He's all boy

This kid is happiest when he is wet, dirty and sitting in a pile of mud. We go for walks after dinner or walks in the park. He has puddle radar and is impossible to pull away from rocks, dirt and dingy water. Needless to say, he is taking a lot of baths and I'm doing a lot of laundry.

Family of Three

I have so much to blog about, but as you can imagine, my hands are a little full right now. But, the brief recap is that we are doing GREAT! Daniel is amazing and I fall in love with him more and more each minute. Our airport homecoming was a giant party with tons of people there. It was so wonderful to see so many people support and love on us. Daniel is transitioning incredibly well. He's (somewhat) sleeping, he's happy, he's learning very well who Mommy and Daddy are. He's eating so well. He's busy, into everything, laughs a lot and gives great hugs. Other than a little altitude sickness and a gigantic tooth popping through his gums, he's happy and playful. He's HUGE! We went to the doctors office yesterday and he's a whopping 36 pounds. Yes, 36 pounds at 15 months. My arms and back are killing me.

We have been out every day. We go shopping, go out to eat, go to the park and go for walks. He falls asleep the instant he gets in the car seat or in the swings. He likes to skype with family in Texas and in New Jersey.

He can climb out of the crib and every bed in the house. He can climb on top of the table, the night stands and the couch and ottomans. He can open every drawer, every cabinet and loves to stick his hands into the toilets. He has mastered the remote control for the lamps and over head lights. He talks on the play phones and texts on an old Blackberry. He's busy and very curious.

He's a cuddler, has the cutest laugh and the loudest farts. We're waiting on the first kisses to us, but he is quick to give them out to all the other kids in our lives.

He's the perfect fit for Dave and I and it feels like he's always been in our lives.

Today and Tomorrow...Forever and Ever

Nine months ago we received a phone call that would forever change our lives. Nine months ago we first saw this photo and cried tears of joy.

We grew to love this not-so-little guy from afar. We longed to have him in our arms and anxiously waited for each update and new photo.

We prayed for him daily and were overwhelmed with the love and support we received from our friends and family. We started preparing to welcome Daniel into our home and took some time to enjoy the last few months of life being a married couple.

 

 Today, we complete the final preparations for Daniel to be in our arms. Today, we keep his foster mom in our minds as she says a final goodbye to the boy she has raised for the last 15 months. Today, we pray for our big kiddo as he boards an airplane to begin his long trip of 20 hours of travel.

Tomorrow, we become a family of three and will finally have Daniel in our arms!

Daniel's Bedroom

Preparations are in full swing for Daniel bedroom. Yesterday was moving day. We moved Dave's office out of Daniel's soon-to-be bedroom and into my office. We are now sharing our workspace (we both work full time from home) so this is going to be an interesting adventure.

I've been purposfully procrasting about setting up the big man's bedroom. We have so many guests coming and going and we didn't want to give up Dave's office sooner than necessary. I also thought I would have a hard time seeing all of Daniel's things each day without him being here.

But, now that his arrival is very rapidly approaching, we are getting things out of storage and into place. It's amazing how much stuff a toddler can have. And, he's not even here yet! Now that the end is in sight, it's nice to see all his gifts and furniture around the house. 

Toy box-A gift from Grandma Gogo

Crib and Changing Table-A gift from Uncle Mike and Aunt Crystal

Crib bedding-A gift from my shower hosts and guests in Texas

The dresser-My handiwork

The dresser is three generations old. I restained and refinished it a few months ago as a suprise to Dave.

The shelf-My handiwork

I bought this shelf at a garage sale this weekend for a dollar. It was cracked, falling apart and dingy white. I repaired the wood, re-sealed the cracks and joints and have just started painting it an orange color to match the orange in the rug and bedding. I'll need about 3 more coats of paint and then need to seal it with a high gloss clear coat to get the sheen to match the other furniture. I'm hoping to finish it up by tomorrow.

The clothes, the toys and the gift-Wonderful shower gifts from friends and family

We were able to fit the crib in the bedroom along with a queen size bed. The bed has always been used for guests. We have no idea whether Daniel will sleep in the crib or what our future sleeping arrangements will look like. We thought it might be a good idea to keep the big bed in the room for a few weeks while he transistions to the concept of a crib from co-sleeping. If you know me at all, you know I am not a good sleeper already. It takes me forever to fall asleep and I wake up several times throughout the night. I'm scared to death of what the next few weeks (months?) will be like sleep wise.

All in all, we're just about ready. I have a few loose ends to fininsh up and still need to buy some necessities. But, the major parts of Daniel's room are done, although, not organized.

The Moose, The Tank, The Linebacker

Here's a new photo of my heavyweight. Stay tuned for details on my suprise...

Shhhhh....

I have a secret, but I'm not allowed to tell!

Stay tuned...

4th of July

The 4th of July is one of my favorite holidays. I love being out in town, watching the parade, seeing all the patiortic colors and catching up with old friends.

There is always so much to do on over the holiday weekend. One of the benefits of living in a resort town is the constant activity. We have free concerts, festivals and outdoor markets each weekend.

After the parade, we walked up to the town park to see racers coming though for the Firecracker 50. The Firecracker is a 50 mile mountain bike race. No thank you, but it's fun to watch.

Later in the afternoon we headed to a friend from church's house. They throw a large BBQ at thier house each year. It's become sort of a tradition. The house is close to downtown, so once it gets dark, everyone disperses to watch the fireworks.

This year, we had tickets to the National Reportary Orchersta. Initally, we were a little hestitate and didn't know what to expect. But, we loved it, the concert was a lot of fun and very engaging. The town's fireworks were sub-par this year. (The entire town is in an uproar over it, you gotta love small town politics). Regardless, it's always fun to watch them go off.

All in all, it was a great day. I love the 4th. And, next year, we'll have our little man with us!

Carnival

When I was a kid, each year a carnival came into our town and set up at the local Catholic church. I would go every year with a bunch of my grade school friends. We always had a great time.

Since moving across the county, yearly carnivals don't seem to happen in any of the towns around me. It's one of the things I miss about the East Coast. While I was driving home from running some errands yesterday, I noticed one setting up in a vacant lot by the marina. It looked really small, but there were rides nonetheless.

After dinner my sister, husband and I all drove over. Dave and I went on the salt and pepper shakers and KL and I hit up the scrambler. Dave snapped this picture of us simulating our experience.

It was a fun way to spend our Friday night.