We are having two..... Gender Reveal!

We decided to have a gender reveal party at our house for our family and close friends. I love the idea of not finding out genders until the delivery room, but with twins that is just too much for this first-time-mama! Daddy George and I decided that we would have a gender reveal party at our house and be surprised by cutting into two cakes and seeing either pink or blue.

On Friday, I went to my OBs office for the gender ultrasound. I told George he couldn't come because since about week 8, he had asked the doctor every time we went for a gender guess. He has been so excited and curious that he couldn't stand it! I knew it would be too much for him to stand, so off to Dr. Benz's office I went, and had the tech put the genders in two separate envelopes labeled "Baby A" and "Baby B." I was nervous about him not being able to tell since we were a few days early (15 weeks, 5 days) and we had 20 people coming to our house the next afternoon expecting to find out. After looking at the babies for about 2 minutes, he reassured me by saying, "Got it. I know what they are!" I got a good look at the two growing sweethearts, and then he asked me to turn my head while he looked at their "revealing" parts and sealed the info in the envelopes. Talk about nerves! Then I left the office and took them to our baker and that was that. I was happy to get those envelopes out of my possession and into the hands of the baker. The next day was a big day!

Mom and Dad arrived later that evening, and we had a great dinner. Matt and Cortney arrived later and were staying with Rachel and Dom. I made snacks that evening and started decorating for the party. We were so thankful for my parents' help! The next morning, I got up early and went to the grocery to get a few last minute items and continued preparing. Mom, Dad, Laura, Billy, Rachel, Dom, Matt and Cortney came early and helped with set up. JoAnna was a HUGE help and made food and brought decor and serving pieces. Cortney picked up the cakes and we were all ready for the reveal!

As guests arrived, they voted for team pink (two girls), team blue (two boys), or one of each and took beads. Special thanks to all of our friends and family that joined us: Mom, Dad, Laura, Billy, Rachel, Dom, Matt, Cortney, JoAnna, Peter, Ava, Aubrey, Doll, Al, Ely, Kyle, Van, Courtney, Jeff, Erin, Anne, Tyler, Michelle, Lindsey, Charlie and Kathy.

We cut the cakes about 2:30, and to our surprise we are having two sweet baby GIRLS! Words cannot express how excited I that my girls will have a sister. I never had a sister and cannot wait for them to share this incredible bond! George and I are so happy and feel so blessed that we've been trusted with these two sweet angels! Our house is officially on pink overdrive!

God Bless Baby Girls!  We can't wait to meet you two in February!

Growing Babies - Months 3 & 4

Moving into month three was a good feeling. The 12-week milestone was in sight! Most know that I am a bit of a worrywart, and this pregnancy has sent me into overdrive! Still at the point I am now writing this (20 weeks), I worry constantly. These sweet babies have one praying mom! I have prayed nonstop since I got that little line.
 
Month three meant that we only had two more appointments with Dr. Kauffman (weeks 9 and 10) before being released to my regular OB for an appointment at week 12. Leaving Dr. K was such a bittersweet feeling. Walking into that clinic for the first time just four months before, I wasn't sure that we would ever be pregnant. Being released to my regular OB was such a huge step. It meant that I was just a regular old pregnant person, something else that I never thought would happen. We bid farewell to FW Fertility and had our first appointment with Dr. Benz on August 20th. She did another ultrasound and said the babies looked "perfect!" That is music to a mommy-to-be's ears! She also mentioned that I would be seeing a high-risk OB beginning at 16 weeks, which is pretty standard with twins.
 
Month 3 Notes:
 
Symptoms: All-day sickness finally started subsiding around week 10. I still didn't want to eat anything, but at least I wasn't feeling queasy all day long! 
 
Cravings: None! Food still didn't sound very good. I had a strange aversion to Mexican food, that thankfully only lasted a few weeks. Chicken and Chickfila were still completely off limits. YUCK!
 
Weight Gain: None
 
Looking Pregnant? : Maybe a small bump that I could see, but by week 12 I definitely was uncomfortable in my pants and using rubber bands to hold them together.
 
