A Camping We Will Go

We went camping and we liked it!!!
OK, so we went for just one night and only an hour and a half away, because we were a little nervous about how this was all going to go. But all our fears were laid to rest- it was sooooo fun!
To be out in the clean air, surrounded by nature, no sounds but the wind and the birds, the smell of the campfire... ahhh.
We went with our dear friends and neighbors, the Myers family. Seeing as how Ben is a former Forest Ranger, we decided they are our idea of the perfect camping companions.

Here is the Myers Family: Ben, Jen, Ceana, & Ally.
And the Spanglers: Greg, Me & Addie

I will post more pictures and stories about our camping adventures later, but I had to do this one first. Here is a shot of Greg and Ben- two men destined for friendship. Jen and I think it is pretty funny how alike they can be, and how many of the same activities they enjoy. Mind you, they didn't plan with each other what to bring so they could wear matching outfits, but here they are. Nothing says good morning like brisk air and a cup of camping coffee.

I Don't Do "Typical"

A "typical" baby would move from laying on their tummy, to crawling, to walking. Not our Addie! She hated laying on her tummy, and skipped crawling and just went right to walking.
Fast forward a year and a half. A "typical" kid would start the bike process on a little scooty-toy, then ride a tricycle maybe, then a bike. Forget that! Who wants to be typical? We have tried and tried to get Addie to ride a tricycle (and there are about 50 of them in our courtyard area to choose from), and nothin. She just didn't want to try, didn't get it. Then last week, she climbs up on the neighbor's bike and off she goes.
A few sessions of help in the department of "getting started" and now she rides like a champ!




Looks like we'll be purchasing a bike soon...

Time to Try Out the Tent!

We're going camping tonight! Considering that we'll be bringing a two-year-old who isn't the best sleeper and neither Greg or I have gone camping for several years, we're taking it easy and going just for tonight. We're also going to an area just about an hour away from us, so that if it goes REALLY BADLY (which it won't), we can come home. I think we'll actually really enjoy it- especially since we're going with our friends and neighbors, the Myers family.

Addie's reflux was acting up earlier this week, but the last few nights she's slept thorugh the night and the whining has died down considerably. She's not asking for Cheerios all day (this is what she does when her reflux hurts her), and ate a normal breakfast this morning, so that is good news.

We'll try to take plenty of pictures of the camping adventure for your viewing pleasure! Ah, I can smell the campfire already!

Big Girl Bed

Yeah! Addie has moved from a crib into her "big girl bed." Now, as you can see, this bed is still just her crib, with the front rail taken off, but it'll do! She is very proud and excited about this accomplishment and we are excited that it's been almost a week and she hasn't gotten out of her bed! We were prepared for battle if needed, but the motivation of turning the bed back into a crib if she has a problem with getting up was enough for her.

If you look closely, you can also see another new thing at our house- Addie's hair in french braids. Amazingly, I had never learned to do this when I was yonger, so Addie has been my french braiding gineau pig. Not an easy task to perfect on a two-year-old, but we're making progress.

Other new things in the last week? She's been calling me "Honey," which has caused us some good laughs. We told her that in order to be respectful, she has to say "Mommy Honey." (I just couldn't bear to have her stop- I love it!). Also, we're turning into professional pool mooches- thanks to the hot weather. We spent the morning in the pool with our friend Ashley this morning and it felt great! Addie loves to swim and loves her water wings.

She's also out of sorts yesterday and last night. She was a mess of whining and meltdowns yesterday and was up every three hours last night, just crying. We couldn't get her to tell us what's wrong, so we'll wait a few more days and see if she can explain what's bothering her. Today she's been telling me she has "yuckies" in her mouth and it hurts, so it's probably reflux. We'll hope it passes within a day or two, like it did last time. We'll keep you posted.

Our Anniversary Weekend

Yesterday we celebrated our 7th wedding anniversary! I can hardly believe so much time has passed! We spent a quiet weekend at home, since we got away to San Diego just a few weeks ago.

Since a whole bunch of our neighbors were out of town this weekend, we decided it would be a good quiet weekend to set up our tent. We bought a used tent several years ago and haven't managed to go camping yet, but that hopefully will change this summer. We thought we'd get it out and set it up and make sure all was good. It was, and we were delighted to find that the tent had all kinds of features we would want, like plenty of space and a zip-in wall that divides the inside. Here's Addie, Greg and some neighbor kiddos enjoying it.
Yesterday Greg and I exchanged small gifts and cards. He was delighted with his gift- can you tell?
Now he can proudly display his love for "The Office"

Greg gave me some clothes too. I had been needing and wanting some clothes I can exercise in in the hot weather. I am STILL working out 4-5 days a week (even I am surprised) and my makeshift workout wardrobe just isn't working. So I was delighted with new exercise clothes.
For dinner, we stayed in and worked together to make risotto for the first time! During our wonderful dinner in San Diego, we finally got to try some and loved it, so we committed that we'd learn to make it at home. Here I am showing off my Risotto Alla Primavera- it came out great! We also had Greg's favorite Dijon Chicken.


