we're on our way

headed off on our first family vacation this morning...we've made *trips* before with garrett, but not a fun vaca, just the three of us. wanted to make it happen for us b/f baby girl arrives. the photo of garrett in his car seat is so sweet...he loves when we count 1, 2, 3 & then raise our arms & yell "wheeeee"!!! we were on our way!!!

little man only slept about 45 minutes today...but was an amazing trooper on our 7 hour drive! plus, he was a little angel until his bedtime tonight...an hour past the usual time. sweet boy! love him!

"momma, let's go to the pool!!! get a move on...wait, can you get this banana off my face first?"

"this elevator's holding up my pool time. let's get this show on the road, people!"

i'm the lucky one

i feel so lucky. to be garrett's mom, mom to Baby Girl growing in my belly. i'm also lucky because i'm sharing the incredible journey of parenthood with brian. he & garrett made today so special for me...it's been a wonderful mother's day! i am so thankful for my mom, becky, & brian's mom, martha. we're blessed to have them be such an active part of our lives & garrett's. we love you, mommas! :-)

below are some pictures of garrett late this afternoon. recently @ my friend christy's house, garrett found the water bottle that she uses to flatten her boy's *bedhair* every morning - he loved it & had sufficiently sprayed himself & her carpet pretty well by the time we left. i picked up a bottle for garrett @ the dollar store this week & let him take it outside today...as you can see, he can't quite grasp the concept of doing anything beyond spraying it directly in his face!

logo recognition

a few weekends ago, brian suggested we hit Krispy Kreme for breakfast on a saturday morning...of course, i put up a fight (right) & eventually gave in. :-) we picked up some mini's...KK's new marketing strategy in which you actually consume MORE doughnuts b/c they're just so easy to walk by & pop one in your mouth!

thought we might see what garrett thought of them...well, he LOVED them. he held them like a little sandwich. he GOBBLED it down...then any time he walked through the kitchen he would point to the box, grunt & sign 'eat' to us! he totally recognizes that KK logo & wants IN that box. i finally had to hide it in the pantry!


soooo...b/w KK & Goldfish...garrett's already being *influenced* by all those dang logos! it's fun to watch our little guy experience new things...especially when they make him happy & he just laughs & laughs & laughs!

our not so happy leprechaun

 

garrett had a not so happy day yesterday (& monday, for that matter). when he woke up from his nap yesterday afternoon, he was running a temperature. but...it WAS st. patrick's day & i HAD to get a picture of my little man in green...well, you can see how successful it turned out. :-)

here's to hoping luck's on our side & today's a better day!

the white's are tickled PINK

according to an ultrasound tech & a perinatologist, baby white #2 is a GIRL! no one's more surprised than me & brian! b/f i even knew i was pregnant, i dreamt it was a girl...but just figured we'd have another boy.

but friday night when we opened that envelope to see that they had written, "congratulations! it's a girl!"...i literally didn't stop laughing. i mean, i just kept on laughing!!!

brian's over the moon w/ excitement over having a girl...& i have to admit, i'm VERY intimidated by it. i am happy that we'll have one of each, but i love my baby boy & would've loved another little man running around here. but it's incredible to know that our daughter is the gift that God's designed for our family; it's a second born girl that God will use to grow me & brian into the people & parents He wants us to be.

& while last week was frought w/ excitement over the *girl* news...last week was also an amazing journey in mine & brian's marriage & our faith. last tuesday AM my OB called to let me know that my blood levels showed high markers for down's syndrome. (apparently - we've learned - this test has a very high false positive rate & now know so many who have walked this same journey.) so thursday AM we had a level 2 ultrasound @ the hospital to check it all out.

our prayer in the 48 hours b/w that call & the perinatologist talking w/ us was NOT that the baby NOT have down's syndrome. i fully believe if that's the course God charted for us, this child & our families, then it was going to be what it was. our prayer was simply that we face the test & the future w/o fear & w/ peace. knowing that the author of perfect peace was simply asking us to look up. to rest in Him. we had a small circle of friends & family praying over us...& we felt such extreme peace driving to our test, in the midst of it & even as the dr spoke w/ us. we know that it was a divine experience. knowing that nothing the dr was going to say that day would take away our peace. that if the diagnosis was yes, then we would begin to process through that & educate ourselves for the future & for our baby. if it was no, it was no.

& while the dr did say there were no obvious signs that our little girl has down's, we are going to repeat the u/s on april 1 (not a joke!) just to confirm. but i have to say, it still doesn't matter. she's ours, He's in control & we are just so grateful for the journey...for the opportunity to have our faith strengthened & to be reminded of just how powerful our God is!

well...i can't leave you w/o posting some pics of our little man...he's getting SOOOO big it seems (almost 26 pounds now); runs just about everywhere he goes; points to things he's not supposed to have/do & says "nah, nah" (translated: no, no) & shakes his hand back & forth; he loves bringing you a book to read to him & curling up into your lap; i've watched him recently instigate games w/ other kids his age; he's begun to cry @ the church nursery when we leave (yes, we leave anyway!) & sometimes when we leave the house...he is SUCH a joy & an enormous bright spot in our days!


garrett sporting the mardi gras beads our sweet neighbors gave him!


reading w/ my mom on her recent trip here to visit with us.