Tanner's Cake Dive!

Enjoy! No words needed.

Tanner's Birthday Party

I'm a firm believer in giving 1-year olds their own cake.

And this is why! After he got a taste of the yumminess, he literally grabbed the plate and just dove head-first into the cake!

We decided to have the birthday party at our sister and brother-in-law's house because, well, they have a really fun yard, complete with a swimming pool and.............

Go-carts! The theme of Tanner's party was "Cars" because he loves all things with wheels. So, while Tanner wasn't quite big enough to experience the party's main attraction, most of our family and friends we invited were, so we all had a great time! Happy Birthday, T!

Baltimore 10-Miler

Dave and I woke up early Saturday morning for our 10-mile race. This was the first time either of us has run this particular distance in a race and the first time either of us has run a long-distance race IN THE POURING RAIN!!!

But we survived the torrential downpour and finished our second long-distance race we've run together! Well, we actually don't run together. It's more like we start out running together, then Dave finishes, walks back to the car, picks up the camera and still has a few minutes to spare before I cross! What can I say, training has been a bit challenging with a baby, a 2-year old and working part-time :)

It's Our Birthday!

A year ago today, I gave birth on my birthday.

Tanner is my little birthday baby. I can't believe how much he has grown in a year!

I take him to the doctor on Friday for his 1-year check-up and we are celebrating his birthday on Saturday with family and friends, so I will make a post this weekend with birthday party pics and 1-year stats. Happy Birthday, my sweet boy!

4 Planes in 4 Days...

The famous Sundial Bridge in Redding, CA.

I haven't seen my 89 year old grandmother since my wedding day, 4 years ago. She's never met either of my children. She is the only living grandparent I have and the only living great-grandparent of my kids. She lives in Medford, Oregon, which isn't easy to get to since a) we live on the opposite coast and b) there isn't a major airport anywhere nearby, so if you want to fly into the small local airport, it costs a small fortune. However, although my grandma is as sharp as a tack, mentally, her mobility is very limited and I have known for quite some time that if I'm ever going to see her again, I was going to have to make it out to Medford. I decided it was time......

I traveled on 4 planes in 4 days and drove 1000 miles with a very active, tired and cranky boy in order to get this picture. And I love it!

Grandma loved meeting Tanner and Tanner had a wonderful time pulling on her necklaces and glasses!

My Uncle Jim lives close by, so we were able to see him as well.

My Grandma treated us to a wonderful dinner on Saturday night.

So, here's the breakdown: I found a fabulous deal on a plane ticket to San Francisco, where my sister Maret lives. We decided that I would fly into San Fran and we would make the 6 hour drive to Medford together. I decided to bring Tanner instead of Lacey because, quite simply, he was free and she wasn't! I got up at 4:30am on Friday and went to the airport. Once I got there, I went to unfold my stroller and it wouldn't unfold - panic!! I eventually got it unfolded and went up to the counter where I presented Tanner's passport to prove he was under 2. It was then that I discovered that I had grabbed Lacey's passport on accident - panic again! I plead my case and, luckily, they let me go. We then flew to Atlanta where we had a 3+ hour layover. We then boarded a plane for San Francisco. T had done pretty good up until now, but about 2 hours into the 5 hour San Fran flight, he'd had enough, so it made for a long trip! Every single one of the 4 planes we were on were filled to capacity, so he had to stay on my lap the entire time, and he wasn't happy about it! We arrived into San Fran about 40 minutes late. My sister had told me to take a train from the airport into the city where she would meet me after work. I got on the train (which, with luggage, stroller, car seat and Tanner was no easy task!) and then turned on my cell phone to call Maret to figure out where to meet. My cell phone was dead. PANIC!!!!! Apparently, I left my cell phone on during the flight, so it drained my battery trying to look for a signal for 5 solid hours. I got off at the station my sister had told me to and went to find an elevator to get up to the street level. The elevator was broken. The worker told me that I needed to get back on the train and go to another station in order to get an elevator. The panic has passed and I simply felt like crying. But I didn't. Instead, I risked Tanner's life, put him in his car seat, and balanced him, the stroller and suit case up the escalator, praying he wouldn't fall. We got to the street level and I look helplessly around me at the cars, people and buildings and realize there is no way I'm going to find Maret without a phone. I then proceeded to bum cell phones off people. I didn't know Maret's phone number, so I called Dave and had him call Maret. I made 4 phone calls from borrowed cell phones until I finally found Maret. Hallelujah! We then drove to Redding, CA, about a 3 hour drive from San Fran. We spent the night and continued our drive to Medford, Oregon. We spent 24 hours there. We ate and visited and relaxed and enjoyed our visit. It was so good to see her! We then left on Sunday afternoon and I did the entire trip in reverse.

It was hard. It was exhausting. It was worth it. I'm so glad I was able to see her and I'm so grateful that Tanner will always have a picture of himself with his Great-Grandma. I hope he will treasure it. I did this trip as much for him as I did for myself. I hope I'm able to bring Lacey out someday too.

4 Years Ago Today.....

We got married! I love every memory I have of that day. We were surrounded by all of our wonderful friends and family and had a wonderful outdoor reception with beautiful weather.

We then proceeded to have 2 kids within the first three years of our marriage! And now we lead a busy, crazy, but very happy life. Happy Anniversary, Dave! Love you a hundred million!