It's been 5 wonderful years!

Five years ago today, I met Greg. We were introduced by a lady who was in the same Sunday School class as Greg's mom. His mom continued to repeat that she wished her son would meet a good Christian girl. The lady I knew talked with me about it before she recommended me. Greg began to email me. We emailed for a few weeks before we had our first event filled date on December 29, 2004. I was working at a daycare and was soooo nervous the entire morning I could hardly stand it. I had never been like that before. He picked me up at my house early in the afternoon and gave me a rose. We went to Pasadena and watched "Lord of the Rings: Return of the King." I had never seen any of the other movies, so I was lost. We were suppose to have dinner at Gringo's after the movie. On our way to eat, Greg was speeding. How many tickets have you gotten since then Greg? Anyway, we was pulled over. I ended up having to rescue my date. We ended up eating at Tia Maria's in Baytown due to the late hour. Greg was embarrassed about the evening. He continued to call me and 5 years later here we are with 1 precious child together, 1 one the way, a beautiful home, 2 dogs, and 1 cat. I love you very much Greg. Thank you for 5 wonderful years together, except that time you broke up with me.... right before I had to take a really hard math final in college. Anyway, you got it together and realized how much I meant to you. Love you.

Chick-fil-A

I love Chick-fil-A. Tonight Caleb and I shared a 12 piece nugget meal. I think I have started something with him. I began dipping things earlier this week in ketchup. Now he has to have his food dipped in some type of sauce. Tonight he loved the BBQ sauce. As for me, I tried to Chick-fil-A sauce and it was yummy! We ate everything.

Poor Jackson

Well, Jackson was scheduled to undergo "the change" tomorrow. Since we adopted him from the animal shelter, they require us to get him fixed within 30 days. I made an appointment for him to get fixed and declawed tomorrow. Last night I noticed he had blood on his legs. I realized it was coming from his nose. Jackson has been sneezing a lot lately and we contributed it to the vaccine that Greg gave him because part of it had to be squirted up his nose. Greg called the vet this afternoon to talk with them about the bleeding. They stated this isn't normal and we may want to bring him in today because if he is sick, they will not perform surgery on him tomorrow. Anyway, the bleeding was coming from his mouth. He had a cut inside his mouth which was causing him to swallow the blood, therefore it was coming out through his nose. Upon further examination, the vet noticed he had bruises on his inner thighs. This was what concerned him. He stated it could be a sign of rat poison. Well, we don't have rats or mice therefore do not have the need to have the products. We do not know his living conditions prior to 12/18 when he was brought into the shelter. After 2 shots, 2 antibiotics sent home, and $144 later, we will have to wait to have his surgery. We are hoping this is his only problem and the medicine will take care of him.

Cravings

My cravings with this pregnancy have been totally different than when I was pregnant with Caleb. With Caleb, I couldn't stand any type of seafood for a while, but still loved steak. I also craved fruit with him. With this pregnancy, I have eaten seafood a lot. Steak is my absolute favorite, but I don't want it. I did eat a small piece on Christmas Day at my parents because it is our tradition to have steak on Christmas Day. It smelled awesome, but was just not what I wanted. I have been craving french fries lately. I ate them on Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. I also crave Cranberry Slushes from Sonic. They are awesome. Caleb and I were on our way home last night from Walmart and I had to turn around and go to Sonic to fulfill my craving.

Christmas Activities

Caleb opening up a puzzle.

Caleb loves his Radio Flyer Red Wagon.

Alyssa opening her stocking at my parent's house (Gaga and Granddaddy).

Caleb playing with something... not the toys he had just gotten.

Caleb sitting in Gaga's lap. She always reads to him. I think he knew he was getting a book.

We had a very enjoyable Christmas. It began on Friday, December 19th at my father in-law's house. We celebrated the holidays with Greg's mom on Saturday, and spent the rest of the days at my parents house. We had our time at home Christmas morning before heading to my parents for lunch. The night ended with Greg, me, Alyssa, and Caleb eating dinner at IHOP because it was one of the only places opened in Baytown.

