Swing, Swing, Swing!

Here is a picture of our new front porch swing! I am so excited! I went out and ate breakfast on the swing, and we took Catherine out there at least 3 times just today! Last summer Johnny put up a martin bird house in the greenbelt behind the house. So, this year the martins have moved in and are eating all of the mosquitoes! It makes it so nice outside since your not being carried off by our state bird, the mosquitoe that is. Johnny got the swing up yesterday afternoon and we have really been enjoying it! I am so fortunate to have such a "handy" man for a husband! He took down the siding, reinforced the beams in order to hang the swing, and then he hung it! We are very lucky to have a neighborhood where people are constantly walking, jogging, strolling their kids, or just playing in their front yards. Consequently, we "people watch" while on the swing now. We have nicknames for certain people in our neighborhood. For example, there is a lady who has a bird that she puts on a leash, yes a leash. Then she attaches the leash to her wrist and walks the bird around the neighborhood? We have named her "crazy bird lady", I know real original but it fits I promise! Then there is "crazy walking lady". This lady parks her minivan down on another street in the neighborhood everynight around 9:00 or later. Then she gets out, sits by the curb and smokes her cigarettes. While doing this pleasant habit, she talks on her cell phone. There have been some nights where she has set her car alarm off or fight with someone on the cell phone? We know this because we are friends with the people whom she parks in front of their house! Oh, occasionally she will go walking while parking, hence the name.

Husband Withdrawls and Surprises!

With Johnny's job come a lot of blessings....BUT, he has to do a lot of travel. This week he is in California starting Monday and he won't be home until Friday! It is the first trip he has taken since we have had Catherine. Needless to say, it has not been easy having him leave this time. I am always very nervous when he travels without me, or at least when he has to fly. It's like, if something happens to him, then I want it to happen to me too! He is able to call very frequently during the day, but I can't wait until Friday! Johnny's birthday is Saturday, so I'm working on a Birthday dinner for him. I don't know what to get him this year? He is always difficult to buy for, because he goes and buys everything he wants before I have a chance. I think all men love gadgets and I may just go to the Sharper Image and see what I can find.

Johnny knows how much I love a surprise! Before he left this weekend he ordered me a front porch swing! We have been in our house for 3 years now, and since we started building I wanted a porch swing. There is something about being outside that calms Catherine when nothing works! I made the comment of how nice it would be to take her outside and swing. So, my wonderful husband is having a swing made for our front porch and it will be here this weekend! I am so excited! I overheard him on the phone with the man that is making it, and I overheard, "No, I don't think I can have anything over 48 inches, and I have the tools to hang it myself." I thought he had bought a flat panel TV without consulting me! We have always had a rule, that we discuss large purchases with each other before we buy them. When he got off the phone I interrogated him! Eventually, I figured out that it was a swing instead of a TV. I am much more excited to have a swing! But still, I don't think he would be too happy with me if I went a got the TV for his birthday without consulting him!

Picture Perfect!

Today we went and had Catherine's first photo shoot with the photographer! I have never been the sentimental type, but there are certain traditions one must pass along. Her picture was made in a dress that my grandmother made by hand that my mother's picture was made in at 6 weeks. My picture was then made in it at 6 weeks, and now Catherine's was made in it! Then there was the dress that my mother made that she wore in some more pictures. Finally, my favorites were the naked pictures! There is just something about a naked baby that is just precious! I wanted to make sure we captured all of her little rolls, since she is finally starting to get really juicy! My biggest fear was her pooping on us during the pictures. I never knew my thoughts would center so much around bowl movements! Miss Catherine likes to poop anytime you take her diaper OFF, but not when she has it ON. I can't count the number of times we have now had to dump out the bath water due to her pooping. Of course, there was also the morning of projectile poop that went to the other wall in the nursery while she was on the changing pad! As luck would have it, she refrained from pooping during the pictures. Back to the nakedness, she really doesn't like to be naked. We first learned of this at the doctor's office when they weighed her. The nurse turned to Johnny and said, "Dad she doensn't like to get naked, and you'll be glad of that when she's older." Needless to say, she didn't cry at all until she got naked. Hopefully, there will still be some good shots. I know what you're thinking, where are the pictures? We won't get the proofs for another 2 weeks, and I am sure to share them then don't worry!

Crazy Bird!

As a real estate agent I encounter many interesting people and things! For example, once I was showing property and walked in on the seller's smoking pot in their home! Needless to say the buyers and I left very quickly and didn't stay to look around much. I get asked quite frequently if I am going to continue working now that we have Catherine. The answer to that is definately Yes! I love my job and love my clients! It is rare to find something you enjoy so much that is so flexible. There are many days that I just work from home in front of the computer. I have a scanner/copier/fax/printer that my husband just got for us, so I won't have to go to the office for much of anything. The only time I will need someone to keep Catherine is when I need to meet with clients. We are fortunate enough to have someone to keep her on an as needed basis. When Catherine was 2 weeks old I listed a house while Johnny stayed with her. This listing appointment was very unique. The seller's own a bird that talks. It is a makah bird and is extremely vocal! I rang the doorbell and I could hear the bird saying "yoohoo" repeatedly. When I walked in the bird said, "oh, who invited you"? repeatedly. This bird was hysterical! As I stayed at the house going over paperwork etc... the bird became more comfortable and therefore talked more! The bird only repeats what it hears from the owners, no one else. It makes a fart noise and then says, "Ok, who farted"? in a very disqusted tone and of course does this repeatedly! The bird also says, "I don't want you, I'm gonna take you back, I don't want a bird that bites." Evidently, the bird use to bite and that is what was said to her. At which point I posed the question of does the bird curse? The owners assured me the bird didn't have a foul mouth and there was no need to worry about that for showings. Then on cue the bird cussed! It was so funny. I have never laughed so much on an appointment in my life! The feedback from every agent that has shown it is nothing but laughter due to the talking bird.

Daffodil's

This past weekend we took Miss Catherine to the Wye Mountain Daffodil Festival. It was mine and Johnny's first time to go as well. The weather was so nice, and it was great to get out of the house! My cabin fever is getting somewhat better. It is hard to believe that Catherine is already 1 month old! She had her check-up last Wednesday at the pediatrician and now weighs over 9 pounds! She eats so well and is now starting to sleep just as well. I am proud to announce that we have slept thru the night for the last 2 nights!!!! I have never been so excited and so proud! She is really starting to fill out and now more of her clothes fit! No one ever told me what a baby would do to your feelings toward your husband. There is just something about seeing a man with his child. Johnny is a wonderful father, and is better than I could have ever imagined! He is so good with her and gets up with her during the night on the weekends so I can sleep. It takes my love for him to another level!

Birth Nightmare!

Ok, all through my pregnancy I dreamed of the "ideal" delivery. Well, that was definately a dream, because labor and delivery was a nightmare! Tuesday night February 6th, my water broke while I was making grilled ham and cheese sandwiches for dinner at 7:20 p.m. So, of course we ate dinner before calling the hospital! I knew they wouldn't let me eat once we got there, so I was fueling up. We were at the hospital around 8:15. In the "preparing for birth" class they told us to go to the ER if it was after 8:00 p.m. due to the hospital doors being locked for the night. So, Johnny took me to the ER entrance and then he went to park. By this time I'm having contractions, which by the way are a little painful. The security guard at the ER stopped me and made me leave the ER! She told me the doors were still open and I had to go through the other entrance. I was not a happy camper as you might imagine. One would think to offer a woman in labor at least a wheelchair. Nope, not this broad! I had to walk out of the hospital then down what seemed to be a never ending halway to the elevators in order to go to Labor and Delivery! When a wonderful woman who was there visiting a family member saw me and grabbed a wheelchair and took me upstairs. Once at Labor and Delivery we were admitted by our good friend Dr. David Nelsen! My nurse was also a good friend. I babysat her eldest son when I was in high school! The staff at UAMS was absolutely wonderful! I couldn't have asked for better care! Everything was going great until I got my epidural. I made a huge mistake by asking for "staff" to perform the epidural instead of the resident. Who knows how long it had been since the staff member did an epidural. Consequently, the epidural only took on the left side of my body!!!!! I was in labor a total of 13.5 hours, and feeling every bit of it (at least on the right side, which was enough). I was cut, then I tore and was completely pain free as soon as our little Catherine came out! It was amazing!!! Now, have I forgotten the pain like everyone tells you happens? To an extent. I now have a whole new reference for pain. I will say, despite how bad labor and delivery was, there is nothing I went through that I wouldn't do all over again. About an hour after delivery, Johnny came to my bedside and said, "I think we need to have a lot more." My response was , "Maybe so, but now is not the time to discuss it!" He was so excited ! We were so blessed to have a healthy baby girl! As a bonus, God made her the most beautiful baby I have ever seen! Of course, I'm a little partial! Thanks to all our family and friends who have prayed for us the last year, brought meals and have helped in so many ways!

Well, we have finally stepped into the blogging world! So many of our friends were already bloggers and I never felt the urge to have one myself until we had Catherine. I don't want to continually e-mail the latest pictures of our child, whom we think is precious and beautiful, to our friends and family every week. So, we'll just post them on our blog and people can check them as they wish instead of us being obnoxious parents who are annoying by sending pictures all the time! I make no promises of how up-to-date this blog will be in the future! I have always viewed blogging as one thing I would really enjoy doing but never had the time, kinda like scrapbooking.