Just a Glimpse

Summer is coming to a close. With all the kids going back to school, the nights getting a little cooler & fall decor starting to pop up in every store I've been in lately, I'd say we are just about there. 

Here are a few random photos of our lives over the past few weeks...

Baby kisses & friends!

We like our play dates & getting together with friends. They have been a big help during this moving process as well.

Greyson has been keeping busy while we've been packing. He was pretty proud of his little block tower & put a cool whip container lid on the very top =)

 He had a little run in with his drum, but mom came to the rescue =) 

 We have had an INSANE amount of rain this summer...it rained almost every single day in July. Our poor garden looks like it was taken over by a field! But most of our plants are high off the ground & have still produced without weeds getting in the way. We tried to weed, but the mud made it near impossible...it was so messy so we just left it. We have enjoyed our squash, tomatoes, & okra so far. Not enough beans yet but we are getting there =)

We sold some furniture to a lady in our church so Greyson had to entertain her while we waited for daddy. =)

Greyson got to ride his horse Zeke at our last horse show the other day. Poppy led him around for quite awhile...he didn't want to stop.

Gmama & Mimi came for a visit the other day & Greyson had fun reading to them. He pointed out everything he knew =)

 Here are a few little frills I had to get the new baby. After our gender reveal appt, Matt & I spent the rest of the day just being together. Greyson was with Mimi, so we went shopping, ran a few errands & got supper. We couldn't find a cute little dress that we liked, since most of the tiny items were still summery looking so I just went with these cute little mary jane socks & matching headband...simple, cute & girly! We did the same thing with Greyson when we found out we were having a boy. I wanted to buy a small item or outfit, just for them on the day we found out...it makes for a special date night as well & its special knowing that we are adding to our family.

As for the rest of our time... we have stayed busy but moving is going slow. Over the past 30 days, we have done a little here & there, moved several big loads & a few small ones & have made our current house look pretty lonely & bare. It looks like we will get to move a week earlier than we thought though! Yay for good news! We have been piling our belongings in the basement garage waiting for the previous owners to move out as well. They have done a lot more than we have so the house is pretty much empty & we can start getting into the house this monday. 

Matt's State Horse Show is this weekend so he has been spending more time riding & getting ready for that. When we get past the weekend, I know we will be in full move out mode. We will also be advertising a "moving sale" for next weekend & have several items stacked in the living room to sell & get rid of. It has been nice cleaning out but that takes a lot of time...I will be happy once we are settled! 

So, theres a little update! We have so much to be thankful for & I am counting our blessings =)

Greyson's getting...

...a little sister!
We were so excited to find out that we are having a little girl...the first one in the Crawford family since Matt's aunt (about 70+ yrs)! Matt & I are so happy & looking forward to life with a little boy & a little girl =)

How Far Along: 24 weeks 1 day

Size of baby: 12 inches long & 1 1/3 lb.

Weight gain so far: 0 lbs

Maternity Clothes: None needed yet, but I'm starting to break out the hair ties for extra give on some of my bottoms =) 

Gender: A baby girl! Now time to work on a name...

Movement: She sure is active & has decided to come out of "hiding" making me look more pregnant =) she is all out front

Sleep: As long as I have my body pillow, I sleep great!

 Symptoms: A little heartburn here & there 

What I miss: Making it a whole night without having to take a bathroom break! ha

Cravings: Still anything sweet...black bottom cupcakes are on the "to do" list tomorrow =) 

Best Moment this week: Officially starting to move to our new house. We have taken several loads over & the house is looking pretty bare!

What I am looking forward to: State horse show next weekend! One little mini break from the moving process 

Greyson seems a little unsure about having a girl in this picture, but who knows...right now all he knows is that there is a "cute"(as he says) baby in mommy's tummy. He likes to pat her but when asked if he wants a baby sister (or baby at all) he says no...haha 

Family Photos

{Ritchey Family Photos}

Nampa, Idaho

Photography by Meggie Kate

(Jamie Taylor)

As I mentioned from our Idaho vacation post, we were able to get some pictures of my family while we were all together. 

Our color choices were coral, navy & white. They turned out so good! Thanks to Jamie for doing a great job...it's always so much fun when you know your photographer & she knows what to do to get you to laugh =)

The 2 that started it all...

- Randy & Christine - married 1981

Which led to the first born - Matthew - who married - Mindy- in 2007

And eventually had - Karleigh - June 2013

Then came the 2nd born - Megan - who married - Matt - in 2006

Had - Greyson - in December 2011 & will be adding - Baby C - to the family in December 2013

Then the 3rd born came along - Brandon - who married - Richelle - in 2012

The current Ritchey family

Enjoying "Grand" parent hood =)

 The men of the family

 Well Hello there "Uncle Brannon"

The women who keep it all together =)

 I wonder what this family will look like 10 years from now!  I imagine, lots more kids...

and a few more gray hairs =)

22 Weeks!

Greyson doesn't usually hold the sign long enough for a picture...he finds other things to do instead...like playing peekaboo!

How Far Along: 22 weeks 1 day

Size of baby: 11 inches long & 1 lb.

