Bumbo Boys

I knew when I pulled out our Bumbo seat for Lucas that it wouldn't be long until Christian requested one also. Lucky for him, we have two! How did we end up with two Bumbo's you ask? I was unable to pack everything in the midst of our shuffle from California to Colorado and eventually South Carolina in the winter of 2009-2010. A lot of baby gear was packed up and shipped directly from California to South Carolina including what I didn't realize would become the beloved Bumbo chair and the bouncy seat that Lucas is enjoying so much now. Christian was 3 months at the time of our move and it was so hard to decide what to bring knowing that we wouldn't see our stuff for another 3 months. Anyway...I purchased another Bumbo in Colorado during our time of transition, and there you have it- two Bumbos. :) Now didn't that just work out perfectly:

Disney Magic

Our final trip during Steve's R & R after his deployment was to...you guessed it...Disney World! If you know us well, you know that we (especially Steve) love Disney World and Disneyland. We had season passes to Disneyland the majority of the time while we were stationed at Edwards AFB in California. It was always fun being able to take the 1.5-2 hour (once 6 due to a wildfire) drive to Disneyland for a little getaway from the desert. Christian is almost 18 months and has already been to Disneyland and Disney World 2 times now! What a spoiled little boy. :o) Anyway, back to our trip....

We had a wonderful time! We stayed at the Shades of Green military resort, which was quite a bargain for being so nice and also within walking distance to Disney's Polynesian Hotel and the transportation center. We went to EPCOT 2 days (because it is our favorite park) and the Magic Kingdom 1 day, and of course, Downtown Disney because I needed to get my Ghirardelli hot chocolate. :o)

Christian loved any chance that he could walk around, explore, and help Disney with their gardening needs. (Spending so much time at our house doing yard work lately has translated into Christian wanting to dig in the dirt and rearrange the mulch.)

It was fun to see C's face light up and he especially seemed to enjoy "Its a Small World" and "The Seas with Nemo and Friends" aquarium at EPCOT. Each morning Christian was excited for another day and would actually want to be in his stroller (temporarily) ready to head out from our hotel room.

EPCOT was having their "International Flower and Garden Festival" which was really neat to see the Disney character topiaries and beautiful gardens. I especially liked the butterfly garden.

Other than Christian having a stomach bug on the way home and enduring a very smelly 7.5 hour drive (we had to pull over to change his clothes 3 times) we had an excellent Disney World vacation. I am sure that future Disney plans will be in order soon. But now, after 3 weeks of fun together, today it is back to reality.

Christian is One!

Happy Birthday to our sweet baby boy, who was born 1 year ago today! I cannot get over how incredibly fast the time has gone. Is he really One? Was he truly this small? It seems like just yesterday that we were anticipating Christian's arrival (which came as a big surprise) but here we are! And what a busy 12 months it has been with traveling across the country and living in 3 states (CA, CO, SC.) It has been such an adventure and we have enjoyed every part of C's life- we look forward to whatever may lie ahead. We love you buddy! Thank you for the indescribable joy that you have brought into our lives.In a letter I wrote to Steve about a month ago:

"Did you ever dream that you would love him this much? Must be just a glimpse of what our heavenly Father feels for us."

What a gift indeed.

Moving Part II...A Sweet Reunion

We made the first part of our move across the country from Edwards AFB (California) to Shaw AFB (South Carolina) in December with a 3 month "pit stop" in Colorado. Steve left in January for 9 weeks of trainings at Hurlburt Field in Florida while Christian and I stayed behind with family. Fortunately, we were able to meet in Orlando for a long weekend in the middle of Steve's trainings. Now we are FINALLY together again! Whoo hoo!

The journey from Colorado to South Carolina went really well. My mom, Christian, and I traveled for 3 days and made good time except for when we had to make a detour of a detour...but that only cost us an hour. The drive for Christian wasn't as easy as it was from CA to CO (because he didn't sleep nearly as much) but overall he was a really good boy and we were able to entertain him with toys.

We arrived on Wednesday afternoon and began to look at homes that Steve had previously viewed. These past few days we have been house hunting almost non-stop and have been getting a better feel for the Shaw AFB and Sumter area.

It has been so nice to be together and to see Steve with Christian. We are really looking forward to being able to settle down and to get the chance to explore the east coast.

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.)

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!

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: