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Pregnancy & Dallas

We are preparing to enter the 29th week of our pregnancy. I am no longer straining to see a pregnant belly. For the longest time (about 26 weeks), the only discernable difference was the enlarged mammaries. While those are some fantastic side effects, the real deal has finally arrived and Jen’s belly is now protruding. In fact, she now follows it around as it leads the way. Our “face to face” conversations are now belly to belly instead. Junior is growing rapidly.

Last week I drove to Dallas. At 9:30PM on Wednesday evening, Justin and I piled into the Jetta and headed South. We arrived in Dallas 23 hours later and sacked out. On Friday I attended a “Discover Dallas” event hosted by DTS. I got to sit in on a couple classes, meet several professors, and chat with the President of the school. I learned a lot about DTS and what to expect there. I’m pleased to report it was all good.

DTS was quite a bit bigger than I thought, with nearly 2,000 students. It’s one of (if not the) world’s largest non-denominational seminaries. In 1994 it was the sixth largest seminary, period. I’d guess it’s moved up since then. Dallas is certainly in Texas, where they do lots of things in a big way. The worlds largest seminary (SBTS) is there. Whereas most major cities have a mega-church or two, Dallas has dozens, with several that exceed 10,000. Where you might find a religious school or two in most cities, Dallas has dozens. It has been said that Dallas is “in the buckle of the Bible belt.”

That’s not the only thing “big” you’ll find in Dallas. Dallas sports the highest concentration of tech industry outside the silicon valley. Step aside Seattle (which we referred to as “Silicon North”). On Saturday, our real estate agent took us around to help us get a feel for the real estate market.

Yet another “big” is the amount of house we can get for our money. We can get a new 4 bedroom, 2 car garage house with a golf course in the front yard and soccer fields in the back yard for $173,000. Best, it’s only a 20 minute commute into downtown. The options in that price range are many, diverse, and overwhelmingly good. To buy that much house in Atlanta or Seattle we’d expect to be paying twice that, or having a commute measured in hours.

I’m feeling more ready to move to Dallas as each day passes. The house here in Cadillac is making rapid strides toward completion. Our monster profiles are updated and we’re watching for opportunies in Dallas. The pregnancy and health insurance concerns are the only obstacles to leaving before the baby is born.

Enroute to Dallas

We’re cruising past Oklahoma City just now. So far we’ve had a perfectly uneventful trip. We’re about 3 hours from Dallas. The only “odd” thing to happen was getting an email shorty after getting out of Cadillac from a client with a “down server”. I have been unable to make a SSH connection from my Sprint cell phone connection, a recent problem. I need to figure out what’s up with that, but it just happened we were driving past my clients site so we stopped in and fixed his mail server.

They treated us to dinner, we each had to pack in a 22oz steak. It was awfully difficult work, but Justin and I managed to deal with it gracefully.

Pregnancy Update

It’s been a while since we’ve posted a “how Junior affects Jen and Matt” update.

It’s been a while since we’ve posted a “how Junior affects Jen and Matt” update. In contrast to the first trimester (which was bordering on abject misery for Jen), the second trimester is pretty smooth sailing. Based on all the books and web sites we had studied, we expected this and planned our trips to Costa Rica and the Virgin Islands accordingly.

What we have learned in this second trimester is that Jen conceals the evidence quite well. While traveling, I had to point out that Jen was pregnant or people wouldn’t have known. Most challenged the pronouncement, looking first at the belly, and then to mommy’s face to verify. At 24 weeks, Jen is finally beginning to show, but the bulge is really only evident when she’s au naturale. Naturally, that limits the audience.

I’d expect that more than a few ladies read that nugget in envy. I’m also certain that nearly every proud papa out there knows my disappointment. After all, I’ve been waiting for that belly to “pop” out and make it’s self-evident proclamation. How else can I walk around with that silly “Yup, I did that” grin on my face? My day is coming, it’s just a matter of time.

I’ve noticed a few role reversals happening lately. For starters, I’m no longer the appetite that drives the eating habits of our home. Before the pregnancy, Jen was the driving force behind meal planning. She based a significant portion of her creativity on trying to select foods I’d like. In the first trimester, that shifted radically with her eating the few things she could keep down (or that tasted fine coming back up) and I fended for myself.

