Halloween 2013

Last year Kate was a cute little bumble bee for Halloween.  

This year we went with a fish (thanks to the Old Navy $5 costume sale).  She loved wearing her costume and thought trick or treating was pretty awesome.  She's even asked me to go trick or treating a few times this week.

Halloween was a pretty rainy day in GR, but at least it wasn't too cold.  After work, my parents came over for dinner, and after dinner we walked Kate around the cul-de-sac to trick or treat.  Her favorite treat by far was a sucker.  After trick or treating, we got to facetime with Matt's parents.  

just coloring to pass the time 

cutest fishy I've ever seen:)

Kate's showing off the baby sister in her belly:)

Matt's birthday, continued

The weekend after Matt's birthday we went down to the Farm to celebrate with his family.  30 years deserves quite a few celebrations, if you ask me.

We could only stay for one day, but we packed in the fun.  Kate went on her first ride in the combine with grandpa and to say that she loved it would be an understatement.  She had so much fun and she's been talking about it for the last two weeks.  If you ask her, she'll tell you that she got to "sit with daddy, see the animals, eat chips, drive with grandpa, push the buttons, and the corn goes back there!"

It was a special treat for everyone involved:)

Kate loved on the dogs all day, and also cheered on the green and white with her cute outfit from Bri Guy.  She never really stops moving, so it's hard to get a good picture of her these days, but I keep trying.

BIG hugs for Grandpa:)

daddy birthday (sur)prise

Matt turned 30 this year.  It was fun...and weird...but we really enjoyed celebrating him on his special day.  Each time something came in the mail for Matt, or we bought something at the store, Kate got all excited for daddy's birthday surprise:) I was pretty nervous that she was going to spill the beans and tell Matt about his gifts, but she held it in!

After church, we went to Fire Rock Grille with my parents and Adam for lunch.  

Kate's monkey face:)

For dinner, we met up with friends at On The Border.  It was so much fun to see everyone - and their kiddos - for a fun occasion.  Matt doesn't like being celebrated, but we wanted to make it special this year.  Our waitress was super great and brought out sopapillas for our our whole table for dessert:)

Matt and I finished the night by watching GATSBY, which we've been wanting to see for a while.  All in all, it was a great day.  Happy Birthday, Matthew!

"punkin patccchhhh"

Our neighbors went to a pumpkin patch a few weeks ago, and ever since they brought their pumpkins home, Kate has been talking about the pumpkin patch on their porch (she learned about the pumpkin patch from a book her Aunt Nikki and Uncle Paul got her:)).

When she says punkin patccchhhh, it's pretty much the cutest thing ever, she really emphasizes the -ch on patch, and sticks out her lips.  It's adorable.

Anyway, we didn't take Kate to a real pumpkin patch, but we did stop at a place called The Pumpkin Patch on 68th Street to pick up a few pumpkins.  We now have our own 'punkin patccchhhh' on the front porch, and Kate likes to show it to everyone.

this one, daddy!

i'll get it, guys

it's a little heavier than I thought!

ok, how about this one instead?

this girl loves her daddy:)

These are all my attempts to get a picture of her looking at me...as you can see, it's a little tough these days!

Kate's punkin patccchhh:)

Gaines Heritage Festival and Frederick Meijer Gardens

Chicago wedding weekend

October 4, we went down to Chicago for Susan's wedding.  She and Bryan had a beautiful ceremony and fun reception at Greenhouse Lofts, and we stayed in Lincoln Park.  We left Kate in GR with my parents (only our 2nd overnight without her!), and even though we missed her, it was much easier not to have a 23 month old in tow.  

We took the train from Michigan City on Friday afternoon.  The wedding was Friday night.  We hung out with my brother, Adam, for a few hours Saturday morning, then had brunch with the Cavicchioli and Eaton families before heading back to Michigan City on the train.

20 weeks!

sister love:)

Lincoln Park Zoo with Adam

I have to admit, being in the city (even though it was less than 24 hours) made me miss it a lot.  I had a lot of fun living in Chicago my senior year of college and it really is a fantastic town.  We need to visit more often.  And, at Adam's request, we'll have to bring Kate along one of these days:)

gender reveal...

Yep, that's right...Kate is going to have a baby sister in February:)