Juliette Christine Lindsey

Well we did it! Juliette Christine Lindsey arrived at 5:43 AM on Saturday the 22nd (her due date). Mike and I checked into the hospital at about 10 o'clock Friday night after I had been having contractions 5 min apart for an hour and a half. We are very thankful to our friends Mark and Lisa for helping. Lisa stayed at the house with Gretchen while Mark picked up my Mom from the airport.

I have to say laboring through the night was pretty tiresome! I elected to have an epidural since I was feeling worn out from a cold. The epidural block ended up being very light, so I ended up being able to feel all the "pressure" of child birth but no "pain." It was a beautiful labor and Juliette arrived alert, red, and very cheesy. She was 7lbs 13 oz and 20 1/2 inches long.

Gretchen and Grandma came in the next day to visit. Typically Gretchen is not shy with babies, but she was pretty tentative with Juliette. One of the Nurse's asked her what she thought about her new baby sister and she replied, "I don't know." Pretty funny stuff. She perked up the next day though and would only talk about going to see "baby Duwiette" until she got to the hospital where she didn't hesitate to shower her with kisses and loves.

Shiver Me Timbers

Halloween was a little crazy this year. Gretchen and I met Mike at his work party at 6:30. It was nice to see his workspace and coworkers. Gretchen was very interested in Mike's microscope but I was able to distract her with cheese and cookies. Everyone thought she was adorable. Before we headed from the hospital Mike headed to the men's room to put his makeup on. I have to say he spent a lot of time in front of that mirror. This is how it turned out:

Mike had to go remove his makeup before Gretchen would go anywhere with him. I ended dropping Mike and Gretchen off on Belvedere St. She was so excited to go trick or treating with Daddy (formerly known as Prince Zuko;). This street is blocked off and all the residents go way out with decorations. I finally found a parking spot by the time Mike and Gretchen had finished, but at least I was able to snap some pics.

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Finally at 8:30 we headed to Mark and Lisa's for a little party. It was probably a little to late for Gretchen, but she was really looking forward to it. We played some fun games and enjoyed time with a lot of friends.

Livin Large in San Francisco

Finally, I'm posting. Today marks my one month left of pregnancy celebration! I am feeling so much bigger with this baby. Yesterday at dinner (Mike was still at work) Gretchen wanted to sit on my lap. So I let her but she kept sliding off. After a couple times she asked "what's happening?" I told her Mommy doesn't have a lap anymore, my belly is too big. She just pondered that for a little while and looked disappointed. Then she looked up at me with a smile and said, "Daddy still has a lap." Thank heaven for Daddy!
So I have a lot of things I think I need to post date and post. Check back to my blog to see what's been going on in San Francisco. We love you all!

Leaving Vermont

I was both dreading and praying for June 20th to come. It was a sad day for me because it meant we were leaving behind so many great friends. My last week in Vermont was a rough one. Mike worked up until the 20th so the whole move was on my shoulders. Thankfully I have some great friends who helped carry the weight with me. Thanks to Jessica, Arian, Heather, Vanessa, and Angie I didn't collapse under the load. The movers arrived a full 2 hours late and loaded up the truck. I actually ended up making them wait for me in the end as I had packed my checkbook and needed to go to my 18 week ultrasound. It was sweet to have such a treat waiting for me after all the hard work! To all those who I haven't talked to or seen in person, we are pregnant! We are having a little girl. Her due date is November 22nd. I have been trying to post the ultrasound but have had no luck. We will miss beautiful Vermont, and we will really miss all the friends we have made during the past year.

Vermont Wildflower Farm

It's been a very long time since my last post! As you can imagine and many of you know, I have been very busy since the last post. Mom, Dad and Lindsey left my house yesterday after a week long visit. It was great to visit with them. I don't have any pictures or video because I loaned my camera and video to Mom. Lindsey has promised to blog photos and the details of their time in Vermont. I am slowly tying ends for our move. So far I have two rooms packed and a moving company coming on the 20th. I have been searching diligently on Craigslist for a place. We are really down to the wire and I am getting really nervous! We are trying to stay under $2,000 for rent and I am having a hard time finding a 2 bedroom with laundry for that price. Never did I think I would be saying that. Anywhere else we would have been living in luxury for $2,000. Somehow it will come together but until then I am on pins and needles. Please keep me in your prayers and thoughts and if you have any solutions please let me know. Posted are some pictures of Gretchen and I on a playdate/preschool trip.

The Big News

Well the day we have been waiting for has finally arrived! Match day was a great success for us. Mike matched into his first pick. Mike will start working as a resident in Pathology at UCSF in July! We both love San Fran and feel very excited. Mike hopes he can fulfill his lifelong dream of becoming a surf bum, and I hope we can afford rent! We are sure we have a lot of great adventures ahead of us.



Mike and I both feel that "the match" closed the door on our great years in New Orleans. We thought we would most likely be heading back to New Orleans. We will miss our great friends and good times in "The Big Easy." We are planning to make the most of our last 3 months in Burlington. It will be hard to leave!

It's Mike's 30th!

Well I have cleaned the house and wrapped the presents (and other random items). Now we are just waiting for the Birthday Boy to come home. Mike is turning the big 3o, and he's not so sure he wants to. We are hoping to go out to dinner tonight. It all depends on what time he comes home from work. This blog is to be continued.







We ended up having a great night. Mike got home about 6:30. We quickly sang, ate cake and opened presents. Gretchen was so excited about our little party. Mike loves opening a ton of things so I wrapped some sweet treats for him (Barq's and Cocoa Puffs.) When Mike opened the Cocoa Puffs Gretchen said "oh, oh can I hold it?" Then when he opened the Barq's she kept repeating "wow." She didn't really care that much about the book and shoes Mike got. After festivities we dropped Gretchen off at Arian and Justin's for Babysitting. (Thanks you two for a great night out!) We went to a great Italian Restaurant called, Trattoria Delia. It was a wonderful night!

The Luck of the Irish

Well I think I love St. Patty's Day. We matched!!! Wow, I have never felt so relieved in my life. (Although touching my toes again after having Gretchen ranks a close 2nd.)





My Mom taught me that every St. Patty's day needs to start with a green breakfast. I really don't even know if Gretchen noticed her food was green! Can you believe the color on those eggs. I actually felt a little queasy while making them. Well I'm off to make some phone calls. Did I mention that we matched?

I miss Mike most on Sundays!

Well I am beat. It was a marathon Sunday. Last Night I had it all figured out. My lesson for primary sharing time was complete. I was so excited about the Easter themed lesson. I was working like a pro in my kitchen cooking some Louisiana style red beans and rice. The food was for potluck Sunday. I even had outfit's picked out for Gretchen and me. My goal was to make it on time to Sacrament without leaving anything behind.
So I made it out the door with 20 minutes to make it to our seats. Just as I turn into the church, yes you guessed, red beans and rice all over my car. Well that just set the tone for the rest of my day. The kids appreciated my props but as soon as they were passed out it all fizzled. I will be filling in for the ward chorister for Easter Sunday. I had 2 practice runs with the choir, and found that I was in shut down mode! The song we are singing switches back and forth between 3/4 and 4/4. Let me say, everyone in that choir would be shocked to know I actually aced my conducting class in college.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that I love it when Mike is home on Sunday. It's nice to have someone to pick you up after your falls. I also hope that all my bad luck was blown on today and we will finish Black Monday with no incident. (Black Monday is the day we find out if we matched or not.)

First Day of Preschool

Gretchen had her first day of preschool. I just got together with a bunch of mothers and we are doing preschool round robin style. If anyone has great preschool ideas please forward them on. We had about 7 kids in all. We are meeting every Monday and Friday. Next Monday is my turn and I'm pretty nervous. I think for the most part "opening ceremonies" was successful although the kids were pretty rambunctious.

Parsley Lemon Salmon

Ingredients:
1/4 tsp Minced garlic
1/4 tsp Black pepper, freshly ground
1 cup Fresh parsley, loosely packed
1 Tbs Olive oil
16 oz Salmon fillet, about 1/2 inch thick
1 Tbs Feta cheese, crumbled
2 Tbs Freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 tsp Salt
1 1/2 tsp Minced fresh mint
1/4 cup Low sodium vegetable broth

Servings: about scaling
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Prep Time: 15 minutes

For the rest of this recipe follow the link below. We really loved this and Gretchen really loved it too (this is saying a lot.) The house didn't even smell fishy after cooking it!


http://hannaford.adplexonline.com/alt/viewrecipe.aspx?deptid=359&recipeid=15121

Valentine

Happy Valentine's Day

We Love You!
Kristin, Mike & Gretchen

Gretchen's not happy about turning 2.

Poor Gretchen had a pretty miserable party. We were supposed to get together with another family who's little girl had just had her birthday, but we had to bag it. Gretchen hadn't been feeling well and they ended up thinking they might be coming down with strep. So our good friends Heather and Ben invited us over to have a little party. Poor Gretchen just wanted to be held the whole time and she hardly cracked a smile at the birthday presents or cake. Well there is always next year!