Hays' Blogland

Peter, Brooke and Heath

2012-01-20T18:45:00.000-05:00

Here are some pictures of the kids for my Nannie and Grandpy... and anyone else that wants to see. I plan on editing these photos more so this post will probably disappear and reappear differently. I love you Nannie!

Introducing: Heath William Hays. Born 1.11.12. Weighing in at 8lbs 14 oz and 20.5 inches long.

Heath brought gifts for Brooke and Peter. And Brooke and Peter brought Heath some cars...

I think Brooke missed me.

First meeting...

End of Day 2.

Going Home

Kids

2012-01-10T17:43:00.000-05:00

Brooke LOVES headbands. But only if she has EVERY headband we own in her hair.

My attempt at photography at 9+ months pregnant. I was a really nice January day. And Peter was actually making normal faces at the camera for once!

You tell me, boy or girl?

2012-01-05T20:41:00.001-05:00

I had my 38 week appointment today at my OBGN. Same old thing. Weight, blood pressure, fetal heartbeat, measure belly, internal check to see if anything is 'happening'.

This pregnancy was pretty much summed up by my doctors comment after measuring my belly.

Me: What am I measuring?

Dr. Way too big....

Me: No really, how big?

Dr. Don't worry about it.

Thanks. That gives me peace of mind. I think this whole pregnancy I have recieved more obnoxious comments from strangers (and friends for that matter!) than any other pregnancy. Here is a note to self for future reference:
You carry way out there. With tons of fluid. And apparently your babies are getting bigger. Deal with it. Or stop getting pregnant.

There. I said it. Hopefully I can take my own advice to heart.

And to everyone else who likes to talk to pregnant women passing you on the street, a word of advice...

Be nice.

Say something simple like: "Congratulations!" or if you must ask "When are you due?" (and when they tell you they still have 3 months, don't reply with things like "Good lord, you are never going to make it!" or "Are you sure there aren't twins in there???" or "hmmm. Well, I could tell you USED to be skinny".... These things do nothing but make the pregnant lady feel crappy. Just FYI.)

I am approaching D-day very soon! I am scheduled for an induction on Wednesday.

And I am sure all everyone is SO tired of hearing about pregnancy crap from me. So this is my last pregnancy post. (okay, not really, I will most likely have a labor and delivery post as well...) Here is the summary:

So far all of my latest appointments have showed that I am only at a 1 cm dilated and not effaced. At least with Brooke I was 1-2 cm at this point and 50% effaced. This kid is just comfy cozy and swimming laps in the excessive amniotic fluid. It has been my easiest pregnancy so far. I am still able to jog at 38 weeks. Yaya! And I am not nearly as swollen this time around. And until today, I have had plenty of energy (minus the miserable 1st trimester of puking and nausea 24/7). But don't let that fool you, I am more than ready to have this baby. I have gained 36lbs. The same amount as with Brooke and 10 less than I did with Peter. (and I am SO excited to lose it!) The sheets are washed, car seat ready to go and I have a fabulous unisex onsie in my hospital bag. We still don't have a name picked out at this point, but we have narrowed it down to 2 boy and 2 girl names.

I am convinced its a boy. Bryan is betting on a girl. Dr. guessing close to 9lbs. I disagree. I say 8lbs 3oz.

What do you think? Gender? And how big?

Baby Shower

2012-01-01T22:09:00.000-05:00

my friends are awesome. Even though this is my 3rd baby they still felt the need to celebrate it. One of the reasons I didn't want to find out the gender of this baby was because I didn't want someone to feel obligated to bring me gifts and throw a shower. That being said... Jessica thought that we deserved a celebration for the baby. I had a wonderful luncheon with my friends that were still in town during the holidays. And I am down with this kind of celebration ANY time. No kids. No shower games. I received a diaper cake for the first time in 3 pregnancies!!! And I got a bunch of diapers and wipes. Perfect! Thank you friends! You are awesome and I had a great time. (I love this picture)

And here is the 37 week picture I am sure you have been dying to see. (I don't love this picture as much...)

Christmas Day

2011-12-28T09:22:00.000-05:00

Merry Christmas everyone! I hope you had a wonderful holiday. This year was a bunch of firsts for the Hays Family. It was the first time we were in PA for Christmas, as well as the first time we were all by ourselves without any other family. It was so fun to open presents, or I should say, let the kids open presents. We had Church at 10:00 am and decided that there was no way we would make it on time if we opened presents, so we just let the kids open their stockings. Santa sure knows the junk food. Peter got some Cheetos and was pretty much in heaven.

I just had to take that typical, 'just woke up' jammie picture on Christmas morning.

Apparently, we should have just gave Brooke some hairspray. And nothing else. I got a bottle in my stocking and that is ALL she wanted to do.

Opening presents after church was pretty fun because we were all dressed up. I don't think that has ever happened before. We usually are in are PJ's and look pretty rough!

again, the hairspray...

Christmas Eve

2011-12-27T18:47:00.001-05:00

We spent our Christmas Eve with some of our 'extended family' out here in Pittsburgh. We went to the Cheesecake Factory with the Nelsons. It was awesome not to cook. I am way too pregnant to be motivated to make a big meal right now. Dressing up and going out was a blast. Then we came home and attempted to read the nativity story to the kids. Next year we will be more prepared with a 'short' version. They listened for about 2 minutes and then they just wanted to play with the nativity set.

Santa managed to find our house and left the kids some goodies in their favorite chairs.

We let the kids go shopping for their own ornament. Peter picked the airplane and Brooke picked the baseball. (I didn't expect that one!)

A visit to Santa

2011-12-23T16:49:00.000-05:00

with no actual picture with Santa because we are cheap. But I took a couple pictures with-out Mr. Clause. I hope that counts for something. Brooke wouldn't sit on Santa's lap anyway. She ran away screaming when it was her turn. Peter was true to form and told him the same 2 things on his Christmas list as he has been telling Bryan and I since September.

I would also like to announce Brooke's first fully formed sentence: " I was at Costco " She marched right in the house when we got back a couple nights ago and informed Bryan. And it was pronounced clear as an Arizona day! Who would have thought???

As much as Peter wanted to see Santa, I think he liked sitting on those silly riding machines more and pretending to drive the Helicopter for 5 minutes tons more.

Its different being away from all of our family during the Christmas Season. I really miss them. It has been fun this year to teach Peter and Brooke about the meaning of Christmas as well as the fun activities (like driving around looking at lights, moving the Reindeer on the Countdown calendar, turning on the lights on the tree everyday, wrapping presents, ect. ect.) I am so excited for Christmas morning with the kids. I never knew I would enjoy buying gifts so much! Its really hard not to spoil them.

In pregnancy news, I am still pregnant. whoopie. Hopefully not much longer. And they say that nobody stays pregnant forever. But I am not sure about that. The last month is always so long and uncomfortable. I am counting down the days. There are 19 and that is close to forever to a pregnant lady. I finally got out the baby clothes and washed the 'unisex' ones. All I can say is this baby better be a boy because I had an ultrasound, and after talking to my doctor he says it will most likely weigh 9lbs. (The the u/s said 6lbs 11 oz when I was at 34 weeks and 5 days) I don't think I need a monster girl. I don't particularly like the thought of having a ginormous boy either, but as long as they are healthy I will be happy. And I am trying not to stress because there is nothing I can do to change how much my ~~little~~ munchkin will weigh.

In conclusion of my random thoughts...
Merry Christmas Everyone! May thoughts of Christ be with you. Our Savior was born into the world in a humble stable. Don't forget your roots and know that humble beginnings can make for fantastic endings. I wish all of you a happy season. God bless you and your families. Stick by your family and they will stick by you! Much love!
Jamie

Graham Cracker House Party!

2011-12-14T21:41:00.000-05:00

This year we hosted our 3rd Annual Gingerbread House Party with our fellow 3rd year dental school friends. I have to admit that our houses keep getting better every year! This year Bryan and I did a "Trailer" theme, complete with a tow bar and an awning. It is pretty ghetto. But we like it.

(I love that it is on 'blocks'. We had to do the underside with marshmallows to give it the authentic 'mobile' look.) I think this is where Santa Claus lives when he isn't at the North Pole.

Our awesome group: The Eriksson's, Sants (along with Raylene's younger sister), Newland's and Hays'!

The "Village"

If you look closely you can see on the upper lefthand house (which is not in fact a house, but a train) you may notice Santa. He is tied to the railroad tracks with twizzlers. So if you don't get a visit from Santa this year, you know why.

A Christmas Letter

2011-12-11T16:09:00.001-05:00

I know this is a random tangent, but I don't send out letter because I think they are cheesy. I am one to think (though I could be wrong) that everyone who would care enough to get a letter about our 'year' doesn't really need to read it because we talk to them often enough that they know what we are up to. And sometimes they come across to me like a competition of 'keeping up' with other families and blah blah blah....stuff like that.
Anyway. So someday if we do send out a Christmas Letter remind me of this blog post. Although, I LOVE family Christmas cards and someday when we aren't poor students anymore, I will send some out. And if I can get Bryan to consent to family photos. And letting me spend money on REALLY cute 'holiday' dresses and suits for the kids... For now we will just stick to Peter's letter to Santa.

He wrote his name and "santa" all by himself, as well as drawing the train tracks. I helped a little with the rest. I always love this time of year, and now that Peter is old enough to understand things, I REALLY am loving this Christmas season. I love how magical everything is for children.

I was shocked when Peter wrote his own name. We have been practicing for MONTHS. And its a fight. Every time. Want to know why? Because he is upset that his name doesn't have the letter "I" in it. So he doesn't want to write it. Bryan and I were in charge of cleaning the Church building one night last week and while we cleaned we set the kids loose in a classroom with a couple pieces of chalk. I walked in later to see his name written on the board. It made my whole week. I love that he really is paying attention to things I try to teach him- even if it seems otherwise.

On to Brooke. She is starting to talk- alot. I like to refer to her as my 'babbling brooke' (pun intended...). She doesn't say much in public but at the house she either talky-talky or listening to Peter be VERY chatty. Her latest include always telling me "I stink" and getting a diaper for me to change her. She can say all the names of the "Thomas and Friends" trains, though her favorite is "Stanley" and "James". She loves her baby dolls too and is playing 'mommy' all the time.

My favorite event of late is Brooke's binky, which she refers to as "Mimi". She likes to pull out the neck of her foot pajamas and drop the binky into her jammies while she is supposed to be sleeping. Then she gets pretty ticked because she can't unzip them to retrieve it. I think its pretty comical (unless it is 2 am). It always ends up down by her feet or behind her back.
Pregnancy update:
I am now 35 weeks along. Fabulous. I am measuring a little more than 2 weeks ahead so they are sending me in for an ultrasound tomorrow. I am not getting my hopes up. I think I just like to retain a lot of fluid. My feet and ankles are swelling if I sit for more than an hour. My hands, correction, my left hand, is swollen as well. (Its been like that off and on since 26 weeks or so) I am still running 1.5-2 miles 2-3x a week (at a snail's pace!) and using a workout video 2x a week as well. As fun as running is right now, it is worth it because I am less swollen on the days that I do- which is worth the 30 minutes of ~~misery~~, ~~torture~~, excitement a couple times a week.

2 kids. 3000 pictures. 0 with both making eye contact at the camera.

2011-12-01T21:07:00.000-05:00

Thanksgiving

2011-11-29T14:03:00.001-05:00

Last year for Christmas Haley got me a spring foam pan. It has only taken me until now to get the guts up to try and use it. I am please to present my first attempt at homemade cheese cake. Pumpkin-gingerbread-pecan.

And my first attempt at home-made crust for my apple pie.

Brooke has become obsessed with 'pretties' in her hair and the latest are headbands. But she doesn't really look 'pretty' in them because her hair goes nuts around the elastic.

We had a group of friends over and decided to put on a movie in Peter's room and turn 'em loose to all the adults could hang out. Not a bad idea, as long as you are okay with the mess that will follow...

Our thanksgiving group. Minus Bryan's dad. He was taking the picture.

Mount Washington

Riding the Duquesne Incline

Thanksgiving isn't complete with out some sort of Christmas-ee adventure to wrap it up. We visited the tree down on Carson street to let the kids run around and attempt some pictures. (more pictures to follow in next post.)

Let the Holiday's begin!!!

