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Monday, December 31, 2012

Happy New Year!

I can't believe 2012 is over and behind us. It seems like yesterday that I was making my resolutions (which I didn't keep... at all... only reinforcing my belief that they are dumb :)


How are you celebrating tonight? M and I are headed out to a party. I don't know if I will be able to stay awake till midnight though... We might have to kiss at 10:00 p.m. instead.


Wishing you all the best in 2013!
Love,
l&m

Saturday, December 29, 2012

22 Weeks

I am currently 23 weeks, but I realized I never posted my 22 week photo. I am trying to stay on top of it, since I know you all want to see me get huger and huger :)


Baby Girl has officially past the one pound mark! We can feel her kicking (which she does OFTEN), especially at night and in the early morning. I feel like I can already tell what her sleeping pattern is going to be... yikes. 

Now that the holidays are over, we are going to have our hands full getting the nursery ready and signing up for all our fun classes. I feel like the days and weeks and months until she arrives are going to fly. I am so excited to meet this little girl. Her presence is certainly going to change our lives! 

Friday, December 28, 2012

A Belated Merry Christmas!

Hope you all had a very Merry Christmas! We spent the holidays back in Georgia with our families. It was wonderful to see them! Yesterday, we came home to a snowy Colorado. Everything is covered in a fresh blanket of white. Sadie and Georgia had a grand old time frolicking today :)


We hope your holiday was merry and bright! 
Love,
l&m


Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Happy Anniversary

This morning, I woke up to snow falling and M cooking me breakfast for our anniversary. I feel like the luckiest girl in the world.


Three years ago today, I married my best friend. So much has happened since then, but when I think back on that day, I still remember how I felt, so calm and filled with anticipation. I will never forget walking down the aisle towards my beloved, seeing the look on his face.

Husband,
I love you with all my heart. The past three years have been a great adventure, and I can't wait for a lifetime more. I can't believe how well you put up with me :) 
Love,
Your Undeserving Wife

Tuesday, December 11, 2012

We're Having a...


girl!!!

We are beyond excited... though I can't believe how completely wrong I was! I was convinced we were having a boy. But little girls are fun. Especially first little girls. I was a first little girl, so I happen to know all about it :)

We have a few names picked out, but I don't want to make an official decision until I meet her.

P.S. The little dress pictured above is our little Christmas gift to Baby Girl. We hope she can wear it home from the hospital, though it might swallow her up if she's especially tiny :)

Saturday, December 8, 2012

20 weeks

We made it! 20 weeks! The halfway mark... I seriously can't believe it.

{Our Christmas tree! And my belly...}

Our baby now weighs almost a pound! At our last ultrasound, we were able to see how everything is developing. Little Bean looks perfect! We were also able to find out the baby's sex... but that's another post for another time :)

Happy Weekend!




Monday, December 3, 2012

Holiday Recap

We made it home from our travels in one piece! I still can't believe we drove all the way to Georgia from Colorado. We must be crazy.

Hope you all had a marvelous Thanksgiving holiday! We certainly did. We celebrated with our families in Atlanta. Lots of food was consumed. After a wonderful visit with M's family, we headed to Athens for my mom's birthday and my brother's CD release. We also made a trip to the Christmas tree farm...


If you look closely, you can see a little baby bump... :)


My brother and M looking thrilled to be posing for my pictures...


We took our tree home in the old family truck... Does it look familiar? That's because it made an appearance at our wedding


Ta da! The finished product!

We had such a wonderful time with our families and friends! As much as we enjoyed our visit, it feels good to be back in Colorado. The first thing we did when we got home was to pick out our own Christmas tree and decorate our house for Christmas. I love the smell of pine needles every time I walk through the front door. Now if you will excuse me, I have some presents to wrap :)

Saturday, November 17, 2012

Travel Plans

Sorry for the lack of posts lately! It's been an insanely busy week as we've been getting ready to take some much-needed time off work for Thanksgiving. M is in Mesa, Arizona this weekend, so I've been trying to get us all packed and ready to leave on our trip. We're headed back to Georgia to see our families, and I could not be more excited...


