i'm not dead, just 3 weeks behind on blogging!

Chellooo blogging world! Good grief, I feel like I'm coming back from the dead since I've been absent for a couple weeks now. This has never happened to me before, the feeling of "oh I'm so far behind in blogging how will I ever catch up I think I'll just quit," but I am trying so hard to muster up the energy to keep this space going right now. Let's play a quick game of catch-up.

Soo... we moved. Really far. We said a tearful goodbye to our home in Virginia, a place we had grown to love, along with so many wonderful friends. I'm still living in vacation mode and it hasn't hit me yet that we will not be returning, but once it does I am going to be a wreck. On the plus side, we relocated back to our roots in California. That has been more fabulous than I had anticipated. Every day we do something with either set of grandparents and the kids see their cousins a couple times a week. Having family around is definitely something we are not accustomed to, but we like it!

Our first weekend back we hit up our local farmers market. Our little "old town" is small but super charming. Evelyn jumped on her first pony ride and squealed with delight the whole time!

Two of the many nice benefits of having so many extra familial hands around - 1) someone to always hold your kids. I occasionally forget I have two children (i kid!) because someone else is always holding them and I'm looking at my empty arms and hands thinking "what is this feeling of freedom!?" and 2) Jared and I can get a couple more snapshots TOGETHER.

Ok, next on the camera roll... Warner's birthday! Yes, his real birthday was back on the 19th, but we "partied" on the 22nd with family.

At first he didn't like the cake.  He was so cautious and deterred by it's sticky nature. He poked at it, examined it, cried about it, threw the cake off the plate on to the grass. But once it fell on to the green reeds, I dunno, maybe he liked that presentation better but he ate it! And THEN he licked his plate clean :) 

Annndd I have to stop there before this post becomes the longest pictorial overload in the history of blogging. Uh, I actually hate this post. Not the photos or happenings, but my writing. So blah and just all "here's what we did." Not fun, but it's taken me three days, THREE DAYS, to find the time to get these photos up here. I'm actually in the middle of something else that has been taking up a ton of my time, but I'm super excited about it and hope I can launch it soon. Til then, I'm stuck typing lame-o recountals.

Ok, so, we also went to the zoo and Ev hand-fed a giraffe and pet a stingray and Warner had a stare down competition with a sea lion and rode a comodo dragon. Tada! Coolness.

Ok, for realz, this post is done now.

fall festival!

In the midst of all of our packing, we made it a priority to hit up Cox Farms for it's opening weekend! When we were planning our move date back in August, I made sure that we moved AFTER Cox opened for it's fall festival. It was such a highlight of autumn last year, and I knew that both kids would enjoy it mucho! And enjoy it they did!

Happy First Birthday, Warner!

One. Year. Old. My baby is one. This has been much harder for me to take in the second time around. I think with Evelyn I was always so excited for her to reach the next milestone and ready to celebrate what was ahead, that with Warner I have learned to really slow down and appreciate his current stage  at all times.

One year ago Warner was added to our family and he has brought indescribable joy to our lives. The boy radiates nothing but smiles and a cheerful attitude - except when he's teething ;) - and truly has given me a taste of divine love. I never knew I would love having a boy so incredibly much. He completely has my heart.

Since we are in the middle of packing up boxes in preparation for our move in 6 days (ahhh), we aren't celebrating all that fantastically, son, atleast not today. But when we get back to California we plan on partying with family 10 days after your birthday. I figured you would be ok with that since you are clueless as to what a birthday is, but I do love you and recognize that TODAY a year ago you changed my life forever. I love you, Warner!

Virginia is for lovers.

Twenty-four hours ago I was standing on the top of a beautiful ridge just outside the Shenandoah Valley, overlooking luscious green rolling hills, sprinkled with white silos,  and echoing with crickets and the moos of cattle. The air was crisp, the sky a light gray while stroked with shades of thunderous clouds. At my feet was Warner, picking at the reeds of grass while Jared and Evelyn stood on a boulder surveying our surroundings. I leaned against our car, gazing at my beautiful little family in the most picturesque scenery and it just hit home to me that golly, this life is amazing! I called out to Jared "i'm so happy I could cry!" It was good to just get away from the hustle and bustle of life and spend time in the quiet serenity of nature. This earth sure is magnificent.

We drove up to Hartland Orchard yesterday morning to pick some apples. The trees and apples were stunning and in perfect form. The kids both had a great time running/crawling through the rows and rows of crooked trees, reaching up through fruit-bearing limbs, and tugging down apples. Two stray chickens were out about in the fields, which was a delightful surprise for the kids as they tried to lure it in with an apple peace offering, but with no success.

Virginia really is the state for lovers. Glad my lover is so handsome, goes along with my desire to meander in the Appalachians, makes my babies giggle, and can give a stellar kiss  ;)

you can see last year's apple picking here. I can't believe Warner was just 3 weeks old when we went! time is flying. He turns one next Thursday :/