Baby Notes:
 
9 weeks - Baby A (25mm long / HB - 183 bpm) ; Baby B (26mm long / HB - 163 bpm)
We got to see them move at this appointment for the first time! It was amazing! Daddy George videoed on his phone and we shared with our families.

10 weeks - Baby A (42mm long / HB - 163bpm) ; Baby B (37mm long / HB - 170bpm)
Our last appointment with FW Fertility! Mom definitely got a little emotional!

12 weeks - Both babies measuring around 5cm and HB between 150-160bpm
We scheduled our gender reveal ultrasound for September 20th! I can't wait! I had a lot of blood taken -- 7 vials! We checked for many different genetic/chromosome abnormalities.

 

 

Month four was a good month. I started feeling a little more energetic, although still exhausted by the end of the day. We had an appointment with Dr. Benz on September 19th and she said all of our screenings came back just fine. What a relief! We didn't get to see the babies on this appointment but I did get to hear the sweetest sound with the Doppler - their heart beats! The next day I went in for our gender reveal ultrasound. We decided not to find out until our reveal party (the next day) with our close friends and family, and it was TORTURE closing my eyes, and then knowing that someone else knew and I didn't.

Month 4 Notes:

Symptoms: I felt a little more energetic, especially in the mornings. By the afternoon, I was exhausted. There was a lot of coming home and laying on the couch! The headaches started this month. I had a major headache every day, and the only medicine safe to take was Tylenol.

Cravings: None - although Mexican food was able to enter the picture again. I was able to eat more foods, but just never really "craved" anything.

Weight Gain: +4 lbs at my 16-week appointment - Dr. Benz wants me to gain 6 more pounds by my 20 week appointment.

Looking Pregnant? : Bring on the maternity jeans! It's so much easier just to break out the elastic than be uncomfortable all day.

Week 14 Bump:

 

 

Week 17 Bump:

Baby Notes:

Week 16: Baby A (13cm long / HB: 154bpm) ; Baby B (13cm long / HB: 143bpm)
Gender reveal! Gender reveal! We could hardly contain ourselves!

Week 16 Ultrasound:



 

Sharing Our Good News With Our Families

We were so excited to hear TWO healthy heart beats and share our good news with family and close friends. We decided we would tell family at 6 weeks, close friends at 8 weeks and the rest of the world at 12 weeks.

Below is how we told our families and their reactions:

Mom and Dad - I bought two frames for the grandparents that had a pregnant lady on them, with the baby bump portion cut out where the picture would go. As luck would have it, we were driving down to my parents house the Friday after the first sonogram. I got the picture ready and stuck it in a bag with my dad's very belated Father's Day gift. That was our cover for having a gift -- it was a late Father's Day surprise. I found cards for grandparents-to-be and wrote a little message inside. The ride down was crazy long, and plus I was sick the entire way and had to use the restroom about ever hour. Daddy George was so patient and kind and did whatever I asked him to do. All three of us are lucky to have him in our lives! When we arrived, we had my parents open the gift and my mom opened the smaller bag with the frame in it. We told her that gift was one for them to share. When she opened it, she immediately held it to her heart and started saying, "Oh my, oh my." I told her to look at how many and she did and continued smiling and hugging the frame. My dad could tell what it was but was confused by the "how many" comment, and he worriedly asked, "Well, how many are there?!" It was a hilarious moment, and I think he was a little relieved to find out there were only two! We had a great evening and visit with my parents and I knew they were so, so happy.

Billy and Laura - We invited Billy and Laura to dinner on Sunday evening after we returned from West Columbia. George stopped at Toys R Us and bought some baby golf clubs to surprise his dad with, as well as the frame and card like we had given my parents. When they arrived at our house, we gave them the card first and as soon as Laura saw grandparents-to-be, she started crying. It was so sweet! She said she had an inkling that we were pregnant. When she opened the card and read that it was twins, they both became even more excited. Laura said she always thought that George and I would have twins. We enjoyed dinner with them and spent lots of time talking about the babies!

Rachel and Dom - We went to dinner with Rachel and Dom the Thursday before our first sonogram. I gave them a little bag of Lucky Charms with a card that said, "A Lucky Charm will be arriving in March. We're pregnant!" Rachel started crying immediately! The even bigger surprise was calling them back on Friday to tell them that TWO Lucky Charms would be here in March (or probably more like February)!

Cortney and Matt - Cortney and Matt came over to my parent's house Friday evening. We gave them the same kind of gift as Rachel and Dom, but had added an "s" to Lucky Charm. Cortney threw the bag at us and said, "SHUT UP! YAY!" It was so cute and fun!

Dixie and Matt - We stopped by Dixie and Matt's house on the way back to Fort Worth. It was so important for me to tell her in person. They were so excited for us, and even more excited for twins! Now there will be a whole new group of Dixie Days to begin each year.


Finally at 12 weeks, we announced to the Facebook world our good news with this photo:

Pregnancy Months 1 & 2 + a Surprise!

George and I were pretty much on cloud nine from the end of June on. We could not believe that finally, after so many tears, prayers, doctor's appointments, months of bad news (to us, it seemed like each negative pregnancy test was bad news), and medicine that we were being blessed with a sweet bundle of joy. I immediately calculated my due date: March 9, 2014. This was even better timing than I could have imagined. I could be with my class until spring break, then take maternity leave and it would run into summer. When I went back to work in August, the baby would be 5 months old. Perfect! Aside from our good news, some friends of ours had some good news of their own. Lindsey and Brian were expecting as well! She was 8 weeks ahead of me, and I was so excited to have another first time mom to share the experience with that was about in the same time frame as me. We anxiously waited from July 10th until July 19th to hear that sweet heartbeat. I prayed continuously for this baby, and the development and health.
 
We had our first appointment on a Friday morning with Dr. Elkins (Dr. Kauffman's partner at FW Fertility). I anxiously awaited as she began the ultrasound. When I looked on the screen, I thought something seemed a little different than other ultrasounds I had seen in the past. "I have great news," she said. "We have a very healthy heartbeat, and I have more good news --- there are TWO very healthy heartbeats!" TWINS! Holy guacamole! Neither of us had any idea that it could be twins! The planner in me immediately started thinking of everything that this meant -- earlier due date, possible bed rest, possible NICU time for the babies, more space (and stuff) needed in the house, etc. I know George immediately thought of the increase in dollar signs! Ha! We came home so grateful, excited and a little speechless and scared. Not only had we been blessed with A baby, but God trusted us to be the parents of TWO babies AT ONCE!

 

 
It's funny how He has such a plan for every single person in this world. I don't think I really wrapped my mind around it until the infertility process. A great example is this one: We had debated back and forth that if we had to do IVF, whether we would put in one or two embryos. We came to the conclusion that we would just put in one embroyo. We weren't sure if we could handle twins! However, it was constantly on my mind that you have better chances with two and that since IVF is so expensive that it is really more cost effective to put two in, but we were pretty sure with our decision. Well in the two week window of the second, successful IUI, I had a complete change of heart about twins. All of the sudden, I really wanted twins. I felt like it would be manageable and something that would really be great for our families. I felt at peace with having twins, and not panicked or afraid. Fast forward four weeks to getting the official twin news, and I know that God was preparing my heart. He was teaching me to trust in him and that's what we've done since that day. Now, I cannot imagine having just one baby. I am so in love with my twins and the special bond that they will share that I can't stand it. Every day I give thanks for making us the parents of these sweet bundles of joy! His plan was greater than ANYTHING I could have ever imagined.

Month 1 & 2 Notes:

Symptoms: Morning (or really all-day) Sickness! I never threw up, but there was a major queasiness ALL DAY long and plenty of gagging and dry heaving. I also was very tired, and thankful to have the month of July off to lay on the couch, which I did daily.

