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 Doug
& CrystalAshleyBrandonWebcam
These pages are devoted to just the Duncan family in Denver, CO. The Duncanet website was originated and continues to be maintained by Doug, so we are kind of the "focal point" of the entire website. Enjoy!
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This is Ashley on March 6th, 2004. We have not been in for studio photos for quite some time, but will have to do so soon for both kids. Ashley is a barrel of fun at this age, but can also be a handfull. We love her nonetheless! Click thumbnail for larger Image. |
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This picture was taken around March 17th, 2003 and is one of her 2-year pictures. She looks so much older than she is in this set of photos, that people are always asking if she is 4 or 5 after seeing these pics. She is growing like a weed, but a very cute weed. Click thumbnail for larger Image. |
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This picture is of Ashley at Christmastime in 2002, at a Sears photo shoot. They take some great pictures! Ashley is always so good when taking pictures and always has a very nice smile. Lately she has been getting goofy and says "CHEESE" with her face all scrunched up as you can see in the recent photo albums. Click thumbnail for larger Image. |
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This picture was taken (around) June 5th, 2002 and is a great picture of Crystal and Ashley, where Ashley's almost 15 months old. This picture was framed and given to me (Doug) as a father's Day gift. (I love it!) Click thumbnail for larger Image. |
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This picture was taken July 10th, 2001 and is a great picture of Ashley at a little over 3 months. As you can see, she smiles very well for the camera. Click thumbnail for larger Image. |
Photo Albums (also on Photo Albums Page)
Some
things I really like top of page
5/04 - I really like to put together puzzles and I am already doing the 25-piece puzzles with ease. They are meant for kids from 3 to 8, but they are just fine for me at 3. I also like playing on the computer and I have several programs set up on Daddie's computers like an electronic puzzle game, a Winnie the Pooh coloring book, 101 Dalmations game, and a few others. I will need my own computer soon. I also like exploring for things outside and taking walks. I love my babies and I nurture them very well. I still like Blues Clues, Arthur, Dragon Tales and Barney too. I think I'm kind of outgrowing Tele Tubbies. I love the Wiggles too!
6/03 - I really like cho-choo trains right now; Chucky Cheese, my dog veterinary kit, Bob the Builder, Clifford the Big Red Dog, Legos, my playgroup, the Wiggles, Blues Clues, my kitchen set, pouring (fake) coffee for Mommy and Daddy, Play Dough, coloring and eating the crayons, swinging on the porch swing, doll houses, dancing and jumping, and Baby Songs videos.
Ashley Updates top of page
All Written by Crystal Duncan
June
28, 2002
Here is Ashley at 15 months old (see above picture). Wow how time is flying by! She is getting very tall. I think she is going to have her Daddy's legs. She is doing great; walking/running all around. We are teaching her sign language with our neighbor's help. She (Susan Mikulich) is teaching her boys also (1-1/2 and 3 years old). It is so cool to she how fast she picks things up. She can sign book, baby, doggie,bear, hat, cookie, and I cant remember the rest.
A week ago had to get rid of Bear (1 of our 2 dogs, Border Collie-Akita mix) she was very aggressive to Ashley by snarling and snapping through the fence sometimes. She has a new home in Greeley, Co. it is a "no-kill" shelter that will find her a home. We stay in contact with them and they keep us informed about her. She is doing great missing us like we are missing her. We had her for 5 1/2 years. Very hard decision, but Ashley is our number one concern now. Cody (the other dog, Golden Retriever) is doing great. Ashley feeds him cookies and what every else. We she comes in from playing, she wants Cody in too. She can climb all over him and we don't worry. Won't take our guard down, cause he is 12 years old and once they get old they can get aggressive, so we just watch them and let them have fun.Doug's new business is up and running. Take a look at his web site: www.pclogic.net He has a partner, Alex Shaw, and they have 2 customers so far, and the first call came in yesterday. We hope things will really pick up and get going for them. We are still selling Discovery Toys and helping Doug get his business going. We are very busy anymore. We go to playgroup every Tuesday and also in a reading program at the library. Just tying to keep the house clean and toys put away is always a challenge.
We will be in Billings, MT for a family reunion and boy will the family be surprised on how Ashley has grown. We have had a very hard June. First Doug was in a accident, not hurt just the truck had $2,500 in damage,. then our neighbors house right next to us caught on fire at 2 in the morning and we were all outside in pj's for about 4 hours. Very scary for us, so I have made some changes around our house to make us safe and better prepared for fires. We are all scared to death with the 4th of July coming and the open field behind us. Our neighbors are all OK and they will have 4-6 months to rebuild. They had great home insurance, so we called to make sure we all had the best coverage also. As for the fires in Colorado, they are getting better. The Haymen fire is about 80% contained and not growing. The fire near Durango is still crazy, but they have it about 30% contained. The other 6 fires are all almost out. We are so dry our here, we just need some rain.
