It's a Girl!!

We found out on Thursday that our new addition will be a girl. Her name will be Bethany Grace Hooker. Barry asked the ultrasonographer if she gave a money back guarantee. She just laughed. She has never been wrong in the years she has done the job...she will only call it if she sees exactly what she needs to see to be sure. There definitely weren't any boy parts. We will have more ultrasounds later in this pregnancy, so we can double check then.

Barry is still not working, but he is certainly finding stuff to keep him busy. Our front flower beds are just about finished. We didn't buy enough flowers the other night, so we made a trip back to Lowe's after church today and got the rest. They actually look really good. We have gone with a red, white, and blue motif out front. It actually has worked pretty good. Unfortunately that means my yellow roses will be relocated after the summer. Only one of them appears to have survived the winter. Then we will have to figure out what to put in that bed.

Barry is also working very hard at getting the nursery switched around, and James into a big boy room. We aren't going to move the crib until closer to Bethany's due date. At that time James will go into his big boy toddler bed. We are saving our money to get him a really nice Disney "Cars" bedding set. His room will be done all in cars, and then we will add daddy's Nascar models to his room soon.

I seem to be more and more tired as the weeks go on. This school year seems to be dragging on. I think the kids are really over it. It has been really nice the last few days, and they are daydreaming about going outside. It may be a really long 5 weeks until the end of the school year.

James is doing more and more everyday. Poor little guy has some awful allergies though. I think he got daddy's sinus problems. The Zyrtec does seem to help a little bit. He really enjoys being outside, so I hope it doesn't keep him down. This morning he walked all the way from the car to the nursery at church. He doesn't seem to want to be held as much and is getting more and more independent. We are trying to teach him to say Bethany...he gets out B. He does say momma, daddy, Adam (ada), D (dog), der (deer), and uh oh. He is learning so much and so quickly.

Well, I guess that's all from our house. We are roasting down here in Tennessee! Have a great Sunday afternoon.

April Happenings... (plus pictures as promised)

It is hard to believe that another month has almost past. James is growing and doing new stuff every day. He is now fully walking. He still stumbles a little, but he mainly walks anywhere he wants to go. When he gets sleepy; he will start to crawl where he wants to go.

I'm going to let the pictures explain our last couple of months and especially the last few weeks. Enjoy!!

We went to the zoo with Uncle Arthur, Aunt Gwen, and cousins Egan and Quinlin. James got to watch his very, brave Aunt Gwen ride a camel with Egan. He also enjoyed his first taste of ice cream. He got really angry when mommy took it away from him. He enjoyed hanging out with daddy down at Kids Cove while at the zoo and watching his cousin Egan play on the slides in the barn.

Barry and I were very brave and kept all three boys for a Saturday while Arthur and Gwen went car shopping. We even braved a trip to Walmart. That sure was an adventure. They boys even sat together briefly for this picture.

Eggstravaganza 2009 was held at our church on Saturday, April 11, 2009. James got to participate in his first egg hunt. Nothing like 15,000 eggs and lots of kids. James wasn't real sure about what to do. He found one green egg and never let go of it. "Aunt" Becca had to help him figure it out along with mommy. James also visited with the Easter Bunny. He was a little afraid of the bunny, so "Uncle" Adam helped him out. I think he was just exhausted. It was a very long day.

James's First Easter was on Sunday, April 12, 2009. We went to church and then to Uncle Arthur and Aunt Gwen's house for dinner. James wore a really cute shorts outfit. I struggled with an outfit for him, because he gets so hot at church. Everything we found was long sleeve with sweaters and a pair of pants. When we found this cute shorts outfit at Sears, we bought it. "Aunt" Megan took a family picture for us in front of the stage in the worship center at church. I think it turned out pretty good. The Easter Bunny visited our house for all three boys. We took their buckets to Uncle Arthur and Aunt Gwen's house for the boys to open together. They were all excited about what the Easter Bunny had left for them.

We left for Pennsylvania on Monday, April 13, 2009, to see Grandma and Grandpa. We knew they'd be shocked when they saw James. When they saw him last at Thanksgiving, he was just sitting up by himself if someone sat him up and rolling over. Now, he is walking and talking. Plus he eats normal every day food...when he feels like it. James enjoyed reading the paper with Grandpa, playing with Tyler, Zacary, and Isaac in their playroom, and playing with Kiersten and Brooke. He also spent a lot of time looking at birds on the porch as they ate from Grandpa's birdfeeder. James did great in the van on the way up and back. He stayed awake for most of the trip and just took a few naps. We watched "Franklin" on the way to Pennsylvania and "Veggie Tales" on the way home. He sure was a trooper with a 9 plus hour trip.

James is growing up so quickly. He has certainly learned the meaning of the word "NO". The picture below shows his response to it every time it is used. The face is priceless. The first time I had to tell him "NO", and he responded this way...I cried right along side of him.

James enjoyed his first piece of pizza this afternoon. We had been giving him the crust off of pizza for awhile. This afternoon he didn't want the crust and took the piece of pizza right out of my hand. He sure did enjoy it.

I hope you have enjoyed our walk down memory lane for the last month or so. We will find out on Thursday whether this new addition is a boy or a girl. Please continue to pray for us and our family with Barry unemployed and our new little one on the way. We trust that God has a plan and will provide. Enjoy your spring! We will update again soon.