Since Christmas....

Yep. Because I'm THAT far behind. I can't think of a better title than "Since Christmas" to describe this overload of pictures that I don't want to forget about. 

Way back in January we watched the Cotton Bowl with a fun group of friends at the Mills' house. Hallie and Kadence enjoyed their long evening of playtime together. Did I mention that they were looking way too cute in their cheerleading outfits.....

I caught a sweet moment during Hallie's first attempt at baking with her new Easy Bake oven. She made some teeny tiny little chocolate chip cookies. She didn't seem to mind that we undercooked them....

Since the new larger computer screen has been set up in our bedroom she has a new nightly ritual that involves cuddling up in our with her favorite blanket and oh yes, her favorite dog....

We celebrated Lauren's birthday with a fun night out at Ramiro's with too many fabulous and fun ladies to list (and their hubbies too)....

Hallie and I joined Sarah and Austin for a fun Friday trip to Enid for some Pearl Junkie shopping and Katy's Pantry for lunch. My mommy brain was not in full force that day as I left my wallet behind in Woodward. So there I was...90 minutes from home for a shopping trip with no form of payment. Ha! This is the sort of instance when having your debit card number memorized comes in handy. Oh yeah! Shopping crisis avoided. Hal and Austin kept somewhat occupied with the iPad while we shopped. We are waiting for the day when Hallie and Austin finally admit that they really do enjoy eachother's company. ;)

We've enjoyed playing outside on days when the weather allows. Unfortunately there haven't been many this winter. Hal's been really into digging, raking and "gardening" lately. Guess she's looking forward to spring just like everyone else....

Since pregnancy exhaustion has set in and seems to be here to stay I've become a little lax when it comes to what Hallie chooses to wear. I guess you could say I'm getting better at just letting it go to avoid hurting her feelings and most importantly avoiding a stage V meltdown. But I must clarify that most of these dress as you please moments come when she is leaving the house with her daddy. It seems to work for everyone.....Riley thinks it's hilarious, Hallie thinks she's a beautiful princess and I just shake my head because I'm not the one going out in public with her in high heels and an Easter dress....

Miss Hal has a mystery face rash that still remains a mystery to this day. We made a trip to visit Kay and this smile tells you all about her excitement level for stickers and suckers at the office....

I don't have to drag her to go to the clinic......she wants to go because she gets to do fun things like this....

We've ramped up the girly girl-ness a notch or two since turning the big 3.5. Nail polish, lip gloss, tiaras, high heels, pink, purple, skirts, dresses, bracelets...and the list goes on. I think Riley is finally getting used to the idea of having two little girls running around the house.....

Cousin Jasper turned two in January and we had a blast at his Saturday morning pancakes and pajamas party.....

 

One beautiful weekend afternoon the three of us had a playdate at Boiling Springs. My belly and I sat and watched these two crazies have fun.....

 

It wouldn't be a catchup post without a few random goofy shots on my princess just being a princess....

 

 

 

 

Hal gal was one happy chick on the day I cleaned out her lil sis's nursery. She found her broken cozy coupe shoved back in the closet and sat in that car all day long. I emphasize that she sat in it because it won't move anywhere due to the wheels being messed up. She talked Riley into trying to fix it but it needs to go to the junk yard.....

 

 

Riley was clearly thrilled....

 

 

Here was another reason she was excited on the day we cleaned out the nursery....

 

 

The Rogers fam became our new neighbors right across the street which makes us very very happy! Lily and Hallie, despite their obvious age difference, play together so well. I caught this picture of them pretending to clean one Sunday and told them to feel free to grab the real mop and broom if they wanted to....

 

 

 

 

We welcomed a snow day a few weeks ago until the snow and ice decided to stick around for quite awhile and keep piling up. But we did enjoy it for the day that we got to spend inside together. Well, Hallie and I that is....Riley was out shoveling walkways at clinics and making sure things kept moving along at work. We stayed busy inside dragging out every toy we own and playing in the snow of course.....

 

 

Snow angels were a must!

 

She snow angel'd the whole lawn.....

 

When daddy finally got home we dragged him outside with us to attempt a snowman. The snow wasn't wet enough but we did have a mini snowball fight. Well, I hid like a sissy inside the door and watched them do that part. ;)

 

 

 

Carmen and Hallie had a snowy stroll with Nanny one day and found this fun igloo near Nanny's house....



 

Oh how they love their Nanny.....

 



 

 

Ultrasound day was an exciting morning for everyone! This girl was extra goofy while I sat and chugged water to fill my bladder up before the big 20 week anatomy check. Big sis was ready to hear the words "it's a girl!"

