Crab Dinner @ The Skidmores

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Thursday night we had a cracked crab dinner at the Skidmore's house with the whole crowd. Their backyard is such a nice place to hang out :) We didn't hit the pool this time but had fun with everybody enjoying the always delicious food and wine spread Ann and Earl put on. It was a treat to eat crab, especially with Baby Ann sitting next to me who likes to crack it but doesn't eat it! Francie ran around with their 70 pound bulldog, Randall and entertained us as usual.

Ann, Ann and Em

Heff and his littlest girl

Pretty table by the pool

Francie was entertained all night by Randall the Bulldog! Watch out... he'll "Knock-a you ova!"

the girls were wearing the darling Best&Co dresses Ann brought back from NY...

in a matching set of course!

The Heffs

Pat and Baby Ann (don't go back to Nashville yet!!!)

"AWKY!" (Pat asked Francie to do her Real Housewives of NJ 'Fabulous!' pose... she looked at hm and said "Awky!" It was hilarious!)

Em and James with Maisie

The binky is as big as her head ;)

Clark and James- in the corner with the cigars

I snuck a picture of the evidence ;)

Michelle, Jannie and Francie

Ann fixed a special little dinner for Francie

Earl and John cracking the crab

ABA, Em and Clark'a girlfriend Danielle with the little Doo (love the look she is giving her Auntie Baby Ann)

Maisie wide awake in her PJ's...

Francie PJ'ed up too- hoping she'll crash on the drive home!

Silly Uncle James chasing Randall

Time to head home! thanks Ann, Earl & Clark!

SF Giants Game

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Wednesday night while we were hanging out for our girl's overnight Daddy took Francie to her first SF Giants Game! Ann's boyfriend Pat came along with them, the Tennessee boy and sports fan's first Giants game too! Heff picked them both up at Rosewood and they took the train (and a six pack or two :) up to the stadium. They sat the first three innings in their bleacher seats then wandered around to get some food and check out the kids area. An older man talking to Francie told Heff to make sure and go to a certain office to get her first "Official Giants Game" certificate with her name on it! Around the sixth inning she was pretty spent (after a full day of swimming and the uber-excitement of riding on a train) so they headed for home.

Heff with his daddy-diaper-bag ready for another adventure with his Doo

Loving the CHOO-CHOO!!

Outside by the famous Willie Mays statue

The guys had to find her her very own Giants hat!

Dad explaining the way the game works from the bleachers

Nice work on camera duty Pat (I made him swear to take them ;)

Pat and Francie

and she's done. But got the certificate for her baby book!

Through Emmy's Eyes

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Emmy is teaching us all how to deal with our sadness. I miss Kaky and having her here to share in all the laughs and seeing the babies grow. Emmy's blog and her photography are incredible and help us all understand her process of grieving, and in turn our own.

... from Emmy's blog- "Grieving Gracefully"

"Suffering Becomes Love"

I came upon this quote in a book a dear friend of mine gave to me- I wanted to share: “Everything in life that we really accept undergoes a change. So suffering must become love. That is the mystery.”

Grieving is a mystery. I am learning that everyday- that grief is mysterious and yet at the same time grief is love. It doesn’t happen right away because we are too preoccupied in our own sadness and go over and over what we have lost, how we are supposed to keep living, what our future holds- but what I hadn’t figured out or realized was that at my daily struggle with grief that I have changed and developed a new compassion, a new love for all. I have become so tender hearted towards others- and my love is bountiful. Suffering is unbearable but it has allowed me to open my heart and share with others. My heart is full-for in life we all have our struggles and know that while we are sad-we are never alone and that love that comes from sadness is one of grief’s greatest gifts to us all. I am forever grateful.

Fabulosity!

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For Mother's Day Heff sent me on Girls Night Out Slumber Party at my new favorite place.. yup, you guessed it- Rosewood at Sand Hill ;) But my sister and I decided that's a lame name for such a paradise so we named it "FABULOSITY"! I know, obnoxious ;) But we really had a great time Wednesday-Thursday up at the resort. My sister, Pat, the babies and I went up for lunch Wednesday on the veranda and Jannie joined us for some pool time and margaritas. Then Heff picked up Francie and Pat at 5pm to take the choo-choo to the SF Giants game. My dad came for a swim and stayed for dinner then Ann and I convinced my mom to sleep over with us even though she didn't bring anything with her beside a swim suit and the clothes she was wearing! (that was camping for Jannie) We watched a movie with Maisie after dinner and had a great night catching up on the gossip together. Heff brought Francie back in the morning (I missed her!) and we had breakfast and a little more pool time. I wasn't leaving until they kicked us out :) Thanks Heff!

Lunch with my sis

with a view of this... calling our names

Poolside with ABA ready to put our suits on!

