my birthday

Well, folks- Shadey Jadey ended up being sick from last Monday (V-day) until this Monday, really. Saturday afternoon was her last fever, but she honestly didn't start acting like her healthy little self until Tuesday. That means we laid low ALL last week (cabin fever affected us both by Friday, so we packed up and spent the night at Nonni's just for a change of scenery :))...

...but it didn't affect my birthday on Sunday! It was WONDERFUL! Rich always plans my special day for me, makes it way more enjoyable that way, we think...so that morning, although our girl was still cranky (finally fever-free, though!) we packed up and went to the ZOO!!!! It was such a gorgeous day (I decided that my birthday present from God :)) and oh to be outside...it was wonderful!! My Mom and Dad met us there and we just strolled and enjoyed the animals...







...and then they took the cranky, now needing nap, Jadeybug back to their house so Rich and I could catch a matinee. Peeps, if you haven't seen UNKNOWN (Liam Neeson), it's really good...

...Then, a few friends met us for a yummy dinner at my fave Italian restaurant, Carrabba's...


Here is the official "hand off" of my birthday gift that traveled the farthest, all the way from the hands of my sweet sis, Court, in South Africa (by way of Rocky)...to me!


...a handmade, BEAUTIFUL scarf...which will not be worn like this-

-although Teri really wants me to! :)

And can you believe that we are ALL preggo together? In order (of biggest belly!)...Baby Andrews due beginning of May, Baby Beasley due middle of June, and Baby Calmus and Baby Walker are literally due within days of each other at the beginning of August. The BEST part is...NONE of us are finding out what we're having, so it's gonna be one, fabulous surprise after another!!! Oh I love these days in my life...


Perfect group, perfect night...

Perfect birthday.

And happy to report that today, this Friday, Shaelyn Jade is back to her old self, inventing new ways to do old things...



Happy weekend.
Love you all...

My Valentine

I had big plans for today when I went to bed last night... I had decorated Rich's office for a surprise for him (not like pink and red streamers and balloons- I mean, he had never hung his pictures or organized his book shelves or bought any decor since they moved in MONTHS ago...so I actually "spruced" it up a little for him)...Jade and I were going to go and meet him for lunch...I bought everything for a big, homecooked dinner he'd love...and planned a fun night at home for us three.

Well, as I am learning happens often with little ones, our plans don't go, um, as planned sometimes, do they? Jadeybug woke up this morning a little less thrilled than she normally is to be awake. She was snotty and whiney...and feverish. After breakfast, instead of her normal request for me to "pay" with her...she simply had one wish: "mama...bed." She was back asleep in minutes...with a 102 fever.

Plans cancelled. Day shot.

But not really. I spent almost the entire day in my PJs snuggled up with my little valentine. She literally didn't want to leave my arms...ALL day long. I spent the first part of the day thinking about HOW unproductive my day was becoming. Then, it dawned on me at some point, that this day of snuggles was the BEST VALENTINE'S DAY GIFT I could have ever even asked for. See, my little lady is needing me less and less each day...she is rarely happy sitting in my lap for too long...and I usually avoid thinking about this reality for fear of crying! But today...on this day of love...I felt so LOVED.








And if that's not enough, my real sweetheart came home with a wonderful surprise----he bought me a prenatal massage that I can cash in on a "sore" day here in this last trimester. What a good man!!!

Hope you all felt love today!

from where I sit...

It's naptime. At 4:22 pm every day, it's usually still naptime. Nearing the end of these few, quiet hours of my day. They are usually not still, however, because I almost always find lots of things to keep me moving... but today I decided to just SIT on my couch and check my email and call H & R Block about filing our taxes and look at THIS great promotion for nursing moms(Enter "VALENTINE" as promo code at checkout for FREEBIE!!!) I have been sitting for almost an hour, now, and started noticing "movement" out of my peripheral vision just a few minutes ago. Raised the blinds to find winter "flurries" comin' fast again...reminding me that this winter isn't quite over...


