We Came, We Saw, We Conquered

Now that we've gotten back into the swing of things and recuperated from our small colds, I can update you all on our past goings on. After coming back from Dallas, the whole family headed off to California the following Thursday. We made it to the airport with what we thought was plenty of time to spare but seeing as an early Thursday afternoon is a super busy traveling time we got slowed down in security and ended walking right onto the plane. I believe we were the very last people on. Luckily it wasn't a full flight and Brooke was able to have her own seat. She did very well on the flight considering she had missed her afternoon nap. We left dry, mild Denver weather to come to hot, semi-humid weather in California. We stayed at my parents' house that night along with Will, Kristin, and their kiddies.

My parents made a cardboard castle that the kids loved. The next morning, Troy, Brooke, and I headed up north to see Jeremy and MacKenzie. I think it only got hotter as we drove into the middle of CA. We hung out with them, visiting Jer's new work, went to dinner, and drove around on their go-kart. I even had a go at it the next morning although none of the pictures reflect the major air I got off of one of the jumps. Luckily Troy has a semi-decent picture taker as a wife and caught a sweet pic of him going off the jump. Brooke got to even have a little go around in the kart.Sunday was my dad's birthday and we celebrated by having a big family gathering with 6 of my mom's siblings and a lot of my cousins and their families come. I love family gatherings and I know for sure Brooke loved all the attention she got. Brooke was definitely ready for bed by the time the festivities were over. We actually put her down before everyone left and she completely zonked out even with all the noise.Monday Will, Kristin, Troy, and I headed to Disneyland to celebrate my birthday. The main reason for the whole trip was to go to Disneyland for free. It was a beautiful day and the weather was perfect. Mickie had recommended that we get the book The Unofficial Guide to Disneyland and by the time we arrived at the park, Kristin had our morning pretty much mapped out. Troy, in action, lathering up for the day. He even remembered to re-apply.We ended up going on about 21 rides/attractions and waiting on average 20 minutes per ride (excluding Space Mountain the second time without a fastpass). We had fast passes for many of the big rides which allowed us to zip right through.

In line for the Haunted Mansion. It was all decked out for Halloween with the them from Nightmare Before Christmas.Troy being a great tourguide on Indiana Jones ride.It's a Small World after all. Troy saw a friend from his parent's home ward.I may have gotten a little wet from Splash Mountain. Good thing we waited until the afternoon to go so we could cool down.Will taking a "catnap" from New Orleans Square to Tomorrowland.One of our last rides of the day. Good 'ol Autotopia. Wish we could have driven faster than 3 mph.Finished off the night with the Buzz Lightyear ride twice without any wait.All in all it was a fantastic way to celebrate my birthday and I think we did a great job in conquering the park. Brooke thinks so. (Notice her 2 upper teeth. Finally. She's got 5 teeth now.)

There's No Mistaking It...

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, you saw it right. We've got snow and it's sticking. I may even be listening to a little Christmas music too. Who can't when you've got snow on the last day of summer?!

Dallas and Grandparents

This week I had my last exam seminar in Dallas. Tracie was tired hearing about hybrid plan designs, risk management, and financial economics over the phone, so she decided to join me.

We managed to escape a couple of nights to see the Dallas sights. Here we were on the free trolley.

One night we splurged and went to Wolfgang Pucks restaurant in Reunion Tower. The view was mostly cloudy with an occasional shower, but we did get a full view of the surrounding Dallas area during our revolution. The food was amazing, it's not hard to understand why his food is loved by lots of people.
We celebrated Tracie's birthday a little early, and had a baked alaska for dessert. Yum-o.

The whole week was possible thanks to the Grandparent clan. Grandma and Grandpa Burt, and Grandma Ware, agreed to come and spoil Brooke for the week. Brooke was in heaven and had attention withdrawals this afternoon once they were gone.

Unrelated photo, but pretty cute!

