Babymoon Surprise Weekend

A few months ago, Clay asked me if we had anything planned for the weekend of July 17th-19th and after looking at our calendar I said no. He told me to leave that weekend open but would not tell me why. So July 17th came around and all I knew was that we were busy and possibly going somewhere that was accessible by car (instead of via airplane).

We started driving Friday afternoon and ended up at Highland Falls Bed and Breakfast Inn near Blairsville, GA. I was completely surprised as I had no idea where we were going or what we were doing that weekend. The Bed and Breakfast was so beautiful, quaint, and secluded in the North Georgia mountains. When we reached the Inn, Clay informed me that we had no activities planned for the entire weekend - just relaxing and soaking in the beauty of the mountains surrounding us.

We were greeted by our "inn keepers" - Jeanie and Pete Bullock who showed us around the house and to our room. Jeanie and Pete were so very nice and hospitable - it was almost like we had known them for a very long time. The house has a great back porch that overlooks Pete's garden and the mountains and is equipped with a large number of rocking chairs - (my kind of porch!). There are only a total of three guest rooms (all equipped with a jacuzzi tub) which makes it very intimate and cozy setting even with a full house. The room we stayed in is called the Summerour room named after locals from the area and is the best room in the whole house. It has a separate door that leads straight out onto the back porch.

Friday night we went into Blairsville and listened to a free bluegrass concert in the old courthouse and grabbed a bite to eat at the Hole in the Wall restaurant - the happening place on a Friday night in Blairsville.

Saturday morning we awoke to a wonderful homemade breakfast that included fresh fruit smoothies, fresh fruit cocktail, biscuits and sausage gravy, homefries, and peach cobbler!!!! The food was so delicious and we were both so stuffed afterwards that all we could do or wanted to do was to rock in the rocking chairs on the back porch. We spent the rest of the day reading and enjoying the view from the porch, "playing" horseshoes, taking walks, and playing card games.

Sunday morning we both woke up very excited to see what would be for breakfast that morning. We were greeted with more fruit smoothies and fresh fruit, scrambled eggs, bacon, hashbrowns, biscuits, and let's not forget the best part - homemade cherry pie!! Mmmm....the food was so good. We had a good time talking with Jeanie and Pete and their daughter, Terri over breakfast. After breakfast it was time to pack up and head for home. But first, we wanted to get a picture with Jeanie and Pete.

On the way back home, we took a detour to Brasstown Bald - the highest mountain in Georgia (4,784 feet above sea level). We decided to take the trail to the top of the mountain which although was only 6/10 of a mile was pretty steep. The view from the top was absolutely breathtaking!! On a clear day, you can apparently see four states (GA, NC, SC, and TN). It was pretty windy and chilly on the top of the mountain even though on the ground at our car was probably well into the mid to upper 90's.

This weekend was a wonderful weekend for Clay and I to spend some time together without the hustle and bustle of every day life just relaxing and enjoying each other. It was also nice to have a small "babymoon" before our little blessing arrives later this year. I'm truly blessed to have such a great husband who loves me, our baby, and planning surprises! :)

24 Weeks Pregnant!

Our 24 week doctors appointment was on Friday July 10th. At this appointment Jen had to drink the sugar solution for the glucose tolerance test. She did not like the taste at all but was able to finish it in the appropriate time. Then we had to sit around for an hour before blood was taken. Meanwhile we met with another midwife in our OB practice and really liked her a lot! She was very friendly and answered a lot of our questions. We received our pre-admission packet and scheduled our child birth class. It's amazing how fast the weeks are flying by!!

So far, everything is going well with the pregnancy. Baby Jones was very active at this appointment. His heartrate was around 145 bpm. Baby Jones likes to lay pretty low in Jen's belly. Jen's weight gain is tracking normal too - gaining between 12-14 pounds since the beginning of the pregnancy. Here's the latest picture of her belly at 24 weeks.

Happy 4th of July!!!

Mom and Dad Bach drove up from Florida on Thursday night to spend the July 4th weekend with us. Since they got in really late on Thursday night (after midnight) we all slept in a bit, did a bit of shopping and then spent the afternoon by the pool. It was pretty hot out so it was nice to cool off in the water.

On Saturday (July 4th), we continued our tradition of "running" in the Peachtree Road Race (the largest 10K in the United States). We've ran this together each year since we started dating - only this year we decided to walk the race instead of run given Jen's condition :) The weather was actually very comfortable with very little humidity making the 6.2 miles more bearable! We finished the race in just under two hours. This was an okay time considering all of the pit stops made along the way due to Jen drinking lots of water to stay hydrated.

That evening, after grilling out, we all walked to Wills Park to watch the Alpharetta fireworks. The fireworks were really spectacular - more than what you would expect from a little town! Baby Jones wasn't sure what to make of all the noise - once the fireworks started he was kicking up a storm. We're not sure if he was excited or just startled! Clay had fun taking pictures of the fireworks with his camera since last year his batteries died before the show started.

Sunday was filled with church and a trip to Clay's hometown, Greensboro, GA. We spent the afternoon with his grandmother and uncle. Mom and Dad Bach had a good time visiting with them as well and seeing more of the town Clay grew up in.

Monday morning brought us all back to reality as Mom and Dad Bach headed back to Florida and we headed to work. We had a great time spending the weekend with them and hated they had to leave but we can't wait to see them again soon!

Catching Up

After almost 1 1/2 years of marriage, and Jen finishing graduate school, we decided it was the right time to add another member to our family. We found out that we were pregnant in late February by taking a home pregnancy test. We were thrilled!!

It was even more exciting to have it confirmed by an ultrasound in late March. The ultrasound was amazing as we could see the beginnings of our new bundle of joy being formed. We could hear the heartbeat which was nice and strong - even at only 8 weeks!

Jen was just starting to have a little baby bump although many people may have wondered if she just ate too much chocolate cake ;)

8 weeks pregnant!

Our next ultrasound was in April at 13 weeks. At this ultrasound we were able to see more defined features of our baby such as it's profile and it's nose. The heartbeat was once again beating strong. Jen's belly was getting slightly larger as seen in the below picture.

13 weeks pregnant!

13 weeks ultrasound

17 weeks pregnant!

We both were so excited for our next ultrasound and doctors appointment since we decided that we wanted to find out if we were having a boy or a girl. That awaited day finally came on June 11th. At the ultrasound, Baby Jones let us know that we were having a.....

BOY!

He was breeched but the technician told us not to worry as there would be plenty of time and room for him to change positions. He was moving around a lot but for some reason did not want his feet showing. The technician had a difficult time trying to get a picture of his feet but finally got one. He also kept putting his hands in front of his face :)

20 weeks pregnant!

20 week ultrasound - IT'S A BOY!