The Collins Family

I'm Letting Go....

2011-05-11T13:20:00.000-05:00

I really really wanted to catch up and document all the wonderful things I have missed posting about Wil Franklin. BUT...that obviously isn't happening...so...I'm letting go. I'm letting go of all my OCDness. I'm letting go of perfectionism. I'm letting go of the past and I am once again becoming a consistent blogger.

I realized that not having the time to catch up and waiting until I did meant that I was missing posting all these new and so fun things my sweet (read WILD) 2 and a half year old is doing. So here goes...

Wil Franklin you are just too fun to be around right now.

You wake up ready to go and you go until your eyes close for good at night.

You LOVE LOVE LOVE anything that has to do with baseball or golf. Your daddy says we might have to skip t-ball and go straight to coach pitch because you can't stand to hit a ball off a tee. You want DaDa to pitch it to you and you hit it so far! Dada walks in from work and goes straight to the backyard so you can hit the ball.

You are fantastic on an Iphone and your little kid computer the iXL. You amaze anyone that watches you and your focus/attention is incredible.

You have an obsession with gloves - winter ones, athletic ones, yard ones...you would wear "guubbs" all day every day.

You talk talk talk talk talk. Sometimes you have so much to say that you get frustrated because you can't get it all out fast enough. You sometimes repeat yourself several times trying to process all that you want to say.

Your new phrases are, "Mama, who dat?" (You ask me when the phone rings, when we see someone at church you don't know, when I talk to a stranger) "Mama, I do it."(You are sooooo independent) "Mama, I go outside." (You would live outside if you could...hot or cold)

You're obsessed with knowing names for things...like our neighborhood name, Gigi's neighborhood's name, our church name, people's names, movie names, etc.

You still won't eat any meat EXCEPT a small bite out of one Wendy's "chicky nuggin". Dada and Papa are so proud. You love veggies, fruit, yogurt, pickles, and anything gummy.

You are just like your mommy when you want what you want, when you want it and that is typically 3 seconds ago. I'm sorry, Love, patience will be something you always have to work on.

You LOVE to sing. Your favorite songs right now are Oh God you are my God, The Days of the Week Song, The "Freeze" Song, and the "Firework Song" (the Star Spangled Banner), and the Super Why theme song.

You know all the Bible stories in your Bible and can tell them back to us. Your "version" of Adam and Eve is the best!

Your favorite thing in the WORLD to do, though, is mow the grass with Dada. You pray at night so that you can "mow da gas" and help use "da beeyoer (blower)". You push your little mower right beside Dad's and stay with him the WHOLE time (front & back yard). It's hysterical.

Your mommy and daddy are so proud of you and love you more than you will ever know.

Life is so so good! We are so so blessed!

WELL HERE'S THE DEAL....

2011-02-04T23:10:00.000-06:00

I LOVE to blog!! And during Wil Franklin's first few months and up to his first year...it was so easy to get some time to blog. Wil Franklin slept twice a day for long periods of time and then when he was awake he would sit quietly on a blanket and just play. I had so much time to BLOG!!

THEN...

He got mobile!! We hit 1 and life went into a whirlwind. We go 90 to nothing, non stop, 24-7. AND I LOVE IT!! My sweet Wil Franklin is ALL BOY! He is so funny and so smart...the things that come out of his mouth now will CRACK me up! But...I digress...

Bottom line is my blogging has suffered. Majorly. My brother-in-law, Hays, was so kind to call attention to my last post in July that was about Christmas. Yeah, I know. Pretty sad.

So I got busy and then I got behind. See I am quite the perfectionist. I am OCD and organized and structured and almost to a fault can't do things out of order. So I couldn't just pick up where I left off and start blogging again, I felt like I needed to catch up.

Then I had this fight with blogger...couldn't figure it out with the new picture uploading thing and I don't like to do anything that I can't understand.

I know I know...excuses, excuses. So I am going to try to, no, I am going to pick back up with my blogging. I'll do some quick updates of 2010 and then get crackin on 2011.

Love yall...

DECEMBER 2009

2010-06-14T15:55:00.001-05:00

December was a great month...we were preparing for Christmas just like everyone else. We were also getting ready for our new little cousin, Olivia to be born. Brooke was having several showers and getting so excited.

Also I got to be a part of BEST GIFT at Pinelake for the first time. It was wonderful. Every other year, Pinelake does their Christmas program for around 15,000 folks. It was AMAZING! I had so much fun.

Here was our Christmas Card photo this year...

Wil Franklin is the CUTEST! HA! We also had a lot of fun with decorations this year, because he was INTO all of them! So we really had to pair down from our norm. BUT Wil Franklin did get his own Christmas tree again with the ornaments that my friends made for him at one of my showers...

Then came Christmas Eve with the Collins Family...

We decided to spend the night at our home for the first time and have Christmas morning/Santa by ourselves since this was the first Christmas Wil Franklin would somewhat understand. It was really sad for me and happy for me all at the same time. Here's our Christmas Eve traditional photo before bedtime...

Matt and I did have fun settin up all Wil Franklin's loot, though...for Santa that is...=) (notice the Mt Dew)

We woke him up really early so we could get to Mimi and Dadaddy's house in Ecru. He was still kinda asleep but I think he was liking what he was seeing...

After playing with our toys for a little bit, then we got in the car and headed North. We were so excited to see Aunt WhitWhit and Uncle D and Mimi and DaDaddy...

Christmas PJs in front of the Tree...classic!

December was a blast and we had a GREAT time saying goodbye to 2009...

Next up HAPPY NEW YEAR, OLE MISS IN DALLAS?, AND WHAT?? I TURNED 30??? AND OLIVIA WAS BORN...JANUARY WAS A BUSY MONTH!

UM..WELL HERE WE GO...

2010-05-24T00:10:00.000-05:00

Wil Franklin's First Birthday PARTY!!!

It was Thanksgiving Day, November 26, 2009 and the family was going to get together anyway, so we just made it into his family birthday party. He was a little on the sick side, recovering from RSV so it was perfect that it was just family. We had a great day! I could NOT believe I had a one year old!

I had Dream Cakes make his birthday cakes. His smash cake (big bird) was a replica of Matt's First Birthday Cake. It was made from a picture of Matt's party. His mom and Gran loved it. It was too funny to watch him with that cake. He LOVED playing in it, then Gigi gave him a bite and it was all over! He tore into it..so fun!

THEN...we had a meltdown...sugar rush I guess...

He had to tell DaDaddy all about it...

Then we had to have a breathing treatment...

Then the big cake came out for all the adults. The giraffe has kinda been our signature so we stuck with that for our cake theme...

Here are all the people that came to our party...

Mimi and DaDaddy

Gigi and Papa

WhitWhit and Uncle D

Aunt Brookie and Uncle Hays (and Olivia)

And my Great Grandmother, Gran

Our family shot..

It was such a great day and we had so much celebrating the wonderful year that God gave us with Wil Franklin. He has made all of our lives so much more wonderful.

November Catch Up

2010-02-14T13:33:00.001-06:00

I have definitely been researching this whole blog thing and figuring out how to make it easier, better, cooler, whatever. I’ve started using Windows Live Writer to see if that makes it easier to post…any comments/tips would be greatly appreciated!

So November was wonderful. It was Wil Franklin’s birthday month, the beginning of the holidays, lots of fun!

Here was a “photo shoot” that Wil Franklin and I had one day. He is 11 months, almost 12 months old here. He can walk, but he was LOVING crawling in the grass. He had so much fun.

Notice the gash on his nose…that was just one of the many bobos we’ve gotten so far…this one was from the corner of a table. It scared mommy to death! Wil Franklin only cried for a minute, but mommy cried for 30 minutes.

A couple of days later we had another “photo shoot” while we were eating some corn…totally trips me out to watch him eat! I love it!

So here’s this post.

Next up Happy Thanksgiving and Happy Birthday!!!!

OCTOBER CATCHUP

2009-11-24T07:00:00.012-06:00

October was a HUGE month! We had so many wonderful things happen in October. Hold on tight because here we go...(WARNING: LOTS OF PICTURES!)

We started October with a trip to the Pumpkin Patch (well the Farmer's Market) and let Wil Franklin help pick out some pumpkins and mums for our house. We had a BLAST! I mean look at that baby!

We also had a playdate with one of my best friends Amanda's little boy Holden. Holden is like 3 weeks younger than Wil Franklin and we are just sure they are going to be best of buds. Can't you tell from this photo? Heehee!

Also in October we had Wil Franklin's Dedication at my dad's church. All the families were there and it was a WONDERFUL day! It was perfect and Wil Franklin was the cutest thing ever. We had the dedication then lunch at Castle Hill in Oxford, a gorgeous bed and breakfast.

Wil Franklin at church waiting for his "turn"...

Opening his sweet gifts...

Jumping with Gigi...

This is my second outfit today since I couldn't walk around in my beautiful gown...

We are so proud of our sweet boy and so happy to publically dedicate him to our Lord...

With Dadaddy and Mimi...

The whole Collins Fam...

Uncle Haysie and Aunt Brookie...

Uncle D and Whit Whit...

Mommy and Daddy...

I mean have you seen anything cuter???

With Great Grandmother, Gran and Great Godmother, Jessie...

And then there was Halloween. This was our first Halloween. Now let me just stop right here and give you my thoughts on Halloween. I have no problem dressing up in "fun" costumes, getting together with friends, and letting children walk around to houses and get some free candy. However, I do have issues with scary costumes, dark costumes, ugly decorations, and the term "trick or treat". So that's my deal...

Our first costume was, what else? A Giraffe...

The night before Halloween, the Country Club had a little ditty where they had a buffet and a few games set out for the kids. We went and had a great time. Wil Franklin really loved the bucket of water that was supposed to be used for bobbing...we just splashed in it. He did not, however, love the lady that was dressed up like a witch. It was the first time that something has scared him like that where he was afraid to leave my arms. I don't blame him, she was pretty scary looking! Sweet baby...

Then on Halloween we went to get candy from Gigi and Papa and Mr. and Mrs. Herring...

Gigi had me some Animal Crackers that I LOVE!

Then we went to MaeMae's house (my friend Mamie and Zach and Grant). Lots of folks were there including Kristi and Keller and Lily Kathryn. We all walked the kids around to get candy. Lily Kathryn is 2 and Grant is a few months younger than Wil Franklin. We had a great time...

Walking up to a door...

Mommy, Wil Franklin, Grant (a precious alligator), and MaeMae (Mamie)...

Wil Franklin LOVES baby Grant.

Me and KK (Kristi)...

The cutest poodle ever, Lily Kathryn...

We also took Wil Franklin to his first Ole Miss game. It was too much fun and he loved every minute of it. I thought he might get scared of the noise and all the people, but he didn't. He was jumping up and down and smiling from ear to ear. I'll have to do a post on that by itself. I have some GREAT pics.

Here is just a cute shot of Wil Franklin from October...He is 10 months old in this photo. He is about to touch the tv stuff which is a big no no and he KNOWS it. But he is about to do it anyway.

Trying Mommy out in my Sunday duds...

November is a big month...I turn ONE!!! Stay tuned for some Thanksgiving/Birthday FUN!!!

JULY, AUGUST, & SEPTEMBER CATCHUP

2009-11-22T13:46:00.000-06:00

July was a GREAT month. We were recouperating from Whitney and Duane's wedding and Mr. Jan and Mrs. Gail let us take my mom and dad to the beach to have a relax and do nothing week after the stress of the wedding. It was over the July 4th weekend, so we had fun eating, swimming, and watching the fireworks...MY FAVORITE! And Wil Franklin wasn't scared AT ALL of the noise or bright colors. YAY!

Mimi and WF at dinner one night.

Dadaddy and WF watching the fireworks...

We also got to go to a July 4th event at my Uncle Dan's house where my granddaddy Robertson and my great Aunt Rene (short for Irene). Here is Wil Franklin with his Great Granddaddy Rob and Great Great Aunt Rene...

Here are a few other fun shots from July...

This is Wil Franklin in the gown that I bought when I was trying so desperately to have a baby. I think it was a year and a half before I got pregnant. It says I know the plans I have for you. It just spoke to me when I saw it and I burst into tears. I bought it for whenever I would have a baby.

Needless to say...I LOVE THIS PICTURE!!!

Also in July, Wil Franklin moved to his big boy High Chair!

AND Daddy took Wil Franklin to a Mississippi BRaves baseball game all by himself. That was also a first!

August came in and FLEW by! Matt turned 30! Wil Franklin was 8 months old. It was HOT in Mississippi! We had a great month, though. We went on the Collins Family summer trip to Amelia Island and had a wonderful time. Here's Wil Franklin on the beach...

I'll have to do a whole post on that trip because we have some great family photos on the beach.

Here are a few fun photos from August.

Wil Franklin went to another Braves game...

We moved from gowns at bedtime to PJs in August.

LOVED this pictures of him in his PJs...

August was when he started pulling up on the furniture and learning how to stand on his own. He was a master at crawling!

I gave him blueberries for the first time in one of those fruit nets where he can't get choked. I think he liked them...what do you think?

September a lot of fun. God answered some major prayers for us during this month. Maybe I'll blog about those oneday, but it was an amazing month.

Wil Franklin got to go to his first football game this month. He was 9 months old and we took him to Delta STate for Pig Pickin. It was so much fun to take him to Cleveland and introduce him to all our friends there.

We stayed with our good friend Roane and Libbi Logan and their two sons Nathan (5) and Thomas (a month younger than WF). Wil Franklin loved his new friend.

He also took his first step by himself while we were at their house. He had LOTS of witnesses. My big boy is growing up!

At the end of September, we went to visit my Granddaddy Rob and we got to see some new kitty cats that were born out in his barn. Wil Franklin didn't quite know what to think. It was too cute!

September is also the month that my child became EXTREMELY mobile. He was fast and could get around so quickly! One day I was chasing him around the couch and one time around he just didn't come back around. So I walked around to see what he was doing and he had gotten into the plant behind the couch and got a handful of dirt...and of course it went straight into his mouth! In like 3 seconds!

Here is the little dirt eater with the evidence all over his mouth!

We also got to spend a day with my cousin Danielle and her two boys Hayden & Luke. Wil Franklin LOVES those "big kids". He got to play in thier car and said, "Mama, I have GOT to get me one of these!" (said like Will Smith in Men in Black). Not really but he said it with his eyes. =)

We had a great summer and a great beginning to our fall. Stay tuned for October and our first experience with pumpkins...and Halloween!

July

2009-11-18T10:00:00.001-06:00

In July we went to Lily Kathryn Watts's 2nd Birthday party! Lily Kathryn is Kristi (one of my best friends)and Keller Watts's little girl. It was really adorable how they had it decorated and LKW got a too cute little pink car!

It was also the first time that Kristi, Mamie (Kristi's sister and also one of my best friends), and I got to take a picture together with all three of our children.

Ok Here's The Truth...

2009-11-17T21:36:00.000-06:00

I have been a bad blogger! I could get on here and whine and fuss about being so busy and just not making my blog a priority, but that wouldn't be the truth. The truth is I was MAD!!!

MAD AT BLOGGER!!!!

Something happened with the way that you upload photos and the way you drop and drag them when you are creating your post. I was frustrated because I couldn't figure out how to do it. Mad at myself, mad at blogger, mad at others that figured it out and were smarter than me...just mad.

BUT I finally surpressed my anger and realized that I was missing out on recording all the special times with my child. It was as if i had abandoned my diary...

So...last night I spent like 3 hours and figured out a way to get around the problem. Not really fix it, but a "new" solution.

All that to say...I'MMMMMMM BAAAAAAAACK!

Check out the post below that I started and never finished until last night.

Also check back regularly because I will blog about all the major events that happened between July and November. Can you believe I am about to have a ONE YEAR OLD???

It's good to be back...I've missed you!

Wil Franklin - 8 Months Old

2009-11-17T16:46:00.000-06:00

My sweet baby is getting soooooooooooooo big!!! It seems like every day he is doing something new and growing bigger and accomplishing more. Every stage is more fun than the previous. I have not made time to blog as much as I should have. It just seems that he is changing so much my head is spinning and I am NOT able to keep up. So this might not be a very interesting post for everyone else, but I want to get things down so that I can remember them for years to come.

