Baby Carlson's (Danielle Nicole Carlson) journey

Happy 2nd Birthday!!!!

2008-04-20T09:35:00.000-07:00

Hi there..
You had a very fun day yesterday. We went to Walnut Creek, to a place called the Jungle. You played ALOT, and had great fun jumping in the ball pit with all the plastic balls, you also enjoyed going down the slide a bunch of times. We had a small party with just a few friends. You had almost a full piece of pizza and then a slice of cake. You had your first sugar flower which you daintily ate, and dipped in the frosting. the 45 minutes went quick, and we didnt get to open all of your presents.

After the party we stopped by Grandma's and said hi, She was happy to see you and gave you lots of Love you's and kisses and hugs. We then went home, and opened the rest of your gifts, and you loved every one of them. I think you've read all the books already :). Then on your actually birthday we woke up and had some breakfast and then went to the park, and we played for about an hour, you had fun in the sand, and playing on the slide. We went to Perko's for lunch and you had a grilled cheese sandwich. Grandma had called and sang you happy birthday on the machine.

Happy 2nd birthday sweet heart.

Santa Claus is coming to.......

2007-12-06T09:03:00.000-08:00

town.........Wait hold the presses, stop the reindeer. A little story that happened last night. We finally made our way to the Mall to see if we could get a picture of santa this year with you, to use as our Christmas Card cover, since last years card was so cute. We ventured out at around 5:30pm to the Mall, parked, changed you into a beautiful Red/white dress and carried you inside the mall. We approached the area where Santa was, and set you down and attempted to walk you in to visit Santa. Luckily there was no one else in line except for one other little boy who darted and was afraid so we were beckoned to come in. you walked slowly towards him.. closer and closer, more wary with each step. Once you got within 2 to 3 feet you looked up, and immediately turned around and started walking at a quick pace towards the exit. You were going to have nothing to do with Santa.. The ringing of bells stopped you in your tracks, as you turned around to see Santa ringing his bells.. you turned around again.. curious of the sound. and again walked towards him.. you grabbed the bells and then took off again.. You were not going to give Santa your list this year, and you certainly weren't going to get close enough to touch his red furry suit.

We left the Santa Picture area, as you beelined it following mommy out of the Mall through Pennys.. you weren't distracted by anything and were focused on following Mommy away from "Santa".

Wow what a difference a year makes.. 365 days ago you were happy to sit on Santa's lap and give us the most beautiful picture. fast forward 365 days and you didn't want anything to do with him, except that he had pretty sounding bells.

All of this is ok though.. your Father didn't like Santa when he was a toddler either.. and we will just have to be more creative with this years photo. (Photoshop rings a bell). Perhaps next year, we will try again and see what happens.

Whose going to be a Big sister???

2007-12-01T09:12:00.000-08:00

That's right, Danielle you will soon be a big sister to your new brother/sister.(we haven't found out yet, but should know by the end of the year) The expected due date is 5/17/08, and your new brother/sisters blog will be babycarlson2008.blogspot.com (Don't look now as it hasn't even been created yet!) Mommy and Daddy are very excited, and you've become curious as to what's in Mommy's tummy. "baby?" you say ever so often. Your becoming quite fond of your stuffed animals Grrrr and Growl (Ty kittie, and Ty cheetah), and have come to say waa waa for water, Maa maa for your bink eat eat for when your hungry, poo poo for when you have gas or when you've actually gone, we've caught you saying "very pwetty" after seeing mommys earrings, and a baby form of thank you after receiving something. you also can saw pwees which equates to please. Your vocabulary is growing day by day. and your getting quite tall. Your in size 5 shoes now and are wearing 24 month clothes.. Your enjoying us reading you bwooks! and playing with your bawls. You urge us to tickle you more, and have given us many kisses. but above all you've learned how to Zurbert mommy and daddies tummy.. after many times of being zurberted yourself you now know how to retaliate, and it makes mommy and daddy laugh so hard when you lift up our shirt and fall upon us open mouthed and zurbert.

Thanksgiving 2007

2007-11-23T09:20:00.000-08:00

We spent Thanksgiving day in the city eating Brunch at Cityscape again with Grandma. This time besies the mashed potatoes, you enjoyed most every vegetable, and other food on the menu. After eating quit a bit you got ancy and wanted to get out of your chair. You found out that you could climb up a step and stand behind a railing by our table, and then you got adventurous and wondered if you could climb over the railing.. which you did, and daddy was there to catch you. You've become very adventerous and daring. After brunch we went down to the main floor expecting it to be decorated for Christmas, boy were we surprised as there was no christmas decorations this year so we decided to go over to the Hyatt, to see what they had. We went to the second floor and saw all these minature christmas displays, and hear this beautiful music coming form a piano. You walked over to the piano player with Grr in tow, and proceeded to try to give Grr to the piano man. He chuckled, and took it and placed it on his piano and then asked if you would like to help him play. you walked closer to the Piano and plunked the black keys ever so softly.. The Piano man was very impressed that you weren't banging the keys. We spent a long time listening to teh piano and watching you roam around, looking at all the pretty christmas decorations.

Friday Morning, we woke you up early because mommy and daddy had to go shopping! We visited a few stores and you were bundled up to the tee with your winter clothes and jacket on. After shopping, we headed down to Mommy's Aunt and Uncles for your Cousin's 1st birthday. We had a lot of fun visiting family and Great Granny goose was there from Oregon to visit as well. You had a lot of fun helping Catie open her presents and playing with her toys.

Summer Vacation 2007

2007-08-29T11:54:00.000-07:00

We left at 12:13 pm on August 16th out of SFO, the night before we spent the night at the Holiday inn North in South San Francisco. (BTW next time will stay at the Holiday inn Express, as the beds at the Holiday inn were terible) Our flight on Thursday was uneventful, you slept for most of the way and enjoyed looking out the window. We arrived in Cleveland at around 8:00 PM eastern time. We met Mike & Marcy, and loaded in the bags and went to their house. We were to wake up at 4:00 am the next morning to get a started on our vacation.

Next morning we slept in an hour and finally left the house at around 5:30am.. our first stop was to be Niagra Falls. We got to the falls and walked around and took pictures. The day had escaped us so instead of continuing on and going wine tasting we decided to just head for the hotel in Syracuse. We were glad we did. Enjoyed the managers reception at the Embassy suites, and when we arrived a wedding was just getting underway. Nothing like walking in on a wedding and seeing the guests 2 or 3 stories up lining the walk ways.. After drinks and snacks, it started to pour, so we decided instead of going out in the rain to order Pizza. The pizza was good, you even enjoyed a piece yourself. We then went swimming for a bit in the indoor pool and spa, and finally retired to our room where you quickly went to sleep. We awoke the next morning knowing that we had quite a ways to go, to get to Rhode Island, so we were off fairly early Saturday Morning.

We arrived at the house with the help of the GPS and unpacked the mini van. the house was big, with 6 bedrooms, a nice living space downstairs and a big living room area upstairs. We went and had dinner and you had your first taste of clam, you enjoyed it.
Sunday was Beach day/dinner party. you thoroughly enjoyed the Atlantic and the beach, after your initial shock of seeing the waves and feeling the cool water you were then happy to play in the sand. That evening we went to Marcy's Great Aunt's house and had dinner along with lots of other of the Great Aunt's friends. We had a great time, and you got so many compliments on your hair and eyes.

Monday & Tuesday we spent around town, and Wednesday we went to Boston, where you got to drive a DUCK (an amphibous vehicle used in WWII) there's a picture of you on the flicker site, of you stearing the vehicle. you slept during the land tour but woke up once we hit the water, we think you wanted to go swimming because you kept pointing to the water.

Thursday we took a Ferry to block island, where you got to take your first bike ride. you didn't like riding in back of mommy at first and cried and cried and then fell asleep. when you woke up again you lost your fear, and enjoyed the rest of the ride. we played on the beach and you collected rocks for grandma. We had a nice lunch and then went shopping for the rest of the afternoon on the island, we returned back to the house to have steak sandwiches. .

Friday we went to Newport and went to a few mansions. you did not like the guided tour and kept being fusy, so we decided to go to audio tours after that. We enjoyed taking pictures and walking through the huge mansions.

