Christmas Cheer (Smiling's my favorite!)

We had a great couple of days in Georgia with family (including some of Allyson's) celebrating Thanksgiving. Running in a Turkey Trot, enjoying good grub, catching up with many faces we haven't seen in quite a while, watching a flick with the fam (& Jenna) on Thanksgiving night, listening to Christmas music, having our last baby shower for Asher, sharing a morning with friends from Trevecca...and the list goes on and on of great times! One of the greatest times at the Arp (Mark's mom's side) Family Feast on Thanksgiving is the playing of Christmas music after the lunch. For those who will be attending the "Arp Family Feast" in the future, here are the rules.#1 If you have ever played an instrument, bring it and join the band! #2 If you can't play, be prepared to get a hymnal from Aunt Deborah and sing along. The sing-a-long (as always) was requested by Nanna and PawPaw, and we certainly did not want to disappoint them. Now...for those who enjoy good, quality music (just a little bit better than a 7th grade band concert), we have a treat for you. The following is what happens when you put together a band consisting of piano, drums, acoustic guitar, bass guitar, trumpet, 2 flutes, and a couple of kids helping play the piano/cymbals/spoons/tambourine whenever they felt like it.

This first video is the first attempt at starting the first song..."Go Tell it On the Mountain". An oldie but a goodie.

Once we got that past us, we ventured into the classic. Feel free to sing along (and smile)...

Believe it or not, we didn't even practice before this video was shot. We are compiling/editing all the video footage. The live DVD will be on sale before Christmas. :)

An early Merry Christmas to you! Mark and Allyson

A Good Number

We are in the middle of week #31...less than 10 weeks! The little guy isn't so little anymore. He is 16 inches long, 3.3 pounds (I dare you to try holding 4 naval oranges in one hand), and Allyson thinks he is going to be a gymnast. He is active and does not care if it's 3 PM or 3 AM. When he gets excited, he goes for it! Cartwheels, somersaults, and high-fives ensue. We went to the doctor yesterday. Besides waiting for an hour, everything was great! Allyson has been dealing with a little bit of allergies stuff, but the doc was not worried. We continue 'every 2 weeks' visits 2 more times and then begin 'every week' visits until he's born.

I am busy reading this exciting book (don't be jealous guys). Actually, it has a lot of good information. We are getting close (not yet) to packing our bag for the hospital. All the emails and books we are reading are starting to suggest things to consider when packing that bag. Most of the items are good reminders, some we would have never thought about. But this one made me laugh..."A photograph or object to focus on during labor". I don't know if it helps or not, but for some reason I don't think we'll be packing a photo or object for that reason.

Speaking of the #31, my older brother (Jeremy) turned 31 yesterday. HAPPY BIRTHDAY JEREMY! I half-heartedly encouraged Jeremy to start a blog the other day thinking he would think I was stupid. Well, I think he thinks I'm stupid, but he started a blog anyway! So, for those of you that know him, jump on over to Thompsons in the Desert...and let him know I sent you. Allyson and I are blessed with great brothers! We love all you guys...and you girls aren't bad yourself!

Wow, that was a long one. Love you all!
Mark and Allyson

Ohio Shower

What a weekend! We made the quickest trip to Ohio for another baby shower for Asher. It was soooooooooo wonderful! Sally, Abby, and Megan planned a great shower filled with great family, friends, food, and laughter. Not to mention the mounds and mounds of presents! Asher is one loved little boy already with quite a library and wardrobe! Here are some pictures for you to enjoy...
Mama, Mom, and meAll of Asher's loot:)Megan and Abby loving on Asher.Mark getting ready to stuff everything in the car. Who needs rear-view mirrors?The beginnings of an awesome library!With love,
Mark and Allyson

Isn't She Lovely

30 weeks & new hair-cut...same beautiful Allyson.

-Mark

P.S. We drafted a post before our last (D.I.O.) about Allyson's baby shower in Nashville. It's posted on the blog now, so feel free to scroll down and check it out!

D.I.O.

It was quite an adventure we (my dad and I along with the help of my good friend, Dave) set out on a few weeks ago. The plan...while the girls (Allyson, her mom and my mom) were having fun at Allyson's first baby shower, we would knock out double windows in our kitchen and replace them with a sliding patio door. Seemed easy enough. During the week leading up to our planned adventure, Allyson was talking with a co-worker who was having a similar renovation done at her home. Her friend told her the sales clerk was adamant about the need to have professionals do such a renovation. We laughed and decided we would d.i.o. (do it ourselves)...or at least try.

Before...During...Almost complete...With curtains...Stairs outside the door...Well, it didn't all go exactly as we thought or planned, but all things considered, I think we out-did ourselves...well the outcome out-did my expectations. We got the door in and we had a lot of fun working on it. Big thanks to my dad and Dave for not only helping, but being great foremen! And of course to the girls who kept encouraging us along the way...even when they weren't sure if we knew what we were doing.

Til next time--
Mark and Allyson

Asher already loves his "Aunties"!

What a great weekend we had in Nashville! It was sooooo good to see lots of friends that we had missed so much! After Mark and I grabbed lunch with Seth on Friday we hung around campus for the annual Homecoming parade...which hasn't changed much:) Following the parade, I(Allyson) headed over to Joy's house and Mark headed to Nick's. The girls all had a slumber party at Joy's that included lots of catching up and laughing about old memories followed by an awesome baby shower in the morning. Emily, Jenna, Joy, Mandy, Mandy, Stacey, and Carrie...thank-you for the great weekend! Joy was so gracious to open her house to all of us and Emily helped to make the shower so special. Not to mention, the rest of them made some great food! As you can see in the picture, Stacey is also having a baby...Emmalyn Kate. Asher and Emmalyn are sure to be good friends! Enjoy the pictures below!

Yummy!
Once again, a great cake by Emily...
More creative Emily...
All of Asher's loot...
We made fun of Jenna for all of her camera equipment, but it did come in handy:) Love you, Jenna!
Loving Asher more every day...
Mark and Allyson

Halloween Weekend

I (Mark) was excited to hand out candy for the first time ever on Halloween night. I remember the times of going trick-or-treating...who could forget The Three Amigos or Prince Ali (AKA Aladdin)? I was smooth. Allyson and I have been away from home the past couple of years. Allyson was working a fall festival at her school, so I loaded up the candy bowl. Well...besides a few visitors from our church, I didn't have anybody after 7pm--until Jason showed up. I had the porch light on, but without any visitors I found myself into college football on tv and messing around on the laptop. Around 8:30, a kid bangs on my screen door. A bit startled I look over and see a Jason mask staring back at me. For a minute, I thought I was going to pee my pants. Then, I remembered...he wants candy. To the parents of our teens--apologies in advance for all the leftover candy your sons and daughters will be receiving the next couple of weeks.

We had a fall festival at our church on Friday night. It was a great time and well attended. Seeing all the little ones dressed up is always fun. Made me think about this time next year having our own little guy all decked out as a monkey, zebra, pumpkin, or a blueberry.

We are headed back to the doctor this Wednesday. We will give an update later this week along with an updated pic of Allyson. For now, enjoy a pic of the 2 coolest nephews.
Much love,
Mark and Allyson