Yesterday, Travis and I decided to take Anya to the apple orchard and the pumpkin patch. First, we went to the apple orchard here in Cullman. They are called Steele Orchard and here is a link to their site, www.steeleorchard.com. They had all types of varieties of apples, so Travis and I got a bag full of the different types, a 4qt. bag for $6 gave us about 15 nice size apples. We have determined, however, that we like the crispier apples as opposed to the soft, velvety ones. They also make homemade apple sauce, which will be great for the baby, and they are just about to have homemade apple cider which I will have to be sure to go back and get!
We also took Anya to the pumpkin patch in Hayden. She had a ball there. She rode a horse, jumped on the bungy trampoline, and got her face painted. And we rode the covered wagon out to the patch, where Anya picked a pumpkin for us and the baby.
Here are some photos, and one of me and my tummy!
The first photo was when we told her there were no more pumpkins! Of course, we were kidding…

Anya and I went down to B’ham this past Tuesday for another doc appointment to check on the baby.
Everything is still going along well. I’ve gained a total of 9lbs so far. The baby’s heartbeat was at 144 and I’m measuring a week ahead, but we will still probably deliver sometime the week of December 15th, hopefully. Other than that, I hope to have another ultrasound at the next appointment to confirm it is in fact a girl. The nurse said she thought the heartbeat sounded like a boy this past week, but who knows. I’m preparing for another girl at this point.
Travis seems excited too. He touches my big tummy a lot more these days, of course its hard not to, because its poking out a lot more!

Hello. Whew, we had a busy weekend this past weekend, but it was good. Saturday, my Dad came up and he and Travis went to a turkey shoot here in Cullman. Travis did 2 shots, but he didn’t like the randomness of the shoot, because its essentially just luck. My Dad won one though. He didn’t win a turkey, darn it, but he won some money! Then, they came back to our house, Travis grilled some chicken wings for us for lunch while Anya and Pop Pop played outside on the swings. Then, Travis and my Dad went down to B’ham for the gun show at the BJCC. Travis really enjoyed that. He hadn’t been to a gun show in a long time. He went and shot sporting clays with my Dad a few weeks ago and he’s really liking that. He came home bruised on the shoulder a bit from the shotgun, but he enjoyed it a lot. My Dad has done sporting clays for years and I used to be a scorekeeper at the tournaments he competed in. I think Travis is looking forward to shooting sporting clays again, he really enjoyed it and it gives him and my Dad something else they can do together other than talking about computers! They have always had a good relationship though so I’m glad we live close enough now that they can do things like gun shows and sporting clays occasionally.
While they were at the gun show in B’ham, Anya and I drove to B’ham as well and went to Babies R Us. I had to buy a baby shower gift for a friend for her shower next weekend. Registries can be a real pain though to deal with sometimes. They seem to categorize things all together according to sheets, bibs, blankets, etc., however, those items may be on total opposite sides of the store! I found something for her though that I hope she’ll like and we found a flannel sheet for the baby’s crib to try out. I thought it might be a good idea to get one of those since it gets much colder here than it ever did in Vegas when Anya was a baby.
Then, Travis and my Dad met us at Babies R Us and my Dad went back to Prattville, while Travis, I, and Anya went to eat at Johnny Rockets and to the Galleria so Anya could ride the carousel. And all this was just Saturday! Then, when we got home I had to cook a dessert because…
On Sunday, we went to Travis’ company picnic back in B’ham at Oak Mtn State Park. I made Strawberry Pretzel Salad, which everyone liked and it was my first time to make it! Its really easy, its broken pretzels baked with a little butter and sugar, then you blend cream cheese, sugar and Cool Whip together for the next layer, and then you top it with Strawberry Jello and sliced strawberries. I was glad it came out and I got compliments on it because I had never made it before! At the picnic, Anya had a ball. There were lots of kids to play with and she enjoyed pretending to play football with them. She also chased a frisbee, pet some Chihuahuas that were with another family nearby, stood on a rock, threw water balloons, and ate some chicken fingers! We are really glad that Travis has a company that does things like this for their employees and families. Its a very nice thing and makes the company stronger as well, in my opinion anyway. Travis really enjoys his work and I really like all the people he works with too.
We got back home at about 5pm and basically did nothing the rest of the night except watch Desperate Housewives (yes, Travis watches it with me) and The Amazing Race before finally going to sleep. Busy weekend, but lots of fun! Next weekend, we hope to take Anya out to the pumpkin patch in Hayden, go to the baby shower for our friend, and take Anya to watch a doggie parade!

I decided to make some banana bread today. Anya loves it.
Here’s my recipe:

Preheat oven to 350 and lightly grease a 9×5 loaf pan.

Blend together with hand mixer for about 1 minute:
6 tablespoons of butter, softened
1/2 cup of sugar

Add to sugar and butter and blend again with hand mixer:
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon of vanilla

Add 2-3 large mashed bananas to above mixture and stir all together.

In a separate bowl, mix together:
1 1/2 cups flour
2 teaspoons of baking powder
1/2 teaspoon of salt

Fold the dry ingredients into the above batter until just blended.

You can add chopped walnuts if you like, at this point, but I leave them out.

Pour into your loaf pan and bake at 350 for approx. 1 hour.

I add a little brown sugar to the top of the bread the last 20 minutes or so of baking as well. I’ll post a photo when its done!

Anya had a great birthday. She had a small party at Gymnastics with her buddy Acacia, who shares the same birthday and age as Anya. Then, we went to lunch with Acacia, her Mom, and her Granny. Then, Anya and I came home and watched Sleeping Beauty together. When Daddy got here, we made spaghetti, hence the dirty face is some of the cake shots! Then, she opened presents and we went to see Beverly Hills Chihuahua! She loved it and Travis and I actually enjoyed it as well. I have to say it had a great message in it, about not treating dogs like accessories and the sad truths behind dog fighting and also about rescuing animals! I loved it and they previewed Marley and me before the movie started. Already I started to tear up in just the preview and its just a lab running on a beach! Marley and Me is based on a book by John Grogan and they made a movie about it with Jennifer Aniston and Owen Wilson.
Anya really did love her birthday though and she keeps asking for a chee waa waa now, because Chance needs a friend!
Here’s Anya and her friend Acacia this past Sunday at Acacia’s birthday party:

Here’s Anya driving, look out!

Thanks Uncle Woody and Aunt Judy:

Cake for me?

Its her birthday so she says “I win”!

Finally, here’s Anya at Gymnastics, practicing on the uneven bars: