sorry!

I've been meaning to do two posts - one about my recent trip to Florida (last weekend) and one about our trip to the pumpkin patch/farm.

We recently got the new Apple OS, which I really like because Brandon and I can have our own settings, etc. but with that comes separate iPhoto accounts?! We haven't figured that one out yet...and I don't want to bore you with more details, but posts will be coming soon!

Who needs apples anyways?

We had these great plans of going to a u-pick apple orchard yesterday and getting great family photos.  All of the trees are dwarf trees, so you don't even need ladders...and Amelia could pick her own!  The only problem was they were closed.  For the second time we've tried this week.  I was so bummed, but we found this cool park instead and everything was right in the world again.

Amelia had lots of fun.

Her fascination with tongues is still alive and well :) 

She got on this spinning toy and said "wow, wow, wow, wow, wow,wow....."

They even had a porch-like swing that Brandon and Amelia had fun on. 

The Zoo!

Today I met Marie and her son Finn at the zoo!  The zoo is fun now that the little ones can walk around and recognize the animals.  

Amelia wore her new boots.  Can you tell that I am excited for the cooler weather?  I got the boots because the only shoes that fit her at the moment also dig into her little ankles, so she needed new shoes.  With winter coming up, I thought boots would be perfect! 

Funny story, she can't really walk in them but won't let me take them off.  It's a love, hate kind of a relationship...but mostly love.  

Here's Finn with a sleeping polar bear.  So cute!  Amelia didn't notice the polar bear.  She knew that she was supposed to stand at the glass and look interested, but she didn't quite make the connection which was almost just as cute.

In all of the times I've been to the zoo, I've never seen the petting zoo! Amelia really, really wanted to pet the goat.  The goat just wasn't feelin' it.

After she got the cold shoulder from the goat, she discovered the hand washing station and probably could have stayed there for the rest of the day.  She has a strange affinity for hand sanitizer.  Just picture me saying "after you do it once, your hands are clean" and her responding "mow-uh, mow-uh, mow-uh."  

True Love

The other day when I was laying in bed, I told Amelia that I wasn't feeling well.  She crawled over to me, gave me a kiss and then sat on my head.  Not in a nice "I want to cuddle with you" way.  It was more of a squish-your-face-and-possibly-break-your-neck kind of a thing. 

We got Amelia a huge teddy bear at Costco a few months ago for the price of a normal size teddy bear because it's Costco, and Amelia LOVES it.  It's her favorite toy by far.  She cuddles with it, rides it like a horse, kisses it, hugs it, etc. 

When I was taking pictures of her with the bear this morning, she did this. 

I think it's her way of saying "i love you."  Or maybe "you're my favorite."  Either way, the fact that she sat on my head the other day made me feel loved.

It's true love.  

Date night!

We didn't get any good photos from our date night, but we still had a great time.  We ate at PF Chang's, walked around Bridgeport and went to an arcade. It was a lot of fun, and I actually beat Brandon at Ski Ball! Yeah, yeah, he can only see out of one eye....but it still counts!

Amelia has a new found obsession with our tongues.  She thinks they are hilarious. She's trying to get mine in this picture. 

Brandon and his eye patch!!! Haha, he didn't wear it out on our date...he just squinted (or winked at me) the whole time.

Brandon's Eye Injury

Last night at the gym, Brandon put Amelia on his shoulders and started walking before she could get settled in.  She tried to catch herself by grabbing his eye socket...

He was in a lot of pain, but took some ibuprofen that helped a little bit.  He's not in as much pain today, but it's swollen.  Off to the store for an eye patch! 

Ten things from Tuesday

It's been a while!  I'll do a quick ten things from Tuesday to get back into the swing of things.

1.  I've been taking more pictures of Amelia recently.  She's adorable.

2.  She has 16 teeth now.  Yeah, 16.  It's like I have a toddler or something... It also means that we have to take her to the dentist soon for her first appointment...which I'm dreading.  Every time I brush her teeth, she somehow ends up pinned to the ground screaming while I try to get a good 5 swipes in before she either sucks all the toothpaste off or tries to eat the thing.  Not the best part of the day.

3.  This summer I broke both my elbows, got pregnant and injured my tailbone. I think I need another (real) summer break.

