Resolutions

<p>So, after some >deliberation, I have decided that by posting my New Year Resolutions online, I might be more apt to obtain them.  Most seem like the same old cliche resolutions, but by George I want them to be mine!!
1.  Take at least one photo a day. Time passes too quickly and pictures are so easy, why not capture each day?  Hey, here's a grand idea, Ill blog about it too!

2.  Put God first always. I want to find the perfect church and become part of the congregation. I want my dd to grow up in church...something I didn't get.

3.  Get healthy. Exercise a minimum of 30 min. Per weekday.  Perfect time: right after lunch...work more on this one....

4. Try new things...sounds simple enough right?

So there they are folks....all cards on the table. Ready, set, resolute (maybe?)

Tis the season...

So here is a recap of what all has happened this year...since the year is coming quickly to an end...New years began at Ben and April's with a run to Krispy Kreme with John and the Ayres'.  I was 6 months pregnant.  March brought us into a very exciting time of our life with the birth of our sweet girl.  I was induced against all of mywishes but it worked out fine.  I personally feeled like birth was a breeze and absolutely loved being pregnant, but I don't think ill do it again.  I have actually nursed her for 9 months (omg, she will be nine months tomorrow!) And I'm still going strong.  I lost my job in May, but looking back think it was a blessing in disguise thanks to my wonderful hubby...he works, i work at home. 

It&apos;s the holiday season!

And we are oh so busy!! Ek took the official crawl steps Saturday, but went back to army crawling. She is attempting to get top teeth and a bottom tooth. We had two Christmas parties this weekend and Ek had a ball! Tired night and busy week ahead so I'll have to continue this when the phones not dying :)

Shopping...with a baby in tow

First of all, let me set the record straight. I do NOT like to shop for no reason. I like to know exactly what I'm after, get it and get out. So when I go shopping I plan my day and hit the stores in a specific order so that I can maximize time and effort. This has been harder with EK, but still pretty successful. In order to make everything work today (because I had returns, exchanges, etc) I knew I would have a handful at every stop so I borrowed a friends ergo baby carrier (a major want, no need, on my list to Santa). This was the first time using one and it ROCKED MY SOCKS OFF! On the front, happy baby; on the back, happy baby. AND I still had two hands to work with! So the day was going great and the to do list was shrinking fast when out of the blue the worst thing ever occurred. Some how E got a diaper wedgie (IKR?!) and pooped! Freeze! Day can't continue...I can't put her in the ergo, heck I can't even put her in her stroller. Needless to say, thank goodness it was a warm enough day for a diaper and a blanket in the warmth of car window sun. We came home. Only target left on the to do list. Defeated.
Bummed that I would have to return to town again tomorrow, I did what any mommy would do...cleaned my baby, put a load of laundry, and headed back to target. This trip was pretty great! Usually, something gets left off the list but not this time. Sweet girl was content in the Ergo. And the absolute best part was the check out...you heard me...check out! All thanks to a clerk named Patrice. She was so sweet to put the groceries on the conveyor and the bags in the grocery cart. What a super lady! All in all, shopping today wasn't extremely successful but not a bust either. Another great day with my lo. Oh, the pic is her showing off all her awesome bed head!

I figured you might want to see the SUPER cute card!

The game plan

So I started this blog many moons ago, and finally my life is at a place where I can start back on track into a glimpse inside our world. I'm not going to do a whole recap deal because let's face it, that would take FOREVER! But I do plan to post as frequently as I can about whatever is on my mind for the night. Tonight...like many to come...Christmas. Yes people, it is on us once again! I began and finished addressing 60 Christmas cards a moment ago. Now, I'm a teacher by blood so buddy each card comes equipped with hand written addressing, a stamp, and a sticker. What can I say, elementary level is all me! As I fill out the envelopes I can't help but to think of all the people receiving a card and how they have touched our lives. I also catch myself over and over looking at the fabulous photos on the card and wonder, where has the time gone? My sweet girl is 8 months old! I know, that's still a baby, but it's happening; she's growing up right before my eyes. She's crawling (all over the place but struggling the whole time), pulling up to stand, eating our food, getting teeth and hair, saying mama...man, what an angel! What a blessed life I have! John constantly is asking what I would like for Christmas and stressing over what to get me. I've told him many of times not to worry about me, I have it all already...and seriously, I do. And with that little note, good night for now!

