Gender Reveal: Is It A...

I've been MIA from my blog for awhile, but for very good reason.  I've got lots of to catch up on, but let's start with this...

We found out the gender of baby FJ.  Is it a LITTLE BOW or a LITTLE BEAU?

It's a ...................................................................................











































We're beyond excited! 


Especially for things like this:


and this:




and this:



and this:


and this:


and this:

and this:

and this:










and this:

and this:

and this:

and this:

and this:

and this:

and this:





As we were leaving the doctor's office when we found out that baby FJ is actually Miss baby FJ, Paul said, "I'm going to have to get another job, huh?" 

Hey, it's not my fault that baby girl clothes are so cute.  Right?  Right??

Happy Easter

Paul's Birthday- 29 and sooooo fine!

Lamest rhyme ever? That's okay. Paul had his last birthday in the 20s on Tuesday and we celebrated big time! Parker and I surprised him at work with brownies and when he got home we went to Taco Tuesday at our new favorite Mexican restaurant- Hole Mole. It's the best Mexican we've had (aside from Los Gallos) since we've been married. In fact, Paul says that their fish tacos are the best he's had. Ever. And when everything is $1 (at least everything we order: tacos, beans and rice, chips) on Tuesdays, it really can't be beat. After dinner we came home for strawberry pie and presents. Happy birthday to the coolest guy ever!

By the way, Parker is really into being a helper these days and he helped me make the pie.  (And you'll see that he helped Paul blow out the candle.) As I rinsed off the strawberries, he laid them on a paper towel and when I was ready to cut them, he placed each one on the cutting board for me.  He helped me put all the strawberries in the pie crust, and most importantly, he helped us eat it! Also, you might notice that some of these pictures are severely lacking in quality. In a different situation I may have taken the time to try and figure out what was going on, but Paul had to open his presents Speedy Gonzales style before Parker opened them all for him.

Train Ride

I found out about midday on Friday that Paul wouldn't be home until after Parker went to bed.  These days, by late afternoon I'm counting down the seconds until Paul walks in the door and can take over playing with Parker.  I just get tired so easily.  But come on, I'm making a baby.  It's hard work.  I'd been wanting to take Parker to Irvine Park for awhile and Friday afternoon seemed like the perfect opportunity; Parker would enjoy it and it would be easy for me.  We'd spent the morning organizing a closet (an interesting endeavor with a toddler's "help") and it was time for some fun.  We walked around the park and admired the Easter decorations and the free-roaming peacocks.  We also saw some parrots flying around.  We looked at some ponies (from a distance, Parker was not a fan) and then finally rode the train.  I don't think Parker would mind one bit if we went back every single day.

Mall Carousel

I've already started wearing my maternity clothes and I loooooooove it.  And really, who doesn't love an elastic waistband?  The last go-around, most of the maternity clothes were borrowed, and the ones that I do own are primarily for winter.  I've come to realize that the pair of capris and handful of shirts that are actually mine aren't going to cut it for the next six months.  So, Parker and I trekked to the mall and shopped til we dropped.  Actually, we only made it to two stores, but by the end we were both ready to be done.  Parker was so good and several people complimented him for it.  Before we left we took a ride on the carousel; he chose the blue bunny and had so much fun!

... and a Birth Day

And now for the Birth Day... Did you catch what was on Parker's shirt?  If not, here it is again:

That's right.  This mama's makin' a baby.

Proof:

While I realize it looks like I'm making a Pinocchio, I was told that it's just the baby's hand by its face.

I'm due on September 9th and am looking forward to leaving this first semester far behind me.  I had planned on detailing some of the awfulness of it, but recently decided against it.  I will say this, though:  I think that with future pregnancies I'll tell people sooner than the socially acceptable 12-week-and-over big reveal.  I think it would have really helped me to be able to talk to people (ie family and close friends) about what I was going through, rather than keeping it to myself because I wasn't ready to make my pregnancy public.  I do understand that the risk of miscarriage is higher in the first trimester, but if I had miscarried I would have wanted people (ie family, close friends) to know that too. 

Anyway, enough about that.  I'm doing SO much better now and we are really excited for this new little addition to our family. 

A Birthday

Parker's SECOND birthday was on February 24th and we had a two day celebration.  On the 23rd (Saturday) we went to the beach to fly his new Cars kite and watch the sun go night night.  For his birthday dinner, Parker chose to go to Mimi's.  Actually, that was my choice, which Paul fought, and then finally conceded.  Paul has issues with Mimi's.  He thinks it's only for grandmas- my rebuttal was that Parker loves grandmas and it was therefore the perfect choice.

On Sunday (his actual birthday), we kept it pretty simple and had some of Parker's church friends over for cupcakes. 

He got lots and lots of presents.  We filmed him opening a few...

2010-01-01 00 01 42 from John Fjeldsted on Vimeo.

2010-01-01 02 11 24 from John Fjeldsted on Vimeo.

2010-01-01 01 37 58 from John Fjeldsted on Vimeo

2010-01-01 01 36 30 from John Fjeldsted on Vimeo.

What a fun little guy Parker is!  He has decided to forego the "terrible twos" and continue to be as sweet as ever this entire year.