SURPRISE!

We had a fantastic surprise this past weekend...My Aunt Kathy, Aunt Dawn, Aunt Jane, Aunt Diane and cousin Shannon all came up from Chicago to surprise me with a baby shower for Grace! It was so much fun! I was more than a little surprised to open up my front door on Saturday morning to find them all standing at my doorstep! Joel was thrilled, too...especially when he saw that they came bearing gifts!

They were all so generous! They had lots of cute clothes and gifts for Grace, Joel and me! They brought Grace her first Jarosch cake and cookies (our favorite bakery back home). They even got Grace a swing...which both she and I love! She's such a cuddler that it's hard for me to put her down. When she's in the swing, she doesn't fuss a bit, and I have two free hands to play with Joel and get things done around the house.

Joel got to go back to their hotel and swim in the pool with Shannon. He was a little cautious at first, but he warmed up pretty quickly.
Curt and I got to go out on a dinner date Saturday night which was fantastic! It was such a treat to have some one-on-one time.
We all went out for breakfast Sunday morning, and then they had to head back home. It was so sad to see them leave! We had so much fun together and were reminded of how hard it can be to live away from family. We're looking forward to seeing everyone again when we come out to Chicago in April! Thank you all so much for such a wonderful surprise!

I decided to try to get some photos of Joel holding Grace...It didn't quite go as planned! It went from "I'm not sure I want to do this" to "I'm losing it" to "GET THIS BABY OFF ME!" in a relatively short period of time...

A picture of the three cousins...Alyssa, Joel & Grace

And a picture of Curt and Joel going out for some "guy time." Curt took Joel to watch his high school basketball team play in the state tournament. Joel was thrilled, and mom & Grace got some girl time (and some much-needed rest). Thanks Dad!