Utah

My parents were kind enough to fly me and the grandkids out to visit for 2 whole weeks!  We were sad to leave Benny behind, but that darn school keeps him busy so his schedule wouldn't allow it.  We missed him while we were gone.  The flights went as well as could be expected and I was really glad that I had purchased a little puppy backpack (read: leash) for E so that he wouldn't run away from me while on the layover.  It turned out to be a lifesaver while I was feeding Sammi.  Yes, I am one of THOSE parents.  Judge if you must, but I didn't have to go chasing after him while trying to maintain a shred of dignity (and modesty).


We started off the trip by being greeted at the airport by Grandma and Grandpa J.  E was thrilled to see them and couldn't wait to "pay trains".  And pay trains he did.  We all found it difficult to resist when he would say "Come on (insert name here), come pay trains!  Pease!  Oh pease!"

Some fun things we did:
I took a trip up to Logan to visit my sister Natalie, and our good friends the Humpherys.  E and Sadie are little friends via blog videos and now Sammi and Ellie are too!  It was so fun to see them and to see how much Logan has changed.  E had a good time in Aunt Nat's apartment eating Cheez-Its and was sad to leave her.  Luckily she was coming home for the weekend the next day.

Sammi met her cousin, Tanner.  Don't they look comfy?  I got to have lunch with Ben's sisters and Mom.

We accidentally caught Emerson being affectionate with Sammi. :)  Shh...don't tell anyone he actually likes her.

Sammi met her second cousin, Addi.

E got to play with his second boy cousins.  And yes, they are all fighting over the pink car. 

E got to "play games" with Uncle Brad.  He was very motivated by this and thought he was doing a really good job.  He was so good that he didn't even need batteries in his controller.

This was his happy face at breakfast each morning.

A huge highlight was going to The Dairy Keen (No, I did not misspell Dairy Queen) in Midway, Utah where my family owns a second home.  It is the home of the train burger and is a train lover's paradise.  They have trains running all over the place, and very good shakes.  E was lucky enough to eat dinner on a train!

E with Aunt Steph and Aunt Nat

E and Sammi posing with the train

I heart this picture...two peas in a pod.  (E got to play with Uncle B's old trains while we were there)

Little Bright Eyes

E's yummy dinner on the train.

We had a great time at the condo in Midway, and that was probably my favorite part of the trip because everyone was together, and no one had work or school or play practice over UEA.  We went to Cascade Springs and drove through Provo Canyon to glimpse the pretty leaves. 

We also went to the Hogle Zoo.  It was a very fun time until the last five minutes where E was sliding for the last time before we went home and he cut his head open on the exposed concrete slab under the slide.  It bled like crazy, but luckily turned out to be a little pinpoint of a cut on the back of his head.  It sure is convenient to have Grandpa J for a doctor!  But here are the happy pictures.  Grandma took us on the train twice!  Lucky ducks.

The animal E chose to ride on the carousel was the peacock.  Yes, the peacock.  He chose the buffalo first, then wanted the peacock.  Of all the random animals...

We had lots of fun hanging out, eating out, and watching our girly shows together.  The yummy places we went:

-Tio's (on the west side of Murray.  Amazing Mexican food.)
-Cafe Rio
-Sweet Tooth Fairy (for cupcakes and other sinful delights)
-La Madelaine Bakery
-Bella Citta (The most amazing tomato soup EVER.  I don't even really like tomato soup.)
-Red Mango (delicious frozen yogurt)
-Scaddy's (burgers)
-Wingers (self-explanatory)

I'm not sure why, but the first few days of vacation always go by really slow...just the way I like it.  Then suddenly a week has passed and the rest flies by no matter how long your trip is.  I'm not sure my parents got enough of the grandkids. :)  E loved when Grandpa would get him ready for bed every night and then laughed when Grandma would admire his shiny clean teeth.  We've had to call them since we've been back so Grandma could admire them over the phone.  We miss you!  Thanks again for all the fun.  We'll be excited to see you again for Christmas. 