Saturday quickly came and we had packed the night before. We had planned on leaving some what early but did not leave until about 11:30 or so. what was supposed to be a 10 hr trip took us almost 13. We arrived back in Cleveland at around 1:30 am. and were quickly off to bed due to a 9:00 flight the next morning back to SFO. We slept for a few hours, packed the car and were off to the airport. We again got compliments on the GoGo Babyz wheels that were on your car seat that allowed us to wheel you through the airport. one of the better things we've bought for travel with you. The flight home was also uneventful.. a little boy did get sick on the flight so they had to close off one of the bathrooms, but that was ok. you again slept for almost 3 hrs and once we got to SFO we got our bags and met Grandma at Mimi's cafe in Pleasanton for a late lunch. After having lunch we left for home, and relaxed.

2008 vacation is currently being planned for Florida. :)

13 months where has the time gone

2007-06-06T19:57:00.000-07:00

Ok so I admit I last posted the day before your 1st birthday and so much has happened since then.

First off you had the best 1st birthday party.. It was at Fremont Swim School in Livermore, where you are currently taking swimming lessons. Tons of Mommy and Daddies friends and family showed up to wish you a happy 1st birthday. You enjoyed swimming and playing wiht all your friends. When it came time for cake you were less than enthused. you ate a few bites but then started handing it off on daddy. By the time you were finished more cake was in daddies hands then went into your mouth but that was ok! your cake was hawaiian themed with lilo and stich.. You got tons of wonderful presents from everyone, and it took you quite awhile to write out all the thank you cards..

Ok next major news is you now have 4 teeth!!! one tooth came about 2 weeks ago and another just popped through yesterday.. You had a terrible time falling asleep last night. Lets see what else is news.. your crawling all over the place and can no longer be counted on to sit in one place. you've also almost mastered getting up into a standing position but have yet to take any first steps solo. Your personality is growing daily.

Oh and one sad thing has happened.. your friend Karen from day care has left the center due to their possible move this summer. We will miss them, and I am sure you miss seeing your buddy every day.. (we are secretly hoping they don't move) but will be happy for them if they do move because then you will just have another out of state friend. :) Ok I guess that's it for now.. upcoming plans are a afternoon with Grandma, cuz your mommy and daddy are going to the horse races.. and you've got your friend TJs party to go to at the end of the month.. it's his 1st and another swim party! yeah!

thats it for now.. Hopefully i can get this thing updated quicker then every few months

1 day till 1 Years old

2007-04-19T14:49:00.000-07:00

Hello little one,
Tomorrow is your big day, you will be 1 years old. Your mommy and me have watched you grow so much over this past year. We've witnessed holding your head up by yourself, sitting up by yourself, getting your first immunization shot, changing your first diaper, coming home from the hospital, sleeping in your bassinet and making the big move to your Crib in the other room. The first night you slept all the way through, the nights where all you wanted to do was keep us up, the first time you had something other than milk to eat, your laugh has made us laugh, your endless bable, your Mammas, Daddas, pointing, clapping, your personality is growing every day. the blowouts, the ear infections, the colds, playing with your toys, the talking to the cats, sitting in a highchair, a shopping cart, falling asleep on the way home, the list could go on and on. It's truely been an amazing first year, and both Mommy and Daddy are looking forward to the years to come, watching you grow. You are already past the 20 lb mark and we will find out next month how tall you are. Your Car seat will soon be forward facing and we'll be able to see you when we turn around.
Happy first Birthday sweetheart.

A little behind...

2006-12-13T10:26:00.000-08:00

Due to the holidays and other circumstances, i've fallen behind in logging the days of Danielle growing up. Over the past 4 months she's gotten bigger, began to explore more, and laugh and smile daily. She is now able to sit up by herself and keeps herself amused at times with her toys. Not yet crawling but very close to. Her two lower front teeth have come in, Her top teeth have yet to make an appearance, but the teething pain comes and goes. Her days in day care have so far been pleasant, she is starting to interact with the other babies. She even has a secret santa gift for another child at day care. Her first secret santa gift exchange. Thanksgiving was spent with Grandma in San Francisco, we went to Cityscape for Brunch and then to the Auto show to look at cars. Christmas will be spent at the Aunts and Uncle's of both Shannon and I.

Danielle is now sleeping on her stomach by choice. We put her in her crib at night and she finds a way to flip over and we find her on her stomach in the morning. Some of the more comical moments have been walking in to find her in a push up position looking over the bumper at us smiling. she's also been known to on being awoken, lifting her head up and then it drops to the matress a few times, groggily waking up.

