Makenzie's Arrival is getting close . . .

So, this has definitely been a much harder pregnancy for me than with Mariah. With Mariah, I was still working out and walking 3-5 miles at this point no problem. With Makenzie, I have been struggling for the past month or two and my doctors have put me on "bed rest" at any time possible. Those of you who know me, know that's insane to ask of me. ha ha. But, if I am on my feet much at all as in a normal day, by the evening I am doubled over in pain so I have had to slow down considerably for me.

Two weeks ago, they checked since I said I felt so much pressure and discovered I was 1 cm dilated at 34 weeks. This week at 36 weeks I had progressed to 3 cm dilated already!!! Wow. My doctor thinks 1-2 more weeks at the most. She said she would be shocked if I made it 3 more weeks, let alone 4 to get to my due date of May 20th. So, time to get ready! Packing the bag this weekend and trying to get mentally ready and finish up some work stuff best I can.

Ryan cannot wait to meet Makenzie and neither can I . . . and we can't wait to see how Mariah absorbs it all. She thinks she is excited to meet her . . . :)

Interview with Ludacris

My job as the Executive TV Producer for Comcast Atlanta On Demand is keeping me crazy busy but I am loving it and occasionally, I get some really cool opportunities for "specials" about Atlanta. Recently, I had the chance to do an exclusive one on one interview with Ludacris at the Atlanta Film Festival. Well, since Ryan is clearly a huge fan, I asked him to come along to do the interview for me. Ludacris was so cool. No ego. No entourage. Very laid back. Great on camera. Such a pro. He was joking on Ryan about us having girl #2. But said congrats to us and wished us the best with Makenzie so that was cool. And one of my favorite parts? Tom Cruise called him during his interview and he was quite surprised! You could tell even HE was a little star struck that Tom Cruise called HIM. I thought that was awesome.

Happy Easter

We had a great Easter . . . It started with an Easter Party at school to kickoff the weekend for Mariah. She got to dye eggs with her friends, have a party and a big Easter Egg Hunt in their big backyard. Next up was a neighborhood Hunt at Ashford Park with Jamie, Todd, Carter & Alexis. Mariah had so much fun and even hugged the Easter Bunny who brought her three awesome baskets the next morning! Poor kid. Ha Ha. And of course, Sunday was a day filled with Buckhead Church, family time and reading the Easter story with Mariah about Jesus dying on the cross and rising from the dead. A fabulous weekend. Check out more Easter pictures.

Maternity Photo Shoot

One of the best parts about working for Gene Ho Photography? I get some AWESOME pictures of my family. :) One of our photographers, Erin McCoy, offered to shoot my maternity pictures so March 15th, we did the shoot! (I am due May 20th). I also decided if we were gonna do it, to do it right, so the fabulous Jae Marie of Van Michael Salon came to do my makeup! We had a fun shoot day and everyone rocked! Check out the photo album to see them all. There ended up a ton that I like which I was afraid I wouldn't being so pregnant and all. Ha Ha. I also got some great new headshots which I am excited about - check them out. Choosing my favorite is the hardest part! If you ever have photography needs - please let me know. I would love to hook you up with an awesome shoot. My email is melanie@geneho.com for Gene Ho Photography and you can follow us on Facebook!

Happy late Birthday to Hailey

I also wanted to wish doggie-dog as we call her a happy belated birthday! Hailey was my 21st birthday present as a 3 month old German Shepherd/Akita puppy from Ryan when we were at UNC. With me turning 31 this year, she really has been a part of our family for a long time now! We love that dog beyond words. She is such a great dog and so pretty. . . . Happy belated birthday to someone who has been there for me through so much in my life - I don't know how I could have made it to where I am today without that dog! I love you Hails!

The CIRCUS

We took Mariah to see the Circus this weekend and I must say, there is nothing like seeing your child so excited! Her entire face lit up as the lights dimmed and the animals all came parading out! She could not stop ooohhhing and awwwwwing and pointing at everything. I had tears in my eyes (pregnant & hormonal) watching her little face full of sheer enjoyment... She loved the elephants, tigers, doggies and horsies - but she was sad she didn't get to see a monkey. Ha Ha. Nonetheless, it was an absolute blast. And Lisa & Derek even joined us and brought Mariah's little friend, Miss Addie. Mariah squealed when Addie got there, she was so excited. What a great night!

THREE MORE MONTHS . . .

I cannot believe how fast the pregnancy is going now . . . only 3 more months til my due date so who knows it could even happen in like 8 weeks I suppose. Knowing my luck, I will be late but either way May 20th will be here before we know it.

I finally took the time to order Mariah's BIG GIRL BED this week so it should be here in about a month and we will move her furniture over to the nursery. Oh - and I found such a cool web site for custom bedding where you can drag and drop fabrics to create the bedding you want. Its so awesome. I went ahead and registered for all the nursery decor on there too so that's another big item off our list. Believe it or not, I did not do PINK! I switched it up and think its going to be very cute and chic . . . check it out: My babybedding.com Registry

At least the nursery is really all we will need since its another girl! That plus diapers I guess. Not looking forward to diapers and bottles again! But, cannot wait to meet our sweet baby girl....

