Easter Round II and an Excuse for Vacation!

Last week we had the chance to go home to Ohio. One of my friends was getting married, and Jon was actually able to take the week of! It was a great excuse for a family vacation that didn't have the pressure of the holidays. Now that doesn't mean we didn't find ways to celebrate. My Grandma spoiled me with a second Easter. She knows how much I LOVE her cooking, so she made an Easter feast on Sunday, and had an egg hunt for Kate. We are so spoiled!

 Kate and her Great Grandma. Or Granny as she calls her.

 Kate enjoyed all the attention from my family. Here she is running outside in her new skirt having Grandpa and Zach throw her in the air.

  Running around outside Kate still takes a time out to request looking at pictures on Grandpa's Cell phone.  That girl is mildly obsessed with pictures!

 4 Generations on the front porch.....we know it isn't pretty...but the point is we were all there and we are awesome!

 And her egg hunt! She wanted the candy out but had a hard time opening the eggs. She quickly discovered that she could break them open by throwing them on the floor.

 And for whatever reason this net was the preferred way to gather eggs. She is such a silly girl and comes up with the funniest ideas on her own.

  All the partying didn't leave lots of time for sleeping. Kate missed her nap multiple times while we were on vacation. But she still was a sweetheart and had a blast....until our last day when we told her we were going home. Poor girl didn't want to leave Grandma and Grandpa! But who can blame her-- they are the coolest!

 Ohh Uncle Zach. Kate just loves flirting with him! She gave him TONS of big kisses. She plants big ones right on the lips and holds it there for long stretches of time. SO fun to watch her do to Zach since it makes him uncomfortable. She would hold him captive all day if she could.

 While in Ohio Kate had her first experience with high heels. She was snooping in Grandma's room and found some dress shoes that Grandma was saving for Christmas. She came running out and said--"Grandma! Pretty Shoes!!!" It is funny to note that it took her quite a few tries to stand up in them. Funny girl. But she is becoming quite the shoe fanatic.

 And the best excuse to have vacation.....Kacie and Randy's wedding! Somehow I didn't end up with a bride and groom picture, but here is Kate and Grandma enjoying the good food at the reception. I was asked to read a poem in the wedding ceremony, and it was great to be there for the big day! I just love Kacie so much!

 I did get a picture right before Kacie and Randy dug into their ribs at the rehearsal dinner. I love a couple that isn't afraid to get messy--especially for good food! Thanks for the great wedding, and I'm so happy for you!

Ahh, being home from vacation is always such a sweet sorrow. You are forced to sit around and cherish the good time you had while you do laundry and get back into the daily routine. I sure love all my friends and family and am so blessed to have them in my life. Sometimes I sit back and marvel at all the amazing people I am fortunate to have by my side! I am one lucky lady! 

Best $2.50 I've Spent!

In Kate's Easter basket I put these cheap popper things I found for $2.50. Kate LOVED them! She spent an hour straight popping the ball to dad and then running to get the ball when he hit it to her. So much Kate laughter....and it made her perfectly tired for bed!

They found it was very funny to pass the ball this way.
But not as funny as popping our self in the nose!

And jumping on dad like a trampoline while playing with the popper was a favorite. She laughed so hard when she made him make noises from jumping on his chest. Too fun to watch them run around enjoying themselves.

Easter Weekend

Here at the Walter House we made Easter a weekend party! On Friday Kate and I got to hang out with our friend Nikki. Above is Kate all dressed up for our lunch date. Can you tell the outfit makes her sassy. Then Friday night Jon and I were able to attend the temple. Then Saturday afternoon we went to a pool party with our cousins down here. Kate had a blast! She is tall enough this summer to really enjoy running around the pool.
Then came Easter morning. Kate was excited to see her new movie, UP. But she is not a fan of our camera--she thinks it is going to flash every time, so she always makes a nervous face. But you get the idea. She loved her dress. When Dad was getting her dressed she started saying, "yay yellow!" We are pretty sure Yellow is her favorite color.
Then after naps on Sunday we went back to a cousin party at Scott and Susan's house for Easter Egg hunt and Easter dinner. Kate was excited to find the eggs, and would ohhhh and ahh when she found them. Then would clap for herself once the egg was placed in the basket.
Another shot showing her disapproval of the camera. Silly kid! One day I will get cute pictures of her!
After grabbing 8 eggs, Kate decided she was done and wanted to swing with her basket. No need to be greedy I guess.

The results are in

We officially are having another GIRL. We found out this morning. I can't say I'm surprised, I kinda figured it would be since I've been so sick. But I was a little bummed....I was excited to try out a baby boy. But things will be fun around here with 2 little girls. I already see Kate's big girl room holding bunk beds full of giggling girls. Now we just need to come up with a name! We have a few we like-- but aren't sold on any yet. We like Anabelle, Abigail (abby for short), Shelby, hey you, baby #2....we don't know! We will let you know when we do. Guess its time to pull out Kate's newborn clothes and see how much we need to buy!

Southeast Texas State Fair

Yesterday was dollar day at the Southeast Texas State Fair, so we decided Kate would really enjoy it. I'm so glad we went- it was a major success! We headed to the animals first. Kate was a huge fan. Here she is petting her first chicken.

She was not afraid to touch any part of the animal she could reach....good thing for hand sanitizer.
She also thought it was fun to kiss any animal that would go for it. This shot in particular cracks me up....preparing to make out with 2 lambs!

She was so friendly to each animal we came to. She would get down to their level and say hi to them. It was super cute.
She really thought the goats were fun. She kept shouting, "Goat, goat!"
Oh the cows....Kate dove head first into a stall after tripping on some straw. Luckily she avoided the cow pies! No harm though, she didn't miss a beat petting and talking to the cow.

