BroncoBlog...Keep Up With Buddy's Baseball

In case you're interested, you can keep up with Chris's baseball team (and their exploits), at BPBroncoBlog, the official site of the Bennett Park Blue Broncos. Click here to check out all the action!

Chris (left) and his friend Griffin.

Georgia Peach...or Stewie Griffin?

OK...so I was a little wigged out by today's update from WebMD. More on that in a second. First, the update:

You're 13 weeks pregnant. Your fully formed fetus, now in about its 11th week of
development, measures 2.6 to 3.1 inches from crown to rump and weighs between half an ounce and seven-tenths of an ounce -- about the size of a peach. The head is still disproportionately bigger than the body, but the rest of the body is starting to catch up. In fact, your baby is growing rapidly these days. The face is starting to look more human, with eyes moving closer together. Toes and fingers are clearly separate, and ankles and wrists have formed. External genitalia are becoming visible. Intestines are shifting into their proper place, too. Your uterus is filling your pelvis now and starting to grow upward into your abdomen. It probably feels like a soft, smooth ball. If you haven't put on weight yet because of morning sickness, you'll begin to now as you start to feel better.

Before I get into why I was wigged out, let me first say how exciting it is to know that our little Georgia Peach is starting to develop so wonderfully. It's truly amazing to know what's going on inside Holly's body right now, especially since the outwards signs have been so minimal so far (other than the morning sickness, of course!). That said..."The head is still disproportionately bigger than the rest of the body" really freaks me out. It sounds like we've got Stewie Griffin in there or something! Is our little Georgia Peach actually a scheming hellion bent on world domination?

Guess we'll have to see...

Ultrasound Photos!

As promised, below are a couple of shots from our ultrasound earlier this week. If you've never seen an ultrasound before, you'd be better off looking at the picture on the bottom...I've outlined the baby's profile in red to make it a little more clear. Enjoy! :-)

Spring Baseball!

What a great first game we had on Wednesday! We travelled all the way down to Midway Park, where we played the Midway Yellow Jackets. Unfortunately, the other team didn't have enough players to field a full roster, and they were forced to forfeit. Fortunately, they had just enough players to make things interesting, and we were able to have a short scrimmage game with them.

The boys did a great job with both hitting and fielding. There was an especially high level of enthusiasm in the infield, where most ground balls were met with a dog-pile of players chasing the ball down. One of the boys actually got kicked in the face, and suffered a bloody lip! Who knew baseball could be so dangerous?!? :-)

Chris went 1-for-2, but he hit the ball without using the tee both times. On his first at-bat, he actually hit the first pitch for a single! He got thrown out (more like run down) at first during his second at-bat, and was none too happy about it. He thought that the first baseman cheated by stepping on the base and touching him with the ball, so he stalked over to the dugout, then resolutely kicked the dirt before taking a seat. It was hilarious!

We've got another game tonight, and I'm hopeful that the chaos will be somewhat more organized. We'll see...

Here are a few pictures from Wednesday night (thanks Hopie!). Enjoy!

In-Utero Shrinkage

How's THAT for an attention-getting header?!? There'll be a more in-depth discussion of it later in this post...

We're now officially 12 weeks along! Hard to believe that poor Holly has been fighting exhaustion for nearly 3 months already, but it's true. First, here's what the good folks at WebMD have to say about things. Then, on to the shrinkage!

You're 12 Weeks Pregnant. Your baby now measures about 2.5 inches from crown to rump and weighs between three-tenths of an ounce and half an ounce. It is fully formed, from tooth buds to toenails. Your baby's job now is to continue to grow big and strong. With the most critical time in your baby's development behind you, the chance of miscarriage drops considerably after this week. Nausea and energy start to improve but occasional headaches, dizziness and fatigue from hormone changes may be present. If it's your first baby, you still could be wearing loose-fitting clothes, but if you've had other pregnancies, you most likely are back in maternity clothes. The typical weight gain by now is about three to five pounds. Fathers-to-be might also experience pregnancy symptoms, called couvade or "hatching," during the third month and at delivery, including nausea, abdominal pain, appetite changes and weight gain.