This week went by in a blur. Okay so maybe that not the real truth. The real truth as that we did absolutely nothing this week. Troy began his study days this week so from now until the end of October he'll be at home every Wednesday. Sadly (and also exciting) this is his last exam so no more study days after this one. Saturday, I went with the achievement day girls to take a tour of the Denver Temple and have a picnic afterwards. Of all the days for it to be cloudy and cold it had to be Saturday. Luckily it didn't rain on us and I think the girls had an enjoyable time. We also went up to Denver to visit my cousin, Jonathan. He even made us dinner that was very delicious. I think his mama would be proud. I was certainly impressed.

Brooke has started taking more and more steps. I think it has helped that Troy and I have walked around with her holding one hand. The video doesn't show much but she did manage to walk all the way around the island.

She also had 2 teeth come in. That makes a total of 4. She has learned how to climb onto the couch and church chairs. She's talking up a storm and thinks that she's really having a conversation with you. She's still as friendly as ever and will pretty much go to any stranger. Even ones we see at the grocery store.

Anywho, stay tuned for a great update from this week. Troy and I are headed to Dallas...without Brooke. Thanks for Troy's mom and grandma and grandpa Burt for coming out to watch her!!!!!

Oh rise all loyal Cougars...

Brooke and her friend Declin wanted to watch the BYU game together on Saturday, so as parents, we had to oblige. We had a lot of fun with Jen and Gavin, and the outcome made it even sweeter. I chalk the victory up to the great birthday present from Will and Kristin!

Friday, Tracie met up with Robyn for a picnic. Brooke enjoyed the atmosphere and snarfed a ton of food. Hopefully all the extra energy helps her in the walking department.

Saturday afternoon, before the BYU game, we went with our neighbors to an apple orchard near Canon City. Despite the traffic we hit because of the Air Force game, and the warm tempuratures down there, it was a lot of fun, and we even got a bag of apples to boot.

The picnic before we started picking was fun, though if we go again next year, I think we'll try breakfast and an earlier start!

Our friends the Halls through a BBQ tonight for Labor Day. Brooke enjoyed the new toys, the watermelons, and all the kids to keep her entertained. She loved climbing up on this horse rider, but couldn't get herself down, so she would let it be known when she was no longer having fun.

Not Quite but Almost There

Brooke has finally started taking her first steps. We forgot to mention it in the last post and I was kind of hoping that by now she would have gotten walking thing down. Not the case here. Brooke is perfectly content crawling to wherever or whatever. I think the most steps she's taken is about 5 and I may even be guessing high. I suppose it's okay that she's not walking yet but she's just so close.

There's not much to report anywhere else. Last week was a pretty quiet and chill week. We excited, however, for September but you will just have to keep checking to see what we will have been up to.

Playmate

Brooke and Lexie have come to tolerate each other much better over the last couple of months. Lexie is generally patient with Brooke, and too her credit, Brooke is generally quite nice to Lexie, showering her with kisses and small pats. Here, Lexie and Brooke both enjoy checking the toy that Tracie got at a garage sale. Yesterday morning, Lexie was hiding between the blinds and the window. Brooke thought that it was quite humorous, and decided to get a closer look by climbing on the file box. Once there she discovered all the cool stuff on the desk. Of course she also tipped over the nearly full shredder, but at least she was nice enough to help me pick up the mess.

This week we also got a crazy hailstorm on Monday night. It was pretty fascinating to watch, but the next morning the aftermath wasn't quite as fun.
Our garden got hit hard, ripping leaves off the peach tree, knocking down tomatoes, putting hail holes in the zucchini and leaving the garden in a general level of sagginess and disarray. Hopefully we can still get some growth out of everything before the season ends.

Also, our firepit cover was apparently not hail proof, because it got ripped to shreds. Luckily, no structural damage to the house or cars, and it came late enough at night, that no one got caught out in it. Just another chapter in a wacky weather summer here in Colorado.

Baby Einstein

Yesterday I dressed Brooke up for church and decided to give her some piggies. I didn't realize how much of a little girl it would make her look but she's still my baby. After having her hair up all day this is what it looked like when I took it out. A small but visible resemblance to Albert, eh?

