thank you.


i am still unsure of how i could have played a part in creating this child. he is perfection. words can't even describe how much i love him. all i want to do is make him feel loved & wanted every minute of every day. i never want to crush his spirit or make him feel like anything less than a wonderful gift. i feel so blessed to be his mama & to have been given the opportunity to mold him & shape him as he grows. it isn't the easiest job i've ever done, somedays he has me pulling my hair out, i'd be lying if i told you otherwise. he's challenging & willful, and a big ol' smarty pants. he knows & understands SO much and at the exact same time is still so little & gets frustrated when he doesn't understand why he isn't allowed to do something. he is molding me too. being a parent has changed me for the better, and every day i feel myself growing & being pushed in different directions. i am forever grateful. i pray to continue being blessed with more littles, and that god give me all of the tools i need to be the best mom for them, and also remain the best wife for chris. 
time is whooshing by & i'm capturing what i can in my mind, in photos & here on this blog. thank you for following along with us.

abel's first baseball game!


while in seattle, we got tickets to see the mariners and the yankees play! hip hip! okay, so i'm not really a baseball fan... okay, i'm not a baseball fan at all. but i am all about new experiences, my little's FIRST experiences and concession food. so this was a win for me. abel lasted 6 innings before he wanted to get down & run all over the place, and that was longer than we had planned to stay anyway so we were happy all around. they gave him a 'first game' certificate and baseball card & the way chris held onto that thing like it was gold made me love him even more than i already did. seattle was so good for so many reasons, but my favorite thing about it was having that much undivided time with chris & seeing him and abel together... melt. me. those two together are my everything.

^^^PLEASE don't be afraid of asking people to take your picture. i am not usually one for the super posed shots, but i just think it's so important to have pictures of all the members of your little clan present & not always be behind the camera or be taking them selfie style. it may turn out like this one & you feel like your head looks 17 months pregnant because you got the front lean in spot, but i'll hold onto this one like gold because of the special moment that it captured... and because the guy eating the burger behind me makes me laugh out loud :)

a bumpdate.


i am officially 29.5 weeks into my second pregnancy... 
HOW are we already here? a few things worth noting...

1. this picture is from last week & i already feel like my belly has grown so much.
2. in any clothes, fitted, loose, doesn't matter... this little belly appears enormous & it's the weirdest thing to see the difference.
3. abel gives "the baby" kisses and snuggles all the time & i about die over the sweetness.
4. just looking in the direction of pizza, chocolate, or anything spicy or greasy gives me heartburn... i eat it anyway
5. we've had her name picked out since before we knew she was a SHE. we played around with other names and kept coming back to the same one, HER name. the sweetest little girl name around.
6. i believe that my dad picked her out for us.
7. every time i roll over in the night, i literally say 'heave ho' in my head... you're laughing, but it's real.
8. opening up her drawers is the strangest sight to me. they looks so different from abel's little boy filled drawers & my clothes are just in a wad most of the time... looking into hers are so sweet & pretty.
9. i hope she's a daddy's girl, but loves her mama too.
10. i'm getting more excited each day to meet this little one & see how she finds her perfect place in our little family. i can't even imagine it, but i know it will be wonderful.

s e a t t l e || part TWO

i bring to you, part two of our seattle vacation!
our favorite spot was pike place market... probably the most touristy spot in seattle, but we were in fact tourists so you know. we stopped at the original starbucks, tried some deeeelicious donuts we heard about via google, sampled fresh fruit, chased birds around (abel) & watched street performers make a parrot do a back roll into a headstand... wide eyed emoji here... abel loves anything having to do with birds, so naturally he enjoyed that. it was imperative that we head down post alley & stop at the number 5 most germ infested spot ever, the bubble gum wall at market theater.. because obviously, the pictures. the market was the best. there are fish throwers & brick streets, and the hustle and bustle makes me feel like i'm somewhere important. please visit seattle in your life... it will probably rain. it did most days that we were there, but it's so pretty. there's lots to see and do, and if you're lucky enough, you might get to see mt. rainier on a sunny day like our first day in the city.

s e a t t l e || part ONE

what a great trip! i REALLY tried narrowing my bazillion photos down as best i could, but i mean... 
so anyway, here is part one of our trip! this was our first vacation just the three of us, no other family or friends along, and probably our last before baby girl arrives & then we'll be four! to say i am happy we went is an understatement. chris had a couple work meetings in seattle that would only take up 4 hours of a 4 day visit, and since seattle was a place we've wanted to go together, we joined him! hoorah! we were able to squeeze in just about everything we had hoped to do and see while we were there & had such a wonderful time as just our little family of three. it was so good for us. i think chris got funnier while we were there & he and i both decided (again) that abel is hands down the best thing that's ever happened to this world, especially to us. we didn't know what to expect traveling with a toddler, but he proved to be a dream on both flights & was the best little traveler 99% of the rest of our trip too... i say 99 because of the aquarium meltdown which i was sweet enough to capture on film for you below. 
all in all it was THE best family time ever & the perfect length of time spent away from home. seattle is a beautiful place, but there really is no place like home. we are happy to be back now in our own beds, in our little tiny house, surrounded by people we love.

the   g r e a t   wheel

the   s e a t t l e   aquarium
^^^i'd be an absolute liar if i didn't post the two photos above... abel truly is a pretty happy camper majority of the time, but i mean... he IS a toddler & this IS real life we are talking about. plus the face on chris (laughing monkey emoji here).