Tuesday, June 30, 2009

pics from the weekend!

We had the lake to ourselves this weekend so we decided to go overnight and go out on the lake, help Grandma Joan with some chores and let Preston swim. Such a great time! We have a busy couple of weeks ahead, but are going again for July 4th with my mom's family. Lots of people and Preston's first fireworks- wish us luck!











Thursday, June 25, 2009

Father's Day Fun

Preston wanted to make sure this was a special Father's Day for Kevin since it's his last one being an only child before his baby sister joins the family and gives him some competition.

First, on Friday, we went to the store and got the ingredients to bake Kevin a homemade carrot cake. For those of you who know me well, you know that baking is not my forte, nor is it something I particularly enjoy. Cooking on the other hand, is wonderful and even a stress-reliever for me. There's just something about baking that seems so overwhelming and like there's so much pressure because it doesn't give a lot of leeway for error. However, recently, I have been feeling more adventurous and brave and am even making some german chocolate cupcakes later today. The recipe is from Ina Garten (known as "The Barefoot Contessa" to my fellow foodies) so I know they'll be delicious. Click here for the recipe: German Chocolate Cupcakes

Back to our Carrot Cake... Occasionally, I have Preston "help" me cook or prepare things in the kitchen. It takes longer than if I were throwing something together on my own, but it's so worth it because he gets such a kick out of it. I really strive to be the kind of mom who can always slow down enough to enjoy the every day little things with her kids. Now I like carrot cake, but I don't love it the way Kevin does. But this really was delicious. You can see the recipe by clicking here: Carrot Cake Recipe
Check out my little chef:





Can you tell we were pretty proud of our efforts as we presented the cake to Kevin? There were about 100 little finger marks in the frosting, though.





Saturday morning, Kevin golfed, then when he got home, we gave him his Father's day gifts a little early since we had such a busy few days planned. Then, a visit from Grandpa and Grammy Roberts to deliver and assemble his new Little Tykes Hide and Slide! Along with a birthday party and fun with neighborhood friends for Finn Adams who just turned ONE! Not sure why these pics are showing up so small? Perhaps because I illegally yanked them from Matt Adams' facebook account, but you get the idea... (Go ahead, Matt, try to sue me!) haha ;)





Here's a stock photo since we don't have pics of Preston on the Hide and Slide yet, but will get those up soon. He's loving it, by the way, and my dad and Kevin put this thing together in about 7 minutes tops. It's totally going in my basement this winter for indoor play.



Sunday we spent the day at Lake James which was so nice and included a boat ride and a certain toddler who was way too brave in the pool for my comfort. I forgot my camera, of course, and will have to get some pictures this weekend as we are taking off for an overnight trip up there tomorrow.

Monday, Kevin took the day off work, so we finally got to check out the African Safari at the Fort Wayne Children's Zoo. It was amazing! They really did such a nice job and the landscaping alone is worth seeing. The Ostriches and Giraffes come right up to you and you can feed them. It was ungodly hot so they weren't into eating much, but one Ostrich in particular was especially enamored with Preston and caused some roaring laughter from our little guy as his shoes were about to be eaten. We got ice cream for a treat and headed home to recoup after our busy and long weekend.

Ok, bear with me because I know I mentioned this in my last post, but honestly, I feel so lucky and blessed to have a husband who is such an amazing father. He really is the kind of dad that cherishes each moment with Preston and his patience and communication with him just floors me. Thank you, honey! You mean the world to us and we love you with all our heart and hope you had a wonderful Father's Day!! xoxo

Saturday, June 20, 2009

Pic Fix!

Camera cord has been found and we are back in business. So, for your Preston pic-fix, here are some recent pics from the last few weeks as promised.

The Pryors came to spend the night one night of my birthday weekend. It was so nice to see them, even if it was a short trip. Emma fell in love with Preston's car and he was happy to help her out when she and her baby, "Baby" got a flat tire.



