Bahama Mama's (and Dudes...but it obviously doesn't have the same ring to it)

Here are some pics from our Spring Break trip to Paradise Island. Sorry to be tardy but I'm caught up in planning Annalise's very first birthday party (can you believe it is here already?!!!!) and battling some nasty bug I caught from my stent in the giant germ tube (aka airplane) last week.

I'll be brief since there are lots of pictures attached to this post. In a nutshell we had a great time! Annalise did great on the airplane, lots of time was spent kicking back around the pool, we saw Jason Alexander in the pool and at the lobby Starbucks, ate lots of yummy food, and had to come back way too soon in everyone's opinion. Enjoy the pictures, and I'll be chatting again soon!

Here is the crew headed for our sandy, sunny retreat. Don't think us too fancy for the sweet ride - it was cheaper than parking two vehicles at the airport for the week. But it was pretty fun and
Annalise loved ditching her car seat!

Annalise had lots of fun poking her head over the seats and pulling Zach and Trev's hair!

The great flight crew made Annalise feel welcome on her very first airplane ride. She got to sit in the Captain's chair AND wear his hat......how cool is that?

If you have never seen a cockpit (which I hadn't) here is a peek.....it is a tight squeeze!

Here are the two divas ready to hit the pool. Annalise's watermelon bikini and sun hat were such a hit! We had total strangers stopping to talk so they could get a closer look :)

Annalise and daddy headed out for her very first swim! She is giving us her best Elvis impersonation...."thank you, thank you very much"

Here is our family taking Annalise on her very first swim. She absolutely loved it! She had serious prune skin and cried when we took her out.

I absolutely love this picture! Annalise posing on the beach with big brother Zach.....the camera could hardly handle the cuteness!

We will be signing autographs from 4-5pm only. Please respect our privacy at this time. Have you people no respect for celebs trying to get a little well-deserved R&R??!!

Annalise had some pretty tasty meals on this trip. She had an amazing appetite, maybe it was all the swimming. Here she is having lunch with daddy.

Annalise had so many exciting moments on this trip, but the event that took the cake for her was the aquarium. She was absolutely mesmerized! This is Annalise gazing at an ENORMOUS ray - you can't tell but the wing-span on this puppy was about 10 feet!!

This is my favorite Annalise shot from the trip. Isn't she too cute for words? She loved gazing at the "Shishies". Yes, I'm still waiting for her to say "mama"......but I'm NOT bitter!

We found Nemo. He obviously picked up some chic and settled down in a posh reef in the Caribbean.

I bet Nemo rode in on his white horse....I mean seahorse....and swept his chic off her fins. (I really crack myself up sometimes.......)

This was very cool but very creepy. The fam is traveling through a tube surrounded by sharks. When we looked up we realized we were so far under that we couldn't see the surface....YIKES!

This was immediately after exiting the shark tube. See how happy we all look!

Nana and Papa in front of the "predator lagoon". I love this picture. Thanks for coming with us and enhancing the joy of our trip! It was great to share this time with you!

Brian could add photographer to his resume. I took at least 50 pictures of the water lilies in front of the hotel lobby. Brian took one. Any guesses who took this one? (hint: it wasn't me)

Early Easter

Hi All! I am so sorry it has been so long since my last post. I know how much of a bummer it is when you check a blog over and over waiting for new info, only to be disappointed to learn that your loved one is falling down on their job.

We have had a very hectic (but fun) couple of weeks. We took the kiddos to the Bahamas for Spring Break and the week before I spent in overdrive trying to get everything ready for the trip. It is AMAZING how much stuff you have to pack for a baby! The wonderful thing about it though was that I got off the hook for having the most luggage :)

I will post pics of the trip as soon as I get them all organized. We have them off of the camera(s) but I haven't yet sorted them, so stay tuned!

You are probably wondering why I haven't talked about "Early Easter" yet, since I titled this posting as such - know that you aren't confused I just ramble and talk WAY TOO much most of the time. So here goes. We did an abbreviated Easter (nice dress clothes for church and opened Easter baskets) the Sunday before Easter since we were going to be on a plane to the Bahamas on Easter Sunday. This was a tough thing for me. I am the type of person that buys into the "whole holiday package". I enjoy spending holidays surrounded by family and friends trying to pay homage to the spirit of that given holiday. I actually have no recollection of ever spending a holiday doing something other than celebrating the holiday. This being Annalise's first Easter added another layer of mixed feeling for me as I wanted to dress her up in an Easter bonnet and white gloves, watch her first Easter egg hunt, eat ham, dye Easter eggs...you get the picture. So when we discovered that the boys Spring Break began on Easter weekend and we would be traveling (we promised them a Spring Break trip last summer when we skipped summer vacation due to travel restrictions with Annalise's heart condition, so there was no turning back on the promise), a large lump developed in my throat. An Easter without church, no Resurrection sermon, no family gathered around the Easter brunch table - instead I'm going to be in sweat pants riding on an airplane and munching on the world's smallest bag of pretzels! EEEK!

I fully realize that there are gobs of people in this world that love the idea of Christmas on a cruise ship or a ski slope, eating Thanksgiving dinner in a restaurant or a condo somewhere far from home, that’s just not me. I am however, married to a wonderful man that enjoys the adventure-filled holidays and Zach and Trev are right there with him. They have all indulged my traditions and spent the holidays since I’ve been around in true Kristen fashion. It was definitely my turn to make a contribution to the melting pot of marriage and open up to different traditions. It did end up being a great trip, we had tons of fun, and created many terrific family memories. At the end of the day, varying my traditions to include the wishes of my family involved taking a vacation to the Bahamas – NOT too tough if you really think about it :)


Happy belated Easter everyone!


Annalise, Zach and Trev on Easter day, 2008. Aren't they precious?

Annalise with some treasures from her 1st Easter basket. Thank you Nana and Papa for the goodies, I love them!

I'm digging for some goodies!

If only Mommy would let me eat these jelly beans!!

Trev and Annalise are best buddies!