Loaded Baked Potato

Have I told you all about my love of potatoes? I'll eat a potato in pretty much any form. I don't think you can do anything to a potato that I wouldn't like.

Still, one of the best ways to eat a potato is in its truest form--baked whole. We usually bake up a couple of potatoes as an easy dinner on a fairly regular basis, but just recently realized we hadn't done it in a while. In preparation for a busy weekend and on a night when we didn't have much time for cooking, we decided to bring the good ol' loaded baked potato back into the rotation. And I'm so glad, because I think I had forgotten just how much I love them!

You can vary the toppings based on what you like, but our favorite way to "dress" them is with a little butter/margarine, broccoli, some shredded cheddar, and Bacon Bits.

Whoa, baby.

This is not a complicated "recipe," but I'll include it just the same.

Loaded Baked Potato

Ingredients:
- Russet potatoes
- Broccoli crowns (or frozen broccoli)
- shredded cheddar cheese
- Bacon Bits (or bacon, cooked and crumbled)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

2. Wash potatoes. Pierce potatoes with a fork or knife. Microwave on high for 5-7 minutes, rotating halfway through cook time.

3. Wrap hot potatoes in foil. Place them on the center rack of your oven and bake for 15-20 minutes.

4. Remove potatoes from oven. Remove from foil and place on plate. Cut them down the center, then top with a little butter. Spoon broccoli, cheddar cheese and Bacon Bits on top.

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Upgrade. Then Upgrade Again.

I hate technology.

It sounds funny coming from a blogger and writer, right? From someone whose job relies on computers, the internet, and e-mail? I know it does. So let me explain.

The thing is that I really do *love* technology. I love shiny new electronics. When I started my job, I got a little giddy when they handed me a MacBook. I love new cameras and lenses. New iPods, TVs, cell phones, and even game consoles. If I'm walking by an Apple Store, I go in just to stare at the beauty of the iMac. I can't even tell you how badly I want to cancel our Verizon contract and switch to AT&T just so we can have iPhones.

But the reason I hate technology?

It seems that as soon as you buy it, it's not good enough anymore. For instance, the laptop from which I am writing this post is only three years old, but it may as well be a dinosaur. It runs as slow as hell, the 140 GB hard drive is constantly full, it freezes frequently, and the battery is completely dead and does not hold a charge. New computers these days offer twice as much memory, and hard drives are often 1 terabyte. TERABYTE! It's sickening.

I think the worst part of it all is that technology is so disposable. When we upgrade to the latest and greatest, there really isn't much you can do with the old stuff. Who wants a computer that barely works?

Aside from the computer situation (we're living on borrowed time, I fear... keeping our fingers crossed that this thing holds out), we are currently looking at video cameras.

I bought a video camera back in November 2001 when I was in college. At that time, they still used the little Hi8 tapes. I'm glad I have the footage that I have from those years, but it sucks to have to hook everything up to the TV and fast-forward through things in order to watch them.

At Christmas 2005, Michael bought me a DV (digital video) camera. It was amazing to be able to take video and then transfer it right to our computer. Video! That was digital!! Awesome. But now? Now, there are tiny little video cameras that take way better video (High Definition!) than we can, and they're relatively inexpensive, too.

*sigh*

And so it is time to upgrade again. We figure that with a new baby coming, we need something that will take the kind of video that we've become accustomed to seeing everywhere.

My DSLR camera actually takes HD video, which is awesome, but there are two drawbacks: 1) It's not as portable as the new video cameras available, and 2) You have to manually focus, so it is difficult to keep focused when you're following around moving subjects (i.e. toddlers!). Although we love that the DSLR has that capability and plan to continue using it, we need something that we can throw in a pocket, purse, or diaper bag and use on an everyday basis.

We're in the market for a "pocket" HD video camera. I've been collecting recommendations; does anyone have ones they want to share?

After some research and reading reviews, we've earmarked a couple of Kodak cameras as favorites:

The Zi8...

