Happy Halloween Weekend from the *3* of Us!

I owe posts about our new car, our weekend at the ranch, and probably one or two other things?
However, I will leave you with these attempts at a good picture of "the 3 of us" :)







We really liked all of these, and picked one to "announce" to the rest of our friends that we hadn't told personally yet.

I realize my face is ballooning. It's a pregnancy symptom and I can't help it :( I think it comes with the nausea and the fatigue. I'm still waiting for the "pregnancy glow" - maybe I should tell Bryan a facial would help?! Kidding, kidding ... mostly :)

You may notice that the shirt I'm wearing was actually created by someone with skill and access to some type of manufacturing, while I cut up white duct tape in an attempt to create Bryan's :/ Not the best job, I know :( But I really did try!! For his costume, he's actually going for Steve Jobs (obviously passed away now) - notice the Apple logo for the heart :) And Jobs almost always wore a black turtleneck tucked into jeans, so we feel it was pretty accurate. Anyway, my point was don't judge too harshly about Bryan's skeleton costume, haha. It was an honest attempt.

Tonight we're off to Andrea's 30th birthday dinner at Shogun - YUM! and then to a Halloween Party at Kirsten & Brandon's house. Should be fun! The puppies are loving their Halloween because they're at Willow Creek Ranch getting to run around, play, and frolic with 20 other doggies who always need an outlet for their energy :) We'll pick them up Sunday, and enjoy the peace for a little while, start missing them, and be glad to pick them up soon!

Our A/C is off, all the windows are open and we're LOVING IT!! I wish this weather would come and stay put. Going from hot to cold to hot makes my sinuses and allergies scream in protest, but I could handle it if it would just come and stay for a while. I got to wear a jacket last night and it made my heart glad :) Also I hope it kills ALL mosquitos. I'm covered, and I do mean covered with bites - neck, shoulders, tummy, legs (really bad), arms, everywhere - how do they even GET into some places??? Bryan says I look like I have a disease, but I swear it's just mosquito bites. Die, miserable creatures! Let the cold overwhelm you!

On that note, Happy Halloween!!!
Oh, and when did ABC Family quit playing great Halloween shows like Casper the Friend Ghost this time of year!? I love non-spooky fun!!

Why, hello Peanut

Today was a pretty awesome day. My gut was a bundle of nerves and butterflies (and baby, too) while waiting for our appointment at 11:30 this morning. (What new Mom isn't always paranoid?) Turns out there was absolutely nothing to be worried about.

Say hello to Peanut!!



Looks like a pretty stinkin' cute baby to me :)

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Hi Peanut!

Mommy & Daddy got to actually see you today! It was the first time Daddy got to really know that you exist. I’m pretty sure he wanted to wave, but resisted and just squeezed on Mommy instead. You were squirming around like you were trying to figure out what to do with those teensy tiny arms and legs. Planning on being an athlete, hm? You’ve got a little while to go before you can throw a ball, but we’ll make sure you learn.

Your heart was beating strong and steady at 143 beats per minute. It looks like a little flicker on the screen, so imagine how small your heart must be! You have an official “due date” now – May 30^th, 2012!! That makes it more real for me too. (When you get to know me, you’ll realize Mommy is a very goal-oriented person.)

The midwife took lots of blood to make sure Mommy doesn’t have any infections or problems that could affect your development, and we’ll find out about that in a few days. The next appointment is next Thursday and it will be a really long one to check absolutely everything.

This is really happening little peanut! You’re still growing right on schedule, and are looking extra adorable (which is to be expected, I suppose :)

Thank you for letting us take a peek at you today!

Love,

Mommy

Texans vs. Raiders

Dad had some tickets to the Texans' game against the Raiders. (Yep, A&M played Texas Tech on Saturday- and beat the hell out of them! and then the Texans played the Raiders on Sunday.)

My parents were very sweet and offered to let Bryan & I join them. The tickets were even in a suite!! Because of the rain we thought we'd be running late, but made it in p-l-e-n-t-y of time, and watched the warm ups, and watched the stands fill up.

