March ~ A Good Month!

March has proven to be a really good month! We started it out with a visit from Grandad & Grandma Duncan, which was super fun!! Elli loves attention from her grandparents...good thing she has a lot of them :) The 2nd & 3rd week was dedicated to packing up our home for our latest move; this time to North Carolina!! My mom (aka Nana), came to help us with the packing/movers/Elli entertaining, and got to come with us on a quick little vacay to Charleston, SC (our reward to ourselves for 6 moves in as many years!). I LOVE that place...definitely a "must visit" if you haven't already! After that wonderful trip, we dropped my mom off at the airport and started our 4 hr. drive to our new home in NC. We hit the ground running as soon as we got here, and were blessed to have GG & Grandaddy (Chris's mom & step-dad) come out to help us with the move-in. Oh, and we celebrated my 30th birthday in the middle of all of that too!! It's been a crazy, but wonderful month. A new house, meeting up with old friends, lots of family visits, & a birthday!! What could be better?!

Grandad, Grandma & Elli...in front of the dog fence. She's going to miss those little puppies!

"Whoa!! Did you guys see that?!" This is what she did after she bowled for the very first time!! She was so tickled with herself :)

Nana, Me & Elli at Ft. Sumter
Chris & E at the Magnolia Plantation...in the petting zoo!
In the park on the Battery in Charleston

At the Charleston Children's Museum...we couldn't get her out of the water!!

In the middle of moving, and while staying in a hotel, I thought that there was pretty much no way that I would be getting a birthday cake. I was so sure of it that I went out and bought myself a cupcake :) And what did I find when I got back to the hotel that night?? My sweet husband had surprised me with my favorite cake (red velvet!!) & candles...I felt terrible for doubting him!! He's the best :)

Elli playing in the fountain in front of the Charleston Aquarium.

When in Maine :)

As a treat to ourselves for completing what might have been the hardest year of our lives together (having a baby AND pilot training!!), we decided to take much needed vacation to Maine. Chris's mom stayed with Elli, and we set off for a relaxing & rejuvenating week filled with all the lobster that we could handle :)

The special surprise the C had waiting in our room!! The champagne and flowers were lovely, but I liked the card the best :)
Taken from my car...simply breathtaking!

The drive on our way to Kennebunkport

Our B&B...The Gazebo Inn

It was heaven!!!
In Kennebunkport
Perkins Cove
In Ogunquit, ME

The Portland Head Lighthouse

This was us on our way back to Boston to catch our flight home. We were sad to leave such a beautiful place, but extremely excited to see our baby girl!! A week was a long time!

The Countdown Is ON!!

Assignment Night ~ 15 days.

Where we'll be finding out where we'll be heading next, which plane Chris will be flying, and basically what our lives will look like for the next 3+ years. Pretty exciting!!

Graduation ~ 29 days

A dream come true...the day that Chris will pin on his pilot wings!

End of Pilot Training/Anniversary/We NEED to Get Out Of Here/Trip to Maine ~ 31 days

No explanation needed :)

Of course I'm excited about Assignment Night. Anxious, nervous, excited, and all kinds of other emotions all rolled up into one big ball of happy is more like it :) And Graduation will be an incredible day as well. I mean, it's probably going to be one of the best days of Chris's life (right under marrying me (heehee!) and the birth of our daughter)! I'm so proud of him, of the work that he has done and the dedication he has shown. I'll be the obnoxious one with the camera in everyone's face, beaming from ear to ear!

BUT, I am so excited about going to Maine that I can hardly stand it! It's our reward for such an incredibly tough year, the brief lull before the next training storm hits, and a chance for us to finally just be able to look at each other for more than 15 minutes without having to think of all of the things that need to be done around the house or at work. Chris deserves some down time, a chance to relax a bit. And honestly, I do too! I'm so looking forward to just spending some time with him, my husband, my very best friend. I'm absolutely giddy about it!

You might wonder what the picture above has to do with anything. It's relevant, I swear :) It's a picture of us in Germany at The Eagle's Nest. That trip, after Chris's first 5 month deployment, is my all-time favorite. We spent a week just exploring Austria & Germany, and it was fab-u-lous!! I think I'm looking forward to going to Maine so much because I remember exactly how I felt on that trip...like it was nice to finally be back together again after life just seemed to make it kinda hard. You know what I mean? So, the countdown is on...there is so much to look forward to :)

4th of July, Memphis, & Other Tidbits

If I thought June was dragging, July has been the exact opposite!! Where has this month gone?! I guess time really does fly when you're having fun! The first weekend of July, we decided to head up to Memphis with our friends and their daughter, Myla. We did all of the typical Memphis things...Graceland, BBQ, the Memphis Zoo, and the Peabody Hotel. It was a quick trip, but it was packed with lots of fun!! Here are some pics of our mini-vacay...

