Varna Star is born

Our first child, a girl, named Varna Ariel Star was born Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2006, at 7:30 pm.

The Baby Blog

We are pregnant with our first child. We expect the baby to be born in mid-January. The first ultrasound picture was taken today. The baby insisted on facing down, and so we weren't able to see the face or detect a gender.

We have the name picked out if the baby is a girl, but a boy's name is more complicated. It has to satisfy three requirements. (1) It must be unique (like Kremena or Marriah) so that the name confers an identity. (2) The name cannot be ridiculous or difficult to pronounce so that other kids ridicule it. (3) The name should mean something. These three requirements are difficult to achieve simultaneously. Once we know the gender (possibly today, but most likely next month) we will reveal the names we have chosen. Until then, the names are a secret in order to save us the necessity of changing a name.

Kremena's physical health fluctuates. Her parents are going through the visa application process, and they will hopefully be here by Christmas. When her parents move here, we will move to a 2-bedroom apartment. We are currently in a 1-bedroom apartment that we moved to in January.
We have chosen an Italian OBGYN who has a lot of experience. Kremena was referred to the doctor by another female Bulgarian medical student. She has medical insurance through Albert Einstein College of Medicine, and the baby will be delivered at Weiler Hospital, which is next door. As of next week, the first trimester will end because we believe the baby was conceived in Quebec City, Canada, April 24-28.

We already have some baby clothes and toys. There is a playground on the housing complex, and many kids to play with, so the baby will be born into a ready-made community. We will be setting up a college fund for the baby, to which friends and family can contribute through Paypal (marriahstar@yahoo.com).