Happy Birthday Dean!

Well my little man is one years old (in fact he was about 2 weeks ago). I can't believe he was born a year ago and how much our lives have changed with the joy of having a little boy. He is so smiley and cuddly and he's learning how to make his voice known in the Anderson house. He is definitely more vocal with his cries and his voice as he's learning how to speak. He says "Uh Oh" and "dog" and "nana" for bananas so we're starting to communicate. He walks pretty well with a few bumps and bruises at the end of the day as he loses his balance but overall he's definitely toddling around. Ella and him play together a lot and I can see how they will be good buddies. It's so great to hear him laugh and often times she is the only one who can make him really laugh which is awesome. We had a birthday party for him with some of his little friends and we had a trains, planes and automobiles theme. I went crazy on the cake making it look like Thomas the Train so that was fun. We had a great time and are so happy to watch our growing children meet these milestones. Happy 1st Birthday Dean! We love you, Mommy, Daddy & Ella

Happy Holidays!

Well the blog is behind as usual but hey, a post twice a month is better than none at all right? Christmas was really awesome with the kids this year. Ella just realized that Santa is actually not such a bad guy because he delivered her a little play house this year. She of course cried at the sight of him but after she figured out Christmas morning he brings her presents she was pretty happy. Dean really just loved all the attention and the paper and bows. He climbed present towers and tried to eat everything in sight but that's what 9 month olds do. We celebrated Christmas "or Faux Christmas" with my family in Danville the weekend before which was nice because all the pressure was off after that and we got to double our celebrations. Also we were home for the actual holiday which was nice this year. Christmas Eve we went to church and went over to a friend's house for dinner which was wonderful. Great meal and great conversation and Ella did awesome staying up late to party like a champ! Christmas morning we celebrated with Grandma in our jammies and opened presents and stockings and had a birthday muffin tower for Jesus. (Jake likes to make a birthday cake for Jesus every year so that's become a family breakfast tradition). Then we all stayed in our jammies and started getting ready for a big dinner with family and friends at our house. We had my grandparents, my parents, neighborhood friends and their parents and Grandma. It was really fun and so great to just visit for the holiday which I'm realizing that's what it's all about. I guess it took me a while now that I'm an adult but I just cherished the time with others so much more than the gifts this year. Also, I have a bit of perspective as my cousin's son is in the NICU this Christmas and I've just been thinking about them a lot. He is doing better now and they knew his condition before he was born but things like this really do bring your life into perspective and make me so grateful for the life we've been blessed with. So on this Christmas and heading into the New Year Jake and I just want to say we are so glad you're all in our lives and let's remember the joy of family and friendships all year round. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Well as you can tell I started work again so I'm a bit behind on my blog postings. As I asked the family at Thanksgiving...can you outsource blog updates?? ha ha. Just kidding. Well the Anderson family is doing very well. Aside from our colds and coughs which are pretty much standard for the season we had a great holiday week. We spent a couple days with our families in Lake Tahoe at a cabin during Thanksgiving. It was very relaxing and there was lots of snow for Ella to play in. We had the whole crew up including Nonni & Pop, all the aunts and Uncles, Grandma and my Grandma (who Ella calls Grandma Lynn) & Grandad even drove up the summit to be there in the snow! We of course made lots of yummy food and ate Shari's pies for dessert. Dean is crawling everywhere (and fast) at 8 months old and he's pulling up on everything to a standing position. I can't believe how mobile he is at this young. He's gotten quite a few head bonks, bruises and cuts as he has no fear and he's not very good at the "dismount" from the standing position but I guess that's par for the course at this stage. I think he needs a baby sized helmet. Ella is talking up a storm and just started putting together sentences (small ones). She sleeps in a toddler bed now and after a few weeks we're doing much better. Let's just say in the beginning she would be mysteriously standing up in our dark bedroom in the middle of the night and we would freak out. She is such a happy kid and brings us so much joy every day. She takes care of her little brother when she's not upset that she has to share her things sometimes. She calls him "baby dean", "little guy", "baby brother," and "Dean Dean" (well that's what mommy calls him a lot so she just repeats it. Jake is doing well with his job apart from the fact that it's been busy for the end of year push as sales guys usually do. I have been learning the ropes of my new role and traveling a bit to meet the team. We're looking forward to spending my birthday in Napa together and staying around for Christmas with the family which will be nice. Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving and here are some pictures from the big event.

Fall & Thanksgiving Photos

Summer Vacation

Well, September is already nearing the end which I cannot believe. We had a great two week vacation in Tahoe to kick it off and celebrate Ella's 2nd birthday with our families. We definitely fell in love with Tahoe in the summer and we'll be up there more often. We realized how close we were when we would watch the morning news on vacation and it was our local news we see in El Dorado Hills. No excuses--we'll be here more often! The kids had a great time with Nonni and Pop and the extended family over the weekend. We took long walks (a hike even), went to the Lake for beach time, out to eat, and even squeezed in a gambling night with the siblings. We got home and the pool had made great progress. I'll post more photos soon as they're finishing the plaster today and are actually filling it up with water. I can't believe it. I go back to work next week so the summer fun is coming to an end. It was such an amazing 8 months off with the kids and I feel so blessed to have that time. I'm ready for the next chapter as a family and for the fall weather looming which is my favorite season. Our vacation photos are attached below. Happy Fall! Love, The Anderson Family

Tahoe Photos

We love you Pop

Okay, I have not posted enough photos of Ella and her Pop so this one gets front and center. Ella loves her Pop and this is one of the first days in Tahoe that she was so excited to see him she gave him a big hug before her Birthday breakfast so this ones for you Dad. Love, Ella

August Fun

Hi all, well the summer is picking up the pace that's for sure. Dean is officially 5 months old now and Ella is approaching her two year old birthday. Crazy how time flies! The big news at the Anderson household is that we're getting a pool! They're starting the process late this week and hopefully by the end of September we'll be splashing. We are so excited for so many family fun memories in years to come! The kids are growing like weeds. Dean loves to jump in his jumper and sit up in his Bumbo seat. He is eating rice cereal and cut is first tooth on the bottom. He rolls all over the place and we're working on sleeping through the night (which basically means he's crying it out a little more). I think we're through the hard part but it was a long week to get us there. He is such a smily, happy and chubby baby I just love to cuddle with him. Ella is also at such a fun age right now. We both love talking to each other all the time. She is such a lover giving kisses and hugs to everyone and also such an active and athletic kid. She loves to jump all the time on carpet, off of things, on trampolines, whatever. She also runs everywhere she goes and swings her right arm for extra push to get there faster! She loves her baby brother and is very protective of him which I think is cute. We're heading to Lake Tahoe August 30th for a two week family vacation which will be super nice as I'm officially on sabbatical from work until the end of September. Here are some pictures posted below of our July and August fun.

July and August Photos

Happy 4th of July!

Happy 4th of July! Summer has officially hit in the Valley and we had our first really hot weekend for July 4th. We didn't let that stop us though as we embarked on a parade in our friend's neighborhood and then came home for naps to rest before an afternoon/evening BBQ. It's about this time every year we question why we don't have a pool. Ella is starting to swim (or splash and kick really) at our gym pool and she loves it. Dean is trying to stay cool despite his chubby little rolls and our "on the go" lifestyle. He's laughing now which is so fun and loves to chat. He likes to be held a lot more than Ella so the Baby Bjorn has become our new best friend. They're starting to coordinate their naps in the middle of the day and he's sleeping well in his crib so mommy gets an hour and a half break or so which is nice. Ella is chatting up a storm now that she figured out people understand her when she talks so she just won't stop. Between him cooing all the time and her talking I think we're going to have some social butterflies on our hands. Hmm, which parent do you think they got that from? Ella also had a huge milestone the other day when she went "pee pee" in the little potty. Jake and I have not been pushing this at all, but she saw her friend go on the big girl potty at our house and she wanted to be like her. She just said "mommy potty" and so I let her give it a try and both her and I were shocked to discover she did it! We'll see where it goes from here but at 22 months I'm pretty proud of my little girl. We've got lots of fun summer plans coming up with the next week in Danville then Daddy is taking vacation for a week and we'll embark on some fun family adventures. I've posted the new monthly photos for anyone interested as well.

June & July 4th photos