30 weeks down, 10 more to go! (I think we’re working on monthly photos instead of the weeklies I promised earlier!) Baby Girl has grown a LOT in the past three weeks. According to my favorite pregnancy website, www.babycenter.com, she weighs nearly 3 lbs. and measures approximately 15.5″ tall by this point. I’ve had a few Braxton-Hicks contractions, nothing painful, but gentle reminders to slow down and encourage Tommy to walk on his own instead of riding around in my arms.

We are making great progress on her nursery. I’ve been very busy sewing…how domesticated! I just finished making her diaper stacker (my first-ever sewing project using a pattern) a throw pillow and curtains to match her bedding. They all turned out great and I can’t wait to share pictures once we get the room painted. We (meaning Daddy) will be painting very soon and I’ll post pictures once we have the right shade of green on the walls. Look how much she’s stretching my skirt! I’m wearing the same one in the Week 22 picture for comparison.

July 27 – August 7 we packed up the family SUV and took off on a 3,000 mile road trip around the West. With the help of many books, toys and a DVD player loaded with his favorite movie “Cars,” Tommy was a very good boy during our travels. Our first stop was Salt Lake City for one night, then we zipped through the western part of Yellowstone Park on our way to Bozeman, Montana to visit with Grandma Norma and Papa Rick.Tommy poses with Papa in the back yard of their Bozeman home.Tommy poses with Great Grandma Untz in Grandma’s back yard.

Onto the Blue Angels air show at the Bozeman airport. Tommy LOVED looking at all the planes, though he declared the air show itself “TOO LOUD” as he covered his little ears. Our little guy’s first ride in a motor home. Grandma and Papa took us to the air show in style. It was a great place to cool off on a 100 degree day…quite a rarity in Montana!

Tommy enjoyed a stop at the Bozeman Children’s Museum. The rice table was his favorite. He also enjoyed a rousing pinball game with Daddy.A cheesy grin in Grandma’s back yard. What a view! Cool dude in a stylish pair of shades…more on his love of sunglasses further down the page.
The whole family posing in front of a beautiful waterfall near Grandma’s home. Feeding the ducks on the Montana State University campus, just a few miles from Grandma’s house.

More sunglasses! These are Tommy’s FAVORITE…an old scratched up pair of Mommy’s glasses. He really likes to wear them everywhere. We get lots of smiles from passersby.On toward Portland! We drove this leg of the trip in one day…about 800 miles and 14+ hours in the car. This photo was taken in front of Multnomah Falls, about an hour outside of Portland. This is the only proof we brought the dog for our trip, as this is the only picture we got of Kaya the whole time! A shot of Tommy admiring the waterfall. It reminds him of his favorite scene in “Cars” when Lighting McQueen and Sally go for a leisurely drive.Our little ham.Enjoying an ice cream treat at Multnomah Falls.Grandma Renee, Mommy and Tommy smile for the camera at Laurelhurst Park in Portland. More ducks to feed and we walked around the pond Mommy used to visit when she was a little girl.Another ice cream stop at Ben & Jerry’s on Hawthorned Boulevard. What a great way to cool off on a muggy day! The gang spent a morning at the Oregon Zoo. Henry and Tommy vie for Addilyn’s affection.

Playing with his second cousin, Avery, at Aunt Donna & Uncle Gary’s house.
A group photo of Mommy with her best friends and their little ones. From left to right: Sarah and Kelton, Mommy & Tommy, Jessica & Henry, Bradi & Addilyn and Amy.
Hanging out with his girl, Addilyn. These two are so goofy together and they are getting along MUCH better than they did during her May visit.
“It’s hard work to be this cute.”
Playing with the rock fountain at Uncle Gary’s house. I’ll have to post the video of him playing with this soon…there are some hijinks with a just-out-of-reach power switch that made for an entertaining clip.
With Grandpa Rick at Uncle Gary’s house.
Celebrating Great Grandma Thompson’s 94th birthday at Uncle Gary’s house.
Posing with Aunt Donna, Uncle Gary, and most importantly, the boomerang. He’s obsessed with boomerangs!
Heading south. On our way to San Francisco we stopped for a night in Merlin, Oregon to stay with Sarah’s parents, Jay & Lynne. Lynne took us for a quick visit to the nearby Rogue River to take in the gorgeous views. He had to touch the water!

Now in San Francisco. A park in North Beach/Little Italy before dinner out.
Mommy’s cousin, Paul, joined us for dinner. He lives in the city and it was great to see him.

Tommy’s first taxi ride. He certainly liked the novelty of being outside his carseat in a moving vehicle.
The view from our hotel room in the Financial District. The Metreon Center was just a couple blocks away.Coit tower. Unhappy to pose for a picture. Coit Tower. A lot happier to pose for this picture!Mommy needed a chai latte at Ghirardelli Square. Tommy decided shoes were optional even though it was a brisk 50 degrees! Posing in front of a fire truck at Fisherman’s Wharf. What a highlight!

Finally, Burger King in Barstow, California…only hours from home. He LOVED the crown, but wouldn’t go for the flame broiled burger. He’s more of a McD’s fan.

No picture to post with this, but I just wanted to tell the world that it IS possible to have a great day with a two-year-old. While Daddy golfed with friends, Tommy and Mommy enjoyed a strawberry pancake breakfast at IHOP and he was extremely well-behaved for the entire meal. I wish I’d had my camera with me at breakfast because he smeared strawberry syrup all over his face and hair…all I could do was laugh! He ate all his eggs and half of mine, and nothing was flung at nearby diners.

Next, we ventured out for a little shopping. Surprisingly, he didn’t fight the stroller too much. And he only threw his Hot Wheels cars a few times to protest boredom/confinement. After a light lunch at home (he only tossed a few blueberries that he deemed “yucky”), he took a three-hour nap and woke up in a great mood. Shortly after he awoke, Daddy came home and the real playtime began. Tommy was all smiles all day!

Finally, we decided to REALLY push it and see how he’d do during another meal out. We went to Roadrunner Saloon where he played in the booth with us, but didn’t jump like a monkey on the seat. He drank lemonade from a big-boy cup, but only spilled a little bit. He even tried a NEW FOOD…penne pasta. It was really mac & cheese in disguise, but this was a big step as he’s leery of anything that doesn’t resemble the ol’ Kraft variety. Success!

All in all, we had a fantastic day together and I wanted to document it. The “terrible twos” are tough most of the time, but our little guy has his good days too. We love you Tommy and will remember this great day with you fondly!

p.s. I’ll post our vacation pics soon. Too busy having fun with our kid lately!

Wow, I’ve been a slacker with Baby Girl’s page (and a slug with her brother’s, too). We went on a 3,000 mile road trip for two weeks, so I have a good excuse! I will post pics and stories from our trip on Tommy’s page as soon as I can.

If baby’s growth was in question before, she’s definitely putting on the ounces now! Here’s my latest belly picture, taken at 27 weeks. No, Shannon, I wasn’t sucking in in that last one! Ha ha.

And here’s a bare-belly pic, so you can compare apples to apples. Today was our monthly OB appointment and all is going well. Baby’s heart rate pitter-pattered along at 147. Doc pointed out that my uterus now stretches several inches above my belly button, which explains the heartburn when I eat a large meal! We return next month for an appointment and one last ultrasound to check our little princess’s growth.