Idaho Trip Part 1

Yeah, so it's been awhile now since we got back and I'm slow. Dang it. It was great seeing everyone, but I was particularly stoked to see my sister Jessica who skipped work and drove from Boise just to come see us (since she had been there only a few weeks before for another wedding). We got to have a great girl's day (no pictures) and talk about Breaking Dawn and just hang out. It was so good to see her and everyone else! Here are our pics from Idaho. Sydney loves her Uncle JC. Here they are having a bonking contest to see who can push their head the hardest. Syd usually wins these.

My mom playing with my nephew Kayden. The Wheels on the Bus is a funny song. Obviously.
Sydney got into her diaper bag and found this banana. It got really quiet. Then we found out she was eating it - peel and all. Gross. We helped her out, but she totally would have gotten through it.
Kayden playing with my parent's dog Winston. Winston would take off running and Kayden would go flying. It was the funniest thing ever.
A new trick. Sit on something semi-hi...
Then fall while daddy catches me! Sooooo fun!
Getting clean

She finally figured out crawling - 2 days before she turned 11 months! We didn't exactly push her though, we just let her figure it out at her own pace. We know now that we were smart. When she first started crawling, the one thing she would do it for every time was a raspberry from Grandma's garden. Yum. I miss those.

I got to go to a baby shower for my friend Amber while I was over there! Neither of us live there and we both happened to be in town! It was kismet! So fun to see her!

We also did family pictures for my family and they were very pleasant, particularly since it is usually Christmas when we try to do this!

Our little family picture. Sydney smiled in many pics, but not the ones where she was looking at the camera. With only a little food and not much sleep that day, we should mostly just be happy she wasn't screaming.

My brother and his cute family. They need a blog. sigh.

Salt Lake Trip Part 2 - Temple Square

On Sunday we got to go to Temple Square. It was wonderful since we have not been there in many years. We got to see the new(ish?) Joseph Smith movie (wonderful - thanks Adi for taking our poopy cranky kid out so we could watch it), walk around the grounds, and enjoy everything as much as the 100 degree heat would allow! Here we are at the statue of the Christus. On our way down the spiral walkway Sydney kept pointing back at it. It was really cute.

She has never wanted to do this with her other stroller or with shopping carts, etc. but she really wanted to push her new umbrella stroller like she was superbaby. It kept her entertained for awhile!
I should have expected this - you can't go to Temple Square without running into someone you know. This time it was our caseworker from Arizona! It was very random, but the story is worth recording, so here we go. We sat down so that I could slather Sydney up with sunscreen before we exited the nicely air conditioned visitor's center. As I was finishing up she threw up all over her clothes. I started stripping her down (sooo grateful I had an additional onesie - thus the outfit change) and heard behind me "I know you - Devony!" I was shocked when I turned around to discover that although the woman looked vaguely familiar, I had no hope of figuring out who she was while trying to stop Sydney from rubbing her puked on clothes all over the furniture. I asked who she was and found out she was our caseworker's wife! She called him over and we had a nice little catch up session. Sydney seemed embarrassed by her lack of attire, so I finally got around to putting a shirt on the naked kid. I was so surprised that she recognized me, but very glad she did! Good thing Sydney barfed and held us up!
So beautiful.

I love all the flowers. Anyone who has not been to Temple Square should go. It's gorgeous and so peaceful.


She looks like a giant in this picture!

It was a beautiful day and we were glad we got to spend it with Adrianne and Michael! We're so glad we got to visit Salt Lake again. I forget how beautiful of a city it is until we go back. Also I really like the layout. Numbered streets are SO much easier than named! Thank you Brigham Young for your insight there!

Salt Lake Trip Part 1

We're finally back from our trip and I'm now going to get all caught up in a hurry. I hope. I'll go chronologically, which will end up backward on the blog, but it's easier for me!

