She's One!

Millie turned one on the 25th!  This year has gone by so fast!  Millie has taken a few steps on her own but still prefers to walk while holding onto things.  We had a party for her on Sunday.  We had some family and friends over and I attempted to make the cake.  As usual it didn't turn out as planned, I ran out of time and my original plan had to be simplified.  I did manage to make the ladybug cake topper though so it wasn't a total disappointment.  At least I didn't have to resort to making cupcakes like I did at Cash's 1st birthday party.  Millie was a little shy at first eating her cake, only sticking one finger in the frosting but then she decided to go for it.  Here are the pictures we managed to get during the party.

Fall photos

This month we had Chris Becerra come take our family pictures.  I try to have them done every fall for Christmas cards.  They turned out great, although Cash was being his usual "larger than life" self.  It made for some funny shots, we can totally see his personality in them.  Josh and I were laughing that we hadn't held hands in so long because we usually had a little person between us.  The photos of just the two of us walking were some my favorites.

Also, here are the photos I took of Millie at 11 months.  I couldn't resist the pink tutu. :)

Off to school we will go...

 Cash started preschool September 5th at Noah's Ark, which is at our church.  It's a Christian based program and it's a class of 14 kids (11 of which are girls).  They have 3 teachers and I step in to help with class field trips and when they need extra hands.  Cash loves being around all of the kiddos his age and had zero anxiety about leaving Mommy for the first time.  Actually when we dropped him off the first day I said, "I'm leaving Buddy.  Do you want to come give me a hug and kiss goodbye?"  He just said, "No, I'm okay".  How do you like that for my four and a half years of devotion?  Here are some pictures of Cash's first day

Cash first class field trip, a nature hike.

With Cash in preschool, I've been able to have some one on one time with Millie, like I did with Cash when he was a baby.  I've been taking Mommy and Me swim classes with her.  She loves the water and has no fear.

Summer is still sticking around so we took Cash miniature golfing.  He hits anyone's ball, he's not particular and he'll move the ball back to the beginning if he likes the obstacle on that hole.  We were not sticklers about the rules of the game and just let him have fun.  My favorite thing was his little celebratory fist pump he did when the ball went in the hole.

First Blog!

I finally decided that a family blog was in order, partly because of the family I have scattered across the country, and partly because I've been failing miserably at emailing family updates.  This way I can put it all here and everyone can just take a look when they feel like it.  This fall is off to a crazy busy start.  Cash started preschool on the 5th (more on that in my next post) and is continuing with his swim lessons.  Millie and I are also taking "Mommy and Me" classes every week.  We had a fun summer but I'm really looking forward to autumn, with changing leaves, a trip to the corn maze, and the harvest carnival.  Stay tuned for pictures of the kids' costumes.  Until then though, here are some highlights from the past few months.

Back when Cash was 8 months old I had photos taken of the two of us so I wanted to do the same with Millie. These were taken at the end of June by Becerra Photography.

Millie's 1st trip to the Oregon Zoo.  For some reason Cash was WAY more interested in this lion sculpture than the actual lions.  He played on that thing for 45 minutes.  Go figure.

A trip to Sunriver with Josh's work colleagues included a bike ride and time at the water park.

In July we visited Nana and Papa near Klamath Falls and spent time at Lake of the Woods.

While in Klamath we had time to go for a hike.  Millie actually fell asleep in her hiking backpack.

Klamath Lake is so beautiful.  This was from our canoe ride on the North end of the lake around the wildlife preserve.

Nana watched Millie so Josh and I could take Cash for a canoe ride on Klamath Lake.  Josh thought it was funny to rock the canoe, practically giving me a panic attack.  Although we all had life jackets, being in a body of water where I can't see the bottom (or any critter that might be lurking in there) is literally my worst nightmare.

This is just a sweet picture I took of Cash playing with Sister on the floor.

 For Josh's birthday I got us Corvallis Knights Baseball tickets.  It's lower key than Oregon State games therefore more kid friendly.  It was warm and sunny, the perfect evening for the ballpark! During the 5th inning they threw one thousand dollars in the air and all of the kids got to jump for it.  Cash was even able to run the bases after the game.

We have spent so much time at the local water park this summer.  Millie and Cash both LOVE the water, they're part fish!

Our 2nd annual Enchanted Forest trip.  I'm the only adult on this ride but they told me I could do it, so I did.

To wrap up this summer update, I'll include some pictures of Millie on her 10 month birthday in August.  I'm already putting together her birthday party, I can't believe how fast it's gone!