26 Weeks :)

Baby boy update time!

We had my 26 week check-up today and the baby is looking good and healthy!

You have five check-ups with your OBGYN here.  This was my third appointment.  So far each one has included an ultrasound (and you're sent home with one picture).  So that's been fun to see the baby so much!  

I'll meet with my OBGYN two more times (at 30 weeks and 36 weeks) and then it's onto weekly visits at the hospital.  My OBGYN will not be the doctor delivering the baby.  Whoever is the on-call doctor at the hospital will, after I accomplish the labor part with midwives (and no epidural!) -- at least this is what I've been told so far.

Here's a picture of me and the baby bump today!  If you doubt how big the "bump" is getting - check out that shadow behind me....he's definitely growing in there!  The doctor said he's 800 grams.  (I just looked it up and that's 1.7 lbs :)  I'd tell you my weight in kilograms, but I don't want you going and looking it up in pounds... ;)

In other news, it's cold and snowy here!  I think there was 2 feet of snow in our backyard when we returned from the cruise!

This past weekend, we hit the slopes with our favorite people...nun other than the TOR Sisters!  (OK - I already used this joke on Instagram, but it was worth the repeat :)

The RAs are here and the rest of the students arrive this Saturday -- we're excited for the semester to begin!

God bless!

Mediterranean Cruise: Life Aboard the Ship

We were super blessed to be able to take a MSC Cruise around the Mediterranean Sea, making stops in Sicily & Malta, Spain (Montserrat), and France, Monaco & Italy (click on the three links to see pictures from those visits).

It was great being able to visit so many countries over one week and return to the same place to eat and sleep - and have fun - each night!

Here's what life aboard the ship was like...

Our ship docked in Malta

Close-up of our ship and the lifeboats

The top floor of the ship (the outdoor pools were open,
but I never saw anyone using them because it was mainly in the 40s and 50s)

Mandatory evacuation drill before embarking

Our cabin, with balcony and bathroom (pack n play for Francis; sofa bed for Ellie)

The indoor pool and hot tubs

Casual dinner at the restaraunt

Gala Night at the restaraunt

Posing on the 'fancy' stairs in the lobby

Francis is currently obsessed with pockets

Each night we enjoyed an amazing musical or acrobatic performance in the theatre

During the day, there were also some kid performances

starring Shrek

Frozen

Listening to music in the lobby

Huge Christmas tree in the lobby

You could also get food 20/24 hours in the Buffet Room

Food was amazing!

The kids with the MSC Mascot

Brian and I got a "date hour" to ourselves
when we were able to leave the kids in a 1-3 year old room supervised with free babysitters!

It was an amazing, memorable trip :)

You can see our pictures from Sicily & Malta; Spain (Montserrat); and France, Monaco & Italy by clicking on those separate links - enjoy!!

Mediterranean Cruise: France, Monaco & Italy

After our day at Montserrat, we headed to France.

Our stop was supposed to be in Marseille in Provence France.  We had reserved a rental car for the day and had planned to visit a St. Joseph and Marian apparition sites about one-and-a-half hours from Marseille.

However, as we left Barcelona, the captain informed us  that the weather was not good near Marseille - so we would be stopping further along the coast in Villefranche-sur-Mer.  As we watched the sunrise over our cabin's balcony, we had no idea what to expect!  Turns out, we in store for a beautiful day!

Villefranche is on the Cote d'Azur, otherwise known as the French Riviera.  It is nestled between Nice and Monte Carlo.  We had a beautiful view of the coast from our boat - however, instead of docking at a normal port - we were anchored a short-distance from the shore for the day.

This meant we had to be "tendered" by the smaller lifeboats from the ship to shore.  We enjoyed the extra "boat ride" along the coast!  (And comforting to know those lifeboats they say you'll take in case of an emergency actually work :)

There's not too much to see in Villefranche, other than pure beauty!...

  

So we walked to the train station and rode 20 minutes to Monte Carlo, Monaco.

Monaco is the second-smallest country after the Vatican.

Monaco is best-known for its casino in Monte Carlo!

We had a lovely lunch at the famous Cafe de Paris outside of the casino.

The kids enjoyed strolling down the ritzy streets in the warm weather (55 F).

So it wasn't exactly like the day we had planned outside of Marseille, but it was a pretty great day and we got to add another country to the list of those we've visited as a family!

Our final stop before returning to Rome was in Genoa, Italy.

We went to Mass at Cattedrale Di San Lorenzo, with it's beautiful black and white striped Gothic marble facade and interior.

We visited the beautiful fountain in Piazza De Ferrari.

And then had lunch at Trattoria Vegia Zena.

Genoa (Genova) is famous for it's pesto alla genovese sauce, which originated there -- so we were sure to try some!  And we can agree, it's pretty delicious fresh from Genoa!

Our final stop was the Aquarium of Genoa, one of the largest in Europe!  The kids (and Brian) love to visit aquariums, so we've visited a lot of them, but I can definitely say this is the best one we've been to so far!

After our day in Genoa, we headed back to the ship, and that night returned to Civitavecchia outside of Rome - where our trip would come to an end!