So much can happen in a month...

Besides our baby getting bigger and bigger every second of every day, it's been a pretty eventful month.

No really, I'm serious.

On August 27, Aaron re-injured his meniscus in his left knee. Our original plan of being in Texas until December quickly changed when we were sent back to Maryland so Aaron could have surgery and recover. We were grateful we made it back to the east coast and Aaron could have surgery right away. When Eli and I saw Aaron after his surgery, Eli looked so concerned. The nurses kept reassuring him (and me!) that Aaron would be okay.

With Aaron on bed rest for a few weeks and then on crutches, I sure felt like a little nurse taking care of my two babies! (I also was reminded how grateful I am for good health and our physical bodies.)

With Aaron resting on a bench at the park, Eli and I decided to try the swing for the first time. This cute park even had a little farm we could walk around!

    

Once everything settled down, our family was able to enjoy a few fun days together before Aaron went back to work. Since we're still enjoying lovely weather, we decided to visit the zoo. (Also, we're on this kick of finding fun things to do for free - or almost free. And, with most of the tourists not around this time of year, we decided we want to visit as many Smithsonians as possible!) 

Our trip to the zoo: 

Last Saturday our church participated in the Maryland Day to Serve.

So many potatoes.

So many volunteers! 

I'm kind of in love with finding good deals on clothes for my baby.

Like this little suit for church. 

And finally, on Monday we went to the Aquarium.

We all loved it!

I decided I want to be a dolphin trainer. 

                                             

Oh, and one more thing - we've also been visiting the library weekly. 

Aaron decided this book was a must for Eli.

Yep, you read it correctly - "The Beginner's Guide to Running Away from Home."

(He also checked out, "The Day the Babies Crawled Away.")

Aaron went back to work today. We miss him. I feel bad that he had to have surgery and be sent back from training - but, I've loved spending so much time together. 

It's almost the weekend! Enjoy!

Love Notes

Tonight I'm just reminiscing to 2 years ago today when Aaron sent me this first e-mail. 

Here are the first few paragraphs of his note: 

He's a pretty good little writer, right? Truth is, I wrote him back the next night!! I know. It was against my dating "rules" to write him back right away, but I'm so happy I put rules aside and wrote him back because I felt like it. {And, in my marketing career, I promised all my clients I would get back to them within 4 hours so I felt this need to respond to him right away!}

And, along the lines of reminiscing, I returned home from my mission 5 years ago this month! 5 years! Really? How is that even possible?!

Here is my cute companion that introduced me to Aaron years later. 

Love her so much.

And finally, have you heard of this movie - 

It's pretty much the most romantic movie ever. And I mean ever. I saw it years ago when it was at the Red Box and I forgot how much I LOVE it! I found it at the library last week and rented it so Aaron and I could watch it together. You'll love it. {And, best news of all. It's rated PG. I almost hate watching movies these days because they're so dirty. I fully support clean, wholesome movies so I wanted to tell you all about this!}

I also was reminded how much I LOVE the theme song for this movie. I so wish we would have used this song for our wedding dance. Check it out here. 

XO

Photo Book

Hey guys! I FINALLY finished our wedding book on Shutterfly.

I love weddings. I loved our wedding. Enjoy! XO

Click here to view this photo book larger

Shutterfly photo books offer a wide range of artful designs and embellishments to choose from.

Wait. You're really from Kansas?

Whenever I tell people I'm from KS, I hear things like... 

- "What is there to do in KS?"

- "You're not in Kansas anymore." (They think they're soooo funny and original.)

- "I drove through KS once and it's so flat and feels like the longest state ever."

- "Just click your heels three times and you'll be home." (Again, they think they're hilarious.) 

Well, I love Kansas more than any other state!! Eli and I had the best week ever visiting my home. 

What is there to do in Kansas?? Oh... just look and see! 

My parents bought us tickets to an old country band concert in Cow Town. A BBQ dinner was served before the show and we had a blast. My favorite part was def seeing my nephews clap with delight after each song! 

We also spent many afternoons at the pool. I can't get enough of Eli in his suit. 

(If you can't tell already, I'm a little obsessed with these little guys.) They loved babysitting Eli and sharing their toys with him. 

We even had story time at the library. This boy. This couch. Love. 

Always a highlight of KS is a JD tour with papa! 

Next, we discovered these beautiful Botanical Gardens with the dreamiest kid place ever. 

Alex even made time for a photo shoot. Thanks, Alex! You're becoming so profesh. Here are a few shots of Eli at 4 months. 

Grandma kisses... 

Lincoln beat everyone at bowling. (Just FYI: I did score 151. Bam. My highest score ever.)

The vacay ended on a boat. Soooo fun! 

I could go on and on. The fun never ends in KS!