Bass Pro Shop Adventures

We went to Bass Pro Shop this past weekend to spend some time exploring and to visit Santa as a family.

We got there at about 4pm and the soonest we could see Santa was 7:30...luckily someone decided not to wait and had a 6:30 ticket and they gave it to us. 

So for 2 1/2 hrs it was all about the 3 guys below

 We crafted

 Watched the "BIG EYED fishes" as Dylan put it

 I l~o~v~e this sign they put on the race track...so cute!

Santa is ALWAYS watching

 The boys shot at some ducks

 Yes he got all targets but I still say "he'll shoot his eye out!"

 An AZ winter wonderland!

Probably the only snow we will see this winter...

This was hilarious!!!!

Each of the boys took turns "riding" an ATV in the store and posed with their best expressions...

 "whoa whats that over there!?!?!?"

 "holy cow is that what I think it is?!?!?"

 "What the what?!?!?"

They are all so funny...I think Trevor's is most realistic looking but Dylan's expression is priceless and AJ of course can't help but have a smile..he tried so hard to be serious. 

 Adia was the ticket holder while we waited in line for Santa

It was such a fun evening with the family! 

We finished it with a couple Christmas movies...a perfect evening!

Some of us didn't make it long through the movies....but I bet they all had sweet Christmas dreams

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

LOVE, 

THE STOUT FAMILY

2 months and growing like a weed!

I'm a little late on Adia's 2 month update.....

10 1/2 wks already can you believe it...I SURE CAN'T!!!

She's getting so big and starting to do more fun things and her personality is blooming!

 She loves to get her picture taken ALREADY!!!

 I LOVE dressing her up every chance I get...I was so worried before I had her that I wouldn't be good at it but when I have such an amazing little girl as my canvas it's so easy!

Adia had her 2 month checkup on her 2 month birthday November 18th

She's doing GREAT!

Already rolling over when you prop her on her elbows

Holds her head up while you pull her up

When you stand her on your lap she tries to walk up you

She is beginning to recognize more and more around her

As excited as I am about all this it tugs at my heart to see her growing so quickly but everyday is so much fun with her and I look forward to each day seeing her do something new.

She loves bath time

I really need to get a picture of her during bath time...she loves the water and she watches herself in the mirror the whole time....so cute!

She's learning to grab things and although she hasn't learned to put them to her mouth she opens her mouth like that's her plan...eventually you'll get it beautiful :)

She loves to have "conversations" with us...such a talker already just like her mom!

Her eye color changes with her outfits...seriously. One day they are blue the next brown. I'm so curious to find out what color they will end up!

I love going on shopping trips with her....most of which involve her getting more clothes!

We have been walking 4 1/2 miles in the mornings and she loves being outdoors

She is becoming interested in Caesar and I help her pet him and she loves touching his fur

Her feet are huge and her legs are long...making footed jammies hard to wear since she's so skinny she swims in 3-6 months but her feet push against 0-3. And her pants look like capris...good thing she's a girl!

She has learned to hold her pacifier in her mouth with her hand although she never really needs it I use it more often than I should I think.

2 MONTH STATS:

Weight ~ 10.3 lbs ~ 50 percentile

Height ~ 22 in ~ 70 percentile

Head ~ yet again forgot to get measurements but it's growing and she's catching up ~ 50 percentile

This was all 2 wks ago and although I haven't weighed her I can say that she's already gone through a couple more growth spurts. She's eating a ton...I can barely keep up!

 Adia loves her daddy and spending time with him!

 She is such a happy girl...from sun up to sun down she is all smiles all the time!

 Such a rough life looking like a doll all of the time and knowing that she is the princess of her house!

 She has so much love around her all of the time....it's not hard to see why she is so happy when she has such amazing brothers like AJ!

 After her nightly bath and massage one night I decided to try painting her little toes. 

She was so squirmy the whole time I think she's a bit ticklish!

 Her first ever and probably only 1 of a very few bottle. 

She did so well with it...Jeff was a little freaked out it's been 9 1/2 yrs since he's fed a baby with a bottle since Dylan never had one but we had to do it because I had "surgery" on the 21st of November now that our family is "perfect for us" it was time to make it permanent so that we can move on to enjoying what we have and making the most of it.

 Thanksgiving night we went "black Friday" shopping and she did great! 

Slept the entire time except once she woke up to eat between toys 'r' us and Target...she must of known Santa was watching her!

This was Adia's first time using her Bumbo!

Can you tell she likes it?!?!

We are enjoying every part of her so much! 

The next couple of months are going to be sooooo fun as she learns new things I can't wait for everything we are so blessed to be a part of in her life!

Trick-OR-Treat 2011

This Halloween was lots of fun!

