Thursday, December 26, 2013

Christmas 2013

Well, Christmas is my very favorite holiday!! I was so excited for the holiday season to begin, until I found out Ron would be in Michigan until Dec 27. What a downer. :-( BUT, Aidan and I tried very hard to make the best of it.
Dressing up for Christmas parties was a must!
The weather was crazy warm, so we spent quite a bit of time outside walking or at the park.
We definitely hung out with as many friends as possible. We enjoyed the Parker Carriage Parade with several of them. One of our college friends was in town and made sure to spend some time with us, even though Ron was not here. Such a sweet guy!
We had several opportunities to celebrate Christmas early. Thanks to friends and family Aidan was spoiled rotten with many train gifts. Choo Choo!!
THANKFULLY, daddy was let go early and arrived home late Dec 23!! We were elated that we would get to spend both Christmas Eve and Christmas with him. I became even more thankful Christmas Eve night when I came down with the awful, no good stomach bug Aidan had a couple weeks prior. Ugh. Sure am glad daddy could help Aidan celebrate Christmas morning!!!

Saturday, November 16, 2013

Boise Trip

Since I was unemployed and Ron was still going to be gone on away rotations for another couple months that we would make a trip to visit Mema (Ron's mom). We were very excited to be going to Boise and looked forward to being spoiled. Unfortunately, the first night there Aidan woke up with a fever. My mommy's intuition kicked in (I was convinced he had another infection as he had been coughing and congested for over a month) so we took him to the doctor's office my mother-in-law works at. Good thing too, poor little guy had a double ear infection. :-( So, the first few days of our visited consisted of getting better. Thank goodness for cuddly grandmas.
Once Aidan was feeling better, our first order of business was to pick out a pumpkin to carve! We went and found a farm that was selling pumpkins. They also had turkeys, Aidan wasn't sure what to think of them. I had teased Mema that was I was going to pick a pumpkin so big we wouldn't be able to pick it up! Well, we found one bigger than Aidan! He thought it was pretty cool!
We did a ton of fun activities during the couple of weeks Mema was able to take off from work. we went and explored the Discovery Center and came out smarter than we went in. So much fun! Aidan had a blast touching EVERYTHING!!!
I had promised Mema that we would help her with her leaf raking. She has a decent sized backyard and a ton of trees. So, we made a game of it. She bought Aidan his own rake and it was his first experience playing in the leaves. He was a hoot to watch! Good to know he's a good helper!
Mema found this beautiful park in downtown Boise while walking with one of her girlfriends. It was gorgeous with all the leaves changing colors! There were waterfalls, birds and a wildlife center. It was a beautiful fall day, and we enjoyed walking (well, chasing) Aidan around. If I lived there, I would definitely had our family pictures taken there!
As Halloween approached we made sure to do all the fun Halloween activities too! We finally got up the nerve to carve that giant pumpkin! I think it turned out very "unique" (take that as you will)! :-) I never said I was a pro! he he We also had a smaller pumpkin just for Aidan.
I wanted to go check out Boo @ the Zoo. I knew they had one here in Denver, but there was never a reason for us to go. So, we dragged Mema along and had an absolutely wonderful time. It was crazy and there were hundreds of people, but Aidan had a blast looking at all the animals. We participated in a costume contest and I was convinced he would win (of course I did). We waited in line a long time and by the time we finished I had wished we had skipped it (and we didn't win either). Oh, well...lesson learned. Overall it was a good time!
Due to the government shutdown, Ron returned home a month early. We were not sure we would get to see him until November, but Ron's AWESOME cousins gave us some of their skymiles (he travels weekly for work) and flew him to see us. We were so excited, it had been three months since we had seen him. So, he was able to enjoy Halloween with us!
While he was visiting, we went and took Aidan for his 1st haircut. I was dreading it, I LOVE his blond curls. I found a kid's salon, which made it a great experience for Aidan. They had a little car he sat on and played games and supplied him with treats. He thought it was the best thing EVER!!! He was such a good boy during the haircut. I cried as all the curls came off. *sigh* I did eventually get used to it, and realized what a grown up little boy he was. But I'm so glad the curls came back! :-)
Ron had to go back early as he had neurosurgery interviews he had to attend. Thankfully Mema had that last week off, so again we took advantage of some of the fun activities available. We went to a little gym (similar to Little Monkey Bizness here in Colorado) and Mema and Aidan played until they were exhausted.
There was also a game center that had a carousel. I had told Mema how much Aidan LOVED carousels, so we had to hit up there too!
The day before we left, we went and checked out this new, gigantic mall area they had just built. There is a playground and fountain area in the middle. The fountains go off to music & lights...so amazing! Aidan was totally mesmerized. He could have stayed there all day and watched it. Made for some very fun pictures too!
And then it came time for us to leave. Bittersweet. I had been away from home from two months and Ron was waiting for us, so I was ready to get back into my routine. But we were going to miss Mema and Aunt Sandy very much. So glad we had this opportunity to make some amazing memories!

