29th birthday!!

I turned 29 yesterday. Things are a little chaotic these days, so I haven't really had much time to think about it, but so far, it pretty much feels like 28. :) I spent the day with Ella, which is always a wonderful gift. Last night, my sweet husband took me out to dinner and gave me the most beautiful diamond earrings. I am a lucky, lucky woman and am so excited to see what 29 is going to bring!

Had to add this on- Ella in her new favorite chair. Looks comfortable, huh? Hope she's going to be willing to share in a few days!!

Fun at Grammy's

I picked Ella up today after a short "spring break" with Lexi at Grammy's. From the looks of the pictures, they had tons of fun (like always!).
Feeding the horses

Hanging with "pup", as Ella calls him. :)

An early Easter egg hunt

Big buddies...

Thanks, Mom and Dad!

A baby party!!

April, Mom, and Carla threw us a baby shower yesterday afternoon. It was small and intimate and perfect. We are so completely blessed to have such tight-knit families and close friends who want to "shower" us with love and well-wishes for this baby. What a lucky, little boy to be born into all this!
Isn't this the sweetest baby cake you've ever seen?!
Ella was so proud of her little teacup. Such a big girl!

So much fun hanging out with Lexi!

Me and my best girl...

Not to be left out- Ella was super happy to get the Dora shoes she's been wanting (I've been looking for a month, but can never find her size!). She opened them and said, "I just not believe this!"

Baby and me with Grammy... Baby and me with Mamaw and Great-Grandma...

A special friend and our little girls. Doesn't Jen look so great??

A kiss for Mamaw... All the "Lawyer girls" (minus Mom). Thanks so much, April and Carla, for making this such a wonderful time! Your love and support mean so much to us.
Our little threesome. Everyone kept saying, "This will probably be the last picture of just the three of you! Next time, your little guy will be here!" Of course, that just makes emotional me cry like a baby. We know our world is about to change forever, but we are SO excited to meet our baby boy!

More birthday

And the birthday celebrations continue! Chris and I celebrated our birthdays with Mom and Dad Saturday night. Mom made an awesome dinner and we had so much fun just hanging out and laughing with each other.
More birthday candles for Ella to get excited about...
Helping me open gifts...

"Baby Tarson"... look at that precious grin!

Chris, Kyle, Jared, and Jason....

And don't forget the little guy that will be here any day now (37 weeks here). He was definitely VERY present for the party... :)

"Just thinking about God"

Ella and I were driving yesterday and she was so quiet. I asked her what she was doing, and she said, "Just thinking about God."
"You are," I said, "what do you think about God?"
She thought for a moment, then said, "God's alive and Jesus is alive and they love Ella."
How sweet and perfect and so simply profound.
God and Jesus are real and alive and they love her... isn't that really all she needs to know?

A little hard to believe...

This is Ella only 10 minutes after I told her it was time to take a nap today. Whether she was just tuckered out from playing outside or excited to cuddle into her new bed, I'm not sure. She always takes a nap, but not usually before several minutes of arguing and never in her own bed. Whatever the reason for her change of heart, it's great!
I'm already crossing my fingers for naptime tomorrow!

Big girl bed!!

Finally!! Ella got her long-awaited big girl bed last night!! And boy, is she excited!! She couldn't wait to jump on it and snuggle into it. She kept saying, "I just can't believe it!"

Wow, our little girl is getting so big!Thanks, Daddy, for putting my big girl bed together!
Surprisingly enough, she went to bed without fussing and slept in it all night long. Way to go, Ella! When she came in and woke me up this morning, she said, "Ella slept in her big girl bed last night and it felt SOOO good!" :)

In Ella's words...

Conversation in the bathtub tonight... Ella was playing with a yellow duck...

Mommy: Ella, what do you think ducks like to eat?
Ella: Ummm, probably spaghettios or something...
Mommy: Do you think ducks like to eat fish or bugs?
Ella: No way! That would be gross-o!!
Mommy: What do you think ducks like to drink?
Ella: Apple juice, or maybe lemonade, because that would match. (She's all about matching these days!)
Mommy: What about a bunny rabbit, what does he eat?
Ella: He probably likes pineapple and cheerios the best.
Mommy: And a cow, what does he like?
Ella: Umm, he likes to eat spaghetti and peas and milk. He likes spaghettios, too, and if the duck ate all the spaghettios, the cow would probably just have to kick him! (??!!)

I love conversations with her and getting to hear how her little mind works. And no, we don't kick each other in our house for eating all the spaghettios!! :)

Lil' mother hen

Our lil' mother hen is practicing up for the arrival of her baby brother. We played baby dolls all day today. She is going to be such a great big sister!

Enjoying the day

We spent a fun day outside today, enjoying the sun and 73 degrees!! It can't get much better than that!
"Working on Daddy's dirt"- I know he's going to be so grateful. :)
Throwing rocks is so much fun!

Awww... I just love this little face!

Running "really, really fast". She kept saying, "Hey, Mommy, clap your hands and say, 'Go, Ella, go!' "

By the time naptime rolled around, Ella was completely wiped out... :)

35 weeks...

and counting!! Wow, I can't believe we only have five weeks to go until we get to meet our precious baby boy. These months have gone by so fast and I can't believe the time is almost here!! Everything continues to look great. A few weeks ago, I was measuring 2-3 weeks ahead, but at my last visit, I was only measuring 7-10 days ahead, which is what we have thought the whole time. Ella came a week early, so I guess in reality, this baby could be here in about three weeks! What a crazy thought. I guess we need to go buy some diapers or something! Everyone has told us you don't tend to be so organized with your second baby, and I guess that is pretty true in our case. We have a lot to do in the next few weeks. It overwhelms me sometimes, but I guess as long as we have some diapers and a place for him to sleep, we're okay, right? I mean, we have plenty of pink sleepers that would work for now. Hahaha- just joking, Baby!! :)
So here's the baby belly at 35 weeks. He's still way out front- completely different than how I carried Ella.

Sunday

We love Sundays at home, especially when we get to hang out with our sweet family.
Papaw and his boys...
Brothers...

An early "mini-celebration" for Mamaw's birthday. Ella is always excited about birthday candles!!

Explaining to Mamaw the pictures on her card...

We can't wait to spend another weekend with everyone!! Please come back soon!!

A night out

We got a rare "night on the town" Saturday to celebrate Chris's 30th birthday. Our best friends, who just so happen to also be our family, were able to come to Cincy and celebrate with us. We went to Brio in Newport and had so much fun and a lot of good laughs. It was absolutely relaxing and exactly the kind of night Chris was wanting to ring in this "monumental birthday". :)
Happy Birthday, Baby!!! I love you!
Carla & Jason

Kyle & Kellie

Chad flying solo- we missed you, April!!

Thanks so much, Papaw & Mamaw, for keeping the girls! We're pretty sure they had a party of their own. :)