Friday, June 11, 2010

Carolina Country

We recently returned from a very busy, but fun two week trip to North and South Carolina with a little Georgia thrown in for kicks. The highlight of our vacation was meeting my new nephew Ryan. Whom my SIL and BIL just adopted from Russia. He is in a tight competition with Braden for sweetest little boy! Braden and Ryan not only have similar personalities, but they are also have the same build...let's just say these boys don't miss many meals! All and all we are very thankful to have this wonderful, healthy, precious new addition to the family. The only downside is that they are so far away. Thank goodness my Christa loves to take lots and lots of pictures!




Our trip started out on different flights. Jimmy had his first solo experience flying cross-country with Audrey. He passed with "flying" colors, but I think he has a little more appreciation for all those trips I took with her on my own. They are such a good team, although I think she is a bit easier on her daddy. We were all supposed to arrive in Charlotte within 30 minutes of each other but due to a two hour delay at SFO Braden and I arrived quite late. Despite the late hour we hit the road and headed towards Atlanta. We made it as far as Anderson, S.C. (quite apropos don't you think ;-) after resting our weary heads for a few hours we continued on to Atlanta. Our first stop was a delicious brunch with Nick, a former colleague of Jimmy's whom he worked with in DC, and his family. They have since moved to Decatur, GA and have also added a little brother to entertain their daughter Audrey (also 2.5). The two little Audreys had a blast "entertaining" the other diners with their songs and making quite a spectacle of themselves splashing in the fountain. I am pretty sure the wait staff took a good long sigh of relief when they saw us leave.

After brunch we continued on to the other side of Atlanta and met up with our dear friends Lee and Shari and their two kids Amelia and Gavin. We spent most of the afternoon splish-splashing in their local pool. The water felt so wonderful to us tepid Oregonians who had just arrived in "HotLanta!" We ended the evening with a fabulous BBQ at the house and plenty of lively conversation. I love friends that you may not see often, we hadn't seen the Rivas family in over a year, but when you are together it is like no time has passed.



We ended the Atlanta portion of our get away with a fun lunch with Jimmy's best bud Tim. Then we hit the road en route to Columbia, SC, stopping briefly in North Augusta, SC to pick up Jimmy's mom. We spent a week in Columbia where Jimmy attended a class for work. Audrey spent the week glued to her Grammy Liz (poor dear, nothing like zero to constant toddler). The hotel we get to stay in has fabulous made-to-order breakfasts each morning and 24-hr yummy sweet tea in their lobby. I enjoyed the daily maid service. The highlight of the week was when Jimmy's sister Christa, her husband, and the kids visited on Wednesday. This was our first chance to meet Ryan. We all (except class-bound Jimmy) went to the Columbia Zoo. It was a great day and cousins Audrey and Andrew made up for lost time exploring and just genuinely enjoying each other's company. The coolest part was feeding the Giraffe. She was so fascinating. I can't recall ever being that close to a giraffe before (my mom says we used to be able to pet the giraffes in Portland, but I was just a babe - apparently one stole my baby hat).




Our second week was spent in Charlotte at Christa's home. We took advantage of the home base and just tried to relax and play most of the week. We set up a kiddie pool on their deck with provided relief from the heat and humidity which was used often in between 85+ degree rain and thunder storms. Our one adventure was a two-hour drive into the mountains of NC to visit Tweensie Railroad. The kids had fun riding the rides and the train. The grown-ups had fun on most of the rides (sorry Jimmy and Andrew - not tilt-a-whirl fans). It was a fun adventure and reminded me of some of the little amusement parks I used to visit on our family trips to Texas.


Toddlers v. Babies ...I think it is clear who won!


We bought a little pool for the babies. The big kids called it the "hot tub" and decided it was more fun!


Ok, so some of the big big kids enjoyed the pool too!

Now we are home trying to settle in to the "norm"(whatever that is). Jimmy and I are making final decisions on preschool for Audrey (starting this Fall) and making remarkable progress on the potty-training front. I'm a proud mama! Braden, as is the norm, took all our travels in stride and continues to be our sweet laid-back baby.

Best wishes for a safe and enjoyable Summer. I, as always, hope to be better about updating this blog.

