Merry Christmas!

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
~Isaiah 9:6

Wishing you and your family a very blessed Christmas!

Happy Promo/Engagement Anniversary!

Congratulations sweetie pie on your promotion to Captain! I am so proud of you and all of the hard work that you have accomplished! I know I don't say it enough, but thank you for your sacrifice and for being such a great husband and daddy! We love you!

Steve didn't have an official ceremony today because we are in the process of PCSing, so I decided to use a picture of Steve and I during his commissioning ceremony from 4 years ago, December 16, 2005.

Today also marks the 4 year anniversary of our engagement. December 23, 2005 Steve proposed at the Denver Botanical Gardens under all the pretty twinkling lights with my family present and in on the big secret. It was certainly a cold night, but a perfect backdrop to a very sweet proposal.

What a perfect day of celebration!

Back Home in Colorado...Moving Part I

We have had a very busy week...not to mention the holidays added into the mix. The movers came last Tuesday and Wednesday and packed up our house at Edwards. It is kind of strange trusting complete strangers to pack and transport your things across the country, but then again its a good reminder that its just stuff...things we forgot that we owned, things that we can live without, things that can be replaced if necessary, etc. We said our "goodbyes" and hit the road Saturday morning for Colorado. Christian was an awesome traveler and slept much of the time, Phoenix had it a little rougher but settled down and is happy to be on solid ground. We were able to take the I-70 route that we were hoping for and the weather and traffic were perfect even with skiers and tourists. We made good time and arrived Sunday afternoon at Steve's parents' home. As I write this, snow is gently falling in little wisps and it feels so nice to be back home in Colorado relaxing and enjoying time with our families. It is wonderful to have the initial part of moving behind us. Now we can celebrate Christ's birth without constantly stressing about all that moving entails and just enjoy!

(I promise to post some new pictures soon...I am using a different computer right now.)

Christian is 3 Months

Christian is 3 months old as of yesterday. Crazy! Our little guy is growing so fast. I took him to his "2 month" (more about that here) well-baby checkup on Monday and he was 13 lbs even and 22 3/4 inches long. He has already doubled his weight which babies generally do by 6 months (I guess he is a bit of an exception since he was 3 1/2 weeks early.) He is as sweet as ever, smiley, and sleeps 6-10 consecutive hours at night. (Hooray! Never thought that day would come!) He still loves being held and is a very content baby. He loves the little bear mobile above his pack n' play and will lay in bed smiling, cooing, and kicking his little legs. Sorry no pictures...we are in the process of moving and life has been a little hectic (I am actually at Starbucks writing this since our lodging doesn't have Internet.) More to come soon....

Christian is 12 Weeks

Some of my favorite pictures this week...

Counting Down...

Beginning the countdown...only 10 more days until we depart from Edwards AFB! The day is quickly approaching! Packers will be coming next Tuesday, movers on Wednesday, cleaning and final house inspection on Thursday, and out processing on Friday! Busy, busy! Steve's dad is kindly flying into LAX Friday night and driving up to Edwards so that he can help us drive to Colorado bright and early Saturday morning. Should be interesting traveling with both Christian and Phoenix and will most likely take a couple of days. We would like to be able to travel the I-70 route as opposed to the I-40, both because it is a little shorter and much prettier, but chances are there will be snow and ice preventing us. Either way, please pray for a safe and pleasant journey!

So Small, So Sweet

Lost in the jumble of the 100's of pictures taken of Christian these past *sniffle* almost 3 months...are these sweet pictures I forgot my mom had taken of us when Christian was just 1 week old. I added a couple of others as well.

Was he really this small? It's crazy how fast he has grown!

California Favorites

I recently mentioned that we have done a lot and visited many spectacular places while stationed in California. Here are some of my favorites in no particular order:

1. Pismo Beach, Hearst Castle:

2. Disneyland:

3. Santa Monica:

4. Santa Barbara:

5. San Diego, La Jolla:

Will We Miss Edwards?

