Babies babies and more babies

Poll at the bottom of this post....

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More prayers needed... my other good friend, Tiffany, is being induced tonight! She had a regular doctors visit today and b/c of a couple things they didn't like they want to induce her tonight. This is her first little girl and she needs prayers for a smooth delivery of baby Reagan. She is actually not due until the same day as me, but she is lucky and gets to meet her baby girl 11 days early! Thanks for the prayers... and here is some pictures of the new edition to the Lada's family.

Hailey, Joey and baby Avery

(Doesn't Hailey look awesome!!! This was taken just minutes after Avery arrived!)

Proud big sister Molly and Avery! I hope Grace is this happy to meet her new sister.
So when is my little baby Emma going to arrive? Any guesses? I would have guessed last week, so what do you think? My due date is March 3rd (11 days from today), but if I don't have her then I'm currently scheduled to be induced on March 5th. So guess away....

OH MAMA!

Here is my ever growing belly! I'm not sure how much bigger it can get.

Avery Kate

She's here!! Hailey had a smooth labor and delivery today. Avery Kate was born shortly before 4 in the afternoon weighing in at 6 pounds 9 ounces and 18.5 inches long... tiny little one! As soon as I have a picture I will post! Thanks for your thoughts and prayers!!

38+ weeks

I had my 38 week appointment today. I can't believe I'm due to have this baby girl in 13 days (give or take... hopefully she will decide to come sooner). My OB said I was dialated to nearly 2 centimeters and I'm still just 50% effaced. So a litle progress since last week. The morning before I had Grace I was checked and I was only a 1.5 centimeters, so maybe Emma isn't far behind.

Oh and on another note, one of my best friends, Hailey, is being induced tomorrow morning to have her second little girl! Many of you know her or hear me talk about her, so say a prayer that her delivery goes smoothly and that their little girl (who is still nameless) is healthy! I'm lucky to have such a wonderful friend... I just wished she didn't live so far away!!

maybe

I thought maybe yesterday was the day... the big delivery day that is.

Turns out that darn braxton hicks can really be a teazer! I had contractions pretty much all day and just felt like poop.... but then today I've been fine all day... a few contractions, but nothing exciting. Maybe this girl is just ramping up for her big debut.

2 weeks and 2 days till my actual due date, but as far as I'm concerned she can come anytime now. So little one in my tummy... did you hear that? We are ready for you!!

Our little Valentine turns TWO!

Happy 2nd Birthday baby girl!

We enjoyed a nice night at Gattiland! It was a nice little family birthday. Grace got lots of fun new toys, pjs, shoes and even a picnic table to enjoy this summer! Yes she is totally spoiled! :)

We went to the pediatrician this morning and boy is she growing! She was 26 pounds (40th percentile) and 36.5 inches (95th percentile). The doctor said she is part giraffe!! There is an old wives tale about double their height at age 2... if we do that it would make Grace to be about 5'8" when she is full grown. That is 4 inches taller than me! Our long and lean girl. She seems to be doing good as well as far as development. I've been a bit worried about her speech, but he isn't in the least worried which is a huge relief. I'm sure every parent worries about their kids... you just want them to be smart and successful, right?

Anyway, I know I will look back on this in years from now and wonder how she was ever this litle. But for now I can't believe she is getting so big. She really is turning into a big girl. I'm sure once Emma arrives she will seem even bigger. But for now she is my little baby girl!

37+ Weeks

Today I had my weekly appointment and we have had a little progress! YEAH!!

I was still just 1 centimeter dialated, but I was 50% effaced and the baby is dropping! This is great news. The doctor even told me to make sure I was registered at the hospital (which I am now!) and to make sure we had a bag packed (which we still need to do!). So I'm sure since she told me those things the baby wont come for 3 more weeks. Which wouldn't be the end of the world, but Adam and I are just so anxious to meet Emma. I can't believe any day Adam and I will be parents of 2 little girls. It is sort of bitter sweet... the days of just Adam, Grace and I will be over and there will be a new little bundle to join our clan.

Also, in 2 short days my baby will be TWO! Where has the time gone? 2 years from tomorrow my water broke and I headed to the hospital to have my little Valentine. Time really does fly. I'm sure the girls will be teenagers before we know it and diapers and preschool will be the least of our worries. But until then I want to enjoy little moment of their lives!

Preschool

Who knew that getting Grace into a Preschool for the FALL (as in over 6 months from now) would be so difficult.

