Nana's 99th Birthday

Geoff, Hylie, and I were so grateful to have the opportunity to be with Nana for her 99th Birthday celebration in St. Joseph, Missouri.

We had some great one-on-one time with Nana Saturday morning.  Hylie was her sweet little self: chattered away, played with balloons, read books with Nana, and even gave her some high fives!  Nana was thrilled to have Hylie there and enjoyed seeing this little ball of energy in action.

At Nana's birthday celebration it was fun to hear everyone share special stories and moments they have enjoyed with this remarkable mother, aunt, grandmother, and friend.

Geoff's aunt and uncle even pulled out Nana's china and silver to be used at the party.  Nana hand-painted these pieces--aren't they beautiful?

  She's such a talent and is quick to let you know the talent came from her left hand.

That evening we enjoyed a family dinner together where Hylie was able to 'help' Nana blow out her candles. Hylie understands how to blow, but her aim and gusto isn't quite there!  It was cute, after Nana successfully blew all the candles out, Hylie asked to do it again and sweet Aunt Margie was quick to oblige!

Hylie enjoyed giving the bear at our hotel a high five every time we passed!

One thing is for sure, the Redmond's don't take life TOO seriously!

Geoff with Uncle Tom, wearing some official party garb...

Aunt Margie and I with our 'staches!  Between the guys and girls, I think we know who wins the 'who wore it better' contest here, right?

We got in one more one-on-one visit with Nana Sunday morning before we had to head back home.  Happy Birthday, Nana!  We sure love you and are so grateful we got to be there for this special occasion.

Trip to the Beach

Hylie and I finally made it over to the beach this month, and boy did Hylie love it!

I was shocked that she kept her hat and sunglasses on the entire time!

She loved the sand and chasing the sea gulls, she kept asking me to catch one--needles to say that did not work out.

At first, the water wasn't that appealing to her, but towards the end of our stay, she started running and splashing in the shallow areas.  Hopefully it won't be too long before we return again!

Sweet Baby Woodhouse #2

We recently had an ultrasound appointment for our little baby and were so thankful to continue to receive news of good health and proper development for this little one.  We fell in love with this sweet profile and are grateful to be over half-way there!

My pregnancy has been smooth and wonderful (aka no arthritis!).  This baby is much more active in the womb than Hylie ever was--kicking and dancing at any and all hours of the day or night, which is a total delight.  However, I can't lie...it makes me wonder how active of a baby this little one is going to be when it arrives!

All Dressed Up

I admit, I love seeing Hylie in cute little dresses...and now that she has more hair, I can't help but try some girly accessories.  She's such a cutie and is growing up way too fast!

Wearing Mom's shoes and shades

Trust me, those bows and piggy-tails don't last long with this active girl!

I finally made the dress I got the fabric for over a year ago--and there's still room to grow!

Girl's Camp and Grandma's Help

I got to experience our church's week-long Girl's Camp for the Young Women organization.  I am still in awe at all the work that went into the camp--I just showed up and tried to keep all the girls on task and out of trouble (and I was EXHAUSTED from just doing that!)

I was able to go because my Mom was willing to come to Chicago and stay with Hylie while Geoff was at work.  Hylie (and Geoff) were certainly spoiled with gourmet breakfasts, yummy brownies, amazing dinners, and a clean house!  Mom even did some home-improvements and got us a much-needed light for over our kitchen sink.

Hylie was busy all day going to the park, blowing bubbles, and doing crafts.  Grandma went the extra mile and even pushed Hylie on her bike (TWICE) to the park which is a good ten-minute walk.  Being hunched over, pushing, and steering Hylie is NO easy task...especially when Hylie applies the brakes!  Grandma definitely gets MAJOR bonus points for that feat!

Can you guess which ones Hylie did all by herself?

Grandma claims Hylie behaved and didn't cause any trouble--I sure hope that was the case.

After a long week at camp, I was so excited to see Geoff and Hylie.  Hylie melted my heart by saying, "Mommy come home from camp" when I walked in the door and then snuggled with me on the couch.

Grandma flew home Saturday morning before I got back from camp.  She knew Grant was going to be in the Chicago area that night and was stopping by for a visit, so she made dinner (which included a yummy dessert) for all of us before she left!  Talk about being spoiled beyond belief!  Thanks, Mom, we sure love you and are forever grateful for all you do and even more for who you are.

Trip to PA

We were able to make it to Grandma and Grandpa Nelson's for a few days at the beginning of July.  We even caught the tail end of "Grandma Camp" so Hylie could get a taste of how Grandma and Grandpa Nelson love to spoil their grandkids.

It was wonderful to be there with Jared and his family, Janna, Dean and his clan, and of course, Grandma and Grandpa and Great-Grandma and Pap Pap.

I really thought Hylie would love swimming in the pool, but she wasn't too crazy about it, unfortunately.

And this is as close as she came to experiencing the slide into the pool...one look over the top told her it wasn't for her!  Maybe next year...

Hylie got to experience her first fireworks show.  When we arrived, it was way past Hylie's bed-time, so we were wondering if she was going to wake up to see anything.  Well, she did wake up and was pretty excited to be in on the action.  When she was watching the fireworks she kept saying, "Fireworks fly in the sky!"

While we were waiting for it to get dark, Hylie was glad Grandpa was willing to walk her around so she could people watch and scope out the scene.

The glow sticks Dean and Andrea brought were a hit with all the kids--especially when it came to using them as swords!

Hylie STILL talks about the pinata she got to hit at Grandma and Grandpa's.  And yes, the candy was quite the highlight!

We also had an evening of sparklers and a few fireworks.

"Fireworks fly in the sky!"

And we found out that Grandpa has been hiding his talent of balloon shaping!

Thanks for such a great time, Grandma and Grandpa!

Summer 2014

So far we've been thoroughly enjoying our summer--lots of sunshine, warm days to play outside, and no snow to clear off the driveway!  Hylie absolutely loves being outside, whether it's to play or to help Mom and Dad 'work'.

I love the faces Hylie makes when she's so involved in what she's doing.

And no, her sticker obsession has not slowed down one bit!

We planted a few pots with some vegetables to see if we could have any luck with a garden.  Our cucumbers and zucchini didn't make it...but we got some green peppers and the tomatoes are looking promising as well!

Hylie LOVES being on her bike, but don't let her fool you one bit: she's not doing a lick of work.  If she goes anywhere on that thing, it's not because she's pedaling...it's because she's being pushed around!