Thursday, October 31, 2013

Halloween

We were in Boise, with Mema, for Halloween this year. AND, Ron ended up coming home early (thanks government shutdown). So, we had a big, family evening of trick-or-treating!! Ron's Aunt Sandy joined us and we made the round of the neighborhood. My MIL and I found Aidan a robot costume at Saver's and he was adorable!!! So excited that he was old enough to understand and enjoy!

Sunday, October 13, 2013

The North Pole (Colorado)

Continuing on with the previous post, I made sure we had a lot of fun activities before heading to Idaho. After going to the Botanical Gardens on Saturday, we met up with another group of friends and headed north, to the North Pole that is! Near Colorado Springs, there is an amusement park called The North Pole, . I had never heard of it, but was excited to check it out. It was October, only a couple mores months until Christmas, wouldn't hurt to get into the spirit a little early! Also it was military month, so Aidan & I got in free! Woot!! Aidan was still a bit small for many of the rides, but enjoyed the ones he could go on. We even went and saw Santa, of course this year he was not so much into him. Kinda traumatized the kid, I think (plus it was way past naptime)!!!
Since he was still small for some of the rides our friend's daughter, Tessa, rode with him. They are just like brother and sister. Aidan behaved pretty well for her and they had a good time.
I took him on the sky ride & ferris wheel. Not going to lie, I was so terrified of doing that. On the sky ride he tried kicking his shoes off, of course. Rachel went on the ferris wheel with us, so he had an adult on each side. I was a bit less panicky. We also went on a ride where you drive a car around a course. That was Aidan's favorite. He would sit at the fence, "car, car, car"! There was also a petting zoo where you could feed...what else, reindeer. Aidan was scared of them, so we just looked at them and took a picture. We came home exhausted (and then had to pack for our next trip), but it was totally worth it!! I would love to take him back before we move!

Saturday, October 12, 2013

Pumpkin Patch @ Chatfield Botanical Gardens

After we came back from our trip to Montana, we had a week before heading to Boise, ID to visit my mother-in-law. We tried very hard to stay busy with activities ALL week! That Saturday we went up to the Chatfield Botanical Gardens, with a big group of friends, to enjoy the activities they put on at Halloween. This year they had a carnival too. Aidan LOVED riding on the rides. The rides that were a bit too big for him, he went on with our friend's daughter, Tessa. All in all, a super fun day!
We also explored some of the gardens. I have only been there in the Fall and the colors are always lovely! It was a bit cool that day, but still ideal for getting into the Fall/Halloween spirit!

