Wedding Bells and Moving Vans

Last Saturday, my good friend Abigail got married. I was in the wedding and was thrilled to be able to partake in all of the wedding festivities that happen before the big day (bachelorette party, rehearsal dinner, pictures, etc) but, I also thought that it was poor timing on our part to be closing on our house on Friday (then rushing to the rehearsal dinner), moving out of our house on Saturday (then rushing to take pictures before the ceremony), then getting up early on Sunday to move some more :) Whew...it makes me tired to think about how much we accomplished last weekend! The wedding was beautiful, went off without a hitch, and we all managed to stay dry---it started to rain at the very end of the reception. The bride looked stunning and it was great to be able to catch up with some of my oldest friends.

Here comes the bride...
T and I all dressed up...This has been a rare photo since Em's arrival. We had a really good time dancing and also enjoyed the DELICIOUS food.The Wedding Party

AT LAST!!!!!!

We are finally in our beautiful new house and have officially handed over the keys of our precious old home. I feel like it was just yesterday when T and I drove by this house and looked at each other and said "Let's do it!" We got a letter from the previous owners yesterday, in it they said that they were sooooo sad to leave this house and were very torn on putting it on the market. They quoted somebody else in saying that "you can buy your house, but you cannot buy your neighbors" and he continued to say that leaving their (now our) neighbors made this move even more heartbreaking. It made me smile because I knew exactly what he was talking about---the neighbors have been fantastic and super friendly. I know that we will settle in soon and make this house a home---we are off to a good start. We are looking forward to having our friends and family over this summer to help us break it in!

Bodhi has found a new friend :)

We have had 3 or 4 deer roaming behind our house the last couple of evenings---I love it!

Sand Fest 2009

Trav, Emma, and I drove down to Port A to go to the Sand Fest. The Sand Fest is one of the largest sand sculpture competitions in the United States. There were "master" sculptors from Canada and Europe there competing. We met up with Trav's mom, aunt and uncle and stayed in the SandCastle Condos--which were right on the beach and just a short walk to the competition. We were worried that there would be terrible thunderstorms all weekend long, but the weatherman was wrong and we had perfect weather!!! Trav's mom and aunt were more than eager to take care of Em while Trav and I hung out at the beach---we really appreciated the extra set of hands and we know that Em enjoyed the extra attention!

Emma's toes touching the sand for the first time. Like everything else in our little, laid back girl's life, it did not really faze her.

Happy Beach Girl

Emma and her Daddy

She LOVED our daily walks to the beach---there were sooo many things to look at and listen to.

No child was harmed in the taking of this picture :)

Perry the Pelican that lived on the pier :)
Introducing Emma to the Ocean
Connie and I talking to one of the sculptors. I was very interested in their "real job" and how they came up with their ideas. This man had made a clay model of his vision. He worked in the wood restoration business in Manhattan, NY.

Trav thinks this picture is HILARIOUS. I was caught off guard by a wave---the water was super cold. Nothing like wet jeans at the beach!!!

All of the sculptors took part in creating the piece behind us. It was quite impressive.

Check out Emma G's flipflops---I know...not very practical, but sooooooo stinkin' cute!!!

Trav and Em sleeping in---the clock says 10:11. We usually do not have Em sleep with us, but she woke up crying at 6 am (first time since she was 1 month old) and we blamed the pack-n-play's hard mattress. So...we laid her down with us and she was out for the count!!!

This is what it looked like at 8am on the first morning. I was sure that it was going to pour and stay really windy, but the rain never came.

Amazing Sand Sculptures

Here are the best of the best for the Master's Division at the SandFest. We had a great time and were very impressed that these artists were able to turn lumps of sand into sculptures that look like they belong in a museum. I remembered most of the titles, but forgot a few and have left those as "?". The pictures really do not do these works any justice! "Seasons of Change"

This was our favorite from the singles' division.

"Hand-le with Care"

"Tall Tails"
"?"
"Sister Cities"
"Port A is Fun"
My least favorite of all of them. It looked very low skill compared to the others.