Cravings: Nothing! Food didn't sound good at all, but the less I ate the sicker I felt. My biggest food turn-off was chicken, especially Chickfila. How sad is that?!

Weight Gain: Maybe a pound or two, but nothing crazy.

Looking Pregnant?: Not really, although towards weeks 7 and 8, I felt like my body looked different but no one else could tell.

Pregnancy Photos:

Week 8:

Sonogram Photos:

Week 6:
 

 

 

Week 8:

 

His Perfect Timing

Something I failed to mention in the update posts is our desire and struggle to start a family. It all started in August of 2011. I remember this day and specific moment so clearly. George and I were going for a walk around our neighborhood and we started talking about having a baby. It had been a topic of conversation for a few months, but nothing definite was ever decided. "Why don't you just stop taking birth control, and we'll see what happens, " George suggested. I had been apprehensive and almost afraid of the thought of having a baby, but this time it felt like the right time. "I agree," I said. And we decided that I would not start my birth control again that month. Anyone that knows me knows that I am a planner. By October, I couldn't just "see what happens" anymore. If we were trying to get pregnant, we were going all in. George was more than on board, and I started buying ovulation predictor kits and tracking my cycle. I knew I'd be pregnant soon.
 
November, December, and then 2012 rolled around and nothing. Then school was ending, and I decided to call my ob/gyn. I went in for blood work and everything checked out fine. Before starting clomid (and because of my endometriosis), she wanted me to have a hysterosalpingogram (HSG), which is an x-ray test that looks at the inside of the uterus and fallopian tubes and checks for blockages. Before starting the process of getting pregnant, I had no idea how time sensitive everything was. I couldn't have the test that month because we had missed the window of my cycle. We discussed doing the test in October and starting clomid in November, since I didn't want to have a summer baby and miss the beginning of school starting. In October I had the not-so-fun HSG (take Advil before ladies, and maybe have a glass of wine!), and then started 50mg of clomid in November. Between June and November, we were still tracking my cycle and pinpointing the days I was ovulating. It made no sense to me why I wasn't pregnant. I had blood work done every month to confirm that I was indeed ovulating. It was puzzling and frustrating! After a month of 50mg of clomid, we bumped my dosage up to 100mg. That month I didn't ovulate and I heard some tough words from the nurse, "I am not sure what else we can do for you. It may be time to see a specialist." The tears flowed heavily, and I decided it was time to switch ob/gyns. I had wanted to do this eventually since mine was about 30 minutes away. We made an appointment with Dr. Karen Benz, and she added progesterone to my 100mg clomid cocktail. After another unsuccessful month, we added estrogen to the mix and finally in April 2012 (after 17 months) after upping my clomid dosage to 150 mg and having me on estrogen and progesterone, she suggested that I see a reproductive endocrinologist. No one could tell me why we weren't getting pregnant. Every test I took was fine. George had been tested multiple times and was fine. There was no logical explanation as to why we weren't pregnant. I prayed and pleaded and begged for a baby. I began to wonder if I'd ever be able to give George a biological child. Infertility is not fun, folks!

We saw Dr. Kauffman at Fort Worth Fertility at end of April. We saw him for our consult on a Thursday, and left for our wine country trip on Friday. Talk about perfect timing! Dr. Kauffman wanted to try two months of inter uterine insemination (IUI) with clomid, estrogen, progesterone plus daily injections that I would give myself in my stomach. If that didn't work, we would move on to invitro fertilization (IVF). Game on! We were so ready. We began at the beginning of May. I went in for a baseline ultrasound and then started the baby-making cocktail. I went in almost daily to check the growth and progress of my eggs. On day 12, we had 2 great eggs and 2 more potentially great eggs, so we scheduled my insemination for the next day. I went home, ate dinner, gave myself a big shot in the stomach and went to bed. The next afternoon, Dr. K performed the insemination and now we would have to wait two weeks. It was the end of the school year, which thankfully kept my mind off of everything. I still dreamed about our February 2014 baby and thought about holidays, maternity leave and they nursery. I went in for my blood work on May 31st and eagerly waited for good news. Unfortunately, my phone call wasn't good news. "I am sorry but you are not pregnant," the nurse told me. I sobbed uncontrollably and called George. I felt so done with it all -- done with the fertility drugs, planning, shots, empty feeling. I told George that I didn't want to do another IUI. I was ready to move on. Time heals most wounds and after a weekend at home and just simply time, I felt better. Dr. Kauffman called over the weekend and said he felt like we should give IUI one more shot. It was a tenth of the cost of IVF, so we agreed. I never thought it would work. We began preparing for the financial burden that was IVF and figuring our how we would pay for it. I started up the daily medicines and shots again and ultrasounds. We finally had the insemination on June 17th. We had two good eggs, and another one possibly. During the two week wait, we went on vacation and I got lots of chores done. I didn't feel pregnant at all.

