As many of you know in mid-2007 I began a career as a financial advisor with Edward Jones. I have been in a extended training period for almost 4 months which finally ends tomorrow, December 3 as I move into my new office in Grand Rapids. Karen and I are excited about this new direction and the possibilities it brings. Thanks to those who have expressed encouragement and support. That encouragement has made all the difference during this time.
One thing our family has decided to do as our first priority is to begin planning for Joseph's education. We are starting what is called a 529 plan, which is like an "educational IRA". Basically the contributions are a deduction for those who participate & the funds are withdrawn for the beneficiary tax free.
We are posting this message as an option for friends and family who may want to contribute during the Holiday season, or anytime thereafter. If you are interested please call Karen or me if you wish to discuss this further.
We hope the holidays is a blessed time for all of you.
Brad & Karen
616.285.5427
Sunday, December 2, 2007
That time of year
Hello All! Get ready, the month of December is upon us! Between work, family, and jockeying for position in checkout lines, the real meaning of the season is sometimes lost. So as we take a collective deep breath for the roller coaster drop into Christmas and New Year, I wanted to quickly send out a wire with a message of encouragement and hope, to fend off missing the best things about this month.
When I step back to think about the many people in my immediate and extended family and the hundred or so new family members I have after Karen I were married, I cannot believe all the wonderful stories. We have those who have gotten married this year and some who are planning weddings. We have those (too many to count) who have delivered healthy babies and those who are expecting. We know of many who are not 100% in health, others who have battled back from sickness. The bottom line is it's just amazing to sit back and think of the many who are in this "circle" and provide encouragement for us, through their stories. If overlooked however, these things--simple stories of other people lives--may cause us to miss something important. So, I wanted to let you know Karen and I are thinking of you today, wishing you all the best.
Happy Holidays,
When I step back to think about the many people in my immediate and extended family and the hundred or so new family members I have after Karen I were married, I cannot believe all the wonderful stories. We have those who have gotten married this year and some who are planning weddings. We have those (too many to count) who have delivered healthy babies and those who are expecting. We know of many who are not 100% in health, others who have battled back from sickness. The bottom line is it's just amazing to sit back and think of the many who are in this "circle" and provide encouragement for us, through their stories. If overlooked however, these things--simple stories of other people lives--may cause us to miss something important. So, I wanted to let you know Karen and I are thinking of you today, wishing you all the best.
Happy Holidays,
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
So much to be thankful for . . .
Wow, I can't believe over one month has already gone by since Joseph has been born! It seems like ages ago -- we can't even seem to remember what life was like before his arrival.
This past month has been full of many exciting new adventures. Adjusting to our new roles as parents and learning all about our little guy has been as exciting as it has been challenging, but we wouldn't trade it for the world. On our end, adapting to life with very little sleep has been interesting to say the least. Thankfully, we've had a great deal of help from friends, family and neighbors. As you can see from the pictures that we've been updating over the past month on our Flickr page, Joseph has had many visitors over the past month, and each of them graciously lent a helping hand. We'd like to give a special "shout out" to the Grandmas for all of their help as well as Joseph's aunts and uncles who have helped us in ways that we can't even count. Especially those who have travelled from afar -- Uncle Michael, Aunt Kelly and Aunt Sarah -- we are extremely grateful for help with some of those late night feedings with Joseph as well as helping us with our own feedings!
In terms of Joseph's past month, it seems that he has already changed in leaps and bounds! As the days go by, we've noticed how much more alert he's become as well how much longer he can hold up his head, and, best of all, how much more he's smiling. Although he has struggled during his early weeks with some gas issues, his smiles have recently become about more than just "passing wind". Usually it starts with him very studiously focusing in on our features and then he suddenly breaks into a big gummy grin. I can honestly say that there is nothing like it in this world -- it makes all of those sleepless nights entirely worth it!
So, in commemoration of this upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, we have so much to be thankful for . . . primarily, our good health, our family and friends and those little gummy smiles!
Happy Thanksgiving!
This past month has been full of many exciting new adventures. Adjusting to our new roles as parents and learning all about our little guy has been as exciting as it has been challenging, but we wouldn't trade it for the world. On our end, adapting to life with very little sleep has been interesting to say the least. Thankfully, we've had a great deal of help from friends, family and neighbors. As you can see from the pictures that we've been updating over the past month on our Flickr page, Joseph has had many visitors over the past month, and each of them graciously lent a helping hand. We'd like to give a special "shout out" to the Grandmas for all of their help as well as Joseph's aunts and uncles who have helped us in ways that we can't even count. Especially those who have travelled from afar -- Uncle Michael, Aunt Kelly and Aunt Sarah -- we are extremely grateful for help with some of those late night feedings with Joseph as well as helping us with our own feedings!
In terms of Joseph's past month, it seems that he has already changed in leaps and bounds! As the days go by, we've noticed how much more alert he's become as well how much longer he can hold up his head, and, best of all, how much more he's smiling. Although he has struggled during his early weeks with some gas issues, his smiles have recently become about more than just "passing wind". Usually it starts with him very studiously focusing in on our features and then he suddenly breaks into a big gummy grin. I can honestly say that there is nothing like it in this world -- it makes all of those sleepless nights entirely worth it!
So, in commemoration of this upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, we have so much to be thankful for . . . primarily, our good health, our family and friends and those little gummy smiles!
Happy Thanksgiving!
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Joseph's Birth Story
Well, here it is almost one entire month after our little Joseph's birth and I've finally found a moment to sit down and write about his exciting arrival. Who knew that becoming parents would give us an entirely new appreciation of free time. Yeah right . . . what's that again?!? As I'm typing this, the little one is actually attempting to nap on my lap, so we'll see how long this lasts! Hopefully I'll be able to complete this story before he turns one year old!!
Anyways, as many of you know, I went into labor on the morning of my due date. Not bad for a first-timer! I labored throughout the day, but the contractions didn't really become regular until the later part of the afternoon. After calling my doctor's office, they told me to sit tight and labor a bit more at home before coming into the hospital. We waited it out and tried to distract ourselves with some Monday night football. Brad was even lucky enough to catch a quick nap! Now, before you say anything, I did tell him that it was perfectly okay for him to take a snooze. Little did I know that he would actually be able to sleep. I swear, my husband can sleep through anything! Regardless, it wasn't long that he was able to enjoy his peaceful slumber. Approximately 45 minutes had passed and my contractions were at least one minute long and averaging 2-3 minutes apart. Based on the increasing pain, I decided it was time to go. I alerted Brad and I swear that I have never seen him move so fast out of deep sleep as he lept into action. He ran upstairs to get our bags and we hustled out the door. He was so focused on making it in record time to the hospital I began to wonder if we were going to make it there in one piece! Of course, Brad came through and I was speedily and safely dropped off at Spectrum Hospital emergency.
When we arrived, I was wheeled up to triage and monitored for a while. Then I was shown to the birthing room which was a corner room with a beautiful view of the city. Unfortunately, I was in too much pain at this point to truly enjoy it, but I took comfort in the great treatment that I was receiving from the hospital staff as well as the wonderful support that my loving husband and coach was lending me. I didn't opt for pain relief right away -- rather I decided to give the whirlpool a whirl to see if it could help to alleviate my pain. It did for about a half an hour and then, as I got out of the tub, my water officially broke and . . . holy contractions! They aren't kidding when they say labor is hard work! A three minute contraction later and I was ready for them to bring on the epidural. After the lovely anesthesiologist administered the pain relief, I wanted to hug her and secretly thanked God for the individual who invented the epidural. Sweet relief! I didn't even feel the next contraction and was able to relax through the remainder of the night. Once 7:30 a.m. rolled around and the sun began to rise, it was about time for me to push. I was nervous, anxious, excited, along with about 1000 other emotions were racing through me, but I didn't care. Before long, I knew that I was going to be able to finally to meet my baby. Ten months of hard work was about to pay off and I was ready to do whatever was necessary to get down this final stretch.
