LOTS of pictures and Allison Updates

Well, I realized that I've kind of been slacking on the Allison picture front and updates. Well, you're in for a treat! Here is a really long blog with lots of pictures!!!

The things that the pictures include: riding Hunter, Allison's first trip to Rodeo, babysitting, dogs relaxing, Egg Hunt, Easter (and the Bunny Cake), walking really well, feeding her "baby" and the aftermath of Kitty Kissing.

First, yes, I did say, "Riding Hunter." Allison has decided that she likes to sit on Hunter's back and bounce. Here is proof that we torment our dogs.

Allison really enjoyed the Rodeo. She walked a TON while we were there. She LOVED the kids area and being able to pet all the animals. She especially liked trying to give them kisses. She really wanted to pet the wallabies and kangaroos but they were behind 2 different fences, so she had to just stare longingly. (Brandon's favorite part was the pig races).

Here is Allison eating her first Rodeo lunch. (She liked Mommy's chopped beef better than her pigs in a blanket).

Allison on a John Deere (taken especially for you Kenny!)

Allison playing her first carnival game, the fishing booth. She picked a dog for her prize. Weird, huh?

This is what happens after she's riding Hunter and he gets up!

Walking with Daddy....

Poor Hunter...

We babysat for one of the moms in my playgroup so she and her hubby could go to a concert at Rodeo. Her daughter is about a year younger than Allison (almost to the day). She is SO much fun. She reminds us of a mobile Allison at that age. She's a little bigger (and a very good eater) but she's already crawling and pulling herself up. She was SO good and even feel asleep on Brandon while he was reading to her. Brandon was adorable. He said that at first he was a little bummed we're having another girl, but that now, after holding her, he's excited. (He'll probably deny this statement). :) But I have proof of how happy he was!!!

Here are the dogs doing what they do best...

We had an Easter Egg Hunt for our Mom's group. It was SO much fun! There were a TON of people there. (Someone else at the park actually asked one of our moms if the park was always that crowded....we had about 60 people including moms and kiddos). There was a TON of food. Allison was doing okay picking up eggs until she realized that some of them had food (like animal crackers) in them. Then she was done and I picked up her last couple for her. She did get this metallic pink egg that she LOVES, so I guess the day wasn't completely wasted! Oh, and 2 of the boys had really neat stuffed animal looking baskets and before the hunt, Allison kept trying to steal them and hug them. I left her stuffed one at home and she just had a cheap bucket. Apparently that was the wrong decision!

Checking out her "stash"

Well, now we're finally caught up to today. Today was Easter and even though Allison didn't fit into the dress I was going to put her in (I think because Brandon can't work a zipper), she did have this wonderful outfit her Grandma Schrenk made her. We had the Clarks over for Easter brunch and it turned out really good! I made my first quiche (ham, cheese and zucchini), hashbrown casserole and French Toast casserole and Lindsey and Sean brought a HUGE fruit salad. Oh, and I made a Bunny Cake. I made everything yesterday so all I had to do this morning was pop stuff in the oven. I highly recommend this method of cooking, especially with a toddler. It made last minute picking up and getting ready this morning a LOT easier. We were actually able to play!

Here is Allison playing with the popcorn popper....it's finally being used properly and not as a club!Reading with Daddy...

The Bunny

Feeding baby

And lastly, here is the aftermath of Allison trapping the cat and giving her kisses. If only the camera worked a little faster and was attached to our hands at all times.

So that's our latest. I might be blogging a LOT this week since my mom is gone. I feel like I have no one to talk to! :) I'll try and at least add pictures to make it worth your while! We do have a doctor's appointment for me and baby 2 this week (32 weeks!!!!) so we'll have an update on that Thursday or Friday.

And I'll have to post what our therapist says (we had a substitute last week because Allison's regular PT was on Spring Break with her kids). She's going to be SHOCKED at how much Allison has changed in just 10 days since she saw her last. Allison is now walking on her own almost ALL the time. She even shakes off your hand most of the time and wants to do it all on her own. It's so nice!!! (Brandon disagrees). She did take a pretty bad fall last night. We were outside playing with the 3 and 4 year old girls next door and the 4 year old was trying to get a hug from Allison and Allison got too excited on the sloped driveway. Bam! She had a HUGE knot on the back of her head. And then the 4 year old was upset because she thought she was in trouble ("I didn't do it!" she cried). We tried explaining to her that we knew it was an accident, but she was still very upset. It was kind of cute actually. But Allison is okay and we didn't have to make an ER trip the night before Easter!

Oh, and a quick shameless product plug for those of you still reading. For those of you who know me at all, you know that my legs are very rarely tan. In fact, I think the proper term for their color is "blinding white." Anyways, I decided to try a subtle tanning lotion so they're not hideous at Michael's wedding. Mary Kay just came out with one, so I thought, "Hey, why not try the product you're selling?" It's FABULOUS. I've only been using is since Monday and by Friday, I could already see a difference. Plus, I like the scent better than the Jergens and Nivea ones I've tried before.

Okay, I guess that's all for tonight. I'll probably have more tomorrow because I miss my mom! :) Take care!!