Sonogram Results are in...

Many of you have been anxiously awaiting the news from our sonogram we had this morning. Of course, we wanted to tell our families first, so we decided to hold off on breaking the big news on our blog until then. Dave's family is out of town, so we broke the news to them by phone this morning. My family (the Roy family) celebrated Christmas together this afternoon at my parents' home in St. Augustine. Before digging in to our family-style Italian dinner, I let Charlie open one gift in front of everyone. His present was a little baby doll, swaddled in a PINK, YES, I SAID PINK BLANKET!!! Everyone cheered and celebrated finding out that Charlie is going to have a little sister, Katherine Elizabeth. Charlie didn't really understand what all the big hooplah was about...in fact, he looked at the baby doll and made a face...quite funny! Of course, Dave and I are thrilled with the news and even more thrilled that she looked and measured healthy today during the sonogram. Our little modest baby girl didn't want us to know she was a girl at first, as she kept her legs closed tight and held one hand over her private area! After some convincing by the the sonogram tech., she gave in and gave us a glimpse. What a wonderful gift on Christmas Eve. We are so blessed!

Theo & Dana's Wedding

After our Thanksgiving in Lexington, NC, we headed to the mountains of Cashiers, NC, to be a part of Theo and Dana's wedding. What a beautiful place to get married! Dave was very honored to stand up with Theo during the ceremony and was even more honored to be fed by Theo's sisters from Connecticut for the entire weekend. The food was absolutely delicious....from grape leaf wraps, to fresh spinach and cheese pastries, to stuffed shrimp, to the best bruschetta we have EVER tasted...we ate almost around the clock. Dave loved it so much, he thought about leaving his Italian heritage and becoming Greek! All joking aside though, Dave REALLY wants to visit Greece the next time Theo and Dana journey over there. And now that we have returned home, we have vowed to eat only salads and soups for the next couple of weeks...I guess I could blame the weight gain on the baby, but not when it goes straight to my rump! As soon as I get a photo of the groom and bride, I'll post it here...

Family Thanksgiving Fun in NC

For a change this year, we headed up to NC (instead of Ormond Beach) to celebrate Thanksgiving with the Conte family. David's grandmother, Maw Maw, made the 7 1/2 hour journey with us to enjoy some cold weather, beautiful lights and family fun. I have to say that it was rather nice to wear sweaters instead of shorts this year! Charlie especially enjoyed the trip because he got to play with his cousins, Jordan, Adan and Ava and his Aunts and Uncles that he doesn't see very often. He was even doling out hugs and kisses upon arrival and departure...I know, amazing for Charlie! Jenny's masterful arrangement of Thanksgiving dinner, topped off by Maggie's yummy sweet potato casserole and dessert was a treat! Dave, of course, was extremely thrilled to eat turkey sandwiches the next day as we ventured to the mountains in NC to be a part of our friend's wedding. Well, here is a few pictures from our trip...thanks to the GPS Ryan and Michelle let us borrow, we finally found the Christmas lights of Tanglewood...you must check them out if you are ever in NC during the holidays!

It's Potty Time!

Well, it's news that only a few select family members may care to hear about, but in our house, it's very big news! This morning, Charlie went "poo poo" on the potty. He was so excited, he kept standing up and looking at it! Kallyn, the little 2 year old I keep during the work week, ran into the bathroom and exclaimed, "Oh, Charlie, I am so proud of you!" He was even more excited when he got to "fush" it down the big potty. Of course, he received a little M&M as a reward, but the big reward for this first big potty feat was a trip to Target with mommy and daddy to pick out a new Matchbox car. Daddy had a LITTLE bit of influence and Charlie brought home a yellow 84 GT Ferrari. Way to go Charlie!

Halloween and Pumpkin Fun

Here are some pictures from the Halloween/Pumpkin Season. Charlie loved pumpkins so much, we visited the pumpkin patch twice. He LOVED his first Halloween and really LOVED the Trick-or-treating part. He was so thrilled when people kept giving him candy and tried his best to eat more than he ever has at mealtime. After a few pieces, we had to cut him off from his supply, so he tried to swipe some favorites from the bucket of candy we were passing out. He was such a cute little monkey! Thank you Grandma Roy for making this year's costume...what a treat!

Breast Friends Team- Race for the Cure

My first attempt at forming a team to participate in the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure in Jacksonville was a great success...hooray! Thank you too all my teammates who got up way too early on a Saturday morning to be a part of a great cause that affects so many lives! Thank you also to those who sponsored me and my teammates. "Breast Friends" team will be back next year for the 2009 Race, and as soon as the date is published, I'll let you know. Way to go!

Charlie's Favorite Table

It took Daddy a while to get this table completely finished, but it has finally made its way to the office! Charlie LOVES his table and sits at it all the time. If you come by the house, he will definently invite you to "seat" with him and play cars. He will even tell you which bench he would like for you to "seat" on by patting his hand on the appropriate one (which is usually the one closest to the window, making it a hard fit for any adult!)

This table is a family heirloom, as PawPaw had his friend make it for his grandchildren. It has perfect height, sturdy wood quality and features rounded corners (a must for every mother's nerves!) Dave stripped off the old paint, painstakingly repainted it a perfect "garnet" shade and adorned it with FSU logos. Way to go Daddy...this table is way better than any you could buy in a store!

Baby #2 Due in May, 2009

Well, we got to see our new little peanut on the ultrasound machine yesterday. No gender news yet, but the doctor says everything is measuring good and the baby looks healthy. We, of course, think is way better than any gender news! Dave had to ask though...and got denied by the tech. This picture is not very clear, but at least you get a glimpse of a profile!

Happy 4th Anniversary

On September 4th, we celebrated our 4th Wedding Anniversary. Nothing extremely eventful about this anniversary...just a nice, QUIET dinner at Bonefish Grill in Jacksonville Beach. (If you get a chance to go, you must try the Bang-Bang Shrimp appetizer...it has a kick, but is VERY yummy!) Charlie went to his Uncle Mark and Aunt Jess's house to play with his cousins for a couple of hours. It was definently nice to have an evening out to dinner where all you had to worry about was feeding yourself! :-)

City Lake Park

While we were in North Carolina over Labor Day Weekend, we visited City Lake Park, which, as the name states, is a city park next to a lake. What a beautiful park and what a fun day! From our picnic lunch, to the playground, to the Carousel, to the train, the kids had a great time playing with each other. The adults especially enjoyed the breezy train ride! We can't wait to go and visit again...

Happy Birthday Cousin Jordan!

While on our trip to North Carolina over Labor Day weekend, we were able to celebrate Jordan's 6th Birthday. The oldest "Conte cousin" started her birthday off with a trip to the "spa" with 3 of her girlfriends, a pizza lunch with cookie cake, and returned home for a late afternoon party with her family and friends. Here are the Conte cousins enjoying their cupcakes!

It's Potty Time!

Charlie is very intrigued by the POTTY, especially since Kallyn is potty-trained.  In fact, every time Kallyn has to go potty, Charlie thinks he needs to go too.  He sits on his little toilet while Kallyn sits on the big toilet.  He doesn't really feel the need to remove his shorts and diaper or lift the lid for that matter.  He just sits and holds onto the side bars.  When he is "finished," he stands up and claps for himself and immediately asks to "osh" (wash).  He moves the little step stool in front of the sink and waits for me to turn the water on for him.  He doesn't really wash his hands, but rather splashes the water around for a while, licking his fingers several times.  I don't expect him to be potty-trained for a while, but at least he knows the routine!  

Charlie's New Friend

Well, I've ventured into being a "stay-at-home-mom" for this year and so far, I'm loving it!  Dave has even commented how much he is enjoying it too.  (Personally, I think he likes having home-cooked dinners every night of the week.)  Since I left my co-teacher in the middle of our looping year (I needed to make it up to her somehow) and to make a little extra money, I am watching her 2 year old daughter, Kallyn.  At first, Charlie wasn't too happy with this new "addition" to our daily routines, but now he actually tries to give her kisses and only cries half of the time when I'm helping her.  She is truly a delight and talks all day long!  I'm hoping her rather extensive vocabulary rubs off on Charlie.  Right now, his favorite words are "go away," "peeessss" (please), mommeeeee, daddeeee, shakkee (Jackie), and "yessssss."  They are napping at the same time so far, which gives me about a 2 hour break in the day to get some of my to-do lists accomplished.  We'll I'm off to sort through the mail...

Fun Summer Pictures

Here is a collection of pictures taken over the past couple of months. Charlie is definently "all boy" and loves to run, climb, pull the dog's tail, make a mess and play with things he is not supposed to play with!

Uncle John's Visit

Uncle John came to visit last week. Charlie and he had a lot of fun together. John was a big help with Charlie and carried him almost everywhere we went. He even learned how to get him out of his carseat. Charlie knows how to say "John" and followed him around the house to watch him get ready, sleep, eat, etc. It is always hard when he leaves to go back to Mississippi, but we look forward to the next visit!

North Carolina Cousins Came to Visit

Charlie LOVED having his cousins from North Carolina come visit two weekends in a row! We went to the Jacksonville Zoo and out to eat several times. We had the most fun playing together at the house. Sharing toys was a new endeavor for Charlie, but I think he handled it fairly well. The thing he loved sharing the most, was his faithful dog, Jack. Charlie and his cousins chased Jack all around the house and backyard. We even tried to have a photo shoot of them all together....Charlie didn't quite cooperate.

After they left, Charlie kept looking for them for a couple of days. Jack was so tired, he slept for those two days! I know Charlie can't wait to see them again soon!

Happy 4th of July!

Charlie went to his first parade in Keystone Heights, Florida, this 4th of July. Only in Keystone, is the parade led by a cowboy on a bull, accompanied by a dog and 2 geese! Charlie loved the potato (notice only one potato fry) dipped in ketchup, seeing his Roy cousins, aunts and uncles, and playing with the freebies thrown out by passing floats! He didn't even cry when the firetruck sirens blared, the roadster car engines revved and the cannon boomed! It was really hot, but it was a lot of fun. After the parade, we went out to the lake to cookout and swim. Charlie even jumped off the dock! What a fun 4th of July!

slide show 4-29-08

This the first of 3 slideshows to catch everybody up. The new ones will be more relevant and thematic as time goes on. So enjoy and feel free to post your comments.

He loves his spaghetti.....Definitely is a Conte