Life on the other side

Well we did it! We made it to life on the other side with Emmy. Today she is three weeks old and wow, have these 3 weeks been a learning experience. In honor of her three week birthday here are three things I have learned:


1. Who you marry defines what kind of life you will have. I have found that Tony is the single most selfless, patient, and loving man I know. He doesn't think twice about night time feedings, holding Emmy when she's crying in his arms for long periods of time, or walking the dog/making breakfast/feeding her a bottle/changing her diaper/and encouraging me all before 6am. God did so good when he brought him to me. I have fallen in love with this man harder and harder each day.



2. No book can compare you for being a new mom. You can reference Google 50 times in one day, talk to 5 different moms, read "your baby this week" again and again and you will still just have to go it alone in some cases. I've learned a little bit of fear is great-a lot of fear will cripple you. I'm FINALLY starting to learn that these things are all good guides, but sometimes you just have to back away and figure it out on your own.



3. No one can prepare you for what kind of love you will feel for your baby. It takes time to develop this relationship and I am completely ok with that. It is a mostly give (on my end) and take (on her end) relationship in the beginning and this will break your selfish ways one cry at a time. Tony and I will finally sit down to start a show we've recorded days ago and the second it starts so will she. It is a sharp contrast to life before Emmy, but we're learning not just to adjust, but to embrace it. Sometimes I watch her as she sleeps and just whisper to her how excited I am to know her and show her this world. We have so much to learn together as a family and I could not be more thrilled.

Bits and Pieces of Emmy's Room

We're still missing a few details like her teddy bear hammock above the twin bed that will hold all her stuffed animals and a few white floating shelves to hold family pictures, but that will all come with time. For the most part, it's done and we're happy with the outcome. We like how simple and calm it feels. No need for a bright and loud room for Ms. Emmy!

Einstein loves to jump all over this bed!

Changing station...

Tony and I fell in love with these little guys. When we were building our home we walked into Emmy's room one day and a huge white owl was flying around the room. We thought it was only fitting to have a few cute owls keeping an eye on her.

Cute art near the door.

Bed skirt made by my wonderful mom!

Her name painted by her daddy and I. Funny how the color of the room can change with certain angles.

34 Weeks & Updates

We're so close...I hope!

Life is getting extremely busy and I think this is God's way of preparing us for what is to come very soon! The holidays are almost here and this excites us! Tony is also a really big Christmas fan so it's fun to turn up the holiday music and just be in the season! Here are a few updates:

1. Baby room is nearly complete. We're just lacking a duvet cover, bedskirt, and a bookshelf. I'll try to post pictures soon.

2. Car seat is officially installed in my car. After a sad first time installation where both he and I were convinced she'd go flying at a stop sign break, it is now much safer and ready for her arrival.

3. We celebrate 3 years of marriage on 12/1. I can't believe it's already been 3 years. Time flies when you're having fun!

4. Einstein has been an excellent rest buddy. I'm starting to get really tired at the end of the day but with a long to do list I only break for a little bit. Einstein is right there resting on my lap as we watch stuff on the DVR.

5. Sleep has not been such a relaxing event. Between finding a comfy spot, staying on my side, and having to get up to the restroom it's definitely starting to be a challenge. It's pretty comical how Tony has to tuck me in with pillows behind me before we go to bed. The other night he shoved one so hard behind my back that I almost rolled off the bed! Between that and he having to roll me back on my side mid-night it's definitely awkward and I often laugh as I realize what he's doing. I feel like a beached whale!

6. Emmy is doing great! She's almost 5 pounds and yesterday we went in for a checkup and all looks great. I didn't see my doctor, but I did get to see the P.A. who told me she was pregnant as well. She and I had a fun exchange of how she's feeling at 14 weeks and what I felt at 14 weeks. She also snuck me a quick free sonogram to get a peek at Emmy. We couldn't see much because the machines they have in the exam rooms aren't so fancy, but it was nice to see the big strong body that's been kicking and punching me the past few weeks.

7. Christmas decorations are about to come out! We'll post pics of that too.

Here's a 34 week shot.

Is it Friday yet?

I just love me some weekends! This weekend was the first weekend Tony's been home in over a month. Before that he was traveling to San Antonio every Saturday and Sunday and a few Fridays for his test prep class for his exam. Here are a few updates in our world:

1. I'm 30 weeks this week and I'm feeling great! Aside from being super sleepy around 8:30 at night I'm doing good so far! I'm still riding the bike, lifting weights, and walking a bunch. We'll see how far I can make it with this...

2. Baby Emerson's room is a work in progress. Today we had crown molding installed in her room and in our room and it turned out great! My grandma was home to supervise since we were both working and we're very happy with the turnout.

3. Einstein is back to his Mini Schnauzer haircut! We buzz him short in the summer, but on Saturday he got his Schnauzer cut to grow out his skirt for Christmas time. He's ADORABLE and we love cuddling with him so much. He always comes back smelling so darn delicious from the groomers!