8 Month Old Stats:

Physical: We have not been to the doctor since he was 6 months old (16lbs), so I am not sure his size. I am sure he is over 17 lbs by now...he is so much bigger. He is just now getting into size 6 month clothes. He has CHUNKY CHUNKY little legs and a little belly that pokes out (he still has a little bit of an outie). His eyes are still huge and a beautiful blue. He smiles ALL the time and is one of the happiest babies in the world.

Teeth: Wil Franklin got his two bottom teeth first, then his two top middle teeth. Now (just started this week) he is getting the two top teeth on either side of the two middle teeth...making our total tooth count: 6!

Emotional: Wil Franklin is very much a studier. He is not really cautious, he just wants to study everything and figure it out. He can have such a solomn face and stare you down. Then when he gets comfortable, he will grin and give you the greatest smile in the whole world. He is very much a momma's boy right now. He will go to almost anybody if mommy is right there in sight. He has started reaching for me or reaching for his daddy...who he LOVES! He has a funny little fake cry that he does when he is frustrated or mad. But when he gets hurt or is really upset, he does this cry where he sucks in a lot of air and holds his breath. Then the tears come and he SCREAMS. He is very much a snuggle bug and loves to fall asleep in my lap while I am singing to him. (Our fav songs of late are the Jesus Medley - Jesus,There's just something about that name, Oh how I love Jesus, Jesus LOves Me). He just moved into his bedroom and his big bed last week and is doing great. He is not sleeping through the night again yet, but we can attribute most of that to teething.

Abilities: At the end of last month (July) while he was still 7 months old, he started getting up on all fours and rocking back and forth. Then he would put one hand out and one knee out in a crawling motion and then faceplant. NOW he is totally crawling. He can get from one side of the room to the other in no time flat. That really just happened this week...yesterday to be exact. He is so mobile and it is scaring mom and dad. Before he got completely mobile, he was figuring out how it worked. One day I sat him down on the floor in the living room on a blanket. He got off the blanket onto the hardwood floor and was sliding because he still had his PJ pants on. He figured out he could slide backwards by pushing up on his hands and managed to get all the way under our table in the corner. I walked back into the room and couldn't find him. I freaked a little bit...then I saw him in the corner. It was way too funny for me.

He is also pulling up to a standing position from a sitting position. He flips and flops all around and doesn't stay still. Changing his diaper is quite an experience.

He's eating extremely well and loving solid food. He does have his favorites right now (sweet potatoes, carrots, applesauce, pears, bananas, prunes, and rice cereal). He is a little resistent to a new taste and likes to take it slow to new foods. He is still nursing and doing great with that. I am making most all of his babyfood right now and everything that he has put into his mouth has been organic. I know it won't always be like that, but hopefully for the first year it will be.

Favorites: Wil Franklin LOVES his Little Einstein Exersaucer (which we call the poopy chair because he poops while he is in there without fail), his johnny jump up, his little red wagon, the roll and crawl ball, his cow bell rattle, his plastic keys, and his purple elephant.

In the morning when I get him out of his crib, he has the greatest smile. He is so happy to see me. We change our diaper, eat, and play a little. He is eating cereal and fruit in the morning time after he nurses. Then he takes a pretty good morning nap. He usually falls asleep by himself, but sometimes I have to sing to him and rock him a little. He sleeps with a passy and snuggled onto his lovey. The rest of our day varies due to what we have going on. Anywhere between 5 and 7pm he eats a vegetable and sometimes another fruit. Then it's BATHTIME!!! Wil FRanklin LOVES the water. He splishes and splashes and kicks his feet. He doesn't mind water in his face at all. He likes to suck on his cloth and pour water out of a cup and chase around his water toys. While we are getting dressed for bed, we do all the sounds of all the animals. Then we tell our Mr. Giraffe and Baby Giraffe goodnight. We say our prayers, nurse, and go to bed. EVERY NIGHT WITHOUT FAIL, as I am laying him down I say, "Mommy loves you {kiss}, Daddy loves you {kiss}, and Jesus loves you {kiss}. Sleep tight my baby and have sweet dreams {kiss}. I love you." Then I lay him down and lay my hands over him and pray protection over him. It is my favorite time of the day.

He is very vocal and can scream, yell, grunt, and talk. He says dadadadadad, yayayayyayayaya, and is now starting to say raaaraaaraaaraaa. Matt and I think he is trying to say Rags. I will be so upset if he says Rags before Momma! Ha!

He is such a ticklemonster and is very ticklish especially under his arms and on the bottom of his feet. He likes to be startled and gets very tickled when he is. He has the cutest laugh when he belly laughs and you know he thinks it is very funny.

I am sure I'll remember more later, but this is a good start to get down some of the things that are making this 8th month so much fun and so special.

I love you, Wil Franklin and am so thankful to "have" you.

Keep scrolling down for 2 new posts!

2009-07-10T18:45:00.001-05:00

Catch Up...and way too many photos

2009-07-10T18:43:00.000-05:00

Here's the Long Story Short...

Wil Franklin had his first booboo...he fell and bumped his head and got a pretty good goose egg...I think mommy cried more than Wil Franklin. Can you see it on the left?

Wil Franklin started solid foods. We LOVE sweet potatoes, carrots, applesauce, and pears. We HATE sweet peas!!!

Matt had his first FATHER's DAy. Look how sweet!!!

Me and my daddy on Father's Day...(This was the day after Whitney's wedding...we are ALL exhausted)!

And then there was Whitney's Wedding...

Disclaimer: these photos are ALL out of order. Which really stresses this OCD girl out. I am so frustrated with Blogger right now I don't know what to do! But here they are anyway...I'll try to let you know what they are.

At the Rehersal Dinner...

At Whit's Family Lingerie shower...

Before the wedding...
AFter the wedding...hugging my little baby sister goodbye...I was so stinkin emotional...

At Whit's Recipe Shower with one of the Bridesmaids from Chattanooga...my new baby sister Hannah...

At the WEdding REception with our cousin Kristen

Me and the Jackson girls Bridesmaids: Carly and Tracie...I know I am super white and the fat bridesmaid...ha!

Rehersal Dinner:

Wedding REception
MOre pics...

Wil Franklin was the CUTEST ring baby there ever was. My dad pulled him down in the wagon and he dropped off the pillow to the other Ring Bearer and then he was wheeled out...I LOVED it. He kinda stole the show...until the bride came down, I guess...

Whit and Uncle D leaving the wedding...

These are all photos from facebook so sorry if they are not that clear. As soon as I get copies of photos, I'll post some better ones. Whitney was the most beautiful bride. I have never seen her look more beautiful...and everything came off without a hitch. It was wonderful!

Catch Up Post 1: Wil Franklin at the Beach

2009-07-10T18:15:00.000-05:00

Ok so apparently you are not able to move your pictures around anymore when you are composing your blog...so until I figure out how to upload exactly where I want the photos, I'll just have to do several short posts. Sorry! Not my first choice! If anyone knows how to fix it or override it somehow, please let me know..it is MOST frustrating!

We took Wil Franklin to the beach for the first time with Brooke and Hays. Here are some of the photos...isn't he just the cutest thing????

I'm BAAAAAAAAAACK!!!

2009-06-28T00:23:00.001-05:00

I have been working on a very long post to catch you all up on what has been going on. It has been the busiest month of possibly my life. SO many things have happened that are blog worthy. I have uploaded all the photos, but blogger is being stupid and I am having some posting problems.

I'm working on it, so stay tuned.

Chattanooga & Mother's Day!

2009-05-16T22:29:00.006-05:00

FIRST OF ALL....NEWS FLASH...WIL FRANKLIN HAS TWO TEETH!

The two front bottom center teeth have peeked through the skin. My lil man is growing up. Poor thing he has been in so much pain.

So Whitney had two wedding showers in Chattanooga last weekend, plus it was her birthday. Wil Franklin, Mom, Dad and I headed up there to be with her. We had a great time although it was a VERY long trip for Wil Franklin. Check out his face below...

Mom teaches 2nd grade and they read a book about Flat Stanley who gets flattened by a bulletin board, but he was ok. So his parents decide to stick him in an envelope (because he fits) and mail him to all these cool places. So all the kids in her class colored a "Flat Stanley" and mailed them to their relatives and asked them to send back pictures of places where he had been. So Whitney is holding Wil Franklin and Flat Stanley in this photo because we took him to Chattanooga...

Here's Mom and Wil Franklin at one of the showers...

And then....It was Mother's Day! Matt came and met us in Ecru to be there for Mother's Day. He was too sweet for my FIRST. I had a card from him, a card from Wil Franklin, AWESOME gold and pearl earrings from Junikers, a corsage, a candle from Wil Franklin and my daddy gave me some roses. It was a great day. Here we are at church.

Me and my little man...thank you thank you for making me a mommy! I have loved every minute of being your mommy!

Me and all my loot!

Me and my mommy...I hope to be just like her...she's the BEST!!!

Wil Franklin with Mimi and Granddaddy...

Wil Franklin's CUTE outfit...I have been dying for him to wear this outfit. I love it...and check out his too cute little shoes...

And for your viewing pleasure...cereal shots...I LOVE cereal time. He always looks too funny! This time I gave him the spoon to hold and suck on...funny!

Whitney had a Lingerie shower today that was so nice and such a sweet group of girls. Can't wait to share photos of that with you. It was a little hard for me to buy lingerie for my baby sister.

Tomorrow is mine and Matt's 7 Year anniversary. What a wonderful seven years. Matt I love you more than life. You are a wonderful husband, the best daddy, and I am so happy to be spending this lifetime with you. Happy 7 Years! Special post about my sweet husband coming soon.

Easter 2009 & New Babies!!!

2009-05-02T00:04:00.006-05:00

This year was obviously Wil Franklin's first Easter. I was so excited because Easter is my FAVORITE!! Easter was always so special in my family. We never did the Easter Bunny or things like that. We always knew exactly what we were celebrating. We did get candy and we had an occasional egg hunt, but mostly my parents focused on giving us a lamb every year to remember how Christ was the sacrificial lamb for us. Sometimes it was a stuffed lamb, sometimes a chocolate lamb, sometimes lamb jewelry...it was different every year. I couldn't wait to give Wil Franklin his first lamb and carry on the tradition. We had a great weekend with my parents and then headed back to Jackson to spend Easter dinner with Matt's family.

Here's a shot of Wil Franklin in one of my favorite outfits...way too cute!

Easter Sunday Morning...
Granddaddy and Wil Franklin. He took him up to the pulpit during the service and did the prayer while he was holding him...way too cute!

And we had to have one silly bunny photo...
Easter was great! Only we missed Aunt Whit Whit being there for Sunday morning. Maybe next year.

Also this week two special people in our lives have had baby boys. Lee and Crystal Stringer, our small group leaders, had Deacon Joseph Stringer on Wednesday.

Then on Thursday one of my best friends, Mamie Courtney Taylor, and her husband Zach had Grant Charles Taylor. I got to be there when he was born...it was SO awesome. Both of these girls did excellent and mommies and babies are doing great! I haven't had my photo shoot with Deacon yet, but here is a snapshot of me and baby Grant. LOve him to pieces!

I can't believe how little they are compared to my big boy Wil Franklin. It was just yesterday that he was that small! I think he is growing up too fast. AHHHHHH!!!! Anyway...congrats to these two families. Your babies are just beautiful and we are so happy for you.

Happy Thursday!!!

2009-04-23T23:49:00.001-05:00

Some More Firsts

2009-04-19T01:07:00.004-05:00

Dressing up for Our First Sunday at Pinelake...

Our First Trip to the Zoo...

He LOVED the Zoo! It was a fun day! Next post...EASTER!!!

Bout Time for an Update

2009-04-16T10:47:00.000-05:00

Life has been going good here lately...busy but good. We had a wonderful first Easter with Wil Franklin and the families. I will have to post photos...he was too cute!

We are weighing in at 14 pounds now and are very very heavy! We are growing out of all of our clothes. We are working on a schedule but it seems we are one step forward and two steps back but we aren't giving up! This week has flown by and Whitney's wedding is just right around the corner. I can't believe it is halfway through April.

I'll post some photos as soon as I get a chance and Wil Franklin's 4 month pics so you can see how he's grown and some of the milestones he is hitting.

Until later...

An Update

2009-04-02T16:15:00.003-05:00

We have been so very busy here lately. We have been to my mom and dad's, I have done a few things at work, we started cereal, and we got a new toy!

Here's Mrs. Bert who keeps me sometimes. I love her and I fell asleep in her lap the other day.

Here is one of my mom's tulips that are growing in her yard. She is so proud of them.

Here is our first time of cereal....

I LOVE my new toy...

A Funny!

2009-03-24T08:00:00.000-05:00

OK...so when Wil Franklin was born, everyone was like..."What a little Matt!!!" Now that he is getting chunkier and his face is getting rounder..everyone is saying that he is starting to look like me. (I'll try to take that as a compliment and choose to not associate the word "chunky" to have anything to do with me.) What is funny is that I looked exactly like my daddy's baby photos when I was a baby. So in a way...Wil Franklin looks like my daddy's photos. Here are two of my dad's baby photos and you can kinda see how Wil Franklin favors him. FUnny!

A Happy Baby and a Happy Mommy!

2009-03-23T23:08:00.004-05:00

Here are a few photos from today after we left the hospital. We are so thankful we left with a happy baby! We turn 4 months on Thursday.

I'll update on our stats after our well baby visit to Dr. Sethi on Thursday afternoon.

God is so good!!!

2009-03-23T13:54:00.000-05:00

Praise the Lord for He answers prayers! We got to the appt and they did an ultrasound first before the proceedure to compare from last time. Wil Franklin's right kidney was completely healed of any dilitation and his left had gone down significantly. They didn't even do the proceedure!!!! We can handle an ultrasound anyday! Praise the Lord for He is great and He answers prayers!

We go back in a year to follow up on the left kidney but until then we are finished. Thankyou for your prayers!

Prayer Request

2009-03-21T16:21:00.002-05:00

Monday we go back to Dr. Harmon the pediatric urologist. We will have our second and hopefully final proceedure to determine that Wil Franklin's kidneys are okay.

Poor little fella will have to have an IV of radioactive material and they will watch it flow through his body and out through his urine. He won't be sedated so I am not sure how all this will work or how long it will take. We go at noon.

We have already determined that the anatomy of his kidneys look normal, but now we have to determine that they function properly. We really feel like this is just a precaution and they will find everything to look normal. Should they find something, it will mean surgery.

Please keep baby and mommy and daddy in your prayers. I think that it is harder on us to have to watch him go through it...but I know it is going to be NO FUN for him. Poor thing!

I'll update on the blog the results of that proceedure as soon as we are finished on Monday afternoon.

Watch Me Grow!!!

2009-03-19T08:00:00.002-05:00

One Month

Two Months

Three Months

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!!

2009-03-17T22:27:00.002-05:00

Erin Kate...this one is for you!!!

Hope you all had a very wonderfully GREEN day!

Well...what can I do?

2009-03-15T20:09:00.000-05:00

Today Matt and I needed to go to Kroger and decided to take Wil Franklin. I wore the baby bjorn and carried him around while Matt pushed the cart. Several people commented on how cute he was or big he looked holding his head up etc...

So by the time we got to the checkout counter, I was a very proud mama. At our lane, there were two teenage girls working together. They started gushing about the baby. I said...very proudly and nonchalantly...it's his first trip to Kroger and... very foolishly added... well actually my water broke at Kroger so this is kinda a special place. They looked at each other and said, "Oh you're THAT lady!" I said you know about me? And they said we ALL know about you! Quickly deflating my pride!

That's right folks. I am officially infamous at Kroger and am thoroughly embarrassed!!!! I imagined the worst at that moment! They might even use me as an example in their training..."when unexpected things happen!" Oh gosh! How awful!!!

