Crompton Corner

Fam BBQ

2011-06-30T23:03:00.000-07:00

We recently had a BBQ in Bremerton with my fam and my sissy showed us her new camera! What a difference a nice camera makes! Her and Dean are still learning all the lil tricks but some pics turned out great. I especially love this one of my Gma with Sawyer -

My sweet puppy niece, Delaney

Flying Sawyer

Darby Lee

Siblings

2011-06-17T13:43:00.001-07:00

Everyone tells me these two look alike, and I must say, we agree!

Bittersweet

2011-06-07T12:14:00.000-07:00

Friday was Darby's last day at Northshore Community Co Op Preschool. Which means, it was her last day with Teacher Betsy, our favorite teacher ever! :( I can't believe that Darby was 1.5 yrs old and in diapers when she started preschool, and now she is all done. Next year we're switching to a drop off only preschool, and only because of Teacher Betsy is she ready for such a feat!

For our last circle time Teacher Betsy called up each child and gave them a hug, a certificate, and some bubbles. And there wasn't a dry eye in the house when we sang the goodbye song for the last time. Us grown ups could hardly get through it! Oy, it's SO hard to say goodbye to such a light in your child's life! Thank you so much Teacher Betsy, for helping Darby come out of her little shell and be just a little more ready for all the new big things coming up in her life! We love you!

Thought it would be fun to show some comparison pics of Darby from when she started preschool and now!

Lil Darby

Big girl Darby

Lil Darby and Bella

Big girls Darby and Bella

It was a fun last day

We love you Northshore Co Op and we'll miss you! Thanks for the memories :)

10 Weeks

2011-05-31T13:51:00.000-07:00

Happy 10 weeks Sawyer!

At this point in your lil life you love some things, and you hate some things. Here are some Sawyer tidbits.

You love -

-laying on a blankie and stretching out your limbs

-watching your big sissy run around

-talking to anyone who will listen and talk back

-going to sleep around 9:30pm and waking up around 5:30am...and falling back asleep from 6:30am-9am

-having mommy walk you around the house for hours and hours!!

-lots of milk

-your binky

-catnaps

-your house, you are such a homebody!

You do NOT love-

-tummy time

-being cuddled and held like an infant (let me stretch out mom!)

-spitting up (but you do it ALL the time anyways)

-other people's houses

-sleeping during the day for long periods of time. You're a catnapper!

-being held while mommy is sitting

-leaning your head to the left, but we're working on it!

We love you Sawyer! You have changed SO much over the past 10 weeks, I just can't believe it. You are such a happy baby when you are in your lil bebe comfort zone. I love learning everything about you and spending everyday getting to know you. You truly are a blessing to our family. Can't wait to see you grow and grow <3

Check Ups

2011-05-23T14:15:00.000-07:00

Today I took the kiddos in for their check ups. Darby still needed her 3 yr check up done, so it was perfect to get hers taken care of at Sawyer's 2 month check up. They both did great!

Sawyer was all smiles and coos for the Doc (until the shots, that is) ;)

He weighed in at 13.9 pounds (91st percentile)

Measured 24in long (85th percentile)

Head circumference is 16.1in (74th percentile)

Yay Sawyer! We talked more about his neck/head problem (he prefers to lay his head only to the right) but the doc said to just keep working with him on practicing turning it the other way and we'll check it again at his next check up.

He is such a good baby. He sleeps through the night and eats like a champ! He still spits up a lot, but it just seems to be his thing! I was worried at first he wouldn't gain adequate weight with all his spitting up, but he proved me way wrong. I also talked to the doc about the possibility of acid reflux, but since he sleeps through the night and doesn't complain much anymore he thinks he's fine. Just a spitter!

Little miss Darby did amazing at her check up. She hasn't seen the doc in a while, so she shook his hand and said 'Im Darby Lee Crompton and Im 3!' when he came in ;) So cute! He checked her all over and she is the picture of health. He had her balance on one foot, jump up and down, draw, name some colors, etc. She even got to wear the big girl gown. My lil baby girl isn't so little anymore I guess.

So blessed to have two happy and healthy bebes!!

Love being a Mama

2011-05-12T09:38:00.000-07:00

I love my two kiddos! And my lil fam-bam. This Mother's Day Dave was cleaning his brother's roof so I went to my sissy's house for brunch with my Mom and kids. It was so lovely! And to top it off, we got to meet her new 10 week old English Springer Spaniel, Delaney! What a cute pooch :)

Sawyer slept the whole time and wasn't that interested in sweet Delaney ;)

I got some gift cards so decided to finally get the car seat adapter for my new BOB....

But....it doesn't fit! Apparently BOB hasn't released the infant car seat adapters for the new models yet, and wont be until mid June. How silly!

My parents dropped this pretty lil sign of Spring off on our porch

And Darby drew this amazing pic of me and her! I know she's my child so anything she does I will see as perfect, but this is pure talent! I was quite impressed. She said we were smiling :)

Then later on that evening Dave, the kids and I went to his parents house for some pizza and more fam time. It was a great Mother's Day! Love my family :)

6 Weeks and Loving It

2011-05-03T17:58:00.000-07:00

Loving my 6 week old lil man these days! It's amazing how 6 weeks can completely change a newborn into a lil baby with personality. We definitely love it! Here are some hilariously adorable pics from last night when big sissy Darby was making him smile and coo. So fun :)

Silly baby!!

And PS, poor guy....maybe next time we have a photo shoot I'll lay a blue blanket over his pink chair...you know, so he won't be embarrassed ;)

Flowers Flowers Everywhere

2011-05-01T22:22:00.000-07:00

Holy sunshine! It was beautiful, sunny and 66 degrees today, so we headed to the Tulip Fields in Skagit Valley. The flowers were gorgeous and the kiddos had fun. Well, Sawyer slept in his carrier and Darby demanded to know where the swings and slides were in this so called 'Flower Park,' but hey, we enjoyed the sun and the sights!

Easter Best

2011-04-28T14:27:00.000-07:00

I forgot to take pics on Easter Sunday (gasp!) Well, I remembered, but it was after Darby had purple jelly bean drool all over her sweater and Sawyer had spit up all over himself. So I had to torture the kiddos and get them dressed again for some quick pics like a week later. And yes, now I see I could have spent 2 seconds and run a comb through Darby's hair....but hey, I'm still getting used to this 2 kids thing! ;)

Yaaaawn! Boring, Mom ;)

Darby wanted a picture in Sawyer's chair, too, of course.

My big girl learned this year that Easter is 'when Jesus came back to life' as opposed to last year, when she thought Easter was 'the Easter bunny's birthday' ;)

Hope everyone had a fun Easter!

Baby Sawyer

2011-04-18T15:52:00.000-07:00

Wow! I'm terrible at blogging! We had a baby a month ago, and still no blog posts about him! Sorry Sawyer, I guess I just love spending my time with you and Darby more than blogging about it ;)

Lil Guy was born on March 21st at 1:32am weighing in at 9 lbs 9 oz, and was 21.5 inches long! He was such a good boy and only made me push for 17 minutes. I had been having irregular contractions for 2 days and they weren't getting closer than 5 minutes apart. Actually, the average was probably more like 8 minutes apart. But they finally let me go into triage, and it turned out my water had broken at some point (I had no idea) and I was 4cm so I was able to be admitted. I got an epidural, rested, and then started pushing around 1:15am. Quite the easy experience compared to the first time around!

Darby did great meeting her new lil bro! We had some hurdles when she came back from my parents house (potty in her pants, acting like an all around crazy person) for a few days, but she got over it quickly and we're rapidly falling into the new routine of being a fam of 4! She adores her lil brother and always asks to hold him, she knows when he needs a diaper change, tells me when he's hungry or just wants his binky ;) Im so proud of how she has adjusted! She gets to see her friends a lot (thank you everyone for all your visits!), and she has preschool twice a week, so she can feel like life is still normal and Darby-centric ;) It's been so fun to see her as a big sissy!

