Great Food, Great Friends

When we lived in Tallahassee, Mike and I had the daunting task of finding a couple to take us through pre-marital counseling. We knew so many wonderful men and women who would have done the job more than justice. We talked and prayed over the decision and in the end went with the couple we felt most connected to together. Lori and Jodie did SUCH a great job, we definitely felt God's blessing over our choice. We had such an open line of communication with them and felt like we came out of our 8 weeks of meeting with a much stronger understanding of the marriage relationship. Our time with them has definitely shown up in our marriage (especially lately, with the addition of our little one) and we feel healthier as a couple for it. I also babysat for them throughout the four years I lived there. I had a really fun connection with their three kids and was so sad to leave them.

We were so excited when we realized that we'd be passing through Tallahassee and would get the chance to meet up with them! The two can cook up quite a storm, so when they invited us over for dinner, we knew we were in for a treat. We got there and it was like we picked up right where we left off (only their kids were a bit older and we had one of our own). Their girls, Katherine and Gracie helped us out by entertaining Lo while we were there.

I remember when Gracie (right) was Logan's age!

They were such great helpers, it gave us all a chance to catch up while Logan was having fun with the big girls.

The girls were so gentle and it was so neat to see them loving on our baby.

Aren't they cute?!

While Lori and I hung out and caught up, Mike, Jodie and their little boy, Austin played Rock Band. Needless to say, the food was incredible and the company was even better. We can't wait to see them again!

Mommy's Alma Mater

Our mini family vacation is about to come to an end. We're on our way up to Wake Forest, NC, and decided that we'd go ahead and take advantage of the trip up and stop and visit a few places. We started with my grandparents and moved on to Disney and finished up in Tallahassee.

Tallahassee holds a special place in our hearts. We loved spending our first year as a married couple there. We got to know some very special people and really made some wonderful memories while there. It was such a treat to be able to bring our sweet girl and show her around such a fun place. And of course, we had to make a stop at Florida State to show her where mommy went to school and to get her some little 'nole gear.

No kidding, it feels like just yesterday I was a senior in high school and standing in this same spot in front of the stadium trying to decide if I could see myself going to football games in the fall.

F-L-O-R-I-D-A S-T-A-T-E

Florida State, Florida State, Florida State, WOOO!

(I LOVE this picture!)

Logan Meets The Mouse

Today we took Logan to meet Mickey at Disney's Hollywood Studios. I was a little apprehensive because:

A. We've never taken Logan on an all day outing where she has no chance of a long morning/afternoon nap.

B. It was a mostly outdoor outing, which we also have not done.

C. I was a little nervous that the characters might scare her.

However, she was a champ! We totally killed her schedule today but she didn't have any major meltdowns and she just talked and giggled the day away. Now, many of you may not know this, but this was not Lo's first trip to Disney. This was:

Yes, her first trip to disney was while she was still cooking. This WAS her first trip that she could really enjoy. She had such a great time. I'll stop writing and let you see what I'm talking about.

I'm going to meet the mouse today!

I'm all ready to go!

We're finally here and ready for fun.

Meeting Mickey for the first time.

Meeting the Incredibles.

Disney does it right for nursing mamas. They have a really nice station where you can go and sit and nurse in private with rocking chairs and dim lights and a tv for the little ones to watch. Here she is hanging out in the nursing station.

Getting ready to for the playhouse Disney show.

Logan loves the Little Einstein kids.

She was completely enthralled with the show.

She danced and played along with them.

Tigger and Pooh were there too!

She met Handy Manny.

Not quite sure what to think about this guy holding her hand.

But after a while, she didn't want to let go.

Then she met June, a Little Einstein character.

June had fun with Logan, too. Logan was absolutely fascinated with her.

After meeting the Playhouse characters we headed off to lunch.

Where Logan passed out.

Until I put the first bite of food into my mouth. Then she was wide awake.

Later in the afternoon we went to ride the new Toy Story attraction. Logan loved looking at all of the different decorations on the way in. We felt like we were inside of a giant toy box. Here she is with Rachael, my college roommate.

And with daddy, the birthday boy!

We had dinner at Hollywood and Vine, our favorite restaurant at the park and were shocked at how empty it was. Usually we have to wait to be seated (even with reservations) but we showed up early and got right in and were probably one of only 6 tables with people at them. Logan sat in a high chair for the very first time and loved it!

These are our Disney friends, Rachael and her husband, Drew. Mike and I have been going to Disney with them at least once a year for the last 3 years and we have such a great time. It's going to be so strange living outside of Florida and not just being a hop, skip and jump away from them.

I love Disney mommy and daddy, let's come back when I can remember what I saw.

Passed out at the end of the day.

We wanted to get Logan a nice keepsake to have in the future. I know, now that I have one of these I'm going to have to get one for each subsequent child that we have. This is why we picked something relatively inexpensive and useful. I'm sure we'll get years of use from it and will enjoy adding to the collection as we add to our family.