And just in case you didn't get enough of Sammi-girl:

3 Months

 Shortly after returning home from Utah, our little sweetie turned 3 months!  She is still such a doll and melts our hearts with every smile.  She has the sweetest personality and is such a calm baby.  (Unless she hasn't pooped in 5 days and you take her for a ride in the car.  Serious fury.)

I had to put this picture up because it shows her pink shoes and her looses (or tights).  I heart them.

At 3 months, our little sweetie:

-Hold her head up pretty well
-Has accidentally rolled over twice
-Smiles adorably
-Laughs when you tickle her under the chin or on the ribs
-Eats every 3 hours during the day
-Can sleep for 12 hours at night
-Is a good girl about going down for naps
-Gets cranky if you don't get her down for her naps
-Loves to suck on her fingers or lick her blanket as she goes to sleep
-Has survived 3 attacks from her older brother
-Has been on an airplane to visit family in Utah
-Passes gas like no other 3 month old I know
-Discovered her feet and stares at them with big, round eyes
-Plays with toys hanging from her bouncer

Oh Sammi, if only we could make you stay little!

*Post about our trip to Utah coming soon.

Popular

Both videos are of Emerson singing "Popular" from Wicked.  Can you tell I've been listening to the soundtrack enough for him to learn it?  The second version is good if you're in the mood to watch him through the hole of his cookie.  But the first version he is singing louder so you can hear him better.

They're Just Jammies, For Crying Out Loud!

No picture to go along with this post.  I didn't have any extra arms to be snapping cute photos as Emerson wrestled with me two nights ago while I put on his sleepers.  This falls under the "freaking out about new clothes" category.  This boy is not big on change, which is why I am so confused he has allowed Bebe Sister to live with us.  He woke up in the middle of the night the other night which is extremely unusual, and the next morning when I was much more coherent, I figured out it was probably because he was cold.  He doesn't stay under his blankets, so no wonder.  I'm not one that enjoys interrupted sleep, so I vowed the next night to put him in his sleepers.

Not without a fight, Emerson decided.  It was tantrum at first sight.  How dare I buy him new things and then make him wear them!  I put on his regular jammies then wrestled him into the nice, warm, cozy sleepers with animals on them while he thrashed and screamed and cried.  I zipped up the zipper and you would've thought I was ending his life the way he screamed.  I said "They're just jammies, for crying out loud!"  Then he thrashed around on the ground some more and wouldn't settle down for a story so I told him he wasn't acting like he wanted a story and that I was going to put him in his bed.  "Ok Mommy" was his reply.  Then I placed him in his crib and left the room as he was screaming "Leave it on!" while pulling on his jammies (meaning take them off, but he's confused about on and off.)  He cried hysterically for probably 5 minutes (you know, the inconsolable overly-tired cry that you can't do anything about.) and then went silent.  And what do you know, he slept the whole night through, warm and cozy.

Point for Mom.

I guess that's why they're called the "terrible twos".  In his defense, he has been sick.  And he is indeed two.

Happy Birthday Ben!

Ben turned 27 on Friday.  It's weird that he's 27 because that rounds up to 30.  I know 25 and 26 would technically round up too, but those ages are more "mid-twenties" than "late-twenties".  I think Ben is freaked out by it just a little.  Oh well, I keep him young with my young-ness, right?  His birthday was a little higgledy-piggledy this year because he was on call on his birthday at Children's Hospital for his pediatric infectious disease rotation.  Sounds conducive to having our own newborn at home, right?  NOT.  He's been very good about washing his hands and changing his clothes right when he comes in the door before he picks up either of the kids, but it's still enough to make one worry.

Anyway, I digress. 