Hoppy (Late) Easter!!

My motivation

SO, I have an AWESOME (and super creative) friend that has a blog so that she could document important events in her life, her family's lives, and just everything in general. She motivated me to do the same since John and I have recently welcomed a new life into the world.

Ellie Kathryn was born March 28, 2011 at 5:17 PM. She weighed 7 pounds, 11 ounces and was 19 inches long. She has absolutely been the light of my life (and although he won't come out and admit that she's got him right where she wants him, John's pretty excited too...you can tell by his sweet little remarks he adds to her pictures on his facebook). Now, I tend to be a little scatter brained and my sentences tend to drag on for eternity, so if you're not in to reading that kind of thing, then my blog is not for you, if you don't mind, then welcome to our crazy ride!

I'll give a little background knowledge on the whole pregnancy, but they may not be as detailed as if I were writing as the pregnancy went along (dang I wish she would have told me about doing this sooner!). John and I started discussing the idea of having a baby sometime soon toward the beginning of June. I had recently been hired as a second grade teacher at a local elementary school and figured we were "stable" enough to be parents...we're parents already to four four-legged furbabies, but to a little human, YIKES! OK, back to the story, so I had been on Seasonique (b.c. that was taken 3 mos. at a time) and it would be finished up mid-June. We decided for me to come off the pill so that I could start regulating and we would be able to start really trying for a baby say around September...yeah, that would be a good time :). Well, we always try to go on a beach trip towards the end of July and this year was no different. The whole time I felt icky, but I just assumed it was that time of the month and I just dealt with it. We made it back from vacation and I still had not had a visit from my "friend". Another week passed and I decided it was time to take a test just in case. Now I was fairly sure I wasn't pregnant, I had to be still adjusting to being off the pill. I waited until John was out mowing the grass...I didn't want him to get upset, excited, yadda, yadda until I knew something first. I read the directions and took the test. Directions said it would take a few minutes to show the results. I swear I hadn't even put the stick down before the answer was beyond obvious. I just stared and wondered what would all this mean...then I heard the lawn mower stop. I wanted to run outside and yell to John, but I knew better than that...in fact, here's the EXACT story I typed for her baby book:

August 4, 2010
Daddy and I had just returned from a trip to the beach. I hadn’t been feeling very well and I just thought I was tired. Daddy was outside mowing the grass and I decided to take a pregnancy test. I wanted to run outside screaming the news, but I waited for him to come in. When he was getting ready to take a shower, I asked him, “John, what do you think about being a Daddy?”. His response was something like, “Yeah, one day…” and I asked him what he thought about being one in nine months. All he could say then was, let me take a shower and then we’ll talk. It took a while to sink in, but we were sure happy once it did! The next morning I took another test just to make sure I hadn’t dreamed it up…sure enough, still two lines!

Now keep in mind, I was JUST hired, hadn't even taught a day, and now I had to tell my principal my exciting (yet scary) news. On top of that, I had to find a local OB-GYN without spilling the beans...boy oh boy!

Here's how we "let the cat out of the bag" so to speak (yet again, from her baby book):
August 28, 2010
We had our first doctor’s appointment on August 24, 2010 and so we decided it was now time to tell our families. My Dad‘s (Charles) birthday had just passed, so we decided this would be a GREAT birthday gift! We wrapped up a pair of newborn Alabama booties, your first picture (ultrasound), and a little poem that said,
“The special time has arrived,
For us to share a big surprise
You can expect a bundle of joy,
For we are having a baby, girl or boy!”

There was a lot of family at the lunch and when he opened his “gift” everyone was so excited! I think the most excited person was my sweet baby cousin Heather. She even cried.

September 1, 2010
We did something similar for Daddy’s side of the family. It was his Bibbie’s birthday so we gave her a birthday card with the same poem inside. Both sides of our families couldn’t wait for you to come…too bad we would still have to wait about 7 ½ months!

Oops, Ellie's calling for her "bottles" (that's a little inside joke of what she calls me...you can figure out why). I'll finish at a later date...don't know when for sure, newborns sorta make their own schedule.