April snow showers bring May flowers

Can you believe it's May already and can you believe I haven't had one new post for the entire month of April!? I can. It's been nuts here. Here's my April recap and I will work much harder at providing more updated info - real time during the month of May.

April started off with Jonathan's (David's older bro) surprise 30th birthday party, where David's dad and Grandmother flew in from Dallas and stayed with us. Here's a pic of the Sullivan boys at the party! They were here for Easter, which was extra special this year to be together in NYC of all places! It actually snowed on Easter this year (not cool) and no tulips were to be seen on Park Ave. Sad!

The next weekend, I went with a group from Junior League on a walking tour of Harlem. You would think it might be scary, but on the contrary - it was very fun! It was a fascinating tour, full of history and fun facts and of course, great food! Here are some pictures of our tour and some of the girls outside a great famous restaurant called Amy Ruth's . They are known for serving Fried Chicken and Waffles together! Not kidding. That was the best chicken and mac & cheese that I've had in a while and it was in Harlem of all places. You Southern girls would be oh-so-proud!

The very next week I went to Austin for a recruiting dinner and got to spend some bonus time with my mom and my dear friends, Allie and Matty-D. Here's a picture of Allie and I at a GREAT breakfast taco place called "Juan in a Million". Love the name but loved those tacos even more! Afterwards, my mom and I drove from Austin to Dallas, stopping over in Waco for some girl time with Steph. We shopped, ate at a darling place for lunch, and then headed back to Dallas to meet up with the boys. Saturday was my TX baby shower, given by some good friends and their moms. What a blessing to see everyone and get to catch up!

My sweet friend, Kimber-Leigh, came early to stay with me. She was a HUGE help during the shower and helping me sort through the gifts afterwards. She is preg-o again with her 3rd!! Yay! We can't wait to find out if the baby will be Kate's girl friend or boy friend.:)

I ended April with a trip to Miami for work. South Beach is a crazy crazy place! I stayed at the Loews Hotel tried to relax as much as possible in between client meetings and the conference sessions. It was beautiful and perfect weather the entire time. One night, we had a client party at what was formerly known as the Versace Mansion - AMAZING! Check out the pics - I felt like I was in a movie. After long walks on the beach, I really felt ready to come back to NY and work on getting ready for baby Kate!

SO...Stay tuned for more updates in May, including: fun community service projects with Junior League, our Babymoon to Puerto Rico this weekend, Shawna and belly in her 7th month (as I am now 31 weeks), and MORE!!

P.S. The bright yellow tulips along Park Ave. are exquisite! It just took May to bring them. :)

March Recap

As many of you know, March has been an exciting month for the Sullivans with moving into the City and having week long visits from friends and family all over the country. It has been action packed and fun-filled and so, well, I thought I'd blog about it and include some fun pictures.

Timeline of March events: (Move-in date: Feb 23rd)

March 2-6th: One of my fav friends, Jes Looney, from Dallas came to visit. She helped me get settled, SORT, and actually throw things away that I couldn't quite part with to date. Jes even stayed in one day to paint picture frames for my wall collage. We went to see "I love you, You're perfect, Now change" on off-broadway together and shopped at Pookie at our fav store! It was excellent! What a friend, Jes, thank you!

March 9-13th: SPRING BREAK time! Stephanie (my sis), her boyfriend David, and my cousin Taylor (known furthermore as "the crew") all came and stayed with us on their break from college life. My uncle was also able to join in the festivities one night, while up in CT. We initiated "the crew" on the upper east side at Brother Jimmy's - an awesome southern BBQ place across the street with some good Texas basketball. While they all enjoyed a beer...I had sweet tea and loved every minute of it! I loved my time with Steph - she helped me with ideas for the nursery and we hit a jackpot at Pookie too! The highlight of this trip was Steph's friend, Caroline, had access into a Baby Market with booths from every Children's designer known to man - and at wholesale prices! We had SO much fun and spent a little money in that place! Thanks, Steph...I SO treasure each time we get to be together. I can't wait for you to be back when the baby is here in July.

March 13-18th: Yes, you see the dates right. Steph and crew left Tues morning and my mom flew in at noon on the same day. Mom and I headed straight for that Baby market and spent even more money - it was a blast! There is nothing quite like having your mom visit and help you process things and get settled. My doctor was kind enough to schedule an appt. so she could see the baby, which was very special. She swears that Kate looked right at her. We talked and talked, registered at a cute NY store, ate great food, drank great wine, and just enjoyed being together. The hardest part was saying goodbye, but we are focusing on the next time we'll be together in April! Thank you, Mom!!

Also the same week, Jonathan and Adriana flew in from Australia with our nephew, Joshua. So, with their 16 bags…David helped them get settled in Brooklyn for the few months that they are in NY. It has been SO fun to have them close by.

March 17-18th: David's dad also flew in for St. Patrick's Day, which is also coincidentally his b-day. There was a blizzard on Friday, so there was snow everywhere and yet the parade still went on as planned. The boys watched basketball, we enjoyed our time with our nephew and all the family.

March 21st - 25th: My dear friend and college roommate, Stephanie and her husband Frank flew in from Alabama. It was so fun to catch up and to watch them experience the City. They are pros now! Steph and I went and saw Anne of Green Gables on off-broadway - so fun!, while the boys watched basketball. The picture of us is at a yummy French bakery near our apt. where we got to sit by the fire. AND...the find of the century was when we left breakfast ... there was this adorable antique dresser out on the curb. So, the boys brought it up to our nursery and we will probably be using it for a changing table for baby Kate! Thanks to the husbands for carrying it and cleaning it and Steph for talking me into it.

Overall, I'm SO thankful for all of our March visitors…we have had such a good month and feel very blessed. Our guest room has gotten a lot of use and is definitely ready for more visitors! Just let us know when you are coming!!

Have a great weekend!

Elephant Walk

Every year there is a tradition in NYC where the Circus comes to town...well, Madison Square Garden to be specific. Evidently the tunnels into the City are not designed to allow the large trucks that carry the elephants and there is too much weight, so they have to take them out and physically walk them through the tunnel.

It has become a huge event in the City and people get together to drink and then watch these animals walk through the streets of Manhattan at midnight. WELL...we went last night. We lined up at 34th street and the parade began. It only took a few minutes, surprisingly, and sure enough the elephants showed up and marched on proudly to the Garden - trunk to tail.

How hysterical is that!? People were cheering so loud, you would have thought it was a celebrity or that they were going to be on TV...nope...it was all for those 8 elephants (i think that's how many). What a memory!

And...I would not be fair to the horse lovers out there if I failed to mention that the stallions and ponies and even the miniature ponies trailed behind the "stars". Police were lining the streets and were prepared for a riot to touch the elephants, I guess. This will for sure go down as one of our unique New York memories!

Legacies and more

Thank you to those who voted on baby names in an earlier blog! David and I have talked a lot about it and thought through everything. It wasn't until one day last week, after reading the below article, that the name was solidified. It is an article by John Piper talking about the death of his father and the legacy he was for the family.

Here is the link:
http://www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/TasteAndSee/ByDate/2007/2013_Hello_My_Father_Just_Died/

(Side note: If you don't know John Piper, I would definitely recommend that you check out his books and his online sermons and just taste of his God-given wisdom. He is a modern day apostle. Someone that generations will speak of for years to come and yet we have the privilege of living in the same day and time with this man.)

If you read the article, then you will know why we are going with Kathryn "Kate" Marie Sullivan. One day David and I will sit down with our daughter, with tears in our eyes, and tell her proudly why she was named after both of our grandmothers. I have to say in reading that article, I couldn't help but think about my Grandma Martin and all that she meant to me and our family. Her kindness and gentleness, and yet her boldness about Jesus and His love, is what I will most gladly pass on to my little girl. I can't wait to tell her all about Grandma.

On a completely different note now (and for those who know me well - you know this is really how I think)… we decided on the bedding last night. I have a picture here for you now. Tell me what you think! I think it will be really cute and I am very excited about it. :)


Have a great week, friends!

Movin' on up...

... to the East side. Remember the Jeffersons? Ok, nevermind. Here are some pictures of our new place. I am only showing the kitchen/living room and for now. You can kind of see the master bedroom down the hall (where our bed is peeking out) The 2nd bedroom has not been touched yet, so there is not much to see.

We have had several dear friends bring over dinner two nights this week and last night the couple stayed and enjoyed it with us. We had a great time. It's starting to feel like home and we love that we have had visitors every single night!

A few things missing... the actual drapes, a chair in the living room, an organized bookshelf and some wall hangings. It's hard to get it all done at once, but hopefully after this weekend, I'll have more to show.

Let me know what you think!!

Have a great weekend friends!

Broken

Sorry I haven't written in a while. We moved into our new place in the City last weekend and we still don't have internet up and running. (but we will this weekend!) So, I will send pictures as soon as I can.

This last Sunday, David and I helped out on the communion team. Our church takes communion every week and I have grown to appreciate the importance of this act every Sunday. Here's how it works: there is one team of 2 people in front (always one guy and one girl) and two teams of 2 in the back of the church. Each time we help out, I have the bread/crackers and David has the wine/juice.

Why am I writing about communion, you ask? Well, it hits me every time I am standing up in front of the body of the church with the basket of crackers (in my case) in hand. I look over all of the faces out there and I am struck with humility about what is about to take place. As the prayer ends, the music starts and people make their way to the front to eat and drink out of the baskets we possess. As each individual breaks off a cracker, I say to them, "His body was broken for you". As they move on to David, he says, "His blood was poured out for you". As the people move past, you can imagine saying these statements each time - over and over for an entire song.

Some look at you in the eye when you say these powerful words; others just focus on the cracker or the dipping into the juice/wine. Every once in a while, you really sense that it has "spoken" to someone in a way that nothing else ever has, and it got me thinking. Isn't this what we are called to do? To look at our neighbors, our friends, our parents, our husband/wife, our children, even the strangers on the street and live in a way that our life states: "His body was broken for you. His blood was poured out for you."

I get tears in my eyes each time. How humbling -- isn't it? I think about a friend that I have had a disagreement with or an arguement I've had with my husband or colleague, and then I think about the fact that we are called to look them in the eyes and say "His body was broken for you. His blood was poured out for you."

At the end of communion, the crowds are seated after being served and it is down to David and I. We look at each other in the eye as I hold the basket for him and he for me. Everything that has gone on during the week seems to fade away as I say to my husband, "His body was broken for you." and he returns "His blood was poured out for you." Then we sit. I am overwhelmed with this pure act of unselfishness and servant hood -- the very example of Christ.

Who needs to hear that from you today? Let's not wait any longer. There is such power in these words.

"His body was broken for you. His blood was poured out for you."

Blue or Pink?

Our Valentine's Day this year was extra special because 1) we had a huge winter snow storm that blew through the Northeast - literally blowing snow horizontally across the City at negative temperatures and 2) we had our first sonogram of the baby - now that I am at the 20 week point. The great thing is that when we move in the City (next Friday), the hospital is 2 blocks from our apartment, and will be so convenient for future exams and of course - delivery. (but let's not talk about that now)

So, the reason for my writing today is that I wanted to share some very special news with you, my friends. David and I are expecting a little GIRL!! We had the doctor write it down on a card and seal it for David and I to open at a later time that night. When we opened the card, we both were crying and I think I was more in shock -because this whole time, I was thinking it was going to be a boy. The Sullivans pride themselves on only having boy "swimmers"...so it will be VERY fun to have a girl on the Sullivan side for the first time in a while. :) We are really SO excited to welcome this little girl in our family!!

Now for the important stuff...
Girl Name choices -> PLEASE VOTE on your favorite:
1. Kathryn "Kate" Marie (named after David's Dad's mother and my Mom's mother)
2. Kathryn "Kate" McKenzie (named after David's Dad's mother and my Dad's mother)
3. McKenzie Lynn (named after my Dad's mother and my mother and me)
4. McKenzie Marie (named after my Dad's mother and my Mom's mother)
Vote for your favorite #!! :)

It's time to go shopping!!!!