Sunday, August 24, 2008

Cordells Everywhere!




Last week at this time, Lily and I were relaxing in an air conditioned house, eating cake, and feeling even more family love. My cousin, Kari, and her children, Madison and Brandon, hosted the perfect family gathering for the ladies of the family. Plus, the Cordells from Alaska were in town for Aunt Janet's high school reunion. Fabulous timing and a wonderful time had by all!

Saturday, August 23, 2008

Smell the Fresh Air


Lily has now experienced her very first hiking experience! Our friend Christy called me this morning to see if I had any interest in going out for a hike. I don't know if she was able to finish her sentence before I said YES!! I packed a few snacks, filled my water bottle, packed my Ergo with a couple diapers, and we were ready to go! Christy came to pick us up and we headed off to Cougar Mountain. It was easy hiking, but we both worked up a sweat as we climbed up the trail. Lily snoozed most of the way, but, once she opened her eyes, she couldn't stop staring up at the light and shadows in the tree tops. Now we're home and she's sleeping off the fresh air. I can hardly wait for her first camping trip!

Date Night


Last night we ventured where many new parents dread: the first night away from the baby. Our very very good good friends, Brandon and Lisa Klassen, were our babysitters for the night. You may have heard their names mentioned if you ever asked how Andy and I met. Yes, it was while helping them get ready for their wedding that we met and got to know each other. But back to this story... they are also expecting their first daughter. Lisa is due at the end of September. This was a great way for them to get a taste of having a baby in the house and see how their sweet pup, Lucy, would handle it, too. Back to the date... Andy had turned the destination into a surprise. It's just one of the things I love about him... He plans these fabulous, meaningful "events" for us to share. This was no let down, either! Do you remember the music group Men At Work? You've certainly heard the song Land Down Under. Well, after the group broke up, the lead singer went out and started a solo career. Colin Hay is his name and, if you ever get a chance, you should definitely go see him! He's an absolute riot and a fabulous musician. I had no idea we were seeing him until we walked into the event center in Edmonds and saw his face on a poster. I think my jaw dropped. Andy's face was priceless! We had Lily on our minds, but had an awesome time full of laughs and toe tapping. Lisa and Brandon looked a little tired by the time we got back to their house to pick our girl up, but it seemed like they had a pretty good time with her. Just a four hour taste before they get one of their own!

Thursday, August 21, 2008

In Relation to the Garden


While I was pregnant, I religiously followed Lily's weekly development on Babycenter.com. Every week they would compare the size of your growing baby to some sort of fruit, nut, or veggie. For example, in the early weeks she was compared to a poppy seed, eventually grew from a blueberry into a mango, and eventually was compared to a cabbage or zucchini. When we stopped by my school today (I was out checking into daycare for this winter and wanted to see how long it would take to walk from the daycare to school.), Pam had all sorts of goodies fresh from her garden that she just had to share. We brought home a zucchini and had to see how Lily measured up.

Thanks Pam!

Home Hunting and Ferry Rides

Our home on Capitol Hill boasts hardwood floors, great neighbors, and an amazing view. Sadly, it has only one bedroom and seems to have shrunk since we got a baby swing, a dresser for all of Lily's clothes, a basket of toys, a basket of board books, and all the other things a baby "needs" in life. So, in another year or two we'll have to move out of our nest on the hill and look for room to expand. Perhaps a place with a yard that a dog could run around in? Or maybe a place big enough to keep a horse and/or pony out back? Definitely a place that will accommodate a sibling for Lily a few years from now. The prices in Seattle might be starting to slow in their race upward, but they will most likely still be too high for us to find what we want in our price range. We've looked at Ballard and over in West Seattle. They're both fantastic areas, and we might end up in one of them, but we want to explore all our options. Hence the ferry ride!
A few weeks ago, Lily went on not just her first public bus ride, but also her first ferry ride. Bainbridge Island was the destination of the day. First stop: coffee! There is this fantastic little cafe right in the middle of the main street of downtown that has the greatest coffee and wonderful pastries and soup. After filling up, we headed out to check out the area and look at the signs in the real estate office windows. Pluses: great community feel, easy access to Seattle, plenty of green forested areas for exploring, good schools, plenty of work possibilities for Andy & Justin's new business,... Negatives: still a little pricey for a house + a few acres, but maybe if we found a place that butted up against some state owned green belt acreage... At any rate, it was a very fun day out of the house. We probably walked a little more than my post pregnancy body was ready for at that time, but I recovered and had such a good time that it was definitely worth it. Maybe we'll end up there in the future. Until then, we'll simply enjoy our perch above downtown.

BATH TIME!!

With all this traveling, a girl just likes to unwind in a bath!

Monday, August 18, 2008

We Are Family

Lily has been a traveling lady! Right at the end of July it all began with a trip out to Lake Roesiger to meet the Reichenberger Aunts, Uncles, and cousins. My cousin Tinell also welcomed a baby into their family this May, cousin Ben graduated from high school and will be attending UW in the fall, and cousin Adam just got engaged to his girlfriend Christina!
The day after we celebrated with the Reichenbergers, we were off to Moscow, ID and then Spokane to see Andy's family. Uncle Jon and Aunt Kathy hosted us the first night on their mountain in Moscow. Then the next morning we were off to Spokane so Lily could meet her cousins and other great grandmother.

Thursday, August 7, 2008

Phew!


As you can see, it's been a few days since we last posted... Life's just been one adventure after another since May 2007! The whole story, in short form, starts when I was hired in late May by Bertschi School as one of their two Pre-K teachers. I couldn't have asked for a better fit! The school is wonderful, only 1 mile from home, and fits me like a glove. Once we knew I had a job, Andy started planning our summer adventure. On Father's Day we moved out of the Diver Dive in Japan and hopped on a plane bound for Seattle. Just two days later, we hopped on another plane bound for Lima, Peru! We spent an amazing 5 weeks traveling in Peru & Bolivia. We climbed across high mountain passes, braved our way through a rock flinging mob, explored the Amazon, met capybara and got them to bark, and so much more. Once we were back in the states we moved back into our condo overlooking Downtown Seattle and the mountains and water in the background. Andy began working at Divers Institute in Ballard. And then we began our greatest adventure yet. In October, we found out I was pregnant and almost one month ago we welcomed Lily Grace into the family. She'll be one month old tomorrow and it feels like she was just born last week. But at the same time, being pregnant seems like forever ago. Does that make sense? Anyhow, since we don't have the greatest track record for keeping this up to date, I expect to be bugged when I'm falling behind again. And now for a few pictures...