Heading into the holidays...

Well, the holidays are officially upon us. Oma and Opa are on their way, leaving a warm and cozy California only to be victim to Indiana's cold spell...BRRRR! Dad and I are tired of this cold and are looking forward to a nice warm week in Cancun with Gram and Grandad in January. However, there is the issue of a proper bathing suit....(Thank you Oma for coming through again with my clothing crisis.)

Dad is recovering nicely from his hernia repair on Friday. We are now two peas in a pod that are able to lift no more than 15-20# and our normal pants do not fit because our bellies are swollen (for different reasons of course.)

No new news with Barack...there have been questionable "flutters" but as this is the first child, we aren't really sure yet. I am sure he will be tap dancing like Savion Glover on my bladder soon. (I do admit that my bladder has been sore each morning...)

Page, the furry family member that resembles more a cat than a monkey in looks only, is posing below by the tree to wish you all a very Merry Christmas from the Barrel for all of us:

Sweet Sixteen

Happy Sweet 16 Baby Barack! You must be really growing now because your mom's innie is now beginning to look like an outtie and you are hungry ALL the time!

This weekend marked Mom's first late night outings--Friday was ladies night out for the Wine Wednesday Holiday party and Saturday was the MLS fußball watching/Red Light Driver CD release driver. Although your mom got to drink in swanky sparkly lemonade and virgin Cosmos, you demanded to be fed at 1:00 am. And how picky you have become! Giving your Mommy cravings such as all things tomato (especially pasta with a marinara sauce), high pulp orange juice not from concentrate (so picky!), all things waffle (toaster, cones, cookies...), and milk (your mom is overjoyed that her lactose intolerance has gone away to make the dairy cravings not so uncomfortable to digest.)

Daddy has been studying hard and taking tests for the past two weeks, so soon we can all celebrate the holidays together.

You heartbeat was heard today at one of your check ups with Dr. V. Good and strong! No known feelings of your rambunctiousness yet, but I am sure your mommy will be feeling you soon.

Drum Roll...

So today we were able to peek inside once more at little Barack. Everything is looking good. Baby is progressing quite well, weighing in at about 3 ounces and a nice strong heart beat of 155 bpm.

But most importantly we were able to gain a look at the "important" parts. At first Barack was sleeping soundly, but after much poking and changing positions it was moving all around. The nice ultrasound tech informed me that this child will be felt kicking before we know it and has a ton of energy! Then it was being shy, by placing its umbilical cord between the legs.

Finally, we got this shot:

Yup, those are the nuts and berries. We are having a boy!!!!