 

My bad blogging habits have not been purposeful....lately I've had the option to either blog or go to bed in the evenings. Sleep is the clear choice. Here's hoping my next post won't be titled "Since baby #2 was born."

Fancy Dancy Day

Parent Day at dance class was exactly as I'd expected it to be. A time to laugh and a time to shed some of those inevitable my baby's growing up sort of tears. My ballerina had grown so much since summer dance camp. She had memorized two full dances. She was miss independent when it came to switching from her ballet shoes to her tap shoes in between dances. She watched her dad and I as she pranced by while they warmed up. She was oh so proud of her moves. One of those sweet moments I'll add to my list of dont forgets. And just a little side note: I think everyone will need a boat to survive the dance recital in May with all of my nine months pregnant happy momma tears that will be flowin'.

Thank heavens for great friends (thanks Lauren) who came to my rescue with pictures since my phone went dead when I arrived. Kadence and Hallie were on point (no pun intended) and had just the right amount of sass....

Hallie had us cracking up with her "princess walk" and high kicks. She took things quite seriously and tried her very best as she strutted past us making sure we were watching every move....

Even though she's been partial to gymnastics I can only assume that she forgets from week to week just how much fun she has with her little dancer friends based on what I saw at parent day. Keep on dancin' tiny dancer.

P.S.- I'm sorry for giving you my short squatty legs but you seem to pack a lot of power in them! :)

Sweetheart Day

Holidays just keep getting sweeter and sweeter as my sweetheart grows older and understands more about what each one means. This year she was fully invested in planning and picking out special treats for her daycare and school friends. Other than the many MANY pieces of candy that she snatched from the cups and stashed in her purse she was excited to share with her friends. I had to go back the night before her Valentine party and refill the cups to replace what was missing. 21 little cups full of love all ready to go.....

I walked into Hallie's room on Friday morning to find a sleepy, crazy-haired girl. I knelt down by her face and whispered "do you want to open your special present?" She kept her eyes closed but slowly shook her head yes. Still no movement. So I asked her again "Are you ready to open your goodies?" Again I got a nod. Finally I started rustling the tissue paper and she shot up out of bed so quickly it made me giggle. She stumbled in her stupor and fell on top of the giant gift bag. It didn't seem to slow her down because she was ripping the presents out of the bag before I could finish laughing.

She loved her Minnie and Daisy tea set, heart purse full of candy and her Disney princess music player. In fact I even heard a "oh mommy mommy, dis is da best gift ever!" She helped me surprise Riley (who was still sleeping) with his special present. Starting the day with happy hearts with my two Valentines was perfect. We hurried through our morning routine and got snazzed up in her new Vday dress. These glasses as school really paired well with it....

I was thrilled....no wait....ecstatic.....I was ECSTATIC to be able to help with her preschool party that morning. I could tell she was happy to have me there to celebrate with her simply by the fact that she didn't let go of my hand unless she simply had to. First all of the kiddos donned those goofy heart-covered glasses to play "Kiss the Valentine".....

Marleigh Gail's turn!

Jaidynce and Jocelyn's turn!

I could sit and watch my girl play games and sing ALL DAY LONG!

We pulled each child out of the circle time room to drop Valentines in each of their classmate's froggy sacks. Hal took the job seriously....

Meanwhile in the other room it was all smiles as they played another fun game...

Shelby had worked so hard to make a fun treat for the kids and it did not go unnoticed. It was so sweet to see their reactions when they walked in to find their froggies, chocolate covered strawberries and koolaid. Prayer time first before they dug in of course....

Here's a good indication of how happy everyone was.....

Check out that hat!!!! Woah! 

These memories are absolutely precious to me.....

Tons of sweet smiles to capture....

We tried to a normal mommy/daughter picture....

Like I said, we tried....

Be still my heart....

More goodies were handed out as they walked out the door and a heart balloon was tied to their sacks. So much excitement and sugar! Man oh man, Hal had an abundance of cards, candy and toys to sort through once we got home. We spent a solid hour eating, playing and reading as we emptied her bag. Let me stress the "we" part....I ate more than my fair share of her treats....it's okay though....I'm not a candy thief...Hal just doesn't like chocolate. Yes, you heard that right. 

