2014/06/05 Thursday: Maternity Pictures

I took maternity pictures for my beautiful neighbor today.  We also had Henry's friend E over, since we are trying to play with him as much as possible before he moves next week.

I'm still coughing, and moving slowly since I cough more if I take a deep breath.

2014/06/04 Wednesday: Breathing Easier

I went to a doctor that wasn't Nick, which means I must be really sick.  I can't stop coughing.  I can't take a deep breath.  I got a breathing treatment at the office, and then went to the pharmacy to pick up several prescriptions.

2014/06/03 Tuesday: Still Super Sick

I'm even sicker than before.  And I'm at the grocery store because we were completely out of staple foods.  I'm wearing the glasses to cover my pinkeye, which is almost certainly from the same virus that's trying to kill me with a respiratory infection.

2014/06/02 Monday: It's a Bike Kind of Day

2014/06/01 Sunday: Spoiled Guest

We were guests at a work barbeque tonight at a very lovely home of an attending.  Kids loved the guinea pigs, and all the toys and dress-ups the hosts shared.  

I am sick, but I think I'm finally starting to get better.  I've been sick for at least a week.  If I called it a cold, I don't think that accurately conveys how absolutely horrible I feel.

2014/05/31 Saturday: It Was Ugly Anyway

I heard a loud rhythmic clanging coming from the back room.  I thought the kids were hitting something.  The reality was that Henry had stood on top of the doll changing table, reached up to the ceiling fan with out "robot arm", and broken off one of the blades.  It was so ugly anyway, I'm not actually sad that we have to replace it.

2014/05/30 Friday: Splash Pad Fun

2014/05/29 Thursday: Sample for Lunch

We love having a Costco so close.

2014/05/28 Wednesday: Where's Your Helmet

I find myself having to remind him again and again to wear his helmet if he's getting on his bike.

2014/05/27 Tuesday: Birthday Presents

Birthday girl wearing her birthday dress (Cinderella Costume) and her birthday crown (Minnie Mouse from Toot's birthday card.  Yesterday was so great, so wants to do it all over again.

2014/05/26 Monday: Gigi is Three

The birthday monsters visited her bedroom while she slept.  It may be Memorial Day, but the bigger holiday today is Gigi's third birthday.  We had a fun family day, and finished it off with a chocolate cake and elaborate candles.  The central candle was a flower that unfurled when you lit it as it played music.

The ridiculously large balloon my mother bought her at the end of March is still floating around wishing her happy birthday.

2014/05/25 Sunday: Sleeping Kids are Good Kids

2014/05/24 Saturday: Tiny Dancer

2014/05/23 Friday: High Chair Antics

2014/05/22 Thursday: Doggy Delivery Service

Caesar has enjoyed his stay in Bountiful, but it was time for him to come home.  My dad drove him from Utah to a Chicago suburb along I-80, where I met him for just a few minutes.  He exited the freeway and stopped at the truck stop just long enough for me to give him leftover fruit and treats from book club and for him to give me Caesar.  He was then on to his final destination back east.

2014/05/21 Wednesday: Last Day of Preschool

Henry and his teacher, Miss Liz

2014/05/20 Tuesday: Park and Recreation

2014/05/19 Monday: Sleeping Beauty

2014/05/18 Sunday: Petting the Plants

The rule is not to touch the plants, but for some reason they wanted to pet it.  This is the plant my nurse work mates gave me when my grandpa died six years ago.

I substitute taught for Henry's primary class today.

2014/05/17 Saturday: Park Day

2014/05/16 Friday: Preschool Graduation

Nick was able to make it (post call) to Henry's preschool graduation.  The kids sang cute songs and showed us how much they've learned.

There's still school next week because they're making up for the Arctic Blasts days.

2014/05/15 Thursday: Back Home

We are back home and trying to get to normal.  The kids had a special cooking class at the preschool today.  The instructor gave Gigi special permission since she isn't quite 3 yet, and Gigi had a great time.

2014/05/14 Wednesday: Time to Go Home

This is our group, minus Dallas and Walt, who had already left.  While we were waiting for our shuttle, characters started to wander in.  In addition to Goofy, we saw Chip & Dale, Baloo, Jasmine, and Pluto.

A couple of days ago, there was a Mickey Mouse balloon floating in the maids cart garbage.  I took it, and put it on our stroller.  Later that day, one of the ears deflated, and people kept telling us to exchange it for a new one.  The whole thing was pretty funny, but maybe in "you had to be there" sort of way.

2014/05/13 Tuesday: Feeling Hot Hot Hot!

It is hot.  Really hot.  Basically, it's too hot to have fun.  We bought $17 spray bottles to try and cool down a little.  We left the  park and went for an afternoon swim.  We returned to the park for dinner.  After pushing my kids around in the stroller and the heat, I started having contractions and had to sit and drink water, and continue to take it easy.  But then again, I feel like I can't complain about anything because we are in Disneyland!  That's amazing!  But crowded Disneyland in a hundred degrees is not the most awesome Disneyland to experience.

2014/05/12 Monday: Magic Moments

At Disneyland, the funnest part may be watching my kids look at things.  Gigi certainly thought it was magical when we walked around a corner and there was her favorite princess, Ariel.  I love watching the kids watch the parade- they are completely enchanted by it.