So, what was all that about in-utero shrinkage again? Here's the deal... We had our 12-week appointment yesterday to make sure that everything's going along swimmingly, and were lucky enough to have another ultrasound (pictures are forthcoming, I promise). The purpose of this ultrasound was to test for any emerging birth defects, Down Syndrome, etc., but it also had the really cool side effect of showing us a great profile of our baby. First, let me say that this child appears to be absolutely every bit as adorable as Chris and Matthew. In fact, he/she puts his/her little hand right up to his/her little face just like both of the boys did in their ultrasounds. Hilarious!

Here's where it gets interesting. We got to see the baby from all sorts of interesting angles, including a lower-body shot. At 12 weeks, it'd be a minor miracle to be able to determine the baby's gender; however, there's always a slight chance. Our technician essentially said that she didn't see anything to indicate this baby is a boy; HOWEVER, she said that it's very common for the boy parts (this IS a family-friendly blog, after all!) to HIDE inside the body due to temperature fluctuations, etc. So basically, if we've got a boy here, it's suffering from in-utero shrinkage. WOW! On the other hand, it could also be a girl...hmmmmmm....

Guess we'll just have to wait and see on this one. We're not technically supposed to be able to find out until we're at 20 weeks, but we may have an in-route with a guy at work whose wife is an ultrasound tech. She got us in at 16 weeks with Matthew, and was able to tell us his gender at that point. Keep your eyes and ears peeled, folks...this is starting to get interesting! :-)

Pregnant Again in Margaritaville!

WHAT?!? Did Brian just make a reference to margaritas in conjunction with being pregnant?!? What the heck is WRONG with this guy?!?

Not to worry, everyone. This post's title is merely a reference to the fact that, as of this week, our baby is roughly the size of a large lime. And what do we do with limes? We squeeze them into deliciously refreshing margaritas, of course...as long as the "we" in question doesn't include Holly!
Here's the latest update from the good folks at WebMD. Enjoy!

"You're 11 Weeks Pregnant. Your fetus, about the size of a large lime, measures
about 1.75 to 2.4 inches from crown to rump and weighs about three-tenths of an
ounce. About now the rapid "swooshing" noises of the heartbeat may be heard
using an electronic Doppler device. Fingernails and external genitalia are
showing distinguishing characteristics, and the baby is swallowing and kicking,
although you still won't feel it. Your uterus is almost big enough to fill your
pelvis and may be felt in your lower abdomen. You may also be seeing changes in
your hair, skin, fingernails or toenails."

The question now, of course, is when we'll be able to see for ourselves whether we've got a little boy or a little girl. The answer: probably in a few weeks. Doctors will generally perform an ultrasound at 20 weeks to determine the baby's gender, but we've got a friend who may be
able to do it at 16 weeks if we're nice to her. I'll be sure to keep everyone updated. Until next time...have a great day!

Shrimpy Shrimperton!

From the weekly files of Holly's online pregnancy updates. Enjoy!

Your baby is now officially considered a "fetus." It looks a little like a medium sized shrimp, measuring 1.25 to 1.68 inches from crown to rump, and weighing a little less than two-tenths of an ounce. The most critical part of your baby's development is behind you. But other developmental processes, such as those affecting behavior and intelligence, will continue throughout pregnancy. You still probably don't look pregnant, but you may not be fitting into your regular clothes. The fatigue, moodiness, and morning sickness associated with the first trimester of pregnancy is likely still present, but these symptoms shouldn't last too much longer.

Strawberry Fields Forever...

Honestly, today's post has absolutely nothing to do with the classic Beatles tune. The simple implication here is that, according to WebMD, our baby should be roughly the size of a strawberry at this point. Awesome! Holly's about 9 weeks along now, and she gets great weekly update e-mails from the folks at WebMD. I'll be doing my best to post those here so that everyone can keep up with where we are in the process. Enjoy!