March
27, 2002 top of page
Our little Angel is all grown up now. A year old!!! Wow, where has the time gone? We went to the Dr. today and got a clean bill of health. She weighs 18.5 1/2" , 30 1/2" long, and 18" head. She got 4 shots today and is very sore from them all. She is currently napping, but starting to wake up so this will have to be short. The Dr. is so happy in how she is growing that he says there is nothing to worry about and keep enjoying her.
She can't walk on her own, but if you hold her hand she will go like crazy. We had her big birthday party on March 23 and what a party it was. She had tons of family and friends here. Got tons of gifts and goodies. We let her have her own birthday cake and she really enjoyed it. We will be going to see the Easter Bunny and look for some eggs this weekend. Cant wait to see how she does with that. All I can say is I love being a Mom and I thank my husband so much for allowing me to stay at home with her.
Doug is doing great and supporting his family and taking care of us, we love him so much for that as does our families. My Dad, Sister, Ash and Me will be leaving on the 16 of April for Dothan, Al to visit her great grandparents and great Uncle and Aunt that have not meet her yet. We will be there for a week having fun and visiting. We are going to take her to the ocean and play in the sand. Outside of just relaxing, we will have lots of fun.
January
29, 2002 top of page
Wow, Ashley is 10 months old already! She is growing like crazy and is 18 pounds, 30" long. She is eating all our big-people food. We are really trying to get her off the jars baby food. Only a few more months and off the formula and on to milk, and we can't wait to turn her around in the car seat!!!!!!!! She is getting the front three teeth, or at least the front left an the one next to it. That has been hard for her, and she has been very fussy.
As of tonight she now can say Mama, and how cute it is. She is so proud of it, as Mama is also. I love just hearing her say it. She learned Dada last month and it was so nice for her to finally say Mama!
She really loves playing by her self for long periods of time. She loves to take everything out of the toy box as I put it in. She moves so fast, you can't take your eye off her. She is also learning to climb the stairs. I had to take my plants to my Dad and Stepmom's house, because she loved eating the dirt. Everything on the main level is hers. She has toys every where and she tells us what we can do.
I love being with her all the time, and being a stay at home mom. Doug is doing great, still working, but always looking for something better.
I really don't have much time on the computer anymore, but that is OK because chasing her around the house is fun. Daddy even gets on the floor and plays with her and she love that.
OK, I need to get her to bed, plus we are fighting a really really bad diaper rash (on Ashley), so no diaper on at the moment so I need to keep an eye on her.
January
4, 2002 top of page
Today, my Sis and I took Ashley in for her 9 month appointment Wow how time flies, she is getting so big. She is doing wonderful and she weighs: 17 pounds 3-1/2 ounces, 29-1/2" long and 17-3/4" head.
We had to get her foot poked to check her iron level which is fine: 11.8. She hated the bandage they put on her foot and she took it off in minutes. Only one shot today and that was the HEB B shot. She was injected in the leg, and again the bandage did not stay on.
She has had a really rough day as she has not eaten anything and is getting a low grade fever. We just woke up from a two hour nap and she seems to be doing OK. Still not very active, but I would not be either it I was poked twice today.
Boy does she get around, not really crawling yet, but she rolls and belly crawls all over the place. Within minutes she is in the kitchen from the living room. Pulling her self up on things. She is eating the plant dirt, which would not be a problem, but I put plant food in it so we are going to make some kind of cover. She loves paper, and thinks eating the paper is the best. We now have to leave all the gates up and move everything up high. She is eating more and more table food and she loves anything Mommy is eating.
We have 3 more months till we can face her forward in the Blazer and use whole milk and will no longer have to use formula. Yea!! We cant wait. We are so broke form the expense of formula, but we sure have loved everything we have gone through with raising Ashley.
Good news, especially for Doug: she is sleeping in her crib for all of her naps, and most of the week during the night. Sleeps about 7-8 hours straight. (Tonight will be a sleepless night, I'm sure)
We all had a wonderful Christmas! Ash got lots of goodies and we loved having all the family here to enjoy in this special time in her life.
Well that is all that is new with us, we just keep going along with everyday things.
You all take care and when Doug gets the web cam working again I will let everyone know so you can log on and see Ashley on the move.
