Our Little Gymnast

Kristin's kids are both enrolled in gymnastics and they spend a lot of time practicing while at home during the days. They have started teaching the other kids their new tricks too. Ian has clearly picked up on it. Casey and I were shocked a few days ago when he started busting out somersaults. He is so good at it! This isn't the best video, but that is how it always happens. I bust out the camera and he gets all shy on me. Atleast you can get the idea:)

Wrapping Up Summer

This morning Ian and I were looking at a picture frame - it has 4 openings, one for each season. I asked Ian, "What season are we in now?" and it hit me. Summer is over. Labor Day is the official end of summer and that is next weekend already. Wow! The mornings are cool and there is a crispness in the air...you can just tell fall is on its' way. But there is plenty to love about the fall season so I am not complaining!

My Dad was in town the past few days. He and Gina stopped for a visit and took a cruise to Moab during the week. Casey had Sunday off so he was able to join my Dad and brother for a motorcycle ride in the mountains. You couldn't have asked for better riding weather.

We found out a couple of weeks ago that Ian's crib had been recalled. Thus began the search of a new crib. His original crib was a gift and came with a dresser and changing table to match. I didn't want all this hodge podge furniture in his room so I needed to find something affordable so I could get new pieces. Enter IKEA. Of course. We got a new crib and changing table/dresser. I really like it! They are much sturdier than what we had before, surprisingly. It is shorter than his old crib so I am sure he will master getting out of it that much sooner, but at least he won't have as far to fall if he does. It was fun getting to rearrange his room a little bit. But also a little sad to realize how much of a baby he really isn't anymore:(

Saturday was the Airport Expo at the Longmont Airport. Casey had the day off so we jumped at the opportunity to do something as a family. Ian loved watching the airplanes and helicopters. They also had some vintage cars that he couldn't get enough of. He was able to run wild and he loved every minute of it. We also ran into our friends, Brian and Colleen. We joke that they are our "festival friends" since we always bump into them at local festivals - they have a 3 year old (Mia) and twin boys that are a couple of months younger than Ian (Rowan and Keller). The kids enjoyed playing with each other while the parents caught up on life. An interesting little fact: the expo honors Cole Kugel. He built the Longmont airport and donated it to the city in 1942. Cole was the oldest licensed pilot in the world, flying until he was 102 years old!

Purple is SO not your color...

I vividly remember the day Brett Favre retired. The first time, that is. Ian was a month and a half old, it was Casey's birthday. What a drag. We watched the press conference in our living room while Ian slept peacefully. I think I shed a tear or two. It was a heartfelt goodbye to the team and fans that had loved him for so long. Then...came the circus. The flurry of rumors, the ridiculous notion that he was considering coming out of retirement. Ugh! I can handle the Jets. Whatever - it is a different division, no impact on my team. I watched his games. I was interested, but not vested. The NFL season ends and then the whole retirement speech once again. I wasn't interested in entertaining that conversation again, so I ignored most of it. Until yesterday, WTF? Are you kidding me? I understand it is business and he just wants to play football...yada, yada, yada. Minnesota Vikings - what kind of statement is that?! May Karma bite you in the ass, Brett!

Welcome Home!

My friend, Laura, has returned from Norway. She has been there for the last year getting her Master's. We all gathered at the Atomic Cowboy in Denver on Friday to welcome her home. It was so great seeing her. She is doing fabulous and ready for her next adventure...whatever that might be. We've been able to keep up with each other for most of the past year through blogs, but nothing is better than sharing a story in person:)

Melissa, Laura, Erin, Maggie and Jecca

A couple of weeks ago, Maggie and I went to Denver to meet Erin and Mattias' daughter, Linnea. I completely forgot to take any pictures while I was there, but I was able to snap one of her Friday night. She is adorable!

