The Boehms

Day 2 France

2010-05-11T11:34:00.001-07:00

Day 2 was spent in Antibe.... lots of the stores where closed on Monday's....love being tourists!! We had a great lunch, walked on the cobblestone streets and got Sam some soaps that she wanted. We all came back to our excellent pool and a nap was unavoidable. To Eze for dinner overlooking the Mediteranean... truly unbelievable!

Griswold's Come to France

2010-05-09T09:08:00.001-07:00

Well, we have sadly left Jack for a week but fortunately we did it to spend time in Europa!!! We arrived in Nice/St Jean Cap Ferrat this afternoon, got settled and headed to the pool for a brunch, champagne and great company. We are all fighting jet lag tooth and nail and winning!!! We walked down the boardwalk to a small marina. Coffee, Bailey's, expresso and Brian's new favorite pink beer made the walk extremely nice. The temperature is great right now and we are enjoying ourselves already. Dinner's at 8 so I will keep you posted.

Bonjour and Aureboior???? Hahhahahahha....

Just some pictures.......

2009-11-30T07:21:00.000-08:00

Here are just some great pictures we have taken over the past couple of months!!!

Thanksgiving and Halloween

2009-11-30T07:09:00.000-08:00

Halloween came and went, just a simple skeleton this year!!!! Jack had so much fun seeing the trick or treaters coming to the door!! Aunt Ash was here to enjoy it too!

We spent Thanksgiving in the Highlands again this year!! I was so fun to be with our family and Jack always loves being with Grumpy, Mae Mae, Uncle Brian and Uncle Christopher. Jack went on a hike in his new carrier.... Thanks Lisa, we love it!!! He ate lots of Cranberry sauce and fixins' too.

Finally, an update

2009-10-26T07:02:00.001-07:00

We have been so busy since this summer!! Our good friends Sam and Russ tied the knot, it was so great and we got a nice little vacation out of the deal too!! Jack is doing great, running around, loves being outside....all the time! He doesnt realize that his mother hates the cold, so we will have to make some deals coming up. Columbia is fine, we are having a nice time here as a family but miss home tons. We are skipping Halloween this year, I have to work...sad, but oh well...So the next update will probably be Thanksgiving in the mountains.
Oh yes, Jack took his first boat ride on the lake and he loved it!!!!!

Oh yes, here is my Julio Jones jersey and my new shoes.....New Balance 992, soooo cool!

Jack's First Haircut!!!

2009-08-27T15:10:00.001-07:00

Jack did so great for his first haircut. It lasted about 3 minutes! They gave him animal crackers and he hardly realized that he was even getting his first trim. He looks so handsome and we are so proud of him.

More of Jack, Video Form!!!!!

2009-08-26T12:40:00.000-07:00

Dancing Jack

2009-08-24T12:34:00.000-07:00

Well, Jack has learned how to dance in his baby crocs!!! So much fun.

First Birthday Party

2009-07-27T17:40:00.000-07:00

We traveled to Birmingham for Jack's official first birthday party. He had a fantastic time and loved seeing all of you who came. He is playing with all of his new things everyday and is loving every minute. I can't believe it has already been a year, wow, a one year old boy!!!

Birthday Boy!!!

2009-07-14T18:40:00.000-07:00

Today, July 14, 2009, known amongst the French as Bastille Day, young Jack Halligan Boehm became a "one-year-old big boy."

How old is Jack?

Been a crazy year, the best of our lives. He hasn't said as much, but I'm fairly certain it's been Jack's best, too.

Early this morning, we burst into his room with a sleepy rendition of Happy Birthday (we haven't learned "Le Marseillaise" yet), then rushed out to open some presents. Jack suggested a trip to the zoo and Leslie and I thought, "What a great idea!" As you can see, it was a right nice time. We capped the day off with a Toys R' Us trip, where Jack joined Geoffrey's Birthday Club and heard the employees sing him "Happy Birthday" over the PA. Back at home, we played with his brand new mini-house (thanks Grumpy and May!), ate a tasty b-day dinner, and practiced his latest skill: competitive speed-walking.

