Ahl About Us...The Ahlgrens

Karate Training

2011-03-29T12:54:00.000-07:00

This past Saturday, we had Kyoshi Richard Bonsteel and some of our karate kids over to our house to do some training. We all learned a lot...as we always do when Kyoshi comes to town...and we finished the day off with some delicious food (mostly brought by the parents of our karate kids...THANKS!). Can't wait to do it again!

Cakeballs!

2011-03-21T18:41:00.000-07:00

Okay, if you've never had a cakeball, drop what you are doing, go to the store, buy the ingredients and make them. They are really THAT good. I got the recipe from a dear friend (thanks Emily Sorgius!!!) and decided to make some for Valentine's day for my TAs. They were a huge hit!

Bake a cake, let it cool. Crumble it up and blend with a canister of frosting until as smooth as possible. I used a white cake + cream cheese frosting. Roll into balls, freeze, dip in chocolate (or almond bark or the like...I used pre-colored almond bark chips from a party store). I topped each one with a dark chocolate m-n-m...which made them look a little like breasts (the pink ones, anyway), but whatever...they tasted amazing!

I also tried this recipe with pineapple cake + strawberry frosting, dipped in white chocolate...tropical YUM!

February 2011

2011-03-21T18:28:00.000-07:00

February was a fun month for us this year. Here are some random shots of Sterling just hangin' out and having some good old fashioned fun!

I absolutely ADORE little boys with their hair combed over (the "choir boy" look), but Jeremey quite despises it. So I sneaked a couple pics before daddy cut his hair. Tell me that isn't cute!

Sterling loves this little wagon...even though a wheel is broken off.

Sterling also loves the TV show The Electric Company. He's got his hand up to his mouth here b/c he's shouting, "heeeeeey youuuuuu guuuuuys!"

We also got to hang out with some really good friends (Sarah, Amelia, Fritz, Carlie, Emily, and Ella) down in Tampa at the interactive children's museum. We gave daddy the day off and Sterling and I had a blast.

Sterling just loved hanging out with Amelia and Ella. He may be 2 1/2-3 years their junior, but he wouldn't have it any other way. He has so much fun with "big kids" and regularly talks about how he is getting bigger, growing up, and that he's a big guy now. LOL!

You can see the beautiful campus of Tampa University (I believe) in the background. It was quite a stunning view.

Sterling and mommy posing as firefighters. Sterling is really intrigued by firemen and firetrucks. He is also a very compassionate little guy. Whenever there is someone crying (usually a kid at the gym day care), he'll say, "oh no, they're sad." And with such concern on his face. :) Makes me proud.

Sterling loves music and loves to dance. Here's a video of him at the children's museum dancing with some other kid-os. He was having so much fun! Listen closely, at the end of the video he says to the big girl, "I want to hold your hand." That's my little ladie's man...Lord, help me!

The day after we played at the museum, Sterling and mommy had some fun outside with sidewalk chalk followed by a popsicle...mmmm. Sterling kept touching his face and his nose was all green...which he thought was hilarious.

Mommy gave a lesson on polysynaptic spinal reflexes...which Sterling LOVED...and I'm not being sarcastic in the least. He was asking questions and everything. Such a good student...melt my heart!

Nothing like a good cherry popsicle to turn your lips, tongue, chin, etc. red. :)

Good to the last drop!

Sterling loves to get dirty outside, but he is a NEAT FREAK when it comes to food. He just HAS to have a napkin and cannot stand to have any food on his hands and face.

November 2010 - January 2011

2011-03-21T17:47:00.000-07:00

Jeremey and I were slightly negligent this past winter season. Not a whole lot of photographing (excluding cell phone photography, that is) in November, December, and January. We really do celebrate Thanksgiving and Christmas, we just don't really make a big "to do" about it. I like it that way, though.

The best part about our winter was having Grandmother stay with us for a month! It was so wonderful to have some childcare relief and for Sterling to get to hang with Grandmother and build a relationship with her. VBS, as Grandmother would say.

October 2010

2011-03-20T15:06:00.000-07:00

For Jeremey's birthday, I got him some new ink. :) He really wanted something representing our marriage...and I would not allow a portrait of me. You think I'm joking...I'm dead serious, he mentioned that as an option he was seriously considering. Yikes! We finally settled on this tat...which turned out beautiful. It's a pelican, for those of you living more in-land. When we got engaged, there were hundreds of pelicans ALL OVER THE PLACE...and this bird symbolizes both loyalty and self-sacrifice in many cultures. What better to represent our union.

Sterling looks SoOOOOO much like Jeremey as a child in these next two pics.
We went to an "Art-tober Fest" with Uncle Jared. We thought it was an October fest, but realized our error when we got there...no beer, no music, no German anything. Oh well. We still had fun. Sterling really liked going down this giant inflatable slide with us.

Sterling was a pirate last Halloween. He and daddy both dressed up. It was ADORABLE!

September 2010

2011-03-20T14:58:00.000-07:00

Here are some picture of Sterling playing on our back deck this past September. He adores being outside and putting the deck on the back of our house was the best investment EVER!

Sterling, his time out stool, and his helmet. He's not actually in time out here...if he were, there would be no helmet and very likely no smile.

Getting All Caught Up

2011-03-20T10:57:00.001-07:00

Okay, so I've been super bad about updating the blog for the last 8 months or so. You all know us, so you know that it's because we keep pretty busy. Jeremey posts lots of pics and updates to his facebook page, though...so if you are interested in more frequent updates (especially regarding Sterling), friend request us.

The next few posts will attempt to cover the last 8 months. It is my goal to post monthly for the rest of the year. Here goes!

Happy Birthday, Sterling!!! 2 years old!!!

2010-07-04T16:35:00.000-07:00

Today was Sterling's 2nd birthday. We didn't have a big party or anything, but we did have a couple people over for some burgers, cake, and rootbeer floats. My cousin, Phil, got to join us, but we forgot to get a picture of him with the birthday boy...so he'll just have to visit us again soon!

Sterling with Daddy on our back deck...before it started raining!

Sterling with Mommy...inside...after it started raining.

Uncle Jared came over to hang out with us. Sterling LOVES his Uncle Jared and enjoys learning magic trics from him.

This was on a t-shirt that Sterling got from his Granny for his birthday. We love it!

Mmmmmmm...birthday cake! I got the last patriotic cake of this size at Publix yesterday...wahoo!
Sterling REALLY loves birthday cake...just like his Mommy! He's been asking for "happy birthday cake" since we got it from the store yesterday.
Enjoying the deliciousness! Frosting, sweet, frosting!

Unwrapping some gifts that we got in the mail. When we opened the boxes these came in, Sterling said, "Oooooooo, cool!" --a favorite new phrase.

Check out the special birthday hat Sterling made at church this morning. He didn't want to wear it at all...I'm not exactly sure how I got him to put it on, look at the camera, and even smile! Go Mommy!

Nana and Papa sent us this cute octopus rug and matching soap dispenser and toothbrush holder. Sterling LOVES octopusses, so these were perfect for him!

My mom (Nana) also recently sent us Sterling's birth sampler. I got a notion to help with it, so my mom made it all, and left just a bit of the lettering for me to finish. I really wanted a multi-generational piece...but haven't cross-stitched in a LONG time, so I needed to start small. I think it turned out perfectly! I can't wait to have it framed and hang it in Sterling's room, which will (eventually) be decorated in muted red/white/blue beach theme.

We're going to be driving up to KY and IL to visit some family on Jeremey's side in just a couple weeks...so we'll likely have some extended birthday celebration there.

Thanks to Grandma and Grandpa Ahlgren for the box of clothes...all the outfits are so sporty, which is PERFECT for Sterling!

Day Before 2nd Birthday

2010-07-03T18:41:00.000-07:00

I can hardly believe that my son will be 2 years old tomorrow. This time two years ago, I was in the hospital and doctors were still trying to stop my labor. Today, you'd never have guessed my little man had such a humble start.

Sterling was born at 3:10am on July 4th, 2008 - 2 months early. He weighed 4 lbs. 4 oz. and dropped down to 3 lbs. 15 oz. the next day. He was in the NICU for 24 (long and agonizing) days.

Here he is making a ducky face...I really think he looks like both Jeremey and me.
Here is his birthday cake...this is much more for mommy than Sterling...but whatever. I have a 7-inch scar...I deserve a little frosting on my baby's birthday!

Today, Jeremey, Sterling, and I got to hang out and just chill together. We were watching a track meet on TV and Sterling started imitating the runners...see for yourself what a speedy little guy he is these days. And he's such a happy boy...as always!

I'll post pics of his actual birthday tomorrow...stay tuned.

Almost 22 Months Old

2010-04-11T09:07:00.000-07:00

Mommy Goes Blonder

2010-04-11T09:03:00.000-07:00

I've been saying that I'm going to get my hair lightened for quite a while now. I finally did it. As I get older, my blonde hair is slowly getting browner and browner...which I'm totally fine with. But I was itching for a change, so blonder is is.

First Beach Trip of 2010

2010-04-11T08:50:00.000-07:00

Jeremey took Sterling to the beach last Tuesday. We love living in Florida...where beach season is nearly year-round. Mommy had to work, but Daddy promised to take lots of pics and videos so I wouldn't feel quite so left out of the fun. I'm only going to be teaching the first half of the summer, so I'll get 6 weeks of beach time before school starts in the fall. Ah yeah !

Hangin' with Mommy

2010-04-11T08:41:00.000-07:00

A few pics of Sterling and me. We don't get to spend nearly as much time together as Sterling and Daddy...but when we do...it's great!

