Michigan Family Reunion, July 2011

Well Abigail took her very last plane ride without her own seat on July 20th. Mommy and Abigail flew to Fenton, Michigan to go visit GGMa and GGpa DeCew as well as Aunt Lori, Uncle Brad, and cousins Alison and Emily. Dad flew in the next day and Grandma Judy and Grandpa Mike were already in Michigan.

The trip was wonderful but a whirlwind of activity. Wednesday we arrived in Michigan and attempted to unwind from a long day of traveling (a 21 month old crazy monkey on your lap for almost 6 hours alone is insane). We went for a boat ride and had some of GGMa's awesome meatballs and noodles. The next day, Daddy arrived so we spent the evening on the boat and played in the water. Abigail is crazy about the water to say the least. Then Friday we had a fantastic day. Grandpa Mike drove us to a few herb farms where we saw tons of real frogs on lily pads and made the frogs jump into the water. Mom pretended to be a mule and pulled Daddy and Abigail around the herb farm in a cart. Then we went to Halo Burger for Abigail and Shawn's first Halo Burgers and cream ales. So Yummy!! That afternoon we went on Lori and Brad's boat and Abigail jumped a good five feet about 50 times off of the boat into the water!! Then it was off to Lori and Brad's house for an awesome dinner of lamb, shrimp, and lasagna. Mom and Dad loved the rum punch!!!!!!!!!

Saturday morning we all piled into cars to drive to Traverse City up North. Mom and I rode with GGMa and GGPa while Dad rode with Grandma Judy and Grandpa Mike. It was a very long trip but Lake Michigan was absolutely gorgeous once we got there. We then drove to GGPa's sister's house, my great-great Aunt Linda, right on the water. I had a blast there playing in the lake, going for a paddle boat ride, and playing in a bucket of water with a little fishing game Aunt Linda gave me. I also met tons of cousins and ate great food. Sunday we drove around Traverse City and went shopping, then we made the long trek back to GGMa and GGPa's for another boat ride and FIREFLIES!!

GGPa and Daddy caught me a bunch of fireflies and it was so cool to see them light up. I was amazed and also loved the bonfire.

Our new boat

Today we got the boat of our dreams!! Shawn has never been happier. We drove the boat off the lot and I thought his teeth were going to pop out of his head from smiling so hard. I will post pictures as soon as I can!!

Las Vegas and Michigan here we come

This last week has been so wonderful. Last Friday, Shawn, Abigail, and I all flew to Las Vegas where we promptly rented a car and drove to Aunt Connie and Uncle Joe's house so they could meet me and Abbie. It was a blast and we even got to meet Shawn's cousin Tony and his wife Nikki. Tony and Shawn used to get into all kinds of mischief when they were little and Shawn would go and spend the summers in Vegas with his grandma and grandpa. The two boys had fun regaling each other with stories of their past and catching up on what had happened since they were last together. Connie and Joe were wonderful hosts and we thoroughly enjoyed spending the night and the following morning with them. Then we went to get JayJay and went off to get some lunch and to visit the pawn shop from the show Pawn Stars. It was fun but not quite as cool as the show makes it out to be. Then it was off to Uncle PJ's for a family barbecue with Aunt Elena and johnny and nick. Lil Sam also came to see her great granddaughter and that was wonderful. We spent the evening eating great food and relaxing in the pool and hot tub with Shawn's family. Next it was time for Abigail and me to fly to Michigan bright and early at 6am.

The flight was uneventful and we both slept about three of the four hours of the flight, which was nice. It was awesome to see ggma and ggpa waiting for us and then we were off to Fenton for a week of fun. We went to Aunt Lori and Uncle Brad's for dinner and even spent some time at an apple orchard. At the orchard Abigail got to see goats, lambs, ducks, geese, turkeys, and a rabbit. She played in a giant barn full of corn and walked in a sandbox with ggpa. After some fun at the farm we went into the little shop and got fresh apple cider and homemade donuts. Abigail loved both and fell asleep as soon as we put her in the car. The next day we went to find a Halloween costume and found an adorable carebear suit but will have to do a
Bit more looking before we make a final decision. We then went out to lunch with Darlene at coney island and she gave Abbie the coolest book ever. The book is called The Tickle Monster and comes with gloves that the reader wears to tickle the kiddo. We also went to the Steck's house for dinner and had a blast hanging out with them and Abbie fell in love with these two tiny green pillows she carried around. So funny. Today we went to meet all the employees in ggpa's office and then went to lunch with ggpa. They served homemade macaroni and cheese that was sinful and Abigail loved her pizza. Tomorrow we fly out, but beforehand we are going to hopefully go to the Aplle Festival in Fenton so Abbie can ride a pony, per ggma's request. Then we are going to meet up with Shawn's maternal grandfather Carmen and his wife Nancy. This is yet another great grandparent Abigail has and we are excited to meet him. This has been the best trip and we wish we lived closer!!!!!

Long time no update

It has been way too long since I last updated this page and I apologize. I am going to work my hardest to update this page once a week as I was doing in the past.

