Sunday, December 5, 2010

18 Week Progress Report

So... Just a quick progress report on the beautiful mother-to-be. She is 18 weeks along and doing great! I thought that I would post a few before pictures starting at 4 weeks and the current picture at 18 weeks for a little side-by-side comparison.

4 Weeks

5 Weeks

6 Weeks

7 Weeks

8 Weeks

9 Weeks

10 Weeks

11 Weeks

12 Weeks

13 Weeks

14 Weeks

15 Weeks

16 Weeks

17 Weeks

18 Weeks

I know that it might not seem like a big difference yet, but that baby has been doing some growing the last few weeks! And I am sure that anytime now that belly is going to start really poking out there! We are so excited, especially that in less than 2 weeks we will find out if it is a boy or a girl! If anyone cares to make a wager on what the gender will be, please feel free! (I am going to add my guess right after I post this.)

In other news, Nicole has been really busy with work, like crazy busy! I have one week left of class and then tests the next week. We got our first real snow of the season, only about 3-4 inches, but it definitely helps us to be in a more festive mood. We are plugging away for these next two weeks before finishing the first semester of medical school and we get to fly home to Utah for the holidays!

Monday, November 29, 2010

Happy Thanksgiving!

We had a great Thanksgiving and a wonderful break this past weekend!
I have to write this one post really quickly because it was definitely the funniest part of the weekend. We were driving back from Thanksgiving with some friends when the two pregnant ladies in our car decided that they ABSOLUTELY had to have some sweet potato fries! We stopped to get some dinner when the following conversation occurred at our table:

Nicole (after our food arrived at the table):
Wow! I think my eyes are bigger than my stomach!

Me:
Yeah, but pretty soon your stomach will be bigger than your eyes!

(Laughter from the four of us at the table)

Complete and total stranger sitting at the table next to us with his little boy:
Wow! Did you really just say that to her?

Nicole:
Oh! It's OK, I'm pregnant.

It was really funny and we all got a really big laugh out of it, especially after the guy and his son left!

Sunday, November 14, 2010

Family: Isn't It About Time?

Yes, indeed it is about time for Cole and I! We are so excited to announce that we will be having a baby in May! And it is ABOUT TIME we started this family, right?! Many of you may have already heard but we wanted to make the official blog post and to give the full story to those who may not have heard it.

Nicole and I moved to Milwaukee the first week of August. Nicole started work again for Ernst & Young in the Milwaukee office and I started medical school at MCW. After a few weeks Nicole started having the "feeling" that she might be pregnant so we made the long drive to Target to pick up a few tests before making the even longer drive home! When we got home she took the test and put it on the bathroom sink for the required 3 minutes. She went in first to look at it before I came in after her. She tried very hard to hide her expressions but I knew right away what it said!

Pregnancy Test

We were so excited for this news! After a few weeks Nicole made her first appointment with the doctor and we got our ultrasound pictures which were so amazing! I never really thought ultrasound pictures were anything too great to look at but it is way different when it is your kid that you are looking at! This was one of our favorites that they took at 11 weeks (4 weeks ago).

11 Week Ultrasound

And of course I made Nicole pose for a pregnancy picture this morning. There really hasn't been much to show up until the last few days. Nicole is just over 15 weeks along today! She wanted to keep her cardigan on but I told her that would not work for a belly shot so she had to hold it back. She looks great!

15 Week Pregnancy Photo

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Fall Fun

Fall has been a busy, busy time for me and Colb this year! Colb spends most of his time studying, at school, and studying. He's made it through his first two blocks of tests and is getting ready for the next batch in a week and a half.

However, he has had plenty of alone time to study as I have been working on the road for the last month. I have been in Indianapolis, Minneapolis, Canada, and California. Thankfully, this is my last week out of town (for a bit) and I get to go home to Milwaukee!

In the short weekends that we have together, we play really hard. We love our new friends in Milwaukee and spend a lot of weekends with the other M1 couples doing anything from temple trips to game nights. On the weekend before test week, I usually party with only the girls (since the guys are way too busy studying).

