The Brown Family Blog

Happy Valentine's Day!

2012-02-14T10:21:00.000-08:00

Remember, this holiday is not just for couples. It's a day where we all tell the people in our lives how much we love them. We hope you know how much we love YOU!

snow days and the fish museum

2012-01-31T18:25:00.000-08:00

We haven't done that much for the first month of 2012. We played in the snow, and went to the aquarium, or as Naomi kept calling it, the "fish museum".

Meet Mrs. Rapunzel Frosty. Naomi was very insistent that Mrs. Frosty have a button nose, just like it says in the song about her famous husband.

Kellan had a lovely talk with Mrs. Frosty

Snow ball fight!

Snow unicorn

I think he's the cutest eskimo I've ever seen!

Sledding!

Visit to the aquarium

Kellan, Ryan, Naomi, and Mom.

They loved the fish scavenger hunt. Naomi was so proud of herself for finding the Unicorn fish!

I love the water dome. It's so peaceful. I want to sleep in there. They do rent it out for sleepovers, so maybe someday...

Of course we had to take a ride on the carousel before leaving the pier.

A New Year

2012-01-04T09:41:00.000-08:00

I have a feeling 2012 is going to be excellent. We haven't made our resolutions yet. These two keep us a little busy.

Christmas in Portland

2012-01-03T23:20:00.000-08:00

My family always has a delicious spaghetti dinner on Christmas eve.

We have a very strange tradition in our family. We make "candle art". It all started one year when someone thought it would be fun to stick a candle in an empty wine bottle. A while later someone else came up and stuck a bottle cap in the melted wax. Is it a fire hazard and bad example to young children? Maybe. Would Christmas eve be quite the same without it? No.

Ryan and I - uh...I mean, Santa and Rudolph came and dropped off presents and nibbled on some cookies and carrots.

Time for Christmas day festivities! For the kids, the presents are the main attraction. Kellan loved the wooden car Naomi painted for him. For the adults, it's all about dinner. Crab cakes to start, tenderloin with gorgonzola, and Naomi's favorite part, dessert!

My little cousin and I put together some minute to win it challenges for the younger crowd. It was hilarious. I have it all on video tape, but I'm saving that for blackmail. All I can say is, if my family ever needs to unwrap some Christmas presents with ski gloves on to win a million dollars, we'll be ready.

I hope you all had a great time with your family and friends this holiday season. I know we sure did. I am so grateful for my generous, fun loving, kind family. I don't know what I would do without these people.

Peace on earth

2011-12-22T13:58:00.000-08:00

Well I am officially donezo. Yep, I am ready for Christmas. Now I can just relax and spend time with the kiddos. I haven't wrapped anything though, but I usually save that for 11:00pm Christmas eve.

Naomi's preschool class performed a Christmas program. It was quite possibly the cutest thing I've ever seen!

We had an early Christmas dinner with Ryan's grandparents. The kids already love Len and Naomi so much, but cookies never hurt!

This sexy Santa's helper did a great job making me feel special for my birthday.

We've had two dates in a week, I'm becoming spoiled rotten!

Downtown is super romantic with all the trees lit up!

Ryan took the kids sledding with his buddies and their kids. I stayed home and had some much needed alone time. I thought I would love it, but I spent the whole time missing Ryan and the kids! I'm such a weirdo.

Naomi and her friend Linus decorated a gingerbread house today! It was epic.

Of course our house isn't as amazing as these gingerbread houses, but maybe in a few years ;)

Tomorrow we will be baking up a storm, packing, and taking our annual "photo booth" pictures! Then on Saturday it's off to see my family in Portland. I hope all of you have a peaceful and joyous Christmas!

merry and bright

2011-12-12T21:58:00.001-08:00

We told good ol' Saint Nick what we want for Christmas. This was the second year with no tears or fits. How did I get such sweet kids?

We have been all around town hunting down Christmas lights. There is a neighborhood in Queen Anne where decorating for Christmas is part of the home owner's association contract. That was fun1 There are lights and displays down every street! We also went to a couple places that have computerized light shows set to music. The kids loved it, we loved it! It's like watching a laser show!

If you want to see Santa's sleigh and reindeer for free, head to Swanson's Nursery in north Seattle. The kids got a kick out of watching them feed Dasher and Blitzen. They also have a donkey and a camel!

Stay tuned for pictures of sledding and gingerbread houses!

Thankful

2011-12-01T10:51:00.001-08:00

I didn't really take very many pictures of Thanksgiving. It was a wonderful holiday for us. We have so much to be thankful for!!

Ryan and I made a wish and pulled, and the top part just broke off and flew into the air, leaving us both with two broken little bones! I guess we both are going to be unlucky this year!! AHHHH!

My bird was so moist and golden brown. I stuffed it with celery, onion, garlic, apple, lemon and rosemary, and then cover it in buttered cheese cloth. It's my third turkey and I never knew how incredible cheese cloth is!

I am especially grateful for these two little pilgrims!

We are ready for the Christmas season now. I don't know about you but I had no desire to go shopping after Thanksgiving. What a chaotic stressful mess out there, no thanks! I prefer a cold leftover turkey sandwich, a glass of egg nog, Christmas music and tree decorating thank you very much!

I made a list of things we are going to do this Christmas. Pretty basic stuff, but very important! Ryan and I can definitely mark kiss under the mistletoe off the list!

I LOVE this commercial. It's pretty true to our philosophy!

Kellan is TWO!

2011-11-07T14:22:00.000-08:00

Oh boy, how did this happen? I still think of Kellan as a baby. When people ask me about my kids, I actually want to say, "well I have a two year old daughter and we just had a baby boy a few months ago". I have a feeling that every birthday is going to be bitter sweet like this.

Kellan is the sweetest boy, and he has a little rebellious streak too. He always has a mischievous look on his face. He loves brushing his teeth, pouting, and drinking out of a big boy cup. He helps us unload the dish washer, and cleans up his toys. He is great at saying please, and his favorite song is 'you are my sunshine'. He loves going outside. Even though he's a tough, dirty boy, he has a tender heart too. He's basically the coolest little boy I've ever met!

Here's a 30 second video of Kellan going a little crazy on his new zebra!

Apple picking, cookie baking, pumpkin carving, and trick or treating!

2011-10-19T12:22:00.000-07:00

We went to a local apple orchard and picked some apples. We just needed enough to make an apple pie. You could see the kids making the connection when they picked the apples off the trees. They felt so special, being able to pick out the apples that they thought looked good for our pie.

We made the traditional Miller pumpkin cookies! My mom has been making these cookies for over 45 years. Ryan's dad came to visit us, it was so nice to see him. The kids where all over him, they miss their Grandpa Brown! I also put up some fall decorations and we carved out some jack-o-lanterns!

Then it was time for trick or treating!

My little Red and my little Wolf

Howling at the moon!

Trick or treat!!

the worthwhile reward

Oh and watch this, it's hilarious:

Welcome Fall

2011-10-10T11:11:00.000-07:00

Well we've caught our first cold of the season, yippee! Other than that, we've been enjoying October.

Oh daddy, you're so funny!

CANDY!

Ryan and Naomi with mom and grandma. We sure do love these two ladies.

We made a visit to the pumpkin patch!

They loved the ducks and the chickens.

Kellan kept saying, "Oh doggie! Doggie!"

She looked through the whole patch for that pumpkin

Hay there!

Makin' wishes

We're ready for pumpkin carving now!

a change in the air

2011-09-22T19:16:00.000-07:00

It's still nice and warm out, but you can definitely feel an autumn breeze as the clouds roll in. I decided to make a fall 'to-do' list, and I realized how many fun things there are to enjoy this time of year! I'm ready to say goodbye to summer now. Bring on the cider! Bring on the hayrides! Bring on the golden leaves and their glorious crunchiness underneath our feet! We're ready.

We've been to a couple mariners games recently, super fun! (Naomi was upset that her dad made her wear a boy shirt, she wanted to look cute like her friend Grace)

These two are pretty fun.

