G's Adventure

We took G to the dog park today. Her first time.

She met some new friends.

Then she decided she was tired...5 minutes after being there.

After a little bit of coaxing, by owner and dog, she figured out this place wasn't so bad and went to play. And boy did she play!

She ran all over, greeting the other dogs at least 10 times each. Their owners she greeted 10 more times than that. She would chase other dogs' toys that their owners threw. She never picked up a toy though, just chased it down.

She ran up an obstacle course because she saw other dogs do it, but then decided she didn't like being up there and jumped off. Kyle and I each tried to get her to run across and down the steps on the other side, but she chose to either jump off or run circles around it looking at us as if we were crazy.

(Kyle trying to get her to do it. Notice how G is nowhere to be found? Yah, she already ran off.)

On the other side of the fence was a water park for the dogs. Most of the dogs were on that side jumping into the water and swimming. They were having a blast.

G decided she wanted to try it too. So she snuck past some strangers opening the gates, charged toward the water, and slammed on the breaks as soon as she reached the water's edge. She then took her time testing the water out. She waded in a little further. Then all of a sudden there was nothing left for her to stand on and she had to learn how to swim. There is a reason they call it the "doggy paddle." G was swimming for her life. Did you know that dogs can get their bodies halfway out of the water by paddling super hard? We didn't either, until G got in the water.

From that point on she stayed just on the edge of the water or looked longingly from the dock. One time she almost jumped in again when a ball was thrown from the dock and another dog jumped in after it. But her experience earlier must have flashed through her mind just in time because she skidded to a halt.

G was exhausted after going to the park. Yes! Mission accomplished. I just didn't know that everyone else would be too.

Bonus material:

The first part is right after a dog jumped in after a ball and G stopped herself from jumping in too. The rest is just a little clip of her inner battle: water or solid ground.

Allorahandmade Party Sunny Necklace GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

This cute and talented mom, Kathleen Frances, has a great blog I think you should check out. She has great ideas and tutorials for handmade sewing projects. Such cute stuff! And she has great giveaways too from other talented people, like the one below. Isn't the necklace totally fun?!

Allorahandmade Party Sunny Necklace GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

Eva is 3 months old!

Guess what everybody?? I'm 3 months old today! I'm growing up so fast...my mom can hardly believe it. Here are some things that I am doing now:

- I like to smile and coo, and I can almost giggle

- I am starting to reach for things

- I am fascinated by hands, especially my own. I just discovered them this week. I hold up my right hand and just watch it move around. Amazing!

- I also discovered the mirror this week. And boy do I love to watch myself. I'm so cute!

- I have started wearing size 1 diapers

- I like to squirm a lot when my diaper is being changed. Mommy calls me Wiggles.

- I started wearing my 0-3 months clothing, although it still is pretty big on me. But newborn size just doesn't cut it anymore. That's for the younger kids now. ;)

- I have started drooling and blowing bubbles. (Mommy doesn't think the bubbles are on purpose though.)

- I love to stand up on my mom and dad's laps. My legs are really strong because I like to stand a lot.

- I really like my swing. But I don't like how the dog sneaks up and licks me on the cheek when I'm in it. It startles me every time. Doggy germs...yuck!

- I can almost sleep through the night. I like to split it up in 4 hour increments though. What can I say? My stomach wakes me up.

- My eyes are still blue and I have the same amount of hair as when I was born. It might be a little more, but not by much.

Well, those are a few things about me right now. Here are some pictures of me from today.

Ta ta for now!

Just look at those cheeks

She "stole" someone's nose. Practicing the pouty lips.

Here are a few of my favorite things about Eva right now:
- Her beautiful big blue eyes. She is so alert and wide-eyed, and you can just see her curiosity and innocence. I love it! I call her Bright Eyes.

- The way her cheeks rise up when she smiles and how her entire face lights up. My favorite is when she wakes up from a nap and sees me. All I have to say is hi and smile at her, and she lights up. Aw! Melt my heart!

- How cute she looks when she has a closed fist and sucks on her first two fingers.

- That when she closes her hands into fists, her thumb is usually between her first two fingers. So it looks like she has stolen someone's nose. :P

- The way she watches Kyle. She will just stare at him when he's lying next to her or sitting next to her. It is so darling. She definitely LOVES her daddy!

- The way she watches my mouth when I'm singing to her or reading to her.

- She loves to cuddle. I love how safe and comfortable she looks when cuddling with her daddy.

Okay, let's be honest...there isn't anything that isn't a favorite for me. Everything about Eva I just love. Seriously, my heart melts at everything she does. What a miracle she is! What a blessing! I love you baby girl!