Now that we’re in the second trimester and Jen can eat again, I find our eating habits have reverted to their original patterns, except we’ve reversed roles. I’ve been shedding a few pounds so my intake is considerably moderated from my mountain climbing days. Jen has taken over my role as primary eater and for the first time, I find myself defending my food.

I have been advised to expect many more role reversals during this transition from happy dual income couple with no kids to the brave new land of parenthood. The best book I’ve read on this subject is Babyhood by Paul Reiser. Instead of boring (or frightening) you with all the details, he presents his own transition in the same comedic fashion that has made Mad About You such a popular television show. It’s a very enjoyable read.

Junior’s Photo

First, for you speculators, Junior is not a name, simply a title our Doc calls our little baby. Thus, it’s what I’m calling it for now. We have chosen not to know Junior’s gender, because I don’t want to know. Jen leans towards knowing, so the compromise was having the nurse write it on a scrap of paper which we’ve placed in a sealed envelope. Without further ado, here’s our 2nd and 3rd photos of Junior:

Home sweet home.

St. John is a getaway destination. In that sense, it’s a wonderful place to go. We got off to a great start, exploring and adapting to the surrounding. We woke up early each morning at 10. We explored the beaches and snorkeled around the island, hanging out with lobsters, barracudas, sea turtles, and octopuses. The biggest worry was making sure our belly got as much sun as our backs got while snorkeling.

However, in the latter few days, the wonderfulness got rubbed off. One must understand that even paradise has rainy days. The clouds and wind can block the gorgeous views but we also had a wonderful place to hang out and wait for the sun to return. We had all the creature comforts one could want. We were managing just fine until a cold decided to plague us and from it there was no escape.

We had been looking for a “Matt & Jen update” photo moment and Jen suggested putting the master suite back in order. The photo would be us sitting in the middle of the room, looking as miserable as we felt with all our used Kleenex blanketing the surrounding area. The caption would read: “Wish you were here.” I thought it was a good idea but we couldn’t summon the energy to do anything about it.

Our colds are now reduced to minor congestion. Our flight from Chicago to Grand Rapids was cancelled last night so we got a cab ride from O’Hare to GRR. We arrived home 8 hours later than expected (8:00AM). Combine the travel fatigue with recovery from the colds and we’re wiped out. A couple of solid nights of sleep will fix us right up. Tomorrow will be a brighter day.

Off to St. John, Virgin Islands

It’s 7:54AM and we’re already in Chicago, having completed the first leg of our flights to St. Thomas. Flight info is as follows:

GRR -> ORD American Eagle #4152
ORD -> San Juan, PR – AA # 1367
San Juan -> St. Thomas, VI – AA #5136
Cab to Red Hook Ferry to St. Johns (Cruz Bay)

Returning Jan 18th:
St. Thomas -> San Juan – AA #5141
San Juan -> ORD – AA #658
ORD -> GRR – American Eagle #4171

Our phone number there is: 340-777-1053

Cell Phone Data Plans

I just have to take a minute to rave about how nice it is to have cell phone data service for my laptop. A couple weeks back on our departure flight from Grand Rapids, our flight was delayed a bit due to the inclement weather. We were already boarded on the jet and the attendants never provide you with enough information. I whipped out my laptop and cell phone, visited The Weather Channel and was able to inform the passengers that the storm was below us and unlike everyone in Detroit, Chicago, Cincinnatti, and Indianapolis, we would probably get to depart.

We’re now on our way home, sitting in Atlanta, waiting for our connecting flight. My emails are downloading in the background and I’m posting a blog entry. This is far better than paying for a subscription to WiFi service. With Sprint, I add a $15 Vision pack to my cell phone subscription. The WiFi subscriptions available in some airports cost that much, and only work in a few airports. I have access in any metro area in the country, and on most freeways. Nice.

Our flight back from Costa Rica to Atlanta was uneventful, exactly the way we like flights to be. The weather in Grand Rapids looks interesting, but not severe enough to impact our arrival. We should be home in about 6 more hours.

C.R. Update #2

Wow, so much has happened, and there’s so much to say but that story will wait to be told when I’m not being charged for internet use. For now, you’ll just have to be content to know that we’re alive and well, and suffering intensely from days of lazing around on the beaches. Love, Matt & Jen