On Monday, we're going to pack up our car and head East. Sadie and Georgia will be making the trip with us, and with my pregnant bladder, it should make for an interesting trip :) 


If you don't hear from me for awhile, I hope you have a happy Thanksgiving!

With love,

l&m

Wednesday, November 7, 2012

16 Weeks

It is official. If I were a celebrity, I would be on "bump watch". I no longer look like I just ate a large burrito. My tummy finally looks like I have a baby inside of it. Which means Baby Bean is growing bigger!


This week, Bean is the size of an avocado! I honestly cannot believe there is an avocado-sized baby in there. In just one month, we will be able to tell whether Bean is a boy or a girl. I am still thinking boy, but no one believes that I can possibly know that so early. I have a 50/50 chance of being right, so I will take those odds!

Monday, November 5, 2012

Weekend Recap

This weekend, I celebrated my 25th birthday. I can't believe I am a quarter-century old! Ha.

{my mom made this amazing almond cake for me... swoon}


We celebrated with a little sushi dinner at my favorite spot in town. The rest of the weekend was so relaxing. We took several walks around our neighborhood, where the fall colors are still beautiful. My mom spoiled us by cooking amazing dinners for us to eat. We still have plenty of leftovers :)

Unfortunately, we had to take her to the airport this afternoon. I don't know how I will be able to make it to Thanksgiving, when we will be reunited with our whole, wonderful family. 

So far, 25 has been a great year. My heart is full of love and awe over all the blessings in our lives. Thanks, friends and family (you're all family, really) for being such an unconditional source of support and encouragement to us always. I cherish all of you in my heart. 

love,
l&m

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

The First Snow

This past weekend, we got our first snow of the season...


It was actually sort of pitiful, especially compared to last year. But that's perfectly ok with me. I'm not ready for winter yet!


For Halloween, M and I are planning a night in with hot chocolate and a scary movie. We'll have the candy bowl ready by the door for trick-or-treaters. I can't wait until Baby Jelly Bean is old enough to trick-or-treat. That's quite a long while from now, I guess! 

P.S. My mom will be coming into town on Thursday for a long weekend visit! I can't wait to see her. 

Monday, October 22, 2012

Weekend Recap

Hello everyone. Hope you all had a wonderful weekend! Here's how we spent ours...


Haunted corn maze with some of our students...


... yes, they are all taller than me.



Baby Jelly Bean is about the size of a lemon this week!!! Not so much a jelly bean any more. Since starting my second trimester, I have been feeling so much better. No nausea or crazy food aversions. For awhile there, I wouldn't touch pasta or chicken, which used to be two of my favorite foods. I also craved root beer and vanilla coke, even though I usually don't even drink soda. Weird, right? 



Monday, October 15, 2012

Weekend Recap

Well hello. Hope you all had a fabulous weekend. Here's how we spent ours...


Playing outside in the crisp, fall weather...


... and celebrating our friend's birthday with a homemade sushi party. Don't worry, I didn't eat any sushi :)


This week is pretty uneventful. I am finally starting to feel better (yay!) and not feeling like I'm seasick all the time.

P.S. I already had to go out and buy one of these! Haha.

Thursday, October 11, 2012

Baby Makes Three...

We feel so blessed by all the love and support we received after making our big announcement. It means the world to us to finally be able to share this with you. Now that the word is out, we thought we'd share more details. Like how we found out that our family of two is about to become a family of three...


Ever since M and I got married, we have talked about one day having children. We have always known that it would happen at just the right time, but I don't think either of us expected the "right time" to come so soon. That being said, when the baby arrives, we will have been married for three years, and we'll both be 25. I've always thought 25 was a good age to start a family. I just expected to feel older when I got there! 


This past summer was a whirlwind. We were traveling constantly and so busy that I almost didn't even notice when my period was late. On a whim, we bought a pregnancy test. We were both shocked when it was positive. So, I took another one. And then another one. All positives. 

After visiting my doctor, and confirming that all those positive pregnancy tests meant something, it was time to celebrate. Remember this date? It was actually a celebratory dinner. We went to our favorite restaurant and ordered our favorite dishes: fried chicken with waffles and scrumptious mac'n'cheese. Obviously, this was before the nausea set in.


