The Details

Let me start by saying that I would NEVER intentionally put my pregnant wife or me in harm's way. No one, and I mean NO ONE, could have predicted the way things ended up happening. Hindsight is 20/20 and there are many things I/we would have done differently knowing now what I didn't know then. The important part is the result of all this...Amanda and I are back home. Amanda feels fine and the baby is doing just fine too.

We arrived in Cancun late in the afternoon on Wednesday (the 19th) and checked into our hotel. The person at the front desk told us they would have more information about potential evacuations the next morning at 9:00am, so we did our best to enjoy the rest of the day at the hotel. As it turns out, it would be our only night at the resort. We had a very good dinner and we also walked on the beach as moderately big waves crashed on the shore. We were able to watch CNN from our room, so we got an update on Wilma and the forecast track before going to bed. The next morning, I got up a little earlier because Amanda and I wanted to eat at the Japanese restaurant in the hotel that evening and you needed to make reservations between 7 and 8am down in the lobby. As I open the room door, I see an orange sheet on the floor. As you can probably guess, the sheet said that the decision had been made to evacuate the hotel. The evacuation process would take place between 9am and noon. So, I closed the door, woke Amanda up, told her the news, and suggested that we take showers and then go eat a big breakfast. At breakfast, you could see the looks of concern and nervousness on the faces of the other hotel guests. The hotel was handing out "to-go" boxes so people could put together some snacks to take with them to the shelter. Amanda and I packed ours with granola, dried apples, apricots, prunes, and various seeds. We figured this was the best thing to pack for ourselves...especially for Amanda as the mix of fruits and nuts would provide a higher level of nutritional value than just about anything else available. After breakfast, we went back up to the room and reorganized our luggage so we could take the important items and leave the rest of our stuff in the room. The evacuation sheet told us to take our IDs, money, bathroom items, one blanket and one pillow per person, and room keys. We took those plus several bottles of water from the room refrigerator, our sandals (in case we had to walk through water...which we did have to do), cell phones (damn batteries didn't last very long), a couple card games, and sleeping clothes. We stayed in our room until just before noon so I could get one last update on Wilma before we had to leave. We went down to the lobby and boarded a bus that would take us to the evacuation shelter. The shelter was a large gymnasium which consisted of two basketball courts at opposite ends of the gym with some space in between. When we got there, the place was already packed with people. There were these green mats we had to use to lay on and by the time we got to the shelter, there weren't many left, so we managed to grab a couple and squeeze ourselves into a small spot on one of the basketball courts. Here is what it looked like in the gym:

You can see my black backpack and our other black bag being used as a pillow prop at the very bottom of the picture. Not only were we packed in there like sardines, there was no A/C and no way for the wind (which was starting to increase) to create any airflow through the gym. It got hot...and with all the humidity, it was muggy, sticky, and just plain nasty in this gym. The hotel did a decent job taking care of our food and water needs, but as you can imagine, it was on the most minimal of levels. There was plenty of bottled water and fruit. On a side note, I don't think I'll be eating any bananas for the next year or so...I ate enough down there to last me a looooong time. Most of the meals served were just some vegetables mixed with some mayo with a side of...you guessed it...more vegetables, this time more like a cole slaw with vinegar. The meals severely lacked protein which is incredibly important to Amanda and the growth of the baby. Thankfully, I bought four protien bars before we went down to Cancun, so Amanda could supplement the food we got from the hotel with those bars. Those protein bars and the "Germ-x" hand sanitizer turned out to be the two best purchases we made for this trip.

For most of the day on Thursday (the 20th), Amanda and I talked with the people around us and played card games. As the day progressed, the wind got stronger and more rain bands moved into the Cancun region. By Thursday night, the winds were gusting to hurricane force (more than 73 mph) and the power would occasionally go out, but didn't go out permanently until early Friday morning. The first half of Friday morning was spent listening and watching Wilma come in with full force. The roof would occasionally rattle rather loudly as the force of the wind started pulling up the metal sheets that compose the roof. They weren't being ripped off...but it was only a matter of time before they did. Once it was determined that the gymnasium was no longer safe for us, the second evacuation began. I'll pick it up there with the next blog entry. Stay tuned...

Thank God We're Home

We're safe...we're home...after the incredible ordeal in Cancun, we're just happy to be back in Amarillo. There will be plenty more to come on this in the coming days. Thanks to everyone who thought of us, prayed for us, and helped us get through this in one piece. Stayed tuned for all the details.....

Now is not the time!

