Summer Trip to Michigan

We went to Michigan for a long weekend a few weeks back.  It was a really wonderful trip.  We took off Thursday, Friday, and Monday...so we were able to be there for 5 days.  Honestly, this is the longest we have been there since 2006 when Aaron proposed to me in Michigan.  It was SO good to be there for that long and not feel rushed to see and do all that we hoped to do!



The trip started with this "melt mommy's heart" moment in the car when I looked back to peek on my kiddos.  They were holding hands!  Oh my, I love them!

 The day we got there Aaron got to spend some one-on-one with his dad and the guys golfing both that evening and the next morning.  Me and the kiddos were lucky to get some quality time with Tina and her kids while they were golfing!  We headed to Marquette to see the newest Anderson addition Jozie (Aaron's cousin's little one) along with her big brother Quincy and Vanessa.  Of course, I didn't get my camera out -- but it was so good to see them and see Vanessa's adorable house! 

As always Ness - I wish we could visit longer :)

Addy reached a milestone that night when she slept with Alesha -- this is the first time since she was born that she slept with one of her cousin's and not her mommy/daddy when she has been at any of our cabins/camps, etc.  As I said good night to her, I was a little choked up thinking "my baby is so not a baby anymore".  Seriously, I get it now when people tell me they grow up fast.


Addy and Alesha getting ready for bed!  Side note - Addy's not the best bed-mate.  I had shared a bed with her the night before and she was ALL OVER THE PLACE and I was sleeping on a tiny edge of a queen size bed.  When Aaron checked on them in the morning...poor Alesha appeared to be on one tiny part of the bed while Addy took up the rest of it.  Sorry Lesh!!!!!

 The next morning we went out to camp for the day - which is where we slept for the rest of the weekend.  We spent the day hanging out by the water and playing with cousins!


Auntie Tina helping Addy...she was funny because she was trying to get her legs all the way out of the water when she walked 'cause it was cold to her!

 Over the weekend we did a ton of fun things.  Blake took his first Sauna (and I promised my husband that I would teach my children the "correct" way to say Sauna (Sow-na) instead of the "wrong Minnesota" way (Saw-na)). 



I wish he was looking here...but it was the best full-body sauna shot that didn't "expose" him :)

 

Splashing and Goofing in the Sauna!

Aaron's cousin Tyler is a serious bicyclist - will likely be pro next year if I understand things correctly.  He raced in the "Ore to Shore" 48-mile race while we were there.  It was a very special race because it runs right through his home-town and he is the only local biker that was racing with the elite group. 

It was so exciting to watch and very fun to see everyone cheering for Tyler.  He took 11th overall and really did awesome! We really enjoyed watching him race - and Addy LOVED it.  Now when she sees bikers she yells out to them "Go Go Go!".  So cute...

After the race we said hi to Tyler and he was a little muddy from the trails.  For a few days after the race Addy would randomly talk about him and say "Tyler bike fast...Tyler dirty...Tyler need a bath!"



Waiting for the bikers at the first check-point that we made it to!

 Side note - I've added Tyler's racing blog to my blog list "Culver's Racing..."-- check it out!!!!!

The rest of the weekend was basically spent out at camp.  I got to go jet-skiing, we went paddle-boating, took a boat ride, swam - and Addy & I taught her daddy and auntie Tammy how to make a sand castle.  Can you believe these peeps had NEVER made a sand castle??!!!



Auntie Tammy & Addy "racing"

 

Once she discovered the sand...she was pretty much planted here digging in it for the rest of the day!



Right after this picture, Blake decided the sand on the bottom would be a tasty treat...so he lost his priveleges of sitting by himself in the water!  Floaty's and mommy's arm were his only swimming options :)

And...two of my favorite pictures of the weekend....I always look through my photos when I get home and wish I had more "family" pictures.  I always wish I had more pictures of the kids with Papa Lowell, and also their cousins. 

I was so excited to see that Tammy had gotten this great one of Addy and her grandpa!!! 


