First Comes Love...

The Lauckner's are loving this sunshine! Last Thursday we went to Zoe Yogurt at Greenlake for dessert (a habit we more than slightly indulge).  We hadn't planned a swim, but we gave Abigail her own yogurt and she'd made a bit of a mess... Not too thrilled that yogurt time was over So it was time for a down-to-diapers dip! She loved sitting at waters edge, dangling her little feet in the water, and eventually getting the nerve to take a few steps in.  Of course we had no change of clothes or extra diapers. Walking back to the car was a pretty big Mommy fail: pregnant lady carrying an I-don't-want-to-leave-so-I'm-going-to-yell toddler, wearing nothing but a soggy (and mind you, dirty!) diaper and sneakers with no socks  (needless to say, I got my fair share of looks). But Saturday's water activities went smoothly; we spent the day downtown, stopped at the Aquarium, then spent the evening on Alki. (a bus ride in, followed by the...

I hope everyone had a great Mother's Day weekend.  Whether celebrating or being celebrated, I hope it served you well! We spent the weekend celebrating Mom's each day: A Mom-athon, lasting Friday through Sunday! Friday night we went to Anne and Ian's for a Mother's Day BBQ to celebrated Mamie! Abigail had a blast playing with her cousins and having a slumber party with Lucy at Mamie and Papa's.  Highlights include black and blue burgers, 3 bags of fries (...it's what happens when the pregnant lady is put in charge of carbs), and watching Charlie and Abigail share their meal (we sat their highchairs next to each other, so they enjoyed grabbing off each other's trays) We left around 9pm to Abigail biding us farewell "G-eye" while eating Cheetos, drinking milk, and watching Shrek 3 with Lucy.  She thought she was pretty cool  (we agree!) Saturday was spent celebrating my Mom! We met my parents Saturday morning and headed to L...

Here are some adorable pictures from Baby's 20 week ultrasound! They ( I use the term "they" instead of "it"... not to be confused with the twin "they"! ) were moving around so much that the appointment took 20 minutes longer than usual.  But we really enjoyed getting so much face time with Baby. Well, I did anyway.  Kevin told me afterward that he was fighting to stay awake after 15 minutes.  Such a guy! Everything checked out great, and we stuck to our guns to wait and find out the gender, so it looks like your due date will be the next time we see you, Baby! (18 weeks and counting..!) Since my parents watched Abigail during our appointment, we went downtown for dinner at Local 360 . The food was good, but I give it a rating of "meh" .  We were thinking more farm-to-table-fresh, but it was a heavier style comfort food.  Still good!  Just not what we were expecting. Post ultrasound Happy Hour at Hard Rock Dinner ...

Last Thursday's Valentine's Day celebration went down in history as my favorite to date! Kevin and I are funny about this little Hallmark holiday.  Every year we play it cool and make the same casual comments: "Yeah, Valentine's Day is stupid..." "Let's save some money and not celebrate this year" "It's such a cheesy holiday..." Then, as the date approaches, the conversation evolves: "Well, I just got you a little something..." "Flowers would be nice.  Just flowers." "Did you see that HUGE box of chocolates at the store?!" And so, by the time February 14th rolls around, we've invariable spent a few casual bucks on a not-so-casual gesture. This year we farmed Abigail off for the evening and enjoyed a night on the town: shopping, dinner at Benihana, then to see a movie (Argo). I figured the date night was our unspoken "not-so-casual" gesture, but Kevin one-upped me ...

Remember when I used talked about weekly date nights ? I was pretty funny... and completely delusional. For Father's Day this year, I got Kevin a Cajun cooking class at Marcela's Creole Cookery and on Wednesday night, we finally made a date of it! Kevin is a huge fan of Cajun cooking, and I'm a huge fan of food in general, so it was the perfect night. We received tons of good Southern cooking tips, and ate lots of delicious food, but there were a few dishes in particular that were outstanding, so I wanted to share them (measurements were not given for everything, but just think in proportion). Creole Garlic Shrimp Crostini: Melt butter (1/2-1lb!), add garlic, pinch black pepper, creole seasoning, and finely chopped green onion.  Add shrimp and saute until shrimp are done.  Place atop toasted crusty french bread, or bread of choice. Smothered Chicken: Salt and pepper bone-in chicken tights and brown in frying pan with a little oil (in southern coo...

Pull up a chair, take a load off; you're in for a long post! As most of you know, Kevin and I took off last week for the Big Apple, leaving Bitsy Girl behind with Grandma and Grandpa. It was amazing to have so much one-on-one time together.  (I can't imagine bringing Abigail at this age) The reason for the trip was to see A Christmas Story .  My Brother-in-Law Ian and his colleges created this musical a few years back and the show went to Broadway this year (!!), so Ian, Anne, and the kids left Seattle and headed to Broadway!  (more specifically, a 3 bedroom apartment in Hell's Kitchen for 4 months- what an experience!) We took a red-eye on Tuesday night and arrived Wednesday morning. There was so much to do and see (Kevin's first "official" trip to the city), so we hit the ground running. Wednesday kicked off with a big walking loop of Park Ave, Grand Central, Central Park, 5th Ave (to see the window displays!), Rockefeller Center, and Time Squa...