The grass is always greener in Vermont

I write these sad lines on the runway of Burlington International Airport, as we wait. Rain, rain, rain is the theme of the last week or so here in Vermont, and it won't let me go it seems as we wait, again, for the rain to pass so the plane can fly. That said, wow.....it sure is green here!

Adam and I passed a leisurely week + a few days with his family at their farm, Hyde Away, in Vermont. It is currently the third wettest summer on record, which makes for raging rivers, lush greenery, and jungled gardens. We had a wonderful time, even making it up to Montreal for a day to enjoy a tea shop, bagels, and the required stop at Schwarz's smoked meat counter.

Several of our friends who are somewhat local to the area, as well as some extended Rosenblooms who were close at hand, joined us for a baby shower. And it showered, and showered, and showered! We painted onezies, ate tasty treats, received henna tattoos, and even watched a birth movie. Our kind of party.



I sit here on the run way waiting to go to NYC, Adam has already flown west and spent a night of debauchery with friends in Las Vegas. We will reconvene for a brunch with friends in NYC on Sunday before heading later that day to Israel, via Rome. So, there is more to come of our adventures this summer but I wanted to post some of the baby shower pictures here for your viewing. Yes, I am getting bigger by day and this wee one is a tad bit antsy as it doesn't stay still for long! Eightish more weeks to go until we meet it, and I am enjoying the last few weeks of round, full Sera before I become an official member of the Mothering Tribe.

There are a few other images compliments of our wedding photographer, Orah Moore, and a one year wedding anniversary gift from the Rosenblooms. It was really fun! Hope you enjoy them, and the glamor that pregnancy CAN be.

Enjoy the pics, and more to come soon!

Tight as ticks

Hello gentle readers, I have a tale or two to tell of my recent adventures to the hills of Arkansas. Yes, spending time with the red-neck kin there always proves entertaining; full of meat, water, and pyrotechnics. I am including some pictures here for your to get a sense of what the place looks like; gorgeous really. And at the end I have a story to tell you all of a small girl and her lucky fur. Read to the end and you shall be rewarded with a chuckle or two.

For the American 4th of July, i.e Independence Day holiday, I flew all of 1.5 hours to my east to join my clan in Arkansas. It was a super quick trip: 35 minute flight from Austin to Dallas, and one hour from there to Little Rock, for three short days. My proud papa gathered me at the airport whisking me away to his house just north of Little Rock in a rural community called Caddo. There we passed a nice afternoon pondering how it is that only 1/2 of his mother-in-law's double wide trailer was delivered. Where, indeed, was its mate? All in good time, I am sure.

We headed that evening an hour 1/2 north to our family farm in central Arkansas in a town aptly called, Clinton. Arkansas, like much of the Mississippi delta region, continues to find itself battling rising waters in rivers, creeks, septic tanks and the water keeps coming. This makes for a green wonderland, but also one too wet for its own good. Farmers are really struggling and there wasn't a vine ripe tomato to be found!

Here is a photo of the waterfall directly behind my grandmother's house. It was just outside my bedroom window and I felt a bit as though I was at a spa as I was lulled in and out of sleep by its melodic mantra of wetness.

Here is an action shot of my Macgyver like father cutting the brush so his expansive daughter and her girth can get a good view of the water. Thanks dad.....

Water was definitely the theme of this most recent trip to the Ozarks. I grew up swimming in this wondrous lake: Greer's Ferry. Its one of the largest man-made lake in the US and this summer its even bigger. The water was up so high (how high was it, you ask??) that when I started each swimming session last weekend I started next to a picnic table surrounded by pine trees, swam over a massive parking lot, and then finally out to the buoy. I learned to water-ski, scuba dive, and fish on this lake and it holds a special place in my heart. Part of me feels like I am home when I am there. Does a body good to have a few such places in the world to return to.

My dad is a real life cowboy, for those of you who haven't had the good fortune to meet him yet. He hosts a massive rodeo, in collaboration with the neighboring ranch, each Labor Day: The National Chuckwagon Races. You can visit his website here to see some action shots: http://www.southforktrailrides.com.

Here is one of his trusty companions seen eying me for more tortilla chips. I was sharing my chips with her, and she was really enjoying them. Its pretty funny to listen to a horse eat tortilla chips.

