A growing baby

Not so much a "bump" anymore! Almost 20 weeks, so here is a pic:

July 4th!

It's been a while, hello folks! Spring has warped into summer and it's already July 5th. Baby1.0 is now 19 weeks, so 21 more to go! We really need to get moving on the nursery and come up with our theme. We're thinking jungle theme and something girly for a girl. We haven't come up with anything yet. I think when we find out if it's a boy or girl, we'll get the kick to really start figuring things out and that big day is July 19th! Keep that day on your calendars! Here are some pictures from last night. They were taken on my iPhone without a flash in a relatively dark room, so they're not too bad.





I don't know how to rotate this pic...(sorry Rana)

Buy Buy Baby

We visited Buy Buy Baby for the first time the other day. Actually we've been there before, but it was the first time we've been there for ourselves. I actually felt like an idiot when I went in! Usually I know all about the things I'm looking for... well, most of those items are things you PLUG in, but anyway... in this case, I felt clueless. Apparently they have these new type of convertible crib-beds where they are higher quality pieces of furniture that you can use for years even after the baby grows up. We need to decide on one of those types or just the traditional cribs... I'll post some pictures of each of them soon.

We also visited Dr. Tran for our monthly checkup. It was a good time because Mom3.0 has recently been feeling some stomach discomfort. In fact the other day, there there was some stomach pain and "pinching" sensations. Good news though, Baby1.0 is fine. The pinching and stretching sensations are from ligaments and muscles being stretched as the baby grows. What a relief!

Baby1.0 is now 17 weeks!

Books, Books and more Books

People have been giving us baby books so we (ok, mom3.0) has been reading more. Right now Nish is reading The Girlfriends' Guide to Pregrancy by Vicki Iovine which she is really enjoying since it validates a lot of the stuff she's thinking and feeling. Thank God because how many times can I tell her that the red dots on her face will go away!?? For me, finding time to read all this stuff is hard... although we always seem to have spare time to do other stuff... like watch movies. Last night we watched Rambo and Superman (the original from 1978) until 2am. Yes, GUY night... with mom3.0 and myself! Can you believe she's never seen either movie??! "They were such boy movies when we were growing up" True...

An expanding bump*

Picture of Mom3.0 - and she's growing! ... which is a good thing in this case - I would suggest that most guys refrain from such comments in any other situation! :)

*bump = as described by Mom3.0's work friends..


[Mom3.0 has requested this picture to be removed]

Baby1.0's first gift and a Feature Update!

Baby1.0 received his or her first gift recently, courtesy of my friend Monica from work! Attached is the little monkey as he hangs from our fridge door! Thanks Monica!



Feature Update! I've also added Meebo to this blog (upper left corner). So next time you see me online, drop me a line and say "howdy"!

It's been a while

It's been a while since we've posted anything here.. again, I must blame all the school work I have for this crazy summer class! But it's only about 8 more weeks left and then I'm free! Well at least free from papers, group presentations or 3 chapters to read in one night type obligations. Either way, I need to find some time for more exciting things, like new cribs or new strollers! Actually, it might sound lame to all of you who have never had kids - or have had kids before and have already been through this - but we're kind of excited. I'm going to start writing about these thoughts and maybe even come up with some polls so all of you can help us decide on what to get! Now that sounds cool.. at least to me, don't know what Mom3.0 would say about that..

Special Appearance from Mom3.0!

Hi everyone! I can't believe it's already 3 1/2 months into the pregnancy! I just went 'walking' today....man, this work out thing, what you can and can't do, is really driving me bonkers! And the eating thing too....I'm just not used to eating sooo much! But I have gotten to the point where I'm excited to decorate the nursery and fun stuff like that. So stay tuned for more tid-bits!

A Surprise 60th Birthday

I've been meaning to upload some of the pictures from my mom's 60th birthday party, but didn't get around to it. Anyway, here's a sample of the party.. it went great! This was one of the first weekends that all of our friends found out about baby1.0 so it was an extra special weekend.