Let's just say that I think Matt will be grocery shopping for a while...or maybe I'll drive down to Brookshire's for a few months!

Small Update-Growth Spurt

2009-03-15T06:31:00.000-05:00

So I truly believe Wil Franklin hit a growth spurt. He has all of a sudden gotten heavier and some of his clothes got too little almost overnight. But most of all he has been so fussy which is not like my normal child and the only thing that works to calm him is nursing.

This could not have come at a worse time because after the wedding weekend of the 28th, I didn't have any milk stored anymore and I kinda lost my production supply since I was away from him so long. It has been a hard two weeks because he's been hungry and I have had to be by him non-stop to feed...almost every hour. Nights have been bad too...and you can forget the schedule we were on before the wedding.

The good news is that I think there is light at the end of this tunnel for us. My milk seems to be back in enough volume to fill him up and I still have some left over to pump and slowly rebuild my reserve. He seems to be getting full and going longer than an hour or two between feedings. Yay! And our nights have been better. Instead of up every two hours he slept from 9pm to 2:30am the last two nights. Then he goes back down until 5 or 6am...totally doable! He's acted happier too. Now we just have to rework our eat/play/nap schedule during the day and we'll be in business.

I think mimi (my mom) is coming tonight or tomorrow for a few days during her spring break...yay! So all in all I think we'll make it!

Gotta go... Baby is finished eating.

iPhone Photos

2009-03-12T17:50:00.003-05:00

Here are some photos from my iPhone. I have it with me all the time and catch all the small moments. Here are some of my favorites from the phone...

I can stick my whole hand in my mouth... I can finally catch that stinkin bird...

Now it is on!

It's the green froggy towel...I am so sleepy that I can't hold my eyes open...

After church one sunday...LOVE to kick those legs...

I am so big in my bumbo seat...
I LOVE LOVE LOVE my giraffe lovey...I have to have it to sleep...
I also love my paci...

2009-03-12T13:08:00.001-05:00

Scroll down for FIRSTS post...

Monday Small Update

2009-03-09T15:16:00.000-05:00

Last night my dad came and spent the night with us on his way to Chattanooga for a conference. He did his radio show from our house this morning and it was too funny! He was in bed with a big ole microphone and a laptop...technology is too cool...just sad I don't get most of it...way over my head!

Wil Franklin and I ventured out to the drugstore and babies r us and Newks today. Now he is attempting a nap. He fell asleep while he was eating which is NOT good but at this point I'll always take sleep. We just can't seem to get back on our schedule. Wonder when that will happen. I am working on two new posts with photos...firsts and holidays...both you should enjoy...and the delivery story-part three finally loaded. See it below.

Some Of Our Firsts...

2009-03-07T22:57:00.008-06:00

Here are some of my firsts...

First Time in my Cradle...

First Bath...

First Smile on Camera...

First Time in Boppy Seat...

First Snow...

First Time at the Doctor...

First Time in my Stroller...

2009-03-07T22:56:00.002-06:00

Scroll down to see Delivery Story Part Three...

Small Updates

2009-03-07T04:14:00.000-06:00

So... encouraged by my loyal reader Erin Kate, I am going to try to post small updates about what is going on in our lives and play catch up in ling posts and with pictures whenever I can. It has not been easy to find time to sit and upload photos. I can post text from my iphone but not photos. They say though that is coming soon and that will change my world. You should see the photos on my phone!

I knoe My blog has seriously suffered. In fact I tried to post part three four different times and the photos wouldn't load so I gave up.

This week we recouped from doing my aunt kathy and new uncle tj's wedding. Wonderful week and weekend, but it wore us out! This weekend is my friend Mamie's baby shower and Sunday is my granddaddy's 90th birthday party. I don't think we are driving back up for that though...we just got back on schedule and are still so exhausted from last week.

Amanda, Emma, Holden, Wil Franklin and I went to Spring Market yesterday and got several cute things. It was about half the size of mistletoe and about half as good but still worth the effort. Wil Franklin rode in the baby sling for a while and then in a baby bjorn for the first time and did wonderful!

Will try to post photos soon...it is getting easier now that we are getting on a schedule. Wil Franklin is SOOO big you won't believe it...although he didn't hold a candle to chunky monkey Holden yesterday! We are still a little boy but we are definitely growing!

Until later...

Delivery Story - Part III

2009-02-23T12:36:00.020-06:00

The day after Wil Franklin was born was Thanksgiving. All of Matt's family was in town, so it worked out perfectly. They all got to come by. We missed going to the Robertson family gathering, but knew we would see them Christmas.

Baby boy...one day old...

Our Second Family Photo...

We had several visitors at the hospital that day (mostly family) and they also brought us some really good Thanksgiving food. So Matt and I didn't have to miss Gran and Jessie's dressing!!! YUM!

Gran with her Great Grandson...

Gigi and Papa with Wil Franklin

Granddaddy and Wil FranklinUncle Haysie and Aunt Brookie with Wil Franklin
Aunt Cathy and cousin Sydney
Uncle D and Aunt Whit Whit with Wil Franklin

Friday was the Egg Bowl day and Wil Franklin got to watch his first Ole Miss football game with his daddy. He is going to have to split his "fanship" between Ole Miss and Delta State because as you can see he was immediately introduced to the Fighting Okra!

We felt so blessed to have so many wonderful visitors come by the hospital.

Sweet baby boy on Friday...

Saturday we knew we were coming home from the hospital, but we got to watch the Delta State football game on tv while we waited around to be released. Matt was uberexcited about that and so Wil Franklin got to watch his second football game with Daddy.

Then Dr. Tucker came by to see us...

Mom helped me get Wil Franklin all dressed and ready to go home. He looked so very cute in his coming home outfit, even though it swallowed him!

Our first car ride...

Walking into the house for the first time...

Taking off all our official hospital stuff...

More visitors on Saturday night...our KK and our MaeMae...

We loved bringing our beautiful baby boy home. It was the best day! This will conclude our Delivery Story but stay tuned for FIRSTS!

Delivery Story - Part II

2009-02-02T21:45:00.006-06:00

Between 5:00pm and 7:30pm:

I think we were all just giddy. Mom tried to turn three times on Lakeland before the actual turn to the hospital. Matt met us there and actually beat us there. We walk into the front lobby and up to the desk and I say, "my water broke and I am meetin gmy doctor here". The lady says hold on just a minute...have a seat...I'll call labor and delivery. I tell her that I really don't want to "take a seat" because my water is still gushing out on the floor...I have a puddle behind me every where I go...my shoes were even filling up. I know that is a lot of info, but I want you to get the picture. The lady rings L&D and they tell me to just wait a few minutes. Mom is not happy. She asks the lady about some towels and she said, "oh they will be up here in just a minute with a wheel chair." So I just stand there. Finally a lady slowly walks up the hallway and says why don't you come in here and we will sign you in and get you registered. Mind you I have already filled out all of the paperwork to be "registered". So I go in this little room and she makes me sit down and she calls out all my information to make sure it is correct. Again...I am still gushing water all over the place. I tell the woman that I am sorry and can I do this from my room and she goes, "oh it is no big deal because we will get housekeeping to clean it up". My mom looks at the woman and says, "I am not worried about your carpet and chair...I am worried about my daughter. Can I get her some towels please??" Because seriously, I have filled up my shoes and and squishing when I walk. The lady gives my mom two paper towels from the bathroom. Ha! My mom looks at her and says, "well I could have done that!" So anyway I proceed to sit there and sign stupid papers saying things like the people who come to visit won't smoke on the campus and that I don't have any special dietary needs. It was absolutely ridiculous. My mom was fit to be tied and I was just scribbling my name as fast as possible. Finally she says, "ok follow me back to L&D and we'll get you in a room." I start to walk and kinda slip because I literally have a puddle around me at all sides and shoes that are full. She says, "well I guess I could get you a wheelchair." My mom says, "Uhhh that would be nice!"

So I get back to a room and the proceedures begin. We make all the phone calls to everyone. I get my IVs, I answer all the questions, I get all hooked up and stuff. My friend Jamie gets there about that time and the nurses all start pouring in. Now looking back, we see a lot more of the details than while we were in the middle of it. It was quite obvious that we had the skeleton crew there for the holidays. The nurses kinda argued with each other and there was one nurse that was just quite frustrated with the doctors and acted on it. It was pretty funny, but I think I got the shaft on several issues. I didn't feel one contraction, but Jamie was watching the machine I was hooked up to and she kept saying there's one, there's one, there's one. Dr. Tucker got there and said, "Let's do this".

7:30pm:

I get wheeled into the operating room, Matt gets his cute little outfit on and they kick out my mom and Jamie. I get my spinal (which was the weirdest feeling in the whole world) and get all preped and then Matt comes in. I am crying at this point and Matt is freaking out. He kept hiding behind the sheet because he didn't want to see anything and he was right in my face and kept saying over and over, "you are doing so good, you're doing ok, you're doing so good." It was so sweet. Dr. Tucker and the other Dr. were talking about Thanksgiving and the Ole Miss game. Dr. T. said, ok Amberly it won't be long now. Then everything got silent. I hear, "Suction, Suction!!!" and they start moving really quickly. The nurse said, "There's your baby" although I didn't see him and they ran him over to the other side. The nurse told Matt he could go over there and take photos. I didn't think anything about it being odd until I looked back on it and talked to Dr. Tucker the next day. My sweet baby had the cord wrapped around his neck three times!!!! When Dr. Tucker came into my room the next day he said, "you know how sometimes you do the right thing for the wrong reasons? Your baby had the cord wrapped around his neck three times and he would not have labored well. We would have ended up doing an emergency c-section, so it is good we decided to do the section because of your back. That's why things got a little hairy when we pulled him out."

So anyway it was 7:41pm when he was born and they rushed him over to get oxygen and then finally brought him over for me to see. It was literally the greatest moment of our lives.

Then everything got fuzzy and I was out for recovery. They wheeled me out to the recovery room and Matt went with the baby.

I think I was out for at least 45 minutes and Matt came back to walk me to my room. However, we got stuck in recovery, because there was a "Dr. Red" code which meant there was a suspected fire in the hospital and the L&D and nursery went on lockdown for about 45 more minutes. Finally they bring me the baby and I tried to nurse (although I was so out of it) and then I finally get wheeled to a room. The rest of that night is really fuzzy for me so I don't really remember much after that. I do remember everyone and their mamma being there.

Mom, Dad, and Whitney. Jan, Gail, and HAys and Brooke. Gran, Jim & Cathy, David and Danielle and the boys, and Jamie Ozier. I am not sure if there were any others.

Mom and Whitney went home to get my bag and Wil Franklin's bag and Whitney made me a wreath that night for my door. I think I posted on the blog that night and it has so many spelling errors and I typed like I sounded....loopy. That was the day we had our precious little boy.

Stay tuned for the rest of the hospital stay....

Delivery Story Part I

2009-01-26T22:34:00.005-06:00

So since this is my diary of sorts, I am starting to forget the details of the day we had Wil Franklin, so I am going to put it into words for my sake mainly, but to share our incredible story with you as well.

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

I finished up my big projects at work and decided to go ahead and take my maternity leave since I had at least a week left to get things ready at home for the baby. My parents had already decided that I didn't need to travel for Thanksgiving, so they were going to come down to Jackson and have Thanksgiving here on Thursday and then travel to my mom's family Thanksgiving on Friday. Whitney was going to travel down as well from Chattanooga. We also found out on this day that Matt's Great Grandmother, Mama Rose, past away. The funeral was planned for Friday. This really through a "hitch in our gitalong" since I loved her very much and really wanted to be at her funeral. At 5pm I sent out an email letting all my work associates know that I was officially on maternity leave. I spend the evening and the night organizing and rearranging EVERYTHING!!! I mean everything...laundry room, rearranging kitchen cabinets, you name it.

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

I get up and get dressed. I shower, shave, wash my hair...the works. I knew my parents were coming and I wanted to look nice. Also I had a doctor's appointment at 2pm. My mom was going to go with me since Matt had so much going on that day. My dad gets held up in Tupelo with a church thing, so my mom decided to drive on down....just to be with me at the dr. appt. I spent the morning cleaning the house and getting my stuff together to pack my bags. I didn't actually pack them, but got everything together. I didn't eat, because I was waiting on my mom to go with me, but when she got here, we ran a few errands and then we realized we needed to get to the doctor appointment.

2:00pm: I discussed with Dr. Tucker my situation about Matt's grandmother's funeral. He checked me and I was dilated about 1/2 a centimeter and had no effacement. He told me that he thought I was good to travel for Thanksgiving, the funeral and that I could probably even make the Ole Miss/State game on Friday. He said he would be there and it would all be fine. Mom and I joke with him about giving birth at the game, we schedule a c=section for 12-8-08 and go on our merry way.

As we are leaving, I call Matt and (snickering to Mom, "Listen to this..") say, "You ready to have a baby today?" With silence on the other end, I laugh and say, "Just kidding...nothing has changed and we have some talking to do about whether or not I want to travel since Dr. T. says I can." Matt laughs nervously and says, "I guess I am ready, but I think we have a few more days." Mom and I decide to go to Kroger and get some last minute items for Thanksgiving meals, and I decide to just eat when we get home.

4:30pm: We run into my neighbor at Kroger and she looks at my mom and says, "I told her she is going to be out and about when that baby comes because all she does is go go go."

4:34pm: On the coke/chip aisle, I bend over and pick up a 12 pack of caffenine free cokes. Mom kinda yells at me and says you shouldn't be picking that up!!! I laugh and say well maybe it will throw me into labor.

4:45pm: Buggy was full, and mom and I decide to head to the check out counter...along with everyone else the day before Thanksgiving. We wait in line for several minutes...laughing and joking. Mom goes first since she had less in her buggy. She loads the line and pays for her stuff. I start loading my line. I bend over and pick something up...I don't remember if it was poptarts or waverly crackers...and I feel this little "pop". All of a sudden, I start gushing. Lovely! I look up at my mom with panic on my face and she says, "WHAT?? What???" I tell her that I think my water broke and she says are you sure? I told her that if it wasn't my water then I just wet my pants and either way I was getting out of there. She says what do you want me to do? I tell her I don't know but I am going to the bathroom. I hobble to the bathroom to make sure it was my water. She tells the lady at the check out counter that we can't deal with this right now because we are having a baby.

5:00pm: Mom comes into the bathroom and I tell her it is for real. I call the doctor and mom calls Matt. The doctor calls me right back and says, "Well I guess I don't know anything, meet me at Woman's." Mom calls Matt and says, "Matt, honey, I am sorry that we cried wolf earlier, but we are at Kroger and Amber's water broke and we need to get her to the hospital." Mom gets the car and speeds me to the hospital and Matt meets us there. Actually he beat us there.

We get to the hospital to check in and....

stay tuned for Part II

And a photo of the baby to end with...isn't he the cutest??

Wil Franklin Update

2009-01-12T11:51:00.000-06:00

Thankyou for all your prayers and sweet texts. We made it through the proceedure ok. Wil Franklin was a champ even though he didn't understand what we were doing to him. Poor thing didn't have the greatest day but got to nurse right after to calm down and then he went right to sleep.

However, the test we had done showed us all his anatomy. All of that looked fine and everything was normal. He does still have the dilitation on both sides and the doctor said on a scale of 1 to 4 with 4 being the worst he has a 1 on one side and a 2 on the other side.

They want to do one further test to see the functionbof his kidneys since all his anatomy looked normal. This further test will determine if there is a narrowing in the tubing between the kidney and the bladder. But they won't do that test until he is 3 months old. It is pretty simple: just a shot into his vein of dye and x-rays. Not fun but no more catheter. We go do that test in March.

We loved the radiologist dr. Sones and the pediatric urologist dr. Harmon and his staff. Dr. Harmon said that because O.B. Sonograms are so good these days they catch the babies that have bad dilitation and also see the ones that aren't so bad and end up following them a lot further and longer than they normally would. He told us he had a great feeling that Wil Franklin's would correct itself or would be so small that we would not have to do anything further. A complete answer to prayer!

