I can't believe how long it's been since I've posted a blog here. Let's see...what's happened?

In August, Matt and I celebrated our 9-year wedding anniversary! We went out to dinner, and had a nice time, but we didn't do anything super special. Towards the middle of the month, we found out we were expecting another baby!

In the middle of October, we flew to Arizona to visit Dan and Debb. I was a little worried at how Kayley was going to handle a much longer flight (a visit to NH is only an hour and a half by plane, and to Tampa is only two hours). She did wonderfully, but it was Matt and me who couldn't keep our eyes open. I swear they put some kind of sleeping gas in the recylced airplane air. :-) We had such a great time, going to the Desert Museum, the Colossal Caves, and to Tombstone. Not to mention the adorable crafty-type village of Tubac, which I loved walking around. Hanging out with everyone was so much fun, and we can't wait to go back for another visit! Thanks Dan and Debb, for showing us such a great time!

We enjoyed a nice quiet Thanksgiving. We didn't cook for a change, we ordered a turkey mean from a restaurant called Bob Evans. It was very tasty, and it was a great day, complete with Cowboys game (my favorite team!)

And just yesterday, we had our 20-week ultrasound and found out that Kayley's going to have a baby brother. We're so excited, and I'm 90% sure we've chosen the name Lucas Michael. I'm kind of hoping to change Matt's mind and have Lucas's middle name as Matthew. We'll see. Now we get to buy boy clothes, and find out what to do with the saved outfits and dresses that belonged to Kayley. Maybe I can talk Matt into trying for another girl someday, too. :-D

My cousin Lauren is expecting her first baby in February. She's having a boy too, and is naming him Cameron Joseph. I love it, and I can't wait for his arrival too!

We decorated the Christmas tree, and made Italian cookies (they were SO good!), and we're feeling very festive. Merry Christmas!

Diet...

Ugh, how I hate to diet. I'm on day...4, and I'm very happy that I'm keeping it together. I'm also doing it with a friend of mine, and that definitely seems to help. I've been buying Lean Cuisine and Smart Ones, and a plethera of other brands. It's easier than I thought it would be, and the food is tastier than I imagined. I'm also logging in my daily caloric intake and the exercises I've been doing. I think I can do this! :-)

Long Time

I know, know...I haven't posted anything in a really long time! Kayley's in school now, three days a week, and she LOVES it! She's always telling us about exciting things that she does there.. She especially loves Fridays, which is Splash Day, and she loves that she can wear her "babysoup" (bathing suit) to school. :-D

Sometimes I think she's four going on fourteen...she said to me a while ago "Mom, my hair is freaking out!" or "That cracks me up!" Ohf course, it's me who's saying these things without realizing she's picking up on them, but at least she's not picking up bad language or anything from school. :-)

My school is going well... have 1 more class to get through, and I'll have finished my first semester! I'm so excited, and it's going by really quickly! I'm not looking forward to the math next semester, as that's never been one of my best subjects, but I think I'll be okay.

Matt's doing well, too. He's excited that I'm going to make him a cake for his birthday, but he doesn't know that it'll be a spice cake with butter cream frosting...his favorite! So shhh...don't tell him! I'm also having a hard time trying to figure out what to get him...something cooking-related, I'm sure. He loves that kind of thing. He's been hinting at Visa cards or Best Buy cards, so maybe I'll get him one of those too. :-)

Right now, Kayley's in her room playing...and I can hear her babbling away to one of her stuffed cats. She sure has a great imagination. She was counting the other day in Spanish...and she can count all the way to ten without much help! She's also writing her name by herself, and she wrote her Uncle Steve an "I love you" note and had me mail it to him. Too cute!

We're planning on visiting Arizona in October to visit Matt's mom and dad! We're excited, and we've never really been in that area. And we're going in October, so it won't be too hot. :-D It'll be nice to see Dan and Debb, so we're looking forward to it!

Kayley and I went to NH for the 4th of July weekend, and it was the first time we'd been back since my Nana's funeral at the beginning of January. And since the 4th of July would have been her 92nd birthday, it was especially hard. We had a nice time visiting with my family though, and come February, I'm going to have a new baby cousin to love!

Florida Fun

We came back from Florida 5 days ago and we're STILL exhausted! Not that we were horribly busy while we were there, but I think the sun and ocean breeze wore us out. Kayley and I were so happy that Matt was able to come this year. He had a great time, even though he thought he'd miss a lot of work. We got there on Monday afternoon and got settled in, walked around and went to dinner. On Tuesday, we went to Disney, Epcot and Hollywood Studios. We got there super early (and Dad's friend Roy is totally AWESOME for getting us in!!) and went on some of the classic rides like Pirates of the Caribbean and The Haunted Mansion. Then we went to Epcot and had fun exploring there. I have a thing for Asian art and goodies, and it was there that I bought 2 more buddhas for my collection! The last stop was Hollywood Studios (we'd never been there before), and Dad actually went on the roller coaster! Haha, we knew he could do it! By then we were exhausted and all we wanted to do was go back to the condo and go to sleep. And on Wednesday, we rested our sore feet and relaxed. Jaimie's plane landed around 4:30 and Matt and I picked her up from the airport (despite Tampa traffic!), and brought her back to the condo. Then we all spent most of the night in the pool and hot tub still recovering from all the walking around Orlando! The rest of the vacation revolved around walking along the beach, going to various shops (where Matt found some fantastic silky Cuban-esque shirts), and going on the boardwalk to watch the pelicans, great blue herons and dolphins. There was also a boat that had been beached. It was fascinating to watch other boats help get it back into the ocean, but it was still there as of Tuesday. Saturday, we came back home, and I don't think I have ever seen our cats so happy to see us! My friend Shelby watched them for us while we were gone, and they were very well taken care of, but they missed their people. Ever since we came back, they won't let us out of their sight. :-)

We'll be getting another car very soon too. I can't wait, because that means Kayley and I won't feel stuck in the house all the time. :-) I'll also be going back to school within the next couple of weeks. I'm getting my associates degree in Health Care Management. I can't wait!!

~jess

4 1/2 more weeks!

Last night, I purchased our tickets to Florida. I feel very accomplished, knowing that I don't have to worry about the prices going uo significantly before we leave. I'm really looking forward to it. Because most of 2008 was not good, I'm really hoping that 2009 will be better. And warm weather starting off the new year is always a good thing. :-)