It's a GIRL!

*UPDATE* The previous copy of the ultrasound that I posted showed half of the pictures upside-down. I've posted each shot individually below.

We found out this morning that we have a healthy baby girl! All is measuring correctly and everything looks great. :) Here are the pictures they gave us from the ultrasound, for those of you who like to try and decipher such things.
Merry Christmas, Seth, Kiersten, Benjamin, Talia, and Baby Girl :)

In Praise of Wives

A Post by Seth.

Kiersten contributes to a blog at www.InPraiseOfHusbands.blogspot.com. Well, this post is "In Praise of Wives" ... specifically, my wife.

Today was a significant day in the Rodriquez family thanks to the hard work of Kiersten: Today Benjamin was potty trained. It involved over a week of prep work ... gathering enough clothing to deal with accidents, talking up the event with Benj to get him excited and on board, and getting laundry done and the house clean so she could focus on the task. Finally, the big day arrived. After breakfast, Benj took off his last diaper ever and entered the realm of big people.

Benj is to be commended for his great achievement. He did a great job today and I am very proud of him. He received a sticker on a chart posted in the bathroom for every successful trip to the potty, and there are more stickers on there than you can count. The column marked "Tuesday" is overcrowded with stickers, and when they couldn't find a place for more stickers on the chart they started putting them on Benj's shirt. I've never seen as many stickers on that boy as I did when I got home from work.

At the same time, although this was a landmark day for Benjamin, Kiersten is to be commended for the incredible job she did to make it happen. Every 10 minutes she marched Benj to the potty with enthusiasm and excitement. She then sat patiently, read him books, helped him learn this new skill, and rejoiced at his successes. She made it a very enjoyable process for him, even though the stress of having a "ticking time bomb" in the house was taking a toll on her.

On top of all that, Kiersten had to take care of a sick toddler today. Late in the morning, Kiersten noticed that Talia had a temprature of 104! So not only did she teach our son how to use the potty, she also cared for our daughter through the highest temprature we've seen yet in our experience as parents.

Needless to say, Kiersten met the challenges of a very stressful day with grace and excellence. Well done, Kiersten!

I don't remember the last time I laughed so hard...

Benjamin, in case I haven't mentioned it yet, has been extremely rambunctious lately. He just has TONS of energy which *must* be expelled through much running, jumping, and chattering. Yesterday he was running in circles throughout the living room and kitchen when he, without warning, ran straight at me and rammed his head into my protruding belly.

"Ouch!" I exclaimed.

Seth quickly chided, "Benjamin, you need to be careful of Mama's belly!"

Wanting to explain why he needed to be especially careful, I started to elaborate. "Benj, Mama's belly is..." I left it hanging, searching for a term he would understand. Sensitive? Fragile?

Benjamin seized the opportunity to shout (emphasizing with a little hop), "BIG!"

I honestly don't remember the last time I laughed so hard.

Talia's new tricks

I recently discovered that Talia has learned how to count to 10 (actually 11).


Surprise! She also knows how to (mostly) sing the ABC's. Evidently I need to keep up with her development a little more closely. :)


I'll tack this one on, just for fun. I love that laugh!

Ultrasound!

I had a baby check-up this morning. Everything looks great. The kids came with me and so were able to hear the baby's heartbeat. I'm not sure they really understood what they were hearing, but they were excited to get to "hear the baby." I think Benjamin thought the baby was trying to talk to him. All the way to the car he kept saying, "The baby say, 'shwshwsh' to me!"

The best news was that I asked if I could schedule my ultrasound for 18 weeks so we could find out the gender before Christmas (last time she told me we would do it at 20 weeks). She said, "sure!" So we will find out--boy or girl--on December 23rd. I am so excited!

Just in case you don't know or remember how we operate...we'll tell you the gender, but you aren't getting the name out of us until the baby is born! :)

In other baby news.... Here is my 3 month "belly shot." I am starting to get a complex. Everywhere I go people are saying, "There's no way you are due in May"..."You're only 3 months pregnant?"... and "Wow! You're really popping out there, aren't you?" Maybe I've forgotten, but I think I've gotten more weird comments this pregnancy than the other 2 put together!

I've also felt a little bit of movement over the past week or so. Just little "squirms" and wiggles, no robust kicks yet.

Baby Update

We don't have much new to report, but I had a doctor's appointment today (my first real "baby appointment") and everything is looking great. I am 12 weeks now, which is always a relief as this point marks a significant decline in the chance for miscarriage. I am also feeling much better and starting to see my energy return.

We were able to hear the heartbeat for the first time, which is always an amazing experience. I don't think that little "swish swish" will ever sound commonplace, no matter how many times I hear it. :) Seth was able to come with me, and even better, we were kid-less (thank you, Christy!) What a fun morning!

For those who have asked, we will probably not find out the baby's gender until the first week of January.... Sigh. That seems like a long time from now. Hopefully the time will pass quickly as we have lots of celebrating to do in the next couple of months.

Misc. cute pictures

Cheesy smiles

Benj loves for me to make him this "hat"

Benjamin is in the toddler version of AWANA this year. He LOVES his "Honeybees" shirt.

Speaking of LOVES... Talia loves her accessories. "Pitty necklace, Mama."

We had a fun visit with Mima in October for Benjamin's birthday. One highlight was visiting Huber's Family Farm where we picked out "cumkins," as Benjamin calls them.