We have moving dates!

We have been waiting for weeks to find out what days the movers were coming. It is very exciting for us to know definite dates and a relief to know that it is all going to work out the way we wanted.

Because Drew is getting out of the military, they are going to pay for us to move back to our home of record. This means that they send in people to pack up everything in our house and then drive it to California for us. Once there, they will put it in storage for us until we know where we are moving to. There will be inventory taken of everything that is packed and if anything doesn't make it or is broken, they will be responsible for replacing it.

The movers will be coming on Tuesday, May 26 to pack up everything in the house and then will be back the next day to load it all up in the car. We will spend Thursday cleaning and get the house ready for the renters and then we will head out on Friday morning. We should be arriving in California on May 31. That is only 17 days away! Oh my goodness, we have a lot to do before then. 

Everything that happens after we get there is still up in the air. We won't know where we are going to be living until Drew gets a job. Our first choice is to be in San Diego but we are open to other parts in California and ultimately just want Drew to get a good job. We really want to be as consistent as possible throughout all of this for Ben's sake. There is going to be a lot of change happening and while I think he will do a great job at handling it, there is only so much a 17 month old can take. There will be lots of unfamiliar faces around (don't worry, they will become familiar) and different places we will be staying at. Until we know where we are moving to, we will be spending a lot of our time in Fresno with Drew's parents with the occasional trip down south to see my family. After a lot of consideration, we have decided that this will be the best set-up for us. We are very lucky to have supportive families who are all willing to do whatever they can to help us out. It doesn't hurt that we have a Benjamin that will be going wherever we go so of course everyone wants us to come spend time with them.

Everyone out in California, we will be seeing all of you in the next month or so...

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to our Moms, Grandmothers and anyone else who is a mom. Being a mom is a tough job (especially if you are my mom and had to deal with me when I was younger). I can honestly say that Drew and I both now have a whole new appreciation for our moms. We are both so fortunate to have great moms who have given us so much throughout our lives. Now they are also wonderful Grandmothers and Ben is very lucky to have them in his life. 

My two favorite boys

I know it's cheesy but he really is the best mother's day gift

Being cute as always

I step away for a minute and he goes to the computer

I don't know what he is doing here but it's pretty funny

A gift from my two boys. Click on it to make it bigger so you can 

see all of the little pictures that make up the big picture. 

Like Father Like Son...

Chocolate Cake...

Ben Kenobi

I can't help it...

I know there have been a lot of pictures of Ben online today (not that you all mind) and that you are probably getting tired of seeing him in this outfit but I had to share his cuteness. We had some chocolate ice cream this afternoon and he couldn't have been happier.

Such a boy...

This is what his activity table is supposed to look like...

This is what it looks like when Ben gets a hold of it (after he has taken off the top and dumped out everything that was inside of it)...

Happy Monday

Click on this picture to make it bigger. On Ben's left side of his mouth, on the top, you can see his canine tooth just barely poking through. That will be tooth number 12.

Happy Ben

He was pointing at his picture, saying "eeee" (meaning "me"). 

Good thoughts for Ben...

Tomorrow morning, Ben is going in for a brain MRI. The doctor is a little concerned about the rate that his head is growing and wants to make sure that everything looks normal so he ordered a brain MRI to be done. When Ben was first born, his head circumference was barely on the charts and then it went to the 25th percentile to the 50th percentile and so on. It is now in the 97th percentile. The doctor said it is probably normal and that he just has a big head but if there is a problem with it (such as fluid around the brain), the MRI will show it and the problem can be fixed.

The MRI will not hurt Ben at all and there will be no long-term effects. He will not even know what is going on since he will be sleeping during it. He isn't allowed to eat anything after midnight tonight except for clear liquids. The procedure will be done at the same hospital he was born at. It will be strange going back there after spending so much time there for 7 weeks. We will probably be there for 4 to 5 hours since it will take a bit of time to get him registered, for them to put him to sleep, then the actual MRI and of course, recovery time. 

Please say an extra prayer tonight (and tomorrow) for Ben that everything goes well and that we get good results. I will update as soon as we know anything.

Thank you!

What the heck???

Pet-only airline taking reservations (an article I read at msnbc.com)

And what if you want to send your pet somewhere instead of having him or her watched while you take a trip?

Pet Airways, the world’s first pets-only airline, started taking online bookings on its Web site Thursday, and passengers can look forward to taking to the fur-friendly skies on the inaugural flight this summer.

The main cabin areas on the Florida-based company's Beechcraft 1900 turbo prop planes have been stripped of seats and redesigned to offer four-legged creatures room in special pet crates.

Initially the airline will offer service on a weekly basis to Los Angeles, Denver, Chicago, Washington D.C. and New York.

“We are flying out of secondary airports in these cities such as Los Angeles Executive Airport in Hawthorne, Jefferson Airport in Denver, Chicago Executive in Chicago, Baltimore-Washington Airport in Washington and Teterboro Airport in New York to make the boarding procedure and the whole travel experience less stressful for pets,” says Pet Airways’ Executive Vice President and Founder Alysa Binder.

Apart from the crew, the only humans on board will be the pet attendants to take care of the furry travelers as they jet to their destinations.

The service is geared for pets of all sizes, but especially large dogs that don’t qualify to fly “cabin class” on regular commercial airlines.

Airports are being equipped with special lounges where owners can relax with their pets ahead of boarding. Owners can track their pets’ journeys online, and special identification safety tags give them additional peace of mind while animals are airborne. One-way airfares start at about $149.

Apart from well-traveled pets, such as show dogs and cats that fly to competitions on a regular basis, the airline also envisions its customers to be pets who will be going to spend a week with “grandparents” while their owners take a vacation, and even for divorced couples who share custody of their pets.

I thought this was pretty funny. We have had plenty of experience flying with Lewey (most of them not good) but this is taking it a little too far. I think we have just decided  that we will never fly with him again. 

Bath time!

Happy Friday...

Hope everyone is enjoying their Friday and looking forward to the weekend. We are having another snow day! I am officially tired of the snow and want to be somewhere warm. Ben is taking a nap and Drew is busy in his new office (the guest room) job searching. It's actually pretty quiet around here.

This is from two days ago...

April 12, 2008:

One year later: