Halloween Fun in the Rain

Although we never had a dry minute for trick-o-treating, it was still a very fun night to take Spence out on the town. He loved every second of all the attention he was getting from everyone! I must say though, his favorite part of the night was not all the candy, but getting to sit on the fire truck. We saw the fire truck at the town square, but did not stay there long. It was a little much for mama and I was ready to head out of town to do some traditional house-to-house treating. It was much nicer and the candy was better too. Jaidyn was a trooper too and pretty much slept through her first halloween. But she was still the cutest lady bug out there!

Trip To Memphis

I must say we have the best kiddos in the world. We took an 8 hour trip to Memphis (one way) there and 8 back, and they did great. We only had to watch Barney 4 times...one way! And 3 on the way back home. Oh well. You learn quick as parents that whatever makes your kid smile and happy on a long road trip, you will do. It's funny though that as you try to plan around "nap time", when it came time for him to go to sleep...uh no. He only took a 30 minute nap!

We had a great time visiting family and anyone would love seeing your grandfather holding a precious little baby and an energetic boy hanging off the side of him. Granddaddy was a trooper and we got to see him for a couple of days while we were there. We also went over to my aunt Carol's house to visit with my cousin and her daughter, Hollynn. She was the one who stayed with us over the summer break while her mom went through surgery. It was a nice visit and so good to see them. They were in desperate need of cheering up and there's nothing better than a newborn baby to do that. Spence and Jaidyn had a great time and brought lots of smiles and laughter to the room. It was a much needed trip for us and we packed more into one day than we ever imagined possible, but well worth it. We loved seeing aunt MaryJane and we appreciate the generosity of my aunt Bev and uncle Frank letting us stay with them. It was so nice to have the opportunity to see all of my family.

Football Time In Tennessee!

Although our season has not been the best, it still feels good to beat Geogia, and actually witness it in person. I get to celebrate for a WHOLE YEAR!!! Spencer and I went to the game Saturday and I went with feelings of anxiety and nervousness for the vols, especially after they got beat by Auburn last weekend, at home. They played the best they have played all season on Saturday and I believe Georgia played the worst from all season. It was as you can see in Spencer's face, not a good day for Uga. It was "uga-ly" for the bulldogs, but I must say we enjoyed our time together and loved being in that football atmosphere again.

Jaidyn is 1 Month Old

Who needs to be in the jungle for a month, when I can star in my own "Survivor" show right here in my own house. We have made it and still happily chugging along together. I've survived 1 crazy month, but more importantly, my two beautiful children are still alive and kickin'. It's seriously been a wonderful month of baby bliss and big brother Spence is hanging in there. He loves his little sis, but right now playing outside still comes first! I'm still trying to get on that thing called a "routine", but haven't quite made yet. However, Jaidyn is doing great and growing more and more everyday. She is starting to smile a lot and lets me know when she need some attention. We have finally gotten our results back from all of her extra testing and she has passed everyone of them. We are excited and feel very blessed to have such a healthy baby girl, but have considered now calling her "Mo" due to the fact she's losing her hair, except that cute little streak down the center. And don't forget the curl on top!

Welcome Baby Jaidyn

We have finally gotten Miss. Jaidyn Leigh home and settled into her new enviroment. She is now 3 weeks old and the time passes unbelievably fast. Honestly, my initial thought was that once Spencer went back to work, the days would be long, exhausting, and slow. What was I thinking?

We are so grateful to everyone for all you did to help us with Spence and for bringing food. All of the meals have been very delicious and Spence quickly went back into his normal routine. We also appreciate the phone calls and visits. The meals have all been very delicious. It really helped us make the transition easier from one child to now two. Spencer decided to take the first week off that we brought her home, and we were both so grateful for that. Although Spence has done really well, it allowed Spencer the chance to give him the extra attention that he needed. We have really enjoyed watching Spence with Jaidyn and seeing his curiousity unfold. We are, however, praying that she won't lose an eye or come out of her chair one day. He has to be watched VERY closely and at all times. At this point, all is well and both continue to change everyday and grow too fast. I can see now that we are going to have lots of fun!

