And, She's Off!!!

Monday night, Abby (finally) learned how to ride her bike without training wheels!!

This was a big moment for sure, but I think it meant more to Greg than Abby. For months (well, years) now, Abby has been saying she's not interested in riding her bike. In her words, "It's boring." Which I KNOW killed Greg to hear that, since he's such an avid cyclist.

Well, over Spring Break last week, we decided it was time. She's almost 7 1/2, and sorry to compare kids, but Nate learned when he was 5 1/2 years old. Greg took her out for a few spins a few times last week, and though she did pretty well, she just wasn't trying very hard.

Then, Monday night, when we told her she could have a trip to Claire's (the jewelry/accessories store in the mall), she finally got motivated! Ha! She & Greg were outside for maybe 15 minutes and then all of a sudden I hear yelling. In a good way. I went outside to find this:

Something finally clicked and she got it!!

Proud Daddy!

 So, true to my promise, we went to Claire's yesterday after school and she picked out make-up and root beer flavored lip gloss :) She is one of a kind, I tell ya!

Greg, you have officially taught both of our kids to read AND to ride a bike. I would say your work is done here! :)

Just for kicks, here is a comparison of Nate's lesson & Abby's. Clearly one kid was enjoying themself just a wee bit more!!

Father-Daughter Dance 2017

Since I was out of town Saturday, I asked my bestie to help Abby get ready for the Father-Daughter dance! She was SO sweet to help, and even got Abby a Shopkins tumbler and some special snacks for while they were getting ready. Abby had a ball!

Greg got ready for the dance at Katie's house too, while Nate played with her son Chandler (and Nate spent the night there too.) Funny story, while Abby was in Katie's bathroom getting ready, she saw a cabinet full of make-up and said "Miss Katie - is ALL of that yours!?" Haha. Poor girl has only seen my tiny little make-up basket!

Daddy presenting her corsage

Proud Daddy & sweet baby girl

I love that Abby is holding her purse like a clutch, despite the strap. Ha!

Ready for their big night out!

Two of my favorite people!

I was on the planning committee for the dance, and was bummed when the date got changed (because I knew I'd be out of town). I hated not to be there for the set-up, etc. But from what I hear, everything looked great and was super fun! Especially the new "Selfie Station," complete with lots of props :)

Greg said Abby danced the night away......not only with him, but with some of her girlfriends too. She has such a sweet group of girls in her grade!!! (Hope they stay that way, ha!)

The girl knows how to make an entrance, and exit! :)

I'm so glad they Greg & Abby got to attend the Father-Daughter Dance for the 2nd year in a row. Here's hoping this little tradition of theirs continues!

A "Sip & See" for Baby Otis!

Last weekend, I flew to NC for a "Sip & See" for my sweet new nephew, Otis!

(What is a Sip & See you may ask?! It's basically a baby shower after the fact.....one where you can show off the baby! And the "sip" part involves mimosas....)

How cute is he!? Just 9 weeks old.

He's more interested in looking out the window than me, but that's ok!
I'm still a proud aunt :)

This little nugget didn't want to miss the party!

My sweet nephew Gibson, who is almost 2.

 My mom did an AMAZING job on all the food & décor!! The sip & see started at 10:30, so she made a lot of brunch foods and of course, mimosas!!

Lora's fave - yellow cupcakes with chocolate icing

Gibson wanted to join in on Otis' tummy time :)

 The sip & see went by so fast that I didn't take any pictures, which is rare for me! I was just enjoying catching up with everyone. My mom invited many of her friends and neighborhood ladies that I haven't seen in years! Best of all, my cousin Betsy flew in from OHIO to celebrate Lora & Otis!!!! It's been a few years since I've seen her, but she was like a 3rd sister to me growing up. Also, my best friends from childhood, Colleen, still lives in town and got to come to the shower with her youngest child, Kate. So fun to catch up and reminisce with her.

Lora with her sister-in-law, Lauren. And sweet babies Otis & Ava!

The crew! Sisters, Betsy, and my Mom. Love these ladies!

I also want to say a big thank you to my little sister, Becky! I stayed with her in Charlotte on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights, and had so much fun with her crazy family. Plus we did a little organizing in her bonus room, which is always a fun project for me.

