white here

Going home today...
Originally uploaded by heykristopher

Right now Chloe is sunning herself, but soon we'll be on our way back
home. The docs thought she looked a little jaundiced, but we've since
been given the all clear. Rachel always did say yellow was her
favorite color.

Can't help but notice this will be the first time I'll be driving home
my new little family. Well, it'll be the first time with her being on
the outside.

World, meet Chloe...
Originally uploaded by heykristopher

On February 8th, 2010 Chloe Rene White was born at 7 lbs. 13 oz. and
19 1/2 inches long.

She and mom are resting peacefully, except every 2 hours, well, it's
feedin' time!

Getting ready for the final push...
Originally uploaded by heykristopher

The nurses are prepping the room. Rachel's practiced one push, and
we're about ready to go. Just waiting for the doc to give the word.

The debate now, will she have hair or be bald? And what color?

Rachel's magic red slippers...
Originally uploaded by heykristopher

Rachel's hospital shoes are so cool the nurses wanna steal 'em. And they get great traction.

Rachel's water just broke and now she's about half-way dilated... so we're probably going to have a baby before 7pm tonight (PST).

Whoever recommended we bring goodies for the nursing staff, thank you.

Our friendly neighborhood anesthesiologist just paid us a visit and gave Rachel a dose of happiness.  After bearing some mighty strong contractions this morning, she's now resting comfortably with the epidural in. 

And, a side note, can I just say how great Rachel did during the contractions?  She furrowed her brow sweetly and followed along with the breathing, but never cried.  Granted, she did say she wanted to rip her eyeballs out.  But between contractions she was smiling and laughing.

Now that my first duties as a coach are temporarily done, it's time to grab some lunch and rest up for the final stretch.  After all, she's taking a nap.  Why can't I?

Well, both Rachel and I had a restless night with a bit of sleep thrown in for good measure.  Rachel, of course, was having contractions and the like, which will keep anyone awake.  Meanwhile, when I wasn't tending to her, I was lying on the hard bench also known as the Daddy Bed. 

She's doing great though.  Things are progressing nicely.  Oh, and the nursing staff rocks.

Thanks to everyone who's been sending us notes of encouragement and support!  We look forward to showing off Baby White to the world (and Facebook).

KW

All checked in...
Originally uploaded by heykristopher

Rachel just checked in and is all plugged in. By this time tomorow
we'll be parents.

Stage 1 commences!!
Originally uploaded by heykristopher

It's official. Baby White has dropped into position. Looks like mother
nature doesn't need any "inducing".

From Rachel:
Babywatch 2010: Day +7...Mom and Dad will be here in an hour, jambalya and cornbread made for tomorrow, and house lookin lovely. Now if the cramping would make up it's mind if it was labor or just pain that would be sweet:/

From Kris:
In the meantime, we've prepped the house for her parents. And I've busted a toe. Fun times. I'd just returned from taking stuff to Good Will and filling the car up on gas (apparently, you're not supposed to let it go below half-full during baby-watch), and bang, nailed my toe on the curb. Stupid flip-flops.

Well, it looks like B-Day will be Monday, February 8th. Right now, we're planning on heading into the hospital AFTER the Super Bowl (Geaux Saints!) on Sunday night to start inducing. The good news is that Rachel's parents are due in town tomorrow, so they will be here for Super Bowl and for the baby (which is more important you ask? Well...).

More news later.

Hey all;

This IS the one-stop shop for updated Rachel-giving-baby news (whitehere.com). Just wanted to let you all know.

Right now, we're plus two days from her due date. And really, it's just a waiting game. A little frustrating at times, sometimes exciting. The weirdest part is just watching her belly shift sides. I know I learned this before, but it sank in last night... that thing is lopsided! The strangest is watching the whole thing shift as she flips over to a different side.

And yes, to answer your question, we have (more or less) a name chosen. It will be revealed on her birthday.

KW (and RW)

My room with a view.
Originally uploaded by heykristopher

Tomorrow is all work. But for tonight I can enjoy my room with a view.

Kristopher White

Matt's tie...
Originally uploaded by heykristopher

Rachel helps Matt tie his toe correctly. I.e. A full Windsor.

me

In Baton Rouge..
Originally uploaded by heykristopher

Rachel and I finally arrived in Baton Rouge for our good friends, Matt
& Leah's, rehearsal dinner.

We barely had time to dress. But thats just the way it goes. Besides,
Rachel looks fab either way.

Rachel blows a moose
Originally uploaded by heykristopher

> Rachel gives life support to the moosehead that lives above our
> mantle. It's the first time we've had to blow him in four years.

Why now? His antlers we're sagging.

>

Getting ready for Bond
Originally uploaded by heykristopher

Rachel and I are super excited about the new Bond. But we can't forget
our roots.

This one's for you Connery!

Kung Fu Panda premiere.
Originally uploaded by heykristopher

Dustin Hoffman hangs with the Pandas outside Hooters in Hollywood.

