One more shower!

My awesome sister and step mom planned, put together, executed AND cleaned up an amazing shower for me and FJ. I keep saying these showers are for "us" but this one really was - it was co-ed. We were able to include FJ's friends as well as some of my guy friends in the celebration. The theme was Vegas and of course costumes were encouraged and somewhat expected...I mean have you met us?! A few things are certain for Rhett's future...he will have a love of fun, no lack of entertainment and will be thoroughly and frequently embarrassed by his parents.

**Check out these pics of some of the games and costumes!!

April and Carolyn put together decorations, food, beverages, games and of course made sure that the most important thing of all was present - our friends!!! I'm very proud of myself - that's three showers/parties in a row where I didn't do anything but provide a list of names and addresses and show up! And this one was another perfect shower! I couldn't have picked anything out better myself.

We got tons of great stuff for Rhett and were able to celebrate again with a lot of our friends. We even had a few come from out of town (Ollie and Anne came from Hilton Head, John and Lindsay came from Athens, Rob and Amy came from Columbus, Jill's mother Lynn drove up from Metter and Carolyn also came from Metter --- I'm sure I missed some folks here). And thanks to David for letting us take over the club house in his condo building, too!

Some of the highlights include watching the boys race trying to chug beer from baby bottles - through the nipple and of course watching people sniff the baby food in teh diapers which looked tragically like pooh. I immediately made a mental note to not smell baby food again. Ever.

Thank you both for the awesome shower. I can't wait to put together these pages for Rhett's baby book -- I've got to give him some sort of warning as to what he is getting into, right?! FJ and I are VERY lucky to have family that is so excited and is going to so much trouble to welcome our new addition. We can't wait for him to meet you both!!! Love yall!

Beckie's 30th Birthday!!

Happy birthday to you, Happy birthday to you, Happy birthday dear BEECCCKKKKIIEEEEEE!!!!! Happy birthday to you!

One of my very close friends, Beckie, is turning 30 this week. I insisted upon throwing her a birthday dinner to celebrate. 30 is just a number, but we all know that for a lot of girls 30 can be a milestone. And I knew that for Beckie, it was, so I wanted to make sure it was celebrated and celebrated right!

As soon as I convinced Beckie to let me throw her a party (back in September... as I was winding down from Joani and Mark's anniversary party - are we noticing a trend?), I reached out to Kate... http://www.andeverythingsweet.blogspot.com/ since I pretty much have her on retainer. I described Beckie to Kate and told her what I was going for. Then I waited for 2 months for the week to arrive to see what Kate had conjured up!!

http://andeverythingsweet.blogspot.com/2010/11/miniature-party-girl-cakes.html

Check these cakes out! For those who don't know, Beckie loves all things outrageous. She loves designer anything, especially bags. She loves shoes, Victoria's Secret and showing off her curves and...assets! :) Beckie is the reason that our group of girlfriends use the term Skank as a term of endearment. She is full of personality and owns it! And I love her for it!

Beyond all of that, Beckie is one of those people who loves to be involved in the exciting times in her friends' lives. She was in 5 or 6 weddings the year that FJ and I got married and she was at every shower, party, bachelorette, luncheon etc for every wedding.

We had a great turn out, 14 people total and 14 individualized "skank cakes". We went to Eclipse Di Luna and had a pre-set menu. I provided some decorations that matched the invitations that went out (pink and animal print, of course!).

It was so much fun. Good food, good cake, good cocktails (so I heard) and good company!!!

Happy birthday Beckie!! I hope 30 is your best year yet and I can't wait to celebrate 31 with you, too!!!

It's raining showers!

The week between the 6th and 13th was a bit blurry. I was in Metter for two days with Jill and her family to mourn the loss of Mrs. Mavis (Mimi). I got home Tuesday, stayed in the car and FJ came out to run errands with me. Wednesday went very similarly - I went to work, came home, walked the dog and we went back out to run errands. Wednesday evening Kevin Gessert got into town. You might remember him from the deck!! FJ and I had so many projects to complete that we decided to ask Kevin if he might want to come spend a few days with us to help us check off some of our list. He was more than happy to help and we insisted on hiring him for the few days. The quality of Kevin's work is definitely professional grade as we learned from the deck so we really got a steal!! The short list of the projects included: remodeling our guest bathroom (tiling, installing a new vanity, etc), tiling the laundry room, installing a custom closet in Rhett's room and installing some overhead storoage in the garage. Simple, right?!?!

