Where were you........

There are only a few moments in my life that I can really remember, I can remember what the air smelled like, what I was wearing and exactly how I felt. The day I was married and my children's birth, of course. I remember when I found out about the Columbine shootings and the death of Princess Diana.....and how could anyone forget September 11, 2001.
I was a senior in high school and didn't have class that day until 11am, but there was a senior assembly, so I had to go in early. My dad woke me up a little after 7am and told me a plane flew into one of the twin towers (my sister lived in New York City at the time and I had actually been to the towers a couple months earlier). It was kinda like, "What a horrible thing that's happened, how did that pilot get so off course". The thought that a terrorist was involved never even entered my mind. My dad and I watched the footage on the news and then I went about getting ready for school.
I was curling my hair and watching TV at the same time. They kept showing the footage of the first plane hitting the tower over and over again. Then the unthinkable happened, another plane hit the second tower. At first I was confused because I thought they were just showing the first plane again, but the reporters voices were absolutely terrified. My dad and I just looked at eachother and I asked "What's happening?".
I was pretty naive and still didn't catch on that this was a terrorist attack, I know my dad knew it was, but didn't know how to tell me.
We both sat on the couch and just watched. We watched both towers fall and I remember feeling horrified and crying. How could this be happening??  I literally watched people die that day, I still get emotional if I think about it. Today is a day to remember all the people who lost their lives that day. They will forever be remembered.

The Brellas are Baptized!!

This past weekend our sweet angels, Bradley and Ella were baptized in our home church. It was truly a blessed event.

Ella Elizabeth Eckert was sponsored by her Aunt Beth (who she is also named after) and Uncle Casey. Beth was able to come out from San Jose, CA to be here for this special occasion. We feel so blessed that she cares for our little girl as much as we do! Casey is back in Japan, but he was definitely with us in spirit.

Bradley David Eckert was sponsored by his Aunt Julie and Uncle John. They made the trip from Maryland and we really enjoyed their visit.

To make the day even more special, my best friend, Christina made a surprise trip to Colorado!! It is a true friend that will drive 10 hours (each way) to be here for one day. She brought her friends Jessi and Sarah for the ride. I feel great knowing she has such great girls looking out for her in Oklahoma since I can't be there. Hopefully we'll be able to make a trip out there soon!!! I love my Christina-bear

The Zittrauers

My sister, Julie and her husband John came to visit last week. They were the best helpers ever, John actually wanted to change dirty diapers! Naturally I let him.
They were here for 5 days and I spent the entire time trying to convince John that moving to Colorado after he graduates would be the best move for them. I was like a used car sales man, constantly trying to "sell" him on the idea of moving here. "Humidity isn't really an issue here", "You would have free daycare when you have kids if you move here", "Let's go look at some model homes so you can see how much house you can get for your money out here". I had no shame. In the end he said he would "Consider moving to Colorado". Definitely a victory!

John had never been on a horse before, so this was a wonderful opportunity to show (yet again) all that Colorado has to offer. I have to say watching John attempt to ride a horse might be the funniest thing I've seen. The look on his face was priceless, a huge smile in anticipation of his first steps. He squeezed and kicked, and nothing- she (Sherhera) wasn't moving.After a couple minutes of this, my Aunt stood on the other end of the arena and said "I'm on fire, you have 30 seconds to get over here and save me".  He squeezed and kicked some more, finally SUCCESS! We all really enjoyed the day and needless to say were sore for a couple days!

Top ten reasons my new little family makes me smile!

10. Matt is very supportive of me staying home and raising our children. I've heard men say they want their wives to work, so I know I'm super lucky to have married the man I did!

9. Our well behaved animals, minus the cat. Other than Saylor loving dirty diapers (now affectionately called Saylor-snacks) and Cole marking the swing in the kitchen (we haven't yet figured out if he's mad that we take the babies out, or that we brought them home....hmm). They are great with the babies and with me since they still don't get all the attention they deserve.

8. We are close with our extended family on both sides. One of the bonuses of having lots of family in the same town.....free babysitting!!

7. Our house is full of baby crap, to include: 3 swings, 2 bouncers, 2 bumbo chairs, 2 pack n' plays, diapers galore and a gazillion little toys. Even though our house is permanently cluttered, I wouldn't have it any other way.

6. Poop!! I never really understood Matt's infatuation with poop before, but it's now one of the highlights of my day. You know, who pooped, when and how much!

5. Bradley's smile and Ella's eyes.

4. When the babies see me their little faces light up! They really like me!

3. The babies are starting to smile and coo at each other, which they never really did before.

2. Ella licks the bath water like she's a dog.

And the number one reason:  Matt and I can't stop telling each other how happy we are! Babies are awesome!!!!!!

Uncle Casey was home!!!

Matt's brother, Casey joined the Navy a little over two years ago and it's been almost that long since we had seen him. He's been stationed in Japan for 23 months and a visit home was in order!! We packed up the babies and joined his parents on the trip to pick him up front the airport. He looked great, almost unrecognizable!
Since the babies arrival I have noticed there are two kinds of men: the ones who are afraid of babies (you know, they get a terrified look on their face when anyone suggests they hold the baby and then when they do it makes everyone uncomfortable) and the ones who love them (and when they puke all over the place don't freak out). Luckily for Bradley and Ella, Casey is the latter!! He was awesome, they cried and he just cuddled with them. He'll make an awesome dad someday.

Since Casey wasn't here for the pregnancy or birth (because he was under way he found out via Facebook, oops. Lesson: always check you email first!) We decided to start them on solids while he was here, which was hard for the nutritionist in me (you should really wait until 6 months, they were about 5 1/2). So cute, rice cereal everywhere. As expected Bradley LOVED it, that boy likes to eat. Ella was more reserved, but is getting more into it with every passing day. Now, they are working their way through the veggies. This is such an exciting time!!

Pony Rides!

We had such a busy and crazy weekend! My Aunt and Uncle live on a ranch in Elbert, CO. 60 acres of beautiful!! I was especially looking forward to going horseback riding, it's been almost 4 years (since I worked at Camp Bloomfield).
My Aunt breeds miniature horses, so the babies were able to have their first pony ride! In reality, they sat on the pony and we took pictures, but we'll tell them they rode ;). Ella was not a happy camper, she didn't like all the dust and the fact we were making her sit still. In the end she was a trooper and gave us a couple great pictures. Bradley was fine, until he realized he was hungry and lost all his composure about 2 minutes into the photo shoot. That's my boy!
Finally it was my turn and I loved it. I forgot how much I enjoyed riding. The only downside is that I'm short, so most stirrups don't shorten enough to be of any use. That means I have to hold on extra tight with my inner thighs if I don't want to fall off. Translation: I've been sore for days!!!! It was totally worth it.

Daddy and daughter

Future Girl of the West!

"What's going on over there?"

Paparazzi shots

I try not to use the flash on my camera because I don't get a natural picture. I get a paparazzi shot. The look on their faces is priceless, they're shocked I'm taking a picture of them!