I have the best family :)

Nanny & Poppy visit!

Last week, Nanny & Poppy came in town for a few days! They picked a great time to visit....the kids had A LOT going on, so we were busy, busy, busy!

N&P arrived Thursday afternoon, and headed straight to Abby's hip-hop class. They got to see the girl doing what she does best!!

Friday, Nate had his Wax Museum at school, which I blogged about here. He did a great job as Daniel Radcliffe! Back in the days when Nanny was a teacher, her class did the Wax Museum so she loved seeing this one.

Celebratory ice cream after the Wax Museum

Friday night, we had a cookout, game night, and then this little blondie got some braids so her hair would be crimped for the big performance the next day.....

Saturday, we had lunch at Cookout (for the first time - YUM!) and then headed to a nearby park to enjoy the beautiful day. Nanny & I had so much fun with the kids!!

The highlight of Nate's day was 1) tossing the football with Nanny and 2) teaching me to punt. He could not stop laughing at us! (Sidenote: I nearly pulled a muscle in my calf! Yes, I'm old.)

Right after the park, we dropped Abby off at a friend's birthday/tea party! They were asked to bring a doll to the party, but Abby brought her dog, Pippy, instead :)

They got to eat off of real china (!) and were served real tea with cream and sugar. Abby was NOT a fan of the tea! Luckily there was pink lemonade too :)

Saturday night, this little miss got to dress up as an 80's rocker chick for the Talent Show! She performed "Livin' on a Prayer" with the school choir. I blogged about it here if you want to read more.

Sunday morning, these handsome guys bundled up and participated in the Derby Dash 5K!!

The cheerleaders :)

Daddy worked on pacing Nate :)

WAY TO GO, NATE!!!

Poppy did a great job too!

Nate was about to pass out, but said he had fun!

Sadly, since this was the first annual Derby Dash, it was a bit disorganized and there weren't any

awards. Too bad because Nate would have easily gotten first place in his age group! (Especially

because there weren't ANY other kids there. Ha!)

After the race, we attempted to go to brunch at one of our favorite restaurants, Another Broken Egg Café. After being told the wait was 1 hour and 45 minutes long (and that we now need an APP to put our name on the list!!!), we headed to find another spot. Apparently, a ton of restaurants are closed Sundays. Who knew?! We ended up at IHOP and I'll just say this.....it was ok. I'm not the biggest fan of IHOP but since it was close to noon, I would have eaten my arm if I had to! :)

Sunday afternoon was beautiful, so we headed to the newly renovated UA baseball stadium to catch a game. It was hotter than we expected, and the game was a little slow, so we didn't stay the whole game. But the kids liked the snacks and new playground!

Sunday night, Abby requested yet another game night. She loves having visitors because it means more games!! Nanny doesn't have a great track record with family game night, but she actually was the winner of PicWits. Go Nanny!

Monday morning, N&P had to head home after another great trip. We are thankful they always make the trip to see us!

Talent Show

Last Saturday, we attended the school's annual Talent Show. We have gone for the last 4 years, because it's a great fundraiser for the Music & Arts program. Well, this was the first year Abby was actually IN the talent show! She performed "Livin' on a Prayer" by Bon Jovi with the choir. They were told to dress as 80's rockers (which is a bit vague), so we went with a little bit of black and a little bit of neon accessories....

She was obsessed with her blue streak!

She & Mia were twinning and it wasn't even planned!!

Such tough rocker chicks :)

Proud Daddy

We shared a table of 8 with Chandler's family, but somehow a few more random boys ended up at our table :)

The choir didn't go on until Act II, so Abby got to sit with us and watch the first half of the show. Here's one last shot - with their bud Erin - before heading onstage.

The choir did great!!! It's a big group because it's for grades 1-6, so look for Abby sitting on the edge of the stage. She was NOT happy about this placement, because she wanted to be standing and dancing. Ha! Click here to watch the choir sing "Livin' on a Prayer."

About to head off stage. They did great!

Not sure if her Daddy or Poppy bought her this. But she deserved it :)

Nanny & Poppy sure picked a great weekend to visit!

More of Nate and his cute buds :)