One more picture by the pond. She's a little blurry (thanks to low light and my attempt to capture the evening without a flash) but it is still a cute picture! 

Sarah and Will "looking for snakes and alligators," as they explained it, in the small pond behind our house. Don't worry -- they didn't find any ;-) 

This is just a good picture of Will -- Dad insisted on the haircut for the heat of the Louisiana summer. I loathed to cut his hair so short, but my consolation is that by August, hopefully it will be grown out again for all those pictures with his new little sister! 

Sarah and Will playing on some of the equipment at the park. Will's helping Sarah make it over one of the obstacles -- he's a perfect gentleman, huh? 

This is Will and his "best friend" from preschool, Sarah. They're sitting at a picnic table at the park behind our house. 

Baby Sister

I just realized I hadn't posted an update about the new baby in months. At our 20 week ultrasound, we did find out that we are having a girl! Will is super excited about
"little sister" and has been telling everyone. She is quite a kicker, though -- I've been feeling her pretty much every day since about 17 weeks. She was a challenge for the ultrasound tech because everytime she would move the scanner along my belly, the baby would kick it. It took forever to get some measurements because she wouldn't stay still! And while she did let us know that she is a girl, she was shy about letting us see her face -- she kept her hands curled up in front of her nose and mouth, and she would wave her fingers around. It was really wonderful to get to see.

We love the view! Our porch and the gorgeous surroundings. 

Once again, previous owner's stuff. But this is our kitchen eating area (we're using the formal dining as an office) with the windown and skylights. 

Front room. This is the previous ownder's stuff. In the background you can see Will -- that will be the baby's room. His is right next to it, and they have a large bathroom across the hall. 

This was the biggest tub we saw while house hunting -- it is quite large and also a jacuzzi tub...so I am happy. Ben looks happy just THINKING about the relaxing possiblities, huh? 

Will and Ben behind our house. This isn't our "backyard," but it is directly behind our house...so we kind of use it as such. It is owned by the homeowner's association and maintained for the neighborhood with dues...we love the view and the accesibility. 

Front Entrance...we're planning on painting that green a different color and also probably painting the white stucco a more taupe-y color. I also think the lamp is a bit small for proportions, but it's not a high priority.... 

A better "photo"...but we'll be seeing this peanut again in about two and a half months, when we will hopefully find that this child is, like Will, not shy about disclosing its gender! We're not really into the whole "wait and see" thing -- we really want to know as soon as we can! For us, we'd rather have the "surprise" about halfway through because there are enough other things to handle when the baby arrives. But that's just us. :-) 

Okay, no scanner because our apartment is about the size of a large closet and we didn't have room, so I'm doing it the low-tech (sort of) way -- I just took a digital pic. So...this is peanut, part deux, first photo! 

Ooops, can't forget to show off the Millenium Falcon (and the messy popsicle face)! 

Well, Ben and I had enough snow to last us a LIFETIME in Wisconsin, but Will was more than happy to bundle up and get out in the white stuff when the huge winter storm attacked Kentucky. 

Will admires his new Star Wars toys -- it was just what he asked for! 

Life as we didn't expect it

Well, I write this at the end of what has been a strange and somewhat stressful month. The plant where Ben works has just undergone a "turnaround" for the last few weeks where they shut down most production so they can do yearly maintenance. Because they work 24-hours a day so they are shut down for a shorter period of time, this leaves the safety people working 12-hour shifts...and Ben's was 5 p.m. to 5 a.m. Compounding this, I have been feeling cruddy in a 1st trimester sort of way. Will, however, is a fantastically accomodating child, and he has been really great. I just have to brag on how well he has handled all this and how his behavior has just gotten more and more mature these weeks.

I had my first doctors appointment on Monday, and, because we figured I was about 11 weeks, my dr decided to get out the doppler and listen for a heartbeat. When she didn't hear one, she told me that it's her policy that once she decides to listen, if she doesn't hear it, she takes an ultrasound just for the mom's peace of mind. I said that was a good policy. So I discovered in ultrasound that everything was just fine...except that I was only 9 weeks along, not 11. I guess this helps explain how I got preganant -- my body tricked me into thinking I wasn't able to concieve at a time of the month when, well, I was. So I saw the peanut. This baby was not nearly as wild in the womb as Will was when I first saw him at around 10 weeks. (Maybe that's a good sign????) Will was bouncing all over the place like a pinball in his first ultrasound, a personality trait that endures to this day! So maybe this will be a calm baby...well, I can hope. :-)

Anyway, I felt like I should update this since I have been delinquent lately. I'll try and be better since I should have something to write about every four weeks or so when I see the doctor, I guess. ;-) Right now, I'm just going to work on valuing my sleep time since I know how short I will be on that very very soon.

A three-foot tall Wookiee in Louisiana. We're going to, of course, supplement with face paint and maybe Han and Leia...get it? 

This is Ben in his office at Marathon-Ashland. He's wearing his standard "nomex" -- it's fire-resistive clothing, which is advantageous in an oil refinery. He's really happy about his job and his workspace -- the window is great for him.