Fall-time Updates!

Since I came home from Utah, we've been so busy!!! Wes and I have been blessed with lot's of new hair clients for me, and lots of overtime hours for him. It's been super busy but rewarding, and in between all the work, we've managed to squeeze in some fun family time. The weather has still been way too hot for my liking (I'm craving my skinny jeans and scarves right about now) but we've been enjoying the fall anyway.

Last weekend we went to a work picnic for Wesley's office. Although it was a whopping 95 degrees, we had a lot of fun! They had 2 bounce houses, a rock wall, pony rides, face painting, petting zoo...the works.

Mia was excited about all the yummy foods we got to eat. all she seems to think about is food. I think we have that in common ;)

Wesley convinced me to climb the rock wall with him.

I'd never done this before, it was really fun!

They had cute little baby piggies!

The snow cones were a life saver :)

Some updates on the kids:

JAKE:

We decided not to send Jake to preschool this year (being so new to Arizona, and not really researching programs) and so I've been putting effort into having more structure in his life. Mia still takes 2 naps a day, so on our days in, I always try to do something fun with Jake during "first nap", whether it be baking, painting, play dough, or the occasional giant fort. We also got annual passes to the zoo, and have already gone twice! I'm glad my sister lives here and that our boys get along so well, it's fun to have them for outings and playdates.

Jake is doing so well with potty training. We stopped using pull-ups at night time shortly after we came back from Utah. So far he's only had a couple accidents while sleeping--we feel very lucky that he's been able to gain control so quickly. He had a big growth spurt in the last couple months, and finally went up a shoe and pants size--I'm excited for him that he's getting taller! His vocabulary is incredible, and he now loves to lounge in his room with my phone, engaging in full and detailed conversations with his aunts and grandmas, and occasionally.. with Sawyer :)

Painting in his new art smock from Omi!

Our first time at the Phoeniz Zoo. Jake and Sawyer had a blast together. It was an amazing 75 degree day, and we enjoyed every minute :)

woohoo!

Jake was a little star struck when he saw the "Rio" birds.."It's "BLUE" mom!!!!!!!!!"

We went to the zoo a week later with Daddy, but I'll save those pictures for the next post :)

MIA

Oh Mia. what can I say--she is going to be my wild child. 2nd percentile for size, allergic to milk and egg whites, and mildly anemic (according to blood tests at her 9 month well check.)

I thought maybe her tiny size would keep her from getting into as much trouble, slow her down in some ways..but no. Mia is a 15 pound force of nature. I'm learning that she can't be left alone even for a minute. We have a gas fireplace in our apartment that has actual doors that open into it. We normally block off the doors with Jake's play table. The other day, we had moved his table into the kitchen for play dough time, and Mia was able to access those magical fireplace doors. She opened the doors and climbed inside, at which point she loaded up her hands and then cheeks with fireplace gravel. It was scary and disgusting.

Today I left her for 30 seconds and she got into the bathroom. When I found her she had climbed up Jake's step stool and was hanging halfway into the toilet, stirring the potty water with her brand new pink shoe. The kid must have a guardian angel, because we were about 10 seconds shy of a very dangerous swirly situation.

Although Mia leaves a path of destruction wherever she goes, she still remains a very happy little girl. She still loves food (eats nonstop) loves to laugh (especially at her brother), is determined to start walking (occasionally takes a step or two on her own, first one taken right before she turned 10 months). You can always count on a big cheesy 2-tooth grin, which she loves to use on strangers when we are out shopping. Such a little flirt, and truly a ball of sunshine.

Playing in the fort we built during General Conference :)

The kids definitely keep me busy and moving, and I thank Heavenly Father every day that I have such fun little people to raise. The weather has finally dropped down into the 80's this past week, and I'm hopeful that I'll be able to get into the holiday spirit in the upcoming weeks. Lot's of fun things to look forward to, lot's of life to live! keep reading for updates :)

Utah--final post :)

This will be my very last post from my month visiting in Utah. (can't believe how long it's taking me to get caught up!) The first week I was there (Schindler ranch week) we left the reunion a couple days early so that we could spend a long weekend with Wesley's folks. We had a lot of fun just relaxing and enjoying good company and conversation. Jake was so happy to see them again, and also to see his Aunt Mel and cousins Scott and Mark! Grandma and Grandpa have worked hard to make their house very fun for everyone, from the G.I. Joe playroom for the boys, to the theatre complete with recliners and projector in the basement.

Since Wesley was only able to stay in Utah for 1 week, specifically to attend the reunion, we decided ahead of time that we would just fly him back home and that I would stay behind. I wanted my in-laws to have enough face time with the kids. After my parents returned to Virginia and my weekend with Cheronne ended, I drove back to Grandma's house and stayed there for the last couple weeks of my trip. During that time I kept very busy--did lot's of hair (caught up with a few old clients), had a few lunch dates with good friends, spent a day here and there with Syd and Mitch, and just enjoyed all the one on one time with my husbands family. My sister in law Melanie lives just down the street, and almost every night after I put Mia down for bed, I would run over there and spend a couple hours hanging out with her--watching trash TV, painting our nails, soaking up lots of girl time :)

Even though I don't work in a salon anymore, I still try hard to keep up with the new hair trends/techniques.. I've wanted to try color melting (ombre hair) for awhile, but needed a willing guinea pig. Melanie was an awesome model, and we had fun experimenting. She has the most gorgeous hair--slightly asian texture, nice and thick--perfection. I LOVED how the color turned out.