One of the tasty treats that I look forward to the most when I am in Arkansas with my Dad is eating local meat. And when I mean local, I mean its from our land. My Dad's baby brother, Dan, still has a hearty cattle herd wandering the place and these burgers seen here are a product of his efforts. Well, of the cow's efforts, really. Can't say the hot dogs were local. I mean, is there even such a thing given the true nature of a hot dog? Anyway, the baby seemed to enjoy its first sampling of a Bonds-grown burger, and its mother certainly did, as well.

When I am in Clinton I stay at my grandma Betty's house. My grandfather, Herman, passed away about 10 years ago. There are many photos of the two of them and their years together gracing the walls of the house where my father grew up. This is one of my faves. I like to think of them as cartoons sometime defying gravity, escaping falling Acme anvils, scaling mountains in a single bound, and looking at each other with little hearts coming out of their eyes. We miss you grandpa.

Here is a pretty picture of my pop, my step-ma, my grandma, and me. My family was so nice to me when I was with them: telling me how healthy I look, cooking my fave foods, and humoring me by letting me watch the swimming Olympic trials. GO DARA TORRES!!!!! She is my new hero and I have a photo of her I am going to take to my birth with me. If she can break TWO American records at age 41, making her 5th Olympic team, I can birth this baby.


Ok, you've done well. You made it to the end of the blah blah blah blog. Now for the tale of the little girl and her lucky fur.

I went to Greer's Ferry Lake each day at least once to ease the burden of the extra 20 pounds I am carrying these days. Its phenomenal how much better my whole being feels after spending some time surrounded by water, weightless. On most of these visits I was the only person at the beach due to some powerfully majestic thunderstorms passing through. Ah, sweet solitude.

Something you may not know about me is that I ADORE swimming in big open bodies of water during thunderstorms. Really, I do. I know, not the safest smartest idea I've ever had considering I am now responsible for another body currently in residence in its own large, naturally occurring body of water, but I couldn't resist. Floating on my back, the water meeting the sky and the clouds, hearing only my own heartbeat, breath, and thunder; I am fully at peace. Anyway, on one of these serene visits to the lake, my solitude was broken by the arrival of a small girl.

She was about seven or eight years old, I am guessing. Her parents were pretty busy chasing her younger brother in his under-roos up and down the shore, so she was free to play in the water as she desired. And apparently all of her own accord, she brought along something very special.

She and I started chatting innocently enough when I was taking a break from swimming out the buoy and back to the shore. We were chatting about how her father had "lost" the boat, so she was bound to the swimming area this summer. I asked where he had put the boat, if he'd lost it. She didn't seem impressed with my wit, and remarked that he'd had to sell it. All the while she was playing with what looked to my untrained eye as a piece of plain black fabric.

Once I had won her confidence with my empathy regarding her restricted summer plans sans watercraft, she beckoned me closer, whispering, "Do you want to meet my friend?"

I replied with abundant curiosity as one can never have too many friends, "Sure, where is she?"

The little girl looked at me as though I was pretty dim witted, "Um, right here." She gestured to her shoulder where she has laid out the piece of thick blackness and was petting it. "This is my pet; my lucky fur".

Now, reader, I am sure that you are all having the same reaction as I did at this point. One mixed with hilarity, curiosity, and sheer wonder. Please feel free to laugh out loud as I could not do at this point as I didn't want to hurt the feelings of this sweet young thing who was clearly enamored with her new and lucky pet fur.

While all the while lovingly, adoringly stroking her pet, she told me tales of their adventures together and of her undying love for this special friend of hers. During the entire soliloquy I am holding my mouth tight, and my inner voice is cackling, open-mouth laughing, at the scene unfolding before me that can only, dear readers, take place in Arkansas and seemed so natural when shared through a thick southern drawl.

So, when I couldn't hold it together any longer, I excused myself from the scene and returned to my laps. When I was about 40 yards away from the girl and her pet, I (as was anyone within earshot) was stunned by a soul piercing scream coming....."MY LUCKY FUR!!!!!!!"

I quickly reversed my direction and swam as fast as this I could, dragging this big ole pregnant lady (and if I do say so myself, I can still set a good pace even with this weight around my gut) body with me. When I reached the little girl, she was inconsolable, and her father (beer and cigarette in hand) was saying the well intended but inappropriate things, "Hush up, I will buy you a new one from the feed store" and "It ain't that lucky if you done lost it!".

