Vacation in Coeur D'Alene

We had the chance to spend a super extended labor day weekend with my sister Becca and her husband Jarred in Coeur D'Alene. We enjoyed playing tons of games with them in the evening and they were entertained by all of our kids' antics. They had this great little park in their neighborhood that we spent quite a bit of time at.

Becca & Hudson on the swing

My handsome hubby hanging out on the play set

We took a field trip to Cabela's in Post Falls since we had never been there before and had heard from several people about what an experience it was....Christian was most interested in the video game. ;)

Becca & Hudson checking out all the stuffed game animals

We spent part of one afternoon at the beach and in downtown - Hudson proceeded to get quite wet.

Beautiful Lake Coeur D'Alene

Trying on Daddy's sunglasses

Hudson with the moose in downtown Coeur D'Alene

Chillin' in the swing - this girl could swing for hours

Riding a duck - what fun!

Little girls can ride ducks too!

Scrunchy nose smile

At a park in Post Falls

My brother in law, Jarred, showed us all his gear for the new squad he's on as a corrections officer - he looked so scary Hudson wouldn't stand near him to get a photo. It was close to bedtime and Christian told Hudson he could either come take a picture with Jarred or go to bed. Hudson quickly replied, "I'm going to bed!"

We stopped in Spokane on our way home. We were going to take Hudson on the carousel in Riverfront Park but he wanted nothing to do with that. However, he did enjoy the giant wagon slide.

He informed me that he had to hold on to the sides so he wouldn't go too fast...he's a cautious one.

All tuckered out on the way home

Climbing

Livia has discovered recently how much fun it is to climb into and ont things. Fortunately for us, she is not as crazy a climber as some children I know....

Climbed into the drawer under the train table - "Look, better access to break Hudson's track!"

Opens up the DVD drawer and sits on it...and then generally proceeds to pull all the DVDs out and toss them on the floor.

She also figured out how to climb into Hudson's little chair from Ikea. She will now climb into that chair multiple times a day and then sit there for extended periods of time. In fact, she's sitting in it as I write this. (part of the reason she sits in it for a long time because she hasn't mastered the art of getting out!)

"Look at me!!" She was so proud of herself!

A Wee Sewing Project

I have been inspired by some crafty blogs that I follow to give repurposing a try...here's how it went for me. (Oh how I love having a little girl to sew for!)

Purchased a plain youth sized t-shirt at the dollar store.

Cut it up and sewed it back together Livia sized. I was able to reuse the collar and the hem at the bottom, which made by life easier.


Made this little rose to add some visual interest

My best attempt to get Livia to model her new digs...it turned out a little smaller than I intended, but it should fit her for a little while at least.

Mt. Rainier Train Ride

Last Saturday we rode an old steam engine train from Elbe, WA up toward Mt. Rainier. We met up with both sets of Hudson's grandparents as well as my youngest sister and brothers for the trip. It was a lot of fun - the only bummer was that it was cloudy so we never did get a good view of the mountain.

Steam engine! Hudson made sure we all knew that this engine was not like Thomas because it didn't have a face.

Waiting to board the train

My brothers Kenzy and Jeffley

Pierre

Train ride - wohoo!

Best we could do for a family photo on the train

We went up front to check out the engine while we were on the move - Hudson thought it was way too loud...but he thinks the vacuum is loud.

That's my dad hanging out of the front of the passenger car

Hudson & Christian with his parents and Livia in the train above

Birthday Party

We celebrated Livia's first birthday last Sunday

with our families and some friends.

The birthday cake - or rather giant cupcake

Every little girl needs her baby dolls

Mmm, ribbon

This was her main expression during the gift opening - I'm not sure if she just wasn't awake from nap yet or if she didn't feel good.

Livia was a big fan of her cupcake. She didn't mind getting messy at all!

Yum!

Livia's One Year Photos

My baby girl turns one year old on Wednesday. It's so hard to believe...where has the past year gone? Livia adds such joy to our family. She has a huge smile and shares it often with us or anyone else. She is crawling all over the place (pavement, grass, carpet - doesn't matter!). She is starting to stand independently but no steps yet. She sleeps like a champion and eats pretty much anything we offer. She also really loves her big brother...she wants to be where he is all the time. Hudson isn't always so thrilled to have her around as she tends to mess up whatever he's playing with - he's taked to closing the office door while he's playing trains so she doesn't "break his track".

But don't be fooled, despite all her wonderful qualities, she's not perfect. ;) The past month or so she has been going through a serious separation anxiety phase - Sunday mornings in the nursery are super rough - I haven't heard an entire sermon in a while.

Here are the results of our little photo shoot today - it was too easy! I was pleasantly surprised that she actually sat still long enough to get some great photos.

Precious profile - those cheeks show that she's not missing any meals!


Big, brown eyes - Daddy's going to be in trouble

when she learns how to use those!

When Livia is really happy this is the look we get
with the scrunched up nose.


Just thought this was cute.

Bad lighting but all smiles!

And the winner is....

I know I'm biased...but this girl is adorable!