Ten for May

10. Both bedrooms in the house have new curtains!  With a house built in the 1920's, we have very odd sized windows that had very odd and decrepit blinds hanging when we moved in.  We really wanted blackout curtains, but I could never find any the right size.  So, I finally broke down and bought a lot (and I mean a LOT) of fabric, found some curtain rods, and got to work!  After four full evenings of sewing, I couldn't be happier with the way they look.  And, it's SO nice to be able to sleep in a super dark room once again!

9. In other household projects, I mentioned last month that we'd done a lot of work on our master bathroom.  Well, we underestimated quite how much time it would take to truly finish it all.  But, it is now about 98% complete for what we want done (with the remaining 2% falling in a "future projects" category), and I'm loving it.  The jetted tub is so much more fun in a relaxing blue room than in a room covered with ugly old wallpaper.  Sometimes, we have just walked in there just to remember how much we love it.

8.  I had two more baby showers this month.  I'm so very fortunate to have so many people in my life who love and care about me.  While I've really appreciated the gifts that were given, I think my favorite part has been the showing of support that I've received.  I hope to remember the advice I've been given, the memories that have been shared, and the fun that I had during each one of them.

7. Even though I'm not officially a mother yet, Devin still made a point of celebrating me the whole weekend of Mother's Day.  He did all of the housework, cooked me several meals including a Mother's Day breakfast, and gave me a Kindle!  On Saturday, we also went to Home Depot to pick up some things for the yard and projects around the house, and he bought me two perennial daisy plants.  These are now in the pots in our walkway and blooming like crazy.  He's even done most of the work to care for them since then, too!

6. This month, Devin has switched into doing family medicine.  We didn't expect him to enjoy this rotation at all.  We'd heard warnings about the specialty in general as well as some complaints about the rotation in particular, so we were pretty wary.  But, Devin is doing a pretty awesome job at it and enjoying it much more than he thought he would!  Even though the hours aren't great, they aren't nearly as bad as what we'd anticipated making them feel much more manageable.  And, Devin is now part of the oldest class of med students and as such is being given more responsibility and opportunities as well.

5. We've had some pretty awesome weekends this month.  The first, we saw The Avengers and loved it followed by hiking Mistletoe the next day.  The second was marked by celebrating Mother's day.  Then, I had a baby shower the next weekend.  And, Memorial weekend we barbecued and got a lot of projects done.  There was also a lot of sleeping in each weekend, too!

4. Our new cooking endeavors have continued.  We eat out so infrequently lately, but are loving trying new things at home.  This month, Devin learned how to make a really good stir fry complete with water chesnuts and all.  As somewhat of a gag, we tried making bacon wrapped, dorito covered, barbeque meatball pockets for a get together with friends, and they actually ended up quite tasty.  In new desserts, I made peach cobbler for the first time.  It was good but not great, so I'll be on the look out for a new recipe. I also made blueberry cream cheese breakfast danishes that were delicious.  And, we've created a hodgepodge Mexican dish we have started calling "dorito fajitos."  They are actually pretty healthy and very delicious!

3. Devin has been selected for an away rotation next year at his top choice program!  He'll be working in the Pediatric Emergency Room at Erlanger Hospital in Chattanooga, TN for the month of January.  We're pretty excited about this as the spots were pretty limited, and we'd love to end up with him working at this hospital next year!

2. We celebrated our third anniversary this month.  It's crazy to realize just how quickly time has flown.  While I never thought it was possible, each year our relationship has gotten better and better.  It was pretty fun to recognize how far we've come and reminisce a little bit.  Of course, the reminiscing was done at one of our favorite restaurants where we ordered too much food but didn't regret it for a minute.  It was also nice to realize, though, that while it was a special day, it was still just one really good day surrounded by many, many other good days on either side.

1. At this point we can honestly say that we'll have a baby here any day now!  I'm a couple days past where "full term" is designated although my official due date is still a couple weeks away.  We are pretty much all ready to go at this point, too.  The nursery is ready (expect for hanging a few items), the hospital bag is packed, I've done loads of tiny baby laundry, and the last of the items I've ordered are almost here.  Now all that's left pretty much is dealing with the fact that I feel like a ticking time bomb and coping with the fact that the over planner in me is officially unable to do anything else at this point but wait!

Let Sleeping Dogs Lie

One of my very favorite things to do is watch my dogs sleep.  I know that sounds crazy, but they are seriously the most entertaining sleepers you will ever see.  Usually, when they are sleeping alone it's hilarious.

The positions they contort themselves into are pretty epic.  And, they frequently fall asleep in akward places, too.  I love it.