Happy Birthday, little buddy! Walk on!

Some Recent Pics from around Columbia

2009-07-14T18:23:00.001-07:00

Hi, all. Leslie's taking a brief (and unwilling) break from blog updates. That's right... thankfully for all of you, DADDY'S BACK!

These are some of my favorite pictures from the last few weeks around Columbia. As you can see, Jack's now a bicycle co-pilot, a tooth-brushing fanatic, a sometimes drunk, and a rabid Alabama fan eager for Saban, Round 3. Hope you enjoy these as much as I did!

Our first big injury and around Birmingham

2009-06-14T17:51:00.000-07:00

Well, Jack is 11 months old today and he almost made it to one year with no problems....Jack got his first cast in Birmingham. His sweet arm got stuck in the stroller, then after not crawling on it or putting any weight on his arm it was off to the ER. Although we were worried about Jack, I got to see all of my old friends, it was so nice. Jack wasnt bothered by his broken bone and was as happy as could be. It bothered us much more than it bothered him :)

Here are some pictures of our time spent in Birmingham after the beach trip. Jack had such a fantastic time with his family and we will cherish the time forever. We love going to Birmingham!!!

Lona Elizabeth Garrison

2009-06-13T18:04:00.001-07:00

Lona Elizabeth is finally here!!! We are so exited and love her so much. She has a perfect mother who is loving every minute of being a new mom. Congrats Leigh Anne and Micheal.

Jack's First Beach Trip

2009-06-12T11:12:00.001-07:00

Jack's first beach trip to Grayton Beach Florida was awesome. He loved the sand, ocean, pool, and especially all of the attention! We had such a great time and can't wait til the next vacation. Jack also had his first trip to the Red Bar-- it is amazing how many children eat there at the early hours... I was amazed!

9 months!!!

2009-05-05T16:24:00.000-07:00

Well, it is obvious how busy we have been by the looks of the blog. Jack is doing great, pulling up on everything, he started going to a nursery (drop in-- sweeeeet) mon, wed and fri's so that I can get some break and it has been great. Great for me but I think Jack loves every minute of it too!! Jack is still smiling and laughing all the time. Loving every minute!

8 months old.... and talking!!

2009-03-25T17:23:00.000-07:00

Well, Jack is working on his Ma-Ma as of today!! He was saying some da da's and ta ta's but this one counts for a word!! He can also clap on demand! About 3 weeks ago he started pulling up to standing and hasnt stopped since. It is so sweet to watch him try so hard at all his new skills.

Some videos...

2009-02-27T05:59:00.000-08:00

Jack's 7th Month...

2009-02-26T08:18:00.000-08:00

Well, we have had a long month. Jack has officially started to crawl, in a forward motion that is, we visited Mackenzie Mellon, the grandparents came for a visit and we had our first house full of illness. Wow....long month. Jack is feeling better now, as we all are! Jack also got his first piano and he loves it!! Enjoy, he is growing so fast.

Playing with Owen!!

Laughing at Daddy...

2009-02-14T07:11:00.000-08:00

Beantown baby!!

2009-02-14T06:32:00.001-08:00

Well, congrats to Aaron and Lori!! We had such a great time in Boston for your wedding. It was beautiful and we always love spending time with all of you guys. Jack loved it too....first airplane ride and time spent with the grandparents and Uncle Bri, Uncle Christopher and Aunt Cate!

For the Grands.....and Great Grands.....

2009-01-19T15:08:00.000-08:00

6 months....

2009-01-18T04:53:00.000-08:00

Well, they say it gets better every day and ITS TRUE!! Jack is 6 months old, I can't believe it. He goes to the park and he loves the swing... it is unbelievable how happy it makes him. We have a long summer in front of us but I cant wait, I see a lot of park visits in my future. He is trying to crawl, but really he just goes backwards. He is grabbing everything in sight. I can foresee a busy toddler-hood for Jack!

Here are pictures of Jack's friends; Will Trumpeter and Owen Boyle. Will is 2 and Owen is just a week behind Jack. We hang out all the time and are looking forward to play dates all summer long!