...or the Playsport (Zx3)

As far as I can tell (so far), the Playsport has the same features and specifications as the Zi8, except for one cool "extra"--it's waterproof up to 10 ft. deep! And given that it's in the same price range, why NOT go for the waterproof one? It appeals to us because of our vacations, but it's also kind of nice to know we can easily take video of our baby at "water babies" classes, in the kiddie pool, or even in the bath.

I've been looking into the Flip brand cameras as well, but all of the reviews I've found that compare the Flip to the Kodak always seem to pick Kodak as the "winner." And I saw some side-by-side comparison video and I think I like the result from the Kodak better.

Anyway, still open to hearing what you all have to say. Pocket cams in general--yea or nay? Specific cameras you like/dislike?

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32 Weeks: Not Wine, But Whine

I think I've been a really "positive" pregnant woman. When people ask me how I'm feeling, I always say "really good," and "great." In truth, I haven't had much reason to complain about anything. Aside from the anticipation of meeting our little one, I've enjoyed pregnancy and have even made a point to try not to wish it away.

SO... would it be horrible if I whined a little today?

Ever since--oh, I don't know... Friday?--something has shifted and things have changed.

First, let's observe:

32 Weeks Pregnant

Is it just me, or am I all of a sudden carrying this baby REALLY high? I feel like my ribs have been invaded. And that, my friends, is the source of much of my complaining these last few days. There's a general discomfort associated with having your organs squished up into your rib cage, along with an active baby who likes to practice somersaults in there. Shocking, right?

My totally comfortable, love-them-so-much full-panel maternity pants? Not so comfortable anymore. Not really loving them at the moment. The elastic band at the top of the panel cuts into the top of my belly (again, because it is SO HIGH), but if I fold it down, it feels like it cuts into the bottom of my belly. This is a no-win situation, I feel. The only solution, it seems, is to live in dresses and skirts for the next eight weeks. Not easy to do when you only have three dresses and two skirts.

Oh, and let's talk about my bra. My bra has turned into a torture device. I wish I was exaggerating. These bras that I bought in April to accommodate my growing pregnancy boobs, and thought would last until I had to switch to nursing bras? NOT SO MUCH. Because of this baby's migration up into my ribs, my rib cage is seemingly expanding, and the bra band, even on its loosest hooks, digs into me and makes me feel like I am wearing a corset around my ribs ALL DAY LONG. I just about cried last night when I went into Target to buy bra expanders only to find that they were completely out of stock. (I went and checked again today, and they were out again. *sob*) And let's not forget about the underwire! The underwire is taking up permanent residence in the skin at the top of my belly. At this rate, I think it's eventually going to leave permanent marks.

The problem is that I can't stand NOT to wear a bra, either. (Um, just to be clear, I'm talking about at home. I wouldn't subject poor, innocent members of the general public to the sight of THAT, I assure you.) So I suffer all day, right up until the moment I'm about to crawl into bed for the night. At that point, I can't even tell you how good it feels to be free of the constriction of the band and the discomfort of the underwire.

As if all of these developments haven't been enough to deal with over the last couple of days, I think it's time to officially retire my engagement/wedding rings. And maybe I'm hormonal, or maybe I'm just a sap, but it makes me want to cry because I *LOVE* my rings. Yes, I know they're just material possessions and don't actually mean anything when it comes to my marriage but I *LOVE* to wear them and I *HATE* my naked fingers.

*deep breath*

OK, now you can start to ship me mass quantities of cheese (cheddar, please!) to go with all of my WHINE. Because I know! I know I'm being a crybaby, and I'm only going to get bigger and more uncomfortable. But if any of you experienced pregnant ladies and/or mothers have any tips on how to get me through these last few weeks, I would love to hear about them.

Moving on, trying to return to my normal, chipper self...

We had a doctor's appointment this afternoon. I'm up 21 lbs. total, with approximately eight weeks to go. I'm really hoping I can stay at or under the 30 lb. mark for total gain, but we'll see how it goes. They say that you're supposed to gain at least a pound a week at this point of pregnancy, so if I stick to an average of a pound a week, that would put me right around that 30 lb. number when this is over. Everything else looks good. Really low blood pressure (she said it was 100/68!), good heartrate, and baby has done some catching up and I'm now measuring right on time again.

