sister visit

Paige came to visit again in June!

It was so much fun to have her here, especially after just getting to see her the month before for little Mad's blessing.

We stayed pretty busy this time around. We went to the pool, to the park, shopping, Hudson Gardens, out to dinner, to the outdoor movie at Aspen Grove, and played around outside with the kids.

We can't wait to have them come back to visit this Christmas. Madden is going to be crawling, and talking, and eating food, and Bridger is going to LOVE him even more!

I love seeing Bridger interact with Madden. He's really so sweet with him, and it's pretty adorable. He will just randomly come up to him, and kiss him on the face or on the head. He did get a little jealous, though. If my mom put Madden down on a blanket on the floor, Bridger had to be on the blanket, too (even if it was just a small corner). If my mom or dad picked up Madden, Bridger was close behind, wanting to be held, too. If everyone was cooing at Madden, there was Bridger, trying to get everyone's attention back on him. Needless to say, Bridger is well loved in these parts :)

 We miss you Paige and Madden. Come back sooooooon!

June Happenings

Did June go by in a flash, or was it just me?

 

This is Baby Time. It's at the library, and they sing songs, and read stories, and play with toys. Bridger loved it!

Garage sale finds.

 

Another garage sale find. And B likes to sit in it more than anything. (I'm sure the fact that Big Fella fills it with warm water, making it his personal little hot tub has nothing to do with it!) He's also naked a lot these days. It's just so hot here right now!

Swimming at Grandma GG's pool. And crackin' while he's at it :)

Splash Pad fun. This park is like 5 minutes from our new house! You will find us here often! Maybe even daily :)

 Hanging out with the big kids, of course.

Same park. They also have this little wading/stream area that's perfect for B. He was in heaven, splashing around, walking up and down the stream, making friends with all the big kids.

Weekly concert in the park.

Rockies Game.

First bite of Dippin' Dots. He was unsure at first, but LOVED it as soon as he figured out what it was exactly.
 

First Tatoo. A puppy riding a firetruck. Pretty intimidating, right??

He loves hats. But not his own. He loves anyone else's hat. This is my cousin Aaron's hat, and B thought he was pretttttty cool wearing this cowboy hat sideways. Look at him checking himself out!



A HOUSE

We bought a house! (well, in the process, technically, but still...)

It all happened really fast, and I haven't had a chance to blog about this pretty big event in our life, so here we go, a little late (again)

We got back in town from being in Utah for my grandparent's big party. We had been looking every day to see what homes had been popping up on the market. If there was something interesting, we had to move fast. That's how the market is out here right now. It's madness. You have to decided instantly whether or not you want to place an offer on a house, otherwise you'll be sore out of luck. And the house will be gone before you can even drive off the property. I wish I was exaggerating. This kind of buying frenzy kinda made me a little uneasy, especially since I wasn't finding anything I was too thrilled about. Until Wednesday, June 5 came along. Uncle Brook emailed me that night, and said that this house (the one above) was starting showings the next morning. Did we want to look at it? Steve was a little unsure about it. But I decided that I really needed to look at this house.

I knew the model. Steve and I had seen it before in the fall. That house was in a terrible location, so we passed on it, and continued our search. Brook met me at the house at 12 the next morning. There were already about 5 showings. It was only 12! I walked through the house. I liked it. The location couldn't have been more prime. At the top of a horseshoe street. Larger lot. Bigger backyard with 3 large shade trees, a shed for Steve and all his tools, a finished basement. 8.3 miles from my family. Minutes from a number of parks, rec centers, the library, shopping, and the freeway. PERFECT.

The house was in good shape. Not my style, with most of the chosen paint colors, etc. but that could all easily be changed. I felt really good about this. I wanted to put an offer in. In this area, if you don't move fast, the house will go. I called Steve at work, told him I liked the house and wanted to put an offer on it. He thought about it for about mmmm 10 minutes, called me back and told me to go for it. We put our offer in, and Brook told them we needed and answer by 8 that night.

Brook called at 5:30. "You got it!"

I was shocked! I really was. I didn't think we'd get it. There were other offers besides ours. I was shocked. And so excited! Brook had told us a few other times before, that we'll probably lose a couple houses before we end up with a house. It's just the way the market is. That's what I had built up in my mind, since this was the first house we'd put an actual offer on.