October
26, 2001 (Doug & Crystal's
5th anniversary, also) top of page
OK, we went to Ashley's doctor on Tuesday, October 25th for her 6 month checkup. She is doing great and the doctor is very happy with her progress and health. She weights 14 pounds, 3 ounces, is 27" long and has a 17" head (circumference). Her hair is very blond, and she has the prettiest blue eyes.
She rolls over all the time now and sits up on her own. I think she is getting close to getting on her knee's to starting to crawl. We have started putting the gates up around the house so we can get used to them before we actually NEED them.
She talks (screaming something from her mouth that only she understands), and just recently started saying dada dada dada, on and on. That's cool! Now we need to get her to say mama mama mama. She tries to copy us and we enjoy the way she tries to do things we do. She makes us laugh all the time.
She is having a hard time sleeping through the night, but she is getting better and better. She sleeps in her crib, but only until she wakes up, then off to Mommy and Daddy's bed.
We will have another photo album up very soon up to her 7 month birthday, so check back here to see more recent photos of her.
We will be Christening Ashley on October 28th at the church we got married at (Southeast Christian Church, now in Parker, CO). Chello Herbert will be Ashley's Godfather, and Trisha Scott will be her Godmother. After the Christening, we are going to have a party at our house for her and family, and also to close out the summer. Chello will be in from Billings, along with his sister (Kim), and his friend (Troy), so it should be fun. We will also be adding a photo album for her Christening here soon.
July
14, 2001 top of page
Well Ashley is getting bigger and bigger every day. We have a scale at home so we put her on it all the time, and last check she was 11.3 lb. and about 23" long, or that is what we think. The scale isn't always accurate. We go back to the doctor for her 4 month check up on July 31,2001, and also get her the next round of shots.
She is such a good baby. We have been feeding her rice cereal for about a month now, not all the time, but every few days, and she loves it. Now that she is getting closer to 4 months we are trying to feed her during lunch and dinner. Right now she is totally a mommy's girl, and does not want to have anything to do with daddy. Every time I give Ashley to Doug, she will do fine for about 10 minutes, and then the lower lip comes out and she starts to cry. I talked with the doctor about that, and he said she is fine, and that is normal at this age. She could be teething, or just used to her mommy, and not looking for change. Daddy is having a hard time with this, but she still loves her daddy very much.
Today (7-14-01) she was all dressed up in her Bronco clothes and we took her to Invesco Field (our new Denver Bronco stadium) thanks to 2M Company, who gave us their stadium preview tickets. She looked so cute and everyone just talked about her the whole time we were there. Don't think she will remember when she gets older, but we all had fun. She also went to her first rodeo with her Aunt Tracy (old coworker of Crystal's), along with Mom and Dad. The rodeo was at the Greeley Stampede, in the town of Greeley, CO, about 60 miles north of Denver. Tracy came out to see Ashley for a weekend from Ft. Wayne, Ind., and we all had a great time.
We had our first professional photos done on 7-10-01, and what a cutie, she smiled and did a great job (See photo above). We had them done at Babies R Us, and they do an excellent job. Dad thought she would just lay there, but she proved him wrong. When there is a camera, she will just smile for everyone around.
She is sleeping through the night, or a least 7 hours straight. We are working very hard on getting her to her crib, but it is very hard because she is used to our bed. I just love waking up with her and she feels the same. I feel sorry for Daddy but he understands (I think) She sleeps like a fish, tosses and turns all night, that is why she gets half of the king size bed until we get her used to the crib.
She will be on her first trip to Billings, Montana in August. The Duncan family reunion is over the weekend of the 18th & 19th, and there is a list a mile long of family who can't wait to meet and hold her. We are all looking forward to the trip. My mom, sister, and her boyfriend are also coming with us this year.
Well that is all about now, or it is just because it is late, and Mommy is tired and should be in bed. Ashley will probably wake up early because she went to bed early tonight. We love being parents.
The next update will be after her 4 month check up.
June
2, 2001 top of page
Well Ashley is 2 months old now, and wow, where has the time gone? Tuesday (4/28) we went in for a check up and her first set of shots. She currently weighs 9.5 pounds , 21 1/2 " long and a 15" head. The shots were hard on her and me. She cried and cried and I felt so bad. She was given two in each leg. Right after the shots, we gave her a bottle and she calmed right down. I took my mom (Bev Scott), as I did not want to go through it alone. Since she has gotten the shots, she has been a little cranky, but nothing bad.
Our doctor said whatever we are doing just keep doing it. He is very happy about her progress. We don't go back to the doctor until she is 4 months of age, and she will then get her next set of shots.
She loves to push up on her legs either on the floor or when you are holding her. She has great neck control. We think she will crawl early. She for the first time, tried cereal tonight and did pretty good. We are trying to get her belly fuller, so she will sleep longer during the night. Right now she is sleeping and getting up every three hours to eat. Still eating 3 ounces a feeding, and still every 3 hours.
