Ketchup

Okay, how did it get to be October so fast?? I know, it's because we've been busy almost every weekend! Here's a recap of the last few weeks:

1st weekend of September: Nelson was gone to a conference, so Kalaya and I spent the weekend at my parent's house. Nothing very exciting happened, but it was a weekend away from the house, which makes my schedule busy and gives me less time to get things done.

2nd weekend: 100th Anniversary of the Pendleton Round Up!! LET 'ER BUCK!! For those of you who have no idea, this is a BIG rodeo in Eastern Oregon, near where my dad grew up. We have been going on and off for years and it is a pretty big deal. I have had family attend or participate in every Round Up since the beginning, so we had to make a trip for the 100th. Kalaya did really well and was super cute in her cow girl outfits. We went to 2 days of rodeo and we had really nice weather. She liked seeing the horses and everything else, even though every horse was called or signed as 'dog'. (we have since then learned the sign for horse instead!!) We stayed in a nice bed and breakfast and had fun seeing family and friends and spending time with Oma and Grandpa.

3rd weekend: Beach retreat with the youth group. This was a milestone for me, as I stayed the first night overnight away from Kalaya. I left with the youth from our church on Friday night and Nelson brought Kalaya to stay on Saturday. We had GORGEOUS weather at the beach and got all of our planning for youth ministry for the year. I don't think I'll stay over night away from my babies again any time soon. Everything went absolutely fine, but I didn't like it. Nelson did great, Kalaya did great. It wasn't even that I was sad or miserable. I read one time that if you practice attachment parenting, you'll know it because you feel like a part of you is missing when they're not there. It was too weird not being there to nurse her last thing before bed and first thing in the morning. Call me obsessive, call us too dependent, but that's what it is and it works for our family! It just makes more sense to be with my baby than to not be with her. Kalaya had a great time at the beach and playing with our youth group kids who just LOVE her. They all love playing with her. She loved playing in the sand and walking along the beach.

Middle of last week: Our new niece arrived!! Amara Sigrah was born on Wednesday, September 29th, VERY early in the morning. She is healthy and beautiful and they are home and happy. We're so excited for Theo and Yvette and we can't wait to spend lots of time together with our two families! Now if only my other niece lived closer.... I was amazed at how sweet Kalaya was around the baby. We spent a LOT of time around her and Kalaya was just enchanted. She was so gentle and quiet. She didn't get jealous when Nelson or I were holding Amara. She will be such a good big sister some day. Obviously I know it won't be quite that simple with one that keeps mom away from home and one that comes into the house permanently, but it's definitely a start. It makes me soooooo ready to start thinking about baby #2.....

So, we've been very busy and my house is a wreck, but I'm getting there. Lots of laundry to do and things to clean. It's definitely fall! There could be big changes for Nelson's job soon, but I'm not getting my hopes up too high yet...more to come as I know what happens. I'll post another quick blog with recent pictures.