when we found out we were pregnant with Noah and got over the initial shock of the miracle that is our little man, I started to check out nurseries for ideas on what to do for our baby room.  I kept coming back to trees.  I love the growth, the element of nature, the comfort and security of a fully grown canopy… anyways, jaythan and I poured over ideas and finally found one in DIY we loved.

I’m so excited we’ve come into some breathing room to latch back onto this central theme and with a few minor tweaks to add some Ima element, we’ve finally started painting our new version nursery!   I can’t wait to share with you!!  Here’s Noah’s old room to hold you till we get this new one done!

We opened our home and hearts to Mina this weekend.  She dazzled us with her wit and imagination as we were constantly jumping from one interest to the next!! Her baby brother, Sufyan, was born 1/14 weighing in at 8lbs 20 inches and is sure to be another dazzling addition to the Ali’s!! It is an understatement to say that we enjoyed having Mina.  Jaythan and I both felt a shift as the weekend progressed where 3 little people running around, making chaos, just felt right!

This is a shocking discovery!!!

I’ll keep you posted…

It has literally been a whirlwind of activity here since fall marked the opening season to our teams’ birthdays, anniversaries, and holidays.  Noah turned 3, Ima bounded into her first birthday and jaythan celebrated his catch up – always having been a sucker for older women:) as he hit the big 2-9!!

Coming into the home stretch i keep reminding myself to take a moment each day to cherish these fleeting memories.  Ima took her first steps last week.  Noah looked into the sky and stood for a full minute just to feel a snowflake land on his skin. So many opportunities to celebrate!

OMG today was fun!  The kids were awesome and so adorable dressed in their finest. The hamburglar was exploring the playground and ended up wedged on one of the climbing structures (I laughed so hard I had to get help untangling him!) and we had such an eclectic mix of new moms and old, it  just clicked!!

It occurred to me after we moved in that this move was by far the trickiest to orchestrate than any other we’ve done. I’m not talking about packing and unpacking, I’m talking about packing, wrapping, lifting, cleaning, and BABY PROOFING! with a toddler in tow. It was crazy trying to figure out in any given space, how much trouble noah could find, so i did what any resourceful, amazing, brilliant mother would do… I invited all my friends over to help find weaknesses! Check out our first elam play-date!

Yep! We rocked, we rolled, we dressed for success! From the BOO-BEE’S to the “lions and Tigers and Bears OH MY!” we had quite the spook-tacular time! Check out how the moms in madison get ready for frightfest!

We went to the zoo on Sunday for what was probably the most perfect day of the year! The weather was just right at 75 with a breeze and sunshine. It was one of those days i looked up at Jaythan and was reminded why we were still living in wisconsin (that, and the fact that my hubby’s about to turn the design community on its’ tushie with the new Microsoft position here in the mad-town) But i digress, the zoo was wonderful! Noah had a great time riding around on papa while I pushed the stroller around to the different animals! He went crazy for the aviary. The birds swooped and called It was fantastic! Click on “ZOO” above to see some of the rest of the pictures!

The ladies and i met up at Orton Park the other day. It was a cold one and the first time we’ve had to bundle the babies in awhile! We ended up raiding the local coffee shop after about an hour of freezing our tushies off! They never saw us coming!

Yes! We just celebrated Noah’s VERY FIRST BIRTHDAY! Jaythan and i decided to dedicate a time capsule to him to be opened on his 21st birthday and asked many of you to help contribute to that cause! We’ve just about finished getting everything together and have been overcome by the notes, letters, pictures, and mementos that you have sent! We’ve also included some of his very first pictures (his ultrasound photos) as well as a map of his DNA, pictures from this birthday, and some small tokens and keepsakes! Thank you to our family and friends that made this so special for us!

PLEASE check out all of his birthday pictures on our flikr site! (click on birthday