Pictures...

Well I have been sick, and am still trying to kick it - hence the lack of posting...
but I'm feeling better and had my 28 week appointment today!  That's right - I am entering the 3rd and final trimester of this pregnancy!  Wow.  My appointment went well... everything is right on track.  And we got 4D ultrasound pictures!  So, I'll hush so you can see our little man =)
(I just picked a few of our favorites)

The crib...

As I mentioned we have a crib!!  It is so neat to see a crib in our house! 
I got a call last Thursday saying it was in... so Friday Garet and I went to pick it up.  We have an SUV, and it would not fit (wish they would have reminded me of this fact before we drove out there to get it).  Lucky for us we have some good friends that let us borrow their truck!  (Thank you soo much Taylor and Amanda!!)

Garet had to work late Friday night, so I had to wait allll the way until Saturday morning to get it out of the box and set up!  Torture!  My dad and G got everything all set up and it looks awesome! 

We unboxed it in the living room since we had more room in there... then we actually set it up in the nursery.

Since I already have the bedding I HAD to put it in the crib so I could really get the full effect!

I do not have a mattress yet... so that's why it may look a little funny.  The bumper will really be up higher (on top of the mattress)... but this is mostly what it will look like! 

Now my problem is... how to arrange the room.  Initially I wasn't planning on having two dressers (the long one and the tall one), but we do so now I am having trouble figuring out how to put everything.  I wish I had a little bit of interior designer in me - but I don't... maybe I'll search the Internet for other nurseries to get ideas =)

Garet decided to let Suzi try out the crib (not really - but it was a funny picture)

The weekend...

We had such a wonderful visit with my parents this past weekend!  It is always so nice to have family visit!
First off we got the crib!!  (I'll post a picture later I promise!)  Garet and my dad put it together on Saturday morning.  It looks soo good! 

We really didn't have any plans for the weekend.  My parents have visited enough to where we've showed them pretty much everything =)  So we were able to just relax!  Garet has had day and night camps for the past two weeks.  In the camps the little cub scouts got to shoot BB guns.  Garet has a BB gun that was at my parents house, so they brought it with them when they came.

Dad, Garet and I all took turns shooting at some targets.  And can I say, I was actually pretty good.  I made a bulls eye (after a few "practice" shots)!  I don't think I've ever shot a BB gun before.  Garet was picking on me because I looked funny being pregnant with a gun...

We went out to dinner on Saturday night and then went to church on Sunday.  Sunday was also Father's Day!  It was nice to have my dad here to celebrate - and of course, Garet!  Even though Colin hasn't been born yet, he is a dad =)  Mom and I treated the guys to lunch.  We really went all out and got subs from Subway. 

Garet and I love going up on Monte Sano Mountain, so we took our lunches up there and ate.  It was hot, but in the shade on the mountain it was actually really nice! 

When Eric and Kailey were visiting, Kailey mentioned that she had seen that somewhere sold peanut butter milk shakes.  I LOVE peanut butter!  When she said that I knew I HAD to have some!  Well, I had no idea where to get it... so we went to the store and just got some peanut butter ice cream.  About a week or so after they had left, Kailey sent me a text of Ben & Jerry's Peanut Butter Ice Cream, and said it was wonderful!  So, I went out and got some... and she was right.  Wonderful! 

All of that to say... guess what we got at the store Sunday?????

Yum!  For dinner that night, mom and I cooked (well let's just say I started helping, then decided that Colin really needed me to lay on the couch and close my eyes for a little bit...) and for desert, we had confetti cupcakes and ice cream.  I made the cupcakes... they're Garet's favorite

Like always, the weekend went by too fast.  My parents brought about 3 garbage bags FULL of clothes for Colin!  (They were given to my mom!)  So we I got to go through those.  So fun!  I really am not going to have to buy this boy any clothes for at least the first year!  And only one more month and we'll see them again!!

My Parents...

My parents came to visit this weekend!  It was so much fun!

I will have to update later!

Awards...

This past week Garet had Day Camp with the Boy Scouts.  He loves this part of his job!  I went out there on Friday and he showed me all the fun activities and introduced me to all his wonderful volunteers!  The boys were so pumped and having such a great time!  One thing that was really cute was that (since it was the last day) they give out awards!  Not trophy awards - construction paper awards, that are personalized!   

Friday afternoon when Garet got home he informed me that not only did they give him an award, but they also gave one to me and Colin!  (I know!!  Cute!!)  Just so you know some background:  Garet LOVES confetti cake.  It's his favorite.  So somehow this came up at camp and they made him a cupcake (out of construction paper) with a single sprinkle on top (for the confetti).  For me, they gave me the Boy Scout symbol (out of construction paper) for "putting up with Garet".  =)  And for Colin... he got an award for being the youngest scout there!  It was a little scout shirt!

How cute is that?!

Water and Jewel...

What a weekend! 

Saturday (after our usual weekend cleaning, fun stuff...) Garet and I headed to the pool!  One of my friends told us to go to her pool anytime!  I'm not sure she is aware that Garet will be there all.the.time. during the summer!  I squeezed into my bathing suit, and off we went =)

[side note: I couldn't bring myself to buy a maternity bathing suit, so I bought a one piece.  I know it won't fit the whole summer... but it does the trick for now.  Actually I found a picture, except mine is black with white polka dots.  And no I didn't take a picture of myself in it.  Don't hold your breath for that...] 

courtesy of Target.com

It is so nice being in the water when it is SOOO hot outside!  We didn't last too long, but enough to get some sun and cool off! 

Sunday we went to church and Anthony Evans sang - which was awesome!  Afterwards, we went home ate a quick lunch and headed out to Lake Guntersville.  Our Sunday school class had a get-together at a lake house.  It was really fun hanging out with everyone!  I didn't tube, or ski, or ride the jet ski, or even get on the boat for that matte - but I still had fun hanging out! 

We spent longer at the lake than we had planned, so when we left we had to rush home, shower and change then head to dinner before the Jewel concert! 

She had an acoustical concert here and tickets were $10.00.  Yep ten.  Crazy right?!  She is an amazing singer!  What a voice!

Garet and I both LOVE live music... we haven't been to a concert in a while, so it was nice to go hear some good singing!

It was a late night, but worth it!  And somehow I managed to get through the workday today without falling asleep!  =)

Baby Update...

I haven't given an update on what we've been up to as far as baby Beane is concerned in awhile!  Well, let me give the run-down:

1.  When Eric and Kailey were here, we moved some furniture around.  We had a guest bedroom and an office... now we have a guest room/office and a nursery!  (aww, we have a nursery!)  Our guest bed is a waterbed (one of those with strips of water, not one that has a big pool of water).  We were lucky that Eric was willing to help =)  He and Garet moved the waterbed into the "old" office, and they moved around the desks and dressers.  Sorry no before/after pictures.  I am bad about remembering to take the before!

2.  I got the bedding!  When we found out we were having a boy, I panicked about the bedding!  I am not a "theme" girl at all, so that eliminated the majority of bedding.  I knew I wanted something soft and calming (does that even make sense?)  I found this bedding, and LOVED it!  I put off buying it just in case something else came along.  Finally I figured, just do it!  It came in about a month or so ago...

This is just the comforter, once the crib gets in and I get it all set up, I'll take a picture of it all put together.

3.  We are pretty much registered.  I mentioned before that I have the book Baby Bargins.  I have really based most things on that book.  Well, that book along with other ratings (and suggestions).  I am all about safety over looks!  Anyway, I already had my list of what I wanted before we even embarked on the registering trip.  So... it wasn't too bad for us.  I think Garet had lots of fun =) (you can tell from how many toys we are registered for!)