Last night, we finished our birth preparation classes. Now that they're done, I think I can be honest and say that they weren't tremendously beneficial. I don't regret taking them at all, as I do think it was nice to review everything and be given a few tools to help with the labor process, but it wasn't like I had any crazy "lightbulb moments" or anything like that. In related news, we did our hospital tour on Sunday. That was actually really nice, as it made us feel more comfortable knowing exactly where to park, where to go once inside, etc. We got to see one of the birthing center rooms and hear all about the hospital's processes and services. All good stuff to know.

Wrapping up... thank you so much to everyone who has entered the Heather Drive Baby Pool so far! It has been fun to see all of the guesses come pouring in, and I look forward to being at the point where the baby is out and we can determine a winner! :) One thing--if you entered and did NOT include an e-mail address, please let me know in the comments or via e-mail so I can go in and add your e-mail address for you. If you don't have an e-mail address attached to your entry, we won't be able to contact you if you win! And if you haven't entered a guess yet, what are you waiting for?

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Baby Pool & Vintage Apron Giveaway

The time has arrived! At 32 weeks pregnant with only 8 (maybe?) weeks to go, it is time to announce the start of the Heather Drive Baby Pool. And, we figure that a contest surrounding the birth of our baby is the perfect time to do our very first giveaway. In other words, if you make the best guesses? There are *prizes* to be won. :)

So here's the deal: Hop on over to our Heather Drive Baby Pool page on Expectnet.com and enter your guesses for our baby's sex, birth date and time, weight, and length. We'll leave it open to new entries until 9:00 p.m. EDT on Sunday, August 22, at which point the contest will be closed. (I'll be 36 weeks pregnant at that time.) Then, all we do is wait for the baby to be born. After that, I'll enter the baby's stats into the system, and Expectnet.com will determine a winner based on all of your entries.

Now you're probably wondering what you might win, right? Well, you're in luck because it is super cute, people. Etsy seller Terrace Hill has agreed to sponsor this contest, and she's offering one of her vintage aprons to the Heather Drive Baby Pool winner. Not only that, but I'm throwing in a copy of this Martha Stewart's Cupcakes book. So you'll have something to bake up in the kitchen AND you'll look cute while doing it!

How cute? Well, just take a look at some of these Terrace Hill aprons...

Every girl needs an apron, right? Gah, there are so many adorable ones that it is difficult to choose a favorite! Click on over to Terrace Hill's Etsy shop and take a look around, as the aprons are affordable and make unique gifts! And if you don't end up winning the pool, perhaps you'll still want to treat yourself. ;) Also consider becoming a fan of Terrace Hill Shop on Facebook so that you will be notified when new designs are added to the shop!

A couple of important things to note:

1) You do NOT need to register to enter a guess with Expectnet.com, so no worries. It is super simple! Enter on our Heather Drive Baby Pool page.

2) When you enter through Expectnet.com, YOU MUST ENTER A VALID E-MAIL ADDRESS in the "A phrase or two describing how you know the parents" field. Otherwise, we will have no way of validating who "Karen" or "Anne" is and will have no way of contacting you to let you know you have won.

3) If you are determined to be the winner, you will work directly with Chadley at Terrace Hill to arrange shipment of your apron. Also, you must choose among Terrace Hill's current stock of aprons at the time of the contest's official end (i.e. when you are notified).

4) Only one entry per person, please. Duplicate entries will be deleted.

5) Make sure to enter a guess for ALL of the fields (sex, birthday, time, weight, height), otherwise you will be hurting your chances at winning!

6) The contest is open to all, whether you live here in the U.S., or outside of it. My international readers are more than welcome to participate! :)

7) Again, all entries MUST be entered into the Expectnet.com system by Sunday, August 22 at 9 p.m. EDT. The contest will be closed to entries at that time.

8) You'll notice that Michael and I have entered our own guesses. We are just as clueless as all of you (we don't even have any "feelings" about the sex of the baby), so we thought it would be fun to venture guesses of our own. However, please rest assured that we are NOT eligible to win.

