We made it to FLORIDA! Day One

We left this morning at 4:45 a.m. Not sure of how Z was going to do on 2 flights we were a little nervous. Kevin and I prayed in our living room before we left. Then we prayed in the drive way when Kevin's parents came to pick us up. Then we prayed again before each flight took off. Praise the Lord, our prayers were answered. Zachary was an angel and we arrived safe & sound.

On the flights Zachary was super quiet and very cute. He flirted with everyone around him and the flight crew. He had everyone wrapped around his fingers. Again we are SO thankful that God was watching over us because it could have been a nightmare. We also were thankful that all 3 pieces of luggage arrived and we got an upgrade on our rental car. We were supposed to get a Taurus, instead they gave us a new Ford Escape. Lots of room for our luggage. Once we got our rental car we headed to the resort. Within 30 minutes of unpacking our stuff we got our sunscreen on and hit the beach. It's right in our backyard. Zachary LOVED it! That is until it dried on his hands and skin. It was funny because he was licking his hands because he liked the salty taste. Until this day Zachary has not had his food salted. Boy, does he like the salt. YUCK!

Anyways, we went to a local place for dinner. It was yummy and very reasonable. I had shrimp, salad, and fries. Kevin had salad, shrimp, and scallops. Z had applesauce, veggies from our salad, and a hamburger. After dinner we went to Publix grocery store to stock up on milk, juice, diet coke, and breakfast items. Tonight we are all tired but very excited to be on vacation. We are still praying that Zachary will be able to tolerate his "crib". He does not do good with portable cribs so it might be a long night. Well, we are going to go on a walk around the resort. Check back tomorrow for more updates. We love you guys, HIL


Zachary's 1st Airplane Ride

Second flight...Zachary crashed.

Yeah! We got a rental car upgrade!!!

Yes, Grandma's I have lots of sunscreen on and a hat. (He did not make it out of the room with the hat)

First time in Ocean




Mommy and Z in the ocean

This is one of the 5 pools on the resort. This is where Z and I will be tomorrow. See you then!

Vacation Time...

We're packed and ready to go

Zachary's new do'



Z's ready to go to the airport tonight

Well, we are headed on a mini vacation. Actually Kevin is going to a lecture/conference series and Zachary & I are tagging along. We are packed (except toiletries and this computer) but I wanted to say that we will be blogging while we are away. Check back daily. Also we are so excited to see Kevin's Brother, Jeff, our sister-in-law, Kathy, and our beautiful nieces Brynn and Karsen on Saturday. Say a prayer for safe travels and a safe return home. Our parents are going to be watching our house and feeding our fish. Lastly, the photos of Zachary are of him tonight after his bath. My sister wanted to see his new haircut...or should I say buzz. Zachary loves it. Kevin and I think it makes him look much older than 19 months. Anyways, we love you all and will keep you posted.


P.S. This is a shout out to all my MOPS friends. Sorry I am going to miss the last one. I hope it goes well. Thanks Kim!

No need for a sibling when you have a cousin 8 months older

Last night we met our "Peacock" family for dinner at Nonna's downtown. We had to squeeze one final get-together in before we head to Florida for a week. This photo is of Elliott & Zachary walking into the restaurant. They held hands the entire way through the parking lot. Grams was a little slow on with the camera but you get the idea. E & Z are the bestest of friends. The Austin's and Young's have decided that for now, there is no need for a sibling for either Elliott or Zachary...Especially since they act and seem like brothers & friends.

We went to the zoo, zoo, zoo...

Hil, Zachary, Elliott, & Aunt Rachel at Zoo entrance

Grams & Z getting ready to enter zoo





Saturday was a beautiful day for a trip to the zoo. My mom, sister, nephew, Zachary and I hit the St. John's 23rd annual Teddy Bear Rally at the Dickerson Park Zoo. Even though it was extremely crowded we had the best time. If you have never been to the zoo with a toddler, you must. If you don't have a toddler to go with call me you can borrow mine or I find one for you to take. Going to the zoo with a 2 year
and a 19 month old brought so much joy to my heart.