It seems, fair reader, that she had dropped her lucky fur in the lake, and it had sunk to the bottom. Never to be seen again.

At this point I couldn't hold it in at all and was openly, blatantly laughing. Thanking the angels around me for this bit of social satire helping to ease my own discomfort with my own family that I was feeling. What a great trip this could be, if I could just laugh through it rather than being so disturbed by it all! A profound realization for me, really, it was.

So, our young heroine is standing on the beach, encased by storm clouds both above and within. I timidly approached, giggle and all. I offered her the consolation that perhaps it was time for her lucky fur to bring some luck to someone else, attempting to appeal to her benevolent side.

"NO!!!!! THAT WAS MY LUCKY FUR AND I WANT IT BACK!"At this point, I have to admit, my sentiment changed, as did my perspective. I realized that this was not just a young child having a meltdown in our midst, this was my future. As I teeter on the edge of motherhood, I find that I have these kind of daily musings now: damn, that could be my child...fill in the blank: screaming inconsolably over something as seemingly insignificant as a piece of black fur, punching that kid over there, demanding a new Elmo toy at the top if her lungs. Whatever. Wow, this is my future.

That said, let us return to the tale of the lucky fur. The young girl, swaddled in her brightly colored beach towel, cried, gazed longingly at the lake, and mourned the loss of her friend. I really felt for her. But no one else seemed to. Her father had returned to his beer and his buddies, and her little brother was still chasing the waves in his panties up and down the beach. She continued to cry, and even about thirty minutes later when I was leaving the lake, she was still whimpering.

The next day when I went back to the beach to swim, I saw the little girl. She was laughing, riding her bike with her mother. She seemed fully recovered from the trauma of the previous day, and to have come to terms with her loss.

This is the image I want to take away with me. As ridiculous and light as the idea of a girl and her lucky fur are to me, and as thankful as I am that this comical gem landed in my lap at the time it did, I want to remember that she got over it. She moved on. We all do.

This child growing in my belly will have its heart broken. It will loose things, friends, pets, dreams, and hopes. But if I do my job well, it will move on to love again, and to make room in its heart for others. For perhaps, a lucky fur of its own.

We should all be so lucky!

And your reward for reading all the way to the end: a picture of me and my growing motherhood.

Happy trails, everyone!

Life in Austin, ahhhhhhhhhh

Adam and I've both been here now for two whole weeks, and boy oh boy, are we enjoying it. We've already been visited by both of our families, and some long lost friends from the arctic: Minnesota, really. Here are some pics of us enjoying our families, friends, and the fun & sun of Austin. More to come, rest assured.....


Adam and my bro, Zack, playing WII boxing. Its actually really fun, and a good workout!

Adam's sis, Nancy Pants, my sibs, Jordyn and Zack, getting rowdy out at my folks' place in Austin's hill country. This is what the heat does to you!

Two of the three of our dad's were together for Father's Day for a brunch and dinner party. Here is Sam, Sera's step-dad, reading a card.


Adam's folks and Adam here opening his father's day gifts.
Watching the Lakers get pummeled, it was glorious.....

Pretty feet and fishes in the hill country.

Adam hard at work studying for his USMLE exam.

Nature's fly catcher, otherwise known as a jar full of sugary water to drown the poor things in. This is what we do to pass time sometimes in these parts....

This is the view from the back patio at a local joint, Oasis, on the lake here in Austin. A great place for sunset viewing!

And our Nordic kindred who came to visit, Nicole and Jeff. Was so great to see you too, we miss you already. Thanks for making the time to come see us, it means a great deal.

So that about brings us up to speed. The bump and I are now 28 weeks along, can you believe it! And so you don't all start freaking out about flying etc, I gently remind you that we have plenty of time to get home and have this baby. But for now, we are loving our time in Austin and together before the arrival of the wee one.

Hope to see many of you soon, love from us!

Change of scenery

Adam and I arrived safely, and somewhat soundly here in the land of Oz: Austin, Texas. We feel as though we've landed on another planet. One where people speak the same language that we do, where you can order a meal and the waiter doesn't yell at you, and has huge cars cruising the highway as if gas prices weren't rising everyday!

Before we both headed away from our sandbox, Adam made sure to honor his last exam and to make certificates for everyone who attended the ethics course he led this last semester. He can be seen here giving out one of the fancy certificates to one of his classmates.