We haven't been very good at remembering the camera, but here are a couple pictures from our Mario Cart tournament/pictionary/breakfast-for-dinner night and a few from intermural flag football. (Long story, but you won't see any flags in these flag football pictures...)

The Gang (or part of us) eating dinner

The guys intense on their Wii game

Teresa and Ashlyn slaving away in the kitchen


The team

My flag football player

The huddle

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Seven-Eighty-Eight



(Days married to my best friend. Love you Cole!)

Thursday, September 30, 2010

Loving Wife!

I just wanted to make a quick post with a picture of me and my amazingly beautiful wife! She is the best and I love her so much! I can't wait for her to get back from Canada tomorrow!

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Take Me Out to the Ball Game

A couple weeks ago I won the office tickets to watch the Milwaukee Brewers, so Colby and I and some medical school friends went to the baseball game. We had great seats just behind 3rd base on the third row. It was a beautiful day at Miller Park, and we enjoyed being outside and watching some baseball.

Trevor, Teresa, Nicole, and Colby
(Trevor and Colby had their first round of medical school tests the next day, so we were glad they took a study break to watch some baseball.)


Miller Park


Sausage Racing: A Brewer Fan Favorite
(Every home game after the 6th inning, these five sausages race from third base to home plate and end at first base. It's pretty entertaining to watch.)


Just us

Monday, September 6, 2010

Thankful

I think it was Eleanor Roosevelt who said, "Absence makes the heart grow fonder." I don't know if we would say that there was any fondness absent, but our move to Milwaukee has given Colby and me an even greater appreciation for our families. It's kind of a crazy feeling when you can't jump in the car and see them in a few hours.

We are so thankful for the love and support they give us. We appreciate all the help and sacrifices they made to help us make this move and start this new phase of our lives. We miss being close and watching soccer and football games, school programs, violin and piano recitals, and everything that's going on in their lives. However, we are very thankful for cell phones, Skype, text messaging, e-mail, Facebook, and blogs. We love you all--Dad and Mom Duncan, Dad and Mom Hales, Katie, Brian, Braxton, Tim, Mitch, Slater, Brynlie, Tieker, and Halli!

Below are a couple of family pictures right before we moved.

The Hales Clan


The Duncan Clan
(minus Tim who is serving a mission in Scotland)

Thursday, September 2, 2010

Big Changes Coming To The Blog!

This is Colby, just checking in on the blog. Nicole has done a great job keeping it updated lately! I thought I would try to contribute a little bit by adding the new picture to the top of the page. Nothing special. Look for more awesome updates in the weeks to come!

Saturday, August 28, 2010

White Coat Ceremony

Colb is officially on his way to becoming a doctor. We attended his White Coat Ceremony a couple weeks ago where the new medical students are "robed" in their white coats. During the program they talked about the the sacrifice required to become a doctor and the compassion it takes to be an effective doctor. It was really inspiring, and I might have even shed a fear tears. Colb is going to be a great doctor!

He has now completed his first two weeks of classes and loving it. I asked him if it has been everything he expected and he said it was more intense than he thought it would be, but he is doing great, studying a lot, and looking forward to the rest.

White Coat: Check!

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Two Years Down and an Eternity to Go


As of last Sunday, Colb and I have been married for two years! I can't believe it! In a way it seems like the time has passed so quickly. On the other hand, it feels like it's been forever that we've been married.

It has been a wonderful two years, and I'm so thankful for an eternity ahead of us! Can't wait to share this new chapter of our lives with an amazing man and my best friend! Love you Colb!

Colb heard a song on the radio that was stuck in his head for a few days. I really liked the chorus and thought it voiced some of my feelings after two years together!

You and me together, we could do anything, Baby
You and me together yeah, yeah

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Welcome to Milwaukee

Colb and I have officially moved! We packed our bags, loaded the truck, and started the long drive to Wisconsin last Wednesday.

Colb is attending medical school at the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW). He was told yesterday that MCW could also stand for Mormons, Californians, and Wisconsinians which seems quite fitting after meeting some of the other students. I transferred offices and am still working at Ernst & Young.

We will miss our families and friends, Sugarhouse Park, Café Rio, and the mountains, but we are excited for the new adventures that await us here in Milwaukee. Although life continues to be busy and crazy, we will try to be better about keeping the blog current with updates about our journey.

