False Alarm

This weekend we had quite a scare. On Saturday morning Doug took me to the hospital because some things were happening that made us think we might lose the baby. Mom met us at the hospital and kept us great company and helped us to think of happier things than all the horrible things that might go wrong. Fortunately an ultrasound showed that the baby was perfectly healthy and kicking around to it's hearts delight. It was the first time Doug got to see the baby so it was very special. It's such a cute little thing! We feel very fortunate that the baby is healthy and that there are no serious problems. After visiting with the midwife yesterday she determined that I have a polyp that will probably need to be removed but is no threat to the pregnancy. We are so grateful to have this baby in our lives and also that Mom was so ready to come and support us when we were feeling so worried. We are very blessed. Doug was especially happy to see the ultrasound because he thinks the baby has his nose :)

Oh Christmas Tree

This year we bought our Christmas tree less than a week before Christmas, which is kind of a departure from the norm for me. I was anxious to get the holiday mood started so I finally got Doug to go with me to pick one out. The first tree we saw when we got to the lot was the quintessential Charlie Brown Christmas tree. It was about three feet tall with four or five branches on it. I really wish I'd gotten a picture of it, it was awesome. Of course, the minute Doug saw it he wanted to buy it for our living room. I convinced him to buy another one, which I kind of regret because that was the only tree he got excited about. Next year Doug!

Doug helping decorate the house. Isn't he cute?! And there's our tree in the corner.

The finished product.

We didn't get hardly any pictures on Christmas but Doug managed to get one of me opening my presents. We had such a wonderful holiday together. And we both had off of work which was really nice. We hope you all had a great Christmas as well!

The Gingerbread House to End All Gingerbread Houses

The week before Christmas we had a gingerbread house making party at my place. Mom, Lizzie, Johnny, Abby, Bekah, Shana, and Mike all came over to take part in the masterpiece.


Lizzie inspecting the gingerbread before the great work is constructed

Abby securing the walls

The yard is underway. That Christmas tree in the front was Lizzie's work of art.

The finished product...kind of. We never could get the roof to stay on so here Mike and Doug are holding it in place to get a picture of the finished effect.

A view from the top. Whew! I never knew making gingerbread houses could be so tiring! I was exhausted by the end but we had a lot of fun.

Thanksgiving

We had a very relaxing Thanksgiving at Mom and Dad's house this year. I had to work but Doug had off so he went over to their house for breakfast. He came home and did some homework until I got home and then we went back over for dinner. Dad, Abe, John, Bekah and I took a walk before dinner which was perfect since we worked up an appetite. It was a really beautiful day out too. Mommy made a delicious dinner after which we watched the traditional "White Christmas" and "Miracle on 34th Street". It was a smaller gathering than usual (a mere 9 people) but it was nice to have such a low key holiday.

Also his past week I found out that I was accepted to La Salle University so that was pretty exciting. Now I just have to figure out where I want to go, and fast. I'll let you know how that turns out.

Quick Update

Hello everyone! I've been woefully remiss recently in my blogging, for which I apologize profusely. Not tons of new stuff has been going on here in Broomall. However I did have a tidbit I wanted to pass along. Yesterday I had an interview for the grad program at Chestnut Hill College. It went well enough that I was told at the end of the interview that I am accepted to the program. I wasn't really worried that I wouldn't be but it's nice to know that I will definitely be able to proceed with my educational plan in January. I haven't heard back from the other school I applied to yet but hopefully I will soon so I can make a decision. I didn't really have my heart set on one or the other so we'll see what happens. In other news Doug is looking forward extremely to the end of his semester in a couple of weeks. He has been doing amazingly balancing work and school and spending time with his demanding wife. He really likes his current job which I am so happy about. So his first semester at Temple is drawing to a close and it seems to have gone pretty well. Yay! I hope all of you are happy and doing well!

Seattle

Well I had a lovely time in Seattle. Unfortunately I somehow deleted about half of my pictures. Oh well, what can you do? One of my favorite parts of the trip was that I got to meet Peter for the first time. He is such a cute, smiley, affectionate baby! And a real chunker too.


The second day I was there we went to a pumpkin patch and carved pumpkins. These are the pictures I'm missing but Leah's got some great pictures of that on her blog. The third day Leah and the kids and I went to Deception Pass which is out on the Puget Sound. I really wanted to see some of the nature while I was visiting because Washington is supposed to be so beautiful. I wasn't disappointed. Deception Pass is a strait between two islands on the Sound. This is the bridge that goes over the Pass.


As you might be able to see from the picture above there is a pedestrian walkway on the bridge. I wanted to get some good pictures of the breathtaking view so I ventured out onto the bridge while Leah stayed in the car with the kids. I didn't make it too far because it seems I am more afraid of heights than I thought. But I did manage to get some good shots.

Shot from the top of the bridge.


Looking the other direction. The water was such a striking color.


After I had gotten a good look from the top we drove down to the shore to have a picnic, where I got this picture.


Here's Peter baby and his big smile.

Oliver on the beach.

Next Leah took me up to Anacortes which is on Fidalgo Island, one of the islands Deception Pass runs between. I got another beautiful view of the Sound.

Cutie Marie and me.

The other great part about my visit was that I got to be there on Halloween. The kids and Shane went out to trick-or-treat while Leah and I stayed home to give out candy. I was a hunch back and Leah was a witch. At twenty five I figure my trick-or-treating days are over and the greatest satisfaction I can hope for is to scare the little kids that come to get candy. I wasn't very successful by the way. Kids nowadays are too worldly-wise. Ah well. Doug embraced his youth and went out trick-or-treating with Abe and Johnny. He was very glad when I came home the next day. But he did tell me he got an unprecedented amount of homework done while I was gone :) All in all it was a very relaxing trip and a much needed break thanks to Leah and Shane who were so considerate and hospitable.

Tagged Crazy 8's!!

Missy tagged me so here goes.

8 Favorite Restaurants?: I can't even think of eight restaurants so I don't have much to say on this one. Five Guys has great fries and so does Arby's, a very important factor to me. I guess my favorite restaurant is Fellini's Trattoria in Paoli. They have a smoked salmon and cream fettuccine there that I dream about.

8 Things I did yesterday?: 1. Worked 2. Napped 3. Read 4. Wrote Letters 5. Cooked dinner 6. Talked to Micah 7. Did Laundry 8. Went to class (I lead a thrilling life don't I?)

8 things I look forward to?: 1. My next vacation 2. The weekend 3. Going to the Temple on Saturday 4. The day that I won't have to wake up at 4:15 anymore 5. Seeing Doug tonight 6. Paying off my school loans 7. Finishing my Masters degree 8. Doug finishing school

8 things I love about Fall?: 1. Camping 2. The leaves, of course! 3. The smell of the air 4. All the Fall holidays 5. Fall foods: pumpkin pie, soup, apple cider and/or hot cocoa, comfort foods in general 6. It's the only time of year besides a few weeks in spring when I don't need my heat or my AC 7. Wearing sweaters 8. Fantastic running weather

8 things on my wish list?: 1. For all of my family to live near me 2. Free rent 3. A job that I enjoy 4. Or better yet a patron 5. For my knee to stop hurting so I can run whenever I want 6. At least one child 7. To be a published author 8. That I will learn how to not get stressed out

8 things I'm grateful for: 1. My wonderful husband 2. A temple marriage 3. A great apartment 4. That Doug and I both have jobs 5. That we can afford for both of us to go to school 6. Our families 7. The gospel 8. That I am alive!!

I am planning on posting an update on my trip to Seattle either today or tomorrow so keep your eyes out for that. Love to you all.