I heart ombre color.

We spent a couple days at Syd and Mitch's house too--I really miss living close to them.

at the park!

why oh why do we live so far from you guys!?!?

Mitch and Jake watching "Space Jam" lol. and oldie but a goodie :)

My last few days overlapped with a visit from Wesleys aunt, uncle and grandma from San Diego. I've met them a few times before, and it was fun to see them again, and get to know them a little better. Now that we live in Phoenix, we are just 5 short hours away from Southern California, so we will probably be seeing them more often in the next few years. I'm excited for those relationships to grow :) (unfortunately no pictures from those days--how did that happen? darn)

On September 15th (the day Mia turned 9 months old!), I packed up my car (oh man, was it packed too...can't believe I fit so much stuff in that little car) and headed out with the kids. I was nervous about undertaking such a long trip alone, but felt like I couldn't have been more prepared. My passenger seat was OCD organized with trip snacks in little baggies for Jake, pretzel rods for Mia (these turned out to be a total life saver), and a cooler packed full of caffeinated soda for Mom. I drove 5+ hours to Vegas on day 1 and then drove the last 5 hours on day 2. We made a pit stop at a hotel, and I just really took my time getting there, trying to keep it as low stress as possible on myself and the kids. Everything went much more smoothly than I could have hoped for! Mia (who is notorious for her carseat tantrums) was almost always content (thanks to those pretzel rods and the movie "kung fu panda" of all things) , and Jake was (as usual) my patient, helpful little road tripper.

I felt proud of myself, and proud of the kids after that drive--more than once I've used this blog to complain about my travel anxiety. How I get so stressed before trips that I can hardly sleep the week before them. I still get pretty tense before I embark on new adventures (sorry to my family who has to experience my intense behavior), but it feels like I'm slowly getting the hang of it. One of my favorite quotes by Heber J. Grant has become my "travel mantra" over the years--he describes so simply just how I feel each time I conquer another challenge in my life--from travel anxieties to the pressures of motherhood, to so many personal trials .

“That which we persist in doing becomes easier to do, not that the nature of the thing has changed, but our power to do so is increased.”

― Heber J. Grant

It was a fantastic month in Utah--and when it was over I was excited to be back home with Wesley, ready to get back into the swing of things :) Stayed tuned for future posts, lots of updates to come!

Week 2 in Utah

After my family reunion, Wesley and I spent a couple short days with his family (more on that in my next post). Then Wes hopped on a plane and flew back to Phoenix. My plan was to stay in Utah and spend some more time with my parents before they drove back to Virginia, and then stay with friends and family for a couple weeks. Basically, I decided that I would drive back to Arizona either when my kids were driving me crazy from being displaced for too long, or when I gained the courage to take on that long road trip alone--whichever came first :)

My parents had some friends who let us use their townhome in Logan Utah for a few days. After saying bye to Wesley at the airport, I drove to Logan and met up with my mom, dad, and David. We had a great time together, relaxing and enjoying the small town. Jake loved the one on one attention--he especially loved the ice cream shop and playing hide and seek with Omi and Opi.

We found a perfect climbing tree on the Logan Temple grounds. When I saw it I realized that I couldn't remember the last time I climbed a tree--so I climbed way way up! Jake was very nervous and concerned that I would fall, but we let him sit on the lower branches after i hopped down. He thought it was pretty awesome :)

Mia's concerned look in this picture cracks me up. She looks so old.

Jake picked out a treat at one of the shops--jellybeans! I wasn't monitoring him very closely, because before I knew it he had eaten a TON of them...

Can you tell he is feeling queasy in this picture? About 10 seconds later he threw up all over the sidewalk. woops! Lesson learned: now when he wants sweets and we tell him he can't have more than a piece he simply says "yeah, thats too much sugar, I'll get a tummy ache"

midweek we headed back to Provo, to spend one night in town together with Syd and Mitch before my parents took off. Before I left, I had a playdate with an old high school friend who happens to live in Logan! She has 1 year old, and it was fun to reconnect and spend a little time!

I had lunch at the deli in Thanksgiving Point with my parents (LOVE that place so much) on our way back to Provo. Jake totally fell asleep on my lap during lunch. For Jake, this was a very big deal. He never falls asleep like that. I had to take a picture as proof. :)

After a tear filled goodbye, my parents and David got back on the road, and I headed over to my good friend Cheronne's house for a long weekend. Her husband was out of town, so it was perfect timing for an extended play date! Jake was so excited to be reunited with his best friend Brayden! and I was even more excited to be reunited with Cheronne!

the kids had the time of their lives together.

Cheronne set up a slip n slide for the kids one day.

up side down goggles. haa.

I totally suck and never took a picture of Cheronne and I together! We were too busy snapping pics of our cute boys. :)

Another fun filled week came to an end. Next post: Week 3 with Wesley's parents!