Emma Grace.

Born October 16, 2009. 6 pounds. 19 inches.

I can't wait to hold her.

So happy for Chris and Shannon. And so thankful for skype. : )

great outdoors.

i went out on a hike this weekend. i'm hardcore; i hiked with toms shoes. my poor feet.

it was good alone time with my canon 40d and ipod. equally needed in my life.

i don't do this often, but here's a photo i will let you steal. it's full pixels. perhaps your fall background? enjoy.

In other news, my niece, Emma Grace, will grace us with her presence this Friday! So looking forward to meeting her and watching her grow.

Fall back because ...

I finally posted some photos of Nathan on my foto blog. Have a look!! He's a handsome boy.

Today I am wearing a fleece and scarf. I am pretty much set for winter except I really need to find a pair of shoes. I'm not excited about this, but my toes have convinced me it is time to search for the perfect pair and start wearing socks. Those who know me well, know that I don't mix well with socks. I am all about TOMS shoes, chacos, and keens. All a girl needs really .... But (sigh) I will protect my toes as I did living in New York. (wow a whole paragraph about my toes).
I am OH SO EXCITED about this coming weekend. Ask me why, ask me why!!!! Okay ... I'm going to assume you asked. I am OH SO EXCITED about this weekend because my friend KELLI PAIGE ROARK is coming to see ME. Yup, VISIT ME!!!!!!!!!!! And I have her AAALLLLL to MYSELF!! Friends, this means some of my favorite things will happen this weekend!! Here are a few of my favorite things .....

1) HUGS!!!!!!!!!!!!! Kelli knows that if at any point I open my arms, this means come to me!! And I get a HUG!!!!!!!!!! I LOOOOOOOOOOOVE HUGS!!!!! And they're not the awkward side hugs like from Ashley. (hahaha, just wanted to mention you friend). Ah, I could stop right there. But no no ... there's more!!!

2) FRITO PIE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! When we lived in Belton, Kelli was my frito pie buddy. She moved away before I did to live in Scotland for a season. I promised I would not eat frito pie until we could again. Though I have seen her since she's returned, frito pie was never an option for our quick visits soooooooooooooo it's been a little over a YEAR!!!!!!!!!!! Oh the excitement!!Wait! There's more!!!

3) GUITAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I love love love listening to Kelli sing and play guitar! We play together as well, but usually I stop during the song just to enjoy her. This reminds me, I need new strings!

Besides those 3 things, I am just so looking forward to being with someone who knows my messy heart and loves me still. I have a feeling this weekend will be full of joy. This weekend would be even MORE perfect if my other half, Jess, could be here. (sigh) We will track you down Jess!!! Maybe we can transport you over here! ;)

roooooooad trip!

i've been going back and forth with this blog thinking ... "oooh i should talk about this." "no, no, i should talk about this." "hmmmm, what do i talk about?"
we could go serious or fun here ... i think i vote for fun today.

this past weekend we ventured out to chattanooga with a 2 year old and a 3 month old. oh the planning!!! you wouldn't guess we would only be around for the weekend with our luggage. we were prepared for anything and everything. :)

the trip went really well. anna loved hiking and well nathan is cool with anything. we visited ruby falls, rock city, and the aquarium. all very close to our hotel. i also hung out at a blue grass/folk festival going on one night a block from our hotel. fun atmosphere. i was so amazed by all the views. i hadn't seen mountains in so long. it's a little different trying to enjoy the view with kids, but my eyes soaked in as much as it could! and really anna and nathan did very well. i could go on and on about the trip but the most notable part is probably what happened on our rock city hike.

we had a couple behind us for most of the way. sometimes they were ahead, but usually we caught up because of picture taking. we switched off a lot taking each others pics which was helpful. we got to one part and i figured they probably wanted a photo because i know i did with the background view! any who ... i walked towards them and the guy handed me his camera. didn't really think much of course. it's just a picture. i can handle the camera. ha!

welllllll, here's the kicker .... they're smiling at me, i'm waiting for the delay flash (very annoying), and with her still looking at me - HE GETS ON HIS KNEE!!!!! i could feel my face turning bright red!!! she was so shocked. I WAS SO SHOCKED!!!! i couldn't stop thinking "oh my gosh kristine! get a good photo!!!!!" (ha) so yeah ... he proposed. and she said YES! :) wild huh? i wish i would have taken a picture with my camera. oh well ... crazy to be a part of that.

here are a couple of photos.

in ruby falls cave. 27 stories down.

nathan finally escaped the ergo.

me and nathan on suspended bridge. it's safe, right?

anna bored with me. =(

Solo.