4. THE RANGERS ARE GOING TO THE WORLD SERIES!!!! Seriously, enough said. Freakin' FANTASTIC! I think Emmy's their good luck charm. The first time in the organization's history...coincidence...I think not...

5. I made this pie Saturday night and it was DELICIOUS! I just finished a slice while writing this. OMG if you like peanut butter, cream cheese, and chocolate you will LOVE this.

6. We had this for dinner Saturday night before the pie and it was wonderful as well. We will be having this again since it was SO easy and yummy.

7. It's time to teach Fall in Kindergarten and I LOVE IT! It's one of my favorite things to teach! :)

8. My mom's birthday is on Friday so we'll be celebrating that this weekend!

That's about all I have time for right now. Pictures/real post coming soon. Night everyone!

28 Weeks! :)

Here's a shot from Friday. Life in our house is super busy with Tony preparing for his Professional Engineer's exam at the end of October. Once (not if, but ONCE) he takes and passes the test, my baby will be a licensed Professional Engineer and will add the initials P.E. to his name. Holla!

We celebrated Tony's 27th birthday this weekend. This was his sixth birthday that we celebrated together as a couple and we had a special night out at a great restaurant. School has been flying by and I'm blessed to have some great kids and fabulous families this year. It makes it fun to go to work!

I'll update more soon. We just had a delicious and SUPER easy chicken pot pie recipe for dinner and I will definitely share. It was YUM! My 28 week appointment is tomorrow so any prayers would be greatly appreciated!

Happy Monday everyone! :)

Fried Corn!

Not deep fried corn, so healthier right?!?

Ha, this has become one of my FAVORITE sides! It's definitely more indulgent than plain corn but we have it sparingly. I found it here and have been in love ever since!

Here is what you'll need..

Ingredients:

• 2 cups frozen or canned corn
• 1/3 cup chopped onions
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1/3 cup heavy whipping cream
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

In a medium sized skillet over medium heat, add 1 tbsp butter and chopped onions. Allow onions to soften and turn transluscent. Add corn, 1 tbsp butter, milk, and salt and pepper (if using frozen corn, add it in first without the other ingredients to allow it to defrost and warm up a little). Saute over medium heat until milk has nearly evaporated. You can add some chopped parsley if you want (we skip this step).

We have this with meatloaf, ribs, fried chicken, or anything that has mashed potatoes! I hope you love it!

Changes around the house...

It has been quite a few weeks since we've updated our blog. School has started and I have a great group of kids! I have a great group of parents this year who are so excited for Tony and I and support us so that is great too! I realized last week just how much I love my job! I know that being a working mom will be a difficult balance that I may never fully achieve, but it has always been a challenge I have wanted to face. Everyone makes choices that work for their family and I'm just so glad that Tony and my family support my desire to go back to work and also raise a family. My grandmother is planning to watch Emerson when I go back to finish the school year and my mom will pick up next August from there on out. I know that my career is the most flexible one to be a working mom, so at least I will get my few months in the summer, winter break, spring break, and all major holidays to be a stay at home mom. We'll just say that things will always be interesting and busy in our home, which is just how we like them!

In the spare weekends we have (which haven't been much since we've been here, there and everywhere lately) we have been receiving so many blessings!

Here are a few changes around our house:

Our great friends Mary Ruth and Preston gifted us with a wonderful gift card that allowed us to get the pack and play we wanted. It's still in the box, but it's super cute and has owls all over it. Thank you guys!

My mom surprised us with a car seat for Miss Emerson. We hope to take her many fun places that we enjoy going to!

Tony's parents gifted us this fabulous swing! They came into town a few weekends ago and wanted to buy us a swing, so away we went and found this adorable one for a STEAL! After being on sale and using a 20% off coupon this one was so much less than any other we had on our registry! Tony's mom insisted on buying Emerson her first stuffed animal so that little one is resting where she will one day! The swing has been on in our living room from time to time so that Einstein can get used to the music, nature sounds, and gliding/rocking motions it makes.

Here is a BOB stroller we found on Craig's List for a great deal as well! We plan on using this as our sole stroller so we were excited to get this one! The car seat pops in with an adapter so Emerson will be riding around the neighborhood and town in style.

Emerson has been blessed so far with a fabulous wardrobe! My sister-in-law Brianne is responsible for most of this as she went on a shopping spree at Babies R Us. The picture doesn't do all her options much justice since most of these sets have 3 outfits on one hanger. My favorites are the A&M cheerleader outfit, A&M dress, and Texas Rangers onesies. This girl is already ready for our love of sports!

I'm feeling great right now! I'm still working out and lifting weights nearly nightly. We've been going on many walks at night and I'm still riding my bike. After the morning sickness finally went away (praise God!) I wanted to get right back to what I had been doing and I got my doctor's blessing. I am a little over 6 months along right now but I haven't taken a picture just yet. Here's an old one of me at 5 months.

Will update more later!