It's been a while since I've done a Toddler Talk, and Addie will soon be 3 so I knew I need to get this stuff recorded. They grow up so fast!

• Fun phrases she uses these days: little critter and little fur-ball (referring to her brother), good times, no worries, what in the world! When she wants a Kleenex she'll often ask for a "bless you." She calls band aids "am baids."
• I suppose Jim taught her the robot dance at some point because I often find her moving around all jerky-like saying "Wobot...wobot...wobot" in a monotone robot voice.
• I asked her to clean up her room one day. She quickly responded by saying, "I'll just watch. You can do it really fast." Ha ha. Nice try Addie.
• She likes to give kisses. Sometimes when AJ sees her swooping in with one he will try to run away. One day I heard her tell him, "Don't worry Ayden...just one kiss!"
• Along those same lines, we talked with her one evening about not try to kiss EVERYONE - like all the boys her age. Jim encouraged her to stick to kissing mom, dad, Ayden, etc. She replied, "But Dad I'm just getting some luvin! I want to love everybody!"
• One of her favorite games to play around the house and in the car is the Opposite Game. I say hot she says cold, I say clean, she says dirty. She's really good at it.
• Earlier this month we were eating at the Karys. The girls had been teaching Addie a few songs about God. She was trying to sing My God is So Big for everyone but ended up getting hung up on a few of the words. She quickly cut her eyes over to Sarah and Mandy and said, "Sing it for me girls!" It was hilarious the way it came out.
• If you ask who she is going to marry, she'll tell you she has her eyes on her good friend Evan T. And when she grows up she wants to not only be a good mommy, but also "a good Sarah" ~ she really looks up to the Kary girls.
• Her imaginary friends still hang out with us often. Jenny continues to be her favorite. I've even seen Addie be so polite as to push Jenny on the swing at the park before she takes her own turn.
• While babysitting, our friends Miles & Alyssa were reading the kids the Creation event from a Bible storybook. They asked Addie why she thought God made so many beautiful flowers. She said, "So I could be a flower girl! She was a flower girl in a wedding last month and will be in Missy & Mike's wedding in October. She's so excited!
• Instead of Colorado Addie says "Cola Rodo" ~ it cracks us up!
• Here's a conversation we had last week. It's a perfect example of the mindset of the modern day child.
A: What store will we buy our new house from?
Me: We won't go to a store. We'll buy the house from another family or a builder.
A: Or, we could just buy one on the puter (computer).

I suppose we are now Coloradans ~ we crossed the border on 9/9/09 and continued south until we got to my parent's house in Fort Morgan. We've been busy checking out potential towns in the Denver Metro area to settle in as well as houses, builders, neighborhoods, etc.

In record timing, the Lord has been helping us narrow down our options. Sunday we put an offer on a house, and Monday we found out that it was accepted. Now we just have to wade through the financing process. While we don't expect any major hiccups, we are praying that everything will go smoothly. It will be nice to have our little clan settled again! Once everything is official, we'll have more to report. In the meantime, we're enjoying our stay here with my parents.

Earlier this month Addison had her first flower girl experience. She had such a great time! Thanks Kellen & Jessie for letting Addison be a part of your big day!

JD was the wedding photographer so he was taking pictures of the wedding party as they came down the aisle. When it was Addie's turn, she started timidly making her way to the front. Then she looked up and saw her Daddio so she ended up running to him with a big grin on her face. Our friend Krajec captured the moment as Addie threw her arms around JD. It was so sweet!

Our house is looking bare. I expect to pack box #100 today.

Ayden has 5 teeth breaking through at once. Thankfully he's not too put off by it all ~ though we did find him chewing on his toes yesterday!

Addison has renamed herself. She now goes by Jillian. This has been going on all week.

Earlier this month I celebrated my 30th b-day! JD threw me an early surprise party that was indeed a surprise and so fun! He also made the real day very special. The homemade pizza he made me was awesome!!

We had a great trip to Idaho for Kellen & Jessie's wedding (friends through GoodSeed & GreenTent). Addie's first flower girl experience was a success! I'll do a separate post with pictures of that.

On the way down to ID, Jim shot a grizzly bear! Okay, I should clarify...he used his camera to get the shot We couldn't have been more than 30 feet away from the bear, but he was so intent on his wild berry snacking that he paid us no attention ~ which was fine by me! Grrrr!