She is still sleeping through the night, thanks to her warm blanket sleepers.

The house is getting baby proofed and will be secure by the time she starts to be mobile.
The Christmas tree is put up, yet to be decorated, Danielle does not like the feel of the needles.

The past 4 months, she has grown so much, and has gained such a personality, it is amazing to look back at pictures to see all the changes.

I promise to not let this go another 4 months before updating again.

Merry Christmas and Happy New year.

ps. New pictures will be posted soon

Happy 4month birthday to you

2006-08-23T13:40:00.000-07:00

Well August 20th was your 4 month birthday, and the 21st was your appt. We found out that you now weigh 15 lbs 12 oz and are 25 1/2 inches long. Such a big girl! The nurse who gave you your shots, was also much better than before, and was very quick.. You cried a bit, but as soon as it was over, mommy picked you up, and you stopped crying. We brought you home and fed you. The Pediatrian told us that we can begin feeding you rice cereal. Wow cereal!! we were excited to hear that. we gave you tylenol every 4 hrs and you slept through the night again. You woke up the next day with bruise spots where the shots were administered, and you weren't kicking as much. But when daddy got home, you were happy to see him, and you also did something for daddy that he had not heard before. You Laughed! This was only the second time, and guess what caused you to laugh, dare I say it! Mommy burped, and you giggled, and she burped again, and you giggled more. Daddy tried burping and you didn't even flinch. Then mommy was silly in front of you and you laughed again. It was truely amazing to hear you laugh, and very memorable. I can't wait to hear that sound again. Happy birthday sweetheart. Your next appt is in 2 months. By then you should be sitting up.

Happy 3month birthday to you, Happy 3 month birthday to you

2006-07-20T09:25:00.000-07:00

Happy 3 month birthday to Danielle, happy 3 month birthday to you.

Wow, it so hard to believe that 3 months ago today, I was holding you for the first time, clipping your umbilical cord, and meeting you for the first time. You sure have grown in these past 3 months, and are really starting to be quite vocal, and even starting to play with some of your toys. I think one of the best gifts you actually gave us, today, instead of us giving you, was that you are now sleeping from 9:00 PM to about 5 AM or longer, and when you do wake up in the middle of the night, you find your hand, talk to it a bit, suck on it, and then fall back asleep. Your hand and you are becoming best buds, I can tell. Your neck muscles have developed to the point that you are pretty much able to keep your head up, next step will be to be able to sit up by yourself, you are soon going to be outgrowing the family bassinet, and we will have to move you down the hall to your bedroom and your crib. That will be a sad/happy day for both your mom and I, because we both have gotten used to you sleeping in the same room as us, and having to make the short trek down the hall will seem like the longest walk, I'm sure for the first few weeks. And I'm sure Mommy or Me will be spending time in your room just watching you sleep, or viewing you through the video monitor, to make sure your ok.

Happy 3 month birthday sweetheart...

Love,
Daddy

Baby Announcement

2006-07-14T10:35:00.000-07:00

For those that didn't get a mailed announcement, I appoligize, we only ordered a handful due to the cost, but you can print your own, if you want :) She's definitly going to see the world, and she already has her passport!

Already Photogenic.. Who is the cutest?!?!

2006-07-14T10:33:00.000-07:00

You got professional pics taken at Babies r us, you liked it up until we put you on you tummy.. But still we got some really good pics. I combined them all into one picture for posting purposes.

A Little over 2 months old and already looking like a 4month old!

2006-06-30T12:17:00.000-07:00

Funny story, Shannon was asked at the Baby's R Us Mothers room one day, how old Danielle was, with which she replied she's about 8 weeks old. The other mother looked in astonishment, and said oh she looks like she's 4 months. Stating that her daughter was also 2 months old, and quite smaller than Danielle.

Danielle, you are getting stronger day by day, almost able to keep your head up with out support, what a big girl you are. And you are smiling more and more, and actually talking to us, although not in words but in different sounds, with the 2 month shots behind you, you have now recovered pretty much completely, and are back to your happy self again.

I read somewhere where at this age, a baby does a full body smile in which he/she smiles as well as shows their happiness by waving their arms and kicking their feet, and Danielle is definitly doing that.

