Growing Family!

Last week was my birthday, Tuesday that is. Maybe I should start before that. Before we went on vacation I was starting to have some of the same symptoms that I had about 2 1/2 years ago. While on vacation I was nauseated most of the time. Right after I would eat I would feel ok for about an hour. I wasn't sure if it was due to motion sickness or what. Well, other symptoms starting appearing and when I returned home I called the doctor. I visited the doctor on Monday, the 13th. She called me on my birthday to say "Congratulations!" Baby #2, or for some, Grandbaby #7, is on the way. We got our official due date today. July 10, 2007 if not sooner, Dylan will be a big brother.

We don't really know how to explain it to him and we think it might be a little early to try so Dylan hasn't been told he's about to be ousted as the baby in the family. We're working on finishing our sunroom so that can become kind of a toy room and then we'll have what is now the spare bedroom for our newborn. I think we, Chris and I, both thought it might take longer than it did to get pregnant. I was really aiming for a September baby. For those of you who know the Jaquess family we are getting so big that there are birthdays in every month except January and September. Well, January just didn't work for me because that would mean Christmas, child's birthday, Dylan's birthday. Too much in a row if you know what I'm saying. Instead, our baby will get to share their birthday month with Samantha Rae and Hope. Pretty good sharing partners but it's always nice to have your own month. I do. I don't have to share my month with anyone, yet. Christopher was that way until Callie was born this year in June. It ruined his month. Now he has to share. Just kidding!

I mentioned we went on vacation. Yes, we did! It was great fun. We started our vacation out on the plane from Chicago to Orlando with an older lady sitting next to us. She was going back home to Orlando. Her husband had passed away 2 months ago and she got lonely so she went to Chicago to stay with her daughter for a short time. She doesn't have any family in Orlando but they had lived there a long time and in their most recent home, over 20 years. She says she has a phone number of a neighbor she had some 15 years ago and he had just recently married. She was supposed to call him when she landed and he would come get her at the airport to take her home. She hadn't seen him in a very long time and I could tell she wasn't completely comfortable with the idea of calling him to come pick her up. A taxi would cost well over $50. Later in the flight she heard Chris and I discussing picking up the rental car. She told Chris she would pay him to take her home when we got to Orlando. She was more comfortable having us, complete strangers, take her home, than this gentleman she knew many years ago. We agreed. At first, when she started giving us direction after leaving the car rental terminal we got a little worried. She was purposely avoiding the highways and interstates. She kept looking around like she wasn't for sure where she was. Then, we finally got to a certain point and she says, "Now I know for sure where I am." Thank goodness. We all breathed a sigh of relief. She tried calling the gentleman who was supposed to pick her up several times to let him know that she was getting another ride home. He never answered his phone. I guess he wasn't home. So, it's a good thing we were there to take her or she might have had to call a cab. We got her home to a villa in a gated community on a golf course with a beautiful lake. It was a gorgeous community. She offered Chris a $50 and he politely turned it down to which she crammed 3-$5 bills in his hand and said you have to at least take this. Crazy! Her name was Winnie, nice lady.

We got to the hotel at I don't know what time and gave Dylan a bath. He was completely wired after having only about a 20 minute nap total that day. We gave him a bath and put him to bed. Friday and Saturday were pretty much the same. We spent most of it at the church setting up for the Youth Rally. Dylan got short naps in but better than nothing. Saturday evening we drove to Titusville and stayed in a missions apartment offered by Temple Baptist Church. It was a quaint home in an older section of town with 2 bedrooms and 1 bathroom. The air conditioning was a window unit and didn't work the greatest but at least we had a clean place to sleep. We attended church that morning and then headed down the coast to board our Disney cruise.

We boarded our cruise line by 2ish, ate lunch, walked around quite a bit and then headed to our stateroom. Dylan slept a couple hours and then we were out again. We wanted to be up on deck when we left port. It was neat leaving port and seeing all the lights fade in the distance. We hit some high waves that night because I have never got motion sick before and I most certainly did then. I went to bed at like 8:00 that evening, I think. I didn't even eat dinner. We visited Nassau, Bahamas the next day and spent most of our morning touring Atlantis. It's a neat place. The next day was spent at Castaway Cay, Disney's own island. It rained off and on the first hour we were there but the rest of the day was beautiful. The water was a little cool to swim in but we enjoyed some beach time and then played games on the island. Our last day was spent at sea. Dylan got his picture made with Minnie, his favorite character, at least 3 times. We got to watch parts of several different shows. Dylan never wanted to sit for more than 20 - 30 minutes through any of them. That's ok! Maybe when he gets older he'll appreciate those parts of the trip a little more. It was a great time!

We put our Christmas tree up last Friday night. We didn't have anything going on and my husband had been bugging me to put it up for at least three weeks. We have our main tree in the formal dining room and two small, 3-foot, trees. One is in the living room and the other in the kitchen. It's our first year for decorating up the house since we've been married. We bought all the stuff two years ago after Christmas and weren't able to use it last Christmas while we were in transition. We went all out this year and aren't finished, yet.

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving Day! Take time to tell others, or at least God, what you are thankful for. I am thankful for so many things but will list only a few. I am most thankful that God allowed me to be born into the Jaquess family with wonderful parents who raised me in church, who taught me right from wrong, who without them I would probably not be on my way to heaven. I am thankful for a God who saved me and offers me a home in heaven. I am thankful for my husband God prepared for me and the children he has given us. I am thankful for my sister-in-laws, both of them. They were friends before family and now it's nice having friendly family. I am thankful for my neices and nephews and being able to watch them grow and learn. I am thankful for my in-laws. I hear so many horror stories and I don't have any. My in-laws have been wonderful. I am thankful for the men and women who have fought for the freedom of this country and those who continue to do so. Thank you to all the soldiers who allow me to enjoy the comfort of my home while they sacrifice their time and lives.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Chocolate Chip Cookies

So, my sister-in-law says to me the other day that I need to post my chocolate chip cookie recipe. I know I use my mother-in-law's recipe but I don't know where she got it. I don't think she made it so hopefully I'm not copyrighting someone else's stuff. Here it is!

Chocolate Chip Cookies
By Janet Gouty

1 cup shortening (butter flavored is best)
½ cup sugar
½ cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla

2 ¼ cup flour
½ tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Mix together thoroughly first 5 ingredients. In separate bowl sift together flour, baking soda, and salt. Stir flour mixture into shortening mixture slowly. Add chocolate chip pieces. Chill mixture in freezer for about 30 minutes or in refrigerator for about an hour. Drop rounded teaspoons about 2 inches apart on lightly greased baking sheet. Bake at 330 degrees for 12 to 18 minutes.

The biggest trick is to make sure the dough is really cold before you put it in the oven and to make sure the oven is completely preheated. It helps make the cookies fat and plumpy. You also have to pull them out at just the right time so they don't get too hard. It never hurts to accidentally put a little extra vanilla in, just a couple drops. It's really easy and if you make the cookies small like I usually do, you can get about 5 dozen.

Hope that works for you Mel.