... Within just about 20 minutes, Joe and Greta's yard is starting to become covered....



...and Clive Staples has roused himself from my bed to come and count snowflakes with me...


...He hasn't said so himself, yet, but I am thinking he's as ready for spring as I am. Usually, on a warm day, this guy's out and about in the neighborhood at this hour, but not during the winter. 4:22 pm means naptime for him, too, these days...along with about 17 more hours of the day! Winter sleeper. Can't blame him. These white flakes a' fallin' are making my eyes heavy too...

Just a few minutes later, now, and the road is starting to accumulate snow...


I wondered if that would happen. That means, without a doubt, no school tomorrow...which doesn't really affect my life, but which I know is getting old for lots of friends! :) It also means that Rich will be later getting home because, as we all know, a single falling snowflake here in Tennessee usually means multiple car wrecks on the already-too-crowded I-65 S at quittin' time. Think we'll just have soup tonight. Yeah, warm veggie soup (although mine doesn't hold a candle to Greta's homeade soup!) sounds good...


...starting to really cover things up out there...

We'd planned to do our new fave winter activity tonight, "mim" at the Rec Center... but donning a bathing suit is hard enough when the temps are just low...I can't see myself also donning my snow boots to get there tonight! No, tonight may call for a "nuggle" night. Jadey is big on those lately. We push the fronts of our two couches together so they are touching and it kinda makes a "double wide" (obviously:)) and extra comfy palate for us...when she hears us moving the coffee table she runs in an screams with delight, "NUGGLE"...and jumps on the couches. She tells us both where to sit and once we're all situated she gives the cutest nod of contentment.

Hopefully me and my sweetheart (V-Day is close enough to start calling him that,again, right??? ;)) will find a good movie (that is, after Jadey has tired of crawling all over us and settles down)...and drift off into a sweet, warm dreamland together. Just about 3 feet away, outside, these flakes may still be falling from the storehouses...


...and I will dream of sunshine and sand...

Spring In Winter

So I am one of those people that just doesn't keep up with the weather. When it comes a big snow, I am usually like a child the next morning because, unless someone called to "warn" me, I didn't know. When I figure it out, I pull the blinds up and exclaim, "SNOW!!!"...and usually tear out through the yard to grab a handful...to eat! :) That's me. So, exactly the same thing happened last Saturday...except it was a "spring day" surprise! I was sitting at the kitchen table early Saturday morning eating breakfast with Shaelyn Jade (Rich had spent the night at The Cabin with the boys) and I thought that the birds in my backyard seemed to be "basking" in the sun...so I opened the back door and much to my surprise I was greeted with the most warm, pleasant, spring air! It was, truly, one of the best surprises of 2011 so far! :) I immediately called my Dad and told him Shadey Jadey and I would be heading that way RIGHT NOW to ride the four wheeler and see the horses and play in the sun all day long! We were in the car about 15 minutes later- windows down, music too loud to be January...and two happy girls. It's crazy how a little sunshine can change an entire day! We started our day with a long walk to the creek...then Poppy picked us up and we drove around on the tractor...down to the horses.


Rich and Uncle Jeff met us there and Jade got to "ride" her horse (thrilling!).


Then Ash met up with us (and brought pizza for lunch!) right as Dad hooked the trailor to the tractor and pulled us all over the farm. A "hayride" lunch on a sunny, January day.


We pulled sleeping bags down onto the trailor and we, like the birds, basked until our hearts were full...and our baby was sleepy!

Jade getting "tickled" by Non...


And proof that this kind of sunshine in winter can make us all do strange things...ever seen two grown men do "the spider"?! :)

Thank you, Jesus, for the surprise of a spring day in the middle of winter.


...and, while I'm on surprises, the BEST surprise of 2010, hands down, was that this sweet friend of mine also has a growing baby in her belly!!! This is my first "belly pic" of her...she's so tiny, but that little baby is starting to "pooch" out a little. Oh Baby Walker how we love you so much already!!!! :)