How Sweet It Is...

Where to Begin...

2011-03-18T13:55:00.003-05:00

Oh, where do I begin....

Life has been out of control, so I have decided instead of sitting down and using my well paid for journalism skills to write Witty & thoughtful blogs, I will make lists. That is about all the time I have these days. So much has happened since the last time I blogged so here we go...

I started back to school!
Little Miss turned 1 year old!!! I will try to post pictures!
We welcomed a boy into our family!! Oh, wait...we welcomed a BROWN headed BOY into our family! What do we do with him??
Abbie made her first plane ride! Detail to come! We all know how fabulous she is at car rides!
We spent a week soaking up time at my parents house! It flew by!
We booked a trip to Mexico in April with The Caldwell's and soon-to-be Parcell's! (I know most people don't think it is safe to go! but it is needed)!
I am on spring break...kind of...it's not quite the same when there is a toddler around & laundry to be done, house to be cleaned, work to be done, meals to be fixed & studying for a test the Monday after spring break!
I'm trying to find balance...I'm struggling...
Eric got in a accident... in my car....on his birthday...our insurance says it's 100% the girls fault, and of course her insurance says it's more her fault but some his (WHAT?) so they will only pay for half of the damages...they are fighting back & fourth...my car is being fixed & will be ready Monday!
Little Miss is unstoppable...she walks and climbs and is a eating machine (most days). She loves the park!
Many play dates with friends! Many more to come!

Upcoming events...hopefully to be blogged about...part of me finding balance :)

Mexico in April
New Mexico in May
Wonderful Little Sister graduates in college in May
"Adventures in Babysitting" stories...I'm sure I will have plenty come May when my mom & sister and my mother-in-law have agreed to watch Little Miss over a 2 week period while I take a class all day everyday!
Little Sister gets married in September!!!
Sweet friends Stephen & Brittany get married in October!
A girls weekend get away to a local lake in a few weekends for crafting & shopping & who knows what else!

I know...you've missed me...

2011-02-03T22:47:00.003-06:00

What can I say...I have been extremely bad about blogging (hence the fall background I still have up). And I make no promises to get any better. I will try to blog some but I don't like making promises I can't keep, so again, I make no promises.

Many factors have contributed to my lack of blogging. The biggest of all being the fact that I have gone back to school! So, my "free" time, if you can call it that, is once again dominated by reading & homework. The second reason is that, you see, I have a soon to be walking, already getting into everything little almost 1 year old monster on my hands that require attention at all times when awake. Who has been sick since Christmas Eve. An upper respiratory infection followed by some strange mind boggling bacterial infection considered "Pneumonia" by ER doctor but not by the Pediatrician or the Radiologist who looked at her x-rays & still has gone undiagnosed, and now a nasty ear infection and cold. Needless to say I am ready for the 2 feet of snow and the -6 degree weather to roll on out of here and for 80 degree weather to return. While my monster is sleeping I am studying & reading & studying some more. Working on some projects for her birthday party, trying to clean or do laundry...so if you like to see pictures of our lives I suggest you keep checking facebook because the only ones I seem to be taking these days are on my iPhone & are more easily loaded to facebook then here!!! But I will leave you some that my sweet friend Lilli @ Lilli O Photography did for valentines day!! She is awesome!!

New Year's Resolutions...

2011-01-03T21:13:00.004-06:00

I would like to start by stating that I hate New Years Resolutions!! I never keep them & it always makes me feel bad. I always cringe when New Years Eve rolls around & I know people are going to be asking me that question (aka my husband)!! So, this year I decided I am not making any resolutions. None. There are enough things in this world to make you feel bad about yourself, I don't need the failure of a New Years resolution on top of that! This year instead, I am setting goals for myself. Some long term, some short term. Eric & I are setting some financial goals for ourselves too. How much money we would like to have in different areas by different times of the year. Some goals have to do with self improvement and some have to do with organization. Some goals have to do with enjoying life more & some goals deal with school. I am writing them all down this year! I have found my memory is failing me lately (not good to learn right before you go back to school)! But, I might share a few of them here & there.

I would love to share a picture of Abbie's 1st New Years Eve with you but I didn't take any. I didn't feel very good at all. She went to bed around 10 & I went to bed at 11. So here are a few from Christmas!

Opening her 1st presents on Christmas Eve!

She loves the little frogs that go in this bus!

Christmas morning! Loves Santas present!

Playing Baby Jesus at Nana & Poppy's house

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Baking!

2010-12-13T22:59:00.003-06:00

Every year at Christmas time Eric asks me to bake some "goodies" for his customers that he can take to them as he sees them the two weeks leading up to Christmas. So, scary as it may sound, it is two weeks before Christmas so the baking marathon has begun around here. This year I made four different things. Peanut Butter Balls, Peanut Butter cookies, fudge & chocolate covered pretzels. I put them in cute little containers & send them off every morning with him. I do some quality control along the way to make sure that I am putting out the best possible product of course. I make fudge every year and never seem to have problems with it...until this year. You see, two major factors changed in holiday baking this year...

1. I am working in a much, much smaller space with a cook top & oven I know pretty much nothing about how it cooks...to hot, to cold, does it need to cook longer or shorter etc.

and #2. A little person that require much attention at. all. times.

So, I successfully ruined two batches of fudge today. So I see much more fudge making in my near future!

Santa!! Santa!!

2010-12-11T13:18:00.003-06:00

So, we have been busy & haven't really gotten into the Christmas spirit around here. But last night we decided it was time to get Abbie dressed in her Christmas dress & take her to see Santa. So, we headed to Bass Pro Shop because I loathe the mall this time of year and I strangely like Bass Pro. And we got our ticket to see Santa. See Bass Pro has a really smart system. They give you a "voucher" when you get there that has a time to come back to see Santa. It is usually like 30-45 minutes away so they tell you to go shop around and come back at your time and they will line you up! Very clever if you ask me! People are willing to wait 45 minutes to an hour if they don't have to wait in line the whole time. And BP gets more business because, lets face it, while you are walking around waiting for your time you are bound to buy something!

So, at 7:30 we lined up to see the big man himself. I was worried we would sit little miss down on his lap & that would be it. The screaming would start, the tears would poor. Everyone in line around us had been talking about how sweet she was & how cute she looked & I kept thinking just wait....just you wait! But to my surprise, she sat with Santa. Looked at him then at us, then a him & then gave a little grin! She liked him!!

Catching up...

2010-11-26T21:12:00.003-06:00

Oh my stars! So much has been going on in our lives that I have not had a chance to sit down & write anything!! I will have to do a post of just pictures to catch you all up on how Little Miss has changed so much. She is turning 9 months on Thursday! I can't believe it. She is crawling everywhere & pulling up on everything. She is letting her true colors show. Tonight at Wal-Mart she threw a total fit in the buggy when I took away a disco ball key chain her daddy had given her. I keep telling him not to give her things he (and by he I mean me) is going to have to take away from her later. She is stubborn & strong headed. But she has started laughing and it sounds like a little girl. Not a baby. It is hilarious! She mimics your noises & chats a lot!

But we have been busy around here. We sold our house!! It took about a month & half. The negotiating process was a piece of cake!! And we are scheduled to close Wednesday, December 1st. We were originally going to close on the Friday the 3rd but the buyers asked to push the date forward. Two days may not seem like a lot to most but to me, I feel like I am losing a total week! We are in Texas for Thanksgiving & we won't be back until Sunday...so that leaves me Monday to pack because we move to our apartment Tuesday & have to be totally out of the house by Wednesday! I have packed some things, but walking into my house you would not be able to tell we were moving in 4 days!!

