It's been awhile...

Our new addition is doing well. Tim and I are adjusting to the day-to-day tasks of raising our daughter, but all the while, savoring as many of these precious moments as we can. Our evenings have consisted of lounging in bed with Kairis, watching the Olympics, Tim attempting to stay focused on writing an 8 page paper on Media and the effects on Preschoolers, and getting much needed sleep. Kairis has gained back her birth weight, plus an additional ounce already. We're so thankful she's healthy and doing well. She's even giving me a four-five hour stretch of sleep at night; since the beginning. I have nothing to complain about! Here are some pictures to enjoy. We have had many firsts; first bath, first trip to church, first photo shoot (2x!) first trip to the mountain I forgot to mention--Tim and I tried to escape the heat on Saturday afternoon, so we took a drive up to Mt. Hood. We had a nice afternoon, but unfortunately, the heat followed us up to the top of the mt. We still had a great time!

Home

I love spending time with my girls! Today was another trip to the hospital to speak with a Lactation nurse. Sure less sleep is hard with a new family, but the challenges of feeding have been our current battle. Things were going great, but it's hard to get a baby fed when she wants what mama don't have yet.

We love her tons and are enjoying a great day with her.

Kairis Elysa Thomas

Sorry I couldn't share any earlier. We forgot to bring our camera cord to the hospital with us. We did bring the camcorder cord so you saw video first. Now thanks to Joel & Lani, we have a cord to download photos, and better yet, Lani has taken some really good ones I am also posting.

So, Kairis comes from the greek word "Charis" meaning "grace" and "Karis" meaning "love" in Welsh. Since I have family history from Wales, I kinda liked the name, and grace and love are great reminders of what God has done in our lives. To carry on in his faithfulness, we also included "iris" at the end of her name referencing how I knew Heidi was "the one"

In 2001 when I left Kansas to go to Bible school in Colorado, I wrote in my journal that I would focus my attention on my Lord rather than girls and He would let me know that "she" was the one by having her give me my favorite flower of a purple iris on my birthday without ant prior knowledge of the journal writing. Well, after a year at CBC, Heidi left me 3 purple irises on my pillow for graduation. 8 days later on my birthday, I open a box from her with a note saying, "I thought it might be fun to get you flowers for your birthday, but since you are traveling with the worship band and I didn't know where you would be, I gave them to you early for graduation." Nobody can make up a story like that, and we wanted to make it a part of our family heritage, so we included "iris" in her name.

Elysa is just a pretty name we both liked, coming from "Elisa" which is Spanish for "Dedicated to God" and "Alyssa" meaning "noble". And untill Kairis gets married, she's stuck with Thomas at the end. ;)

well, enjoy these photos, I'll slip more in tomorrow.




minutes after birth.



1 hour old.



Saturday afternoon, and more to come! Isn't she beautiful?

-T

Introducing...

This video is a little choppy, but here is the newest addition to the Thomas family! Mom is doing well, we are al tired and will be heading home probably tomorrow.

Here we go!

If you can see the time in which I am posting, you can see that no one in their right mind would be up at this hour just to type out a blog... unless he happens to be out away from home. If you haven't guessed by now, Heidi and I are at the hospital, checked in and going through the laboring process. We will keep you up to date as things progress or at least photos and a name when she comes! Keep watching!...

-T

Today's the Day! (and we're still waiting...)

As most all of you know, Heidi and I are expecting our little girl any day now. In fact, today was the due date set by Dr Mitchell and while Heidi and I are as ready as we can be, we are still waiting. Oh we've had our little clues and reminders that she is coming soon, but still we sit with our crib empty. Hopefully we shall see her by the end of the week. If she doesn't come naturally by the end of the week we have a scheduled induction for Sunday morning.
Thank you all for your prayers for us and our little girl. Please continue to pray. We'll keep you as up to date as we can and you can guarantee that in a matter of days, everyone will see pictures and we'll reveal her name! Untill then... patience.

Laughter...

Ok, so it's Oregon and it's summer. You are going to see cyclists everywhere. Today however was an unusual sighting. Now, I've seen old guys on bicycles before, in fact it's pretty common in the "Green" state of Oregon. Old guys like to be in shape. I've also seen guys in suits on bicycles before. We've probably all seen a few Mormon "missionaries" on their bikes every now and then. Todays sighting however, took that combination and mixed it all up with a safety lesson we all should avoid.

Helmets. Now If you don't have a bicycle helmet, most just chose to do without. Some even go a little wacky and pick up a motorcycle helmet, or a skateboard helmet, but this approximately 60 year-old guy decided that he wasn't only going to wear his out-of-style 80's tweed suit with his 10-speed, but none other than a navy blue baseball batter's helmet (with a large red "B" on the side).

I drive a lot in my job taking supplies and what not to the carpet installers, but today had to be the best memory. I couldn't stop laughing at this image, and of all days, I wish I had a camera!

Nothing says it better than the bumper sticker that reads "Keep Portland Weird."



Can you imagine this helmet on your grandpa? Dad? Husband? It's OK to laugh out loud.


-T

Of All The Weeks...

I'd like to think of myself as an asset to not only the preschooler's this week, but also to the very patient teacher, Amie who was suckered into being lead teacher for Vacation Bible School at Grace this summer. I guess God had different plans.

Humility has taken it's toll on me as I lay here in bed, with no contractions at the moment, and not even a cute baby to justify my lackluster, and often mistaken look of laziness on this fine summer day. Okay, so no one has actually SEEN me today, but I'm sure if they did, they're first assumption would be that of laziness.

I had the opportunity (and was actually really looking forward to this!) to help in the preschool room during VBS this week, with none other than a good friend of mine, Amie. (Oh, and a couple wanna-be teen helpers that I still don't know the name of) After bending, chasing, corralling, and just plain exhausting every strategy I had while being 9 months pregnant, I left VBS an hour early on the first day. Lovely I thought; I'm going into labor, and will have a legitimate excuse for not showing up the rest of the week. Well, after visiting the hospital and my dr. on Monday afternoon, she informed me that I am dilated to a 1cm, and that it could be anytime. Cool. Tuesday I woke up feeling miserable. Contractions started early and lasted all day, 6-6.5 minutes apart, 30-45 seconds in length. The worst part of this weren't the contractions. Instead, It was the intense sharp pain on my left lower side that wouldn't subside. So, after being on the phone with nurses most of the day, Tim and I drove ourselves back into the hospital last night. Thankfully, I wasn't hallucinating, as my contractions were showing up on the monitors, however, they weren't strong enough/long enough to create any cervical change. I was also told that the pain in my left side are torn round ligaments that support the uterus and abdominal walls. I suppose I inadvertently tore these somehow during VBS on Monday. Or, I fell down the stairs in my sleep while thinking about cold milk and chocolate Ovaltine. The nurse was fairly certain I must have fallen somehow, though I kept telling her I didn't. So, of all the weeks this summer to be on my back....it had to be this week.

Now if only our daughter would make her grand entrance, maybe I wouldn't feel so silly laying in bed, reading Harry Potter books, eating Belly Bars, and surfing the net.

Fortunes and broccoli

It was yesterday that I was at work, tearing out some carpet from an apartment downtown. Now it isn't unusual to find pennies, nickels or even Cheetos between the baseboards while pulling carpet. I take those coins as my "tip" for the job, but leave the snacks for the installers.

Yesterday , however, was different. Oh sure I found 13 cents in pennies, but I also found a little slip of paper from someone's fortune cookie. "Tomorrow your partner will tell you exciting news."
"Ok", I thought. "Maybe we'll be going to the hospital soon and our little girl will be here, that would be an exciting phone call!" Baby did drop ofer the weekend so she could come anytime.

You know me though, I don't take those silly fortunes seriously. That was until today.

Separate house, different part of town, and this time not even an apartment but a duplex, yet they still had the slip of paper in common. This time it read, "An unexpected event will soon make your life more exciting." unexpected? Really? (Like I didn't see this coming the past 9 months?)

Well, it's 11:48pm, and as I write this blog we have less than a half hour before this 'fortune' proves true. Since we are still at home practically in bed, I doubt anything interesting will happen in the rest of this day. The Dr. is in Seaside at a conference until Sunday, so we are trying to lay low until she returns. We would rather baby come sometime next week, so our Dr will be here.

This fortune thing is a little crazy, but hardly believable. It's like the psychic magazine's website that recently read, "Due to unforeseen circumstances, the magazine is now out of print" (like they didn't see that one coming?)

Anyway, we are still waiting and getting more excited. our baby girl will be here very soon and we will be jumping for joy, but for now, Heidi is acting like Broccoli; takn' it easy and Veg'n-out.

Identity Crisis

Since the passing of Snickers, we've noticed a sweet side to our little Emma that has been tucked away for a few years. I feel blessed to be able to just enjoy the company of our mellow, timid, sweet-spirited cat. She snuck outside the other day and gave us quite the scare, as she was no where to be found for hours. Shortly after I opened up our dining room sliding glass door, in she walked as dusty and dirty as ever. I was so relieved to have her home.

Tim and I came home from church this morning to find this cute girl sleeping soundly in none other than our baby's crib.....maybe she's starting to have an identity crisis :)

I guess putting clean sheets on the baby bed two months before her due date was a mistake!

Waiting for new life...

Lani took some urban maternity pictures of Tim and I in the Pearl (out of towners, this is NW Portland) Sunday night. We had a great time, and look forward to seeing the rest of them. Thanks, Lani!

Baby Shower

This post is long overdue! Two weekends ago, Tim and I were given a beautiful baby shower for our upcoming daughter. The weather allowed it to be outside in Dave and Shaela's backyard--they have a beautiful yard, full of flowers and couture landscaping. Our dear friends, Joel and Lani and Ben and Heidi orchestrated the entire event, and another good friend of mine, Andrea put together all of the decorations/floral arrangements and even our diaper cake! It was a truly unique and beautiful shower.
We had quite a few people in attendance as well, making for some pretty darn cute gifts...I think our daughter has more shoes than I have, and she's not even here yet! :) Thank you to everyone who was involved; we had the best time, and will hold fond memories of our baby's first shower. (I'll post more pics when I receive them from Lani....she was the photographer for the shower...for now, these are the two best ones I have)

Tragedy

I know for some of you, cats are just any other animal on the planet, and not one to be desired. As many of you know, Tim and I adore our cats, and treat them like our family. With that said...

Yesterday was one of the worst days of my life, and I honestly don't feel like I'll ever be the same again. I know that sounds extreme...I am just grieving and missing our beloved friend and companion, Snickers.

Nothing out of the ordinary happened yesterday morning. I was running some errands earlier, and came home at around 2pm. I was enjoying a piece of my baby shower cake (I will blog about our beautiful shower soon! :) ) downstairs, and as usual, Snickers and Emma were whining for their food. So, I fed them and headed back upstairs to check my email. Snickers followed me upstairs, jumped into my lap (like he always does when I start to type!), I shooed him down so I could finish my email, and he laid down in the hallway not far from my chair. Roughly two minutes later I heard him cough a couple times, so I turned around and noticed his stomach was spasming. (sp?) I immediately assumed he was choking on something, as his eyes were dilated and he was foaming at the mouth. I did two finger sweeps and couldn't find anything, and by this point, I knew time was running out. He grew limp in my arms as I raced out the house and into my car to rush him to the nearest animal hospital. In the meantime, our neighbor pulled in, and saw how hysterical I was, and offered to drive me instead. This was a divine moment, because I know I wouldn't have been able to be a safe driver had I gotten behind my wheel! With all of this happening in maybe 5-10 minutes, we arrived at the vet clinic...I raced in without second thought, and thank God an older veterinarian was there. He grabbed Snickers from me, gave him a shot of Epinephrine in the heart, and began chest compressions on our 16lb cat. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. After ten or so minutes, he said he was gone, and that he couldn't detect a heart beat. Though, it's very rare, the dr. said that cats occasionally can die of a brain aneurism or something similar, without warning of any kind. He said there was nothing he choked on, as his airways and stomach were clear. So, away I carried our sweet cat back to Jon's car for what felt like a long car ride home. (down the street).

Tim came home shortly after and we sat on the couch together holding our sweet Snickers for awhile. We decided to bury him at my grandparents home, as they live nearby and have a large piece of property. Our friends, Joel and Lani accompanied us with flowers and pictures of him. We laid him to rest with his favorite toy, a shredded "jingle bear" he carried around everywhere.

Snickers was quite a unique cat. At least, to us anyway. He slept with us every night and was known for stealing our pillows in the middle of the night. When Tim leaves for work at 6:30 in the morning, Snickers takes his spot in bed, and would rest his head on the pillow until I woke up. It was always so sweet to see him there. We adopted Snickers when he was 6 weeks old, and saved him, as he was malnourished and very sick when he was young. The special bond Tim and I shared with him was unique. We would never had guessed he would leave us in this fashion at the young age of 4. Everyone who knew Snickers, loved him. He was always in your face asking for attention, and didn't let a minute pass before jumping into your lap ready to give love. He gave us so much love, and forced Tim and I to slow down each day, to play with him, pet him, and just give him what he needed. We will miss him so much. His sister, Emma misses him too. They were the best of friends.

Snickers will be missed by many, and we cherish the 4 short years we were with him.

