It's a New Year....Happy 2013!!!

January 2013

When we got back from Utah, we decided it was time to get Maverick's first haircut. He was a champ, super wiggly, but did not fuss! 

 Lanie's friends, Sage and Sydney, came to play since their mom had just had a baby. They love Shawn! Who wouldn't? I mean, with story time as awesome as this!!!

Watch out Paul Blart, this Patrol officer is a high inforcer!

We forgot our stroller when we went to the mall to do Christmas returns. Renting the mall stroller was well worth the $5 of entertainment we got out of this boy. He's a true driving natural.

 I still laugh just looking at these pictures. Shawn got Lanie dressed in leggings, white shorts, and her tall Go-Go Boots. Interesting combination that left Lanie looking like a 'Lady of the Night.'

Our cute Bug didn't know, all she wanted was to walk her own stroller with baby over to the gym. She is becoming such a big girl, so independent, and so smart!

 This little man brings so much joy to our days. I love little boys in overalls, and I found these adorable ones at the second-hand store for $1. He is probably has grown out of them by now (the boy is growing like a weed), but it was worth the dollar, just for the photo shoot!

This chica loves the snow!  Really she just loves to play outside, which we haven't done a lot of this winter.  When it snows though, she brings me her snow clothes and asks to play outside. She likes to go out on the deck and use her sand bucket and shovel. We're pretty sure that Lanie has no sense of temperature. She is NEVER cold!

One day, Lanie wanted to play outside. So I let her out on the deck. The green saucer sled was full of ice. She dumped it out and was startled. I thought, why not give her something to do. She is always wanting to pound things with the hammer and constantly has me telling her "NO." So, I gave her the hammer and let her go to town. She had a ball!!!

"Church Day"

Lanie gets lunch in the car on the way to church and usually falls asleep now that we have 1-4 pm church. She never skips a beat of nursery though, she love love loves nursery. Maverick was a little sick this day (hence the rosie cheeks). He looks a lot worse than it was (we would not have brought him to church otherwise). 

FINGER FOODS

Mav has become our little eater. We gave him blueberries to feed himself and he made a way funny sour face. Unfortunately I missed capturing that, but in the end, he really liked the blueberries. And even more, loves the freedom of feeding himself.

Bruins Hockey Game

Shawn's company took us to a Bruins game. It was fun just to be there. Hockey is not our favorite sport to watch, but hockey fans are quite entertaining.

This is how daddy time goes for Maverick!!!

AUTISM AWARENESS

For Family Night one night, we put together some Valentine's to send to Utah Legislatures for Autism Awareness. We have some friends whose children have autism, and requested an effort and voice for Autism Awareness. We were happy to help.

December in Utah

Utah

December 19th - January 7th

The kids traveled really well. As you can see, we laid them out, sleeping, taking up the whole row. We fit oodles into this trip. Shawn hadn't been home since May and had a lot in mind. So it begins: went to Heber to Saige's school program, stopped by and delivered a package to an Elder's mom, went to the dentist, had Hooper family pictures, went to Daniel's cabin, did Christmas shopping, celebrated Christmas with Tyler, Destiny, and Adaela, acted out the Nativity (Lanie was an angel), had breakfast at Warren's, had Christmas Eve Dinner at Aunt Susan's, went to Alana's and acted out the Nativity again (Lanie - Angel, Maverick - Baby Jesus), opened presents Christmas morning at Hooper's, Lanie tortured Koa, breakfast at Grandma Shirley's, Parker family Christmas, sang carols at Auntie Pat's grave, visited Grandma Lu-Lu, celebrated Shawn's birthday, played in the snow, sledding in the snow, 4-wheeling in the snow, lunch at Zupa's, went to Brigham City to help my dad with his truck (in a blizzard), party at Adam's, Lunch with the Swedish family in Orem, Party at Melissa's, Lunch with Shawn's boss, Parker family weekend in Salt Lake (Chris' Birthday, Talent show, Jingle Bus, Jazz game, Joseph Smith Movie, City Creek, Cafe Molise, and Swimming), Spainhower Family Party, Cousin game night, New Year's Meatball Party, Maverick learned to sit up, Skyler's cabin, Treson's Basketball game, Lunch with roommates, Christmas present returns and more shopping, craft night with Jen, lunch with sisters and mom at Sizzler, traveled to St. George, rented a car, saw Chris' new house, went to Vegas, celebrated Jordan's birthday, date night at the Bellagio, stayed at Jordan and Tara's, played with Kynli, visited Haley and Jake, flew home!!! I'm sure there was lots that I did not list too. Lots more eating and playing with cousins and grandparents. I think you get the idea. Not much more we could've fit in. Needless to say, we were beat, slept on the flight home, and took 2 weeks of catching up when we got back to Mass.