Last weekend we had Abbie's baby dedication at church. It was wonderful. We had all of our family come in. My parents, grandparents, aunt & uncle. Eric's parents, brother & family, sister & family, Ryan & Hope and Stephen & Brittany! It was a full house but we were so thankful that they all love Abbie enough to share in that special day with us. It was fun to have one last big event at our house before we move out. It was kind of a farewell celebration!!

If you have been reading my "Thankful" posts you would realize that I am quite a few days behind. But, we have had Internet issues and have been down to one computer (we are back up to two now though!), I have been trying to pack & clean out, getting my house ready & cooking for 20 people and coming to Dallas for Thanksgiving week!!! IT'S BEEN BUSY!!! But I have a few more Thankful posts so stayed tuned! But right now laundry calls!!!

Busy, Busy...

2010-11-21T22:33:00.003-06:00

We have been busy busy around here...I have much to post about but I am too exhausted to do it now! I will probably do it tomorrow when Eric gets home so I can use his new shiny computer that I am obsessed with!!

The count down to moving day is on! We close December 1st!

Busy but Thankful...

2010-11-19T08:45:00.002-06:00

We are busy around here. We are suppose to close on our house December 1st. So that means we have 7 more days of living in our house (since we go back to Dallas for Thanksgiving). So, there is packing to be done. It was my week to make dessert for Community Group Wednesday. We had a play date yesterday, which I will tell you more about later. I made (with the help of my mom) & decorated a centerpiece for a table at our church's Christmas Gathering that took place last night and tonight. We have to repair some wood rot this weekend so the buyers can have it inspected again. We have a lot of family coming in for Abbie's baby dedication on Sunday!! And, I found out yesterday that the appraiser that came out on about 30 minutes notice Sunday to appraise my house has yet to turn the appraisal in. Good news...bad news...laziness...I don't know. So I am very worried that 1. the house didn't appraise 2. He won't get it turned in, in enough time for the loan to be processed before closing! It's stressing me out! A lot! But here are a few things that I am thankful for this week!

Wednesday:

Abbie decided that she was only going to take a 30 minute nap Wednesday afternoon. A 30 minute nap is not out of the ordinary buy normally after a little crying she goes back to sleep. No not Wednesday. The day she had to go to childcare at church that night because of community group. I always feel bad dropping her off anyway because I feel like she is the child that require all the attention & crys a lot, even though they tell me she does pretty well & plays a lot. I don't believe them. I have been in those rooms & no one wants to be the one to tell a parent "your child cried the whole time". But with hardly a nap that afternoon I thought for sure I was handing over a bear. But wen we picked her up they informed us she was awesome! She never cried & she played the whole time! And I quote "she was the best she has ever been"!! So I am thankful for that.

Thursday:

Ahhh....Eric got his new computer!! It came early Thursday morning! It is beautiful! If you don't know, his work computer crashed. To be more specific, the mother board (whatever that is) fried up. So, his computer that caused him much stress because the power cord didn't charge it so if it died good luck getting it back on! It crashed at any given moment loosing hours of work (because no one ever taught hubby to save as you go along)! It is a beautiful silver computer with all of the latest technology. As Eric was informed by the tech people at his headquarters..."your computer is ancient". It was 4 years old. But I guess that is "ancient" in computer times. So, we are back...operating on 2 computers again! I asked him to leave the new one when he went to work this morning...he laughed & said no. I said "but it works sooo good"!!!

We had a bad night of sleep last night so give me a little bit longer today to find something to be thankful for!

Today I am Thankful For...

2010-11-16T19:15:00.002-06:00

I never promised these wouldn't be silly!!

The Teenager That Sacked My Grocery's Last Night

To me, a lot of happiness in life is found in the little things. Things that make my life a little easier. I am very systematic about putting my grocery's on the belt at the checkout. I like all of my grocery's to be organized so that when I get home I can immediately unload the things that need to be unloaded and leave the others things in the bag if I need to. I have had adults, mom's none-the-less, pick at free off the belt in no specific order and bag fridge items with bathroom items etc. This high school boy sacked my grocery's in the most logical way I have ever seen (even though hubby did not put them on the belt in the most logical way). It made my life easier when we got home because I was able to put my fridge food up and sit down & eat my dinner & not have to pick through sacks. I told him how happy the way he sacked my grocery's made me...that made him grin from ear to ear!

Today I am Thankful For...

2010-11-15T16:37:00.003-06:00

Eric's Job

I complain about Eric's job a lot. It keeps him very, very busy. It is time consuming & keeps him from spending time with Little Miss & me a lot. It is a some what stressful job at times. It can be a very frustrating job. Some of the people he has to deal with are beyond frustrating. But I am thankful that he has a job. I know that there are a lot of people out there that don't. So I am very, very thankful for it & I know that we are blessed that he has such a good job (because even though I don't talk about them a lot, there are some great aspects of his job as well!!). So, today I am thankful for his job. A job that allows him to come home & eat lunch with us some days (even though we were at the grocery because he didn't tell us he was coming home to eat with us!)

Today I am Thankful For...

2010-11-14T11:38:00.002-06:00

A Good Nights Sleep

I woke up at 7:00 this morning...for the first time all night long. That has not happened in forever...forever. I woke up and looked at the window (always my first clue as to what time it is) & it was light outside. I thought "wow" then immediately thought "OH MY GOSH!" I went to bed around 11 o'clock & did not wake up until 7 o'clock! I immediately put on my glasses (although I could make the walk to Little Misses room with my eyes shut & my hands tied behind my back) to check on her. I thought something must be wrong. Not a peep all night. No crying spells, no wiggling moans, nothing...zip, nada, nilch!! She was fine! She woke up shortly after that at about 7:30 like normal. I will tell you a little secret...something took over her body yesterday (with the napping & sleeping at night) and I wish it would stay around!!

Today I am Thankful For...

2010-11-13T19:10:00.003-06:00

Two, yes count them, two almost 2 hour naps today!!!

Today we were blessed. Naps which are normally a battle, were wonderful today. It normally starts with crying & then results with a baby that wakes up 30 minutes later, almost to the minute every time. But today, something took over Little Misses body & we had two great naps! Which helped greatly because we are in the middle of packing our house up & this is the last day that granmommy is here to help! Words can not describe how wonderful it was! I am praying that maybe this will become a trend around here...but I am pretty sure today was probably a fluke. I will keep you posted, but I promise even though it is what I would be thankful for everyday if it happened everyday, I will find other things to be thankful for!!!

I leave you with a tiny sleeping Little Miss

Today (Wednesday really) I am Thankful For...

2010-11-12T10:05:00.002-06:00

Let's all pretend that today is Wednesday & that I am not behind on my posts...

Today I Am Thankful For...

Our Community Group

Every Wednesday we meet with our community group from church. I love our community group! Moving to a city where we only knew a few people was hard. We searched & searched for a church to attend & we finally found one. Our church places a huge emphasis on community groups. So we tested a couple and landed on one that we truly liked. It was large & continued to grow, so we split & then split again & now we are a tight knit group of about 8 couples. They are wonderful...each one different & each one bringing something different to our group. We all have kids, Abbie being the youngest, but not for much longer. They really have become our Tulsa family. We have gone through sicknesses & babies & all sorts of things with them. We love them dearly & we feel like our week is not complete if we don't get to go to community group. This group of people are what is going to make leaving Tulsa some day very very hard.

Today I am Thankful For...

2010-11-12T07:56:00.002-06:00

I promise I am still thankful...

But we are down to one computer around our house since the desktop got packed away when we listed our house....