We stuck to our traditions and for Jeff's birthday we carved our pumpkin (just one this year because we procrastinated buying them and by the time we went to get them there was pretty much nothing left :( ) and watched Halloween movies.

 official Stout family pumpkin portrait

Dylan was a big help separating the guts and seeds so I could bake them

Only a few times a year can we get our kids to sit near each other without arguing...a cherished moment for sure in this house!

The older 2 are into being scary on Halloween now...I'm glad I still have 2 that want to be cute and not gross.

This year I realized how much AJ and Trevor have grown and it made me really sad. I feel like I'm running out of time with them before I'm just the nagging mom.

 left to right

Jason (AJ), Ghost Face (Trevor) and Mario (Dylan)

Adia didn't dress up...I wanted her to but the stores sold out of the costumes I had in mind for her and we weren't just going to settle on a costume just because so she just went as herself ~ a PRINCESS!

 One of our neighbors had each of the kids either do a dance, sing a song or tell a joke for a piece of candy. AJ told a joke, Trevor danced and then shy little Dylan chose sing a song and sang the ABC's to him...it was so cute!

 The pirate ship house!

The kids and I are obsessed with this house!

 Trevor and Dylan sitting in front of the pirate ship house...Dylan was so worried the fire was real I couldn't get him to look at the camera

 This house was really fun!

They put a silhouette of Alfred Hitchcock on their door and created a scene from the movie BIRDS in their front window

 Lots of dead things around this house and coming out of the ground...YIKES!

My least favorite part of Halloween.......

THE CANDY!

6 weeks and ALL SMILES!

Our sweet little Adia is getting bigger and learning new things!

She is smiling ALOT!

And quite cute when she's doing it too

 She makes the cutest facial expressions and when she smiles she curls her lips in over her gums

GOSH I LOVE HER!

She loves kisses and when you kiss her she gets very excited and smiles lots

I think it's safe to say she loves her life!

 Love that dimple on her left cheek!

 SUCH A BEAUTIFUL HAPPY GIRL!!!!

At my 6 week check up Dr. Bullaro had fun snuggling Adia.

I absolutely LOVE my Dr and if you are looking for a new one she's the one you want!

She's so amazing and truly cares. When I had Adia she wasn't on call and when she found out she came to meet her and stayed and chatted and held Adia for a while.

And I'm not just saying that because Trevor is friends with her son and we live in the same Community it really is true ~ our family loves her! 

 Remember what I said about Adia's facial expressions?!?! 

Dylan is still having a blast being a big brother and kisses and snuggles his little sister all the time.

And she thinks he is great too! If she's fussy or I need help keeping her company while I do something I always call on him and he jumps at the chance to entertain her and she watches him in amazement each and every time.

 They are BEST FRIENDS already!

Jeff has been working a lot but every chance he has he spends it with his little princess (and his boys of course)

 I'd say her daddy is her superhero what do you think?!?!

I'm doing so much better and have finally adjusted to having a new baby again. It took a lot longer than I had thought it would or ever did with the boys but now that I'm pretty much back to normal Adia and I have been having lots of fun shopping, playing and cuddling.

 She is the best part of waking up in the the morning and I love spending every moment with her

She's a great sleeper too!

 Last night she slept 8 full hours straight..how did I get so lucky?!?!

AND FOR EVERYONE THAT SAYS SHE'S ALWAYS SO QUITE (and she really is actually) AND SHE NEVER CRIES (usually she doesn't) HERE'S A PICTURE TO SHOW THAT SHE DOES HAVE HER MOMENTS!

Hungry and not patient AT ALL!

LIFE IS PERFECT!

Fall Ball

Trevor has been playing on the Fall Baseball League and his team is doing great!

His hitting has improved a ton and he has been trying out other positions other than catching...although he still LOVES catching and is very talented at it.

He's made lots of great plays behind the plate this season!

The main position he's been put in at other than catching is PITCHING! At first we were worried because although he is a very good pitcher and has a very accurate and fast throw he gets really bad anxiety when he's on the mound and more than once has went from 0-2 to walking a player in 4 more pitches. I don't blame him I'd never be able to do it..BUT this season he's been able to control his nerves and strike lots of players out. Last game he pitched he had 0 walk and 2 strike outs!

You can't see him very well but that's him on the mound in the middle of a pitch!

He loves baseball so much I catch him all the time making pitching movements while he's supposed to be doing something else and he sneaks out back to practice whenever I'm not looking....I wouldn't mind if it wasn't in the middle of a chore or homework..little stinker!

This week playoffs begin

GOOOOOOOO MOUNTAIN LIONS!!!!!!

And just when I thought I was going to get a break for a few months....there's Winter Ball too!!!!

On a Roll....the HONOR ROLL!