Daddy brought Sterling to the office one day to visit me. He really wanted to sit in my chair and read a book. Such a smarty-pants!

Phinally Phinished with My PhD

2009-12-23T09:06:00.000-08:00

Even though I successfully defended my doctoral dissertation in September, commencement was this past Friday. I didn't want to participate, but my former mentor (The Good Doctor, as Jeremey and I fondly referred to her) told me that if the other graduates and their parents were flying in from Washington state, Washington D.C., and Colorado...then I HAD to come. So I did. Fortunately it was a pretty brief ceremony...whew!

Here are some pics my brother, Jared, took of me in my graduation regalia.

This is my dissertation...The Good Doctor had a copy bound for me...the actual "book" version is yet to come.

A special thanks to all my family and friends who supported me throughout my college experiences...especially graduate school. And a very special thanks to my husband for putting up with many years of long hours away from home. Love ya, babe and can't wait to spend the summer hangin' with you and the boy! Muah!

Mmmmm...dirt!

2009-10-31T16:56:00.000-07:00

Sterling helped me with some yard work today. I let him play with the mini-rake while I planted some new shrubs in front of our house. He played by himself for nearly an hour. Finally, he got bored enough that he thought he ought to sample the soil. He didn't seem to mind it...b/c by the time I reached him, he'd had at least two tastes. He needed a bath anyway...LOL!

It's a bird...it's a plane...it's SUPERMAN!

2009-10-31T16:47:00.000-07:00

Jeremey took Sterling to the store to pick out his own halloween costume this year. He was torn between Superman and Yoda...but Superman made the final cut.

Back in Blog-Land!

2009-10-25T16:23:00.000-07:00

We took Sterling to the pumpkin patch for the first time. We had a great time for the cost of the pumpkin we bought ($4). Sterling kept trying to pick up the smaller pumpkins, which he was able to do a few times. We all had a great time.

Birthday Blessings

2009-07-26T07:10:00.000-07:00

Last year Sterling got to come home from the hospital on my birthday...this year, Jeremey is coming home from Texas on my birthday! Yeah!!! My life rocks!

Our Little Karateka

2009-07-15T18:41:00.000-07:00

Check out Sterling's new skill. We are PROUD, PROUD, PROUD!

Happy Birthday, Sterling!

2009-07-12T06:21:00.000-07:00

I just cannot believe it's been a whole year since our little man was born. The last 365 days have been filled a wonderful mix of emotions. Sterling was born so early and by emergency c-section, so last 4th of July was very, very scary for us. But every single day since our joy has hitched a ride on a logorithmic escalator. We smile and laugh so much sometimes that our cheeks burn. One of my most favorite memories of Sterling is when he used to make "kissy lips". He started doing it from day one outside of the womb and continued for about three months. It was just the most adorable little pucker-lipped face you could ever lay eyes on. These days, Sterling is cruising along furniture like a pro, playing chase with Daddy all over the house--including up the stairs, and using baby sign language to communicate all sorts of things. Here is a list of the things he's now able to communicate to us:

milk

food

mommy

daddy

plant

duck

He's actually able to recognize a lot more signs than these...but he's still working on mastering them. I'm certain it won't be long before we are going to be getting signed sentences from this little guy. He's really into sign language and we just have the best time as a family learning to communicate with our hands. :)

My parents (Nana and Papa Cox) weren't able to make it to FL for Sterling's first birthday, but they sent us a party in a box and the money to buy Sterling's first birthday cake. It was a wonderful gift and such a great idea! Thanks, Nana and Papa!

Jeremey's mom (Grandmother), two sisters (Jessie and Amanda), and two nieces (Mya and Laurin) were able to come to FL (from Kentucky) to celebrate with us. We were soooooo happy to see them and get to enjoy our little boy's first birthday with them. Thanks for coming, guys...we loved having all of you!

Okay, enough gab, now for some pics:

Laurin helped me decorate for the party...we had a great time and it was fun hanging out with her. The birthday boy!
Sterling LOVED helping unwrap his gifts...well...he LOVED all the tissue paper!
Check out this awesome book that one of my labmates gave Sterling...he really likes it...and so does mommy and daddy!Here is Mya (one of our Karate kids) with Sterling in his outfit that his Nana made for him. There is a matching hat to the outfit (which is VERY cute), but he just wouldn't wear it. :(Mmmmmmm, birthday cake!
We also had a cup-cake-eating contest in which participants had to devour a triple-frosted cupcake with no hands. Whomever ate the fastest with the least mess won.These are actually not the cupcakes from the contest...the contest ones had a LOT more frosting...if you can imagine that! Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

Happy Father's Day!

2009-06-21T06:01:00.001-07:00

Happy father's day to all the fathers we know out there in blogger-land.

Since it was Jeremey's first official year as a daddy, I wanted to get him something that he's been wanting for a while...another tat. Yep, you heard correctly, I got him a tattoo for father's day...check it out.

Before:

After:

The shading will fade over time, so the text will stand out a little more. Since Sterling was born on the 4th of July, we wanted somthing a little on the patriotic side...red, white, and blue. And since his name is a derivation of the word "star" and actually means "shining star"...the shape.

Our Happy Boy

2009-06-21T05:45:00.000-07:00

Sterling is just the happiest little guy. Nine times out of ten there'll be a big grin on his face...and it just makes me soooooooo happy, too.

Sterling is playing with his older cousins, Alex and Joey Jr.

Last of the KS pics

2009-06-13T06:54:00.000-07:00

So, I'm a little slow to get these pics up...but better late than never, right?! Here are a few of the pics we took in KS while visiting with my Step-Mom (Granny Shelley), brothers, and my Dad (Grandpa Hansen).

I adore this shot of my brother, Clinton, with Sterling.
Sterling and Tia Jackie looking at a ceiling fan...ooooooooo...ahhhhhhhhh.

Sterling with my brothers, Clint on the left, Chris on the right...playing dead, I think???

Granny Shelley had a bunny (Hoppy) who just loved Sterling. And Sterling loved Hoppy right back.

Here is my Grandpa Preston with his new wife, Christine, and Clint.

Grandpa and Chris.

Clinton joined the high school wrestling team this year, so he wanted to go round or two with Jeremey...which Jeremey was more than happy to comply with.

Sterling with Granny Shelley.

Check out these stylin' shades Grandpa Hansen let Sterling play with. This pic is on our fridge and it makes me laugh daily!

Here we are with Grandpa Hansen.

Sterling had a blast playing on the floor with Grandpa Hansen.

Another 4 generation shot...yay!

Here is Sterling with my Aunt Tami (Granny Shelley's sister). They were having the best time playing together...it was cute to watch. What's really great about this pic is that Sterling is all decked out in K-State gear...and my Aunt Tami is a HUGE, DIE-HARD KU fan...go Wildcats...LOL!!!

Aunt Jessie and Uncle Jason's Visit

2009-06-05T08:27:00.000-07:00

Aunt Jessie and Uncle Jason came to visit us last weekend. They are expecting a little boy at the end of September. Isn't she just the most adorable preggy-lady ever!?!

Jessie and Jason tied the knot in April. I was not able to attend and Jeremey helped give her away...so I was super pumped to get to see them! We took them to La Chua Trail here in Gainesville to do some gator-watchin'. We saw some pretty large bull gators and they were very active, too.

We kept Sterling shaded on our trail walk so he wouldn't get fried. He liked helping with the umbrella.

Getting Caught Up...Finally

2009-06-05T08:05:00.000-07:00

I'm finally getting caught up on the blog. Here are some pics I've been meaning to get posted for a while.

Meet Bob...our punching pal. Sterling was a little taken back by Bob, at first.
But he warmed up to him pretty fast.

Now, they're best buddies!

We went to a birthday party for a girl in our Karate club. Her father got a magician for her party and he was amazing and hilarious! I got to be in a lot of the tricks b/c I'm so animated with my reactions...I loved it! The magician's name was Dr. B Magic and he combined character messages (such as: don't be racist or use racism as an excuse to feel bitter...don't sag your pants...and don't hang out with people who are doing bad things...etc...) with his magic tricks. What an inspiring act! I just had to get a picture with this amazing man.

Here's our little monkey-boy...holding his bottle with hands AND feet. Sometimes, he just holds on with his feet and no hands...so cute!

The birthday party we went to was a pool party...so Sterling got his first taste of a cholorinated pool. We got him this little floaty-crab to keep the sun off of him since he's a whitey like his mommy. :)

Sterling and Daddy eating a hearty breakfast together...these two are like peas in a pod...always together.

Mastering the art of Karate already...Sterling handles Daddy's bo staff like a pro already. Okay, maybe not, but he sure has fun playing with it.

Aunt Jackie's Visit

2009-06-05T07:42:00.000-07:00

My sister, Jackie, came to visit us for about 5 days. She lives in Kansas, so we don't get to visit often. While she was here, we went to Daytona Beach to show Jackie what FL life is like (sometimes). We took Sterling's pack-n-play to minimize sand in the mouth (and everywhere else, too)...and he had a blast!
We did let him experience the beach a little bit...it was Jackie's and Sterling's first trip to the Atlantic.

Jackie made us some REAL Mexican food...chille rellenos...mmmmmmmm!

The Back Yard

2009-06-05T07:36:00.000-07:00

We are blessed with a beautiful, huge, grandfather oak tree in our back yard. Unfortunately, it causes the soil to be very acidic and a little too shady for grass growth. Sooo...we decided that it would be easier to sweep a deck than to constantly rake a dirt yard. Here's what our yard looked like BEFORE...
And here's what it looks like now...

