more to this life

Grace's 3 Year Pictures

2009-11-22T17:30:00.004-05:00

**Not sure why there is a blue tint to some of these!**

Twinkle Twinkle

2009-08-25T16:25:00.003-04:00

"Twinkle Twinkle Little Star"
Lead Vocalist: Grace
Dance/Choreography: Ella

*My camera died before all of the ABC's were recorded. For a performance of the ABC's see a few posts prior.

Wow, does time fly!

2009-08-14T10:11:00.005-04:00

So it is now mid-August and I'm sitting here wondering where the summer has gone! I guess time does fly when you're having fun, and as a family we've had plenty of it over the past few months. In June Nate and I took a week long trip to the Florida Keys for our anniversary. Nana and Papa came down to watch the girls, and though this was the longest time we've ever been away from them, it honestly wasn't that hard leaving knowing they were in good hands! We had an amazing time escaping from the realities of work and parenthood together. I really think Nate figured out how to relax on this trip-we returned feeling refreshed and reconnected!

Once we came back the girls and I drove up to CT with my parents so that I could attend my 10 year hs reunion. I had a blast reconnecting with old friends and catching up with everyone.

After we returned from CT we flew out to OR for Geoff and Michelle's wedding. The girls and Nate were both in the bridal party. The girls were absolutely adorable in their orange dresses. It was a beautiful outdoor wedding in Ellensburg, WA. We stayed for 12 days so in addition to the wedding we were able to spend a few days at John and Anna's house. It was great to be able to reconnect with them, and we met cousin Bryant for the first time-what an amazing bundle of joy! Grace and Ella appreciated cousin Aubrey and all her neat toys. It was really cool to see all of them play and interact together.

From J&A's we went to Grandma Gladys'beach house. The girls loved being on the beach and we've finally reached the age, where eating sand isn't a constant temptation! We thoroughly enjoyed our time at Cannon Beach-what a beautiful place! And once back in Portland, thanks to our friend Dan, I even got to wake board for the first time! I loved it...now Nate's idea of getting a boat at some point doesn't sound like such a bad idea! Overall we had a great time with family and friends in Oregon, and look forward to our next visit.

And finally just last week we celebrated Grace's 3rd birthday! We kept it pretty low key compared to the party we had last year, and just had a family party at home. Nana was in town so that made it all the more special. Grace got lots of great gifts from family and friends and enjoyed every minute of the celebration! On Grace's actual birthday, instead of going to a studio to have her 3 yr pictures taken, we met our very talented photographer friend Amaree at the park. She captured some great photos of Grace! I'll post some of those soon.

Whewww...So here we are, enjoying some down time at home and getting back into somewhat of a routine. As of right now, no more traveling for a little bit-except for a possible family camping trip to the mts. this fall. Enjoy the captured moments from our blur of activity over the past few months!

Pretty Girls

2009-05-16T15:52:00.005-04:00

Getting dressed this morning was a bit of a process. When I went upstairs to get the girl's clothes Grace had gotten ahold of the camera and had taken this first picture of herself! Amazing she got Ella in the background too! The last two are ones I ended up taking of the girls being silly.

ABC's

2009-05-12T18:24:00.003-04:00

Spring '09

2009-04-16T09:23:00.004-04:00

I can't believe Easter has already come and gone! We've had a busy couple months. The girls and I flew up to CT to surprise my dad for his birthday. He had no idea we were coming, so it truly was a great surprise. We had a great time with family, but mostly with nana and papa-the girls just can't get enough of them! (Which is great for me, because I always get a nice break when they're around)

Once back from CT we headed to the beach for our friend Lilly's 1st birthday. Becky put on a great party, so great we ended up deciding to spend the night, even though we didn't plan to! The toddler bounce house was a hit with the girls-especially Ella, she loved it! That Sunday we all went to the aquarium, which was a great experience for all! According to Grace her favorite things were the turtles and the fish.