Sawyer left the hospital weighing 9 lbs 5 oz, then was down to 9 lbs 2 oz at his doc appt, and then a week later was up to 9 lbs 12 oz. Now that he is a month Im sure he is gaining well! He is quite the lil spitter-upper which I am SO not used to (Darby never even threw up til she was 2!!), and he is very very fussy at certain times of the day (and when I say fussy I mean he is trying to make sure I burst an eardrum soon). I might talk to the doc about acid reflux or something, to see if there is anything we can do to help him. But I do know that some babies are just more vocal than others, or just more colicy. He is having more and more quiet awake time, especially in the morning. I love seeing him look around and kick his legs, so cute! He definitely LOVES his daddy! It's too funny, it's as if he searches him out and once he finds him he doesnt look away!
He *usually* wakes up once at night, around 3-4am, and then again around 6-7am, and takes a long nap late morning. But then again, sometimes it's totally different.....so I guess we haven't fallen into a sleep routine quite yet. But Im definitely seeing improvements from the first week at least! ;)

Im learning that every baby is different. He is TOTALLY different than Darby was as a baby. At first I was so exhausted and worried I would never be able to handle two kids, and already at the 4 week mark things are getting so much better. Im so happy to have Sawyer in our lil fam and to see how he and Darby will interact as they both get older. It's also so fun to see Dave with his new lil boy. He has helped me so much these first few weeks and Im so thankful for him! Also, we have literally only had to cook about 2 times in the past 4 weeks! Our friends and family have been SO generous and we have received so many meals from people!! So wonderful (and delicious)!! We are so spoiled and I wont remember how to turn on the oven if this keeps up ;)

We are already so in love with our new lil guy, and we can't wait to see him grow!

Lil Preschool Party

2011-02-09T13:10:00.000-08:00

Darby also got to celebrate turning 3 with her preschool friends in class on Tuesday. Teacher Betsy gave Darby her crown (again) and we enjoyed some yummy cupcakes. She also got to choose a new book! Man, she should turn 3 everyday!

This is Darby's embarrassed 'everyone is looking at me and singing happy birthday' face ;)

3 Years Young

2011-02-09T13:04:00.000-08:00

No, the Super Bowl wasn't the ONLY thing happening last weekend. It was Darby's 3rd birthday, too, of course! She had a fun little party with friends on Saturday and a fam party/Super Bowl shin dig on Sunday.

Earlier this year Darby's preschool had an auction fundraiser and we bid on having her party at her preschool with her teachers - and we won! It was such a blessing to not have to do much and just sit back and let the teachers run the show, especially this late in my pregnancy. They did SO great, the kids had such a blast! Several kiddos canceled the morning of the party due to yucky colds and flus, but we still had lots of fun and Darby had a great time.

They made necklaces at the art table

Checked out Lola the turtle, fed her some worms and even got to listen to her 'heartbeat' with the stethoscope

The teachers did such a great job leading the kids in so many activities! Circle time with singing and dancing was definitely a huge hit. They even sang Darby's favorite song 'Shaky Egg' :)

The girls putting their 'elbows in'

Darby got her little princess crown and opened presents with Bella's help ;)

This was her 'Happy Birthday' smile she kept giving me all day. She really was excited, I swear! She's only 3 and I'm already annoying her like she's 13 or something ;)

The next day we headed over to Bremerton for some more 3 yr old party-down fun! She was so proud to wear her new pretty dress from Hilary and Liam.

She was spoiled beyond belief again. Here is an owl pillow she got from Bamma that matches her new big girl bedding. So cute!

Her Auntie Steffie definitely won the best Auntie award by getting her a new trampoline. This kid is going to be busy for hours. Yay Steffie!

I think it was a hit with everyone!

One more quick photo. Dave's parents are out of town but of course Bamma Sue still got Darby her all time favorites! Thank you! Happy 3rd birthday Darby, we love you so much. Can't even believe you're 3 already!

No More Rapunzel Hair!

2011-02-03T17:11:00.000-08:00

Darby is seriously growing up! I know lots of kids get their first haircut long before they turn 3 yrs old, but Darby is just not one of those kids! I haven't had the heart to get it cut yet. But it has been getting longer and longer, and harder to manage. So I thought right before her 3rd birthday would be a good time to visit Bella and Max at Country Village in Bothell and get it snipped. She did SO amazing! She sat so still and was so quiet, even while a little baby boy screamed bloody murder in the seat next to her ;) It was his first haircut, too, but he was probably just 1 yr old.

Here is the before pic (you can see how long her hair was in the mirror)

She was so good!

All done!

No more Rapunzel :( But doesn't it look cute?!

I'm so proud of my big girl!

Bella and Max gave me a lock of her hair to keep ;) I don't know why I'm so sentimental about this! I even almost screamed 'Stop! Nevermind! I changed my mind, don't do it!' as the girl started cutting her hair. But I kept quiet and let her finish. I guess in the end, it's just hair and will grow again! Darby is very proud of her big girl haircut, and that's all that matters.

Preschool

2011-01-19T21:59:00.000-08:00

Darby's preschool picture this year just melts my heart! She looks SO much older than last year. I'm a little scared to see what next year brings! My girl is growing so fast.

I'm so proud of her this year. She has done so well being dropped off once a week at preschool and seems to be coming out of her little shell even more. She sings along with all the songs at circle time and participates much more this year. Next year we won't be returning to the co op - we decided on a solely drop off preschool since I feel I will just be too busy with the new baby to do the co op once a week again. (She gets dropped off once a week, but I have to also stay once a week, too). We toured some schools today and decided on Kids At The Creek which is run out of Gold Creek Community Church in Mill Creek. It just really felt right as soon as we walked in, and Darby seemed so comfortable there! (We may even start going to church there)! We will definitely miss the co op, especially Teacher Betsy, but I think it's best for our lil family. And I will be returning to the co op with baby boy as soon as he is old enough for the 1-3's class. Just love that Teacher Betsy! Darby has learned so much from her. Great teachers are such a blessing :)

Birthday Party

2011-01-19T21:46:00.000-08:00

Darby's lil BFF Bella turned 3 and had a fun birthday party at her house. I remember when these girls were 1.5 yrs old and just starting preschool! And today we toured DROP OFF preschools together! Gasp! Time really does fly.

Some of the party animals lined up

Dress up time!

Happy 3rd birthday Bella!

I can't believe Darby will be 3 in a few weeks. And a few weeks after that we'll be the parents of a lil girl AND lil boy!! Amazing.

And here's a quick cute photo of the girls after preschool the other day being silly ;) Love them!

Happy Christmas!

2010-12-27T10:50:00.000-08:00

Now that we're all suffering that Christmas-is-over let down, let the Yule Tide Christmas blog be posted! This year we went to Bremerton to celebrate the merriness. We had such a fun time with the fam, except for Darby's snot-filled cold and waiting til 5am to fall asleep on Christmas Eve....I guess she was excited? Or sick? Or both. But she managed to leave some cookies for Santa to gobble down.

She was excited to see proof that Santa loves Christmas cookies.

Then there were stockings...

Followed by billions of presents.

Her Daddy made her a pretty little stepping stool so she can finally reach the toothbrush by herself and other grown up type things ;) He's just so handy-dandy.

(And if you're wondering, yes she got some new PJ's from Santa so she doesn't have to be a belly-exposer anymore)

Present-opening was followed by lazin- it up on the couch surrounded by toys and watching Over the Hedge.

After her sleepless night of excitement (and sickness) on Christmas Eve, she slept through all of Christmas dinner! Oh well, at least she got to eat what she wanted in solitary peace and quiet ;)

Another Christmas is over! I can't believe next Christmas we'll have TWO lil kiddos. That really blows my mind. Lil baby boy will be 9 months old at Christmastime. Can't wait for the fun and crazy times ahead :) Merry Christmas!

Family Christmas Music

2010-12-23T16:24:00.000-08:00

My family basically listens to the regular favorites during the holidays. But there is one album I grew up listening to in the Willcoxon household that NO ONE ELSE in the world seems to know about! Dave makes fun of me every year when I pop in this particular CD, even though I think it is secretly starting to grow on him. So along with Amy Grant's Christmas Album, Bing Crosby, Nat King Cole, and the rest of the favorites, everyone should take a listen to (drum roll please) -

That's right! The Roger Whittaker Christmas Album! It's the BEST. He's European, dontcha know ;) With such tunes as Momma Mary (Darby's fav), Hallelujah It's Christmas, Darcy the Dragon (my fav), A Time For Peace, and Country Christmas how can you NOT get in the Christmas spirit?! I am seriously so grateful for my weirdo parents who picked this album out of oblivion and stuck it in our record player when I was a kid. Awwww memories. But really, the story goes like this - my dad went to pick up some Christmas music at the store early on in their marriage and saw the cover of this one and grabbed it. Didn't know ANY of the songs. And now it's a family classic. Yay Dad!

Take a listen someday when you're not all drowning in Christmas cheeriness and business - click here to listen

Family Photo Session w/ Claire

2010-12-17T23:48:00.000-08:00

Right after Thanksgiving the talented Claire Gilfillan had a mini-shoot, so we took advantage of her stellar deal and expertise and got some family photos done for 2010. It was perfect timing for Christmas cards and to also capture a little bit of the pregnant tummy before baby boy arrives! We were so happy with how she captured our lil family, she really is such a talented photographer. Thank you again Claire!!

Gingerbread House

2010-12-14T13:48:00.000-08:00

Today at preschool Darby had such a great time making (or eating) a gingerbread house. She even said 'Take pictures Mommy!' So of course, I had to ;)

More Merriness

2010-12-10T23:20:00.000-08:00

Holy holiday season! It's been crazy already and it's only December 10th, but we're definitely having a blast! Today Darby got her annual pic with Santa at Alderwood Mall. She was so excited and even told him she likes Mickey Mouse, which totally surprised me. What happened to Elmo and Curious George?! ;) Well here she is in all her glory.

She was happy, I swear it! Compare it to her first Santa photo-

Awwww Santa has moved up so much in her world since then ;)

To add to our Christmas cheery-day, we went to Garden D'Lights at the Bellevue Botanical Gardens with friends, and finished with Snowflake Lane and Red Robin at Bell Square. Quite the merry evening. I think even 'Daddy Dave' was secretly in candy cane heaven.

She had so much fun with sweet Olivia! (Couldn't fix her glowing eye)

So excited!

Love these girls <3

Such a magical jingle bell-y good time!

Merriness

2010-12-03T14:14:00.000-08:00

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas around here! Getting in the holiday spirit, picking out our tree, decorating and making cookies for cookie exchanges is just even more fun with a little 2 and a half year old girl to enjoy it with! Seeing everything through her excited eyes makes it even more special.

We headed out to Farmer Brown's to pick out our tree again this year, and found a great one!

Darby had so much fun helping me decorate. She likes to put 5 ornaments on one branch!

Being in the duplex this year for Christmas, it was kind of difficult to find a spot for the tree. Behind the front door seemed to be the only spot!

My mom gave us the advent Christmas countdown calendar that we used when I was growing up. Now Darby gets to move the little mouse every morning just like I did when I was a little girl :)

We've also been having lots of Christmas fun with friends, and went to a cookie exchange the other day. Darby was such a good helper with the Hershey Kisses.

During the week of Thanksgiving we had some fun snow days. Darby loved playing outside, even when Mommy was freezing!!

We got her to come back in by tempting her with hot cocoa

One tradition we started last year was checking out the Macy's Star and Christmas tree lighting in downtown Seattle. It's pretty fun and Darby loves the fireworks they set off. Downtown Seattle is always so pretty at Christmastime.

Merry Merry!!

Shutterfly's 50 FREE Holiday Cards for Bloggers!

2010-11-24T13:29:00.000-08:00

Ok blogging Mama's, doing Christmas cards this year? Family photo Christmas cards, perhaps? Well get 50 free cards from Shutterfly just for blogging about it! Every year our fam does a family photo/card for Christmas, and we love getting them from our friends and family, too! (You know you're all more excited when you get photo cards rather than just a plain old signed card, right?!) :)
This year my favorite Holiday Card company is offering 50 free Christmas cards! That's a great deal for tight pockets this season. They have so many cute choices, picking one out is always fun.

Here are some examples of Christmas photo cards

Or some stationary Christmas cards

You could even make personalized photo mugs

All you have to do is go here.
Follow the instructions and get your 50 free cards!

I just can't wait to get our mini family photo session done by Claire Gillfillan and to send out our Christmas photo cards from Shutterfly! I love good deals :)

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays :)

What's in a name?!

2010-11-15T18:02:00.000-08:00

Boy names will be the end of me! Why are boy names so hard?! Of course plenty of names sound cute enough, but then imagining my lil boy out on the playground someday with some of those names is, well, interesting. We had a girl name picked out which we will just have to put on the back burner for awhile til (if) we have another baby girl. In the meantime, I'm having boy-name probs!

I guess Dave and I will just need to keep pondering a la Homer Simpson til the right one strikes us.....or just do with Darby's choice of - yup, you guessed it, Elmo! ;)

Friends and Fun

2010-11-07T23:46:00.000-08:00

Im so thankful for the wonderful women in my life and for all of Darby's lil friends. She has so much fun every single day, and so do I!

Doing some exercises after the Mama's were done

Giving us Mom's a concert from the fireplace

Looking at slugs with William

Reading time

Out with some of my favorite people for Pris' birthday

So blessed!

Trick or Treat

2010-11-07T23:30:00.000-08:00

We decided to hit up the Mill Creek Town Center again this year for trick or treating since it was so fun last year. Darby was so excited to have Bamma, Boppa AND Auntie Steffie join us with our friends for the fun! We had a great time and rounded out the evening with a yummy meal at Azul. Happy Halloween!

And since this is the Halloween-y post, if you will, here is the one pic of Dave and I sporting our costumes!

Preschool Halloween Party

2010-10-29T21:55:00.000-07:00

Today Darby's preschool had a Halloween party! It was so fun to see all the kiddos (and parents!) dressed up in their cute costumes. Darby was so excited and kept telling everyone 'I'm a yummy cupcake!'

We did all the regular fun preschool activities, just dressed up!

Playing with Wonderwoman Bella ;)

Yum!

I dressed up too, but managed to forget to get a Mama/daughter shot! But no fear, Dave and I will both dress up with her on Halloween and get the ultra cool family shot :) Can't wait for more sugar rushes and fun times!

Even MORE Pumpkin Fun

2010-10-24T22:24:00.000-07:00

Ok so maybe we're on pumpkin overload these days....but we've had so many sunny October days, it's kind of hard not to take more trips to the pumpkin patch! I think Darby has been to 4 different ones this Fall! She lives quite the life, dontcha know ;)

Bob's Pumpkin Patch/Corn Maze in Snohomish was another fun one we visited with friends.

BFF's

Following the leader through the patch

After visiting lots of pumpkin patches, you carve pumpkins!

Now we're all set for costume parties, trick or treating, and even more fun :)

Preschool Field Trip

2010-10-23T22:18:00.000-07:00

Last Friday Darby's preschool went on a field trip to Craven Farm for some pumpkin fun. Darby had a blast with her BFF Bella and her other classmates. She was so excited (and confused) to see Teacher Betsy outside of the classroom ;)

Our little tour started with cookies and a story in the barn.

After seeing the animals we made our way outside to the fun sights and of course, the pumpkins!

We got a preschool group photo which I have been waiting to add to this but haven't received it yet!! So I'll just add it later ;)

It's a Lil' Dude!

2010-10-15T20:35:00.000-07:00

We had our ultrasound today for baby #2 and found out we're having a healthy lil boy! Let me be the first to say, I was SHOCKED! For some reason I have been completely convinced we were having a little girl....and when I saw the 'sweet shot' of his little manhood I was speechless! I still cannot believe we're going to have a lil' dude running around following after his big sister Darby! I had a girl's name all picked out, but we are totally stuck when it comes to boy names. I'm sure we'll think of the perfect one :) Yay for healthy baby boy!! So excited to meet him!

Remlinger Farms

2010-10-13T17:12:00.000-07:00

The place of little kid dreams! Last Saturday we met some friends and had a blast at Remlinger Farms out in Carnation. What a cute place to take your kiddos! Darby had a blast on all the rides and of course loved all the special treats. Such a fun day.

Pumpkin posing

Boat ride

Pony rides! Darby giggled the whole time :)

Scary but fun pumpkin ride with Olivia and Steve

Brave girls riding the ferris wheel all by themselves!

Train ride group shot. Stellar day! We will have to visit again and show 'Daddy Dave' a good time :)

Date with Mommy

2010-10-13T16:42:00.000-07:00

Recently Darby and I had a nice Saturday to ourselves because Dave was stuck working and we had no plans. It was a beautiful day so we went to visit the Edmonds waterfront, and then got to share a yummy donut at Top Pot in the Mill Creek Town Center after feeding the ducks.

Mmmm yummy!

Back to School

2010-09-21T15:47:00.000-07:00

Darby's first week back to preschool was last week and I must say, she impressed! Preschool this year will be Tuesdays and Fridays, for about 2 hours. Tuesdays I stay in class as a 'working parent' and Fridays will be Darby's drop off day. I was SO worried about the drop off day, since I have never left Darby unless it's with very close friends or family, so I wasn't sure how she would react. But she is always surprising me and showing me how grown up she is! She did way better than me, that's for sure. She (supposedly) did great! She apparently became BFF's with Ellie's Daddy Drew, which is so surprising since she usually prefers friends' Mommies, and hung around with him all morning having a blast! I cried when I picked her up because I was about 3 minutes late getting there and wanted to be there before class ended, but she just ran up and hugged me! So proud of my lil-big girl!

Recent Concerts

2010-09-14T23:26:00.000-07:00

Labor Day weekend Dave humored me yet again and went on our yearly pilgrimage to the Gorge to see DMB. I lucked out and got Pit tickets through the presale so we were up pretty close to the stage. My sissy went to the Sat night show and enjoyed a much better setlist than my Sunday show....but who am I kidding?! I have fun every year no matter what ;)

This weekend my sissy and I went to see Ray LaMontagne and David Gray with my sweet friends Hilary and Trevor. It was such a great evening at Marymoor with perfect weather. We had such a blast despite getting orange soda thrown on us from the weirdo lawn dwellers behind us (apparently they didn't want us dancing and enjoying the show when they wanted to sit on their bums all night). Even David Gray himself several times told everyone to please get up and dance...it's a concert for crying out loud! Even though I must admit, Ray Ray and DG do draw out some of the umm, 'older crowd.' And Im no ageist! Im just saying...it may have been past their bedtime ;)

Ray Ray was SO a-may-zing and DG blew me away! He even played Darby's all time favorite 'Be Mine!' Im sure if she were there, she would have been singing and dancing along with me. Great evening!!

Flower Girls Rock!

2010-09-14T20:45:00.000-07:00

Our BFF Kris McArthur got married (GASP....I know, it takes a moment to sink in....) over Labor Day weekend and my sweet husband was honored to be the best man, and my lil 2 yr old was rockin' it as their flower girl. Can I just say it is SO STRESSFUL when your kid is the flower girl in your best friend's wedding! I was an emotional mess anyways, let alone trying to make sure my terrible two's toddler followed orders and looked cute! *Phew* But Im proud to say, she pulled out a stellar performance and lasted until 11:30pm dancing with the best of them on the dance floor. Stunning, I tell you! I was so proud of our lil miss and of my hubby, too! Who had to give a best man speech by ever so gracefully balancing the embarrassing stories with the sentimental lovey-doveyness. Quite successfully, too, I must say! Cheers to Kris and Andrea! We're so happy for them and love them soooo very much (wipes eyes and nose repeatedly)

About to walk down the aisle!

Contributing to the debauchery

Cutting it up on the dance floor

Sending off Kris and Andrea with bubbles

Nail Polish and Beaches

2010-08-20T12:42:00.000-07:00

Darby got the royal treatment from her GG and Boppa the other day while we visited Bremerton. GG was painting her nails in her classic dark, dark red, and of course Darby wanted in on it. Boppa even helped and did a foot ;)

We visited Jetty Island for the first time earlier this week and I must say, we had a blast! It was such a beautiful day, and the water is surprisingly warm for Washington water!

Walking to the ferry with Olivia and William

Playing on the beach

Over The Hill

2010-08-12T15:26:00.000-07:00

My sweet hubby turned 30 yesterday! I know, I know - 30 isn't old.....but it SOUNDS old to you when you first turn 30! Im sure it sounds young to 40 somethings, but seriously, how am I married to a 30 yr old?! Where has the time gone? But alas, Dave makes it look good! :)
I figured since you only turn 30 once I should torture him with a little surprise birthday get together. So I told him we were meeting our friend Kris for drinks, but when we arrived he was surrounded by friends ready to celebrate. He was surprised and had a great time catching up with everyone. I only took a few pics right at the beginning before everyone arrived. I had wanted to get a group shot once everyone was there but forgot! Blast!

Happy 30th Dave! Here's to many many more!

Boys Know How To Party

2010-07-28T15:33:00.000-07:00

A couple of Darby's bestest boyfriends, William and Liam, had a combo 2 yr birthday party at Rhododendron Park in Kenmore. It was so fun to celebrate with them, and of course Darby loved the pizza and cupcakes!

The birthday boys William and Liam

Look at this spread!

Hello piggy

Bye bye piggy

Happy 2nd Birthday William and Liam!

Super Model

2010-07-28T15:13:00.000-07:00

Recently our friend Claire Gilfillan had a little photo session with Darby. Darby was being her regular sassy self and Claire still managed to capture such amazing shots! Im so happy with them all and would recommend her highly to anyone! She does great with kids. Thank you Claire!

Quiet Sunday

2010-07-18T22:36:00.000-07:00

Today we had big plans to go check out the Bite of Seattle, but changed our minds and just stayed in.
Darby had fun painting with Daddy.

And we finally put together the kitchen she got from Bama and Boppa for Christmas! She was so excited and didn't stop playing for 2 hours (and that was only because it was bedtime)

She told me she was 'just cooking some goldfish soup and cupcakes' :)

Summer Lovin'

2010-07-08T23:26:00.001-07:00

Nothing better than beating the heat with your best boyfriend ;)

Random Catching-Up-Ness

2010-06-29T19:43:00.000-07:00

Im falling behind yet again on the old bloggy blog. So here's a quick recap.

There were some sunny days with cake and friends

And there were some rainy days with cupcakes and friends! Darby had fun helping Noah celebrate turning three at Willis Tucker, even with the wet weather

The birthday boy, Noah. Yum!

We had a Father's Day celebration at Tom and Sue's house. As you can see, daughter loves snuggling up close to her daddy

And on Saturday I ran in the Rock N Roll half marathon. Dave, Darby, Tom and Sue were cheering from the sidelines around mile marker 8. Seeing them revived me and gave me the energy to get my second wind and finish the 13.1 miles strong! Thanks for cheering us on! Dave's brother James ran the FULL marathon!! He did amazing and is truly inspiring! So impressed that anyone can run that distance. I ran with my sweet friend (and stroller strides instructor) Amber. Here we are at the beginning:

Here's Darby waiting to see Mama or Uncle James run by (she looks so excited)

Here comes Mommy! (I was waving at Darby)

There's Uncle James! He's wearing the grayish shirt with black shorts

Here is my ultra spiffy finisher certificate ;)

I beat my hubby and in-laws to the finish line so no post race pics with my little medal ;) And I just am not going to pay the $29.95 for the post-race pic they take for you at the end. What a rip! That's our last 2 weeks(ish) at a glance!

Jump Planet

2010-06-16T14:13:00.001-07:00

We visited Jump Planet today in Bothell with some friends. And no, it's not because there was a Dave Matthews & Fam sighting there recently (he also apparently showed up at Richmond Beach last weekend without notifying me first, too)!!! The nerve.
So, besides attempts at stalking famous band members, we had a blast jumping and sliding and yes, getting clocked in the head by some random crazy boy. Yay Jump Planet!

Smiley Bella
Darby, William and Evy climbing up the wrong way...as always. What's with kids and climbing up slides?!

I just love little Evy's face here

Next time we'll be jumping with Dave Matthews' kids, mark my words!

These Times They Are A-Changing

2010-06-11T18:02:00.000-07:00

It's taken a few days to sink in...but The Kid is retired. I'm not going to talk about all the gossip from this season, or give my opinion on if/when he should have retired. I'm just going to be super cheesy and say thanks for the memories. Seriously. Thanks for keeping baseball in Seattle, for Safeco, for the All Star Game, for the '95 season (and all the ones before that year that I still completely and utterly enjoyed because I didn't know any better). THANK YOU!!! Have fun working on your golf swing and watching your kids grow up. We'll miss you!

He Climbs Mountains Now...Really, It's Nothing

2010-06-08T22:20:00.000-07:00

My husband has a knack for picking new hobbies that make me crazy with worry. But whatever, he has fun! For the past several months Dave has been hiking local trails with a group of friends getting prepared for attempting to climb Rainier this summer. They've done crevasse training, avalanche training (don't make me think about it), your-friend-is-falling-down-the-hill-so-hurry-up-and-dig-your-ice pick-and-boots-into-the-snow training - ya know, all the regular everyday problems we all have (bah!) At least he is taking the time to be prepared. I can at least be thankful for that! And he really seems to, ahem, enjoy cold, snowy conditions in high altitudes?! I told him he will never get to enjoy climbing a mountain with ME, because you couldn't pay me to do it, but to each his own.
Last week he attempted to summit Mt Adams. Apparently it's a decently easy climb when the weather is cooperating. Unfortunately, they weren't able to summit due to bad weather, but he had a lot of fun and learned so much. Believe it or not, he's now even more excited to climb. I better get my praying hands ready! ;)

Dave resting up (with hotel teddy bear, of course)

Eric and Paul hiking to the starting point

Eric striking a pose

Dave and Jeff building a snow wall to help block the wind

It's windy! ;)

Dave all decked out in his billions of dollars of climbing gear

The boys' attempt at being artsy. Not bad, not bad

Yay Dave and friends! Now please, keep being safe and smart, and come back to lil Miss Darby and me after every climb :)

Park Days

2010-06-05T21:17:00.000-07:00

Today was Darby's end of school picnic, but since Daddy wasn't able to join us for that, we had a picnic dinner together tonight and Darby got double park time. She has been so excited since Daddy got back from Mt Adams yesterday, and is attached at the hip! Definitely missed her Daddy time while he was away.

Major slide-static

So delighted

Peek a boo

Visitors

2010-05-31T18:25:00.000-07:00

Today for Memorial Day Bamma and Boppa came to visit and play. We had a great time catching up and having lunch. Poor Darby woke up with a bit of a cold, then skipped nap, but she still was so happy to see her Bamma and Boppa :)

Darby had so much fun showing off her Elmo Potty movie to Boppa. (Now if only she would follow Elmo's advice and go on the potty!)

Then Bamma came over to join them

My Dad brought me another beautiful hanging basket to join the other one he made for me. My front porch definitely needed some flower-beautification! Thanks Dad! Now let's hope I don't kill them...I certainly did not inherit my Dad's green thumb.

Mama's Day

2010-05-09T17:57:00.001-07:00

For Mother's Day I spent time with my Mom, sissy and Darby in downtown Seattle. It was perfect weather and we had such a blast! I love those girls. We had lunch at Elliot's on the water, then walked up to Pike Place Market. I didn't take very many pictures, we were too busy chatting and having fun. Happy Mother's Day, Mama's!

Being silly with Auntie Steffie in the bathroom

Looking at the boats

Walking with Bamma and Steffie

There are a lot of steps up to the Market for a toddler to climb!

Crashed as soon as we got home!

I'm so blessed to be a Mommy to my lil girl Darby, and to be married to my sweet husband Dave. What a nice Mother's Day, and what a nice lil family.

Diving In

2010-05-07T14:15:00.001-07:00

We are diving feet first into full time business ownership pandemonium! We signed the papers yesterday afternoon that makes Dave Mr. Head-Honcho/El Presidente/Boss-Man of Monet Painting and Remodeling. I'm so excited for my little entrepreneur, but can't help but have that 'oh my gosh I'm sliding down this slide WAY too fast' feeling! It's just the worrier in me, dontcha know! CONGRATS DAVE! So proud of you. You are the hardest working, and bravest boy I know. Now go make some money already! ;)

Why Can't I Stop Reading?!

2010-05-04T17:42:00.000-07:00

This might not be a secret, but I'm a huge nerd. I read a book a week, sometimes more than that depending on how many nights in a row I can manage staying up til 1am laying on the couch, reading. (And my secret reason for still not having baby #2 might just be because Im worried about losing my valuable book-time....) I kid, I kid. Right? ;)
Here are some favorites from the past few weeks, and I basically bug all my friends to read them so we can spend endless hours discussing every last detail. I know, nerd alert. I've been known to jump on complete strangers grabbing a book I like at the library or store....so watch out if you see me coming.

The Book Thief is SO GOOD. It's a young adult novel, but any adult would enjoy it. Seriously! I don't know why I had never read/heard of it before, but it's on my all time favorite list now.

I just randomly tried The Water and the Blood because I LOVE this author. She wrote These is My Words (which I adore), so I thought I would pick this one up. I was not disappointed!

Oprah almost (ahem...almost) never leads me astray. The Help was one I stayed up past 1am reading a few days in a row. Loved it! Oh Minnie...

Calley blogged about Truman Capote (and his ever so desirable voice), so when I saw In Cold Blood on the shelf at the library I grabbed it. Now I want to read all his other books. Maybe Truman was a nut, I don't know, but he was a good author!

My current read is Little Bee. So far it is interesting...but then again, I'm only on page 13...

After this book though, I will be slumming it and re-reading the Twilight Series. I guess renting New Moon the other night inspired me to be ready for the release of Eclipse? ;) Hey, I like Twilight. So shush.

Top Pot 5k

2010-04-25T13:40:00.001-07:00

This morning I ran a 5k at Greenlake with some great girls. And after the race, of course the only logical thing to do is to scarf down one of these!

Meeting Spot

2010-04-16T21:51:00.000-07:00

The UW Bookstore has storytime every week and we try to catch it every so often. This week was Special Storytime with Spot! There was a story read to the little ones all about Spot, and then to the kiddo's surprise, Spot himself showed up! ;) Darby and Noah were happy to go give Spot high five and get a picture taken with him.

Group photo right as Spot arrived. Can you see us? ;)

Heading Outside

2010-04-15T23:25:00.000-07:00

On Wednesday morning after a good workout we celebrated the sunshine by visiting Country Village in Bothell. Darby was in lil kid heaven! First we stopped by The Village Bean so we Mama's could get some coffee, then we moved it outside where the kiddos basically hyperventilated from all the fun in the sun. I have never seen so many ducks, roosters, and chickens just walking around stealing snacks from all the kids. It was glorious. The roosters were a little confused though, cock-a-doodling all the livelong day ;)

Harassing the rooster (there was a lot of this)

Busy flirting with William

These days Darby has been busy deciding whose hand to hold. Look at these boys! Decisions decisions....it's rough being a girl.
William

Liam

Noah

See what Im saying?! Look at her giddiness...

Top it all off with some yummy lunch, and it's the perfect day!

Thanks for playing Mr Sunshine, we'll have you back anytime.