Thank goodness ABA was there to take her swimming... Jannie has Francie convinced "Jannie's don't get wet- onn-ly feet"

Silly girls attempting THE DUNK (Ann was cracking up at Sansie because every time she told her to "HOLD" her breath Francie literally HELD her mouth and tongue!)

"ABA made me get out." ;(

Sorry Francie, but it was high time for Margaritas

We had the pool mostly to ourselves... until the star of "Hairspray" arrived for some lounging with her bf. (and no, we're pretty sure it wasn't a wig!)

Reading with her Jannie

So glad Baby Ann is here to hang out!

My baby girl (maybe a little hungry? ;)

Jannie and I getting "onn-ly seet" (only feet!) wet ;)

I love having a baby to conveniently cover the belly ;)

Maisie said she could get used to this

So could ABA

tough life

We got the girls dolled up in their GIANTS orange so Francie could head out on her date with dad... Maisie, Jannie, John, ABA and I caught the last rays of sun

7pm at the pool? Sun going down... time to head in!

We had drinks on the patio and ran into some friends my parents knew then went to the restaurant "madera" for dinner. Not surprisingly Jannie started talking it up to the wine somonier and dug up that his parents grew up with her parents in Watsonville and his sisters just published this book on Croatian's in Watsonville my dad read cover to cover twice ;)

Ann, Mare and Maisie

Taking pictures of my baby girl from the table?... yup it's great to be drinking again! ;)

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Breakfast at Madera and a few more hours at the pool the next morning

Jannie has a rare moment to hold Maisie while Francie is otherwise occupied ;)

"that big sister is bossy"

and it's time to pack up and head home... a 10 minute trip if there isn't "traffic" on Sand Hill!

Playgroup @ Francie's

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Tuesday we hosted playgroup at our house- it was pretty easy after the BBQ to keep the bounce house up, pull out all the kid snacks and throw the baby pool out on the lawn! Emmy was here for the day too- she was a huge help with Maisie and carried her in the sling most of the afternoon (my new Serena & Lily sling from the Carter's I am in love with!) It's been hot all week so we let the kids strip down and "swim" (aka emptying the baby pool on the grass) and play. Maisie and Wyatt hung out in the shade :)

Hollywood

Emmy sling-in Maisie

Bouncers

Swimmers

Stackers

Alessandra and the babies

Moms

Emmy and Francie bouncing the little ones

Thanks Em!

Auntie Baby Ann & Pat Visit!

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Baby Ann and her boyfriend Pat are here for a week to meet Little Miss Maisie and visit after they both graduated from graduate school last week (Ann from her Masters in Education and Pat from Vanderbilt Business School) As ABA said, nothing like working for a week then taking a weeks vacation! They've been hanging out with us, sight-seeing and enjoying the NOT-humid weather. Francie loves ordering her ABA around ;)

Dinner after we picked them up from the airport Sunday night

Francie "helped" dad with the charcoal... what a mess!

bathtime was in order

For Maisie too!

bedtime stories with ABA and Pat

Francie getting IN the chicken coop after a wayward egg... until the chicken's started "eating Sansie's wegs!" = not happy

come on ABA... let's go play.

and after a fun Monday hanging out with Ann & Pat...

Francie helped her Dad with his bow & arrow target practice... without pants on.

Memorial Day Weekend BBQ

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Saturday we threw together a BBQ with some friends and neighbors to celebrate Memorial Day Weekend and the official start of the summer season. Heff grilled up Santa Maria style Tri-tip with salsa and beans and we had lots of beverages for the adults and snacks for the kids. We ended up with 19 kids under the age of 5 at the party... it was nuts! We had a great time catching up with friends and didn't shut the party down until 1am, just in time for Maisie to wake up ;) Happy Memorial Day weekend!

Maisie and her soon-to-be-buddy Beau (just 3 days older than she is)

The Fosters on a kid-free date night!

kids in the playpit

Paige with Maisie and Icie

feeding the troops

Neighbors Jess and Jen with the baby- she was passed around all night and very happy about it!

Dawn and I

The Chanes

Emma- the leader of the pack and only kid at the party over 5 yrs old!

Francie and friends

the legrands in the sun

Heff and the guys grilling

Bounce house never gets old

Christian, Dawn, Alexis and I... we all went to Sacred Heart together!

Lena, Adam and Rose on a family pile-up

speaking of a pile-up! Miles and the kids at the bottom of the bouncy slide

Chris and Wesley with his very patriotic binky

Heff's law partner Dan and his wife Michelle gave Francie this adorable Corelle doll for being a new big sister- she hasn't put it down since!

Christian and I on the couch with Maisie

Late night crowd... Heff, Bert and Estelle

The Little Doo still going strong....

her father was not too happy when she showed off her "dancing pole" skills!

girls are getting sleepy

Francie held off going to bed by fetching Coors Light for everyone

Heff's ready for bed!

