Birthdays have always been big in the Bateman house...I mean, BIG. Mom always woke me up with our breakfast in bed, followed by whatever I wanted for lunch, and then she'd fix my favorite meal for dinner (always chicken wrapped in bacon w/ angel food cake w/ whipped cream & strawberries) my mouth is watering just thinking about it & my head is swimming full of wonderful memories.
So as I slap one more candle on the cake each year, why should it be any different?
SATURDAY, AUGUST 23rd
This was from the week before my birthday with the college roomies in Towson @ Rainforest Cafe. LOVE that place and LOVE those girls even more. I actually only lived with Tracie (far top left), but everyone else in this pic (Katie & Tori are next to me) lived in the apartment the year before I moved in Senior Year...well, except for Jenny (far top right) but we say she lived there b/c she was over a lot :)
FRIDAY, AUGUST 29th
This was Thew & I @ The Melting Pot (favorite restaurant). We go every August either for our anniversary or my birthday. Usually, we reach our table to find a balloon and flowers, but we just bought this...
for our backyard. It's a Cherokee Princess Dogwood that will look like this every spring and have fiery red buds during the fall. We had a white Dogwood tree in our front yard of the house I grew up in in good 'ole SP. Anyway, b/c we just added this to the backyard, I asked Thew that we just count that as my flowers instead. So I was totally not expecting to see a balloon, teddy bear, and chocolates at our table instead. That sneaky, sneaker :) I love that man :) And one of the best parts of the night...dessert...
Both the b-day girls...Ella Marie Wagner & myself. Ella, the oldest of the three girls born so far to my high school girlfriends, was born on my 24th b-day two years ago. Best b-day present I ever got :)
After we went over to the Wagner's, we headed to my dad's for boating, BBQ, & blue crabs...awesome combo. Thew & I took the jet ski for a tour around the Magothy (the river I grew up on). Two out of the three houses I lived at in SP are reachable by jet ski...the one I lived in in high school was on the streams leading to the river, but not deep enough to travel up. We decided to visit the house that I most recently lived in and one of the two that my dad actually built. As we're motoring back, we pass a couple also on a jet ski. We motored right around the peninsula of the house and turned around to find that the couple docked right up to the pier! I told him that my dad built the house & he invited us in. He was a super nice guy & let us tour the whole place. Not much had changed...it's a beautiful house & he kept commenting on how well it was made. I didn't bother remarking that that was b/c my parent's built it thinking that it would be their house that they would retire in, only to be divorced 2 short years later.
It wasn't as nearly as emotional as I though it would be and it was so neat to actually go inside & look around...my room is purple now, though (not my favorite color). So after that, it was getting late, so we decided to just head back to my dad's instead of seeing the house I grew up in. Now, that would have had me really going, so that was probably a good idea.
SUNDAY, AUGUST 31st
My mom's sister, Martha, had never been over to our place and my grandparents have only been a few times. It's been months since my mom, Todd (my mom's fiance), and my littlest bro, Patch B., had been over (Scotty had a retreat for Young Life, he's a volunteer leader @ Annapolis High) and we had been running around all weekend so we wanted to have them over instead of heading back to SP to my mom's.
Finally, Thew & I got an updated pic of the Fohner Fam (up above)...
The littlest (not so little anymore) bro...Patrick is now a big time sophomore @ UMD in the architecture program (smarty pants).
Part of the Bateman Fam...
The Fohner's & the Blalock's...we were married 50 years after my grandparents. We had the Anniversary Dance during our reception in their honor :) 50 years...I get all kinds of excited thinking about how God will continue to bless us like he has them over the next 47 years. In the time since then (it will be 53 years on October 8th) they have raised 4 wonderful kids, loved on 11 grandkids, made countless friends, built up a successful motorcycle business from the ground up, and been extremely active in their church over the many years doing the work that God has led them to do.
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 1st
No pics from this day, but we got to chill @ Thew's mom's house with all three of his sisters and all of our 6 nephews & 3 nieces...including the latest addition, only 2 & 1/2 weeks old (more on little Avrie later)
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 4th
Girls Night (as every Thursday is) @ my favorite Fred-neck restaurant, Isabella's Tavern. I LOVE that place & my meal was free b/c I have very generous & sweet friends :)
Ann, Ashley, Cassie, Cheryl, Lainey, and I had a blast hanging out and pigging out on the killer food. I can't wait to go back :) and of course, for our next Thursday night together.
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 4th
Mom & I met @ Arundel Mills to see "Mama Mia"...so cute! I had so much fun sipping on Diet Coke and singing along (to the few songs I knew) with her. I LOVE musicals and since it came out (almost a month ago) my mom and I have promised each other we would wait to see it until we could see it with each other. I really want to go out & buy the album but am waiting for another sale or coupon to come through for Borders, they love us teachers & spoil us rotten w/ coupons :)
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 5th
This is unfortunately, one of my only pics taken from that day. Di, Jax, Nicki, Rache, and I (these are the girls who got me into blogging, BTW) met @ The Breakfast Shoppe in SP for an early morning breakfast since Rache works in B-more on Saturdays. After breakfast, we headed back to the Mallare's to hang out w/ Lily before her nap. Her new favorite thing is blowing kisses (from the side of her mouth)...so cute!
