Grandma came to visit!

 We were so excited to have grandma come visit us for the week.  I had made some fun plans throughout the week.  Before we picked her up, we went to the Alexandria Zoo.  For such a small zoo, it was really nice.  There were high decks to look in the cages and we saw all the animals.  We even went on a train ride, although you don't see much on the ride.

 Tiger!

During my mom's stay, she helped me plant grass seeds in the front yard and plant flower beds to help make our house more presentable for sellers.  It would be nice to sell before our upcoming move!

 We drove to Lafayette, LA on Friday and stopped for lunch. We had our first crawfish and shrimp po-boys.  Basically, a fancy sandwich with fried meat inside. It was in a cute little down town area of Breaux Bridge, LA.  

 We had to hurry to Champagne's Cajun Swamp Tour, which I scheduled for 1 o'clock... and because we were eating at a fancy French restaurant, we kind of had to tell the cook to hurry... Yikes!

 The swamp tour was fun.

 It was a little difficult for Kate to be held for 2 hours on a boat with hungry alligators all around us.

 This alligator is HUGE!

 We went swimming everyday at the hotel.  Kate LOVES the water. She has no fear and will just jump into the pool so we had to be extra careful with her.

 We went to Avery Gardens, LA on Saturday.  The Tabasco Factory is on the island and we took a tour of the factory.

 Then we drove through Jungle Gardens and Bird Island, located on the park.  It is so beautiful there.  Alligators were sun bathing around the lakes everywhere.

 Kate loves her grandma Sue! We can't wait to see you in June!

Mardi Gras 2014

We started out the day with a 5K through down town Leesville.  Bryan got 3rd place in his age group.  I was just happy to make it across the finish line. 

Then we went down town to watch the parade with friends! We got lots of beads and candy. Kate LOVED it! 

 Next, our neighbors came over for Kate's smash cake.  Jennifer took wonderful pictures of Kate tearing up her cupcake cake.  I did a much better job decorating this cake.  It makes a world of a difference when you have the right tools.  

Kate's First Birthday

We traveled up to Oklahoma to celebrate Kate's first birthday with family and see Stratton after his 2 year mission in Mexico. 

The last time all the brothers were together was December 2011 Ahlympics.

Michael, Stratton, Bryan, Adam

 Kate enjoyed the dogs at Grandma and Grandpa's house.

 For Kate's birthday we went to the Tulsa Zoo.

We watched the monkey's get feed

 and pet a goat. 

 Before we had cake, we went swimming at the YMCA. I made a cupcake cake, but I definitely need to work on how to frost a cake. I guess you get better when you have more kids and lots of birthdays! 

Kate really enjoyed her cake! 

She even opened up most of her presents! She got lots of clothes, a vacuum popper, a giant chicken, books, a toilet, and shoes. 

Bryan and I made a growth chart for Kate (and for our other children) for her birthday too.  It turned out perfect!

Happy 2014

January has been super, crazy busy! Here's what we've been up to.

This might be a little sad, but Bryan and I finally went out on a date.  It was a double date, but yeah, we did it.  I guess we've been busy with work and building a house and having a baby. We went to brunch with our neighbors at a little gem of a restaurant in Leesville.

We were mad at the US Mail because they made us put our mailbox on the street instead of on our house like everyone else in the neighborhood.  When Bryan cut down one of the trees, we decided to make a "custom" mailbox. We finally fixed it. 

I was admitted to a hospital in Houston and so glad to see Bryan and Kate the next morning.  It was scary being all alone, without family. Just glad everything went well.   

 Kate has become our little climber.  I've caught her on ladders, buckets, and the arm of the rocking chair.

 We traveled down to Baton Rouge with our neighbors for the Louisiana 1/2 Marathon. Only Bryan could participate, as I was recovering from surgery.  We went to the zoo, which was Kate's first time seeing all the animals.  The weather was perfect!

 Bryan crossed the finish line in 1 hour 43 minutes??,... his goal was under 1 hour 45 minutes, so he did great!

 State Capital. This is where the Louisiana Marathon started and finished.

 Our first snow in Louisiana. Crazy!!

 Since I haven't been to work for the past 2 weeks, I was able to complete a much needed project.  I used Annie Sloan chalk paint and wax and a special brush- it turned out super cute!

Christmas Morning

Our first Christmas as a family. It was fun playing Santa Claus, even though Kate's not old enough to understand. I wanted to start some traditions this year to help bring Christmas cheer.  We did the 12 books of Christmas, made sugar cookies, and watched Christmas movies. Here is our tree on Christmas Eve. 

Christmas Festivities

There are a lot of activities happening in this small town over the holidays.

 We completed a Reindeer Run 5K- Bryan got 2nd place overall and 1st place in his age group.  He was beaten by a girl! (She is on the Army 10 miler Team).

 Santa came to Leesville via firetruck at the Christmas Parage.

 It was really cold at the parade!

 Kate met Santa Clause in Natchitoches.  She was definitely fond of him, no tears.  This was a legit St. Nick.  He had a real beard and a stomach full of jelly.  Next year Kate will react WAY different.  

Not sure she enjoyed the fireworks after her visit with Santa.  I think it was too loud.  We really enjoy the Festival of Lights in Natchitoches, LA.  Good times.  It's too bad the weather didn't cooperate.  I was hoping to go on a carriage ride and do a tour of the homes...guess we will have to come back before we leave LA!