it's no secret that i LOVE dr. suess books. i've never come across one of his books that i didn't like. i originally wanted to do my baby's nursery in dr. suess and have a whole suess library ready for when she is born. my favorite book (BY FAR) is "Oh The Places You'll Go!" but today i received in the mail a completely different kind of suess book: "Oh Baby, The Places You'll Go!" a book to be read in-utero. now, usually i am not sappy like this, but when i got this book and read it, both my mother and i were completely in tears!

it's still sinking in that this is happening. my life is completely inundated with baby stuff - whether i want it to be or not! between the physical symptoms (indigestion, lack of sleep, utter exhaustion, etc) and then the other stuff that other people bring into play (wanting to know everything that's going on, wanting to touch my belly and feel her move, etc), i am literally in baby world! it's just still strange to me that this is happening to ME, not one of my friends. MY child will be here in about 4 months and MY world will be rocked with sounds of crying, dirty diapers, and sleepless nights. (well, that's already the case!) but i am overwhelmed with the idea that i am about to be a mother and that i will soon be holding my baby girl. it blows my mind!

anyway, here's the cover of the book:

Life is tough. It's tougher if you're stupid

ONE
Recently, when I went to McDonald's I saw on the menu that you could have an order of 6, 9 or 12 Chicken McNuggets. I asked for a half dozen nuggets.
'We don't have half dozen nuggets,' said the teenager at the counter. 'You don't?' I replied.
'We only have six, nine, or twelve,' was the reply.
'So I can't order a half dozen nuggets, but I can order six?' 'That's right.' So I shook my head and ordered six McNuggets

TWO
I was checking out at the local Wal-Mart with just a few items and the lady behind me put her things on the belt close to mine. I picked up one of those 'dividers' that they keep by the cash register and placed it between our things so they wouldn't get mixed. After the girl had scanned all of my items, she picked up the 'divider', looking it all over for the bar code so she could scan it. Not finding the bar code she said to me, 'Do you know how much this is?' I said to her 'I've changed my mind, I don't think I'll buy that today.' She said 'OK,' and I paid her for the things and left. She had no clue to what had just happened.

THREE
A lady at work was seen putting a credit card into her floppy drive and pulling it out very quickly. When I inquired as to what she was doing, she said she was shopping on the Internet and they kept asking for a credit card number, so she was using the ATM 'thingy.'

FOUR
I recently saw a distraught young lady weeping beside her car. 'Do you need some help?' I asked. She replied, 'I knew I should have replaced the battery to this remote door unlocker. Now I can't get into my car. Do you think they (pointing to a distant convenience store) would have a battery to fit this?' 'Hmmm, I dunno. Do you have an alarm, too?' I asked. 'No, just this remote thingy,' she answered, handing it and the car keys to me. As I took the key and manually unlocked the door, I replied, 'Why don't you drive over there and check about the batteries. It's a long walk.' (she had no clue either!)

FIVE
Several years ago, we had an Intern who was none too swift. One day she was typing and turned to a secretary and said, 'I'm almost out of typing paper. What do I do?' 'Just use copier machine paper,' the secretary told her. With that, the intern took her last remaining blank piece of paper, put it on the photocopier and proceeded to make five 'blank' copies.

SIX
I was in a car dealership a while ago, when a large motor home was towed into the garage. The front of the vehicle was in dire need of repair and the whole thing generally looked like an extra in 'Twister.' I asked the manager what had happened. He told me that the driver had set the 'cruise control' and then went in the back to make a sandwich.

SEVEN
My neighbor works in the operations department in the central office of a large bank. Employees in the field call him when they have problems with their computers. One night he got a call from a woman in one of the branch banks who had this question: 'I've got smoke coming from the back of my terminal. Do you guys have a fire downtown?'

EIGHT
Police in Radnor , Pa. interrogated a suspect by placing a metal colander on his head and connecting it with wires to a photocopy machine. The message 'He's lying' was placed in the copier, and police pressed the copy button each time they thought the suspect wasn't telling the truth. Believing the 'lie detector' was working, the suspect confessed.

NINE
A mother calls 911 very worried asking the dispatcher if she needs to take her kid to the emergency room, the kid was eating ants. The dispatcher tells her to give the kid some Benadryl and it should be fine.The mother says, 'Okay, but, I just gave him some ant killer..... ' Dispatcher: 'Rush him in to emergency room!'

Here she is! I was completely shocked that she is a girl!! I was convinced that she was a boy! But I was wrong! And I couldn't be happier!!!