4.  Garet and I went out a few weeks ago and bought a carseat and a stroller!  This was a tough decision for me!  I wanted safety (first and foremost!), and I also wanted the travel system... seems easier.  Problem - the travel systems were all pretty heavy.  This one was a perfect combination!  The carseat isn't as heavy AND it fits right into the stroller!  The stroller folds up flat so it will be easy to pack (I am supposed to be able to fold it with one hand... I need some practice with that!)  Anyway, we are super excited to have made that purchase!

5.  We painted!  (by "we" I mean Garet.  Seriously he gets ALL the praise for how great the walls look!  But... I did do the taping.)  I wanted it to match the green in the bedding, and wow it is perfect!  I can't wait to put everything together!

6.  We are signed up for classes at the hospital!  Child birth class, breastfeeding class, and newborn care class - I am really excited about it!  We are also going on a tour in August of the hospital where we'll deliver.

7.  Lastly - here is me and Colin =)  I really feel like I am going to be huge!  This was taken at 24 weeks... I still have a ways to grow!

(I think) that is all the baby updates!  There are so many here that are having babies!  It is fun to compare and see what they are going though.  My next appointment is in 3 weeks!  Then I think I will get to go every other week.  Time is flying!

Hydrangea...

I don't know if anyone remembers my hydrangea plant from last year, but there were pink blooms!  This year they are blue!

I know that the acidity of the soil will determine if your hydrangea is pink or blue - I guess when we bought them last year the soil it was already in made them pink.  But I LOVE the blue!  We used blue hydrangea in our wedding flowers!  And we had a HUGE plant in Wilmington with blue hydrangea.  Love it!  Now my problem is that the blooms are weighing down my plant!  I seriously have no clue when it comes to plants, am I supposed to tie them up?  Or just keep cutting off the blooms?

These pictures were taken a few weeks ago... now the blooms are almost purple they are so blue! 

Love Story...

I don't write enough about my wonderful husband.  We are celebrating our anniversary so I figured I'd do a little recap =) ...it's a short version but still probably going to be pretty long, fyi!

We met back in college at UNC Charlotte.  I was a sophmore, Garet was a Junior.  We went to the same college but actually met because we worked together.  We both worked at Uno's Chicago Grill.  (They seriously have the BEST deep dish pizzas!)  Garet was a waiter, I was a hostess.  We got along great from the start... but we were strictly friends.  I constantly reminded my friends (and parents) (...and probably myself) of that!  We started hanging out a lot though.  In fact, Garet always got in trouble for hanging out at the host stand!  He even told me that he was going to marry me!  I laughed... little did I know!  When we would have a party, Garet would always be there...

We estimated that we started dating around April 19, 2003... we really have no clue.  I began meeting his 4 sisters and parents, he had already met mine.  I took a train to go visit him in DC, and he showed me around everywhere!  He helped me celebrate my 21st birthday by taking me skydiving!

In December 2003 I watched as Garet walked across the stage to receive his diploma.  After his graduation, he took 2 1/2 months to go on an Outward Bound excursion to get certified to lead one.  I wasn't allowed to talk to him (except he snuck and called me a couple times!).  He would mail me letters, and Valentine cards (he was there for our first Valentine's day).  It was really hard, but it just proved how we felt about each other.

In August 2004 I graduated, and after MUCH thought, we celebrated my 22nd birthday by moving to St. John, USVI.  This is the night of my birthday at my parents house on August 17th... we woke up early the next morning for STJ!

We had a blast living the island life for about a year!  Boy did we learn a lot about each other!  There is no escape when you live on an 8 mile long island  =)  Garet worked as a waiter and a trial guide, I was a waiter and a bookkeeper.  We met some crazy fun people that we still keep in touch with, and got to experience a whole new lifestyle!  It was hands down the best thing we could have done!  We had fun, we made lots of friends, we got tans!  And we got engaged!

December 24, 2004 at a fancy little restaurant looking over Coral Bay, called Chateau Bordeaux.  It was a perfect night!  I decided to start planning the wedding as soon as we got back to the states.  In the spring of that year, we took a cruise back to the states to start our "real" life.  That's right, a cruise was cheaper than a flight!  Especially with ALL of our luggage! 

