Made It

After 1900 plus miles, several Subway sandwiches, hours of Sirius radio, mosquito bites galore, romping in the grass, and many sleepless nights in the RV, we made it to Minnesota.

From Here to There

Sold the house: Maplewood Place is ours no more. We've been here since October 1999 and it's been a wonderful place to live. We will miss the comfort, floor plan, space, location, and familiarity.

Bought a house: It's multi-leveled, sits close to the crown of a hill, has less space, more grass and trees. And it's older by ten years, has lower ceiling, more intimate feel, and a basement cool enough to store my freshly brewed beer.

Changing states: The new house is in Chanhassen, Minnesota. It's a long way from Arizona culturally, weather-wise, and distance. It'll have real seasons; cold winter, the blossoms of spring, humidity of summer, and the color of fall.

Employment: No, my job hasn't changed, other than the workload of a new infant son. But Shanna's new opportunities and new unknowns will shake up her comfort zone. This is how we grow.

The move: The house is in chaos and we can't park in the garage. The packers-n-movers arrive Monday, by mid-week all our stuff, along with the cars, will be on the road. To get from here to there we are renting an RV. Just as long as this doesn't turn into a Griswold movie plot...

Places: We will have to find new restaurants, campsites, and places to play. Gas stations, bank, grocer's, and library will all change.

People: Trusted doctors and baby-sitters, veterinarian and dentist, drink'n buddies and barbers. All the people we depend upon will change.

Family: Shanna's family is here, Galen & Liam will lose easy access to a set of people that are important. My family is in Indiana, not quite local to Minnesota but closer to enable more visits.

Stressors: Another child, sell-n-move, and new job. That should be enough for one year.

2 Month Checkup

This morning was Liam's 2-month checkup. The vitals:
Length: 23 in
Weight: 13 lbs 8 ozs

Everything good, except for the obligatory wailing after the vaccination shots.

The Boys

Liam update: Liam's growing nicely. He coo's, head stays up strong, almost smiles, or is that gas? At tummy-time he keeps up a pretty good 45 degree angle. He's not yet sleeping through the night, so neither are we. And those beautiful eyes.



Galen update: Galen is turning out to be a wonderful big brother. He's attentive, mostly gentle, and likes sitting with him. He knows all the letters of the alphabet, but not in order.

We are not sure if it's the terrible two's or the addition of Liam, but he does get a little more defiant than he used to. Nothing we are concerned about, but definitely something we could do without.