Almost 35 Weeks, 30th birthday, and 4 year Anniversary!

     So I apologize for being so horrible at keeping up with new posts on our family blog!  I have been so busy trying to get things arranged for my long term sub who is starting off the school year for me and trying to rest in the AC as much as possible during this hot summer.  I will be 35 weeks on Friday.  Here are some ultrasound pictures of our precious little one!

3D Ultrasound of baby at 22 weeks.  The hand is curled up by its eye and it is sleeping :-)

Profile shot with the hand waving at us!

Basic profile shot of Baby Storch.

Baby's big foot that I will be kissing a lot :-*

       A couple of weeks ago we had some maternity pictures taken by my sweet friend, Christy Marini.  We went to my Aunt Ginger's house and used her beautiful backyard for our photo shoot.  Here are my 3 favorites!

Ryan and I were playing around with the camera at our house before the real photoshoot.  My husband is actually a pretty good photographer!

This is one of my absolute favorites!

I just love when he gives me forehead kisses <3

      On another note, Ryan and I are celebrating our 4 year anniversary tomorrow as well as my 30th birthday.  We are going to spend some quality time together and have dinner at the Cotton Grill here in downtown Lexington.  I am so thankful for the years that we have spent together and I can't wait to grow old with this amazing man.  He brings so much joy to my life everyday and is going to make such an amazing daddy.  I love you sugar! 

Spring Break Is On the Way!

So I LOVE my job. I enjoy seeing my kids everyday and I have such a sweet, amazing group this year. With that being said, I am soooo ready for Spring Break. I need it. The kids need it. We all need it! By this point in the year they start getting a little tired of each other and the endless amount of tattling ensues. I am counting down the days. I think I have 9 days of school until 10 days off. I have so many plans over break as well. We will go with my parents to church on Easter Sunday and then head to Sumter to have dinner with my in-laws and husband's side of the family. Monday I have a dentist appointment. Wednesday is our 22 week ultrasound and pre-natal appointment. Friday we are taking our nephew, Jack, to see Toy Story 3 on Ice and keeping him for the night. Somewhere in there we are going to finish registering for the rest of the baby stuff we need. So . . . I am looking forward to Spring Break, even if it is going to be extremely busy! I will post the 22 week Ultrasound picture and some belly pics soon. I keep forgetting my camera at school. I hope everyone has a fantastic weekend :-)

We're Pregnant! 17 weeks

So I realize it has been almost a year since I have posted anything on our family blog! That is just pitiful :-( Haha! Since we have lots of family and friends who live out of town, I decided I better get on top of these posts to keep everyone updated. Thanks to Facebook, most of you already know that we are expecting our first child in August. Our due date is August 17th. We are VERY excited, happy, terrified, etc. I guess all the basic emotions that most first time parents feel. I am currently 17 weeks so officially in my 2nd trimester and feeling great. My 1st trimester wasn't too bad either. I had some waves of nausea and fatigue, but that is about it. I think teaching 22 six-year-olds contributes to the fatigue, but I was literally a walking zombie for most of my 1st trimester. Thank goodness I have a hubby who is a good cook and helps around the house because I am spent by the time I get home in the afternoons. We had our first Ultrasound in January at about 10 weeks. Everything looked great and the heartbeat was really strong. We decided that we want to be surprised and we aren't going to find out the sex until we deliver. It is so funny how much that drives family and friends crazy! I read somewhere that only 30 percent of expectant parents keep the sex a surprise. Well we are in that 30 percent! My brother-in-law and sister-in-law didn't find out the sex of their boys until they were born and it was so fun hearing everyone's guesses and watching all of the excitement. My students keep saying they think I'm having a boy. I guess we will see in August. I will post some belly pictures soon. I hope everyone has a great weekend!

Spring Break Mini Vacation!

