Wicked; Up close and personal

We got to go see our friend Kevin Jordan in Wicked last weekend. It (and he) was amazing. We have seen the show before, but it still is incredible.

We met Kevin early and he took us on a backstage tour of everything, which was very cool. It is always fun to see how it all really works. Also, we won the lottery (well really one of Kevin's friends won it for us) so we got to sit on the 3rd row for half the price of the cheap seats; so, not a bad day at all. We took Kevin out to dinner and then headed back to the theater to see the show (thanks to Aaron and Haley for watching Julia). It was a very fun date for us to go see something we both enjoy.

Devin Williams, CPA

Although Devin has been a licensed CPA since last November, they only do the ceremony once a year. We were happy to have Devin's mom Linda, and Peter in town for the occasion. So, we rented a mini-van and all drove down to Austin for the swearing in ceremony. So, now Devin is officially official.

Julia did pretty good in the car, but we did figure out that three hours is above her limit these days as she did get pretty restless. The fact that our portable dvd player did not work on the trip did not help the situation at all either. We ate some great food and enjoyed the quick trip to Austin. Also, while Linda and Peter were here, we got to do lots of fun things. Devin took them for a tour of the new Cowboy's stadium (it is ginormous)!

We had a great time while they were here. Come and visit any time. We love visitors.

Two Cookies = One Happy Daddy!!!

This is Devin. So, I am a happy daddy. We are potty training Julia this week and giving her little treats as rewards. Yesterday she went in the potty, so we gave her a little bite-sized cookie (she loves cookies). She really wanted two, but the rule was one - she really asked nicely and REALLLY!! wanted two cookies. She was very polite, so we gave her a second cookie. As soon as she had it, she came right over and gave it to daddy! I love my little girl!

We are getting back into blogging so stay tuned.

We're still alive! More to come soon!

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! :)