Update...

I have been slacking on my blogging lately. I really want to do better. We were so good when T was younger. Doing a post every week or so. I will try to update it more. I guess the problem is coming up with interesting things to post about.

I think this picture sums up what it has been like since we moved back to Washington. A little exhausting, especially with it being holiday season. We have been doing lots of family things. Which we enjoy. That is one of the main reasons we moved back, to be closer to family. But with things jammed packed every weekend and even through out the week it can get exhausting. We also have been traveling with D for work the past couple of weeks.
We went to Spokane last week. Which was great. We got to spend time with D's sister and her family. She has four kids and lots of toys. T was in heaven. We also got to see some friends that we haven't seen in a long time. So nice! This week we drove down to Oregon for 3 days. I got to do some Christmas shopping. Tax free in Oregon, so I had to take advantage. T has been a trooper for there long car rides. But we think next time we just might leave him with Grandma. It's not easy shopping with a 17 month old.

It's really hard to believe we have a 17 month old. He is full of personality. He is learning new things everyday. He has a pretty good comprehension of things now. It's amazing to see him process things and understand what your saying. He says all sorts of words like hey, ba-bye, apple juice, baby, monkey. D got him to say please yesterday. He loves being outside and around other kids. He doesn't quite know how to interact with others but he is learning. We love him and are so happy he is apart of our family. I can't believe we are going to have another one in a few months. I am trying to prepare myself but I have no idea how. T has been keeping me so busy I don't have as much time to think about it. Much different than when I was pregnant with T. We still haven't done much to prepare for her arrival. I am waiting until after the holidays and then I am sure I will be in baby girl mode.

Little Lion King

Happy Halloween!

T was dressed up as Lion King this year. He was suppose to be a monkey, but unfortunatley I packed his costume in a box that is somewhere in our garage that we can't get to right now. I was so bummed that I couldn't find it. I was able to find this adorable lion costume last minute which worked just that same.

At the Trunk-or-Treat with Grandpa. He really didn't get the concept of Trick-or-Treating. He only lasted about 4 cars and then got distracted.

T also went Trick-or-Treating with his cousin who is a year older and gets the concept much better. So cute!

Baby Girl Koons

We got to see our baby on Friday. We are happy to find out that we are having a girl! We were completely surprised. I think I was more prepared to find out it was a boy than a girl. But we couldn't be happier. We had a great ultrasound. A lot different experience than our ultrasound with T. I found a doctor at a Women and Family Health Clinic near our house, it was recommended to us. It is a 5 doctor practice, which was appealing to me because if I didn't like one doctor I could see another. Also we could find a doctor for the whole family. One stop shopping I guess...I like that. The ultrasound was so amazing. We had a very detailed ultrasound. They look at everything from the feet, heart, kidneys, spine, and brain. It lasted about 25 mins. The pictures were so clear. Completely different experience from last time that only lasted about 10 min and we couldn't ask any questions. We had to bring T so 25 mins for him was too long for him. But for me it was perfect. I got to ask questions and see all the different parts of our little girl. It has given me such reassurance that she is healthy and normal. All the worries that a mom has about her baby. I am now busy looking for a name and planning out all the things we need to get for her. I am so excited to shop in the girl section with all the pink dresses!

So long Cincinnati...

I didn't get a picture of the actually truck we drove, so this will have to do. Last week we arrived in Seattle after our long trek across the country in our 26' truck and car trailer. We left our home and friends in Cincy early Saturday morning. We drove through 11 states and 2500 miles in four days. It was just D and I, luckily Grandma was able to fly back with T. That would have made the trip even longer if we had him. We arrived late last Tuesday night. Four days with out T was long for me, the longest we have ever been apart. I think he was a little mad at me, because I didn't get much love from the guy for two days. He had fun at Grandma's house and they had fun hanging out with him. So we have been staying at D's parents house for the last week. Still waiting to get into our house. The renters will be out on Oct. 31st, we are excited to be able to move in the next week.
It is truly a blessing to be back in Washington. It couldn't be better timing with the holiday's around the corner and the new addition to our family in March. It will be great to be in our home and feel settled and have family around. But will miss Cincy. It was such a blessing to spend the last two years there. We started our family there and made some really great friends. We are so grateful for the time and memories we made there. And look forward to a visit sometime in the future.

Summer Fun

We are trying to enjoy a last bit of summer. Things have been a little out of the norm around here with D traveling. We were able to spend a short weekend together and decided to have some fun family time at the local pool. T is not afraid of the water at all. Which we are happy about, although we need to get those swim lessons started soon.

This had nothing to do with swimming, just a cute picture we caught of T hanging out in the dryer. T and I are getting ready for a two week trip to visit family and friends in Washington on Wednesday. While D will be off traveling for work. We will miss him when we're gone, but we are excited for our vacation.

