It's a Boy (and other news)!

I've been trying to think of a witty way to convey over a month's worth of updates, but I'm coming up with bupkis.

Should I do an alphabet-themed post?

A is for an AWESOME SUMMER!
B is for it's a BOY!
C is for... ugh, this isn't working for me. Way too cheesy. Next!

Should I do a poem-themed post?

The days have flown by and the posts have built up,
And now I have so many things to write about that I am having trouble figuring out where to start and it's super overwhelming and makes me put off posting at all which just perpetuates my problem and...
(Uh oh, that doesn't rhyme. Epic poem fail.)

Should I do an all-photo post?

Yes! That's it! I'll let the pictures truly be worth a thousand words! And then all I have to come up with are the captions. Which is good, because - stick a fork in me - between going back to work and finishing grad school and being pregnant and having a toddler at home, I'm so done. *sigh of relief*

Aunt Mary came to visit us this summer!
Yes, I said summer, and yes, she and Ethan are all bundled up on the beach. That's San Francisco weather for ya.
Ethan had his first visit to Fairyland, where he rode the carousel all by himself! Good grief - I blinked my eyes for one quick second, and now he's all grown up.
We found out that we're having a boy! I decided not to post the pic of his baby boy bits so as to respect his privacy.
But trust me, it's a boy!
We also celebrated Ethan's 3rd birthday, with a special boat birthday cake made by Aunt Mary! Oooohhh, aaaahhh!
And, just because I don't want to leave anything out, here's a quick list of happenings that didn't manage to get captured on film in pixels:

- Ryan got an AMAZING new job! He's now the Senior Photographer for Monster Cable. He handles all of their product photography for packaging and marketing, as well as serves as a celebrity photographer, capturing shots of some of Monster's endorsement partners. So far he's photographed Neil Young, ProHoeZak, JYP (the #1 pop star in Asia), and Chris Botti. Next up are Manny Pacquiao and Lance Armstrong.

- As we'll be needing our third bedroom for a nursery soon, Ryan's office has moved out of the house and into the in-law unit in our backyard that was converted into a studio! It's a great space that not only gives him the room that he needs for freelance work, but will also serve as our guest quarters when out of town visitors arrive.

- We had a bit of a speed bump over the summer when we got the news that the baby only has a single umbilical artery. Apparently, babies are supposed to have two, but our fetus is a minimalist. Our OB sent us to be checked out by a geneticist and a perinatologist, as the single umbilical artery can be indicative of genetic abnormalities, heart problems, or kidney problems. After a bonus ultrasound and some blood tests, everything that can be checked before he's born checked out just fine.

- I designed, and redesigned, and reredesigned the nursery decor with my friend, Stacie, and finally settled on a non-theme theme for baby brother's room. Ethan's theme was monkeys, and this time around I wanted to focus on colors and patterns instead. However, the room has slowly evolved into a woodland theme, but not in an overly obvious way. I'm creating some custom art pieces for the wall, and Ryan spent an entire weekend assembling furniture for me. It's all coming together!
Now all we need is the baby...

It's a BOY!!!

Very exciting news today - we learned that we will welcome a baby boy in July! The doctor's visit went really well, and our little man looks fantastic! We learned that he is camera shy, though... every time the doctor attempted to get a good profile shot he would turn his head away. Ryan will break him of that habit soon enough after he is born! He was also positioned in such a way that most of his body fell in a shadow, so the ultrasound pictures aren't great this time. We'll be sure to post the best of the bunch within the next few days!

Mommy Update:
- Getting bigger every day, feeling well, and enjoying the second trimester much more than the first!
- Excited to add one more male to her house full of boys (she's already outnumbered by Ryan and Max)!
- Feeling lots of kicks and movement lately, and looking forward to when Ryan will be able to feel them, too!
- Finding that those famous San Francisco hills are getting harder and harder to climb!

Boy or Girl?

No, we don't know yet... but March 5th is just around the corner! Our next post will probably be the big gender reveal! Until then, we are happily taking predictions, but refusing to speculate ourselves. We had another fantastic report from our doctor today - the heartbeat sounds great, weight gain is right on track, and belly measurements look good. We took round two of the belly portraits last night - it was kind of shocking to see the amount of growth that has taken place in just a few short weeks!







Sarah at four months - and she thought she was big last month!
















Yeah, we're probably going to have to buy new jeans for next month's photo shoot...







Mommy Update:
- Getting used to being told, "You're big for four months!" right after she hears, "You're small for four months!" from someone else... everyone's an expert!
- Feeling GREAT! No more morning sickness, and all of the current symptoms are sooooo minor compared to that!
- Can't wait to feel the little one kick and stretch - also super excited about finding out the gender in a few weeks!
- Has picked up a new habit in preparation for her upcoming role as a mother: she cooks real, microwave-free meals on a regular basis now!