The Long Memorial Day Weekend

This past weekend was long overdue and was an action packed holiday weekend spent with some of the best people in the world.  A few weeks ago, Cyle and Athena called to let us know that he had some work stuff to do in Dallas and he was bringing Athena (and Kingston their kid) along because she had to attend a missionary farewell for someone that she had taught when she was a missionary in Dallas.  We were really excited to spend the weekend with our good friends!  For those who don't know, Cyle was one of my roommates all throughout college and he married up, so we decided to stay in touch with them.

Their boy Kingston is just around a year old so it was lots of fun to see Callie and Kingston hang out, although Kingtson was a superior crawler and was a lot quicker than she was.  Cyle and I started the weekend off right by playing some Top Golf on Friday after a delicious pancake breakfast.  It was nice to spend an hour reminiscing about the old and simpler days of college and comparing that life with the one we live now of mortgages, jobs, and changing diapers.  Very different.  We then enjoyed several trips to the park to find our favorite duck, Sergent Quackerson, and other trips to another park that just got remodeled which Kenna has dubbed the "castle park".

That night we had the main event.  We hired a babysitter so that the adults could go out and enjoy an evening of high culture.  The evening started with Texas BBQ and then we went to the theatre.  Somehow, whenever a Fast and Furious movie comes out there is always one of my friends in town.  This held true for the newest Fast and Furious movie (I think they are on 13 or something) and so we decided that we had to go see it.  The acting was terrible, the cars were colorful, and the dialogue was amazing.  Everything you would ever expected from Ludacris, Vin Deisel, and Paul Walker.  Amazing.  It was a really fun evening though and we enjoyed spending a few hours out without the kiddos.

We spent Saturday playing at the park and letting the girls do a few hours without the kids so they could do some shopping.  That night we ventured down to an even more authentic BBQ joint called crazy 8 or something like that in Coppell.  The food was amazing and it felt more like camping than a restaurant.  They had huge ovens where they were busy burning down cords of mesquite wood and then they were loading that into giant smokers and grills to cook the meat.  The food was amazing and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.  The evenings were wasted playing ticket to ride (a board game) and trying to keep Cyle and Kenzie from starting fights because Cyle thought that Kenzie was making up rules as she went along.  Sunday was another normal day spent hanging out, going to church, and letting the kids catch up on some sleep.  We got an email from Tyler (another college roommate) that he would be flying back from Europe (that is where you vacation if you marry a doctor) and would be at Dallas Fort Worth Airport with a 3 hour layover on Memorial Day.  It was the perfect storm.

Monday morning Cyle and I went for a dad jog around the park, pushing all three children in assorted strollers while we ran.  It was laughable and several jogging moms gave us flak while we ran and called us super dads.  We are.  It was still overcast and windy a bit too chilly for swimming so we went to the indoor gym pool for Callie's first swim.  We even managed to talk Jenna and Bo in to bringing their dad to join us.  Everyone had a great time and Callie loved swimming.  Kenna is turning in to a fish and will probably be swimming on her own by the end of the summer.  Bo is fearless and several times he would break away from his dad and jump in to the pool because he saw me standing in the water. 

We got home and showered just in time to head off to a pizza joint right outside the airport to meet up with Tyler and Amy.  It ended up being a quick dinner because everyone had to catch flights, but it was awesome to get all of us together again.  Things have changed, but mostly they stayed the same.  I am lucky to have such awesome friends and it was refreshing to spend some time with them and enjoy their company.  And it is just fun.

We got everyone back to the airport and now we are back to real life, but we had a fabulous weekend with them all.  We did remember to thank everyone for their service in keeping us free.  Cyle and Athena were the foremost recipients of that thanks, and I consider them heroes for the deployments they endured.  I am also glad for both of my grandpas serving and for Brad, Erica, and their family.  Thanks for keeping us safe and for finding Bin Laden.

9 months

Callie is now officially the only 9 month old at the gym who is still small enough to fit in the baby swings.  Most days when I go to pick her up she's just swinging away with the newborns, chewing on a toy.  It's pretty funny.  She's so little she looks like she should not be able to do the things she does.  Her doctor appointment was yesterday -

15 lb. 8 oz (12th percentile)
27.5 inches (47th percentile)

I don't remember her head circumference but is was up in the 50th percentile.  She's long and thin and like I said, she looks too little to be doing things like swinging at the park and standing up.  She is crawling like a champ.  She can also pull herself up and love to stand next to the ottoman and drum her hands on it.  She also thinks its really cool that she can stand up in her crib.  I have never seen a baby so happy to see you when you come to get them out of bed.  Her smile is so big it takes up the whole bottom half of her face and she is usually so excited she falls over backwards.

