You Were Warned....

Well by now you may have heard we're having a boy this August. And if you're a regular reader you might also recall K had her second ultrasound and everything looks great. Of course the rub is, just because the little guy looks great from a developmental perspective doesn't necessarily mean he's the most photogenic baby out there.

I think the word used previously about the following pictures was "creepy." Now of course none of this is reflection on the little tyke himself, who I'm sure will be the cutest guy either of us have laid our eyes on. However it's an interesting look at how sonagrams can distort the baby depending on the depth of the picture. Ladies & gentleman, we're about to play a little "You Make The Call'"...

Okay, it's just a foot. Not too bad, maybe even kind of cute.....

So this is a straight on picture of the Cubby's face laying on his side. Well, the terms "alien" or "evil teddy bear" might spring to mind. But we're not finished yet....

Well all right, here we've got Mr. Cubby in the same position and the creepiness factor has gone up a few notches. I tend to look at the pic as a cross between a skull & the puppet from Saw.

Editor's Note: The actual link to a picture of the puppet from Saw was removed, as the editor found it entirely too disturbing to connect that to her baby. In the interest of freedom of the press, the editor has allowed the reference to stay, but if you must see a picture, you will have to google it yourself.

That's Mr. Cubby To You...

Ladies & gentleman the Cubby now has a gender. Today was the big day of our 2nd ultrasound & we found out that we're having a baby boy!!!! We, along with all the parents & relatives, are thrilled (& its safe to say that at least one may be down right ecstatic). So now my mom's getting her wish when she said that she hopes I have a kid just like me. Apparently I'm supposed to be due for some sort of karmic retribution (or at least a glass cover to protect our coffee table); we'll see what happens.....

The doc also said that everything is looking great so we're pretty excited. All of the organs, spine, etc... are developing nicely which is always good to hear. The only bummer on this end is we couldn't get a good profile picture of the little guy but we've got a few (slightly creepy) shots of him head-on that we'll probably post to the blog later. Apparently some people are doubting the creepiness factor. All we can say is wait & see.....

Weekend Roundup....Plus

Well another fine weekend has come & gone in Raleigh with thankfully no yard work--here's the highlights:

• Friday night was momentous because K & I finally had success in securing some food at the Hayes Barton Cafe. We've attempted to eat there on two separate occasions & both were strikes; once it was just too packed & once we got there at closing time (What restaurant closes at 9:30 you ask? The HBC). The second time was particularly unfortunate as we stuffed 6 people in the Outback & poor Craig (who gets motion sickness in cars) had to ride in the back. Not exactly the ideal situation. Regardless, this time Kristin & I manged to sneak in just for some desert & we'll certainly be back. She had some sort of mint chocolate cake (with full Andes mint bars baked in) & I had a caramel apple pie--quite tasty. Its also noteworthy to point out the serving sizes were huge; we took most of our pieces home.

• On Saturday I took the pooches over to Andrea & Brandon's to watch Duke take out Miami while the K rested on the couch. She regrouped (I tell you, the pregnancy wears one out) & the four of us caught Juno at The Rialto. It was a fun movie that had a couple small but interesting twists that kept it from being too formulaic. Had some quirky characters & some good dialogue--its safe to say we endorse it.
  

• Sunday had a bit of errand running involved (for a duvet cover, if you must know) but since it had a high of 68 or so we took the dogs on a walk around nearby lake Johnson. We did a 2.5 mile loop which tired the dogs out but they did fine. We then drove (all the way) up to Wake Forest to catch the Super Bowl with a bunch of friends. Most of the party (including the hosts, Erin & Brian) were pretty hard core Patriots fans and, unless you're viewing this blog through some sort of time-travel portal, it didn't turn out so well for them. So the party ended on a bit of a downer which I can appreciate considering I lived through The Horror last year. However, the game was interesting & overall the party was great. Somehow Brian grilled hamburgers that actually had bacon & cheese already in the patty--if that's not a monumental human achievement I'm not sure what is.
  

And now for your 'Plus'....

• On Monday morning Kristin & I went on over to the doctor's office for the next scheduled Cubby appointment. The good news is both K & the baby are doing great and we got to listen to the heart beat for the first time. I think we were both expecting the heart beat to sound like what one would hear through a stethoscope (think 'thump, thump') but through the doppler thing it was much more of a 'whish-whish-whish' sound. The quote from the doctor was a 'strong 158 beats a minute & everything sounds great.' 'Very exciting stuff......
  

Petra Ad Infinitum

Here in Raleigh, the unborn Cubby is somehow managing to take up a good chunk of our free time. We're reading baby books, discussing nursery decorating, and even planning for future daycare. Not to mention that Kristin feels the effects of the baby most nights which has her climbing into bed around 9:30.

However, much of our non-Cubby time is currently focused on Rock Band, an Xbox 360 game my parents got us for Christmas. Even though Rock Band Fever is apparently sweeping the nation, for the uninformed here's how it works: Up to 4 people at once can 'play' ~ 50 popular songs together with each using a different 'instrument.'

The game is essentially a deluxe karaoke system--while someone sings the songs other people can be on the 5 piece colored drum set as well as both bass & regular guitars with colored fret buttons. The people on the instruments play along by following a scrolling pattern of colored notes & tapping/drumming the corresponding color.

An example of 'full' band playing Stone Temple Pilot's Interstate Love Song (& an excuse for me to embed a video):



K & I have our own band (called Benny & The Pets) & we play a few songs a night. She usually drums & occasionally sings while I man the guitar (much better than I ever have in real life). Its a great party game--so much so that one of my co-workers tried it once then went out & bought a 360 & the game.

Through the miracle of the internet, we could also play online with any of you so feel free to pick it up and join in the fun. We're ready to rock whenever you are.........at least until August when the Cubby shows up.

New Year, New Blog....

For all 10 or so of you prospective readers, welcome to the blog. After a great holiday season in both Indy & Ann Arbor, K & I are now back in Raleigh at the start of what might be the most exciting time of our lives.

First, however, a few recent highlights:

• Christmas in Indianapolis with the nieces
  
• Vacation in Ann Arbor with the family (& the extended Gunn/Saeed/Sommers family)
• Michigan beats Florida in the Citrus Bowl
  

And of course the biggest news:

• Our first baby is on the way!!!

Kristin's currently 10 weeks pregnant & the due date for "the Cubby" is August 13 (I checked, its not a Friday). Here's the proof:

So with child on the way & some not-so-subtle pressure from some friends & family we figured we'd give the blogging thing a try. Both K & I should be throwing in random updates every now & then. The goal is to at least keep it more up to date than the house blog. We also know we're not always the best at keeping in touch with everyone so please leave comments & we'll try & make them interactive.

Once the baby comes I imagine this space will be overrun with baby pictures & parental gushing but the goal is to mix in some generic life stories & opinion posts. So come August when all you see are pictures of the Cubby you can remember the good old days when there were random posts about Michigan football or Jon Scheyer's basketball IQ. Regardless, you'll be able to say you got in on the ground floor........