Walkin' in Memphis

Video of Anabelle

2010-10-30T10:03:00.001-07:00

Anabelle is continuing to grow and do new things. It's so much fun! I attached a video of her a couple days ago. She's starting to make more "babble" noises which are so cute! Justin and I are loving being parents although it is hard sometimes. Right now we are trying to get her used to going to sleep in her crib. It's so hard to let her cry in her crib. It makes my heart hurt.

We made our first road trip last weekend. We went down to Mobile to see Justin's parents. We had a great time and Anabelle did well in the car. It's hard for Justin and I because once we get on the road we don't like to stop and we pride ourselves in not losing much time when we do. So, traveling with a baby has made us change our travel habits. But she did great!

Getting settled in

2010-10-12T10:06:00.000-07:00

Well, things have been busy around here lately. We have had lots of company which has been so much fun. Justin's mom came up for a few days, Milla came to visit and took Anabelle's newborn pics, then his sister Anna and his Meemaw and this past weekend my dad and Terry came to visit. We have really enjoyed having so much family and friends here in Memphis. We couldn't get them to come up before Anabelle came and now we can't keep people away!! :) Anabelle has loved it because she has been held constantly. Now, we are trying to get her used to being put down. Needless to say, she doesn't like it. She also doesn't like her tummy time. She is getting so strong, lifting her head and starting to push up. She is also getting so big! I took her by the pediatrician's office on Friday and she weighed 9 pounds, 8 ounces! She is gaining about a pound a week.

Justin and I have been getting out more lately and it has been very good for me. I am beginning to feel like my life is regaining a little bit of normalcy. I actually went to the gym yesterday for the first time in about 2 or 3 months! It felt great.

As I mentioned earlier, Milla came down and took some newborn pictures. We have posted them to a shutterfly website for family to order. If you would like to check them out go to http://anabellesnewbornphotos.shutterfly.com/. They are awesome!

Week one

2010-09-24T18:29:00.000-07:00

Well, we have been home from the hospital for a week now. Anabelle turned one week old on Wednesday. It has been a week of learning and adjusting. I love getting to know my baby girl and learning her faces and cries. We had lots of family here for a few days after coming home which was alot of fun. Then Milla came for a couple of days to take her newborn pictures. Today has low key. We have been around the house and it has been wonderful. Tuesday Justin and I took Anabelle to the pediatrician for her first check up. Everything went well except she was looking a little yellow so the doctor wanted to get a bilirubin check. They pricked her heel to get some blood and she cried and cried and cried. And I also cried and cried. It's so hard to see your baby hurting. If that wasn't bad enough the doctor made us go back Wednesday and today to do it over again! Thankfully, today her numbers were down so we don't have to go back anymore. I don't think I could handle it. Justin is on call this weekend so he will be gone most of the time which makes me sad. I can't wait for him to move to a new rotation (starting October) so that he will be home more. I miss him so much. I'm realizing that parenthood is going to require us to be very deliberate in making time for us to be together. I miss our quality time already. But, we would not trade anything for the joy that Anabelle has brought us already. These are a few pictures from around the house.

Anabelle has arrived!!

2010-09-21T04:30:00.001-07:00

Well, our precious baby girl has made her entrance into the world! Sorry it has taken me a few days to post this but things have been crazy. I went into the hospital Tuesday night (the 14th) and started cervadil. The doctor began inducing Wednesday morning about 8:00. Labor and delivery went beautifully and Anabelle was born at 5:14 pm on Wednesday, Sept. 15th. 7 pounds, 6 oz., 20 1/4 inches long.
We have been taking it easy around the house lately. She is beginning to get into a schedule which is nice. I still can't believe that she is here. I love her so much! Everyone tells you that you will love your kids more than you thought you could and they are right. It's such a different kind of love than I have ever experienced. I just love to watch her sleep and watch her make faces when she is awake. Justin and I are so blessed to have this perfect little person given to us. God is wonderful in his design of life, it is such a miraculous process!
We go the pediatrician today for her first check up. This will be Anabelle's first outing since coming home from the hospital. And tomorrow Milla is coming to visit and to take pictures of Anabelle! I can't wait! I know that she is going to get beautiful pictures of her! I will continue to update on how we are doing and how Anabelle is changing.

I'm back!

