Where in the World are... the Agres

2012-01-25T07:03:00.000-08:00

After bath dance party necessities: "T-T bale" ie Tinker Bell costume, with wings of course and an Abby wand, and lots of music with a strong beat.

Here it is, the first instance where Addison has stolen my shoes. I am sure there is instances to come in the future.

And why is she clutching that blanket like a 4month old? It just came out of the dryer, super nice on a cold single digit night!

Because You Guys Always Want More.

2012-01-22T13:00:00.000-08:00

Addison loves reading. She loves her New Testament picture book in particular. However, the story she always seems drawn to is the one about a guy possessed and then his demons come out of him as pigs. A little bit scary. Sometimes, this kid just doesn't sleep in long enough for me on the weekends. On mornings like this I set her up with juice a snack (dry ceral), and cartoons. I then can snooze in bed for another 30min before she comes and checks on me. A few weeks ago I came back out to her all accessorized like this.

She was wearing all her necklaces from her toy drawer and had put on all the headbands Grandma Jodi had sent her. Very stylish!

Here's her Christmas dress that Pop Pop picked out this year.

Three Degrees and Decreasing

2012-01-20T18:56:00.000-08:00

It's officially Winter here in Sturgeon Bay. Last week we recieved our first big snow storm of the year and this week it's been in the single digits, plus wind chill factor. This has been the first year Addison has been old enough and well enough to go out and experience the snow. She came home one night and threw herself on the floor moving her arms and legs and saying snow man. I realized I had read at school they learned about Winter activities. I put two and two together and said, "Oh, you mean snow angel." She still calls it snowman angel. BTW she is very good at it too!

That night we got hit by the first storm of the season and in the morning I took her out to make a real snow angel. The first thing she did was throw herself on a pile of snow. She is loving it and doesn't seem to mind the cold at all.

Birthday!

2011-12-11T10:39:00.000-08:00

We started off Addison's birthday with a breakfast of a variety of fruit and cake! And ended the day with nachos and a fruit Popsicle.

While I was prepping for her party on Saturday, Ryan took her to the Y where she got to play for three hours in the gymnastics room with all the toys. She also met up with two of her friends at the Y.

Here's pictures from her party on Saturday.

For favors we gave away sparkly play dough, gold fish crackers, ring pops, and real goldfish. I am sure the mothers really appreciated the live fish!

Her cake was Abby Caddaby and took most of Saturday to complete, but seeing how happy it made her worth it.

She loves this Elmo balloon walker. She gives it hugs and kisses all the time and yesterday I caught her talking to it very seriously and then saying, "Yeah?" In a tone that implied she was awaiting an answer back.

She's finally got the hang of opening presents. And she scored big time with so many cool presents.

This tissue paper was a bigger hit initially than the present. She took out the tissue piece by piece and smoothed it out before digging in for the next piece.

Now onto planning for next year!

2011-12-04T10:39:00.000-08:00

Today is a big day in the Agre House. Our little girls is 2! We are celebrating tomorrow with an Elmo and Abby Caddaby party with some little friends. We cannot believe we have had two years with her and Ryan can't believe we only have 16 more. We love her more than we can put into words. She has truly changed our lives in unexplainable ways. We love you little Monkey! Today, we will leave you with some pictures to finish off the last post.
Last month we gave Addison her big birthday present early. We went to a showing of Elmo Live in Green Bay. She totally loved it. This is her "Elmo" hair.

Trying to show the camera her hair.

Riding in style, popping cheese curds and popcorn on the way to Green Bay.

We have NEVER seen Addison so excited. It was awesome to see he so happy. She was a head shaking, booty shaking, screeching little kid. I didn't know that Elmo made people tear up, but that's what happened to me seeing Addison SO, SO, SSSSSSSSSO happy.

As soon as we entered the arena she saw the merchandise display, very good marketing to kids, I almost fell for it too. $25 for a T-shirt even more for the little Elmo she already had at home. Instead we settled for a $10 Elmo balloon, it's still inflated so we got our moneys worth...I like to believe.

Just a little bit excited.

Sliding down the stair railing.

One day unexpectedly, Addison busted these moves out, much to my astonishment.

This is what comfy at our house looks like.

This is what our Sunday nights look like and I love that Addison love is as much as I do. My Mom started the tradition of pop corn and movies on Sunday nights and we are carrying that tradition on.

Here's a sample of what Addison and I did for Ryan's birthday card. She was a very unwilling participant but we finished it in time. When he came home we had it hanging on the wall spelling out "Happy B-Day."

We went out to Sonny's Pizza to celebrate Ryan's birthday. We ordered lots of deep fried appetizers, had pizza and a yummy cake from the bakery.

Post 1 of many to follow.

2011-12-02T19:51:00.000-08:00

We have a lot to catch up on so here is one post of many to follow.

Ryan recieved lottery tickets from some of his friends for his birthday. He was quick to teach Addison how to scratch them properly and she loved it.

Summer & Ryan sent Ryan a birthday in a box. Addison had fun decorating the cake they sent.

For Thanks Giving we traveled up to Duluth and spent time with Cameron and Rebecca's family. We were stationed with them out in Astoria and are happy to be close to them again.

Georgia, their oldest, and Addison have mutual adoration of eachother and spent a lot of time playing. Adelaide and Addison are too close in age yet and had some good fights.

We had a really nice couple of days, minus the dog poop on three pairs of shoes incident, catching up with some of our favorite people.

We celebrated the day with a proper feast and a Tur-duck-hen.

We leave you with the many faces of Addison Agre.

Latest Project

2011-11-06T05:33:00.000-08:00

I've been seeing word art all over the craft blogs and really wanted to create one. No "I'll love you to the moon and back," or "It all started because two people fell in love." Those are all well and good but I wanted something unique to our little family and I came up with this.Ryan's take on my "creative word art saying,"... "That's random." I am so blessed to have a husband who gets my ideas! Anyway, I'm trying to infuse more color into our house and I think these letters do the trick!

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T07:05:00.000-07:00

Here's Addison's Halloween outfit for school today. Later this am all the kids will be heading to the hospital to do a costume parade for the nursing home residents. Happy Halloween everyone!

Halloween

2011-10-30T15:52:00.000-07:00

This weekend was our branch Trunk-or-Treat party. Here's some of the decorations in progress. It looked super spooky with the lights off. This lighting just doesn't do the decor justice.

Some of the center pieces were goldfish with glow in the dark pebbles.

This year for our family costume theme Ryan thought up Addison being a race car driver that led us to being her pit crew. Ryan made up a killer racecar that fit over her wagon. Here's pictures from the party last night. It only took one trunk-or-treat car until Addison was a pro at getting candy, putting it in her bag and then running onto the next car.

With some of her loot today. It took her a bit to get the hang of these lip kazoo.

More pictures of the car and costume.

When Mom's Away

2011-10-26T18:02:00.000-07:00

Ryan watched Addison one day and I came home to find a list he made of things to do to keep her busy. This was one of the activities. My Dad had previously left some acrylic paints, canvas, and brushes here when he visited. Ryan set up a easel from a diaper box and a pallet, made a smock out of a garbage bag and set this up.

2011-10-01T21:38:00.000-07:00

It's a Dad thing.

She had figured out that she can wear her baby around and thinks it's pretty cool. She's had dolls for awhile now but has just started to really be interested in playing with them. Today, she carried her baby around and then put her in the highchair and fed her, but not before blowing off the "food" that was too hot for the baby.

One day I asked her to stand in front of this wall so I could get a picture of her. Now she insists on taking a pictures in front of the wall and saying, "cheese," which doesn't produce a very good picture face but does make for a funny moment to remember. She loves the Elmo pajamas that Grandma Jodi just sent.

In the process of cleaning out the garage for the winter I came across a tote full of stuff from when I was a little girl. I had saved it all for when I had kids. This little treasure box is now one of her favorites. She loves to stash her jewelry in it.

This picture makes me want to yell out, "NO! Stop the paparazzi!" Oh, and do you like the new pillows? I love them, it adds more color into the room.

"No, really I mean it. I'm calling my agent..."

"Okay, as long as I get a REALLy big cut off this."

Yesterday was a BIG day in our house.

2011-09-18T22:49:00.000-07:00

This is the REAL Addison, all wide mouthed excitement over big and little events. Yesterday we put on Fall clothes and went to the Harvest Festival. The weather was perfect, not too cold and not too hot. It had the perfect crisp of Autumn in it.
We enjoyed perusing the craft wares, listening and dancing to the live music in the streets, and sampling the street food, especially the homemade crepes!

I think she has seen one too many shows of "America's Next Top Model." She's really got that "say cheese," face down to a science!

Ryan got to come home and visit,for 24hrs, from dry dock, three hours away. We enjoyed a quiet weekend catching up, taking naps, playing games, and playing at the park. But the crowning "jewel" at our house was...wait for it...wait for it...

