All Reese wanted for Christmas was his first tooth?

Apparently, all Reese wanted for Christmas was his first tooth. He cut his first one today!
It's very hard to see, because it is only barely surfaced, but we can feel it.
He has also tried sweet potatoes, a sippy cup, and peas (in addition to the rice cereal he loves).
He hated the sweet potatoes the first two tries, but was ok with them the third time. He loved the sippy cup when we tried that last night, but ended up soaked.
He tried the peas tonight. He did ok, but then refused to open his mouth for any more after two or three bites.
I will be posting some Christmas photos and stuff shortly, right now Reese is not happy with sitting in front of the computer so I had better go. I think he needs his diaper changed anyway.
Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas!

Reese eats cereal!

I know it's been a long time since I posted last, and I do apologize. We have been keeping busy with the holidays, the children, and just life in general.
I post tonight with big news though. Reese had rice cereal tonight for the very first time!
And he seemed to just love it! He was quite a little pro, opening his mouth and leaning in for each bite. I am shocked at how little ended up on his bib and face area. I guess he was just ready.

About a month ago he went from sleeping six hour stretches to getting up every one to two hours to eat at night again. He tries to store up before bedtime by nursing almost constantly between six and eight every evening. It still doesn't really hold him for long, as he ends up sleeping three to four hours max at a time.

When we had his four month checkup last week the doctor said he can start baby foods anytime we want now. We talked it over and decided to give cereal a shot, in hopes he will stay full and sleep a little longer at night. Our pediatrician also said the cereal should help alleviate some of the spitting up - and that would be nice too.

He was actually four months old on December 4th, but his checkup and immunizations were only last week. He weighed in at 19 lbs, 2 oz (97th percentile) and is 25 3/4" long (80th percentile). So he's a pretty big boy all the way around. Because I nurse him though, the doctor said his weight is just fine and to keep letting him nurse whenever he wants. He told me there is absolutely no concern about his weight because it is normal for breastfed babies to start out heavier. Personally, I think he's just perfect anyway - but I am aware that I'm biased.

Dog the Bounty Hunter is on, so I am going to wrap this up. Just wanted to share my excitement about Reese's instant ability to eat like a pro. I admit I am sad too though. It's really tough to see him growing up so fast.

Happy Holidays!

Love,
Janae (and Ben, Maddie, & Reese)

We are still afloat

Hi everyone. Sorry I haven't posted in so long. We have all been keeping pretty busy lately. Maddie is working hard to keep her grades up, and playing with a neighborhood friend. Ben is still plugging away at work and is anxiously awaiting his new laptop. I have been staying pretty busy with Reese, Christmas shopping, present wrapping, along with the usual laundry and housework.

We had Lutafisk and did most of our Christmas shopping this past Saturday, so the Christmas season is in full swing now for us.

Our little guy is growing so fast! He will be four months old on December 3rd, and already wearing clothes in size 6-9 months! Lately, I have been buying the 9 month size since the 6 month is already "snug" on him - yes, he is a healthy boy. It makes me almost sick how little he gets to wear each size. Typically, infants level off a little on the weight gain after four months - I can hardly wait! Seems like he is always outgrowing something right now.
To add insult to injury, he is going through another growth spurt. He woke every two hours last night to eat, and seems to sleep most of the time he isn't eating. He hasn't eaten this often for quite some time and typically sleeps for six hour stretches at night. I still managed to get up at 7:00 am, but it will probably catch up with me this afternoon.

Reese and I have been visiting with my friend Sherri, and her 6 1/2 month old (Tayla). They all of a sudden discovered each other Monday! It was the cutest scene, with Tayla reaching her slobbery little hands out to touch Reese's face and the big smiles from both of them. They seem quite taken with each other and love to just look at each other. Sherri and I promised ourselves we would get photos the next time the kids are together, so I will make sure to post at least one.

Reese is letting me know that he is done playing, so I better go give him his bath now. I just wanted to say hi to everyone - I hope you are all having a wonderful holiday season!

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

Have lots to do since I am cooking for the big day tomorrow, but just wanted to pop on and wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving.
Eat as much as humanly possible and enjoy your afternoon nap. Have fun!
Love,
The March Family

New Photos of Reese March

March and Crawford Kids

Here are some photos of Reese, Avery, Madaline, and Ian.

Welcome to the world Avery James Crawford!

Ben's sister had her baby Tuesday night! Avery James Crawford came into the world at 6:45pm weighing 9 pounds, 1 ounce. I believe he is 22 inches long. He is perfect and healthy, and very adorable.
I have included a photo from our visit with him on 11/4/06 and here is the link to the ISJ website: http://www.growingfamily.com/webnursery/babypage_view.asp?URLID=4Y3T3J8P3Y

No school and other things I know about...

Good morning everyone!
Sorry I haven't updated in so long, it's crazy how the days can get away from a person so quickly.
Due to conferences, Maddie has no school both yesterday and today. So she is home with Reese and I, and seems to be enjoying it.
Oh, and in reference to my last post; I did a scan and we don't have a virus on our computer - great news! What a relief!

Not a whole lot is going on around here right now. My dad's birthday was Monday, we still need to get together so that we can give him his present. Ben had a dentist appointment this past week, I had coffee with my friend Sherri on Wednesday, and am planning on heading into Mankato again today.
Sounds like we will be hauling Kelly & Mick's tractor to our place to take care of it for the winter. I believe we are doing that this weekend, and Ben already has a trailer rented.
Other than that we are just planning on going over our health insurance options (it's open enrollment time at Taylor) and I am planning on getting my hair cut off next weekend. Pretty exciting stuff, I know.
Ben's sister has a lot of excitement in her life right now. Sounds like her little boy will be born either Tuesday or Wednesday! He was due to be born this past Monday, but apparently he's comfy and cozy and doesn't see any reason to leave. His lease is up next week though, and we are all looking forward to meeting him.

Well, I better get moving if I am going to get into Mankato yet today.
I have included a few snapshots for your viewing pleasure. I have here a photo of my brother, John, who returned to his Navy ship in Japan last week. I also included an action shot of Maddie at a Volleyball game, Ben with his faithful dog, and my son in his adorable little sweater vest outfit.

Take care everyone!

Sick computer

Norton keeps catching virus emails on our computer, and a few have slipped through to my Inbox. I'm guessing that a virus has infected our computer even though I delete those emails immediately.
So, I will be wiping everything off our computer and re-installing windows over the next day or two (nothing is quickly done with an infant in the house).

Other than our poor computer possibly being ill, we are keeping pretty busy these days. Maddie is still going full force with volleyball, Ben is still doing well at work, and Reese keeps me pretty busy.

My brother finally got leave from his station in Japan! He got into town early last week, and will be here until the 10th or so. We are all very happy to see him again. He left for Japan two years ago this past July, so it's been a very long time.

We are all anxiously awaiting the arrival of the newest family member. Ben's sister, Jennifer, is 38 weeks along with her second boy. We can't wait to meet him!

I better finish my orange juice and toast quickly, I hear Reese stirring from his morning nap.

Take care everyone!

Endless days and nights

I'm in a rut deep enough to hang up posters.

Reese is getting fussier every day. This means my days and nights are too long. How can both the days AND the nights be too long you ask? I think anyone who has ever had a fussy baby can tell you it's possible. You have to experience it first hand to relate.


I have spent my morning trying to soothe a baby that shouldn't even be awake yet. He is over tired and pretty angry about it. Unfortunately, he refuses to go back to sleep. So here I sit, posting on our blog while he screams it out for a few minutes in his swing. Hopefully a few minutes of crying will tire him out enough so that when I pick him up again he'll finally go back to sleep.

I better go, he's really lost it now.


Enjoy your day!

Volleyball 9/23/06

Maddie had her second volleyball game this past Saturday, the 23rd. These games were held in St. Clair, which was nice and convenient for us.

Her first set of games was played against Janesville, two 25 point games. Maddie's team lost both of those games. Her second set of games was played against Lake Crystal, two 25 point games and one 15 point game. Her team won the second 25 point game.
So it wasn't a total victory weekend, but the games were a lot of fun for everyone. She only has a few games left, as they are going to be completely done with volleyball in about a month.
So far, volleyball has been really good for her so I would really like to get her involved with another activity once this is done. Her grades seem to be pretty good so far this year, which is partly due to volleyball (we made it clear she can only stay in volleyball as long as she gets good grades).

Other than volleyball, we didn't really get out of the house much this weekend. We all spent time doing things around the house, and got caught up on some laundry. I canned some pasta sauce and organized Reese's bedroom. It's nice to have a weekend to work on little projects sometimes, and not have anywhere to go.
I am actually hoping to get our office re-organized some time this week. We are still "settling in" from the move. Our office and family room were just kind of thrown together when we moved in, and are in need of some adjustments.

I'm not getting anything done sitting in front of the computer, and I have some clean laundry calling me to come fold it. I will check back shortly.

Take care everyone, and enjoy the fall weather!

The going's on around here

I thought I better pop in and post to let everyone know we are still here. I am including two photos that I took of Reese this morning. I was making myself breakfast and when I turned around he was grinning at his toys. Of course, by the time I got the camera out I pretty much missed the moment, but he's still pretty happy in these shots.

Maddie is still enjoying school, as well as volleyball. Her next game will be in St. Clair at 1:00 pm this Saturday.
I really enjoyed the last game we went to, so I'm looking forward to this one as well.

Reese is growing at an alarming rate, outgrowing his size 0-3 month clothes already. He is 7 weeks old today, which means he's a big boy. At his last doctor appointment (one week ago) he weighed 11 pounds, 12 ounces already! This means we have to go buy clothes again.
He is now smiling and "talking" on a regular basis. We get lots of coos and gurgles, and it's very cute! He is a high maintenance baby, but very lovable.
He is still spitting up, but I am trying the "Total Elimination Diet" for two weeks to see if we can put an end to that. If so, I can start re-introducing foods one at a time to find out what is triggering all the vomiting. If I can get the spitting up to stop though, this will all be worth it.

Ben is taking one class this semester, but has to go three days a week. This means he has to go into work an hour earlier those three days in order to take time out during his day to attend class. He is really looking forward to finishing, and who can blame him?

Well, I will try for the fourth time to put Reese down so that I can get something done around here, we'll see if it takes this time.
Take care everyone!

Volleyball results and more

Maddie played two rounds of games on Saturday, each contained three games (two 25 point games and one 15 point game). Her team won both 25 point games but lost the 15 point game in the first round. In the second round the won only one of the 25 point games.
Overall, her team did really well, and we had a lot of fun watching them.

Reese is still growing very fast, but spitting up quite a bit too. Today I am starting a special diet, in hopes of lessening the occurrences. This means I can eat only brown rice, potatoes, yellow/green squash, and free range turkey or lamb. I am also allowed to have olive oil, salt, pepper, and pure cane sugar. I have to follow this diet for two weeks to see if his spitting up stops. If it does, then he has a food allergy/sensitivity. Once the spitting up stops on this diet, I have to start re-introducing foods to my diet to try to figure out what is bothering him. I have a chart so I know what foods to introduce first (which foods are least likely to cause a food allergy). We will see how this goes. If it works, it will be worth all the sacrifices I have had to make (and have yet to make).

My little spitter is fast asleep again, I am going to try once more to put him down so I can get something done around here. So far, he hasn't been tolerant today and we have had a pretty fussy day. Wish me luck.

Maddie's Volleyball Schedule

Please give me a call if you have any questions.

Staying afloat

Well, Reese's one month birthday came and went and we are all still intact.
He isn't really sleeping any better or any worse than before, though there are definitely good nights and bad nights.
I took him to the Pediatrician last week because the constant spitting up was wearing me down to a frazzled, weepy woman. Turns out he has acid reflux, which is really common in newborns. So I have cut dairy completely out of my diet and take a probiotic twice a day.
This has helped quite a bit, I would say about 50% less spitting up - but again, we have good days/nights and bad days/nights. Sometimes he doesn't spit up for hours, other times we go on a binge & purge spree that results in every burp cloth and outfit being soiled within hours (and in me having to feed him every 30 to 60 minutes).
I am going to give it another week, if the spitting up hasn't subsided further I am going to head back to the Pediatrician's office again. Our next step is Zantac for Reese, which is apparently safe and should stop the spitting up. In the mean time, we let him sleep in his carseat (which is sitting safely within the confines of his cradle) last night and it helped minimize the grunting he does all night in his sleep. I think maybe the acid reflux is uncomfortable when he lays flat, which is why he grunts so much. Either way, he was a lot quieter last night - yay!

I actually got his birth announcements assembled today! It's embarrassing how long it has taken me to get them out, but when you have a high maintenance baby things don't always go as planned. I can't blame it all on Reese, finding someone who would print 3.5 x 5 photos for the announcements was no small feat. I didn't realize that size print was now a dinosaur. Live and learn I guess.

Maddie's first day of 6th grade was today. She loves it so far. Volleyball practice starts tonight too, so things are really taking off for her now. Even though she loved school she was happy to get home. She told Reese that she missed him so much. I'm fortunate that my children are this far apart and there is no rivalry.

I got the baby sling I ordered, which means I can "wear" Reese around the house to get things done. I have used it some today, which is how I got the announcements done, and I really like it so far. Because it's new to both of us though, we need to take a break every few hours.

Well, Reese just had a fit because his hair was being pulled (by him of course), so I have my hands full once more. I had better cut this short so I can make dinner too, since we need to head to volleyball practice by 6:00.

Sending everyone our best wishes!
Love,
Janae, Ben, Maddie, & Reese

Life under my rock

Hi everyone, I am coming out from under the rock we are residing under lately to give everyone an update.
First of all, I don't think I ever gave anyone the ISJ Hospital Nursery website address. Reese's picture is here, as we had it taken the day we left the hospital. That would make him nearly two days old in this photo: http://www.growingfamily.com/webnursery/babypage_view.asp?URLID=4E0N7C0B2D

Reese is...well as I began this sentence he woke up, and now my sentence must change. As I hold him here, I was playing with his little cheeks and he smiled at me!! As I continued to act like a fool and poke his mouth playfully with his pacifier he smiled a few more times!
Ok, back to my updating now...

Both our children are growing like weeds lately. Maddie is excited for school to start, and volleyball starts in September too. Her first game is the 9th, but we haven't heard about practices yet. I am looking forward to her being in volleyball, I think it's going to be a wonderful experience for her to be in a sport.

Reese is growing too, and getting better looking every day. His first big milestone - losing the belly button - occurred a week ago (Sunday, the 20th). Nights were getting worse instead of better for the past week, but Saturday night he was only up every two and a half to three and a half hours (and he went to bed at 10:30). Last night was pretty much the same thing, which means we are getting a LOT more sleep now. I cannot express to you how happy this makes me.
We had the baby shower at Taylor on Friday. It went very well and both children were very well behaved. We have also been spending quite a bit of time with my friend Sherri, and her little girl Tayla. Reese and Tayla are about 2 1/2 months apart in age. Sherri and I (along with our children) have been frequenting Caribiou Coffee quite often these days. It's nice that there is somewhere we can go with the babies that has comfy couches, where we can sit and just be out of the house. Saturday we also strolled around the mall for a short while too. This put both babies right to sleep, as you can see in the photo I included here.

Well, I would update more, but one handed typing is a real drag. Thank you for all the birthday wishes last week! Enjoy the last of the summer.

Love,
Janae

More pictures of the baby

Photos of our Reese

Here are a few photos of us with our new family member.

We are settling in nicely, and we are all thrilled with him. He is wonderful - we can't seem to get enough of him!

Once things calm down and we have a routine we will have people over for visits. Thanks for everything. We really appreciate all the support and generosity you have shown us.
Reese is a lucky little guy, having people like you in his life to show him such kindness.

I will post more photos when I get the chance.

Take care everyone!

IT'S A BOY!!!

Our son has arrived!

Reese Mason March
Born: August 3rd, 1:09 pm
Weight: 7 lbs, 8 oz
Length: 22 inches

I only have a quick moment, baby needs to be fed. Photos will be posted shortly.

Update

Still pregnant.

Ben decided quite some time ago that this baby was going to be born August 3rd.
I'm having a lot of false labor right now, but not going to get my hopes up.

Baby countdown...

Yes, I am still pregnant.
I still have contractions about 1/2 of every day. They are gradually getting more painful, but no big news yet.

Quick Update

Hi everyone! I had another OB appointment today. I am 2 cm dilated and 50% effaced.
I didn't sleep much last night due to all the pressure from the baby being so low. When I got up this morning to let the dog out I thought the baby was going to fall out he felt so low!
I told the doctor this and he said he could understand why I felt that way, because the baby's head is extremely low now.
He told me to make sure my hospital bag is packed and that we have things in order, because even though no one can predict when it will happen, he said it probably won't be much longer.
I have been having lots of contractions the past two days, so my body is gearing up just as it should be. I am very happy that everything is going well and baby is still doing fine.
Hopefully it won't be long before I am posting his first photo on here.

It's very hot out and I am pooped from running errands. I am going to go sit in front of the fan and fold laundry now. Hope everyone is keeping cool.
Have a great weekend!

Baby Shower

Hello everyone, and Happy Monday!
The baby shower this last Saturday was really nice. I want to thank everyone again for spending the afternoon with me. It was so nice to see each of you.
And the gifts were all very nice, thank you for your kindness!
Sherri did a wonderful job at putting the shower on for me. The food was so good! I loved the cake so much, I told Ben we are going to have to start coming up with excuses to buy those.

Ben, Maddie, and I are very anxious to meet our new family member. Hopefully the big day isn't too far off - though I do have plans for every day this week, so if he could just hold off until next week, that would be great. :)

He will make his debut when he's good and ready, I suppose. Until then, I will try my best to keep busy and not think about it. I'm taking these last few weeks to get some cross-stitch projects done, and to finish the baby's blanket I am crocheting.
Speaking of which, I think I will go work on some of that now.

Have a good week everyone!

Things are moving right along

Ben has been working in the "back bedroom", trying to get it ready for us to move into (so that the baby can have the room that we are currently in). He has the drywall/taping/topping done and is working on getting the paint primer on.

The baby's room has been painted a beautiful shade of "cornflower blue" for about two weeks now. We love the color, it really turned out nice.

Maddie starts summer school on Monday (and no, she is not at all happy about it). She only has to attend 8:30 to 11:30 am, Monday through Thursday - so it's really not that bad. But try to tell an 11 year old they have to go to summer school and convince them it's not so bad. Her main complaint about attending is that it covers the window of time when the baby will arrive. She is extremely worried she is going to "miss the baby". I have assured her that we won't let that happen, but I'm not sure she's convinced.

Maddie has also decided to play volleyball this fall. According to the information we have received to date, her games will be on Saturdays and practice will be on Sundays. This program will run from the middle of September, through the middle of October. I'm really glad she is getting involved in an activity this year. She will have that many more opportunities to make friends at her new school. I find myself very excited for her, starting a new school (that we have heard nothing but good about) and getting involved in a sport. She has a lot going for her, the possibilities are limitless!

I had an OB appointment yesterday and everything is still fine. I have to start going weekly from here on out, so my next appointment is next Friday already. I guess the end is in sight now, since I only have about four or five appointments left.

I have a big day of laundry and running errands. Ben, Maddie, and I send all our love to everyone!

Happy Birthday to Ben!

Ben celebrated his birthday on Saturday, and again on Monday. He was pretty pleased about getting two cakes.
We gathered at Ben's parent's house on Saturday, along with Jennifer, Dan, and Ian. We had Ben's favorite meal (sloppy joes) and some very yummy angel food cake.
Grandma and Grandpa Rekstein came over to join us for dinner and cake Monday night. We had homemade "sub sandwiches" and German Chocolate cake. I'm going to go ahead and confess now, that I am losing my "attention to detail". I managed to purchase those "magic relighting candles". I didn't intend to purchase candles with any special powers, and I will be much more careful in the future. Those 27 candles threw sparks and ash in a way that seemed extremely unsafe. Of course, the whole house filled with smoke as we tried to blow them out long enough to pluck them off the cake and drown them too.
Once the evil little sticks were extinquished, the fine layer of ash cleaned off the waiting cake plates, and the windows opened to allow for some fresh air, the cake and ice cream eating commenced (and all was right with the world again).
Ben said he had a really good birthday! Thank you to everyone for the phone calls and the visits - family is what makes a "very special day" so special.

The 5th of July is here...

Good morning everyone, and Happy July 5th!
Ben had lots of fun setting off fireworks last night, and we had lots of fun watching.
Saturday we visited Kelly, Mick, Jeanne, and Jim at Kelly's lake place. Afterwards, we stopped in Lake Crystal to visit my mom. Sunday we just stuck around the house and worked on a few projects. As we do a few times a week, we played an intense game of Monopoly in the evening.

The back bedroom is coming along pretty nicely. Ben has been doing a great job at fixing the walls and ceiling in there. We picked up a couple paint swatches a few days ago too.