A Little Easier

2010-04-03T15:20:00.000-07:00

This one should be a little easier than the half, it's a 5K in Mill Creek...but it's a month later! Wrong order, but should still be fun :)

Happy Birthday Easter Bunny....or something

2010-04-03T15:02:00.000-07:00

Darby thinks it's the Easter bunny's birthday. We'll keep trying. In the mean time, might as well go and enjoy the commercialism of it all!! :)

We went and enjoyed a freezing cold egg hunt in Mill Creek with some buddies.

Had to grab them up quick!

Eating chocolate with William

Happy birthday Easter bunny! ;)

It's Official.....

2010-03-02T12:28:00.000-08:00

I'm registered. And freaking out. T minus 16 and a half weeks, and counting.....

There was this one week of sunshine and happiness....

2010-02-26T22:02:00.000-08:00

This is what my little girl has been doing all week -

Well, not exactly that, but she has been sleeping a lot, coughing like a chain smoker, and sneezing all over me. Poor girl! She has the creeping crud in full force. And I have found the most evil word in the English language might be 'virus,' since there is basically nothing I can do for her except torture her with Tylenol and forcing liquids down her throat. BUT, we did have some good times last week that we like to reminisce about....

We made (and tasted) some cookies with friends

Caught 'Daddy-Dave' (as Darby calls him) finding the perfect magnet outfit

Practiced being a pretty lil flower girl

Got some serious play time in with buddies.
First in our fire hats -

Then in our PJ's -

And we met Boppa and Bamma at the Edmonds waterfront

I basically have suffered cabin fever all week, but there are a few things getting me through it....

Maybe next week we will join the world of the living again....please?!

Turning 2 Is Fun To Do

2010-02-13T17:23:00.000-08:00

I have a 2 year old! It just doesn't flow off my tongue easily yet. I have a 2 year old. Well, even if Mom's and Dad's aren't ready for their little stinkers to grow up, it inevitably happens, and of course there must be birthday parties!
We had Darby's little birthday shebang at PlayMatters in Seattle last Saturday and had quite the turnout. 14 little kiddos came to play and celebrate with Darby!

The kiddos had a great time decorating cookies and playing with all the fun toys PlayMatters has to offer.

I made her some very girly, very sprinkle-covered cupcakes which eventually lead to a sugar induced coma for all.

She was so excited when we sang Happy Birthday, and even waited until the song was over to blow out her candles! *During our 'practice runs' at home, she just went straight into the blowing, I was surprised she restrained herself* ;)

Yummmm!

And if that wasn't enough sugar and presents, the next day we went to my parents house for round 2.

Happy Birthday sweet Darby girl! Thanks for making life full of laughs and smiles :)

Almost 2

2010-02-03T21:55:00.000-08:00

On Tuesdays Darby has preschool, so this Tuesday we brought some cupcakes to share with the kiddos to celebrate Darby's 2nd birthday, which is coming up this Saturday. Teacher Betsy makes a little birthday crown for each birthday girl/boy which Darby was so proud to wear! Everyone sang her the birthday song during circle time and she seemed excited, proud, and shy all at the same time (possible?!) I'm just a sappy, proud, (and a little sad) Mama of an almost 2 year old I guess!

Future stylista?

2010-01-31T16:00:00.000-08:00

She chose to wear her bee costume, brown sweatpants, and her furry boots. Since we didn't have anywhere to be, why not? She was so proud of her very stylish outfit, as you can see ;)

Party at the Seattle Children's Museum

2010-01-23T21:22:00.000-08:00

Darby got her party on at the Seattle Children's Museum today. What an excellent idea, right?! This Saturday was Darby's friend Olivia's 3rd birthday. We have really gotten to know her over the past 6 months through Stroller Strides, and I absolutely love her mommy, Amber! It was such a fun idea to have Olivia's bash at the Children's Museum - there was so much to do! Darby had a blast, let me tell you. Her favorites were the grocery store and Elmo's house. She about died when she saw her BFF Elmo. (Her new nighttime sleeping buddy is Tickle Me Elmo). Can't get enough of him these days.

First she chowed down on her basic food groups: pizza, cheese puffs, and birthday cake.

Then she ran wild in her little-girl-crazy-child frenzy for a couple hours.

It was just too much fun! Darby was out cold soon after we got home :)
Happy 3rd Birthday, Olivia!!

I'm with Conan

2010-01-14T22:14:00.000-08:00

Silly Billy

2010-01-02T20:35:00.000-08:00

Some random silliness a la Darby.

Trying on Mom's hat

Playing with Dad's ski gloves

Getting her bake on

Trying to look like the nuns while watching Sound of Music

Just flying around

Trying out Bella's rocking horse

Catching a sunglasses nap ;)

28 Feels Old

2009-12-29T23:13:00.000-08:00

That's right. Im officially a decade older than I was when I was a senior in high school. Im pretty sure it's all downhill from here ;)
In spite of all that I had a stellar day! I went to lunch with some girlfriends, and dinner with some fam.

The whole crazy clan at my annual Anthony's birthday dinner

A couple of my girlfriends got me mini cupcakes earlier in the day, so Darby helped me celebrate with a candle when we got home. And this is after enjoying some delicious burnt cream at dinner. At least they're mini cupcakes?
Diet starts....now! No wait....NOW! No wait.

Happy Christmas! (In my best Harry Potter accent)

2009-12-29T22:31:00.000-08:00

Can I just say Darby is spoiled. I have a feeling a lot of the other kiddies her age around the world are spoiled rotten, too. Or at least that's what I tell myself.
We spent Christmas Eve in Bremerton with my side of the family. The annual partay at my Grandma's house followed by more presents at my parents place.
Let the spoiling commence.

The goods at my parents house

A few new BFF's

And here is just a little clip of the joyous sound I get to listen to day and night of said new BFF (at least there's an off switch) :)

T-Ball skills to rival the boys

And she was glued to my Dad's lap all night! She calls him 'bapa' and basically just loves his guts. Every time he got up to do something she would yell 'Bapa!!!!'

Christmas morning at our house included all the already unwrapped gifts from Christmas Eve + our one stroller for Darby + the classy 'fireplace channel' on our totally awesome early 90's tv. We rock it like it's hot.
But whatever - look at that face! She could care less! She was super excited for her $10 stroller! :) We'll save the classin' it up for when we're old or something.

Puzzle crazy

THEN we went to Dave's parents house and spoiled the child some more...

Until she was pooped

Now onto the photo montage of all my presents.....
Just Kidding!! I'll stop the torture now, I think I've gone on long enough ;)
Merry Christmas!

Bella Visits

2009-12-19T14:19:00.000-08:00

Bella's mommy had to go to an afternoon meeting sans kiddos so we had Bella over for a visit and a nap. These two girls are just too cute together!

Cheese!

Christmas Babes

2009-12-19T13:58:00.001-08:00

Some of us were blessed enough to be born in this busy little month of December. Darby was invited to two little friend's birthday parties the last couple of weekends.
First there was Tristan's 2nd birthday party (his real birthday is on Christmas Day) and Darby had a great time decorating cookies and riding the rocking horse.

The birthday boy Tristan

Next was Addison's 3rd birthday party (her real birthday is on Christmas Eve!)
It was such a pretty little Winter Wonderland party with lots of balloons and yummy cupcakes. The kids were even visited by a big bear!

Addie the birthday girl

Darby kept sneaking upstairs. I think she wanted to check out Addie's room/toys ;)

All of these parties are starting to remind me that Darby turns 2 in just a couple of months...! Sigh. I guess they all grow up sometime.

Fast Times at....Northshore Community Cooperative Preschool

2009-12-02T21:29:00.000-08:00

Darby's quite the little lady nowadays, attending preschool and all. She is getting used to lots of new things, such as being pushed, getting toys snatched away, and being chased by a particular boy for hugs...you know, the regular preschool stuff. Actually we both really love it! We've had a lot of fun so far. It's every Tuesday for a little over 2 hours and I get to stay with her. She has learned so much already!
She's finally getting used to art projects! She was having none of it at first, but is coming along quite nicely. Im about to start selling her billions of sticky-glue-paper-plate artwork for tons of money. I'll be rich.