Pics from the Weekend

Here is a slideshow of pictures from Eva's baby blessing weekend. Enjoy! We certainly did. :)

p.s. Eva started smiling on purpose yesterday! We are so excited! What a thrill goes through my heart each time she flashes her cute smile at me. *sigh* oh the joys of parenthood. Hopefully soon I'll have the camera ready when she does it. Seems to never be where we are.

Random Thoughts ... coming off a high

So everyday I have thoughts upon thoughts race through my mind that snowball into even more thoughts until I am overwhelmed with so many thoughts I don't know where to begin or how to write them all down because I don't know where to start and I don't know where they would end and I'm afraid there just wouldn't be enough time to write them all down... feels kinda like that run-on sentence. :P Sometimes you've just got to try though. All the other random thoughts end up in Kyle's ear, whether he wants them or not. :) Thanks babe for always listening!

Anyway, I have an over-abundance of thoughts from this past weekend having been Eva's baby blessing, and I need to get them out. I suppose just to make room for more. Oh the never-ending cycle. So here are a few... (p.s. pics from this weekend will follow shortly)

- Talk about a high, this weekend was filled with marathon days of cleaning, painting, shopping for food, picture taking, and visiting. Amazing what you can squeeze into a weekend.

- God's plan to organize us into families - and to provide the way for us to be eternal families, not just lifetime families - is so WONDERFUL and AMAZING ... there are no words that can truly describe my deep gratitude for His Plan of Happiness for us.

- I am truly grateful for the priesthood. I know that God's priesthood has been restored here on the earth by His hand. And I am grateful to have a husband and a father who are worthy to hold and act upon that priesthood.

- I am grateful for my parents. They have taught me so much and continue to teach me many things. Two lessons I re-learned this weekend, among many others, were hardwork and having faith in the Lord. Mom and Dad helped Kyle and I paint our living room and dining room and loft. That was no easy feat considering the majority of that painting was of a 20ish-foot wall that was the entire length of the house - aka no good spot to stop the paint without it looking weird. Fortunately, Dad has experience in painting having painted with his dad when he was younger. And even more fortunate was my parents' willingness and desire to help us beautify our home. As for faith, my parents have always been the greatest example to me of having unwavering faith in the Lord. A much-needed example as we embark on the journey of parenthood.

- I am grateful for scales and formula. It has taken me a week to say that truthfully. Especially when the scales read the following numbers: 6-10 / 6-7 / 7-8. Those are the weigh-ins for Eva at 1 month, 2 months, and then 1 week later. Probably the most scared and most sad I have ever felt to see her weight had dropped - caused another episode of overwhelming snowball of thoughts. But after supplementing with formula for a week (given to her after nursing), our baby's tummy is full, she is happy and content again, she will sleep on her own now, and she is back on track to gaining the weight she needs to be healthy. Thank you for encouraging words and stories to let us know that it happens, that it is not my fault, and everything turns out fine. Thank you to the nurses for not laughing at me when I literally threw up my hands in jubilation to see Eva had gained a pound and an ounce. And a special thank you to Kyle for holding me and reassuring me. Love you!

- I am so grateful for family and friends and their support. Thank you everyone for making this weekend even more special and lovely and a wonderfully blessed occasion.

- There are few things cuter than a baby sneeze

- One last thought: there is nothing sweeter than your little baby resting peacefully in your arms. As she dreams, I wonder what beautiful memories of heaven dance through her mind. And then I think how truly blessed am I to hold such a little piece of heaven.

A Birthday and a Smile (well, almost)

Kyle's birthday was last Thursday. Happy birthday sweetie! Don't worry, I wished him a happy birthday on the actual day. :) It was a pretty low-key celebration made up of our foursome and phone calls from family. Thank you for the calls!

Kyle does feel a bit overwhelmed by the thought that he is one year closer to the ever daunting 30th birthday, so we just say he turned 26 for the second time. Okay, I say that because I didn't have little candles like I thought and just had the leftover 26 from last year. But a birthday isn't complete without candles on a cake, so he turned 26 for the second time. :)

And the almost smile, you ask. That is courtesy of little miss Eva. And maybe Mom for not being quick enough with the camera when she actually formed her closest resemblance to a smile, and then continued to try and capture the moment again ... and again ... Anyway, a photo shoot ensued and here are the results. Pretty dang cute if you ask me.

And then it was tummy time

Super Eva!

She was tired after a long photo shoot.

It's tough being this cute.