Birmingham and Around the house....51/2 months

2009-01-07T07:17:00.000-08:00

Jack meets his future wife!

2009-01-07T06:50:00.000-08:00

Jack and I went to Charleston to meet Mackenzie this week. Lisa is doing so great and is taking to motherhood perfectly! We had such a great time meeting sweet Mackenzie and Jack told me in secret that it was love at first sight! Congrats to you Lisa and Steve on a beautiful baby girl.

Its a girl!!!

2009-01-07T06:48:00.000-08:00

Hooooooray... My sister Leigh Anne found out while we were home for Christmas that she is having a girl. We are so exited to have so many first cousins for Jack and can't wait to see how much fun Jack, Coleman and baby girl Garrison have together!

Jack's First Christmas

2009-01-07T06:09:00.000-08:00

We had such a great Christmas and we were so lucky to have been able to spend it in Birmingham!! Jack had so much fun spending time with all of his family but was worn out to say the least when we got home. Christmas was so exiting and fun again, we cant wait to see what the years ahead hold.
Did Santa come??

Getting ready for Santa....

2008-12-15T09:23:00.000-08:00

Well, have I become so CHEESY or what. Couldnt resist these pictures! Hope you all have a wonderful Christmas.

Getting ready for Baby's First Christmas...

2008-12-04T08:39:00.000-08:00

Well, I have never seen a better first picture with Santa than this one. I am sure you will all agree...;). What a handsome little Christmas boy!!!!

Thanksgiving and almost 5 months old...

2008-12-04T08:21:00.000-08:00

We spent the week of Thanksgiving in Highlands, North Carolina with Mae Mae, Grumpy and Uncle Brian and Uncle Christopher. We had such a nice time and Jack loved all the attention. He will be five months old soon, I cant believe it. He is grabbing things with his hands and "talking" back and forth pretty consistently. He is so happy all the time and we love him so much.

Around the house in Columbia...

Thanksgiving....

Four Months Old!!!!

2008-11-16T05:53:00.000-08:00

Jack is smiling constantly, I swear I have never seen a happier baby. We love him so much. Aunt Leigh and Granny came up this weekend to visit and we had such a nice time. Growing and changing everyday for Jack, he is trying so hard to talk to us and is laughing back and forth with us all the time.

Videos...

2008-11-06T06:07:00.000-08:00

11 Weeks at Granny's house in Birmingham..

Jack at 16 weeks...

Partly Cloudy with a chance of Showers....

2008-10-31T16:38:00.000-07:00

HAPPY HALLOWEEN. Little Jack is a lightning bolt for his first Halloween and Matt and I are Partly Cloudy with a Chance of Showers!! So much fun and I am already plotting for next years costume!

All Smiles!!!!

2008-10-26T12:51:00.002-07:00

Happy Halloween and here are all my big smiles. 15 weeks old, how time flies...

2008-10-26T12:51:00.001-07:00

3 MONTHS OLD....

2008-10-15T14:56:00.000-07:00

WOW, time flies when you are having fun. Jack is 3 months old and getting so big. I look at his baby pictures and cant believe how much he has changed. He has been to Birmingham a couple of times and already had one trip to the mountain house... we are getting him used to all of our traveling!!
Here is Jack's new friend Will Trumpeter!! Jack was Baptised on Sunday the 28th... It was very nice and his godparents Maria, Thomas and Warren were so happy to support him. Everyone was there and we had a fantastic afternoon enjoying Mr. Boehm calling Jack a Christian allllll day!!! Here's Jack just hanging around the house learning and playing all day long.
Here is Jack's first trip to the mountain house and of course, he loved every minute.

Golf anyone?

10 weeks old!

2008-09-22T09:24:00.000-07:00

Well, can you believe its been 10 weeks?? Jack is smiling every day, holding his head up and yes.... it is time for the Jumper Chair!! We have been waiting to use it and the time has finally come.

Now the fun begins.... 8 weeks

2008-09-09T17:54:00.000-07:00

Here is Jack in his Bloomingdales outfit on his 8 week old birthday. It is getting more and more fun everyday!!!

Fun times at the Boehm house....

