Hi Ho, Hi Ho it's off to Florida We Go!

Well, on Monday we are taking off to Naples Flordia for our first family vacation. We are so excited to take Logan and will post our pics when we get back.

Logan Loves the Riding Mower!

Logan has been on a riding mower since he arrived in the U.S. If there is one around, then someone has to give him a ride...and he can be Very convincing :)

Here he is with Papaw when we first brought him home. He has really grown since then!

Here he is recently with Aunt Tonya mowing her yard.


Here he is with Daddy on the same day. Funny b/c it was Brian's first time on one and I think he actually scared Logan a little...but only b/c Logan can drive it better than him :)
Here he is today with Papaw.


And also today with Uncle Alex and Papaw. Alex had been riding him around all morning.

The big field behind them is mowed once a week by Dad, Tonya, or Eric and Logan is usually riding along with them.

Happy Mother's Day!

This year was my first Mother's Day and I enjoyed every minute of it!

On Saturday I went to the Mother-Daughter banquet with my mom at her Church in Richmond. She oversees the banquet and always puts together a wonderful luncheon for all the moms/daughters. It has grown in the past few years and this year there were over 140 people! This year's theme was "How Sweet It Is!"

It is nice b/c the men from the Church, including my dad, serve all us ladies and they do a great job making sure the food is passed out and the drinks are constantly full. Then they tear everything down and do the dishes at the end. What women doesn't love a man taking care of her!

I always enjoy helping out but mainly I love getting to spend the time with my mom...just us and no boys around :) Plus, a ton of my family attend the Church so there are many of my cousins, aunts, great aunts, grandma and great grandma that are there too. It's just a wonderful and relaxing day with great women that I have always looked up to.

On Sunday I spent the day with Logan and Brian. It was so awesome being around Logan and knowing that I'm so lucky to be his mom. He has brought so much joy into my life and is such a wonderful blessing!

We got up early and went to Panera for coffee (me) and breakfast sandwiches (them). Afterwards we went to Lowe's and Menards so that we could get the materials needed to landscape the backyard. I never in a million years thought this is how I would want to spend Mother's Day...working in the yard! But we got a lot done and had so much fun just hanging out together outside. For gifts I got tulips, a beach bag, sunglasses and flip flops. Everything I wanted for our Florida vacation next week :)

Logan decided to grab the hose and start spraying Brian and I. We were laughing so hard b/c by the end of the day Logan was a complete mess. He had mud, sand, ketchup and water all over him. The ketchup was from where we let him eat his chicken nuggets outside with his tray.

It ended up just being an absolutely wonderful Mother's Day!

Welcome Baby Ana!

Our great friends Juan and Janae just brought their baby girl Ana into the world last Wednesday at 1:11 p.m. She is just absolutely adorable and so tiny...only 6 lbs!

Brian and I went to visit them at the hospital and were able to hold her. I just love her little fingers and how there is just a hint of eyebrows coming in. Plus she had a full head of dark hair.

Juan was making fun of Janae because I took a picture of her chowing down....

So, I took a picture of him stuffing his face while making fun of her :) Notice the puffed out cheeks!

Brian always gets a little scared when holding a newborn...he looks so young in this picture!

And I'm just a natural...Yeah Right...newborns are so tiny and I always feel like I'm squeezing them too tight. A lot different then being handed my 15-month old Logan :)

Happy 30th Birthday to ME!

Alright, after all these birthday festivity posts, I finally turned 30 on Monday, April 27th! It was a wonderful birthday because I just spent it with my two favorite boys...Brian and Logan :)

It was a beautiful day outside, so we just spent the day working in the yard. And it wasn't torture, we love landscaping!

That evening we went to Olive Garden for dinner and used the Gift Card that I received...Thanks Regina, Scott, Megan and Allyson :) I got the new dish that they have, Chicken with Lasagna rolls...Delicious!

Room with A View

Well, after Kari's bridal shower Brian and I headed to downtown Chicago and stayed at the Swissotel. We were on the 35th floor and the view was gorgeous...even with the clouds and rain :)

This venture was a continuation of my birthday which wasn't until Monday the 27th. It's funny b/c since he had the party for me a week ago, I feel like I've been celebrating my birthday forever! Oh well, I guess I'll always remember my 30th :)

On Sunday, we decided to drive-by our old neighborhood, Lincoln Park and take some pictures. It's crazy we haven't lived there for 3 years, but it seems like just yesterday we were walking around downtown with Brandon heading to a dog park. We really loved the city, but seeing where we used to live really makes me love our house with a big backyard!

The 2-Flat in the middle was ours. We had the top floor and the inside was actually really gorgeous because they had re-done the whole inside. It's still my fav kitchen with brand new white cabinets and tile.

Just in the middle of the below pic is the back of our place. Where the cars are is where we payed a hefty fee to park.
Salt 'n Pepper Diner was where we would walk to eat Sunday breakfast. We loved this place...Brian always got breakfast and I would get a cheeseburger (not a huge brkfast fan).

Vaughn's Pub was our local watering hole :)
This was the dog park that we used to take Brandon after getting our Chai tea's at Starbucks.

Kari's Bridal Shower

On Saturday Kari's wedding festivities started off with the Peterson bridal shower. It was held at Aunt Carol's house and there were 18 people that were able to attend. Carol always does a wonderful job hosting parties and so it was a very fun and relaxed shower...not too mention she is an amazing cook!

There were thunderstorm showers outside. We just said that Kari was getting it all out of the way now since on her wedding day it needs to be nice and sunny...it's on a beach!