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Us falling in love. April 2005.

We look so young, but was that really only 4 years ago?!

I have been asked to give a post with an update in our lives, but there doesn't seem to be much new happening in the SMTanner home. We enjoy our generally routine lives but life's upcoming changes bring a bit of thrill to our ordinary pace. Right now, however, we can't claim much excitement, which we are nonetheless enjoying. This last week I spent a great deal of my time coordinating a service activity for church while Skyler continued to work hard at school. As school is winding down (Sky graduates in 40 days) we are looking forward to the other changes life will bring...baby and full-time work for Skyler. It seems that we each spend a lot of time preparing for the future as I do things to prep for baby and Sky has already begun studying for the NY Bar Exam.

Day to day we enjoy the simple responsibilities and joys of school, work, friends, and one another's company. Considering that it is only going to be the two of us for a few months longer is somewhat crazy. Just four years ago we were holding Sky's little sister in the hospital thinking how babies were so far off for us. We are each very dedicated to the other and I can't imagine how we will switch to welcoming a baby of our own--but we are excited and ready for the challenge.

Sky with his youngest sister, Angelina, born March 16, 2005

Warning...expect more sappy posts soon as we have our 3 year wedding anniversary coming up!

Spring Break...

We had a fantastic time over Spring Break (Mar 13th -21st) visiting Emerald Isle, North Carolina. We drove down with the Lee's that live in Ithaca and the Jones' flew in from Chicago. Skyler and I love roadtrips and had a great time traveling with the Lee's and playing with both couples at the beach house. We were all able to spend lots of time playing and laughing together. We all loved the beach and I felt right at home. It was the most similar beach I have found on the east coast to where my family vacationed along the Oregon Coast. Needless to say, I was in heaven. Skyler had an enjoyable time watching me play in the water and we both had a blast with our friends while we enjoyed the weather.

Highlights not documented by photos:
playing wii
delicious dinners at the beach house
dining out at yummy restaurants
famous NC bbq
late night movies
relaxing inside the beach house
great walks on the sand
lots & lots of laughs

Thursday we went to Shackleford in search for wild ponies. The ponies made it here as the Spanish shipwrecked on Shackleford in the 1400's and left horses.

Tuesday we went to an aquarium. We had a great time playing with the stingrays and taking silly pictures around the exhibits.

Wednesday & Thursday we soaked up the sun!

Thank you Lee's for inviting us to join you in sunny NC!

23 weeks

We are now at 23 weeks and all is happy and well in the SMT family. Savannah is moving lots and is clearly reactive to different things, she is especially fond of chocolate ice cream (smart girl) and singing. Since we are enjoying our now titled "baby-moon" (since all three women here are pregnant) we thought it appropriate to take the picture for this week on the beach.



Just for the full effect I have also added a picture of me wearing this same outfit back on August 2nd this last year. It is fun to see the difference. I am definitely pregnant. I am to the point where strangers have started conversations with me about how I look and their individual pregnancy stories.

We had a doctor appointment on Thursday and nothing out of the ordinary happened, which is always nice. Savannah's heartbeat is still strong. The total weight gain is at 10 lbs, but after having 3 pregnant women in the same house and an endless supply of treats, and husbands that are more than happy to accommodate, we will see more growth soon.

21.5 weeks

Grandma & Grandpa, a new slide is up!

I must admit that taking these pictures isn't always the highlight of my week, but it will be fun to have a little "flip-book" of it all later.

Me trying to decide if the pictures are worth the embarrassment.
We get a good laugh out of it.

I am afraid I have gained a bit extra this week. We will see when I go to the doctor on Thursday. I made the transition to some maternity pants...that was a big step for me. I am still able to fit two of my regular pairs of jeans, but it is definitely time to move on to the stretch belly. Thank you Mom for the maternity clothes, it is nice to know that I have some things that are cute and can be comfortable!

I am definitely feeling larger and looking more pregnant. I got my first stare from a stranger yesterday at the mall. Strangers are also being more polite in some ways though, which I have to remember so I don't get annoyed by the rude ones. A gal in the restroom let me go first in line. It is weird getting special treatment as I haven't had a rough pregnancy in the least. I am grateful though as I appreciate the sign of respect/thoughtfulness.

It is a lot more fun to be able to call Savannah by her name. She is much more "real" to us now as we talk about her and begin preparing ourselves for her. I have been able to feel her being active much more this week. We are loving it all and can't wait to keep feeling her more as we anticipate meeting this little girl!

The two little outfits waiting for Savannah.
Sky found the green and pink dress.
Dana was a sweetheart and brought the polka dot one as a gift.

Hypnobabies Giveaway!

We are set on our birthing plan now and have chosen to go with Hypnobabies! I am very excited to start the program. As I was price shopping and getting more info on other HypnoMom stories I found this great giveaway. Check out this link and give it a whirl: Hypnobabies Giveaway

Baby SMT is a...

GIRL! Not many of you will be surprised as the final tally was 24 total votes-- 20 for a girl and 4 for a boy. We were able to get a lot of good sonogram pictures of our little baby girl. She looks very healthy and happy. She was just smacking her cute little lips the entire time while snuggling against her hand/arm.

Full profile shot--head to the right.

Picture of her face with her little arm against it on the left.
She looked cute and cozy.

We are happy to know that our Savannah Madelyn will be here soon!

20.5 weeks

We had a fun week with the baby. Skyler was able to feel the baby kick on Thursday for the first time. All he could say was "Wow!" It was quite exciting for both of us.

I am switching to a slideshow of the pictures so that I don't have to specifically post a belly pic each week. I will still update the pictures each week.

Stay tuned as we hope to find out the gender tomorrow afternoon!!!