Small Things. Great Love.: The Man has a Voice and He is Speaking

Due to technical difficulties this post is not being brought to you by Courtney, but rather her partner in crime...one Matthew Powell. Thank you very much.

The week of January 4th began to look a little complicated because Courtney would be away from the house the next three weekends. The first being for her baby shower in Athens (would have loved to be there, but it was my turn at playing the head babysitter out at the jobsite this weekend). The second weekend Courtney would again be in Athens for her annual scrapbook weekend with her sisters and mother. It is always fun to see what she creates with all of the pictures that we have taken the previous year and then getting to read all of her cute and quirky blurbs. The third weekend we will both be in Dallas to attend the wedding of one of Courtney's childhood friends. Luckily we have the days to spend with each other in between and getting to marvel in the beauty of our ever-growing child.

With Courtney gone from January 6 to January 9, my evenings were very boring and dull, just waiting for Courtney to return. However, Courtney did make me my most favorite dish to have while she was gone and that is her homemade macaroni and cheese. I know that you might be asking how could he eat just macaroni and cheese for dinner, but let me tell you this...ain't nobody got nothin' on my lady's mac and cheese. It is the best and the easiest thing for me to have while she is away. The other problem with Courtney being away is that I often stay up later than I normally would. For some reason I seem to find the most intriguing things to watch on tv while she is gone and before I know it, it is way past my bedtime. Got to get my rest in now, because I know when Mr. Liam arrives that those nights of deep slumber will be gone. At least until he gets older. When the weekend finally rolled around, I was out at the jobsite for both Saturday and Sunday. Large government project + BRAC deadline + poor management from those above me in the food chain = work, work, work. During the week, I am responsible for all of the underground utilities and all of the site beautification aspects of the project. However, on the weekends, these contractor's do not work, because they get what they need done during the week, which leaves me to wonder through the building checking out what I am missing by being on the outside. This weekend though required me to be onsite again on Sunday to help with water removal from the building. See the building is not 100% water tight, but we still have areas in which we have gone ahead and started finishing out spaces, so water in these areas is a big problem. Even with the rain and water removal, it could not ruin my day as my baby-mamma made her way back home and all was well.

The week of January 10, 2011 was another exhausting week of work for me given that the work that I still need to get in place, seems to invariably be held up by some other more important contractor. The only thing is that when you have a baby on the way all of the headaches of work seem to disappear. Life is definitely what you make of it, but not appreciating the beauty of a life being formed and growing is not something to be missed. In this the second week of our Childbirth class we took a tour of the hospital for the second time and discussed the "natural" (unmedicated) birth. Good thing that we got another tour of the hospital as the first time we were there, I totally spaced out and was more impressed by the size of the labor & delivery and postpartum rooms instead of really paying attention to where I would need to get Courtney to on that day when she tells me that "it is time". The discussion and videos of the "natural" birth made me more excited about the birth of our son, but at the same time question whether or not I could be strong enough to provide the support that Courtney is going to need on that day. However, I will be strong and will be there with her every step of the way and to help her in any way that I can. On Friday, Courtney ventured off to Temple to pick up her sister, Madeline, and then they headed to Athens for scrapbooking. I had originally planned to go with Courtney and have her drop me off at the lake for the weekend, but some things came up at work that needed my attention. However, all was not lost as Shannon, Kevin, Dad, and Brenda made there way down to San Antonio on Saturday after driving through Fredericksburg, TX and spent Saturday evening and Sunday morning with me. Our first kids, Daisy and Jack, enjoyed the company as it meant more petting and attention for Daisy and more laps for Jack to check out. Dad and Brenda left after breakfast on Sunday heading east on their way back to Atlanta after spending the previous week in Dallas, which was longer than originally planned due to the storm and freeze that hit the Atlanta area. Shannon and Kevin also packed up and I followed them up to the outlets in San Marcos to hang out with them a little longer before they continued on up to Austin to spend the evening. I then went to the Janie and Jack and the Gymboree where I purchased two outfits for Mr. Liam. The one is a baby blue onesie with a dog on the front of it and the other outfit is a reddish-orange onesie with a gold star in the middle that says "Mommys Little Cowboy", which can be paired with a pair of blue jeans and button down shirt that I also purchased. I then made my way back home to San Antonio after I meandered through Gruene and checked out one of their antique stores. I always complained when mom wanted to look in antique stores, but now there is not an antique store that I pass, that I do not get the urge to stop in to and take a look around. Thanks Mom.

Thanks for taking the time to read my post and we look forward to continue sharing our stories, adventures, and pictures with you in the coming months.

Matthew