Well, Sadie, my mom, and Dick made it back sa...

December 31, 2001 by Adam in Family

Well, Sadie, my mom, and Dick made it back safe and sound from Africa. Sam and I headed over for an impromptu gift exchange, Sam returning happy with a couple new Lego sets. I think everyone liked the presents I passed out. A couple Lego gifts given myself, as well as assorted gift certificates, movie tickets, and a bizarre card game.

It's New Year's Eve tonight. I plan on celebrating by sleeping through the transition to 2002. Sam's sleep schedule is getting wacky again. He's been waking up later and going to bed later, fighting sleep all the way. Last night, I made the mistake of turning the channel to an old Godzilla movie. Based on the number of times he said "Don't turn it off!" I think he appreciated it. Unfortunately, that made bedtime close to ten o'clock.

Jamie's been really sleepy lately too. Morning sickness seems to be strongest the first thing in the morning, then exhaustion off and on all day. Pregnancy sure seems like hard work.

I'm hoping to spend some time with Sadie today. I suspect Sam will tag along for much of it. Tomorrow is a last Christmas party at my dad's house, then no more holidays until Valentine's Day. Happy New Year to eveyone!



I'm back at work after five days off

December 27, 2001 by Adam in Family

I'm back at work after five days off. We were all pretty beat after driving down from Portland on Tuesday. We stopped by Jamie's dad house for an impromptu Christmas, then back to our very cold house. It took several hours for the fireplace to heat everything to a normal temperature, so we huddled in the living room sipping cocoa. We had our family Christmas, with Sam having the most fun with his new Legos.

The next day we spent puttering around the house and buying groceries for our reduced stockpiles. Yayoe dropped off some more presents, adding yet more Star Wars Legos to Sam's arsenal. I probably spent two hours over both days putting together all the various toys. Great fun.

The one really odd thing we got this year was a talking Jar Jar Binks doll that Sam got from Angie. Unfortunately, it announces the time every hour, usually with an oddly phrased Gungan quip. Late last night, Jamie brought down the doll in her outstreched arms, unable to sleep through it. It now rests in my cubicle, as my coworkers plan its demise.



Well, it's Christmas Eve and I'm typing from ...

December 24, 2001 by Adam in Family

Well, it's Christmas Eve and I'm typing from Judy and Jim's house in Portland. It's been a lazy last couple of days. We headed up Saturday and lazed about the house. I managed to play some computer games while we had our free babysitter. Yesterday was a bit more exciting. Jamie and I saw Ocean's Eleven, an enjoyable heist movie, before returning to a Sam-free house. Sam and Josh were taken out to see the Christmas lights and have dinner, a tradition two years running now.

Meanwhile, Dave, Brant, Tracie, and I played Kill Doctor Lucky. I picked it up at Cheapass Games, and it proved to be as weird and funny as promised. Sadly, I never did manage to kill Doctor Lucky, though I made several attempts with a chainsaw, a revolver, and a tight hat. Oh, and many attempts to kill him by merely poking him in the eye.

Today should be the really big family day for Jamie's side of the family. There's a huge number of stockings hanging from the fireplace if that's any indication for the festivities to come. I think we open presents tonight too, then it's to Jamie's dad's house for awhile tomorrow, and finally to home.

Best Christmas wishes to everyone. An extra special greeting to those overseas, especially my sister, stepdad, and mom. Hope all is well.



With all the talk of the new baby, Sam decide...

December 19, 2001 by Adam in Family

With all the talk of the new baby, Sam decided to crawl back into Jamie's shirt. Here's what Jamie would look like if she were three years pregnant.

Jamie saw the doctor yesterday for her first prenatal checkup. She is indeed pregnant, about eight weeks along. That puts the due date at August 4th. They also took five vials of blood - I'm convinced that the lab is really a front for a coven of vampires.

I'm also going to Lord of the Rings tonight, right after work until 9:30 pm. I felt guilty leaving Jamie alone with Sam all day, so I tried to convince a couple people to come over. I think she'll survive, it's just strange to not come home right after work. I can't remember the last time I went out for an evening.



We had quite the exciting weekend

December 17, 2001 by Adam in Family

We had quite the exciting weekend. Saturday night was the big cocktail party. We had quite the spread of food and drink, though Jamie was stuck with soda water. We had a big turnout and Jamie was trying to kick people out close to ten o'clock. Another successful party.

On Sunday morning, I built Dave's new computer. A few exciting moments, as I was afraid my overclocking hubris had gotten the best of me. All turned out well in the end, however.

That afternoon, Sam and I went on a hike through the forest. He was amazingly energetic, running down the path pretending we were being chased by Imperial Scouts (another Star Wars thing). We returned home tired and muddy, so we pulled our pants off and had cocoa by the fire.

Mmm. . . Pantsless cocoa.



We all continue to be a little sick, though I...

December 13, 2001 by Adam in Family

We all continue to be a little sick, though I think the end is near. Jamie was feeling better by the end of the day. I'm hoping that the ginger snaps and ginger brew I got worked their magic on her nausea. We went to Jamie's Diner for dinner and her appetite seemed fine.

Sam and I invented "laser ball" last night. Mostly it involves Sam holding a paper lightsaber while I throw bean bags at him and shout, "Run away! Run away!"



Jamie called me at work yesterday, feeling si...

December 12, 2001 by Adam in Family

Jamie called me at work yesterday, feeling sick and wanting to have someone watch Sam. I dutifully headed home and watched el boyo. I think the headaches were virus related, rather than due to the pregnancy. Later that day, I started to feel pretty cruddy too. My guess is that we got what Sam had earlier in the week.

We took it easy for most of the day. Sam and I watched Spy Kids. It was borderline scary for him, but also exciting and fun. We took a break in the middle, like we ususally do with movies, and had a bath. He had to reinact parts of the movie using Legos, especially after we assembled a Lego jet pack for one of the Lego people. Funny kid.



Jamie called to report that the nausea has in...

December 11, 2001 by Adam in Family

Jamie called to report that the nausea has indeed hit. She's sunk to eating dry toast. I'm trying to remember what worked best last time. Ginger tea and ginger snaps seemed to help some.

My mom and Dick are heading off on their trip to Africa. Hopefully they'll have a safe trip and have a good visit with Sadie.



Well, a slight miscalculation on my part

December 10, 2001 by Adam in Family

Well, a slight miscalculation on my part. It looks like the new baby will come in August, not July. Fortunately, math isn't really required to bear children.

Busy Sunday. Sam and I went Christmas shopping and got some good loot. I also started in on the banister, drilling holes in the stairs and putting the final touch on things. I'm hoping I can get the posts in by our Saturday cocktail party, though I'm not sure if I'll have time to sand and paint them.

Back to work for me today. It promises to be another hectic week. I wrote all the things I needed to do in really small print so that I felt better about my workload. Sigh.



Big news

December 09, 2001 by Adam in Family

Big news. It appears that there will be a new addition to the Miller household next July. The telltale signs appeared, and the pregnancy test was positive. Now, we'll probably have to have it "offically" confirmed at some point, but I'm sure it's for real. Jamie's doing well - a little tired but no nausea like last time. I'm not sure Sam really gets it yet. We'll talk about it together, but I think Legos are far more interesting.

We also got a Christmas tree today, cutting it down from my mother's property. It's all decorated and really brings the spirit of the holidays together. Now all I have to do is finish up the banister and the image is complete.

Frantically trying to get all the Christmas presents ready. I'm making some this year again, and I want to get it done so I can mail some out way before Christmas. The way the postal service is dealing with the anthrax issues, I just hope they don't set it on fire with radiation.



Another Friday rolls around

December 07, 2001 by Adam in Family

Another Friday rolls around. After being Mr. Tea all week, I gave into temptation and slammed down a Mocha this morning. Now I'm bouncy and have a huge pile of work today. Oh well, at least the weekend approaches.

I think we're getting our Christmas tree tomorrow, completing the cozy living room feeling we've got going these days. The fire really makes a difference (along with the big t.v. with surround sound). On these cold rainy nights, we'll often pile on the couch and watch a show.

I'm looking forward to Christmas and being lazy with my family. Sam's been particularly funny these days, though his sleep schedule is still wacky. He's still obsessed with Star Wars, so any presents related to that brand will do well. "Dad, tell me a Star Wars story." is a phrase often repeated in our household.



I had to dig up this picture and show it to e...

December 06, 2001 by Adam in Family

I had to dig up this picture and show it to everyone. We were having lunch last weekend and Sam decided to eat his bagel in a special way. You can see a bigger version here.

I've been having fun doing the online shopping this year. I hit amazon.com, as well as a very off-the-wall site. Some of you may have some interesting stocking stuffers.

It's been a quiet week so far. Sam and I wrestled last night, which he thought was grand. I wore out before he did, so I think he won by default.



Judy and Jim came down for the weekend

December 03, 2001 by Adam in Family

Judy and Jim came down for the weekend. Jim to watch the game, Judy to visit with Sam. Nothing too exciting happened. Yesterday was mostly bumming around the house. We did a little shopping and I went to Robbie's birthday party today. I did manage to get the banister stained and installed. The hard part is the individual posts, which will involve much drilling, cutting, and careful measuring.

Now everyone's gone except Sam and I. Jamie's off at Angie's and the grandparents have gone home. Sam's playing beside me, talking about the eye color of all his toys and Legos.

Back to work tomorrow. We hired two new people on Friday, so hopefully things won't be quite as crazy. Of course, they don't start for a couple weeks and then there's training . . .



Older Posts