First baseball game hot dog

Yes we are alive! Between new jobs and a move and getting adjusted to new schedules we are finally somewhat settled. I will try to give a few posts in the next few days to catch up on what we have been up to. A few weeks ago we took Hunter and Avery to a Diamondback game. We found bleacher seats that were actually pretty close to the field for an inexpensive rate and decided to go. Hunter was absolutely enthralled and I cracked up getting pictures of him eating his first hot dog at a game he chowed down. He was so excited that three fly balls came into our section and loved it when everyone stood up and tried to catch them. He was convinced that one almost came right to him. Avery was amazingly good through almost all of the game and sat and snacked. When they opened the roof of the stadium she kept looking up and saying "oh wow" over and over again and pointing, it was funny. It was a really fun thing to go do as a family and I can't wait to go again.

Moving

The day we moved in Deke and Hunter found this little kitten in the backyard. The poor little thing still had its umbilical cord and had been abandoned. Before I knew it we had a box with blankets, an eye dropper and milk and it had been named. Hunter came in and asked us if it was a baby Jaguar and then proceeded to tell us that that was its name. Deke and I don't like cats at all so it is a good thing that this one was tiny and helpless. It is the only time I like cats is as babies and will never own one. It wouldn't eat for me so Deke because the official feeder and feed it every couple of hours when it would start crying. He would wrap Jaguar in a blanket just like a baby and sure enough he would lap it up. I couldn't find any shelter that would take him and not put him to sleep. Deke and I couldn't handle the thought of something so new to the world leaving it so soon so we ended up caring for it for a few days. We finally found a shelter that said they would nourish it until they found an adoptive home for him. Hunter was so cute with him, he would talk to him and pet him and was so concerned about him. When it came time to take Jaguar to the shelter there was not a single dry eye in our car and it was a very sweet experience for us to watch our children love and nuture this little animal. When we are ready I think we are going to be great pet owners... of a dog that is :)

It goes fast

I can't believe that Deke and I recently celebrated our sixth anniversary already! It goes so fast and we have had so many wonderful and trying things happen to us in such a short time. We had a great anniversary and were able to have my cousin Kristal take some photos of us which was really fun. She did a great job, these haven't even been edited yet, you should see how cool they look when she edits them. It was so nice for us to reflect on our lives together so far and talk about the dreams and goals we have yet to come. We are grateful to have had six wonderful years together, four wonderful kids, and look forward to what things will be in store for us this year! We feel very blessed to have each other and be growing together. I know that life is going to continue to fly by us so fast with joys and growing experiences and I am glad that we are trying to slow it down, take it all in, and be in the moment.

A quick update

Well I had to start with this photo because I think it is so cute, I love you Deke! Anyways Burch life is busy as usual and here are some photos of what we have been up to. Deke and I took a little trip up to Holbrook this last weekend and since we were there we had to see the Wigwam hotel (you know the idea behind the cozy cone hotel in the Cars movie)

We also stopped in Winslow to make sure to see the "Man Standing on the Corner" of Winslow, AZ and go through a couple of cute shops totally dedicated to ROUTE 66.

A quick stop just outside of Joe City where my parents met to visit Geronimo. A little trading post where my mom once had I believe a summer job.

In Joe City we actually went by Grandma and Grandpa Hatch's old house since Deke had never seen it. It was kind of emotional to me to see it again and think about the fact that this little town is where my parents met and that this was the house they used to come home to on their dates.

Oh yes and Easter came and went. I have to post my favorite part of Easter in the next picture below. I LOVE these little chicks, they each have a different adorable pose that suggests certain personality traits. Yes I realize that they aren't real but they for whatever reason are adorable to me and I look forward to Easter because of them.

These are the cute Easter bouquets that we made for the Grandma's for Easter this year.

This is the Surprise Stadium where we took our kids for an egg hunt like no other. Never seen so many people, so many ridiculous people. The hunts were supposed to be divided into age groups yet somehow a thirty some odd woman still ended up walking off the field during the two year old hunt, unaccompanied by a child in a short skirt and spaghetti strap shirt, with as many eggs as she could hold carried in her shirt. All I could think was "Really lady, really???" Other than the fact that we had to sit in stadium seats for twenty minutes each holding a two and under child on our lap with the view of colored eggs waiting right before them it was great.

I let little Avery run out onto the field and was prepared to take on any of the crazy moms that were out there if they tried taking any of her eggs as she tried to gather them. As everyone rushed around her she just slowly picked them up one by one and smiled at me every time oblivious to the madness surrounding her.

Hunter however was raring to go and quickly dashed away from Deke in pursuit of just the right eggs. The word "comical" comes to mind as I watched Hunter dart through the crowds with Deke weaving and darting in and out trying to keep up with him. All in all very fun except for the fact that the bunny left the scene early and that reduced a very tired Hunter to tears.

Julian, Mira Mar, and Mitsuwa

I apologize up front for the amount of pictures you are about to be bombarded with. Well this last weekend we were so excited to have a chance to get away to beautiful San Diego for a visit with my mom. It was Deke's spring break so we headed out on Thursday afternoon and arrived in Cali later that night. On Friday morning we woke up and drove over to Julian this adorable little country town with rolling hills, farm animals, orchards, and quaint little shopping areas. It is known mostly for it's orchards and famous apple pies, in the fall you can go there and have a chance to pick the apples and make your own cider. We went into downtown Julian and walked all the shops and had fun taking pictures in all of the great little photo spots around town. I loved some of these pictures that we took of the kids. I don't know why but the one with Hunter standing by the red and blue barn door is just so cute, I love it. It was absolutely gorgeous there it was so green and I again wondered why we live in Arizona? We stopped by the Julian Pie Company and picked up an apple pie which was flaky and delicious. They make cider doughnuts that are supposedly amazing, we asked to try one and were shocked when the lady told us that you have to reserve a dozen if it is a Friday or a Saturday in order to get any. I then was even more interested in trying one and of course it was Friday so...no doughnuts for us. We spent all afternoon just walking the shops and then headed home for the evening. Deke wrestled the children while my mom and I snuck away for some fun one on one time shopping together. The next day we went to the Mira Mar aviation museum which was very cool and fun for both of my boys, both the little one and the big one. The old helicopter's were really neat and it was great because they actually let the kids touch the planes so they could really experience it. Then we headed to a huge park across from Sea World and had a picnic which was great until a guy crashed his kite into the tree right above us. Then Deke had to help him untangle it all which was quite a task. Marley took us to Mitsuwa a very neat Asian market. We went through a bookstore, a neat shop with all sorts of ornate tea sets and tea pots, aisle after aisle of new foods and vegetables and a giant room totally devoted to every type of rice you can imagine. It was really interesting to be somewhere where everything was in a different language that you couldn't read and people were talking in a language that you couldn't understand. I guess it was my first time being in a place that I was totally surrounded by another culture, it was very eye opening. We then headed home and let the kids play and we just relaxed. We relaxed and visited on Sunday and then headed back to AZ. It went fast of course like it always does but I just love love love going to California. It is such a fun place to get to go away for the weekend and let the kids get to spend time making some memories with Grandma and "the auntie's" as Hunter calls them.