The Home Stretch

We're in the home stretch. Mindy will be 32 weeks this Saturday - 8 months. Click on the video below to see the incredible progression from Week 1 to 40.

Baby Blossom is technically due on February 27, 2009, but will be delivered via Caesarean so the actual birth date will likely be 1-2 weeks sooner. Place your bets now as to whether he will be an Aquarian or a Pisces.

Starting next week, we will be stepping up the doctors appointments with twice-a-week fetal monitoring (also known as a "non-stress" test) and OB appointments every other week. These sessions will help determine the actual due date - we'll keep you posted!

Prep Course

We just finished a marathon session of prenatal classes including:
− Breastfeeding
− Surviving the First Few Months With A New Baby: Basic Baby Care
− Infant Child CPR
− Childbirth Preparation: Integrated Methods

We also took a Birth Center Tour/Orientation of UCSF where Mindy will be delivering via C-section. You can do the same thing by taking a "virtual tour” here to check out the hospital, the OR, the hospital rooms, etc. Click here to start the virtual tour.

Going to these classes was like going back to school – 3 hours of class a night, after work when you’re starving and tired and had battled rush hour to get there, and then dinner at 10pm. Rinse and repeat.

In the end, the classes were informative and worth the time. We still don’t know what we don’t know. But we do know what a baby looks like now, how to hold one at least 3 different ways, and confirmed that cloth diapers are a pain the ass to deal with (sorry Environment).

Unfortunately, Stella got so much nap time while we were gone at night that she started waking up at 4:30am needing to go for a walk. Must be some divine cosmic plan to prep us for what’s coming.

Chrissy Field w/ Stella

We spent the morning today at Chrissy Field near the Golden Gate Bridge. Chrissy Field is a flat paved and dirt path that winds its way along the Bay for a few miles. There are always lots of joggers, bicyclists, windsurfers, and dogs to meet along the way.

It was a chilly day and the rain will be coming soon. A wet dog is no fun, so Stella also got a new coat this weekend.

Click here to see more pictures of the day.

Stella by the tree

Before the house was filled with friends to help trim the tree last weekend at our annual Holiday Party & Tree Trimming, Stella took a nap in the quiet glow of the tree's lights.

Nursery Tour

We converted the guest room/office into the guest room/nursery. We'll "room-in" with the baby in the bedroom at night for the first few months, so it will be more guest room than nursery to begin with. Click the video to play it.

Greetings by the tree

Holiday greetings by the tree at 28 (of 40) weeks - beginning of the last trimester. Click the video to play it.