Billy Called it...

It looks like I can keep my current BLUE polka dot background, because....

IT'S A BOY!!!!

So yeah, Billy is pretty confindent in his gender guessing abilities (as if he wasn't before). This is 6 out of 6 babies he's accurately guessed (including nieces and nephews)! It all started when he was "good for boys" when we got pregnant with Tyler. From day one, he insisted he was a boy. I even gave all the little talks about the fact that he should still be open-minded in case it turned out to be a girl, but nope...he KNEW it was a boy.
And he ended up being right.
When we got pregnant with Allison, he didn't feel so confident about being "good for boys" anymore. He said, "it's a girl, I just know it..."
And he was right AGAIN.
Then with this baby, he's called boy since the day I found out I was pregnant. He even had me convinced with this one. I've been calling it a "he" this whole time.
Turns out he was dead on the money.
So we are all happily awaiting the arrival of our new little guy in approximately 4 1/2 months!
I think Tyler was most exstatic about the news. He's also been saying that he's having a brother this whole time. When people asked him why he thought this or why he wants a brother, he would respond with "I already have a sister!" All this week, he's been counting down the days until we would go to Mommy's doctor. He told everyone he saw, "We find out if the baby is a boy or girl in 4 days!!!" Then yesterday as we were getting ready to go to the doctor, he exclaimed, "I'm going to be SO HAPPY if it's a boy!!! I'll be so EXCITED!" I responded with, "What if it's a girl? Then what will you do?" His response? "I'll be sad." I sure am glad he didn't have to be sad.
Allison really isn't all that concerned about whether it's a boy a girl. In fact, she fell asleep in the middle of the ultrasound. I guess it's pretty uneventful for an almost-2-year-old. In the beginning, she was requesting a sister. Recently, however, she sided with Tyler on the "brudder" idea. Mostly, I think she just wants a real live baby to hug and cuddle and squeeze and love. Everytime we see a baby somewhere she says, "Wook Mommy! A BABY!!!" She is going to be a great helper (maybe even too helpful at times!)
As for me, I would have been happy with news of a boy or a girl. Whatever spirit Heavenly Father decides to send me will be perfect. I am very happy to be having another sweet little boy. If his movements inside me are any indication, he's going to be a calm little guy. I've got my fingers crossed anyway! I am more and more eager to meet him with each passing day!

Love on Mother's Day

Just a week late this time...I'm getting better!

Billy and the kids did a great job making me feel special this Mother's Day. It all started at church where Tyler got to go up and sing with the Primary kids again. I just love this new perk of having a Sunbeam aged child! They sang two songs about mothers, and it was simply precious!

After church, we came home and Billy had a few surprises up his sleeve. After having Tyler and Allison write their names (well, scribbles for Allison) in a special Mother's Day card, he sent them to me holding the cards, flowers, and some yummy Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Granola Bars (a recent pregnancy craving). I really enjoyed the looks of joy on their faces as they ran up to me with all the sweet gifts as they yelled, "Happy Mother's Day" and gave me BIG hugs! We took a few minutes to look at the cards (one from Billy too) and take some pictures.

(Vanessa gets credit for this shot.)

After that, my sister and her family arrived. Billy had asked Jon to get over to our house because he had another surprise for the two mothers. After waiting several minutes for Billy and Jon to prepare the surprise, we were presented with the MOST delicious dessert in the world. If you haven't had the Chocolate Chip Paradise Pie from Chilie's, you SHOULD! It is delicious! Knowing this is one of my absolute favorite desserts (next to cheesecake), Billy had stopped by there on Saturday night to get them, and saved them in our downstairs refrigerator to keep it a surprise from me. It was very thoughtful and a wonderful surprise! (And just for the record, we were nice enough to share with our sweet kids and wonderful husbands.) I guess holidays are a good enough excuse to eat your dessert before dinner!

Speaking of dinner, Vanessa and I didn't even have to cook that evening! Jon is a great cook, and he offered to make dinner for everyone. It was delicious, especially since I didn't have to make it! Doesn't it always taste better when someone else does all the work?! Thanks so much Jon!

A special thanks goes to Billy for making this such a happy Mother's Day for me! I love you!

