Baby Hoffmann on the Way!

I'm so excited!  Becky is in labor. Her original due date was September 8th, but little Biscuit wants to make his debut in August!  Becky's water broke at 2:30 this morning. As of 4:30 pm still at 6 cm.  It's killing me not to know if Biscuit has arrived!  I cannot wait to meet him!  

Our First Year

So...we didn't become the bloggers I had hoped we would become over this past year! I'm pretty disappointed in myself, given I check other peoples' blogs on a daily basis. Even getting to know other families I've never met simply by reading their blog! Daren thinks this is creepy, I think it's just plain curiosity and friendliness! We're making a comeback though! Now that I have learned how to download pictures to the blog, I am ready to take this on full force ahead!

I will do my best to recap this year as we approach our 1 year anniversary! It's so hard to believe we've already been married for almost a year! We have had so much fun!  We are blessed to have one another, our families and dear friends!  

Enjoy our past year together...I've learned after catching up on our blog entries that Daren and I need to take more pictures of us together. I'll get better at this for year #2!  The following posts "Jazz and Rib Fest" to "Trunk or Treat" go from the most recent to October 2007.  

Jazz and Rib Fest 2008

Daren loves to go downtown to the annual Jazz and Rib Fest in July. This year we rode our bikes down, enjoyed the fest for about an hour, then road around downtown. We have such an awesome path that goes from our house down town. We ended up riding about 12 miles which made for an awesome afternoon!  Don't ask why I was brave enough to put this nasty picture of us online in our bike helmets, but this is the real deal folks!

Becky's Baby Shower

At the end of July I hosted a baby shower for my best friend Becky! Her sister Anne, friends Amy K, Amy G, Libby and I all had a blast planning this special brunch for our dear friend! The big task I took upon myself was making Cinnamon Rolls from scratch. My friend Vanessa has this great recipe, but lets face it I'm not the best at baking. Luckily, I know this and have embraced it. So the weekend BEFORE the shower I did a trial run. Thank goodness!!! To make a long story short, I ended up skipping an entire side of the recipe card (the part where it teaches you how to roll the cinnamon rolls with the filling). I realized something was missing, but rather than check my email from Vanessa I became upset with her thinking I am not as good of a cook as you Vanessa! Panicking, I franticly started looking through other recipe books. In the end I ended up rolling the dough into balls...don't even ask! It was hilarious! 2nd time around was PERFECT and a hit! Becky is due September 8th, her new little bundle of joy will be here any day now! We cannot wait to meet him!

4th of July 2008

Like last year, we took the opportunity to drive back home to DC for a very patriotic 4th of July with mom and dad Jagodnik! We don't get home often, so it's always nice to be "home" in Virginia. We also got the chance to head out to dad's airport to see where he stores his plane (Daren is standing in front of Big Blue, another plane in dad's hanger). It's so beautiful out there. On our way back we stopped by Cinnamon and Chris' to see the boys (Brady and Cash). Daren, Dad, Chris, Wild Bill (Cinn's dad) and the other men put on a great fireworks show...entertaining to say the least! Cinn's boys are getting so big, and now #3 is on the way!!!

Babies...Babies...Babies

We have so much fun watching all our friends as parents! Ernest and Sarah welcomed their baby girl, Kesra in December. Fred and Nicki had their second beautiful baby girl, Charlotte in March. We got to visit Jason and Jen's new baby, Jackson, in April on our trip to New Hamshire. While in New Hampshire we also got to see Pete, Lindsey, Gavin and Big Blue eyes, Logan. Gabriella, Rac and Amanda's daughter, turned 1 at the end of March. Mason, Joelle and Keith's son, turned 2 in April. Isabella, Fred and Nicki's oldest, turned 2 in June. AND last but not least, Jackson, Mike and Libby's little guy, turned 1 in July. All these little ones are so stinkin' cute!

The Annual Collis Cookout 2008

Every year Jeff Collis invites us to his house out in the country! It's so much fun to drive out there, spend time with our friends and hang out around the bonfire. Jeff and Claudia are always such awesome hosts! This year was, unfortunately our last time to see his loyal best friend, Bailey, before she went to dog heaven!  Thank you Jeff and Claudia for always including us!

Key West 2008

In May we took an awesome trip down to the Keys to visit Bean. We met Ivers, John and Pat down there for a week of absolute fun, incredible weather, and memorable moments! We've been down with the Campbell's twice now, so we know how to make the best out of this trip! Bean was an incredible host and we finally got to meet Samson (her dog). We spent a day at Bean's house enjoying the pool, a day at the beach and walking Duval Street, a day out on the water snorkeling, an evening at Bean's restaurant for dinner (yum), a night down at sunset festival, stops at Margaritaville, the southern most point, and Irish Kevin's, we saw KEY DEER (a first for some) and introduced the party ball! As always, we were not ready to leave! It's no wonder why Bean moved down there to live...it is Paradise (yes, that's her backyard)!

