Mini-freakout.......averted

So, I'm officially in my third trimester. Two-thirds of the way finished. Seven months pregnant. However you want to say it, monkey could be here in as little as 10 weeks. This number has been freaking me out.

Neither Jemar or I are ready. The nursery isn't ready. The baby still doesn't have clothes and I haven't decided on a diaper system yet. And there's only 10 weeks to go!! Eeek!

I was driving home after lunch on Friday and 10 weeks kept popping through my head. By the time I drove up into our driveway, I was in full blown freak-out mode. And then I saw the most beautiful thing waiting for me at our back door.

Seeing this box helped me to realize that everything is and will continue to fall into place. Of course that didn't stop me from tearing it open as soon as I walked in the door.......
















Yes, we bought our child an argyle car seat. You aren't really surprised are you? Isn't it fabulous?!?!

8 Reasons I LOVED my baby shower.....

1. Baby Shower Cake - How amazing looking is this cake?!? (It tasted even better)












2. Stephens Reunion - All my Stephens College favorites in one place! What could be more perfect?











3. Taco Bar - Food wise, we had a taco bar. Lots of different salsa options, ground beef, shredded chicken and various taco shells and chips. Yum, yum, and yum!

4. Surprise visitors! - My Delta roommate Julie's mom, Bridget and her boyfriend, Kevin drove up from Topeka and surprised me. I haven't seen her since Julie's wedding and having her there meant so much.

(Slightly random story - During our first year of teaching, Bridget and Kevin were living in New Orleans so Julie and I drove up to visit them for the weekend. On our last night there, Kevin grilled some massive steaks that took up an entire dinner plate. He intended for Julie and I to share one steak since they were so large. But, he didn't realize what we were capable of. We ate one whole steak each and even saved room for dessert! Two years later, he's still mystified as to how two, tiny girls could eat all that food)


5. My very own, Edible Arrangement - Have you seen these commercials on TV? I've been wanting one for months. Laura surprised me with this beauty. It was just as tasty as I imagined.















6. The BEST onesie - Christine bought this adorable onesie for Monkey. SO perfect.

















7. Baby books - My Stephens friend Hannah is also in education, so she knows the value of reading. These are the first books in Monkey's collection!










8. Nursery Wall Art - Laura found this fabulous clock in Columbia. Isn't it great?! Love, love, love.

Baby Shower Re-Cap

If you didn't know before, I'm not really the "typical" pregnant woman. I don't like being touched. I don't like swapping pregnancy stories and I generally steer far, far away from typical maternity clothes. (More than once, okay more than five times, someone has congratulated me, and I got a stupid look on my face and asked them why) .I tell you this so you can draw your own conclusions about how I was feeling about my baby shower. NERVOUS would be the answer.

However, I shouldn't have worried. My mother, sister and dear friend Laura threw a modern, un-sappy baby shower that I really enjoyed. No silly games (measure MY stomach? I think not), no babyish decorations, just friends, tacos, cake and fun.

Thanks to all that came out. But a special thanks to the fantastic organizers.

I'll share my favorite things with you later.

Forget Me Not

"Death leaves a heartache no one can heal, love leaves a memory no one can steal."

Today should have been your day, and I can't help wishing you were here. You are always in my thoughts and forever in my heart.

BANG!

Picture this, 30+ people are coming over to your house for a Friday night birthday party. You've planned every minute to the hour and run to the grocery store for a last minute purchase before heading home and putting the finishing touches of everything.

You get to the turn for your street (with 72 minutes to spare before guests begin arriving) and BANG! Literally, bang.

























When the accident happened, I was flustered and frustrated. It happened in the middle of a busy road in Helena and I hated being so exposed. Plus, I had carefully planned for this party and it suddenly seemed it wouldn't happen. Thankfully, I knew Jemar was on his way home so I just had to call and get him to hurry and then wait. It turned out that it only took about 20 minutes to give our statements, get checked out by the ambulance (thanks Jemar) and finally for me to walk home. So, as you saw from the pictures, the party did commence and the accident just became a party story.

Since then, I've picked up the rental car and have entered the frustrating world of appraisers, insurance claims and purchasing cars. But more than anything else, I'm missing my car. Journey has been with me for four years and we've had tons of memories.

I've driven it to Destin, Florida twice. She's been in New Orleans enough times to be a temporary resident. She was with me as I drove back and forth between Helena and Cleveland almost on a daily basis. She's made the trip to Kansas City and Waukegan, IL countless times. Beyond the big trips though, the smaller memories are what I'll really miss. Jemar proposed to me as we sat in Journey at Rosedale Park under the Delta stars. Julie and I took her on a trip to the same park and drank champagne to celebrate the end of our first year of teaching. Countless memories happened in Journey, it makes me wonder what the next car will bring.

Would you miss your car if you lost it? Why?

Happy Birthday Jemar (Part 2)!!

Jemar's official birthday celebration took place on Friday, the 23rd. We invited about 30 of our friends over for desserts and cocktails.
In addition to the Alice Chow cake that Jemar is posing with, we also served mini-cheesecakes, lemon bars, puppy chow and finally, chocolate fondue with fresh strawberries and pineapples. Yum!


Drink-wise, we had about 30 different types of beer (our refrigerator is still full) three types of wine and a sparkling punch.

We had lots of fun and ended up playing Encore until midnight. Jemar loved it and brought in 30 with a bang.

Literally. More on that later........

Happy Birthday Jemar! (Part 1)

Today, Earth Day, Jemar celebrated his 30th birthday. What did he want to do? Make one of his favorite dishes - Pork Tenderloin and Bacon with stewed white beans.



(Generally on birthdays, everyone other than the birthday person does all the work. Today, I just sat and watched Project Runway episodes while the birthday boy did all the work. Fabulous!)































The finished product! (Yes, that is wine. Yes, I drank it. And yes, it was delicious :)



The culmination of Jemar's birthday celebration is tomorrow. Stay tuned......