Sunday, July 25, 2010

The Last Hurrah


Colb and I decided that we needed one last hurrah before he started medical school, so we decided to go on a cruise at the beginning of July. Our cruise left from Miami and went to Grand Cayman, Isla Roatan, Belize, and Cozumel. We had a blast! The absolutely only sad part of the cruise is that we didn't get to go to Belize because we were following hurricane Alex, and it was too windy to get into port.

The water was amazing! We went to beaches that I only thought existed on postcards and relaxed to our heart's content. We shopped, snorkeled, and explored these amazing parts of the world.


Thursday, June 10, 2010

Hunkin' Duncan

Some days I still have a hard time believing that I am actually married to Colby Duncan—the talented, smart, good looking, funny, caring guy that I grew up with. Among some of the Union High School girls, he was also known as “Hunkin’ Duncan” and pretty wonderful. He is still pretty wonderful, and I am so grateful to be married to him!

He turned 25 on Monday and so I thought I’d share 25 (of the billion) things I love about him and that he’s done in the last year.

1. He was accepted to medical school and starts this fall. He’s going to be a great doctor!

2. He is the most patient person I have ever met in my life. He never gets mad or loses his temper (which is a lot more than most of us can say). ;o)

3. Ran a marathon last month (and did a lot of other running) and did a great job! He is very self-disciplined. We trained for the marathon together, and he always kept me going. I am not as fast as him so he would run back and forth past me so he was still close to me when we were running in the dark. I really appreciate all the extra laps he ran around Liberty and Sugarhouse parks, the late night and early morning pep talks, and the thumbs up every time we passed.

4. He’s done more dishes and folded more laundry than I have in the past year, and he’s good at it! (maybe we should keep this going…)

5. He can fix anything especially computers and keeps me and the rest of the family in good computer condition.

6. He is unselfish and spends his extra time volunteering at two hospitals, working with the young men, keeping chores done, etc.

7. He tells the best jokes ever and always makes me laugh.

8. He has a strong testimony of the gospel.

9. He is a consistent exerciser. It is one of my favorite things to do with him (although he may not always believe that).

10. Smart, intelligent, and always has the answers

11. Family man

12. Optimistic

13. He is a great cuddler (my justification to him for why we only sleep on ¼ of our already small bed). ;o)

14. Good listener

15. Very supportive and encouraging--brings out the best in people

16. Values educations and learning

17. Attractive—tan skin, big green eyes, nice muscles, dark hair

18. He can do a little bit of everything—sports, music, building, cars, cook, books, etc. This always gives me a huge sense of security and is also really fun because he has lots of interests.

19. He can name songs, music groups, etc. with the best of them!

20. Great team player—I always want him on my team when we are just playing games with the fam and especially in life. Glad he’s my partner!

21. He is a great goal setter and accomplisher.

22. Thoughtful (and loving, respective, caring, considerate)…

23. He graduated with a degree in Chemistry and minors in Math, Physics, and Biology. (Refer to number 10).

24. Kind—they always told us as young women that when we were looking for a spouse we should watch how a guy treats small animals, old ladies, and his mother and sisters to see if they would be kind of respectful. That is Colb. He is extremely gentle with small animals, all of the older ladies in our ward and condos adore him (we live in a retired community), and he treats his mom, sisters, and me like queens!

25. He is a hard worker. Whether it is doing physical labor, writing medical school essays, exercising, working at the U, reventing the dryer, or formatting a computer, he gives 110%.


Yes, I’m lucky enough to be married to this amazing guy. Love you Colb! I am so thankful for an eternity with you!

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Race Time!

Run a marathon: Check!

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Sunday, May 23, 2010

The Primary President

So today at church we were sitting in the chapel waiting for sacrament meeting and I was up in front of the chapel waiting to pass the sacrament. As I passed the sacrament I noticed that Nicole had left the chapel, or so I thought. When I finished passing and returned to our seat I found that she was still absent. I continued towards the door to see if she was outside when I spotted her at the back of the chapel sitting next to one of her primary kids.
After she got up and we returned to our seats I asked her about her odd disappearance. It turns out she had seen one of her primary girls crying at the back of the chapel and Nicole had gone to comfort her and to sit by her until her brothers returned from passing the sacrament as well. It just reminded me of how great Nicole is and how much she cares about others. She is the best primary president!

