So, here are the pictures again!

Emmy

Abby

baby #1

baby #2

Take a guess and I’ll tell you who is who tomorrow! Have fun!

I must be honest, I’ve gotten so behind on blogging life’s events that I have become completely unmotivated to blog at all. It’s like I don’t even know where to start. We’ve gone on trips, celebrated a certain  Little Missy’s first birthday, scorched in the heat, checked things off our to-do lists, started getting things ready for Emmaline’s arrival, attended play dates and on it goes!

Abby’s birthday was a blast! I had so much fun making it special for her. I learned on YouTube how to make paper flowers and they turned out just like I had imagined. I made her a fun birthday banner (which will be used for many birthdays to come!), and lots of yummy snacks for our guests. The whole day I just couldn’t believe that our baby girl was one. I kept thinking back to that day one year ago, and how absolutely clueless Andrew and I were. Needless to say, we’ve learned a lot since then. We were so thankful to the family and friends who came out and helped us celebrate this special occasion. And of course we missed those who could not  be there.

In between her birthday and now we have been busy with life. It seems like there are so many things we want to complete before Emmy comes…sometimes I get a little bit overwhelmed thinking about it all. Of course, my wonderful husband always brings me back to reality! Most days Abby and I run a couple of errands during the morning and then stick around the house for the remainder of the day. For two main reasons: It is BLOODY hot and Abby’s nap is in the afternoon. Oh, did I mention it’s HOT? AND I’m 8 months pregnant? Pretty sure I’m ready for this heat to end, or this sweet little girl to make her exit. I told Andrew that the temperature will drop the day after I have Emmy…that is just my luck. Ha.

Abby has been busy walking (most days trying to run), and really just exploring the world around her. Which really, that is just a nice way to say that she is getting into EVERYTHING! She definitely keeps me busy and on my toes, but I wouldn’t want it either way. She is doing really well drinking whole milk from her sippy cup and mostly at the table. That was quite a challenge to get her to drink it at the table. The little girl wanted to be held, but really, could you blame her? She is also getting more adventurous with the foods that she eats. Here are some things that she LOVES:

1. donuts

2.muffins

3. pancakes

4. bananas

5. yogurt

6. grilled cheese

7. hot dogs

8. pizza

9. chicken nuggets

10. spaghetti

11. chili

12. broccoli

13. pudding

14. ice cream

15. nilla wafers

Well gosh, I now feel like a horrible mother…donuts, pizza, hot dogs. I promise she doesn’t get those everyday! She is definitely more interested in the foods that we are eating, so that is helping expand her horizons.

Ok…now I feel like I have mumbled on for long enough. You should be all caught up now. I’m going to try and not get so behind this time. Wish me luck!

ready to party!

cupcake time!

with Gram and PapaK

celebrating 3 years!

cutie pie!

I think I”ll just break it up day by day and see what happens! Here goes!

Day 1: Flying to Colorado

Andrew and I were pretty nervous about flying with Abby. I think it was mainly fear of the unknown. We just didn’t know how she was going to respond. But of course, she did great. Abby loves to be around people, so she had a good ol’ time laughing and smiling for all the passengers around us. Thankfully, we had a couple of other families with small children sitting by us, so they were completely understanding. Abby ended up falling asleep for half of the flight and slept through the VERY bumpy landing. She enjoyed being bumped around, I on the other hand, did not. Let’s just say the the combination of being pregnant + being hot + holding a heavy sleeping baby = nausea! Thankfully I had my wonderful husband sitting next to me fanning me as fast as he could with the barf bag. Let’s just say the the barf bag was only used as a fan….thank goodness!

waiting in the airport

In Colorado!

The 2 hour drive into Estes Park went well…we were so glad to be there. We were greeted with cool weather and gorgeous scenery!

Day 2: “Hiking” to Bear Lake and Poppy’s

While we were getting ready for the trip I took on the task of planning out our days. Since I grew up going on family vacations to Estes Park I thought it would be fun to share with Andrew and Abby all of the things we used to do while being there. Of course, I did not take into consideration that we were going in May (off season…or basically winter) and we always went there in July. BIG difference.

Of course our first trip into Rocky Mountain National Park deserves a picture!

