7 Months!

28 weeks, approximately only 12 more to go!

Holiday Road: New Orleans

Matt and I made it back to the 505 late last night and after our week long adventure through the South, we're slowing getting back into the swing of things.

Our last two nights were spent in New Orleans, Louisiana. We were able to stay just outside the French Quarter and once we checked into our hotel on Christmas Eve, we walked over to Bourbon Street.

There were so many sights to see on Bourbon Street, including Jazz bands, street side singers, bars galore and unique architecture.

My Dad and Matt enjoyed Daiquiris from one of the many Daiquiri bars. Apparently Matt enjoyed his a little too much and started making friends with this wooden Indian.

After cruising Bourbon Street, we walked over to Jackson Square,

and then over to the Mississippi River.

Here's the 3 of us at 27 weeks

These human "statues" were all over the French Quarter.

Christmas Eve dinner consisted of Craw fish Etouffe, Jambalaya, Red Beans and Rice, Bread Pudding and Banana's Foster at the Oceana Restaurant, which was such a favorite that we went back the next day. It also happened to be one of like two restaurants open on Christmas Day.

We left full and happy!

That night we watched a Christmas Story and It's a Wonderful Life from the comfort of our hotel room.

Christmas Day was spent playing tourist. It was cold and wet, so that afternoon we decided to go on a 3 hour tour around the city.

Does that sound familiar?

Did we not learn anything from Gilligan's Island re-runs? It was one of the worst bus tours I've ever been on. I'm pretty sure my Dad slept through most of it and we learned more about the driver's history than we did about New Orleans. Although we were able to see the 9th Ward and Sandra Bullock's house, I wouldn't recommend it to anyone.

The next day was the last of our adventure. Everyone humored me by standing out in the cold to get a table at the famous Cafe du Monde where all they serve a these beignets, covered in powdered sugar and coffee.

So yummy, but so messy. The restaurant floor was covered in powdered sugar, my Mom even found some in her purse later that day.

After lunch and some more sight-seeing, my parents were finally sick of us and dropped us off at the airport.

Thanks for a memorable trip Mom and Dad. Love you guys!

Merry Christmas From Bourbon Street!

Wishing you a very Merry Christmas from the streets of New Orleans!

Holiday Road: Orlando

After driving 6 hours from Orlando last night, we are enjoying a morning of leisure in Panama City Beach, Florida.

The two nights we spent in Orlando were a blast! We met up with our family friends who flew all the way from New Mexico to Charleston, SC to see my brother get married. All 7 of them! What great friends! They were relaxing on a beach while we were in Jacksonville and we were excited to reunite with them at Universal Studio's Islands of Adventure.

We all enjoyed getting to spend the day together and wished Perry and his new wife could have joined us. I'm sure they were having much more fun on their honeymoon in Jamaica.

This sign was on EVERY ride! Baby Danner and I will have to go back when we can participate in the fun.

While all of the adrenaline junkies stood in line to ride The Hulk and the Spiderman, I shopped and ate too much food with these lovely ladies.

I must have had a bad case of the Pregnancy Brain while packing because I failed to include a pair of comfortable shoes. My feet were sore and swollen by the end of the day. Thankfully, I had a nice place to rest that night.

We had the opportunity to stay in the beautiful Bohemian Celebration hotel, located in Celebration, Florida. 

Celebration is this cute little neighborhood in Orlando, created by Disney. The houses look as if they are hundreds of years old but were probably built in the 2000's. We walked around the square where it "snows" every hour and indulged in italian food and ice cream.

I loved the decor of the hotel and wouldn't mind having a couple of these items in my own house someday.

How cool is that chandelier? 

My photography skills don't do this room justice but I LOVE this long table with the different chairs around it and the beautiful hard wood floors. It reminds me of the Mad Hatter's tea party in Alice in Wonderland.

That's all for now. I'm going to get some R & R in before we pack it all up again and head to New Orleans to spend Christmas day there. 

Only 2 more days till Christmas!

Hope you are enjoying the holiday season!

Holiday Road: The Wedding

Hello and Happy Monday from the Sunshine State!

Matt and I drove into Jacksonville, Florida last night with my parents after spending the weekend in Charleston, South Carolina for my brother's wedding. Even though it rained and we experienced unusually cold temperatures for that part of the country, the big event went off without a hitch and my little brother is now some body's wife!

Allow me to introduce Mr. and Mrs. Perry Dunn.

This was technically before they became Mr. and Mrs. but it's the only photo I had of the two of them from the weekend.

Perry was a very handsome groom and he chose a beautiful bride. Both Matt and I were honored to be in the ceremony.

Someday we'll tell Baby Danner that he (or she) was there too, even though he may not remember.

As the newlyweds took off for sunny Jamaica, the four of us began our vacation with a little site seeing in historic Charleston.

The old houses were decked out for the holidays.

Can you imagine living in one of these? I would love to open a bed and breakfast in a quaint house like this.

Our vacation continues today with some golf and a little shopping in Jacksonville. Up next on our itinerary is Orlando, Florida!

6 Months and Counting Down the Days

Happy December everyone! (A day late, I know)

We've started a few countdowns in the Danner home.

This photo was from yesterday, It's taken me awhile to get this post up

Christmas is only 24 days away and Matt will be done with school in ONLY 9 DAYS!!!!! Woo hoo, we're now in the single digits! He has been a great student, especially these past couple weeks, studying away for finals and working on his final paper. He's actually graduating a semester earlier than most of his class, I'm so proud of him!

And then of course there is the on going countdown till our bundle of joy arrives.

24 weeks/6 months

Approximately only 111 days to go!

There is definitely no hiding the fact that I'm pregnant anymore. Strangers have begun commenting, especially men. They sure are brave!

Setting up the tree seemed a little more exhausting this year. Little things like that have become quite the chore. I attempted to paint my toe nails the other day. They are still visible over my growing belly but bending over to get to them is a little difficult. I was able to remove the polish from one foot and had to ask Matt to do the other. Since Matt isn't the best nail polisher (one of his few flaws), I've had naked toes for about week. Just one more reason I'm thankful to be pregnant during the winter.

A Wonderfully Non-Traditional Thanksgiving

This year for Thanksgiving, Matt's family decided to skip the hassle of preparing a large meal and headed up north to spend the night at Buffalo Thunder Resort and Casino, just north of Santa Fe. I had my doubts about spending the holiday in a casino, but it actually turned into one of my favorite Thanksgivings.

Snow in Albuquerque on Thanksgiving morning! The perfect beginning to a great day.

I enjoyed a relaxing morning under a blanket watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade while Matt woke up before the crack of dawn to go duck hunting, in the snow. The only mishap of the day came when the truck they took to go hunting broke down and I missed Matt's 5 phone calls. Oops! He waited in the Walmart parking lot for over an hour, by himself, on Thanksgiving, for his Dad to rescue him. Everything worked out though, and we made it up to Santa Fe just in time to meet the rest of the family.

The hotel's buffet was huge and we were able to pick from Asian, Italian, Mexican and the traditional holiday items for our Thanksgiving feast. I tried duck and lamb for the first time, but decided I prefer turkey.

The 3 of us at 23 weeks on Thanksgiving Day

After dinner we spent some quality time together playing dominos, relaxing and talking about babies. It was a great time and I wouldn't mind if it became a Danner tradition.

We are so blessed and have so much to be thankful for, including a loving family. I'm looking forward to many more holidays together.

Dreaming Away at 22 Weeks

The other day, my Mom and i went to a Women's Conference at a local church.  The first session was great and I was enjoying all the attention my baby bump was getting. We went home that night and I gave birth to a sweet baby girl. The next morning my Mom and I went back to the second session of the conference and left sweet baby girl at home. Half way through the morning session I began feeling guilty for leaving a newborn at home alone and I expressed my concerns to my Mom.

