And the Madness Begins!!!

Yes it is true. Today marked the first day of March Madness- the 2009 Men's NCAA basketball tournament. That means it's college basketball, basketball, basketball in the Hamilton house. For the next few weeks expect us to be following basketball on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays.
For game highlights and scores check out ESPN.
Keep your fingers crossed that our brackets match the game results!

An End of the Quarter Treat for Me & Baby

Today I finished my last final of Winter quarter. Not only was it an end to a more than busy few months, but the end of finals for Nursing school! That's right-I'm done with finals!! All that is left is to finish Spring quarter and Senior practicum and then it is on to the NCLEX certification exam. I'll be a nurse before we know it!!

To celebrate the great event Robbie took me out to get an ice cream cone at one of the best ice cream parlors in town, Molly Moons. If you haven't been, it's a must try!! They use all organic ingredients and all compostable supplies. My favorite thing to do is get one of their freshly handmade waffle cones with 2 half scoop flavors. Believe me, a half scoop is not small. Only a real adventurer prepared for a challenge should take on two full scoops!

My favorite flavors are salted caramel, strawberry balsamic and of course chocolate. But I have yet to try a flavor that I didn't think was fabulous.

Here is a picture of me enjoying my treat- I think baby enjoyed it too because I got a whole lot of kicking afterward.

~Chelle

Tracking the Baby's Growth or Salad Ingredients??

Ever since my two work buddies, Sara and Lisa, found out that I was pregnant, they've been tracking the size of the baby on my work board. We even have a "NRTW", (Not Related to Work) box separated for their tracking. Each week I read about a fruit or vegetable that is comparable to the baby's size. Above is Sara finishing up a carrot from week 21 when the baby measured at 10.5 inches.
Originally the box took up less than a quarter of my board. As you can see it has been enlarged to over half of my board. A spaghetti squash is supposed to go up for this week, week 22. It's starting to look like the size of my whole board may not last for very long considering that we need to get to at least 38 weeks...

~Chelle

The Best Company when Pregnant... Nursing Students

I have to admit that when we first got pregnant I was worried about the fact that I would be in nursing school for most of the pregnancy. But what I have found is that being surrounded by nursing students while pregnant has been nothing short of a wonderful experience. You really can't find a more nurturing and supportive group of people to be around. Not only do they understand all the physiology of what my body is going through, but they appreciate and are excited about it. I feel like I have nurses checking on me and the baby every day that I am at school. It has been great!

During our last week of seminars for my community health rotation, my classmates surprised me and another student that is getting married with a surprise lunch /bridal shower/baby shower. I was so touched by this thoughtful and generous gesture.

Here are me and bride to be Brandy at Ohana, the restaurant they took us to for lunch, and a picture of me with my first baby gifts.

I can't thank my friends/classmates enough for how wonderful they have been. We are all so lucky to be having these amazing nurses entering the field in a few months!!

Piano Taken...and in Under an Hour!

Just a quick update. Within 30 minutes of posting the piano online we had 3 responses of interest! Within an hour of posting we had talked to the first responder and scheduled a time for pick up during the week.
We were so surprised to see such a great response. We are even happier to know that the piano will finally be headed to a great home!

Piano in Need of a Good Home

A few years ago we received a beautiful antique piano that we hoped to make a permanent fixture in our home. Unfortunately, it just wasn't meant to be. First we had challenges trying to get it upstairs- it is quite heavy! And now with the coming of the new baby there just won't be any place for the piano. So today we posted an add on Craig's list for the piano. "Free piano, you move". So if any of you know of possible takers, please send them our way. Here is a link to the add. Cross your fingers that the piano goes soon- we need to get working on the nursery!!

Piano listing

Dine Around Seattle

With the arrival of March came the arrival of "Dine Around Seattle- 30 for $30". This is a great event that takes place all of March and November. It involves 30 Seattle restaurants offering 3 course meals for $30. It's a great deal! I love this event because it gives us an opportunity to try out restaurants that we typically wouldn't get to try. Here is a link to the list of participating restaurants and more information about the event.

Last week I was able to take advantage of this great event and head to Restaurant Zoe with my wonderful chef cousin Bernadette, and my cousins Mariel and Micha. It was a delicious meal and great fun to catch up with my cousins. Here we are after our wonderful meal.

I can't decide what restaurant to go to next!

~Chelle