Friday, January 4, 2013

baby kline gender reveal

a little late, but excited to share how we found out whether baby kline was a boy or a girl.

there are lots of ways to find out the gender of the expected baby. we heard of an idea from a lovely couple where you throw a party and the guests watch you cut a cake with the baby's gender revealed inside with either blue or pink frosting. both of us immediately loved the idea.

so, on august 25, 2012 we invited family out to a local park to find out with us whether baby kline is a boy or a girl.

we had a sealed envelope in our possession for a couple of weeks.


i set out to find a bakery that would bake us a cake in secret. mission success.



dolce bakery in prairie village did an amazing job with the cake.


the night before we met with the bakery, nic thought it would be nice to, instead of cutting a cake to reveal, open a big box in front of everyone filled with balloons.

loved the idea. 

he quickly reassured me that we could still have cake and why not also have the inside of the cake be the gender color as well. so, we kept the cake appointment and the following morning enjoyed a delicious cinnamon roll and coffee discussing cake decorations. and why not add some fun cookies while we are at it. :)

so balloon unveiling it was. next task was finding a big box... harder than you might think. we asked around at a couple of stores and finally the thursday before uhaul came through for us and $13 later we had a box.


then came decorating it. i was a bit overwhelemed as i had no idea what i wanted on the box. nic in a matter of fact tone, said, oh, let's just wrap it up like a present. perfect. done. 


i found some ribbon at walmart, ended up being the sheerest ribbon i'd ever seen, oops. he whipped up the present just in time and it looked perfect.



throughout this process, i learned a couple of things. first, we are currently in a a helium shortage due to lack of natural gas mining or something, and two, helium only lasts a max of 8 hours, so we needed to be sure to get the balloons blown up close to the event so they would actually fly out.

thanks to some WONDERFUL friends, we got a box filled with balloons.

everyone gathered,



and ate,


and caught up on life - it had been about four years since all these people were in the same place,

and soon found out with us that.... 


it's a BOY!!




it was a wonderful way to find out and so the planning began for our little soccer player. :)

Tuesday, January 1, 2013

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!


To celebrate 2012, let's recap our year.

1. I had my first dance recital as a teacher/choreographer. Nic got a new job and enjoys it.

2. We traveled.

West Virginia, May
Danny and Nic took a motorcycle trip to West Virginia. It was hot.



Alaska, July
After countless hours of preparation, Nic and his dad traveled to Alaska on their motorcycles. I flew up to meet them and we explored the Alaskan country together. Baby Lincoln was on board as well.


Florida, August 
Work training event, visiting family, relaxing.

New York City, September 
Purchased a car on ebay and flew to Long Island to pick it up only to find that the car had a bad part in it, drive-able, but expensive to fix. We drove it home, stopping off to see Nic's sister in NYC and at an IKEA in Pittsburgh. The shop finally fixed the car about a month later. Added a roof rack. We love it.

Photo

Photo

Garden City, KS, November
Thanksgiving with family.



3. Throughout 2012 we celebrated the anticipated arrival of Lincoln Alan.









We are so thankful for all the friends and family that have shown such love for our little man.

4. We met our firstborn son, Lincoln Alan Kline, on December 15, 2012, and celebrated Christmas in Kansas City. It is amazing to finally meet the little guy that journeyed with us this year. So grateful.



The "15 club" graciously welcomed Lincoln in.


Three generations of kline gents.


Ima and Papa


Powell family


 Cousins!!


Kline folk


adapting to life with a newborn.

We are so incredibly blessed by friends and family! We can't wait to experience 2013 as a family of three humans + one dog.

Sincerely,
Nic, Julie, Lincoln, and Neosho