He is now settling into his "job" this summer of 8-10 hours a day of studying for his Step One USMLE exam. To be fair, he took his first practice exam yesterday and already scored a passing grade, so its just a matter of scoring as high as he can so we can have some control when it comes time for him to place into his residency in 2010. Go Doctor Adam!

I arrived stateside about two weeks before Adam to get some COHI face time with our dedicated Board of Directors, staff, and some volunteers. Here are some of us at the Board retreat in upstate NY.

I then went to NYC where I packed in as many meetings as I could, before getting the flu. I just can't do what I used to able to do before this little one joined me. All in all, though, I had some wonderful meetings and things are moving right along for this little, fledgling organization. COHI is full of Geminis so we had a group birthday party while I was in NYC, as well. What a great way to kick off a new year!


Adam and I are now in Austin. He is studying, and I am doing a fellowship for NARAL Texas Pro-Choice. I will continue to fill my day with my COHI related work, as well, but I am starting to look forward to a year+ from now when I will be stateside for a good chunk of time and would like to perhaps get into politics a bit. So I am trying that on this summer, we will see how it feels.

We'd love to see you all this summer, but I recommend you wait until Adam's exam is over: July 25th, so he can play, too. This is the view out his back porch while he studies, so don't feel too badly for him!


We hope that all is well in your corners of the world, and lets meet up soon!

Sera, Adam, and the bump

Tempura baby

Adam, baby, and I spent an hour last night with an OB/GYN in the plush suburb of Be'er Sheba called Omer. Its where most of the professors and doctors live and it feels a bit like southern California with big stucco houses, green lawns, and big cars. All the same, we went there to visit Dr. Maymon, one of Adam's professors in the reproductive unit in school for a private ultra-sound. Let me explain a bit....

Israel does more genetic testing than any other country. Reason: lots of inter-marriage in the Bedouin community, and closely related gene pools in the Ashkenazi Jewish populations. Both communities are strongly urged to do genetic counseling and testing BEFORE marriage. Either way, all OB/GYNS require this special, 3D, ultrasound at 20 weeks of gestation. These factors make Israel, especially the southern part where we live, a fascinating place to study genetics. Or so I am told by all our geeky medical student friends.

We were not so hip to do this since we are minimalists when it comes to intervening in this pregnancy, but its the only ultra-sound our midwife, Mindy, requires. Additionally, this test isn't covered by insurance. Ironically, most of our prenatal, delivery, and postnatal care within the mainstream system (blood tests, ultrasounds) isn't covered by insurance although we bought the special "pregnancy package". When we complain about this additional, significant cost we are often presented with the suggestion that we should just become citizens of Israel. Then all of our problems would be solved, right? Ha, not quite. Anyway, I am getting away from the story.

So, off we went to Omer last night.

We arrived at the residence of Dr. Maymon, with his office behind his home. It was certainly the most western office we've encountered here so far: bookshelves with lots of medical books, pictures on the wall of babies he delivered, and a coffee machine! In the back room, with nice soft lighting, was this amazing ultrasound machine complete with flat screen TV on the wall facing the table the patient lies on so she can watch the whole thing in full-on technicolor and 3D.

The test was about an hour long, and we did not find out the sex of the little one. Gentle reader, you will have to keep tuning in to find that out. But we found out just about everything else. If our baby were a trading card, here would be her/his stats:

97% for weight according to gestational age
It has lips, eye lenses, and a nose (that looks like Adam's)
It has two kidneys
It has all four limbs that are all well above 50% for length according to gestational age
The fetal position during the exam was vertex (its head was on my left side)
The spine was anterior (towards the top)
The umbilical cord is inserted in the middle of the placenta (where it should be)
There is the right amount of amniotic fluid
It has ten fingers and ten toes
It weighs a bit more than 1 pound

What we learned about our baby from watching it on the screen: it doesn't like to be seen, it kept hiding its face and turning away from the belly camera; it is SUPER long, could be an Olympic swimmer or NBA star; and it is super mobile. That explains my incredibly sore belly. We also saw it scratch its face; so cool.