I started looking for different Mothers-day-out and preschool programs before we even moved. Once we found a house I narrowed the search to a couple local churches very close to our house that I wanted to check out. Grace and I got out and toured our top two choices. My top choice is the church we are currently in the process of joining (we have to do a Membership class that is 4 weeks). Anyway, I love their program... everything about it. It just seemed perfect for us and Grace. But then they told me her class was already full for fall and I couldn't even get her on the waiting list till this morning. Which she is on the waiting list... number 10 on the list!! (I actually waited for an hour and half just to put her on the wait list!!) Anyway, when they told me last week there was already a wait list, I RAN to my second choice and was able to get the LAST spot for the 2 year old class. Now I do like this program just as much, but would love to get her into the program at our soon-to-be church. So right now I'm just thankful that I was able to get her into a program for the Fall, but hoping that I get a call at some point between now and then telling me they have a spot for Grace. I guess I always have next year. :)

I can't wait for her start... she LOVES being around other kids. In the mean time she still gets interaction with my friend's kids and at the church nursery on Sunday mornings. And in just a few weeks she will have a baby sister to play with... well sort of. Good enough for now.

All smiles

I could just eat her up! My sweet girl...

Mystery gift??

Update below...

Today we got a gift for the baby. It is a set of adorable little mary jane socks by Trumpette. The only problem is we have no clue who its from. The return address on the box is from a lady named Donna Savanella and the card only says :

"To Adam, Lisa and Grace,

Congrats on your new baby girl, Emma!"

Adam and I don't believe we know this person. Her address is in Hartford, CT... and we don't know anyone that even lives in that state. The only thing we can think is that someone we do know ordered the gift online and their name was left off the card that was enclosed.

So if you sent us the adorable socks let us know so we can thank you personally! I do love them and I'm sure Emma will wear them often!

****** My friend, Hailey sent the socks! What would I do without a blog? Would I had to call everyone I know. She ordered the gift online so the lady was just some random person! I guess I'll forgive her that her name wasn't on it. She is 9 months pregnant so we will give her a break!

36 week appointment

Well the numbers are in... the baby weights approximately 6lbs and 6 ozs and is 18.5 inches long! That puts her in the 67th percentile! I have friends that have delivered their full term babies and they weight that much. So basically we are expecting to have a baby about the same size as Grace... she was 8lbs 10ozs and 21 inches!

I really felt like they were going to tell me that she was smaller since I haven't gained as much weight, but oh well. I guess I just make big babies. My amniotic fluid levels were a little low, but nothing to be concerned about yet. Oh and I was dilated 1 centimeter. Nothing exciting, but at least its something! So we went ahead and scheduled to be induced on March 5th if I haven't already had her (my due date is March 3rd). However, I can still change my mind. I am just hoping that I will go on my own before that.

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In other news, Grace slept the ENTIRE night without waking up!! WOO HOO!!! She has only done this a few times since we have moved her to a big girl bed. I'm hoping it is a new trend! :) She never would wake up in her crib... I guess she is just trying to get us ready to have a newborn in the house! We will take what we can get!

news news news

Lots to report on here!

1. Bed progress - Grace is doing better. We have taken the Supernanny approach. THANKS so much for all the suggestions. First, we ended up putting her bed together and buying a rail and that seems to help keep her in more. She has gotten out, but only a couple times. I guess it makes it feel more like a crib. Over the past 5-6 nights we have gone from laying with her till she falls asleep to standing at her door. We do the normal bedtime routine... brush teeth, read books, turn on music, etc and she hops right into bed. We tuck her in and say "I'll be right here". And we walk to the door and just stand there for a few minutes. She will sometimes fuss for a minute after we close the door, but has normally fallen alseep. As far as her waking in the middle of the night... she is doing better. The last few nights she has only gotten up once and stayed in bed. I've gone in there and re-tucked her into bed and stood in her door way for a few minutes and it seems to do the trick. AMEN!!!!! So I've been able to get a bit more sleep. Thanks again. Hopefully things will keep going well. Here is a picture of Grace sleeping in her bed... she looks so tiny in the big bed!!

2. Photographers - Still loooking, but I've emailed a couple of the people that you guys suggested. I was so clueless that photographers are so expensive!! I've been lucky and had friend of friends take her pictures or we have gone to the Picture People and I've never spent more than $100 (including photos). But they are only little once right? Hopefully I will find someone quick! Thanks for your suggestions.

3. 4 weeks in counting... I'm due in 4 weeks... 28 days to be exact. I feel like I have everything to do. Although Emma's room is really coming along! I still have laundry to do and diapers to buy, but hey Walmart is open 24 hours right? I have an ultrasound tomorrow morning and we should be able to make sure its still a girl and see how big this baby is. It's weird because I haven't gained as much with this pregnancy, however I feel so much bigger. This baby is taking up every bit of space that I have. Hopefully this means that the weight I have gained will quickly be lost after her birth!!

4. Grace turning two! Several people have been asking what we are doing for her birthday... well since I'm too tired to throw a big party we are just having a small family dinner at Gattiland. Next year I think we will have a big party... and maybe just do a party every other year. I think it makes it more special then. But if you are just dying to buy her something she could use pajama's (2T) or any new fun toy or book (she loves books!).

