Room Conversion

An important symbolic moment worth blogging about:
I constructed the crib today.



Our nursery isn't quite as orderly as Pottery Barn's fabrication pictured here. Also, special thanks to Nick O'Donnell who reminds all future fathers that it's always best to build a crib in the room where it's supposed to end up, as moving it is often an impossible task.

Dreams of a soon-to-be father

We're currently enjoying ourselves at Canyon Ranch, a spa in Arizona, and a pre-baby treat from my (Elliot's) parents. Perhaps because we're just about 2 months away from having a child (or maybe it's all the endorphins from vigorous hikes in the desert), but I've started having dreams about being a new father.

Barbara and I have decided to keep our favorite names for our daughter a secret, with this exception. It came to me 2 nights ago in a dream. In the dream, Barbara had just given birth to a beautiful baby girl. Both of us were glowing, and were so happy to finally lay eyes on our daughter.

We enjoyed the new experience for a few minutes, when a nurse approached us.

"Now that's you've had some time with your new baby, are you ready to give her a name?" the nurse asked.

Barbara and I paused, then smiled at one another. Barbara nodded to me.

"Yes," I announced proudly, "her name is Toasty McChestnut."

Dreams are bizarre.

Surprise!

Two close friends of Barbara, Kristi and Lorie, threw a surprise baby shower for Barbara today. After a delicious brunch at the East Coast Grill, we arrived at the house to find co-workers and friends waiting to celebrate the baby. Kristi and Lorie are known for their craft skills and attention to decorative details, and you can see why in these photos.

That's a diaper cake - NOT EDIBLE!



Everyone had a chance to sign this beautiful quilt,
handmade by Kristi.

6 months and counting...

As you can see in the photo, Barbara is still doing great - and we're already at about Month 6 in the pregnancy. We visited our fantastic OB, Dr. Beth Hardiman, yesterday, who reported that everything seems to be going smoothly and looks normal. (She reminded us that in medicine, it's always best to be "normal." There are other, better places to stand out.)

Several folks have asked where we're registered, so I've posted the list on the upper right corner of this blog.

More updates soon!

Baby Belly + A Nursery Chair

We picked out a chair for the nursery (in different colors than what you see here), and you can see the mom-to-be and her belly giving it a test sit. It's a swivel glider for her and a recliner for him.

Promised Pics

Here are the scans of out little sweet potato. (No, really...she is now the size of a sweet potato) Note the little feet showing in the first one below. I hope they continue to resemble her mother's.

It's a girl!

We found out this morning that we're having a little baby girl! It's exciting to know the sex, if only to be able to refer to it by "she" rather than "it." The ultrasound revealed 2 adorable feet, and we got a glimpse of one of her hands (all five fingers were there...phew!). I'll post pictures tomorrow morning.

Male? Female? We'll know on Wednesday

Wednesday of this week is when we'll have the ultrasound that determines if we're having a little girl or boy. I'm still thinking it's a boy...but we'll find out for sure in 3 days. Either way, as long as s/he's healthy, I'll be a happy Dad.

First pics!

It's official! Barbara and I are having a baby!
Our due date, for now, is Valentine's Day 2008.

Here we are...the first photos of our baby! These are from the 11-week ultrasound - it's amazing that you can make out the head!

We went to the OB yesterday and heard a healthy heartbeat. We'll head for a second ultrasound in 4 weeks, at which point we'll be able to find out the gender of our child.