26 1/2 weeks / New Carpet

We decided it was time to update the belly pictures. Man, it's starting to get big. We can now feel the baby moving all the time and can sometimes see Baby J as it rolls or pushes, whatever it's doing! We went to the doctor a couple weeks ago and everything seems healthy!!! I've gained 8 pounds so far, the baby's heartbeat is around 150 I believe (I can't remember if that was the right number), and the its due date will be somewhere between the 20th and 26th of October. My cravings have somewhat subsided, but I still enjoy bagels and hamburgers! :) Fresh fruit has also been a lifesaver when it's hot out! I'm also excited to get up to Point Roberts and eat some fresh crab and blackberries.

Stef and I also got new carpet this past Thursday (thanks Grandma and Grandpa). My mom and I painted all three bedrooms, the hallway, and the family before they put the carpet in. It looks awesome! Man, it is so fun to get out of bed and step on something soft, rather than the peeling cork! :) Norm also loves have a permanent bed throughout half the house. He rolls and rubs everywhere!!

We love you all and miss you much. In less than a month, we'll be up in Canuck land!! See you all soon! Hugs and love, Stefan, Betsy, & Baby J

Stef's 2nd Triathlon - Chaska, MN

Stefan, David and Steve, just finished their 2nd triathlon this morning. It was a gorgeous morning for a race. As Ashley and I drove into town, before their race had started, we passed what looked like a man made pond. We were surprised to see buoys/markers all over, and then realized, THIS was the "lake" they were racing on. Yuck! I'm sure it was fine, but man it looked kinda gross. Stef said it was nice, warm, and CALM!!!!!

The swim was 0.3 miles, bike 16 miles, and the run, 3 miles. All three boys did excellent and got done around 1 hour and 30 minutes. Dave came in 6th, Steve 8th, and Stef 9th (in their age group)!!! Way to go boys!

Triathlon - Pics 2

Way to go Stefan!!!

Stef's Triathlon - Lake Waconia

Stefan completed his first Triathlon this morning. Two of his buddies, Trevor and Steve, also raced. They did awesome! He's sleeping right now, so I thought I'd update the blog for the Juliens in Canada. The race was a .5 mile swim (in crazy whitecap water), 24 mile bike, and a 4 mile run. Stef completed it in 2:36. His swim was awesome, 20:22. He said the bike was the hardest part (He really only trained a handful of times on the bike, so now he knows what to work on for next year!). Canadians be proud, he carried the flag through the finish line. I'll put the other 3 pics on a new post!!!

We love you all and can't wait to see you in August!!! Baby J says , "Hi!". He/she started moving and kicking so that we can now both see it through the skin. Pretty crazy and cool!

Madison/Milwaukee Weekend

We took a 15 passenger van (13 people inside) and went on a road trip to Rock Lake, right outside of Madison, Wisconsin. Liz's grandma has a home on the lake and was generous enough to give her house up for the weekend. We then all traveled (15 people) to a Milwaukee Brewers vs. Minnesota Twins game in at Miller Park in Milwaukee. We tailgated for about 3 hours eating tons of great food (great BBQ David)and playing corn hole, before watching a great game that lasted 12 innings long. Twins won! We had a blast and can't wait to do it again sometime. Thanks Liz and Steve for organizing everything!

23 weeks and our new garden (almost done)

Stef and my dad spent the entire weekend building the retaining wall for our new garden. It will be plenty big, might even feed the entire neighborhood. It looks amazing. They have 2 more layers to put in, and then it will be ready to fill in with black dirt. Norm enjoyed spending both days supervising under the shady apple tree and running through the sprinklers. :)

The other two pics are of my growing belly. Man, we can't believe that I'm almost 24 weeks, 6 months. YIKES!!!! We've been painting and cleaning up our house so we can put carpet in this July. Once that's finished, we can actually put together our crib and figure out if it has all the pieces or not. :) I've been feeling great (definitely slowing down a bit, especially when trying to run to first base when playing softball) and Stef has been training for his triathlon which is next weekend. It is a 1/2 mile swim, 25 miles bike, and 4 mile run. I promise to post pics of that next weekend. He got his rental wet suit (full body, skin tight) in the mail yesterday and tried it on for me. Words can not describe what he looks like! :) We hope all is well up in Canada. Happy Birthday Sue, Mom and Nana Su Su. Hope you had a wonderful evening out. We love you all and pray that God is blessing your lives! Lots of love, Stef, Betsy, Baby J and Norm

Ultrasound of Baby J

It's Baby J's head!!! YIKES!!! WOW, after the ultrasound it makes our baby feel really real. So much fun! Stef and I had our ultrasound of Baby J yesterday, Tuesday, at 3:00pm. I made the mistake of telling Stef that all of my appointments had been late (which they were, some by even 40 minutes), but NOPE this one started as soon as I walked through the door at 2:58pm. Stef ended up coming half way through, but still got to see most of the show.