5. We have been enjoying the nice warmer weather the last couple days. We let Grace play outside yesterday and she had a blast. Here are a few photos of her playing. Don't you just love her curls! The more humid it is the curly her hair! (Oh and just so you know our neighborhood is half finished, so they have houses popping upeverywhere... including across the street. That is why there is a port-a-potty in our neighbors lawn.... LOVELY huh!)

Looking for a photographer!

Does anyone know someone in Dallas that does children's photography? I am looking for someone ASAP to take 2 year pics of Grace and newborn pics of the baby next month. Let me know if you know of anyone that is good (and reasonable). I can't spend $200 on the sitting fee alone! Any suggestions welcome!!

ps... I've done Picture People in the past and they have done good, but I am looking for something a little more creative to show Gracie's personality. THANKS!!

OH and I am going to try to post later today... I've been under the weather so just haven't been up to it, but we have lots to update about!

bed issues

We need some advice. Grace will not stay in her bed! She was doing great until she got sick last week. So for nearly 2 weeks she has gotten up at least 2 times a night. This was fine when she was sick, but now she is fine and I'm sick! We have a child lock on the inside of her room, so she can't out. (This might sound mean, but she is on the second floor of our house and I wouldn't want her to get try to come down the stairs in the dark in the middle of the night). Anyway, we don't know what to do. She usually goes down pretty easy (although not as easy as it was when she was in a crib), but then wakes and gets out of bed and starts knocking at the door. I've let her cry when she was in her crib around 8 months, but what do I do now?? We currently have her mattress on the floor, but we are thinking of putting her bed frame together and just getting bed rails. Our thought is that it just might keep her in the bed. So any advice?

ps... Since I'm due in less than 5 weeks I'm totally worrying. What am I going to do if I have a toddler and a newborn waking up several times a night. I'm tired just thinking of it!

A girl and her wuvey (lovey)

I don't know what Grace would do without her lovey. When she was 9 months or so she started to become attached to a blanket with silky on one side. So last year for Christmas my mom made her 6 lovey's that have silky on one side. We lost one last year when we were out shopping, thankfully I had another one in my car! Anyway, I took a couple photos of her snuggling with her lovey because it really is such apart of her.

8 advantages of living in the city

I haven't lived in a big city since I graduated from high school... 10 years ago! And since being back I love it! There are so many awesome advantages. Here are a few I've noticed.

1. Delivery - You can anything delivered right to house and put in the room you want it. Since we moved we have bought several new furniture pieces for the family room, Grace's room and our new study and it is so wonderful to have it delivered. When we lived in Oklahoma we lived too far for delivery or it was out of this world expensive to deliver, so we always opted to pick it up ourselves.

2. Shopping - The nearest Target is only a couple miles from house. When we first moved to Oklahoma the nearest Target was an hour away and then about 2 years ago we got one 30 minutes away... not nearly close enough.


3. Restaurants - Too many options is great! I was limited to Chili's, fast food, or a couple local places. Adam and I are trying not to go crazy in this department though...only eating out once a week!


4. Grocery Stores - Any place that has more options than Walmart is fantastic. While I still do most of my grocery shopping at Walmart (because it really is cheaper) I enjoy having other options to go and grab something different and yummy from a place near us called Market Street... so cool!

5. Grandparents - We have always been lucky to have our parents pretty close... my parents use to be about 1.5 hours away and Adam's parents were 3, but now my parents are a mear 20 minutes and Adam's are about 2.5 hours away. It is great! My mom even babysat for us last Friday night so we could have a little night out to ourselves. It was wonderful!! It was even topped off that we had a gift card to where we ate, so our entire night out was practically free. I'm sure we will be needing more help from our parents once baby girl Emma comes (in 5 weeks!!!).

6. Pre-schools - there was only one in the city we lived in!! We have just started looking here, but there is one on practically every corner and they all seem wonderful. We were hoping to get Grace in one right away just one day a week, but everyone that seems great is full. So we are hoping to get her into a program 2 days a week for fall. Grace LOVES to be around other kids and I really just think she needs that time away from me. Plus it will be nice to have some time just me and the baby (like I did with Grace).

7. Food delivery - so a cross between delivery and restaurants... but in Oklahoma we only had pizza delivery. I don't even know how many places deliver here, but it has to be more than just Domino's. This will come in VERY handy after we have the baby. Although I am planning to make some meals to freeze (if you have any great casserole recipes email me!), I know there are going to be days that even putting something into the oven isn't going to happen! So Amen for food delivery.