Some friends of ours build it for us...and did a great job. It's just what we wanted. :) Now we have our own dojo (place to practice karate) in the back yard!

KS...Yep, more pics!

2009-05-28T09:46:00.000-07:00

We took a TON of pics while we were visiting family in KS. We don't get up that way too often, so we wanted to take advantage. It was Sterling's first introduction to most of my family. He'd only med my Mom prior to this trip...and that was when he was first born and in the NICU...so it was minimal exposure. :( So, just a heads up, there will be even more pics of our KS trip to come. I still have to sort through pics from the other side of the family!
This is a cute pic of Elizabeth reading to the boys. What great kids! Jordan and Elizabeth had a blast feeding Sterling dinner one night. Jordan fed him bananas...

And Elizabeth fed him squash...what a mess! Ha ha!

More Pics from Our KS Trip

2009-05-26T11:35:00.000-07:00

This was my very favorite picture taken while in KS. My mom had these hand weights in the living room and one morning Sterling and I were playing while everyone else was still asleep. Doesn't he look so content with those weights?! A natural-born exerciser! That's our boy! Here are some shots taken with my Grandma Spencer (my mom's mom). She really loves babies!

Sterling didn't quite know what to think of Great Grandma Spencer.

Four generations...I'm soooo happy we got this picture while in KS.

Sterling LOVED playing with Nana's curtains.

Drinking juice with Papa.

Sterling with my step-brother, Jeff.

More Cousins!

2009-05-26T11:29:00.001-07:00

Here are a couple shots of my neices, Jordan and Elizabeth. They are little bookworms!!! Go girls!
Pretty sure this is Jordan and Elizabeth's dramatic interpretation of two lionesses. That's my guess anyway. LOL!

Sterling Meets Logan

2009-05-26T10:37:00.000-07:00

These are pics from our trip to KS this past March of Sterling meeting and playing with his cousin, Logan. Logan was born about a month earlier than Sterling and was also a premie. Don't you just love that hair!?! Soooo adorable!

From left to right: Elizabeth (my neice), Sally (my sis-in-law), Jeff (my step-brother), Ken (my step-father), and my Mom...and of course...Sterling and Logan.Sterling is just emphatuated with shoes! Here he is playing with Logan's shoe.

I just love these next two shots of the boys. You can see all the little scrapes on their faces from scratching themselves and tumbling around.

We are playing keep up with Sterling!

2009-05-04T17:18:00.000-07:00

Sterling is really hitting those mile stones now. Here's the short version; he began climbing and pulling himself up to stand about 2 days ago, he is in the forward facing seat now, and he even follows me around when I am busy conducting my manny duties.

It's interesting to me what touches me about Sterling. Just this evening before bed Sterling was crawling after me wherever I went and it really just hit me. This little guy is going to be following me around for a good portion of my life and that thought makes me feel great.

Josie's day of play and ......Sterling crawls

2009-04-28T13:12:00.001-07:00

Josie is finally starting to live a normal life! She actually gets to have some fun now and then. To celebrate her new freedom we cooked out at the veteran memorial park with some friends. We were having so much fun that we didn't take a lot of pictures, but here are a few.

Today Sterling started crawling! I know this means a lot more work for me but, I am happy for Sterling's advancements. In this clip he is crawling for a carrot. Imagine a child of Josie's and mine chasing after "Rabbit" food, lol. In unrelated news, Sterling now says, "book." Our boy loves books and carrots.

Stuff about the boy and my sister Jessica's wedding

2009-04-23T09:42:00.000-07:00

I feel the urge to start off by saying how incredibly fortunate I am to have such a lovely wife and spirited son. Everyday I see how the choices I have made in my life have connected to bring me to where I am at this moment. I want Sterling to know that the love I have for him and his mother knows no bounds.

Sterling is so much fun! Just today I walked into his room where he was supposed to be laying in his bed, to find him sitting up calling, "dadda, dadda, dadda!" My little man is a babbling fool these days. In fact, when we went to Kentucky to visit family he began babbling even more and calling for me emphatically. He may not crawl yet, but he loves to talk.

The following pictures are from our solo trip to Kentucky without mom. On the way to Paducah I made a wrong turn ( of course I wasn't lost) so we took about 14 or 15 hours to get there. Sterling did great despite our side trip. We made it home in a whoping 10 hours thanks to our new Tom Tom! We traveled to KY for my sister Jessica's wedding. We stayed with my family for about 4 days. I wish Sterling's grandpa Ernie could have spent more time with him, may he rest in peace.

This picture was taken at a McDonald's

Sterling is getting ready to go out on the trampoline

Sterling, Jacob, and Mya are ready for the trampoline. Hurry uncle Bobo!

The kids and I had a blast playing all day.

Jacob and I made a masterpiece.

Jacob is intriqued by Karate. We had some good training during the visit.

Sterling loved chilling with his Tia Mal.

Aunt Sarah (Mean Jean) and Sterling making faces.

All dressed up for the big event.

Don't ask me why, but my sister asked me to give her away. I am deeply honored.

The newly married couple! Jessica Reyes-Curlin and Jason Curlin.

Sterling's 9 month doctor visit

2009-04-10T16:42:00.000-07:00

Sterling had his 9 month doctors visit on 4/9/09. He weighed in at 18lbs. and he is 26 & 1/2 inches long. The doctor said he is in the 25th to 50th percentile in comparison to other children his age.

I remember how much I enjoyed playing in the laundry basket as a child so I thought I'd let Sterling give it a try.

We may have an escape artist on our hands. I sure hope not!

I don't know about you, but when I fold laundry I throw the contents of the basket on the bed to sort and fold.

Here's Sterling playing with his Easter basket from grandma and grandpa Ahlgren.

Sterling wants to put his two chompers to work. He wants anything we have.

Sterling is 9 months old now!

2009-04-04T14:59:00.000-07:00

Sterling is so much fun these days! He jumps at whatever interests him, plays on his own, tolerates his belly time better than he used to and wants to eat everything in site. Oh yeah, Sterling also has a tooth cutting through!

Our family trip to Kansas

2009-03-18T06:47:00.000-07:00

We just recently went on a trip to Kansas so Sterling could meet his family that lives there. We spent the bulk of our time in Belle Plaine/Wichita, but I managed a 24 hour trip to Manhattan. Nana and Papa put us up in their home for the first part of our trip and Granny put up with us the second half. We all had a blast. Sterling was such a good boy! We left our house at 2:30 AM to drive to the airport in Jacksonville and Sterling didn't fuss a bit. As a matter of fact, Sterling was awake the whole trip to Kansas. He talked to anyone in sight and played with mommy and daddy. I'm definetly a proud papa and husband. On our way back from Kansas Sterling slept off the trip and began his recovery from a little cold he picked up during our visit.

Thank you Nana, Papa, Granny Shelley, and Don for putting us up. Pedro, thanks for offering to let me stay at your place.

This is Kansas for ya.

I'm chillin with a couple of old ARMY buddies in Manhattan. We have known each other for about 18 years!

Sterling Hangin' with Daddy

2009-03-02T15:46:00.000-08:00

Sterling was ready to hit the town with this outfit. I have so much fun with this kid everyday. I am very fortunate to have such a wonderful wife and son.

On our way home from a charity kickball event, Sterling and I stopped by a friends house. He has a Corvette that Sterling just had to try out.

Sterling is showing his K-State pride...GO WILDCATS!!!!

Sterling Claps His Hands

2009-02-22T11:29:00.000-08:00

We read to Sterling before he goes to bed at night. He loves it and it also makes him VERY sleepy and relaxed. He just loves listening to mommy's and daddy's voices.

Here's Sterling with his first Valentine's Day card...thanks Grandma and Grandpa Ahlgren!

Nana and Papa got this cute dinosaur shirt for Sterling for Christmas...I just love it and he looks so good in blue.

Here's another cute little sporty outfit from Nana and Papa...thanks!

Mommy and Sterling chowing down on some more sweet potatoes. MMMMMMM.

Shopping with daddy.

Sterling just loves clapping his hands now and he really loves when we do it. Check him out.

Jeremey got tagged!

2009-02-22T10:58:00.000-08:00

I was tagged by my hottie.

1) I'm intrigued by the inner workings of how in the world miracles happen, life happens, the universe and our interconnectedness with it.

2) What is real?

3)I'm a Scorpio

4)I want to know where the heck Osama is!

5)Why is Blue called blue?

6) How in the heck did I end up with such a wonderful wifey and child?

I've been tagged!

2009-02-22T09:44:00.000-08:00

TAG...YOU'RE IT!

Rules: Write 6 random things about yourself, link the person who tagged you, and post the rules...oh...and tag 6 more people! Have fun!

Six Random Things...as tagged by Emily Sorgius (www.calebandemily.blogspot.com)

1. Even though I love being a student and have been in school FOREVER, I never actually had aspirations of getting my PhD...I always just wanted to be a teacher. I only decided to get my PhD after several of my college professors told me I'd need to in order to teach at the college level. Turns out that's not exactly right...but too late now! LOL!

2. I have always wanted to be black...probably b/c my sister is and I always found her more attractive than myself. Just something pretty to me about dark skin, hair, and eyes.

3. When I was younger (WAY younger), I wanted to be a "fly-girl" on M-TV. Go ahead...laugh.

4. I have a filthy mouth...I swear like a sailor sometimes. Not something I'm proud of...and I work daily to keep it under control. Having Sterling has helped me a lot with this nasty little issue.

