we did it!

We completed a 1/2 marathon in June (a bit late with this post)! I could not have done it without Jared. He was the best trainer and kept me on track (motivated) while preparing for this run. He is a seasoned runner, having run a few marathons. So, you can imagine that I was a bit intimidated but, it turned out to be much better than I anticipated. I actually had a lot of fun! It is the best feeling to cross that finish line!

I would even consider doing it again!

At mile 8 we stopped to give Caden a super quick kiss

Our support team! Thanks for getting up at the crack of dawn!

my little lover.

I'm still overwhelmed by our vacation pictures. 

So, here is an update on my little lover.

He is now 8 months {tear}.

crawling at record speed, no more worm :(

cruising the furniture 

pulling himself up on anything he can grab (i.e. our legs, clothing, chairs, cupboards, sliding door)

words: dada, mama, mom

waves hi and bye
2 teeth

eats like a champ, loves food!

getting the hang of his sippy cup

almost sleeping through the night, still waking up at between 2-4, why?

loves swimming and baths

We could not be more in love with this guy. He is our world. 

get ready for this...

we have been on a major road trip.
people might call us crazy for traveling over 2,100 miles in a car, with a baby.
let me tell you, our little guy is a fantastic traveler.
how did we get so lucky?

here is a run down of our itinerary:

• las vegas - visit the hall's
• utah - surprise jared's family, see our nieces off to college, a 40th surprise birthday party
• oroville - visit my aunt and cousin
• folsom - visit the wilson's 
• (detour) fort bragg - explore sea glass beach
• dublin - visit jared's dad
• san luis obispo - relax
• woodland hills - visit the johnson's and steenhoek's
• los angeles - attend genie and fred's wedding

we had little stops here and there along the way, it was quite the adventure.

in the mean time while i sort through pictures, you can enjoy this (taken in the car -somewhere between vegas and utah, i think).

surf lessons & kickball tourney

We went to Arcadia to spend time with the Daines. Lucky for us they were in CA one last time before they move to NY. We had an amazing lunch (thank you Ginger) and some good "quality" conversations. It's always a good time with the Daines. We wish you all the best in NY.

Nadia wanted Jared to teach her how to surf. He did a great job. He is very animated (if you didn't know) and he is a great teacher. I think she enjoyed it.

Caden absolutely loved Nadia. She is a fantastic big sister to Marcus (remember Caden's best friend?) 

On Memorial Day, we played in a kickball tournament with our besties, The Thrapps. This was a serious tournament people, 24 families, uniforms, bracket chart and all. We had a really good time. Who cares if us adults were sore the next day? That just means we played our hearts out!

p.s. our team, The Grass Kickers, won it all (despite some minor controversies)!

game faces

Jared wanted to share his beloved Sioux City Sasparilla

I just noticed all these pics are of Caden, who by the way is wearing my sleeve on his head. I didn't really take an pics of the actual kickball games. We were too involved to be photographers :)

busy bees.

I'd much rather be busy than bored.

So, here's a look at some adventures in May...

We hurried home from Utah in time to catch a dinner date with our dear friends, The Mortensens.

They live in El Paso but, were going to be in Carlsbad for one night. We haven't seen them since they moved (over a year ago). So, we definitely wanted to make sure we saw them before they left. We became friends with Jay and Marisa in our ward in Culver City. We wish we would have hung out more before they moved. They are good people. Although, that last sentence is so simply stated, to me it really describes them. After spending an evening of chatting with these guys, you leave feeling so good. We had a lot of fun catching up, so much so that we shut down Claim Jumper. We hope to see them again soon and who knows maybe we'll live near each other in the future....Houston or Utah???

Next up, Genie's bridal shower.

Everyone did an amazing job putting this party together (especially my cousin Trish).

The bride-to-be was glowing and I think she had a pretty good time.

We are looking forward to her wedding in July. 

Did I mention that we also love her hubby-to-be? Fred is awesome! We are so happy for them.

We went to Nicole and Ronney's co-ed baby shower. 

Baby Aiden is due on my birthday! I'm looking forward to meeting the little guy. 

We had a great time. These people sure know how to throw a party. 

Ronney and Nicole

Pirate themed party - we couldn't resist

Diner and Trish - dressing the baby with only one hand

Fred - future father of 5

who can drink beer (apple cider in Jared's bottle) out of a bottle the fastest
Fred won.

Jared gave it his best shot, he came in second.

I just love this kid. He was on his best behavior at the party and let everyone hold him.

A few days later...Caden, Jocey and I headed back to LA. We went to my cousin Dylan's graduation. He graduated from Cal State Long Beach! We are so proud of you D!

Can you spot Dylan?

Go Beach!

Auntie Trish putting C to sleep. He didn't fare so well with all the air horns and cheering.

Little sissy and I

Auntie Cathy and her boy

Sibling love

Dylan's very supportive cousins

Then, the celebration...

my hub.

Happy Birthday to my awesome husband!!!

I appreciate your hard work and ambition. Thank you for being so encouraging and positive. I'm glad you chose me out of that sea of girls....haha. You are the best hub I've ever had.

 Caden is so lucky to have such an amazing dad. 

We love you SO much!

private eyes.

I know I'm not a popular blogger.
I blog to keep a record of our happenings and so family and friends can see what we're up to.
Since having our little C, I am feeling much more cautious about having our personal info exposed.
So, I have decided to make our blog private.

If you want continue reading our blog, please leave your email address in the comment section.

p.s. If you are a blog stalker or ghost reader and never leave comments, its ok. I too, read blogs and don't comment on them. Don't be shy if you want to be added, especially if I know you.

p.p.s. I didn't mean for that to sound like I think I have some huge following. I'm pretty sure just a few friends and my family read this blog :)