Highlights

 

Parker Family Salt Lake Weekend

New Year's Eve

Traveling Home from Vegas

You may wonder, why is Lanie in the same pink dress the entire trip??? Well, she got that from Pops (Grandpa Kerry) on Christmas and refused to wear anything else the entire trip. We did pack clothes for her, a lot of them, but next time I'm just bringing the pink princess dress!!!

December in Massachusetts

Music with Carrie

Lanie loves going to this music class. This was especially fun because Lanie got really into it and became Carrie's sidekick. They put red stickers on their noses and pretended like they were all Rudolph and then they threw cotton balls and sang about snow. Such a cute program!

Mother Goose Reading Time

Lanie had a blast (can you tell???) singing, dancing, and reading stories with the other kids at the Northboro Library. She even got Shawn doing the actions (something we love about Daddy's schedule is that he has some mornings off to do fun things like this with us!)

Bathtime Buddies

These two LOVE bathtime, especially together!!!

Jordan Furniture Enchanted Village

Edaville Railroad

This was so fun!!! We went to a Christmas Village that had a little fair going on. We got to ride a train around the grounds and lake, rode on the rides, sat on Santa's lap (not pictured), and played in a ball pit. The kids loved it and so did we.

Pre-Christmas Christmas

We decided to do Christmas and Shawn's birthday here in Mass. before we went to Utah. We had Christmas Eve dinner and opened our ornaments. The candles are from the 4 weeks of advent. Lanie woke up on OUR Christmas morning, got her stroller and Dora doll from Santa, emptied her stocking, and opened presents all before Maverick was awake. We had a lot of fun with her. Shawn gave me clues for my present; he gave me like 6 different presents. I opened a foam letter "U." Then a "B." Then an "M" and "I." Then I opened a toy wheel broken off of Lanie's toy car. The last one I opened was a wrapped up date (the fruit). I was like "Thanks???" It took me all day of thinking about the clues to guess what his present was,."Wheel U B MI Date (Will you be my date)?" Clever, right? But date to where or what....? I still did not know. Anyway after opening presents, Shawn went to work (kinda funny since it was "Christmas"); When he got home, I had decorated our bedroom door with balloons and his birthday presents. The only thing I failed to remember was a birthday cake...ooops!!! The next day, we packed up and got ready to fly Home for the Holidays.

Quiet Book

This is the quiet book I made the kids for church. It's great, time consuming, but paid off when I saw them playing with it. They love it AND it really does keep them quiet. Phew!!! This was my homemade gift and project for the month of December. This year I vow that I am not doing any projects, just enjoying my family and the season. :)

