Christmas Festivities!

Well, Finley and I are almost over whatever we had. My coughing is much better and aside from an occasional cough, Finley seems to be fine. I haven't been that sick in a long time and I would like for it to be a really long time before that happens again or at least when I'm not pregnant and can have codeine cough medicine ;)

Anyway, Christmas was a bit of a blur this year. I think between traveling, sickness and the normal chaos of the holidays, we were just glad to make it through and we're ready for a new year.

In case you haven't noticed I've been really lazy about my blogging. For the sake of being consistent, here is Christmas in pictures, short captions and videos :)

We went to my mom's house to have Christmas with our cousins, The Blakes. We had a great time visiting and we all got a chance to love on Ava.




Christmas Eve Day we went to see my dad, step-mom and step-sisters and have brunch. I didn't take a single picture. What did they expect? I'm their evil step-sister.

Then, we went to Joey's brother's house to exchange gifts. I don't know why Finley looks so depressed in the first picture. Since we've been home, she has watched the DVD she is holding about 25 times. At least it's educational. She knows her vowels.




After visiting the Beattys, we went to Joey's parents house for Christmas with his side of the family. Again, no pictures. I'm just having an off year...

Finally, we headed home for Christmas in Huntsville!






My mom and sister came up on Christmas Day and at that point, Finley had had enough of opening presents.



There you have it, Christmas 2011!

Sick Log

Here's what our week looked like...

Monday: I take Finley to the doc because I'm worried about a cough and runny nose. She has a double ear infection. We get sent home with meds.

Tuesday and Wednesday: She's taking her meds and seems to be getting better

Thursday: I start having flu like symptoms.

Friday: I wake up feeling terrible! My throat is killing me and the pain is moving up into my ears. I get meds that afternoon, but have a sleepless night.

Saturday: Finley starts coughing again and has a runny nose, but seems like she feels fine. My throat has never hurt this bad. I don't have heartburn, I have heart inferno! It has never been this bad and I've taken all the Pepcid I can take today. I'm miserable and really upset because we have a busy week full of fun that I don't want to miss.

Saturday afternoon: The dreaded pregnancy headache sets in and I just want to cry.

Sunday: My throat is much better, ears are still hurting a little and there is definitely fluid in the right one. Finley is now running a low grade fever. Also, my headache is here to stay.

Sunday night: Up at midnight (still have headache) listening to my baby cough in her bed. Had to cancel Monday playdate with girlfriends in Bham. Will be up all night praying tomorrow is a better day.

Finley's Do's and Don'ts

If Finley had a do's and don'ts list this is what it would look like...

DO
Give me chocolate and Dum Dums
Take me outside to play
Chase me
Tickle me
Hold me
Hug me real tight
Make me grits or cereal for breakfast
Take me for rides on the carousel
Let me help you put clothes from the washer into the dryer
Let me climb on you
Let me watch home videos of myself
Turn up the music and let me dance

DON'T
Wake me up when I'm sleeping
Try to make me eat anything green (unless its a green apple Dum Dum)
Try to make me sit still and color
Tell me no...EVER
Let a bug get near me
Tell me to wait, I have no idea what that means

SWEEM Christmas Program

Finley's Christmas program was a huge success! She sang along, although very quietly, and didn't run off the stage even when she saw me in the audience. It was so cute! It's fun experiencing all these milestones in her life. Her first Christmas program :)

Welcome Baby Will!

A couple weeks ago I threw a Girl's Night Out baby shower for my friend Katie. We are so excited to meet baby Will! I'm so excited that finally one of my friends is having a baby where I live. When all my friends were having babies I was stuck down in Mobile which is 4 hours from Birmingham so I never got the chance to go up to the hospital to see them and their new little ones. Katie is giving birth less than a mile from my house!!! I know it seems silly, but it's a big deal for me. Katie has become one of my closest friends and I am thrilled that not only do we have daughters the same age, but our sons will only be 3 months apart! They have no choice but to be friends :)