"Don't worry," she said. "All new moms go through this phase."

And then.... I woke up!

Matt and I have both had some weird dreams about the baby. Most of my dreams involve the baby coming super early and us going on with life as usual. In Matt's dreams, I have the baby and hide it from him. Maybe he has fears of not bounding with the baby? What are our subconscious trying to tell us?!?

We had a blast at our first ultrasound a couple weeks ago. The "Little Brat," as the tech called him, was 15 ounces (a little on the chubby side) and hyper! He was moving so much that we weren't able to get all the measurements we need and will have to go back in a couple of weeks, which is fine with me!

22 Weeks!

Whether Baby D is a boy or a girl is still a surprise, but after seeing the ultrasound, I have a little feeling that we will be bringing home a blue bundle of joy. But what do I know really?

Half Way There!!

We've made it to the half way mark!

I'm a little bit embarrased to post this weeks photo because I look HUGE! Oh well, here it is.

20 Weeks/5months!

We only have 5 months, or 20 weeks to go. Yikes! When you break it down like that it's actually a little scary. There is so much to do and prepare for with Thanksgiving, My brother's wedding, Christmas, New Years, Matt's Graduation and Bar Exam all thrown in there. Poor little Baby Danner, we don't have that much time to spend on preparing for his/her arrival. I don't think either of us really know how to properly change a diaper. Matt did learn how to properly burp a baby when holding a friends baby the other night. He'll be a great dad.

Last weekend we started doing a little baby shopping. We cruised the Baby Depot at Burlington Coat Factory, which is surprisingly huge. We oohed and awed over the super cute nursery sets and I fell in love with one in particular.

We then ventured into the stroller section which left us a little overwhelmed. There are so many different kinds of strollers with varying prices. We left wondering what kind we really needed. There is seriously so much to learn about baby's and all their needs.

I just ate dinner here, I don't think I'm really that big. It was a wierd camera angle.

For the most part, I am continuing to feel pretty good. I had a little faint/dizzy spell yesterday that had me a little worried but it passed. Other than that, my only complaint is being extremely hot. It seems like as the weather cools off, my body temperature increases. Being someone who could never be warm enough, this is new.

There we go... I think this is more acurate

We're off to enjoy some quality time with family this weekend. Hope you all have a great weekend!

19 Weeks!

Were almost half way there!

18 weeks

18 weeks

19 weeks

My belly is growing and everyday finding something to wear becomes more of a challenge. This weekend I went through all my winter clothes and said "See you later" to most of my favorite sweaters. Hopefully we can be friends again next year.

We visited the baby doctor again last week and everything checked out well. I've gained 5 pounds which means Baby Danner is growing and on the move! Not only did we hear the heartbeat, but the doppler was also able to pick up sounds of the little guy moving around. I've felt a lot of movement again this week which is so fun and a bit distracting. Matt hasn't been able to feel it kick yet but I'm hoping he will soon. It's just a matter of being in the right place at the right time.

Crazy to think that next week, we'll only have 5 months left. I can't believe how quickly these weeks have past!

The Air Up There

After 25 years of living in the 505 and attending the Balloon Fiesta, Matt has never had a chance to ride in a hot air balloon... until this year.

One of the pluses of my rather long week was sharing this opportunity with my hubby, who totally deserves a fun little treat after living and dealing with my pregnant self. In return, he said I could share his photos with you.

This was taken with the camera on my phone, right before he took off.

There he goes!

One of those little bitty dots is me, waiving safely from the ground

Looks like it was a beautiful ride!

This was a competition day so the balloons all took off from other locations. Their goal was to drop bing bags on targets on the field.

We live in such a pretty place

They ended up landing in a neighborhood full of trees, right next to the river. It was hard to keep a visual on them. The car I was in got to claim "FOS" (First On Sight). This is a big deal among the chase crew and everyone else was pretty jealous.

When we finally found them, they were just hanging out in someone's back yard waiting for us.