:: the pipers :: a preview ::

a few weeks ago, the pipers gave me a call and asked if i'd be available to do a family portrait session with them before the winter cold set in. i was thrilled. they are such a photogenic family, and even though it felt like winter had already come the day of the shoot, they were great sports.

i've been out sick for almost two weeks now, so they've also shown great patience with me as i wait for this well-overstayed cold to pass. in the meantime, here's a few shots to share with friends and family over the holiday vacation, and i can't wait to finish the rest for you...

:: parker thomas gee ::

most of you know about the birth of our son, parker thomas gee. but some of you may not know just how adorable he is. so here are a few pics to help convince you of how good looking he is:

:: monica @ 38 weeks ::

After a bit of prompting and a streak of good weather, Monica and I were able to get out into our backyard and take some more prego pics. Monica is now 38 weeks along - and ready to be done! We can't wait to see our son. But before the delivery, we wanted to get out and take one last set of pics to show just how beautiful and stylish momma is. I love these pics. And I love my wife. I hope you enjoy the pics as much as we do, and we can't wait to see you all soon!

peter & laura anniversary session :: preview

Peter and Laura recently celebrated their anniversary. As a gift to each other, they called me up to shoot some anniversary portraits downtown. I LOVE shooting downtown, so I couldn't wait for this session. What I didn't expect was how awesome Peter and Laura were in front of the camera. Their love and passion for each other bleeds through each image. So, Peter and Laura, here are a few shots from our time downtown. More to come later, of course ::

What's Cookin' in Our Kitchen

I posted this picture over on my craft blog, but thought y'all might appreciate an update too! We are in the house and the last big project is underway. The kitchen cabinets arrived on Monday and can you believe they are already looking this GREAT? That's Brian and Pop hard at work -- actually, they are working as a type! I can feel the 'ceiling' (I'm in the basement, so technically it is the floor!) vibrate as they drill away. Anyway, isn't it looking lovely?

Before the Dust Settles

I know what y'all really want to see is pics of the new place, but it is still under construction! We've been homeowners for a little over three weeks now and have been hard at work ripping out wood paneling (really, if you are considering putting paneling in, just don't), tearing down walls, putting up drywall, spackling, putting up moulding, caulking, sanding, painting, etc. We've had the amazingly generous help of both Brian's mom and grandpa - which means we are nearing the end of destruction/reconstruction.

But, until then, I thought I'd share some pics of our soon-to-be-old apartment here in Wheaton. We've loved living here, and it is fun to reminisce on all the good times we've enjoyed in these rooms. Hope this will tide you over until we get some pics of the new place up and running!

Our Little Boy

So, for those of you who haven't heard the news yet--we are having a baby boy!! Brian took some pictures (crafty fellow even snuck into a few of them!) of me that we thought you'd enjoy. I'm about to complete my 24th week which puts me at 6 months pregnant. Just a few more months to go . . .

Becoming Homeowners

This little charmer may be the future home of the Gee Family!
We've still got a little ways to go until closing, but we are well on our way to buying this bungalow and making it into our first home!

A Weekend Getaway

A few weeks ago we decided to take a breather from our busy schedules. We spent one night in the Hyatt Regency in downtown Chicago. We took the train after Monica got off work and checked into our hotel. Our room was on floor 36 and had a great view of the backside of Millenium Park.

We enjoyed a fabulous dinner on Rush St. at Carmine's Rosebud Restaurant. Then went to the Signature Lounge on the 96th floor of the John Hancock. After a fabulous view of the city skyline and some s'mores we headed back to our hotel and had a good night's rest in our King Size Bed. Saturday was just pure fun! We went to Lincoln Park and enjoyed the free conservatory . . .

. . . the zoo . . .


. . . the Chicago History Museum, a movie, and then dinner with a dear friend. Brian took some fun photos of the Chicago night and then we headed back home.

Short but sweet!

Competency Exam

A few weeks ago Brian faced several hours of Competency Exams to complete his MA program. We just found out yesterday that he passed!

Now just two more final papers and three more weeks of class and Brian will officially graduate. Congratulations, honey!

Our 20 Week Ultrasound

Here's the pics...still no gender: it wasn't exactly that cooperative as it kept its legs crossed the whole time! Because of that, Monica thinks that we are probably having a very polite girl! (Click on the picture to enlarge it!)UPDATE: Ok, for those of you who like a little more information, I thought I'd expand on Brian's original post. If you are like me and can't really make heads or tails (well, hopefully not tails, that would be weird) of an ultrasound, here is the scoop. The first picture is baby facing the camera. The dark area on the right, I believe, is baby's brain. You can sort of make out two alien-like eyes (no insult to baby, that is just the way these things look!). Baby is on its left side and you can see the body off to the left. If you can make out a little round circle towards the top, that is the baby's hand. Like Brian said, the baby wasn't exactly cooperative during the whole ultrasound so it was difficult to get a good shot. We did get to see fingers, toes, a little bum, and all sorts of internal organs. Good stuff! On to pictures 2 and 3. These are pretty much the same, but I think #3 is a little clearer. Baby has moved onto its back and you can make out its little profile pretty well. These ones needs a little less explanation!

So, our baby is weighing in at about 12 oz and is right on target for its age. The heart rate was 156, so you can speculate how you wish on the gender based on that information! At my next visit the doctor will do a quick check again to see if we can get a clearer picture of the gender, but if not we'll be happy to wait (that's scheduled for May 13th for those of you who are counting!). As much as we'd like to know now, it is just a huge blessing that our baby seems to be in perfect health and is growing exactly like its supposed to. We are so thankful for that!

