Almost 2

Addison is almost 2! I can't believe how fast these past two years have gone. I still feel like it wasn't too long ago that we were adjusting to being new parents and carrying around a tiny baby! Now she is running around (or away from us!) and talking in a few word sentences. I was going through our hard drive and found some pictures that reminded me that Addison will always be my baby girl...even if she does break my back when I carry her:)

When Daddy's Home....We PLAY!

Dave has had the past two weeks off in between semesters and it has been so incredibly nice! The weather has held up so we have been to get out and do a lot. We ran around the park a few times and Addison is now tall enough to climb around by herself. She loves the slides, but her true passion is still swinging.

 After a few days we got in the car and drove to Chicago to see Tara and Jared before they head to Texas. It was a long drive of just over 9 hours. Addison did pretty good with an unhealthy amount of sugary snacks and watching the same episode of Elmo on the ipad. Unfortunately all of us ended up getting a head cold and Addison had a bad cough the whole time we were there. I am a wuss when I am sick and being pregnant means I can hardly take anything. We made the best of it and had a really good time running around seeing the city. Addison and Halle loved taking baths together, eating by each other, holding hands, chasing each other and fighting over toys:) We ate a lot of yummy Chicago food with the deep dish pizza being our favorite. We stayed up playing card games and even got to sneak away one night to go to dinner down town. The weather was cooler most of the time, but warmed up enough to go to the zoo on our last day. We did a lot of walking and I realized I am not used to that much walking! Mother's Day was the Sunday we were there. Dave and Jared made a nice dinner and we got to skype with Makel as well. Before we left Dave and Addison gave me a new pair of sunglasses and a fancy case. They were perfect and I love that Dave picked them out himself. Even though we got everyone sick before we left and Addison got up at 4:30 a couple of days we had a great time! Addison talked about Halle the whole way home!

We decided to stop in Kirtland, Ohio on our way back home. It was a nice break since my legs were killing me and Addison had had enough driving. I talked Dave out of the one star hotel and we found one with a king bed which made the stay totally worth it! We did the visitors center and church sites the evening after pulling it. The weather was beautiful and everything was really neat to see again. Dave had never been and he gave the sister missionaries a run for their money with questions. That night Addison some how climbed out of the pack and play and made her way over to our bed. Neither of us know how she did this! The next day we headed over the the Kirtland temple and Addison sang, "I love to see the temple" on the way over. She is starting to speak more in sentences and communicate more. I love it! We got to go up to the third floor of the temple which I had never done before. The temple construction was beautiful and there was so much detail it was amazing. We ended by going to the Morley Farm and let Addison run around a but before getting in the car for the rest of the ride back. Addison somehow convinced the senior missionary couple to give her gummi bears on the tour! It was good to get away, but we are all glad to be back in our beds tonight! 

It's A.....

We had the much anticipate appointment to find out the gender of baby Michael #2! We are going to have another HerSHEy joining our family! Addison is going to love having a sister around to steal her dolls and share her bows with. Uncle Katie (which is what Addison calls her...no one knows why!) sent a fun package to celebrate the good news.This little lady is already proving to be a wild one like her sister. She is all over the place during the ultrasounds! It is so fun to watch. We are thrilled for another girl and can't wait for September to come!

Early Birthday

My mom helped me drive back from Cincinnati followed by my dad and Jenny driving up a couple days later. They were nice enough to haul up the new dresser and head board for Addison. We decided to celebrate Addison's big 2nd birthday with my family early. Everyone has a busy traveling schedule this Summer and it seemed like the only time. We got up Saturday and had a nice breakfast and headed to go on a nice walk around Niagara River. It was a beautiful day! Addison was demonstrating her new development of the terrible 2's a little early so Dave ended up carrying her most of the time. After walking around we got some ice cream since Addison seems to think it is for what she should have for all three meals! We came home and played outside which is proving to be Addison's favorite past time these days. The only problem is she NEVER wants to come back inside:) Aunt Jenny made Addison an adorable "pillow bed" to watch her shows on. She is in love with it and asks for a blanket to cover up. Grammie and Papa helped to decorate Addison's soon to be big girl room. She got a matching lamp and rug which she proudly kept pointing out the butterfly pull string. We had a nice grill out and sang her favorite song of happy birthday to end the special day. We dropped Addison off at the bff Will's house and went to see Iron Man 3 which was a great movie! Thanks everyone for making the long drive to celebrate!

Ohio Visit

Addison and I decided to take a last minute trip down to Cincinnati before driving became unbearable. The 8 hour drive turned out to be just about all either of us could take! We did a little baby shopping and got Addi some summer things. The mall has a train ride that goes around which Addison loved and Grammie and I endured. Addison has almost perfected her choo choo whistle. I got my Cincy fixes of skyline, greater's black raspberry chip, buskin cookies and most importantly jersey mikes once or twice!There was a lot of playing outside with the wagon and car and following Papa around as he did yard work. Poor Harley didn't know what hit him once Addison arrived. She loves that dog, but I don't think the feeling is as mutual:) Once Jenny was finished with work we headed to the zoo for the day. It was refreshing to see a zoo full of animals and lots to do around the zoo! We got to see a giraffe feeding up close, comb a goat and see a cheetah run. Last spring Addison was terrified of the goats so it was a pleasant surprise to see her to calm around them. Aunt Jenny finally fulfilled Addison's request of painting her toes and fingers. She sat really still and picked out a pretty purple color. I had projects I wanted help with while I was there. My dad and I made a cute yellow and white polka dot headboard for Addison's big girl bed later this summer. Jenny has turned into the professional sander and painter. She helped to refinish a tall dresser that will also go in the new room. I helped Grammie pick out the fabric to make a quilt for baby girl that is going to be really cute! Addison has turned into a do it yourself kind of girl. She likes to say, "Me do it" or "My turn do it"! I am learning to be a little more patient and Addison has had a lot of melt downs that end in kicking face down on the floor. Thank goodness it is warmer weather now and we can spend most of our days outside! We celebrated Jenny's birthday right before we headed back home. We went to the art museum which Addison enjoyed until I ran out of licorice to give her. Jenny picked grilling out at the park for dinner and angel food cake cupcakes. Everything was really yummy and Addison of course enjoyed singing her favorite song of Happy Birthday!!!