Our Trip

Here is how our trip looks so far.  You can click on it to zoom in.  The day we get in and the day after we need to sleep and get used to the time change.  The funny Xs mean we are busy just part of the day.  Let us know if you would like to plan to meet.  We would like to avoid meeting to eat at restaurants.  If you want to get together for a meal I can pack us a picnic and we can meet you at one of the many many great parks. 

Bowling, Beer, Bazaar, and Badgers Oh MY!

Okay! No joke Dave and I have had a crazy weekend! 

Saturday we went to buy our airline tickets from Misawa to Tokyo.  Then we went bowling, and I didn't do half bad.  But if Loraine is reading this half bad for me means breaking one hundred and not falling on my butt. 

 

 

Then on the way home we stopped at the class six to get a bottle of wine, and they had Labatt Blue!!  Dave's favorite beer!  Our entire assignment they haven't carried any Canadian beer and now they got Labatt in!  It is wonderful. 

                                                         

                                Sunday we went to the Big Far East Bazaar.  Its huge, held in an old airplane hanger FULL of vendors.  We finally picked out a sword, and we got a few other things.  I think we have bought almost all of the Japanese Mementos that we would like.  I still need to find a doll and maybe a kimono too.

 

And then on the way home from the bazaar, we saw a flippin' badger on the side of the road.(ALIVE!)  ONBASE!  I have never seen any animals other than crows and harrier hawks onbase.  Never a squirrel or anything.  So it was a little shocking and a wee bit frightening to see a badger.  It was seriously 20 yards away from the main running path onbase.  Not that I'm a runner, but you know, like if someone were running at night they could get attacked or something.  Probably not but it could happen!

This was all very exciting to us since we have spent the last 7 weeks talking about what goes into baby and what comes out of baby and little else. WHEW!  

Oh and a couple other things, on our way back to base today I saw the tulips and daffodils are up about 6 inches already!  SPRING IS HERE!   So sorry for all you in Michigan shoveling still. 

Also I forgot to mention that on March 21st we went to our WIC appointment and they weighed Nate and he weighed 9 pounds 9 ounces.  That was over a week ago, I bet he is 10 pound by now! 

Seven Weeks Old

Here is Nathan seven weeks old today.  This week has been going well.  We had 6 hour stretches of sleep 3 night this week.  Not bad eh? 

Keep Nate in your prayers this week.  We are going for another ultrasound on April 1st, and then back to the ortho doctor on the 2nd to find out if his hips are okay now.  At our last ultrasound they found that his left hip socket was loose.  The doctor said it could be from the surge of hormones my body put out before giving birth to loosen up my joints so baby could exit easier.  But I can't help but have a bad feeling that he might have to go through the same problems I did.  Obviously his hip isn't dislocated, but the doctor was going to order him a Pavlik Harness just in case he ends up needing to wear one.  I really hope we don't have to use it and this ultrasound shows that his hip has tightened up on its own.    The doctor said his hips feel fine and don't click or slip out of socket, so really  if I had never asked for an ultrasound to 'put my mind at ease' then we would have never known it was loose.  We will see. 

But he sure is a happy kid.

Easter

So, how did you last all week wondering if we would make it to church on time again?  Well, the suspense is over, WE DID!   We even had time to take a few photos before we left for church.  Nathan looked so cute in his little Easter outfit.  He was really good at church again, no crying.  But he was grunting, trying to poop.  I wonder what the people around us thought, Dave and I both knew exactly what he was doing, and couldn't help but laugh a little. 

I hope you all have a wonderful Easter!  I posted a album with the Easter pictures we took, check it out!

Six Weeks Old

Here is the photo I took of Nathan today.  Six weeks already.  I cannot believe it.  I am going to post a video right after I finish this blog.  After I took this photo I got a big boogie out of Nathan's nose with the sucker thing, and he got a little upset.  I put the doggie on the bouncy chair and turned it on and Nathan had the funniest look on his face.  He was still a little upset but he was mesmerized by the dancing puppy.  It was cute. 

Nathan's Birth Announcment

Nathan was in last weeks Birth Announcments in the Tri- City Times.  Did you all catch it?  I am posting the link to the announcment online.  Keep an eye out he will be in the Lapeer County Press soon.

http://www.tricitytimes-online.com/SiteElist-3232.112113_Birth_Announcements.html?-token.menuseclooptracking=3&-token.menuitemlooptracking=303

 

I am going to post this link in our Links section too.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Made it on time!

So during the later part of my pregnancy our church attendance was poor. Mostly because the idea of getting my tired butt put together really early in the morning was trumped by the idea of sleeping in  instead.  Terrible I know!

Then the craziest thing about having a newborn is that it is nearly impossible to get anywhere early anymore!  Dave and I were always obsessively early to EVERYTHING.  But now even though we start getting ready an hour earlier we still just barely make it on time to wherever we are headed.  So I was thinking jeez since we are up by 6 am every morning now we should have no problem going to church, but then I wondered if we could make it on time. 

Well, today we did.  We went and we weren't really early, but we weren't late either!  Nathan didn't cry and we were shocked when we got there and it was Palm Sunday!  Duh!  It was nice, and we got to dress Nathan in this super cute outfit I got from the baby shower! 

Thanks, Loraine, Andy, Grace, and Hope! 

