We got another ultrasound today, this time because Beth's been having some problems. But the baby is just fine, although we still couldn't tell the baby's gender (baby is too modest). But the nurse said it has "very delicate features" and it's face was "dainty" so I hope it's a girl. To me, however, the face looked like a bare skull. You can see a picture on the baby pictures page. By the way, we've changed our minds about the name if it's a boy, but we haven't decided what we've changed to. Anyway, Beth's been hurting like hell for about a week nonstop now, hopefully we've turned the corner on that though. In other news, it hasn't rained here in weeks, it's hotter than the 4th of July in Muscat, and two of my bushes (see 3-26-2000) I have officially pronounced dead. A third is dying too and I'm trying to save it. The other two look OK so far. The tomato plant is also doing well, producing like crazy.

Last night I felt the baby move for the first time! Just after we went to bed I put my hand on Beth's belly where she said the baby was, and a few moments later I felt a kick! It felt like a little ripple moving across her belly. She says baby's been kicking her in the same spot for days now (her bladder) and she is really getting tired of it.

Rewind to mid-May. Beth's mom is visiting us. Out of a small patch of dirt right by the deck, a plant much taller than the other weeds has sprung up to around a foot tall. Beth and I wonder what it is. Beth's mom says it looks like a tomato plant. We leave it alone, marveling that a tomato plant should be growing right there, where none grew last year, where I dug everything up and turned the earth over a few weeks before. We staked it when it got tall enough to fall over but otherwise left it alone. Today, Beth and I shared the first vine-ripe cherry tomato from that plant. Large as cherry tomatoes go, and just about perfectly ripe. Good stuff!!!! Beth and I had our Wednesday night class at church with the preschoolers today. We all had a lot of fun tonight because they found out that the little plastic buggy in the room can fly. On a related note, my arms are really tired. Thank goodness for the distracting power of cookies over 2- and 3-year-olds.

Beth and I have sold the Jeep, with plans to be car payment-free until the baby comes and get something a little more baby-practical afterwards. We got $15000 for it, which was enough to pay off our lease and cover the remainder of our other car payment. We'll miss that Jeep, but the nearly $600 a month that this will save us is worth it for now. We already have used some of the savings to paint the master bedroom and put up a border.

Lot of stuff happened in the past week or so. I was alone for a few days and headed up to Michigan... ..again...last Thursday. I made the trip alone in 11 hours and 47 minutes (as opposed to 14 1/2 hours with a pregnant woman, her mother, and a flat tire) but that kinda sounds like a Jeff Foxworthy joke. Reference his first album. Anyway, Beth had a baby shower last week and we got a whole bunch of stuff for the wee one. Our neice Stephanie got married on the 29th, and nobody got into their luggage, due to betrayal by insiders. I never would have suspected Marve to turn to the dark side. We were prepared (4 boxes of minute rice and 2 BIG bags of bean bag chair stuff) but their luggage was in the Jeep, which was hidden at an undisclosed location that Marve knew and wouldn't tell. The wedding itself was really nice, and the reception was a lot of fun. The next day we drove back down here (13 hours 20 minutes with a dinner stop) and that's it. No more travelling until...well, maybe ever. Beth is just beat, and the doctor told her today to stay put and rest. Fine with her. Me too.