UPDATES

For some odd reason I actually got inspired to write a post this morning!  I started a real, live scrapbook in the spring to document our lives.  Which leaves me not feeling like I really need to post a bunch of pictures/updates on the blog anymore.  We will see what happens.  There is a lot going on as you will see...

1.  I am 25ish weeks pregnant.  I am not totally sure.  Need to check my phone.  This pregnancy is so different from the first time.  This baby kicks and moves like crazy.  My desire to nest and have energy came to me much later this time.  And, I have done NOTHING in preparation for this sweet girl.  Anybody have a crib they want to sell?  Doesn't look like Quinn is going to giver hers up anytime soon.

2.  We bought a house!  This happened in August, but it has been a whirlwind every since.  Living in a house has been such a blessing and has really helped with my sanity.  I am so grateful.  We are loving our neighborhood.  I wasn't expecting to love being in a neighborhood as much as I do.  There are a lot of little kids and young families.  The families are super friendly and that gives me a lot of peace of mind. 

3.  Quinn is becoming such a big girl.  She is incredibly smart and picks up on things so quickly.  I could go on and on because she is so busy these days.  We had a blast on Halloween.  She was a black kitty...a very, very cute one.  She loved passing out candy and insisted on walking and carrying her own candy bucket throughout the neighborhood.  "Quinn, you want me to carry you?"--as we walk at a snail's pace--"No!"  She is Miss Independent.

4.   I decided to close/take a break from Lemon Bee Studio.  It practically closed itself as I have barely done anything but fill orders since being pregnant.  A part of me kept thinking I would snap back into it.  After praying about it, it became apparent that this is just the beginning of a new season.  Part of this new season means learning when to say "not now."  It's a hard discipline for me to learn but I am finding a lot of freedom in it.  I am excited for what the Lord will do as I open myself up to the new things He wants to do through me.  I just bought "The Best Yes" by Lysa TerKeurst.  A girl from my BSF class said she is really enjoying it.

Well there ya have it!  In a nut shell :)

Easter 2014

 I'm a little behind here with the blog.  Better late than never, I guess!  Blogging feels like somewhat of a chore right now.  I have been really into making things for Lemon Bee and enjoying the nice weather outside.  Doesn't really leave much motivation for blogging!  Anyway, we had some lovely company over for Easter weekend.  Ben and Kelsey drove up from Charlotte, Topher from Chicago, and Polly from Buffalo.  We are the lucky ones who happen to be a pretty central meeting point! 

 It was SO FUN to watch Quinn get into her Easter Hunt this year!  Last year she was just a tiny baby.  It feels like forever ago!

 Napping definitely made it on the agenda for the weekend ;)

 So, did dirt pudding :)

Matt and I were able to sneak in a nice little walk on Sunday afternoon.  Polly was able to stick around after everyone left, and gave us the gift of free babysitting :)

Christmas 2014

We spent Quinn's first Christmas with my family in Michigan.  I don't think it every stopped snowing!  It was beautiful.  I made sure to take lots of pictures!

  I was so happy that I could tag along with Natalie and Meredith to see the Nutcracker.  It's one of my favorite Christmas traditions!

We spent Christmas Eve at my sister's house.  It was a fun party--complete with delicious appetizers, a white elephant gift exchange, and gingerbread contest (the girls won!)

 cousins!

 Quinn and Oliver--such a cute little pair! 

 Our Christmas Crew.  So glad that Great Grandma DeHaan could be part of the celebration!

 

 

Quinn's Christmas present to her parents :)



 

I tried to keep it low key with the decorating this year.  Mostly because I didn't want to have a lot of clean up since we are moving so quickly after the holidays.  The newest additions to our Christmas décor this year was our advent calendar + Jesse Tree ornaments, and Quinn's stocking!

 

 

 Hope you had a Merry Christmas!  Now it's time to go do some more organizing and laundry.     I haven't stopped since we got home.   Only a couple weeks before we move out!  It's all very bittersweet, but I am going to really try to enjoy our last moments here in Florida!

Thanksgiving 2013

I'm feeling pretty blogged out these days.  But, I had to make sure to post these pictures from Thanksgiving up north with the McCauleys.  Thanks, Aunt Katherine for about 90% of these pictures!

Quinn did really well with the traveling.  We had very early morning flights because we figured it would be easier with Quinn, plus the fact that we were traveling with the rest of America.  We actually only had 38 people on our flight to NY!  Quinn did very well on both flights!

We had the whole clan at Matt's parents' house!

 

 

Did I mention how much snow they had??!  I hadn't seen that much snow since we moved to Florida two years ago!  Matt and I did some shoveling Thanksgiving night...we were feeling a little stir crazy/fat.  ;)

 

 Quinn was asleep when everyone arrived to eat on Thanksgiving day.  This was her reaction to everyone after she woke up...love her sweet post nap face!

 Oh, and Quinn had some stranger anxiety while we were there.  This was a first! She would start to cry when we handed her off to someone else, or just simply stepped out of the room for a mere 10 seconds!  The only way she would let people hold her was if they told her "they were looking for the kitty."  (Sorry, Molly!)  She started to warm up after a couple of days.  I guess she really knows all of the people we interact with in Florida, and needs to spend more time with her extended family!  The square lip...everyone said Matt had the exact same look when he was a baby... :)

 The first grandchild getting a lot of attention. 

 It was definitely a fun and freezing trip!  I also enjoyed getting away one night with Matt to go see the Hunger Games!  I didn't really enjoy our last night when Quinn was up about every 1.5 hours and would only sleep on me...followed by a 4 am wake up to go to the airport...and more crying in the car.  I guess that is just how it goes!  But, Quinn now has two top teeth that are emerging quite nicely as a result! :)