I haven't blogged in awhile and feel pretty guilty about it....especially since Kenna's birth didn't even make an appearance on here! However I do have a runner-up post - photos from our trip to Italy.

My husband Chad was lucky enough to get an opportunity to travel to Italy on a "business trip" as a host representing his company. I was lucky enough to have the chance to tag along!

We stayed three days in Milan and three days in Florence. The people were friendly and the food and wine were magnificent! We fell in love with wine from a vineyard in the Tuscany region called Brunello. We sipped red wine from noon until midnight every day. We ate tons of pizza, pasta, gelato and other goodies. We slept in. We walked around the cities. We explored. We shopped. We ate!!!!

We laughed....alot! Especially when my hair dryer and curling iron both blew early in the trip. Frizzy wavy hair is not a good look for me.

We worked too - the business part of the trip were the evenings taking out clients for dinner. It was a blast for me, since big group dinners are usually filled with loud conversation and laughter. And getting to know new people is always fun!

Here are some photos of the food, the cities and of me dressed in something other than yoga pants. I took a ton of photos but these are the highlights. (they uploaded in random order)

It was super hard leaving Kenna at six months old, but Chloe made it pretty easy by practically pushing us out the door, saying it was time for her vacation with Grandma D. Big thanks to Chad's parents for toughing it out for the week! It was a trip of a lifetime! Feels good to scratch it off our bucket list :)

Halloween and 2nd Birthday!

This is a busy time of year for Chloe - Halloween and Birthday!

Chloe was a bumblebee for Halloween! We went to Aunt Marcy's for a yummy dinner of white chicken chili and then headed out for trick or treat with her cousins! Chloe loved riding in the wagon with cousin Leah and would not let Leah walk with her sister Holly! It was so cute listening to Chloe say "trick or treat" and hold out her treat bag at the houses we visited!

Chloe turned 2 this year! We invited the family and our neighbor friends over to celebrate. I cooked an Italian feast of homemade meatballs, baked mostaccioli, garlic bread and salad. We opened a ton of awesome gifts and ate delicious cupcakes! Chloe always has a blast when she is with her cousins, and has developed quite a "crazy party laugh"!!! I will have to get that on video one of these days!

Health update: Chloe's cardiology report has stayed pretty much the same. She still has a moderate leaky aortic valve, as well as some aortic root dilation - both are "side effects" of her open heart surgery. All we do now is monitor them both every six months. Eventually she will probably need her aortic valve replaced.

Chloe has not been gaining weight as fast as we hoped. Her tube feedings have increased to three times a day, plus a ten hour overnight drip. She eats great, except she doesn't eat enough.

Chloe had her 2 year well visit today. She is 3rd percentile for weight, 25% percentile for head circumference and 56% percentile for height! We have stopped her physical and speech therapies for now. We, including her pediatrician and therapists, all think she is caught up in those areas of development!

Bumblebee-cakes! When do we say "trick or treat"?

Chloe laughing with her Manz cousins!

Cupcake cake with whipped icing - YUM!

The "gourmet" chocolate covered pretzels I made and used as edible table decorations!

Im TWO!!!

2 cousins + 1 neighbor = FUN!

Stuffed giraffe from UNCLE Jason!

A lick of the icing was the extent of Chloe eating her birthday cake!

Chloe ended the night happily, in her new rocking chair from Grandma D, sitting next to her giraffe and holding her new pink stethoscope! She didn't even realize she was being tube fed!