Up to this point, the nurse kept saying how my labor was "textbook". Being the overachiever that I am, I felt so proud and thought maybe I'd even get a gold star when this was all said and done. Little did I know that when I began pushing was exactly when my labor became anything but textbook. During the 3 hour process, we discovered that our little one was tranverse (i.e., facing sideways) and my pubic bone was unusually low for the baby to travel through. Not impossible, but the doctor said that it would present some unique challenges.
I pushed "perfectly" as the nurse described and she gave me a true glimmer of hope at the two hour mark when the big light lowered down from the ceiling and she told me that this was the beginning of the end. Before I would know it, she reassured me, I'd be holding my baby. A few more pushes later, the doctor walked in and completely deflated all of my hopes when he informed us that the baby hadn't made any progress in a while because he was stuck. Let me tell you, after 40 weeks of waiting and close to 3 hours of pushing, that's the last thing you want to hear! Regardless, I was willing to do anything to deliver a healthy baby, so I informed the doctor that I could push for 3 more hours if he needed me to. One look in his eyes and I knew that was not going to be an option.
After a few minutes of considering a forceps delivery, he decided that the baby was not in the correct position to do so safely. The decision had been made for me . . . we had no choice but to deliver by a Caesarean secion. As upset as I was, the doctor and nurses were very reassuring as what seemed like half of the hospital staff frantically rushed around to get me into emergency surgery. Before I even knew what was happening, I was wheeled into the O.R. and they began working on me. Thankfully once I saw Brad's face -- or at least the small part of his face that wasn't covered by medical gear -- I felt like everything was going to be okay. I tried to stay focused on the fact that I would soon be able to meet our little one.
I said a prayer of thanks, once again, for the wonder of the epidural as they worked away at me. I didn't feel any pain, but there was quite a bit of pressure from all of the tugging that ensued from trying to get him out. I could feel the entire table shaking because his head had gotten stuck, but I finally felt a great release from the pressure and heard a good, solid cry. Misty-eyed, Brad finally was able to get out the words that I'd been waiting to hear, "It's a boy". At the same time, I heard various murmers through the O.R. proclaiming what a big boy he was and how surprised they were at his size. The doctors and nurses that had worked so closely with me throughout this process had predicted that the baby would be somewhere between 7 and 8 lbs. However, one look over at the warming table that they had placed him in and it was confirmed . . . he was indeed one Big Boy!! While trying to take in all of his features, I absolutely could not get over the size of his hands and feet (see below for the true to size image of his footprints)! Brad immediately kicked into father mode and held his son's hand and got many great photos of his first moments of life. It was truly a magical moment! Once they were finished checking him out to ensure that he was healthy, they were finally able to bring him over to me and rest him on my chest. That first thought that I had was similar to the one I feel every time I look into his little face . . . Thank God for this miracle and for allowing us this little piece of heaven. Happy Birthday, Joseph Bradley Hunter!
Anyways, as many of you know, I went into labor on the morning of my due date. Not bad for a first-timer! I labored throughout the day, but the contractions didn't really become regular until the later part of the afternoon. After calling my doctor's office, they told me to sit tight and labor a bit more at home before coming into the hospital. We waited it out and tried to distract ourselves with some Monday night football. Brad was even lucky enough to catch a quick nap! Now, before you say anything, I did tell him that it was perfectly okay for him to take a snooze. Little did I know that he would actually be able to sleep. I swear, my husband can sleep through anything! Regardless, it wasn't long that he was able to enjoy his peaceful slumber. Approximately 45 minutes had passed and my contractions were at least one minute long and averaging 2-3 minutes apart. Based on the increasing pain, I decided it was time to go. I alerted Brad and I swear that I have never seen him move so fast out of deep sleep as he lept into action. He ran upstairs to get our bags and we hustled out the door. He was so focused on making it in record time to the hospital I began to wonder if we were going to make it there in one piece! Of course, Brad came through and I was speedily and safely dropped off at Spectrum Hospital emergency.
When we arrived, I was wheeled up to triage and monitored for a while. Then I was shown to the birthing room which was a corner room with a beautiful view of the city. Unfortunately, I was in too much pain at this point to truly enjoy it, but I took comfort in the great treatment that I was receiving from the hospital staff as well as the wonderful support that my loving husband and coach was lending me. I didn't opt for pain relief right away -- rather I decided to give the whirlpool a whirl to see if it could help to alleviate my pain. It did for about a half an hour and then, as I got out of the tub, my water officially broke and . . . holy contractions! They aren't kidding when they say labor is hard work! A three minute contraction later and I was ready for them to bring on the epidural. After the lovely anesthesiologist administered the pain relief, I wanted to hug her and secretly thanked God for the individual who invented the epidural. Sweet relief! I didn't even feel the next contraction and was able to relax through the remainder of the night. Once 7:30 a.m. rolled around and the sun began to rise, it was about time for me to push. I was nervous, anxious, excited, along with about 1000 other emotions were racing through me, but I didn't care. Before long, I knew that I was going to be able to finally to meet my baby. Ten months of hard work was about to pay off and I was ready to do whatever was necessary to get down this final stretch.
Up to this point, the nurse kept saying how my labor was "textbook". Being the overachiever that I am, I felt so proud and thought maybe I'd even get a gold star when this was all said and done. Little did I know that when I began pushing was exactly when my labor became anything but textbook. During the 3 hour process, we discovered that our little one was tranverse (i.e., facing sideways) and my pubic bone was unusually low for the baby to travel through. Not impossible, but the doctor said that it would present some unique challenges.
I pushed "perfectly" as the nurse described and she gave me a true glimmer of hope at the two hour mark when the big light lowered down from the ceiling and she told me that this was the beginning of the end. Before I would know it, she reassured me, I'd be holding my baby. A few more pushes later, the doctor walked in and completely deflated all of my hopes when he informed us that the baby hadn't made any progress in a while because he was stuck. Let me tell you, after 40 weeks of waiting and close to 3 hours of pushing, that's the last thing you want to hear! Regardless, I was willing to do anything to deliver a healthy baby, so I informed the doctor that I could push for 3 more hours if he needed me to. One look in his eyes and I knew that was not going to be an option.
After a few minutes of considering a forceps delivery, he decided that the baby was not in the correct position to do so safely. The decision had been made for me . . . we had no choice but to deliver by a Caesarean secion. As upset as I was, the doctor and nurses were very reassuring as what seemed like half of the hospital staff frantically rushed around to get me into emergency surgery. Before I even knew what was happening, I was wheeled into the O.R. and they began working on me. Thankfully once I saw Brad's face -- or at least the small part of his face that wasn't covered by medical gear -- I felt like everything was going to be okay. I tried to stay focused on the fact that I would soon be able to meet our little one.