Can there be a more precious picture????  Seriously????!!

 Lowell - she sure does love you!  She was so excited to see Grandpa Lowell and when we got home, she kept asking to go to "Grandpa Lowell's House" for a few days.  XOXOXO!!!



The View from the kitchen of camp...seriously, the most peaceful view I have ever seen.  Makes all the stresses just fade away when you sit there, stare at that, and slowly take some sips of coffee!!!!

It was such a wonderful trip!  It was great to see Addy grow up a bit from the last trip to this one.  She was less of a little one that needed their mommy/daddy and became a little girl that enjoyed spending some quality time with her aunts, uncles, cousins, and of course, Papa Lowell. 

WE LOVE YOU GUYS!!!

Nine Months

Lots happened for Blake between months 8 & 9.  He MASTERED crawling and he is all over the place now.  The kid has no fear and a gate had to go up instantly.  We didnt' have to worry about anything with Addy.  Blake gets all over the place.  He makes me so nervous sometimes...I'm going to be a wreck as he gets older, LOL!

He has no fear in the bathtub so I constantly think he's going to slip and fall and get a mouth full of water.  He stands up on everything and is starting to walk around things too. 

Blaker L-O-V-E-S his food!  Seriously, if you put it in front of him, he'll eat it.  He's still not ready to eat everything...but he sure does try.  He gets mad when you are eating and not sharing :)

Speaking of getting mad - the kid has somewhat of a temper!  He seriously has a "roar" that he does, it is too funny!  When Addy is annoying him he'll sort've go "grrrrr" and get mad.  I need to record it, because trying to explain it doesn't do it justice! 

We went through a phase this month where all he wanted was to be held and loved and when you put him down, he was extremely sad and mad.  It was a little bit of that "separation anxiety" and a mixture of just plain wanting to be held.  He's gotten SO MUCH BETTER...it was a hard few weeks because at the end of the work day, he'd be sad and not want us doing anything but hold him (he'd even get upset being put in his high chair to EAT)...that stage is tough!

He doesn't really say any words yet.  He's said ma ma sometimes but I haven't officially noticed that it is toward me.  I noticed him saying "Ba" recently when I was getting his bottle, not sure if that was a coincidence.  He does clap now and puts his arms up for "SOOO big!". 

The best thing about my sweet boy...he's a cuddler.  He'll snuggle right into your shoulder...and now that he's over the separation anxiety thing, he does it to pretty much anyone that picks him up.  It is so sweet...and I hope he's always my little cuddler :) 

People comment all the time on how big he is and heavy he is...but he's average which totally surprised me when we went to his 9 month check up.  I expected him to be in the upper percentiles.

Here are his stats:
Weight - 20.2 pounds (41%)
Length - 28.1 inches (42%)



My Sweet Boy!  (he has 2 teeth right now)



Messy Eater...he is soooo messy when he eats!  He only gets things like this (ravioli's) on bath night!

Standing Up...he's gotten brave and let go a few times too...I think he'll be walking before Addy did, she was 14 months



Crazy boy in the bath!

 

The phase we went through for a while...my sad boy.  I don't know if this picture is very nice of me to take...but look at him.  It was so hard to not just give in to those sad sad eyes :)

 

Hey Guys!  I wanna come out too!

 

Daddy loves to style my hair!!!  So cute and makes me look like a big boy!



Summer Fun

July and August so far have been sooo busy - which is why I haven't been blogging as often as I wish.  We've been doing lots of traditional summer things, like chasing after the ice cream truck in our neighborhood, going to the pool, going for walks, having fun with friends and family.  It has been a WONDERFUL summer so far! 

Here's a few of the fun things that we did in July (welll...maybe more than a "few"!):


Chased down the ice-cream truck and enjoyed some goodies on our deck!

 



Played with our water table in the backyard!



