The Pumpkin Patch

So I have really only gone to pumpkin patches in Florida, which means an open field with a straight line of pumpkins that were picked and moved to the field. Our friends, Dawn and Brandon, decided it would be fun to go to a farm and pick out the pumpkins we were going to carve that evening, so we tagged along.

I could not believe the amount of pumpkins at this farm. You drive in, they hand you directions and a little saw to cut your pumpkin off the vine - I was super excited. There were fields upon fields of pumpkins everywhere - I honestly had never seen that many pumpkins in my life!

Here we are scavenging through one field trying to find the perfect pumpkins.

We of course found 2 of the biggest pumpkins in the field and threw them in the car!

Our next stop on this adventure was the corn maze. The farm had 3 different options, so we chose the middle distance. We first let the dogs lead us around the maze, which in hindsight, was a bad idea. After about 20 minutes of wandering around, we ran into a checkpoint, which made us realize we should probably use the map that was provided, find all the checkpoints in order to find the exit.......so after another 30 minutes of a bit of wandering, we made it to the end.

Ruby loved it as you can tell!

We headed over to a friends house and what would be a party without bobbing for apples - seriously, when is the last time you did that? The person who found the one with the quarter got to have beers brought to them all night - unfortunately, after everyone went, the last apple was the winner, so everyone had to get their own beers.



It was then time to carve pumpkins! Michael already knew what he was doing, and I honestly have no pumpkin carving skills, so I found a lovely stencil of a pirate.

Here are the final products and some other people's thrown in.

The pirate on the right is mine, and Michael went with the Pac-Man theme for his.

Unfortunately, our pumpkins lasted only 1 day. The lovely squirrels in our yard found it entertaining to steal bits and pieces and eat them, ending in complete destruction. We had never heard of this happening, but will guard our pumpkins next year.

Happy Halloween!

Pregnancy Miles....Check!

So as some or most of you know, I set a goal out for myself the day we got the "yes" from the doctor that we were actually pregnant. We planned it out and it was exactly 220 days from that day to November 3rd, 2011, our due date. So I said that I have to walk 220 baby miles before the little man decides to join the world. I got a pedometer and we were ready to walk!

Well, I completed my goal and finished my 220 baby miles!

Michael decided to make me this homemade finish line to celebrate my victory - yes, that is toilet paper, but it is the thought that counts!

Now we are just in a waiting game for the little man to come out and meet us. He has plenty of visitors on their way - Grandma Tina will be arriving next Tuesday (or earlier if needed), and then Grandma Helen and Grandpa Richard arrive on Wednesday. I just hope we aren't all sitting around twiddling our thumbs waiting for him to come out.

Come on little man - we want to meet you!

36 week update by guest blogger Michael Tully

Jenna and I have just returned from the Doctors office for our 36 week check up on junior. Everything went exceedingly well the Dr. is really happy with Jenna, she barely stopped short of high-fiving us as we exited. I can only hope that things go just as smoothly in the coming weeks, months, decades etc.

She predicted that the baby would be somewhere between 7lbs 14oz and 8lbs 2oz which is a bit of a relief (particularly for Jenna) considering that both of us were practically ready to wear adult clothing when we emerged.

As we left the building we both got free flu shots which was nice considering that I feel like there'll be enough hospital excursions coming up. At least I assume they were flu shots. I did type the first draft of this email on the toaster, so who knows.

We're now getting down to crunch time and the baby formerly known as Nordley, has a pretty cozy looking room. Could use a little more decoration, but the furniture, assembled by me (a.k.a. the Allen Wrench Ninja) is all ready to go.

Excitement and nerves are building and we can't wait to meet the new addition to the family.


Either the Baby's face or the Sea of Tranquility on the Moon.


Top of the Baby's head. Braaaiins... braaaiins...


The Baby's arm and shoulder apparently or maybe a butt or something...

2 Milestones in ONE Day

Well......today we have reached two milestones in our lives.

#1 - 4 years of Marriage!

October 6, 2007 was one of the best days of my life - I got to marry the love of my life - someone who understands me, challenges me and makes me want to be a better person. All our friends and family were there to celebrate this exciting occasion, and I could not have imagined a better day. I look back and would not have changed a thing - well maybe I would have put the ring on the correct finger, but it is also something I will never forget.

(Michael had already switched the ring in this pic)

Big things that have happened in the 4 years of marriage:

• We got our first apartment together in Tampa
• We got Michael's Temporary Green Card
• We moved back to Colorado (where we have always wanted to be)
• We got Michael's Permanent Green Card
• We have flown across the Globe 3 times
• We have taken great trips to Costa Rica, Alaska, California, Nevada, Utah, Washington, Georgia, and plenty of times to Florida
• We got a puppy, Ruby
• We got pregnant and will soon be parents

There are definitely TONS of details I could include, but life seems to just be moving along at a quick pace. I am so lucky to have such a wonderful partner to experience it with - I love you Michael James Tully!

#2 - 36 weeks along!

Our little man is almost here! He will be fully cooked next week (37 weeks) and could come anytime.

We have been trying to be as well prepared as possible, but you just never know when it is going to happen - oh the anticipation is going to kill me! We recently just finished our Childbirth Class which definitely opened our eyes a bit that this is definitely going to happen and sooner rather than later.