So where this leaves us. Mindy is happy as it seems our little one is seemingly very healthy so we are free to move forward with planning for our water birth. We still have a very elusive due date. According to some measurements from this test, the baby is at 20 weeks and 5 days of development. Then according to others, like the length of its leg bones, its at 22 weeks and 5 days. We are confident it will arrive just when it means to, and not a moment before. But we are sorry for those of you who are trying to plan travel to be here as it could be as early as September 22, or as late as October 5. All we know is, it will come to meet us when it chooses. And we will do our best to wait, patiently and gracefully.

Here are some pictures of our deep-fried baby (my sister says the pics look like the baby is being batter fried, I tend to agree). These are likely to be the last images we see of our little one before we meet her/him in the flesh. Enjoy!

Birth of two kinds

I feel as though I witnessed a birth last weekend. Not to the growing baby inside of me that stars in the last few lines and photos of this blog posting, but to a project we've been working on since 2004. COHI was finally able to host and sponsor the first meeting of Israeli and Palestinian midwives as part of our coexistence work in the mid-east last week. To say that I was humbled, moved, and inspired would not do the experience justice. I want to share some of the photos with you, there will be more published on the COHI site soon, but please take a few moments to bask in our success.

I served as the facilitator for the weekend's activities, and while this was a great honor, it was also a great challenge. We spoke together in English as this is our shared language. But many of the midwives from both groups don't speak English often and so there were some funny miscommunications. As the excitement mounted, women were speaking over one another and so we resorted to the old "talking stick" protocol. But as we were in a birth center, we used a fetascope as it was closer at hand.

Here is our token man, he is used to this role in these settings. He tends to disappear all day, running errands for us, and then shows up when chores need to be done. What a man, what a man. He can be seen here washing up the day's tea cups at the birth center after the first day's event.
Mindy, the Israeli coordinator for this project as well as our midwife and COHI Board member, can be seen here hugging two of the Palestinian participants. This is the sentiment that exuded from everyone present all weekend. It was heavenly, really.

The workshop over the course of the weekend paired up midwives from both groups to present on protocols regarding all aspects of labor and delivery in their countries. It was a great place to start the conversations between the women and to keep things focused on midwifery. Here are two midwives, one from each group, demonstrating some positioning options for delivery. Truly supporting one another!
Below you will see the entire group, minus one of the Israeli midwives who was called to a birth early in the am. I hope that the friendship, partnership, and goodwill established through our first few days together continues to grow, proving that peace is indeed possible in this part of the world, and women just may be the ones to make it so!

Adam and I stayed on for a day so we could do our scheduled pre-natal with Mindy. I thought you might enjoying seeing some of what our process involves, and the place where the baby will hopefully make its debut.

Here is our midwife, Mindy Levy, who is also a dear friend and COHI Board member, checking my blood pressure. It was just where it is supposed to be.

Adam working through the various positions that the baby takes as it moves through the birth canal. Lots of work for that little baby!

I have a a tipped uterus, meaning that my pregnancy is in the front of my body rather than in the middle. Mindy is modeling for us how my uterus is extending out over my pelvis right now, but as the pregnancy progresses it will straighten out. This is why I am showing so much, so early.
Adam checking my proteins, again, right where they should be. Reminds me of checking the chlorine levels at the pool all of those years. The scientist in him really enjoys this part of the appointments, I think.

This is the garden out back from the birth center, where should I feel up to walking during my labor I can wander around. Not a bad place to bring a new life into the world, eh?

This is the size of our baby as of now: 19 weeks, plus a few days. See the cell phone placed next to the picture so you can get the scale. No, the baby isn't making a call.

You can see here Mindy measuring what is called the fundal height. As it is, when I lie down the majority of the pregnancy disappears due to the tipping action of my uterus. We measured me both lying down and when I stand up. When I stand up, its significantly larger. All the same, I am where we should be with this, as well. Or I should say, the baby is where it should be!

So there you have it, an update on all of the excitement that we've joined in over the last week. I am set to fly away in less than a month to the US, and Adam will join me there in early June. We can't wait to see many of you quite soon, and we will post any news about things from our sandbox should we have the chance.

Love from us,

Adam, Sera, and the bump

Holiday meditations: aquariums and downward dog

Adam and I are still cleaning the sand of the Red Sea from our clothes and backpacks as we bask in the wonder of our most resent holiday. We returned late last night from a week in Dahab, Egypt, on the Red Sea. Our bodies, minds, and hearts are all the lighter as a result and we've found a new place to return to someday with our growing family for more of the same. All of this only five hours away from our humble routines here in Israel. We won't stay away long, that is for sure!

