Linkan's 1st Pull up/Stand

After Ben read Linkan her bedtime stories last night, he called me over to see what she had just learned to do! I think it was nice for him to witness one of her "firsts". :) Usually, I am the one showing him stuff that she can do. He was so proud of her! Meanwhile, I'm thinking "Oh joy! This should make nap time verrrrry interesting!" haha She hasn't quite figured out how to crawl yet. She gets into the position and then just rocks back and forth. I'm sure it won't be long before she is crawling. She is really good at the "down dog" yoga pose too! :)

South Boulder Peak Trail

We hiked the South Boulder Peak Trail on Friday afternoon. The weather couldn't have been better! I have not been to the top of this peak but Ben has taken many visiting friends up it because it's so close to our house and has great views of the city at the top. We didn't make it to the top because the dogs were tired and we didn't want to press our luck with Linkan. We hiked about 2 hours round trip. Funny - we ran in to a guy from Lawrence, Kansas on the trail. I recognized his "Sunflower Bike Shop" t-shirt and struck up a conversation. It's nice to be on the other side of that conversation...the one that doesn't involve driving 8 hours home! ;) We went to Pearl Street in Boulder after wards for some Ben & Jerrys. What a spontaneous and fun afternoon!

Multi-tasking...working and hiking at the same time.



I guess the pooches were a little hot by the end of the hike. We didn't have to tell them to lie down. :)

My "favorites"

You know you're in Kansas when...

Linkan and I stopped in Americus to gas up for the long ride back to Colorado in June. This is what I encountered at the pump. Only in Kansas! :)

Hopkins Wedding

On June 5, 2010 our dear friends Kourtney and Amy Hopkins got married. It was at a Rose Garden in Kansas City so the location was absolutely gorgeous but MAN it was hot! Ben officiated their wedding and did a great job. Justin Hopkins sang and made all of the bridesmaids cry!

I couldn't believe that I didn't have any pictures of the bride and groom but then I remembered how busy we were making sure that everything went off without a hitch and it did! The wedding and reception was amazing and the bride was beautiful! We were able to get a picture with Trevor and Angela(sans Trenton) at the reception. We really enjoyed our time with those two and miss them already!

Linkan had very late night but was a trooper to the end! We are on our way up to our room in this picture.

This is the program/fan that I did for their wedding. The fans came in handy in the 95 degree weather!

Ben's First Father's Day

For Father's day, Ben did the Denver Century 100 mile bike ride. Linkan and I started later in the morning on the 22 mile Family Fun ride. She did great but it sure got hot! We got back from our ride just in time to see daddy cross the finish line.


The race started and finished at Mile High Stadium. You can see the sign in the background.

We had a picnic lunch after the race at Mile High.

We finished off Ben's first Father's day at Ceramics in the City. I surprised Ben by taking him there and having a custom silver jewelery bracelet made for him. It has Linkan's finger print and her initials on it.

Pressing Linkan's finger into the mold. We haven't gotten the jewelery back yet but I will post a picture as soon as it's all done. All-in-all, a wonderful Father's Day. Linkan is one lucky girl to call him her daddy. :)

Jumping on the bed!

I am modeling bad behavior by jumping on the bed but Linkan's laugh is just irresistible! :)

The Bee vs. Linkan

The bee won...sorta. After our fun bike ride on Memorial day, we hit the hot tub. Right before we got out, we decided to try a new life vest that we got Linkan (for canoeing). As Ben was taking it off, Linkan started screaming bloody murder and Ben figured out real quickly that she had been stung by a bee on her cheek. I grabbed her and her plucked the stinger out as fast as he could. I panicked for about 10 seconds as it was happening and then got it under control. I knew that wouldn't help anything. We washed the area, spread and baking soda/water paste over the sting and applied a cold compress. After a little tylenol and some distractions (the lotion bottle), she settled down...but still fussy so I fed her and rocker her to sleep. We watched her like hawks all evening to be sure that she wasn't having any trouble breathing. It was a little unnerving!

Of all the things!? Why didn't the stupid bee sting Ben or me? Noooo! It had to sting the 6 month old and on the face, no less! I know that we will have many more of these experiences in the future but I'm just being honest...I'm not looking forward to them. Seeing your baby in pain is not an enjoyable experience. They are character building, I must say. Learning not to panic and spring into action, not reaction... Learning to trust our Heavenly Father no matter what the outcome is with our children. After all, Linkan is His...first.

In the end, the bee bit the dust. And Linkan woke up this morning with a HUGE smile, no swelling and just a little dot on her cheek.