Slippery fish

Not too far from where we live, there is a shopping place called the Riverwoods.  In the past few years they have made a lot of improvements to the areas that are mainly used as walkways.  In essence they have made it super fun for kids and equally fun for the adults watching them... let me demonstrate.

 Water shooting out of the walkway? Yes please!

 I love this, he just got hit in the face and was a little shocked

Oh so happy to be a fish

Adam really is our water baby and is always looking for a chance to make a splash!

one year older and wiser too :)

My Birthday in September was very nice.  In the middle of Nathaniel's crazy busy schedule he found time to take me out to Tucanos (yummy) and we had angle food cake and ice cream which we had a fun time sharing with the little one.  I am now twenty six years old... how did that ever happen? Looking back, it seems that all my goals for the future, as good as they might have been, have paled to my reality.  I have been allowed to do so many things that I had never even planned or dreamed of.  If you would have asked me ten or even twenty years ago what I wanted to be when I grew up I would have told you that I wanted to be a Mom.  It is all I have really ever wanted and I never thought I was selling myself short by having that as my goal, and honestly I wasn't.  Being a mom and a wife is all that I dreamed it would be and much much more. Yes more difficult and painful but also more wondrous and fascinating. But I wouldn't be where I am today if my goals for marriage and motherhood were not fulfilled much later than I had planned.
Let me explain ... no that takes too much time, let me sum up.  Finishing four years of college and going on a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints were never, ever part of the plan.  And yet, without those experiences I feel that I would be missing a vital and essential part of who I am as a wife and a mother.  Because of the trials and joys I have experienced while waiting for my hero, I have learned much more about the kind of wife and mom that I have dreamed to be.  Moral of the tangent?  I guess it would have to be something like this.  Having and working towards righteous goals should never blind us to the refinement our Father in Heaven plans for us while leading us, in his own way and time, to that destination.  Just something to think about.
Back to the birthday.  I know I don't post many pictures of myself, but in case you are wondering what I look like now ( hasn't changed too much) here is one, followed by my favorite photo subject... Adam :) this time having fun with the whipped cream from my cake!

wand wielder

Way back in June we went to Harry Potter world and I was given a wand.  Adam has since made good use of it and had been in a few duels with his Dad.

Ready 

Set

Go!

And that is how it's done.

are we still alive, you ask?

I lost my camera battery charger.  It happened a couple months ago, but it is still lost. So other than not wanting to post without any new pictures and not feeling my life is interesting enough to post about, I don't have any more excuses ;)  hmm what to write... updates you say? okay! After Adams birthday he started not only walking every where, but also running and climbing onto EVERYTHING. He goes off all the big slides alone and has shown his desire to be independent by "running away". after about 50 or so feet he will turn around until he is sure I know what he is trying to get away with and then he takes off again.  He got his first black eye a few weeks ago by running around with one shoe on and falling into the playground... silly monkey.  He has increased his vocabulary by adding "da" (dance) "doh" (down) "uh" (look) "mo" more and he claps when we say happy (if your happy and you know it...), shakes his fists when we say shake, and depending on the music he will bounce (he loves techno for this) or spin in circles (usually softer music). He is learning new things everyday. turning on and off light switches and scooting his car to where ever he want to climb up.

Nathaniel is in France right now and though I do fine during the day, in the evening I miss him tons. He has been working for the past several months on his research and now he has the opportunity to present it in a large conference in Nantes.  I am super excited for him and proud of all his hard work.  He will be graduating in Apil so he is finishing up his classes and taking the GRE hoping to get into a great Grad program.
As for myself, I am learning to enjoy being a mother of a very busy toddler. Adam makes sure we get outside at least once daily, if only to check the mail. We have also been more involved in a mom craft day that the sisters in my ward put together.  while our kids play I have made paper flowers, Autumn magnets and even a necklace made out of an old tie.  I am loving learning to be more creative.