8. Doctors - While I LOVED my old OB and Pediatrician, there are so many more options here. In Oklahoma we had only 3 OB's and a hand full of pediatricians. In fact, I ended up going to a pediatrician 30 miles down the road because he was that good. I miss them both terribly, but feel like we have found a couple good ones here. This could be a con as well... since there are so many finding a good one can take time. Thankfully I have so many family and friends in Dallas that have been helpful in this department.

Only a couple disadvantage I can find so far. One is traffic. And really that doesn't affect me that much... only Adam. Better him than me since I can get road rage. The second is that our neighbor is sort of busy during the day because of construction. Our neighborhood is about 3/4 complete, so we have probably about a year of construction noise ahead. It just isn't completely optimal for a stay-at-home mama that needs a nap from time to time. Thankfully Grace seems to sleep right through the noise!

OH and Grace is feeling much better. Unfortunately Adam and I have caught her little bug and are now going through tissues very fast! Hopefully it pass quickly because I would love to enjoy these last few weeks we have to sleep!!

hey

I had a doctors appointment this morning and all is looking good. I'm 34 weeks and 1 day, but I am measuring 33 weeks. No big deal though. I just can't believe that in 6 weeks (give or take a few days) we will have another baby. Boy do I have some shopping to do. This baby needs some diapers!!!

Grace hasn't been feeling well the last several days. I ended up taking her to her new pediatrician (who I had yet to meet) and found out it's just a bad cold. She has had a fever on/off since Friday and is coughing like crazy, but today she seems to be getting back to normal despite those two issues. I really liked her new pediatrician. My old pediatrician had given me 2 recommendations for new people that he knew down in our new area. One of them couldn't get Grace in till MAY (for her 2 year well visit). So we opted for the other one and couldn't be happier. He has only been practicing in our area for about 6 months so he is still building up clients, which I loved! (They just moved to the area as well to be closer to family.) It was just nice being able to call yesterday morning and get in the same day within a few hours. I hate those pediatricians that you have to make appointments with for the next day or when you get there you have to wait forever! We were in and out in about 30-40 minutes. Very convenient!

Oh and just for those that asked, no we are not potty training Grace. She just loves to go on the potty from time to time. So if she asks I put her on the potty. But overall I don't think she is quite ready, plus with all the changes in our house in that last month and another change coming very soon we decided to wait until Summer to start official potty training. Wasn't that picture adorable though! She loves to read magazines when on the potty... its so funny to see the things that she picks up from us :)

And like I always say, every post is better with a picture... here you go. My messy hair girl first thing in the morning. I'm beginning to think she may need a haircut soon...

potty time

Grace being silly.

just an update

Things are slowing down around here... finally. We are for the most part settled. Although we haven't managed to hang any pictures, almost everything else has found a home. It is nice I have to admit to move to a larger home. Makes finding new places for stuff easy. We have several cabinets in our kitchen that are completely empty! My only main complain is there isn't really an extra closet on the first floor for stuff... you know... Grace's toys, the vacuum, etc. So those items are either in the laundry room or crammed in every little corner of the house.

Grace was doing well in the toddler bed, but she kept falling out! So we decided to just go ahead and put her in the big bed (full size) on the floor and she is doing great. Each day is getting easier and easier. And today when I laid her down for her nap she just said "night night" and laid right down! AMEN! What an answered prayer. I worried so much about moving her to a big girl bed and she really has done very well. Here is a picture of her sleeping in her new bed. My big girl!




I'm feeling very pregnant these days. I am now 33 weeks. WOW! This pregnancy has really flown by. We have been working on the baby's room a lot. I pulled a bin of old clothes and just sat there wondering how my toddler fit in all those clothes. I know she didn't fit in them for long, but how was she ever that little? I can't wait to have another baby girl wearing those clothes. Half of them look like new! Other than diapers and a few other miscellaneous items we are pretty much ready for this baby girl to come. Grace seems to be getting it more each day that there is a baby growing in my belly. She will lift my shirt up (only at home thankfully!) and will say baby. She will kiss my belly and press her ear against my belly button just listening. Who knows what she hears. But she always pops up and smiles and says "baby". I wonder if she will be that excited when she realizes that baby is going to occupy her mommy and daddy's attention! OH and whenever we are out and about and Grace sees a baby she yells "baby" and gets so excited. She even reaches her hands out like she wants to hold the baby. Again, I wonder if she will have the same excitement when Emma arrives. Somehow I think the newness of a baby sister is going to wear off very quickly!

On another note, I went to my friend Tiffany's baby shower this past weekend. She is due with her first baby the same as me and she is also have a girl. How fun is that! The girls are destined to be best friends! Here is a picture of Tiffany and I and are growing belly's.


And thanks everyone to posted about places to shop for dresses. I haven't found "the one" yet. I realized that most places don't have their Easter dresses out quite yet. I was told to wait a couple more weeks. So the first week in February I'm there. Although, I did find a couple I LOVE on the website you guys suggested. I just want to make sure I can't find something a little cheaper than online.

matching dresses

Mamma's of two kiddos...

