Our Feathered Friends

The other day, Gaby and her good buddy, Carter, went to a farmer's market. Gaby got to check out some chickens. Being the city girl that Gaby is, this was her first time meeting chickens. It's so interesting to realize that chickens are something we've talked about and seen in books for months now but this is the first time she's ever seen them in person. It makes you take a second look and appreciate the little things a bit more. Needless to say, she thought they were very cool...
Reminds me that I haven't posted our duck encounter pictures. A couple of months ago, we went to the park and found some ducks. We had been looking for ducks for a while and had not been successful until then.
They came right up to us and ate bread out of our hands. Gaby loved it!

Moe...

According to my daughter, that's what the cow has to say. It's too funny! Where'd she learn that? Brooklyn??

We are diligently working on the animal sounds and have got a few down pat- the cow, sheep, horse, and kitty. We're having trouble with the puppy, duck and pig. If you ask me ,though, those are a bit more tricky...

Why??

The last two days we've been hearing this word! I'm not sure if she exactly knows what it means although at times it's been used appropriately. Maybe she's just saying the letter "Y"? Lord, I sure do hope that question doesn't start this early. Mommy, may start losing her mind...

Okay

This is my favorite. Everything is "ok". If Gaby's not saying "no", then it's "ok". For some reason, it's just soo funny to hear a tiny, little person saying "ok". I must say that word all the time for her to use it so often. We still don't hear "si" as much as we want to, but any affirmative is better than the evil negative word...

Mimi & Papa

It's hard to believe it's already August! Where has the summer gone?? It has been waaay too long since we've seen Mimi and Papa! For some reason, this summer, our schedules just haven't worked out for us (Daddy works way too much if you ask me.) . Anyway, lucky for us Mimi and Papa decided to come visit us and we were super excited. Even though Daddy was on call this weekend and actually gone alot, Mimi and Papa didn't care b/c they were here to see the princess. Miss Gaby acted a little shy at first but came along pretty quickly. Once she realized that they were here to spoil, love, hug and kiss her she was ready and willing for the attention. By the end of the weekend, we had her saying both of their names (which made Mimi & Papa extremely happy!) and she was giving away kisses freely. Here are some pictures of the fun we had.

We went to the pool so Gaby could show off her swimming skills....

We went to the park- it wouldn't be a right without a trip to the park :)....

Kisses for Mimi...

We enjoyed some margaritas on the lake...

Gaby and Papa watching all the cute turtles...
And Gaby getting spoiled with some presents...
It's always so great to see how much Mimi & Papa enjoy spending time with Gaby. And how much fun she has with them. We love Mimi & Papa!!

Good Times w/my Cousins

We spent a couple days in Houston last weekend and brought back some fun. Gaby's cousin's, Carlos and Susana, came to Austin with us to hang out. We've been having so much fun with them. Gaby loooves playing with them and pretending that she's a big girl too. They are both so loving and sweet with her. Even though they are 10, they still love playing with little Gaby and are always ready for a hug and kiss from her. I swear, I haven't heard Gabs giggle as much as she has this week. She's having a ball!
Anyhoo, here are some pics of the fun we've had:

playing at the park...

swimming at the pool...


a little BBQ at Rudy's...

just hanging out in our pjs...

playing video games...

riding teacups...

go carts...

Gaby's very lucky to have such great cousins! They love her so much :)

Si, si si !!!

Finally!! The last few days we've been hearing the word we've been waiting for FOREVER! Our sweet angel has finally learned how and when to use the word "si". I know it doesn't sound like much, but it makes this mommy VERY happy!!

Also, this weekend Pita taught Gaby how to say "amo" (as in "te amo" or "I love you") except she doesn't have the "te" part down. But "amo" is enough to just melt your heart when you hear it:) It's just too cute!

Big Melon Head

Apparently, I've passed on an undesirable trait to my precious daughter..... Yesterday, was her 18 month appointment. Yes, 18 months! What a big girl! Anyway, Gaby's height and weight are staying pretty steady. She's always been tall and lean. She's 33 inches (90%) and 26.1 lbs (75%). But looks like she has mom's "melon head" as my sweet husband likes to kindly call it, when we discuss his disproportionally small head. Her head measures in the 97% percentile. Sorry, baby :) Wait...maybe that just means she's got a big, smart, ever-absorbing brain??

Who you callin a Melon Head??

I Know You're Out There...

I have been having so much fun with this blog. As I've been writing it for the past year and a half, it's been hard to know if anybody is reading or visiting. I started doing this as a sort of scrapbook for Gaby in the future but it really has become such a great way for our friends and family to keep up with the princess. Consequently, it sure is nice when someone sends me an email or calls and mentions they have visited the blog. A couple of weeks ago, I was playing around with it and added a neat new feature- it's a "Hit Counter". It basically just tallies all the hits/visits to the blog. To my surprise, I got over 100 hits in the first week!! That tells me that ya'll are out there and hopefully enjoying the blog that I have so much fun writing! Now my loyal bloggers, I have one teeny, tiny request. It would be sooo lovely if every once and a while...maybe...possibly you could leave me a little note/comment. Gaby and I would love it :)

Angie

Happy Anniversary!

It's hard to believe but- today is Gaby and my (Byron was here a couple weeks b4 us) first anniversary in our new house, new town, new home. Time sure does fly! We are loving Austin and are acclimating to the excruciating heat. Although, with less humidity and great Hill Country breezes it really isn't as bad as it could be. At least that what I tell myself :) The Longhorn brainwashing has begun early (by her non-UT-going-daddy) and Gaby is certainly on her way to becoming a "Cool Austin Chick". Cover your eyes my Aggie friends...

Beach Pictures

While we were on vacation on Anna Maria Island in April, we thought it would be a good idea to have our portraits taken. Unfortunatley, the ONLY time it rained while we were on the island was the minute we got into position to take our pictures. Bad luck! We still managed to get some good shots, I think. But please excuse our hair :)

Here are a few of those pics:

Our little family...

Mimi, Papa & the girls...

Candie, Steven & Mia...

A couple of the princess...

Sweet little Mia...

The whole gang...

Although, it was a little stressful trying to take good pictures with two toddlers (especially two tired toddlers after a full day of beach fun!) I think the photographer did a great job and we are really pleased with our pictures.

Happy Belated Independence Day!

We had a great 4th of July weekend! The Morrison Clan
came over for a fun-filled weekend and luckily we got a break from the oppressive heat so we spent lots of time outside. Here's a quick recap: we ate chili dogs, corn on the cob, & watermelon (yum,yum & yum!), went swimming, threw frisbees, had dinner on the lake,
went to the park, played with sparklers, had multiple puppet shows,
fed some pigeons (we were looking for ducks!), ate birthday cake (Happy B-day Jill!) and threw lots of rocks into the lake.
Friday night, after the babies were safely asleep, us adults got to see fireworks from our deck and Saturday night we went out for a nice quiet:) adult-only dinner. Hope, Charlie and Gaby became fast friends and when they weren't fighting for toys they giggled and played nicely. In the end, a good time was had by all and we were so happy to have the Morrison's and their precious kiddos over:)!!

Puzzle Maniac !

My daughter LOVES doing puzzles! I'm not kidding when I say she can do them all day long. It's pretty darn cute. And I don't think I'm being biased when I say she is very good at them. She always wants you to tell her what shape, animal, object, she's holding. She also enjoys looking for the specific piece to put in the right spot. At only 17 months, I believe it's pretty impressive that she can do them so well. She is definitely one smart cookie :) and I am a proud mama.