But, what I end up photographing most often are pictures of them sleeping together.  Recently, I was going through my phone and found waaaaay too many pictures of this sort.  Literally, I probably left out close to half of what I had from just the past few months.  So, without further ado, here are my favorite recent sleeping puppy photos--with a few classics thrown in the mix.

  

Aaannnd, Blogger wouldn't let me put them side by side, so I'm left with a really long post with over a dozen pictures, but they are all pretty adorable in my book.  At least I didn't write any commentary on them I suppose!



Mother's Day Thoughts

This is the first Mother's Day I've ever really felt was about me.  And, technically I'm not even a mother yet.  But, my wonderful husband has made a point of spoiling me beyond belief today...and really for the whole weekend.  I'm a pretty lucky person.

As I look forward so very, very much to the time when I am actually a mother, I definitely find myself thinking about my own mom a lot more.  She has played such a role in shaping who I am today.  I can never tell her just how grateful I am for this.

My mom is a passionate person.  She taught me to stand up for what I know to be right, to not be afraid to make a little noise, and to remain true to myself.  The two of us don't always agree, but I think that we have learned to disagree with each other very well when it happens.  We love to debate ideas and usually neither of us changes our mind, but we have learned how to see each other's point of view.

Mom also taught me the need for fun in my life.  She was frequently the one telling me to let loose, embrace the moment, and focusing on enjoying the journey instead of focusing on reaching the end too quick.  I can't count the number of times we've laughed until we've cried while gasping for breath.  Sometimes, she'll do things "just because" that always make a day better.

There have been so many good (and tough) lessons I've learned from my wonderful mother over the years.  As I've started on my own journey to motherhood I already find myself looking to her for more wisdom, knowledge, and maybe just a sympathetic ear sometimes.  Mom, I can't tell you how much I appreciate you becoming my mom...when you didn't have to be.  I love you!

Happy Birthday Daddy!

Most people I meet tend to think my Dad is a pretty serious guy.  Honestly, he looks pretty intimidating at 6 foot 6.  He doesn't smile with strangers and has a pretty intense stare with his icy blue eyes.  One glance and you'll never think about crossing him.  But, I've been fortunate enough to know another side of him.

When I was in kindergarten, he started giving us a "Rule of the Day."  My favorite of all time was "Don't put a rocket up your teacher's butt and then say, 'Teacher!  You should be a rocket scientist...you've got it within you!'"  At the age of 9 or so, this was pretty much the funniest thing I'd ever heard.

My Dad would frequently be the one to pick me up from my half day kindergarten, too.  He would stop and get a soda from a gas station on the way and write "RLM" on the lid knowing we shared these initials.  We would debate who the soda belonged to the whole way home and finally agree to share it. 

With so many daughters, my Dad loved working with the Boy Scouts during my preteen years.  I remember laughing at the stories of him hiking into the mountains in the middle of the night (after getting off an evening shift) to join them on an overnight...only to perch a short distance from camp and scare them with elk calls.

I'm so grateful to have had such an amazing Dad for all these years.  He's been my biggest supporter, greatest challenger, and has believed in me when no one else does.  I've never once seen him react in anger but often thoughtfully stood up for what he knew was right.  Only once, I saw him raise his voice with someone on the phone...and that was when the company was harassing me.  And, he has always known how to get a laugh out at just the right moment.

Happy Birthday Daddy!!  I love you!!

Three Years Ago...

It's hard to believe it's been three years since this day.  I can still remember so many tiny details.  It was pretty much the perfect day, and looking back, I wouldn't change a thing.

We were so, so very happy to be married.  The day was spent with a permanent smile on my face.  My cheeks started to hurt at points, but I couldn't stop smiling even when I tried.

We had a lot of fun with taking pictures.  Some of my very favorites are the out takes between all the posed shots for the story they tell.  There are some pretty classic ones in the collection.

Then, we headed of to an amazing reception.  It was the perfect reflection of the two of us, if I do say so myself.

We had so much fun with our family and friends that evening.  My only request with the cake was that Devin  not get it in my nose.  Obviously, it happened in the heat of the moment anyways.

After the cake was all cleaned away, we headed off on a wonderful honeymoon.

We didn't exactly sail right off into the sunset, but we did head into the Caribbean a couple days later!

I'm so very grateful to have the chance to look back on this day and remember it so fondly.  But, I love even more looking back at how wonderful these past three years have been.  I know it's said that no marriage is perfect, but most days I feel like ours is pretty darn close to it.  It's pretty easy to say that, though, when I'm married to such an amazing man.  No one can make me laugh harder, smile bigger, think clearer, or enjoy life better than him.  I love you Babe!