Thankyou to all our wonderful and sweet prayer warriors out there. We serve a mighty God that is real and present and answers prayers and gives amazing comfort.

Will post more if we hear anything different from our pediatrician at 2:30pm.

Prayers Please

2009-01-08T22:04:00.003-06:00

Today we had a sonogram on Wil Franklin's kidneys. He has Renal Dilation in both kidneys. Sometimes this goes away with growth and age...his has not gone away so far.

Either tomorrow or Monday morning we will have a proceedure called a VCUG that will put a catheter and dye into Wil Franklin's bladder to diagnose exactly what is causing the dilation in the kidneys. Depending on the results of that we will know the next step, which could very likely be surgery.

Please pray for Wil Franklin during this test/proceedure...he will probably not have any sedation because of his age and size. Poor little thing. Please pray for momma and daddy too because I think it will be just as hard on us knowing it is being done to him. I have cried all day thinking about it. I don't want anyone to touch my sweet beautiful little baby boy.

We know and are confident that God has a wonderful plan for this little miracle baby. We are not scared about results. In fact we are praying that this will still correct itself on its own....well that God will heal his kidneys. We are claiming His promises and are praising Him for what we know He can do. Please join us in that prayer.

I'll keep you updated as soon as we know anything different.

Also please keep Matt's aunt Cathy in your prayers as well. She is having an impromptu surgery on Monday. I'll let you know more about that when I feel like I have permission to discuss more.

Here are some photos to leave you with. Wil Franklin's first Christmas morning and then two other photos of my sweet little boy...

Sweet Sweet Baby...

2008-12-17T00:27:00.003-06:00

First Laugh Caught on Camera....Gotta love that toothless grin!!!

On mommy and daddy's bed before a diaper change...I am SO in love!!!

Until later...

Just Photos

2008-12-07T23:23:00.003-06:00

So I have like 30 minutes till feeding time and I have to wash my face/brush my teeth, put the dishes in the dishwasher and start a load of clothes, and I decided to upload some of my favorite photos.

the first one is of when my mom, my dad, matt, wil franklin, and I went to get our Christmas tree. It was the fastest tree trip ever, because it was cold and Wil was in the car with my mom, so Matt and I went to the tree place, walked around literally 3 trees and said..."That one." We were back home in 30 minutes.

The others are of a little photo shoot we had of Wil at Mrs. Gail and Mr. Jan's house tonight. Mrs. Gail had a tree trimming party and we went over to visit. Daddy and Uncle Hays(ie) took photos of Wil.

Enjoy! Bet you can't guess which one is my favorite...

Duh...this one is my favorite...I mean how stinkin cute is that little ole man face with the Santa hat???!!!???

Until later...

Whitney...Please forgive me!!!

2008-12-05T23:24:00.005-06:00

In my haste to just get some photos on the blog and to give you guys some updates, I have totally neglected to post about the coolest aunt ever...my sister Whitney. Sorry, Brooke, I'll devote a whole post to you really soon, but Whitney is getting her feelings hurt =)

Whitney did awesome, she was already on her way to my house for Thanksgiving, and totally made it by the time Matt came down the hallway with the baby. She had a 6 hour trip to make all in all, so if she had not already been on the way, she would not have made it since we had the baby in right at 2 hours. Totally Awesome...I don't even want to know what her spedometer said between Tuscaloosa, AL and FLowood, MS. I am even more sure my dad doesn't want to know.

Also she made the wreath on the door at like 2am on Wednesday night so we would have something on our door for visitors the next day. Totally awesome!

AND she went out with her BF Duane to buy us some preemie clothes, wash them, and bring them back to the hospital since so we would have something there for us to wear that we fit in. We were SO tiny.

AND she helped take care of Rags while we were at the hospital.

AND she loved on Wil Franklin and took so many photos for us.

Thanks, Aunt Whitney!!!! (Not sure what we are going to call you yet...)

I love you...

Signed...Wil Franklin Collins...your favorite nephew. Here are some photos of Whitney with Wil Franklin and of her BF Duane and Wil Franklin...

More later...

Update

2008-12-03T13:27:00.002-06:00

I just reread my first baby post...can you all tell I was still on drugs at the hospital??? How funny!

Coming Home

2008-12-03T12:57:00.003-06:00

Ok so Matt and my Mom have been like King and Queen nazi on making sure I sleep (which I have been trying to do but there is so much else to do...and I know you are all about to comment on how they are right...I know...so just save it.) So...blog has come last. I'll try to do several short blogs that have photos so you guys can keep updated. Here are several photos of coming home from the hospital.

Oh and by the way...I am in complete heaven and LOVE this little boy to pieces. He's the cutest thing I have ever seen and can NOT get enough.

First...my favorite photo of Matt and Wil Franklin. I didn't see this when it happened because I was in recovery, and just got this photo from Hays...Matt's brother. I cry every time I see it...

Getting Ready to come home...all my clothes SWALLOW me...

Our first car ride....

At home with Mom and MiMi (my mom)...

Just hanging out at home...it is so good to be home...

A Thanksgiving Gift!!!

2008-11-27T01:09:00.005-06:00

Well Matt and I have so VERY much to be thankful for...Today our son was born!!!

We are so thankful that

Wilson Franklin Collins

Born November 26, 2008

at 7:41 pm

weighing 5 pounds 15 ounces

and measuring 19 1/2 inches.

Here's the story...

Mom went with me to my DR appointment since Matt was so busy today. Dr. Tucker checked me and said I wasn't dialated anymore and that he thought it would be ok for me to drive up to Grenda and Oxford for Thanksgiving.

So Mom and I head out to Kroger and do our last minute groceries for supper and Thanksgiving day. Standing in line at Kroger I bent over to pick up the box of poptarts (Strawberry of course) and all of a sudden I felt this pop and then IT happened. Oh yes, ladies and gentlemen...My water broke in Kroger. ALL OVER THE PLACE. It was lovely.

So we leave our groceries on the check out counter and I rush to the bathroom and Mom rushes to get the car. We head to the hospital and Matt meets us there. No big contractions, no nothing but broken water.

And the rest of story I'll tell later. It is late but of course I am wired. I'll post more when I feel like it.

We are all happy, healthy, and so very very thankful.

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Here are a few pics with more to come soon...

Waiting to go back to surgery...

The wreath Whitney made for the door...it has all the ribbons from gifts from the showers...too sweet...

2008-11-24T11:36:00.003-06:00

My too sweet friends, The Courtneys (i.e. Mrs. Lynn Courtney, Kristi Courtney Watts, and Mamie Courtney Taylor) threw a baby shower for me last Sunday at Different Strokes. It is a pottery painting place in Ridgeland. The idea was that they would have everyone paint an ornament, sign it, and then have them glazed for Wil Franklin. It was too cute. At the end of the shower they gave me a little mini tree that was decorated to match his nursery and I can put all the finished ornaments on his tree...so he has his own tree and own ornaments for his first Christmas.

I LOVED IT!!

Here are the "Courtney Girls"...and yes I am an honorary one...

Me and Mom...

Scenes from the shower...

Special Thanks to my sweet friend Kelli for taking the photos since my camera died at the very beginning of the shower! What a tool...didn't even charge my battery!

37 Weeks today...I went to the doctor on Friday and everything is looking great. The baby is 6 pounds and 5 ounces and all the specifics (heart, lungs, kidneys, etc) look good. I was slightly dialated and effaced, but I won't go into detail on that. I go again to the doctor on Wednesday and he said we would determine then if I need to go anytime sooner than December 8th. But as of right now...that's the date: 12-8-08. YAY!!!

Shower Photos and Not Me Monday

2008-11-17T13:55:00.003-06:00

Here are the photos from my first shower at the beginning of October. Sweet ladies from Lakeside Pres. gave us this shower. Lots of fun and sweet baby gifts...

The Courtney Girl Shower was yesterday. As soon as I get photos from that, I'll upload those too...

So there is this blog that I read every once in a while and it makes me crack up...not someone I know personally, but found her through a friend's blog. She just had a baby recently and has a wonderful story. ANYWAY! She writes on her blog on Mondays something call Not Me Monday. I think the way it started was that she was having the preggo crazies and doing silly stuff...because you really do lose your ever-lovin mind...and so she would confess on her blog but would confess it like this..."No, not me...I did not do this today...." Funny!

So since I am getting bigger and bigger and clumsier and clumsier, I have a few "Not Me's" of my own. I am "stealing" her idea to share with you this...

No, not me. I did not yell at my husband this morning because he used the green towel (the huge one he has had since college that has Matt monogramed on it) because it is the biggest towel we have and the only one that still wraps all the way around my big belly. I did not say, "Why did you use that towel?" to which he did not reply, "Well it has my name on it!" to which I did not snap back, "Don't you know that it is the only one that fits me anymore and I was so happy to pull it out of the dryer last night and know it was clean but now it's dirty because YOU USED IT!" To which he did not roll his eyes, smile, kiss me on the forehead, and whisper under his breath, "Only a few more weeks, only a few more weeks."

I promise that was not me...it was the hormones. I love you, Matt....for many reasons....but mostly because you STILL love me...nine months preggo. =)

2008-11-10T15:02:00.003-06:00

So Matt and I have some very wonderful family and friends. They have been so sweet to us and have thrown us several showers. We have had three so far and one more this weekend. I had a shower by the Ladies of Lakeside Presbyterian Church, some Jackson area Ladies, the Ladies of Friendship Baptist Church, and my good friends the "Courtney Girls" are throwing one this weekend. We have been given SO much wonderful stuff. We are so blessed to have such loving friends and family. Here are a few shots of the Jackson Ladies shower at Mrs. Maggi Lampton's home and of Friendship Baptist Church.

Jackson Ladies:

The Hostesses...

My Sweet Friend Libby who is expecting a boy as well...

Me and Emma...I have a great shot of me and Amanda (Em's Mom) but she always gets mad when I put her photo on here so I'll refrain...she is 33 weeks preggo too so I'll choose not to make her mad...

Friendship Ladies Shower:

Me, Mom and and Mrs. Gail...

Tons of fun...look for more photos when I get them...Have a happy Monday!

Well...It's Official...

2008-11-06T14:52:00.004-06:00

I am the worst blogger EVER!!! Or maybe...here come the excuses...it's just that I have had so much going on in my life that blogging has had to take a back seat...or third row seat even!

Here's the quick run down...I'll post more details about each item soon. I promise...I am missing my blogger friends!!!

1. Baby Update: Wilson Franklin is doing GREAT! He is about 5 pounds and moving and shaking all the time. VERY ACTIVE little boy!

2. Preggo Update: I on the other hand have been having some major issues with my back. I have Scoliosis and have always had back issues. Now I have the "Perfect Storm" of problems as my Dr. calls it. My muscles and ligaments have loosened to make way for delivering the baby, my hips have shifted for the same reason...both of which leave my lower back with no support. I have the weight of the belly, the scoliosis and sway back. Now the general consensus is that I have a slipped disc and it is putting pressure on my nerve and/or building up fluid in my left hip. So there you have it...major pain and non functioning Amberly. Also due to all this back stuff, Dr. Tucker says he would prefer to do a C-Section since we don't know what all is going on back there since we can't do an x-ray. Good news??? I get to schedule Baby Wil Franklin a little early! If I don't go on my own, we will be going into have him on December 5, or December 8th...we'll see next week when I have a sonogram. Yay!!! Only 4 weeks left...can you believe it?????

And it is has happened...I am officially LARGE and IN CHARGE!!! Oh I am humongous!!!

3. House Update: All is organized except for the laundry room and the garage...which are two rooms that I can take or leave. Thanks to the help of some wonderful friends (Jr./Mrs. Lynn/Mr. Charles!), the house has been transformed! I'll have to take photos and post them for you when I can. The baby room is almost complete. We have all the major items and all is put up. All we have left to do is decorate the walls!

All is well at the Collins House. SO much more has been going on that I will have to post about. I can't wait to tell you all the news...that has been keeping me away from the computer for so long.

It's also officially Holiday Season!!!

Mistletoe Marketplace is this week. I can officially pull out the Christmas music now! Here are photos from Preview Party last night!!!

Me and Mamie...a fellow preggo...

Me and Brooke in front of the Christmas trees...really bad lighting!

Until this weekend....

Baby Wil Franklin's First Photos

2008-10-01T10:18:00.004-05:00

Ok so here is my baby...the little stinker! He didn't want to show us his face at all! He kept putting his hands or his feet of all things in front of his face. We did get better shots yesterday than we got the other two times...and I got a visual image of something to imagine when I feel these MAJOR jolts in my tummy! Ha! Last night he kicked me so hard that my whole body moved forward...it was hillarious. So some of these photos make him look a little deformed, but the sonogram tech assured me that he will look normal it was just that he was moving around so much when she took the photos and that he was pushing into my uteran wall so she was getting wavy shots. He does have all 10 fingers and toes and is definitely a boy! I also heard his heart yesterday and it sounded strong. Gotta love this little boy all ready!

Look how pouty he looks in this photo...

He had just yawned and stretched in this photo and moved his hand for two seconds...

UPDATE:

2008-09-28T19:51:00.002-05:00

I got asked to post a close up of the bedding...here it is...

This and That...A major catch up...

2008-09-28T18:16:00.005-05:00

So take a deep breath...here we go...

My promised Soapbox:

So I am not as emotional about this as I was when I wrote my last post, but it still angers me enough to share it with you. I LOVED the fact that John McCain chose Sarah Palin as his running mate. Don't worry this is not going to get political. However, I was SO MAD at how the media was and still is treating her after the announcement. Regardless of who you are voting for or which candidate you think is better suited, there is NO EXCUSE for how the media and Hollywood have treated Sarah Palin and her family. I am all about studying a candidate and learning how they live rather than how they speak to see what type of leader they will be. BUT I am also about fairness and truthfulness.

What made me the most irate was that US Weekly Magazine, which I used to shamelessly be a devoted reader to every week, People Magazine, and Newsweek all had Sarah Palin on the front cover the week after the announcement. People and Newsweek were all talking about her, her experience, her record, and her family...not necessarily positive but not really negative either. US Weekly had a cover that stated Sarah Palin: Lies, Scandal, and Babies. All it talked about were the horrible rumors and her 17 year old daughter being pregnant and how awful Palin was. BUT the rest of the magazine had how stylish Michelle Obama is and how beautiful and how much of a Jackie O she is and they have had several covers in the past about how the Obama marriage is wonderful and Michelle is such a wonderful mother and Obama reads to his girls at night. It just infuriated me. All that may be true about the Obamas, but give the McCain's and the Palin's the same courtesy. If you are going to talk about the rumors on the right talk about the rumors on the left. Just be equal.

I am no longer a subscriber to US Weekly. I have heard several different numbers on how many subscribers they lost due to that cover...anywhere from 5,000 to 10,000...and since then they have talked about how stylish Cindy McCain is. BUT I'll just have to get my celebrity news from People or some other magazine. I would encourage you to do so as well if you subscribe to US. Ok...I am stepping off the soapbox.

So Matt and I registered at Babies R Us about two weeks ago. We were SO overwhelmed! Who knew you had to choose between like 1200 different types of pacifiers.

AND my chair for the nursery and baby bed came in and my bedding was finished. Matt put it together the other day. I think it was just the beginning of "putting together" for my sweet husband. Ha!

And out came the power tools...

The Finished Product (minus the crib mattress and the sheet and the bows...but you get the idea). Like the wall color and the new carpet?

OH and we when to Cleveland, MS a few weekends ago to Pig Pickin. We had a great time seeing all our friends from college and church during that time. We stayed with our great friends Roane and Libbi and their son Nathan. Would you believe that I didn't pull out my camera at all except one time! What is wrong with me???? I did get a photo of sweet Rebecca Grace Carter, KeithAnn's sweet daughter. She was such a good baby and soooooo cute!

AND I had my 10 Year High School Reunion. It was a lot of fun. We didn't have the greatest turnout, but several people showed for the tailgate at the RHS homecoming football game on Friday night and then several others showed for the Saturday picnic and tour of the new school. I didn't get Saturday photos, but here are a few from Friday night.