Happy Birthday Bryan

2011-11-28T13:55:00.000-05:00

Bryan is officially old this year. Why? His wife has wrinkles. That makes him old.
We celebrated by going on a date to one of his favorite places to eat- Texas Roadhouse. Country music, random bursts of song from the waiters, and lots of hot fresh rolls. What could be better?!

We had a small gathering to celebrate and to help us eat the ice cream cake. It was tasty, but not much to look at. I made it in a loaf pan and when I dumped it out I saw how poorly I had packed in the ice cream. Oh well. I have something to improve upon next year.

Tractor Ride

2011-11-17T15:59:00.002-05:00

Peter has been asking to go on a tractor ride since about July. I have been promising him one when the 'leaves started to fall off the trees'. So when my parents came for Halloween, we decided it would be a good time to go. It was tricky to find a couple hours to go when it wasn't SNOWING or DOWN-POURING buckets of RAIN.
I love Peter's face in this one: (he really did enjoy the ride!)

Autumn Activities

2011-11-16T19:05:00.000-05:00

I made some bows.

here I am looking very pregnant at 31 weeks.

Peter has enjoyed his gymnastics class

The last day of classes was 'bring your friend' day. We brought Brooke. She was in heaven.

Here she is trying to do a front roll up the mat. It wasn't too effective but after 1 hour in the gym, she can do a front roll by herself. I am impressed. She has been doing them in the living room all day!

the "fat" beam

Rock Stars

2011-11-16T15:59:00.001-05:00

They make me laugh. Brooke finally will move to music. She used to just sit and stare at Peter. (Probably overwhelmed at the craziness that she saw when he dances.)

Little Moment

2011-11-11T14:25:00.000-05:00

Today I was reading to Peter while Brooke was taking a little morning siesta. (That is NOT normal for her at this point, but she woke up at 6 and was grouchy by 10 so I put her down for a 40 min nap.) It was really nice to have some quiet time with Peter all by himself. He and I just enjoyed some books together and then he started staring at my pregnant belly.... The baby was moving a ton so I put his hand on my stomach and let him feel him/her kick. It was so cool to see Peter's face light up when he realized that there was SOMETHING in my super large tummy! He was so excited and loved feeling the baby move. This was the first time I have really attempted to let him feel kicks. I was excited to see how excited he got over it. It made my day.

And by the way, Peter informed me that it IS a baby brother because he has a baby sister already. And that we need to name him Hiro.

Sweet Caroline

2011-11-09T14:15:00.000-05:00

We enrolled Peter in a gymnastics class this semester to help him with some coordination skills Bryan and I felt he was lacking. He LOVES his class and has so much fun. His teacher's name is Caroline. I have been practicing proper edicate and telling him he needs to call her "Miss" Caroline.

Well today on the way home from class he started telling me all about the things that he learned from "North Carolina". Wait- What?

"Peter", I say, "What are you talking about?"

"My teacher Mom! "North Carolina".

I had no idea he even knew there that the words "North Carolina" even existed. I wonder how "Miss Caroline" likes her new name?

Men In Tights

2011-11-01T21:42:00.001-04:00

I love fall and Halloween has always been fun, but since we have moved to Pittsburgh, I have a whole new love for the holiday. It may have something to do with the fact that my parents have made it a tradition to come visit for the weekend. I love it and have looked forward to it since, uh, last Halloween!
I also love that Peter is still willing to let me pick out his costume. I am thinking this is the last year this is going to happen. But to his benefit he does love this character and was so excited to dress up. Bryan's mom made the kids costumes and they came out absolutely adorable. The one thing Peter's costume lacked was bottoms...so this is what we found. He is very manly in them. I am just not going to mention the little dance he did every time he told someone that he was "Peter Pan!"

Brookey was my little Tinkerbell

I make "Monster Cupcakes". Aren't they cute?!

The spookiest part of Halloween... SNOW. Yuck.

My mom was some kind of pack animal for Halloween. Free rides to anyone under 40lbs!

Peter's first experience going trick-or-treating. Checking out the goods! (People go all-out here. We only trick-or-treated down 2 blocks and he got 3 full size candy bars, along with a couple 24 packs of crayola crayons and sidewalk chalk! I felt really cheap passing out my little fun size snickers and reese's!)

Quiet book

2011-10-28T14:06:00.000-04:00

I recently organized a project to make a quiet book with a bunch of girls. It was pretty intense, but it came out awesome. Here is how it worked: 14 girls signed up and we all picked one page and made it 14 times. 8 of us decided we wanted to do a second page so we picked a second theme and made it 8 times. We all got together earlier this week and exchanged the finish products. Now i have a super awesome quiet book for church. I am not done binding it and sewing titles on all the pages, but I am SO excited for it.

It was my first time sewing a zipper. It was easier than I thought. I bought finger puppets from Ikea that fit inside the ark and am making a little felt "Noah" to go in it as well. 14 "ARKS" later....my stack is really big...

My second page: (I only had to make 8 of these, thank goodness. Placing eyelets is a huge pain)

I will post my entire book when I finally decide how I want to bind it all together.

Witches Night

2011-10-27T14:04:00.000-04:00

My super creepy witch costume. Or not. But I did borrow a hat. Here is the fabulous 28 week belly picture. Yes. I am showing. Get over it.

Most of the girls

Kimi and I are a week apart. She is due the 13th and I am the 20th. Brooke and her little boy Trey are a week apart too!

Annual October Closet Raid!

2011-10-23T14:57:00.000-04:00

Every October I clean my closet. I am slightly obsessive-compulsive. I like things in a certain order. I don't like it when I am playing a card game and the 'discard' pile is messy. I like my shirts folded a certain way. My food storage is methodically dated and organized in order by weight of the food as well as category the food fits in. So, naturally, my closet is organized in rainbow order. You know, Red, then Orange, Yellow Green Blue Indigo, Violet. Then come Blacks, Whites, and Greys. Then Skirts, dresses, hoodies, and winter coats.

Every year in October I go through and mess up the order. It is tough. But it has to be done. I look at the weather forecast and plan out my stuff in advance and have to go through and wear the clothes in that order. If there is anything I skip and don't wear- Goodbye! It goes to Goodwill. That way my closet doesn't get full of clothes I never wear. And it is fun to actually wear everything in there!

As you know, I am moderately (bordering on severely) pregnant. I can't fit in 3/4 of the shirts in my closet so I can't do my usual plan. Instead, I am wearing the same 6 maternity shirts and 3 pairs of pants that still fit. Getting dressed is so depressing these days! The best part is picking out my shoes because at least those aren't getting tight.

My alternate plan is to go through my closet and get rid of any summer shirt that i did not wear more than 1x this summer. Then when I am no longer preggo, will attempt this again when my body is somewhat back to normal. (Because we all know doing the 'wear the thing you planned' within the first 2 months of having a baby is ludicrous. I will be wearing whatever I don't feel fat in. And I will probably change it 3x before deciding on it. Then I will just get spit-up, or poop all over it 30 minutes after putting it on so i will throw my hands up in frustration and put my pajamas back on.

Pitt Homecoming week and the River

2011-10-20T01:10:00.000-04:00

This week was full of events. Bryan decided it wasn't too cold for some wakeboarding. I am glad i had the excuse of pregnancy because there was NO way I was getting in that river. And I think Bryan was frozen by the time he got out.

Pittsburgh Dental School Alumni dinner. We got a special invite because they were honoring military students. Free dinner? we were so there.

We went to the Pitt homecoming game where we sadly lost to Utah. But it was a fun event and we rode our bikes to the game, which made it all worth it.

Peter in his "Pilot" hat

And Brooke is obsessed with my Camelback. She could drink the whole pouch of water if I let her.

26 weeks. Oh ya. (you should see me on a bike. I look hot.)

My little monkey!

Brooke, Peter and Sharlie at the park

Peter thinks he has a girlfriend. He refers to her as "my Sharlie". Bryan and I are not sure what to think of it.

The Blue Slide. its built into the side of a hill and is a pretty big slide.

Brooke was wearing fleece pants and had the least amount of friction going down the slide. She would FLY down it. Most of the time flipping on to her stomach and head before reaching the bottom. She would fuss for about 10 seconds and then climb back up the hill to do it again. And again.

Lovin the weather!

2011-10-08T14:48:00.001-04:00

Most of the time I am complaining about it. But the past week has been amazing. I can't get enough of being outside. We have gone to the park, to the zoo, our Branch activity (where we spent the majority of it in the grass running around), numerous playgrounds, ice cream outings, and our Stake Softball tournament. The weather is supposed to be just as good tomorrow so we are most likely going for a bike ride at Ohiopyle. (more pictures to follow...I am positive!)
*Brooke's latest is to climb the kitchen table and chairs. But she doesn't quite understand that she has to pull the chair out first. She gets 'stuck' under the table and makes some awesome faces.

Peter at the zoo. Why does the 3 year old want the stroller and the 18 month old want to walk?

The jaguar was right by the glass and Brooke was awestruck.

Brooke signing "Fish" the entire time we were in the aquarium

Peter did NOT like the ginormous fish in the tank. Can you tell?

But he was more than happy to visit the shark tunnel.

Decorating Pumpkins at the Branch

Last weekend of Page Dairy Mart before they close for the season! I hate how the ice cream places are seasonal around here! (as if you need more reasons to dislike the winter!)

P.S. I love my kids!

Brooke at 18 Months

2011-10-05T14:10:00.002-04:00

Can you believe I have an 18 month old? (not to mention a 3 1/2 year old too!)

Thoughts on Brooke at this phase:

She hates having her teeth brushed.

She loves trains, especially Thomas and plays for hours with Peter at the train table.

She eats EVERYTHING. I love having at least 1 child that eats food. Her only quirk with food is that she doesn't eat bread very often. If I make a sandwich she eats the meat, cheese, lettuce, pickles and tomatos and leaves the bread behind. (which could work, because peter only eats the bread and not the rest of the stuff. picky little booger.) Her favorite foods are pickles, tomatos and cheese.

She can speak her favorite foods quite clearly- though cheese is elongated to "Cheeeeeeeeeeeeeeese!" every time she says it.

She refuses to say "dad". don't misinterpret this. She CAN say it. She just won't. And she thinks it is hilarious. every time we point to Bryan and ask "who is this?" She replies with a 'Mama!' and just starts giggling. She only says "dad" if Bryan is asleep on the couch and she wants him to wake up to play, and as soon as we acknowledge that she said it she shakes her head and changes it back to 'Mama'.

She still has a Binky for naps and bed, and i am okay with that. We will get rid of it eventually, but she sleeps anywhere as long as she has it and I am not ready to give that up yet. She calls it "Mee-Me".

She isn't afraid of getting dirty.

Actually, she isn't afraid of anything. She will hurl herself headfirst down any slide at the park too.

Okay, that is a lie, she is afraid of the doctor's office. It's ~~almost~~ embarrassing. she just cries and makes herself hysterical when we walk in and doesn't stop until we leave. sheesh!

She takes 1 nap a day now. Usually 2-2.5 hours. So does Peter. I am glad because I need a nap too.

She doesn't really have 'girly' hair yet. i got the 'mullet' cut 2 months ago, and it still doesn't quite look girly to me. She refers to her hair as "pretty" and pats her head if I mention her hair!

Her sign language is pretty awesome. She LOVES "Baby Signing Time" and can sign just about anything relative to her world. Its cute. (Please, Thank you, Sorry, Boat, Dog, Airplane, food, Eat, drink, Milk, Juice, Cereal, Book, Cat, Car, Cracker, Sleep, More, ect...ect...)

Stats:
Weight: 24 lbs 74% (I think this is a high estimate of percents though, I think is actually around the 55%)
Height: 31'' 90%
Head: Don't remember the number but it was the 90%.

I suck at french braids.

2011-09-29T22:57:00.001-04:00

I should clarify... I suck at french braiding a toddler's hair. it is so fine. and short. And they move so much!
i really try. this is the end result. one side looks decent, and the other side goes in a pony tail because she won't stop moving and it always looks horrible. i can't get her to sit still long enough!

So instead she gets to look like Cindy-loo-hoo or Pebble's from the flinstones.

Having a boy is a lot less of a time commitment to get ready. just throw in some gel and we are good to go!

or I can always go for the 'messy' look. its the style right? ech. not on a 1 year old. its way too thin to pull off...poor girl. i hope i get better at fixing her hair cute soon!

