catching up is hard to do...

I have so many potential blog posts at the moment. 3rd Anniversary...Texas Thanksgiving...Nickel Creek shows...how much I love our Christmas tree...how I am about to have the best time ever in Dallas this weekend with my college friends, my girls, my BFFs... But sadly, you must continue to wait.

And, since pictureless blogs are boring, here are some things I've created lately...

a painting for the living room

burp cloths and booties for Zoey and Baby Girl Albright

sunday

Baby Girl,
You distracted me in church on Sunday. I tried to pay attention...Genesis 47, was it? The joy of reunion. But the details I can't quite recall. I could do nothing but stare at your kicks and punches causing my stomach to go every which way. I even nudged your Daddy for him to see. (I was guilty of some distracting myself.) But, baby girl, that was the greatest experience I've had of God's love in a while. Thank you for distracting me in church on Sunday.

11.20.04

Kev and I have been married for three years today. I couldn't be more excited. I love any sort of occassion that merits a celebration, an interruption in your everyday life, so something that celebrates something that I have done with Kevan...well, it doesn't get any better than that.

Happy Anniversary, my Kevan! I love you more than you know, and I can't even explain how honored and privileged I feel to be your wife...

--coming soon...i had a special post in mind about our 3 years, but we are beginning our drive to the promised land, I mean, TEXAS, today after school. kev and i have an anniversary car date--

i'm not a woman anymore, i'm a mom

21 weeks

I am loving dressing "pregnant", but I am finding that not all maternity clothes send me into a fashion frenzy. I have a few cute things thanks to my sweet mama on my last trip home. The maternity sections in any store that might happen to have pregnant "fashions", and have them affordably, take up the same square footage as your computer screen. What's a girl to do? I'd rather stretch, and I do mean stretch, my normal clothes as far as they can go for the time being. But... even though I haven't completely fallen for maternity wear quite yet, I have fully embraced the elastic-waisted maternity jean, aka "mom" jean.

I have decided they are the greatest and I might wear them forever. Who doesn't love a "grow with you" waist band? And, while we are on the subject, who doesn't love the following SNL commercial?



Are you kidding me?! A free vest with purchase? It's almost too much...

precious

Baby Girl, your Daddy's Daddy wrote such a sweet little rhyme for you! (He doesn't know what name we have chosen for you, just as we don't know what name you have chosen for him...)



Who??

When I read “Once I Ate a Pie”
With tears of joy I almost cried
A secret name, who will she be
The suspense is killing me
On the other hand, it might be fun
To wait until her life’s begun
And gaze into her precious eyes
While mom unveils the big surprise
And laugh a lot when our thoughts linger
About her dad wrapped ‘round her finger’
We know if she is like her mom
Then she will really be “the bomb”
Or like her daddy that’s great too
A “Little Rhino” through and through
And blended with a Godly love
Brought down from angels up above
A precious gift who will she be
The suspense is thrilling me……

Thanks so much, Steve. Little _______ is going to love reading that someday...

(i added some more sweet pics of zoey in the post below!)

introducing...

our precious new baby niece!

zoey ruth

7 lbs. 15 oz.

20.5 in.

congrats to paul, lori, and macy!!

(thanksgiving week could not get here soon enough...we'll get to meet her then!)

well...

It all became a little more real today. We found out that...

It's

...
...

...
...


A

...
...

...
...


GIRL!!!!!!!!!

We were so glad to hear that our baby girl is healthy and doing well! She is measuring right where she should be, so my due date will stay at March 22nd for now. She is soooo cute (I love using "she"!) and was moving all over the place during the sonogram, arching her back and poking out her round belly, kicking, grabbing her legs with one hand, touching her nose with the other...most of these things at the same time. It was an AMAZING experience to feel her and see her move on the screen at the same time. The lady who did the sonogram kept saying things like, "This is a wild baby" and "Don't ever feed her sugar, EVER!" She acted surprised, like she doesn't always see babies who are that active. Kevan and I laughed through the whole thing, trying not to think about what this could mean for us when she is around 2 years old.

We do already have a name that we love...it will most likely be the one we stick with...but we are keeping it a surprise until the baby comes. I love being on this side of the secret. Speaking of secret names, my 2nd niece is due to arrive this coming Monday, and I am dying to meet her and know her name! (She may be on her way this week...please be praying and thinking about my brother Paul and sis-in-law Lori!) I can't wait for these girls to grow up together.

Introducing our hyper baby girl with the sweetest profile ever...

Touching her cute nose...

Little baby bum...is this blog-appropriate? :)

We can't wait to meet you, baby girl!

lola bee

Kevan mentioned to me recently that I have failed to ever speak of Lola on my blog. Shame on me. Lola is our pug. She is a crazy pug, but she is a good pug. She constantly demands attention, so some blog attention she will get...

Here she is at 8 weeks old on the day we got her.

And here she is just this last Wednesday on Halloween!

Side story...we enjoy taking Lola to the dog park, and last year a "kind" pug owner man told us about Pug Day at the park. He mentioned that since the next one would be in October that all the pugs would be coming in costume. I, of course, was giddy about a pug costume party, so I made Lola this bee costume. When we arrived at the park, with Lola Bee on her leash, Kevan noticed that none of the 20 other pugs were wearing costumes. We quickly ripped off the cute bee costume, not wanting to embarass Lola in front of her friends. I'm still not sure what the deal was, but I really think it was some kind of cruel first-timer Pug Day initiation! Even the guy who told us about the costumes had his pugs there, un-costumed.

Speaking of the dog park, here is one last pic of Lola with her BFF Harriet.

Well, I am now 20 weeks - halfway there. We go TOMORROW for our ultrasound, and, hopefully, will be able to find out if the baby is a boy or a girl! I am so excited. I am also a bit nervous...please be praying that they have nothing but good news for us about the health of our baby! Here are some recent belly pics. I left my camera cord at school, so no 20 week pic today. I know you are so disappointed about that.

18 weeks

19 weeks

Check back tomorrow. Hopefully, I will have some news to share!

the amazingness who is my husband

(<--Isn't he so cute?!) Kevan has always been willing to do anything for me. I knew the story would be no different once I got pregnant. The first few days and weeks he did all he could to help me with my "morning sickness"...bringing me breakfast before I got out of bed, going on Walgreens runs to get me whatever I thought might ease the nausea for that moment's time (Ginger Ale, no wait, Gatorade, how about lemonade? jolly ranchers, saltines? no, wait, lemon drops. oh, and some ginger snaps?) And now that I am feeling more like myself, he continues to show such a servant heart in the daily way he treats me. If I mention that I am craving something, he'll find a way to ease my craving.

If I am having a stressful week at school (which non-stressful weeks are hard to come by these days...) or if I miss my family, he finds ways to cheer me up.


He is constantly finding ways to lighten my load. Yesterday when I got home from school he had done the laundry and dishes AND he made a great dinner last night. I am blessed beyond belief, and so is our little baby...he is going to be one incredible dad. I can't imagine going through this experience with anyone other than Kevan Hayes Albright. It is so good to be his girl.