Asheville

Like I mentioned before, Weston and I spent the first part of our vacation catching up with old friends.  We used to hang out with these folks every week for several years when we lived in Johnson City, and before everyone moved away to their husband's residency programs, we took a cruise together.  We said our goodbyes the day we got off the boat.  It was sad to say goodbye to such good friends.  We had only seen the Smith's twice since that goodbye, and we hadn't seen the Freeman's once since.  So we were so excited to catch up over the last 2.5 years!

The Smith's, Eric and Dawn, live in Asheville less than an hour from where we all lived in Johnson City.  Eric will finish up his family medicine residency this spring, and they have an adorable daughter, Olivia, who is 6 months.  The Freeman's, David and Kaylen, live in Richmond, VA while David completes his psychology residency, and Kaylen is expecting a baby boy in February!

To start off our visit, we got in later than expected to Asheville thanks to some horrible traffic.  So we were able to see Olivia for just a minute before this sleepy baby got her bath and bedtime.

 

The next day we all visited and ate lunch at the delicious Tupelo Honey Cafe .  The girls went back and spent the afternoon baking and cooking away from pinterest recipe ideas to have our own mini Christmas party that night.  

And our coordinated plaid husbands.  I'm still learning with my camera so Weston is a little blurry.

The Smith's were awesome hosts!  Their house was decorated so nice for Christmas, and they hung garland everywhere.  It was so beautiful.  As wonderful hosts, they gave both of us pregnant girls the two beds, and they slept on the air mattress.  Dawn even wrapped up ear plugs with ribbon in case Olivia woke us up in the morning which was thoughtful but not necessary.  For one, Olivia was so good, and we never heard her crying in the morning.  For two, we better get used to a crying baby in the middle of the night.

We exchanged Christmas gifts, and we got Miss Olivia a baby doll.

And our spread that we made for the Christmas party included sausage balls, ham sliders, several types of Christmas cookies, brownie Santa hats, baked brie, and deviled eggs.

And Elsie, another resident in Asheville with Eric, was able to join us with her husband Ben for the Christmas party.  Elsie graduated with the guys, and it was so great to see her again too.

Thank you so much for having us, Dawn and Eric!  We had a great time!!

Weeks 17 and 18

Weeks 17 and 18 flew by for us like time does for all of us at Christmas.  We celebrated my 29th birthday on the day I turned 17 weeks.  So we snapped the weekly picture on our way to dinner.  Weston was really sweet and treated me to a day of beauty for my birthday.  I got a pedicure in the morning, and my makeup done before dinner at MAC.  I love MAC makeup.  It was really a wonderful day with my honey, and the pedicure was so relaxing.  I haven't had a pedicure since the day of my wedding 5 years ago!  I think I may have to have another one or two pedicures before the baby comes.


So here is week 17.  I thought I started feeling the baby moving at night around this time, but Weston thought it was a little too early for me to feel movement as a first time mom.  But the further along I go, I am certain that I am feeling the baby, and it is so reassuring to feel the flutters.

Wait a minute! Silly daddy.

This week is the big week.  We find out boy or girl!  We're starting to get really excited to know if we'll be having a son or daughter!

Throwback Christmas

Well we have finally made it back from our travels for Christmas.  We started off our vacation in Asheville, NC with a visit with old friends from Weston's days in med school.  Then we drove in to spend Christmas with both our family's in Franklin.  Weston got horribly sick with a stomach bug on Christmas Eve and missed most of the Christmas celebration.  Poor guy.  Thankfully, he's on the mend now.

I have a few pictures to share from our visits, but as you might guess from the post title, these pictures in this post are from the good old days.  I raided my parent's photo albums and scanned some Christmas pictures through the years.  They bring back so many happy memories for me.

 

Christmas 1984: I had just turned 1 that Christmas.  I'm with my Daddy and my middle brother Joe.

 

Christmas 1984: We always did the stockings first.  Dad always had a million batteries in his stocking for the presents yet to be unwrapped, and Mom usually had a chocolate Santa.

Christmas 1986:  All dressed up for Christmas Eve Mass.  Joe is looking dapper in the green sport coat.  We were ages 3, almost 6, and 9 that Christmas.

Christmas 1987: Our first Christmas in our new house.  It was a two story house.  So this marked the start of the tradition of having to wait at the top of the stairs while Dad got the video camera turned on, and Mom got her glass of orange juice.  Mom has to have her OJ first thing in the morning.

Christmas 1988: Our first Christmas with our new puppy Checkers.  He was the best dog in the world, and we celebrated 17 Christmas's with this little guy.  He used to love curling up under the Christmas tree.  Eleven months out of the year he'd curl up behind our toilet, but for the month of December the tree was the lounging location of choice.

Christmas 1989:  My first Christmas to get an American Girl Doll.  I got Samantha that year, and every Christmas after my gifts from Santa completely consisted of dolls, dresses, and books from AG.  I would squeal every time I ripped open the wrapping paper and saw the brown AG box. 

I can't wait to start new traditions next year as our family grows.  I only hope our children will have as fond and meaningful memories of our family at Christmas as I do with my childhood.  I hope everyone had a very blessed and joyful Christmas!

Decking our Halls

Christmas is almost upon us.  Three candles were lit on our advent wreath at dinner tonight, and I can't wait to celebrate the birth of our Savior with our family and friends.  By far one of my favorite moments every year is attending Christmas Eve mass huddled in a pew with my entire family and singing "Oh Come All Ye Faithful" in Latin.  It is so moving deep in my soul.

 

Our nativity set that was Weston's Granny's set.

And here is my year-round ruffle wreath, it was inspired by the wreath made on the Dear Lillie blog.  I only wish I had chosen a stiffer fabric for the wreath.  I used a cotton blend that was on sale when I made it several months ago for fall.  Now my ruffles aren't quite as perky as when I first made it.

The little evergreen detail is just attached to an alligator clip.  So once Christmas is over, I can just unclip the Christmas decor and put up something for Valentine's day.

 

And for fall...

 Happy Monday!  Off to finish my Christmas shopping, and then we're headed to the historic Alabama theatre to see a showing of Christmas Vacation tonight with friends.

Sweet Sixteen

I hit the sweet sixteen this week in the pregnancy, and I am still feeling great.  My regular clothes are starting to get tight.  So I ordered a pair of skinny jeans and a couple cotton shirts to start my maternity wardrobe from Old Navy, and I love them.  I was really nervous to order anything online without trying it on.  So I am really glad it worked out!  It's still a little weird wearing the full panel jeans.  I feel a little like Steve Urkel wearing them, and when I showed Weston what was going on under there with full panel maternity jeans, his face was priceless both confused and slightly disturbed.

By the way, speaking of online ordering I am really digging the online shopping this year for Christmas presents, especially when you can score some free shipping.  No driving, no crowds, yes please!

And without further adieu, baby bump photos...

I definitely feel like I am starting to pop between weeks 15 and 16.  I better start using that cocoa butter more religiously now.

And here is a little collage I put together using photoshop elements.  I'm trying out the 30 day trial, and I'm struggling with making these side by side comparisons.  There must be an easier way.  Any tips?  I think I'll be practicing more with it this month and see if it's something I want to buy.

Happy Friday to you!