Due-Date Eve

Still waitin'. We hope he takes after his mommy and daddy and is punctual - by coming on his due date - not too early, not too late. We all want to meet you, Owen!

Taking a walk in the Rose Garden.

Let's Go Owen!

Just trying a little cheer to try to encourage Owen. We've been talking to him - telling him that he can come now. Unfortunately, he does seem awfully comfortable in there. He just had some new furniture delivered and carpeting installed. And with the economy the way it is, it's just not a great time to move. No reason to do anything risky. At least he's sensible - just like his parents.

Kathleen @ 39.5 weeks

The Countdown Continues - 4 Days to Go

Not much news from the doctor this afternoon. Still no big signs or indicators that he's coming in the next few days. Kathleen scheduled her first post-due-date appointment with the doctor, so let's hope it doesn't come to that. But at least, he's safe and healthy in there! We'll just have to be patient to meet him!

5 Days and Counting

Well, we made it through Musikfest without Owen coming. Kathleen's been told a lot that walking can bring on labor. But I think she walked about a mile a day during Musikfest and that didn't seem to move things along.

So, now the final countdown starts. Friday is the due date. But Kathleen would like Owen to come before that if possible - the sooner, the better. We have a doctor's appointment tomorrow, so we'll see if there's any news then.

FestBlog 2009 (Day 10)

Well, we got through Musikfest and still no Owen. But we had a great time! At least for Kathleen, it was as great of a time as you could have being 39-weeks pregnant. We caught some great free live music, had some nice lunches out, and saw a lot of friends!

Today was a nice final day of Musikfest. We checked out Girls Guns & Glory (a honky-tonk country band) at Liederplatz and the Blue Vipers of Brooklyn (dixieland band) on Main Street. The Blue Vipers had an amazing percussionist with his own homemade instruments.

Girls Guns & Glory @ Liederplatz

Blue Vipers of Brooklyn @ Main Street Stage

After the shows today, we did our normal end-of-Musikfest activities: making dinner at home while listening to a mix of all of the great music that we heard all week. And then... watching the fireworks from our sunroom.

FestBlog 2009 (Day 9)

We started our festing today by stopping by our friend Nicole's annual Musikfest party. Nicole is also a teacher at Phillipsburg and one our Bethlehem townie friends.

We had lunch with our friends Joe and Rebecca and watched the Women in Docs concert at Liederplatz - followed by The Duhks, also at Liederplatz.

Women in Docs @ Liederplatz

The Duhks @ Liederplatz

The second Friday and Saturday nights of Musikfest get very crowded. It's about time for everyone to go home. At least, after we catch a concert or two tomorrow on the last day of Musikfest.

FestBlog 2009 (Day 8)

The weather was beautiful once again today. We caught a Dixieland band (the Syncopatin' Six) on Main Street today that was amazing. We both closed our eyes and dreamed about being in New Orleans!

Syncopatin' Six @ Main Street Stage

We also saw a little of the West Philadelphia Orchestra. They play Eastern European and Balkan music! Lots of fun!

West Philadelphia Orchestra @ Volksplatz

On the way home, we stopped by to listen to a few songs by the Billy Bauer Band (which is my barber's brother's band). They play original Dave Matthews-esque music. Main Street gets crowded on the second weekend of Musikfest, so we didn't stay long.

Billy Bauer Band @ Main Street Stage

On the walk home, we ran into a friend on the street. Liz used to teach at Phillipsburg with Kathleen.

FestBlog 2009 (Day 7)

We had a doctor's appointment this morning including an ultrasound. Owen looks happy in there. He's presently estimated at 6 lbs., 14 oz., so he'll probably be a little over 7 lbs at birth. Kathleen has progressed a little towards labor (at least as compared to last week), however there don't appear to be any signs that he's in a hurry to get out of there. So, the expectation is that he'll come about on his due date or maybe a little later.

We had a nice time at Musikfest today, once again. The weather cooled down a lot today - and the humidity was much lower. It was really beautiful. We caught the entire concert by The Doc Marshalls, a band from NYC that plays Texas honky-tonk swing as well as cajun music. We saw them last year at Musikfest and at a concert in town in November, so we were really looking forward to this concert.

The Doc Marshalls @ Volksplatz

We also saw Carrie Rodriguez and her band at Liederplatz. Carrie is a Mexican-American singer/songwriter who plays the violin, mandolin, and guitar.