I must say, the drive there was fairly miserable for me. It was beautiful (we took a new route through the mountains) but the altitude bothered poor Sydney's ears, I ended up being nauseated almost the entire way, and we hit construction about 12 times. Add to that the fact that Sydney only slept for about 2.5 hours the whole trip, my new need for frequent stops, and ligament pains, and we had a fairly rough 10 hour trip (which was only supposed to take 8-9).
On Saturday we got to see/meet a couple that Aaron knew on his mission who are now serving a Church History Mission on Temple Square. They get to work in the archives all day. My dream job. sigh

Later that night we got to celebrate Michael's college graduation! Yay Michael! Here is Aaron feeding his brother Garth a diabetic coma comprised of hot fudge and a tiny bit of ice cream. Gag.
Shawn, Brittany, and Britt's twin sisters came to visit us later that night. Hooray! I was so glad to see her! Also it was the first time I have seen her prego! She looks so great and is ready to go any day now!
We got to hang out with Kiery and Garth. Garth had a bit of an accident.
And got to stay with Adi & Michael. Thanks so much again guys for your hospitality and fantastico apartment!
Sydney also got in a few crawling lessons with her Auntie Adi and had oodles of fun with Uncle Michael's balloons!

For all the Churches...

Just thought I'd post proof that she's a serious member of the family! (There's a strong basketball gene in my mom's family that completely skipped me, but not Sydney!) She loves this thing!

Surprise!

This may come as a shock to some of you - just like it did for us!

Five years ago our friend's daughter correctly predicted that our first baby would be a girl and Sydney came along a few years later. Anyone have any thoughts on this time?
The first picture is at 9 1/2 weeks and the second one was at 12 weeks. I'm now at almost 14 weeks and am due at the end of January! Surprise!

Tag

Ok I liked this one, so here it is:
1. As a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you knew me a little or a lot, anything you remember!
2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It's actually pretty funny to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you. If you don't have a blog, still leave a comment for me so I know you were here!

Why Didn't I Ever Do This at Work?

