Daisy has arrived!

We picked up Daisy from the airport yesterday. She was a little nervous about getting out of the crate, but once she got out, she was a ball of energy and so excited to see us. I can only imagine what she had to endure on her long trip from Idaho. We're all adjusting to this new addition and so far Roxy has not eaten her :) The pictures do not do her justice, she really is precious and very sweet!

Dinner with the Laurens crew

Heather and Richard were in town last night so we all met for dinner. It was great to see evryone and catch up. It was also fun to speculate what Reid (the only one of us who couldn't make it) might be doing in Paris :)

It's a girl! and another girl!

No, we're not having twins. We had the big ultrasound on Tuesday and we have a healthy baby girl! We are very excited to know for sure and I must say I am looking forward to pink things and bows! John has been saying all along that the baby was a girl so he has earned the right to say "I told you so". Now if we could only agree on a name...

In about two weeks, we will have another special delivery arriving from Idaho. About two and a half years ago, John put his name on a waiting list for a Cheasapeake puppy. Well, guess who called with some news? The breeder, just in time for me to be 5 months pregnant! So, after many discussions we have decided that our lives are only going to get crazier from this point on so why not add another 4 legged addition? By the time the baby arrives, hopefully, John and Roxy will have her well-trained. Below is a picture of Daisy and her litter mates. At this point we have no idea which one she is.....

Happy Birthday to my Sweet Mama!

Dock Building is HARD work!

Dock Building pictures as promised. Wonder if pluff mud is good for the skin?

Brady's Baptism

Here are a few pictures of my nephew Brady's Baptism. As I had said before, we had a great weekend and Brady was very handsome in his outfit and was very good during the service.


Brady meets his new puppy, Trixie
At the church
Brady's Baptism outfit
Brady with his Grandmama
Brady walks!

Happy Birthday to ME!

While I try to wrap my mind around the possibility of having a girl, we have been very busy. We were in Roswell, GA last weekend for Brady's christening and had a great time. I will try to post pictures soon. We didn't have a camera (hopefully my birthday present in 11 days!) so Sally's step father is mailing me a disk. We went to the Georgia Aquarium on Saturday and then of course to church on Sunday. Brady was VERY good during the service and looked very handsome in his outfit. This weekend, John's parents and his Aunt Rhee are coming into town to help us build the dock. Or actually, John and some of his strong buddies will be doing the manual labor and the rest of us will be supervising :) Pictures to be posted later....

80% Gender Determination???

I went back to the doctor Monday. This time Baby was sleeping and still not very happy to cooperate with the nurse. They finally got an OK picture and sent me home with several pictures to keep. She also said that there is a very good chance that Baby Dangerfield is a girl! I am very excited about this news but I was convinced that it was a boy so I'm having a little trouble digesting this information. AND, we'll have to wait until mid-June for confirmation. Patience is not really a virtue that John or I have. And trying to get us to agree on a name for a girl is not going to be easy I can already tell.....

One Active Baby

John and I went down to MUSC yesterday for a Genetic Screening Test. It only involved a finger prick and an ultrasound so we decided to have the test done. They failed to tell me that my bladder needed to be full so it would be easier to see the baby and the particular area (his/her neck) that they needed to see. The first tech was great and explained what everything we were seeing was. It was very hard to get a good look though because Baby Dangerfield was taking advantage of all the space s/he has and was running around. After one glass of water didn't do the trick, they sent us back to the waiting room for more water to wait for my bladder to fill up. After another 20 minutes, I was sufficiently "uncomfortable" and a second tech tried again. She was not nearly as friendly. This time, baby had changed positions and we couldn't see anything. I was asked to empty "just a little" out of my bladder and she tried again to get a good photo of what she needed to see for the test. We repeated this process to no avail and then she decided I should just come back Monday. While I'm disappointed that they were unable to get the best picture the first time around, I'm looking forward to seeing the Baby and his/her acrobats again on Monday. It's amazing to see all that movement and to not be able to feel a thing.

Things I learned over the weekend

1. If you run and do a superman jump into a jump castle that is starting to be deflated, you could break your collar bone.
2. A rake is a handy tool for cleaning out the dryer vent.
3. Riley, at almost 8 years old, is still EXTREMELY scared of thunderstorms.
4. If you run over a lizard in the garage, it makes a disgusting mess.

