Merry Christmas

Wishing you and yours a very merry Christmas!
Share in memories both old and new...





















XOXO Todd & Lisa

A little night at home...

We are so grateful for our long holiday break as teachers. It gives us a chance to rest, relax, and get a little more done for the holidays too. This Christmas we are epecially grateful for this break after a long semester of graduate classes, work, travel, projects and not to forget about this little one we have been caring for the last 7 months. Time is going by so quickly and she will be here before we know it.
Last night we had a chance to relax, bake some cookies, and start filling in the baby book. :) (We are trying to stay on top of things!) So amidst our filled table of hershey kisses, cookie dough, and baby book, is a little family very grateful for this time. (As you can see Lucy is always right there with us.)
Hope you are able to take some time to relax this holiday season too.

P.S. Lisa is also extra excited that at her Dr. appt. this morning she only gained 2 pounds this past month. :) Baby gained 1 pound of that, so she is feeling much better that the weight gain over the last two months did not continue. Phew! Although, we think we may have a little stubborn girl on our hands. The last two appointments had our nurses giggling because everytime they try to get a good read on her heartbeat she moves away from it immediately. So, it's a fun game of chasing her around my belly for a good 10 minutes. Our little active one...

Happy Birthday Liam!

From one party to another, we moved straight from baby shower mode to birthday party mode the next day. Our little nephew Liam is 2 already! Here are a few pictures of our cutie pie celebrating his big day.

The Baby Shower

This past weekend was Baby Girl Weimer's absolutely beautiful baby shower. There are endless thank you's we have for all of our family and friends, and especially for Amy, Linda, Aunt Jodi, and Aunt Celeste for everything they did to host such a gorgeous, relaxing and absolutely perfect shower. Todd and I are overwhelmed by the generosity, love and support we have been surrounded with and we can not thank everyone enough. The day was beautiful, we received so many wonderful things for baby, and we actually have most of it already somewhat organized. :) Thank you for sharing in such a wonderful day with us!
xoxo Lisa & Todd

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Welcome, Third Trimester!

Time continues to fly by, and we can't believe we are in week 28 already! Here is a little update on baby and pregnancy...

How many days left till the due date? 88

How big is baby? approximately 2-3 pounds and already 14-15 inches

How are you feeling? always something new to experience during pregnancy, however, weeks 26-28 have by far been my best! Prevacid has been my relief from horrible heartburn. I'm more energetic now as well, and feel more productive too. This is helpful during the holidays for sure. The latest...just starting to get very swollen and experiencing some lower back pain... not too bad. :)

Have you finally stopped vomiting? YES! I laugh when others say they never did once... I clearly was not that person. It stopped for me at week 26!!

Any cravings? Surprisingly no cravings... just a lot of different foods that taste really good :) But, nothing that I am eating very regularly or have to have.

Weight gain? uhhh...I started out great with just 8 pounds in the first 20 weeks. But the last two months have clearly been catch-up time. 6 pounds one month, and 10 the next, yikes! Oh well :) Just hoping for a little steadying out now. At this point, I'm just glad baby is measuring right on target. As long as it's me gaining the extra weight and we aren't preparing to deliver a 10 pounder than I do not mind. I'd really like to believe that my chest is responsible for a good 5 pounds of all of this!

Dr. Appt.'s? Scheduled every two weeks from now till baby is born, and everything is going great. We were also very excited that my blood pressure has come back down to normal. It was a little higher in months 3, 4 and 5, but not too concerning. So this was great news, that we didn't see it continue to escalate.

Movements? Baby is moving a ton. There is still quite a bit of room in there for her to roll around and flip, so hopefully she is enjoying that these next couple weeks before she gets much bigger and won't be able to flip as much.

Does she have a name? Names...Todd and I had this one pretty easy I think. We rarely even had much discussion about it, we just kind of knew. So, yes, we believe that she has a name and have already ordered it for her nursery. I guess if we change it, it's not that big a deal, just out $30.

