Water Water Everywhere...

We've got most of the water up, but Doug had to come over and help me take the carpet from the back porch outside to speed up the drying. Between the two of us, we couldn't lift it, and were barely able to drag it out onto the back patio. We put some chairs underneath it to let it dry in the sunlight. You wouldn't believe the amount of water that started pouring off of it! Within a couple of days, it was dry enough to move back onto the porch and weighed much much less! I was able to roll it up my self and move it back in, as well as reinstall it. It's too bad I can't lose weight that fast! With a little sweat and a lot of Febreeze, things are relatively back to normal, except that we have to clean up everything that we threw here and there to keep it from getting wet! What a great summer vacation activity!

The Good People At The Red Lobster...

So I go into the Red Lobster and order takeout at the bar. I ordered a container of Tartar Sauce and 6 biscuits, and that's all.

The waitress asked if I was sure that was all I wanted and said, "yes, that's it. My wife is pregnant (that's nice to say by the way...) and she wants tartar sauce and biscuits."

The waitress smiled and said, "She must be REALLY pregnant...I'll be right back."

Moments later, the waitress appeared with a bag and said, "I threw in a couple of extra biscuits, ya know, for the baby." She winked. I winked back, said thanks, and I took the bag and I left.

I think the folks at the Red Lobster are skilled customer service agents, and it's too bad a couple of them can't go and work at Arby's--they're way to sarcastic there.

Long Island Lament...

We had a bad storm last night and got over four inches of rain in under two hours.

We got water in three different rooms, the utility room, the Florida room, and the back closet.

We were supposed to be going to Long Island for Mike Corrigan's wedding, but the mess was too overwhelming and we had to cancel.

We've got fans on in every wet room, and we still have to mop up water that's STILL coming into the utility room. The sump pump froze with the amount of water that came in, but it's working again. We got the marjority of the water up, but still have damp carpets in the closet and the Florida room.

Oh, and did I mention that it's still raining?

Doug came over and helped clean out the gutters and thinks we need to have them repitched so that they don't drain into the lowest part of the yard, which conveniently butts up against the house.

I'm sure you've noticed the lack of humor--Liz and I have had better days.

Last Doctor Visit...

Nothing much more to report. We went to the doctor on Monday. Everything looks fine and over the course of the next few weeks, Liz has to go through several tests. The doctor didn't do another ultrasound yet, but we will have another in about three weeks.

Liz has been really nauseous, but I wouldn't really call it morning sickness. It's more like all day every day sickness. I asked the doctor if there was a support group for husband's dealing with their pregnant wives. He said no, then he said I could call this guy "Kevorkian" and he'd take care of me. I'm not sure if I'm really comfortable with a funny gynecologist, though, in all fairness, it was my first trip to a gynecologist ever. Maybe they're all funny, maybe they have to be in their line of work.

At any rate, as we find out more...we'll post it here!

Cravings...

--Shepherd's Pie, occurred at 3:00 AM. Didn't happen. Liz took a Berry flavored TUMS instead.
--Pickles and Ice Cream, yes it actually happened. However, the pickles were on a hamburger, which was followed by an ice cream sandwich. Liz doesn't normally eat pickles so this is significant.
--CASHEWS, more CASHEWS, and then a few more CASHEWS. Did I mention that she's wanting CASHEWS?
--Bananas...monkeys would be jealous.

Other than that...nothing way out there yet, but we're only 9 weeks in. I'm sure big changes are on the horizon!

We'll have more news on Monday after we see the doctor again.

New Music Box!

The music will play for most of you as soon as you load the website, automatically. If you don't want to listen to it, there is a gray music box on the right hand side of the weblog if you will just scroll down a little. There are controls in the top left corner of the box where you can change the song, or stop it all together by pressing the square button. You may have to press a couple of times. I would suggest stopping the audio stream if you are going to watch the videos. To play the videos, for those of you having a trouble, just press the arrow in the middle of the video screen. You may have to press it a couple of times. Hope this clears some of the new technology issues up, email me if you're still having trouble.

-Mike

A Brand New Baby Blog!

Liz and I have created a new blog for the new baby that's on the way! Liz is pregnant, and the baby is due in February! You can see all the new information at: http://fisherbaby.blogspot.com

For now, here's the sonogram picture from today...much more to come!

SURPRISE!

We've called and emailed many of you to tell you our good news about Liz being pregnant. We saw the heartbeat today, and the doctor said everything looked great and we could begin telling people! The heart was beating at 128 beats per minute, and it was perhaps the most incredible and miraculous thing Liz or I have ever seen. We have a definite due date now of February 27th, but the doctor said we would just shoot for February and leave it at that. The pictures show the baby at 7 weeks and 2 days. I've labelled one with where the heart and the head are.