Easter weekend was nice. Nate was able to take Saturday off from work, so we spent the whole weekend together as a family.
I read Grace the story of Jesus in the garden, on the cross, and his ressurection from her children's Bible-kind of a lot for a two year old to take in, but she sat and listened. When Gavin came over Saturday night to babysit, she got her Bible out, climbed up on his lap, and proceeded to tell him the whole story-at least from her perspective! Amazing.
On Sunday the four of us and Gav went to our good friends the Pease's for dinner and an Easter egg hunt! It was nice to have a big dinner and relax with friends.

Ella Joy

2009-03-03T23:19:00.003-05:00

I realized in my last post that the only picture of Ella was of her crying...which is actually a really rare occasion! She is so spunking and happy all the time that its infectious-we really just want to kiss and hug her all the time (too bad she doesn't ever sit still long enough for that to happen much)!

January/February

2009-03-03T08:50:00.007-05:00

Hi everyone....just wanted to fill you in on what we've been up to the past few months. Here's a look through some pictures:

We've had two different snow storms (rare for down here). The girls, and Nate have had fun playing out in the snow-except for Ella who refused to keep her mittens on, and consequently got very cold hands!

Aunt Shana came to visit! The girls loved having an extra playmate and I really enjoyed catching up on all our "girl talk"...unfortunately she got the 24 hour stomach bug that we (and pretty much everyone else we know) had two weeks prior. Sorry Shana! :(

My parent's were down here for Valentines weekend, so Nate and I were able to go away for a night-a first since Ella's been born!

Catching Up....

2009-01-07T19:47:00.008-05:00

With Thanksgiving, Ella's 1st birthday, Christmas, and New Years already come and gone I guess I have a bit of catching up to do!

I hosted my first Thanksgiving this year and though it was a small crowd (our good friends Reed and Kelsey came over) we made enough food for about 10 people! Aside from the oven getting accidently turned off, pushing our turkey time back a few hours, everything was great and I must say (thanks to Kelsey and myself) the food was delicious!

Our baby girl, Ella (who is now walking around everywhere!)turned 1 on December 8th. The week of her birthday both girls were on antibiotics for ear infections. So with everyone feeling a bit under the weather we decided to just celebrate with the four of us. It seemed a bit uneventful, but was still fun watching her (and Grace)with the cake and presents!

We had a great time in CT for Christmas this year! For the first time in a while all of the Coombs kids were home. Ryan, Rhonda, Maddox, and Jacobi were all there from CA, so with a house full of four toddler girls there was never a dull moment! (for great pictures check out coombsinanutshell.blogspot.com)It's holidays like this that make me wish we all lived closer to one another. Thankfully, we do have Gav around and are anxiously waiting for him to get back into town!

Since our vacation we've had a few relaxing days (aside from some car maintance-see picture)around the house together to re-group. Just being able to ease our way back into the craziness of life has been huge for us. We've been able to reflect on the year past and are excited about what the year ahead has in store for our family, church body, and business. We serve such an awesome God and are constantly in awe of what he has blessed us with! Happy New Year everyone! Enjoy the video and pictures!

(apologies in advance for the annoying Barney music in the background and yes, our dining room has indeed transformed itself into a very short term storage space for Gavin's stuff)

Ella and Grace trying out the cake

Opening presents

Sledding in Connecticut

One of our Christmas pictures

Should I be concerned about this? My husband never ceases to amaze me...thanks for getting the heat working again!

Happy Halloween!

2008-10-31T22:50:00.003-04:00

We had a great time today with friends and family! We went to our friend's neighborhood for a Halloween parade, which ended with a pizza party in a culdasack. From there we went trick or treating....Grace was acting like it was the best day of her life! She'd run up to a house, say "trick" or "treat" (never both at once), then come back to us yelling, "Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!" And then on to the next house! Ella was a monkey (Grace's from last year) and Grace was a ballerina (tutu compliments of our friend Becky), then switched into her full bodied cat suit as it got colder. Having little kids around makes life (and holidays) so much better! Grace and Ella's innocent joy about the littlest things is so contagious! We're so thankful for our two little blessings from above!

Enjoying the "treats" before the trick or treating even began!

In the parade

Best Buddies!

MEOW!!!

She would have done this all night!

