Turns out, it was just a good 'ol putenschniztel! Sven had goulash with knödel and raved over his while mine melted in my mouth. Good start! We hung around the place until a bit after 8:30pm because Sven wouldn't go and I think secretly wanted to see who was going to fill up this tiny little place...not much of anyone came by the time we left, but all who did were musicians!

Saturday

Hundertwasser
My goal was the Hundertwasserhaus. Seriously been wanting to go ever since Kim went and told me about it. We were in Vienna in March or Feb of 2002 and the water was so bad, we just hopped on a bus and did a bit of seeing that way. The bus did a drive-by of the area, but we didn't get to stop. I've been wanting to go back ever since. You can't go inside the Hundertwasserhaus, people live there, but you can join the hundreds of tourists outside and take all the pictures you want before going into the Hundertwasser Village.

So Friedensreich Hundertwasser born Friedrich Stowasser, changed his name at 21. 'Sto' means one-hundred in Czechish (thanks to that tidbit from Pavel on the way home today) and Friedensreich is something like 'peaceful realm'. He must have been the coolest person. Originally a painter, he moved into architecture and took his ideals and philosophy about environment with him. What stands out most is his take on the straight line. He said that it was foreign to man and only came into use with architects. He said: "Our present, planned architecture cannot be considered art. Our modern buildings are detached and pitiable compromises by men of bad conscience who work with straight-edged rulers." His buildings therefore, use straight lines only when necessary. Hundertwasser's Mould Manifesto Against Rationalism in Architecture (a good read for all scrapbookers who live by their rulers and straight lines...) Likewise, his floors are not flat. "An uneven and animated floor is the recoverery of man's mental equilibrium, of the dignity of man which has been violated in our levelling, unnatural and hostile urban grid system.(...) The uneven floor becomes a symphony, a melody for the feet and brings back natural vibrations to man." Read More at: The Uneven Floor. The floor of Kunsthaus Wien is therefore anything but flat, making walking from exhibit to exhibit an adventure.

Because this was my main goal, this is about the only thing we took pictures of while in Vienna. By the time we got to Kunsthaus Wien, I was starving, so we stopped off in the Restuarant for an expensive lunch (well for me). I ordered the Germknödel with Mohnbutter. I think I prefer a good 'ol Dampfnudel with hot vanilla sauce! On to see the Hundertwasser Exhibit and get the fascinating bits of Hundertwasser's history...

St. Stephen's Cathedral and the Catacombs
Off to the city's center to take a peek at Stephansdom, the city cathedral. I didn't think we were going to go inside, I've honestly seen enough cathedrals to last me a few years at least! Sven wanted to though, and I soon learned why. He had read or heard somewhere that there was a tour through the catacombs with a look at plague-infested bones. Oh yah...The next tour wasn't for half an hour, so we waited around until it started. They have renovated half of the catacombs in recent years so that in the beginning, it isn't spooky at all. It looks like any church basement of stone! The renovated part of the catacombs contain the mausoleum of the bishops, the tombs of Duke Rudolph the Founder and 14 other members of the Habsburg family, and 56 urns with the intestines of the Habsburgs buried between 1650 and the 19th century in the Imperial Burial Vault. That right, their intestines. Apparently, it was their wish to have the intestines removed from the bodies and placed in urns. The Urns are in the cathedral and the bodies, now empty of intestines and filled with beeswax are in another church burial ground someplace.

Now the half of the catacombs that are not rennovated....spooky. It was like having a bit of history that you've read about suddenly thrown at you 7.5 meters below ground, and made tangible. It was almost too much for me. Grisly. We weren't allowed to take pictures, but at some point they must have allowed it. We started with one room on view and a long history. how the bodies were put in and stacked up one room above another until they ran out of room. We then had a lovely view of one of the rooms through a barred window. At first you just saw a few bones, no big deal right? Then you step back and look at the whole picture and suddenly you see that it is boards/coffins with skulls at the top, rotting cloth and bones down to the feet. Ugh. Next word is that in the 17th century when Vienna was suffering from the plague, they had to close down the services at the church due to the stench of rotting corpses. They were overfull and had been dumping the bodies down a shaft. And oh yes, we got to look down the shaft...One last room consisted of stacked bones. I didn't quite understand how this worked, did people really go down there after the bodies had rotted and stack the bones on top of each other to make more room?

