Good Cheer...

We (my parents and us) just got back from spending Christmas in Dallas, Texas with my brother - Ryan, and his family (my sweet sister-in-law - Steph and adorable nephews - Sam and Blake.) It was a great week of getting to relax with family and enjoy one another. Hightlights included: Johan getting to visit Whole Foods (a health food supermarket), ice-skating with Sam, daily check-ups by Dr. Sam on our baby "Thor Bjoern", lots of cuddle time with 9-month old Blake, family dance-off using Wii Dance (video to come soon), and getting to spend time with our good friends - Martin and Lynsey - who are also expecting a little boy at the beginning of March!

Johan's plant-based Christmas brunch...
The rest of use ate omlets and
waffles with chocolate and strawberries

Our sweet nephews!

We loved spending time with them!

Dr. Sam checking in on his cousin "Thor Bjoern" -
he gave a good report after every check-up...

Lynsey and I - so fun that we are able to
share this experience with such good friends!

The Innkeeper's Story...

Check out John Piper's reading of his poem "The Innkeeper". What a powerful reminder of the truths of Christmas!

Be Blessed... http://vimeo.com/54336630

Blender Bliss...

Johan got his beloved blender - The Ninja Mega BL 770 - for his 30th birthday from his parents. He has been experimenting with his 2 horsepower blending machine for the past two weeks. Some highlights have been his fruit/green smoothies and cookies dough (OK, that was me!) Some of his not so successful combinations have included a carrot, apple, green ONIONS, broccoli, GARLIC and whatever other leftovers he could find in the fridge...Needless to say, when he tried to kiss me later that day I about lost my lunch - his entire body was radiating with onion and garlic...He has been put on probation concerning what he is allowed to blend. (At least while my sense of smell is so super hyped with being pregnant.)

In other news, Johan has been working on brewing a beer for the past 4 weeks and he was finally able to enjoy it this week. Thunder Bear Brewing is off to a strong start! :)

 

***Note: I am very grateful that I have a husband who enjoys being in the kitchen - cooking, experimenting and doesn't mind doing dishes...I definately was blessed with a great man to be my husband - garlic, onion and all!*** 



Enjoying a relaxing, lazy Saturday morning
after a busy week at school!

This Tuesday I will be 22 weeks pregnant. I have been feeling our little "Thor Bjoern" kick, punch and do flips. Johan has also been able to feel him. It is exciting to think that his finger prints are formed, his sense of touch developed, and he can now hear us.

HAPPY HALF WAY!!!

We are officially 20 weeks pregnant today! It has gone by fast and I know that our sweet baby boy will be here before we know it...

Johan's family just left on Sunday to go back to Denmark. We had a great time with them. His mom and aunt always inspire me to be creative and crafty. And so while they were here I decided to be brave and attempt my biggest sewing project yet - making a crib bumper for the baby. (I know that bumbers are not recommended due to SIDS risks, so I will just use it for looks...) It turned out way better than I thought it would and was not nearly as hard to make as I had anticiapted - thanks to Johan's Moster (Aunt) Bitte and her amazing coaching skills.

20 Weeks...Happy Half Way

I re-covered an old bumper that was given to us.



We might be a little early on having the crib up,
but I couldn't wait to see what the bumper would look like.



Johan's big "gender reveal scam" on my mom

It's a BOY!

This past week was a big one! We had Johan's parents and aunt and uncle visiting from Denmark. Thanksgiving. Johan's 30th Birthday. And our first ultrasound!

We are happy to say that we have a sweet, active, little boy coming in April. He appeared to be healthy and strong - his spine, heart and brain are all developing as they should. We feel so blessed to have been able to share this past week with so much family around us. Both our moms and Johan's aunt were able to come to the ultrasound and we were able to reveal the gender of our baby boy with both families present. We are so happy to say that our Danish made baby will be able to carry on the (Hansen) Carl family name...

What a handsome boy!

We got to see his tongue.

It's a BOY!

Johan's little soccer player, Kelly's little swimmer...

Thanks to "Far"/Johan and his insistence on me eating wheat germ,
and flax seed every morning, this baby has a fantasic looking spine!

Nesting on a Budget

 The past two weeks we have been preparing for Johan's family to come from Denmark, by cleaning the house, and putting up Christmas decorations. But we have still found time to "nest" for the baby. I had been wanting to find a dresser that would be able to double as a changing table. I had been looking at garage sales and second hand stores for the past few weeks, but had found nothing.

Last weekend we went to an estate sale and found a dresser that would work...but it was included as a stand to a saw and it was sold. The people who bought the saw came to pick it up while we were there and I thought: "Maybe they don't want the dresser." So I asked them and score for baby - they did not want it...and ended up giving it to me for free!

We then went to the paint store to buy paint to re-paint the baby's dresser (and my grandmother's dresser for our room that my aunt just gave us.) We have found out that paint store often have "whoops" paint - paint that they mis-tinted or someone returned. We ended up finding a gallon of red paint for $3 and a quart of light green/gray for $2.



17 Weeks





18 Weeks





 

Baby's dresser before



Baby's finished dresser

Grandma's old dresser

Grandma's re-finished dresser



Since we found out that we were pregant I have wanted to buy a onesie for the baby that says "made in Denmark" - since the baby was made there (TMI? - Sorry!) I had found some online for $20 but since I am a little cheap thrifty. I decided I could make one. After researching how to best make one - I decided to try a freezer paper stencil. I bought fabric paint for $1.77, a onesie at a garage sale for 10 cents and freezer paper for $2.25. And BAM! After less than 30 minutes I had a designer onesie for the baby! Best part is that I saved over $15 and now have the supplies to make personalized onesies for our baby and our friends'!   

 



Bump Ahead...

Fall has been a busy time. Johan has been working non-stop on house projects - finishing the garage, re-painting trim, cleaning out attics, etc... He has also taken a new job working at a P.E. teacher two days a week at Waterloo Christian and then teaching special needs adults the other three days. I have been busy coaching swimming (State is this weekend!)

In addition, we are expecting a new addition in April! We are very excited about our Danish made baby! And can't wait for our ultra-sound in three weeks to find out the gender. This is our attempt to keep our family and friends more updated as the bump continues to grow and on the daily happenings of our baby developments.

Today we are officially 16 weeks pregnant. Yesterday we went to our check up and both baby and mama seem to be doing great. The baby's heartbeat was 150 beats/minute (between 110-160 is good). I also started feeling movement last week - little butterflies or bubbles in my stomach - which is very exciting to feel.

6 Weeks  

Week 13

Week 15

Swim Team Formal Dinner