DASNET

UPDATE -- We've now posted the rest of the "First 12 Months" photos here...including one of the first pictures after getting his first haircut!<!--BREAK-->

(originally posted February 8, 2006)

Well, it's been a long time since we've posted anything here. We've had quite the busy Holiday season, starting pretty much when Andrea went back to work in October. We've only just now settled into anything resembling a routine (that is to say, we've accepted that having no time has pretty much become routine).

Hanging next to his crib is a really nice frame with cutouts for a "picture of the month" for Dominic's first year, and we were quite surprised when we realized that we've already filled in over half of it. So we thought it would be nice to share the photos here...hopefully, we'll remember to post the rest of the pictures as they're taken. :)

Okay, okay, stop calling / writing / sending scary looking thugs named "Mikey the Neck." Yes, we know that we've been ignoring the website. Yes, we know that our excuse (lack of time) is no better than the same excuse other people have had, and those other people have no problem finding time to send pictures to grandparents, friends, co-workers, or the Washington Post.

Just what have we been up to lately? A whole lot. I'll post a few updates here (and if iPhoto ever comes back out of its "Rebuilding Thumbnail Cache" tailspin, I'll add pictures too), and in the next few days, hopefully another update, and then another, until we get the last few months done. Maybe. Or maybe I'll just start from scratch. :)

First, a real quick set of photos from our 2005 Beach Trip to Nags Head, NC. As usual, we had a fantastic time, though it was totally different from any beach trip we've ever been on before...amazing how having an infant affects your schedule in unpredictible and unavoidable ways...

I'll post more details about the trip later. Right now, people are clamoring for pictures, so here they are. :)

I've been experimenting with an online photo gallery, and have been adding pictures beyond what we've posted in our blog entries. It's not really working right yet (some features, like "Add to Cart," just don't work), but it does give you the ability to easily get the original full-sized photos, and it even has links to Shutterfly, so you can print photos directly from our webpage. We've got some England photos up (just the ones in our England travelogue, though), and a bunch of additional pictures of Dominic. Just go to the "Photos" link in the menu at the top of the page...

We've been busy lately...lunch with co-workers and their babies, movies, vaccinations, and Dominic's first big road trip. Not to mention his first tub baths (which he really seems to enjoy!)

Well, okay, not quite his first cache find, but at least his first cache adventure. It all happened yesterday...

Earlier in the day, I'd finally begun working on the puzzle cache Top Rock. After finishing the puzzle, and verifying the coordinates, I plotted it on a map and saw that it was along some nice trails near a creek. When I got home, I mentioned it to Andrea, and told her I'd like to get it soon so she could actually see a White Jeep Travel Bug (the last ones I found never actually made it home with me). She seemed up for it, so we got Dominic all suited up and took off.

We can't believe it has been (over) a month since Dominic joined us. It has been great, and a bit exhausting... There has been a whirlwind of Dominic meeting friends and family, outings to the mall (and other errands) and some visits to the Pediatrician. Lots of flashbulbs from all those pictures (and some video, who can resist that cooing?) And we have totally lost count on the number of feedings and diaper changes.

I've been having some fun with the computers lately. A week ago, the GFI outlet that all our servers are plugged into tripped, for no obvious reason. So we were down for most of the day. Then, I decided it was finally time to get started on the server room walls, so I built a 4-foot section of wall and put it up (mostly. it's not quite square. but it's not load bearing, so I don't care.) Then I spent a few days re-wiring everything on the network panel. Buying patch panels. Getting a new firewall. And, finally, upgrading the site to the latest version of Drupal (because the old one had some security problems). I'm only now finally getting everything working.

We've had our baby!

At 11:32 pm, on Monday, June 20, 2005, Dominic Andrew Schuetz was born. At birth, he weighed 7 pounds 10 ounces (he's since dropped to 7 lb 4.5 oz), and was 20.5 inches long. He's doing really well, though being born so close to midnight seems to have put him on a schedule counter to ours. He's awake non-stop from midnight through 5 each morning, and we're getting kind of, well, tired. Still, when he's curled up in your arms, opens his eyes, and looks at you, well, it makes it worthwhile. Even if you can't see him clearly because it's 2:00 am.

Well, we're just about ready to have the baby, and we finally got hold of the pictures from the Baby Shower. So even though I should be downstairs trying to get the house clean, I'm up here on the Mac writing a quick story for the webpage. Mostly 'cause I think some of these are great pictures and I'd love to get them published. :)