Pretty pictures . . .

Over the weekend we went out to the Botanical Center so I could take some pictures of the flowers and try to get some cute family portraits.  It's pretty obvious that Katie is my favorite subject to photograph and below are some of my favorites from our venture. 

The photo below was taken yesterday afternoon when we took Sam for a walk around the neighborhood.  One of the rare moments when he will sit still.  :)

Ella's birthday lunch

Had lunch today with my good friend, Nicole, and her mom, Andi, and daughter, Ella.  Ella's friend, Haley, was with them as well.  Today is Ella's 7th birthday!  Happy birthday, Ella!  It's been so great to watch you grow into such a wonderful little girl!!  XOXO

More randoms . . .

Some randoms over this past week . . . Katie and I went to Family Fun Fest at Valley West Mall, spent some time at the gym, and went to the Iowa Deer Classic.

Dog Walk

Took Sam for a walk last week and found out that he drools like crazy while he's walking. 

Enjoying the first nice day of the year!

Today the temp got up to 70 degrees and as soon as I got off work, we walked straight up to Lion's Park and played.  Here are a few pics.

Trip to the desert . . .

Katie and I just got back from Mesa, AZ, where we visited my grandparents for 5 days.  The weather was absolutely perfect . . . 75-80 degrees every day.  Katie and I spent our days walking through their resort, swimming in the pool, and we even went on an adventure to the Superstition Mountains and visited Tortilla Flats.  On the way back from Tortilla Flats, we stopped at Goldfield Mining Camp and watched a gunfight and walked through the country's largest museum of poisonous reptiles and invertebrates.  We watched some beautiful sunsets and enjoyed wonderful company.  Here are my favorite pics from the trip.