Here are some photos of Kristine at 18 weeks with Kaylee.
Momma and Kaylee
Momma and Kaylee
Momma, Suzie and Kaylee
Suzie sitting on her future sister
Suzie and Kaylee
Today at 9:00 a.m. we got to see our baby and finally know that she is a little girl. We already had agreed on the name Kaylee earlier if it was a girl so the naming was easy to do. Everything was in the right place and she was very healthy with no signs of any issues. During the ultrasound, she was moving around constantly so it took forever to get all the things checked out. We didn’t get a good profile picture either because she kept hiding her head behind Kristine’s bellybutton!
We can’t wait to hold our baby but still have to wait till Thanksgiving. In late July we will get an additional ultrasound because they couldn’t check her profile for a cleft palate because she was hiding. Below are some photos of Kaylee; enjoy!
It's a girl!!
Kaylee's head
Kaylee's head with her mouth open!
Kaylee's hands
Kaylee's hand showing she's rockin' out
Kaylee's feet
Kaylee's profile
Kaylee's Profile
Kaylee's Profile
Kristine and I went car shopping on Saturday since we need to find a new car that will fit the baby. The Monte Carlo and Dodge Ram Pickup only have two doors so they won’t really work well for the baby car seat. We go out to test drive some cars and make our first stop at the Mazda dealership. We tested the CX-9 and really loved it. Next, we rolled over to the Volvo dealership and test drive the XC-60 which was ‘ok’; really wanted to test the XC-90 but they don’t have anymore.
Finally we figured we would go to the Toyota dealership to test drive the Highlander. This is where our trouble began. We pull up and park at the dealership and walk up looking for a sales man so we can test drive the highlander. The first guy we run into was a young guy so I figure he would be good to help us.
When we walk up, he asks us if we were just there. “No, I have never been to this lot before” I told him. He kept trying to tell us we were just there but he finally stops. We tell him we want to test drive the Highlander and so he brings us inside. He makes us fill out this form asking for our address and sorts and tells us management is requiring it. We oblige and then he asks us what car we are trading in. I tell him, no we are just test driving right now; no trade in. Weird.
We walk out to the Highlanders which are on the farthest point of the lot. We told him we were looking at the Limited series but of course he grabbed the keys for a normal one; not what we are interested in. He leaves us out in the hot sun to get the keys for the correct cars. At this point, my pregnant wife is less than happy baking in the sun.
While we are waiting, the cars unlock and we are able to open them up. Of course it is 500 degrees inside the car. I begin to look at them while I can but Kristine is melting. The guy walks back to the car and says he has some other clients he needs to finish a sale with and if we could wait. What? He gives me his card and says call his cell if we have any questions while we are looking over the car in the hot sun with a pregnant wife. Screw this! We walk back to the dealership right behind him.
We walk inside and he notices we are back with a puzzled look on his face. He says, “let me show you our service department!” He shows us their ‘VIP’ lounge which he says he is not allowed into because he hasn’t bought a car from the dealership. The place is closed but he lets us in anyways. They have drinks and food up there so I ask him to grab me a water which he does. He then tells me I shouldn’t have one since we haven’t bought a car yet.
I am thinking to myself as this is going on, “why do I care about the service center? I don’t want to see this place since it means my car is broke!” After we walk back up front and he says “thanks for coming and let me know if there is anything else I can help you with!”
“Wait,” I ask, “so no test driving today?” He responds saying they are way to busy on the weekend to give test drives to people who are not ’serious’ about buying a car. Do what?!?
“So no test drive?” Kristine asks to which we get no reply. It is very awkward so we turn around and leave. To my surprise, the ‘busy’ dealership had 3 other guys hanging out in the front of the lot! After all of this, I have scratched Toyota off my list of cars to buy if the salesmen are like this guy. I have told other people this story and evidently this dealership has a history of people like this working for it.
Thinking back about this, I would have expected this from a higher end dealership like Volvo, especially since we are young, but we had nothing but amazing salesmanship from them.
Kristine under the cherry blossomes
While we were in D.C., it was the Cherry Blossom Festival which was amazing. I had never seen so many cherry blossoms all over. The blossoms were everywhere especially near the tide pool area and the Jefferson Memorial. This will just be a quick photo update blog but still have more of D.C. to document!
Mike and Alice under the cherry trees
Cherry Blossoms
Jefferson Memorial on the tide pool
Jefferson Memorial on the tide pool
Jefferson Memorial on the tide pool surrounded by cherry blossoms
Special duck with cherry blossoms
Cherry Blossoms
Cherry Blossoms
World War II Memorial
Joel and Kristine in front of the reflecting pool
From the World War II Memorial we walked along the reflecting pool towards the Vietnam Memorial. We didn’t walk to it but walked by it. From there we headed up to the Lincoln Memorial. The lake to the north side of the reflecting pool was drained as they were shoveling the sediment out of it. Was funny the ducks were still hanging around the lake looking for the water. At this point we knew Kristine was pregnant so she had to drink a ton of water. We stopped at a little booth and made sure she and little Turkey were kept hydrated.
