Birthday Fun!!

Kyler had a great 1st birthday!! We had a little party on Saturday at our house for him ~ it was great fun!! He wasn't too aggressive w/ his cake but his cousin, Evan, helped show him how to do it.

 He got a lot of AMAZING gifts! He loves having fresh toys to discover. I went through his toy box in the basement and packaged up the little baby things. Kinda sad :-(

family photo shoot

Cousin Emily took some fall pics at a nature center tonight (thanks again, em!) ~ we got some really cute ones!!

pumpkins!

Autumn has turned into my favorite season over the last couple of years!! Kyler's birthday is coming up and there is a lot of excitement in the air.. or maybe it's just me?!

Either way, we had a great weekend and look forward to many more in the coming months.

Back to Reality

Well, Kyler and I are back in Minnesota's heartland... and we heart it. (haha)

We had a great trip & can't thank our peeps enough for the amazing hospitality!!

The Serpa's new house is B-E-A-Utiful ~ Newport Beach/Orange County is a fabulous place to be and we can't wait to visit again!

THANK YOU KEITH, BONNIE, KALEN & JAMES for the super accomodations and company! So much fun!!

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Kyler and I didn't get enough beach time while in Hawaii.. but we are so grateful to have been able to travel there! He is such a fun little guy to be with. Thanks for all the help Auntie Leigh - we can't wait to see you around Christmas!

Uh-Oh!!

Looks like we might have to start using the gate when we get home!

Kona Kai

We are having a great time with Auntie Leigh & Uncle Dave in Hawaii!!

Our flight leaves tonight @ 11pm.. should be interesting ~ let's hope for some sleep!

We will be in California for two more nights w/ the Serpa's and then back home on Saturday!! What a trip it's been!!

Kyler got to ride to the beach in the Wrangler.. of course we got rained on during the ride back to the house (quite exciting!).

We got some great quality time with Serafin, Carlyn & Isaiah. He is 7 1/2 mos old and him & Kai became the best of friends!! SO CUTE!
Kyler loves the Hawaiian beaches.. He likes to try and fit in w/ da locals, yeah. "gimme some beers, bra!"

Most of all, he just really loves hangin with his Auntie!! So much love!! Really wish we were bringing her back w/ us.. it's been so nice having my best friend IN PERSON!! :-(

Fall Fun

We had a great weekend... thanks to Auntie Allie, Uncle Matty, Cally (sorry, not auntie yet), Auntie Rena & Clara!! We are missin' Chris... so it was REALLY NICE to have visitors!!

Kyler and I walked to the park for an evening swing after everyone left :-)

Kyler is lovin animals lately! His best bud is Siddy Kitty (and she actually seems pretty fond of him, too!) And he is very interested in dogs, squirrels & birds.

This isn't the best pic of grandma & grandpa Nelson, but at least they're all sportin' Twins gear! Go TC!!

just hangin out!

Kyler and I have been having a lot of fun together lately!! We love hangin at our new home.. and sometimes we even find time to run errands, clean, cook, etc.

The two of us are anticipating an upcoming trip to California & Hawaii (in TWO WEEKS!!), so we need to hang with dad as much as possible!! The combination of our trip and his long weekend in Denver w/ the boys will mean we won't see him for 15 days in a row! not looking forward to that!!

Twins Win!

Kyler went to his 2nd game at Target Field on Monday (he also went to the opener). He enjoyed this one much more than his first! He especially loved all the snacking and people watching...

Uncle Grahamm can't get enough of his favorite buddy :-)

But I can get enough of Chris's weird shirt. Bring on the cold so this thing can be retired into the fugly hall of fame!

Our New Place

We are finally feeling settled in our new place and WE LOVE IT!! The neighborhood is so great! Kyler and I took a walk today to return a movie and he agreed that it's a little gem of a spot we're in. We've only met a couple of neighbors but we're thinking if we have a little bbq soon (before the weather gets too cold), maybe we'll invite them to stop over..

front of the house:

front entry opens into the living room:

Living room:

Eat-in area off the kitchen:

Kitchen:

Formal dining room:

BEST FEATURE - Kyler's Bedroom!!:

Basement:

We've been having a great time in this cozy, sunny space! Soon we will be tackling the outside.. I've already started pulling some weeds but there are a lot to go! Cleaning the windows & freshening up the green space will do wonders, I'm sure :-) Home sweet home (for now, at least).

Burntside in Ely

Man, it has been a B-U-S-Y few weeks! Chris, Kyler and I are finally enjoying some time with just us!

The Serpa's (family I nannied for) are now officially relocated.. We moved to a great new house.. and we went to Ely for a long weekend on the water... and that was ALL LAST WEEK!

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Kyler is up and moving! He loves being mobile and the slow crawl is SO adorable!!

He also really loved his "own little burntside." He went in the water in his fish floatie a couple of times but the water was chilly and he was able to be more independent in his own little pool/bucket.. something he is getting more interested in lately.






Chris & Uncle Grahamm were able to fit in some play time between baseball, beer, sauna, swims & bacon :-)





Seeing a bonfire for the first time brought a big smile to Kai's face..

As did finding this special stick.

We went to dinner at Burntside Lodge one night and Kyler looked so handsome ;-) He entertained himself very nicely while we enjoyed a fabulous dinner!

Thanks to Kevin & Diana for such a great time!! It's always fun hangin out with those two wild ones ;-) Getting away from the city felt GREAT ~ can't wait for the fourth annual.