The summer has flown by and Abigail has experienced many new things. She went boating and camping for her first time and absolutely loved it. Memorial Day and Fourth Of July were spent at Standley Lake with our friends the Aker's family. We had a blast. Unfortunately on Fourth Of July it poured rain so Abigail has yet to see a real fireworks show, but we will try again soon. As a family we went on our first RV trip to Guernsey, Wyoming which was quite an adventure. The journey was fun but camping was difficult because Abigail was crawling/trying to walk and we were on a slight hill with lots of small rocks that she loved to eat. We spent most of the trip in the RV and ended up going home early.

Three days before she turned ten months old Abigail started walking on her own after walking on the furniture and squatting for about six weeks. She wanted to walk so baldy but she could crawl so much faster. The first time Shawn saw her walk, Abigail walked down the hall to him saying Dada the entire time. The look on Shawn's face was absolutely priceless and a moment neither of us will ever forget.

Now Abigail is walking all over the place and will be a year old in less than a month!!!!! She loves animals and can say many words such as Mama, Dada, Dog, Ek (Shrek), and What? She even shakes her head no when she does not want something and can make choices. She loves clothes and shoes and has Grammy Judy wrapped around her fingers in regards to shopping. If Abbie even looks at something with interest, Grammy buys it for her. Abigail is quite the little tomeboy and loves playing in the rocks, sticks, and mud. There are few moments where she is not happy, smiling, and laughing. She loves to be on the go and is extremely easy going. We are so happy she came into our lives and can hardly believe how much joy she has brought to our family.

Abigail and Shrek are the very best of friends and follow each other around the house. Abigail chases Shrek around when he has a toy or bone and he will play growl and let her take the toy or bone right out of his mouth. He is such a sweetheart. Shrek hardly ever leaves Abbie's side and goes and opens her door to check on her when she is asleep, sticking his little nose between the slats of her crib to see if she is okay. The second she wakes up he is waiting by her door to greet her and she smiles the second she sees him and says dog. So adorable, we are so blessed.

At the end of this week Abigail, Shawn, and I will be flying to Las Vegas to visit Lil Sam (Shawn's maternal Grandmother), and his aunts, uncles, and cousins. I can hardly wait for Abigail to witness the strip and the lights and energy. She will love it. Us girls are then leaving to fly to Michigan to visit GGma and GGpa DeCew for the week while Shawn stays in Las Vegas for a work conference. Abigail and I are going to meet Shawn's grandfather for the first time while in Michigan as well. We are looking forward to another great trip and to introducing Abbie to more of the world and new people and places.

Abigail is standing and crawling

Abigail began crawling and standing all in the same day!! She stood up for the first time all on her own while leaning on me in the bathtub on April 26 and that same night she actually crawled forward twice a few paces. Before that she was doing pretty well crawling backwards and could stand up with some help. Now we are in deep trouble because she thinks Mom is the human jungle gym and she is constantly standing up and has begun just letting go. So funny. She is also really eating a lot of solid foods and loves drinking out of a regular cup like Mom and Dad. She is an absolute riot and talks and laughs all day and night.

Viva La Mexico

Grandma and Abigail taking a siesta in the casita by the pool




The three of us right outside of Senor Frogs on the Playa del Carmen beach



Abigail and I with the Mayan warriors in the Playa del Carmen square



My mom and Shawn drinking their daily dose of pina coladas




We went to Mexico, Abigail, Shawn, myself, and my parents. It was fabulous and Abigail even had to get her own passport. We had such a wonderful time and celebrated my turning the big 30. We spent most of our time at a beautiful resort called the Mayan Palace. It was enormous and absolutely gorgeous. The resort is known for the world's largest pool and sits right on the ocean. Unfortunately the ocean floor is a bit rocky right at the beach so we did not spend much time swimming in it. However, we spent a lot of time at the pool. Mom and Shawn spent most of our days drinking pina coladas and we discovered that Abigail loves a pina colada as well. Luckily all of the staff were in love with her and would fix her her very own mini pina coladas. Everyone thought Abigail was adorable and the staff began calling her the princess. We went to a nice dinner at this restaraunt called Tramonto, which serves Italian and steaks, and our server, Guillermo made Abigail a special hat out of a napkin. So cute.



We also spent an afternoon in Playa del Carmen and went shopping. It was fun and nice to see some local scenery. The weather was very hot that day and the streets are all cobblestones and have very high threshholds to cross to get into the stores, so Shawn, Abigail, and I went down by the ferry that takes people to Cozumel and hung by the beach. It was gorgeous. My mom and dad shopped like crazy and my dad even tried on the traditional Mexican fighting mask.




We also went to his amazing place called Akumal. There you can just wade out into the waters and there are giant sea turtles everywhere. It was icnredible and the beach was absolutely gorgeous. We had so much fun and the town is this little artisan town with fun things to buy.

The next night we all went to a Mexican Fiesta. It was very fun and there was great food and a great show. Abigail was so hot and tired that she slept through almost the entire show, despite the fact that there was a live Mariachi band and loud music.



Overall we had a great time and cannot wait to do it again!!!!

Abigail is six months now

She can finally sit up and play by herself



I love Mommy



Talking away and playing with a bottle




So cute in her pink tutu bathing suit