For those who don't know what I do for a living...I am a meteorologist at KVII-TV in Amarillo. I've been in the TV business for 8 years now and have been a storm chaser for 11 years. I've seen more than 2 dozen tornadoes in my life...some a little bigger than others. In addition to tornadoes, I have experienced numerous bouts of extreme weather in my life including blizzards, major hail storms, and even this heat burst in Oklahoma City (click on the link to read the article...you'll see some error messages on the side and top of the article, but the article itself explains the event.). There is, however, one experience I have yet to encounter...and that, my friends, is a hurricane. I have always said that at some point in my life, I want to experience a hurricane for it is truly one of Mother Nature's most powerful and incredible phenomena. My plan was to do this excursion when the right opportunity and situation presented itself. What I did NOT plan on was the possibility of having my first experience with a hurricane while Amanda and I are trying to take our last vacation before the baby comes!!!

Yes, this is what we are faced with right now...the very real possibility that tropical depression #24 (currently just south of Grand Cayman and Cuba) will strengthen and become Tropical Storm Wilma in the next day or so. From there, conditions will be favorable for it to strengthen even more and become Hurricane Wilma. The current forecast track offered up by The National Hurricane Center does not bode well for us and our trip to Cancun later this week. Being around weather for as long as I have, I know that hurricane forecasting, while better in recent years, is still notoriously bad...especially beyond the day two timeframe. The only thing we can do is wait and see what happens. The way it stands right now, we're in for one hell of a vacation!

The Day of Determination: November 4

So...now we know when we will find out the gender of our baby: November 4th. I have a feeling the next three weeks will go by so slowly that it will feel like time is standing still. We can't wait! Other than that, the most recent appointment with the ObGyn went just fine. The doctor offered us the opportunity for Amanda to give blood for a "quad test". This test is "an enhanced prenatal screening test for Down Syndrome, trisomy 18, and neural tube defects. It is done between the 15th and 20th week of pregnancy and measures substances that come from the developing fetus and placenta and are present in the mother's blood. The substances measured are alpha-fetoprotein (AFP), human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), estriol (a form of estrogen) and inhibin-A." So, as soon as we were done with the ObGyn, Amanda went down the hall to offer up some of her blood for the tests. The doctor also did a quickie ultra sound to check the baby's heartbeat, which was 156 beats per minute.

Amanda and I are going to go on one....last....vacation before the baby comes starting this Wednesday (the 19th) and coming back home Monday (the 24th). We're headed to Cancun and we're staying at an all-inclusive called the Riu Cancun. It came recommended to us by one of my co-workers. We'll be sure to take plenty of pictures! If nothing else, this vacation will help time go by faster because time on vacation always goes by too fast.

15 Weeks and Going Strong

It's hard to believe that we're already 15 weeks into the pregnancy. Time is just flying by! As I'm typing this, Amanda is in the back bedroom...soon to be the baby room. I would go in there and try to help, but I would just be kicked out and told if I want to live to see the birth of the baby, then I better not return. Well, okay, not really. However, I know she wants to sort through some of the stuff/junk that's back there...so I'll just let her sort and determine what she's going to keep and what's going to become fodder for the garage sale. Of course, if we want this to be a real garage sale and have enough stuff to sell, then we have to go through the rest of the house too. That'll be fun (please note the sarcasm).

As for Amanda...also known as "the baby factory"...she's doing very well. The only bump in the road has been sleep...or lack thereof. My sister (who went through this whole pregnancy thing about a year and a half ago...and has been extremely helpful so far. Thanks Jen!) suggested Amanda get a body pillow. Now, for those of you who don't know about body pillows, let me explain. It's a pillow that's about 3.5 to 4 feet long and just a little wider than a standard pillow. But, it becomes very useful in that it relieves a lot of pressure and pain by allowing her wrap her arms and legs around it. In summary, it helps her sleep more comfortably on her side. She meant to go get one from Target last weekend when she was on the other side of town, but she forgot to check them out when she was there (more on that later). So, I went to Target Monday to make the purchase. The selection wasn't what I had expected. I had three styles to choose from: a bright pink "Hello Kitty" pillow, a vivid yellow "SpongeBob Squarepants" pillow, and a sky-blue "Tinkerbell" pillow. Well, in my opinion, the Tinkerbell pillow was the most comfortable, so I bought it. Turns out to be a pretty good purchase because it has helped Amanda sleep a little better.

Now back to Amanda forgetting to check out the body pillows. My poor wife...she's slowly but surely loosing her mind. It's all part of being pregnant...becoming forgetful and frequently absent-minded. By her own admission, she has become like our dog "Halo"...dumb as a stump. There have already been several instances where she'll walk down the hallway toward the back bedrooms, stop in the middle of the hallway, and declare she has no earthly idea what she was going back there for. I do laugh...but only because she laughs...so I'm laughing with her. In the same respect, I feel bad for her because she needs her memory to tell clients the names of trees and shrubs they should consider for their landscape design...and the names have already escaped her while meeting with people. I've already suggested that she start making lists as often as possible.