Friday, May 14, 2010

The Countdown

It is Friday the 14th and there are only 21 hours left until the marathon starts! We have our running gear, shoes, music and headphones, gummies, and we are way excited to get going! Today we will drive to Ogden and visit the Expo to pick up our race bibs. Then off we go to bed! We will wake up tomorrow at about 4 AM to eat breakfast and start getting ready. The bus leaves at 4:45 and then we are off! Wish us luck!

Thursday, May 13, 2010

Ogden Marathon

So it has been awhile since the blog has been updated...again. Sorry! Life has been pretty crazy since the last post. I interviewed at the Medical College of Wisconsin on March 5th and flew to Virginia to interview at Virginia Tech on March 6th! We have heard back from those two schools and the University of Utah and I am currently on the wait-list for all three. In March Nicole spent three weeks in Fresno, CA working hard on an audit there. All-the-while we were putting in the miles for our marathon training.
The marathon is in two days and we are getting very excited! We have worked really hard and put in hours and hours of running to be able to do this. It is going to be an awesome experience and I know that we can do this. I can't believe that it is already here. We will have more pictures and stories to tell after this weekend, I am sure. That is the basic update on our lives right now. The marathon has been a big focus for us these last few weeks. We will post again this weekend and share our experiences from the marathon!

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

BYU Vs. Utah Game


So, it has been an interesting month! Since the last post Nicole and I have been pretty busy. Nicole started her busy season and has been working like crazy! I was supposed to go on the Klondike camp but was sick and it was snowing hard so I didn't end up going. As I recovered from my sickness I developed the nice cold sore that you can see in the picture. That weekend we went to Avatar in 3D and had a great time. The young men also took first in the Klondike sled race so we threw a short pizza/wii party for them and had a blast!

Nicole and I went to the Jazz Vs. Kings game on Friday night and then the BYU Vs. Utah game on Saturday. I love to watch the Jazz, especially when they play well which they have been. And of course Nicole had fun watching Kyle Korver! Saturday was actually really busy and as you can see from the picture I clearly love Nicole to pieces because I wore a blue shirt! I still cheered hard for the U though! I am going to try harder to keep the blog up-to-date, but I have a hard time posting without pictures which means I will need to take more pictures.

In other news, Nicole and I are making it through the winter with hopes of a sunny vacation sometime in the coming months. We are also training hard for the Ogden Marathon on May 15th. It is really exciting to be doing it but it is going to be a lot of work! I have an interview at the Medical College of Wisconsin on March 5th and as of yet we have not heard back from the U. We hope that whenever we hear back that it will be good news!

Sunday, January 10, 2010

Home for the Holidays

This year we had a special treat for the holidays. Colb and I both had brothers serving missions who returned home. Brian Hales arrived home two days before Thanksgiving from the Argentina, Buenos Aires West Mission. Braxton Duncan returned a few weeks later on December 15 from the New York, Rochester Mission. We are so excited to have them back!

We spent Thanksgiving and Christmas in cold Roosevelt and really enjoyed the time, good food, visiting, games, late nights, traditions, and family. We missed Tim who is in the MTC learning Chinese and preparing to serve in the Scotland, Edinburgh Mission. We also missed Grandma Lamb who passed away Christmas Eve returning to our heavenly home for the holidays. We are so thankful for the gospel in our lives and our knowledge of eternal families.

We had wonderful holidays and thoroughly enjoyed the time together and not working!

We don't have pics right now of Brax getting home, but I'll go ahead and post the a few holiday pics.

Our first moments with Bri and the airport

Rise and shout the cougars are out!
BYU vs. Utah football game

Cheering on our teams

Playing some Wii over the break
(I love Mom in the background folding laundry)

Making Christmas sugar cookies with Colb
This is my least favorite part as you can see by the mess (where are you when I need you LeAnn)!

The finished products!
We made over four dozen--way too many!

The guys talked Halli into giving them a back rub after dinner