The birds found our feeders. There have been times we have counted a dozen or more around the feeders at one time. The Grackles are pretty greedy, they manage to empty the one feeder on a daily basis. Ben now rations out the food - they get a cupful a day. The Mourning Doves are my favorite. They aren't such piggies, so their food lasts quite awhile.
My mom bought me a Stargazer Lily (same kind of flower I had for my wedding) after we moved in. We planted it out front last weekend, and already I have a bloom! I just love Lilies, they are my favorite flower. The bloom I found when watering this morning is so perfect I just had to take a picture.

I got an email from Maddie's principal that she has been accepted into summer school. Her first day will be on Monday, the 24th. I don't think she's all that thrilled with the idea of summer school, but I really feel it will help her ease into her studies this fall.

I am happy to announce that the baby "dropped" last week. I can now breathe a LOT better! For a while there I wasn't sure I was going to make it until August, gasping for air constantly.
I have an appointment at the hospital today to pre-register and talk with the Birthing Center nurse in regards to my preferences. I'm not sure what this process entails, but it will be nice to have it done and out of the way. My next OB appointment is tomorrow, but I expect it to be pretty uneventful.
I removed all the tags from all the baby clothes we have purchased so far, so that they can be washed in Dreft. I sure hope the ultrasound wasn't wrong, because now I can't take any of these little boy's clothes back! My hospital bag is almost packed, and our cradle should arrive anytime between today and Friday.

Maddie and I visited my friend Sherri, and her little Tayla, last Friday as well. We wanted to squeeze in one more visit before they went to Canada for a week.
Wow! That little baby is changing and growing by the day! She is just getting cuter and cuter! I think it's the baby fat she is putting on, it's just the icing on the cake for babies. She is also doing a lot more smiling, so that's a lot of fun as well.

I want to get dinner thrown in the crockpot before I leave for my appointment today, so I better not play on the computer any longer.

I hope everyone had a wonderful 4th of July! Take care, stay cool, and don't let the bugs eat you up.

The parade fell short...

St. Clair days came and went without much excitement. Ben's parents, his sister (Jennifer), and nephew (Ian) all came over to join us in watching the parade on Sunday afternoon. The kids got lots of candy - and we had a hot dog lunch afterwards.
Saturday afternoon my parents stopped by and Rex cooked us some of his notorious ribs on the grill. Ben and Rex spent some time talking "guy stuff" around the grill, while my mom and I clucked around the house (which is still coming together, bit by bit). Before our ribs were even done a nasty storm hit. The weather went from calm and quiet to extremely strong wind, in just a matter of seconds. The wind got so strong and violent, in fact, that we considered all going down to the basement. Luckily, it only lasted a few minutes and the dinner plans continued.
The presentation Ben gave at the Tech Conference for Taylor went really well. He's glad it's all over with nonetheless. It's nice to have our evenings and weekends to ourselves again.
We have decided to take the back bedroom, and give the baby the bedroom in the front of the house. Because there was paneling on two of the walls in the back bedroom we tore it down and put up sheet rock instead. The sheet rock/taping job in there isn't very quality either, so the rest of the walls and ceiling will be getting some touch ups as well.
Once we have that done, we will move into that bedroom and begin painting the baby's room.
There are a lot of other little things we would like to do (such as paint the living and dining rooms, etc.), but we are trying to pace ourselves.
In the mean time, we are preparing for our new family member's arrival. The carseat/stroller were purchased and the cradle was ordered last week. I even purchased some Dreft already, so that I can get everything washed before the big day. We have talked about packing the hospital bag, but haven't really gotten around to that yet.
Just think, the year is half over already. Wow, time does go by so fast. It's going to be Christmas again before we know it!
If I don't post again before then, have a fun 4th of July holiday!

And a funny link from Kelly

This is a pretty funny video of a guy doing the "evolution of dance". It's six minutes long, but wasn't a problem for us, and we are using DSL speed.
This is a pretty good laugh - thanks Kelly!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dMH0bHeiRNg

Things are still going well here. Ben gave his presentation at the Taylor Tech Conference today and it went really well. Not that I expected anything less, of course. My husband is a very smart, capable man. Maddie is enjoying her summer so far. She and Ben just left to go to the park and play basketball. I had another checkup and the baby is head down and "in the right position" according to my doctor. Now it's just a matter of time. :)

It's St. Clair days this week/weekend. I think a couple of you will be joining us to watch the parade, or to check out the city wide garage sales this weekend. I am looking forward to the Belgian waffle breakfast on Sunday morning too. Give us a call if you would like to join us for any of the festivities!

I hope everyone is happy and doing well!

We're still here

Well, we have lived in our new house for over half a month. We still like it so far.
Now that we are done with the move, and done with vacation, things are calming down a little bit.
The unpacking is coming along pretty well. It hasn't been a frantic pace, yet we are getting there pretty quickly. Our house looks a lot less like a storage shed and is becoming much more comfortable.
Colt has adjusted quite well to the change in scenery. He seems to like having more room to run around the house. Sometimes, I can hear him making his rounds in the middle of the night. When we went on vacation he got to stay at my mom's and play with her dog, Daisy Doodles. They are the best of friends, and they have always played so well together. I think it was a nice treat for him after the stress of the move, to be able to play with Daisy for a few days.
Maddie has been pretty busy arranging and decorating her bedroom - over and over again. I think she is really enjoying the extra space she has gained. She has picked up a few things to customize her room (such as wall decals, a canopy for her bed, etc.), and plans to paint the room pink and lavender. Now that things are settling down it won't be long before the painting gets done.
We need to paint the baby's room and purchase a cradle and carseat in the next few weeks. I think we are going to go shopping for the carseat/stroller combo tonight, actually. That will be exciting, since we haven't really bought anything for the baby yet.

Baby is still doing very well. It feels like he is really growing right now, as my belly is getting bigger by the minute. He enjoys playing footsie with my ribs/lungs and he's stretching a lot. I am at the point now, where I have to see my OB every two weeks. This seems to make the weeks go by even faster. Which is good, because we are all looking forward to the big day.

Maddie and I have gotten the chance to see my friend Sherri, and her little Tayla the last couple days. Coincidentally, we were both having work done on our vehicles Wednesday and Thursday - so we had coffee both days. Maddie is smitten with Tayla, and understandably so. She is such a sweet little angel! Of course, this has made Maddie all the more anxious for her little brother to arrive. :)
She is hovering over my belly pretty tightly these days. She doesn't want to miss a kick or a hiccup lately.

Maddie also got a tour of her new school this past Tuesday. It's such a nice school, and luckily, her new teacher was around. She's pretty scared about being the new kid, but I think she's equally excited. I am really excited for her! There are so many opportunities at this school that she wasn't offered in Mankato. She can be in any sport she wishes, they don't do "try outs" so it's simply up to her. She can choose an instrument if she wants to be in band this year, and in the fall they have what they call "Cheerleading Camp". When that was mentioned I saw her eyes light up. Apparently, it's the high school cheerleaders teaching the girls her age some of the school cheers. I think Maddie just likes the opportunity to jump around and yell in a coordinated outfit - but don't we all? :-P

St. Clair days start on the 19th of June. We got a flyer and it looks like there will be some fun activities during that week. Maybe Maddie will meet some friends to play with this summer.

I hope everyone is enjoying their spring/summer. I'm sure we will see a lot of you very soon.
Take care, be safe, and have fun!

The March Family Move

We are officially moved!
We packed everything up from the house on Broad Street on Tuesday, the 30th. We stayed in Mapleton Tuesday night, then Wednesday morning we stopped by the Broad Street house one last time (so I could give the kitchen and bathroom the last once over with some cleanser). I wanted it to sparkle and smell clean for the buyer's walk through at 8:15. Our walk through was at 8:30 in St. Clair, and afterwards we headed over to the closing on the sale of our home on Broad Street. The closing was at 9:00, but we didn't get in to sign our share of the paperwork until 9:50. This was cutting it pretty close for us, since we had to close on the house in St. Clair at 10:00 the same morning. Fortunately for us (unfortunately for the seller), there were some slight complications on his end. This delayed things by about 20 minutes, so we weren't late after all. Luckily, everything went really well for both our closings, and we were able to get everyone rounded up right away after the last closing so we could start the move-in process.
We are very fortunate to have a lot of family to have helped us. Thank you again for all your help!!

Colt was pretty nervous and wound up most of the month of May, with all the packing. It (of course) only got worse when we loaded the truck on Tuesday. But once we were in the new house he started to settle in pretty quickly. Within a day or two he seemed to be pretty well adjusted already - with the exception of some lingering separation anxiety. He has had a pretty hard time being away from us (as in, more than a foot or two away). The first few days he would whine and bark if we even got out of his reach while we has tied up. Even in the house, he started to bark at us for attention, from time to time. It hasn't been even a week yet, but he's already getting better about that. I think he's a pretty resilient dog.
He is still extremely clingy with me though. He has been pretty protective and watchful over me while Ben and Maddie were gone during the weekdays. I'm so glad we got such a sweet dog. I know he can been a buffoon sometimes when company comes, but really is one of the most loving dogs I know.

I have already started considerations for the paint color in the baby's room, and I think Maddie has decided on just the right colors for her room as well. Our living room and dining room are currently a...green color. Not sure how to describe it, I guess we have a shade of "evergreen" and a lighter shade that is something of a lime/olive/evergreen as well. Really looked fine with the previous owner's setup, but it clashes with our furniture and the beautiful Jack Vettriano print Ben gave me for Christmas. So I think it is going to have to go. I don't think we will have time to paint over those greens any time soon though. The kids' rooms are going to be taken care of first.
My mom bought me an orange lily when I moved into my house on Broad Street, and it has grown to be such a big, healthy plant - and I LOVE lilies. I brought it with to our new home and so far it's doing quite well. Looks like we will have our first blooms within a week! My mom also brought us some tomato and pepper plants today, so we have a little garden started now too. We LOVE our new back yard! We have already spent a decent amount of time on our deck with various family members who have visited. We have already grilled twice as well. The central air is nice too.

I guess this only applies to anyone local, but I wanted to mention that should anyone around here need a realtor we highly recommend Angie Jenkins at Homestead Realty in Mapleton. She was wonderful to work with and ran her behind off for us! We really wish we would have sold our house through her as well - she would have deserved that commission.

Maddie's last day of school was this past Friday, so she will be here to keep me company for the next few months. Ben will be doing a presentation at this year's Tech Conference for Taylor Corporation, which is held during the month of June. We will also be heading to Lake Koronis this Friday for the March family vacation. Maddie still hasn't gotten to see my friend's new little girl, so we are planning on getting together with her yet this week. We also have to get Maddie a tour of the school here in St. Clair, and I have dentist and OB appointments. Throw the vacation packing and shopping into the mix and we have a pretty crazy schedule for the immediate future!

This entry is a long one, but there has been so much going on in our lives! We hope everyone is having a wonderful summer, and we send you all our love. I will try to get a family photo in front of the new house or something - we'll see. :)

Last post (for at least a week anyway)

Hi everyone! Hope you are all enjoying this awesome weather we are having. I just love summer!
Well, this is going to be our last post for just a little while. Once I am finished with my lunch here, I am heading to the phone company to turn in our DSL box. So no more internet :(
I'm having withdrawals already! We should have our DSL active in St. Clair by the first of June, but I'm guessing we will be doing a lot of unpacking for the first week or two.

I have lived in my little two bedroom home for nearly four years (just a month shy of four years). This is the longest I have lived in one place since we moved from California in 1990! I guess I have gotten pretty settled in, because I find myself having a hard time trying to picture us not living here. I think it will be a little bittersweet walking out the door for the last time. So much has happened in my life since I bought this house - I found an amazing man to share my life with, Maddie has gone from just a little kid to a pre-teen, and now we are planning the arrival of our newest family member. Ben, Maddie and I have had so many laughs and spent so many quiet family nights here. We have a lot of great memories in these rooms. Just last night we lounged on the deck (in the wonderful, warm weather) while we grilled our dinner.
What will make it easier to leave here, is the excitement we have about our new home. We are all really looking forward to settling into the new house. Maddie has already decided she wants her room painted pink, I'm pretty sure Ben is mentally outfitting his shop with tools, and I have already started to mentally organize the kitchen.
Of course, this also means we can finally buy a crib, cradle, and carseat for the baby!
I think the reality of the baby's arrival is going to dawn on us once we have a place we can actually "settle in". We have felt unsettled for a long time, knowing this is not going to be our permanent home. We are all going to be able to let that weight fall off our shoulders now, and really relax and enjoy our home.

The closing on the house we are selling is at 9:00am on the 31st of May, and our closing on the house we are buying is at 10:00am on the 31st of May. Once we are done with those we can officially start moving in.

We still haven't gotten our stolen money back, but hope to have in back yet this week. Right now, our biggest inconvenience is that we don't have check blanks (well, not preprinted with our names, etc.) yet. I am expecting those to arrive any day now though.
So things are pulling together!

My lunch is done with, so I better go take care of my errands. So long everyone, hope to blog again soon!

Love,
Janae, Ben, Maddie, Colt, and baby

The big little news...

Well, my first bit of news is big, but about someone small. My friend Sherri had her baby girl on Monday morning! She came into the world just after 8:00 am this past Monday, at 6 pounds, 6 ounces (I believe she was 20 3/4 inches long).
She is just the most adorable, petite little girl! I knew Sherri would be an excellent mother, and so far she has proven me right. Both Sherri and her husband, Dave, are completely in love with their little Tayla Marie. I was fortunate enough to get an hour or so to visit with the new family on Tuesday (after my own OB appointment). Wow, holding a new baby has to be 10 times more addicting than any substance known to man! Colt was pretty intrigued with the new smell when I got home from the visit too.

Things are still on track for the closings of both houses, so that's good news. We don't have an actual time set for the closing on our new house, but we know it will be on the 31st (same day as the closing on the house we have sold).

We have another prepared childbirth class Monday night, then skip next week (since that will be Memorial Day). Our last class will be on June 5th, so we are almost done! This coming Monday it is our group's turn to tour the birthing center (the maternity ward, basically). I look forward to seeing all the brand new, little people in the nursery. I think that will be the highlight of the tour for me. It's not obvious that I'm a baby junky or anything is it?