5. The first "thing" I ever disected was a human being. That's right. In middle and high school I bartered with other students in order to get out of having to touch a gross, slimy worm or frog! Eeeew! HA! I would write lab reports or do other homework assignments in order to escape the trauma of cutting open any little thing. But for some reason or another, cutting the skin off a human cadaver didn't bother me at all...and still doesn't. Go figure.

6. I'm living my dream. I have a husband that is more a blessing to me with each passing day. I have a beautiful, healthy son who brings me unspeakable joy. I am working in a field that I feel contributes to society. I am a teacher. God is good...enough said.

I tag: Jared Hansen, Nicole Hansen, Jeremey Ahlgren, Karen Bonar, Eric Bonar, and Sarah Miller. If you share a blog...just post individually. :) I don't know that many people with blogs that haven't already been tagged...so I had to double up a bit. Can't wait to see your random facts.

Is the "stimulus" bill transparent?

2009-02-14T05:57:00.001-08:00

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2009/02/13/cafferty-is-the-stimulus-bill-transparent/

Sweet Potatoes

2009-02-11T17:08:00.000-08:00

One of the best pieces of advice Jeremey and I were given was to sincerely enjoy each developmental stage as Sterling grows and to not hurry him along anxiously (thanks Millers). We took that advice to heart and are truly enjoying every moment with Sterling. Every day we have so much fun watching Sterling experience his environment with his hands and his eyes and his ears. It's such an amazing thing to witness and we are blessed beyond words. Tonight when I got home from work (6:40ish), Jeremey and Sterling were sitting on the front porch watching cars pass by. Sterling looked so adorable following the cars as they drove past...almost like a little lap dog. He is our little pup!

In this video clip, Sterling is eating sweet potatoes. We've already mastered rice and oatmeal cereals and bananas...so a veggie was in order. :) Tonight was the first night he ate an entire jar of baby food. MAAAAAYBE he'll sleep longer tonight. Fingers crossed.

Sterling is a play-a-holic!

2009-02-07T16:29:00.000-08:00

So much cool stuff is happening that I can barely keep up!

Sterling spends a lot of time playing...
He has also been known to chill at times. What a smile!

We are also working on oure ASL skills. Sterling is quite astute.

2009 is upon us!

2009-01-27T10:14:00.000-08:00

With the new year many changes have occured. Sterling is experimenting with solid foods, sitting up quite well on is own, manipulating objects in his environment, learning american sign language and helping daddy around the house. It's been a while since we have added to our blog because we had company for a bit, the work schedule is extremely demanding and then the whole house got sick. But, the doom and gloom is over and we are getting back to our regularly scheduled program : ).
Sterling is a drooling fool these days! But, we have not discovered any teeth yet.
Sterling spends a lot of time in his little jumper play station.

I think he looks like a mad scientist in this one!

Feeding him cereal has been a real blast! He doesn't particularly like the taste, but he eats it anyway to make his mommy and daddy happy.

Sterling and Jeremey play outside quite a bit. They spend a lot of time exploring the Veteran's Memorial park on Tower road.

Christmas in SUNNY Florida!!!

2008-12-30T19:02:00.000-08:00

Now this is how we do Christmas in Florida...cabana shirts and shorts!

My sister got this cute little outfit for Sterling when he was born. I'm so excited that it finally fits him. I think it really works with the Santa hat...LOL!
This is our first Christmas tree. I've never had my own tree and I'm glad my first was with my own little family. I am so anxious to make ornaments with Sterling when he gets older. Also, Jeremey and I would like to decorate our tree with ornaments that represent our friends and family, so if you are looking to get us something for Christmas...please send us an ornament with your picture or your name or just something that we'll know represents YOU!
One of our many Christmas blessings this year was a visit from Pam (Jeremey's mom, aka: Grandmother) and Jessie (Jeremey's youngest sister, aka: Auntie Jessie). When I first saw this picture, I thought Sterling was 'flippin' the bird'. But he's not...there are TWO fingers up. :)

Sterling was having so much fun with these little jingle-bell antlers.Daddy was having fun with the jingle-bell antlers, too. I love my husband...never a day without laughter!Sterling wasn't really interested in learning to unwrap gifts this year...but he REALLY liked the ribbon from his gift from Auntie Jessie (some really great books...thanks, Jessie!). Here's Sterling "helping" Mommy unwrap some more gifts.

More Extended Family Shots

2008-12-25T10:05:00.000-08:00

We were soooooo excited to see Miss Mya (Sarah's daughter) at Thanksgiving this year. The last time we saw her, she was less than a year old! She's going to be 3 soon...whew...that went FAST!
Mya was very anxious to meet "Baby Sterling".

She was super excited to get to hold him. That didn't last very long, though...because Sterling is only about 10 pounds less than she is! So, he got pretty heavy, pretty fast. :)

It's not going to take long for Sterling to pass up Mya in the weight department. He's chunkin' out pretty well and growing longer and longer every day!

Mya is such a little share-bug. Immediately upon picking up her Curious George toy, she placed it gently on Sterling's tummy and said: "he can have". It was beautiful! What a good girl! Mya just giggled when all Sterling wanted to do with George was suck face. Hee hee!
In this picture, Sterling is with some extended family. Uncle Johnny (on the far left) and his two kids, Michael (holding Sterling...his girlfriend is left of him [Lisa]) and Adrianna (far right). I had never met any of his family on his father's side...so it was great to get to meet them all.

Jeremey and I are cuddled up to Aunt Monte in this pic. She was a lot of fun! And she and her hubby (Syd) live in the Tampa area...so we'll be visiting them!

Here's Jeremey and Aunt Lupe. She's the eldest of all her siblings and seemed to really be the rock of the family. She was very sweet. She looks just like Jeremey's grandma (Lupe's mother) who passed away 4 years ago. I did not get to meet his grandma, so it was a neat experience to get to meet Aunt Lupe and just envision what his grandma must have been like. :)

Aunt Monte, Sterling (of course), Uncle Syd, and Aunt Lupe.

Uncle Syd is a CHARACTER...and so SHY.......................NOT!!!

My Brother's Artwork

2008-12-23T12:01:00.000-08:00

My brother, Jared, is an amazing artist. Check out this charcoal/acryllic piece he did for a college course he's taking. If you know anyone who buys original art pieces...seriously, have them get in touch with me and I'll hook them up with my brother. In a couple of years, a piece of art by Jared Hansen (did I already mention he's MY BROTHER?!) is going to make you a serious art snob! ;)

Miscellaneous Adorableness

2008-12-21T15:52:00.000-08:00

Daddy bought Sterling a fun jumper. As you can see...he really likes it. :)
Check out this look...laugh...go ahead...it's funny.

Mommy and Sterling on the way to Kentucky for Thanksgiving.

Daddy and Sterling on the way to KY.

Check out these adorable overalls!

Voting was a big ordeal for Sterling. He just pooped himself out trying to decide who to cast his vote for.

Sterling has discovered his feet and is now able to grab them with some accuracy. He LOVES his feet and he really likes trying to get them into his mouth. More pics of that to come! For now, enjoy the view of those thigh rolls! Ha ha ha!

My mom makes Sterling's karate gis right now because we can't buy them in his size quite yet.

He is demonstrating his punching skills in this shot...we have not quite figured out that punching OTHER people is better than punching ourselves. :)

Tummy time! Sterling is not too fond of spending time on his tummy...but we did capture some cute little faces during his tummy time a few weeks ago.

Doesn't this face just cry out: RODNEY DANGERFIELD?! LOL!

All Bundled Up

2008-12-21T15:32:00.000-08:00

I realize that it doesn't get THAT cold in Florida...but we do have to get out our coats and hats occasionally. Here are some adorable pics of Sterling all bundled up and ready for the brisk outdoors. Brrrrrr......!I bought this snow-suit for him (on sale for $12!!!) to go to Kentucky for the holidays. It is a 6-month suit. I figured it would be a LITTLE too big for him, but perfect to wear over his clothes. yeah...it was a little bigger than I'd anticipated. Oh well...still super cute!

Sterling LOVES going for long walks outside with Daddy in his "snuggly".

Sterling and Mommy go for walks, too...but we ride in style with our cool shades. :)

Sterling Babbles

2008-12-16T06:44:00.000-08:00

Sterling is 5 months old already and growing and growing and growing! He is the most content and happy baby. Sucking on his fingers and taking long walks to the park with Mommy and Daddy are probably his favorite things to do right now. He adores being outside...just like Daddy.

Because he was so premature, Sterling is still a little behind the curve for things like sitting and beginning to crawl...he's just now able to hold his head up for a couple minutes while on his tummy...but he doesn't really enjoy "tummy time" yet. We're working on that. :)

Sterling is not sleeping through the night yet...but his typical bed-time routine goes something like this. He usually falls asleep around 6:30 or 7pm. He either wakes up around 10 or 11pm (or we wake him up) to eat. He goes back to sleep when he's polished off 7 or 8 oz. of formula and stays asleep until about 2 or 3am...when he wakes up to be changed. Usually, we can just quickly change his diaper and he'll go back to sleep. Some nights it's more of an ordeal than others. :) When he finally goes back to sleep, he'll wake up between 4 and 5 (or we wake him up at 5am) to eat again. He usually is up for the day afther the morning bottle...but he'll generally take a morning nap. So, we're on our way to better sleep...and wearing lots of concealer over our dark eye circles to mask our exhaustion until then. Well, Mommy is wearing concealer...not Daddy. :)

We went to Kentucky to visit Jeremey's side of the family for Thanksgiving this year. Although we mourn the loss of Jeremey's father (he passed the Saturday following Thanksgiving), we celebrate the fact that Sterling was able to meet Grandpa Ernie. And it was a blessing to be around so much love during such a difficult time.

