It's Finally Friday!

So, yes, I DO realize that I only worked two days this week, but I was still in need of another weekend!! Not too sure why these two days were so long, but suffice it to say, THEY WERE!! Now, it's Friday night, and I'm sitting on the couch with my feet up... This is a big deal because my little piggies are a lot swollen tonight...

After work, my friend Jessica and I went out to do some running around. The first place we stopped was at the "paint your own pottery" place. A little over a week ago, the spouses' group met here and we all painted our own pieces of pottery. The way it works, though, is that you leave it, and they fire it in the kiln then put a glaze over it. They allow themselves a couple of days to get this done before you are able to pick it up again. So, we had waited long enough, and stopped by there tonight to pick up our pieces. Here's a picture of the platter I painted... I think it turned out pretty darn cute!!


After we picked up our pottery, we went to KFC for dinner. Yesterday in the mail we both got coupons for KFC, and it looked and sounded REALLY good, so we were both very excited at the thought of going tonight. We agreed after our meal that the KFC was not as good now as it was when we were kids. It wasn't bad, but it was an entire meal for less than $5...

After our KFC stop, we went grocery shopping. I had told her that I wanted to go tonight, whether she joined me or not. I just didn't want to be bothered with having to get up in the morning and going. I got all my groceries for the next week (I think), so now that's checked off my weekend to-do list.

Once I got home, it was already 8:30, but I wasn't done with my evening yet. Tomorrow night Roberto, my boss, is hosting a bar-b-que at his house, so I made my mom's famous "ugly dip" to take. It's so much better if it marinates overnight, so I put it together tonight and will take it with me tomorrow night!

Now, like I said, I'm sitting on the couch with my feet up... FINALLY! Nash just put himself to bed, and the baby seems to be a little restless (she's moving like crazy tonight), so I think I'll go hit the hay!!

Love you guys!!

I LOVE YOU, BRYAN!!!

Another Day Down...

Well, it's time to mark ANOTHER day as complete. I know that it's not wise to wish your life away, but as the deployment draws closer to an end, it becomes more and more difficult to follow this sage advice. I did, however, have a very nice surprise to come home to today...

When I got home, there was a package on the front porch. I ordered a dress on Monday, so I thought it might be the dress, but quickly realized that I thought the box was a bit of overkill for one measly dress...

THEN, I noticed that it was a package from "Granny Hales". Granny is Bryan's grandmother. When I opened the box... Here's what I found:



This is an adorable tiny hat that she knitted/crocheted for the baby to be named later...

Then, I found this:

THIS is a sweater that she knitted/crocheted to match the hat... It even has cute little teddy bear buttons!!!





Last, but certainly not least, I found this:

This is a baby blanket that she made!! Wasn't that a sweet surprise?!?! The colors are white, pink and blue. I'm assuming that she started working on this LONG before we knew that we were having a girl. I think it's all absolutely adorable!! I'll have to put it in her room!!! We're transitioning... There are still quite a few of "our" things in "her" room, but they'll all be gone once Bryan gets home... I have been told that the filing cabinet was the last thing I was to move... I was told this AFTER I had moved it. I "got in trouble" so-to-speak... Don't worry, though, I'm done moving furniture until Bryan is home...

After the "surprise" Nash revisited his latest "surprise" with me... He's been shedding like CRAZY lately. When I picked him up from the kennel today, he was beginning to look camouflaged because of the winter coat that's falling out and the summer coat that's under it. I decided that he could use a good, old fashioned bath tonight... So, a bath is what he got...




















I, then, caught Nash with his eyes closed...















Nash and I are just relaxing now. We'll probably head to bed soon!!

Can everyone tell that I like the multiple picture feature of this blog?!?! HaHaHa!

Love you guys!!

I LOVE YOU, Bryan!!! (We're almost there... it's the last month!!)

Travels...

Well, everyone, I made it to the parental units' house safe and sound yesterday afternoon... Not without drama, though. Who would have expected anything else??

I got to the airport in Abilene VERY early. We no longer have a parking lot that is close enough to walk to the terminal, so I didn't know how long the shuttle would take to get me from the parking lot to the building. I decided to play it safe rather than sorry. Turns out, that shuttle is pretty darn quick!! After checking in and going through security, I went to sit by my gate. I need you to visualize this, though... our little airport has a total of four gates and there is one main area in the middle of the gates where everyone sits!! HaHaHa... Since I got there so early, it felt like I was there FOREVER. Finally around 8:10 they let us board. We all got on board and got situated. About 10 minutes later they came over the intercom and told us that due to maintenance issues, we all had to get off... This particular plane was not going anywhere today!! So, we all unloaded and went back to the terminal. Upon returning to the terminal, we were told that this was the only plane going to Dallas that day (mind you, the only place to go from Abilene is Dallas), so our choices were to take a bus from Abilene to Dallas or wait until tomorrow (Sunday). While I was not a fan of either of these options, the bus was more appealing than the going back home... No more than five minutes later, they came BACK on the intercom to tell us that they were just kidding... the plane is now miraculously fly-able. I will not lie, I was a little nervous, but I hesitantly got on, and I'm pleased to report, the drama ended there!

I got to Dallas with about 30 minutes to change terminals and grab a bite to eat. That actually turned out to be PLENTY of time! I boarded my plane and was on my way to see my folks!!! We landed right on time and before my bags even came out, they were there waiting for me!!! I think that deserves a WOO-HOO!!

So, even though the day started out a little icky and stressful, it turned out to be A-OK!!!

Last night my parents took me out to Jomar's for dinner. It's a buffet place with fried chicken, meatloaf, mashed potatoes, mac and cheese, and all that sort of stuff... It was pretty good! It was nice to go out to eat with them... I haven't done that in a LONG time!

After we got home, I share some pictures with them of everything I've been up to since we last saw each other, and they shared their Alaska pictures with me. About midnight, we all finally decided it was time to turn in for the night! :)

We're all up and moving now... I think that my mom and I are going to go shopping a bit later today. I'm REALLY excited about that!!! :)

Hopefully I'll blog again soon... Love you guys!

I LOVE YOU, BRYAN!!

VACATION!!!

Good evening everyone! I am quickly falling into "vacation mode"!!! I have the last load of laundry in the dryer... once it's done, I'll iron and pack. I am going to try to do a few chores this evening, but if they don't get done... WHO CARES?!?!

While I'm SUPER STINKIN EXCITED about my trip tomorrow (to see my parental units)... I am having a little issue with guilt... Nash was FAR FROM happy when I left him at the kennel earlier today. He was sort of okay while I was holding the leash. As soon as the vet took the leash, though, the poor guy BOLTED for the door!!! He almost pulled the vet down. I felt AWFUL!! The only good news is the fact that my friend Jessica's dog, Stryker, is going to be there for most of the time that Nash is there. I also left a bone for Nash. I hope that will occupy at least a few minutes of his time. I know he'll be VERY clingy whenever I get back next week, but I'm sure he'll be A-OK in the grand scheme of things. Since I'm missing the big galute (sp?), I thought I'd post a picture of him... ENJOY:


Love you guys!

See you tomorrow Mom & Dad!

I LOVE YOU, BRYAN!!!

Just a Quick Post...

This is just a quick post... I think all of you should have gotten the e-mail that I sent out about the baby... WE'RE HAVING A GIRL!!! She's already 10 inches long and weighs 13 ounces. The doctor said that everything looks good!! I've attached a quick video that I took today... The most noticeable thing about the video is her spine. It's pretty obvious (I think)...

Love you guys!

I LOVE YOU, BRYAN!!!

Let's Give This a Shot...

Ok... I'd like to give something a shot on here... Tomorrow is the day of my big ultrasound... They call it the "anatomy ultrasound". They will measure some things about the baby to make sure that he/she is growing properly. They'll also be checking these measurements to ensure that there are not any disabilities that seem to coming (Downs Syndrome, etc). Of course, the most fun part of the ultrasound is the fact that they'll (hopefully) determine if Bryan and I are having a baby boy or a baby girl. With all that being said, obviously Bryan will not be able to attend the appointment with me. Since his laptop has died (a new one is on the way to him, but hasn't arrived yet), we are trying to figure out a different way that I can share the video I take on my digital camera with him. Tonight, I'm going to attempt to post the last ultrasound we had done on here. This is the one where the baby looked like a little bean. If this works, the next step is to determine whether or not Bryan is able to access this site... Since he's having to use government computers, many websites are blocked. I'm not sure if this one is or not. So, long story short, I'll post the last ultrasound video on here, and I'd be forever grateful if you will leave me a comment indicating whether or not you were able to watch the video. If you are, then HEY, that's GREAT!! That means you may get to see the anatomy ultrasound tomorrow too!! Please let me know! Thanks!

Love you guys!

