January 2016

I don't think we had our calendar on "month" view when we scheduled a few big things for January of this year. It ended up being a very fun but very FULL month and since I fully intend to document things a bit better this year, I wanted to get the highlights down before February is over. 

For Christmas this year we got together with Hub's sister and her husband and decided to do a family weekend at the beach for his parents for Christmas instead of a gift. We hadn't all been anywhere together since the kids were born and we hadn't taken a family picture ever, so it was a good time to get away, let the kids run wild, take them out to a nice dinner and get a current family photo.

The kids loved their makeshift camp out with their cousins. The adults enjoyed playing games after the kiddos were in bed and a bonfire on the beach on a rainy weekend was perfect. We can't wait to make this an annual occasion and plan different trips each year (maybe camping next year)!

The following weekend, hubs and I flew to Denver Colorado to visit the Cook's! Hubs had only ever flown once before and we had never flown together (I hadn't flown anywhere in 10 years) so we enjoyed our first flight together (four actually by the time we got there and back). We have been talking about flying out there for a few years but had never made it happen. They came out to California in October to visit family and our kids had strep throat so we weren't able to see them and were so so sad about it, we decided to just book the trip!

Hubs and I have also never been to the snow together. Neither of us are big fans of extreme sports of any kid so we don't ski or snowboard and I do NOT enjoy being cold, so we've just never gone. Not to mention that our local mountains haven't had much snow, if any, the last few years with our extreme drought. I was so nervous about being freezing the whole trip and I wasn't at all! The weather was perfect the whole time we were there, sunny and warm with a gorgeous view of snow & mountains. I loved it there. The company really made it extra fun as well. 

I got to ice skate (pushing it for me as I'm not the most graceful on two solid feet) on a real frozen lake. The giant sign on the way out that says "watch for cracks" was super encouraging! I do enjoy trying new thins and having new adventures so I LOVED the whole experience. 

The photo above is such a fun picture. Laura on the left is a glad that I "met" online via Twitter years ago when we were both new to mommy hood with our oldest two (only three months apart). We could chat and vent about all things related to church, motherhood, newborns etc even in the middle of the night while feeding our wee ones. We were pregnant together with our second little ones too and only due a few weeks apart. We've even text messaged each other at points over the years chatting about life in general. At some point over the last few years I realized (how small of a world is it) that Laura and Cori actually knew each other in real life and attended the same church for a long time. I knew when we planned this trip that I had to meet this gal in person and squeeze her neck! We met for tea in their little town and had the best girl talk/time like we had been friends for 20 years. I love these ladies and their hearts and their authentic lives they've shared with me. 

Our last night there was date night! They got a sitter for little Miss Charley Grace (whom I just adored and is the best baby!) and we rode the light rail to downtown Denver for dinner and shuffleboard in Union Station. Downtown is so pretty and it was the perfect "parents night out" to end our trip. Sometimes it's so fun to dress up and go out and feel like adults. 

We have had a chance the last two years to have some nice weekends away just hubs and I and we really appreciate the people that are willing to keep our littles and let us recharge as parents but some of our favorite trips have been with other couples. There's something so refreshing about having time to chat with other married couples who love each other and love the Lord and are in the trenches of life just like you are. To talk marriage and parenting and family and work and how we manage to juggle it all. We have only had the chance to hang out with the Cook's 2 times since we've all been married and while we've enjoyed it each time, this was such a great chance to really get to know them and spend quality time. I could see us making a few more trips out there in the future. 

The following weekend we decided (in a moment of insanity I'm pretty sure) that this girl was ready for a big girl bed! Her crib was a convertible crib meaning it would turn into a full bed but we failed to buy the conversion piece when we bought the crib and of course they no longer make the piece that connects the headboard and foot board, so Daddy had to build one! She was SO excited about it. 

The first few nights (read:weeks) were a bit rough but we've figured it out and now she does great!

I still have to get the bed skirt to hide the awesome frame Daddy built for her but my mom helped me make the new curtains and her big girl room looks so cute!

The next weekend Daddy played Super Dad and kept the kiddos at home while I traveled down to Temecula for this gal's (my sister) Dirty Thirty Birthday weekend!! Most of the ladies in my family went and stayed at our cousins house and went wine tasting. 

We had the best food at this cute little place in downtown Temecula called Vine & Branch I think. The guys were our Uber drivers. It was such a quick trip but a very fun day with the girls to celebrate.

The weather was perfect the day of. The drive home the next day was a different story. It POURED rain the entire drive home making the roads a total mess. They shut the Grapevine down a few hours after us due to a crazy snow storm. We really got home just in time. I'm so glad I wasn't the one driving!

And because we apparently think two crazy kids isn't enough, I came home Sunday the 31st and we went to see a puppy we were considering and brought him home. Meet Paxton "Pax"! He was all of 2.5 lbs and 9 weeks old when we got him and he's just the sweetest puppy. He's definitely a puppy so he keeps us busy, but he's so cute!

This boy has wanted a dog for a long time and doesn't this face just beam joy!? We hope he survives the two crazy kids! 

February has been a bit slower paced around here but March/April are shaping up to be just as crazy so I will attempt to document all our fun this year!