...play our new game ExpectNet!

Aunt Fifi came across this fun game! If you want to guess the due date, gender and size of the baby click on the link to the right. When the due date draws closer we'll remind everyone again. In the meantime it could get interesting!

...yo ho, yo ho a pirates life for me!

we just saw the final pirates movie (the advantage of aaron being home during weekdays)! there was a guy laughing this strange laugh throughout the whole movie...we couldn't tell if he was laughing because he genuinely found it funny or if he thought it was ridiculous. we enjoyed the movie...i hope you do to. i think a trip to disneyland is in store now- it made me miss our days of living in anaheim and having passes.

...lala's whirlwind adventure!

i spent the last week and a half on a whirlwind trip. on thursday (5/10) i went out to the bay area so that i could head to orange county with my mom and joanne on friday. we went down for my baby shower which was just amazing. it was so great to catch up with friends i have not seen in a while and to feel pampered and loved. aunt ev and kim went all out for the event and not only were the decorations beautiful and games fun...but everything really reflected me and my personality (and that made me feel really special). our little baby was spoiled with a lot of wonderful gifts (including 5 or more firefighter rubber duckies)! i will be posting pictures of the party in the next few days- along with pictures from aaron's fire academy graduation. on sunday we celebrated our moms with some shopping and dinner...the weather in southern california was perfect! my mom, joanne and i left on monday and met up with natalie and kirsten for a wonderful dinner in san luis obispo before getting home late to pleasanton that night. i spent the next couple of days home with my parents and even got to see drew and his girlfriend ellen. my dad had eye surgery to correct a detached retina...fun stuff. i'm glad to report that he has a clean bill of health and the eye doctor is optimistic that his eye will be okay. then on thursday (5/17) we were off for vegas. i got home yesterday and have not slept this much in a long time. aaron got home from a long shift this morning and is actually still sleeping. we are looking forward to spending the next two days together- the time a part was not ideal- but my whirlwind trip was well worth it!

...las vegas!

my mom dropped me off before we got in a huge van headed for SFO...the fun had only just begun!



















as you can see vegas was an awesome adventure as 12 of us girls got the chance to celebrate fifi (aka: jen) and her 30th birthday! lounging by the pool, eating, bowling, slot machines, crepes, shopping, limos...the list goes on. i could not have asked for a greater weekend for jen...what a great trip and what a fun way to show her just how much we love her!

The BABY CHRONICLES (PART 5)...baby's latest picture!

here is the baby's latest picture. aaron finally got to see him/her for the first time last week! this kid is growing (should be a little over a pound by now) and moving around a lot more. the coolest thing we saw on the ultrasound was the heart...you could see all four chambers pumping...it is just amazing. i will be six months on friday and am looking forward to my baby shower on saturday (my aunt evelyn and cousin kim are throwing it down at my aunt's house in orange county)! sadly i do not have any more belly shots because aaron and i misplaced our digital camera at a cinco de mayo festival last weekend...by the time we realized that we had left it where we had been eating it was already gone. of course i keep hoping someone will see the pictures on there and turn it in...but i guess that is probably not going to happen. on the bright side i was just talking with mishawn about how i miss taking film into the store and getting it back...not knowing what the pictures will look like...so i will at least get to do that for a while until we can replace our digital!

...happy anniversary mom & dad!

Walt & Mar celebrate their anniversary today...we love you guys and wish we could be there to celebrate with you! xoxo

The Fire Chronicles (Part 2)...first official day!

aaron just left for his first official day as a firefighter! we kept saying this weekend that it was the last weekend of a "traditional" schedule that we will have for a long time...maybe 30 years! it was an honor to pin his badge for him on friday at his graduation ceramony (more pictures of that to follow). the 17 firefighters who graduated academy were not only in the local news but also in the fresno bee. it is strange that he is really going to be a firefighter...but wonderful! after training for almost 4 years i am happy to finally see him do the job...and i think he would agree! God has been so faithful to complete the work he began in aaron and he has been with us every step of the way. i don't just say this as a cliche...but we are convinced that we could not have done it without God's guidance, provision and stamina & the help of friends and family along the way...we are truly grateful!

this is a picture of him from friday...they did outdoor demonstrations after their graduation ceremony. in the spirit of his new career i have changed the blog slightly...so don't be alarmed...you are at the right blog.

