Ultrasounds

OK, so after a trip to TX last week, I have finally gotten around to scanning in the ultrasound pictures from the week before. We had a routine ultrasound at 21 weeks and opted against the perinatologist (due to advanced maternal age) and just had it done with our regular doctor instead. She was concerned about a spot she saw on the baby's heart, and thought it could be a hole so referred us to the perinatologist...guess we should have gone there in the first place!

We were able to get in the following day for a fetal echocardiogram and found out that everything is OK, false alarm. Of course we are SO relieved! The technology was really amazing, especially considering the baby doesn't even weigh one pound yet. They sent doppler waves through each chamber of the heart individually (and it sounds different in each chamber!), could color blood entering and leaving the heart differently and removed the rest of the body, leaving just a beating heart on the screen-it was like a science textbook!

A profile, with arms crossed in front:

Two feet which Jeff says look like big boy feet. Of course if it's a girl, we'll never tell her he said that!

A 3D image of the face

Another of the face, resting on an arm

Nora has been busy getting ready for Halloween and I'll post pictures this week. In the meantime, here she is getting ready for school one day recently:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ma4Irk4I1x0

Minneapolis

Apologies for the delayed post; our home computer (where all of our pictures are stored) crashed this week and I've spent three days trying to get it to come back to life with no luck :( That also means I had to re-download and prepare the pictures for this post, hence the delay.


Anyway, we had a great trip to Minneapolis the first weekend of October. Nora was great on the flight, this was the first time she had her own seat. She, of course, fell asleep just AFTER we landed at 10pm central...but, she waited patiently for our luggage on the airport floor.


What's better than two toddlers in the bath?

Thursday was very windy, Nora and Croix almost got blown over at the playground.

Nora enjoyed running through the leaves, something we don't really get to do at home given that our largest tree is 8 feet tall!

Friday we took the kids to the Como Zoo, the primates are always a hit.

Riding the copper turtle was fun too!

Friday night we got together with Jeff's high school friends and their families. The kids had a blast running around while the adults caught up. Saturday we went out for breakfast, visited Heather and Troy's new house, relaxed with my parents and got ready for the main event on Sunday.

Nora waited patiently for the marathon runners; clappers, sign and cow bells at the ready! This was our first time to see Jeff, around mile 7.

We missed a planned Jeff sighting at mile 11 due to traffic and parking issues, but say him again at 14 looking great and way ahead of his planned pace!

Here, around mile 19 Nora was all smiles waiting to see him again. The problem was each time we saw him, she would cry inconsolably. She was so sad that he kept running and didn't stop.

The long run up Summit Avenue; mile 20-something and still looking good. I hear that looking good and feeling good can be two different things...

Finally, Nora got to hug her Daddy at the finish! 3:13 was an amazing time!!

The entire cheering squad. Micheal and Emily had run a 10 mile event related to the marathon, but still made it out to cheer Jeff on in a few spots.

That afternoon/evening we enjoyed the perfect weather and visited with Jeff's family members and some friends. We couldn't have asked for better fall weather to enjoy.

Who can resist a jumpy house on a great fall afternoon?

Taking a break for some snacks...

The following day was a bit more relaxing, a trip to the park and an apple orchard.

Nora and Croix enjoyed fresh apples right off the tree.

Aside from apples, there were grape vines to admire

and caterpillars to watch

and goats to pet!

Since returning from Minneapolis, Nora has really taken to her bike, and rides it every night after daycare.

Here favorite destination is the sandbox.

Sunday we enjoyed bagels outside; Nora sported her new sunglasses. While her old ones fit much better, they finally succumbed to the roughness of a two year old and needed to be replaced.

We probably should have visited a pumpkin patch, but due to a weekend home improvement project (rebuilding and repainting the porch), we just picked some out at the grocery store. I'm not sure that walking there was the best choice...

Nora perused the Fischer Price holiday catalogue on her way home from the mailbox. She's making her list early!

This week we also made several trips to the doctor for ultrasounds. I've got some pictures to scan in and share, hopefully I can get to that soon.

Videos

While I get my act together enough to post about our great trip to Minneapolis, here are a few videos from the weekend.

Costco shopping: http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=houPLqvPdoY

Bike riding: http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=Mrd7hTVa4WY

http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=79h8inTIRjg