200 Have and Have Nots

This is long, so skip it if you want, but too interesting to not do. (BOLD the haves if you want to do it too!)
1. Touched an iceberg
2. Slept under the stars
3. Been a part of a hockey fight
4. Changed a baby's diaper
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Swam with wild dolphins
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a tarantula
10. Said "I love you" and meant it
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea (I slept through one though!)
14. Stayed up all night long and watched the sun rise
15. Seen the Northern Lights
16. Gone to a huge sports game
17. Walked the stairs to the top of the Statue of Liberty (I don't know why we didn't. I think the line was like 5 hours long just to get to the stairs & with 4 kids my parents were not game for it)
18. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
19. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
20. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Bet on a winning horse
23. Taken a sick day when you're not ill (only if you don't count mental health days)
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Taken an ice cold bath
28. Had a meaningful conversation with a beggar
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Ridden a roller coaster (I HATE them!)
31. Hit a home run (yeah right)
32. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking
33. Adopted an accent for fun (Kristi, remember our 10pm Albertsons runs?)
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Felt very happy about your life, even for just a moment
36. Loved your job 90% of the time (Ah, Soc & SW Dept).
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Watched wild whales
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Gone on a midnight walk on the beach
41. Gone sky diving
42. Visited Ireland
43. Ever bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited India
45. Bench-pressed your own weight
46. Milked a cow
47. Alphabetized your personal files (Is anyone surprised at this?)
48. Ever worn a superhero costume ( I was totally a Ninja turtle for Halloween once)
49. Sung karaoke
50. Lounged around in bed all day
51. Gone scuba diving
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Done something you should regret, but don't (I have a pretty over-active conscience)
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Been in a movie (It was one that we made, but that counts!)
60. Gone without food for 3 days
61. Made cookies from scratch
62. Won first prize in a costume contest
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Been in a combat zone
65. Spoken more than one language fluently
66. Gotten into a fight while attempting to defend someone
67. Bounced a check
68. Read - and understood - your credit report
69. Recently bought and played with a favorite childhood toy (My sit n' spin!)
70. Found out something significant that your ancestors did
71. Called or written your Congress person
72. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over
73. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
74. Helped an animal give birth
75. Been fired or laid off from a job (I even asked!)
76. Won money
77. Broken a bone
78. Ridden a motorcycle
79. Driven any land vehicle at a speed of greater than 100 mph
80. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
81. Slept through an entire flight
82. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
83. Eaten sushi
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read The Bible cover to cover (I am counting this since I only have a few chapters left!)
86. Changed someone's mind about something you care deeply about
87. Gotten someone fired for their actions
88. Gone back to school
89. Changed your name (last name only)
90. Caught a fly in the air with your bare hands
91. Eaten fried green tomatoes
92. Read The Iliad
93. Taught yourself an art from scratch
94. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
95. Apologized to someone years after inflicting the hurt
96. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language (not very well, they thought I was homeless)
97. Been elected to public office
98. Thought to yourself that you're living your dream
99. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
100. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn't know you
101. Had a booth at a street fair
102. Dyed your hair
103. Been a DJ
104. Rocked a baby to sleep
105. Ever dropped a cat from a high place to see if it really lands on all fours
106. Raked your carpet
107. Brought out the best in people
108. Brought out the worst in people
109. Worn a mood ring ( I wore a mood necklace)
110. Ridden a horse
111. Carved an animal from a piece of wood or bar of soap
112. Cooked a dish where four people asked for the recipe
113. Buried a child
114. Gone to a Broadway play
115. Been inside the pyramids
116. Shot a basketball into a basket (shocker, I know)
117. Danced at a disco
118. Played in a band
119. Shot a bird
120. Gone to an arboretum
121. Tutored someone
122. Ridden a train
123. Brought an old fad back into style
124. Eaten caviar
125. Let a salesman talk you into something you didn’t need (Aaron saved me)
126. Ridden a giraffe or elephant
127. Published a book
128. Pieced a quilt
129. Lived in an historic place
130. Acted in a play or performed on a stage
131. Asked for a raise
132. Made a hole-in-one
133. Gone deep sea fishing
134. Gone roller skating
135. Run a marathon
136. Learned to surf
137. Invented something
138. Flown first class
139. Spent the night in a 5-star luxury suite
140. Flown in a helicopter
141. Visited Africa
142. Sang a solo
143. Gone spelunking
144. Learned how to take a compliment
145. Written a love-story
146. Seen Michelangelo’s David
147. Had your portrait painted
148. Written a fan letter
149. Spent the night in something haunted
150. Owned a St. Bernard or Great Dane
151. Ran away (I tried, but I never made it off the property. I'm a wuss)
152. Learned to juggle
153. Been a boss (Funnest time ever!)
154. Sat on a jury
155. Lied about your weight
156. Gone on a diet
157. Found an arrowhead or a gold nugget
158. Written a poem
159. Carried your lunch in a lunchbox
160. Gotten food poisoning
161. Gone on a service, humanitarian or religious mission
162. Hiked the Grand Canyon
163. Sat on a park bench and fed the ducks
164. Gone to the opera (No, but I watched it frequently in Italian when I was 4 years old)
165. Gotten a letter from someone famous
166. Worn knickers
167. Ridden in a limousine
168. Attended the Olympics
169. Can hula or waltz
170. Read a half dozen Nancy Drew or Hardy Boys books
171. Been stuck in an elevator
172. Had a revelatory dream
173. Thought you might crash in an airplane
174. Had a song dedicated to you on the radio or at a concert
175. Saved someone’s life
176. Eaten raw whale
177. Know how to tat, smock or do needlepoint
178. Laughed till your side hurt
179. Straddled the equator
180. Taken a photograph of something other than people that is worth framing
181. Gone to a Shakespeare Festival (The Renaissance Festival was almost as good!)
182. Sent a message in a bottle
183. Spent the night in a hostel
184. Been a cashier
185. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
186. Joined a union
187. Donated blood or plasma
188. Built a campfire
189. Kept a blog
190. Had hives
191. Worn custom made shoes or boots
192. Made a PowerPoint presentation
193. Taken a Hunter’s Safety Course
194. Served at a soup kitchen
195. Conquered the Rubik’s cube
196. Know CPR
197. Ridden in or owned a convertible
198. Found a long lost friend
199. Helped solve a crime
200. Responded to a NJP newsletter

Ok, I've done 94! I have some stuff to do before I die! What have YOU done?

Happy Birthday to Me...