Our first “hike”, and I use that term loosely, was supposed to be to Bear Lake. A fairly easy trail…one that would be good to break us in, get us used to the altitude change. Well, this is what we found upon arriving to the trail head:

Bear Lake trail

Hmmm….not what I had remembered. Sadly, we left all our crampons at home (catch the sarcasm) and could not make the hike. I’m pretty sure our tennis shoes would not cut it. I was really disappointed…..but soon realized that my expectation just had to change, and that I needed to be more flexible. And if any of you know me well, you know that is not easy for me. It probably worked out for the best, Andrew and I soon realized that we are in HORRIBLE shape. That fact became obvious to us as we were sucking wind just walking up the parking lot. I blame it on being pregnant….I’m not sure what Andrew blamed it on. We did catch a few pictures before leaving:

ready to hike!

This one cracks me up…look at Abby’s face! She is like…”Mom…what are you doing? You are SO WEIRD!”

The best family shot we could get!

After that we decided to head back to our cabin and let Abby catch a nap. She had had a rough night and needed some sleep (and so did we)!

On the menu for dinner was Poppy’s. We went to this restaurant A LOT with my family…and by a lot, I mean like multiple times in a day. So I knew it was a place I had to take Andrew. We shared a pizza and enjoyed our first dinner in Estes! It was fun to share that memory with my family.

At Poppy's..Abby was really excited!

Andrew and Abby at Poppy's

That night we all crashed. It was a long day, but lots of fun!

Day 3: Visiting the Alluvial Fan and our “fancy pants” meal

Since we had such a rough time hiking on Monday we decided to do something a little easier. We went and visited the Alluvial Fan which is basically the sight were a dam broke. It’s pretty cool to see how all the trees fell and the huge waterfall. I knew this place would not be snowy and we would have a better chance of walking the path. Except we did not realize how windy and cold it would be! We all felt pretty miserable, so this little hike was pretty short. Andrew did enjoy seeing it and got some good pictures.

Part of the Alluvial Fan

Abby at the Alluvial Fan

After visiting the Fan we decided to drive to a couple of scenic points in the Park. It is all so beautiful, it almost takes your breath away.

Beautiful view

Another beautiful view

After driving around we headed into town for a smoothie (which was also a required part of our trip) and to walk around downtown. I got a mixed berry smoothie and Andrew got a chocolate raspberry milkshake. You would think after being so cold we would be smarter than that, but oh no! We pressed on and enjoyed every last bit of our icy drinks!

Yum!

Please ignore the fact that I look like death in this picture…no mascara=one tired looking Kari.

smoothie!

On every trip Andrew and I take we always have one really nice meal. So, of course we planned one for this trip. We get to the restaurant and it is a nice (not too fancy), quiet atmosphere. But, as fate would have it, Abby decides that she does not want to be in a quite place. She wants to be loud, and cranky. After trying to entertain her and keep her happy, Andrew tells the waiter that our “timer is going off” and we need to leave. Thankfully, we did get to have our dinner (which was not worth how much it cost) and he quickly got our check to us. I”m pretty sure “fancy pants” meals our not in our future. That’s ok, I”d just rather a cheeseburger anyway!

After our fancy meal

Day 4: Snow…and more snow!

We woke up to a blanket of snow! It was so gorgeous! I had never really been around this much snow before..and it just kept on coming! We decided to take it easy that morning, since we didn’t know how bad the weather would get. After we had a lazy morning we decided to drive over to one of the main cabins at the YMCA (where we were staying) and hang out by one of their big fireplaces. This was great fun! It was nice to get out of the cabin, and Abby enjoyed people watching.

the YMCA statue covered in snow

snowing!

Hanging by the fire

By the fire

A couple of hours later we decided that the roads were clear and it was safe for us to drive into town for dinner. This was our last night in Estes…so we decided to eat somewhere yummy.

Somewhere yummy lead us to the Peak to Peak restaurant. I got a yummy hamburger and Andrew got some sort of grilled chicken dish. I’m pretty sure he had dinner envy after seeing and tasting my burger. It was a delicious meal and we had lots of fun talking and laughing about our trip.

Family shot at Peak to Peak

Later that night we soon realized why Abby had been so cranky all day…she was getting sick! Poor baby was running a fever and had a snotty nose. Upon realizing this, I started dreading putting her to bed. Abby typically does not sleep well when she is sick, and add to that being in another place..it really is a recipe for disaster. Our fears became a reality when we were up with her for most of the night. But really, can you get upset at a poor little girl who is feeling awful. No, or course not. We knew it meant a REALLY  long day of traveling ahead of us, but what can you do? All I can say is thank goodness for an amazing husband who does so much! We really work as a team when it comes to Abby (and everything else), and I am so thankful for that.

