Hunting in the Park

This morning our homeowners association had an Easter egg hunt in the park by our house so we decided to ride our bikes over and check it out (it's a little too far for me to walk to right now...). There were quite a few people and I think it scared Jake a little. He liked watching them from Daddy's arms but didn't want to be put down. That is, until it was time to "hunt" for the eggs. He really wanted to cross the line and get those eggs! When the hunt began he just wanted to throw the eggs like they were balls. He was very cute and was such a sweet boy, there was a little boy who was crying and Jake handed him one of his eggs. It was tender. After the egg hunt we went and met the Easter Bunny and, surprisingly, Jake did ok. He didn't cry, he just sat there like, "alright, let's get this over with." :)

The rest of the day we are planning to enjoy listening to the Prophet at General Conference, spend more time outside playing, and head to the grocery store at some point so we can make some homemade ice cream, yummmmm!

Silly Friday

The last few days Jacob has decided that instead of sleeping at nap time he would rather sing and play in his crib--- as long as he stays in there, that's fine with me! (Although he really needs the nap too, but even the quiet time is nice for me!!!) I went in this afternoon 45 minutes after I put him down and found him pulling his dirty clothes into his crib and singing, it was hilarious! Check out how he's "holding" his paci too. (We are still letting him use it for nap/bedtime... that will go eventually.)

Later, he had a good time "riding" his bike in the backyard. (He can reach the ground now if he sits on it, but it goes much faster if he pushes!)

Last two tidbits:
1) Jake stopped drinking milk about a week ago, I was a little concerned, so I added a little strawberry syrup... he gulped it down! Problem solved.
2) I had my bandage changed today. I wish I had remembered my camera, it was ugly. I have stitches from the middle of my toe to the top of the toenail. Fun, fun, fun but I am getting around much better now!

Speaking of Child Birth...

I realized the other day that I've never really shared the story of Jake's birth with many of you, which kinda makes me sad since it was one of the most amazing things-- if not the most-- I've ever accomplished in my life. So, I figure since no one really wants to hear about my day of sitting around with my foot up while I pop the vicodin, today's the day to share Jacob's arrival with you.... straight from the pages of my journal.

Monday, February 6, 2006:
On Wednesday night I woke up at 1 am with contractions every few minutes. I thought that it might be the "real thing" but they were only lasting about 30 seconds so I knew I had time ahead of me. About 1:50am John woke up and started timing them. They were about 4- 10 minutes apart all through the night. Once they started getting consistent I called Marcia (our midwife) and let her know what was going on. She told me to keep her updated as to my progress. After we talked my contractions jumped from every 10-ish minutes to every 20. I was afraid they were going to stop and it was all just false labor. But, John called into work anyway to stay home with me and I am so grateful.

My contractions continued throughout the day, jumping all over the place, but I was able to relax between them. I slept a little but only in 5- 10 minute intervals. Marcia called sometime that afternoon but I still wasn't having consistent contractions so--- we continued on ALL DAY LONG. I had contractions that jumped all over the place.

That evening Ruthie and Meme stopped by to check on me and I continued to have contractions. While they were here I had the first one that was two right on top of each other. John and I decided to lay down and try to get some sleep at 10 that night-- we'd both been up all day and all night already. Laying down only made the contractions stronger and I couldn't stay there so I decided to get into a warm tub and see if that helped. John got up too and worked on the computer so that I knew he was there.

While in the tub the contractions continued. They hurt and I got a little frustrated with the whole thing. The contractions hurt so badly but they were still jumping all over the place, they weren't getting consistent and I started to doubt I could do it any longer, I was just too tired. I'd been going through it all day and I was done with the whole thing. I talked with John about whether I should call Marcia again or not. We thought that it might be silly since the contractions still weren't 5 minutes apart, but I decided I needed to otherwise I was going to go crazy!