I said a prayer of thanks, once again, for the wonder of the epidural as they worked away at me. I didn't feel any pain, but there was quite a bit of pressure from all of the tugging that ensued from trying to get him out. I could feel the entire table shaking because his head had gotten stuck, but I finally felt a great release from the pressure and heard a good, solid cry. Misty-eyed, Brad finally was able to get out the words that I'd been waiting to hear, "It's a boy". At the same time, I heard various murmers through the O.R. proclaiming what a big boy he was and how surprised they were at his size. The doctors and nurses that had worked so closely with me throughout this process had predicted that the baby would be somewhere between 7 and 8 lbs. However, one look over at the warming table that they had placed him in and it was confirmed . . . he was indeed one Big Boy!! While trying to take in all of his features, I absolutely could not get over the size of his hands and feet (see below for the true to size image of his footprints)! Brad immediately kicked into father mode and held his son's hand and got many great photos of his first moments of life. It was truly a magical moment! Once they were finished checking him out to ensure that he was healthy, they were finally able to bring him over to me and rest him on my chest. That first thought that I had was similar to the one I feel every time I look into his little face . . . Thank God for this miracle and for allowing us this little piece of heaven. Happy Birthday, Joseph Bradley Hunter!
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Waiting No More
The time finally came like it has for so many first time parents to leave excitedly for the hospital as Karen and I did Monday night. But before I go any further, I have to brief with this description, I'm expected back at the hospital shortly. I'll claim the role of a stereotypical male in my birth description, so that Karen can fill in all wonderful details Friday when she arrives home.
Our son, Joseph Bradley Hunter was born at 11:08 Tuesday morning October 16 in Grand Rapids, Michigan to Karen and Brad Hunter. He weighed in at 9 pounds and 2 ounces. As many who saw Karen in person can attest, she carried every ounce of the baby very well--he was much bigger than anyone thought he would be. His cry is a not-so menacing, pseudo-angry kind of whimper, really. We only once have heard him really belt it out. The lactation consultants have been great. And so far Joe has eaten well from mom, as they both figure out the complex process of feeding for the first time. What else...what else....oh he has a little dark hair mostly in the back. He has more of my features like hands and feet, while his face is strikingly, almost scarily Karen's resemblance. Which as all of you know, is a good thing! Gotta run for now, go to Flickr to see the rest of the pics. We're just a wee bit proud right now. Thanks for visiting. Cheers!
Our son, Joseph Bradley Hunter was born at 11:08 Tuesday morning October 16 in Grand Rapids, Michigan to Karen and Brad Hunter. He weighed in at 9 pounds and 2 ounces. As many who saw Karen in person can attest, she carried every ounce of the baby very well--he was much bigger than anyone thought he would be. His cry is a not-so menacing, pseudo-angry kind of whimper, really. We only once have heard him really belt it out. The lactation consultants have been great. And so far Joe has eaten well from mom, as they both figure out the complex process of feeding for the first time. What else...what else....oh he has a little dark hair mostly in the back. He has more of my features like hands and feet, while his face is strikingly, almost scarily Karen's resemblance. Which as all of you know, is a good thing! Gotta run for now, go to Flickr to see the rest of the pics. We're just a wee bit proud right now. Thanks for visiting. Cheers!
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
The Waiting Game
. . . Or should I call it the "weight-ing" game instead?!? Sorry, bad joke. I just find it hard to imagine my belly getting any bigger! I know, I'm exagerrating a bit. The doctor says that I'm measuring as "average" size, but nothing about this feels average to me. Literally, I feel as if I am stretched out to maximum capacity and at any moment the baby may come bursting out of my belly button. An image reminiscent of that horrific scene out of the movie "Alien" keeps playing through my mind, so let's sincerely hope that's not the case!
As you can imagine, time seems to be moving at a snail's pace for us. We are really trying to not count the minutes until this baby will decide to arrive and rather are just trying to live our lives as normally as possible. Easier said than done, but last night was a nice break from the monotony when Brad decided to take me out on a date to a very nice local restaurant. Minus the Braxton Hicks experienced during the first half of dinner, we had a very enjoyable evening. We got a good laugh out of that because we thought maybe the baby wasn't going to let us have our last hurrah. However, he or she decided to "quiet down" and let us enjoy what felt like our last supper. Below is a picture from the evening that will give you a glimpse at our new family vehicle (the Ford Edge) as well as what I look like at almost 40 full weeks of pregnancy. Enjoy!
As you can imagine, time seems to be moving at a snail's pace for us. We are really trying to not count the minutes until this baby will decide to arrive and rather are just trying to live our lives as normally as possible. Easier said than done, but last night was a nice break from the monotony when Brad decided to take me out on a date to a very nice local restaurant. Minus the Braxton Hicks experienced during the first half of dinner, we had a very enjoyable evening. We got a good laugh out of that because we thought maybe the baby wasn't going to let us have our last hurrah. However, he or she decided to "quiet down" and let us enjoy what felt like our last supper. Below is a picture from the evening that will give you a glimpse at our new family vehicle (the Ford Edge) as well as what I look like at almost 40 full weeks of pregnancy. Enjoy!
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
The Home Stretch
Now that Summer is winding down and Fall is officially upon us, we can count down the days until our new little addition arrives! The last few months have been incredibly busy with numerous travels, crazy work schedules and even a career change thrown into the mix. Although we have barely had a moment to catch our breath, we are so grateful for the time that we have been able to share with family and friends as we prepare for this major life change. Trips to Phoenix, the Outer Banks, New York, Ann Arbor and Detroit have allowed us to spend some much cherished time with our loved ones and even meet some of the newer additions that have arrived over the past few months. Be sure to check out our Flickr page for the latest pictures -- they also provide a great visual for how my belly has grown. Who knew that the human body could stretch to such capacities!?!
According to my doctor's appointment a few weeks ago, my body is doing everything it needs to prepare for our baby's arrival. The baby has dropped, the head is down and I am 1 centimeter dilated. Hey, that means only 9 more to go, right? This should be a piece of cake! We keep trying to give the baby a pep talk and let him or her know that the world is a good place and it's okay to come out now! However, for some reason the baby isn't quite ready to make its grand appearance. Perhaps the recent performance of the UM football team has been somewhat of a deterrent -- can't really argue with that one. As our anticipation builds and we wonder what this baby will be like, we remind ourselves that he or she will come in good time when the moment is just right. After all, patience is a virtue!
We want to thank everyone who has been so supportive of us during this special time and feel truly blessed to be extending our little family very soon. Feel free to post comments on our blog and even let us know if you have any predictions as to when Baby Hunter's birthday will actually be! We'll be sure to update with pictures and the birth story as soon as possible, so wish us a healthy and smooth delivery.
According to my doctor's appointment a few weeks ago, my body is doing everything it needs to prepare for our baby's arrival. The baby has dropped, the head is down and I am 1 centimeter dilated. Hey, that means only 9 more to go, right? This should be a piece of cake! We keep trying to give the baby a pep talk and let him or her know that the world is a good place and it's okay to come out now! However, for some reason the baby isn't quite ready to make its grand appearance. Perhaps the recent performance of the UM football team has been somewhat of a deterrent -- can't really argue with that one. As our anticipation builds and we wonder what this baby will be like, we remind ourselves that he or she will come in good time when the moment is just right. After all, patience is a virtue!
We want to thank everyone who has been so supportive of us during this special time and feel truly blessed to be extending our little family very soon. Feel free to post comments on our blog and even let us know if you have any predictions as to when Baby Hunter's birthday will actually be! We'll be sure to update with pictures and the birth story as soon as possible, so wish us a healthy and smooth delivery.
