Life in Philly

Hello to all of you who follow our lives...

Since the summer is now half over it is about time to update you on life in Philly AND post my first entry to "our" blog. So, I am working at Centocor Ortho Biotech a division of Johnson and Johnson. I am sure you are first wondering - "I thought Johnson & Johnson only sold baby shampoo." I am glad you asked… JnJ is really made up of over 250+ distinct operating companies spread throughout the world. They make everything from insulin pumps, to chemo drugs, to baby shampoo. Some of the brands you’re probably more familiar with in our consumer group are Tylenol, Aveeno, Neutrogena, Acuvue, Clean and Clear, Visine, and Listerine…just to name a few. The op-co (short for operating company) I work for this summer makes both immunology and oncology biologic drugs. Our drugs treat patients with rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, breast cancer, and ovarian cancer to name a few.

So, day to day that is my life here in Horsham, PA. I love the team I work for and the folks at JnJ. Everyone I am surrounded with is at the top of their game. It is interesting to work in a different part of the country and a completely different sector then I am used to. I feel like I am learning so much every day my head hurts.

While the internship and company are great, marriage long distance style is not great! Although we have been able to see each other pretty much every weekend, at times I think we both feel like we are living out of a suitcase in a revolving door of new cities. So far this summer there has been Charlotte, Washington DC, Philadelphia, New York, and Boston...We love traveling and seeing parts of the country we have never experienced – BUT - I think we are both ready for the pace of travel to slow down at the end of the summer. Thankfully we practiced our long distance relationship building skills for a while during lele's college years :) So, we like to think we are pros at it! However, each weekend brings the usual rekindle and 48 hours later the tearful goodbye. This week however lele is staying for 10 whole days! We almost do not know what to do with this gift of added time and proximity.

Lele will catch you up on our many travels throughout this foreign land. As an FYI, people up here have been a lot nicer and more hospitable than they are made to seem in the movies. Before you know it the summer will be over and you'll have a second blog post from me!!!

I’m off to make a facebook page now!

13auburnfriends

Last weekend, 13auburnfriends had a reunion in Fairhope, AL at Turner's bay house. Really, there were just 12 this time, but Anne was truly missed! I love those friendships and we have such a blast together.

Our weekend consisted of screaming excitement upon arrival, late nights, coffee on the porch, prank calling, lots of laughter, lunch at Mary Ann's, sitting in the sun, nonstop talking, Trussville chex mix, walks, Ivy's birthday, singing, pillow talk, boat rides, skiing, tubing, card games, thousands of pictures, diet coke, seafood, puppy chow, He's just not that into you, dancing, soaking up last minute sun, Gordo's, clean-up, and sad goodbyes until Mary B's wedding!

Jess (and others) captured the weekend with great pictures.]

Halfway!

Things have been so busy lately with traveling every weekend, and I realized I have not updated on the baby in a long time. We are now halfway there!

Here are a couple other fun updates:

• 20wks along
• Baby is about 10 1/2 ounces and 10 inches long (about the length of a banana)
• I am quickly growing out of my clothes!
• Most people have predicted Baby Phelps is a boy, but there are a few girl guessers out there in the minority.
• I feel it move pretty much everyday now- which I love! John was able to feel it for the first time last night too.
• Looks like our little one might be a thumb sucker. I had an ultrasound yesterday and saw several pictures of the baby sucking his/her thumb.
• Baby is growing right on track. My due date has not changed and is still set for Oct. 28
• I get a little anxious saying this because it is such a big decision, but I think we have the names picked out. We have a couple girl names and a couple boy names at this point. Of course, this is a surprise too though!

I do not know how people do not believe in the Lord when seeing this process and how He has created us all. I have truly been amazed and learned so much!

Road Trip '09

Last week, we started our journey of driving to Philadelphia.  Instead of making it one really long day, we split it up and made it a little trip to visit friends and family on the way.  It was a lot of driving but it seemed to go by pretty fast and we had a great time hanging out together in the car.  We love road trips! 

1st stop- Charlotte, NC.  

We spent a night with Kristen and all the Cofield clan.  I love Charlotte.  It is one of those cities I think I would like to live in and John had never been before.  It was fun to visit with all the Cofields since we do not get to see them as much since they moved from Bham.  And Shannon (who has more connections than anyone I know) had a friend giving away her glider from her nursery.  So, we also got a precious white, FREE glider for the baby's room.  I will have to put a pic up of that later.  

2nd stop- D.C. 

We headed to DC Thursday for two nights.  We did not do tons of tourist adventures because we had both been to DC and it rained most of the time (as you can see below).  We were able to visit with several friends we had not seen in a long time.  We ate lunch with Anne in the Senate Cafeteria one day- which has great food by the way.  We stayed with another friend of mine from Auburn, Melissa.  And we went to dinner one night with Jared and Belen, who live in Arlington.  Jared and Belen had a baby in December and so we got to meet James too! We had so much fun seeing people here that we probably could have stayed many more days! 

    

Sorry, we were not great about taking pictures the whole trip.  

