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Thursday, July 24, 2008

Our Final Camping Trip


This past weekend we went on our final camping trip here in the great state of Washington. We headed back to Gold Basin which has been our camping headquarters for the last three years. We spend the weekend with our good friends, the FitzGeralds and the Belks. Samuel and Liam had Katelynn to play with and Bailey had Hannah (Belk's dog). It was a good time had by all.

We spent time eating great food, hiking to Borgman Lake, sitting around the campfire, making homemade ice cream and laughing with friends. The kids did great during the days and as expected at night. Here are a few highlights through pictures.The whole gang.
Jen, Tucker and Katelynn
Anne, Paul and Hannah
Mommy and Liam playing by the river.

Daddy and Liam hanging out at Borgman Lake.
The boys exploring.
Cheeky boy.
Early the morning of Liam's birthday, Daddy took him down to the river. They got to spend some quality time together playing in the rocks!
We left Gold Basin Sunday so thankful of the memories we have from there. We will miss our camping trips there where the boys spent hours playing at the river, getting dirty and being "just boys." The ice caves, Borgman lake and Mt. Pilchuck will always hold special memories for all of us. We look forward to telling the boys all our stories of our times spent there.

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

The Place We Will Call Home

So...we bought a house!

During this past trip to Michigan Mike and I began entertaining the idea of buying a house in Coldwater, being able to live in it over the next year while we fixed it up then either remaining, reselling or using it as a rental. So we began calculating, looking and decided that if we could find the right deal we would go for it.

Then we told my dad. Give him a mission and he was off. Being a small town, my dad knows one of the guys at a local bank that is in charge of repossessions. He made a call and found that there was a house that was not yet on the market but that might be something we would consider. My dad went and saw the property and took over 60 pictures. We then chatted over the phone a lot, virtually walked through it room by room and made lists of things we would need to do to live in it. After many hours of conversations with multiple people we decided that we would be crazy not to consider. So we made an offer and it was accepted.

So...we own a house...in Michigan...that we have never seen! Crazy!
The property is about 1.3 acres and has a three bedroom/1.5 bath house, an additional 1 bedroom/1 bath guest house, a three car garage, a huge storage shed and lots of yard to run around in. We are thrilled that it has lots of mature trees and space for a garden. We have also found out that under the carpet there are hardwood floors. We are really excited about the project we have ahead and can't wait to actually see it!

So..we own a house!

Birthday Fun

With the boys birthdays only being two weeks apart we had lots of opportunity for lots of birthday fun. It all started with a birthday party in Michigan. We then had a birthday party in Seattle, a trip to the Great Wolf Lodge and two weekends of camping! Since I am so far behind with blogging you will get it all in pictures...

Michigan
First paddle boat ride with daddy!
Samuel liked the speed boat much better this year!
Opening presents in Lansing.

Camping Trip #1
Liam and his first rock climbing experience.

Daddy and the birthday boys!

Mommy and the birthday boys!

Dirt!

Chilling by the water.

Mr. Adventure crossing another bridge!

Great Wolf Lodge
Nana and the birthday boys!

Buckets of water...

Samuel going down the slides by himself. He ended up going on the big ones too!

Liam loving the water!

Getting sleepy...
Have to have a break.

Samuel and Daddy going down the slide together.

The boys loving the water!

Get 'em!

WET!

Good times...

More pictures of camping trip #2 to come along with anything else that is still on the camera!

Monday, July 21, 2008

Liam Turns 1!

Happy Birthday Liam!

Can it really be true? It is so hard to believe that our baby is already a year old. It really feels like just yesterday we found out we were expecting and began to prepare for another little one. Time sure does fly.

A year ago yesterday, Liam blessed the world with his presence. After an good pregnancy and amazing delivery we were shocked to find out we had a second baby boy. I instantly fell in love. From the beginning Liam has been an amazing baby. He slept well, ate well and just enjoyed life. He was generally happy, easily entertained and overall content to go with the flow.

I always worried about loving a second child as much as the first. I wondered if my bond would be the same, if I had enough love to go around. The instant I held him I knew. I knew that I would adore him, I would light up at the sight of him, I knew that I had enough and that I would be enough.

I love the gentleness we have witnessed in Liam. He is so curious and desires to be independent but sticks close to mom and dad. Lately we have begun to see a bit more of Liam's personality. He is going to be the younger brother who is sneaky and a bit of a stinker. As soon as Samuel is out of the room, Liam will go for Samuel's most treasured toys and a huge smile will spread across his face as he realizes he is into something he shouldn't be. Liam adores Samuel and wants to do everything he does. He is generally pretty close behind as they tornado through the house. I am so excited about watching them grow up together.

I am not even going to begin to guess what the next year will be like for Liam. I am amazed at how different the boys are and how much I love that. I love watching Liam discover life. I adore him in every way and am so honored to be his mom. Whatever the next year brings you can bet that we will discover it all together.

Happy Birthday (my not so baby) Baby Boy!

Sunday, July 06, 2008

Samuel turns 3!

Well, our little guy is officially three! It is so amazing to think about the past three years and all the wonderful memories we have. Samuel continues to amaze me each and every day and I still adore him, his dimples and his gentle spirit. In the past three years I have laughed more authentically, cried more fully and truly learned what it means to love unconditionally. It has been an amazing roller coaster ride that I would jump on again in a heart beat.

I remember the day he was born. Holding him, so little, so innocent and so perfect. I remember thinking that this love is really what living is for and promising him in those moments that I would always be there. He was our little miracle and I was never going to let go. The last three years have taught me so much about parenting, love and letting go. We have watched our newborn baby grow into a curious infant, adventurous toddler and an active little boy. I am so proud of the little boy that he is. He is so full of life (and energy) that is contagious. His smile can light up a room and his dimples melt your heart.

Samuel still loves his cars more than any other toy. He will play for hours lining them up, driving them around and reenacting scenes from movies. His love for puzzles and books has continued to grow. He still blows me out of the water in a race to put a 24 piece puzzle together. Samuel has also become a little explorer. He loves being outside and hunting for special treasures. He collects rocks daily and brings mommy flowers whenever he can get away with picking them.

Samuel is a great big brother. He loves Liam and is constantly watching out for him. They play well together when Liam is doing exactly as Samuel wants him to. I am so excited to see their relationship grow and hopefully develop into a lifelong friendship. Liam adores Samuel and is constantly trying to copy everything he is doing. Samuel is generally very patient with Liam and eager to help him do it "like a big boy."

I can't even begin to imagine what the next year of life will bring, but one thing I am sure of is that it will be filled with many memories, much laughter and moments in which I just want to freeze time and remain here forever. I can't wait to see what Samuel will be like at 4!

Happy Birthday Little Dude!