Of course in the midst of all of this, I got a cold. I knew it was bound to happen. I usually get sick right around Thanksgiving and it's not like I've been eating incredibly well or exercising (I was doing really well till about the beginning of November when things just piled up) to ward off sickness. The dust from the projects didn't help either! So by Saturday I was in a world of misery.

But I did have something really exciting to look forward to and a reason to get out of our dusty house. Joani had organized a baby shower for us with several of her friends!! We did a brunch/tea at St Ives (where FJ and I got married) and it was so much fun. I was expecting to be overwhelmed with advice but we ended up laughing, telling jokes or stories and having a great time for hours!! FJ and I also got some of our bigger items which was really exciting for us. It's so amazing to see so many people come together to support our family. Many of these ladies were at our wedding or parties related to that. I had also spent time with several of them (or at least exchanged emails) when we threw Mark and Joani their anniversary party. It was so good to be able to spend some time with these amazing women!!

Joani really outdid herself. We played a fun game, chatted, ate, had a cocktail or two (well I had no cocktails) and opened gifts. All in the company of the largest stork balloon I have ever seen in my life!

Fish & Furniture

I'm WAY behind on updating the blog...or we've just been doing a lot so there is much more to say than before!!

Let me back up a couple of weekends. The weekend of the 7th, FJ's dad and step mom (Frank & Gina) came to visit from Greensboro, NC. We had a great weekend with the two of them. We ate TONS of good food (Veni Vidi Vicci, Stoney River, breakfast at our favorite diner, Mexican food, pizza, you name it - we ate it!), went shopping for the baby and for furniture and visited the aquarium. It was a packed weekend, but a BLAST!

We are having our new furniture delivered the day after Thanksgiving so if I can get caught up, I'll have more pictures soon. We got a new bedroom set (a KING!!!) and will be moving our bedroom set to the guest room. For the past year, Joani and Mark (FJ's mom and step dad) have been kind enough to let us borrow some of their very nice furniture throughout our house. They are finishing out above their garage and will need some of it back so the timing worked out almost perfectly. Frank and Gina also got us some new furniture for our den so we'll be moving our den furniture to the living room which was also furnished by Joani and Mark on loan!! What Joani and Mark don't realize is that I'm somehow going to hide some of that furniture in storage or help them forget about it so that when we get a bigger house, we can "borrow" it back...

We also got our pack n play, our swing for Rhett and the bumbo seat. Gina and Frank are super excited to meet Rhett and we were glad to have them to visit. We have never been able to host them at our home before because we lived in the condo and when we got the house we didn't have a spare room for awhile. I'm glad they were able to see the house before it was completely taken over by the baby stuff!

Definitely an exciting weekend! Thank you to Frank and Gina for the exciting gifts - it's a huge help and we are really excited for all of Rhett's new things as well as the big people furniture...now we just have to coordinate the moving parts which we all know is one of my favorite things to do!

First (planned) Baby Shower for Rhett!!!!

I'm a week or so behind on my updates and I've been fighting a cold without my arsenal of CVS over the counter drugs - I never realized how great they were until I couldn't have them!

On the 7th, one of my closest friends, Allison (some might remember her from the wedding - she was one of my gorgeous bridesmaids!) threw me an awesome baby shower brunch! The set up was gorgeous, the food was great (even the cheese grits, Fred!) and the company couldn't be beat. Of course it didn't hurt that we got tons of great stuff for Rhett and his room!!!

Allison had the shower set up on lock down! There were beverages, food, a sweets table and she even had everyone make a scrap book page and I took a picture with each guest so she could put together a book for Rhett to look through and see who all came to celebrate for him. I can't wait to see the book, though I did sneak a peak at some of the pages people made and they were awesome.