Time With Friends

2008-10-16T15:24:00.005-04:00

Recently we took the girls kayaking for the first time with our friends (and newlyweds) Reed and Kelsey. It was Nate's idea to go, and I love him for trying to find "adventures" we can all do together as a family. Our little outing on the lake wasn't quite like the river kayaking he's done in the past...

This week we took a quick trip (left early morning, returned late night) to see our friends Corey, Danielle, and their two girls (with one more on the way!)who recently moved to Roanoke, VA. While they were in Raleigh we hung out quite often so it was a fun reunion for us all. We really miss their friendship and hope to make the 3 hour trip again sometime soon!

Right now we're outside a lot enjoying the beautiful fall (80 degrees) weather, in the process of remodeling one of our duplexes, planning a pumpkin carving party for our neighborhood, and loving the fun, but very busy, stages that the girls are in. Enjoy the pictures!

Workin' Hard....

2008-10-03T15:42:00.003-04:00

Nate and I have been really busy lately painting and remodeling-acquiring some new properties and having a tenant move out has kept us working hard! This week we brought the girls to an apartment (along with the baby gate, a bin of toys, and the pack n play) and would gate them in a room while we painted. It sounds worse than it really was, they do a great job of playing together. This video cracks me up...the girls discovered the kitchen cabinets while Nate is totally focused on getting the job done!

Happy Birthday Grace!

2008-08-20T11:31:00.003-04:00

Grace turned 2 on August 10th, and we still can't believe it! Our baby is turning into a little girl! Grace is an absolute joy in our lives-she has the greatest personality and loves being around people. I don't know what we did without her! We had a party for her at a local park and though she may not have been too sure what was going on, she definitely loved the cupcakes and all the presents!

Trying out her Mrs. Potato head pieces

Yummy cupcakes to go with our flower themed party!

Grace and Uncle Gavin

Ella having a treat with Nana

We're Still Here!

2008-07-27T13:40:00.005-04:00

For those of you who check out our blog...my apologies for not updating it for awhile! As a family, we've been doing great and have much to be thankful for! We've been enjoying the summer months at the pool, playground, or forest for some family hikes. We went to Philadelphia for a wedding and our anniversary in June, but other than that we haven't done much traveling, as Nate is really busy with work and a number of our friends here are getting married. Grace had her first job as a flower girl, and she did great! Aside from the fact that she forgot to throw any of the petals out of the basket, she was as cute as could be walking down the aisle! Ella has two teeth, is crawling, and enjoys aggrevating her sister by getting into all her stuff! Enjoy the updated pictures!

Memorial Day Weekend

2008-05-31T16:36:00.004-04:00

We had both a productive and relaxing Memorial Day Weekend. My parents came down from CT, so with an extra pair helping out with the girls we were able to get some projects done around the house. My resourceful husband (and my father)used some scrap wood we had laying around to build the girls a swing set, and to create flower beds around the mailbox and along the driveway. We also spent Sunday afternoon at a park in Raleigh. Its Grace's favorite because she gets to ride the "choo-choo!"

Old Memories

2008-05-10T13:49:00.004-04:00

Mom and Dad Anderson,

Notice anything special about this picture?

The leather boots you made for me finally fit Grace!

Two Peas in a Pod

2008-05-05T16:47:00.002-04:00

2008-04-22T20:28:00.005-04:00

The girls and I have been traveling a lot lately. Two weekends ago, we went with our friend Katie down to the coast to see Becky and Fitz's new little girl, Lilly. She was six weeks early, so she barely weighed 5lbs when we were there! She is such a perfect looking little girl! What an amazing little miracle she is, it was worth the trip to go see her!

This past weekend we were in Atlanta. We drove down with my parents to watch uncle Gavin run in the ACC Track and Field Championships. Grace was really into the track meet (a girl after our own hearts!). She would clap her hands and point every time Gavin ran by. Ella, on the other hand, would start crying if we or the people around us cheered too loud. We stayed with my Aunt Sandy and Uncle Richie while we were there. It was great to see all my cousins and their kids. As always I wish I would have taken some more pictures, but here are a few from the last two weekends. For now we're catching up on our Daddy time...I think he missed his girls!

Grace (18 lbs),Ella (13 lbs),and Lilly (5 lbs)

Ella teaching Grace how to play the piano

Grace teaching Ella how to give a back massage (she was told to get off her sister, but I couldn't help but take the picture first!)

Our beautiful Ella Joy

Grace sharing an ice cream cone with her cousin Josiah (or first cousin once removed?)

Just Chillin'

2008-04-08T13:22:00.005-04:00

Grace is always doing something to keep us smiling. She's had this sweat suit for a while now, but it wasn't until yesterday that she discovered it had pockets! If she wasn't eating or playing, she was walking around with her hands in those pockets!

New Kids On The Block Reunion - Latest News

2008-04-08T13:22:00.001-04:00

I know there's probably been more important news this past month, but I must confess I'm excited about this! As one analyst (my brother Ryan) states, "It’s brilliant,…..in a time of rising oil prices and a recession looming around the corner America needs a reason to smile."

"Rainy Days and Mondays..."

2008-04-01T08:51:00.004-04:00

It's been raining here for three days now! Though we desperately need the rain, we're just not used to the sun not being out! :) Yesterday I let Grace go outside in the rain because we were both getting a little stir crazy! I missed the shots of her puddle jumping, but here are some cute ones of the "little piggy" out on the deck.

(I don't know what it is with her cup these days, but she wants to carry it around with her everywhere! At least she's staying hydrated!)

Happy Easter!

2008-03-23T22:00:00.002-04:00

Some things I love about Easter: nice NC weather, cute summer dresses on the girls, Peeps, flowers in bloom, delicious dinners (and desserts), times with family, and above all the hope that comes with knowing that Jesus is alive!

Sisters!

2008-02-28T14:28:00.003-05:00

We had a little photo shoot today with the matching outfits Grandma got for us when we were in OR. Both girls are begining to become more aware of each other, which is so fun to watch! Grace just loves her little sister! She is constantly checking on her, rocking her, asking to hold her, and offering her pacifier to her (ironic b/c as much as we try ella won't take one and grace is fighting getting rid of hers). Ella is getting use to Grace being in her face all the time and is now smiling back at her big sis! I can't imagine life without our two beautiful little girls!

2008-01-12T11:06:00.003-05:00

Grace and Ella enjoyed their first bath together last night and we captured it on video for your viewing pleasure! I can only imagine how excited they'll be in the future when they find out we put their bath time on our blog for all to see!

Here's the link to it on you tube. I couldn't get Blogger to load it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ybl42MB-eRw

Happy New Year!

2008-01-11T17:48:00.000-05:00

We had a great time visiting family in CT over Christmas! Though we were a little worried about how the girls would do with the 12 hr drive(Ella only 2 weeks, and Grace in the continuous "go" stage of life)they ended up doing great...we couldn't have asked for a better experience! Grace enjoyed opening up her gifts and especially enjoyed the wagon that her Nana and Papa gave her. Ella, on the other hand slept through her first Christmas!

Our New Family!

2007-12-20T21:07:00.000-05:00

Enjoying the nice December weather in our backyard

4 days old!

2007-12-11T13:53:00.000-05:00

Ella Joy is Here!

2007-12-10T13:33:00.000-05:00

We welcomed another beautiful little girl into the world on Saturday, December 8th at 10:13 a.m. Ella Joy Anderson was 7 lbs, 11 oz. and 20 inches long. Our home birth was a wonderful experience with no complications. Grace seems to be adjusting just fine and shows her love by waving at Ella and tapping her on the head.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2007-11-25T19:10:00.000-05:00

We spent the 80 degree day doing a little bit of cleaning (Grace loves Swiffering our floors), playing outside in our beautiful backyard, and celebrating with our friends John and Amy. It was a nice relaxing day for us as a family, and for that we were very thankful!

Happy Halloween, From Our Little Monkey!

2007-10-31T22:01:00.001-04:00

Visit to Connecticut

2007-10-16T10:58:00.000-04:00

Grace and I traveled to CT this past weekend for my grandparents 60th wedding anniversary-what an amazing legacy! We had a wonderful time visiting with family, especially Aunt Rhonda and twin cousins, Maddox and Jacobi, who traveled all the way from CA! Playing soccer and football outside with the boys and apple picking with Nana and Papa were also highlights of our trip.