Friday, June 29, 2007
Birthdays, anniversaries and other surprises . . .
What a month this has been! Apart from most recent exciting trip that we returned from, we've had so much to celebrate in this month of June. First, we received another report on the continued healthy development of our baby. During our 21 week ultrasound, we could see Baby Hunter kicking away feverishly inside mama's belly. What a sight! I've been feeling little kicks and jabs for a while now, but we truly couldn't believe how active this baby was from the images on our screen. Even the doctor commented on how active the baby was as well as how challenging it was making it for her to take all of her necessary measurements. At that point in time, the baby was measuring right on target in the 50 perentile of weight -- approximately 10 and 1/2 to 12 inches long and not even one full pound yet! I don't even want to think about what these little "karate chops" are going to feel like towards the end of nine months!
Below are some updated pictures of Baby Hunter taken during the ultrasound. I have to admit that the last one is my favorite!
Check out the legs on this baby! Dad couldn't stop commenting on them. Also, it appears that he or she has inherited Daddy's feet - notice the big toe is a bit shorter than the second . . . something I noticed right away. Brad couldn't be more proud!
Now, onto the big 30th birthday party! Yes, I have hit another landmark in my life and have decided to wholeheartedly embrace my 30's. After all, aren't the thirties the new twenties anyways? I have to say that my 30th birthday couldn't have started better - I received not one but three different gift deliveries that day, including a balloon and floral bouquet from Orla, a cookie bouquet (yum!) from the Murphy's, and a personal delivery of a dozen roses my husband. In that moment I decided that this was the result of one of two things: (1) People truly loved me, or (2) People felt sorry for me that I was turning 30. I opted to believe the first and went on with my day which included a lovely evening out with my husband. The birthday celebration continued with a quick visit from Christy, Chris and Kylie that following Saturday. We truly enjoyed our time together, and it's important to note that I received yet another bouquet of flowers. Once again, I was reminded of my recent feeling of being loved and a little concerned that I was running out of vases! Little did I know that the birthday fun was still not over . . . my friends were all accomplices to Brad's grand plan to get me downtown for a surprise birthday party. Thanks to the help of our friend and neighbor, Kristen, I unsuspectingly thought that I was simply meeting a few girlfriends out for dinner. When I reached the top floor of Gardella's Tavern, I soon saw many familiar faces and a few odd outfits which was later explained by Brad's choice of a totally 90's themed party. Yes, imagine pegged pants and the one shoulder overalls look. What were we thinking back then anyways? I digress. The best surprise of the entire night was walking in and seeing my Michael and Kelly's smiling faces . . . all the way from Florida! I couldn't believe that they made the trip up to Grand Rapids for the big event and was grateful to have some time with them for a few days. It was a wonderful evening and I feel especially blessed to have a husband who put that much time and effort into planning the party and making sure that my special birthday was marked with many special memories.
Which brings me to the last portion of our June celebrations . . . our 2 year wedding anniversary! Brad, we've been through so many exciting changes this year and I can't wait to see what's on the horizon. Thanks for making every day special and for being such a wonderful husband! Here's to 60 more . . .
Below are some updated pictures of Baby Hunter taken during the ultrasound. I have to admit that the last one is my favorite!
Check out the legs on this baby! Dad couldn't stop commenting on them. Also, it appears that he or she has inherited Daddy's feet - notice the big toe is a bit shorter than the second . . . something I noticed right away. Brad couldn't be more proud!
Now, onto the big 30th birthday party! Yes, I have hit another landmark in my life and have decided to wholeheartedly embrace my 30's. After all, aren't the thirties the new twenties anyways? I have to say that my 30th birthday couldn't have started better - I received not one but three different gift deliveries that day, including a balloon and floral bouquet from Orla, a cookie bouquet (yum!) from the Murphy's, and a personal delivery of a dozen roses my husband. In that moment I decided that this was the result of one of two things: (1) People truly loved me, or (2) People felt sorry for me that I was turning 30. I opted to believe the first and went on with my day which included a lovely evening out with my husband. The birthday celebration continued with a quick visit from Christy, Chris and Kylie that following Saturday. We truly enjoyed our time together, and it's important to note that I received yet another bouquet of flowers. Once again, I was reminded of my recent feeling of being loved and a little concerned that I was running out of vases! Little did I know that the birthday fun was still not over . . . my friends were all accomplices to Brad's grand plan to get me downtown for a surprise birthday party. Thanks to the help of our friend and neighbor, Kristen, I unsuspectingly thought that I was simply meeting a few girlfriends out for dinner. When I reached the top floor of Gardella's Tavern, I soon saw many familiar faces and a few odd outfits which was later explained by Brad's choice of a totally 90's themed party. Yes, imagine pegged pants and the one shoulder overalls look. What were we thinking back then anyways? I digress. The best surprise of the entire night was walking in and seeing my Michael and Kelly's smiling faces . . . all the way from Florida! I couldn't believe that they made the trip up to Grand Rapids for the big event and was grateful to have some time with them for a few days. It was a wonderful evening and I feel especially blessed to have a husband who put that much time and effort into planning the party and making sure that my special birthday was marked with many special memories.
Which brings me to the last portion of our June celebrations . . . our 2 year wedding anniversary! Brad, we've been through so many exciting changes this year and I can't wait to see what's on the horizon. Thanks for making every day special and for being such a wonderful husband! Here's to 60 more . . .
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
The Hunter's European Vacation (cont'd) . . .
The following is Brad's addendum to our trip, inspired on our flight back to Chicago . . .
"I guess I didn't realize . . .
• how lavish and ornate London is and
• how cool Howth, Ireland is,
• what my baby kicking felt like,
• how bad the air in London is,
• how much worse GWB (“W”) sounds when you’re overseas,
• how much better the Irish accent sounds,
• what 900 A.D. really feels like,
• what Guinness smells like over 10 city blocks,
• how afraid of heights I am,
• the importance of walks in the park,
• how big 800 Karats really is,
• what it really feels like to run aground,
• what Traverse City, MI looks like from 10,000 feet
• how hard traveling 8 hrs east can be
"I guess I didn't realize . . .
• how lavish and ornate London is and
• how cool Howth, Ireland is,
• what my baby kicking felt like,
• how bad the air in London is,
• how much worse GWB (“W”) sounds when you’re overseas,
• how much better the Irish accent sounds,
• what 900 A.D. really feels like,
• what Guinness smells like over 10 city blocks,
• how afraid of heights I am,
• the importance of walks in the park,
• how big 800 Karats really is,
• what it really feels like to run aground,
• what Traverse City, MI looks like from 10,000 feet
• how hard traveling 8 hrs east can be
The Hunter's European Vacation
Well, folks, we made it back safely! No, we didn't decide to extend our stay in Ireland a few more weeks. Life has just been so completely crazy since we have returned -- the month of June has just flown by! Anyways, more on that later. For now, I want to focus this entry on providing a brief recap of our wonderful European adventure, so here goes . . .
