San Diego!!!

Devin and I are so grateful that we got to go on a wonderful trip to San Diego in August. Don't get me wrong, I love Julia, but it was really fun to get away just the two of us. I have to admit, I missed her more than I thought I would. We called a lot, even though we knew she was just fine with Grandma and Grandpa. Despite having young parents missing their child syndrome, we were able to relax and have a very, very, very fun long weekend!

Thank you poor economy and empty hotel rooms. Thank you Priceline name your own price. We were able to have champagne taste on a beer budget (it's just and expression people, I've never had either...) and staying at a 4-star resort is really fun... especially when it's really cheap!! We had fun staying at a fancy hotel, but it's hilarious... the fancier the hotel, the fewer things come with the room! I've stayed at lots of cheap hotels that have free high-speed internet, free movie channels, free parking, and free breakfast. Not this place! I guess they figure if you are spending buckets to stay in a resort right on the beach in San Diego (yep, right on Mission Bay... it was great!!!) that you can afford $15 a day for the internet and $25 a day to park your stinkin' car!! :) Whatever... it was still a steal, and well worth it!!

I know... I know... I am a total nerd. But I LOVE the zoo! And the mother of all zoos is the San Diego Zoo. How could we not go? It was great. You really can spend all day there. The animals were fun, the pandas were as cute as I hoped they'd be, and our feet were very tired by the end of the day. So, what could be better than a couple's massage that night?? Nothing, I tell you... Nothing!!!! :) It was my first professional massage, and it was worth every penny!!

We also got to go do a session at the San Diego Temple. The last time we were there was June 3, 2006 (ring any bells? It better ring yours Devin!! hehe... just kidding, you're great at remembering stuff like that!) We realized that we had been sealed there, but that neither one of us had ever done a session there. It was really great. It brought back wonderful memories of our wedding day. We got to go stand in our sealing room and it was so, so great to relive the day we got married, and remember how much we love being married to each other.

All in all it was a much needed and greatly enjoyed vacation!
Now, when is the next one??
Haha... just teasing. ;)

California, There We Went!

Well, Devin's job has him working in Philadelphia a lot these days, so I figured that rather than hang out by myself in Texas for a month, Julia and I would go to California and spend some time with my family. We had a great trip, and I loved seeing everyone. My grandma even came down from Logan for a few days, and I always love to see her when I have the chance.

This picture is of the four generations of May birthdays, all oldest daughters. My grandma is May 6th, my mom is May 1st, I am May 4th, and Julia is May 22nd. I love that Julia got to spend time with her grandma and her great grandmother, known as G.G.

Julia and G.G.
Julia would only whisper "G.G." while grandma was around, and then, of course, after we got home Julia couldn't get enough of looking at the pictures and saying "G.G." clear as can be. We need to teach this child to perform on command!! ;)

Julia and Todd (the dog) were fast friends. Julia is obsessed with dogs anyway (which, by the way, are now "dawwws" rather than "oofs") and so she loved having a real one around. I have to give a hand to Todd, who is apparently the best dog on the face of the planet. Julia is still learning the art of being "soft" and "nice" to the doggy, so he definitely got smacked on several occasions, usually right in the face. He just took it like a man, and never so much as flinched. I think he figured it was a small price to pay for the extra food he got while she was visiting... more on that later. And yes, she is lying on his doggy bed (you have to pick your battles, and I figured I would let her lie in the hair since I wouldn't let her drink from his dish!) and although it looks like he is attacking her, this is the only picture I got of them playing together, and it was a significant chunk of the trip for her!

I got to see my friends Charity and Cynthia! We went swimming with the kids and had fun catching up!

Ok, these are the pictures of Julia's favorite game from the trip, called: "Feed the dog instead of eating any food myself, and think it's hilarious." She absolutely loved feeding Todd. Without fail, every time I put her in her high chair, Todd would walk over and sit right underneath her, just waiting for his next meal. Todd has been on a diet for the last little while, so he was anxious to get a little on the side. And believe you me he got plenty. In these particular shots Julia was throwing him peas and Todd was catching them in the air. Nothing has ever made Julia laugh harder. I can't say I blame her though, because even us grown ups were laughing pretty hard, while trying to keep a straight face and instill in my child that as much fun as it is, we shouldn't really throw food from the table.

Julia's other new trick (yes, we are training her) is to fold her arms when we pray. She finally figured out how to do it herself, and she does it all the time. It's really cute. Now we need to work on staying quiet for more than 2.5 seconds. We'll get there.

So, we had a great time with my family. I even finally went through some of the boxes my mom has been begging me to clean out of my old bedroom for years! We can't wait to get back and see them again. Now I need to write about the rest of the trip, which was when Devin came and joined me, and we had a weekend getaway in San Diego, and my parents were kind enough to watch Julia for the long weekend!!! Coming soon...

Spray Park!

