We had our second sonogram yesterday and everything came out well. The baby is currently 8 oz and everything is developing normally. The sonogram tech showed us the heart, stomach, bladder, spine, and ribs. We also got a little wave and a yawn. It was the coolest thing I’ve ever seen. The tech was able to determine the gender but we’re waiting until Saturday to actually find out. Tyson will be home from Saudi and my mom and dad will be in from out of town so we’re having a get together. We’re having a cake made that’s either blue or pink inside and we’ll cut it in front of the family to find out.  I plan to get it all on video and post it here so everyone that can’t be here will get to see the results.

Those of you who helped us move, you know who you are but there will be Thank You notes in the mail in a day or two. We definitely couldn’t have done it without you no matter what you did. These are the postcards I designed and put together. Ronna and I are planning on writing the notes and addressing the envelopes tonight so hopefully we can get the cards in the mail tomorrow.

Well it seems I’m in the full swing of home ownership. Last night I mowed the lawn for the second time and I’ve even cleaned the gutters out already. We got some mulch for the flower beds the other day but we need more. In time we’ll get all those little things taken care of. I can already tell that we’re gonna need some fertilizer and/or weed killer. Dandelions are everywhere. Plans for a deck are in the making. Once I get my tax incentive I’ll include that in the things I want to do to the house. We’re still finding places for everything and we still have a garage full of junk but once all that is taken care of I’ll take some good interior pics for everyone to see.

(I didn’t have my camera so the crappy iPhone pics will have to suffice)

It’s been a while since I’ve posted because I’ve been pretty busy. I’m getting ready to close on a house and all my time has been going towards getting ready for that. We had an uneventful garage sale last weekend and have been packing too.

That being said, the real reason for this post is: Sonny Bryan’s Smokehouse. The original one. If you know me you know I’m a little bit of a BBQ snob. I make my own sauce, I have a good grill, and I usually can’t stand other people’s BBQ. So if I say a BBQ place is good, you can believe it. As soon as you walk in you know this place is not your average restaurant. No waitresses, no indoor restrooms, this place specializes in food. The atmosphere was “quaint” or “cozy” or any other word you want to use for tiny. It was a kitchen and some schoolhouse style seats inside and picnic tables outside. Ribs are not supposed to “fall off the bone” which seems to be a qualifier for most people when they’re eating BBQ. I want my ribs to taste smoked and have some flavor and texture and that’s exactly how they were at Sonny Bryan’s. All I had was ribs but next time I’ll try Brisket or sausage and see how it is. So there you have it, my official review of Sonny Bryan’s Smokehouse.

Pat McD and made a quick trip to Wilburton to visit Bubba and Rachel. Left Saturday morning, came back Sunday morning. It was a little cold and we got wet Sunday, but it was a good ride. We took 43 on the way home and it turned out to be the best route I’ve ever ridden. Through the mountains and by lakes and some of the fastest curves I’ve ever gotten to ride. It was great.  It was good to see Bubba and Rachel too. They have a kick-ass saloon behind their house that we got to party in a little.

Well I honestly never thought I would say this but I put an offer on a house today. It seems like my life is finally falling into place. It’s all happening at once and that’s ok but it’s actually happening. In 6 months I’ll be a dad and in 30 days if all goes well I’ll be a homeowner. We found a great little house near downtown Mckinney over a month ago and when I finally got in contact with a realtor we found out it had a contract on it. I was a little heartbroken because we had our hearts set on it. Well this past weekend I got a call from the realtor saying the contract had fallen through and that I needed to get my finances in order so I could make an offer. So I spent a few hours filling out paperwork and got it all submitted to a lender that specializes in VA and FHA loans. Long story short, I made an offer this morning. There’s still a chance that we might not get it, but I had to take that chance. It’s a great little house with an updated kitchen and bathrooms and a huge backyard for furbutt. We plan on growing a garden and maybe even getting a chicken or two. I’ll keep you posted here.

Yesterday we had our first sonogram and it was pretty much the coolest thing ever. The doctor said everything was completely normal and the heartbeat was a healthy 171 bpm so we’re pretty excited. Right now it’s about an inch long and a lot of the basic organs have started to form. There’s  a spinal column, a heart, the beginnings of the stomach and very basic lungs. We don’t go back for another sonogram until week 18 but this was a milestone. The doctor reassured us that we should haven’t any complications based on Ronna’s health and her track record with her insulin (she’s diabetic) so that was a relief. I’ll keep everyone posted.

It’s hard to tell from this pic of Odie, but we actually broke a record in DFW today. I don’t know what the previous record was but, as I type this at 10:43, DFW airport received 9.5 inches of snow and it’s supposed to fall for another hour or two. I’m in Mckinney about 50 miles from the airport and I think we got almost that as well. I plan to get up in the morning and take some more pics while it’s nice and pristine. I got up early this morning and started getting ready for work only to realize that the roads were probably going to be too bad to drive. After talking to the boss I decided to work from home and they ended up closing the office at noon. It’s wild here, it doesn’t even look like Texas. If you look out the back porch you’ll see what looks like some sort of Kincaid postcard. Except it’s real. Anyway, keep an eye out for more pics.

This is the start of a new month and, for Ronna and I, a new life. I found out on Thursday after much anticipation that my beautiful girlfriend Ronna is five weeks pregnant. I haven’t told everyone just yet, but a lot of the family knows and it should start to trickle down to everyone in the following days. Plan A was to get married someday and buy a house and have kids sometime after all that. Apparently, nature doesn’t care about our plans. So we’re going with Plan B. I’m ok with Plan B even though I’m not ready. I’ve been told by many a wiser man that you’re never ready so I’ve kept that in mind. Both of my parents told me they thought I would be a great father and, given their reputations as parents, I take it as a huge compliment. So with this post and these events I start the next chapter in my life. I’m ready to close the last chapter anyway so it works out. Pay close attention to this site because I plan to make a section solely dedicated to Plan B. In the meantime I would like to thank the following:

• Both of my amazing parents for understanding and offering words of wisdom and advice.
• My friends for all the advice.
• Dr. Vega, Ronna’s diabetes doctor for setting our minds at ease and answering our questions.

Ronna and I went home to Wichita Falls this past weekend to visit with mom and, in general, relax. We had a great time as usual. Saturday we decided to go to the Wichita Mountain Wildlife Refuge in Oklahoma and do some hiking. We made a quick stop at Meers Burger in Meers Oklahoma for a big ol’ burger and I had a beer. The beer is outsourced to a small brewery in Oklahoma and was traditional Choctaw Nation brew. It was delicious. I wish I could do it every weekend. As always mom was great. She bought a Diabetic cookbook so she could fix meals that Ronna could eat. Everything was good except that weird frozen desert stuff  (Sorry mom!). Anyway, it was a good weekend and I look forward to the next time I get to see her. I love you mom.