Pregnancy Update

I went to the doctor today for my 24 week appointment. It was an uneventful appointment which is great in my book :) Everything with me and baby is great and I passed my glucose test! She did tell me I had to start taking iron, but it sounded like they routinely put everyone on iron. They brought me a prescription before I even got in my room. Sam was kicking the nurse's heart rate monitor wand (or whatever you call it) which was pretty funny. Perhaps it was the Coke and Kitkat that had him all excited. It had me pretty excited too. When I had to take my glucose test with Finley I was still feeling sick and that orange drink did not agree with me. After I drank the last sip, it immediately came back up. I told my OB about what happened and was prepared to beg her to let me do the coke and candy bar alternative I had heard about. I didn't even have to go into it, she immediately told me I just needed to get 50grams of glucose before I came. I wanted to give her a big hug and kiss, but I thought that might be weird so I just said thank you and left :)

Breakfast with Santa

Something else we did this year that was new was Breakfast with Santa. The Bob Jones High School cheerleaders do a Breakfast with Santa to raise money to go to competition. We heard great things about it so we decided to try it out. They had a pancake breakfast, tons of crafts for the kids and , of course, Santa Claus was there. Finley was kind of fussy so we didn't stay long, but she enjoyed seeing Santa Claus and getting a balloon animal. Finley is definitely not into crafts or coloring. I wish she was, but I have tried and she just won't do anything like that for more than a minute or two. She does like to paint, though so there's some hope that at some point she will sit still and give me a break from the constant physical activity :)

Annual Zubkus-Dambro reunion :)

We went to Murfreesboro, TN to visit the Zubkus family again this year. We went the same time last year. I think we've started a tradition. The kids played together, we all went to dinner, did some shopping and just relaxed. Finley was obsessed with their new kittens and it made me want to get her one. The verdict is still out. I love cats, but I'm not sure I want the responsibility. Can't you just see a little white kitten with a big red bow around its neck waiting for her on Christmas morning??? Something else I discovered while we were there...Finley is really good at riding a scooter. She fell several times and skinned her knees, but got right back up and was back at it with no tears. She's one tough cookie.

Christmas kick off!

We decided to kick off the Christmas season with the Huntsville Botanical Gardens Galaxy of Lights. Finley loves looking at Christmas lights so I knew this would be a winner. We went with our friends, the Chatams. Abby and Finley enjoyed the lights and had a little visit with Santa. For whatever reason, the minute they were on his lap they both froze. It was pretty funny. After we got done pushing the strollers for 3 miles through gravel, we all went to dinner.

Little Indian girl

Ava Jacqueline Blake

Is there anything better than a brand new baby? I think not :) My cousin and his wife welcomed their first child into the world last night. Ava Blake...sounds like a movie star name to me :) She is perfect and so beautiful! She had to take a little trip to the NICU so I didn't get to hold her, but I can't wait to get my hands on her at Thanksgiving. Congrats Greg and Angie! We love all 3 of you!

Christmas card pics!

One of my absolute favorite things about Christmas is Christmas cards. I love to see pictures of my friends families on Christmas cards! I took Finley out today hoping to get a good shot the first time and I did! Yay! Here are a few of my favorites.

Operation Christmas Child 2011

We packed boxes for OCC again this year. If you want to participate, here is the website with instructions on packing your boxes.

http://www.samaritanspurse.org/index.php/OCC/

Each year, Samaritan's Purse asks you to donate at least $7 (either online or put a check in your box) for each box to cover shipping. This year they asked for a little more because shipping costs have gone up, but it's still a great way to give without breaking the bank.

We did a boy and girl ages 2-4 again this year. Here's what we packed...




Finley wasn't quite sure where all these toys were going, but she was happy to help me pack them anyway.



Next year I want to go to another country to help distribute the boxes to the children. How awesome would that be??? If you see me soliciting people to go with me on Facebook next year don't be surprised.

A new love...

I FINALLY found a table to go between my chairs! I'm madly in love with it. I love the finish! The lamp is new too. I got both for less than $150! I heart T J Maxx ;)

Buying Boy Stuff :)

Very surreal...

