WORK...

...is too good to be true!  Have I ever mentioned, I HAVE THE BEST JOB EVER!!!

Playing @ the Frisco Marina Park... Adeline hanging out on the blanket, while Elsie Anne cruises around checking EVERYTHING out!

Picnic w/ the girls...

And I must say, I've got the BEST work assistant ever!!!

My Heart...

...is aching w/ overpowering LOVE!  I think I've figured out what brings these passionate feelings on, and when it happens, it is blinding!  It hits me like a ton of bricks, only something more positive, like a hot air balloon carrying me away! :) 

I woke up this morning w/ butterflies in my stomach, @ the sound of my sweet little princess quietly saying, "momma, momma".  Shawn + I smiled @ each other and rolled out of bed, one to get her milk from the fridge, + the other to hug Elsie Anne + change her diaper...then we met back in 'Momma + Daddy's Bed'!  We all LOVE this time in the morning... snuggles, songs, silly faces + giggles, before EA announces she's "all-done" and climbs down, heading straight for the bathroom to brush her teeth, before going down stairs for breakfast.  Her routines are ingrained so deeply, that she'd probably do them even w/out us around!

The butterflies continued all morning long as Elsie Anne played w/ Shawn, helped me w/ the dishes in the dishwasher + danced around to the 'Imagination Movers' song (she does all the motions by herself)!  I haven't felt these flips of happiness in my belly since May, the first morning I woke up in Tallahassee, in my childhood bed, after a 30hr drive, to the same sweet words out of EA's mouth!  In that moment I knew we had all day to play outside in the warm air - just the 2 of us, w/ or w/out clothes on, in the sand, swing, grass, or pool, I knew my Mom, Dad + Husband were coming home to us for a home cooked meal, + I knew we had an entire month to enjoy all our family + friend's fellowship!

In this moment, as I'm waiting for my 18.6lbs, almost 32in, almost 16mo, teethy-grinned angel to wake up, I KNOW my butterflies are twirling about b/c of the fun things we're looking forward to!!!  Shawn is taking 'his girls' to the Denver Zoo on Friday, we'll be in Granby, CO for a 4th of July weekend get-a-way, + we'll get to do whatever we please for the next week + 1/2 w/out any work interruptions!!  Just PLAY, PLAY, PLAY... enjoying my MAN + my MISSY MOO!  I think I've fallen in LOVE all over again! :)

There is NOTHING that beats this INTOXICATING feeling!  I wish I could bottle it up + get a splash of it every day!  But for now, I will bask in the glow + be thankful for my incredibly scrumptious family!!  MUAH!

Freckles!

We just found Elsie Anne's SECOND FRECKLE on her body! 

Most of you know that the first one is her birth mark, on her right hiney-cheek:)  The new one is tiny + on her left face-cheek!  It's super cute, but I'm worried she has inherited her Momma's 'moley' complexion.  I also wonder why this new one has shown up?!  She is always covered in sunscreen + wears her hat religiously!!  So, I don't think its anything I'm responsible for?!  I'll be asking our pediatrician @ our next appt.

I'll try to get a picture of it, but I don't know if it will show up:)

Sweet Mimic!

Our little 'mimic' has picked up many new words + uses them in the correct context...

My very favorite, right now, is... "ES-GO!" (let's go) as she's standing @ the door looking outside, or sitting in her carseat, or headed to the bath tub, etc!

Shawn's very favorite, right now, is... "WOW!"  She uses this all the time... when she has a big bite on her fork, when Daddy does a big golf swing, when she jumps real big, the list goes on:)  But her face is the best part, her eyebrows raise, her mouth/cheeks pull back + she looks very serious!

Since Elsie Anne is trying to say EVERYTHING we say, Shawn + I have been doing very well @ curbing, pretty much avoiding, cursing around her!  Of course, there is the seldom slip up, but so far she hasn't picked up on any nasty words!!

Loveland Pass Hike...

We finally managed to get out for a HIKE!!  Our first of the year, + Elsie Anne's first of her toddler life:)  She did incredible!  She started off hiking w/ us, since she needed to stretch her legs, after the 30min drive.  We held her hand as she tromped along, saying, "WOW!" "ROCK!" along w/ humming some tunes!  It was no question she was COMPLETELY ENJOYING HERSELF! 

Playing in the flowers...

Her stamina was better than ours, at times!  She's definitely got some 'Colorado Lungs' in her:)

It was nice to see a few people on the trail to take some family pics!

Once we decided to pick up the pace a bit, we strapped EA into the BackPack, as EA would say, "BAPAC!"  And, NO, there was NO CHANCE I would carry that thing w/ her in it...thank goodness for Daddy the Mule:)  That is Keystone Ski Area in the background!

We made it to the first Peak...gorgeous day, gorgeous scenery, gorgeous hubby + baby girl:)

Since EA was being such a great sport, we pushed a bit further to the second Peak!

...and someone had stacked up a big pile of rocks that EA just HAD TO CLIMB!!

On the descent, she got to ride on Daddy's shoulders part of the way...can you tell she's loving this too?!

Back @ the Trail Head, we got a pick w/ the sign...

We actually got close to 13,000ft elevation!!  So happy our adventure went perfectly...Elsie Anne is hooked, so our goal is to do a fun hike every other weekend:)

SHOTGUN...

Okay, this is for the Tally folk... Shawn was teaching Elsie Anne how to hold a SHOTGUN!  An odd game @ Jake's Dive Bar that EA likes to watch.  There are rabbits, deer, turkey, mountain lions, elk, moose, bear, etc roaming around, and you're supposed to 'blow them away'!  She loves pointing out all the animals, making their sounds + watching them run.  And I am very thankful that she DOES NOT KNOW the gun she is holding is supposed to SHOOT them!!!

