Playing catch up!!!

Yes....again I am behind so here is a quick synopsis of a month of pictures. I will include under each what they are from. Quick baby update....no name yet. It is a lot harder to name a boy than a girl!!! We had another ultrasound so that the doctor could get a better look at the heart and all is well. He was 1 lb 1oz according to his measurements. He is kicking away and now others can feel it as well as see it now and again. Very exciting. Mom and Mark are in the country and it feels so good to have them close even though it is for a short time.


Thanksgiving at Grandpa's in Georgia

Auntie and her turkey

Hanna Montana

Madison and her new cousin Ashley

Mom and Mark on our intercoastal cruise...So happy to have them close again!

Travis driving the boat on the intercoastal

Our 1st attempt at seeing the snow (fake) and it got rained out :(

True Florida Christmas!!!

Splashing in the water at Grammy and Papa's house

Gingerbread pirate ship at the Ritz Carlton (I look huge!!!)

Auntie and Shawn at Grammy's

Trying to catch the snow with her mouth (Yuck! Its soap!!!)

Snow in Florida....WE WISH!!!!

Short video clip

Here is a little clip of baby Kane's arms moving and his heart beating. They counted 147 beats per minute.

ITS A BOY!!!!

Speaks for itself!!!

Hello Everyone!

Side profile

Fingers and toes...look at how cute that foot is (right) :)

Thumbs up!!!!

Yes, it is official...ITS A BOY!!!! Tonight we went and found out the sex of the baby and had Madison with us. We thought it was a boy all along from our gut feeling which turned out to be right. Madi on the other hand was not too happy. She wanted a baby sister. We have been trying to let her understand that we did not get to pick and remind her of all the things she can teach the baby that boys and girls do the same like riding bikes etc. She is slowly coming around but mad that we got it right and she was wrong :) She seems fine but is worried that she will not be able to do a hand stand or cartwheel before the baby is born. Funny to hear their perception on things.
Travis and I are extremely happy and glad to see that the baby has all limbs and looks great!

No training wheels!

We have been working with Madi since Monday when she told us she did not want training wheels on her bike any more. Tonight she got on and just took off! We were so amazed and suprised all we could do was jump up and down cheering....yes we probably looked a little silly but to us it was a huge deal :)

She's got it!!!!

Space shuttle Endeavour

I know you cant make much out of these pictures but last night just after 7:30, the space shuttle endeavour took off from Kennedy Space Center. We watched the launch on T.V. and then ran out front hoping to catch a glimpse. The night was so clear it was like it took off only a mile away. Believe it or not, we could make out the entire body of the shuttle....pretty neat as none of us have seen this before. As we were walking in we could hear the claps and cheers from people on other streets.

Here are some pics from our recent trip to Maryland. I am playing around with a new photo program that I came across so you will have to forgive the "embellishments". I do however think they look pretty cool. More pics to come but this will get you all started! We had a great time seeing family and especially visiting with Grandma. I made my heart happy to see Madi and her make bracelets and necklaces together.

Trick or Treat!!!

Witch by day (school)

Little Mermaid by night



Hanna Montana & Ariel


Last night we had a great time trick or treating. Lots of candy, fun and friends. Madi was so tired when we put her to bed (10:00) she asked that I stop reading her story so she could fall asleep. She was out in seconds! For those of you who don't know....this never happens with Madison. She fights it until the end!

Pumpkin Carving

Thursday night we carved the pumpkin. Madison's only request was she draw the face and it needed to look like a Jack o Lantern. Hopefully we succeeded! On a side note, there was a beautiful sunset that I did not get a shot of but you can kind of see it in the back ground :)

Weekend fun

painting pumpkin for baby

bobbing for apples

He has hair!!!




This weekend has been full of Halloween fun. Friday we went to the pumpkin patch in the rain. It was quick but Madi picked out a nice big pumpkin for the house and two little ones. One for her and one for her baby. She had fun painting them and putting funny sticker faces on them. Saturday we had a Halloween block party for the kids. It was fun but but drizzled off an on for about two hours. They bobbed for apples, played pin the nose on the pumpkin as well as lots of other games. Lots of food ( everyone had to bring a dish) and lots of good conversation. I got Madison a cheap witch costume so that she did not destroy her little mermaid costume for the real deal!

Catching up

Swimming with Destiny Lee



I have not updated in a while so I apologize to all that have been asking. Last weekend Madi slept over at DL's and then DL came over and had a sleep over at our house. The bottom picture is Madi in her dance outfit. She started a few weeks ago taking tap and ballet. This is one of her poses :)

Haunted House

Front

Back and side

Today Madison and I made a gingerbread haunted house. It was pretty tough getting the structure to stick together because the icing did not want to cooperate. Madi had a great time decorating and eating the candies!