Addison pooped for the first time in the potty! And we made a very big deal about it with pictures and flushing, toilet paper, and "Yeah, you're a big girl!"

And I must say that "Da-E" did a very excellent job of capturing the moment and keeping the "bits" covered. So that's what "dropped" at our house yesterday, how about at yours?

Today

2011-09-15T15:48:00.000-07:00

We played peek-a-boo around the corner of the wall.
Just kicked it after nap and watched some Elmo.

Tried on our winter gear to make sure we are ready.

Washington Vacation

2011-09-12T14:34:00.000-07:00

Rick and Ryan went fishing and came back with these. They bought them. Just kidding! It is so nice to swing on the patio when it's warm outside. Addison loved it. I came out side and caught her swinging, kicked back, lounging on the pillows with her feet up on Grandma Jodi's lap. They weren't talking, just swinging and enjoying themselves.

Addison decided she needed to kneel down for the picture like Pop-Pop and Grandma.

We're Back.

2011-09-10T23:18:00.000-07:00

After a month long vacation out on the west coast we are back. We had so much fun and loved catching up with family and friends. More on that to come, but for now some recent pictures. Would you let this little grub in?

She loves, loves, loves vegan overnight oats. Want the recipe? Go to here.

I'm not done yet (I have one panel still to go) but here's my latest project...black and white striped curtains. They have given me the inspiration to finally do up this room.

It's Summer Time...

2011-07-20T21:37:00.000-07:00

and we are out enjoying it so a new post maybe put off for awhile.

4th of July

2011-07-06T22:46:00.000-07:00

We started or Fourth off with checking in on social media in bed.

Ryan bought Addison lots of "kid friendly" fireworks including snakes.

This photo cracks me up, if you blow it up you can see Addison getting ready to put a firework in the fire. All the guys have no reaction and all the girls show a huge reaction.

After the BBQ we went to the town fireworks along the canal and then headed back home for our own finale.

2011-07-01T07:08:00.000-07:00

We attended the change-of-command this week.

Addison sported, for the last time, her sailor dress the Captain and Ellen gave her as a baby.

We went to a birthday party for Addison's little friend Arielle.

And sported a new side braid.

Earlier in the month we celebrated Father's Day with a new grill and a side sloping cake!

Out Takes from our Photo Shoot

2011-06-19T21:32:00.001-07:00

We went out and took some photos this weekend. Here are some of the unedited outtakes.

2011-06-08T19:49:00.000-07:00

Our summer is off and running. Since the last week in April we have been on the go and loving the warm weather this time of year brings. Last weekend Ryan completed his first sprint triathlon with his friend Dave. Addison and I along with Kristy (Dave's girlfriend) went down to watch the boys compete. We left the house at 4:45am and it was so warm all day. I don't carry a purse but let me tell you, I am completely convinced there are traits specific to the genders that we are born with. Addison picked up Kristy's purse and knew just how to carry it.

Ryan leaving the swim.
Coming in from biking.

Ryan did really well and came in at 1hr and 41 min (he was in the 11th wave and the clock starts at the first wave so it's off for his time.)

Dave and Ryan happy they did it and happy they're done. I am very impressed with Ryan completing this goal, especially because he trained for less than a month.

And now for the pictures you have been wanting.

I threw as baby shower for my friend Sunday last Saturday. Before I had the table runners all cut up I had a flash of what else the fabric could be....

A sari for Addison and let the fashion show commence!

The shower was perfect. I love seeing a vision become a reality. The weather was awesome and the company as well.

There's some kind of magic white lights contain. I think my favorite time to view a party setting is after dark bathed in the glow of white lights, it's magical.

I Smell Bounce

2011-04-28T13:32:00.000-07:00

Now that I am done refolding 80 bounce dryer sheets I can tell you what happened. I was just finishing up Skyping with my Mom and I had been getting strong whiffs of dryer sheets. I wondered where the smell was coming from, it was pretty strong. My Mom asked where Addison was and I said I didn't know. But the house is baby proofed so I don't worry about her roaming around. When I got off the computer I went to see where Addison was. Here she was. In the middle of 80 Bounce dryer sheets. She's never bothered them before, I guess I'll have to move them now.

She smells so strongly I think I could toss her in with the next 50 loads and get the job done. Or maybe more correctly then next 80 loads.

She has really gotten the hang of how to lounge in her chair. Assume the position.

Easter Week

2011-04-25T09:49:00.000-07:00

We had a great, busy Easter week. We made cookies to take to a neighbor along with an Easter lily to celebrate Palm Sunday.

We visited some baby bunnies and chicks at the co-op. I really thought about bringing one of those cute bunnies home and then thought better of it.

And we dyed eggs of course, along with a little girls legs, hands, clothes, and the cupboard.

And the Easter Bunny made a stop over at our house and brought some fun surprises.

We capped the week off with attending church and showcasing the Easter dress Great Grandma Worlton bought Addison.

Spring Has Sprung

2011-04-13T14:44:00.000-07:00

The last of the snow is all melted and we have had a string of warm weather days. The last two days I took Addison outside to get down in the yard and play. We've been able to make a good dent in cleaning up the flower beds for the season. Addison loves being outside. She's dug in the dirt, raked up leaves, and pulled weeds. Today, we saw a mole pop up from the flower bed we were working on and then scurry across the way from us and go down another hole. Pretty interesting. Addison also had her first encounter with a worm. I picked it up and gave it to her which at first she wasn't too thrilled with. She threw it down and then on second thought picked it back up. I wanted so badly to capture it on film but I don't trust her. It would take me far longer than two seconds to run in the house and get the camera and in that time she can get into a LOT of mischief. And about two nanoseconds after that thought flew through my mind the worm was IN her MOUTH! She ripped it right out of there when I yelled, "No, get it out of there!" and then promptly ripped the poor thing in half. That was the end of her worm experience. I took Mr. Worm's, now, two body segments and put him back into the dirt.

And I know she loved every minute of it. I think the dirt in her diaper proves it or maybe the dirt she insisted on grinding into her hair.

Our Bags are Packed!

2011-04-10T19:56:00.000-07:00

At 9pm tonight it was warm outside, the sky was flickering with a magical show of cloud to cloud lightning and I was running through the house gathering up our 72hr kits. By 9:15 my car was loaded and my friend was on alert that we might be headed her way, to take have a tornado party in her basement. Last night we had thunder, lightning, and rain storm that lasted for hours and this afternoon most of Eastern WI was in a tornado warning. Kind of a nerve racking situation for a girl from the west coast, a girl whose been prepped from elementary school on what to do in case of an earthquake or tsunami but NOT a tornado. In fact the only real information I have about tornadoes is only what the Wizard of OZ taught me...tornadoes are the means by which wicked witches end up under houses.

It's now 10pm and we are in the clear with the storm now over Lake Michigan and I have time to reflect. And the one thing that keeps coming to mind is that I am thankful. Thankful that we did get hit by it, thankful that those who did get hit didn't get hurt, and mostly thankful to be prepared.

Our church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day-Saints, for years, has counseled us to be prepared. We are encouraged to put together 72hr kits, have a year supply of food and water, and a financial reserve. Growing up I imagined using these resources in an apocalyptic setting, like something out of a movie and that was the only scenario I foresaw us using them in. However, the older I get the more I have been able to see the many more common situations where these reserve would come in more than handy. Growing up on the Coast our city water was vulnerable to the ocean backing up far enough to make the city water salty and unfit to drink. Thankfully my Mom and Dad took the church leaders counsel seriously and we were able to use our water storage until the city water cleared up. And just last month, my hometown was hit by the tsunami from the earthquake in Japan. When the tsunami warning sirens went off my 80-something grandma threw her 72hr kit in her car and away she went to gather with others to the designated "safe zone." Lastly, with the possibility of the government shutdown this week and the possibility of Ryan only receiving half of his pay next month I was very relieved to know we had food storage we could rely on. And tonight I am again thankful that we had our 72hr kits all prepared just in case we needed them for a "tornado party." How grateful I am that Heavenly Father has given us a prophet on the earth today who receives modern day revelation and by heeding those revelations we can be prepared...no matter what.

If you would like to know more on how to prepare a 72hr kit, food storage, or financial reserves visit http://www.providentliving.org/channel/0,11677,8033-1,00.html

I Heart this girl!

