So, we've had a really busy month....We went on a family vacation towards the beginning of the month, and I've just gotten around to downloading the pictures! Anyway, I'm sure that most of you who read this blog have already heard, but we found out at the end of last month that we are expecting another baby (due October 29th)! (So, pregnancy nausea and tiredness combined with traveling and having relatives in town has certainly given me little time on the computer!) We were, of course, surprised, but also very excited. Elle will be a little over two when the new baby is born, and we've always talked about two years being a good gap in between kids. So, I guess, as always, God's plan was better than ours, and we can't wait to meet this new blessing in our family! Here is a picture of Elle with her new shirt (we used it to tell some of our family members the big news) although she has no idea what it means:
As I mentioned before, we went to Florida for Kyle's vacation earlier in the month, and it was a fun and relaxing week. We left early on a Friday because it had been snowing all day in Louisville, and we were afraid we would get stuck in the city if we didn't leave right away. Louisville ended up getting over a foot of snow, so were glad we got out when we did. My sister, Tarolyn, and her husband, Dan, were wonderful hosts, and we thoroughly enjoyed getting to spend more time with them and their two boys, Carter and Grant. In addition to spending time at the beach and just hanging out around the house, we went to Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom (thanks, Aunt Tarolyn!). Elle had a blast and especially loved the shows at Animal Kingdom (Both the Lion King and Nemo shows are seriously awesome, if you have the chance to go!) She also loved playing with her cousins and really like following Carter (4) around and trying to play with the same toys as him. Tarolyn would, of course, love for us to move down there when Kyle is done, so she did her part to convince us of how great it is to live in Florida. Kyle says it's at least on the list of places to look for jobs, so we'll have to see what the future holds! I will say, it was nice to go from snow to a beautiful 70 degrees! Here are some pictures from our trip:
With daddy on the Merry-Go-Round
Carter, Grant, and Aunt Tarolyn
In front of the Cinderella castle at Magic Kingdom
Animal Kingdom
My cutie!
Carter and Elle loved the fish!
Enjoying some ice cream Mickey ears at the end of a long day!
My parents, along with my younger brother, Sean, came in town for Easter, and we had a great weekend, despite the fact that it snowed on Easter Sunday! Our next move definitely needs to be somewhere warmer! Elle took to Papa (my dad) right away on Friday and even took a nap in his lap. She also loved dancing with Nana (my mom) and thought Uncle Sean was too funny. My mom and I did lots of shopping, and it was nice to spend some time with her, since we usually only get to talk on the phone. On Saturday, we had a late-mini-birthday celebration for my dad, and Elle became his best buddy again when he shared his dessert with her!
Elle didn't sleep well the night before Easter and seemed to have a fever (we later found out she had and ear infection), but she still enjoyed following her Fruity Cheerios trail (my family always did jellybean trails growing up, but I used these instead, since she's too young for jellybeans) to her Easter basket and finding Easter eggs "hidden" in the living room (although once she found the first two, we had to greatly encourage her to keep looking for them!). We left the trail out most of the day, so she loved running into the living room and grabbing a few Cheerios at a time. Her Easter eggs were filled with marshmallows and Teddy Grahams, since she's too young for real candy, and to this day, if she finds an Easter egg around the house, she quickly brings it to me and says, "more," to let me know she wants me to refill it with Teddy Grahams. We went to mass together after the Easter egg hunt and had a nice Easter dinner (even though my mom and I both felt nauseated). The only bad part of the weekend: my mom and I didn't get pictures in our new Easter dresses (by the way, thanks again, Mom, for my new dress!). We didn't have time for pictures before mass, and Elle fell asleep on the way home from mass, since she wasn't feeling well. By the time I came downstairs, everyone had changed clothes already! Hope everyone else had a happy Easter too!