As we spend our last few weeks here at Edwards (less than 3 now,) many memories and thoughts are beginning to surface. While Steve's parents were here last week, Steve's mom asked us if we will miss Edwards. Both Steve and I were silent with little response for a few moments (as Edwards and Lancaster have been very "interesting" places to live- for lack of a better word.) Then Steve responded that he would miss Disneyland and I responded that I have enjoyed visiting various places in California....So you see, I don't believe that either of us will miss Edwards proper. However, last night while nursing Christian in the wee hours, I could hear engine tests being performed on one of the jets and I became a little sentimental for several reasons...maybe partly because I know the end is near. While living at Edwards my knowledge of the Air Force, flight testing, and airplanes has greatly increased. For instance, I can now look at a flying plane and usually name it (as long as its a f-22, f-16, c-17, b-1, b-2, b-52...etc.) In addition to learning more about airplanes (one of Steve's passions,) we began our marriage here in the desert July 2006, have shared wonderful vacations and visited places we never would have, made some wonderful friends, AND to top it off welcomed our beautiful baby boy in September. So as much as we have acted impartial or even looked at the Antelope Valley in disdain at times, I believe that Edwards will always have a special place in our hearts because of these fond memories and the beginning of our family.

Happy Birthday Grandma E.

Happy Birthday Grandma!

Hope you have a very special day!

Wish we could celebrate with you, but we will see you soon (only 3 weeks now!)

Lots of love,

Steve, Erin, and Christian :o)

Christian is 10 Weeks

So Christian was supposed to have his "2 month checkup" today...at 10 weeks...BUT they cancelled on me, and forgot to call and tell me they cancelled and now Christian will have his "2 month checkup" at 3 months....oh well. A little irritating, but I am glad that we live on base and I didn't drive 40 minutes to the pediatrician for them to tell me that they cancelled his appointment. Anyway, Christian has been busy, busy, and these are the things that he has been up to the past week or so:

• Beginning to get over the whole "swaddling" thing...plus his receiving blankets don't seem to wrap him the way they used to...not to mention those crazy kicking legs!


• Studying faces and people's reactions. He is following people around the room, not just with his eyes, but he is turning his head also.


• Christian has nearly mastered holding his head on his own...every now and then he needs a little support.


• Sleeping longer stretches at night (my favorite!) The past few nights Christian has slept 7 hours before waking for a diaper change and to nurse. He is also learning to self-soothe and fall asleep on his own.


• This is funny: when Christian wakes in the night, I go into his room and nearly every time find him turned 90 degrees from where he started in his crib. I wouldn't be surprised if he rolls over soon too. He is pretty strong!

Thanksgiving Week

We all had a great time with Steve's parents this week. It was so fun going to Disneyland and very enjoyable relaxing at home the rest of the week. Steve's mom and I prepared most of Thanksgiving dinner on Wednesday which was good because we had a power outage most of the morning on Thanksgiving day. Fortunately, we have a gas stove and oven...so we would have survived. :)

On Monday we visited Steve's Great Aunt Lucille in La Canada Flintridge and she was tickled to meet Christian. Christian meeting his Great-Great Aunt Lucille:

Christian loves his Grandpa and Grandma....very, very spoiled by them!

Christian *Hearts* Grandpa and Grandma...and Disneyland too.

This past weekend at Disneyland was so fun and magical with all the Christmas decorations and twinkly lights...it was fairly busy with Thanksgiving coming up, but we just enjoyed all the sights and took part in a few rides. Christian enjoyed all the lights and stimulation (there is so much going on!) He even "made" his first Build-A-Bear with the help of mom and dad, a polar bear named "Everest" (yes, I know there are no polar bears on Mt. Everest.)

He especially enjoyed meeting Grandpa and Grandma R. and has been spoiled by them with lots of hugs, kisses, singing, reading, and cuddling...mommy can no longer soothe him the way that they can. :o) It is really fun to see Christian watch their faces and smile and coo.

Christian is SO cute (if I may say so,) and really a very content baby. It seems like just this weekend he grew even more and is learning so much. He is holding his head pretty well, and is sleeping some longer stretches at night (hooray for that- 5 consecutive hours is huge!) He is growing before our very eyes...before we know it he will be crawling!




We are looking forward to the rest of this week with Grandpa and Grandma and are excited about some delicious Thanksgiving food and family time. Hope that you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving!