The Lawrensons, Nathan, Tricia & Gwyneth

Meg introduced me to the most amazing blog weeks ago and I have been addicted ever since, checking for updates several times every day. I have placed the link to the Lawrensons' blog on the left side of this page, under links to sites we like, in hopes that everyone will take a chance to visit their blog, read about their journey and be amazed like I am every day I read Nathan's blog or any of the family member's blogs. After reading through their blog (make sure you start at the beginning to understand the past), I hope you will consider adding a link to their blog on your page as well or tell your friends/family about it. Their blog is truly contagious and as you can see from the map, it has spread around the world.

Our Strong Little Baby Boy

Amy and I are sitting around catching up on our blogging and relaxing this evening and it happens to be the most popular active time for our little baby. I went to lock up the house for the night and when I got back to our rental house, Amy had this surprised look on her face and said, "You just missed the strangest thing". I was thinking she saw something on t.v. or got a phone call from someone, but it was our little baby boy showing how strong he was. He did a super somersault...by this Amy tells me it must have been a double flip with a half turn. She said it was the strangest thing she has ever felt. She is used to him moving around, but this was huge. We have now been sitting here for the past 20 minutes watching him move around and kick. You can actually see the kicks and punches, rather than just feel them. He has now settled down into his favorite position, low in Amy's belly. All of that activity must have worn him out.
I am adding to this post from last night. About an hour after I reported that our baby boy was exhausted, he started back with about 20 more minutes of punching and kicking. I grabbed the video camera to record this event as you could again see it in the belly, but I think he is shy and he stopped moving as soon as I pressed the record button. There will be many more chances to video this so as soon as I get video, I will post it.

Welcome Baby Sullivan!

Our friends from UNCW, Amanda & Drew Sullivan recently announced the arrival of their first child. We are so happy for them and wish them the best with their little girl.

What a precious little baby girl.





Congratulations Sullivans!

East Beach Carriage House Apartment for Rent

We are getting close to finishing the house and one thing we are ready to do is find someone who is interested in renting a Carriage House Apartment in East Beach. This apartment is 700 square feet with 1 bedroom, 1 bath, a full kitchen and just steps from the beach. Large living area & bedroom with ceiling fans and plenty of windows. Kitchen includes 42" wall cabinets as well as a Full size refrigerator/freezer with icemaker, a Full size electric range with warming drawer, a microwave/hood combination, dishwasher, and Kohler double bowl stainless steel sink with garbage disposal. All appliances are GE Profile. Kitchen also has bartop with seating for three. Bathroom includes single bowl vanity & full size tub/shower combination. Floors are hardwood and tile (bath only). Full size washer & dryer are also included. Private entrance with ample parking. We are asking $1250 in rent, which includes all utilities, except Power. Security system is optional and can be set up with Johns Brothers Security if desired. Enjoy the many amenities of East Beach. Smoking & Pets Prohibited. Email me if you or anyone you know is interested. We are looking to rent it out by the 1st of April.

Sorry for the Delay

We just realized it has been 2 weeks since we last posted. Everything with Amy & our Baby Boy is going well. Daddy is doing well also. We are now in Week 23 of pregnancy and we go back to see Dr. Fontanares on Thursday for our monthly checkup. The baby is very active and seems to be on a schedule. He is very active in the evenings with a combination of rolls, turns, kicks & punches. The baby bump continues to grow and is now noticeable to the average person.

As for the house, we are working on finishing up our house. The interior is getting painted. Cabinets arrive tomorrow with installation starting in the afternoon. We ordered our couch yesterday from Bassett Furniture and are very excited to sit on it with our little baby boy come this summer. We highly recommend Bassett to anyone looking for furniture...they were wonderful to work with and have great prices and selection. We also ordered the remainder of our appliances for the Carriage House Apartment. The nursery is trimmed out and is looking great. We will take some pictures this weekend and post them. For now, here is an image of the crib bedding we have purchased.

What's Kickin?

Daddy here.
This weekend was very exciting for me and a first in the pregnancy. It has been about 2 weeks since Amy first felt the flutters from our little boy...she always lets me know so I can try to feel him kicking & moving. It finally happened this past Saturday morning...I felt our little boy kick for the first time. It was shockingly strong...it felt like it lifted my whole hand up. I was such a proud daddy and it brought tears to my eyes. Sunday morning brought an entire round of kicks that I was able to enjoy. He must think Amy's uterus is a punching bag, but we both love it. He is very active in the morning & evening. Amy can feel him rolling around and on occasion, you can actually see him balled up on one side of her belly and then you can watch the bulge move back to its normal location after a while.
We can't wait for even more amazing things from our baby boy.

Week 20

Week 20, marked by the continued growth of the baby bump (and the start of the t-shirts we mentioned before)...




brought us the exciting news that we were expecting a little boy. Our parents were all there with us. Emily also got to come to Norfolk for the big day. Everyone was excited to see that Baby Riley was a little Boy.






Afterwards we went to dinner and celebrated with everyone. Waiting for us in the restaurant was a basket full of little boy goodies from Nana & Pop-Pop Riley--Thanks Mom & Dad!




What a great weekend and way to end 2007.

Christmas In North Carolina

After a great time in Aruba, it was time to head to Advance, North Carolina to spend Christmas in Amy's parents new home. It was a great time, but like all of our trips to visit her family, it seemed too short and we were sad to leave.
One of our Christmas presents came from Kim, Shane, Emily & Graham and will be used many times when our little boy arrives. It was a Boppy and from what Kim says, it was one of her favorite items while raising Emily & Graham. In the background, you will see the Greenwood Christmas tree. Amy says that the tree should have been bigger with the tall ceilings--maybe next year!




Don't worry about the bandaid on Graham's head. It was not to cover up a boo-boo, but meant as a fashion statement. What a trend-setter!

Aruba 2007

Sorry it has taken so long to get these pictures up. We wanted to put a few of our pictures online. Aruba was a blast this year and was our last vacation with just the two of us--well 2 1/2.
All of our pictures were taken by our hired photographer, Baby Riley's Cousin Cole. Well, at least he was playing the part!




Here we are waiting for our table at Giannis. This turned out to be one of our favorite restaurants this year. It is an Italian restaurant with the best Caribbean Lobster you will ever eat.




And while waiting for our table, we had a new setting to photograph the baby bump
This was Amy's baby bump at 19 weeks




Little Peanut seemed to enjoy Aruba and the warm sun on his shell. He was constantly moving around providing what many call the flutters that precede the kicks, punches, cartwheels, etc.




And one more picture that I could not leave off. Our little photographer taking a break to cool off under the outdoor shower.

Ultrasound Pictures

Here are our pictures from Friday's ultrasound where we found out we are having a baby boy.
Look at the size of those feet!


It's a Boy!


Later my Cousin Cole will teach me it's name is "Leroy".


The big head looks like Daddy's


Looks like he is blowing bubbles inside Mommy


4-D shot of the legs & arms. Look closely at the top right corner of the picture and you will see the facial details. WOW!