The Ellijay Fair and My Garden

We are still waiting for this little girl to join us and have been trying to do lots of motivating things to initiate labor, but no go. Even taking Spence to the fair and riding some rides didn't work! It was still worth going though because he had a blast. It was so fun for Spencer and I to watch him and see his face light up and have looks of amazement watching all the rides. He rode the choo choo train, the airplanes, carousel, went down the big slide with daddy, and lots more. He even watched his mom shoot basketball to win an Uga. Yes, an Uga. For those of you not sure who Uga is... it is the Georgia mascot. Unbelievable huh. The things you do for your kids, but trust me there will be a Smokey joining him soon:) We had a great time!

We've also been busy playing ball outside, messing around in the flower garden, and Spence has even helped me with my garden decor to make a garden stone. It was fun to do this project with him. This year has been better than previous ones, however, I still don't have that green thumb like my mom. I wish I did, but every year gets a little better. I will definitely miss those beautiful flowers blooming as winter slowly approaches. Winter...can you believe it?

Ready for number 2!

At this point we are just at that sit and wait point that just about can drive you crazy! The wait part is what it is, but let's be real, I'm doing anything but sitting. This baby girl will be here anytime and I find myself continually thinking of things I need to do to be overly ready. If she did come, yes, we're ready, but having laundry caught up, the house clean, the nursery and Spence's new room as organized as possible, bags packed for the hospital, camara's ready and charged, okay you get my point. OVERLY READY! It doesn't hurt.

We are also in the process of moving the dental practice to a new building. I will post pics as soon as the office is complete. It's very exciting and to be honest we are really glad she decided not to come this past weekend. Spencer has been working extremely hard to get as much done as he can and it looks as if we could definitely open the office back up on Tuesday. Very exciting for both of us and it really looks good.

Some additional thoughts I would like to share about this pregnancy as we know the BIG DAY approaches us soon...

• Not finding out your pregnant until 10 weeks into it is fabulous and this pregnancy has absolutely flown by




• I've really enjoyed this pregnancy and have been amazed at how different it was from carrying Spence, COMPLETELY DIFFFERENT, but not having to go to the specialist every 2 weeks and the OB once a month sure did help




• The upside...she moved a lot and I truly enjoyed every second of it, she just started having the hiccups 2 weeks ago, I gained plenty of weight and swelled, but not as much as before, I have the nursery ready and getting even more excited to have a girl on the way




• The downside...these early contractions are NOT friendly and the physical pain they cause is very scary, I can cry over just about anything at this point and being an emotional person is not for me, losing lots of sleep, nothing fits this body anymore!!




• Anxiety level is rising everyday thinking about having two kids 16 months apart, but the excitement level is beyond imaginable




• Working until 36 weeks was great for me and I loved every second of it. We have a wonderful team down there and great patients. They have all been very understanding and supportive, especially towards the end when I moved a little bit slower




• One thing I've learned about myself that I hope will make me a better mom is knowing my limitations, it's never easy for me to stop and say "I'm done", but finding out after it's too late isn't fun either. My goal is to know before.




• Praying for a smooth delivery and healthy baby girl, praying the (+) Strep B will not cause any complications for the baby or myself, and praying we don't go into labor in the middle of the night!

Let me just quickly share one more thing. Spence is an absolute gift from God. I don't know how we got so lucky, and trust me Spencer and I ask ourselves that question everyday, but there is not a day that passes that we don't thank our Heavenly Father for that special child that belongs to us. We know he's going to be a great BIG brother, and in time, we will all adjust to adding another precious miracle to our family. Our Sunday School teacher quoted Charles Swindoll the other day and man it really stuck with me. "EXPECT NOTHING, APPRECIATE EVERYTHING." So simple, yet so true with everything in life.