So this week I have that special project I am working on for a friend. I can't wait to share it with you when it is finished!!!! And I am in the middle of the Fall Campaign at work...which is really got me stressed out. Anyone want to donate to the Y? I am trying to raise another $200,000 for the year. AND I have my third attempt at a 4 D Sonogram on Tuesday or Wednesday...not sure yet which day. I have been twice and have a few ok shots of him...but that little stinker is just bound and determined to not show us his face. He keeps putting both feet in front of his face and his hands! I have had a long talk with him and this time is going to be the charm! Right? I hope so. I'll share all those photos with you and some belly shots next time.

Have a great week!!!

2008-09-10T15:30:00.002-05:00

So I just realized that I have never in my life been so overwhelmed. I heard someone say it last night like this, "For a while I have been on the roller coaster that was heading up, up, up, and then it reached the top. Now I am zooming down faster than ever and all you can do is get out of my way." PRETTY GOOD explanation for me right now.

For the last few months, I have been going up, up, up. I am on the way down, baby and all you can do is get out of my way.

Work is super busy because fall is our big push for the Partnership for Youth Annual Campaign. Starting the last week of this month, will be the big six-week cram to get those dollars in. That goes through till Thanksgiving.

I am in the final 14 week countdown until the baby comes. Seems like life will stop and be reconsumed by baby at that time. So these last few weeks are booked with preparation. I have a car to sell...yes...if you are looking for one, a 2002 G20 Infiniti, black, about 110,000 miles on it. Great car for a new driver, great gas mileage...I would be keeping it except that I need a baby mobile...sorry I digress. House is still in shambles with repainting and rearranging. New furniture for the baby has been bought, but not all of it is in yet.

I just thought it would be a great idea to take on a new project at this point in my life, so me and another girl have been planning my 10 Year High School Reunion. What was I smokin that day that I agreed to that. It is the weekend of this month, so it won't be long till it's over, but oh my has it been time consuming.

Lastly, I am working on this project for a special friend, but I can't tell you much more because it is a surprise thing. But I have had to squeeze it in.

If you could see my calendar, you would laugh....and in my pregnancy book last night I read, "This is the time you should be taking it easy, getting as much rest as possible, relaxing, clearing your schedule." I thought to myself...clear it!???!! I can barely see any open space on it!

So anyway...all this to say...I'm sorry.

I know have been falling down on hanging out with some wonderful friends, I haven't updated my blog in about a month...oh goodness, and I haven't washed clothes in 4 weeks. So I am truly sorry...to my friends, to my blog readers, to my husband who had to buy new undershirts last week because he didn't have any clean ones.

So, buy a ticket and join me on this wild roller coaster ride, or wait til I get to the bottom and can hop off for a second before my next roller coaster adventure called mommyhood.

Hopefully, I'll blog soon about my 26 week Dr. appt. that I have tomorrow morning and my newest soapbox. It's a good one and has involved a lifestyle change for me...stay tuned!

I'll leave you with this...the first home Ole Miss game vs. Memphis...sure felt good to win again didn't it, Rebs!

Me and Matt in the Grove and then the team coming onto the field...

Finally...the story of Hawaii

2008-08-18T19:26:00.012-05:00

Okay so after like 4 hours of playing around on Blogger and PHotobucket, I have somewhat figured out how to upload slideshows of photos. The Hawaii photos were all too good to not share them. There are two hundred, so feel free to not watch them all, but I just couldn't decide which ones not to share. What I couldn't find out is how to upload the four slideshows in one post instead of several posts. So...make sure you scroll down to see the 5 new posts about Hawaii. The first three slideshows are Matt's "professional photos"" and the final slideshow at the bottom are my "snap" photos.

On to the trip...
(I have chosen a few of the photos to go along with my story...)

So we left Monday morning from Jackson and after a 10 hour combined flight through Dallas, we land in Wilea, Maui, Hawaii. It is a five hour time difference so it was only 4 something in the afternoon when we got there. It was wild. We got our rental car and checked into the hotel. Then we headed for some dinner. By this time it was 7 or 8pm...which was like 1am Mississippi time. We were FAMISHED and SO TIRED!!!

We went to bed and the time difference was brutal because all of us were up the next morning at 5 or 6 am...our bodies thinking it was 10 or 11am. So at least we didn't sleep away our trip. Ha! The next few days were wonderful.

Tuesday we took it easy by the pool most of the day, then got ready for dinner and went to The Shops at Wilea and ate dinner at Tommy Bahamas. It was delicious!

The pool...

Wednesday morning the girls did the spa thing and the boys played golf. I got a great prenatal massage with cocoa butter and oils in a cabana on the beach. Then we stayed by the pool again for a while. Wednesday afternoon we all traveled to Lahaina (a nearby town) and did some shopping and ate at Bubba Gumps.

Some shots from the pier in Lahaina...

Thursday morning Hays and Brooke did an excursion where they rode up to the top of a mountain/volcano to watch the sun rise and then biked down.

Mrs. Gail, Mr. Jan, Matt and I got up, got in the car and traveled the Road to Hana. The town of Hana is on the southeast(?) side of the island of Maui and is very remote. As I understand it there is only one way in and one way out...the infamous Road to Hana (or Hana Highway). The drive to and from is one of the most breathtaking drives on earth through Maui's tropical rainforest. 617 curves, 54 one lane bridges to Hana, pineapple fields, spectacular cliffs, bamboo jungles, waterfalls, tropical streams and pools, colorful and fragrant island flowers and rainforest vegetation line the way to "Heavenly Hana". It really was amazing. It's only like 30 or 40 miles long, but it takes like 3 hours because you have to go so slow on the roads.

Here's a photo from one of the websites about Hana. See how windy the road is and how it is right on the side of the mountain...

See the slideshows for all the Hana photos, but here is my favorite one. We stopped on a little peninsul and got to get close to the water...It was amazing...

We were all pretty exhausted after this day, so we just went over to the Shops again by our hotel and ate at Cheeseburger in Paradise. It was probably the best burger I have ever had!

Friday we spent our last full day by the pool and then got ready for our big...LUAU! It was really fun. It was down by the water where they had traditional food and a whole entertainment show that told the history of Hawaii. There was hula dancing and a guy thowing fire...pretty cool. I have video of the luau so I'll have to upload that soon so you can see how fun it was.

Me and Brooke at the Luau...

Our favorite part of Hawaii were the sunsets. They were more beautiful than I could have imagined. It was a daily reminder of how AWESOME our God is... So we took advantage and took lots of photos.

I also had some fun taking lots of belly shots in Hawaii. So I'll leave you with them...

22 Week Belly

I tried desperately to give up my life here on the Mainland and become a Hula girl in Hawaii, but it just didn't turn out to be a good life choice at this point in time...ha! But it is definitely a place that I will hopefully return to someday...

Hawaii Photos - Matt

2008-08-18T19:23:00.001-05:00

Hawaii Photos - Matt (2)

2008-08-18T19:22:00.001-05:00

Hawaii Photos - Matt (3)

2008-08-18T19:21:00.001-05:00

Hawaii Photos

2008-08-18T19:06:00.001-05:00

HAWAII!!

2008-08-17T16:36:00.002-05:00

Sorry it has been more than a week. Matt and I have been in Hawaii. I thought I would blog about our trip while we were there, but we decided not to take the computer. AND OH AM I SO GLAD!!! We had such a great relaxing time. I am working on the post about all we did and the fantabulous photos that Matt took. Oh and I have some very FUN belly shots. Stay tuned!

The Chapman Family

2008-08-07T23:21:00.002-05:00

For those of you that don't know, Steven Curtis Chapmen is a contemporary Christian artist. He and his wife, Mary Beth, have a family with three older biological children and three adopted children from China. Their youngest, Maria Sue, was struck and killed by an SUV driven by her older brother. This all happened in the family's driveway in May. Can you imagine? My heart just went out to them immediately when I heard about it. They have been in my thoughts and prayers ever since.

I have always loved Steven Curtis Chapmen. I got the opportunity to meet him when I was younger and my dad was in radio in Tupelo. He came in town for a concert and dad and I got to spend the day with him before the concert and dinner afterward. It is one of my favorite "cool" memories with my dad. He was (and I am sure still is) such an awesome guy.

Tonight I caught the Chapmen family on Larry King Live talking about their tragedy. It was such a blessing to watch. On this secular show, this family was declaring through their grief that their Heavenly Father was and is loving. They admitted that they have questioned thier God and wondered why, but Mary Beth said it best when she said that even when they have fallen on their faces at rock bottom, the Foundation was still there...their Heavenly Father had a purpose and they knew they would see their daughter again. They have good days and very bad days but God's mercy is new every morning. It truly was an awesome witness from Steven, Mary Beth, and their three older children...even the son that was driving during the accident. Which by the way is named Will Franklin Chapmen. I love the clip they showed of the oldest son Caleb speaking at the memorial service saying that they prayed for healing for their sister Maria and God choose to do that in a way that they didn't want, and they were praying for God to heal their brother, Will, and he was choosing to believe that God will heal him in a way that they all will be very happy about. It was amazing. I cried and praised my Lord for being a loving God that we may not understand, but we can completely TRUST and HOPE in.

You can check out photos and videos and other clips on tonight at the following link.

http://www.cnn.com/CNN/Programs/larry.king.live/

Dave Matthews Band

2008-08-05T22:20:00.004-05:00

Ok so Matt found out that Dave Matthews was coming to Memphis and we had to go. We went with Brooke and Hays this past weekend. It was extremely awesome. Matt has loved Dave Matthews for a long time. Now while I will not endorse all of his music, he is undenyably a VERY talented musician. The music was too much! In a good way! So here's how the weekend went:

Friday we drove to my mom and dad's house after work and spent the night.

Saturday we slept late and then got up and got dressed and headed to Memphis. We did a little shopping at A Pea in the Pod and the Pottery Barn Outlet and then headed over to Brooke's parents. By the way...it was SO hot on Saturday. I think the heat index was 111 degrees. I thought I was going to die just walking from the car to the shops. I was DREADING the concert that night because it was at the AutoZone Park...the OUTSIDE baseball stadium. Anyway we got together with Brooke and Hays and headed to downtown Memphis to meet up with Jay and Rebecca (they were in college with us but were more Brooke and Hays's age, so they are more their friends, but we love em!). We met up with them at Rendezvous for BBQ! Now you all know that I don't like PORK so you can imagine my enthusiasm. Have I mentioned it was SUPER HOTT!! But it was nice to drink some much needed water (several glasses) and I had chicken nachos. Pretty good...I must say.

Next...off to the stadium. Well my husband got us the best tickets he could that were on the field so we would be really close. The problem is that it was standing room only...thousands...literally...were on the field, so no real seats at all. Brooke and I had brought a blanket, but it was kinda crowded to even put one down. People kept stepping on it and stuff. Gross! So we stood...for hours. Big mama here was not in the greatest mood.

The opening act was Willie Nelson. ODD COMBO, I know! He was ok...the crowd seemed to like him. I was just EXTREMELY HOTT and tired of standing. Willie finished and then there was a pretty long lull. So Brooke and I went over to the very edge of the field and put our blanket down by the wall between the stands and the field. It was cushiony so we sat with our backs to it and watched the field. We couldn't really see the stage extremely well, but it was REALLY nice to sit down.

Then...came...DAVE!

He really was super cool. It was a great show. I told Matt that even though I had been miserable and hot and didn't really want to be there anymore, the show had made it all worth it. Poor Matt stood up the whole show...like 4 hours. He was a trooper. AND the best part of all was that Wil Franklin kicked the ENTIRE show. Guess he is going to be like his daddy and love some DMB.

All in all it was a GREAT memory to make with Matt and Hays and Brooke. We did have a great time...even though we probably all almost had heat strokes and Wil Franklin felt like he was in an oven and we were so exhausted the next day. We did make it to church though...which was sheer determination since we didn't get home to my mom and dad's until 2am. BUT it was worth it. Thanks, Matt for planning the whole trip and making a great memory for us.

Love you!

At the "Pork Place"...Brooke and Hays...

Jay and Rebecca...

Me and Matt...

"Walking in Memphis" Before the Concert...OH SO HOTT!

One more thing...I, of course, had my camera and wanted to photo and video the whole entire thing. BUT they were being really strict on taking cameras in. So I got really scared...I didn't want them to take my camera. Well Goody Two Shoes that I am should have just done like everyone else and hid it to get in. There were THOUSANDS of cameras in there and they were doing NOTHING about it! So I didn't get any photos of Dave on stage or the crowd or anything. However, SEVERAL uploads of the night have made it to YouTube. I am not endorsing any of them except the one below because I don't know what is "overheard" during the recording. However, if you really want to see some clips of the concert, there are a few really good ones. Especially when Willie came back out and sang with Dave on one of the songs. Just search Dave Matthews in Memphis and you'll find tons of clips. Below is the link to one where Dave does this CRAZY dance...it cracked me up. Watch about a minute and 20 seconds into it...it is too funny! So...enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhzFAqMhIpc

Baby Bedding

2008-07-30T14:57:00.004-05:00

So I have ordered my baby bedding. It is going to be made. I had SEVERAL people tell me about this lady in Jackson off of McWilly Drive behind Batts Furniture. She makes BEAUTIFUL stuff and is VERY reasonable.

I have had this vision in my mind ever since I got my baby bed of the kneeling bench pillow that a wonderful friend of the family made for our wedding. I wanted it to be just like it. So I took the pillow to this lady and after about three days and 12 opinions from several people, I made the choice of all the fabrics and trim and it's being made as we speak.

So here are the photos of all the pieces. Hope it turns out like I want it to...

Remember my bed...

Here's the kneeling bench pillow from our wedding. It is antique silk and is embroidered with our initials in the middle. It has gold trim all over...it's so beautiful.

I know the photo isn't that great, but here are all the pieces. Up top are the paint chips (the lightest blue is the wall color and the cream is the trim in my house color. The cream fabric swatch is the fabric for my bumper pad, skirt, and blanket. The trim at the bottom is outside trim and the trim going from top to bottom is the inside trim around the monogram part of the bumper pad...

Close up of the outside trim...

Close up of the trim around the monogram...not a great photo I know...

So...hope it all ends up looking good. We are going to get Collins or C monogramed in the middle instead of just Wil Franklin's initials so that maybe we will use it with another child. Stay tuned for finished product photos in a few weeks.

Happy HALF WAY to me!!!

2008-07-28T10:40:00.004-05:00

Today marks 20 weeks which is exactly halfway in my pregnancy! Woohoo! Whoop Whoop! I can't believe that we will hopefully see Wilson Franklin in only 20 weeks!

We (well the painters) have been painting the nursery this weekend and Matt and I decided to go ahead and paint the hallway, the other guest bedroom, the living room, the dining room/piano room, and the foyer. Whew! So as you can imagine, the house is a little destroyed right now...which is totally killing me! AND we are getting new carpet for the baby room and the guest bedroom so all the furniture is crazy too. BUT I am loving all the changes. I'll post before and after photos soon.

I'll leave you with my 19 week belly shot!

Have a happy Monday!

6 UNIMPORTANT THINGS ABOUT ME

2008-07-23T15:16:00.002-05:00

I've been tagged by Mandye Flowers to come up with 6 Unimportant Things About Me. I am so sure that there are so many unimportant things about me that it is not funny. However, I have pregnancy on the brain so I am going to come up with 6 unimportant things about my pregnancy.

1. LISTS: I have always made lists for everything, but the baby has multiplied my desire/need for lists. I have them on everything...what to take to the hospital, what to purchase, what needs to be done to the house, what needs to be captured on photo/video, just everything. AND if I have already made the list, but I accomplish something that should have been on the list, I add it even after the fact just so I can cross it off. So weird...I know.