Where can I find Easter dresses in 0-3 months and 2T that match?

I've been looking but haven't seemed to have any luck. If I find something cute for the baby they don't have it in toddler sizes, or vise versa. Since Easter is so early this year (March 23rd) I wanted to get dresses before the baby comes. Any suggestions welcome.

Like mother like daughter

I was over at my friend Lindsay's house the other day and she and our other friend Michelle thought it would be funny to make Grace look pregnant. They pushed a little mini basketball up her shirt and she walked around preggo! It was so cute and funny! We were all laughing so hard and Grace loving the attention of her new belly. So without further delay... here are a few pictures of my Miss Pris looking like mommy!

my new OB

This morning was my first visit to my new OB in Dallas.

I like her.

But it's so weird to change doctors this far into the game. I loved my old doctor! He was great.

But things happen and I guess I couldn't drive an hour and a half for my appointments and to deliver. So a change was inevitable.

Anyway, everything is looking great. I am measuring a bit small, but all in all the baby sounds great. (Funny how you can feel HUGE and be measuring small!). My new doctor was a bit concerned about the weight of Grace when she was born... 8 pounds 10 ounces. She was saying that many times your second baby is larger. She just doesn't want me having a baby bigger than 9 pounds. So I am scheduled to have an ultrasound in 4 weeks (I will be 36 weeks then) to make sure the baby isn't getting too big. She mentioned something about possibly inducing early if the baby is looking big, but I'm not sure how I feel about it. I've always been pretty against inducing unless there was a medical reason to do so. Things just happened so naturally with Grace (my water broke on my due date... who does that happen to?), so I guess I was just hoping the same would happen this time. Anyway, I guess I have a little time to thing that over.

So all in all, she was very nice. Hopefully the next 8 weeks of this pregnancy will go as smoothly as the first 32 have. I just can't believe I will have another baby in less than 2 months! Time sure does fly. Now I have to run b/c I have lots to do before this little one arrives.

more Christmas and birthdays

Grace and her new bike! Such a big girl!

Last week Adam's grandpa turned 90! So everyone in Adam's family came in from out of town to celebrate his big day. Before we celebrated the birthday we had Christmas. Adam's parents were on a European cruise over Christmas and all the boys were with their wives families (including us)...so we had another Christmas on Saturday. Adam's parents brought all the daughter-in-laws (there are 3 of us) beautiful crystal necklaces from Austria and Grace got some fun new toys and a bike. She has been talking about a bike for about a month now. Although she is still a little bit small for the bike, she loves it! She wanted to ride it so badly when Adam was putting it together.

Anyway it was a nice weekend. Here are a few pictures of the weekend.

Adam's family... his parents, 2 brothers and their kiddos... Grace is the one not looking at the camera. oh well.

Kaleb (3 yrs) and Kameron (6 years) smiling

Kaleb (3) and Grace (nearly 2) hanging out on the stairs before bed. Such buddies.

Pop Pop about to blow out the candles

We're back........

Yes we made it and we are still alive! Here is the last few weeks in a nut shell...

• We packed (took forever!)



• Had my last day at work. It was Pajama day... Grace in the front on the far right.

  



Grace and I by the Christmas tree... she has a nice little resting spot on my belly!






• closed on our house in Oklahoma


• closed on our new house in Dallas


• Got a new stainless steel fridge and plasma tv (it was a gift from our realtor... long story, but we are still in shock! It was an amazing gift!!)
  
• Moved in our stuff that was in storage


• Painted the new baby's room a light green (so cute!)
  
• celebrated Christmas with my family!
  Grace first thing Christmas morning! So cute!


Grace with her new baby stroller!



Grace during the day... the only cute picture I could get of her dressed up!




• Movers moved us in on the 26th


• Unpacked a lot of boxes (that actually went pretty fast)


• Fired our new cable company (Time Warner) and already switched to AT&T (big mess!)


• Bought some new furniture. (needed something to put the plasma on and bought big girl furniture for Grace since her crib and furniture is now in the baby's room)
• Moved Grace to a big girl toddler bed!!!! (This is a whole different post, but she is doing great... I worried for months about this and it has really gone very smoothly!)

• Went to Walmart and Target a good 10,000 times to buy things we needed... it's amazing ot me the things you need when you move, or things you didn't need in your old house and now you do.

• Had a baby shower for my sister-in-law at my parent's house (she is due with a little baby boy just a couple weeks after me!).

  
• Celebrated New Year's Eve at a good friend's house. We hung out and ate lots of yummy food with Michelle, Jeff (her hubbie), their little girl Grace, and another couple... Missy, Kevin and their little boy Grayson. We enjoyed ourselves and Grace stayed up till 11!


