Jeff...a Trucker?

Tomorrow around 3am my husband will be leaving North Carolina to drive this huge 24 foot truck all the way to New Hampshire!! Yikes! Oh, did I mention that the truck will be pulling a car dolly behind it? Let's remember here for a minute that Jeff has ZERO experience driving a rig this size! The whole thing makes me a little nervous to say the least. I have no doubt he can drive it straight down the highway no problem but what about getting TO the highway and getting gas?? Oh boy!

Let's all keep our fingers crossed for a safe and UNEVENTFUL trip North!

***UPDATE***
Although I wouldn't call their trip "uneventful" Ryan, Jenn, Sadie and Jeff arrived in one piece at 9:30pm last night. A short 17.5 hour trip (usually 14ish)...slowed down by weather, traffic and a Budget truck that would randomly stall out! Jeff drove the truck the entire way and seemed to enjoy it, however, I don't think he has any plans to give up his day job!!!! Matthew and I are headed up to see them this morning...of course I won't be much help unloading it with this melon in my belly but Matthew is excited to check out the truck and we can't wait to see everyone!

Welcome Back to NH guys! We are SO happy to have you close again!!!!

Memorial Day

We spent the weekend in Wells, ME. The weather was fantastic and we had a great time...got some work done too. Jeff and Matthew spread some mulch around the sea rose bushes on the side of the house, raked the rock path and Matthew helped clean the deck furniture. The definite highlight of the weekend was Matthew's trip to the arcade where he earned enough tickets playing Skeeball and Whack-A-Mole to get not 1 but 2 dum-dum lollipops!! Big day! Probably the quietest Memorial Day weekend we've had in awhile since Heather is still at school and Ryan and Jenn are in NC...we missed you guys!

Happy 10th...yikes!

Today is the 10th anniversary of my UNH Graduation...10 years! Crazy! It seems like it was just yesterday! Of course when you look at all that has happened in the last 10 years, it's easier to see...getting married, having a baby (and another on the way), buying 2 houses and multiple vehicles, several jobs.

I had a great time at UNH (and did a little studying too). I, like every other college student, didn't realize how easy things were and the changes we would go through once we were officially in the "Real World" but I wouldn't trade my life now for any of it.

So, Happy 10th UNH Class of 1998 and a big shout out to some of you that read my blog. Just for laughs, here are a few pictures from that day.

Look how young my sister is here!

So It All Begins...

Some might say that I'm nesting...I know deep down that I've just put too many things off for too long!!

I don't know about you but the Widget with the baby countdown isn't cute, it's downright scary!! 46 days??? What?? Does anyone know how much stuff there is to do between now and then? Can we slow that thing down at all? Oh yeah, I don't like being pregnant, that's not an option??!!

Since the list of things to do prior to the baby's arrival goes on and on, I got up today and vowed to myself that I would accomplish SOMETHING. First up, making some space for baby things in the Family Room.

Anyone who has been here knows that we have lost our Family Room to Matthew's toys. I, of course, prior to having children, told anyone who would listen that we would not have a house overrun with toys...boy am I eating my words!!

Our brilliant idea to help us find our carpet and furniture was to finish the basement, make the typical playroom down there with closets for lots of storage. It took a long time but the playroom is done! Great! So, let's move stuff down there...wait a minute, just one small problem...the closets are already full with the stuff that was just sitting in our basement prior to it being finished. You know, the boxes of stuff that you never unpacked, things we haven't seem for 4 years but for some reason we need. Everyone has this kind of stuff, right? Let me know if you are someone who does not!

So really this is a two fold project...

Anyways, Matthew and I went through all the toys in the Family Room...he was actually a big help putting things in different baskets or drawers, headed to one place or another. After that, on to the basement. I managed to get some things sorted out, a pile of things headed to the attic (that's another story!) and the closet rearranged and (sort of) ready for the toys that had now been displaced from the upstairs.

Of course, looking around you can't really tell that I did much of anything! I think I cleared out just enough space in the Family Room for the swing. But, at the end of the day, I actually accomplished SOMETHING. Problem is, there is still SO MUCH to do. Hopefully my little countdown to the right will help keep us on track:)

Happy Birthday

A big HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Jeff's sister, Jamie!! No mention of what anniversary of her 30th this is of course:) We hope you have a great day and year ahead!!

We're Back!

We are back from NC! Had a great time and really enjoyed sharing all the graduation festivities with Ryan and Jenn. Like I've said before, we are so proud of Ryan and all he has accomplished. Here are some of the pictures...

More pictures on Ryan and Jenn's blog...link to the right.

Matthew was a trooper. These things are tough for little guys to sit through but we couldn't have asked for better behavior. Of course, the highlight of the trip for him wasn't Ryan receiving his degree...it was the shuttle bus ride from the airport to Enterprise and back again! Too funny. Although Jeff and I liked seeing Matthew wearing the MD Regalia, we suspect he his interests are more vehicle related!

Drew & Monica

Unfortunately we are missing something very important this weekend...Jeff's cousin Andrew is getting married!! Just wanted to say BEST WISHES and we will be thinking about you guys:) Monica-welcome to the family. Have a safe trip to HI, lucky ducks! Can't wait to see the pictures...

Who would have guessed?

This guy...a doctor? Tomorrow we will be traveling to NC to attend a weekend long celebration of my brother's graduation from Wake Forest School of Medicine. We are all super proud of all he has done and accomplished. Still, it makes me laugh to think of some of his antics over the years and the image of him playing Guitar Hero for hours, knowing that he will be in charge of the people's well-being:) Actually, no one is better suited to be a Pediatrician. Children have always gravitated toward him and love him...my son's love and obsession for Uncle Ryan is certainly proof of that!

This will also be our last trip to NC. We have traveled down there about 10 times in the last 4 years and absolutely LOVE the Winston-Salem area. If any of you ever have the chance to travel there, I highly recommend it.

That being said, we are SUPER excited that Ryan, Jenn and Sadie will be moving back to NH in another week as Ryan will be doing his Residency at Children's Hospital at Dartmouth. It has been a difficult 4 years with them so far away and missing so much of Matthew's life and us their life. We have been fortunate that we have been able to travel so much and they have been able to get back to NH on their breaks.

Ry-GOOD LUCK & CONGRATULATIONS!! We are all so proud of you and how hard you have worked. I wish Mom were here to share this with you, she would be the proudest of all:)

I've Joined the Ranks...

After becoming addicted to several other Blogs, I've decided to create my own. I'm hoping that this will prove to be a good way to keep in touch with our friends and family, near and far, and keep you updated on our life and activities.

On another note...

A big CONGRATULATIONS to my Sister-In-Law Jenn! On Tuesday she graduated from Nursing School:)