Birthday Boy

yesterday was sunday funday and we celebrated daddy's birthday. complete with decorations and presents. of course.

and funny cards too.

my favorite part was the family hike we took before the sun slipped behind the valley. behind the house, up the hill and around the bend...

muck boots for all.

muck boots most always lead to some messy mischief for em. and good entertainment for the rest of us.

we did it! whew....it was kind of hard. for me, at least. sheesh.

our reward was tacos for dinner....mmmmmmm.

and then it was time for silly party masks.



i don't know if we, as a little family, have ever laughed so hard. in fact, in this picture, mom's funny face and the camera shake are because we were trying to not to erupt in sheer, uncontrollable laughter.

we could hardly look at dad. it was too creepy. and when he chased us for a kiss, we all ran. fast.

and what is a birthday without a candle and a wish. and some amazing, sweet creation, made by mom with love.



happy birthday daddy. i love you so. so much, i fear you will never know.

and i can't say much more because i seem to cry at everything these days and i am already getting misty in the eyes at the mere thought of you.

and frankly, i just put on mascara.

i hope your day is as swell as you are.

*if you are inclined to read more about this man i call daddy, i will refer you to this post.

thirteen weeks

...but looking a little more like twenty weeks. hmmm.

dear baby:

*we got to see you in action twice this month.

*it was magical and breathtaking. we had smiles the size of melons on our faces.

*we particularly enjoyed watching you roll and jump around and throw a peace sign up at us with your little paw. i am also pretty sure there was nothing cuter than seeing your baby foot.

*you are our favorite thing already.

*and i can't stop eating all things fruit! smoothies, popsicles, apples, grapes. along with the occasional caving for a cup of frozen yogurt. for calcium.

*oh yah, and anytime you want to you stop making me feel like i am going throw up all day, well that would be fine with me. but if not, that's ok too. you are way worth it.

*stay cozy baby.

P.S. thanks for the photo shoot trev. i mean "dinha".

beach day

last week i took another trip to the beach. i can't get enough of this place in the winter. it is sunny, and so relaxing and lately, both of those things are pretty enticing. it really is my perfect place.

this time my companions included erika, ever and trevor. one of my favorite combination of humans.

in accordance with tradition, we stopped at genova's for food and drinks and chips. i always like chips at the beach. well anytime if we are being honest.

*ummm...isn't erika's hair color to die for?

ever loves this place as much as we do. we always wondered if he would. and he does. thank the stars.

i wondered what he was imagining as he played that stick. was it a sword? a baseball bat? maybe binoculars? or perhaps it was just a stick he found at the beach. fun in its own right.

we played with sand (some of which ended up in uncle trevor's pasta), played kickball, wrestled in the sand and watched the kite flyers.

and of course, the finale, a bit of beach ballet.

soon it was cold and damp and we headed to the car.

on the long ride home, ever and i shared an apple and then took a nap together in the back seat. usually the rule is that all adult passengers must stay present and a part of the conversation, but trevor gave me a pass this time. thanks to the wee babe growing in my tummy.

what a dreamy ending.

breakfast at the caldwell's

sunday funday morning included a trip to see my little logan. and dee and mitchell.


she said she wanted to cook for me and i happily agreed because a) i haven't been cooking lately, b) i love breakfast food, c) she said we could wear pajamas, and mostly, d) i simply adore this little family.

after breakfast, mitchell took me to the garage where boxes of chic maternity clothes and baby goods awaited me. i am so lucky to have such good friends and cousins who will let me borrow their "with child" wardrobe and precious baby items.

then it was time for the little logan show. he was quite the show off impressing me with his ability walk and nearly run on two legs and his giggle. oh that giggle. i could listen to it for hours.

special delivery

here i am.

three months (not three babies-i realize this picture is deceiving) along with little baby kelly.

eta: august.6.2011

i feel:

*love for our little soy bean
*love for my ryan

*excitement
*nervousness

*nausea
*exhaustion, too tired to type in paragraph form in fact

*pretty
*sometimes pretty gross

*admiration for mothers everywhere

*inexplicably, randomly weepy

*joy
*and mostly, gratitude

****

i have been waiting for this all my life.

down by the seashore

last weekend, my mr. kelly took me on a very lovely getaway. i needed it. bad. we have hardly had a day alone together in weeks, let alone two days in a row. and this lack of sunshine and the bitter cold have really been getting to me. maybe you have noticed my blog has been feeling less than "inspired".

the beach. with ryan. was just what the doctor ordered.

both possess such restorative powers for me.