So, at 12:40 am, from the bathtub, I called her. I felt badly but, as I said before, I was done and couldn't take it anymore. I was tired. She sounded skeptical but suggested we meet her at the birthing center so she could check my progress. When I got off the phone I had John put the bags in the car- just in case- and I started to get out of the tub and get ready to go.

As we were leaving John turned off the porch light and I said, "maybe we should leave it on because we'll probably be home in a little while". He said oh well and turned it off. I was certain that I was maybe dilated to a 3 but dreamed that I would be a 6, knowing that it was impossible-- we'd be home that night, I was just being a wimp and had a long way to go. I was sure of it.

As John drove to Simi Valley the contractions got more frequent and much stronger. They hurt so badly! When we arrived at Marcia's her assistant, Mary, met us at the door. As we stood in the waiting room I had another contraction and Mary held me up. Being there felt really comfortable and comforting. I felt like John and I were no longer in this alone. It was such a tremendous relief.

We walked back into the birthing room and Marcia checked me--- as I waited nervously not wanting to be sent home. To my surprise (and maybe hers too!) I was dilated to a 7!!! Not even a 6, as I has hoped and prayed! It made me so happy and helped me gain some confidence in my abilities to handle pain. I was a 7--- so close to the end! As I went through the next few contractions I sat on the birthing ball while Marcia filled the bathtub. Finally, I couldn't... (and that's where my journal ends. But, I will continue with what I remember looking back a year later.)

Finally I couldn't take it any longer, it was nearly 2:30am, I'd been up for 25+ hours and the contractions were getting really hard and difficult to stay on top of. Marcia had me get into the birthing tub to help with pain management. It really did feel so much better to be there, in the tub, with Marcia, Mary and John helping me concentrate and relax through each contraction. While I was in the tub I tried several different positions to help and finally dilated completely and was ready to begin pushing. Apparently I wouldn't be going home empty handed. Marcia encouraged me to push with my next contraction and I just couldn't do it. I had no "urge" to push. I wanted to, but I just couldn't do it. This went on for quite awhile. I was so tired I just couldn't push. John was the perfect cheerleader and coach, he was so strong and encouraging. When I cried out in pain and wanted to quit he reminded me how well I was doing and how close I was to the end. He sat at my head and held my hand, helped support my back and was the sweetest man. After an hour or so of me, literally falling asleep between contractions, Marcia asked me if I wanted to feel Jacob's head. I think she thought that would help me want to push, it didn't. I was just so tired I couldn't get the power I needed. A little while later Mary said, "this baby will come whether you push him out or not, it's just going to take a lot longer" and I thought, "I'm willing to wait." (How bad is that!)

Around 5am I started to get a "second wind" (if you can even call it that!) and I was ready to push. It was hard, harder than anything I've ever done and it hurt incredibly, but at 5:50 am our sweet little Jacob arrived. It was the most amazing moment. I remember looking at John and seeing such pride and excitement in his face. We did it, I did it. Unbelievable. As soon as he was born Marcia laid him on my chest and we just stared at him. I was so amazed at how small my little boy was... and that he didn't have red hair. John's first words were, "You did it!" Marcia and Mary left us alone for a minute or so to give us time together as a family. When they came back in they washed Jake off a little and then helped me get comfortable again. Marcia showed John how to cut the cord and then the three of them, Jacob, John, and Marcia left the room to see just how big our little guy was. Mary stayed with me and helped me get out of the tub and into the bed.

For the next few minutes we called our family to let them know of Jake's arrival and then spent a few hours -- just the three of us-- sleeping together as a family in a nice comfy bed. Marcia checked on me and Jake every once in awhile and around noon we were ready to go home.

Jacob's birth was the most incredible experience. I am so glad that we decided to go with a midwife at a birthing center instead of a doctor at the hospital. I'm certain my experience would have been completely different had we gone the other route. Marcia gave me and my body time to do what it needed to do, without being rushed. It was an incredibly relaxing, although totally painful, experience. I want all of my future births to be just like Jake's. I loved every minute of this experience... even the hardest ones.

