Forget Sirius Radio...

Around here we've been listening to Uterus Radio. :) We had a home doppler with Merrick, and decided to get one for baby Barron also. It's fun to be able to hear this even in between my check-ups! I'm sure this sound is much more exciting to us...but just thought we'd share! :)
(Sorry the quality isn't great...I couldn't get Blogger to accept the sound file from my phone so I had to try to record it to my camera and THEN upload it to my blog...)

All I want...

"Maybe Christmas, he thought, doesn't come from a store. Maybe Christmas...perhaps...means a little bit more." - Dr. Seuss.

How true! Well...Christmas has come and gone for another year! I am so sad it's gone *Christmas is my favorite time of year!* but we had a wonderful Christmas with family and friends! This Christmas was so much fun with Merrick...who was definitely more into the wrapping and the tree than the actual presents. He was fun to watch, and not so fun to keep out of the decorations on the tree. (He only broke one I think) We had a little more time to relax and enjoy the time together this year also. We spread our many family gatherings over a few days instead of all on one day. We spent Wednesday night with Grandma Howren and the extended family, Thursday with Austin-Lee's family, and Friday with Billy's. It was great to see everyone! We finally were able to meet Billy's new niece Gianna...who is very adorable and so tiny! (It's amazing how big MY *lightweight* baby looks next to a 2-week-old infant! haha) We have been blessed in so many ways this year. (Even in the rough times: struggling to find a house, assorted ER trips, car problems, etc...God has always taken care of us in the ways that really matter) We've learned so much, and are looking forward to what this next year holds for us. I'm sure things will be as busy/crazy/fun as they always are around here! Merrick has grown so much in the last year, and we are thrilled with the new little one who is on the way! We hope that each of you had a wonderful Christmas as well, and that you know how glad we are to have each of you in our lives! Thanks for reading my ramblings! :) Have a wonderful weekend! Here are some pictures from this week:

HSC Game

We went to the HSC basketball game with some of the kids from church today. Merrick couldn't understand why those big guys with the ball weren't sharing. During half time he ran off under the bleachers and tried to play ball with the other kids. :) Here's a (bad quality cell phone) video of him watching the game with Billy. (And nearly falling off the bleachers right at the end!)

Dancing Snowmen

Merrick loves these singing/dancing snowmen @ Grandma's house! He dances to them for as long as we'll sit there and push the button. :)

Tacky Lights

These are a couple of pictures from when Billy, Merrick and I went looking at lights last night. I love Christmas lights, the more the better. So we went on part of the "Tacky Light Tour" in Richmond. So much fun! Go if you can! Sorry the pictures aren't great...next time I'll remember my real camera and skip the blurry cell phone pics. Hope everyone is enjoying the holidays so far! :)

Famous Guy

Billy's parents took Merrick and Leia to the parade last Sunday in Farmville. They had a great time, and we're dancing to the music from the floats. Delma told us a lady from the paper kept taking Wild's picture, and called us Wednesday night to say she'd found him on the front page of the Farmville Herald. Pretty exciting! I don't think he cares really, but Mom and Dad were proud of our little celebrity! Haha. :) Here's the picture!

Do you hear what I hear?

Well, probably not, BUT...today we had the priviledge of hearing baby Barron #2's precious 163 beats/min. We are so excited to announce the next Barron will be arriving July '09 (prayerfully safe and sound)! Here is a picture of our "teddy graham". That's what the ultrasound tech said it looks like. :)

We are so excited about this news...and hope y'all will keep our growing family in your prayers. We were so blessed with Merrick's healthy/safe arrival, and are praying the same for this little one. I am about 9 1/2 weeks at this point...and the due date we've been given is July 9th, '09. (Merrick was 2 1/2 weeks early...so one can hope. haha) Baby Barron is about the size of a grape at this point. For a person the size of a grape it sure is making me tired and cranky, and a bit forgetful to say the least. Preggo brain already. It's been very hard to keep the secret this long. I knew something was wierd when I stopped wanting to eat ice cream and was craving bean burritos and egg/cheese biscuits. What?! The things pregnant women eat. Billy is loving this, to say the least. Beans and cheese keep alot longer than a tub of cookie dough ice cream. ;) Maybe there are no midnight ice cream runs in the next 7 months of his life. Hope everyone is having a great weekend...but for now I think Taco Bell is calling my name. ;)