*we ate out. i ordered pesto. surprise, surprise.

*we ate chocolate covered strawberries. fancy!

*we watched television in bed for hours. which is quite a luxury if you don't have a television in your bedroom at home.

*i blogged. fireside.

*i took a lazy bath and read magazines.

*we strolled on the beach at sunset.

*we hiked bodega head trail.

*we had a picnic lunch, complete with the most delicious deli sandwiches and kettle chips.

*and then we drove home and watched eclipse. yes, my man will watch twilight movies with me.

Birthday Girl

christy had a birthday. it was her golden birthday. and she is like a golden friend-always thinking of others, will make you laugh (hard), and will send you a cheerful text just when you could use a cheery text. i wish everyone could have a friend like her and i would offer to share her with you, but i need her. although i do sincerely hope you have or find your own "christy".

like always, we had dinner to celebrate our christy and tracey set a very fancy table.

we ate fireside, and enjoyed salad, rolls, chicken with asparagus and then for dessert....we feasted on Sara's homemade cherry pie. christy's favorite.

it was soooooo delicious. and was what i like to call, "a fine evening with friends".

christmas

christmas eve was spent with the kelly family. it is always a fun night and this year was no exception. like a little girl, i always run to the tree to look for mr. and mrs. claus who smile and sway to their own little beat. really! they move!

before our christmas supper and gift giving extravaganza, mama marsha brings us fun hats and headbands. festive!

and there is always a beautiful table set. this year, prime rib graced our plates. delectable.

my favorite kelly tradition: christmas crackers. we play with the little toys and read the jokes to one another. and i think the kelly parentals should wear these glasses every year. i couldn't stop laughing.


bright and early christmas morning we threw on our christmas pajamas and headed down to the abernethy's to wake up my sleeping sisters and discover that santa had come!

i was gifted with another another ina masterpiece...you know what that means.

my parent's christmas tree was a really beauty this year....i could hardly take my eyes off of it. and of course, this jolly old st. nick makes everyone feel the holiday spirit.

in between gift giving we enjoyed rachel's HOMEMADE cinnamon bread (which was the best we had ever had) and we admired my dear dad's wrapping and bow tieing (sp?) skills. and of course, what's not to love about ryan's ribbon suspenders?

christmas afternoon found the entire family at my grandparent's house where ANOTHER grand tree greeted us. this tree is a masterpiece every year: hundreds of vintage ornaments delicately placed by my devoted, christmas-loving grandma.

prime rib again! lucky us!

the dish washing crew...all wearing grandma's aprons. well, except alex. and emily showed us her bubble trick.

one of my favorite christmas traditions is exchanging names with my sisters and cousin and filling wooden shoes with little treats, honoring our dutch blood. the objective is for all the treats to fit in the shoe and as you can see someone cheated this year. but the best part was when hannah stuck a piece of coal in emily's shoe. we laughed and laughed...

and all were merry.

my mister had a birthday. a big one.

so we had a little party to celebrate. complete with balloons, streamers (courtesy of my Em), a keg filled with celebration ale and presents.

and of course, what is a party without food and spirits. beer, wine, and dirty shirleys. mmmmmmm.

the sisters made spinach dip and blood orange shrimp dip. ryan's mom made peanut clusters and rocky road, and my mama made ham and brie sammies. how lucky am i for all the help. major lucky.

if it weren't for my sisters, this party would not have happened. true story. they came the night before to help me tie bows, chop veggies and clean my oven. Yes, my sisters cleaned my oven for me. i could cry thinking of all that they did.

there also would be no pictures of this little party if my sisters weren't there. so thanks girls.

after trevor and my mom had some type of bonding moment while remininsing our high school years, he became the star of the show and we all laughed at him for hours.

mistletoe mischeif

and then there was dessert.

my mister loves dessert so i went to town the week before whipping up his favorites. coconut cupcakes, chocolate cake, and cheesecake.

and then we lit the candles, sang, as he contemplated his wish. the whole time i thought, "he is the cutest, sweetest thirty year old I know."

before the night was over we had a little fun with party poppers. ok, maybe a lot of fun.

my mister is thirty and he was so happy and grateful for his party.

it made me happy. really happy. and a little tired.

thank you to all of our friends and family for helping me "cheers" to my ryan.