Baby Walker!

Well...as requested, we're adding updates on Baby Walker to our blog so you can be kept up on all the news. If you don't want any details (how my belly is growing, what the Dr. says, etc. then please feel free to skip the Baby Walker updates).

So, here is our first ultrasound pic. It was taken a week and a half ago when Baby was 12 weeks old. Baby was really active when we were at the dr. We got to see lots of moving and kicking around. We were amazed with the details we could see...counting 5 fingers, seeing the spinal cord and developing lungs, brain, heart. WOW!I'm entering trimester 2 and feeling good (if still a little tired...but that might be because we've just started school again, too). I thought I'd share some of the questions that have come up lately from friends and family (in case you have any of the same questions).

Q: When are you due?
A: The doctor gave us a due date of Feb. 22nd based on the size and development of Baby Walker at our first ultrasound.

Q: Do you know if you're having a boy or a girl?
A: Nope...and we're not going to find out if we can help it :) We're going for the surprise factor.

Q: Are you hoping for a boy or a girl?
A: If I was really hoping for one, I would find out what we're having so that I could come to terms with it :) In other words, I'm just hoping for a healthy baby.

Q: Will you have the baby in Prague?
A: Yes. We have a great doctor here and the facilities and procedures are pretty similar to what we would see in The States.

Q: Will you stay in Prague after the baby is born?
A: Yes. Our plan is to stay here at least through next year and then we'll see what happens after that. I'm planning to stay home after the baby is born this year and next year as well (assuming we sell our house!!).

Q: Do you have names picked out?
A: We have boy name possibilities, but we're still working on girl names. When we do definitely choose, we'll probably keep it a surprise anyway :)

Q: Will you go for the epidural?
A: No. I'm going for a natural birth and please, I only want to hear positive comments on this. "You can do it, Hannah!" and "Of course you should go for it...People have had natural births for thousands of years!" So, if you have any comments or stories to combat that, please keep them to yourself for now :) I'm thinking only positive thoughts and want to keep it that way! You can tell me your stories after the birth of Baby Walker :)

Q: Do you think it's a boy or a girl?
A: I kind of think it's a boy...but that's totally not based on anything factual.

Q: Are you getting a belly?
A: I'm starting to feel the expansion in the last week. Pants are getting tighter and pregnancy jeans feel REALLY comfortable :) I think I'm showing a little bit, but if you didn't know I was pregnant, I'm sure my current belly wouldn't give it away.

Alright, that's it for now. We have our next appointment in a couple weeks so I'll share more about Baby Walker then!

Summer Catch-Up

So let's just start off with our yearly summer motto, "It was great to be back in the Northwest!" And one of our favorite things to see when we arrive in Seattle is the beautiful Mt. Rainier.Our first weekend home, we went to Gig Harbor for our friend's wedding. The wedding was held on the little beach jetty you see with the lighthouse. This also happened to be the view from the house where we stayed. So here's an evening pic - such a beautiful setting. Here we are with Kim and Jed getting ready to go to the ceremony the following day.Here's the groom, Shawn, just before the wedding...Looking so G.Q.At the ceremony, Thalia (the bride), was boated over to the beach. Here she is walking up the beach as she comes to meet Shawn. Thalia looked so beautiful!The wedding was wonderful and quaint. We were so happy to be a part of it. Congratulations Shawn and Thalia!The next day we headed back to Seattle to check out our house-swap condo in Belltown. What we didn't realize is that the Pride Parade was taking place at the very moment we were trying to get through downtown...good luck with that! We eventually made it, quickly dropped off our bags and ran back down to check out the parade (that was just a block from our condo). The Pride Parade is a great time and we love an opportunity to show support for our gay and lesbian friends. Not to mention...the costumes are fantastic!Afterwards, we headed back to the condo to enjoy a little relaxation as well as amazing views! This is from the condo rooftop looking out at Elliot Bay. We're thinking this house-swap deal is pretty sweet :) We spent most of the following week working on our house in N. Seattle trying to get it in ship-shape condition for selling. Thanks to the help of some good friends, an amazing realtor, and a LOT of money, we were able to get the house mostly finished by the time we left Seattle. A couple jobs left to finish and the house should be on the market just after Labor Day. (If you know anyone who's looking for a wonderful starter home...2 bed, 2 bath, 990 sq. ft, good location, lovely quiet setting, 10 minutes from downtown, and more...please let us know!)

Alright, enough of the house sales pitch. On the 4th of July, we spent the day with Kim and Jed and their family. We hit the Pacific Science Center...which is awesome!Did some walking on the Pier.Then headed back to the condo for a fantastic fireworks show...2 actually! We had beautiful views from our apartment of both Elliot Bay...And Lake Union...We were particularly impressed with the Saturn shaped fireworks over Lake Union.A couple days later, the Rietz and Walker clans headed off for our annual trip to Leavenworth and Lake Chelan. Of course, one of the highlights of that trip is visiting Benson Vineyards (owned and run by very good friends of ours, Scott and Becky and the whole Benson family). It's great to catch up with them each year and the kids always enjoy seeing each other, too!Benson Vineyards is Located in Manson, just a few minutes from Chelan. If you have a chance, go check it out. The views are beautiful and the wine is fantastic!On our way back to Seattle, we saw a forest fire in action, just across the lake from us. It was incredible to see it, but sad to think about the damage it was causing. This picture doesn't really show what it was like in person, but it's still worth showing.Another highlight of our trip back home was a day hike with good friends.We headed to an area called Denny Creek, about an hour from Seattle. The hiking was easy and there were some beautiful sights.Of course, the boys always make time for playing around.We love the Northwest forest and it's always nice to be outdoors in the beautiful Seattle summer.Our next big adventure (besides continuing to work on our house), was a trip to Orcas Island with the Bradford family. We stayed in a great cabin with a lovely water view.We had deer visit our yard everyday.Probably because we kept feeding them apple slices.(Please ignore the socks and sandals in the previous picture. I swear I threw on the first pair of shoes I could find in the house so that I wouldn't miss feeding the deer :)
We enjoyed some hiking through woods in Moran National Park.Maggie and I caught salamanders...(Don't worry...he's not dead.)And we saw some incredible scenery.Even with all that...there was still time to play Pretty, Pretty Princess. Looking good, Cisco.With just a few more days in the Northwest, Hannah met up with some old girlfriends from college. 10 years after college!! Dang, has it been that long? This is a mix of girls from the SPU basketball and volleyball teams back in 1996! At least we're all still looking pretty good :)And Cisco headed to another wedding. Mitch, the groom, had 15 groomsmen. Don't those boys look dapper :)We finished our time in Seattle with the annual farewell BBQ at Kim and Jed's. As always it was a great time and we love the opportunity to say goodbye to all our friends.

This year's BBQ had an added theme... It was Bye Bye Walkers, Hello Baby. Because, that's right, the Walkers are joining the parenting club! More on that in a later post :)