Such a Champ!

Ashley just recently had her 2 month check up! The doctor said she looks great - weighing in at 10lbs 6oz and 21.25 in long, and a head size in the 80th percentile (thanks dad!). Unfortunately, she also had to get 4 shots! Yikes! It was heartbreaking to hear her cry, but the nurse was really fast and our little snugs took it like a champ. Here she is with her camo bandaids a few hours later- still as happy as can be!

To make it easier for her to sleep that night we gave her a bath with some 'soothing bedtime' baby soap. She was loving her bath center when we changed the setting from newborn to infant! Now she looks like a queen on her throne! It seems like the whole 'shot' experience was definitely harder on Mom and Dad than it was on her!

Happy Halloween!

Our Halloween activities began by going to a harvest pary for one of our friends a couple weeks before. Ashley of course was the cutest darn Tinkerbell you have ever seen, and Matt, Erin and Cheryl were of course, the three blind mice! Someone did actually ask Erin if she was a bunny- we worry about the bunnies that this person has seen!

Next was one of everyone's favorites-carving Ashley's first pumpkin! Ashley helped Matt carve the perfect jack-o-lantern, an exact copy of her very own pumpkin-booty!

On the actual day of Halloween Ashley got to hang out with her buddy A.J. as Erin, and her friends actually had time to sit down and talk while eating a 'pumpkin pizza'- trust us, it is supposed to look like a pumpkin! Then we took the kiddos to Enterprise where Ashley got to see her daddy and all his co-workers go crazy with decorations!



Last but certainly not least we drove down to Palmer Lake so that Ashley could meet up with her cousins. We had Pebbles and Bam-Bam, Aurora (Sleeping Beauty) and the little fairy herself. By the end of the day she was EXHAUSTED! What a fun first Halloween though!

Bring on the Fall!

On Saturday we had the chance to visit the Colorado Pumpkin Patch in Monument and it was aweseome! Not only did God bless us with incredible weather, but there were SO many activities for the kids to enjoy- and you only had to pay for kids over the age of 2! Adults and the little ones were free (which is a word everyone appreciates!)

Ashley got a chance to spend time with her three cousins and a couple of really close friends-

which we will just have to tell her about later because the little stinker slept through the whole thing!!

Here are the kiddos at the goat petting zoo and the corn sandbox- yep, it was filled with real corn kernels!

Matt took Ashley for a 'ride' on one of the huge tractors and the kids spent some time running through (or on top of) the hay maze.

And of course, here is little miss Ashley with her very first pumpkin - now we just have to figure out how we want to carve it!




Towards the end of the day we all stood in line so that we could go on a tractor ride-not quite a thrill seeker,
but the kids had a good time :)

The last stop was the hay slide, which went surprisingly fast! Ashley will just have wait and try this one next year-
but her cousins had a great time!

We would definitely reccommend this activity to anyone willing to make the drive down to Monument!
It is the perfect way to celebrate fall!

Check out that volume!

Here is miss Ashley right after her bath. Hair is nice and clean, softly brushed, and 'pulled back' with a cute little bow........

Then no joke, like 20 minutes later....

POOF- it is all standing straight up!

Erin has to put stuff in her hair in hopes of having any kind of 'oomph,' and Ashley's won't stay down!

Gotta love it!

Spending time outside!

We LOVE going for walks and are so blessed to live right next to the fairgrounds! The parks and walking trails in Castle Rock are amazing and so we try and use them whenever we can. Recently, we tried putting Ashley in the 'snuggly' and walking into town. At first she was not a big fan, but within a minute of being snuggled up close to daddy she was sound asleep! We had such a great time walking around the shops downtown, doing 'taste tests' at the farmers market, and having lunch. Ashley preferred the stroller on the way home and Matt made sure to see that Erin and Grandma kept up an impressive walking pace.

We also just tried a new trail that Matt had discovered next to the railroad tracks. It was a beautiful walk with some of the leaves changing color, and it led us to some interesting art. Who knows why, but in the middle of Castle Rock- right off of the interstate, you can find large painted cutouts that you can stand in, a bowling scene, and even a cereal bowl of fruit loops that has been tipped over. Hmmmm......

Grandma's Visit!

Ashley's Grandma (Erin's Mom) just came to visit for a whole week! It was SO nice having an extra hand to help around the house, and Ashley- well she just got spoiled rotten! We went for walks every morning at the park by our house, tried new recipies, caught Grandma up on episodes from The Office :), and of course- went shopping!

Grandma bought Ashley three outfits for the upcoming holidays! She now has a 'lil pumpkin' outfit for Halloween, a 'Baby's first Thanksgiving' outfit complete with a matching bib and socks, and a "Baby's first Christmas' outfit - you gotta love the Carter's store at the outlet mall!

Splish Splash I Was Taking a Bath!

Ashley has the coolest little bath center (thanks Aunt Sue and Shannon!), but she still isn't too sure about the whole taking a bath experience! She seems content when her little body gets scrubbed down, but when it is time to clean her hair- little miss is not a happy camper!



Everything gets better though when she gets bundled up in her cozy towels! Daddy blows warm air onto her hands so she doesn't get too cold. He also calls her his 'little Yoda' because of how she looks in her hood!

After her bath Ashley's hair almost looks curly! As it dries it definitely shows off a little more of the 'fluff' look and then she is ready to go!