See Ya, Flash

Flash, our cat, has moved to another loving family. We will miss our cat, but know he will be well taken care of. Ahhh...Memories of Flash:

1. He was such a trooper when we moved or went on vacation. He was totally ok living in a box for a few weeks.

2. Friends and contractors worried about him...why didn't he move?

3. Almost getting in trouble living on base with a cat.

4. Ate the least amount of food of anyone in our household

I am getting teary-eyed at these sweet memories.

First Visitors, Snorting and Sunsets

We were excited to have our first out of town visitors, cousin Lisa and fam! It was great catching up with them and in San Antonio! I included some pics of Elli...the first one of her fav trick: standing up! The second is her funny snorting that she does when she is in a silly mood, especially with dad. This is the funnest season with her...she is hilarious (most of the time). The other pic of our backyard is by request due to understanding why we have so many creatures in and around our home. That's the latest on the Houge front:)

Bye Bye Denver Home...sniff sniff

At this very moment, hopefully, the buyers are closing on our home. Though we are very thankful it sold so quickly, it is sad to say good-bye to this home. So many fun memories took place here. We put so much energy into the garden/landscaping and into that home. But, memories we will take with us, and friends remain no matter where we move.

Now This is Summer!

This weekend we celebrated that the stress of the move is finally over! We needed a weekend "away" so we drove 10 minutes to the Hyatt. Talk about a wonderful place to relax...our favorite thing is the lazy river. We both got a tube and put Elli in her baby tube and relaxed on that river. Elli loved watching the other kids and splashing. There are so many fun things to do there. We went on scenic walks, roasted s'mores, spent time reading in the many beautiful areas and Elli got her first backpack ride. She loved it more than we thought she would. Anyways, we feel so refreshed.

Sippy Cups, Ponytails and Crawling

Elli is hitting all kinds of milestone...she learned how to drink out of a sippy cup recently and loves loves loves it! She is officially mobile now...watch out! Today she got her first ponytail, too! All kinds of accomplishments:) Oh and yes, there are 4 more teeth coming in...6 total.

So I have to include an update about our new life in Texas. Though we miss dear friends in Colorado (and the wonderful Colorado weather), we are loving Texas. We get to see Brian and Leann and Landon more often. It's all about community and I am so thankful for Maggie's friends taking us in. I get to hang out with Maggie almost everyday, either walking or whatever. We already feel like we have community here, plus we feel settled in our house...visitors come on down. But there are some differences we are noticing...

I know I am not in Denver when...

1. I have to slam on my breaks for a bobcat and her cub a block from my house

2. There are racoon tracks all over our back porch (and all of our neighbors fish have been murdered in the night)

3. Deer droppings are found in our front yard

4. I vacuum up scorpions in my house--bedroom and office (luckily dead)

5. Temps in the 90s are considered a cold front

6. I have snake traps in our garage

7. An UMSA (unknown medium sized animal) walks behind us as we are enjoying our back patio in the evening

Happy 4th of July!

We really enjoyed dinner/hanging out with Brian, Leann and Landon at the Ski Lodge tonight. Elli loves watching Landon and waves her hands uncontrollably. Landon decided to imitate her and it was hilarious! Thanks, Mia Warren, for the cute outfit:) BTW, Elli took her first few crawls today! We better start babyproofing this house!

New Home and Crazy Hair

This is our new residence in Texas! We are starting to feel at "home". I had to put a pic of our bedroom view because I think the fav thing of our new home is the oak tree outside our window. A cardinal and red/blue bird have made the tree their home as well as fly into our windows many times a day, but have not learned that they will get hit by a window...definitely not the smartest birds. Our friends, Brent and Maggie, who live 2 doors down have made us feel so welcome. We have gotten to join neighborhood/mommy Bible Studies and social events with them. Makes the transition actually fun!

Elli's First Swimmng Experience

OK, so last Friday was one of the funnest days in Texas so far. I met Leann and Landon and her bro Ryan at the Hyatt by our house. Talk about a resort! It was beautiful! We hung out and Elliana dipped into the pool for the first time. She loved it! Thanks for inviting us!