Alright, so I have gotten BLASTED for not adding anything else about the appointment yesterday except for that she's a girl! So here we go:

Everything is great! My doctor is very pleased with how she looks as well as how I look and am doing. I have only gained 7 lbs to date. (I didn't gain anything between my last 2 appts.) My blood levels are good. The baby is doing great. She is weighing in at 1lb 6oz. During the ultrasound, she didn't move a lot -- she just sat there kinda balled and scrunched up. She had her arms crossed over her chest but was more than happy to show us that she's a girl! (go figure....)

I hope that helps everyone!

Bible Conference was good. But I am glad to be home! Got to spend some time with some people that I miss terribly (Amanda!) and got to see some other people that I haven't seen in a while. Also, quality time with JoJo is never a bad thing! It was crazy hot up there, which really got to me. Until Friday night I was staying with mom at a bed and breakfast which did not have air conditioning. I had a hard time with that. My feet swelled like mad in the heat!!!

Being with Territorial Band was, as always, great fun! Got to spend some time with Jamie and Wendy which was nice. And of course, the Barrington's always bring tons of fun! I had Anthony, Ella, and Talitha all weekend which was a BLAST! I took them gem mining which was hilarious! There's nothing like watching a 9 and 5 year old think that they have struck it rich! And really, who am I to burst that bubble?!?

Andrew was dedicated while we were there. I cried. I know, I'm so sappy. But I couldn't help it. It was a nice private ceremony and I felt so honored to have been invited. Pictures of that will follow. Like a complete idiot, I forgot to bring my camera so I have to wait for Erin to email me pics.

Tomorrow we go to the doctor to find out if we are having a boy or girl. I absolutely can't wait! The baby has been moving a lot and is getting so much stronger. I feel the kicks much more clearly than ever and it's easier for other people to feel now, too. I can't wait to see!!!!!!!!

Enjoy the pics from last week!

i was reading around on the internet and came across this chick who has the most hilarious site i've seen in a long time! i thought this was quite true (and funny):

Once I started “showing” a little baby belly, there were certain things, such as downing a pitcher of beer, skateboarding and pole vaulting, that I decided to stop doing in public.

You see, many people view that belly as a way to tell you what you should and shouldn’t do. I don’t know how many times I walked into a coffee shop only for them to ask me if I wanted my drink “decaf.”

Uh, no. If I wanted my drink without the “good stuff” in it, I would have told you so. Also, why are you looking at me strange? What? You don’t allow cigar smoking inside Starbucks? Okay, fine.

All kidding aside, it really chaps my hide when I see people telling a pregnant woman what to do. Even better is when the advice is coming from someone who has never been pregnant.

I know that the 16-year-old making my mocha thinks that all caffeine is bad, but it isn’t. That is because she hasn’t studied up on what is okay during pregnancy.

Instead, she listens to what she has heard and assumes that any woman that dare drink a cup of joe that isn’t decaf is going to have a five-headed baby.

Even if the baby does have five heads, I’ll make sure to teach those heads not to give unsolicited advice to pregnant women.

so here we are at 19 weeks. we went to register at Babies R Us today and I was completely wierded out! Robert was more comfortable and okay with it than I was. I've registered with Erin 3 times now but doing it for myself was just too wierd. it's becoming really real. this is for real. and i'm almost half way done. crazy. (sarah -- thanks for the shirt!!! LOVE IT!)














so after our "registering fun" i decided i needed to relax a bit so i got stuff to set my fish tank back up. amber will be so happy!!!

Spent the day with Erin and the kids today. It was great!!! Here are a few pictures...

Leavens Family Reunion

Faour Family Reunion

hello all.

yes, it's been a while. and to the "anonymous" comment: yes, i am okay. just very busy! i just got back into town after nearly 3 weeks gone. tmi and 2 family reunions will do that. (pictures later.)

we spent the first family reunion in chattanooga with robert's family. that was good fun. a GREAT pool in the backyard always makes get-togethers more enjoyable! especially when there's 114 people in one house!!! (literally 114. no exaggeration there!)

then it was off to camp tomahawk for me to go to my side of the family's reunion. robert had a trip to costa rica for work already scheduled so he couldn't go. it was nice to be with my family...again, with a pool! but even with that, a week with them is tiring! i was ready to come home. we did a day trip to DC where i almost passed out from walking in the unbelieveable heat. the next day everyone went to philly. i opted to stay home with my cousins who are 2 1/2 years and 8 months old. that was great fun.

at some point in all of this i have started feeling the baby kicking for real. no more of this "fluttering" stuff. it's actual kicks! very cool! and, much to robert's dismay, mom felt the baby first!!!

speaking of, i have my ultrasound on aug. 28 to find out what we are having. i know (some of) you are waiting with baited breath!

amanda -- EXCELLENT picture! it totally made my day! i miss you like mad! i SOOOO wish you were here!

alright. it's off to bed for me. i'll post pictures of my past few weeks later.

7 years ago today. it was hard flying home...

night.

so it's almost time to go home! this week has gone by pretty quickly. for the most part it's been really good. i love being able to come out here and catch up with good friends i only get to see a few times a year. i didn't play in a band this year -- the baby wouldn't allow it! "he's" really hardly allowing for anything much in this heat! yesterday i ended up having to spend the entire day in bed b/c of being (basically) over heated and exhausted! it's the hills that kill me!!! i am singing in TMI chorus - which has been interesting to say the least. i ended up doing a solo with the territorial songsters that went very well, i must say. especially with the fact that (1) i learned the song the night before i got up to sing it and (2) i almost passed out at the beginning of the concert! so i was pleased.

i started feeling the baby kick this week. that has been incredible! monday night was the first time i felt it: just like someone was tickling me under my skin! and since then, "he's" been going nuts!!! "he" either really likes it or really hates it when i sing, cause that's when i feel him most!

i got through Harry Potter in about 3 days. which, considering i've had classes most of the time, isn't bad!!!!! i was surprised at some of it! but over all i thought it was excellent! robert is insanely jealous that i got through it first. bless his heart!

i'm coming home monday. robert is driving the truck back and will be home tuesday. then we have to haul tail to get our house emptied of our furniture b/c we got an offer on it. they want to rent for 2 months then buy...hopefully they actually will buy it. but even if they don't, we're getting 2 months off our mortgage and it will still be on the market while they are renting. so no time lost there.

alright. sleepy time for me. i think that's about all i can say for right now. have a fabulous weekend!!!

so i haven't been on here in a while. it's been REALLY busy around here getting ready for TMI. by the time i get home, i'm absolutely wasted and ready to go to bed! i was under the impression that when you hit your 2nd trimester the fatigue went away. well, it's not happening yet!!! oh well.

i've gotten a lot of baby presents this week. it's so wierd to be the one getting presents for a baby. i'm used to being the one buying the baby stuff!!! among my favorites are the best baby bathtub that i wanted and 3 "official" atlanta braves outfits to choose from as the coming home outfit. i'm so excited about that. they were very unexpected!!!

for those of you who are wondering, "belly" pictures will be back up soon. i haven't been able to get a good one lately. not sure why. but i'm working on it! i know some of you want to see....i keep getting emails! :-)

well, i'm off to TMI. can't wait! it still blows my mind that i actually like it now that i'm on staff. craziness.....

i spent the afternoon and evening at erin's helping out with the baby and girls...baby mostly. the plan was to take the girls out to dinner and let them play a little at an indoor park but that plan didn't work out. the girls wanted to play with nina and papa - so i helped out with andrew. amber and i gave him his first bath at home, which was great! he peed on me...and everything else around him! he did NOT like being bathed. he screamed the entire time!!! but it was great!!!

it's awesome to have godchildren!!!

MY PRAYER

Christ In Me (words: Colin Fairclough)

Christ of Glory, Prince of Peace
Let Thy life in mine increase
Though I live may it be shown
'Tis Thy life and not my own
Dwell within that men may see
Christ in me, Christ the living Christ in me

Answer now my soul's desire
Purge my heart with Holy fire
Soothe the hurt with gentle balm
Breathe within my life Thy charm
Fill me now so shall there be
Christ in me, Christ the Holy Christ in me

Gracious Lord, Thy grace apply
Both to save and sanctify
All my life wilt Thou control
Calmly ordering the whole
That the world may ever see
Christ in me, Christ and only Christ in me

Happy Birthday, Andrew!!!

i got a call at 2:45am from erin saying it was time to head to the hospital! so i rolled out of bed, threw some clothes on, brushed my teeth and rushed to emory eastside. took me 28 minutes to get there. her labors are usually fast and i was afraid i wasn't going to make it. i got there and she hadn't even started contracting, but because her water had broken at 2:30, it was go time! she got her epidural and 4 1/2 hrs later, ANDREW ARTHUR JOHNSON SELLERS was born! 7lbs 10.5oz, 20 inches long.

i must say that being pregnant myself, watching this birth up close and personal gave me a COMPLETELY different perpective! all i could think was, "oh my -- how am i going to do this in 5 months?!?!?"

anyway, he's beautiful and they are all doing well!!!

Finish the sentences.

