Us Now!

We've had the best fall and have had so many fun, family adventures as of late! Jumping in leaves, going on walks, apple and raspberry farm picking, pumpkins, trick-or-treating with a very zealous 2 yr old, playdates, parks, a few zoo trips and loads of traveling (Washington, Arizona, PA/Baltimore/DC, Kansas)!! Grateful the weather has been so amazing until this week.....brrrrr...I just can't see 7 degrees as a high! Thank you Colorado!

But....needless to say, our dear blog as been severely neglected for a long time! So, I've decided to attempt to catch up over the next few months. Shooting to be caught up by the new year but being realistic that the holidays may delay my goal just slightly. Until then, here is a brief update on us for now!

We are loving all the fun adventures of life and love watching sweet Addison grow and experience everyday life.  She is a spit-fire and keeps us on our toes but is the smartest and sweetest girl! (We may be slightly biased ;)) Currently in the throes of potty-training but thankfully it is going fairly smoothly. Just recently we were able to travel to AZ to visit Addison's birthmom and birthfamily! So grateful that we've developed such an open and loving family relationship with all of them! Watch for the updated posts for more details and lots of pictures of our trip!

Jarad is eagerly searching for his first RN job after passing his boards! YEAH! And I'm try to keep up with Addi and am still zumba-ing regularly.  Sadie is a great dog per her usual and even takes it in stride when Addi wants to hold her or carry her around.

We hope soon to be able to add to our little family and pray often to be directed in our path to a new agency (LDS Family Services is no longer doing adoption for those of you who don't know.) as well as to be connected with another birthmom.  We love adoption even though it can be a hard road. We have been forever blessed by it and we can't wait for Addison to be a big sister!

Anyway- that is a VERY brief update on our life!

Sports Spectacle

We had a busy weekend of spectating some sporting events!



 We started downtown at the festivities for the Opening Ceremonies of the Olympics.  They closed down the street, had a huge screen as well as other Olympic activities.  We even got to watch some members of the USA trampoline team do some tricks!

 Rodney Atkins was also there putting on a concert for all the firefighters for their efforts during the wildfire. So we got to listen to some good 'ole country music too!

 It was really fun, especially with our pals Joe & Cara! Addison was a champ as usual and even slept through all the noise. We did have a realization that we need to do more local events!

The next evening, we headed to Denver for a night of baseball at Coors Field with the Rockies! Pre-game we ate at a local pizza place (YUM!) then we headed to the field. I was glad Addi had another chance to wear her baseball outfit. :)

Family pic- we had a fun and relaxing evening! (Even though we ultimately lost the game, it was a good one!)

Jarad's instagram shot- Addison and I!

3 Months

 12 lbs 1.5 oz

You're really growing!

(and look at that face- such personality!)

You've developed your own little personality too.

 Such a princess and you love to smile!

 You had a busy and fun month! You met the rest of your counsins and more Aunts/Uncles. We spent a fun weekend at Grandma/Papa's.

You had your first 4th of July! 

(Thanks for the outfit Grandma!)

We spent the 4th having fun at the lake as a family.



Sadly, you also got your first sunburn. :(

 You are really trying to figure out your hands and fingers.

 Such concentration!

 We had a special visitor- your birthmom!

 More time at the zoo!

You get to play with your cousin Reise a lot and she just loves you!

(she has from even before you were born! I think you'll be besties forever!)

 Tummy time isn't too bad now cause you have really gotten the hang of holding up your head.

You're the sweetest baby and adorable too! I don't think it is possible for Daddy and I to love you even more but we do E.V.E.R.Y. day!!!

(I don't think you care yet, but you finally fit into some shoes and I love when you wear them!)



G-Swing

Jarad loves golf. It's his thing, his "man-time," his stress relief, etc. 

Sometimes he plays 9 holes and sometimes he just hits the range for a bucket of balls. But recently, we made it a family affair!

 Reise loving roaming in the grass at the range.

 Mom and Addison were spectators that evening.

 The men-folk tried to give us some swinging lessons. Kev workin' it with Lori.

 Jarad kept telling me to stick out my buns- my form was not very good and I couldn't stop laughing.

 I finally got a couple of decent swings in... still in bad form apparently.

 Dad got to focus on his swing since Mom was spectating. They are taking lessons this summer so they've been getting lots of practice.

 After a bit, we left the balls to the men. Kevin's ready...watch out!

Jarad in action!

Although our g-swing was less than stellar, we had a fabulous family evening!

Mommy & Me at the Zoo

Just after Addison was born, we got an annual membership to the zoo, which is one of my favorite places! Seriously...we have the best zoo! And we have a lot of family and friends who also have memberships so we have fun play dates. :)

 Addi isn't too into the animals yet, but she likes to get out and about and I'm sure as she gets bigger she'll love it as much as I do, especially since we go at least once a month!

 

 My favorite bird- the peacock...I tried to get it to open it's feathers but it wouldn't.

 We had a blast with cousin Reise- look at that smile- just wanna squeeze her!

 Friends Amber & Amelia at the budgy birds- one landed on her shoulder and stayed until Amelia reached up and got her tail feathers! HA!

 Lindsey caught a bird to feed too but Penelope wasn't too sure about them up close.

 My other favorite animals and one of my favorite spots at the zoo- the giraffes! Lori & Reise feeding them (isn't rad that you can get so close to them?!).

 Penelope loved the giraffes too except when their slimy tongues kept getting her.

Addison and I- such a fun afternoon!

 

(not to mention a good workout pushing the stroller all over the mountainside)

Special Visitor!

Drum roll please....our special visitor was....our BIRTHMOM! We're so lucky to have such a great relationship with our birthmom and were SOOO excited to have her come visit for the weekend. One bummer of the weekend- Jarad had to work part of it but we still had a wonderful visit and can't wait for our next visit.

 Baseball is big in Addison's birth family so we thought it'd be fun to go to a game! Birthmom and I did some shopping and even found an outfit for Addi. (It's a boy onesie but we put a skirt with it and a bow and voila!- girl baseball outfit!)

 Sorry it's blurry, but it was pretty windy! Jar, birthmom and I

 Love her so much! We had such a fun weekend! (I need to work on my chin position in pics- as to avoid the double as featured here!)

Wind and a bit of rain didn't keep us away, but it did keep Addi bundled up! Snug as a bug in a rug!

 Mom and Dad and...

 Kevin, Lori & Reise joined us for the game as well.

The next day, the darn rain continued so the Zoo was a bust but after driving around town, we found a fun bowling alley and went to play!

 The ladies (minus me)...

 Jarad & I- just love him!

 Check out my sweet bowling form! Not to mention my outfit is awesome- the bowling shoes really go with the skirt. N.o.T.!

 Addi took a nice little nap even in the load bowling alley.

 A tradition continued- Chipotle! It is a favorite of all of ours!

 Baby girl got lots of snuggles and clothes from her birthmom and family- including an adorable Minnie Mouse outfit direct from Disneyland!

 I'm who?! Minnie Mouse has nothin' on me!

 Our birthmom seriously has become a part of our family and I know that our families love her as we do! Family dinner and games and lots of laughs and a semi-decent timer pic. :)

Jarad, Addison, Birthmom and I at the airport. Much to our chagrin, our weekend had to come to an end. Tears were shed but so grateful for a fabulous visit!!!