MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

I'm an Auntie!

Meet lil Miss Samantha, isn't she a cutie? Her momma finally sent me pics the other week and while I was looking at them, I thought to myself, I want one...we've got a little over two months left...I can't wait! Congrats to baby and momma, I can't wait to see you both over Easter weekend! 

Congratulations to Xin Xin and John!

They got engaged a couple of weeks ago and guess what? I'm going to be a bridesmaid! Yay! :) The wedding is set for January 2008. That means that I was a bridesmaid in 2005 for Maria and RJ's wedding, 2006 for Kathy and Arthur's wedding, and 2008 for Cindy and John's wedding...c'mon Mae or Lydia, get hitched in 2007, so I can be a bridesmaid next year to keep up the trend!

In case you're wondering, no, John is not standing on a step, he is that tall (and Xin Xin is probably wearing stilettos and she's not a short girl!). I thought that Steven's height at 6'2" was an issue...have fun with that Xin Xin! 

House Update

As of last Saturday, the 16th, the house had carpet! There's still quite a few things that need to be done though, like the sprinkler system and landscaping which they'll probably do the week we close, we got pavers for the front entryway and the patios that still need to be put in, we're adding a small deck off of the baby's room, we need a fence, and the wrought iron railings need to be added to the patio areas. Those are the biggest things that I can think of right now, but besides that, there are a couple of things in the house that need staining like the staircase and mantle, and the paint needs to be touched up everywhere. The independent inspector that we hired is coming out on Friday to look over the house. I'm really interested in what he's going to find, you really just never know. Next week, we'll have our New Home Orientation on the 28th. The house should be really close to being done on Friday, so I'm super excited about that. It's really crunch time now...it's so exciting! Once we move in, I'll make sure to take more pics to post!

Our Baby Boy at 29 Weeks and 5 Days

These pics are from our monthly growth ultrasound for December. Isn't he cute? I think that he has Steven's nose and lips. :)

He measured 1 week ahead and weighs 3 1/2 pounds. At our last ultrasound, he measured 2 days ahead, so in the last month, he's grown an extra 5 days. They said that it's a side effect of the gestational diabetes, but the good news is that measuring one week ahead isn't that uncommon and it's not anything that we should be worried about. Everything else looked normal, which at this point, we're very thankful for!

After the ultrasound, we met with the dietician and I am officially on a diabetic diet which basically means no simple sugars, no fruit until lunch time, and I have to limit my intake of carbs. It's really not that big of a deal until I start craving dessert. At least there are ways around it, like sugar-free ice cream...yummy! I have to take my blood sugar 4 times a day, once in the morning before I've had any food, and then 2 hours after each meal. I have to admit that this was the part that I was dreading the most, but pricking myself has really not been that big of a deal. It doesn't hurt as much as I expected it would and I don't really have that big a phobia of needles or blood, so if this was going to happen to anyone, I would probably be the best person to have it happen to!


 

More pics!

Cutest couples ever...Felicia with her hubby Keith, and Langan and his wife Amy.

Hook 'em horns!

Shelly, the dancing diva.

Look at all the fun prizes!


 

Holiday Pics!

Best dressed couple of the night a.k.a. Nancy and the Monopoly man!

Craps and Texas Hold 'Em tables.

Dangerous team...look at those smokin' hot girls on the loose!

Estrogen team, run by woman power (with the exception of Mateo, of course)!

EY Holiday Party 2006

Our holiday party this year was at the beautiful Austin Museum of Art at Laguna Gloria. Steven was the photographer for the night and did a wonderful job of taking pictures.

The theme for the night was The Great Gatsby / roaring 20's. I'm glad the theme was such a hit, it was so much fun seeing everyone all dressed up. There was also a toy drive benefiting Toys for Tots. We had so many people bring toys that the Marines could barely fit them in their cars to take them away! It was also a casino night and the craps table was hopping. We had a live band playing as people arrived, they were awesome! It was such a fun and festive night.

This is me and Steven's "prom" picture. Don't ask about my hand...I have no idea what was going on there!

The second pic is of me and my girls K Ry and Felicia. Aren't they the cutest! I love you girls!!! I'll post a couple of other random pics from the night.

 

Me at 28 (28 weeks and 5 days pregnant)

I turned the big 28 yesterday (now I'm really in my late 20's!) and was surrounded by birthday wishes from all my friends and family. Thanks everyone for all of the calls/emails/messages.

Like most people, birthdays always make me think about the past, present and future...or do people always think about the past, present and future during Christmas? My birthday is so close to Christmas that it's all the same thing to me anyway!

My past
Ten years ago, I turned 18 and was a senior in high school. I didn't know where I was going to college yet and the world was full of possibilities. I was surrounded by great friends who I still have to this day. I felt like I owned Houston, driving around in my blueberry Mazda Protege. Life was good.

A year ago, I spent my 27th birthday at Walt Disney World...it was the best birthday ever! It's definitely hard to top WDW. :) We spent the afternoon on the Fantasia mini-golf course and had dinner at the very fancy Victoria and Albert's at the Grand Floridian. We did the wine pairings with dinner...I don't think I've been that drunk since!

My Present
Fast forward to the present and I definitely did not expect to be pregnant a year ago. It was such a wonderful surprise and I feel truly blessed to be where I am at today. I've always said that I wanted to have my first child before I turned 30 (30 seems to be the cut-off point for a lot of people), so it's not too crazy that we're expecting our first child now. It's just that there's a lot going on at one time between the house, baby and busy season at work, but I don't think that I'd have it any other way. I've been surrounded by such caring people through my family, friends and co-workers, that I feel like I can handle anything.

I got the "unfortunately" phone call from the doctor's office yesterday informing me that I've developed gestational diabetes. I was so upset, that I left work early and went home. When I got home, I found Steven baking a birthday cake for me. It was so sweet of him and I was so sad that I couldn't sit there and eat a huge slice of cake. I spent the afternoon and evening talking through my roller coaster of emotions with friends. Thanks Mae and Kathy for listening to me in my state of madness. I'm really lucky that I went to the High School for Health Professions and ended up with two best friends who are doctors! I definitely did not see that as being a high school perk 10 years ago! They made me feel so much better about the whole GD situation and it made me realize at the end of the night that I've got a great support system and I'm truly lucky to have the friends I do have in my life. I can't wait until the baby comes...Maria will be getting midnight calls from me, and, in a couple of years when Alice graduates from vet school, she'll be getting phone calls about Carrie and Button! If I end up having a C-section, then I can definitely turn to Melissa! Hmmm...it makes me feel kind of useless...anyone want an audit, I don't do taxes, just audits. :)

We had dinner at the Roaring Fork in the Intercontinental Hotel (and, of course, didn't order dessert). We used the last of our cousin wedding gift certificates. The amount wasn't on the gift card, and I thought it was for $100 and Steven thought it was for $50. We ended up spending $77 and the gift card wasr $75, so it turned out perfectly! I'm sad that we're out of gift certificates now, does that mean we're not newlyweds anymore? We still have a few shows left at the Paramont. So far, we've been to Sarah Vowell, who was the voice of Violet in The Incredibles and has a show on NPR,and George Orwell's 1984. Let's just say that Sarah Vowell was much better than 1984! Coming up, we've got: Dave Barry, David Sedaris, a Spalding Gray tribute (not sure who that is, but that's part of the fun), and the Kodo Drummers. The Kodo Drummers is actually the week that I'm due. If the baby hasn't come yet, maybe the drumming will coax the baby out. :)

The best birthday present I got this year was from Steven (besides the cake). He's been working on knitting a scarf for me for over a year now and he finished it for me as a surprise while I was on one of my marathon phone conversations yesterday. It's self striping Noru yarn from Hill Country Weavers that I absolutely love. He even looked up how to bind off the scarf in one of my knitting books and he wove in all of the loose ends. I wanted to make sure that I'm wearing the scarf in my birthday picture. Isn't it pretty?

The Future
Hopefully a year from now, I can say that I'm a mom to a healthy and happy 10 month old baby boy, who will have a name by then! I look forward to whatever this next year brings. Bring it on!

Thanks everyone again for all of the birthday wishes! 

We'll miss you Judy!!!

l-r (back row): Holly, Heather and me
l-r (front row): Sabrina, Judy and Peggy

EY just won't be the same without you! Good luck on your GMAT!