2 Month Shots.. OUCH!

2006-06-22T12:21:00.000-07:00

So you got your two month shots today, and boy were you not happy about it. You were first measured and weighed and came in at 23 1/2 inches long, and 12 lbs 9 oz. In the 90th percentile. :) We were very happy to hear this. And then the Dr. left and we waited patiently for the nurse to come in and give you your shots. It seemed like forever until she came, and you were getting hungrier by the minute. She finally came in and Mommy helped the nurse by holding your arms while she confined you by pinning your legs against the table. You did not like this at all, and starting wailing even before the first needle was poked. The nurse seemed to be taking her time, and was not as efficient as we thought she could have been, taking a long time to administer the shot, and go on to the next one. After the 4 shots were done, mommy picked you up and you stopped crying for a bit, and we left the Dr's office and fed you in the car before going home. It was a tramatic experience but well worth it. You actually slept through the night, and woke up the next day, feeling ok, but later that day, you were not yourself and so mommy gave you some tylenol which seemed to do the trick. You continued not feeling very well for probably the next 2 to 3 days. And then you got back to being you. Your happy self again. We were happy to see you smiling and cooing again and are not looking forward to the next round of shots.

Baby Danielle has made her appearance

2006-04-20T08:11:00.000-07:00

It was the afternoon of the 19th when I got a call from my wife that she had just had an ultrasound, and had then spoken to her OB, and She said that she would like to schedule a C-Section due to you being in the Breach position, in essence, sitting on the drain. I was a little shocked when Shannon said to tell my work that I wouldn't be coming into work on Thursday, due to this, but was also very excited. I went home that afternoon excited and a bit nervous. Marcy, Our friend who had moved to Ohio, was due to arrive Thursday and met Shannon at the hospital. We couldn't have planned that better if we tried, since she was coming out to help Shannon and I in the first few weeks after the birth. Little did we know that we would be meeting our daughter on Thursday.

We got to sleep at a decent hour because we had to be at the hospital by 6:00 to check in.

4/20/06:
Didn't get much sleep last night, and woke up earlier then expected. We got dressed and went to the hospital, the moon was still out as we entered the hospital and walked down to the birthing center. We were let in and Shannon was told to get changed into a gown, and an IV would be placed in her arm. It was about 30 minutes later that they wheeled her off to the operating room, and I was given scrubs, a hat and a mask, and was told that I would be taken in once the IV and the C-Section began. 15 minutes later, the nurse escorted me to the operating room, beyond the double doors. The operating room was start, and bright, a blue tarp was raised so that I could not see the operation in progress, but I did see Shannon, laying there arms outstreched. I was told to sit next to her and as I sat there, I heard the commotion beyond the tarp, of the Dr's and nurses, preparing to bring baby Carlson into the world. It didn't take long at all, before we heard that you were out, and that you had just gone to the bathroom upon leaving your mother's womb. The Dr. then asked if I would like to cut the cord, I spoke up immediately and said Yes!, not knowing before hand if I would be up to it, but something inside of me said that this is an experience that I would regret if I hadn't have done, so I stood up and walked over to where you were laying. Mommy was surrounded by nurses and Dr's and all I saw as I walked over there was a bit of blood, and a lot of commotion. I was handed a pair of what looked like scissors, and was told to cut between the two clamps. It was an interesting experience because the cord was rubbery and took a few up and downs of the scissors to actually cut the cord, after that you were wiped off a bit more, and we waited to hear you cry. It took you a bit but finally you let out the most beautiful cry I had ever heard, at that same moment, Mommy also cried, knowing that you were ok. You were a very quiet baby. as you were monitored and cleaned up a bit, then you were taken over to your Mommy and she got to see you for the first time. I was then told to take you and we walked out to where Marcy wa waiting, and the video began. I was beside myself, overfilled with happiness, and in wonderment of how small and delicate you were. You were soon weighed and measured, and your birth weight was measured at 8lbs 5 oz (same as your dad) and 20 1/4 inches long. Your birth time was recorded at 8:22 am. Your grandma came in and saw you wiggling around and we just stared at you. You were then given your first bath, and bundled up. You looked great, with no birth marks, and your head was perfectly round.We then took you back to the room where mommy had been taken back to. We spent the next few hours admiring you, and then mommy fed you for the first time, and you were quite responsive to the feeding. We were very happy. I spent the night and the next few nights with you and mommy at the hospital. We were not released until the 24th. We brought you home, and were nervous about leaving the hospital, because they had treated us so good, and helped us a great deal in those first few days. The days seemed to fly by, and soon I had to return back to work and Marcy went back to Ohio. We celebrated your week by week birthdays, always wishing you a happy one the morning of.

