Fall Fun

Fall is a busy time for us.  I love this age because Caden is able to do more things.  He's such a happy guy and loves people.  Here is a short update and some pictures from this past week of a few things we have done.

Last weekend we took Caden to a pumpkin patch.  Sadly, it was more of a farm than a pumpkin patch.  Other than him shivering (poor little guy) in the cold he had a great time.  He especially liked chasing the German Shephard dog around the farm and looking at the horses. 

 

Monday my friend Kristine threw a Halloween cookie decorating party.  It was a lot of fun.  I decided I would let Caden have his first bite of sugar cookie.  To my surprise he refused!  He would not even try the cookie.  I was hoping he would enjoy decorating the cookies too but he ended up getting really upsit when icing got on his hands.  Caden has always preferred to be clean than dirty.  He's not a child who enjoys playing in the sand or getting his hands dirty unless it's playing with his food that he doesn't want to eat.

 These look neat

 Ew, I don't like the icing on my hand

 Caden's sweet friend Peyton

Getting mad because his hands are dirty

Tuesday was Caden's first day of gymnastics for his age group.  He had a great time!  He loved running around and playing at the gym.  Here are a few pictures.

Caden is 16 Months Old!

Today Caden is 16 months old.  We were in the States when he was 15 months old and I did not get a chance to blog about last month.  So I'll combine this blog post with the past two months.

We took him to the doctor in the States for his 15 month check-up since he was sick.  Here are his stats from last month when he was 15 months old.

Weight: 24 lbs 8 oz - 50 percentile
Height: 32 1/2 in. - 90 percentile
Head circ: 18 in. - 20% percentile

Caden is at such a fun age right now.  He's constantly learning more and more.  I am amazed almost every day at something he does.  He is starting to copy more words that we say.  He follows instructions very well and loves to bring us things.  Some of his favorite and new words to say are: buddy, money, shoes, socks, lion, shirt, and chair.  He also tries to copy me when I make animal sounds.  He is so cute when he talks. 

I enrolled Caden in gymnastics and his first class was yesterday.  Unfortunately, the lady signed us up for the 2-3 year olds so it was a little advanced.  We stayed for most of the class and he participated in the group activities.  I was happy that after introducing himself he went to hit the tambourine the teacher was holding and came back and sat on my lap like the older children did.  When they started that we were third to go and I was thinking we should have sat further down so he could see more kids do it.  He loved the class including the trampolines and rolling on the mats. I'm really excited about his class. It's for Moms, Dads, and Tots.  I was surprised how many dads were there.  I was glad to see so many men taking their kids.  If Collin is ever able to take part of the morning off I think he'd enjoy taking Caden.  I was also happy to see some of our friends in his new class.  Since I signed him up late I wasn't sure who was going to be there.

It seems like our lives are getting busier and busier.  I'm a discussion group leader at MOPS this year.  I missed the first two meetings when we were in the States and am glad to be back.  My small group is getting together Friday for a play date.  I joined a great ladies' Bible study group at the chapel and Collin is still teaching the youth group at church.  Besides our regular activities, we have a few trips planned including going to Paris for Thanksgiving.  We are super excited about it.  I have a few photography sessions over the next few weekends that I'm looking forward to doing.  I just hope the weather stays good.  The weather is now cold but thankfully we have great heaters. 

Collin and I dropped Caden off last Saturday at the Parents' Day Out program on post.  He did great!  We only left him for 4 of the 6 hours.  Collin and I went to eat at a boat restaurant on the river for lunch.  We have wanted to eat there since we first saw it.  Then walked downtown and ate dessert and drank coffee at a cafe.  Doing things like that make us really enjoy living here.  In Texas the only place you walk around is the mall, downtown, or a town square it seems.  Unless you're walking to a park.  We also went to a movie last Thursday while our sweet friends watched Caden.  It was a wonderful break.  I'm so glad Caden's now at an age he likes being with other kids and is fine being away from us for a short amount of time.

Here are some recent pictures.

 First day of gymanstics

 He loved walking on the LONG trampoline

 He did great!

 Ducks are one of Caden's favorite animals.  He was super excited to see this

huge duck at a department store yesterday

Michelle and Kyle's Wedding

We made it safely back to Germany on Tuesday. These past 5 weeks went by faster than we anticipated. We really enjoyed getting to spend so much time with family and friends. I have so many things to write about but am still adjusting to the time change and still have unpacking to do so my computer time is limited.

I thought I would first share some pictures of my sister's wedding since that was the main reason we came home for a visit during this time. Michelle really honored me by asking me to be her matron of honor. Thanks to Collin who was able to do some training in the area we came back just in time for me to make it to all of her bridal showers. She was a beautiful bride and their wedding was not only elegant but fun. We were blessed as well to both get to enjoy the reception thanks to our good friend, Ashley, whose mom offered to watch Caden during the reception. We felt so bad picking him up so late and to our surprise he was still awake and in a great mood. Thanks again Mr. and Mrs. Sandel for watching Caden while we enjoyed the reception.