Nesting Hormones

Many of you have been asking what I've been up to lately, as my last day of work ended a week ago. This past weekend I was at the beach with some of my girlfriends. We had a great time; I didn't realize how much I missed girl time, until I had a huge dose of it last week! I have succumbed to the "nesting" hormones this week, and am just going crazy with all of these projects and "catch up" I've not had a chance to focus on until now. I know I still have like 7 weeks to go, but everything in me says this girl is comin' early. I am convinced she wants to go to the church family campout as much as her mom and dad do! :) (the grace campout is Aug. 8-10, and my due date is the 5th) :)

So, I thought I'd blog about some of my projects I've started. This will give you a new glimpse into the typically "organized" Tim and Heidi you thought you knew so well. :) I love having control over what pics I post, and which ones I don't! :)


My planter boxes I found at a garage sale for a quarter a piece-I primed and painted them, bought flowers and made them new again. Tim hung them up for me.


More flowers in our courtyard that I planted last night.



Our Nursery....looks a lot better than it did, believe it or not!! Tim painted this adorable dresser for me, and put new hardware on it. My friend, Kristi had triplet girls nearly 2 years ago, and gave me a TON of girl clothes from newborn to 1 year. I am still sorting through bags!



I am recovering this glider chair I found on craigslist, as I need it to be pink and not blue! I am also (with the help of a friend) sewing curtains for her room.


Last but not least...here's my expanding belly shot. I am feeling huge, but not too uncomfortable yet.

Tim is such a trooper these days...he listens to me rattle off my list of things I need to finish (with his help!) nearly every night....
and somehow still loves me enough to help me when I need his help, hug me when I'm overly emotional and lonely, and surprise me when I'm least expecting it. Even after going to bed way too late this past week, working overtime on a lovely Friday, and staying on top of his homework load for the week. What a guy.

-H

Whether you like him or not... (and other stories of law enforcement).

Almost exactly a week ago, that traffic stopped out front of our house. over 30 motorcycle cops blocking roads and the entrance to our condo complex. What was the big deal? B.O. No, not body odor, but Barack Obama. Below you can see the short video of the presidential candidate driving within 50 feet of our house. Pretty cool to have a possible president drive right by your house. It was only 8 years ago that Heidi had a bigger encounter with a candidate from the opposite party. She got the autograph and handshake from none other than George W. Bush.



In other stories of law enforcement, we were headed to birthing class last Sunday and ran into a traffic crunch. Several cars in front of us turned off to get out of the jam, so assuming they knew something we didn't know, we followed suit. Now I know you've heard "If your friends jump of a bridge would you do it too?" and you could legitimately ask that of us in this situation since we followed suit like lost sheep. So, we turned the corner onto the "on-ramp" and headed down the hill to follow the wiser-than-us. As we turned, they were nowhere in sight, but an Oregon State Trooper was headed straight for us. Obviously we knew immediately we were stupid. He pulled up with an easy question:

Officer - "What are you doing?"
Tim - "Heading to the hospital since my wife is pregnant and the freeway is jammed."
Officer - "get outa here!"


How we managed to squeak by on that is beyond me, and no, we won't be doing any more of those stunts, at least not until she really in labor.

Now, unrelated to any sort of law enforcement, here are some photos and stuff from our Memorial weekend to the coast.

Beach Excitement!

Off to the beach we go!! Tim and I have been anticipating this "last baby-moon" with our friends, Joel and Lani and Ben and Heidi for quite some time now. It almost didn't happen, as I wound up horribly ill with the stomach flu on Wednesday. After spending the night in the ER (in a small psych eval room, as it was the ONLY room they had left) Wed. PM-Thurs. AM, getting re-hydrated intravenously, along with other preventative measures, I'm feeling much better today. SO....we're off and can hardly wait to start our vacation!
-H

Tim's Survey

After Heidi was "tagged" by Kristi, and then by Lani. and Heidi did hers, I figure I should do mine. Tomorrow I will write about Sunday's run-in with law enforcement...


5 things I couldn't live without for under $5:
1. a Pen
2. Water
3. Toilet paper
4. soap
5. toothpaste/brush

5 favorite movies:
1. The Bourne Idenity/Supremacy/Ultimatum series
2. Good Will Hunting
3. The Fugative
4. Shawshank Redemption
5. The Mission

5 baby names I love, but won't use: (we've had our share of baby name ideas lately, but have finally come to one we both LOVE)
1. I dunno, I believe this section was designed to "coerce" our baby name out that we haven't decided to share just yet.