At about 2 weeks, you had your first big growth spirt, which we recognized by you wanting to eat about every hour on the hour, and boy were you grumpy if you didn't get fed. You also had your first Dr.'s appt at about 2 weeks, we wondered if that day would be the day of your first shots, Marcy was still here, so all 4 of us went to the Dr. appt and were surprised and happy that it was just a check up. We were shocked when they again measured you and weighed you. Looking back at discharge from teh hospital you weighed 7lbs 11 oz, and at the appt you weighed 8lbs 10 oz but the most shocking thing, was that you went from 20 1/4 to 22 inches long!

We quickly got into a routine with you of taking you to bed at around 10:30 or so, putting you in the bassinet (which is a family heirloom, that has been in the family for some time), and we would all go to sleep, and for the first few nights you would only wake up one time at around 3:00 or so. which we thought was wonderful. You have had your good nights and bad nights, but overall you've been a great baby.

5/14: Mother's day. We brought you to Grandma's house to celebrate mother's day, your mommy received a small baby shoe inscribed with your name and birthdate. we had a delicious lunch and stayed for most of the afternoon. You were being so good.

I think I've pretty much caught us up to present day, I apologize to you and the rest of the people reading this blog that I haven't kept it up to date, and will try to do a better job in the future. Our next big day is Father's day on the 18th, and then it will be the 21st when we go in for your 2 month appt, and that is when you will get your shots. We still look in wonder at all the facial expressions and noises that you continue to make as well as how strong your neck muscles are getting, being able to lift your head and turn it from side to side. your hair is still a dark red and your eyes are still blue, and your gaining a bit of weight :). Making you a little chubby baby. Oh I almost forgot, we named you Danielle Nicole carlson. After going through various names, this was the one that fit you best. I hope you like it, because Mommy and Daddy, and the rest of the family and friends sure do. Also a link to pictures of you is on the left hand side under links, click on My Flkr.

peek a boo We see you

2006-03-13T11:53:00.000-08:00

Wow, I'm still in shock, we got to see you for only the second time in 3 d and boy have you grown. Your looking good, with your chubby cheeks and your hair, but you still have that arm up by your face. Don't be shy, its ok. We both can't wait to meet you and we enjoyed seeing you on Saturday. Your grandmother also truely enjoyed the seeing you as well, and was amazed at what technology can do. When I was born, all they had available were x-rays. I'll post pictures asap.

Baby Shower..

2006-02-05T11:49:00.000-08:00

February 4th was a wonderful day, filled with games, laughter and lots of presents for our little girl. We got an abundance of onsies and other clothing as well as a jumperoo, a exersaucer, 2 hand made blankets (Thanks Grandma/Mom)and other items to much to list. We played games like guess the baby food, make names using our names, and others. The cake was decorated Pooh style, and was made by the same person that baked our Wedding cake. We had tons of guests, and the shower was held at Bob & Sandi Common's house in Livermore. Thank you to everyone who came and shared that special day with us.

All day Parenting class

2006-01-15T14:23:00.000-08:00

Saturday was spent at a Parenting class learning the basics from labor, to delivery to even bathing the baby afterwards. It was very educational and taught us a lot, we were glad that we went to the one day class instead of the every night for 2 hours class. Walked away with a lot more information that we needed. We even got a free lunch from the cafeteria, which was decent. Lasagna was very tasty. We got a tour of the nursery and of one of the rooms. Very well done. The baby doesn't even spend time in the nursery, she will be in the room with us, after the birth, which is very cool.. Video can be done prior to and after delivery, not during, which is ok with us.

Breast Feeding 101...

