Happy Everything!

Chris's first Father's Day!
Happy Belated Father's Day! And, Happy Baptism and Happy 24 weeks on the 24th, Nolan! AND HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHRIS!!!

Whew!!! Can you tell I've been living in a black hole at work the past couple weeks?!?

I didn't want to let Father's Day get too far away without giving a shout-out to Chris. He is such a wonderful daddy to Nolan! I could not ask for a better partner in parenthood. Nolan already adores his daddy and seems to think he is hilarious! It has been such a joy watching Chris become a doting daddy. So, forgive my tardiness... Happy First Father's Day Chris!

Chris and all our other favorite dads had to share their special day with Nolan this year as he was baptized on Sunday. I was so excited to see him in his little white bubble and knee socks (the lady on Etsy did such a fantastic job on it!) I was, however, terrified we were going to have a potty accident once he was dressed. We've had some major issues with leaky diapers lately, and I had a horrible vision of him messing all over himself, or worse... Pastor John!!! Fortunately, he was PERFECT and the diaper remained in tact. In fact, Nolan fell asleep at the start of church and slept through his entire baptism ceremony, the remainder of church, and photos afterward! WOW!!! That's a sound sleeper!!! We had 50 or so of our closest friends and family members over afterwards for a little luncheon. It was a fun (and exhausting) day. I love that many of my closest girls have babies right now, too. It is so fun to share this experience with them. Mommyhood is the best!!!

Nolan after his baptism!

Next up, Happy 24-Week Birthday Nolan! We all know Chris's fave number is 24, so he thought it was pretty cool that Nolan's 24-week birthday fell on the 24th (and Chris's birthday). Yes, we are a little strange. :) It is so hard to believe Nolan is nearly 6 months old. I can't say it enough... time flies far too quickly. The past 24 weeks have been the best of my life!

And, last but HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU! HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR CHRIS/DADDY! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! In honor of Chris turning 32 (WOW!), I thought I'd share with everyone 32 reasons Nolan and I think Chris is so great!
1. He wakes up every morning around 6am, prepares Nolan's bottle, and feeds him (often while I sleep)!
2. He doesn't mind changing diapers.
3. He always cleans up the doggy messes without too much whining.
4. He lets me talk him in to eating icecream OFTEN. :)
5. He always puts the toilet seat down.
6. He makes sure our yard looks fab all the time!
7. He irons his clothes every morning, and helps out with mine sometimes too.
8. He lets me wear his white undershirts to bed... which are so soft!
9. He burns DVDs for me... because for some reason I've never bothered to learn to do this myself.
10. He loves my family and fits in perfectly!
11. He fixes our cars whenever they need fixing (if he and Jacob can figure it out!)
12. He always makes our meals "pretty".
13. He always smells good.
14. He loves my friends as much as I do!
15. He is a great dog dad and loves his girls (even though he says he doesn't!)
16. He is a hard worker at work and home.
17. He is so talented... he built a built-in bookcase in Nolan's nursery and an awesome poker table most recently!
18. He loves The Notebook.
19. He lets me listen to anything I want when we are in the car.
20. He always gets out of bed to change the thermostat when I'm too hot/too cold.
21. He gets me water, pain meds, ice packs... anything I need when I have migraines.
22. He's naturally atheletic and enjoys being active.
23. He is a great travel companion.
24. He understands and even supports my love for Kenny Chesney! ;)
25. He watches 90210 with me... even though he pretends he doesn't like it.
26. He offers to paint my toenails for me.
27. He is the King of Spray Paint!
28. He sends me flowers.
29. He is best buds with my mom... who also happens to be my best bud!
30. He likes Taco Bell as much as me!
31. He loves being Daddy to Nolan- which makes me SO happy!
32. He has the biggest, kindest heart of anyone I've ever met and is never afraid to show his affection.

Happy 32nd Birthday, Christmas! We love you mucho!!!

A Trip to the Sunshine State

Look at our little beach dude!


Adding Nolan's hand print to his t-shirt... disaster!


First time touching the ocean!


Aunt Randee, Grandma Sandy, and Mom... pretty ladies!


Lookin' good in is shades on his 5-month birthday!


Ready for a swim!

On June 5th, which also happened to be my dear mom's birthday, we climbed into the family vans and headed south to the Sunshine State for the annual Harper Family Vacation. This one was extra special because it was Nolan's first vacation! I must say this kiddo was a superstar. He rode quietly in his car seat for the entire 12 hour drive! We stopped about three or four times for gas/food/diaper changes, but the rest of the time he just napped and played in his seat. He was great!!!

