Catching Up...and Looking Forward

Well, since our little Anna bug has arrived, the blog (among many other things) was put on hold so we could adjust to life as parents. She has had lots of new experiences already and has survived her first big holiday season! It's crazy to think how different our lives are as compared to this time last year. 2010 was not the easiest, but with Anna's arrival, the year certainly brought our biggest reward. We are so looking forward to seeing what new changes and adventures this little babe will bring our way in 2011!

Loving on her hands...this is her "party shirt" she donned for New Year's Eve!



I can't get enough of her legs...a little bit chubby, and oh, so soft!







Ahhh, so precious!

One of her many expressions...

Fun leg warmers for Christmas :)

Getting familiar with her Bumbo seat...she's not sure if she likes it yet or not.

Did I mention the holidays wore her out?! She fell asleep while laying under her play gym...at this point, she still had two Christmases to go, poor thing!

Daddy gets in on the wrap-time, too (earning BIG points with mommy)!!

Chubby little thighs after her first shots.

Oh, my little snuggle-bugs!

Kisses for daddy

This was the first time we really got her giving us "real" smiles...then we realized we needed to trim her nails, yikes, look at that scratch!

One week old

Again at 1 week...the girl's got a personality!

Meet our Little Pumpkin!

She's here! After much anticipation, our little Anna has arrived! She was born on October 13th at 4:46 pm, weighed 7 lbs 15 oz, and was 20 inches long.

Neither Michael nor I got much sleep the night before, so once I got my epidural, we were both able to get some rest before the excitement really began.

Who knew how delicious crushed ice could be?

Meeting for the first time

First family photo

We're in trouble...this girl's got the pouty face down and she's only minutes old!

Salsa Time:)

Well, this crazy hot summer has taken its toll on our much neglected garden. Despite the fact that I was wondering if the zucchini would eventually take over our entire backyard, we were able to salvage some veggies for a little bit of homemade salsa.

swim-bike-run

Today was Michael's first experience with the Tri-Indy downtown (he completed a Sprint Triathalon earlier this summer in Muncie...pictures to be posted later!). He did incredibly well, and has been so good about training throughout the summer heat.

The first leg of the race was a 1500 meter swim in the canal, followed by a 25 mile bike ride, and then he finished up with a 10K run. Thankfully, the weather was a little cooler than it has been all summer, which was great for Michael, as well as this preggo spectator wife:)


A view of downtown via the canal in the early morning hours



I loved that we could literally walk along our racer during the swim portion of the race!



Maybe Anna will learn to swim like her daddy instead of her mommy!!







Heading into the transition area

Michael in transition for the bike portion of the race



Half-way done with the bike, now for lap 2!

Last turn of the bike portion

Heading into the transition area for the last time...getting ready to run

Running to the finish line

Love this one!!

GOOOD JOB, MICHAEL!!

New Toy!!

Have I told you how wonderful my husband is?!?! He got me a new lens for my recent birthday and I'm loving it! Check these out...totally unedited:)

Still alive and kicking...

Well, despite a couple months of absenteeism from the blogging world, I am no doubt back with another post. Michael and I recently learned that we are expecting our first child, so life on the homefront has been full of adjustments...already! Needless to say, my poor camera has been neglected, but I think I'm getting back in the swing of things (with a little help from Michael, I must add...a new lens for my birthday!!).

We were able to celebrate our dear friends' wedding in mid-April. It was a very special and meaningful weekend to see such wonderful people share so much happiness with family and friends. Tyler and Kara, we love you!

With school winding down for another year, I'm hoping to have more energy for some photo-taking and blog-posting!