Updates

So much has taken place since I last posted a blog. Travis and I have been super busy and always on the go. In April, my sister-in-law hosted my first baby shower for Will in Kerrville. Everything was amazing and she did such a wonderful job. I was fortunate to have my parents drive up for the weekend and for my mom to come to the shower! Will received a lot of wonderful gifts! I came home that Sunday and started organizing.

2 weeks later, we headed down to Louisiana for Mother's Day weekend where we had another shower and our family's annual crawfish boil. It was a jam packed weekend. I ate so much crawfish but it was so good. My baby shower was amazing. We had so many people come to the shower and it was so good to see everyone and visit with them. Will received even more wonderful gifts! One special gift that I did receive was from my gram and paw. It was Will's bassinet. It was so hard to hold back the tears when I opened the gift. I know that if my gram were here she would have been front and center as I opened gifts and anxiously awaiting the arrival of Will. It was so hard not to have her there. I know she was with me in my heart but I missed her so much that day. As each day gets closer to Will's arrival, I'm constantly reminded that my gram won't be here to meet him and that is a hard concept for me to swallow.

Here are some pictures of our Mother's Day Weekend in Louisiana...

Can you tell my grandpa is proud?!?!!?

The weekend after Mother's Day, my parents drove up here to deliver the gifts since we were unable to bring them on the plane. My mom and I spent Friday afternoon, unpacking all of his gifts and organizing them in his room. It was so nice to have her here to help me get everything in place. On Saturday, her and I went shopping for some things to finish up his room. We had so much fun spending time together. It was good to have some mother/daughter time. While we were out spending money, Travis and my dad put together Will's bassinet and swing and then found some other projects to do around the house! Here are some pictures of Will's room. We still are missing a few minor things but for the most part it is complete. Thanks mom and dad for all of your help!

On Sunday, my friends Meagan, Tracy, and Natalie hosted another shower for me. They did such a wonderful job and I had a great time. Everything was perfect! It was great seeing my friends since I haven't seen them in a while and catching up with them. It made me realize how lucky Travis and I are to have such a great group of friends around us since we don't have our family near us. I appreciate each and every one of them and cherish our friendships!

32 weeks and counting...

Pictures of Will

Here are some pictures of our sweet baby boy Will after our 21 week checkup last week. He is doing great and growing fast! Travis and I are amazed every time we have a sonogram at how big he has gotten and all the new things that you can see. I'm feeling him more and more each day and absolutely love it. Travis has felt him a few times and is anxious for the day when he can feel all of his kicks like I can. He talks to Will every day and it is the cutest thing. He's so proud of his little boy and we are both anxious to meet him. We love him so much!

21 weeks after a nice walk

Definitely a boy!

Sweet baby Will

It's a.....BOY!!!!

Travis and I are going to have a baby boy!!!! We are so excited!!!!

After finally getting on our flight Saturday morning, we made it to Louisiana for our sonogram appointment that we had at Sound Diagnostics. It was a chance for my mom and dad as well as my grandpa to get a sneak peak of our little miracle. I enjoyed watching how excited they were when our baby popped up on the screen. It was all so new to them. The doctor pointed out its little fingers and toes as well as different parts of his body. When our baby first came on the screen, he had his two hands on his head and then threw his legs up to touch his head. He's quite acrobatic! The sex of the baby was the last thing that was shown to us. I was so anxious to hear what we were having even though deep down I knew it was a boy and Travis was still convinced it was a girl. When it was time, the doctor showed us where I needed to be looking and at that point, he didn't even have to tell me it was a boy! I was able to tell VERY clearly! We were so excited especially Travis! (He still hasn't wiped the grin off of his face :) ) We were able to watch our baby for a little longer hoping to get a good profile picture of him but he was too busy moving all around but towards the end of the sonogram, he waved his tiny little hand and then closed it and gave a thumbs up! It was so cute! Everything became so much more real.

After the sonogram, they captured a few pictures of our special day and the family we shared it with. It will be something Travis and I will always remember.

I will post pictures soon of our little guy!

Love,
Mary

SNOW!

Who would have thought that living in Texas we would have gotten this much snow?!?!!? I enjoyed it yesterday but then when it started tinkering with our travel plans for today (Friday), I was bummed. We were supposed to leave for New Orleans this morning for Mardi Gras and to find out the sex of our baby. Unfortunately, our flight was canceled. We did get on another flight tomorrow morning. I called the imaging office where the sonogram is being done and they fit me in tomorrow for an appointment. We are very fortunate and are anxious to find out what we're having. So, it looks like I have to patiently wait one more day. Let's keep fingers crossed that everything is back on track for tomorrow.

Cooper loves the snow!

