Chicken Farming

I ordered chicks early this year so that they would be relatively low-maintenance by the time Sprout arrived. They showed up three days after she did, so they are a bit neglected. So far I've managed to keep all 28 of them alive. Karen hasn't even been out to the shop to see them yet. Guinness is really into the chicken farming thing. So excited, in fact, that he gets mesmerized and shakes every time he sees them.

Day 5

We are all doing well and finally catching up on our sleep. We head back to the doctor today to check Elena's bilirubin (jaundice) levels because they have been a little high. She slept really well last night, which means we had a couple of 2-hour stretches of blissful sleep. Here is a picture of her all wrapped up for bed.

After Elena was born we quickly realized that we didn't have any clothes small enough to fit her, so I made a run to the store and picked up this outfit. I think she'll outgrow it next week. Here she is in her outfit hanging out with the puppy that Grandma Bean gave her.

More Pics

Last night, while having dinner with Karen's parents, Karen suddenly disappeared and then called to me from the bathroom. She told me very calmly, "my water broke, we're having a baby." I nearly fainted. She wasn't due until March 18. Despite Karen's nesting activities, we were ill-prepared for this event. I threw a bunch of stuff into some duffle bags while John mocked my panicked state. Karen was born six weeks early, so I'm sure he enjoyed some flashbacks. I remembered to pack everything except for a car seat, baby clothes, diapers, and basically everything else required to bring a baby home (I did bring two pairs of fleece pants for me though). Fortunately I remembered to take Karen with me when I went to the hospital. Here is Karen ready to hit the road.
I wasn't allowed to bring out the camera until after Elena was born. Karen let me imprint Elena's feet and bathe her. Karen's willingness to let me take over these duties became transparent when Elena wailed until I gave her back to Mom.
I went home today to get the items we'll need to take her home tomorrow. I also cleaned up the mess (with Mary's help) the dogs made after they saw what a wreck I was when leaving last night and they apparently figured I was hiding from the law and may never return. One of the dogs actually got on top of the washer and dryer to watch for us to come home (I assume). One potted plant was thoroughly intermixed with two loads of previously clean clothes. The water in the utility room sink was also running when John came over to let the dogs out this morning. We leave our dogs in that area every day and they have never done this before. I'm off to a great start on this parenting thing...

Today was scheduled to be Karen's baby shower, not Elena's birthday. Several people chose to stick out the shower despite the absence of the guests of honor. Thanks to everyone who made it. Thanks to all the grandparents, aunts and uncles (including Bev and Justin) for coming to visit us. Thanks for the countless things people have done for us. It really helps, especially with my sanity. Below are some pics of us with our new addition.

Surprise!!!

Well, Sprout decided to come a little earlier than we anticipated. She was born this morning at 4:22 and weighed 6 lbs. Both mom and baby are doing fine. I apologize for the lousy picture, I don't have the download cord for my camera so I had to use a cell phone pic. More pics coming soon. Her name is Elena Lorraine Bean.

Weekend at the Williamson Cabin

This weekend we were fortunate enough to spend two nights with Justin, Bev, baby Zarek and Cider (their dog) at their cabin. Karen and I got in late the first night after having dinner at Buffalo Gal's in Donnelly. On Saturday Justin and I went to Brundage to enjoy some pretty nice snow. Here's Justin taking a break on one of our tree runs.
While we were skiing, the rest of the clan went for a walk. Here is a picture of Zarek bundled-up for the trip:
...and a good pic of Bev and Zarek together.Saturday night I took a shift watching Zarek. Well, he peed right away and everyone crowded around to watch me change my first diaper. Bev was a good coach.Karen and Cider both managed to hide from the camera on this trip. We'll have to catch up with them next time.

34 Weeks

We now have about six weeks until we're due to be parents. We're making progress on the baby room. We have the versatile baby playpen (and bed, changing table, etc.) that my parents gave us ready to go (pictures coming soon). Tonight we finished week 9 of our 12-week birthing class. I have to admit that I was hesitant about the class at first because Karen basically described it as me "preparing to rub her back for 18-24 consecutive hours." At least that's what I got out of the conversation. I have to admit that I feel much more prepared and confident for the big day. Karen thinks I'm slacking in the studying department, but I totally kicked her a$$ in birthing class Jeopardy tonight. That's right, she went down just like her beloved Peyton.

It's over.....

Bird hunting season that is. Guinness took it pretty hard when I told him last night. Karen is celebrating. In fact, when she heard the season is going to be two weeks shorter next year it made her happy. Below are a few highlights. I swore this year that I was going to get some pictures of my dog pointing, but as usual, I wasn't willing to set my gun down to take any pictures. You can check out the hunt I did with Matt here. The first picture is from a chukar hunt with Mike and Dustin.

Here is a goose hunt about 200 yards from my house with Marty and Ben.

Quail massacre, Day 2 with Dustin, Cowboy, and Jeremy (I missed Day one). Jeremy was visiting from Colorado and wanted to try hunting Idaho quail.
Quail massacre, Day 3. I think Jeremy will be coming back!
It's been a good year, but I look forward to warmer weather and getting some projects done. Yea, like the baby room....