We've been desperately trying to spruce up our backyard with some creative landscaping. We still need a few square yards of sod, and some more trees or large flowering shrubs, but those may be projects for next year. (You know, when I have tons of time on my hands with not one, but two kids under the age of 3.) I really regret not bringing some of the beautiful perennials we had at the old house over to our new one. I did make a trip this spring with my master gardner mother in law to pick out some new ones and I've also been lucky enough to be on the receiving end of her plant splitting a couple of times this year. Anyways, we have a desperate need to add some privacy along our deck. Our neighbors are very nice, but their bedroom window is literally about 12 feet from our back door, so if I were them, I'd be very thankful for some privacy there. We planted a really pretty chokecherry tree, and along the back of our yard, a serviceberry tree. Preston enjoyed helping us plant and water them.




Speaking of sprucing up the backyard, we are getting our effort and $'s worth, because we're spending tons of time out there. Preston has a water table, a pool, a golf set, balls, trucks, sidewalk chalk, etc... And today, much to his surprise, he's getting a new Little Tykes climber courtesy of Grandpa and Grammy Roberts. (pics to come!) Anyways, we've had playdates, planting, and dog washing sessions out there and even though I keep him slathered in 500+ SPF sunscreen, he still has a farmer's tan. The suit goes on and he's immediately in play mode. Seriously, I hope you won't get bored with pictures of Preston playing in our back yard because that's what most of our days consist of right now.






We recently watched his cousin, Baby Elliana a couple of weeks ago and he was sooo great with her. Loving on her and giving her kisses. I really hope he'll be as good with his new baby sister when she gets here. How sweet is this?




I mentioned that we had some painting done in my last post and promised pics of the nursery color. It's ridiculously far from being done. Like, stressing-me-out far from being done. But, alas, it's painted and that's a step in the right direction. We went with a very pale pink called "Pine Hutch." I'm really happy with the color because I was pretty worried about a pepto-bismol look.


And, while I'm at it, here's a 27 week belly shot and a pic of the upstairs bathroom color, called "Quietude."



Last but not least, Happy Father's Day to my wonderful husband Kevin who makes being a dad a top priority every single day. Our kids are so lucky. And so am I. :)

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

We're still here!

Geesh- I've been away from blogging for a few weeks. Just wanted to pop on and give a bunch of excuses, er- uh..... "reasons" why.

1. We've been busy! So get off my back, ok?? :) Just kidding, but we really have been swamped. With summer stuff, life, family, OB appointments, friends in town, parties, etc... The summer is flying in a blink of an eye.

2. I lost my camera cord. But never fear- I found it and have weeks of photos to upload and share.

3. I threw out my back- last week at a lunch with some friends while I was lifting Preston and have spent the last several days trying to rest to let it heal. I know, what a perfect time to blog, right? Well, the camera cord and all...


So, in an attempt to catch up, here's a family picture and some pregnancy progress info to tide you over...
This was taken at Grandma and Grandpa Erb's this past weekend. (keep in mind, my back... I was in pain) and Preston was having a ROUGH day. But Kevin looks good. As always. :)


And in pregnancy news- I'm 27 weeks. Yep, that's a week away from starting my third trimester. Ridiculous. Where has this pregnancy gone? Kevin and I keep saying that it drug on and on with Preston because we were so nervous, but this time it's going too fast. We had the baby's room painted a pale pink last week. (In fact, we got a ton of painting done.. it was my attempt to hire someone to take care of my nesting duties for me.) :) Btw, can I just say how nice it was to have someone paint FOR us? We've always painted our houses by ourselves, but we left it to professionals last week and they did a great job. We had the kitchen painted, some trim in the breakfast nook, the foyer and upstairs and downstairs hallway (bye bye obnoxiously dark black/brown color!!) the baby's room, and the upstairs hall bathroom and we are really relieved to have done in one day what would have taken us a few months. Pics of the baby's room to come...

27 week update: (taken from BabyCenter)
This week, your baby weighs almost 2 pounds (like a head of cauliflower) and is about 14 1/2 inches long with her legs extended. She's sleeping and waking at regular intervals, opening and closing her eyes, and perhaps even sucking her fingers. With more brain tissue developing, your baby's brain is very active now. While her lungs are still immature, they would be capable of functioning — with a lot of medical help — if she were to be born now. Chalk up any tiny rhythmic movements you may be feeling to a case of baby hiccups, which may be common from now on. Each episode usually lasts only a few moments, and they don't bother her, so just relax and enjoy the tickle.