Fun in the Sun

These past few days have been

in the 90s here in Western Washington.

The second we saw the forcast, I called my Aunt Cindy to let her know I was bringing the kids over to keep cool.

My cousin, Larissa, loved to take pics of the little ones, the above pic is one of my absolute favs!!!

Caitlyn was introduced to arm floaties and about two seconds afterwards... she could swim independently.

She loved swimming so much...

another thing she loved... applying sunscreen independently... she's got the technique down, turn nozzle directly into face and spray into eyes until they foam... she was done after that...

and decided to steal her brother's bink and take a two hour nap in the 90 degree heat with her blanket.

after she awoke... she skinny dipped... totally cute.

Ashton all of a sudden couldn't get enough of the camera.

I've got about 30 pictures of him posing next to the monkey bars, each one cuter than the last.

Seriously... he's too cute!

I'm only posting this next collage for one person. 

There are 2 things that would've made this collage more complete.
1- if Tiffany was right next to me performing these highly dangerous dives

2- if my perfectly posed tripod was caught on camera.

I ♥ Summer 2010!

Caitlyn Leigh Turns 3!

Happy 3rd Birthday to my sweet daughter, Caitlyn Leigh.

We celebrated, luau style, on Sunday with all her favorite people.

Caitlyn has been talking about her 3rd birthday ever since Ashton turned 1. So I was a little surprised when she turned shy for present opening. Thanks goodness little Miss Avery was there to help her along.  Even though everything about the cake was NOT what I ordered (except the pink Hawaiian flowers), it was still a crowd pleaser and brought about many many blue laughs (see the pics below).

The party was everything I imagined for my 3 year old daughter.

There was family and friends

and lots of love and laughter.

I even surprised myself by holding it all together unless you count the three times I cried in the morning getting ready, the one time while we were opening all the cute clothes she received for presents and as I pictured her wearing them on her way to preschool, or the one last time I laid in bed with Ashley talking about the perfect day and I leaned over to turn out the light but instead grabbed her 'Welcome to the 2010-2011 School Year' packet and lost it again.

It was a great day. 

On her actual Birthday, Ash took the day off and we started with cinnamon rolls, lots of play time, lunch at Red Robin where we were joined by Auntie Scarlet.  After lunch, we all headed to the supermall to ride the carousel, came home watched two movies, ate dinner and headed to bed early.

Another great day for a great 3-year old. 

I know that this year is gonna be a big one.

She begins preschool in less than a month and I already know she's gonna l♥ve it!

Just for Fun

Cousin Brian, Poppy and his girls visited Washington during their way too short trip to the USA.  Caitlyn and Ashton absolutely LOVE Myranda and Kassidy. I wish they were here everyday!

Fun times were had by all... as they always are when Brian visits. We miss him and all his girls already.  We rocked the West End Karoake and man did it bring back some memories.  We went out just with our family and I can't even remember the last time I was able to relax and simply hang out with such fun people.  Although we have our ups and downs (as most families do), I LOVE each and everyone of these guys.  I couldn't help but remembering my Dad always saying when we were little (and he still says it to this day),

"Friends will come and go... Families are Forever!"

Oh, what a fun night.

The kids and I also traveled a little North on the 5 to visit Mandy. Ung-King Jon was able to get off work a little early to join us for a dip in the pool.  We had a blast and plan to do it more often... thanks Ung-King Jon and Mandy for such a great time.

♥

Handsome Haircut

Before...

During...

After...

...and after...

....again...

this time without his sister stealing his sucker

♥

♥

So stinkin' HANDSOME!!!

Ksavera's Shower

It turned out perfect and it only made me a thousand times more excited for the wedding...

if that's even possible!

Thank you to everyone who helped make her day super special!

Fudgsicle Faces

My two cuties after enjoying one of their favorite summertime treats.

♥

This post has gotta make you smile

Guess Who's Back...

Back to the 'world of blogging' that is.

What have we been up to this past month

........let's see..........

My cousin Brian and his girls came to visit from Korea

we've participated in  many BBQs

celebrated Father's Day

gone on a few weekend trips

started plans for the upcoming wedding shower, bachelorette party

and the wedding of course.

celebrated the 4th... 'Steve Riggs Birthday Style'
I've read 3 good books

completed home projects

geocached some rough terrain (my dad has the wounds to prove it)

celebrated many birthdays

gotten a few pedicures

and really we've been living life..simply.

♥

A collage to try and recap the past month.

The 4th of July/Steve's Birthday

Here are a few updates on the fam-

Caitlyn- She is almost 3 and plans for her big day have already begun.  We sing happy birthday to one person by her request every night... and if you're reading this... I'm sure we've sang to you! She totally enjoys the fact that Ashton can play with her now. We've spent many nights laughing until our guts hurt watching them two wrestle each other. They each have great moves. Caitlyn has spent a few nights with Babcia and Dziadzia and Gram and Pap... which she loves and usually will talk about for over week.  She surprises us daily with words we never knew she knew.  Even on our hardest days, she finds ways to make us smile.  Some of her favs right now are: everything about the outside, water balloons, our mini pool, the beach, the ice cream man, her bike and new helmet, noodles, and her hair pretties. 
Ashton-  He's almost 15 months.  He kinda runs the house right now. He still takes 2 naps, but occasionally he will sleep in til ten and then he only takes an afternoon nap.  He still only has 5 teeth, but has been working on a mouth full for a long while now. His teething has made for many days with extra long naps, not much eating, ibuprofen as his and our savior, and even the re-introduction of a bottle here and there (only on a few days where I think he could benefit from some calories he lost from not eating well).  He can speak two words intentionally: dada and uh oh, he can say mumma a lot... but not sure he knows it's me.  He signs milk, more, airplane, dog, and thank you (I swear there's more but can't think of them right now). Some of his favs are: his bike, the mini-pool, the sand at the beach, climbing, dancing (he's got great moves), oatmeal with blueberries, and being held by the one and only... me.
Ashley- He has recently graduated from the Leadership Institute of South Puget Sound.  The graduation ceremony was super nice and I was and still am so so so proud of all his hard work.  His graduation project with the coolest.  If any of you are in the Auburn area and see any of the large white drop-off bins feel free to drop off any hygiene products for the homeless (you know you've got them... left over from the hotels and vacays you've all been on).  He and the Auburn Food Bank teamed together to make these bins possible.  You should've seen it being dropped off... there was a huge crane, the CEO of Top Foods, and the Mayor of Auburn... huge deal... still proud!  He also has joined a bowling league with his BFF, Ian, Ksavera, and Scarlet.  They're really not that good... but he has a BLAST doing it... that should count for something. He participated in Hoop Fest 2010 with my bro and they had their best record in their teams history: 2 wins, 2 losses, while he was gone I tried surprising him with a clean deck... which brings me to my story.

I haven't climbed any mountains, ran any marathons, white water rafted down the Wenatchee, or hiked to the Enchantments (wink wink to one of my besties that has, Tiffany Jeanne), but I'll tell you what I have done though... in an attempt to surprise my husband, I have scrubbed the deck clean, stained the deck... not liked the deck stain, stripped the deck of stain, cleaned it again and re stained it all the way I liked it.  Thought it'd take me a day... maybe two, instead it took me three weeks... but we finally have our improved outdoor living space.... perfect and in time for the shower and Cait's  3rd birthday.
I've had a lot of days off this past month, actually I've hardly worked... my grandpa passed away and my Mom traveled to WI for the celebration of his life, therefore I took bereavement and experienced what it'd be like to be a stay at home mom.  I was actually very happy to have my mom back and to return to work. I love my children deeply, but I also really enjoy what I do and the team I do it with.  Which makes me love and appreciate my Mom in so many ways I can't even explain. 
On my days off, I have been to the beach a few times, the zoo more than a few times, had many play dates, and really I've just been enjoying the routine that has become my life.  My children's age right now... so far... is my favorite!  They're both so incredibly sweet and so much fun!

Although this post took me three days, not because it was so lengthy but because I have two little interrupters... it's good to be back.

Dressing Herself

Caitlyn has been dressing herself for a little while now

and when I forget to help her lay out her clothes the night before...

we usually get something like this.

Love you, Caitlyn!

The Final Chapter

Ashley and I took Caitlyn to her 1st ever movie.  A while back we started watching movies on Friday nights.  Shrek 1...2...& 3 were on our list of ones we've seen. So of course we had to go see Shrek the Final Chapter on the big screen in 3D.  I'm not entirely sure which she like more... the movie, the candy, or the extra large bucket of popcorn. 
It was a fun night had by all.

The Future Mr. & Mrs...

Coming this September!!!

Yep... that's right, Ksavera and Jason are engaged to be married!

Congratulations to the both of you!

Ocean Park

I see many more extended weekend trips to the beach in our family's future.

The weekend couldn't have been more perfect.

The sun was out, the kite's flew high, the kiddos both took 2 naps a day, the dice rolled in my favor, the grill... grilled our food... you get the point?!?

Everything was perfect and so relaxing to not have a thing to do...

So we walked alot to the beach, the store, and the big toy. I should retype that... Ash and I walked while Ashton rode in the wagon and Caitlyn rode her bike with her new helmet she got at the bike fair we went to. At the bike fair, put on by the OP Fire Dept, Caitlyn needed to ride her bike successfully through a bunch of obstacles... seriously, I almost cried when she completed the course perfectly and was rewarded with a new helmet. Man, I was so proud!

At the beach... I have never seen Caitlyn run so hard and so much... back and forth from the water to Ashton who played so well in the sand, then She'd grab hold of the kite and run and run and run with it in her hand. She was so happy and carefree... which made me so happy and carefree...

Seriously... I wanna go back right now!

It was especially fun to watch Cait and Ashton play together.

This is something they just started to get good at...

playing together...

totally precious to watch and listen to. 

When we first arrived,  

Caitlyn played in the bed of Dad's truck until we were unloaded.

She proudly waved one of her many kite's to let everyone know we had arrived.

Ashton loved the water and the sand and most everything about this mini vacay.

I got about a hundred of these 'bay watch' style pics as she ran back and forth on the beach.

That's a wrap on our mini trip to the beach.

We'll go back very soon I know!

Sleep Tight

Just thought I'd post a sweet pic of my handsome guy cuddled in with the sock monkey his great grandma gave him.

Thanks, G.G.!

Good night.

David Spencer

David Spencer (Ash's Uncle), passed away Thursday, May 6, 2010 at Harborview with many of his family and friends by his side.  He was the beloved husband of 21 years to Sue Spencer (Ash's Mom's sister). 

Although Dave's fun spirit will be missed tremendously, 

 I know he is looking down on us from heaven.

We all love you Dave!

♥

Yesterday, as we all grieved and celebrated Dave's life,

I was reminded of how important and totally AWESOME family is.
xoxoxox

Numbers

Ashton's 1st Year Statistics

Weight: 19 pounds and 10 3/4 ounces (9%)

Height: 29 5/8 inches (49%)
Head: 46.3 (51%)

Ashton turns ONE!

Ashton's 1st birthday started similar to Caitlyn's 1st.

We began the day enjoying cinnamon rolls at home.

Ashton devoured every single bit of his cinnamon roll

where Caitlyn simply enjoyed the top part with the frosting and then tried to give the rest to her brother.

By the look on his face... I'd bet he was pretty full at that point.

We enjoyed lunch with all the grandparents and a small dinner at home and then went out to the new Menchies for frozen yogurt with the Johnson family.

His actual birthday was relaxing and spent with our closest family and friends.

♥

Ashton's big celebration was on Sunday when the weather was sunny and warm.

It was so warm we celebrated mostly outside...it was beautiful!

I couldn't believe how many tiny friends came to celebrate with him.

Ashton enjoyed his first cute little monkey cupcake.

Caitlyn enjoyed singing happy birthday to her brother

her lyrics were amazingly clear,

aaaapple to you, apple to you, apple to you dear, ashee... apple to you!

sto lat yay she a naaaaah!

 She also enjoyed telling everyone that asked,

"Ashee is 1 and Me 2." 

My Dad enjoyed some R & R with the tiny babes.

By the end of the day, I had taken near 300 pictures and 98% of them were of Caitlyn and Ashton.

Near the end of the party Caitlyn was all photographed out and as you can tell by this next photo...

so was Ashton.

Well, sweet son... I truly enjoyed celebrating your big day. 

We couldn't have asked for a more perfect day!

I  ♥ You!!!