Naomi started preschool a couple weeks ago and loves it!

zoo trip!

baby jaguar, sleepin in a tree.

Kellan was mesmerized by the fish!

we fed the birdies

Kellan was a little scared of our feathered friends

Fair trip!

Woo hoo!

Oh the delicious scones! The main reason Ryan comes with us to the fair ;)

We ran into some friends at the fair, so we visited while the kids went on some rides together. Naomi and Phoenix are only a month or so apart. You probably can't tell from the picture, but Naomi is half her size! Will my kid ever grow?

Kellan LOVED the big slide!

Here is my fall list that I made. I hope I can get all of these fun things checked off, we've completed one so far!

Just a little longer please

2011-09-11T00:08:00.001-07:00

Summer seems to be sticking around a little longer, and we couldn't be happier. Every Seattleite knows that you just have to drop everything and soak up the sun while it's here.

Going...

...going...

...gone.

Family Pictures

2011-08-24T17:17:00.000-07:00

Here are some of the pictures that Lisette took of our little family. We couldn't be happier with them, she is so talented!

sun, water, and smores is all we need

2011-08-23T21:12:00.000-07:00

Here's some of our summer fun in pictures!

Naomi's Birthday

2011-08-05T12:04:00.000-07:00

Naomi's birthday was perfect. I did as much as I could. I had a lot of help and it all turned out great. I know she was happy with it. She can't stop talking about her rainbow birthday! I'm just glad it all went okay, we even had enough food left over to bring to our neighbors who had a baby the night before! When I saw her adorable newborn, I couldn't help but get a little misty eyed. I can't believe Naomi is four now! She will always be my little baby. I love her so much. I couldn't have asked for anything more, she is everything I ever wanted.

I had a target on the fence that the kids could throw water balloons at. Ryan didn't think that was challenging enough so he decided to become the moving target. I love that I have a fun husband!

I asked everyone to write thier advice for Naomi for her next year of life. I guess she'll be cooking with peppers? ;)

Also, remember that give away I won from Lisette? Well we're cashin' it in tomorrow! I can't wait!

Next Week

2011-07-22T14:05:00.001-07:00

Naomi's birthday is next week! She really wants a rainbow birthday party, the girl loves rainbows. Here's is my plan:

I'll also have sandwiches there, but I couldn't think of how I could make rainbow sandwiches??

It's okay though, I have the next week to prepare for her birthday. Oh wait, did I mention we're also moving next week?! Ugh. Why is life like that sometimes? By the time we actually get in somewhere, it will have been three weeks living out of boxes, with two kids. Not cool. I know I'm whining right now but let me whine okay? I just hope I don't let Naomi down, and I hope I don't pull all of my hair out from stress, that is not an attractive look.

Britney Spears after having two children...I totally get it.

I'm tired

2011-07-13T14:51:00.000-07:00

It was a bit of a crazy weekend. Our lease is up soon and we're finding that it is very difficult to find a decent place in our price range. It's pretty discouraging when we can afford rent that is as much as some people's mortgage payments, and yet still have the bad luck that we have had. We just can't seem to find the right fit for us, but we're hopeful and we're continuing to move forward! On a happier note, the weekend wasn't just filled with frustrating house hunting, we also went to the West Seattle Summer Fest and we went up to Blaine for my cousin Jessie's wedding. I was so overwhelmed that unfortunately I kept forgetting my camera. I hardly took a single picture all weekend! My cousin was so beautiful and relaxed on her special day. They make an adorable couple and they sure know how to throw a party! Everyone had a good time visiting and dancing!

Red, White, Blue, and the Browns!

2011-07-05T16:14:00.000-07:00

I hope you all had a fun time celebrating Independence Day!

U-S-A! U-S-A! :)

We had a good weekend. A zoo trip, park play time, ice cream, a parade, BBQ ribs. What more could you ask for? We squeezed as much fun out of this three-day weekend as possible. Ryan and I finished it off by seeing Transformers at the drive-in. There were some fireworks going off pretty close by on both sides of the screen. It was quite the experience!

