Bun in the Oven :)

Weeeelllll.....now that I am out of the first trimester, I want to post and let everyone know that we are expecting our 3rd little blessing! We are due Feb. 5th and are so excited to be expecting again :)



First look at the bean :)

Getting huge already!

My little shadow :)

I Made a Pie :)

And I am so proud of it :) Everything was made from scratch, including the crust. I have no idea if it tastes good, but it's pretty, so I think that counts for something ;)

My attempt at organization and creativity :)

So, creativity is definitely not one of my strong suits. I love to look at other people's blogs and see all the cute and creative things that they come up with, but I have never been much good at it myself. While cleaning and organizing in Hannah's room, I got completely irritated with the mess that was her hair bows. So I got myself motivated and made her a bow board :) I have seen these on a lot of other people's blogs and it looks like such a cute way to keep hair bows organized.

The best part is that it only cost me $1.86 :) We already had the sign from a Christmas gift two years ago, and I used my 50% off coupon at Joanns for the ribbon. Cute and cheap...can't beat that in my book :)

Family Fun Weekend

We had a really fun, and really busy weekend! Saturday we went to the inlaws for a cookout and spending time with Nick's Aunt who is visiting from New Zealand. The kids had a blast playing with cousins, and we even managed to take a family picture :)


My little monkey!


Hannah playing in the dirt. She is so girly in some ways, but also a tomboy playing in the dirt :)


Family picture! We were all there at the same time, so this was a definite must :)

Sunday we spent the day with my mom's side of the family. My aunt and uncle have this fantastic cabin that is up on a huge hill and we all try and get together there every summer. It is a great way to spend time with family that we don't get to see very often, and just a relaxing way to spend the day :)


My mom and her sisters. I love this picture of them laughing and being goofy :)


My adorable grandparents :) I seriously don't think they could be any cuter :)


Our little fish. My aunt brilliantly thought to bring a pool for the kids to play in. It was perfect for a super hot day and for keeping the kids busy so the adults could visit :)


Who knew grill tongs could be so fun?!

Overall it was a fabulous weekend! We are so blessed to have most of both sides of our families close and love it when we all get together :)

Birthday Party

We had Gabes 2nd Birthday Party this past weekend, and it was sooo much fun! I know its a bit dorky, but I love doing the kids parties and coming up with fun themes, and then making a cake to match :) This year we did a farm theme. Here are some pictures of the fun :)


The birthday boy and his big sister. These two are such good buds! They fight of course, but if Hannah isn't around, Gabe is completely lost. The other day I took him to the grocery store and Hannah stayed home with daddy, and we hadn't been in the store 5 minutes when he started telling everyone, "Hannah home." I love that they are so close!


Mommy and the birthday boy :)


His present from Mommy and Daddy. Gabe is completely obsessed with mowers. When Nick mows the lawn he will stand on porch and watch him for the entire 45min-hr it takes. Then he goes on and on about "Daddy mow, daddy mow...." He was so cute opening his presents this year. He would open one thing and then he could have cared less about what else he had to open because he wanted to play with the gift he had just opened. We really had to encourage him to open something new :)


The cake :) I love making these! Unfortunately Gabe was so interested in his mower that he could have cared less about the cake and didn't even want to blow out his candles. That's ok though, I am just glad he was having fun!

2 Year Old Stats

Height = 34 1/2 inches
Weight =25.8 lbs

Sigh...he is growing up way to fast...

2 years old!

I can hardly believe that my baby boy is turning two years old today. It seems nearly impossible that two years ago Gabe was born. My sweet and onery little boy :) I love your personality and the way that you challenge me as a mom. You are one of the most determined little boys I know :) If there is something that you want, you don't stop until you figure out how to get it, or make it work. I know that this will serve you well as an adult...but you sure to keep me on my toes. You have the softest heart, and are so sweet to your sister when she is hurt. I love that you two are close! You are the most precious little boy and I love you so much Gabey! Happy birthday sweet heart!

