seeing horses in a new light

those of you who know my sister lindsay and i, know that perhaps our biggest difference is her love of horses and my desire to keep my distance from the animals. lindsay has been riding for for 15 years and has owned willie for about 4, and the closest i come to touching him is about like this...

i think he is scared of me too. growing up, every time lindsay got to choose what to do for a birthday or special occasion, we could all bank on going to see horses in some form...arabian nights, birthday party at a stable, donkey rides, and other things and places that really stink. i cringed on the inside, and maybe sometimes on the outside, plugged my nose, and went along for the ride.

well, this month cavalia came to atlanta. it's directed by the same guy who helped get cirque du soleil going, and incorporates horses with all of the other crazy acrobatics that make the show famous. since i did dream of being an acrobat at one point in my life, and since lindsay wouldn't miss any local event that involves her equine friends, mom and dad took us all to see the show at the big top last night.

it started out a little slow and i (and i'm pretty sure andy and dad) were feeling a little skeptical, but before long, acrobats were flipping on the backs of cantering mustangs, flying down from the ceiling and landing in the saddle, and amazingly bouncing around the ring while artfully missing the piles of poop that were being produced by the stars of the show. i didn't think it was possible, but for the first time in my life i have decided that horses are really quite pretty and brilliant. it's impossible to explain how talented some of these trainers, acrobats and horses were but here are a few photos so you can get an idea...

this was my favorite part, but since we couldn't take photos, this is the best i could find.

this girl, sylvia zerbini, somehow got 8 horses to all walk in formations together like the rockettes, using her pointer finger and horse language. she was amazing.

after seeing the show, i feel confident that we can have a family act traveling the world...lindsay can do the horse training and i'll work on my acrobatics. andy can sing, dad can set up our tent and mom can sell water during intermission and make trips to publix to get apples for the horses. i think it will be a great success.

welcome to the 21st century

a few months ago we made enough money at our garage sale to purchase a new television. the one we have in our house is about the size of a refrigerator, and somehow the screen is only 19 inches. we were really excited about our new piece of technology, watched our entire dvd library (which consists of the chronicles of narnia, zoolander, juno, fever pitch and how to lose a guy in ten days) in it's entirety at least two times, and got completely caught up on all five seasons of the office. after much debate and many nights at the harmon's watching lost, we gave in a got cable this weekend.

i think the final decision was made on wednesday night when we were watching the magic game via espn.com's gamecast. this is not actual video footage of the game, it's x's and o's on a court that shoot little bubbles out every now and then to tell you about a rebound, foul, or timeout. it was working really well for us, until we realized that it was about as reliable as listening for the cheers and boos coming from the bar down the street to get a real time idea of what was going on. so on wednesday night andy made friends with the man on the other side of the phone at direct tv, and scored not only an awesome deal on cable, but also 2 free $100 visa gift cards!

so far, we have thoroughly enjoyed the luxury of cable. yesterday i learned how to make an entirely deep fried thanksgiving dinner, thanks to paula deen, and we also refreshed our knowledge of wwii events with a documentary on the history channel. i thought we were missing out on much greater things. maybe there will be better stuff on during the week. until next time, if you have any questions regarding the american's sneak attack on the japanese military at guadalcanal on august 7, 1942, you can feel free to give me a call.

happy tuesday

today is a good day for a few reasons.

• starbucks released their christmas drinks and red cups. when i finish writing this, i am walking to starbucks to have a white peppermint mocha with caroline on the phone. despite the fact that she lives in north carolina, we will always drink our first seasonal beverage at the same time.
• we had an ultrasound and got to see janie at a much fatter stage than the last time we saw her. in fact, seeing her size (3 pounds 12 ounces, which is far ahead of where she should be at this point) gave me hope that she may have a chance at surpassing a height of five feet.
• the weather is cool, which means for the first time in quite a while, i am not sweating.
• a lady told me i looked nice, which really beats the rest of the comments i've received over the past few weeks. some of them include "you're enormous!", "that's gonna be one HUGE baby!", "has your doctor mentioned anything about you gaining too much weight?" and many, many more.

this weekend we traveled up to atlanta where the summit christmas album was mastered. it is a masterpiece indeed, and i can't wait for everyone to hear it. all of the folks that contributed to it (including the hand clappers) are so super talented! luckily, we returned home in time for halloween with some good friends. here are some photos to document the evening.

juno and paulie bleeker...we went into publix dressed like this, and the helpful store clerk told me i should be sure not to drink any alcohol wherever i was going, then laughed and said, "i'm just kidding...i know it's just a costume". apparently my stomach looks fake. we fooled him, alright.

this is simon simon, explaining all of his eagle scout milestones. he earned badges for saving lives, tying knots, catching fish with his bare hands, and wearing worlds greatest knee highs, all before his eighteenth birthday.

you're probably thinking, 'this costume wins the contest hands down. she even brought her own horse to the party!' turns out, it isn't a costume at all. my little sister lindsay rides on SCAD's equestrian team and had a few shows this weekend. of course she came in first in all of the events she rode in, which has led me to ponder if it's too late for me to excel in some form of an athletic event. lindsay informed me that the "ribbons" i won during my days on the swim team were merely honorable mentions given to make the losers feel like winners. with that heartbreaking news, i have decided that once janie arrives i am going to challenge myself to rightfully earn a real award by training for (and completing) a half marathon. anyone with me?

