The Name Game

Why does it have to be so hard to pick out a name for your offspring? "It's going to stick with him the rest of his life." "It might be a source of agony in his life." These are just a few statments you hear just after the question: Have you decided on a name yet? I tell you, that's a lot of pressure. Matthew and I are both middle name kids, so we know how important a name is. No offense Moms and Dads. We both love our names. I feel a little unique because of it. It still throws me when I'm asked to spell my first name. It just doesn't sound right, I really have to think about it as I spell it aloud. So to get to the point: We have narrowed our list. I would love feedback on these, but understand that we get the final say. It's not a democratic voting process you are participating in. Still I would LOVE some comments good or bad, I'll be thick skinned. In no particular order:

Graham Edward
Cotton Edward
Dallas Edward
Morgan Edward

Obviously Edward is important to us. Matthew's grandfather's name was Edward. I would even take other suggestions at this point. A post just isn't the same without pictures so I threw in a 23 week shot just after our appointment today. I hope everyone enjoys "opening season" of LOST tonight! Matthew and I will be glued with pizza in hand!

"Sew" Busy Sewing!

I have been very busy sewing the past few days and just wanted to share a few of my projects. I made this fantastic Mei Tai for Matthew to carry the baby in when we go hiking. Matthew says he won't be seen in public in it. The great thing is it fits me too! He says I'll have to wear it heading onto the trail, then he'll switch once we are under the cover of trees. I think he'll change his mind once he sees his precious son inside it. I was able to snap a few shots with him hiking "Garfield" around our apartment. Look quick before he has me delete them. (Hopefully he won't.)

Here's the pattern: http://thosemartins.com/bmt/index.htm She really has great instructions! I already had this fabric, so my straps have a right and wrong side when you tie the knot. I still like how it turned out. The wonderful thing about this carrier is it can be used as both a front and back pack. Of course you can't carry the baby in the back hold until it has good head control (about 6 months old). Also, the babies legs would be sticking out around Matthew's waist. The tie goes under the baby's bottom to make a little seat. Garfield just wasn't tall enough. I added two loops to hang toys or keys from on the left and right sides. The pocket is big enough for a diaper and adds a little padding for the baby.


Matthew has to sleep during the day because he works overnight one day a week. For the last two months we have talked about investing in blackout drapes. I say invest because of how crazy expensive they are. I finally decided to purchase inexpensive curtains and then attach my own panel of blackout fabric to the back. I finished them today and I think they look great!


While at the fabric store yesterday, Matthew picked out some fabric for a flannel receiving blanket for his boy. Here's the final product:

Easton's First Birthday!

Here's the sweet one year old blowing out his candle.
He absolutely loved the cake!

Easton loves to give kisses, play tackle with Tanner, and plays with any ball thrown or rolled his way! Stephanie planned a great, small family party. We really missed Mom, Dad, Aunt Cack, and Uncle Zach! Mom and Dad are really sick right now, we're hoping they feel better soon! After chili and cake we all took a walk to downtown Jboro. The boys really enjoyed their wagon ride. My favorite part was my shoe selection. Nick and Caroline threw Tanner's new football all the way down Main Street and back! It was a great birthday!

No Smocked Dresses......

We had a great appointment today. The baby looks perfect! The ultrasound tech was fantastic! She talked us through every frame and printed off four pictures for us to take home. The boy parts could not be mistaken for anything else. The scan took quite a while because our sweet boy wouldn't untuck his chin. The tech had to keep pushing on him so that she could get a better picture of his heart. His head and femur measurements were right on target leaving our due date as expected (May 26). The heart beat was 145. He is really beginning to move around a lot. Matthew still hasn't felt him, but I know it will be any day. We are still waiting on some blood work results from last month, but really nothing to worry about. I just take an extra iron supplement every night. The pictures were both taken today 19 weeks and 4 days. We went through the baby name book last weekend on our way to Paragould so we have a list of "acceptable" names, but haven't even started narrowing them down or talking seriously about them. We're headed to Paragould again this weekend and then to Jboro for Easton's 1st birthday party! Have a great weekend!

Curton Christmas!
We had a great time at mom and dad's! This year the family was on "B" for gift giving. We are slowly making our way through the alphabet. This is our second year with "the rotating gift" Stephanie and David brought the game: Scene it Squabble. A ton of fun girls against boys with trivia, only the opposite sex would know. It was a "B" because Steph called it Boys Against Girls Squabble. Matthew and I brought the interesting drink: Berry-Cherry Lemonade. Complete with Sonic ice and floating berries. This is the best lemonade ever, but I'm a little bias. Nick didn't like that it left seeds in your teeth. Nick and Caroline made a Big Breakfast Buffet for the interesting snack. The Bertolli Paninis were delicious. We also had Banana Berry Smoothies! Thanks for all the hard work Nick and Caroline! Cassandra and Zach brought the movie, Bourne Ultimatum! Thanks for picking it! The movie was awesome! Dad decided to bend the rules a little this year, instead of everything actually starting with a "B" he bought everything at Bed Bath and Beyond. Three points for him! He was also thoughtful and picked out a very appropriate book for each of us from Barns and Noble. One point for that one! The girls spent a ton of time in the kitchen this year. Thank you Mom for making the traditional Christmas dinner so special. It brought back many childhood memories! Can't wait for "C" my snack is going to be unbelievable so get those appetites ready for next year!

Horner Christmas!
We had the best Christmas yet in Huntsville! We started something new with this side of the family. We are doing a rotating gift.... We each buy a gift for the little kids, but the adults no longer buy for each other. We rotate responsibilities instead. Shannan and Robin provided the MOVIE this year, Santa Clause 3. Jana brought the GAME. It was called Finish Line and was a blast. You had to finish famous quotes, songs, lines from movies, and famous literature lines. All of the adults really enjoyed themselves. Mr. and Mrs. Horner brought the INTERESTING DRINK. Sodas this year! Matthew and I were responsible for the INTERESTING SNACK. We made beggar's purses. These are crescent rolls filled with sausage and cream cheese. They were delicious. Each year your name gets moved down the list so that you are only bringing a movie every four years. It was really fun! Christmas for us is all about spending time with each other so the gift ends up being just that; a time set aside to watch a movie, play a game, and eat and drink a little snack together. We are really looking forward to sharing more time together next year. I'll leave you with a little slide show from the weekend. Merry Christmas everyone!

You Felt the Baby Do What??

That's right baby Horner is up and kicking and Belle can't believe it! I had to start wearing maternity pants to work this week too. Found a great clearance deal at Target, too bad I don't get that discount anymore.