And So it Begins....

Yes...I have survived the sickness. I have to say I think it was pretty bad. I have no other pregnancy to compare it too. But none the less, I think it was pretty rough there for a bit. The good news is that I have reached my 13th week, and the sickness has DISAPPEARED!!!! PRAISE THE LORD!!! Now it seems that I am just hungry...almost all the time :) I have gained more weight than I knew possible in such a short amount of time...most of my pants (OK almost all) don't fit so well any more...Hmmm....But the great news is everything is going perfect, the baby by all accounts is thriving and meeting all it's measurements and we have our next doctors visit in a couple of weeks. Thank you so much to everyone who has been praying for my sickness to subside and for all the sweet cards and flowers we have received. It has been wonderful to hear from everyone back home...we miss you! :)

Introducing...Baby Bains :)

That's right...this little miracle is our baby...Right now it's the size of a kidney bean and doing just perfect!! Andrew and I are so thrilled...we could not feel more excited or blessed!!! Our due date is September 14th (the day after my Birthday!) We have had the most horrible time not telling the entire world...but we wanted to make sure both of our families found out first (check) and had our first Dr.'s apt. (check) So now we can shout it from the roof tops... "WE ARE HAVING A BABY!!!"

Snow Day!!!

This is the first snow day of my entire life....and like a little child I was out side in my pajama's at 7:00 taking pictures of the snow. I feel it is my job to give the neighborhood something else to laugh about when talking about those crazy Californians :)

Merry Christmas!!!

Luke 2:1-20 In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. And everyone went to his own town to register. So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger." Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest,and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests."

Wishing you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Love, Abby and Andrew

Psalm 106:1 Praise the Lord. Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His love endures forever.

Happy Thanksgiving!!! We had a very very blessed holiday, so much to be thankful for...like my parents and Alison & Andy flying in for four days :) It was so nice to have them here, and to show them where we have been living. I cooked my first Thanksgiving meal (it turned out pretty well). This is my cute turkey apron mom brought me (thanks mom).

Here are Mom and Dad sitting out in front of our house, enjoying what is left of the fall foliage. Family portrait :)

Alison...being Alison :)

The family all together to watch USC stomp on Notre Dame...good times!!! (Yes, like the row boat picture this too was staged)

GATORLAND

http://www.gatorland.com/

What trip to Florida would be complete without a trip to Gatorland?? Besides do you really think Andrew would miss any opportunity to see Alligators (remember alligator wedding cake??) Gator Land was actually really cool, there were hundreds of Alligators, I actually touched one, you could watched them jump out of the water and eat, you could feed them and hold one if you wanted. It was a fun trip...Im sure we will be getting a season pass :) Here are some alligators. Here is a BIG Alligator...the caught him in a Florida neighborhood...he had been eating all the dogs (oops)...Gatorland saved him from being hunted and killed :(

The North Carolina State Fair! (notice the Tar Heels blue font I am writing in)

The fair is in town, and we were there!! Andrew has officially wrapped up Gears, and the wrap party was Thursday night...so they gave everyone Friday off!!! We had a really nice time, ate some hot dogs, rode two rides and then decided we are too old for rides (yep..we felt sick).

This is a cup of deep fried Coke...yes...fried coke. (I love the south)

Here Andrew is actually eating the deep fried coke :) It tastes just like sweet funnel cake, they put Coke syrup on top and some whipped cream...its yummy..mmmm

Here is Andrew just being cute :) awww, cute Andrew (I love him.)

Row, Row, Row Your Boat....

No, Ladies and gentleman... your eyes are not deceiving you. That is indeed Andrew and I in a row boat...in the middle of a lake :) And yes, the picture of me rowing is staged, we almost tipped the boat over so I could "look" like I was rowing. I just didnt want a picture of me stitting there eating all the snacks :)

This is at "Bass Lake" it is 5 minutes from our house where you can rent boats and go out and fish. Or in our case...paddle out, eat your yummy snacks and then paddle back :) It really was a beautiful day and we are falling in love with North Carolina.

This is the cute little boat house where you can rent the boats, fish from the dock, or sit in a rocking chair and look at the view.

Just another beautiful fall day in North Carolina!!

Viva Las Vegas!!!

This is my Grandma (Ms. Louise as Andrew calls her). This past weekend I flew to Las Vegas to celebrate my grandma's 80th Birthday, and attend my Aunt Madelyn's wedding!!!! It was a very busy weekend, lots of action crammed into about 30 hours.

I had a great time watching my Grandma try her luck at the slot machines, and it was really nice to see my family :) As usual the only person who actually won anything was my sister :)

Mom and Dad

Ali, Mom and I

My Aunt and her husband Mark :) Me, my cousin Lauren (who is getting married in January), and Alison My sister and I (again I am sitting and Alison is winning)

Andrew at work :)

Here is Andrew at work (Epic Games). They are in the final push getting ready for the game to be wrapped up. Andrew has been working so hard, I am so proud of him. He has gotten such amazing reviews and everyone is really impressed with him. Two days ago he was offered a position on the skeleton team laying out the design for their next game!!! Yeah!!!

Here is the game Gears of War. I don't know if this is the actual cover they are going with...but anyway if you have an X-Box 360- BUY THIS GAME (and you are an adult..this is NOT a game for kids). And if you don't have an X-Box 360 this is a great reason to buy one :) hee hee Anyway I am so proud of Andrew and I just wanted to brag a little ;)