What lucky folks we are!

These two pictures pretty much sum up our week. The first is of Cuyahoga Valley National Park, where we went hiking on Saturday. Although the hike was somewhat soggy (it poured on us) it was still a lot of fun, and very beautiful.

The second picture, as you may have guessed, is the newest to-be member of the Hazard family. This ultrasound was actually taken in Utah (see the last post for details), and it shows that Rachel does, in fact, have a baby inside of her. This week we went to the doctor again, and although we didn't get to see an ultrasound, we did hear the baby's heart- yet another sign that this baby is real. Really, it's pretty crazy!

We also are beginning to collect stuff for baby. Rachel has become quite the expert on craigslist (online classified ads) and she has found some great deals for us. This week we were able to get a stroller/car-seat "travel system," a Winnie the Pooh bassinet, a matching high-chair, and a baby carrier pouch thing that you wear in your chest like a kangaroo (also Winnie the Pooh). The Winnie the Pooh items are all light green plaid and will be perfect for a boy or a girl. All this stuff is in perfect condition, and Rachel was able to ruthlessly bargain the price down to be pretty dang low.

When Rachel is not perusing craigslist for more deals, she spends her time at her job interpreting, being the secretary for CADA (an organization for dental student's wives), and coordinating a walking group she has started up in our ward. I don't think she knows how to just sit back and relax!

As for me, school has been surprisingly laid-back up until now. I routinely get done by noon and am able to come home and hang out with Rach. This next week we are supposed to start some pretty intense stuff though, so I don't want to jinx myself by saying it is easy.

Overall, our lives continue to be charmed and we are loving our stay here in Cleveland.

Oh Baby!

This past week has been fun and busy. I (Rachel) spent the beginning of the week in Sandy having a good time with my family. We went to the zoo, hiking, shopping for maternity clothes, and had a lot of time to catch up. Because of some pregnancy complications we had a crazy night on Wednesday. I had to go to the hospital with my sisters and my mom, but thankfully everything seems to be ok. It actually turned into a really cool experiance because I was able to hear the heartbeat for the first time and my sisters and mom heard it too. We also had the first ultrasound to make sure the baby was doing ok. My mom came in with me and we saw the baby for the first time together. The baby looked so perfectly formed. I was expecting to see a little alien like image, but it looked very well proportioned and perfect! The doctor told us that according to the measurements the baby was actually 14 weeks and three days. If my doctor agrees this means my due date will be changed from Feb. 21st to Feb 10th! Logan was in Ohio because of school and I really missed him, but this was the only chance my family would get to see and hear the baby. The ultrasound technician did not allow cameras or video into the room, but before she left she snuck me a picture of the ultrasound. I will post pictures of the ultrasound as soon as we get our card reader to transfer pictures from our camera to our computer.

I have a belly! Last week I noticed that I was a little bit "thicker" in the middle and my stomach was starting to poke out a little bit (probably only noticeable to me!). In the last three days I have started to have noticeable little belly. Logan and I are very excited about this new development. I also started taking pictures to document my growth. I started at 12 weeks and will take one every two weeks. As soon as our camera is working I will post them for anyone that is interested.

Logan and I have had a lot of time together since I returned from Sandy. We have been reading the final Harry Potter together and we have read a lot this week. We also went to the temple in Columbus for the first time. It was an all day event because the temple is two and a half hours away.

Our week has been full of home made pies (maybe that is why I am beginning to show :). Logan made me a delicious coconut cream merangue pie for the day I arrived from the airport. Our electric mixer broke and he ended up putting our whisk in his electric drill to stir the egg whites! We had a delicious chocolate cream pie with oreo topping for our celebration of Logan's birthday last night. He turned twenty-five on Tuesday, but I was in Utah at that time.

Life is pretty wonderful for us here in Ohio. We would love to hear from you! Our e-mail addresses are rachelhazard@yahoo.com and loganhazard@yahoo.com if you want to say hi and/or give us an update. We love you guys!

Here are some pictures of Haley's Wedding:

Fun, Fun, Fun!

It's been a while since we wrote here. Rachel and I have be very busy these last few weeks. Soon after Rachel's parents left, we got on a plane headed for California for the Hazard family reunion!

We had a great time with everybody on the beach. There was a lot of swimming, surfing, and walks on the beach. Also, we had fun at Six Flags- Magic Mountain. Some of the guys got together and built some pretty awesome forts on the beach, which by now are probably inhabited by hobos. We also had a great family dance, lots of food, lots of kite-flying, and lots of fun just talking around the campfire. We couldn't have asked for a better week before going back to start school.

That's right...school has officially begun and I love it! The first few days were spent buying all the new toys I need (ouch), and then I started learning how to use them. I've always loved school and learning for learning's sake, but it is extra cool to be learning things that I will get to use on a day-to-day basis.

A week after school started we were on the plane again; this time to Utah for Haley's wedding. Matt is the new guy from Texas, and him and Haley will be very happy. The reception was a lot of fun with a lot of dancing. As one of the guests commented, "Only at a Hazard reception would they have the song 'Play that Funky Music White Boy'!"

Right now I am back in school, and Rachel is still in Utah hanging out with her family. Today she went to the zoo, and later she is planning on going to a Colln Raye concert with her sister, Shannon. We are as happy as ever, especially since we have so recently seen most of the friends and family that we love.


Here is a picture of my white coat ceremony. I'm standing next to a bunch of bald guys. Pics of the reunion and wedding will come next week.