Sunshine Fun

Just a couple of cute pix from a fun day outside, catching bugs!

Energy!

We had an active week last week, checking out new things like the Denver Art Museum and doing some of our usual faves - mom's exercise followed by kid's play and time trying to burn energy in the nice weather. This kid is impossible to wear out! Have I mentioned that he has a lot of energy and totally exhausts me on a daily basis? Pete was on a snowboarding trip for 4 days, but we kept busy with help from friends and even got a girl's night out - the only problem being that Evan hasn't stopped asking for our babysitter since she was here.

My mom is in town right now, so we've been having a fun week in the warm temps & gorgeous sunshine. She agrees - it's not just that I'm tired and pregnant, Evan is challenging to keep up with!

Here's a clip from an excursion last week, playing on this cool "bubble" installation at the DAM:

Perfect Weekend

It doesn't get much better than a long weekend that includes yoga, snowshoeing AND hiking! Oh, and a whole afternoon of girly pampering at the spa :) We spent a fun Valentine's Day at the Aquarium and having lunch out, then feasting on crab legs & chocolate fondue for dinner. Evan is much happier when there's other people than just me to play with, his energy is endless and he wants constant interaction - otherwise he gets pretty destructive, kind of like a new puppy. Parents of toddler boys can probably relate...I know that there are a whole different set of challenges with girls, but his "boy-ness" is so pronounced and difficult to deal with lately.

It was really great to get Natalie out and show her the best of a Colorado weekend - showshoe one day, and hike in 60 degree weather the next! We took her out on our neighborhood trails, which she had attempted to hike on when we were gone a few weeks ago, but didn't get very far. We had neglected to tell her about the slightly scary mountain lion warning signs (oops!), and decided a lion was not something she wanted to face alone.

I love this photo, Evan's expression just says, "Holy sh*t, did you see the size of that tiger?!" (and yes, it's totally bizarre that there are tigers at the aquarium). And I couldn't resist this "What Not to Wear" photo - seriously. There is just not much to say about that get-up:

And here's a couple from snowshoeing - the pregnant belly & layers of clothes don't make for a very flattering picture, oh well!:

Laying Low

My very good friend, Natalie, moved to town a couple of weeks ago and will be staying with us during her transition. Evan loves having the extra playmate in the house, if we could only keep him from tormenting her poor little dog... I love having her here, too - it's been so long since we've lived in the same city and been able to spend this much time together, and it's extra fun for those MSU basketball games!

Last week was my birthday, and although I don't get as excited to celebrate it as I used to, I had a great time. A few of my wonderful girlfriends and I went out to my new favorite restaurant in Denver and enjoyed one of the best meals I've ever had - what a treat to have a night out with such great food & friends! I was sick on my actual birthday, but Pete was kind enough to stay home so I could rest up and we still went out to dinner at "the club" for seafood night. The best was having Evan say "Happy Birthday, Mommy!" - and even wrapping up "gifts" for me in his menu (spoons, forks...) and presenting them to me.

We're not sure where he got it, but Evan's response to everything that we tell him "no" to lately is, "I don't get to (insert want) EVER!". Funny, but not exactly charming. The other day at the grocery store it was, "I don't get balloons EVER!". This age is constantly challenging and hilarious, as the kids learn so much every day. Just when I think I have the most difficult child on the planet, or I'm going to lose my mind, I'll have a grounding conversation with a friend who just reminds me that ALL of our kids are going through the same things right now and I'm not alone. They all have their days, they all have their specific challenges, and they all have so many wonderful wonderful things to love.

Winter Park

We had a very fun (and exhausting) getaway to the mountains with friends this weekend. It's really great for the kids to play 24/7, although I think it's challenging for them...or at least for Evan...to have to share & have that much stimulation all day! He didn't sleep much, which means that we didn't sleep much - but that's ok, he's never been what I'd call an "easy" traveler, and we still manage to do it often. It's great for us parents to have so many people to keep an eye on the roaming toddlers, and to be able to hang out together in the evenings after the kiddies go to bed. We got out for some snowshoeing and sledding in the beautiful sunshine, and enjoyed the gorgeous views of the Frasier valley from the house. Evan was obsessed with the air hockey table, we could barely tear him away from the thing! Our group has been really good about doing these weekends every few months, and we always look forward to it. The girls & kids spend a lot of time together on a weekly basis, but it's great to get the husbands in on the fun, and to hang out as families.

Changes

I've been thinking, that not so far off, Evan is going to have to start sharing with his new sibling. Our time, his toys, and this blog! Up until now, I've pretty much kept it to solely Evan pictures & doings - but we'll be changing it to a slightly broader look into our family as it grows. I hope you'll enjoy the transition!


So, a few thoughts from me about where we are...

Being a mother to Evan is the most rewarding job I've ever had, and I'm over-the-moon excited about welcoming our daughter to the world in the spring! In hindsight it wasn't very long, but it seemed like eternity that I searched for something that I was passionate about - and it wasn't until I was gifted with the choice of leaving my career behind that I finally found clarity. It was extremely important to us that our children have a parent that is with them full time, and the journey has been as rewarding and as challenging as you'll hear from any parent. Being a mother has also led me to getting certified as a Labor Doula, which from the first birth I attended felt like what I was meant to do my whole life. I would consider myself a lucky person, but our lives today are beyond what even I would chalk up to as just luck. I am grateful for so many things - our family, friends and health at the top of the list, but also for this amazing place we call home (both our wonderful neighborhood & just CO in general), for the experiences we've been given, and for the people that love us and continue to join us for this ride.