Is there any point in telling you that I was very happy to get out of the Catacombs?

Kaiserschmarrn & Wienerschnitzel
We'd picked up some ads at the hotel for restuarants. One boasted 'Vienna's best Kaiserschmarrn' and the other 'the best Wienerschnitzel'. Both of them were in the Stefansplatz area so we took off looking for them. Kaiserschmarrn was first, since it was closer to Kaffe und Kuchen than dinner and in all honesty, eating Kaiserschmarrn was my 2nd-to-last goal for our trip...(and that is all Stacy's fault!). Anyway, we were looking for Heindl's Palatschinken Pfandl and found it. Empty. We went in anyway and ordered. Sven had 'palatschinken with marillen' even though I begged him to share the Kaiserschmarrn with me. We were stuffed. It didn't help that we stopped by a pizza place on the way over. The smell of fresh italian pizza wafting after us on the street was just too much for me and I dragged Sven in. We got a big double-piece of pizza with eggplant and tomatoes for €2,50! Not bad! (yes, we decided Vienna is much cheaper than Munich).

So there we are, stuffed with pizza, kaiserschmarrn and palatschinken and walking to Figlmüller to see if they make a turkey-schnitzel. They do. Dinner is saved. The place is totally quaint, btw, and empty. We headed out toward the Opernring and Hotel Sacher. By the time we were there and done, I was exhausted and Sven needed a bathroom so we went back to the hotel for a break.

Spittelberg
On the way to the Hotel, I noticed one of those arrow signs pointing the way to the Spittelberg. I asked Sven what a 'spittelberg' was, but he wasn't listening. Looked it up in the hotel and decided we might as well take a look, it was right around the corner! So off to the Spittelberg we went. Unfortunately, it was pretty dead by early evening, stores were closed and restaruants not yet hopping. We walked through and then caught the U-bahn back to Stephansplatz so we could go have dinner at Figlmüller.

Wienerschnitzel Revisited
Now be honest, didn't you always think that wienerschnitzel had something to do with hotdogs? I did. It took a few years for me to finally stop being surprised that it wasn't. It just means a Viennese Escalope (or cutlet). It's usually a very thin cut of pork (or maybe it's just pounded thin) that is breaded and baked to a fine crispyness and served with a slice of lemon. I'd never had it. I don't eat pork. Well, in Vienna, they offer their famous Wienerschnitzel as chicken, turkey, and pork, 'nuff said. Now Figlmüller boasts a 250g-as-big-as-your-plate-Schnitzel, and it was! Make sure you click on the website, choose English, click 'Figlmüller' and then 'The Schnitzel'. We arrived at Figlmüller sometime around 7:30 or 8pm. The quaint little empty restuarant was roaring. There was a line of at least 5 parties ahead of us, just standing outside the place, waiting their turn. We joined them. It was worth the wait. By the time we were up, there was an Italian family in front of us, mom, dad, daughter. They had a big table free and we shared.

We were lucky to hit the restuarant on a fairly smoke-free night. You could walk in and every few minutes, take a deep breath and get a nosefull of breading and freshly squeezed lemon. Heaven. I ordered turkey, Sven got the house special, we both ordered the potato salad with feldsalad and pumpkin seed oil. Sooooo good I'm dying of hunger just thinking about it! Turns out, the turkeyschnitzel is bigger. It is thicker for one thing, and they filled my plate with two pieces, one was just about as big as the plate, and the other was half as big as the plate. I couldn't finish it, and it was toooo bad!

We were so stuffed after, we walked all the way back to the Hotel and collapsed!

Sunday, we had to meet Pavel at Hütteldorf at 11am. Can I just say, I want to go back to Vienna?! PLEASE don't let it take another 3 years to get there!