A piece of my heart...

can always be found in India... with little sweethearts like these! Isn't she a doll? One of the children enrolled at Ark of the Rainbow.

Happy 11 month birthday to Reese

I can't believe this little sweetheart is almost a year old! She started walking on the 4th of July. She loves her pink bunnies and splashing in the pool. Her favorite foods are blueberries, tofu, rotisserie chicken, clementines, and shredded cheese. We have to watch her closely because she will put absolutely anything she finds in her mouth (especially paper!). She's a very happy, smiley, easy-going child (she must get that from her Daddy) and her teachers absolutely love her. We feel very blessed to have such a spectacular kid!

Lounging at the Lakehouse

We finally made it out see Kelley and Carl's new lake house... and it was amazing!!! They definitely have created my dream lake house. It was like staying at the most comfortable 5-star resort, in a totally beautiful setting, just 90 minutes from here. We enjoyed delicious BBQ that Carl had smoked on his Green Egg, made yummy breakfast tacos, took in some gorgeous boat rides while people "surfed" and tubed, jet skied, splashed around with Reese the Loredo and Garner kids at the neighborhood pool, and just RELAXED with dear friends. It was perhaps my favorite weekend of the summer!

Exciting Family News

Baby #2 is going to be a BOY! It will be so fun to have both a boy and a girl. We are thrilled! Our little guy is due the 1st week in December.

Ark of the Rainbow opens its doors

After a lot of answered prayer, Ark of the Rainbow opened its doors this month, and already has 18 children enrolled! The school is located in one of the Bangalore slums. The Christian-based program is intended to provide a jump-start to formal education for kids who otherwise could not afford it. Enrolling these children in school means that their parents can both go look for jobs (and much needed income) to support their families. We've spent the last few weeks getting the school equipped with class materials and kitchen supplies. Over the next few months, the preschool classes will be expanded, and the school will offer Bible Study classes and a Girls Club (the equivalent of Young Life + life skills + human trafficking awareness program for teen girls).

Reese starts walking

Reese took her 1st steps on the 4th of July. It was so exciting! We were at a party at our friends Janelle's and Mike's house when it happened. She was a bit of a late crawler (8 months old) but an early walker (10 months). I guess she was just ready to take it to the next level!

Happy early birthday Sara!

We spent a fun weekend in Austin visiting our friends Sara & James. We drove down as an early birthday surprise for Sara. Angie & Kevin came too so we had a great time swimming and eating a lot of great food!

Family Vacation to Charleston

Dana, Reese and I just returned from a 5 day trip to Charleston, SC. It was incredibly charming. We ate AMAZING food... really, I think all we did was eat. But we also took a horse-drawn carriage tour of the city, walked around the historic town and shopped, visited the aquarium, took a harbor cruise, and spent a day at the beach on nearby Sullivan's Island - which I loved!!! It was a completely relaxing, sweet vacation. We stayed at some quaint inns and just enjoyed quality family time in between Dana's jobs and my roles at work. Life is good : )

So much to celebrate!

We finally announced our pregnancy at work and it was so fun to be congratulated by all of our friends! In other good news, Dana accepted a job offer at a new company - in a totally different career! He's going to be an executive recruiter...a change that we anticipate will be really good long-term for our family. In addition to that, I was promoted to Sr. Director of Global Brand Innovation... so we have a lot going on! If only I could drink champagne these days : )

Happy Anniversary

Happy anniversary to the love of my life! After enjoying a fun few days with my mom who came to visit for the weekend, we celebrated our 8th anniversary by heading downtown to try a new restaurant called Bolsa. It was amazing! Such a wonderful night out together. I feel so blessed to be married to this amazing man!