eighteen months old

i know that i am partial - but we have the sweetest & cutest 18 month old i have ever laid eyes on. she is so smart and loves to learn new things! but after she understands (or thinks she understands) she likes to do it all on her own. little miss independent for sure.

she's becoming such a big girl. we can tell she understands almost everything we say to her...even though at times she does the exact opposite of what we say. ha! i am loving her age! even though i've said that at every age...this really is the best. we love to dance around and be silly together! her laugh literally brightens our day.

• evie is now 21 lbs 2.5 ounces and 31 inches long (5-10th percentile)

• she is STILL wearing size 2 diapers but we are ready for 3's after this pack runs out! she's such a peanut!

• evie spent her first week away from mommy & daddy this month...but had a full week of mimi & papa!

• she LOVES to read, especially on the iPad

• evie has 10 teeth & 4 about to appear

• she likes to stack blocks, blow bubbles, color with crayons & draw with sidewalk chalk

• evie really loves listening to music & singing (praise the LORD!)

• she sleeps 8pm til 8am

• her vocabulary continues to explode every month! some of the words she can say: NO! (usually spoken forcefully), book, milk, more, happy, hug, nigh nigh (goodnight), please, out (usually mocking mommy when told to get out of the bathroom, bedroom, cabinets), ouchie, peeeyeww (poopy), button, awwwduuh (all done), hot, hiya, bu-bye, bah bah (ball), cheese, baby, choooo (shoe), cah-cah (car), chuck (truck) and many many more.

la la la

evie loves to sing!

ipad - toddler generation

evie really loves reading. she constantly is climbing in our laps with a book in hand. erik recently downloaded a couple sandra boynton book's on the ipad. they are super fun and interactive and she loves them. erik sent me this picture today while i was at work with the following message: "Came around the corner to find this. She turned it on, unlocked it and sure enough, what was she doing? Reading her sandra boynton book"

eeeeeee

this is the sound we hear when the hustad cousins are together. eeeeeee!!! aaaaaaaaaa!!!! evie was not letting the boys push her around tonight! :)

father's day

after a week away on vacation - erik and i soaked in some quality time with evie over the weekend. an even sweeter deal was to be able to celebrate father's day with evie's aunt kinsey & uncle jase! we hit up the saltdogs baseball game and enjoyed fun in the sun!

erik, i am so thankful for you. watching you with our sweet baby girl melts my heart. you love her so hard and so well. she's so lucky...and so am i. i know you will always take care of us. thank you for being a man of integrity, a husband who chases his wife, and a daddy who loves his little girl unconditionally.

what happens in vegas doesn't really stay in vegas...

erik & i went to las vegas this past week for vacation. some much needed time of rest, relaxation & fun! we went with gabe & emily and had a wonderful time!! here are the highlights!

we ate at some incredible restaurants!!

ben & jerry's

one of erik's favorite chefs is thomas keller. we were lucky to be able to eat at his restaurant, bouchon, in the venetian. it was amazing! the service was excellent! they even gave us a private tour of the kitchen knowing erik admired keller's work! so fun!

hitting the casino!

emily and i had our priorities straight when we got to vegas. and that was...to spend as much time by the pool as possible. we did just that. and it was amazing!!

evie spent the week with her mimi & papa. she had a blast! these are some of the photos my mom sent us during our first week away from our little peanut.

thanks mimi & papa! loved spending the week with you! love, evie

three, two, one....summer!!!

handpicked

my sweet nephew, declan, is one adorable little man. declan and i share something very very special. we are adopted (better known as handpicked). God chose declan to be placed in our family and we couldn't be happier. on friday, we celebrated just that - declan's adoption day. two years ago, ashley and mark stood before a judge and proclaimed their unconditional love & devotion to decs. that day - declan legally became a hustad - even though he had been a hustad since the day we found out he was going to be placed with a&m.

my mom & dad celebrate my adoption day with me every year. and every year, we would pray for birthmom. my birthmom made a difficult decision that was beyond painful for her. but God was bigger than that...and he brought us together 21 years later to begin a very special relationship. we have such a unique story and through it all, there was a plan. a plan i still can not fully comprehend, but i am thankful for the Lord's blessings.

i will never forget the day my sister.in.law ashley called me to tell me they had been chosen to be the parents of a baby boy who was to be born a few months later. they were chosen not only by the birthparents, but by God. it was a great day. it was even more wonderful the day he was born. and our hearts leapt for joy the day he came home. but it was icing on the cake when the judge signed the papers. declan isaac hustad.

declan, my prayer for you is that you understand that being adopted is not your identity. it is merely a part of your birth story and your coming home story. may you come to know, understand, and appreciate the love that your birthparents have for you...the love that your mommy & daddy have for you...the love your family has for you...and above all...the love our Heavenly Father has for you. and my oh my, we are so thankful for you. you are very special to us little man. we love you!

evie getting some love from two of her uncles

not flesh of my flesh nor bone of my bone,

but still miraculously my own.

never forget for a single minute,

you didn't grow under my heart...but in it.