Addy & Owen
Addy, Owen, and Maddie are all just a few months apart. 
Lindsay, Andrea(Owen under the blanket), Crystal, Theresa,
It is funny, even though we don't all get together very often, as soon as we see each other it is like no time has passed at all. Here we are all gathered around listening to one of Charity's stories. (Somethings never change :) Thanks girls for such a fun night!
My sweet niece Caroline was born with a hole in her heart. If that wasn't scary enough, she recently picked up a nasty respiratory virus that built fluid around her lungs and heart causing her fragile little heart to have to work way to hard for her body. Due to her lack of energy she has been hooked up to a feeding tube to ensure proper nutrition. She has been in the hospital since Monday, they are monitoring her heart, fluid levels, and nutrition. We are hoping she will be able to come home soon. Our family would appreciate prayers and positive thoughts toward Caroline and her Mom & Dad as they deal with this difficult situation.
I took Addy Mae outside to capture some pictures of her first snow.
Our backyard full of snow! It has been snowing nonstop since I woke up at 6 AM this morning.
We had to make several grocery store trips to gather all our supplies! We went everywhere as a big group. The rule is NO separating.
Laura kicked of the baking in the kitchen!
Digs made some adorable holiday pillows.
Krissy was the official taste tester and craft helper! Cabe was the all star baker/crafter. She made the most batches of cookies, washed piles of dishes, sewed her & Todd's name onto their stockings, and became quite the card maker. We voted her ALLSTAR crafter.
Jamie (AKA craft leader) made the cutest paper garland and taught us all how to make her adorable fabric banners. Ruthie making her most beautiful holiday cards.
I thought you might enjoy seeing a picture of Addy all bundled up and ready for our walk. It was such a gorgeous winter afternoon, clear, sunny, and crisp. It is sometimes hard for me to get motivated to work out when it is so cold out but once I get out there I love it. We went for a great walk. I was loving my playlist of all my favorite Christmas songs, a combo of Amy Grant, Sarah M., and Celine. All was good until we got home and realized I had locked ourselves out of the house. Thank goodness I had my cell phone. I called my Mom, she came and unlocked our door for us. Thanks Mom! Enjoy this lovely winter weather, you can't say that very often in the NW.
We woke up early to watch our friends run in the Seattle half marathon. It was such an inspiring and amazing event. As I was standing on the corner watching the runners go by I found myself trying everything to hold back my tears. I was surprised how emotional I was watching these runners. I wanted to cheer but if I did, I would have really started crying. It was just so neat to see all kinds of people, young and old, working incredibly hard to finish the race. Everyone (except me) on the street was cheering on the runners, cute little families were holding up signs, taking pictures, and looking for their loved ones in the race. It was amazing to watch so many people pushing their bodies to such great lengths. I am not sure if I am ready to do a marathon but it has definitely inspired me to get back into running or should I say jogging. Congrats to everyone that ran today and good luck to Justin & Laura who are running next weekend in the Sacramento marathon. You guys are amazing.
Addy's 1st Thanksgiving!
We ended our fun filled weekend with a day at the beach. We packed up the frisbee and the picnic basket and headed to the coast. It was the perfect way to end our weekend.
As we were crossing the street I just happened to find a $20 bill laying in the road!
And to top it off the Cougs won in double overtime! What a lucky day!
China Town!
The view at the top of Lombard Street-AKA crookedest street ever.
The Wharf!
Riding the trolley.
We ate dinner at The Stinking Rose. I am still tasting garlic-yuck. Poor Justin, he met up with us Friday evening and we were SOOOO stinky!
Me on the BART
Addy is getting to be such a big girl. She had her 8 month birthday on Friday! She is now trying to stand up when she is leaning up against something but if she forgets to hold on she falls right down. She loves to sit and play with her toys but she hasn't figured out how to crawl. I am sure it is coming soon. She knows exactly what she wants and if you give her the wrong toy she will let you know by protesting. It is so fun to try to figure out what is going on in her little head.
We just got back from family dinner over at my parents house. Bryan is home, which is always a good excuse to get together and have Mom cook us a yummy meal! Thanks Mom! The kids were loving Bryan this evening, especially Megan. She had to sit by him at dinner and when he was holding Addy she had to jump in his lap too. Bryan burned me a copy of the new Kenny Chesney CD, which I am super excited about! I am going to go take a bath and listen to it right now. Have a good night!
Addy is so incredibly blessed to have two cousins that are less than a year apart! They are going to have so much fun growing up together. We love you Parker and Caroline!
It was so fun to catch up with you girls! Our visit was much too short! We look forward to seeing you soon! Digs, we hope you had a great birthday and that you find your keys.
We are off to Seattle this weekend to see baby Caroline and celebrate Diggy's birthday! Have a great weekend!
Our good friend Philipp is heading back to Germany today. We will all miss him! We had such a wonderful time together the past few weeks. The Elhardt's first met Philipp when he was a foreign exchange student 12 years ago, since then he has been back to visit several times including making the trip for our wedding. He is considered a member of the family. We look forward to the next time we see you-hopefully it will be in Germany!
Yeah! Addy Mae can finally sit up on her own without falling over!
Megan found a pumpkin that was the perfect size for Addy!
Ellie found her pumpkin!
Megan after a long search for her pumpkin!
I found the cutest pumpkin in the patch!
Jake, I think that one is a little too big!
Parker loved the baby goats!
