The Beast

Adyson and I put together the double stroller today. She was more annoying than she was help, but what else is new? She just kept saying "I want ride in new stroller!! Move Mommy!!" and such. We did finally manage to get it together, although there wasn't much actual assembly. All we had to do was put the wheels, cup holders, front canopy, and parent "organizer". Once all that was done, we got out the car seat and tested it out too. Sorry the pic is blurry - I took it with my phone. Ady didn't want to sit down, so here is, standing on the new stroller.

Cheese!!!

The downside to Adyson being so tall for her age, this seat is supposed to last until she is 50 lbs. Which I am certain it will. However, the canopy, I give it until Spring... She is so tall that her head nearly hits the top already!!

It wouldn't be a true test if we didn't strap "Baby Coop" into the car seat. So far we have had every doll (or Baby Coop), Baby Bob Baby, Big Bob Baby, Big Manny, Little Manny, Puppy, Horse, Big Giraffe, and Baby Giraffe all in the stroller. Although I have to give Ady props, when she had her "pairs" of Bobs, Mannys, and Giraffes out, she did put the big ones in front and the little ones in the car seat!!

Canoeing @ Watson Mill

While we were at the covered bridge, we also decided to rent a canoe and take it for a spin. Here is a view of the river that we were on.

Okay, okay. Truth be told, the river was only about 2 feet deep in the deepest part that we were in. But at least we didn't really have to worry about tipping the canoe over since we were in no "real" danger. The oar is actually touching the bottom. No kidding :)

In true Adyson fashion, she had to pick up a stick and help Daddy row the boat. She did more splashing and nearly hitting me in the face than helping, but she was happy.

Quentin, working hard to row while I took pictures. We were by no means professionals, and even though the water was only inches deep, we had a heck of a time getting the canoe to go in the direction we wanted (probably because the water was so shallow, you couldn't really row).

Here are Adyson and I. Just enjoying the ride. You can see a tree in the background, I am pretty sure we crashed into it shortly after this picture was taken... Maybe I shouldn't have asked Quentin to stop rowing and take pictures!! HA!

Watson Mill Covered Bridge Comer, GA

When we were in Georgia with Quentin, we stumbled across this covered bridge, which is part of a Georgia State Park now. We decided to drive out and see what it was all about and here is what we found:

This is the view of the bridge as you approach it. you can actually drive through it, and we did. Once on the other side, there is a small parking area and a trail where you can walk down to the Broad River.

(This is copied from the website www.raodsidegeorgia.com)

History of the Bridge
The Watson Mill covered bridge was built to allow access to the mill built by Gabriel Watson in 1798 about 300 feet south of the present location of the bridge on the south fork of the Broad River. A sluice extended past the shoals now below the bridge and provided water to power both a sawmill and grist mill. There were other shops in the small community that developed around the mill.
In 1900 the mill fell victim to technology. In place of the sluice, a raceway was built to deliver water from the dam to the turbine that generated electricity for Jefferson Mills (a textile mill) in nearby Crawford.
With the rise of electricity in rural areas in Georgia during the 1950's it was no longer economical to create power from the dam, and after stripping the site of everything of value the company let it sit until it donated the land to the state of Georgia in 1971.
The state began a restoration effort, which centered around the covered bridge. In 1973 Watson Mill Bridge State Park opened to the public, and since that time has become a frequent stop on Roadside Georgia's itinerary.

This is a side view of the bridge.

Ady was having such a great time "exploring" that she wouldn't hardly stand still for a picture. There were plenty of big rocks for her to climb all over. Of course, the rocks were slippery with moss so I didn't do too much exploring. Daddy took Ady out into the water almost of to her knees and she LOVED it.

Ady and Quentin by the waterfall.

Virginia Vacation

(So I thought I had posted this, but just saw that is was only a draft... Better late than never, right?)

Ugh! I forgot this crazy thing loads the pictures in reverse order! HA HA!

Quentin had a class in July at Ft. Eustis in Williamsburg, Virginia. We decided it would be fun to tag along so we flew out on July 3rd. We had a great time, here are the highlights of our adventure.

Me and Adyson at Virginia Beach. Adyson was really not too sure about the waves. However, she LOVED the sand and she would sit right where the water would barely reach her when the waves cam in and dig holes and wait for them to wash away. The water was pretty cold, so that may have also been why she didn't like it too much.

Adyson did not want to go near the water without being held or holding hands. I think this picture is the actual "First Time" in the ocean picture.


Adyson and I showing off our "Baby Coop" bellies.

Adyson and Daddy at the fireworks on the 4th of July. We spent the day at Busch Gardens with DJ, Sabrina, Bri, and Marie. We had a ton of fun and everyone was exhausted by fireworks time. Adyson was frightened by the noise, she thought it was thunder. She ran to Quentin and said "I scared Boom-Booms" and he held her the entire fireworks show! She was interested in watching, but wasn't sure if she wanted to look.

