home again, home again jiggedy jig.

we're heading back home to texas in 5 days.

boxes are packed and sealed up. 

furniture is gone, and walls are empty.

we are more than ecstatic to be going back home to our family and friends!

but it just doesn't seem real.

i don't think it will set in until we get back home and our things are put away.

not until we cook dinner together or have company over will it really set in that we are back home, for good.

even though the winter was brutal and colder than we could've ever imagined.

even though the past few months have been hard and texas is where we want to be, there are things about this place and this past year that we'll never forget.

i loved being in a new place and meeting new people along the way.

i loved waking up every morning to snow falling and drinking my coffee as I soak it all in.

i loved watching chester frolic in the snow.

i loved having a white christmas and seeing "christmas trees" covered in snow.

i'll never forget the people i've met who have done so much to make us feel welcome here.

or the mall where we spend many winter days.

i'll never forget our anniversary at jasper national park and the beautiful things we saw there.

or elk island national park where we had many weekend picnics and spent a lot of time hiking.

i'll always remember kyle shoveling the driveway and cursing at the snow that was currently falling from the sky onto the half shoveled driveway. :)

and how happy he was to see the last of the snow melt and knew his shoveling days were over.

i'll always be grateful for how this adventure has brought my hubby and i closer than we ever imagined.

i'm grateful to have had my precious dog with me and don't know how i would have survived without him.

i'm grateful for skype and free calls to the u.s., moving here was hard and not talking to family and friends ALL the time would have made it so much harder.

there are things that have happened in this past year that have definitely changed my life.

i lost my cousin, brittani, who is more like a sister to me, she's made such a huge impact on my life.  even though i wasn't there to say goodbye, i did get to go home to celebrate her life. it comforts me to know that she's joined her sister in heaven and i now have them both watching over me. my two precious angels. 
we also found out we were pregnant here.  such a special moment, and even though it was weeks before we told anyone, i loved that we were giddy and couldn't talk about anything else with each other since we couldn't tell anyone else.  i will always remember my husband's reaction to seeing the word *pregnant* on the home pregnancy test.  our lives were forever changed in one instant. :)

i'm excited for the future and what the next chapter of our lives has to bring.
i'm ready to get back to texas.

i'm excited about teaching and being in the classroom with kiddos again.
i'm thrilled to be close to friends and family again and look forward to A LOT of time with them. spontaneous pedicures or shopping trips are things i have missed dearly.

i can't wait to find out what our precious little one is,

and i CAN'T WAIT to become a momma and watch kyle become a daddy.

but this past year in canada has been a blessing.

an adventure i will always treasure,

and one i'll never forget.

12 weeks.

i'm 12 weeks. close to being through the first trimester...and that just means we're closer to finding out what our little love is!

so far this pregnancy has treated me very well, i feel great and am thankful for that!

we are heading back to texas in one week and 4 days and i cannot wait! here's a little info on me and this little one in my belly!

How far along? 12 weeks 1 day

Total weight gain/loss: gained 3 pounds

Maternity clothes? nope, not yet, but my jeans no longer button comfortably, i'll be getting belly bands very soon! : )

Stretch marks? no, it's too early for that but i'm being extra cautious and already using tummy butter every night! : )

Sleep: sleeping very well except for waking up in the middle of the night many times to take trips to the restroom! it's a lot less frequent than it was a month ago though!

Best moment this week: feeling like i'm showing

Movement: too early still

Food cravings: salsa, brownies and cheese!

Gender: we'll find out in september!

Labor Signs: no way!

Belly Button in or out? in

Wedding rings on or off? on

What I miss: wine, deli meat, tuna and frozen margaritas!

What I am looking forward to: finding out if it's a boy or girl and being able to feel him or her!

Milestones: not really any yet...according to what to expect when you're expecting, the little one can open and close it's hands! : )

the greatest gift.

we are expecting!
our little one is expected to arrive january 27, 2012.
kyle and i have always talked about becoming parents, but we were just waiting for the right time and wanted some time just the two of us for a while. so after 2 and a half years of marraige, in april, we decided that we were ready to add to our little family. so we stopped preventing it in the hopes that within the next 6 months or so, we'd get pregnant.  little did we know it would happen a lot sooner than that. : ) about two and a half weeks later i told kyle that i was pregnant(i just knew i was, i can't explain it!).  he thought i was crazy of course.  a few days later i had a line down the middle of my belly. (i know what you're thinking...wha?! already??...i thought the same thing!) i showed the hubbs and told him see...i told you i'm pregnant! he still wasn't buying it. so about a week later i bought a few pregnancy tests and planned to take one the next morning. i woke up so excited and the few minutes it takes for the test seemed like forever!  i went and looked at the stick and there was a faint little pink line.  i showed kyle and of course he said, "it's not very dark." i tried explaining to him that a line is a line and it was probably too early that's why it was so faint.  so a few days later i took another and the line was a little darker...and then to ease my husband's doubts bought a digital test and showed him the next morning the words "pregnant" and then he really believed it was true....we were having a baby!  we laughed, we cried, we were thrilled! we couldn't believe it happened so fast and just weeks ago we were dreaming about the wonderfulness of parenthood... and now we were expecting! we had plans to go back to texas a few weeks later and we didn't want to tell anyone over the phone. so a reallly really  LONG 3 weeks later we finally went home.  i went to my first doctor appointment and had an ultrasound.  everything looked great so of course we couldn't wait to tell our families and friends.  everyone was surprised and so excited for the new addition!

we are now back in canada and will be driving back home to texas in a few weeks. we cannot wait!
i got a job teaching second grade at a new school that's opening and we couldn't be more excited to be going back to texas AND becoming parents in a little over 6 months!

we can't wait to find out if we'll be bringing a sweet little boy or girl into this world! (i have a feeling it's a girl, but who knows!) as long as it's healthy we don't care at all!

just wanted to share the news....when we get back to texas i'll put my ultrasound pictures on here(I left them there) and by then maybe a belly pic or two. : )