After our long transatlantic journey from Chicago, we safely landed in beautiful (but sligthly chilly) Dublin. There we were greeted by our wonderful hosts, Toni and Harry Gallagher (i.e., Mama & Papa G) as well as the rest of the Phoenix crew. As my blurry eyes tried to adjust to the whole concept of driving on the other side of the road, I said a few silent prayers for our safety over the next several days. Let's just say that there's no such thing as defensive driving in that neck of the woods! Anyways, once we arrived to the Gallagher residence we were immediately introduced to their beautiful neighborhood and surrounding area of Howth(rhymes with both), a fishing and yachting port that also serves as a popular suburban resort just outside of Dublin. We went hiking along Howth Head and it was everything we would have pictured Ireland to be - gorgeous cliffs, lots of greenery and a mixed bag of weather. As we took in the views of Dublin Bay, we were also privileged enough to get our own personal tour of the attractions, courtesy of Orla Gallagher. As much as we love her, we soon learned that Orla might not be the best candidate to give us proper history on what we were seeing. For instance, she told us that Lambay Island was once used as a lookout point for the Vikings. Papa G then chimed in and informed us that it was actually designed as a lookout for Napolean. Same difference, right?!? We continued exploring this quaint community throughout the day and enjoyed our first Guinness break at The Abbey Tavern, an infamous 16th century pub completely furnished with all the trimmings you would expect -- a blazing fire, original stone walls, sawdusted floors, and friendly faces. Advised by many to "push through" the jet lag, we had no choice but to continue our evening in the Temple Bar area of downtown Dublin. During our evening out, we had a true sampling of what Irish folks are all about. The places we visited were jam packed with Guinness-drinking, foot-stomping, and the occasional arse-bearing patrons. Even when we were in transit from one place to the next, many a folks could be found actually dancing in the street. I couldn't believe my eyes -- it was honestly like a scene out of a movie!! It was a proud moment for me as well. As the one pregnant lady in the group, I pushed through my fatigue and lasted until about 1 a.m. If you knew what my bedtime has been lately, you would be proud of me too!
The next day involved us taking advantage of our first full day in Ireland and touring downtown Dublin. Be sure to check out our pictures on our Flickr website because there's quite a few great shots. Highlights from this tour included seeing St. Stephen's Garden, Christ Church Cathedral and The Guinness Storehouse. Not surprisingly, we continued our evening in Dublin with dinner and drinks (stillwater for me) and had a wonderful time. Surprisingly, I was not the one to let the lingering affects of jetlag take over and actually fall asleep while we were out. Another proud moment for me, not so much for our friend Kristene!
The next three days began our lovely boat adventure from up the River Shannon which we learned was the longest river in both Ireland and Britain. We were excited to take in the scenic countryside views and enjoyed our relaxing cruise until we ran into our first slight glitch on the trip. After only one hour from our Banagher departure, we managed to, as seasoned sailors like to refer, "run aground". Unfortunately, Brad happened to be at the helm when it happened. He was slowly cruising along, smack in the middle of the river where he should have been, with Harry by his side. He began to notice the depth gauge was dramatically dropping to alarmingly low levels and alerted Harry. Harry, with a typical laid-back Irish attitude, confirmed that it was okay and that the river had been a bit low recently. Before another word could be uttered, the boat shook with a violent lurch and we heard sounds from the bottom of the boat that no one should ever hear (imagine the underwater scene from Titanic when you can see the iceberg actually scraping the side of the boat). After painstaking silence from the crew and futile efforts to get "unstuck", we were fortunate enough to be rescued by some German pirates. Yep, you heard me correctly. A boat of Germans flying the pirate flag actually towed us to safety -- apparently they were pros at this since they already had to do it three times prior that week! We then ported at the next stop of The Shannon Bridge to make sure that there was no damage. After another slight incident with German boaters involving the exchange of registration numbers -- Capt. Harry assured us that the strong wind was the culprit -- we safely docked and confirmed that the boat was clear for continued travel. We were so inspired by the news, that we were almost compelled to re-enact another Titanic moment -- Jack and Rose flying toward the sunset on the bow of the boat. Thankfully, we ignored those urges and kept things on the somewhat normal side. Apart from witnessing more nakedness from a overly-friendly stranger on his balcony (what is it with these Europeans?) the rest of the trip was relaxing and uneventful. Our first stop was Athlone, a quaint little port, where we were able to appreciate the Athlone Castle and Sean's Pub, the oldest pub in Ireland. The next day we cruised up to Lough Ree Lake and then turned back around to port our second evening at The Shannon Bridge. We enjoyed our evening and the rest of our boating excursion as we took in more countryside, when I determined that Irish cows have got it made with all of the lush green pastures available for grazing! On our drive back toward Dublin, we stopped off at Locke's Distillery in Kilbeggan where they are infamous for their strong Irish whiskey. Based on the smells emanating throughout the tour as well as the look on everyone's faces during their whiskey samples, the Irish don't mess around when it comes to their whiskey!
Part three of our European vacation brought Brad and I to the London portion of our trip. Accompanied by my friend and colleague, Mary, and her pretty German companion, Wolfgang, we took in London like there was no tomorrow. We were centrally located in the city and had wisely invested in the London Pass, which made it easy to take many of the sites. We were able to see Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, The Eye of London, St. James Park, Buckingham Palace, Wellington Arch, Hyde Park, Tower of London, Tower Bridge, the Britain at War exhibit, St. Paul's Cathedral, Picadilly Square, and The London Dungeon. As comfortable as my shoes were, my feet were still on fire after all of this sight-seeing. Part of that may have to do with traversing 530 in one stop alone! Believe it or not, I actually got my pregnant body all the way to the very top Golden Gallery of St. Paul's where we were able to take in the most breath-taking views of the city. It was entirely worth it, although I'm not sure that Brad would agree after the lengthy foot rub he had to give me later in the evening. Oh well, I promised myself that a little extra "baby baggage" wouldn't slow me down at all on my trip. It didn't and the baby even got to take the experience in utero!
Our return to Dublin for our final evening brought us to the close of our trip. I have to say that as our plane slowly descended over Ireland, it felt like we were coming home. As much as we enjoyed the hustle and bustle of London, we truly connected more with the laid-back pace and gorgeous scenery that Ireland had to offer. We were sad to end such an unforgettable trip, but new that our gracious hosts would welcome us back at any time. Who knows, with his/hers first taste of Ireland, maybe Baby Hunter would be curious for more someday!
After our long transatlantic journey from Chicago, we safely landed in beautiful (but sligthly chilly) Dublin. There we were greeted by our wonderful hosts, Toni and Harry Gallagher (i.e., Mama & Papa G) as well as the rest of the Phoenix crew. As my blurry eyes tried to adjust to the whole concept of driving on the other side of the road, I said a few silent prayers for our safety over the next several days. Let's just say that there's no such thing as defensive driving in that neck of the woods! Anyways, once we arrived to the Gallagher residence we were immediately introduced to their beautiful neighborhood and surrounding area of Howth(rhymes with both), a fishing and yachting port that also serves as a popular suburban resort just outside of Dublin. We went hiking along Howth Head and it was everything we would have pictured Ireland to be - gorgeous cliffs, lots of greenery and a mixed bag of weather. As we took in the views of Dublin Bay, we were also privileged enough to get our own personal tour of the attractions, courtesy of Orla Gallagher. As much as we love her, we soon learned that Orla might not be the best candidate to give us proper history on what we were seeing. For instance, she told us that Lambay Island was once used as a lookout point for the Vikings. Papa G then chimed in and informed us that it was actually designed as a lookout for Napolean. Same difference, right?!? We continued exploring this quaint community throughout the day and enjoyed our first Guinness break at The Abbey Tavern, an infamous 16th century pub completely furnished with all the trimmings you would expect -- a blazing fire, original stone walls, sawdusted floors, and friendly faces. Advised by many to "push through" the jet lag, we had no choice but to continue our evening in the Temple Bar area of downtown Dublin. During our evening out, we had a true sampling of what Irish folks are all about. The places we visited were jam packed with Guinness-drinking, foot-stomping, and the occasional arse-bearing patrons. Even when we were in transit from one place to the next, many a folks could be found actually dancing in the street. I couldn't believe my eyes -- it was honestly like a scene out of a movie!! It was a proud moment for me as well. As the one pregnant lady in the group, I pushed through my fatigue and lasted until about 1 a.m. If you knew what my bedtime has been lately, you would be proud of me too!
