Nursery Pictures

I had fun taking some pictures of the nursery and also playing with the color and contrast of them. I finished her banner last week and was so glad that it turned out to be such an easy project! My friend Robyn painted the canvas--she is amazing. Originally, we were going to have her paint right on the wall, but then I decided even though it would look cool, I wouldn't be able to take it with us if we move!

I'm really excited because I've finally got some new card ideas. I can feel the creative juices flowing again...after feeling "dry" for several years! This is fun for several reasons: 1) I like (and miss) having original thoughts and 2)I've decided not to be full-time at Windy Gap after mid-August so I'll have some time to devote to these creative urges :) I have never been surrounded by so many artistic friends and people in my entire life--I love it! AND I'm excited to be a full-time mom.

So, it looks like we'll be here this next school year since we haven't had any bites from the job market in Texas. It seems like they are laying off teachers everywhere now--it's really very sad. We are so thankful for Chris' job and his school that is so supportive of his work there. It looks like we'll continue to tighten our budget and enjoy more family time!

Little Swimmer

First swim at Windy Gap! She liked it even though the water was probably 60 degrees--so did Grandma!

Latest development--laughing!

This one is really fun. She just started laughing this week and is smiling so much! Here's a taste of what we spend most of our time doing...

I promise we take her out of her seat :)

So Big!

She's growing so much everyday and she's more alert than ever!

ps--I meant bouncy seat instead of swing!

Scary

I came across this ad in our very own Weaverville Tribune last week. I took a second look at it because, well, you don't see too many ads for how to get your very own concealed weapon permit. Upon closer inspection, I then noticed the "Christian Environment" that was being offered, along with "Discounts for church groups". Wow.

This is where I live...with my husband and daughter...and none of us have a concealed weapon permit. Are a lot of people walking around with concealed weapons? Who knows!?

Babywise

So, as I write Charlotte's in her room "crying it out" as the lingo so aptly states. I'm trying to get her on a more regular routine with naps (good luck, right?!). Until now I really haven't been putting her down for a nap because, well, she really hasn't had a clear nap schedule. I would like to change this, mostly because it seems like more and more she is overtired and can't calm herself down even when she's exhausted. She's not crying at the moment, but I can hear her in there stirring, so I'll call it "rest time" instead of naptime this morning. Ha ha, I wrote too soon! More later...

Big Week

We had a big week! Chris' parents and grandma came in from Colorado because Chris was off for spring break. Chris and his dad did a lot of work on the house and us girls had fun shopping and playing with the baby. Here are some pictures from a few photo shoots we had...

Arrr...she looks like a pirate to me in this one!

Big smile in her Easter dress.

One Month

It's hard to believe that she's already a month--check out her skills!

She's Here!!

We all made it through (there were some times we weren't so sure)! Charlotte Dale McGlade was born on Thurs. 2/26/09 at 11:38 AM. She weighed 6lbs. 14oz. and was 19 1/2 inches long. We are home and happy and tired.

More to come!

This is how I feel these days...

Busy Week

So, Homer is officially 2 year old and we still think he's great. His birthday is Superbowl Sunday. This is how we will track his age for years to come. In the years we've had him we've learned a lot about patience, consistency, caring for something else that is dependent on us, how he can be a the bridge between a friend and a stranger, and most recently the animal contol center. Yep, we found an official complaint taped to our front door on Friday. One of our neighbors had called to complain about his barking and disturbing the peace. At first we thought they had the wrong house, as our neighbors across the street are notorious for their 2 barking dogs. But sure enough, it was Homer. Since Friday we've been leaving him inside when we leave the house as to avoid another complaint and possible fine. But we're discussing ways that we can figure out what he's barking at and what we can do about it. As far as we know, this hasn't been an issue before. Any ideas?

By the way, if our dog sleeps with his nose under his paws to keep it warm, is our house too cold?


My sister, Luci, came to visit this weekend! She arrived on Thurs. night and worked with me all day on Friday at Windy Gap. I could not have done everything I needed to without her help. We had 2 snow days this week and my intern is gone to the Dominican Republic along with other Windy Gap staff so everyone at camp was short on time and help to get everything ready for the weekend.

Saturday was not only Luci's birthday, but also a baby shower for us hosted by some of my favorite people Cara Jenkins and Kate Womack. We went to the shower that morning and then later went out for a ladies tea and shopping. I couldn't remember the last time we shared her birthday together. Anyway, she got to meet several friends from church and see a bit more of my life here in Asheville.


Today (Sunday) we had yet another shower out at camp and enjoyed some sweet fellowship with our good friends. It was a coed shower and it was so great to have Chris there. I think it's been important to include Chris in as much as possible of this journey, especially after our first child birth class when he leaned over and said "Wow--we could have a baby real soon." Mind you, I was 7 1/2 months pregnant at this point! I replied, "Yep. Where have you been??" For him it wasn't reality. For me it was...as much as it could be. Anyway, it's closer and closer and we have less than a month now. Our friends and family have been so great in caring for us and supporting us in this adventure.

Thank you so, so much.

Yum.

That was a good weekend.

Nursery

So, I guess you can say I've been nesting...I think that's what they call it when you are getting ready for baby. I'm feeling really ambitious--and trying to take advantage of it! This weekend I made curtains along with recovering a glider we got on craigslist. Most of our ideas for the nursery just evolved with stuff we had or was given to us or was purchased out of necessity, which by the way, I've decided is pretty much my decorating style. Just let it come together I say. This is convenient for several reasons: 1) it takes less work 2) it takes less money and 3) it's personal and 4) it you want to change it you can for the same minimal effort. Check out my work...also my rapidly growing midsection. Hope you are having a great 2009 so far!

Round

For anyone out there tracking my shape...be amused :)

3rd Anniversary

Chris and I celebrated our third anniversary this year with a trip to Banner Elk, NC and a stay at a bed and breakfast. The place was beautiful, not to mention the breakfast! We drove around the area trying to get a feel for the place. It's so funny how close Boone, Blowing Rock, and Banner Elk are to each other. We found a Pumpkin Festival in Valle Crucis (right outside Banner Elk) at one of the oldest Mast General Stores. And further down the road was Mast Farm with some increidble old Appalachian buildings. I was trying to gather inspiration for the upcoming store remodel. And Chris ended up finding his dream car across the street where you can rent all kinds of fancy cars for your vacation. It was a quick trip, but a wonderful one to mark three whole years. Yep, sometimes we feel like our days are numbered now that there's going to be one on the way...

We've tried to make the most of the this fall. Stay tuned...

Our Baby Bumps

For your viewing pleasure...

It's a Girl!!

Look's like we're having a little baby girl! Our ultrasound on Tues. went really well. There were no concerns or any abnormalities seen. It's incredible how much you can see on an ultrasound. We saw everything from her kidneys, to her heart, to each hand and foot! Amazing. New due date is Mar. 7 (it's no longer Texas Independence Day, Mar. 2). Not sure why it's so difficult to pin down, but it seems to be. It's definitely becoming more and more real. Chris and I got our first real piece of baby gear in the form of a glider and ottoman off of craigslist last week. It's awfully pastel and early 90's (even though it's only a few years old...hmmm) so we'll look into recovering it. Last night we scored a moses basket from our friends Karl and Ellen to use for the first few months.

One thing I've noted in the past several months--maternity clothes. It's a slippery slope into the world of terrible clothes and I think this is a potentially hazardous gateway season in one's life. I was really surprised to see that they sell 2 piece outfits at Motherhood that consist of a patterned top and solid color, matching bottoms. Wow, it's tempting with it's ease and convenience but please, please don't let me go there. I'm asking for accountability here people!?

But seriously, we are awed by the gift of a little one that somehow we are supposed to care for and parent. We need prayer. Sometime worry and anxiety about the future can overwhelm and dishearten me. I wish this weren't the case. If you think of it, please pray that we'd trust in the Lord who made us, who is making our baby, and who controls all things. Please pray for joy and against stress. Thank you in advance.

Much love and we can't wait to share more with you in the days to come.

Heartbeat

Yesterday Chris and I got to hear the baby's heartbeat, but only after waiting an hour for the doctor. I finally decided to cross some things off my to-do list and register us for childbirth classes and in she walks. She put the doppler thing on my tummy and found the heartbeat right away! 146 bpm. Pretty normal, I hear. I was starting to have some of those crazy "am I still pregnant?" type thoughts because 1) I'm not really showing and well, mostly number 1 I guess. Anyway, still pregnant. Of course, we are still happy about that! I'm 16 weeks now--that's 4 months people (that is people who don't think in weeks, but months like normal people)! We are slowly but surely cleaning out what will be the baby's room. If you've been to our house, it's also called the mango room. Pretty sure we'll paint it as we don't want the child to wish it had never been born. Does anyone out there have some color suggestions? We won't find out the sex until our next appt. on Oct. 14. So, you can look forward to that announcement--hopefully! Hopefully, as in hopefully it won't be crossing it's legs and we can get a good look at the parts :) Today my engagement ring was tough to get on and off so I left it off...did I mention that I'm not really even showing yet!?

Civic

These are pictures from camping about a month ago. We found a great campsite not far from us (south Asheville!) that has some nice trails and a lake. We had a lot of fun just packing up and getting out of our routine for 24 hours! The homestead.
The alarm.
The heat.

The fridge, storage, and wonderful transportation.

By the way, we inherited a "new" car this summer that we LOVE! It gets incredible gas mileage and does everything we need it to--we can fit the whole family in it. It ain't pretty, but it suits us just fine for this time in our lives. We often see it a reminder of God's good provision for us.

Cinque Terre

Cinque Terre is part of Italy's northern riviera. It is the most beautiful place on this earth. In fact, I told Chris he should propose to me while we were there for this reason. Cinque Terre is made up of 5 small towns all connected by a walking trail. We stayed in town #2, Manarola. Unfortunately, some of the trails were closed while we were there due to landslides and a fire, but the one we did manage was pretty tough at times--and so worth it! We got some of our best pictures from the trail. This was by far our most favorite part of the trip. And it was a wonderful break from the city.

This is town #5 (people really do refer to them this way!) also named Monterrosso. The only town with a real beach.
Above is Vernazza. It's so unique with the town surrounding this little water inlet, and SO picturesque.

If you're in Italy, don't miss Cinque Terre!!