On a more somber note, we had someone get a hold of my debit/check card number and run up $600 in postage stamps at the US Postal store online. Luckily, I check our online banking every other day (at the very least). We caught it right away, and the people at our bank have been extremely helpful. Unfortunately, we won't be getting that money back for at least a week. This makes paying our bills and covering moving expenses trickier, so I am getting pretty creative with our finances right now.
I'm pretty certain I don't have any telepathic powers, but just in case I do, I am sending deeply disapproving messages to the thief who stole from us. You never know, and it makes me feel better to direct my frustration somewhere.

I had an OB appointment this past Tuesday. It was a fun one, thanks to the gestational diabetes test (sarcasm is really wasted in writing, isn't it?). I gained a frightening amount of weight, but the doctor was pleased with the progress anyway. He said the baby is "measuring big", which is something we have heard quite a few times this past few months.
I think we are clear of the whole placenta previa upset now, so I don't think we will have anymore ultrasounds. While I'm relieved things are going better for baby and myself, I did enjoy seeing the baby during the ultrasounds we had. But we have just about 10-12 weeks left until we will get to see the real deal! We are going to have to do some serious shopping once we move, because we have nothing ready for the baby yet!

I better go start dinner pretty soon - it's spaghetti night!

Take care everyone!

We have a home!!!

We got the word yesterday that we have a home! We found out just before 5:00 pm last night that the seller on the house in St. Clair accepted our bid.
I'm sure you can all imagine just how excited we are. It's a great house for us, and we are really looking forward to moving in.
The best news is that the seller is going to try to be out May 31st so we can close on this house the same day we close on my house!
I have included one photo of the exterior for now. But you will get to see the inside soon enough once we are moved in.
We are going to have quite a bit more room now. There is an extra room so we will actually have an "office" to put the computer in! And there will be room for my piano (that has been sitting at my mom's house since we moved from California) and my antique hutch. The two and a half car garage is pretty spacious, so Ben is already mentally moving in all his tools - I envision this just like the "visions of sugar plums" dancing in the children's dreams in "T'was the Night Before Christmas". I haven't checked, but I'm pretty sure he's smiling in his sleep, dreaming of the shop, and the tools, and all the fun he's going to have. :-P
The yard is pretty good sized, as well as landscaped. The deck is bigger than ours (of course), and will have two bathrooms now! Maddie is also pretty excited, even though she was at school when we saw the inside of the house. I think she is going to be very happy with the change. She will be only a matter of blocks from school, so she'll get to ride her new bike there.
We feel very fortunate that things have fallen into place for us like they have. Once we are moved in to this new house, we are almost ready for baby! We only have fourteen weeks (or less) left until the official due date. I am hoping to have us unpacked and settled before the baby arrives, but we all know that unpacking can take years sometimes. :-P
A quick side note: my friend (Sherri) is due Memorial day, but it sounds like things are moving along for her already. So her little girl might make her grand entrance sooner than expected. I can't wait to meet her, and I am so happy for Sherri and her husband Dave. I wish all three of them the very best!
I hope everything is going well for each of you as well. Summer is almost here, it's almost vacation time!

Maddie's new bike, and more

Well, Maddie got her new bike last night. Looks to us like she really likes it too. We didn't find anything we wanted at Shopko or Target, so we ended up at Scheel's. As long as we were there we walked around a little to see everything. It's a pretty cool store, but I think Cabella's has a lot more to look at.
The realtor called me this morning and told me the closing on our house will be the 26th of May. Unfortunately, I was extremely displeased with him. It was agreed upon that we would close the 31st of May, and we need that extra week to get moved (to where, I don't know yet). So I did some checking and found out that if the buyer can only push the closing up if the seller agrees. Last I heard from our realtor they are changing it to the 31st.
I guess it's safe to say that the selling of our house has not been anywhere near a positive experience for us so far. Yesterday it made me think of the movie "Series of Unfortunate Events". Remember the aunt who had a phobia of realtors? I can commiserate with her now.

Other than the real estate drama, our lives have been pretty awesome. Maddie is continuing to improve in school, Ben is done with that "project" that occupied his evenings and weekends, and the baby is growing by the hour, it seems. Sometimes it's hard to believe we have three months left. It doesn't seem like there is that much more room to grow some days. Other days I actually forget I'm pregnant, because I feel so good.
I paged through the baby name book once more this morning. We are really having a tough time agreeing on a name. At this point, we pretty much have nothing. Good thing we still have three months!
Looks like this post is long enough, I'm done. I hope you all have a wonderful, sunny day!

Sold!

I just got the call that our house is sold. The guy that put in an offer on Friday came to look at it again today. He has agreed to our counter offer.
This is exciting, though we will be homeless until we find a house that is right for us. We have to be out by May 31st.
One of Ben's coworkers is moving to the cities, so his 2 bedroom apartment up by MSU will be empty. He has offered that to us, so worse comes to worse we can live up there.
Well, Maddie is dying to pack something so I better let her. By the end of the month I'm sure packing won't be "fun" anymore, so I'm going to take her up on it now.
Take care everyone!

One week in

Well, we have had the house on the market for one week now. So far we had someone look at it on Sunday (they liked it best out of the five they have seen), three showings last night, and now three showings this afternoon (so far).
I'm pretty excited, because one of the showings for this afternoon is a second showing from someone who looked at it last night.
Yesterday was the day that realtors can visit (anytime between 9am and 1pm), we had six of them come through.
It is a little bit of a pain to have to be homeless for a couple hours each evening, but hopefully it will sell quick with this much exposure. It could be worse, I could have to pack up and be homeless with a newborn (ugh) - at least it's just Maddie, Colt, and I right now.

On the flip side, we are going to go look at a house in Mapleton on Saturday afternoon. It's older than my house, but has been completely reworked. So far, we have only seen internet photos, but the kitchen looks new and it's really nice looking. It has four bedrooms, central air (a luxury we are currently without), a 2 car garage, a large lot, AND laundry on the main floor. It's not huge, but we aren't looking to spend every possible penny on our house payment. Besides, it will seem huge to us, after being cooped up in a two bedroom home.

I only have a little over an hour before I have to evacuate for the afternoon, so I better check the house over for any last minute cleanups. Hope you are all enjoying our wonderful spring weather. Have a great weekend!

It's official!

Our house is officially on the market. The MLS# is 106645. I am going to have to call our realtor, because I notice he didn't put any interior photos or information on the site. I really think people like to see a lot of photos, and get the information about the basement, etc.

On a brighter note, when I spoke with him this morning he said that the couple that looked at the house yesterday have looked at 5 houses. Apparently, they like ours the best so far!
I know it's not an offer or anything, but it's the next best thing!
Keep your fingers crossed for us :)

I better get back to my cookie baking, I just wanted to share the good news with everyone.

Hope you are all doing well, take care and enjoy your week.

Easter Weekend 2006

Here are a few photos from Easter Weekend at Kelly's this year. Hope everyone had a great holiday weekend!

Great Job Maddie!

I just returned from Maddie's spring parent-teacher conference. She is doing really well!

Just a year ago (or even this past fall), she wasn't even close to keeping up with the other children in class. Right now, she is keeping right up with the other students in class AND her teacher said she is "a model student".

She used to struggle with paying attention in class, and being interested in the assignments, but now they said her determination, pride, and attentiveness is outstanding! We are very proud that she has made such great strides in this school year, but Maddie's pride in herself is even more rewarding.

Ben was unable to attend the conference this time, because he had to work. But I have told him about the reports from the teachers. He is extremely proud of Maddie, and she will be getting a new bike this weekend. She has worked really hard to make a complete change in her habits this past few months, she deserves it. I have to say, I know grown ups that can't make behavioral changes that drastic in such a short amount of time.

I just wanted to pop on and post our pride for Maddie. She deserves the publicity!

I LOVE WARM WEATHER!

Every spring I am reminded just how much I love warm weather. Last night we were able to sleep with the window open all the way, it was wonderful! According to my thermometer here, it was around 80 yesterday afternoon. It was nice to get all the windows open and get some fresh, spring air into the house.
The grass is getting greener by the hour, and the trees in the neighborhood all have buds. Summer in Minnesota is so green and beautiful, I look forward to it every year.

Maddie is just itching to wear her summer clothes already. We have to stop her every morning, and make her go change her clothes. She is ready for shorts and tank tops, even though it isn't summer yet. She really wants to purchase a new bike as well. She has been saving up her money so we have agreed to half the cost with her.
We have been working hard around the house lately. We are getting very close to being ready to list our house. It's an exciting prospect, I only hope it sells before the baby is born. I'm fairly confident it will, since I am not going to list it at a very high price. My main concern is to move on, not to make a huge profit at this point. I'm not overly concerned with finding another house, since there are just tons on the market. I think buying a house is a little easier than selling right now. Other than spring cleaning, a little painting, and some little home improvements, there isn't a whole lot going on here. The baby is obviously growing, as I am getting poked with elbows and knees these days. Though it can be uncomfortable at times, it's reassuring to know that things are going well. I have a big day of sorting through a closet planned, so now that I am done with my breakfast I am going to jump in and get started. I hope everyone is having a wonderful spring so far, and have a great Easter weekend!

Baby pictures are finally in!

Here are a couple of our ultrasound photos from the last two ultrasounds we have had. I know these are hard to read sometimes, so I will do my best to walk you through it.

First of all, the darker photos (with a black background, rather than dark brown) are from March 4th (16 weeks along). The lighter photos, with more of a brownish color to them are from this past Monday, April 3rd (21 weeks).

Looking at the March photos (darker ones), we have a picture of the baby's face. It's not at all a flattering picture of the baby, and I'm pretty sure the finished product will be loads cuter! On the up side, you can see the brain segments- and breathtaking bone structure! ;-P Ha ha.
The other shot in March is also a little scary looking. This is kind of a profile view of most the body, showing the baby's spine.

The pictures we got this past Monday weren't as good. Most of them just look like blobs and you can't tell what the heck they are, so I just put the two clearest pictures up here. The baby was already too big to fit on one screen too, so that might have attributed to the low quality photos.
One shot is of the baby's hand up by the head, which is probably pretty obvious.
The other shot is the bottom's of the baby's feet. The baby was lounging with legs crossed at the ankles when this one was taken.

It's been really hard for me to type this up and not let the gender slip, but I think I made it through!
We are getting more excited by the day and can't wait to meet our baby!

An update on my friend Sherri: She didn't have the baby yesterday (whew!). The doctors have said the baby is healthy and doesn't need to be delivered yet. She will be having a lot more ultrasounds in the remaining weeks, but that's a small price to pay to avoid a premie. Even though we are anxious to meet her, we are all very relieved that this little girl is getting more time to grow before meeting the world. Thank you, everyone, for your thoughts and prayers!

Have a great weekend!

It's a...

BABY! :-P
We had our ultrasound appointment yesterday morning and were fortunate enough to find out the gender of our child. I am not posting the results on this blog because some of our family and friends rather not know until the baby is born. If you are interested in finding out let one of us know.
The lady who performed our ultrasound said we aren't in for any surprises when we see my doctor next (April 18th), because everything looks good. She also said that she didn't think the baby was big, it is actually perfectly sized according to how far along I am. Every other person who has seen me and/or done and ultrasound has said the baby is big, she said it's not at all larger than average - so who knows. As long as the baby is healthy we are happy.
When we first started the ultrasound the baby had the hiccups - how cute! We got a strip of pictures, though none of them are fabulous. We haven't had the best luck with ultrasound photos. I think the best photo we got this time was a shot of the baby's nostrils, so that says something.
I plan on scanning the photos from our last two ultrasounds on Thursday afternoon, when I visit my parents. So I hope to have some new photos on this blog by the weekend. There are two photos that reveal the gender, so I will be leaving those out.

Our day was pretty exciting, not only did we get to see our baby again (and find out the gender), but we got a new vehicle too. We found a Chevy Blazer here in Mankato that has been extremely well taken care of. It's a 1997 and the lady who owned it before not only kept every receipt but was also the type to ok any suggestion any mechanic ever had. The transmission is new, still has a year left on the warranty, the tires are brand new (we are still wearing off the nubs), the interior is immaculate, and some other stuff is new that I don't understand.
So far, we are pretty happy with it. It will be so nice to have more room - the Topaz and Firebird are just not roomy cars. Ben joked that we should be able to make it to each family's for Christmas with only one vehicle this year (we usually have to take both to fit all the presents, etc.). It is also WAY easier for me to get in and out of right now.

I'm sure you all are very aware that I have been obsessed with winter getting gone - and it finally has! I am SO happy! Yesterday was such a nice day for us to have off and do our running around. The wind was a little cold, but the sunshine was heavenly.

On a more serious note, my best friend (who is also pregnant) may have to deliver her baby early (she is 31 weeks along). I feel especially optimistic because she is having a girl, and girls do so much better as premies. But it's heartwrenching and scary nonetheless. I just wish there was something I could do to ease her pain and worry. If you pray, I would really appreciate it if you would say a prayer for Sherri and her little girl.

Thank you for checking in, and I hope all of you are doing well. Enjoy spring and be happy. :)

Spring is here?

I am pretty excited about the weather today, looks like spring might finally be here! It was so nice to open the windows and get some fresh air in the house.
We don't have a lot of news right now, but that's ok - lack of drama is fine with me. Ben is almost done with this extra project, we can see the light at the end of the tunnel now! I have been getting up and about a little more, and so far everything has been fine as long as I don't push it.
We are all getting pretty excited about our next ultrasound, which is on Monday (the 3rd). Even if the baby doesn't cooperate and we cannot find out if we are having a boy or girl, it is always exciting to get to see the baby. I can't wait to find out how big it is now.
Ben is pretty happy that his class was canceled for the third time this semester. Although, knowing that before he went all the way to school (walked from the free lot) and got logged into the internet, would have been a little easier.
It's getting to be dinner time, so I will talk to all of you later. Take care everyone!

Hello Monday!

Good afternoon everyone! Welcome to Monday!
I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend. Maddie had a great time on Saturday, she really enjoyed her birthday weekend. She just loves her presents too.
For those of you who don't know, we took Maddie and her best friend to the Mall of America Saturday, where they met up with Reilly. They all got made up at Libby Lu before we had lunch with Kelly, Mick, Jennifer, Jody, and her friend. The girls were so excited on the drive up there that they were already in need of a nap by lunch time. It was cute though, and all three girls were very well behaved. Of course, we forgot our camera. But Kelly picked up a disposable one at the Rainforest Cafe, so we did get some pictures. I am going to try to use up the last handful of photos so that I can get the film developed soon, and get a photo or two on here. Ben bought fun stuff for that evening too, but I think the 3 cans of silly string were the biggest hit. We got some pictures of them being nailed by us, and I'm sure those will be priceless.