Caden and Kyle's nephew, Blaine, were both the ring bearers and were so cute. Caden looked so handsome in his little tux. I walked them both down the aisle and they did great. Our cousin Claire was the flower girl and she was beautiful too. Her older sister, Lily, was mine and Collin's flower girl in our wedding.

Michelle and a lot of others spent a lot of time planning and preparing for her wedding. Collin and I are so excited we were able to share their special day. Here are some pictures related to the wedding. I'll post more on Facebook over the next few weeks. Congratulations Michelle and Kyle!! 

 Grandmother Charlene and I

 Granddad and Cade

One of the few pictures of the three of us

 Walking with the ring bearers down the asile, aren't they cute?!

 Michelle and Kyle

 Cade trying to take off his shoes

 Marisa, Collin, and Shawn (M's brother)

 Poor Cade was so hungry and tired, he LOVES his aunt and uncle

but sadly wasn't in the mood for any pictures

 Wedding party - great shot Collin!

My cute little man in his tux

Caden's First Trip to the Dentist

It is recommended that a child visit the dentist after they turn 1.  So we decided to take Caden to the dentist in Texas rather than in Germany.  He really did not appreciate being "held down" while a stranger messed with his teeth. He's smart, I wouldn't like that either.  Thankfully he loves his parents brushing his teeth and will even help us and sometimes cries when we take the toothbrush away.  That's when we know he's just chewing on it or playing.  Caden's 12 teeth look great.  The dentist cleaned his teeth and flossed them.  We were not aware that we needed to floss his teeth so that's something new for us to do.  We were also told to start using fluoride toothpaste on his teeth.  There's a lot of controversy on that matter so we think we're going to wait until he can spit the toothpaste out of his mouth before giving him fluoridated toothpaste.  What are your thoughts?

I'm happy sitting in this chair

I'm not liking this!

Mommy, don't you see what they're doing to me?! (He seriously cried the whole time, I felt so bad!)

All done!

Caden and Friends

Having a kid is so much fun.  I LOVE being a mom.  We had Caden at a great time.  Many of our friends in Texas had kids around the same time we did.  One of my favorite things to do is take Caden to play with his friends.  Not only does it give him a chance to play with other kids but also gives me a chance to catch up with my friends.

We also have a lot of wonderful friends who do not have any children yet and we love seeing them too.  This coming week we hope to see more friends and family since Collin is on vacation and not working.  Yay!  He worked very hard these past two weeks and learned a lot.

Thursday morning I met up with an old friend from high school.  She has a four-year old that is so cute.  We met for breakfast.  After Shea picked her daughter up from pre-school it was time for Caden to take a nap so we didn't get a chance to let them really play.  Sadly, Bria locked her mom's keys in her car and they had to wait for someone to come unlock the car.  Meanwhile I needed to get my son down for his nap.  They were gone by the time Caden was sleeping.  We had a great time catching up over breakfast.

Caden and Bria

Friday morning I went to see my friend Emily Campbell and her son, Ryan.  Ryan is 7 months and a very happy baby.  It was neat seeing Caden around a younger child.  Caden mainly wanted to chase their cat but he seemed to think Ryan was cool too.  I know as they get older they will enjoy each other more.  Emily and I also went to school together.

Caden and Ryan

Friday evening I had a lingerie shower for my sister and stayed out until 10:30 with her and her friends.  I know, I'm a night owl, haha.  I had a great time seeing some of her friends and hanging out with her too.

Girls Night Out

While I went out with the girls Friday night, Collin invited his friend Burt over.  They stayed up and talked until almost 1am!  Talk about a night owl.  They have been friends since kindergarten and Burt was in our wedding. 

Today we met up with our good friends Andrew and Rose.  They have two kids, Austin and Avery.  We had planned on meeting them at their new house but we're sharing my parents' cars and were unable to borrow a car until it was too late to drive out there.  So we met them for dinner.  Collin and Andrew went to graduate school together and both worked for the same company after college.  Thankfully they both have moved on and have more family firiendly jobs now.  We also used to live on the street next to each other.  They are such a neat family and we have missed them a lot.

Rose, Austin, Avery, and Andrew

Having Fun!

We have really missed living in Texas.  It has been so nice being home and seeing our family and friends.  The first week we were home I was sick and Collin was working and staying in Dallas.  Thankfully I was feeling well enough to meet one of my good friends, Chase, for lunch.  Chase is pregnant with her first child, a boy.  I'm so excited for her and Brandon.  We had a great time eating BBQ and catching up.