I borrowed a sack n' seat for Ian while we were there. It was genius! I had seen portable high chairs before, but not like this one. Luckily, Mattias' mother was coming here in a couple of weeks and they said they would see if she could bring one. I didn't want to be a hassle, but I wanted to get my hands on one for Ian. I found the American version on amazon.com and ordered one. There was slight miscommunication and they ended up getting one for me as well, so I stopped by their place Friday night and little Linnea was wide awake. Lucky for us!

Ian is almost big enough to use the travel seat and sit at our dining room table, but not quite. Just a foot or two to go, but the travel seats will be awesome for dining out, traveling or anywhere where there isn't a highchair handy:) I am excited about them and I think Ian is too!
Saturday was Maggie's birthday party! We enjoyed yummy food and snacks. There was a game theme. It was pretty cool. Unfortunately, we had to leave before Pictionary started because it was Ian's bedtime. We enjoyed getting to hang out with everyone while we could. I thought for sure Ian would pass out on the way home, but he held on until he could get his PJ's on. He loved exploring the backyard and Maggie's new hammock. Josh showed up and they were able to do some gardening and tend the cooler. Pretty important jobs for such little guys! Casey was able to show up for a bit as well, which is always a wonderful surprise these days. Ian wanted to ride home with Daddy, but we couldn't find a helmet that fit!

Step 4

Enjoy!

Baking with Mommy

I survived my second week on the job. Whew! I am starting to feel more settled each day. We are in the process of implementing new programs, so the way I do my job now will change a lot in the coming weeks. I am taking it one day at a time for now!

Last Wednesday was Maggie's birthday, so I met her and Courtney for lunch. It was great to catch up with them. Courtney recently resigned and will be moving onto bigger and better things. Which sadly leaves Maggie as the sole survivor of the girls group that once existed at Rogue Wave. Amazing what can happen in a year!

One bonus of my new job: I was able to score some free rhubarb from the break room the other day, so Ian helped me bake a pie this afternoon. He helped me coat the rhubarb and place in the pie shell. Yummy! He will have to wait until morning to taste it because it wasn't cool enough by dinner time and I wasn't about to give him a sugar laden snack right before bedtime. Sorry, dude!

Step One
Step Two
Step Three

We'll have to wait until tomorrow to hopefully get a picture of Step 4 - I wonder if he will like it! Coming from a boy who loves lemons and olives, I think he is going to dig it. We'll see!

It's been a pretty calm weekend around the Andrews household. We met with Jack on Saturday to discuss our bathroom remodel. He will get back us this week with an estimate. We are very eager to start this project! We are hoping to do a lot of the work by ourselves in order to cut down on costs, but also want to avoid an episode of Renovation Realities so we will call in the pros to do the big stuff. I am just excited for the shopping:) Stay tuned for updates!

Other than baking, we don't have much to report. We had a nice weekend and are gearing up for the work week. Training camp has started @ CU and Casey is as busy as ever. I just keep telling myself I just have to make it through August, then I will worry about September. So on and so forth. The payoff truly is all the downtime he has during second semester and early summer.

Ian is communicating more and more with us. Which, of course, makes our lives easier. He is becoming more of a helper too. We can give him the recyclables and tell him to "recycle" and he will walk over to the bin and drop them in. So cool! He also gets to pick out his bib before every meal. He walks over to the drawer and picks out one, sometimes two. Today he was all about the Merry Christmas bib from his Aunt Sue. What a cutie!

Grand Finale

Back in March, we started the project of remodeling our basement. If you don't recall, this is what it used to look like...

The actual remodel didn't take long. I was surprised by how fast the room was transformed. Decorating was a different story. As you know, we have been on the go this summer. So I have been trying to tackle it in pits and pieces each weekend. We put the finishing touches on it this week and I LOVE it! This room is exactly how I envisioned it and we look forward to making great memories here.

Ian and I had a laid back weekend. Unfortunately, Casey had to work a lot. We took plenty of pictures and videos so he won't miss a beat. I had to show him Ian's newest trick. I know I shouldn't encourage it, but it just looked like too much fun. The coffee table is on its' way out so enjoy it while you can little man!