The Chou Life

Fridays in Woodland Park means Farmers’ Market!  I look forward to it every week (mostly for the free samples ).  Summertime in the mountains is just fabulous, and what better way to spend it than strolling around the booths full of fresh produce, natural and organic meats, beautiful flowers, homemade arts and crafts, and aromatic coffee?  Aaaahhh.

Last Friday we tried a tamaco–basically a tamale wrapped in a flour tortilla, which makes it easy to eat without utensils!

There was a sidewalk art contest going on last week, and although Calla didn’t participate in the contest, she enjoyed drawing “flowers” on the pavement.

She was very proud of her artwork…

Yesterday was Calla’s special day.  I made her quesadillas for breakfast AND lunch at her request, we read stacks and stacks of books together and cooked lots of “food” in her little kitchen, she got to watch two movies (!), and we had a little birthday party for her in the evening.  I may have gotten misty-eyed on a few occasions thinking about how much I’ve enjoyed this girl and how quickly the time is passing.  She is a true source of delight for our little family.

Opening presents from family and friends:

Reading one of her new books with her big little friend Caitlyn:

Trying to show us how old she is with her fingers:

Getting really excited about sprinkles:

Blowing out her candles:

Showing off all of her fun gifts, including the sweet white dress she’s wearing from her Lao Lao and Lao Ye:

Hudson got a little bored with all the b-day excitement, but his friend Shelbi worked tirelessly to keep him entertained:

We had a great day being reminded over and over again how fortunate we are to have such an AWESOME 3-year-old!

-Abby

Today is NOT Wordless Wednesday for me.  I have to mention that our little girl turns THREE today!  Over the weekend we celebrated with her great-grandparents in Missouri, and she loved being the center of attention.  Is she my child?

Enjoying her Happy Birthday song:

Blowing out the candles:

Helping Great Grandma cut the cake:

Digging in:

With all four of her great-grandparents:

We are so blessed and thankful to have such a sweet, beautiful, smart, friendly, energetic, independent, fiery little girl.  We love you, Calla!

-Abby

My high school reunion happened last weekend, and we decided to make the 13-hour trek to Missouri–kiddos and all.  Amazingly, both kids were very content for the majority of the trip (there and back) and we were supremely grateful.  We enjoyed staying with my grandparents and had an early b-day celebration for Calla with both sets of grandparents (pics to come later).

Saturday morning we met up with several of my high school buddies at a park.  Of course we were exactly TWO hours late (it’s genetic, I can’t help it) so we missed a lot of the fun, but it was wonderful to see old friends.  Several of us have children now so the dynamic has changed a little, but they’re all still the same sweet and genuine people I knew ten years ago.

My friends Megan and Steve have a darling 3-month-old girl named Hannah.  I wish I could have held her longer.  Yay for babies!

Allison learned not to call Calla “little lady”…because “I’m not lady, I’m Calla!”  I think they could be great friends.  Calla is still talking about “Miss Ahwison.”

Brooke is newly engaged–congrats to the happy couple!  Too bad we didn’t get the ROCK in this pic.   Unfortunately I’ve never met the lucky Ted, but hope-hope-hopefully we can make it to the wedding next year!

The main event was Saturday evening at Good Time Charlie’s, a former hog barn that has been renovated and turned into a club.  I know, only in Chillicothe.  This is a pic of the gravel road out to Charlie’s…can you FEEL the humidity??  Ugh.  That was one thing I did NOT enjoy.

No, I didn’t even have a sip of alcohol…I was just really happy.  Frightening, huh?

Lots and lots of friends…

Brad and Brookie:

Megan, Laura, and Jennifer breakin’ it down on the dance floor:

Jared, me, Alli, Leslie:

Halfway through the evening, we were blessed with the deafening sounds of motorcycles burning out right next to the building.  Allison and Eric went to check it out…

Speaking of Eric…

Eric was quite literally the feature attraction of the evening.  By the end of the night I think he had more friends there than I did.

Eric and Kelly:

Eric and Billy (Charlie’s son):

Eric and Good Time Charlie himself:

It was a great weekend and well worth the drive.  I’m just hoping it’s not another ten years before I see all these peeps again!

-Abby

A “new” posting idea (new for me anyway)… I enjoy finding fun ideas like Wordless Wednesday from other blogs.

Surprise!  My Dad turned 50 over the weekend, and my bro and sis-in-law (with their 2-month-old!) surprised him by driving 12 hours and showing up on the doorstep Friday evening.  We had a fun weekend hanging out, talking, eating, watching old home videos, and enjoying beautiful Colorado.  Calla LOVES her newest little cousin, Solomon.  He is just too cute!

She also can’t get enough of her Uncle Daniel…

Just a couple of Royals fans…

Grandma with her sweet little grand-bundle…

We spent Saturday afternoon at Eleven Mile Canyon…

Note the babywearing daddies on the right…

Superdaddy!

Saturday evening brought a crazy hailstorm.  Eric and Daniel decided to see who could stand outside in the hail the longest.  I think it was a draw…

The weekend was tons of fun and we’re looking forward to the next time we get to see Dan, Brit, and baby Soli!

No sibling rivalry yet, just lots and lots of love!

And one more just because they’re so cute…

He’s half a year old!  Our little man has his two bottom teeth, is rolling over (both directions), is starting to sit up without support, takes just two naps a day, and loves to laugh with his big sis.  We are all smitten with this 18-lb bundle who hardly ever stops smiling…

Happy six months, Hud-boy!

If you read my article here, you know that curry is good for the brain, literally!  Studies are showing that eating curry regularly can help prevent Alzheimers’ disease and dementia.  As if you needed another reason to indulge in the yummy goodness.  I tried Seeds of Change’s Tikka Masala a few weeks ago and the whole family loved it.  For a spicier Indian dish, their organic Madras curry is a great option.  I simmered it with chicken, snap peas, and half a bag of stir-fry frozen veggies.  Spicy perfection!

Hudson is already starting to outgrow his Bumbo that Grandma and Grandpa got for him recently.  But I’ll keep squishing him in there as long as he’ll fit because he loves it and so do I!  I think he feels like a big boy when he’s sitting in it.

Isn’t he handsome?