My 23rd Birthday!

It has been the most exciting and joyful past few weeks, including putting on offer on our first house and shortly after, celebrating my birthday. We found out very quickly that our offer was accepted and now we are just waiting or the contract to be accepted and the bank loan to get approved. We are going crazy with anticipation, especially me. I'm not very good at waiting. I'm not going to lie though, this couldn't come at a better time nor be a better birthday present!

My birthday celebration started over this past weekend and Joey and I did a lot of fun things!  Friday night we used our free pair of movie tickets that a student's parents gave to me for Christmas. I begged Joey to let us see No Strings Attached with Ashton Kutcher and Natalie Portman. It was absolutely hilarious and heartfelt! I loved it!!! Then on Saturday, I met up with one of my closest friends, Becca, at Cafe Intermezzo for brunch. We both enjoyed yummy coffee and Eggs Benedict! YUM!!!! She's already spoiled me with clothes for Hartley, and for my birthday brought me two more of the cutest outfits for her and a Target gift card. I am going crazy collecting Target gift cards since that's where we are registered for Hartley. It was so wonderful catching up and enjoying a nice meal at one of the cutest little cafes!

Once I got back from brunch, Joey and I decided to go to Home Depot to look at a few things for the house, like paint colors, chandeliers and such. It got both of us sooooo excited for everything we will get to do to make our new house, our home. When we were finished browsing, we decided to go to one of our favorite Italian restaurants,  Caprese. MMMM!!! We had Pizza and Pasta and no doubt, they have the best!!! To end the night, Joey prepared my favorite discontinued cake from Olive Garden called Chocolate Lasagna. I had found the recipe online and he spent hours making it. It tastes like chocolate heaven with cherries on top!


On Sunday, we woke up and had a relaxing morning and then headed to celebrate at my parent's house. My mom and dad got me a delicious cookie cake, just as I had requested. hehe. I had also requested my mom cook her Shells and Cheese Casserole, my favorite, which is absolutely delish! It's basically spaghetti but in the form of a lasagna with layers of shells, meat/sauce, sour cream, and cheese. Oh and Joey also added his homemade garlic bread! MMMMMmmMM!! After lunch I opened presents and enjoyed dessert and more time with the family. It was such a wonderful day!!!!

Monday, my actual birthday, was phenomenal. I expected it to be kind of a downer, considering I had to go to work. Boy was I wrong......little did I know I would be surprised with flowers from both my parents and my amazing hubby, Joey. I felt so special! My best friend Sam, from California even sent me flowers too! All of my bosses and coworkers even signed a card and gave me another Target Gift card, which couldn't have made me happier! One of my closest coworkers/friend Nicole, was so sweet and gave me the prettiest wall decoration for our new house, sour gummies, and a bath and body works gift card! WAHOO!!!  To top everything off, my wonderful brother Matt treated Joey and I to our favorite Mexican restaurant, Fuego's, which was absolutely delightful! After we finished dinner I even talked Joey into letting me go spend my gift card at Bath and Body Works. It was one of the most special birthdays I've ever had and I loved how simple and heartfelt it all was. I have the most wonderful family and friends in the world!!!

We Put An Offer In....

It's crazy when you feel like little things start happening and you begin to notice a pattern of what seem to be "God things"...well, this has been one eventful week. I was completely shocked and ecstatic to be told by a close family friend that there was a steal of a deal on a house (that just so happened to have everything on my list) for sale right here in Buford. We immediately fell in love with all of the pictures we saw and ended up going to see this house the next day. And- of course, we fell in love with it in person.

Right now in this tough economy, we didn't expect to be looking at houses for a while, so it seemed so perfect (a little too good to be true) that we would find an opportunity like this that fit our needs. It felt amazing when we found out that we were prequalified from the bank and that we could go ahead and put in an offer on our first house. WHAT?! I still feel like i'm dreaming. With our precious little one on the way, the though couldn't make me happier of having a real home.

Now we wait....praying super hard that they'll accept our offer. Hopefully we will find out today if not by Monday. I don't think I've ever wanted something so badly. We'll see! Here's the gorgeous house:

Getting Anxious...