Are you sharing her name? We are not, and we pretty please ask that you do not try to get it out of us, or even try to guess. Todd and I both know we are horrible secret keepers, but this one we really do want to keep. When we knew it was her name... Todd was the cutest. He said this particular name he knew all along was hers, but that he felt if we officially said it then it meant we really had to keep a secret instead of just saying "We are still working on a name." Which was just so much easier to say. :)

The nursery? We are SO excited to get the nursery all put together over the long holiday break. Furniture is being delivered and set-up just after Christmas and we will be able to start putting things in their place and decorating! YEA!!

Weirdest pregnancy moment? Yesterday roaming Target and all of a sudden feeling my belly button start to stick out a little more. weird! It's not out yet though.

What are you excited about this week? My graduate school graduation!, Todd finished three classes and sent all of his completed work, two weeks of holiday break coming up very soon, baby shower next weekend, and lots of time with family over the holiday. oh, and...Christmas cookies. :)

Stay warm and safe on these snowy days!
xoxo Todd & Lisa

Class of 2010 .... Master Lisa?

No more night classes, no more homework, no more APA style, no more tired computer eyes...

I am officially done with my masters and submitted my final project just a little while ago. I told Todd "I'm so excited!" and he laughed and said "Really?? You just look exhausted." Well, that pretty much puts it all into words. Two and a half years later...excited but exhausted. Thank goodness this has all come to a close at the perfect time, as baby is kicking and rolling around like crazy as I type ~ probably saying "Finally!, It's about time it can be all about me now."

As of this weekend, I am a 2010 graduate with a Masters in Curriculum and Instruction from Northern Illinois University's Graduate School.

For lack of better words with my tired computer eyes... YEA ME!

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...
Last night was our first beautiful snowfall. It was a perfect evening. Todd and I all cozy with bellies full of Portillo's, sipping hot chocolate, Lucy cuddled in our laps and watching "The Polar Express" with christmas lights all aglow in our home.




A little Christmas decor in action...






One very excited little kitty!
"Pretty please, put that one at the bottom of the tree!"
















My little craft for displaying our christmas cards this year.
With our very first card. :)








Looking forward to lots of time with family this holiday season!
(And excited that our next christmas will have a little 9 month old getting mischievously into all the decorations right along with Lucy :))

A few of my favorite things...

If you were a fortunate member of the audience on "Lisa's Favorite Things" show this holiday season here is what you would be gifted with. :)



10. Cozy Slipper Socks
9. GAP body pants with elastic waistband
8. Twist ice cream cones (apparently they don't make them in Kentucky)
7. Sports bras
6. Slip-on shoes
5. Big jar of JIF creamy peanut butter
4. Prenatal massages
3. Portillo's hot dogs & cheese fries
2. Gallons of skim milk
1. PREVACID (my lifesaver these days :)


Maybe it's not a cruise, big screen tv or diamond studded watch, but if you are a pregnant woman in my audience you would love me. :)

The Gift of Friendship

This holiday season I find myself so blessed by the gift of friendship.
I am incredibly fortunate with my group of friends and recognize how unique it is to have such an overflowing amount of support, compassion, and loyalty. I am so thankful to all of my friends who have always been there and would continue to drop anything if I was ever in need of them. Thank you so much for a treasured gift I could never truly put into words the importance of.

This week I was able to get together with some of those friends and at this time of year I was feeling quite sentimental...

First, I got together with my girls from school and many years of growing up together. It is incredible to go from our elementary school days, to our fun and outgoing 20's, to sharing in weddings and new babies. Every moment of happiness, sorrow, celebration, and once in a lifetime experiences have all been shared together. These girls are truly more like family now, and the way we share in each others lives is a unique and special gift. As I'm reflecting and getting teary, I just can't say enough ~ Thank you for always being by my side and I am so incredibly blessed to have your gift of friendship.

A little Then and Now ~ Ashley, Kirsten, Lisa & Heather


























































































































This week I was also able to get together with my Jilly, and enjoyed one of our favorites ~ chips with salsa and ranch :). She and I have been friends since we started college and living together as college roommates built a cherished friendship I am so grateful for. I can always count on Jill and can't thank her enough for her unselfishness, a quality that is truly rare and such a special gift. She is "that friend" that you would never hesitate to call for anything. I can only hope that she knows how much I would do anything for her in return.