If you've heard me talk about preparing for the baby or any of these random facts that I seem to know, you'll hear "Allison said __________" or "I asked Allison about _________". Allison has 2 boys, Cooper who is almost 3 and Landon who was born in March of this past year. She has been so excited for our family since the day I casually mentioned that I was pregnant... I think I worked it in there as a response to "what's up?" or "how was your day"...it was so much fun to slide it in there. I was like "oh, I had donuts for breakfast which is a huge treat, sent some contracts out to customers, got an ultra sound because I'm pregnant, shopped online...the usual..." But that was the end of my playing it cool. Now on any given day, Allison can expect an email, text, phone call or corporate IM (we've worked together for 7 years!) with a ridiculous question from me ranging from pregancy questions, questions about babies or kids or some of the more embarrassing questions surrounding the unknowns of pregnancy.

Allison's mom Kim has been exceptionally supportive and helfpul, too and of course was at Allison's house bright and early helping to put together the shower. Kim has treated me like a second daughter (she has 3 sons and a daughter - she's just the type of person who welcomes people into her heart, home and family) since the very first time I assisted her with a prank call. I knew at that point that she and I would get along just fine! Their families have come to mean the world to me and FJ and I can't wait for Rhett to get to know them, too!!

I went home from this baby shower loaded down with loot and we all know I took some of the candy and donuts home, too...I'll say it again - this sweet tooth better go back to where it came from after Rhett gets here - there is no need for it!

What an awesome way to spend a Sunday...in the company of good friends celebrating one of the most exciting and special things to happen in my life!! Not to sound cliche, but every time I feel Rhett move around (even when he's not being very nice), I feel very blessed. To sit in Allison's home, surrounded by friends and family who all wanted to celebrate Rhett and to celebrate for me and FJ made me feel even more blessed.

More to come on the rest of our exciting weekend last weekend as well as the busy week last week... I usually put something about what is coming down the pipeline in the coming weeks, but I am so far behind that I feel like that would be unfair to all of the things I have yet to cover that have already happened!!

But I will say that my beautiful, amazing sister is coming into town on Friday and I can't WAIT to see her!!!

Thanks again to Allison for being a terrific friend and pretend aunt to Rhett and thank you also to Kim for raising such a terrific friend and letting me into your family! And of course to all of our friends who have been so generous with time, gifts and just checking in on us - it means the world!!!

You're in our hearts Mrs. Mavis!

I met Mrs. Mavis Banks when I was 17 years old, the summer before my Senior year of high school. She welcomed me into her home with an open door, a big hug and of course a meal. Over the next 12 years I would come to realize that those were staples to Mrs. Mavis and all 3 were always available. I spent countless nights at the Banks house. I couldn't begin to tell you how many pot roasts, servings of chicken salad or cookies I have consumed in that home...and most of those just happened to be there when we got there. Jill and I were always coming and going and there was always food on the table and Mrs. Mavis would always be waiting to hear about our latest shennanigans. We would eat, hug and run some days. Others we would stay and watch a movie or gossip or maybe go shopping.

As high school turned to college, this pattern continued. We would drop in to say hi (after a quick trip to the county line package store) - aka look pitiful in hopes that Mavis would throw us some leftovers or $20! As I pledged ZTA with Jill, Mrs. Mavis welcomed my into her sisterhood, as I had already been welcomed into her family. Over the next several years, Jill and I only became closer and Mavis only became more a valued part of my life and a staple in my support structure. When Jill moved to Atlanta after college, the two of us became inseparable. I looked forward to the visits from Mavis, Lynn and Robin - especially when they would come decorate our house for Christmas, fill our fridge or take us to dinner (and always cocktails!). I loved hearing the news from Metter and even more than that, I loved laughing with Jill and her family at any and everything. Whether they were laughing at us, we were laughing at them, we were all laughing at Jill (chipmonks are real?) or we were laughing about life - a few things were constant... Mavis, Lynn and Robin were working and sweating, Jill and I were trying to get away with the least amount of work possible and we were all laughing hysterically most of the time!

