May Update

This is an update. Merrilee and I got to go to Lion King it was pretty amazing and we had a lot of fun going with Merrilee's family. The next picture is Merrilee's FHE activity building a house of cards. The funny thing is we read the scripture about the foolish man who built his house on the sand and the house was easily destroyed. Well the same thing happened to this house of cards. The third picture is pregnant Merrilee. Merrilee is feeling great she just hates bending over and frequenting the restroom every 20 minutes. She is still not very big, but she is definitely growing, or I should say the baby is growing. On that note, I got to feel the baby kick! It was so cool he must have strong legs, because it was a solid kick.
To continue my update, I finished school last week and I have been packing. Merrilee just finished her last day of teaching students yesterday(Thursday). Saturday morning we are packing up the car and driving to Cali. California here we come!

What is it?

We are having a boy!!! We were shocked to find out we were having a boy we really thought we were having a girl. We even agreed on some girl names. Well its back to the name game. Merrilee and I are so excited we woke up last around 3 a.m. and couldn't go back to sleep. We just talked about our little boy. I decided to post some pictures. I haven't posted any pictures of Merrilee because she didn't look pregnant. Well now Merrilee is just starting to look pregnant. Then I wasn't sure if I should post the ultrasound pictures, because it looks a lot like pre-child pornography to. Just kidding.

The narrows

Oops I forgot this one. This is called the narrows.

Spring Break

This is a little late, but I recieved an e-mail from Kendra reminding me I had not updated the blog. This is the Witchita Mountains (more like hills if you ask me) a wildlife refuge. They had prairie dogs, buffalo, and hiking trails. Merrilee and I went down for spring break and had a ton of fun. We had a picnic and went on a hike. The hike was short, but we saw some beautiful areas. That was our big thing this spring break. Oh and check back to this blog shortly, because Merrilee is getting an ultrasound tomorrow. Hopefully we will know the baby's gender.

Our LIttle Tadpole

Merrilee and I went to the OBGYN yesterday and the first thing they did was the ultrasound. At first I just wanted to know if the baby was healthy and alive. Then the technician showed us the little fetus and we saw the flutter of the heart. That is when it hit me that little life is mine. It was such a special moment for Merrilee and I. It all became more than a sick and grumpy wife. I am kidding, Merrilee is actually really good to me. Though she is not as nice in her sleep last night she hit me and stole my pillow. Yea I whine about it, but I realize Merrilee has the hardest part. So thanks Merrilee.

They printed out a regular ultra sound and a 4-D one. Hope you can see the baby, it looks like the baby is sucking its thumb if that helps.

Girls Weekend in Dallas 2008

Once upon a time, there lived four damsels in distress. The first damsel in distress was a mother, Carla, with three daughters (well, technically, she had 4 daughters, as well as 3 sons, but they appear in other stories). The eldest daughter, Phaedra, had 3 kids at home, was working full time, and was going to school to get her HR degree. The second daughter, Shannon, had 4 kids at home and was going to nursing school full time. The third daughter, Merrilee, was a middle school Spanish teacher, and therefore, a little unhinged.

It was a crazy time for all of them. As Phaedra's and Shannon's birthdays loomed nearer, Merrilee conspired with her mother to plan a girls' weekend getaway. They decided to keep at least a part of the plan a secret, so they could surprise Phaedra and Shannon. The two elder daughters agreed to go, although they repeatedly tried to torture the information out of both the mother and the third daughter.

So... the four girls hopped into a Ford Fusion and drove to Far, Far Away (aka Dallas, Texas). Their first stop was to the Galleria, an amazing 5-level mall with a skating rink and many amazing stores. The girls absolutely loved it, especially Phaedra, who always had a flair for the chic sophistocation of New York-style boutiques, like Saks Fifth Avenue.

After several hours of wandering around that wondrous mall, the girls headed to their grand hotel room at the Hampton Inn. They quickly readied themselves for the surprise part of the journey. Carla and Merrilee were bursting with excitement... they couldn't wait to see the looks on Phaedra's and Shannon's faces.

They finally arrived at the surprise destination... the palace of Medieval Times! The four damsels arrived just in time to have their photograph taken of them wearing their crowns and they darted into their cheering section for the Yellow-and-Red Knight.

The show was spectacular! Carla was enthralled with the horses... it had been a lifelong dream of hers to see the gorgeous Lipizzaner horses that performed in this show. Shannon was especially starry-eyed, as she is a medieval maniac. The food was great, the silverware nonexistent, the knights charming, the swordplay breathtaking, and the overall atmosphere absolutely enjoyable. The beauty of both Phaedra and Shannon caught the eye of the Yellow-and-Red Knight... he tossed a flower to both of them. What better birthday gift?!

After the show, the four lovely ladies headed back to the Galleria and Merrilee was ecstatic to find that Zara's, her favorite European store, is actually here in the U.S. They stayed until the mall literally kicked them out, and then the girls headed back to the hotel room for pedicures, girl talk, and a great, uninterrupted sleep.

Ok, no uninterrupted sleep. SOMEBODY was snoring- loudly- so Merrilee kept asking them to be quiet and turn over. Unfortunately, no one else heard the snoring, they only heard Merrilee's requests for silence, so Merrilee took the blame for waking everyone up. Oh well, it was still fun.

After a great breakfast in the lounge, the girls headed back to the car and drove back to Close Close Up (aka Oklahoma) to return to their hectic everyday lives. Hopefully, though, they had enough fun and relaxation to help them through some of the tougher days. Except for Merrilee, who's still a little bit unhinged. :)

The End.

Pumpkin Carving Party

On Friday, we invited 3 other couples over to carve pumpkins. It was a lot of fun, other than the fact that we have only 5 chairs (you do the math) and a very tiny table on which to carve our pumpkins to perfection. No matter- all the pumpkins turned out great- ours was a cat in a pumpkin. We played Tabboo after most of the carving was done (except for mine- I'm a bit of a perfectionist). The girls let the guys win out of love. Please enjoy this post for as long as you can before Ben reads it and changes that last part. :) Anyways, the party was a lot of fun, the food was yummy, and we got to know the other couples much better. Overall, a success!