Fun Family Fall Days

Well, Stef inspired me to post something today since she did. I can't be outdone by my sister, now can I? I am not really going to update all our happenings from the last few months. We have been very busy. Q is growing like crazy! She is pushing 20 lbs., and she really, really wants to crawl. I am excited for that and NOT excited at the same time. Once she is mobile, we are in for it! Shockingly, she is incredibly vocal...and LOUD! She loves entertaining the whole room and gets upset when all eyes are not on her. (Hmmm...I wonder where she gets that. Nick and I are so shy, quiet and reserved.) While attending an Open House the other night, she stole the show from the Elder we were wishing well. It's a good thing she's so cute!

I am loving these fall days. The trees are gorgeous! The air is...well, how do I put this? The air is just fall-y, and I love it! There isn't a day that goes by that I am not grateful to be back in Colorado. We have been trying to do as many activities with Q outside as possible. We go on family walks, and we recently took her to Anderson Farms, a really great corn maze/pumpkin patch.

We made it a true family day and brought Uncle Adam and Aunt Kara along with us. I had never been to a pumpkin patch, so I was excited, but I don't think my excitement could match the excitement of our girl! Q was laughing and yelling and screaming before we even made it in the gates!

She rode a pony; she picked a pumpkin; she witnessed the birth of twin goats; she posed for a million pictures; and, she loved every minute of it! My goodness, we are blessed by her presence and her personality daily!

There are lots of changes coming for the Sadler's, and I have to take a minute to thank our family and friends who have already been so supportive. I would be lost without the love and support from people near and far, and I never want to seem ungrateful. Our journey will be long, but somehow, through faith and love, we will make it to the other side--one step at a time.

The Hike...that just about killed me!

Someone needs to constantly remind me that I lived in Texas for two years! I--well, we--tend to forget that the altitude here is different, and we need to adjust. We attempted to go for a rather small hike one weekend. It turned into an even smaller hike when I thought my lungs were going to explode while trying to make it up a hill with 15 extra pounds strapped to my front. So, we turned around and just walked around the park, played on the swings and slides, and took in the view! Here are a few pictures from the outing:

 Daddy and Q before we left the house! They are such a good looking pair! I love them!

 Mom and Q taking a break! Mom got tired easy!

 Family shot!

I love the mountains! I love the rolling hills! I love the flowers! I love the dafodils! I love the fireside, when all the lights are low! 

Q meets Aunt Lisa

The last sibling on my side to meet Miss Q was Lisa. She came to visit us--along with her hubby, Hondo--for a few days in May. It was so good to see her. She is having a baby in July, and I was anxious to see her belly and feel my new niece kick and move. The highlight, of course, was having her meet Q!

My pretty daughter and beautiful sister! Life feels more complete now that Q has met my sibs. We still have lots of people to see though, so there will be more fun updates to come!

Grandma Halasz and Great-Aunt Celia

We had our first visitors when Grandma Halasz (Nick's mom) and her sister, Celia, came to visit. Grandma had an appointment in Denver, so it was the perfect excuse to come and see the baby! We went to dinner at Red Robin, shopped at Flatirons Mall, and dined at P.F. Changs. It was so nice to introduce Q to her great-aunt! She came and spoiled as only a great-aunt can! Once again, it is so nice to be close to family! Thanks, Grandma and Aunt Celia for coming and spoiling us. We love you!

Q in her cute new hat from Grandma and Aunt Celia! That is Grandma Halasz holding her!

Q meets Aunt Holly

Since the Mahan clan is so large and spread out right now, there were still a few siblings who had not met her by the time we moved home. So, Aunt Holly and Uncle Eric decided to make a trip to visit our parents. Holly and I joked about us making the five hour drive over to see them, but since we had just moved back, she understood that it probably wasn't possible. Little did she know that Mom and I were conspiring behind her back to surprise her and come meet them anyway!
Holly and I had several conversations, and I even talked to her when we were only an hour away, and she (nor Eric) never suspected a thing! It was so fun to be able to walk in the door and yell, SURPRISE! Dad and Kelli were surprised too! We loved it! These pictures are from that weekend!

Here Aunt Holly and Aunt Kelli play with Q in the morning. They were making her laugh and laugh!

Q and Grandma

She got to meet her Great-Grandma Gray, and Great-Uncle Dan and Great-Aunt Carol too. However, I don't have pictures of that for some reason! Fail on my part!

Aunt Holly and Q! I think they like each other!

We took a Four Generation picture! Look at how cute we all are!

Uncle Eric and Q! They were pretty cute together!

Altogether it was a successful and fun trip! We are so glad to be back and close to family again! Love it! Love it! Love it!

The Long Road

Well, if anyone thought that driving from Texas to Colorado was easy never did it with a UHaul, an auto transport behind it, another car, two dogs, three adults, and a four month old. Let's just say that we had the adventure of a lifetime!

Day 1: After having many helping hands load up our UHaul and emptying our house, we took off around four hoping to make it through most of OK before stopping for the night. Right outside of OK City, we hit major traffic, and Miss Q wouldn't stop screaming! I was in the UHaul, so poor Aunt Kelli (who saved our lives!!!) was trying to calm her down...it wasn't working! So, on the north side of OKC, Nick radioed me with our super handy walkie-talkie that we needed to stop because Q wouldn't calm down and Joey had just thrown-up all over the front seat! Needless to say, we pulled off at the next stop and stayed at the ever classy Motel 6. Poor, Kelli! She was so nervous! We had to carry Elway up the stairs, and poor Nick made trip after trip up and down three flights of stairs to get suitcases and the dog crate. So, I had a very grump hubby, an upset baby, a nervous sister, and two confused and frightened dogs on my hands. Not a great start!

Day 2: While very long, was much more successful! We stopped a lot to fill up the giant UHaul, and we were able to stop in Burlington at the Hitchcock residence to let baby girl stretch and play (thanks, Grandma Barbie!) , but we made to Arvada to stay with Kristie and Ron just in time to hear that Bin Laden had been killed! A few minutes later we got to celebrate this with our Marine! Needless to say, my brother was very emotional and joyful!

So, here we are! Back in the big CO, and we love it! 

The Moving Adventure

Ahhhhhh! This is all happening so fast. I actually don't feel as if I have time to breath. We are trying to get so much done, and I hardly know where to begin...AND since Miss Q is starting to stir, this will be quick.

There are actually a few things we wanted to do with Quincy before leaving. So, we took her to the zoo a few weekends ago. She slept through most of the day, but woke up in time for us to get some really great pictures of her--and us as a family.

We also got some professional family shots done at the Fort Worth Stockyards. I like it there! Our family started here, so we thought it appropriate to get these taken. I obviously can't post them, but trust me, they are great!
The packing has begun. The house is always a mess. AND...we don't have a place in CO yet! We might be a little stressed...or a lot! Still can't believe this is happening!

The Plan: Colorado

I love this place!

Okay, so the news has been announced and we are moving back home. I just thought I should take a moment to update you all on our plan. Here it is--much simpler on paper than it is actually going to be to execute!

1. Purge house of all unnecessary junk.
2. Pack (long process--has already begun)
3. Find a place to live in CO. Still not sure where exactly we will be yet--anywhere from Broomfield to Fort Collins is still a possibility.
4. Say our good-bye's in Texas. Much harder than I originally anticipated. I have come to love some really wonderful people here!
5. Pack up house on April 30th and begin trek to CO with two dogs and a baby in tow!

Yikes! No wonder I have a cold sore right now. I'm a little stressed about it. Excited. Nervous. Giddy. Happy. Sad. Basically all the same emotions I experienced moving from CO to TX...it's all coming back to me now.