We had his cake Wednesday night, then I made him his birthday dinner on Thursday night before he rushed off to Scouts.  If you know Ben, you know he loves seafood and that I do not for the most part.  So I compromised and made salmon (which I do like) with a pistachio and brown sugar crust.  Don't knock it 'til you try it.  It was fabulous.  And Bennish.  He also requested "those rosemary potatoes your mom made when she was here."  Meaning, Crash Hot Potatoes from Pioneer Woman.  Shhh....don't tell him that's where they're from because he thinks she is the source of our out-of-shapeness.  Well, we have shapes, but they're like the Marshmallow Man from Ghostbusters.  And she can't help that all of her recipes are fabulous, and that many of them appeal to me when I'm in the mood for comfort food, can she?

I digress again.

During birthday dinner festivities, I asked Ben if he wanted me to make him cupcakes or anything to take to work the next day to share with his little co-workers (isn't that cute that he has co-workers?).  He said "Sure, but the other med student said he was making me a cake, so maybe I should call him and tell him you're doing one."  So he called and the other sort-of-odd med student said he was making cake anyway.  This med student had also brought baked goods twice earlier in the week, so I took this as a challenge to outshine him.  Just 'cause I'm competitive like that and I don't have much else to do.  I bake.  I like it.  So I made a repeat of the cake I made Wednesday night since I had a bunch of leftover stuff.  I was glad Ben would have some little thing to make it feel like it was his birthday.

So my Friday night was planned out to have chicken nuggets or mac n' cheese with the kids AGAIN, then putting E to bed and crafting while Sammi looked on cooing.  Instead, happily I received a call that Ben was on his way home and that his awesome resident, (Kelly Sandberg, the very same as in our ward) let him go because it was his birthday!  What a swell guy.  So E and I hurried to finish the birthday sign we were already making and we floundered around for something celebratory to do since we'd kind of used up everything already...including presents since his b-day present was a new suit which he received before Sammi's blessing.  So we decided to go to dinner, but Ben got to choose so it was a Chinese buffet (gag).  Not my choice, but it was his birthday, so I acquiesced.  We finished the evening out with some store-bought gelato and 101 Dalmations with E.  Oh, how times have changed since before we were married or had kids. :)

Saturday Ben went on a man-date with Mike Richards to the Buckeye game.  I mean, Mike is pretty fun.  Even other men are attracted to him.  True story. 

And Ben thinks MY birthday celebrations are long and overdrawn.

The birthday boy

Birthday friends.  Ben's is on the 24th and Jordon's is on the 25th.  Plus, they both have matching boys in yellow shirts.

 Emerson was excited for Daddy's birthday for DAYS.  He was in disbelief that the day had actually arrived when he could finally have "day-day cake."  Do you like that he's leering at the cake?  He ran around the house yelling "Happy day-day to YOU!" all day until Daddy got home.

 The big moment.  Happy day-day cake.

 He and "eeyam" (William) pretending to be asleep on the couch.  They think they are so clever.

The "day-day" cake.

2 Months Old

Height: 22 inches (40%)

Weight: 10 lbs. 13 oz. (50%)

Head Circumference: 38.7 cm (50%)

Ok, I'm going to say it again.  Time is flying by way too fast.  I remember loving this age with Emerson, and I'm really trying to cherish each moment with Sammi as well.  2 months is like the best age ever.  Sammi is so cuddly still, is sleeping through the night (about 9 hours), is a great eater most of the time, and can smile now.  We don't have to mess with that silly rice cereal or baby food yet, we're not still figuring out breastfeeding and all the fun THAT brings, she is completely stationary still and can't get into trouble, she can't throw tantrums, and we have a pretty good schedule down.  As I said, I'm trying to enjoy every single moment, but I can't help but look forward to when she can laugh, talk, walk, stay up late chatting with me about boys, etc. :)  I hope she and I have the kind of relationship I have with my mom.  I really hope I'm the kind of mom that she feels like she can tell anything and everything to.  I just love my little girl to pieces!  She is such a sweetheart.