Sterling was soooooo happy to meet his Aunties, too. Here he is with Auntie Sarah.

And here he's snuggled up to Auntie Jessie.

And last, but not least, here he is hanging out with Aunti Amanda (aka: Tia Mala...just kiddin'!).

Jeremey and I were very excited to see our neice and nephew (Amanda's kids), Laurin and Jacob. We miss them a TON!

Halloween

2008-11-03T07:09:00.000-08:00

We went to a pumpkin carving party at one of my professor's home. A bunch of graduate students and faculty came and we all had TONS of food and then we all carved jack-o-lanterns. Sterling was a little "needy" so Dr. D carved ours for us.

This little set of scrubs was a gift (Thanks Sarah!!!) and we used them as his "back-up" costume.

He actually wore these the day before Halloween to the doctor's office. All the nurses and doctors were so tickled at his little scrubs. PAGING DR. AHLGREN!!!

This little outfit was also a gift (Thanks Aunt Julie!!!) and was his "starter" costume. Isn't he adorable in it!?! My little jail-bird. :) The onsie actually reads: "Alcatraz Reject: TOO CUTE!"

I'M INNOCENT!!! I SWEAR!!!

Big Smiles!

2008-10-14T10:15:00.000-07:00

Sterling is super smiley these days. Check out this HAM!

Sterling also likes sitting up like a big boy with mommy and daddy.

Recent Developments

2008-09-24T08:42:00.001-07:00

First things first...the good news: Sterling had his follow-up EKG and echocardiograph yesterday and Doc says all is well with out little man's ticker. He's perfect! Of course, we already knew that!

Jeremey took Sterling to his first football game last Friday at Williston High (where Jeremey works). He and Daddy had a great time and Mommy got some much needed alone time to get some work done. :)

I know that I'm holding the bottle up in this picture, but that's just because Jeremey and I didn't have the camera ready while Sterling was holding it up himself. Yeah, yeah...so it was a cute little fluke. Of course he can't hold his bottle up yet...but it was still adorable!

For the last week or so, Sterling has been trying to get that cute little thumb of his into his mouth. He is really bumbly about it and ususally ends up bopping himself in the face a few times before he gives up. Sometimes he gets it in there, but nothing much comes of it...as is shown in this picture where he's pretty much just liking his thumb.Ah, but today...TODAY...he actually got the thumb in the mouth, fully extended, and was sucessfully sucking it! It was adorable...and, naturally, no one was around to bask in the joy of the moment with me. I did, however have the camera handy. YES!!! I didn't even realize he was doing it until I heard him. Then I looked down and saw the cutest thing ever. He was holding onto my collar and sucking his thumb at the same time. Ahhhh!

Who does Sterling look like?

2008-09-19T18:10:00.000-07:00

So, I dug up some baby pics of Jeremey and I to post so we can see where Sterling got his good looks. :) Here's a cute pic of Jeremey...Look at that big smile!!!...and that stray pinky finger! ADORABLE!!!
Here's our beautiful baby boy. (How do you like that left eye drifting out like that?! Hee hee!!!)

And I couldn't find any good baby pics of me where you could see a good straight-on shot of my face...but I think this pic will do. I'd guess I'm about 18 months old in the shot. I'm with my sis...isn't she a doll! You can see now why I've always been self conscious about having chubby cheeks! Ha!

My vote: I think Sterling looks more like me as a child. Hopefully he looks more and more like his Daddy as he gets older!

And now for a blast from the past! I found these pics of Jeremey when he was in the ARMY. That would be 1991! Look how TINY he was! He couldn't be an ounce over 135 in these pictures.

Here's where you'll really start laughing... I have no idea how old he is in these pics of him with his 3 sisters (aren't they cuties, too!). Can we say "MULLETT"!?!

Mullett #2, with bangs.

Too Cute!!!

2008-09-18T10:26:00.000-07:00

Jeremey's mom (Grandmother) came to stay with us for a week in August...near the time Sterling was supposed to be born. We had a wonderful time with her and Sterling just couldn't get enough Granmother-kisses!

All that kissin' made him sleepy!!!

Here is "sheep"...Sterling's best pal. They chill on the couch together...

they hug and play...

and they even do circus tricks together! What a pair!!!
Sterling enjoys the warm sun as he basks near a window. Doesn't he look so big now?!

I bought this neck pillow for him b/c his head bobbles a little too much in his car seat for mommy's taste. Two words: Papa Smurf. LOL!!!

This is just a cute shot of him. Yes, he's sleeping on his tummy. Don't freak out...we only let him sleep this way if we are right next to him on the couch...never at night or when we're in another room.

We introduced Sterling to books at an early age. When he was in the hospital, we'd read to him all the time. And what do you know...he's already a little bookworm!

"The cutsie little turtle on my shirt doesn't mean anything. Believe me when I say...I'm bad...bad to the bone!"

Grandmother gave us this cute bib. In case you can't make out the text on it...it reads: "If you think I'm cute, you should see my dad!"

Check out my shiner

2008-09-04T18:55:00.001-07:00

So, I wish I could say that I got this ugly black eye from some brave act or from some exciting adventure...but, alas...I cannot. I stood up out of bed one morning to go feed Sterling and I must have stood up too fast...b/c the next thing I knew, my face was a centimeter away from my night stand. Jeremey said I just fell like a tree right into it. It was really scary for both Jeremey and me. Talk about a head ache! You can't see it in this picture, but my head hit the dresser in three spots, near my hairline, just above my eye brow, and right at the corner of my eye. The worst part of all of this is going out in public. I feel like everyone is staring at me and I've even gotten a few sad faces from people...like I'm a "battered wife" or something. Jeremey beating ME up?! Yeah right!!! He knows better than to pick that fight! Hee hee!

2 Months Already!?!

2008-09-04T18:38:00.001-07:00

Well, my beautiful baby boy is two months old today. He is healthy and happy and his guardian angel must be a part-time chef b/c Sterling weighed in at 9 lbs 1 oz today!!! That's almost a pound a week for the last three weeks!!! Today was vaccination day...three shots and one oral vaccination. He sucked the tylenol and the oral vaccination down like they were candy. The shots went pretty well, too. He cried, of course (anyone would), but as soon as the nurse picked him up to console him, he was just fine. Such a little man.

I'm recovering from the cesarean very well. I'm back to teaching 2-3 group fitness classes a week and doing karate (in moderation...front kicks are still pretty difficult). My incision is still numb in places, but I'll take numb over painful any day of the week. :)

Jeremey started teaching again a couple weeks ago and he's slowly acclimating to the sleep deprivation that comes with a newborn. Well, maybe he's not acclimating to it...I'm not sure you ever really get used to that...but he's tolerating it like a champ. I'm so impressed with single parents. I know that I COULD do this alone if I HAD to...but I'm so thankful that I don't have to. Jeremey is such a rock! I'm so anxious for next semester to come already so that Jeremey can spend even more time with Sterling and teach him how to be an amazing man.

Kissy Lips

2008-08-30T14:17:00.000-07:00

This is one of Sterling's favorite faces to make. We have cleverly entitled it "Kissy Lips".

While we waited for Daddy to pick up Grandmother, Sterling and Mommy played with the camera. I really wanted some cute shots of just the two of us. He just didn't want to look straight ahead, though.

BIIIIIG YAWN!!!! It is so fun watching him yawn b/c he goes from a tensed up crinkle-nosed face right into "kissy lips". It's super cute!

I think he looks a little older in this picture. He's getting so big already. We were 6.5 lbs about 10 days ago...so I'm guessing we're at least 7 lbs now. Before ya know it, we'll be looking up to him!

Baby Dedication

2008-08-30T13:39:00.000-07:00

We had Sterling's Baby Dedication at church last Saturday. It was really special b/c Pam, Jeremey's mother (aka: Grandmother), was in town. The dedication was on August 24th, which was Sterling's intended due date...he was nearly two months old by then!!! :)
Everyone kept asking whose mother Pam was...mine or Jeremey's. But I think that Jeremey (not me) looks a lot like his mom in these shots.

Our Family Group leaders, Dustin and Lucy Shenk, introduced Sterling to the church for us. They explained the meaning of his name (Sterling: bright/shining star, James: follow after) and passed things over to Pastor Max for the blessing.

None of us realized we were on the big screen until we looked at these pics. YIKES!!!

This is the outfit he wore. The little onsie says, "I might be little, but I think BIG". Isn't that the cutest!?! (Thanks Bob and Lisa!) And we borrowed those cute little canvas shoes from our friend, Beckett...they really completed the outfit.

Such a cutie!

2008-08-21T19:18:00.000-07:00

Sterling was all cuddled up in this sweet little romper and I just had to document the angelic state. It's also a really great view of his LONG feet! LOL!
Uncle Jeromi (aka: Jermo, The Madd Greek) holding Sterling. What a contrast in size, eh?!

Uncle Ben (aka: Benjamito) holding Sterling before he moved up to DC for grad school. Ben and Jeromi are naturals with babies...they try to act like "tough guys", but put a baby in their arms and they melt like butter...in a MANLY sort of way, that is...LOL!

First Karate Gi

2008-08-19T15:33:00.000-07:00

My mom made Sterling his first karate gi. It is sooooo adorable!

This is the cutest picture of them all! Doesn't it look like he's actually doing some fierce karate move?!

