Showers and Holidays

Ah, a new year with new things to come!
Here is an update with some pics of the last couple months.

We've had two baby showers. Fun stuff! And it's so great to feel supported by everyone. One was recently thrown by friends of mine from work. Barb (Richard's mom), friends from church, and some of Richard's friends from King George all came. Here we are, opening gifts. (These are the most recent pics of my belly. Looking pretty pregnant at 8+ months!)



The first baby shower was a big surprise. We were home in Chicago for Thanksgiving (having refused to travel at Christmas), and I was lured into the shower after Thanksgiving dinner. This shower was complete with silly games like pass the pacifier via straws. Aunt Carol & I didn't quite make it.

Other highlights of the trip were, of course, Toby & Zemira. Toby & I did a kinetics experiment with glowsticks. Toby correctly hypothesized that the glowstick would shine brighter in hot water than in cold water. (The molecules move faster when they are hotter and have more energy, so they react faster. OK, chemistry lesson over.) I am stoked this picture came out.


Toby and I also worked on a K'nex missle launcher, which sorta worked. It launched stuff most of the time, although it was hard to tell in which direction.
And Zemira just keeps getting cuter.




Christmas was fun & relaxing, with my parents coming to visit us in VA. Here's Richard, playing with one of his presents. No snow in Virginia (boo!) but we did have snowflakes, supplied by nephew Toby, which you can see in the background.


I also have video of my mom enjoying her new iPod - singing loudly, eyes closed, on the loveseat. Even though she doesn't surf the web, I think I still might get in trouble if I post it. :)

Our amaryllis bloomed sometime after Christmas. It is gorgeous.


The amaryllis was in time for the second round of Christmas. Barb (Richard's mom) is here. She is the major catalyst for getting the nursery in order. She came with the crib!


We haven't set it up yet. Right now, Barb is painting the nursery. Here is the before picture:

Here is an in-progress picture:
(Note: Richard helped her tape for oh about 10 minutes. The rest has been entirely her work.)

You can see the teal color in the background. Once the trim is done, we will set up the crib and take an after picture. Although we still need to get the glider (gift from my parents) and a dresser/changing table. The nursery is going to be the only coordinated, well-painted room in the house!