Since our last post, Libby has continued to grow. Now at almost 14 months, she has gotten this walking thing down pat. She even has figured out how to almost run (I wouldn't call it running yet, but a VERY fast walk). One of the more fun things she likes to do is dance. It started out as bopping to music, but now has moved onto stomping her foot and now this weekend, spinning around and moving her arms. It is really fun to watch and hard not to laugh, even though mom and dad try to join her. She probably thinks we are nuts!
The other thing she has started doing is bringing us a diaper when the one she has on needs to be changed. Is it too early to start potty training????
Denise and I were able to get away for a week. The week of our anniversary, we took a cruise in the Eastern Caribbean. Leaving from Port Canaveral, Florida, we made stops at Cocoa Cay (Bahamas), St. Thomas and St. Maartin on Royal Caribbeans Freedom of the Seas. Let me tell you, I was one that didn't think I would enjoy a cruise, being stuck on a boat and all the other arguments you hear against them. But Denise talked me into it and I LOVED IT! There is just so much to do on the ship that you can do as much or as little as you like. We are already talking about doing it again in a year.
Here are two pictures of our ship, the Freedom of the Seas. Right now, the Freedom class for Royal Caribbean is the largest cruise ship sailing, but in December, Royal Caribbean will break out the Oasis of the Seas. We did have some people tell us that we were starting out our cruising experiences right by going with the biggest and the best right out of port.
Here is the sign to Coco Cay, Royal Caribbeans private stop in the Bahamas. We decided to just rent some beach mats and lounge around on the beach an in the water. Unfortunately, I forgot to upload a picture of the actual island......
After a day at sea, our next stop was St. Thomas, where we decided to take an island tour with one of the local guides. We got to see the WHOLE island, the rich and high points along with the poor and low points. It is kind of amazing that there can be such a huge disparity on such a small piece of land. In the picture below, we are at an overlook that has Magen's Bay behind us (one of the top 10 beaches in the world).
The next day was a stop at St. Maartin, where we decided to take part in the America's Cup sailing regatta. There were 30 of us from the ship that were divided up into two team and we raced actual multi-million dollar boats that have participated in the America's Cup races. Our team ended up on True North from Canada, while the other team was on Stars and Stripes from the US. After a quick tutorial by our captain and his two helpers, we raced, and the Great White North prevailed! I was a grinder on the boat, while Denise was a relief grinder, and it was a workout. My shoulders were a little stiff the next day.
After two days at sea to get back to Port Canaveral, it was back to Minnesota and to Libby, who spent the week with Grandpa and Grandma Danielson.So, enough about us, back to Libby. Below are some pictures of her in her Halloween Costume. We decided to take her outside and put her with one of the leaf piles and a pumpkin!
A couple of weekends ago, we made a quick little trip up to Fargo and on the way home, we decided to stop at a farm with a corn maze, pumpkin patch and petting zoo. Well, we pick a horrible day to stop as it was cold and rainy. And since it had been raining off and on for a couple of weeks now, that Red River Valley soil was very soupy. We did get a few pictures though.Libby on a hay bale.
Libby petting "Baby Davy" the cow.
Libby looking at the goat, who looks like she wants Libby's stroller. Libby loved petting the goat and having her nibble at her hand.
And here is proof that Libby is not always the little angel that we like to make her out to be! One day at daycare, they decided to put her hair in "pig tails". Not only do we have the three that you can see, but there was one in the back also.
Both our jobs continue to go very well. Last week Denise had to spend three days in Denver doing some hardware upgrades to the network out there. This week, she will spend three day in Golden Valley, MN, doing the same upgrades as those two sites are paired together. Even though she is gone for a few days, it bodes very well for her future as this part of the network will be hers to watch over once she is fully trained. Her mentor keeps giving her more and more responsibility and she is loving it, finally having something to do again. And Libby survives very well, taking care of dad while mom is gone!
Well, that is about all from here for now. We will try to update a little more frequently here in the future. Until next time......
Troy, Denise and Elizabeth