Happy Halloween!

Finley made a spooky ghost at MDO.



We went trick-or-treating with the girls across the street. Finley loved going up to the houses.



Here's our "lazy parent" pumpkin. Finley didn't mind. She's really into Cookie Monster and Elmo right now. She never watches Sesame Street, but they are on her diapers so she's obssessed.



Finley had a halloween party at MDO.



I hope everyone had a Happy Halloween!!!

Wordless Wednesday

This is an interesting look. Mommy's bra around my neck and velcro rollers on my arms. She keeps calling herself a caterpillar.

Really?

How in the h*@# does this happen so fast??? How??? It was clean 15 minutes ago. Why do I even bother cleaning it up?

OH BOY!!!

It's a BOY!!! We are thrilled! Joey and I were convinced it was a boy, but it was still a shock to get confirmation. We are so excited!!!



People keep asking what Finley thinks about having a baby brother. She is completely clueless. We have told her several times that she is going to be a big sister and that there is a baby in mommy's tummy, but she just gives us a blank stare and then asks for a popsicle. My friend Katie is having a baby boy in December so maybe when Finley sees her friend Abby with her baby brother, I can try explaining it again. I have a feeling it will not be real until he's home with us for a couple weeks.

As soon as we found out it was a boy we did what any normal person does once they find out what they're having...we (or I) went shopping! I couldn't wait to buy something blue :)



Want to see pictures of the nursery??? Well, here it is!




Just a little bit of work to do in there. For now we are just letting it sink in :)

Back on the coupon train!

I haven't been couponing :( I started getting sick at about 5 weeks and since my sickness was the worst at night, I quit making dinner. When I would try going to the grocery store, I would buy whatever sounded good. Of course, once I got home and started making it it didn't sound good anymore. You pregnant people know how that goes. Anyway, we ate out a lot and just bought the essentials once we ran out. It hurt having to pay $70 for half a cart of groceries, but on the other hand, it was nice to just go to the store with no preparation and just get what I wanted and not have to think about getting the right brand, size, etc. Now that I'm feeling better though I am getting back on the coupon train. My food stockpile is almost depleted. My toiletry stockpile is still going strong, though! Today I spent $70 and saved $50. Hopefully, I'll be back on track very soon:)

Gator tastes good.

Joey and I went to Auburn for the Auburn/ Florida game. The weather was perfect!!! I felt good all day, we got to spend time with the Harbucks and Auburn won. It was an awesome weekend! We were glad to get home to Finley. My mom and sister came up to keep her. We came home to chicken and rice casserole for dinner, clean bathrooms, new maternity clothes for me and itty bitty Ugg boots for Finley. We should go out of town more often ;) I hope everyone had a great weekend!

P.S. No pictures from the game, forgot my memory card again :(

All caught up.

I think I'm all caught up on my blogging. I will not go that long without posting again! I knew if I didn't sit down and do this tonight I would get so backed up that I would just quit. These posts are out of order, but I wrote them as they came to mind. I'm out of blogging shape. I was really lazy with these posts, but I promise to do better. I want you all to know that even though I haven't been blogging, I have been reading all of your posts and I'm glad to see that all my blogger friends are doing well :)

Madison Street Festival 2011

This was our 2nd year to go to the Madison Street Festival. We ate, Finley rode a pony and played in the inflatables. It's funny what a difference a year makes when you're talking about toddlers. We went with the Chatams again this year. Here is a picture of Finley and Abby back then...

and this year...

Katie, Abby's mom, and I joked that this was our one year anniversary. Joey knew Katie from high school and introduced us at the festival last year. I can't imagine what this year would have been like if we hadn't met. She has become such a good friend and we would not be as happy as we are in Huntsville if it weren't for those girls. We love you, Katie and Abby (we love you too Wade!)

Here are some pics from this year.



There are no pics of me and Katie. We are both pregnant and were both feeling good that day so we were busy eating our weight in Greek food, kettle corn and funnel cakes.