cultivating an heirloom

Well here we are at 19 weeks. It's hard to believe that we are almost 1/2 done with this pregnancy! The little tyke has had a busy week. It's busy growing hair sprouts and kicking me =) It's very light, but it's getting more regular, and I'm pretty sure that's what I am feeling! It doesn't feel like gas or a flutter or anything that the 'books' say, but I am pretty sure about it. We know the baby is doing well because we've been listening to the heartbeat once a week or so. I 'borrowed' a fetal doppler from work....who wants to wait 4 weeks to hear the heartbeat when you could do it anytime? It's always 150 or above, so we'll have to see if that old wives' tale holds up. Our ultrasound is on Monday, Aug 2nd. If that baby makes it obvious, we may just know the gender in a matter of days. Otherwise, we'll be waiting until December.

I am still wearing regular clothes, but I did buy my first pair of maternity jeans the other day for $4.11. I went to the Mercer Island Thrift Store. Let me just tell you, Mercer Island is one of the swankiest/most affluent neighborhoods in all of Seattle, so their 'hand me downs' are my idea of great clothes. I think I will frequent their thrift store often!


19 weeks. You can see the outline of the belly band. Note to self, do not wear belly band under white shirt.

Last week I feel like I ripped on Seattle a bit. I am trying to change my attitude because I really could live here for many more years. That wouldn't be my preference, but I still need to focus on Seattle's great attributes!

You can great fresh crab for $3 a pound... and it's delicious! I love this picture of Mike.

I think I could eat two in one sitting.

Last Sunday we went blueberry picking.. $1.25 a pound! We have enough blueberries to last us for weeks, and we've been putting them on everything: ice cream, cereal, salads, you name it.

The great thing about picking blueberries is that it's super easy to tell when they are ripe!

This is a picture from Alki beach yesterday. It's my absolute favorite place in the whole city, and it's just stunning when the sun shines.

                   If you come out to Seattle, we can have a bonfire on this beach. Does that tempt anyone?

I also wanted to post the link to Britt's Home Depot commercial in case you haven't seen it. You can see her at 11 seconds and then later painting!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mw0nGAzGUSM

We'll post pics from the ultrasound on Monday! Love, Heather, Mike, and the Little Tyke

little tyke's first sound

little tyke's first sound was a big giant airplane...

Though Mike has been playing classical music to stimulate brain development since we got pregnant, we are both fairly certain that the baby's first sound was a soaring F-18.

Varying resources report that the sensorineural function of the ears turns on right around now. The external ears have been formed for a while, and they've been migrating closer and closer to their final position each week. Of course we don't totally know when the baby can hear, but we are pretty sure last Sunday provided several loud noise opportunities.

We went down to an air show at Joint Base Lewis- McChord in Puyallup, WA. Our friend Kim's brother was flying C-17 demonstrations, so we had to go check it out! Capt. Brian Dodson did a wonderful job.

           Mike sitting inside the C-17. It's a huge, 4-engine military cargo airplane.

                                                          C-17 in flight.

We were also thrilled to see this PBY, circa the late 1930s. This is the plane that Grandpa Earl Wade flew as a Navy officer in WWII out of Hawaii and the South Pacific. These planes are a rare find, so we took lots of pictures. Dave Wade, these are for you!

         Pilot Mike, at your service.

Quick pic of the overhead throttle controls (wording here assisted by none other than Mike Wade)

Vintage cockpit

Pretty PBY Catalina (Patrol Bomber) Y is the code used for the aircraft manufacturer. 

 Thanks Grandpa Wade for serving our country and fighting for our freedom.

We are growing the 4th generation of aerospace passion in the womb right now. It's first sound was an airplane, and if it's anything like Mike, it's first word will be airplane too.

sweet baby bell pepper

It's been a big week for baby. He's busy flexing his arms and legs, blood vessels are visible through his skin, and myelin is beginning to form around his nerves. The girl vs boy parts are clearly evident, and even visible on ultrasound. Other big news is that baby's wardrobe doubled in size this week. It appears that Grandma Cooper and Aunt Debbie went shopping at the Carter outlet at the Lake. Baby Wade is so excited about it's new outfits! Mamma Wade loves getting fun packages in the mail.

   Check out these cute bibs!
 

I love the feet and the polka dots! Mike and I have a hard time believing that something this size will actually
come out of me in 5 months!

The baby has a long way to go from bell pepper to newborn size. Mike and I were trying to figure out the best angle to show off the bump, and he recommended that I 'stand like a baseball player'. Once I had that helpful hint, I found the perfect position. I look forward to the day my belly sticks out further than my back end. With my luck, my back end will grow at the same rate. One blessing is that I should have great birthing hips.  All is going well with the pregnancy. I feel great, and I've even been able to run some again.

Mike and I have begun the daunting task of searching for baby gear. We've been 'stroller' shopping at Seattle's parks, and it appears that the hip stroller in Seattle is the "Bob" jogger. Turns out that the Bob isn't in our budget. Where do people in Seattle get all of this money? If you are reading this and you have any input on strollers, cribs, car seats, cloth diapers, etc... feel free to send them our way!

I was about to sign off, but I just have to tell you that the weather man just came on TV and said 'Summer is about to storm back'.  When he says storm, he is speaking of the low 80s. You also need to know that for the past 5 days, the sun hasn't been able to burn through the clouds until about 4:30 pm. Today we didn't hit 70, and the overnight low is in the 40s. You'll notice that I am wearing long sleeves. Summer SHOULD storm back! I would love to turn the fan on in my house =) At least I won't have to buy maternity shorts!

