Baby #4

I'm 13 weeks pregnant with "Baby Gh" I probably should verify the spelling and name with Mario. With his unusual humor, Mario nicknamed this baby after Ghandi in hopes that this child would grow up to be peaceful. Baby Gh is possibly due Jan 16th (MJ's 6th birthday) and he is VERY excited to have a new baby for his birthday. This being my 4th winter baby, I've been able to compare pregnancies pretty well (and I am already much larger than I was with MJ (sigh)). But with their potential shared birthday, this has been especially fun.

Baby Gh at 8 weeks taken on 6/8/2010 exactly 6 years after....

Baby MJ at 8 weeks, taken on 6/8/2004

And today all 4 of my children were incredibly cooperative during our 1 1/2 hour visit to the radiologist for this ultrasound. I had not intended to bring my 3 out of womb children with me...alone...but I did, and we survived. As you can see based on these 2 images, Baby Gh was moving quite a bit. Though baby often found a cozy position all curled up and face down.

Baby Gh at 13 weeks

That's my brother!

As you may know, Bobby has been in Japan as a starting pitcher this year and is doing very well. Here is a recent article about him - at the time he was 9-1 and now he is 10-1. Way to go!!!

http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/sb20100624j1.html

So after each game, they pick two "heroes" or MVPs to interview. Bobby has been picked several times. A few things of note: there are lots of fans still in the stands after the game (baseball truly is a favorite sport in Japan). I think the bear microphone is cute. Bobby has a translator - the guy in blue standing standing next to him. In this hero interview, the other teammate is quite the jokster and was making up his own interpretation of what Bobby was saying. Fortunately, it seems people knew that he was joking.

http://www.tv-live.jp/vod/20100518_heroFG.html

Weekend with family

We had a terrific weekend with all of our family in town. Really and truly, Christian & Michelle did visit (though it seems as though my pictures don't have any of them present)... I just didn't take enough pictures. Thanks to everyone for making the long and short trips to Ashburn this weekend. Thank you Tabitha for the endless supply of food, Mary for the delicious cookies, and the incredible clean up crew!!!

I know the kids had a great time with their cousins - and we are still catching up on sleep today. Some of these slideshow pictures picture:

-the daytime fireworks
-how much Sheila loves Cecilia
-a small frog found by the boys, he made it away alive
-bedtime for the first sleepover night
-4 handsome boy cousins (who were all well-behaved in church)
-a few nighttime fireworks

First summer vacation

It feels like we were gone for so long, but really it was only 9 days. I don't think it helped that the days before leaving for the trip (you know, those crazy days of cleaning, packing, preparing) we were sick with the stomach flu. But we left on time Friday June 11th and headed for Chicago for my friend’s baby shower. We made the 12 hour drive (despite a tired mommy who just had the flu on Thursday) and arrived at a fancy Marriott in downtown Chicago. (Mario flew to Chicago for work). The kids really enjoyed the city and I wish we could have stayed longer.

Saturday during the shower, Mario and the kids went with Jeff and his son Joseph to Two Toots (a fun restaurant where they serve hot dogs and hamburgers on a train the runs around all the tables. Sheila and Joseph (almost 3) were really cute together.

Sunday, Mario flew to NY and I drove with the kids to St. Louis. I learned that you are contagious with a stomach bug even after you feel better since I got my friend Emily and her son Joseph sick, my mom and my sister. I’m not certain they will invite us back again. J The kids and I had fun in St. Louis with the Keppel family, and my Grandma was visiting too.

Then Thursday we headed to ND for my cousin’s wedding. The rehearsal dinner was at Fiddler’s Hearth (an Irish pub). Sheila is definitely Irish - she can’t help but dance when she hears music and was compelled to climb on the table and start dancing there too. The wedding was fun, and it was nice to reminisce about our own wedding at the Basilica almost 7 years ago.

We arrived 11pm Saturday night (after buying some fireworks for our 4^th of July celebration) and spent most of Sunday relaxing and enjoying our family. We did get out to see Toy Story 3 which was really cute. I’m so excited that we will be seeing so many family members very soon!

We are happy to share...

Updates

We just got back from an amazing weekend in Connecticut. We were fortunate to witness Luke as he became ordained a deacon. I've never been to an ordination before and it was so amazing - I highly recommend going if you ever have the opportunity. Photos from the ordination are on the Suarez family blog. Here are a few pictures from our recent family visits.

Bobby in Japan

My brother is now pitching in Japan. I think it was a pretty exciting deal for him, and of course a great life experience. I guess there was some big game or series for his team and they won. I'm impressed by the crowd's enthusiasm. Hopefully these video links will work.

The game highlights
http://www.tv-live.jp/vod/20100429_digestFBs.html

The post-game interview - I love the mic with the mascot on it.
http://www.tv-live.jp/vod/20100429_heroFBs.html