My oldest Valentine surprised me with a massage gift certificate and a picture frame for the nursery. He knows my heart and my love language. ;) That evening Nanny treated us to a candlelit dinner of salad, steaks, baked potatoes and chocolate lava cakes. She had put a lot of heart into her Pioneer Woman inspired meal that she served. The evening was a quiet and peaceful one with some nice catchup time talking with her and Katie while the guys watched the Olympics. Gman and Meg made a special trip to Woodward to bring Hallie a bag FULL of toys, candy, stickers and snacks. Spoiled to the max!!! He always remembers all of his girls....I now have some pretty red roses to smell. ;) 

 

Some call it just another day but I think it's a pretty great one. Yes, I agree with the notion that we don't need a day to remind us to show love; however, it's nice to have an excuse to do some extra spoiling on our loved ones. I heart Valentine's Day!

20 Week Bumpdate



 

Well if watching my stomach grow outward by the day wasn't enough to make it real then the ultrasound we had this week did the trick. I am in fact growing a living being that does flips and kicks and punches and has the personality of her big sis. Yes, I said HER!!! After much anticipation we finally know what to call this babe something other than "it." My OB appointment was originally scheduled for Tuesday which was also the day seven inches of snow fell on our town. I was getting antsy and worrying about having to wait to find out the gender. If you haven't figured out by now I'm just a tad on the neurotic side. With the expected snow coming my favorite husband in the whole wide world checked to see if we could change my appointment to Monday before the snow arrived. Just one of the perks of him working amongst all of these doctor's offices. I managed to make it back to Woodward in time for a 4:00 appointment. Everything checked out great....blood pressure, heart rate, baby growth....we won't talk about weight gain. I settled in back in the ultrasound room for the big reveal. The reveal that never happened. Baby just wasn't ready to reveal her parts that afternoon. Dainty and cross-legged she remained during our ultrasound. Dr. Lehman guessed girl but said he couldn't give us a 100% since she wasn't cooperating. I left disappointed with not knowing. Riley left disappointed that he probably wasn't going to be having a tiny Marine. The week that followed was a long one with ice covered roads and record low temperatures which made for not so fun working conditions. Somewhere in the midst of working out in the cold and ice, chasing Hallie around and not getting enough sleep I ended up with the crud come Friday morning. But there was NOTHING that was going to stop me from making it to the big ultrasound. Hallie went with even though I had originally planned on surprising her at home and we met Riley at the hospital that morning. Baby girl made it clear what she was the second time around.....and daddy was no longer in denial about living in a house full of women...

 

Pink for Hallie

 

But I'm pretty sure seeing her tiny little footprint helped to melt his heart at least a little bit.....

 

  

 

Lil Sis was way more entertaining than I'd expected. Guess she was excited for the weekend just like her momma. That's what I get for expecting her to perform on a Monday...who likes Mondays anyways?! She was on her back most of the time doing all sorts of stunts for us. This was my favorite...hand behind head, fist in the air proudly proclaiming the female reign in the Fanning household....well, we can just pretend.....

Don't get me wrong, she did have her shy moments though....

 

And the moments that let me know she was definitely going to be a mini Hallie....kicking me pretty good here....

And arching her little back....looks similar to some of Hallie's two-year-old tantrums....

Riley kept Hallie busy and quiet while the tech finished up with the ultrasound. I think Hallie really wanted to understand what she was seeing on the screen but I'm 75% sure that she was just agreeing with everything we were saying. "Hallie, look! It's your sissy waving at you!" Her response: "oh, uh huh." Reminded me of the Friends episode where Rachel can't see her baby on the screen. "Hallie look! She's doing a flip!" Her response: "where?" I think once she knew she was having a little sis everything was sort of blah to her....she had confirmation of what she apparently already knew all along and that was enough for her. She returned to watching Mickey Mouse while I marveled at this tiny precious GIRL being.....

I had planned to surprise Hallie with a big box with a big pink or blue balloon inside but those plans changed once we didn't find out on Monday. Since she was in the know already she helped me share the news with family and friends.....

 

Two girls it is!!!!! I think I've secretly always wanted this. Just please don't tell Riley I said that. But this obviously begs the question I'd been hoping nobody would ask: will there be a third? We'll talk about that later. For now I have a nursery to decorate, Hobby Lobby trips to make and online shopping to do. Last pregnancy there was no Pinterest and I hadn't fallen in love with Etsy yet.....things should get interesting this time around.