A Lesson on Putting God First

Okay, I am taking this moment to make a journal entry. I have been reminded of a lesson I learned growing up, was reminded of on my mission, and am reminded of yet again. It must need to be written down so that I will remember again or so someone else who reads this can learn the lesson. Here goes...
As a child I always heard the stories about when we pay our tithing everything works out. I believed those stories. As I got older, I had my own experiences with that. I can't think of any single experience that stands out, per se, but I have just always known that when I pay my tithing, the other 90% is enough and things seem to "work out." I also learned that if we do not pay our tithing first thing, or put the Lord first, somehow at the end there will not be enough to hurry and give Him. Interesting right?
Well, as a missionary, I experienced something similar. We had a rule to email home every Wednesday (Preparation Day). We had 1 hour allotted at the email cafe to do this: read our emails from home AND email home. Along with this, we were instructed to email our mission president. At first I never did this (meaning I never emailed my mission president). By the time I read my emails and emailed my parents there was never time to email the mission president. I didn't realize it was a rule of the mission either until at a conference our mission president addressed it. (I clearly was not the only one not doing this.) As obedient of a missionary as I was, I realized that I was not keeping the rules if I was not writing this letter each week to let my president know how things were going. I committed myself to this "simple" rule and the next time we emailed I was determined I would have enough time to email both president and my family. I started emailing my family and with a 5 minute warning on my computer, I realized I had not emailed my president. I hurried and wrote him a quick line (just so I could count myself obedient). The next week the same thing happened and the next week repeated the experience of the first 2 weeks. I was so frustrated that it wasn't working out. As we ended emailing that day, one of the sisters said, "You know, when I email President first, I seem to have so much more time to email my family." Then it dawned on my, I was not putting the Lord first (even as a missionary). So the next week I emailed President first. It basically took the whole hour, and I knew I had to email my family too, so I hurried, with my 5 minute warning, and forwarded my family the letter I wrote to President just so they would hear from me, even if it was impersonal. This continued for a few weeks. Then I learned that if I went to email time prepared, meaning if I had a plan, then my time seemed lengthened. So beforehand I would write 2 lists, one was what I needed to write to president, and the other was what I wanted to tell my family. As I went prepared, emailed President first (put the Lord first), then my family, I seemed to have more time. I started to learn the lesson that this sister had experienced. It was a small and simple principle with a great lesson on putting the Lord first.
Recently as a busy mom, I have found myself slipping away from putting the Lord first. Often times the day slips away without a single scripture read (I hate admitting that, but it's the truth). I know I should be reading my scriptures everyday, I know that I NEED the power that comes from studying the gospel, and yet, I forget??? This wasn't sitting well with me. I seemed to be going through the motions of my day, and not really enjoying it. I felt guilty every time I thought about how neglectful I have been to the Lord. I tried to arise early, before my husband and kids, and that didn't work. I thought about studying at night after kids were in bed and it was quiet and I would forget. Nothing was working. Until I found what worked for ME...Naptime! My kids usually will nap at the same time for at least an hour if not longer. That was MY time! I concluded that not only was that MY time, that was the LORD's time. Time for me to study the scriptures. Time to put the Lord first! I have to admit, I am not perfect at this, but as I do it, my days seem to run more smoothly. I crave that time every day. I am happier. It is not easy to push aside the laundry, dishes, bathrooms, and floors that need to be cleaned (I know it should be easy cause who really wants to do that), but as I take the time to put the Lord first, he gives that time back to me and blesses me with added strength and power to accomplish the essential things in my life.
I am grateful to have learned through tithing, my mission presidents letters, and a mommy's busy schedule this great lesson about putting the Lord first.

Happy Thanksgiving

Our little family had such a memorable Thanksgiving this year. I will post pictures of it later. But I just wanted to share our day with you and share some thoughts while they are on my mind. We started our day with a one-hour drive to Plymouth for the Pilgrim Procession at 10am. The Procession was great as they walked passed Plymouth Rock and to the cemetery where there was a small service of singing and scripture. After the Procession, we saw the Mayflower and then stopped and the Blue Blind Cafe for breakfast. At noon there was a Native American Protest ceremony where they sang and danced around a fire burning incense by the Massasoit statue. It was fascinating and offered new perspective to Thanksgiving. Sure made me realize it wasn't some happy friendly first Thanksgiving together. I will be doing some research now to learn more about where Thanksgiving really came from because the Native Americans do not act like they are happy the English took over their land. Anyway, we left Plymouth around 12:30 and rushed home (in heavy traffic) to get to dinner at 2:00. The traffic was outrageous and almost ruined my day, and let's face it, was not bringing out my delightful side. But we made it to dinner at the Johnson's (a darling family of 8 kids in our ward). Our family and the Che family (a cute little family from Taiwan with 2 little girls) joined the Johnson's for dinner. We absolutely enjoyed every minute we spent there. After dinner we played a game of charades. Oh my goodness, we laughed so hard.  The Johnson girls LOVED taking turns holding Maverick and Lanie loved having friends to play with. The Johnson's 7 year-old son said, "We want you guys to stay for 2 weeks....The Johnson family LOVES babies!!!" Oh they are the most darling, easy-to-be-around family. We spent about 4 hours there and enjoyed everything about it. Couldn't have had a happier, more memorable Thanksgiving. The only thing missing was watching the Rockettes in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and being with our families. But overall we made the best of it!

