The "Big" Ultrasound

We are officially the most impatient people in the world. July 10, the original date of the "big" ultrasound, was just too far away so we called this morning to reschedule. Now the ultrasound will take place on July 7. It's only a few days earlier, but we'll take it.

If you haven't already voted in our "Boy or Girl?" poll, please make your pick on the left.

Fnding out the gender of the baby is a benefit but not the purpose of the "level 2 ultrasound". The real purpose is to perform an anatomy scan is to measure the baby from crown to rump, around the middle, and around the head, for starters. The four chambers of the heart will be viewed, as well as the kidneys, bladder, stomach, brain, spine, and, of course, sex organs. Measurements are taken to make sure the baby is growing appropriately. A survey of the organs, including the umbilical cord, ensures that it is developing normally. The sonographer will also be looking at amniotic fluid levels, the location of the placenta, and the fetal heart rate.

Master of the Fork

Jack has been growing more independent recently and it is most apparent during meal times. He wants to feed himself everything, and as a result he has become pretty adept at using even grown up utensils. I don't know why, but we find it pretty cute. (If you haven't caught on by now, we find just about all things Jack pretty darn cute.) Here he is serving himself some carrots while holding a pen (?) in his left hand.

Sometimes, just like the rest of us, Jack just wants his food fast so he resorts to using his hands.

First Gymnastics Class

I think it's safe to say gymnastics class was a hit. Jack had a blast and we are both worn out! I wasn't able to get any photos today because I was pretty busy doing my share of the "parent and tot" class, but I hope to get a few next week.


We played on three different "circuits" around the gym. The first focused on floor work so Jack did forward and backward rolls and jumped on a trampoline. He really seemed quite pleased with himself every time the teacher or I would flip him over to complete a roll. The second phase was the vault. This involved a lot of climbing and jumping and I was exhausted after doing the exercises a few times. The last circuit was on the bar and the styrofoam pit. Jack seriously hung onto rings and a bar like a little monkey and then dropped when instructed onto the mat. It was hysterical. He especially liked going down the slide into the giant blocks of styrofoam.


The last bit of class was spent running around chasing bubbles. The teacher, Miss Kathy, instructed the kids to catch, pop and stomp on the bubbles. Jack would watch the other kids for a minute to see how they were doing it and then join right in. He really did great today considering it was his first class. He lasted the entire hour and Miss Kathy was impressed he hung in and participated the whole time and he was the youngest in the class to do so.


Here's Jack after gymnastics class. I anticipate a good nap this afternoon!

Rocking Elephant

In Atlanta when Jack wasn't trying to ride Maggie the dog, he was rocking on Edie's Elephant. In this video you can see Jack rock and hear him say my favorite word of his "elephant."

Happy Father's Day, Kevin, Grandpa and Papa Lou!

Catching Up with the Lockes

On our way home from Atlanta we made a pit stop in Montgomery, Alabama to meet for lunch and play time with our friends the Locke family. Joe "Snake" and Kevin were in the 23rd Fighter Squadron together in Germany and the Lockes are now on their way to Korea. I'm so glad they allowed us to totally crash their Father's Day so we could see them before they move.

Here are Garrett, Jessica, Jack and Carson. Please notice the big gap in Carson's smile; he lost his fifth tooth this afternoon while we were hanging out. (Once again, Jack was not feeling the photo shoot and the only way to keep him still on the couch was to let him play on the phone.)
Jessica and Garrett

The Jack and Edie Show

With Kevin out of town (again), Jack and I hit the road to catch up with some friends in Atlanta. We went to stay with Jennifer, a college friend, Alex, her husband, and Edie, their adorable daughter. It was our first time meeting Edie and we were not disappointed. She is adorable and smiley and we are so happy we finally got to spend time with her.

With two little ones running around, we kept quite busy without really doing too much. We spent quite a bit of time in a couple of pools: the community pool in Jennifer's parent's neighborhood and the little backyard pool.

When we prepared the bath tub for the kids, we filled both the baby tub (for Edie) and the regular tub (for Jack). After a few minutes of interacting and playing, Jack decided they weren't quite close enough so he climbed into Edie's tub with her.

On Saturday we tried to do a photo shoot of the kids in matching outfits. We managed two costume changes before totally giving up: coordinating striped one pieces and matching Mount Holyoke t-shirts. Jack was not cooperative and wanted nothing to do with sitting still, but at one point he was feeling very affectionate towards Edie.

Here are a few highlights from a slightly more successful photo shoot after the pool on Friday.

Jack's other new best friend after the weekend is Maggie the dog. She is the sweetest, most relaxed dog. Thank goodness, because Jack was all over her. He seriously layed on her, pulled her tail, stepped on her, hugged her and she just took it. Between his new friend baby "E-ie" and Maggie the "daw!", Jack was in heaven in Atlanta.