After a long, hard night we got up early the next morning, finished packing and said “goodbye!” to Estes Park. Even with being sick, Abby did wonderfully the whole day. She was such a trooper….and we were all SO  glad to be home. Needless to say, we all crashed pretty hard that night.

I’d say our first family vacation was a huge success. Parts of it were hard, and afterwards Andrew and I felt like we needed a vacation to rest from our vacation, but we wouldn’t take it back for the world. After we had Abby we decided that we would not let having a baby keep us from doing the things we love to do (traveling) and that we would make it work even with an infant. We now have so many memories to look back on and hope that one day, Abby will cherish family vacations as much as we do.

I debated whether or not I should take belly shots this go-round, but decided it could be fun to compare the growth between the two pregnancies.  Here are the two shots we have taken so far…

three months

4 months

I have been feeling really good lately! I know I have been so blessed to have two easy pregnancies so far. It is so different to be pregnant and have another baby to chase after. Especially since she is into EVERYTHING! Oh well, I think it is helping me keep my weight down!

I am now 19 weeks and we find out in 1 week what we are having! Andrew and I are so excited…he thinks it will be a boy and my guess is a girl. I guess we will find out who is right in a week!

Little Miss has also gotten quite the personality. When she gets in a crowd she puts on a show! It’s as if she knows she is getting all the attention! Along with her bubbly personality comes her STRONG  will. It is already showing through, and quite honestly, it terrifies me! She has already learned how to throw a fit if she is not getting her way. For example….she LOVES crawling over to our fireplace, pulling up on the hearth, and trying to play with the mesh cover. Of course, when we pull her away, she lets us know she is not happy! Shesh! I can only imagine what the teenage years are going to be like.

Every day with Abby is an adventure, but it is such a blessing to watch her grow up, learn and develop.

playing at Aunt Kelli and Uncle Toby's house

What a stinker!

"helping"

Here is a glimpse into Andrew’s birthday week for #29!

Day #1:  A birthday banner to hang up and enjoy all week! Plus, brownies and ice cream for dessert!

Andrew's birthday banner!

Yummy brownies!

Day #2: Lunch date with Abby and me at Vitek’s

Day #3: Pizza and a movie (while our wonderful friends Carolyn and Daniel watched Abby!)

pizza date!

Day #4: Two new shirts from Old Navy!

Day #5: Coupon for a family fun night to a Baylor baseball game!

yay for presents!

Day #6: New picture frame to put in his office..of course to show off another cute picture of Abby!

Day #7: The big day! We went to dinner at Texas Roadhouse and then walked around on the Baylor campus. Afterwards we came home and Andrew opened his present…a Baylor baseball cap! We ended the night with homemade cheesecake topped with strawberries and whipped cream!

Abby waiting for her steak!

excited about a steak dinner!

umm....cheesecake!

Of course she was such a ham as we were standing in front of the congregation. She entertained everybody by showing how she can put her foot in her mouth! Silly little girl…I have no idea where she gets her personality from!

Abigail’s life verse:

“Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

1 Thessalonians 5: 16-18

Here are some pictures from her special day:

With Gram and Papa K

With one of my best friends Alicia and her husband Matt

Our little family

With Nana and Papa

With Uncle Brett, Aunt Erin, Matthew and Joseph

After breakfast we headed over to Cameron Park to try out the Baby Bjorn (since we will be using it in Colorado). Abby LOVED it! She loves being bounced around and getting to see everything around her. Not to mention the girl loves being outside. Andrew and I also thought it would be good for us to get in “hiking shape” since that is what we will be doing in Colorado. (Have I mentioned we are going to Colorado in May???) Fun! We didn’t make it as far as we hoped because we accidentally picked one of the harder trails to go on. With Andrew carrying Abby and me carrying Little Nuggie inside of me, we didn’t want to take any risks. So, we headed home and decided to try another easier trail later.  I would still say the day was a success!

Abby went to her first birthday party that afternoon. A couple’s daughter from our Sunday School class was celebrating her 1st birthday. It was a cute Curious George themed party and I know Abby had a great time….we did too of course! Being there made me think about Abby’s 1st birthday, which made me sad because our baby girl will be 1 before we know it!

I’d say it was a great weekend…it’s fun to take part of the cool things your city has to offer!

And of course a blog would NEVER be complete without some pictures!

Abby and Daddy outside Cafe Cappuccino

Abby and Me

Fun family shot!

Going for a hike!