Here are Quentin and Adyson on one of the rides at Busch Gardens. They had a couple different "kiddie" sections, but for most of the rides you had to be 38" tall to ride by yourself. Sabrina and I decided that was a good job for the dads! They had a blast!!

Cooper Update

Today I had my 28weeks and 3 day appointment. Nothing really new to report. I got the results from my test last appointment. Passed the glucose test with flying colors (Whoo Hoo!!!), blood count was all right on, and my anti-body screen was negative. The anti body screen was really the most important result for me because it means the previous positive results I had gotten were a result of the previous Rhogam shot I had. Also, very good news. Since I am 28 weeks, I also got my Rhogam shot today that will last until Cooper is born. Ady was with me and did not like me getting a shot at all. She told me "Mommy, Ady hold you. No owie." So she held my hand - what a sweetie!!

I was also told that we will discuss my "delivery options" soon. Apparently Cooper's size and weight are a concern based on the ultrasound I had at 20 weeks. He was measuring bigger than average, but not anything alarming. Since I have previous issues with shoulder dystocia (basically Adyson got stuck on my pelvis and the doc had to turn her over to deliver her) they are worried about me delivering a big baby. It is a conversation I am looking forward to with my doc and will probably not happen for a few more weeks. They will continue to monitor Coop's size as we get closer to D-Day and we will decide what is best when the time comes. I have no preference - I just want a happy, healthy, and safe delivery.

Adyson was very good at the apppointment today and as soon as we left she wanted to call Daddy and tell him that Cooper talked to her. She called Quentin and told him that Cooper said "Woosh-Woosh-Woosh" as she waved her arm around in the air. She is such a doll. Although she told me today that she didn't want Cooper to come to her house because his house is in my belly. We will work on that when the time comes I suppose.

A successful day

Well, I am totally behind on blogging so I will start here and post the past in the next few days to come.

Today was a successful day. Adyson did not have her "B" (aka her binky) all day long. The only time she got it was at nap time (and she left it in her bed when she woke up - with some encouragement from Daddy) and although she hasn't asked for it yet I am sure she will get it to go to sleep (she is thinking about falling asleep on the couch right now). Our plan is to limit it to only bedtime and then cut it out from there, but unless she asks for it at nap and bedtime, I am going to withhold it all together. I am so excited. This morning was rough when we initially took it away. She would play for a few minutes and then remember she didn't have it and start whining and asking for it. I totally used peer pressure and told her that we were going to Ella's house to play and that Ella was a big girl and didn't have a binky. She told me "Elwer (that is how she says Ella) no like Ady's B - it yucky!" She really got a lot better about it throughout the day. I only messed up once and mentioned it accidentally when talking to Quentin and she started asking for it. When I told her she had to wait until bedtime, she went on about her business.


Let this be the warning post - I am so far behind posting on this blog that there are going to be many, many post coming in the near future...

I have pictures (and stories) to post from both out adventures in Virginia and Georgia as well as som other stuff along the way...

I plan to start catching up tomorrow :) For now, I need to get precious Adyson off to bed.

Gone Fishin'

We took Ady fishing - didn't get many pictures, but here are a few.

The turtles were out in full force, the water is kinda dirty but you can see one here, literally right off the dock, waiting for us to throw him a line...

The big catch of the day! HA!

Daddy and Ady checking out one of the many mini-fish we caught that day.

Ring Around the Rosie

Ring around the Rosie

Pocket full of posies

Ashes! Ashes!

We all fall down!!

Well, it looks more like a staged hug gone wrong, but they were playing Ring around the Rosie...

Ring around the Rosie again...

This one looks more like they are two stepping,

but it is hard to make a circle with only two people!!

RUN Brady!! RUN!!!! (for your life) :)

And of course, in true Adyson fashion... She had to throw a fit in the end...

S'MORES!!

We decided that the 'sac (this is what we call our cul-de-sac) needed a fire to make S'mores on. Of course we headed straight to Wal-Mart and got one. before we got brave enough to take it out front, we gave it a test run in the back yard. Please excuse the half put together trampoline, we are STILL waiting on the safety net to arrive.

Since we were building a fire anyway...

We had decided we were going to clean out all the junk. And by "junk" I mean the countless receipts, carbon copy checks, paystubs, and other random papers what were saved (well packed and moved several times now) dating back to about 1997. They made great "fire starters" but caused a lot of smoke.