I LOVE YOU, BRYAN

Here's the video (hopefully):

Hot Day in Texas

Today is, yep, you guessed it... Another HOTT day in Texas!! My friend Jess and I just went for a walk and commented the entire time about how warm it is outside today. When I got home, our suspicions were correct... It is about 91 degrees in the shade here!!! (According to our LLBean indoor/outdoor thermometer...) So, Nash and I are a little TOASTY!! Poor guy, I didn't realize how hot the pavement was. He kept wanting to walk in the puddles from peoples' sprinklers, so I let him. I felt bad for him.

Speaking of Nash... Here are a couple of pictures of us from today...

The first one is not too bad... other than the fact that the angle isn't the greatest:


So, we tried again...

... But this time he started licking me just as the camera snapped the picture...

One more try:


At this point, the photo shoot came to a close... Nash was just getting silly, so we were done, and just played for a little bit...

Once those pictures were finished, I took my weekly pregnancy pictures (which is why I was sporting the too-tight tank top...), so here are the latest pictures of my bump:













































So, there we are... Oh wait!!! DUH!! I almost forgot someone... Here's a picture of "the man" himself that I recently received in an e-mail the other day:

Yes, that's Bryan sitting in the copilot's seat. I think it fits him well... What do you think?!?!

I guess that should cover the bases... An update on each person in our little family. Everyone is doing well. The deployment is getting closer to ending every day, and we couldn't be more thankful!!! We're definitely ready for this one to be over!!! Keep Bryan and Baby in your prayers as Bryan finishes his deployment, and Baby finishes gestating. LoL. I'll do my best to blog after this week's doctors' appointments. We have one on Tuesday afternoon and one on Thursday morning!!

Ok, so maybe I'm not done... Tuesday afternoon is just a normal appointment... check my vitals, blood sugar, baby's heartbeat, etc. Thursday is the BIG ONE, though!!! This is the one where we get the anatomy ultrasound!!! I should get some printed out pictures, so I'll try to get them on here... so you can all see Baby Williams... Anyone want to make a guess as to gender?? I'm taking guesses, so let me know what yours is!!!! Once we officially know, I'll be sure to pass on the information!!!!

Ok, I think I'm done now!! Love you guys!!

I LOVE YOU, BRYAN!!! ::KISSES::

Good evening all! This week has started off as yet another long week. I would like to believe, though, that it will improve... seeing as how tomorrow is "hump day".

Last night, Tommy from my work stopped by and took my old computer desk to give to his daughter who is moving into her first apartment. I was a little sad to see it go, but we need the room for the baby, and have no use for the desk anymore.

Tonight, I went to my "Fit Moms" class. Class keeps getting harder and harder the bigger and bigger I get. After class, Jessica and I went for a walk. I was glad to get Nash out of the house, but it was tough for me. I was already worn out from my class, so walking made me even more tired. I think everyone in our house will sleep well tonight!!

I have heard from Bryan on the phone more often as of lately. His laptop died the other night, so he can not talk to me on the computer anymore. He has ordered a new laptop, but it will probably not be there until May 28th or so. That means that I will not be able to share the ultrasound video with him right away this time. That's okay, though, I'll send it to him as soon as he's back up and running!

Speaking of the ultrasound, that is NEXT THURSDAY!! We're down to less than 2 weeks, and I couldn't be MORE excited!! Next week is a big doctor's appointment week for me. Tuesday is my regular monthly check up and Thursday is the big ultrasound!!

After my big doctor's appointment week, it'll be time for my visit with my parents!!! I'm pretty dang excited about that!!! Mom, your mission is to find out where are some good maternity stores around there. I shopped all evening this past Saturday for a dress for Bryan's homecoming, and everything looked very tent-ish. The LAST thing I want when Bryan sees me for the first time in four months is to look like I'm wearing a tent!!! I found ONE cute dress at Motherhood Maternity in the mall, but they didn't have my size. Worst case I can order that dress online, but I'd rather not go that route if at all possible!

Ok, well, Nash is outside barking like crazy, so I should probably go let him in... as to not annoy the neighbors!

I hope that everyone is having a good week... especially all you Alaskan cruisers!

Love you guys!

I LOVE YOU, BRYAN!!

HI!!!

Hi Everyone!! I just wanted to test this out!!! So, here goes nothing!! This is my first blog on the new site!! Let me know if you're able to read/see it!!

Love you guys!

I LOVE YOU, BRYAN!! :-)

HI!!!

Hi Everyone!! I just wanted to test this out!!! So, here goes nothing!! This is my first blog on the new site!! Let me know if you're able to read/see it!!

Love you guys!

I LOVE YOU, BRYAN!! :-)