Christmas Party at the Shirleys

Ornament Hanging Party at The Lachers

Christmas 2008

This past Christmas season proved another busy one for Darren and I. We were lucky enough to spend a lot of time with family and friends at several parties and gatherings. It was also our last Christmas of "freedom" as we called it, or our last one as just a couple. We logged a lot of miles driving back and forth from Fullerton/YL to HB, but luckily the drive doesn't bother us too much. It may be a bit harder to travel as much next year, but we'll see.

On the pregnancy front, I have been feeling pretty good for the most part. It's hard to slow down during the holidays when you're pregnant. There is always something to do what with the shopping, wrapping, decorating, baking and parties to go to and I have a hard time not doing everything I would normally do. Besides some lower back pain here and there and of course getting tired sometimes, I've had a relatively easy pregnancy, knock on wood. : )

I'll be 27 weeks on New Year's Day so I am closing in on the third trimester. I still feel like I have so much to do before our little girl arrives. Our office is still an office and needs to be cleaned out and organized so we can get started on the nursery. My nana is making the crib bedding so I've started seeking out the perfect fabric for that and need to get everything mailed up to Oregon so she can put it together. I want to do the room in black, white and raspberry pink. I have so many ideas in my mind and I can't wait to get started putting it all together. Guess that's it for now!

Happy Thanksgiving!

With the state of the economy this may not be the best Thanksgiving for some. But I recently received an email from a co-worker that reminded me how lucky we all are, just to leave in this great country. Even with the financial crisis, people losing their homes and jobs, the U.S. is still the best country in the world.

With that said I can look into my small part of the world and be thankful for so many blessings this year.

1. An amazing marriage! I can honestly say that I have married my soul mate. Darren is such a special person and together we share love and laughter every day.
2. An awesome family! I couldn't have a better family to have grown up with. My mom and dad are always going out of their way to do something for me or others and they are both amazing parents. I am also lucky enough to get a long so well with my both my sisters. Having a great extended family is also a blessing.
3. Our little girl in the making. I can only imagine how much we'll love our little girl when she arrives.
4. Our jobs! I know we sometimes complain about having to go to work, but aren't we lucky to have a good job right now.
5. Friends. Having a great core group of friends makes life so much better.
6. The little things in life - hot showers, blankets, a fire place, the beach, a good night kiss, slippers, dessert, hugs, flowers, music, etc, etc....

It's a GIRL!!!

It's a .......

We'll find out tomorrow afternoon whether our little bundle is a he or she! We are both very eager to find out!!! Of course we both just want a healthy baby, but I am kinda hoping for a girl and of course Darren is hoping for a boy. We'll be happy either way!

PREGNANT!

Ok, so I have been lagging with this announcement, but I am finally posting it! Yes, we are pregnant (most of you already know) and we are very excited!!! I am due April 2, 2009 so I am about 13 1/2 weeks along so far. On Oct. 28 we'll find out if we're having a boy or a girl. So far I have considered myself fairly lucky with the morning sickness period. I have definitely had my days and moments, but am not throwing up and been using the sea bands to help me through the days. I am now moving into the second trimester and I expect to be rid of the morning sickness for good. Hopefully I will get around to posting a "belly" picture soon.

Last visit to the Fire Station 49 - Dad retires

On July 26 we all went to the fire station for my Dad's last Saturday as a firemen. We had lunch, including dessert, the Claim Jumper mother lode that was of course cored. After running around with the kids and feeding the birds and fish, we all boarded the fire boat for our last ride with the Dadster. It was a really long boat ride which included all the kids and the adults a chance to shoot the fire house off the back of the boat. It was a really fun and unique experience! After the boat ride we had to say bye the firemen Dad for the last time. It was a little sad, but overall a great day!

Darren flexing his muscles as he practices using the water hose on the fire boat.

Baby Finley with her moustache on!

Mom bought plastic fire hats and fake moustaches for all of us. It was sooo funny! Even the baby wore one. : )

Family photo in front of the firetruck at Station 49.

Last Firestation Visit - July 26

Avery turned 4 on July 22! We all met at the RainForest Cafe at Downtown Disney. Avery had a blast at dinner and walking around after dinner with her fairy wings on.

Avery turns 4!

Big Ben, Parliament in London

Entrance to the Louvre in Paris

Arc de Triomphe in Paris

Oh la la...the Eiffel Tower

Tapas Dinner and Flamenco Dancing Show in Barcelona

Venice gondola ride!

Ooooooohhhhhh the food in Italy. This was my favorite meal of the entire trip - in Monterosso.