2014/05/11 Sunday: California Dreaming

Through the miracle of human flight, we woke up in Utah and spent the afternoon at the hotel pool in California.  The kids and I are here with my family.  The only downside is it's about 20 degrees too hot.

2014/05/10 Saturday: I Sat Down for a Moment

I sat down for a minute and was suddenly covered in dogs.

Our Utah visit is over, and we never get everything we want done.  We did manage to also see Nick's grandpa Buddy, as well as Nick's dad and step-mom.  Nick missed seeing everyone because he had to be back to work so quickly.

2014/05/09 Friday: Museum Again

We got into another museum for free, the Museum of Natural History, with Toots and J.  We enjoyed the exhibits and the chocolate tour and indulged in some chocolate ourselves. 

Later, we visited Deborah and her new husband Dan, back from their honeymoon.

2014/05/08 Thursday: Museum and Farm Day

Our membership to MSI also gets us into several Utah museums.  So, we spent the morning at Discovery Gateway children's museum with cousin J, and the afternoon at the Thanksgiving Point farm with cousin B.  The funny part was I had called and asked if my membership would get me into the new Thanksgiving Point museum of Natural Curiosity.  They told me it would, so I asked Samantha to meet me there.  What they hadn't mentioned was the museum didn't open for another couple of weeks.  So we changed our plans slightly and went to the farm instead.  The kids had a great time.  Samantha was forced to take B on the pony ride over and over again.  My kids overcame their fear of horses momentarily, but only for long enough to ride once.  Gigi said she wanted to ride again, but then wouldn't.  We also went on a carriage ride as a group.

We ducked inside a building when it started to rain, and I ran into my friend from high school, Kyle.  It really is a small world.

I then had dinner with my friend Hillary, who lives next door to my friend Brian in Utah county.  They knew each other before they were neighbors there, because they were friends when both lived near the U during college.  And I know them each independently of each other.  Hillary had us all over for dinner.  It was so fun, and so nice to get to know Brian's wife better.  It's not just a small world, it's tiny.

2014/05/07 Wednesday: Belle Gigi

Gigi was promised a Belle dress when she was done potty training, and now she's showing it off.  Also pictured are our very entertaining neighbors, Coleen and Carly.

2014/05/06 Tuesday: Reunited and it Feels So Good

We saw Janette and her girls today.  I have missed them terribly!  Last time we were together, we were both pregnant, and those fetuses are almost three-year-olds now.  We went to the botanical garden and checked out the new City Creek play area and food court.  But really, just seeing Janette was so great.  I hope we'll be able to talk more now that our time zones won't be exact opposites (since Guam is about a ten hour difference).

2014/05/05 Monday: She Loves Nail Polish

Gigi loves painting her nails.  I think Henry has pretty much caught on that it's "nail polish" and not "posh paint" as he was saying.

2014/05/04 Sunday: He Was Tired

Nick was in town for the blink of an eye for his mom's wedding.  When I took him to the airport the kids came with us.  Henry must have been really tired.

2014/05/03 Saturday: Wedding Bells

Deborah, Nick's mom, married today.  I was the photographer for the event.  I do know I'm not skilled enough to really be trusted with people's wedding day, but I was needed today.  I studied a lot in preparation, but when you're there I feel like most of your prep knowledge disappears.  I feel I need a lot more practice.  A lot.

The event was lovely.  Last night Deborah and her family came to set up the decorations, and things looked beautiful.  An additional BIG thanks to my family for doing a great job of making it a beautiful and delicious affair.  Our kitchen "staff" included SIL's Megan and Lucy, my sister Kate, and my friend Jessica.  The men helped set up and take down, so thank you Nick, Brett, Sam, Harry.  Toots, thanks for helping watch my kids.  And Doug and Linette, thank you for being such great party hosts!

2014/05/02 Friday: Dusting Up High

Finishing wedding preparations for Nick's mom's wedding means dusting in all the hard to reach places.  Henry "helped" me for a few minutes before he decided it wasn't all that fun.

2014/05/01 Thursday: Babies Holding Babies Holding Babies

2014/04/30 Wednesday: Meeting Franklin

2014/04/29 Tuesday: What Happens in Vegas, Gets Delayed in Vegas

It's miraculous that you can get from Chicago to Salt Lake in a day.  However, today's flight was a little less miraculous, and a little more challenging than our usual.  We boarded the plane is this crazy nook of the airport we've never been to before,  It's Midway's equivalent of Platform 9 3/4.  There was no room to sit down and we were packed in the terminal, which was a glorified hall, like sardines.  We boarded the plane, and sat and sat.  They were having a maintenance issue.  As we continued to sit, we realized Henry had left his backpack in the bathroom.  We called the airport, the police had the backpack.  If it wasn't claimed today it would get shipped off to a warehouse.  Katie called them and talked them into delivering the backpack to our plane.  We were still sitting on the plane at the gate when it was delivered.  After about 3 hours on the plane, we finally pushed back.  We clearly knew we were not making our connection in Vegas.

When we got to Vegas, we had new tickets for the next and final flight that night from Vegas to Salt Lake.  That flight ended up being delayed, so we spent a lot of time sitting next to a vending machine charging my phone (pictured above.)  Although the day was long, there were no major meltdowns.  Caesar really had it the worse since he had to spend about 5 extra hours in his carrier.  Rough day for him for sure.