2006-01-09T10:17:00.000-08:00

So Monday evening was spent learning about Breast Feeding. Such holds as the foot ball and clutch were mentioned. As well as bulleyeing the babies mouth to the nipple and not the other way around.. I wonder what the baby is thinking when it suddenly is thrust against a mothers chest??? "FOOOOOD!!!" Anyways the class was very educational, and I ended up winning the "prize" for knowing what the walnut on the table represented. Some answers were "Brain, stool, etc" and I answered Stomach, which was correct. The instructor laughed and said in a previous class a man had answered with Testicle.. The whole class laughed at this. It was definitly 2 hours well spent. Shannon also had a regular check up, and everything seems to be good

All she needs is a few more Z's...

2006-01-08T10:26:00.000-08:00

So for a little over a month, Shannon has been complaining of not getting enough rest, falling asleep while driving, at work, etc. We first thought it may be due to Pregnancy, but one night and there after I noticed that Shannon would fall asleep fairly quickly and start snoring, she would then be silent for a bit and then with a loud snore resume. This would continue through out the night. I mentioned this to her and she didn't believe me, and said that she would wake up multiple times at night to go to the bathroom but didn't realize she was waking up at other times. I finally decided to video tape her on one occasion when she had fallen asleep on the couch. For 5 minutes she stopped breathing 2 times or so. She was amazed at what she saw once I woke her up, and she then scheduled an appt with a General Practioner, Dr. Gee, who then refered her to a sleep specialist. Her first night was on Tuesday, she was hooked up to multiple wires and monitors.

As Shannon recalls the evening was horrible. First she couldn't fall asleep because they said that she had to be on her back as much as possible, which is almost impossible for a pregnant woman. Along with all the diodes and monitors all over her face and body. She finally fell asleep and got the recordings the technician required, that proved that she had Apnea. The next morning I picked her up at 5:30 and we went to work. She was dead tired due to lack of sleep. On Wednesday she had appt with her GP and came to find out that she has HypoThryoid, which also can be a cause of Apnea. She was prescribed a medication to boost her Thryoid.

On Friday, She again had another sleep study but this time with a CPAP machine which forces air into a person to help them breath. Saturday morning came and Shannon said that she slept wonderfully. And the technician said that they had controlled her snoring. Unfortunately, her appt to meet with the Dr. and get her Machine isn't scheduled until the 17th, but we are hoping for a cancellation before then. Until then Shannon is still not getting that good of rest and is still tired through out the day, althought he thyroid medication is helping a bit.

The suspense is over.

2005-12-25T19:16:00.000-08:00

Ok so for all of you who don't know yet. Baby Carlson is a girl..
And here are the pictures from the Ultrasound that proved this.

Is it a boy or girl???????????

2005-12-13T19:34:00.000-08:00

We woke up this morning fairly late, knowing that today could possibly be the day that we find out if we are going to have a little boy or girl. Our appt was up in Sacramento, so we got an early start not knowing exactly where the Dr.'s office was. We arrived there in plenty of time, and checked in. There were a few other couples in there also with their water bottles, and i found it amusing that the trash was full of water bottles. Guess that's a given for this type of appt.

Anyways we met with the Genetic counselor for alittle over 20 minutes and she eased any of the fears that we may have had, telling us that we had a 1 in 10,000 chance of having something be wrong with the baby, and a 1 in 314 chance of the baby having down syndrome.. We were quite excited at this news, and thanked her for the information, we went back to the waiting room and waited till our name was called.

We were led back to a darkened room with the Ultrasound machine and a chair for "dad" to sit in, with a screen elevated on the wall in front of us. Shannon got "warm" gupe this time, which was a change from the cold stuff she usually gets. I guess there are actual warming bins for the gupe, too bad more dr's don't have them. The tech started scannin for the baby and soon enough he/she was found. The tech took measurements of the arms, legs, brain, body etc. Checked the spine, stomach, and told us everything was ok. And then she asked if we wanted to know what the sex of the child was....

And of course we said yes! And then she zeroed in on a specific spot and said see this... and we said yes. And she said well you are having a ..............

And we were totally excited, and happy, and then she went on again with the measurements. and we actually got to see the baby in 4D for a bit, and saw the little arms and face, it was all very cute. And that was it.. She then left and another Dr. came in to make one more check of the baby, and said everything is looking good. the baby's heart rate is at 135 beats per minute, and weighs about 12 ounces... and is 20 weeks and 2 days old.

