Name: Triana Ramirez-Rocha
Age: 24
Occupation: Student
Neighborhood: Prospect Lefferts Gardens
Relationship status: Married
I struck up a conversation with Triana Ramirez-Rocha riding the Q train on my way to a baby shower, which was a fitting topic of discussion, as she herself is pregnant with her first child. She says right now she feels “like the world’s most pregnant housewife,” but that’s all about to change. Triana’s having her labor induced tomorrow, and she and her husband–they recently celebrated their sixth wedding anniversary–are going to be first-time parents. One the eve of her delivery, she shared with me how she spent her last weekend before becoming a mom.
FRIDAY: I left the house bright and early and walked to catch the B12 bus at Parkside towards Kings County Hospital. I have become a huge fan of buses recently, mostly because over the last few months it has become a lot harder for me to manage the ups and downs and stairs of the subway stations. Kings County Hospital Center has been a blessing for me. Although, no matter how early my appointments are set, I never seem to get out of there before lunch time. I have just come to expect that if I have to be there on any specific day, I don’t make any other plans. We got some exciting news today, as it turns out, I am a week ahead of where we thought I was all along, and I was told I will be induced on Tuesday morning to have our baby. The rest of the day seems like a blur after such exciting news. My husband and I did managed to fit in an outing to Mike and Tony’s, our favorite pizza spot in the neighborhood. We shared a fettuccine alfredo and a freshly made cheese calzone, which my husband decided would taste great with some Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ sauce poured all over it.
SATURDAY: By 8:30am we were rushing out of the house and headed for breakfast at Fish & Sip in Park Slope. This place is just one stop on the B or Q, or a 5-minute bus ride up Flatbush from our home. My husband recently decided to become a vegetarian, and as of a few weeks ago, he adjusted his diet to a pescetarian one. We found this place when craving a nice salmon and were blown away. The food is fresh and tasty and cheap. I had my first cup of coffee in nine months and it was nothing short of amazing.
Our day was spent at home with the intentions of cleaning house and preparing for the arrival of our little one. I think we did more napping and surfing the Internet than anything else. After finally getting all the baby things in order we headed back out to Park Slope for some Thai food. While walking down 5th Avenue looking for our Thai, my husband spotted a stunning plate of seafood paella on someone’s table. We ended up stopping and found ourselves at El Pollito Mexicano, a place we’ve been to before that has delicious Elote. It was here at this restaurant that we came to the realization that we have turned into parents and not just any, but a reflection of our own–my husband and I are both from Colombian backgrounds, and I think it lets us appreciate the look and feel to our neighborhood. Lots of Hispanics and Caribbeans, and we love it. We took advantage of the outdoor seating and finished our meal as we danced in our seats to Latin music that jogged out episodic memories. Every song was “such a good song,” and we quickly ordered two cups of coffee and sipped it slow so we could stay as long as we could.
SUNDAY: THE BIG CLEAN. That’s how we spent our day. Everything from the couches to the drawers in the kitchen were wiped down and cleaned. I made an appointment for our Pug, whose name is Lola, but we fondly call her Puggins, to get groomed the next day. She sheds hair like a beast, and it’s probably the only thing I dislike about her. I made some split pea soup at home and plans for my big Monday night meal–since I will be checking into the hospital too early for breakfast and can’t eat until this child is out of my body. I fantasized about Burrito Bar for the rest of the night and can’t wait to stuff myself.
RATING: 3. Like I said, this weekend seemed very uneventful for us. We like to walk about a lot more, maybe enjoy some Prospect Park time since it’s around the corner from us. But we did accomplish some major cleaning and organizing and enjoyed some quality time together considering our lives will change forever this week.