Weight gain so far: 0 lbs...I keep losing & going back up, losing & going back up...so I have 6 lbs to gain before I get back to my pre-pregnancy weight when I first went to the dr.

Maternity Clothes: Wearing regular clothes but some of my bottoms are getting a little snug...

Gender: Anxiously awaiting August 14...I'll be 23 weeks by the time we see this little one! Yes, I could have found out sooner, but I'm trying to work with my husbands schedule 

Movement: Starting to figure out the routine...way more active at night & in the morning & mellow throughout the day

Sleep: Good except I am getting up a lot more in the night to use the restroom...=/

 Symptoms: Started getting a little heartburn in the evenings..nothing a few tums can't take care of at the moment, but I remember it getting worse with Greyson

What I miss: Only my family! I really love being pregnant so I don't have any thing to really miss in the pregnancy yet

Cravings: Mostly sweet stuff...I made a chocolate cake & could have only had that for supper...hehe

Best Moment this week: Matt got to feel the baby kick several days in a row! And I was able to finish some projects for our new house =)

What I am looking forward to: Selling our house so I can start packing to move...we have had 2 offers!

Family Vacation

This year's vacation was spent in Nampa, Idaho at my brother's house! We've been anxious to meet the newest little member of the Ritchey family, so all of my immediate family got to go out west & spend some time together. 

It wasn't Greyson's first time to fly, but it was the first time that he noticed...EVERYTHING! He was so fascinated by the clouds & the planes. When we took off, he just said..."Whoa!" then after awhile started saying "Weeee!"...he finally fell asleep & did awesome on all our flights.

We got in late, so we didn't see the new baby until the next day. My brother Matt & my dad picked us up at the Boise airport. We stayed at Mindy's brother's house (his family was in florida) so they were kind enough to let us stay there along with Brandon & Richelle.

Meeting Karleigh for the first time was neat. Greyson loves babies but had never been around one so tiny before. Of course he wanted to touch or grab her, but we had to keep telling him to be gentle. He just folded his little arms & stared at her...it was so cute! He was all about giving cousin kisses too & knows exactly who she is...baby Karwee.

Greyson gravitated right to Aunt Richelle & started calling her by name the first night we got in. She took him to play in the sprinklers out in the yard. Nana sure is loving her little grandkids & Matt thought he better get a little uncle time in so he can get used to holding a tiny baby again soon =) 

We got to do some fun things while we were all together! We went & played putt putt golf (Greyson's first time), ate at Red Robin, then went to a fun rodeo that night. Papa showed Greyson how to golf the "right" way...haha & he loved the little glow stick we got him at the rodeo...he still plays with it! One thing that we had to get used to, was how long the days last out there. It was after 10pm when we got out of the rodeo & you could still see sun light even after it had gone down. I took a picture of Greyson & Matt in the parking lot, but those aren't street lights reflecting on them! 

The next day we were invited to go a lake with some friends of the family. It was SO gorgeous there & I was glad they had a very nice picnic area & play place for Greyson. I was afraid we would be out in the middle of no where with no shade, but it was perfect. I didn't even get sun burned! 

 The water was really cold, but felt so good in the hot sun. We had a blast...the guys were definitely in their element! It was different for me because I couldn't ski or tube but I still had a lot of fun. Taking Greyson swimming & on the boat was good enough for me & I had a lot of fun watching everyone "attempt" to learn wake boarding & surfing =) We ate an amazing supper near the water...we grilled chicken & steak & had all kinds of other good food. Greyson ate so much fruit salad we finally had to cut him off...haha he loves his watermelon & grapes.  I took the picture of Greyson in his stroller watching the boats at about 9:40pm...he usually starts going to bed about that time, but the sun was still shining as bright as ever! The guys wanted to get as much out of the day as possible so we stayed until after dark. 

The Gardners were amazing hosts & we couldn't have asked for a better day.

Everyone else was sore the next day after having so much fun on the lake...so we took it pretty easy. We had family photos (taken by Jamie Taylor) done later in the afternoon & finished with supper at PF Changs. I love the picture of Matt & my brother Matt pushing their strollers =) They have come a long way since college! 

Sunday was baby Karleigh's dedication! She looked so adorable...Nana got her the cute little headband & she actually kept it on =) They showed a picture of her at the front of the church during the service & Greyson recognized her right away...he pointed & yelled out her name =)

We just loved getting to cuddle her all weekend & dress her up =) She wasn't sure she liked all the added frills but we couldn't help it! 

Mindy's parents had us all over for dinner after church on Sunday & the rest of the day was spent relaxing & swimming in the pool. Greyson absolutely LOVES being in the water. Karleigh got to try out her new swim suit from Aunt Richelle & seemed just as content floating around in the pool as ever.

We crammed a lot into one little weekend, but it was so good to be with my family. We never know how long it is going to be before we are all together again, so we try to make these trips whenever we can. Greyson was able to learn all of his aunts & uncles names & still points them out when he sees a picture. I especially thought Uncle Matt would be hard to decipher since daddy's name is also Matt, but he always puts the "uncle" before it, so he know's who he's talking about =)

It seems like our trips to Idaho are very far & few between...we don't know when we will ever be back, but we sure had fun & we can't wait to see everyone again!