Look how well he pulls his toes back already. Bring on the front kicks!

First Bath at Home

2008-08-19T15:04:00.000-07:00

I actually got to give Sterling his very first real bath in the hospital on the day he came home. The nurse helped me and made sure I knew what I was doing. It was great. These pictures are from his first bath at home. He doesn't look that excited, but he really did seem to enjoy it for the most part.

Sterling Comes Home!!!

2008-08-13T15:55:00.001-07:00

The big day had finally come...Sterling was discharged from the hospital on July 28th...Mommy's Birthday!!! What an amazing birthday gift! He's getting all juiced up for the big trip in this shot.
This is what joy looks like. Jeremey and I were all smiles on this special day.

Sterling was just barely big enough for the infant car seat. He's 4 lbs 11 oz here.

He has a really sour look on his face in these next few pics b/c he was not used to the bright sunshine. They keep the NICU very dimly lit so the babies aren't irritated...so the FL sunshine was a sharp contrast in environment for him.

Finally home!!!

We had been wearing our wrist bands for the NICU since the day he was born (July 4th), so we were VERY excited to be able to cut them off! FREEDOM!!!

I just love this shot of Sterling. He looks kinda skinny, except for his jowles! Hee hee!

More Pics of Sterling

2008-07-23T15:54:00.000-07:00

When my mom was visiting, she had a really clever idea for labeling all the clothes that friends had loaned us for Sterling to wear. I was feeling overwhelmed at the idea of having to make list describing each little piece of baby apparel and to whom it belonged. So, my mom stitched a different color of thread to the collar of each piece of clothing depending on who it belonged to! Isn't that a great way to non-permanently label the clothes!?!
One of the NICU II nurses gave this cute little baseball outfit to Sterling.
And check out those matching booties...aren't they too cute?!

Here I am feeding my baby boy! Talk about an exciting moment!

How about those baby blues? Not sure what's up with his hand in this shot...but we're pretty sure it's not the local nursery gang sign. LOL!

Dad got to feed him, too. He's a pro!Time for a burp! Very manly activity for Dad and son!

Here's Sterling in the bassinet they transferred him too. No more enclosed plastic box!!!

This picture is so adorable. He's all snuggled into Dad's chest...face smushed and everything. Now THAT'S comfort!

Kangaroo time with Mom. Sterling LOVES being close to Mommy...and Mommy loves it too!

Dad gets kangaroo time as well. Of course, it's not as good as mom's kangaroo session...but that goes without saying! Just kidding!

While Sterling was in NICU III, we let him be a part of a study to test a specific type of blood oxygen patch for the head and kidney. It didn't bother him at all and it will help other sick babies.

First Pics of Sterling

2008-07-11T11:41:00.000-07:00

If that isn't a proud papa, I don't know what is!
This was the "box" Sterling was moved into when they transferred him from level 3 down to level 2 NICU. It's much more frightening than what he was in initially...but we were assured that it was a good sign for him to be in this "box". :)

Here's my mom holding Sterling for the first time. Oh yeah, she cried.

He has an IV in his head here...it actually bothered him less there than in his arm or leg.

Jeremey thought it would be funny to do an impression of Sterling...and all his wires and bandages. We all got a good laugh out of it.

The two best looking men I've ever seen!

He's trying to open his eyes here. He looks a little drugged...but he's just sleepy. :)

He's under some blue lights in this picure...used for fighting jaundice.

Here I am massaging my husband's feet as he lays in my hospital bed. Maybe it should be the other way around...but I was feeling okay and my husband deserved a food rub for all his support and help!

Check out that fuzzy head! He definitely has Jeremey's hair line! LOL!

Our little man loves stretching out and straightening his skinny little legs. Born for the beach!

First famly picture. :) That thing hanging in front of Jeremey's face is Sterling's feeding tube.

This is the day after my c-section. Doc said the more I could walk, the faster I'd recover...so I started walkin'!

This is also the day after my c-section...Jeremey wanted to document my recovery.

This is a really great pic of my mom and Sterling.

This was the first time I got to hold my baby. I'll never forget it. He even opened his eyes for me.

The nurse held him up for us so we could check out all his hair. WOWeeee he had a lot. We both kind of expected he'd be bald when he was born since neither of us had a lot when we were born. We were pleasantly surprised!

When they had him under the blue lights to help with his jaundice, they had to protect his eyes. Aren't these little "shades" the coolest?! Sterling didn't like having them on...but he tolerated them very well. He's patient like his Daddy.

Sterling James Ahlgren...Welcome to the World!!!

2008-07-10T14:02:00.000-07:00

Many of you already know this, but I've not had a chance to tell everyone...Sterling has arrived! Last Thursday evening (July 3rd), I was on my way out the door to go teach my toning class at the gym. As I was walking across the living room to fetch my gym bag...SPLASH!...my water broke. Talk about a shock. I blurted out, "Oh my gosh!" and Jeremey came running. "What's wrong?" he asked. As he noticed the puddle I was standing in and as I explained that my water had just broken...all chaos broke loose. We got into the car, where I experienced a second "gush"...so I had to go back into the house and put on some dry clothes. Yeah, yeah, yeah...I know...when you are in labor, you don't have to look good or anything. But you try sitting in a pool of your own "fluids" for that long and THEN tell me how I didn't need to put on dry pants! Anyhoo... While en route to the hospital, I started getting contractions every 4 minutes. By the time they checked my cervix in the labor and delivery ward, I was 1-2 centimeters dilated and still contracting. They checked my amniotic fluid to determine whether Sterling's lungs were producing enough surfactant to be able to breathe well enough on his own. The doctor said that if the lungs were mature enough, they'd induce and get the labor over with. But, if the lungs were immature, they'd do everything they could to stop labor. In the mean time, they started giving me tons and tons of steroids to stimulate his lungs in case they were not mature enough but were unable to stop the labor process. That, indeed, turned out to be the case. My contractions just kept getting stronger and closer together...and VERY PAINFULL!!!!!!! Although I kept asking for the epidural, they wanted to wait until the last possible moment in case the contractions happened to stop on their own, which they said might happen. At 5 centimeters dilated and in excrutiating pain, they finally decided to get the epidural in me. As the anesthesiologist began scrubbing my back and injecting the lidocaine (for numbing), he exclaimed, "you have a scoliosis in your lower spine!" I actually knew this, and told him so, and then asked if it was a problem. He then explained that it was not a "problem", but that he needed me to remain VERY still. That was a tad bit scary...and really difficult since I was in full-blown labor at that point. My contractions were litterally back to back. It took about 20-25 minutes to get the epidural in and about 20 more minutes for it to really take effect. I could actually breathe at that point...GOD BLESS!!! As my labor progressed, Sterling's heart rate kept getting lower and lower, so they finally decided to do a cessarian. I hadn't gotten any rest up to this point and everything had happened so fast...and then off we went to the OR. From the time they got me strapped down and numbed from the sternum down, it was only a matter of minutes before we had our baby boy ex utero and fussin'. It was CRAZY!!! Happy 4th of JULY!!! He was born at 3:10am, 17 inches long, and 4 lbs 4 oz. Jeremey got to hold him right away and I got to see his little face peeking out of a blanket and hat. It was a life-changing moment...and I'm tearing up right now just recalling it. :) It took me a lot longer than expected to recover from the anesthesia b/c they had to administer more than they anticipated for someone my size. Additionally, my body temp dropped a little too much and I couldn't stop shivering uncontrollably for hours. About 3-4 hours later, they put me in a room in the Mom and Babies ward. It wasn't until the NEXT day that we could see our precious son in the NICU III...which is where the sickest babies go. :( Sterling was on a CPAP (continuous positive air pressure) machine to aid him in breathing. He also had an IV to administer fluids, ECG, respiratory, and oxygen saturation monitors, and a feeding tube. He's been in the NICU III ever since and has had his share of good days and bad days. The good days are becoming more and more frequent, however, and just today we were told that he'll soon be transferred to the NICU II...which is the step-down unit and also where he can be sent home from when he's gained some weight and can maintain his body temp, breathing, and begin nursing. So, we are praying for him to come home within the next 7 days. We appreciate all the prayers you can muster for our little man...and for Jeremey and I to keep strong and faithful during this ordeal. I'll be posting pictures soon, so keep checking back for pictures of the cutest boy on the planet!

Key West and Maternity Photos

2008-07-01T14:34:00.000-07:00

Our trip to Key West last weekend was so much fun! We visited our friends Sarah, Fritz, and 2-year-old CUTIE, Amelia who are stationed there with the US Coast Guard. The strangest thing about Key West were all the wild chickens and roosters. These crazy cocks were EVERYWHERE! It was really fun...and little baby chicks were running around, too. :)

One night we went downtown to a plaza where local artists and artisans display their talents in exchange for a captive audience (and tips, of course). This guy was an amazing bag piper. and check out the beautiful boat in the background!

Here's a shot of the men and Amelia watching a juggling act. The juggler couldn't have been more than 17 or 18.

Miss Sarah with her Mango Margherita...mmmm! :)

Jeremey and me in the shopping plaza before dinner.

I love this shot of "the men" with a pirate statue outside the pirate museum.

When you're this pregnant, you sleep in whatever position you can!

Miss Amelia is quite the reader! Saturday morning we brought Amelia downstairs so mommy and daddy could sleep in a little bit...and all Amelia wanted to do was read books. It was adorable. She showed off her counting skills...and check out her precious bed-head! Hee hee!