I figured I'd end with a bit about the actual pregnancy side of things....I'm in that blissful period known as the second trimester where I can still breath when I walk up stairs, I can still see my toes to paint my toenails and I can lean over in a seated position to put my socks on. There are no nose bleeds, no nausea (besides that lovely altitude sickness I experienced in the mountains), no crazy food aversions (cravings is another story) and no overwhelming fatigue (ok, maybe just a smidge). My pre-pregnancy jeans have been placed up high out of my reach and I have a feeling it will be a very long time before we meet again. But honestly, is there anything more comfortable than maternity jeans??? I think not. As far as work goes, doc told me I can continue at my current activity level until 28 weeks and then things will have be scaled back a bit.....this means no more crawling on the floor, lifting and doing whatever other crazy activities I do on a weekly basis with my sweet school kiddos. I did find it eye-opening that I'm exceeding the recommended weight limit for lifting everytime I pick up Hallie....36 pounds of three-year-old.

 We're halfway through this journey and feeling blessed with a smooth ride so far. I'm hoping when next months' update rolls around I'll have a name for our princess to share with you. That is if we can convince Hallie that Butterfly Ladybug Fanning isn't going to be her official name. ;)

 

 

 

Mountain Trip with "the fam"

Warning: the lack of pictures is both highly out of character and embarrassing to me. I think Kristen and I were both majorly bummed that we failed to get at least one group shot. But hey, there's always next time!!! :)

Here we are again, up in the mountains of Angel Fire one year later. After last year's trip in the white out with 30 below temps I didn't see a January trip to the mountains in our future. But the weather could not have been more perfect and the company was about as good as it gets. Part of our Sunday school class decided a couple of months ago to take a weekend ski trip. Lindsay was our trusty trip coordinator and found a cabin in Angel Fire to accommodate our large crew. There were a few couples who really wanted to go but were unable to for various reasons. In the end we ended up with seven couples leaving town on Thursday. Riley naturally insisted on driving his truck and Lindsay and Andrew provided seven hours of non-stop entertainment as our traveling companions. We stopped midway through our trip to eat with Luke and Katie at Eklund Hotel where the laughs just continued. We pulled into Angel Fire around 3:30 and led the way up the mountain in search of our cabin. After a few unsuccessful trips up and back down we eventually found the place. Three-stories of mountain bliss. The cabin had a wall of windows that made the mountains even more beautiful to gaze at. Once most of the couples had arrived we decided to do what we'd all been avoiding.....draw for bedrooms. Note to self: if you want to actually sleep don't room in an open loft upstairs. ;) I blame Riley for a bad draw! We were all hungry (well most of us....Lindsay and I did not stop shoving food in our mouths during the six hour drive) so we ate dinner at Zeb's down the road. We stopped at the grocery store and filled up three baskets full of food for the weekend. Upon pulling into the cabin after our shopping trip Riley's truck got stuck at the bottom of the driveway. Turns out the steep drive was a deathtrap for vehicles that weren't 4-wheel drive. It was both frustrating and hilarious to watch as the guys tried an assortment of tactics to get the truck back up the hill but it just kept sliding. Air mattresses (to block the flying rocks from busting the windows downstairs) and floor mats were involved in the process but nothing seemed to do the trick. Finally we rounded all of the troops up ("except the pregnant ones" as Derek put it) with half of the group in the back of the truck and the rest pushing he was able to get up the hill....

That night Lindsay and I whipped up what would be our dinner for the following night and put it in the fridge to wait. Andrew nearly lost his face in the fireplace when he started it up. It gave everyone a pretty good laugh to kick things off! The rest of the crew unpacked and relaxed until everyone had arrived at the cabin. We all settled in to watch a movie before the first person started the "I'm exhausted, let's go to bed" trend. The shower fired up around 5:30 on Friday morning and the skiers were out the door by 7:00 on their way to Taos for the day. Carolyn, Heather and I took our time at the cabin just relaxing in the sunshine...

I put the brisket in the oven that morning and it immediately filled the house with smells of goodness. We decided that a day in Red River sounded fun so Heather drove us girls to the pretty little mountain town about 45 minutes away. It'd been a couple years since I'd been and was looking forward to some girl time there without chasing around a certain little girl. We were amazed by the ice sculptures that were at businesses up and down the street as we went from shop to shop...

We had lunch at a little cafe before heading down to the end of the street to the candy shop. Hallie made out like a bandit at that place once I realized they sold kids' toys as well as delicious fudge. It was still early in the day but all three of us were thinking that naps sounded like a great way to spend the rest of the day. So we did just that. Our little snooze was up followed by watching The Help (awwwww favorite movie EVER!) while Heather and I took the brisket out and finished prepping the potatoes and green bean casserole. We realized that a quick trip to the store was a must but we weren't sure how to escape the deathtrap driveway without sliding down it. But it turns out Heather has some mad backing skills and we made it out with no problem. We now had bread that would cook in 5 minutes versus the two hour rolls we had accidentally bought the night before. Yippee! By the time the tired skiers dragged in the door we had dinner complete and waiting on the counter. Feeding the masses was pretty fun and easy cleanup too!  From the stories recounted it seems like they all had a great time with only one slight casualty.....a broken tailbone for Mike (he would later find out). He had a little hitch in his get-a-long the rest of the trip due to his spill while snow boarding. Lindsay kicked butt for being almost 20 weeks pregnant on the slopes. Kendra and Katie were excited that they'd had such a good day despite not skiing since junior high. Several people informed me that Riley was "awesome", a "daredevil" and "fearless." Fabulous....just enough to frighten me even more. ;) Here's a shot of the skier's fun day on the mountain.....