Girls Night!

2011-09-27T14:28:00.001-04:00

I hosted a girls night last week and I hope everyone had as much fun as I did. I did a 'Cooking Night' where I had everyone bring 3-4 ingredients and set up stations around my kitchen with the recipes we were using. We drew out of a hat for the recipe we were going to be at and we got down to business and made a TON of food. And it all came out Amazing. (please excuse the 'half eaten food' pictures...what can i say, it was THAT good...)
Here was the menu:
Appetizers: Cheesy Garlic Bread
Southwest Eggrolls
Salsa

although this doesn't look amazing in the picture, trust me, it was.

yes, you can buy 'egg roll' wrappers in the produce section of your grocery store!


this was Nicole's salsa, i didn't get a picture of the one we made...)

Salad:         Berry/Spring Mix/Peaches
                  Homemade Blueberry Vinaigrette dressing

Main dish: Cilantro Lime Rice w/ Pineapple
Carmelized Green Beans
Bacon wrapped Chicken terryiaki shish-ca-bobs

Drink: Brazillian Lemonade (from scratch)

Dessert: Cheesecake stuffed Strawberries dipped in Chocolate

I have to say my favorites for the night were the homemade salsa, bread, and the green beans. Closely followed by the rest of the food...
I have a super creative friend who is really good at plate designs and showed us some ideas...

We even threw in a baby shower to go with it... Happy Baby Nicole! We kept it simple and had the traditional present opening after we stuffed our faces. good times. Thank you friends for all your help with this. It will be a great memory of good times and girls in the 'burgh.

"Bun in the Oven"

I can't take the credit for these. But I wish i could. They were de-lish!

Shoes

2011-09-26T13:54:00.001-04:00

I have a 'thing' for shoes. My shoes, guys shoes, kids shoes. Any shoes. The bad thing about being a student's wife is the shoe budget is seriously lacking. As in, pretty much no new shoes. Unless the ones you have have a hole so big that you can't wear them. (okay, that is an exaggeration. I have a small personal budget, but I admit that I have used it. For the entire year.) In summary, I am not buying new shoes any time soon for myself.

The good news is....drum roll please....KIDS are ALWAYS growing. Which translates into: Kids need Shoes more often than not!!!

And i am happy to accommodate their needs and will make the necessary sacrifice to get them new shoes.

Brooke happens to LOVE shoes as well. I frequently catch her putting on several pairs of shoes at a time. she starts with her own and then layers them with mine or peter's over them.

( i am really glad i got a picture of these pretties because we went to the park the day after and it was a bit muddy. I am afraid the shoes will never be this clean again...)

Belly Pictures

2011-09-24T09:00:00.002-04:00

Yuck. i hate these things. But since i did them with the first two i may as well not neglect #3.

Looking back at this picture I am thinking: why in the world am I still wearing normal clothes? They look really bad. Reminder to myself; You have never been this far along in a pregnancy when it is so dang hot outside. All your maternity stuff is winter. So you get to look like you are wearing Brooke's clothes.


Week 22

Second note to self: Have someone else take the pictures. it is so much easier.

Week 23 1/2

I am over halfway done. Thank goodness. I really can't complain too much. I have moderately easy pregnancies and after being here in Pittsburgh and seeing what some of my friends have gone through (trying to get pregnant or being pregnant) I have to admit that I am very blessed. I was sick the first trimester and ended up losing a bit of wieght, but no worries. I have gained it all back plus plenty more. I am very hungry when I am pregnant. (Meaning i eat. All. The. Time.) I have been running and doing my modified version of 'insanity' workouts. Which I probably should have stopped a long time ago. But i figured as long as it didn't hurt I was fine....
wrong. it didn't hurt while I was doing it, but it has aggravated my round ligament to the point of severe pain. I hate having to say that i have limits. (i guess i do... don't tell anyone!). And I pushed it too far. I did one of those 'insane' workouts on Tuesday and I woke up not too hot on Wednesday. It got to the point that I developed a fever and almost went to the ER. not smart Jamie! Long story short, I am totally fine now. I just know that I need to go easier on my body and NO more "insanity" workouts until I am way post-pardum with this little munchkin.
On happier notes: baby is growing and I feel big strong kicks and see body parts poking out on my belly every day. he/she is a happy little person with lots of energy. (probably from those insanity workouts....)

what happens when the movie is over...

2011-09-23T13:31:00.000-04:00

Amoxijuice

2011-09-16T13:10:00.004-04:00

You read it right. Amox-i-juice. The hidden way to trick an 18 month old into taking her antibiotics.

Directions: Daddy inserts straw into juice and drinks about 1/3. Then fill medicine dropper with prescribed amount of amoxicillin. Remove straw and dispense meds into juice box. Give to toddler.

Other things of note: gets rid of ear infections. gives nasty diapers.

Outerbanks 2011

2011-09-14T23:34:00.000-04:00

After much stress, (which I probably brought upon myself un-nessarily) we finally got to go on our much anticipated vacation to the Outerbanks in North Carolina. I have to say that you know it was a great vacation when you get home and realize that you didn't take many pictures because you were too busy having a good time! It was a super enjoyable experience (for the most part).
The highlights (for me) included:
the beach.

the sand at the beach.

the waves in the ocean.

the really awesome sea shells.

the sunshine at the beach.

the pool.

the light house.

I have to mention the bummer stuff because I am trying to keep an honest record of how things really are.
the lowlights would have to include:

brooke's ear infection 2 days before we went.

the antibiotics that made me have to change a stinky diaper 8+ times a day while trying to enjoy all of the above.

brooke's diaper rash due to the above events that made her super grouchy. (bryan and i considered leaving her there for someone else to take home.)

other than that it was a really good time. we rented an awesome beach house in Duck, NC. Comparing this trip to last year I have to say that Duck is way cooler than Waves. The whole area is more developed. There was a ton to do. Our house had a killer pool, and club house, and playground for the kids. It also had a very convenient private access to the beach. We were in walking distance to an ice cream shop, so of course Bryan was happy.

Some of the boys (and a couple girls) even risked their lives and may or may not have jumped from the 2nd story balcony into the pool....

Peter hanging out on the Sound side of the island (this was the side that got pummeled by Hurricane Irene). This was one of the only walks out to the water that was still in usable condition.

Looks like it is nice weather...decieving. We were really sweaty. And hot. And here is the closest thing to a belly picture you are going to get of me. 21 weeks.

We got to hang out with Kurt and Helena a bunch and we had a great time with these guys! (sorry Helena, this is the only picture I got of you guys...I know its not great!)

The highlight for Peter was the Go Karts. It was a shinnanagan to find a place that would let a 3 year old ride as a passenger. (weird? I thought so) But he was in HEAVEN. I think it was the highlight of his trip.

Showing how Brooke really was...a snotty mess!

This is as close as Peter ever got to the water. Brooke would have swam off to China if we let her, but Peter was TERRIFiED of the waves. He was hysterical every time we even mentioned the word 'beach' and he would consent to go but stay up close to the top and play in the DRY sand. The picture below is when he was feeling really brave on the LAST day we were there. Pathetic.

I am almost done with pictures. I promise. To conclude I must put in the classic "Buried Alive" picture. Meet Chad. Once upon a time, a human. At the beach, a sea turtle. Pure awesomeness.

I LOVED the time we spent together with family and friends. We made some great memories. The only thing that I didn't get to do was take a big group picture with everyone that went. It was a great group!

3 days before we are supposed to be having a good time.

2011-08-31T21:06:00.002-04:00

my dad told me today that he was waiting for more blog posts. i think what he meant was pictures of the kids, so i will include a couple in this post. what you are mostly going to get is me whining about my not good day. sorry.

you know its time to look back and re-evaluate yourself when your kids, your husband, and your good friends are driving you nuts. i realized this at about 7:00 tonight. i am sitting here stressing and complaining in my head about all my favorite people. wow. time to take a step back. it must be me. i would love to blame it on pregnancy, the effing hurricane, being on hold for hours with various insurance and/or realty agencies, and at the same time as that being stuck in front of my laptop for over 5 hours trying to find a replacement vacation home at the last minute, while wondering the entire time if my original plan is going to miraculously come through, leaving me and my friends missing a lot of dollars, plus a lack of kids napping when i need them to, not to mention the fact that i burned dinner, bryan broke a plate (i am down to 6, so looks like we are limited to eating on paper plates when we have guests...), the garbage guy only decided that only 1/2 my garbage was worth taking so i have a pile of trash still out in my yard, and my shift key isn't working. i don't think i can put the blame on anyone but myself. that sucks.

so, to all my good friends, kids, and husband, i am so sorry. tomorrow is a new day and a better one. i promise to be happy and less beastly.

brooke loves pickles. she could eat them all day. and she calls them 'kkkkkkles'. its pretty awesome.

she is also obsessed with shoes. she puts them on and takes them off all day long.

Cupcakes!

2011-08-22T21:07:00.000-04:00

Need I say more?

August so far

2011-08-20T13:39:00.002-04:00

We have been busy. That is for sure. Bryan and I had the opportunity to ditch the kids for an afternoon and go on a date. It was so great to be out with him. We went kayaking along the Yougiogehny (pronounced Yauk-a-gain-ee if you were wondering) River. We had seen this shop along the bike trail and talked about doing it 'someday'. I was very pleased that 'someday' actually happened! I didn't get any pictures because I was afraid of dumping over in the kayak and ruining the camera. So it stayed safely tucked away in the car. It was a fabulous time. There was not a soul on the river and we paddled about 5 miles or so total. I even have a slight sunburn to prove it.

As a family we have been outside a ton! I LOVE being outside. The kids (finally!) have bikes. They are loving them!

Last Saturday we took a boat ride on a big ferry along the river downtown. It was kind of lame, but Peter and Brooke enjoyed it.

(notice her trying to EAT the balloon???)

As if that isn't enough activity! We went to "members night" at the Zoo last Thursday with the Rivard's. Food for a dollar, great weather and letting Peter and Brooke run around until all they wanted was sleep. It doesn't get much better! (The only disapointment was the train ride. We stood in line for 30 minutes and they told us it had broken down. So we got out of line only to have the stupid thing show up. We got back in line and were not as far up as we were before so we were first people cut off to get on the train because it was full. Sad. The kids were bummed.)

In "Brooke" news, I finally consented to cut off the 'mullet'. She has a cute little bob now and looks a ton better. I really should have done it sooner. I was just afraid to cut the length for fear that her hair would always end up being short or something.
Here is what I like to call "Dinosaur Hair" (pre-hair cut)

Finally, a preggo picture. Here I am at 18 weeks.

Bathroom Horrors

2011-08-14T15:00:00.001-04:00

I seem to recall posting a couple months ago about my kids and toilets... But they have brought it to a whole new level.

I will start with Peter. He is potty trained and has been for about 8 months now. I have to give him credit to the fact that he goes in by himself, can pull his pants on and off and get on and off the throne by himself. The one thing he cannot do (because I have never even attempted to put the thought in his mind that he could) is wipe his bum after going #2.

I feel like Peter is a pretty well behaved kid. For the most part. He tries to be considerate of his sister who is sleeping 2x a day and then nights... So he won't yell "MOM! Come help!" or anything of the sort. When he is done doing his business, he whispers, "mom!....mom!....Mom!!!...." And NEVER gets any louder. It is kind of nice, but most of the time it creates a slight problem.

He ends up sitting on the toilet (especially at night) for hours. I kid you not! I have put him to bed at 8:00 and go upstairs to go to bed at 10:30 or later and find him sitting on the toilet just chillin (sometimes not so chill...) waiting for me and his poor behind has those huge red indentations from sitting too long on a hollowed circle.

The example that takes the cake:
We left Peter at a friends house so Bryan and I could go out on a date. I always warn whoever is watching him that he tends to do his business at night, so be prepared... My friend put him to bed at 8:00 and all was quiet in her house. She came back upstairs about 2 hours later to find Peter ASLEEP, sitting up, on the toilet filled with ,ahem, #2 (for lack of a better word). His arm was resting on the ledge of a little heater that came out of the wall and his head was propped up by his arm. (When I heard this it made my night. Classic!)

I would think by now he would learn to raise his voice a little so he could get some assistance...but I can't seem to get through to him that that is a good idea.

Story #2
Brooke.
She gets her own toilet stories. She is obsessed with the toilet as well. If I ever leave the bathroom door open I can almost guarantee I will find her there splashing around in the toilet. She will be soaking wet with nasty toilet water down her shirt, pants and all over her face. (ew...you may involuntarily shutter now...)

The ULTIMATE is when I was (again, at a friends house) and she disappeared upstairs. It was just too quiet so after a couple minutes I went to check on her. I found her in the bathroom playing in the toilet with a wad of soggy toilet paper. I honestly have no idea if she pulled it out of the toilet or found it elsewhere in the bathroom. I hope I never know.
Here is the worst part:
      She was sucking on it.

Catching up

2011-08-10T14:07:00.000-04:00

After our crazy busy trips to Arizona and Florida, my mom flew back with us to Pittsburgh and we spent some time seeing Niagara Falls and the Church Historical Sites around Palmyra, NY. We got to see the "Hill Cumorah Pageant" which was something I have wanted to do since I was a little girl. It didn't disappoint!
We brought our bikes with us and were able to bike around the falls and to the wirlpools. It was awesome. And of course we found a playground for the kids which made everything worth it to them. We wanted to eat "buffalo" wings since we were in Buffalo, NY. We stopped off at this wing/pizza place that Yelp had listed as really good food, but terrible service. They didn't lie. The pizza was even more amazing than the wings, but I have never sat SO long at a table in my life. We waited about 15 minutes before the waitress even brought us our menu's. That should have been our first sign. (Usually this sort of stuff only happens when my Dad is with us. He seems to have a permanent curse of getting poor service, uncooked/overcooked food and sometimes the wrong order or a forgotten order altogether!) He wasn't with us so we mistakenly thought we were safe....
Anyway. Not to make my post all about the food...

Sliding with Daddy

Greatest picture EVER of my mom. I laugh every time I see it. It just makes me happy!

Palmyra was amazing. We saw the Joseph Smith farm, the Sacred Grove, the Peter Whitmer Farm, and attended the pageant in the evening. It was truly amazing to be in the place where the restoration began! I loved the Sacred Grove. It was an experience I will never forget. It was so peaceful and calm. I could feel the Spirit from the moment I set foot in the place.
The pageant was incredible. If you are thinking about seeing it- DO IT! It is worth it. They really go all out. We had great seats, and brought the pack-n-play for Brooke and set it up in our row. It was perfect. She sat in it and watched "Baby Signing Time" while Peter fell asleep on Bryan's lap and all the adults got to enjoy the show!

Whitmer Farm

The Sacred Grove


Us with ALL of our stuff at the Pageant. Pack N Play. (Check!) Big Awkward Bike Trailer/Stroller. (Check!) Kids. (Check!) Toys. (Check!) DVD player. (Check) + all other needed baby items are in the back of that blue monstrosity!

Baking Skills

2011-08-01T08:27:00.002-04:00

My oven is baking up a little hot cake. Expecting the timer to go off around

January 20, 2012.

I might regret this post later in life.

2011-07-24T07:42:00.000-04:00

I hate to say it, but sometimes Bryan is right.
That tastes like acid coming out of my mouth.
I am not saying I am wrong. Okay, maybe on occasion.
Alright, maybe on some occasions.

But I really hate when he is right about every day stuff I think I am in complete control of.

For example:

Me: "Since you started seeing patients in clinic, I got you a separate laundry basket for you to put your scrubs in."

Bryan: "That's fine, but I am worried you will forget about washing them and I will run out before the week is over."

Me: (scoffing and slightly rolling my eyes) "When have I ever left you without clean clothes!?"

Bryan: "I'm just sayin..."

5 days later.... 6:45 am on a Friday.

Bryan: "Where are my scrubs?"

Me: (Groggy and trying to pretend like I am still sleeping) "In your closet"

Bryan: "There aren't any in there"

Well. You can guess where they all were. In the laundry basket. Dirty. Waiting for me to wash them.
Yes. I am awesome. And I am admitting just this once that Bryan is sometimes right. (But PLEASE don't tell him.)

Coming of Age

2011-07-22T07:42:00.001-04:00

How do you know when your 'baby' isn't a 'baby anymore?

Apparently, the world revolves around "Light-Up shoes"

Peter tells me the other day,
"Mom, Brookie isn't a baby anymore. She is a big girl."

Me
"Oh, really, why is that?"

Peter
"She has "Police Car" shoes, just like me. That makes her a big girl."

(He has Sketchers light up shoes he refers to as "Police Car Shoes" and Brooke has some awesome Sketchers "Twinkle Toes". I recommend them for every kid.)

So, in case anyone was wondering about when their babies were going to reach "kid" status, or how if and when your older kids were going to realize that their younger siblings are going to grow out of being a "baby", just get them some light up shoes!

I love these!

2011-07-15T10:39:00.000-04:00

Florida

2011-07-13T20:35:00.001-04:00

Part II of our Summer excursion.
I left Bryan in Arizona to bake in the dry heat so I could go sweat in the humidity! It was awesome. Every bit as good as I imagined Florida could be. Our little party consisted of my parents, my sister Cori, me and Brooke. My other little sister Haley is stationed in Panama City so we figured that we could surprise her with a visit. She had NO idea that Cori and I were coming. It was so fun! She was graduating from her training and earned her "wings". I got to attend a fancy smancy Air Force catered dinner party, with pretty awesome food and company. I even left Brooke with a baby sitter. That was a first for me. Well, not that I have never left her, but I left her with someone I didn't know. Kind of scary. Haley had some friends from church she said could be trusted (some young women- the Bishop's daughter). I figured I could trust them from Haley's recommendation, and they were awesome, but it was still a little weird to be in uncharted territory.
We went to Haley's graduation the next day. The ceremony was short and sweet. (Thank goodness. I hate graduations) I was also Cori's 21st birthday so we had to party it up all day! Lounging by the pool and a nice Italian Restaurant for dinner topped off by an ice cream cake back at Haley's place. I hope she had a great day. I felt so old when my little sisters went out dancing that night and I felt I had to stay home because I was married, had kids, and my hubby wasn't with me. I was a little bummed, but the bigger part of me was just excited to go to bed early. I am so lame.
Haley gave us a special treat the next day by getting us military clearance for a flight simulation. It was fun. I kind of suck at flying an airplane. But it was my first time. I have to admit that I really don't think I am cut out to be a pilot and she can go have all the fun in the planes. We also went to Mexico Beach and Panama City Beach. I love the white sand the the gorgeous color of the water!
We also went to Shipwreck Island- a water park next to the beach. It was a blast, Brooke even went down a couple of the big slides with me! Having a baby at a water park was a challenge. I was so happy to have all the help from my family. Brooke is fearless when it comes to the water. And the sand. She was dipping her graham crackers in the sand at the beach for some extra texture. Sick. And in the water she doesn't want to be held. She wants to do it herself. I can't believe how independent she thinks she is.
There were a couple down sides to our trip.
a) Cori had to fly home 3 days before us because she had to work.
b) Haley had to fly out the day before we did because she had to go to survival training in the wild woods of Washington state. (I am sooo glad I am not in the air force). So we stayed at her place with out her.
c) The airplane ride. Flying with Brooke is not fun. She is miserable to travel with. (you know, that whole independent thing) To top that off our flight home was delayed 2 hours. Then we sat on the runway for an hour before taking off. We had a 3 hour lay over in Atlanta. Followed by us sitting on the runway for another hour and a half because there were over 25 planes in front of us for take off. It was a very long day.

Brooke was LOVING Haley's cat. The cat didn't feel the same.

entertaining the Brookie Monster at the airport

Haley getting her Wings

yea sisters!

Sister's are the best!

got sand?

Mmmm. Sand in my mouth tastes good!?

I am Brookie the destroyer. I have come to get into as much trouble as possible.

nice tan lines.

The one and only time I got Brooke to sit still. Possibly for the entire trip.

I do love my family and it was a blast to get to spend so much time with them. I wish Bryan would have come. It was strange to be away from Peter for that long. (10 days!)
* Sadly all these pictures are all taken with my point and shoot because I didn't have any batteries in my Nikon.

Arizona part Deux

2011-07-12T23:02:00.000-04:00

Peter and I got to spend a little quality time away from Jamie and Brooke. All the highlights had something to do with water. First we got to go to Lake Roosevelt with the Henlings. Other than a couple "wild" tubing rides, Peter spent most of the time sitting in Mrs. Henling's lap. Peter loved it... becuase sitting on her lap meant that I probably wasn't going to do something terrible, like throw him in the water. Luckily Peter grew to love being in the water more and more as the trip pregressed...

Day 1 of swimming lessons.... Peter didn't want to do much more than hold onto the side. But by the night before we flew back to Pittsburgh, he was taking full advantage of uncle Chris's pool.

I got to spend 4th of July at the place that sets Winslow apart from the rest of AZ. THE CREEK!!

If you can look past the graffiti, it's quite a picturesque place (as opposed to the "desolate" place that Jamie tries to make it out to be.
Peter even got to go on his first camping trip (thanks to Nana and Grandpa)! Peter's favorite part by far was the fishing... Not that he was able to catch much with just a weight attached to the line.

On our way up from the lake, we got to see an eagle's nest.

My favorite part was going on a long hike with my Dad to the very tip of a finger-like extension of the rim.

And of course, anytime that Steve and I get together, you know we have to play as much basketball as possible. Mostly we just played open gym, but we did get to play in the Joseph City 3on3 tournament.... which we won thanks to Cas driving up from Round Valley.

Our trophy..... A wildcat t-shirt (as long as it's not a Holbrook or UofA shirt... I'll wear it)

Arizona

2011-07-12T18:34:00.001-04:00

Part 1 of our summer vacation.
We had a great time in Arizona. Unfortunately I was not the smartest and forgot to charge my camera prior to leaving so I took about 6 pictures and the low battery light started flashing.

In summery, Arizona was:

Family

Friends

Sunshine

Not a cloud in the sky

Swimming Lessons

Mexican Food

Running in the dry desert

Blue Bell Ice Cream

Wind

Heat

Good times

For those of you that have never been to Winslow... I wanted you to know I wasn't exaggerating when I say it is a barren waste land to look at.

woah.

2011-07-11T15:22:00.001-04:00

Its almost been a month since I blogged. That would have been such a tragedy!
To avert the crisis I suppose I will have to post something.
I have a good excuse for not blogging in a while. We went to Arizona, followed it up with a slight detour to Florida, then hopped on a plane to come back to the 'burgh, only to leave the following day to go to New York to see Niagara Falls and the historical church sites that are around Palmyra. To top all that off, when we got back I found myself faced with a slightly self imposed deadline to start publishing my blog into a physical book for my children's children to look back on and wonder how in the world their ancestors were so cool. I bought a Groupon for "Blurb" a couple months ago and remembered that it expired (today!) about a week ago. So I have been slaving away at my computer making "Year 2008" into a permanent record. Whew. It was exhausting and I just finished it about an hour ago. I am such a procrastinator. Too bad I only have 3 more years of blogging to put in a book. I might just do 1 a year and stay 3 years behind for a while. That sounds good to me.
I am going to have a big, big post later with some of the 400 hundred pictures that I have taken in the last month. You can look forward to it with lots of anticipation. Its going to be cool. (Well, for me anyway.)

Thoughts

2011-06-16T22:15:00.000-04:00

I feel like I have been posting tons of pictures lately and not a lot of words. The last couple weeks have been crazy busy. On Sunday afternoon I came down with a cold. So did Peter and Brooke. It really hit me hard. Now that I am better I have been thinking about life and my Heavenly Father's plan for all of us. The phrase "Let there be Opposition in All Things" comes to my mind. I seem to take so many things for granted. Like being healthy. It takes me getting knocked over the head with a 2x4 for me to express some gratitude to God for all the great things in my life. I realize that we have trials for a reason and that through the bad and the hard we will find the good and become stronger.
One of my favorite hymns, "Lord, I would Follow Thee" has been in my head tonight.

Savior may I love my brother

As I know thou lovest me,

Find in thee my strength, my beacon,

For thy servant I would be.

Savior, may I love my brother-

Lord, I would follow thee.

It made me think about 2 things.

a) The need for repentance and change.

b) How amazing the life of Jesus Christ was.

