The Grahams

Before I was pregnant Jess and I would spend our summer hiking through Washington. We bought ourselves a hiking book and starting going page by page through it - hiking 3 or more times a week. Obviously that has changed but with Callie still in daycare we took advantage of a few days this summer and redid some of our favorites and tried some new ones. Everytime I head to the mountain I am instantly amazed at the beautiful state I live in. Here's some of our favorites. How can you not be happy in a place like this? Annette Lake Annette Lake The view on the hike to Crystal Lakes The trail was a bit snow covered on the way but how could we not go for it? Summerland - our lunch buddy On the way to Panhandle Gap (just beyond Summerland) Summerland We ended up with a beautiful day - one of those Seattle days where it is cloudy all day until you go up into the mountains then it is crystal blue skies. Okay....I'm not sure I would classi...

We spent Callie's actual birthday together, just us as a family then invited everyone over for a bbq at our place. It was a lot of craziness but a lot of fun. Glad we had such great weather (and that it wasn't 90). The day started out with Callie and I heading to My Gym for a trial class for her. She LOVED it!!! Afterwards she slept for 3 hours (which is absolutely unheard of) and got ready for everyone to come play. The boys bbq-ing and frying - yum! Next year - a bigger sandbox is needed. We reached maximum capacity very quickly. The birthday girl. (the dress didn't last very long but I tried) Blake and Eli playing with the water table. This picture should be before the other one - o well. Let's just say she knew just what to do when the cupcake was placed in front of her. It's not a birthday until...... Preston opened presents with Callie..... Let's just say, he was overwhelmed very quickly :-) Loving her ladybug...

So, Callie and I have been very busy lately - I feel like we are trying to cram as much as we can into the last few days of my summer break. It's hard to believe I will be going back to work on Monday! We have spent most of our time outside playing in the sprinkler, sand, or drawing with chalk. We also have spent a great deal of time at the playground. Reading with Papa! I love this picture! Playing at the park. This (besides the slide) is by far her favorite feature of the playground. I have to confess, I didn't know what it did until we went to the park with Aunt Sarah. The bells play music when you hit them. Callie and I headed out to Lopez Island to visit all the happy campers. A long but very fun day! Next year, we WILL be camping! Callie loved the ferry. We spent most of the time on the deck of the ferry entertaining everyone out there. Text from me: "do I need to bring a bathing suit?" Amy: "No! No one goes in the water - its...

Can you believe it?! Our girl is one year old! What an amazing year it has been. I've been trying very hard to live and enjoy every moment but it seems to go by so fast. I'm so excited about what Callie has done so far but the selfish part of me wants her to slow down....one of my favorite parts of the stage she is now in, is how obvious it is to see her learn something new and understand exactly what we are saying to her, I ask her to please sit down so we can put her shoes on and she plops right down where she is, I tell her it's time to put her coat on and she sticks one of her arms out to help. I love this little girl. By far, my favorite part of the day is when I stick my hand out and she runs to me and we walk hand in hand. Here's whats going on with her: She is walking and climbing everywhere. She has absolutely zero fear - which I love! I think daycare has been waiting patiently for her birthday to move her up to the toddler room. They claim she has been r...

Well, summer finally arrived with a bang and we have taken every opportunity to enjoy it. We've hit the zoo, the beach, the park, and everything in between. Although I realize I didn't seem to take pictures from most of what we've done, here are some things that I have been able to capture: We had an unexpected longer visit from Pat this summer. He seemed to LOVE Callie - and she of course, was smitten herself. He introduced her to the video game controller - a pro in the making Zoo trip with Taylor and Blake - I love that we put Taylor in charge of making sure Blake didn't fall out of the shark's mouth - not a good idea looking back on it :-) She dug the shark tank And this was her favorite - it also prompted us to have to drive home from the zoo with just a diaper. She got absolutely soaked (and we had a bit of a melt down when I told her we had to leave the water) When I had my classroom of 24 responsible-ish fourth graders, I refused...