• Got to see one of my best friend's Katie and her hubbie Andy. They came up from Southeast Texas for New Year's Eve and we grabbed lunch on New Year's Day. It was fun for them to see the house.

• Adam started his new job yesterday! He said it was a good first day. They already have a mess with our new insurance, but hopefully that will get fixed quickly because I have an appointment with my new OB next Tuesday. But I think it sounds like he is really going to enjoy his new job! He is just anxious to really get started!

• Now to just get settled more. I will post pictures once things are looking more done. Right now we don't have anything on the walls or any decorations out... just basically the furniture is in place.

• Now to get planning for Grace's 2nd birthday next month!


• Oh and lets not forget... I'm now 31 weeks pregnant... where has this pregnancy gone?? So in a couple of months we will have another baby girl! Hopefully we can just enjoy things for a couple months until Miss EMMA makes her appearance! (Yes, we decided on a name!)

And here is the Miss Pris herself sporting her new "eyes". I can't get her to say sunglasses, but at least she knows where they go!

Bloggin break

With the move and Christmas I'm going to be away from the computer for the next week or so. Hopefully the next post will be coming from our new house!

Have a very Merry Christmas!!

oh baby

I looked down today and realized that my belly sure is growing! With this pregnancy there have been days that I forget I am even pregnant, until I feel a kick or try to squeeze into a small space that I use to fit into. I know things have been pretty busy lately, but what mother forgets she is pregnant with a tiny baby girl? Well I have. And since I am already 28 weeks and a few days I need to start writing about this tiny baby so she knows that we loved her and wanted her before she was even here. I can't believe in about 11 weeks she will be in our arms to hug and kiss.

Here is a picture of me at 28 weeks and 4 days about to walk out the door to Adam's Christmas party!

Of course Sammie and Grace had to be in the picture. :)

8 days!

We close on our house in Okahoma and our new house in Texas in 8 days (December 21st)!!! All in the same day. We are so excited! I can't believe how quickly everything is going. So I'm off to keep packing! We have a LOT to do. Thank goodness I'm done with my Christmas shopping!!

Christmas picture

We were unable to get a cute picture of the whole family (all 3 of us that is), so we opted to take a picture of just Grace for Christmas cards this year. Since I mailed mine this morning I thought I would post the picture for all those that don't get a card out in the blogging world.

What a cute smile! I love it!

Christmas cards!

I love getting Christmas cards! It really makes getting the mail fun throughout the month of December.

Anyway, several family and friend have emailed asking where to mail cards to... for now keep sending them to our Oklahoma address. We will have our mail forwarded when we move, plus I will send an email out as soon as we do move.

We are currently just waiting on an official closing date. We just found out today that we might be able to close next week! This would be awesome to move before Christmas!!!!

Anyway, can't wait to see everyone's cards (and hopefully cute pictures!).

Christmas thoughts

I'm so sad this year because I have no Christmas decorations to look at. Since we are probably moving the week of Christmas we have opted to not put up a tree and bring out all the stuff. I did bring out the wreath for the front door and our stockings, but that's it. At least we will be at my parents house for Christmas morning so Gracie will get to enjoy a tree there.

This weekend we also started (and finished!) our Christmas shopping!! The last several weeks have been so busy with job and moving stuff that we haven't had time to focus on Christmas. I can't believe it is in just a couple weeks!

We also attempted a Christmas card picture... not much luck for a family photo so I got one of just Grace. Hopefully we can get those in the mail this week!

OH and I almost forgot we tried to do Santa, but the line was LONG!! Apparently Sunday's at 11 are bad. I guess because everyone is already dressed up for church they just head to Santa... who stole our idea? So we are going to try again hopefully this week or next. Gotta go see Santa right?

That's about it for my Christmas thoughts. I'm off to wrap Christmas presents. And maybe start packing... we move in 3 weeks (maybe sooner!!!).

Our realtor

I've been meaning to post all week about our realtor in the Big D. He was AWESOME! His name is Bill Nelson. He and his wife have a team of Realtors that are so wonderful. His wife spent several hours setting up times to look at homes of our choice and I sent her a pretty long list! Then Bill spent the ENTIRE weekend with us looking for a house. He was out looking with us at 9 am Saturday and we looked till dark. I know I was exhausted and I'm sure he must have been, but he was at our house again the next morning to keep at it. We found a house we loved and he was there with us to answer any questions when we signed the house contract. Since I'm not planning to move anytime soon (at least 10+ years!) I just wanted to pass his name.

Anyway, if you or anyone you know is moving to/from Dallas/Ft.Worth he is the man you want! Check out his car here... you can't miss it driving down the road. OH and one cool thing he does, if you buy a house from him then he will sell your house for free! Check him out at www.teamnelson.com.