Ah yes, this is how summer should be. Eating watermelon, lounging in the sun with friends.

I made some patriotic mini cupcakes!! lemon cake with coconut frosting. Yum!!

The West Seattle 4th of July children's parade was a great way to start off the holiday. At the end of the parade they had treats, a firetruck tour, and lawn games like wheel barrow races. The best part is seeing all of the kids (and some of the adults) all dressed up!

I tried explaining to Naomi why we were celebrating and it got a little out of hand. She had a very confused look on her face, then Grandma Diane threw in two big words for a four year old, democrat and republican. Then Ryan started explaining what his cousin Jon does in the Navy and compared him to Astro Boy, which confused her even more I think. Finally I just tried to explain to her what the word freedom means. I said "can you say freedom?" She was fed up at this point, so she said "No, I don't want to". I figured she was free to say that, so I just left it alone.

2011-06-24T19:33:00.000-07:00

I've always wanted to win a blog giveaway and recently I did! My lucky streak has finally begun. I won a free photo session from an amazingly talented photographer in my ward, Lisette. The title of her personal blog is "Finding the extraordinary in the ordinary". I think that describes her style of photography perfectly. She brings so much life to every day objects and really knows how to capture the beauty of the incredible scenery we are surrounded by here in the Northwest. We live in Paradise, and yet some of us can take the beauty of the trees, mountains, and water for granted. Not this girl. Anyways, I can't wait to show off the family pictures she takes, but in the mean time, you should check her out!

Here are some pictures of what we've been up to lately.

Sunset Club

2011-06-10T08:16:00.001-07:00

The women in my church like to get together once a month and have a potluck dinner. We all prepare food from recipes we get out of Sunset magazine. It's a lot of fun. The food is amazing, but the real event is getting to talk and laugh with these incredible women! Jessica started a blog for us so we could share photos and reipes for those that couldn't make it or as a reference for future use. I like it because I'm trying out foods that I might not seek out to make on my own.

While you were sleeping

2011-06-09T14:23:00.000-07:00

I love nap time. Obviously children need naps, they need a lot of sleep because they're growing so fast! Mommies need breaks too, but there is another reason for naps. I think they are a blessing for older siblings in the home. When Kellan is napping, it is a perfect opportunity for Naomi to get some greatly needed attention. She has these two or three hours a day of uninterrupted time with me. It is a quieter, peaceful, girly time, and I love it.

Whale Tail Park and Remlinger Farm

2011-06-05T21:19:00.000-07:00

We spent the day at the Whale Tail park by Alki the other day. Then we stopped by Pepperdock's on Alki and got some burgers and ice cream. They really do have good burgers and fries, and we love to sit in the back booth.

On Saturday we headed up to the Remlinger Farm, in Carnation. It is heavenly! They have a wonderful market and restaurant. We were greeted with fudge and apple pie samples. Then we shared the spinach, walnut, and chicken salad. Yum! They have everything imaginable there for little ones. Forget Disneyland, we can just come here! We enjoyed a couple kiddie rides, a train ride, and Naomi had her first pony ride! All morning she kept asking, "Is it going to be a real pony? Is this really happening?" She was so happy the entire day, some of her quotes were "This is a dream come true!", "This is TERRRR-rific!"(and yes she said it just like that), "Thank you for bringing me to this place!" She's such a cheese ball, I wonder where she gets it from?

Tiny bunnies!!!!!!

Every time she came around to us on the carousel, she had something to say as quickly as she could before turning the corner. The first time around she yelled out "Look, I have a rainbow seat belt!", the next time she passed by she said "Rainbows are my favorite!", the third time around, "They come after storms and stuff!". Then she started asking us what our favorite colors were. Everyone around us was cracking up.

On our way out we picked up some ice cream and mini pies! Their strawberry/rhubarb pie has changed me forever. I'm not sure how I will ever eat another pie again.