Not to get all preachy or anything...but I really love my Savior, Jesus Christ. I know I am so far from perfect, but I know its never to late to change or to try and do better. I know he died for me and I don't want to waste His sacrifice. (Geez, I feel like I am giving a church talk and need to close all formally or something! Sorry!) I just want to put in writing my feelings and I feel like when I put things in print it kind of pushes me to really do better and try to truly be grateful for my blessings and do better tomorrow than I did today.

Water Fun

2011-06-11T21:37:00.000-04:00

I really love warm weather. I feel like I say that in every post lately. But when you live in a place where its cloudy and snowy/rainy 300 days a year, you really grow to appreciate sunshine and warmth. I think buying our bikes might be the best purchase of 2011. It was well worth using 65% of my yearly personal spending money to buy it. It has proven to get me in shape and lots of great times with family and friends. Today we went on a bike ride to find water. Its not hard to do in the City of Bridges! Here are some of my favorite parts of our day.

At PPG Place Fountains. Water at Random. And of course- Free!

I'm gonna get you Peter!!!

Waiting for lunch....what should we eat?

why, yes. That is in fact a pizza. or 2!

Water Stop #2. Another Fountain by Heinz Field.


Water Stop #3. The Rope Swing. In the Monongahela River.

Of course, Bryan tells Devin- "I'll go if you go!" And 24 seconds later they are jumping into that really disgusting thing we call a river. I would not recommend going in there without wearing a containment suit of some sort. But that's just me.

Going.

going....

Gone!

Family Home (and not at home) Evening (and other times too) Adventures

2011-06-09T14:26:00.000-04:00

I love summer time. LOVE summertime. Especially early summer before it really gets hot. We have finally had some good weather to go play in. We went disc golfing for FHE the other night. It was the first time since leaving Flagstaff. How lame are we? We used to go at least 1x a week! I think this is the only course in Pittsburgh. It is a pretty good course, but not nearly as tough as Flagstaff's.

We went down to the Pittsburgh Arts Festival last week and let the kids run wild on the grass and jam out to a local concert. I have been forgetting my camera lately. So there are no pictures. We also got to go to our much anticipated Pirates vs Diamondbacks game at PNC park. It was a blast. The kids loved being in the stadium and it was only about 90 degrees outside. I don't think I have ever seen my kids sweat so much. (and they are quite sweaty...)

Our Big Night Out

2011-06-05T21:08:00.000-04:00

For my birthday this year Bryan took me to the Melting Pot. I have always wanted to eat there. We found a baby-sitter for the kiddies and took off for a night out by the river. It was so nice to have an un-interrupted dinner with my best friend. I don't know if any of you have eaten here before, so in case you didn't know- its a fondue restaurant. We went all out and got the four-course meal! Yum. Cheese fondue and veggies, salads, the main course and the best part, a chocolate fondue for dessert! Thank you Bryan for a great date!

Abby comes for a visit!

2011-06-01T10:10:00.000-04:00

My mom came out last week from Arizona. It was so much fun to have her here. I wish she lived closer so she could come over all the time! It was one big party from start to finish.
She flew into town on a Thursday morning, and that night we had a going away party for the fourth year dental students. The next day was Peter's birthday.

At the Fire Station

At the bowling alley

Then we took a day trip on Saturday to Ohio to see a couple historical places from our Church's history.

Newl K. Whitney's Home

Kirtland Temple

just chillin' while Abby texts her kids back home!

We topped that off with a 'sight detour' to a fabulous ice cream shop for what may be the best ice cream in Pittsburgh and possibly the state of Pennsylvania. Sunday after church we decided to show my mom the city the best way possible- on a bike. It was so fun! We rode from Carson St. to Heinz Field.

(notice who's bike is hooked up to the kids??? In B's defense, he did take them on the return trip)

(gotta love how little kids can sleep anywhere!)

Monday was my mom's birthday and I am sad to say that I didn't get any pictures of it! I hope she had a good birthday. We went running, and then shopping for the majority of the day. We also went out to dinner and took another 'slight detour' to Sarris Ice Cream for her birthday treat.

(I didn't make her a cake, and feel bad about it, but we had so much cake left over between Peter's birthday party and the baby shower I threw that I thought it would just go bad). The next day we started a painting project in Peter's room. Holy cow. I had no idea it would be as complicated as it was. I really wanted an argyle wall. To figure out the measurements and get all the diamonds even and a good size is very challenging. I still only 90% done so you don't get to see the finished project yet. It took us over 4 hours of measuring and penciling (and I am not counting the time it took to tape the wall) in our pattern and only a little over 2 hours to actually paint.
It was so wonderful to have her company for the week. We all loved it and can't wait for her to come back.
P.S. Any other family members or friends... We love it when you come to visit. So get your booty on a plane and come see us! What could be cooler than Pittsburgh?!

Here comes trouble.

2011-05-25T20:00:00.003-04:00

Can you believe it? He is three. Happy Birthday to my best-est little buddy!
Peter these days:
*fun loving
*sooo sweet to his little sister. He gives her hugs and kisses at random.
*Still a big chicken. He refuses to go on the swings at the park.
*Still LOVES Thomas and trains, in addtion to anything else on wheels.
*Knows all the sounds that the alphabet makesand can even sound out simple words.
*He LOVES reading and wants me to find him "good words to read" every day.
*Is 100% potty trained (since February)
*Still a frikin punk at the dinner table, though his array of acceptable foods is slowly growing. (at a snail's pace)
*Weighed in at 33lbs at his 3 year check and 37 inches tall. (39% for height and 56% for weight)
I love this kid! For his birthday he wanted a fire truck cake. (He was adamant about this. I had other ideas for his cake, but he ONLY wanted the fire truck cake.) So he got "Red", the engine from the Disney movie "Cars". I am happy to say that he loved it and it made all the time I put into it worth it. When he saw it his face just lit up and he couldn't stop talking about his cake.

During the morning went to the fire station down the street from us and he got the grand tour with a couple of his buddies.

Then we had a little party with his friends. (It was supposed to be at the park, but it got rained out so he settled for bowling and pizza.)

And of course, Peter's birthday wouldn't be complete without an ice cream outing with Daddy!

She Walks!

2011-05-24T14:59:00.001-04:00

May I present Ms. Brookie, who might possibly the slowest walking baby ever... But she does try to catch Peter. (But I think he laps her about 7x times to her 1/2 lap!)
*Please ignore the mess in the kitchen. That is what happens to my house while they are awake.

The Un-Baby Shower

2011-05-22T17:01:00.000-04:00

I feel like life has been incredibly busy since we came home from our trip to DC. We got home on a Sunday and I was planning a baby shower for a really good friend on Tuesday. I had a fun idea planned for it eons ago, and like always, I procrastinated actually putting everything in motion until I got home. Monday and Tuesday were rediculous. I really should learn not to put things off. I had a ton of shopping to do as well as 'crafting' and decorating. Luckily, I was co-hosting with my friend, Kelly, so we managed to pull it off. But barely.

I wanted to do the theme "Alice in Wonderland" and have the scene from the Mad Hatter's "un-birthday tea party". It was so much fun to plan. We went to Good Will and found tons of really ugly tea pots and cups and we made little tags for the beverages "Eat Me" and "Drink Me" for the food. I really hate shower games, (my apologies to everyone that loves them) so we played 'un' shower games. We painted white roses red like the movie, and also attempted to play Croquet. I had no idea it was so hard to play. I suck at it (no surprise here. Have you seen me with any other sport that required a ball???). I wish I had a ton of money to spend on this party. I really could have gone crazy for it... (you know, life size playing cards, nice white chairs with big bows on them, 20 strings of paper lanterns hung...I could go on...)

(Another note when planning: Do the cake the night before. It always takes longer than you think!)

(I had to get yard flamingos too! What kind of "mad hatter" party would be complete without them?)

I am so happy so many people came to support Jessica and her soon to be baby girl. She is going to be great with a girl! (She is already super-mom to her boys!) Oh, and I had to add a picture of the super popular dress...

I think she got five of these cute little things!

Day 5- The Big Finish!

2011-05-19T21:11:00.001-04:00

I thought I would throw in an elevation chart for the fun of it. The first 2 days were tough, and the last 3 were pretty much flat:

We decided to wake up early(er) today and get going so we could try to be at the Capitol by 1:30 pm. We got up early and were at breakfast by 7:15 am and on the road by 7:30. It was a beautiful (crisp) morning. I love the atmosphere at daybreak. It is just amazing to me. Everything always seems so new and hopeful. We stopped to take a couple pictures of the 'downtown' area at Harper's Ferry. Even though it seems deserted, the streets were PACKED with people the night before.

We hauled our bikes back over the bridge onto the towpath and started peddling towards Tannon's campsite (which, again, was 5-10 miles further down the trail). I don't know why the boys were feeling so generous, but they let me lead again today. We really wanted to be done at this point. It wasn't that we weren't enjoying it, but you could taste victory, or the end of our trip. It was SO close and we were just shy of hitting 300 miles on our bikes.

The trail today was a challenge. It was a muddy mess for the first 40 miles. I felt like we were navigating through a swamp. We were mud bogging on bikes. I was still a little skeptical of the sloshy, muddy parts due to my 'stunt' the previous day. I kept a decent pace only because I would go really fast in the good parts so I could go really slow in the bad ones. Today was also 'buggy'. The bugs really liked Bryan. They kept trying to set up a permanent residence on his arms and head as we were biking...

(looking back at Harper's Ferry, you can't tell, but the whole village is on a point where 2 rivers merge.)

I didn't want the boys to feel like I was slowing them down so I pushed and peddled at a 'brisk' pace. I found out when we took a break (3 hours later) that I was going about 14-15 mph. Yes. Finally! I wasn't being a slow wimpy girl! It really felt great to go that speed. Until we stopped for a break. Then my body was trying to tell me to get in a car or something.... We stopped for a very quick lunch on a very touristy part of the path where there were plenty of idiots out and about who didn't have any etiquette or courtesy. You can see the annoyance on Bryan's face at this (old) lady who practically pushed us out of the way to take a picture of the river. And there was a huge tree blocking her view when she took it. If she would have moved to one of the sides of us, she would have had a great shot. Dummy.

Anyway. We ~~ate~~ inhaled our lunch (jerky, dried fruit and nuts and the remnants of our bagels) and off we went. (again) The tow path was changing here and the scenery was breathtaking. Unfortunately, we were on this wild drive to be done so we didn't take pictures like we should have. We were too focused on finishing and avoiding the millions of people walking/standing/taking up room on the path. Its like the closer we got to DC, the more I would have to ring my little bike bell to politely ask pedestrians to get the heck out of the way. Okay, i am exaggerating slightly (I tend to do that from time to time). About 75% of the walkers were great and would just make sure to stay on the right side of the path. The other 25% wouldn't have a clue what the bell was for and moved further into the middle of the bike path so we would have to dodge them + the bikers/walkers coming the other direction.

The canal at this point was not a murky mess. It was almost sparkling clear (not that I would drink it- I had seen it in its entirety) and deep enough to support kayakers and fishermen as well as birds and tons of other wild life.

(see how nice the canal water is?!)

This part of the path was not what I expected. I did expect the people. But what I didn't expect was the absence of 'city'. If I didn't know from the map that I was 15 miles out of DC, I would have never known! The forest of trees was so dense and the undergrowth was crazy. You couldn't hear cars or see any houses or big buildings. It was nuts!
The path at this point was very well maintained. (As expected) We were able to get up to 16 mph at times. We followed the C&O until 6 miles or so until the end. Bryan saw a paved path and the rest was history. We hit that sucker and flew on it until we hit Georgetown. We manuevered through traffic and Bryan was our navigator to the finish. We could see the Washington Monument! And....
it was sort of anti-climatic. We got there. Yay... That was it.

We were pleased that we finished. And really hungry. And tired. We hung out ant took a couple more pictures. Then Tannon's wife, McCall came to pick us up and drive us home. (Thanks McCall ;) ) The 1/6 of the mile I had to ride to get to her car from the monument was the most unpleasant time on a bike I have ever had. I'm not even joking. I was pretty stiff. We had been enjoying a good long sit on the national mall for about 45 min. It was amazing.

