He's the best!

I wanted to do a quick post about Sadie's great Daddy! He loves her so much and loves being her Daddy. They especially love to go outside together and go on walks or work in the garden. I am so grateful for him and how supportive he is of me. I know I do not tell him nearly enough or show him enough how much we love him and appreciate him, but I hope he knows I do. He is so patient with me and helpful, especially the last few weeks when I haven't been feeling the best. I am excited about what the future holds for us. I know we have a crazy few years ahead of us, but I also know that with Gabe we are going to look back laughing. I love you!

Going for a walk.

Working in the garden

Learning to walk.

Daddy makes a great place to take a nap.

Guess What?

Well, we have some news that we are finally sharing. Sadie is going to be a big sister! I really was going to post it a few weeks ago, but life has just been busy and I haven't been feeling the greatest so we have been getting by. Anyway, we are excited to be welcoming a new little one at the end of the year. I went to the doctor today and I am 12 weeks and 1 day. The due date is officially Dec. 24 and we are looking at a repeat C-section the week before. (Dec 18 to be exact) This works out great for me because I can use all of Christmas break for maternity leave. We bought Sadie a book so we could start talking about babies and being a big sister. She likes to read the book so I guess that's a good sign and she has started calling her blankets "babies." I am praying that we will have a healthy, new baby and that God will use the next 6 months to prepare me so that I can be the mother I need to be for 2 children. It's a little scary right now.

I had to get this book because the big sister is pushing the baby in a jogging stroller. Yes, it is English and Spanish. Maybe she'll pick up a little :)

Lions, and Tigers, and Bears

So we took a trip to the Abilene Zoo this week. I had heard from several different people that it was a great little zoo and we thought we would go check it out. It really did impress us and I have to say, you can't beat the price. $4 for adults and Sadie was free! We paid $1.50 for some "animal crackers" to feed the animals. You really can't beat it. Sadie had a great time. We saw monkeys, bears, rinos, tigers, and giraffes just to name a few. The coolest thing was that there was a bridge that went over the giraffe exhibit and they would come right up and eat crackers. I never knew it, but they have really long tongues. This was definitely Sadie's favorite part. We had to go back 3 times to feed them. I really liked that we were able to see everything in about 2 hours including our repeats. We also were able to eat lunch and were home by 3:30 when we all took naps. That's what I call a great day!

A white tiger

Sadie and Gabe feeding the bear.

Sadie feeding the giraffe. Check out that tongue!

Eye to Eye with the giraffe

Here's a picture from the bottom. Sadie and Gabe are up at the top if you can make them out.

And we ended the trip with what else, but a giraffe. Sadie held it all the way home!

A Visit With Friends

I'm a little behind on my blogging so I'm going to try to catch up. A couple weeks ago, we were able to visit with our friends Fred and Alison all the way from Georgia. This was also our first opportunity to meet baby Ian too. He was so cute and a great baby. While Sadie was running around the coffee shop and I was constantly saying, "Sadie, No" or "Sadie come over here," Ian was just sleeping and eating. He was super sweet. It was so great to see Fred and Alison. They are just great friends and great people who love the Lord. I have always loved that we can count on Fred to ask the tough questions to get us thinking and Alison is always so honest and real. It is just refreshing to be with them. Well, we took a few pictures so I'll get those posted. We love you Fred, Alison, and Ian and we continue to pray for your family.

Me and Ian

Sadie getting a look at Ian.

That's enought Mama. Time for Sadie.

Alison and Sadie

Fred, Alison, and Ian

Tumblebugs!!

One fun thing we have decided to do this summer is Tumblebugs. We enrolled Sadie in a Parent Tot Tumblebugs class for June at a gym in town. She was a little unsure at first, which seems to be her pattern, but quickly figured it out. I've noticed that she is not shy at all around other kids, she really doesn't need us there at all, but when it comes to trying new things she is a little hesitant. She was worn out when it was over and so was her daddy. He did most of the lifting and following her around. It really was a lot of fun. The pictures aren't that great. It was difficult to get any good ones. Maybe I'll get some better ones another time. At least she will know she went.

Enjoying the swing.

Not quite sure of the swing.

Jumping on the trampoline. One of Sadie's favorite things to do.

Enjoying her popsicle after class was over.

Parachute at the end of class.

Summer is here!

Anyone who has been around us lately knows that we are soooooo excited that summer is here! We have been livin it up since school got out on Friday. Playing outside, swimming, and just enjoying doing nothing. This afternoon we were supposed to go swimming. We told Sadie when she woke up from her nap and she was walking around the house clapping and laughing while I got her swimming suit together. Just as we were about to walk out of the house, a severe thunderstorm warning came on TV and we got a major storm. So we had to go to our back up plan and get the Elmo sprinkler out since Sadie was already gooped in sunscreen and ready to go. She got to play for about 30 minutes and didn't really seem to know the difference.

Hangin out in her sun hat.

I just love pictures of little ones from behind. Too cute!

When the rain started, we got under the patio and had a popsicle.

Checkin out the garden after the storm. I couldn't resist this picture. There really isn't much cuter than that!

What a big girl!

It's hard to believe our sweet girl is old enough to be in a toddler bed. We decided to go ahead and convert her crib to get her use to sleeping in a toddler bed before our big trip to Savannah. Nana has a blow up travel bed all ready for her. After getting some great advice from a friend who has done this before (Thanks so much Emily!) we decided to give it a go. I think it helped that we used her crib and really just lowered it a little more and took away part of one side, but we tried to make it a big deal none the less. While Gabe was converting the crib we played on the mattress and talked about Sadie sleeping in her "big girl bed." We also talked a lot about her staying in the bed until Mama or Daddy came in. (That was another tip from Emily and I'm really glad we did it.) It's great not to have to worry about her getting into things while she is supposed to be sleeping. So anyway, the first nap went great and I was quick to go in as soon as I heard her to praise her for staying in the bed. When it came time to go to bed that night she really did fine going to sleep, but when we went to check on her she was asleep on the floor with her blanket. I had put pillows on the floor by the side that was open, but I think she had to get out of bed to have her blanket with her and to be asleep in the middle of the room! We put her back in bed and when we woke up the next morning she was asleep on the floor again. So I was a little discouraged, but just kept telling her that she was to stay in bed until we came to get her. We weren't home for her nap on Sunday so I was especially nervous putting her to bed, but she did great. I think she was really tired since she didn't get much of a nap and went right to sleep. Gabe checked on her several times after I went to bed and got up once during the night to check on her. Everytime she was in her bed and was there when I went to get her this morning. So, I have to say it was not as difficult as I thought it would be and she is getting the feel for it. I know we still have one more move when she needs a regular bed, but for now...Sadie is adjusting just fine, it's me seeing her turn into a little girl that is a little more difficult.

Showing off her "big girl bed."

Practicing going "Night, Night!"