Japanese Gardens

Here are some photos of a trip we recently took to the Japanese Gardens. We've had a few bright warm sunny days the last few weeks, so we've tried to get outside and enjoy them. We haven't been to the Japanese gardens for a few years, so it was great to go back. The cherry blossom trees were just starting to bloom.

On a baby note... we had an OB appointment today and I am 4 cm dilated 70% effaced. T-1 week until our due date. We got the ball rolling to schedule an induction at 41 weeks if she does not decide to come before then. We are extremely antsy and can't wait to see our baby girl.

Eugene Visit

We sure missed this place! So many fun memories were made here!!!

The construction site for the new Mac Court...it's ginormous!

With our buddies Betty and Fr. Dave at Studio 1

Last Sunday Jason and I drove to Eugene for a visit. We hadn't been there since we moved to California 2 1/2 years ago, so it was long overdue. We went to the Newman Center Sunday morning for mass and got to go to Studio 1 Cafe for breakfast with our friends Fr. Dave and Betty. We hadn't told them that we are having a baby, we wanted to surprise them in person....it was so fun to see their reactions! We drove by the new baseball field at Autzen, saw the HUGE pit at the new basketball arena site, saw the new alumni building at the entrance of campus, went to Sweet Life (bought 3 pieces of cake...2 for then and 1 for later), went to the store Modern that's always been a fave of ours, and ended the day with a stop at Burrito Boy (got 4 burritos...one for then and one for later, they even gave us extra mole since we were bringing them home to Portland). It was a great trip and it was so nice to visit all of our favorite old sites. Can't wait to visit again!

Heaven in a glass case!

37 1/7 Weeks

Oh the fun that awaits us!

We had an OB appointment today and I am almost 1cm dilated, 70% effaced, and at 0 station....in english that means that the baby's head is down right at the cervix, cervix is 70% of the way thinned out and starting to dilate. As far as what that means for delivery, that remains to be known, could still take weeks for her to come, but at least there's been some progress! We were pretty happy with the news! Our to do list is complete, can't think of anything we have to do while we still have some baby-free time....we're just relaxing a bit and enjoying each other's company - cooking some fun meals together and laughing lots. Jason is making blueberry scones as I write this so I should head to the kitchen and help...just wanted to give you all an update!

This girl has one heck of a wardrobe already!

Nursery

We've got the baby's nursery all put together....we think. Crib - check, dresser/changing table - check, rocking chair - check, clothes/blankets/burp rags washed and put away - check, toy box ready with toys inside - check, boppy - check, diapers/wipes/butt paste ready to go - check, 5 million other little gadgets and things in their "proper places" - check, it feels like we have it all put together, the last thing we needed to do was put things on the walls (aside from actually having the baby...but that's a given right?). To start we hung the wonderful quilt that my friend Sara made, above the crib. We hung "baby" in wood letters on the wall, but we were at a loss for what to do on the rest of the walls. My aunt Kathy gave us the inspiration we needed. She gave us a framed photo of my great grandma, who was a nurse way back in the day, holding up a newborn she helped deliver for the dad to see for the first time. It was a really special gift and it helped us figure out how to decorate the rest of the room. We put up frames of black and white baby photos of us and the baby's grandparents along with sweet baby quotes like: "Babies are like tiny blossoms so eager to grow." and "A new baby is like the beginning of all things, wonder, hope a dream of possibilities." We don't have all the photos gathered yet, or all the quotes in the correct sizes, but getting the frames up and to get an idea of the photo layout was huge for us. We love how it's all come together! Can't wait for her to arrive ....now is the only time there will be any semblance of order in there we're sure, but hey we'll enjoy the cute pink cleanliness while it lasts! :)

Blast From The High School Past

I was recently going through some old high school photos and got a good laugh out of these in particular! These are at my high school graduation party....my friends and I did a dance to the Backstreet Boys, "Bye Bye Bye" at our grad night party (we actually placed in the top 3 and won $$). We gave the guests at my party a preview of our performance - looks like we were having fun! Don't you just love the HOT pink cowgirl hat I'm wearing...it was all part of the gig. Ah the memories.

Anna Lail, Maria Lawler, Sam Guido, Rebecca, Me

I think Anna and I were both a little lost and cracking up at each other! Love it!!

Stroller and Car Seat

We had one heck of a time choosing a stroller and car seat! We wanted something that was practical but that we could use while hiking, running, going to the zoo, going to the beach etc. We really wanted a Bob stroller but we didn't know that there is an attachment that makes it possible to hook a baby carrier into it...once we figured out that this was possible we were sold. We got a Bob revolution stroller and a Chicco car seat/carrier to go with it. We bought them at Segals baby store in Beaverton, they were so helpful and knowledgeable! They even installed the car seat for us. I still have to do a double take each time I go to get into the car and see a car seat in the back, can't imagine what it will be like when there is a baby to go in it! :)

Nursery Furniture

We're slowly but surely getting the nursery all put together. We got our crib and dresser/ changing table a couple of weeks ago. We had fun getting it all put together and getting things organized in the baby's room. It's still not 100% ready, we don't have much on the walls. We're putting up baby photos of family members, us and our parents and grandparents (mostly fun old black and white pics) along with cute framed baby quotes, and we hung a quilt that my friend Sara made for us....it's still all a work in progress but once we get done with it all I'll post a couple photos. She's due in just 4 1/2 short weeks, on April 23rd. We feel pretty ready as far as clothes, baby supplies, diapers etc. go....now it's just a waiting game. We're such planners that we even have our hospital bag packed with a "don't forget it" list on the fridge. My cousin Jill that was supposed to be due about 2 weeks after me went into early labor and delivered her baby at 32 weeks last weekend (on the day of her baby shower of all days!) so that gave us a kick start and made us get things together in case she comes a little early.

The crib all boxed up!

Jason had to work and I couldn't stand seeing the crib just sit there in a box, I was too excited, so I got busy putting it together. Say WHAT??? Sure hope we followed the instructions right!

Lining the dresser drawers with wrapping paper from her baby showersThe crib all put together...it converts into a toddler bed and eventually a double bed as she grows up!