The Family Christmas Present

Greg and I have been talking for a while about getting a cat. Don't really know why we need a cat since we have two huge Weimaraners and possibly about 7-8 puppies that may be with us for a while if Greta is pregnant. Anyway, Greg has actually been wanting a Toger which is a mini tiger...... I don't think so. But, he decided a regular cat would be just fine.

We went to a pet store on Tuesday to see if they had any cats. We had actually considered selling them a weimaraner puppy when we bred for the first time, but the puppy was way too big for their kennels. Anyway, they had 3 cats which were actually stray! Greg decided he did not want them to make $20 off a stray. We drove over to Petco just to see if they sold animals. We talked with a worker who was on her way to work and she told us they work with the Humane Society and if we bring the paperwork, they would give us a coupon book. The Humane Society had several cats and dogs to choose from. We immediately knew Jackson was the cat for us. He was very friendly and was not asleep in his litter box. An employee had made a mistake and listed him as a female. As Greg was about to fill out the paperwork, he decided to look the cat over and noticed the difference. He asked the man behind the desk to double check. It was confirmed that Jackson was a boy. He has done extremely well in our home. He loves to cuddle and follows us around like a dog. He has not met Fritz and Greta. We will wait until the backyard dries up and they are allowed back in the house. Of course, they will have their fully charged shock collars on the highest setting when they meet the newest member of the family. I hope it goes OK.

Cookie Thief

Last night we had Christmas with Greg's dad and that side of the family. Billy and Carolyn had a card table set up with the dessert (several kinds of cookies). Well, Caleb saw what was on the table when someone was holding him. We would see him walking around the house with a cookie in his hand. We asked who got it for him, but no one had. This happened several times. We finally witnessed Caleb reaching up and grabbing cookies. He was too short to see what he was grabbing, but he knew what was there. It was actually funny watching this little hand reach up and grab a cookie. Of course, he ate too many and did not sleep well at all.

Time to go shopping

I can't believe Christmas is 2 weeks away. I am nowhere finished with my shopping. It is so hard having a 1 year old, working full time, and being pregnant. I am worn out after one store. Greg is going deer hunting this weekend, so mama and I are going shopping. My plan is to get everything taken care of on Saturday so when next week is over, I can relax. Two whole weeks of not having school!!!!!

Let it snow, let it snow...

It actually snowed tonight!!! Greg is working nights, so he was not here. I knew it had been sleeting some earlier in the night. I let the dogs outside around 8pm and saw snow! I quickly got Caleb dressed so he could see snow for the first time. Of course, he didn't know what it was. It did not enjoy the snow because it was his bedtime. Once 8pm hits, he gets tired. I held him one time outside and he held his hand out to catch the snow. I sent Greg a text and told him I had just finished taking pictures of Caleb in the snow and he wanted me to send him a picture. Well, I was taking them with my camera. We once again went outside (this time in the backyard) to take snow pictures. I took a couple of pictures with my phone which did not please Caleb. We went inside and I put his night-nights on and he was out. I walked outside again and kids were outside throwing snowballs. I was really waddling in the snow and I still have 6 more months to go.

I called my parents to see if it was snowing at their house. Mama was still at church practicing for the Christmas program, but daddy was home. When I asked him if it was snowing at his house, he said, "I don't know? Is it?" I had to tell him I did not live there, but it was snowing at my house. He checked the front yard and it was covered in snow. He discovered the same thing when he checked the backyard. I guess he may have finally found out it was snowing once mama got home.

The sound of a beating heart

I had my second doctor appointment yesterday. After waiting a long time, I finally saw the doctor. I wasn't able to see my Dr. because she was delivering a baby. I was able to hear the heart beat. It is such a precious sound to hear it. You know something is inside of you, but until you see the baby and hear the heart beat we sometimes don't realize the miracle growing inside of us. Hopefully next month we will find out if it is a boy or a girl.