Solo Saturday night

I'm flying solo tonight. Part of Ty's Father's Day-of-choice was to spend a little pre-festivities time with his brother tonight. They are hunting tonight. Yes...you read that right.....hunting. Remember how I told you awhile back that Ty is now into bow hunting? Well, there are really big, scary looking wild boars that live in the canyons near our house (Ty and Rod have several pictures of them to prove it! I'll have to post one or two sometime!) and they have spent quite a few evenings camped out in their special little blind (a tent-like camouflage used for hunting) in their little secret spot, as they wait for a little (er....big) piggie to mosie their way. So far, of the 5 or so times they've been out, they have been within shooting distance of a piggie two or three times, but have had no luck in killing one. And I'm not complaining about that AT ALL! I'm happy to have them bond over the 'thrill of the hunt' since it is one of the few things that they do together that reminds them of precious time spent with their dad while he was alive, but I am not so thrilled about the prospect of wild boar meat in my freezer! Ty tells me its the best pork I'd ever come across, as it is much healthier than their grain-fed counterparts from the farm, but I just don't think that I will be able to overcome my mental block about it. Eeewww!!!! So while I eagerly listen to him talk about the adventures of the night, I am also secretly thankful that they did not make a kill. Yuck...yuck...yuck! I can still be a supportive wife and still not be over the moon about the prospect of a stuck pig, right?

Anyway.....'nough about that. My point in saying all that is that Ty is gone for the evening and I am here, typing away in silence. Luke is in bed, getting a MUCH needed and hopefully LONG night of sleep, the house is picked up and the dog is fed. Phew! We had a good day today, but towards the end, Luke was a tired boy, vacillating between giggles and tantrums like a sleep-deprived schizophrenic! Ugh! He was driving me crazy!!!! But I sent him to bed peacefully, and hopefully he will awaken in the morning a new boy!

So what did we do today??? Well....this morning we headed over to Sarah's house to have my 'belly' pictures taken. :) Luke and Ty were there too, and we got some great family shots as well as some really fun ones of just me. I had a blast! And am so thankful to have such a talented friend! (Thanks, Sarah!) When I was pregnant with Luke, I had always dreamed of having maternity portraits done, but both money and his premature birth stole that opportunity from me. I was very sad about that! So, to have them done today was extremely precious and meaningful to me.....even healing in a way! It really meant the world to me! It's a little awkward to have the camera turned on me for a change, but I had a blast nonetheless! Ty took Luke home around lunchtime, while I hung around Sarah's awhile longer to take some more shots, review the pics and chat a bit over lunch. Such a fun morning for me!

Once I made it home, it wasn't long before Ty headed over to his brother's house to 'prepare' for their little adventure, and Luke and I headed back out to prepare for Father's Day! At Ty's request, we will stay home tomorrow (its been an awfully long week for him with having to work Monday through Saturday due to a training/presentation he had to give today) so he is very much looking forward to some R&R with us at home tomorrow. He requested fillet mignon, broccoli (a random choice in my book, but whatever), garlic bread and Newcastle beer for dinner, so we had some grocery shopping to do today. I'm planning on breakfast in bed for him too, so we scooped up a few extra items for omlettes in the morning. In trying to add a little special twist for dessert, Luke and I drove up to Oak Glen to pick up a very yummy, homemade dutch apple pie. They sell the best apple pies up there! MMMMM!! I ended up picking one of for my own dad too....thought he might like that! We stopped at a little country candy store on the way out and Luke picked out a chocolate covered marshmallow on a stick for his special treat, while I opted for the old Oak Glen standby....a carmel apple. Yum! We sat outside in the sunshine and tried to enjoy a little mother-son time, but that schizophrenia I spoke of earlier decided to rear its ugly little head just then, and Luke threw a fun little tantrum 'round the picnic table. Nice. That kinda ruined 'the moment', but oh well. We dropped by my parent's house after that to deliver the pie and wish Grandpa a Happy Early Father's Day, and then it was to the grocery store and home. A busy day. And I'm feeling it now as I sit here. Phew! I think it will be an early night for me.

But before I go........
I'd like to propose a little vote. Wanna play along? Many of you have asked whether or not we have officially decided on a name for the baby yet, and the truth is, we haven't. We have narrowed it down to two, with the middle name being the same for both, but we are both so completely undecided about which one we like best that we cannot seem to make a decision! We really like both names and vacillate almost daily as to which one we like best. Some days I'm sure its one, then the next its absolutely the other. Ty's been the same way. Back & forth and back & forth we go! We've tried asking Luke which one he would prefer, and he always just chooses the last one we say. No luck there, I guess. We've polled just about everyone we know and there seems to be a consensus among you, but I thought it would be fun to have you all vote formally online, just for giggles.

Now....let me just say, that we are in no way choosing the most heavily voted for name simply because it is the favorite.....it can still go either way, but I'm curious to know what you all like. And since I like them equally, well.....I'm just interested in your answers. So here is the deal......if you are a willing participant, you need to click the 'comments' button at the bottom of this posting, choose between the two names I provide, AND tell me WHY you are choosing that name. The 'why' part of it is just as important to me as the choice itself! Also....are there any weird rhyming 'issues' or reasons why we may not want to choose the other name? Simply telling me in person (if I see you or talk to you regularly on the phone) will not suffice this time. I want your answer on the blog for me to keep track of! (Aren't I being a little demanding?! hehe!) And......if you don't like either one, its not nice to tell me so or offer other suggestions! ;) It will be one of these. So.......with all that said, here are your two choices:


Lainey Paige McLaughlin
or
Ellie Paige McLaughlin


Let the voting begin!