Callie loves to play with balls.  She will chase them around, batting them just out of reach for a very long time.  She loves big people food and whenever she sees you eating she will open her mouth and cry until you put something in her mouth.  She loves to swing and she thinks that the windup leading to the swing is fun.  You pull the swing up and she smiles and goes "ah ah."  She still loves Kenna and will always try to find her when she hears her.  Now that she can crawl she doesn't want to be left out.  If you set her down and walk away she will follow you.  She likes to watch people and if there is a lot going on she gives herself whiplash trying to keep up.  That usually means that if there are people over and she needs a bottle we have to take her into another room. 

Callie will now ride on Kenna's powerwheel.  At first she wasn't sure but now she likes it and if you put her hand on the button she can push it herself.  She loves the bathtub and is great at splashing.  She likes to crawl under the piano and feel the vibrations while you're playing it.  She knows that at night time before bed Nate and Kenna will play with her on our bed and last night she crawled in there by herself and yelled for us.  She's still working on some teeth which she will hopefully get soon because she is chewing on everything and drooling like a little puppy.  She's a happy, sweet baby and we'll keep her another nine months.

Ballet Recital and Mother's Day

Yesterday was Kenna's ballet recital.  She was so excited.  He last class was on Thursday and the whole way home she was trying to convince me that her ballet recital was the next day.  I finally had to tell her I'd check with her teacher (which I didn't) and make sure it was on Saturday (which it was).  We showed up early for a dress rehearsal at which point Kenna said, "Oh no mom I don't have flowers!"  I told her maybe she would after she danced and then it was time for the big show.  Since Miss Lisa teaches out of her home, the recital was wrapped up in 20 minutes which was great.

She was very cute.  She was the line leader and was a little confused on when to stop but boy was she good at staying on her spot.  Even when they had their "free dance" she did not stray far from that spot.  She kept sneaking little waves to us.  It was adorable.  When it was over she ran up, gave me a big hug and squealed, "I did it mom!"  She was so proud of herself.  After it was all over she finally got her flowers.

Unfortunately she decided she does not want to do ballet next year and I finally found out why.  She told me that they used to dance to "Loopty Loo" in ballet and that was fun but now all they get to do is "practice the recital five times! For 'ears and ears'".  Anyway she now wants to do "joo-nastics" instead.

 She smiled at us the entire time

 Sneaking a wave

 

 Kenna only skips with her right knee.  It's super cute.  She hops with one foot up then step, step, step and hops with the same foot up again.

 

 Proud of her flowers

 

We hit up Chipotle when it was over to celebrate and she wore her costume the entire rest of the day.  She is happy that it is now a dress up.

Playing in her costume

Mother's Day was also a great hit. I got blueberry pancakes this morning and Kenna gave me her present first thing.  Nate took her to target to pick it, which she did without prompting.  Nate says she walked up and down the isles till she found something for me.  Ironically enough I had seen it at target a few days earlier and thought it would look cute in the house.  She can read minds.  Then I just had to explain to her that it was too nice to go outside and I'd be keeping it inside.

 For Kenna's first mother's day Nancy helped her make a handprint picture frame.  I told Nate that I had to have one of these for Callie too.  He picked it up and we made the print today but its not dry yet, so I'll have to put a picture up later, but Callie did get to play with the box it came in.

Nate is also very good at reading minds.  He got me a gift card so I could get a new pair of summer shoes.  What a guy!  Although I have to say today was not much different from most other days.  I know that sounds mean but really its a compliment.  Nate is always so helpful with the girls and housework that if I just want to sit around on a normal day he picks up the slack.  He did go out of his way to make it special and he is wonderful.  Oh, and to top it off all the kids sang to their moms in church today.  I didn't think Kenna would go up there especially since Jenna took off before her, but she walked all the way up there and all the way back by herself.  When she got back she told me that was the song they had been practicing for "ears and ears."  I love those girls!

 She still can't always get the binky in the right way.

 This is for my Aunt Cristen who thinks my kids only play with electrical cords and hair dryers.