I have heard from about everyone who has said "you have not posted in forever"!! Yes, I know but I have been very busy to say the least. As most of you know we had to go to Georgia in the beginning of the month because Janice (my step mom) unfortunately lost her battle with cancer. It has been rough on all of us and we still seem to have our moments just when we least expect it. I created a slide show of different things we have been doing over the past month. We went to an ice skating party a day before going to Georgia, we have seen a lot of family and also have managed to squeeze in Disney on Ice.

Another big milestone has been we have reached the 12 week mark in our pregnancy which means the first trimester is done...CAN YOU BELIEVE IT?? It has gone by fast with everything going on. On Wednesday I had my doctors appt and all is well. I even got to hear the heartbeat! We have now told Madison and she is thrilled to say the least. She would like to name the baby Isabella if it is a girl and "Brownie" if it is a boy????? Today she picked out pacifiers that she insisted she needed to keep safe for the baby until its arrival. So, being the sucker we are decided to let her buy them and let her enjoy in the excitement.

Ultrasound

Last night we went for an ultrasound. We were happy to see our little bean baby. It was actually moving so she had to keep repositioning the wand. Because it still is only about the size of a blueberry the image is not defined. They said that it was doing well and had a heart rate of 111 BPM. The line in the image at the top was them measuring it. Very Exciting!!!

Week at a glance....

Needless to say the past few weeks have been a whirl wind and this last one tops them all. I headed to Georgia last Friday because we have fond out that Janice, my step mom has been diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. It has "taken up residency" in her lungs but the doctors still are not sure where the primary site is. She finally is home now after spending 11 days in the hospital. I went up to give the only thing I fell I can at this point....support. It is kind of weird to say that in the hard times we as a family are going through, that my dad and I had a great time together. I think that knowing that family is there and will always be there as a shoulder to cry on or just to vent to is worth more than anything. The picture above was from a morning we spent on the lake together in his new boat.

I flew back on Monday right before Tropical Storm Fay was to hit. Work was not closed unfortunately on Tuesday but such is the life working in a hospital. The lake rose so much that at one point the water was over the dock! Yes....the "HS" (dingy) sunk....but has been fully resurrected! All we saw from the storm was some pretty hard wind gusts and a lot of rain. At the same time as all of this school started again this week for myself and Madison officially started VPK or as she calls it "K-4". Three classes now for me and a fourth that starts in October. All of this madness starts at the same time that the constant tired feeling of pregnancy has kicked in. To top it off I have constantly been feeling nauseous and need to keep food or tums by me at all times. Trust me....I am not for one moment complaining (by reading this I know it does not seem like it). I am grateful that God has blessed us with a baby so soon after loosing the last one and grateful that Janice is home and doing as well as can be expected for now.

One last thing....Travis has now taken on a second job in hopes to get extra money before the baby comes and is now a "bug guy"! That's right he sprays houses and lawns. Who would have thought???? :)

We are pregnant!!!

Yes, that's right! Did not take us long to conceive but we found out a little over a week ago now that we have a little one on the way. After what happened last time we have been a little hesitant to broadcast the news but all lab results and physical signs seem to be on the right track. We will go for an ultrasound on Tuesday of next week and will get a better idea of a due date. Right now they are telling us April 13th. We are not going to tell Madison until we reach the 12 week point this time so if you are talking to her, please do not mention it!

Where our journey began....

The sun peeking through rain in the distance

U.S.C.G. Station Ft. Lauderdale

Dolphin

Where it began


Last night we went out with some friends to cruise the intracoastal. We had beautiful weather and the one storm we saw in the distance made for great scenery. At the southern end of our trip was the Coast Guard station. Driving up under the 17th street bridge and catching the first glimpse of the station brought back a flood of emotions. My first reaction was how much it has changed but I next found myself picturing some of the best moments of my life and realizing that even off of the base we had some of the best times that we can never replace. As we got closer a CG Helicopter (dolphin) passed over head. What a perfect moment. Travis and I both found ourselves getting a little choked up and after just sitting in front of it for about 10 minutes could had had all we both could take. This is were our family started. It has now been 10 years since Travis and I first met there. How time flies. Leaving the station we discussed that for myself, I would have stayed in if I had it to do all over again but Travis said he made the right choice to get out. Either way, the choices we make bring us to where we are today. We have Madison!