This past weekend was fun.  I went out with my two good friends Ashley and Jocelyn while Collin hung out with his good friend Bernd.  We spent Friday night at Bernd and Ashley's house.  It was nice seeing them and watching our kids play together.

Off to hang out with the girls

Caden and Autry on a magic rug ride

Sunday after church a big group of our good friends got together for lunch.  I love our church here.  Legacy is a large congregation but has a small church feel to it.  If you are looking for a church in the mid-cities area I'd highly recommend visiting Legacy. 

Monday I got together with Ashley and Jocelyn for a play date.  Collin and Bernd went to play golf.  Philip would have joined them but he's out of town because his mom is really sick.  Hopefully we'll see him this weekend.  The girls' went to a neat park in Grapevine and then went back to Ashley's to swim.  Here's a picture of our three sweet babies.  We were all pregnant at the same time.

Autry (May '09), Caden (June '09), and Levi (July '09)

Other than that I have been busy helping my sister get ready for her wedding.  I went to one of her bridal showers and have two more this weekend.  I went with her to her dress fitting and even got to take some bridal portraits of her.  She is a beautiful bride!  Michelle and I have also enjoyed getting our nails done and hanging out.  I have missed my sister and am so glad I got to come in town as early as we did to participate in some wedding planning.

Most of Michelle's bridal party after her shower

Last night my parents watched Caden while Collin and I went on a date.  We ate at Simply Fondue which was really good.  We had only been to the Melting Pot but wanted to eat downtown and noticed that was new.  My dad tried putting Caden to bed and almost had him down but he kept waking up.  Thankfully we weren't too far away and got to spend a few hours together before coming home.  I really appreciate my parents for watching him and helping it.  It was a MUCH needed break.

I got to take Caden to see Great-Grandmother Dot yesterday.  She's my closest grandmother.  She smiled a lot when she saw us and loved watching him.  I can't wait to see her again.  We've seen my other grandmother and Cathy's mom is coming in town this weekend.  We always wished we had more time when we're in town but are never able to see everyone we want.  Next weekend we get to see some of Collin's family before heading to his hometown to see his parents.  We are really looking forward to seeing his mom and dad and brothers, sister-in-laws, and all his nieces and nephews. 

There is so much more to write about but my time is limited.  To sum it all up, we have enjoyed being home so far.

Made it to Texas

About a week ago we flew home to Texas.  My sister is getting married and I really wanted to make it to all her showers and be here to help with wedding preparations.  Collin worked really hard and got some training approved about an hour from my parents' house so we were able to come earlier than we originally thought.

Last year when Caden was 2 months old we made the trip overseas and it was exhausting.  Although at that time I was up around the clock with him anyway so jet lag and establishing a new schedule wasn't as difficult.  My how things have changed.  We went ahead and paid extra for a seat on the plane for him.  He only slept 1.5 hours on the plane.  Which was actually a pretty normal nap.  We had a difficult time getting him to sleep because he wanted to explore the plane and say hello to everyone.  But he finally gave in when Collin took him mid-plane and rocked him in his arms.

I, on the other hand, did not do so well.  I got a horrible headache about 6 hours into the flight that turned into a migraine.  They served us pizza and seeded grapes for dinner - a terrible combination.  As my migraine progressed so did the nausea.  When we were about 30 seconds from landing I threw up, thankfully in a barf bag.  I have never thrown up on a plane before and I don't get motion sickness.  It was from the migraine.  About a month ago I threw up one evening when I had a migraine but won't say where. 

Saturday I went to my sister's first bridal shower.  It was really nice.  By Saturday evening I started feeling sick and got another migraine.  Sunday morning I woke up with a sore throat and a pounding migraine.  We headed off to church but I felt like I was going to throw up at any moment so we turned around and went home.

Monday I met my best friend since 7th grade for lunch.  She is pregnant and just found out she's having a boy.  I'm so excited for her!  I was feeling better in the morning but by the evening felt horrible.  Tuesday I had to cancel a play date I was looking forward to and went to the doctor.  I got some medicine and today I am finally feeling better.  I ended up having a viral infection and allergies.

My sister and I went and got our nails done and I got a facial today.  I have really enjoyed hanging out with her.  Being away from family and friends makes living in Germany difficult.  Tomorrow I'm going to my first ladies' night out (since Caden was born) with some really good friends.  I'm looking forward to it.

Overall, it has really been nice being home.  I have enjoyed my parents and seeing my siblings.  Caden has had a lot of fun!  He likes chasing my parents' dog and hanging out with my dad.  I'm looking forward to seeing more of our family and friends.  Collin is working the first two weeks we're in town so Caden and I have missed him.  Thankfully we've been able to eat dinner with him.  He's such a hard worker and great dad and husband.