OK, I've got a lot of other things to write about since "change" seems to be the theme in the Gee household these days. I'll try to update soon and let you know the goings-on!

:: my wonderful wife at 18 weeks ::

A Day in a Life

We're back from our travels (they actually only lasted a total of 30 hours!) but have been pretty busy since we returned. Brian was able to take a lot of fun photos at the wedding and we got to catch up with some old friends from TMC. It was such a blessing to be a part of it all! Brian wants to edit some of the photos, but will probably get them posted eventually. Most of his time has been consumed with web design, editing, accounting, photography, and oh yeah, homework. He is one busy dude!

In the mean time, Monica's got a busy little bun in the oven. We had our 14 week ultrasound (this means the start of the 2nd trimester, woohoo!) on Monday and got to see our growing baby. It is just amazing how much they grow each time! We weren't expecting another ultrasound, but our doctor said, "Why not? You are here anyway" and we didn't turn him down. I want to see that little kid every chance I get! After a quick look at the baby the doctor announced "That's one healthy kid." That's just what we like to hear. Like before, baby is a mover and a shaker (although Monica isn't feeling any movement yet) and we weren't able to get a great shot. But, here is the little one a lot bigger than last time. Throughout the course of the ultrasound we could see him/her moving his/her arms and could even make out little fingers. 6 more weeks until the gender ultrasound - we can't wait!

Sorry for the greasy finger prints to the right, I guess I was enjoying my french fries a little too much when admiring this picture! Ok, here is the scoop, baby's head is to the right and we are pretty sure he/she is on his/her back. You can kind of make out the legs and feet to the left, but its not super clear. I'm starting to get the faintest hint of a baby belly, so we may be posting pictures of that soon. Enjoy!

Y'all Come Back Now, Ya Hear?

This weekend we are making a small trip to the more southern regions of our country. To us, pretty much everything seems like the South, but I'm pretty sure Louisville, KY does actually qualify. We'll be celebrating the wedding of Brian's college friend Jeff Mixon. Hopefully we'll have a few pictures to share from the adventure. It's a quick trip, but with snow in the forecast it might take a little longer than normal. I'm just excited to go to a new state. At least, I think its a new one. I may have slept through it on a family trip 10 years ago, but that doesn't really count anyway. Hope you all have a great weekend!

Baby Gee

Some of you know by now that we are expecting a little one to join our family on September 1, 2009. If you know your pregnancy math (which takes a little getting use to!), that means that I am almost on week 11 with our little kumquat (pregnancy books like to compare the size of the baby with fruit). As this is a semi-photography/semi-personal blog, we thought it would be fitting to share the first pictures of our baby with you all. Yep, you guessed it - ultrasounds!

Here is baby Gee at week 6 - heartbeat already going strong and mama starting to feel queasy. Baby is that small little dot - about 2mm long!
And here is baby Gee at week 10. Most of the big organ systems are developed and baby has gone through a growth spurt and is now 1.2 inches long! It's no surprise then that mama's been feeling nauseous and tired for the past month! Baby's head is to the left, you can see the little arms reaching up, and the little legs to the right. Baby has already inherited daddy's restlessness and wouldn't sit still for a good picture. Heartbeat is at 168!
We'll keep you all updated as the weeks progress. I look pretty much the same for now, so there won't be any baby bump pictures for a little while!

It's Been Frosty Lately!

A Week of Class

Just in case you were wondering what Brian has been up to this week, this picture might help explain.

Brian has preparing for his Winter class that starts tomorrow. He has been hunkered down, reading page after page of The Oxford Handbook of Systematic Theology. It makes him go a little loopy, but I guess that is just standard procedure for the MA student!

A Quick Look Back

Everyone seems to be doing the "2008 Year in Review" post, so why should we try to be any different? 2008 has really flown by, but we managed to cram a whole lot in there.

This past year:

We faced (and survived) our first winter in Chicagoland

We attended a Bull's game (and sat in box seats!)

We went to the Shedd Auqarium

We fell more in love with Chicago

Monica started seeing a new doctor who has really helped

Monica worked on the ESV Study Bible

Brian went to the Together for the Gospel Conference in Louisville, KY

Monica started a purse making business

Brian completed year one of his MA degree

Brian came down with mono

We went to a Cubs game with Monica's parents

We celebrated 2 years of marriage

Brian's grandparents and parents came to visit

We took a vacation to Michigan

Monica turned 24

Monica's dear friend from CA came to visit

Brian grew his photography business

Monica's sister and brother-in-law came to visit

We went to CA for Brian's sister's wedding

Brian started year two of his MA degree

Brian helped co-lead our Young Married's Bible Study

Monica's brother-in-law came to IL on a Marine Band Tour

Monica went to the True Woman Conference with her mom

Monica went to the Evangelical Theological Society in Providence, RI

Brian's parents, sister, and brother-in-law came out for Thanksgiving (which Monica cooked)

Brian turned 23

Brian finished up his second to last semester in the MA program

We went to CA to celebrate Christmas with our families

And that pretty much brings us up to date! There have been so many other little things that have contributed to this past year, and so many things that can't be quantified or summed up in a short sentence. But afterall, this post isn't called "A Long and Lengthy Look Back". We are bringing in the New Year by celebrating with some of our close friends. There are so many things we are looking forward to in 2009, but for now, we give thanks and praise to our God for his goodness and faithfulness to us. It is such a comfort to know that we can trust him with our past, present, and future, knowing that none of it is without purpose. We seek to continue to love each other and glorify God each day in 2009.

Happy New Year!