St. Mark's Pumpkin Patch

Destin - The Emerald Coast

They call it the Emerald Coast.  We had no idea what to expect from the Florida Panhandle.  We purchased a condo at a Gala auction last fall because we had heard so much about Destin.  We fell in love with it and had a fantasic time playing on the beach.  The food is amazing with lots of Southern and Cajun influences.  I ate myself silly with crab and Tobin enjoyed his lobster - our favorites!  We are sold and ready to return.  Right after we go on diets for a few weeks.  Our favoriate spot was Seaside, a small beach community about 20 miles south of Destin.  We can't wait to go back. 

First Day of School 2012

Kariana started school at the end of August and is in the Preschool 3's Froggie class.  Her teachers are Ms. Williams and Ms. Canales and she is having a blast. We are hoping for a great year!

Oregon Coast - August 2012

Although Kariana is back in school and we are starting to prepare for fall, I am just now catching up on pictures from summer 2012!  These are photos from our annual trip to Salishan and Portland.  Grandma and Grandpa Carlson and Aunt Kari, Uncle Eddie and Baby Annika were with us.   

  

As usual we had gorgeous weather.  Cool in the mornings and clear skies in the afternoon.  

Kariana played in the sand on the beach morning and afternoon. 

Tobin played lots of golf and let Kariana hit a few times.  She's becoming a pretty good swing.  It must be all of their Saturday afternoon trips to the driving range.

 Baby Annika was with us for a few days and Kariana loved helping out with her.  Here are the girls visiting Great Grandpa Larry.  Kariana is 3 1/2 years and Annika is 6 months old.  

We also spent time with cousins Ian and James.  Kariana had a blast with the boys and Ian was a very sweet host showing Kariana around Portland.  

St. Mark's Episcopal - Preschool 2's

This was Kariana's Preschool 2's class at St. Mark's Episcopal School for the 2011 - 2012 school year.  Her teachers were Ms. Martinez and Ms. Murray.

Last Day of School 2012

Bumblebee to Froggy

It's the end of the school year and Kariana's last day to be a PreSchool 2's Bumble Bee.  Yesterday her class celebrated all of the kids' birthdays throughout the year by having one big class birthday party.  Ms. Martinez made an individual birthday cake for Kariana and each of her classmates to decorate.  Kariana's class of 10 girls and 2 boys was the sweetest class and thankfully most of her classmates will be moving up to the PreSchool 3's Froggy class next year.  Thank you Ms. Martinez and Ms. Murray for a wonderful year!

  



The Big Girl Room

We've been working on Kariana's big girl room for a few weeks and it's finally finished! It started with a trip to Pottery Barn Kids to try out big girl beds and figure out how to consolidate all of Kariana's toys into her room. The toys were starting to take over the house.

We kept most of the artwork from her nursery because I still really like all of it. We added these great magnetic frames that hold Kariana's artwork from school. Kariana chose the artwork that she wanted to display in the frames, but its easy to swap out with new artwork she creates.

The stuffed animals were also taking over her room so I found this great basket at Restoration Hardware Baby & Child. My Zachary Bear and Tobin's Paddington Bear maintained their proper place on the shelf.

These storage cabinets are also from Pottery Barn Kids and hold all of Kariana's toys. Her play kitchen is now out of our dining room and in her bedroom!

Kariana and Lou named her elephant "Rose" because she has delicate pink roses all over her.

Kariana loves Thomas the Train and her train table so Thomas and the table had to stay.

Easter Sunday

We took our trip to California to visit Baby Annika during Kariana's Easter Break from school. These are pictures from Easter Sunday.

Aunt Kari and Kariana before church.

Kariana was very excited when the Easter Bunny showed up at the restaurant where we were having brunch and she couldn't wait to have her picture taken with him.

A proud daddy and uncle with Kariana and Baby Annika.

Half Moon Bay with Kariana & Baby Annika

We spent a beautiful day on the beach at Half Moon Bay with Aunt Kari, Uncle Eddie and Baby Annika. I think Kariana enjoyed herself the most playing in the sand and getting her toes wet in the water. Baby Annika slept in her infant carrier most of the time. She must be the easiest baby in the world but she did wake up to grace us with a few photos.

Kariana - 3 1/2 years

Annika - 2 1/2 months

Lunch on the patio at the Pro Shop.