Weekend Adventure

I would not have believed it if I was not there myself but these pictures...

...where taken in Las Vegas. The last 2 weekends in a row we have headed up to Mount Charleston. It takes us about 45 min to get there and once you are there you are in a completely different world. On Mount Charleston there is hiking, camping, and even SKIING!




On top of Mount Charleston there is a great little lodge with an excellent little restaurant. It must be good if we went back 2 weekends in a row =) I have no doubt we will be back again very soon.


Last weekend we also took Abby to meet Santa Claus. Jim and I new right away that we would have to sit with her to try and avoid a melt down. Well...the melt down was averted for about 20 seconds. We were able to sit down and then slowly Abby realized that there was a strange bearded man next to her. This is when the crying began. I quickly moved Abby so that she was not facing Santa and we were able to get a picture off.

Better luck next year.

Abby has also discovered a new pillow...
Thank goodness Billy is a good sport!

Bubbles

Last Saturday Abby had her very first bubble bath...it was a hit!

Another Crazy Month: November

After nearly 3 weeks of living in a hotel...

...on November 19th we FINALLY got the keys to our new house.

As soon as we moved in the mad rush began to get unpacked as quickly as possible. Joe and Remy were with us for Thanksgiving and I didn't want the house to look like a war zone.

In the middle of unpacking we did take a break to have brunch with my cousin Corey and his wife Elaina. They were in town for a bit of fun but we were able to meet up with them for a bit.

Abby now has her very own bathroom...she LOVES it!

On the Wednesday before Thanksgiving Joe and Remy became our first official visitors...and yes, we did get most of the boxes unpacked before they got here.

The last several years in Naperville Thanksgiving morning meant the turkey trot. This year, it meant a hike up Lone mountain. It was a 1 mile hike but, it was all up hill!


But, the view from the top was amazing...


After our hike it was time for dinner.

Abby was a big fan of the turkey, cranberries, and mashed potatoes!


On Friday we explored Red Rock Canyon. It was so much fun climbing all over the rocks.

Abby was so relaxed in the fresh air that she took a little snooze.

Friday was an amazing day for Abby; she took her first unassisted steps!

On Saturday night we headed to the Hofbrauhaus. Jim, Abby, and I had been there before and Abby love the German polka music and...


...the beer of course.

We had a great Thanks giving with Joe and Remy and Abby is definitely going to miss her play mates.

Look What Abby Can Do...

I will post more about November soon but, I had to share this video ASAP.

I took this video on Wednesday, December 2nd.

Abby took her first steps unassisted the day after Thanksgiving...at just under 10 months old and with the encouragement of Aunt Remy and Uncle Joe. Soon she will be off and running. The animals better watch out!

Football

Even though the Steelers suffered a disappointing loss yesterday to the Bangles (18-12) Abby has really gotten into the spirit of the football season...

Corinne Comes to Town

Last weekend Corinne came to Vegas. She was came to be with her best friend while her and her husband renewed their vows but we were lucky enough to see her too! We were so happy to see her and to have her finally meet Abby.

We miss you Corinne!!

What a CRAZY October!

October was a crazy month!

The month started out with a visit from Aunt Ellen and Uncle Larry. They were coming to town to watch the Notre Dame vs. Washington football game (Notre Dame won) but they were able to stay with me for a few days. It was great to have them especially because Jim was out of town for work. Plus, I was excited for them to for them to meet Abby.

Larry and Abby:

While they were in town we got to go see my great Aunt Kay. She is going to be 92 in November and she is one of my all time favorite ladies!


Thanks for visiting Aunt Ellen and Uncle Larry!

After my visitors left, Manuela and I took Abby to the pumpkin patch. Unfortunately, the corn maze was closed but we still had a great time looking at all the pumpkins...

Talking to the farm animals...

Taking a hay ride...

and being together.

October 9th was Abby and my last Naperville playgroup. I was very lucky to meet all these amazing women and their little ones. I sincerely hope I can find a play group 1/2 as good in Vegas.

Next, is was off to Las Vegas for our house hunting trip. Abby did really good for her first flight. She didn't sleep as much as I wanted her to but she was a good girl...squirmy...but good.

After the flight she was SO tired that she crashed...

Sadly this did not last long. As soon as I went to change her into her pjs she became wide awake and didn't go back to sleep until 3 am Chicago time.

The house hunting trip was exhausting! We literally looked at 50 homes. The only breaks we took was a drive through Red Rock Canyon. It is beautiful there but Jim and I kept on joking that all the the times we have been to Vegas we didn't realize that it was surrounded by mountains.


We are excited to rediscover the outdoors! Red Rock Canyon, Lake Mead, Grand Canyon, Zion, and Bryce Canyon are all a close drive away.


