Goodbye Neighbors

Our first family is leaving the cul-de-sac - Frank and Linda are moving next week. I am glad they will be closer to their 3 daughters and their grandbabies, but they will be missed. We had a little goodbye brunch for them on Saturday morning. We had it inside at the Johansson's - gosh I didn't realize how many kids we all had because we are usually outside :)

Goodbye for now Frank and Linda! We will miss you both!!!

Run, Run As Fast As You Can...

Slide, slide, slippity slide. Super happy boy.

Tongue out of course!

I am suppose to be in circle time right now.

Bubbles or "balls" as Cole likes to say.

Sitting in his "highchair"...Bring on the carrots, bring on the peas!

Under The Big Parachute!!!

Cole had his first "real" Gymboree class today. We have been to two birthday parties and a trial class, but today was the real deal. Dan was my personal camera man today and he finally understood why I said, "We MUST enroll him in these classes, he loves them."

Mollee's Diaper Shower

My boys! Paul helping Cole play washers.

Notice any other kids rolling in the sand???

Red faced and sweaty already.

Sweet Landry!

Fun, fun, fun!!!

Last Saturday we went to Jennifer and H's Diaper Shower...Little Mollee should be here in a little over a month. I am so excited that Cole will have another girlfriend. We had a great time catching up with old friends and Cole had a good time making new ones. He really enjoyed H's horseshoe pit :)

Happy Hour With The Girls

I don't think the picture is out of focus...that is the amount of smoke in the bar...cough, cough!!

I went to Happy Hour with some of my work friends last night - it was Neef and Beth's birthdays...a whole 25 years old and 30 years old...I'm soooooo old. Dan and I are making more of an effort to do things on our own - happy hours, poker nights, etc. I think it is great that we do our own thing for sure, but the entire time I was there (when I wasn't having a really good time), I was thinking that I should be home giving Cole a bath and making dinner - How sad is that? It is so hard these days to enjoy something that doesn't involve my boys, but I know it is good for us and I am SURE it will just take more practice :)

Philly Boy

MMMMMMM....as Cole would say. "Ey, you lookin' at me?" You have to say that like Rocky!

Mom, what took you so long to give me a cheesesteak?

OK...I'll eat the fruit too!

Had to post a few pics of Cole eating his first cheesesteak...minus the bread. He had zucchini sticks and a bunch of fruit too. I should have taken a picture of his tray 20 minutes later...not a drop of food left and hardly any in his diaper tonight. Somehow food "falls" in his diaper when he eats :). He LOVED the cheesesteak, maybe someday we will be able to take him to Gino's or Pat's for one "wit whiz"...as my husband says!

Where Has The Time Gone???

Dan and I celebrate four years of marriage tomorrow - it is completely unreal to me - four years have flown by so quickly. What makes our relationship a good one - well I like to think it is because we are truly a team. We raise our son together, we make our house a home together, we save our money and stick to our budget together (haha, those of you that know ME are laughing about now). I come up with the ideas and Dan implements them - it works well. I think another reason things work is because we are honest about our relationship. We tell it like it is...WE don't claim to have a flawless marriage, we don't claim to agree on everything, we don't walk around talking about how much we like each other and that we are each other's best friend - well, because we are not. In fact I am sure there are MANY days when we don't like each other much, but the love is ALWAYS there and we work through the days where the like is missing.

Dan, we have been through things together that I never imagined would be part of our history. Trips to the Bahamas, Jackson Hole, the lessons of Poker and how I absolutely hate you when you beat me (especially if it is on the river or you bluff me out of a big pot)...A lot more wrinkles and definitely a few more pounds. We have been together during the loss of both of my grandfathers, the loss of my 15 year old sweet Lexi, the death of our daughter, the birth of our son. You are my rock. I can't imagine taking this journey with anyone but you.

Happy Anniversary!

I love you.

Road Trip

Posing with Mommy. Look at me!

Waiting for a penguin to swim by.

Whoa!!!

Four generations of Collett's

Hal Collett (my dad or PaPa)

Me, Cole

Dorrie Collett (Cole's Great Grandma)

My mom and dad decided to go back to Iowa to help my grandma find an assisted living apartment. I am on summer break and my family in Iowa has only seen pictures of our little monkey, so I decided that Cole and I would tag along. All and all it was a good trip...the 11 hour car ride to and from had its moments (a one hour bad spell from Cole each way, other that that he was great). I realized when I was there that our house is very baby friendly...as Cole threw my grandma's doilies down her stairs that we blocked with a card table and crushed her hidden candy bars and carried breakable bowls out of the kitchen every 30 seconds....THANK GOD for baby proofing!

We spent a lot of time just visiting with family, but we did sneak out to the Henry Dorley Zoo in Omaha one morning. It was awesome. The temperature was in the low 80s, so all of the animals were out and very active. Cole loved it and Mom, Dad, and I loved watching him. He is getting to the age where he truly understands what is going on around him and it is VERY fun to watch. When Cole would go to bed at night, we would take turns watching him (we had adjoining rooms). I watched a couple of movies that I had not seen - Shutter Island...creepy! I also did a little gambling in the casino (We stayed at Harrah's). Needless to say I did not win!

I am now in the midst of unpacking and doing laundry...back to a little bit of normalcy tomorrow.

I am glad that my grandma, cousins, and aunts and uncles were able to meet the newest addition to our family. Made the trip worth while for sure!

Patriotic Weekend

Hallie Nicole Collett 8

Connor Franklin Collett 10 1/2

Daniel Cole Walker 14 months

Cousins

March...march...marching along!

He escaped from the picture posing.

Of course we spent the The Fourth of July at the lake house...didn't have to tell most of you that. Our family was there, but we had some extras come along for the ride. Niki and Kate, my friends from work, and our cousins, The Settles came too. We had a great weekend. Lots of sun, lots of water, lots of good food, lots of games (poker and of course the annual girls vs. guys Catch Phrase), LOTS of beer, and lots of fun. We always have a good time at the lake, even when we do absolutely nothing. It is really nice to have a place to go, to meet up with family and friends. My parents make everyone feel welcomed, always have and I am sure always will!