Our evening ended up including an unplanned party outside our front door. We sat out with our friends and neighbors, Ben & Jen Myers, and Robert & Gerri Dupee, on Robert & Gerri's last night in the complex. They leave today for Tennessee. We got to share some of our dinner and then Greg and Ben made a Bananas Foster Upside Down cake and we all enjoyed in thoroughly. What a nice evening- sitting out in the cooler temps and eating dessert and talking and talking. I don't know if we could've planned a nicer night if we'd tried!

Random Life

Yes, I realize it's been awhile since I've updated the blog. But I hope the new look of things is a payoff to you loyal viewers.

Life is just rolling along here for us.

I'm all done now after 5 weeks of watching "Baby S" twice a week. Here is a shot of Addie playing with her toes. It was a good experience and I'm glad we got to do it. It gave me a more realistic idea of what a day with two kids is like, and it wasn't as scary as I thought. It was also a great chance for Addie to share some attention and work on being a helper. She really like the baby and enjoyed playing with her.

Just a cute moment to share. This is how I found Addie today while she was playing alone in her room. She still looooooooves books!
I hope this is the only picture of Addie ever taken on the hood of a truck.
She was chillin' with our neighbors, Ceana and Alli (it's their daddy's truck) while watching he and Greg pack a moving truck. Our neighbors, the Dupees, are leaving this weekend for Tennessee. **sniff sniff*

And lastly, a highlight of our week. The local hispanic market, Vallarta.
They delighted us this week with their delicious fajita meat ($1.99/ lb.), REAL tortilla chips ($1/ bag), limes ($3/ bag) and oranges ($1/ 5 lbs). Yes, you read that right. 5 pounds for a dollar! Let me tell you, 5 pounds of oranges makes some REALLY good fresh squeezed orange juice.
So this week we had fiesta night- melt-in-your-mouth fajitas, chips with homemade salsa (from safe, heirloom tomatoes), and homemade limeade! We had so much we were begging the neighbors to come in and help us eat it!
This bag of oranges pictured is saved for Sunday morning. Nothing says Father's Day like fresh squeezed orange juice!

A Couple More Shots from Balboa Park

From the photo booth in the Photography Museum.

Yes, I know the bottom is cut off. It scanned in funny and I don't want to do it again.

just a pretty shot
my conquering hero

Our First Getaway

Greg and I just returned last night from our first kid-less overnight! It was great!

Before I even go into the details, I know a few of you are freaking out ("She's two-and-a-half and this is their first overnight away!?!?). I'm also guessing that you same people have not been steady blog readers since Addie's birth, or you would know about the reflux, the ear infections, the countless upper respitory infections, etc. You may have also missed the previous posts about how we were suppossed to go away two months ago but we all got so sick that Greg's mom had to fly out to take care of us.

Needless to say, we were pretty thrilled to get a second chance for a get away and have everyone stay healthy so we could go!!!

We went to San Diego for two days (but it felt like 4 or 5). The weather was cool, but nice. God graciously provided a room for us at the Hilton in La Jolla- and we got it for a bargain price, so it was twice as fun for Niki the Bargain Hunter.

We spent the first day strolling through Balboa Park, then headed to the Gaslamp Quarter for dinner. Now, every couple is unique and will enjoy things that others may not. We know who we are- we are the people REALLY into their food. So one of the highlights of our trip was dinner at a restaurant called Croce's. It was amazing. Niki's "grilled free-range chicken with forest mushroom risotto and rosemary vodka sauce" was a truly amazing experience with every bite. Greg's "pork loin with balsamic gargonzola glaze and twice baked potato" was equally astonishing. Our mouths were singing with joy.
The next day we rode a tandem bike all around Coronado island. Here is Greg in front of the Hotel Del Coronado.































The view of the city from the ferry dock on Coronado.

















After a full day, we got a pizza and watched the sunset over the beach in Encinitas, then headed home.




Addie had an equally great time this weekend, hanging out with the Kropf family and playing with Grant. She did not even miss us! (which delights us). We are soooo glad we got to get away and will have great memories of this trip for a long time!