{Duck Pond Part Dos}

So this Saturday we went back to the duck pond because we some baguette left over from dinner Thursday night. I was a little bit nervous about going, as was Evette, because of our last trip to the duck pond. The husband said he would protect us.

It was actually not disastrous. Evette and I stayed far away from the ducks and just let the husband feed them. We found out a trick, if you throw the bread in the water, and the water only, then the ducks don't chase after you or try to climb into the stroller.

Evette was a little tuckered out at the end of our trip lol

Happy Birthday to my dad

It's my dad's birthday today. I won't tell you how old he is, but just to put it in perspecitive: he was born the same year France tested its first nuclear bomb, the first CERN particle accelerator went live, Congo began its talks to separate itself from Belgium, Elvis Presley returned from military duty in Germany, Swiss women got the right to vote, the first laser was patented, the US launched its first weather satellite, "Ben-Hur" won a record number of academy awards, Japan signed its militaristic future away to Washington, New Zealand launched its fist TV station, the 50-star US flag is first flown, the Ivory Coast, Gabon, and Mauritania broke off from France, the first televised presidential debate was aired, Soviet premier Krushchev pounded his shoe on a table at the UN, JFK was elected, NBC ran its first pre-recorded TV performance, and the UK stopped minting farthings (a thing it had done since the 13th century). Some of those things sound recent, some sound like forever ago... so I'll let you figure it out.

My dad's a great guy. One of my heroes, to be honest. We've had a good 24 years together and there have been bajillions of pictures taken of the two of us over the years, so here are some highlights from the early years (i.e. pre digital cameras --> not so many photos to sift through).

OK, these two are from before my birth, but they're good for reference (he's the oldest boy in his family), and to admire his sweet hair and 'stache in the second shot (red shirt).

This last one was from one of our wonderful home improvement projects together. One of many. We were installing a drainage pipe in this one.

I have a wonderful dad. He's been a wonderful role model, instructor, and father to me over the years. Perhaps the single thing that I'm most grateful for from him (besides my life, raising me, financial support, etc. -- all of which deserve more thanks than I can possibly give) was his insistent question at dinner throughout my childhood: "What good questions did you ask today?" That question has largely shaped my approach to learning and life in general. The question isn't what I learned but how much I explored, where I dived deep, and to what extent did I push the information in front of me... Invaluable lessons from a great man.

I love you, Dad. Happy birthday!

{Happy 4 Months!}

Happy 4 Months to Miss Evette Rose! She's growing so big! I took her in for her 4 month check up yesterday and she weighed in at 14 lbs 11.5 oz and was 24.75 inches long!! Wowza. the doctor said she was absolutely perfect and doing just as she should. All the nurses and everyone was in love with her and commented on what a happy, content baby she is.

Evette is awesome. She is constantly drooling, sucking on her fingers, lips, anything she can put in her mouth, is full of smiles and starting to laugh, sleeps through the night, and is starting to give kisses [sorta :) ]!. Love this girl mucho!!!

look at how she's grown!

she's stinkin adorable.

{One Year}

One year ago from yesterday we found out that we were pregnant with our little Evette. It was one of the happiest days of my life. It has been amazing. Everyday my love grows for her a million times over. So counting the pregnancy [which I def do...] Evette has now been a part of our lives for 1 year now.

Here are some pictures of the Angel from January:

Man.... I love this little girl.

{Trip to Dallas}

Last weekend we went on a trip to Dallas. Remember how the husband landed a super awesome job? Yeah, we went down to go neighborhood hunting. Dallas is a big place and with his office being in the heart of downtown we could have lived pretty much anywhere, so we had to narrow our search.

Evette was a super traveler. She did so well. I was a little bit nervous since she went through an entire outfit and one blanket before we even got on the flight there, but it turned out that was about the worst of it. She cried really loudly for about 30 seconds when we first got on the airplane and everybody was loading, but that was virtually it. She was silent for the rest of the flight and slept pretty well once she fell asleep. The altitude changes didn't seem to bother her at all.

We rented a car and carseat....which turned out to be a terrible idea. The carseat was awful and had no head support - we stole a towel from the hotel to help,but it didn't do much good. Did you know that you can check baby gear - car seats, strollers, pack n' plays - at the gate of the airplane for free? Yeah, we didn't learn that til after the trip. We will def bring ours next time.

This is Evette in awe of the TV at the restaurant we were eating at

playing with Dad on the bed...

Since Evette is rather immobile she got to sleep on the second queen size bed lined with pillows. She thought she was quite the princess :)

Thanks to some advice from friends and hours and hours of driving around neighborhoods, we have narrowed our search down to the northeast corner of Dallas [M-streets/Lakewood/Hollywood Heights area]. Special thanks to one of Sean's office's assistant partners and his wife, who had us over for breakfast on Saturday morning, then the wife watched Evette while the husband drove us around town, showing us the neighborhoods right around the city. Another thanks to one of Sean's friends at BCG who showed us around the south end of Dallas, in the Duncanville neighborhood, on Sunday night. They were both very helpful tour guides.

It was a super helpful trip and I'm so glad we went. I was a little hesitant at first since it would be the first time really traveling with baby and it would be a pretty expensive trip [not covered by his office...poop]. But, potentially, we could be in Dallas for a long time and we didn't want to mess it up.

This is Evette and I waiting for the shuttle at the airport to take us from the car rental place to the gates at the end of our long trip.  She's such a cutie! Also, we're kinda making the same faces in both of these photos!

On the flight home she did splendidly and slept through pretty much the whole thing. After the plane landed and we were all getting off, the lady behind us stood up and said, "Wait? You have a baby? That is the quietest, most well behaved baby I have ever seen! I didn't even know she was here! Plus she's beautiful.... Count your blessings!" Don't worry, we do, multiple times a day :)

Wonderful trip and I'm so glad we went. We are now working with a Realtor to get us a place lined up for the beginning of May - She is a sweet old southern lady and she's been a huge help already. 

It turns out that the husband is wanted sooner than they initially said. We received an email a couple days ago asking us to come down earlier! So instead of starting in July, we will now be starting in May, which is a huge blessing. We weren't quite sure how we were going to go through May and June with no job and no insurance.. but now we don't have to! Hurray!

Counting our blessings... one by one..