In summary- Day 5. We were just ready to be finished. The scenery was the possibly the best of the entire trip. If I had a do-over of this day I would not have put a time limit on myself. I would have taken WAY more pictures, and taken the time to enjoy this last leg. And I would strongly recommend a bell on your bike in this part of the trail.
Looking back, my feelings about Day 5 changed. I am so incredibly proud of what we accomplished. We went 346 miles on a bike. I actually hauled my ~~crap~~ stuff on the back of it. We road in mud, sticks, rocks, pavement, dirt and everything in between. I think we chose a great time of year to go. It wasn't too hot and humid and there were minimal insects to deal with. We really lucked out and didn't get rained on (with the exception of Day 1). I felt like I trained enough to actually enjoy the ride and not spend every night in pain. (though I was definitely sore every night) It was an unforgettable experience that I wouldn't trade. I would even ride it again.

Day 4- Accident Prone. Who me?!

2011-05-16T22:37:00.001-04:00

Hancock, MD to Harper's Ferry, WV. (65 Miles)
Today we didn't sleep in as long as the previous days. I wonder if the condition of the hotel had anything to do with it? Maybe. And maybe not.
We also took the least amount of pictures today. But the ones I have are priceless. I could see a habit forming starting the day. We got up, packed, and got back on the bike for a trip down the road to meet Tannon at his campsite. He (again) camped quite a ways down the trail. We learned the night before that there was a paved bike trail that ran parallel to the C&O for 10 miles or so outside of Hancock. We couldn't WAIT to get on it. (In case you aren't familiar with bikes, it is SO much easier to ride on a paved road than a dirt trail.) We decided the 11 miles we had to ride to get to Tannon was a good warm-up. (Also, it is interesting how my perspective changed during the duration of the trip. It is amazing when I am viewing 11 miles as a warm-up and 20 miles of riding a 'short distance') The paved road was as wonderful as I thought it was going to be. It was even uphill. But it was paved. Bryan and I averaged 14+ mph on this small stretch. And we were 'warming up'. Nice job us.
As the saying goes, all good things must come to an end. It did and we found ourselves back on the award winning towpath full of fun obstacles from every direction. Once we picked up Tannon, I somehow became the front man (or girl). I set the pace for a while. It was nice to be in the lead. I felt much relief being able to see all that was in front of me and not the back of Bryan's head. I wanted to stay in the lead and not let the boys pass me so I decided to push myself and see how fast (within reason) I could go. I didn't know until later that I was cruising at 15 mph. Anyway. We passed a bunch of locks and some breathtaking views of the Potomac river.

I could feel us nearing 'civilazation' because we were meeting more people (mostly hikers) along the trail. I was enjoying my IPod and my lead when I saw a dude on a 'four wheeler' headed towards me. Last time I checked, motorized vehicles weren't allowed. I guess if you are a park ranger you can do whatever you want. He didn't even slow down. Or move over to the side. Rude. I had to be the one to dodge him. But in doing so, I found myself trying to go to the far right of the path and there was a huge pothole/mud puddle. My bike didn't like whatever I did and I ended up doing some world class gymnastics over the front of my handle bars. Yup. Lucky for me I escaped unscathed. Lucky for me the sides of the path were wider in this area and I didn't hit a tree. Or fall off a cliff. Or into a canal. Or worse, the Potomac.
And the park ranger dude/jerk didn't even apologize. He witnessed my front flip and didn't even have the decency to compliment my skills.
After that I was much more aware of every pothole and puddle for the rest of the day. I felt bad for the boys because they wanted me in front in case I pulled another stunt like that they could keep an eye on me. I was not hurt at all, but a bit shaken and I kept slowing down to a turtle's speed on every muddy area. (which was about every 5 minutes) I am sure I drove them bonkers.
The rest of the day was pretty uneventful, with the exception of the 'detour'. Part of the path was under construction so we were routed into the countryside for about 7 miles. It was a nice change. It was extremely hilly and we maxed out at 40 mph down one of the hills (and hit about 2 mph going up a couple of them). We got to see some pretty elaborate estates. The houses were just plain awesome. I could totally live in the country in uh, where ever it was...West Virginia? Maryland? Not sure.
I felt like the ride today was not too hard at all. We seemed to be adapting nicely to our bikes and new transportation. Each day we 'saddled up' it felt better than the one before, which was a huge surprise. Harper's Ferry came into view around 4:00 PM. We felt so good that we actually wanted to ditch this stop and try to get as close as we could to DC. We were hoping to get another 25 miles in before dark. We stopped to check the map for somewhere to stay. When we found NOTHING for 50 miles, we accepted the fact that we would not be riding any further today.
The only way to get to Harper's Ferry was by crossing this huge bridge. There was a pedestrian path right next to the rail road tracks. The hardest part was carrying your bike up the 3 flights of stairs to get to the bridge.

Harper's Ferry turned out to be wicked cool. I am so glad we stayed here and toured around. And NOTHING beats getting served dinner by this guy:

We had pulled pork in an old caboose. So cool. And there were 4 ice cream parlors on the same street. This was my kind of town. The only con of the whole night was that the hotel we were staying in was on the top of a really really big hill.

The lessons learned today were huge for me:
A) Helmets are not as dorky as they seem. Our little group were the only idiots I saw on the entire trail that did not have them on. What were we thinking??? I am so glad God was watching out for me today and I didn't get seriously injured. Helmets = really cool. (I had even bought one just for the trip. But when the boys showed up with out them, I didn't want to be the nerd so I left mine at home too.
B) The coolest mullet on earth resides in Harper's Ferry, WV.

Day 3 Starting the 'C&O'

2011-05-15T16:24:00.002-04:00

Cumberland, MD to Hancock, MD (62 miles)
Today we woke up refreshed and excited to check out the new part of the trail. We would be riding along the 'Chesapeake and Ohio Tow Path' which stretches from Cumberland, MD to Washington, DC. It was built a LONG time ago when the main way to haul freight was by boat. The dream was to tow them up the canal using a series of locks. Unfortunately, it took way longer to build than planned and by that time the railroad had taken root in America, which had proven to be a more effective way of transportation. The tow path was forgotten by time for a while. Then it was 'rediscovered' and set apart as a national park to be used by bikers and hikers.

We hit the trail around 9:30 and pedaled away to find Tannon's campsite. We found him (probably board and wondering why it was almost 10:00 by the time we got to him- but we just couldn't resist a nights rest without having to wake up to a child needing to be taken care of. :) ) The towpath was quite primative compared to the GAP trail. It definately looked like it had been 'lost' in time. It was narrow with big ruts and huge puddles* and tall wild green things (also known as plants) growing in the median. It was pretty awesome because the Potomic River was on our left side and the canal was on the right. So it felt like we were on this little plateau/island path. It was incredible scenery. I should have taken better pictures of the crappy parts of the trail. I think we all became very focused in these areas because it was so rough and we just wanted to get though it. So the pictures you will see are when the trail had brief periods of 'niceness'.

*About the puddles- We ended up aquiring fenders on our bikes the day before the trip. I can't tell you how many times they saved us! I have no idea what they cost. (Bryan told me I was better off not knowing) All I know is that they proved to be a great investment and a must have for anyone else planning on doing this trip.

Hanging out on one of the locks

We rode in single file, riding in the ruts and unsuccessfully trying to avoid the huge puddles of water for about the first 20 miles. My goal was not be behind Tannon. His rear fender wasn't too affective. Anytime I got too near him I found myself eating dirt. The path may have been a little rough, but boy was it flat. I love flat. We stopped for pictures alot today as well because it was just gorgeous. And the weather was warm. I found myself wanting to ditch my long pants and jacket by lunchtime.
The locks were pretty cool. The waterway on the canal was shallow and extremely murky and nasty looking. I have never seen more turtles in my life. Or ones that looked like this:

We were thinking about stopping in one of the little towns we would find on the way for lunch. We didn't realize that there really were no little towns. There was a whole lot of nothing. I didn't realize that you could really be in 'the middle of nowhere' on the east coast. I learned otherwise today.

The most anticipated event of today was 'The Paw Paw Tunnel'. I had been talking this bad boy up since day 1. It is a 900 foot tunnel with a narrow path on one side and a drop to the canal that takes up 3/4 of the volume of the tunnel. With no lights. Flashlights are necessary. The tunnel lived up to the hype. It was dark, wet and not maintained well. At all. It was like riding on a roller coaster. I was disoriented, slightly dizzy and enjoying every second. My little flash light couldn't take all the bumps in the tunnel and kept flickering off, which made me want to fall off the bike or crash into the stone wall. It was freakishly cool. As usual, the boys were in front of me. (I am happy to say this changed during the afternoon today)

We peddled on. It was a beautiful day out and the miles were going by quite quickly. We could fully appreciate the non-inclined surface as well as the fabulousness of the GAP trail we had left behind the day before. We took very short breaks to eat our Cliff bars and fruit. We arrived in Hancock around 4:30 and made a quick stop at the bike repair shop. Bryan's pedals had been grinding for about 40 miles. Some tephlon tape and 15.00 dollars later we were good to go.
About Hancock... It is not much. It was the ONLY place on the map we could stop on the trail without going on about 35 more miles. There was a bike repair shop, a Shop and Save, two hotels and a pizza hut. That was about it. We checked into our local roach motel and after an internal debate with myself I decided I was in fact dirty enough to consent to get in the shower. But after getting in I decided it was a mistake and the shower was dirtier than I was. (I did shower, but very quickly) The boys were unaffected by the state of the hotel. I guess I am just high maintenance.
We headed to dinner at Pizza Hut. I should have taken a picture. We ate alot of food. Then we hobbled over the the Shop and Save to find some ice cream. (Did you know there aren't many options at this grocery store???) We found some drumstick wanna be cones for 2 bucks and Bryan downed the majority of the package. We also stocked up on some bagels and lunch meat for the next couple days.
Bryan and I headed back to the hotel at dusk. I have no idea why Tannon wanted to camp instead of sleep in our cool hotel. He found himself a nice place to camp (is there such a thing?) about 11 miles up the road. I am amazed that he found the energy to put in another 11 miles after 3 days of hard riding!
To sum up day 3, it was another really great day on the trail. We were a little more beat up from the terrain, but it was worth the scenery. And if anyone decides to to this trip I have 2 pieces of advice.
A) Buy fenders for your bike. Nice fenders that cover the majority of your wheels.
B) Don't stay in this hotel. Go with the other option. I assume that the Super 8 would have been the better choice.

Day 2- To the Highest Elevation

2011-05-14T08:38:00.002-04:00

Confluence, PA to Cumberland, MD (65 miles)
We woke up around 7:30 am on Thursday to the smell of breakfast. Yum! We had an amazing french toast casserole with yogurt and applesause. (If you couldn't tell, I was REALLY hungry all trip. And I am not sure if it really was the best food in the world, or I was just calorie starved for so many hours during our rides that I could have eaten bugs.) The morning was uh, "crisp" for lack of a meaner word, but with hopes of getting in the high 50's today. I was thrilled! We loaded up our packs, and took off around 9:30 am. (We were waiting for the weather to warm up)
Yesterday we had discussed what day of the trip we were dreading the most. It was a unanimous decision that "Day 2" was going to suck. We thought we would be so sore we couldn't move and that our butts were going to be KILLING us. And it was another uphill day. For 40 miles.
We were all pleasantly surprised when today turned out to be one of my favorite days of the trip. The night before I begged Bryan to go slower today. My reasoning was fabulous. "We don't need to kill ourselves." "We are supposed to be enjoying this trip and taking in all the sights." "We had 4 more days of riding ahead of us and I really want to be able to complete them!!!" ect. ect. Lucky for me, he is a nice guy and agreed to slow down.
Let me tell you, I was extremely nervous about starting today. We mounted the bike- eek! There is nothing comfortable about getting on that saddle first thing in the morning after a big ride the previous day. The coolest thing is, your bum goes numb or something after about 3 miles and you feel just fine! Its awesome. Our quads were a little stiff but once we got warmed up life was great! We paced ourselves at a comfortable 11 miles per hour.
We stopped every 10 feet at first to take a picture of something cool. When we finally got going we realized it was a pretty good incline. We were so excited about ending our uphill battle. We pressed on for about 35 miles, went around a mountain, bypassed a really old tunnel, rode by cliffs and rivers, and beautiful spring blooms. Didn't take a ton of breaks in the morning (minus the 3 second picture stops). We made it to Meyersdale, PA around 1:00. It is a very quaint little town that survives off of bike travelers. Per my begging the previous night, we stopped at a cafe and took a 'real' lunch break. Again, my cold cut sandwich never tasted better! The owner of the cafe sat with us for the entire lunch and B.S.ed with us. He even brought over some raw rhubarb for us to try. It was wildly entertaining to sit with this guy...