View of beach in Monterosso in Cinque Terre, Italy

View from Michaelangelo's Hill in Florence

The Trevi Fountain in Rome

Vatican

Ceiling of Pantheon in Rome

Europe photos

I am finally getting around to posting some pictures from our trip. Although, I think by now most of you have seen the 200 plus pictures on Kodakgallery.com. : ) I am already missing things about our trip, but these pictures take me back! Enjoy.

EUROPE!!

Well, were back from Europe and boy was it a whirlwind trip! We had an amazing time in each city and loved them all for different reasons. Darren and I both agreed that Monterosso in Cinque Terre, Italy was our favorite stop. We were lucky enough to spend 1.5 days in that small slice of heaven! Cinque Terre is made up of 5 tiny and quiet towns on the Mediterrean Coast in Northeast Italy. The food and wine were amazing and it was such a relaxing place amidst the crazy sightseeing schedule we had in London, Paris, Barcelona, Venice, Florence and Rome. One of the other highlights of the trip, at least for me, was going to the Eiffel Tower! It's so surreal walking up to it and then taking the shaky elevator all the way to the top. It was much bigger than I imagined it would be. The London Eye was another really neat experience -as well as waling past Big Ben and Parliament. Barcelona, definitely had an energy about it and I wish we would've had more time there. We spent the most time in Italy, and although some of the people were rude, we had a wonderful time. Venice was just as you'd picture it to be from pictures and movies you've seen. Lots of shops and restaurants and gelato stands! Were splurged for a gondola ride and that was really great. It was the day we were without our luggage so it was nice to be off our feet and resting even though it was only 35 minutes. Most of you have probably already seen the 200 plus photos I sent out, so I have just attached a few of my favorites.

1st Anniversary!

We did it! We made it through the first year of marriage - time really flew by and being married has been great! We've been celebrating for the past week or so. On May 10th we stayed at Laguna Cliffs for our free one night anniversary stay. It was a fun day and night remembering back to all the planning and fun we had at the wedding. We spent the day walking around Dana Point harbor and then laid out by the pool for a couple hours before going out for a nice dinner. Then this past Friday night Darren surprised me with tickets to see Wicked at The Pantages in LA. The show was really good and actually surprisingly funny. Today, our actual anniversary we aren't doing anything special since we are leaving for Europe on FRIDAY!! That is the real anniversary celebration!! We are both getting really excited and are probably going to start packing as early as tonight. We are still thinking about trying to see the new Indiana Jones movie on opening night, May 22 so we want to try and get all our packing done before then so we can see it. Our itinerary is below:



London - May 24 - May 27

Paris - May 27 - May 30

Barcelona - May 31 - June 1

Bologna - June 1

Venice - June 2

Cinque Terre - June 3 & 4

Florence - June 5

Rome - June 6

Flying home on June 7



One final note - just wanted to say thanks to everyone who sent messages and even cards and a special thanks to mom and dad for the beautiful flowers!



My next post will probably be all about our European vacation!



Love, Melissa and Darren

Mother's Day 2008

We spent a fun day at Disneyland for Mother's Day this year. It was my mom and dad, and Amanda and then Pam and Brent and the kids and John and Lou. The kids were very well behaved all day and Avery even went on Space Mountain for the first time. The weather was perfectly pleasant too. All in all a great day.

Love you mom!

Finley Kate Lacher finally arrived on 4/11 at 12:31pm. She weighed 7 lbs and 9 oz, just like Avery and was 19 inches long. Pam checked into the hospital at 1:30am so it was a long labor, but she dealt with it like a champ. Although it took a while to progress, according to Pam the labor was relatively easy - not a lot of pain, and got the epidural at a perfect time. She only had to push once! Enjoy all the pictures. : )

Awaiting baby Lacher #3

Hi everyone. So...we are waiting for the arrival of baby Lacher #3. Pam isn't due until 4/14 but she is at 4cm and we all thought she'd be at the hospital by now!!! Keep her in your thoughts and prayers and I am sure she will be in labor soon. : )

First post

Hello all! Welcome to the Stewardson Family blog! This is my first post on my first ever blog. I figured I would start one so I could be cool and be part of the "in" crowd. We are eagerly awaiting the arrival of our new niece. Pam is due on 4/14 so it could be any day now. Darren and I are also getting very excited about our European vacation!!! We leave May 23 for London. We'll spend 3.5 days in London, 3.5 days in Paris, 2 days in Barcelona and 6.5 days in Italy. It will be the first trip to Europe for both of us, so we'll be the blind leading the blind - but we are getting a lot of tips from family and friends and doing a lot of reading.

Hope everyone is doing well!

Love, Melissa and Darren