Confused Seasons

How great is 70 degrees in January? We had a wonderful day enjoying the weather yeterday with a run in the park & visit to the zoo with friends, and today we plan to hit the trails! Evan is never going to understand seasons when we get 7" of snow one day and we're all bundled up, and it's 55 degrees the next. We're all still waiting for winter to hit, and taking advantage of the warm temps in the meantime. We took Evan to the Stock Show last weekend, which was mildly fun for us (livestock is only so interesting) - definitely more entertaining for Evan, or maybe it was just a high from his first taste of cotton candy. Mom got to enjoy a nice, long afternoon at the spa with a fellow pregnant friend - bliss! Other than that, we're just up to the usual playing & outings - below is a cute pic of Evan having a dinner date with his "ladies", and skateboarding with dad & friends. He's fully into the toddler questioning and "Me too!" stage - everything is "What's this do? What's that? What happened?", and he really thrives on predictability, no doing something different every time!

Adventures in Toddler-dom

It sure is exhausting keeping a 2 yr. old boy entertained! We had a fun week getting back into our usual swing of things - meaning lots of playing, playing and more playing! We went to this really awesome indoor play area, which the kiddos absolutely loved - and us mommies, too, since it seems way less germy than the Children's Museum (and they have a full-service coffee bar)! Evan is still talking about it.

He was especially excited to start back up with our music class after a holiday break, and to enjoy a beautiful 64 degree day outside! Our neighborhood has been doing "playgroup" since this summer. This used to be simply meeting at the playground, and morphed into a full-on party every week. Now that we're mostly indoors, it's absolute mayhem! We hosted before Xmas, and I thought the 15 or so kids we had was pretty crazy, but there must have been close to 30 kids this past week, plus all of the parents and 4x as many cocktails. It's great for the kids to have that sense of community, and such a good way to welcome the new families that are moving in and get to know everyone better. Almost all of the kids are under 5, we feel so lucky to live in such a great neighborhood!

Lately he likes to say, "That's ok, no worries", which cracks us up. We're still entertained everyday by his eating, he approaches meals with such gusto it's impossible not to watch him. We take him out to eat often, and always have comments from other diners about how good he is, and how he just devours anything! When we give him juice, he gets it with 50% water, so lately he's taken to asking for it and then doing a "No water...juice!" dance.

Somewhere in between all of that playing mom even got a morning off while Nana & Papa babysat, which was time for me to attend a meeting at the birth center and meet with the midwives. I'm feeling great now that I'm halfway through with the pregnancy, I've been feeling the baby move for over a month and we're getting really excited about our new spring arrival!

Happy New Year

May this year bring everyone fun times, good health and happiness!

Merry Christmas!

Well, this was definitely our best Christmas so far with Evan. It was really wonderful to have both sets of grandparents and Uncle Brian & Kayle in town to celebrate with, and the days surrounding the holiday with visits from special friends and cousin Veronica! Evan was treated to a live lobster dinner AND a seafood boil (both of which he devoured), and so many presents he was clearly overwhelmed by all of the new toys. It was incredibly fun to watch him get so excited about Santa and opening presents, and a riot when he joined in for some Wii action. We are so thankful for a wonderful year, and for our amazing family & friends who continue to fill our lives with love & laughter!

More Fun...

Evan is loving to talk about Santa, the red nosed reindeer (and watching for the "reindeer" in our yard), the Christmas specials of his favorite cartoons, and eating out a lot since mommy doesn't want to cook! Here's pix of making brownies, meeting Evan's adorable new friend, and the Zoo Lights - very fun!

Christmas Season

This holiday season has been so much fun with Evan, and there's so much more to look forward to! We can't get enough of the pre-Xmas activities, and were enjoying the great weather...until this week - brrr!!

Making a gingerbread house:

Wrapping presents, playing outside, and snoozing on the way to visit Santa:

Still a "Big Boy"

We had Evan's 2 yr. check up today, and he's still topping out the charts for height! He's an even 3'-0" tall (90th %tile) and 29 lbs. (50th %tile). She sat observing and asking him questions for over 30 minutes, and kept saying, "Are you sure he's only 2?", and that she was "just in awe" of how advanced his communication and physical skills are for his age - especially considering he's a boy. She thought that he was so amazing (I think after he counted to 10 for her), that she even commented that if she were me, she'd be scared to have another child because Evan has set our standards so high and it's not typical to have such an advanced 2 year old! One of her first ?'s was if I thought he might have 50 words - I told her that a year ago, he had close to 50 signs (which they count as words) - and that he speaks in 3-4 words sentences now. Maybe we just have an easily impressed pediatrician, but we do think that he's pretty special. Ok - enough gushing? :)

On a Happier Note

Aside from being very sick, we got to go get our Xmas tree in warm, sunny weather! We also did one of Evan's favorite activities, he "walks" Lucy down to the pond and will spend all afternoon throwing rocks into the water if you let him.

Sick

Evan and I have been sick for a few days - we thought it was just a cold to start, so we hung around the house trying to keep occupied, we even made some Christmas cookies! But on Sat. night, Evan was pretty bad and we made our first trip to the emergency room. Of course, he thought it was great - they have popsicles, a fish tank, and cartoons, what's not to like? The doc was surprised to find that he had a pretty severe double ear infection, because he was being so well-mannered - and he had pink eye on top of that! The pic with the hat (where he is obviously not doing well) is on our way to the ER around midnight. Evan's usually pretty healthy, this is only the 2nd time he's been really sick, so it's pretty scary for us - he's doing much better now, back to his usual energetic self :)