2011-04-03T19:50:00.000-07:00

I love this kid. No, really besides the obvious reasons, she's mine, she's blazingly cute, she's funny, etc. etc. etc. She always notices and admires my completed projects, Ryan, ummm not so much. I finally finished up this Valentine slipcover, just in time for Valentine's day...next year, and had it sitting on the couch. When she went in the room she immediately noticed it and went crawling all mad woman like over to it and began inspecting it. My peeps banner was the same thing. When she woke up from her nap she looked up at it, pointed, smiled, and gibbered something to the effect of, "Mom, you are just so awesome! Look at the great handiwork you just made. It's the best I've ever seen and I love it!" For days she kept looking up at it, pointing, and got all happy. It makes me so happy to make her happy and to have someone appreciate my projects. Sure Ryan appreciates them but just not in the same way. We finally got our package from Oregon. We had to ship out all the goodies we picked up while on the West Coast. With two grandmas you easily fill up your suitcase and then some. Here's some of the cute socks my Mom made Addison. You might be able to tell they are a bit BIG. Hey, we still have one more WI winter to make it through so no worries. They'll get used.

We watched General Conference today. There were so many great talks and a lot of humorous points as well. Addison watched the choir intently and enjoyed a snack while sitting in her chair my Mom made as well.

Craftin'

2011-03-26T21:17:00.000-07:00

I am still on the look out for frames to finish up this project but here's a peek at the first completed one. It has cork board for the back so I can swap out her drawings/crafts etc. and keep them on a rotating display. These are going in her toy corner of the family room. While I was busy up top whipping up this Peeps banner this was happening below...

...transcription of the whole activity. It was a pretty handy way to keep her busy for awhile.

The banner up in it's place for Easter.

More of Ocean World

2011-03-17T18:28:00.000-07:00

The Shark encounter! Duh na naaaa! Oh No! He's eating my hand!
Oh, crap now he's got my arm!

Ha, ha just kiddin' guys. Got ya!

Ocean World

2011-03-14T02:40:00.000-07:00

One of the adventures we went on during our latest West Coast vacation was visiting Ocean World in Crecent City, CA...before the tsunami hit.

Addison surfed for the first time.

Oh Crap! That's a big one!

We petted starfish.

Visited with Sam, Sienna, & Azura who were visiting their Grandma in Crecent City.

We got to pet two sharks which felt creepily rough like snakes.

Took family photos. Now I know where Addison gets her wide mouth smile from.

My Dad made yet another friend. If you know him this picture makes complete sense. If you don't, well that's a whole days worth of explaining.

A Nice Evening

2011-03-14T02:25:00.000-07:00

We are loving the first day of Daylight Savings and with the weather being warmer (40F, I think the WI winters have warped my heat scale!) we headed out for the first walk of the year. Addison got to try out her new wagon she got from my parents for Christmas. When Ryan pulled her down the hill we kept heard little soft, "Wheee(s)," escaping from her mouth. She thoroughly enjoyed herself and so did we. It was a nice escape from our cabin fever.

Happy Valentine's Day

2011-02-14T14:32:00.000-08:00

Here's lookin' at you! Today, we attempted to make these. I made a peanut butter sheet cake for the hearts and chocolate cake for the cupcake. They were a visual fail as the hearts floated up to the top but to the palate they were a super success. Addison enjoyed some of the peanut butter cake along the way.
And then we made edible play dough.

It was a pretty good Valentine's Day. It could have only been better if Ryan was home with us too...maybe next year!

Sunday

2011-02-13T16:28:00.000-08:00

This picture belongs at the bottom of the post.

This is not a good way to start your day. Addison has mastered getting down from couches and chairs. Apparently her tactics do not yet work when trying to get off a bed.

Ryan has been off in Virginia at a buoy school for the last week. The base has an internet cafe where he can Skype from. So the last few nights we have been Skyping. Tonight, Addison opened her Valentine's present with her Dad on the computer.

Weeks Picture

2011-02-10T09:15:00.000-08:00

We tried on one of Dad's shirts while folding the laundry.

I decided to make a smoothie today first, because Addison is beginning another cold and I thought the fresh OJ would help her and second, I thought she might enjoy putting the ingredients in the blender. She was a great help. Grab the ice, check.

Put the ice in the blender, check.

Grab a strawberry, check. Place it in my mouth, check. That is she was a great help until she got to the strawberries, which promptly when into her mouth instead of the blender.

After 14 months I finally got the timing right! Addison's poop face. While she does grimace awful I am very grateful that she no longer makes grunting noises while the "work" is in progress. You can hide a grimace behind any public restroom door but the grunting, not so much.

She isn't walking unassisted but she is getting there. She finally got the hand of moving along with this little push car.Making Valentines.

I came into the TV room to find her and this is what I happened upon. She had reached the camera bag, pulled out the manual and was flipping through it like she knew what she was doing.

Again, this kids got awesome morning hair. Ryan said it looked like Whoo hair.

There's a new little fact about Green Bay that I'm not sure you know about. They have a football team and that team just won a little contest called the Super Bowl.

Needless, to say it was a big deal around here. We invited people over and had a party because we didn't want to be the only ones in the state not holding a party.

The girls weren't too impressed.

When You're Happy & YOu Know IT!

2011-02-04T18:06:00.000-08:00

Houston We Have a Problem...

2011-01-26T18:23:00.000-08:00

A POOP problem
This is the second time in a week that poop has ended up in the tub after Addison was all nice and squeaky clean. The fist time Ryan was watching her and he was afraid she ate it before he got it cleaned up. But he assured me he," Smelled her breath and it didn't smell like poop." That still cracks me up that not smelling "poop breath" was his assurance that she hadn't ate any. Apparently, she is an equal opportunity pooper because tonight she shared the wealth with me. Yuck. I got it all cleaned up and then her re-cleaned up but not before running to get the camera. In all seriousness, I do love being a mom and especially being HER Mom.

2011-01-20T12:53:00.000-08:00

Grandma Jodi sent this track suit for Christmas. Waking up from a nap and having a snack.

Staying cozy in the WI winter!

This picture is the day she got her one year shots. She did really well. She got mad a heck and let me know she didn't like it but she kept her legs still and just buried her head into my chest. And when they were done so were her tears.

Look at her already multi-tasking! This was her first "fun" band-aid.

She's slowed down on her weight gaining but is keeping well above most kids on her height.

Eating dinner or maybe I should say WEARING dinner.

Spaghetti squash is one of her favorites.

I was making some decor for our Young Women's room and Addison loved playing with all the fabric scraps. Here she is giving one scrap a love.

And of course smelling the fabric. What, you don't do that?

This is one of her favorite games to play with her Dad. He covers her up with a blanket and pokes her saying, "Where's Addison?" She laughs and laughs and then uncovers herself.

She's got a great Dad and doesn't even realize it yet.

So happy and mischievous.

Have a Fabulous Sunday!

2011-01-01T21:56:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!

2010-12-31T08:53:00.000-08:00

Addison is very good at pointing out too me how dirty the floors are. She finds every microscopic piece of cheerio, dirt, lint, or otherwise, picks it up all dainty, and holds it up for me to take away. When I went to investigate what piece of dirt she got a hold of yesterday this is what I found upon inspection. A sow bug! These buggers are everywhere here. When we moved in I found a bunch dead under where the furniture was. And now even if I have just vacuumed I find their little bodies creeping across the carpet. But I will take sow bugs over ants and mice, of which I have had the pleasure of both while living in this house.

She had a good time trying to pick him up. She wasn't hurting him so I thought I would take a moment to get a picture of her first bug interaction.

But then suddenly right after this picture he wasn't okay, he was popped into her mouth and MUNCHED. I yelled, "NOOOO!" and then started laughing hysterically about what she just did. I did get it back out but he was long gone. All the while she just looked at me in bewilderment.

If this is any indication of our upcoming year it's going to be an adventure! Happy New Year.

2010-12-27T10:30:00.000-08:00

Lately, she's been going from here... to here. I can feel it, walking is not far off.Just a funny for you. She knows how to wave goodbye and will blow kisses too

She started pulling herself up onto things a weeks or so ago and now she's a pullin' up fool. If it has a handholds she'll pull up on it. She especially likes to get right in front of the kitchen TV.

Addison can now say two words, Da (Dad) and on. The other day she got her hat out of her dresser and brought it to me and said, "on." She's also been pointing at things she wants. So next, she pointed at the stereo and said, "on." I left to go clean up the kitchen and when I came back this is what I found.

She was "playing cards" while listening to her radio and wearing her fabulous hat. It was a sight!

I was pretty impressed at how well she could hold the cards in a fan. And the pinkie is always, always out like a lady.
P.S. That is Vick's under her nose NOT snot.

We live in the perfect climate for ice luminaries! We made some the other day and they looked fabulous!

Gratefully, it Was an Ordinary Day.

