Winter Again!

Well, it's that time again in Buffalo for frigid weather and snow! Actually, it's been that time for a while now. Although I have to say that this winter has been much milder and less snowy than last winter was, and we are thankful for that! We actually did not have much snow before Christmas, but when we came back after Christmas there had been lots of it. We had a couple of weeks of pretty big snow at the beginning of January. Here is our front balcony - check out the depth of the snow on top of the table!

And this is the neighbors' balcony and the view of our street:

When the weather is like this, this is what Boston does as soon as we come in from a walk:

Ha ha! He runs as fast as he can into our bed and buries himself in the covers. We know how you feel, Boston! He is a southern doggie for sure.

January also was the end of my seasonal employment at Target. It was a real blessing to be able to work for a few months to enable us to pay for our Christmas trip, but I was pretty glad to be done with it. The standing for several hours straight was getting really tough on my back and feet. This is a picture of me in my Target "uniform" after my last shift was over! Yay!

Last weekend Wes was asked to play at a Walk for Cancer benefit at one of the local malls. He played all his original stuff for about an hour and a half while people registered and did the walk. He did great and all the folks really seemed to enjoy him! I know I did.

And finally here is my latest belly pic, taken at 35 weeks on January 18th. We both cannot believe how soon the time is coming! Everyone asks the question "Are you ready?" and we both honestly answer "No!" I mean, how can you really be ready for something so huge and life changing that you've never experienced before? We are just trusting that God will give us the strength we need to make it through and praying that He will prepare us for whatever comes!

First Baby Shower for Reese Cup

So my wonderful family in Gadsden, Alabama got together to throw me a baby shower when we were down there for Christmas! It was just the family, which was great. My mom, sister, grandmothers, aunt, nieces, and cousin were all there. I am so glad I was able to get together with family to celebrate this special time.

First I have to post the pictures of my precious nieces Rylie and Bailey in their matching outfits!

And I just love how amused Rylie looks at Bailey's distress.

Okay, this is hilarious. My mom, sister, and I had been talking about what to wear to the shower and joking about how it was a "formal" event (not really, though). So before it started my sister came downstairs in this:

I believe that is one of her old prom dresses. It was hysterical. (Please don't kill me, Ash! Love you!)

Here I am (and Reese) at the beautiful table.

My mama and me:

And mama, my sister (after she changed), and me:

The DELICIOUS punch with beautiful fresh cut flowers around it done by my mom. And you can also se the adorable pink bootie mints:

The super adorable and DELICIOUS cake with Reese's initials:

And the gifts begin! Bring on all the girlie stuff!

Just had to include this beautiful pic of my Rylie:

Rylie and Kiley are helping me with my gifts. This was the great "sleep sheep" from my aunt Susan.

Cute purple and pink blanket monogrammed with Reese's name, from my Granny:

And my sister made and painted this adorable "Reese" for her room!

Those are just a few of the awesome things we were blessed with at the shower. Another huge thank you to my mom and sister for getting it all together and for everyone who came and for all the wonderful gifts! What a blessing!! We thank the Lord for all of you!

The Twelve Days of Christmas (almost)

Well, we had a very busy, packed, and wonderful Christmas this year. And it wasn't quite twelve days, but it was eleven days including travel. Here we are at our apartment trying to get a "family" portrait in front of the tree. Boston really wasn't cooperating very well, and after a few attempts, this is the best we could do! He looks like a psycho dog with glowing green eyes and his tongue out, but he's still cute.

Christmas 2009:

So right after church Sunday morning before Christmas, we loaded up the truck (borrowed from our Buffalo friends Joe and Shelly) and headed out. Since it really isn't fun to drive the entire way from Buffalo to Alabama in one trip, and I am pretty pregnant, we drove to Louisville, Kentucky and stayed the night. Boston and I are enjoying being out of the car and chilling in the hotel!

The next morning we woke up and drove from Louisville to Gadsden, Alabama, stayed the night at my parents', and then the next morning woke up early and headed down to L.A. (Lower Alabama) to see Wes's parents. It was a balmy 60-something degrees in Mobile, AL and we were LOVING it!! Wes's dad even grilled out some delicious ribs for us.

Nothing like seeing a palm tree at Christmas!

The family in Mobile:

After staying a night with Wes's dad and stepmom, we drove over about half an hour to his grandmother's house to see her and his mom for the afternoon. It was great to see them!

That evening we drove back up to Gadsden and were pooped. Early the next morning (on Christmas Eve) we met our old friends at Chick-fil-A for our annual Christmas reunion! I've been friends with these girls since elementary school. It was so great as always seeing Brandie, Allison and Mattie, Kinsey, Michael, Brianna, and Sarah, and Ashley and her new husband! The time is always way too short, but I'm so thankful we were all able to get together. Allison and I are both due with baby girls on February 22nd!

The rest of Christmas Eve was spent at my parents' house along with my sister and nieces just hanging out, watching movies, making treats, and eating - it was fabulous.

Here are my babies (well, technically they are my sister's babies) with their matching PJ's on Christmas Eve sitting with Pop.

Boston got festive with a Christmas bow.

Since all my family lives in the same city, we were able to take a break from driving for a few days! Christmas day we spent at one of my grandparents' for lunch and another for supper. Here are some pics from Christmas day:

Precious Bailey:

Sweet sisters, our nieces Rylie and Bailey:

My lovely parents:

Me with the bow that has been put on my head every Christmas since I don't even remember when:

Wes and me with Grandaddy and Grandmama:

Wes and me with my aunt Susan:

So that evening we went to my Granny's house. My cousin had gotten "Just Dance" for the Wii for Christmas, so of course we all had to play and it was a blast!!

Here is my mom getting into it with Rylie and my cousin Kiley:

And my sister and I totally broke it down to "Step By Step" by New Kids On The Block:

We had lots of fun and I'm so glad we were able to spend time with the family. Here are some more random shots from the holidays.

A beautiful Alabama sunset the day after Christmas:

Uncle Wes and Rylie:

A pic that Rylie took of us herself:

My sister and I at my cousin's roller skating birthday party... I couldn't skate seeing as how I'm eight months pregnant, and it was killing me!

Me and Miss Bailey (in my parents' sunroom overlooking the river):

Wes and Bailey - look at that face! Adorable! (both of them)

And of course a preggers pic (taken December 28th, 32 weeks):

Wes and me in the sunroom with the beautiful view of the Coosa River:

When we headed out from Gadsden, we made a stop in Nashville to see some friends there. Here is Wes with some of our oldest friends in Tennessee, Clint and Brad. We've known these guys for over 7 years now!

And here we are with Brad and his wife Allie, our dear friends. Allie and I are both having girls and she is due 6 days before me! So sad we don't live in the same city anymore. :(

Bumping bellies with Reese and Sophie :)

And with another dear friend, Amber:

Whew! I am tired just thinking about our Christmas vacation! We traveled a total of about 40 hours, in a truck, with a dog, and swollen feet and ankles (well, mine were), but it was totally worth it to see and spend time with all our families and friends! We love you all and are already looking forward to the next time we get to see you again!