Against my better judgement on Friday, June 28th, I decided to take a pregnancy test. It was almost the weekend and I wanted to have a glass of wine if I wasn't pregnant. My blood test was scheduled for Monday. George was in the shower when I took the test and I didn't even tell him I was taking it. After a few minutes, I took a look and saw a very faint second line! I took it to him in the shower and he confirmed --- it was a line! I felt so cautiously optimistic. I couldn't let myself get excited. I took another test on Saturday morning and the line was darker and then a digital test on Saturday afternoon and it said, "PREGNANT!" I couldn't believe that our dream of starting a family was finally
becoming a reality!

On Monday, I went in for blood work and got the good news about 4:00p.m. I was indeed pregnant. My beta was 145, which the nurse said was not unusually high as to suggest multiples. I had to go back in 48 hours later to make sure the numbers were doubling and then a week later. I prayed more in those 10 days than I probably ever have. Each time, I got good news. My numbers were going up and I was pregnant! I would go in for an ultrasound on July 19th to hear the heartbeats. We decided we would tell our families at that time. I could not believe that my dream was coming true! We were having a baby! George put it best: "I have never been more happy in my life!" This was indeed done in His perfect timing and as we do with all of our blessings, we give so much thanks to Him.

2013 - Part 1

We've made it to 2013! It's been a wonderful year, one that we will never forget! I'll recap the first six months of this year, before resuming monthy updates, and hopefully staying on track!

January
- Cotton Bowl - The Aggies played OU in the Cotton Bowl at Cowboys Stadium. George organized a huge tailgate for his company with their tailgate trailer. It was a huge success! His company had a suite and we were able to watch the Aggies BTHO OU in style! In the words of George's customer after the epic win: "(I've been an Aggie for countless years and) it hasn't ever been any better than this!" WHOOP! What a special season!

- Chevron Houston Marathon - On January 13th, I ran my first marathon in Houston. It was an experience that I cannot even begin to describe. I have never worked so much and sacrificed so much for anything in my life. Running consumed my life in the fall. EVERYTHING had to be planned around running and my sweet friends and family pretended to care every time I posted how many miles I had ran. The words of encouragement and support were so inspiring and really pushed me through the tough and painful runs. I injured my IT band and developed runners knee about six weeks before the marathon, so the last few weeks were tough. I am so thankful for Stacy and her willingness to not only leave her family to come down to Houston to cheer me on, but jump in at mile 20 to really help push me to the end. The 20-mile wall that is talked about in marathons is NO JOKE! It's real, people! She was just the burst of energy and encouragement that I needed. A special thanks to all of my cheerleaders: Mom, Dad, Aunt Dixie, Cortney, Kim, Matt, Colleen, Taryn, Megan and of course, my George. I could not dream up a more supportive husband. George has zero interest in running, yet he was so interested, suppot rtive and encouraging up until I crossed the starting line. I am a blessed girl! My official time was 5:21 -- not great, but definitely a good starting point and something to beat next time!

 

- Matt & Cortney Tie the Knot - The last weekend in January was a special one, as Matt and Cortney officially became Mr. and Mrs. The weekend was so much fun and spent with wonderful family and friends. Cortney thought of every detail and the wedding was stunning, just like her! As my sweet father inlaw said, "The Buckmaster circle is finally complete."