After an hour of sitting *thank you* We hopped back on the bikes and were elated because we only had about 11 more miles until the highest part of our ride. We reached the "Eastern Continental Divide". This meant for the next 25 miles of our day, we would cover the elevation drop that took us 1 1/2 days to climb. Let me tell you about fun. This was fun. 25 miles of coasting was what I was prepared to do. It wasn't quite that easy, but close!

Before we really started hauling *$$ down the trail, we came to "Big Savage Tunnel" which was 3,294 ft long. This tunnel was sweeeet! It was well kept and even lit! (Well, enough to see where I was going, I couldn't sit down and read a book)

Then out of the tunnel there was another AMAZING view.

We met another group doing the same trip as us, stopping in the same towns as us at night as well. They kept asking us to come drinking with them... (Why would you get wasted if you were going to ride your bike for 70 miles the next day? I can't imagine this would give your body 'optimum' performance...) We ~~rode~~ flew down the next several miles with them. Trying to chat with them while cruising at about 22 mph with the wind in our face. We broke apart from them eventually and continued to book it down the hill. We were so excited to be moving fast. The trail at this point went along side the railroad tracks. (literally!) And here was another bonus, it was paved in parts. These 25 miles were definitely a highlight of the journey.

We arrived in high spirits in Cumberland by 4:40pm. We had officially ridden the entire portion of the 'Great Allegheny Passage'. From here on out we would be on the 'C &O towpath'. We found our hotel, 'The Fairfield inn' about 5 feet from the trail. We immediately hit the hot tub and pool. It was heaven! I talked to the kids on the phone for a couple minutes. I already missed them. Then we showered and headed 'down town' to find some dinner. Down town Cumberland is pretty cool. It was so strange to be on foot and not on a bike. We walked about a 3/4 mile and found an Italian Restaurant. Again, my Chicken Marsala was probably the best Italian dinner I have ever had. We followed it up with an ice cream stop. (oh ya, chocolate custard!)

We tried to talk Tannon out of camping and staying with us. He didn't listen. He headed out to find a campsite around dusk with his flashlight strapped to his head. He ended up finding a site about 10 miles down the trail. Nuts.
I did a load of laundry at the hotel and checked the weather and trail for the next day. Then I slept like the dead and loved every second of it.
Today was a great day. It was work, but it had a cool destination and a rewards along the trail. The weather was slightly nicer and it didn't rain. I think it was my favorite day, or very close to it. My body felt surprisingly good after riding today. It was a ton of fun.

Our Big Bike Trip Day 1

2011-05-13T23:24:00.001-04:00

Are you all dying to hear about our trip?

No?
hmmm.

oh well.

You get to hear about it anyway!

Day 1. McKeesport, PA to Confluence, PA (71 miles on the trail. + another 3 or 4 to get to food and sleeping arrangements.)
*A little background- We were riding the "Great Allegheny Passage". This is approx. a 155 mile trail that goes from McKeesport, PA to Cumberland, MD. The trail then turns into the Cheseapeak and Ohio Tow Path and runs another 150 some-odd miles to Washington DC. Both trails are designated for hikers/bikers with no motorized vehicles permitted on the trails. The "GAP" trail runs along side the Youghiogheny (pronouced "yauk-ah-gain-ee") River all the way to Cumberland. This makes it 'relatively' flat. Emphasis on "relatively".

As you can see, we are pretty excited and ready to go. If I was really optimistic, I would say this morning's weather was 'crisp'. But in reality, it was just plain cold. The high was 44 degrees. Brrr.

I didn't really think about the fact that I would be going 10-15 mph with the wind in my face. We loaded up the bikes with our backpacks and put on our camelbacks and took off around 9:30 am. By mile 15 I was REALLY cold. I put on another layer and we pushed on. I think the boys were REALLY excited about today because they really pushed me the whole time today. We took a couple short breaks within the first 20 miles to take some pictures.

These were both taken when we thought the waterfalls were a novelty. We probably passed 50 waterfalls on our journey!
We pushed on, and on. The whole trail was very well maintained today. We stopped at mile 45 or so for lunch. My home-made turkey sandwich never tasted so good in my entire life! It was still really cloudy and cold. I had warmed up enough to be comfortable while I was riding, but after about 10 minutes of a stop, I was shivering. So we got back on the bikes and took off in hopes of seeing the sun. Mr. Sun finally made a brief appearance about 10 miles later. I was struggling to keep up with Tannon and Bryan all day. They wanted to ride at about 14 mph. I wanted to ride at about 11.5. This didn't work out so well for me. They road about a 1/2 mile ahead of me for at least 2 hours while I muttered nasty things about the both of them under my breath.
Much to say, I really wasn't loving the first day of the ride. We started nearing Ohiopyle State Park around 3:00 PM (60 miles out!)
We took a short break and I gave myself a pep talk and then begged Bryan to slow down a little. I don't know why I was such a slow poke all day. I think I had it in my head that I needed to pace myself and not go as fast as possible the first day because I had no idea how my body was going to react to a 71 mile ride in a single day (followed by 4 more days of the same thing).
We finally reached Ohiopyle. It was beautiful! There are great views and some really cool bridges to ride across.

We got to the train station at Ohiopyle at just the right time. It started hailing. We took shelter and I think I ate about 4 lbs of food. I was STARVING! And it was excited to know we only had 11 miles left to go before our stop point for the night.
This was quite possibly the longest 11 miles of the entire trip. The boys were kind and slowed down to below 11 mph for me. My body was a little stiff by this point.
We reached Confluence, PA by about 5:00 p.m. After 3 failed attempts to find a place to eat that was open, we stopped at "Sister's Cafe". It was a tiny, locally owned diner. Super Cute. And low key. They whole town of Confluence might have 1,000 full time residents. After eating the best chicken pannini in the whole world, we got back on our bikes (ouch! My butt was a tad sore) and rode another 2 miles to the Paddler's Lane. It was an AWESOME bed and breakfast with a campsite on the side. Bryan and I enjoyed a very comfortable bed with a gracious host and crazy Tannon slept outside in the camp site. (did I mention he is nuts?!) The only down side was that it was about 10 feet from the Rail Road tracks. I could have slept through an earthquake though. I was vaguely aware of the trains passing and honking all night. But barely.
Overall, I would sum up Day 1 as the hardest. It was all up hill. And cold. And the longest mileage. So, yes, it was hard and not my favorite day.

Getting ready

2011-05-02T20:41:00.001-04:00

I am sitting here on the computer compiling list after list of things that need to get done before we leave for our bike trip. Well, I was. And then I got distracted and was surfing the web. It seems to happen more often than I am willing to admit. We leave in 2 days. I am so excited. Here is the grand plan-

Wednesday- McKeesport, PA to Confluence, PA (71 miles)
Thursday- Confluence, PA to Cumberland, MD (63 miles)
Friday- Cumberland, MD to Hancock, MD (60 miles)
Saturday- Hancock, MD to Harper's Ferry, WV (64 miles)
Sunday- Harper's Ferry, WV to Washington DC (61 miles)

It should be interesting to see me try to pack for this length of time and carry so little. What is REALLY necessary? And then I think of how gross my clothes are going to be at the end of every day. Everything I am taking has to fit in my Camel-back (which will mainly consist of food and water), and another small backpack that I am bungee-ing on to the back of my bike on a little metal rack.

We dropped our bikes off at the shop today for a 'tune up'. I went grocery shopping for more Cliff Bars than I have ever bought in my lifetime. I dragged out all the 'travel size' toiletries. I have even made the list of the kids' schedules and stuff like that for my awesome friends that got suckered into watching Peter and Brooke. (they rock!!!)

I am looking forward to a good 5 days of sweat, sun, rain, beautiful scenery, and a really sore bum. Bring it on.

More Pictures

2011-04-29T13:55:00.000-04:00

Hodgepodge of things

2011-04-28T23:11:00.000-04:00

Here is the newest toy in the Hays' household. I am not sure how long it will last because it takes up half our tiny living room. But the kids sure love it! It gives them HOURS of entertainment. They sit in it, climb in it, and even pretend it is a "present" and close the lid and ask me to open it! It has also been a house, space ship, and recliner for TV watching. (Bryan and I go all out for toys...)

I am such a sucker for girly pink frilly things. And it doesn't help that I really like to dress Brooke up. I just want to squeeze her little legs when she is in the leg warmers!

Its a good day to go outside.

2011-04-15T22:03:00.001-04:00

We took our inagural spring trip to the Pittsburgh Zoo and Aquarium. My friend Ashley and her boys joined us. Jackson and Peter get along great. They were walking around holding hands a good portion of the trip. It was so funny. This kid is so funny. He kept his hand over his mouth the whole time we were in the "monkey house" because it was too 'stinky'.

Peter kept asking, "Where are the grasshoppers? Can we go see them next?"
Of all the cool things to see at the zoo, he wants to see the crop killing pests that hang around the deserts of Arizona?! Just wait little one, just wait. Someday you won't want to EVER see one.

Brooke thinks she is a big girl. She kept on begging me with her sad puppy dog eyes to get out of the stroller and hang out with the big kids.

The Peacock. Need I say more?

Off to the aquarium...

The best part- the amazing naps these guys take when we get done!

Wanna be photographer

2011-04-14T21:54:00.000-04:00

I really love taking pictures. I also have NO clue what I am doing. I have an awesome camera. Every once in a while I will push the buttons somehow to get the exposure time to change or accidentally move the focus from set 'middle' point and it will actually be on my subject. Its amazing when that happens and I get really excited. I have been picking my friends brains that have these mad camera skills. I have a book that stares at me at night when I go to bed that is begging me to be read that is all about acquiring mad camera skills. But I get too lazy and end up just getting out my camera and pushing buttons and taking random pictures. (I think I take about 50 pictures a day)
Anyway, the point of all this is that when I went to the zoo today I took a bazillion more pictures and somehow I got a couple where I really like the lighting. They aren't necessarily great positioning of my 'subjects' or anything. They are just candid shots and I was desperately trying to get them to look at the camera (or just hold still). The middle picture might be a teensy bit too overexposed for my liking, but I am proud of the 1st and 3rd- even though I am really not sure how I did it.

Logging Miles

2011-04-14T20:23:00.002-04:00

     This week has been one of those weeks that reminds me that winter doesn't last forever- which is great because I have been feeling really down lately with all the horrible weather and grey skies. We started the week off on Monday with a 40 mile bike ride on the GAP trail. I was able to rope a friend into watching the kids for the morning (thanks again!) and Bryan, Tannon and I were on the trail by 8:00 a.m. This was amazing in itself. I don't think I have ever gotten the kids out (with food for them and us, along with bikes, gear, ect.) this early! The other great part was that the weather held out for our entire ride as well. This was my longest ride yet. Prior to this I had been 25 miles in one trip which was a disaster**
      We started out at about a 11 mph pace and after ten minutes picked it up to a 12 or so. Bryan and Tannon are like two chatty girls so I passed them after 6 miles to let them gossip about their hot wives or whatever it is that they do. I stayed ahead of them for a while until I REALLY needed a granola bar. By then we had kicked up the pace even more. I think we must have averaged about 14mph for 13 miles or so. We hit the turn around point under I-70 (it is a HUGE bridge~if I would have thought about it, I would have taken a picture), stuffed our faces with some food, water and G2 and headed back the way we came. I felt like I could keep pace until about mile 32 and I hit this mental + physical wall where my ~~legs~~ whole body wanted to die. I was glad to be riding with the boys at this point because I didn't want to wuss out. I am happy to say that we made it there and back in about 3 hours and 20 something minutes of peddling time. We picked up the kids and Bryan was back at school by 1:00pm. It was a really great experience and has got me even more excited for our trek in 3 weeks.
     Bryan and I sat down last night and planned out each leg of our trip and where we are staying along the way. We are hoping to get at least 2 more big rides in before we leave. I am hoping to ride from Ohiopyle (that is an awesome state park along the trail) back to McKeesport. If the rain will just stay away...
**The disaster trip: Saturday we attempted to take the kids on a really long ride. They get REALLY heavy to pull that far in a trailer. But the worst part was that my body decided to get sick on me when we were 12 miles in the middle of nowhere and I was MISERABLE. I don't recommend it to anyone.