5 songs I could listen to over and over:
1. Everything (Apron full of stains) - Normals
2. Glory - Tim Bach Band
3. Awakening - Switchfoot
4. Signature of Divine (Yahweh) - Needtobreathe
5. Unbelievable - Downhere
And MANY MANY more!


5 people that have influenced my life in a positive way: (note that these are not in order of importance nor are all included.)
1. Jesus - my savior and friend
2. Heidi - my beautiful wife
3. Dave - my adventurous college friend who challenged my small town thinking
4. Jesse - my regular Thursday AM-kick-you-in-the-head-not-afraid-to-be-genuine (or get up super early) friend
5. Lane - a counselor who has revolutionized my marriage.

5 things that stay in my purse at all times: (well, I don't have a purse, but I do carry these few things in my pockets
1. Driver's license/wallet
2. Cell Phone
3. Keys
4. List of things I need to do
5. loose change (that I picked up off the street and am transporting to my savings account)

5 moments that have changed my life forever:
1. deciding Jesus is more than just who I want to follow, but that being like him in some way is actually somewhat attainable
2. getting married to my beautiful wife
3. counseling both individually and maritally
4. School. all realms have given me perspective
5. Strengthsfinder (Grace's "Wired" class) and my personality test.

5 obsessions that I have right now:
1. saving $$ for my daughter
2. personal growth
3. playing music/writing music
4. spending quality time with Heidi
5. Homework

5 Places I would like to go:
1. Switzerland
2. Wales/England
3. out on a date with Heidi
4. to the summit of a mountian
5. on a cruise!

People who's top 5 I would like to see:
1. Jesus
2. My daughter (when she gets here...)
3. Karen running in her marathon
4. Alex and Leah at their wedding
5. Dave

Some of you got to see at least a few select photos from this Fall's photo shoot with Josh McKenney, Here is the photo gallery he has posted of the best we got to choose from. I don't want this to look completely like a "blog advertisement", but I will say that he does an awesome job and if you are looking to do any photos for anything, shoot him and e-mail. We'll be posting baby pictures soon!... (well, after she gets here, but you know what I mean).



Photos by Josh McKenney, an Oregon
Family Photographer

Baby Confusions explained.

Go to any modern mom and she can give you definitions and maybe even personal stories on her experience with these items, but go to any new dad to be, and you have nothing but confusion. Terms like "peanut shell sling", "Hooter Hider", "Fuzzi Bunz", and "Woozit".

Now I am not a dumb dad so I can figure a few things out:


"Sling" refers to a toy I used to play with. The sling-shot, so therefore, a "peanut shell sling" must be some sort of device moms use to shoot things with (obviously peanuts) and to what? well, probably baby. Maybe it's a game moms play. "Hit the baby with peanuts". Sounds silly, bur if mom is staying at home, maybe this keeps her from getting bored.

"Fuzzi Bunz" had to have been created in the early 90's (since they replaced the S's with Z's and the Y with an I). My guess is that this is a form of treatment cream. "If your baby has a rash that gets so bad it's growing fuzz, you need Fuzzi Bunz!"

"Hooter Hider", ok so most guys know that hooter references more than vocal noises of owls. It's kind of a no-brainer. It must be a way to cover a particular part of the body, so simple reasoning would say that this is nothing more than a bra.

Finally the "woozit". Otherwise known as a "What-cha-ma-call-it", "Thing-a-ma-jig" and "Doo-Hickey" which goes to show that it has many purposes because they cannot decide on a name that tells us what it really does. Therfore, it slices, dices, fries, blends, cleans, buzzes, shakes, twists, bounces, makes dinner, cleans the garage, takes out the trash and helps us sleep. Everyone needs one even though nobody has a clue what to do with it.





Fuzzi Bunz.














a Woozit.





Research shows that my assumptions are 100% inaccurate and 90% funny.



-T

It Says What?!?!

We have been tagged. Not our building but the one right across the parking lot in our Condo complex. I got up Thursday morning and meet Jessie for breakfast. When he left, (about 6:30am) I drove off to work. I turned out of our parking lot and headed up the hill to work when I noticed a 6ft tall by 15ft wide rattle-can masterpiece. For a limited time, this logo put a little fear in us about "how safe is our neighborhood?" It was there until this afternoon when the Treehill Board rollered and brushed it away with a fresh coat of ugly tan paint.
The location was street-side, but between the building and street is a grove of blackberry bushes. No car driving by would have noticed the vandal, nor would anyone in their homes have been able to see it. Eric, our neighbor to the left, could be the only window to see that plot of dirt where the artist stood to spray his passion.
I notified the Board about this, and showed it to Heidi. A couple hours after I spoke with the Maintenance guy about it, a Gang/Graffiti Specialist Officer came to the door and spoke with Heidi. Being an expert in the field and studying these images all over Portland, He could actually translate what it said and what it meant, even pinpointing styles to what race and gender creating it! Turns out, it wasn't a gang sign at all, but a declaration of love. Just as we used to carve "T+H" on a tree in the center of a heart, this suposed High/Middle Schooler found a new way to express his love. According to the specialist, our "tag" turned out to be "I love Jennifer".
So Jennifer, I don't know who you are, but maybe you should convince your significant other to start buying boxes of chocolates or sappy romance cards. (Although I guess it's better than "Billy Bob loves Charlene...in John Deere green).

shaven, that naked feeling.

As some of you know, I was planning to cut my hair a little shorter except for the upper lip section for a "look like our researched person" for class. If you read my earlier post, I chose Alfred Adler, and if you know anything about him, you know he wore a mustachio, and was less than gifted with hair o' top his hill. So to be like him I had to lose some hair.

Now some of you guys I know wear this style of baldness and I unfortunately don't plan on letting it stay as I styled it for last night's class. Without further ado, here is the one and only photo of my impression of Alfred Adler.





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Ok, so some of you thought I was going to shave my head, but I couldn't follow through with it just yet. I did manage to create augliness I had not known before and a naked feeling to my poor chin. Can you believe it is practically summer and my chin feels like it's winter? (thank God also that I am not keeping this nasty look!)

I did sport the cup duster, and probably would have looked better if it were like these guys.








but then again, don't give me any ideas...






-T

Survey

Okay, I'm giving in....I usually don't do survey's like this, but after being "tagged" by Kristi, and then by Lani...I thought I'd post this. Sorry, Lani, these q's aren't the same as on your blog; hope this satisfies :)

5 things I couldn't live without for under $5:
1. toothpaste/brush
2. deoderant
3. shampoo/soap
4. chapstick
5. toilet paper

5 favorite movies:
1. Dan In Real Life
2. Anne of Green Gables
3. You've Got Mail
4. Runaway Bride
5. Mrs. Doubtfire

5 baby names I love, but won't use: (we've had our share of baby name ideas lately, but have finally come to one we both LOVE)
1. Ryan. Tim doesn't like the name
2. Mackenzie. Tim doesn't like the name, because it reminds him of our guy friend, and I like this for a girl name :)
3. Kennady. Again, Tim doesn't like the name...reminds him of the president. Only spelled differently!
4. Julia Anne. Again, Tim is so picky! :)
5. Riley. Once again...we don't agree...I like this for a girl name

5 songs I could listen to over and over:
1. Anything by Enya
2. Umm...I enjoy music, but am forgetful of artists and song titles. I am known for listening to the same cd over and over and over again though...drives Tim crazy!
3. Runaway Bride soundtrack
4. Jim Brickman music
5. Anything relaxing/classical is nice too



5 people that have influenced my life in a positive way:
1. Jesus
2. Tim
3. Jamie
4. Laura
5. Lane

5 things that stay in my purse at all times:
1. Driver's license
2. cash/debit cards
3. lipgloss
4. pregi pops; ya never know when you might have the urge to throw up!
5. lots of writing utensils

5 moments that have changed my life forever:
1. deciding Jesus is the one I want to follow
2. getting hitched with Tim
3. my moment on the beach when God told me "I am all you need"
4. several "ah-hah" counseling appts.
5. returning to school, after realizing what I was meant to do...or at least a different direction than I'd realized before

5 obsessions that I have right now:
1. making money, saving $$
2. baby stuff-getting things prepared, feeling "organized" ha! still wondering if cloth diapering is what I want to do/need to do
3. praying for God's peace, direction, and protection as we move into a new role soon
4. spending quality time with Tim
5. sleep. I need my sleep!

5 Places I would like to go:
1. Bahamas
2. Italy
3. Africa
4. Hawaii, Maui or Kawai
5. on a cruise!

People who's top 5 I would like to see:
1. Tim
2. Lani
3. Angel
4. President Bush (just for kicks)
5. Mary

For one night, and one night only!

