It's a....

 

 

Once I had the ultrasound appointment set for Oct. 30, I knew I wanted to do something fun to announce the gender of this tiny human, and the idea of carving a pumpkin popped in my head (without the help of Pinterest thank you very much)!  I figured we'd just carve the words "it's a boy" in the pumpkin, but Remy was drawing up little sketches of some ideas (he's so clever) and came up with this!  

We (well, Remy) carved 2 pumpkins with this design and took them to each of our parents' houses.  Remy's house didn't go as smoothly, there was just too much going on with everyone excited and getting ready to go out Trick or Treating.  -Specifically by the front door which wasn't good because we were trying to be sneaky about getting the pumpkin on the porch and lighting it.  Not to mention they kept asking us if we had found out yet and we just said that we had an appointment the next day (which is true!). So when they saw it, some people were confused at first, but I guess I can't blame them.  It was still fun!

Acutally Mako, our nephew was the first one who walked out of the house, saw the pumpkin and said, "so you're having a boy?"  At least someone got it right away!  :)

Then it was off to my parent's.  Much less comotion because there are no young kids and hardly any trick or treaters, so it was easier for Remy to sneak out and set everything up.  Then instead of just letting them notice it on their own we asked them to come outside and check out the pumpkin we carved.  It was fun!  My little sister was like, "Dang!  I bet a Jamba Juice it was a girl!"  It made me laugh a bit.

As for my shirt, I have to admit, I'm a little proud.  I had seen these online and wanted one really bad, but they were like $30 plus shipping everywhere I found them.  Then I found just the iron-on design for $17 plus shipping, but then I would have to buy a shirt so that didn't help.  I had found a blog where a lady had made her own by making a freezer paper stencil, but painting a shirt freaked me out for some reason.  So I got some think fabric stabilizer it was called, that has adhesive on one side and made my own iron on.  :)  Mind you it wasn't easy cutting all those little baby bones out (especially the fingers and toes!), but it turned out! And for about half the cost of buying it online. :) 

One last picture I have to share, this one of the ultrasound.  -Which BTW I had no idea would last so long.  It was like 45 mintues with the tech person and then the Dr. came in and looked around a bit.  I guess he wasn't cooperating when they were trying to get specific angles of his heart and spine.  So she was looking around and all of a sudden this little hand pops up giving us this little thumbs up!  I was so glad she was quick and grabbed a picture!  It seriously makes me laugh every time I see it.  We figure we'll take that as a sign that everything is okay in there.  :)

 

When the ultrasound person (what are they called anyway?!) told us it was a boy we just sort of looked at each other because we had felt like it was a boy all along. :)  So it was like, "yeah we know, but thanks for confirming."  But it was still exciting to hear!

So it was a happy Halloween for sure!  And we're excited for our little guy to get here at the end of March!

Never Gets Old

I had my monthly check-up this morning.  The Dr. of course got out the doppler and literally touched my stomach and there was the heart beat.  Is it just me or is it always a huge sense of relief when that happens?  Not necessarily the speedy part, but the part where you can hear it.  My Dr. always lets me listen for a while, which I love.

Can I just tell you, that sound never gets old.

Every time I hear that little heart beat and every time I see the ultrasound pictures on the fridge, I just can't believe it.  I can't believe how amazing it is.

I also can't believe how lucky I've been so far with how easy it's going.  Now, getting the baby there in the first place...not easy.  So I feel like it's only fair.  :)  (Sorry for all of you that have difficult pregnancies!)

Also over the last week or so I've felt the baby moving.  It's so awesome!  Someone described it feeling like muscle spasm without the muscle....which is actually pretty accurate.  I wish I could feel movements more often (though I'm sure later on I might be telling a different story. :) ). 

Later these week is the "Big Ultrasound"!  You know, the one where we can finally assign this baby the right pronoun.  :)  So cast your votes! We are so excited!

Oh Baby!

Man, we've had a lot going on!  I'm going to download some pics here soon of this really fun trip Remy and I just went on.  I had a work conference in Boston, so Remy came with me and we made a big adventure out of it!  We took a train from Boston to NYC, NYC to DC, and DC to Greensboro, NC.  WHEW!! 

 The view from our hotel room in Boston.

We caught a Red Sox vs. Yankees game at Fenway Park!

 

USS Constitution

 

We went to Mr. Bartley's Burgers just across the street from Harvard University.  Mmmmm.

Remy getting to eat his lobster before the baseball game.  He was loving it.

Went to the place where the Greensboro 4 did a "sit in" at the Woolworth's in NC.  It was a really awesome museum.

Of course, the Washington Monument.

 

I have a ton more pictures, but this is just what I could get off of my phone. :)

It was really a blast.  It was Remy's first time back there AND his first time riding a subway.  It was sort of adorable.  His favorite place was Boston, and though I do love it there, I really love DC.  We got REALLY tired by about the middle of DC.  We only spent a day in New York because it's so expensive to stay there.  The train pulled in around 10am I think and we got back on around 9pm.  We managed to to the Statue of Liberty, the tippity top of the Empire State Building, Times Square, Rockefeller Center, a walk down Wall Street, a visit to Macey's for ice cream :). 