After getting back to Charlotte and figuring out where to live next, we made the move to Wilmington, NC where Garet started grad school.  We bought a precious little house and within the same week we got Suzi.

Grad school only lasted a semester... Garet went on to work for Easter Seals, as well as the Boy Scouts.  I worked for an insurance company as a bookkeeper.

We decided to get married on June 3, 2006 in Lake Lure, NC.  My family owns a campground in Chimney Rock - which is right beside Lake Lure.  When we looked at the area, Garet said, this is it!  And it was!  We had a beautiful wedding (I may be a little biased!)  It was outside, and the reception was at Lake Lure Inn.  It was perfect =)  The night before a bunch of our friends and family went out to celebrate.

We were taken away on a horse drawn carriage.  It was the day I married my best friend.

We had already decided to move (LONG story... maybe some other time I'll tell it) so we quit our jobs right before we got married, sooo we got to take an extra long honeymoon.  One week in X-Caret, Mexico, and one week back in St. John.

After the wedding and honeymoon, we spent about 2 weeks traveling around the south figuring out where to live.  It was definitely an adventure!  Garet, me and the pup.  We finally decided on Huntsville, AL .  We put our sweet little Wilmington house up for rent and made the move.  About a year and a half later we built a house and settled in.

It feels like we have done soo much since we met.  It has been so much fun, and I am looking forward to what the future holds!  We are about to embark on yet another adventure when we welcome Colin to our family!

Garet, I love you!  You are my rock, my support, my sholder to cry on, you keep me laughing, you always know just what to say (or not to say!)  I can't imagine my life without you!

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!!

New site...

Wow, I am really on a posting kick!  Don't get too used to it  =)  I'm sure I'll run out of material soon!

I just wanted to link my sister-in-law's site.  She started a blog, and so far I think I have been brought to tears at almost every entry!  The latest one was about how she said "bye" to Eric as he left for bootcamp...

Here is the blog:  Love Always

Mini-vacation...

We left on Saturday morning to head to Chattanooga, TN.  It's only about an hour and a half from here, so we didn't have too far to drive (I still somehow managed to sleep on the way there!)  When we got there we unpacked and then headed downtown.  We walked ALL around downtown!  We started in the Bluff View Art District.  It was a really pretty area!  There were art sculptures all around!  Here is Garet with a battleship...

Does it seem like a funny picture?  Here is the uncropped version... 

=)  How funny!  It actually took us a minute to figure out what the heck it was!  I love looking at the art though!  We came across a bridge that you could see through!  It made me a little nervous!

I made sure to stay in the middle!

It was so hot!  But at least we had a beautiful day!  Throughout downtown there were random art sculptures.  I just fell in love with this dog!

That night we went out to dinner at a place called Sugars Ribs.  It is a BBQ place, and it was wonderful!  It was recommended to us by a friend.  There are a few goats outside that you can feed when you are finished eating! 

Sunday we went to Rock City and Ruby Falls.  Rock City was really neat.  There was a nice trial that took you to the waterfall.  We got there early so we beat the big crowd!

There were a lot of tight squeezes though!  And I am seriously poking out now... I feel like it anyway!  So when we came to "Needle Eye" I got a little worried!  =)

There was a split in the trail and we could either cross by stone bridge, or by swinging bridge.  I went to the stone bridge and took Garet's picture on the swinging one... and then I went over and crossed on the swinging bridge too.  It was scary but at least the view was pretty!

When we were about half-way finished Garet found the most AMAZING thing!  (if you can't read it, it says $2.25!!)

When we left, we decided just to drive around the top of the mountain.  There was a neat neighborhood, and all the street names were named after fairy tales!  (There was a Cinderella Lane and a Peter Pan Road...)  It was really cute.  Garet found a little path on the side of the road that lead to an awesome overlook!

It was raining off and on all afternoon and evening.  That night we went back downtown for dinner and dessert.   It's always so hard to come back and go back to work!  We had such a great time!