our little peanut ain't so little

She is finally here!  Weighing in at 8 lbs. and 4 oz., we welcomed baby Hazel on Sunday, July 12 at 1:25 PM.

Sugar and Spice and Everything Nice

Sugar --> First trimester woes have been long forgotten!

Spice --> Baby Hazel has perfected her punches and kicks.  Oy!

Everything Nice --> Well-deserved and long-awaited babymoon in Santa Barbara.

All aboard Amtrak's Coast Starlight!

Enjoying a stroll on State Street.

Evening walk along the waterfront.

At the wharf.  Ours is better =P.

Basking in the sun while waiting for the shuttle.

Trying out the surrey.  I couldn't even reach the pedals.

In the halls of Santa Barbara's Courthouse.

Leaving for the Bay Area.

Sigh of Relief

Between appointments, I can't help but feel nervous.  I have no way of telling how the baby is growing - I can't feel, see or hear anything that's going on in the womb.  At this point, I've come to understand why some people (OK, maybe just celebrities) buy ultrasound equipment for the home.  They cost just around $7000, by the way.  

hello!

However, our ultrasound appointment from earlier this week not only gave me a huge sigh of relief, but some belly laughs as well.  Baby DC was wide awake and rambunctious.  The chatty technician was quite surprised at how active our baby was.  The baby was hiccuping, playing with the umbilical cord, waving hello, turning in circles, even posing - at this point I've suspected this one's a boy.  But we have to wait for the next ultrasound appointment to find out the sex of the baby. 

world's smallest beer gut

With all the signs of healthy development - a "beautiful brain" (the tech's words), the important bones of the nasal structure (the lack thereof would be a sign of Down Syndrome), a strong heartbeat and a beer gut (the baby is well-fed) - we both shot up a 'thank you Lord!'.