Our New Life Has Begun

Much has happened since I last updated the blog. The biggest, most exciting news is that we are expecting! Baby Lucas will be arriving sometime at the end of May, and we could not be more thrilled. I am grateful to say that this pregnancy has gone well so far. I haven't experienced any nausea or morning sickness. There have been minor inconveniences and discomforts (back pain, heartburn, etc.), but that is to be expected. The baby and I visit our doctor regularly and have remained happy and healthy. God has been incredibly good during this new adventure (just as He always is).

The Facebook announcement that we published on Reformation Day (Halloween)

It's amazing how getting pregnant changes the whole dynamic of your life. Ever since we started trying to conceive in July, my focus has been all about baby. Each milestone makes this journey more and more real to me. Getting that first "positive" result (and then another and another just to be sure!); sharing the news with our parents, families and friends; the first doctor's visit; the first ultrasound; finding out the gender (it's a boy!); feeling him kick and move; reaching the halfway mark; and now I am looking forward to our first baby shower. My mom and our home church are hosting a shower at the end of February (only 23 days away!). Each of these treasured moments brings us closer to the day that we get to meet our firstborn son. Words cannot describe how that feels.

20 weeks on New Year's Day

Another fun experience has been slowly researching baby gear and adding items to our registries. At first, I was overwhelmed by the idea of registering. There are so many different things you need or may want when welcoming a little one into the family. I had no idea where to begin. Thankfully, God has blessed us with a phenomenal church family filled with countless experienced moms and moms-to-be. These generous women, my coworkers, my aunt who on Thanksgiving gave birth to her firstborn daughter (HG), and other family and friends have shared a wealth of welcomed advice and wisdom. We finally narrowed down options and made some decisions. Although a work in progress, our registries include the following:

- Amazon (www.amazon.com)
- Babies "R" Us (www.babiesrus.com)
- Carousel Designs (www.babybedding.com)
- Target (www.target.com)

The bedding we chose for Baby Lucas

Regarding the future of our family, we have made the unofficial decision for me to stay at home with Lucas when he arrives. Although I love my job, I feel confident that this is the perfect time for one door to close and another one open. We have been budgeting and saving for this next step in our lives. We trust that God will provide us with the knowledge and means necessary to become a one-income household for a while. The official decision will be made in the next month or so.

24 weeks down and 16 weeks to go (give or take)!

July 2013

Our July highlights:

-James and my brother Eric went canoeing on the Buffalo with our Sunday School class.

-We spent Independence Day in Paris.

-Our niece Ava came to visit us for a couple days.

-We met with Abrea Garwood to order photos from our June session. Here are a few that she highlighted on her blog:

-My brother Eric attended SOAR (Summer Orientation and Registration) where he registered for his college classes. He will move into the dorms on August 22 and classes begin on August 26. We are very excited and proud!

-We celebrated our niece Evie's 2nd birthday!

-Cole Family Reunion

-We celebrated James's birthday! James's parents came to visit, I made dinner, and we watched some home videos.

June 2013

Fun events this month:

-Central Baptist 5k to raise money for the Ecuador mission trip. I did not prepare for this race very much, so my time wasn't impressive. What was most memorable about this race is that we ran it in the pouring rain! I have never done that before, and it was totally worth it!

-VBS at Central Baptist. I volunteered in the nursery this year. Lots of sweet babies and girl talk!

-Britt and Adam's wedding. They had one of the most beautiful receptions I've ever been to!

-5 year anniversary photo session with Abrea Garwood Photography. Photos to come!

-James's scuba trip to Mermet Springs.

-Weekend in Millington to spend Father's Day with my family and to go to Janell and Joseph's wedding. This is also the weekend that Eric moved out of our parents' house and in with James and me. He plans to go to UTM this fall.

My mom got to meet country singer Jimmy Wayne!

-Copeland/Hawkins/Tull family hiking trip to Mt. Cammerer. James, his dad, uncle, brother-in-law, and cousins went hiking in East Tennessee.

James and his dad at the top of the mountain

Copeland/Hawkins/Tull Family

April and May 2013

April and May have come and gone. This has been a big year for us so far, and it seems like we've only just begun. I heard this song at lunch today, and it brought back memories of listening to the Carpenters with my mom. It seemed appropriate for this post. 

April consisted of the following shenanigans:

-I spent the first weekend with some amazing women from our church at Women of Joy Conference in Louisville, KY where we got to hear a concert by Jeremy Camp and several awesome speakers such as Lisa Whelchel, Jill Kelly, Liz Curtis Higgs, and Angela Thomas.

Dinner at the Cheesecake Factory

Riding home from the conference on the church bus

Central Women's Ministry

-We ran with the Skyhawk Veteran Association in the UTM ROTC 5k where James and I both won second place in our age/gender categories. Whoop whoop!

SVA before the race

-My mother-in-law, sisters-in-law, a family friend, and I went on a day trip to the Southern Women's Show in Nashville where we got to see Miss Kay.

The Copeland Metals girls at the SWS

Miss Kay Robertson from Duck Dynasty

-Last but not least, James and I both made it through the end of the semester at UTM which is a very busy time for us. James made all A's!

May began with our 5 year anniversary Carnival cruise from Miami to Cozumel, Belize City, Roatan Island, and Grand Cayman. This was by far one of the best times James and I have ever spent together! We made so many memories and experienced several firsts: our first cruise, our first trip to the beach together, our first visit to the Caribbean, and James's first ocean dive. We absolutely loved it! The weather was perfect, there weren't any ship mishaps, and God kept us safe the entire time. Click here to see some photos from our trip.

We both love traveling, and we try to take advantage of any opportunity to travel abroad as often as we can. This trip added 4 new countries to our growing list. James has visited 10: Brazil, Germany, Kuwait, Iraq, Thailand, Peru, Mexico, Belize, Honduras, and the Caymans. I have also visited 10: Japan, Thailand, Peru, Poland, the Czech Republic, Germany, Mexico, Belize, Honduras, and the Caymans. We plan to take a break from traveling abroad next year and go to Colorado where I worked two summers during college - Camp Redcloud. I have been patiently waiting to take James there since we started dating, so I am thrilled that we are finally making plans to go!

The rest of May included:

-Getting gutters installed on our house

-Dog-sitting for my co-worker Somsak. He and his family are from Thailand, so we are taking care of their dog, Junior, while they spend the summer back home. We are not typically dog people, but keeping Junior has been so much fun for me. He is an old dog, so he requires some special attention. I have done my best to make life great for him while he's staying with us. He hardly ever barks, he doesn't jump, and he is fairly obedient. He has the sweetest temperament. Such a good boy!

 
-During the last weekend in May, we went to Paris to spend time with James's family and to go to his 10 year high school reunion. Yes, folks, it's been 10 years. We can't believe it either.

Our nieces Evie and Ava

Our nephew Jax

Our nephew Caden

James and Ariel

Fun at the reunion!