We had another appointment with my OB today. Things are looking good, we are doing everything right, he says. He had to chase the baby around a little to hear the heartbeat today, it was a squirmer. He said it sounds more like a girl at this point (a little over a month ago the heart rate was lower, so he was leaning towards boy). We have another ultrasound scheduled for April 6th. I am really hoping the baby will cooperate so we can find out then. My doctor also mentioned today that he thinks this baby is big, which isn't a surprise to us.

Hopefully, Ben will be done with this "extra project" at work pretty soon. We are looking forward to work calming down a little so that we can spend more time together as a family.
And, everyone knows how much I am looking forward to spring. It's grey and dreary again today - and cold. Technically, it's above freezing so some of the snow is melting, but it's so overcast that it just doesn't feel like any progress is being made.
Not much else is happening right now, just taking it day by day, waiting for some warmer weather to get here. I hold out hope each day, since it's almost April already.
I hope everyone has a great week. Take care everyone, and we hope to see all of you soon!

One week down...

Well, I have survived my first week on bedrest. It was bearable because of our very helpful friends and family. All of you have kept me sane, thank you!
Things are going well, as far as I can tell. I don't see the doctor again until the 20th, so hopefully we will get some good news then.

We have looked at a some names, but haven't decided on anything yet. We have had a really tough time with boy's names, we just don't find much that we agree on. Ben said he would like to wait and find out what we are having before we go through anymore names. I agree with him on that, why give ourselves the headache of choosing a boy's name if we are having a girl? So we set our name books aside for now.
The baby is moving quite a bit at times, and getting stronger by the day. This really eases my mind, and makes the hours and days of boredom worth it.

Thank you again, everyone! We all appreciate everything you have done, from the phone calls, to the visits, bringing movies and magazines, and food. I know I've said it before, but we are so lucky to have such wonderful people in our lives!

Looks like our spring weather was short-lived. Looks like a rain and snow mix is supposed to hit us today. I sure hope weather.com is wrong on that. I was really hoping winter was done. I want to fill the bird feeders in the back yard and start seeing some life out there again.
Keep warm, and be careful if it gets slippery out there.
Take care everyone, we love you all!

News from the couch

Hello everyone, hope you are all doing well. As some of you may have heard, the doctor has ordered me to stay off my feet, in hopes of avoiding early labor.
I don't know how long I will be on bedrest at this point. The doctor said he doesn't know why these things are happening and that no one really knows why early labor starts for some women. He said our best chance at saving the baby is for me to just stay off my feet.

On a bright note, we got to see a lot of our baby during the long (long) ultrasound we had Saturday night. We saw the baby's kidneys, stomach, legs, arms/hands/fingers, legs/feet/toes, face, heart (all 4 chambers are there), etc. The thickness of the skull was measured, and the spine was checked (for any birth defects) - they said the baby looks good! We saw pretty much every part the baby had, with ONE exception...

The way the baby was crouched, the area between the belly button and hips was in shadow the whole time (what are the odds of that?). So we still don't know whether it's a boy or a girl at this point. The baby was measured and measured (the skull, the femur, the spine, etc.), and before we left we were told it weighs about 6 ounces!

We got a few more ultrasound photos. I will try to get them scanned somewhere so that I can post on here sometime. My favorite photo is of the baby's little foot, you can see the little toes and everything! I can hardly wait to kiss the little baby toes, it will be very exciting to meet the baby. I hope the weeks go by fast.

In the mean time, Ben and Maddie have been taking good care of everything. And everyone has been so helpful already. I appreciate everything. I feel so lucky to have good family. I really think family support makes a big difference in how things like this go. This baby doesn't know how lucky it is (yet), being born into a world where so many loving people are going to be part of its life.

Feel free to email me, if you get bored (jjanae@hickorytech.net). I also keep my cell phone nearby (507.340.6775). My Yahoo instant messenger name is "jennifer_janae", if any of you happen to use that. I am working on crocheting a blanket for the baby, I cross stitch, and have books to read. We also subscribe to Netflix and Jennifer is borrowing me some magazines and movies. Not to mention all the hours a person can waste on the internet! So I think I will keep myself pretty entertained for a little while. I think I should also take this opportunity to work on compiling all my recipes, I started that project over a year ago, but never sit down long enough to really work on it. So maybe I can get that website done too.

Jennifer called earlier today, she is stopping by with some anti-boredom material for me and bringing dinner - that will be fun! My next doctor appointment is in two weeks, so I'll get a chance to get out of the house for a little bit then.

This just might be my longest blog yet. Well, I'm wrapping up. You can wake up now, and go about your lives. :-P

Take care everyone, and thank you VERY much for all your support and caring!!

Today is March 1st

Still not a whole lot going on with us right now. Today it was about 50 degrees, so that makes me pretty happy.

Work is busy for Ben right now, and a bit slow for me. Farm tax returns were due by today, so we were pretty busy up through last Saturday. But now the next big deadline is business returns (due the 15th, I believe). Because I don't work on business returns it's going to be pretty quiet for me until then. Once that deadline has passed we are on to personal returns (due April 17th), which means I will be super busy. I would much rather be busy than not. It's so boring when we are low on work, I end up having to do filing (ugh).

Ben is still working on that "extra project' for work, so he is spending a lot of his evening and weekend hours slaving away at his laptop (as he is this very minute).

We subscribed to Netflix. We are enjoying it so far. It's especially nice for Ben to have a fun movie to watch before he goes to bed, after working for so many hours. We have already decided we are glad we started renting through them.
To give you an idea of how dull our lives are right now I will admit to you that we get excited when we get a new Netflix movie in the mail. Yes, it is a bit sad. But things are better dull than tragic. We are fortunate to have our health, our home, our jobs, our loved ones, and each other.

One of the first DVDs we got was "The Office". It's a British comedy about a bunch of people who...yeah...work in an office. It's actually funnier than it sounds.

I would like to wish my little brother, John, a happy birthday! He will be, I believe, 28 years old tomorrow.

That's pretty much all I have to say at this time. I had better get ready to go, it's yoga night.

Take care everyone! Wish real hard for spring to hurry up and get here!

How could I forget tihs news?!?

My little brother (John) left Japan today for the United States! I'm very excited for him, though I most likely will not get to see him.

He will be in Virginia until the 4th of April for some schooling. But he has some more schooling in Japan right afterwards, so he won't get to take leave after and come up to Minnesota. My mom is most likely going to get to Virginia to see him, but our little family is all tied up with school and jobs. It's sad that we won't get to see him, but I think being in the states for a few weeks will be good for him. He has been in Japan for nearly two years, so he feels like he has lost touch with American culture. I can believe that. I hope that this visit to America, though short, will help him overcome that feeling.

He has said that he hopes to get leave the end of August, which would be just in time for him to see his new niece or nephew. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that we see him then.