Other than that, she's doing wonderful...and she looks as beautiful as ever! Here is an updated picture of her at 15 weeks (click on the pic to get the full-sized picture):


See what I mean? She's gorgeous! Our next appointment is October 11th...which technically will be past the magical 16-week mark. Between 16 and 20 weeks is when you're supposed to be able to find out the sex of the baby. If we can find out, we will! I'll keep y'all posted. Until then, y'all take care!

More Ultrasound Pictures!

I'm actually posting this blog entry from a remote location. Amanda and I are currently in the Jemez Mountains of New Mexico...which are about an hour north-northwest of Albuquerque. With the baby on the way, we decided now was a good time to try to get a little extra vacation time in. Amanda loves this area because she spent many summers at a YMCA camp just a few miles north of where we are right now. In addition to Amanda getting to revisit her youth, we get a chance to do some fly fishing up here. I caught two brown trout yesterday and am looking very forward to catching some more today! Here's a pic of one of the spetacular fish I caught yesterday:


Okay...now back to Tuesday and our second visit to the ObGyn. In the words of the doctor, the pregnancy is going along perfectly! Amanda's bloodwork and other tests came back just fine...and we now know Amanda's bloodtype: A negative. I am also A negative, so I guess we at least know what the baby's bloodtype is going to be. He also estimated that she is 12 weeks and 3 days along...so the due date is still around March 25th. Then we had the second ultrasound. What a difference a month can make! Very definitive features are now visible and it made us so happy to see some of the things we saw! When the doctor measured the baby, it was 5.7 centimeters from head to butt...so throwing on a centimeter or so for the legs and the baby is roughly 3 to 3 and a half inches long. Here are a couple of the clearer pictures we got from the ultrasound (the pictures are labeled for those of you who are ultrasound-picture-reading challenged...just click on the pic to get the full size version):




The question everyone asks is, "Do you know what you're having yet?" The answer is no, but we will find out once the time comes...in about a month and a half to two months. Right now, Amanda and I are both on cloud nine enjoying this experience together...especially given the fact that Amanda is sleeping much better now too. We'll be up here in the mountains for a few more days, then it's back to "the real world". Our next appointment will be October 11th. Between now and then, I'll post another entry with an updated picture of Amanda. Until then, y'all take care!

Brian Turns 30 & Amanda's Belly Grows!

That's right ladies and gentleman, I've hit the milestone of 30 years on this planet. To be honest, I really don't feel 30. Age really is nothing more than a number. It's all about how you feel...and with all the wonderful things going on in our lives, I feel absolutely awesome! A special thank you goes out to all the people in the Amarillo area who conspired together for my surprise birthday party last weekend. Amanda worked so hard on getting it together...a feat made even more difficult by being pregnant. Lots of people helped her get everything accomplished for the party...and it was an incredible and very memorable party!

Ok, enough about me. This is supposed to be about me and Amanda and "gummy bear". Amanda is just about at the end of the first trimester at week #12 right now. This past week, she actually got a good week of sleep. The reason is two fold and straightforward: 1. I'm no longer on the morning schedule at the TV station...and 2. Amanda was sleeping in our guest room all last week. Let me go into a little more detail on both points. At the station, we were down to two meteorologists since early July. Steve (the Chief Meteorologist) and I have been working 6-day weeks since July. I was doing the morning and noon newscasts (plus Saturdays) and Steve was doing the 5, 6, and 10pm newscasts (and Sundays). Working that morning show schedule meant I had to get up at 2:30am...and I would often inadvertently wake Amanda up. She would frequently have trouble going back to sleep, so she really lost quite a bit of sleep over the past month or so. On the point of sleeping in the other room, that was because for the last week and a half I've been dealing with a pretty intense allergy attack. It left me stuffed up worse than a Thanksgiving turkey. So, Amanda opted to sleep in our guest room. Now, don't get the wrong idea...the bed in our guest room is soooooo comfortable, so she's really sitting (or sleeping) pretty right now. The good news is I'm off the morning schedule and the allergies aren't nearly as bad as they were earlier in the week. Even with that development, my guess is Amanda is enjoying being able to spread out in the guest bed (and admittedly, I'm liking the ability to spread out myself), so she may not return to the bed in the near future. We'll see how long that lasts.

