The Georgia Aquarium

This past Thursday was Brad's first day off since we were in Charleston. We decided to spend it in Atlanta, and Dede treated us all to a trip to The Georgia Aquarium. All I know to say is:
Oh My Goodness!!!
God certainly had fun when He made some of these amazing animals! The whole experience was absolutely breathtaking! We all loved seeing the absolute joy on Alli's face, but we all had a terrific time, as well!

Alli loved every second of it, and we were there for 4 hours. When we left, she had to think about it before deciding that the otters were probably her favorite. Sadly, we do not have any good pictures of them ~ they were moving around so quickly!! :) They were cute, and all of them were sisters, which Alli liked because she said, "I have a sister, too!" They were also extremely playful; Alli said they were playing hide-and-seek, and it really did look like they were doing just that!

There are several places for children to actually touch some of the animals ~ starfish, sting rays, sharks, shrimp ~ and we did it all! Here is Alli touching a sea anemone.

Words nor pictures can begin to describe or show the wonder of this place! All of it is simply AWESOME! I loved several of the areas, but my favorite was "the big room," where the 'window' to the tank is the size of an IMAX screen. Of course, I couldn't begin to get the whole thing into a picture. Below is an attempt to get a portion of it, taken from a viewing balcony ~ you can't even see the floor! It is such a peaceful place to be.

These are some of the tropical fish. I only wish these pictures could begin to show the brilliant colors of the fish!

This shark was swimming above us as we walked through the glass tube, which is very much like the glass tube in "Jaws." It was incredible!

The penguins were cute and lots of fun! There are lots of places where kids can crawl through a tunnel and 'pop up' in one of the exhibits. The penguin exhibit is one of those ~ so cool!

In the glass tube, you can barely walk for looking in every direction! Both girls loved being so close and so surrounded by under-the-sea wonders. There was utter joy on both of their faces!

I can't remember what these are called, but they are literally translucent ~
and SO beautiful!!

Beluga Whale

Sea Horse

Clown Fish ~ Just like Nemo!

The Aquarium's mascot is also a clown fish, named Deepo. While Dede was in the gift shop, we walked outside, and Alli and Boots got to meet Deepo! He really liked Alli, and they played and even danced in the square!

What a fun, amazing experience!!
Brad and I have been talking about it since we left, and we already can't wait to go back!! Thanks, Dede!!

Trip to Charleston

A little over a month ago, in the middle of March, we went to Charleston for a long weekend. Brad's good friend from Medical School, Will Chafin, and his wife, Melissa, live there in Daniel Island. We had an amazing time!! It was such fun to get to visit with Will, Melissa, and Baby Will, and we loved our sightseeing in Charleston.

Here we are at The Market. Even Alli loved all of the people-watching and the many things to see....

One night that we were there, another mutual med school friend, Michelle, and her husband, Chris, came to hang out and visit for dinner. Michelle and Chris have a baby girl, Maddie. I love the picture below ~ my how things change in 4 short years!!

Alli and Mommy at The Battery

Rainbow Row

Fort Sumter

"Alli and Boots' Mommy and Daddy"
(Previously known as Britt and Brad)

The kiddos ~ all smiles and behaving ~ before the meltdowns. :)

Everyone was tired. The babies finally slept in the car....

...and Alli fell asleep in a chair that night during the tornadoes which were all around us but didn't come too, too nearby.

Alli loved our trip, and she really loved Will and Melissa! She didn't really want to leave. Here she is, asking if she can "just stay" with them. :) We left the morning of her birthday to come back to Augusta.

Thanks for an awesome vacation, Will and Melissa!!
We need to do it again soon!!

GYN Support Group Wine Tasting

Last weekend, our Supper Club attended the annual GYN Support Group Wine Tasting ~ a fundraising event for GYN-ONC patients. We had a BLAST!! It was such fun, and a special way to have a fun night with several friends who will be leaving us soon. We ate good food, tasted good wine, and laughed and laughed.... Many of the laughs came from a certain 'indecent proposal' that earned Emily the nickname "10K" ~ one which she will never live down! :) The night ended with yummy desserts at The Bollweevil Cafe downtown. Below are (backrow) Brad and me, Emily and Stephen; (front row) Jason and Sue Anne, Leah, Melissa and Rich. We missed those of you who couldn't be with us!!

Our supper club is extremely diverse, and Jason is the OB/GYN resident in our group. He made our reservations:

We were trying to get a "prom picture" with the Greers before we left for the evening, but of course, Alli and Maddox wanted to join us. We joked that we probably aren't the first couples to take prom pictures with our children! :)

The Prom Picture

We had a fun date night! Our first since Elizabeth was born.

Alli News

Alli has had lots going on lately!
For her birthday, Papadoc gave her a set of pink golf clubs, and her Daddy has been working with her in the front yard. Here are some pictures from a recent "golf lesson."

Gigi came for a visit last weekend. She kept the girls while Brad and I went out with our supper club one evening. She also made a pound cake while she was here ~ and Alli helped her! Alli loved her first baking lesson!

Brad ended up with 2 tickets to The Masters on Saturday, so we went out to The National for a couple of hours that afternoon. The Greers were nice enough to keep both of the girls on very short notice. Brad and I had a blast! Brad, of course, has been out there more times than he can even count. For those of you who don't know, he caddied at The National during Med School, which meant he got tickets to The Masters every year. So awesome! It also means that he is a terrific person with whom to walk the course; he certainly knows his way around and also knows all kinds of random "little known facts" ~ everything from the names of the individual holes to the story about the Eisenhower Tree. I had such fun! I have only been out there once ~ with Brad and Alli, who was only 3 weeks old! This time, I was able to pay a little bit more attention to my surroundings without needing to care for an infant at the same time.

While Alli was at the Greers', she and Maddox had their first official car date! I had Stephen take this picture ~ afterall, she won't be allowed to go on another car date until she is at least 15 years old, unless her Daddy is driving her!! :)
Baby Boots was along for the ride, too, but in her stroller.

We found out a couple of months ago that Alli was accepted into the preschool program at EDS (Episcopal Day School) for next year. After much prayer on the subject, Brad and I are so excited that she will be attending!! Our baby girl is certainly growing up! Brad was so cute; after we got the news, he hopped in the car and drove down to the school. Alli now has an EDS sweatshirt and pullover ~ neither of which will actually fit her for quite sometime, but they are fun to have. :)

One Year Ago Today...

...I had been feeling nauseated, extremely tired, and my nose had been stuffy for a few days, but I wasn't sick.
Hmmmm.... I suspected, but I wasn't sure....

Yep, that's right ~ I was pregnant with Elizabeth!

I took a pregnancy test...then one more, just to be sure. Both were positive, and I was not yet 2 weeks pregnant!

I figured out that our baby would be due December 21, and since the baby would be a little Christmas Angel, I wrapped up the positive pregnancy tests in Christmas paper to give to Brad. But then, I had to wait to give it to him, because it was only lunchtime, and of course he was still at work. I took Alli to the park that afternoon with some friends, and Brad met us over there after work. So we continued to play...then we went to Mellow Mushroom, and I still had to wait. We finally got home, and Alli and I gave Brad his gift.

Not surprisingly, the green and red 'theme' of the wrapped gift was completely lost on Brad. :) But that was okay.
WE WERE HAVING A BABY!!!
And now she is here ~ exactly 4 months old today.

And we continue to count our blessings....
Thank you, God!