Oh and while we were in Plymouth, we had a missionary experience. Shawn and I overheard a group of people walking in front of us say "Mormon." We looked at each other and Shawn said, "should we catch up to them and see what they are talking about?" I said, "Of course" and started running up to them. I interrupted them and said, "Hey, excuse me but I overheard you talking about Mormons, and I'm a Mormon,   mind if I ask what you were saying." One of the guys was really open and warm with us. He said, "Sure, first,  do you believe in Jesus Christ?" My response, "Yeah, Mormon is just a nickname, but we are the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We believe in Christ." The conversation continued a little bit longer, we encouraged them to read the Book of Mormon for some more clarity to their questions, and we went our separate ways. Man, it felt so good to get that rush from sharing just a piece of the truth of this true church. It felt so so good to be able to offer some clarity and insight with this group. And it felt especially good to just have a missionary moment, which sadly, I have not had in a LONG time. I am reminded of the Conference talk by Sister Dibb, "I'm a Mormon. I know it. I live it. I love it." And I'd like to add, "I share it." I am so thankful for this time of year when we can spend quality time with family and friends, make memories, and be reminded of the greatest gift of all in our lives, the Gospel of Jesus Christ and love and life of our Brother and Savior. Thank you, Heavenly Father, for giving us a purpose and a plan!

6 Months

Today hits the 6 month mark of us living in Massachusetts. It has flown by very slowly if that makes sense. We feel like we've been here forever and yet sometimes it feels like just yesterday that we moved (similar to the mission, I'd imagine). We are enjoying it. We like the differences in homes, in the accent, in climate (I love the climate here), and in autonomy. We also very much miss the conveniences of home (Utah). We miss our families, our friends, the Diamond House, our doctors, our day-to-day life and activities. But, we love meeting new people, people from all over with various different demographics. We love welcoming them into our lives and them welcoming us into theirs. This is still a bitter-sweet experience, and I think it will be unless we totally let go (which is nearly impossible to do). Shawn and I take turns being homesick, and I actually think that I have dived into making this more permanent than he has. After 6 months, it is starting to feel like home. I still can't get around without the GPS but I get where I need to go. We love our rental house and are so blessed to have it. Shawn is diligent with his work, and I love watching him learn new things. Our kids are changing rapidly, every day. I was going through Maverick's clothes the other day, and I came across his tiny, newborn clothes. I can't believe that he fit in those just 6 months ago. He is so fun. I feel like he's been part of our family forever. Lanie's a riot too. They are my little buddies that entertain me all day long. When I go places without them, I miss them because I am just not used to being alone and they give me so much to live for. Shawn is the cutest, I mean cutest daddy. He teaches me to be patient and find the joy in the day-to-day activities. I am learning. I hope to forever explore things with my sweet little family and learn from them and treat every day like a vacation. This 6 months has really put things into perspective for me and helped me stretch, relax, and explore. For this I am grateful!!!

OCTOBER

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!

from The Cat in the Hat

 We had our ward "Trunk or Treat" party on October 27th and on the 31st we went to Natick Mall trick or treating. The kids costumes were a hit that random people were asking for their pictures. Also, they had a costume contest at their doctor on the morning of Halloween and they won!!! We got a $15 gift card to a local bookstore. I have to admit, these were my favorite costumes. They were super easy to make and they scored BIG points. The only negative was that everyone thought Lanie was a boy and Maverick was a girl. Kinda funny!

Saturday with Daddy

Shawn had an appointment in northern Massachusetts on a Saturday, so we decided to go with him and explore. The appointment was quick and after we were able to do some fun things in Concord. We had lunch at Kimball Farms where they have a little farm boutique shop and yummy food. It was a darling area with wagons and tractors that Lanie loved. Then we went on a tour of Ralph Waldo Emerson's home which was very cool. We were able to see his study where he did a lot of writing and as we left, we went to Walden Pond where he would take thought provoking walks.

BERLIN ORCHARDS

We loved this place. It had all sorts of activities for miss Lanie to do.

APPLE PICKING

PETTING ZOO

MINIATURE HOUSES

PUMPKIN PATCH AND JOHNNY APPLESEED

Joseph Smith Birthplace

Sharon, Vermont

We drove 2 1/2 hours and met up with Auntie Pam and Uncle Eddie to see the Joseph Smith Birthplace. It is a beautiful and peaceful place. The 2 bottom right pictures are of the house and hearth of the house. So small. I found it interesting that Joseph Smith lived here until he was about 10 which means he had his leg surgery in this house. It would have been the tiniest house. I learned something very fascinating this time at the Birthplace. Joseph Smith's family were forced to move after a paralyzing snowstorm hit in June of 1815. This was known as the year without a summer. What happened is that Mount Tambora, a volcano in Indonesia, erupted which resulted in a horrifying snowstorm in Vermont which caused flooding and crop failure. The Smith family was forced to move and that is when they went to Palmyra, New York. Amazing to think that only 4 years later the First Vision took place.

The Old Stone Bridge 

This bridge, located on the Mack Family property, was for major crossing on the highway in the 1800s. It is build purely of stones. I could just visualize the horse and buggies prancing across this rickety bridge. I can't even imagine living in those times, but very cool to see.

We sure enjoyed this day with Pam and Ed. After going to the Joseph Smith Birthplace and the Old Bridge, we went our to lunch and to some cute toy shops in the area. We really love being close to family out here!!!

BOSTON

We love spending time in downtown Boston. This time we went to the north side of the city. This is my favorite area. There is a town called Charlestown just across the bridge which is where I would love to live one day. Lanie loves the tunnels getting into Boston and I love the bridges. The "Zakim Bunker Hill Bridge" is my absolute favorite with it's fan shape cables. We played in the park and Lanie climbed the rocks under the bridge. We stopped at Emack and Bolio's on the way in AND on the way our for smoothies and chocolate turtles. Mmmm....it was delicious!!! Family Funday!!! 

ALL DADDY'S DOING

Shawn is so good at making me laugh on a regular basis and this is how he does it. He dresses the kids up in the funniest things and then presents them to me. It cracks me up every time. The best part of him getting the kids ready are the outfits he and Lanie come up with. He doesn't know how to do her hair so she is always inevitably in a hat, matching or not. I love it for humor's sake and hate it if we really have to go in public. But shoot, at least the girl is dressed, right?

FALL FOLIAGE

Conference weekend we took a walk in the park to enjoy the beautiful New England Fall weather. It was breathtaking. Lanie picked some of the giant leaves and wrote letters and mailed them to some family in Utah. She talks about them constantly.

"ROCKET SHIP"

Lanie's favorite TV show these days is Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood. On one of the episodes, they build rocket ships. So Lanie, being the creative little girl that she is, took our laundry baskets and pretended like they were her rocket ships. So one rainy afternoon, I decided to use her creative juices, and make a cardboard box rocket ship. She loved it, for that day, and the next day went back to using the laundry baskets.

THE HOME FRONT

We love this little round head Maggot. He is the happiest, fun-loving little person. Everyone needs a Maverick in their life! And yes, that top left picture is his giant bib courtesy of Grandma Judy. The kid is always puking!

A typical day: 

coloring, playtime, dress up, Maverick on roll baking duty (okay that's not typical), 

playdates with friends, and daddy time. 

This is one patient little guy. These pictures are from 2 different occasions. One was when I was putting Lanie down for bed and he screamed and cried himself to sleep while he waited on the floor for some attention. The other was when he had a cold, he was playing while I was in the kitchen. I didn't hear his little voice anymore, so I went into check on him and found him passed out, worn out, sleeping at his play gym. They were precious little moments that I had to capture.

