Pregnancy Update

I'm officially four months pregnant!! I still don't look too pregnant yet (sometimes with certain outfits) so I'm not going to put a picture up of my belly. We already had our first ultrasound several weeks ago, and we'll probably get another in a few weeks from now. We've decided not to find out the gender of our little one; I LOVE surprises and can't think of a better surprise to wait for. A few days ago I felt the baby move for the first time which was really cool, but really fleeting. I have no complaints - I feel good most of the time and am completely obsessed with talking and reading about the baby growing inside me.

So Long, Motorcycle

Many moons ago, when we left Idaho, we sold two motorcycles and told ourselves that it would be awhile before we ever owned another. Well, a couple months later Chris bought a bike. But this time it would be a special project of his. He spent hours on this bike and enjoyed his time changing the look of it. But when the project was over, so was the desire to own it. So yet again, we are bike-less people. But something tells me that this time it really will be awhile before we get another. Goodbye, motorcycle.

Rock, Rock, Rock

Chris was at it again. During his kayaking man-paddle with our brother-in-law he picked up a bundle of sticks. Not just any sticks - he climbed up on a beaver hut and dam to select the sticks he wanted to use. He made me a rocking chair, and I'm in love with it.

Our cat loves playing with string--as you can see she decided to help Chris make the seat, but he didn't make it so I could rock her. As many already know, and those of you who don't, Chris and I are expecting our first child in February. I'm 11 weeks pregnant and so excited!

Merry Christmas?!?

Every Christmas my Dad gives each of his children and their spouses an envelope with cash to buy something special for ourselves. We've been waiting until this summer to go on a fun weekend trip for our Christmas present. Last weekend we headed up to the White Mountains in New Hampshire. We had soooooo much fun. We did a lot of hiking and found some really beautiful sights.

The cabin we stayed in was perfect. http://www.maplelodgecabins.com/cabins/

Our last day was our biggest hike. Using Tucker's Ravine trail, we hiked about 7 miles round trip - it took 6 hours.
Here we are, 2.4 miles into our hike. See way off into the distance, the top of the ravine on the right hand side of the picture? Yeah, that's our destination.
We crossed over the top of this waterfall to get to the top - I couldn't let myself look down.

Here we are at the top of the ravine. We were only 3/4 of a mile from Mount Washington. My calves were sore for 4 days!! For our next trip to the White Mountains, we're planning to summit Mt. Washington. :)

Happy Birthday, Chris!!

When Chris found out that my sister, Mandy, was going to bake him a cake for his birthday, he immediately texted her, "I want a kayak cake". You see, he's been doing a lot of camping and kayaking the past couple of weeks. So, since she's pretty awesome, she made him an awesome cake.

If...

If both of the batteries for our camera were not dead during the Fourth of July Weekend, you would see these pictures up on our blog:

• Chris' Great Aunt Emily's stuff scattered around the lawn in front of her enormous house across the street from the ocean in Connecticut. (She passed away several months back and we helped out during the estate sale).

• Chris and I snuggling on the beach as fireworks lit up the sky in front of us.

• Chris, surrounded by fearless seagulls, using Aunt Emily's golf club to whack golf balls into the calm ocean waters early in the morning.

• Me, wearing an amazingly tacky beach hat of Aunt Emily's, halfway into the ocean and begging Chris to join because it was 8 in the morning and already wicked hot.

• Chris and I standing in front of the looming skeleton of a dinosaur while visiting the Peabody Museum in Connecticut.

But of course, our batteries were dead that weekend, so I have nothing to share.

Marblehead

Today we took a trip to Marblehead, MA; a quaint old fishing village full of east coast beauty and history. Its narrow streets are lined with houses dating back to the 17 & 1800's.

Here at the very tip of Marblehead Neck, we are standing at Lighthouse Point. Not too far from here there is a large rock, named Castle Rock. It was used as a lookout for fishing fleets and for pirate and enemy ships. Below the rock there is a stony beach.

So naturally, I made Chris take a cute picture. It's my favorite.

Old Burial Hill was the site of Marblehead's first meeting house (which is no longer standing). They buried their dead in the church-yard. It all looks quite sleepy hollow. Here, 600 revolutionary war dead are laid to rest.

On the other side of the hill, sits Redd's Pond. It is named after Wilmont "Mammy" Redd, a town resident accused and convicted of witchcraft in the Salem witch trials. Legend has it that that it is so deep the bottom has never been found. Of course, it's actual depth ranges from 3 to 11 feet. Haha.

Fort Sewall, originally called Gale's Head, protected the people in the village. Here, we are sitting next to the bunkers and underground rooms used to detain prisoners. In one of the rooms, you can peer inside and see an old bed frame and table. Cool!

Lovis Cove is also known as "Screeching Woman's Beach". The locals will tell you that a 17th century pirate ship landed here and murdered a woman from a captured ship. She was buried in a nearby swamp and every year, on the anniversary of her tragic death, you can still hear her distant cries.

After a fun day, we met up with family to eat dinner in celebration of Damen's and Amanda's graduation. They both graduated from Salem State College today. Go team!