 

 

 

Check back next week to see photos of Nathan's 1st Easter, and find out if we made it to church on time two Sundays in a row! How will you last all week with the suspense??  HAHA

 

5 weeks old

Here is the photos I took today of Nathan.  FIVE weeks old!  Time goes fast when you are in a fog due to lack of sleep.  The picture is a little fuzzy but right after I took it he destroyed a diaper and then he wanted to eat and then he had to be burped, so you know, I just haven't tried again yet. 

It seems like we are constantly going to appointments. I have appointments coming out of my arse!  I just counted 8 appointments for Feb and March.  And I just called to make 3 more for April!!  Its always something.   Jeesh!

Big excitement at Dave's work!  They got new office furniture today!  The next pregnant wife in office is due to deliver in two weeks. 

OH!  Our neighbors upstairs are moving in a couple of weeks, and we ran into them the other day and they told us something very interesting!  Our building is going to be demolished, and when our neighbors were in the housing office getting the OK to move off base, housing told them our building is scheduled to be torn apart in OCTOBER!  Won't that just be the absolute pits to have to move to a new house 3 months before we move!!  Oh my goodness, I would just hate that.   But the good part of this info is that I won't have to clean this place when we move out!  Uft, the military is super picky about how clean quarters have to be when you vacate them, so I was dreading cleaning this place.  And I guess if we have to move into a new place for 3 months we wont have time to get it too dirty!  Guess there is an upside to everything!   

B-E-A-UTIFUL out today

It has been so nice here the past few day.  The temp made it into the low 50s! The sun has been out, I even heard some birds chirping in the backyard!  The snow in our backyard is gone and there are only a few piles around base.  I guess spring really will make its arrival soon.  I am assuming we will have a few more bursts of snow since we are still ten inches shy of the monthly average.   But is sure is nice to have a little break. 

I made it to the bank and grocery store with Nathan today without Dave's help!  I don't think I have been to the commissary without Dave since late October.  It was really nice of him to use his lunch break to go shopping with me and carry the groceries in the house while I was pregnant.  But it was nice to go alone.(Well, Nathan was with me but he slept through the trip so I was pretty much alone.(and he didn't sneak anything into the cart!))  I stopped by the bank and chatted with my friend Trina for a bit.  I felt like a real person again. 

Does everyone have fun St Patrick's Day plans?  I was going to make Corned Beef and Cabbage but they don't have any corned beef at the commissary.  So maybe I will just make some green cookies and call it festive enough.  I cannot wait until we move back to the states!  I am so tired of the disappointment at the grocery store.   I plan our meals out and it throws a real wrench in my menu when half of what I need isn't available.  The produce has been really terrible lately.  The celery looked like someone should have pitched it a week ago!!  I know its winter, but the previous winters haven't been this bad. Oh well.  Its frozen veggies for us! 

FYI

So just to let you all know... We are coming home for a visit in a couple of months.  We had gone back and forth about coming home this summer, but for a long time had decided against it.  Then I was sitting looking at my two week old baby and decided that I had to take him home to show him off this summer, I couldn't bare the idea of our families meeting him for the first time when he is one!  Between Jackie graduating and wanting to taking Nathan home, I told Dave I wasn't taking no for an answer.  Surprisingly he easily agreed and is now really looking forward to it. 

SO!  We bought tickets a couple days ago to come home mid may and stay through the first week of June.  We are going to do another 'make a date' calendar.  It worked really well last summer.  I will post it on multiply very soon so you all can start considering if and when you would like to get together with us.   

Hope everyone enjoys 'springing ahead' don't be late to church!

Four weeks old

Here is Nathan's four week photo.  Does it look like he is growing?  I think he is getting longer just because the newborn pjs are starting to feel a little snug.  But I cant tell from the photo.. Can you?  Nathan was a good sport when i was taking the photos this morning and i got a couple of him smiling.  I will post them in the photo album. 

Dave's work is having a lunch today for a couple of the office birthdays.  They requested I make Taco Salad again.  I hope the lunch isn't too long.   I didn't sleep very well, because I had a killer backache last night.  I have been feeling totally great for the past 2 weeks except sometimes I get a really nasty backache that reaches around my ribs and makes me feel sick.  I have no idea why.  I take a Motrin, it goes away but comes back week later.  Whats with that?  Oh well. 

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!  We love and miss you all! 

 

 

this is kind of a boring post

I have been feeling more productive lately.  Now that we have the eating, sleeping, and diaper changes down I have been able to get more done around the house.  Laundry and house cleaning is under control.  I even manage to get dinner done in a timely manner.  We have exhausted our freezer meals.  It was really nice to have a casserole to toss in the oven during those first two weeks let me tell you.  But now I know when I can put Nathan in the swing so I can get a shower or start supper.   I have yet to stay in my pjs all day long so that feels like an accomplishment! 

Today we are taking Nathan in for an ultrasound on his hips just to be sure they are as they should be.  I thought it was really nice that the pediatrician agreed to do an ultrasound just to put us at ease.  Usually military doctors are sort of stingy.  (ie. the dentist that wouldn't numb me up for over an hour of DRILLING because he thought up to 6 hours of numbness wouldn't be worth it... as I am nearly convulsing in pain in the chair and he has to continually stop to yell at me to be still) Anyhow, after the ultrasound we have errands to run around base, I need to get groceries, and stop by the post office and grab a few things at the exchange.  Knock on wood the car seat seems to be a magic chair of some sort.  We put Nate in it and he is asleep a second later.  It is very helpful when we have things we need to get done. 

I guess that's all the news I have to offer right now.  I hope everyone is enjoying their last little bit of winter... Spring will be here soon!  The Easter Bunny will be here before we know it!