So much has happened since that first positive pregnancy test. After seeing our baby and hearing the heartbeat, everything feels much more real. M has been awesome through this whole process. He gets major points for making special trips to the store to satisfy my weird cravings, giving up foods that he likes because I suddenly find them disgusting, and not complaining when he has to do the dishes or take out the trash because I can't stand the smell of old food. What a champ. 

The baby's due date is April 24, 2013. It feels far away now, but I have a feeling the time will fly :)

P.S. Adorable animals photographs by Sharon Montrose




Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Something Exciting...

We are very excited to announce...


... that we are going to have a baby! That's right - M and I are going to be parents. We've been waiting to share the news with you, and believe me, it has been hard to keep this secret for so long! 


{Already sucking his thumb...}


{Reclining position...}


{In this photo, he is using my uterus as a trampoline...}


{... and back to sucking his thumb again.}

No, we don't know the baby's sex yet. But I call him a "he" for now, because 1) I have a feeling that this baby really is a "he", and 2) I don't like calling our baby an "it". If it turns out to be a girl, she might have a slight complex after being referred to as a "he" for so long. Oh well. 

I have one more week in my first trimester. So far, pregnancy symptoms haven't been too bad. I'll talk more about those in another post. For now, we are just over-the-moon excited and so thankful that the baby is healthy! At my doctor's appointment today, we got to hear the heartbeat. There is really no way to describe that experience. I was not expecting to be so overwhelmed with emotions. Then again, I have raging pregnancy hormones, so I shouldn't have been too surprised when I started crying! 

The baby's heartbeat and measurements all look great! Apparently, he is very active. During the ultrasound, he was jumping up and down and doing somersaults. He also likes to suck his thumb a lot, which he does pretty much whenever he's still. 

We are obviously overjoyed and can't wait to start this new chapter of our lives! We would appreciate your prayers that this baby would continue to grow strong and healthy, and that I would not kill Morgan for some minor offense, like leaving smelly dishes in the sink. 

Thanks for letting us share our big news! We are so thankful for all the love and support we have in our lives.

Love,
l&m
(and baby jelly bean)




Friday, September 28, 2012

Napoleon Dynamite Party

Last month, some of our friends hosted a Napoleon Dynamite themed birthday party. At first I thought it was so random, but the party turned out to be so much fun and really creative. I didn't think to take pictures, but I found a very similar party on the web. I have never been very big on themed parties, but I thought this one was so clever.




The menu included corn dogs, quesadillas, and of course, tater-tots. For party favors, all the guests were given tubes of ChapStick. After dinner and cake, we all gathered outside for a backyard screening of the movie. It has probably been at least ten years since I've seen it. 



Happy Friday!



Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Labor Day Weekend

Hope you all had a fantastic Labor Day Weekend! We really enjoyed getting a little break from the chaos. A long weekend was just what we needed!


On Saturday, we went to Tour de Fat, a bicycle "race" that New Belgium brewery puts on every summer. Everyone dresses up in crazy costumes and rides around town on their bicycles. Spotted this year: a Chinese dragon, the Flinstones, a family of unicorns, and several grown men wearing nothing but diapers. We live in a strange town. 

M and I didn't participate in Tour de Fat this year. We just sat on the sidelines and watched with Sadie and Georgia.

Yesterday, we went to a cookout where we ate tons of ribs! It was glorious. 

Also, my mom finished her hike on the Appalachian Trail this weekend. She and my dad are still up in Maine, celebrating. I am so proud of her for pursuing her dream! So much of the time, I feel like I am too afraid to pursue what I really want. It takes a lot of courage to do that, and I hope I got some of those genes from her. We'll see...


P.S. M is having {very!} minor surgery today, but your prayers would still be appreciated! Thanks! 

Thursday, August 30, 2012

One of Those Weeks


Hello. It's been one of those weeks. Work is terrible / busy / stressful. I'm sure you've been there if you aren't there right now. I feel like I might just pass out at any given moment. 