Sweet Little Baby Feet :)



Transitioned to a "Big Girl Bed"  (after about a week of her climbing out and us putting her back in bed about 5 times a night...she gave up on trying to prolong bed time and now she rarely comes out once we tuck her in).  She's getting SOOO big you guys!



Took Silly Pictures and had fun with each other.  Addy says "Blake's not Cheesing in this pic"!!!



Finally grew hair long enough for a full up-do of pigtails and ponies!



Went to the local pools.  I'd recommend Soldier's Field to anyone...0 depth entrance and both of the kids LOVED LOVED LOVED it! 

 

I thought we were going to have a toddler melt-down when it was time to go...but somehow we avoided it!

 

Hosted some of my dear college friends!  Jill with her new little girl Aubrey (born 6/25); Me and Addy, Amy, Katy, Rachel and Ella.  Blake was napping and Katy has 2 boys that were in the car ready to head out after the morning.  IT WAS SO GOOD TO BE WITH THESE GIRLS FOR THE MORNING!

 

Took walks and had some 'lazy' kiddos that would bask in the sun while we walked!



Veteran's Memorial in Rochester...think this is a cool picture.  We walked around this one day...

More to blog about for summer fun...but had to wrap up July so we could move on to the rest of our summer adventures!!!!

Addy's Cabin Adventures

Addalyn was a very busy girl at my parents cabin on our vacation over the 4th....

First off...for whatever reason the kids LOVED playing in my dad's car that week.  It was too funny, they'd take turns being the driver.  At one point, they were at the "beach" and I heard my niece Brynne SCOLD Ella because it was time to go home from the beach (leave the sand by the lake and go to the car) and Ella was not "obeying".  It was pretty intense...these kids take their playing seriously, LOL!

Watch Out...Addy's the Driver!

Addy also went fishing for the very first time!!!!  It was too fun...she caught a couple of Sunnies...perfect "Addy" size!

Off We Go!



Perfect Little Addy Fish

 Addy went swimming quite a few times also.  We take the pontoon out a lot and try and go swimming in the deeper waters, and Addy was a trooper doing that!  My family just got a slide to go off of the pontoon and she even went down that with me into the water.  She did great.

The Pontoon w/ Slide...anchored about half of a football field's length away from our dock.

Swimming from the pontoon back to our dock!

 

Swimming in the Deep!

 And there was a ton of fun cousin time - of course!!!!!  The three little ones would just follow eachother around and giggle a lot of the time.  She also played tag with the big kids, house, and lots of other games!  It's fun to see them get along so well and have a good time together.


The 3 Little Ones "hunting for bucks" (Addy - 2, Drew - 3, Hunter - 2)

 

Blury but cute...a bunch of Goofballs! 



The Three Stooges Maybe??

 

The Girl Cousins...Ella (5), Brynne (6), Addy (2), Brooklynn (5)

"Laugh Until Your Belly Aches" --- Love these sweeties!

Blake's Cabin Adventures

The week that Addy, Blake and I were at the cabin - I was happy that I was able to get some one-on-one time with both of my babes. 

One day Addy was taking a late nap and I was able to enjoy some time with Blaker by the baby pool.  At first, he wanted NOTHING to do with the pool.  But eventually he warmed up to the water, as long as he was on the side of it and not IN it. :) I think he was enjoying himself regardless!



Testing the Waters





So So Fun Splashing Around!!

Blake also had his first pontoon/boat ride that week...at first he was pretty serious and poker-faced.  But, he warmed up and seemed to enjoy it after a bit!

One big thing that happend at the cabin is that he STARTED CRAWLING!!!  The kid gets EVERYWHERE and into EVERYTHING!)


Showing off his mad crawling skills :)

Most of the week Blake was inside the cabin or by the baby pool.  Since he was crawling, I didn't go out on the dock with him because I didn't trust that he wouldn't try to crawl right off the dock and dive into the water.  The kid would dive right for stairs if we let him, so I wasn't going to risk it!!  All in all I think he had fun at grandma & grandpa Tarara's cabin!

My and my babes at the cabin.