IT'S A..........

Only our doctor knows :) Allen and I went to the dr 2 weeks ago and surprisingly, the doc was able to tell the sex of the baby! It was the hardest thing in the world to say, "No thanks, we'll wait" when we were asked if we wanted to know what it was :) Our baby has grown SO much! He/she was kicking, punching, and squirming throughout the entire ultrasound. I'm afraid we are going to have a very active baby :) We go for our big scan next Wednesday. Here is a picture of little baby (Allen thinks he/she looks like an alien, I think little baby looks more like a jackolantern).


In other news... Allen will be running the NYC marathon on Sunday! He has trained so hard and I am so proud of him! We leave Thursday and will get to celebrate our 1 year anniversary a week early while in the big apple. Allen tells me almost everyday that he hopes our baby loves to run like he does. I think this little foot looks like a runner's foot! What do you think? :)

Cuba's new backyard...part 2

The last post I told you all about how wonderful our new backyard is and how much Allen and I (and Cuba) love it. Well, I take it all back. Yesterday afternoon, after a week of rain, I took Cuba out to play in our "great backyard". After playing for about 5 minutes, I walk over to little Cuba to nudge him away from a mud hole he found. That's when I decided not only do I not love our backyard anymore...I ABSOLUTELY HATE it! Inches from my foot and Cuba's little nose was a rather large SNAKE....Make that a water moccasin! I screamed and ran faster than I have ever run in my life. Thank goodness Cuba thought it was a game and playfully ran after me. Allen was inside and I think he thought somebody was after me. He went out to check out the situation telling me the whole time he was sure it was just a king snake. After "checking it out" for a several seconds, he changed his mind about the whole innocent king snake thing. He went to borrow the neighbors hoe and returned with not only the hoe, but also the neighbor who verified Allen's conclusion that it was indeed a water moccasin. Seconds later, the snake's head was chopped off and his body was thrown over the fence....YUCK! Therefore, until the rain stops and the grass can be cut as short as possible, Cuba and I will take his potty breaks out in the street!

Cuba's new backyard!!!

Here are a couple pictures to show you how much Cuba LOVES his new backyard!!! He loves it so much and the grass (which he eats) that he threw up grass all day long yesterday...LOTS of fun...especially when you have carpet throughout the house :)

"Every good and perfect gift comes from above" James 1:17

It is finally time for us to make this announcement to the blog world. Allen and I are THRILLED to tell you that we are expecting Baby Cravens to arrive the end of March!!! We cannot explain how excited we are about this little baby! We are almost 11 weeks along and saw a strong heartbeat a little over 3 weeks ago. I have been feeling not so great since about week 6, but know that ii will be well worth it come March 31st!
Other news....we are moved in and settled in Oxford! We absolutely love our new house as does Cuba! Allen is doing great at his knew job and really likes all the guys he works with. I just found out today (officially) that I will be working part time at an outpatient clinic seeing pediatrics. It is a GREAT job and Allen and I feel like God has does more than provide for us. We feel so unbelievably blessed!!!

HOME SWEET HOME!!!

After a LONG vacation from the blogging world, I'm back with HUGE news!!! Allen and I will be Mississippians AGAIN in 2 1/2 weeks. We are making the move to Oxford! Allen was recently offered a new job in Oxford and we thought that this a great time for us to get back to our homeland :) Allen assures me that he will never be seen wearing rebel red :) The house pictured above is the cute rental home we found just outside of Oxford in a quiet, cute neighborhood. It is perfect for us...we could not be more excited about this move!!! Allen and I have a a great summer with lots of "mini-vacations" and my goal is to update all of you on our summer by the end of the week...promise not to take anymore long vacations from the blog world :) Good night all!!!

New York Marathon, Here We Come!!!

Allen found out last week that he made it into the New York Marathon! It is on November 1st (a great trip for our 1st anniversary) and the training has already started. Bad timing with the 105 degree heat index we have had for the past 4 days here in Nashville, BUT that doesn't stop Allen...

Allen is pretty safe in that he wears a water belt to stay hydrated and he always has on his road ID wristband. If any of you out there are runners (or love a runner) this is a must have. It has Allen name on it and my cell phone number so he can be identified and I can be reached if anything were to happen.

So for the next few months, the road may see more of my hubby than I do :)

MOTHER'S DAY WEEKEND!

Mom, Dad, and Cade came up to Nashville for the weekend. The girls had a GREAT time at Signature Nail Spa having a relaxing morning of manicures and pedicures. It is probably a good thing that a place like Signature does not exist in Grenada or Mama would be broke :)


Allen, Daddy, and Cade had a fun filled day of skeet shooting, Bass Pro shopping, and floor buying (for B'ham house soon to be on the market!).
Saturday night the grill master cooked us steaks at Meagan's house for a perfect ending to a perfect day!
The Grill Master...

Enjoying the Grill Master's masterpiece...


It was a GREAT WEEKEND!

If anyone is looking for a new home in Birmingham, a GREAT 3 bedroom/2 bathroom is going on the market this weekend...

RECIPE SWAP!!!

I'm in need of some new, yummy, simple, cheap and somewhat healthy recipes! I am somewhat stuck in a rut when in comes to dinner ideas...I think we have fajitas, tacos, and spaghetti at least once a week (I don't mind, I love all 3, but I think Allen in getting tired of my dinners). Anyway, I ventured out last night with a new recipe (a VERY simple recipe) and it turned out great so I thought I would share.
Teriyaki Chicken Stir Fry:
1 bag of frozen stir fry veggies
Chicken cut into cubes or small strips
Whole wheat spaghetti noodles
Teriyaki sauce (found in the ethnic food section of the grocery store)
pepper

Marinate your chicken in the sauce and put in a large skillet (in hot EVOO)
Cook chicken until no longer pink
Add frozen veggies to skillet and turn to med-low
Add a bit of Teriyaki Sauce and pepper
Cover and simmer, stirring every few minutes
Cook until veggies are cooked (about 8-10 minutes)
Boil noodles and drain.
Mix noodles and stir fry. Add sauce and pepper to taste...ENJOY!

Now for Dessert!!! Orange, Apple, Strawberry SMMOTHIES!

1 apple peeled and cut into cubes
Handful of strawberries cut into pieces
About 1-2 cups of orange sherbert
A little milk
A cup of ice
Mix well in a blender and enjoy and VERY yummy and healthy dessert, snack, or breakfast!
Now I have shared my very easy recipes with you so it's your turn to share some (easy and cheap) recipes with me.

I'm BACK!!!

Sorry about the month delay of posting. I guess Allen and I haven't been doing anything exciting lately :) BUT, we had a GREAT weekend with siblings last weekend so that's what I'm going to share with you. Kyle (Allen's bro) came into Nashville on Friday for a fun filled, somewhat laid back weekend. Friday night we had a great dinner at Blackstone Brewery with the Munselle's. Awsome food and fellowship (as always with this couple). Saturday, Allen, Kyle and I took the top off the jeep (actually I had no real part in taking the top off the jeep) and rode for HOURS around Nashville. Wish I had a pic of what my hair looked like after that ride. Saturday night, we had tickets to the Billy Currington concert...suite tickets! Thanks Kathryn (& Deloitte)! Here are a few pics of the night...
M & T sitting on the railing of the suite...you can't see it, but the stage is directly behind us.

Kathryn and Phillip Spencer breaking it down to Billy!

BROTHERS!!!


We had a great weekend and hope Kyle comes back soon!

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY! Kauai and more...