Registries

For anyone that is interested, little Betz Bennigsdorf is registered at Babies 'R Us and Target. :)

Looking forward to seeing (many of) you next weekend!

Bubbles and Dots and Circles... oh my!

While not 100% confirmed, it looks like this is what little Betz' (ahem) room is going to feature -- with light sage green walls and a newly-painted white-and-pink dresser! Real room photos to come soon... hopefully... (finding time to paint is proving to be a real bear!)

Photo Friday!

First: the weekly belly photo. Gettin' tubby(er) at 22w5d! (Trying to combat some of that tubbiness, however -- note the Sporty Spice look I'm rockin' here after a lap around Wash Park.)



Next: thanks cousin Erin (and Baby Gap) for the cute gear!



Thanks Keeley and Taylor (and Chris and Brian) for the equally cute gear! (Turn yer head, folks -- I can't figure out how to rotate the pics.)




I got camera-happy, so here's a couple snaps of the goodie barrels in our back yard:


Zucchini!!
Tomatoes!!

The Daxman. He so rarely looks at the camera when a photo is being taken; it was worth posting!

Have a great weekend! Happy Father's Day to one and all!

Eureka! We have a name!!

And no, it's not Eureka. Although...

So I've been trying to figure out a way to tie in my family name to this little goober. Eschewing the whole Bunny or even Bonnie path (c'mon now!), I jokingly said to someone the other day that we'll just name her Wrabetz and be done with it. Mean? Yes. But whatever -- it will build character. And I thought I was kidding... until...

I was laying in bed this morning and it struck me: let's name her Wrabetz and we can call her Betz! (Phoenetically pronounced "Betsy.") PERFECT!!

I am, of course, kidding. But you do have to admit I'm pretty darn brilliant!

C'mon.

Admit it.

I do have a college degree, you know.

From an accredited university.

:)

Hormones? Nah! It's just love!

This story made me tear up so I felt it needed to be shared. Personal politics of you, reader, be what they may, you can't deny the heartwarming beauty of waiting 55 years to legally marry your beloved!

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/06/10/MN51116A6H.DTL

Cheers to love!

22-week update

So according to the preggo journal:

+PLUS+

=EQUALS=

a.k.a.: combine the size/length of a Barbie doll and a pound in weight (the example of a package of butter was used) and you've got our little cricket! I'm all about the visuals.

Have a great week!

(PS: A tip from me to you: don't Google "22-week fetus." Many of the results are less than pleasant. Chalk that one up to a learning experience. Ick.)

Belly Foto Friday!

I'm starting to realize that I'm growing, um, back at an equal (if not faster) rate than I'm growing forward. Nature's way of balancing me out? Cruel prank? A little of both, methinks...

Anyway, here's big ol' me at 21w5d:

The Awesomest Baby Music Ever!

Rockabye Baby! (http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_m?url=search-alias%3Dpopular&field-keywords=Rockabye+Baby%21&x=17&y=12)

How brilliant is this: take any song and turn it into a lullabye by playing it with glockenspiels, vibraphones, and mellotrons. (Yes, I had to copy-and-paste those words.)

A sample of albums:
U2
Bob Marley
Coldplay
Metallica (yes! Metallica!)
Pink Floyd
Led Zeppelin
Rolling Stones
AC/DC

That is officially the coolest thing EVER!!

The Cricket is Growing!

I haven't updated on any of the little one's developments lately, so let's see what I can remember from my various growth report sources:

• As ZZ Top reminds us, she's got legs -- and she knows how to use 'em! Definitely able to identify what is her and what is me (hungry tummy, growling intestines, etc.) nowadays.
• She's got a full head of hair and eyebrows to match.
• She's occasionally sucking her thumb. (awwww)
• She has near-normal sleep/wake patterns. i.e. She sleeps when I'm moving and wakes up to wiggle and punt when I'm not. Nice.
• She is covered with slime. Okay, she's covered with "vernix caseosa." Same diff.
• She's also hairy. Okay, she's covered with "lanugo." Same diff.
• She's about 7.5" long and weighs about 16 oz. In other words, she's a pint of beer!

The miracle of life. It's a beautiful thing!

(PS: I'm finally getting the hang of this blog thinger and I think I changed the settings so you don't have to create a Gmail account or log into anything to leave a comment. Just remember: keep it clean! This is all for the child's eyes someday...)

Weekend with the Rings

Just back from another weekend in paradise (a.k.a. the Ring Estate in Tampa). Had a wonderful, wonderful time and got to meet the most handsome little man on the planet: Carson!





After waking up entirely much too late (as yet-to-be parents, you put me and Jody into a room with blinds that actually block out sunlight and no dogs breathing in your face at the crack of dawn, and it's very difficult to get up! and yes, we are very aware that all of that will change in just a couple short months...), we took the Miss Eau Claire out on the Gulf to Caladesi Island -- where Jody discovered is the #1 beach in America (per some website a couple weeks ago):

Sunday was spent loitering lazily at home, in and out of the pool, playing the longest game of dominos in the history of gaming. It was pure luxury!

Not a lot of photos to share; two days goes by really fast! Super-thanks to Dee and Matt and Carson for being such good hosts; we appreciate them more than they know!