We love and miss you and the Midwest humidity! Heather, Mike, and the little Tyke

blessings and babies

There will likely be many posts in this blog entitled blessings and babies, and all will be indicative of God's abundant love and gifts. This particular post is dedicated to my dear, sweet coworkers. We all work in the "Learning Lab" at the UW School of Nursing where we teach undergraduate nursing students. This job is absolutely hilarious at times with some of the concoctions we have created (fake poop, pee, blood, etc) to teach basic skills to these students. We also have plenty of "talking" mannequins who cough, moan, have difficulty breathing, etc... and additional teaching tools like "Seymour Butts" who we use to teach wound care. The other day I found a breast model that you can wear.. too much fun with that one for sure. Because we are all nurses and we understand the very profound dichotomy of beautiful and grotesque tasks that nurses must perform, we get along fabulously.

Today Mike and I hosted a baby shower for my co-worker Sophie and Peter who are due with baby #1 on 8-9-10! We had a blast hanging out with these fabulous ladies and their spouses! 

Back Row (L to R): Heather, Sarah, Sophie, Kala, and Juvann (our super boss!)
Front Row (L to R): Marta, Lam, and Me

Here are Sophie, Peter, and Baby Girl Kazarinoff opening their 'Hooter Hider'. This is my favorite baby shower gift as of late! Peter tried it on later, and it seems to fit perfectly.

Mike was a super great help today. I love this man!

Just a quick photo op of my culinary attempts. I was really missing Ryan today. He could have whipped this out in no time at all.

I took a picture of the cupcakes to document finally using this Tripoli serving platter.. first time since we've been married.

For those of you reading this who know us well, you know that I have an insane amount of work to accomplish in the autumn quarter to give myself a 'maternity leave' during the winter quarter of this school year. Mike and I have decided that I shouldn't work any longer so that I can concentrate on fitting two quarters into one. Though this makes logical sense, I am very sad to leave this lovely group of ladies on a daily/weekly basis. They really are my community here in Seattle. I suppose now the little Tyke and I will just have to schedule some good lunch dates!  

Rule of Fives

Baby Wade is growing fast this week. It is 5 inches long and 5 ounces. For those of you who are curious, five oz is approx the weight of a deck of cards or a Yoplait. Amazing to think that at the end of this whole thing, the weight will be some number of pounds plus 5 ounces-ish.

The fruit/veggie of the week is a turnip. We don't know how to prepare turnips, so we just hijacked one from the cooler at Safeway and took a picture at the grocery store. We replaced it, don't worry. The baby bump may actually be looking a bit like a bump this week!

We had a great report from the OB today. The heartbeat is strong and steady again at 150. It is music to our ears to hear that heartbeat. According to an old wives' tail (and my mom),  if the heartbeat is greater than 140 it's a girl, and if it's less than 140 it's a boy. We will have to see... it will be a Christmas surprise for sure!

In other news this week, my wonderful husband surprised me with a fun date last week to Cirque du Soleil! It was an absolutely amazing show, and we were stunned at what the human body can do! There is no way to put into words the stunts these people pull off.

We are having a baby shower tomorrow for my friend Sophie from work, so I must sign off now to begin the pink cupcake and watermelon baby buggy assembly. Pictures to follow.

Oh, and the Alaska pictures ARE coming. We are still sorting through =)

We love and miss you all! Heather, Mike, and the little Tyke

Holy Guacamole, we're at 16 weeks!

Three guesses at this week's fruit.... yep, it's an avocado. And I am super pumped to eat it now that it's served it's picture purpose. I had no appetite for avocados in the first trimester, and that was one of my clues that something was indeed changing. Normally, I could eat 1/2 an avocado in one sitting. But alas, here we are in the glorious 2nd trimester... the land of energy, baby 'bumps', and odd cravings....

I don't understand the cravings. I absolutely 'medicalize' every symptom that I am having. I'm nauseated because my blood sugar is low, etc etc. I don't understand cravings at all. You would think the body would desire something that it needs. Not in my case. The first trimester I couldn't get enough salt. Pickles were a must have, and there were several nights (when Mike wasn't home) that I simply ate massive amounts of chips and salsa for dinner. Now I've turned the corner to the sweet side. Starbursts, gummy bears, licorice. What gives? My body certainly doesn't need over processed, artificially flavored and colored candy. I feel like I am doing my body a service because I haven't yet purchased those peach flavored rings (can't remember the name).. but I am one step away from them. If any one has a rational explanation, I would love to hear it!

So here we are at 16 weeks. I think there's a slight bump. One of my faculty told me I looked pregnant today, and I just beamed. I'm starting to get really excited about this whole thing!

At 16 weeks, baby is 4 1/2 inches long (head to rump) and 3 1/2 ounces. His/Her legs are more developed, the head is straighter, his eyes have moved closer to the front of his head, and his ears are close to their final position, too. Baby has toenails, lanugo (fine baby hair), and it's heart is pumping 25 quarts a day. Way to go Baby Wade! I am a proud mama!

If any of you readers are in the mood for a super sweet tear jerker, I invite you to check out Chelsea's letter to Siena on her 2nd birthday at www.salinasbaby.blogspot.com. It's beautiful! Happy birthday Sweet Siena.

Happy beginning of summer to Seattle as well. We broke 75 this week and even got into the 90s!! We miss and love you all.

Heather, Mike, and the little Tyke