Easter 2008

Our first Easter as a married couple was spent here at home. We went to church and then to one of our fav's, Cap City Diner, for brunch.  Although surprisingly we were bummed we had to order off the menu for brunch, no buffet, WHAT?  It was a nice, relaxing day just the two of us and Bentley Boo!  My favorite thing in my Easter basket...my new green Crocs!

St. Patrick's Day 2008

I've always considered St. Patty's Day to be a holiday, but now that I'm a "Lynch" it IS a holiday!  Even Bentley joined in the Irish fun!  The day started off with green eggs (yes, they were actually green) and ham!   And we ended the day with the start of an annual party at our house to celebrate the big day! Our first year was a great success as our friends all joined in the fun!

New Year's Eve 2007

We brought in the New Year with the Tidball family! HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Christmas 2007

For Christmas we went up to Cleveland to spend it with the Jagodnik/Formica family. Mom and dad always drive up to Cleveland from DC, my sister (Bean) flies home from Key West and us from Columbus. Christmas Eve is huge for my family. It's tradition to go to church, then come back to Grandma and Auntie Nance's house for dinner. Following dinner we open gifts from the youngest grandchild up to my Grandma (11 grandchildren, 6 spouses, 3 great grandchildren, 4 of my mom and her sibs, and their 3 spouses). Yes, it's timely however it's tradition, time together, and always entertaining. Daren got to experience his first BIG Christmas! We always spend the day with dad's side of the family too over at Auntie Susie and Uncle Tom's house. Dinner is always delicious, the games always get us riled up, and this year we were told a new family member would be joining us in July 2008. Our new baby cousin, Joey!  This picture is The Jagodnik Family, small but mighty!  *Side note: please notice Daren's red corduroy pants, they go to an old suit, yes red corduroy suit, his dad wore that Daren found during one of our trips to New Hampshire.  They started out as a joke, but are now a hit!

A Hard Day's Work...and Evening of Fun!

Auntie Susie and I made a promise to each other when my Grandma Jagodnik passed away in October 2006 we would keep the Jagodnik family traditions going. One of which is making a Slovenian nut roll, potica, for Christmas to hand out to all our friends and family. Grandma Jagodnik did this each and every year. Not only did she make it for Christmas, but for Easter too! We thought we'd take baby steps. Auntie Susie and Uncle Tom drove down from Cleveland for the weekend and the baking began. We used Grandma's recipe (recipe card and all), wore her old aprons, used her original rolling pin, and then rolled it out on Grandma Formica's old porcelain top kitchen table. How much fun! We laughed, we cried, and we celebrated! My Dad was the judge of our final product and we got the stamp of approval! After a long day at work we attended the annual Natalie Christmas party!

Timbuk Farms 2007

For the past 2 years we have gone to Timbuk Farms in Granville to cut down our Christmas tree! I LOVE Christmas, so this is something I really look forward to each year. Nothing gets you in the mood more than piling your friends into the trucks all bundled up, driving out to Granville listening to Christmas music, hopping on the old school buses and heading out to the type of Christmas tree you choose for the year.  So fun!  We've gone with Jamie and Laura the past 2 years.  Brad and Becky were unable to make it this past year, but Justin and Addie joined the group!  Can't wait for this year!

Thanksgiving 2007

We had an awesome Thanksgiving in New Hampshire with Daren's family! Uncle Wayne and Aunt Cheryl prepared a delicious dinner and even surprised us with a little bit of home. They became hooked to cornhole when they came out for our wedding. Aunt Cheryl could not wait to surprise us with her very own cornhole game. Didn't take long and we got some good family competition going! It's always tradition after dinner to watch a family movie (hand chosen by Mom Lynch). This year we watched The Holiday.  We'll get better at capturing more pictures this  year!

OSU vs Michigan 2007

We may be an "old married couple" now, but we are still troopers!  For the biggest game of the year, we got up early with Jamie and Laura for a morning out at Panini's.  Sure, we may have been the oldest people there at 6am but we sure were proud of ourselves! Then it was off to a nice cookout with all our friends and fellow tailgaters!  

Halloween 2007

Party at the Tidball's! The newlyweds, Jon Marc and Abbi hosted a great Halloween party at their house! In attendance was Jose from Chipotle (Daren), the Tooth Fairy (me), Rob (from Rob & Big), Deputy Clementine from Reno 911, St. Pauli's Girl, Sam Adams, and an Ohio State cheerleader and football player.

Trunk or Treat 2007

My friend Vanessa and her family have this long-standing annual tradition to have a Trunk or Treat for Halloween. I had never heard of such a thing. She and her husband, Jace invited Daren and I to join along. They invite friends and family to their home, you park your car in the field behind their house, and you open your trunk to all the little kids to come trick or treat out of your decorated trunk. How cute and SAFE!  Now we just need some kids to join in on the fun!