After Idaho we headed to Fairmont for a few days for some much needed R&R. Visits to the local coffee shop, playground, and the great outdoors does a person good. A short hike up the mountain led us to waterfall and natural pool. It was awesome and surprisingly warm!

On the way home we stopped off at Moraine Lake to say goodbye to one of our favorite spots. We also love Emerald Lake and had hoped to get over there sometime this summer to do some canoeing, but that never worked out. Oh well, we'll be back.

We saw another grizzly on the way home from Moraine Lake. Sweet!

The downside to all our packing and traveling around is that JD & I both have been having back problems. Jim's issues involved a pinched nerve, several trips to the ER for pain relief, and 3 chiropractic visits to date. Thankfully he's finally found some relief. According to the doc, his inflammation was off the charts. Poor guy! I saw the chiropractor 3 times as well.

The moving truck arrives on Monday. We have to be out by next Friday. BUSY DAYS behind us and BUSY DAYS ahead.

There are few things more touching than the sound of your daughter's voice calling you by that endearing name that only a father has the privilege of hearing. Lately Addie has referred to me as "Daddio" and it has completely melted my heart! When I come up from my basement office and she hears my footsteps she runs to the top of the stairs and says "Daddio, I'm so glad your back" and gives me a big ol hug. These are moments I never want to forget and thank the Lord for!

It's official, the McCulleys are moving back to the States. As of yesterday our house has a "SOLD" sign out front, and we have less than 30 days to box up and move out. It's definitely a bit mind boggling, but we are trusting the Lord each step of the way.

What? When? Where? This past spring we started taking the necessary steps to move our family south once again. The house went up for sale at the end of May and earlier this week we had a buyer. We have to be moved out by August 28th, but we plan to stay here with friends during part of September before we head to my parents' house in Colorado. We'll settle in with mom & dad for a month or two while we visit towns, homes, churches, schools, etc. We are looking to put down our roots in the Denver/Boulder area.

We've had 5 wonderful years serving with GoodSeed. While we will no longer be on staff, we do plan to continue working with the ministry on a volunteer basis. It's certainly exciting to be closer to both our families, but moving away from Alberta will be bittersweet. Leaving behind dear friends that we count as family as well as wonderful co-workers will not be easy. This is where we built our second house. This is where Addison & Ayden were born. This is where we've been given numerous opportunities to teach others about Christ. This is where the Lord has taught us many many things, and we've seen Him work in amazing ways.

Transitional times in life are almost always full of challenges, but they also tend to bring about opportunities to wait patiently on the Lord to provide and guide as He sees fit. On that note, we are excited about the journey ahead! Stay tuned for more news from us Crazy Culleys!

While Ayden and I were down in the States earlier this month, Addie spent the weekdays with the Karys and also some time with the Thomases while Jim worked. She had a blast! Thanks guys for taking such good care of my little girl!

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Ayden turned 1 on July 2nd! Our little boy is growing up. Ayden and I were down in the states on his birthday, so we had a belated party for him mid-month with some of his close friends. It was a fun time; it seems like only yesterday we celebrated Addison's 1st b-day with the same group!

While Ayden & I were at my parent's house in Colorado, he took his first steps to Uncle Ryan ~ a few days before his birthday. We kept it a secret from JD and Addie so we could come home and surprise them. He was so proud to show off his new skillz! However, for the time being it seems as though Ayden prefers to crawl in turbo mode. Oh well, he's definitely a few steps closer to being able to keep up with his sister!

Ayden has a soft spot for his Ugly Dolls so for his party I did an Ugly Doll mini-theme. He sleeps with Ox and Big Toe and enjoys chewing on their limbs. Ironically the ugly suckers are quite cute!

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Ayden has recently started to explore the world of speaking. He says dada, mama, Addie (which sometimes comes out as Abbie), hi, bye bye, and most recently uh oh.

Les and Ayden have been gone for a total of 5 days attending her Granddaddy's funeral. I heard that it was one of the most beautiful funerals by virtue of those that stood up and testified to the man that CB was. I really wish I could have been there to hear the impact he had on so many people.

Back home, Addie and I have been having serious withdrawals! Each day that goes by I have to take the time to walk through the situation with Addie and help her countdown the time that is left before her mom and baby "Age" (her own nickname for her Ayden...the even shorter version of AJ) return home. Only one day left and we are sooo excited to see them! Here are few pics that made us both smile and giggle...making the last day a little more bearable.