She loves it!

This summer Adam and I took Grace on her first carousel ride and she HATED it. She was okay until it started moving. So we figured we would wait a few months and head back.

This past weekend we were at the same mall with the same carousel and we thought we should try it again. Success! It's amazing how a new day and a few months will change things.

I'm hoping to have the same success with Santa this weekend.

A new home...

About 48 hours after we sold our house in Oklahoma we bought a home in Texas!

I think we are both still in shock, but very excited to have found a home so quickly. The house will only be about 20 minutes from my parents and most my family! We close at the end of the month, so we will probably have an exciting New Years of unpacking and organizing. The house is definitly something that we can grow into and hope to be there for many years as this is our dream house!

So once we get settled come and visit anytime!! Here is a picture of the outside of the house. I love the rock and brick combo.

SOLD

Only 2 weeks and 2 days after we listed the house we accepted an offer OVER our asking price. WOW! Thank you everyone for your thoughts and prayers. We have to be out of our house by December 31st... so 31 days to find a new house, pack and move. No problem! Hopefully :)

TWO or THREE??

That is the possible number of offers we have on our house! I still can't believe it. We already have 2 offers and we might have a third coming in tomorrow. This is WAY more than we could have ever dreamed of. Shoot we were just praying to sell before the baby comes. It is looking like we might be moved a good 2 months before she makes her arrival. AMEN!

God is good. We will keep you posted.

Thanksgiving, house, baby and stuff...

Grace snacking on the dog!

Thankful.

That can describe in one word best how I feel. Although things in our lives are CRAZY right now, really things couldn't be going better.

Thanksgiving week was wonderful. We spent the first part of the week trying to find areas we like. It went well and we found a few neighborhoods that we are in love with. Grace spend a few days with her Mema and PopPop in East Texas. They spoiled her lots, so I know she had a blast. We got to East Texas on Wednesday and basically just relaxed. We hung out around the house, watched lots of movies, celebrated my nephew's 3rd birthday and ate too much food. We were sad to leave on Sunday, but ready to get home. Grace doesn't sleep very well when we aren't at home, so it was nice to just be back and get some sleep.

Kaleb ready to dig in!

Kaleb and Grace riding on rides at Chuck E Cheese!

Grace found a new friend... Annie. She carried the dog around all weekend... she was just the right size!

Our realtor had an open on house on Sunday and it went okay. We had a few interested people come out. The best news is that we have had one of those people already come back to see it again today. Then this afternoon we have 3 more showings and on Thursday we have a couple coming in from California to see it!! So who knows... maybe an offer will be in the near future. I just can't believe it... the house hasn't even been on the market for 2 weeks. Trying not to get my hopes up, but we are just so excited!

This morning I had a doctors appointment. We got to have another ultrasound to make sure the baby is still a girl. And she is! She looks great. Very healthy and active. Only 14 more weeks till she makes her big appearance!

Then we ran from the OB's office to the Pediatricians office... well we actually drove since they are 3o minutes from one another. Grace has been coughing for a couple weeks now. Ends up she has a sinus infection. But with a little medicine she should back to normal in a couple days. AMEN... I need my happy baby back!

So I guess that is it for now. OH YEAH... I got a new laptop. Basically an early Christmas present, but we had to give back our old computer since it was Adam's company! And since he is leaving we thought they might want it back! I've never had a computer of my very own that was new. I had my parents old hand-me-down in college, until Adam built me one to last a little longer, then I've always just had Adam's computer. Kind of cool to have my very own now. I guess I'll share it Adam from time to time :)

And just a cute picture of Grace snoozing in the car. She puts her blankie behind her head when she sleeps now... how cute is that.

Hope you have a wonderful day filled with family and fun.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!

We will remember!

Watch this. Grab some tissues too!



A day that I will always remember is November 18, 1999. My roommate woke me up at 5:30am to tell me to turn on the tv. Bonfire had fallen. Students were trapped. We got up and threw some clothes on and headed to campus to see for ourselves. By time we got there the sun was just coming up. It was so busy. Policemen, firemen, students, and volunteers working feverishly to remove the logs one by one in hopes of finding students that are still alive. Students were surrounded by the stack of logs praying and watching in disbelief.

You see Bonfire was an Texas Aggie tradition since 1909. It started with a big bunch of trash and students getting together for a sort of pep-rally to get fired up about the big game the following day. (Texas A&M v. Texas) Years later it was a 55 foot stack... huge... but amazing.

About 2:30 in the morning on this day 8 years ago, the centerpole (the tallest log) snapped. This sent the stack towering down and killing 12 students and injuring 27 others.

I was a sophmore this year. And my freshman year I went to the community college in my hometown so this was my first year at A&M. So I've never seen a Bonfire before, but I will never forget it.

breathing...

