Getting into the Holiday Spirit!

Last weekend we really got in to the holiday spirit by walking the Trail of Lights at the Denver Botanical Garden and cutting down our Christmas tree in the Pike National Forest!  The walked the light trail in the evening so it was a bit chilly out (I know, I know, not as cold as MN or NY.... we didn't even get our first dusting of snow until yesterday!  We're in for a shock when we head to MN for Christmas!) so we made sure to bundle up and drink plenty of hot cocoa. :)  The lights were beautiful!  Here are a few pics from our walk:

Our little snow baby all bundled up in his stroller.. :)

Stopping at the warming hut for a fam pic.

 

A few of our favorite trees...

Christmas tree cutting morning!  B was excited!  :)

 

On our way to find a tree... which Charlie Brown tree should we pick?!

Cool rocks we saw on our hike.  Can you spot Matt and Bodee?

 

Spotting the perfect tree!  This may have been a reenactment...

Another reenactment - I couldn't get my camera out fast enough the first time.  :) Cutting down the tree!

 

The finished product!  We love our little tree!

Standing

When Bodee's not crawling he's trying to stand.  He's one active little guy!  In fact, I wouldn't mind if he took an extra nap here or there so I could cross a few more things off of my 'to do' list.  ;)  The 'to do' list can wait though - I'd much rather be hanging with B!  He cracks me up!  Here's a fun video of him last night showing off his new talent of standing (and being a chatter box):

JSCE Christmas Party

Matt's work Christmas party - always a riot!  This year we enjoyed dinner and drinks at Chop House followed by busting a move on the dance floor at Jet.  A great night was had by all!!

Traditional Car Bombs.  No Christmas party would be complete without.

Jansen Strawn!

 With Spouses

Bodee is Crawling!!!

We are such excited parents as our little babe has conquered another milestone - crawling!!  I know, I know, it'll only make our life more challenging as he'll constantly be on the move, but it's so exciting to see him succeed at something he's worked so hard on for so long!  Go B!!

As I mentioned in a previous post, B has been crawling backwards for awhile.  Here's a fun video of that...

And, drum roll please.... here is a video of him crawling FORWARD for the first time (yes, the first time.  I can't believe I caught it on video)!  Go, Bodee, go!!

So Close!

Bodee is SO CLOSE to crawling!  He definitely finds his way around by crawling backward, spinning on his tummy and rolling in every direction (super cute and entertaining), but crawling forward is his next feat to conquer.  Matt and I constantly have the Flip Vid an arms reach length away to capture the moment of his first crawl, so I'm sure I'll be letting you know when it does happen!  We're so excited about this milestone that I can only imagine how obsessed we'll be when he's close to walking.  B is obviously our first child. ;)  Go Bodee!

Visit from the Sewalls!

Andrea and her family came out to visit the first weekend in November.  It was super fun to have them out here!  We fit in a lot of kid friendly activities while they were here, as well as some sisterly bonding time - it was great!  Bodee loved playing with Weston as they're only 7 months apart, and he loved being entertained by his hilarious cousin, Brayden!  Brady is such a great big brother and cousin.

Andrea and her kids hit up a transportation museum the first day they were here.  It was perfect for Brady as he loves anything with wheels!  Next stop on the trip - Dinosaur Ridge.  We saw some pretty cool dino tracks as well as got a workout pushing our strollers up the trail.  :)  Here are Andie, Wes and Brady posing by some tracks:

My Godson and I at a look out point.

A and her family taking advantage of the pretty view.

We took a pic too..

Great pic!  It was a beautiful day.

 

Next stop - the Denver Aquarium!  Brady loves Sponge Bob so he got a pic by him before our Aquarium tour.

Mermaids were actually swimming with the fish!  They would blow kisses and wave to the kids - probably the cutest thing ever.

Wes posing by a tiger

Turtle

Such a poser. :)

Loved the shark room - so cool!

Ladies man posing with the mermaids

Up to the mountains we went.

Look who we found in the A-Basin lodge!

Group shot with the slopes in the background

Fam pic

Another fam pic

After the mountains we hit up the Children's Museum.  They had an awesome baby room.  B loves mirrors!

Brady found his favorite room - TRAINS!  He was too distracted to look up for a pic...

Fire truck!
 

Wes helping Brady drive.  Here they come to save the day!

We had so much fun with our visitors!  Thanks A and fam for coming to visit!  See you soon!

I miss you, Grandpa.

The night of October 26th my Grandpa Lubben passed away.  Even though we knew his time was coming it still took my breath away.  He was one of the best people to have ever walked on this earth and I am so lucky to have been his granddaughter.  Most of my best childhood memories were from "The Farm."  He took all of the grand kids on hay rides, tractor rides through honey suckle lane, we made hay bale mazes together, fed the chickens (Henny Penny) and pigs (Squeeky), built snow forts, had giant bonfires, he let us wear his t-shirts to bed and then jump on him in the morning to wake him up, we played frisbee golf and croquet, and of course played cards together (which somehow one of us grand kids always won).  :)  One of my favorite phrases from my grandpa was "500 or midnight!" as we knew it was bedtime but didn't want to stop hanging out and playing cards.  My grandpa was SO fun and such a wonderful man.  I miss him so much but am happy for him as I know he's enjoying himself right now up in Heaven.

To see a video tribute of my Grandpa's life check out this link:  http://www.ranneyfuneralhome.com/index.cfm  (Walter Lubben)

We have a tooth!

On October 26th Bodee got his first tooth!!  It was a very exciting day!  I was picking Bodee up from school and screamed with delight when I saw the little white edge shining through.  I think I actually scared his teacher, but when she found out what I was so excited about we celebrated together. :)  I couldn't wait to show Matt when I got home.  We were so proud!

I tried my hardest to get a picture of his tiny tooth but it never showed up on camera as it just looked like a sparkle in his drool (which B has a lot of these days!).  A few days ago we finally got a good picture of his tooth... and now there are two sticking through!  B's little grin is cuter than ever.  :)

Fall Festival

Bodee's school hosted a Fall Festival this weekend.  There was a magician, trick-or-treating, coloring, a pumpkin carving contest... very exciting!  :)  Bodee dressed up as a monkey.  We had a great time!

Bodee with his teachers - Ms. Kayla, Ms. Janelle, and Ms. Erin.

"Trick-or-treat"

Fam pic in Bodee's classroom
 

Intense arts and crafts..

Half of Bodee's classmates were there so we lined them up for a pic...

It was so nice out this afternoon that we hit up the park for some more SWINGING!  B loves it!!