Love All

Derek is begging us to enroll him in a tennis program. He has to wait 3 more years until he's old enough, but he is just itching to join! Just look at that face....Can't you just hear him saying, "...but Mommy, pleeease??" Ha!

An Evening Out

One of Ryan's high school friends had a surprise 30th birthday party over the weekend. It was so much fun to have a night out on the town. The party was held at The Upper Room Martini Bar in Broadripple. What a classy place! Apparantly Peyton Manning and his buddies claim this as their hangout, which only added to my excitement. :)

It's always a good time to get together with Ryan's high school friends. They're great people, and it's always a treat to see them. Happy 30th Birthday, Brian!

Brian the birthday boy and Ryan
Ryan, Jeff and Justin

Just us

This DJ was so great, and he absolutely cracked me up ;)

Play Date

My friend Amanda and her son Zackary came over to visit Derek and I last week. It was Derek's first real play date. Too bad he didn't last very long before he got cranky and needed a nap. Zackary didn't mind too much. He is the most content baby boy! He is such a sweetie complete with an adorable smile.

Amanda and I had a nice time chatting over warm tea. It's so comforting to have another Mom to discuss baby topics with and to have a few laughs with, too. We can't wait for the next play date!

One Year Old!

Happy 1st Birthday, Derek Reid!!! To celebrate his big day, we threw a birthday party for him over the weekend. We had a fun time with family, and boy did they spoil him rotten!

Derek Fun Facts:

-His way of greeting people is with a fake cough
-He can climb a flight of stairs in less than a minute
-He is already exercising selective hearing
-He loves to play catch
-He is such a happy boy
-He loves attention from the ladies
-He is a social butterfly just like his Daddy
-He is a fast crawler, but hasn't attempted that first step yet
-He has 2 bottom teeth, and 1 upper just poked through yesterday
-He kicks his legs and laughs out of excitement when he knows it's bath time
-He thinks every object should roll like a ball

A Little Dab'll Do Ya

An apple orchard, a 60 degree and sunny November day, late night conversation and laughs complete with dessert and wine. Does it get any better than this? When it's being shared with Daren, Angela and Isaac it does!

We met Daren and Angela during our college years and ended up moving to Colorado within a month of each other and then ended up moving back to Indiana within a week of each other. We are blessed to call them our friends.

Their 8-month old son Isaac was such a great host as well. He greeted us with a huge smile, a wave, and even little kisses. He is already really good at sharing, and he let Derek play with all of his toys. It was so cute to see the boys interact together.

Before heading home we were able to visit Ryan's parents, Gary and Debby. Gary took Derek for a mower ride, which he wasn't too sure about. Debby found all kinds of kitchen utensils to keep Derek entertained, and he loved all the different gadgets. Ryan's Granny, Uncle Jim, Uncle Jeff and Aunt Glennda were also there, so it was great to get to visit with them as well!

Togetherness

It had been 2 years since we were last able to be with my brother and his family from Arizona, so we were beyond elated to have Jake, his wife Kim and their 3 kids (plus 1 on the way!) here for a visit! We were finally able to meet their youngest, Selah Hope, and they were finally able to meet Derek Reid. It was so great just spending time with them and watching Derek play with his cousins. We treasured our time together because we don't know when the next time will be that we will all be together again. What fun we had!

Fall Walks

What a most beautiful time of year. Yesterday we took advantage of an autumn walk with Derek and Collin, too of course. Derek absolutely loves being outdoors soaking in the sun and fresh air while he's bundled up and cozy in his stroller. This time next year he'll be walking with us!

ZZZZZzzz

Aaah, SLEEP! So many times I will tell myself I'm going to bed early tonight, yet it never happens. Well last night I finally caught some good z's and am so ecstatic about it that I want share.

People, I slept for 10 hours last night! I woke up with enough energy to run a marathon and such a feel good perkiness that not only would get on people's last nerve, but also didn't require a cup of morning joe. I have not been able to sleep that long in over a year. Watch out world, here I come! Wheeeee!

A Time to Reflect

This time last year we closed a chapter in our lives as we pulled out of our driveway on Peyton Drive on a crisp Sunday morning leaving behind a completely empty house that we had made our home. As difficult as it was for me to be so far from my family during our years in Colorado, I would never in a million years change it for anything. Tears welled in my eyes as the garage door slowly shut knowing that the life we knew and had become familiar and comfortable with would never be the same. Change was on the horizon, lots of change.

We knew our new life in Indiana would begin with adjustments. Ryan had a brand new job that he started Monday morning at 8am, just 4 hours after arriving in Indiana. Can't say we didn't hit the ground running! We had a baby arriving in 8 weeks for whom we were barely prepared materialistically, let alone mentally. All of our possessions arrived at my parents house via the ABF moving truck only to find out while unloading that most of our (very new) furniture had severe gashes and scrapes in the woodwork. We discovered this just hours after receiving the news that our house in Colorado wasn't sold after all because the buyers lied about their income. The stress continues. A semi truck ran into the side of Ryan's new to us car a couple weeks later. Thank God he was o.k. My sister moved in with my parents and us, which made for a tension filled atmosphere at times. During these times I could feel the stress piling higher and higher in my chest. I missed my husband. He had some very long 12-15 hour work days as he was getting himself accustomed to his new job. And to top it off we had to put the family dog to sleep, and I was dealing with a bang cut from hell. Depsite some amazing blessings (like our son!)our life hit a rough patch, and I think it has taken about a year to adjust!

