TGIF

I would love to say that the entire week has been spent with me being so incredibly busy that I simply had no time for anything else, but that would only be a lie. I have done nothing. But sleep. I sleep a lot. The routine this week was to go home and take a catnap—about two hours—and then get up when John brought me dinner. I would stay up for a short while and then go back to sleep about 9. Seriously—not only is this baby sucking my energy but also my common sense that it is normal for anyone to sleep this much. I told John that when the baby comes and I never get to sleep again, I am going to be so out of sorts since my routine is simply shot now.

A friend’s brother got married last Friday night so I hurried to Wynne after work. Anytime before, you would have gone with me. Showers? Weddings? Birthday parties? Of course I will be there—my standby date is waiting in Wynne. She will even pick up the gift for me at Caldwell’s or Rose of Sharon before I get there. It dawned on me about Wednesday that I had no one to go with to this wedding and going alone was just not going to work. John Burton would have cut off the tip of his finger before he went to a wedding! Luckily, Neall and Becca were going so I tagged along with them. She even picked up my gift for me! Even though things here aren’t going exactly as they should be and things are not right at all and may never be right ever again, I am pretty lucky to have the family that I do have.

How stupid am I that it took so long to realize it? More,

Sunflower

My sunflowers are blooming! They are really blooming!! My yard gets so very much sun that I really can't grow much without it wilting. I even lost some Gerber daisies because of the sun but the sunflowers are doing great. In college, I loved sunflowers and had my kitchen decked out in them. Daddy grew sunflowers for me that summer and you took a photo and framed it of them for me and gave it to me for my birthday. {I hope I am half as good as you were about getting the best and most special thing for every occasion.} I will have to frame this one to go with that photo to keep around. My first homegrown sunflower! How exciting!

Meaningless Reporting...

I would love to tell you all the fabulous things going on right now but as of now, there are none. You see, it is really hard to get fabulous things done when you are going to sleep between 730 and 800 each night. Last night, John told me that he hadn't been to bed at 8 since he was six and it really meant a lot to him to stay up until dark. Wow. How sad is that??

We had a relatively calm weekend. Daddy, Neall and Becca came up to visit on Saturday. We went to lunch and then looked at mattresses. Yet again, how exciting am I? I can't believe more folks don't visit even more often!!!!!!!!!

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Monday all over again...

John was off all last week on vacation. I must say that it would be a fabulous and wonderful thing to have him home all the time. There was no whining as he got ready for work, I came home to meals ready to eat and he did all the housework. Literally!!! I have felt oh so very bad lately and every night after I went to bed at 730 or 800, he would come in to check on me and bring me something to drink and snack on while I mentally focused on making the room stop spinning. He was in a fabulous mood as well (maybe because I was going to bed at 730 or 800 and he had the house to himself again?) so everything was just peachy. Yesterday, he realized he had to go back to work today but he did a good job of keeping his new composure going for a while longer.

Daddy and I went to visit Grandma on Saturday--she looked better than she has in years, I think. It was good to see her so well colored and smiling. You always said how she would just stare at me and say how precious I was. Ah... no wonder I am so fond of her. So Saturday, she would just look at me and grin, "so you are really pregnant??" Yep. If I had found Saturday what I found this morning, I could have shown her and she'd have known for sure. There is certainly something there today! Today the little bugger decided to make his/her presence known. It's not big and you can't see it, but you can feel the firm little something in my tummy. After I discovered it, I just sat down and cried. I am crying now just thinking of it--of course I keep having to touch it. You always said Neall was going to be flat on one side from you holding me the entire time you were pregnant with him--this one is going to be flat on one side from me touching my belly all day to make sure that the bump is still really there!!! Oh so happy!!! More,

Nine Weeks...

Yesterday I had my nine weeks doctor appointment and Doc said that everything was going good. Next time we get to hear the heartbeat!!

Final Report on the Trip

When we were younger, we went to Gulf Shores fairly often. I told my group about the twins from Georgia that I pen-palled with after each vacation since we were always there at the same time and I wondered if they would be here this year. I didn’t see them. :)

On Sunday afternoon, Tara and I drove back to Foley to the outlet mall. On the way home, of course, we talked about you some, because there will never be a better power shopper than you! She asked if I wanted to drive out to the house that you and Daddy stayed in last January but I didn’t think I could do it. Just being there and thinking of how you loved the water and the beach was enough to keep you on my mind but to go out there where there were so many fabulous memories of not just you and Daddy but of you and the girls would have just been too much.

Monday was a day of beach bumming. I walked over to Sea-n-Suds to get us lunch. It always makes me giggle to think of me just not “getting” what the suds were! I had a t-shirt from there and never understood why you wouldn’t let me where it to Sunday night youth group at the Wynne Baptist Church. I have always been a little slow on the take, I suppose. That night there was a fireworks display in Orange Beach so I was up late (past my usual 9pm bedtime these days!) watching that. There are always two stories that I tell when fireworks are near. The first one is the in July of 1978 and Wynne used to do the fireworks downtown. Uncle Elliot actually did them, I think, since he was the fire chief. You were pregnant with Neall and Daddy was holding me. The noise scared me, I have always been a wimpy kid, and I pounded on Daddy’s chest, “get me home! get me home!” Now, this is my mantra when I am ready to leave any where. The other story is when you and Daddy had just bought the Nissan Maxima. It was the one that talked and would say “the door is ajar” when it wasn’t shut. Neall and I would just laugh and laugh, “No, it’s not! It’s a door, not a jar!” So, as we were shooting Roman candles off the front porch, one went astray and started landing on your new car! Daddy, frantic at the thought of damage to his new car, ran over and lay across the hood so that it wouldn’t be harmed.

All in all, the trip was a wonderful, memory filled trip and I wish you were here for me to call and tell you all about it, More,

Point us towards the water...

We left last night heading to Gulf Shores and arrived sometime after 3 this afternoon. The traffic was horrible today so we were pretty much stop and go the whole way from Hattiesburg. But arriving was so worth it!!! We did go for a quick visit to the beach to remind us the drive was worth it and it totally was. Here are a few pictures and this entire place makes me think of you. You should be here with daddy this summer and getting ready for another month long visit down here with your girlfriends. Love and miss you more,


Here are John and Jorge drinking fruity drinks in our honor since we can't...