Annalise is learning her prayers!

Tonight Annalise said the "Lord's Prayer" by herself without trying to make me laugh by putting potty words in the verses. (I'm trying to make her understand that her bedtime prayers are NOT the time to incorporate the word "poo-poo" for comic effect.) She was so proud that she wanted to say it over and over (or maybe she was just stalling going to sleep?), so I finally had to grab my camera. Couldn't resist sharing it! She just started learning "Hail Mary" so we'll see how she does with that one!

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And we're having a...

BOY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

His head, hand, and chest...
a future thumb sucker like his sister? We hope so!

Another cute head shot.

Proof that he's a boy!

And a perfect tiny little foot.

We couldn't believe it when the ultrasound tech said "It's a boy!" We were predicting another girl, which would have been wonderful as well. But, of course we're so very excited! And even though Ricky never actually admitted to rooting for a boy, he's SOOOOO thrilled. Annalise said it was going to be a boy, and she was right! (Of course she also said his name is going to be "Ruthie Patch" - my mom's name - but one out of two isn't bad!)

Broadway Baby

Annalise is ready to audition for the cast of "Annie." Unfortunately my camera cut off before her grand finale, but you get the idea! Hmmm...sadly she may have inherited my voice talents, but she certainly sings with conviction! :)

Enjoy!
Laura



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Our trip to St. Augustine

Earlier this week we returned from St. Augustine, FL where we went with our friends Kelly & Seth and their girls Jordan & Mya. We stayed at Ricky's parents' house and had a great time! Here are some pics...

Laura and Annalise relaxing on the beach

All of us enjoying the carousel in downtown St. Augustine

Laura and Annalise playing in the waves!

Annalise watching a dolphin at Marineland

Laura and Kelly on the dock at Capp's

Mya's first day at the beach!

Jordan and Annalise ready to hit the beach!

We're Blogging!

An O'Connell Blog! Wow, we seem to get more techno-saavy all the time! : )

Here is our blog, and we're hoping our out-of-town relatives & friends (and even those two miles down the road) will check in and catch up on our latest happenings.

This is the low-down on our family...

Ricky is the president and owner of a landscaping company and he's built the business from the ground up. When we met, he was lugging a small trailer around behind an old Mercury Cougar. Very professional! : ) He now has a shop, several box trucks, a crew of difficult employees, and a long list of customers. Of course, our yard continues to be the WORST yard in the neighborhood! I'm thinking of hiring our elderly neighbor to be our landscaper.

I (Laura) am enjoying staying at home with Annalise, and soon there will be another one in tow! This year I will not be coaching the St. Pius Dance Team anymore. I coached for five years and I'm happy to have a break. I had too many distractions to give it my all anymore. But, I am keeping up my little side business, sewing and embroidering baby & toddler clothing and accessories. I've been quite busy lately! But, I'm hoping to have some downtime in the next couple of weeks to sew some things for friends, family, and of course Annalise! My "company" is with two of my best college friends, Leslie and Julie, and it's called Blueberry Daisy. I have a not-so-up-to-date website: www.blueberrydaisyatlanta.com.

Annalise is our toddler, who will be three years old in October. (I can't believe it!) We're already talking about her upcoming birthday party. She is SO MUCH FUN. Every day she says something to make us laugh. Each Tuesday we go to The Music Class, which we both love. We have made some good friends there and we routinely go to lunch at Mama Fu's with about four other moms and their kids. It's insane. I'm sure the employees dread our arrival each Tuesday. But, Music Class brings us both so much joy, and we're blessed by having her teacher, Moira Nelligan, in our lives. Moira is fun, silly, nurturing, talented, and wonderful. She has a Celtic band that she performs with and we have her CD, which Annalise must listen to in the car each time we go someplace. I love Music Class because it's a time I can dance, sing, and snuggle with Annalise and not be distracted by sewing, my laptop (I need laptop rehab), the phone, etc.

Baby #2 is well on the way! My due date is Dec 2, but I'll have a repeat c-section at the end of November, probably a bit after Thanksgiving. Annalise is already getting things ready for the baby, finding spare spoons and pacifiers to help out. We find out whether this baby is a boy or girl on Wednesday, July 18, only five days from now!! We can't wait!