Alise's First Annual 29th Birthday and More!

Let me begin by thanking everyone who made my birthday so wonderful. All the calls, cards, and gifts made me feel very loved. It really was a great day. One of the best parts was visiting Olive's brand new friend, Paloma, in the hospital. Paloma's parents, Joe and Nellie, were the first friends Jason and I made in Miami, so you can imagine how exciting it is for all of us to be having little girls so close in age. Both mother and baby looked beautiful, and they even unswaddled her to show me what Joe and Nellie called "Porter toes," or toes that look and function more like fingers. (Jason really does have crazy long toes.)

It wasn't just my birthday on the 15th; I also hit the 6-month mark for this pregnancy. As promised, here's a picture. I wore the same top to try to show growth more accurately. I'll continue to do so while it still fits.

Front View: 24 weeks

Side View: 24 weeks

I have to admit, I'm a little disappointed that this bump still doesn't scream baby. But as long as she is healthy and growing, I can deal with being a little lumpy.

Now, I have to take this opportunity to brag a little about my amazing husband. Admittedly, Jason and I aren't great about going all out for birthdays. We usually go out to dinner and have a nice evening, but they are not wildly different from most of our Friday nights. However, this year, I have to give Jason credit. He was super thoughtful. The day before, he brought me home beautiful roses, so I could wake up to flowers on my birthday. For my birthday, he proved that he does listen to the little details. I've been searching for the perfect every-day-earrings for a while now, and he found them. Subtle, small white gold hoops. Perfect. He even got me a card this year! Now this one kind of threw me for a loop. I couldn't understand why he got me a "You might be a redneck if..." card. Upon seeing my confused/amused expression, he quickly explained that he stopped at Bass Pro Shops specifically for a card. He figured since mostly guys shop there, they would certainly stock plenty of greeting card options for their wives. He was wrong (and I also have a feeling that there may have been a reel he wanted to check out). My point is, a girl could get used to this mother-of-his-child special treatment.

So what did I want to do for my birthday? Well, exactly what any chic, sophisticated, metropolitan 29-year old would want to... See the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows premiere!!! It was awesome, by the way. I got dressed up and we went to a really great, quaint little Mediterranean restaurant that Jason found. I put on my fanciest dress that fit. Jason took a picture because we agreed this dress made me look way more pregnant.

Way more pregnant-looking, right? (Of course, it helps to arch your back and stick your stomach out, as evidenced by this picture.)

And finally, the man who made it all possible. Here's Jason at Mandolin, the Mediterranean spot he found. It was delicious, but with all outdoor seating, we were feasted upon nearly as much as we feasted until the waitress kindly lent us some bug spray. (Don't worry it was the natural kind.)

Thanks for a great birthday, Sweetheart! xoxo

It is crazy to think that the next birthday we'll be celebrating in our house will be Olive's. We are getting so excited to meet her. Today I got an extra special treat. I had an ultrasound scheduled, and when the tech asked if she could do 3-D imaging, I have to admit I was hesitant. I have seen some freaky-looking babies with that 3-D stuff. But I agreed to it, and I'm glad I did, because I saw the most beautiful face, which immediately made me burst into unexpected tears. She may not have verbally said so, but it was clear this was also the most gorgeous baby the technician had ever seen. She didn't have to speak; her body language said it all. ;)

How sweet is this girl?!

Well, that's all for this post. Thanks for checking in on us!

There's a First Time for Everything

Well, I am blatantly stealing my sister's (Brie) blog idea. But I figured with our sweet baby girl on the way, there are far-away loved ones who may like to keep up with our quickly changing lives. Also, it's summer, or as I like to call it, self-imposed semi-bed rest, (ok- that might be a bit of an exaggeration, but I have definitely been catching up on All My Children, which is unfortunately going off-air after 30 years just in time for my maternity leave!) My point is, there is no time like the present, so I've decided to start a blog. For those of you who have been fortunate enough to see Brie's blog, please don't expect this one to be as clever or regularly updated. In fact, I think we should start with some realistic expectations. Unfortunately, Jason and I are historically terrible at taking pictures to commemorate, well... anything. Hopefully, that will change once our sweet little girl is born. Speaking of whom, I suppose this is a good time to introduce her. Here is one of our first glimpse's of Olive Evelyn Porter.

Here she is at about 18 weeks. I'm pretty sure this is the most beautiful profile ever, and I have been told so by several other people.

In case you were wondering what she looks like from the outside, the simple answer is "lumpy." Here I am at 20 weeks. My plan is to take a picture every four weeks to see the progress. Coincidentally, 24 weeks falls on this Friday, July 15th, which also happens to be my First Annual 29th Birthday.

Like I said, a little lumpy.

To help everyone get to know our little girl, there are a few characteristics that are already evident. To begin, she is very playful. She likes to tease ultrasound technicians by turning just enough so they can rarely get the shot they want. That's why it took two ultrasounds to figure out she was a girl. I like to think that she is just ladylike. Also, there are already several shots of her sucking her thumb, which the techs tell me would be rare so early. However, I know she is just advanced. Next, she is a mover and shaker. I've been able to feel her since about 14 or 15 weeks, but her dad felt her for the first time last week on the 4th of July. I think she also shares her mother's love for American History, and chose this monumental day to kick enough for her dad to feel. Like I said, she's advanced. As to which one of us she will look most like, the jury is still out. I think she looks like her dad in the 22 week shot.

Now the only one I haven't updated you on is Jason. He is doing well and working hard, as always. He tries to do as much fishing as possible on the weekends, because as he constantly reminds me, he won't be able to go as much once Olive arrives. Unfortunately, unless the weather conditions are pristine (which means absolutely no wind and not too hot, which rarely happens in Florida) he doesn't love me coming along. He's already very protective of both of his girls, which is pretty sweet. Lately he's been pretty obsessed with catching bonefish, which isn't easy because they are very "spooky." He also has found a great spot for snapper. You may be thinking, "Perfect! Jason can bring home all those delicious omega-3s for Alise and the baby!" But unfortunately, you'd be wrong. Jason likes to fish near the Turkey Point Power Plant, and since we don't want our little girl to have three eyeballs or the ability to read minds, I'm not too keen on eating his fish. I'm sure the fish also appreciate our catch and release philosophy.

I can't find any of the bonefish pictures, but this is a permit from last weekend. You may be thinking that we are getting better at taking pictures since this is recent, but this was taken by our friend David who went fishing with Jason that day.

There you have it folks... The first ever "Porterly Report." We look forward to sharing this exciting time with you all!