Month: July 2011

Today is my 31st birthday. Obviously 31 isn’t any sort of big birthday but it’s exciting for me because it’s the last birthday I’ll have before my first child is born. Since it’s a Saturday and we both work in the restaurant business we decided it would be silly for both of us to take the night off to celebrate, so we’re just going to celebrate on Tuesday instead. The plan is to head up to Beacon’s Beach at Leucadia State Park for the day and hang with friends, surf, boogie board, etc. I think the craziest thing about being 31 is that it’s been a full decade since my 21st birthday. While working at the Tractor Room last night the whole staff decided to sing “Happy Birthday” to me at midnight, which was equal parts cool and embarassing. Hopefully we’ll have some good pics to post to the site after Tuesday. Also keep an eye out for a whole new family website. I’ve been working on a redesign that’s coming along really well…

Last night provided us with an experience that we won’t soon forget. Our hound dog Bruno kept freaking out and trying to get at something underneath our bed. My first instinct was that there was some little animal under there, but when I got down to look, I couldn’t see anything. Bruno continued to freak out for the next couple hours and Jessica and I thought he must be going crazy! His attention soon shifted from under the bed to behind my guitar amplifier, which is just across from the bed. I wheeled the amp out to see what was there, and was quite startled to find a rat! I must admit that I kinda freaked out and screamed, then rushed Jessica and the dogs out of our room. Jessica HATES rats/mice so I knew I was going to have to deal with this one on my own. I decided to use my pellet gun to hunt the poor thing down because I couldn’t think of any other way to catch it. After suiting up with motorcycle boots, plastic shooting glasses, and an airgun, I went in for the kill. I shot it once and it scrambled away. Since I couldn’t find it I had to bring Bruno back in to locate it for me. Once located, I shot it several more times and it died. I didn’t feel good about it but had no choice. Cleaning it up wasn’t fun either. Afterwards I had to praise Bruno for alerting us that something was definitely in our house. What a memorable night!

Five years ago today, one of my dearest friends, Spencer Frenette, drowned in Lake Washington while trying to save someone. Neither of their bodies were ever recovered. It was because of Spencer’s death that I decided to move from Las Vegas back home to Seattle. Less than a year after moving back, Jessica and I started dating. Had it not been for this unfortunate event, we may have never met. I truly believe that everything happens for a reason, but I miss my friend and wish he was here to witness the birth of our baby girl. Although he can’t be here in person, his spirit lives on with all the amazing friends and family he left behind. Miss you Spencer!

Today Jessica and her friend Raquel went to the 51st Annual Sand Castle Competition in Imperial Beach (a.k.a. The Southernmost Beach City in America).

Jessica said she could feel Ava kicking for the first time tonight. This was very exciting news! All of our pregnancy literature says that it’s around the 4–5 month range when the baby starts to kick, so she’s right on time. Jessica also had a doctor’s appointment earlier this week and everything was good to go. We’re almost at the 5 month mark now so the half–way point is behind us. Hopefully Ava will be kicking next week on my birthday.

Last night Jessica and I went to our first baby-related class. It was called Dogs and Babies and was all about how to train your dog, and your child, to co-exist peacefully. We learned a lot about non-verbal queues our dogs may be sending us that let us know whether they are happy, fine, or unhappy. Obviously the biggest concern is making sure the dog doesn’t lose it’s temper and bite the child. Although there were certain parts of the class where I was struggling to stay awake, overall I found it to be very informative and helpful.

Today was Rick’s final day in San Diego. We were sad to see him leave but we all had such a great time this past weekend. I’m glad Jessica got to spend a lot of quality time with her dad while I was working on Saturday and Sunday. Monday was definitely my favorite day of his visit. The three of us did some shopping, went to Torrey Pines Golf Course so Rick could get some souveniers, then we headed up north to Moonlight Beach in Encinitas and spent the next few hours boogie boarding, playing frisbee and relaxing in the sun. The perfect day was capped off with the perfect meal at Truluck’s in La Jolla. Definitely the nicest meal we’ve had in a while. Below are a few photos from his visit.

Jessica’s dad Rick is in town this weekend. He’s never been to southern California before so we’re super excited to show him around! This morning he and Jess took a long walk around Pacific Beach and now they’re exploring La Jolla together. I’m looking forward to spending more time with them after this crazy weekend at work ends. Can’t wait to take Rick to the beach on Monday! Pics coming soon…

These ultrasound’s were taken on July 5th, 2011, when Jessica was 18 weeks pregnant. This was the day that we found out we were having a little girl. Many phone calls and text messages followed shortly thereafter.

Today we decided to create a family website for our loved ones to visit and see what’s going on with us down in San Diego. As you all know, our little Ava is due in early December and we couldn’t be happier. New pictures will be added here regularly throughout Jessica’s pregnancy and beyond.