Carrie Rodriguez @ Liederplatz

We met up with some friends of our tonight: Ethan, Jen, and their 2-year old son, Evan. Jen is also pregnant and just found out today that she's going to be having a girl! After watching a little of the Carrie Rodriguez concert with them, we tried to tire Evan out by walking him down Main Street. Evan and a few other toddlers were very entertained by the ragtime jazz band playing in front of the Hotel Bethlehem.

FestBlog 2009 (Day 6)

This is the first year that we're members of Artsquest (the organization that runs Musikfest). Our big find this year are the members-only bathrooms with running water in the old mill (shown below). No more porta-potties for us! They've come in very handy - especially for a pregnant woman! The indoor bathrooms are right next to Volksplatz, where we like to watch shows and where the only other options for bathrooms are the porta-potties.

The concerts we went to today were bands that we're fans of: Oakhurst (a bluegrass/rock band) and Scythian (a Celtic/Gypsy band).

Oakhurst @ Volksplatz

Scythian @ Volksplatz

FestBlog 2009 (Day 5)

We had a full day today at Musikfest. We headed down to Banana Island (the kid's stage) around noon to see Kira Willey play. She's a local musician, who also teaches kid yoga at The Yoga Loft on the southside of Bethlehem (where Kathleen does yoga when she's not pregnant). But, she's best known for her song "Colors", which was featured in a Dell laptop commercial within the last year (you'd recognize it if you heard it). There were a few groups of summer camp kids there, who all knew their yoga positions: they did surfer pose, tree pose, mountain pose, plus volcano, which isn't quite a pose - more of an action. They were all having a blast! It was nice to see some boys having a great time. Hopefully, Owen will be able to enjoy something like kids yoga one day.

Kira Willey@ Banana Island Stage

Later in the day, we went to see our future babysitter Hannah dance with the Parker Irish Dancers. It was a great show! Phil works with Hannah's mom and we've known Hannah for a few years and have been watching her dance at Celtic Fest and Musikfest. She's now a senior Irish dancer - and also a freshman in high school. And that means that we'll at least have her for babysitting for about four years! Her mom says that she's excited about sitting. She said that Hannah often plans activities for the kids she babysits! That sounds great!

Hannah w/ Parker Irish Dancers @ Plaza Tropical Stage

We also caught an hour of another Lovell Sisters concert later in the evening. They really are a great band! They finished up with an acapella version of "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" as an encore.

The Lovell Sisters @ Liederplatz

FestBlog 2009 (Day 4)

Phil's taking half days at work this week to keep Kathleen entertained during Musikfest - and to keep her mind off of her big belly. Today, we were able to catch the entire show of a bluegrass/country band: The Lovell Sisters. We saw them last year at Musikfest, so we've been really looking forward to this show. They've very talented musicians - really seem like they'll soon be big stars. We told Owen that some cute girls were playing bluegrass for him and he seemed to like that.

The Lovell Sisters @ Volksplatz

After the show, we had a delicious dinner at Petra (a Mediterranean restaurant) before walking around town and bumping into a few friends. It was a beautiful - slightly cool evening.

Zydeco-a-Go-Go @ Volksplatz

FestBlog 2009 (Day 3)

Some friends (Wendy, Brian, and Abby) came by Bethlehem to fest with us today. Abby had a good time dancing to the band on Main Street. We had a nice time walking around town despite a little rain. But, it actually turned out to be a pretty nice day after quite a bit of rain this morning.

Kathleen was hoping for an anniversary present in the form of a baby boy today. But that was not to be. We're starting to believe what the doctor said - that he's not coming before the due date. Here are some pictures from Musikfest today:

Scott Marshall & Hillbilly Soul @ Main St. Stage

Eric Steckel (young blues guitar player) @ Americaplatz

Happy Anniversary, Phil & Kathleen

6 years!

FestBlog 2009 (Day 2)

We had a nice sunny Saturday for the festival today. We got out early before the crowds came and saw a noon show (a blues rock band) at Liederplatz. The Liederplatz stage is in a courtyard off of Main St. There are some trees that provide some shade - it was really pleasant when we were there today. Owen really liked the band (he likes the louder upbeat music). After the first show, we had a nice lunch at Mama Nina's (our normal order: garlic marinara pizza, two dinner salads, and a large Pellegrino). Then, we walked around town, ran into some friends, and saw bits of a few more shows.

Bronze Radio Return (blues/rock) @ Liederplatz

Li'l Anne & Hot Cayenne (Zydeco) @ Volksplatz