August's Random Ramblings

• We were at Target and one of the y0unger male employees was sporting a mowhawk. Abby looked at the guy then looked at me and said "Mommy, what is that guy?" I just sort of looked at her blankly not really knowing what or who she was talking about. And then she said, "Oh, Mommy, that man has dragon hair!"
• Abby and I were in the car talking and she was rambling on and on about something. All of a sudden the topic turned to Nolan and she said, "I want to sleep with Nolan in his bed tonight".
  
• Andrew and I were talking one night after dinner and he mentioned that he couldn't believe they (the Red Sox) got rid of Manny. From the kitchen we hear Abby ask, "Well, where did Handy Manny go?"
• On our way home one night Abby asked if I could do something I told her, "That is a Daddy job, he will do it" And she said, well what does Mommy do. I turned the question around to her and said well, what does Mommy do? To which she replied, "Nothing"
• Abby has really enjoyed having peanuts for a snack lately, so I packed some in her lunch for school the other day. She ran around the house saying, " I love penus, penus. Thank you Mommy so much for the penus!" I tried to get her to say Pee-Nuts but when she says it quickly it sounds a lot like the other word!
• Earphones for the DVD player are called "Eargloves"
• 
  

Kristi's Wedding

The plan for the wedding was to have it at the top of the mountain outside at 6pm followed by an indoor reception right there. Well, all day it didn't look like the weather was going to cooperate. Kristi was bummed and a bit stressed out, but was actually handling the situation much better than I would have. The girls headed up the gondola to the top of the mountain early to finish getting ready and take some pictures. The wedding coordinator told us Kristi wouldn't have to make a decision at about 5 as to where to have the wedding, so we prayed the weather would clear up. As time went on, things started to improve and we were able to take some pictures outside and at about 5:30 the sun broke through the clouds and Kristi was able to get married just as she had pictured. It was absolutely beautiful (although a bit cold, but to tell you the truth I just kept thinking about hot, humid Florida and actually enjoyed the chill a bit!) Kristi looked stunning and her now husband Kevin was blown away when he saw her for the first time! The reception was awesome as well. The view was incredible and it was a fun party, second only to my own wedding ;) Perhaps I am a bit biased though!! Thank you Kristi for having me be a part of your special day, I am so happy for you and Kevin and wish you many years filled with happiness and laughter!!!

Ok, so I went a bit overboard on the picture taking here. But come on, its a wedding people! I tried to keep them to a minimum so here you go!

I had the wonderful idea to get my hair done professionally in an effort to feel a bit pampered and pretty since I pretty much felt like a house in a black tent for a dress. But, as you can see, that backfired and I ended up with a lovely helmet hairdo! I swallowed my pride to show you all the outcome, please enjoy a giggle at my expense :)

And here I am not too long after "fixing" my hair!!

The beautiful bride getting dressed

I took on the job of getting the garter on, whoo hoo!!

Me and 2 of the other bridesmaids, Jenny and Jessica

This is Kristi's sister and her 2 niece's, aren't they adorable? And, they did a wonderful job!!

Me and the beautiful bride

Me and Andrew right before the ceremony....notice he is wearing a jacket? It was chilly!

Andrew and his "date" Zak, he is Jessica's husband and they hung out together while we were doing our bridesmaid thing!

The view from the top of the mountain, just gorgeous!

How cute are they?

The happy couple

Look at how happy and beautiful she looks! Congrats Kristi!!

Me and my man of 6+ years of marriage and still going strong!!

Steamboat Springs

The main purpose for our trip to Colorado was to so that we could go to my friend Kristi's wedding which was up in Steamboat Springs. I was actually a bridesmaid in the wedding which was an honor! Andrew and I left Abby at home with Grammy and Papi and headed up to the mountains at about 9am. We thought that would give us plenty of time to make the 3 hour drive, check into the hotel, and get settled before the rehearsal which was at 3pm. Boy, were we wrong. We made good time to the Eisenhower tunnel and that's when things got a bit hairy. It was snowing and cold and right before we got to the tunnel traffic on I-70 came to a dead stop. We were stopped for about an hour before we started moving again only to find out that we had been re-routed. We had to turn around and we were diverted to Loveland pass. Traffic wasn't any better on the pass and we were not making good time. At this point I called Kristi to let her know what was going on and that we would try to make it in time, but things weren't looking good. Unfortunately I was right, with all the traffic and bad weather we didn't make it to Steamboat till 4pm, so I missed the rehearsal. (Note to others, don't ask me to be in your wedding....I don't make a very good bridesmaid.) We checked into our hotel room, freshened up a bit and went downtown to meet up with Kristi and the other for the rehearsal dinner. Kristi was so understanding and not a crazy bride at all which was a relief because I felt awful. The rehearsal dinner was a lot of fun and it was great to finally see Kristi again, it had been a long time!! The next day before the wedding Andrew and I did a little shopping in the downtown area and then headed Fish Creek Falls for a short hike to check out the beautiful waterfall. I had never been to Steamboat Springs before even though I had lived in Colorado for over 20 years and its definitely a town I would like to go back to visit again!

