Grammy and Pops Christmas and Our Surprise Announcement!

I've been working on this post forever!!! Lets just say Landon and I are about to take our computer out and do to it what they did to the copy machine in Office Space!!!

I found this adorable Advent Santa calendar I thought would be fun for Brielle to do. He was $50 but after some negotiating because of a missing knob and some other discounts I got him for $7 BAM! I thought it would help her visually see how many days until Christmas there was and to incorporate the story of Jesus birth everyday until Christmas.  When we would put her to bed at night she would say " Maybe if I go to sleep 3 more times, then it will be CHRISTMAS!"


She enjoyed getting a little gift everyday (dinosaurs & Christmas erasers) and reading the bible verse.

Our first Christmas began at Aunt Carols house, Landon's Aunt on his dads side of the family.

His other Aunt Carol (yes he has two) and Jack were still in town to celebrate with us.

 

 

Looks like everyone was especially good this year!

Especially this little one!

 

Grammy had just had knee surgery a couple days before and we were very happy she was able to be with us and doing well!

 

Trent sitting Brielle on his knee and asking her what she wants for Christmas....or maybe what her life long goals are......Trent likes to make sure everyone has a plan haha!

Time to open presents!

Brielle asked for 3 things this year...a camera, a choo choo train and a bicycle.
Gigi and Gannpa got her a camera.

Baby Chloes first Christmas!

 

 

 Aunt Carol makes us chocolate covered pretzels every year normally shipped from Idaho but since she was here this year she handed them out personally to us...I had to hide mine quick from Emily in my purse.........you know you would have stole them! HA

 

 

My two sweeties, and a creeper in the background.

After we opened gifts it was game time.  Last year we played the "LEFT RIGHT" game.  Everyone gets a gift box and I read a story, every time I either said left or right they'd pass the box in that direction.  Got a little crazy, couple boxes got dropped but the surprise wasn't ruined.  Last year everyone got a pack of gum and one person won a gift card. 

We thought it would be the most fun way to announce our baby news at each family Christmas.
Since we did the game last year nobody suspected what was on the inside!!!
I always thought it would be super fun to surprise everyone with a pregnancy at Christmas time, and it just worked out that we did!!!

It took everyone FOREVER it felt like to read the note!!!  Emily was the first to realize what it said, she threw herself  back on the couch and screamed at the top of her lungs!!!  I think she even kick her legs up in the air ha. It was the BEST reaction!!  Everyone else looked at her wondering what she had won lol!
 I tried getting pictures but my camera wouldn't focus.  We got video though!

After our big surprise Emily and I had planned one more game.  Guess that Christmas song.  We would read a clue such as "The event that occurred at one minute after 11:59pm with visibility unlimited." The first to blurt the answer out "It came upon a midnight clear" won a prize.  We had to put a cap on the number of prizes people could win cause we had some smart cookies in that bunch aka GRAMMY!

 

Then it was on to battle of the sexes.  I'm no good at that game.  Trent was really into it.  Landon and I made fun of him, just a little bit behind his back. This is what he would do........He'd read the clue then announce "Ok, I'm gonna read it again."  and he'd read it again.  He did that every time it was his turn in a very leaderish take charge kind of voice ha!

 

While we played games the kids played in the rooms with toys and watched a movie.

I feel extremely blessed to have so much family to celebrate the Holidays with.  

We Are PREGNANT again!!!

We are PREGNANT!!!

What a BLESSING!  What a special post this is!  You only get a couple great surprises in your life and I am overwhelmed with thankfulness that I get to write a post like this!

With Brielle we got preggo the first try! Super Easy.

This little one took us 5 months.  We knew God would have the perfect timing and we had faith in him.  

But boy, when you want a baby you want a baby! 

Each negative pregnancy test broke our hearts just a little bit more.  

I was a hardly a day late but I ran out anyway and got a pregnancy test.  I didn't even wait till morning I tested right then!  I was elated when I saw that plus sign!!!  I stood in the bathroom, 

raised my hands to my God ,cried and thanked him over and over again!  He's just so good, all the time!

I didn't want to wait to tell Landon.  This was election night.  We were all bummed, so what better way to make the election completely unimportant to us and  lift everyone's spirits but with this little blessing.

I got out the video camera (hoping my mom was still up too but she and gone to bed) and began video taping.  I asked what he thought of the election.  Then he asked me what I thought.... I said WHO CARES!!I'M PREGNANT!!! and busted out the positive pregnancy test.  Landon's eyes got huge! 

He couldn't believe it!

 

I was going to tell my mom that weekend and surprise her with a cake that said baby Gann 2013 like we did with Brielle.   As the days went on we decided to wait to tell anyone else.  I know many many other people try for years to have a baby and 5 months is nothing to most, but it was a bit of a shock to us because it happened so easily the first time and we expected the same this go round.  I had been taking my basil body temp and charting it and bought at home ovulation kits as well.  With all that said we were nervous to tell everyone so soon (we told with Brielle when I was only 5 weeks along) so we decided to keep it secret till I was farther along, just in case.
So no, my mom who is living with us had no idea....or so I think she doesn't ha.

   It's faint but it's there!!!


 I ran out right away and stocked up on everything a pregnant woman should be eating!

We forget everyday that I'm pregnant!  With Brielle it was the only thing I thought about and Landon too.  I guess we have her now so our minds are a bit occupied and we just aren't as scared and worried the 2nd time around.  No need to pile up on books and take classes.  We've got this!  I never had a feeling of what it might be with Brielle, I told myself boy cause I wanted a girl so bad and didn't want to be dissapointed.  Well I don't have a feeling this time either but every time I think about being pregnant "boy" pops into my head.  Kinda funny.

 

The biggest joy in all of this is that Landon and I will be giving Brielle the greatest gift of all, a sibling.
She's going to be the best big sister I just know it and can't wait to see them together!

Oh and since I was keeping close track of my ovulation days....I knew exactly when I conceived.
  Hey we're planners, can't help ourselves!
This may be TMI for some but I want to remember everything!
Brielle was conceived...February 6th
Baby number 2........October 25th which happens to be Brielle's birthday.......how sweet is that!

 

Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4

It's A Wonderful Life!

I found out that the Main Street Grapevine theater was doing Christmas movies here and there throughout December .  I thought it would be a fun way to spend some time with my mom so I told her  to take off early one night and surprised her with one of her favorite movies.  I didn't tell her what we were going to watch so she was super excited when it started.  I'd never seen it but it was really cute.
 

Darn if I had noticed the balcony when we walked in we would have sat there!

 

How cute are these little lover seats!

Afterwards we walked around and looked at all the beautiful lights.

It was the best night! Just what we needed!

Brielle loves to come outside and watch Santa inflate.
She tells us every night..."It's dark, time to wake up Santa!"


Santa's awfully big so she give him a helping hand.

Here she is giving him a pep talk, telling him

"You can do it!!"

Flower Mound Christmas Parade

My mom and I took B to the Flower Mound Christmas parade.  It was just a few blocks from our house.
 

Are they coming yet?

ELF!

 

Cute little flashlights this a church handed out.

Ok so I know band is supposed to be dorky but our band at Marcus High School apparently the bomb!  They win state a lot so I was excited to see them march.

 

 

 

We sat a block away from where the parade was supposed to end.  So when we go there I got kinda sad for Brielle thinking nobody would have any candy left.  Not that she eats all this, most will get thrown away but it's fun for her to gather it up.  Well that wasn't the case....people were either completely out of candy or still had so much cause they didn't want to give it all away a the beginning that they would just give us handfuls as they walked by.  This was our stash halfway through the parade.

Happy Girl!