We are happy and thankful to be near family once again, but man we had to jump over some major hurdles during the transition. I knew the moves (CO to my parents, my parents to our house), Ryan's new job, our new baby would be stressful but I really had no idea just the toll it would take. Whew!

To everything there is a season....I am really thankful that season is O.V.E.R. I am thankful for our new home, great neighbors, my part time job that I just love, living in the same city as my parents, getting to see family more than just every few months, autumn in Indiana, Daren and Angela and Zach and Beth moving back to the midwest from CO as well, the lush green grass, the colors of all the different flowers and plants, the familiarity of Indiana, our new church, a happy and healthy baby boy, a too good to be true husband who I don't deserve (I married way out of my league!), and a God who proves over and over he hasn't forgotten about me when I thought he did.

See You in September

I absolutely love this time of year. Brisk mornings, sweatshirts and jeans, the glow of dusk, the anticipation of fall. The beginning of September is also special to me because it's when Ryan and I began dating 9 years ago! I always get butterflies in my stomach when I think back to that time. Despite the fact that Ryan wasn't full of conversation during our first dinner date, (I think he was really nervous!) later on that evening we talked and talked and talked. Even though we were just getting to know each other, there was a familiarity between us and chemistry that words cannot describe. Hands down I knew he was the one for me by the end of our first date. Nine years later he still gives me butterflies and makes my heart go pitter-pat.

We took a day trip to Ball State's campus on our wedding anniversary this past June. Here are a couple pics:

Posing outside the building where we met

North Quad building where we met in Religious Studies 101 class

New Trick

This is what I found when I went to get Derek from his afternoon nap.

...and it begins...

The Ninth Month

Derek had his 9 month wellness check up a couple days ago. We are happy to report that we have a healthy baby boy! Derek is growing consistently. He weighs 20 lbs. (45th percentile), is 28.25" in length (50th percentile), and his head circumference is 17.25" (15th percentile). The nurse practitioner said, "Oh, he just has a small head doesn't he.....doesn't surprise me.....both Dad's and Mom's heads are small." Huh? Oh well.

Last week Ryan and I noticed an upper tooth poking through Derek's gums. Two days later it was gone and hasn't been back since. Strange. Despite the lack of teeth, we have been advised to go ahead and start him on table foods. Table foods? Are you kidding me? I am scared to death that he is going to choke. And then there's that debate on whether he is going to remain vegetarian like me or become a meat eater like his Dad. While I'm on this soapbox, does it just floor anyone else that once a baby is weaned from human breast milk the pediatrician wants him to drink cow's milk?!

Here is Derek reacting to his first experience with blueberries. I think they were a little on the tart side.

Happy Birthday, Gary!

Ryan's Mom and Dad came to visit at the end of last week. It just so happened they were here on Gary's 61st Birthday! (Hope I don't get in trouble for revealing his age.) ;) We were able to have dinner out with them as well as Ryan's Uncle Jeff and Aunt Glennda. We had a great time. I made him a chocolate chip/toffee bar cookie cake. It turned out pretty good if I do say so myself. We had a fun couple of days with them, and we're thankful we were able to celebrate Gary's birthday in person this year! Happy Birthday!

Bump, Set, Spike

Ryan's cousin Katy plays Volleyball for The University of Indianapolis. It just so happened that she had a game scheduled in Fort Wayne! We were so excited to see her play. Katy is an excellent athlete, so it didn't surprise us at all that even as a Freshman she got some playing time. Way to go Katy!

Katy's Fan Club

The star athlete and her biggest fan

Ryan's Uncle Jeff & Derek could barely hold in their enthusiasm (c'mon guys, we won!)

Derek with his Grandma Deb

Katy in action. She is the blonde far left.

way to go #5

Congratulations, Isaac and Kari

This past weekend we attended my cousin Isaac's wedding in Michigan City. It was such a lovely day. I was a little nervous wondering how Derek would handle such a long day. We were gone for 12 and a half hours, and 5 of those hours were spent driving. Our little boy could not have done any better!!! We were so proud of him. He did not fuss one time, he absolutely ate up the social scene of the reception, and yes, he was the cutest baby there. ;)

Isaac and Kari had the most beautiful reception. It was so fancy, and everyone had a great time. Unfortunately we weren't even able to snap a photo of the new Mr. & Mrs. because we never got a chance to be close enough. There were around 400 people there!

Derek with his Pop Pop

Derek having a ball with his Mop Mop & Pop Pop

Family Pic

Fresh flowers and chocolates at the reception

with my Favorite

The Fort Wayne group

Derek with his Great Grandpa Wally, Great Grandma Phyllis

Father of the Groom and his Sister (my Mom)

Mother of the Groom (so pretty!) and her Sis-in-Law

Poolside

82 degrees and sunny. What's the best way to wrap up the month of July? Let's go swimming! So we did. Derek and I joined our friend Melissa at her parent's pool for the afternoon. I was so excited to take Derek to see how he would respond to the cooler water. Considering how much he likes his baths I was pretty confident he would enjoy the pool as well. He absolutely loved it! He squealed with joy, kicked his legs with excitement, and broke Michael Phelps' world record in the breast stroke. (not to brag or anything.) Sunscreen and sunglasses -- we're ready to go

Derek's first dip in the pool

Taking our time to dry off


Worn out by the time we got home