6 Weeks & Counting...

I haven't posted since JANUARY?!?! Agh! Where does my time go?!
...I spend it with this sweet face!

I "plan" to update my blog life this weekend, but my sister is coming to town, we are continuing our house preparations for Baby Dos, and trying to relax (what does that word mean again!?) hehehe! So we will see if updating "A Little Nugget" really happens...hehe!

I have less than 6 weeks before we become a family of 4...5 counting Major! and there is still so much to do!

First things first...We have made the "Big Girl Room" transition and it went AWESOME!!! Aaaaa- that is me singing!
Mary Carlisle loves Loves LOVES her new bed! She wakes up every morning saying, "I sleep in big girl bed!" with a smile! It is the most adorable and joyful way to start our day!
There is no turning back now...she is done with a "baby" bed! hehe!

Secondly, I must make it to the end of the school year! Agh! We have 4 weeks of school left. School ends May 25th, I am due June 8th...and the Doc is predicting an earlier arrival like I had with Mary Carlisle. She was a week early...Oh! Did I mention this Little Boxer is measuring BIG! Agh!!! Mary Carlisle was born at a perfect petite size of 6 lbs 6 oz.

At my Ultrasound on Monday, they said this baby is in the 78%! haha! And they are estimating it is around 5 lbs 9 oz! Chunky Monkey!
Now, I know this is an estimate and they were off an entire pound with Mary Carlisle...but I'm not gonna lie...I AM NERVOUS for this expectant BIG Babe to exit from me! hehe!

As the story goes...Chad thinks the baby will be a girl and I am thinking boy...only 41 more days or less until we will know the truth!...Wahoo!!!

Anywhoobies...Enough talking...here are a few pictures to show that it is actually Spring here in Knoxville and not still snowing :)...

Easter Egg Hunt At Church

Mary Carlisle Took The Hunt Very Seriously...Until She Discovered There Were Treats Inside The Eggs & Ate Her First Jelly Bean! :)

Hayes & Mary Carlisle Checking Out The Petting Zoo

It Is So Hard Getting A Picture With All Eyes Are On The Camera...hehe!
Two Different Days & Easter Day Brought Us A Successful Attempt!

A Little After Church Stroll At The Park

Chad and I Took A Trip To VEGAS! Yes, I was 7 mos pregnant when we went! hehe!

Mary Carlisle Turned 2!!! ...These pictures are for another full day of posting!!! :)

Two of My Favorite People...Looking Cool In Their Shades!

Bring on the New Year!

We Love Snow...and Lots Of It!

Our January has kicked us off real fast to a New Year of fun, excitement, and doctor's visits! We started off the year with #7 of our ear infections since September, followed by an appointment with an ENT doc to get tubes in our little girls ears. I anticipated being a teary mommy through our exit as she was taken away for the speedy procedure, but Mary Carlisle's reaction to the "happy juice" kept us in laughable tears instead.

We hardly returned back to school, when we got 3 whole days off because of this beautiful white snow! Thank You Lord! I needed some more Merry Martin time!

Chad decided we just had to have a "WHITE" Party!
White Snow, White Chili, White Russians and the movie White Dog. hehe! Chad's idea...not mine!
These are Chad's homemade White Dog cookies...yes, the dog is a mean red-eyed dog. They are supposed to look like that! :)

No one could drive up our big old hill so the neighbors packed up their drinks, food and even their babies and set up camp at the Casa de Martin for the day! It was SO fun!

Ben, Rachael & Jack making the trek in the snow

Our little fashionista checking out her boots in her reflection...hehe! Such a Diva!

Still can't find her anywhere! She picks the BEST hiding spots! Major does a good job of keeping her safe too!

Our Little Patient...She's A Trooper!

She even looks cute in scrubs!

Video 1 is the first 5 minutes of Happy Juice...Video 2 is 15 minutes later...hehe!

Laughing All The Way...

Laughing All The Way....

A Merry Martin Christmas...

10 Days... 3 Christmas', 3 Families, 12 Martins, 7 Keenans, 5 Howarths, 1 Boyfriend, 4 Baby Dolls, 1 Baby Stroller (problem!), 1 Redneck Christmas Village, 30 goats, 5 camels, 3 bulls, 1 Unhappy Santa and Unhappy Mary Carlisle, 3 Different Doctors in 3 Different Cities, 1 Bowl Game, 2 Terrible Endings to a Vol Game, and 1 Hokey Pokey Elmo...oh yes, and 17 weeks pregnant trekking across the state of Tennessee in a truck with my loving husband, 21 mos. old Mary Carlisle and our German Shepherd, Major!

She will laugh one day...right?!

Entering the Christmas Village, which we thought was going to be like the Enchanted Forest...Boy, were we wrong!!! hehe!!! :)

Happy Mary Carlisle BEFORE her encounter with Santa!

Paige getting more attention from the goat than she wanted! ...Haha!

Yes, this is their idea of Christmas...interesting?!

Anyone want to be a part of the Martin Christmas Vacation?!?! I am pretty sure we can be a top selling movie too! Hehe!!! Despite how, well, hilarious or exhausting it may have sounded...we made the best of the best and had a great time laughing our way through it! Hahaha!!!

