7 months

Okay, so it's been a while! This is the beginning of seven months... Baby is definately more active and I can finally identify it's little head, especially when it trys to push out (you can actually SEE the head!). I also have obtained the linea nigra, although it isn't too dark yet! As you can see, my "timer" has also started to push out. I've been told that I had an outie when I was little too. As long as it goes back in, I'll be okay! Baby continues to be just in the front. My family tells me that I don't even look pregnant from the back (what a great family I have!). All goes well and I'm in the third trimester with bi-monthly doctor appointments now. It amazes me how time flies!

How we ended up with another dog...

I realized that I hadn't yet blogged about are latest edition to our household and since I'm sure she will at some point come up, I should probably tell the story of how we found her.

It all begun when Chad and I went over to eastern Washington, near Ellensburg, to hunt coyotes, or cougars, or just camp, and shot some guns a little. It ended up being just the latter of the three, though we did give it our best shot with game calls, and hours and miles toward making it a successful hunt.

The weather was cold at night, and during the day when the sun came out, everything turned to mud.

It's too bad we weren't hunting for elk, because there were plenty of them spending their winter months in the sage brush.

So we didn't come home with any dead animal, but we did bring home to live ones!! We found these to 8 month old dogs wondering near where we were camping. As you can see from the picture, they were very happy that Chad got out of the truck and game them some food. After that they followed us to our camp, and never left. We tried to find their owner, went to a local vet to scan for an I.D. chip, and called the Animal Shelter, but no one was looking for them. It seemed the had been abandoned. They were both a little thin, and it seemed they hadn't had any food for awhile.

How could we just leave these puppies? Chad had been wanting a dog anyway, and Xica and I had been toying with the idea of getting another dog, mostly for companionship for Abby.

It was pretty cold camping... the dogs helped warm up the tent that night though!

So Chad liked the red dog, and we took that black and tan. We named her Ellie, since we found them just out side of Ellensburg.

Abby and Ellie are getting along just fine, and have fun playing together.

And maybe a little biting!

Theft

This morning Xica was going to take her car to school, and found it missing the back wheel!!! Sometime in the night, someone jacked up the car, took the wheel, and threw a cement block under it. I think the only time I had seen this before is in the movies when they're trying to portray a ghetto, I didn't know people do this in neighborhoods, and right in our driveway, while we were sleeping! Its very frustrating, especially when it is just under the insurance deductible, so it just comes out of our pocket. I found a replacement wheel today on eBay, so hopefully it gets here quickly, so we are back to two cars. Its interesting how we get use to having two cars(which is a luxury in most of the world) to get to the jobs we have, and don't know how to function with just one.

I think I'm going to buy some locking lug nuts.

Ultrasound

Baby Peterson (sex still unknown... lol)

I absolutely loved this picture. Baby suddenly opened his/her mouth and it looked just like baby was laughing. The ultrasound Dr. seemed to find it amusing too as he replayed this image mulitple times! (Baby is lying down with the head on the left and the big belly on the right.)

The Dr. wanted to make sure we had a serious pose of baby at his/her 1/2 point (20 weeks). It is truly amazing just how real baby looks and acts (sucking his/her thumb, curling up in a ball, all the little bones and stomach, and of course kicking momma- aka me!)

Baby's growth

So, at the request of Mom (Cynthia), we're posting the progression of Xica's tummy up to this point, as our baby grows inside her.

This is about 4 months.

3 Months

2 Months

First Month

Can you tell we got a better camera after month 1? We decided we better have a good camera to capture all our baby's experiences.

Hike in Anacortes

This last weekend we took our dog, Abby, and went on a hike with Curt and Emily, and their dogs, Jasper, and Ruby. We went to the Anacortes Community Forest. It's a good size chunk of forest full of lakes right outside of town, with trails all through out. It's a great place for dogs to have a lot of fun, especially dogs that love water!

Recent Flooding (and an iffy crossing)

About a week or so ago our valley, and much of western Washington, experienced flooding when the temperatures increased, melting snow in the low lands, as well as the mountains, up to 7,000 ft. Along with the warm weather we had rain for several days, raining up to 12 inches in many locations. Xica and I took a little drive around the valley to take a look at some of the flooding. We couldn't get near any of the worst damage, since most of the roads were closed.

On Friday night, as most of the flooding was subsiding, the water rose higher out on the flats around Samish Island. This was mostly due to all the extra water up river making its way down the Samish River. My Brother-in-law, Chet, was unable to get back home on the Island with his car, so Xica and I offered to take him home in my Tahoe, since I've got a lot more clearance. Unfortunately it was dark, so i didn't get any pictures to prove just how bad it was, but it had to be one of the most sketchy drives I've done. (the road wasn't even closed yet!) The water was close to a couple feet deep, flowing across the road with debris like fence posts, and was a crossing of almost 1/2 mile. I couldn't see the road, but it was a straight section, so i just kept the wheel steady and went for it. We made it through just fine, and also on the return trip, which wasn't any better. I love my truck!!! It's always up for the challenges I give it. We found out the next day that a small truck had washed into the ditch and gone completely under the water, along that same stretch of road, and that very evening, just before we drove through!