I have loved living at my mom and dad's house. Living here has only confirmed in my mind how important it was for us to live near family. I want our kids to grow up near cousins and their grandparents. As we were looking at houses out in Parker, I was realizing that I was most likely going to have to make a sacrifice somewhere along the line. I had envisioned us buying our first house and being excited about the house, but sad about the location. Sad that we wouldn't be able to just "drop" in and say hi to family when we were out and about. That was a hard pill to swallow.

This house is a blessing and a direct answer to our prayers. We had to be patient, yes, but Heavenly Father listened to our prayers. I am so excited about every aspect of this house.

We close in 8 days. July 17. We will be homeowners!

And here are the details:
-3 bedrooms, 2.5 baths
-Master bedroom is large with a separate sitting room with a fireplace
-Walk-in closets
-Laundry on main floor
-Large kitchen with island, and granite countertops
-Great backyard with 3 large shade trees and quite a bit of grass
-Storage shed on the side of the house for tools and lawn equipment
-Basement is finished with cold storage and craft/office area (
-Large crawl space for storage
-Vaulted ceilings in front living room (so my Christmas tree will fit!)

And here are some of our plans:
-scrape all of the popcorn ceilings (I know, quite the task, but we're doing it)
-paint existing kitchen cabinets white
-install a white subway tiled backsplash in kitchen
-stain hardwood floors dark
-crown molding in kitchen/family room
-paint EVERYTHING (I'm thinking a linen color with white trim)
-install a reclaimed wood wall in family room
-new light fixtures throughout house
-stencil/wallpaper laundry room/powder room
-stencil sitting room in the master bedroom
-turn basement into fun playroom with a reading nook, lots of storage, and color.

We'll be staying with my parents until everything is done and ready.

I think it might be a bit of an adjustment moving from my mom and dad's house. We really have enjoyed the past year. Bridger has so many people around constantly that love and adore him.

Good thing we are only 8.3 miles away so we can visit often!

Papa Dick & Mama Donna's Celebration

The whole family came together in June to celebrate these two.

They both turned 80 years old in May, and will celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary in August.

8 children.

31 grand children.

19 great grandchildren.

 

What a legacy these to have created!

We love them so much, and are grateful that we could come over to help celebrate.

 

We all contributed to a gift.

80 Reasons Why We Love Mama Donna and Papa Dick.

They loved it!

 

It was a fun, family-filled weekend.

Those are the very best kinds of weekends, in my opinion.

 

 

 a few of the great-grandbabies

 

 see? NO FEAR!

 

Father's Day (a little late!)

This boy loves his Daddy.

 

He runs to him when he walks in the door from work at night.

He wrestles with him.

He gives him big and tight bear hugs.

He gives him kisses all the time.

He plays cars with him.

He splashes and plays with him in the pool.

He learns how to play golf from him.

He eats treats and snacks with him.

 

These guys are best buds.

 

I am grateful to have Steve in my life. He is such a great dad, and I love watching him learn and grow with Bridger. Being a parent is sometimes not the easiest job, but Steve loves it. You can tell. He is so proud of Bridger, and loves him so much.

 

I love you Steve, and the father you are to our little prince.

He's sure lucky to have you. (and so am I)



And then there is my dad.

My dad is the best.
He's always been one of my biggest supporters.
He's steady and level-headed and wise.
He's funnier than most people even know.
He's compassionate and loving and aware.
He makes the best pancakes this side of the Mississippi.
He's strong in the Gospel and his life is centered on Christ.
He loves my mom more than anything.
He loves each of us girls second best.

I am lucky to have been raised by such a great guy.

17 Months (1 month late)

This little boy. Just look at him. Please. His face just kills me.

 

17 months have seriously flown by. I can't believe how fast it's all gone. It seems like just yesterday I was cradling my tiny newborn and trying to figure the whole "mom" and "schedule" thing out. Now, I have a crazy toddler not walking, but running around. He's the light of our lives, for sure, and if all of my babies are as sweet at this little one has been, I could have a dozen kids.

 

Just kidding, Steve. Calm down.

 

At 17 months, Bridger:

-runs everywhere, and consequently, has many bruises, bumps, scrapes, and cuts to prove it

-signs all the time and now signs for more than just food, for example, when we sing a song he likes, as soon as the song is over, Bridger is doing the sign for more, over and over and over and over.

-loves popsicles, and does a pretty good job at NOT getting them all over the place.

