12 weeks pregnant and Thanksgiving

I have to say...I love Thanksgiving. I had been craving my Grandma Saunders's mashed potatoes for a couple of weeks, and let's just say they didn't disappoint! :) We go every other year (due to the married, rotating schedule) to Rogersville, TN, which is where my Dad's parents live. It is pretty much in the middle of nowhere, but it's always been so much fun. We've had an annual paintball tournament for as long as I can remember; we play cards; we relax; and we get to be outside. It's perfect. To the left is a picture of the Saunders clan. It's been quite a while since everyone's been together at the same time! As you can see, Thanksgiving is quite a formal affair.

We also had our Church cousin Christmas party at my Aunt Kay and Neal dog's house. We normally play some kind of Bingo type came with everyone's birthdays for some fabulous prizes, provided by Aunt Kay. Without fail, Elizabeth always remembers the most birthdays. I've already begun studying so I can dominate next year.

And last, but certainly not least, I had my 12 week check-up yesterday, and it made me sooo excited!! the ultrasound actually looked like a baby, rather than an alien or...well....nothing. It did a couple of flips, which I thought was very impressive. I think it will be a coordinated athlete, much like its mother. ha! It was just amazing to see arms and legs. The next appt. is on the 21st, and if the baby cooperates, we'll be able to find out the sex! Woohoo! None of this waiting for a surprise. Yes, I'm calling all of you out who wait and torture the rest of us.

Well, that's all for now!

Evening Sickness

Well, I decided not to post the ultrasound picture. It looked like a bunch of grainy nothing, so I'll wait until you can actually see something before I put it up. It's finally starting to sink in that I'm pregnant. Maybe it has something to do with throwing up my dinner, which is the newest fun experience. ;0) Here are a few pictures from this past weekend with Rachel, Mo, Katie, and Janelle. We decided to take a girl's trip to Jasper, Arkansas, and it was WONDERFUL! We actually got to see leaves that changed color. Enjoy!

Here we are the morning before our first hike. This is the balcony of Misty Bluff, our Arkansian paradise. :)
We stopped in the lower Boxley Valley (Katie, am I right?) the first morning to look at the elk. Katie almost wet her pants she was so excited!
Mo took this picture of us at Hawksbill Crag, the destination of our first hike. It was beautiful!
Thanks to Katie's handy dandy attach to anything tripod, we were able to get some group shots. This is one of the few pictures where we're all being serious.



Sister Picture!

The trees were beautiful!! We took quite a few at this spot.

After our hike, we had a bit of a fender bender. We were all okay, but the other car didn't come out without some bumps and bruises. Luckily, our car was fine, and we could drive it home!

Our second morning, we drove to Harrison to a famous cemetery....famous for it's Maple trees. They were unbelievable. When we first got there, we laid down to appreciate the leaves, and the girls watching wanted to know if we were there for a photography class. Nope, we're just big dorks! :)

Our second hike was quite different from the first but just as much fun! We had so much fun exploring the caves! mwahahaha.

Katie made us a rope so we wouldn't get lost while navigating the dark passages of the cave. It was made of masking tape, and I for one felt muuuuch saver with it wrapped around my waist. Katie, you are a woman of many talents....

We spent our last night out on the deck looking at the stars. It was a perfect way to end our last night.