The family at Graceland

Chris & Elli waiting for the ducks at The Peabody Hotel

Our attempt at a family picture, but Elli just wanted to see the ducks!

Sadly, this is the only picture that we got of the girls together! They had a great time though, and we'll definitely have to it again really soon :)

This is what Elli looked like all day at the Memphis Zoo!! She LOVED the animals, and "talked" to all of them while waving her arms. So cute!!

Daddy & Elli swimming in a "big pool" for the first time! She LOVED it!

Our little fish :)

After a speedy trip to the Pottery Barn & Williams-Sonoma outlets, and a very good meal at Carraba's (oh, how I have missed that place!), we headed home just in time for the 4th! Chris's dad & Donna came out to visit, and met us back at the house after church. We had a wonderful three days with them swimming, shopping, relaxing, & shooting off fireworks!

BUBBLES!!

Taking a walk w/ Grandad

An afternoon of swimming!

After the Duncan's left, my mom arrived! We spent the week checking out Columbus & Tupelo, and Chris & I even got to enjoy a much needed date night (LOVE those!). We watched the movie, The Book of Eli, and if you haven't seen it already, I HIGHLY recommend it! So good! And perhaps the best thing we did all week was plan Elli's 1st birthday party! After a theme change, a location change, and multiple attempts at the perfect invitation picture, I think we're done :) I'm so excited, I can hardly stand it! Don't worry, I'll post more about it soon!

Elli & Nana

Eventually my mom had to leave (don't you hate it when visitors leave?! It gets me every time!), but Chris's mom came out shortly after! In fact, she's here now...and so the fun begins again :)

I hope everyone had a safe and happy 4th of July!!

Who Knew?!

Miss E and I are heading back to Texas tomorrow for a brief visit, and to attend my older brother's wedding. In case you didn't know, I LOVE weddings!! Big, small, outdoors or in, I just love them. This will be E's first experience at one...don't worry, I've packed plenty of non-noisemaking toys!

Speaking of packing, holy moly that girl requires a lot of stuff!! Though, I have to admit, I might have overdone it just a little bit. My convo w/ the hubs last night went a little something like this...

Him: Hon, why do you have 10 baby bowls in your suitcase?

Me: So E can eat, why else?

Him: Yes, but why 10?

Me: Well, one for each time she eats her oatmeal.

Him: Hon, don't our parents have dishwashers?

Me: Oh.

Him: Silence, followed by a kiss on my forehead.

I'm just going to skip over the patronizing look, and go straight to thinking that he just loves me so much that he couldn't resist giving me a sweet kiss :) After our brief chat I began to think that 10 bowls might be a tad too many (considering she only eats oatmeal 1x day), and that I probably don't need to pack every single bottle & baby spoon that we have in the house....just for starters. And her bows alone take up an entire bag! Now I'm just exaggerating...or am I??!! Ha! But the things that she really does need DO start to add up. With the stroller, the diaper bag, her suitcase, her toys, & her bottles and food, I barely have room to drive. **Insert my plea for the Volvo XC-90 here!!!** Who knew babies would such space-hogs?! Gone are the days of a 1 backpack per person! Wait, who am I kidding? I was never like that. I guess my Little Miss takes after her Mama!!

Updates from the Duncan House :)

It's been a busy week! Super busy! So busy that I can't really remember why it's been so busy! Ha! We went to Atlanta last weekend to visit the Hilburn girls, and it was an excellent trip. 9 months is way too long to go without seeing them, and I've decided that I'm never doing that again, I just love them too much! Elli did okay on the trip down...a little fussy, but what baby isn't after 5 straight hours in the car? That night; however, was a different story. I haven't gotten that little sleep in months, and I had forgotten what sleep deprivation feels like! Elli just wasn't a fan of sleeping in her pack 'n play, staying up past her bedtime, not eating on time, or being in a new location. It was a rough night, but luckily she's a sweetie and by the time morning had rolled around she was back to herself again. We visited the Georgia Aquarium, which was AWESOME!! I think Cara & Syd's favorite part was the penguins :) I really liked the sea tunnel, I've never been through one of those before. We spent the entire day just wandering around all of the exhibits, most of which were really cool. We also got to check out Olympic Park and we tried to stroll on down to the Atlanta Underground; however, the drug deal that took place directly in front of us kind of put the damper on that whole thing! I'm totally serious, it was crazy! The next day we went to Sweetwater State Park, and spent about an hour talking and playing near the lake. It was a gorgeous day, and honestly I just didn't want to leave. We had a wonderful time with the Hilburn fam, and we're so looking forward to seeing them again really soon!