The highlight? Watching Mary Carlisle unwrap all our Christmas gifts! Isn't that who they are all for anyway? She thinks so and she finds such enjoyment in unwrapping every tiny piece of paper and handing them to me, I couldn't help but let her think they were for her! I have a tidy girl on my hands...she doesn't want any paper to touch the floor it must be thrown away, if I blow my nose she must too and place it carefully in thetrash, and she likes to clean the space up after she eats...hehe! I am not joking! I guess she learned this at school because I am not a stickler for this kind of stuff.

Seeing Family is always so great...it makes me want to move closer to them ALL...which is slightly impossible considering we cover the greater states of TN, GA, and NC! But a girl can dream...

Another highlight was a surprise visit with my friend Jonathan. He and his wife, Alicia, recently lost their sweet 20 mos. old baby girl, Evie. It has been the saddest loss for them, for anyone who knows them, and for those who do not know them. They are one of those couples everyone loves and admires. Their strength and faith is an example to us all. I want to ask anyone who reads this to keep them in their prayers. It was so nice to see him and give him a hug letting him know I am praying for their family.

My, what a year is has been...It is hard to believe 2010 is behind us and we are onto day 2 of 2011. I find time flies by much quicker with a little one. It makes me sad...She will be 2 in March and I feel like she just entered our life a few months ago, but at the same time I cannot remember what life was like before her. I guess that is the beauty of parenthood.

During Christmas, my sister gave me a picture of the two of us when I was about the same age as Mary Carlisle. First off, the resemblence is scary between Mary Carlisle and me. But I promise I do not feel like it was THAT long ago that we were wearing those awesome 80's clothes! :) It must be because we looked so good in them! hehe! Do you think our children will be looking at their clothes like we do in our 80's clothes? "Mom, what were you thinking?!" hehe!

I am not really into New Year's Resolutions...but here's to 2011 a year that I plan to pray harder, hug tighter and kiss longer!

Love you all... :)

How Do They Do It?!

This SMILE makes every day a GREAT day!!!!!!


Well, we have (kind of) survived our first 6 weeks of going back to work and starting daycare. But I must ask...How Do You Do It?! How do people go full speed ahead, be a super mom, be a super wife, super teacher and great friend and feel like they have actually been all those things...oh! and not get sick!?!? A day as a mom, whether it be a stay at home mom or working mom is tough and bringing all these school germs home is not helping The Martin household.

We have overcome just about all the illnesses there are in the book ever since...well, ever since the Parsley Pair were born... I know this date well because Mary Carlisle and I have been trying to go meet her newest besties but every Thursday or Friday disaster strikes and Boom we go down and go down hard! Aghhh!!! This week it is the stomach bug, allergic reaction to amoxicillin, double ear infection and now breathing treatments for the lil girl! :( Make it stop! We want to kiss our friends, Minnie & Tully!

But by the end of the day or at the end of a week there is nothing greater than coming home to these sweet faces...my wonderful family!

UT Stadium Tour...Go Vols!

My Aunt Angela, Cousin Payton & her friend Kristen came to visit us this past week! The girls are thinking about coming to UT in a couple of year for college, so Chad called a friend (that i didn't even know he had! hehe!) and we got a tour of the Stadium! It was incredible!!!...I wonder what other friends he has that i don't know about... :)

V-O-L-S...GO VOLS GO!!! V-O-L-S...GO VOLS GO!!! V-O-L-S...GO VOLS GO!!! V-O-L-S...GO!!!

Put me in Coach! I'm ready to play!!! GO VOLS!!!!

LIVE FROM THE MEDIA ROOM...MARY CARLISLE & FAMILY!!!

UT Bound? Call Chad and we will help convince you to go UT...hehe! I am ready to go back after the day we had! A visit to the practice field, different levels of the stadium, locker room, media room, into the letterman's room and on the actual field! This was the best day!!! Who's ready for football season now?! I AM!!! and so is Mary Carlisle :)

Mary Carlisle says..."Let's Do This People! I have my shades on...I've touched Smokey! Let's get on with this tour!"

Look at this little girl sasha'-ing around the field...

future vol dancer? future vol cheerleader? We Hope So!!!

WOW! Mary Carlisle thinks this is pretty amazing!!! I think so too!!!

Check out my kicks! Orange patent leather!

Our Crew...Mary Carlisle, Chad, Colleen, Payton, Aunt Angela and Kristen...future Vols, I hope!

First Week of School

Wahoo!!! My First Day of School!

I can't WAIT to meet my new friends and show them my fancy backpack!!!
Am I stylish or what?! ...Watch out new friends...I'm ready to play!
Fwew! Watch out new friends...I'm resting up for tomorrow! :)
Getting clean from my first day! Bubbles are the best! :)

Excited...Sad...Anxious...Exhausted...Joyous...& Lonely are all the emotions that have run through me this week as my little Mary Carlisle started "school". Ugh! Knowing this day is coming and actually going through it are completely different! I hate it and she loves it, so I guess one of us just has to get over it and move on...ME! :) She is a little social butterfly and loves playing with her new lil friends, so at least she is spending her day smiling and playing & eating and sleeping! Well sleeping has been an issue considering she doesn't want to stop playing to stop and sleep! :) hehe! The first day she spent her nap taking out and putting in the kids paci's and the second day she passed out and woke up an hour later talking for the second half of her nap! haha! She just wants everyone to know her thoughts and be a helper! Who can blame her?! :) She is a sweetie and i think they are SUPER LUCKY to have her...Because that is how I feel when I have her!