You're nine weeks pregnant! Your embryo measures about 0.9 inches to 1.2 inches from crown to rump (note to Hopie here...RUMP!!!), or the size of a strawberry. The arms and legs are getting longer, and the fingers might be a little swollen where the touch pads are forming. The head is more erect and the neck is more developed. Your baby now moves its body and limbs, and this movement can be visible during an ultrasound, but you won't be able to feel it yet.

Holy crap! I (almost) have a Kindergartener!!

It's true...Chris is getting old. How old, you ask? So old that we registered him for KINDERGARTEN yesterday! It's truly amazing how quickly the past five years have flown past. It seems like just a couple of years ago that we were taking my sisters down to the bus stop for their first days of school...

Anyway, I don't want to wax nostalgic or anything. Just thought I should share. Here's a picture of Chris at his new school. The reason that he looks less than happy is that he was completely exhausted from a trip to the circus. Enjoy! :-)

Mr. Whizzer!

** - Note to non-parents: The following post will be meaningless, and frankly a little odd to you...get over it!

One of the great joys of parenthood is the seeming endless carousel of dirty and wet diapers that you get to change. Then, one day, it happens...your child decides he wants to wear - wait for it - UNDERPANTS! This day actually came a few weeks ago for Matthew, and we've been sending him to school in underpants ever since. The funny part so far, though, has been that he usually only made it about half-way through the day before he invariably had an accident. Always prepared, we sent him to school with back-up pants and a full complement of pull-ups (think Depends for kids).

A few minor accidents aside, Matthew was cruising along nicely. He made it almost the entire day on Tuesday, but missed the full-day mark by about three minutes - he had an accident just before Holly picked him up. But yesterday (cue herald angels singing, trumpets blaring, etc.) he made it all the way through the day! WHOO HOO!

There's truly nothing more exciting than knowing that the days of Matthew diapers are almost behind us. Granted, we've got another two-plus years ahead of us with the arrival of 3.0, but we can totally handle it!

Anyway, just wanted to congratulate The Moo. Have a great day!

Three-Point-Oh!!

Excited!

Enthusiastic!

Elated!

What do these words have in common? They all perfectly describe how I feel about the following announcement... Holly is pregnant!!!!!

That's right! The imminent arrival of Baby Johnston Three-Point-Oh (as we've come to call it) was confirmed this morning by Holly's doctor, and we couldn't be more excited, enthusiastic, or elated!

We (I say "we," but we all know that I really mean Holly) are about 8 weeks along, which gives us a due date of sometime around the end of September. We had an ultrasound this morning, and everything looks great. There's a heartbeat, and our baby looks something like a little lima bean at this point. In the coming weeks, it'll take on the size of other edible objects (though there are those who would argue the edibility of lima beans!), which I'll do my best to keep up with here. I'll also be sure to keep the blog updated with ultrasound photos when possible. There should be another one here in about four weeks, so keep your eyes peeled.

Holly's doing great, though she's been really tired so far. It's actually kind of like having a third child in the house already...she's constantly hungry, and she goes to bed at 8:30! :-) (Love you, Holly...don't kill me!)

The boys are also very excited, and were the ones who got to break the big news to my parents. We bought them both shirts that said "Big Brother," then let the boys take it from there. They grabbed Mom and Dad, and said, "Look at our new shirts!" There was a brief moment of silence, then Dad said, "Wait a minute...TWO big brothers?!?" What followed can only be described as a melee. Hugs were flying around the room at light speed, and my mom's excitement was probably audible about a mile away!

We took a few pictures of the boys in their new shirts, then sent them to Holly's folks as part of a birthday card that we sent her dad (Happy Birthday, Mike!). Thinking (correctly so, I might add) that they may not catch the subtleties of the "Big Brother" shirts, Holly signed the card, "Love, Holly, Brian, Chris, The Moo (Matthew, for the uninitiated), and Baby 3.0". Since we weren't there in person to witness the excitement, all I can tell you is that the phone call I received after they got the card was filled with the same level of excitement exhibited by my parents...though for some reason I was branded a "little stinker" by my mother-in-law. Presumably, this stemmed from my not having told her sooner.