Some of you know I am taking night classes to pursue my MAT soon. Tonight is my final presentation and the class, Psychology. In only a few short hours, I will be standing in front of a class of 16 to present psychologist and physician Alfred Adler. He was one of the first to break from Freud and thinking he was "too obsessed with sex and death". He developed individual psychology, pioneered the inferiority complex, started a school in Vienna, constructed the Birth-order theory and... wore a mustache. So, yes, you guessed it. Tonight as I portray a founder of modern psychology, I too will be sporting the "stache". but have no fear, come friday morning, before I leave for work, the crumb-catcher (otherwise known in Liverpool as a "muzzy") will be cut away.
Stay tuned, for in my next posting, I might just reveal the only photograph (that has not been photo-shopped) of my nose neighbor.

-T

Heehee Who?

Okay, I know this is a corny title, but if you say it out loud in a "nasaly" sort of way, it sounds like the old kind of Lamaze breathing they used to teach back in the day.

So, without further ado, as you probably guessed....Tim and I had our first child birthing class last night. I wasn't sure what to expect at first, and I think Tim was just scared out of his mind about having to watch some freaky bloody video or some such thing. We both walked out, 2.5 hours later feeling very excited and overwhelmed with all of the new information we received. I love the instructor; she's a doula, and a real nurturing spirit. Tim said he'd never seen anyone smile as much as she did. (I think it made him feel a bit uncomfortable :) ) However, I reminded him she's probably trying to get some business for her doula practice....or maybe she's really just that nice! Being that Tim and I are both absorbers of (at times) too much information, I think we've landed ourselves in the right place. At least, I know I have. She has only intensified my need for more answers to new questions I'd never thought of before.
So, 5 more weeks to go, and away we are ready to birth a baby. I wish it were as simple as that sounds. Here are a few "prego" pics to enjoy...these were taken about a month ago.



-H

I never thought it would be me...

So Sarah R. Might be pleased with my current musical direction, but her husband Dave would disagree. I never thought there would be a day when me, Timmy T would be behind the drum-set for a quartet of females. Yes, I have had the opportunity to play drums with a variety of people, and there is nothing wrong with females; not even 4, but 4 middle age women singing four-part harmony was far from reality until Monday night.

There I sat behind a shimmering set of Zildjian cymbals pounding out a simple beat while the estrogen flowed in the chorus "Circle of Friends". "Dave would be so disappointed in me" I thought, yet here I was keeping beat to a bad flashback from the mid 90's.

The situation is honorable. I am playing in the worship band for Grace's Women's Retreat, and the choir of female leaders felt this song would be fitting to showcase their talent. So it is not by choice but by default that I find myself playing POG and not POD.


More fun to come so stay tuned!



-T

Maternity Shots

Tim and I enjoyed a BBQ with our close friends, Joel and Lani yesterday afternoon. Lani is into photography, and wanted to take some maternity pics of me, so I let her experiment yesterday at the park. Here's just a handful she's photo-shopped, so I thought I'd give a link here. There will be more to come! (she took a ton!) This was a trial run, and her first "maternity" shoot; we are going to do more as my bump gets larger. :) Thanks, Lani! These turned out wonderful!!!

http://picasaweb.google.com/lanimaria/Heidimaternity1

Cribs on cars and more adventures

Last week was "Spring Break" for us, but since Heidi and I both only have class one night a week, It was basically just a few open evenings. Heidi had Monday and Wednesday all day off but spent the mornings with the girls she used to Nanny for. Shireen and Sara are so cute and "love the baby in her tummy". I still had to work, but we really enjoyed our evenings together.

Having last Wednesday off, Heidi had some friends over to paint the baby room. She got her idea from HG-TV and I adjusted it slightly by replacing the yellow stripes with a green. I think it looks better with the green. Here are a few photos of the process and the new crib after completion.




Kudos to Kristi McKenney and Christine Penuel for helping Heidi get this project started.

Speaking of the crib, we had quite an adventure with that as well. Heidi drove across the border to Vancouver to pick up a crib she found on craigslist.org and did fine on the trip out, but I had to go rescue her on the way back. The guy helped her load it up, and since it wouldn't fit inside my little hatchback, he strapped it to the top. Fine, I strap things to the top all the time! (see previous posts). However, he didn't strap it on very tight and also did it while she was in the car, so.... as she is driving along the freeway, slow and with flashers going, the crib is slowly inching it's way backwards and bobbing up and down. Heidi calls me and is totally freaked out that it is going to "fall off and hit somebody!" I drove out there thinking she was just driving poorly, but it really wasn't the case. Now she probably could have in most situations gotten out and tightened it up, but since he straped it down after she got in the car, all four legs of the baby bed were now blocking all 4 exits... except the hatchback.
Long story short, I got there, tightened it down, Heidi crawled out the back and O started to drive, found that is was just too unstable, pulled over again and took it apart on the side of the freeway to load inside. Here is the short video of part of that adventure.








