pineapple express

We're at 33 weeks and Professor Goldblatt is a squirmin' and turnin' all over the place, giving us interesting visions of her life out of the womb. The Good Prof now weighs around 4.3 lbs, not according to our online source, but according to the doctor Overboard visited last week. That weight makes her around the size of a pineapple, but less prickly.

Goldblatt is starting to look less wrinkly as she grows and her skeleton hardens. If she's anything like her big brother, a strong skeleton (especially skull) will be a bonus. After all, Kenny managed to clock his head off the tub twice this afternoon while pulling on his underpants. But I digress...

under construction - part iv

The siding and gutters are all done, and the upstairs passed the initial plumbing/electrical inspection. The bath tub is in place in the kids' bathroom, and the base of our new shower is in our bathroom. The drywall is up and the've mud and taped just about everything. Sanding should start tomorrow, and maybe even some tiling this week. All in all, not too shabby...


Front of the house with siding and gutters in place.


Goldblatt's room and closet.


Kenny's room


The hallway (gotta love a good hallway).


Kids' bathroom and the rescued tub.


Our room. I love, love, love, the new windows. Had to be said.


The base to our new shower - complete with a seat/foot rest for those who shave their legs in the shower.

happy birthday, kenny!

The party may have been last weekend, but the big day is today. Here's to the world's greatest three year-old!

mr. cool

kenny's birthday weekend - the teaser video

Stories and pictures coming soon...

we should all enjoy an ice cream cone this much

jicama be kidding me

We're in Week 32 and Professor Goldblatt's arrival is growing closer and closer.

As of now, the good Prof. is roughly 3.75 pounds and around 16.7 inches long, which means things are starting to get cramped in there - like living in a Manhattan studio apartment, but without having to pay exorbitant rent. In produce terms, Goldblatt weighs about the same as a large jicama. "What the %$#@ is a large jicama," you ask? No? Was that just me? I suppose I should really do more grocery shopping. Anyhoo.

Apparently, Goldblatt will gain anywhere from a third to a half of her birth weight in the next seven weeks. It's like crash dieting in reverse. Nifty.

In Overboard news, she's doing well, but waddling a touch more these days because of the large, growing jicama in her belly. Also, Goldblatt is doing some sort of ongoing synchronized swimming routine in there, as she's in constant motion and we get to see those little ripples of elbows, knees and feet across Overboard's tummy. Kind of cool, but no fun when Overboard is trying to sleep.

awwww, mannnn

Picking up on something he undoubtedly heard me say a few million times, Kenny has a new phrase to employ.

The other morning, while trying somewhat successfully to get dressed, Kenny got frustrated at his shoes, which sadly didn't want to Velcro themselves. With a big dramatic sigh, Kenny then groaned, "Awwww, mannnn..."

happy birthday, dr. overboard!

Here's to Dr. Overboard...she's not getting older, she's getting more awesome.

under construction - part iii

The word of the week is "Siding"...


No siding here, but check out the new windows!


Side of the house...and siding!


Aaaaaaand...the back of the house, with (wait for it)...SIDING! Looks good, no?

wedding weekend

Two weekends ago we traveled to DC for Overboard's cousin's wedding. It was a fun occasion, and a chance for Kenny (and the rest of us) to visit with lots of relatives. We took a fair amount of pictures, but I tried to pick out some of the best ones here...


Kenny rests up before his busy Friday night.

NOW he's ready to hit the town. Yeah, baby.

Kenny and his gearhead cousins talk cars.

A family outing to the Air & Space museum near Dulles. Lots of planes and helicopters? Fine by Kenny.

A space shuttle too. Just for good measure.

Pre-wedding dinner. We had to negotiate a bit over whether or not this could be his wedding outfit. Let's just say Mommy won that argument.

The happy couple, Maura and Tyler.

Grammy Shirley is all smiles when surrounded by Uncle Henry, Aunt Melissa and Cousin Sara.

Uncle John, Aunt Amy, Sara and Grammy.

Family portrait with Grammy.

Kenny and Cousin Bessie-Margaret played many rounds of "run in circles while laughing hysterically."

Overboard and Kenny get their groove on.

Kenny and his comedy partner, Cousin Peter.

under construction - part ii

Just a few more construction pix. These are actually from a week or two back, but I don't have the latest just yet. But what do you care? These are all new to you, right? Right. So there you have it.


This is after the gables were added, but before the windows were put in.


Piping in the kids' bathroom.


This is taken from Kenny's room. The closer window is in his room, then his closet, then Goldblatt's window and room.


This unfortunate flue was in Goldblatt's room, just in front of the corner of her closet. Luckily, we were able to have it readjusted and shrunk (pix coming soon).


Gotta love the new windows (and the tax refund they'll bring).

Up next: Exterior shots of the new windows and siding! Wow. You can just feel the excitement.

goldblatt's just pondering her navel

Week 31 is upon us, so what does that mean?

