Biscuit's Boyfriend

My dog has a boyfriend. No, it's not another dog. It's a bear. A stuffed bear that we have named BB. BB stands for Biscuit's Boyfriend. She has had him since October and she is completely smitten. Actually, Rian's Dad and step-mom bought BB for the baby, but Biscuit instantly fell in love with him and I'm not sure she will ever let the baby have him. He has been sitting on the back of our couch since October. Biscuit doesn't want anyone to move him or touch him but her. She's never rough with him and doesn't want to play with him like her other stuffed toys, she just wants to kiss (lick) him and love him. It's the craziest thing I've ever seen. Today I decided to put BB in the baby's room. Biscuit hadn't really paid much attention to him for a few days, and she was outside, so I decided she wouldn't notice if I took him in the baby's room. WRONG! Oh, she noticed. And she was upset when she noticed he wasn't on the back of the couch anymore. The funniest thing was that she knew exactly where to find him. She went running into the nursery and immediately saw BB sitting in the baby's cradle. Boy, was she upset and she wanted him OUT! I didn't want her rocking the cradle with her paws, so I had to take BB out of the cradle and bring him back out in the living room to sit on the back of the couch. Biscuit has had an eagle eye on him ever since. I think that BB is now a permanent fixture in our living room. It's definiately true love.

Got Rock?

We do! Check out the progress on our house:



There is tons (almost literally) of rock to be dug out for our new house. It is crazy!

Progress on our house

There was some progress on our house yesterday. They are clearing off the brush and the trees. Here is a picture:

The strange powers of American Idol

I love the first few episodes of American Idol. You know, the ones where people who think they can sing get up in front of the judges and belt out 'I Will Survive' or some other crazy song. This show makes me laugh out loud. It's funny. I can't believe these people don't have friends or family who are willing to save them from the humiliation. I guess it wouldn't be good TV if it weren't for these people getting up and trying to find fame and fortune!

Anyway, last night I was watching the show and when I got up the pain in my pelvis was gone. I felt like dancing! I laced up my tennis shoes and told Rian I was going to walk on the treadmill because suddenly my pain was gone and I was walking like a normal human being again. He said, "are you sure you want to risk it? You've had non-stop pain for 2 weeks and now you're going to risk the one time you don't have pain?" Hmm.. he was right. I needed to get some stuff done! So, I cleaned the guest bath and hung the rest of the pictures in the baby's room. It was so nice to feel somewhat normal again. I still had some pressure, but it was more like achiness or soreness rather than the pain I had been feeling for weeks. Was it the wonder of American Idol that took away my pain? I doubt it. But maybe the laughing out loud helped a bit. Listening to some of those people 'sing' was painful enough.

Welcome to the world Sebastian!

Our friends had their baby, Sebastian, last week. We got our first look at "the boy", as is he affectionately called by his father, on Sunday. He is absolutely precious. Seeing the looks on our friends faces made us realize how worth it all it really is. And although they looked tired and weary from the long nights with a newborn baby, the glow in their eyes was unmistakable. They had made this beautiful, precious, human being that they adored more than anything on the face of the earth. Now it seems we are more impatient than before. I'm ready to get a good look at our little one. I can only imagine what it will be like when we see her for the first time.

In other news, they started on our new house this week. Mostly all they have done is removed trees and pushed some dirt around. It's still VERY exciting. I still can't believe we're taking on the stress of a newborn baby and a brand new house at the same time. What a great year this will be for us. Here is a picture before they started:



I will periodically add pictures so we can keep track of the progress since it will be a long 12 months (or so) before the house is built.

Toilet Paper Never Lies

Odd title, huh? Appropriate enough for the situation. I have been measuring my belly with toilet paper. Strange but true. When I started out, I was about 8 squares. Today, 5 1/2 weeks from my due date, I am a whopping 11 squares. YIKES! Whatever way you slice it, I am big and I am ready to be done.

This has been the hardest part of my pregnancy so far because of the pain and pressure in my pelvis. I feel like this baby is just going to fall out of me. I wish it were that easy! If it's this painful now, what is the actual birth going to be like?!? I'm like an old lady that needs one of those lift chairs to get up. I can hardly walk anymore. So much for exercise. It's a huge effort for me to walk from the living room to the kitchen. Oh, and forget sleeping. I can't get comfortable, and just when I do, something starts hurting and I wake up and need to roll over again. And THAT takes effort.

It's all worth it in the end. I just wish the end was nearer!

Who are you and why are you here?

Here we are. Rian, Amy, Biscuit and Bagel Sand. As of today, it's just the 4 of us. Just the 2 of us if you don't count the adorable 4 legged creatures, but we certainly see them as part of our family. Today, they are our babies. In approximately 6 weeks, their lives (as well as our lives) will change forever. You see, on February 25th, 2005, we are expecting our first child. I decided I needed a way to chronicle the changes we go through as we embark upon this new endeavor. I think the reality of it all is finally hitting home. Yesterday we had our pre-admission appointment at the hospital. After finishing, we realized, "wow, these people are going to let us bring home a baby in about 6 weeks!" Scary thought... or is it? Scary or maybe exciting. Or both. I think both. We did 'graduate' from baby class, so we're qualified to be parents, right? We didn't even have a final exam. Are they sure we passed? No matter, I'm sure we'll be the best parents that we can possibly be. I think we're ready. Maybe it's not that we're 'ready' per say, just impatient. This pregnancy stuff isn't easy, and it only gets harder as you go along. The morning sickness, the fatigue, the ever changing shape of the body. Now with 6 weeks to go, there are more aches and pains than most of you can imagine. (unless of course you have been pregnant!) So... all of this leads to the impatience. Besides, I just want to meet my little one.

So anyway, welcome to our blog. It's sure to be an interesting ride. (Well, to us anyway!)