On second thought, I'm done with summer.  

4. Amelia talks now.  Her favorite word is more, which comes out sounding like "mow-uh".  It's adorable and hard to resist. 

5.  I'm pregnant and have been sick for almost 2 whole months.  But you don't want to hear about that.  I'll share more about the good parts of pregnancy once I remember them.

6.  Brandon is back in school which sucks.  After having him home all summer I was SO ready for us to be back to a normal schedule.  Well, let me tell you, the grass isn't always greener on the other side.

7.  Amelia makes animal noises.  She's a pro at the elephant, donkey, cow, and monkey noises.  I think she might have to be an elephant for Halloween.  But, I'll probably change my mind 50 times before we get a costume.

8.  This happened a while ago, but is still worth mentioning.  Brandon surprised me for my birthday with a dinner cruise!  It was super fun.  And a little chilly.  Here I am on the Willamette River in front of the Portland Oregon sign (that you can't really see).  I love that sign.

9.  We go to the zoo, OMSI (Oregon Museum of Science and Industry) and the Portland Children's Museum a lot.  Especially in the rainy winter when outdoor parks and activities aren't feasible.  Here's Amelia on the go at OMSI.  They have a forest area with chipmunk costumes.  So cute!  Maybe she could be a chipmunk for Halloween...

10.  I go to Florida at the end of this month...childless! Well, kind of.  Amelia is staying home with Brandon while I attend Rachel's wedding.  I'm super, super excited.  My mom is flying in from Ohio, too, which is going to be a ton of fun.  I can't wait! 

Memorial Day

Going through security on the way home from Ohio, I cried.  I've been known to cry at some pretty ridiculous things.  Insert incredibly cheesy political ad http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7oyDsebJrQ

No joke, I cried my eyes out on the way to work one morning during this commercial.  It was a sight to be seen.  

This time around, I wasn't pregnant and had a little more reason for tearing up.  Here's what happened.  When going through security, an older woman checked our IDs and asked me to wait an extra second.  I obeyed, partly because she asked nicely and partly because I'm super scared of TSA agents and what they're allowed to do.  A few seconds later, she stood up from her chair, looked Brandon in the eye and gave the most heartfelt thank you for the sacrifices he's made for our country I've ever heard.  She then looked at me and "thank you for the supporting this young man and the sacrifices you've made for your family." I couldn't help but tear up a little.  

Here's the funny thing.  I haven't even made any sacrifices.  Not compared to any other military family I know.  But I still cried.  I don't have to explain the kinds of sacrifices others have made.  I think we all know.  Instead, I'd just like to extend the same sincere, heartfelt thank you that the woman in the airport gave to us.  

And share a cute picture, of course.

Summer has arrived here in Portland and at my mom's house here in Loveland, Ohio.  It's been a while since my last post...and I'm just now learning how to used my iPad (thanks, mom!) to blog.

My baby turns 1 tomorrow and I can't believe how the time has flown!  We're in Ohio to spend time with the 'rents and celebrate!  I'll be sure to post pictures of our celebrations :)

In the meantime, here's a review of our trip so far :

Mom and Carl convinced us to stay for two weekends so Carl could teach Brandon how to use all of his fancy tools.  I picked out a few things for them to build, and I can't believe how good everything has turned out!

This was the first night of work.  It's going to be a cheaper, better quality, prettier, more meaningful version of this Potterybarn tree:  http://www.potterybarnkids.com 

Carl printed the picture, drew a grid over it and a huge piece of wood, and then drew it to scale.  Here Brandon is cutting the tree out.

And Carl looking on.

And, of course, no woodworking project could be complete without a little Phil Collins on the radio.  

While the boys have been busy in the garage, the girls have been busy playing and shopping.  Who knew that Plato's Closet actually had cute clothes for cheap? I'm talking super cheap.  This is one of my new favorite photos, and I just happen to be wearing a top from Plato's Closet that only cost $4.80.  No joke.

Needless to say, we've been back to Plato's Closet a few times.  I've also been taking advantage of Chick Fil-A while we're here.  Oh, Chick Fil-A, how I've missed you.  I'm on vacation, so it's ok to eat out every other day, right?  Yeah, right.  Good thing my parents have an elliptical downstairs.  

Til tomorrow!