And Eric's work computer bit the dust...

So work takes precedence over blogging...go figure!! So I will catch up very soon....like as soon as he heads out the door maybe!

Today I am Thankful For...

2010-11-09T16:24:00.003-06:00

My Mom...

I have a wonderful mom...maybe the best mom ever. I talk to her on a daily basis, which I am sure drives her crazy sometimes, but I need it. She always has an answer for my questions or problems. She is always willing to do whatever I need her to do. Like today afer spending 2.5 hours in the doctors office getting a breathing treatment & X-ray's for Little Miss, she offered to come stay a few days & help me. Much needed help. Espeically since the buyer of our house wants to move our closing date up a couple of days. I am forever indebted to her for everything she does for me & I only hope one day I can do the same things for my kids. She is wonderful & I love her very much!

Today I am Thankful For...

2010-11-08T13:06:00.003-06:00

My Hubby...

I will be the first to admit that I got a good one. He works very hard for our family & because of that he is busy... all the time. But when he does have free time he spends it with Little Miss & me. She was sick on Wednesday so he stayed home with her so I could go to community group. When I got home my pile of sheets was folded. Little Miss has been really cranky lately so he took her with him yesterday to Lowes & Wal-mart and I stayed home and cleaned my house! He helps me any chance he can get & for that I am unbelievably thankful.

Today I am Thankful For...

2010-11-06T20:23:00.008-05:00

Today was hard...or is hard because it is not quite over yet and probably won't be over even after I go to bed...I have a sick baby or quite possibly a sick & teething baby or a sick baby with a sore throat. Not quite sure what combination we are fighting this time. All I know is it's hard & it isn't over yet!! So as you can imagine when you are in a world of snot & crying it is hard to think of something you are thankful for. But I have two for you again today...

A First Floor Apartment...

We managed to get over to our new apartment complex today to take another look at what is to become our new home. Even though we were offered many appealing deals for apartments on the 2nd & 3rd floors, we opted for the 1st floor option. It didn't have all of the bells & whistles that the others did but it fit our budget nicely & hey, this is only a temporary move! So I am thankful that I don't have to make a hundred trips up & down stairs everyday with a baby on my hip & a dog on a leash.

A Nice Lunch With The Hubby...

Hubby, Me & little Miss went to Zio's for lunch today. I had yummy spinach artichoke chicken pizza & hubby had a calzone. Little Miss had anything she could reach & put in her mouth (no food of course...just napkins & toys & things of the like). It was nice. Little Miss sat in her high chair the entire time despite the fact she was sleepy. We talked about our pending move. It was quite nice.

Today I am Thankful For...

2010-11-05T16:51:00.004-05:00

Two Things...

The Contract on Our House

After what seemed like an eternity (but was really only about 1.5 months) a nice couple relocating from Nebraska looked at our house and made an offer! The negotiating was very easy & quick (about 1 day total). A total answered prayer! God is so good!

and one that might not seem so big to anyone else but it is huge to me...

A Few Diaper Changes with out screaming & rolling over

Diaper changes are a battle (like many things) at our house. So I am very, very thankful for the times little miss sits still & quite long enough to get the diaper changed!!

Thankfulness...

2010-11-04T09:21:00.006-05:00

I have been inspired by many around me to start being more thankful. I tend to get very caught up in the everyday "stuff" & some times I find myself focusing on all of the bad or annoying or crazy things that are going on instead of just being thankful for all of the wonderful things I have been blessed with.

So I have decided that every day I am going to blog about something or someone that I am thankful for. There is no particular order...just as they pop into my head. So hear it goes...

Abbie Laughing at me...

I am thankful for Abbie's laughs. She is not the happiest baby, so any time she laughs it melts my heart. Last night when I got home she just sat & stared at me, grabbing for my face & giggling! It was precious.

It's That Time Of Year...

2010-10-19T13:34:00.003-05:00

Well it is that time of year! The time of year when the weather cools down & everyone pulls out their pumpkins & scare crows! So, we braved the crowd & went to the pumpkin patch. This year we ventured to a pumpkin patch some friends of ours had told us about. I really didn't think it would be that crowded but man was I wrong. We parked in the back fourty and hiked our way up to where the pumpkins and animals were at. Abbie really did a great! She loves looking at animals and did a great job when we drug her around to take pictures in every possible spot. I am sure you have seen plenty of pumpkin patch pictures this year, but I must share little misses with you too!!

A Love-Hate Relationship...

2010-10-12T16:21:00.005-05:00

I have a love-hate relationship with this table...

I love it because it was given to us...for free...by someone we love.

I love it because it has been host to many dinners with friends & dinners to our family of three.

I love it because it is a pretty table.

I love it because as you can see it provides a great place to dry clothes.

I hate it because it can bring you to tears when you bang your knee on the metal legs.

I hate it because the top has little lines cut out that all the crumbs fall into.

But most of all I hate it because of this...

I spend a majority of the day pulling little miss out from under this table & for that I hate it!!

If my house wasn't for sale I would put one of those ugly round baby gates around it.

But no such luck!

Kansas City Getaway...

2010-09-07T08:23:00.006-05:00

This past weekend we took a little trip to Kansas City, MO. I know if doesn't sound very glamorous or exciting but we were wanting to get away (A much needed get away in the midst of trying to put our house on the market...that story later). Since Eric took off a week when Abbie was born back in March & we like to use his vacation days for a little more time in Dallas at Thanksgiving & Christmas, we decided that Kansas City was the perfect destination for us! That and the fact that Abbie still hates to ride in the car. KC is only about 4 hours from our house so time wise it was perfect.

We got up Friday morning & headed to Coffeyville, KS with Eric for an appointment he had that day. We had lunch with two of the sweetest people I have every met. This was the first time they had met Abbie, but from the moment we walked in they loved on her like they had known Eric & I our entire lives...not just 3 years! After that we headed on up to KC. Abbie did pretty well in the car, only getting fussy right towards the end! We found our hotel & then struck out to find dinner. We ate at this great place in Overland Park (where our hotel actually was) called Nick & Jake's. Best club sandwich I have ever had!

Over the next two days we pushed Abbie pretty hard! No napping at the hotel...only the stroller & car. But despite the crying from getting in & out of the car seat so many times she really did great! We visited many of KC's fountains, Loose Park, Country Club Plaza, Crown Plaza, Union Station, the art museum, Ewing & Murial Memorial Garden, World War I museum...ate yummy food at d'Bronx Pizzeria & Jack Stack BBQ, drove around through the Power & Light district and much more!!

We had a great time & got up Monday morning and headed home. We stopped in Joplin to eat lunch and made it back by early afternoon...enough time to get back to the grind of getting the house together!!! Abbie did wonderful on the car ride home. Slept all the way to Joplin then after lunch slept for a little while then woke up and played in her car seat only fussing a little!
I know if wasn't glamorous but it was sure nice to get away!!

Here are a few pictures. I have many more that I will try to put on face book some time.

Enjoying being at the hotel and not in the car!!

Pooped after a long car trip

Helping daddy look for things to do in KC

Ready to go Saturday Morning

At one of the many fountains KC has...this one in Country Club Plaza.

Visited the Crayola Store in Crown Center

Abbie & Me at the WWI Museum over looking KC

Hanging out in the stroller

I'm A Big Kid Now...

2010-08-20T09:43:00.004-05:00

My baby girl is quickly approching the 6 month mark! I can't believe it!

We have totally ditched the carrier car seat & are using a convertible car seat in my car, riding in the shopping cart seats when we go anywhere & using high chairs at resturants! What a big girl!!

