Hormones + TV = Lots of Tears

As of my 16th into my 17th week, I started to feel the baby move inside of me.  The best way I can describe it is that it feels like bubbles popping.  I wasn't sure if it was fetal movement until my OB confirmed that the baby was indeed hanging out on my right side, where I've been feeling all the flutters.  It's been slight and random (usually in the evenings around dinner time), but it's nice to know that's what's going on in there.  It still amazes us that there is a little human being inside just doing its thing.  I can't express how humbling this experience has been for us.  Having lost our first baby, we definitely don't take any milestone for granted.  I was watching "Guiliana & Bill" on TV and found myself bawling at their struggle to conceive.  It's a very honest look at how difficult that journey can be, and how no matter how much you want to conceive, it doesn't always happen.  When they found out their second try at IVF failed, Bill talked about how they couldn't let that define them as a couple and how they already had so much in their life.  That really affected me and I hope that in our journey to have a family we remain constant in our greater purpose in life and faithful in the identities that God gave us as individuals and as a couple.  I truly believe that a child is a blessing and not an entitlement, and am so grateful for this little life inside of me.  That being said, I am sure I will rant about the pitfalls of pregnancy (I'm still learning to say goodbye to my boobs as they once were), but I know that ultimately this is a gift, and one that I hope I never take for granted.

Family, Friends, Food, and Fun!

After Christmas we drove up to our cabin to spend time with family and friends, get away from city life, and ring in the New Year.  It was great being able to host our loved ones!  It was just a glimpse into the many memories we will make there.  With the exception of a failed water pump and the 7 hour drive back through inclement weather, we had a wonderful time.  Here are some photos (with more to come):

Our moms enjoying the sunshine on the deck.

Mia lounging on the chair.

Remy taking in the views.

More Mia lounging.

Enjoying the short bit of sunshine outside, which made the 30 degree weather bearable.

Ashley & Remy: A match made in heaven.

Playing in the little bit of snow we got.

Happy New Year!

How quickly a year comes and goes.  The most notable change has definitely been our emotional state from this time last year.  Last January we were still mourning the loss of our first baby and looking forward to the possibilities of starting a family again in 2010.  Now as we start 2011, we are awaiting the arrival of our second baby in June.  So much will change this year and we are ready to embrace it all.  For Adam, work will take on new demands as the company will be expanding to a new facility.  For me, I am learning to accept the changes in my body as the baby continues to grow.  Now that I have more energy back, I'm definitely looking forward to prepare our home for the arrival of our little one.  As a couple, we are learning what it means to trust in God's grace and power.  A top priority is definitely to prepare our hearts to become stewards of this little life God is entrusting us with.  So some resolutions for us this year are: 

• Pray more and pray often.  It's really the only thing we have control over.
• Enjoy every moment of this year because time flies. 
• Learn to love in new ways as our roles change and redefine themselves.
• Remember to keep giving because we are constantly receiving so much.

We hope everyone is ushering the New Year with as much anticipation and hope as we all are.  Wishing you and yours lots of reasons to celebrate!!

Happy New Year!

Two Furry Pugs and a Baby in a Pear Tree

We hosted Christmas this year for our immediate family and continued the tradition of Christmas Eve dinner followed by opening presents late into the night.  Nothing warms the heart more than spending time with loved ones and seeing them smile when opening a gift.  We have so much to be thankful for this holiday season and are just overwhelmed by the blessings in our life.

Christmas Eve dinner.  First course... pumpkin soup a la William Tran - a very special seasonal treat!

WE thought they looked cute.  

Cutest. Reinpug. Ever.

Our first Christmas picture as a family of 5... Well, almost 5.  Maybe more like 4.2.

Mia enjoying her Christmas gift.

Remy playing with his.  (Tongue shots are courtesy of Auntie Ashley's photography stylings.)

A Holliday family tradition - Christmas Tree Bread for breakfast.  Yum!

We also hosted a cookie exchange and White Elephant gift exchange party with friends.  Here is the display of our hard work.

We hope everyone had a Merry Christmas also and that the New Year ushers in many more occasions of joy and cheer!

Welcome!

Welcome to our blog!  

We were so happy to announce that we are expecting through our Christmas card, and are so excited to share this journey with you.  We love being able to stay up to date with our friends and their families through their blogs, so into the blogosphere we've come.  Plus, I find that blogging helps me stay consistent with documenting our pregnancy.  I've been posting since we found out, but have only now shared our site with people.  So, welcome and happy reading!  And thanks for being a part of it all!

Fa la la la la

I LOVE this time of year.  I always say that I love the holidays so much, I married one.  Our decorations are almost all up, with two trees decorated and the outdoor Christmas lights strung.  Every year we purchase a larger tree for our living room where all the presents go under, and a small little mini one (I call it my Charlie Brown tree) that I can have a little more fun with.  Last year the CB tree got decorated with knit cake and cupcake ornaments I bought from Anthropologie while living in San Francisco (they were my first ornament purchase on my own).  This year, I stuck with our overall color scheme of red, silver and ivory and decorated it more traditionally.  It's crazy to think that starting next year, the CB tree will be the dedicated tree for the baby (and future kids) to decorate.  It will be interesting to see what ideas they come up with!

I must thank Louie, Tristan & Denise for helping with our tree this year.  Since Adam was away for the weekend and my heavy-lifting duties are kept to a minimum, they really helped out and endured my perfectionist ways to put up a beautiful tree.  And another special thank you to Ashley for helping with the CB tree and draping the silver beads oh-so-perfectly!

Our "Charlie Brown" Tree

Our Christmas Tree

I love Magnolias and decided to add them as our extra detail to this year's tree.  I am still scouring all the local Michael's stores to collect more.  

Our entryway arrangement, beautifully put together by Ashley.  Love the pine cones as future Christmas card holders!

On another note, we received our first baby gift!  Our friends, Aaron and Mai, gave these cute items to Adam to bring home from Seattle.  I was only slightly tempted to put the bathrobe on Remy.  

Random Thoughts

Adam is in Seattle for the weekend to watch the Seahawks game, so I'm home alone with the two puggies and the little lima bean.  I am looking forward to snuggling on the couch and catching up on my DVR'd shows and a couple movies.  I just have two little thoughts this evening as I settle in for the night.

One is the recent discovery that chocolate gives me indigestion.  *Insert silent, internal wailing*  This was quite a sad discovery for me since I love chocolate and have been craving it a lot.  I've been limiting my intake because of the caffeine and sugar, but after indulging in some rocky road ice cream the other day, I confirmed my suspicion that chocolate makes me sick.  Yet another indication that this baby is inheriting more of Adam's traits than mine.  Sigh.

Secondly, pregnancy has made me a horrible student.  I've never been this bad at staying on top of my assignments and being able to focus on my studies.  Maybe it's baby brain, maybe I'm just too tired to think too hard, but I've been struggling to keep up, which makes me reconsider how many classes I want to take next semester.  I've been tempted on more than one occasion to write the professor and say:

 "Sorry for my half-ass assignment.  I'm pregnant.  And pukey.  

And would rather sleep than be analyzing this language sample.  

Thank you for your understanding."

And in honor of my procrastinating ways (and in mourning for my newly-developed aversion to chocolate), I'm going to heat up some warm, vanilla milk and watch a bad romantic comedy.