2010-12-22T22:40:00.001-08:00

Today was a hard day, nothing extraordinary, just a tiring day. It has now been two weeks that Ryan has been underway and that leaves me to solely care for Addison 24 hours a day, seven days a week. In that time we have gone through a blizzard, popped a molar, both carried a cold, and done the trillion other daily tasks we repeat at LEAST a dozen times a day. Like today, we ventured down to Green Bay, just Addison and I, and for five hours it was unbuckle her, put on her coat, go into the store, do business, unstrap her from the cart, change her diaper, strap her back in the car seat, stow away purchased items, drive to next store, hear repeated sneezing, pull over, clean up snot, get back in car, pull over, fix a bottle, situate bottle in car seat so the drinking angle is just right for Five hours. And when I got home it was more of the same, unload her, unload the car, pick up around the house and I was more than ready for a break. Ready for Ryan to come home and do his Dad thing. Ready to NOT give just one more bath, not fix one more meal, not wipe one nose, not unbuckle a car seat one more time, not carry 25 wriggling pounds into a store. I was ready for a break. And then I listened to my voice mail.
It was my college roommate Tara. Our other roommate, Jenny's, fourteen month old passed away Mon. night in his sleep. And a million things race through my mind. What happened, what do we do, what is she going to do, what do we say, do we say anything, have you talked to her, does she want to talk, how are we going to make this better? And a million answers did not come to my mind to answer those questions.
All evening the calls and texts went back a forth between Tara and I. Calls to Jenny went out and then calls back to each other. Questions, questions, and more questions and just not enough answers. But one thing was made blatantly clear to me...I am GRATEFUL. I am grateful to have the opportunity to give Addison another bath, to fix another bottle, to position it just right, to put her in and out of her car seat, to make another harried trip to the city, to wipe away more snot, change one more diaper and care for her solely while Ryan is underway again. I am so desperately thankful for the opportunity Heavenly Father has given me to be a mother, to be Addison's mother. I am thankful to have the opportunity to fulfill the mundane tasks of everyday life with a child and marvel at what an extraordinary opportunity it is to serve a precious little spirit of our Heavenly Fathers.
My heart aches for Jenny and what she and her family must be going through. I am grateful for the example she is of what a Mother should be, even at a time like this. She is truly a spiritual powerhouse and I know she will make it through the hell she is facing. She is strong and she has faith in our Heavenly Father's plan. I am grateful for that plan that our Father has created, a plan by which families can be together forever and I am grateful that Jenny has that knowledge too.

What We've Been Up To.

2010-12-19T20:30:00.000-08:00

This is how I contain my baby when I can't hold her. I tie her to a tall, tall, chair. J/K we went over to our friends house for a day of baking and a cookie exchange. I didn't want Addison to wander around while she ate her snack so I set her at the table. The only problem is that Sunday has those tall cafe table chairs and a long way to fall. So out came the trusty dishtowels and voila! An instant high chair! Hanging out with Mr. Dale and Hunter. She was so tired but wouldn't take a nap. Addison loves jewelry. You can see her sporting my necklace I wore that day. She now points to things when she wants them. Not only does she want jewelry she knows she wants it on too.Later that night when we all got together for dinner. Addison was the star of the party. One of Ryan's co-workers was there, he's a twenty something and Addison loved, loved, loved him. He was having a pretty good time playing with her too and even offered to watch her while I ate (Ryan was underway.) Gotta love that entertains her and lets me eat!

Looking for trouble.

Miss Sunday let Addison play with some of her decorations.

How do we not get bored when there is snow all around outside? We sit in boxes!

Thank you Gena for the cute birthday dress...and the box it came in.

Addison's birthday present from Grandma Jodi and Pop Pop arrived and we got to open it up with them on Skype. Addison loved all the goodies inside, especially the hair clips.

She's been sick again this week, can you tell?

She loved rediscovering the presents the next morning too.

Sorry Jana, this is the best picture I could get of her in the dress you got her. It wasn't her best day. Notice the cute tights from her previously mentioned birthday box?

I finally finished some projects I've been working on. I borrowed a friends ladder and got these babies hung up. See that curtain rod? Well I've had drapes up and down on that dang thing twice since we moved here and once again they are down. The window is so wide I had to get two hand rails and screw them together. I got so tired of waiting for Ryan to have the time to do it I just tackled it myself. When Ryan saw how jimmy rigged they were and that the stain didn't match he said they had to come down. I didn't care, after a year and a half I just want my drapes up again. So in blog land I found this ingenious idea to use PVC pipe for a curtain rod (because solid wood rods are super expensive, especially when I'll only live here for such a short time.) I think they look pretty believable. When I went to put the curtain rings on they were too small. Man! I guess I measured wrong when I got the pipe so I'm waiting on my new rings to arrive and then I'll show you a final picture. Oh, I also whipped out that little picture in the frame. Just some cute fabric and a sparkly JOY for the Christmas season.

I picked this little table up at a consignment shop here that I love. It was stained a dark brown, UGLY! But the shape was cute. This project took forever because I wanted to sand through the finish color and have the look of layers and layers of paint underneath. I achieved the look but it too three separate colors, many coats of paint, and a few months. I'll post a better picture when I get the drapes up.

Addison give kisses now. The open mouth kind. Here's a series of her kissing her new monkey.

Eye's on the target.

Going in for the smooch.

Open mouth landing.

Sealing the deal.

And when she's done with you, she's done.

This was the day when I looked at her and realized she's not a baby anymore she's a little girl.

having a sick day.

We have her dresser drawer out to fix. This is how I found her the other day.

Some Happy for YOur Day!

2010-12-13T21:46:00.000-08:00

Just some quick pictures from the last few days. Here's she's sporting her new Uggs from her birthday! Kinda gives me a glimpse of what her first day of school picture will look like. Doesn't she just look like a little person when she's standing next to the wall like that?

This girl is so her Dad's kid. She loves technology. Did you know that when she gets a hold of a cell phone she tries to scroll on it. Ryan's phone is a Droid and you have to use your finger and scroll on the screen, she knows that and she tries to get every other phone to work by scrolling it.

Just watching some Yo Gabba Gabba music videos on U-Tube.

And sporting her new pajamas from Uncle Kyle and April.

This my friends is her super, super, super excited face and I've never been able to get it on camera till now. The mouth is always open in a "just can't stand the goodness any longer" fashion and there's usually a little excited body shakin' going along with it. I love it. The excitement is a result of me giving her my concealer brush and showing her how to use it.

Who knew a make-up brush could be so fun!

Or perplexing.

A little off target, but she's getting there.

Hope this brings some happy to your day!

It's Official

2010-12-11T09:21:00.000-08:00

It's official, Addison is One year old and all the birthday celebrations are over. We had originally planned her birthday party for today, Saturday, when Ryan would be back home from the boat. However, he pulled back in early on Thursday and left again today. I was good because he was able to be with her on her actual birth day. But what to do about the party he would be missing on Sat? At about 4:30pm on Thur he asked me if we could hold it that night. Umm, (my mind raced flipped through all the preparations I was planning on starting that night. Prepare tacos, make and decorate cupcakes, make a table runner, decorate the dining room, get balloons, make Brazilian limeade.) Nope, no way could I pull that off that night, but maybe the next day. So we hurried and called everyone to see if they could swap days and sure enough we only lost four people due to school/work. Needless to say I was up until 2am that night getting everything in order. Ryan helped me a ton by doing the stuff that needed more muscle than I could manage, squeezing limes and rolling fondant, it's like rolling concrete. Throughout the early morning hours I kept thinking, "This is totally what being a mom is all about!" And I loved it.

I think Addison had a great party day. It started off right with both her Mom and Dad home which doesn't happen all that often. Ryan hung out with her during the morning so I could get stuff done and then they headed out to get balloons.

The party theme was hedgehogs and the cupcakes had to match of course. I never would have completed these without Ryan's help. They look a little ghetto due to us slapping them together in an hour. But they sure tasted great, chocolate and strawberry colada!

This was one of the test ones I did the night before and she was one of the cutest. I rolled the fondant between sheets of Press 'N Seal and it gave it some great texture. The little spikes look better too because I cut them in when the fondant was nice and moist.

Addison's little friend Chloe gave her this spiky ball and Addison loved it!

We had a few close friends over for tacos, lime-cilantro pineapple rice, Yummy!, Brazilian limeade, and cupcakes. It was a full and fun.

Opening Uncle Kyle and April's present.

Yep, that's Dad's present to her, two DVD players for the car. And what does she like better, her hair clips from Uncle Kyle and April, still in the package.

Her candle burned a pink flame.

When we all sang to her she kept looking around at us like, "What is going on?" She looked pretty confused.

All dainty again, at first.

And let the fun begin!

Her birthday morning playing in her kitchen. She is enjoying her kitchen more and more as she gets older.

The night of her actual birthday we went out to eat Mexican. The salsa was a little too spicy.

Ryan gave her some lettuce and from her reaction we figured she didn't really like it. Piece by piece she piled up the lettuce in the corner. It was really funny to watch.

A birthday balloon she enjoyed bopping me with...repeatedly.Birthday fried ice cream.