I think Jill knew before I did that I was going to marry FJ and it became more and more important to Mavis to meet this man and of course she asked "honey, does he take a drink?" I remember taking FJ to the Banks house to meet Mavis. It was a quick drop by, we weren't going to have much time. I warned FJ that there would be food...not just food, but tons of it. Of course Mavis happened to have a roast that she had cooked (my favorite) and in order to make it less formal, she was offering sandwiches...as always, the choices were 2 or 3...not 1...just 2 or 3. We filled our bellies and Mrs. Mavis got to ask FJ some questions. FJ also got a taste of some of the earlier days of Jenny & Jill or as some called us "Trouble." As we left with tight hugs, I told FJ two things. 1, Mrs. Mavis had skipped church to prepare that meal and be there for us when we stopped by coming through Metter (which those who know Mrs. Mavis know this was a big deal) and 2. I knew for a fact she was on the phone with Lynn, Jill's mom, right then letting her know that she got to meet FJ first!! That was the day FJ was inducted into the Banks family.

I can go on and on with memories of Mrs. Mavis or moments that shaped my life in which she was involved. I could list off the amazing things she's done for me and my growing family. When I tell people "this is the family, the woman who threw my bridal shower" it seems to resonate with a lot of people how much I considered the Banks family to be an extension of my own. I was known to refer to Mrs. Mavis quite frequently (both directly and indirectly) as Mimi. I sought her approval and felt terrible when I disappointed her. I valued her opinion and looked to her for guidance, support and strength. She was an excellent role model. She was full of wisdom, stories, good faith, humor and love.

As we come closer and closer to welcoming Rhett, my heart hurts that he will never know Mrs. Mavis or get to call her Mimi. I am convinced that she will know him, though. She will watch over him and continue to be a part of our family. The lessons that Jill and I have both learned from her will impact his life and he will hear story after story about Mrs. Mavis over the course of the years. And I am very lucky to be so certain that he will also have the benefit of the love and support of the rest of the Banks family as he grows up and will feel the impact of this amazing woman. And I hope that he can bring a smile to the faces of that family as they face the holiday time without their matriarch. It's often said that to every ending there is a beginning. Perhaps Rhett's beginning can help soften this difficult time, especially for Mrs. Lynn Culpepper and Jill!!

I love you, Mrs. Mavis. Thank you for looking out for me over the past 12 years on earth and I know I can count on you to keep looking out for me, FJ, Rhett and whatever else our family is blessed with over the next 12, 24, 36 and so on years from Heaven. Thank you for letting me into your family, your life, your heart, your home and your dinner table! :)

I love you, Jill. And Lynn - I am so sorry for your loss. If I could say or do anything to ease your pain, I would.

Happy Halloween!

I'm refraining from posting Halloween pictures, but let's just say that FJ and I both chose the comical route this year and now more than ever, the world should be convinced that Rhett will have an amazing sense of humor.

We had a busy weekend, yet again. Our roommate, Liz moved out on Friday night/Saturday morning, FJ had to work Saturday morning (I ran some errands) and then we went to Joani and Mark's to watch the UGA/FL game and pick up some Christmas decorations that they had leftover from the old house. We also got ready over there for the Halloween party at a friend's house. I incorporated my large belly into my costume and FJ went the pop culture route and we both received a hearty, laughter filled welcome when we walked into the party. As I saw several of my girflriends in their cute, flirty, pretty costumes, I felt a twinge of jealousy, but I also reminded myself that it's excellent motivation to get back into shape after Rhett joins us!

To give an update on the countdown, we have 7 weeks (and a day) until December 23, obviously, less than 2 months and I have less than 6 weeks left at work -- all of which is assuming he doesn't come early. Of course I'm keeping my fingers crossed that he does come a few days early but these things rarely work on the schedule or time frame that the mother prefers, so I'm hardly getting my hopes up.

That's about it for now! Rhett is growing and moving! We have a doctor's appointment (34 weeks) next week!!