Sewing 101...

2010-08-12T22:56:00.004-05:00

Well, I did it! I finished my first sewing project. A mighty ambitious one at that! No patterns, no previous sewing experience besides some pillows & no mom, who is a wonderful sewer! I grew up with one of the very few if not the only mom in my circle of friends who could sew! What a blessing! Although she will tell you differently she can sew pretty much everything (I am blessed with a mother-in-law who can do the same!). My mom made Abbie's beautiful cradle bedding! So, I have this desire to sew inside of me...to make dresses for my daughter & for me...curtains...pillows...crib bedding...etc. So this past summer when my grandmother passed away I inherited her sewing machine. And I have a huge list of projects I want to accomplish! So, I started with my greatest need. Something to throw a few diapers & wipes in and put it in my purse so I don't have to take the whole huge diaper bag...so I basically winged all the measurements & came up with something not too bad!

It is just one of many projects I hope to share with you! Hopefully the next ones better then this one!

A Summer Update...

2010-07-27T13:35:00.005-05:00

Well, I haven't blogged in a while because the summer has found us traveling a ton!!! And when we are not driving back and forth to Dallas, I am at home doing laundry & repacking us for the next trip! But I am happy to say we are done traveling for a while!! We don't have another trip planned until the end of August!! Which is a good thing considering Abbie hates to travel!! Hates the car & the car seat...we had a little improvement when we moved her from her carrier to a bigger car seat but it still has not completely stopped the screaming meltdowns that she tends to have in the second leg of our trips to Dallas & back to Tulsa. I'm pretty sure it is punishment for something we have done but not quite sure what yet :-).... but lots of things have happened this summer, so I thought I would give a quick update!

Eric & I celebrated 3 years of marriage & 10 years of dating in June!!
My gorgeous little sister got engaged!! Getting married next September!!
My beautiful older sister is having baby #2!
Eric went to Miami for a week for work & Abbie and I went to spend the week with my parents!
We spent July 4th in Dallas celebrating with our families.
Abbie went swimming for the first time at Eric's parents new house on Lake Lewisville!
Abbie turned 4 months old July 2nd...weighed 13.5 lbs & was 25 inches long!
Ryan & Hope finally got married this last weekend...the source of much of our traveling this summer!
Eric spent a weekend celebrating Ryan for his bachelor party...floating the river, Drillers game, etc.
Abbie & I spent a weekend celebrating Hope...bridal luncheon, personal shower, dinner & bachelorette party in Dallas.
Abbie & I got the chance to catch up with Casey & Caden and Kelly & Kinley...I see a trend...maybe I should given Abbie and C name!
My parents are finishing thier backyard & putting the pool in which we are very excited about!!

We do have some more travels planned but not for a while. We are heading out to Fort Gibson lake next Sunday to spend time with our sweet friends in our community group! We are really looking forward to that! My cousin is getting married in October so we will be traveling for that. We are planning a vacation for Labor day weekend but are still in the process of deciding where to go! And I am sure more things will pop up along the way...but for now I am enjoying staying at home!!!

I will do a post soon of all pictures to recap all the fun we have had this summer!!

Read With Me...

2010-07-12T18:44:00.003-05:00

My dear & sweet friend Casey, at Carrying On...Life with the Kazmanns is hosting a book club! We are going to be reading The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein. I have read the jacket cover & it promises to be a good one! The chapters are not very long so it won't take too long to read & we will have a couple of discussion questions through Casey's blog to answer each week. So if you are looking for something fun to do that won't take up too much time...come read with us!!!

Take Me Out To The Ball Game...

2010-06-20T23:23:00.005-05:00

We had a very busy Father's Day around here! It started with a trip to get donuts with Daddy, then off to church, followed by lunch at one of Eric's fav's Pei Wei, then back home to open his present (fire pit...Eric LOVES patios and anything to do with patios!), then hit a couple of new houses out by us on the tour of homes, followed by a soccer game, a quick bite at Taco Bueno and finally to see the Drillers play in their new stadium! Busy day, I know!!!

So tonight was our first night to go to a Drillers game (minor league baseball) in their new stadium downtown. But, more importantly it was Abbie's first baseball game!! I am a worrier...I come by it honestly & can admit I have a problem. I was very worried about it being too hot & her being in the sun even though we bought tickets that we were certain would be in the shade by game time. But I kept all these worries to myself & I am glad I did because it worked out great!

Our seats were in the shade...it was a little hot but every once in a while we would get a good breeze to cool us off. Abbie did great (until the car ride home where she had a complete and total meltdown). We watched some of the game from our seats then made our way to the air conditioned gift shop for a while. Then we toured the stadium on the concourse where the wind was blowing. I am a complete germaphobe and avoid public changing stations at all cost (I have changed quite a few diapers in the back of the Volvo) but I covered it really good and let her lay down and stretch out for a little while! Then in the eighth inning she finally fell asleep while Eric & I ate dip-n-dots! The night was very successful! We even found a home run ball on our walk around the stadium to commemorate Abbie's first baseball game!

Abbie & Eric

Excited about her first game!

A constant drool bucket!

Eric, Abbie & Hornsby!

This picture was very hard for me because I am a germaphobe & did not want Hornsby to hold her...but he insisted & I caved because it was kind of cute!!!

View of downtown Tulsa!

She couldn't go any longer!!

Bad doggy...

2010-05-22T23:14:00.006-05:00

For a while now I have been wanting to get a new washer and dryer. Mine are pretty old and have some issues and I would just love a new set of front loaders (call me a typical housewife, I know)! So we have been on the hunt...If you know Eric & I, you know we do not make rash decisions about much of anything. Lots and lots of looking and price shopping goes into everything. We had kind of decided what we were going to get and the time line we were going to get it in until we woke up to this the other morning...

My dreams of a washer & dryer down the drain! Apparently, our dog Bo had a panic attack during one of the storms that rolled through the other night (never happened before) and tore up a huge section of our carpet! This picture does not do it justice! Now, we were eventually going to replace the carpet but not any time soon. We were going to wait until right before we got ready to sell our house so it would be nice & fresh! And of course you can't just replace one room because you wouldn't put the same cheap carpet the builder put in, you want the new fashionable carpet they are using these days! And this room is connected to a hallway that is connected to another room that is across from another room with carpet...you get the ugly cycle!! So instead of my beloved front loaders, I will be getting new carpet. Not nearly as fun!

Here is the devil dog munching on a tomato at Easter!

A Big Weekend...

2010-04-05T23:57:00.008-05:00

This past weekend held many things for our family, starting on Thursday. Thursday we made our first trip back to Texas with Abbie & our first trip back since January. We decided we would leave around 8 right after we fed her and then hopefully let her sleep as long as she could praying we didn't have to stop. Well, no such luck. At about 10:00 pm we got stuck in traffic outside Norman. Like takes you 40 minutes to go 5 miles traffic. Of course she woke up hungry & screaming. And go figure all the exits we could get to were closed! So, we got pulled over finally in Norman & got her fed. We made it to my parents house around 2 that morning!

Friday, my sweet Abbie girl was one month old. I can not believe it!! Time has flown by! I look back at pictures and realize just how much she has changed in one month. It makes me a little sad because I know she is going to grow out of this baby phase so quickly, but at the same time I am so excited to see her personality develop! Speaking of personalities, I prayed many times that she would have her daddy's laid back personality & not my impatient personality. As time passes I am seeing that I don't think this prayer was answered! She is quite fussy at times but I am sure it is just a phase that will pass...hopefully soon!! At one month she weighs 8 lbs. 1 oz. and is starting to sleep for some pretty good streches during the night. Last night we went 6 hours between feedings!

Friday was also the day that Abbie got to meet two new people, her great grandmother & Caden Kazmann. Colter & Casey made the trip up to my parents house so we could see each other after a long strech & so Caden and Abbie could meet. We had a great afternoon together & took lots of pictures!!

On Saturday she got to meet my cousins & their baby Ayden. We got to start a fun Easter tradition that we had a kids and dye Easter eggs to be hunted on Sunday. Needless to say Abbie slept through the experience but Eric & I had fun! Eric was the last one to finish trying his hardest to make a pink camo egg for Abbie!

On Sunday Abbie celebrated her first holiday, Easter!! We got ready that morning & headed to church and then on to my grandpartents house to snap some quick pictures with Abbie & her cousins. Then we headed out to Eric's parents new house to celebrate Easter with them. Here Abbie got to meet all five of her cousins, her aunts & uncles and her Poppy. We headed back to Tulsa and stoped to eat dinner a long the way. Our idea was to kill to birds with one stone & eat the same time Abbie did. I am happy to say we made it all the way home after that with no stops & a sleeping baby!!

Here are some pictures from the weekend!

Abbie & Caden meeting for the 1st time

Abbie's 1st Easter

Abbie with her cousin Hailey

Abbie, Hailey & Ayden

Abbie with her Nanna

Abbie & her Aunt Shawna

Her "O" face

Asleep in Daddy's hand

We survived...

2010-03-21T16:46:00.007-05:00

Well, on Tuesday Abbie will be three weeks old! For the first two weeks of her life my mom, her Granmommy, was here to help us out! But last Sunday she had to head home & with a tearful goodbye we had to split ways. Eric asked me often "what are we going to do when your mom leaves?" & I replied "I don't know, but we will figure it out". I was really nervous about being on my own because it seemed like we had faced a lot of obsticles in the first two weeks. Abbie caught a cold, I had an infection in my incision which left me feeling really bad, I had an allergic reaction to the medicine for my infection, my dad got hit in the head & had to have staples and my grandmother was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer. It just seemed like a lot to deal with.

Well Eric went back to work Monday morning and Abbie & I were left on our own. And I am happy to say with some trial & error we figured it out! I'm a lot more tired during the week then on the weekends because I try my hardest not to wake Eric up in the middle of the night so he can be rested for work. But on the weekends he really tries to help me out. I have always prided myself on my organizational skills & they have never come in more handy then now! Being organzied is the only way I am surviving! Call me crazy but the only way that I can remember what time I feed her last & how many wet/dirty diapers she has had is by keeping a running list on a legal pad! Life is different but every time she stares up at me, my heart melts & I could not imagine her not being in our life!

Some things I have come to realize:

My clean & organized house will never be the same! It has been over taken with baby items & my OCD nature to have things clean and in their own place is having to take a back seat to all of this "stuff". It is a balancing act to not get overwhelmed by my need to have my house organized & realize that the most important thing is spending time with our sweet girl.
I won't sleep through the night again until about the year 2032...when she graduates from college. I have full on Mommy hearing that awakes to the smallest squeak, sigh or skirm. But that is okay because I am learning to live on the naps I get in between feedings!
I will never again be without laundry to do. Almost every feeding or diaper change leads to some article of clothing needing to be washed.
No one ever told us that burping a baby was going to be an art form that will have to be perfected and still may not prove to be fruitful. We try over the sholder, sitting up then back over the sholder then back to sitting up, massaging the back and finally we might get the burp we are looking for.

I am not going to lie & say this is easy but every minute of missed sleep is worth every time her big eyes stare at you & you feel like there is no one else but you and her around. We have a long way to go from being "organized" & "scheduled" but we are getting there! And I am so blessed to have such a wonderful husband that lets me be a stay at home Mommy & take care of our precious little girl! Here are a few pictures! Now that we are catching up a little on sleep and getting things under control, it is my goal to start taking more pictures!!!

Abigail Grace...

2010-03-09T12:56:00.004-06:00

I know I have not made a formal anouncement on my blog yet but one week ago today Abigail Grace Broberg was born!

I went at 7:30 to the hospital to be induced Monday night. There was apparently a rush of women in labor & we had to wait quite a while and did not get checked in and put in a room unitl midnight. That is when things started going not as planned! I did have a sweet nurse though, that I actually had met before because she was a Chi O at OU. They were suppose to start my induction that night with a pill & then move to Pitocin the next morning. After getting hooked up to all sorts of IV's, gadgets & monitors, the monitors reveled that I was actually contracting every 2-3 minutes. I had no idea. So, the plan was changed and the pill could no longer be used. I was then hooked up to Pitocin then instead of in the morning. After a night of painful not fun contractions my doctor came in early & broke my water. I was having horrible back labor so I opted for an epidural asap! And it was a good thing.

To make a long story short I had gone in to the hospital with high blood pressure that continued the entire time. At some point in time in the morning my contractions were not getting any stronger and Abbie's heart rate was dipping pretty low with each one. After watching the monitors for a while, the decision was made that a C-Section was going to have to be done. As my doctor put it "we can stroll back to the OR right now or we can rush back there later." Basically meaning this was the way Abbie would be coming into the world no matter what. At 11:30 the decision was made and at 12:00 p.m. Abbie was born! By 12:20 I was back in my labor & delivery room. By Thursday afternoon we were discharged & back at home adjusting to a whole new way of life!!

A lot of my pictures are on my camera that is not working with my computer right now! So I will post more pictures eventually once I get that situation worked out!!

Frustration...

2010-02-23T18:01:00.002-06:00

I have lots to post about but the screen to my desktop computer that has ALL of my pictures on it won't turn on!! It is at the top of my frustration list right now but at the bottom of my list of important things to get done before I go into the hospital in ONE week!!

You've been asking...

2010-02-10T15:38:00.006-06:00

Well...we have had many requests to see what the nursery turned out like. So, here you go! There are still pictures that have to be hung on the wall by the crib, the white shelves still have to be worked on, I still have to make a table cloth for the round table & a pillow for the glider...but for the most part it is done!! For your viewing pleasure...

The fabric across the round table a sample of the fabric I am making the table cloth & pillow out of.

Love & Laughter...

2010-01-22T11:30:00.005-06:00

As I had mentioned in a previous post Eric & I had the opportunity to to escape Tulsa last weekend & make the short drive up to Branson, Missouri. We attended a one day marriage confrence on Saturday called The Love & Laughter Getaway. I want to emphasize the Laughter part because that is what we spent most of our time doing! The day was broke up with sessions from 3 different people. Dr. Gary Smalley, a relationship expert, Pastor Ted Cunningham from the Woodland Hills church in Branson, & a wonderfully funny comedian, Paul Harris, who has a show in Branson & is a member of Woodland Hills himself. Since the main point of the weekend was how important it is to laugh & to create memories, Paul Harris really had the most stage time infront of us. Which was no problem for us because we have not laughed so hard in a long time!! It was nice to see a comedian whos jokes were appropriate & still some of the funniest I have ever heard! Since the seminar was only one day long I can't say that I learned a ton of information...but I was more reminded of how important it is to not be so serious all the time & to find ways to laugh & make memories because that is how we want our kids to remember us. That we were able to laugh with each other & laugh with our kids...and those are the memories they will truly cherish! We are wanting to go back next year & are definitely wanting to invest in more marriage confrences because it doesn't matter how great your marriage, there is always room to make improvement or try something new!! And it is always nice to be reminded what God intended marriage to be.

Outside the confrence we spents some time touring Branson...which was a ghost town!! We arrived Friday night and by that time my prego body was starving so in an effort to start the weekend out on a good note, my husband tried to quickly feed me! We ate what was suppose to be a quick meal at the hotel...one waiter for 10 plus tables equals not so quick! But with my mood much better after a meal, we decided we would strike out and "explore" Branson. The Ghost town! We made it down to the landing thinking that maybe the shops would still be open but we were later informed that they had closed at 7:30!!! So we topped off the evening by sharing a McFlurry at Micky D's!! Saturday we woke up and attended the confrence then went out to lunch at Shorty Smalls with some other couples from our church that were attending as well! Lots of fun! After the confrence wrapped up around three, we headed into Branson. Most of the shows & attractions were closed for winter but we of course hit up some of the places that were still open...the Outlet Mall, the Landing & the Titanic exhibit...which we didn't go into but we did see the ice sculpture contest outside it!! We finished off the night by eating again with our friends at Olive Garden! We had a nice long dinner with lots of good conversation & lots of laughing!! Sunday morning we woke up and ate at IHop & then headed back to Tulsa! We had a great time but are very much missing our King size bed we had at the Cheteau!

Our hotel...the Chateau on the Lake.

The view from our hotel room.

The Lobby at the Chateau.

One of the ice sculptures that had not melted by the time we got there!

2009 Wrap up!

2010-01-08T11:57:00.012-06:00

This year has been full of changes for Eric & me! I will have to say not all bad ones though! I think this has really been a year of learning for us! We have learned a lot about other people, this world, and ourselves! I have seen God work tremendously in our marriage and bring us closer then we have been in the last 9 1/2 years together! So, I just wanted to take some time to recap a little of what has happened since my last post!

Many of you may not know this but shortly before Thanksgiving Eric's mom was diagnosed with Breast Cancer. Her outlook on this situation has made me pray everyday that if this were ever to happen to me that I could have even an ounce of the positivity & courage that she has! She is probably one of the strongest women I know & Eric and I thank God for her daily! She has had many test run & so far everything has come back to negative, meaning the cancer has not spread to more serious areas!

On a different note...Christmas was a little different for us this year as well! Starting with the fact that it snowed!!! Something I have always wished for but when it actually happened was a little irritated by!! As you may or may not know, my parents moved into a new house this year. It is their dream house...the last one they will live in...its on the lake in the area they are orginally from. In years past we have always spent Christmas eve at my grandparents house since we lived in Dallas and had to travel there. This was the first year we did not do that! So this year we planned to have a nice Christmas eve of opening presents, eating & going to church. Instead a blizzard moved in and we hurried through presents, church got canceled & ate pizza from the local gas station (did I mention how small the town is that they live in!). We rushed through presents so my older sister & her family could travel back to their house before the roads got bad! That did not happen! The highway to their house got shut down & in the process of turning around to head back to my parents house they got stuck on the side of the highway! So my mom & I sat at home and waited while my Dad, Eric, Leandra & her boyfriend Chris struck out to pull them out & many others while they were at it! The weather then delayed our Christmas morning plans of going to my grandparents which further delayed us getting to Eric's parents house!

However, we did end up getting to Dallas in a timely manner since they had virtually no snow! Christmas ended up being great but it went by way to fast!! Before we knew it we were driving back to Tulsa where we found tons of snow! Which is still on the ground today!!

We ended 2009 on a boring note this year! No fun parties for us! We were back in Texas because I threw Casey a baby shower & my family threw me a small family shower that weekend! The week leading up to New Year's I had a stomach virus & Eric got in an accident on his way to Kansas. His car had to be pulled out of a ditch & is now at the repair place for who knows how long. We were suppose to celebrate my sisters birthday on New Year's day but she & my mom came down with the stomach bug as well...so they spent their time in their room & Eric and I bypassed the germy main floor at my parents house by taking the elevator from our room where we watched a lot of TV on the third floor the the gameroom on the bottom floor where we played a lot of Wii, to keep ourselves entertained!

We are hoping for a better start to 2010! My mom & my grandparents are coming up this weekend to put together the nursery! I will post pictures when it is all done! Monday is my 25th birthday! Yikes!! Eric's mom has surgery on Monday as well, in Houston. Then will be spending some time at a condo in Galvaston recovering. Next weekend Eric & I are headed to Branson for the weekend to do a one day marriage seminar and spend some last time as a couple before we become a family of three! We have a couple more baby showers to help get us prepared for our little girls arrival, which is a short 2 months away! I hope to keep you all posted as these things happen but as you can tell I am not very good at keeping this up-to-date! I leave you with some pictures...

For those of you who don't know that is suppose to be a lake out there! It was snowing so hard you couldn't see it.

Christmas Day...this is what the other picture is suppose to look like!

Christmas Eve!
What we came home to after Christmas!

I Love This Time of Year...

2009-12-15T18:07:00.011-06:00

Seeing as how it has been a month or so since my last post, I figured I should write again and update everyone on what has been going on with us! Since we last chatted we spent a wonderful Thanksgiving with Eric's family then on to have two more with my family to finish out the weekend! Needless to say my craving for Thanksgiving food that I have been having since the begining of my pregnancy has been sufficently satisfied! This year we did again brave the cold & the crowds and go shopping on the dreaded day after Thanksgiving! I however did not have the worst end of this deal, as I got to sit in my car with the heated seats on until Babies R' Us opened, while my wonderful husband & mother-in-law stood outside to be first in line to get us a glider & ottoman for 50% off! Waking up at 3:50 a.m. wasn't all that fun...but I know the minute I unpack it all from its box it will have been totally worth it. Here is a picture of me at a little over 24 weeks right before Thanksgiving.

For some reason we only remember to take these pictures at night when I could not possible look anymore ragged!

So far this December we have kept busy! We got our Christmas decorations up shortly after Thanksgiving so we would have plenty of time to enjoy them, since we spend most of the week of Christmas in Dallas! We have purchased lots of the big items for our little girls room...all of which still sit in bags & boxes in our guest room/soon-to-be nursery! This past weekend was full of fun and exciting things. We spent Friday night at a great restaurant/bar here in Tulsa at a Christmas party for one of Eric's clients. We had great food & great company! It was lots of fun! Saturday was a very exciting day as we made our way over to Fayetteville, Arkansas to see Eric's best friend's fiance & very very good precious friend of ours, Hope, graduate from Nursing school! They are getting married some time this summer & we are so excited!

For those of you who are wondering that is me at almost 28 weeks or a week or so into my 7th month!

We came back late Saturday night so we could get up & help with Toys for Tots at our church on Sunday. What an amazing day that was!! While the parents shop in other parts of the church their children attend a Christmas party where they get to see Santa, watch a movie, see a magician & make crafts! Eric & I helped in the craft area where we got the chance to talk with some amazing kids! I think this is one of the most amazing things our church does & I love it. I haven't heard an exact number of kids that accepted Jesus & got baptized but Eric and I talked to a ton that had!!!

Well, I think that gets us caught up until now! This is Eric's last week of work until after Christmas & then he only works three days after that! We will probably spend a lot of that time cleaning out & rearranging so we can get our nursery set-up in January. But I can't wait just to spend some time with him! I am offically in my third trimester! I'm really excited about that. I go to the doctor tomorrow for my normal check-up & the fabulous glucose test! Which I am sure I will fail & then have to take the three hour test because I JUST LOVE SWEETS! From this point on I start going every two weeks to the doctor!! Exciting & scary at the same time...exciting because it is really hard to wait an entire month to see her move & hear her heartbeat between visits...scary because that means the end is coming near! But we are really excited! I leave you with some holiday pics!! Merry Christmas!