Ghost Jack

2008-09-07T12:14:00.000-07:00

An ectoplasmic disturbance has been haunting my days (and nights)... a free-floating, full-torso apparition.

And a real nasty one, too.

Those of you who don't recall the above lines have no appreciation for American pop culture. I'll give you another hint:

(Hallway 1)
Ray: (picks up his walkie-talkie) Venkman! I saw it! I saw it! I saw it!

(Hallway 2)
Peter: (into walkie-talkie) It's right here, Ray. It's looking at me.
Ray: (on walkie-talkie) He's an ugly little spud, isn't he?
Peter: (into walkie-talkie) I think he can hear you, Ray.

The phrase "slimed" takes on a whole new meaning when you have an infant around. In the last two months, I've been pissed on, puked on, and, yes, even pooped on.

Numerous times... projectile-style.

You get to the point where the sight of regurgitated breastmilk on your shoulder doesn't even faze you. Which is, I imagine, the feeling Dr. Venkman must have experienced while lying prostrate in that hotel hallway, covered in slime: "Man, I feel so funky," he said.

Funky indeed, Dr. Venkman.

(Side note: for those of you who did not know, my youngest brother - and Jack's youngest uncle, Chris - was a huge Ghostbuster's fan... like, I came home from school every day for a year to find him watching the movie, dressed in a miniature ghostbusting outfit complete with proton pack and styrofoam proton stream.)

So this one's for you, Chris. May young Jack take to his childhood with half the enthusiasm and commitment to playtime as you did.

Wow.... 7 weeks old already

2008-09-05T11:39:00.001-07:00

Well, our sweet boy Jack is 7 weeks old and time seems to be flying by. He is smiling a lot during his days and we have a record sleep time of 5 hours for 2 nights in a row...We never thought we would get that. He is wonderful and had a great time last week in Birmingham with his family.
Oh yes, his first Alabama football game was Saturday and he was awake and exited for kick off with DAD.
Uncle Christopher was so exited to finally meet Jack
Mommy and Me relaxing at the Boehm's!
Uncle BriBri has many plans for Jacks future!!

Jack finally got to meet his first cousin Coleman!!
Yes, I still make my Fish Lips....oOo oOo
Bobbi loves me so much and wishes she could see me every day!!
Here are some pictures of Jack for pure enjoyment....

Just a little bean sprout...

2008-08-20T13:57:00.000-07:00

A big thanks to Kit King (you may remember her as Kit Brown) for making this little outfit for young Jack. He's shooting up so fast!

Happy Days!

2008-08-06T15:40:00.000-07:00

As sweet as can be. We are loving every minute....

Here I am at 3 weeks. Getting cuter every day.

SERIOUSLY..... He is the cutest thing we have ever seen. He loves his robe and slippers after his bath!

Naptime with Dad

Mommy and Jack!!

Daddy and Jack after his bath!! He really likes them.

oOo Fish Lips oOo

2008-07-28T15:58:00.000-07:00

Whenever young Jack gets the hiccups, he puckers he sweet lil' lips into this O-face formation. Leslie captured this b&w in a particularly cheek-swollen moment...

Somebody hook that sucker!

The hiccups don't seem to bother him too much, but we're pretty certain he doesn't enjoy them as much as we do. Check him out in real time by clicking the play button on the video below.

THE JACK ATTACK!!!

2008-07-19T09:40:00.000-07:00

Bastille Day, 2008 - little Jack Boehm stormed into this world like a crazy, half-starved Frenchman. The world will never be the same.

We were planning on inducing Wednesday afternoon. Monday morning, we drove to the doctor's office to get some medication that that would get her ready for the big day. As soon as the prepadil was administered, the contractions began. They came on fast and they came on strong. Two hours later we were in Labor and Delivery (A.K.A, Stork's Landing) at Palmetto Richland Hospital. Calls were made; families were mobilized. Little Jack was on his way.

At first (with the proper pain meds), it seemed like labor would be a cinch. Leslie kicking back with some Gameboy Tetris, me surfing the web... free as the breeze. Sometime around 5 pm, her blood pressure began to rise. By 8:00, she was hitting really dangerous levels, and we made the call to go with a C-section. They wheeled her off, and told me to wait in the room until she was fully prepped for surgery. That was a long 45 minutes...

Finally, they let me in to the room, and there was Leslie smiling at me with a curtain drawn up around her neck. We sat and held hands and talked casually about mundane things: how the animals were doing at home, what we thought Jack's carpool would be like, etc. All of a sudden, someone said, "OK, Dad, get your camera ready!" I stood up, fumbling in my pocket for the camera, only to drop both arms at my side as they pulled little Jack out of Leslie.

A picture captures a thousand words: check out Leslie's face here and you'll get an idea of what the moment felt like.

Truly an awe-inspiring experience... and its getting more awesome each day.

We love you, Jack.

Belly Pics!!!!

2008-06-12T17:51:00.000-07:00

HOOORRAY...they are finally up! My belly pics are a sight to see. How exciting it is to see them all together now that I am HUGE>>>hhhahahha... I don't mind a bit! I am now 34 weeks pregnant and these pictures go from 8 weeks up to 32 weeks. They are 8, 12, 16, 20, 28 and 32 weeks... I will add 2 more soon before sweet little Jack comes!! A little over a month and we will finally meet our sweet baby boy!!

Birmingham Baby Shower!!

2008-06-12T17:41:00.001-07:00

Our second baby shower was in Bham on June 7th. I had such a fantastic time and had so much fun seeing my family and best friends. Everyone gave Jack such sweet things and I can't wait to see him use all of his new things! Thank you everyone for making it so special, I will never forget it.

Columbia Baby Shower

2008-06-12T15:59:00.001-07:00

Over the last month, we've been the grateful recipients of two baby showers. I'm especially grateful that I only had to be present at one of them. J.K. But seriously, guys at a baby shower are like ants in a swimming pool. They stand around, toe the dirt, and try to make conversations about parenting sound manly. Not a pretty sight.

That said, the coed shower our Columbia friends threw for us was far, far better than most such events. One of my office mates, Casey Boyle, and his wife Tracey are due for their first a week behind us, so the gang at the USC English Department chipped in and treated us to an end of the semester, baby-themed barbeque. We didn't want to show up without a gift for the hosts (I'm learning these rules slowly) so Leslie put together some big flower pots. They was right nice, too. Way to go Les!

At the party itself, there was keg beer, bocci, skewers, homemade bread, a jack terrier named cricket, cookies, and a host of little pre-k boogers going nutz in my friend's backyard. This rasing kids thing may prove to be more taxing than I thought.
Thanks to Steve and Wendi Spratt for offering up their place for the shendig, and thanks to Kevin and Nevie Trumpeter (a good 'ol Chattaboogie couple) for co-hosting. Incidentally, that's Steve "The Ecocrit Crusha" on my left and Kevin "I'm not Earl from TV" Trumpeter on my right).
If I hadn't drunk too much and revealed to everyone that Dead Poet's Society was one of my favorite movies, it would have been a perfect evening (NOTE: don't show sentimental weakness to a crowd of English teachers off the clock... they'll eat you alive!)

Return to Vulcan

2008-05-18T14:30:00.000-07:00

On May 10th, Les and I returned for the first time to the site of our nuptials. It was May 10th, and we were there to see our good friends Marcel Vargas and Melissa Lowry tie their own knot.

The weekend was a blast. It started off with a rehearsal dinner at the Cahaba Pumping Station, a first for us and many other long-term Birminghamians, too. Lots of good soul food, plenty of toasts (Leslie gave one that lasted longer than thirty seconds!)

On Saturday, the ceremony itself was at Vulcan. Pretty cool to see those two gettin' hitched with all of downtown Birmingham as a scenic backdrop. Plenty of good food that night, too - in fact, it was the same catering company that had done our wedding a year beforehand. The guy who had kept a drink in my hand last year was for some reason unwilling to continue the tradition. Something about being busy with Marcel, my day had passed, etc.

Thought the rains might get us, but it proved to be a beautiful night. We danced under the big man, and when the rumbia hit the speakers, the entire Vargas clan descended on the dance floor. I got some lessons in moving my hips from Ms. Vargas; even Leslie was livin la vida loca.

Congrats to Marcel and Melissa, who are probably returning from Mexico tonight. May your first year married be as enjoyable as ours has been. We love you.

~Matt and Leslie

Tiger Woods, Ya'll ________________________

2008-04-24T18:34:00.000-07:00

F'shizzle.

The 17th at Augusta.

Tiger walks to the trap.

He settles into his stance.

The club goes back, a quick flash of sand, and the ball drops,
rolling,
rolling,

plunk.

Tiger Woods & Tiger Woods & Tiger Woods, Ya'll.

On April 7th Brian, Cate, Leslie, and I spent the day at Augusta National. It was the practice round that Monday, so to be fair, Tiger had a few shots to ring one from the trap. But it was still pretty cool to see him raise his hand to the crowd and acknowledge his general badassedness. Of course, he could of used a little of that magic on Sunday, but, oh well, good for Immelman, I guess.

Augusta National's about as pretty as pretty gets. The azaleas here were obviously in full bloom. You could find little spots like this one and watch action on the green fully framed by flowers. Brian learned how to use the macro function on his camera, so that was good, too.

AMEN!

We saw Veejay putt around on eighteen (he's enormous, incidentally), ate pimiento cheese sandwiches in the grandstands, and kept our eyes peeled for "jorts" and - even better - gym coach shorts. Five points for the former, twenty for the latter. (Where's Larry Paulin when you need him, anyway?)

All in all, it was a good day at Augusta.

ITS A BOY!!!

2008-03-06T12:17:00.000-08:00

Well, we went to the doctors office on February 25th about to explode with exitement. I was sure that I was going to have a girl, but on the drive over it occured to us that there is no way that we will break the long gene pool of the Boehm boy! We were so exited we arrived 15 minutes early only to wait until 15 minutes late to go back to the ultrasound room. The nurse was so sweet, measured the head, the abdomnen and finally, i said; are you going to wait until the end to determine the sex. She laughed and said, no, we can look now. There it was, easily spotted, a penis!!! It was just as plain as could be and we were so happy. So, unless we change our mind, which we may, Jack Halligan Boehm is on the way!

ps. this entry written by Leslie

A Visit to Uncle George Bailey's

2008-02-09T15:13:00.000-08:00

One of the best things about the clan Boehm is our respect for history and tradition. Leslie and I got a dose of both recently when we met up with Janet, Ned, Paul, and Dad at Uncle George Bailey's house in Augusta. Not only did Uncle George regale us with family stories from the past - he also told them to us over a round of his world-famous martinis. For those of you who have never experienced the tradition of sipping on one of Uncle George's mandatory martinis in Augusta, all I can say is that you're missing out. For one thing, you can't beat the company. For another, you'd be hard pressed to find a more potent concoction this side of the Mississippi. Just ask Uncle Bill: he'll tell you that krispy kremes just don't taste as sweet unless you've had a couple of Uncle George's martinis!

It had been about five years since I'd been to Augusta for a visit, and of course things weren't quite the same without Aunt Ellen around. But otherwise, the house was largely as I remembered it - from the wooded front yard to the the shag carpet in the den. Here we all are in the kitchen, about to sit down for a feast of lamb chops and miniature twice-baked potatoes (thanks Claire!).

Aunt Ellen, of course, was never far from anyone's mind, especially from Uncle George's. When I asked if it would be alright to make a video so that the rest of the family could see and hear from him, this is what he had to say:

We capped the night off with some of Janet's cheesecake and a round of Laphraig, Uncle George's finest single malt scotch. Wowzers. Stuff was so strong it almost cinged the hairs on Dad's newly grown beard. Needless to say, it was a truly enjoyable evening. Counting the unborn babe, there were four generations sitting around that dinner table.

Leslie and I live only an hour from Uncle George, and we're already talking about the next time we can get back. It's about a four hour drive from Chattanooga... We'd love it if some of you wanted to meet up with us there. If nothing else, think of Uncle George - and call him if possible - on his ninetieth birthday, February 22nd!