Memorial Day

2011-05-30T15:40:00.000-07:00

On our way to the park today we passed the cemetery. There were white crosses and American flags as far as we could see. I watched people getting out of their cars, walking the paths, embracing each other. I can't even begin to imagine the sorrow of losing a loved one to war. As we enjoyed the good weather and watched the kids play, my heart was full with thanks for our fallen heroes. I am very humbled and grateful when I think of the bravery of the men and women of our armed forces, and their families. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Five years baby

2011-05-29T23:00:00.000-07:00

I can't believe how quickly the time has flown by. It has truly been the best five years of my life. Ryan never ceases to amaze me. When we were sealed together for time and all eternity, I knew I would never regret marrying this man. The Holy Ghost was so strong as we knelt at that alter, I thought we could reach out and touch it. Everyone in the room was crying, including the sealer. If I ever start to have doubts about our future together or our relationship, all I will have to do is recall that special moment. Heavenly Father has blessed us so much. He's always sending us love in so many different ways, but mainly in the form of family and friendship. I'm so grateful for my husband and our little family, and for the people that have taught us, helped us, and share in this beautiful life with us.

We went to Athenian Seafood Restaurant for lunch.

When I was a teenager I thought it was so cool that we could go to the restaurant were they filmed a scene from "Sleepless in Seattle". Tom Hank's tookus sat on one of those bar stools!

Two heads ARE better than one!

We took these pictures with our iphones, because I forgot my camera! I was sad to be caught in pike place market without it. I wanted to take a picture of just about everything I saw. I think I caught the photography bug a little bit with tis new camera.

Lunch was wonderful, I really enjoyed thier crab cakes and that's saying a lot! I almost always order crab cakes wherever we go and I'm usually dissapointed! Not today my friends.

our view

fish mid throw

It was suppose to rain Saturday, but instead it was beautiful! We walked around downtown for hours, poking our heads into little shops we passed by.

Alki

2011-05-23T16:45:00.000-07:00

I want the world, I want the whole world

2011-05-14T14:12:00.000-07:00

There are times when I really feel like this.

I want a new sofa, I want a mini van, I want a personal chef and personal trainer. I want to rent out a park or swimming pool or circus tent for Naomi's birthday in July. I want to go back to school for free, without sacrificing any time with my kids (HA!). I want five more hours added to my day and one more day added to our weekend. Ok, I have to admit it feels a little bit better to get that out.

It's times like these that I just need to fall on my knees in gratitude for all of the abundant blessings in my life. I am showered with love and mercy from my Heavenly Father every day! As President Monson says, it "requires conscious effort" to develop an attitude of gratitude. In these moments when I start to become a greedy little piggy, I just need to remember this.

Give away

2011-05-14T14:05:00.000-07:00

A friend of mine from church is having a give away on her blog. You should totally check her out. She is so very talented and cool to boot. Jealous? You should be. :)

Another Zoo Trip

2011-05-05T12:45:00.000-07:00

We went to the zoo again, that's twice in one week! There is so much to do there with the kids, I love it. My mom came with us. Kellan loved the family farm exhibit and Naomi got her face painted! It was nice to walk around all day in the sunshine. We missed the giraffe feeding time. Did you know you can feed the giraffes yourself?! I guess we need to go back again!

It's official

2011-05-02T22:39:00.000-07:00

Ryan's little sister, Chantel got married. She was a beautiful bride. We're happy to have a new addition to the family. Don is a really nice guy. The dress she's wearing in the pictures is not her wedding dress. I didn't get any pictures of her in her dress. I was so busy visiting with family that I didn't get as many pictures as I would have liked! It was worth it though. Ryan had some family in town that he hasn't seen in ages! It was so nice to catch up with all of them. They are some really great people. We were able to go to the park and zoo with Ryan's brother and his wife. We wish we lived closer to them!

Easter Festivities

2011-04-25T13:54:00.000-07:00

The Queen of Seattle

2011-04-18T13:16:00.000-07:00

It was a beautiful day. The kids loved thier first boat ride!