The next day involved us taking advantage of our first full day in Ireland and touring downtown Dublin. Be sure to check out our pictures on our Flickr website because there's quite a few great shots. Highlights from this tour included seeing St. Stephen's Garden, Christ Church Cathedral and The Guinness Storehouse. Not surprisingly, we continued our evening in Dublin with dinner and drinks (stillwater for me) and had a wonderful time. Surprisingly, I was not the one to let the lingering affects of jetlag take over and actually fall asleep while we were out. Another proud moment for me, not so much for our friend Kristene!
The next three days began our lovely boat adventure from up the River Shannon which we learned was the longest river in both Ireland and Britain. We were excited to take in the scenic countryside views and enjoyed our relaxing cruise until we ran into our first slight glitch on the trip. After only one hour from our Banagher departure, we managed to, as seasoned sailors like to refer, "run aground". Unfortunately, Brad happened to be at the helm when it happened. He was slowly cruising along, smack in the middle of the river where he should have been, with Harry by his side. He began to notice the depth gauge was dramatically dropping to alarmingly low levels and alerted Harry. Harry, with a typical laid-back Irish attitude, confirmed that it was okay and that the river had been a bit low recently. Before another word could be uttered, the boat shook with a violent lurch and we heard sounds from the bottom of the boat that no one should ever hear (imagine the underwater scene from Titanic when you can see the iceberg actually scraping the side of the boat). After painstaking silence from the crew and futile efforts to get "unstuck", we were fortunate enough to be rescued by some German pirates. Yep, you heard me correctly. A boat of Germans flying the pirate flag actually towed us to safety -- apparently they were pros at this since they already had to do it three times prior that week! We then ported at the next stop of The Shannon Bridge to make sure that there was no damage. After another slight incident with German boaters involving the exchange of registration numbers -- Capt. Harry assured us that the strong wind was the culprit -- we safely docked and confirmed that the boat was clear for continued travel. We were so inspired by the news, that we were almost compelled to re-enact another Titanic moment -- Jack and Rose flying toward the sunset on the bow of the boat. Thankfully, we ignored those urges and kept things on the somewhat normal side. Apart from witnessing more nakedness from a overly-friendly stranger on his balcony (what is it with these Europeans?) the rest of the trip was relaxing and uneventful. Our first stop was Athlone, a quaint little port, where we were able to appreciate the Athlone Castle and Sean's Pub, the oldest pub in Ireland. The next day we cruised up to Lough Ree Lake and then turned back around to port our second evening at The Shannon Bridge. We enjoyed our evening and the rest of our boating excursion as we took in more countryside, when I determined that Irish cows have got it made with all of the lush green pastures available for grazing! On our drive back toward Dublin, we stopped off at Locke's Distillery in Kilbeggan where they are infamous for their strong Irish whiskey. Based on the smells emanating throughout the tour as well as the look on everyone's faces during their whiskey samples, the Irish don't mess around when it comes to their whiskey!
Part three of our European vacation brought Brad and I to the London portion of our trip. Accompanied by my friend and colleague, Mary, and her pretty German companion, Wolfgang, we took in London like there was no tomorrow. We were centrally located in the city and had wisely invested in the London Pass, which made it easy to take many of the sites. We were able to see Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, The Eye of London, St. James Park, Buckingham Palace, Wellington Arch, Hyde Park, Tower of London, Tower Bridge, the Britain at War exhibit, St. Paul's Cathedral, Picadilly Square, and The London Dungeon. As comfortable as my shoes were, my feet were still on fire after all of this sight-seeing. Part of that may have to do with traversing 530 in one stop alone! Believe it or not, I actually got my pregnant body all the way to the very top Golden Gallery of St. Paul's where we were able to take in the most breath-taking views of the city. It was entirely worth it, although I'm not sure that Brad would agree after the lengthy foot rub he had to give me later in the evening. Oh well, I promised myself that a little extra "baby baggage" wouldn't slow me down at all on my trip. It didn't and the baby even got to take the experience in utero!
Our return to Dublin for our final evening brought us to the close of our trip. I have to say that as our plane slowly descended over Ireland, it felt like we were coming home. As much as we enjoyed the hustle and bustle of London, we truly connected more with the laid-back pace and gorgeous scenery that Ireland had to offer. We were sad to end such an unforgettable trip, but new that our gracious hosts would welcome us back at any time. Who knows, with his/hers first taste of Ireland, maybe Baby Hunter would be curious for more someday!
Friday, May 25, 2007
Off to the Emerald Isle . . .
The day has finally come -- we depart on our big trip to Ireland today! With the exception of a few last minute items, we are mostly packed and ready to go. Our flight leaves from Chicago this evening as we travel through the night overseas. We'll reach our final destination of Dublin bright and early tomorrow morning where we'll be greeted by the native Gallagher family. We absolutely can't wait to take in the sights and immerse ourselves in the wonder of Irish culture. Who knows . . . maybe we'll even come back with accents?!? We'll be sure to update you with many pictures and tales from our trip upon our return. In the meantime, here's a fun little snapshot into the Irish culture that translates some popular Irish slang into our own (more understandable) terms:
Arseways = complete mess (I did it all arseways)
Bag of Taytos = packet of potato chips/crisps
Black Stuff = Guinness
Culchie = a city dweller's name for a country person
Dry Shite = boring person
Eejit = idiot
Fluthered = very drunk
Gas = funny
Hollier = holiday, vacation
Holy show = embarrassing exhibition
I am in me wick = I am not!
Jackeen = a country person's name for somebody that lives in Dublin
Kip = to have a shortsiesta, rest
Knackered = fatigued very tired
Legging (it) = running fast
Mary Hick = old-fashioned female
Nappy = Diaper
Off your nut = mad, crazy
Pull your socks up = Get to work/get busy
Queer hawk = peculiar person
Runners = trainers, everyday sports shoes
Snog, Shift = to make out, kiss
Twistin' hay = means you're starting trouble, usually in a playful way
Up the pole = pregnant
Wanker = a person you don't like
Y-Fronts = Men's briefs
Hmmm . . . this should be interesting. So, since I'm up a pole I'm hoping that everything will go smoothly for us today so we won't have to leg it through the airport. After all, I won't have my runners handy! Hopefully, the flight will go without a hitch and we can squeeze a kip or two in as I'm sure we'll both be knackered. Once we arrive and join our Jackeen hosts, our true hollier will begin and we can pull up socks and get ready to enjoy ourselves . . . as long as we don't meet any wankers. I think I'm getting the hang of this already! Either that or I've gone completely off my nut!!
Arseways = complete mess (I did it all arseways)
Bag of Taytos = packet of potato chips/crisps
Black Stuff = Guinness
Culchie = a city dweller's name for a country person
Dry Shite = boring person
Eejit = idiot
Fluthered = very drunk
Gas = funny
Hollier = holiday, vacation
Holy show = embarrassing exhibition
I am in me wick = I am not!
Jackeen = a country person's name for somebody that lives in Dublin
Kip = to have a shortsiesta, rest
Knackered = fatigued very tired
Legging (it) = running fast
Mary Hick = old-fashioned female
Nappy = Diaper
Off your nut = mad, crazy
Pull your socks up = Get to work/get busy
Queer hawk = peculiar person
Runners = trainers, everyday sports shoes
Snog, Shift = to make out, kiss
Twistin' hay = means you're starting trouble, usually in a playful way
Up the pole = pregnant
Wanker = a person you don't like
Y-Fronts = Men's briefs
Hmmm . . . this should be interesting. So, since I'm up a pole I'm hoping that everything will go smoothly for us today so we won't have to leg it through the airport. After all, I won't have my runners handy! Hopefully, the flight will go without a hitch and we can squeeze a kip or two in as I'm sure we'll both be knackered. Once we arrive and join our Jackeen hosts, our true hollier will begin and we can pull up socks and get ready to enjoy ourselves . . . as long as we don't meet any wankers. I think I'm getting the hang of this already! Either that or I've gone completely off my nut!!
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
Beans, Strawberries, and Sweet Potatoes . . . Oh My!
Why is it that everything that I've been reading from the beginning of this pregnancy has compared our little fetus to some sort of food item?!? Over the past few months we've found ourselves immersed in many developmental accounts that allow us to track the progression of the baby's growth. First, the baby was likened to the size of a pea, then a bean, then a strawberry which led Brad to question whether it was like an organically grown strawberry or a hormonally injected strawberry . . . a valid question, I think! 
Then our journey led our little one to become the size of a pickle and now a large sweet potato. Seriously, if you don't believe me see the excerpt below from pregnancy.org detailing the 18th week of development.
"Head to bottom, your baby is approximately 5 1/2 inches long (about the length of a large sweet potato), and she weighs almost 7 ounces. She's busy flexing her arms and legs — movements that you'll likely start noticing more and more. Myelin (a protective covering) is beginning to form around her nerves, a process that will continue for a year after she's born. If you're having a girl, her uterus and fallopian tubes are formed and in place. If your baby is a boy , his genitals are noticeable, though he may hide them from you during an ultrasound."
My only thought is that pregnant women must have written all of these detailed developmental accounts. With food becoming an ever-present part of a pregnant woman's daily thought patterns that's the only explanation that I can come up with! What's next . . . a squash, a cantaloupe, a loaf of bread?!? Only time will tell, but I think I'll go grab a snack in the meantime . . .
Then our journey led our little one to become the size of a pickle and now a large sweet potato. Seriously, if you don't believe me see the excerpt below from pregnancy.org detailing the 18th week of development.
"Head to bottom, your baby is approximately 5 1/2 inches long (about the length of a large sweet potato), and she weighs almost 7 ounces. She's busy flexing her arms and legs — movements that you'll likely start noticing more and more. Myelin (a protective covering) is beginning to form around her nerves, a process that will continue for a year after she's born. If you're having a girl, her uterus and fallopian tubes are formed and in place. If your baby is a boy , his genitals are noticeable, though he may hide them from you during an ultrasound."
My only thought is that pregnant women must have written all of these detailed developmental accounts. With food becoming an ever-present part of a pregnant woman's daily thought patterns that's the only explanation that I can come up with! What's next . . . a squash, a cantaloupe, a loaf of bread?!? Only time will tell, but I think I'll go grab a snack in the meantime . . .
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
The Summer Tour of 2007 . . .
Okay, so I have been a little bit of a slacker on the blog lately, but I promise that I will get better now that I actually have some free time. Yeah right, what's that?!? I recently just completed several faculty contracts that I've been working on over the past few months. As much as I love teaching, three classes at once in addition to some additional contracts is a bit much! I think it might be time for a little break so I can begin to focus on some more important things like, um, . . . getting organized!
In addition to a very active work schedule, we've also managed to keep ourselves busy with the our ever-increasing summer travels. We're actually referring to it as The Summer Tour of 2007 -- we'll be selling T-shirts if anyone is interested. We kicked off our tour a few weeks ago with a visit to the Detroit area. We had the opportunity to spend time with both family and friends and especially enjoyed meeting the Suggs' latest addition to their family, Kylie. We were so excited to meet her and see our friends take to parenting so naturally. Congratulations, Christy and Chris! Below are some pictures of little Kylie . . . and I mean little since she was born a month early! I especially love the shot where she's hiding her face from the paparrazi.
The following weekend continued our travels to Chicago to visit sister Sarah. We had a relaxing time visiting with Sarah and enjoyed being able to see her new condo in the heart of Wrigleyville. We even got to take in a little sight seeing with a visit to the Museum of Science and Industry. A little bit of fun and education at the same time . . . you can't beat that! Our excursion went well until we were almost escorted out by a security guard. Toward the end of our visit, we stumbled upon the Prenatal Exhibit. Unfortunately, we only had a few minutes before the museum was set to close and we got stuck in line behind a 10-year-old who was a bit overeager and decided that she needed to read every word of every display of the 40 week journey. Needless to say, we didn't get through the whole exhibit, but what we did see was amazing! Despite the security guard's threatening demeanor and intimidating fake walkie-talkie call for backup, I appreciate Brad's valiant efforts to stay put with the exclamation, "My wife is pregnant and we're here to learn!" Nice try, honey!
The next weekend we actually returned to Detroit for Christy's surprise 30th birthday party. As much as we enjoyed being able to visit once again with friends and family, we had to quickly return to Grand Rapids on Saturday for another friend's birthday. We simply couldn't resist a little Cinco de Mayo celebration! I think Nathan was in agreeance as he got an early start on the celebrating. Check out the hungry man below.
This brings us to last weekend which consisted of our long awaited return to the Valley of the Sun. I was awarded "Top Performer" status in our company and, therefore, we were able to enjoy an expense paid visit to the Desert Ridge Marriott resort. We enjoyed our time spent with colleagues, friends, family -- not to mention that we even had the opportunity to relax in the Marriott's very own "lazy river" (think UOP meets MTV Spring Break). Anyways, a good time was had by all. The highlight of my weekend was being able to see my girlfriends again - especially being able to join the gang to celebrate Orla's birthday. Not only was I able to visit to some of my old favorite hangouts, but I was able to witness the interesting progression of the night which ended with some of the girls talking to the baby through my belly button and some very not-so-flattering pictures (see below for example of Vogue-like picture of me with the birthday girl).
As much as we enjoyed our time there, can I say that it was so HOT that I'm not sure that I'm looking forward to my return trip in July. My body has definitely adjusted back to the more moderate Michigan temps and I'm not sure how I will handle even hotter temps (100+ degrees) when I'm even more pregnant (6+ months). I guess we'll just have to wait and see! We will most certainly keep you updated as the adventure of The Summer Tour of 2007 continues . . .
In pregnancy news, we had another appointment a few weeks ago and were able to hear the heartbeat. No hiding from us this time! It was so wonderful to hear such a strong and fast heartbeat and, more importantly, to know that everything is progressing normally. We are so grateful that everything is going so smoothly!! We'll be sure to keep you updated as we have our next appointment right around the corner which will include the big ultrasound. And, for those of you who might be wondering, we are NOT finding out the sex of the baby! After all, isn't that the way that God intended it ; )?!?