2. ROUTINE: I do everything in a routine. It helps me not forget something. I don't go with the flow very well. I like everything planned out...so that helps me accomplish that by having a routine. I have a getting ready routine, a going to bed routine, a packing for a trip routine, etc. I NEVER veer away from it either. If you had to be me for a day, I could type you out a step by step process that you could follow. Seriously...it's that bad. So with the baby, I am determined to make my first goal a routine. I have bought every book I can find on getting your baby on a routine and have already started trying to figure out what will be the best one. I know, I know all you moms out there are laughing. I am realistic enough to know that it will all depend on what routine my BABY WANTS to be on. BUT I am going to be as prepared as I can be.

3. NESTING: I swear I have it normal times 57! I am going room by room clean sweeping...every drawer, every closet, every cabinet, every corner. There will be not one item in my house that doesn't have a specific place and purpose when that baby gets here! No JUNK allowed! You will literally be able to look behind any crook and cranny (whatever those are?) when I am done...and eat off my floors. BECAUSE I don't know if I'll be able to keep that up after the baby, so I want to at least start out that way. Can anyone say "Garage Sale in my future?"

4. NICKNAMES: One of the hardest things that Matt and I had to get through deciding names for the baby is what could his nickname be... We are so against names that can obviously be changed for the worse. I would hate for my kid to have someone tell him oneday that obviously his parents didn't think this naming thing through. I get the fact that any child will probably have a nickname in high school, but if it's bad it won't be because of what his parents named him.

5. FOOD/SOUND: When I read in my pregnancy calendar that my baby's taste buds have developed and that he can hear and process sounds now it has made me ever so cautious about what he tastes or hears. I think twice about things like garlic or sour or extremely sweet. I don't want to make his little face grimace or anything. Also I have been so careful about what I have said. I don't want him to hear anything inappropriate from my mouth or from someone else's. I also haven't screamed or yelled or been loud so it won't hurt his ears. I know a little extreme, but you know.

6. STRETCH MARKS: I have this crazy fear of stretch marks. Don't get me wrong, I have a few already on my legs. I got them really early in life...like jr. high...really! I grew so tall so fast that my skin couldn't keep up. Now I am sure weight gain/loss have effected them since then, but I have had them as long as I can remember. SO...I hate them! They are the worst thing I hate about my body. I am extremely afraid that I will get them all over my belly. Ugh! So every night after my bath, I lather up....not just put on, but am like a greased butterball turkey... in stretch mark cream AND oil. You could probably catch me but you couldn't hang on...I would slip right away! Matt makes so much fun of me, but I don't care. If I get them, it won't be because I didn't try. To be honest, though, I would do anything to my body to have this baby, so it's not that big of a deal. If I get them, I'll deal with it just fine. I just have this crazy fear of them.

A Tribute

2008-07-16T11:52:00.004-05:00

Warning: I am pregnant and hormonal. I have been so sentimental lately and this post is very much so. If you can't tell already, I love my family. Here is a tribute to them and the last of the singing videos...

The song in the video is called the Lighthouse and my family has been singing it together as long as I can remember. I have known every word to this song for as long as I can remember too. The children in my family grow up knowing that this is a special song...even if they don't know what it means. As you watch the video, how many teenagers do you know would hang out with their older adult family and join in on a very old fashioned song? As I have grown older, lived a little, and really focused on the words, I understand why. I don't think I can hear this song without crying now. The gist of the story in this song is of an old lighthouse on a hillside that would shine the light to boats on stormy nights and show the way. But now that lighthouse isn't used as much anymore and the light has no purpose and everyone is saying it is old fashioned and should be torn down. The author of the song (a sailor) says that it reminds him of when he was there one stormy night and just in time he saw the light...the light from that old lighthouse and it saved his ship. Then he compares it to how Jesus is the Lighthouse for us and when we aren't going to make it through the rocks of life and sin, HE shines a light around us that we can clearly see. If it wasn't for that Lighthouse....this ship (us) would be no more. It's a simple concept on the outside, but it means so much on such a deeper level for my family.

I think on two levels this song really touches our family. One is that my grandparents gave us such a strong biblical foundation for what has become this massive family and God has blessed us beyond words. Not everyday do you see a family four generations deep that still all get along, love to be together, with not one single divorce, and all, even the children, share in the worship of the same Lord. We have 11 southern baptist pastors/ministers in our family. Church is important, yes, but a personal relationship with the Lord is the ultimate goal...the center of our family. We pray together and love on and support each other. It is truly my haven. Don't get me wrong. I want to be the first to say that we aren't perfect. We have our fusses and hard times, but we have always gotten through it...not by our own might but by the Lord. All glory to Him. He is the Lighthouse for our family.

Secondly, we want to not boast in how God has blessed our family...far be it from us to take any responsibility whatsoever...but we recognize that God has given us a special gift and we want to use it for His glory. We want to be a Lighthouse for this world. So many people are hurting and they don't have that haven of a family to run to. We want to be a light in the darkness. We want to be an example, a witness, a shoulder to cry on. Many call us old fashioned, many say we (this family that prays together/serves in ministry/spends time together) is outdated and we shouldn't put the importance on it that they did in the past. It is not that important to prioritize to be at a family gathering. It isn't that important that you teach your children to put the same importance on the family that you were taught as a child. In fact, people say it is unrealistic that our family will stay like this. That's the other reason that this song speaks to us so...we feel like there are those that want to pull that lighthouse down because it is not needed anymore. When we stand and sing this song as a family, I feel in my heart that we are saying...stating...promising...that we will not be torn down. By God's grace...we are needed and we will fight to be there. We will teach our children that it is important to prioritize time for our family. It is important and it is a legacy that we want to leave behind.

Here's the Lighthouse...sung at the Cabins June 2008. Lots of chaos during the song, and a few silly moments...remember there are 54 of us and we don't have a recording contract, but singing together is a special special time we share as a family...hope you enjoy...

2008-07-15T17:02:00.002-05:00

So this is one of the videos that I promised a few posts back. It takes FOREVER to load them! My granddaddy is singing a song he used to sing to my Grandmother every night when their children (my mom and her brothers and sisters) were going to bed. This is especially sweet to us now since my grandmother has past away. I think my granddaddy wipes away a little tear at the end. WARNING: this is one of those family things that is so special to you but people outside your family don't really get it....but I promise you will love watching my cute little granddaddy sing!

(My uncle Dan is playing the guitar in the background and singing along with granddaddy.)

Emma and Baby Stuff

2008-07-14T13:44:00.004-05:00

On Thursday of last week I got to see my little EmandEm (my great friend Amanda's little girl Emma) have her gymnastics class. It was 3, 4, and 5 year olds and it was hillarious! She did so good...she even got a stamp on her hand! =)

Here's her backbend attempt...

Posing for LeeLee (what she calls me)...

Em and LeeLee self portrait...

It was too fun. Thanks Amanda for letting me come...

This weekend was pretty dull. We didn't do much which was WONDERFUL except for...

WAIT FOR IT...

I BOUGHT MY CRIB!!!!!!!!

Yay! Jamie Ozier and I were shopping at the Play Pen or whatever it is called now and they were having a great sale on Saturday. I saw this crib in the window that looked a lot like the one I have been drooling over online (the online one was $1000 and Matt said I had lost my mind if I thought we were spending a $1000 on a baby bed). It was a different color, but Jamie was like...ask if they can order in different colors. So we did and we asked the price. Come to find out, it was the exact one I have been looking at online...same brand same style. It was MUCH cheaper at play pen than online. AWESOME! So I called Matt and he said go for it. I got my favorite crib...same brand, same color, and right at our price.

Here are the photos from online. It's called a 3 in 1 bed. It comes with all the parts and you decide which way you will set it up. It is so beautiful! I love it!

Option One

Option Two

Option Three

It is our first major purchase for the baby. I think we have decided on a scheme for the nursery as well, but I'll tell you all about that when we have gotten a little further. It made it real to us this weekend because we bought the bed and we saw on my pregnancy calendar that in two weeks I'll be halfway through with my pregnancy! Oh Gosh! It is FLYING by!

Until later...

I PROMISE TO...

2008-07-07T16:08:00.006-05:00

So I talked to a faithful blog reader today and she was VERY upset that I have really fallen behind in my posting. Well, never fear. I PROMISE TO BE BETTER! (I have exaggerated a little because I don't think she was really upset, but it got me thinking about how much I used to blog and now how little I blog.) So my July Resolution...blog more.

So here goes...

First of All...

SONOGRAM PHOTOS!!!

The first real photos that look like more than a blob...

Sweet Wil Franklin...here is the profile photo where his hands are up next to his head and the black circle in the middle of his chest is his little heart area...

This is from up underneath the poor little baby. We didn't give him any privacy and now Mommy is posting it on the internet...BUT...Definitely a boy...

This one is where he is looking straight at you. You see his face and stomach area. This one made me worry just a little bit that he looks like an alien...he was moving around a little and we got to see his legs and arms moving...

Here is my favorite belly shot of all time (so far I guess)...I have the camera and I am pointing it down and Matt has his hand on my belly...

This weekend we were at the beach with Matt's parents. We had a great time, sunning, shopping, eating...the usual. Here are a few after dinner shots on the balcony while we were waiting on the fireworks show....

Me and Matt...

Matt and Mr. Jan...

Most of you know that I love fireworks!!! I don't just like them or enjoy them, I LOVE THEM!!! Each year, the Beach Club (where the Collins Condo is) has a spectacular show. Mr. Jan and Mrs. Gail's condo is on the 18th floor, so they sound and feel like they are going off right in front of your face. It was the highlight of my whole trip! My camera has a fireworks setting on it, so it takes great shots...here are a few...mostly for my pleasure, but hope you enjoy too!

A new one I had not seen before...the "Swirlies"...

Hope you enjoy and that you had a great FOURTH OF JULY weekend too!

I'll leave you with my favorite patriotic hymn...it used to be my favorite because it said my name, but now it is my favorite because it has become my prayer for this country. Really read the words and pray for our country and our upcoming leadership. I pray that God will continue to shed His grace on us...even though we are so undeserving...

America the Beautiful by Katharine Lee Bates...

O beautiful, for spacious skies,
For amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties
Above the fruited plain!
America! America! God shed His grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood, from sea to shining sea.

O beautiful, for pilgrim feet
Whose stern, impassioned stress
A thoroughfare for freedom beat
Across the wilderness!
America! America! God mend thine ev'ry flaw;
Confirm thy soul in self control, thy liberty in law!

O beautiful, for heroes proved
In liberating strife,
Who more than self their country loved
And mercy more than life!
America! America! May God thy gold refine,
'Til all success be nobleness, and ev'ry gain divine!

O beautiful, for patriot dream
That sees beyond the years,
Thine alabaster cities gleam
Undimmed by human tears!
America! America! God shed His grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood, from sea to shining sea!

WE ARE SO EXCITED!!!

2008-07-06T22:27:00.002-05:00

We have been waiting and wondering for four months straight...

But what we found out was worth the wait...

Will our nursery be pink or blue?

You decide, but here's a clue...

You might want to rush out and buy a golf toy,

Because OH MY GOODNESS we are having a _ _ _ !!!

A BOY!!!

Wilson Franklin Collins is due to arrive December 16, 2008, and everything looks GREAT so far! All his measurements were wonderful and his heartbeat was 154...which is right on target. I'll upload sonogram photos tomorrow.

THE CABINS!!!!!

2008-07-01T21:59:00.005-05:00

So we had an excellent time at the Cabins.

For those of you who don't know, my mom has a very large family. She has six brothers and sisters and they all have kids and they all have kids. I think we are 54 in all. Our baby should make 55, I think... Anyway, we get together all the time, but every year, the last week of June, we all gather at George Payne Cossar State Park and rent cabins. We play volleyball, swim, fish, ride jet skis, play cards, sing, and fun stuff like that for a whole week together. It is wonderful and I cherish that time so much.

Here are a few of the photos I took this year. DISCLAIMER!!!! We really take the "camping" thing to the limit. No one dresses up, we swim all day and hang out all night. No makeup allowed and it is dusty and dirty. So keep that in mind when you see all our photos. I am pretty sure that most of my family will kill me for posting.

Me and Whit Whit

Kari Ann and Zan and Me

The Three Stooges (Jordan, Whitney, and Madison)

Me and Danielle

Whitney and my SWEET SWEET Little Granddaddy!

Me and Danielle Again

Caleb and Emily doing some stunting

Me and My Aunt Kathy

Danielle and her oldest son Hayden who really didn't want to take a photo

I have been trying to upload three videos of my family singing. It is so special to me. But for some reason, Blogger is not allowing me to upload video. It keeps bumping me off. So if anyone else is having trouble, let me know so I don't think it is just me. I'll upload as soon as I can because I just have to share with you guys.

Also, HOPEFULLY, we will find out the sex of the baby on Thursday morning. I'll update as soon as we know (if the baby cooperates). Also I'll put up belly shots from week 16 as well.

2008-06-23T12:18:00.004-05:00

So last week was a long week. I was so exhausted! There were a lot of photo opportunities, but my camera battery was down, and I kept forgetting to charge. So I have a few shots at the bottome that I took with my phone. Here's a recap of the week:

Monday, Rags got a long overdue haircut from Mr. Keith at Puppy Suds in Madison. He's amazing and we have been with him for 5 years. I'll have to post before and after photos, because it was hillarious the difference.

Tuesday, I met Jamie (an old friend) for lunch and had a great time. That night I finished organizing Mrs. Gail's closets and crashed into bed.

Wednesday, I had one of those awful days where nothing goes your way except for lunch with Amanda. So that afternoon, I drug my good friend Rebecca Pierce to get a pedicure with me and then we had chicken pot pie at Primos...yum... By the way, I felt like Elle Woods in Legally Blonde when she squeals into the beauty shop crying and she walks up to the nail lady and says, "Are you free? It's an emergency!" That was how my day was and the pedicure made it all better.

Thursday, I had lunch with KeithAnn, a friend of mine from Delta State. You may remember a post earlier about her baby shower. She and her precious new baby, Rebekah Grace, met me at Newks and we had a great time. It was my first time to meet the little cutie and she is so beautiful and was sooooo good at lunch.

Friday & Saturday, I began "helping" Crisler Boone, Wedding Consultant Extraordinaire among many other talents, with the McDaniel/Husband wedding at First Pres. Crisler is letting me "intern" with her for some wedding consulting experience. It was so much fun and the wedding was absolutely amazing. The Bride and Groom were too sweet and the day was just perfect. I don't really know the bride/groom very well, so I didn't want to go posting their big day on the internet, but I got a shot of how gorgeous the dresses were and the brides/bridesmaid bouquets...absolutely beautiful... (Remember, camera phone quality)

Sunday, I was completely exhausted from the week. That afternoon, we met Hays and Brooke at the Country Club for lunch and then catching some rays at the pool. Small group was last night and then my bed was calling!

Next post will be much more interesting, I promise. This week my family goes to "The Cabins". My mom's whole family (all 54 of us) rent cabins at a state park and spend the whole week hanging out together. I am getting to go for tomorrow and Wednesday, so I'll have some great photos to post. Also I'll give a pregnancy update and some new belly shots. Happy 15 weeks to me!

PS...keep my friend Beth in your prayers. She is going to the DR. tomorrow to talk about some different options. I know she is wanting that baby so badly, so pray for her as she and her husband decide what route to take next!

Comedy Wednesday

2008-06-11T13:41:00.003-05:00

So last night I went to a Cabi party. It's a line of clothing that is shown at parties similar to tupperware parties. The clothes are always so cute and very well made...and we have a great time. Anyway, it was across the street from my In-law's house at Mr. & Mrs. Herring's house. They have this enclosed back porch where their cat lives...equipped with a cat door to the outside. We are chatting at the beginning of the party and all of a sudden someone says, "RACCOON!" We all rush over to the window and look inside the back porch. Here is what we see...

The raccoon would just take a bite and look up at us staring through the window and then take another bite. It was too funny. Mrs. Jeri Herring says that it has been coming in to eat for a while now and they hate it, but they think it is a momma raccoon because of the way she looks and they feel sorry for her. How funny is that? I wish I had gotten her right when she was coming in the door because she stuck her head in and peaked around and then came in ever so slowly inch by inch. It was hillarious!