3rd Stop- Horsham, Pennsylvania 

Last but certainly not least, we arrived Saturday right outside Philly where John is working for the summer.  We got him unpacked and settled in about an hour!  It was such a breeze compared to all those times of moving me back to Auburn.  We spent the rest of Saturday and Sunday hanging out and exploring the area mainly.  John was able to show me where he works and his office.  Many of you have been asking about him and so I will let him tell more about his job and the area.  He has promised to make his first blogpost very soon...so stay tuned!      

Family Beach Trip

We had a great Memorial Day weekend in Sea Island with the Phelps.  This is a trip John and I really look forward to each year.  The weather was not great everyday but we were still lucky enough to have sunshine Sunday and Monday.  Even though I think the gulf has the most beautiful beaches, I have come to love this place too! 

  

Dinner at the River Room

The sunrise would shine into our room each morning, so one morning we walked outside to get a picture- it was beautiful! 

This is what Mama Jo calls her "heaven on earth"

So, they were having work done on the pool the first day, but John "went swimming" anyway to cool off.   

This picture just makes me laugh-Josephine bought tiny umbrellas for cocktails each night. Well, while we were shopping at a baby store one day, John got a little distracted and found this huge pink parasail.  So, that night for dinner he put it in Josephine's cocktail.  

Lucky

I am not really the type person who believes in luck.  If I did though, I would not really consider myself a "lucky" person.  I have never won a raffle, a game of bingo, a contest on the radio or really anything.  However, for some reason I feel I have had "lucky" seats at both Coldplay concerts.  

I got John tickets to Coldplay last October for his birthday.  We had decent seats but nothing spectacular or up close.  We were just thrilled to be at the concert.  Little did we know, the band would come out into the audience and play several songs and it just so happened we were about 15 feet away! We could not contain our excitement or believe we were so close! 

Round 1- October

So, last night Coldplay came back to Atlanta.  To justify going a 2nd time, I bought the really cheap seats in the lawn for $35.  I am assuming they will come play again in the audience but I never thought they would come all the way to the back of the lawn.  Well, in the middle of a song, I notice a stage crew man come set up a mic about 5 ft. in front of me.  I was in disbelief! I felt like such a teeny bopper obsessed fan but it was so worth it! 

Round 2- May 

Cold, wet, and loving it!

I took a quick video of Chris Martin singing a Monkees song.  Needless to say, I love Coldplay and I love their concerts!  

Vacation

We had the best vacation at the beach last week.  John and I spent 8 days down in Seagrove and had gorgeous weather.  It rained one day, but it was actually a nice break from the sun.  We were able to eat at some of our favorite restaurants too: Red Bar, Old Florida Fish House, Back Porch, and Cafe Thirty-A.  My mom had also given me a great, Paula Dean recipe for a low-country boil. So, we did that one night and it turned out great! I would highly recommend it for the beach or even just at home. Needless to say, we ate very well. :) We also had a wonderful time reading for hours on the beach, taking naps, walking on the beach or through the towns on 30A, and biking in Seaside and Watercolor.  

On the day it rained, we took a trip to the outlets in Destin.  Someone told me there was a good maternity store there and you could get the clothes for really discounted prices.  Well, sure enough we did find the store and it was one the most strange and hilarious experiences ever.  I had never walked a foot into a maternity anything and knew nothing of how to tell if these clothes will fit when I actually need to wear them.  Well, if you were like me, do not worry anymore.  The stores have it all figured out for you!  I grab some tops and and a couple dresses and take them to the dressing room to try on.  I do not know how I was expecting to see if these fit since I do not have a baby bump yet, but I go back there anyway.  As I walk in the room, I notice this round pillow shape object hanging from the side of the wall.  As I get a closer look I see the strap is velcro.  Surely this is not what I think it is and I am about to have to try on this pretend baby belly! If you need a mental picture, remember Full House (yes, the TV show) when Becky makes Uncle Jesse where a belly to try to understand what Becky is carrying everyday for 9 months - that is precisely what is in the dressing room.  Regardless of how ridiculous I felt, it was very practical and helpful.  I would have been clueless otherwise! So, with the help of the belly, it was a successful trip.

Here are a few pictures from our trip.  Sadly, I did not have a camera in the maternity store.  

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On the way home from the beach Saturday we stopped in Auburn for Matt's graduation.  Matt went to Vanderbilt undergrad, but has also always wanted an Auburn degree.  Over the last two years he has been in Auburn's cross-country executive MBA program.  We had a fun time getting to celebrate his graduation and Mother's day with my mom a day early.

We also got to be with the English's as Lindsey was graduating Saturday as well.  The English's have always been like a second family to me and Lindsey and Anna like little sisters.

After a long day of driving and then stopping in Auburn, we got back to Atlanta pretty late Saturday night.  We quickly unpacked John's things and repacked them as he left Sunday morning for Philadelphia.  Monday was his first day of work at Johnson & Johnson.  He is loving it so far.  More updates to come on that later!