Cribs and kitties.

Early on, while my mom set about planning Sarah's baby shower, I hit on the idea of having a bunch of guys over for a Men's Baby Shower. The idea would be that I would tempt them over with burgers and beer, and then put them to work painting the baby room and assembling baby furniture.

My friends Zeke and Chris work on putting the baby swing together while, in the foreground, my dad does some really hard work.

And, while my friend Bazor got stuck with the lion-share of the painting, I think it worked like a charm. Thanks to his work, and those of my friends and family, Sarah and I now have a painted baby room, and assembled crib, an assembled baby swing... and I even scored an X-Box out of the deal (thanks Ben, Luke and Bazor for that)!

The baby room so far. It still needs a lot of stuff, but at least the walls and crib are taken care of.

Meanwhile, across Lake Washington, at my Aunt's house, Sarah was quite literally being showered in gifts. By the time her and her mom returned home with everything, the pile of gifts was so large that it looked like a baby bomb went off in our living room. If nothing else, the tummy monkey will be well dressed for the first half dozen months of its life. You can check out a selection of pictures here and here.

Sarah holds up the wonderful baby quilt my mom made. One of the many gifts she opened (notice the pile in the lower right.)

In addition to the new clothes and furniture for the babies, we've also got two new additions to our house hold: Wesley and Buttercup!

Wesley. For some reason he likes to lay spread out on his belly like that, with his legs behind him. It makes him look really goofy, especially when he's also trying to look fierce.

Buttercup... still hiding shortly after arriving. I also just realized, we need to sweep the floor under our bed.

Earlier this week, our friends, Shahaf and Pnina, departed on their own Round the World Adventure. And, just to one-up us, they're going for a full year! Very exciting for them. Wanting to help support fellow travelers, Sarah and I offered to watch their two cats in the absence. We can understand the fears and hassles that come with leaving your life behind while you travel for an extended period of time. So, we were happy to watch the kitties while they were gone so that they hopefully don't have to worry about them while they are exploring the Tanzania, Jordan, Nepal or any of the countless places we are jealous that they are going to visit.

If you are interested in following their adventures, you should check out their travel blog: Honeysun. "What does 'honeysun' mean?" you ask. Well, check out their blog, Shahaf explains in their first entry and Sarah and I both agree it's a great idea for a travel blog name. Best of luck on your adventures, Shahaf and Pnina!

But, back to the cats. It's been great having them around so far! The male, Wesley, was a little freaked out at first, and spent the better part of the first 24 hours hiding under the couch... or in a corner... or under the bed, but he seems pretty content now. Buttercup, on the other hand, is more daring, and is already finding new ways to explore the house and create kitty chaos. I think it will be fun having them around!

Oh, and just to keep the record going...

Sarah at 32 Weeks!

Sarah at 33 Weeks! ...less than two months left!