We're so happy everyone knows now so that we can talk about it!

Ginny and Grandma Find Out...

More Videos!

More Videos of Siobhan, and Dolly's 95th birthday back in June!

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Gastroenteritis: Best Diet Ever?

Somewhere, somehow, we've picked up this freeloading germ that is systematically liquifying our intestinal tracts.

I'm moving swiftly into day number 3 with this bug, and my butt is all but married to the toilet lid now. Liz ended up at the hospital last night for fluids because she had become so dehydrated. I've been considering the hospital all day, but unfortunately can't go beyond a 15 foot radius from the bathroom.

I know I've lost a good 10 to 15 pounds, and at this rate, I should be fairly thin by my birthday in August. Maybe everyone can pool their presents into one large gift certificate for the plastic surgeon.

The doctor said we should eat this BRAT diet: Bananas, Rice, Applesauce, and Toast. I've eaten a little Rice and Toast, and had some chicken broth, but this is an awful diet. I wish BRAT stood for Beef, Roasted chicken, Angel hair pasta, and Tomato sauce.

I must admit, though, that I've gotten way more than the usual amount of sympathy than is usually doled out in the event that I'm ill. Barb and Doug have been over several times, my wife has made toast for me, even though she's sick too, and everyone keeps asking how I'm doing. I love it, although, I probably should go and check on Liz and make sure that the sympathy is being appropriately reciprocated.

Feel free to call, but I wouldn't come over. That is, unless you have a full body chemical warfare suit that you can just throw on over your clothes. We don't have a decontamination chamber, but I could hose you down and throw bleach on you in the driveway...just a thought.

I must go now...nature's calling, AGAIN.

All The Grandparents Know!

We called my parents today in North Carolina and told them, with Leigh's help! My mother had it figured out just before we told her, but her and Dad were both happy.

We're still going to wait a couple more weeks to tell other people, but it's nice to be able to share our excitement with our families.

We have been so sick today, we think with food poisoning, and being able to tell someone else made us feel a little better.

More to come...

CAUGHT! (Posted on the National Day to celebrate Freedom...Ironic?)

I'm taking a break from my severe stomach disorder to tell you about our conquests over the weekend:

We've caught three squirrels in the traps set by the exterminator we hired to get rid of them.

They are no longer with us, though not in the way you think.

I took the traps down off the roof and drove the squirrels 10 miles away to live in a nice park. (Because if the guy removes them, it's $45 a pop. I can do it myself for free.) This is their only chance. If they come back, I will take the trap off the roof and walk 10 feet to the freezer, where I will place them overnite and then put them back on the roof to serve as a warning to other animals that would like to live in our house rent free.

The exterminator guy went up in the attic and said he didn't see any damage, but he did find a dead squirrel. And it was a BIG sucker! Evidently they DO eat rat poison, and I am preparing an attic buffet made of several different kinds.

It's really too bad squirrel soup is not a favorite in these northern climes. I could be making money hand over fist with all the delicious backyard ingredients. I could serve it with homemade crow pie, as the crows are my next target.

Four and twenty blackbirds baked in a pie? That's the kind of rugged, forthright, forward thinking that builds civilizations. Toss in a few dozen squirrels, and we've got the beginnings of a new sort of miracle...southern style. I should send this to Larry the Cable Guy. If this doesn't embody what "Git-r-done" means, nothing does!

First Video!

Barb finds out as part of her birthday gift!

Two Down, Two to go!

We told Barb and Doug last night as part of Barb's birthday present. If I can figure it out later, I'll add a video of them finding out.

We're telling my parents tomorrow afternoon. We've hatched a plan with Leigh to take them the picture and we'll tell them over the phone while Leigh shows them. I can't wait to tell them!

My sister called yesterday to see if I knew what the BIG secret was. (How she found out I don't know...but I have a couple of young suspects in mind...) I flat out lied to her and made her believe it was something else! (I pretended to be mad, saying that people never tell me anything and when she finds out what the secret is, to call me immediately!) I love it!

New Technology!

I hope this works! Here's Siobhan playing in the pool from last weekend!

Revelations...

While we are going to wait for a couple more weeks to tell everybody, we are gearing up to tell our parents in the next couple of days.

For Barb and Doug, it will be their first grandchild, for my parents, it will be their third.

We are more excited than all of our Christmases, Birthdays, and any other happy thing put together to share our news.