Our Latest "Project"

Our latest "project" is a........BABY!

That is right, Baby Belyea is due to arrive in September and we are so excited for everything to come. We'll be chronicling our journey to parenthood on our blog and hope everyone checks back often for updates...whether they be the latest nursery pictures or descriptions of nervous breakdowns, that, yes, we will actually be parents. Needless to say, we are already absolutely in love with our baby and can't wait to meet him or her!

So for our first update.....I am 14 weeks and so far pregancy has brought morning sickness that lasts all day, LOTS of naps, and a feeling of never knowing what I want to eat. Ben has been the best husband ever....since all I do when I get home from work is lay down...he makes dinner, cleans the house, and, well, pretty much everything else. He loves to "listen" to the baby although there isn't much to hear yet. It still doesn't seem real to either of us but it will soon! :)

I haven't gained weight due to being naseous all day but there are definite signs of a small baby bump coming along. "Nesting" kicked in....I've already started getting ready the room that will be the nursery. Unfortunately TC doesn't have alot of baby stores so on-line browsing is what I've been doing for "stuff." However, mining the maze of the baby equipment has been overwhelming, proving we have alot to learn (like what is a burpee rag and the difference between a normal blanket and a swaddler).

We had our first and second appointment with our doctor, Dr. Bump. Our first appointment was at 10 weeks and was amazing. We got to see our baby for the first time and it was amazing on how clear everything was (see picture below). The baby was moving its little legs around and waving its arms, we even got to see the little heart beating. At our 14 week appointment, we heard the heart beat at 160, normal and healthy. In 8 weeks we'll have our next ultrasound and should be able to find out the sex.

Well, check back often for updates and we are so excited to share this new chapter in our lives with everyone.

Introducing Baby Belyea at 10 weeks old.

Ski League

Congrats to Ben and his team, Dan Brady's One Track Minds. Ben tied for first in the overall men's platinum division and his team took first place in the Crystal Mountain Ski League. This weekend we are headed to Boyne for the end of year race. Hopefully there is snow!

One Track Mind's (minus Jim) with their 1st place plaque.

Maui Snorkeling Adventure

Here are some pictures of our snorkeling advenutre all taken with an underwater camera. We were worried about how the quality would be but I think they turned out amazing. Especially the turtle pictures. Enjoy!

A cute black fish...there were huge schools of these everywhere.
An eel.

Ben and I underwater.

Nick swimming near the coral and black fish (I wish I could remember what these fish were called)!

A spiky sea urchin-apparently if you touch one of these it will "sting" you and is very painful. Needless to say we stayed far away from these. They were very pretty though.

Ben enjoying the snorkeling.

A fish in the coral.

A turtle.

A turtle swimming with Ben.

Another turtle picture. So amazing!

A few days in Hana

We took a few days to travel over to Hana with Tara and Nick. The road to Hana is a famous road for it's VERY windy route, sharp turns, and one lane wide roads. Even with some car sickness along the way we saw amazing views and tropical scenery. Including many waterfalls that were flowing very strong due to recent rains in the area. We also enjoyed the black sand and red sand beach~Ben brought sand home from each to keep as a memento. Enjoy all of the pictures-there is alot!

At the State Park...these falls were near the 7 pools.

Ben and I in front of one of the many waterfalls.

The house we stayed in...right behind me is the ocean.

I love this picture of Tara and I!

Ben playing in the bamboo forest. The bamboo was so thick and probably around 70 feet high.

On the path to throught the bamboo forest. We were on our way to see a 400 foot waterfall. Unfortunately we couldn't get any pictures because the water was flowing so strongly near the falls that it was like it's own rain storm. That is why many of the pictures we are soaking wet.

Ben and I on our way back down. We tried crossing the streams to see the 400 foot waterfall but the water was too strong and getting higher every second.

Another waterfall....I lost count how many we saw.

Ben climbing a coconut tree. He spent around half an hour trying to get some coconuts off the tree with no success.

Ben and I at a lava formation beach.

BEAUTIFUL!

Nick, Tara, Ben, and I at the ocean taking a break from the windy road. The water was so blue! You can see in the background the mountains behind us. We were driving along that just a few hours before!

A local carrying a dead pig. The picture doesn't really give justice to how big that pig really was.

At Twin Falls. You can usually swim in the pool under the falls but the water was not as nice as usual...the heavy rain fall made it brown and mucky.

Tropical Vacation in Maui

A 4 year old female seal sleeping on a beach near our hotel

A whale fin...it is mating season in Maui and we probably saw around 1000 whales during our stay. It was amazing to see them breach, play, and swim in the ocean.

A male whale fin, trying to get a female's attention.

The crater where we went snorkeling. I'll post underwater pictures soon of some of the sea life we got to see.

Ben and I on the snorkeling boat. It was windy and cold that day but the water was great for snorkeling.

Tara and I at the beach.

Ben and I on our hotel balcony. We were surprised by an amazing ocean view room at the Westin. Every morning we drank coffee and whale watched on the balcony. We even slept with the doors open to hear the waves crashing along the beach.

Nick and Ben in the pool at the Westin.

Ben and I before a beach day. Tara and Nick surprised us with leis as we got off the plane.

Our first trip to Hawaii was amazing! The weather was great and we saw and experienced so much Maui has to offer. We feel so fortunate we got to spend time there with Tara and Nick and have a break from the cold Michigan weather.