Huntington Beach, California

January isn't the best month to visit the beach, but we just couldn't resist!! We arrived in LA just in time for lunch and we decided the ocean would be a great view to enjoy :) Adam selected Huntington Beach which had a pier. We even got the chance to eat at the end of the pier at Ruby's Diner. We left having wonderful meals and loving the view!

Growing up in Florida I never saw a lot of surfing. Hurricanes were usually the only time that good waves came our way. We had a great time watching the surfers and talking to their friends standing on the pier. They all seemed like a tight group that enjoy spending a few hours at the beach each day. The pier had a few shops, but the one shop that kept my little ones attention was the wind sock & flag store. They had airplanes, hot air balloons & bicycles.
After lunch we walked across the street and side walked shopped (Addison really wanted to go inside). Dad even had us circle our loop again so that we could enjoy fresh gelato!! Dad enjoyed his salty caramel and the kids had chocolate & s'mores.
The weather was perfect and we had a great time enjoying the beach in January!!! We didn't even have to vacuum out sand from the van :)

Got Cake!!

Tonight was not only a first for Amelia, but for myself as well. Our birthday girl isn't feeling well and neither is her dad, so today I decorated Amelia's cake while holding her. I cheated and didn't finish the back forgetting that we would be recording her and see the unfinished cake in pictures and videos!!! Amelia dug in as soon as we were done singing :) Once she had her own spoon it was game on! I took the tiara off the cake and put it on her head (since she was dirty already) and she started crying and threw the tiara!!! Once she had thrown the tiara she stopped crying and started to enjoy her cake once more!!

Adam, Addison & Alex had a hard time waiting to see what Amelia was going to do with her presents. She wasn't tearing right into them so they thought that helping out would be the best thing to do. We stopped them just in time to let Amelia tear the last pieces of tape and get inside the envelopes and presents :) She received her first pair of walking shoes and once we got them on her feet she stood up tried it and started crawling!! I sure practice will make all the difference. Grandma made Amelia a cute jumper out of Grandpa's old ties. SO CUTE :)
Amelia decided to give her Daddy a present today too...when we took Amelia into the bathroom to clean her up after cake we found Daddy's Blackberry in the toilet, so Daddy gets a new phone!!

Happy 1st Birthday Amelia

One year ago today Adam and I headed to the hospital at 3:00 a.m. to welcome our sweet Amelia into our family. We have truly enjoyed watching her grow and find her natural place in our family. I think that she and Lil Adam will always have a special relationship. She has such a love for him and he for her. Addison can't wait for her to move into her room! Alex has a hard time with how much Amelia wants to play with him/his toys, but he has done pretty well with her. Dadam and I have really tried to slow down and enjoy her firsts, knowing they would be our last. I have truly had fun celebrating her with our other little ones. Adam & Addison have really enjoyed watching Amelia grow and start to sit up, crawl, walk, eat & play with them!!
Amelia has had quite the first year... she has traveled to 24 states, seen the Statue of Liberty, been in the tallest U.S. building, swam in the Atlantic Ocean & Gulf of Mexico, & most importantly visited Grandparents & Great Grandparents & extended family!!
Happy Birthday Sweetheart! May you continue to grow and enjoy life :)

Grateful

I don't think that Adam and I truly understood how hard starting a new diet would be for our family. After spending about $400 dollars on food it was gone within 5 days. We were both surprised and a little overwhelmed. On Monday(after having a nervous breakdown on Sunday) I spoke to the doctor and we have created a plan for our family to slow things down and not cut out all Gluten & Dairy right away. We are now avoiding processed foods & trying to eat grains, fruits & veggies.
We have many people around us that have helped find websites, recipes and friends that have been through this process. Tonight was by far the most humbling of all the help we have received though. When I got home from Alex's & Addison's appointments there were four bags from Trader Joe's on the front porch.

After the grateful tears and the kids enjoying their fruit on a stick we put things away.

To our special Angel, thank you!! What a great tithing blessing :)

Are They Here Yet!!

Our little ones were over joyed today when we told them that the Ashton Family was coming over for dinner!!! Life has been so crazy with well you know LIFE and we haven't seen our friends since September. Adam and Addison were so worried today when we went to drop our Christmas tree off at the park and run to a grocery store. (Funny story...our Christmas tree flew off of our van while driving!!) Both Adam and Addison kept saying, "We are missing them!"
When dinner time finally arrived they were simply over joyed to see their best friends. As you can see from the pictures above they picked right up right where they left off. I love seeing my little ones enjoying themselves.
I was worried about how we would serve a dinner to friends that aren't gluten- and dairy-free, but we enjoyed pulled pork sandwiches (they brought good bread for their family!), coleslaw, corn chips with salsa & guacamole, a few hot dogs (Alex & Addison) & coconut milk strawberry ice cream for dessert.
I had a wonderful time and am grateful for good food, good friends & good family :)

Look Out World!!

I came home from a doctors appointment on December 23rd and was shocked when I saw Amelia take steps from our chair to our couch. I was told that earlier in the day she took 10 steps across our toy room. Slowly but surly she has been cautiously practicing her walking skills. We made a video of her yesterday when she was trying to get to her brothers and sisters!! She loves growing up and being like the big kids. Alex is having a hard time with her being on the move though!! He has been playing on the landing of our stairs so that Amelia can't touch his toys :)
I hope that you can hear the singing/babbling as well :) Can you believe she will be 1 a week from today!!!

Three Days In...

January 1st was not only the first of the new year for our family, it was also the start of a Gluten Free Casein Free diet. I haven't announced on our blog, but our Alex was diagnosed with Autism last year. We have seen a lot of doctors, taken all of their recommendations and advice and used it to make the family choice of trying this diet for 6 months. We are hoping to see results in not only Alex, but Addison as well. I keep thinking in my mind...is it working??? We are only on day three, but I am hopeful. We don't want it to work a little, we either want it to be a home run or a strike out. I will say that for the first time in a long time all six of us made it through three hours of church yesterday :) Please join me in knocking on wood!
I have been very nervous about this venture. The cost is crazy...I have spent two months worth of grocery budget in 4 days. SHHHH don't tell Adam!! I have also had a hard time finding things such as meats without gluten, MSG & nitrates. When I have found them they are pricey. I saw the bacon we can have today and for 12 oz it was $5.99. I passed on that buy :)
Cooking has been a talent of mine and as I was baking our holiday goodies and meals I felt a remorse or mourning. As my family has started this adventure we have all been timid when it comes to tasting a few things. Dadam tried the vegan mayo yesterday and I thought he was going to die!! I made eggs with vegan cheese on Sunday morning and ended up throwing a lot of eggs away. We have had a few successes though! I made granola using gluten free oats on Saturday and it is already gone. Today I made chicken noodle soup from scratch using rice noodles and it was a success as well. Tonight we ate BBQ chicken & mashed potatoes using vegan butter and soy milk. I am learning a lot and hope that as the days and weeks progress so will my bravery. I am trying to work up to making bread. Sunday before church I made sandwiches for the kids. They used a $6.00 loaf of bread in 15 mins...so this will have to be something I conquer soon :)
As these six months progress I will share a few more pictures and updates as to how the diet is working out for not only Alex, but our whole family!!