Jacob D. Mxxxxxx

2 February 2006; 5:50am

8 lbs, 1 ounce

20.5 inches

Love... Hurts

Love: Celebrating a dear friends 29th birthday with: Good friends- Foxy, Birdie, Elizabeth and Meme, Good food- Sassi in Encino, Israeli salad, pita and shiskebab's... yum, Good conversations- oh, the stories... love those! (Elizabeth, I'll swap this pic when I get yours!)


Hurts: Having surgery to remove the part of your toenail that keeps becoming ingrown... ouie, ouie, ouie... it hurts, it hurts, it hurts!!!! I have to go back on Friday for a changing of the bandage and then again in 2 weeks to have the stitches removed. This better work... if I end up with another ingrown toenail, so help me... Dr. Clemente will never hear the end of this. He's funny, as he's giving me the most painful shots I've ever gotten in my life and I cry out in pain, and he says, "Now Kels, didn't you give birth naturally- without pain medication- you can't tell me this is worse than that." Yes Dr. Clemente, yes I can. Shots between the toes are much more painful then having a baby without pain medication, thanks for asking! I'd give birth everyday this week if it would avoid having those blasted shots again!!!

Beautiful Gardens

Today Jake and I were invited by some friends from our ward (the Del Hoyo's and the Bartley's) to the Descanso Gardens in La Canada. Gardens in the middle of the city? Fabulous! Let's get out of the house and explore! The news said it might rain -- 10% chance -- this morning, but the sky was blue and the few clouds were white and fluffy, so we took off expecting sunshine and beautiful gardens. You see, it's been warm here for weeks and everything is in bloom, including the tulips I finally got around to planting in my front yard (see photo, right), so I was really excited about touring the gardens.

Melinda got a new suburban last weekend so she volunteered to take us, along with her 3 kids and Mindy's two (Mindy stayed home to pack). I was amazed at how nicely we fit in there, all 8 of us, including 5 car seats! (It was quite a sight!) Heather and her kids followed us in their car. As we got closer and closer to La Canada the clouds grew darker and darker. We thought we might get a little rain.

Once we got there (after driving through cutest little downtown Montrose!) we unloaded the kids and headed to the cafe for lunch. As we sat eating it started to sprinkle. No biggie. After lunch we started to explore... and the rain started coming down in a serious way! Before long we were running from tree to tree to stay out of the down pour. We saw a few gorgeous gardens, but some of the kids weren't dressed for the wet, cold weather and started to voice their desire to go home. Melinda, Heather, & I talked about it and decided we should go and come back another time. (Soon I hope!) I must say, my sweet Bunny Boy was such a trooper, he never cried as the rain was falling by the bucket loads on his head. Yeah, Jake!

As a side note: Jake gets very sad when John leaves for work. This morning he followed him out the door and to the gate to say good-bye. It's so tender how much he loves his Daddy!

Happy Birthday Elizabeth

Happy, Happy Birthday Elizabeth dear,

Happy days will come to you all year,

If I had one wish then it would be...

a happy, HAPPY BIRTHDAY to YOU from ME!

Looking forward to celebrating tomorrow night!

L-R: Emily, Jene, Meme, Ruthie, Elizabeth, Kelsi

Monday, Monday

Today was a fairly quiet day around our house. John had a busy day at work, and Jake and I just hung around here and played. The weather was kind of yucky so we stayed inside all day, except to get the mail, of course. As I played with Jakey I was amazed at how big he is getting. All of a sudden he is so capable of so much. My sweet little cuddly boy is getting so big. It really makes me sad. But he still has the best personality and is such a happy boy! For the first time EVER he slept from 8pm to 7am last night--- hallelujah! He also took two really good naps today, here's hoping tonight goes just as well! He's running and playing so well these days and he keeps himself entertained for some time... it's nice. His new "thing" is taking all of the cookbooks out of the step in the kitchen. I'm not sure if it's because he wants me to make something because 1) he's hungry, or 2) I never do! Maybe he'll be like his Daddy and like to cook and bake-- that would be nice. Many of you know, but for the first year we took "monkey pictures" of Jake each month, tonight I thought you might like to see a few of them together to see how much he's grown and changed over the past year.