We'd planned on a rowdy game night but settled for lounging and another movie once everyone realized just how tired they were from a day on the mountain. Even though I'd smelled the lovely aroma of the brisket all afternoon I just couldn't bring myself to eat any of it that night. I suppose the mountains were taking a toll on this pregnant old lady and I felt like my body was trying to get sick. I was up most of the night with a headache and stomachache which had me begging for some nausea meds Saturday morning. Thank goodness for fast-acting medicine which allowed me to feel like a human again just in time to hop in the car to head to Taos. The ski group was up around 7:00 for breakfast and out the door a little after 8:00. Sergeant Riley may have had something to do with. I was beginning to wonder if he would still be welcome in the cabin by the end of the trip. ;) Katie, Carolyn, Heather and I were more than ready for a morning at the spa so we headed out early and arrived at El Monte in Taos around 9:30. The place was beautiful as we wound around outside to find the spa entrance....

We robed up and had some time to relax before our therapists came to fetch us....

Heather and I both got 90 minute prenatal massages while Carolyn had a hot towel treatment and Katie got a facial and a pedicure. The massage left me in a wonderful daze of euphoria...I sat out in the waiting area sipping on water and talking with Heather about how wonderful our treatments had been....the relaxing sound of water trickling in the background and the natural light seeping in from above....AND THEN....I had my face assaulted by the esthetician during what turned out to be the most painful spa experience ever. OUCH...OUCH...OUCH. Katie agreed. Whew, lesson learned. My subtle suggestion would be for the scheduler to make the torture come before the massage. The muscles that were once relaxed were now tensed up from almost jumping off of the table. Next I wanted to jump over the counter when we paid before leaving. Holy overcharging for ridiculous things. Nearly $400 later I was wondering if Riley would give me a ride back to Oklahoma. ;) Trying to put the spa experience behind us we drove up to the ski resort to pick up Mike who'd been waiting that morning. We found a yummy lunch place back in town where we scarfed down Mexican food like it was our last supper. The guacamole and salsa were top notch and I decided by the end of my meal that I could definitely eat at a place like that every single day. Love me some mexican food! We dropped Mike off at the casino, Katie hopped in with Luke who had come to pick her up and the rest of us girls took to the square for some browsing/shopping. I was so excited to find the cutest little toy store and tried to contain myself. A couple hours later it was time to head to dinner since the skiers were done for the day. We all decided on pizza in Angel Fire and game night back at the cabin. After a windy ride in the dark back to Angel Fire Heather and I were feeling less than stellar and all but skipped dinner while everyone else ate. After some more meds to kill my headache and nausea I felt like a million bucks just in time for games. Headbanz and Catchphrase were the picks of the night we actually convinced all of the husbands to play too....which I considered to be a small miracle. To say that having all 14 of us scattered around the living room laughing our heads off was fun would be an understatement. I hated to go to bed that night and actually stayed up just a tad bit longer with a small group of us so that vacation wouldn't come to an end. The next morning Riley the Rooster crowed at 6something after we heard one carpool moving around downstairs. He all but dragged by lazy bones out of the bed. Man, it was so hard to get up that Sunday morning knowing we had to leave. I heated up breakfast for the group so that we could use up the remainder of the food we'd bought and then reluctantly packed my bag. We pulled out way earlier than I'd expected and got home by 4:00 that afternoon. The ride home consisted of naps, snacks, more snacks and more hilarious conversation.

 

I say it often but it's still not near enough.....we could not be more blessed with a Godly, uplifting, hilarious and laidback group of friends. They make life fun!

 

 

Dear Kristen, Derek, Lindsay, Andrew, Matt, Heather, Katie, Luke, Mike, Carolyn, Austin and Kendra,

 

Thanks for an amazing weekend filled with laughter!

 

Love,

The Fannings

 

 

 

NOTE TO SELF: do NOT go to the mountains again while pregnant. All three pregnant women on the trip would agree. Altitude + curvy roads = Lord help me!