Arden's first birthday.

And just like that, our baby girl turned one.

I can't believe it's been a year since Arden was born, and we became a family of three. I wouldn't say the year flew by - it was a long year! But it's amazing how much she's grown into her own person - from an intense and hungry newborn; to a cuddly and joyful 6-month old; to a happy, playful and always on-the-go one-year old. 

Arden is now a pro at crawling, loves to pull herself up on things, and always wants to be in the company of her mama and dada. She's pretty cautious about other people (and sometimes gets very clingy and upset when meeting/re-meeting some of our friends, unfortunately!) but loves to watch other babies and children. She likes babbling and singing to herself, clapping and trying to snap, and smiling - a lot. She's finally enjoying solids, like baby puff snacks and mashed banana. Unfortunately sleep is still an issue (long story short, we need to sleep train her again - we can't carry her for naps forever..!), but we'll get there when we get there. And she still prefers being carried to riding in her stroller. 

We spent Arden's birthday enjoying the sunshine, playing at a park and chatting with some family on FaceTime. We dressed her in red, as per the Chinese custom (and because she looks so cute in it!). I felt pretty emotional all day, looking back on our year with her, trying to recall what she was like during her first few days and weeks of life. It's been quite the journey so far.

Happy birthday, Arden. You are amazing, precious, and so very loved.

CK

Arden: Year One from Candice Kortlever on Vimeo.

a weekend in adelaide.

A few months ago when I had a 3-day weekend, we decided to take a little trip to visit Adelaide. Adelaide is a small city of about 1.3 million people located a short 1-hour flight from Melbourne. The perfect stopover for a long weekend.

One of Candice’s friends from college lives in Adelaide, so we met up with him for lunch shortly after we arrived. It was great to meet a local who could take us to the best coffee shop and show us Adelaide’s shining jewels – the Malls Balls.

the "Malls Balls"

The rest of our first day was spent wandering around the city in the rain, exploring Chinatown and the Adelaide Central Market. The next day the sun came out, so we decided to explore the Adelaide Botanic Gardens. When we travel to a new city in Australia, we always love to check out the botanic gardens. They offer a beautiful place to take an afternoon stroll, and occasionally glimpse some unique wildlife. Melbourne has an excellent botanic garden, but I think the Adelaide Botanic Garden is my favourite. From the unique buildings, lush gardens and beautiful lavender arches, we would highly recommend a visit to the gardens if you are ever in Adelaide.

The rest of our time in Adelaide we spent walking along the river, visiting the Adelaide Oval and exploring North Terrace. We had a great time on our visit and hope we have another opportunity to visit Adelaide again.

 -BK Adelaide - September 2016 from Candice Kortlever on Vimeo.