Jacob- 2 weeks

3 months

6 months

9 months

1 year

Showered with Love

We had a great weekend with Toni here. Most of Saturday was spent at Meme's baby shower... I'm NOT kidding! She opened gifts for nearly 2 hours, and it wasn't because she was taking her sweet time! Toni and I were "pushing" her along to keep it short. You see, Meme is in denial about how many people she knows and how much those people love her. Originally she thought we'd have one baby shower and, maybe, 20 people would be invited with half of them showing. In the end 45 invitations were mailed and.... 45 people showed (although not everyone was invited, there were some people who just decided to come!) We had a great time though... and Lin and Meme are well on their way of having everything they need for little Norah. Toni, Ruthie, Mema, Erin-o, Aunt Linda and my mom worked their little tushies off to keep the party moving and all the food well stocked -- some of those plates were piled high! Thanks so much for your help!!! After the shower we all packed up the van and headed down to the valley to go to La Fogata for dinner--- yum!! I love that place and Jake loves downin' their burritos! Then over to Lin & Meme's for relaxation and visiting. It was a busy day. Jake and John had a good day spending time together.


Sunday morning it was time for Toni to head home... the trip went by way too fast! We're hoping to head up north for her baby's blessing in July (she's due with #5 on June 13... and it's another boy!) maybe Lin and Meme can go too, that would be fun.


Another busy, quick weekend has passed. It was so much fun and I'm so glad Toni was able to be here. I miss her. I love her.

Oh, the Memories

She's here! She's here! Toni flew in today for Meme's baby shower tomorrow. It's so fun being all together, it's been a long time! There was a period of about two years when it was just the three of us... and I have the photo albums to prove it. We did everything together. Oh, how I miss those days of few responsibilities and lots of silliness. We have some good memories. Ones that will always be special to me. I love these girls and am so thankful for the person I became because of them.

It's been almost exactly 10 years since that picture was taken... and 3 husbands, 5 kids with 2 more on the way, and lots more responsibility later... here we are, together again for a short weekend to celebrate the upcoming birth of Meme's sweet little Norah Ann. I love you girls. Thanks for being such a special and important part of my life.

March Madness, completely

So, I love college basketball and there's no better time to watch then during the tournament. March Madness is what it's all about. I wait all year for this. Patiently. I know my team will be in the tourney- I count on them- they're there every year. They became my team while I was living in Salt Lake with Melly. We watched them faithfully, even thought about taking a trip to see them play at home, but they were sold out for the weekend we were able to go. But it didn't cause us to love them any less. Each Saturday during the season we could be found sitting on our living room floor watching our Kentucky Wildcats play, while scrapbooking--- hey, we're girls, we can multitask! (Our home teacher thought we were not only crazy, but the coolest girls around! That's why he came every Saturday!)

We fell in love with Tubby, who couldn't love a guy named "Tubby"?! We watched his players faithfully, we loved his son, Saul. We loved everything UK.

But today, in the middle of The Tourney, it's announced that Tubby is leaving UK for Minnesota.... what?! Minnesota. They play basketball in Minnesota? I called Melly--- this is crisis time. What are we going to do? Do we keep our allegiance with UK or do we follow Tubby?!! I'm not sure. Maybe the glory days are over... I'm thinking so. And we never got to Lexington to watch the magic live, dang. Kinda regret we didn't do that when we had the chance, back when we were livin' it up in the SLC.

So this is my dedication to Tubby... you will be missed my dear friend. I'm upset you're leaving UK. I liked you there. You were Kentucky basketball in my eyes. What will they do without you?? Thank you for being an amazing coach, thanks for your energy on the court, thanks for having such a great name. I loved cheering you on over the years. Best of luck to you at Minnesota. I'll be expecting great things from your Gophers. Don't let me down.