A quick update...

2009-11-19T11:46:00.002-06:00

It has been a while since my last post so I thought I would give a quick update on what has been going on with us lately!

Last Saturday we went to Oklahoma City and did some shopping. We both agree it was one of the best days we have had in quite a while. It is so nice to get away from your normal day to day lives and go somewhere...even if it is only a couple hours away.
While in OKC we ate lunch at an all time fav of ours...Moe's (which we haven't been able to since they closed the one in Tulsa)
After finding some great shopping deals we headed to Norman for the OU v. A&M game!
Love, Love, Love my sooners but one of the highlights was watching the Aggie band perform! Something I have loved to watch for most my life!
Finished off with a dinner that can only be found in Norman & then headed home!
Went to the doctor yesterday for our last monthly visit & everything looks good!
Next month we start going every two weeks and we get to have another big ultrasound that I am very excited about...but I also have my glucose test which I am not very excited about!
Our little girl is moving around sooo much! Eric can feel her move & now you can see my stomach move when she does. Sometimes at night we just sit & watch my stomach as she dances all around!
Our guest room that will become the nursery is begining to be taken over with baby stuff. Her furniture came in the other day & it has added to the chaos that has become that room!
Eric continues to melt my heart with the love he already has for our daughter. I find him on baby websites looking at outfits & things that she "must have"!
I'm excited because Eric took the day off tomorrow! Then he only works two days next week before we head to Dallas!!

Have a wonderful day!!

Lessons learned...

2009-11-06T19:12:00.004-06:00

I will be the first to admit that sometimes when I am at school, frustration gets the best of me. But a sweet little eight year old girl today made me realize two very important things about children.

1. They ask things because they are learning and they don't know any better.

2. They are so observant...it makes you realize how unobservant adults are.

I have been pregnant for a little bit over five months now & I have not had a single person ask me if I was. Now, don't get me wrong...I will be the first to say that until this week I have looked more "Pudgy" in the middle then I do normally instead of preggers. But on our way out to recess today I had a little girl ask me in the most innocent tone "are you having a baby?". When I replied "yes" excitement broke out with all the surrounding girls.

She made me realize that adults won't ask until it's obvious because they don't want to be rude or hurt your feelings if you are in fact not pregnant. This little girl had an aunt that was expecting & connected how I look and how she looks...she is just learning.

It also made me realize how much more observant children are then adults. As adults we get caught up in the business of our lives that we forget to pay attention to anything that does not pertain to that exact moment. It makes me ask myself how much have I missed out on since I have too "busy" to observe the little things. And what have they observed me doing in a moment of frustration or irritation that I didn't even realize they were paying attention to.

Little kids just make me smile sometimes!

We're Having a...

2009-10-15T11:06:00.007-05:00

For those of you who haven't heard yet...we are having a GIRL!! We went to our doctor about three weeks ago and she told us that she thought it was a girl but she wouldn't start painting pink just yet. She told us that the ultrasound technician would be able to tell us for sure when we went for our big ultrasound. Well, we went this Monday morning and and she confirmed for us that is was a girl!

For those of you who have never been pregnant, they make you come to the ultrasound with your bladder full!! I don't know why! It makes it extremly uncomfortable. They press down on your stomach in order to take all different types of measurements and though you want to pay attention to the screen in your mind your telling yourself "don't pee in your pants!" She asked me if I could feel her move yet, and as of Monday that answer was no, and she said that was good because she was kicking me in the bladder!

Yesterday morning however, I am almost positive that I felt her move! It was not like anything I have felt before and now I want to feel it all the time!! Lots of people have been asking to see ultrasound pictures so I leave you with our latest ones...

Great Giveaway...

2009-10-12T10:01:00.002-05:00

One of the girls I went to high school with is doing an great giveaway!! She is giving away the most adorable hand made baby beanies (made by another Berkner Grad)! If you don't have a baby or know one you can get a beanie for check out her website just to see her adorable baby Hudson! He is the model!! Check it out at The Pettijohn's !

The Tulsa State Fair...

2009-10-11T16:32:00.008-05:00

I don't want to say that I have become a hermit in my second trimester but, I have however, definitely gone out of my way to avoid coming down with what Eric calls "the swinenies". I am armed with Germ-X and Lysol wipes at all times and never hesitate to whip them out! But this Saturday I had to crawl out from my shell to go to the state fair! This has some what become a tradition for Eric & I, being that we have gone for the last three years. For those of you who do not know about the fair here in Oklahoma, let me enlighten you a little. Unlike the fabulous State Fair of Texas that is only held once a year at Fair Park in Dallas, the Oklahoma state fair travels, and is held twice. It starts in Oklahoma City and then makes it way here to Tulsa.

This Saturday was the second to last day for the fair. The weather was suppose to be sunny and the low 60's. Due to other commitments and just plain gross weather earlier on in the week, we decided that Saturday would be the day we would go. Apparently, so did everyone else. We spent the morning around the house, Eric watching football and me researching car seats and strollers online. We watched the first half of the OU game and then headed out for what should have been a short 20 minute drive to the fair grounds. Did I mention everyone else decided they were going today too? So, after an hour of driving to the fair and trying to find somewhere to park we made it. Armed with my Germ-X in pocket, we finally started our solid half-mile hike (uphill) to the fair grounds, my pregnant self huffing and puffing like an asthma patient! Half-way through the hike Eric tells me his stomach does not feel that good and he doesn't know how the fair food is going to do on it. At this point in time I have two things on my mind, any guesses...a bathroom (like a good pregnant lady I went before I left, but remember I thought it was going to take us 20 minutes to get there!) & food.

So, the first stop of course the restroom then onto one of my favorite parts...the livestock/animal area! This was one of the perks of just going with Eric this time and not a whole group of our friends...I got to drag him through the cows and goats and all that fun stuff! As we walked through the fair I was making a mental note of everything I smelt and everything I wanted to eat! Cotton candy, kettle corn, turkey leg, cheesecake on a stick, funnel cake, cheese on a stick...and the list could go on. It got pretty cold out after the sun went down so we stuck to things inside the Quick-trip center.

We walked and walked around the fair until I could pretty much not walk anymore! So after all the walking I didn't feel all that bad about all the eating!! All though I could have eaten alot more, my husband is not pregnant and could not have eaten much more! We both had a corn dog & cheesecake on a stick and then split some nachos. We were going to finish the night off by sharing a funnel cake, but Eric and his weak stomach wimped out on me the baby (I do not eat like this on a daily basis, just so you know)! We did stop in and see a great hypnotist show (not quite as funny as the one last year that our friend Ryan was in) and we saw all the fun exhibits the fair has to offer but neither one of us are game players or ride riders, so after the nachos we called it a night! We made our hiked back to the car in the cold!!! I will just have to save the rest of my food list for next year...

P.S.-armed with my stroller research from earlier that morning I checked out every stroller we passed trying looking to see if I could find some of the features that I had read about and trying to find patterns that I liked! I'm pathetic I know!!

A New Look...

2009-10-08T20:44:00.003-05:00

With the weather changing, I decided it was time to give the blog a little change too! I just love this time of year with all of the Holidays coming up! Around this time every year I feel the need to do lots of baking and organizing and decorating! This is year has been no different. I think I have actually been worse this year! I know it is too early for me to be nesting but that is sure what it feels like. I spent part of my day thumbing through cook books looking for delicious treats that I could make! I hope everyone is getting their share of the fabulous fall weather & that my blog changes put you in a festive mood!!

But I had to eat it...

