Exactly three years ago, our family shared some very special news: that we were expecting our first child, a baby girl born in January of 2015. Now, at age two and a half, Alexandra August has some big changes coming up in her future… Ryan and I are expecting our second child! Alexandra will be Big Sister to a little mister! Baby BOY Wiese is due in February 2018. 
Big Family Announcement!
04 Friday Aug 2017
Posted in Baby Girl A, Everyday Joie, Faith, Infertility, Married Life, Motherhood, Pregnancy
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I was stung by a yellowjacket in my backyard last week and this stuff worked in a flash. I immediately iced the area, followed with a dab of After Bite, and the wasp sting was gone! After Bite has provided instant itch relief from bug bites and stings for over 40 years for adults and kids. The pharmacist-preferred, proprietary mix of soothing ingredients acts fast when you need it most so that bites and stings don’t ruin family fun. After Bite Kids is also available with a non-stinging sensitive cream that is gentle on kids or perfect for anyone with sensitive skin. Available at Walmart, CVS, Target, Rite Aid, Walgreens, Kroger, and at afterbite.com.
Don’t want to invest in a multitude of outdoor-appropriate toys this summer? —
Gotta admit: I occasionally entertain the indulgence of splurging on fancy bottled waters from across the globe. Pack a few bottles of this alkaline water all the way from Hawaii to feel a little fancy during your next day in the sun. Waiakea Hawaiian Volcanic Water has just launched eco-friendly six and 12 packs of its award-winning alkaline water. Waiakea is not just the only certified CarbonNeutral bottled beverage in the country (helllllooo, eco-friendly), but it is also lauded for its wide variety of ethical initiatives that benefit communities both in its local Hawaii and across the globe.
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Home to our city’s only indoor skydiving tunnel, this place is legit. So legit, in fact, that when we arrived for our mid-morning “flight,” the freaking ARMY was training there. Legit soldiers were in full gear practicing for when they’ll have to jump out of planes to keep America safe. Understandably, they wouldn’t allow me to take pics. Seeing a few minutes of their training was an honor.
Then, we were ready to fly! Neither of us have gone skydiving before so it was our first experience with anything like this. –SO hilarious to see each other’s reactions! With the basic level ticket price, you get two flights. For the second round, we chose to upgrade a bit…the instructor takes you on spins and way up high to the top of the tunnel. This way, even though you’re a beginner, you still get to experiment with trying some tricks! 
It was an unexpected adrenaline rush that left us energized for the week. So, if you’re like me and feel like you & partner’s typical date-nights are in a bit of a rut, definitely give indoor skydiving a try. It’s the “something different” you’ve been looking for, trust me! They’re open until 9 or 10 p.m. most nights, so it can really fit into any schedule. Safe to say, we definitely bought ourselves return flights before we left. Thanks to iFLY for a truly unique day-date experience — we’ll be back!
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They’ve just opened a plethora of presents under the tree and were drug to more holiday events than they can count. As much as we try to make them feel special and not forgotten after the Christmas chaos, winter birthdays aren’t the best. Everyone’s coming down from that yule-tide high and ready to just #NetflixandChill. After those packed schedules that come with the holiday season, people are beginning to settle back into their regular routine and at this point, are frankly partied-out.
But what to do when the dreary days of January & February have most of us ready to hit the fast forward button to Easter? My little one has an early January birthday and last year I kept it low-key for her first birthday celebration. Admittedly, that approach was due to me feeling like I was still getting my shit together has a new mom and couldn’t fathom adding party planning into the mix. So we went for something small and intimate, no guest list to manage, no decorations to fuss over. I have a little twinge of mom-guilt over it, but we ended up skipping the traditional 1st bday party in lieu of a morning of simply doing an activity she loved. We chose to spend a couple hours at 
This year, I am kinda taking the opposite approach… Thankfully it is now in my capacity to take it up a few notches for her second birthday. We’re throwing our little one a Texas “2”-Step themed party. To kick things off, we are hosting local children’s music artist 
Lunch will be catered by Austin’s famous 
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This selfie snap = my mood driving from home this morning: angry Mozart on blast and wearing head-to-toe black, almost as if in mourning for the future of our nation. Well, the Lord has a way of speaking to our hearts at exactly when we need to hear Him, amen? I’m thankful the Pastors at 
The full video of their 17-minute message is linked above, but from my notes, I wanted to share some Scripture-based takeaways that helped me begin to Keep Calm and Carry On:
Us girls had a short, whirlwind trip to Montreal…I landed the afternoon of the event and we packed a lot into those few hours we had to spare. After meeting up downtown, we beelined to the perfect gourmet bistro for a fancy French-inspired lunch, complete with foie gras and rose’! Then, she treated us to massages at the most unique spa concept: a historic river ferry turned into a luxurious floating day spa in the Montreal harbor called 
We arrived to the venue a mere seconds before showtime but it was perfect timing! Our seats were pretty high up but very close to the main stage. And of course the sound, lighting, visuals, etc. were all stunning. One thing I appreciated was that her face was up on the big screen the whole time…you could see up close how she sang each note & the emotion she put into every lyric. No costume changes, just the right amount of pageantry, nothing superficial, perfectly classic timeless Adele.
She performed for a full two-hours and showed us lots of personality in between sets! Adele is very very funny, y’all! We were cracking up — she was talking about how she’s trying to keep up with her work-outs on this tour but then she discovered 
All the big chart-topping hits were sung, there was a short acoustic set, a couple covers, and best of all: she told us the back stories. She writes most of her own music and she really exposed herself emotionally by going in deep: where she was living, at what point she was at in her career, where she stood in her love life, all of the nitty gritty & many times sad feelings that inspired her writing. –Ah, Queen Adele crying, cold & wet, living and writing her songs in a dank, dark English basement…say it ain’t so!
A few insights: she told us that no, contrary to the tabloid reports, she is not pregnant. She apologized for going away for so long but warned that she will go away yet again…that she needs & wants to be connected to her family and to live a real life and have real feelings in order to produce art that speaks to us.
My favorite song of the night was