We love this little girl so, so much. She has changed us in a lot of ways and all for the better. Our life is so much fuller and happier with her in them. So after "Almost One" birthday in UT, a fun birth day and a birthday part the next day the celebration is over, until next year.

This Little Monkey Is Going to Be One..in a day.

2010-12-05T20:24:00.000-08:00

I really cannot believe that Addison has been with us now for a whole year. It is true, time really does fly by. And how precious the little time we have with them is. Ryan reminded me yesterday that we only have seventeen more years to have her living at home with us. We use to have eighteen. We are so grateful to Heavenly Father for blessing us with such a precious little girl with a sweet spirit that has already touched so many people. Tomorrow is going to be a very special day. Here are some pictures from her "Almost One Birthday," that her Aunt Summer planned while we were out in Utah.

Birthday kisses from Grandpa Layne.

Awesome decorations by Aunt Summer.

What did she grab the card...no, the money. She's learning quick!

Cute little felt carrots, pancakes, & strawberry Grandma Cec made for her kitchen.

Loves the My Little Pony mane.

Admiring the bracelet her second cousin made her.

Oven mitts made by Aunt Summer.

By Aunt Summer again.

Playing with the decorations was half the fun (with her third cousin).

Tomorrow, is going to be great.

Catching Up.

2010-11-23T19:36:00.000-08:00

Just because she is cute! Monday marked a big day at our house. Addison crawled! Her PTs had just been here giving us tips on how to help her learn the manuvers and that afternoon she crawled. I was Skyping with my Mom and threw down my cell phone towards the computer to see if she'd go after it...and she did.

It is nice though, she only crawls when she wants something. She doesn't just crawl to get into stuff. We'll see how long that holds.

Watching TV

She's pretty smart. She knows her bows are suppose to go in her hair. She also knows she's not suppose to touch them and take them out. However, that final bit of knowledge she tends to ignore.
So proud of herself.

This kid has some awesome hair. This is what it looked like one morning after waking up. Kind of like Play's on Kid N Play way back in the day.

I've had a cold for the last two weeks and one morning I was so cold. I thought I'd throw us in the shower to warm up but while I was getting things set up I filled the tub for Addison to keep occupied. While busying around I hear the noise. You know the "poop notification" noise. And sure enough when I lifted her up this fell out.

I fell pretty fortunate that it took 11months to have this happen and that it was a solid turd, none of those watery messes. Needless to say my quick shower warm-up turned into a half hour of tub sanitising, rug staining (Oh, yes her little bum left a skid mark when I picked her up to go back in the clean tub.), and reorganizing.

Her monkey face for her Halloween costume has turned into an everyday toy. She loves to wear it.

We went to our towns Holiday parade again this year. It was so cold. But I'm pretty sure Addison was cozy in all her gear and blankets.

Yep, she waves now too! I came back from the gas station across the street to see her waving at the floats. So cute. They said she was dancing too.

Ryan not only made sure she got candy...

He helped her learn how to eat it too.

On Saturday we went down to Green Bay to eat sushi for Ryan's birthday celebration. We went to this restaurant that is all themed out. I loved it. They have a sushi house, tap-in-yo-key (phonetic spelling) place, and a bar. I was so fun.

Uncle Randy will be please to see chopsticks are already being used

Time to Catch Up

2010-11-10T17:50:00.000-08:00

Cellulite is so cute on a baby! I have never seen Addison from behind without her diaper. I am usually at the front end of things during a diaper change. I knew she was developing some super chunker legs that I love but I had no idea...I laughed and laughed when I got her ready for this bath. I propped her up on the side of the bath to watch the water fill, took off her diaper, and steped back to throw away her diaper. When I looked back this was my view. I love those rolls.

I love how her little thighs pop right out. You can see them in leggings too.

On Sun. I asked Ryan if he could get Addison ready while I got ready. I blew out my hair, which takes forever to get dry and when I checked back in this was the progress. I asked Ryan if that's all he'd got done in the last 15min. He said, "Yeah, those things are hard to put on!" It was so funny.
Notice how he had them pulled up like grandpa pants too!

Watching football with Dad.

A month ago Addison finished her first swim lessons and this was the certificate that she earned.

In Nov. we enjoyed a visit from our friends Cameron and Rebecca and their girls. Addison had such a fun time having buddies around. Although, she couldn't keep up she enjoyed watching them in action.

Here's another cute dress Grandma Cec made for Addison.

Carving the pumpkin.Tasting the pumpkin.

The pumpkin's hairbow was inspired by Addison.

Into the candy stash...smart kid.

Double fisting...really smart kid.

A First Halloween

2010-10-29T21:39:00.000-07:00

Tonight we went to our branch Halloween party. Here's our little monkey all dressed and ready to go. She was kind of overwhelmed at first with all the people, costumes, and noise. But then who wouldn't be when you have a gaggle of kids in your face making a ton of racket trying to get your attention and smothering you with affection.

It was surprising how much she liked her costume and actually didn't fight us to keep it on. Earlier in the week when she saw it in her closet she would smile and get really happy. Thanks again Grandma Cec.

Melt down moment.

Addison loves her friend Chloe. Especially Chloe's jewelry.

Ryan and I completed the family theme with me dressing up as a banana tree, when I held her Addison became a monkey in a tree, and Ryan as a tour for "Agre's Photo Safari." I had so much fun imagining up our costumes and then creating them. Notice, Ryan's jeep has actual working headlights and a real transparent windshield! Love it! Ryan at first didn't want to wear the Jeep when I was thinking it up but when I created it he had to admit it was a pretty cool jeep. And I don't think he minded wearing it in the end.

Now off to create next years theme!

Enjoying Fall

2010-10-13T12:50:00.000-07:00

Ryan has been underway for about a month so as boat wives we planned a welcome back party for the guys. A dessert tailgate complete with lights, music, and flags. While waiting for the boat this is what I saw. A car drive straight down the boat ramp and into the water. And you know what? He didn't sink, he just kept on truckin'. He boated around for a few minutes and then... Drove back up the ramp and left. Just like no big deal. Crazy this state we live in!

My Mom made Addison's Halloween costume while she was out here visiting. Here's a preview of the little monkey.

She also discovered how tasty the tape measure was while Grandma was busy sewing.

ADORABLE!

We have been propping Addison into a standing position more lately. She gets so proud of herself when she is standing up.

And she thinks it's hilarious when she is on her knees. She has now discovered that she can finagle her way from her knees onto her bum without falling.

What a cute surprise to find in the endless laundry heap.

After dealing with chemo and hair loss I was way more than ecstatic the first day I was able to put piggies into her hair. She actually keeps them in too.

She loves to swing.

Ryan's Aunt and Uncle flew out from North Dakota to spend the weekend with us and to meet Addison. We had such a good time while they were here and did a lot of fun things. We went to the Pumpkin Patch Festival up the peninsula. The village was crowded with tons of people.

I got the obligatory roasted corn on the cob while everyone else went for the brats.

Addison having her first taste of roasted corn. And she love it.

This guy was just roaming around with a lama so we petted it.

Shopping, shopping, shopping.

Addison and her Great Uncle Jim. She took quite a liking to him and I think the same was true too.

We went to the dairy. They had animals the kids could pet.

Addison seemed more interested in them than when Ryan took her to the fair animals. We also went through the corn maze. It's huge, there's like five mazes in one. I am terrible with direction so I wasn't much help. It was a great day, and the highlight? Well, that deserves it's own post. So look for an unbelievable highlight post next!

Great Aunt Betty sharing her ice cream sandwich. They were huge and I'm pretty sure Addison wouldn't have minded having one to herself.

We also stopped in at Grandma Tommy's. They sell local food and tourist stuff. We grabbed some jerky, apple cider, and fudge! Addison would have been happy if she could have grabbed just one gumball.

They have some humungo pumpkins around the peninsula! I've only seen pumpkins this big in pictures...well until now.

My favorite type of pumpkin.

I must confess, I really like Wisconsin in the Fall. It's full of all those typical fall activities and sight we don't get in Oregon.

A Week With Grandma Cec

2010-10-03T10:18:00.000-07:00

After seeing Addison for so long this summer my Mom was having withdrawals. Nothing a few frequent flyer miles couldn't get rid of. Last week we were lucky to have her fly out and stay with us for seven days. We went up the peninsula for lunch at the Fish Market, a white table cloth affair if you know what I mean. And we survived it with only on mark left on the table cloth. This is the fish tank they have in the lobby. It's a pretty creative idea and what a great way to reuse those nasty old TV cases. Whenever I put Addison on her knees she thinks it's so funny. She always giggle and laughs apprehensiously. I think it because she kind of teeters forward and then regains her balance and leans back. This week she has learned that she can maneuver her legs ever so carefully out from under her and get off those knees and avoid falling.