Funny side story - so last night I went to a Breastfeeding Class. It said when you signed up that partners are optional - me thinking that Michael can't breastfeed, what was the point of him coming, right? Well, I arrive and there are 13 couples and me.....all of the partners attended.....whoops! And to make matters a bit more awkward, I had taken off my wedding rings because they are getting a little tight and uncomfortable. So there I was - all by myself, 36 weeks pregnant, and no wedding rings.....what a sight! So my advice is - if you sign up for a class that has partners optional, bring them along :)

Belly pic at 36 weeks - still on the smaller side, but I feel pretty cramped at times.....

We have an ultrasound next Tuesday, so for those of you who don't get creeped out by the inside the belly pics, we will post what we get and any additional updates that might come along.

Let the day countdown begin........28 days.....

Alaska (finally!!!)

So my immediate family, which included us, my folks, sister, brother-in-law, brother, sister-in-law and niece embarked on an adventure to Alaska a couple weeks ago. All I have to say is....IT WAS AMAZING! It is a beautiful state with sights I have never seen before!

We first started in Seattle and spent the weekend being tourists and visiting family. Seattle is such a cool city....rolling hills that end at the water.....if the weather was a bit more sunny, I could live there. We did all the typical touristy things - EMP Museum (Michael's heaven), Space Needle, Pike's Place Market, the Locks/Salmon Ladders, and of course, met up with a few of Michael's buddies to have a few beers (them, not me). Here are a few pics...

At the EMP Museum getting ready to have our own concert!

We also got to hang out with my aunt Judy, uncle Rich, cousin Lindsey and her boyfriend, Ken. They took us to an amazing sushi place....Ken is a foodie and he ordered for the entire table.....he definitely got a good mark in my books.

The cruise left port on Sunday from Seattle - after the schlepping of luggage and checking-in with 9 people, we were finally aboard our Alaskan adventure on the Norwegian Pearl! Cruises that I have been on the past are lying next to the pool getting a tan all day while drinking cocktails....this is definitely not that sort of cruise (especially since I can't have cocktails). It was definitely an "older" crowd, but the ship had lots of activities to keep us entertained.

Day 1 - At Sea

We were busy eating, playing trivia, taking naps, eating, going to shows, did I mention eating? Also, Michael discovered his new favorite sport - Shuffleboard....although, it is a little tough with wind and being on a ship, he wanted to play everyday!

Here is Michael showing off is juggling skills at the Martini Tasting.

Day 2 - Juneau, AK

We arrived in Juneau around 2pm and headed off to the Mendenhall Glacier, the biggest glacier in the USA! Once arriving and taking in the amazing site, Michael and I went off on our own for a 3-mile hike through the rainforest to get some exercise and get off the beaten path a little bit. It was raining and we both managed to step in mud puddles up to our ankles, but the scenery was beautiful and it didn't bother us much. Also, while waiting for the bus, we got to see a black bear cross the road in front of the bus stop....it didn't seem to notice there were 100s of people around and just went on its merry way.....I wasn't too quick with my camera, so no pic :(

Side note.....even the Gators represent in Alaska! We were out wandering through the shops in Juneau when we came across a Russian shop with Matryoshka dolls, and look what we found! It has 5 of the players inside (of course starting with Tebow) from the National Championship year. I would have totally bought it, but just couldn't get myself to pay $65, so instead we took this nice picture of it.

Day 3 - Skagway, AK

Skagway is a cute little town with a population of less than 1000. Right when we got off the boat there was a group of harbor seals just catching their lunch - they are so cute! We ended up taking a gorgeous train ride up to the top of a mountain and rode bikes 15 miles down the Klondike Highway. The crazy thing is that on the the train you cross over into Canada, so we had to go through US Customs on the way back on a bike! It was crazy how much the weather temperature changed from top to bottom, but it was another beautiful ride with waterfalls and even a little bit of sunshine!

Day 4 - Glacier Bay

Wow oh wow is all I can say. Glacier Bay is a protected National Park that is only accessible by boat. Each cruise ship only gets a certain amount of time in the park before they have to leave. We hit Glacier Bay around 7am and spent most of the time on the balcony of my parents room just "Oohing and Aahing". The boat got pretty close up to the glaciers and you could hear and see the ice breaking loose into the ocean. The pictures below don't even show how beautiful this park is, but just an idea of how much there is to see!

We also got some whale sitings in - you really can't even fathom how large of animals they are!

Day 5 - Ketchikan, AK

So everyone knows that fishing is a big thing in Alaska, so once we arrived in Ketchikan, we headed off on two small boats to catch ourselves some salmon. The weather this day was pretty dreary, rainy and cold, but once we started catching fish, it didn't matter! Michael, me, my mom and dad were on a boat together and caught about 20 salmon of all different varieties (there are 5 different kinds in case you were wondering)....it was super fun! You also can get your fish shipped to you (fresh or smoked), so if anyone is near my folks house in Florida, they have 30 pounds of salmon to eat!

Papa Frank looking over his catches!

Day 6 - Victoria, Canada

Victoria was the last port, and we were only there for a short amount of time. We wandered the city for a little bit, and then found a cute little restaurant to have some drinks and some food. The big hit was "Poutine" - French fries covered in gravy and cheese curds - man, this is SO GOOD, but also a heart attack on a plate.

Day 7 - Back in Seattle

With 7 days at sea behind us, we ended up back in Seattle. After tons and tons of food, lots of laughs, and plenty of amazing surroundings, we headed back to Colorado.

Overall, this was an amazing trip that everyone needs to experience!