OUR CLIMBER

This independent child refuses help going potty and washing her hands. This is her dangling trying to wash her hands "ALL BY HERSELF." Shortly after this, she begged to go back into diapers which we graciously did (more selfishly did). I don't think she liked how much work it ended up being for her to actually go potty. If only she'd let us help. :)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!!!

Shawn, Gayle, and Auntie Pam surprised me with a huge party for my birthday. I was truly surprised because Shawn isn't one to really celebrate birthdays (you know, having his on Christmas and all). A bunch of families from church came and Pam, Ed, Anthony, Lily and Ashley were here. It was wonderful. Shawn even spoiled me with lots of gifts. Nice work, Honey! 29 should be a good year!

Our Kids

Our little Stud

Maverick is one happy little baby. The only TV he will watch is football with daddy. He is often found in his bouncy chair kicking his toys with his feet. Speaking of his feet, they are always kicking (he will either be a soccer player or a swimmer). And his hair is now long enough to spike up, which Shawn is loving.

Our little Mama

Lanie is a great helper around the house. She loves loading and unloading the dishwasher, scrubbing toilets (I know....I know), and folding laundry (if rolling them in a ball is folding). She is found singing the "clean up" song from Barney quite often. But in addition, She takes very good care of her toys. As you can see in this picture, her Minnie has a blanky and bottle in the bouncy chair and her Mickey has a bib and binky. Notice that the silverware in the dishwasher is all in one spot, not spread out. Cracks me up! We love our helper!

Our Climber

Along with Lanie taking good care of her toys, she also takes good care of her brother. Every morning she climbs into his crib because he is "crying." It really is cute, kinda dangerous and scary, but listening to them talk is music in the mornings. We just lay in bed and listen. Mav watches her so attentively and you can tell he adores her. Aside from that, they clearly loves mommy and daddy's bed. Lanie is often found trying to hug, sit on, and ride on her baby brother's back. Lanie did not pay much attention to Maverick until recently, and now we are constantly having to remind her to be soft and quiet with her brother.

Family Pictures

Every Day a Vacation

I stole this idea from my cousin that lives in Texas. She moved about a month before us. I was feeling sad about being away from family, more importantly, having our kids away from family. I asked my cousin if she was feeling the same way and I said, "I just wish every day was a vacation!" She replied with, "It is." I have thought a lot about that and being here in Mass. There is so much to do here that is different from Utah. We are so close to different states and different cities (big cities). The people are different, the culture is different, the dialect is different, there is different food and so many fun things to do (that aren't all that expensive). I finally decided to have the motto, "Every day is a vacation." Now when I approach the day or the week, I get excited about what "field trip" we can take. What new things we can do! Since I have taken this approach, it has started to feel more like home. I am happy about my surroundings and I am taking advantage of the time we have here. I hope we get to fit lots of "mini vacations" into the big vacation. So you will often see in this blog the adventures of every day being a vacation.

Utah Trip

The kids and I went to Utah from August 26th-Sept. 14th. We scheduled the trip when my sister Barbi was ill in hopes to do our part helping. By the time we got there, Barbs was feeling better and we ended up getting to spend some good time hanging out with her and everyone else. Here are some of the highlights:

Our Flight

We had a great experience and many miracles happened. We were so excited to go visit everyone. I got up at 5:30 am and knew it was going to be a long travel day. We boarded our first flight which was to be a quick 1-hour flight from 8:30am-9:30am to Baltimore. We ended up having a maintenance issue and sat ON THE PLANE for 2 extra hours while it was taken care of. I was very nervous that my kids would flip, but Mav slept and Lanie was so into the experience of the airplane that we got through it. The other concern was that we would miss our layover which was originally 2 hours but the delay was going to leave us missing it. I mentioned something to the flight attendant while we were waiting and the pilot overheard and told me to stay with him cause he was the pilot of the Salt Lake flight. Long story short, we made it to the layover as they were boarding, that flight was delayed by 40 minutes waiting for the pilot (and us), and the pilot gave me a thumbs up when he saw we made it. That flight was lovely being that both kids slept and so did I (for a bit). Lanie went potty on the plane 6 times and did not have single accident. And all the faces that looked like they were dreading sitting by the mom with 2 kids, ended up offering compliments. Angels helped us that day, and a small miracle came to pass. Phew!!!