Her favorite book of the weekend was entitled "Everybody Poops". She wouldn't let Jeremey stop reading this book. It was histerical! Check out the rhino poop!

Sarah is seriously talented behind a camera, so I asked her if she'd take some pictures of Jeremey and I to document out pregnancy. She did a fabulous job! Here are just a few of our favorites. She took over 200 shots, so it was really difficult to cull it down to just a few for our blog. Enjoy!

This is my absolute favorite picture out of the bunch! :)

Mark's Wedding Weekend

2008-06-23T14:56:00.000-07:00

Last weekend Jeremey and I traveled up to Ft. Walton Beach, FL to celebrate the marriage one of my work friends (congrats, Mark and Jenn!). We had a wonderful time in the condo we shared with a bunch of my fellow grad students...right on the beach! The highlight of my weekend was definitely getting to have my photo shot with this little gator. He was approximately 3 feet long...so about 3 years old.

All these gators were at a restaurant in Destin, FL called Fudpuckers. It was a tourist-trap of a restaurant...but I just couldn't pass up the prospect of getting to see live gators up close and personal!

All these gators are american alligators under 5 feet long. After they've grown longer than 5 feet, they become too territorial to be housed in such a confined area. Did you know that gators grow teeth their entire lives?!

Mark is anxiously waiting to grab Jenn's garter belt in this picture...they played the song "Can't Touch This" by M.C. Hammer...it was cute.

At one point during the reception, the song "I'm Too Sexy" came on and Ben, one of my lab mate's significant other, decided to do a little entertaining. He walked straight to the middle of an empty dance floor and started "taking it off!" It was great..we all laughed histerically!

For the song "YMCA", we got a 4-man costume party. Also very fun and funny. These guys were just guests at the wedding that volunteered to do this.

I may be 7 months prego...but I can still shake it! I admit, I couldn't dance a lot...but Jeremey and I had a great time anyway. How could I turn down a dance with such a studd muffin anyway!?!

How low can you go? Well, I tried. :)

We all had such a wonderful time at Mark and Jenn's wedding and reception. In this pic, Vipa, Erin, Patrick, and Kate (left to right) boogie down. You can't see me behind Kate, but I'm in there, too.

Mark and Jenn got wrangled into doing the Hoakie Pokie. Poor Mark...LOL! This a great shot of the back of Jenn's gorgeous dress, though. She looked stunning!

Here's a shot from the front. The happy couple was listening to their toasts in this shot. :)

Kate and Vipa.

Me and my honey!

Karen and Ben...with all his clothes on.

Erin and Patrick...lookin' MEAN!

Davenport's peeps on the beach outside our condo. Someone feed these people!!! LOL!

This is what a 7-month pregnant lady looks like when she's miserable. This chair was amazing, though...took a lot of pressure off my back.

Karen and Ben in a "Lady and the Tramp" moment...only with a huge piece of lettuce instead of pasta. It was really cute!

After we sat down at the dinner table, we realized that Davenport's people were sitting on one side and Hayward's people were sitting on the other side...purely coincidental.

I fully recognize that this hat is not that cute on me...but now that I'm pregnant, my face fries like bacon in the sun. Plus, all my extra blood makes my face turn BRIGHT red when I'm hot...so I try to shade my face as much as possible.

Beached whale? Nope, that's me. However, there will be no more pictures in a two-piece. I have a limit!

32 Weeks Pregnant

2008-06-15T16:22:00.001-07:00

Can you believe that yet another 4 weeks have gone by already?! Here I am at 32 weeks prego (Sterling is exactly 30 weeks old now). Only 8 weeks (ish) left to go until the big day! I am more and more excited to have my baby boy here with each passing day! And not just because I want him out of my belly! :)

I am 36 1/2 inches around and 129 lbs at this point. That's a total of 10 1/2 inches gained at the waist and somewhere between 16-19 lbs. Sterling is SOOOOOO active. I can now easily distinguish between punches, kicks, and head butts...and I'm not joking! He likes to hang out on the right side of my uterus...which is very uncomfortable for me. I let him hang there for as long as I can tolerate, but eventually, I have to kind of push him down a little bit so I can breath. I have also now experienced the "joy" of my son dancing on my bladder. Oh, and I made my first madd dash to the bathroom b/c I thought I was going to pee my pants when I saw something histerically funny on TV the other night. Fortunately for our couch, our bathroom was nearby!

Jeremey and I wanted to post a video clip of Sterling kicking and punching and moving around, but the little guy is little camera shy it seems. As soon as the camera would roll...he'd completely freeze. Figures. I'm talking to him to try and get him to move around a little in this picture. You can also see a thin "stripe" down the middle of my belly in this shot. Jeremey swears he can't see it...but I can. It's like a very pale freckle...but a long strait line. A lot of dark-skinned women will get something called a linea nigra during pregnancy...a line of darker pigmentation below the navel. My little stripe must be something along those lines...the white-girl version. :)
One of the classes Jeremey teaches at his high school is Algebra 1A (a step above pre-algebra). He promised his students that if they--as a group--showed an 85% improvement on their FCAT scores (Florida's standardized test), he would dye his hair the school colors...red and white. Well, go Williston! They did it! In this picture, we are double bleaching his hair to get it light enough to apply the red dye. I'm loving the blue! He matches our living room walls! LOL!

This is the bleaching result. Pretty light.

Drum roll please... Once I got past the initial shock of the color, it grew on me. :) Nothing like having a husband with a red mo-hawk! LOL!

I took this picture of Jeremey after Karate one day. I just thought he looked hot...so I just had to capture the moment. Hee hee. While I've gained all this baby weight and lost all my muscles, he's dropped almost 10 lbs and cut about 4% body fat. Yeah, I'm hatin'. Can you blame me?!

28 weeks pregnant

2008-05-18T14:56:00.000-07:00

I've made it another 4 weeks...and what a crazy month it's been! I've had a couple trips to the labor and delivery ER in the last few weeks. Everything turned out fine, but it was a tiny bit scary. Baby Sterling is growing and growing and growing and I'm doing the same. Doc has me on a fairly restricted activity regimen, so I'm going out of my mind...but I'm hanging in there b/c I know that having a full-term bundle of joy is worth the sacrifice. And as my boss so lovingly pointed out, now that I'm a mommy, mental sanity is no longer a luxury I get to indulge in. LOL!

The next three pics are sonogram pics taken around 20 weeks. This is a cute little profile.
In this pic, you can see both lower arm bones (radius and ulna) and the handbones (metacarpals)...that's why the sonogram nurse wrote "hello" on the image. :)

Here's a really good profile of Sterling. The "black hole" in the middle of his chest is actually his heart...it is soooo amazing to get to see each little chamber pumping away. Heaven for both the anatomist as well as the mommy in me!

This sonogram shot was actually taken at the emergency room at my last trip...so he's 24 weeks old in this hot. You can see all 4 fingers and thumb...they are in a fist with thumb out...like a hitch-hiker. He's probably getting ready to or just got done sucking...cute, huh?!
And here I am at 28 weeks (so Sterling is really only 26 weeks old). I'm up to 124 lbs. and 34 inches around. All abdominal definition has completely gone. Believe it or not, I'm still able to do crunches (modified, of course)...and yes...my doc says that's perfectly fine. I'm all for anything that's gonna help me get that baby outta me faster when the time comes...and that includes having strong abs!!!

About a month ago, Jeremey and I went to the beach with some friends, so I had to hit Target to get a preggy-suit. Can I just say how aweful swim-suits are for pregnant women. They look like they are made for 80-year olds! Seriously, they're atrocious! So, I ended up just buying a regular 2-piece...in much larger sizes than I'm used to. It's a strange feeling buying an extra-large top when I've only ever worn a small. LOL!

Our Wedding Sampler

2008-04-27T11:12:00.000-07:00

I've been meaning to have the wedding sampler my mom made for us professionally framed for a while now. I tried framing it myself...but let's just say it gave less than pleasing results. The frame shop did a spectacular job. We can now proudly display my mom's handywork on the wall...yay!
Here's a closer shot of the sampler. Didn't my mom do a great job?! It looks much better in person...the stitching is more obvious and the colors more true. Nonetheless, it's a great memory for us and I'm so glad to have it to take with us to our next stop in life where there are no palm trees or beautiful beaches (Kentucky).

24 Weeks Pregnant...and other stuff, too

2008-04-20T10:37:00.000-07:00

Well, four more weeks have passed. I'm 24 weeks prego in this pic (as always, according to a 40-week pregnancy schedule), so Sterling is actually 22 weeks old exactly. He's kicking and punching pretty hard now. You can see it when he's moving around...either his bottom or his head can be seen fanning across my abdomen...very alien-esque...maybe a little cuter. :)
I'm up to 120 lbs...a weight I've never been...so this is uncharted scale territory for me. Ahhhh! So, at 5 months pregnant, I've gained somewhere between 7-9 lbs. My waist is 32 inches here, so that's a net gain of 6 inches around so far. I'm getting a lot more comments about my size these days...lots of "WOW, you really are pregnant!" and "hey, I can actually tell you're pregnant now!" Of course, I can't believe no one said this months ago...but whatev. LOL! Sterling is just over a pound and about 10 inches long now from crown to rump. Although pregnancy has not been the most fun thing ever for me...I have to say that my most fun thing about being pregnant is when Jeremey can feel/see Sterling kicking/punching/moving around. Sterling now has a noticeable startle reflex, too...so when Jeremey talks to my belly, it wakes him up if he's asleep and if he's already awake, he jumps.

