A Day At The Park

Since Nick is still off work, we decided to take Allie to the park on Monday. She's still a little bit young for most of the equipment but it's nice to get out of the house and spend some time as a family. Thank goodness we didn't get any pics of Allie and me going down the slides together. I don't think those things are quite made for adult measurements.

When we got home, Allie decided to do a little bit of reading before taking a nap.

1st Mother's Day

I had a wonderful 1st Mother's Day! We invited Nick's whole family over for dinner. The weather was beautiful so we were able to let the kids play outside while everyone just relaxed. In fact, I must have been so relaxed that I didn't even take any pictures! Not. a. single. one. What was I thinking? Perhaps I was thinking that the Riesling was tasting oh-so-good. Yeah, I'm pretty sure that was it. Anyways, pictures or not, we had a fantastic day!

I'm so blessed to have such a wonderful husband and a fantastic daughter. They teamed up to buy me a gift certificate to get my hair cut before Chris & Victoria's wedding next weekend. I'm ashamed to admit that I haven't had my hair cut since last August and good Lord does it need it. Allie also gave me some extra cuddle time with her. Her impending teeth were really bothering her so I got to spend almost an hour just rocking and cuddling her in her room, just the two of us. While I'd prefer her not to be in pain, I truly enjoyed the Mommy-Daughter time. She's growing so fast so I just rocked her and soaked it all in. It was the perfect day!

I hope everyone had a fantastic Mother's Day too!

More Bathtub Pics

Just because she's so cute...

Could I possibly look anymore like my Daddy?

I'm ALWAYS chewing on something.

All clean!

Grilling Out

Wow, I'm really behind on updating this blog. I need to get better about it.

We went to Nick's parents' house to grill out last week for dinner. His parents had just come back from vacation and wanted to see the grandkids. The weather was beautiful and I got some great shots of the Alligator playing outside.

She LOVES her Daddy!

Playing in the grass outside.

Our sweet girl showing Ma and Pa her new trick.

Hanging with Pa after his week-long vacation.

So cute!

Sitting Pretty

Allie has been trying to sit up for awhile now but last Sunday, she finally mastered the trick! We were playing on a blanket, watching Daddy fish and I decided to let her try to sit up. To my amazement, she sat for nearly 10 minutes before falling over! She was so proud of herself and had this huge smile on her face the whole time. She sat up some more when we got home and has been going strong ever since.

Looks like we might be skipping that whole rolling thing. I've heard it's over-rated anyway.

My first time sitting up all by myself!

So proud of myself!

Whoa! This sitting up thing is pretty cool!

Okay, this sitting up thing is getting a little bit boring.

Okay, this is fun again!

I'm such a big girl!

Do I have something on my head?

Derby Days

Every year for his birthday, Nick likes to go to a local horse track to bet on the horses and watch the simulcast of the Kentucky Derby. We usually go to River Downs in Cincinnati but this year we were in Columbus for Loren's show choir showcase so we went to Beulah Park instead.

Allie was very interested in all of the action. She loved watching the (crazy) people and just sat there, taking it all in. Victoria had given her this adorable feather headband that was a perfect Derby Hat! Random people kept stopping to tell me how cute she was in that headband.

We had a great time betting on the horses, although there were no big winners. We did let Allie pick a horse for one race (not the Derby) by placing the program in front of her and seeing which horse her hand landed on. She actually picked the winner but Nick wasn't able to place the bet before the window closed. Oh well, I guess we'll have to figure out how to pay for college another way. After the live racing was done and the Derby bets were placed, we headed back to Tony's house to watch the actual Derby. It was a fun weekend!

Excited to be at the race track for the first time.

Posing in front of the big board.

Having fun at the track!

Back at Uncle Red's house for the Derby Party.

5 Months Old!

I'm a week late in posting this, but we've been so busy this week, I just haven't had a chance.

Allie turned 5 months old last Monday and continues to get cuter by the day! She weighed in at 14lbs 5 oz so she's definitely getting bigger. She's found her voice and loves to have "conversations" with us. Her favorite song this month has been The Itsy Bitsy Spider and her favorite toy has been her jumperoo. She goes crazy in that thing! She's become much easier to put down for naps and at night time but has decided that sleeping through the night is nowhere near as fun as waking up 2 or 3 times a night. Mommy and Daddy are tired! She still loves her cereal and also enjoys being outside. Seeing leaves on the trees move always brings a smile to her face. We found out this month when she broke out in hives that she's allergic to penicillin. They're listing it as a sensitivity for now and will continue to test it in small doses until she's older. She has become so interactive and is just they joy of our lives.

Happy 5 Month Birthday Baby Girl! We love you so much!