First shower in Sumter!

Our friends in Sumter gave us our first baby shower! It was so wonderful to see our precious friends again. We stayed with Mark and Gayla and had a great time hanging out and staying up late talking with them.

Pregnancy belly 6 weeks-6 months!

Now, i'm nearly up to date with everything. Here is the journey thus far of the ever slowly expanding baby belly! The last one is our current 6 month picture!!!

Bella Grace Smith first pictures

Here are our first ultrasound pictures of Bella. The first time we went in for our ultrasound, the doctor couldn't tell if it was a girl or boy because she was moving too much. Every time we've gone to listen to her heartbeat she's all over my stomach so they can't get a good read. Mike said she has to be a girl and she's going to like her mommy with energy..."Two morning people". =) He said if it was a boy then the baby would be chilling reading a book. And, sure enough it's a very active girl!!!

And, finally we are up to date with Bella Grace!

I found out I was pregnant on February 12th on my lunchbreak. I kept thinking about it and decided to take a test, completely expecting it to be negative. Then I saw the 'PREGNANT' sign come up! And, I think I squealed and jumped and cried and laughed and squealed and jumped and cried and laughed the rest of the break. (notice the picture)
I don't even think I ate lunch that day! Mike had a special trip planned for Valentine's Day which was 2 days away so I decided to wait until then to tell him. And, I was so moody those 2 days because I was really anxious to tell him! Poor guy! (I say poor guy in a lot of these posts...hmm, he's a trooper with me.) Finally, Valentine's Day came around. I bought him a little onesie that said "Things I love...Daddy, hugs, and kisses" and a onesie that said "My first valentine". We exchanged gifts before we left to go to Austin because I couldn't stand it anymore. I had actually lied to him the day before when he asked if I thought I was pregnant. I told him (through a huge grin...i'm surprised he didn't know right then) I was pretty sure we weren't...oops. Sorry about that but I didn't want to spoil the surprise. He opened the package and say the onesie and said "Are we pregnant?" I yelled yes and he jumped up, we hugged, then he sat back down and got all fatherly..."we've got to get her a crib and paint and pick out....". It was hilarious! After that initial shock (notice the picture below) he took me to Macaroni Grill and then to the Austin Symphony. But, the entire night we were definitely in between moments of excitement and joy to 'oh-my-goodness-we're-going-to-be-parents'. Even while we were sitting at Macaroni Grill we saw a cute little girl out a date with her daddy....then the next table was a fussy baby. It was really comical! Now starts the precious journey of our Bella Grace Smith!

3 year Anniversary trip

We took a trip to the Bahamas for our 3 year anniversary! Check out the pictures by following the link.

Family fun

Being closer to family in Texas means we can go to fun family events without having to fly. We were able to go to my granddaddy's, aka. Seymour, 80th birthday party.

We were also able to attend my cousin Cybil's wedding reception!

Coming back to Texas

After I finished my degree, it was now Mike's turn. He received a full ride scholarhip to Baylor Truett Seminary in Waco, Texas to receive his MDiv degree. So, once again we packed up our Penske truck (we didn't get separated this time...thankfully!) and went cross-country again. We have now landed in Temple, Texas.

Christmas 2003-2007

We were able to fly home and celebrate Christmas with our families in New Mexico, Texas, and Oklahoma. Here's a fly-by journey of those times!

First Christmas together as a married couple! We were trying to get a good shot but we kept cutting off our heads. So, we decided to keep taking funny ones!

Second Christmas



Third Christmas

Fourth Christmas

Other trips....Litchfield Plantation, Pawleys Island, South Carolina

On our way back from a trip to North Carolina, we decided to stay overnight somewhere by Myrtle Beach. Everything was booked except the Litchfield Plantation on Pawley's Island, which was pretty pricey.
But, it ended up being one of the best places we've ever stayed at. You had a huge condo (bigger than our house) with a private patio and private beach and beachhouse. We got up early one morning and watched the sunrise over the ocean, which was beautiful! Hopefully, we'll make it back there one day!