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

First Montana Trip

Our plane trip to Bozeman, MT was TERRIBLE! It started out fine and Aidan was even being a good boy but when we arrived at the Bozeman airport, we ended up circling for about an hour as a private plane had crash landed on the ONE landing strip. Ugh. Once we finished circling the captain (who was very funny and stayed in great spirits) told us we would have to fly to Billings, gas up and then fly back to Bozeman. This ended up being about 30 min in the hour and about an hour (give or take) waiting on the group and then another 30 minutes back to Bozeman. My poor parents sat and patiently waited for hours at the airport for us.
Montana in September ended up being quite pleasant. We did have a day or two of snow, but overall it was warm enough that we spent many days playing kickball or pulling the wagon in the backyard. We also went for many walks where Aidan was introduced to the neighborhood horses. We also made good use of the playground at our church! We had a couple trips out of town that always ended at a local park (no matter how cold it was).
We had the opportunity to do some "site seeing" while home. We didn't feel like paying to tour the Old Prison, maybe we'll take Aidan another time when he can appreciate it. But we did take him to see some of the old trains on display (he loves trains) and then to Grant Kohrs Ranch where we walked around and enjoyed all the wild animals.
My parents really wanted to take the opportunity to take Aidan to a carousel (or two)! We took trips to Missoula, where Aidan and I rode an older (and kinda scary) carousel I rode as a child and then to Helena where we rode a newer carousel. Aidan LOVED it. He would cry every time he had to get off.
Aidan enjoyed his time with both Grandma & Grandpa. He spent his time with Grandpa reading books, playing with Grandpa's train (I grew up enjoying this train under the Christmas tree), playing legos and blocks and cleaning the house every week!
Grandma time was spent reading books, several library visits, playing playdo (which we made) and painting!
Aidan and I very much enjoyed our time in Montana. My very close friend from high school, Joana, was able to make the trip up and visit Aidan & I. I was so happy to introduce her to my little tornado! She always brings a smile to my face. My parents even gave us the opportunity to spend the day up at Fairmont (a hot springs resort) enjoying the warm water and some girl time! My Aunt Carol was also able to make the trip down from Lewistown to meet Aidan for the first time. We had a wonderful time at the park, going for a walk and of course book reading. I was so happy she was able to visit! I am so thankful to have the opportunity to spend a month with my family!
Aidan enjoyed his time too and looks forward to more visits this summer for graduation!

Monday, September 2, 2013

Labor Day Weekend

Daddy was in Portsmouth, VA for Labor Day weekend so it was just Aidan and I. The SAA organization at our school did a group event at the Cherry Creek Reservoir! That was a ton of fun Aidan had a blast playing in the sand with his new (dollar store) sand toys and "swimming" in the water. It was a beautiful day and I enjoyed the company of my girlfriend.
The next day, I won the "mother of the year" award & our first visit to the children's ER. *sigh* It was Sunday morning and I was doing my hair so we could go to church. I left the straightener on and the bathroom door open as I was just going to take Aidan out of his high chair. Of course he made a mess so I cleaned up his chair and he made his way into the bathroom and grabbed the hot straightener. Worst little cry in pain ever. Called the nurse line, since he had a blister the size of his thumb they had me go to the ER. Of course that is an experience in itself as the doctor gives you the look and asks you some worrisome questions (I was hysterical and explained Ron had already been gone a month...I think they got the hint I didn't hurt Aidan). They bandaged both hands and then they made an appointment for us to go to the burn unit at Children's Hospital as they were concerned about the joints healing correctly. So, we went to our appointment, they broke the blister and put on a cast so it would health and not get infected. Worst week every. Thankfully Aidan has healed beautifully!
On Labor Day we met some friends in downtown Denver for a picnic and a day at the Nature & Science Museum. For a one year old Aidan did pretty good. He did seem to enjoy the space exhibits and dinosaurs (who doesn't like dinosaurs, right)?! Of course my favorite exhibit was the Egyptian exhibit, just wish it had been larger. Overall, super fun day!

Friday, August 30, 2013

Summer Fun

We had a blast this summer! Since daddy was only around for one month this summer, we made sure to do lots & lots of activities to stay busy! We did have some fun days with daddy before he left. While he was around in July, studying for boards, we went swimming and to the park....often!
After daddy left, we went to the Wildlife Experience, with a girlfriend of mine. This is a great place for kids & adults alike, and it's just down the road from our apartment. You get to learn about wild animals, and many of them are animated, which makes it even more adventurous!
We took a trip to the Zoo. This was not Aidan's first experience, but he was a little bit older and I was hoping he would be more interested. Not really. I just don't think he understands the concepts. Plus, it was a warm day. I, never get tired of going to the Zoo!!
On the days it was too hot to play outside, we went to Little Monkey Bizness. My girlfriend introduced me to this great little gym for itty bitty's like Aidan. It's great! And he always gets worn out just enough to fall asleep on the drive home. Woot! As the summer went on, he became more and more brave, learning to climb more and go down the slides all by himself. By the end of the summer he even ventured into the bouncy castle all my himself. Way to go Aidan!
Of course we did the usual playtime at home, corn on the cob and just all around being silly. Aidan has such a great personality and imagination. It's fun to watch his little mind at work!
Last but certainly not lease, we spent quite a few mornings or evenings at the splash pads. Colorado has these all over the place and we love them. Aidan has never been afraid of the water and could not wait to spend as much time running in and out of them. It was a great break for me and an easy way to cool off. Yeah summer!!