Both of the boys knew the animals. Elliott said every animal by their name, whereas Zachary knew the animals by their sound. Elliott was so specific to the animals name that I thought he was going to call them by their genus & species name. Seeing E & Z get so excited at the animals was a hoot. I think Zachary's favorite animals were the monkeys. Elliott's had to be the Macaw parrots. Both boys loved the elephants too. At the exit of the zoo there was a train that you could pay for rides. The boys LOVED it! Unfortunately, we don't have pictures of this because we left the camera in the stroller. However if you could have seen us it must have been priceless. Elliott shared a seat with Grams. Zachary sat with Aunt Rachel, and me. During the ride around the track both boys sang their favorite song that my dad sings to them...Down By the Station. It was a great ending to a fun, memorable day.

Happy Birthday Cousin Karsen!

Today is our niece, Karsen Rebecca's 5th Birthday. It's hard to believe that she is already five. When Kevin and I were engaged...almost married, Karsen entered the world. I can remember sitting in a classroom at UMKC School of Dentistry waiting for my soon-to-be mother-in-law to call to tell me that Karsen was born. I checked my phone numerous times, waiting & waiting to hear the good news that she arrived.

It's hard to believe that was 5 years ago. Today, Karsen is a very caring little girl that loves animals and loves to take care of others. Unfortunately, the last time we saw Miss Karsen was last summer at a family wedding. Good news is that we are going to get to see her and her sister Brynn next week in Florida! YIPPEE! Here are some pictures of the birthday girl with her cousin Zachary, Uncle Kevin, and Aunt Hilary. Karsen have a great day and a Happy Birthday. We love you!

My sister's son

Ever since Zachary was born, I have noticed a lot of similarities between my sister and Zachary. Here are some to name a few...

Zachary is very dramatic....much like his Aunt Rachel.

Zachary LOVES to be out and about. He's always on the go....again like Aunt Rachel.

Zachary LOVES music....just like Aunt Rachel.

Zachary LOVES to sing...just like Aunt Rachel.

The other day really made me question as to if I was raising my sister's son. Zachary and I were in the kitchen. I had the refrigerator door open. Zachary reached into the veggie drawer and took out a plastic bag with a clean tomato in it. He immediately bit into it and ate the entire thing. For those of you that know me, you know that I despise tomatoes. I have never liked them. My sister loves them. She always has. After this episode I knew that I am raising my sister's boy.






Please note the tomato seeds on Z's chest. What a mess!

Let's Go Fly A Kite

My in-laws were gone for a week to West Virigina. The other night when they returned we went to their house for dinner. Zachary was excited to see his "Paw Paw" and his "Maw Maw". It was the first time my in-laws heard him call them by name. It was sweet. After dinner we went outside to play with the dogs, feed the horse, & ride the John Deere. One extra bonus was that we took our ELMO kite from Grams & Pops with us. Luckily the wind was perfect. Z loved the kite. It was a great night with our family.

Zachary with a Pinwheel

Kev, Hil, & Zachary


Zachary and his ELMO kite


Paw Paw and Zachary....I love this photo!


Three Generations of Austin's


Paw Paw and Z on the John Deere


Daddy and Son

A playdate with Leslie & Harley

Today Kev and I had an appointment with our attorney to get things finalized with our will. My cousin, Leslie was so awesome to come over and watch Z for the morning. Zachary loved having all of Leslie's attention but he was super excited that she brought her dog, Harley. Harley is a Great Dane and she has the best personality. She was super good with Z. He loved having a dog in our home....I think he thought it was a pony though. Leslie, thanks for taking good care of Z. We really appreciated all you did. After Leslie & Harley left, Zachary ran all over the house barking. He was looking for his friend, Harley. It was so funny.

Outside, please.

This photo of Zachary is what I see all day long. He stands by our front door or patio door and begs to go outside. Zachary says, "Out, out, pleaseeeeeee." Poor guy he was teased by the recent spring weather. Now it is back to being cold again. In fact last night we had a freeze advisory and were expected to get below 20 degrees. We are praying that the weather gets warm again...soon.

P.S. If you click on the photo it will enlarge it. Please note the many finger prints on my patio door. You can see that Zachary spends a lot of time in this position waiting to go outside.

Gram's Birthday Party

This past Tuesday, April 8th we celebrated Gram's birthday. We all met for dinner at Pasta Express (Gram's choice). It was a great night to celebrate all that mom/Gram's means to us. Mom took the head of the table to sit next to her favorite boys, Elliott & Zachary. We enjoyed dinner, "Party Cake" and presents. Elliott & Zachary helped mom open her gifts and helped her eat her cake. Happy Birthday Grams!