While we were in Vegas we did put an offer down on a house but we didn't know if we got it when we headed back to Chicago. It is a foreclosure home. How foreclosures work is that you put an offer in and you either get the house or you don't there are no counter negotiations.

A couple of days after being back in Chicago we found out...we got the house!
It is almost 2,900 square feet, 4 bedroom, 3 bath. We also have a great view of the mountain and from our upstairs balcony we have a view of the lights of the strip.

The weekend after we got back from Vegas my parents came for their last Chicago visit. Jim and I were very busy trying to get the house in order for our big move so it was great having my parents there to watch after Abby.

After my parents left time flew by! My parents left on Monday the movers came and packed up our house on Tuesday. The movers were back on Wednesday to pick-up our things. On Thursday our car was picked-up for transport and on Friday we were on the plane moving to LAS VEGAS!

Unfortunately, Abby did not have much of a Halloween this year since we are not in our new house yet. Our house is supposed to close on November 11th so, we are in extended stay for a while. Abby did wear her Halloween onesie though...


We know that November will be a busy one as we move into our new house and get settled into our new city but...we hope it is not as crazy as October.

September with Abby

September has been a big month for Abby! She started off the month crawling and now she can crawl up the stairs...



(Sorry that the video is sideways!)

Abby has a new appreciation for bath time! She is now able to take baths in the big tub and is loving every minute of it. Also, you can's see it in theis picture but she has her two bottom teeth.

Abby's first official Steelers season has begun...

week 1:

week 2:

She has a new fancy toy:

And she continues to hang out with her playgroup friends...

With all of these things happening in just one month we are excited to see what October brings!

Labor Day Weekend

The weekend after we got back from vacation was Labor Day weekend and Grandpop Regis and Grandma Gwen came to visit. It was nice for them to be able to spend some more time with Abby. We had a weekend full of morning walks and lazy afternoons.


We are looking forward to Grandpop Regis and Grandma Gwen visiting us in our new home.

Family Vacation

On Thursday, August 20th Jim, Abby, and I headed out for our first family road trip. The first day we drove from Naperville to Pittsburgh.

The drive took us about 8 hours. It was a long day! Abby had her moments but who wouldn't after being in the car for SO long. The memorable story of the day was Jim got yelled at by a midget at the toll gate...NO JOKE! The midget was super rude! The highlight of the day was our very first Yuengling of the trip...delicious!


The next day Jim drove us through the sights of Pittsburgh. It was fun to see Pittsburgh through Jim's eyes. It is always great to show off your home town. We also had lunch and beer in a church (got to love Church Brew Works!). Jim was a bit sad though because some of his favorite places have closed down.

Friday night we headed over to Jim's aunt and Uncle's house for a cook out. I love the Roger's clan and it was amazing to see them again and have Abby meet some more of her family. Here are a few pictures...

Uncle Joe and Aunt Monna:

Lizzie and Abby:


Helen and Abby:

Rick and Uncle Pat:

Thank you Rogers' for a wonderful night. I can't wait to the next time that we all get to be together!!

On Saturday we hit the road to the Haffer's in Dundalk, Maryland.

We had a fun night at the Haffer's reminiscing about old times and eating soft shell crabs but...we were really excited for the next day and getting to the beach!

Emma, Abby, & Charlie:

On Sunday we drove to our final destination Ocean City.

In Ocean City we stayed at the Haffer's beach condo. We had a blast but it was a bit crowded! They have a 1 bedroom condo which was packed to the rim with 4 kids under the age of 7 and 4 adults. Here are a few pictures of our time in Ocean City...

View from the condo:

Abby's 1st day on the beach:

Little Miss Grace:

Abby's putting her feet in the ocean:

On this trip Abby was NOT a good sleeper and with us all living in such close quarters I could not let her cry herself back to sleep so, I saw many beautiful sunrises...

Grace giving Abby a kiss...


We really enjoyed our evening walks down the beach. Most of the time Abby would be sound asleep by the time we got back to the condo:

Thank you Haffer's for the great time. We can't wait to see you all again!


The Haffer's left on Wednesday because Emma started school on Thursday but Jim, Abby, and I spent one more night at the beach. Then, On Thursday we packed up the car for a LONG drive home. On Thursday we drove for about 10 hours and spent the night somewhere in Ohio. We arrived home about mid-day on Friday.

It was GREAT seeing all of our family and friends but Jim and I both agree that this was the most non-vacation vacation we have ever had. Abby was relatively good in the car but, as I said before, it is a long time for any of us to be in a car so...she definitely had her melt-down moments. Plus, not being able to let her cry at night was hard on us all.

I think for our next family vacation we will staying in our own new back yard in Las Vegas and enjoy our pool.