What a week.

My husband accepted a new job. WHOOP!

My husband quit his job here ... went very well.

I celebrated my birthday 3 nights in a row... yeah for no cooking!

I got lots of fun presents for my bday... a new Nicholas Sparks book (in hardback... I normally wait until its in paperback), a beautiful new coat, a Sonicare toothbrush (which I LOVE!), and a couple fun things from some girlfriends... including some Belly Butter from Burt's Bees... every pregnant woman should try it... its great!

We put our house on the market. We even had a showing yesterday and are suppose to have a couple more this next week.

I've cleaned my house more this week than I did the entire month of July. (If you remember I was pretty sick that month and cleaning wasn't in my vocabulary that month... nor was cooking!). Seriously though my house is so stinkin' clean.

Adam and I are meeting his parents today to drop off Grace. They are keeping her for the week! Well I guess for a few days. We will be going to their house on Wednesday. Until then we will be working on finding a new house and praying our current home sells so we can buy a new home!

So for now I'm just breathing and taking one day at a time. While we are super excited to be moving home, I'm just trying to take it slow and not get overwhelmed. Thanks for the prayers.

We actually ordered a St. Joseph on e-bay that I'm hoping will come very soon. Have you heard the old wives tales about a St. Joseph statue when trying to sell your house? Check it out here... anything is worth a shot :)

BIG NEWS

It's official... we're moving! Yup you read that right... we are moving.

We are leaving our little town in Okalahoma and heading to the bright lights of Texas! I think I'm still in shock. When Adam and I first moved to Oklahoma 5 years ago, we were just a few months out of college and we never thought we would be here this long. Not that his job wasn't good, we just thought he would do this job for a couple years then move back home to Texas. But that wasn't what God had in store... Adam earned a couple promotions along the way, I was able to stay home with Grace and we really started to like here. However, due to several changes and a growing family we started to think about moving home again. It's really hard to be away from family when you have little ones. We have been so blessed to have found so many wonderful friends here that will truly miss... hopefully they will come visit us.

After several months of searching for the right job and many many interviews later, Adam has accepted a position. We couldn't be more excited!! Our house here in OK goes on the market today. Hopefully it will be sold fast, but the average length of time a house in the market here is 120 days... so it could be a while. I also have no clue where this baby girl in my tummy will be born. Maybe the house will sell this week and we wont have to worry ourselves with that.

Anyway, I've been dying to tell everyone, but had to keep things quiet until it was official. So help us in praying for a smooth transition, move and new start in Texas!!!

hi

Sorry for the lack of posts lately... things have been just so busy. I'll expain more later, but for now here is a picture of my child reverting to being a baby. I pulled out her exersaucer to put in the attic and she HAD to be in it. And you also may notice the pacifier. She has never taken a pacifier except when she was really little... but the last couple weeks she has to have one. So I've had to go out and buy a couple because she was stealing other children's pacificers. What am I going to do when baby #2 is here?? Do all 21 month old children do this?

My Oreo baby

Grace LOVES Oreos. But then again who doesn't. Shoot I don't even like chocolate (which is a totally different post), but I like Oreos. I think the baby in my belly likes them too :)

Anyway, she pulls apart the oreo and licks all the icing out of the middle then proceedes to eat the 2 chocolate cookies. It is just so funny to watch. How did she learn to eat the good part first? Adam and I don't eat oreos that way?

Here is a picture of my oreo girl!

dentist drama

I hate the dentist.

Seriously... I brush twice daily (sometimes more often), I floss almost daily (sometimes I am just too tired to floss... but I floss at least several times a week), I go to the dentist religiously every 6 months and I have ever since I can remember.

Yet I still have TWO cavities! Granted I don't remember the last time I had a cavity, but still I have TWO!

I'm going to blame this on my dad since he has bad teeth, but the dentist said I need to stop eating candy. WHAT! Stop eating candy?? You can't tell a pregnant woman to stop eating her main craving! But I guess I'm on a mission to try to eat less candy.

So if you see me eating candy...especially things that are hard or sticky... make me stop. Now I have a month to think about getting those cavities filled. YUCK!

Oh and just so you know they called my OB and he says its okay to have it done since I will be in my 3rd trimester when I'm having it done.

And since every post is better with a picture... here is my Miss Pris in all her glory picking her nose! Oh joy!

The news is in...

IT'S A BOY!

No, not me... we are still having a girl (at least we think so!). My brother and his wife just found out they are having a little boy! My sister-in-law is due just a couple weeks after me and we couldn't be more excited for a little boy! Especially since we have one little girl here and one on the way... we need a boy in the family. :)

Oh and just for those who are curious...

my 2 friends and my aunt that are pregnant are all having girls! So you can see we really needed a little boy.