The End is Near...

Before Jake was born John and I discussed the use of a pacifier and agreed that our child would not be one of "those kids" who used one... and then Jake was born and cried and John popped that thing into his mouth! It's been a year now and he's totally attached. So much so that if he even sees it across the room he cries for it and goes and gets it.

We decided that once he was weaned we would start the "losing the paci" process. Well, it's time. And Jake knows it. At bed and nap time for the past three days he has to have two of them, one in his mouth and one in his hand. And he swaps them until he falls asleep. It's hilarious. And breaking this kid is going to be hard. We're starting and it might take some time, be patient with us.

Daddy's Little Helper

Jacob has had a fascination with brushing his teeth since before the first one came in. He loves running around the house with his toothbrush (I know it's not safe!). Yesterday morning John found him in the kitchen brushing away. They were so cute together working to keep those pearly whites pearly. Jake really watches John to see how it's done and then tries his best to brush just like Daddy. He does fairly well on the gums and back teeth, it's the top front ones he has a problem with. But, he keeps trying and we keep encouraging him. It's not everyday you find a kid who likes to brush his teeth!

Speaking of teeth, I think more are coming. He's been popping his pacifier out of his mouth again... only this time it's on the left side. Oh joy. He's not sleeping again either. I guess I really should have been grateful for those few nights of sleep! :)

Another thing Jake loves to do is help Mommy unload the dishwasher... and he's pretty good at it. (I know, another unsafe task!) As I put away the dishes he hands me the silverware and points to the drawer where they belong. It's adorable... and hey, if the kid wants to help with chores I'm all for it. (Don't worry, I take all the sharp stuff out before I let him help, I'm no dummy.) Oh, and yes, that's a piece of lunch on his cheek... and I realize I should have cleaned him up before I let him help with the unloading of clean dishes. Next time.

We had a fairly uneventful day. The only time we-- we as in me and Jake, not John he was at work all day-- left the house was to go to Target. Jake needed some oatmeal and fruit, I wanted Peter Pan. Of course I can't go to Target without finding a bunch of other stuff I don't really need... so I ended up spending too much money and we now have a really fun game to play when company comes. It's called Blokus, it takes strategy and makes me think, I like it. It challenges me to use my brain that sometimes seems dead. If you come over, maybe we can play. You might like it too.

John had to work a little late so Jake and I had a quiet evening. The quiet was nice, missing Daddy was not. Jake got to play with him all day, all week and he is such a Daddy's Boy, he started acting up at dinner and decided to throw his food. (Not ok.) He made such a mess of himself, the floor, his highchair, me (a piece hit my cheek as I was bending over picking up food off the floor.)... and he just smiled through the whole ordeal. He's cute, but sometimes his behavior is not... this was one of those times. After dinner he was cleaned up, as was the rest of the dinning room, John got home just in time to read stories, say prayers, and put him to bed. And I got to relax.... aaaaaaaaaagghhhhhhhhhhh!

Jakey D.

Yesterday was our first full day home from vacation and Jake already seems back to his old self. He ate mac-n-cheese like a professional eater at lunch with my friend Heather (check out kickbuttmommy) and her girls Hadley and Ella. It was so nice to see. It bothered me that he wasn't eating well last week. I'm sure it was because of his new teeth, but he seems to be adjusting to them in his mouth and his appetite is back... in a BIG way!


We had a nice afternoon visiting with Great G'ma and Gramma, playing in the yard, sticking Jake's feet in the spa, and handing G.G'ma the coasters over and over again. Jacob loves going to Gramma's and playing with Great G'ma... and we all love to see them together.

In the evening Meme and Ruthie stopped by to finalize the plans for Meme's baby shower on Saturday and Jake soaked in their affections. I love that my baby loves my friends, and more importantly, that they love him. They make him feel special and I love that. His little face brightens up when they walk through the door, it's very tender.



