Christmas Cheer.. and a few sleepy elves...

Christmas has come and gone and here we sit two days away from 2009... man time flies! Christmas Eve was mom's birthday, her wish was for everyone to be home, in their pajamas watching old movies and eating homemade soup all day... her wish is our command. She had blast, got some great presents, and we all spent the night for Christmas. One of these days regardless of how much she "doesnt want a big deal made of her birthday" I am going to give her what she deserves, maybe a fancy dinner and a day at the spa, or a night on the town... one day. She is the most amazing woman to me and everyday I pray I will be as smart, beautiful, and fun as she has been to me all my life. The same goes for my father!! They are the two most special people in my life, and I couldn't be where I am today without them.

Twas the night before christmas... and all through the house, all you could hear was BAILEY SNORING worse than my spouse!!!! OH it was awful. Not sure why this started, my mother will tell you its because she is in complete bliss at her grandmother's house, but I tell you I thought the house was vibrating... then joined in Phil... HILARIOUS! They were a symphony of snoring that I wouldnt trade for the world!

Christmas morning came and Dad made his famous Sausage Pinwheel Roll. Its amazing, sausage, green peppers, eggs, jalepenos, all rolled in a pinwheel in a large fresh yeast roll, then oven baked to perfected and topped your choice of cranberry sauce, raspberry jelly, or any other topping you'd like... Lets just say this was gone quicker than the upcoming pumpkin pie.. so good.

Grandmother was in town for the holidays, it was great to get quality time with her. She is truly a blast to be with. I think she enjoyed watching everyone and all the events take place more than anything.

Cody and the boys joined us for christmas day, however our two nephews were just a little too tired from being up at the crack of dawn for Santa! As the pictures will show, between Santa, Christmas dinner, and a few laps around the house with Uncle Phil.. these two were done.

All in all this day was as it should be. Not full of fancy gifts and suprises, but overflowing with family fun, memories, and three spoiled dogs. All under one roof! I think the only thing more we would have wanted was the Ballard family there with us! One day... we'll have all the Ballards in Texas with us... one day.. hee hee hee

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

Last night we went to my nephew's 8th birthday party. They did a mad scientist theme, had experiments, a scientist, the whole bit. It was amazing to see these little kids so easily amused and in awe of everything from the black light to the fire tricks... those were the days! Then we hopped out to Wylie for our friend Ken's surprise party. It was at a place called "THE RANCH HOUSE" it was a pretty cool place, dance floor, great band, etc. I was a little nervous to be walking into a bar with Phil being pregnant! But i had a blast, it wasnt smokey, and my water on the rocks tasted excellent. I realized last night I have a great group of friends. All though we didn't party the night away, everyone is so much fun, and at least two of them have had a kid recently, so they know what its like to be prego and still try and be social! Although I can honestly say we haven't cut back much on our social life, this baby loves to be out and about!!

We got our test results back from our quad screen last week, all clear and all normal. Even though I didn't doubt we would be fine, I will not deny being scared out of my mind for 4 days until the doctor called to tell us everything is ok. No matter how healthy I eat, how much I walk and do my videos, some things you have no control over, and its a scary thought. Regardless of the outcome we would still be thrilled for this child and our future, but man was it great to get the A+ from the doc! Now we just need 10 fingers and 10 toes and we are all set!!

Holidays are here and going full steam ahead, I cant believe its a week before christmas, actually only 5 days, and next thing you know it will be 2009!! Well, to all my family and friends and everyone else.. Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays and Happy New Year! See you in '09!

The miracle of life

I have not written a blog in so long and Phil and I decided we have really been slacking on this blogging for family and friends! Its October, weather is cooling down in Texas, great walks at the park and a fall season we will always remember as the time we find out about our first child!

Yes, we are pregnant! I am only 7 1/2 weeks along and taking all the proper measures to keep my first trimester smooth and safe, anxiously awaiting that 12-13th week when i can relax and feel we are out of the danger zone. Between prenatal vitamins, walking everyday, lots of rest, and a few doctors' orders... everything is so far so good.

Its the craziest thing you can imagine. One day you know you are "trying" to get pregnant, and it feels real, scary, exciting and fascinating... then the next you ARE pregnant and it takes your breath away. Not in the "oh crap" factor, but the moment of reality when you realize your lives will never be the same, you are creating a miracle of life, a beautiful being to love, nurture, and teach all you know. Its such an amazing feeling, such a blessing and something so real.