Darby and her cutie friend Bella fishin' in the sensory tub.

Circle time means love time. About to get 'face-hugged' by little Hunter. Ahhh young love.

Watching Teacher Betsy with wide eyed wonderment ;)

Shakin' those jingle bells!

All in all, we love preschool! So what if you get shoved around a little bit and get your toys ripped away from your hands? You gotta get ready for annoying little brothers and sisters sometime, right?

christmas2

2009-11-30T22:42:00.000-08:00

Many Memories Tree Christmas 5x7 folded card

Shop Shutterfly.com for elegant Christmas photo cards.

View the entire collection of cards.

Ho Ho Ho

2009-11-29T22:12:00.000-08:00

Christmas tree shopping/chopping is just way more fun with a crazy kid to chase after through the maze of trees. We headed out to Farmer Brown's Christmas Tree Farm again this year, and this time we let Darby chime in with her input. Usually we get a noble, but Darby's pick this year was a....well, I don't know what it is. I'm no Christmas tree expert you know, but whatever it is, it works! And of course it came loaded with spiders and ladybugs who eventually took up residence at our place...

On the car ride home Darby let us all in on Santa's famous one liner :

Once we got home my little helper got all into the Christmas spirit (well actually, she tried to tear down every ornament I put up, but whateva)

These days its hard to get Darby to stop and pose for the camera...this was the best we could do -

And the cuter, but blurry camera phone shot -

Ho Ho Ho!

The Holidays are Here

2009-11-28T15:26:00.000-08:00

I failed to take any pictures on Thanksgiving (besides the one classic family shot - which wasn't even with my camera). Blarg! I think I just don't even think to take the camera out of it's hiding place because it is dying a very long, crappy-picture-taking death. But just like everything else I have ever owned, it will not completely break, but continue to barely hang on to dear life, just so I can't buy a new one ;)
The day after T-Day we went downtown to watch the Westlake Center tree lighting and the Macy's Star fireworks. It was such a nice evening! We just love downtown during the holidays.

Bzzzzzz

2009-10-31T23:46:00.000-07:00

Onto the typical Halloween post!

First, we carve pumpkins.

Next, we got trick or treating with a little bumblebee! How else are we supposed to score a bunch of candy?! We had a fun time with some friends at the Mill Creek Town Center.

Trying to stay dry

Learning the trade

Beeeeeeeeing cute! (Sorry....)

Breaking into the candy while still in the car seat!

Fun Halloween with a little bumblebee :)

Surviving Zee Swine (And Road Trips)

2009-10-27T23:19:00.000-07:00

That's right. I caught the swine flu. We went on our huge long road trip, just for me to get sick the day we got back! I think I know where it all began....*cue the wavy memory fade out...* We were walking down the street in San Fran and there was a big guy walking towards me. As he went past he turned right towards me and coughed! On me! I even said 'Oh he better not have the swine, so help me!' Low and behold, the very next day on the long drive home to WA my throat started to hurt. And then we all know it turned into over a week of near death fun. And poor little Darby caught it from me. BUT she got Tamiflu within the first 24 hours of symptoms, so she was golden. Apparently her immune system is amazing compared to her old mother's. ANYWAYS, now that I have climbed back from the abyss, I can finally blog about our little family car trip to Colorado! (And Idaho, Wyoming, Utah, Nevada, California, and Oregon)!

With Darby navigating, we drove straight through all night and all day to CO. Or Dave did. I slept. And when I took a turn for like one hour at 5am I had to quickly switch back for fear of killing us all from falling asleep at the wheel. Ok, so I stink at all night drive-alongs, so what!? Dave had around 6 Red Bulls and I refuse to drink those things. So there.
But it was all sunshine and blue skies and happiness when we arrived at the cabin!

Some of us became one with nature and our 'Ranger Joe' selves.

All so we could enjoy some of these

And these!

It was just lovely having the cabin all to ourselves! Last time we were here we (happily) shared it with close to 20 people. Not that we ran around naked or anything this time, it was just roomier.
Some ever so exciting family activities included -
puzzles

picnics

and nature walks

We also checked out the river.

Or got INTO the (freezing cold) river !??!

Struck poses in Vail

And had warm fuzzy moments with Daddy

So fast forward through Utah and Nevada - and end up in California! Since we loved San Francisco so much, we showed little Darby a day o' fun and visited the Wharf and such. Here is some photo proof.

Driving across the Golden Gate Bridge

And that was the day I got coughed on. We all know the rest ;) But I digress, you CAN miraculously heal from zee Swine. I am living proof. I eventually crawled out of my dungeon and saw the sunlight once again. It can happen.
Til our next road trip!

Pumpkin Hunting

2009-10-04T14:43:00.001-07:00

Has it really been a year?! Time has flown by since the last time we visited Carleton Farm! We love it because it's close enough that you don't feel like you're traveling cross country to get some pumpkins...and it just really is the place of little kid dreams!

Here is Darby last year at Carleton Farm -

Is this the same kiddo? Now she is just too hip hop to even be held by her Mom and Dad and opted for traversing the pumpkin vines herself.

Hay ride

We are always being told how humongous Darby is...so we had to measure her ;)

The search is on!

Darby's choice

She was saying 'ewwwwww' to this pumpkin. So rude.

Checking out the (small) animal selection

Pumpkin hunting is over for another year!

For Miss Megan

2009-09-25T14:18:00.000-07:00

Our friend Megan made Darby a couple of the cutest dresses I have ever seen. We think she does great work! Here you go Megan - we just love them! Darby looks so sweet and fancy free in these breezy dresses :D

Thank you Miss Megan! I've already received billions of compliments from complete strangers when we are out and about sporting her new duds.
She just looks like she should be tiptoeing through the tulips or something. So cute. THANK YOU!

5 years of Surprises

2009-09-21T18:05:00.000-07:00

5 years go by fast. Why do I feel like before I know it I will be saying 50 years go by fast?! Bleeech! Well, before that happens, we will be taking spontaneous anniversary trips to San Francisco!

We were driving past Seattle when Dave told me to open a package, which ended up being a tour book and map of San Francisco! We were on our way to the airport! I was SO surprised. He is seriously sneaky. I thought for sure we were going to Victoria, BC. I don't know how he became so devious and secretive...should I be worried?! ;) But it was the sweetest surprise ever! 2 nights in San Francisco with no baby and no worries?! Sounds good to me!

We were on the 25th of the 27 floor downtown Hilton. The view was gorgeous.

It was the best weekend to visit. So many things were going on. Our first morning we decided to start out in China Town and randomly came across their Moon Festival celebration - and it was poppin! Parades, dancing dragons, and Chinese food to die for.

AND it was Family Day down at the Marina Green - Kite Flying Contests and all! It made for a pretty picture.

We hiked up Lombard Street to see what all the fuss is about. And actually, it was fun to watch the cars zig zag their way down! Plus the flowers were so pretty. I'll just pretend I didn't get all gross and sweaty on the hike up.

I'm the best photographer ever

Cheesin it up with Alcatraz in the background

Dave and I decided it would be no problem to swim across and escape from Alcatraz if we had to. What's the big deal? ;)

We basically OD'ed on crab. Crab sandwiches, salads, soup, pasta....well you get it (as if we can't get crab in Seattle or something).
Dave with a crab sandwich

And, of course, me with the extra healthy crab and corn chowder bread bowl. Good thing we walked everywhere, right?

Tipsy and tired elevator ride back up after a late night of dinner and wine

We tried to find the Golden Gate, for tourist purposes, but it was hidden all weekend! That bridge is just too shy!

And, the sea lions. Oh my goodness. First, they are smelly. And mean. And LOUD! But oh so fun to watch! They are crazy! They are all trying to catch some zzz's - but continuously wake each other up by bumping into and bugging each other non stop! So crazy. They snarl at each other like death is near.