The one downside to 2 months--baby acne.  Don't worry sweetie.  When you're a teenager with acne I'll pull out pictures to remind you that you dealt with it once and can do it again and that we still think you are beautiful, zits or no zits.

I had to put this picture up because her jellies make me giggle.  Her little feet get sweaty in them just like a big kid's would.

Twist and Pull

That's the correct method of apple-picking, you know.  That's what Emerson yelled with each apple he picked.  We'd hear "Twist and pull!" followed by a plop as the apple dropped on the ground.  The force of him pulling the apple off the tree was just too much, and it slipped through his little hands almost every time.

Sometimes Daddy would lift E up high to get an apple.  He thought that was pretty cool.  (Ben isn't crabby in this picture even though it looks like he's scowling.  I think he's just concentrating.  Or something...)

E had to take all his apples to Daddy for inspection.  He had to hear Daddy say "Oh that's a good one!" before he would bring the apple to me to put in the bag.  I had to keep telling him "Put it in gently" which usually just resulted in a gentler throw. :)

Sammi was a big help too.

I'm not sure how many apples each of us ate while we picked, but it was a lot.

 

This is me in my camouflage shirt.  It's camouflage because it hides the awkwardity of my bust-al region during the time that I'm nursing.  I get thrown off when people are wearing beige or tan shirts and I have to do a double-take to make sure they're not nude, so I figure it works that way for other people too.  It makes people think "Oh, good.  That girl is just wearing a tan shirt.  She's NOT naked." instead of them noticing that I have that "new mother" (read: frumpy with oversized uneven bust) look.  I'm tricky like that.

After we picked apples, we drove to Amish country and sampled some cheese at Heini's Cheese Chalet and some bread at Kauffman's Bakery, then ate dinner at Mrs. Yoder's Kitchen.  It was our favorite Amish restaurant yet.  I highly recommend the sweet potato fries.

Before all of this though, E got to sleep outside in the tent with Dad in the backyard on Friday night.  Ben reports that he actually was a pretty good boy in there and was thrilled to death with the jellybeans that Daddy brought.  He had a blast with the flashlights and the train stories.  I was wondering how they were doing all night since Sammi and I slept inside the house.  It was so cute to see his excited little face emerge from the tent in the morning with his little Ute sweatshirt on and proudly tell me how he got to sleep in the tent.  I didn't think he could get any more excited until he saw I was cooking pancakes for breakfast.  (We're a cold cereal family.)

All our Saturday activities combined with E's little backyard camping trip with Daddy on Friday night made for a pretty fun weekend. 

Love This Girl

One of her huge, gummy, face-splitting smiles.  I don't want her to get teeth anytime soon.

Our little Sammi has been quite the happy girl lately.  I just haven't been able to capture her smiling very well...until now!  One of my favorite things is going to get the kids out of their room in the morning.  Not because I enjoy getting up, mind you, but just because they're both so excited to see me.  Sammi rewards me with a huge smile and some excited noises that accidentally slip out, and E says "Hi Mommy.  Git out!"  (He climbed out of his crib last week and I thought my world was over, but I told him we're not supposed to climb out of our crib, so he hasn't since.  We'll see how long it lasts until we have to switch him to a big boy bed.  Maybe I'm weird to keep him in a crib for as long as possible.  I doubt they discuss it amongst themselves in nursery while they're coloring or whatever, so he probably doesn't realize that a lot of his friends sleep in beds now.)

And now, for some random tidbits about our little sweetie.

An earlier attempt to capture a smile.  Just a teaser.

 This reminds me of the picture of me getting squeezed to death by my brother Scott.  You can trust that Emerson is lurking nearby.  Usually she just smiles at him, but I think she can sense what is coming.

Something I never realized would be a problem with my little girl is what we call "attack of the headband".  Sometimes she'll start freaking out while we're driving and we'll look and her headband is over her eyes or her mouth and she's licking it to death.  How aggravating to not realize you have hands with which you could fight the headband.  Sometimes she just gives up and goes back to sleep though.

