Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Up North

This past weekend, we traveled up north for our first family camping adventure! We camped at Bear Head State Park (near Ely)...a beautiful campground nestled in the thick forest on Bear Head lake. Despite trying to escape the mosquitos and the occational rain, both Chris and I agree that our experience was absolutely wonderful and memorable. We loved being in the wilderness... listening and feeling the earth...and sharing this passion with Elias, who was a true camp trooper! Here are many pictures we wanted to share of the beauty we experienced... The first few days of our trip it rained off and on...our only escape was the car! Elias loved to play "driver"...hours of fun!
And when the skies were clear, we spent time on the lake!

Mikko's graduation photo. He has learned to stay in the boat and not jump out after anything he thinks is a ball! Congratulations Mikko!! He actually was a wonderful camper too!!


Daddy showing Eli a worm!!



Tired boys!

Campfires...love them!



The morning of our last day...it was gorgeous!














Helping take down the tent...




Bye Bye camping adventure...bye bye mosquitos!!


Elias standing on his own!! This is his new trick...and he thinks it is so great! He just giggles the entire time!

I think we have a gymnast on our hands!!!


Sending our love and giggles...













Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Swinging Streaker...

Here's our little swinging streaker...naked in the sunshine. Eli loves the swing we hung from a tree in our yard and loves to be naked!





Oh, what have I discovered down below...hmmm, something very interesting!! :)


Here is a little video of our peanut starting to walk with his little walker... (thank you Courtney...we see why this was a favorite of Brinnon's). He now walks all over the house with this fun toy and has started crawling up the stairs...it's a whole new world!

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Happy Birthday Sweet Love!

Our sweet love turned one on April 10th....it was a beautiful and emotional day filled with sweet memories as I thought about how much we've all grown in one year. My heart was filled with so many emotions thinking back to that beautiful moment when Elias was born. Our dear friend Amanda, who shared this moment with us, gave us a precious gift on Eli's first birthday...
our birth story. We are forever greatful for this beautiful gift of our story...thank you Amanda!

We celebrated Eli turning one this past weekend with family and friends on a beautiful sunny spring day! Here are a few (okay a lot) of pictures from the birthday party and easter...thank you to all who helped bring this day together...and thanks to Sal for these great photos!!

Happy Birthday sweet stinkle toes....we love you so much!

The Vogt clan on Easter Sunday...we sure are growing!!

Thank you uncle Tim for the hockey helmet...it's just my size!

The goofy goobers hunting easter eggs...

Nana and Grandpa loving stinkle toes....

It's my birthday party....yahoo!

One of my favorite pictures of our peanut...so cute!

Mama and Eli opening gifts...

Mama with all the yummy food...

hmmmm, not so sure what to do with this yummy cake...



Auntie Gigi and cousin Liam helped celebrate too....

Our easter birdies...

Pictures and clothes from Eli's birth... he was so tiny!



Eli at a year old: (oh so much that we don't want to forget...here are just a few of the many things that make us smile!)

*4 teeth (two on top and bottom)
*17.5 lbs, 28 in.
*Crawling all over and faster each day
*Pulls himself to standing position and goes from standing to sitting over and over
*Loves to be outside and could spend hours on the back patio studying rocks and sticks
*Eats all kinds of food
*Loves to snuggle
*Has some really sweet dance moves
*Loves to be chased when we say "I'm gonna get you!"
*Points at everything (sometimes points and yells at Mikko)
*Loves his furry friends
*Is very ticklish and has the sweetest giggle

A few of his many words:
mama, dada, hockey="ha", kitty="kee", ball, nana (for nana and banana), star="dar", puppy="bup"

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Stinker toe who loves the outdoors...

"As a child, one has that magical capacity to move among the many eras of the earth; to see the land as an animal does; to experience the sky from the perspective of a flower or a bee; to feel the earth quiver and breathe beneath us; to know a hundred different smells of mud and listen unself- consciously to the soughing of the trees." ~Valerie Andrews, A Passion for this Earth



This past week has brought some amazing weather and now we are patiently waiting for the leaves and flowers to blossom! We are truly looking forward to this spring with our little stinker toe who absolutely loves to be outside...in the warmth of a spring day or the freezing cold of winter, he just loves it. We can't wait to watch him discover and explore the world around him as the earth begins to unfold! I have a feeling he will be eating some bugs this spring as he has discovered a passion for the ladybugs that live in our house!:)
Here are a few random pictures from the past month... Mama and Eli on a ski...

On a hike in the arb with papa. Eli loves to ride in his backpack and look out at the world!


Little stinker toe loves to have his feet free of those things we call "socks". Really though, he does not allow socks on his feet...they go into his mouth the second we put them on. I love this picture...his sweet little toes all full of dirt! That's our little stink toe!!


Oh so happy!!

These pictures are from last weekend at daddy's hockey tournament in Somerset, WI. I think we have a little hockey fan on our hands!









Thursday, March 5, 2009

Capturing memories...

When Elias was a few months old, I remember feeling so overwhelmed with how quickly our little peanut was changing and how I was going to capture and document all of the "firsts" that were blossoming daily. I've always dreamt of being an avid journal writer and what a great time to start right? But really, how could we possibly forget these milestones...they will for sure stay written in our minds forever! Well, I've learned how fast the months drift away...how the memories we felt would be so clear forever do fade and that I will continue to strive to write in a journal.:) I've also learned that these feelings will continue to be present and that we will remember the specific moments, like the first time we held our little miracle, that are instilled in us forever and the rest will be captured through photos, videos and our blog...yes indeed, the blog has become a journal, a techno-journal! I am truly greatful to have documented some of the many memories through our blog. My sister Sally discovered something fabulous that I want to share...you can make your blog into a book through blurb.com. I believe it's called blog to book where you basically insert the words and photos already present into thier numerous layout options. We have a book of our blog from the first few months that Sal put together for us and I look at it daily... I love having a hard copy and can't wait to create the other chapters to have as a keepsake.

Our little boy is only a few days from turning 11 months old, which means he is almost a year old...what?... and mom and dad are having a hard time believing this. Just this week he has learned to crawl on his knees, clap his hands and play peek-a-boo. He is starting to repeat some words and is really absorbing his world...and everything that goes into his mouth! He is watching, listening and doing everything! Oh, it is so much fun!! I love this stage...every stage brings new worries and adventures as we watch him become a little person with personality and understanding. Here are a few captured moments...

Elias has found a love for hockey through his papa. Chris took him out on the ice at the Rhino tourney a few weeks ago and Eli absolutely loved skating with dad. He has a little hockey stick that has become his favorite toy which you will see in the video!



My buddy August...he is four months old and I love him!

Did we mention peanut grew a tooth? Yep, it's a snaggle tooth!!

Thank you Grandpa John for the MN Gophers outfit!
Crawling...

Favorite toy...hockey stick! This was the first gift we recieved in the hospital from uncle Tim autie LyLy and the kids.

And here he is crawling to get his hockey stick...look for a dog who is longing for attention..poor Mikko!