One Big Bird

We had a relaxing weekend in Norway this past weekend. I continued to work on Brady's christening outfit with the help of Aunt Nancy and John got in some hunting. The outfit is coming along very nicely and I am quite proud of myself! John was very proud of the fruits of his hunting labor as well.

I hate needles

I had to go have some blood drawn this week as part of the preliminary prenatal testing. I have never had this done before because I am extremely afraid of needles and being "stabbed". I have never been able to donate blood for the same reason. So, needless to say I am very nervous and chatty, etc. The actual procedure was not that bad (I was turned the opposite way the entire time) and the technician did a good job, but as soon as I got out to the parking lot, the floodgates opened. Must be those dang hormones. I promptly called my mother to ask if there was some sort of needle trauma when I was little that I should know about. She replied "No, I don't think so, I don't think you were the one who tried to climb out of the doctor's office window". Yep, that was me. I remember it vividly, I was 17. That's right, not 7, 17. Told you I hated needles.

You might have married a Redneck if....

FYI, I only use the term "Redneck" because that was John's choice of words. Sunday started out as a fun day. I headed up to Summerville to go to the Flowertown festival with Megan. It's our "annual date". We had a great day, ate lots of fun festival food and picked up a few goodies. There is an artist whose work I have loved for the past three years and now that there is a nursery in the near future I picked up a few of her pieces. See the picture. So, I'm happy to be getting home after a long day of crowds and walking. I pull into the driveway with dinner only to discover that my husband has shot a raccoon in the neighbor's yard (it was harassing their dog) and is skinning it in our flower bed. Nice.

I may be crazy but I swear I think the dogs are more protective of me. This morning I had to step over both Riley and Roxy while getting ready. For Roxy, that's nothing new, but for Riley this is definitely a change. Usually he's lounging on the couch. Good thing we have a good sized bathroom!

Watered Down Beer

After much thought, John and I decided to tell our families on Friday (on the way to Maureen and Dave's rehearsal dinner no less). The plan was to get Annabelle's help but unfortunately she was too busy eating french fries so I just blurted it out. John's parents and Kirsten & Cart were very excited and said all the right things. Next, John called Shannon who was thrilled and actually believed John for a second when he said it was triplets! I drank bourbon and ginger ales (minus the bourbon) all night and no one was none the wiser. The wedding was very nice on Saturday and Maureen looked amazing as always. I made friends with the bartenders very early and by the second "drink" they were pouring water in my beer bottle without even asking (AND distracting my friends if they happened to walk up during the process!). We had a great time with the band, who also played at our wedding and I told John I would like them to play at my 30th b-day party next year....he laughed until he realized I was dead serious. We told my parents last night so now on to Brian, Sally, Brady and Erin.....

So we had our first doctor's appointment yesterday and everything looks good. The Doctor did an ultrasound so John and I got to see the heart beat on a very TINY baby. It turns out that I am not quite as far along as they had first thought (we're 7 weeks instead of 9) and my due date is now 11/12/08. She said they would do the next ultasound around 18 - 20 weeks to determine the sex but I am going to go crazy waiting until then (~6/11). I think we have decided to tell our families sometime this week ot next. It's just too hard to keep this a secret!

The Big Secret

So it's been 18 days since we have found out I'm pregnant and we have survived a trip to Laurens and a trip to Norway. I had to bow out of Maureen's bachelorette party because we just found out the Monday before. But the true test, I survived ladies night at our house last night with no one suspecting a thing (although, Reid, there was one look that you gave me after I said I missed Mo's weekend because I had the flu....). Who knew they made non-alcoholic wine? I simply switched the bottles before the gals arrived and voila! Tasted just like grape juice. We're headed to the Frog Jump in Springfield this weekend so hopefully, we can keep up the act. Then, on Monday, we have our first doctor's appointment with an ultrasound. I'm extremely anxious to know that everything is going as it should be. On a side note, I found out my friend Heather is having another baby and is only about 5 weeks ahead of me. I'm glad we'll be in the same boat!

New Orleans

John and I went to Mardi Gras at the beginning of February. Kirsten and her family were great hosts and we had a great time. Here are a few of my favorite photos.

Wow, after seeing so many negative tests, I was shocked this morning when the pregnancy test was positive. And then the second one was, and then the third one. Hard to ignore 3 positives! I don't think it's set it quite yet that we will be having a little one by the end of the year. I have a doctor's appointment March 24th so I'm sure that will help the news set in. How does anyone keep this a secret for 12 weeks???? I already feel guilty for not telling my mother :) and 12 of my closest friends....