The Wallace Expansion!

It is hard to know where to begin! Bill and I had a very eventful past month with lots of adventure and positive changes, so I will start with our most exciting news....

In case you haven't already heard, Bill and I are expecting our first child December 3rd 2012! We have just recently made the official announcement to all friends and family and are extremely grateful for all of the well wishes and support we have received! We are super excited for this new chapter in our lives and look forward to this transition as we go from a couple to a family. However, I would be lying if I said we weren't just a little scared as well ;) At this time, we have no preference for gender other than just a happy/healthy baby, but I do think it would be kind of fun to see Bill with a girl considering he grew up with all brothers! I guess, I could say the same about myself as well! We will just have to wait until July 9th (The big ultrasound appointment) to find out!!

Here is our first ultrasound at 9 weeks:

Baby Wallace

My fancy announcement ( I thought this was kind of creative if I do say so myself!! Thanks Amber for capturing the moment!!) :

Surf City, NC

As we await the arrival of Baby Wallace, Bill and I have decided that we are going to practice our parenting skills by obtaining a puppy. Haha, just kidding. We had actually been planning on getting a puppy for quite some time and since I have just recently resigned from my job, we felt that this was the perfect time as we would be able to spend the time required to make and train a good puppy. With that being said, we have gotten a Golden Doodle, which is a mix between a Golden Retriever and Poodle. We saw one of these on the beach a couple of years ago and ever since have been waiting for the right time to get one. Therefore, we introduce to you; Mr. Boortz Wallace also known as "Bo" for short. Bill picked out this name after one of his favorite radio talk show hosts Neal Boortz. 

Boortz

He loves to play!

He also loves to sleep on his back!! (WEIRD)

Prior to getting Boortz,  as mentioned above, I did resign from my job at the beginning of May. It was a very difficult decision as I really enjoyed my position as a Rehabilitation Counselor with the State of Arizona. However, Bill and I decided that at this time in our lives, it would be best if I stopped working. This will allow a lot more flexibility in both of our lives as Bill often travels. Not to mention, this will allow us to have some quality time together before Baby Wallace arrives and for me to take good care of Boortz. With that being said, shortly after I resigned, Bill had assigned fleet support in NC and a work conference up in Washington DC, which I got to accompany him to, which was nice for a change!

During the time that Bill was doing his portion of fleet support up in Jacksonville, I took this time to revisit my old stomping grounds. I can't tell you how great it felt to be back in NC (I sure have missed that place!!), back at the beach, and in the company of good friends! My friend, Amber, graciously hosted me for three days and during this time we hit up her community pool, downtown Wilmington, the beach, and did plenty of walking!! It was great to visit with Amber and it makes me grateful to have a friend that I can pick up with right where we left off no matter how far away I am or how long I have been gone! Thanks again for having me!!:) Here are some of my favorite photos from our visit!! 

Pool Day!!!

Downtown Wilmington for some Front Street Brewery

Amber, Theresa, and I at the beach! 

Following my visit with Amber and Bill's completion of his work duties, Bill and I drove up to Washington, DC for what was called the OAG Conference. Basically, this conference was held to commemorate 100 years of Marine Aviation. There were several active duty military and retirees attending this event. During the week, this conference was like any other with Bill attending classes during the day. Fortunately, another Huey pilot that was attending from MAWTS brought his girlfriend, Kari, so she and I got to explore DC together.

We visited the White House:

Kari and I

The Lincoln Memorial:

The Korean War Memorial:

And many many others!!!....

Even though the guys were busy during the day with their classes, they were given some time off to explore the city with Kari and I as well. Also, there were special events held in the evening such as the Sunset Parade. This event was held at the Marine Corps Memorial and was a beautiful performance as they had the band and Silent Drill Team participate. 

Sunset Parade Performance

Bill and I

Another event that was held in addition to the classes was the Gala. The Gala was again held to commemorate 100 years of Aviation in the Marine Corps. This was a pretty fancy event and a lot of important people were there so-to-speak. In addition, the ceremony included all of the Marine Corps Traditions, a concert by the band, reflection of the past 100 years of aviation, guest speakers, and an awards ceremony. It was neat to be part of such a profound event!

Though it was great to be back on the East Coast for a short while, I was excited to get back to Arizona as my cousin, Kari, and her boyfriend, Aaron, were planning on making a visit out to Yuma to see us! They came over Memorial Day weekend and we sure did pack a lot into their visit! For instance, we took them to tour the Yuma Territorial Prison (you can't come to Yuma and NOT see it, come on now!). We also spent a lot of time pool side as the weather was perfect (it was actually under 100 degrees for the most part). Last but not least, we also did quite a bit of hiking! We took them out to Picacho Peak State Park, which overlooks the Colorado River and we also took a day trip and flew up to Sedona where we hiked the Devil's Bridge Trail and grabbed some lunch. 

Unfortunately, I didn't get too many pictures from the pool or Picacho State Park Hike, but here are some of my favorite photos from the Devil's Bridge Hike:

Aaron, Kari, Bill, and Myself

On top of Devil's Bridge

Bill and I standing in/on a vortex?? haha. 

We really enjoyed Kari and Aaron's visit and look forward to another visit with them whether it's us traveling to NY or them coming back out to AZ! Either way, we look forward to future visits with family and hope that they had just as good of a time as we did!!

As we wrapped up the month of May, we both feel grateful for the opportunities and blessings we have been given and pray that everything continues to go smoothly as we progress toward December!! We have a busy couple of months ahead of us that will keep us occupied for sure, but will continue to keep everyone updated on our progress!!