Rock Chalk Jayhawks!

I ventured down to see friends in Kansas City and Lawrence this weekend (sans Dave because he had a lot of real estate things going on). It was a whirlwind weekend, but I had a lot of fun catching up with my KU friends.

On Saturday, I met Andrea for lunch at this fabulous organic restaurant in Kansas City called Blue Bird Bistro. I used to go there for lunch every once in a while when I lived in Kansas City, and I always got this yummy tomato sandwich. Their menu has changed since I frequented the restaurant, but the food is still wonderful - I highly recommend trying it out if you're every in the downtown Kansas City area and looking for a one-of-a-kind place to eat.

After lunch, I headed to Lawrence. I always enjoy driving into Lawrence...I'm quickly transported back to my KU days as I drive into town on 27th Street. I love, love, love Lawrence; it's the quintessential college town, full of tradition and spirit. And although some store fronts and buildings have changed since I graduated in 2002, much is still the same.

Tim and Kyly, two college friends of mine, live in Lawrence, and they just had their first baby in November - a sweet baby boy named Anderson. This was my first time meeting their new addition, and holy cow - he is a spitting image of his father. He has the same eyes and easy smile, and at four months, he's already a flirt. Here's a picture of me holding Anderson:



Two more college friends, Ali and Josh, joined us for dinner at Free State, the restaurant / brewery on Mass St. that nearly every KU grad touts as their favorite. Their beer rocks, and their food is even better. There's almost always a wait for a table at Free State, but not to worry - there's plenty of room to wait by the bar while enjoying one of their many seasonal beers. Of course, I drank water this time around instead of my usual Wheat State Golden...I figure I'll make up for that the next time I find myself in Lawrence.

On Sunday morning, I drove back to Kansas City to have brunch with Ryan and Christy - and it was Christy's birthday! Glad I could be a part of it! We had a lovely time catching up over eggs and pancakes at First Watch.

I missed watching my KU Jayhawks beat the Dayton Flyers in the NCAA tournament since I was driving back to Omaha during the game, but the weekend seeing friends made it all worth it. Crazy to think that the next time I set foot in Kansas, I will be a mom!!!

And to wrap up this post, here's my 24 week belly picture:

Ali's Trip to Florida

I'll be honest...I've never been a huge fan of Florida, but my good friend, Darcie, and her husband, Josh, live in Jacksonville. Josh is going to law school down there and will be done this summer - then they are promptly moving to Denver. In any event, when an opportunity to go to a training class for work at Disney World in Orlando came up, I took it so I could visit Darcie (not so I could get my picture taken with Mickey Mouse).

I was in Disney World for five full days (February 22 - 27), and I'm going to come off sounding like Scrooge saying this, but Disney World is not my cup of tea. There are many reasons, but let it suffice to say that I just don't understand why one would go to Disney World for vacation when there are so many wonderful real cities and vacation destinations out there to discover...places with culture, real people, and restaurants that do not serve butter in the shape of Mickey's head. Yes, it's fun to take children there for a day or two, but as expensive as Disney World is, you could take a family of four to Europe for a week for the same price as it costs to spend a week in Disney World, a completely fabricated place.

I escaped the confines of the "happiest place on earth" on that fifth day and drove north to Jacksonville to spend the weekend with Darcie, Josh, and our friend, Aly, that flew down from Chicago for the weekend. Aly and I were loving the warm weather (being the Midwestern dwellers that we are), and I think my favorite part of the whole weekend was Saturday morning: Aly, Darcie, and I put on sun dresses, got coffee, and walked barefoot along the beach. Pure bliss after a long, cold winter.

Here's a picture of Aly and I in St. Augustine - and, yes, I'm also posing in it for my 21 week belly picture:


I returned from Florida on March 1 and was happy to hear that I missed 4 inches of snow in Omaha while I was gone (maybe spending 5 days in Disney World had its merits after all). And now I'm keeping my fingers crossed that spring makes an early arrival this year and that Nebraska is done with snow until December - here's to hoping!

Mojo is Half-Baked Today!

I can't believe that we're already half-way done with this journey; Mojo is exactly 20 weeks today. We had our big ultrasound on Thursday, and it was such a cool experience - we got to see Mojo for almost an entire hour! The ultrasound tech took measurements of everything: the brain, heart, bladder, arms, legs, neck, etc. Everything was measuring perfectly! This was a big relief to us because although good measurements don't rule out all birth defects, it does greatly increase our chances of having a healthy baby.

Here are some pictures from the 19 weeks 5 days ultrasound:

A sideways view of Mojo's head with arms holding head

A shot of Mojo's foot (toes are on the left)

And here's an updated belly pic of me at 19 weeks 5 days:


The day I've been looking forward to since Christmas finally got here - the first day of the Lenten fish fries! Lent doesn't officially start until this coming Wednesday, but Holy Name always has their first fish fry the Friday before Ash Wednesday. And you'd better believe that Dave and I were out there in line last night! Our friends Lyndsay, Nate, and Damon joined us for the occasion. I will say the whole fish fry experience is much different for me this year since I can't drink beer with everyone else, but it was still a really good time, and we're looking forward to hitting more of them in the weeks to come.

18 Weeks and Nina's New Ride

Nina, our darling and mischievous little cat, is obviously unaware at this point that her life is going to change completely in a few months when Mojo arrives...but she has enjoyed being a part of the preparations thus far. Here is a picture of her sitting in the stroller we got:



And here's my 18 week belly picture:

First Belly Picture!

Somehow, over the course of the weekend, I went from looking fat to actually looking pregnant. Yay! That means I will be making Dave take weekly belly pictures of me starting now! Here's the one from this morning at 17 weeks:


In other news, it is Groundhog Day, and that darn little rodent has predicted another 6 weeks of winter. Groundhogs suck.

And so it begins...

Dave and I are blessed with family and friends all over the world, and with so much going on in everyone's lives, we decided to start a blog to simplify communication on our end. So on this cold winter day in January 2009 (when I apparently have nothing more pressing to do), it begins.

As many of you know, we're expecting our first child in July! We are over-the-moon excited and can't wait to meet Mojo in a few months! (Mojo is the "name" we've given to our little baby while he/she is in the womb.) I've already started planning the nursery, and to Dave's dismay, spending money on things for Mojo. It's so fun to shop for babies! :)

Here are a couple of Mojo's first pictures:

Mojo swimming around at 8 weeks 4 days
(taken on December 3, 2008)

Mojo showing off his/her backside at 15 weeks 6 days
(taken on January 23, 2009)

Our next appointment is scheduled for February 19 when I'll be 19 weeks 5 days - and it will be our "big" ultrasound where they do the anatomy scan and we *could* find out if it's a boy or a girl if we wanted to...but we don't. ;) We'll be keeping that a surprise from everyone, including ourselves, until the day Mojo comes into this world!

We have picked out both a boy and a girl name:

Boy: William Ralph
This name is after both of our fathers. We'll call him "Liam", which is an Irish nickname for William.

Girl: Gillian Bella
This is after my dear Grandpa Gil that passed away in June 2008. It's pronounced just like its alternative spelling, Jillian. Bella is a tribute to my deep-seeded love for all things Italian (it means "beautiful" in Italian).