Our Drew!

Little Drew & Jenny

Bass Lake

Always dancing the night away ;-)

My bachelorette

If there is one thing that I have learned since my dear cousin Drew has been diagnosed with Leukemia, it would have to be that life isn't fair. It often seems that the most undeserving people are put in the most difficult positions. Drew has been a fighter his whole life and I'm confident that this situation is no different. I keep telling myself that God must have known that he was one of the few (I certainly don't know many) who can persevere through anything and come out of all of this with a smile on his face and a whole new perspective on life. Given the circumstances, I figured that now is as good as time as any to let Drew, and everyone else, know how much he truly means to me. If nothing else Drew, I hope this puts a smile on your face ;-)

My happiest childhood memories, without out a shadow of a doubt, were the summers spent with my cousins at the beach house in Newport (with Dad's side of the family) and at Bass Lake (with Mom's side). Paloma was my idol and Drew my first crush (inappropriate, I know). We only saw each other twice a year (during the holidays and for a week every summer at Bass Lake) but we were as close as cousins could possibly be. Drew was an extremely fun & wild child and, to this day, is quite possibly the most outgoing person I know. We have always had a special bond but, I can honestly say, that I think everyone who knows Drew feels that way. We had our first fight in the early nineties when he proposed to Katie in front of our whole family at Bass Lake. I was devastated it wasn't me. It took me years to get over it, but I totally understood given my unfortunate "awkward" phase. We have the most amazing stories and I cherish these years more than anything!

During high school, Drew started visiting California regularly and spent many holidays with my family. It was during one of these visits that Drew introduced me to the world of designer labels and showed me how to apply for a credit card (Luke will forever thank you for that one!). He was the first person who ever said to me, "It would be a sin to leave this store without that outfit. It's not your fault it looks amazing!" To say that Drew has comedic timing would be an understatement :-) During our junior year of college, Drew decided to make the move to Los Angeles from Portland (where he was currently in school). I convinced Luke that having him live with us would be the best decision we ever made, and it definitely was. We had more fun that year than I ever thought possible. It just so happened that Luke's agency wanted him in Australia for two months so Drew and I spent our nights watching Strangers with Candy and dancing to Kelly Clarkson. I can't even begin to tell you how many night clubs he dragged me to, but he made me enjoy LA and was the first person to keep me out until 2am.

I love Drew more than words could ever express. I truly see him as another brother. He's the guy that will be there for you when know else is. He's the only person who can make you feel comfortable in a room full of strangers. He is also the only person I know who always puts someone else's feelings before his own. He is the event planner in our family and keeps us all close. Drew, I admire all that you are and all that I know you will be. I'm anxious for you to fight this fight and to see the man you become afterwards. You are my hero. I love you.

9 Months!

Many faces of Ella :)

Lazy bones ;-)

Valentine's Day

Brothers with their baby girls!

Playing in the backyard

Getting tossed in the air

Spectrum date

Yay, Ella pulled herself up!

Beach day with daddy

Ella's had a hard time eating this month :(

Celebrating Dr. Seuss's b-day at Mommy's school

Getting kisses from cousin Emi

Waiting to meet cousin Story :)

Playing with GG

What a fun month we have had here in the Carlson household! Ella has been such a joy and her little personality shines through more and more each day. She LOVES to stand and demands to be walked around with an adult holding her arms as much as possible. We are still working on crawling (although rumor has it she came pretty close in order to touch cousin Story), but Ella is an expert "scooter". She can easily get to one end of the room to the other by scooting on her bottom or moving backwards. She absolutely adores her "play station" where we have a large carpet rug with all of her toys. She could sit their forever playing by herself.

We had a wonderful play date with Mandy & Brady (they are only one week apart) at Irvine Spectrum and Ella loved to touch him and just stare at him as much as possible. They looked so cute sitting side by side in their highchairs. We recently had a family night and Ella went nuts over second cousin Emilia. I can honestly say that I have never heard her screech that loud with excitement. She LOVES being around other kids (especially cousins Emi & Story). She would scream every time Emi left the room. You can already tell that they are Paloma & Jenny minis (Drew and Johnny, please refrain from sarcastic comments here :-)

We also had a visit with GG (Great Grandma) and Uncle Bob. Ella couldn't get enough of GG and spent the entire afternoon in her arms singing, dancing, and reading the book GG recorded for her. I recommend everyone get one of those record-a-books and have their grandparents read the books to the babies with their recorded voices. It's one of those gifts that is absolutely priceless. Ella will forever be able to hear GG read 'Twas the Night Before Christmas.

We are very excited to announce that Ella officially has 4 teeth! She got her two lower central incisors in January and her two upper lateral incisors just came through. She may look a little vampire-esque until her upper central incisors (center teeth) come in :-) That's okay, it will build character! My little munchkin has been refusing solid food for almost two weeks now (and she would eat ANYTHING prior). I'm hoping it's because of all of her new teeth coming in (I think I can feel the front center teeth... they will probably be here any day). She used to eat 1-2 jars per feeding. The past couple weeks its been a fight to get her to eat her oatmeal in the morning and it just gets more challenging as the day goes on. She'll eat string cheese, cheerios, and sometimes bananas throughout the day as snacks, but we are going to see the doctor early next week just to make sure everything is okay.

Welcome Story Jean!!!!!!

Story Jean Carlson made her grand entrance on February 17, 2012 (7 lbs 15 oz) just in time to have the same birthday as Sally. We waited in anticipation for quite some time until we got to meet this little miracle. It's been such a wonderful journey to experience Nikki's pregnancy right alongside her. Nikki has become another sister in my life and I love her and this precious little baby to pieces. Noah handled everything like a champ and Nikki's mom and dad are pretty much the coolest people on the planet (and an amazing support system!). Needless to say, we are extremely fortunate to have these people in our lives. Ella was thrilled to meet her cousin and made numerous, desperate attempts to touch her face. You can see she got a little upset when I had to hold her hands down. Story, we are so excited to watch you grow and change every day! We love you with all of our hearts ;-)