The Next Adventure: March 2013

How can it be March already? We have been so busy since leaving Maryland! Settling into our new life in Los Alamos has completely absorbed all of our time. We arrived in New Mexico on December 28th, after spending Christmas with our family in Clemson, SC. It was so nice to break up our move with good company and some relaxation. It took us three longs days and two nights from Clemson to reach our new home. This is the kind of trip that Colin and I normally look forward to, but with two full vehicles, two babies and two dogs our previous road trips could not compare. Having said this, the kids and dogs travelled nicely and we had no problems along the way.

Our first impression of our new home has become our lasting impression. We love it here! The landscape is absolutely amazing and we couldn't be happier living nearby our friends and of course traffic is nothing compared to what we left behind on the East Coast. Colin jokes about his 10 minute commute saying the biggest concern is watching for elk on the road! Everyone tells us that Los Alamos is a great place to raise kids, so we feel that we are in the best place we can be for our family with incredible outdoor opportunities literally just around the corner from our house. Colin started his new job on January 2nd, and is happy to be working with like-minded colleagues. He has worked with many of the people on his team at some point during his career in the military.

Finn and Lilly seem to be adjusting well to our new environment. It is so dry here, both have been battling dry skin and have had a few colds, which haven't been much fun, since we are living at such a high altitude. Finn has become a full-fledged toddler learning new words everyday. His latest favorite word is, "NO," but we are very pleased to report that one of his first words and a word he uses regularly is "HAPPY!" He runs instead of walks everywhere and loves to be outside wandering the yard with Annie, or in the garage with Colin. He also loves to read books and play with toys. I'd be lying if I didn't share that he also loves to watch tv. He will take the remote control and point and say, "HEAD" indicating he would like to watch a show that includes singing. One of his favorite tunes is "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes."

Lilly is growing like a weed. She is already 5 and a half months. At her 4 month check-up she was 12.5 pounds and small for her age, but growing well. She rolls over, smiles all the time and is such a nice baby! She will continue to deal with hypothyroidism for the rest of her life, but we have been able to manage it quite easily. She loves her brother and Finn treats her very well for the most part. She still feeds during the night, but it isn't difficult to get up with her as we cherish the quiet time we have together and she is always full of cuddles as she falls back to sleep.

My parents drove out from Canada and spent two weeks with us in February. It was wonderful to see them and of course for them to meet Lilly. They drove three days each way on icy roads, so we really appreciated their effort to get here to see us! We look forward to seeing more of them and of course, we hope all of our family and friends will have the opportunity to come out for a visit!

We miss you and will do better at keeping in touch!

Christmas in Clemson 2012

Finnian and Auntie Trisha in front of the Christmas tree.

Colin and Lilly wearing her Christmas PJs.

Finn playing with his present from Santa. He loves Thomas the Train!

Lillian with her Aunties and cousin Raney.

Finn with his cousin Will. They had so much fun together!

On our way to New Mexico...life on the road!

Views of Los Alamos

The Rio Grande snaking through the canyons.

Snow in the hills.

The sky is almost always blue here.

This is the bridge that takes us into Los Alamos.

Me taking a picture...we are at the bottom of a canyon. Many trees were destroyed during a forest fire a few years ago, but this canyon was untouched.