I can't end this post without giving some credit to a few creative geniuses. The adorable pillowcase dress with the Minnie and Mickey heads was made by Marci, she does incredible things with a sewing machine. I got so many comments on Logan's dress, I can't wait to put her in it again. The big Minnie bow was made by my sweet friend Shannon, she also does some crazy wonderful things and we love her work! She has definitely been my inspiration with the bow making. Thank you, ladies, for making Logan's Disney wardrobe so cute and special!

Summer Days

I've always loved summer. Something about lazy lounging by the pool, reading tons of books, sunny days, the smell of sunscreen, and no school (which I think I enjoy more now, as a teacher, than I ever did), makes my eyes light up and my skin tingle with excitement. Now, I get to enjoy them with my baby.

There's something wonderful about the simple things that excite children. I remember thinking before I had a baby that I'd never enjoy those things that I loved as a child again. I think I enjoy them even more, now, as I watch my little one excited about them. I get so much joy out of thinking of different things that we can do as a family, or just the two of us, to allow Logan to explore the world.

For example, next week we're headed off to Disney for Mike's birthday. Now, I know she won't remember this visit (though, I plan on taking many pictures so that one day she can see what we did), but I've still had so much fun looking into the different things that they have there for her. I don't care about riding the big rides or seeing some of the shows I used to look forward to. Instead, I'm excited about going to see the Playhouse Disney show and taking Logan to meet the Little Einsteins. It never ceases to amaze me how much my mentality has changed since becoming a parent.

Another new found love of mine is the kiddie pool. I remember being young and visiting my grandmother and looking forward to using the splash toys and kiddie pool in her backyard. Getting to share that experience with Logan is even more fun. Tuesday, we filled up the pool and headed out back for some water fun.

It started out with just Logan and I.

We were having so much fun...

That daddy decided to join us! (or I made him get in...ha!)

We've also been spending a lot of time away from the hot sun inside. Another thing I love about summer is flip flops! I'd wear them all year long if I could, and in Miami, I have been able to. I have a feeling, though, that I'll have to retire them come winter this year. I've really been enjoying that Logan is fitting into baby shoes, now. I love to accessorize her little outfits with baby flip flops, I think they are so cute!

C'mon mom, more pictures?

Ok, I'll smile for this one.

But, now I think I'm more interested in my shoes. Happy Summer!

Happy Birthday, Happy 4th and a few not so happy incidents

Well, the weekend started off with a bang....literally. Friday, as I was driving to pick Mike up from work my AC went hot so I quickly got to the safest place to pull over (less than half a block away) and parked to figure out what was up. No sooner had I parked the car, it started smoking pretty good. We (Lo and I) got out of the car and called my parents (who just happened to be less than a block away from us at the time...coincidence? I think not.) and they came to help with Logan so that I could take car of the rest. My dad and I got a tow truck to come out and take the car to the dealer, where Mike met us. Come to find out that the AC compressor locked up (why my car got hot) and then in just the time it took for me to drive that half block to park, that problem caused a bunch of other things to go wrong. It ended up costing us a pretty penny--but we have an emergency fund for this kind of stuff (thank you Dave Ramsey) and were able to cover it.

Friday night we went over to my family's house to celebrate my mom's birthday. We had a great dinner with great fellowship. We're really going to miss having them so close when we move. It's such a blessing to be around family, especially with a new baby, they help so much and we are so grateful for them and all they do. They even lent us a car for the weekend to help us out while we waited for mine to get dealt with. Brings me to the rest of the story.

Logan and nana on her birthday.

So, Saturday rolls around and Mike got up bright and early (at 3:30am) to head out for the opening shift at Starbucks. After work he packed up the rest of our house and headed back toward us. About halfway, he hit a bad patch of rain and ended up spinning out on the turnpike and hitting the inside guardrail. He's ok, the car...not so much. We're waiting to figure out what the damage is but it's not looking good. My family is being very gracious about it. I know that we're inconveniencing them quite a bit because they're down one car and it's just a pain to have to re-arrange schedules to work around that.

A while back, I made Logan a pillowcase dress for the 4th. Unfortunately, it was stuck in a bag in the car that was in the shop on the 4th so she didn't get to wear it. Oh well, maybe our next little girl will get use out of it, right? :) Here is a picture of it, anyway.

I'll end the post on a happy note, with some pictures of the princess. She's wearing another mommy creation. I'm really into making a lot of these sweet dresses for her because:

1. Diaper changes are SO EASY in them.

2. They're really cute.

3. They breathe really well so she doesn't sweat like crazy in them.

4. They slip on and off very easily (making clothing changes while sleeping nice)

5. It's SO MUCH cheaper to make them than it is to buy them.

P.S. Notice how she stands in first position? I think we may have a ballerina. :)