A couple of weeks ago I had the chance to go to Dylan and Trevor's school to see them both receive rewards during the awards assembly!

Dylan has done such a great job in Kindergarten and loves to learn!

He started out barely knowing his ABC's and only counting to 20 and within the first week knew his ABC's, the sounds they make and how to spell his name. He is counting to past 100 and by 2's, 5's and 10's. He is now reading and LOVES to spell!

Because of the amazing progress he has made and as fast as he's done it he was chosen as only 1 of 3 kids in his class to receive the personal achievement award!

We are so proud of you Dylan!

Trevor has been working really hard to stay on track this school year and using doing great!

His teacher said that he was only 1 grade away from being leader of the pack in his class and after our conference with him Trevor now knows what he needs to do to make it next quarter (READ!!!!). He is in ELP again this year and did great on his first project of the year. He is also learning to play the trombone and sounds great!

Because of all of Trevor's hard work he made Honor Roll for the first quarter of the school year!

We have no worries that he will do it again next quarter too!

We are so proud of your hard work Trevor you've made huge improvements and are a great example to your little brother.

Tidbits of our weekend

This was the first weekend I have allowed myself to be busy since I had Adia.....I need another weekend to recover from this weekend!

Friday I finally got my hair done after neglecting it for way too long Adia was amazing and so patient the entire time and stayed that way the rest of the day while we ran errand after errand. She is such a good baby...I know I say that a lot but it's seriously the truth.

Friday night we had Trunk or Treat and I was so exhausted and it was my first time out with 4 kids and I'm not so sure I am ready to do that again for a while. I couldn't keep track of everyone and the older boys were busy wanting to be with their friends so when I needed to take care of Adia they were less than willing to watch Dylan and I ended up pawning him off to a friend only after Trevor and AJ both disappeared when I thought they were with him and I found him with some friends upset at his brothers...like I said I don't think I was ready for it after I had already put ourselves in the situation. And it sounds a lot worse than it was we were inside during all of this and I had friends helping to keep track of them ~ thank goodness for friends! But it was more hectic than I like that's for sure.

We did have one heck of a decorated car and everyone seemed to think it was fun. We pulled the seats down in the back of the van and had spider webs, ghosts, gravestones and a strobe light set up...SO FUN!

Dressed for our day out with Dylan

Saturday Trevor had a game...they won and Trevor was 2 for 2 in hits!

Saturday afternoon the older boys went to the office with Jeff while Dylan and Adia went shopping with me and Dylan got some much needed mommy attention. He's getting so big ~ while we were grocery shopping he kept reading the food labels and counting things as we went along. He has developed so much in just the couple of months he has been in Kindergarten!

I've gotten myself a new hobby!

I made Adia's flower headband from fake flowers for her baby blessing (my very first hair bow or headband I have ever MADE...seriously...how did I not start this hobby before she was born?!?!)

On pinterest I saw these cute felt flowers and had to make them ASAP and so now that I'm not so intimidated by making them and the one above was my first attempt...not bad right??! I'm kind of obsessed now and need to make one in every color. I also made some bows from felt and have a few other flower patterns I want to make....this is just the beginning of my craftiness....and I didn't think I had it in me who would of thought having a baby girl was all I needed to unleash my creative juices?!?!?!?

I'm LOVING it!

This picture is for Dylan. He bought these jammies for Adia before she was born and loved them because they have monkeys on the feet but when she was born they were too big BUT now they fit great! He was so excited to see her wearing them.

Adia's Blessing October 23, 2011

Today was Adia's baby blessing!

Daddy and his baby girl before the blessing (don't mind the scary guy in the back..this is definitely a Stout picture!)

We were so lucky to have Jeff's parents and some of our friends come and be a part of her blessing.

Grandma Stout and Adia

Grandpa Stout and Adia

We had her blessing at home.

Jeff's parents bought her her blessing dress and it so BEAUTIFUL!!!

I wish that we had a good camera and I wasn't such a scatter brain lately we would have gotten better pictures....we didn't even get a family picture because AJ went back to church after the blessing and it happened so fast we didn't get a chance and there was no way we were going to be able to keep everyone in their church clothes until he got home (me included!).

AJ wanted so badly to be a part of it so he said a opening prayer and it was such a good prayer. He always says perfect prayers I don't know how he comes up with it all I can never come up with the right things to say in the spur of the moment...I wish I had that ability.

Her blessing was so nice and I know that she will be even better and do even more than she will believe she can....she's already amazing and is only going to become even more amazing as she grows.

We are so grateful for the friends that took the time to come to her blessing it truly meant so much to us and we appreciate each and everyone of them for offering and wanting to be a part of such a special part of Adia's life.

Such a tiny beautiful little girl

WE LOVE YOU ADIA FRANCES MARIE STOUT