2009-09-01T21:28:00.004-05:00

So far during this pregnancy I have had more food adversions then cravings. Food has been my enemy for some time now! I thought that maybe I had a craving or two along the way...you know, it had been a slight desire to eat this food or that. But whenever food sounds horrible to you that might be considered a craving right? Well, today I found out what a true craving was like. And I can now confirm that the previous cases were indeed not cravings! This is how it happened...

Today after school I had to stop by the front office on my way out. I went in and noticed two boys standing by the secretary's desk watching TV. I walked on past and droped off what I needed to and went back out to talk to the secretary. As I was waiting for her to finish talking with a parent, I glanced over to see what the boys were watching. That is when I saw it...the craving that made me cave! The boys were eating Hostess chocolate cupcakes. You all know the ones I am talking about. With the cream in the middle and the frosting on top, with the cute little white squiggle on it. I saw just a glimpse of it but I had to have it. There was no changing my mind on this one because trust me I tried to talk myself out of it. But I had to have it! I drove straight to the gas station after school and picked one up! And let me tell you it was delicious!

But I have promised our sweet baby that I would not pump it full of sweets, so after the splurge today I am taking a sweets break for a little while! I leave you with a picture of my delicious indulgence!

Right on track...

2009-08-26T17:38:00.005-05:00

My first trimester is coming to a close thankfully and I had another Doctor appointment today! I have a wonderful doctor who does an ultrasound at every appointment, so again today I got to see our precious baby and hear its sweet heartbeat! I was a little worried about whether or not the baby was growing enough since I have had such bad morning sickness! I have actually lost a few pounds since my first visit. But when Dr. Summer's measured our little peanut it measured right at 12 weeks and 1 day, which is exactly where I should be for my due date.

We also found out that at our next appointment we will get to find out if Baby B is a boy or a girl! Maybe over the next 4 weeks while we wait for this appointment Eric and I will each make up our minds about what we think we are having. Some days Eric & I think it is a boy and some days a girl, however we are hardly ever on the same page about it! We just can't wait to find out!

Finally....

2009-08-11T20:55:00.002-05:00

For the past 10 weeks I have been holding in the biggest secret of my life!! And finally today I can announce that Eric and I are expecting our first BABY!! Baby B will be joining us some time around March 9th! Our sweet tiny has been the reason for the lack of blogging lately. Besides having zero, zip, zilch energy to do much of anything and the morning/noon/night "morning" sickness that kept me pretty stationary on the couch for a while, it would be nearly impossible to blog about anything else but our tiny blessing! We are really excited to start this new chapter in our lives! We can not wait to see what lies ahead of us! I will keep everyone updated as our lives are sure to be changing ALOT in the next months but promise that I will not only blog about baby (as hard as it may be sometimes!).

Axo Family Affair...

2009-07-08T23:12:00.004-05:00

A few weeks ago Eric & I had the honor of attending the wedding of one of the sweetest girls I know...she is one of my two beautiful lil' sisters from my sorority at OU. Natalie & Brent got married on Father's day weekend...which just so happens to be the weekend Eric & I got married on two years ago! Everything about the wedding was beautiful including Natalie!! I also got the chance to see my other beautiful little sister Lauren while I was there! I was so excited to see them get to catch up with their lives! It seems we are all so busy these days we don't get to keep in touch much! I really do miss them & I was so glad to get to spend time with them! We drove to Duncan, OK on Saturday for the wedding...a three hour drive from Tulsa. And although we only live about an hour and a half from Norman we don't get to go there much. So...we stayed there on Saturday night after the wedding to break-up the terrible three hour drive!! :-) Or maybe it was to eat at our favorite resturant on Sunday!! Here are a couple of pictures from the wedding!

The beautiful bride...

My other little Lauren...

The Great Garage Makeover

2009-06-28T14:11:00.007-05:00

In my post about our two year anniversary, I mentioned I would post some other things that we got to do in year two of our marriage, but deserved their own post. Well, this is definately one of them! Back in the spring our garage underwent a makeover! The whole idea came about because Eric's "organized" chaos was begining to take over our office. For those of you who don't know, the Fedex delivery man pays us a visit about once a week. He is always brining us samples of different products for Eric to give to his customers. Well, when he delivers it, it never seems like quite the right time for Eric to give it to customers, so it ends up in boxes in our office floor or in the closet which was begining to literally bulge! So we decided we would utilize some garage wall space and hang some shelves so he could contain the rapid growing mess. We also decided that we would paint an epoxy sealer on our floors to make them look better. So Eric's parents came up for the weekend to help us with our mini garage makeover. Well, a few shelves and paint on the floor turned into paint on the walls because the floor made the walls look terrible, and a work station with full cabinets...not just shelves. But with the help of his parents, which we could not have done this project without, our garage looks amazing! And it makes me so happy to drive into a clean, organized garage everyday!

Before...

After...

Two years ago...

2009-06-17T11:00:00.012-05:00

Yesterday Eric and I celebrated our 2 year anniversary! Wow, how time has flown by! I do have to say though that year two of our marriage has been much different from year one. Year one seemed like it was filled with changes and new adventures. Every time we turned the corner we were faced with another decision or another big choice. I think that the best word to describe that year would be chaotic. Year two has taken a much different (and much needed) path. It has been filled with tons on wonderful memories. This year I think we really felt like we were living our lives not watching them fly by us. Here is just a short list of some of the things that happened for us in year two!

spent tons of time with family & friends
found a great church
joined a community group that we lOVE
made lots of new friends
took a wonderful vacation to the beach
had family come and visit
had a major garage makeover
celebrated birthdays
bought a new car

Eric's brother & sister-in-law and their kids came to visit...

Eric's company car was totalled...

went to the waterpark the day after christmas with eric's mom & brother's family...

celebrated the holidays with good friends...

Floated the river...(more then once)

celebrated birthdays...

spent time with family...

went to Dave & Buster's for Eric's birthday...

The spring was full of a lot of great things that all deserve their own post! Hopefully I will get that done soon!

1 year ago today...

2009-06-08T21:28:00.011-05:00

One year ago today I broke my arm! For those of you who may not know the story here is the short version...

Ryan and Eric convinced me that I could totally play indoor soccer and it would be good! They needed the players...it was just for fun...the list of reasons goes on and on. Well, with about 2 minutes left in my second game to ever play (my mom was at the first game...luckily she wasn't at this one!) a guy (did I mention it was co-ed soccer) shoots a shot at the goal and in self-defense I stick my arm out and it hits me right on the wrist. Needless to say, a couple hours later in the St. Francis ER, the doc informed me I had broken my wrist in multiple places! So I thought I would include a few pictures for those of you who did not get to see me when I had my lovely pink cast last summer!

At Christie's bridal shower with my beautiful cast!

Jumping on the band wagon...

2009-06-08T15:09:00.001-05:00

Well...after a lot of thought I have finally decided to jump on the blogging band wagon!!! I have debated for a while about whether or not to do this! I personally feel that our lives are not interesting enough for anyone to follow in a blog, but I have blogs that I read...so who knows! Just yesterday Eric & I passed a big milestone in our relationship. We have been together for 9 years! We were looking back on those years and remembering some of the things we had done and it just made me think that blogging would be a good way to kind of "log" our life together. I am also doing this because we don't live close to our family and a lot of friends that we don't get to talk to that often, but want to let them know what is going on in our world!

So...bear with me as I get started in the world of blogging! I think it is going to be a while before I get the hang of it...seeing that it took me hours to find the layout I wanted today!! But once I get going I will give a recap of some of the really fun things that we have got to do in year 2 of our marriage! Thanks for reading!!