Well, Professor Goldblatt is now clocking in around 16 inches long and about 3.3 pounds. Or, roughly the size/weight of four navel oranges. She can turn her head from side to side, and her limbs and body are pudging up as fat accumulates underneath her skin. She's also Ms. Squirmypants. Overboard is perpetually grinning and commenting how our little girl is "really moving around in there!" Last night we even saw some fun ripples across Overboard's belly, as the good professor decided to go on a roll. It was like Aliens, but cuter.

one big happy family

As previously discussed, the house is under construction. Our contractor is an awesome Chi-caw-go guy and Kenny has gotten to know him as the dude he sees every morning as we're on the way out, and he's on the way in.

The other night Overboard picked up Kenny from daycare and asked if him if he was excited to go home and see everyone.

"We'll go see Daddy, and Sadie..."
"...and Mr. LaPelusa," said the boy.

happy mother's day

Happy Mother's Day to Grammy Shirley, Grandma Jackie, Great Grandma Barbara and all of the amazing mothers we know. But above all else, Happy Mother's Day to Dr. Overboard.

Love,
Prof. Evenkeel, Prof. Goldblatt, Ms. Sadie and this guy...


Kenny knows the simple truth that mommies are awesome.

cabbage patch kid

Week 30 has arrived and we're starting to gear up for the home stretch.

Professor Goldblatt is now measuring in around 15.7 inches, and weighs nearly three pounds - or, wait for it...about the size of a head of cabbage.

The Professor's eyesight continues to develop, but for now she's still squinting like someone who just came out of the movie theatre into broad daylight. On the upside, she doesn't smell like popcorn, but she very well may have some sort of Goobers stuck to her feet.

As for Overboard, she's doing well, but coming down off of the energetic high that was the second trimester, and now searching out more and more naps during the weekend.

That's all I've got. You may resume your normal Web browsing at this time.

dandelion man

Today in the park, I helped Kenny discover the joys of dandelions. While his blowing technique wasn't terribly efficient, his shaking-rapidly-to-disperse technique was pretty effective. Or, to sum up, we had fun going through every dandelion we could find (all 652 of them).

kenny's not a fan of urinals - he prefers to stall

Each night at bedtime, Kenny demands a sippy cup of water, which he then proceeds to guzzle down. Afterwards, he yells out from his bed that he "NEED MORE WATER!" As of late, I have obliged the second request, but caveat it with the instructions that if he wants a third, he has to go potty first. This worked pretty well the first couple of times. Then, our smart little pisher figured out a great way to stall instead of going to bed.

"DADDY! WANT TO GO POTTY?"

This puts me in a tough spot. I need to oblige, because I don't want to do anything that sets back potty training in any way, shape or form. However, I also know that he often doesn't really need to go potty, he just prefers hanging out in the bathroom than in his bed (where he is supposed to be unconscious, and not demanding water or potty breaks). When we do go, I get to be "Captain Hardass" and deny him reading materials, toys, or any other way to do anything but get in, get on, pee and get out.

Tonight, in an awesome moment, Kenny asked to go potty in between sippy cups One and Two. I opened his door and he was already standing there, all set to waste my time in the name of not going to sleep.

Looming over him, sippy cup in hand, I asked, "Kenny...do you really need to go potty or are you just stalling?"

"I'm stalling."

"Would you rather just drink your water in bed? Or do you REALLY need to go potty?"

"Water in bed."

"Okay then."

I proceeded to tuck him in, hand over the sippy cup, and then walk out of his room. Upon closing the door, I broke out in hysterical laughter.

As for Kenny, he promptly drank and passed out like a college freshman.

no, not racquetball...the other one

If Prof. Goldblatt is about the size of a butternut squash then it must be Week 29.

Yes, according to our trusty source, the good Professor is weighing in around 2.5 lbs and is just over 15 inches from head to heel, or, about the size of the aforementioned butternut squash. Her muscles and lungs are getting stronger (in anticipation of gross amounts of kicking and screaming), and her head is expanding in order to accommodate her ridiculously powerful brain. Apparently, billions of neurons are developing in Goldblatt's cranium, as she ponders the mysteries of the universe (and wonders why Overboard went for the spicy chili at lunch).

Prof. Goldblatt is also stockpiling calcium, as around 200 milligrams of the stuff is deposited into her skeleton each day. This means that her bones are hardening, and if she's really a Rolnick, developing pointy elbows for jabbing into people's ribs to illustrate the hilarity of the joke she just told.

Due to all of this growth activity, Goldblatt's nutritional needs reach their peak during this trimester. It is here that we should all pause and take a moment to be thankful that Overboard is the one carrying the child, and not me. Because unless Chipotle burritos count as a nutritious meal, this kid would be screwed.

Finally, in Overboard news...she's still doing pretty well and commenting more and more about Goldblatt's movements. Often, this involves grabbing my hand (and occassionally Kenny's) and placing it on her belly and demanding/asking, "Did you feel that? No? What about now?"