Memorial Day Weekend

This weekend we went on our annual trip to Indianapolis to visit Mark's extended family and go to the Indy 500. This was the last flight our little man will go on before he arrives (he's racked up quite a few SkyMiles in utero). We stayed with the Baileys and as usual has a wonderful time! It was a quick weekend with lots of travel involved but well worth the time we got to spend with family. Race day was hot, with not a cloud in the sky, but there was a nice breeze. Mark and I didn't mind the heat (I guess we're weathered Floridians now) and the baby got to experience his first race. He didn't show much interest or aversion . . . Mark says he was watching and mesmerized . . . I say he was sleeping! Thank you Chuck, Marty and Grant for taking such wonderful care of us!

Protecting baby's hearing :-)

Now it's back to a short work week before we're off to Edisto Island,SC for a family vacation with the Wakleys. We're looking forward to a week of relaxation (reading books, walking on the beach, golfing, napping and ice cream sandwiches :-)).

25 years

I haven't been an avid Oprah follower my whole life, and my daily life isn't really going to change now that the last show has aired; but I do think Oprah has brought a lot of good into our world. She encouraged reading and literacy, promoted change, encouraged self help, donated to many many causes, brought awareness to AIDS, alcoholism, and abuse, and inspired millions. So, in honor of her 25th and final season coming to a close, here are a few quotes from Oprah that I think can be used by all.

"My philosophy is that not only are you responsible for your life, but doing the best at this moment puts you in the best place for the next moment."

"I trust that everything happens for a reason, even when we're not wise enough to see it."

"The big secret in life is that there is no big secret. Whatever your goal, you can get there if you're willing to work."

"Every one of us gets through the tough times because somebody is there, standing in the gap to close it for us."

"True forgiveness is when you can say, "Thank you for that experience."

"Real integrity is doing the right thing, knowing that nobody’s going to know whether you did it or not."

One Lucky Man!

Where do I begin . . .

Last weekend we drove to Virginia to visit family and friends, and for my first baby shower. Although the weather was less than desirable half of the time (rainy, rainy, rainy), it is gorgeous there this time of year and the temperatures were refreshing. The flora and fauna were plentiful on this trip! We enjoyed seeing the lush green mountains and beautiful Spring flowers, lots of beautiful birds, as well as lots of wild turkeys and young fawns roaming around at my parents house. It was a nice change from our currently very hot and dry Florida. Bailey also LOVES going to what we refer to as the "McCoy Country Club" and she soaked up every ounce of attention she could get from her favorite person, Grandpa Chris!

We made the long drive on Thursday, leaving around 5am and arriving a little before 5pm.

Friday, we spent the morning with Mark's parents and enjoyed a long awaited burger from Mike's Grill for lunch! In the afternoon we visited with my Aunt Susan and Grandad and then helped get things ready for the party.

The amazing Mike's burger!

The baby shower was on Saturday and I was truly overwhelmed by everyone's love and generosity! The shower was a "garden luncheon", moved indoors because of the rain. We had amazing food (all made by my Mom and family friend Amy), created nursery rhyme mad libs during the meal, and then sat and enjoyed the company of close friends and family while I opened presents. I have to say that the gifts were amazing, and our little guys received some pretty awesome stuff!

He is well stocked in the diaper department . . .
Has all of his essential bottle and pacifier needs met . . .
Will be an avid reader in no time . . .
Has beautiful sheets and blankets to sleep on . . .
Will probably be the best dress guy in the land . . .
and might have to hide some of his toys from his father!

It was wonderful to have so many close friends and family together that we don't see very often. There were generations of babysitters there (from my babysitter, to the "kids" I baby sat for who are now old enough to watch our little man). There were aunts, and cousins, and childhood, high school and college friends. There were mothers and daughters, granddaughters, grandmothers and a soon to be great grandmother. It was a blast and a day I will remember for a long time! Our little man is so blessed to have every one of them in his life and he will be arriving into a world of so much love and support!

We can't go to VA without helping out with a project or two, and this trip was no different. While all the girls were at the shower Mark and Dad built a new concrete slab at the outdoor basement entrance. Despite the rain, they finished before they were needed again for shower clean up.

The finished product.

Saturday evening we spent relaxing (trying to stay awake) at my parents house with my family, Mark's family, friends, and lots of dogs!

