Annika is 2!

This weekend we held a special PURPLE birthday party in honor of Annika's second birthday. We were thrilled to have both sets of grandparents as well as Branden's sisters and our nephew Will in town from Minnesota and North Carolina to help celebrate. Some highlights included...

- Annika's favorite meal: Chicken Pesto Pasta
- A beautiful purple birthday cake
- A life-size Minnie Mouse doll from Grammy and Grandpa
- A new trike from Mommy and Daddy
- A new Little Tykes car from Nana and Papa

A Growing Family

This is a little overdue, but Annika is excited to announce that she's going to be a big sister to a baby BOY due July 11, 2011. We couldn't be more thrilled!

Swim Lessons

This morning Annika took her first swim lessons with her Daddy. We signed up to take the class with our good friends Eric and Cindy and their sons Marshall and Caden. Annika was a little timid at times, but loved playing with the balls and splashing around. I have a feeling that by the end of this class we'll have a little fish on our hands.

Winter Fun

Snow, snow, snow has been the the theme of this winter and if I'm completely honest, I really love the white stuff. Annika is learning to love it as well, though she wasn't too sure about about it being up to her waist a few weeks ago. With March nearing I'm starting to long for spring, but we have had a lot of fun being snowed in together this winter!

Christmas in California

This year we decided to pack up and spend the week before Christmas in California with my family. We braved a 5hr flight with Annika and spent an incredible week relaxing with the harbor seals by the ocean. A few of the days were rainy, but that didn't stop us from having a blast at the Monterey aquarium and watching the enormous waves. When the weather cleared, we hiked, ran around with Annika on the beach and simply enjoyed the opportunity to be outside in December. I think we have more hiking in our future because Annika couldn't get enough of running up and down the trails. She's getting to be a big girl and insisting more every day that she wants to do things on her own. As a result she hiked almost two miles by herself one afternoon. After my two trips this year, I can definitely tell why some people go to California and never leave.

Scary Santa

Maybe it is because of the snow today, but I'm realizing that it is extremely out of season to still have pumpkins on my front stoop (must remove those tonight). To top it off, my most recent blog post is about a little pumpkin, so I think I owe you an update on what we've been doing this past month:

• I turned 29 (eek! Maybe the last birthday I'll decide to celebrate?)
• I had an AMAZING time traveling to Santa Barbara, CA to run a very hilly 1/2 marathon with my dear friend Stacy as well as see the place out west that she and her husband Jonny now consider home.
• Branden, Annika and I traveled to Charlotte, NC to celebrate Thanksgiving with my sister and brother-in-law and their son, Will. Will and Annika are just a few months apart and it was so fun to see them interacting (and dream about what fun they'll have together as they continue to grow)
  

We decided that since Annika and Will were together, it would be worth trying to get a photo with Santa that we could have as a keepsake and use for gifts for family. Needless to say, Santa wasn't a hit with the kiddos. We may not use this for gifts this Christmas, but I think this photo will become a treasured keepsake for years to come...

Happy Halloween!