Congratulations Jenny and La!

Look at this cute baby!!! My friend Jenny gave birth to this 6 lb 1 oz bouncing baby boy on Sunday, August 27th. They named him Talon Paul and he's just cute as a button! After holding him at the hospital, I realized that I definitely do want another baby. It's just too fun seeing what they end up looking like and watching their little personalities develop. My cardiologist says it's ok so I'm in for a 3rd. Not yet though probably in a couple years. Anyway, congratulations to Jenny and La and thanks for restoring my baby fever! Love you guys!

Let them eat cake!

Cooper's first birthday party was great fun! We had a Baby Einstein theme (because he loves his Baby Einstein videos!) I made a Baby Einstein caterpillar cake and a small smash cake just for Coops. Once he figured out that he could eat it, he was all over it! The kids really loved the cake and fun was had by all. Thanks Jen for taking the pics for me!

Sugar, schmugar...

Ok, so I went to see the cardiologist yesterday morning and after reviewing all the test results he says I have slow circulation. This means I have low blood pressure and my body is not pushing the blood around fast enough. I think it's called hypotension. Anyway, this is why I've been really tired and also why my heart rate has been dropping into the high 30s at times. I'm not really sure why this happens but he did tell me how we are going to treat it. He says that I need to cut sugar out of my diet and add salt. Also, that I need to eat 5 small meals a day instead of 3 big meals. My first thought- "NO SUGAR!!!" I truly couldn't believe what I was hearing! How am I supposed to survive?! Anyone that knows me knows that I love supersweet buttercream frosting and all kinds of pastries and can't live without a chocolate fix here and there. But my sugar intake apparently causes my pulse to spike and then my blood pressure to drop even lower so it's a no go. My second thought- "Add salt?" How do you do that without loading up on pretzels and potato chips? I'm not a salt craving kind of person. I guess I'll have to learn to be because salt is notorious for raising blood pressure and that's exactly what I need it to do. And my final thought- "How exactly am I supposed to split up 3 meals into 5 small meals?" The doc says it's imperative that I do this so that I don't have all my blood rushing to my digestive system after a big meal. That means there is less blood that can make it to my brain and I'm more likely to pass out on the couch after I eat. If I cut down to 5 small meals, everything can stay steady.

So, even though this is all going to bring about a major lifestyle change, I'm dedicating myself to it. If it means that I'll have more energy to do all the things I need to do everyday and that I won't have to rely on meds to do it for me then I'm all for it. I'll be meeting with a nutritionist next week. I'm hoping to see a real difference in my energy level over the next couple weeks. Wish me luck!

Will and Chuck (his dad) taking some time out to pose for a picture on the golf course.

The pier at James Island. Catching dinner! 

Coleman and Cooper enjoying the aquarium. 

Don't let his look of confidence fool you, Will was pretty freaked out by this little sea creature.

At the children's museum in Charlotte. 

The S. Carolina part of our trip.

Ok, so after we left WV we headed down to South Carolina. (This, by the way, turned out to be the most challenging part of the trip and the deciding factor for not driving all the way to Disney. A baby and a 4 yr old who has to pee every hour just do not travel well.) Anyway, once we got there it was a lot of fun! The day after we arrived, Will and I went golfing with his dad. I was thrilled because (even though I love it) I haven't golfed since Will and I were dating. It was really fun just to be outside and doing something sans the boys who were being watched by Grandma Verburg.

A couple days later we packed up and went to Savannah, GA for the day to go the Paula Deen's restaurant, The Lady and Sons. We ended up waiting a few hours to eat (this place was packed!) The food was great but there wasn't nearly enough to choose from. When you think buffet, you think there is going to be lots of food but really there was only about 15-20 items. However, what was there was simply delicious! I won't be going back to The Lady and Sons but it was a neat experience. And, because we had to wait to eat, we did get to see the famous River St. in Savannah. All in all, a fun day. That night we traveled north to Charleston, SC to settle in for a night of rest before a big day of crabbing the next day.

One of Will's fondest memories from childhood was going out crabbing with his Mom when he was a young boy. I think that he really wanted to re-create that experience for Coleman. So, we went to James Island State Park and let Coleman help pull up some traps and see all the crabs as they were caught. I think Diane (Will's mom) and Paul caught about 30 crabs that day. While Coleman did enjoy crabbing when he was pulling up traps, the waiting part of crabbing proved to need more patience then Coleman possesses. So, we skipped out early on Will's parents and went to Folly Beach for the rest of the afternoon. We met them back at home in Sumter that night just in time to eat all those crabs that Diane cooked up. It was really yummy!

Another couple days passed and we packed up again to stay in Diane's vacation property at Myrtle Beach. While there we went to the beach (of course!) and went to the new Ripley's Aquarium. It was really a great aquarium. Just big enough that you feel like you get your money's worth and just small enough that you don't have to spend the whole day there to see everything. Great fun!

We headed back to Sumter after two days in Myrtle beach. I should mention here that everytime we went back to Sumter Will would golf at least 9 holes (but usually 18 holes) a day. So, while in Sumter I spent a lot of time babysitting but I can't really complain because I did get to play with him twice. But it was much more fun getting out and doing things around South Carolina. In fact ,we like SC so much that we are planning on moving there someday soon. As soon as we can figure out a way.

Wrapping up our trip to SC, we headed back to Charlotte to stay the night in a hotel there and catch a plane home the next day. We went to the children's museum in Charlotte which proved to be really exciting for Coleman. It was too bad that they closed at 6 o'clock as we didn't get there until about 4 but we really had fun while we were there.

So, that's our trip. I think that I haven't blogged in such a while because I knew these vacation blogs would be long. Hopefully, I can get back to writing on here everyday or every other day now that these long posts are out of the way...

Cooper is turning 1!!!

Hey Everybody! Cooper is turning one and you are invited to celebrate with us! The party starts at 7 pm on Thurs., August 24th at our house. Be there or be square! Oh, and be hungry because we're having pizza! See you there!

Will and Coleman on our first ride of the day at Carowinds! 

Almost at the finish line! 

Coleman and his Uncle Kevin at the Power game. 

Where do I start?

Okay. I have yet to post anything about our trip because I'm too overwhelmed by the amount I have to share! First things first. Our vacation was fantastic! We started it with a bang by meeting family in N. Carolina and going to Carowinds Amusement Park. Coleman had a blast and is now officially not afraid of anything! I think if he were tall enough, Will would've had to take him on the big coasters. He had a blast and he can't wait to go back.

Next, we went up to WV and everytime we went up or down a hill (which is all the time in WV!), Coleman would say "Weeee!" like it was a roller coaster. It was really fun to see family and be at home for a little while. It always good to reconnect. We went to a performance by the No Pants comedy troupe (No, they are not naked! They wear shorts!) that my brother-in-law is in. They basically do improv comedy like that one show that Drew Carey does. There is lots of audience participation. In fact, Will, Coleman, and I all got a chance to get on stage at one point or another. That was really fun. Although, I definitely don't think on my feet very well. I think I'll stick to what I do best, heckling! Just kidding. I'm not a good heckler either. In fact, I am not an attention seeker. I just much prefer being a wallflower.

Also, while in WV we stayed with my sister Celeste and her boyfriend for a few days. She hosted the big July 4th BBQ at her house because she's got a fantastic pool. There was so much good food! It was really fun. Oh, and Will and I ran in the Riverfest 5k in St. Albans and I got 2nd place in my age bracket! I got a trophy and everything! I beat my last time by nearly 2 minutes! It really is easier to run at a lower altitude.
That reminds me, I need to find a race for Will and I to do this month. I better get on that.

WV offered lots of unhealthy, greasy, yummy food that I just couldn't wait to eat! I had a Tudor's biscuit the morning after we arrived and helped myself to some Dunkin' Donuts after our race. Those were the two things that I really had to have while we were there. And they were worth every stinkin' calorie!

We ended our trip to WV by going to a baseball game in the new Power Park in downtown Charleston. Uncle Kevin bought Coleman a baseball helmet and a little wooden baseball bat and Coleman was ready to play as soon as he put them on. He asked us if he was on the team. He's so cute!

Well, I'll get to the rest of the trip on the next post.