This morning we went to the spray park for our ward's playgroup. Julia loved it. She was having so much fun running around that I could hardly get a picture of her face because she wouldn't stop long enough for me to take a picture! The spray park is great, because I can basically just let her have free reign, and she can run around and there's nothing for her to hurt herself on. My child has no fear. She plays with the big kids like the best of them, and kept running right back into the water. It's a great activity, and one of the few ways to be outside without melting!

These are some great pictures that Teresa got of Julia and Boston. These two need to get married, simply so we can put these pictures in their wedding video! :) They were walking around holding hands, and it was probably the cutest thing I have ever seen. Teresa and I both bolting for our cameras was probably fairly amusing too!

Yay for having something to keep us busy. I'm grateful that our ward has lots of young moms and that we get our kids together to do fun things. It's good interaction for Julia, and I think it's even better interaction for me! :)

Also, I need to cite Teresa's blog for the good idea of using my Memory Mixer pages to put the pictures on my blog. I'm totally stealing her brilliance, but this is me trying to give credit where credit is due! Thanks for the good idea Teresa, and thanks (in advance) for not hating me for stealing it from you! :)

They Grow Up So Fast!!!

I can't even believe this is the same child that runs around my house and talks to me! Two of our really good friends just had brand new babies a few weeks ago, and there is nothing like holding a brand new baby to make you feel like your child is growing old, not to mention huge!!

I was looking at old pictures of Julia and I just can't believe how grown up she is getting! Imagine what I am going to say at her wedding... But for now, I will just admire how far she has come in the last 14 months. In this picture she is 5 days old, and that seems like a lifetime ago. It is just fun to look at these pictures next to each other and admire the changes.

In this picture she is 8 months old. Ok, I still think that Julia is my chubby little baby, but looking at these older pictures, I am realizing how much she has thinned out! She was such a chunk! Her neck, her cheeks, her wrists... there used to be so much chub!!

My big little girl!! She has officially made the leap from baby to toddler. A transition complete with wanting, pointing, talking, finicky eating and even the occasional tantrum. But even though I feel like she is growing up, she is still my baby, and she still wants me when she is sad or hurt, and she gives the best hugs ever! I love you Julia!

Minnesota...May all of our trips there be taken in July!

HAPPY 4th OF JULY!!!

We had just pulled in to Woodbury after a 15 hour car trip, so please forgive the glazed look in our eyes, but we got there in time for Julia to see some little fireworks. We had planned on getting there the day before to enjoy the 4th, but our little bout with the Swine Flu (Yes, you read that right...) backed our plans up by a day. Regardless, we were still able to join in a little festive 4th of July fun!

She thought the sparklers looked really neat, but she was afraid to get too close, which is good because we wouldn't have let her anyway!

Chasing minnows was just WAY too much fun (and a little gross to mommy... this is where Devin made fun of me for making a comment about preferring to swim in chlorinated water...what can I say... cleanliness is next to godliness!)

Just playing with the seaweed...
This day was absolutely beautiful, and the lake was gorgeous. Maybe this is why Minnesota is inhabited... that's still a pretty big mystery to me!! :)

Julia's main reaction to having to wear a life jacket.

She came around after riding on the boat for a while. She fell asleep, it was cute!

Summer fun with the Williams Family!

Yay for cousins!!

We had a great time in Minnesota. We got to tour the children's hospital that Russ is building, we spent time with Linda and Peter, Julia learned what it's like to live with other children, and we got to leave after Julia went to sleep and actually go on a date!! It was a fun trip, although I think next time we'll fly! :)

I Got a New Toy!

I feel like I always start my posts with an apology for how long it has been! :) This time I won't apologize... I've been busy, but now I'm back! So here are some updates...

First, I got a new camera. Yay! I was in need, and I saved up my piano lesson money and we bought one. It's really, really fun to get things when you've been wanting them and working for them for a long time... that's something I need to always remember...:) Anyway, we went to Costco (I love Costco, the cameras were all $40-$50 cheaper than at Best Buy) and Devin was kind enough to walk Julia around the store for 2 1/2 hours while I played with the cameras and decided which one I wanted. I chose one and I love it!! But the string attached to the purchase was that if I didn't post a picture to the blog every day for the next 89 days, the camera was going back to Costco on the last day of the 90 day return policy!! :) We'll see if I manage! hehe...

This is my daughter... I can hardly believe it! She's such a little grown-up now! I feel like she's getting so big! I think I am going to post about that in a minute, so hang on for more on that...

Julia thinks it's hilarious to say "cheese" for the camera, so we get a lot of pictures that look like this! She was pretty good about humoring me so I could have a before church photo shoot to play with my new toy.

Another reason for the photo shoot was to get some pictures of Julia in her new church dress. My mom made this for Julia for her birthday, and it's taken her a couple of months to grow into it, but now it fits! My mom used to make all of our church dresses for me and my sister, so I love that she made a couple for her granddaughter too! Thanks mom! (she made the matching bows too!)

