Happy, Happy 2 years!

Can't believe it has been 2 years since Aaden joined our family. He has provided such joy in our lives, we are so thankful for him. To many more years of fun with our baby boy!

Birthday Week {Day 5}

Today Aaden had his 2 year check up. He has been suffering from a stuffy nose so I was worried that there was more. Thankfully his Dr. had only glowing words for his health and stature. He is back up into the 93% for weight at nearly 33lbs and 88% in height at nearly 36". A big, healthy, growing boy!

For his gift today, he received a new set of plate, bowl and (non-sippy) cup. He was overjoyed to use the cup like his Mommy and Daddy! He's also modeling another new shirt, a silly monster top his Dad picked out for him.

Birthday Week {Day 4}

For day 4 Aaden got a few new 3T outfits. He proudly wore his new jeans and shirt to go play with his cousin Carter and his parents, Joanne and Andy. We had fun playing blocks, discovering new toys and sharing with his nearly 7 month old cousin. I had a great time smooching on Carter and catching up with Jo & Andy over lunch. Love that they are back in the Pacific NW having moved from Florida.

Birthday Week {Day 3}

Day 3, Aaden got several books. He immediately wanted us to read him Francis Likes Bread & Jam, Mike Mulligan and the Steam Shovel and Spot Loves His Friends. He is such a book boy, really he could spend hours reading quietly.

Birthday Week {Day 2}

Today, marked day two of birthday week. Aaden LOVES brushing and flossing his teeth. He also has a fascination with Sonicare toothbrushes. We decided to combined his love of trains and brushing his teeth and got him his very own spinner Thomas the Train toothbrush!

Squeaky clean!

Birthday Week {Day 1}

Sunday marked the start of {Birthday Week} for Aaden! We started a tradition this year for my birthday where Kristofer and Aaden gave me small gifts every day for a week, leading up to my birthday. It was great fun and made me feel extra special. That being said, we decided to do the same for Aaden.

Aaden's first gift was a coloring book that you can paint in. He had great fun doing this at Nana's house a few weeks back, so thought it would be fun to do it at home too.

He loves Mickey and Minney Mouse, so this was a great hit!

Busy Busy

I've been bad about posting on the blog recently and it's making me feel a little guilty. About a week and a half ago Blogger told me that I had used up my free picture posting space. That seems odd to me as I didn't feel like I was posting a lot. A well, I've been too cheap to cough up the few bucks to get more space. So an anti-picture post it is ---

We are almost 1 week away from our 1 year old turning 2! This amazes us as it seems just a few short months ago we were planning big ONE. What brings us back to reality is the fact that Aaden is very much TWO! A few things he is doing to keep us on our toes:

1. Man handling the bathroom drawer, pulling hard enough to break the baby latch.
2. Followed by scooping out all of my chapsticks and lipstick and smearing it all over himself and the bathroom.
3. Followed by potty training attempts that end with poop on the floor in his room and smeared all over his toys and himself.
4. Talking A LOT! Most people will say that Aaden doesn't talk much, as his mother I will tell you this is false. With me he talks constantly. Most conversations consist of different animals, balloons, the moon, his interest in other kids (especially babies) and food.
5. He LOVES books. I recently rearranged his toy boxes and took all of his books out and put them on low shelves. While this creates a mess quickly, what I have found is that he could sit and read for hours.
6. ChooChoos (Thomas the Train) and George (Curious George) are his favorite things to watch. We've checked out a few DVD's from the library and he enjoys snuggling with us a few nights a week to watch them.
7. He is enjoying playing with more friends his age. We go to the parks near our house 2-3 times a week and meet new people. He's also been a gracious host, having a number of friends over to play and share.
8. He is still sleeping great, napping most days for a few hours in the afternoon and sleeping 12-14 hours at night.
9. He enjoys eating (no surprise, always has) and is especially fond of eating all his own food and then asking for mine.
10. After said eating, he will say "DONE"! and within moments try and clear his plate from the table. Sometimes this results in dishes on the floor (thankful for the dog), but most of the time he dutifully takes his plate and cup to the dishwasher.

Well, as I look over the things Aaden is doing I realize why I feel so busy. We love having a nearly two year old and are enjoying every moment as a family. I'm still loving being at home with him full time and taking care of things on the home front.

By next week hopefully I will have forked over the $5 to Blogger and will have some fun pictures posted of our Curious George family birthday party!

Happy Fall!

A Surprise Visit!

My good friend from college Mary Lynn called me the other day and asked if she could come visit. It has been nearly 2 1/2 years since we've seen each other and she really wanted to meet Aaden. For the past four years she has been living in LA and working as a flight attendant. She recently relocated to the area. I was so glad to see her and Aaden was quite smitten. So great to catch up with her. Nothing like keeping in touch with your first college roomie.

{Pumpkin Patch}

We spontaneously headed to our favorite Pumpkin Patch a few Sundays ago as October is completely booked (no other time)! We called up Tim & Lacey and headed out for an afternoon of fun! We went to the petting farm, had fresh corn on the cob, went pumpkin searching and played on the playground. The Farm, in Snohomish is a great place for kids and families!

The Last Train From Paris {Murder Mystery}

It has been a dream of ours to host a murder mystery. If you've never heard of them or done one, they are a ton of fun! I recall as a child my parents getting dressed up numerous times to go out and be a part of one. Essentially the game Clue, but acted out and dressed up!

Kristofer and I were finally able to pull it off. We invited a few friends and family to partake in the fun. A lot of preparation goes into the actual event. As host, you provide a four course meal, drinks and a location. My parents often would head to a retreat location to do them (so fun)! We decided to just remake our living room/dining room into a 1940's Pullman Cab Car (train).

The menu was a bunch of French cheeses for appetizer, Coq Au Vin Rouge (Chicken in red wine reduction), a fresh salad & green beans from our yard, freshly baked French & sourdough bread for the main course. We went to our local French Bakery and picked up some lovely pastries for dessert.

My dad was our porter/server, Jean Pierre' and my mom served as care-taker of Aaden, photographer and kitchen helper. All-in-all, we had a fabulous time and hope our guests did too. Here are a few pictures of our characters.

Duke Swazhe B.U. Klare & Princess Idelle Chattre

Malcolm R. Conntint & Belinda Screete

RAF Group Capt. Weyland W. Awfcorce & Barbra Z. Enhussie

Khover T. Ageante & Mary K. Trairie

Jean-Pierre' & our dessert!

The whole gang

Family Photos

A friend of ours, Claire took some family photos of us this past week at Discovery Park. We love them, check a few of them out at http://justlifettl.blogspot.com/2010/10/dobelstein-family.html. My brother Jonathan and his Fiancé Megan also had their engagement pictures taken by Claire, also posted at http://justlifettl.blogspot.com/2010/09/engagement.html.

Fun to have some fresh photos as it has been over a year.

Enjoy.