Happy Anniversary

I wanna be the wind that fills your sails
Be the hand that lifts your veil
Be the moon that moves your tides
And the sun coming up in your eyes
Be the wheel that never rusts
And be the spark that lights you up
All that you been dreaming of and more
So much more, I wanna be your everything....

Four years ago we danced our first dance together as husband and wife, with Keith Urban's "Everything" playing all around us; we were in total newlywed bliss!  It has been an amazing journey- from meeting in Germany (you have to love Oktoberfest!), to an outlet shopping proposal, to the start of the next chapter together as Mr. & Mrs.!  We've made it a little tradition (three years so far, but traditions have to start somewhere!) to have delicious steak and extra special champagne to toast the occasion- last year I wasn't much fun for drinking, Little Guy was still cooking inside, but we toasted none the less.  This year I could enjoy the champagne, but we still kept to the tradition and cooked at home after Little Guy went down.  We even enjoyed a rented movie with our steaks and Little Guy slept the whole time!  Thank you honey for making me the happiest wife, and now mommy, I could ever be! 

Along with celebrating four years, we got two other SUPER exciting pieces of news!!!

1.  Our dear friends Mindy and Lance are expecting baby number 2 this January!!  We can't wait to see Evan as a big brother!  We joke that it will be ten years before all of us can have a drink at our annual January Birthday Bash Dinner...someone has been pregnant the last four years, and with this baby on the way, we're right on track for a big bottle of wine in 2022!

2.  Uncle Luke and Auntie Kim are making it OFFICIAL!  Luke proposed out at the ranch and Kim said YES!  We (really just me!) can't wait to get all the juicy proposal details at breakfast this weekend.  2013 is already shaping up to be a very exciting year!

Independence Day

Life has been a little hectic over here as we have been getting ready to host what's become an annual 4th of July BBQ.  This year we stuck to tradition with hot dogs, watermelon, and corn...oh wait, my husband scoffs at tradition when it comes to food, so we also roasted some chickens on our spit- yes we have a spit, and yes we have roasted a pig and a goat in the past...The food was delicious (if not VERY delayed...Hubby is still working out the timing kinks) and the company even better.  We had a blast seeing all the babies in their patriotic gear but we never got a picture with ALL of them together- there was always someone sleeping, eating, swimming, crying...as it is with babies.

 

The best picture we got with all four kiddos

 

 

This is really what the majority of the photos looked like

 

Almost all the babies, Ryan was sleeping and Jackson has already left (yes, I am still calling Jackson a baby!)

 After the fun BBQ, we headed downtown for some Journey music and Little Guy's FIRST fireworks show.  He and Noah were in AWE once the show started, too precious.  Little Guy got hungry towards the end and was perfectly content to nurse and snooze while the show went on.  He finished just in time to catch the finale and then was out before we even got home.  It was a great first 4th of July for all of us!

 

Waiting for the show to start! 

 

Family Photo- Little Guy couldn't take his eyes off the show! 

 

Passed out!  Celebrating Independence Day is HARD WORK!

He's baaaccck...

Daddy's HOME!!!  We're so excited to have Daddy back home, safe and sound, after his little fishing get away.  I love the simplicity of male travel; gone for four days, and all he needed was a school size backpack, THAT'S IT!  And this was hard core travel:  sleeping outside (sans tent), smelling like nature (no shower or soap), fighting off badgers (REALLY?!?)...it sounds like they had quite the adventure in Idaho!

Not one to be outdone, we kept with the adventure here in sunny California!  A quick tidbit about myself, I HATE/LOATH/DESPISE(take your pick) birds!  Not any certain kind of bird, just anything with wings, that flies, that poops on my porch, and can potentially make a nest in my attic to lay her eggs and torture/taunt/mock me with the sounds of baby birds chirping ALL DAY LONG (that really happened!)...so, what did I discover last Thursday about 1.5 hours AFTER my husband's plane took off??  A dove perched on her nest, right there in plain sight for all to see!!  How did I miss this??  You can see her from the pool, picnic table, and inside the living room!!  AGHHHHHHHH...while it isn't a badger or a rattlesnake (yes they saw BOTH of those in Idaho), the dove just about did me in...We are SO happy Daddy is home!

Code Brown

We're going on day 2 sans Daddy...I am getting an awful lot of crafting done (Yay!) and Little Guy is perfecting his walking (or at least getting in a lot of practice), so we'll have a lot to show Daddy when he gets home!  Along with showing him all we did while we was away, we'll have to tell him this funny story:

Every Friday we have swim lessons with Noah and his mommy.  And every Friday Noah's mommy and I discuss poop...we have a 20 minute drive to swim lessons, and we inevitably talk about the boys and their pooping, specifically if they've pooped that day.  We are both PETRIFIED that will be the ones responsible for a pool closure and drainage...Well, today we were two verses into a water rendition of "The Wheels On the Bus", when Noah and his mommy made a beeline out of the pool and into the showers...it happened...CODE BROWN!!!  AHHHHHHHH!!!!!  Noah's mommy was so quick about it, that the crisis was averted with no pool closure or drainage, and minimum embarrassment...we all told her there's nothing to be embarrassed about, it could have been (and probably will be one day) any of us, but my fingers are crossed it's not us!

Twice in One Day

Phew, what a day!  We got a jump start on our errands with our first Target run at 8 AM...I rounded out my day with an 8 PM Target run as well, but that's neither here nor there...in between Target, we continued prepping and planning for the upcoming birthday and hitting up the Farmer's Market with Noah, his mommy and daddy, and grandma!  We had a fun time (like usual) eating YUMMY food and listening to a pretty good cover duo.  While the food and music were great, the real excitement came watching Little Guy toddle all over the grass...YIKES, he's really starting to walk!

Noah got a new camp chair!

Walk Like An Egyptian...

We can't quite say it's official, but we're still pretty excited/proud/blown away by the fact Little Guy is almost WALKING!!!  He's been teetering and taking a step here or there, but today his buddy Jackson came over and showed him what walking's all about.  Jackson has been on the cusp of cruising on his own for some time now and today he was officially walking on his own...Little Guy took one look at him and decided to follow right along.  Naturally, Daddy was obsessed excited to be practice walking all night...just like crawling, I am excited to see him reach such a HUGE milestone, but I can't believe my baby is walking...Here's a clip from one of our MANY practice runs...

Carmel By The Sea

We just got back from a mini vacay in Carmel By The Sea (no, it's not just Carmel...) Every year we're lucky enough to spend some time down on the ocean with my husband's family and friends.  We stayed in a new place this year, one block from the beach with plenty of rooms for everyone to stay!  We've watched these trips transform over the years, slowly moving away from the late night dinners in fancy restaurants, to all home cooked meals served after the babies are fast asleep for the night, and I have to say, I much prefer the latter.  It was a real treat to see Little Guy play with his cousin Henry (technically second cousin, but they're the closest things each other has to cousins right now!) - Henry is a busy boy and Little Guy was hot on his trail the whole time.  We got in a trip to the aquarium with the Santopadres and a couple walks on the beach.  It was a great break for Daddy from the daily grind (he even got to enjoy a round of golf!) and we could not have asked for better weather- sunny and high 60s everyday...I think the central coast is trying to redeem itself with me...Until next year Carmel By The Sea!  Here's a sneak peek at our vacation:

 

Tub time for Little Guy and Henry...it all started out great, and quickly spiraled into major meltdowns...

 

Check out this cool jelly fish!

 

Little Guy was all about the aquarium

 

Daddy and Henry

 

Daddy and Iris- she is such a sweet little peanut

 

The aquarium is a great place for kids and adults- One area was just perfect for our little ones to get out wiggles with climbing structures, a slide, and a water table...how cute are those aprons?