Next it was back to the Wagner's to visit again with Ella (twice in one week :) and introduce Hope Ann Wagner to Di & Jax. Dave & Nicki sure make some hairy babies. You can't tell in this pic, but Hope has the hair of a 10 month old, and she's only 1 month & 1/2 old!
So that was the two weeks of b-days wrapped up. Love it!!!
Now onto the babies post, as promised...
SEPTEMBER 2007
Little Hadyn arrived to one of my former lax girls that I coached. He's been such an easy baby for Sam, so she's felt super blessed b/c of that. He's a very happy boy and a good sleeper. I can't believe he'll be 1 at the end of this month!
Sam still lives in the area so we are able to get together sometimes. I was able to watch him one night a few weeks ago while Sam was at a dance class. He's going through a little separation anxiety right now with Sam, but I kept him busy playing w/ his little plush b-ball, & keeping him away from Thew. He was terrified of him! Thew would try & come from around the kitchen into the family room & Hadyn would clutch me like there was no tomorrow. He didn't warm up to him for the entire almost 2 hours that Hadyn was over so it was a little frustrating for Thew since we did want to play with him together. Apparently, Hadyn is this way with all men except for his dad & grandfather so that made me feel a little better, but still it was pretty funny. In fact, Thew was the one who took this pic & the reason Hadyn is posing like he is b/c he was so scared that Thew was in the room. His little hand would cling and his legs would tighten up around me...absolutely precious!
THURSDAY, JULY 17th
HOPE ANN WAGNER
This was the precious angel I wrote about before. I love the little Wagner girls...the first one was born on my 24th b-day & this one shares my middle name. I got to hold her the entire time Thew & visited with the Wagner Fam last weekend and it was so sweet to have her fall asleep in my arms. I can't wait for that for Thew & mine's little babes when they each arrive into our life.
TUESDAY, JULY 22nd
JACOB ALLEN WHICKER II (JETT)
This cute-as-a-button boy was a stubborn little thing for me ;) Two Fridays before he was born Thew & slept over at Jake & Beth's to watch their little girls (see below). They spent the night at the hospital since all that needed to happen was Beth's water to break & then it was go time for this little boy. The doctor's were sure that that would happen so they kept her overnight, but alas...Jett waited another 11 days to arrive on his own. I put my hands on Beth's belly and gave Jett clear instructions only to arrive either before July 18th or after August 1st since Thew & I would be away on vacation. That little bugger didn't listen so I wasn't even able to meet him until he was 2 weeks old! I was even tortured with a picture text of Thew holding him when I was in Bethany & Thew hadn't joined us yet there! No offense, Beth, it was super cute & I loved it, but I couldn't wait to see this kid...and then, as soon as we got back from Bethany, Jake's mom came up from FL for over a week & they were so busy I wasn't able to come over & visit. So finally, I was able to hold this little cuter :)
Here's the Whicker's oldest, Halee, chilling with Aslan. They LOVE her since they don't have a pet.
Here's their youngest girl, Karis...she's the happiest baby I have ever met. This little one always has a smile on her face :)
THURSDAY, AUGUST 14th
AVRIE PAIGE SIFFORD
This beautiful little girl is now Thew & mine's youngest niece. She is the youngest of Thew's youngest sisters (all older than him). Now that we have 9 nephews & nieces, it's been made very clear that it's our turn (hold on a minute...give us some time here!).
Here's the latest pic of the Sifford Fam...Tim & Shannon now have Landon (far left, 3 & 1/2), Aubree (middle, 6 on Thursday), Avrie (being held by Aubree, only a couple of hours old at this point), and Addyson (2 in November)...whew!
Here's Thew's Mom, Heather (his middle sister), Avrie, Aubree, Shannon (his youngest sister), Thew himself, & Michelle (his oldest sister)
and here I am with the precious little girl. I've been able to be at the hospital the day that my two youngest nieces have been born to hold & visit w/ them. Landon was born on the day we got engaged and Aubree was born a little over a month before Thew & I met so I feel a special bond w/ Shannon's kids, just b/c to them, I will always be "Aunt" Lynsey. Our other 5 nephews were born before I met Thew & for the first few months we were married, every time we hung out with Thew's fam, they would say "Lynsey, I mean...Aunt Lynsey". It was so cute. I love them just like I was there for their births as well and they're great kids. Josh, the oldest, is now a sophomore in high school so we've got quite a range for that generation on that side of the family.
So that's the latest & greatest from the Fohner Fam :)
As always, stay tuned for more!
1 comment:
Don't you just love SP?! My parents have a dogwood too and I always tell Bobby that that's the first thing we're buying when we get a house! LOVE all the babies, too!
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