butternut squash

this week marked the start of the third trimester! i've been getting mixed reviews about whether the next 11 weeks will fly by or be the worst two months of my life (thanks, to those of you who suggest the latter). currently, janie is the size of a butternut squash...about 15 inches long and 2 1/2 pounds. we are so excited to meet her, and the preparations are coming along nicely. i found out last week that the crib and dresser won't be here until late november, which i reacted very irrationally to. in fact, it was so absurd, i'm not even sure i can blame that scene on pregnancy. anyways, i've come to my senses and realized that there is no need for a crib until january and managed to turn my anger about that into excitement about these wall sconces and chandelier that we found on super clearance at lightstyles down near lake ivanhoe.

here are a few of my favorite janie things...

this is one of my favorite little outfits.

lauren found these adorable little shoes on etsy!

clearly, andy's child must own a pair of cowboy (or girl) boots. thanks mom and dad!

our friends monica and brackston bought these awesome headphones so janie can accompany her rock star dad to shows and recording sessions, and have her little ears protected.

as you can see, janie already has what it takes to be a pretty awesome little girl. andy's hoping she takes after me and spends the majority of her first 15 years playing baby dolls, swimming with floaties, and showing little interest in boys. for her sake, i'm hoping that she is way cooler than i was and finds something better to spend her babysitting money on than babies r' us gear for her dolls. no joke, i really did that.

alright, i'm heading to drop my computer off at the apple store to be fixed, so don't be expecting any exciting updates for the next week or so. i'm flying up to boston in the morning for my shower. despite that fact that i will probably be freezing from tomorrow at noon until sunday at 2 since i don't have a single jacket that will button over my belly, i'm really looking forward to seeing everyone. sadly, andy will not be joining me because he is opening for the blues travelers with mike dunn and the kings of new england tomorrow night at house of blues. in closure, this is the wife of a rock star, signing off.

hello, delaney harmon!

5:45 am - i'm practically typing this with one hand, as i keep my phone in the other, anxiously awaiting tim or shannon's phone call...at 12:30 this morning she called to say they were on their way to the hospital because shannon thought (though wasn't positive) that she was in labor. all i know as i write this is that delaney downey harmon is here!

the last time i had such intense butterflies in my stomach was the night before our wedding. if you know me, you know that it is a real stretch for me to stay awake for a movie or television show in it's entirety. well, over the past 6 hours i have watched approximately 8 seasons of the office. that should be a good indicator of the level of excitement i'm experiencing.

in between jim and pam's romantic love story (i'm still on season 4), i found myself having a conversation of sorts with god. events like this always lead me to be reminded and amazed by the fact that he knew, well before anyone even considered our existence, the exact moment that we would enter into the world, the exact number of hairs that would reside on our little misshapen heads, and the journey we would take throughout the rest of our days on earth. we hear it often, but i think the past 6 months have made it a much more real concept, being able to apply it the the little girl that is growing inside of me.

welcome to the world, delaney! you are so loved, and until janie arrives, you are my favorite little girl on the planet!

3:37 pm - yep, favorite little girl indeed. i just got home from the hospital and can assure you that delaney is one of the best looking babies i have ever seen.

"for you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. i praise you because i am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, i know that full well. my frame was not hidden from you when i was made in the secret place. when i was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be." psalm 139:13-16

my 23.333333rd birthday

i should start this blog out by introducing you to some of our great friends, brianne and eddie kaufholz.

brianne is a coupon cutting, free food finding, mall madness winning, green element driving superstar. and she is hilarious. her husband eddie is a beer brewing master and has been featured on many great blogs. he is commonly referred to as an angel here on earth. well, i'd like to give eddie a break from the spotlight and focus in on his other half, bri.

last friday evening was a night worth writing about, and we owe it all to brianne and her coupon cutting skills. striving to be a good steward of all that she has, bri purchased a $50 gift certificate to SEA Thai for just $4. (if you're as interested in free things as brianne, you should check out her blog). upon printing out the coupon, there of course, was fine print which read "$50 off a $100 purchase". most people (me) would be super frustrated that they got tricked into such a deal...after all, what two people can consume $100 worth of pad thai and praram? bri's optimism and generosity led her to view the mishap as an opportunity to invite joey, lauren, andy and i along for the great coupon redemption. surely six of us could reach the $100 minimum. if you aren't familiar with SEA Thai, you should know that this is what it looks like...

as you might imagine, i was quite hesitant to enter into this place to eat, especially since it would be my first thai food experience, but eddie and brianne have never let us down.

turns out, the inside is really nice and it was totally packed. we finally got a table and our waitress, K, asked us immediately what the occasion was. in not-so-perfect harmony, eddie and brianne answered, "oh, no special occasion" and "it's her birthday!" (while pointing at me). i'll let you guess who's response was who's. great. we've started out on a good note. after the wave of embarrassment subsided, we enjoyed a 2 hour single course meal. the food was great, service not so great. or so we thought...

we had asked multiple times for our check, but to no avail. just as we were losing our patience, the whole kitchen crew came parading out to our table with a platter of birthday treats, complete with a candle glued to the center and "happy b-day" scrawled in chocolate sauce, just for me. i was serenaded by the SEA Thai staff and good friends and then consumed more fried bananas and thai donuts than one could imagine. it was the best birthday i've ever had 2 months after my birthday. thank you bri, for making it all possible.

and then there were two...

for the past 6 months i have enjoyed being pregnant with two of my favorite people on earth, lizzy and shannon. well, today, october 14 2009, lizzy moved on to bigger and better things, leaving shannon and i counting down the days until we join her as ladies with babies outside of our bellies, rather than in. fortunately for shannon, her countdown is just 12 days.

luke joel hunter made his grand entrance into the world this afternoon, and boy, is he good looking. we are really hoping that janie and luke fall in love and get married.

congratulations, joel, lizzy and luke! we love you guys a whole lot and can't wait to meet your sweet little man.