 Princess fishing

 

 Kenna's first root beer float.  We had them on family night and the next morning she says, "Mom can it be family night again so we can have the yummy icecream?"  Yes.

 

Callie also loves the bear Anna sent. She loves to rub her face all over it.

For My Grandma

Grandma, this is especially for you.  Note how I put it up before you reminded me that I needed to post one.  AND it has been less than a month.  Enjoy!

The grandparents came through with pictures from the Easter trip to Utah.  I realized as I was doing Callie's baby book that we really took no pictures of her first Easter.  No pictures with candy or a basket or toys or anything.  Oh well.  We still love her.

 Panning for gold at "This is the Place"

 Telling you how many she got...five

 The bunny and backpack that she got and wore the entire time she was in Utah and still wears now.

 Nate got in a fight with a goose....

 ....and almost lost

 Easter #2

 Easter #1

We have been back in Texas for a few weeks now.  We have been spending a lot of time with Jenna in the afternoons so Lix can take a break while Bo naps.  Kenna is thrilled with this and so I am.  It generally means I don't have to hear from Kenna all afternoon.

We recently found something to do right around the corner.  This is big news because here in Frisco, there is surprisingly little to do with young kids unless you want to swim or go to the park and sometimes we need a break from that.  We discovered a warehouse full of those huge bounce houses and we've been a few times.  Since Jenna and most of the other little girls in the ward have preschool in the mornings twice a week Kenna has had to make a new friend, Camden.  We hang out with them about once a week.  Nate refers to them as my 'imaginary friends' since he is not sure who they are.  Anyway, we hit up the bounce house together and I'm surprised at how well Kenna plays with a boy.  She really seems to like him.  Maybe its because he doesn't usually care if she bosses him around.

Callie also took her first trip to the beach.  There are lots of lakes around here and at one they trucked in a bunch of sand so we have a beach in the middle of Texas.  It's pretty cool.  Callie really liked the sand, but cried every time the water grazed her toes (in her defense the water was freezing).

 My dad sent us home with a couple aloe vera plants since we killed our last one.  Ironically I'm pretty sure the one outside is dying.  The one inside looks like it might survive.  I've also planted some basil so that I can have that fresh.  It seems to be impossible to find.  I've learned all about how to prune it so that it turns into a basil tree instead of a stock.  We'll see how it goes.

Kenna has picture day at ballet tomorrow and has she has told me repeatedly, "After that there's only one more class and then it's my recital."  She is also expecting flowers like in the "Fancy Nancy and the Mermaid Ballet" book.  I think we can handle that.  She's really excited because her costume is purple and has a tiara.  She was also able to repeat to me (what I'm assuming is verbatim) her teacher's instructions for the costumes.  "You have to hang them up and fluff them up.  Not just with your hands you have to put them on a hanger so they're fluffy."  Check.

Kenna has also informed me that next year she really wants to do gymnastics instead of ballet.  We will see if I can find a place that doesn't require half of Nate's salary each month for her to participate.  If not Lix suggested we have our own class.  Maybe we'll do that.  I wonder if she will pass that as a "real class."

Callie is real crawling now.  It is very slow, but she can get where she wants to go.  She is also able to sit up on her own and is usually sitting when I go to get her out of her crib.  She is so smiley when I get her up.  I love it!  It's like she can't wait to get out of the crib and into your arms. 

The home improvement projects have started back up.  We painted the toy room blue and while moving the bookshelves broke them and had to get new ones.  They were 5 years old and originally 30 bucks from walmart so we got our moneys worth.  We also painted the entryway.  All of the tall walls are done which just leaves the ceilings.  We got a quote and it would be like 400 bucks to have someone do it so Nate is crafting ways he can do it on his own.  We also put up some new art and curtains in the kitchen and some accents all over the house.  Unfortunately I didn't take any pictures and am too lazy to do so now.  Maybe next time.

Since Nate is in scouts he broke down and bought a tent.  He is taking Kenna camping in the backyard on Saturday night.  It will be her first camping trip every.  They will be roasting marshmallows and everything.  She is really excited and now she will have something to talk to Anika about.  

That is life for us now.  The kids have both been sick so we haven't really been to the gym since before Utah.  Kenna is going through withdrawals and I'm doing my best to keep her entertained.

Callie is still working on teeth.  She likes to chew on everything.