And the Baby is a......

GIRL!!!!!!!!

This actually comes as a total shocker that we know (and have known) already!  We hadn't planned on finding out the gender until Jen's 21-week appointment. But when a friend of Jen's (who also happens to be the ultrasound tech at her OB/GYN's office) offered to scan her to pass the time while she waited to see the doctor, she absolutely couldn't refuse! 

We couldn't be any more excited about adding a little GIRL to the family!!!  People have been asking since we were pregnant what we were hoping for.  And, in all honesty, we were truly hoping for either gender!  Both had pro's and con's.  It always made us laugh how people assumed we'd want a girl just because we already had a boy.  Or that people predicted we were having a girl, just because we already had a boy.  WE really didn't have any feelings either way as to the gender, but now that we know, we are quite ecstatic and look forward to having a lot more pink around the house.  ;)

It was hard keeping the secret, but sharing it with our family and friends all at the same time made the wait completely worth it.  Here's what our gender reveal looked like this time:

It's a girl!!!  A GIRL!!!  Isn't she beautiful already???  =)

 

 

Consider Yourself Warned.....

It's gonna be a long post.  We have a lot of catching up to do on here.  The last few weeks have been quite eventful, to say the least.   


Pumpkin Patch
The first weekend this month, we headed out to the pumpkin patch!  We went to a new one this year.  We were so-so impressed with everything, but made the most of it.  Noah had a good time - but then again, he usually has a good time anywhere he goes!  ;)  (anyone else find the last picture amusing?)

Circus and a weekend in Denver
The next weekend after the pumpkin patch, we took Noah up to see the Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus and spent the weekend in Denver (we got upgraded big time when we checked in to our hotel - gotta love "key car access only" to get to your top floor room!). He was less than thrilled with the acrobatics but perked up more with the animal stunts.  We enjoyed them both.  Either way, it was a super fun weekend and it was nice to get away for 48 hours. 

I spy...... a moose!!!!
Not only have there been 2 moose in our neck of the woods, but Greg keeps seeing a moose almost every day on his way up to work (near Castle Rock).  It may be the same one that was in Monument and he just decided to ditch his brother and do his own thing and head North.  Regardless, it's been super exciting and Greg's been getting some fantastic pictures!!

Google Maps!
While in Arkansas this past Summer, when Greg and Noah came home from a (long) walk to the park, they happened to spot the Google Maps car!  Well, lo and behold, 4 months later, they officially made it on the world wide web and are famous!  =)  Don't believe us? Look it up!  =)

A BABY!!
Cousin Judah has finally arrived!  After months and months of the longest wait ever, he finally decided to show up.  We are crazy smitten with this precious baby - he's quite addicting.  ;)  Noah tells him over and over how sweet he is, that he loves him and that he is his best friend.  He's even held him more than the rest of us have! He was quite possessive and overprotective of that little guy - always wanting to help and see everything that was going on.  He was also SO sad that we couldn't take him home with us after visiting Brian and Becca in the hospital. We told him soon enough we'd have a baby of our own to take home.  ;)  Pretty sure he's gonna make a FABULOUS big brother.  =)  (does anyone else think it's cool that Jen and Judah have matching hair?!?!) 

Jen's Birthday
Another year bites the dust!  Jen had a great birthday this year.  But what birthday wouldn't be complete without a nice dinner out, (cheesecake factory) cheesecake brought home for later, gifts and memories to last a lifetime? 

Pumpkin Fun
We carved and painted our pumpkins again this year.  We mostly did it because Noah has such a good time painting them AND because we like to roast the seeds.

 

 

 

Fall Festival
This past Saturday, our church had their annual Fall festival in the late afternoon/evening.  SO.MUCH.FUN. They had quite a few things this year that they didn't have last year and everyone seemed to have a blast!  THIS is the fun part of Halloween.  =)  (Jen couldn't convince Noah to be anything but Mario, otherwise we ALL would have dressed up as characters from Duck Dynasty).  ;)

 

"Boo at the Zoo"
The next night, we went and trick-or-treated with the animals at our local zoo with some good friends. We had never done it before and thought this year would be the perfect time to try it and see what it was all about. Noah ran himself ragged, hit the mother lode in the candy department and promptly crashed when we got home. 

 

"Safe Trick or Treat" in Downtown Monument
Tonight we went to downtown Monument with some different friends and did their "safe trick or treat."  The kids had a blast and it was actually a pleasant night - until the very end when it got windy and chilly.  We had good timing.  ;)  After dinner together, the Dad's took the kids back out and around the neighborhood to do even more trick or treating.  It's mind-blowing to see how much candy we have in the house at this juncture.  =)

 

Oh.... and by the way.... someone learned how to whistle this month. All on his own.  He whistles all.day.long.  =)

Noah's Tall Tales

For the past couple of months, Noah has been cracking us up in ways we never thought possible.  He has had quite the imagination and has told THE tallest tales!!!  He's got a story for everything, and 9 times out of 10, they aren't true.  ;)

Like....

Us:  "Noah, how did you get that scratch behind your ear?"
Noah: "Well, I was on the highway and the wind was blowing REALLY hard and it knocked me down and I got scratched."

Us: "Noah, how did you get that bruise on your arm?"
Noah: " I fell all the way down the stairs at Mimi's house."

Noah: "Mommy, do you know why cats jump?"
Jen: "Why?" (thinking this was a riddle or something...)
Noah: "So they can turn on the lights!"
Jen: "What???"
Noah: "Yeah, Uncle Brian told me that!"

Noah: "Daddy, did you get a new car?"
Greg: "Nope, not yet!"
Noah: "Yes you did, you went to safelite repair safelite replace!"
Greg: "LOL, where in the world did you hear about safelite?"
Noah: "Nowhere."

