All Caught Up

We have added quite a few posts to the blog over the weekend. Scroll down quite a ways to be sure you don't miss any of the pictures!! Here's a recent one of Eliza to start things off . . . This is how she is around the house about 99% of the time! She has learned how to walk, is almost running and is always chasing Marshall! She loves putting on necklaces and getting into everything.

Pumpkin Patch

Last weekend we made our first pumpkin patch trip of the season with friends here in Salem. Eliza loved playing in the dirt, and Marshall really just wanted to play in the bounce house! We managed to get them to each pick out a pumpkin and take a few pictures and had a lot of fun.

Marshall Turns 3!!!!

On October 5th we celebrated Marshall's third birthday! Eric and I can hardly believe that our baby is 3 years old. We are thankful everyday that the Lord blessed us with this sweet, shy, bright, funny ball of red-haired energy. He is always ready to play outside these days and loves to run, run, run. Marshall also loves to ride his trike, play with friends, climb, go to the library, swing, slide, go to Bible study or church, color, paint, sing, play with play-doh, play Guitar Hero or Mario Kart with dad, dance, read, go to Gram's house, eat candy, make cookies, ride the carousel, play at the park, spend a morning at Mrs. D's music class, play hide and seek, work on a puzzle, build something, knock something down! - the list goes on and on!!

Hope you enjoy these pictures from his little birthday dinner. We had a big birthday week at Disneyland so we decided not to have a big party with all of his buddies. Just a few friends and grandparents were planning to come for dinner. Unfortunately, we all came down with a stomach bug and thought we probably shouldn't have everyone at our house catching it from us! Marshall had a great birthday with our family and his Gram and Bampa. He loved all of his gifts and especially loved his cake. By request he had a Toy Story cake with the Buzz and Woody characters, he is still talking about the cake two weeks later :)

Disneyland Day 6

Our last morning at Disneyland we enjoyed a character breakfast before heading to the airport. Marshall had a great time meeting the characters from Chip 'n' Dale! No pictures of Eliza because she wouldn't go anywhere near the characters :)

Disneyland Day 5

Riding one of the Toontown Cars. It was about 95 degrees on our last day in Disneyland. And, there is NO shade in Toontown. It is the only part of Disneyland that Mom and Dad could have done without!!
Our suitcase gremlin - Eliza loved to get in the suitcases!!!
Waiting for the big parade to start on our last night in Disneyland and enjoying a gigantic lollipop!

Disneyland Day 4

Marshall and his new mouse ears
Meeting Minnie Mouse!!
Marshall on the giant ferris wheel. He actually asked if he could open the ferris wheel doors and JUMP down into the water below! We couldn't believe how fearless Marshall was. If it went fast or high he wanted to ride it! He was so upset that he couldn't go on the "upside-down" roller coaster with Eric and Brad the day before. He was ready to take on anything!
Outside of Winnie the Pooh
Marshall's birthday cake. We had pre-ordered a birthday cake to be delivered to our hotel room this night. We didn't tell Marshall about it and he saw it as soon as he walked into the room and screamed "Micky Mouse brought me a birthday cake!!!" We still have no idea where he thought this up but he was SO excited that this cake came from Mickey. It was yummy!

Disneyland Day 3 Continued!

Marshall waiting patiently for Dale's autograph. Marshall did not like Disney characters at all during our first couple of days in the parks. So, we got him an autograph book and for some reason, he thought the characters were okay if he was getting their autograph. And, he had to be in his stroller. He did not want to get out of the stroller and give them a handshake or a hug. He is so proud of that book and loves to show it off to friends who come to the house now.
What you couldn't see in the first picture was the look on Eliza's face everytime we got close to a character. The first day she loved the characters. After that she was terrified of them!
Eric's brother, Brad, drove up from San Diego and joined us for the afternoon this day. We had a great time catching up. He and Eric took a ride on California Screamin' since the kids are too small for that one. Here they are ready to take-off on the the ride!
Marshall SO EXCITED to high-five with the Space Ranger during the parade at California Adventure. Marshall loves the Pixar Disney movies - Toy Story, Ratatouille, Monster's Inc, Cars and the characters from those movies were the stars of this parade. It was a highlight of his trip to Disneyland!

The Disneyland pictures are neverending and I am really just sharing some favorites. I finally have a minute to blog again so here are a few more!!

Disneyland Day 3

Disneyland Day Two

The first couple of days Eliza loved the characters and Marshall wouldn't go with them. That all changed on day 3!
Eliza at lunch!
Kids in their stroller - that stroller logged a lot of miles in Disneyland!
Ladybug Teacups
Rainforest Cafe
Here are some more pics!!

Disneyland Day One

Marshall on the shuttle from the parking lot to the airport! Ready for the big trip!
Eliza KO'd at the end of day one - travelling and staying up late for the fireworks show was just too much!
Our brand new Buzz Lightyear Astro Blaster - couldn't be happier!
Eliza finally made it to bed - she never woke up when we put her pajamas and and got her to bed. One tired baby!

Two weeks ago we returned from our Disneyland trip! We all had a great time and the kids are ready to go back! Marshall says everyday that he misses Disneyland and often comments that Mickey must be sad that we aren't there with him anymore. Both of the kids were wonderful on the airplane - we couldn't have asked for a smoother trip. We know we must have provided excellent airport entertainment as we took ourselves, an almost 3 year old and a one year old through security with 3 carry-ons, 1 double stroller, 2 Britax car seats (they are huge!), a Go Go Travelmate, and on the way home we added a GIANT Mr. Potato Head to our entourage. Oh, and add to that having to collapse the stroller and take off all of our shoes and belts. Whew! But, that was the toughest part of the trip. Other than Eliza's one restaurant meltdown we had an easy trip with no temper tantrums to speak of. Add to that perfect weather, an incredible view from our room, celebrating Marshall's 3rd birthday, and no lines for any of the rides and we had the dream Disney vacation! A HUGE THANK YOU to those of you who were praying for our travels - only the Lord could have provided such a trouble-free adventure for us! Enjoy the pics!

Just Because We Love This One

Recent Pictures

We have definitely fallen behind in our blogging in the past month, and so much has happened around our house. I've posted a few blogs so be sure to scroll down to see all of the posts, starting with one about Eliza's first birthday. Yes, our baby girl turned one in August. We can hardly believe that she is a year old already. Jocelyn turned 30 this month - and thanks to Eric's planning, we celebrated with a fantastic dinner with good food and great friends at our favorite Portland restaurant. Marshall has learned to pedal his tricyle AND to steer so now can ride his bike up and down our street. Eliza is almost walking. And, Eric couldn't be happier that college football season has begun! We are sad to say good-bye to summer as we have had so much fun this year. But, we are also looking forward to a fun-filled fall season!