Questions? Please ask in the comments. Also, if you just HAVE to know whether my pillow faces north or south in order to make your guesses, ask those types of things in the comments as well. ;)I'll answer everything in the comments so everyone is privy to the same information!

A few basics: The due date calculated by my doctor's office is September 18. The due date calculated based on my ovulation chart is September 19. I was 10 days early, and Michael was born on his due date. (Supposedly this stuff is supposed to help? HA!)

We look forward to your participation and seeing all of the entries come rolling in. Happy guessing!

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Toddlin'

I've mentioned before how difficult it has been to take actual portraits of Hunter lately. We attempted some one-year photos just prior to his actual birthday, but he was so go-go-go that I didn't get too much that I was happy with. At the time, I promised Kara that we would try again later in the summer.

While we were in the Poconos earlier this month, I tried to take advantage of some of the beautiful surroundings in the garden there and snap some photos then. Again, didn't get anything spectacular (i.e. smiling AND looking at the camera), but what we did get was a series of photos that really capture his personality at this stage. And in the end, isn't that really what it's all about?

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Born to Chill

Earlier this week, my mom sent me this photo we took of Hunter on her BlackBerry while we were in the Poconos. I had completely forgotten about it and I almost died from the cuteness, all over again. See what I mean?

Look at him kicking back with his bottle, with his feet crossed, and gripping onto his favorite toy fork. We did not pose him, this is the way he was lying on his own. Apparently he lies with his feet crossed like that all of the time. And I JUST CANNOT HANDLE THE LEVEL OF CUTE.

Please God, let our child be HALF this "chill." Hunter's such an easy-going kid, and I'm terrified that statistically, Michael and I will end up with the terror of the family.

And with that, I wish you nice, relaxing weekends of your own. Kick back with your bottles beer/margaritas/wine/drink of choice, put your feet up, and unwind. :)

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Growth Ultrasound

We had the growth ultrasound this morning, and I'm happy to say that everything looks good!

This is the best "photo" we got. It's the profile of the head, and you can see the little nose. Underneath the nose, the baby has its hand up by its mouth. Perhaps we have a thumb-sucker on our hands? :)

At the anatomy scan at 19 weeks, I was easily able to decipher the different body parts. The legs, the feet, the arms, the hands, the ribs, the spine... it was all clear as day. Now? Not so much. Everything is so smooshed in there that all of the body parts overlap and I couldn't tell what the heck we were looking at half the time. The tech was all, "Here I'm measuring the leg bone..." and I was thinking, "What? Really?" because it looked nothing like a leg. At one point, she was up by the face and was pointing out the baby's features. Here's the eyelid, here are the nostrils, etc. CRAZY.

All of the baby's individual measurements were right on track for between 31 and 33 weeks (depending on the body part), so that was perfect. Then they used all of those measurements to come up with an estimated weight, which she said was about 4 lbs. That's in the 58th percentile for this gestational age, so it was great news. She also took a lot of pics of the heart, listened to the heartbeat, checked the flow of blood through the umbilical cord, and measured the amount of amniotic fluid. She indicated that everything went really well. She also said that my placenta is up high in my uterus, meaning that it will not get in the way of anything. Awesome.

We'll get the official "all clear" once our doctor has time to study all of the results. We have an appointment on Tuesday so I'm sure we'll hear about it then.

Needless to say, hearing everything is OK was a big relief!

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31 Weeks: I Gotta Pee

I've been a bit of a nervous wreck today. We have the growth ultrasound tomorrow. While I've been really calm about the whole situation since my doctor first mentioned it last week, for some reason, now that it's upon us, I'm apprehensive. I'm ready to be reassured. I want to know that I'm doing right by my baby and that he/she is growing properly. Tomorrow morning, I guess we'll know!

31 Weeks Pregnant

Look! I finally got my hair cut/highlighted! IT'S A MIRACLE! Goodbye, roots! Also, isn't it funny how certain clothes can make you look more pregnant than others? I feel like this one makes me look very pregnant. Anyway...