We had our first ultrasound this past week. When the baby showed up on the screen i got the best goosebumps and started to tear up. I looked at the screen and realized this was gonna be something big, something great, and the best thing I have ever done in my life, next to marrying Phil. I will never forget that day, hearing the heartbeat, seeing our baby for the first time.. it still tugs at my heart when i think about it. Phil has the baby's heartbeat recorded/saved on his phone. He listens to it all the time, we both do, and he may not confess to anyone, but I will proudly tell you he is quite the sentimental dad already. He tears up over the heartbeat, he is reading up all he can online.. he is so nurturing and supportive to both of us. Of course he thinks, naturally, it will be a boy, so he is picking our Boston Red Sox nursery decor, clothes, etc.... Goober!

Being pregnant has made me look around and think..yes i know, i havent been prego that long, but regardless... it makes you see things different. I think phil and I are one up on most expecting parents in the fact that we have two amazing families and an amazing group of friends who we have the pleasure of sharing this miracle with. I know we wont be completely perfect parents, but the amount of love that is building up day by day, week by week, and everytime we look at eachother for this baby is amazing.. and completely undescribable.

The Dark Knight

Tonight we went to see The Dark Knight. This movie was amazing. It was so good to see another all time favorite! Batman! Christian Bale and Heath Ledger are absolutely breathtaking in their roles. The late Heath Ledger was sooo good and really took on the dark twisted role of the Joker. All characters in the movie kept you on the edge of your seat. I think we jumped and said "ahh" about 8 times in the movie because there is so much action and even creepy at several points. This is not something you should wait to rent, you must see it on the big screen or you won't be able to appreciate the effects... We gotta get ourselves a batmobile!

Housebound and keeping busy

Time sure does fly, or does it? One minute we are going 90 miles an hour and the next I am counting down until we are closer to the next.... by this I mean WE ARE BEYOND ready to get out of this apartment and have a home, and so are the dogs! Our lease isn't up until February, which is good because this means we really have sometime to look, but where should we live? I am familiar with the entire Dallas area and Phil is still somewhat new to his surroundings. Wherever we pick needs to be a good school district for children, good property value for resale, and of course a safe area for us to live.... ahhhh the joys of adulthood, we all wanted to be adults with decisions and responsibilities... well here it is! I know everything happens for a reason and we will move/find the right home for our family... as I type this Bailey just whipped around and gave me the "you better" look... I think sometimes she reads our minds, but thats another blog!

I think we are both living in a fantasy dream of finding a home like our home in Tulsa. It was unique. It had some minor adjustments and renovations, but that's what we loved about it! We want a nice home, but not too nice... a new home but not too new... something we can remodel and upgrade into something unique and different...but we will see.

Phil seems happy at Target and the hours are nice. We are so glad to be with a decent company while he finishes school. He had a small set back, but due to start school back up within the next two weeks. (see and if we had a house he could have a nice study to get quiet time!) Omni is treating me well, its really busy season and with the economy like it is, Omni is in overdrive promoting their hotels. My boss is teaching me so much and calls me her rising star. She along with one other woman in our department are truly women to envy. They are both so smart and quick on their feet, always going and always innovative. I only hope I can be half of what they have become! Go Joy & Liesl!

Well i suppose this is all for this blog. I am not used to blogging, ( hence the 2 month gap in blogs) so bear with me!

This thing called love

We are officially married! We made it official barefoot on the beautiful beach of Los Cabos on Saturday April 19, 2008. Little did we know Eli Manning was also getting married on the same beach just a few hundred feet away! Pretty nifty!!

It was the most beautiful day of my life. I could not have asked for a more perfect day! The only possible thing which would have made it even more perfect would have been for a few missing family members and friends who were unable to attend... we missed each of you! We are both blessed with an amazing family and I am so lucky to be a Ballard!!

For those of you who ever read this and have not yet married or are planning a wedding... DESTINATION WEDDINGS are the way to go! I cannot express to you the magic and memories created in this weekend. Did I mention it was essentially STRESS FREE??

Dreams Resorts' staff and facilities were impressive. Clean, Relaxing, and the staff was amazing. The food was outstanding, the pool was always clean with sparkles like diamond tears from the sun. Every night they held a different event. Every night there was a "movie on the beach" The ocean was so blue and the sand soft and grainy between your toes... I can feel it now...

Our Wedding was amazing. Words cannot describe the imagery in my mind.I can still here the waves and the way my heart fluttered when Phil said "I do." I am the luckiest woman in the world. We are incredibly blessed. I believe there is someone out there who completes "you." Phil is this person for me, he makes me whole, fills me with life, loves me for my flaws, and I am so excited to spend every day waking up next to him, being the best wife I can be and going through this thing called love.