IT'S A GIRL!

What a great day! We had our ultrasound today and we got to not only see our beautiful new baby, but we got to see her in style! The doctor's office has a 32 inch flat panel monitor on the wall with all of the images showing our beautiful baby girl. After taking the shots, the ultrasound technician gave us a cd for us to put the photos on the web...so here are a couple of them! She was very well behaved for the photos. Most importantly she is healthy and has all of her parts! We proudly introduce to you Alyssa Roselli. (Middle name is TBD)

Alyssa taking a taste of her fingers. What a cute profile!

Alyssa showcasing her flexibility with her left leg and foot touching her forehead.

A Perfect Autumn Day

We had the most perfect fall day yesterday. We decided to beat the crowds and head to the pumpkin patch right when they opened. It was not busy at all, much to our surprise! Come to find out, their opening weekend is always the least busy (we know when we'll go again next year!). We went out to Stoney Ridge Farm about 20 minutes outside of Bellingham, where we got to take a hay ride, get lost in a corn maze, eat lunch by the bon fire, ride a train, jump in a bouncy castle, pet goats, horses and cows, eat a caramel apple and almost pass out from the sugar overload. It was great! Lexi had a ball choosing her pumpkin and partaking in all of the fall festivities. Luckily, we were able to do this before a huge rain and wind storm hit. Whew!

This is the one she chose for Daddy!

She wasn't too sure of the tractor ride at first..."I don't like this!"

The hay ride to the pumpkin patch

Running through the corn maze
She wanted the pumpkins that were on display
So much fun!

Feeding the goats
The train ride. We were actually surprised that she decided to get on.
She did like it, contrary to the look on her face in the picture.

There is no graceful way to bite into a caramel apple.

In the snack shop after sharing our apple.

I'm almost 3 feet tall!
Daddy Pumpkin, Mommy Pumpkin, Lexi Pumpkin and a green one for the baby that's not "quite ripe!"

Happy Fall!

What a Weekend!

This past weekend, my two dearest friends from high school, Shannon and Vanessa and their families, as well as our friend Caleb, made their annual pilgrimage to Bellingham for a weekend visit. Each year it seems to get a bit busier and crazy as we continue to add kids to the mix! We were fortunate enough to have great weather which allowed us to take advantage of all that Bellingham has to offer outdoors. We enjoyed Semiahmoo and Birch Bay, the playground at my school, the trails around our house and lots of play time in the toy closet at our house and in our yard. We had so much fun with the kids and also enjoyed the evenings when they went to bed! Let's just say, we relived some old times after the kiddos were down! While we hate that we only see these friends every couple of months, we love that when we do see them, it is for a good chunk of time, and we seem to pick up right where we left off. Thanks for visiting. We are looking forward to next time...

Lexi and Daddy on the swings at mommy's school

The Viles family on the teeter totter
Now the grown ups know why the kids love the playground so much. We had that teeter totter rocking so much that we bottomed out...

Frosting cupcakes to celebrate Brian and Desi's birthdays

Yummy! Look what I did!
Avery working hard
Kendyll was the oldest of the bunch and did such a great job helping with the little ones

Chocolate fondue for dessert on Friday
Getting ready to swim in the pool at Birch Bay
" Motor boat, motor boat step on the gas!"
I see you!
More fun on the playground!

The daddys were in charge of baths this night...wow...look at all the paint!
Blake and the girls!
Kendyll and Avery
Lexi's new favorite tub game...pouring water out. Yay!

Thanks again Quintanos, Viles and Caleb for coming! What special memories we have of the weekend (some inappropriate to share on-line!). We love that our kids are growing up together just like Shannon, Vanessa and I did. Until next time...

Getting into a New Groove!

You can probably tell by my lack of postings in the past three weeks that I have gone back to work. It seems that by the time we get home, play, have dinner, bath and bed, that I am ready to pass out on the couch...not ready to spend time on the computer. So, I apologize. Here are a few pictures of Lexi and Chris' new favorite thing to do while I make dinner.

"Daddy Gymnastics"

The uneven bars
The trapeze
Daddy trampoline
The Daddy Slide
And...Lexi bench presses!

Hope you all are well, we'll try to post more often!

A Ferry Ride to Bremerton!

Last Sunday, we took the ferry out of Seattle to go see the Lynch family in Bremerton. It had been way too long since we had seen them. We had a great time catching up and Lexi was in heaven playing with their girls (Elleanor, Ainsley and Baby Emerson). Thanks for the fun, Lynchs! We're glad Lexi survived the fall off the swing set!

On the way to Bremerton!


"I love this big boat!"
We were checking out other boats on the water.

Lexi loved the swing set...even after a huge flip off the swing to land on her face. Good thing there was a doctor in the house!
Our wagon ride down the street. Ainsley, Lexi and Elleanor

Fun in the tub with the Lynch girls before heading back to Bellingham!

Big Girl Bed!

If there is one thing I have learned about being a mom it is that every stage Lexi has gone through has gone so fast. It seems like just yesterday that we transitioned her from her cradle in our bedroom to her big crib. Well, now the crib stage has ended,

AND...

Lexi now has her own big girl bed! I'll have to admit that it was/is quite emotional for me (well, everything makes me emotional since I am pregnant!) to move her to a big bed. It seems as if she isn't as much my baby, that she is all grown up. My mom keeps telling me that this is only one of the first steps in letting go. Ugh. Lexi on the other hand didn't have any trouble saying good bye to her crib and has been extremely excited about her big girl bed! So excited in fact, that we have been woken up at 5:00 (yes, AM) every morning with "Mommy, Daddy, I wake up!" Whoa, where is the kid that was sleeping until 7:30-8:00 every morning just 2 weeks ago? Hmmmm. We have decided, because we need our sleep, to institute the "good morning" light. For those of you who are unfamiliar, this is a nightlight on a timer. Lexi is not supposed (you notice I say supposed) to get out of bed until the light comes on. It did work this morning because we set it for 5:15 to give her a chance to be successful with the "good morning" light. Our hope is to gradually be able to set it later and later as she gets more used to it. We are hoping that she is merely in love with her new found freedom and that this too shall pass! Stay tuned for more updates! Here she is, the day we got the bed.

"MY big girl bed!"
So much fun to just hang out here
Wow! It is much easier to see what is happening in the backyard now. **Note I shut and locked the window pretty much for good since I took this picture!
Her first night...what an angel
Just before she fell out of bed, hit the pillows and rolled completely underneath the bed. Yeah, the next day...we got a bed rail! How can she sleep like that?