I needed some sticks and rocks for a project I'm working on so we headed to Cave Point for a little hike. Addison was playing peek a boo with Grandma.

Grandma Cec and Addison in front of Lake Michigan. It was so great to be able to finally show my Mom what Sturgeon Bay looks like. Although, this was her third trip out here since Addison was born it's always been under snow until this time. Unfortunately, Addison was recovering from a cold and ear infection, I was getting sick, and then Mom got sick. But we were able to see some sights despite it all.

It was so very, very nice that my Mom took Addison and watched her a bunch so I could catch up on some sleep. A few days before Mom got here Addison didn't sleep more than 15min at a time during the night so I was in some desperate need of sleep. Especially, because I am once again a single parent as Ryan is underway for the whole month. It is very interesting how you learn to survive with so little sleep when you first have a baby and then when they are older and stay up all night you're totally sacked the next day.

This is a little game my Mom came up with and Addison loved. It's all about Addison pulling off her socks and my Mom giving a big reaction like she was suppose to keep them on. During one nap I could here Addison rolling with laughter and came out to find them playing the sock game.

I love how her little shoulders go up when she is laughing.

We had a lot of fun while Grandma was here. Thank you Mom for coming out and helping me so much I loved it. And thank you Dad for holding down the fort so Mom could be here.

Here's just some random pictures:

Addison began a new medication to control the growth of her hemangioma. It's a blood pressure medication that she takes three times a day by mouth. She's been on it a little over a month now and is doing very well on it. The growth we saw return after being done with chemo. is now gone again thanks to this new medication. She will continue taking it at least until January. We are very pleased with the outcome and many people tell us you can't even tell it was there. It is very, very nice to feel the warmth from the light at the end of the tunnel.

We've come up with some interesting outfits now that Fall has arrived. We're still eking out the last uses of the summer clothes and trying to make them a little bit warmer for the crisp air days.

She love the cell phone. I showed her a picture of Ryan the other day on it and she took her little finger and rubbed his picture and smiled. She loves her Dad and although she can't voice it I know she misses him while he is away.

She finally fits into the little sailor dress the captain and his wife gave her.

I love this headband and the best part is that it's a adult size so it fits me too.

One of Addison's newest entertainments. She sits close to the end of our foot board and pulls herself towards the rails until her feet slip through. She gets so proud of herself.

She looks in the mirror and vigorously kicks her feet in the air.

She's also learned that this is a great place to fall backwards because it doesn't hurt on the landing. Like all babies her age she eats everything and the rails are no different. See those two bottom teeth, they're going to wreck my foot board.

She had her first swimming lesson a few weeks ago. She splashed so excitedly when we got in that I should have worn goggles. Contacts and that much splashing in the face don't mix too well. I didn't think they put babies underwater at this age but to my surprise we were instructed to take them under at the end of one of the songs we sing. When I was younger my daycare went to swimming lessons in the summer. My instructor took me under even when I protested and that is why to this day I am still learning how to swim. So I was more than hesitant to take Addison under and create that same fear that I have in her. I think I had a mini panic attack as I looked around at the other parents and back to the instructor. But nobody else was freaking out so I followed their lead and with much apprehension at the end of the song Addison went under. And when she came back up she looked around like, "What the heck just happened!?" And then started grinning. No coughing, no sputtering, just smiles as other kids around us came up coughing, gaging, and crying. I was so proud.

Labor Day Weekend

2010-09-13T14:05:00.000-07:00

For Labor Day Weekend we headed up to Duluth, MN to see our friends Cameron and Rebecca. We were stationed with them in Astoria and now get to be close (six hour drive) to them again. We all had so much fun catching up, reminiscing, and making new memories. It was so fun watching our girls meet each other and interact. We went on a sightseeing train adventure. Except Rebecca got us on the wrong train and we didn't get to see any of lake Superior like we were expecting. And there was terribly annoying narration the WHOLE ride. But we still enjoyed just being all together.

No, Ryan and I didn't mean to match. It's been hot here at home so I only packed shorts and t-shirts with the exception of one sweatshirt I threw in last minute advised by Ryan that it would be colder up north. And guess which sweatshirt he threw in too! So we represented OR double time that day and if there would happen to be a tsunami on Lake Superior we had our evacuation instructions printed on the sweatshirts. Addison is developing some sticky fingers. I looked over at her to find her fist stuffed with a sourdough pretzel nugget. I asked Ryan why he gave her a pretzel. He said he didn't. I said, "Well I didn't." This little turkey dipped herself a pretzel out of the bag her Dad was holding and managed to escape both of us knowing.

She really did enjoy it!

It is so nice to have friends who you can't just pick up where you left off with.

Like I said it was cold in Duluth and I had not packed for Addison or myself accordingly. Earlier in the day I improvised an outfit for her that would keep her warm but during lunch she blew out her diaper all over her stroller and me. The only other outfit I had with us was a onesie so on it went and when we went for a stroll on the waterfront the only thing close to a blanket I had were Ryan's surf shorts. So hence her styling black blanket. She did fit nicely into one leg!

This was such a sweet moment I wish the lens wasn't all fogged up. I left my camera out in the mud room and when I brought it in this moment was happening and if I wanted to capture it I didn't have time to wait for the lens to heat up and clear.

We had a busy weekend roasting s'mores, scavenging through Rebecca's cast offs (I scored some killer carved plant stands!), going out to eat, making vanilla cream soda (which even the kids wouldn't touch, maybe it was the turbinado sugar. We'll have to try it again.), riding the train, discovering Duluth, and staying up way too late into the morning talking it up.

Our Day

2010-08-19T14:54:00.000-07:00

In the mornings I sometimes catch a little bit of Martha in between Addison's breakfast and mine. The other day Martha was making homemade lemonade. It's been so hot around her lately that I had the perfect opportunity to try it. Here's the end result and it tasted as good as it looked. My first time sugar rimming a glass, not too shabby. Here's the recipe:
2 Parts fresh squeezed lemon juice
5 Parts cold water
Sugar or Splenda to taste (I used Splenda)
Sugar rim your glass and pour lemon aid over crushed ice.

Our friends Bradd and Sam passed on this Leap Frog learn your alphabet magnetic alphabet and sound box. It's a good distraction for Addison when I have to be in the kitchen. She was down there playing with all the letters for awhile and I look over and she's LICKING the fridge! What is wrong with this kid? She tries to eat everything and this latest attempt proves the ANYTHING part. All I can say is it must be Ryan's genes because the Worlton kids never attempted to eat fridges. It made for a pretty funny moment though and I wish I could have gotten it on film.

Keeping Up

2010-08-15T11:47:00.000-07:00

We bought Addison some squishy blocks and Ryan showed her how they could be stacked. She then preceded to knock down every tower he built.She loves her Dad.

Grandma Cec brought back this cute John Deer bib from one of the concerts she went to this summer. It's made from jeans and does the trick .

Grandma Pat sent this outfit for Addison. You gotta love it. We think it makes her look like Aunt Jamima. We laughed and laughed.

Baby cellulite is so cute.

To the Shore.

2010-08-14T19:04:00.000-07:00

Today, the three of us traveled up the peninsula to Jacksonport. One of the ladies from church has a cottage there on the shore of Lake Michigan and held a picnic afternoon for the branch. It was the most idyllic day and weather. It was warm and humid with just enough wind to keep it comfortable and the water. The water was the warmest I have felt outside of Hawaii. I went kayaking for a bit and didn't even flinch when the waves lapped up over the sides of the kayak. This was very good seeing as I got soaked. It was a beautiful day.

I have looked forward to the event of Addison experiencing sand and waves. Unfortunately, we weren't able to make it into the ocean when we were on the West Coast so here in Wisconsin was her first shoreline experience. And she loved it. When thinking about this moment I have always been worried over the thought of her trying to eat the sand or rubbing it in her eyes. But she handled it like she had been in it a thousand times before. She grabbed a handful, examined it and that was it. No eating, no rubbing. It was blissful.

She would kick her little legs so vigorously in the waves and smile. I do believe she could have stayed just like that for hours and hours.

Sheer contentment and a beautiful day.

I Forgot These.

2010-08-13T18:45:00.000-07:00

This will make sense after you read the next post. I forgot to add these in.
Here's two of the cardboard boats from the Maritime festival. All of them floated until the end, when one team attacked all the other boats with their oars. Everyone went in the canal and their boats were torn up. That is all except our favorite one, this turtle. This one is for Pop-Pop. Blow this picture up and look at the boats name...Curdinator. That'll have to be Addison's nickname for when she plays sports.

We've Been Keeping Busy

2010-08-13T16:25:00.000-07:00

Time flew by at lightning speed while we were on the west coast. Now being back home it is still flying. We have been keeping busy with all the fun summer activity the peninsula has to offer.

