It's a....

GIRL!

To be honest, I was kind of expecting a girl. I don't know why, and I don't know if I would even call it a "feeling". I think it's probably because Ella and Maiya lived with us for 4 months and we got used to having little girls in the house.

We are SUPER excited! I've told Greg I'm going to start toughening him up, because I know he is just going to be a big sucker for this little girl and she's going to wrap him around her little finger, just like Ella did!

Everything on the ultrasound looked fabulous. Baby is right on schedule, and is already sucking away at her hands. I was a finger sucker, so I'm guessing she's sucking her fingers and not her thumb. She was very lazy this morning, hardly moving at all. The ultrasound technician kept bouncing my belly to get her to move, but it didn't really work. She obviously couldn't be bothered to accommodate our ultrasound. (I'm thinking she takes after Greg.) They were able to get two very clear pictures of the gender, so they are very certain in their announcement that it's a girl.

The doctor says my placenta is low-lying, but should move as I get bigger. He also said my uterus is tipped forward which makes it difficult to feel the baby move. I guess that's why I haven't felt much movement. On Sunday I felt my first flutters, but it was after I VIOLENTLY sneezed. For anybody who has heard me sneeze, you know that it really does scare small children...in this case, a very, very small child.

No, we haven't thought of any names yet. I might have been able to come up with a few boy names, but when it comes to girl names I am at a complete and utter loss. My student told me yesterday that 51% of parents have name regret after naming their child. So much pressure!

By the way, I was voting it was a girl, and Greg was voting it was a boy, and the loser had to buy the winner cheese fries at Outback. We plan all our bets this way so that either way we get cheese fries.

Looks like it's Outback tonight!

Jamming with Stevie Wonder...yes, in person

Yes, it's true...I jammed with Stevie Wonder.

No, really, I did. Look at the pictures. That's Stevie Wonder sitting at the piano with the sunglasses!

I played with the Atlanta Symphony on Sunday for the 90th birthday part of Reverend Lowery. Look him up if you don't recognize his name - MLK's right-hand man in the Civil Rights movement, an amazing man who has literally changed our country.

It was a 4-hour birthday extravaganza!

Also sharing the stage with me and Stevie Wonder were the Attorney General of the United States, Pres. Obama's personal assistant, Soledad O'Brien from CNN, Al Sharpton, Andrew Young, and Martin Luther King III to name a few.

And yes, of course we played "Sir Duke!" It was AWESOME!

Glamping

Definition of Glamping: Glamorous Camping

Necessities: Oversized tents

with air mattresses

An awesome cook stove with taco soup for dinner

And not pictured: flushing toilets, bugless restrooms, and showers

A supposed 8-man raft that only fit 4 adults, a two-year-old, and a cooler very tightly

Bonus: Chattachoochee River Access

Awesome friends who have all the necessary Glamping Equipment -- Mark, Nicole and little Anna

And a camp site that is just outside of Newnan: Chattachoochee Bend

We highly recommend it!

Update

For my family who doesn't live close to me....16 weeks!

I think it's finally true...I am pregnant

Some people are under the impression you have to have sex in order to conceive. We have found this not to be the case. Due to our struggles with unexplained infertility the last 3 years, we bought our baby from Emory Reproductive Center.

And these are the shots I did for the In-Vitro Fertilization process during the course of 3 months.

And a close-up of the worst part of all - 10 weeks of progesterone shots with a 1 1/2 inch needle in the bum. That's 77 shots, folks. Don't worry, I have chronicled the whole journey, and this child will know all that I suffered to get them here!

But we are pleased to announce all of our efforts were worth it this time around, and I am currently 14 weeks pregnant!

Due date is March 16th (really March 20th according to the ultrasound, so Greg is hoping for March 21st which is his birthday).

Next Dr.'s visit is Oct. 20th where we will hopefully find out the gender of our baby.

So anyway, if you see me and are wondering why I'm got a big belly lump (not so much a bump yet), you will know why.

A Hiking We Will Go!

Have you...

1. Scaled to the top of Amicalola Falls
2. Explored the depths of Providence Canyon
3. Braved the swinging bridge in Tallulah Gorge
4. Faced the daunting staircase in Cloudland Canyon

We have! Apparently we are eligible to be in the Canyon Climbers Club for a $10 fee. Ummm....I think we'll pass and instead explore new GA parks.

Today we went to a park we'd never been to before, Sweet Water Creek, located near Six Flags.

Similar to Roswell Mill, this mill, called New Manchester, was burned per Sherman's orders during the Civil War invasion of Atlanta. Roswell was burned first, and then New Manchester. The women and children working in both mills were charged with treason and put in prison in Louisville, KY. Sherman is not highly regarded here in the South.

It was a beautiful day for a hike, and so great to find a new place to explore! Thanks for the tip, Jaimee!

And in other news, Greg got to see the DragonCon Parade this year while I was stuck in a building one block away adjudicating orchestra auditions.

We are kind of in love with "Dr. Who" at the moment. Okay, more than kind of....it's an obsession. :)

Joon and Joo-ly

ARIZONA

Six days after I returned from China, I left poor working Greg to go to Tempe, Arizona for the International Double Reed Society Conference. This year it was held at my alma mater, Arizona State University. We lucked out with beautiful weather in the 90's, and I was so happy to visit my Arizona home and so many good friends.
Martin Schuring was my oboe teacher for my Master and Doctorate degree, and Rebecca Cain was my office mate when we were both T.A.'s.

Amy Fleishans was my first oboe student in Arizona, and she started studying with me when she was 12. She just graduated from ASU in Journalism. Don't I feel old!

This is part of the old gang from our fabulous AZ single days: Amanda Jackson Bergeron and her daughter Katherine, Sharron Krebs, Tammy Adams, and her sister Laura Krebs. Minus the complaining about bad dates, it was just like old times!



And this is truly a blast from the past - me, Andra and Elizabeth started at BYU as oboe performance majors together in 1995.



Me, Melanie Carter Garcie and Ashley Reed Williams - Mormon Oboe Players from ASU




My student McKenzie (the one with the big hair) playing for the VERY FAMOUS Nicholas Daniel, a British superstar oboist (in case you haven't heard of him).


Sarah Ambrose, my co-worker from GSU, came all the way to ASU to perform with me!


4TH OF JULY IN PEACHTREE CITY!

And speaking of Mormon oboists, during the first week of July when Elizabeth, Jacob and Aloysia were once again visiting us, Heidi Reed dropped in for a visit from North Carolina where she is working on her doctorate in oboe performance. (There are too many of us now!) I taught Heidi during my semester visit at BYU, and Elizabeth taught Heidi while she was a high school student.

After our experience last year, we plan to never miss another Peachtree City 4th of July. This year our city was competing to be recognized as the nation's most patriotic city. Greg heard we came in 3rd, which isn't too bad! Here's the crowds of people and golf carts lining up for the parade.

Heidi baking in the sun...

Elizabeth and Aloysia (unfortunately Jacob had to leave early this morning)

Golf cart from one of our local pet stores

With the tail wagging behind!

I know Aloysia doesn't look excited about all the candy she was getting, but trust me, she was.

These dudes were scary.

Cruise Golf Cart

My favorite part - the McIntosh Marching Band!

And my other favorite part - THE WIZARD OF OZ!!!

Greg trying to take candy from a baby

Greg and Jacob went fishing with Greg's co-worker Cameron, and Greg caught this fish!

And this is what his fish looks like without Photoshop.

UTAH

Greg and I were able to go to Utah for a short 4-day vacation last weekend. Alisa and her fam were visiting from Mexico, so we were all together except for Ben, Jenny and Tyler (we missed you guys!) Our first activity was to go on a short hike to a waterfall.

Here's Jared with the newest member of this ever-increasing family, Ethan.

Maiya, Danny, Nana, Ella, and Cole - caught by surprise it seems!

On Monday we went to the Kennecott Mine, which I had never heard of, but it was amazing! This open mine pit used to be a mountain in the early 1900s. It has one of the nation's largest copper deposits, and provides more copper than any other source for the United States.

This tire is from one of their massive haul trucks, which is as large as a house. Their "diggers" are as large as a 6-story building. Here is some of the family.

Super big tire!

Can you see how small the white truck is compared to the haul truck? They are side-by-side on the road.

Danny Danger - about to jump?

My wonderful husband and my wonderful Dad

Lara Rae and Ella Rae, both born on March 28th!

Me and Michael - He was flirting with me big time all weekend

4 of the 5 sibling: Alisa, Lea, Lara, and Brian with my Mom. This picture is also proof that Brian really is a giant, at least in the Saville family.