Where in the World is Anna?

We haven't done a "gues-where-Anna-is-off-to" post in a long time.

Please comment and play along!

This morning my alarm went off at 3:30 AM so that I could get on this for a 6 AM direct flight.
When landing, I am likely to see this out my window. I expected cool weather, but it will be in the low 80's, just like in Texas. A car will drive me here which looks much prettier than most convention centers do.

I'll likely see something more like this on my 2 day trip where I'll be working a trade show floor hoping to get doctors interested and registered for upcoming conferences.

My one night in town, I will eat here which is one of my all time favorite restaurants. I have eatern here twice, once on business and once with Marcus for our anniversary. I wish they'd come to Texas! I'll be having sweet corn tamales and fried cheesecake in case you are curious.

BIG CLUE! I am hoping this fine young man decides to dine at Lime tonight as well because I would just love to meet him!

I have a feeling since it is September, he spends all of his time here. I wish I was in town through Sunday to catch a game. I have the perfect outfit!

This one isn't too hard- where in the world am I?

21 Month Birthday

Seriously, can she get any cuter? We tried on glasses at Target while they adjusted mine and she was sad when they took them off. Oh honey, they are very likely in your future.

Cute from the top to the bottom- Abby loves wearing her new turquoise tennis shoes and socks. I rarely put socks on her, but with this cooler weather, she has worn and loved them.

Some things I don't want to forget about this stage:

Abby has learned to say "thank you Momma" and she does it on a regular basis without any prompting. The funny thing is that she has been prompted by me for so long that she says "thank you Momma" to other people who aren't her Momma.

She does a great job of verbalizing what she wants or needs. We ask her walk or carry, milk or water, applesauce or peaches, etc. I am hoping this is an early stage of empowering her to make decisions and feel confident in her abilities. It is all part of the Love and Logic parenting techniques we hope to use with her.

She currently loves to brush her teeth! She gets two small smiley face stickers when she does it. She will brush a little and then asks for "help please" and we finish for her. We also learned she is particular about which toothpaste she uses. ha!

We are still working on the potty. She has gone on it a few more times this week. Something about the process scares her and we are working on what that is. She has sat on the potty at school which is a big step. The funny thing, anytime someone else goes potty and she hears a toilet flush, she'll congratulate and high five them!

She walks and runs everywhere. She wants someone to hold her hand for steps, but is otherwise independent. She likes to walk most of the time. She loves shoes! She will find shoes around the house and bring them to us and will always comment "no shoes" if we are barefoot. I love shoes so it makes me happy that she does too! She has moved into a size 5 shoe which is still small, but much more inline with her age.

Happy 21 Months Abby! We love you!

Silicon Labs Marathon Relay

We spent Saturday night and most of Sunday with Marcus' Avnet (work) family. They were in town for the Silicon Labs Marathon Relay. In this picture, there are people from Dallas, Houston, Arizona, and Southern California. This year they had shirts made for their team and the Avnet supporters.
I was totally there as a supporter. And, let me tell you, when the alarm went off at 4:30 AM, my support wavered :)
The set-up crew at 6 AM at Auditorium Shores.

L to R: Curtis (Marcus' boss), Marcus, Kyle (from corporate office) and Kris (Curtis' boss)

These are the official team members who raced.... Kyle (12K), Debbie (5K), Marcus (5K), Jordan (10K) and Kris (10K). Overall, they finished in 3 hours and 55 minutes which was under their 4 hour goal. They averaged about a 9 minute mile.
This is the whole group of runners and cheerleaders! The race had just ended and Marcus was the 5th leg which explains why he is magenta :)
We also were able to cheer on our church friends who had a team. They finished in just over 4 hours! Natalie did much better than she thought and Heather posted a personal best!

Go GHBC Eagles!

After the race, we went back to South Congress for lunch at Guero's. Kyle and Marcus celebrated with a beer in a tiny cup. Run Big and Drink Small :)

After lunch, we drove home for time on the couch with the football games on! Luckily, my Mom had driven Abby back to our house and she was napping nicely when we arrived. We woke her from her nap at 4:30 excited and ready to play!

Happy Birthday Kyleigh

Kyleigh turned 9 on Sunday and we celebrated with a spa slumber party on Friday night. Abby and I joined her and my sister to help with the party.

The beautiful birthday girl!!!!

She talked about presents all night long and was so excited when it was time to open them. I am amazed at what gifts were a big hit- she loved baby dolls, but also more "teen" gifts. I will be there in just 7 years. Wow!

We gave all of the girls (12 I think!), manicures and pedicures. It was fun- they were so excited and all wanted white tips on their toes. Seriously, so grown up!

Can you tell these kids are cousins? Cohen (whom Abby calls Doe Doe instead of Coco) with his cousins Cayden and Addison. They were funny!

This little girl was a rock star! She only fussed when I wouldn't let her outside, but otherwise did so well. She loved running around with all of the girls, ate cake and ice cream after dinner, and went to bed without a fuss. She loves her cousins and a good party!

I left on Saturday morning and left Abby with my Mom and sister for the weekend. We had such a busy weekend that it worked out perfectly. On my way home I shopped the outlet malls for about an hour and then made it home for the big 2:30 PM games.

More to come on our weekend tomorrow! It was busy and I am tired!

Home Gym

Marcus didn't make it to the gym the other night, so he decided to play with Abby and make her his workout buddy. At 28 1/2 pounds, she is a great little weight for him to use!

They did squats and full body lifts.

Can you tell how much she loved doing this?

He worked his arms holding her out one handed.

To make sure he was curling enough weight, Abby added Foofa and Bugs Bunny to the workout. She is a tough trainer!

Leg lifts were also lots of fun with Abby!

I love this picture, she was smiling in anticipation!

Oh to be little again

Thank you Da-Da

Mwah!

Who needs a gym membership?

Fun Day at Home with Abby

Abby has struggled with a runny nose and nighttime cough since Sunday. After an increase in coughing last night, we decided to take her to the doctor today and just make sure it wasn't anything major. I called the doctor this morning and got a 10 o'clock appointment. I had to wake her about 8:45! She left for 13 hours. This girl's love of sleep may be the single reason we don't have another child. She is so great!

After a breakfast bar and milk with Gabba, we headed to the doctor. For the first time, she "got" the bead maze and laughed as they ran down the wires. Mind you, she has a horrible runny nose and rattle-y cough, but she is in a great mood!

We busted out the play-doh while waiting on the doctor and learned to make balls and roll and toss them. I heart play-doh. It is a special "out in public" treat and we have so much fun with it.

The verdict is non-allergic rhinitis. Abby isn't allergic to anything seasonal (was tested with the peanut scare) and has no infection. So, it is just a runny nose and drainage. Nice that it isn't serious, but also crummy that it is just part of her makeup and must run it's course.

We had a few minutes to kill before grabbing lunch and coming home so we ran into Target. Look what they have! I bought 4 boxes for Marcus and texted him in excitement. He loves this stuff like a little kid! So cute!

We came home, ate lunch and Abby has been napping for over 3 hours. It gave me time to do a little craft project and start decorating for Fall. Yea!

Texas v. Texas Tech Game

We watched the big game on Saturday night with our friends. We were both decked out in red and black all day and got some sympathetic looking smiles around town. I tried to be extra nice to everyone around me at the grocery store in the name of Texas Tech. I wasn't sure how polite our fans would be Saturday night. ha!

Our little gathering including 2 Red Raider families, a family of Longhorns and an Aggie family. We had a good mix watching the game. We had a Bevo Bar (beef hot dogs) with all the fixins, chips and queso, veggies and dip, and potato salad. I brought dessert- a shredded Bevo (carrot) cake. It was all yummy!

We had so much fun at the game we were able to convert Connor whose parents are Aggies to the Raiders. He was killing his parents with his Guns Up and shirt change. We promised to pay for his college ;)

Although our team didn't win, we played hard and are proud.

B-I-N-G-O Night

Friday night our Sunday school class held BINGO night and we had so much fun! We had a good crowd and shared a potluck dinner and crazy white elephant gifts.

Marcus and our friend Mitch shared most of the calling duties. They would try out various accents, languages, and called out football players where we had to guess their number.

Is it wrong to play BINGO inside a church? We didn't bet money or gamble?

Part of our group- The Gutierrez's, Jenny, The Binghams and Natalie

More of the group- Mitch, The Hendrix's, The Trejos and Chris

We now own a bingo set and have big plans to use it in the future! It is fun to play with a group and win little prizes. Loved it!

My Favorite Red Raider Fans

We decked Abby out in her Texas Tech gear for school on Friday. Her sweet shirt was a gift and I just love it. The bloomers that go with it are too small, but the shirt fits great. Her favorite teacher Ms. Brandis is a UT grad (Tech's opponent this week) and she called Abby her little traitor. ha!

Abby loves her Daddy!

In preparation for today's game, we put her in her little cheerleader outfit and suddenly my little girl became a big girl right before my eyes!

She went to story time at Barnes and Noble with Marcus this morning and he said people were just smiling at her and one girl even said, "I'm a Longhorn, but she is the cutest little Red Raider." I hope that my little Raider is victorious!

She has no idea what is at stake!

Fight Raiders Fight! Beat those Longhorns.

Slumber Parties

Abby has watched her fair share of Yo Gabba Gabba this week. I think coming off vacation she is just mentally exhausted after a full day at daycare and she wants to sit and just stare at the TV. I am letting her this week because I too want to just sit and stare at the TV after a full day at work. We normally sit by her, but instead used the time to make dinner last night and Abby laid out on the couch like she owned the place. Isn't this just the cutest?
Marcus said he envisioned slumber parties seeing her like this. I agreed. He then said slumber parties in like 2 years and I disagreed. I'm not ready for a bunch of 4 year olds in my house! I told him birthday parties are not slumber parties until like age 7. Am I wrong?