Soccer and Swimming

We have been very busy these last few weeks between having started Kindergarten, Hunter's swimming lessons, and Justin's soccer games, it seems we are always on the go. On Thursday night, I finally remembered to throw the camera in the diaper bag, and caught a few cute shots of Hunter hanging out at the Marines' bench during the soccer game:

Willow!

We feel so blessed to have had our awesome sister-in-law Willow come and stay with us for a few weeks when Morgan was born. Willow arrived a few days before the induction, and stayed for about a week and a half after that. We were completely spoiled during that time, as she prepared all of our meals, kept Hunter entertained, and even did the laundry! On top of all that, she acted as our official family photographer. She captured so many precious moments in that first week - here are some of my favorites:

This was taken as Justin and I were headed to the hospital:

Hunter's first glimpse of his baby sister:

Priceless:

Thank you, Willow, we are forever grateful!!

Six Weeks!

I can't believe we are here at six weeks old already! Morgan is doing great, she's grown 3 inches and put on just shy of 3 lbs since her birth. She is growing and changing so much every day! We are enjoying more and more social interaction each day, including coos, and lots of smiles!

Backtracking a bit -

Ran out of time to make this post before we headed out for 4th of July weekend!

On June 26th, when Morgan was about two weeks old, my mom and dad were able to come out for a weekend visit. It was a quick one, but so much fun none the less!

Sunday morning, we went out the the farmers market for a Monterey favorite - pluots! After that we headed to the pool so that Hunter could show off his new swimming skills for Grandma and Pappa.

On Sunday evening, my mom made pot roast, the same homemade meal she made for me right after Hunter was born. Pot roast is just one of those things that tastes better when your mom cooks it!

On Monday, while Justin was in school, the rest of us went out to the Dennis the Menace park. In the afternoon, my mom and dad took Hunter to see a matinee of Toy Story 3. Monday evening, we all headed over to the Monterey Sports Center to watch Hunter's swim lesson, followed by a trip to McDonald's for dessert (Hunter's choice :o)

While my dad was able to stay until Thursday, my mom had to head back to Chicago on Tuesday morning, but we took some great pictures before she left:

On Wednesday evening, my dad, the kids, and I went to watch Justin's soccer game, and then to Hunter's swim lesson. Afterwards, we headed out to Moss Landing to check out a seafood restaurant my dad had spotted on his drive down to Monterey. This turned out to be an amazing find! Great seafood, right on the water, in a quiet spot far away from the more touristy cannery row and fisherman's wharf!

Thursday morning it was time for my dad to head home. While we always wish their visits could last longer, we are so glad that they were able to make the trip to help us celebrate our newest little addition!

Fourth of July Weekend

With Justin being off work for a 96 over the holiday weekend, we decided to drive down to Las Vegas to visit Josh and Willow for a few days.

We left on Friday evening around 7 and drove 3.5 hrs to Bakersfield, CA. The kids were AMAZING, and we were able to drive straight through without stopping! After spending the night in Bakersfield, we got up around 6 on Saturday morning and headed out for the second leg of our trip.

We arrived in Las Vegas at 1pm, and needed to jump in the pool immediately as it was hotter than heck! We have been VERY spoiled by the mild temperatures and cool ocean breezes of Monterey - Vegas proved to be quite a shock to our systems!

Morgan, lounging poolside:

On Sunday morning, we all got up early and met Justin and Josh's brother, and their grandparents, at IHOP for breakfast. The afternoon was spent in Josh and Willow's living room-turned-photo studio, as Willow had generously offered to take Morgan's newborn photos and family portraits. I don't have these pictures in my possession yet, but when I do, I'll blog about them!

In the evening, we went out and grabbed some sub sandwiches and headed out to Lake Las Vegas to watch the fireworks over the water. Hunter seems to have gotten over his fear of fireworks and really enjoyed the show! Morgan, as expected, slept through it all :o)

On Monday morning, we took our time getting ready in the morning and headed over to Lourie and Rita's house (Justin and Josh's grandparents) for a longer visit -

Justin and Hunter started rough housing, and Josh stepped in to give Hunter an advantage:

Justin came out on top:

M&M world!

The drive home on Tuesday - 8 hours, stopping twice and only long enough to fill up the tank - the kids rocked this leg of the trip too! We had such a great weekend, and we are so thankful for Josh and Willow, our gracious hosts - can't wait to see them again!