 Playing at Alana's

My mom was sick when we got to Utah so we stayed at Alana's. Her kids were not in school yet, so we got to spend a lot of quality time with them. Sisi was so kind as to share her room with us and let us bombard her! Sisi and Shelby were so cute with the kids. And Lanie loved bath and play time with Parker.

Trip Agenda

This collage is a little bit of everything that we did. 

August 27th- Brigham City Temple Open House with Alana's family

August 29th- my cousin Cami's Funeral

August 30th- Heber Farmer's Market with Barbi and my dad

Sept. 1st- Lagoon with Chris's family (found out Eva's pregnant!!!)

Sept. 2nd- Church with mom and Parker family reunion

Sept. 3rd- Hooper Tomato Days

Sept. 4th- Road the Front Runner and met up with Barbi at the Gateway Children't Museum

Sept. 5th- Went to mom's special needs music/dance class, dinner with Jen and Macee, and Shawn's friends'  softball game

Sept. 6th- Dentist and playdate with Melissa to meet baby girl Pearl

Sept. 7th- Meet Jaclyn's twin baby boys and visit Adam and Katie to see their baby, Hanna.

Sept. 8th- Work Salt Lake Farmer's Market with my parents

Sept. 9th- Family Dinner with the Hoopers

Sept. 10th- Lanie rode tractors with Grandpa then Judy and Kerry watched the kids while I did girls night at City Creek with my sisters and mom (found out Alana is pregnant too!!!)

Sept. 11th- Lanie did dance lessons at Felicity Dance Academy (Alana's dance school)

Sept. 12th- spent the day in Logan with Preston's family and the evening at the guys' softball game

Sept. 13th- Mom's 60th birthday party

Sept. 14th- fly home

Busy 3 weeks, eh???

Spending time with Barbi's family

We stayed at Barbi's house for a couple of nights. It was fun to have the kids play together and to spend time with them at their home. Bailee and Krystal loved to laugh and play with Maverick. Gracie followed Lanie around while Lanie followed Krystal around. Cute Bailee gave up her room so we could stay in it. Thanks Bai!

Time at Nana JoJo and Grandpa's 

About a week into the trip, my mom started feeling better and had us stay at her house. It was nice to have a home base and not feel like a gypsy carting our luggage from house to house. Lanie loved playing outside in the backyard and also watching shows with Nana. Grandpa was thrilled that Lanie was more friendly to him and that she called him "Dwampa."

 Time with Grandma and Pops

We didn't get to spend a lot of time with the Hoopers since they were camping and working. The kids often went over in the evenings and played with Pico and Koa. Lanie got some Adaela time on the tramp and playing outside and inside on Sunday when they came down for dinner. Tyler was so cute with Maverick. Lanie loved her 4-wheeler ride with Pops and putting on the helmet.

 Logan 

We were lucky to have a free day in Logan and caught Preston home. It was fun getting Maverick and RaKell together and see how they are growing. Lanie loved playing outside with Landon and Katelyn.

Going home to see daddy

After a great trip and a fun night celebrating my mom's 60th birthday, we packed up, said goodbye to everyone, and headed back to Massachusetts. This flight was a lot trickier because Lanie did not want to rest and was kinda over the excitement of the plane (although she was stinkin' cute reading and talking to the guy sitting next to her). Also, the flights were booked so I had to hold Maverick the entire time. I got creative tho, and made him a bed on the tray in front of me. I was exhausted by the end of this trip too. I quickly realized the amount of help my sweet Shawn is in taking care of the kids (we're a good team). Anyhow, we flew in at about midnight. Shawn was so excited and cute. He had the house decorated with welcome home posters everywhere and flowers. Love him!!!!

Well, those are the highlights of our 3 week adventure in Utah. Hope you enjoyed!