38 Weeks

37 Weeks

Woo hoo...only 11 days to go! We are all ready to meet Abbie Grace!

Ian started his new daycare today and did so well. He walked in like he owned the place...like he always does! Immediately the radars went up to find the trucks and cars and once he found them he was as content as he could be! And it only took 4, yes 4, minutes to get there. What a blessing! I am so excited to be able to leave the house a little later to take him and get him a little earlier each day and still have time to spare!

36 Weeks...

Here's the 36 week picture...yes, I am large! Whew! Only 20 days to go though!

Ian's Water Table

Ian received a water table for his birthday from Grandma and Popie and Joe and I just got brave enough to put it together! He has had such a good time with it though. Since we don't have a large back yard (we actually have about an 8X8 space) it is perfect to let him play outside with. Plus it's under the deck that is on the 2nd floor so it is cool for mom:)

We try and take Ian to the park around the corner often...lately he has had a hard time with the swing concept and that he can't run in front of or behind them when others are on them. Last time we went he darted and we all had to grab a child in the swings to keep them from hitting him. It scared him pretty bad so hopefully the lesson was learned.

Abbie Grace only has 20 days until her arrival! We have her pack and play setup in the office/playroom/tv room and Ian has decided that it will be a car garage until she arrives. When we tell him she is coming he says "No no Ab Grace is stuck". He's quite cute.

Finally....an update!

I am so sorry it has taken so long to put a new post out here. Thank you all for your many encouraging emails, calls, and prayers. We could not have done it without them! Things are finally settled and out townhouse feels like home. We hung pictures on the 2nd and 3rd floor Friday so now only the playroom/office to do.

Ian is adjusting well. He is going to a home daycare on post currently but we will be switching him to somewhere closer to home on June 12. We love the place he is going right now but even though it is only 9 miles away it takes us about an hour and forty five minutes everyday to get him there and home. The new place is only 8 minutes away with traffic! Woo hoo! Hopefully he will continue to adjust well. He loves his new bunk bed with the trucks all over it:) The hardest adjustment for him is not having a back yard. More than once he has darted into towards the street because the garage is open which gives mommy a heart attack! There is only about 10 feet between the garage door and the street so we are trying to train him.

Abbie Grace is on track to be born June 23 at 7am. She will be born at Bethesda Hospital...the President's hospital:) Joe and I feel so comfortable with the hospital and staff. I wasn't feeling well on Wednesday this past week so they had me come in and within 5 minutes I was hooked up to all kinds of machines to monitor both of us and Abbie Grace was having a biophysical ultrasound done...she's really healthy! I am measuring 2 weeks big and they anticipate her being as big as Ian was...9 lbs 12 ozs. We did get really good news that Joe will be flying home Thursday June 22 for her arrival! He will take the red eye out of AZ on Wednesday night and then leave Sunday morning. What a huge answer to prayer though! Kerry, Joe's sister, is still going to come in and be here for a few days to help once Abbie Grace arrives along with Joe's mom, dad, and then my Daddy and Granny will come in. Hopefully this time will be much easier than with Ian. Tanya, one of my good friends, lives around the corner so she will be helping too:) What a bless family we are to have so many wonderful family and friends!

Let's see...unpacking was loads of fun. Kim from Clarksville come out with us and was the most incredible help we could ask for. She worked late, sometimes without being fed and never complained! We got all the boxes unpacked within a few days and then started putting things in its place. Kim and I went to DC one day for some sightseeing and Kim went back by herself a couple of times to make sure she saw all the big stuff.

Church...we have visited the same church for the last 2 weeks and like it. Our friend and one of the pastors of Grace, Ron, gave us a list of churches to try and this one is closest to our house. They currently meet in a school and the church just approved to start building on some land they have had for a year or so. If all goes as planned the first service in the new church will be in Sept. 07.

Joe is taking a couple of weeks off to rest prior to leaving for school. I am still working full time, hopefully until Abbie Grace comes. I plan on taking some days off here and there so that we can take Ian to the zoo and spend some time with Joe prior to the new baby.

Well, I think that sums up our life this past month. What a whirlwind! God has been so good and protecting and providing for all of us though. I definitely do not recommend anyone moving at this stage of pregnancy:) But now that it is over I am so glad!

Quick Update

Just wanted to give everyone a quick update that we are here in Northern Virginia. We arrived last Thursday evening. We absolutely LOVE our townhouse but don't have our stuff yet. It is supposed to arrive Tuesday May 2 so hopefully we will spend our first night there tomorrow. Ian is getting spoiled but loving every minute of it at Popie and Grandma's! We have been able to start the process of finding a dr here to deliver little Abbie Grace. So far it looks like we will probably deliver at Bethesda in Maryland since they have a really good high risk unit. Definite dates for the delivery next week!

Thanks for all your prayers as we have been transitioning. Ian will most likely start temporary home childcare next week until a space becomes available at the permanent daycare he will attend. Pray for an easy transition for him (and mom)!

We will miss you Clarksville!

To all of our wonderful friends in Clarksville:
Words cannot express how much you all mean to us. You have been such incredible friends over these past 3 and a half years. You have seen us through 4 deployments, 1 (almost 2) babies, and many, many other lives moments. Ian has grown to know you all as his extended family and we are so blessed to have this while our own families are so far away.