We arrived in Panama City Beach, Florida about 7pm and moved our luggage into the condos. There were 19 of us this year! Quite a group!!! Our condo housed Chris, Nolan, the parents, Grandma Sandy, and I. Once we got settled in and ate dinner it was time for bed. Nolan woke up that night around 3am, but quickly went back to sleep after a bottle.

The next morning we awoke to a beautiful beach and plenty of sunshine! The next several days were spent relaxing (and playing) in the pool and ocean, eating numerous fattening meals, shopping, and napping. Who could ask for a better vacation!? Chris and the boys also played golf three of the days too. One day the condo had t-shirt painting for the kiddos, so Chris made Nolan an adorable little t-shirt. We tried to add Nolan's hand print, but as you can imagine that turned into a big mess! We skipped the family miniature golf this year because of Baby Nolan, but we managed to find a wonderful little ice cream shop to fill the void while the others were golfing! I think it was a good trade-off! We also had a family photo made while we were there. The photographer did a nice job with the group. We all dressed in white and tan, and looked pretty good if I can say so myself!

Nolan really enjoyed spending time with all of the family. Since we got home he seems pretty bored with Chris and I! He's wondering where all of his fun cousins have gone. He spent at least half an hour every day in the swimming pool which he LOVED! He will be a great swimmer one day the way he kicks those legs in the water! We took him down to the beach for photos one morning, and while we were posing him he face planted right into the sand. It was ALL over his little face. He cried. Mommy cried. It was chaos! Luckily Chris got him to the outdoor showers and quickly got him cleaned off. He may never want to go to the beach again though!

On Saturday, June 12th we packed up the vans and headed back home. I was sad to end such a nice trip. Fortunately, Nolan made the drive home easy as pie again. He is such a trooper. I think he's going to be an avid traveler like his Mommy! I hope so anyway! We got in on Saturday around 9:30 or 10pm. It was nice to sleep in our own house, but I was sure missing the beach on Sunday morning!

Next up, Chicago for Cory's grad party!!! Can't wait!!!

And one last thing, Happy BELATED Birthday to my wonderful Mom!!! You are the best mom and friend a girl could ask for, and we all love you very much!!!


She's simply the best!

A Weekend of Firsts & Fun

What a fun weekend! The weather was absolutely gorgeous and our little guy was on his best behavior. We were able to get out and about quite a bit and enjoy the kick-off to summer. Nolan got to experience quite a few firsts this weekend too.

-He went on his first picnic where he got to meet Mo and Angie, Aunt Wendy's college roommates, and took his first nap under a tree!

-He went to his first parish picnic, Bonifest, and got to watch Mommy and Daddy stuff themselves with bbq and gyros. He was amazed by all of the people there. He sat in the Baby Bjorn and held tight to Mommy!

-Nolan also got to go swimming in Grandma's pool for the first time... and he LOVED it! We hoped he would like swimming since he enjoys baths so much but were worried the cold water would scare him. That was definitely not the case though! He really seemed to like it... and he looked adorable in his little tiny trunks and sun hat!

-He attended his first bbq! Sunday was Aunt Sue's Memorial Day BBQ and the weather was perfect. Nolan obviously didn't get to partake in the yummy food, but he did enjoy visiting with his grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. He was quite the little chatter box too. It seems he has discovered his voice!

Chris and I had a big weekend too. We officially became Godparents to Zoe on Sunday at her baptism. It was a nice ceremony and Z looked ADORABLE! She was a perfect little lady through the entire ceremony. Hopefully Nolan will be that good. We'll see! Curt and T had a really nice party afterwards at their house and we were able to visit with everyone. Nolan slept through the party, which allowed Mommy and Daddy to eat their food at a normal pace and visit a little bit.

I went to the Gypsy Caravan yesterday with Christie, Teresa, and Violet. It was pretty neat. I didn't buy anything... except a giant corndog... but it a good time. I got a little sunburned, but it felt great being outside. Violet was an angel all day. She has the tiniest voice I've ever heard!

It was a really nice weekend. We are really excited now for our trip to FL next Saturday! We have a lot to get accomplished this week though. Should be a busy one, but there's a great reward at the end of the week! I can't wait to have an entire week with Nolan... and of course the fact that we will be at the beach doesn't hurt either! :)

As you can see below, all of the fun made for a sleepy baby!