Too excited.

Ever since we knew we would be buying a house with an unfinished basement we have been trying to figure out how we want to finish it.  I made copies of the plans of the basement we got when we first started building and we have sketched many different ideas, some of which we liked but couldn't really visualize any of them enough to choose just one.  To help with that problem we bought a program for the computer that let us design our basement (and landscaping too) and then showed us in 3-D what it would look like so we had a better idea of which plans would work.  We had so much fun playing with that program that it became a little addicting.  It did it's job really well though and we were able to settle on one plan that we all love very much.  It will add 3 more bedrooms (Rebecca and Dakota would share the big one, Lizzie would have her own room and I will use one as my craft room), a full bathroom, an entertainment room, and lots of great storage when its done.  The problem is that we can see the finished product and really want it done now so we can start enjoying the new rooms.  We are a little too excited for what will be the basement that it is frustrating to know it won't be done for a long time.  We plan to start buying the lumber here and there and work on the basement as time permits so we know it could take years before it will look like the pictures we are seeing now.  The saddest part is that if it takes too long the rooms we have planned for the girls won't be done before they are able to use them.  I am hoping for a miracle that somehow we are able to get it done soon.  Anyway, here are a few snapshots of our future basement complete with furniture.

1 year old

Yup...I blinked and my tiny baby boy is one year old.  What a joy it has been watching this little boy grow.  Oh how I love him sooo much!  He is so sweet and funny.  His personality is really showing now.  He loves to play, sing, dance, cuddle (toys and blankets...not so much mamma), eat, run, and do anything for a laugh.  Even surrounded by so many girls he is all boy.  He is really trying to communicate more.  His favorite thing is to point at things and say "ohhhh" like it's the most amazing thing he has ever seen.  It sounds so cute.  He also is learning that he has some power.  When anyone, especially Megan, has something he wants he knows just what to do and how loud he needs to yell to get it.  It's funny because I keep telling him to use his words, like he actually has a vocabulary, and sometimes he will settle down and just grunt instead of yell.  He does repeat "uh-oh" when we say it and he likes to hit his head on objects or fall down and say "ow" just for laughs.  He doesn't do it often but he will say da-da when he sees CJ.  His newest ones aren't words but he did finally start waving bye-bye, and he shakes his head "no" when he doesn't want something.  He loves to give high-5's and will even grab your hand and put it up so he can give you 5.  He also loves to give hugs to every child he meets.  Oh yeah, he did finally learn to run unfortunately his coordination hasn't quite kicked in yet so he can't run for longer than a few seconds.  His balance is still developing as well so he is constantly falling and he is getting so frustrated with falling.  I could go on and on but I won't, I'll stop talking and put up some pics of this little guy growing so big.

Sweet baby feet.



This is the outfit I've had since Lizzie was born and we didn't know if she was
a boy or girl.  I have been waiting a long time to put this outfit on a little boy.



6 weeks

3 months

5 months

7 months

10 months

1 year

Isn't he soooo sweet?!  His sisters just adore him and love to show him off where ever they go.  His daddy keeps planning all these father-son activities and even bought him his first set of Hotwheels for Christmas.  I love to hold him and wonder what he will be like in every stage of his life.  We all love him so much and are so grateful that he chose our family so that he is ours for eternity.  Our family definitely was not complete with you Alex.

Alex's 1st Birthday

We celebrated Alex's 1st birthday a little early so that we could share this most special day with family.  Everyone gathered together at my mom's house for cake and ice cream and to watch this little guy dig into his very own cake.  He was very intimidated by the huge number of people all gathered around him just watching his every move.  He grabbed at the cake when I first put it on the table but I had to tell him no because we hadn't sang the birthday song yet so after the song was done he didn't want to get in trouble and didn't touch the cake.  I felt bad because normally he would have had the cake gone in 60 seconds but he just sat there with a very tempting cake in front of him not knowing what to do.  I put a little frosting in his mouth and that seemed to do the trick.  The taste of frosting was more powerful than the fear of getting in to trouble.  He lightly touched the cake to see what our reactions would be.  Not looking at the cake but instead watching every one's faces he began to put his fingers in the cake.  Little by little he put his fingers deeper in to the cake until his whole fist was in it and since no one was taking it away he finally trusted his instincts to eat the cake.  He took a few big bites and then decided it would be fun to play in the cake while eating it so he grabbed on with both fists and just smooshed until there was no resemblance of the original cake.  He did eat quite a bit of that smooshed cake and even dove in face first to eat more.  It was so much fun to watch.
 

On his actual birthday we kept singing happy birthday to him all day. My favorite was listening to Megan just burst out singing to her little brother at odd times throughout the day. He got a ball pit for his birthday and couldn't wait to play. He likes to play in the balls but he likes to throw them more, it's a good thing he isn't that strong yet.

 Happy 1st Birthday Alexander!!

Happy New Year!!

We were originally going to leave Arizona the Tuesday after Christmas and I was so sad because I really, really, really wanted to spend New Year's Eve with my family too.  We always have such a good time with them and I didn't want to leave so soon after getting there.  Just as we were getting in the car to come home a miracle happened, so instead of going home we were able to stay for the rest of the week, so we unpacked the car and celebrated. 


Decorating for the big celebration.



Starting a new tradition of New Year's Eve fondue.



Lots of food is needed for 23 people and a 6 hour party.

I knew Alex wouldn't be able to stay up till midnight but I was surprised when I couldn't find Megan and when I did find her she had put herself to bed and was fast asleep.  My brother had gotten a writing pad accessory for the Wii so we played Pictionary on the Wii until it was time to watch the ball drop.

When the clock turned 2010 into 2011 we made tons of noise.  I think this has to be right up there as one of Dakota's favorite holidays because she went outside and screamed at the top of her lungs until she just couldn't scream anymore.  It's the only time she can do that (especially at midnight) without anyone stopping her and she took full advantage of the pipes she was born with.  What another great celebration with the family.  How grateful I am that we were able to stay and enjoy.