So as busy as I have been with school lately, I have been ready for a mini vacation. I haven't seen my best friend Joyce and her family (Juan, Javier, and Nina) in about a year. We talk a few times a week on the phone, but with us both being teachers and leading busy lives, it is sometimes a hard task trying to get together for a visit in person. We found out that we had the same Spring Break this year so I decided to go to Virginia to visit them. The flight there was pretty uneventful, which I definitely like. Besides having to sit next to a man who smelled like a horrible mix of B.O. and cigarettes, it was pretty much smooth sailing. We spent a lot of time hanging out and relaxing. We hung around the house, watched movies, went to the park, and took a few day trips. We could have done the whole D.C. day trip, but neither of us were in the mood to go into D.C. in the middle of the week with all the crowds and chaos. We took a trip into downtown Fredricksburg which was nice. It was like stepping back in time. There were lots of neat shops that you don't see anymore. There must have been ten antique shops that had some really unique merchandise. On my last full day in Virginia, we went to a huge outlet mall. We shopped around for a few things and had a blast reconnecting. My trip home was much more eventful than the trip there. We left Joyce's house 2 1/2 hours before my departure time. She only lives about an hour from the airport, so we thought that would be enough time to ensure me getting there and checked in with plenty of time to spare. WRONG! We got caught in traffic on I-95 and it took us an hour to go 11 miles. Needless to say, we were pretty sure I would miss my flight. My flight was scheduled to leave at 4:15 and we pulled up and starting unloading around 3:55. I ran into the airport and checked in with Delta. I told the Delta rep that my flight was leaving at 4:15 and I didn't know if I would make it. He said he would need to put me on another flight because I wouldn't make my original flight. He asked if I got stuck in traffic and informed me that there were lots of people missing their flights due to an 18 wheeler that overturned on the interstate. I arrived in Columbia at midnight and was soooo excited to have my hubby and pup girl pick me up from the airport. It made for a long day, but everything turned out fine. I already miss Joyce and her family :-( Thanks for being such a great hostess!

Change Can Be a Good Thing

So most of you know I love my job and absolutely LOVE the people I work with. I think that is part of why change can sometimes be scary. You get comfortable with your colleagues who have become close friends and the routine of your five-day-a-week existance. Midway has been my home for the past 4 years. I didn't know anyone when I moved to Lexington and starting teaching at Midway. I quickly found that I had a family there. My principal, Cheryl, is incredible and has always been a supportive boss and friend. My first and second grade teams are full of caring, helpful, amazing women who have become some of my best friends. I have friends in other grade levels and areas of the school who I don't even get to see everyday, but have come to know rather well. That is why I consider today a life changing day. We found out in the fall that Cheryl is moving to open the new school in our district and serve as principal there. We knew there would be some changes and some of us would be staying at Midway and some moving to Meadow Glen. Today I made the decision to move to Meadow Glen. I will still be teaching first grade :-) I am looking forward to these exciting changes. I will be working for the best principal I know and I have some friends who are moving with me. I will also have an opportunity to expand my horizons, meet new people, and make new friends. I prayed that God would put me in the place HE thought best for me and I am trusting in HIM. I will miss my Midway family, but true friendships will continue no matter where you are. So to all of my firsties that I vent to and laugh with: Andrea, Amy, Karen, Liz, Sudie, Stephany, I love you and look forward to our monthly dinners for years to come. :-)

Happy Birthday Jack!!

Here is a recent picture of my little man!

Here are some pictures from Jack's 1st Birthday a year ago!

So anybody who knows me has heard me talk about my nephew Jack. I just think he is the most perfect, handsome, sweetest little man in the entire world! Unfortunately, we don't get to see him as much as we would like because they live in Florida. I mostly get to marvel at all the pictures that Ed and Elizabeth post of him on Facebook. Well, Jack is celebrating his 2nd birthday today. We really wish we could be there tomorrow for his birthday party. At least we know we will be at every party from now on because Ed, Elizabeth, and Jack are moving to South Carolina in August! Wahoo! So . . . in the meantime, I will simply wish Jack a very HAPPY BIRTHDAY from his Auntie Amanda and Uncle Ryan. We love you!

The Flu

So I have been sick all week with the Flu. I knew I was bound to catch it since I have had at least 6 kids in and out of my classroom with it over the past couple of weeks. So I had a horrible headache Friday at school. It wasn't my typical sinus headaches, it was almost like a tension headache or a migraine. By Saturday I told Ryan I felt like I was getting a cold or something and I started on Zicam. That night I didn't sleep well because of severe body aches. I felt like I had been kicked in the ribs and back by a horse or something! Sunday morning I woke up and could hardly shower without almost bringing myself to tears. Ryan took me to the Minute Clinic where they tested me for Influenza A and it came back positive. Since I had a fever or 101.6, I figured I would be out at least Monday and Tuesday. Our school's requirement is that you are fever free for at least 24 hours without any fever reducing medicine. Well, it is now Wednesday and I am still at home from work. I am planning on going back tomorrow since my fever broke yesterday. Right now I am just feeling exhausted and rundown. I had my favorite substitute cover my class. She is so awesome and it has been wonderful being able to focus on feeling better instead of worrying about my kids. She even dropped off "Get Well" cards that each of my kids made for me yesterday. It brightened my day to read all the sweet notes from my students. I am actually looking forward to going back tomorrow and seeing their sweet little faces :-)