Happy Thanksgiving!

First of all, can I just say...how on earth are we already counting down to Christmas?! It feels like the last month absolutely flew by! Sam is almost 18 months old, Olivia's 3rd birthday in Heaven is just around the corner, and we'll be flying home to Indy before we know it for the first visit in over a year!

With that being said, we had a great Thanksgiving -- I hope everyone else did too! We made a meal big enough to result in leftovers for a week, we relaxed and enjoyed James being home (after 5 weeks in the field), and talked about all that we're thankful for. Oh, and we joined in on the Black Friday madness...starting at noon on Friday after all the crazies were back in bed recovering from a night of door buster deals. Who doesn't love a good sale!?

I can't even describe to you the joy it brings having Sam here -- especially during the holidays. While decorating the house with our Christmas decor, it brought on feelings of sadness as I unwrapped various ornaments for Jacob, Jordan, and Olivia. But then as I unwrapped Samuel's ornaments, it brought on a big smile. Talk about mixed emotions! The holidays will always be bittersweet. There will always be three stockings that remain empty. BUT...thankfully, unlike years past, there will also always be one stocking loaded to the brim -- Samuel's.

I'm excited to be able to celebrate our second Christmas with Samuel in our arms, just as it was fun celebrating Thanksgiving with him again this year -- never mind the fact that he passed out before dinner was done and didn't wake up until after we were finished putting it all away. The sweet boy.

This is my favorite time of the year and to be able to celebrate it all with our little family makes it that much better.

Annnnnd so....the time has come. I can't end this without sharing pictures, so here are a few from the last week.

Our Thanksgiving -- football, food, and a sleeping boy...

It's a rare moment when he's actually still, so when it happens, I try to take every advantage of it and cuddle with him...

Oh, and here he is after breakfast earlier that day in his little tie. A friend commented on him looking like Rodney Dangerfield. Ha! Love it!

While I need to get some better pics with our real camera, here are a few of Samuel and the Christmas decor. He's in LOVE with his singing basset from Hallmark that he received last year...

Here's our tree designated just for our 3 angels - Jacob, Jordan, and Olivia. In the past, we always put their ornaments on our big tree, but this year decided to give them their own. And since we ordered new monogrammed stockings for the whole family this year, we put their old stockings on this tree as well...

And a blurry cell phone attempt of our mantel. Now if it would actually get cold enough for us to use the fire place, I'd be in Heaven! I would love to be able to listen to Bing Crosby sing, "It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas" and not step out into 75+ degree weather outside. Such is life in El Paso, I suppose...

Oh and I think I forgot to mention, we drove up to Ruidoso for a little day-trip over the long holiday weekend and checked out that cute town. It was so nice to be able to get away to a place with pine trees, grass, etc. Living in the desert has really made me homesick for WA, and while this was definitely not WA, it was close enough. The best part of it though was being able to get some family pictures! Our version of family pictures typically includes a tripod and self-timer. I know. I'm cheap. BUT...I think they turned out alright. (It's just too bad Obadiah isn't in any of them!) In fact, I used two for our Christmas cards this year. Ultimately, I couldn't decide which one to use, so I made two different cards and it will just be a surprise as to which one people receive. Ha.

Here are a few photos from that attempted photo session...

This pretty much says it all...

And I suppose with that, I should finally go to bed.

Here's to a wonderful Christmas season in the month ahead!

Shopping...

As we near closer and closer to Samuel's arrival, James and I have found ourselves talking more about the things that we want to get for him. While pregnant with Liv, I had put off buying a good chunk of necessities due to wanting to wait until James was home for R&R after her birth. I figured we could go shopping for those items together. Plus, we were due to have a belated baby shower with friends and family a few months later, so I just stuck to what we absolutely needed right out of the hospital...I figured the rest could wait. Well, here we are in a similar situation -- 3 1/2 weeks away (or less) and the realization that he very well could make it is hitting us...

With talk of the necessities that need to be purchased, we've also begun looking into the things that we had wanted for Liv, but hadn't gotten around to getting yet...and if Sam makes it, we DEFINITELY want for him. For instance, one of those cute Pottery Barn chairs -- love those things! Not only would he be able to use it when he's a little older (I realize that as a newborn, it won't get much use), but I could take his monthly picture on it as he grows...

I guess we'll see how the coming weeks go -- if we get to bring our little man home. I still have yet to set up the room since I promised James that we wouldn't touch that until after he's here. It has been tempting, though. I recently gave in and bought the wall letters for his name and will soon paint those. Even with all of the fear (and there is a LOT of it!), it's hard not to try and let ourselves get excited. I'm half-tempted to order the little PB chair when we're in ATL next Friday...we shall see...

Our Babymoon...

So with an unexpected day off, James and I decided to say screw it to the plans of laying low for the entire pregnancy and instead, we got out of town for a couple days! We needed this little getaway and while telling one of my sisters about such plans, she got super excited and reminded me that this was our so-called Babymoon. I hadn't even really thought of it in that way, but I suppose that's exactly what it was -- one last getaway before a hopefully healthy baby boy!

