Spiderman saves the day

we shall prevail!! Good will Triumph!

Ramin checking in. This is my maiden voyage on the family blog. my personal ramblings can be found on our Roots Church blog at www.rootschurch.wordpress.com

Wanted to fire a couple of halloween images up as we had a grand old time in the Park. Living in Chautauqua Park compels a restful adventure ready lifestyle with friends. we are incredibly grateful for the other families who are living in the Park over the winter. It makes for incredible community and great times for the kids. here are some sweet shots of the crew on a trick our treat rampage. We've got the fairy princess-Cecelia, Curious George-Peakay, Big Spiderman-Gordon, Lil' Spidey-Isaiah james and Tiger-Nathan. The neighbors went all out and really made the little crew feel welcome at each house. In the process of collecting candy we managed to save the day at least 8 times while ending global hunger, protecting orphans, reforesting the Amazon and finally getting George Bush out of office. Enjoy and just remember Spiderman can save your day too. all you have to do is believe.




Quick Rally the Team.

we all need mentors

Not so fast! Your villainous plans will never succeed on my watch!

POW! WHAM! BOOF! I have trapped Dr. Evil in a pile of leaves....
Quick-rush the porch Chuck Norris style, they'll never know what hit them

Take my hand Princess, I will Save YOU
saving the world makes me hungry
Let Peace prevail

Fall has hit Chautauqua (and cute Isaiah pics)

Fall has come to Chautauqua Park and although it's a far cry from the vibrant reds, yellows, and oranges of the Indiana tree line, it's beautiful and we're trying to drink it all in before the foothills are white for 5 months. The bright jewel tones of the trees have reminded me lately of the great and glorious mystery of God. The reality of Him creating a process that turns leaves from green to incredible colors that paint our landscape with beauty fills my heart with a sense of how much there is to discover and how little I know.

Because I'm not an expert blogger these pictures are a little out of order, but I'm thinking you'll be able to enjoy them just the same :)

Isaiah and I went out to the "yard (a big plot of grass at the end of our street)" today to take fall pictures and it didn't go so well. I either got pictures like the one below where he's grasping for the camera or ones of his back as he was running away from me.

Here's a fun one of him playing with the leaves. What a fun thing to discover! They're pretty colors AND they crunch!

Pretty trees over our front porch.

Pictures like this make me ask for the 10,000th time, "I live here?!"

Here are Isaiah and his good buddy John working hard in their overalls. Being a toddler and having a whole world to discover is a lot of work!

I love this hat! It probably wasn't cold enough for it, but it's one of those items of clothing that you pull out as soon as you feel a little nip in the air. He was learning how to play piano with our friend Daniel and clearly loving it.

He looks like he belongs in a Louis & Clark expedition. He was pointing at the flag pole in the middle of the yard. He loves the flag pole and makes sure that Ramin and I see it everytime we pass by. I think it's a one year old thing, but he loves his pointer finger. He points all day long and very apparently feels empowered by his ability to direct people's attention towards things he's interested in.

What a Special Weekend!

It was a special weekend...awhile ago :) The little Internet access we do have at the cottage on occasion is not strong enough to support updates on the blog, so I wanted to share these pictures with you even though it was mid September when it happened. Heidi, one of my dearest friends from college had business in Denver so she came up to Boulder to visit for the weekend. It was so great to catch up and to experience that although our lives and circumstances have changed our hearts are still so connected. In addition to Heidi visiting, my Mom decided to take a spontaneous trip so that she could hang out with Isaiah. It was kind of fun pretending that she doesn't live over 1000 miles away, "sure Mom, come for the weekend." The cutest part was that in the morning when we all woke up, I brought Isaiah into the living room to see Grammy and he knew her right away! He gave her big snuggles and acted like he'd just seen her the day before. It was truly priceless. This picture is Isaiah and Grammy together at the Walnut Cafe, a fun place to get breakfast in town.

Very opposite what this picture may lead you to believe, Isaiah LOVED Heidi. The minute I introduced them, he leaned her direction with his arms outstretched and gave her a huge hug. I'd never seen him do that before with someone he'd just met. Again, another priceless moment. He was just too squirmy to sit still for a picture :)

Here are Karin, Heidi and I posing for probably the 15,000th picture of our lives knowing each other. We shook our heads in amazement as we remembered what it was like to meet for the first time when we were 18! And that is why we feel so blessed. We still love, encourage and give life to each other after 11 years...beautiful!

More Fun Pictures from our Trip to the Midwest

Flying high with Papa Mehdi

Isaiah, mounging at the best mexican restaurant in Indianapolis with his new friend David. David was recently adopted from India and became a part of the wonderful Nevin's family.

"Reunited and it feels so GOOOOD!!!" Isaiah loved seeing his Auntie Lauren again (I don't think she minded either)

Opening presents at Grammy and Papa Jon's house in Indy. His party was so much fun.

Isaiah and his 2nd cousins, Hallie and Kaden sitting with their wonderful Great Grammy and Papa B.

There are a lot more wonderful images to share from the trip, but I ran out of photo space in this post. I'll keep updating as I get chances. Grammy Debi is coming for a short trip this weekend so I'll definitely put up some pictures from that time together.

We're Back!

Hello again friends and family! An update is a long time coming and has been postponed because we don't have Internet access in our new home. I've made it to a coffee shop tonight, though and am excited to get you all caught up on the happenings of the last month. The first notable event is that Isaiah, Ramin and I moved from our home on Lincoln Place and are now living in an adorable 19th century cottage in Chautauqua Park (one of the major open space parks in Boulder). We're loving the charm of the cottage, the quiet living and the direct access to hiking trails. It's been a great change for us, a slowing and an unplugging. We put our TV in storage with all of our furniture (the cottage is furnished) and have been enjoying the chance to breathe deep and truly rest in our hearts. TV is such a default activity for me, especially, so not having that as an option has been a really good thing. We have gotten a lot of family time and love most of all, hiking together in the evenings when Ramin gets home. I'll have to post a picture of Isaiah in his back pack. For those of you who have had the joy of witnessing his "groove," imagine him doing that the whole time we're hiking! It's truly adorable.

