Christmas Tree Hunting

We got our Christmas tree last Saturday!

I absolutely ADORE going and getting the family Christmas tree. I remember going up in the mountains in Oregon when I was younger with my dad. We went (almost) every year - traipsing around the mountains, searching out the most perfect tree. I would inevitably find a 12-foot tree that was absolutely perfect. My loving dad would chop it down (about 3 feet off the ground). We'd drag it down the mountainside to his truck, chuck it on top and head home. When we arrived, he'd chop another foot or two off, haul it inside... and then... the Christmas tree decorating tension would begin. :) 

I'm sure you know what I'm talking about...

it's the, "a little more to the right", "no left", "it's still leaning" comments came from my little sister, my mom and myself while poor dad was stuck under the tree trying to tighten the screws. Eventually we'd settle on what we all deemed as perfection and start putting on lights, bulbs, family ornaments - the works.

I miss those days.

Anyway... last Saturday was perfect. We went to Home Depot right before to grab a rope ($10!) and saw a gorgeous 6 foot tall tree for $20! After a bit of debate we decided on going out for the experience of chopping down our own tree and left the gorgeous foliage behind and headed out to the mountains (aka a you-cut Christmas tree farm). 

We posed for pictures before getting really serious:

And then we started hunting:

Then we took a break to throw rocks in to the creek:

Finally we got really serious... and stomped in the dirt a little. :)

And... after much searching... we found our tree!

It was so exciting we threw the little man into the air!

We had a lot of fun!

Mary

The Window

I feel really blessed that we have a giant window with a view to look out of...

... of course, the view comes with a price - walking up three flights of stairs with a solid 14-month-old - but it's a great work out too. Landon and I get to watch all sorts of things from the third floor: squirrels, the leaf blower man who comes once a week, and (Landon's favorite) the garbage truck. 

Last week, I put some paint in some ziploc bags and taped them up on the window. I put blue and yellow in one bag and red and yellow in the other. We had a lot of fun smooshing around the paint and talking about the colors and discovered that when colors mix, they make new colors! Pretty cool. :)

Here's smurky-faced, Landon. Just up from a nap. :)

I still have them up and he'll go over to them every once in a while, tap them, squish them, smile at them, and then run around like a crazy man. Love him!

Mary

Landon's Birthday (... a month ago)

So, apparently, I'm super-duper distracted and can't seem to keep up a blog.

Boo.

Moving on though...

Landon's 1st birthday party was absolutely amazing! We had it in the cabana room at our condo complex (since our place wasn't going to hold more than 10 people :) and had a cookies and milk theme. The only reason this theme was pulled off was because of my mom and mother-in-law, Debbie. No way I could have done done it without them! They were busy making cookies, taking care of Landon, making a cake, and making sure I didn't go crazy. Amazing moms I have! :)

With Grandma LaPlante

With Momo 

I made the invitations on Picnik after looking at some examples online.

Here they are:

We ended up making 7 different kinds of cookies ('cause we're crazy like that) and have some Oreos and Chewy Chips Ahoy too. Grandma L made her famous Chocolate Chip cookies, Momo made Apple Pennies, Auntie Lauren made Funfetti Cookies (on sticks!) and we all chipped in with the rest.

The little guy decided not to take his second nap that day, despite the fact I had gotten him up extra early so we could fit in 2 naps. So, he was a little bit tired at first and wasn't quite sure what to do with the cake. Then he got eating and really went to town. The sugar helped a bit and he was up and running in no time.

It was so great having our friends and family there to celebrate Landon's birthday with us. I can't believe it's been a year! (And one month!) I can't wait for the next, and the next, and the next...

Happy 13 months, Little Man!

Love, Mommy and Daddy

Ooooh, also, check out this amazing video my sister-in-law, Lauren made of Landon's birthday:

Landon's Birthday Video

Invitations

So, we just got back from Oregon...

... and the trip was AMAZING!

... and I should probably be blogging about how AMAZING the trip was...

... but I'm a little distracted.

You see, my little man's birthday is coming up. :)

(Yes, it's two months away, but this is the very first birthday and you can see that I'm just a tid bit excited!)

And I've started thinking about decorating with streamers or a bunting and what we're going to serve as snacks and drinks and what color scheme I want everything to be and if I'm just crazy enough to have a theme of some sort and what that theme would be...

Just a little excited... :)

Anyway, I jumped onto picnik and started creating an invitation. Justin and I really like the modern look of a friend's Christmas card we got this last year so I thought I'd try to create it using Picnik.

Here it is:

This is just the first final draft.

I'm sure there will be a few more... 

seriously, just a few.

But then I have to go through the horrible process of actually deciding which one...

maybe each person will get a different one...

wouldn't that be fun?

Mary

My Love of Two Years

Justin and I celebrate our 2 year wedding anniversary today!

I just can't believe it's gone by so quickly...

... I'm sure I'll be saying that in 10 years and 20 years too. :)

I'm so grateful that I got to marry my best friend, that I get to be with him forever. We really compliment (and complement!) each other well. I'm happy to have him in my life.

I love you, Justin.

Mary

If They Don't Win It's a Shame...

About a month ago, Landon and I went on a tour of Safeco Field in Seattle.  We got to go with a bunch of 4th grade students from a local elementary school, which made the trip even more fun! All of the kids from school thought Landon was just great and he thought the same of them.

I wanted Landon to look like a Mariner's fan for his first trip to a big baseball stadium. His Aunt Katie and Uncle Ben gave him these super cute Mariner's onsies when he was born (since Uncle Ben is a huge Mariner's fan!), but they don't fit the little guy anymore.

Here he is way back in December! (So small!)

So, instead of going out and buying new baseball-themed onsies or a shirt, I just cut up one of his old ones and added it to a sweatshirt that that fits him now. :)

It was a lot of fun "re-creating" a few of his shirts so he could wear something new...

I cut out some baseballs, mitts, and stars and super glued them (pre-sewing machine) to the blue sweatshirt. Next, I added a few stitches around them to make them stay on a little better. I don't have a good picture of the back of the sweatshirt, but I cut out the Mariner's moose and added it there. Finally, I added some thread on the sleeves near his wrists to give it a little more character.

We had a lot of fun exploring! Next step: Going to a real game!

Mary

EKG Cookies

My sister just graduated from nursing school! 

She did an absolutely amazing job over the last few years...

I know this because I tried reading one of her text books once and it took my about 15 minutes to read two sentences. And I had no idea what I had read. Sigh.

For her graduation party, my mom and I made her EKG cookies that we had seen online a while back. We had a bit of trouble with the dough because it was super sticky and didn't want to leave the counter to be baked, but we had a lot of fun and a ton of laughs making them. 

I got the sugar cookie recipe via i am mommy and it was absolutely delicious! (I have to admit, my mom made the cookie while I was trying to get Mr. Motion in bed...) We got the frosting recipe from the i am baker site. The frosting was easy to make and had a shiny look to it - which made me feel like I actually knew what I was doing. :)

Well, here they are:

My mom found the blog Sweet Tooth which shows different heart rhythms HERE. I had no idea what I was drawing but all of the nurses at the part appreciated the 'atrial fibrillation' and 'ventricular tachycardia'. :)

Congratulations, Katie R.N.! 

So proud of your accomplishments! 

Mary