OK so I just had a birthday and I had to post my cute pics on here for all to see. I'm pretty sure I have the most darling baby girl on the planet, which is actually what inspired me to take these pictures, not the fact that I am now 26, which my sister-in-law has so kindly informed me is "middle-aged." Ha ha! I think not, but one thing I determined to do a little while ago was to age gracefully. I don't mean physically, because it's sort of hard to control that sort of thing. I mean attitude-wise. I know so many people who freak out when they turn 30 or 40 or whatever, and I really hope to just be able to take each year in stride. So guess what? I'm 26, and I wouldn't care if that number was 36! I hope to be able to proudly state my age each year, so that when I'm 65, I can grin and tell people that I've lived 65 good years. That's my goal anyway! :)

Sydney and Aaron surprised me with singing and a few presents. I got the movie Eragon (very good, as are the books), a pen picked out specifically by Sydney while at Best Buy, and.... a BB/Pellet Gun also known as a varmint shooter. Hooray! I think Sydney was mostly confused about the whole thing, but excited that I was excited. She also repeatedly tried to eat my presents. I don't know how they tasted since I took more of a looking approach.
She is still not very helpful in the present unwrapping arena. She mostly just wanted me to tear pieces of paper off for her to eat. Yum.
For those of you out there wondering (and I know you are!), I really did want the BB Gun - we've got a serious rabbit problem in Colorado. It's so fancy it even has a little scope! It's probably not a great one (and let's face it, I really don't need one) but it's sort of exciting that it has one anyway, I'm not gonna lie.
Also tonight a whole bunch of girls from our ward went out to Chili's to celebrate mine as well as 2 other girls birthdays. This means I am extra full but had tons of fun having a girls night and enjoyed a little time away. As I got there a family arrived with 3 kids, lugging in the kids, diaper bags, and other paraphernalia that kids attract. I had a weird moment where for a split second I wondered where my diaper bag was. Hadn't I brought it? Then I relaxed and enjoyed the fact that Sydney was spending the evening with her daddy and I was getting a milkshake. The end.

Why We Love Summer

Eating outside (some of us just in our nuddy pants obviously!)

Water balloon fights (these created a fair amount of confusion!)
Going to the zoo (we got to see a baby zebra that was only like 17 hours old! He was cute.)
Swimming in the pool. The floatie is Syd's favorite. She kicks her little legs and swims around the 6ft x 8ft kiddie pool.
Summer foods! She was going nuts for the cantelope!

Happy Independence Day!

Today was Sydney's first Independence Day! We started off with our ward's traditional pancake breakfast. I think Sydney ate an entire pancake! She was so happy about it. (Food makes her that way). We came home, took naps, ate some burgers, and got ready to go to the fireworks.

We have this fantastic mall right next to our house and they had live bands and fireworks. We drove the 1 1/2 miles and parked our truck in a fantastic spot. We walked around for awhile and enjoyed the band and the festive air. I also got a snow cone (what moron decided not to sell them regularly in Colorado?) and the lady gave us Sydney's snazzy glow stick necklace. Confession: I have always wanted one of these and have actually never had one. I was way more interested in it than Sydney was!

When it was time for the fireworks we went back to the truck. We opened the back window and let Sydney sit in her seat for a bit while we waited for them to start. (This picture was taken in the back of the truck looking in).
After a bit she came out to join us
Here's our sweet set up
Sydney's initial reaction to the fireworks

She soon cheered up though (after a bunch of Cheerios) and was pretty calm the rest of the time. Although apparently last year the show was pretty poor, it was really great this year! We're used to the fireworks in Idaho (which is actually one of the best shows West of the Mississippi), and we've seen some pretty poor ones in other places we've lived. We were very impressed with this show and really pleased with it! We had some serious issues getting out when the super smart people over there decided to control traffic in the most ridiculous way possible. We finally got home though, so all in all it was a great day!

Simple Toys are Best

Everyone knows simple toys are best. The other day we gave Sydney a box. We used it as a train/car, and it also proved very useful for keeping her in one place for a little while!

Such as when I needed to clean the garage
It worked pretty well! She has lots of fun with it and is perfectly capable of tipping it over so she can wiggle out when she wants to!

Fun in the Sun

Wow, it's been a long time since I've posted. Sorry! Here are some pictures of what we've been doing. We've gone to the pool since it's been pretty warm! On this particular day Sydney waved at the camera every time she saw it.

Then she got tired and we relaxed for a bit.Silly girl.
Afterward we had popsicles. Sydney sort of liked them.
She did not however, like it being taken away! You know she loves her food, but this particularly ticked her off!