Happy Valentine's Day!

One of my favorites from our recent trip to California...

lots of lovin' from Sebastian!

Hope you're feeling the LOVE today and everyday!

P.S. My hubby rocks. I woke up this morning to yummy pancakes that he and Sebastian made for me... in the shape of a heart! How sweet are my boys?!?

2 months and 2 years...

Today is our 2 year anniversary! It's so hard to believe how time flies and how much has happened in our lives over the past two years. With each new day, I love Tim more and feel so blessed to have him in my life. If it weren't amazing enough just being married to the guy, now I also get the opportunity to parent a child together with him! I'd say I'm the luckiest gal in town, or maybe in the whole - wide - world!

Sebastian just had his 2 month well child check yesterday. Again, it's incredible to comprehend how fast time is flying by, how old (relatively speaking) he's getting, and how much he's growing. We had taken bets on his weight and height from our family and friends over the past week or so, and we were surprised to find out that no one was close on his weight. I think everyone we asked guessed over 13 pounds for his weight. I guess those cloth diapers add some extra weight, huh? So here's his shot on the scale:

He weighed in at 12 lbs, 7.5 oz... rounded up to 12 lbs, 8 oz, which is the 65th percentile. Our guessers seemed to do much better at his height, which was 24.5 inches (92nd percentile). So, he's turning out to be tall and lean, just like his Daddy.

Sebastian has taken to sucking his fingers these days. He sucks on them so hard and pushes them in so deep, that he often gags himself. I'm working on behavior modification... but he just hasn't quite gotten it yet. ;) Those fingers must taste good, and I haven't put anything tasty on them!

He had some shots yesterday as well, and he did just fine. Of course he did. Much better than his Mama. I'm guessing this is how many things in his life may turn out...

Tim & I are going out tonight for the first time since Sebastian was born. When I say "out," I mean out alone, no baby, just the two of us! Seems like an impossible task, but we're actually going to have our first date night since Seb joined our family. And what a better choice of nights than our anniversary?!?! Again, I'm sure this will be one of those things that will be much more difficult for Mama than for the babe. Eek! But, he'll be in good hands; our dear friends Rachel and Peter have agreed to keep him for a couple of hours. So thanks in advance. :) I'm sure he'll be well behaved for you!

So much goodness to celebrate! Which is a great thing right now, because there are other things going on around us that could potentially get me down - like thinking about going back to work (in 19 days...sigh), craziness at work that's been brewing while I've been out on maternity leave, witnessing domestic violence disputes in the street outside our church and having to call 9-1-1 (with a small child physically caught in the middle - literally), a messed up health care system and bad economy, PBS wanting to get rid of Mister Rogers Neighborhood, and much, much more.

But really it's so much better to focus on the good things in life - because there are so many really good things! ...like a wonderful marriage with a wonderful husband, a beautiful, healthy baby, a house with a roof, clean, bountiful running water, projects that are making progress around the house, jobs with benefits, awesome family, grilled beets, corn on the cob, ice cream (had to throw some of my summertime favorites in there), a new chest freezer, restful nights, state representatives that go to bat for us (yeah, Mike Sturla), great friends, the best group of partners a doc could ask for, and the new phones that Tim got for his birthday that can double as an intercom system so I can be three floors away from my little guy while he naps and hear him when he wakes up! (I know they make these things called monitors, but why bother when you have technology working for you already in your home.) Anyways, there is so much to be thankful for... and so many good things!

And just to refresh your memory... a blast from (not-so-distant) past:

Happy Anniversary, Timmy! I love you more with every day! And happy growing, Sebastian! You bring us great JOY!

What's in a name?

"What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet."

-Shakespeare

Kirsten, Sebastian & Tim

J 0 h n s e n M a r t i n

This is our first series of family pictures officially all sharing the same last name! Tim & I have finally changed our last names to match that of our son's and to represent the union of our marriage and our families... as we approach our two year anniversary in just about two weeks!

So what's in a name, anyways? Before we were married (and for the past two years), we entertained a variety of options for our surnames: both keep our own names, both change to Tim's last name, both change to the same, joint last name, or come up with a whole new surname altogether (how about johntin or martinsen?!?). We planned to change our names since we were married, but never "got around to it..." Then we had a baby! And we felt it was important to: a. make a final decision about the name change thing, and b. all share the same last name. Thus, Sebastian was a little bit ahead of the game... he's had our last name since he was born - now over 7 weeks. But now we all have the same last name, according to the Social Security office - it's official and legal and all that other good stuff.