To our Grace Family:
WOW! What an incredible thing God is doing through the hard work and prayers of you wonderful people! We cannot wait to come back and continue to see His work begin done! Thank you for the opportunity to serve along with you:)

Please know this is not goodbye but so long for now. Please come and visit us in DC. We would love to see you. If you did not get our contact info please post a comment and we will send it to you via email.

Love,
Joe, Tammy, Ian and kick kick from Abbie Grace

Easter 2006

Ian's second Easter was quite a treat! He came down the stairs Easter morning and was fixated on his basket. He honed in on a chocolate bunny and the rest is history! He was so engrossed in his bunny he didn't care what else was in the basket:) After Church we had come friends over for dinner and an Easter egg hunt. Once Ian and Dylan found out there was candy in the eggs they were really excited! What a wonderful day celebrating our risen Savior!

Ian's Second Birthday

Today was Ian's second birthday! It is so hard to beleive! I think I am just as tired today as I was the day he was born. He had a birthday party at school complete with a Nemo and Dory cake. After that he came home and we ran him around a bit to burn off some sugar! Next, it was time for Chuck E Cheese...he ran and ran and ran for 2 hours from game to ride and then back again. We all had so much fun though. When we left Chuck E Cheese it was off to Toys R Us to get Ian his first tricycle. We were going to wait until after we moved but decided to go ahead and get it here. What's one more thing for the movers to move, huh?

He is such a sweet little boy and we have been so blessed these past two years. The joy and laughter he brings with each day is priceless! Soon we will have double the pleasure when Miss Abbie Grace comes along!

28 Weeks

Yes, that's right, I am now 28 weeks! Little Abbie Grace will be born in 10 weeks! Can you believe it?? There is much to do before the little one arrives though....moving being the biggest! We have started reading some big brother books to Ian and stopped referring to Abbie Grace as the baby and by name. Hopefully this will help with the transition. Joe thinks Ian will adjust without any problems and hopefully he is right! He will have grandparents and family around spoiling him while I am in the hospital since Joe will be away in training. Abbie Grace will also have a very special gift for Ian when he comes to meet her:)

Spring Has Sprung!

YAY! We have had 4 days of beautiful weather! Last night there were really bad storms but so far it doesn't look like we had any damage. Ian has his first new summer outfit on today...it's a 3T! Yikes when did he get so big?!?!?

Things are progressing well with preparing for the move. We had a successful garage sale this weekend and got rid of all of the extra furniture we had. Ian is moving into a big boy bed when we move so any of you coming to visit will get to sleep under his new Trucks bedding! He will have a twin over full bunk bed for his new room.

It's official!

We finally have orders, a townhome, and a signed contract! WOO HOO! The packers come on April 24th and we will head out on April 26th for DC...Thanks for all your prayers in getting everything to line up! We are very excited but have a super busy month ahead of us.

Baby Abbie Grace

We had a 4-D ultrasound on Saturday and got to see Abbie Grace! She is so cute:) Her pictures look exactly like Ian's did. She is a very active baby, especially about 2 am!

Still no word on when we are moving but we have a buyer for our house and they have one for theirs. It will all work out but whew is it hard to wait!

South Carolina

Ian and Tammy went to SC this past week to visit friends and family. They were so glad to see so many folks. Ian got to play with Angela's little girl, Katie, and had a great time. We went to Charleston for one day and Ian attended his first oyster roast and crab boil. He enjoyed the corn and sausage the most:)

We are so blessed to have the friends and family God has given us! We can't wait to see more of you soon!

Ian and Cooper

Aunt Kerry and Cooper are visiting us for a few days. Ian isn't real sure what to do with a little baby! Here are some pics of the two cousins! They were not very photogenic this morning!

Church Gala

Joe and I went to a Gala on Saturday night. We got to dress up and had such a great time with our friends.

Here is a recent baby picture...

Valentine's Day Party

Ian's first official valentine's day party was today! He was the clown, of course! Since he is the oldest one in his class now he is often the entertainment for the little ones. And boy does he love snack food! Whew...he ate twice as much as most of the kids:)

More Snow!

We had more snow in TN this weekend and Ian had a ball playing in it. Friday night when we played in it for a while I showed him that he could eat the snow...well that was all he did for the rest of the time we were outside! And for those of you who have been around Ian when he eats, he hums and he did this while he was eating snow too! Such a funny little Guy!

He has been learning to sing songs too! He sings the first few lines of Jesus Loves Me and all of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star! The first time he did this we were amazed! They are also learning 10 Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed and other nursery rhymes at daycare so he will often sing a line of one of them! It's hard to make them out but we eventually catch on.

DC Bound!

We found out Thursday that we are going to move to DC in April! We are so excited to move near family but are so sad to leave our friends here in TN. Joe also found out he will be promoted to Major probably this summer!

Please pray that we will find housing, childcare for Ian and Abbie Grace, and healthcare since we will be moving with I am 31 weeks pregnant!

So many people of offered to help with the move and we so appreciate all of your support and prayers during this time!

IT'S A GIRL!!!

Abigail Grace was cooperative for about 30 seconds yesterday and allowed Dr. Anderson to see that she was a girl! It took him quite a while to get her to cooperate and he was about to give up but I convinced him how much I really needed to know! So he tried one more thing and got her to flip! I was able to talk to Joe right after and tell him the news. (He is training in GA right now). We are planning on calling her Abbie Grace...Ian says Ab-Gace.