Right off the bat, they measured my bladder, and she assured me that if I felt like I had to use the bathroom already, I'd for sure be in Depends by 40 (In other words, hold it). Needless to say, I hadn't drank enough water so Baby J settled its head for a nice snooze most of the time. Oops!

By far the coolest part was watching Baby J's legs kick back and forth, a lot. It's like a short silent movie (most of the time you have NO clue what you are looking at). The pictures are so incredibly clear, but we only managed to scan the head and somewhat the bum so you can actually know what you're looking at.

Stef and I couldn't stop smiling the entire night. How amazing that this is the product of God's handy work! Man! Also, Stef and I both got to feel Baby J move last week. I guess I had been feeling movement for about 2 weeks, but thought it was indigestion or gas! :) Baby J is SUPER active when I've been active all day, hop into bed, and lay flat on my back. It start doing cartwheels and flips. It feels like a steady poking and prodding. SO amazing!!

We'll it's time for bed here in MN. We love you all and will try to scan or copy some more of the ultrasound pics. Have a wonderful rest of the week. Happy 21st birthday Sarah! You can legally have a beer next time you're here! Love you all and God bless! Stef, Betsy, and Baby J :)

Memorial Day Weekend

After camping on Saturday and Sunday, we took Monday and got a bunch of yard work done. Here are pictures of our new patio furniture (Thank you Nana Sue-Sue and Papa). We LOVE it! We already had lunch on it today, so comfy. We also included a picture of where our garden is going to be. Stef and my dad are going to build it during the next two weekends. :) Norm had such an exhausting weekend (playing with Tyson and hanging out in the mud Sunday morning) that he found a nice spot to rest (in our hostas) and wouldn't MOVE. :)

Full Weekend: Graduation and Canoing

This past weekend, Ashley, Cristin, and I graduated from Hamline University with our Masters of Education. :) Fun times had by all. The 3 of us left Minnetonka at 1:15 and didn't arrive at Hamline until 2:25 due to unforeseen road closures (we were supposed to have already picked up our cap and gowns and be in our procession line by 2pm). We ran the entire way (high heels and all), checked in with 4 minutes to spare, and had really nice people help us throw on our outfits. :) The important thing was that we GRADUATED. My entire family meet us out for dinner at Macaroni Grill afterwards.

The following day, Sunday, Stef and I decided to venture down the Minnehaha Creek after church. The only directions we were given, multiple times from my parents, was to steer right when we got to a certain divide in the creek (my family had a mishap about 8 years ago, choosing the left side and going over a neighborhood made dam and capsizing our canoe).

We had a gorgeous day and the only mishap (besides my hubby sayin "You're just dipping!" and "Dig in, dig in. (Doesn't it totally make sense that this would mean paddle faster, not steer)" and "If we ever go canoing with our parents, the men are in one boat, and women in another!") happened at our famous divide in the creek. So, Stef and I steered clear of the left side (even though it was flowing beautifully) and madly paddled to the right where rocks were sticking out everywhere. You can imagine what happened, our canoe bottomed out. So while the neighbors watched from afar, we first tried rocking the canoe, then Stef got out, finally we both got out, and when I sat down, my buttocks came right down on my paddle. Oops! We looked like a gong show trying to paddle the mini rapids with my stubby paddle. Stef was a true gentleman and didn't complain about being the only one paddling the rest of the way (we probably went straighter this way). All in all, we had lots of laughs and can't wait to go again.

Belly Time - 17 weeks

We haven't been very good about taking belly pictures of the first 4 months, because I felt like nothing really showed. But seriously, last night after eating, I swear my belly popped out 6 inches. For real! Even my students could tell today, they kept whispering and asking me to turn sideways. The whispering part was probably because we had "the talk" in health class today! Fun times! I felt all eyes were on me when we talk how conception works! :) The joys of teaching.

Anywho, here are my a little over 4 month pictures. I've found it painful to know wear any of my old clothes and have it down to a science which 4 pairs of pants I rotate, to wear to work every day!

I may be crazy, but I'm also pretty sure I can feel the baby. They say at 20 months you should be able to, but every night when I lay down, it feels like little bubbles inside my tummy. SO COOL! Interesting how you can't feel it during the day when you're moving, but when it's time for bed, the little thing goes wild. That should be interesting when I'm trying to fall asleep! :)

All is well back here in MN. I graduate tomorrow from Hamline (along with Ashley and Cristin) with my Masters in Education. :) Stefan and I are working on making our garden. This weekend we have to clear the rest of the brush so that after camping next weekend, we can start putting up the retaining wall. God has blessed us with GORGEOUS weather the past two days! It is actually shorts weather here and everyone (especially Norm) is loving it! Stef and I just bought our plane tickets for our trip to the coast in August. We are flying into Seattle on August 15th and leaving the 24th. We aren't heading back to Summerland this time, just staying at Point Roberts and relaxing!! Hope to see a lot of you, we love you all and pray that God is with you all!