And it feels good. Really good. We're excited to be united in this way! We both loved the names that our parents chose for us - first, middle and last - they have significant meaning for us. And now we love each other and our baby boy, and we still love both of our families. We desired to share both of "us" in our new family name. We didn't get married fresh out of college; instead we had years of experiences, training, careers - all of which continued to define us for many years until we became one. We are excited about combining both of our names to change the definition from the two of us to one...and to now share that with our son as our family grows.

The tasks that lie ahead include changing our licenses (both to drive and to practice medicine ;)), bank accounts, credit cards, passports, and everything else that has our names attached to it! It seems a bit daunting, but so very worth it - to make the change complete once and for all. I'm sure we'll still get all variety of combinations and titles in the mail, as we have since we were first married, but now at least Uncle Sam knows what to call us!

So, what's in a name? A whole lot of love, family, history...and a whole lot of future and great stuff to come!

The photographer on the beach...and some lovin'!

My friend, Julia, and I went to beach to watch the sunset on Monday night. It was lovely, and we got some great shots...including some that we took of ourselves together - you know the deal... hold the camera out, try to sort of center yourselves and snap the picture, right?! Well, we were pleasantly surprised when a woman passed by and offered to take some pictures for us. We said, "sure, that'd be great." She asked if our camera was a "single lens reflex camera," and we confirmed for her that it was. Of course, this made us believe that she knew her stuff about photography, because she knew the lingo, and that's half the battle! So, we got all cute and posed on the beach in front of the sunset, and our photographer told us how great of a picture she was getting. Julia had one arm around me and her other hand was on my belly making small talk with the baby. Our photographer friend continued to tell us how good the photos were: "I think I got some really nice ones!" She handed the camera back to Julia and went on her merry way. We were anxious to check out the "really nice photos." I thought I hadn't heard the shutter open and close, because of the crashing (albeit small) waves behind us. But much to our dismay, the last pictures on the camera were ones that Julia had taken. And that was it. Nothing else! Apparently the photographer lady was under the impression that she was taking fab photos, when all she was doing was looking at the two of us through the view finder! But, boy, we must have looked pretty darn good ;). We couldn't stop laughing at our new photos and the expertise of our photographer!

Even though we never got to see the photos that our photographer took, we did get some fun ones on our own... and a good story to tell as well!

To add a little sap for today's post, I have to share my beach-written message for my love, Timmy Dean, who is at home working very hard to get more and more projects done, while I'm learning all about infectious disease, hanging with my friend, Julia, and soaking up some sun! This is what I sent to Tim, for him to find in his inbox when he opened his e-mail on Tuesday morning! :) I love lovin' Tim (and baby loves him, too)!

Happy Birthday Tim!

Today I celebrate Timothy Dean Martin - my husband! What a wonderful man God has blessed me with! Tim showers me with love, caring and service.

• He's a man of God, who has a servant's heart.
• He is faithful and incredibly dedicated to the people he loves and the things he holds dear.
• He puts others first, even when he's fatigued or suffering.
• He listens - really listens.
• He loves children, and they love him.
• He is patient and kind.
• He knocks down walls and puts new ones up again.
• He doesn't take any medicine (that's good and bad for a doctor's husband :))
• He prays the most sincere and earnest prayers; he prays for the people of the world and the people we encounter in our daily walks.
• He asks for cleaning supplies for his birthday - warms my heart.
• He walks to church and car pools to work.
• He has taught me the beauty of composting.
• He refinishes hardwood floors and he redesigns closets.
• He has a heart for missions and cultures of the world.
• He supports my jewelry business and always lends a helping hand.
• He loves ginger brew!
• He sometimes starts laughing uncontrollably when he's lying in bed and overly exhausted - the smallest thing (that may not seem so funny under less tired circumstances) sets him off.
• He reads reviews about most things before purchasing them.
• He uses spreadsheets.
• He introduced me to g-mail!
• He's expanded my family and my circle of friends.
• He is my life long partner and my best friend. I love sharing life with him. I love you, Timothy!

Happy birthday, my love.

Our engagement story made the "news" on the Liz Hess webpage!

I was just browsing around the web site of the wonderful artist Liz Hess, and happened across a little piece about our engagement, which took place in her gallery on First Friday, January 2007. My, what a year it has been since then!

Check out the piece: A Couple is Engaged.

Thanks, Liz, for sharing our joy on your website!