19 months

At 19 months old, Blaykleigh …

• got to decorate her first round of Christmas cookies with her friend Jade! Although, there was more eating of the sprinkles and raw dough than decorating but she had fun nevertheless. 
• spent a good chunk of the month of December in Colorado visiting family; it was our second trip there since she was born. 
• joined in on a little "tacky Christmas sweater" partying! 
• stayed in a cabin up in Silverthorn and got to experience snow and sledding firsthand. 
• was sick a lot - cold, double ear infection, another cold and then got a nasty virus while we were in Colorado. We even had to make two trips to the Children's Hospital ER in one day -- that was definitely a first! 
• had her first ER visit x's 2. 
• loved getting to spend so much time with her cousin Kailyn while we were in Colorado! Those two together were so darn cute … until they fed off each other's tantrums, that wasn't so cute. 
• took her very first trip to a Children's Museum while we were in Colorado. Had it not been New Year's Eve, perhaps it would have been slightly less crowded and more enjoyable. 
• was completely spoiled from all who love her for Christmas, she got so many wonderful gifts from all of our family and friends! Definitely blessed. 

Colorado Christmas

It's official ...

... we're moving!!! 

Des Moines, Iowa here come the Stowell's! 

(courtesy of pinterest) 

Yup. Our little family of three + our four fur children are taking a leap of faith and starting afresh in a brand new state! Jason was offered a really great promotion (I am so proud of him) within his company and after weighing the options we feel this is where we are supposed to be. It is definitely going to be hard to pack-up our lives here in Corpus Christi and say goodbye to family and friends that we've made along the way (hardest part by far!); perhaps we will leave it at a "see you later" because let's face it, everyone knows goodbyes stink! With that said, it is merely an understatement when I say that there is SO much to be done between now and January 21st - Jason's first day! Nothing like a little chaos to spice things up. These next few months will undoubtedly be a whirlwind of crazy but we've got each other and the grace of God on our side. 

As hard as it will be to say our "see ya later's", there is also a lot that we are looking forward to in this new chapter of our lives. For one, we will be closer to more of our immediate family than we are now, which means a lot! Jason will get to eat Chipotle as often as his heart desires and me, don't even get me started on how many SuperTargets there are to choose from! I am only slightly kidding. No, but really, after our short visit to Iowa we really fell in love with all it has to offer! 

OH! and one more thing, whether it was a mere coincidence or a sign from God, this may or may not have played a little roll in our final decision process...

In the midst of our decision making process this little piece of paper was torn out of one of my decorating books by our naughty sweet daughter! After getting myself ready for the day, I came out of the bathroom to Jason and Blaykleigh in the living room. Jason watching t.v. and Blaykleigh doing what she does best, getting into stuff she shouldn't. After fussing at her and then Jason for not watching her, I grabbed this piece of paper out of her hand. Of all text that could have been written on that torn page, there it is folks, printed clear as day ... Des Moines, Iowa. 

Just a little odd don't ya think?! 

Well there you have it. 

We will soon be "Iowans".