I cannot believe how fast my pregnancy has flown by. Sometimes I still catch myself saying "wow....I'm really pregnant." This week I will be six months pregnant (24 weeks). I cannot even begin to describe how amazing the whole experience has been. More and more each day, Hartley spends her time kicking her way around inside me and it is unlike anything I've ever felt before. I can feel her turn completely over, upside down, and even kick me as hard as she possibly can and each day her strength grows more and more.

It's crazy how you become so paranoid about the safety and health of your unborn child or maybe it's just me...but, I wonder and worry about how she's doing 24/7. The times that reassure me just so happen to be at 6 a.m. when Joey's alarm clock wakes me up and I know I still have more time to sleep. Hartley however, thinks it's her alarm to wake up to and then begins her morning hour work out. And of course, this makes it almost impossible to go back to sleep. She does seem to have a routine now...or somewhat of one. I just hate freaking out if she's not moving for a long period of time. I can't wait until this period of worrying about her and not being able to see her or do anything to help, will end. I know, I know, as a parent, worrying will never go away, but you know what I mean.

So...as you can tell, I'm getting anxious. I feel this growing need to fill up Hartley's nursery and I am just waiting for that moment when Joey says we can. I am wishing and hoping that I will be able to start on my birthday, but we'll see. I just hate to do things last minute...I always do everything, and I mean everything, wayyyyyyy before I should. I like that about myself, it makes me feel accomplished and organized. I'll also be glad to not have to stare at my registries anymore and actually see those precious items in person that will soon make up her room.

So...I'm sure you'll be seeing me count down, annoyingly, I might add. But, that's just me. As it gets closer to time, I also think more and more about being able to stay at home with her full-time. It breaks my heart thinking that it's so hard in this economy. I want Hartley to have the most amazing childhood like I did- with a mom who was always there. Most of you know that being a stay-at-home mom is my dream. It may not be a dream to many women these days, but I will pray every single day for that to happen. I know it truly is my calling, my purpose, and nothing makes me happier than to dream about it and to hope someday that it will come true.

A Little Note to My Little Princess:

I feel you...
tiny, precious, innocent one inside me.
I think about you constantly...
wondering if you're okay, if I'm taking good care.
I dream about meeting you...
looking in your eyes, holding your hand, giving you kisses.
I love you...
even though i've never seen your face, or looked in your eyes,
or held your hand, or given you kisses- because,
You are the gift I've waited for my whole life, my little princess.

I Forgot to Mention...... It's a........

A few weeks ago we went to the doctor for my 19th week check up. It was the week he was going to tell us the sex of the baby and we were ecstatic. The morning started off all wrong....as we drove to the doctor's office and waited for them to unlock the door as we were the first appointment of the day. Then, we noticed there was a sign on the door that they had moved--and I'm thinking, excuse me? Thanks for telling me that my doctor has moved elsewhere. I knew that I'd be late to my appointment and this was not the day to be late. So, luckily, they had only moved one street over, but......we could not figure out which building it was because there was no sign. UGH! Finally, we found what we thought was right and Joey ran in and checked. Ding ding ding! I was already in a bad mood being late, since I'm NEVER late to anything. We ended up waiting a good twenty-five minutes before we were called back for the ultrasound. I was soooo nervous laying there, preparing to find out what our baby was going to be. A good thirty minutes of her rubbing that stupid machine on my belly and.....nothing. She said she could not tell because of the position she was in. Then, to my disturbing surprise, she says "well...I have another appointment, but if you have to talk to your doctor, i'll try to bring you back in." UGGGHHH! Can you believe that? Well...I talked to my doctor for a bit and the nurse was sweet enough to offer me my one and only craving- Coca Cola! Baby got super hyper off that caffeine and as we went back into the ultrasound room I prayed for an answer. Pictures were taken and parts were labeled. Finally- and I mean after beating around the bush and never actually coming out and saying "IT's a GIRL!!" she kind of mumbled "i'm thinking it's a girl...." So anywho, not the best experience....or at all what I imagined, but we are super happy. We thought for sure it was a boy, but wow will I never believe anything I read again. Here are some pictures of our little Hartley!!!!