We'll end with a picture of Sammi in her pretty clothes from Aunt Ashley.  I love the little elephant, and so does Sammi.  She told me so.

For Aunt Karen

Hey Karen, I just wanted you to see a picture of Sammi in the adorable outfit you sent her.  The crocheted sandal booties just kill me!  Thank you!

Love,
Nin

FAQ

Lots of people have asked if I made Sammi's blessing dress.  I did not.  I wish I could say I was that talented, but alas, I am not.  The good news is you can have one just like it!  We got it online from White Elegance.  Grandma and Grandpa J were so nice to give her such a beautiful dress.  It's hard to find blessing dresses, especially outside of Utah.  Pretty much all of them have crosses on them and start at size 6 months...I'm guessing for the whole Christening thing.  I guess that's cool if you're into infant baptism 'n' stuff.

The headband, you ask?  I didn't make it, but my good friend Natalie did.

The bracelet and pacifier clip?  I did make those...when I was craft happy before little S was born.

The bib?  Oh, the bib...my sweet Taiwanese visiting teaching partner Sister Chen made that for Sammi.  She was SO excited about it and worked very hard on it so that she could wear it for her blessing.  She asked me many times if I would send her a picture with Sammi wearing it, so I will have to remember to do that.  I have to guiltily admit that she didn't wear it for her actual blessing, but she wore it for a picture afterward...and that is the picture at the top of the blog and it's the one where we all looked the best.  I sincerely do appreciate Sister Chen working so hard and being so sweet.

And the baby girl?  Yes, I made her. :)

Sammi's Blessing Day

Here are the pictures of Sammi's blessing day.  There is something so special about your baby's blessing day, and this was no exception.  Ben gave her a beautiful blessing, and she looked so beautiful in her white dress.  We feel so blessed to have this sweet little girl in our family.  We love you Samantha May!

Our little family of four

We tried to take some pictures when we got home, but E would have none of that.

The grandparents and aunts and uncles

Grandma and Grandpa J with Sammi

The three generations

The aunts

The uncles

Our little sweetie in her beautiful dress

It's hard being so beautiful all day

Company

We were lucky enough to have two sets of grandparents come visit for Sammi's blessing last week during Ben's week off.  And, we were lucky enough to have them at two separate times!  First, we had Grandpa Tom and Grandma Dixy.  We picked them up from the airport and went to Schmidt's where they were super impressed with the 1/2 lb. cream puffs that are the specialty there.  We then decided to be completely spontaneous and tried to win some tickets to Wicked at the drawing they were holding outside the Ohio Theatre.   We didn't win, but they offered everyone who entered the drawing discounted tickets.  So we decided to go for it.  We rushed home, left E and Sammi with our trustworthy friends and rushed back to the theater in time for the show.  It was awesome.  I was so glad to finally get to see the show I've heard so much about.

The next morning, I dropped Grandpa Tom and Grandma Dixy off at school so that they could meet Ben for a suture workshop.  From there they went directly to Washington D.C. to the Glenn Beck rally.  That didn't sound like much fun to me, especially with two small children, so I opted to stay behind.  We passed the time with some friends and even got chicken nuggets for dinner one night.  I also watched quite a bit of Food Network.  I heart it.

The rally-goers returned just after midnight on Saturday night, and Grandma Dixy left really early the next morning.  Grandpa Tom stayed for three more days.  Those days were filled with a visit to the train tracks by our house, a small fishing trip, a Reds game (for Tom and Ben), a trip to the Bunny Fountains, Texas Roadhouse, Jeni's Ice Cream, and a very short round of Frisbee-golf, aka Frolf.  It was a lot of fun, and I don't think we could've packed much more in!

