Sunday, January 27, 2008

Gambling, UFC, and JORTS!!!

Last weekend , Susan, flew down to care of Abby so that Andrew and I could enjoy some time away. While it always hard for me to leave Abby, this time seemed to be a little worse. Since she is getting older, she understands that I am leaving and she knows that I am gone. It did help to know she was in good hands. I did not let that stop me from having a good time. We headed to Biloxi to meet up with some of Andrew's friends from his time in Honduras. It was like a mini-reunion! On Friday night we headed out to the casinos in Biloxi. We hit up the Beau Rivage, where the guys gambled and the girls watched a bit and then went dancing!! The next day, a few of us headed over to the Hard Rock for a few rounds of blackjack and a nice (free) buffet! We LOVED the Hard Rock, the dealers were nice, friendly, and fun and we made some money!!! That night Brenda and Paul (our hosts for the weekend) had a UFC party. They made some ribs and we all hung out and watched the fights. The next day we headed home to see Abby!! It was a great weekend, it was nice for Andrew and I to get away and Abby enjoyed her time with Grammy. Thanks again Susan!!

Let the night begin!

Our wonderful hosts Brenda and Paul

Some of the Honduras boys
From L to R: Brian, JP, Paul, Andrew

The girls: Brenda, me, Chelsea

Matt and Andrew at the Hard Rock by the Led Zepplin drumsticks


Me and Andrew at the Hard Rock, this casino treated us well...

....it treated Matt even better!!!

The gang during the UFC fight. The guys were sporting their jorts in true Honduran fashion!

Look at those sexy jorts!!!!

And the men who wear them :)

Wednesday, January 23, 2008

Pardon the interruption...

...But, we have breaking news in the Vrabec household....Bucky is finally home. After his extended Colorado vacation of 7 months we are happy to report he is back in Florida with us. We missed him lots, especially Andrew and Abby. When Abby got out of the bath tub last night she looked at me and said, "please bring me to my Bucky." Any worries I had about them getting along have been put to rest for the moment!




PS....Yes, those are Abby's Halloween pjs. Time to do some laundry!!! :)

Tuesday, January 22, 2008

Birthday Dinner

For my birthday dinner we went to a nice Italian restaurant called Grazie, in Destin.  The food was yummy and company was great.  It was a quiet night overall, but I couldn't have asked for anything better than eating good food, chatting, sipping some wine and being with my wonderful family!!!

Aww, this picture makes me feel so loved!!

Thursday, January 17, 2008

Tea for three!

For my birthday Susan, Abby and I decided to do something a little different and had lunch at the Ivy Leaf tea parlor here in Crestview. It was a lot of fun and the tea parlor even has dress up clothes that you can use while you are there. Susan and I enjoyed the "light afternoon tea" which consisted of our own pot of delicious tea, fruit, a scone, 1/2 chicken salad croissant, and dessert. I brought along a PB&J sandwich for Abby and she picked from our plates. It was wonderful and Abby even enjoyed some tea in her very own little tea cup. This is definitely a place I want to go back to, and I am sure Abby will enjoy it even more in a few months!









Tuesday, January 15, 2008

Our little cheesehead

Since the Broncos didn't make it to the playoffs this year, I told Abby it would be ok to cheer on the Packers!! Don't get too used to seeing her sporting a cheese head because as soon as next season starts she will be back to being Broncos fan ;)

The Florida Trail

This past weekend we headed right down the street and went for a nice walk on the Florida Trail. Abby did well in her kelty backpack and enjoyed looking for deer, although we didn't see any! We walked out to the stream where Abby enjoyed playing on the bridge and throwing leaves into the water and watching them float away. It was a really nice way to spend the afternoon.













I even took my turn carrying Abby in the backpack!!!

Wednesday, January 09, 2008

New Years Eve

We were unable to find a babysitter for New Years Eve, but that doesn't mean we didn't have fun! Andrew cooked us a nice dinner and after we put Abby down for the night we headed outside and joined the neighbors party. Wade (our next door neighbor) made a trip to Alabama earlier in the week to get some fireworks. They were some crazy fireworks...really loud! They put on quite the show! Afterward we headed to our back yard to enjoy a fire in the fire pit. While it was a low key night, it was one of the best New Year's Eve's we have had. Plus, we didn't spend a small fortune to go out on the town! Hope everyone else enjoyed their New Years Eve as well!!! Happy 2008 :)




This is not recommended: Lighting fireworks with a cigarette in your mouth!



Enjoying the fire!!

Sunday, January 06, 2008

New Camera!

Thank-you so much George and Jane for the new camera! Cheyna and I have been busy figuring all the ins and outs of our new Digital SLR the last few weeks. Here is a bit of the "product." Thanks again!!






Wednesday, January 02, 2008

A Look Back at 2007

This is a recap of our year. I know most (if not all) of this has previously been posted, but it was fun for me to go back and look at all that has taken place. We have enjoyed our year in Florida and have made some wonderful and lifelong friends along the way. We have been blessed in so many ways, and watching Abigail grow up has been an absolute joy! We are looking forward to the year to come.