Pics to follow.. and of course whether the baby is a boy or a girl :)

Regular Dr. visit 12/12/05

2005-12-12T19:29:00.000-08:00

Shannon went for her monthly appt. and was done in 30 minutes. No issues, no concerns. Dr. said she is doing just fine. Shannon mentioned her apparrent apenia which I have started to get concerned with, and the Dr. mentioned that she will need to set up an appointment with a general practitioner to have a sleep study to find out just how serious it is.

Tomorrow is the big day! we will be going up to Sacramento to have the level 2 ultrasound and hopefully find out if we are going to be having a boy or girl.

More tomorrow...

November 14, 2005

2005-11-14T19:04:00.000-08:00

We went to the Dr's today to find out the "official" due date. After some measurements and a scan to hear the babies heart beat, we were given the news that we are to expect baby Carlson on or around April 30th. Looks like I will be getting one of the best birthday presents a guy can get. We were also told that we are in the 16th week. Shannon has begun to feel every once in awhile a "feeling" which we relate to the baby movin around.

Next appt will be in 4 weeks but prior to that we are getting the blood test to see if there are any problems with the baby.
Also we will be going up to Sacramento to get a level 2 ultra sound (a more intense one) to make sure that there are no signs of spinal abifida, due to Shannon having a minor case of it.

say cheese!

2005-11-01T11:13:00.000-08:00

Some of the first documented Pics of baby carlson. Notice the legs and arms.. This was taken at aprox 14 weeks

12 weeks since Conception or so they say...

2005-10-25T15:51:00.000-07:00

...I should have started this blog awhile ago, and so I take the adege of never to late to start something. A brief history to catch you up to this point.

From our earliest recollections we can trace back the date to conception at or around August 13th, 2005. We went to the city to see the Dave Matthews band in concert along with the Black Eyed Peas. Prior to the concert we had checked into the Embarcadero Hyatt and had a beautiful view of the bay.
We dined at Epetus, a Brazilian bbq all you can eat place which was awesome.
The concert was truely awesome as well and we ended up walking back to the hotel from the concert.
Fast forward 4 weeks or so, and are curious as to why there has yet to be a period.

We then took one pregnancy test, which came out to be negative, still wondering why Shannon was late, we waited a few more days and then took another test. This time according to Shannon the line showed up almost instantaniously, showing us that we were in fact pregnant. I personally was in shock, filled with happiness, and other thoughts of the unknown, we hugged and were very happy with the news.

I then set out to find a Ob/GYN in Tracy, that would be a perfect fit for us. Searching online O came across http://www.sdwashington.md/ and figured we'd try her. Shannon scheduled an appt and was very impressed with the first appointment, she came across as professional and friendly. She also confirmed that we were in fact pregnant and scheduled the first ultrasound.

Our first picture of the baby resembles a little bean, but more importantly Shannon got to see the flutter of the heart beat, which told us that she in fact had something living inside her growing day by day.

We were very excited and happy.

back a few more weeks

2005-09-15T09:23:00.000-07:00

Ok so we came back to California and returned back to work. and over the next days and weeks we slowly leaked the news to more and more friends, family and co-workers. All were genuinely excited for us. We took my Mom out for dinner and gave her a card with pictures of the 2nd ultra sound, where the babies features are more pronounced. She was very excited, and mentionied that my Cousin Jamie and his wife were expecting around the same time.

Back to Labor day weekend

2005-09-05T09:17:00.000-07:00

We planned a trip to Ohio to visit friends that had recently moved to Ohio. We were excited about the trip but more importantly we had discussed whether or not we would tell our friends that we were expecting. Due to the fact that our friends probably would be planning on taking us wine tasting and other drinking adventures, we decided to tell them so they wouldn't wonder why we weren't drinking.

We took the red eye to ohio and arrived there at around 6:00 am. We hugged and then were taken to their house. Amazed at the size land, and view of the place, at first sight it was truely amazing. We got the grand tour and then they said "break time" which meant cigarette break out side. We all went out front and then spilled the beans that we were expecting. We all hugged and talked about when/where/how. They were truely excited and happy for us, and Marcy was hoping to hear the news. Our 3 day weekend went by way to fast, but we got to experience quite a bit, great food, a ren festival, taste of Cleveland, and a slower pace of life. The midwest definitly has something going for it, and we are eager to return to visit our friends.