Noah: "So.... we ALL are going to go to Disney World in the car, Mr. Bob has to sit in the trunk and Maddy can sit up front with me because I am going to drive us there."

Noah: "When I was a little baby, I.... (insert about a thousand different stories here)."
Us: "What in the world??  Buddy, you never did that as a baby."
Noah: "Yes I did.  And when my Grandma was a little baby, she.... (insert about a thousand different stories here, too)."
Us:  We just shake our heads and laugh.

Stories like this happen ALL the time around here lately.  So needless to say, there's never a dull moment and we find ourselves always looking forward to the answers to our questions.  ;)

However........ here is one tale that actually IS true:

Noah: "I'M A BIG BROTHER!!!!!"

YEP!!!  You read that right!!!  It's true!!!  WE'RE HAVING ANOTHER BABY!!!  We always wanted our kids to be about this far apart, so..... here we go!!!  =)

 

As of today, Jen is almost 13 weeks along with a due date of April 15th.  This time around we find ourselves a lot more relaxed and a lot less intimidated about the whole "baby" idea.  Two kids (treasures) will be SO much fun - even Noah talks non-stop about his plans for/with the new baby.  =)  We've been given the most amazing gift and will excitedly post updates and pictures as things progress.  Please pray for us!  We never know what the future may hold, but we know who holds it and we sure are excited for it!!! 

John 1:16 - "From the fullness of his grace we have (all) received one blessing after another."
 

Beautiful Summer Chaos

Today is the last day of Summer.... can NOT believe it's already over!!!!  We always anticipate it SO much and then it's gone before we know it.  We've done quite a bit this season - below is a glimpse of our Summer and some of the fun things we've done.  We KNOW this isn't everything..... pretty sure we probably missed some things..... it's just hard looking through hundreds of pictures trying to remember what all we did!!! 


We've played outside a LOT - with the water table, the water shooter, the silly sprinkler and our new cobra mister.

Noah caught a HUGE butterfly one morning - yes, apparently while still in his jammies.  ;)

We frequented Steak 'n Shake and McDonald's - burgers and milkshakes always help beat the heat!

Our daily routine of winding down, snuggling and watching "Jake" before nap.

Playing Guitar Hero with Daddy - your guess as to who is better....  ;)

Playing cars - this was before the explosion of all of his hundreds of other cars came out to play, too.

Mr. Dan bought a plane to put together/play with Noah - he was SO excited!

 Auntie and Noah playing ladder golf.

Picking out a tractor at Home Depot and making sure he tried them ALL before we left. ;)

 

Went to a Sky Sox game with friends one Sunday afternoon.  Noah won a fishing pole and scarfed down his hot dog!  (and oh boy, was it HOT that day!!!)

We helped the Collins' with sifting, clearing the property, cutting down trees and getting ready for the rebuild.  It's coming along quite nicely!!!

We made a couple of forts with pillows, sheets and couch cushions!

Daddy and Noah had a picnic outside one night when Mommy was out with a friend.

We made several trips (with and without friends) for ice cream and fro-yo (we kept Monument in business this Summer!).

Noah had his first trip to the Urgent Care..... this was a horrible, HORRIBLE day..... ='(

We have been utilizing our zoo membership and try to go every other week or so.

Noah perfected his bike riding skills - and has become quite speedy!

Noah went to TWO superhero birthday parties this Summer - he absolutely refused to dress up, but had a lot of fun anyway.  ;)

We had THE best swim play date in Parker with friends.  We LOVE that pool!

We played outside with sidewalk chalk.

We went for a super fun hike in the mountains behind our home.

We, of course, went and fed the ducks.

We pulled out old toys for a new thrill and built things with blocks.

Noah had his first trip to the dentist - and loved it!  (just like his Mommy!)

Our little man looking all handsome for church on a hot Summer Sunday morning.  =)

Noah enjoyed plenty of Otter Pops at Auntie and Mr. Bob's house (gosh, we miss that place.....). 

Noah had to pose in long jammies and slippers one last time before it got WAY too hot.  =) 

 

We took Noah to see Planes one night after dinner.  Can you tell by the look on his little face that he was elated?  We figured we should take him to see it since Auntie and Mr. Bob bought him pretty much every single one of the toy planes from that movie.  ;)

 

We added a brand new SUV to the family!  Someone is quite thrilled with all the bells and whistles.  ;) This brings our vehicle count up to 3 now.  We're gonna look like a car dealership pretty soon here..... ha!

We've also had numerous play dates - sometimes twice a week!  We've done lots and lots of yard work and finally got our path concreted - everything looks SO gorgeous!  When we had melted from the heat and didn't feel like playing outside (which were many, many nights), we stayed inside and challenged each other to multiple games of Mario on the Wii - Noah is getting to be quite good!  Duck Dynasty has become a show we are now thoroughly addicted to - new episodes or old, we love them all and can't seem to get enough - even Noah asks to watch it!  We've both started back up in our men's and women's Bible studies - and also our small group Bible study.  We finally are getting the last bits of paperwork done to sell our first home to the person who was leasing it for the last 2 years - feels great to almost be done (next week!)!  We've done some upgrades around our home, too - doing a little bit at a time!  We had a bear in the neighborhood wreaking "havoc" one night - tearing up fences and getting into trash cans - we found that to be quite exciting and decided that we LOVE living at the base of the mountains!  Jen pulled out her old Awana Cubbies books and we've been working with Noah on memorizing scripture - since our church doesn't offer Awana (boo!), we figured this was the least we could do.

We didn't get to fit in everything we wanted to do, believe it or not.  Good thing there's always next Summer!!!  =) 

Happy Fall, Y'all!  Bring on the pumpkin spice lattes and apple desserts - we're ready!