My New Lunch Spot

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Now that the warm weather is here to stay we've been hitting all of our favorite outdoor lunch spots... but I am slightly obsessed with going up to the new resort, Rosewood at Sand Hill, for lunch on their outdoor patio overlooking the pool. This place just appeared out of nowhere and it is so nice up there. Cobb Salad and an Arnold Palmer with my girls and friends in the sun- not a bad way to spend the afternoon :)

Francie sits in her own big girl chair snacking, reading Carl books and coloring away (I might not have noticed the crayon on the side of the table while she was busy coloring... Thank goodness for wipes, it came right off ;)

Maisie doesn't mind hanging out either

on my lap

Maisie's lunch date kissing "Beatrice" the Butterfly ;)

Francie trying to put her shades on

My girls

Fancy-Nancy-Francie

is a wild child!

loading back up in the car to go home (5 miles away but feels like we're on vacation when we're here!)

Sweet Tooth

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We were all in orange for heading to the dentist then lunch on Thursday! (not on purpose, I promise ;) My little sweet-tooth remembered where I put her lollipop and the cookies Jannie brought her last night. She pushed her "helping change Maisie's diaper stool" over to retrieve her goodies Thursday morning... good thing we were on our way to the dentist huh?

STRETCH! and she's got it :)

breakfast of champions

Lollipop, Lollipop

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Wednesday night Christian, Adriana and Conor came over with lollipops for a little cathcing up! Conor and Francie were obviously in heaven with the huge Sugar Shack lollipops and ran around getting stickier and stickier as the night went on... Christian, Adriana and I stuck to champagne and crackers. They made me an adorable book with photos and "wishes" from the baby shower they threw for Maisie- I still have yet to post those gorgeous photos from their photographer!! Coming soon...

"Chickens like lollipops mom!"

Conor even picked one out for Francie to match her outfit ;)

Excited much!?

Licking Lollipops all night = liking bathtime even more!

Park Playdate

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Wednesday we met some friends at Holbrook-Palmer park for a little afternoon playdate and wine :) Francie has names all of her favorite parks. There is "Dog Park" and "New Park" and I learned on this trip she called this park "Grampa's Park" since my dad brought her here a few months ago!

Maisie lounging on the blanket

"Hmmmmm...." Estele contemplates

Francie giving Isaac some love again

Moms and babes

Emmy and the Big Girls

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Tuesday after playgroup we stopped by the Stanford Park Hotel where Emmy was babysitting two adorable little girls for the night while their mom was at a dinner here. Francie made fast friends with Chellie and Lulu as soon as we got there (she didn't even need her usual warm up to get over the shy, talking-only-about-her-dog-Ollie phase. We walked around the hotel and hit up the pool!

The girls grabbed Francie's hands and took off as soon as we arrived. Lulu looking back...

walking through lobby, the girls made friends with guests :)

silly girls

I might have forgotten a swim suit/swim diaper for Francie. I also might have been down to my last diaper to get us home (there was a pool at playgroup!) and no extra outfits to even make it look like she had a diaper/clothes on. Luckily the pool was kinda tucked away and we were the only ones swimming!

Francie adores the big kids...

almost as much as she adores Emmy! (little miss-sometimes-timid-around-water was JUMPING in for Emmy! showing off much? ;)

Someone insists on wearing her "purse like mommy's" everywhere she goes now

tired little sis ready to head home after a triple-play-date day!

Oh, Honey

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We had such a busy weekend last weekend it's taken me all week just to catch up on the blogging (Friday night daddy-daughter camping trip pictures coming soon!) We've been busy this week too... hanging out with friends, lunching, playgrouping and even stopping by the office to check in. Some pictures from earlier in the week...

Francie likes to bounce in Maisie's chair before bed (not with her eyes glued to the TV or anything... she's never seen real Housewives or Tori & Dean, I promise ;)

But this is why we let her hold "her baby" Honey and not her sister in the bouncy chair... karate chopping mid-violent-bounce

Maisie was sleeping safely on her baby-lounging pillow

Oh the love... thanks for the matching pink dress and bubble Bethy!

aaaaand she's done.

baby in a bubble suit

and baby in big sisters doll stroller (someone was NOT happy about this and it wasn't Honey!)

order is restored "NOT YOU'S MAISIE! ONLY HONEY!!"

patheticly resorting to holding the poor baby up to an unsuspecting big sister to try to get a picture of them together!

one more try...

only love for Honey this morning

We've lost ABA to the South!

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My sister has been in Nashville too long... she pierced her ears today!!! I know, no big deal for most normal people but NO ONE in our family has their ears pierced, except Kaky who did it at 33 years old. I don't know why we aren't ear piercers but Baby Ann decided enough was enough... or maybe she was getting sick of her boyfriend necklaces and wanted to diversify? :) (she's going to kill me for that one) I will give you a hard time but it looks good on you ABA! We'll just tell Francie an Maisie they have to wait until they are 23 to pierce their ears, just like mom always told us we had to wait until we were 33 like Aunt Kaky :)