February
- Cowtown - This month was a whole lot less eventful! We ran the Cowtown for our fourth consective year. My knee was still on the mend from the marathon, so I took it pretty slow and easy which was fine by me. At the conclusion of the race, I got a phone call that rocked my world. Without reliving the details (but still wanting to document), JoAnna had been in an accident and was in a hospital in Houston. Stacy and I drove down on Monday night to bring our girl home, and I am so thankful that Jo recovered like a rockstar and is doing so well. Not that we would expect anything else from her -- she's pretty amazing! I have to say that the whole experience made me realize how much Jo brings to my life and the importance of slowing down and making time to spend with those that you love. I am so thankful for JoAnna and Stacy -- my DFW sisters!

 

March
- St. Patty's Day - We celebrated this springtime holiday in Fort Worth this year at the block party on West 7th. We had a great time with Jeff, Erin, Kyle and later Lindsey and Brian.

- Springlike Weather - I love March and the weather that it brings! It was starting to feel more like spring in the metroplex, and I had a week off for spring break. It is so nice to have a week to catch up on chores and errands and just catch my breath. I am thankful for a job that allows these frequent breaks!

April
- Birthdays - Here we go with the birthdays again! George organized a surprise birthday dinner for me on a Friday night. My parents were coming into town already for Laura's surprise 60th, and I was so happy they were able to be a part of the fun. Thanks to all who came and celebrated: Emily, Kyle, Theresa, Van, Courtney, Anne, Tyler, Lindsey, Brian, my parents, Rachel, Dom and George. What a nice surprise! Then the next weekend, JoAnna and Stacy acted as my personal shoppers and we had a full shopping day at the Galleria to prepare for my upcoming wine country trip. It was so much fun! We also threw Laura a surprise 60th birthday in Granbury, wished Matt birthday wishes from afar and celebrated Rachel's birthday at the end of the month.

- Half Marathon - Stacy and I ran our second half marathon together - the Big D Half Marathon! We weren't as fast this time, which was totally my fault. I was still having knee pain from the marathon. We had a great, HOT, run and enjoyed brunch at Breadwinners afterwards!

- Wine Trip - One of the perks of George's job is that occasionally we get to go on pretty great trips. Each year in Sonoma County, they have Passport Weekend. Basically, you purchase a wine "passport" and can visit any of the wineries in it for wine and food pairings. The food is fabulous, and it's a fun weekend of nonstop eating and drinking wine. That's pretty much my paradise! Luckily, the group of couples that traveled together had a great time and meshed so well. I had a wonderful time!

May
- Jo's Birthday- Jo turned 30! We celebrated at Del Frisco's Grille and with drinks in Uptown. Jo looked so fabulous and had a great time!

- End of School - School is out for the summer! As ready as I was for a break, I was so sad to send this group of bumblebees off to first grade. This was such a special group of kids and parents and I enjoyed every minute with them over the year. There were so many times that I took a step back and felt so lucky that I was actually being paid to work with them every day. It was a great year!

June
- Anniversary - We celebrated our fifth wedding anniversary! Time flies when you are having fun! It seems like just yesterday we were on our honeymoon and here are we five years later. I am so thankful for such a wonderful man to stand by my side in this crazy life! He surprised me with a new wedding band! I was completely shocked, in fact, I didn't think it was real when I opened the box. Three years after I lost mine in the lake, I was a real wife again!

- Wedding - We traveled to Destin for a quick weekend to watch Chad and Tonya tie the knot! It was a fun weekend at the beach, although we were too busy to really enjoy it. Congratulations to the George's!

Our 2012 Recap

Moving along to 2012!

January
- I hosted Hilary Hymer's baby shower for sweet Jackson at our house.
- We went skiing with Van and Courtney in Angel Fire, NM. We both had a much more successful ski trip than Whistler last year. Angle Fire is a much better mountain for inexperienced skiers -- it even has as a green that I was able to get down by the end of the trip!