We walked on to the Lincoln Memorial and I am always shocked at how big he is. Kristine didn’t realize how big he was either. Last time I was here, I had all my luggage with me since I was ‘officially’ on my way to Reagan International for my flight back home. Was nice to enjoy a stroll around DC without the clack clack clack of my luggage behind me; that and not being in a suit.
 Entrance into the Lincoln Memorial |
 Mike and Alice in front of Abe |
 Joel and Kristine in front of Mr. Lincoln |
 View down the mall after visiting with President Lincoln |
We walked on to the Korean War Memorial which is a few steps away from the Lincoln Memorial. While we were there, birds were loving to swim in the water. Being bird lovers we had to watch and laugh at the cute birds.
From there we walked on to the tide pool area to view the Cherry Blossom Festival.
Korean War Memorial
Birds bathing in the Korean War Memorial water
Well God has blessed us with a perfectly healthy baby and we couldn’t be more excited!! We are calling it Turkey because the original due date is Thanksgiving Day. Kristine will be at 10 weeks on Wednesday and is sick as a dog; which is a good thing! Here are some photos of Baby Turkey from today. It was an amazing thing and I couldn’t help crying through the ultrasound as he squirmed around on the ultrasound moving his arms and legs. It was a beautiful thing and I will write more about it as time progresses. Thanks for everyone’s prayers!
Baby Turkey
Baby Turkey
Baby Turkey
Baby Turkey and it's heartbeat
Baby Turkey and it's heartbeat
Ford's Theater where Lincoln was shot
On Tuesday, we woke up early to make the drive to Perryville, Maryland to catch the MARC train into DC. We got to drive through Delaware for about 10 minutes on the hour and a half drive. When we got to Perryville, we had about 5 minutes to catch the train. All the parking spots were taken so we took our chance and parked on the street. We had to run to the train and barely made it. As soon as we sat down it started moving for our hour and a half train ride into the city. It was a nice and quiet trip with a pretty view of the Maryland country side as we came into the city.
U.S. Treasury Office... I need a bailout!
We finally got into D.C. and walked into Chinatown for lunch. We met with my Department of Justice contact and he ate with us for lunch. After lunch we walked to the White House. On our way their we passed Ford’s Theater and got to see the building where Lincoln died. The theater was closed so we didn’t get to go in but the construction on it was finally done from my last trip up there.
White House.. but Obama wasn't home
We made it to the White House but Obama wasn’t home. No loss; but we got some nice photos of the building and the snipers hanging out on the roof. I waved at them but they never waved back.
We walked from the White House to the Washington Memorial but it was also sold out for the day as well. We walked down to the World War II Memorial on our way to the Lincoln Memorial. It was actually very windy and the water from the fountains were blowing everywhere.
You could also see the Jefferson Memorial from the memorial which was surrounded by Cherry blossoms (more in a later post). From there we headed to the Lincoln Memorial for a meeting with ol’ Abe.
Joel and Kristine at the White House
Snipers?
White House
Washington Memorial
Florida at the World War II Memorial
Jefferson Memorial
Liberty Bell
On Monday, March 30th, we slept in a bit so we could recover from our long day in New York City. We got our day a bit later than we expected but got plenty done. We took the train in from Mike and Alice’s apartment into town. Our first stop was a CVS to get Kristine some water. While there we saw this dude get caught stealing from the store. Welcome to Philly I thought to my self!
Liberty Bell with Independence Hall behind it
From there, we walked down to the Liberty Bell which I had not seen since I was a little kid. The new building was really nice and I loved seeing Independence Hall behind it through the glass. The building had tons of history about the Bell and it being used as an icon for freeing slaves. This was a history I did not know and found it interesting. They also had x-rays of the bell showing the work that has been done on the inside along with the supports to keep it from further cracking.
Ben Franklin's Grave... I think I heard him spinning!
We next walked towards the river and passed a few additional sites. The first was Ben Franklin’s grave. I was surprised at how simple it was for one of the most famous persons in our countries history. With everything going on in our country… I could swear I heard him spinning in his grave! All joking aside, it was really amazing to see his grave. Next we walked next to Betsy Ross’ house on our way to the shore.
Grave of the Unknown Revolutionary War Soldier
Once at Penn’s Landing, we could see a great view of the Walt Whitman Bridge and the the USS New Jersey. The shore was nice but very cold and windy! We walked back towards Independence Hall but made a stop at the Grave of the Unknown Revolutionary War Soldier. This was where hundreds of soldiers from General Washington’s army died during the winter. We finally made it to Independence Hall only to realize they are closed for the evening so we didn’t get to go inside.