Oh, 2 last things, Our new due date is officially August 5th according to the Dr today, and I got to feel our little girl for the first time on Saturday! It felt like air bubbles. It was a few kicks and/or punches. She is being quite active these past few days. Looking forward to meeting my little girl!


-T

Prego Pics

Here are a few pics taken this evening. There's no hiding this bump anymore! :)

Just Because...

Just a few details I'm feeling inclined to share about our weekend. It's nearly 11 PM and Tim is downstairs warming up a bean and cheese burrito I made from scratch earlier today and bringing up a glass of water to quench my thirst. I've been more hungry these days. We are five months today; hard to believe that I'm half way through this pregnancy! We are becoming more and more excited as time passes. I'm feeling our girl wiggle around ALL THE TIME now! It's so exciting. I can't wait for Tim to be able to share in my unique experience.
So, we found a beautiful desk this weekend on craigslist. A steal of a deal too! (is that surprising though, for those of you who know what I find on craigslist? :) ) We have spent the entire day moving our bedroom around and fitting the desk in our small space. It actually works rather nicely, as we have plenty of room to store our office clutter now. We have decided to make our second bedroom exclusively a little girl nursery, as it's going to be too challenging having her room share our office space when she's supposed to be sound asleep! This has spurred on a new found excitement and desire to decorate her room now. Tim and I also assembled a rather large closet organizer for her room that Tim received for free from his boss. I love being organized! So, today has been a lot of rearranging and preparing our new bedroom and our daughter's new room. We are FAR from being done, however we've thoroughly enjoyed spending our day dreaming in anticipation of what is to come so soon. I think I have settled on a nursery theme....I don't know if this link will work or not, and of course, I won't be able to pull this entire look off. However, I am inspired by this theme/idea, and hope to carry some of it into the new room.
A few other tid-bits...don't drink nearly 5 glasses of water 2 hours before you go to bed. I was up 5 times last night cleansing my system. It was so annoying, and I am now sleep deprived. I guess it is after 11 now though...so I should be. Tim and I received a copy of the new book, "The Shack" from some of our friends. We have been reading it together, and I would highly recommend it to anyone. We have also started our cats on a new diet. Their Dr. suggested we feed them only 1/8 of a cup per day per cat. Crazy sounding, I know....anyway, they are on a serious diet. They have so much more energy now, and though they do tend to whine at night when we're trying to sleep, we are trying to stay disciplined with keeping them healthy.

Okay, that's all for now. I'll post some pics when I have a chance...Good Night!

It's A....

Yep, we had our ultrasound yesterday. I am right where I need to be, 18.5 weeks, due between July 23-Aug. 3. Okay, now let's cut to the chase!




We're having a GIRL! And, we're thrilled. We would have been thrilled with a boy too, but now...ahhh, my mind can rest at ease.

I NO LONGER HAVE TO BE TERRIFIED OF CIRCUMCISION CARE!!!!!!!!

Seriously though, it was awesome to see our little daughter on the screen today. She was moving around so much, and the tech said she was quite polite, as her little legs were crossed at the ankles! I could go on and on...Tim and I have been talking about it all day. We'll try to post a video after we figure out why it isn't working.

-H

I'm Growing!

Some of you have been commenting this past week that I'm starting to show! Well, you're right...I am! I'm almost 17 weeks now, and have been really starting to "pop". I'm feeling great lately, too! I have a new found energy, the prego "glow" as stated by some of my friends, and a healthy appetite.

Tim I spent a couple days at the beach together last weekend; our first "baby moon" as we like to call it. :) We had a wonderful time, enjoyed beautiful weather, and caught up on some much needed rest. We also finished all of our home remodeling projects last Friday. We are so happy with the outcome of our kitchen especially; our hard work paid off-literally, sweat equity!! ;)

Okay...this is a hodge podge of a post; enjoy!

Hey, I got published!

I have been quoted in my all time favorite magazine, "Real Simple". Check out the March edition, and see "Your Words" page 53. There I am! I have already received a few phone calls from friends alerting me of my new-found fame! Enjoy!

-Heidi

Bye-Bye Banana stain, Welcome Black Granite!

Old kitchen counter tops...(with banana stain)




New kitchen counter tops!



I took on a big project Saturday for the beauty of our home, and while it isn't fully finished yet, it is already beautiful! I will post more of our projects as we finish, but here is what we have been working on thus far. Today I finished the drip-edge and back-splash. We'll grout and seal this week along with the finalization of several other projects.