Baby or Butterball?

Happy Thanksgiving to all!

We were the lucky turkeys who were able to celebrate in Sun Valley with the Kvidahls. It's always fun to visit family, but this year was extra special because David's family was able to see my ever-expanding waistline (and bustline and...well you get the point!) in person. The next time we see them will be when baby has finally made it into the world.

Soon-to-be Grandpa K and I went to workout each morning before everyone started the day. And we went on lots of walks as a family. David, his dad and his bother went to the U of A vs. ASU football game, while soon-to-be Grandma K and I got facials (I'll take the facials over football any day!). Later on in the week David, his dad, his mom and I went to an ASU basketball game.

We were even able to visit with a Chicago snowbird, Mary Kay, at her house near the Mountains.

I'm now approximately 32 weeks and the countdown is on! It's hard to believe that there are only 8 weeks remaining (give or take baby's schedule) to wrap up work and prepare the baby's room. Logistically one knows that pregnancy is only 40 weeks, but at times it feels like pregnancy is forever. Little Kvidahl is now completely aware that space is at a premium, but with frequent elbows, kicks, punches, and body turns, Baby still tries awfully hard to find extra room in which to get comfy. Some days I think we just make an unspoken pact to be uncomfy together as both of us shift from position to position!

Baby and I are doing well. However we found out that I have gestational diabetes. The good news is that it is temporary and doesn't pose any serious risks to myself or Little One. The not so good news is that I have to be even more careful with what I eat and I have to exercise more than I was before. Just when you think you're eating as healthy and being as active as you can, heredity smacks you upside the head and says, "Nurture only takes you so far sweetie!" So now I'm adjusting to my new regime to keep Little Kvidahl from becoming a butterball of Perdue proportions!

Still growing....

At 25 weeks (we're past the halfway mark!), I am now noticeably pregnant to pretty much everyone (you know you're looking pregnant when strangers in the checkout line no longer hestitate to ask, "So when are you due?"). Now that my energy has returned (at least for now), I am feeling large and in charge! Baby's presence is felt off and on throughout the day in kicks, punches, swirls, and twirls. But we are starting to notice that baby is developing a pattern much like dad's in that our little one doesn't really start getting moving until about 10:30 or so in the morning (unless mom forgot to eat a snack before bed, in which case baby wakes mom up at 3am to remind her it is time to eat!), gradually becomes more active as the day progress, and seems to be ready to party from after dinner until about midnight. I say, "live it up little one while you still have the real estate for acrobatics!" I'm hoping in the next few weeks that David will be able to take part in the fun and be able to feel the high fives and the hi-ya's when he puts his hand on my belly. But for now it appears that baby and I have our first "inside" joke!

A picture is worth 1,000 words

About 4.5 weeks ago (Baby aprox. 19.5 weeks) we had our anatomy ultrasound. During the ultrasound we saw most of Baby Kvidahl's developing parts. Weighing in at about 10 ounces so far, our little one is already ahead of the curve size wise. But, that is probably no surprise for the Kvidahl side of the family! Baby was demonstrating some early martial art skills in the form of kicks and punches. Both the ultrasound technician and our doctor said that everything is looking just fine. David indulged me a bit by encouraging the technician to linger on the images of the brain. We didn't get a picture of it (much to this "brain dork's" disappointment), but here is a profile picture and a picture of baby's foot eager to kick mom at every opportunity! So tiny, but so amazing....

Kvidahl....The Next Generation

No, that's not a beer gut, it's Little Kvidahl making his/her presence known to the world! With the baby bump now more pronounced at 18 weeks, we thought we'd debut a mom and baby picture. Our little one has made several appearances on screen already. The first was at only 7 weeks old at our first ultrasound appointment, when we were introduced to our next family member. At 7 weeks lil' one was already showing us a steady heartbeat, reassuring mom and dad-to-be that things were going swimmingly. Then at 9 weeks, our next ultrasound, baby showed not only that he/she could keep a good rhythm (maybe baby will take after mom on that one), but also showed off some right and left hook punches (float like a butterfly...sting like a bee)! Our last appointment, at 13 weeks, we heard one of the most beautiful sounds to parents' ears -- lil' one's heart beating. David recorded the heartbeat for posterity on his Blackberry and then emailed it to himself to convert it into an mp3 file so we can listen to it on our computer or iPods (ain't technology grand!).

Our next appointment will be on September 17th (19 weeks), were we will get another peak at how much baby has grown and find out the gender of Little Kvidahl.

Stay tuned for more pictures of Lisa's growing belly and updates on how the next generation is doing.

A last day at the (South) beach

We wrapped up our last full day in Miami by taking in South Beach one more time. This time, however, we actually stuck our toes in the water and enjoyed the sand and surf...for about 10 minutes. I picked up a shell, a friendly local took our photo and all seemed right. There is nothing, nothing I tell you, like spending a week away from it all and getting to know all the little parts of another part of the world. And, as they say, the nice thing about Miami is it's so close to the United States...

Hopefully we'll have another adventure or two in us yet. But, as some of you know, we're expecting our first child in February. Who knows, maybe we can take the little one on those adventures with us...just not to Key West (until they're 21!).

Thanks for reading and for future updates, pictures and the like with what's going on with our unborn child and it's mother, remember to check back here.

Back in Miami, at the monastery

After two and a half days in the Keys we returned to Miami for another day and a half before we departed back to reality in St. Louis.

One of the places we made sure to hit was the Ancient Spanish Monastery. Located in North Miami, the Monastery is the oldest structure in the United States. Tycoon William Randolph Hearst was in Spain and came across the building. He love it so much he purchased it and had it broken down, stone by stone and shipped to the United States in 1925. About that time hoof and mouth disease was running rampant and the boxes were broken open and the hay used to keep the stones packed was removed and burned. The workers did not put the same stones back in each of the marked boxes.

The broken down monastery stayed in pieces and in storage until 1952. Heart's financial trouble forced an estate sale and the monastery was purchased by two gentlemen as a tourist attraction. Assembling the monastery took 19 months and over a million bucks. And when they were done putting it together there were pieces left over (but, really, who hasn't been there before?).

In 1964 the Diocese of South Florida purchased the monastery and it has been in its care ever since.

We enjoyed our visit to the impressive structure. It was absolutely beautiful and, as you'll see, very photogenic.

For pictures click HERE.

Key West...in a day

We decided to dedicate one day to see as much of Key West as we could. We made the two hour drive down US 1 to the southern most point in the continental United States.

First we hit the beach at Fort Zachary Taylor State Park. It is, by far, the most beautiful beach I've ever stepped foot on. The water was aqua blue and warm, the beach was bright white and the people were friendly and clean (no trash cans, whatever you bring in, you must take out). It cost us a few bucks to get in to the park but it was totally worth it.

After showering off we found a place to park (no small feat) and decided to hoof it for lunch. We found a nice dive, shanty looking spot that came highly recommended in our Lonely Planet guide. The food was great, it was the best burger I had on vacation and the mahi mahi earned a thumbs up from Lisa.

Next it was off to Hemingway's house. There we viewed many of the famous six toed cats as we took a guided tour of the famous authors home. At one acre, it's the largest piece of personal property on Key West.

Once we got our fill of Papa Hemingway's cats, it was off to the southern most point in the continental United States. You've probably seen the buoy looking thing that marks it (see photo above).

The rest of the evening became a sample of the local taverns. I had a few drinks at the Green Parrot and Sloppy Joe's (Hemingway's prefered bar of choice). We watched the sunset and then hit the road for the two hour trek back to Key Largo.

It was a hurried trip, a busy trip but it was an awesome trip. I'd move there tomorrow if it wasn't for the whole making a living thing.

For photos of our adventure in Key West, click HERE

On to Key Largo!

After venturing out to the Biltmore, walking up and down the Miracle Mile and getting caught in a wicked thunderstorm (OK, so I got caught in the storm and had to have my lovely wife come pick me up at the bookstore) we woke up bright and early the next day, the Fourth of July, and headed to Key Largo.

It took about an hour to reach Key Largo from Bill and Ginny's place (who were so sweet to allow us to spend our vacation in their home). It would have taken less time if I wasn't chasing a cup of coffee and if there wasn't construction on the only road into the Keys (US 1).

Because the four lane road was down to two lanes (one each way) and the road was packed with holiday travelers, the trip took a little while longer than we thought.

The ride was, however, beautiful. As you hit a bridge all of a sudden there is nothing but ocean on either side.

We reached the motel, a lovely little place Lisa dug up online. It had a small dock for fishing and boating. There was a tiny beach to slip into the water and go for a dip (on the Gulf of Mexico side or "Bay" side as they call it). The room wasn't big but it was air conditioned, with cable TV, a mini fridge, queen size bed and an excellent shower. It was just what we wanted.

We found a nice place to eat lunch (thank you again Lonley Planet guide!), did some shopping, enjoyed the hammock at the motel and headed out for dinner at the Fish House (another good idea from the guide!).

The Fish House is, believe it or not, one of the handful of restaurants that continues to serve locally caught fresh fish every night. While I discovered they have excellent jerk chicken, Lisa reports everything she tried from the lobster bisque to the entree were out of this world tasty. The menu even gives those adventurous sorts the option of: "You hook it, we'll cook it."

We grabbed dessert at another sea side restaurant and managed to get caught in the traffic along the one road that connects the place (US 1) as people filed out of the local park after the Fourth of July fireworks.

We didn't stay up too late. We had a big day coming up. We were headed for Key West.

The beautiful Biltmore

After our day at the Fruit & Spice Park we headed back into civilization. We decided to pal around the Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables. It, shall we say, is fabulous. We'd like to one day have the good fortune to actually spend a night (or a few) in this national landmark. It's an incredible structure that was built in 1926 in 10 months for $10 million. It has the largest continuous pool in the continental United States. The place is said to be haunted by the ghost of one of Al Capone's victims as he was often a frequent quest at the place and, legend goes, whacked somebody right there in the posh resort.

It was amazing to walk through, incredible to look at and stunning to think it's been standing for the better part of 83 years.

If you're so inclined there is a highly rated golf course, restaurant and bar on the premises. Plus it has its own Culinary Academy for all you chefs.

For a look at this marvelous place click HERE.

Our fruity day trip

If you're ever in Miami and have a hankering for something exotic, we highly recommend the Fruit & Spice Farm. Located about a half an hour south of the city of Miami, the Fruit & Spice Park is exactly that, a fruit and spice park.

They grow all kinds of fruit from all over the globe on the premises. For about $10 each, you can either walk through the park or, at certain times of the day, take a guided tour. We missed the tour by 20 minutes (I was chasing a fresh cup of coffee) so we decided to hoof it through the park, which was actually quite enjoyable.

Before we set off on the concrete path through the park, we were allowed to sample some of the different fruits they grow at the park. There was dragon fruit, coconut, banana, plantains and something called ice cream fruit which was fuzzy but actually kind of had a creamy taste to it like ice cream.

They tell you that anything that hits the ground and you know what it is, you can eat. You can't go picking things off the tree and you can't go eating something if you're not sure what it is (did you know that unless cashew nuts are roasted they are poisonous?).

We meandered through the park, snapping photos and enjoying the late morning steam bath that was the weather.

I did drag Lisa to the back of the park, off the beaten path, to the mango grove but it was totally worth it...at least that's what I kept telling myself.

They even had a section of poisonous plants that were behind a fence. We did, however, see an adventurous rabbit nibbling on the grass back there.

To see more photos of this lovely place click HERE

A day at the (South) Beach

We spent our second full day in the city on the southern part of Miami Beach, AKA South Beach. The locals call it the "Billion Dollar Sandbar." We called it the home of the most obnoxious hosts and hostessess you could possibly imagine.

The eastern side of Ocean Drive (the main drag just off the beach) is loaded with hotels, bars and restaurants. Most of the places have large umbellas or awnings to keep the sun out and misters blowing cool, moist air on those that walk down the sidewalk. The only charge for this? Every time you pass a business there is someone trying to hand you a menu and asking you to check out their "specials." It was the most unbelievably annoying thing you could imagine. Then again, with so many foriegners walking the streets, you could say nothing, give a quizical look and move on and they'd go right on hawking their wares to some other poor schlub. And, we agreed, it beat walking in the record breaking heat with the sun beating down on us.

We did manage to find a place that came highly recommended by the travel guide Lonley Planet (which if you're going anywhere we recommend you pick up a guide, it never steared us wrong) and Lisa was able to enjoy a gargantuan serving of snow crab legs for half off the regular price. Not too shabby. Too bad their beer special and burger weren't all that great. But hey, half off a plate of snow crab is no small feat.

It was an incredible scene as we watched people from all walks of life, all different nations taking in the SoBe (as they call it). We heard at least 10 different languages from English and Spanish (the main ones) to German, Swedish and maybe even some Arabic.

We took a ton of photos, most of them are of the buildings along the strip. We also threw in a couple of us enjoying lunch at the News Cafe (what do you want, I'm a news guy!). The food wasn't great, the service was OK and the tip was included. It would appear that Miami has taken to including a 15% gratuity on ALL of its checks. While annoying, most of the servers we encountered were friendly and effective.

Click HERE to see the gallery. I recommend watching it as a slide show (upper right corner of the page).

Baseball, rain and campers

Our first full day in Miami and what do I want to do?

Check out a baseball game of course!

I talked Lisa into catching an afternoon game at Landshark Stadium to watch the Florida Marlins play the Washington Nationals (the worst team in pro baseball).

We arrived early enough that there were literally a dozen cars in the parking lot. If not for the people drinking by the car next to us, we would have been the only ones in the parking lot. As we approached the stadium a kind gentlemen told us our umbrella (purchased that morning) was not allowed in the stadium. It's Florida, it rains almost every day in the summer but our umbrella was not allowed.

We walked back to the car (a short walk) lathered up our sunscreen (you can't bring in open bottles of anything either), returned to the ticket office and purchased two of the cheapest tickets we could find.

As we walked into the stadium, which was built for the Miami Dolphins pro football team, we noticed there were a lot of kids in matching T-shirts running around. We didn't think much of it.

After we found our seats we noticed the stadium was quite empty, save for the dozens upon dozens of kids in matching T-shirts.

Then the PA spoke up and we were alerted.

It was Camp Day. Every kiddie camp from South Florida was coming to the game. The attendance for the game was about 27,000 and I'm going to guess about 20,000 of them were boys and girls ages 4-14 in matching T-shirts, screaming their bloody heads off and clogging up the lines at the concession stand.

The game itself was rather drab despite some decent players on both teams. Lisa and I agreed to cut out before the 7th inning to avoid the early part of rush hour traffic. I had hoped to pop into the gift shop to purchase a specific Marlins hat (I like the logo, sue me). As we walked toward the gift shop the sky opened up and a massive storm soaked the area. We were free from the rain since we were in the concourse...but then again, in retrospect, maybe the rain would have been the best option.

Thousands of campers and their guardians flooded the concourse in an effort to stay dry. What had been the most open part of the stadium turned into a traffic nightmare. There were thousands of them. Some going one way, some going the other way and some not going any which way.

We eventually found the gift shop and they had run out of the type of hat I wanted.

The rain finally let up and we were able to return to our car but not before I snapped the above photo of bus upon bus in the parking lot waiting to take a load of wet, smelly, sugary children back home.
The Marlins won the game (or so I was told after we left).

Our lovely little rental

We decided we wanted to rent a car to get around Miami and the Keys. We settled on a full size car since I wasn't that interested in tearing up the town in a tuna can on wheels. So Lisa booked us one Hotwire.com. We didn't know what we were getting nor who we were getting it from but upon arriving at Budget, we were fortunate enough to be the proud drivers of this little number, a Toyota Matrix. It's a four door hatchback with plenty of room to spare. The AC worked (which was fantastic) and one of the ammenities was a thermometer in the dashboard (which was routinely showing 90-105 on our trip). It handled like a dream, didn't guzzle gas and was comfortable, served us well and was cherry red (the first time I've driven a bright red car). I must say, we thoroughly enjoyed the Matrix experience.

Welcome to our website!

Hi everyone,

Lisa and I would like to thank you for dropping by our blog to see what's happening in our life. We're going to start off with our recent 7 days and 7 nights in Miami and the Florida Keys. We returned last night despite our better judgement. It was such an excellent vacation that Lisa and I (okay, mostly I) would happily leave the day to day stress of life behind to sit on a beach, sip a cold beer and enjoy the multicultural melting pot that is Miami and the Keys.
Alas, not everyone can be Ernest Hemmingway.
In the future this will be the best place to see pictures and get updates of what and how we're doing.
Without further ado, let us delve into the nuttiness that was our recent vacation.

Love,
Lisa & David