In February, Jeremey and I traveled to Lexington, Kentucky where I interviewed for a post-doctoral research position at the University of Kentucky. While we were there, Pam and Jessie (Jeremey's mom and youngest sister, respectively) came to spend a day with us. If you can't tell this is a mom and daughter in this shot...you are blind!

Just to update everyone, in case you haven't heard yet, I was offered the job in Lexington and just accepted the position last week. So, the plan for me is as follows...October: complete dissertation; November: defend dissertation; December: graduate with my doctorate and move to Lexington (Christmas time); January: begin my post-doc.

Here, Jeremey and his mom boogie down to a fun oldies song outside the Applebees where we had dinner.

Here are a couple pics of Jeremey and I with our instructor and one of the girls who trains with us.

A few nights ago, I asked Jeremey if he could buy some milk while I was teaching class. From the ensuing huffing and eye rolling, it was obvious that buying milk was not on his evening schedule. But, he went anyway...'cause he's good. When I got home from teaching (about 9:30pm), I went upstairs to take a shower and get ready for bed. There was a dozen long-stem roses in the bathroom sink. My first thought was, "ooo, I wonder who he bought flowers for"? My second thought was, "I wonder why he didn't put any water in the sink". My third thought was, "why are there flowers in our upstairs sink...why aren't they at least downstairs...where the kitchen is"? Finally, I came to the conclusion that these beautiful flowers were for me! YAY!!! Jeremey knew that the first place I go when I get done teaching is upstairs to take a shower. What a sweety-pie, huh?!

Black Belt Testing

2008-03-30T09:17:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, Jeremey and I tested for our black belts. We became students of karate (karateka) shortly after we got married and have enjoyed it together ever since. Our style of karate is a very traditional Okinawan style in which you only receive a green belt, brown belt, and finally a black belt. Our insturctor (Sensei Howard Moring...on the right below) tested yesterday for his 4th degree black belt. He has been practicing karate for nearly 30 years. In this picture, he is working on a sai kata with Sensei Bo, who traveled from Georgia to attend our big test.

This is Sensei Richard Bonsteel, Howard's instructor and the man who tested us for our black belts. He is a 6th degree black belt (notice the red and white belt). He trained directly under the master of our style in Okinawa.

Here's Jeremey and I working on Seisan Kata...the very first kata we learned. In most styles this kata is a black belt kata...but in our style this is where you start.

In this picture, Sensei Bonsteel is showing Jeremey a hidden techniqe in one of the kata moves.

Those of us testing (Jeremey, Howard, and myself) had to perform one of our kata alone. Jeremey was asked to do the first bo kata. He is very good at weapons kata. I, on the other hand, am much more of an "open hand" kata gal.

Here, Sensei Bonsteel is showing Jeremey another technique...watch closely...now he's up...

And now he's DOWN! Sensei Bonsteel tossed Jeremey around like a rag doll. Jeremey loves this stuff! I could do without...LOL! Once Jeremey was on the ground, Sensei hyperextended his arm and touched a pressure point under his jaw to make him really squirm. Painful? Yup. And still, Jeremey LOVES it!

After Jeremey was released, they bowed to one another to show thanks and respect.

We worked with Sensei Bonsteel for about an hour and a half on Wednesday and again for about 2 1/2 hours on Friday before our actual test day...though really, all of it was part of the test. Yesterday we worked for only 2 hours before being honored with our black belts. (However, some of us stuck around and trained for another hour after it was all over...hard core, I know!) Here, Sensei Bonsteel and Sensei Howard are asking us to the front to receive our new belts.

I'd say getting your black belt at 4 1/2 months pregnant is pretty good...I know I'm proud! It was a long week for me (and little Sterling)...but it was still fun and well worth all the hard work. Jeremey always kids around and says that Sterling is going to be born an automatic green belt! LOL! I'm excited to be a black belt because it means that I'm now a sensei (teacher)...and you all know how I feel about teaching!

Jeremey feels the same way I do about teaching...we both can't get enough of it. Before handing Jeremey his black belt, Sensei Bonsteel told Jeremey that he had an outstanding character (I was glowing with pride in this picture) and he emphasized how important teaching is. We are very proud of our style of karate and are glad to help pass this on to future generations.

After the testing and training ended, we all went back to our place for a BBQ. It was a great time and it was great to just relax and enjoy the beautiful day and all the delicious food.

20 weeks pregnant

2008-03-29T00:38:00.000-07:00

Here I am at 20 weeks prego...so the baby is 18 weeks old. Almost half way there! I weigh 117 lbs in this shot and am 31 inches around at the waist. That means I've gained about 5 pounds and 5 inches. It may not sound like much, but trust me...it feels like a lot already! I've been having really bad fatigue, back aches, and head aches...making daily life less than pleasant most days. :( My appetite is growing, though, so that's good. Only 4 1/2 more months (ish)!!!
I felt the baby move for the first time about two days ago. I've been feeling some fluttering for a few weeks now, but this was the first definitive "whoa...now that was a kick or a punch!" feeling. It was pretty cool. I've not been enjoying pregnancy all that much...so getting to feel Sterling moving was a really nice treat for me. In addition to getting stronger and getting denser bones (both of which help him kick and punch me), Sterling now has eyebrows and something called vernix. Vernix is like a wax that helps protect his developing skin from turning raisin-like in all that amniotic fluid. Babies look strange enough when they're born...the last thing they need to look like is a giant raisin! LOL!

Here I am with "normal" clothes on. I'm almost always in either scrubs for work or work out clothes...neither of which show of my growing tum tum too well. Jeremey took this picture of me right before we went on a date. We went to dinner and then came home and I gave him a foot massage. It was a great night! (Thanks Christen and Matt!)

The Amazing YOGA-DADDY!

2008-03-11T14:43:00.000-07:00

Jeremey got me a pregnancy yoga DVD so that I can take advantage of all the relaxin in my system and try and develop my flexibility...and who knows...maybe I'll develop a taste for yoga workouts. Doubt it, but who knows. :) Well, Jeremey's been having some back pains, so he joins me in my YOGA-MAMA worksouts. Some of these images are a little dark...but the lights were low and you can see the actual yoga instructors on the TV. So, sit back, relax, and brace yourself for some serious entertainment (and not to worry...there is no spandex involved!).

YIKES!!!

DOUBLE YIKES!!!

TRIPLE YIKES!!!

Jeremey pretends to be a tree with flowers here...hmm...wonder what type of flowers?

Jeremey is connecting to his heart and his "baby" here. I'm sorry, but he looks preggy in this shot...doesn't he!?!

Paying attention to the yoga instructor, Reignbeau Mars...I'm serious...that's her name. Can we say: HIPPY PARENTS!

It's a BOY!!!

2008-03-08T12:14:00.000-08:00

Well, it's that time again. Here I am at 16 weeks pregnant. I grew a lot this last 4 weeks. I can't wear any of my button pants anymore! This is the only time in my life when that will be GREAT news! :)

Here I'm 114 lbs. and 28.5 inches around. Come on, that's a baby bump...right?! My first trimester side effects are slowly tapering off. Still some nausea and headaches...but not nearly as bad as a few weeks ago. I'm also slowly gaining some energy...and an appetite.

This is how we found the baby (who we'll call by his name from now on: Sterling James Ahlgren) when we started the sonogram...soundly sleeping, all snuggled up on top of the placenta. You can't see his arms b/c they are tucked under his body. This is a true fetal position!

We got to see Sterling sucking his thumb...it was great. You could see his little mouth going and everything. In the last sonogram, we couldn't tell if the baby was just putting his hand up to his mouth or actually sucking...but this picture clearly captures a thumb-in-mouth action.

Here's another one of Sterling all curled up and resting on his placenta...what a cush life! You can see the ribs really well in this picture as well.

Sterling has his little hand in a fist in this image. Working on those karate basics already! He knows what mom and dad are expecting...practice, practice, practice!

Drum roll please...... Here's the pic we've all been waiting for...parental discretion advised. This pic is at a strange angle...but you can think of this shot like this: if the baby were sitting on a piece of glass, this image is taken from below. I don't know if that helps at all...but the pic is labeled, so you're on your own with the rest.

Hope you all enjoyed these pictures as much as we did! We are so excited to be having a little boy. Now, I just can't wait to meet him! And before that, I can't wait to feel him practicing all those little punches and kicks (and blocks if we're lucky...hee hee). Doc says I can expect to feel the baby moving any day/week now. :) I can feel flutters now and then...but nothing definitive yet.

Sonogram Pics @ 14 Weeks

2008-02-24T11:03:00.000-08:00

This is another sonogram pic from a few weeks back. The baby is only 8 1/2 weeks old here and just 1 inch long. What a cutie, huh?!

Here are the new pics we just got on Friday...baby is 14 weeks old in these. Somewhere between 3 and 4 inches long. In this pic, you can recognize the eye sockets and the nasal bones. The left hand is right in front of the mouth. You can also see the little brain!

You can see the eye sockets in this one, too...but this time, the left arm is beside the head...with the hand beside the ear. Almost like it's pretending to talk on the phone. Maybe it's a girl!!!

This is profile shot, head on the right, body in the middle, legs on the left. The white densities on the body are actually the spine and ribs! It was difficult to get a great profile shot b/c baby was moving sooooo much! Getting a head start on work outs...that's our baby!!! I can't feel the moving yet...but should be able to within a couple weeks.

This is a closer shot...we were trying to get a better look at the baby putting it's fingers/thumb in its mouth. :) You can see the left arm (white line to left of head) and the fingers of the right hand (touching the face...probably with thumb in mouth).