Fall has finally fallen

Daylight savings is here and all I want to do is go to bed at 8:30- but instead I think it's about time I update our blog.

Two months- wait almost Three months have gone by since my last post.

Since then we have gone back to Iowa for some family time, ran a half marathon, had a girls weekend in LA and everything in between. Oh and how can I forget to mention- Greg grew and then shaved what may have been the most "amazing" mustache ever.


 Fall Is HERE.. Kind of..

 We were both a little uncertain of the horse..

 And we can't forget the trips to the pumpkin patch. - I know it is already November and these photos are already a month old- but I couldn't resist.

Halloween came and went with Luke being probably the cutest tiger on the block.
And no fall season is complete without catching his first cold (of course the weekend I was away).
He did great and it barely phased him- we were still able to take him out to a few houses for "trick or treating". I think he loved it. He carried around a little bag of m&m's the entire time

In San Diego- we don't have the most traditional indicators of fall. We don't get the falling leaves, cool temps in fact most years we have quite the opposite. With record high heat waves and santa annas we are forced to trade in our ugg boots and classic "fall" sweaters for tank tops and sandals.

But last weekend we were blessed with some classic fall weather- rain and all. So I did what any mid-westerner would do... Relished the moment. Put on my sweater and boots, made chili and started up a fire.
I am ready for the season to strike- Thanksgiving will be here before we know it and then ... my favorite time of year... CHRISTMAS!
Hopefully I will have a post before then but lately it seems time passes and before I know it a month has gone by.
In the meantime- we will continue going to class where, as you can see, Luke is quite the Picasso. Greg will keep working hard in school and I will .. well try and keep my blog updated. ..
Till next time

We all survived.. One Year

Well I have postponed the writing of this blog post because I really felt I needed to come up with something so special to say about Lukes 1st birthday but after the party passed and all the dust settled I realized that his face really says it all.

 

Now that's not to say I wont fill you in on all the details but I thought I should start with that. 

WE have celebrated many "first's" over the last year. It truly is incredible how much he has changed our life. I remember being pregnant and having people tell Greg and I that on a daily basis. "your life will never be the same" and i really couldn't comprehend the magnitude of that statement until Luke came into our's.

So in the first year we have a talker (nana and dada), a walker and a paci, cake loving little boy.

He has such a great personality and is so happy all the time. 

And I truly can not believe how and what he enjoys eating. It's like he dosn't have any taste buds (just like his Dad). I could give him a pile of spinach or a pile of cake and he eats it with the same enthusiasm. Lets pray that dosnt change. 

So to celebrate the big day we planned a Dr. Seuess inspired birthday party.   My Mom, Dad, Brother and girlfriend- Rachel all came into town a few days early - little did they know I had agenda's for all of them to help it all come together. Don't worry we did find some time to make it to the beach for a little relaxation.
It seems so silly to plan so much for a party he won't even remember but then I realize it is more of a celebration for us that we all made it through.  And only with ONE BIG bump and a few bruises but nothing more to worry about for the first year but a healthy fun little LUKE!

Our Seuesstastic party had all the fixings to make it extra special...

The food- deviled green eggs(thanks to Grandma C) and ham sandwiches, goldfish, sweedish fish and cupcakes of course. As well as a fruit salad in his very own personalized watermelon- complements of Chef Jonny (my brother)

The decorations were personally hand crafted in the months leading up to the the big day and I think really turned out quite cute.. We had a house full of kids, friends and family. We couldn't have asked for a better time!  Enjoy the photos...

Luke with his Uncle Jonny and Auntie Rae- with his new John Deer Trike

Barbara ("The Nanny") and Her Husband Jim

Charger had more fun than the kids

Onward and upward we go... I can't begin to imagine how much fun this next year will be.  Even with Greg in school and our lives seeming busier than ever we really keep it pretty simple around here. . Luke and I started a Mommy and Me class this winter to keep ourselves busy while Greg is working so hard in school. He is doing great so far!! It is such a busy program he is pretty much always buried in a book or away at class.  And as they say we all just keep putting one foot in front of the other...

Love the Johnston's

And He's off..

We have a walker.

