We're Booked!

We finally got our flights booked for our trip home in the fall. Here is our itinerary:

Sept 24-28: Baltimore for Carrie's Wedding!! Here she is dancing with her Dad at our wedding :)


Sept 28 - Oct 1: San Francisco/Mini Napa Trip (we didn't want to make the entire flight from the east coast to Hawaii in one day)

Oct 1 - Oct 28: Hawaii!!

Oct 29 - Nov 13: Blaise and I will be in the Chicagoland area. Jan unfortunately will have to fly back home for work. We are looking forward to seeing as many friends and family as possible!

My Sweet Baby

Blaise's Exercises

Before we left the hospital we were taught some exercises to do with Blaise because he tended to always go right. The purpose of the exercises was to make sure he developed symmetrically. We still have fun doing his exercises and now, to my surprise, he is working on rolling over.

I love this little shirt, I'm afraid its days are numbered though!

He likes exercise time too!

Blaise trying to roll over


I sound like an idiot, but here is B trying to get off his tummy :)

Blaise in March Madness Fever

I thought about putting Blaise in his IU duds...but that thought was depressing. Then I thought, too bad I don't have any Butler apparal - that was yesterday. Today I was happy to get a picture of him in his super sweet pjs, especially since he's almost outgrown them :(

Abbi and Andre come to visit!

My very good friend from college, Abbi, came to visit with her husband, Andre. They got married last September and planned their Italian honeymoon during Abbi's spring break. Before they got started on their museum, gelato and pasta adventure, they stopped by in Germany to visit us. We aren't kidding ourselves though, they really came to see Blaise :) It was great having them here, even if it was only a few short days. We relaxed, toured around the city with the baby buggy - Andre quickly became an expert pusher - and caught up on the last few months. Unfortunately, I didn't get a picture of Andre...hopefully Abbi got one of him and Blaise. If my calculations are correct, Abbi is now tied with Jen Kler for number of visits to Germany (excluding my parents of course). Again, our door is always open and we have a guest room :) Hope to see you soon!

"Born in the USA" ...okay, not really

We got Blaise's passport in the mail today. It took only 2 weeks, which is pretty impressive considering the Frankfurt consulate sends passports to the US to be generated. Now we are all ready for our trip in September/October...except for flights and other minor details :)

Tschüss, Grandma Rose and Grandpa Lynn

My mom and dad left on Tuesday after staying with us since mid-December. They were a great help and a huge support, especially during Blaise's hospital stay. They took over vacuuming, laundry, window-washing, shopping and much more. They also kept me hydrated all day with water and tea. It was a blessing to have them here for so long to help out, but above all so that they could share in the beginning of Blaise's life. Thank you both for your time and effort! We love you!

Hee Hee

We had a long night with Fever Baby...Blaise apparently wasn't too affected.

2 months old - March 7, 2009

Dear Blaise,

Today you are two months old – how is that possible? What we didn’t think possible, you have made possible…how can we love you more every day?

You had a big month! We had many appointments with your pediatrician, physical therapist, osteopathic doctor, check-up in the hospital and a preventative hip ultrasound. You did wonderful and your doctors are all happy with your recovery and progress. We also made a trip into Frankfurt to the US Consulate to register your birth abroad and apply for your passport. You will be all ready for your first flight in September to the US! We also made a visit to Bockenheim to visit Sarah, Kurt and little Vivien at the winery (http://www.schloss-janson.de/index.html).

We celebrated your baptism with friends and family at St. Quintin’s church. It was a wonderful celebration and you were such a good boy. It was such a special day. You wore Mommy’s baptismal gown, Grandma Rose baked you a yummy cake and Auntie Andrea is your proud Godmother.

Your first Karnival came and went without you noticing much, but we had a good time. You had a sweet little Karnvial scarf you borrowed from Baby Adrian. We spent Rosenmontag at Jen and Martin’s watching the parade from their apartment. We had an exciting afternoon especially since we found out that you’ll soon have a little playmate come September! (Congratulations again, Jen and Martin!!!)

You are much more alert now and have gained weight like a champ. You have started cooing and are playing with your baby gym. It is fun to watch how concentrated you are and determined to reach your goals. You now also like playing with your mobile in your bed. You get so excited about it and are very smiley in the morning. We like to listen to music with you – everything from baby lullabies to Norah Jones to John Denver :)

Thank you for enriching our lives!

We love you!

Love,
Mommy

Dr. Stockinger

During our three weeks in the hospital, we interviewed everyone who would listen about a good pediatrician. We of course got many recommendations, but no one's name was mentioned as often as Dr. Stockinger. The only negative thing we heard about him was that he was in his 60's so would likely be retiring soon. Blaise's surgeon's comment about him was 'he knows what is wrong when you hit the door.' I thought, this is the kind of doctor we need! We really like him and he is very personable. My parents have gone with me to all our appointments and my mom has gone in with me to meet the doctor. She thanked him for treating me and not only Blaise. The first week out of the hospital I was extremely concerned about having enough milk for him and that he was gaining weight. After our appointment on Monday he told me to come back on Wednesday so we could weigh him. He always makes me feel better after talking to him. Hopefully he's a work-aholic and will never retire!

I love how he always wears jeans and a plaid shirt! :)

Good Morning

I was really tired the other morning when I woke up, but then I saw this sweet little face:

What a great way to wake up!!