We're ENGAGED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Incredible. It's the only word to describe how I feel right now. We had been planning this trip to Chicago for the past two months or so. The plan was to go to Six Flags, but we found out two days before we left that the park was closed for the season (other than on the weekends). Plan B: Brookfield Zoo. Okay! Sounds good to me!

The trip began as any other road trip...scurrying around at the last minute to pack things that Lilly would need, stopping at the bank and the gas station on our way out of town...then a quick stop in Wabash to get my mom and my sister. We were finally on our way to the windy city around 11:30 Wednesday morning. Upon arriving at my brother's house, we planned out what our little vacation would consist of. Adam suggested that we go to the lake at some point. Although I wasn't overly thrilled at the thought of walking my big ole' pregnant ass around the Montrose Harbor for an hour, I agreed and suggested that perhaps we go before dinner so that we could get Lills to bed at a decent hour.

The evening was beautiful. The lake was calm, bright, and set an overall romantic mood. My brothers were busy entertaining Lilly and pushing her in the stroller. Aaron and I strolled hand-in-hand along the harbor, while my mom and Miranda followed closely behind. Everything was just perfect! We made our way closer to the lake, where I begged Aaron to go as close as we could to the edge of the water without actually going in! Everyone else stayed behind on the steps that overlooked the lake. The senery was gorgeous...the skyline in the distance, the water peaceful, the day turning to evening, and the sky a gorgeous blue. Nothing could make the evening better....UNTIL........
Aaron turns me around so that I'm facing him. He gets down on one knee and I about PASS OUT when I hear him say "I love you. I'll always love you. Will you be with me forever and marry me?"
Here's where the romance goes OUT the window......
My response: "SHUT UP! ARE YOU FREAKIN' KIDDING ME!? SHUT UP!"...Followed by me pushing him!
"Is that a yes!?!"
"OF COURSE! YES! OH MY GOSH! SHUT UP!"
Aaron pulled out my DREAM ring and placed it perfectly on my left ring finger, which was shaking uncontrollably!
He stood up and hugged me, and I cried my eyes out!

It's official! I'm the luckiest girl in the universe. I have the most incredible family, the most amazing daughter, and now the most WONDERFUL fiance'! I HAD NO IDEA HE WAS PLANNING ALL OF THIS! He's AMAZING!

INCREDIBLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!





***And a VERY special thanks to my mom, Adam, and Gary for helping Aaron pull off such a perfect proposal! I love you all very much! ***

Oops, she did it again.....(It was too easy!)

Britney, Britney, Britney. Where do we even begin with you!? Well, by now, we've all seen the pathetic performance (and I use that term loosely)that our once-pop-princess performed at the VMA's last night. You have to understand, I am probably the easiest critic of Britney's, since I DO own a shirt that reads "Britney is Queen", however last night the mother-of-two (and again, I use the term MOTHER loosely), completely let us all down. Right from her beginning pose, which exposed the mess of extensions from the back, took a role in the demise of her comeback performance. We all knew not to expect to hear Britney's REAL voice, but rather the usual lip syncing perfomance that we're so used to seeing. The problem, however, was that Britney apparently didn't KNOW the words to her own song...or perhaps was too lethargic to truly lip the lyrics. And let's not even TALK about her "dancing".....Or shall we? I understand that Britney has had two kids. And please, the girl looks good for popping two kids outta her little body, BUT, if she wanted to dance like she used to, then perhaps covering her mom-body up would have been a better route. Instead, Britney tried to outdo her own previous VMA performances, and shock the crowd by displaying her scarcely-toned body for the world to see. The problem: We've all already seen enough of Britney's body to shock us for a lifetime. We didn't need a barely-there outfit to astound us. In fact, what may have shocked the VMA crowd a little more was seeing Britney COVERED up....and perhaps that's what she should have done. Strap yourself into a tight little girdle (is that what they're called?!) to hold everything nice and close to your bones, cover it up with some flashy material, and shake your body 'till you just can't shake it no' mo'! Sorry....I got a little Diddy on you all!
So perhaps this comeback that us loyal Britney fans were hoping for, just isn't in the cards. Poor Britney. Well, look at it this way...maybe now she'll try the MOM thing on for size! Hopefully!?

Young Love....I miss it!

Damn Newport Harbor! MTV's newest version of Laguna Beach has got me thinking...I miss the young puppy love that comes with being in high school! hahahaha! I know that people are going to think I'm insane for saying that, but think back to how FUN it was to be flirty and to LONG for that ONE guy. It was annoying at the time, sure...but looking back now, ugh! I'd do anything for the simplicity in those relationships! Now it's all about bills, kids, marriage (not in that order, usually!), and just the day-to-day realities of adulthood! Ugh! I'm sitting here, watching the newest episode of Newport Harbor (it's commercial, I'm not missing anything!) and literally smiling because the relationships, however cheesy, are innocent and so silly! I think I'm going to break up with Aaron tonight and then try to get him back in the morning...maybe then I'll feel like I'm in high school again! LOL!

It's a Boy...still!

