James' First Birthday!!

For James' birthday we went to the zoo - which was a lot of fun!! We went out to dinner at Cici's, which, as you can see, he enjoyed thoroughly. And on our way home from dinner we noticed that the elementary school in our neighborhood was having a carnival, so we checked that out. James loved the cotton candy!! It was a good first birthday!!

Eleven Months Old!

He's kind of beyond wanting to just lay there with Casey anymore...


But I was fast enough to get this one.

Some random pics

Evan and his chocolate cupcake. He is such a ham!!


Our little Rockies fan :)



James finds the open Kix box...


Let's us know he's found it...


And digs in!!




James is very laid back while he drinks his bottle. Notice his legs, crossed at the ankle :)






I've decided it's really fun to throw a pair of Brandon's clean boxers on James while I'm folding laundry. It keeps James occupied, since they're hard for him to take off himself, and it keeps me entertained, since he looks kind of like a superhero with a cape. He'll so appreciate these pictures when he's older...

Things you never want to hear your hairstylist say...

A few weeks ago I decided I needed a new haircut. I also decided that my sister would be the perfect person to cut my hair for me. Keep in mind, she's not professionally trained or anything, but she does a great job cutting my nephew and my brother-in-law's hair, so I figured girl hair can't be that different, right? She was pretty reluctant at first, but once I talked her into it, she got pretty excited. So, she whipped out her colorful sea animal protect your clothes cape and we got started. She had a picture and things were well underway. I had total confidence, until she started saying things like, "This is making me so nervous!!" "I really hope you like this." And then, she went to shorten up the front, and that's when she said it... "I think I've given you a mullet." Now, as those of you who know me know, I don't care much about my hair. I don't take time to do much with it, nowadays I'm lucky if I get it brushed. So I'm not the pickiest about my haircuts, but when the word "mullet" came out of Steph's mouth, I have to admit, I panicked. I took a look in the mirror and we had to decide how to proceed. Steph decided she could "fix" it, and she ended up doing a great job. When we looked back at our sample picture, we did realize she wasn't supposed to have cut it that short in the front in the first place, but we made it work and it's actually pretty cute. All I really have to do is blow it dry and try to keep James from pulling out my hairclip. All in all it was a pretty fun afternoon, and I think I'll keep her on as my regular hairstylist...as long as we stay away from using scary words like "mullet" :)

Mandy <><




No mullet here!!

Ten Months Old!!

I know this is really late, but it was taken when he was 10 months old :) I also know it's not the typical format, but we forgot to take one in the typical format, and I'm sure Casey Jones is in the toy box somewhere...

Our Spring Snowstorm

We didn't get a ton of snow this winter, so we made up for it this spring with a couple of big snowstorms. Of course, the next day most of the snow was melted and it was in the 70's later that week. That's Colorado weather for you!!

Family Visit

James' first trip to Fargo's Pizza Company!! He loved the cottage cheese, of all things :)


The Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs











In March Grandma Sandy, Papa Allen, Aunt Rachel, and Aunt Sandy came to visit. It was a lot of fun!!

Fun pic

This is what happens when Aunt Steph is in charge :)

Thoughts on motherhood

Having been a mother for almost a year now, and with Mother's Day right around the corner, I've been reflecting on motherhood. I find it a little bit crazy that I am actually a mom. I mean, this is the only job I didn't have to fill out an application to receive. I didn't have a 90 day evaluation to make sure things were going all right. Almost a year ago the nurse handed me my newborn son and sent me out the hospital door. I had read books, sure, and talked to other moms, but really, I had no idea what I was doing. I didn't know that diapers don't really hold everything a tiny baby can fill them with, or that I would spend hours with my son napping in my lap because he refused to be laid down during the day. I didn't realize that I would have to figure out how to change a diaper fast enough to not get peed on, or that a part of my heart would be ripped away the first time I left James in the nursery at church. I didn't know the terror that would grip me on the middle of the night drive to the ER when my son started to swell up for no apparent reason. Or how much fun it would be to just laugh with my baby, and have him laugh back. How excited I would be over his first smile, his first tooth, the first time he crawled, or clapped his hands. Motherhood is a lot harder than I thought it would be, but a lot more rewarding too. I can't believe how much I love this little person, who is really quite demanding, but can melt my heart when he looks at me with those blue eyes. I know that I'm far from perfect at this job, but I am so blessed to have the opportunity to be a mom, I wouldn't trade it for anything!

Mandy <><