baby's first wedding

my dad got re-married last night in grand haven, it was a small, beautiful little ceremony just for family. we had a huge snowstorm so though the roads were treacherous, it was a scenic winter night once we were settled in. here is a family pic - from left, uncle jim & aunt barb, dad holding declan, new wife shelly, andy, me & tim

christmas 2007 - chicago edition

we did a midwest tour this year for christmas, spending 4 days in lake forest with tim's family before heading over to michigan christmas eve. we only got caught in one snowy blizzard which is par for the course in michigan in december! michigan pictures to come soon...

new stockings seem to be added every year with weddings and babies in the mitchell family

declan meets santa for the first time, and sleeps on his lap!

tim's sister and family

i had to document this one as our little peanut is growing so much every day - his PBK stocking is bigger than him!
the babies in their "bouncies" for dinnertime
my best gift!!!

our little guy!

it seems like declan is growing inches and ounces every day! he is a very good baby and we are so happy to have him. it is hard to believe we are parents. of course, we think he is the handsomest little guy around!

first night out

we were happy to have tim's parents in town this week from chicago to visit the baby and help around the house. they insisted on babysitting so we could do some christmas shopping and go out for dinner, it was great (and I was only a little nervous... )!

first colt's game

we were indoctrinated as colts fans when we moved to indianapolis last summer. it was great timing with their superbowl win too, plus how can you not like peyton manning?!

first bath

hated the sponge bath part...

loved getting his hair washed (just like his mom)

headed home...

headed home from the hospital...

our baby is here!!!

we were blessed with our son declan timothy very early sunday morning on november 25th! he is a beautiful, healthy and strong little boy. he came out with a thick head of hair which already covers his ears and goes down his neck... he will have to get his first trim before he is one month old! he is a very good baby and only cries during diaper changes and when he's hungry or bored.

our last quiet thanksgiving, just the two of us

with our little guy due any day, we stayed home and had a quiet thanksgiving with just the two of us. i think our families felt bad for us, but we loved it! we ordered tons of food from Fresh Market (no cooking for me this year), put up Christmas decorations and watched football. we even broke out the china, crystal and silver for the special occasion!

november already?!!!

sorry to the handful of friends who check out my blog which has not been updated since july! we are anxiously awaiting our little bundle of joy in a few weeks, November 28th to be exact. i have "back-posted" some events from the past few months.

since i live in Indiana now and will be giving birth to a Hoosier baby soon (yes, hard to believe in so many ways), i insisted on a hay bale on our front porch this fall. this may seem like a dumb entry to most of you, but I AM a little bit country so my rustic hay and pumpkin display make me SMILE!!!

one year from today....

which one do you like?

date night chicago!

tim and i were just in chicago for one last time before baby's arrival. we enjoyed a last special dinner at The Capital Grille. i don't have many "belly" pics so here is one of me almost fully baked at 37 weeks! i feel truly wonderful and really have from day one. this little guy has been very easy on me, i pray he will be as easygoing outside of the womb when he joins us!

we're in this together!

so i met my new friend jenna through work, she one of the company trainers and "oriented" me to my new job in no time last summer! jenna and her husband brad surprised us in april with the great news that they were pregnant too - just 4 weeks behind us! we could not be happier to go through this journey with another couple and have had lots of fun hanging out over the summer talking cravings, maternity fashion, baby gear, hopes, dreams, etc. well that is us girls anyway!!! stage left is tim and brad putting back some vodka cocktails, playing beanbags in the backyard and rolling their eyes at all the gear we think we might need to be successful new moms!
they are also having a boy so we look fw to playdates for years to come!

baby shower #3, oct 6th

i have made some really wonderful new friends down here in a short period of time, most of them girls I work with. they've been so excited for us and so supportive of my first pregnancy - like we've all known each other for years!!!! they were very sweet and threw me a baby shower as we feasted on maggianos after work one night.

brooke's wedding, "the girls"

my college friend brooke married mike rummelhoff on june 8th in chicago, it was a beautiful wedding and they make a perfect pair. getting all of us npc girlfriends together now basically takes a wedding or shower event of some type. here is one picture from the big day. notice i'm sticking out my stomach to show my newly pregnant profile at 16 weeks- so PROUD! meanwhile heidi (far right in orange) and shelly (to brooke's right) were both totally pregnant with their 2nd and 3rd babies respectively... they were either hiding their conditions or in denial! i love you girls and can't wait for our next gathering in april.

new trees & new life

who knew trees could be so exciting?! we didn't either, until we became homeowners and discovered not only good landscaping but also hedges! we got 10 huge white pines and a maple planted in may, and not to mention the little germination happening inside of me. only 4 months along in this pic...

san francisco/napa trip

we headed out to SF & napa for a little vacation in early july.







ghirardelli square for husband with the small ice-cream obsession!!!



jaime came up from the oc for a few days to hang in sf with us. the 3 of us had a great time and met up with many old friends during our stay. we were lucky to hit three of sf's coolest restaurants - they did not disappoint! americano, salt house and town hall -awesome awesome awesome! we didn't feel guilty eating so much since we walked our butts off during the day.


it was tough on a pregnant girl to be in napa and not be able to indulge in the local specialty. we took back a few bottles to enjoy later however and we enjoyed this beautiful part of the country. compared to the hustle and melting pot activity of sf, napa was a stark contrast of relaxation and the good life. can't wait to go back and spend more time here. this was an adorable and romantic french restaurant we enjoyed one night, bistro jeanty. i couldn't get over how cute this place was!

big news!!!!!

long time, no post - sorry. i hope to catch up on some events and family updates on the blog in coming weeks.

the biggest news is that our family is expanding on November 28! we are having a little boy!!!! we are very blessed and so excited for what is to come.

i've been thinking about how to creatively break the news on this site, but so much time has passed since we found out in March that i thought i better just get writing!

birthday weekend

i sailed into my official 30s this weekend, turning 31 on sunday. our friends tina and andy came down from chicago to help celebrate. thanks you two - we had so much fun and many laughs! as tina and i used to say, we made good memories!



future chicago trib/dupage county engagement announcement pic:

easter

here are some photos of the family from our saturday dinner downtown for tim's mom's birthday over easter weekend. we went to crofton on wells, it was a wonderful time!





here are some belated easter pics... caroline w/ "uncle timmy" as she referred to him!
and mitch in his cute little boy outfit, i wish the photo showed his cute patchwork madras pants!