Out with the Turkey in with the Tree

Turkey Day has come and gone. As is the case with any of my favorite moments, it has all gone by so quickly. We ate and we ate. And then we ate some more. All together we had 3 turkey dinners (not including leftover dinners) this year. The first was at our house last sunday. The 2nd was at my Dad and Stepmom's in Ohio (see photo of beautiful farm below). And the 3rd was at Bryan's Grandmother's home on the Tennessee River. All three were so fun and special- each in their own way.

Our turkey turned out yummy and on time. Two things that I most worry about for the turkey. Yay! I had a preggo-brain moment when I was purchasing the turkey and bought a bird that was actually twice the size we needed. Ooops. It was HUGE- 24lbs! I was thinking it was 2lbs per person when in reality it should be 1lb per person. My brain is not right. Everything turned out beautiful and it was a fun afternoon.



Dad's was also fun. We split the drive to Ohio this time and stayed in a hotel on the way there. That was nice. We had free breakfast at the hotel which I loved! You know, I gotta eat when I wake up these days and this place had SO much to choose from. I like variety. My stomach is tough to please currently so it is nice to have choices. It helps when those choices include make-it-yourself waffles! Yum! And all the OJ I could chug. Which is a lot. I'm in love with citrus right now. Wow, enough about the breakfast. It was wonderful to see the Ohio family. Grandma was doing great. I love seeing her. Linda made a feast for us. She is a great cook and such a warm, loving person. We are all so lucky to have her in the family. She takes care of Grandma like she is her own mother. And loves me like a daughter. :) Brett (stepbro) and his wife Gretchen were there also and it is always fun talking to them and getting to know them better. I'm not sure when I'll be back up to Ohio with this baby and all. It seems weird that some of my family will probably never see me when I am big and pregnant.



Bryan's family is always a hoot. He has so many aunts, uncles, cousins, etc. that there is never a dull moment. They love to play cards and games; so do I. We always play this card game called Maneuvers. It is a blast and is considered an initiation to the family if you can survive a game. Even better if you are any good at it. We also were able to tell the family in person about our babe. It was so fun! They were all sooo excited. They love family and are ready to welcome another Kelley into the world. I can't wait for them to meet him or her. We slept at Grandmother's house for the first time ever. We usually stay at an aunt and uncle's house. We must be grown up if we are staying in "the big house" now. Here's me butting in front of the buffet line since I'm pregnant. I think I was first in line at all turkey dinners this year. :)


Tuesday was the birth of my cousin's baby, Isabella Grace. Happy birthday, little girl. You are a cutie. Congratulations, Sara and Tommy!

We came back home sweet home today. Vacation was wonderful and relaxing this time but I was excited to come home! Especially since we went to pick out our Christmas tree today. Yippee! I LOVE LOVE x-mas and the tree. We went down to Fayetteville to the tree farm but ended up with a fir from out of state. They don't grow here so the farmers always import some for people like me and Bryan. We thought about cutting down a Leyland Cypress but were totally distracted by the beautiful firs. I made Bryan play the requisite Christmas tunes while we decorated it. Bryan is in charge of lights, me the ornaments. Up top is a picture of the beauty.

The day before early Thanksgiving

Tomorrow is early turkey day at our house. We are leaving Tuesday night to head up to Ohio and Tennessee for the holiday, so we are having dinner here tomorrow with the Georgia family. Last year was the first year we hosted Thanksgiving at our house. It was really fun. I love to cook and have people over so it is a blast for me to host it. I was sitting here o the couch thinking how I need to get up and make the brine for the turkey, so I thought I'd get on the computer and blog instead. :)

Tomorrow I am making only: turkey, mac-n-cheese (yummy Flying Biscuit recipe), and stuffing. I've asked the rest of the guests to pitch in and bring some sides. It is fun to make some stuff but not be overwhelmed with making everything. Plus, I get to taste new things that people bring and everyone gets to feel like they have contributed. I always feel better when I can show up to a party with something in my hand; but maybe that is just me and everyone else wishes they didn't have to cook!

I love the holidays. There are so many reasons why:
Family time- seeing loved ones near and far, sitting around relaxing and enjoying eachother
Food- cooking always seems so loving to me (thank you Grandma) and I love the warmth it conveys
Time- we all work so hard and it seems like it is the one time of year when we are all forgiven for working a little less and
being with friends and family more
Decorations- the remind me to enjoy the season, to just be happy
Generosity- we all can use an excuse to give to others, to think about somebody else's needs
Presents- let's be honest! presents are just fun!

The baby on the way seems to make this all even more lovely than usual. I'm thrilled to have our families and friends so excited and we get to talk about the baby during the holidays. I wonder what our holidays will be like next year with the baby here? I look forward to finding out!

Our Big News

Well, I'm still a crappy poster. Surprise. I've been reading all of my friends and family blogs and feel inspired to write something. I was especially inspired by my cousin, Sara, because her blog is so much fun for me to read. She's far away and having a baby any day now. I miss her and love feeling more connected to her through the blog. So, Sara, thanks for the inspiration.

Now to the title of this entry. Our big news...Bryan and I have a little babe on the way. I am 11 weeks and 1 day today. I can't believe it. We are so excited. I actually wrote an entry about the first week after we found out, but alas, I am a goof and deleted it on accident. I was typing it on my itty bitty iPhone and then poof! I deleted it.

We found out about our little babe on September 29th. Bryan and I were suppose to go out with Seth and Emily that night, so I took a pregnancy test because I wanted to be sure I could safely have a few drinks. I came home from work and took the test. And...it was sort of positive. Talk about ambiguous! Emily was certain there could be no false positive- only false negatives! Seth and Emily were so excited! It took taking a test 2 days later for me and Bryan to really believe it. Even still, it was weeks before it truly sank in.

The next couple of weeks we told our close friends and family. It has been so much fun telling everyone. It is really awesome to see everyone's reaction. I wanted to do something really special to tell our Mothers. So, I made them each a newborn onesie. My Mom's had a #6 on it and Bryan's Mom's had a #1 on it. The numbers represent what grandchild baby Kelley will be for them. As you can see, my Mother is a pro by now. She was still sooo excited. This is Bryan's Mom's first. The look on her face was awesome. She is thrilled about this little thing. I think she said she has nicknamed the baby Squirt. Well, okay, whatever floats your Grandma Boat. :) We are so lucky to have such a supportive family. I've said it before, but this baby is so lucky to have so many people who already love it so much. We are lucky, too.

There's so many new things going through my mind now that this little one is on the way. Life is good. A friend of mine that had a baby earlier this year was reminiscing about being pregnant when I told her about my pregnancy. She said she loved being pregnant and that she just felt content. I think that is a good description.

More to come...