I've attached a picture from our ultrasound this morning, as well as the tell-tale photo that we used to share the news with the in-laws. Hope you enjoy! :-)

El Nino Karaoke

A few weeks ago, I put up a post about Chris's love for Larry Gatlin and the Gatlin Brothers, and their smash hit, "Broken Lady." Today, I'm pleased to say that Matthew has joined the ranks of Karaoke Kids with his intense desire to sing along in SPANISH (!!) with Andrea Bocelli's "Pero Te Extrano" (which roughly translates to "I miss you"). I'm not sure how we got into this particular realm of music with The Moo, but I can say this...for a VERY long time, this song served as our "calm The Moo down" music. If Matthew was out of control, cranky, or otherwise unpleasant in the car, all we had to do was play this song, and he'd calm down almost instantly.

After a few months of self-calming with the song, though, it appears that Matthew thinks he's a blind tenor! He asks for the song by name ("Strano, Daddy! Strano!"), and then proceeds to sing right along with Bocelli. The funniest part, though, is the soaring "PERO TE EXTRANO" that gets both Matthew AND Chris singing at the tops of their lungs. It's absolutely hysterical, and I'll do what I can to post video of it sooner as opposed to later. :-)

The Fight Against Fat-Assery...Redux

** - The following post in no way, shape, or form relates to my children, their cuteness, or their inherent funniness. It's simply a post about me. Selfish? Probably. Enjoy all the same...

Just a quick update on my battle against fat-assery...did you know that a chicken bake from the Costco deli has over NINE HUNDRED calories and FIFTY GRAMS of FAT?!?!? I ate one for lunch today, then came back to the office and Googled the "nutrition information" for it, and I was completely blown away!! I could have had almost TWO BIG MACs for that amount of caloric intake. Seems it's not just Costco's packs of toilet paper that are meant for fat asses! :-)

Battle Hymn

In case you hadn't heard, my family is made up of rabid Georgia Bulldog fans. That said, we pretty much started brainwashing both Chris and Matthew at birth to not only love the Dawgs, but to revel in all things UGA. In fact, the first mobiles that hung over each of their cribs were made up of five little Ugas, while the music played "Glory." If you're not familiar with the song (and SHAME on you if you're not!), the song is sung to the tune of the final stanza of "Battle Hymn of the Republic," ("His truth is marching on!" which becomes either a) G-E-O-R-G-I-A, or b) And to Hell Georgia Tech!) and is widely considered to be the national anthem of the Bulldog nation.

The larger song, "Battle Hymn," is performed prior to and immediately following every Bulldog game, and the ending receives a great flourish where the entire croud yells out "GO DAWGS!!" during a brief half-note rest. Hard to picture in your head? Maybe, so I've attached a photo montage of Georgia goodies featuring the song so you can get the idea.

ANYWAY...we're crusing down the road the other day listening to "Bulldog songs," as Matthew calls them, and "Battle Hymn" comes on. It's one of my all-time favorites, so I'm getting all geared up for a rousing "GO DAWGS!" in my head when, from the backseat, at the top of his lungs, Chris yells out "GO DAWGS!!" I'm not sure I've ever been prouder to be a Bulldog OR to be a dad. It was awesome! :-)

Enjoy the video!

Gobama!

In the wake of Barack Obama's historic ascent to the Presidency, I'd just like to say how proud I am to live in America. This is a man who has truly inspired tens (if not hundreds) of millions of people to once again believe in the future of our country, and whose leadership we have craved for far too long.

The Fight Against Fat-Assery

** - The following post in no way, shape, or form relates to my children, their cuteness, or their inherent funniness. It's simply a post about me. Selfish? Probably. Enjoy all the same...