...our spontaneous adventure!

this saturday (April 21st) started out like any other. we had volunteered to help with special olympics and got up early to head out. we checked the directions on our way out the door and realized the event had been the day before (4/20). we were really bummed when we realized that we had unintentionally dissed the disabled...but we had a whole weekend ahead of us decided to make the best of it. i gave aaron his academy graduation gifts early in hopes that I could talk him into a last minute camping trip. a new tent, air mattress and some other accesories- along with some persuading and we were on our way up to Yosemite! it is really beautiful there in spring.we got to there in no time. the shot of half dome (below) was our first view of "the valley" on our drive in. our camp sight was just below half dome, along a river and not too far from curry village. we did some exploring before heading back to our camp sight. salmon, potatoes and garlic bread made the perfect dinner...along with smores of course. we even managed to play a game of scrabble before dark and turned in just as it was starting to rain! the forecast had predicted rain but we are used to that from camping in Washington- so we didn't think much of it!









much to our surprise we woke up to SNOW! it was beautiful...really beautiful...but not good for tent camping. it was a good thing aaron had put this tarp on our tent to keep out the expected rain. we got on the road as quickly as we could pack up the car and managed to make it out of there safely while getting in a few more good pictures along the way. the road conditions were not good...it was not an ideal situation driving out of there in a small car...but by the grace of God aaron knew how to drive in the snow and got us home in one piece.

The Pregnancy Chronicles (PART 4)...bellies!

Aaron was feeling jealous of all my belly shots...and so we took some of him just to be fair. I am 20 weeks and that means I am half way through the pregnancy!!!!

The Pregnancy Chronicles (PART 3)...i finally felt it move!

So the baby finally moved! Two nights ago I was trying to fall asleep and felt the little "flutter" they talk about. Wow- that has got to be one of the most amazing feelings in the world. One of my books said that the baby is often born 147 days after you first feel it move...if that is true I will have the baby on September 5th. Sorry Dad (he is hoping to share his birthday with the baby on August 26th)!

...happy easter!

My family came over for a quick Easter visit. It's nice to live so close now!

The Pregnancy Chronicles (PART 2)...belly shot!

This was taken the other day and boy am I starting to show. I cannot wear regular pants anymore!

The Pregnancy Chronicles (PART 1)...baby's first picture!

Here is the baby's first picture (taken on March 1st, 2007). It was so amazing to see this littlel child moving around inside of me. In case you are wondering- that is the head to the right (it is facing up) and you can sort of make out it's profile. The dots along the bottome are the spine. Isn't is just so incredible! To see the size of the baby check out the Baby Link (I'm 19 weeks along as of yesterday).

As for the next question, we are not finding out what we are having. We want to be surprised! This seems to be very upsetting to some people. In fact people we don't even know well seem to be very concerned and passionate about it. At least three people have sarcastically said to me "I hope you like green!" Don't worry- Aaron and I both love green- so save that one for the next person who tells you they are not finding out what they are having.

The Fire Chronicles (Part 1)...burning down the house!

Aaron and his fellow academy guys got to burn down a house here in Fresno a few weeks back. He took one of these pictures from the top of a very tall ladder. It's cool to see him finally fighting fire after all the training he's been through over the past few years.

...another valentine baby!

Elsie's little sister Carson was born on my birthday (valentine's day)...auntie LaLa got an extra special present this year! We got to meet her and see the Woodward's in February- just a weeks after she was born! It was fun to be together again.