January: We ushered in 2007 stuck in Memphis. We got the last hotel room near the airport and were given a cage as a crib for Abby. I must say it was not the best way to spend New Year's Eve. We did make it out the next day and were very happy to be home. I turned 27, and had a wonderful birthday evening. Sam and Brian watched Abby overnight and Andrew and I headed to Pensacola to the Melting Pot for some yummy fondue and wonderful evening out. We also enjoyed a visit from Jason, complete with disc golf!


February: This was a tough month for us. It started out nicely, with a wonderful visit from my friend Kristi, followed by a visit from my dad. But unfortunately, Abby was very sick the entire time he was here. We visited 2 different E.R.'s for a total of 4 hospital trips, with many doctors appointments in between. Everything turned out to be ok, just a horrible ear infection and a scary looking rash that turned out to be harmless. The rest of the months events were a blur.



March: Andrew and I celebrated our 5th Anniversary. We marked the occasion with a cruise to the Bahamas. Andrew's mom, Susan, stayed with Abby so that we could enjoy time as a couple. We missed Abby terribly, but we had a wonderful time our cruise. Near the end of the month, Andrew had a 2 week TDY to DC so I headed to Colorado. While we were in CO, Abby received her first haircut!


April: Jason and Mel came to visit and we hit up the beach. Abby and I hosted a play date complete with an Easter Egg Hunt! It was freezing on Easter, but we enjoyed time as a family during the holiday, and the Easter Bunny treated to lots of goodies!



May: It was another tough month for us. Abby and I sent Andrew off with tears in our eyes, and heavy hearts for a 4 month deployment to Honduras. We spent time getting ready for the separation and before we knew it Andrew was gone. We did have a few trips planned, so that kept us busy. We left about 10 days after Andrew to go to DC for my cousin's wedding. We had a great time seeing all of my family and Abby really lit up the dance floor. From there we headed to Colorado to spend some time with the fam!



June: After 3 wonderful weeks in Colorado, I decided I couldn't go back to Crestview just yet. We were having so much fun in Colorado and Abby was enjoying her time with all of her grandparents and aunts/uncles. I was also enjoying all of the help I was receiving and we decided to stay for the rest of the summer.




July: We spent the month at the pool, the park, and at the gym. Abby was so enthralled with my sister Ana's gymnastics that I decided to sign her up for her own class. Abby LOVED it, and we spent the next few weeks tumbling! We also hit up our fair share of ice cream socials that were put on by the community. We enjoyed a low key 4th of July celebration and remembered how thankful we are for our freedom and those that sacrifice to provide us with it! This month also marked the halfway point in the deployment!





August: It was a bittersweet month and very busy, we would be leaving Colorado. It was really hard to leave my family, but after a quick trip to visit Andrew's side of the family, we would finally be going home. We had a great visit in Wisconsin. We went to The Wiggles concert, the zoo, the park, on a duck tour, and to the circus, just to a name a few. We had a great visit with Peter and Susan and even had the pleasure of spending lots of quality time with Andrew's grandma, Lois. We were greeted by heat and humidity when we got back to Florida, but it was nice to be in our own home again.





September: This was probably the best month of the year! We celebrated Abigail's 2nd birthday and although Andrew wasn't home to be with us yet, our friends made the day very special. When we returned home from our "summer vacation" Abby started going to "school" one day a week, and we signed up for gymnastics! Midway through the month, we had the homecoming we had been waiting 4 long months for. Andrew was finally home from Honduras!! It was wonderful having him home and he had 2 weeks off from work to be with us. I will admit it took a little getting used to again, but we very quickly readjusted as a family. We ended the month with visit from my sister Greta, and a spur of the moment road trip to Ft. Lauderdale to celebrate my dad's 50th birthday!





October: We took a trip down to the pumpkin patch. Abby dressed up as a pink Octopus for the festivities prior to Halloween. On the 31st we made the long journey overseas to Germany to visit some friends and see the sights.





November: Our trip to Germany had just begun. Andrew's parents met us out there and we were lucky enough to be able to stay with our good friends John and Becca. The highlight of the trip was meeting their son, "baby" Wes. He is just too adorable for words. We also spent a weekend in France, traveled to Belgium, Luxembourg, and hit up many of the small towns around Spangdalem. When we got back to the states we started getting ready for the holiday season. We spent a very nice Thanksgiving at home with the added company of Sam and Nolan. (Don't worry, we set an honorary place at the table for Brian. We can't wait till he comes home and he can fill his chair in person!) The end of the month was Andrew's 29th birthday and we spend the night out on the town, having a yummy dinner at McGuire's and then some dueling pianos at Howl at the Moon.





December: With the holidays in full swing, we prepared for some visitors. Andrew's dad Peter came to stay with us for a few days, but unfortunately had to leave before Christmas because he had to work. We had a great time with him and Abby really brushed up on her cooking skills while he was in town, and Andrew enjoyed a few rounds of golf with his dad. The day Andrew's dad left, his mom arrived! We spent Christmas with Susan, and Josh and Laura who also drove down from Wisconsin. We had a wonderful holiday and feel very blessed for all the wonderful opportunities and memories 2007 has provided for us as a family.



A look ahead: We have a few trips planned for 2008, and a couple of weddings to attend :) Hopefully, we will have some news in the way of a little brother or sister for Abby in the months to come! Check back...I will be posting our adventures along the way and lots of pictures (with my new camera). I hope everyone else had a wonderful and blessed New Year!!
 
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