2010-09-03T16:43:00.000-07:00

So, I've been gone for a while from the blog world but I thought I would try to get back into it since Anabelle will soon be here! Hopefully this will allow family and friends to keep up with her as she grows! Tomorrow I will be 39 weeks pregnant. I have been having some contractions lately but they are very random. We are just waiting for her to decide she is ready to come into this world.

The nursery is ready and all her clothes have been washed! I love going in there and looking at everything. It's such a comfortable room to be in. I love it! I have attached some pictures of me and the nursery. The next pictures on here should be of our beautiful baby girl! Justin and I are so excited about this miracle that the Lord has blessed us with and can't wait to see what parenthood is like!

Pray for Justin

2010-01-16T05:40:00.000-08:00

This morning Justin left at 6:30 as usual for his 24 hour shift. This is his 2nd month of the dreaded "desk". What this means is that he covers everything orthopedic related that comes into the ER at the Med. The Med is the busiest trauma hospital in the region and I think close to the busiest in the country. So, he stays very busy while he is there. He works 24 on and 24 off all month. This just wears him down. (I know some of you other ortho wives completely agree) Please pray that he will have energy to finish this month out. And that he will be able to think clearly at hour 20 and he will have patience with those who come in. I praise God for where he has brought us and I am so thankful to see how he continues to provide and give us strength to get through residency. Thanks for listening and thanks for your prayers!

Jamaica!!

2010-01-13T18:56:00.000-08:00

Well, I didn't get a chance to put up some pics from our trip to Jamaica because our computer got a virus or something and had to be sent off. So, here they are! The weather in Jamaica in December is absolutely perfect!!! We had a great time. And we came home with 2 liters of rum!! Apparently that's the only thing they have for door prizes. :)

My new hobby!

2009-11-07T19:42:00.000-08:00

So I've taken up sewing recently! I've wanted to try for a while because I see all the cute things other people do and it doesn't seem like it could be that hard. Well, I really enjoy doing it now!! I posted some pics of my first two projects. I picked too hard of a first project with the curtains. But I had a ton of fabric left over when I had someone make some valances for my kitchen so I wanted to use that since I already had it so this is what I came up with. I am really pleased with how everything turned out. I think it looks great!! (if you don't look too closely :)) Now I am working on some decorative pillows which is what I probably should have started with. I'll keep you posted with any new exciting sewing projects!!

Dentist

2009-09-26T10:01:00.001-07:00

So, I went to the dentist today for the first time in a really long time. I've been putting it off and didn't know who to go to so I finally did it. I had a feeling it was going to be a bad report and it was. She said the dreaded word.... Gingivitis!! And she told me that I will need to wear my retainer for the rest of my life b/c my teeth will always move!! I thought after a couple of years of that I should be done! And she said no cokes, no sugar, no aspertame, no juice. I don't know what's left to drink but water! I don't know how many of these I will actually follow but I guess I'll least get back to getting my teeth cleaned regularly because they do feel great now! And, no cavities!!!

Sorry it's been so long!

2009-09-24T18:34:00.000-07:00

Well, I know I haven't updated in a really long time but I'm back for now at least! Justin and I are just trying to get through his residency schedule. He's been working alot and I think it's taking a toll on the whole family (by this I mean Doc). Justin has been upset because he feels like Doc likes me more than him now. I hate to say it but I think he does. :) He has gotten really attached since I have been home alone with him alot. But, September is almost over which means that Justin will be through with the Med for a while in just a few days!! We also got great news that Justin will be off for Christmas! Yea!! I guess the big events since I posted last include Justin's sister Lauren getting married and we took a trip to St. Louis to go to some Cardinals games. I have attached a few pics. Well, I promise to write again soon. Maybe something interesting will happen between now and then. :)

Strawberry Jam!

2009-04-19T12:00:00.000-07:00

So, the girls and I got together on Friday night to make Strawberry Jam. Thanks to Whitney! What seemed like it would be a nice calm activity was quite different. With kids running around, one of them very sick, and 6 bowls of strawberries to be stirred constantly it was quite an activity. But we got it done and it turned out great! Here are a few pics including the final product. I might tackle this project again, just not soon. Thanks for the fun activity Whitney!

DOC

2009-04-19T11:56:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to give you a glimpse of what goes on in our house. This is a common occurance for Doc to sit on the floor and stare at us until we pet him. He can't stand to be anywhere except right beside us (preferrably touching us.) One picture is Justin's view and the other is my view. Isn't he cute!

Branson

2009-03-24T17:37:00.000-07:00

So Justin and I decided to take a little weekend trip to Branson, Missouri. We signed up for one of those things where stay in a nice hotel for very cheap but you have to listen to a presentation about buying a time share. So, we stayed at Bass Pro Shops Big Cedar Lodge. It was very nice but we weren't too impressed with Branson. We did some fly fishing for trout for a couple of days and it was so much fun. The lakes up there are so different from what we're used to. You can actually see the fish swimming around and not just mud colored water. I didn't catch anything but Justin caught a few thanks to an older gentleman we met while fishing. He decided to take us in and give Justin some pointers. And they worked! I've posted a few pictures of our lodge and us fishing. There is also a picture of this cute little restaurant in a tiny mountain town where we stopped to eat lunch on the way up there. There were very few fast food restaurants on those back roads through the mountains. It was so nice to get out of Memphis for a few days but sadly it's back to work tomorrow.

Copper Mountain

2009-02-28T17:56:00.000-08:00

Well, Justin and I went to Copper Mountain, CO last week so I thought I'd post a few pictures. We had a great time. We went with another couple, the guy is in residency with Justin. And, we drove out there....all 17 hours! But, it was a great trip and a great break from work!

Justin is still hanging in there with residency. The last couple of months haven't been too bad but, he starts doing orthopedics in April and that's when his schedule is going to get crazy. I'm still working at the same clinic and even though it's not perfect I'm going to stick with it. I am just praying that if the Lord wants to lead me somewhere else that he will clearly reveal it to me.

It snowed in Memphis today, about 2 inches! It's a little funny that Justin and I pay lots of money to go out west to the snow and then we come home and have it in our backyard. But, seeing the mountains is well worth it.

I hope you are all doing well and I will try update more frequently!!

Kitchen Update

2008-11-18T16:31:00.001-08:00

So I know it's been a while since I updated my blog. I really have no excuse except that I'm just not very good at keeping it up to date. Well, a few weeks ago Justin (with the help of his dad) updated our kitchen. Our house was covered in a 1" layer of dust for about a week but it turned out great. These are some pictures from before, during, and after. It really makes the house look great. Our house is really turning into our home. I think this house is perfect for us! (At least until we expand our family:)) I hope you all enjoy the kitchen pictures! Oh, and I don't know how to change the position of the pictures so they should go from bottom to top.

Wedding Pictures!!

2008-09-25T19:04:00.000-07:00

Well, Justin called me at work yesterday to tell me that I had a "happy surprise" when I got home. I was thinking he probably replaced something at the house or cooked dinner but, the surprise was that our wedding picture CD came in the mail!! I was so excited! So, I thought I would post a few of my faves. If you want to see them all you can go to the photographer's website and click on "proofing." Her name is Alisa Lynn and the website is http://www.alisalynn.com/. Take a look, she did a great job on the wedding, bridal, and engagement pictures. Hope you enjoy!

Our Home

2008-09-14T15:19:00.000-07:00

Well, I promised some pictures so here they are. This is our house in Memphis. We live in one of the older areas of town so our house was built in the 50's. We love living here! Our neighbors are wonderful and the neighborhood is unique. Since our house is kinda old we've had some projects to work on since moving in. Nothing major just some upgrades. It's been so much fun. This has become one of mine and Justin's favorite things to do on the weekends. It's gradually feeling more and more like our home. Our next project is a kitchen makeover!

I finally did it!

2008-09-05T10:39:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! Well, I thought I would join the blog world. Now that Justin and I are living in Memphis it has become even more difficult to stay in touch. So, this is my new attempt at that. So far life in Memphis has been pretty good. Justin has had ups and downs with being in residency. This month is one of the downs but next month should be a big up so we look forward to that. I am working at Physiotherapy Associates. It is an outpatient clinic with me and one other therapist. It is smaller and quieter than I am used to but I'm getting used to it. I also start tomorrow at one of the hospitals working a couple weekend days a month. I'm really excited about doing this. I hope I like it. Well, Justin and I bought a house here in Memphis and I will attach some pics later. It was built in the 50's so there's always little projects to work on which has been alot of fun for us. Justin loves making the house look nice, it's fun to see him get excited about it. We've made some good friends through residency and we have truly been blessed by them. We have other couples to lean on when things are hard. The Lord has blessed us here and we are loving married life! I can't imagine my life without Justin in it everyday (even if it's just a short phone call on the phone from the hospital). I look forward to hearing more from all of you!