Playing with the stool that has to hide in mom and dad's closet, because otherwise I climb up on it and get into things I'm not supposed to!!

This little girl is going to give me a run for my money... probably literally. She LOVES shoes. Not matter who they belong to. When she gets a new pair of shoes she runs around in them staring at her own feet for hours. She also loves to play with and wear my shoes, and she always goes for the red ones first. She has good taste. Not only that, but when we were playing at the Chik fil a playplace with our ward, she was stealing other girls' shoes out of the cubby holes. This would be one thing, but now she has also learned to open my wallet, and, of course, she goes straight for the credit cards...EVERY time... This is going to be a deadly combination.

Again with the shoes...

And again...

And again... I'm telling you, this is the only thing I can get a picture of her doing, because she spends a great deal of time doing it.

This is just a great picture. :) This is what the cute pigtails from before church look like after three hours of running around and refusing to sit, stand, or hold still. 15 weeks till NURSERY!! Yes, I am counting!!! :)
P.S. No, no... that is not soot on my daughters cheek. I do not, no matter what she tells you, make her clean the cinders out of the fire place. She has a nice black bruise from tripping and falling right into the corner on the wall. She loves to run around without really taking her lack of body control into consideration. She'll learn... (unless she's related to my mom... hehe... just kidding mom, I love you!!)

Summer SUN!!!

Despite her tying to escape, she loves the pool, be it the big pools, or our $10 Target special blow-up pool!

Julia and her best friend Boston are still learning the art of sharing.

So, yes, this is Devin. While Andrea is away in Alabama, I am trying to be the best housewife ever. So, while Julia is napping, I thought I would update the Blog!!! Manly enough for ya?
Julia loves to swim. We did get a little pool for her, but mostly she goes over to her friend Boston's house where they have a pool. She loves going outside. This week however, Texas has a heat advisory, and it is well over 100 plus the humidity makes it feel upwards of 110. So, not many outdoor activities this week.
Yesterday, we did manage to make it out in the evening for a little shopping (man do I sound girly or what!?!) I needed some work clothes. I really like Marshalls. I found Kenneth Cole pants on sale for $25 (regularly $75). I have learned many a bargaining tip from Andrea.
Anyway, Andrea's play is now over. I went and saw it last Saturday, and it was great. I never knew a nun could be so attractive!

Better hurry and view this now, as I am sure Andrea will be mad at me for posting this pic. :)

She was in "The Sound of Music". It was a very high-quality show. We were very impressed with the level of talent at the theater. I am sure she or I will be back there to do more shows in the future. She had a lot of fun, but I am glad to have her back.

Well, I will learn how to do this better, but that is a little update for now.

More Birthday Fun!!

Here are some pictures of Julia opening and enjoying her birthday presents. This one is the doll that Devin and I got for her. I love that she loved it!! She unwrapped it, and then she couldn't wait to get it out of the box. She was going crazy and getting so excited about it. It made me so happy! I want her to be a girly girl so badly!

As soon as she got the doll out of the box she was holding it and hugging it, and cuddling with it. It was the cutest thing I had ever seen... until the next picture of the doll... just wait...

This is probably the cutest picture I have ever seen of my daughter. She chose this dog at Target and she loves it. She loves dogs in general, which is so funny because we don't have one, and she hasn't really spent much time around them. Every time she sees a dog on tv or in a book or outside she gets so excited and starts saying "woof" which really sounds more like "oof." The best reaction so far was to the lab puppies on a Cottonelle toilet paper commercial. When you get that excited about puppies I think you deserve at least a stuffed one until the real one comes in a few years!! :)

I like this picture of Julia loving her puppy enough to show you all the pile of laundry in my living room... that's a lot...

This next new fun toy is from Aunt Emily... who knows how to buy a gift for a little lady!! If anyone could find a stylish purse that is the perfect size for a one-year-old, it is Emily!!

So is it just female instinct to know how to wear a purse??

This is not the cutest picture of Julia's poor face... :)... but I love that she knows what to do with a purse without me showing her!! (I also love the dress tucked into the bloomers... hey, it was getting in her way!!)

This is my favorite thing that she does with this doll!! She feeds this cute baby all day long! She gets the bottle and takes it over to her and works so hard to get it in her mouth. I love it. I'm glad to know that she knows that you feed, love, and hug babies... I guess I'm doing something right as a mom! :)

Let Her Eat Cake!

Here is my first attempt at making a birthday cake... not too shabby if I do say so myself! :) Although I did have some help from Devin and my mom. (And Betty Crocker!)

Happy Birthday Julia!!!

It took her a while to dig in, but once she did she went to town! I don't think she really liked the way it tasted, she just really liked smearing it all over her face and hands.

Showing off the damage she had done...

I think she had fun... what do you think??