The view from our car as we were stopped on I-70 right outside the tunnel. It turns out there was a 10 car pile-up inside the tunnel!

The top of Loveland Pass at the Continental Divide

Kristi and me at the rehearsal dinner

Andrew and me at the rehearsal dinner

Hanging out with Ben Franklin in downtown Steamboat.

Andrew and I at the beginning of our little hike to Fish Creek Falls. I should mention that it was pretty steep and I was wearing flip-flops....not smart when you are 2 months pregnant!!

A picture of the falls

Abby's Colorado Playmate

Our friends that live in Colorado, Jen and Rob, have a little boy named Trevor who is a few months younger than Abby. The 2 of them play really well together and we try to see them every time we are in Colorado. Its not too hard because they live just a minute away from my dad's house. Abby loves going to Trevor's house because its like her own personal toy store there! They have so many toys to play with there she is entertained for hours! I love seeing Trevor and seeing how much he has grown since the last time we visited. Hopefully someday (sooner, rather than later) we will live closer and the kiddos will be able to play together on a more regular basis. Until then, we will have to watch each other's kids grow up via the blog :)

Abby and Trevor playing outside and having a snack

I think I have this exact picture from the last time we were home. Those two LOVE to play in the dog kennel!!

On a dinner date at Old Chicago, they even shared and entree!

The Painted Platter

While we were in Colorado we decided to try something new. It was supposed to be rainy out and we were trying to come up with something to do and since Abby has been into arts and crafts lately I suggested that we go paint our own pottery. We went to a place called The Painted Platter with my Mom, Mikey, and Ana and it was a lot of fun. All the kids picked out something to paint and then the creativity began! We picked out our paint colors and started painting. I let Abby just go for it and do whatever her little her desired. It was hard for me not to take matters into my own hands and put some kind of order to the piece, but I think she had more fun just painting however she wanted to. She picked out a bowl to give to my dad as an early birthday present and he is going to use it at his office as a paper clip holder. This is something I definitely want to go do again, it was a lot of fun!!

Colorado Trip

We just enjoyed a trip to Colorado to visit the fam and to attend my friend Kristi's wedding. It was a wonderful trip but as always it was too short. I have quite a few pictures from the trip and will share those in separate posts for orginizational purposes. But, here are a couple random shots from our time in Colorado.

Abby with her Uncle Mike and Aunt Ana at Clement Park

My "little" brother Duke and Andrew

Duke, Andrew and my Dad. Yes, they are all wearing matching shirts and yes they did go out in public like this!!

From Mom's Day Out to Preschool

As many of you know, Abby has been attending a Mom's Day Out program once a week through our church for about a year now. She has done really well with this program and has gained a ton from it. This is where she overcame her separation anxiety, she learned new songs, made new friends, and most importantly began to form a relationship with God. I think one of the most amazing memories from her time at MDO (mom's day out) was when we sat down to dinner one night and she told us we had to pray first and began reciting a prayer she had learned. I will miss this program, but I had decided she was ready for something a little more formal and I was hoping I could get her into a pre-school here in Crestview to eliminate some of the driving I have been doing.

After some research and talking to other mom's in Crestview I decided to check out a couple of preschools in the area. I first looked at the Montessori school in town and just didn't get the right vibe from it. There wasn't anything specific that I didn't like, I just didn't get a good feeling. I then visited the Apple Tree Preschool in town with low expectations but was actually pleasantly surprised. I felt comfortable from the moment I walked in, things seemed organized and clean, the staff and teachers were knowledgeable and friendly, and most importantly Abby was very content there. She was excited to see all the toys and it just made me feel better knowing this was a place she was comfortable in and excited about. I made the decision then and there that she would start in the fall.

That lead us up to yesterday, her first day of preschool!! After a busy trip to Colorado (more to come on that later) we had to wake up early the day after we returned for her first day of school. I spent the night before try to get all of her things ready so we would have an easy transition in the morning and have time to take some pictures and spend some quality time together. Well, like most things in life our morning didn't go quite as planned. Everything was fine till it was time to walk out the door. In fact, things had gone so smoothly we were planning on meeting Sam and Nolan at Starbucks and driving the kiddos to school together. As we were headed out the door with all of our stuff in tow I realized I didn't have my keys. No problem, I would just run back in and get them. No such luck, the keys were no where to be found. As I was frantically searching, I called Andrew at work because he was the last one to have my keys since he drove my car to pick us up from the airport the night before. He told me they were in the pocket of his shorts. Good crisis averted, or so I thought. Of course the keys weren't there! So, I continued my frantic search while calling Sam to tell her we wouldn't be able to meet up with them. I overturned couch cushions, stripped the bed of the linens, threw open drawers spilling their contents onto the counters and floors. The house looked as if we had been robbed! At this point I began crying, I was so upset and really didn't want Abby to be late for her first day of school! I continued to wander aimlessly around the house looking in the same places a million times, when for some reason I decided to look upstairs. I walked into Abby's room and there on her dresser were my keys!!!! For whatever reason, Andrew took them out of his pocket up there and set them on the dresser. Normally I would have seen them when I went to get Abby's clothes but due to our trip I had clean clothes for her down in the living room and didn't need to go up there. After all that, we happened to be on time for school after all! I thought I was going to be more emotional about her first day of school but the events of the morning coupled with the fact that she had been attending MDO for a while led me to be calm and excited for her rather than too emotional.

The emotions did come later though as I found myself in an empty house for a few hours and even more so when I picked up my smiling little girl. I was able to sneak up on her and watch her playing for a few minutes before she noticed I was there. She was having a ball playing and her teacher Miss Marlo said she had a wonderful day! As I began to talk to Abby about her day she told me she had fun and her teacher was nice but that she cried a little on her mat (which they use during rest time) because she missed me! That right there melted my heart. Its good to know that she thinks about me while I am gone, but I also know she was busy and had a good time at school. I am excited about this program. They provide you with a report everyday with how the kids did, what they played with, when/if they went potty, and how much they ate. Their teacher Miss Marlo is very nice and it wonderful with kids. Its also nice that the school is in Crestview, I am able to run errands and go home to clean or relax if need be. I am looking forward to seeing how this enriches Abby's life and what she takes away from it. I am sure there will be more posts about this to come!! Until then, enjoy a few pics that I was able to snap even in my state of pure chaos!!!

Before School

Nolan and Abby after school

A shot of Abby's "daily report"

The forgotten one

Poor Bucky never gets any love, on the blog or otherwise for that matter. He can be a pain in the behind sometimes, but for the most part he is a good dog. And, I can't help but love that face!!

Operation Baby's Room/General Decluttering

And so it begins. I know we must create a mess in order to make any progress, but this makes me crazy. I hate looking at it, it makes me break into a cold sweat every time I enter what will eventually be the nursery. I am feeling the pressure to get things done. I will be 30 weeks along on Tuesday and I have a busy couple of weeks ahead of me where I won't be able to really work on the room. I will be in Colorado for 12 days, we might go to Atlanta for Labor Day and I am in the process of planning Abigail's 3rd birthday party! Plus, Abby starts preschool when we get home from Colorado. I guess that is a good thing for the progress of the room though, since I will have Tues and Thurs. free to get some things done! If anyone has an eye for decorating, or wants to come over to help, please be my guest!!!

Ben and Angela's Condo Warming

Last weekend we headed down toward Ft. Walton Beach for a condo warming party. Angela is a new addition to Andrew's office and he is her sponsor. Her husband Ben is also Air Force and they were both stationed with Sam and Brian at F.E. Warren in Cheyenne, what a small Air Force. Anyway, they are living it up while they are here in Florida. They have a beautiful condo right on the water with spectacular views. They put on a great a party and were wonderful hosts' providing yummy food and good drinks! Hopefully next time we go over we can hit up their gorgeous pool :)

P.S.--I stole the majority of these pictures from Sam, thanks!!!

Our gracious hosts, Ben and Angela

The spectacular view from their balcony

Abby enjoying some juicy watermelon out on the patio

A few of the kiddos watching a movie. Well, the girls are watching a movie, Nolan seems more interested in the pretty ladies he is hanging with!

Crestview Creek

We finally made it over to the creek here in Crestview. I say finally because I had originally heard about it last summer while I was in Colorado and then totally forgot about till some other gals mentioned it recently. Sam and I were all prepared with lunch, beach chairs, swimsuits, sunscreen, and towels and 2 toddlers in tow to go last Friday but changed our minds when we got there. For some reason it seemed a bit creepy to us when we pulled up by ourselves on Friday morning. I don't know if it was the weather which was making everything look dark and gray or if we are just a couple of chickens, but either way we opted to wait till one or both of the guys could come with us. It just so happens that Sat. worked out well for all of us and so we loaded up the car once again and headed to the creek. I don't know why it seemed so creepy on Friday because on Saturday it looked just fine and I think Andrew and Brian though we were crazy. Anyhow, we had a lot of fun. The water is very shallow and perfect for the kids to splash around in. They played in the water and in the sand and even took a little tubing trip down the "river". Its awesome that the creek is so close and this is definitely a place we will be going back to. In fact, we might head over there tomorrow!

Our beach site

Ahh, this is fun! The water was really chilly to me but it didn't seem to bother Abby at all!

The boys and the kids talking a walk down the creek

Family photo minus Bucky, he was there but just not in this picture

Floating down the creek