The Nuchal Translucency Screening Test

Living in a large metropolitan area, we have easy access to technology so we decided to go ahead with the test. It's non invasive and very reliable so why not, especially since it's covered under insurance. With any test like this, mom and I talked about the chances, however small, that we may get unexpected or unwanted results. As you can imagine, it's not a fun topic so we'll rely on the fact that Down Syndrome doesn't exist in our family history... at least as far as we know. $10 copay.

But the best part of the test, more baby pictures! Wow, the baby1.0 is growing incredibly fast! Mom and I just got back from a run which is now down to a fast walk (for me) and a very slow run for mom. She probably only has a couple more weeks of running left and is now moving towards more lower impact exercises. (Mom just disagreed, so we'll look into how far along you can be and still find it comfortable to run). Also, we're a bit further along than originally predicted - 13 weeks and 2 days as of today, a full week difference from the first "estimate". Our new delivery date is November 26th - Turkey Day!!

Total Baby1.0 cost as of 5/23/07: $89.60
Baby 1.0 is now 13 weeks and 2 days!

For The Nerdy Parents (including me) - An Interesting Science Article

An interesting Science Magazine magazine article was recently published that discusses how young kids see the world and how these early impressions impact the ability to learn about scientific theories later in life. Young kids know that things fall down - apples roll of a table and hit the ground or a spoon that is thrown from a highchair falls with a bang on the floor - long before they're taught the about the science of gravitational attraction. These intuitions may hinder the ease of accepting science facts, such as the world is round and isn't flat. Here's a link to the article, but you need a subscription to read the entire thing. If you're at the local library, check out the physical article. Childhood Origins of Adult Resistance to Science

Total Baby1.0 cost as of 5/16/07: $79.60

Our 2nd Dr.'s Visit

Actually, it was just mom3.0 who went to see Dr. Tran, but it was another successful visit. The baby is healthy and coming along fine! The heartbeat is strong and he/she is alive and kicking... well, not kicking yet. Here are the latest updates...
Dr. visit copay - $10
Prenatal vitamin prescription - $25
Can you believe those vitamins are $25 for only 30 capsules??! Apparently, they're really good and contain Omega-3 fatty acids (DHA and EPA). Anyway, we only want the best for baby1.0.

Total Baby1.0 cost as of 5/16/07: $79.60

Discounted flowers for Mother's Day

ProFlowers has two dozen assorted roses for just $19.99 after a $10.00 discount that appears automatically at checkout. Select no vase to avoid an additional charge of $11.99. Shipping adds $9.99 for a total of $29.98 delivered. If you're ordering for Mom, you can choose a flexible May 10 or 11 delivery date at the same shipping fee.

Total Baby1.0 cost as of 5/8/07: $44.60

A Healthy Breakfast

Something easy and healthy that mom used to make - Cream of Wheat "Pudding".

We used to call it Cream of Wheat Pudding, but it's really cream of wheat done in a slightly different way than what's called for on the box. These modifications make it MUCH more tasty than how you're 'supposed' to cook it. First, take a teaspoon of Smart Balance margarine and melt it in a small pan over medium heat. Add 3 tbsp of cream of wheat (the 2 1/2 minute cook time one in the red box) and saute for about 1-1 1/2 minutes. Add 1 1/2 cups of 1% milk and quickly whisk around the mixture to prevent lumps and then add about 2 tbps of sugar (or Splenda, but we have held back on the splenda since mom3.0 got pregnant). After it comes to a very slow bowl, cook for about 30 more seconds and then add a cap of vanilla extract. Cool slightly and Enjoy!

Total Baby1.0 cost as of 5/8/07: $44.60

New Amazon Coupon - Save 25%

For all of those people a lot closer than we are to the big day, Amazon has a new promotion when creating a Baby registry. Click here for the details:

25% off Amazon

Not a bad deal, plus you get free shipping on orders over $25 and don't have to pay tax. At least living here in MD, I don't have to pay taxes. Our friends in SF, CA say that Amazon charges them 8% tax no matter what. Don't know why, especially since Amazon.com is based out of Seattle, WA.

Total Baby1.0 cost as of 5/3/07: $44.60