We went to the county fair and took Addison for the first time. It was very important to Ryan that he take her to see the animals. She wasn't so excited to be so close to them. We also went to her first demolition derby. Thanks to earplugs she took her nap through most of it.

Pretty tentative, even with the baby rabbits.

This was really a cool picture in person but on film... well it's pretty much just cow butts.

She wasn't sure with the goats at her feet.

The pigs were not as cool as the straw.

We also went to the Maritime festival and saw some pirates! We were hoping Addison would perform her "one eye Willie" face, but not go.

It was s-o-o-o-o-o-o humid this day. It was kind of miserable and made us just want to run into the museum to escape the heat. Just one problemo...the museum was just as hot and stifling as outside. No AC people? Isn't a $12 ticket a piece enough to pay for AC?

Addison indulging in some ice cream minus the cherry pie side.

At the festival they have teams who build "boats" in a limited time out of cardboard and some sort of caulking. We went to watch the teams try to float their boats. Notice Addison's dress is perfectly coordinated for the occasion! Oh what fun it is to have a darling little girl. Ryan always asks me if it's fun to dress her up like my personal doll. Yes, it is!

As always, she wants more, more, more ice cream!

I had Ryan take this picture of us before we went to church. I only have a handful of pictures with Addison and I. I am usually behind the camera and for fear that she will not know how much her Mommy loves her I wanted it documented.

Look at those two cute teeth! She just broke her fourth one also. Now she has two middle lower ones, two on top, the ones on the outside of where her front teeth will be. Maybe, if she's lucky, she'll get her two front teeth for Christmas.

My friend Kim moved to Salt Lake before we got back from the West Coast. She didn't want to pack this little kitchen along so now Addison has a super retro kitchen and accessories.

I love this picture of her!

This is one of her newest tricks. She has discovered that she can lean her head w-a-y over to each side along with giving five and shaking her head in a "no" motion.

We're Back.

2010-08-01T19:46:00.001-07:00

After six short weeks out on the West Coast visiting family we are back home in Sturgeon Bay. Addison and I flew out to Brookings for four weeks and then Ryan joined us for the last two weeks. We stayed a week together in Brookings and then we headed up to Seattle to visit more family. We were busy non-stop while we were gone. Addison was able to meet a lot of family and have many new experiences. Here's some pics from the second half of our vacation.

We went camping for a few nights up the Chetco River. It was nice and warm. Ryan and Addison gold panned on our first evening up the river.She loved sitting in her Bumbo splashing with her feet. Grandma Cec discovered a new revolutionary toy...a canning lid. Who would have guessed. Behind Addison you can see the bottom of the motor home. We really roughed it!
I have always taken for granted how crystal clear the Chetco is. After going swimming here in the canal I truly appreciated the Chetco's clarity.

Modeling her new bathing suit Great Aunt ShawNee and Blake got her.

Addison learned to take naps in some very unusual places, namely the closet, a bathroom at the shop, and the river bar.

The only time in your life you can get away with cellulite and have people call you cute.

Hanging out with G.A. ShawNee.

On the way to Seattle we stopped off in Astoria to visit our friends Bradd and Sam. We were all stationed there a few years ago and now Bradd and Sam are there again. It was great to catch up and drive around to some of our old favorite spots in town. Here Sienna is teaching Addison Chinese. When I asked Sienna what she was saying she said, "I don't know I just learned it on Ni Hao Kai-lan.

Addison love to watch the girls run around. Which of course included Sam running around too.

Group shot in front of one of my favorite landmarks, the old net drying shed.

Pop Pop and his baby curd.

We were lucky to have Ryan's sister, Jeniffer and her two boys, fly into Seattle while we were there too. Ryan his brother, Justin, and sister.

Jacob decided Uncle Ryan's head was a good spot to sit.

Grandma Jodi bought Addison and Brady net bags with handles. You can put food in the bags and they can munch on them without worrying about chocking. They were a hit.

Addison liked to pull Jacob's hair and funny enough he seemed to enjoy it too.

Addison and Brady.

Sometimes you just have to show boys who's the boss.

Since being gone Addison learned how to roll from her back to her stomach and is improving on her tummy time. We often find her sleeping on her stomach at night.While we were in Seattle Addison was able to go to her first Pop concert. The Reeces Monkey,a kids pop band, was playing at the park. I don't think I've ever seen a bigger collection of strollers, and baby gear in my life. It was pretty impressive. And what do you do when you have seen an awesome band? You buy a t-shirt, errr... Grandma Jodi buys a t-shirt, and you get it autographed by the band. Pretty good for only seven months old.

With Great Aunt Jen.

Snuggling with Pop Pop before bed.

Sharing toys with Brady.

Can you see them? Her lovely, long eyelashes have grown back.

Addison really loved to watch Pita and Lilly race around the house. They however, didn't really love her.

We're Out...

2010-06-28T14:48:00.001-07:00

...on the West Coast for the next five weeks. We'll update when we get back home.

Daily Dozen for the Grandmas

2010-06-08T11:55:00.000-07:00

Memorial Day Weekend

2010-06-01T09:41:00.000-07:00

First, a cute shot just for the heck of it. This is how I found Addison sleeping away her nap. Arms up and stretched out for a good sleep. We started off Memorial Day Weekend a day early. I went up the peninsula with Desiree and Christine to celebrate Desiree's birthday. The boat pulled in minutes before I was to leave so Dad and Addison got some quality time together. We stopped first to have lunch.

Went shopping and finished up with ice cream.

Dippy's ice cream shop.

This is the restaurant we ate at. We ate upstairs in the open air balcony. It was fabulous!On Saturday we first went to a nursery up the peninsula. Kim had taken me there earlier in the week where we scored $0.49 cent plants. Can you even believe it! So I took Ryan there on Saturday so he could pick out pepper plants for his topsy turvy. Later in the afternoon we met up with Kim and the kids at the Fine Art Fair. The art wasn't really up our alley but the food was. Logan and Abe got to try their hand at making fine art. But all Abe wanted to do was eat the paint. Notice the blue? He took the loaded paint brush and shoved the whole thing in his mouth. This is after he tasted the yellow.

Ryan decided to try out Addison on the baby swing. And she loved it. Especially when he would tickle her feet.

Addison and her buddy Abe. She loves Abe, he makes her smile and Abe in return likes to poke her in the eyes or the head.

Later that night Sam, Kim, Logan, and Abe came over for a BBQ. It was so nice to be able to use our porch for the first time since we moved here a year ago.

Abe really liked the s'mores, my camera lens however did not.

Sunday afternoon we had a farewell dinner at Eric and Christine's for Travis and Desiree.

A game of horseshoes which required trimming the tree first.

The weather was perfect for outdoor grilling.

Addison fell asleep while we were outside all snuggled in her sleeping bag with Dad.

And that was our Memorial Day weekend. Not too shabby.

Have You Met One Eyed Willy?

2010-05-26T18:56:00.000-07:00

Just two pictures I took to send to Anna to see if we could skip our Dr. apt. this Friday. Cute little chubby legs.

Tiny little feet.

And now for One Eyed Willy....So here is Addison's newest face. I call it "One Eyed Willy." She scrunches up one side of her face when she's watching TV or looking at something. Kind of funny. If you look real, real close you can see two little toofers have popped up on the bottom of her mouth and hence the drool.

Since coming off of chemo her hemangioma has grown a bit as expected. But it is not yet at a point where they want to start her on oral meds. We have to wait for it to get bigger first.

One Eyed Willy strikes again!

Dinner in the Park

2010-05-25T18:02:00.000-07:00

Last week was the begining of our summer weather. One night I packed a picnic dinner and we headed to the park to enjoy the warm weather. We were in luck as Little League was playing a few games. So we had dinner and entertainment. I love these blummers Aunt ShawNee bought for Addison.

Kim pointed out that when Addison smiles it's not a little smile, it's her whole mouth that gapes open. Too cute.

More Pictures

2010-05-25T17:00:00.000-07:00

I think this is so sweet. I love the way she has her hands grasped around her blanket. She loves her naps. A lot of the time she is so excited to go down that she smiles or laughs when I put her in her crib. And she always holds onto something, her blanket or pillow. Just some cute pictures Ryan took while he was watching her one afternoon. With her hair all peach fuzzy I think she looks a lot like Summer when she was little.

This one really reminds me of Sum.

The hat fashion show as promised.

These little babies have come in so handy now that the weather is warming up around here.

Last Saturday we headed up the peninsula with Kim and her family from out of town. We first stoped at this winery/cider mill. We took these picture in front of this really cool old barn that has been converted into a gallery.

We took the obligatory picture of Addison sitting on a rooster. The look she is giving me is like, "Come on Mom, this isn't cool."

