Pink or Blue?

During our 20 week ultrasound, the tech let it slip as to what the baby's gender was, upon which Tom and I just looked at each other. You see, we wanted to wait until the birth to find out what we are having, since we have one of each right now. It's kind of a bummer, but at the same time now I get to plan a gender reveal party! And if you know me, hosting fun things that require food and creativity is my specialty! So in the end, I'm still having fun with knowing the gender.

These are the invites I mailed out, which I created using Microsoft Paint (I know, I wish I had Photoshop, but it's all I have to work with right now). I found some pictures online of owls (apparently cute little owls and birds are the "thing" right now). And then I simply touched them up in Paint and pasted them into a Word doc. I went to Hobby Lobby and got some card stock: grey, blue and pink. I printed the invites on the grey linen-side up, and then had Tom cut each of the blue & pink paper 1/4 inch larger than the preceding paper. I think they turned out really cute! These fit into a 5x7 envelope and they didn't cost any extra postage.

As soon as I can get to it, there will be many photos to come of the party! I should get to planning! Stuff like this gets me all excited. As you can imagine, making these invitations was quite the fun project for me!

Cancun

 Our latest family adventure led us to Cancun, Mexico for a week with Grammy and Pops at their time-share exchange. The weather was wonderful, the ocean was beautiful and it was a great break from the everyday actions here at the house. As I type this I stare at the 6 inches of snow and ice that cover the ground outside, with a high temperature of 35 degrees today. Oh, I love the beach, and I love the warm weather. I am ready for Spring and Summer.

Our time was spent at the pool and beach, as Ryan and Brooklyn LOVED just hanging out in the water. The resort had beautiful landscaping, and our beach was nice and secluded (unlike the resort next door - we could hardly walk through the area it was so crowded, and I think the dress code required less than 3 inches of clothing).

The travel was a sight to see: a family of walking through the airport with a stroller, 2 kids, 4 suitcases (carry-on), 2 diaper bags, 2 car seats and a backpack. Since we travel standby all luggage is carry-on. The first day traveling was spent going through LAX. Both flights had extra seats near us, so we were able to have two rows for us, which was nice. The flight home was a tighter fit, but it was non-stop back to Colorado. Here are some pics for you to enjoy.

Back to Life!

Why hello there! Sorry for the absence. As stated in previous posts, I am currently pregnant. Right now I am 26 weeks, but my first trimester I was totally incapacitated as I struggled with extreme fatigue. I hardly did a thing, and with the closing of Biltmore Inspirations, blogging was far from my mind. I still don't have much time to blog, as right now my daughter is clinging and whining at my legs. However, my energy is back (as much as it can be) and with winter break over things are back on a schedule. Even with Biltmore Inspirations is gone, I still plan on posting the latest news on the family, recipes I've tried and even some about my struggles with post partum depression. I truly believe that too many people struggle with depression and simply don't talk about it or even seek treatment. It makes life harder, but I know that it pleases God to give me this affliction right now, and for what purposes I still am not sure, but I am happy to share in my experiences.