Welcome to the family, Bo!

So we went away for a week for Thanksgiving, and we came back with a puppy! My grandpa, or Poppy, as we fondly call him, has been on the hunt for the perfect dog for us for a few weeks now...and we are so happy for this sweet lab mix puppy to join the family.

Meet Bo. He is around eight weeks old, and is so much fun. He and Max are already best friends. They love running around the yard together and tackling each other, and of course snuggling up together for a movie. We have all really enjoyed having a dog around. I can't wait to start taking him along on our neighborhood walks!

light up downtown!

So, every year on the Friday before Thanksgiving, North Wilkesboro has a celebration downtown to light up the Christmas lights.  There are bands, dance groups, singing groups and the like for entertainment; hayrides; and of course Santa!  There are also vendors selling food, and the shops have a contest for the best window decorations.  Nick and I took Max and joined my parents and sisters...and we had a blast. We started off by visiting our favorite coffee shop in the world (which also happens to be in downtown North Wilkesboro)- Talia Espresso- and then we walked around and enjoyed the lights and entertainment.  The biggest hit with Max, however, was the North Wilkesboro Fire Department allowing him to check out one of their trucks.  He got to sit in the driver's seat and explore a little on the outside of the truck, too.  We all had so much fun!

24 weeks and counting!

I'm opting out of answering those sam old dumb questions that we all already know the answers to, probably from here on out. I just wanted to post a picture, and let y'all know that everything is still going great!

I am still just loving being pregnant and enjoying every moment. If you follow me on twitter or Instagram (username allynbrown), you have probably seen me post various things with the hash tag #pregnantladyproblems but this is all just for fun and games. I just think it's interesting to point out all the random things that you have to deal with when you are pregnant! Things like stains on the belly part of your shirt, "cankles," taking 5 minutes to get up off the floor...I find it all a little amusing this time around!

This week has been fun...starting to feel especially huge, but in a good way. There have been hardly any people at all (that I don't know) that have mentioned the fact that I am expecting. It's sort of a relief (I hated being constantly questioned when I was pregnant with Max), but it's also sort of odd to me that nobody says anything. Other than feeling ginormous and craving raw vegetables and Greek yogurt, this week has been wonderfully normal!

I remember how much fun it was to be pregnant during the holidays...my favorite time of the year! Max and I are leaving tomorrow to spend a week at my parents for Thanksgiving, and I will probably eat way too much good food while we are gone and gain too much weight. Again. Regardless, I am so very excited to be spending some time with my family over the next week. I hope you all have a spectacular Thanksgiving!

23 weeks

-How far along? 23 weeks
-Maternity clothes? yep.
-Cravings? peppermint anything. Which may have something to do with Chick-fil-A having their peppermint milkshakes starting yesterday, and Starbucks having peppermint mochas back now.
-Food aversions? Still meat, always meat.
-How do you feel? I feel wonderful this week, so far! I have noticed that my belly is getting in the way a bit more lately, but that's not a big deal, of course!
-Anything interesting? Not a thing new going on with Drew this week, at least not that we know of.  Max is so funny though...if you as him where Baby Drew is, he points to my stomach and says "in there." It is possibly one of the cutest things I have ever seen. I am so excited to be the momma to these two boys and watch them both grow and learn like this every day!

fall family days

We spent the afternoon outside on Saturday, working on our landscaping and just having fun! Family days are my favorite!

Fall Zoo Trip

Oh, how we love the zoo!  The NC Zoo in Asheboro is pretty close to us, so we have a membership and go fairly often.  Max loves the animals, but Nick and I might love seeing them just as much :) We love to take day trips and have a "family fun day" exploring and learning.  Our last trip was a couple of weekends ago (yes, I am super behind on blogging. oops).  This was something that was on our Fall Bucket List.  If you have never been to the zoo in the Fall, you definitely should! The animals are usually much more active when it isn't so hot outside, not to mention that it is more comfortable to be walking around outside when it isn't 100 degrees!

learning about elephants...Max is showing Daddy its eyes!

these two are my world...

elephants!

Max loves riding the tram back to the car at the end of the day

tram fun :)

Happy Halloween!

I had no idea how much fun Halloween was going to be with Max this year!  Halloween has never exactly been my favorite holiday, but I have always enjoyed and/or politely endured it, depending on the year.  If for no other reason...simply because after Halloween is over my favorite month(s) begin! 

My husband, however, loves Halloween.  And all other holidays for that matter!  He insists that we decorate and celebrate and enjoy every second of it.  I actually really appreciate his enthusiasm...it helps me to get the most out of a holiday that would normally get put on my back burner.  If you asked him about it, he would probably say its another one of those things with us that is sort of like "the olive theory" (for those of you who watch "How I Met Your Mother"). 

This year was wonderful!  We decorated the house a few weeks ago...nothing crazy, but certainly cute...and of course dressed Max up and took him trick-or-treating last night.  We all had a blast! I love seeing Max experience new things.  It is definitely one of the many perks of being a parent.  

We originally planned that Max would be Batman for Halloween, but it turned out to be much colder than expected, and we opted for a farmer costume instead so he could stay warm.

on our way to go trick-or-treating in Aunt Gretta's neighborhood

he got a treat bag from Aunt Gretta! complete with buddy fruits!

already liking Halloween

he wasn't really sure about trick-or-treating at first

trick-or-treating at Aunt Gretta's

so excited to have a bucket full of candy!

Max definitely wracked up. His pumpkin bucket was full!

by the time we got home he was completely tuckered out, and almost slept through me changing his clothes!

**ps...some of the pictures are from my camera and some are from my phone, so excuse the mix of quality!