Weekend Away

Greg and I decided to take advantage of what is left of Summer by spending a few days with our friends Gerry and Kenz in Hermosa Beach and their twin girls.

We spent most of the day Saturday at the beach and park where Luke and Becca played with the water bottle and Luke practiced taking more and more steps.

Hermosa was great! Luke had so much fun playing with the 2 girls (Becca and Reese). He also had fun playing with their toys, and boy do they have toys.  It was like walking into a toys 'r us- every fun toy you could imagine and duplicates of everything.But even with all the fancy toys all they really wanted to play with was the bottle of Aquifina- go figure.

Becca politely telling Luke "Please Dont take my Bottle"

Becca not happy-

But you can't go wrong with swings on the sand!

We have every weekend booked solid till September 17th- It feels like Summer will be over before we know it. With the end of summer comes a busier work schedule and Greg starting his Paramedic program.  So we decided to take full advantage of every moment possible and try hard not to think about the school days that loom around the corner.

On our way back we stopped in Laguna Beach for some pizza and people watching- one of our favorite places to stop. The beach was packed with people and the weather was perfect- I love California.

Luke is inching closer and closer to the big birthday.
I can't believe our little guy is going to be one so soon.
The party is going to be great- Dr. Seuess theme.

I try not to stress about it - but truthfully it's all I can think about these days.

11 Months and Counting.

Luke continues to change more and more every day.
He started walking last week - well maybe more "stepping" than walking but it counts.
Greg's Dad bet he would be walking before 10 months was up and I guess he was right.
He is so cute taking 4-5 steps at a time then gracefully plopping on his butt. He is so proud of himself everytime!
Greg and I have a busy month coming up before his school starts in 2 weeks. But we still manage to snap many many photos of the little guy.
And for today I hate to say but that is what this blog is going to be about- Photos not words.

San Diego Summer in the backyard- Nothing could be better.. ok maybe the swings.

Lukes new favorite things this month- walking or stepping- throwing the ball with Charger- and Snuggling

Independence Day.

Well I know I skipped over telling you all the details of my Birthday at Mr. A's

Oh yeah- we even did shots, got free t-shirts and went dancing

And Fathers Day came and went without a blog update..

-- Ok so a few details about his special day.

We spent it with Jim and Candi celebrating mine and Jim's Birthday- and 2 very special Dads.
Greg is an amazing Father and every time I watch him with Luke I love him more and more!

But keeping in time with the season- Independence day came and went and I have barely had time to blink.
Luke is keeping us very very busy now a days. He is so much fun and really is the happiest baby alive. (I swear).

I also swear he is the best swimmer in his swim class. I told Greg this today and he just laughed at me. But really he has started swimming his arms and legs together - he goes under and holds his breath without swallowing a gallon of water. And he has a smile on his face the whole time.

But back to the 4th of July.
The 4th is probably my favorite holiday, next to Christmas, of course.
I remember it as a kid growing up in Iowa. It was always a big event for our family.
We had the tradition of going to the Clear Lake Parade during the day then a big bbq in the afternoon and of course the fair and finishing off the night watching a sky full of fireworks.

Now I know San Diego has much more going on than the small town in Iowa - but sometimes it is just too much to choose from.
But after this year I realized all you really need are some good friends, family, a bit of BBQ, a pool of course- and what 4th of July would be complete without a Fire Truck.

So that is our new tradition for the last 2 years. Thanks to Mike and Sarah we are lucky enough to have all the parts to equal a fun 4th holiday.

We spent all day on the 4th at Mike and Sarah's pool with lots of friends.
And finished it off with a neighborhood block party complete with .. you guessed it.. A Fire Truck.

And on the tail wind of the holiday that blew by- Luke started taking his first steps assisted by his "walker".
I really feel like he has changed a lot over the last few weeks. He is starting to look less baby and more like a little man.

 He is also developing quite the vocabulary. Well at least he has the basics.
DaDa and NaNa (for Mama) are the noises that now fill our house everyday.

My Mom comes out next week and I am so excited for her to see him. Because our schedule is slower at work during the summer I am even able to have a few days off while she is here. So expect lots of visits to Sea World and the Zoo. Hooray Summer!