Family pictures 2010

So much has been going on this month. We went to Arizona to visit family and friends for a month, we celebrated our 4th anniversary, finally got family pictures taken, and took a short trip to Landstuhl. The month went by in a blur! We are really relieved to be home safe and sound and back to our daily routines.

Our family pictures were taken by

my good friend Amber Cupples. Check out her store here: http://www.thekarliekollection.com/ She has been awesome, she's already made some things for Tommy and Tristan that have been so nice to have. I like buying things that no one else has, and she does custom orders. You really can't beat that.

So, we got family pictures taken! We haven't had any taken since Tommy was a baby, so we were way overdue. They turned out awesome, I've been framing them and hanging them around the house for the short time we've been home. I'm going to tackle some scrapbooking later today. I've posted all my favorites, but it was hard to choose. If you're a friend of ours on facebook, you can see more there.

While we were in Arizona we got to do

a lot of fun things. We saw a few movies (we can't see many here, most are in German)

went out to eat for practically every meal (we missed American food soo much!), went to the Ostrich Festival, saw Guys and Dolls at the Hale Theatre, and got to catch up with everyone. Justin had the pleasure of fixing everyone's computer while he was there, which he really loves to do.

The flight home was really long. Justin was a sweetheart and took care of Tommy most of the time so I could relax a little more. I usually fly without Justin so I felt extremely spoiled. When we got home we had a few days to unpack and then it was back on the road. Justin had lasik surgery scheduled on an air force base in Ramstein/Landstuhl. It was a three hour drive which wasn't too bad. It was my first time on an AF base. I was really impressed with it, they had a lot of really nice parks, houses and a huge shopping mall. They also had Macaroni Grill and Chilis. Here in Bamberg on the army base we have Subway, Burger King and Pizza Hut. So needless to say, we're bummed we're not stationed in Ramstein! Justin's surgery was delayed until next week, but it was still cool to sightsee a little while we were there.

We're really cracking down on getting Tristan's room ready for him. In the next 3 months we'll

be picking up his furniture, painting, and baby proofing. We can't wait to see it finished and to bring home our new baby boy! I'm due June 27th, only 3 months to go. We're all feeling a little anxious for June to get here. We can't wait for our little June Bug.

Thank you to all of you in Arizona! We had so much fun seeing you. We won't be coming to visit until our time here in Germany is up. That's a year and a half. We don't want to travel until Tristan is a bit older. You're all welcome to come and see us here, though!

My sweetheart, all year, every year.

Justin,

How lucky I am to share my life with you,

Sometimes it's jut too good to be true,

You brighten my life with every smile,

With every laugh & each new mile,

you mean more and more to me.

Even when you're so far away,

There's oceans between us and we're still okay,

Your return brings me such exquisite bliss,

I'll never forget how much you were missed,

Can never take for granted every moment I have with you.

You're my perfect match in every way,

It can't be celebrated in just one day,

You're my sweetheart all year round,

The greatest treasure I've ever found,

Like every day for the rest of our lives...

Be mine this Valentine's Day.

The Best Gift Ever.

Most definitely would be my camera. My camera goes everywhere with me! And since I use my camera so much, I'm confident Justin will find it urgent to get me an upgrade. (Are my hints too subtle?) I digress! Here are some shots I've taken the past couple weeks.

Question: What could be better than a man in uniform? A man vacuuming in uniform, of course!

We took Tommy to H&M for some much needed new clothes. He loved the attention he got from the staff working there with each outfit he tried on. Then he took it upon himself to run outside in one of them and cause the theft alarm to trigger. They let him go with a warning, I think he learned his lesson.
I find it much easier to buy nicer clothes for Tommy now that we have another boy coming that will use them too. The one below is our favorite.

It's a BOY!

Justin and I waited patiently (or rather, relatively patiently) for our final ultrasound to come around. I don't think either of us have been so anxious in all our lives! Well, the day finally came on Monday and it was pretty obvious our new baby is a BOY!

Just look at that cute profile! The baby is growing like he should and seems to be a really healthy baby. I can definitely see a remarkable resemblance to Tommy's ultrasound pictures. I think they're going to be little twin blondies. Here is Tommy before his debut.

It might just be me, but they look the same! We won't mind having a mini Tommy around! ♥

The latest belly shot.

Christmas

Here are some pictures of our Christmas. It was a nice relaxing day and we were all glad to take a break from the big move. We were babysitting an English Bulldog named Buttons. Tommy really loved having him around. They were inseparable the whole time he was here. It gave me the idea that maybe I should buy a pet for Tommy, but decided a new baby was an even better gift for him. So we're going to wait on the pet. I barely remembered to take pictures. We went and had dinner with some friends and their kids, and when we came home and got ready for bed I remembered I hadn't taken any pictures!

Our landlord who lives below us came up and gave that teddy bear to Tommy. She made it herself!

We didn't need any mistletoe!

Look how big I've gotten! The pregnancy seems more real now. I'm due June 27th, but hopefully this little guy or girl decides to come a bit sooner.

Christmas shopping and a medieval festival!

Today we finally finished up with our Christmas shopping. It was so much fun! Downtown was packed with people and new shops that open up just for Christmas. Candy, German chocolate, fresh crepes, homemade gifts, and music!

Here's Tommy intently watching New Moon at the theater with us. He sure likes his popcorn!

Here we are!

Tommy getting ready to go. He likes showers better than baths.

We fear he's not really shy.

Here's Tommy playing with his new toy. Isn't it cute?

We're pretty sure this guy was drunk. He saw me taking a picture and hurried in front of the camera. I was trying to take a picture of their 10 person "beer bike". Everyone sat around the table peddling and drinking beer. It was quite a sight!

Here we are at the only Mexican restaurant we've been able to find in Germany. It's pretty good, but we both agree that Mexican food in AZ is a little bit better.

I didn't know Justin was taking my picture. :) Chips and guacamole!

Here's Tommy on the Christmas merry go round. This was the best picture we took because it was hard catching Tommy while it was moving. He had fun waving to us and blowing us kisses as he passed.

It was a fun day, but by the time we got home Tommy was exhausted. We stopped by 3 different chocolate & candy shops to get all the best chocolate to send home to our families. Their truffles are incredible. One is made out of pop rocks and it's fun to bite into it and feel it popping in your mouth.

Downtown Bamberg is so much fun. There's usually always all kinds of different people performing something cool and unusual. Today we saw a man who stood so still he looked just like a statue. He had cool makeup and he really didn't look real. You give him money and he'll move and it was so awesome. I wish I had gotten a picture. We went to a medieval festival but couldn't get many good pictures because it got so dark. At the end of the day we caught New Moon at the theater on base. Before the movie started they played the national anthem and everyone stood with their hand on their heart. It's the simple things like that that make us proud of our country.

Enjoy the pictures!

Some pictures!

Just goofing around with Tommy today. :)

This is one of his favorite stuffed animals.

Tommy has my lip gloss on his mouth, as you can see he has his fair share of kisses.