While making plans for our little trip, we fully intended on taking the basset with us -- what's a vacation without Obie?!?! However, much to my surprise...bassets (or any dog, really) are not allowed on the beaches in Destin, FL. So much for that idea! I guess if we want to take Oba with us to the beach, we better head back to the west coast! A beach hound banned from the beach -- such cruelty...

So instead, we dropped Obadiah off at the local doggy hotel and headed on south -- just the two of us. I must admit, a long drive without the cries of a basset is just a little odd. I missed his pathetic ways, but knew he would be well taken care of where he was staying, so all was good.

After 3 1/2 hours, we were in Destin -- soaking up the fresh air and ocean breeze. For so many years, I was not a fan of the beach (I can't stand the fact that sand gets into everything!). However, I have definitely grown to love it -- the fresh air, the sound of the waves crashing in, and the relaxing nature of it all.

Being that I've been on modified bedrest (if you want to call it that) for the last several months, my endurance level is crap. Upon arriving in town, we stopped at the local outlet mall (James and I both love shopping at those), but didn't end up lasting long. I took several breaks just to sit and veg between shops. In the end, the only thing we came away with was a pair of GAP pj's for Sam. I don't know about you, but I love GAP pj's for little kids -- they make their chunky little tummies that much cuter.

After some gelato and shopping, we headed to the beach to watch the sunset. While we were hanging out, I couldn't help but think of how we were doing the same thing while pregnant with Olivia -- only we were in Hawaii at that time...

With no one else in the area that we were at, it was so nice to spend a quiet evening with the hubs...

Officially 29wks...

Soon after this, we were both starving so we headed to a place recommended by a friend for dinner -- definitely check out Cantina Laredo if you're in Destin! Great Mexican with a nice atmosphere. After living in the South for 7 months, it was nice to try a flour tortilla that didn't taste like it was fresh (or not so fresh) out of a store-bought bag. I'm not sure that they made their own at this particular restaurant, but they were of much better quality to say the least -- everything was for that matter. Yum!

We spent Saturday morning wandering around different beaches, shops, a pier, etc. Gotta love the colorful nature of beach towns...

Not to mention the peaceful nature of a beach at 8am...

When we settled down at one of the beaches, it was great to have it almost completely to ourselves. I guess most sleep in on a Saturday morning -- fine by me!

This was about the time when I locked away the nice camera and brought out the point-and-shoot. I'm not quite brave enough to face sand/waves with that puppy just yet...

I was a bit paranoid with the waves crashing in on Sam. Between my lack of balance these days and the forceful nature of the waves...I was a bit cautious...

With this being my first time to the Gulf, I couldn't get over how clean/clear the water was, not to mention how white the sand was. Loved it!

Big preggo belly...

Beautiful...

After a morning on the beach, we headed out for lunch at McGuire's Irish Pub -- another place recommended by a friend. Great burgers, beer (for James, obviously), and quite an interesting feel to the restaurant --there were dollar bills stapled everywhere.

The entire ceiling was full...

This is what you get when you use no flash...

Okay, not sure why these are turning out so grainy via Picasa...

Immediately following lunch, we headed out for a dolphin cruise. I don't know about you, but when I think of dolphins, I think of Ace Ventura -- more specifically, I think of Jim Carrey talking like a dolphin...good times...

As we left the harbor...

It wasn't long before we saw those cute dolphins...

James is a bit braver than I am. He wanted to jump in and swim with them...

Upon seeing these guys, James quoted Finding Nemo..."Get in my mouth if you want to live..." Ha.

So sweet...

As we were heading back to the shore, James and I agreed that at some point, we'll have to make another attempt at getting out there and swimming with them (preferably trained ones). We tried to do that while in Hawaii, but apparently preggos aren't allowed in the water with them. Perhaps if Sam makes it, we can wait a few years and try to do it with him...

Outside of James' comfort zone, I asked another tourist to get a picture of us...

This guy was there when we left the harbor and apparently never moved, as he was there when we got back, too.

We spent the rest of the afternoon/evening walking the harbor, beaches and ended up at PF Chang's for dinner -- not exactly a local must-have, but we love that place and haven't been in a very long time. Once we got back to the hotel, all I wanted to do was crash. I could barely move. That was one very long, full day for this preggo.

On Sunday morning, we had fully intended on spending another hour or two at the beach before heading back home, but I was too tired to do much of anything. So instead, we went to the beach for about 30 minutes before getting back on the road.

The aftermath of me turning my back to the water and getting my shorts soaked. James caught me laughing as I was walking back. So much for feeling clean on the drive home...

James was smart enough not to go any further than that...

Love the hubs...

So long, Destin. We loved your white (clean) sand, clear water, and fresh air!

Since James wanted to be back in the early afternoon to get a few things done before the work week started, we quickly soaked up the ocean breeze one last time and got on the road. Overall, it was a nice little getaway that I'm glad we were able to take before the end of this pregnancy! Hopefully, we can take Sam there in a few months. In fact, I might have to search for a dog-friendly beach so our entire family can go. Good times...