Well, we had our "official" ultrasound today and yes, it's still a boy! It's not that I'm not HAPPY that we're having a boy--- I am....but more for Aaron! I know it sounds horrible of me to say that, but let's be honest, Gretchen's not much for subtlety. But seriously, I AM getting more excited about having a boy. It's just definitely going to be a change from my precious angel baby girl! Everything about a girl is so delicate and dainty (okay well Lilly's not exactly dainty, but...) and then there's a BOY. All I can think about is MUD when I think about a boy! Hahahahhaa!

AND this damn name thing! See, once I found out Lilly was a girl, we had her named picked out a week or two later! We've know this baby is a boy since the end of July and we've YET to agree on a name...WAIT, let me first say, we DID have a name, Anderson Reid, but Sunday I was told that SOMEONE didn't like that name....AARON! UGH! I could have knocked him out! I will say though, that I'd like to somehow incorporate either Aaron's name or middle name into the baby's name. I think that since Lilly is named after the women in MY family, that we should be fair and do the same for our boy! We've thought about Brody Aaron, but...again who knows! I'm sure Aaron will change his dang mind again! UGH! MEN!

I'm attaching a picture of our little alien baby! His nose looks JUST like Lilly's did at this stage! Poor things are gonna have MY nose! EW!

The distorted views of "family"...

After spending time with Aaron's family this week in Iowa, I was reminded of something... I should first say that I am, in no way, saying anything BAD about Aaron's family, but there were things I observed that I can't help but blog about.

I guess it all boils down to the fact that you don't really appreciate your family enough until you spend time with a family completely different from your own. My family is a VERY close-knit union. My mom is by far one of my best friends, as is my brother. I talk to my mom, my brother, and my sister at LEAST once a day...and truth be told, I actually talk to my mom probably 94385948 times a day! (If my kids EVER call me as much as my brother and I call my mom I'll shoot myself! hahahaha!) I guess that the relationship I have with my family could be considered an abnormality to some, but to me, my mom is basically all I've ever been able to count on in my life, especially as stability is concerned. (Sure we've had our issues, but what mother/daughter hasn't?) My point is that when you look at the makeup of someone else's family, especially the person you plan to spend the rest of your life with, you just wonder if they're missing out on the bond that families SHOULD have with each other.

Example 1: Aaron and his mom talk...rarely, but more now than before. And of course, I wasn't around to see how Aaron grew up, but from what I hear from him, Aaron never really had a strong MATERNAL influence in his life. And I guess I noticed that, when the first time I met his mom, the first comments about her ONLY grandchild (my Lilly) was "Oh look, I've still got it. I can hold my wine and a baby at the same time." And although she may have been joking, I found it incredible tacky and almost insulting. Again, I'm not talking badly about Aaron's mom, but it's hard for me to understand how someone can come into town, (since she lives in MN and only makes it to IN probably four times a year, sometimes more), and not WANT to see her only grandchild, but yet has ample time to gamble and drink while in town. I guess it's just such a clash with what I'm used to with MY mom, who goes INSANE if she can't see Lilly EVERY week.

Example 2: While in Iowa this past week, Aaron's uncle arranged for two of his aunts and uncles, along with his grandparents, to come over for dinner so that they could all see Lilly, since they haven't seen her since she was three months old....although, I should mention that I have emailed pictures to those relative whose email address I have (even though I've NEVER heard a response from ANY of them). I'm not saying that Aaron and I EXPECTED any attention from the family, we're pretty used to the fact that people want to see LILLY, and we're okay with that....BUT, I was a little taken back by the fact that NO ONE in his family has a CLUE what Aaron and I are up to in our lives. No one knows what Aaron does for a living, no one knows what I do, no one knows ANYTHING about Lilly (such as her middle name, her bday, etc...)...and no one really took the time to find out.

The thing that REALLY bugs me is that Matt (Aaron's brother) warned me that there MAY be a conversation as to why Lilly doesn't have the Scudder name. (Apparently, "Grandpa" mentioned to Aaron's MOM that it was WRONG that I didn't give Lilly the Scudder name...and instead of saying anything to AARON, she told Matt, whatever!). Of course, "Grandpa" is a little "out there" in his older days and tends to fly off the handle about ANYTHING at ANYTIME! I must admit that I was a LITTLE frightened, due to my emotional state (pregnant, duh!) that I'd break down or LASH out, neither of which I wanted to do in front of Aaron's family!!!!! Although we avoided the topic of the last name, it DID get me thinking later that night....

When has ANY of Aaron's family (with the exception of his sister, whom we talk to often..and adore) called HIM to see how HE is? When have ANY of them (again, with the exception of his sister) called to see how LILLY is doing? I sent EVERY SINGLE one of them an invitation to her first birthday, knowing of course they wouldn't make the drive to IN, understandably, but NEVER heard back from ANY of them saying that they couldn't make it...or even a BIRTHDAY CARD IN THE MAIL FOR LILLY! It just BLOWS me away that these people have the nerve to comment AT ALL about Lilly's last name, the fact that I'm not working, the fact that Aaron's working at a bar, etc....I HONESTLY felt like crying for the fact that Aaron's family is NOT at all what family SHOULD be. The only person, I feel, who even gives a damn about him is his sister. I'm not saying that my family is perfect, Lord knows we're far from it, but the thing about my family is that we're THERE for each other. We KNOW what the other is doing, and we CARE to keep up with each other. I know that NO MATTER WHAT I can count on my mom and dad, my brothers and sister...even my grandparents and my aunts and uncles.