On a much more cheerful note, my amazing mom is finishing her 6-month hike on the Appalachian Trail this weekend! I am so proud of her! If you would like to read about her incredible adventure, you can check out her trail journal. She hiked all the way from Georgia to Maine, starting in March and ending this Saturday. My dad is on his way up to Maine to pick her up at the finish line! 

Monday, August 27, 2012

Weekend Recap

Hello there. Hope you had a fabulous weekend. Here's how we spent ours...


Sadie and Georgia had to get baths on Saturday. We went to a DIY place down the street from our house. It was like a doggy spa! But our girls were not too impressed. 


Saturday night, we went on a date to one of our favorite places in Fort Collins, Restaurant 415. They have the best mac'n'cheese. Period. 


Here's a little video of how much Georgia enjoyed her bath! :)

xo.

Friday, August 24, 2012

Happy Friday

Happy Friday, everyone! Got any fun plans? M and I went to breakfast at our favorite bakery this morning...


It's a pretty low-key weekend for us. Mostly, we have a lot of things to do around the house, some pre-fall cleaning. It's amazing to me how much dust accumulates in our house, no matter how much cleaning I do. It's everywhere! And we'll probably take the pups to the dog park tomorrow morning, so Georgie can have her swim time.

Have a lovely weekend!


Wednesday, August 22, 2012

More Wedding Photos

I just got photos in from a wedding I coordinated back in June, and I would love to share them with you if you'd like to see...


This photo was taken in the stairwell in our church where the wedding ceremony was held... I love the stained glass!


One of the colors in the bride's palette was apple-green, so we used granny-smith apples as place card holders... and props to show off their wedding bands.


I love this photo! In the distance, you can see the barn where the wedding reception was held.


This is the walk-way leading up to the barn. We hung mason jars from shepherd sticks to add a little oomph to the entrance.



The bridal party...


This is one of the entrances to the barn that the guests did not use. We hung moss letters with the bride and groom's initials. A gust of wind came out of nowhere and blew those letters off as we were decorating the barn! Fortunately, they stayed on for the reception!


The barn was already set up to be able to hang things from the high ceilings. 


The happy couple, sharing their first dance. 

{All photos by Beth Bruno}


Thanks for indulging me for a minute! As you can probably tell, I am very proud of how it all turned out.



This week, we are gearing up for the new semester. Our students are back to school, which means that the vacation is over, and M is back to work. We have had an amazing summer. I am pretty sad that it's over, but we're looking forward to fall. Fall is a fun time to live in Fort Collins. We have the annual Tour de Fat bicycle rally, which is coming up on Labor Day Weekend. Then, we can look forward to seeing all the pretty fall colors and maybe even snow!  

Wednesday, August 15, 2012

Weekend Recap


We just got in from Virginia Beach, where we were for a wedding over the weekend. Both of us are dragging today. Travel is fun but not always relaxing. One of my friends gave me a gift certificate to get a massage, and I think I'll definitely be cashing that in this week :)



Hope you all had a lovely weekend! xo


Monday, August 6, 2012

Wedding Photos

Hello. Hope you had a fabulous weekend. One of my friends from college has been in town. On Friday, we spent the day in Boulder. It was my first time there, even though we've lived in Colorado for almost two years. Tonight, we're going out for Mexican :)

I just got some photos back from one of the weddings I coordinated earlier this summer. You can view them on my website.



 That is all :)

Photo by Jose Mesa

Saturday, July 28, 2012

Mexico, Part Dos

Today I'll share some photos from Taylor and Pammy's wedding, the reason we went to Mexico in the first place...

These guys were awesome... They played at the cocktail party before the wedding reception.

Between the ceremony and the reception, we refreshed with cold champagne...

First dance...

Groom and mother-of-the-groom...

M officiated the wedding ceremony... He did an amazing job!

The ceremony was held outdoors on the beach. The white sand and turquoise water provided the most beautiful backdrop!

Mother-of-the-groom...

The wedding party...

The happy couple! 

Pammy was a beautiful bride, and M's brother, Taylor, was a handsome groom. We are so happy for them!