A to Z...

So, most of my blog posts lately have been about the baby for obvious reasons. Well, today people you are in for a treat! This one is all about ME.

PS Thanks to my childhood friend Natalie for unknowingly letting me "borrow" this idea!

Like the random picture of me and Shakespeare?

A. Age: 25

B. Bed size: King - (Kevin and I broke down about month 6 of my pregnancy and upsized our bed and our life to a King...it has changed my whole world!)

C. Chore you hate: cleaning the bathroom...there is just nothing fun about cleaning potties!

D. Dogs: Umm, I grew up with dogs, but the older I get the less I want one of my own. I think it is the hair everywhere...not a fan of the hair...so I guess the answer is no. Of course, Kevin says that we'll have to get a dog when the kids get older (is that like a rite of passage?) so there you have it. The kids will inevitably whine and beg and then I will be the lame mom if I don't give in so yeah, we'll probably end up with a dog in the end.

E. Entertainment: I love to read and watch movies. Seriously, I could read all day. I also love to see shows. Les Miserables is coming to Dallas this winter and I am sure as heck going!

F. Favorite color: Well now that just depends. Is this my favorite color to wear? Definitely black. My favorite color to eat? Probably brown or red (chocolate / strawberries, pasta sauce, etc). My favorite color of paint in my house? The blue in Colin's room. Favorite color of purse? Turquoise. Favorite color of nail polish? Red or bright pink.

G. Gold or silver: silver

H. Height: 5’7"

I. Instruments: 2 years of piano lessons as a child and 3 years playing the French horn from 6-8th grade...so no, I don't play an instrument.

J. Job title: mommy according to the baby and "homemaker" according to the government

K. Kids: one, unless Kevin counts!

L. Live: Sunnyvale, Texas (little rural suburb of Dallas)

M. Mom’s name: Jeanette (named after my grandma's favorite celebrity, the 1930s singer and actress Jeanette MacDonald)

N. Nicknames: Les to most people...of course my family is much more creative. My brother Steve has a variety of names for me: Lester Fester, Lester, Fes-Munch, Fes, etc. Kevin mostly calls me Babe when he's in trouble and he's trying to apologize...as in a "ah, Babe, don't be mad at me! I love you." His super cheesy shmoopy name for me is Pook, or Pooky.

O. Overnight hospital stays: twice

P. Pet peeve: someone else's toenails touching me, especially in bed (shudder)

Q. Quote from a movie: All I can think of right now is "Your mom goes to college" (Napoleon Dynamite)

R. Right or left handed: Right

S. Siblings: 4 : Steve, Mark, Kevin, and Stacie

T. Time you wake up: whenever Colin wakes me up

U. Underwear: white

V. Vegetables you dislike: do water chestnuts count? I hate them. I don't like baby corn either. I can tolerate mushrooms (yes, I realize they are a fungus, not a vegetable, but for the purpose of this blog post I think they count) but I am not really a fan.

W. What makes you run late: missing cell phone

X. X-Rays you’ve had: teeth

Y. Yummy food you make: I am a decent cook...Kevin likes most of the things I cook, but my pride and joy in the kitchen in my St Patty's Day feast - it ROCKS!

Z. Zoo- favorite animal: monkeys and the big cats

Easter Festivities

We had an awesome weekend! Colin and I spent Friday making Easter sugar cookies for home and visiting teachees and I am ridiculously proud of how they turned out!

Then on Saturday we headed out to Kevin's aunt's farm for an egg hunt for both the kids and the adults.

The kids were so excited for their hunt...it was so much fun to watch!

Colin didn't really participate, but we pretended that he enjoyed it!

Me and my baby!

Looking back at Daddy

We found some eggs for Colin to pose with

Mike and Dylan searching for eggs

After the adult money hunt (a BIG thank you to Liz and Jim for the $$$ - so unexpected and generous!) we headed to the pool to cool off

Such a fun day!

