'oh christmas tree'

we found the most beautiful christmas tree farm a couple of weekends ago!

it was another lovely drive out on I-90. the seattle area had quite a bit of snow the week before and spots of white could still be found on the ground. we drove to mountain creek tree farm and stepped out into the cold air. we made sure we were bundled up nice and warm before venturing into the rows of fir trees with our candy cane striped saw.



it was so beautiful! pictured above, eli and i are looking at the snow laden mt. si. we hope to hike that one if we get some good weather this spring!

after some serious searching we finally found our perfect tree, a nice symmetrical noble fir. aaron did a great job sawing it down in no time :)


as he wrapped the tree in netting and tied it to the hood of our car, i went inside and grabbed some of the free hot cider. it was cold out there!

we unpacked the christmas decorations and found bandit's christmas chew toy...he was sooo excited and has been playing with it non-stop. and whenever he really goes after it, eli gives a little giggle :)


i have to say that this is one of the best trees in shape and decoration. elias loves the tree, the lights, and ornaments. it is heart warming to see his eyes light up in fascination.

and with the holidays, of course comes the holiday treats. we have made one batch of ginger molasses cookies, and have purchased more bags of sugary deliciousness than healthy for one household!

and aaron came home with a chocolaty treat for me the other day and i just had to share the cute little way he wrapped it up in a napkin :)

giggles, gobbles, and great-grandmas

elias is now 16 weeks old and his personality is really starting to shine through. his smile lights up his entire face and my whole heart is instantly filled with joy. it is one of the most precious things in this world and i wish i could capture every single one on camera! with that said, i do capture many of eli's smiles because he gives me so many to choose from! and the giggles, oh the giggles...they are the cutest :)


we were able to fly to california for thanksgiving, a blessing for which we were thankful for indeed. it was a wonderful trip full of family, food, and yes you guessed it- sunshine! it was good to see bandit's pup, who is not a pup anymore with his rastafarian hair and big derriere! fin was very interested in elias and i think a little jealous of the attention grandma and grandpa were giving to the baby too :) hopefully we will make a drive down soon so that we can bring bandit with us for a father-son reunion.

this trip was special because it was the first time most of the extended family got to meet elias, including both of eli's great-grandmas.
great-grandma rivas

great-grandma nepomuceno

i mentioned those giggles earlier. well, they really come full force when eli is with his goofy grandpa larry and we got it on video- enjoy!



we tried to soak up the vitamin D, a ritual rejuvenation on our trips to california.


all in all, it was a wonderful trip.
it was a lot of traveling and visiting packed into just a few days and i think the little guy was tuckered out!

snow day!

imagine all the fall drive pictures from the last blog post covered in snow...that what we saw just 7 days later! our plan was to drive until our car temperature gauge reached 32 degrees...well we got all the way down to 27! i think my mom was a little nervous in the back of the car but she had eli to calm her nerves :)


we ended up driving to the exit we took the prior week to get to lost lake, but didn't dare attempt to drive to the lake!


does this picture above look familiar? this is where aaron was skipping stones! i stayed in the car this time but bandit and aaron went down to the water again. bandit LOVES the snow!



we didn't stay long because the sun sets early and quickly this time of the year.

the next morning we woke up to snow falling and sticking outside our balcony! it was so beautiful and it snowed all day long. we dont usually have snow stick, so the seattle area does not handle it well when snow stays on the ground. luckily aaron took off from work early because the city couldn't move later that day. cars and buses were stuck on interstate 5 from the evening on into the morning hours. aaron drove eli, my mom, and i to the airport to make our 6am flight the next day and there were semi-trucks and cars abandoned on the road. it was eerie! but we made it to our flight in good time and aaron was able to fly out the next day without complication. it was quite an adventure and a pretty one at that!

purple mountains

it is getting colder here and we are dressing warmer! we decided to take a nice drive down interstate 90 and take advantage of the respite of rain. we drove over the snoqualmie pass and found lost lake.


we weren't sure how gunter (our bmw) would handle to dirt roads laden with snow and potholes of water but he did great! and it was a beautiful drive.





and what happens when there is water, rocks, and boys? skipping stones and hitting trees! i am looking forward to watching eli do the same :)


the sun has been setting so early and dusk approached quickly while we were out at the lake. but we saw the surrounding mountains turn into a hue of purple and appreciated the majesty of what the Creator has blessed us with.

after a long day of driving it was time to relax and play at home. gosh, i love this kid :)

our little pumpkin :)

fautumn has brought the most beautiful colors right outside our door. i love walking outside and smelling crisp air and seeing the changing leaves on the trees and ground around them. and with fall comes another halloween. i dont know if time speeds up once you become a parent but it feels like it is just flying by.
we took elias to his first pumpkin patch, remlinger farms in carnation, wa. we must have picked three of the biggest pumpkins in the field.

but the cutest pumpkin was the one in my arms :)

as with garrett tradition we carved up our pumpkins and toasted the seeds. and i made another batch of pumpkin soup too! we actually still have the third pumpkin that we didnt get around to carving up.

of course we had to dress eli for his first halloween :) we decided to go with the tigger costume because 'tiggers are wonderful things.' oh and dont be too concerned...there is some stuffing in belly of the costume, though this baby is growing growing growing!


i could kiss those cheeks all day long...and i do!
as of this post, eli is 3 months old and more specifically he is going on 14 weeks. as i mentioned above, he is just growing so fast and more and more of his adorable personality is being revealed. recently he has been trying to turn from his back onto his stomach, and he pretty much has accomplished it. he just has to get his left shoulder out from under him, but belly has made contact with the floor! one night he ended up turning himself 360 degrees in his crib. he was supposed to be sleeping and once a complete circle was made, he was so exhausted that he fell right to sleep. if only every night was so entertaining and easy :)

stay tuned for some more cute pictures and stories.