Consignment Finds

I've never been much of a consignment or garage-sale shopper. But everyone keeps telling me about the great finds they come across at various shops. So last Friday my friend Darci & I ventured out to a couple of garage sales over our lunch break. It wasn't a very successful adventure, but I think we're both excited to head out again on Friday lunch breaks to come!

On Saturday, Steve and I traveled 45 minutes south to Boone, Iowa, where my cousin Stacy & her 3 girls live. Her middle daughter, Chloe, had a softball game, so we stopped by to watch. It was a fun morning, even though it was drizzly & cold! We also got to see my Aunt Ruth & Uncle Jay, who were also there for the weekend. (Please send out prayers to my Aunt Ruth who subsequently tumbled & broke her leg Saturday evening.)

After the ballgame, we headed east to Ames to complete our WalMart baby registry. I think even Steve will admit that we had fun putting it together. He was most excited about the farm-related toys I think!

On our way out of town, we stopped by one of the consignment shops that my friends have raved about. It turned out to be a successful stop! I found a few maternity items for myself...

...and lots of fun things for baby that look like new(including the cute little cowboy overalls that we both eyed as soon as we entered the store!)

I think I've been converted, and can't wait to search for more bargain treasures!

40th Birthday!

Last Saturday we celebrated the 40th birthday of our friend Dawn by throwing a surprise party. It was a great time...and I'm pretty sure she was surprised! We started the night by having a "girls night out" @ our fave Mexican place. We then ended up at Amigo's where the guests were waiting to yell Surprise!

Dawn & her party hat (Yes...she's turning 40...not 30!!)


Erica & the bday girl


Me & Jenny close-up


The Girls @ Amigo's!


What a CUTE couple (a little too close-up!) ;-)


Fun times! Bring on Summer BBQ's!

Nursery Sneak Peek

I finally got around to choosing a paint color for the nursery. I had the hardest time trying to come up with a denim blue that wasn't too dark, and wasn't too light. Steve did a good job of humoring me by giving his opinion of the shades of blue that I held up to various walls in the room. I think the final selection turned out perfect! Following are a few "before" pictures of the room, along with a couple of pix of Steve as he transformed the room from blah to blue!








We have quite a bit more to do to the room, but it's nice to feel like we're finally making some progress!

What's in a Name?

So you all know we're having a baby. You all know we're having a boy. So naturally we should tell you all what the baby's name will be, right? Well...no. We do have a name picked out - in fact, it's been at the top of our "boy list" for many years. But we've decided to keep the name to ourselves until the day he arrives.

This seems to have caused some grumblings amongst our family and friends. My response is often received by others in many different ways. Some seem offended that I don't want to tell them. Others have decided that we need assistance with coming up with the "right" name.

Some suggestions that we heard as we celebrated Easter with family over the weekend include:
Bill Self Jackson (a nod to the KU head basketball coach)
Bob Jackson (baby's cousin Rachel's suggestion)
L.J. Jackson (aka Little Jim - after Steve's brother Jim)
William Jackson (which Steve's brother Billy thought would be the "perfect" name)

Though it was fun to hear the suggested names, I'm pretty confident in our choice. Hopefully you will all agree when the day comes for the big announcement!

April SNOW Showers...

...Bring May Flowers??? Something about that doesn't sound right to me. Fortunately we didn't get the 8-14 inches of snow that various meteorologists were predicting for our area. But we did get enough snow flakes to create patches of snow in our yard. Most of the snow has melted, leaving a wet, muddy mess in its wake (which the dogs love). But hopefully that's the end of snow for this season.

Baby is still doing great. We have finished up our 22nd week, which means that I am starting my 6th month of pregnancy. This past Saturday we had an exciting experience: Steve got to feel the baby kick for the first time! At first he couldn't tell if it was baby or his finger twitching involuntarily...but then after the second kick, we knew it was all baby! I've been feeling baby's kicks for quite a few weeks now, but I can definitely tell he's getting stronger...especially when he is aiming for my bladder! Though I love to feel him move around, I could do without those bladder kicks!

Friday we are heading back to Kansas for Easter. We haven't been back for Easter for a few years, so we are both looking forward to it (though I'm not sure if I'm ready for the chilly hilltop sunrise services!) It won't be long until our own little guy is running around Grandma's yard hunting eggs! Steve thinks that we should be able to join in the hunt this year - he said he could hold my hand & guide baby & me around so that he can grab some treat-filled eggs "for baby". For some reason I don't think that will fly with the younger kids! I guess I'll have to buy him some Reese's eggs, which should keep him happy. :-)

Since I probably won't write again before we leave on Friday, we both wish you and your families a Blessed Easter!