And yes she kissed a few cows....
We then met up with our friends and Kate had a blast with her friend Avery.
We found a stuffed gator, and Kate loves them lately, so she was very happy to see it. Of course he got a kiss too!

And then she was given a balloon! That simple balloon made her squeal with laughter for quite some time. She enjoyed running from dad and hitting the balloon into people.

Look at the joy on that face.

This was taken right after saying "daddy mommy balloon!" meaning dad hit mom in the head with the balloon. She thought that was the best game ever!
After that the balloon broke off the string and floated away. Jon and I looked at each other with the "aw crap" expressions and started telling her to wave bye to it, blow it kisses and such. Surprisingly it worked! She didn't cry at all!

Then we headed off to ride a few rides. I bowed out of them----spinning in circles isn't a good idea for me right now. Here is the rest of the gang on this spinny bear ride.
And this is what Kate thought of it:

Apparently not a huge fan. lol.

Then the elephant ride with Nikki. (PS..Nikki was the ride partner of choice. Kate didn't want to ride with mom or dad, not for lack of trying. We wanted to ride with her, but we aren't as cool as Nikki!)Avery and Tanner saying Hi on the Elephant ride.

And to finish up the evening, the carousel. Again she wasn't a fan.

Overall the fair was a great time! Kate only occasionally expressed her frusteration--mostly about being taken from Nikki. No temper tantrums or crying. It was a good time to be out and make memories!

What is better than a clean floor?

A MESSY ONE!! I hadn't even put the vacuum away from cleaning the living room floor this morning when I find Kate sitting with ALL her books around her. I know I've posted almost identical pictures before, but this time it's just to point out that apparently my life will never be picked up and tidy again! Kate thinks that being surrounded by books and toys is a better way to live! I guess I'll get over it, or put all the books in her big girl room (speaking of big girl room, you should start getting excited. Jon is HOPEFULLY going to paint Kate's bed this weekend so we can finally put her room together! We want her to be very used to her big girl bed by the time the baby comes along. Thanks to my mom and collecting for a year now her room is going to be too cute!)

Mini Me

Today at the grocery store we went to the candy isle. I needed to grab some Cadbury eggs, ya know the essentials. Kate was very excited to see the candy and refused to put the bag in the cart. She hugged it for the rest of the shopping trip. It was pretty funny...it really reminded me that she is my daughter! Another funny lately is Cheetos. For whatever reason I have been craving them, so naturally Kate gets to enjoy also. On the way home from the grocery store she asked nicely for her cheetos, and she was a very happy mess by the time we got home.

Run Jonathan Run!!!!

So my husband is pretty much amazing. Scott, Melissa, and Kenneth (some of his siblings) talked him into running in the Cow town race with them in Ft Worth a few weekends ago. Jon decided to do the half marathon with Kenneth and Melissa, Scott is an overachiever and did the full! The slightly sickening part about it was that Jon did so well with little training! His training schedule went like this; basketball on Tue evenings with some friends at church, and Sat morning runs with 2 friends. He finished his first half in just over 2 hours. Then this Saturday he ran another half here in Beaumont and finished 1:54. Sometimes his athletic ability makes me sick....and also attracted to him at the same time! Way to go Jon--we are proud of you!

A Car Confession

Ok, there is one thing about having another baby that is starting to nag at my mind.

My car is small. It works great for 3 people, but that is just about it. But add one more car seat and it will be FULL on a normal basis. Then cue hurricane season. What if we have to evacuate?! We would have to fit our sweet dog in there too somehow, cause he is part of the family! I guess he could sit in the passenger seat with whoever isn't driving, not the most cozy arrangement. I am starting to realize that eventually I will have to part with my car. That fact deeply saddens me! I love my little car! It was a cheap car, so our monthly payments are so small I barely notice them when I pay them. It is cheap on gas because its tiny and a stick shift. I only get gas like once every two weeks. And one of the biggest things I will miss about my car is the day-dreaming time it gives me. You see, on occasion (ya know when my kid isn't in the backseat with me killing the fantasy....so these times are rare) I like to pretend that my car is my dream car (a mustang if anyone is planning on winning the lottery). I crank up the music, and race people down the streets! I love changing gears and pretending I'm driving something with lots of power built for speed! Funny enough this fantasy works for me. It helps me fight off the longing for a 'cooler' or more 'hip' version of myself. Sometimes, and only sometimes I mourn the loss of my 'younger years'. I was 19 when I got married and now at 25 will have 2 kids! And I realize that with those kids my dream car gets farther and farther out of my reach (if I think the backseat of my current car doesn't seem compatible with 2 car seats that barely existent 'seat' in the back of a 'stang will never work for my life!). So I am clinging to my current car as long as I can. I need to at least play pretend every once and awhile! It will take a lot more work for my imagination to turn my mini van into a 'stang. I guess I should start practicing!

Style

Kate has developed quite an opinion about what she wears lately. Usually its her boots that she insists on wearing, and you have seen many pictures of her in those. But today she pulled out a new fashion statement that I think may foreshadow my future.
We got all dressed to go to the store, and she ran to her room to put on this very special skirt on top of her shorts. It is a dress up skirt that goes with her wings and wand....thankfully she only needed the skirt! At least it was purple so it matched. But she marched around the store confidently in that shiny ensemble.

First Family Camping Adventure

This weekend we went on an overnight camp out with some of our good friends. It was really fun, until the sleeping part! None of us got lots of sleep--but aside from that it was perfect! It did start raining at about 10pm, but the rain cooled the temperature down to a perfect crawl-into-a-sleeping-bag-temperature.

Kate got to do the traditional camping things, like roast a marshmallow.....she loved when it caught on fire! But in the end she wasn't a huge fan of eating the roasted ones...she kept going back to the bag for the 'raw' marshmallows!