Chicago

I wanted to get away for a Baby Moon with Mark before Baby Hill arrive, so I decided to plan a special trip to celebrate Mark's 30th birthday and Baby Moon in combo.  We wound up heading west to Chicago for the weekend and had a blast. On Friday, we checked out Navy Pier, saw Born to Be Wild in IMAX 3D (first 3D movie for both of us!), and went to an amazing dinner at our Hotel's Restaurant Nomi.  Saturday we spent the day at Shedd Aquarium, and went to Medieval Times - something Mark has wanted to do since he was a little kid! It was so much fun, and it made us both really excited about parenthood. We will DEFINITELY be repeating this trip once Baby Hill is here.  I was 28 1/2 weeks during this trip and, when I planned it, I thought this would be the perfect time to get away.  The one thing I did learn was that, even though I still have about 11 weeks to go, my body is already slowing down. I had to take A LOT of sitting breaks during the trip and every day I had to go back to the Hotel room and relax for a while (which I am not complaining about AT ALL).  I have been having braxton hicks contractions very sporadically for a few weeks now, and after hours of being out and about, they started to become more regular while we were in Chicago.  It was a little scary because I have never been pregnant before, and didn't know what was going on.  But, a warm bath or a short nap always made them slow down, Baby Hill never stopped karate chopping my belly, and I never had any other signs of labor.... so I figured everything was alright.  Just to be safe, I did get checked out by L&D when we got back.  They said every thing is A-ok and Baby Hill looks good. I am so grateful that Mark and I had the oppurtunity to get away as a couple one last time before our life changes in a big way.....

28 weeks

fun mirror at Navy Pier

out at the end of Navy Pier... now we know why they call Chicago the Windy City!!

I heart Haagen-Daaz!!

Getting ready for Dinner..

In front the weirdest statue etiehr of us have ever seen...

Until next time....

Happy 30th!!!

HAPPY 30th BIRTHDAY to my amazing husband!!! I love you more than words can express!!!! We celebrated by going to dinner and Mark got to try Alaskan King Crab Legs for the first time! Yum, Yum, Yum!!!!! We also went to a local comedy club, and laughed our pants off to a great stand up show!  Next week, we are going to Chicago for the weekend to continue his birthday celebration and get away one last time before Baby Hill joins our pack....

(I think he liked his dessert...)

Until next time...

Practice Makes Perfect!

Hey Guys,
   
       Jessica's Grandma, and Baby's Great Grandmother, bought Jessica and myself an awesome stroller/car seat combo. We were excited to get it because we wanted to do a test run with the dogs walking next to the stroller. It is really important for us to keep a good routine with the dogs as the baby enters our life. At first we were a little nervous that the dogs would be yanking and unwilling to walk next to the stroller but as soon as we got outside the dogs were walking right next to the stroller like they had been doing it their whole lives. After about 1 minute I handed all the dogs to Jess and she pushed the stroller AND walked all three dogs for about 2 miles....LIKE A CHAMP! I just walked next to her with my hands in my pockets. As she walked other people walked by, ran by, biked by, pushed strollers past, walked their dogs past, and the dogs just trotted right next to Jess perfectly behaved. There was no tension on the leashes, as if she wasn't even walking one dog let alone 3 dogs! Every now and again she would stop and let them sniff around so they got their time in too. Everything was perfect and I feel like that was a best case scenario!

After watching that I am really proud of the dogs for being so good. It makes me even more confident that our PACK will grow by one very comfortably and without many ripples in the routine.

Until next time...

Another Bed in the Bedroom!

Jessica's mother, Joyce, was nice enough to get us a "Pack N' Play". This is something the baby will use for a long time. First, it will be used as the place the baby will sleep before we transfer her to the crib. The Pack and Play is right next to our bed so that when the baby is brand new Jess can just roll over and feed the baby without much disturbance. As Baby moves on through life she will use this area as a play pen while we clean and get things done around the house. It will also be used as a travel crib when we drive and visit the family! THANKS Grandma Joyce for such a awesome and functional present!

We have set the Pack N' Play up early so that the dogs get used to it. The dog beds used to go where the Pack N' Play now sits, and we want to give them ample time to adjust to their new sleeping arrangements (on the other side of the bed). Good dogs are creatures of routine, and we don't want them to associate these big changes and stresses with the baby. We felt that if we waited to set up the bassinet area until right before we brought baby home, then they would relate the baby to stress or negative change in their lives. This way, with 12 weeks to go, by the time baby comes home the dogs will be used to everything and their new routine will be disrupted as little as possible.
Until next time...

27 Weeks

This 27 week bump photo was taken at the University of Michigan Men's Swimming Banquet.  It was a great event celebrating an amazing year of swimming (and coaching!!!)! The swim team won Big Ten Championships for the second year in a row AND moved up to a 5th place finish at NCAAs (from 9th last year).  Congrats to all the swimmers and coaches for a great year!! GO BLUE!!!!!!!!!

Now it is on to the Olympics!!!
Until next time...

Bump Shoot

It is not often that Jess has a chance to be in front of the camera and there is not a more perfect day than a 65 degree sping day in Dexter, MI. She looked beautiful against the backdrop of the little town and as we were running around I would snap some photos of her. I love all the little looks that she would flash at me and it was fun to watch her be happy and in the moment.  I feel like it is a day that I will remember for a long time.


Enjoy these photos of my beautiful wife!
Mark aka Papa Hill

26 Weeks

As my belly continues to grow and Baby Hill becomes more active, I am definitely finding it hard to sleep at night. I wake up almost every 2-3 hours (which I know is great practice for the real thing!) for a million different reasons - I have to pee/ I need some water/ I have a leg cramp/ My nose is bleeding/ Baby is kicking/ Mark is snoring =).... Once I am up, I find it very hard to fall to sleep again. Needless to say, I am catching up on a lot of reading before the little one arrives...

Until next time..

The Driving Range

Mark and I have been spending our weekends exploring more of Ann Arbor in preparation for Baby Hill. Today we stumbled upon a cheap, and super fun driving range near our house!  We both tried hitting some golf balls and had a blast!.  I obviously couldn't do a full golf swing when I was up, but it was still a good workout for my upper body.  Mark, of course, swung so hard he actually broke the driver he was given (which made me laugh so hard I almost peed my pants!!!!).  I can completely picture Mark bringing Baby hill here (when she is a bit older of course) for some daddy/daughter time!!

Until next time...