Freemasons Temple
We continued our tour of Philadelphia by walking towards City Hall. From there, we walked through it and on the other side was the Freemasons Temple. Never seen a church where they worship masonry freely. Our day was finally up and we took the train home so we could rest up for our trip to Washington D.C. in the morning.
On a side note, the whole time we were touring parts of Philadelphia, I couldn’t help thinking ‘National Treasures’ the whole time. I was so tempted to find the glasses hidden inside the walls of Independence Hall and then run from the Freemasons Temple.
Betsy Ross' House
USS New Jersey
Independence Hall (panoramic)
Kristine next to a 'Sorry' game piece
Joel and Kristine under the 'Love' art
Trump Tower (Panoramic)
Upon leaving Central Park, we walked through the city towards the Rockefeller building. Our first stop was the Trump Tower where the show is filmed. Everyone (except myself) got Starbucks from inside Trump’s building. Everything had a golden look to it, was odd. After that, we came across Saint Patrick’s Cathedral which was amazing inside. I figure that is what the churches in Rome must look like. They only let us hang out for a bit since they were getting ready for that evenings mass.
30 Rock
We finally made it to Rockefeller Center and I was actually surprised at how small the area was. I figured from TV it was much larger than it really was. Either way, it was still neat to see the people ice skating in the center. I don’t see where they have space for the Christmas tree or anything. From there we walked past all the NBC studios and Radio City Music Hall on our way to Time Square.
Time Square
Time Square was pretty insane. I had never seen somewhere so busy and full of lights everywhere. There were lights and signs on every surface available. One of the really nice things was they left he ball from New Years still up so we got to see that. Additionally they had some bleachers you could sit on that was relaxing to enjoy after so much walking.
Empire State Building going up into the clouds
We next departed for the Empire State Building but was unsure of what we could see due to the low clouds in the city. When we made our way to the building I was surprised because it didn’t look that big but we could only see half way up the building because of the fog. We went inside to see it, but it is all under construction. It cost $20 to go up to the observation deck as well which was insane. It would have been worthless to go up there due to the heavy clouds and we wouldn’t have been able to see squat.
Kristine trying to eat Calamari at Carmines
After the Empire State Building, we headed back to Time Square to find some food. A friend of mine (who actually told us where to go in NYC) recommended Carmines which was an Italian restaurant that served family style portions. We first ordered Calamari which I like OK. The plate got there and it had to have 100 to 150 little squid parts on the table! Kristine wouldn’t eat the ones with tentacles still on them though. We also ordered stuffed mushrooms, which were amazing, a sampler plate and meatballs. The meatballs were amazing and had to be the size of a baseball. The sampler plate was huge! It easily had 4 servings of the 4 items it had on there. Needless to say we took home a ton of things in a box.
From there we took the train back to Trenton and drove back to Kristine’s brothers place where we rested and saved up our energy for our Tuesday trip to DC.
Buildings of New York
Saint Patrick's Cathedral (Panoramic)
NBC Studios
Too much food!!
Time Square at night (panoramic)
Chrysler Building
Early Sunday morning we woke up for our trip to New York City for the day. It was a cold and overcast morning but we had high hopes the day would get better. We drove from Kristine’s brothers place to Trenton where we caught a train into New York City. Amazingly, this was Kristine’s first ever train ride. For most of the trip I zoned out and listed to my iPod while the rest of the train was entertained by a very excited person in the front of the car who was going to see Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz.
As we rolled through New Jersey, I was actually in shock with the amount of filth and trash that was visible along the train tracks. I had never seen anything like it except on TV! Additionally, every square inch of available surface was covered in graffiti as well. Now I understand this is the train tracks but still, it was a bit shocking. When we finally pulled into New York, I realized how busy and insane the city was just from Penn Station. From there we took the A/C/E train downtown to World Trade Center. I was amazed at how little had been done in the way of building the Freedom tower but it was a great reminder of what happened on 9/11 and made me a bit emotional. I was also a bit disappointed that it was so overcast we couldn’t see tops of the buildings due to how overcast it was.
From there we turned east and headed towards Wall Street where we got to see the stock exchange and the Merrill Lynch bull. We continued on to Battery Park where we hoped to see the Statue of Liberty. Unfortunately it was so overcast we could barely make her out! From there we walked up to the South Street Seaport for lunch.
From there we took the A train up to Central Park for a nice walk. Central Park was amazing with all the wildlife around and the huge rocks sticking out from the ground. There was also a guy playing the sax in the park who was amazing.
Kristine on her first train ride
Kristine on her first subway ride
World Trade Center
Buildings in the low fog in New York City
New York Stock Exchange
Panoramic View of Wall Street
Merrel Lynch Bull
Lady Liberty in the fog
Kristine at the South Street Seaport next to the Helen McAllister
View of the Brooklyn Bridge
Mike and Alice next to the Brooklyn Bridge
Joel and Kristine next to the Brooklyn Bridge
Rocks in Central Park
Man playing sax in Central Park
Panoramic view of Central Park