It’s great that it’s just 3 or 4 minutes away.  We come here for our regular doctor appointments too.

From the moment you walk in, you realize that it doesn’t feel like just any other hospital.  The indoor waterfall and bright skylight make you feel like you walked into a hotel lobby!

Having a baby in the New Life Center is like staying at a resort.  The accomodations are more than comfortable, with extra closet space for your clothes…

…comfy sofa/bed for daddy, TV, DVD/VHS player, wood finish all around…

Even the glider is a nice touch!  Basically the only thing out of place is the hospital bed!  You’ve also got some light reading in case you can’t fall asleep…

…and a play area to keep big sis occupied!  There’s a TV in there playing kid shows.  How awesome is that?

Every so often someone pushes a cart around to all the rooms with warm chocolate chip cookies.  Yum!

And they even have free masssages for mommy!

The eight page menu was amazing!

Thai chicken salad with a… yes… real ice cream chocolate milk shake.  We must have had milk shakes everyday.  Every.  Single.  Day.

The buttermilk pancakes were also probably the best I’ve ever had anywhere, hospital or not.

But the part we liked best was the awesome staff!  The nurses were so friendly, so helpful, so accomodating.  We also met a lot of staff that had the same names as us!

There was Peter the anesthetist…

4 Jody’s (two spelled the same, two with “i”).  This Jody (nurse) even had the same middle name…

And another nurse named  Lana for good measure!  Lana took care of Noah in the nursury.

It’s no wonder people come here from miles away to have their babies!  We just picked it by chance because we live so close.  We have friends who personally changed their hospitals and doctors mid-pregnancy to have their babies here after they saw what it was like!

We knew when we had Lana here that we were coming back.  But this time might be our last, so it’s bittersweet to leave this place.  We’ll miss you, Avista New Life Center!

Stats:
Time: 12:42 PM
Weight: 6 lbs. 9 oz.
Height: 19 1/4 inches

Happy birth day Noah!

This year we went to a block party at Toni and Erick’s place.  They have a great cul-de-sac with great neighbors, so the whole area was closed down for the day.

Bouncy houses for the kids, bean bag toss for the adults…

Everyone wanted to get in on the action…

Even with the Jell-O shots.  Jell-O what???

Lana found a new favorite toy…

And a new friend!  I gotta admit, this kid knew how to work it.  Sly boy!

Daddy had to escort him away from the property…

But Lana’s boyfriend Ethan was patiently waiting for her…

Bean bag toss wasn’t enough.  We had to play some horseshoe too.  REAL horsehoe.  For REAL…

As the weather cooled, it was time to start the fire pit.

Nothing like roasting some marshmallows over an open fire!

It was so fun to gather around the fire, listen to the blasting music, and just relax and “talk story.”  Thanks Toni and Erick, and thanks Frank and Marie!  You guys ROCK!

Happy Birthday, America!  We’re so lucky to have great friends to share it with!

After a quick stop at Costco for some cheap lunch, it was off to Colorado Mills Mall.  We took the scenic route toward the mountains.  Partly because of the view, partly to give Lana time to take a nap, and partly because I wanted to play with my new camera lens!

Nice stops along the way to take in the view.  When we got to the main road I just had to pull over on the side to take this shot.  Not as dramatic as being there, one of those things you have to experience I guess…

At the mall, Lana grabbed a map and played tour guide.

Of course the first stop was the carousel!

Followed by the Lego store (for daddy, of course)…

And some rides!

This time we let the train go by…

While Mommy got a GREAT deal at the Corningware store!  Look at that big smile!

Then it was time for dinner at the Yard House for Happy Hour!

Luckily Aunty Jacie and Kallie were able to meet up with us!

On our way out we saw a hermit crab kiosk…

As you can guess, Daddy + beer + cute Lana = “Let’s get some hermit crabs for Lana!”

Lana was so excited she plopped down on the floor of Carter’s to check them out!

One is named Kal El.  You can probably guess which one (if you’re half a geek)…

What a great day and great way to kick off Independence Day weekend!  Can’t wait for tomorrow!

To celebrate the last day, they brought over a FEAST!

I also happen to be playing around with my new lens.  It’s a Nikon 35mm f/1.8 prime lens.  For those of you into photography, you know what that means.  This is my grill.  It loves me as long as I love it.

Mr. Sugs did an awesome job of seasoning the lamb chops.  Yum!

Of course you can’t grill without some beer!

Some appetizers to start things off…

Some pork loin, prepared two different ways, with red potatoes.  Well done, of course…

Lamb on the grill… check…

And the final result: a FEAST!  King crab legs, veal, angus franks, the whole nine yards!

Of course, no feast is complete without a full selection of beer!

… and my favorite bottle opener ever.  It’s from Italy.  Thanks sis!!!

Alright, enough with the pics, time to eat!!!

Boy, these Sugs really know how to party it up!  Thanks guys, we really appreciate it!

We’ll miss you Kallie!  Keep mommy and daddy out of trouble!!!

We were so glad that Lana’s friends could join us to celebrate her 2nd birthday!  It was utter chaos, but it was so much fun!

I don’t know if Lana even knew she was the guest of honor, but I think she had a great time!

Lana really has a thing for big mice, it seems…

It seems everyone else had a great time as well.

It was also a great time for the mommies and daddies to catch up!

Then it was time to open gifts…

And run around till she couldn’t run around any more…

What a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon celebrating such a special occasion.  Thanks everyone for coming!

After a day like today, anyone would be pooped!  Hope you had fun, Cutie Pie!

We started off the festivities during daddy’s lunch break with a picnic in the park and some play time in yet another nearby playground.

Lana just LOVES to hang out with us!  Ahem…

After a nap for Lana and mommy and more workie workie for daddy, it was time for dinner at the mall.  They have indoor and outdoor play areas, as well as a huge sand box.  We worked up an apetite at the outdoor playground, then headed over to Red Robin for a birthday dinner!

Lana got her first restaurant birthday song! As you can tell, the staff was extremely enthusiastic…

Lana was just excited to get a balloon!

Then it was time to burn off that free chocolate sunday in the indoor play area!

Daddy was having some fun of his own!

Finally, it was time to head home for a Birthday song with the family over Skype!  Two laptops, one for each family.  Grandparents and uncles and aunts on both sides, even great grandpa sang their hearts out.  It was great!  It’s even more special that Lana shares the same birthday with her great grandpa!

Lana really enjoyed mommy’s famous cupcake birthday cake.  It’s a tradition!

And time for Lana’s birthday present: Mickey Mouse!  Last time we walked into a Disney Store Lana’s eyes lit up and she gave Mickey a BIG hug and a kiss.  So of course we had to bring him home!  It was well worth it, because her eyes lit up again and it was hug and kiss city!

Happy Birthday Cutie Pie, we love you!  Can’t wait for your birthday party at Chuck E Cheese this weekend!

What, you thought I was going to post a video of myself dancing?

Yes, we like to dance sideways!

These are the moments that make being a daddy great!

You might need to crank up your volume…

Most people probably don’t believe us when we tell them that Lana talks up a storm, since she’s so shy in front of others.  So I need to resort to quick recordings from my cell phone!

Complete sentences are hit and miss, but she has quite a bit of 4 or 5 word sentences in her arsenal!  Isn’t it nice to be able to communicate with your child?  Or is this how Pandora’s Box gets opened…