April Activities

2011-04-11T17:31:00.001-07:00

We took the kids to the park and tried to get some pictures of them in thier easter outfits. Kellan was very uncooperative when it comes to posing for the camera! These were the best ones.

Mom wanted to take Naomi to the movie Hop. It was an adorable movie. Just think the chipmunks with a bunny. Naomi was thoroughly entertained even with the looming fear of being snapped up by her velvet theatre seat.

The Claaaaawwwww!

We also went to the zoo. The penguins are my favorite. I could watch them waddle, dive and swim around all day! They are so cute!

My aunt Ruth and cousin Melissa had dinner at mom's house. It was so wonderful to see them. I love these ladies so much!

Here comes the bride!

2011-03-23T09:42:00.000-07:00

My beautiful little sister in law is getting married! How exciting! We had a shower for her here at our place and it was so much fun. It was nice to meet Chantel's girlfriends. They're such sweet girls.

A dress up shot of Naomi just for fun. The girl loves to dress up!

Me Lucky Charms

2011-03-17T15:04:00.001-07:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Sillies - what parents need to know

2011-03-11T12:35:00.000-08:00

have you caught your child doing any of these things:

chasing each other

making a mess

wearing thier pajamas all day

sticking thier tongue out

wearing a fake mustache

This is a serious issue. I think it's extremely important for every parent to watch this video:

Katie Couric Investigates the Sillies from Katie Couric

2011-03-01T16:42:00.000-08:00

New camera!

2011-02-25T23:00:00.001-08:00

I love this new Canon Rebel we just got! It captures all of the cute moments I usually miss!

Good ol' fashion fun

2011-01-22T20:38:00.000-08:00

In 2011, we are keeping the butterflies in mind as we step carefully...

...Naomi is picking up boys in cars

...more play dates and dress up please!

...ranking #1 in importance for 2011? Wholesome family activities!

More Christmas Festivities

2011-01-04T16:33:00.000-08:00

Annual Photo Booth Pictures

2010-12-27T10:28:00.000-08:00

Christmas Morning

2010-12-27T10:26:00.000-08:00

Another year...

2010-12-21T16:30:00.000-08:00

...with the people I love, in this beautiful life Heavenly Father has given to me. I am so blessed. I had such a nice birthday! Ryan really knows how to treat a lady! Dinner at the space needle, then a night at a nice hotel downtown. For the second day of festivities we had a yummy dinner out again, and went to see a movie. Tron is a fantastic movie, such a ride! I loved the music and imagery. I'm glad we saw it on the big screen.

Christmas Merriment

2010-12-15T01:50:00.000-08:00

The Garden d'lights at the Bellevue Botanical Garden is spectacular! Naomi got such a kick out of this!

Yum. It's time for gingerbread house decorating! ...and eating candy until you're sick! Definitely an official Brown family tradition!

dress up. we love dress up. sometimes you just need to act silly and pretend to be a polinating, karate mastering, fairy princess, with green x-ray vision.

It has begun!

2010-11-30T00:58:00.001-08:00

With young kids, you have to start the Christmas festivities as soon as possible. Okay let's face it, I'm doing this for me too. We are going to soak up every last drop of Christmas that we can get this year! Christmas lights hunting, Santa lap sitting, hot chocolate sipping, caroling, every day, all day! Are you excited or what?!

Thanksgiving

2010-11-30T00:38:00.000-08:00

My bird was moist, the company was good, and I had pumpkin pie for breakfast three days in a row. There is much to be thankful for.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2010-11-24T20:01:00.000-08:00

2010-10-19T17:51:00.000-07:00

Just in case you were wondering, if you haven't seen us in a while, Kellan is still cute. Here is photographic proof below:

We've had quite a time the last few weeks. Most readers of this blog kow we've been in and out of the hospital. We've all been sick, but I was the lucky one, I got away with a small infection and strep throat. Ryan and the kids had to recieve several days of IV antibiotics for thier strep and severe infections. We're all healed and well recovered now. We've been humbled and we feel so grateful and well loved and cared for. I just hope as we head into flu season, that we can stay healthy. I plan on being the most anal mother on Halloween, with gobs and gobs of ati bacterial gel all over us. Or we could just stay in for a few months. Being a shut in at home is much more fun than being in isolation at the hospiital. The food is not that great.