We left our home in Be'er Sheba and headed to the bus station here early last Friday AM. We both left with a great sense of purpose and pride as I had spent the previous day helping our neighbor though her first labor. She succeeded on all counts in the natural delivery of little Alice Nell. I was acutely aware during this labor of what is approaching on the horizon for me! Adam completed his Neuroanatomy exam last week, and is totally engrossed in his new system: the reproductive system. Appropriate, no? So, well aware of where we will find our selves in four+ months, we headed off on our last international holiday sans children.

This week is Passover, and there is always Shabbat to consider when planning for over-land border crossings (Shabbat is a weekly holiday here in Israel for the sabbath where most things including public transport and borders close from sundown Friday through sundown Saturday). So we have to be sure to reserve our tickets, arrive early, and be patient as the place will be packed. Riding buses in Israel is not for the faint of heart, or for those with a fear of pushing. I cease to be amazed with the hostile disregard for other's space, safety, and the polar opposite of this westerner's idea of order that individuals arm themselves with as we board buses here. Sadly, I shamefully admit to partaking in this madness, as well. It overcomes me as I get in line and wait for my seat: I put on my game scowl, sharpen my elbows, and prepare to take no prisoners.

That said, we made it on to the bus in plenty of time (we always do, in spite of the urgency with which people push and shove) and just to help you get a sense of what this experience does to me in spite of my deep breathing and well intended goal of not getting cranky, here is a photo adam took of me once we reached our seats. Looking tough, eh? Really, I was just cranky.



Dahab is only five hours from our doorstep in Be'er Sheba~amazing! The drive through the desert looks a lot like this the whole way: rock, sand, sandy rocky mountains. And then, all of a sudden, there is water!!!!


We arrived in mid-afternoon. I took my first of many naps, and Adam went to wander a bit to scout things out. This is a pic of Dahab from a hill just outside of town. A small-ish place teeming with ex-pats running hotels, dive companies, and the like. That part was unexpected. We stayed in the only Bedouin-owned hotel in town, it was amazing. Its called the Bedouin Moon Hotel, and we highly recommend it.


Here is the view from our hotel room. We would sit out on our patio in the evenings, watching the light slip away enjoying the cool evening air. Most evenings we walked about 30 minutes through town for dinner, after the last call to prayer broadcast on some serious sound systems by the local Mullah at the city's mosque.


The week passed in a deepening state of relaxation for us both. Adam spent his week underwater, reading his first non-medical books in over a year, and eating an impressive amount of chicken Kabob. He would try to describe to me his experiences during his underwater jaunts. He told me it feels like being on the inside of an aquarium; with full mobility. Being able to go up, down, sideways, front, backwards; a feeling of full physical expression.

Adam also joined me for a few yoga classes and he expressed a feeling of more mindfulness on his breath underwater thanks to the instruction in from the local Yogi. He looked like a different person as we were leaving: relaxed, renewed, and standing a bit straighter!

I spent my time in yoga for a few hours each day, reading wonderful books, and napping either by the pool or in our gorgeous hotel room with a view of the Red Sea. The yoga sessions were every morning and each afternoon for two hours. We did a great deal of breath work, mediation, and lots of good stretches and openers for hips and backs. There were only four of us, students, and so we received a great deal of personal attention

We enjoyed one another so much. The quality time we were able to share was just what we needed. Lots of laughing, talking, and also time to recharge on our own. Perfect.



So that brings you all up to speed on the adventures of Adam and Sera in Israel. Adam heads back to class and I head up north for meetings and lectures tomorrow. The next trip takes us across the pond to NY and Texas, touching down briefly in Vermont, Vegas, and Arkansas. Hope to catch some time with you all this summer while we are on that trip, but Adam will have his head to the grindstone with his first board exam at the end of July. We are expecting great things.

And for those of you who are interested, here is a pic of me and our bump~ beaming. We are 18 weeks along now, and feel great!

Lots of love from us,


What we were reading material

Sera: Best Buddhist Writing 2007 an anthology, Harry Potter and The Half-Blood Prince, and Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortensen

Adam: Gynecology and Obstertics text book, Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim by David Sedaris, and The Universe in a Single Atom by the Dalai Lama