The number one thing people want to know is...how does Amanda look? As you would guess, she looks absolutely beautiful! She's glowing and gorgeous...of course, I have a slight bias. People have been asking for a picture and it's finally time to post one. Here's Amanda at 12-weeks pregnant:

Isn't she cute??? Such an adorable little pouch belly! Overall, things are going really well right now. The next appointment has been bumped up a day to September 13th because Amanda and I are going to go on a mini vacation into the mountains of New Mexico starting on the 14th. I'll try to post new ultrasound pics before we leave for New Mexico. Until then, y'all take care!

The First Appointment

Wow!! What an incredible day yesterday! Amanda and I had our first appointment with the ObGyn...well, actually Amanda had her first appointment with the ObGyn...I was just the amazed and awe-struck bystander while she went through the initial examination. The overall outcome of the exam is that Amanda and the baby are doing just fine. Please note I said baby, not babies...meaning there is only one child on the way. That's just fine with me! I'd prefer to take this one step (and baby) at a time, thank you very much! Here are a couple of the ultrasound pictures. There are four others...if you're interested in seeing them, please let me know and I'd be glad to send them all to you:




As you would expect, it's rather difficult to pick out too many details this early in the pregnancy. It may help to know that the baby's head is pointed down toward the bottom of the pictures. The baby is 1.8 centimeters (or just under 3/4 of an inch) long in these pictures. The doctor made an excellent size approximation...the baby is about the size of a gummy bear right now. The highlight of the visit was being able to hear the baby's heartbeat for the first time. After hearing that, it took Amanda and me a long time to wipe the smiles off our faces! It's a very fast heartbeat compared to an adult (172 beats per minute)....and using the ultrasound wand, it sounds like rapid "whoosh"ing. It was amazing!!

The doctor has approximated the due date to be March 25th...which is pretty much in line with our initial thought of mid to late March. The next appointment will be in four weeks on September 14th. I'll keep everyone posted as events occur and situations arise, but if you have any specific questions, feel free to post 'em and I'll be happy to answer them! Y'all take care!

Not Much Has Changed

At this point, things are going along very well. Amanda has been quite fatigued all week (and most of last week as well). From the stuff we've read (and we've read a lot already), being extremely tired is a common characteristic of the first trimester. Of course, another common occurrence is "morning sickness"...which is a general nauseated feeling that usually lasts far beyond the morning hours. Amanda has been fairly fortunate in this department...so far. She's had waves of nausea...even going as far as kneeling before the porcelain goddess...but hasn't had to "complete the prayer." Amen for that! :-)

We've started making a few preliminary plans for getting the house baby ready. As with most couples, this will definitely include a garage sale. So, I spent the day cleaning the garage...after all, Amanda needed a place to put all the stuff going into the sale. Our house is a one-story, no-basement-having, Texas-brick special with only about 1250 square feet. So, we need to be efficient with the little space we have. So, we're going to purge stuff until we're at least semi comfy. One thing about having a baby...all the things in your life you thought were important before knowing a baby is on the way rapidly become secondary and insignificant once you know a little one is on the way. So many people have told me being a parent changes your life...but one detail frequently left out is how much your life changes long before the baby comes...about eight months before to be exact.

I'll post a picture of Amanda sometime next week. The first doctor's appointment is still slated for August 17th and we're eagerly awaiting the arrival of that day. Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers!

A Baby is on the Way!

Welcome to the wonderful adventure that is Brian and Amanda headed down the road to becoming parents for the first time! I found out Amanda was pregnant back on July 14th. Now, keep in mind, Amanda knew she was pregnant the day before that...after taking 3 pregnancy test and all three of them coming back positive. Yet, my darling wife couldn't believe that any one of those 99.9% accurate tests were correct, so she didn't say anything to me until the following day. Even after telling me, she was still in a state of denial. So, after dinner that Friday (the 15th), we stopped by Walgreen's and got another pregnancy test. However, this one wasn't just the simple "plus or minus sign" type test. This one had to be a digital readout. In other words, Amanda had to see the word "PREGNANT" for her to finally believe it. After the test came back positive, I felt the need to take a picture of it so we could have it as the starting point of this magnificent stage in our life together. Here is that image:

To say the least, Amanda and I are incredibly excited. We're also trying not to be too overwhelmed with what's in front of us, so we're doing our best to take it one day at a time. So, that's where we stand right now. We're in the process of letting everyone know the wonderful news and trying to get an idea of what we want to do to the house to prepare it for this new arrival. Amanda's first appointment with the doctor will be on August 17th. By our rough approximation, the due date should be mid to late March. After the appointment, we should have a better idea on that. Also, twins does run in the family on Amanda's Dad's side, so there is that possibility as well. I'll be sure to keep y'all posted as we get new pictures and information. Until then, please keep us in your thoughts and prayers! Take care!