"Sandy Bottom Boys"

"Tucked Away"

"Sunrise"

"Sons of a Beach"

back of "Time Consuming"

This one was our favorite. The artists were very creative and detailed in this sand sculpture. Each day that we went to go see it, the sculpture had something else added that made me appreciate it even more!

side of "Time Consuming"
Notice the hand in the middle of the smaller clock at the bottom. I guess somebody has already been consumed :)

Front of "Time Consuming "Wolves' Rendezvous"

"Some Assembly Required"

"Sandburger in Paradise"

Jimmy Buffett sitting on a ginormous burger :)

"Squeaky Clean"

This was going to be a large sink (faucet to the left of pic) with all of the mice in the bubbles and dishes. Cute and fairly detailed.

"?"

Easter Antics

Ok...I am quite aware of the ridiculous amount of pics that I posted in this entry, but there were too many for me to pick from. I hope they make you smile as much as they did me. Emma the Easter Bunny
We went to my parents' house on Easter Sunday to spend time with my parents, grandparents, and my sister's family. We had a lot of fun and had access to sweet treats and yummy food all day long.
Emma's first experience with a swing. She was not super excited about it, in fact, she never cracked a smile while she was swinging. Hmmmm...I am sure she will warm up to the idea over the next couple of months.

My niece, Mia, has a jeep at my parents' house. It is soooooooo funny to watch a 3 year old drive around (stick shift), pump up the radio, get gas (with the water hose), and visit her friends around the yard. She always has to have her baby with her when so goes out. She has gotten much more talented since she got it a year ago!!! Now she wants to take Emma with her...I am not sure Mia has proven herself to be a safe enough driver for me to allow my child to be her passenger :)

Motal Feet---Just thought it was a cute pic

We tried to get a really cute family pic. There were many funny pictures, but none of the pics had all 3 of us looking at the camera at the same time. We are going to have to practice a bit more. So...this was the best one out of the 20 or so that we took.

We also got some precious pictures of Mia and Emma. Mia got an outfit from our Grandma (her GiGi) and Emma ended up getting a coordinating outfit from Lela (my mom). They did not plan this, but when we saw that they had matching outfits in their Easter baskets, we jumped at the opportunity to get some cute, cousin pics.Mia was trying to give Emma commands..."Sit, Emma!" and "Emma, stay!"

Precious!!!

This one is a framer!

PaPa and Emma

GiGi, Mia, and Emma

Mia dressed up like the Easter Bunny. T and I gave Mia an Easter basket, and it had bunny glasses in it. She gave us a bit of a show as she modeled her bunny look.

T and I took Emma and Mia to see the Clydesdales at the Dell Diamond. As you can see, Emma had a blast sleeping through the whole thing!

Mia really did have a good time and was excited about getting to tell her friends about the "giant horses".

Baby Birdies and Little Pink Ladies

A couple of weeks ago, we noticed a bird's nest in our wreath on our front porch. On Thursday we saw little birdies inside. They were tiny and it was obvious that they were very newly hatched.
Trav got a great shot of all of the baby birds reaching up, mouths open, waiting for their mom to come back with food.

Today, when we got home, we noticed a big pile on our porch. I went to go check and was saddened to see that a cat had gotten to the nest, knocked it from the wreath, and ate the babies. RIP little birdies!!!

My school has a 50's themed spring fling (dance/carnival) each year. For the last 3 years, Trav and I have manned the jail as Mr. and Mrs. Sheriff--kids pay to put their friends/teachers in jail for 10 minutes. I decided to make Emma the tiniest poodle skirt ever. Travis just laughed when I showed him her outfit, he shook his head realizing that the silliness has just begun :)

All of these cuties look like they are trying out for the play pen version of Grease!
Landry is one lucky guy!!!

Emma is also turning 5 months old tomorrow (the 5th). She has found her voice, her independence, and her appetite. We have love getting to know our little girl better as her personality starts to shine through. She makes us smile and laugh constantly. We love you Emma G!