Baby is the size of a Lime!!!

It's been a couple of weeks since my second doctor's appointment where we were able to hear baby's heartbeat and see baby for the first time. I cannot begin to describe how truly amazing it was to see that something was growing inside of me and to hear that it had a heartbeat. It was a wonderful experience and I could never forget it. I am now almost 11 weeks pregnant and the baby is now the size of a lime!!! Here are some pictures from our very first ultrasound, which was done at about 8 weeks. =)

The Start of Something Really Big

So, as most of you already know, I recently found out that I am expecting! Joey and I will have our first child in May 2011. Yesterday, September 15, was my very first doctor's appointment. I'm not going to lie, I was sooooo anxious. I could not wait to actually hear the words "you're pregnant!" because looking at a home pregnancy test and accepting the results just didn't quite make it real to me. Having tests done and hearing those precious words brought the biggest smile to my face. My doctor, Dr. Gerber, says I'm 7 weeks Pregnant and have an expected due date of May 4, 2011. I've dreamed of the day that I would be a mom for practically my whole life. I never thought that both my biggest dreams would come true so soon--getting married and starting a family. I absolutely cannot wait. I also can't begin to say how happy Joey has made me....from his beginning reaction to how he treats me day to day. Joey is the most wonderful husband and man I know. I really wish I could have recorded his reaction because it melted my heart and I will remember it forever. It's amazing how someone's tone of voice and facial expression can either make or break your day. He made my year! So as for how I've been feeling.....I started feeling really, really nauseous this past week, which is horrible for me because I NEVER throw up and I also have a phobia of throwing up. Luckily, I have only felt nauseous and haven't gotten sick- Yet. Other than that, I've just had a few little symptoms....one though, that makes me laugh is the fact I downed a WHOLE jar of pickles the day before I took the test. Although i've always loved pickles, I've never eaten a whole jar before, or even a half of a jar. ;) I am going to start reading "What to Expect When You're Expecting," which I cannot wait for. Until next time...

It's Been A While....But I'm Still Here =)

I know it's been terribly long since I've last written down a few thoughts. I've blamed my lack of doing anything on the busyness of my job, which absolutely exhausts me. I'm not going to lie, I definitely have a new perspective on how much work taking care of kids really is, but that will never stop or change my passion of being a stay-at-home mom. Aside that fact, I've pretty much focused this entire last year on being a newlywed. I've put my friends and even family, on the back burner. I know that when you get married, that of course should become your number one priority, but I have been a mess this year-not myself--all of these changes all at once, and trying to feel comfortable with who I am now that school is over. It's been difficult being in the real world straight out of college and married. However, I wouldn't change anything for the world. Recently, Joey and I finally made it to the church we had been wanting to check out, called 12 Stone. We were absolutely blown away. I had a very heavy heart, as it has been nearly a year since I graduated from a Christian college. There, I was able to go to chapel three times a week, and living on campus definitely made that easy. We definitely will be going back to that church and hopefully it will make a huge difference in our marriage and get us back on track. I suppose this year I've just made too many excuses and I have definitely been selfish. I can't even begin to explain how great it feels to actually set new goals and work on them. I've seen my friends more in these last two weeks than I have in months. Joey and I also decided to start doing P90X which is an extremely intense exercise system. HAH! We'll see how that goes. We are moving out of our apartment next weekend.....the place we have made our home during the first year of our marriage. I am so excited because we are moving into a much bigger apartment. =)) Anywho...I just love this feeling of being so truly happy, wanting to always be selfless and kind, especially in my marriage, keeping friendships that have lasted for years, and of course, feeling very close to God. One of the greatest feelings that I've gotten lately, after we went to that new church, was when I started listening to all my favorite Christian songs again......and when I feel close to God, I get chills all over--like he is speaking to me. It's awesome! So...I better get back to accomplishing those goals: Selfless in my marriage, Making my best effort with friends/family, and Exercising!!!! Wish me luck!