Labor Day Camping Trip

2007-09-16T15:03:00.000-04:00

Grace and I tagged along with the boys to Hanging Rock State Park for a fun weekend of camping, hiking, and rock climbing. Here's a picture of our family from the top of one of the ridges. If you look close you can kind of see Jr. #2!

Beach Trip

2007-08-25T09:09:00.000-04:00

We spent the first week in August in Emerald Isle, NC with the Coombs side of our family. With Ryan, Rhonda, and the twins living in Montana it's rare that we are all together at the same time. We had a great week together and spent most of our time at the beach and being entertained by three beautiful little girls! It was also Grace's first birthday while we were there (I'll post some of those pictures later). Here are some shots from our family photo shoot on the beach.

All Dressed Up

2007-07-15T18:20:00.000-04:00

Nate and I went to our friend's Brandon and Julie's wedding a few weeks ago. We never get dressed up anymore so it was nice to see my husband out of his painting clothes and in a shirt and tie!

Sailing Adventure

2007-07-10T22:52:00.000-04:00

Yesterday our family took a little adventure out to an island in the Outer Banks to retrieve our tent Nate had accidentally left there the day before. Being Monday, Nate couldn't find anyone to go back out there with him, so Grace and I (being the troopers that we are) agreed to drive back down to the coast with him. This was the first time we had brought Grace out on the catamaran with us, so I was definitely a little nervous, but everything turned out ok. It was a beautiful day, the wind was whipping (which meant we were going a little too fast for comfort), we saw some of the wild horses on the island, had a nice picnic lunch out there, and returned with the tent. Mission accomplished!

PB&J

2007-07-10T22:44:00.000-04:00

Here's a cute picture of Grace from the other day...her first pb&j sandwich! I think she enjoyed it a little too much!

Disclaimer

2007-07-10T22:30:00.000-04:00

So I know it's a little weird that the last time we posted to this site was almost a year ago. I'm not going to try to come up with a legitimate excuse of why that's the case, nor am I going to say I'll start posting on a more regular basis. It'd be impossible for me to try and fill in the gaps over the last 11 months, but here are the highlights: Anderson Painting and Power Washing is now in full swing and Nate is always busy with work, I'm in graduate school trying to obtain my master's in Reading Education, Grace now has three cousins: Maddox & Jacobi Coombs and Aubrey Anderson, we are expecting a new little one in December!, we just purchased another duplex down the street and will be closing July 25th, and our beautiful little girl will be 1 on Aug. 10th! Whew! Time seems to fly.....especially when you haven't updated your blog in a year!

2006-08-12T13:22:00.000-04:00

We welcomed our new little daughter, Grace into the world on August 10th, 2006 @ 9:32 a.m. She came into this world weighing 6 lbs., 13 oz. and 20 inches long. Here's some photos of Grace and her thoughts of her first few days.

2006-08-12T13:19:00.000-04:00

I love it in here I just sleep and get feed all the time!

2006-08-12T13:18:00.000-04:00

I'm in a tight squeeze!!!

2006-08-12T13:15:00.000-04:00

I'm finally out!

2006-08-12T13:13:00.001-04:00

WOW!

2006-08-12T13:13:00.000-04:00

Daddy and I, He was with me for all those tests, my first bath, and even picked out my hat.

2006-08-12T13:09:00.000-04:00

Me and my mommy.

2006-08-12T13:06:00.001-04:00

It's Bright out here.

2006-08-12T13:06:00.000-04:00

Proud Grandparents

2006-08-12T13:05:00.000-04:00

Big beautiful eyes.

2006-08-12T13:02:00.000-04:00

Close up.

2006-08-12T13:01:00.000-04:00

I'm getting tired now.

2006-08-12T13:00:00.000-04:00

Bye,bye

2006-03-15T21:46:00.000-05:00

Welcome!

2006-01-30T18:48:00.000-05:00

With so many of our friends and family living afar, we thought this Blog would be a great opportunity to keep you all informed and updated on our current happenings. We hope all our details, reflections, and pictures give you a little glimpse into the always adventurous life of the Anderson family.