Baby news

We had another appointment with my OB today and my weekly monitoring. Joey seems to be doing just fine and growing like a little weed. By ultrasound measurements today, they estimate that baby already weighs around 3 lbs. 12 oz. They did a very detailed ultrasound of baby's cardiovascular and GI systems to check again for a possible cause of the excess amniotic fluid, but everything seems to be very normal. The good news is that the amount of fluid was greatly reduced (though still high) on today's ultrasound.

Cute little piggies!

These were printed off and then scanned in, while the previous images were saved to a CD. That is why there is a difference in color. Here are some cute shots of baby's hand up in front of its face.

Little pouty lips!

We also saw for the second week in a row that little Joey seems to have a full head of hair!

Four On The Couch

Renee brought Carter and Camden over for a visit this evening while Jeff worked late. All the boys on the couch together.

Camden and Mikey share a little laugh.

Whale sighting!

After a closer look, I guess it's just me and my large tummy! 30 weeks+ and counting!

A determined boy!

Dane's newest favorite activity is riding his trike down the sidewalk on our block. He doesn't pedal it yet, but he can sure move it along quickly with his feet. He has discovered that there is a little boy who lives in the house at the end of the block, so he likes to ride down there to see if his friend happens to be outside. Tonight, as soon as Dane and Daddy got home, Dane talked Daddy into taking a quick ride down the block. When Dane discovered that his buddy wasn't around, he decided to keep on riding... to the park over a mile away (1.3 miles to be exact!). I was in the house and didn't think anything of the fact that Mike and Dane had been gone for quite a while since they often stop to chat with our neighbors, etc. Pretty soon I got a call from Mike to tell me that he and Dane were almost to the park! By the way, this includes about a 1/2 mile stretch of rocky, hilly desert road. But Dane wasn't about to give up! They finally made it to the park and played on the slides, baseball field, and basketball courts before I drove down to the park to rescue them! Crazy little determined boy!

A few weeks ago, Dane scored this bike from a giveaway through Mike's work. It's pretty awesome! We had it out in the garage, and Dane hadn't paid too much attention to it until this past weekend. On Sunday, he talked Daddy into getting it out for an inaugural run!

Just a shot of Dane taken one morning last week. Dane was enjoying the blueberry smoothie I made him and ended up looking a bit like Hitler (with morning hair)!

Dana Point, California

This weekend, Mike and I celebrated our 10th anniversary a bit early by taking a weekend getaway to the Pacific Coast. First of all, thanks to our wonderful friends, Jeff and Renee, and to Grampy and and Grammy for taking great care of Dane while we were gone. While we enjoyed our time away immensely, it was difficult to leave Dane behind for our first "couple's trip" since he was born. We really missed the little guy!

We stayed at a cozy little place called the Blue Lantern Inn in Dana Point, California. It came highly recommended by Jeff and Renee, and we were not disappointed!

Blue Lantern Inn from near the harbor.

Looking out the door of our room onto our little balcony and the beautiful view beyond. We enjoyed Saturday morning breakfast at this little table, although it was getting a bit warm already. The forecast had predicted highs around 77 degrees, but it reached almost 95 by the afternoon!

View from the balcony.

Roses from Mikey waiting for me in the room.

Very welcoming!

Saturday morning we walked around the harbor after breakfast.

Then we headed south down the Pacific Coast Highway and stopped at Capistrano Beach. Mike

braved the cold water all the way up to his knees! Capistrano Beach

After spending some time in the sun, we headed a little further south to San Clemente where we caught lunch. We then headed back to the inn for a wonderful afternoon nap, followed by afternoon tea and hors d' oeuvres. Then it was time to explore a little more of the beach of Dana Point. I can hardly wrap my arms around Mike these days, thanks to my expanding "swimming pool" (see next post).

The fading sunset above the Pacific Ocean.

And the real reason that we couldn't take Dane with... the roses and teddy bear had to have a seat on the way home!

I'm sure Grammy and Grampy will put some pictures up of their weekend with Dane soon. It sounds like they had a great time, and Dane hardly noticed we were gone! Thanks again to everyone who helped make this a great weekend for us!

Baby update

Pictures from Friday's check-up. Still looking lots like Daddy and Big Brother Dane!

The ultrasound showed that I have some excess amniotic fluid for an unknown reason. My OB ruled out most common causes for this condition immediately, so we are not too worried. However, this does mean that I have to go in for weekly fetal monitoring, probably for the rest of the pregnancy unless it resolves. Maybe this baby just needs a bigger "swimming pool" for all his/her extra activity!!

Fun with Daddy

Dane loves to play catch with Daddy. Dane won't wear his little glove, but he always insists that Daddy wear it instead! Daddy treated Dane to a little go-kart ride on Sunday afternoon. I don't know which of them had more fun!

New Friends

Our good friends Tyler and Kim from Idaho stopped at our place last weekend on their way through town. When we lived close to them and spent lots of time together, none of us had kiddos. Now we have Dane (and Joey), and they have sweet little Avery. It was so fun to catch up again and to watch the little ones become acquainted. Dane kept trying to smother Avery with kisses!

Dane and Avery.
Kim, Tyler, and Avery. (Sorry the exposure is so bad here, but the picture is still great!)

Happy Birthday, Mike!

Some pictures taken approximately 34 years ago!