I am listening to...
My next-door neighbor mow his lawn

I talk..
With my emotions

I love...
My husband

My best friend(s)...
Is about to have my 3rd godchild

My first real kiss…
Was not that great

I've lost...
A certain amount of trust in people

Love is...
Very special when it’s real

Marriage is...
An anchor in my life

Somewhere, someone...
knows me for me…and loves me anyway

I'll always be...
Apprehensive around certain people

I have a secret crush on...
Mellow Mushroom cheese calzones

The last time I cried was...
This afternoon

My cell phone...
is extremely overused

When I wake up in the morning...
I hit Robert…and snooze

Before I go to sleep tonight...
I’ll tell my husband I love him

Right now I am thinking about...
Too many things to put here

Words can be...
Extraordinarily helpful and loving but also extraordinarily hurtful

I get on myspace to...
Honestly, I’m not sure why I get on myspace. I’m contemplating shutting all these things down.

Today I...
Had a rough day.

Tonight I will...
Rest

Tomorrow I will...
Clean out my mother’s garage with her and my husband

I really want...
To understand a lot of things about life

The person who means most to me in the world right now...
Is laying with me on my hammock. And it’s wonderful.

well, i'm home alone this weekend. mom and robert are out of town. i hate it. happy day.

i have not been feeling well this week at all -- very dizzy/disoriented, cramping, and mad headaches. so i went to the doctor yesterday...freaking out that something was wrong. i got there and they told me that my blood pressure is dropping. that is causing all this dizziness and such. i was very worried about the baby, so when i heard the heartbeat (after the dr took forever to find it), i completely lost it and cried like a baby! worse than when we saw the baby for the first time on the first ultrasound! but it was just such a relief to hear that and know that my child is fine...and apparently doesn't really care much about how i'm feeling!!! so while he didn't put me on bedrest, he did say that i have to take it very easy. which means that i can't go to the house this weekend and pack and clean. that is so frustrating. but at this point it's more important to keep me and the baby healthy.

so here's to this weekend...alone. unless erin calls telling me she's gone into labor. her appt today brought news of 2 cm, 70% effaced. WOOOHOOOOO!!! andrew should be here soon!!!!!!!

11 weeks - looking kinda scary....

in other news, tonight is our last night in our own home...

very....completely...utterly...exhausted!!! (funny how all my posts lately start that way?!)

did 2 very cool things today that i haven't done in a while:

1. had a girls' night and got a pedicure with jojo. that was not only much needed but quite relaxing. i now have no money.

2. went into bernie's studio and recorded some stuff. that was great fun!! haven't recorded anything in a while...even though i love doing it!!!!!

now it's off to some serious bathtime...then bed.

today has been absolutely exhausting and overwhelming! we listed the house this morning which was good, but also quite overwhelming because of the amount of work that goes into selling a house. packing, cleaning, getting things together and moved is just more than i can think about right now. i am so tired and easily exhausted right now that it just makes me tired to think about it!

my neighbor came over and took some stuff today and they are coming back tonight with their truck to get some more stuff. that helps them and me: the less i have to deal with the better!!

oscar is taken care of. we can't take him with us on our move so jonathan and amanda are taking him. i am really happy about that. i don't want to give him away but since i don't have a choice, i'm glad that he's going to really good friends who i know will take care of him.

erin is coming over tonight which i am VERY excited about. i feel like i havent' seen her in forever! it'll be good to see her and the girls for a bit.

i didn't sleep last night at all. i literally just laid in bed awake all night. not sick. not anything. just not sleeping. utterly frustrating!

so now i am going to take a nap before robert, erin, and the girls get here. lovely.

i've been feeling so much better the past 2 days!!! almost like my old non-pregnant self! (knock on wood) up to this point, come 8pm, i've been wasted with really bad indigestion. but the past 2 nights i've felt really good with NO indigestion! i'm very happy about that!

i went to pick up my last check from work tonight. that was interesting. i no longer work for them and anakin is in daycare. not completely sure how i feel about it all. part of me is relieved that i'll have a chance to get my house done and moved, etc and part of me is upset that i won't be with the kids anymore. oh well. c'est la vie.

it looks like i'll be going to the music dept again this year to help out with TMI prep stuff which i am SO excited about! so the money that we thought we lost by me not working anymore is not really lost! just coming from a new place. thank you, lord! we need it!!!

when we were coming home, our neighbors were out in their yard so we stopped to talk a second. they just bought a new house in snellville so they aren't our neighbors anymore, but they are cool. rocky, the husband/dad, was doing some last minute stuff to the house and yard before he had to turn his keys in, so his wife and kids came over to hang out for a bit. it was nice to sit and talk with her a little. she's really funny! and, robert was able to borrow their lawnmower (since he broke ours) and get our lawn mowed before susan comes to take pictures of the house tomorrow for our listing. so that was really nice!!!

but now it's 10:30 and i'm getting sleepy. so goodnight, blogosphere.