Norm's new friend

Norman had his first play visit with my aunt and uncles new Schnauzer puppy, Sadie. It was touch and go for a while trying to determine who would be the dominate one (all bets were on Sadie, Norm rolls over and is submissive to the cat next door), but in the end Norm won. :) She is so adorable. We decided that Norman doesn't understand how to play "nice" with a puppy. His idea of play was to steal her chew toy, run circles around her, and taunt her by coming close but not close enough for her to grab on. Pretty comical! :)

14 1/2 weeks, Tight Pants, and Fun News!

Stefan and I have some fun news, a little Julien is on it’s way shortly. ☺ Crazy, eh? It has been extremely difficult keeping this big news a secret for 3 months, but in the end, the shock and surprise by our parents (our friends were just betting on the due date) was all worth it.

Stef had a chance to meet up with his parents a couple weekends ago in Phoenix, AZ. So we both got to share our news on the same night. Watching their faces as they opened their presents (we made them T-shirts that said Papa, Nana, Grandma, and Grandpa) was positively one of the most exciting things ever! My mom wouldn’t stop screaming and Stef’s mom started jumping on the couch.

Our due date is October 22nd. The pregnancy has been going great so far. I’ve only gotten sick a handful of times in the morning and I’m pretty sure it’s due to Life cereal (so I’ve had to stay clear of that for a while and switch to oatmeal). Stef is really enjoying my cravings. The biggest so far has been McDonald’s cheeseburgers. Crazy, eh? One for me, one for Stef. There are lots of foods I can't even be around anymore, the worst being RICE. I had to throw away all the rice in my house (including the chips I ate with a Mexican rice salsa) and can't even think about it without getting queasy.

My belly is starting to pop, but I guess I’m the only one who can tell. If you rub it there’s a little bump. I'm about 14 weeks along, my uterus is about the size of small melon (which is why buttoning my pants has become a difficult task) and the baby is roughly 3 and 1/2 inches long!!!! Since birth, I've been a belly sleeper and could still handle that until about 2 weeks ago. I decided it's time I stop sleeping ON the baby and switch to something that will be a necessity in a couple weeks. MAN, I haven't gotten a good night sleep since. I'm constantly asking if Stef is awake and to talk to me! Good thing Norm is usually a good listener (even if he's sleeping).

Speaking of Norm, we are pretty sure he is pumped to have another small playmate around the house. Whenever our friend's baby comes over for a visit, it never leaves without a super clean licked head (and hands, and toes, and toys). I'm sure he'll enjoy having his own playmate to give kisses to 24-7.

Stefan and I are so excited to be parents. It is somewhat surreal, but became quite real when we got to listen to the baby's heart beat for the first time. Stef was still in Arizona, so while taking a quick golfing break, I held the phone to my belly while the doctor held the Doppler. HOW INCREDIBLE!!! As I said goodbye to Stef, the doctor said, "Here's the first heartbeat and now... the 2nd." I think I went into slight cardiac arrest before she announced it was mine. I wonder how much fun she gets by looking at new mother's faces while making that announcement?

Stef and I promise to make updates!! We love ya all so much and please keep our new little member of the family in your prayers. Hugs to you all!

Betsy, Stefan, & Baby J (of course Norm too)

P.S. Norm is really not liking (or should I say liking too much) all the baby toys Baby J is receiving. Especially ones that squeak!

Cute Pic

I just wanted to share a quick cute picture of the two men in my life. Just a typical hang out time in the Julien basement. I'm also using this a self-teaching tool for how to post to the blog! Yes, everyone in Canada, no one here in MN has a blog really. But we now have a GREAT reason to keep this a weekly ritual, instead of a twice a year thing! :)

Downstairs/new couch

Hey all,
Just wanted to show you the finished look of the basement, we just got our new couch. Can't wait to have you all over to watch some movies and "veg on the couch" eh Dad!

Basement Remodeling

Some of you know that we have been fixing up our basement by furring out the walls so we can insulate and put up a vapour barrier. Well, we are getting close to the finished product. Above you can see the soffet we built to hide the heating/cooling ducts and also the copper piping that we ran from our dryer to the fireplace for our gas fireplace.

Here is Betsy putting up the insulationg, lots of fun, no I mean lots of itching. Below, you always have to have a cold Diet Coke to keep the body going.

We have started putting up the sheetrock and are getting ready for the next inspector's visit, we have had 4 visits from the city already, for gas, electrical and framing. We probably could have been done 3 weeks ago if we didn't have to wait for inspections. We will have some updates as we get closer to the finished product!

Anna's Cabin 2007

Hey all,
We got to spend an awesome weekend up at our friend's, Anna and Nick, cabin. Fun times were had by all - fishing, water-skiing, skeet shooting, and other nafarious activities:)

S&B Julien