So...they say that when you are pregnant, you start to forget things and can sometimes feel like you are in a fog. I am claiming that and blaming what I am about to tell you on being pregnant...

Today Amanda and I went to eat lunch. We had a great time, laughed a lot and enjoyed a great meal. We looked at the clock and both decided we needed to get back to the office so we got up and went on our merry way. About 10 minutes later, Amanda looked at me (we were riding together) and said, "Did you pay for lunch?" and I said, "No, did you?" She shook her head no and we both screamed. We had gotten up, walked out and just forgotten to pay. We had to turn around and go back and pay for our lunch. We were sooooo embarrased. We both told the manager, "We're pregnant, and we are just crazy these days." It was so bad. I have never done that in my life. They were really nice about it and weren't upset at all, thank goodness, but it might be a few months before we return. I would hate for them to ask us to prepay for our food next time!

Yeah Well...

2008-06-09T10:49:00.002-05:00

I spoke too soon. I got really sick on Friday and really sick on Sunday. It's not over yet. Ugh! BUT...really I am trying not to complain. At least it isn't every day.

I have two prayer requests today. Please join with me in praying for my dear friend Beth who had her umpteenth IUI last week. She has the dreaded two week wait to see if God is going to choose to give her a baby this month. I know first hand how longing for something with your whole being can almost drive you batty. Please pray that God would bless them this month and that if He doesn't, that Beth and her husband would know and feel patience...which is soooooo much harder than it sounds. I love you Beth and I am fervently praying for you...either way. I know she would appreciate words of encouragement as well. Check out her blog here to keep updated.

Secondly, my sweet little mama had her tonsils out last Tuesday. They say it is a horrible proceedure to have anyway, but especially when you are in your 50s. She hasn't gotten any relief up to this point and isn't doing too well yet. Please pray for pain relief, patience, comfort, and healing. She doesn't know how to be sick and it's killing her to be down for so long. I love my sweet mama and it is so hard to not be able to do anything to make it better. Also remember my dad. He is being an excellent nurse to her, but I know he is exhausted giving fulltime care to my mom and to an entire church.

Thanks for your prayers. Talk to you soon.

12 Weeks And Counting

2008-06-05T11:30:00.002-05:00

Okay so I have GREAT news!!! I haven't thrown up since Sunday....knock on wood! I have had a few queasy spells, but no actually getting sick. Could it be that I am over the hump? Maybe? Hopefully? Oh that would be so nice. See my big baby today! I love that little ticker thing...I look at it every day!

I find out the sex of the baby on July 3rd. I'll post as soon as I know. Oh and about photos from the beach with me and amanda...yeah...neither one of us pulled out our cameras once! We were just enjoying the weekend. I am going back to the beach this weekend with my motherinlaw and sisterinlaw so I'll for sure take some this weekend. I'll get a good belly shot too because it is getting bigger!!!

And Maggie, I added what I told you I was going to add. =) I had a great time at lunch yesterday! You are so much fun.

Sidenote

2008-06-02T13:15:00.003-05:00

So I tried to make the post below more appealing to the eyes, but for some reason it wouldn't carry over the spacing and stuff when it published. Sorry it is hard to read. If you guys know how to override blogger on spacing/layout, please let me know.

My Quirks

2008-06-02T00:38:00.007-05:00

My sweet friend Mandye tagged me for a list of my quirks. Some people don't really like getting tagged for these silly things, but I LOVE it! I think it lets my "readers" (well my friends and family) get to know me a little better. AND I think I get to know myself a little better. So thanks, Mandye! So before I go there (to the quirks), a little about Mandye...

As most of you know, my dad is a pastor. In 9th grade, his mom got pretty sick and it was obvious that she wasn't going to be able to live by herself very long. So my parents decided that we would move from Laurel, MS to Jackson, MS (actually Richland) to move in with her. We bought her house and she built on a little apartment for herself. My dad didn't have a church in Jackson to come to at that point, so we began attending different churches. It was very weird for me because it was really the first time to not be the preacher's daughter. We went to Riverwood Bible Church (which was awesome and I made some great friends) for a while, but ended up at Park Place Baptist Church. Park Place's Youth Group was so inviting and I made great friends really fast. Mandye was one of them. She has an incredible voice and my dad always said she looked and sounded like the blonde from Point of Grace. We had a really tight knit group of about 15 people and we would hang out almost 5 nights a week. It was great and definitely a defining time period in my life. I kinda lost track of everyone after my sophmore year of college because I moved to Delta State. It is so fun to be back in Jackson and get to know these people again in this life. So Mandye...here are my quirks...

1. I think the beginning of this blog is a great example of one of my big quirks. I am EXTREMELY detail-oriented. I notice details, I think about details, I obsess about details. If I am telling a story, I have to give people the background (which can sometimes be more than they really wanted to know...case in point here) before I can tell the point I wanted to get across, because I need you to know the details. To me the details define the large picture and how could anyone get the large picture if you can't see the details. Don't ever ask me to develop or plan your long-range goals or "paint the big picture" because I can't. But give me the long range goals or the big picture already painted and I can come up with the details and the step by step process to get you there. I guess that is why I am an event planner for a living.

2. I have major OCD tendencies. I guess this goes along with details. If I am getting ready in the morning, I have to leave my sink/makeup/hair stuff exactly in its spot before I go or I will think about it all day long being out of place. Or, if the pillows are not exactly how they should be on the couch, I have to fix them before I go to bed or I will get up at some point in the middle of the night and fix them. Think Monica on Friends. Now I am not excessively clean at all times, because that just overwhelms me. But I am excessively organized at all times. For example: If I am going to clean my bathroom, I am going to clean every thing in it. The decorative towels on the bar, the inside of the water jets on my whirlpool tub, the baseboards, and will pull everything out of the drawers/shelves and clean/reorganize. BUT that bathroom will be clean in every way. You could eat off the floor if you wanted to after I get done. BUT who has time like that? So the majority of the time, my bathroom is not what I would call clean. I guess in short, I don't do anything half way...I am all or nothing. Really.

3. I take a bath every night of my life (well mostly...I don't do baths in other people's homes or in hotels). My bath is me time. It doesn't have to be long, or have candles or anything, just a bath. It is the one time during the day that I don't have to keep thinking about stuff (i.e. obsessive details...see above). It completely relaxes me and gets me ready for bed. I think I feel like it is washing off the day or something. My absolutely favorite feeling in the whole world is getting out of a hot bath, putting on gobs of lotion and clean pjs, drinking a big Newks cup of ice cold water, and climbing into brand new clean sheets...ahhhhh heaven!

4. I make lists. AND I check them off with a big colored in checkmark. Even if I know in my head that I have finished my whole list, I will still take the time to find a pen and check off the items on my list. It is such satisfaction. Oh and if I do something that wasn't on my list to begin with, I add it to the bottom just so that I can check it off. Weird...I know.

5. I don't eat pork. I don't like the way it tastes, I don't like the way it smells, I don't like the way it looks. I get completely grossed out by pork. It's a long story and I will spare you, but I haven't had pork (except accidentally on a few occasions) since I was 7 years old. If you really wanted to make me sick, the fastest way would be to fry bacon or sausage in my presence. I will immediately be sick. Ugh! Just thinking about it grosses me out. NEXT...

6. I love taking pictures. I don't think about it as taking a photo that will be cute to frame or anything, I think about it as capturing and cataloging my life. I want to leave a history of my life for my children and their children (if the world lasts that long) because I love learning about that stuff from my grandparents. I love to hear their stories. A picture says a thousand words, right? AND I love my life, I feel so blessed, so I want to remember and be able to know and tell the details of every minute of it. (Well 90% of the time. I am pretty clumsy and that gets me a few moments I would rather not remember. Ha!) Which brings me to number 7.

7. I am pretty clumsy! I drop everything. Literally. Ask Matt...or work. I dropped the metal can of hairspray on our tile bathroom floor like 3 times the other morning and finally Matt said, "Honestly! Are you doing that on purpose?" I just had to laugh because I really wasn't. I really didn't mean to. And I can just fall standing there. I don't have to be walking or moving. I can just fall. I don't know what it is. I am not graceful and I am not smooth. I am just clumsy.

Well, I am sure I have many others, but I still want you to be my friends and not think I am too weird, so I am going to stop there. Thanks, Mandye, for letting me get a good laugh at myself. I tag Maggie, Beth, and KeithAnn...if you guys want to...

And ERIN KATE...GET YOU A BLOG!

BABIES AND BELLIES

2008-05-28T17:17:00.005-05:00

OK...WARNING...THIS POST CONTAINS BIG MAMA'S BELLY!!!

Several of you have asked, so here it goes...

When I first got the positive home pregnancy test was on a Sunday Morning. Tuesday, we left for Canada. This shot is the first belly shot I have. I am 4 weeks here. Notice that to begin with, it was NOT a six pack...ha!

On Monday when I got back, I had a sonogram at week 5. It was very early and it was just a blob on the screen, but it was blinking, which meant it had a heartbeat!!! It was the greatest photo I have ever seen! (Sidenote...all you girls out there that have scanned your sonograms...how did you do it? I have tried three different scanners and none of them have worked. So I had to take photos of the printouts. Go Figure!)

Week 5 Stats...

Heartbeat: Saw It First/Strong

Weight Gain: None

Morning Sickness: Almost everyday around 4 or 5 pm

This is from far away. The barely visible fuzzy dot in the center of the black circle is the baby.

This is closer up...notice that there are two fuzzy spots. The bottom right is the actual baby and the upper fuzzy spot is the other stuff. No there are not two babies...

And closer still...

This is my six week belly shot...not a whole lot bigger, but maybe a little poochier (is that a word?).

Then I had another sonogram at 6 or 7 weeks? I can't remember at this point.

It showed that my uterus had definitely grown and the baby had too. It also showed that everything else...all that other stuff was developing as well. The very bright spot at the top of the big black circle is the heart beating...

Week 6 Stats
Heartbeat: Saw & Heard It/Strong
Weight Gain: None
Sickness: Almost everyday...sometimes morning, sometimes afternoon, no rhyme or reason

Then I kinda forgot to take photos of my belly. Time just really flies so fast. I think I am going to be 39 weeks pregnant and go wait a minute...didn't I just find out that I was pregnant?

So here is the photo I took last Sunday at 10 weeks.

DEFINITELY BIGGER!!! I just woke up and it was poking out one day! Amazing!

I felt awful when this picture was taken. We had been late for church that morning because I had been so sick...thus the curly hair. I thought I was going to get sick like 4 times during church. Then we came home and I was ready to crawl into the bed. I think it is an awful picture of me, but the baby certainly looks cute! Ha!

I had my second OB appointment today. It went really good. Everything looks great. I am off blood thinners and can resume exercising so that's GREAT NEWS! Notice my weight "gain" below. Can you believe it??? Guess that proves that I have been so sick.

Week 11 Stats
Heartbeat: Heard It/Strong
Weight Gain: LOST 3 POUNDS
Morning Sickness: EVERYDAY! Morning, Afternoon, Evening, Whenever
I can't wait to be able to make food choices again based on other reasons than what will be the easiest to throw up!

So you are officially updated! This weekend my BFF Amanda (who is 8 weeks preggo) and I are going to the beach! I am so excited! It is my first trip this summer! By the way...Amanda and I have been best friends since we were 6 months old...our moms were friends. We are 16 days apart in age. Our babies are due 15 days apart! How much fun is that????
Beach photos to come soon...

Taking a Bite out of the BIG APPLE

2008-05-23T13:10:00.019-05:00

Okay this is a long one...brace yourself...and sorry it took so long. I had a lot of trouble with Blogger since I was uploading so many photos...notice that I am finishing it at 12:25am on Saturday morning...

We had the most fun EVER in New York. I also realized that I am not as young as I used to be. These college girls kept me going at all hours. I think they had a great time too, since it was their first time in NY...for both of them. So we did all the touristy stuff.

We left on Thursday morning VERY EARLY! The weather was so bad and the plane ride was the worst ride I have EVER had. It didn't help to be preggo, so of course, I was sick several times on the first flight. We landed, got to our hotel, and "freshened up" and went walking.

This was the second flight...after I got so sick...
Our hotel was right in the middle of Times Square. We walked all around the Midtown/Times Square area. The girls LOVED the M&M store. I admit I did too. It was pretty awesome with walls and walls of M&Ms. I really really wanted to stick my mouth under one and just open wide.

I loved the NYC Taxi blend of M&Ms.

Then we went to the Toys R Us and rode the big farris wheel. We asked for the My Little Pony car or even the Cabbage Patch Kid car, but they gave us the leggo looking car...mega blocks I think. NO FAIR. Can I just get a shout out for My Little Pony? Who else loved those like I did? The farris wheel was fun, but I was still feeling queasy from the plane, so I had to ask to get off. But other than that, I didn't get sick in NY so it was a pretty nice trip...preggy wise.

Then of course, we had to go over to the Hershey's store...

More Times Square...
Then this guy stopped us on the street and told us about the comedy show he was in that night. So we got suckered in and bought the $5 tickets to go see the show. It was really close to our hotel and he also told us about this great little restaurant called La Caverna. So we went to eat there and then went to see the Comedy Show. It was only worth about the $5 we paid for it. The little restaurant, though, was really good and had great atmosphere. It was like the whole place was in a cave. The photo didn't come out too great since it was too dark.

The Comedian... La Caverna...
The next day the weather was SUPER rainy and cold. So none of us pulled out our cameras because it was so wet. We did a lot of walking up 5th Avenue and saw lots of the famous shops. We did some major damage at H&M and then went to Bergdorf's where Whitney got her makeup done by "THE PROFESSIONALS". I think she liked it. We also ate lunch in their little cafe...I totally pulled a preggy craving and ordered the plate of deviled eggs...how random, but they were so good. I think I ate like 5 of them. I should have taken a photo! We did stop at the famous church on 5th Ave. They were having Mass so we felt it not appropriate to take too many photos, but I got one good one of just how beautiful it is...
That night we decided to go to a Broadway Play. Whitney and Katie really wanted to go see the new Legally Blonde and it was right next to our hotel so we went to get tickets. The girls both had student i.d.s so they got to buy tickets for $25 each. They could purchase 2, so Whitney got me one, so we saw a Broadway play for $25. How cool is that? Oh and our seats were on the VERY FIRST ROW! Major cool. It was very cute and lots of fun. I highly encourage you to see it if you are looking for one to see...
Me and Whitney right before the show...

The next day we attempted the subway (a first for both Whitney and Katie) and SoHo, Chinatown, and Little Italy.

The first time on the subway...aren't they so pretty...

Stopping at a jewelry stand in SoHo...we all bought something because it was really great looking stuff...

Then we ate at this little bistro that had the best fresh squeezed lemonade you could ever have. Here's me and whit whit outside. Check out my maternity shirt..it's one of my firsts...
We totally bought up like the entire Chinatown. We didn't take many photos there either, because our hands were full of our purchases. Maybe Whit or Katie took some, I'll have to get theirs and do a NY Part 2...

Here we are on the subway trying to get back to the hotel with all our packages. Can't you see we are tired shoppers...
Here's all our loot...seriously you should have seen us trying to get this all home...

That night it was raining again and we were tired of Italian food, so we sought out this Mexican restaurant. I can't remember the name, but it had great food and after 11pm it turned into a Latin dance club. Think...Along Came Polly...but a much smaller space. If you have seen the movie, you know.

Me and Katie at the Mexican Place...

Whitney and Katie at the Mexican Place...

That got to be a little much for us, so we hopped a taxi back to the hotel, changed into some jeans and t-shirts and flipflops because it had started raining and got some dessert at Roxie's. It's this great little place that we are told all the locals love because it stays open all night and is right in Times Square. Did I mention it has amazing desserts.

Check out our cheesecakes we ordered. We should have just split one...

the next day was Sunday, so we took the subway all the way to Brooklyn for church at The Brooklyn Tabernacle. I think this was my favorite part of the whole trip. The choir...who is amazing was there. I think that is what heaven is going to sound like. It was the most spirit filled church I have ever been to...a truly amazing experience. I have some video of the choir warming up before the service that I will post in another post. It isn't that great, but at least you can get an idea of how fun and worshipful the whole service was.