Don't get any ideas BigDaddy, Dallas or Sydney... my daughter is going to live the sheltered life:)

Wine @ the Park!

This had to be one of the best 'playdates' ever!!  We met our 'summer friends' (b/c they live in Houston the rest of the year) @ River Walk after the kiddos naps!  Kristin brought the wine + I brought the apps!  We rolled out the blankets, popped the top + dug into some Roasted Garlic Hummus w/ Everything Bagel Chips + an assortment of fruit!!  Elsie Anne + Jake played, Kristin + I drank...everyone was HAPPY:)

Elsie Anne found her own little spot, sat down + started singing... then we look over + she's rolling around in the soft, lush grass like the happiest puppy I've ever seen:)  I ran over + snapped this pic... I wasn't trying to be artsy, but I'm pretty impressed that I captured our set-up in the background!

Sun Hats are a MUST in the intense mountain SUNSHINE!  We are happy that our little ones keep them on:)

Jake is just 2mo younger than Elsie Anne, but about 6lbs heavier!!  He's so sweet + so much fun to have around...we'll be doing this again, for sure!!

I'm bummed Kristin + I didn't get a pic together, b/c we were looking pretty good, if I may say so myself:) 

"YeeeHaaaw!"

My sweet girl just has too much personality sometimes:) 

I broke out my COWGIRL HAT the other day...always do in the summertime b/c its the perfect amount of shade on blue sky days!! 

A little background info before I proceed w/ my cute story...Elsie Anne is very keen on accessories + has to point out necklaces, bracelets, earrings, lipstick, watches, etc...all of which I don't wear!  I wish I could be more fashionable for her, but its just not in me?!  However, I do wear sunglasses + a baseball cap (like Daddy) pretty often + she likes these accessories too:)

Well, when Elsie Anne saw my large rim, beaded COWGIRL HAT, she about jumped out of her pants!!  It made me feel so special to have an accessory that she was SUPER-DUPER excited about!  I told her, its a 'COWGIRL HAT' + swung my arm around in the air, yelling "YEEEHAAAW!"

Since that moment, she can't get enough of MY HAT!  She knows where I keep it in the mud-room, points to it + says, "YEEEHAAAW!", swinging her arm around just like I did:) 

She put it on a bit crooked...

Wow, its big on her!!

Looking @ the Large Rim:)

I just love my little munchkin + all the silly things she does:)

Father's Day...

Elsie Anne is so blessed to have THE MOST WONDERFUL DADDY ON EARTH!!  And I am blessed that he is all mine...MOST AMAZING HUSBAND ON THE PLANET:)

We were able to enjoy a beautiful day in town, just the three of us!  To make it even more fun + exciting for Elsie Anne, we took the BUS from our house, into town!!  The town was hoppin' from the Film Festival, so it was nice not to fight for a parking spot!  We strolled around, ate yummy food, went to the Farmer's Market + watched part of the Cincinnati Reds game, then made it back home on the BUS!

We were all pooped from a day of SUNSHINE!  Elsie Anne reading her bedtime book w/ "Flopsy the Bunny"!

We also honored the other Incredible Men in our families...PaPa, Uncle Brad, Uncle Adam, GranDaddy, Big Daddy + Uncle Dallas!  We love + miss all of you:)

Breckenridge Town Party!!

We always look forward to the the Summer Town Party... and this year was no different!  We had gorgeous, warm, sunny weather, unlike some years, when we are bundled up trying to stay dry from rain + sleet.  This weekend we were nannying Henry, so we got to see just how chaotic it gets, watching two kids in a big crowd:)

Henry, Elsie Anne + Nadia are having an apple snack...

...before heading down to the dance floor!  We all enjoyed dancing + watching the live bands perform!  Shawn hanging on the steps w/ all the kids!  Shelby is admiring Shawn, she's loved him for almost 5yrs:)

Elsie Anne needed some space...she walked over to the ramp, sat down right by herself + wiggled to the beat of the music:)  She is Miss Independent these days!

Having so much fun w/ two of my FAVORITE little ones:)

HAPPY DAY:)

After 4 days of SNOW, SLEET + RAIN... we were so happy today to get outside!!  We went to the park w/ friends in the morning, played outside w/ a neighbor friend while waiting on Daddy in the afternoon, then went to Kingdom Park to watch some intramural softball w/ Daddy:)  We didn't know either team, but had a ball watching Elsie Anne cheer + run when the teams did! 

Elsie Anne running back + forth on the bleachers!

Playing @ the baseball park's playground!  EA loves slides + goes all by herself!!

This outing showed us that we'll definitely have to take EA to a Colorado Rockies game this summer!  She loved all the commotion + talked about the ball + bat the whole time;)

**slowly but surely updating May...our time in Florida...so keep checking older posts!**

SCROLL DOWN FOR NEW POSTS! THEY ARE BY DATE, 4/29/10 IS THE FIRST!

COMING BACK...

So, I'm not quite sure how I'm going to recap the last month + 1/2, in which I took a blogging hiatus, but I am DETERMINED!!  Our family is well, everyone in good health + happy.  Elsie Anne has grown leaps + bounds in this time... she is RUNNING now + very VERBAL, she pretty much tries to say every word we tell her to!  She learns 2-3 new words a week + continues to amaze us!  She is also very opinionated + adamant about her wants + needs;)

Here are a few recent pics to tide you over until I have time for a RECAP...

Having fun swimming w/ Daddy @ the Golden Eagle pool, before he drove home to Colorado!

Hanging out in her bathing suit, in between dips into the baby pool...one of her favorite past times in Florida!

Our matching outfits that we flew home in...NO, I did not plan it, just ended up that way:)