-Kristen





Sunday, May 2, 2010


Hello there friends and family! I know it has been awhile since my last post. Considering Braden was six months last Thursday and my last post stated that we were on "Bubba Watch" I guess a bit has changed. We have been so blessed with two wonderful children and a full and busy life. Here is a quick photo synapsis of the last half-year in the life of the Cox family ...


































Wednesday, October 21, 2009

One week to go...

Well we are on official Bubba watch now. The c-section is scheduled for next Thursday, but I am really hoping he decides to make his appearance early....I know this makes Jimmy cringe, but I don't think there is anymore room for this little guy in there. I had my last formal ultrasound today and his current estimated weight is 8.1 lbs with almost seven days to go. Yikes! It will be so odd to have a nine pounder. I think Audrey was over three months old before she hit that kind of weight. Hopefully this means he will be a super good eater and sleeper. A mom can wish, right??

I am just anxious and excited to meet this little fellow.


Monday, October 12, 2009

Bubba Shower / Pumpkin Patch

Fall is officially here! We are busy getting ready for Halloween and of course the arrival of baby boy...any day now! I am 37 weeks along now and feel like I am carrying around a big pumpkin! I am scheduled to have a c-section on October 29th, but I am hoping he might come a little early so I don't have to spend Halloween in the hospital. I was told on Friday that due to the H1N1 threat children under 18 will not be allowed anywhere on the maternity or post-partum units so that means Audrey will have to wait for his homecoming to meet Bubba. That also means 3-4 days without mama seeing her Audrey. This is going to be tough. I was hoping that Jimmy could at least bring her to the hospital in costume so I could see her but I guess that is just not going to happen.

Bubba Shower...

My mom and friend Sami thru me the sweetest baby shower to celebrate baby Bubba. I had a house full of dear friends who all made the day so special. The pumpkin theme meant an abundance of delicious fall treats. Yummy yummy!



Pumpkin Patch...

Last weekend Jimmy and I decided to take Audrey to a pumpkin patch to pick out her own Halloween gourd. We joined Nana, Papa, Sami, Daren and Zach at Olsen Farms in Gresham. It was a beautiful day for a pumpkin hunt. Audrey's favorite part was the wagon ride. Now the wagon's purpose was to haul the pumpkins out of the patch. Audrey was going to have none of that. She refused to share her ride with any pumpkin, so note the smiling girl on her ride and all of the family carrying the pumpkins! Here are some highlights...




Wednesday, August 12, 2009

New Address

Many have asked where our new house is.  Well the address is:

7571 SW Mapleleaf Street
Portland, OR  97223

For those of you locals, we are basically in the Metzger area off of Hwy 99, near the Tigard Fred Meyers.  In between 217 and I-5 and near Hall Blvd.  Basically we are "near" everything!

We should be in the house on Saturday and I will try to take and post some pictures.  My computer has been less than cooperative lately so I don't know if it will let me download anything.  I will do my best.

Thank you for all the well-wishes.  I know it took lots of prayers to get us here!


Tuesday, August 11, 2009

House

So now with very sore hands and a signature I no longer recognize, Jimmy and I are officially first-time home owners.  It is still hard to believe that we actually managed to do it.  We should get our keys and officialy take over the property on Saturday.  It has been a very long process (I think we started around February 2007 -  with a little detour to DC in the middle) but the wait was well worth it.  I think I toured every house for sale in Portland so I have no doubt we found the right one for our family. 

We will officially be moving in the weekend of 8/21-23.  Yippy!!!

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Happy Birthday Nana

Today is my mom's (Nana) birthday.  She is such an amazing mom and grandma.  Her endless energy and love for her family is truly inspiring.  Audrey and I decided to take Nana to the zoo with our friends Sami and Zach for a fun morning of animal antics followed by a birthday lunch at one of our favorite nostalgic restaurants Big Reds.  

The highlights of the day were watching a polar bear pee (kids thought that was quite exciting indeed) and my personal favorite, watching the elephants march in line truck to tail baby Sam (newest baby elephant at the zoo) right there with them.


Nana with her Zach, Audrey and her lemons!