Peeing. It's one of those things that everyone knows about a pregnant woman: She always has to pee. What's funny is that if I'm sitting, I can usually go for several hours without a bathroom break, even if I'm drinking water. But the minute I stand up? Gotta pee. I could almost ALWAYS pee at this point. It's even worse when I walk. In fact, I can barely make it through our 3-mile walking route now, simply because I can't go an hour of walking without needing to pee. And sleeping? HA! I'm up probably 3-4 times a night now, just to stumble into the bathroom. 'Tis fun. And this is supposedly going to continue getting worse until the baby drops down into my pelvis just a few weeks before delivery. Yikes!

I'm a nesting fool these days. Not every day, but when I get the itch? Watch out. On Sunday, we were on the hunt for small shelves for the nursery wall. When they were out of stock at the first place we tried, I couldn't take it. I don't know how to explain it, but it's just like I CANNOT BE SATISFIED unless the thing that I just HAVE to do is DONE. In this case, it was shelves. I dragged poor Michael all over town before we found what we were looking for. Thankfully, he was a good sport about it. It made me feel so crazy, though--my rational mind was saying, "just wait until the shelves are back in stock!" but my pregnant, nesting mind was all, "No. MUST. FIND. SHELVES. NOW."

We had another birth prep class last night. We practiced a few more breathing techniques, talked about the most common reasons for c-sections, learned about some of the medication options that will be available to us during labor, and watched a few videos about labor and delivery. I wouldn't say I'm really nervous about giving birth--at least not yet. Instead, I'm curious about it. I'm wondering how it's going to work out for me. I want to go for as long as I can without pain meds, but am not against getting something if I need it. I wonder what I'll be able to handle, and how things will turn out. I think it's the unknown that fascinates me, as it seems like it could go so many different ways. And whenever the instructor talks about going to the hospital, being in labor, delivering the baby... all it really does is make me excited, because when we're at that point, we'll be so close to meeting our child!

We ordered our stroller last week, and over the weekend, we ordered our first cloth diaper supplies (yes, we're cloth diapering--more on that as we get closer!). The nursery is coming together, but I think I need to wait until after my second baby shower (August 7) before finishing it off as best we can before the baby gets here. I'll hopefully be able to share some pictures then, even though it won't be TOTALLY finished until after the baby is born. We have a few final touches that we plan to add, but how we do it depends on whether the baby is a boy or a girl. So those have to wait.

As of yesterday, we have exactly two months to go...

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Cherish

It's really hard not to wish a pregnancy away.

During the first trimester, you're so consumed by the anxiety associated with potential miscarriage, or with the sickness that takes over your body, that you will the days away. You wish you could go to sleep and suddenly wake up at 13 weeks, when your chances of a healthy pregnancy are significantly increased, and your stomach gradually settles again.

In the second trimester, you can't wait to look pregnant. You can't wait to feel your child kick, flip, and roll inside of you. You can't wait for the ultrasound that will reveal (if you choose) whether you're having a son or a daughter. You look forward to 20 weeks because you're halfway there; then you long for week 24, which marks viability.

Finally, when you're in your third trimester, you count down the weeks and days until your due date, unable to contain the excitement you feel about meeting your baby. You can't wait to see his or her face, to determine whether he has your nose, or if she has your husband's eyes. You ache to kiss his tiny ear; you long to count her fingers and toes. You spend time standing in the nursery you've prepared, running your fingertips over the small diapers and socks, just waiting for the day they'll belong to a baby. Your baby.

It is only when you step back and take a moment to breathe that you realize just how precious these months are. When it is over, you will never again carry your baby this closely to you. You will no longer feel every kick, every hiccup, every stretch. You won't have your baby with you every hour, every minute, every second of every day.

And life, it is about to change. We will never again have the level of freedom to do what we want to do--with ourselves, with our time, with our money--as we do right now. (Or, we will... someday. But not for a very long time.) In a handful of weeks, it will no longer be just the two of us and our pup. There will be someone else here, a little someone who will dictate how things run around here.

When I think of meeting this baby, I am overwhelmed with excitement. But when I think of how things will change forever, I'll admit to being somewhat scared. I feel such conflict over wanting to get to "three" so quickly while also wanting to so deeply cherish every minute that we have left as "two." And perhaps a baby takes nine months to get here just to teach us that lesson. To learn patience in the face of anticipation, and to treasure the moments that we will never have again.

This pregnancy thing? It is beautiful.

We should not wish it away.

I'm really trying not to.

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Two

...to Heather Drive! The blog is two years old today.

Thank you to all of you who continue to support the blog by visiting, reading, and commenting. It is much appreciated and means a lot to me. Keeping up with it has been difficult for me lately, but knowing all of you are out there keeps me coming back to post.

Most exciting of all is that approximately two months from now, we'll be adding a new member to the Heather Drive family! :)

I hope you all have fabulous weekends.

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30 Weeks: Measuring Small

I don't know how I could possibly be small, as I feel absolutely huge these days.

30 Weeks Pregnant

As I've mentioned, I'm now in the stage of pregnancy during which I visit the doctor every two weeks. The appointments are very quick--urine check, weight check, blood pressure check, belly measurement, and a quick listen to the heartbeat. Questions. Then we're on our merry way.

My last appointment was on Friday, July 2, and I was 28w5d pregnant. At that appointment, I was up 16 lbs. from my pre-pregnancy weight, and my belly was measuring right on target at 29 centimeters (your uterus is supposed to measure as many centimeters as you are weeks pregnant).

Today, two weeks later (well, 11 days in this case), I was up two more pounds (I'm up a total of 18 lbs., if you're keeping track). It's normal to gain about 1-2 lbs. a week in this stage of pregnancy, so that's normal. When the doctor came in and measured my belly, she said it was 29 centimeters. I didn't think much of it at all, as it's only one centimeter off from where I'm supposed to be. So, no big deal, right?

Well, that's what I thought, until she looked at my chart and said, "You know, I'm actually going to send you for a growth ultrasound. Even though you've gained two pounds, your belly hasn't shown any growth since last appointment. I want to make sure the baby is growing as it should, and ensure that the baby has enough fluid." Since I've been measuring RIGHT on track throughout this entire pregnancy and I have all of a sudden fallen a bit behind, there is a little bit of concern.

Cue the internal mommy panic! My doctor was very nonchalant about it, so I feel *pretty* good about the situation, but still... it's so much nicer to hear that everything is perfect. Also, my ultrasound is scheduled for next Wednesday (more than a week away), and I know that if there were something really wrong, there's no way they would let me go that long.

Even so, I'm having mommy guilt. All afternoon, I've been thinking--I wonder if I've done something wrong. Am I not eating healthy enough? Am I not drinking enough fluids? I keep waking up on my back in the middle of the night... is that restricting blood flow to my baby? In my mind, surely I must be causing this to happen. My common sense tells me that my doctor is just being extra cautious, but GAHHH. I just want to know that everything is OK.

On the bright side, we get to sneak a peek at the baby again. I wasn't expecting to have another ultrasound at all, and since we haven't seen the little one since 19 weeks, it'll be interesting to see him/her again. I'm crossing my fingers that everything looks beautiful and we don't need to go through this again! Until then, I'm counting down the days until next Wednesday.

In other news, we started our birth preparation classes last night. The class is only three weeks--we'll go for three consecutive Monday nights for 2.5 hours. Last night, we talked about some of the basics: some of the symptoms we're all experiencing this late in pregnancy, the stages of labor, the way babies come through the pelvis, etc. We also worked on the first breathing technique, and did a relaxation exercise. It was interesting and it's nice to be reminded/reassured of things, even if I've heard or read about them before. The class was made up of seven couples, including us. Two of them actually have the same due date as we do, so that was kind of funny.

Also at my appointment today, my doctor felt around to try to determine the position of the baby. I've been suspecting the baby is head down and that his/her back is on the right side of my belly, as the right always feels more firm than my left. I also feel most of the BIG movement on my right side, so I figured that just HAD to be the back/butt side. It turns out I was right! She said that the baby is still capable of flipping him/herself around at this point, but by 34 weeks, they like the baby to be in a consistent head-down position. I'm pretty sure my baby is already there, but there's really no telling what some of those big movements are that I feel.

Going by the books, baby is about 3 lbs. now, and his/her eyesight is developing. Brain and lungs continue to develop as well, obviously! But we'll get a better idea of our baby's actual size after the growth ultrasound next week. Baby remains active; I feel him/her moving around much of the day. Still amazing!

Oh, and I'm totally celebrating the fact that I'm in the 30s now! Only 10 weeks to go. I feel like the next big milestone is 35 weeks... hopefully that will be here soon. :)

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Down and Out

Not surprisingly, Michael and I were two of the first people up this morning. We came down to find my mom at the kitchen table, though. We relaxed a bit while everyone else gradually made their way from their rooms, but after that, everyone was bustling around.

First, Marie and I made breakfast. I cooked up some pancakes (with the blueberries we picked yesterday, AMAZING!), while Marie did the bacon. I also heated up the hand pies in the oven. We all sat down for our feast, and then it was time to start loading up the cars to head out.

Michael remembered to snap a few photos of the newly-renovated house before we left:

Ah, it is so beautiful! I love it so much.

Then, we took our traditional photo beside the White Meadows sign (new sign this year, though--it'll take some getting used to, I think!):

Unfortunately, Susan and Vinny's kids weren't able to join us this year. It's so hard coordinating everyone's schedules! Even so, a great time was had by all, even though Doug and Nina were missed.

We'll definitely be back next year. (And next time, Michael and I will have a baby--possible toddler??--in tow.) But man, I miss it already. A year seems far too long to wait to go back! :(

If you're interested in seeing photos and recaps from our past Poconos trips, click here.

The drive home wasn't too bad. Tessa slept THE ENTIRE TIME (tired girl!) and has continued to sleep like a rock since we've been home. I think it's going to take her a couple of DAYS to fully recover from her Poconos adventures!

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Country Livin'

From year to year, we pretty much do the exact same things when we come to the Poconos.

For instance, we always arrive late on Thursday night and stay up too late talking and laughing with each other. We always grill for dinner on Friday. We go out to breakfast at the same local diner on Saturday morning. And then we always make a big homemade breakfast before we leave on Sunday.

It's all about tradition, people.

So it should come as no surprise, then, that we went out to breakfast this morning. YUM. Once back at "the farm," we set out to enjoy another day outdoors. We didn't see much sunshine today, but it was still nice out and the temperature was much more comfortable than yesterday.

We spent some more time down by the pond. Tyler and Marie played fetch with Miller in the water. He loves it now, they can't keep him out! He was so good at swimming out to get his frisbee and bringing it right back in for more.

Well, he does have to work on giving it back a little easier. It turns out he's into "tug of war," too.

When he'd come out of the water, Sashi would approach him and try to take his frisbee. She wouldn't do any of the work to swim out there and get it, though! (Smart girl!)

While Miller swam, Michael ran Tessa up and down the hill. She loves to run, especially when she's experiencing complete "freedom" off of her leash!

I think the Poconos is Tessa's version of heaven.

We eventually walked back up to the house, and decided to go blueberry picking with Susan. There is a wild blueberry patch across the road, and we knew we'd want some berries to make pancakes for tomorrow morning. So Tyler, Marie, Michael, Susan, and I set out with the dogs to gather wild berries.

Picking blueberries is time consuming! I have major respect for the people who do this to supply our markets with berries. The greenery was super tall all around the blueberry patch, so Tessa had a bit of a hard time making her way through everything out there. We had to stomp down a path for our short-legged little girl! :)

Holding the share of blueberries that Michael and I picked. Each and every one of them are precious, as they were obviously picked by hand!

When we got back to the house... more sitting and chatting, of course! Tessa took the opportunity to rest:

I decided to do a mini photo shoot with Hunter in Susan's garden, but the boy is INSANE. He just does NOT. STOP. MOVING. I got a couple of cute ones, which I'll probably share here once I have time to edit them, but in the meantime, I figured I'd share some of the "outtakes" so you can see what it's like to photograph a VERY ACTIVE almost-14-month-old.

Too busy to look at me.

Cute shots of his backside are much easier to come by, I assure you.

Little man is a stair climbing FOOL. Probably his favorite activity.

Forget smiling. If he looked at me, it was usually to make funny faces.

There is also a lot of running involved.

The top of his head is just as easy to get as his backside. At least we'll always have these parts of him captured. ;)

Tonight, my mom, Susan, and Vinny had a wedding to go to, so they left for that around 5:00 p.m. Us kids relaxed a bit more, showered, then relaxed again. The guys cracked open some beers, and the girls some wine.

We took some photos in front of the White Meadows Pub sign (outside of the bar that is in the carriage house):

The girls chatted and cooked up a delicious pasta dinner (meat sauce, garlic bread, salad!) while the guys watched a movie. After our meal, the guys started a small fire in the fire pit and we roasted a few s'mores before retreating indoors to watch a movie together.

All in all, not a bad day in the country. It's really too bad that it's already time to go home tomorrow. :(

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The Great Outdoors

After our roadtrip (and stop for frosties, of course), we arrived in the Poconos around 10:30 last night. We were given a tour of both the main house and carriage house, as they're both pretty different than when we were here last year! A fairly large addition has been put on the main house, and the renovations in the carriage house are complete. Very nice, I must say.

When we were finished unloading the cars, we all settled on the porch to catch up with each other. It was a really warm night, as even the Pocono Mountains have been touched by the Northeast's heatwave. Everyone else enjoyed drinks while I just enjoyed the company. :) Once we realized it was after 1:00 a.m., we all decided to get to bed so we could be up to take advantage of the day today.

Unfortunately, I don't have many pics to share from today. I didn't even break out the SLR yet. Oops! But the thing with the Poconos is that we don't ever *do* much. It's a completely relaxing getaway, so it's hard to remember to take photos sometimes.

We all woke up on our own time, ate breakfast, and walked down to the pond to hang out in the sunshine (or inside the shady gazebo, where it was considerably cooler). Tessa became "nature girl" and really enjoyed her time off of the leash today. She even abused it a little by wandering into some really tall grass in a field--Michael had to go chasing after her so we wouldn't lose her. Little stinker!

Marie and the boys did a little fishing...

...and Miller did some wading/swimming. Amazing, since Tyler really tried to get him into the water last year, without much success. Today, Miller was swimming like a pro. When Tyler was out fishing in the paddle boat, Miller actually jumped in and swam out to the boat to get in!

Pretty. So, so pretty. (The scenery. Not Trevor. HA!)

Hunter and I, hanging out in the gazebo.

In the early afternoon, we put together a grocery list of things we were going to need for the weekend, and my mom, Susan, and I took a ride into town to do the shopping. When we returned, we all had a late lunch, then spent more time talking and being outdoors. Around 4:00 p.m., everyone was feeling pretty tired (up too late last night!), so most of us retreated to our respective bedrooms. I didn't think I would nap (I tend to be a terrible napper), but like two pages into reading my book, I was out. Next thing I knew, Michael was waking up, saying that it was 5:45. Nice! And let me just say, afternoon naps are SWEET. I wish I could do that every day.

We all gathered at the bar in the carriage house, where Vinny made everyone (minus me, *SIGH*) some happy hour drinks.

We took them to the picnic table outside and--you guessed it--just sat and talked and joked and laughed. Eventually, we all got cleaned up and showered, and it was time to get started on dinner--I made roasted potatoes, we had a great salad, and the boys grilled corn on the cob, burgers, and white hots. We didn't eat until after 9:00 p.m. But who cares when you're on vacation, right?

After getting eaten alive by mosquitos tonight (bastards!), we're all zonked from the sunshine and fresh air. We're hitting the sheets at a more reasonable hour tonight so we can get up and do all of this over again tomorrow.

Have I mentioned how much I <3 the Poconos? I look forward to this trip every year. It's so great to be here.

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