But here she's a little more into it. This weekend marked our official break into summer. The weather was so nice. Not too hot and not too humid. It made me glad to be is Sturgeon Bay.

We headed to Al Johnson's for lunch. Can you see the grass on the roof? On Memorial Day they bring their goats for the summer and do you know where they live? On the roof. Where else can you find goats on a restaurant roof?!

Al Johnson's is Swedish restaurant. The waitresses are from the old country and have thick accents. They even wear customary dress. The food was okay, the experience and atmosphere was awesome. Ryan had the best Ruben of his life and Kim and I split Swedish pancakes and Swedish meatballs.

Painted Piggies...the Final Result.

2010-05-23T18:29:00.000-07:00

I did all those pictures of Addison getting her piggies painted and then forgot to post pics of the outcome.

A Fun Weekend

2010-05-17T16:56:00.000-07:00

This weekend Addison had a new first. Her first painted piggies! She was a very patient client.

Do you know how hard it is to land paint on a toenail less than 1/4 of an inch long while it's moving at erratic speeds? Let's just say the polish remover came in real handy.

2010-05-13T14:42:00.000-07:00

Chillin' with Dad and eating yams.

I ordered some hats for Addison since her hair is pretty much gone now. Seeing her bald little head and diminishing eyebrowns and lashes reminds me of what she's going through so I try to cover it up with hats. And she looks really cute in them anyway. This one came with a honking huge flower. Way too big for her tiny noggin at the moment so we improvised with some hair clips that her aunt Summer made and now that we don't have any hair to attach them to they are the perfect beanie accessory.

A purple bow accessory to match the outfit. Plus when she's wearing brown, or green, or pretty much any color besides pink people won't call her a boy. What's up with that anyway? I can dress her in brown and have a bright pink blanket in her lap and they still call her a boy. Can't you see the pink people?! And who says brown is only for boys. Would you put a brown sweater with white embroderied flowers on your little boy? I think not. And the other day when I took her to the post office with a green Girl Scout t-shirt we got called a boy again.

Ryan was on the phone and she just listened so intently on what he was saying.

Chemo is Done.

2010-05-12T15:13:00.001-07:00

Check out Addison's blog she's got some exciting news.

2010-05-08T19:09:00.000-07:00

Pictures

2010-04-25T19:25:00.000-07:00

Addison loves, loves, loves her baths. Can you tell. This is the second time that she's fallen asleep during a bath. When we decide to go the chemo route they told us no baths for as long as she had the PICC line in. Well I knew we had to come up with someway for her to have baths. Ever since the day she was born she's loved them. In the hospital she was screaming away. That is until Ryan started washing her hair and she didn't make a sound. We knew there was some magic in that hair washing. So with so many unpleasant and painful experiences she's had to endure I wasn't about to take away something that she enjoyed so much. After trying a few things we came up with wrapping her arm in Press N Seal. You know the kitchen wrap stuff. We seal the ends off with paper tape and don't fill the bath up. We just let it run the whole time and she stays elevated on her sponge.
Even hair washing didn't wake her up.

On Saturday my friend Kim and I headed up the peninsula to Fish Creek. We had a great lunch of black bean burgers at the White Gull in. The weather was nice and sunny. So much so that they May Flies were out everywhere on the shore. Yuck.
Kim sporting a sequined ensemble! She's going to be one Hot grandma someday.Kim told me this building use to be across the lake. During on winter they chopped it up in three sections and pulled it across the lake. Can you believe that?

And while you are in Fish Creek you must kiss a pig...

Or ride a turtle!
Isn't this little stone wall and gate charming? It reminds me of the, "Secret Garden,"There was a little cottage hiding behind it's enclosure. I'm sure they have a great view too, because we were right on the shore of Lake Michigan.

Pretty creative with hay. A tractor and trailer hauling hay made out of hay.

One draw back from all of the chemo treatments is hair loss. Yikes. I kept finding her pacifier covered with hair and then one morning this week I saw the back of her jammies were covered in hair and started investigating.

One Dr. thought we cut her hair like this. What??!! Who would do that. No this do is a result of her turning her head to the left and right repeatedly to put her self to sleep and chemo. She has effectively sheared off the top row of hair straight across.

My investigation lead me to this nice little pile of hair in her crib courtesy of chemo. I find little piles like this every morning. Anyone know where to buy some cute spring/summer hats?

My childhood friend's, Gena, aunt sent this little outfit for Addsion. I think it makes her look so girly and adorable.

This picture reminds me of a porcelain doll you'd find on QVC way over priced. And the best thing about this one is she's mine.

Addison loves a good magazine. She thumbs through the pages like a pro. Now I just have to cross my fingers that she doesn't pick up how to use a credit card as fast as she learned to scan a mag. Otherwise we could be in trouble.

I loved this little outfit too. It's so nice that the weather is turning better. We can start wearing all of our summer clothes.

Random Happenings

2010-04-22T09:06:00.000-07:00

We looked out the window one day last week and saw this fox in the field across from our house. I've seen him on another occasion since. I don't think I'll let Addison play in the yard alone for awhile! On Saturday we got out of the house to enjoy the warming weather. We went GeoCacheing around town. On of the caches were located along the Ahnapee Trail. Near the end we saw what looked like a stump on the road. Ryan asked if it was a piece of wood or a cat.

As we got closer it moved! It was a critter of some sort. I thought it looked like a beaver minus the beaver tail. I asked our YW leader on Sunday and she said it was muskrat.

Another cache was located near this old brick church. Around back we found this pump and Ryan, by working it for awhile, found out that it still worked. We tried to get a picture of Addison with it but the wind kept taking her breath away.

Ryan and Addison in front of the church doors. This is just five minutes outside of town and you are in the country. Pretty cool. There are as always lots of barns around too.
On the Ahnapee trail. This was the first time we used the backpack and Addison really liked it. While I was packing her around she even fell asleep. She loves being outdoors.

She was so super serious here. We couldn't figure out what was up.

Since being in the hospital Addison has really taking a liking to TV, errr, especially Baby Einstein Videos. We try to limit her to about 20 min of anything only a few times a week. Did you know TV early on can make kids have ADD? But she's sneaky and finds the TV even when we just have it on for background noise. At which time we quickly turn it off.

A week ago we had a week of really great weather. One day it even got to 82! Yipee. So Addison's and I had lunch on the deck. Or I should say I had lunch while she played.

Yams

2010-04-21T15:30:00.000-07:00

Addison has moved onto eating real food, vegetables. Her first try was with yams and from the sequence below you can see that it wasn't all that successful.

These few are suppose to be at the beginning but blogger won't cooperate.

Easter

2010-04-06T11:40:00.000-07:00

If you have to go to Chemo mine as well make it fun right? So when Easter rolls around what do you do? Dress up like a little bunny. We handed out Peep treats to all of Addison's "Favorite Peeps," at Children's. It kind of didn't work because she finally had her MRI which she was suppose to have the week before but it got cancelled due to her being hospitalized with RSV (see her blog for more details http://www.bumpcourage.blogspot.com/). So she was a little drunk monkey from the anethesia they gave her during the MRI. But I handed them out to everyone and they all adored her bunny outfit. It was nice to bring so many smiles into a place that can sometimes be so sad and stressful. Her onsie had a peep bunny on it and the bum said, "Peep," with two more small peep bunnies.

For Easter dinner we had brunch with friends. It was a great view of Lake Michigan out the window and such a beautiful day.

Easter at our house was pretty low key. We mostly stayed in and tried to recover from our hectic week before. It's my goal to make our future Easters more Christ centered and this year we started by doing activities that mirrored the events that happened that day in Easter week. I got this great book last year from Deseret Bookstore , A Christ Centered Easter, which started my mind thinking about how we could be more Christ centered during the week. On Palm Sunday we took one of the ladies in our branch some bulbs. Just like Christ they live and die and just like Christ they will live again. And since it was a plant I thought it was representative of a palm. On the day when Christ cleansed the temple we thoroughly cleaned the house in preparation for the rest of Easter week. And this year those were the only activities I could get my rear in gear to do. Next year we will hopefully be able to complete the whole week of activities. It is my hope that our kids will look forward to celebrating Easter week for the real reason and the fun activities that remind us of the original Easter week. And we of course colored eggs.
Addison's Easter basket was one of my little holiday crafting projects. You turn a stuffed animal into a basket. So cute and easy too plus I got the animal for 50% off at Joann's, score!

Eating the non edible bunny Grandma Jodi and Pop Pop got her. The edible one stayed in it's package this year.

More presents from Pop Pop and Grandma Jodi.

To say the least between the bunny and both grandparents she made a haul. She got several outfits, LDS children's songs on CD, multiple teething toys, and a baby Einstein DVD she loves.

And just because. Wacky hair, snot freshly sneezed out, and drool. Yep that's our precious little monkey.