Here is a pic of Ady and Brady roasting some marshmallows. For some reason, even though she used to call them "mar-mewwooh" she now calls marshmallows "lawnmowers" I don't know...she is just goofy :)

Of course, roasting marshmallows got old fast so Ady chased Brady all over the yard. I will post another blog of the post S'mores fun with more pics like this next...

" C'mere Brady!!! Ady get you!!"

And when they weren't roasting the marshmallows, they were sword-fighting? Shasta was waiting (cautiously as to not get clobbered) for the marshmallows to fall off...

MMMMmmmmm..... Finally :)

Yummy Yummy Yummy

Ok, not really. In true Ady fashion. She does not like s'mores. She only took two bites (luckily I had the camera ready) and then gave it back "I two like" (which means "I don't like"). She like the chocolate, graham crackers, and marshmallows all separately, but was not impressed with the end product. Sometimes I wonder if she is really my kid, hehe.

Cooper Patrick Lease

Today was the BIG ultrasound!! We now know for sure that we are expecting a little boy in October. We will name him Cooper Patrick. We took Adyson to the ultrasound with us and she was really good. Once we started seeing the profile on the screen she understood that it was really a baby on "tv". Once we knew it was a boy, she said "Here he is. Here's baby Coop"

A little closer profile shot.

Here is a shot of Cooper's face. A little scary now, but in 8 more weeks, he'll look like a "real" baby. It is kinda hard to see, but he had his hands up by his face the whole time. There is a hand beside his face (you can see his arm) waving. He was very active.


Drum roll please......

The "REAL" money shot...

Most importantly, everything looks good. Cooper is measuring right on schedule and had a strong heart rate of 144 BPM. He measures 19w5d, which is what I am today. He weighs

13 ounces. Hard to believe... I know!

We are very excited and ready to start shopping for a little boy!!

MMMMMmmmmmmm Spaghetti

No explaination necessary...enjoy!

Accessory Queen

Adyson tends to dress herself up. She usually puts on mismatched shoes (or Mommy or Daddy's shoes) and random hats and such. On this particular day, it was nice warm (as shown by the lack of sleeves on Ady's dress) she decided she needed to wear a hat and gloves.

Here she is putting her hat on, it usually takes a few attempts because she ends up holding it closed when she tries to put it on...

And what outfit is complete without "Dora" gardening gloves?!?!

15W5D Appointment

Well, there isn't too much to report today. I had an appointment, all is well. I have lost 5 pounds (which is a whole lot better than gaining) but now the doc thinks I need to count calories to make sure I am getting at least 2000 a day.

Quentin was able to go with me today, and we got to hear the heartbeat with the doppler (although the Med student had a hard time finding it) and all sounds well. They didn't measure it, for two reasons: 1) they had a hard time finding it and 2) they baby was moving all over so once they did find it, it was gone...

My next appointment is on June 10th. I will have an ultrasound at 1:15 and doctor appointment at 2:20. This will be the BIG ultrasound. We should know (as long as the little one is cooporative) whether Ady will be getting a little brother or sister.

I can't wait to post all about it!!!

The wait is over...

After a 3 month wait... we are finally ready to announce that Adyson is going to be a

BIG SISTER!!!

This is by far the hardest "secret" I have ever had to keep, and although I made a few slip-ups here and there...most people didn't know until they got the above card in the mail! Ha Ha!

We have known since Valentine's day, that we would be expecting a Halloween baby. My "official" due date is October 30, 2009. So far everything has gone very well with this pregnancy and I have had no complications. My next appointment is May 13th and I will be 15 1/2 weeks. Right now, our BIG ultrasound is scheduled for June 22nd (I will be 22 weeks). My OB office will not do the ultrasound until I am 20 weeks, and since Quentin was scheduled to be out of town, I pushed it back until he would be able to come too. Well, now he will be home (love the military) and I haven't been able to reschedule it just yet.

BROWNIES!!

(cooked or not) are a girl's best friend!!!

I was trying to get her to smile... this is the pose she struck :)
"Mommy, you eat!" I didn't move quick enough, and she even got some on the camera!

MMMMMmmmmmmmmmmm!!!!

These pictures are reversed, so this is the beginning and the top ones are after she had the spatula for a while :) Not that the mess on her face didn't already tell that story!

Silly Faces

I think she was eating some candy here, but I am not sure about the "gang sign" she is putting on there... Probably some secret code between her and her toddler friends :)

SSSSSOOOOOUUUUURRRRR!!!! "Ady not like" I am sure she spit whatever this was out immediately after making this face...

Usually this look is accompanied by "Momm-meeeeeee!!! I want __________" Usually candy or a mint, but this is her "I want" face and dance :)

And last but not least, she is the queen of rolling her eyes. I wish I could take credit for catching this look, but Aunt Shannon actually got this shot. I usually miss them and ger her after she is done rolling her eyes...