Mom & Dad rocking Texan red :)

It wasn't planned, but Bryan & I wore the corresponding color, blue :)

They played hard (and fairly well), but still lost - doh!

I was so dang cold the entire game, so I used the little handkerchiefs they were handing out as a freebie at the door as a very mini-blanket. Burr!

Bryan & I both had a great time - thank you for taking us!

A&M vs. Arkansas House Party

So, to get caught up, let's start with the A&M/Arkansas game. It was the first away game, and Bryan and I were longing to have some friends & family over to enjoy the new screen Bryan built.

But before the game, Ronnie was AMAZING and installed crown molding in our game room for us!! Meanwhile, the dogs mostly wrestled and looked cute.

Somehow he's able to just measure and cut, measure and cut, no mistakes. I was not only extremely appreciative, but also extremely impressed!

The outlet upstairs was not overly impressed this dude, so we had to plug it into extension cords and run them downstairs to the laundry room to get enough power without shorting it out.

It looks fantastic! Tricky corners and all!

Thank you Ronnie! (And Paw for helping!)
That evening my Mom was also fantastic and helped me (I barely did anything) and Bryan (who actually was working with her) paint the boards and the moulding. Have I mentioned all my family members are awesome? Oh, and Bryan hung all of the paintings where I pointed :)

The next day it was game time!! MeMaw, Paw, Ronnie, Celina, Alexandra, Ronnie, my Mom, Steven, Adam, Ashley, Marley, & Rachel all came over to cheer on the Ags!

I have to admit, Bryan's hard work on the screen paid off. It IS pretty amazing.

That afternoon we also told Bryan's family about wee-Evans-in-progress. They were pretty excited too :)

The Ags lost (stupid 2nd half), but it was fun to see friends & family, get together, eat fajitas, and have a good time. We'll do it again for sure!

A Baby Story

This is the letter I wrote to our little one explaining how we found out about him or her. This was written back on September 28, but I thought I'd share it as a way to tell all of you the story too. Our ultrasound is coming up on this Wednesday! Nervous & excited all at the same time!

Sweet Baby,

Your Daddy & I just found out about your precious self on Thursday, September 22, 2011. We are full of JOY! We weren’t expecting such a blessing so soon, so we believe God knew it was time for you to join us. It is HIS perfect timing, as always.

I had been feeling sick to my stomach for a few days, and your Daddy decided (more as a joke than anything) that I should take a test to “just to see.” Later that morning, I decided to do just what he suggested … couldn’t believe it … and took three more! “Pregnant” four times. Oh my goodness.

I needed to tell your Dad! I called him and asked if we could meet for lunch after I went to the gym. I didn’t give anything away though. After the gym I ran by the shady store, “Dollar and More” to purchase your FIRST ever clothes, two pairs of these teensy tiny pink-and-blue striped socks for $1.49. (It’s amazing the details we remember, isn’t it?)

We met up at one of our favorite restaurants, Cheddars, and during that slow point between receiving our drinks and ordering our meals, I told him I had something to show him. I pulled out the first pregnancy test I took as well as the itty bitty socks. Your Daddy just stared at them for a moment, and then started crying. He is OVER THE MOON about you, little one, and so am I!

Your Daddy & I are so in love, and so happy. We started planning your nursery, and thinking of names. I’m also constantly eating saltine crackers, pretzels, and drinking water and Gatorade. According to all the doctors, you’ve been only the size of the tip of a ballpoint pen until now, yet my whole body can tell you’re there.

We love you so much already, sweet baby.

Keep growing and growing!

Love, Mom & Dad

Thankfully so far baby has been following our wishes, and if our guesses are correct, baby has grown from the size of the tip of a ballpoint pen, to now the size of a raspberry! That's pretty exponential growth. I'm feeling it too. Although I had got into the habit of getting to the gym regularly before the baby, I've still been doing it, but it's gotten far more challenging, especially with the nausea and fatigue I've been feeling. Mid-mornings and evenings are the most challenging right now, but I'm grateful for it because I know things are going well with baby.