Chris also finished up in T-6's this week. His last ride was a check-ride, and he did awesome! He actually scored higher on it, grade-wise, than any other ride he's had in that plane. Needless to say, I'm pretty proud of him! We're now just waiting for Track Select to roll around to see which plane he'll be flying next...and then it begins again! Ready for the next adventure I guess :) It's crazy that he'll only have another 6 months of training before we find out our next "real" assignment. Just like the months flying by with Elli, I feel like our time here has gone by extremely quickly!

We have some visitors coming into town within the next few weeks as well, which is always fun! I'm sure there will be lots of pictures to post after they leave :) And then, it's back to Texas for Elli and I so that we can attend my older brother's wedding. I'm so excited to see everyone again, and I just love a good wedding!!

We've had a great day today as well! Elli & I went to Tuscaloosa w/ my friend, Jeane, and her sweet daughter, Myla. We hit up Hobby Lobby, and Chick-fil-a...now that's my kind of day!! I love shopping w/ friends, especially when there's a Chick-fil-a in the food court :) And then, this evening, we got to eat w/ some of our friends from England! It was great to catch up w/ Shanna, and I know Chris enjoyed talking w/ Hooch about all things jet related.

I'm continuing to hone my crafting skills, and have a few new projects under my belt that I'm super excited about! Don't worry, the big reveal is coming soon :) And I'll be hosting a new bible study in our home which will start in early May, so if you want to say a quick prayer about that, I'd definitely appreciate it! I'm really excited to dive into it. It's a Beth Moore study called, "A Woman's Heart: God's Dwelling Place", and I've heard great things about it. I think that covers just about all things Duncan!! I hope you are all having a great week, I'd love to hear what y'all have been up to lately!! Doesn't it seem like Spring is always the busiest season? It definitely is for me!!

Trip to Jackson w/ Nana

Elli and I made the trip down to Jackson this weekend to visit with my mom (Nana), and to do a little shopping at the Jackson Spring Market. SO MUCH FUN!! We picked Nana up from the airport on Thursday and started our shopping extravaganza on Friday morning. The Spring Market was in the Jackson Convention Center downtown. Vendors from all over the US set up their booths selling everything imaginable. We got Elli a precious little smocked apron outfit for the summer...oh my gosh is it precious!! I'm all about smocking, by the way :) There was jewelry, clothing, shoes, bags, books, bows, and on and on and on. It was the perfect place for a girls weekend!

Here are a few of my treasures:

LOVE this red cross!! It will be on my mantle shortly, I just have to re-arrange a bit to make it fit :)

And THIS, my friends, is my newest favorite thing EVER!! It's a casserole carrier. Genius! You can't see the inside (thanks to my lazy picture taking), but your casserole dish fits nicely in there, all bundled up w/ fabric that has insulation sewn in. There is also a tile on the bottom that you stick in the oven and heat before transporting it so that your dish stays even warmer. Plus, did you notice the monogramming?! LOVE it!!

As if the Spring Market didn't quench our shopping desires, we headed over to an outdoor mall to top ourselves off....and the Easter Bunny was there!! It was a gorgeous day, so we took some pictures around the area.

Elli and Mr. Bunny

She's getting so big!! She loved looking at that pretty flowers!

My mom and I have a tradition of taking a Girls Trip every year. We've been to Ashville, NC, Savannah, GA, Charleston, SC, Belgium, England & Italy...but this year, in Jackson, might have been my favorite. Every place we've been has been wonderful, but this year was even more so because I got to share the experience with Elli. She loves her Nana so very much, and it was incredibly special to spend some quality time together, just the three of us.

Elli's first Girls Trip!!

Mama & Elli is our favorite place...Barnes and Noble!

Elli & Nana...that is one happy girl!