Just a few days later, Grandma and Grandpa J, Nat, Brad, and Steph arrived for their visit.  They arrived late at night, so they didn't get to see E the first night, but they got to meet Sammi for the first time and fell in love with her. (How could you not?)  We got up pretty early the next morning to drive to Cleveland to pick up Uncle Scott and head directly to our train excursion on the Cuyahoga Valley Railroad.  E was so excited about this.  See picture below.

He was thrilled to death to be on a real live train.  It was a three-hour round trip and he was awake for two of the three hours.  Every time he heard the train whistle, he would turn to me and say "Mommy, what sound?"  quickly followed by "It's not moving yet...nope, not yet."  The ultimate, though, was wearing his train shirt while playing with his trains ON a train...a train car named Emerson, no less.  You'd have thought we'd be all train-ed out by the end of the day but we were not.

a thrilled little boy

Happiness :)

Having these pictures in the order they're in makes it appear that there are two baby Sammis, but I assure you, we only have one.

Proof that we got to ride on the car named Emerson.  How cool is that?

After our train ride we drove to Kirtland and got there just in time to get a tour of the Kirtland Temple and the church-owned site as well.  Afterward, we went in search of some dinner and went to a 50's Diner.  They had really good milkshakes and HUGE hamburgers.  Then we drove all the way home and got there around 12:30 a.m.  Then we had Sammi's wonderful blessing day (it deserves its own post, so it will follow.)

On Monday, we headed to COSI to check out the Titanic Exhibit, then hurried to City BBQ and Graeter's before we had to drop Uncle Scott off at the airport.  We hung out for a couple more hours at our house and let everyone get more time with E "paying trains" and cuddling with Sammi, and then suddenly it was time for them to go. :(  We went out to the front porch and waved goodbye as the rest of the fam left for the airport.  Tears ensued, and the long-awaited trip was over.  We had so much fun and were so glad to have all my siblings here.  (But we missed having Ashley!)

I hate it when family has to leave, or we have to leave family.  It's the worst.  But at least we have Christmas to look forward to, and maybe even a trip in October for me and the kids.  Thanks again for coming!  We love you.

Four Happies, One Sad

I'll start with the sad. My family left yesterday. They came out for Sammi's blessing and we had a great time. My only complaint was that the time went by way too fast! I will post pictures from their visit and Sammi's big day shortly. You'd think I'd be able to say goodbye without tears by now, but I can't. So cry I did. For a long time.

Luckily though, I have my own precious little family right here in Columbus to cheer me up. They each did such nice things for me after my family left.

1. Just mere hours after my family left, Ben bought our plane tickets home for Christmas so I have something to look forward to. Hooray!

2. Sammi slept through the night for the first time, at only 6 weeks old! Such a good girl just like her big brother.

3. Emerson said his first prayer all by himself at breakfast this morning. I want to write it down so I don't forget.

"Fadder, tank you breakfast, cheerios, bagel, orange, milk...hmm....let's see...Fadder tank you golden grahams and breakfast. Fadder, Amen." (Followed quickly by a very pleased look on his face.) Let me also say that he didn't have all these things for breakfast. I think he was trying to think of everything he's ever had for breakfast.

4. This one wasn't specifically for me, other than the fact that it made me smile. He had a huge scenario going with his trains, and this is how it went down:

"Gordon! No touching Clarabel! Time-out. Better go to time-out." Walks Gordon over to the corner while looking him straight in the face. "No touching Clarabel, Gordon. Sit in the corner." Takes a few steps, turns around, and points his finger sternly at Gordon. "You stay in the corner Gordon. I will set the timer." Sets the timer. 5 seconds go by. "Ok Gordon, no touching Clarabel. Tell me sorry." Drives Gordon on the tracks over to Thomas, who is pulling Annie and Clarabel. "I'm sorry Thomas, touching Clarabel. Give me a hug. Ohhh!" Pushes trains together and leans their heads together to hug. "Love you Thomas. See you next time! See you next train!"