Last week went by quickly and before I knew it we were already to the weekend. Thursday was our 5th anniversary so our neighbor, Patty watched Brooke while Troy and I had dinner at a local restaurant called Augustine Grill. We also gave each other new Wii games. I got Troy the new Tiger Woods PGA Tour '10 since I've been hearing good things about it. Troy got the Big Brain Academy for me. Troy also spoiled me earlier in the week by making a fantabulous dinner. The beans even came from our garden.

Sunday night my cousin, Jonathan, came up to visit. He's here for the next few years attending pharmacy school in Denver so I'm sure we'll be seeing him often. Brooke sure loves having people come to visit and shower attention on her. Speaking of visiting, my good friend, Megan, is coming to live with us for a couple of months. I definitely know Brooke will be loving that.

In other news here is one of the things Brooke has been up to. I give her 2 weeks until she's off and running. (Mom- can you tell what she's doing in this picture?)

Shout Out

Just wanted to give a quick shout out to Troy and thank him for a fabulous 5 years. Has it been 5 years already? The time has gone quick but I've had a blast along the way. Thanks for being the best...the be-est.

Ware Reunion 2009

This week we went to Heber City, UT for a nice Ware Family Reunion. It was a fun few days. Here are the highlights.
Our picnic on the way in lovely Rawlins, WY.
Aunt Heather, Aunt Kenz, and the constantly happy Cousin Scarlett.
The downstairs playroom that included foosball, ping pong, pool, and the kids favorite treadmill. No pictures, but I really enjoyed Samara 'working out' on the treadmill in just a diaper.
Brooke sometimes had a hard time being the smallest of the active cousins. She got stepped on, run over, etc. Luckily there were lots of adults to keep her company, especially her Aunt Kenz.
Brooke took her first stab at coloring. She managed to make a few marks on the bag, and did not eat a single crayon!
Heading out for the family hike. It was a very strenuous quarter of a mile!
Brooke really enjoyed the sunflowers along the way.
The best from a few rousing games of dunk ball.
Brooke loved the balls.
Bubbles!!

The fishing game was a hit.

Behind the scenes. The fishing poles came in handy the rest of the week, especially for Channing. He managed to get 2 or 3 stuck in the most random places!

To the victor go the spoils. A princess wand and animal crackers. Thanks Grandma and Grandpa!

The kids getting ready for finding Nemo.Tracie getting ready for the alpine slide

Wild, Wild Weather

Some of you know that Denver has been having some wacky weather this summer. This past week a cold front moved in from the northwest. For 3 days straight we were in the 60s while on the other side of the Rocky Mountains Grand Junction was hitting the high 90s. I believe on Wednesday (or Thursday) Denver set a record for having the lowest high for the day at a whopping 63. I don't even think the tempurature fluctuated more than 10 degrees that day. But no worries the summer heat is back again this week with highs in the 90s. Great. I've actually really enjoyed the cooler, wet weather and not having to go out and water the garden every day.

Speaking of the garden we've got produce!!!! We've picked our snow peas several times and just picked our first zucchinis. Our green beans and tomatoes are coming in nicely and we got another green bell pepper growing. Our other bell pepper got picked and destroyed accidentally by our neighbor's little boy.

Because it has been so nice in the early afternoons, Brooke and I headed to the park one day. She was a little unsure of the swings this time but loved the little play areas where she could make some noise.

I wish I could say it was a windy day but it wasn't. Brooke just woke up with her hair like that and it stayed like that the whole day.

Lastly, a funny story about Brooke. Troy, Brooke, and I went for a walk the other night to the mail box. It was still sunny outside so I stuck a hat on her. When we got up to the mailbox I noticed that her hat was gone. (Side note - this is not her first time "accidentally" dropping her hat). Normally I can look back at the steps I've taken and see her hat but this time it was not in view. At least this wasn't done on one of my long walks that I like to take in the mornings. When we got close the house again we spotted the hat including Brooke. The first thing Brooke said was "uh oh." Aren't you supposed to say it right after the fact and not wait until we've made it to and from the mailbox? Silly kid.