In addition to a very active work schedule, we've also managed to keep ourselves busy with the our ever-increasing summer travels. We're actually referring to it as The Summer Tour of 2007 -- we'll be selling T-shirts if anyone is interested. We kicked off our tour a few weeks ago with a visit to the Detroit area. We had the opportunity to spend time with both family and friends and especially enjoyed meeting the Suggs' latest addition to their family, Kylie. We were so excited to meet her and see our friends take to parenting so naturally. Congratulations, Christy and Chris! Below are some pictures of little Kylie . . . and I mean little since she was born a month early! I especially love the shot where she's hiding her face from the paparrazi.
The following weekend continued our travels to Chicago to visit sister Sarah. We had a relaxing time visiting with Sarah and enjoyed being able to see her new condo in the heart of Wrigleyville. We even got to take in a little sight seeing with a visit to the Museum of Science and Industry. A little bit of fun and education at the same time . . . you can't beat that! Our excursion went well until we were almost escorted out by a security guard. Toward the end of our visit, we stumbled upon the Prenatal Exhibit. Unfortunately, we only had a few minutes before the museum was set to close and we got stuck in line behind a 10-year-old who was a bit overeager and decided that she needed to read every word of every display of the 40 week journey. Needless to say, we didn't get through the whole exhibit, but what we did see was amazing! Despite the security guard's threatening demeanor and intimidating fake walkie-talkie call for backup, I appreciate Brad's valiant efforts to stay put with the exclamation, "My wife is pregnant and we're here to learn!" Nice try, honey!
The next weekend we actually returned to Detroit for Christy's surprise 30th birthday party. As much as we enjoyed being able to visit once again with friends and family, we had to quickly return to Grand Rapids on Saturday for another friend's birthday. We simply couldn't resist a little Cinco de Mayo celebration! I think Nathan was in agreeance as he got an early start on the celebrating. Check out the hungry man below.
This brings us to last weekend which consisted of our long awaited return to the Valley of the Sun. I was awarded "Top Performer" status in our company and, therefore, we were able to enjoy an expense paid visit to the Desert Ridge Marriott resort. We enjoyed our time spent with colleagues, friends, family -- not to mention that we even had the opportunity to relax in the Marriott's very own "lazy river" (think UOP meets MTV Spring Break). Anyways, a good time was had by all. The highlight of my weekend was being able to see my girlfriends again - especially being able to join the gang to celebrate Orla's birthday. Not only was I able to visit to some of my old favorite hangouts, but I was able to witness the interesting progression of the night which ended with some of the girls talking to the baby through my belly button and some very not-so-flattering pictures (see below for example of Vogue-like picture of me with the birthday girl).
As much as we enjoyed our time there, can I say that it was so HOT that I'm not sure that I'm looking forward to my return trip in July. My body has definitely adjusted back to the more moderate Michigan temps and I'm not sure how I will handle even hotter temps (100+ degrees) when I'm even more pregnant (6+ months). I guess we'll just have to wait and see! We will most certainly keep you updated as the adventure of The Summer Tour of 2007 continues . . .
In pregnancy news, we had another appointment a few weeks ago and were able to hear the heartbeat. No hiding from us this time! It was so wonderful to hear such a strong and fast heartbeat and, more importantly, to know that everything is progressing normally. We are so grateful that everything is going so smoothly!! We'll be sure to keep you updated as we have our next appointment right around the corner which will include the big ultrasound. And, for those of you who might be wondering, we are NOT finding out the sex of the baby! After all, isn't that the way that God intended it ; )?!?
Friday, April 13, 2007
Wedding Bliss
This past week has entailed some long hours on the computer. . . way more than I'd ever like to admit! Although the majority of this time was dedicated to work-related responsibilities, I was able to play around a bit with our blog and make some enhancements. I'd like to say that I figured it all out on my own, but I'd be completely lying! Thankfully one of my colleagues (and resident blogging expert), Nicky, was able to walk me through the process of including some long awaited photos on our page. I am so grateful for her technical know-how!
Anyways, as you can see from our new and improved page, we've now been able to link directly to our flickr photo site. If you click on any of the pictures located under our Hunter Highlight's Photos section, you will be taken directly to that picture within our flickr account. From what I'm told, you can download and save any of these photos to your own computer - so feel free to grab any that you like! You'll see that we finally uploaded some great pictures from Michael and Kelly's wedding. I hope you enjoy them . . . how can you go wrong with a little love, the luck of the Irish and the sensational croonings of the Baccala's?!?
Feel free to leave us a comment and let us know what you think!
Anyways, as you can see from our new and improved page, we've now been able to link directly to our flickr photo site. If you click on any of the pictures located under our Hunter Highlight's Photos section, you will be taken directly to that picture within our flickr account. From what I'm told, you can download and save any of these photos to your own computer - so feel free to grab any that you like! You'll see that we finally uploaded some great pictures from Michael and Kelly's wedding. I hope you enjoy them . . . how can you go wrong with a little love, the luck of the Irish and the sensational croonings of the Baccala's?!?
Feel free to leave us a comment and let us know what you think!
Friday, April 6, 2007
The Maiden Voyage . . .
Well, I can't believe that we've actually done it -- we're finally catching up with the times and starting an official family blog! With so many friends and family spread all over the country, we couldn't think of a better way to keep you updated with all of the latest news in our life . . . not to mention that we will finally be able to share pictures with everyone without the wait time of approximately one year! If you've had a chance to browse around our page, then you've probably guessed our news. Yes, we have officially taken the plunge and decided to venture into the wonderful world of parenthood! Our very first little baby Hunter is scheduled to arrive sometime in the Fall -- October 15th is the official due date as of now, but that's subject to change.
Now that we're out of the first three months, I'm feeling a bit more human again. The nausea has passed and I'm slowly regaining my energy. We actually had a doctor's appointment this morning and they did confirm that we have a healthy growing being developing right inside of me! At first, the doctor was unable to hear the heartbeat with the doppler, but she assured us that it was perfectly normal. She immediately wisked us off to another room where she let us have an unscheduled ultrasound. What a relief to us - I like her already! As soon as she got an image, we couldn't believe our eyes. We saw our mini-baby flailing about and being quite active in there. We could clearly see the head, the spine and even the flashing light that represented it's tiny, but fast heartbeat. You can take a look at the picture below that we have from our ultrasound. Brad already thinks it looks like him, which made me laugh. He might be on to something, though -- if you notice from the picture the most discernable feature is the baby's ears!
As we begin this adventure, we feel truly blessed! We are excited to share these moments with those that we love and welcome comments at any time. Even though we are still amateur bloggers, we plan on making many upgrades and changes to our page . . . stay tuned!
Now that we're out of the first three months, I'm feeling a bit more human again. The nausea has passed and I'm slowly regaining my energy. We actually had a doctor's appointment this morning and they did confirm that we have a healthy growing being developing right inside of me! At first, the doctor was unable to hear the heartbeat with the doppler, but she assured us that it was perfectly normal. She immediately wisked us off to another room where she let us have an unscheduled ultrasound. What a relief to us - I like her already! As soon as she got an image, we couldn't believe our eyes. We saw our mini-baby flailing about and being quite active in there. We could clearly see the head, the spine and even the flashing light that represented it's tiny, but fast heartbeat. You can take a look at the picture below that we have from our ultrasound. Brad already thinks it looks like him, which made me laugh. He might be on to something, though -- if you notice from the picture the most discernable feature is the baby's ears!
As we begin this adventure, we feel truly blessed! We are excited to share these moments with those that we love and welcome comments at any time. Even though we are still amateur bloggers, we plan on making many upgrades and changes to our page . . . stay tuned!
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