Kellan's Laugh

2010-09-20T10:08:00.000-07:00

days gone by

2010-09-18T14:28:00.000-07:00

Kellan is standing and exploring all the time. He's so curious. He's our little adventurer. I'm not sure if I'm ready for him to start walking just yet. I'm starting to really miss when he was a baby.

We had friends over to the new place.

We played games. We haven't had a game night in a while.

my beautiful day

2010-08-28T11:57:00.000-07:00

We had fun making this video, I hope you enjoy it!

Fresh air

2010-08-12T12:28:00.000-07:00

We went down to my family's annual beach get away at Lincoln City. It was way too much fun as always.

We celebrated Naomi's 3rd birthday there. For Naomi's birthday I tried a betty crocker gluten free cake mix and I used bananas and apple sauce as substitutes for eggs.

They turned out alright, a lot of people liked them! I'm slowly inching my way towards allergy free success!

I can't believe I have a three year old! She is a riot right now, always making us laugh.

Kellan is crawling like a mad man and trying to stand up every chance he gets. Soon enough he'll be running all over the place and church will become less a place of worship and more of an exercise in humiliation for us.

We're excited to see him grow :)

We just found a new apartment. We will miss our current apartment so much, but this new place is going to be such a great fit for us. We can't wait!

Here are some recent home videos:

Summer time, and the livin's easy...

2010-07-07T15:32:00.000-07:00

Ryan had his birthday. Instead of a cake, he blew his candles out over some delicious sushi. We're Seattleites, we'd rather have a rainbow roll than cupcakes. Well, why not both?

Naomi is almost potty trained, we're getting there. I can't believe she'll be three soon, no way!
She is so smart and joyful. She really is a sweetheart. She loves to cook for me in her kitchen and bring me breakfast in bed. What a great way to wake up!

(escape artist in the making)

We try to get out to the park or beach as often as possible. Ryan is super excited about his new promotion, he'll finally have normal hours! He can't wait to get home at 6 and have dinner with us.

Kellan is so close to crawling. He loves carrots, and he is all smiles all the time! He's such a happy baby!

We're enjoying our summer so far here in the emerald city, we hope you're all having fun in the sun too!

The life of a younger brother

2010-06-19T09:36:00.001-07:00

Naomi really does love to dress up. We have a whole box of dress up stuff. Little dude, I'm afraid the pictures below are only the beginning...

Summer has arrived!...?

2010-06-19T09:06:00.000-07:00

Well we've tried to take advantage of every random sunny day we're blessed with here in the North West. So what if it's still jacket weather in the middle of June? We really do live in paradise here, it's gorgeous!

Spring

2010-06-19T08:53:00.000-07:00

Spring was fun here in Seattle. We enjoyed a lot of afternoons at the park and the beach!

Anniversary Trip

2010-05-30T12:20:00.000-07:00

We decided for our fourth anniversary we needed to go back. Way back. Back to where it all began. We went to a Mariner's game just like on our first date, and then stayed downtown for a couple nights(sans the kids). Heavenly.

BOO!

2007-11-15T12:14:00.000-08:00

Naomi had her first Halloween. At about 10pm I realized she didn't have a costume. I started whining about what a horrible mother I was and convinced Ryan to go to Wal-Mart with me. Let me tell you, at 10pm on Halloween, Wal-Mart is really picked over for costumes. We couldn't find anything! So we did the best we could and her costume was pretty pathetic but it was well worth it. We made such a fun memory. I'm so glad that we can find joy in simple things. We have fun together wherever we are no matter what we're doing. We were walking to the car and we found a ten dollar bill! It had been ran over a few hundred times but it was ours! It went from Halloween to Hallelujah! We were laughing so hard in the car we couldn't breath. Later in life when we're financially comfortable, we'll look back and laugh at how excited we were to find ten dollars in a Walmart parking lot.