Only the cutest pictures ever

I just have to show you some recent photos of Kyah; they're too cute not to share. I mean, what's not to love about the curly red hair and cute smile? Seriously, even when this girl isn't feeling well, she's still smiling and laughing.

Ok, this first photo isn't a smiling photo... but it's the next best thing - sleeping. When I go in to check on her at night and cover her with a blanket, I always leave the room saying "I love that girl!" She just seems so peaceful and innocent when she's asleep. Plus, she sleeps in some of the greatest positions - curls right up into a ball.

Kyah's totally smiling in this photo, but inside she's sad, and so are we. That's Amanda and her son Eli, and Amanda was Kyah's nanny for about 8 months. Sadly, they're moving back to Minnesota. We're going to totally miss them.

See that cute flowery headband? It was a gift from our great friends the Kettmans. Kayli babysat Kyah for us and totally made this headband for her. Doesn't she look fantastic in it?

If you look closely, you'll notice that Kyah is sporting some awesome pig tails! Her hair is getting long enough now that we can start having a little fun with it. She totally rocked the hair do all day.

The next two pictures might be my favorites from the last couple weeks. We've been talking with Kyah a lot about her sister. She's still too young to fully grasp what we're talking about, but she does know enough that when we ask her where sister is, she points right at mommy's tummy. She'll even try to lift mommy's shirt to get a better look at sister. She does some of the cutest stuff, too, like hugging, kissing and feeling sister.

Abby will be 30 weeks along this week. Only 10 more weeks to go, give or take a week or two. It's amazing how much faster the second pregnancy goes by. Our baby girl will be here before we know it. We're really excited to meet her. Keep praying for Abby and baby girl - pray that the rest of the pregnancy would go smoothly and that everyone would be healthy.

A little father-daughter cuddling

Kyah and I were having a little fun hanging out on the couch together.

We had a blast taking pictures and then looking at them together. (It's still amazing to me that we can take a picture and then look at it instantly. What an amazing marvel.) As you can see, Kyah's getting pretty good at "cheesing" when we say cheese!

Playing in the snow

We got a nice dollop of snow about two weeks ago, and it was the perfect excuse to stay home from work. So we went outside and played in the snow. The cold didn't seem to bother Kyah at all. She even wanted to stay outside after we were ready to come in. She's been in the snow before, but she was far too young to really enjoy it. We even busted out the sled and pulled her around the block on it.

Celebrating Grandpa's 100th birthday

Look at this guy, does he look 100 to you? No way. He looks great for 100. My Grandfather turns 100 on Tuesday, Dec. 6. Since his birthday was in the middle of the week, we got together on Saturday to celebrate the major milestone.

I don't know about you, but this was my first 100th birthday party. I'm guessing I probably won't go to too many others. What an impressive milestone.

In my line of work, I deal with the media daily and write news releases to pitch stories to them. I had contemplated writing a news release about my grandfather's 100th birthday and life. I thought it might be fun to pitch his birthday to the media and get an article in the paper about this significant life milestone. In the end, though, I decided not to. I did write it and figured I'd share it.

Tacoma man celebrates 100th birthday

TACOMA – Over the last century he’s known success and felt failure. He’s survived the Great Depression, served in World War II and witnessed 17 presidencies. Now, he’s celebrating his 100th birthday.

Today, Sherrill Terpening gathered with family to celebrate the major milestone. Even his 89-year-old brother flew half way across the country to partake in the celebration.

When asked about his birthday, he proudly announces, "I was born Dec. 6, 1911." He was born on a farm in rural Galesburg, Ill., and was the oldest of five brothers. He spent the better part of his life in Illinois.

He and his family survived the Great Depression, but it was a challenge, just like it was for everyone else.

He was nearly thirty before he found and married the love of his life, Marion Terpening, in 1941. The two were married for 53 years.

Before leaving for war in 1942, he ran a successful John Deer tractor company, but had to give it up when he traveled halfway around the world to serve his country. He spent two years in India during World War II.

After returning from the war, he had a son, Dave Terpening, in 1947.

He later started a career in real estate where he worked up until the age of 94 before officially retiring.

At 100, he’s a little slower than in his youth, but he’s still sound of mind. Today, he lives with his son’s family in Tacoma, Wash.

He enjoys spending time with his two grandchildren and two great granddaughters. He’s even proud to report that his third great granddaughter is due in April.

Oh, and in case you're wondering, it's not uncommon for Terpenings to live long lives. His dad and all his dad's brothers and sisters were born in the 1800s and lived to 85 or older. Pretty impressive genes.

When asked if anyone else in his family line had lived to 100, he believed he was the first one. Congratulations and happy birthday, Grandpa.

Love,
Your grandson, Dustin

We're having a...

GIRL!!!

Kyah is totally going to have a little sister to play with.

Here's an ultrasound photo of our beautiful baby girl.

And here's a fun, short video of her putting her hand in her mouth. And if you look closely, you can totally see her heart beating. So cool!

The doctor said everything looks great for both Abby and our baby girl. Such good news!

Much to be thankful for

We had a fantastic weekend in Tacoma with our families celebrating Thanksgiving. As usual, the weekend went by quickly and felt too short, but we made the most of it and had fun.

We have been blessed immensely with amazing friends, family and adventures. When we went around the table and shared what we are thankful for, Abby said she is thankful for a husband who does a lot around the house. She's too nice. I shared two things I am thankful for; first, I am thankful for healthy baby on the way, and second, I'm thankful that, despite injuries in recent years, I'm still able to get out and run and play soccer.

Though we didn't say it, the thing we're most thankful for is Jesus' sacrifice. Because of him we are filled with thankfulness and joy.

We also took a bunch of photos of Kyah and, I think, we got some really, really cute ones. You can be the judge.

A little hiking and beach time on Oahu

It's hard not to enjoy life on the island. There's just too much fun stuff to do - including relaxing!

Bob (my father-in-law) and I went for a hike in the morning up to some bunkers built into the hillside above the house we're staying in. Needless to say, the view was incredible. The hike was fairly intense, too. It was so much fun and so close; I'm definitely doing it again. It's great exercise.

When we reached the end of our hike, we found a beach chair atop the remains of a tiny little bunker house. Somebody was kind enough to pack it up the hillside for others to enjoy the view. We gladly took advantage of it and soaked up the incredible views.

We also took a drive up the east side of the island to the North Shore. We stopped for lunch at a park with a view of China Man's Hat.

Kyah loved playing in the sand. She only tasted it once and that was enough to keep her from doing it again.