In DC one of our stops was at the National Archives.  I really love that place.  We only had time to stop in the rotunda, but that's where they keep the coolest stuff!  The Declaration of Independence, Bill of Rights, and the Constitution.  It was cool because while we were there it was the 225th anniversary of the Constitution so they had what they call the 5th Page on display.  Basically it's the last page that just explains how you can make an ammendment.  Not super thrilling so they have never displayed it before and they only had it out for a few days and we got to see it! (I'm a total nerd).

After DC we took our last train down to Greensboro, NC where I have an Aunt, Uncle and cousins and we stayed with them for a few days.  It was really great and we were sad to leave.  Hopefully we can go back soon!


Also, there is this:















Baby Smith coming March 2013!!

Cub Country

So this past week was Scout camp.  It wasn't overnight or anything, just Friday and Saturday from about 8a.m.-3p.m.  Remy and I went up just on Saturday...I'm surprisingly wishing I had gone on Friday too.  Those kids are so funny I can't even stand it!

The camp was up Millcreek Canyon, called Cub Country.  They have a whole bunch of sites with different themes.  Friday was Jurassic-something or other.  Saturday was Superhero Academy.

So cute.

It was super cheesy and the boys loved it.  I just had to share a few of my favorite moments.

I'm not going to lie, I thought the boys were going to be too crazy and off the wall to handle, but they were SO well behaved.  Really.

So at one station we were talking about historical figures/folk stories/legends.  You know, Paul Bunyan, Pecos Bill, Johnny Appleseed, some lady whose name I can't remember who survived the Titanic.  Well to start off the scout who was leading our group was trying to get them to come up with the aforementioned names -or at least some sort of old famous person -examples given: Abraham Lincoln, Albert Einstein, etc.

Names the boys came up with:  None.

So the leader tried again. (and I apologize if you saw this on FB already, but it's just too funny I don't ever want to forget).

Scout Leader: Who is a famous American who has done something great?
Scout: Kanye West

OH EM GEE, I died laughing!  Seriously.  Well, maybe not serious about the died part.  Obviously I'm still here typing this.

But it was close to death.

Then someone mentioned Big Foot.  Aka: Sasquatch.

Then there was a discussion about the size of said creature's feet.

Scout #1: 5 feet
Scout #2: I'd say...this big (holds hands about 2 feet apart or so)
Scout #3: Yeah 5 feet!
Scout #4: They wouldn't be THAT big!
Scout #5: Well maybe they all have different sized feet?
Scout #4: No.  There's only ONE Big Foot.

SO FUNNY!

Also there was an obstacle course.

They had to climb over a wall, grab some Kryptonite (they had to save Superman), then do that thing where there's two rows of tires on the ground and you have to jump through them, you know, like army people?   Anyhow, then they had to weave around some hanging cylinders, balance on a log, jump through some ropes, and crab walk back to the beginning.

Remy was superman.

 Well the first few times through the kids ran through it as fast as they could, with just a few tumbles -mostly on the balance log, which I was standing right next to.  Well they just kept going and going and going...around and around and around!  By the 5th time through or so you could tell they were starting to get a little tired.  And pretty much every kid started falling on their face when they got to the tires.  We could not stop laughing.  And not in a mean way, the kids were laughing too.

Just had to put that out there.

One of our boys was going across the log and was almost to the end when somehow he slipped and landed stomach first on the side of the log.  It looked like it hurt, but he just popped right back up and kept going.

Another of our kids was getting really pooped.  One time he got to the crab walk and was basically going in slow motion because he couldn't go any further.  He was purposely being dramatic and it was cracking me up!

At another station the boys paired up to make paper rockets.  To start they took turns cutting out the pieces.  One of the kids accidentally cut in the wrong spot so they had to cut a new one.

Scout #1, upon seeing the wrong cut had been made, it the most calm, disappointed, serious voice I have ever heard:  You messed up.  You really, really messed up.

Now was that nice to say?  No, but the way he said it was so funny.  Of course I stepped in and said that it's not a problem, we all make mistakes and we can easily get another.  The kid who said it is the sweetest little guy which is one reason it was so funny to hear him say that.

Our little sharpshooters in action

One of our last stations was BB guns.  I had never shot one before and it was really fun!  The scout leading that station was SUPER energetic and silly, but the boys were eating it up.  I mentioned to Remy how surprised I was by how well they were listening, that they must really like the kid who is talking.  Remy thought it was because they were just really excited to shoot the guns.  But, I said, that's exactly why I'm surprised they're listening!

They had a really good time and I know I was thoroughly entertained by the day.  By the time it was over the boys were FILTHY -special thanks to the crab walk for that one.  But they didn't seem to care, or notice for that matter.

I'm actually looking forward to next year!

Then we got home and took a nap.

The End

A List

I'm normally not into these sorts of things, but I saw this on a blog and it looked fun, so I thought I'd do it.  If it's orange, I've done it!

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars

3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain 9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo (karaoke only though!) 11. Bungee jumped - Does the bungee swing count? 12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm 14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning 17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty -not WALKED
18. Grown your own vegetables 19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort 25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community 36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Have Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris -been to it, but not to the top!
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling

52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud

54. Gone to a drive-in theater 55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China 57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp 67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial 71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square 74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been a passenger on a motorcycle 79. Have Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Kissed a stranger at midnight on New Year’s Eve
86. Visited the White House 87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Got a tattoo
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake -surprisingly no and I live right by it!
97. Been involved in a law suit

98. Owned a cell phone

99. Been stung by a bee