Have you ever been to the movies solo? I've always wanted to see what it's like. Would I feel lame? Would I feel cool? Would I react the same way to jokes or emotion as with someone else?
Well, the suspense I put myself through is finally over. My questions were all answered.

Does going to the movies ever make you feel "normal?" It does for me. (haha) I feel the same way about eating at Subway locally or abroad. I don't know why, but I was this way even when I was in New York alone. It was comfort to go to the movies and do something "normal" since everything else felt unnatural. The first week I was living in NY, I went straight to the movies. It comforted me that the popcorn would taste the same. (haha) It comforts me that Subway tastes the same everywhere.

Yesterday I braved my insecurities and was super excited about going to the theatre alone. Up to the counter, "One for All About Steve, please." Okay. I'm committed. I'm going in alone. Maybe they think my "friend" is inside waiting for me. Up to ticket man, "Hello doll." (oh no! he knows I'm alone) Such a bizarre experience. I find the theatre and I am all alone inside. Granted, I am a little early. I was so excited about the thought of having the whole room to myself. I could sit where ever I want. I could *snort when laughing. Whatever! But then I realized "Wait Kristine, you're early. People will walk in." (sigh) And they did.

I didn't enjoy watching a movie alone as much as I hoped for. (once past insecurities) I didn't laugh as much which was really disappointing. Granted, the movie has parts I could do without either way.

I'm glad I finally put those questions to rest. Would I do it again? Probably, but more because it's my only option - not because I favor it.

Have you ever been to the movies alone?
Try it. It's bizarre.

All for now.
Pray I find friends. Quickly. We were not made to live life alone.



*i do not snort when laughing.

the other T state.

Dear Readers,

It's tough having a blog! If I don't keep up with it regularly I feel like I must back track to catch you up - and I don't have time for that! :) I'm going to attempt to avoid details and hop around instead. We'll see how that goes. Surely you will stick around either way.

In honor of Tennessee, I googled their state song, but it was long and boring so I opted out of sharing it. I then decided to check out our TEXAS song, surely it's better, and well we really are proud Texans. Okay, okay ... here is Tennessee's song. I can't imagine the tune to it. I will have to google that later. (for Texas fanatics, i knew part of the song, just not the whole thing).

Tennessee living is going well. It's a little less sleep, but I'm drinking Starbucks regularly and going strong! :) The days go by so fast. I've been here almost 2 months I believe. Nathan, whom I care for, is a sweet boy. He is almost 10 weeks and makes my heart happy. I am learning so much from him about myself and even the Father/Mother heart of the Lord. His spirit is so calm and refreshing.

I also get to hang out with Nathan's sister, Anna. She's a hoot! Our time together is usually spent watching "coo coo's" (blues clues), playing outside, tea party or having a dance party! I'm enjoying getting to know her at this age when her personality is blooming.

Last week was really enjoyable. Jess came to visit us for the week, which Anna sure enjoyed the new company. It was great to see them together as Jess cared for her the first 6 months (correction - 10 months) of Anna's life. We went hiking, had a picnic, ate at fun restaurants, etc. So good to have my best friend here.

I ventured up to Piggott, Arkansas for the weekend with Jess to visit her grandparents. Such a cute, very small, town. Coming back, I took a somewhat different route. In 4 hours I drove in 4 states! Arkansas, Missouri, Kentucky and Tennessee. How crazy is that?!? You can't drive out of Texas in 4 hours.

I will be in Texas this weekend which I am looking forward to. I'm sure I will forget that once I feel the HEAT, but it will be nice to see my folks and sister before she has Emma Grace. I also really miss having a dog to play with, so seeing MINE will be oh so good!
Whelp ... I think that is all for now. Here are a few pics of Poppins life.

ciao.

s c o t l a n d .

i saved a bird.