The "Sniffles..." I need to vent ...

I used to love when the leaves would start changing and the cool crisp winter air would start blowing! I'd get to bring out all my warm sweaters that I forgot I owned, the down vests, the boots, the cute hats, the pretty scarves, etc. It meant Thanksgiving and Christmas and time with loved ones.
Now that I have a child, soon to be two, I am starting to hate this time of year. The cool crisp air only signals for me that the snot is going to start flowing and we will continue to pass it around to each member of the house from about November 1 to March 1. That is four months of Sunny getting a cold and just about as she is on her last day of it, I start sneezing which leads into a week of me having the cold. And of course, Rob will start with something right after that. I wonder if it will get worse when we throw the new kid into the mix or if I will just need to start buying tissues wholesale at Costco.
Sunny was home all week last week with massive amounts of snot and congestion. I woke up on Monday - the first day I was going to send her back to school - sneezing. Today my head feels like it may implode. So now I have all this pressure in my head and on my bladder, (also on my back and my pelvis bone!). UGH! If I am snotting and sneezing the day I go into labor, I am going to ask for an epidural for my head as well ... do they do that?

Pottery Painting

We went to the pottery painting place yesterday with some friends. Sunny painted a snowman for daddy 'that we will wrap in Christmas paper and then he can't open it until Christmas morning. It's a surprise.' As you can see, she is very serious about her painting! She told me she learned to paint at school. I am trying to spend as much one on one time as possible with her these last few weeks since we will not always have this mommy/daughter time anymore. It does make me a little sad ... I have gotten used to just the two of us for the past three years!

Our Tree ...

After much deliberation, we decided to invest in an artificial tree. It is better for the environment. Also, with two young kids in the house, now we won't have to worry about needles or water spilling out of the base. We went with the 9" tree that can be made into a 7" should we ever want it shorter. I miss the smell of the real tree though. Maybe we will get a real wreath for indoors or we can get 'Christmas tree' candle. Ha!

Thanks Stuart!

Rob's oldest friend, Stuart, got this jacket for Sunny for Christmas last year. Luckily he bought it big enough that it will fit her all of this year and hopefully next year as well! She loves it! She said that all her friends in her class love it too! With cold days in the 40's (mornings in the 20's), this jacket has been perfect!

In Our 30's

I hit a milestone this week. I am 30. I swear, the day of my birthday I was so out of breath all day and I don't think I can blame it entirely on the fact that I have 4 weeks left until this baby comes. I never imagined spending my 30th with an almost 3year old and a newborn on the way. Amazing the blessings (and surprises) that life brings. Rob also hit a new age ... 38. So we are both in our 30's and he can't call me his young wife anymore. Bill and Patty brought baby Anna over to 'celebrate' my birthday ... Riley says, 'Anna is my friend'; she also wants to know why our baby isn't here yet.

Rob's Fly Fishing Adventures on the Hooch

Rob has been fishing on the Chattahoochee a lot lately. I'm glad he has discovered this hobby; it gets him outdoors, allows him to spend time with his friends and doesn't cost too much money (other than the multiple $2 flies he has to buy every week and the new rod and reel that he HAS to get. Ha!). It is his new obsession; I just hope it lasts. We have discussed that he will have to take a break from it all for the first few months of next year unless he plans on taking Sunny with him. Here he is with Pete.

Family Photos and Amber's Belly!

We had a new friend, Jun, come to take some family photos for us since we don't have any together. He also made sure to take some of my belly to document this time in our lives. We will have Jun back to take some newborn pics as well once baby Stephan makes his arrival. I think Rob found a new fly fishing friend as well! Here is the link to all the photos he took; below are some of our favorites! YAY! I am so happy to finally have nice family pictures! http://junpark.zenfolio.com/p600591852

Fall is here ...

Although I miss Florida, the leaves changing here in the fall are amazing! We headed up to Lake Allatoona, http://www.lakeallatoona.com/ which is only about 30 minutes North of us. It was beautiful but I think we missed the really vibrant colors by about 2 weeks ... we still had fun hiking and being in nature on a beautiful sunny day!

First Pedicure!

When Rob had to go out of town for a week, Riley and I had some "girl time" ... Sunny got her first pedicure! It was really just a soak and polish but she loved it!

Riley loves to read!

Every three weeks we go the the Smyrna library after school and check out new books. Our bedtime routine involves reading 5 books before bed. Some I have to read five times but we have gotten bed time down to about a 20 minute ordeal. Finally! This frog is outside the library and Sunny always likes to say hi to him everytime.

Our Little Princess on Halloween

Sunny knew in August (after our trip to Disney) that she wanted to be a princess for Halloween. She was lucky enough to wear her princess costume to our Moms Club fall party, to her school party and then to trick-or-treat. We met up with Andy (the biker) and Garrett (the doctor). All night Sunny told everyone she met, "I am a princess". When the boys were getting rowdy, she would say, "Be careful for me; I'm a princess". Robbie Reno was out for Halloween too.

Disney on Ice

We were given tickets to see Disney on Ice. Sunny fell asleep on the way but woke up just in time to get a 'very magic wand' and see Cars, The Lion King, Ariel and Tinkerbell.

Pumpkin Patch

Although Sunny refused to pose for any pictures, with the help of my mom, we were able to get a few. Sunny's best friend, Andy went too. This year Sunny wants to carve flowers and leaves into the pumpkin, like on the front of the Southern Living magazine. Great, that should be easy, right?!?! Also, this had to be the windiest day on record, hence the hair flying everywhere.

It must be in the Water ...

It would not be ridiculous to say that I currently have more friends pregnant than not. For instance, Patty is due Oct. 24, Kristin is due Nov. 8, Dayna is due Nov. 9, Christi is due Dec. 8, I am due Dec. 27, Heather and Ashley are due in January and Kristi is due in Feb. That's a lot of hormones flying around! Here is a pic of the two due just before me, Kristin and Christi.

Amber finished the Breast Cancer Walk!

I was able to raise $1,425 for the Atlanta 2 Day! I was able to walk all 30 miles and only got a small blister on the bottom of my foot. I told Rob that this was my last walk ... after 3 walks and a marathon for breast cancer, I am going to take some time off. He said, 'Yeah right, that's what you said last year'. Once again it was a wonderful and emotional experience and it reminded me to thank God on a daily basis that my family and friends have their health. It really is the most important thing in life.

We have tomatoes!

I thought we would never have edible tomatoes this year! We've had fried green tomatoes a few times and finally we are getting red ones. Sunny's loves to pick (and eat) the RED cherry tomatoes ... she says, 'We only pick the red ones mommy'.

With the L'Amie's

We spent a couple days with my family after we visited the Stephan's. We were able to see Poppie a few times as well as my dad, Grant and Gabrielle.
We went to the Alligator Farm with my mom and then to Disney with Crystal, Mom and Aunt Sally. The Snow White ride was the very first place we went and it scared Sunny so much that she actually bit her finger (through the skin). We tried the Pooh ride after that and she was still too traumatized. The rest of the day we stuck to shows and parades. She was the hit of the Tiki Bird show as she got up and danced in front of everyone while the birds sang.

Made it to FL!

We made the last trip down to FL until after the new baby comes. Here are some pics with Oma and Opa and the wildlife sanctuary they feed. Ha! Lilo loves being at Oma's too becasue she gets LOTS of snacks! Riley just figured out yesterday that Oma is her daddy's Mom and Opa is her daddy's Dad.