I still love being a stay at home mom, even though I don't get much sleep, but it is so worth everything. We will keep everyone posted on her and she continues to grow.
May
2, 2001 top of page
Just a quick note: We went to the doctor yesterday and got a very good clean bill of health for Ashley: She is 7 pounds 9 ounces, 20 1/2" long and a 14" head. The doctor says what every we are doing keep doing, because we are doing a great job, and Ashley looks great.
We go back to the doctor on May 29th for the first set of shots, four of them. Ouch!!!!! My baby will be so mad and sore. She is doing wonderful for her parents and she sleeps during the day until around 9:00 PM then she is awake for a while. She still does not sleep through the night, but she will soon. We are somewhat on a 12;30, 3;30, 6;30, 9;30 eating time, but sometimes that changes depending on her.
I love being a stay at home mom and taking care of Ashley all day. Doug is doing great with her, between studying for the test he needs to take and taking time with his girls, he is very busy.
Ashley Ann Duncan Born on March 27th, 2001 top of page
Yes,
we've all been waiting quite a while, but Ashley Ann Duncan was born
into the world at 4:23 AM on the morning of March 27th, 2001. YEEHAW!!
She was 5 weeks premature (originally due May 5th), but is in excellent
health and spirit. Because she was premature, she will be kept at the
hospital for approximately 2 weeks for precautionary measures. She was
born weighing 5 pounds, 5 ounces, and only caused her mother to go through
1/2 an hour hard labor.
The
StoryI (Doug), got the call Monday, March 26th around 4:00 PM, that Crystal's water had broken and she was on her way to her doctor's office. I rushed from work to meet her there, and her doctor's assistant (her doctor was on vacation that week) confirmed that she did actually break her embryonic fluid, and sent her to the hospital. We arrived at the hospital at around 5 PM, and Crystal was admitted, being informed that she would not leave without having a baby. WOW! This was a shock to both of us, because we thought it might be an early complication, but had no idea that it was going to happen this soon.
Crystal went throughout the evening having several contractions, but not timed regularly as a mother about ready to give birth would have. Because of this, the nurses said that the baby would possibly arrive naturally within the next 24-48 hours, and would probably be closer to the latter. If Crystal did not give birth by that time, she would most likely have to be induced. Crystal had many guests that night including her mother (Bev), her Father and wife (John & Lucy), Her Grandmother (Ruby), her sister and boyfriend (Trish & Chris), and of course her coach (Doug). Because the nurses had the opinion that this was going to be a long, drawn-out birth (because of being so premature), everyone was sent home, assured that they would be called when the time came close, thinking it would be at least 24 hours away. The three remaining people at the hospital were Crystal, Doug, and Bev.
Crystal was experiencing extreme pain around 10:00 PM, so they gave her a sedative/sleeping agent to help relieve the pain. This did absolutely nothing for Crystal, so they decided it was OK to give her a small amount of morphine to help her relax and to alleviate the pain. This was around 12:30 AM. Everyone got a little (on-and-off) shuteye after midnight, but at around 3:30 AM, Ashley decided she had enough of being in Mom's belly. Crystal woke up with severe contractions and had dilated from 1 to 9 cm in a matter of 3 hours. Whoops, too late for any medication to relieve the pain this far along!
The doctor on call had left for the night and was on her way home, and the next doctor hadn't arrived yet. The nurses agreed that the baby was coming and by Crystals screams, this was confirmed. They had to page the last on-call doctor to return to the hospital, which she did, but it seemed like an eternity (you can ask Crystal about this one).
Because the nurses were not prepared to deliver a baby at 5 weeks premature, they insisted that Crystal not push until the doctor arrived. These were some of Crystal's finer moments, which I will not elaborate on here. Finally the doctor arrived, and about 10 minutes later, Ashley was born. Wildest thing I have ever seen. She is the most beautiful child I have ever laid my eyes upon. Crystal went through the entire birthing process without any medication. The funny thing is, is that was the way she wanted to do it originally, but when it came closer to the birth she said "NO WAY!!". Well, that's how it goes sometimes.
Mom had to spend a couple days in the hospital, and they told us Ashley would be there for around 2 weeks for precautionary measures. Ashley is in exceptionally great health and does not need an incubator, as many premature babies do at that age. She is breathing on her own and doing great, so we hope to have her home in a week or so. She had a little bout with jaundice, but seems to be over that now.