The Easter Bunny brought Colin summer swim stuff (swim trunks, rash guard, floppy hat, sunglasses, and swim diapers)...he's all set for the pool!

He thinks he's pretty cool!

One Year Ago Today...

...I went to the doctor. It was day 35 and I was either pregnant or most likely just late. As a clomid user, I had very regular appointments and me and the nurses at the OB-GYN's office were becoming very good friends (a shout out to Angela, Toni, and Lee!). However, for several reasons, chances were not in my favor to conceive and so I didn't even bother to take a home pregnancy test.

Well, I am sure you can guess what happened next. They told me I was pregnant. I thought they were kidding me and I started to cry because I couldn't imagine a more cruel joke. After showing me 2 of the several tests they took (my nurses and OB were just as surprised as me) and assuring me that I was indeed pregnant, I left to go tell Kevin.

He was in as much shock as I was. I mean, our chances of getting pregnant were very slim and here we were, pregnant. Of course it wasn't as simple as that...they also let me know that my chances of miscarrying were double that of other women, so as happy as we were, we were afraid to get too excited, too attached, too hopeful that it would stick.

I had sonograms almost weekly to check the progress of our little one (not to mention lots of blood tests, progesterone supplements, etc). I had some complications, I guess you could say. But by week 18, they gave us the go ahead to celebrate - I was no longer a high risk pregnancy! Such amazing news.

Colin, I can't tell you how blessed we feel to have you in our life. You are the most perfect little baby and your father and I thank Heavenly Father daily for giving you to us. We love you and will try (future tense) to give you siblings :)

Four Months!

Our baby is GROWING!! Holy cow! Colin is getting bigger every day (check out his stats below!) and is constantly discovering and learning.

Colin is finally learning to like his Bumbo...he still prefers to stand/lay down/anything that doesn't require bending, but he's coming along.

Colin is drooling and chomping on his fists (and anything else he can grab) like crazy...still no teeth, but I am sure they will make their appearance eventually.

Our little man loves his jumperoo - the best squeals come when he is jumping away :)

Four Month Stats:

15lb 7.5 oz (50th percentile)

26.5 in (95th percentile)

I think he got Kevin's height!

I Don't Think He Trusts Me...

I always feel like he's holding on for dear life!

Mom, don't drop me!!

And no, I have never dropped him!

Why My Baby Makes a Bad Date

With Kevin taking business trips abroad about a week every month, I have decided that little Baby Colin is NOT a good substitute for his father on a date for the following reasons:

He doesn't pay

He doesn't drive

He drools all over me

He's toothless

Every time he looks at me he throws up (point in fact, he just spit up)

He is only interested in my chest (not appropriate? sorry!)

He doesn't bother to wear shoes

He has no control over his flatulence

He cries in public

He doesn't mind having a booger hang out of his nose

and

He poops his pants

Why he makes a good date?

He looks at me like I am the only woman in the world!

Erin Go Bragh!

St. Patrick's Day is a pretty big deal in the Grady household. In fact, in the month of March, you can call us the O'Grady's (historical sidenote - this was Kevin's ancestor's last name until they dropped the O' when they came to America in an effort to hide the fact that they were Irish and in turn reduce prejudice...yeah, I don't think people needed the O' to realize the redheaded guy with a thick Irish accent was indeed Irish!!)

Anyway, we O'Gradys like to have a pretty awesome St. Patrick's Day party every year, and this year we were so excited to have some extended family join us as well (not to mention the most adorable little leprechaun)!

Doesn't look like he wants a kiss!

Some of the amazing food people brought

How cute is this veggie dip?

Derek enjoying the greatest corned beef ever

(seriously people...don't knock corned beef until you've had mine! I have made believers out of the most anti corned beef haters!)

Karen and Mike

Lisa and Karen

Derek and Lisa

A big thanks to all of my family (especially my mom) for all of the help with the party and to Karen for taking all of these pictures for me - you're the best!