Sunday morning Mark and Henry had a trail run planned so Mom, Dad and I went with them and "crewed" as they ran 11.8 miles over Brush Mountain and back. The run provided a lot of "firsts" in Marks running portfolio.

1. A long trail run in the mountains.
2. Running though a stream.
3. Not being able to run the entire time and having to adjust back and forth from running to walking.
4. Running through the mud in the chilly Virginia rain.

The Brown Farm, where they started their run.

Off they go . . .

Brush mountain, they ran over and back (by the radio tower on top)

50 minutes in . . . heading down towards Pandapas Pond

The trail they ran on.

Mom, Dad and I had time to take a quick walk at Pandapas Pond in between rain showers before we had to meet the guys at the finish line. They had a good run, and afterwards we all went to Backstreets for lunch.

Coming back into the Brown Farm, almost done.

The final few steps.

Recovering . . .

. . . and analyzing.

Monday we made the long drive home, another 12 hours on the road. Pretty uneventful except for the numerous bathroom breaks I currently require! We're still recovering from the weekend but had a wonderful time and are so blessed to have such a great support system of family and friends!

A Game

We're less then 10 weeks away from the arrival of our little man so we want your thoughts. Leave a comment to this post (don't forget to include your name) and guess his birth date, height and weight. Once he arrives we'll choose a winner in each category, and an overall winner. All winners will receive a (to be determined) prize. Good luck (and be nice about the guesses, you're sending them to a very pregnant lady remember!)


Note: His actual due date is July 27th.

Bailey LOVES bottles!

Thanks Mom!

I'm sure there have been 1 or 2 (or 10) posts about this before, but Bailey LOVES plastic bottles. She's had a very strong affinity for them for years and I think she would be quite happy if they were her only toy. Cheap for us . . . but she'd prefer them with the cap screwed back on and not rinsed out.

During our girls weekend in Daytona we drank a lot of bottled water and I brought all the bottles home to recycle them. Before I even got all the way in the door with the bag Bailey was pulling them out and scattering them on the ground.

I poured them all out for her on the living room for and let her enjoy a bottle party before they went into the recycle bin. She thoroughly enjoyed herself, and after taking the caps and rings off of all the bottles she spent the rest of the afternoon sacked out on her bed snoring.

She prefers bottles that have something flavored in them (soda, juice, etc) and is very systematic about how she takes the cap and ring off. I'm not sure how she acquired this skill but I'm sure she could set a world record for the fasted bottle cap removing canine.

Here are some pictures of her bottle party a few weeks ago.

The party begins . . .

Getting ready for her next one.

Thoroughly enjoying herself!

I should have timed her . . . caps off, taking a break.

The many names of Baby Boy Siburt

He was called "kiwi baby" for a long time;it was the fruit size he was many weeks ago and seemed to stick.

My office mates, while trying to come up with names for him have settled on all of the names he shouldn't be called. Currently he is "Albert Siburt", before he was "Robert Siburt". The "ert" names have been vetoed and Albert is even more fitting since that's the name of the UF mascot.

One evening with friends we named him "Cyrus Albert Siburt", not quite sure how we came up with that one.

He's also been referred to as "Buddy", "Little Man", "Eli", and "Junior".

The weekend Michael and Claire were here he was named "Larry" because on the window screen in his room there is a small "L" someone wrote years ago that won't come off. Larry was the first "L" name we came up with and for some reason it stuck.



Now Mark and I just have to decide on his actual name, that's the hard part!

*images courtesy of my friend google*

Girls Weekend

From our balcony

Last weekend I met 3 of my best girlfriends (and travel partners) from grad school in Daytona for a mini beach vacation. We stayed on the 25th floor, right on the beach and enjoyed having no agenda for 4 days! We went to St. Augustine one day, talked, read books, sat on the beach, talked, went out to eat, talked, walked on the beach, watched the royal wedding, and talked some more. It was wonderful for the 4 of us to be able to be in the same town for a few days and I know we all enjoyed the relaxation. We didn't take many pictures, but here are a few from the weekend.

Our view down the beach . . . not too shabby!

Our view toward the Intercoastal

Our hotel from across the Intercoastal

Sunrise over the Atlantic (from our balcony)