Growing Pains

As we celebrated T's birthday, it became a very sentimental week for me. I found myself looking at old pictures. Thinking back at what life was like a year ago and contemplating all the changes that have happened since. I never thought I would find celebrating T's first birthday bitter sweet. But it kind of was for me. I can't help but be a little sad and miss my little baby. And I never thought I would say that. I didn't know how much I enjoyed this past year until now. I thought I would share a few of my favorites moments of the year. It is really hard to narrow them down...but here are some.

Oh what fun T is ONE!!!

This past week we celebrated T's first birthday! My mom flew in for the week to join the festivities. It was fun for everyone. T got lots of love from family and friends with gifts and birthday wishes. We celebrated with dinner out, presents and chocolate cake. We had a small party on Saturday with a few friends (that i forgot to take pictures of). But on his birthday it was just us and Grandma.

He was excited to eat cake. He had no idea what kind of goodness he was in for. He learned how to clap this week. Whenever some one says "Yay!", T will clap. So adorable.

After a few short seconds of getting acquainted with the blue gooey chocolate treat sitting in front of him, he began to stuff his face.

Every good chocolate cake is not complete with out some milk.

Our happy birthday boy! It is hard to believe it has been a year. It was a wonderful year watching him grow and learn new things. We are so happy to be his parents. We love him so much. Now we begin another year...and we are ready to see what fun it has in store.
We captured some video of him enjoying his cake but I am having trouble posting it. So I will try again later.

T's best friend

T has found a best friend. He loves his little stuffed monkey friend. He has grown attached to the little guy and it is adorable. He sleeps with him, he plays with him, he goes just about everywhere he goes. He loves to give him hugs and kisses. It's just the cutest thing. I was kind of hoping he would find something that brings him comfort, for the most part it has been is pacifier or food, now he has little monkey. We'll see how long it lasts, but for now I am glad he found a friend.

Our little toddler

I wanted to post an update on T's walking skills. He has been doing so awesome! He walks all over the house and does not want any help. He is still doing the "zombie walk" with his hands in the air for balance. But he is walking longer distances and gaining more confidence. He is still taking some pretty good falls. You can't really see his bruise on his forehead in the video. He had a face plant on tile floor this past weekend that left a pretty good mark. On our trip last weekend we were outside a lot, I got him some shoes and tried to encourage him to walk with us. He did really good. It is so fun watching him grow. I know walking will give him more freedom and give us more work, but I think it is worth it.

Fourth of July Celebration

We loaded up the car last Thursday with our good friends Brock, Britney and Peirce and made a 5 hour trek down to Pigeon Forge, TN to celebrate the Fourth. We went down there last year, but there were no babies around. So we knew this year would be different. We found a great condo the was really close to everything. The weather was perfect, the babies were amazing. It's just a bummer that we couldn't fit everything in the two and half days we were there. But we were able to see Galtinburg, go down an Alpine slide, play mini golf and ride some go carts. It was great fun and great memories for all.

He's watching you

I guess you don't realize how much kids watch you. Last night while D was on the phone T found another phone and started mimicking him. He would put the phone up to his ear and start talking. He has started to say things we can actually make out as words. He kept on saying "hey". It was so funny. And he actually let me take some pictures of it. I tried to get video but he kept going for the camera. His personality is coming out more and more everyday. He is turning from a baby to a toddler too fast.

Can he walk?

The other night while at a friends house T took his first steps! He didn't get too far, but they are definitely some big steps for him. It was very exciting. I am pretty sure he knew what he was doing and was excited to do it. This might be the beginning of our baby growing into a walking (or running) toddler. Brock was kind enough to document the occasion for us. We are still practicing...but who knows we might have video of him walking around the house in a few short weeks.

Another first for T

T is a climber. We captured him in the act and here is the video to prove it. He couldn't climb enough stairs while he was at Grandma's. Eventually we had to block the stairs for everyone's safety.

This is not his first time climbing stairs, this was however his first time falling down stairs. Our hearts stopped as we watched him tumble head first down the stairs. This was our first major scare as parents. We tried to be so careful around those stairs. He is a fast little guy and accidents happen quickly. It only took a couple of seconds.

He knows how to go up, but he doesn’t know how to go down. We were trying to teach him to go down you have to turn around. He kind of got the idea, but his depth perception is just not there yet. As he was turning around the top step was too close. He fell backwards and toppled head over heels. He landed on his back as we slid down the stairs trying to catch him. After a good scare and couple of minutes of crying he was fine. He actually went right back to the stairs. I know stuff like this happens, but it is so scary to watch. T is okay and still fearless about climbing. I guess you can say it's just another one of his firsts.

He is going to swallow that!!

T loves his pacifier. It has been his favorite toy since birth. We on the other hand have a love hate relationship with it. We love that it can calm him down when he's upset, but we hate always having to stick it back in his mouth when it falls or he spits it out. When he learned how to put it back in his mouth by himself life got much easier for everyone.