-loves the pool and is completely and utterly FEARLESS when it comes to the water. This is both good and bad. He is perfectly content with the water right up to his mouth. He goes under the water, jumps off the edge, is learning to kick his feet, and float on his back, and blows bubbles like a champ. Swim lessons next summer is a definite must! Or maybe even swim team, depending on how good he gets this summer :)

-says some words! Dadda, Mamma, Ball, Up ("Uttt")

-finally has gone into Nursery! One month early, and I was more than thrilled to put him in there. Every time that nursery door would open, Bridger would see the toys and kids, and want to go in and play. They finally allowed him to go in early, and it was a good day. He did great! Only cried a couple times, because he got pushed over by some of the bigger kids. He's doing better and better each week though, which I'm thrilled about.

-likes to draw on the back patio with chalk, much to Big Fella's dismay (he hates chalk). Bridger likes to get the chalk all wet (because he saw some of his friends do it when they came over to play) and then color with it, because then it turns into "paint" (which, by the way, makes it even harder to wash off....sorry again, Dad).

-likes to smell (and pick) Honey's flowers. He smells them, and says "mmmmm!" It's pretty much the cutest thing ever. He helps Honey water her flowers in the morning, and likes to play in the hose water. He usually ends up wet by the end of it all.

-likes hot dogs, mac and cheese, pb&j, chicken nuggets, pretty much all fruit, carrots, crackers, shakeology, and fruit snacks. And still likes to dip all his food in pretty much anything.

-LOVES LOVES LOVES ice. Is this normal? He becomes a crazy person whenever he sees that we have ice and he doesn't. This child could eat ice all day long.

-knows where his eyes, nose, ears, mouth, belly button, head, teeth, shoulders, and toes are

-kisses on command (this is my favorite)

-likes going to rides in the laundry basket

-likes anything with wheels, and can spot a wheel from a mile away! (or so it seems)

-likes his kitty still, but has since discovered his little Tonka trucks. He has 2 and LOVES them. They have kinda replaced the kitty, actually. If he has his little red truck, he will go to sleep just fine. Hah! And when I go in to his room to get him in the morning, he won't leave his crib unless he has his little red truck in hand.

-is totally soothed by books. I love this.

-loves playing with kids. Big kids, little kids. It doesn't matter. He is a little social butterfly, and loves to be around people.

-likes to help do whatever I'm doing. Laundry (he shakes out the clothes as they come out of the washer), dishes (he likes to close the dishwasher), baking (he likes to hold the hand mixer), vacuuming (he likes to hold the little vacuum and drag it around the house).

-loves to sit outside on the front porch steps and wave to cars as they drive by.

 

We love you B, and are so happy that we get to be your Mom and Dad!

16 months (2 months late)

I am playing serious catch up on the blog today. For 15 months, I did so great and keeping a monthly journal of this little crazy and his growing and changing. That all came to a screeching halt at month 16. And I don't even know why. Blah. We'll blame it on the beginning of a pretty busy summer. Yep, that sounds good to me!

Here we go, and hopefully I can remember everything!

At 16 months, Bridger:
-talks more and more, and says words like "Mama" "Dada"
-still signs a lot (please, thank you, more, all done) and can even put two signs together like, "More, please"
-loves eating raspberries off his fingers
-loves chasing after the kitty. Luckily our cat doesn't seem to mind the constant bugging and tackling by B.
-likes to eat pretty much whatever we're eating
-loves to dip his food in ANYTHING. Chicken nuggets in BBQ sauce, or watermelon juice...it doesn't matter. If it can be dipped, he will eat it.
-likes to dance whenever he hears music come on
-learning where his eyes, nose, ears, mouth, etc. are.
-likes to go for walks in the wagon
-likes to be outside, no matter how hot it is
-likes to play in the water
-loves the swing
-loves reading books. We read the same book every night before bed. It's a book my Mama Donna gave him for his first birthday, and he loves it. He gets all cuddly and brings me the book to read to him.
-fold his arms for prayer each night before bed
-likes to be sung to before bed
-still takes 2 naps a day, and goes to bed at 8:30 at night

We are so lucky to have this little one in our family. I wonder what my life would be like without him sometimes, and it would be so BORING! Bridger is wild, and crazy, and sweet, and happy, and keeps us laughing just about all day long....well, except maybe when he's up way past bedtime :)