Just for fun, on the Wharf there was a little boy band called Casino Avenue and they were pretty good! Even if the lead singer's Daddy was taping them with his video camera...and between each song the lead singer would ask his Dad for more water....?! Haha, too cute. They were rockin out though! ;)

Thank you San Francisco! Dave and I fell in love all over again (awwwww) and had a great time. Happy 5th Anniversary Dave! It only feels like the....3rd? Thanks for always thinking Im special enough for surprises :D

Cloudy and Cool....So What?!

2009-09-16T22:43:00.000-07:00

We live in Western Washington people, if you go to the Ocean in September, it will most likely be cloudy. But we Willcoxon's had some fun. We visited our friend's beach house yet again - but this time with the whole clan for some kayaking, fishing, wine, and all around fun-ness.

We left late Friday night, so for some of the drive Darby looked like this (with her one bff who she cannot sleep without these days....)

We did some relaxing

Some kite flying

And some serious sand castle building (which became quite the fierce competition between Dave and Stef)

We also did some kayaking and fishing

Feeding baby deer

Our room when the sun was out (which was before Dave and I arrived I should mention. Stef took this pic)

Oops!

It was a fun trip! Until the ride home...when Darby puked for the very first time in her life! She has been completely fine since, so I guess I can just blame my crazy driving or something...?! It was after Dave and I switched and I took over when she threw up...! Poor girl, crazy Mama making her carsick.

Thanks Ocean Shores for the happy times!

My other husband named Dave....

2009-09-06T22:38:00.000-07:00

*Get ready to indulge me*

My wonderful husband (Dave Crompton) took me to see my other (imaginary) husband, (Dave Matthews) this weekend at the Gorge!! Last summer was the first summer I missed seeing DMB since 2000, so I guess you could say I was pretty excited. Even though I did see him last spring at the Key Arena...but still! Missing DMB @ the Gorge is quite tragic. Believe me.
I wish I would have brought my camera, but alas, I was too busy figuring out everything for my first night away from Darby - so I forgot the all important camera. I did, however, have my extra crappy Blackberry camera. So please excuse the less than impressive quality of the following pictures.
PS - It rained all the way through the passes, through E-Burg, and through our walk from the Gorge parking lot to the ticket entrance. Then, of course, the sun returned! After it completely soaked us :)

Clearing right after the rain

After it rained there were two FULL beautiful rainbows! My camera phone did them zero justice.

Souvenir tour shirt

The barfy stage pics. We were 32 rows back with a camera phone, it's the best we could do!

I discovered that it really doesn't matter where my seats are. I had as much fun in row 32 as I did a couple years ago in row 5, center stage. It's all good at a DMB concert, dontcha know. My sweet husband (DC) got offered pot (as did I) a few times, per usual, which we politely declined, per usual. As I said, it's all good at a DMB concert ;)

For you Die Hards, here was the set list...and Im throwing in the Sunday set list, too, which I did NOT get the chance to see this year (blarg!) But don't worry. I talked my one husband (DC) into going to TWO shows next summer to see my other husband (DM). That is, if they go on tour next year. *Fingers crossed*

Saturday 09/05/2009
Dave Matthews Band
Gorge Amphitheatre
George, WA

Don’t Drink the Water *
The Stone *
Stay Or Leave *
Funny The Way It Is *
Dive In *
Lie In Our Graves *
Shake Me Like a Monkey *
Seven *
Crash (Into Me) *
Bartender *+
Caveman *+
Alligator Pie *+
Road *+
#41 *
Everyday *
You and Me *
Ants Marching *

Encore:
The Maker *
Pantala Naga Pampa *
Rapunzel *

Special Guests:
* Jeff Coffin
+ Danny Barnes

Sunday 09/06/2009
Dave Matthews Band
Gorge Amphitheatre
George, WA

One Sweet World *
Funny The Way It Is *
Why I Am *
Seven *
So Damn Lucky *
Typical Situation *
Spaceman *
You and Me *
Tripping Billies *
Raven *+
Caveman *+
Recently *+
Road *+
Crush *
Squirm *
Shake Me Like a Monkey *
Two Step *

Encore:
Grey Street *
Time Bomb *

Special Guests:
* Jeff Coffin
+ Danny Barnes

REALLY wishing I was at Sunday's show, too.....BUT Im so happy I went to one! AND they played my one favorite, #41, on our night. Thanks my one Dave (DC) husband for putting up with me!!!

Wet n' Wild

2009-08-19T15:30:00.000-07:00

Holy Water! We were tipped off to this fun spray park by our super mom photographer Teddi Yaeger. It's a bit north for you Seattle-ites, but for us Bothell kids - it was perfect! When we drove into the parking lot and saw two buses parked though, I was a bit perturbed. It was crowded beyond belief, but Darby had a blast getting all wet and sun burned (and didn't mind being plowed over by big kids)
*Also, I happened to walk directly under a FULL bucket of water that tips over when full...which resulted in mommy getting soaked as well. I was looking quite the hottie after that - plus I was wearing white capris....yah*

Darby was a little skeptical at first....I mean hello! All these big kids running and screaming?! But as soon as she felt that first spray of water she was in water wonderland heaven

She kept busting a move even though there was no music...?! I guess the best songs are just stuck in our heads or something.

Water water everywhere

Taking a break....but so jealous of the kids still playing. Grrrrrr....

Round 2

'Should I venture into the big kid zone?'

She looks like such a shorty next to all those big kids! Can you spot her?

Willis Tucker Park = A+ from Darby

Bellevue Botanical Garden

2009-08-18T23:01:00.000-07:00

The weather was beautiful today. My little date Darby and I are trying to get out and have some fun before the nice sunshine leaves us all behind for the inevitable 9 months of dreariness. Today we hit up the Bellevue Botanical Garden for a picnic and some flower smellin' ;)

First we checked out the flowers and made sure they were smelling wonderful

Next we made the unavoidable stop at the water fountain and splashed in the water

After dragging Darby away from the water fountain (ugh) - we found a nice little spot for a picnic

Helping me pack up the stroller

Bye Bye Bellevue :)

Tomorrow we're trying out a park with a spray fountain to beat the mini heat wave that is supposed to grace us with it's presence. Yay Summer!

Taste of Edmonds

2009-08-16T18:46:00.000-07:00

This morning Dave worked a few hours and after he got home we headed to the Taste of Edmonds. It was a beautiful day for some waterfront fun!
PS
I just really want to buy a house with a view in Edmonds. Ahhhh to dream a little dream.

Ready for some grub!

Dave getting a gyro

Chicken gyro (very blurry, my camera skills have been less than stellar)

My blackened salmon salad

They had a really fun area set up for the kids. I had to see if Darby would go on the pony rides. It's a rite of passage, dontcha know. I was so surprised when she laughed and clapped the whole time! I thought for sure as soon as I plopped her down on that saddle she would scream. But alas, she is just growing up or something.

Meeting Mr Pony

Giddy up!

Ohhhh how we heart Edmonds :)

Remember to Laugh

2009-08-14T11:34:00.000-07:00

We've been going through some boo-hoo type things as of late....but we are remembering to laugh and smile! We are so blessed to have a crazy, wacky, fun loving little girl who never fails in making us crack a bit of a grin these days :)

I haven't blogged in awhile...so since last time we've had some birthdays -Darby turned 1 and a half! My cousin Josie turned 22, and Dave turned....29!!! We love teasing him about being sooo close to 30 ;)

Here's Darby with 1 and a half candles

Josie's Bday

Two days of rainbow chip cake and frosting in one week?! Darby was in sugar coma heaven.

We've been playing and trying to have some fun the last few days...here is proof!

Her favorite place to sit...don't mind the fingerprints, or the mindless wasting of energy

Blanket capes are all the rage

Looking sweet and innocent one minute...

And quite possessed the next!

Hiding

Found!

Current fav's are tortillas and yogurt ;)

Lots of reasons to smile :)

Spin Dancing

2009-08-03T17:16:00.000-07:00

It's all the rage don't ya know. I caught Darby 'Spin Dancing' to some Matt White. It's becoming her new favorite dance. Dizziness and all.