Ryan's Birthday . . .

Shortly after I turned another year older . . . Feb 8th so did Ryan! We had a great time for his birthday . . . I surprised him with Black Eyed Peas tickets. It was an absolutely awesome concert and we had a blast dancing and singing all night together. Who cares if I am big and preggo - mama still has some moves. :) And Ludacris even opened for them. What a fun night. And Mariah took Daddy jeans shopping too for his birthday so he was a happy boy.

Melanie's Birthday . . .

Well, January 28th I had to add one more candle to the birthday cake. :) It was a fun night though - I had a jewelry party at my place with some of my best girlfriends and watched THEM drink MY wine. Ha Ha. Nah - it was fun and we had a great time! Ryan bought me the coolest gift - a FLIP Video camera - I love it. Now we catch fun little clips of Mariah - its awesome. I will post some for you all to see on here. And Mariah bought me a gorgeous new watch! She must have had some help picking it out - but I think she is learning quick how much girls love bling. :)

Mariah is going to the "big kid" class

I am so proud of Mariah but it also makes my heart hurt how fast she is growing up. Her school decided that she is too advanced for her 2/3 year old class and they have moved her to the 3/4 year olds class. She just turned 2.5! Awwww. Our little over-achiever. They said she was bored in her class already. Ha Ha. She speaks in very long full sentences, is crazy articulate for a 2 year old and loves to learn and just learns so fast! Am I bragging? Maybe a little. Ha Ha. But, I really am so proud of her and looks like its not just me since the school decided to move her. She really is going to be a great Big Sister! And she LOVES getting to carry her back-pack to school everyday now and head to the "big kid" class....

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year

We would like to wish all of our friends and family a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! We are very excited about 2010 and our growing family and we hope its the best year yet for all of you!  

Christmas in Florida

We loaded up the car and braved the roadtrip with a 2 year old to be in Florida with the Snares for Christmas this year.  Thank God for portable DVD players, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Dora the Explorer. Ha Ha.  It was a really great week with the Snares and such a fun Christmas for Mariah.  There is nothing like seeing Christmas through the eyes of your child!  She was so excited that Santa brought her presents even though she cried when she sat on his lap.  He brought her awesome baby doll furniture - now she can practice being a Big Sister!  And Grandma & Grandpa gave her every little girl's dream dollhouse!  Barbie time!  Ryan had fun golfing, playing basketball and playing Texas Hold Em.  Megan and I had fun at the spa for facials and massages. And Grandma had fun with her girl. :)  A great trip!  Oh - and Mariah had a blast with the Snare boys - her cousins!  Last but not least, Mariah learned about celebrating the birth of Baby Jesus - we even baked him a cake!  Merry Christmas! See more pics on our Kodak Site.

Christmas in Atlanta

Mariah got a few early gifts from Grandma & Papaw when they came to Atlanta the weekend before Christmas. Since they got 16 inches of snow and lost power in NC, they came to Atlanta as a safe haven and to spend the weekend with us.  Mariah got some great gifts!  And Papaw is letting us borrow his truck to go to Florida since we can't fit Mariah's presents in our cars to come back. Ha Ha.  

Meeting Santa

Mariah was so excited heading to our day out to meet Santa with all of our friends (Walker, Carrington, Addie, Alexis, Jon Carter & Parker).  She was literally skipping and singing all through the mall to go see him. She stood in line with Alexis & Addie waiting her turn and jumping up and down about meeting Santa - UNTIL it was time to sit in his lap. And that's when the tears began . . . ha ha. Maybe next year!

Christmas Tree Time

On our way home from Thanksgiving, we stopped in the mountains of Georgia at a tree farm and picked out our pretty Christmas tree . . .  and then home to decorate!  Tis the season . . . 

So Much to be Thankful for . . .

We really are so blessed and have so much to be thankful for - especially our friends and family! This Thanksgiving, we went to NC to my hometown to spend it with my family.  It was the first time in years that almost all my cousins were able to come in town and all be there at the same time. We had 35 people at Mamaw's house for lunch! This picture is 18 of 20 of the grandkids and great-grandkids with Mamaw and Papaw who made it all possible by having my Mom, Uncle Charles and Uncle Terry.  What a special picture and special Thanksgiving.  More pictures...

Melanie has a new job . . .

I took a new position in October as a Production and Marketing Manager for Comcast Atlanta for the Get Local On Demand television shows. Basically, I am the one who chooses what shows to produce (other than a few shows corporate pushes through), I manage the production of the shoots, editing, etc and also come up with marketing strategies around each show and the Get Local - Channel 1 as an overall brand.  Its really fun and I am loving it so far! The best part? I work from home so I have total freedom and flexibility which rocks!  If you have any show ideas - let me know!

UNC Homecoming 2009`

We went back to UNC for Homecoming for the Carolina-Duke game.  Ryan, Mariah and I came from Atlanta, Macey from NYC, Brittany from Charlotte, Amanda from San Diego, Carla from Miami and Leah from Myrtle Beach plus my parents with Jordan and Jacob and their friends from Waynesville.  There is nothing like going "home" to UNC!  That place is so special to all of us and so full of memories. And its amazing how after all these years, no time nor distance ever separates us Carolina Girls - we are closer than ever before!  I love those girls with every inch of my heart and soul!  We had so much fun seeing a lot of people from back in our college days and the Heels won the game. Yay.  Enjoy the pictures and GO HEELS.

Mariah is gonna be a BIG SISTER

We couldn't be more excited with the news that Mariah is going to be a big sister!!!  My due date is May 20, 2009!  Just as with Mariah, I have been so exhausted and pretty sick 24-7 but its finally easing and I am starting to feel better. Why can't I be a Mommy who does NOT experience morning/all day sickness? Oh well - its worth it!  We will keep you posted on updates.  I can't believe I am already showing - the bump definitely comes faster for baby #2!!!  Its crazy! So - boy or girl? What do you think? hmmm . . . . Cannot WAIT to find out!

Happy Halloween

We had an awesome time this year with Mariah for Halloween - it was so much fun that she actually was excited and understood what was going on . . . she actually would say "Trick or Treat" and "Happy Halloween" at the doors and of course "Thank You" after getting her candy!  She was a cute little rhinestone cowgirl because she loves her pink cowboy boots so much - she wants to wear them everyday so we decided to do the costume around the boots. :)  And of course Mommy added some bling bling to the costume and candy bag. Gotta love a dancer/cheerleader Mommy - we love sparkly stuff!   Our night started with pizza with the Ratliffs and then Mariah and Alexis had a blast Trick or Treating in our 'hood together!  They were so cute! Jon Carter and Parker hung back with their Dads for this year.  Next year they will be ready.  After a little while with the Landmans and the Ratliffs, we headed for round two of Halloween festivities - to the" burbs" with the Shaws!  Mariah had fun with Walker and his friends and Carrington was so darn cute!  After we finally ended the door to doors - we ended up at a Halloween party with all their friends.  It was a long day and night but tons of fun!  Oh - the cute Witch shirt outfit was her school outfit for Halloween Eve. :)  Check out more pic on our Kodak Gallery site.

Hallelujah - No More Diapers . . .

Mariah is getting to be such a big girl - she is just growing up too fast!  BUT - I must admit, we are super happy to be finished with diapers - at least until Mariah is a big sister someday.  :)  She is officially potty trained at 2 years old.  She has been using the potty for months but we finally pushed her to officially be done with diapers and she was ok with it apparently.  She feels like a big girl! :) So, its cool.  She went to the doctor recently and she ALMOST weighs 26 pounds.  Ha Ha. She is a petite little girl - love it. She is in the 30th percentile for her age.  But her head is in the 70th percentile - too funny. It doesn't look big to me but you can tell its holding some serious brains because she is so crazy smart!  She can count to 20, knows her ABCs, all her colors, has an insane vocabulary and is so articulate, knows all her shapes - even random shapes like "Octagon" and more. ha ha.  Its so much fun watching her learn so much all the time.  I love learning time with her! And Ryan loves play play dough time so its a good balance.  Anyway, I haven't done a Mariah update in a while so thought I would give you one.   By the way - this picture of Mariah was taken at Grandma and Papaw's house (Melanie's parents) at their new front porch - love the gorgeous mountain view!!!  

3rd Annual Girls Beach Trip to Seaside

Lisa, Shannon, Jamie, Jennifer, Laura, Michelle and Melanie headed back to Seaside, Florida for the 3rd annual girls beach trip....  It was an awesome trip as usual!  We left rainy weather for perfect sunny Florida weather!  "FingerNAIL" "Cheerleaduh" "I think its time for you to take me home" . . . . I LOVE these GIRLS!  Check out a few of the pics.

A Summer full of Babies . . .

I haven't updated in a while . . . all the summer babies have arrived! And we couldn't be happier for the Mommys and Daddys and siblings... Yay!!!  Congrats everybody!

Laura, Cameron & Walker welcomed Anna Carrington Shaw

Jamie, Todd & Alexis welcomed Jon Carter Ratliff

Shannon & Chad welcomed Parker Lee Landman

Melissa, Dustin & Ellie welcomed Levi James Mowrey

Nadia & Mark welcomed Nicolette Prima Ferrara

Leah & Chad welcomed Casey Violet Gibbs

Now, that's a LOT of new babies!!!!  

Gene Ho Photography - Our Family Pics on the Beach

So, how could we possibly be at the "home" of Gene Ho Photography in Myrtle Beach and not take advantage of some beach pictures??? So, Kevin, yet another one of Gene's amazing team offered to shoot our family on the beach.  Here's a few favorites and a link to more will be coming soon. :)