By 8 am this morning, I had completed 5 Petey Pie orders, sewed MR a new pair of shorts and a dress, mowed the yard, unloaded the dishwasher, and completed two loads of laundry. Feeling a bit like Superwoman, albeit a rather large and bloated version. We are down to 8 weeks until baby Hutson’s arrival and I’m doing my best to trick my body into nesting mode. Most days, I fail miserably on my “to do list”, but excel on my daily caloric intake. I’m hot. Anxious. Big. And ready. But also nervous about entering the newborn phase again. It certainly feels real–I’ve already gained the recommended weight limit for pregnancy– but then again, it doesn’t. Its hard to imagine what life will be like with two babies. I’m looking forward to the changes and learning to embrace (and not rush) these last remaining weeks.
The early bird gets the worm and dibs on the remaining Doritos
Favorite things
If you ask MR to name a few of her favorites things, she is likely to respond “grecian music” and “sprinkalas”. In grown up words, this translates to “Christian music” and the “sprinkler”. She calls her daddy her hero and gives the best kisses and hugs. Life with sweet MR gets sweeter by the day!
9 weeks to go
I’m officially as wide as I am tall. My bra resembles something purchased from a prank store and my panties could fit an elephant. Still, I am giddy with excitement at the thought of meeting our little man in just 9 short weeks. Until then, we’ve been doing our best to keep busy…Popsicles on the porch have become a nightly tradition. We’ve also been doing our part to cheer on the Braves. G and MR attended Friday nights game and convinced me to join them again on Sunday. And although Sunday’s game included zero time in the stands (we met Dora and played in the Kid Zone instead), it was a nice reminder that an air conditioner, couch, and bag of Doritos is truly a pregnant girls best friend!
First game of the season; G and MR met our friend Jeff and his son Brayden for a daddy’s night out at Turner Field.
The kids has a blast watching baseball and playing in the Kid Zone.
The daddies had fun too…
so much fun that they did not return until midnight with two very tired, sacked out kids.
Dora (the Real Dora as MR refers to her) stopped by Sunday’s game

MR and Aunt B; Sweet MR makes this face when she doesn’t want us to know that she is having fun. Gone are the days of modeling Petey Pie shirts; this is all I get when I ask her to smile.
A week of pure bliss
It really was one of those weeks…
One of those weeks where we stayed in pjs way past noon,
one of those weeks where the porch replaced the tv,
and one of those weeks where we ate like kings and queens.
Mothers day was equally as special. G and MR gifted me with a Dyson vacuum. It really does work like a charm and I am absolutely loving it! We visited our new church for the first time and had lunch at a nearby soul food restaurant. One things for sure, I’m counting blessings and not calories these days. My last doctors appointment showed that I have gained A LOT of weight and that I am anemic, giving me a much needed excuse for my sluggishness and irritability:) We also set July 20th as the c- section date for Hutson’s arrival. That leaves 10 weeks to go and many, many more gallons of ice cream and time spent relaxing on the front porch!
Fernandina
The trip wasn’t near long enough, but it sure was good for the soul…
Our journey down south included a quick visit with Meme and Papa Joe in Waycross,
a Friday evening walk on the beach,
a journey through downtown Fernandina early Saturday morning for the annual Shrimp Boat Fest,
a long ride down a big slide with the help from G, who never once complained about carrying 30 pounds amongst mounds of overly excited children,
an $8 failed attempt at the bungee jump,
MR patiently waited her turn in line for 5 minutes; her expression (pre jump) should have been the first clue that she was not interested.
This was as high as sweet MR got and although she never cried, it was apparent that she was less than thrilled with the experience.
an afternoon at the swimming pool,
and lots of sandcastle time on the beach.
We also snuck in plenty of good seafood, lots of giggles, and some fun time with MR’s cousins, Jay, Aaron, and Laine.
Southbound
We’re headed southbound for a weekend of fun in Fernandina Beach, Florida. And although my bathing suit is a lot bigger than it used to be, I couldn’t be any more excited if I were arriving in a size 4 bikini. Looking forward to great seafood, lots of beach time, and a weekend away with G and sweet MR.
The old sewing machine has been busy preparing for our long weekend way. I wanted MR to have a few new outfits for the beach. Wish I could take credit for the dress with the red ric rac. I found it at out local goodwill and covered up the monogram with a blue whale and initials.
I also made a monogram top and madras ruffle shorts for MR.
We’re hoping some good salt air will help MR to feel better. She’s spent most of the week recovering from the croup.
Making up for lost time
Worse than the stomach bug was spending 3 and a half days away from sweet MR. Our little girl brings me so much joy and laughter! As I lay sick in bed on Tuesday with my face burried in a garbage bag, MR replied, “Mama, what you lookin’ for in dere. Did you lose somefin?”
**Poor Gran C is the latest victim to the stomach bug. Please say a prayer that she recovers quickly!**
A birthday celebration and a very nasty bug
My sweet friend Kristi celebrated her birthday this past Thursday. To honor her special day, we invited her family over for a Mexican fiesta. G made his infamous guacamole and fired up the grill for marinated steak tacos. Kristi made a delicious Mexican salad and I baked up a two layer brownie cake with whipped icing and strawberries. The kids played beautifully together, allowing the grown ups a chance to relax, laugh, and reminisce.
The night couldn’t have been more perfect, or so we thought. About half way through dinner, I started feeling nauseous. Never one to pass up a meal, I chalked it up to pregnancy and proceeded with dessert. By the time our guests left, I knew I was in trouble. From 10 pm to 2 am, I hugged the toilet while G desperately tried to get in touch with the on-call OBGYN and line up a sitter for sweet MR. By 2:30 am, we were on our way to the hospital. We left MR in the care of Aunt and Uncle B, who were kind enough to make the 30 minute drive to our house in the middle of the night.
What we thought would be an hour long visit to labor and delivery ended in a 3 and a half day stay, eight bags of IV fluid, three sonograms, and over 24 hours of NPO (no food or drink) . Pancreatitis was the initial diagnosis, but a nasty bug seems to be the more likely culprit. Since my discharge on Monday evening, both G and Julie have come down with similar symptoms (Julie spent several hours today at the same hospital).
This bug is sure enough a nasty one; as of yesterday (day 5) I was still making frequent trips to the bathroom. We are praying that the end is in sight and so thankful that it has not had an effect on Baby Hutson and my sweet niece-to-be, Anna Bea.
Browinie Delight- 1 box of brownie mix (follow directions on box); strawberries for center of cake; combine a container of cool whip and a box of instant vanilla pudding for the icing; chill and serve with vanilla ice cream and cut up strawberries.
26.5 weeks pregnant and back home with my #1 girl!




















