We had a great first day home. I worried how Jake would handle being home without any kids to play with... and he whined some in the morning, but in the afternoon and evening he was preoccupied with the attention of everyone else. It was nice. It's always good to be home and back into our routine. Hopefully we can -quickly- get Jake on pacific time and end this waking up at 5:30am -- 7:30 in Texas. He's slept through the night, I suppose we should be grateful for that alone!

The Stars at Night...

Deep in the Heart, part 2 (another long one...)

Thursday, March 15th- We spent most of the day doing laundry and packing for our weekend get-away to San Antonio and Fort Worth. Abi was such a little helper and entertained Jake and Miles while Gretchen, John, and I got everything ready. She is such a sweet girl. The day went by fairly quickly and at 4:30 we left to meet Scott and get on our way. We stopped, had dinner, and continued the drive to San Antonio. It was a longer drive then I expected but Sterling kept Jake occupied in the back seat... and I was grateful. They are so cute together- talking, laughing, and playing. Jake loves Sterling. Eventually, both boys fell asleep (after many rounds of "I spy with my little eye...").

We arrived at the hotel in San Antonio around 11:30pm... and I was totally disgusted!!! (Remember, this is the hotel the GIRLS booked. It looked good on-line. Liars! **and we all know where liars go!**) Gretchen and I went to check in, knowing every other hotel we tried were booked, and discussed the grossness of the lobby. We got our room keys and headed there. Walking into the room was a nightmare of mine. I was totally disgusted when I saw our room. It was one of those hotel rooms you see in movies with shady characters who use hotel rooms. It was CERTAINLY not the vision I had in mind after seeing the rooms online. It was dirty. The floor was nasty. The mattresses, I won't go there. But the worst thing was the slider door had no lock. I wasn't comfortable staying in a room that didn't lock. John and I talked about it... we'd figure something out. And then I checked the door connecting us to the room next door--- IT DIDN'T LOCK EITHER! That's it. I am NOT sleeping in this room. (I wish I had taken a picture.) So John (and Gretchen) went back to see if we could get another room. Thankfully there was one, a smoking room, but the window locked and there was no adjoining room. It was still as dirty and gross as the other room, but it locked so we took it.

I never took my shoes off. We threw off the comforter (there's no comfort in those in a hotel room!) and slept on top of the sheets in our clothes! Jake slept between us-- away from the pillows. We laid down around midnight knowing we had a busy day ahead of us. At 1am we were still awake. At 2 too. And 3. Apparently we were next to a railroad track because at 2 it sounded like a train was going to come crashing into our nasty hotel. I heard it again at 3, 4, 5, and 6. Sometime between 3 and 4 I fell asleep for a little while. Until the train came again. I was so glad that Jake was sleeping though, otherwise we would have a cranky mom and baby the next day!! In the end, I got about 3 hours of sleep and John got 2. As I laid there I decided I would do this blog and talk about how totally gross the hotel was.... so, if you ever travel to San Antonio STAY AWAY from the Roadway Inn-- even though their website looks like its been remodeled and is nice- IT'S NOT! As a matter of opinion, stay away from ALL Roadway Inn's. period.

Friday, March 16th- Before we headed into downtown San Antonio we stopped to check out the hotel's "continental breakfast". They had donuts and Texas-shaped waffles. We all ate. Called it good and left the hotel in the dust. We arrived at the Alamo and took a tour. Sterling was surprised by how small it was (I think because he heard everyone else comment on it!). He's a really fun and smart boy. John went to search the basement... only to discover there is no basement in the Alamo (name that movie). I'm glad we went. Now I can say I've been to the Alamo. And you know what, I learn a little American history while I was there... so it was worth it. I always enjoy learning something new.