Although my family relationships may be odd to some, I know that my kids will ALWAYS feel the same way I do about family. It's the most important aspect of my life. I can't imagine my definition of family being anything but what it is now. And although perhaps intimidating at first, I think that Aaron now sees WHY my family is as close as we are....and he has accepted that this is how our children will be raised. The kids will see their grandma and grandpas and uncles and aunts as much as they can....and hopefully it'll be as normal to them as it has been for me. I love that it's now AARON asking if we can go to Chicago to see my brothers, or to Wabash on Sundays to see my mom and my sister. I love that he now knows what family life is supposed to be like.

Randomness...Such a Mess of Thoughts!

1) I'm sure I'm seeing the beginning stages of arthritis in my right hand due to constant texting. I'm such a compulsive texter that my right forearm seriously starts to BURN by the end of the day. Thought to self: I should learn to text with my left hand.

2.) I'm almost embarassed that I used to be such a huge Britney fan...going so far as to have an old friend in high school MAKE me a shirt which read "Britney is Queen"....(Thanks Steven!) I almost feel guilty for saying this, but perhaps Baby Daddy SHOULD have sole custody. Poor Jayden and Sean Preston....they don't stand a chance in this cruel cruel world.

3.) All this hype about High School Musical 2 got me in the mood for a musical....so I attempted to watch "West Side Story" this morning, but after the first 10 minutes of complete silence, other than snapping, I was forced to change it back to Regis and Kelly. Hey, I tried. I love musicals, but this was just a bad day for it, I suppose.

4.) Speaking of HSM2...My sister is hoarding her copy of HSM and won't let me borrow it. UGH! How am I ever going to be able to include myself in conversations of HSM2 if I can't first see the FIRST one?! (Katie, I'm talking about having conversations with YOU about HSM2!!!!). And about this High School Musical stuff....Is Zac Efron REALLY that hot? I mean, I've seen him, but to ME he looks like a 14 year old kid! LOL! When I first got a text from one of my brothers professing his crush for the young lad, I had to see what all the talk was about....sure, he's cute...and by cute I mean, "awwww I wanna pinch your cute cheeks"....but I do NOT find him HOT as everyone says he is! (Sorry Katie!)

5.) Here's the thing....You're not the PREGNANT one....I AM! If you ask me what we're naming our son, and you HATE it, KEEP IT TO YOURSELF!!! I'm not asking you to LIE to us and tell us you LOVE it...and I don't want to hear about YOUR suggestions on a name. Aaron and I have decided to name our son Anderson Reid. We MAY or may NOT call him Andy, but if we choose to do so, I don't want to hear a comment from ANY of you about how much you hate that name, GOT IT!!!!!!!!!

6.) This whole RAIN thing.....Yeah, I'm over it. I'm not a farmer, I'm over eating sweet corn for the summer....so I could HONESTLY care less about NEEDING the rain. It does horrible things to my STRAIGHTENED hair! UGH!

7.) I miss some of my old friends. I've been talking to a couple old friends I went to high school with a little more often. It just seems that when you mature, and everyone gets in serious relationships or starts having kids, there is that bond again. I'm glad that even though it's been MANY years since we hung out as FRIENDS, we can still get together and have something to talk about for three hours! Fun!

...more later maybe...The Hills is on! LOL! Don't judge me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm weird....I've just discovered....

Aaron has a set schedule. It's always the same. Or it rarely changes. Which means, I have the same routine everyday too. With a small child, it's best that way. But routines bore me. And the same routine, everday, realllllly bores me. Ugh.

So my brother, bored out of his gourd as well, suggested tonight that Lilly and I should go stay with him for a couple days. Sure, sounds like a good idea. He needs me to finish the scrapbook that I started for them last year...you know, add the millions of pictures they have from the thousands of vacations they've gone on this year (I'm not bitter, not a bit). UGH!

Only one problem. I'm weird. Basically, ever since I had Lilly, I've been weird about staying at places other than my own house. Not only does packing (and unpacking) for a 15 month old STINK, but then making sure I have everything that I need and WANT for a three day get-away just adds to the drama of packing. It bugs me.

Then I realized, I HATE showering at other people's house. Even my mom's house...the CLEANEST shower in the UNIVERSE...just bugs me. My hair is use to MY water and my own products, which yes, I could pack for the trip, but then again, that's just ONE MORE THING to worry about. Are they going to spill on the designated outfits I've assigned for each day? What if my shampoo spills all over my straight iron? I'd really be screwed. SEE, it's ALL these things that go into "going away" that just stunt my departure.

In conclusion....I think I'll become a hermit. Thank God winter is near, giving me yet another excuse to be the homebody that I long to be. Call me pathetic, it's okay. I'm going with the excuse that I just love my family and my home THAT much that I never want to leave!!!!!!