Here's to you Uncle George!

The Griswolds Ski Sun Valley!

2008-01-20T13:29:00.001-08:00

That's right: Clark, Ellen, and the rest of the gang (AKA the Boehms) graced the friendly locals of Sun Valley, ID with out presence for our 2008 family vacation. And, of course, they were pleased as punch to have us - just ask the staff at Casino!

We flew out on January 3, 2008. Check out the Wasatch Mountain range right outside Salt Lake City. When Leslie saw these snow-capped behemoths, which reminded her of her lovely three month stint in Denver, Colorado, she got a little confused. Apparently, she was convinced that Idaho was not that far west, that it was "near Ohio or Michigan or something like that." All I can say is thank God she's pretty!

When we arrived in Sun Valley, Leslie and I went straight to Grumpy's, where we caught up with Mom, Dad, Brian, and Chris for some burgers and some big ol' beers! Later that night, after we had settled in at the pad, we all went to eat an inaugural vacation dinner at a pizza joint where Brian had flipped pies for a summer back in '03. It had been a long day traveling, so we went to bed early, mentally preparing ourselves to "shred pow-pow" early the next morning.

Here we all are on the bus to the slopes. It's always a little uncomfortable putting on your ski suit for the first time in several years. The socks itch, the boots hurt, and the extra layer of longjohns makes your back sweat. I think that may explain the somewhat strained look of excitement on our faces as we made our way to the first lift. Of course, the fact that none of us had skied in over six years may have had something to do with it. For Brian it had been twelve... that's why he looks especially sheepish. We might have grinned a little bigger if we had known that, over the next few days, we'd get about thirty inches of fresh pow-pow. (That's powder for you squares out there!)

Mom, as always, was as graceful as a gazelle when she hit the slopes. Here she is standing outside the lift line, ready to carve up some snow. Looks like a natural, don't she?! But Leslie was the most accomplished skier of us all. She didn't let a little thing like being three months pregnant stop her from rippin' snow at maximum capacity. Check her out diving in to this badass slope! BANZAI!!!
OK, let's cut to the chase: check out this video of the Boehm's skiing for the first time in years. We start with Brian (Leslie apologizes for the shaky camera work), move on to Christopher and the infamous "pizza plow," and end with the graceful, impressive ski-work of one M. Halligan Boehm. What can I say... I'm straight up Extreme!

Somebody's coming!

2007-12-24T08:35:00.000-08:00

Wow. Still reeling. You can hope and pray for something, but getting it's a whole different ballgame. It was Saturday morning, November 17th. We had been out with friends the night before (oops) and needed some, what shall we call it, convalescing time. Les threw in a pan of biscuits, I brewed a pot of coffee and we settled under the blanket to watch Knocked Up. No, I'm not kidding, and yes, I recognize the irony. Not three hours later, Leslie's peeing on a stick and I'm going weak at the knees.

Movie quote: "Somebody's coming! Somebody's coming!"
Bill Murray, Ghostbusters

The question then becomes, well, what to do now? Pace around the house for a little while, obviously, that much is certain. But what then? Can't tell the parent's yet... Thanksgiving's only a few days away - an around the dinner table announcement would be priceless. Can't call friends in Birmingham - they might accidentally let the parents know. Can't toast the moment with champagne - Leslie particularly unhappy as the reality of that fact sets in. Can't sit still..

Buy more sticks?

Buy more sticks.

Yep. It's official.

Somehow each stick hit home a little more: a little babe was on the way. Not easy to hold on to such a big secret, even for five days.

But the celebration was worth the wait. We told everyone at the Lantrip Family Thanksgiving dinner. Earlier that week, Leslie had bought a handful of "onesies" -- I'm learning these terms as I go, so bear with me -- and painted names on each: World's Best Grandparents, Uncle Patrick and Aunt Mandy, Uncle Michael and Aunt Leigh Anne... even one for Granny. That night at, around the dinner table, everyone received the bag with his or her painted onesie. There was some hemming and hawing going on in that room, I'll tell you what. Lotta happy faces! Cheers, cheers, and a piece of pie for everyone... we're gonna be parents!