There were so many people there, we had to wait in line to get in the door. We got there about 45 min early and we were a block a way in line.

Here we are waiting in line...

A glimpse of the inside. We were trying to be respectful since it was church, but we wanted to capture the moment...
On the way back from Brooklyn, we were in the subway at a stop and we saw...wait for it...

Michael Jackson!

Well an impersonator anyway...he was dancing to Beat It. I couldn't get a great photo, but you can kinda see him. It was hillarious!

When we got back to the hotel, we wanted to go see another play. We didn't plan very well and buy tickets before we went to church, so the only ones we could get so last minute (for student prices) was Legally Blonde. The girls wanted to go see it again for two reasons...1...they really liked it and wanted to see it again...2...the night we went, the main actress and the main actor (who are dating in real life) were not there. The girls had apparently seen them on some MTV reality show about finding Elle (the star of the play), so they really wanted to go back and see it again. So we did.

Then we headed to Maxie's...another favorite for the locals so we are told that serves old fashioned food and stays open all night. They had amazing desserts as well.
Whitney making one of her famous faces...

The next day was Monday...time to leave...but we still had several hours before we needed to get to the airport and the weather was great, so we did all the sightseeing we could possibly fit in. We hit Ground Zero (photos in just a sec) but first we went into St. Paul's which is the little church across the street from Ground Zero that became the hub for all the volunteers. They fed them, housed them, gave them supplies, etc. The church is now a "museum" type where they house a lot of artifacts and photos of that time. They call this the little church that stood, because it is literally right behind ground zero and everything around it was destroyed and 100 year old trees ripped from the ground because of debris and the impact of the buildings coming down...But this church didn't have one single window broken. It became Holy Ground for several firemen, policemen, and relief workers...

People and groups from all over the world mailed in cards and signs and letters that they posted them on the pews and the collumns and the walls for all the relief workers to see. I forgot I had my flash on, so the photo isn't that great, but you can kinda see what the church looked like right after 9-11.
Here is one of the signs that was in front of the food table that a bunch of southern women from Georgia came and set up in the church...I loved it. I loved the fact that our country came together during that time...
The church houses one of the memorial crosses made out of debris from the buildings...
People came from everywhere and worked 13 -15 hour shifts searching for people trapped. The church used the pews to let the men and women catch some rest before heading out again. Most of them have been removed and put in other museums, but they still had one to show you what it was like...
All the volunteers that were government officials from somewhere else, left their patches off their clothes to show who all had been there to lend a helping hand. They were all in a pile at the church...amazing isn't it...
In this photo, I am standing at Ground Zero...the site where the towers were... and looking back at the church. That's how close it is....can you believe that not one window was broken by debris?
This is one of the 1oo year old trees that was ripped from the ground...
Ground Zero...the blue shinny building to the right is the first new building they are completing in place of the World Trade Center towers...
This is the Fire Station that is across the street from what used to be the towers. They were the first responders and from what I understand, most of them did not make it...
This is the copper memorial to the firemen from this company...it is down the side of the building that houses the station and is a block long...

Okay...I'll get a little lighter. We just had a very wonderful experience in the church and looking at Ground Zero. It is very humbling and reminds me of a time when our country was ready to stick together and give a helping hand. It doesn't seem like that very much these days...and it makes me sad.

So the sight seeing continued...
Macy's on 34th Street...

The Empire State Building...

Radio City Music Hall...
A carriage ride through Central Park...
The Plaza Hotel...
The United Nations Plaza...
And oh so much more. We went to Tiffany's where the girls picked out their engagement rings...ha!, Rockefeller Center (did I spell that right because it doesn't look right), the NBC building, Carnegie Hall, etc, etc. We did it all...

I think they had a great time, and I know I did. I bought the baby an I heart NY onesie since technically the baby had its first trip to NYC too.
Thanks girls for letting me share your first trip to NYC with you. Love you both!

Next post...sonograms and belly shots...but only because several of you are asking for it..

2008-05-21T14:20:00.003-05:00

So I know that I am being so bad at this blogger thing. I have been swamped at work since I got back. Things are getting so busy! But I am working on the blog that details New York, so maybe it will be done tonight...if not...tomorrow.

By the way did anybody notice that my imaginary baby on the left was sucking its thumb today? How fun is that???

New York City!!!

2008-05-16T17:57:00.002-05:00

the title was meant to be said like the guy on the salsa commercial that was upset that his salsa was made in NEW YORK CITY???!!!!

Any way...

Whitney and I and Whitney's friend Katie are in New York until Monday. We are taking Whitney on her 21st birthday trip. We are so excited about being here and are having a fabulous time! I'll post photos and updates as soon as I get back.

Until then...

A SHOUT OUT TO WHITNEY

2008-05-08T18:35:00.006-05:00

So today is my sister, Sarah Whitney Wilson's, Birthday.

She is 21 and Fabulous! Whitney is seven years younger than me and for the longest time was so annoying because I was too cool to hang with my little sister. Now, she is the cool one, lots of fun, has great style, is a mean basketball player, and has the best laugh. She is the most genuine, loving, sweetest, funniest, craziest person I know. She is also turning out to be a very Godly woman whose heart is with children and youth. Whitney is one of those people that when she walks into a room, the whole room is a brighter place and everyone in that room is drawn to her. She never meets a stranger, isn't scared of anything, and has more "best friends" than you can shake a stick at. She is a great listner and is extremely loyal. She loves hot pink and black, shinny lip gloss, Mississippi State, singing loud in her car, sleeping late, being on the water, taking silly pictures of herself (see below), making funny faces, hanging out with her family, a good game of H.O.R.S.E., and rap music (sorry, Mom!). She's not perfect, but she's pretty darn close. Whitney I have enjoyed being a part of every one of your 21 years. You completely changed my life when you were born...and it has just continued to get better. You are truly my sister and best friend.

Love ya boo!

Happy Birthday!

Happy Monday!

2008-05-05T10:11:00.002-05:00

I totally loved this article. As the older sibling, it really made me laugh. Hope you enjoy your CINCO de MAYO!!!

Also say a prayer for my sweet friend, Beth. She and her husband are "desperately seeking baby" just like we were and today at 2:30pm she is having a proceedure at Dr. Isaac's. Love ya Beth! We are praying so hard today.

Good News

2008-04-30T21:10:00.002-05:00

I heard today from Dr. Layne and he said that all my tests came back negative for any hint of a blood clotting disorder. So he believes the blood clot is just a fluke from the fertility treatments and all the blood they drew. So the good news is that I just have to finish out the prescription of the shots and then I get to get off of them. NO MORE SHOTS!!! And NO MORE WORRY of developing blood clots that could hurt the baby. Thanks for all your prayers. This is truly an answer to prayer!

I promise that the next post will be more fun and have some photos.

Babies and Blood Clots

2008-04-28T09:47:00.002-05:00

Thank you all so much for all of your comments and phone calls and everything. We (me and the baby) are doing well. I still have the blood clot in my arm. It hasn't gone anywhere, it hasn't down yet either, but the swelling has gone down a good bit and so has the redness. I am hoping a few more shots and it will be gone. I still don't have full use of my arm, but I am making it. Saturday, Matt had to help me wash my hair...oh what a sight. There is a reason boys aren't supposed to have long hair...and Matt proved it on Saturday! Ha!

I am back at work today and hoping that I can make it through most of the day. I am having a little bit of trouble typing, so I am going to keep this short and sweet, but I just wanted to say thanks and let you guys know an update.

Please keep us in your prayers, I find out tomorrow or Wednesday if I am "genetically predisposed," and whether or not I have to take the shots for the rest of the pregnancy. BTW...you should see my stomach. It looks like a pin cushion. Matt, I am afraid, is enjoying giving me the shots. =)

Thanks again,

Amberly and Baby Collins

Seriously???

2008-04-25T13:31:00.005-05:00

So, I have had the weirdest thing EVER happen! On Monday after work, I came home and took a little nap and my right arm kept jumping on the inside. I really didn't pay it much attention but I got up and went to sewing class. That night I woke up several times with my arm hurting and I just thought I was sleeping on it wrong. When i got up Tuesday, it was so sore. I felt like I had lifted two tons of weights with one arm. And it was sore on the inside of my arm on the bend of my elbow (almost where you give blood from). I also felt a really hard vein on the inside.

I called my dad and he said I needed to get it checked out. I went to work as normal and called my OB/GYN. He told me to go immediately to an emergency room or to an MEA so that I could be seen quickly. I went to the MEA clinic because I did NOT want to go to the emergency room. The MEA doctor thought it was tendenitius (spelling?) and that I just had a pulled tendon. But he said that it could (worst case) be a blood clot. He told me it was my call. I could go home and put an ice pack on it and take tylenol and treat the tendon or I could err on the side of caution and have an ultrasound done on my arm to rule out the blood clot. I chose to do the ultrasound. He set me up for an appointment at a digital imaging place for 8:30am on Wednesday morning.

I went home Tuesday night as usual, went to dinner with Mrs. Gail and Brooke and went home. When I woke up Wednesday morning, my right arm was HUGE and there was a red line from the inside of the elbow to almost my wrist. I could barely bend my arm or straighten it all the way. So I went to have the ultrasound done and they did find a blood clot.

However, they wouldn't release any information to me so I had to go have a consult with the MEA doctor. I got back to the MEA (by this time my arm was throbbing and hurt so bad and I was driving with one arm). I asked them to release my information to Dr. Scott Layne (our family internist who also goes to church with my in-laws...sweet sweet family!). I called Dr. Layne's office and they told me to come in right away. Dr. Layne took one look at me and said we need to talk with your OB to see what we can do.

He said that if I were not expecting that he would send me home with heat and tylenol. However, he said that since I was expecting he wanted to take care of it immediately. He said he wasn't worried about it traveling to my lungs or my heart, but he was worried about it going to my uterus. He called Dr. Tucker and they decided to put me on a low dosage of blood thinner and to send me home for "bedrest". They wanted me to take it easy with my arm...not a lot of movement. I couldn't move it any way though. So he put me on Lovonox (spelling?) that is a form of Heparin but it is a very low dosage and it only comes in a shot form. So my dad and Matt have been giving me shots every morning. Ouch!

Anyway. Dr. Layne said that he was a little concerned since I developed a blood clot so easily. He was worried that I might be genetically predisposed to blood clots. So he drew a lot of blood and sent it off to be tested. I'll find out about that next week. He said best case is that since I had been giving blood every week for all the fertility treatments, maybe I just developed a small blood clot since it was in that same arm. Worst case is that I am genetically predisposed to blood clots and since my body is making so much more blood for the baby that I wasn't able to handle it and I clotted. He was concerned because he said that if that is the case, I could easily develop one in my uterus and lose the baby. So if any of my bloodwork comes back positive, then I am going to be on the blood thinner shots everyday for the rest of my pregnancy.

I am doing better today and the swelling is down some. My arm still hurts a good bit and I still see the red lines, but it is much better than on Wednesday or even yesterday. I took off work on Thursday and Friday and am taking the weekend to rest as well. HOpefully I will be able to get back to normal on Monday.

So I would covet your prayers that I don't have to take the shots every day for the rest of my pregnancy, but if that is what it takes, I am fine with it. Just pray that things go smoothly with the pregnancy and that we carry to term healthy and happy....shots or no shots.

The silver lining is that I got to see the baby again on the ultrasound and I also got to hear the HEARTBEAT!!!! It was so sweet. Everything looks good so far with the baby. We are very thankful for that. Thank you also for all your prayers and phone calls. We are doing fine and hope to be back to normal soon.

I'll keep you posted if anything changes.

Beautiful Blogs

2008-04-22T12:07:00.002-05:00

I have to give props to Maggie Ingram. She is an expert at all things creative. She created the new header for my blog and I LOVE IT!!! Thank you so much Maggie!

I haven't know Maggie for much over a year now, but she has quickly become one of my favorite friends. She is always encouraging and so much fun to be around. Funny fact is that her husband Brad and my husband Matt went to elementary school together back in the day! How fun!

Check out her blog here and see their two beautiful children!

Thanks Maggie!

You are the GREATEST!

Happy MONDAY!!

2008-04-21T10:31:00.005-05:00

So I have a picture for you to make your Monday a little brighter!!!

Yep! Matt and I are going to have a baby. We are soooooo excited! We have been trying for almost two years and finally God blessed us with a sweet little one. We have been through a really tough time and have done the fertility thing as well. I started another blog about my whole having a baby journey and you are welcome to read it here if you are interested in all the details. It isn't very long and there are no photos, but it will tell you about my journey. I started it as a journal of sorts because everything was running together to me and also because we weren't telling too many people so I needed an outlet.

I am due December 15 or 16, 2008. I will get my confirmed due date on Thursday when I have my first OB appt. with Dr. Tucker. However, I have already had an ultrasound at the Fertility Clinic so I will post that as soon as I scan it.

We told our parents this weekend and had some GREAT response. Our child will be the first grandchild for both families and I see a very spoiled child in the future.

I bought these ornaments that say Baby's First Christmas and wrapped them up with a Christmas Card Invitation that had a poem on it announcing we were pregnant. Both of our moms collect ornaments so we told them we had gotten them an ornament from Canada. Neither one of them had any idea it was so much more. This is the poem...

This Christmas will be EXTRA special Indeed!
For we will have another mouth to feed.
Will we have a boy or a girl, maybe?
We don't know, but we will for sure have a SANTA BABY!
Announcing Baby Collins
Due to Arrive December 15, 2008

Here are the photos and video...

Here's Matt on the way to tell his parents...he was a little giddy...

I didn't get video of Mrs. Gail opening her present, but I got a picture afterward. She was speechless. And she teared up a little. Mr. Jan was very happy too...

Here's is how my family reacted. I got them on video but didn't get them in pictures. PLEASE disregard me...I hate the way i sound on video. I was trying to tell her that I couldn't come to see her for the previous two weeks because I didn't want to slip and tell her because I was trying to wait till Whitney could be there too. The funniest part is when my mom goes over to Matt. Listen to what she says when she hugs him...HHHHHHAAAAHAHAHA!

We are so happy. To GOD BE THE GLORY!!!

Lamentations 3:21-25 This I recall to my mind, therefore I have hope. The Lord's lovingkindnesses indeed never cease, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfullness. The Lord is my portion, says my soul, therefore I have hope in Him. The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, to the person who seeks Him.

Montreal, Canada - Part 2 (Matt's Photos)

2008-04-20T22:28:00.007-05:00

So here are Matt's photos of the trip. And of course, they are amazing.

Matt and Allison got to ride the train to Quebec City one day and take a great tour of the City and take great photos. They said it was really French and really old. This building is painted on the side to look 3D. How cool??
Old Quebec City with the original walls around the city and the "castle". It is now a hotel, but it is one of the oldest structures in the city. I think we should have stayed there!
Check out how deep the snow was...

More Quebec City...
Matt and Allison ate at this little cafe that was in the building that has the red roof. Can you tell I am a bit jealous I didn't get to go? I was in stupid meetings...
Back to Montreal...they had lots of parks with statues in them and cannons and all sorts of old historical stuff...

I can't remember what this was and Matt's not here to ask...so sorry...don't have the scoop...

We also got to go to Olympic Park. They had the Olympics there in the 70s and they built all these wonderful structures. This was the cycling arena (maybe) in the 70s and this is a photo from the tower beside it looking down. It is supposed to resemble a riding helmet from the 70s.
Now they have made everything public by creating a zoo in one of the buildings, a public swimming arena, and a major training facility. Here are a few snaps on the inside...

Here are photos from the island. I had a few the other day but here are Matt's. He caught this animal coming out of the ground and then we saw a fox. How fun!
Can you see the fox in the middle by the fence...
The fun structure...

The frozen river on the island...The city of Montreal from across the water (we were on the island) check out the cross...
More photos of Notre Dame...
All in all we had a great time. Hope you check this post fast, because I have new adventures from this weekend to post about....those will be soon...