I owe lots of posts about football games, new cars, etc - our quarter grading period is over, and life has settled down, so I'm determined to get caught up SOON! :)

Our Emotional Ride

I know I've been absent for a few weeks, but that's because our life has felt a little turned upside down, and then put on an emotional roller coaster ride. So even though blog-worthy things have happened, it's all faded into the background compared to the fact a few weeks ago,
Bryan & I found out we are pregnant.
(That's a story for another day - a very sweet, precious, and fun story :)

Since then:
- I've been incredibly nauseous, exhausted all the time, and full of JOY because those things meant we had a baby growing and developing
- I've battled neck pain, a sinus infection and allergies without medicine
- I've continued working with a personal trainer and (attempting) to eat a balanced diet
- We've both been daydreaming like crazy about nurseries, names, teaching our kiddo how to read, and thinking about how smart/athletic/musical they will be :)

As well as:
- Had our first ultrasound last Wednesday (earlier than usual due to severe cramping, which is sometimes a sign that something is wrong)
- Had an U/S tech tell us that our pregnancy was no longer viable and that there really wasn't much of a point meeting with our midwife as planned. She also told me to stop crying and we should just "move on and live our lives."
- Felt absolute devastation and loss

On Thursday:
- Still feeling shock, we researched causes, options, and more information than what our lousy and insensitive U/S tech gave us
- Found out that no matter what the U/S showed (especially at this early date), there should have been additional blood work done to check levels of progesterone and HcG levels to compare to the levels I had tested at a week prior.
- Because of my bizarre and irregular cycles, we don't have a definitive due date yet, and therefore NO assumptions should have been made about how far along I am, which means there may not have been a heartbeat clear enough to been seen on an U/S (and this one was ancient anyway) and that it's possible our little tater tot is just still pretty small/young, and that this doesn't necessarily show that it's not progressing, but that it just hasn't had TIME to get to the size they were thinking it should be at based on the date of my last cycle.
- Therefore, I set up an appointment and met with my midwife to have the blood work done
- Spent the day with Mom trying to NOT continue to panic and break into tears every 10 minutes

On Friday:
- Opted to not spend the day at work, distracted and randomly crying while waiting for blood results
- Spent many AGONIZING hours waiting for my midwife to call and give us numbers
- Finally received a call, and:

We are thankful that (as of now) we are still going to be parents in May/June!

We are seeking comfort in the Lord, and knowing that he counts every hair on our head, and therefore knows every single cell in our baby's growing body, and knows when things are perfect and when our baby may have complications so severe that their life would be impossible or quality of life negligible. He knows that we long to parent this sweet life, but we are also trying to recognize that in His infinite wisdom, He knows best.

Please pray for miracles, for emotional balance, and for our baby. This has felt like a very rocky road so far, and we've only had our baby for a few short weeks. This won't be the first or the last time we feel sorrow, joy, and so many more emotions regarding this little person.

Most people do not share about their pregnancies before the end of the 1st trimester, and so far (other than immediate family, one co-worker, and a friend) no one really knows about ours. I thought how silly is it that the ONE thing on my mind all the time - how is baby doing!? - I felt like I couldn't write about on a blog meant for me to share what's going on with me personally. It will be heart breaking if we find out that we miscarry, but if that happens, I would *need* to share about it, the same way I feel a *need* to share about what's going on with us right now.

We are not necessarily asking folks to refrain from sharing with others, but given how emotional it has been, I don't want to find myself in a position of needing to "untell" too many people should the Lord chose to have us wait for another tiny miracle. Please be sensitive about who you would share with if you chose to, knowing their likelihood of asking a lot of questions that could be painful for us later. I will keep everyone posted!

Many prayers in the works for little Baby Evans!

Oops!!

So much has been happening recently, and I owe posts! Sorry about that!

.... that said, this is mostly a teaser. Posts coming soon!