After the Alamo we walked over to the San Antonio Riverwalk to check it out and... walk the river. John and I were pleasantly surprised by how pretty it was. We took a riverboat tour of the town and heard a lot about the history of the river, San Antonio, and the buildings along it. I think everyone enjoyed it and I'm glad we took the tour. As we went down the river there were restaurants all along the shore and we must've been hungry because we all were ready to eat once the boat docked. The restaurant we really wanted had a 45 minute wait, we had 4 starving kids, so decided to keep looking. We ended up at a different Mexican place and they could get us in immediately. The food was ok, Jake was out-of-control,

and it wasn't quite the experience I would've liked to have. (Did I mention already that Jake had 3-- that's right THREE-- teeth come in on this trip, including one of his 1st year molars! Yah, he was a bit cranky the entire week. He didn't eat like he usually does, in fact he hardly ate at all.) But, our tummies were full and we headed off on the next adventure.

Since we were planning to be in Fort Worth on Saturday the boys booked a hotel for Friday night in Waco, Texas... yes, THAT Waco... so we all got back into the car and started driving north. On the way to Waco we passed through Austin. We decided to stop so Sterling could see the capitol building he's been learning about in school. It was a nice short stop. The kids all seemed to really enjoy being able to get out of the strollers and play for a little while (I think the parents enjoyed the break too!)

Once we'd toured the Texas State capitol and played outside for a little while we got back into the cars and continued our drive to Waco. It was another long drive Friday evening but we arrived at Hotel Waco around 8pm. It was a palace compared to the hotel (Gretchen and I booked) in San Antonio! I was soooo impressed by the rooms, the lobby, and the price. $10 less cheaper. The rooms were completely renovated and beautiful. We had a king size bed (a double the night before) AND they brought in a port-a-crib for Jakey. It was really a good nights sleep. Thank goodness! We were pooped.

Saturday, March 17th- Sterling made sure everyone had green one and for those of us who didn't-- he pinched. That would be me... and John. (nice) We had a fabulous breakfast in the hotel lobby; fresh fruit, cereal, Texas-shaped waffles, muffins, fresh juice, milk, whatever you wanted they had-- like a regular ole' IHOP, only it came with the room. After breakfast---- off to Fort Worth. The drive went quickly, Jake napped, and Sterling, John, and I played "I Spy" again. We arrived at the Historic Stockyards Station and checked out the events planned for the day. Big Jake was just coming out so we jumped in line to take a picture of our little Jake and Big Jake together. It didn't go so well. Then we stood on the curb and waited for the (twice) daily "run of the bulls", ok it was more the moseying of the longhorns. Their longhorns REALLY are long! I was shocked by them! We had a really good time at the stockyards. It was nice to be outside and let the little guys run around a bit. These little Mxxxxxx cousins play so well together, it's wonderful. I wish we lived closer so they could play all the time. I always loved having my cousins live nearby while I was growing up. They really were my best friends and I would love for Jake to experience living close to family, mine or John's. It's fun for me too, getting to know Gretchen and Scott, and I know John would love to live near his brothers. Anyway, back to the stockyards. :) It was a great day and we left early enough to get home in time for dinner and the regular bedtime routine.

Abi, Miles, Jacob, and Sterling

All of us together... Sterling, Jake, John, Kelsi, Gretchen, Miles, Scott, & Abi

Sunday, March 18th- Our week in Dallas has come to an end and it's time to return home. Saying goodbye is always hard, especially after such a fun week and not having a "next time" planned. A million thanks to Scott and Gretchen, Sterling, Abi, and Miles for having us for the entire week. I think it went really well, the kids got along and played so sweetly together. We love you and are looking forward to our next visit! Any time you're ready to come to California-- our house is open and we're excited to have you!

Thankfully DFW is a fairly easy airport to navigate because once we arrived at our gate (A29) they announced a gate change. We have to haul Jake, the stroller, and our tired selves to C2. When we get there, another change -- gate C12. But we figured it out and made our way there. The flight home was a little stressful as Jake's teeth are still bothering him. He slept for a little while, but not long enough!

My mom picked us up and brought us home... thanks Mom! We spent the afternoon unpacking and putting things away, doing laundry and relaxing. Mom invited us to dinner at her house, yeah! no cooking for me, which is good cause our cupboards are bare!