I recently discovered I was becoming a bit of a fat-ass. Nothing too serious, as I was weighing in at about 222. Still, that weight put me in the "overweight" category, and I wasn't too pleased about it. This being a new year and all, I decided to get off of the aforementioned fat ass and do something about it. After doing a bit of research online (always the bargain hunter!), I found several websites that offered great workout plans, calorie counters, etc. Among my favorites so far have been:

• www.fitday.com - A great fitness, health, calorie, and workout tracker. The biggest plus? It's free! Using the calorie counter to determine exactly what I'm taking in has really forced me to look at food in a whole new way, and I've become almost obsessive about keeping my daily intake under 2,300 calories.
• http://www.truthaboutabs.com/time-crunched-workouts.html - Truth About Abs was a site that I found sort of by accident, but it's given me some great ideas about weight loss, not the least of which is the site's position on cardio exercise, which it considers healthy but not the be-all, end-all of weight loss. Instead, it focuses on resistance training. The link listed above is actually a really great at-work workout that I've started using. Essentially, you take a few minutes each hour to complete the exercises listed, then get back to work. I've found it to be a great means of staying motivated and energized at work, and it does a great job of keeping my appetite in check.
• www.thefitbastard.com - Not only is this a hilarious name for a fitness site, I really enjoy the updates and ideas that it offers.

I've only been keeping tabs on things for about two weeks, but I've lost about 4.5 pounds so far. Not exactly Biggest Loser-type results, but good enough to keep me motivated. Wish me luck...maybe the next time you see me I'll be a shadow of my former self!

She's MY Woman!

So...I was just at school to drop off a car seat for my mom (they're stealing the boys to see a movie), and his teacher relayed the following story:

Today in class the kids were talking about helping people. For example, if you know how to do something, and see someone else who's not quite doing it right, you're supposed to give them helpful hints, etc. I'm not sure how that translated to what Chris said next, but he said:

"If someone was being mean to my Annabeth, I would NOT be nice to them. I
would have to go and yell at them, because she's MY woman!"

I'm sure it's nice for Annabeth's parents to know that their daughter is well taken care of!

Procrastination and Birthday Wishes

OK...I'll admit that I'm WAY late in posting this, but I'd like to wish my sister a very happy birthday (it was January 9th). The boys were kind enough to seranade her on the big day, and I thought it would be nice to share that video here. Enjoy...and Happy Birthday, Annie! :-)

The Karaoke Kid

As further proof that Chris is apparently my Mini Me-style clone, he's developed a love affair with music...as well as the singing that comes along with it. Since Holly and I aren't always in the mood for his particular brand of songs, however, we bought him a small MP3 player for Christmas (Note to those of you concerned that we're spoing our children: this is NOT an iPod, but rather a cheapo player from Target!). It's a 1gb model that holds about 250 songs or so. Before putting it under the tree, I filled it with his favorite kid's music, as well as a bunch of oldies and mom-and-dad songs that he's come to love.

Of particular interest to him right now are two songs by (I couldn't BEGIN to make this up!) Larry Gatlin and the Gatlin Brothers: All The Gold in California, and Broken Lady. So now, out of his bedroom every night, we're seranaded by the melodious sounds of the five-year-old sensation, The Karaoke Kid! You really haven't lived until you've heard a little kid belting out a heartfelt love song from the 70s!

Jesus is NOT funny...He is LORD!

I swear, if Chris doesn't grow up to be some sort of street-corner preacher I'll be absolutely shocked! We were in Houston for the holidays (visiting the in-laws...more on that in another post), and I was asked to give the blessing at Christmas dinner. When I had finished, Chris chimed in to say, "And thank you for making Jesus our only present!"

Naturally, this kicked off a chorus of laughter around the dinner table, and apparently my laughter was the most noticeable to Chris, who delivered the following rebuke: "Dad, Jesus is NOT funny...He is LORD!" Never let it be said that our child doesn't have a spiritual side! :-)