Locks of Love

Hannah before

Me before

Hannah after...such a cheese ball :)

Me after :)

Us with our hair :)

Hannah and I chopped off all of our hair today to donate to Locks of Love :) I was so very proud of my little girl! She didn't even flinch when she got her ponytail cut off! We had a really fun girls afternoon consisting of haircuts, a trip to Claires for new hair things and milkshakes to top it all off. Love spending time with my little girl!

Who needs toys?

When you can build forts with blankets and chairs :)

Game Day!

This year for mothers day, Nick got us family tickets to an Indians game :) It was what I asked for...I love baseball :) We had a blast, and it was fun to have some family time!

Grown up things...

This is probably going to sound pretty silly, but can anyone else relate to those little things that you do that make you feel like a grown up? I planted flowers in my flower bed today....for the first time since we have lived here...and we have lived here for almost 6 years :) As silly as it sounds, it made me feel like a grown up :) I had so much fun taking the kids to the greenhouse, and picking out what we liked, and then bringing it home and planting. We didn't do anything fancy, and only time will tell if these poor plants will manage to survive, but at least for today, I felt like grown up :)

Here is a little bit of what we did today:
Potted geranium...this is Hannah's plant that she picked out :)

Geranium in a hanging basket...my favorite!

Daisies on the step.

My flower beds...geraniums and impatiens...not much to look at yet, but when the impatiens start to spread, I think they will be really pretty :)

Just because I am love with these flowers. Aren't the colors stunning?!

First Soccer Game

Saturday was Hannah's first soccer game! She is playing on the Maroon team at our local YMCA, with one of her buddies from church :) It was an interesting day to say the least :) Hannah can be pretty shy and timid in new situations, but usually warms up pretty quickly. She was a bit nervous when we first got there, but she did a good job during practice, and seemed to enjoy kicking the ball into the net with the other kids on her team.



Unfortunately, that seemed to be where the fun ended. When it came time to actually play, she didn't want to have anything to do with it. This picture pretty much sums it up....



There was also some sitting on the field and crying involved :( She kept saying that she was afraid that someone would kick her in the eye. Poor kid, I felt bad for her, but just kept encouraging her not to be scared, and to try and play. We want her to have fun, but at the same time, she needs to know that you at least have to try. So we'll be back at it next week, hopefully with smiles instead of tears :)

Happy Birthday Honey

Happy Birthday to my incredible husband :) You are my best friend, and I couldn't imagine doing life with anyone else! I love you honey!

Easter

Happy Easter...from our family to yours :)

Frustration

Sometimes I feel so bad for my little Gabey. He so badly wants to be just like his big sister, and to be able to do everything that she does. And when he can't, boy oh boy does he ever get frustrated. This picture was taken right after he tried to get the Brita out of the fridge, and he dumped it all over the kitchen floor. Poor guy. I know that his determination and drive will serve him well when he gets older, and for now, I will just continue to give him lots of love and hugs and snuggles from mommmy...while I still can :)

Bella Bean

Bella bean...that is what I always called my sisters sweet new baby, while she was pregnant with her. Last Monday, at 12:03 in the afternoon, I became an aunt again :) Arabella Mae was born and was 7 lbs 9oz and was 19.5 inches long. We weren't able to head out to visit until Saturday, but we headed out Saturday and came back on Tuesday. And oh the squishy newborn goodness! Love love love my sweet littlest niece. Hannah and Gabe had a ton of fun playing with Sera and Hannah was completely smitten with her new little cousin. She loved holding little Bella! Here are some fun pictures from the long weekend.

Remodel :)

We have lived in our home for going on six years, and during that time the list of things that we really want to fix just seems to get longer and longer :) I am sure that most people can relate to this phenomenon. You cross one thing off the list and add five more. We are big fans of Dave Ramsey, so we made it a rule that we wouldn't do any projects around the house until we could pay for them with cash. Sooooo...we have finally started being able to get some things done! Woo-hooo! First on the list was our lovely master bath. If you had seen our old bathroom, you know that I am using the term "lovely" very sarcastically!!! It was a true 70's bathroom, complete with a teal sink and toilet, a cirle shower (very star trek) and sparkly teal linoleum :) After our remodel, I think it looks like a sophisticated grown ups bathroom. Here are some before and afters, so you can see for yourself.

Before:




And after:







Next project...the kitchen :)