Another wonderful event in August was a road trip to the midwest to spend time with our families. We had a ball! We spent the first 7 days in Tiffin, OH with Ramin's family and the last week at my parent's house in Indiana. We rested, read, played a lot with Isaiah and had a great time connecting with our families. Among all of the fun we did manage to have 2 birthday celebrations for Isaiah James who turned 1 on the 26th! Below are some great pictures from his party in Ohio with the Razavi's. I'll post pictures from the rest of our trip soon.

Enjoy!

Isaiah's very own #1 cake (chocolate inside), decorated by a very amateur Mommy
Isaiah with his Gram and Papa Razavi. Papa decorated the patio with streamers, balloons and fun signs just for him. He loved looking at it all. He even took one of the balloons and made it a bath time toy :)

Happy Birthday to YOU (he doesn't look too into it does he?)

This picture makes us laugh! He didn't eat a bite of his cake and had bananas instead :) What a funny kid.

We're Having Lots of Fun...

This month holds a special treat...my best friend Erin and her husband, Brian and son, Brett are in Colorado. They work for an organization that helps high schoolers cultivate their spiritual lives and they're out here for classes and a conference for the month. We've been trying to get as much time together as we can, so last Friday, Karin, Isaiah and I headed up to Fort Collins to hang out. This picture is Karin, Erin, Erin's dog, Bailey and Isaiah. Isaiah was having a great time chasing Bailey around and he was being such a good sport. Isaiah is not yet acquainted with the concept of "gentle." We're working on it!

On Saturday we went with Aunt Lauren and Julie to the pool in town. It was quite a scorcher, so the refreshing water was just what we needed. Isaiah wasn't so sure about it...the water was a little more chilly than usual, so he's not showing his cutest, most pleased face in this picture.

So, when the water fails...try LUNCH! Our boy is a very husky eater. It's one of his favorite things to do. Here he is with...well...I can't tell, but it looks like he's enjoying it.

After a big lunch what is better than a nice nap in the diaper? He was worn out from the whole adventure and decided to take a little rest in the shade.

Isaiah's new obsession is "The Very Hungry Caterpillar." We picked it up at the library last Tuesday and he has been all about it since. The first night he had it he made Daddy read it 6 times! It's usually on the floor in his room and when he wakes up from his nap I hear him saying "booo, booo." Isaiah language for "book." This truly is a special book because it marks one of I.J.'s milestones of communication. On the first page when I ask him where the little egg on the leaf is, he points to it....what a big boy!

Happy 4th of July!

We enjoyed our 4th of July afternoon with friends at a birthday party for our friend Michael. We had a great time with everyone. I felt especially thankful this year as I looked across the yard at a new friend who moved to the states after being released from a refugee camp in Ethiopia. We are so blessed to live in freedom. Happy 4th of July!

Isaiah James loves his Auntie Lauren. Here they are together at the party in their red, white and blue.

Sisters!

Should I get in?

Yep, I should....did you bring a change of clothes for me Mommy?

All wet and riding his Mickey hog!

Water Baby

It has been HOT here in Boulder, so on Friday we went to a friend's neighborhood pool and chilled out in some refreshing water. One of our friends had an extra floatie, so we gave it a try and Isaiah loved it! He didn't waste any time trying to find the bottom of the pool with his feet, he just got in, leaned all the way back, put his little legs up and was content to float around relaxing (not something we commonly see Isaiah doing). We had a great day and were definitely glad to escape the heat for awhile. I have a feeling we'll be doing a lot more swimming as the summer goes on. The sun in Colorado packs a punch.

Sprinkler Fun in Roxie's Yard

Poor Isaiah James is struggling pretty bad with teething right now, so the neighbors were collaborating, trying to think of something to make him happy. Our next door neighbor Roxie had the sprinkler idea and it was a hit. He had a great time sticking his face in it, touching the water with his hands and stopping the water flow. He even got courageous and started to drink it.Trying to get a drink

Stopping the water with his hand

A wet face! And a wet diaper :)

Bub Man's Week in Review

How else does a Mom get stuff done? Isaiah helps me with the laundry by riding in the basket from the dryer to the living room :)Last week Isaiah went nuts for his friend Justin's ball, so that week at Walmart I sprung for the $.93 special....he loves it!

My cousin Kristen came to Colorado to spend time with us last week/weekend. Isaiah had a great time with her.

Our little bub is now experimenting with standing....no steps yet, but long moments on his feet. He especially loves to show off his skills with xylophone mallets in hand.

On Father's Day Isaiah did his favorite thing with Daddy....played "Ba" and sang and laughed with glee. And I wish I could have captured it, but that afternoon when we went out for tea, he gave Ramin the sweetest Father's Day smooch.

Little Friends at a Wedding

Isaiah, Mercy and John

Betsy and Mercy, Isaiah and I, and Meggan and John

This past Saturday we had fun celebrating the marriage of our good friends Andy Swanson and Tara McPhail. Their romance started pretty much as soon as we got to Boulder and after 2 years of dating they sealed their marriage vows. It was a great time with all of our friends. The wedding and reception were outside right next to the St. Vrain river. It was beautiful. Isaiah had some good buddies there, too and we couldn't help but get some great shots of them together. What Cuties :)