When did October sneak up on us?  I can't believe Fall is already here!  The last month has been chalk full of activity - birthdays, visiting relatives, tropical vacations...what a whirlwind!  We ended our amazing summer with a visit from Brian's parents and grandmother and threw Addy's birthday bash while they were in town.  We did a monkey-themed party at the park for our little monkey, celebrating with family and a few close friends.  I could not believe how well Addyson did for the entire party.  She sat on my lap and opened gifts, interested in everything and not once getting fussy.  And she is definitely my daughter - she DEVOURED her cake! :) It was such a perfect day, beautiful and sunny and full of love for our baby girl.  We couldn't have asked for a better birthday celebration!  And we could never thank our families enough for their generosity and being there to celebrate our daugher. :)

 

Of course we had to do a small celebration on her actual birthday as well.  Just had Mima and a few friends over to the house for dinner and cupcakes.  Addy certainly remembered what cake was and jumped right in!

It's still hard to believe that our baby is officially a toddler, it seems like just yesterday we were bringing her home from the hospital and having no idea what to do with her!  Addy has grown up so much and we marvel on a daily basis on how smart she is and what a big girl she's becoming.  She loves bathtime and reading stories.  We made "Addy's Corner" in our living room with all her books and music toys - she'll stand at that bookcase and take out all the books and flip through the pages, singing to herself as she goes.  It's one of the most entertaining things ever and just cracks us up!  After her bath, she loves to try to get away in all her naked glory, crawling as fast as she can down the hallway in a fit of giggles as we chase her.  She's very ticklish, especially under her arms and chin.  She is more and more fun to interact with every day and Brian and I are just relishing every moment.  We thank God every day for blessing us with our amazing daughter - our happy, smart, funny and loving Addyson. :)

Brian and I just got back from Jamaica and had an absolute blast with our friends.  From sunbathing on the beach to climbing up Dunn's River Falls, dancing with the jamaican ladies on the catamaran and snorkling in the beautiful ocean, there were so many amazing memories made.  Although our flight experiences left much to be desired, the trip was so much fun and our friends that joined us made it one that we will never forget!  I'll let the pictures do the talking. :) 

 

The morning after we got back from Jamaica, little Miss Addyson got baptized!  She was such a good girl, sitting in the pew with all of us during the service before her ceremony.  When the priest took her up to the Holy water, she thought it would be fun to play in it and splashed in the bowl while he poured it over her forehead.  That's our monkey! :)

Last weekend we took Addy to Remlinger Farms for the first time to go pumpkin picking!  We used to take Justus every year when he was little and it was so much fun to carry on the tradition with Mima. :)  We got to see the puppet theater and pet the farm animals.  Then we rode the little train before going to see the pumpkins.  We've been blessed with the best October weather I can remember in Seattle and it was 75 degrees that day!  We will definitely be making this a yearly family outing. :)

So often I take a step back and wish I could just freeze time and make these moments last forever.  Life gets busy, time flies by, we all get distracted with work, paying bills and planning for the future.  Sometimes we just need to stop, look around us and count our blessings.  I thank God every day for my amazing husband, daughter, family and friends and this awe-inspiring world he's created for us. <3