Another Free Trial

Netflix just sent me another set of coupons to pass out to my friends. It gives you a free trial to the service for a month, and I get one free rental in return! It's a win-win situation. If you're interested, just leave me a comment with your email and I will send you the info from one of the cards. I only have 4 coupons and they expire on June 15th, so get 'em while they're hot!

Happy Mother's Day!

To all my friends who are mothers or will one day be mothers....
Thanks for showing me all the many angels of and approaches to motherhood, and for helping me to realize that there isn't just one right way to teach and raise our chilren. I appreciate being able to learn from each of you!

To my many aunts and cousins who are mothers....
Thanks for being wonderful examples of great mothers throughout my life. There hasn't been a time in my life where I wasn't able to witness someone being a mother. All of your examples have helped me shape my own life and discover the type of mother I wanted to be.

To my Granny and Grandma....
Thanks for being there to love and nurture me through the years. Thanks for all the hugs and words of encouragement, and for spoiling me the way grandmothers do best! Thanks for all the fun times I was able to spend with you. Thanks for teaching me about things from days that are past. I have enjoyed being able to grow up so close to you and all the times we were able to be together! I love you!

To all the wonderful mothers in Billy's family....
Thanks for accepting me into your family 7 years ago! Thanks for treating me like one of your own, and for all the love and support you have offered to me. I am so grateful to have married into such a loving family that truly wants the best for me. A special thanks to Lynette and Grandma Farish for the love and time you invested into raising Billy to be the loving and caring husband and father he is today!

To my beautiful sister, Vanessa....
Thanks for being one of the many constants in my life. No matter what we went through, you were always there. Thanks for being an example and teaching me how to be more giving and less "bossy" throughout life. These are things that have helped me to be a better mother to my own children. I enjoy going through the journey of motherhood with you and being able to share the trials, joys, and many other emotions that go along with it! I love you!

To my own caring, brilliant, and amazing mother....
There simply aren't enough words to express the amount of appreciation and gratitude that I feel for the wonderful job you did raising me. Thanks for all the sacrifice, devotion, and time you invested (and continue to invest) each and every day of my life. Thanks for raising me in the gospel and making the effort to get 3 children to church each and every Sunday on your own. Thanks for demonstrating such an amazing amount of strength and faith when Courtney passed away. Now that I am a mother, I know the pain and anguish that you must have experienced, yet you never let that get in the way of pressing forward to continue to be the best mother you could be for me. Thanks for your kind example and nurturing spirit. You always knew when I needed a hug or someone to talk to. Thanks for teaching me to love and be accepting of everyone and how to serve my fellow man. Thanks for the countless number of hours you have spent helping me to be successful in school and throughout life, and for the invaluable lessons you taught me in the process. Thanks for all the words of encouragement and praise during the tough and stressful times in my life. Thanks for believing in me. Thanks for loving me. Thanks for being my best friend. And most of all, thanks for being my mother! I love you!

And to my little munchkins....
Thanks for choosing me to be your mother! I am so grateful to have this opportnuity from Heavenly Father to love, nurture, and raise you. You mean more to me than anything in life, and I strive each day to be the best mother I can to you. Thanks for being so forgiving of me when I make mistakes. Thanks for brightening each of my days with your beautiful smiles, warm spirits, and loving hugs and kisses! I love you both so much!

I hope all of you have a fun and relaxing weekend!

Happy Mother's Day!!!

Summer Vacation

Some of you may already know, but we get to head out on a cruise with Billy's family at the end of this month! Since we love going on cruises, and the last one we went on took place almost 3 years ago, we've been getting very excited! The ship we get to sail on is a brand new ship too! How much better can it get?!
Well, one problem arose about a month ago. Anyone care to guess where our cruise (leaving out of Long Beach in L.A.) was headed to? Uh huh...Mexico. We were scheduled to travel down the Mexican Riviera to Puerto Vallarta, Mazatlan, and Cabo San Lucas. So yeah, Swine Flu anyone??? (Just a little FYI - our cruise was booked WAY before any news of this outbreak came about.) Shortly after the outbreak, we heard that the cruise was still a go, but that it would not allow anyone off at the ports. This message contained both good and bad news to me. Good for the obvious reason that my family would have better chances of not contracting the illness. But also good because we had been on this particular cruise twice in the past and I had already said I wasn't getting off at every port with two kids in tow. (We've attempted it with one child, and it's hard work!) Bad, however, because I was excited to get off the ship to relax and hang out at the beach. Allison has never been, and Tyler was too little to remember the last time he played in the sand at the beach. So, these were the things I was looking forward to on this cruise. The opportunity for my kids to experience something new, and no pressure to get off and "see the sights," since I've already been to each of these places twice. I got over the downside of it very quickly though...I was still going on a cruise nonetheless!
But that's not it.
We just recently discovered that the cruises to Mexico have all been rerouted to different locations. For example, ships that were supposed to sail to Cozumel are being rerouted to Nassau, Bahamas. Pretty good trade, right? One tropical, sunny location for another!
Not so much in our case...
Our cruise has been rerouted as well, and will now be heading north. Maybe it's just me, but Astoria, Oregon and Victoria and Vancouver, British Columbia in Canada don't scream tropical and sunny, right? So while I may get my wish of hanging out at the beach, it may not be quite the same experience if the temperature isn't even going to be in the 70's! So now my "good" and "bad" reasons have completely flipped. These ports offer new sights and places I've never been to. But do I make sure I'm up and off the ship at every port so I don't miss out on anything (this is totally a little personality quirk of mine by the way), and risk experiencing the stress that could be involved?!
Then there is the problem of the weather...
Should I even bother packing swimsuits??? I did a little research and looked up the averages for those areas for the month of May, and NONE of the recorded temperatures even hit 70! I mean honestly, I'm not going anywhere near the water if that's the case! Someone who knows that area a little better than me, please tell me that the weather is going to be perfectly warm and sunny and conducive to going to the beach the first week in June. If not, well, I'll just have to look on the upside of things. I'm more than willing to experience the many other redeeming qualities this area has to offer! And like I said before, no matter what.....

I'll still be on a CRUISE!!!

Family Photos

We went out with my sister, Vanessa, last Thursday so she could take some practice family photos. We found this great spot at Kennesaw Mountain, complete with a huge grassy field and railroad tracks! She calls herself a "beginner photographer," and while she may just be starting out, they turned out pretty professional in my opinion! Thanks Vanessa!

The Hadley Family ~ May 2009

I know I already have this one at the top of my blog, but it's a little fuzzy for some reason, so I wanted to post it the way it's supposed to look!

Our energetic and spunky Tyler Man!

The happy couple after 7 years of marriage!

Our adorable little go-getter, Miss Allison!

THE END!!!

A Chuck E. Cheese Party!

Tyler has been wanting to experience Chuck E. Cheese for months now (thanks Nick Jr.). Everytime he would see the commercial (you all know the one... "25 cent FUUUUN!!!") he would say, "Mommy, we need to go there!" Well, he finally got his wish when he was invited to a birthday party there! He and Allison had a blast! I could barely even pull them away from the rides and games to get some pizza and cake and meet Chuck E.

Once I did get them headed in the right direction, Tyler was thrilled to see the lifesize Chuck E. and join him in a parade! Allison had the same sentiments about him as she did the Easter Bunny...she was going nowhere near the giant mouse!

Can anyone locate Tyler Man???

After the fun with Chuck E. and the consumption of some pizza and cake, it was time to head back to the games to finish using up our tokens!

Allison climbed up here herself to take a ride! Such a big girl!

After the tokens were all used up, I was ready to head home. But then Tyler discovered the FREE entertainment...

I'm pretty sure they spent almost an extra hour playing inside all the tunnels suspended from the ceiling and going down the slide over and over again! It was actually pretty relaxing and fun for me to be able to just sit back and watch them play. The best part was watching Tyler be a great big brother to Allison, who wasn't tall enough to get up the big platform steps on her own in order to make it to the top. He got a great system down and probably boosted her up more than 20 times! He was very careful the whole time not to leave her behind. The little guy got a workout from it all, that's for sure! I tried getting a picture to capture the moment, but it didn't turn out well due to the netting around that part.

Once we finally decided it was time to go, we made one last stop by the Chuck E. Cheese sketch booth for a quick group picture. I thought it turned out so cute to only cost 25 cents, so we actually ended up taking 3! But since this is already another long post, I'll only make you look at one! :)

I couldn't get Allison to look at the actual camera. She was much more intrigued seeing herself on the giant screen up above! Billy was out of town that week, so he wasn't able to join us. Maybe next time!
Now everytime Tyler sees the commercial he says, "Hey Mommy, that's where we went!!!"