Here is a progression for those who have not seen Amy’s path towards motherhood

Having seen all of the Harry Potter movies leading up to the final installment, I made the committment to read the series before the last movie came out. I had heard how awesome the books were, so I was not surprised at all how much I enjoyed them. Great writing, wonderful characters, quick reads…loved them all. Definitely ranks as my favorite book(s) of 2011 even if they came out earlier.

Amy’s favorite – Towers of Midnight by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson.  This was a long awaited 13th book of a series of 14. Amy has been reading this series since 1990 and she is VERY excited to see how it will be finished up. This book ties up lots of loose end as one of Amy’s favorite fantasy epics comes to a close.

I saw this ad again last night and it is definitely my favorite of the year…

What’s that? You love that song and want to rock out to it? You got it!

A close second has to be the VW Darth Vader Ad:

So here are some highlights of the late summer and fall that have lead up to this point at the beginning of a new year…

• Amy made it out to Spokane to spend time with the McEachran kids and visit the Spokane family.
• The 2011 JWI Volleyball Tournament was a big success
• We made it to Spokane together to celebrate Nonnie’s 90th Birthday! On the way back we stopped at the Rosman farm for the annual McKenna Mania football draft
• We pulled the condo off the market and instead found a 12 month renter
• We moved in with Kris McKenna who was amazing and showered us with love (and food) at every step of the way
• Momma Weaver was in town in October and helped throw a baby shower for Amy at the Paulsons house
• The Sounders hosted a thrilling playoff game but had a disppointing end to a great season
• We bought a new house and with Jesse’s help we were able to move the first week of December. The work force which needs thanking included: Kris, Jack, Heidi, Barney, Craig (and Lucas), Staci Imwalle, Jesse, Todd, Matt, Janelle, Mom, and Dad Weaver.
• We hosted our first holiday feasts for some wonderful time with family.

And now here we are waiting for a baby! I will post some pics of our adventures if we have some time before the baby gets here. In the meantime, welcome back! And don’t worry this will be the hub for more baby boy Weaver pics then you can possibly imagine. Keep your eye out for an announcement soon!

Two years ago the Judy and Strode Weaver family tree gathered in San Diego for a mini-reunion. At the time we decided if we could do it every other year that would be fantastic. Well guess what? Early August we were off to meet up with the fam once more. The Houghtons from Des Moines; Units from Denver; Matt, Jannelle, Camille, Amy and I from Seattle; all joined up in Gerhart, OR. A cool little town just north of Seaside. Mom found a great house rental plenty big for our mob and we enjoyed incredible weather all week long.

Highlights included:

• Playing/relaxing on the beach
• Kubb in the yard
• Flying kites
• The Seaside Aquarium
• Day trip to the Portland Zoo
• Tillamook Cheese Factory
• The Nike Employee Store
• Puzzle making
• Lots of hugs and laughter

It was just wonderful to reconnect with family. See you all again in 2 years!

After the fun weekend on the island, it was off to Leavenworth for the wedding of Liz, one of Amy’s MIT Classmates. We used the opportunity to get in some time with Matt, Janelle, and Camille at the same time. Janelle’s aunt was generous enough to let us use her cabin for the weekend so we met in the mountains on Friday night for some Bavarian fun! We enjoyed the beautiful setting and fun downtown shops, walked the arts fair, ate some good food and practiced our Austrian accents.

The wedding on Saturday evening was beautiful and we were honored to be invited. The setting of the green mountains and bright blue sky could not have been better.

Amy and I are so excited! We had a great ultrasound appointment and are happy to report and healthy and active little baby on its way in January. Now if only I knew where to shop for football gear…

We made great time and were some of the first in line for our 4:45 boat direct to Friday Harbor. We enjoyed some time on the beach with toasted bagels before the boat arrived. In passage we ran into Ethan and got to meet his lovely girlfriend Liz with whom we instantly fell in love. We arrived at Jack and Heidi’s just in time for delicious pizza to be coming out of the oven. There was much catching up and a few practice games of Kubb before bed.

The next day the tournament began in earnest. It was a strong field of players this year. The rebuilt Åsa stadium was in excellent condition and the weather was absolutely perfect. Jesse Snyder treated us to delicious pulled pork that he roasted all day long. Everyone enjoyed taking turns playing their matches, score keeping, spectating, kayaking on the lake, and soaking up the sun. The day ended with a rousing demonstration of Jack’s favorite pastime, birdball. This “sport” includes using a dog chuck-it to hurl moldy limes at a dead snag tree in an attempt to get the lime into a woodpecker hole. Everyone took turns hurling limes, falling down, and laughing hysterically.

Sunday the tournament came to its climatic ending with Ethan beating me soundly in the final match. The tournament was filled with upsets and great matches. Elvis Beta would have been very proud. That night we had a special treat as our good friends Laura and Dave happened to be camping just across the lake! They made the short hike to come visit and hang out for the night. We introduced them to Kubb and enjoyed a fire and s’mores.

Monday we had more excitement as Marc McEchran and his family joined us on the island along with his new fiancée Jamie! It was so good to see Gracie, Josten and Clara. They are growing quickly and are all flourishing. It was our first opportunity to meet Jamie and her parents and they are very kind people. We are so thankful that Marc has found companionship, he truly deserves it. After another fun-filled day we made the slow trek back to the ferry and the long journey home. All of us were exhausted (none more so than Copper) and were so happy to be back in our own beds after a wonderful weekend of family.

Saturday morning we packed up the car and headed for Naches, WA to attend the baptism of Jace and Trey. The weather was stunning and the drive over was just gorgeous. Stephanie’s parents, Ron and Marcia, hosted us at their beautiful ranch home and we enjoyed all it had to offer. We ran out into the field to greet the new ponies, we rode the RTV and really enjoyed the peace and quiet. Both the boys were on their best behavior for the baptism ceremony and made us all proud.

Finally Sunday, we raced back to Seattle in time for a 2-1 Sounders victory. What a weekend indeed!