This
was the contest:
Correctly
guess, or come the closest to, the baby's sex, birthdate,
weight, and time, and you will win a $25 gift certificate
to Amazon.com! This is for anyone who visits this website, whether
friends or family. Your information will be kept confidential and we
will announce the winner after the baby is born.
Good Luck!
The
winner:The winner was Marjorie Steele, a former coworker of Crystal's, at Superior Wire. Her guess was: female born April 7th, 6 pounds 6 ounces. She will receive a $25 gift certificate from Amazon.com.
Congrats to her!!
We had many participants in the contest, but the way we were able to pick the winner was to match the closest guesses in the following order: sex, date of birth, weight, and then time of delivery, if it got that close. Marjorie was correct in the sex and closest to the date and weight.
Ultrasound Photos (As explained by Crystal) top of page
Click thumbnail for larger picture
This was my first ultrasound taken on 9-26-00 and what a surprise to us and the Doctor. When I saw this, it brought tears to my eyes. The little spot in the middle of the baby is the heartbeat. It doesn't look like a baby quite yet, but it is only 1.69 cm long at the time.
This was taken on 11-9-00. The baby is growing fast and is about 2.88 cm long and very active. I could feel the baby moving softly. This photo captures the baby's head and spine. The baby was moving so much we had a hard time to get a good clean ultrasound shot. We were both doing great at this time and the heartbeat was very strong.
This was the big day, usually the one to find out the sex of the baby. Doug and Crystal did not want to know the sex until the baby is born, but Crystal's Mom and Dad went to this apt. and were trying to find out. Both of them had money ready to bribe to the doctor, and Crystal's Dad had a pink and blue bow tie, asking the doctor what color looked best?? Our doctor did not say a thing. The baby was again so active, it was hard to get a good clean photo so when my doctor caught the baby with his/her hand up saying hi to Mom, Dad, Grandma and Grandpa, she got the shot. The other hand was in the mouth.
Crystal Pregnancy Pictures top of page
Click thumbnail for larger picture
This picture was taken in Cancun when Crystal & went there for vacation over the week of Thanksgiving 2000. The photo was taken in front of our hotel right on the beach. As you can see the water is soooo blue. We met our friends Craig and Lani Bolenbaugh on this trip and all had a great time.
This picture was taken in Billings, MT when Crystal went up there a couple weeks before Christmas of 2000. The photo was taken at (future) great Grandma and Grandpa Sullivan's house. Crystal is displaying the new "Farmers" line of clothing that Doug loves to tease her about. YEEHAW!! ;-)
This picture was taken in South Dakota at the Mount Rushmore Memorial. We went to Deadwood, SD for a few days (Jan 20-22) where we met some friends and took them to the memorial because none of them had ever been there before. This was officially our "last hurrah" before the baby is expected in May. We met Craig & Lani Bolenbaugh and Chello Herbert there, and afterwards we went to Billings, MT for a couple days before returning to Denver.
Here I am 32 weeks along and getting closer and closer. I am feeling good except that I still cannot sleep well due to the belly getting so big, as you can see!! The reason I look like I do (no makeup and my hair pulled up), is because I was put on bed rest Wed., March 7th. I went into early labor and now I'm currently on a drug to stop premature contractions, since the baby's not due until May 5th. The baby is so active that we all laugh about my belly moving constantly.
Baby
Room Conversion top
of page
Crystal, her mom Bev, and Grandma Ruby have done an awesome job of converting our "guest bedroom" into a wonderful baby's room. I (Doug) cannot believe the difference that they have done to the room. Because we do not know the sex of the baby, we are keeping a "neutral" look and are using an ocean and fish theme. It is really cool. I have included a sample of the pattern we are using for the room. They have also painted the lower half of the walls with a dual blue colored ocean-swirl that looks really cool.
Click Image for larger picture.
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In
the beginning... This is the swirled multiple-blue pattern that is supposed to resemble an ocean or water. It looks very neat. Crystal and her mother Bev did all of this in an afternoon and were even able to add a few fish into the pattern to get a feel to how it would look later. |
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Adding
the Trim Grandma DeBeaux and Bev are now applying the trim that separates the pattern on the lower half of the wall from the white upper portion. This is the theme you see in the "Fish Wallpaper" above. |
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Baby's
Crib After all the work on the walls has been completed, all the furniture needed to be assembled. This is where I came in (Doug). This is the completed crib along with all the padding, blankets, mobile, etc. It looks great in the room. |
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Dresser
and Changing Table We wanted a light-colored wood look for all the furniture in the room to contrast the dark blues of the walls and curtains. These two pieces match the crib and really lighten the room up. Also notice all the "flying fish" on the walls. |
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All New Duncanet!! |
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Thanks for visiting! |
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