The front of our house

Remembering Gram

On January 22, 2010 at 5:40pm my grandma was taken from us. The week before her death, my grandma suffered a massive heart attack and then a stroke a few days later. Travis and I drove in after the stroke so we could say our good-byes because the doctors didn't expect her to make it through the weekend. I stayed with my mom, grandpa, and aunt Lene for a few days while Travis went back to work. Hospice took over and brought my grandma back home where we knew she would want to be. My grandpa was so devoted to her and stayed by her side every minute of every day. They demonstrated the true meaning of love and marriage to each other.

I had to head back to Texas to go to work and it was the hardest thing to say good bye to my grandma. I didn't want to leave her. She has been such a huge part of my life since I was a little girl and now I had to tell her good-bye. I cried for the fact that I would never share any more memories with her, I cried for my grandpa who was losing his spouse of 56 years, I cried for my mom and aunt Lene who was losing their mother, and I cried for Travis and I's child that she will never get to meet. Before I left, I kissed her and told her that I loved her and to take care of our little girl in heaven.

2 days later after coming back to Texas, we got the dreaded phone call. My grandma was called to be another one of God's special angels. She was surrounded by loved ones as she took her final breath. All I wanted to do was be at home with my family during this difficult time.

My grandma will always be remembered for her love of life, her love for her family, her love and devotion to my grandpa, her love for Mardi Gras, and her love for cooking. She was one of kind and will truly be missed by so many people that knew her.

I love and miss you Gram!

Down on the Farm

This past weekend, Travis and I went visit my aunt and uncle in Crawford, Texas. They have a beautiful place there with lots of cattle and donkeys. Travis and I love it there. It is so peaceful and a great place to just get away. We had a blast during our visit and quite the adventure. When we pulled up we were greeted with the "Welcome Peanut" sign! What a surprise! I sent them an email the day before announcing our pregnancy and referred to the baby as our little peanut.

After arriving, we visited for a bit before heading out to On the Border. My cousin Jess was also visiting so it was good for all of us to be together and catch up on everything! After dinner, we came home and watched the UFC fights. Now I must say, I'm not a fan of the fights but I did get into it while it was on tv. The next morning, we went eat at this little Mexican restaurant called Lolita's! So yummy! After returning from some errands, we arrive back at the ranch and low and behold, one of there cows is in labor!!! Not something I was expecting to watch! The cow was in such distress due to being in labor for so long, that we did not think the calf would make it out alive. My uncle had to walk the cow up the ranch into this squeeze machine because they were going to have to pull out the calf themselves! I knew this was something I couldn't miss seeing even if it was going to gross me out! So, there I was sitting back anxiously awaiting the birth of this calf while my uncle, his neighbor, and Travis (yep, he was involved!) pulled this calf with these tools out of the cow! After several minutes of trying to get the cow to cooperate, they were able to pull out the calf. I will admit, this was nothing pretty to see and I'm not sure how my weak stomach pulled it off but I was in complete awe of the whole situation! (After hearing that cow in so much pain, I looked at Travis and said I'm getting the drug when it's time for me to go in labor!) It's not everyday you see a calf being born! After some time passed and the momma cow had time to attempt to bond with her calf we went back down to the barn to check on them. The momma cow still wasn't going near her calf to clean him off and feed it. She was in such distress from the whole situation but who wouldn't be after going through all of that. Hopefully, she will come around soon and nurture her calf.

Here is a picture of our dog Cooper and my aunt and uncle's dog Pearlie. They finally passed out on Sunday afternoon after playing non-stop for two days! I think they met each other's match! Cooper is still recuperating from his playtime with Pearlie!

All in all, it was a great visit and we can't wait to go up there again! Who knows, we may see another calf being born!

Love,

Mary

We're PREGNANT!

It's true! Travis and I are pregnant! We were going to try and wait and tell everyone at Christmas when I would be 12 weeks but we were just too excited not too! We found out last week and had trouble keeping it a secret for that long! I am about 6 weeks along and feel great! The day I found out, I was in the doctor's office doing blood work so they could check my HCG level and my progesterone level. The results showed that my levels were high which is what we wanted to see. I went back for a second round of blood work so they could make sure my levels tripled from the previous results. Sure enough they multiplied by 5!!! We were so excited that the results came back positive! I go in for my first ultrasound on the 30th and from that point will go in every two weeks so the doctor can keep a close eye on me and the baby. We're so very thankful for that! Travis and I feel so good about this baby and the way I feel compared to the first one is so much better! The only thing I can complain about is that I'm tired which is normal.

I can only hope and pray that this baby, "our peanut," continues to grow and stay healthy so the day will come where Travis and I can hold it in our arms and tell it how much we love it.

Please continue to pray for me, Travis, and our peanut as we continue this exciting journey!

Love,

Mary