Sunset 11-8-08
Originally uploaded by heykristopher

As I was sitting in my breakfast nook writing, I looked out the window for the first time in a while... and noticed the unusually beautiful sunset happening.

I know... SoCal usually has beautiful sunsets. But if no one notices them, what good are they. And we haven't had one this nice in a while.

If you notice, I did a poor man's HDR on the photo. Thanks to my new camera (Nikon D90) I can try this... now all I need is a better version of photoshop. Sigh.

We JUST got the disc with our wedding photos in!  And... well... there's a lot of them.  And a lot of great ones.



This, of course, is our signature shot.  We call it... Kentucky Gothic

So, until I have time to sit down with Rachel and pick out our collective favorites to show on the web, here are some random highlights I found during lunch on Friday.  Most of these are already posted on Facebook.  But I know not everyone has Facebook.  So... enjoy.

On the fourth day of our honeymoon, we did nothing dangerous or adventurous... but we did encounter one of the coolest animals on our trip... a rare and almost extinct baby Oncilla.


This Oncilla was brought to the property as a kitten in a cage. One of the local residents, an ex-pat who lives on the property, rescued the animal and has been feeding it raw chicken. As a result, the cat is semi-tame. They are currently reducing its chicken rations, forcing the cat to hunt for food and no longer just for fun. In another month or two, this cat will probably return to the wild on her own.

In the meantime, though, she trailed us around the property... and even posed for a photo or two.




Here is a video of the Oncilla...

Well... Obama has been elected.  Which means it's time for more honeymoon highlights!



In today's adventure (or more accurately, our adventure from October 15th, 2008), Rachel and I went rappelling down waterfall walls, witnessed a truck nearly fall off the road, and caught some hummingbirds hanging outside our room.

Enjoy.

Hey all;

Here are some highlights from our first two days in Costa Rica.  The good stuff if yet to come though... zip lining, rappelling, monkies and a semi-WILD CAT!

My voting line!
Originally uploaded by heykristopher

After last night's Halloween adventures, I needed a nap.  Which I took this afternoon.  Only my dreams were filled with strange music.  Turns out, as I woke, there was a mini-outdoor festival happening right outside my street.

Sami Culture throws down.  Click on the photo above to see more from this set at Flickr

So, I grabbed my camera and checked it out.  Sami Cultura and several other Latin hip-hop artists were gathered and throwing down on the corner of La Brea and Pico.  Yeah, I couldn't understand a word of what was being said... but it was cool nonetheless.  A good reminder that LA is a unique blend of cultures -- and sometimes that happens right outside your door.

The gathering was being thrown in honor of "Bruno's Barber Shop".  I used to go there to get my hair cut... so it was good to see those guys again.

With Tron.
Originally uploaded by heykristopher

At WeHo for Halloween
Originally uploaded by heykristopher

Here are some of the highlights from our third day of the wedding... aka, the actual day before our wedding.



The day started with Ashley arriving in town.  And all of us grooms-people having a tasty breakfast at some random omelet place.  After that, the groomsmen busted a move to the Four Roses distillery to taste some bourbon and I got myself to the farm to put up lights, chairs and tables... along with some help from my brothers, Will & Andrew.

That evening, we had the rehearsal (well documented in the photos) and the rehearsal dinner... Though none of the toasts were tapes or photographed (probably for the best).  They were all memorable. 

Some highlights:
Jason's plethora of notes (which has been a long time coming, since I did the same thing to him at his rehearsal dinner)
Coop & Craig's sketch comedy show on the faults of Kris
Leah's heartfelt speech -- including one misperceived comment... a must for any rehearsal
And, Pennie's straight-from-the-heart speech that only an older sister can give...

Sigh.  After that, the parties split.  With me and the groomsmen playing some inane drinking game where you point at each other.  (Ask Ashley)  And the bridesmaids and Rachel playing Spades, and concluding with an orgy.  (Well, that's what the photos look like!)

Next up... the most well-documented day in our life thus far... our wedding day.

All the photos are coming in... and slowly... we are compiling them.  Right now, we're happy to present our brief selection to everyone of the best of day 1 and 2 of our wedding.

These photos represent October 8th & 9th. 


October 8th was low-key, primarily a day for Rachel and myself to get acclimated and knock off a few errands ahead of time... you know, like getting our marriage license and purchasing the liquor.

On the 9th, the bulk of our groomsmen and bridesmaids arrived in town.  Oh, and so did Rachel's immediate family.  The afternoon was spent waiting for the rental company to come by and setup the tent and drop off the chairs and tables for the wedding.  Which, of course, ended up happening more or less at the same time as Rachel's entire family arriving on the farm for the first time ever too.

That evening, we got the families together for a meet-n-greet dinner while the groomsmen and bridesmaids went out of the town for dinner.  My brothers and I caught up with some of them afterward for some late night bar-hopping... along with the Grest brothers, our first out-of-town non-wedding party guests to arrive.

There are no photos here of that adventurous evening.