February 
- Happy 1st Birthday, Molly and Luke!
- We ran our third annual Cowtown 10K. This time, we had Van, Courtney and Kyle join along. It was a fun day filled with running, Fred's and Rahr!

 

March
- St. Patty's Day in Dallas!
- I met my girlfriends from high school (Cortney, Megan, Taryn, Kellye, Jenna, and Claire) in Surfside for a fun girls' weekend. We had a blast talking, laughing, getting sun and spending much needed time together.

April
- Birthdays Galore! My goodness, our family has a lot of April birthdays. Here's the roll call: Lindsey, Laura, Matt, Taylor and Rachel! Our gift budget takes a significant hit in April! :)

 

May
- Matt and Cortney are engaged! It was such an exciting weekend. Matt and I had been scheming the whole week. I was so anxious that he wasn't going to get the ring in time, or that we weren't going to come up with the perfect plan but we did! He told Cortney that he was coming to the metroplex for the weekend. She was not overly happy about this because they had not spent very much time together lately. We got a manicure Saturday morning and then were off to lunch at Lucy's. I was panicking because lunch wasn't taking as long as I needed it to in order to have her at her parent's house at the appropriate time. Thankfully it all worked out, and she said YES!

June/July/August
- Summertime is here! After a tiring school year, I was ready for a break! I didn't get too much of a break, because my school decided to make the other campus the primary only campus, so I had to pack up my room and unpack once again!
- Holy Marathon! I registered for the Houston Marathon lottery and got in! Training would start in the fall for my first 26.2 race ever. It was equally exciting and terrifying!
- We had many wedding festivities for Rachel, including her bachelorette party, D/FW shower, and finally her BEAUTIFUL wedding in July! She was such a beautiful bride, and I was beyond honored to be her Matron of Honor.
- George and I celebrated our fourth anniversary in June and took a late anniversary trip to San Francisco and Sonoma County in July. We had a great time just spending time together, and getting away from the every day craziness.

 

September/October
- Football season! We enjoyed our first season as members of the SEC! We attended the Florida, Arkansas, and LSU games at Kyle Field and traveled to Shreveport to see the Aggies play LA Tech and Auburn with Al and Stacy for AU game. We loved seeing a new stadium and college town. The people of Auburn are wonderful and so warm and friendly. We enjoyed getting to try Toomer's Lemonade and seeing Stacy's family. I didn't even let a terrible MRSA staph infection ruin the trip, although it tried at moments.
- Marathon training began for my big race in January. I followed Hal Higdon's marathon 3 plan, which had three runs each week. On the weekends we were home, my Friday happy hours and nights out quickly were traded in for early nights and substancial meals so that I could get up early and get in my runs before the football games started.

November
- Stacy, Lindsey and I ran the FW 1/2 Marathon! It was Stacy's first half marathon and my third. She did an awesome job! I was so proud of her. We enjoyed a nice brunch at Cowtown Diner after our run. 
- Cortney's bachelorette party was held in New Orleans and we had a BLAST! I loved seeing Cortney, her sisters, Kali, Megan and Taryn and of course, devouring the yummy cajun cruisine. I introduced them to oysters at Draggo's and I think they're as hooked as I am!
- We hosted another Thanksgiving at our house! Again, I loved having both sides of our families together. We are so lucky that they act as one big family that's been "united" forever!
- Football and Running - These two things were totally consuming my life at this point. The Aggies had a pretty special football season, including beating the number one team in the nation (Alabama) at their stadium.

December
- The HTS Christmas Party in Houston was 80's themed this year. Anyone who knows me knows I HATE looking silly and dressing in costume, but oh well! We were able to watch our quarterback, Johnny Manziel, win the Heisman Trophy becoming the first freshman ever and the second Aggie ever to win it. Amazing!
- We took part in many other Christmas activities including: decorating the house, a Christmas lights tour, and time with friends and family.
- Rachel graduated from SMU with her masters! Amazing!!!
- We spent Christmas with my family, and enjoyed our time with them so much.