sledding 101

Another first for Leo this Christmas season- sledding! We bundled him up tight and carried him up the hill. He took a ride down the hill with grandma and fell asleep on the way down! Don't worry- it was a slow, controlled, and safe ride. I guess the slight jiggle of the ride relaxed him. So while he slept through most of it, he had a great time!

Disneyland!

Leo took his first trip to Disneyland! We saw Santa, rode the carousel, ate some delicious food at the New Orleans Cafe, and watched the parade. He had a blast! Papa and Nana we also there to share in all the excitement. We made some great memories that day.

Also, while in California we had a great time visiting with family and celebrating the holidays! We are back to snow country now, where it definitely looks and feels like Christmas.

as the seasons turn.

Goodbye beautiful Autumn. I miss you so much already. Your vibrant colors and your crisp air made me smile everyday. Until next year.

Fall in Cashmere is, to say the least, amazing. The apple, pear, nectarine, and cherry orchards are beyond beautiful. I absolutely love living around them. It's organized nature. These gorgeous trees all perfectly set equidistant apart from one another with their offspring of bright green, red and pink fruits stretching across the land for acres. It is quite serene to stare at. Especially from an airplane. Oh, I love it.



Cashmere is beautiful in the winter, from my warm house staring out the window. Once you step outside and drive on those icy roads, it's not too pretty. But at least the orchards are still gorgeous even though they are naked now. And kind of dark and creepy looking with their kinked branches. They look like something in a Tim Burton movie. I love a good dark-creepy Tim Burton movie, probably why I like the orchards in the winter.

I am very grateful for the beautiful place in which we live.

6 months + spokane.

I can't believe I am typing this. My little Leo is 6 months old!

This past week, I swear he has grown by leaps and bounds. Stats: 17.5 lbs (50th percentile). 26 inches long (50th percentile). head circumference- I can't remember but I do remember he was in the 40th percentile. So his head may appear large but it's actually not!

Not only has he grown physically but intellectually! He is very curious about everything around him. Reaching for everything. Of course it all goes straight to his mouth.

He is also starting to play with the concept of pushing himself up onto his knees and hands! No no no no no crawling! Mom and Dad are not ready!

Last week he decided that he no longer wants mom to rock him to sleep anymore. Which is so sad, just another manifestation that he is growing up. He arches his back and begins to fuss if I rock back and forth.

He still does not sleep through the night. Leo is waking up about once a night to eat. Doctor says there is nothing wrong with it. He says if Leo is hungry then keep feeding him and that he is still young. I don't mind it, it's kind of a part of my life now. I wake up at 3 am every night whether he is up yet or not. Darn you internal alarm clock. But it would be nice to sleep through the night again. I might decide to change that eating schedule soon.

He can basically sit up all by himself now. He is a little dangerous in that Bumbo. He likes to head dive out of it. He just did it right now... no joke.

A new game! I put his binkie in my mouth, Leo stares at it confused, takes it from me and puts it in his. It's really too cute.

Also, while he is playing on his own in his bumbo or his jumpy chair (our new fun toy!), he will pause and look around the room to find us and once he does, he gets soooo excited. As if he is saying to himself, "This is so fun, Mom and Dad should come play with me too. Where are they?" (looks around the room) "There you are! Look at how much fun this is!!"

Leo likes to do this laugh. But it's not a belly laugh it's more like a courtesy laugh. It might be in one the videos I have uploaded. He does it quite often. Braden claims he gets it from me and all I can say to that is I get it from my mom! haha.

Sometimes I can't take how much love, happiness, and cuteness this little bundle of joy exudes. I mean honestly, I think it's so much deeper than we mortals can understand. It is divine.

Last week we went to Spokane, WA. Braden had training there for work and I decided to go along. It was nice to go somewhere I had never been before. Oh yah and they had three malls! That's three more than my town. After going to each of the malls twice, Leo and I got pretty bored. Three days in Spokane would have been plenty, we were there for nine!

On the positive side, our hotel was right next to River Front Park. And the fall colors were beautiful. (see Leo and fall leaves photos above). It was really nice to walk around the river.

Thanks to my sister and bro-in-law's suggestion we went to the Wolf Lodge Inn. It's about 45 minutes away from Spokane in Coeur D'Alene, Idaho. It doesn't seem like anything special. In order to get there we drove down this tiny, two lane, windy road. There is nothing around it, probably for miles. Inside there is a huge fireplace with a blazing fire going. It was so warm and cozy. It felt like a comfy cabin in nowhere land. Oh and then there was their steaks. They are cooked over an open fire and they are HUGE portions. Let's just say that was the BEST filet mignon I have ever tasted. Oh man my mouth is watering just thinking about it! YUMMMMMMMMMMM. The highlight of our trip to Spokane by far!

Sorry about the ridiculously long post. If you have made this far, CONGRADULATIONS!
Oh and today it's snowing. Our first snow. I am not looking forward to winter with a baby but I must say that it is absolutely beautiful outside!

yum yum yum

Zombie Apocalypse Survivors.

We had a great Halloween!

I couldn't be happier that it's over. I get so stressed over what we will wear, where we will go, if we will just stay home...blah blah blah whooooo cares. You have no idea how many times I went hunting for Halloween costumes this year. Only to be talked into being a "Zombie Apocalypse Survivor." Gotta love my husband and his love for all things ZOMBIE, like the new AMC series "The Walking Dead." (Honestly, it's totally awesome, gorry but awesome- you gotta DVR it.)

I, like every other first time mother, was searching for the cutest costume for my little kitty- to no avail. None of them are cute enough. You may be offended by the fact that my 5 month old child has a "bloody injury" on his head and his costume is not something to "awww" over but, there is one important thing you are forgetting... IT'S HALLOWEEN! Aren't things supposed to be over-the-top scary, frightening and silly? Yes.

Anyways, I can now move on with my life. Although I am ready for Thanksgiving, I am definitley not ready for Christmas.... bah humbug.

P.S. My sweet baby boy will be 6 months old in about 2 weeks... tear.
P.S.S. In the collage: Our awesome friends - Lane, Jannica, and Kim Larson.

little kitty.

My baby is 5 months!

Leo has found his feet, and he loves to play with them. He will hold his feet up for me while I am changing his daiper. What a gentlemen, eh?

I have got him back on a schedule now (the move kind of threw him off a bit). He still wakes up once a night to eat. Eventually, I would like to ween him off that but for now it's manageable.

His vocabulary is growing. He says mamama, dadadada, and bababa. Of course it's all baby gibberish for now, but it's still cute to hear his voice.

He can now roll from his back to his belly! He loves to sit up in his bumbo and look around.

We recently bought him some Dr. Seuss books and he loves those. Oh yah and he also loves to scratch things. It seems as if it is his way of feeling the texture of things. So that's what he loves to do to the books, scratch at the cardboard pages. He also loves to scratch at the wall while I am changing his daiper or scratch at mom's denim pants. He is my little kitty.

Braden is working alot more now, so our time together as a family is cherished. Also, it's great to be able to get a little bit of a break on his days off. Braden will go get the baby at about 730am and they will go play so that I can sleep in. Even an extra half hour makes all the difference.

We went on a walk along the river at sunset the other night. It was the perfect evening for a walk. Fall is definitely here. The leaves are changing and there is a chill in the air now. I love it. I am not ready for winter AT ALL, so please, Fall, stick around for a little longer this year... please.

That's all for now.