One of his favorite things about his pacifier is he can stick the whole thing in his mouth. T has a huge mouth and we think he just loves his pacifier so much he can't get enough of it. We get comments about it all the time. It even frightens people. My sister-on-law got really scared and suggested we get a bigger pacifier. We tried it out and even the bigger pacifier fits. It doesn't really scare us that he puts the whole thing in his mouth. I don't think it could ever hurt him. It has just become his thing. Since he has gotten so many comments about it I knew I had to finally take a picture of it.

Back from la la land

We just got back from a 12 day trip from as D calls it "La La Land". He calls it that because it was magically different from our normal life. We had a blast. We were busy just about everyday, trying to cram as much as we could into everyday. It was actually quite amazing what we were able to witness so many cool things. There is a lot that I can write about. I might have to split it up into different post to keep it interesting.

Our first event was family fun at the Mariners game. It was T's first M's game. I think he had a good time until about the fifth inning as he was exhausted. T really became a Mama's boy during this trip. He was good when someone else was holding him, until he saw his Mama.

My brother who lives in Utah went through the temple for the first time over Memorial weekend. It was quite amazing how it all worked out. It was perfect that he was able to do it in the Seattle temple with his whole family there. Except for D who had work :(

We all headed down to the Cabin for some good R&R and family bonding. It was fun to share this with T. I have many memories going down there as a kid. Now I get to share it with my own.

T loves water, any water, even water that is 50 degrees. This is a great shot of how Dad likes to play with T in the water. One of the things that made this trip so good was the weather. It was in the 70's everyday while we where there. Which is rare for Washington in early summer. We were able to spend lots of time outside. And the sunshine just makes everything better.

After a great weekend with my family we headed up to D's family to spend some quality time with them. We had a good time hanging out with them and actually squeezed in a lot of family time. T took his first trip to the zoo. I don't think he knew where he was, but he loves being strolled around so he had a good time.

T loved his Grandma's. And we loved being around them. D's brother also was there visiting from Arizona. Another amazing thing that worked out. We had a great time seeing him and the rest of the family. We are so blessed with great families that we enjoy being around. We love showing T all the people that love him. T's world is so small, but we really want him to understand that there are lots people that love him. We are so glad for the time we get to spend with our families. I think T really loved it too.

9 months and growing

T had his 9 month birthday last week and I didn't mention it on my last post. We can't believe he has been in our life for 9 months. He is growing too fast. But we are enjoying this stage of his life very much. He is a fearless little guy. He often thinks he can do more than he actually can. He is a climber, always climbing up on things, most of the time on Mommy. He thinks he can walk, but doesn't quite have the balance for it yet. The walking toy is a great way for him to practice. He is such a little boy already, he loves anything electronic, he loves to hits things, and he is always making a mess with toys or with food. Sounds just like the four brothers is grew up with. He is just a happy energetic baby boy. We love him so much and are so excited to see what he will learn next. Here are few of his latest photos.

T is getting his bottom teeth. They are coming in kinda slowing. Aren't they adorable. He wasn't too happy we were taking his picture, but at least we could see his teeth.

We got some video of T practicing his steps. This is for his cousins that just love to watch T's videos. We love you guys and are so excited to play with you in a couple of weeks!!! Sorry it's sideways.

Move 2009

So we did this crazy stressful thing last week....we moved. We had been looking to move since the beginning of the year. We liked our apartment but knew we were paying too much and we needed something a little more T friendly (more space and more accessible to the outside). The only problem was our lease wasn't up until July. We put in a notice to the manager that our place was available so she could show it if anyone was interested. After a couple of months of waiting and looking for a place off and on, in one day we found renters for our apartment and found this great new place. It is a 3 bedroom 1300 sq.ft. duplex. It has a yard and a back deck (neither of which we had before), more space and is less rent. We are so excited that we found it! We moved in last Monday. It was more stressful and took longer than we anticipated. I didn't quite understand how adding a little baby in the mix could make things a lot more trickier. But we got through it and are finally settling in to our new home. It took T a few nights to get comfortable, again something I didn't expect. I think he is enjoying the space, he is always crawling from room to room checking things out.

T was in heaven with all the boxes and stuff he could get into.

It's amazing finding out how much stuff you really have when you move. We moved here only a year and half ago, but our family has gone from two to three and that has defiantly added to our accumulation of stuff.


Our new home! So glad there isn't three flights of stairs to walk up everyday. T wanted to sit outside and watch the rain I guess.


The back deck is so nice. And the view is a little more peaceful than a parking lot. You really don't understand how nice is it to have a deck until you don't have one.


Another good thing about our new place is the third bedroom. We have our office back. I am finally able to have a craft table. I am so excited about all the projects I get to do. Here is the first project I did. I have been wanting to use my Cricut for T's room since Christmas.

We are excited to be in a new place. We hope it turns out to be a better fit for us. It's not permanent, but we think it will be great for now.