9 year celebrated.

dear brady,

a couple weeks ago we left you at home for the first time and took a trip just me & dad.  he planned the whole thing, which he's so dang good at.  my only requests were that we go somewhere with cooler weather & good local coffee.  the oregon coast was absolutely perfect!!  your aunt jane flew out to take care of you for the five days we were gone & i'm positive you had the BEST time!  she spoiled you rotten & had such a blast with you.  i'm so glad you were so happy, and dad & me had an amazing time on our vacation!

we started off at the salish lodge in washington state.  the wood burning fire place was PERFECTION to me!  i think we had a fire going pretty much constantly the 24 hours we were there.  we got massages upon check in to start the vacay out right :)

then we headed into oregon and down the coast to astoria.  where we found the most amazing fish & chips.  the bowpicker came highly recommended by our concierge at the hotel we stayed in as well as trip advisor.  it wasn't much to look at but the food was ridiculously good.  and i'm not even a huge fish-fan!

while all of our trip was incredible, cannon beach was the best part of our trip.  the little boutique hotel we stayed on had great views from the property of haystack rock.  and such great service.  and a coffee station in the lobby.  and we had a bonfire on the beach that night after dark, with the sounds of crackling fire & crashing waves.  it was just beyond amazing.  oh! and our little seagull friend visited us every morning.  i'm not sure, but it could have been because i fed him little snacks :)

the next morning the fog rolled in heavy on cannon beach and we took a walk along the water.  you'll find this out later, b, but your mama LOVES precipitation of any kind.  i consider fog a huge blessing.  along with rain & snow.  so staying at a place that gave us a foggy morning was heaven to me!

we pulled over to grab a picture of this little town of brady washington!  i love it.

we spent lots of time in the car, going from one little town to the next & i loved the roadtrip time with your dad.  the talking, laughing, and connecting was just what we needed.  these four months with you have been the best of our lives but have been so busy!  it was perfect to just be together.  and the highways were gorgeous, so that was just an added bonus to the roadtrip.

we loved the little coffee huts on the side of the roads. they're everywhere in the pacific northwest & we pulled over often to get a coffee fix :)

and oh we had the best drinks! :)

this was a self portrait on our anniversary day.  nine years in and he just keeps getting better, brady.  i'm the luckiest person in the world.  we both are.  i know you will learn so much from him, little guy...he's just such a good man!

 aunt jane kept us supplied with lots of texted & emailed photos of you!  you were loving your hands :)

 you took lots of walks around the neighborhood with her and it looks like you really enjoyed yourself!!  you love a good walk.

but you were so happy to see mama our first day home!  your smile made my heart so full.  i missed you!

before janey left we tried to take a self portrait on the porch out front - you wanted to steal the show by getting really close to my phone.  good thing you're cute!  those CHEEKS!!!

 finally a decent one :)  i love your aunt janey very much and was so, so glad she came out to hang with you while we were gone.  it made the leaving much easier, knowing you were with someone who would love on you as much as i do.  we're so lucky to have great family who will come stay with you!  we love you buddy, and we'll travel lots together as a family, but you should know that sometimes me & dad will sneak away just us.  it makes us better which in turn makes our family so much fuller & happier.  but don't worry, you will always have a blast at home hanging out with aunts & grandmas & friends :)

happy 9 year anniversary to my love - thanks for such a beautiful season together so far.  can't wait for the next chapter.