Knowing that it would one day end. Thankfully. Retroactively there were things that I liked. Knowing that I had a baby in there that would soon be a person. But I was sick and uncomfortable for both of my pregnancies (although one was worse than the other, so I guess with my second, I liked that it wasn’t as bad as my first), so it wasn’t particularly enjoyable at the time.

I am so excited to read your new book! I’ve been loving your stories since the first Yudah Cohen story came out and the Yudah Cohen series along with Suradanna and the Sea are stories that I’ve probably reread at least six or seven times. I also really liked The Iron Children, so I suspect that I will really enjoy your new book. A few questions: what was the process like when you first started publishing your short stories? Do you think that you’ll revisit the Yudah Cohen series with new stories? What inspired the Yudah Cohen series?

Oh man. This is really sad. My favorite bar in LA. Always a great experience.

What great photos! Your family has great smiles!

So sad when ritual cafe closed.

I will never give up my deep and abiding childhood hatred for the Celtics, but this is such a wonderful BORU and such an amazing experience that the organization put on. I’m so glad that they quietly supported OOP and made her experience amazing.

I don’t know about guided hikes, but we’ve had success with doing the hikes around the mid-mountain areas from the resort chairlifts. At Deer Valley, Stein’s and probably other places are open for lunch, so you could do a morning hike and then lunch afterwards. We also like to do a walk at the McPolin barn.

My experience has been that this is normal for that age. My daughter has a rule that if she wants to touch her vagina, that is something that she needs to do in her room or bathroom by herself. Sometimes she wants to go to her room and touch herself but mostly she’d rather be where she is (and I give her the option neutrally).

I love it! Absolutely gorgeous!

Don’t know about the Virginia bar, but it’s pretty easy to waive into the DC bar if you’ve been practicing for a few years.

I suspect that this will be a fairly unpopular opinion, but I’ve been ok with moving away from Benedict’s and Eloise’s book storylines because I didn’t really enjoy them. Sometimes, I wish that they had deviated more from the books (I’m looking at you, season one, with the inclusion of the non-consensual sex where blame is cast on Simon instead of Daphne as the perpetuator). But to me, the show feels very different from the books, so I’ve just mentally slotted them differently. And depending on the character, I feel like sometimes gender swapping characters works well (like Starbucks in Battlestar Galatica).

Reddit has baby bumper groups for each due date month. I highly recommend joining yours as I found it a great spot to ask all the minor and major questions and feel supported. You can also check out r/babybumps as well.

I’m so proud of you for persevering and getting your pain taken seriously. You deserve to be taken seriously. The waiting is the hardest part—and I know how stressful it is to wait for MRI results. My (other, because you’re now an honorary kid of mine) kid has to get MRIs annually and the first few (which happened within a few months of each other) were petrifying for me while we figured out what was going on. I’ve been there—but knowing is better than not knowing, especially if there’s a chance that your pain can finally be addressed. I agree with treating yourself after your MRI. You deserve it and be kind to yourself, hospitals and tests are hard. I’m rooting for the best for you and I hope you are able to finally treat your condition.

One of my favorite books features this: {Not Quite A Husband by Sherry Thomas} but it is a polarizing book because it also features Spoiler .

For what it’s worth, I did IVF and while stressful at times, I imagine it would be a lot easier to deal with that than rolling the dice and having it not go the way you want to.

Your children probably pick up more than you think that they do. And they’re internalizing all of this. So you wouldn’t be destroying your family if you get divorced or separate. Instead, you would be modeling a healthy sense of self-value and expectation for how partners should be treating each other. Your kids will know if you’re staying with your husband for them.

My kid was a little under two (so didn’t conceptually understand it in the way that I think a three year old would), but I found that the best thing that helped my daughter was keeping her routine consistent. Her childcare stayed the same, so even though there was a new baby, her day to day was pretty consistent before and after the baby arrived. I also tried to still do bedtime with just me and her, post baby, so that she got a bit of quality time with me each day. We did read lots of books and talk about babies, but I think that it didn’t really click until the baby arrived. And then he did and she thought he was super boring for a few months, so really, it was as close to a non-event for her as a new baby could be. Edit: when baby was born, I used a lot of “it’s baby’s turn, now it’s your turn.” For my attention and tried to really emphasize when it was her turn. I did a lot of putting baby down and then saying loudly, “Ok, baby, now it’s daughter’s turn.” to emphasize to my daughter that she also got priority (in turn).

I would talk with a lawyer. It sounds like he is not in a safe place at home. She may have been a good mother when she was with you, but she sounds unstable now and likely abusive (even if currently limited to verbal abuse), and that’s the reality that you need to approach. It sounds like you are in the UK/Australia, so I can’t comment on applicable law, but I would consult with a lawyer about a few things about obtaining legal guardianship (even if on a temporary basis). It may be a situation where your likelihood of obtaining guardianship is unlikely and so it’s better to let him stay there unofficially and play nicely with his mother to keep letting him stay there. Or maybe the courts are likely to award you guardianship. I’d find those things out. Right now, it would be best to have some form of guardianship to ensure that he is protected in the case of an emergency or if he needs medical attention.

Outside of Eyes of Silver, Eyes of Gold and Dancing on Coals, her other books feature white main characters and racism isn’t really discussed (I’m not sure if you’re wanting no discussion of racism or acknowledgment in the book of how serious racism was). There are oblique references to things like the civil war in her books—such as in Without Words where one of the main characters is estranged from his family because he went to fight for the union and they supported the confederacy.

I don’t begrudge anyone loving the show, especially if they know those things. I think that when people raise it, they usually expect that because I’m a lawyer, I would like it or that I should watch it. That’s I think where my ire really comes from.

I think it's one big thing (how incredibly unrealistic Harvey's practice of law is--no one is a generalist and an expert in ALL types of law the way that Harvey is. I think in one episode early on he said something like "i'm the best closer in New York" and we'd already seen him best the best litigator ever, and I was like...are you a closer or a trial attorney? pick one.) and then an assortment of little things (very few people actually practice law as a first year associate, all the "senior" partners are super young for senior partners, the super quick trials, the super quick settlements, the super quick anything, also the law that the show purports to show isn't accurate? i feel like a subpeona got sent at night, although that could be a rage haze dream that I created). My passion and deep burning hatred has died down some since it's probably been a decade since I last saw an episode, so if I got anything horribly wrong, my apologies.

My disdain for Suits cannot be restrained, so when people ask me that question, I think that they quickly regret their choice.

I found this while trying to figure out the hotel/Nanit issue, and this is life changing. Thank you!

It sounds like it's been good having your sister there--to help manage the load and also to be another resource for your siblings. I'm really glad that your 16 year old sister is able to connect with her. And that she's getting along well with you and your older brother. It sounds like you guys are getting into good routines, and that's great. You're doing a great job with your siblings and I hope that things keep moving in a positive direction.

Not the best views, but I really enjoy the drive to Provo, driving in between the mountains. Bonus: there are a ton of cute spots to stop and get a bite before you turn around (my favorite is Mozz).