My Motto

2011-04-08T20:13:00.000-04:00

Pigtails, Contortionism, and a Hat

2011-04-06T20:21:00.001-04:00

Brooke's hair is FINALLY long enough to put in pig tails. I am so excited! And did she is figuring out that drinking milk isn't such a bad thing either.
This girl is really into climbing into tight spaces. She usually finds a small space and goes in butt first and fold in half to get her whole body in. Its pretty comical. Here are some little spots she has found to hang out in:.

The kitchen cabinets

The bar stools

The train table

She has also figured out how to climb on and off of "Thomas". Now she is one step closer to keeping up with Peter!

Here are a couple fun shots of Peter. He is REALLY tough these days to get a good picture of. He just makes fake smiles and goofy faces on purpose. Its obnoxious.

P.S. Don't you love it when my titles make my posts seem much more exciting than they really are???

Toilets and Kids

2011-04-04T22:24:00.000-04:00

What is with the obsession with the toilet? I don't understand.
I feel like I spent the first 18 months of Peter's life keeping him from it.
Then we potty trained and I thought he was over the urge to splash around in it.
I hate being wrong.
I woke up yesterday morning to some really strange sounds in the bathroom. I jumped out of bed and ran to the bathroom to find Peter having waaaay too much fun with the plunger. He was plunging the toliet, then the floor and his feet.
What the heck???

Then tonight he disapeared after dinner to 'go potty'.
After a 10 min disappearance to the bathroom I went upstairs to check on him and he was using the toilet scrub brush to scrub in the toilet, out of the toilet, the walls, vanity, and of course the floor. Fabulous. Anyone else have this problem? I think I am going to have to do a better job of keeping these intriguing items in lock-down.

Dear Diary,

2011-04-01T21:58:00.001-04:00

Or not. What I am trying to say is I am writing a Journal-type entry today. For those of you that hate to read- Get over it. Just click the back button and check some other blog with more pictures. For those of you unfortunate souls that have chosen to read on, I have a lot to say to say. Sorry. :)

I would like to say that March has flown by.
Unfortunately, I can't.

    I feel like it took FOREVER to get to April. Its not that I have some vendetta against March or anything. I am just sick and tired of this crappy cold weather. I am usually not a complainer. (okay, that's a lie) What I mean is, I am usually not a complainer on my blog. I try to keep it mostly upbeat. *Key word- Mostly*

To summarize the month- It was way too long. Too cold. Too snowy. Too rainy. Too cloudy. Too Gray. It really wasn't all bad. Really. Bryan had 2 four day weekends. That was awesome. One of which we took a trip to Washington D.C. with the Nelson's to go to the Temple and to check out some historic sights. It was a blast. And I bet you wouldn't believe me if I told you when we left Pittsburgh, it was snowing. (gasp!)
We went to Mt. Vernon and walked through George Washington's estate. Pretty freaking cool if you ask me. We also went to the Museum of Natural History, saw a St. Patrick's Day Parade on Constitution Ave, walked about 40 bazillion miles, saw most of the war memorials, took a picture with Honest Abe, took a potty break in what has to be one of the nation's busiest (and smelliest) bathrooms underneath the Lincoln Memorial, ate lunch on the grass in front of the Washington Monument and discussed all the incredible biking possibilities around the DC area.


    Brooke turned one. That was probably more fun for me than for her. She also had her 12 month check-up.
       Stats: Head Circumference- 75%
                Length: 31 inches- 90%
                Weight- 21 lbs- 50%
I am shocked that we actually have a kid that is above the 50% for anything. And for as much as this one eats, I would have thought it would be weight! (She is a garbage disposal. Her Uncle Ryan would be so proud!)

     We switched Pediatricians offices too. What a relief. The place I was going to had great doctors, but every time I went we waited at least 1.5 hours to be seen. It was my worst nightmare- Germs everywhere combined with bored kids. It produces pretty poor results. Especially with an obsessive compulsive/germ-a-phobe mother.

     Bryan had to grow a mustache for one of his classes (how in the world it relates to dentistry is beyond me). I have one word for mustache's in general- Ewwww. He may or may not have looked like Hitler.
He kept the darn thing for the majority of the month. Maybe that was why it seemed so long.

I read a bunch of books this month. I have added about 20 more to read soon. I love when I find some good reads and can find the time to sit and enjoy a book. (It is very tricky to do that!) I am going to read our book club book, Life of Pi written by Yan Martel. Another on my list is The Count of Monte Cristo written by Alexandre Dumas. I also have a couple cake decorating books and photography books on my list as well as the usual Book of Mormon study. Which brings me to one of my goals this past month. I am FAR from perfect on it, but I have found that if I do my scripture study before I read anything else or turn on the TV, I actually get it done. Otherwise I am putting it off until bedtime, and I end up falling asleep reading them. Wow. That sounds terrible.

Bryan and I have gone for quite a few bike rides. Regrettably, they have been in the snow, rain, wind, and cold. Every once in a while we have been graced with the sun's bright presence. We are planning on doing our crazy bike ride to DC the end of April. I am really hoping the weather cheers up a bit because we have some high mileage rides to get in to be ready. The kids love the rides. Our little trailer is perfect!

     Peter has become enraptured with the alphabet. It is pretty awesome. He loves Word World and when he is done watching it he wants to 'build a word'. He gets all the fridge magnets and arranges them into his own dictionary of words. He also goes around making up his own spellings for everyday objects. For example, the table would be "b-e-e-g-h-a-t-e-l". Or something of the sort. I didn't say he was good at spelling. He is just learning the concept, which is really cute to me.
     He is also loving his train set, as usual. But now he has added the element of conversation to his trains. He sounds just like George Carlin. Kind of. "Thomas is a really useful engine, said Sir Topham Hat" and "The troublesome trucks wiggled and giggled...said Percy".... It cracks me up. I love listening to him ramble on and on about the next big adventure his trains are going to take!

     Brooke is, well, into everything. EVERYTHING. Including the toilet. And the dishwasher. And the my clothes hampers. And my kitchen cabinets. And I mean that Literally. She loves climbing in things. I am just glad I caught her before she was totally in the toilet.

I promise to post pictures soon. I have a ton. Way too many probably.
   Until next time, peace out!
           Jamie

Brooke's Big "ONE"!

2011-03-23T22:57:00.000-04:00

I love this girl! She is such a sweetheart! We had a fun little party, complete with red velvet cake and pin the crown on the princess. Bryan took Brooke out for ice cream about 2 hours before I gave her cake, so she was on an extreme sugar high. She ate the cake, but honestly, what doesn't this girl eat???

Sugar coma....

I had a blast making her decorations. My favorite was the topiary ribbon flower. I think it turned out so cute! And it was really easy. I can't wait to make another one. I also had a blast making the cake. Thanks to my mother-in-law I have a really awesome toy to help me make cakes....

She is crawling everywhere, and pulling herself up and walking along the walls and furniture. She refuses to even try to stand on her own. But I know if she gave it half a chance she would be walking in a couple days time!

They change fast.

2011-03-13T10:08:00.004-04:00

so tiny.


I think they go through so many different looks. This look is definitely different.

Chubby.

Alert.

Sleepy.

More chubby. (doesn't his fat little face just make you smile?)

1st Birthday

Moving to Pittsburgh

Picky Eater Phase.

We are still in that phase.

The start of the "monkey" obsession phase.

The "Ice Cream" phase. (I don't think he will grow out of this one)

Independence.

Brooke's First Dance

2011-03-11T22:37:00.003-05:00

(With some help from Peter)

This is her "hip hop" dance.

This one is lyrical.

Anyone else think she needs some help stylizing different types of music? She is also one of the most solemn soloists I have ever seen.
I think its time to put her in a real dance class. What do you think?

I hate thinking of titles to posts. So I am not titling this one.

2011-03-10T20:31:00.002-05:00

1. I really like sleeping. But why am I so insistent on staying up late? That makes no sense.

2. Month 2 of "Insanity" is proving to be a little insane. Needing over an hour for a workout? With kids? Ya. That is insanity. I only have 1 more week. Hallelujah.

3. Brooke's first word (other than Mama and Dada) is "Bathtub".

4. My computer hates me and has a plot to ruin my life by down loading spyware on its own.

5. I just finished a 4 book series that was somewhat of a let down. And then sort of not.

6. I don't think I can handle another cloudy day.

7. The only thing worse than a cloudy day is a day where something is coming out of the clouds.

8. I just ate a really yummy cup of ice cream. Samoas ice cream. It is Better than the cookie. I swear.

9. Brooke is also boycotting liquids. Since I am weaning her, she won't drink ANYTHING.

10. I have that song by Bruno Mars stuck in my head "...Gave you all I had and you tossed it in the trash...
YOU TOSSED IT IN THE TRASH"....

11. Don't order the Black Bean soup at Panera Bread. Its kinda yucky.

12. I don't know why I am numbering this post.

13. Bryan is growing a beard for extra credit. You heard me right. So much for maturity in a doctorate school.

14.We had to make JoMax a bed of his own downstairs. JoMax told me he was feeling a bit smothered and needed some personal space. Unfortunately, Peter doesn't agree.

I swore I wouldn't spoil her.

2011-03-03T22:25:00.001-05:00

Sometimes in life you have to eat your words.

I admit it. I really like having a girl. For the cute, frilly, pink and purple, flowery crap that I could NEVER get away with putting on a boy. Don't get me wrong, I love playing cars and trucks and trains, but there is just something about the color pink that makes me happy.

I have been planning Brookie's 1st birthday party for a while. Here is my latest project. It was pretty much idiot proof. All that was needed was the ability to sew in a straight line. Which, by the way, is a challenge for me.

"The Throne"

(complete with matching crown)

Its going to be fun to watch her have her first cake and eat it too!

Big Dreamer...

2011-02-28T09:35:00.001-05:00

Bryan says I like to spend money. I think he is somewhat right. The thing is, you have to HAVE money before you can spend it. But I am scheming about what I would do if I did have a lot of cash at my disposal...
I like to day dream about my dream house. I have been planning all the things I want in it since I was 14 years old! I thought I would immortalize my ideas in one spot. They have been jotted down in various areas around the house- my journal, the back of some power point slides from an old perio lecture, the recipe box...ect ect.
Here are the main items:

One main floor. I might possibly go for a basement for a game room. But I really HATE stairs.
A FLAT driveway
Big windows. (I hate dark places. I want my house to have LOTS of light) This brings me to my next dream...
Privacy. A house in the sticks might be alright after all (either that or have my house far back on a big lot with lots of trees to block the from the prying eye). I don't want those big windows to be a waste. I want to be able to have the curtains open all the time with out worrying about creep-o's checking out my house!
Enough Closets. Big closets.

A nice coat closet by the front door with enough room for shoes, scarves, umbrellas, coats, hats.
Linen closets in every bathroom
One in the laundry room to hold all my cleaning supplies
Another one for seasonal items that you want to access without having to go in the attic...
While I am at it, how about a nice walk in closet in every bedroom?

A 'folding station' in the laundry room. i.e.- enough counter space that I don't have to fold laundry in ANY other room in the house. (one of my friends told me that this idea is silly and I don't need a folding station, just a maid if my house is going to be this big...lol)
A wrap around porch. With a swing.
A kitchen with an island. And enough counters to store everything in. I don't want my toaster to not have a home and be stuck out on the counter.
2 sinks in the master bathroom. And tons of counter space.
Did I mention big windows?
Master bedroom- far, far away from the others. So far that if I turned off the baby monitor there would be a ZERO% chance of me having to hear a someone who wants a party in their room with mommy at 3 AM.
Work out room
Game room/movie room
Office
Formal Living room when you enter the house. With my grand piano. (dream on...huh...)
Covered Porch in backyard.
Fenced in backyard
Basketball court in backyard
Flower Garden
Veggie Garden
3 car garage (big enough to open the doors and not be hitting the walls, possibly big enough to open doors and get in the garage if I was carrying a child or carseat or stroller.)
Lots of grass in the backyard.
Vaulted ceilings. (I didn't say I was practical)
Master bedroom with a reading nook. I want a bay window to sit in and enjoy the sunshine and a good book.

This is just the start of my very long list. Did I miss anything vital?

A week of pictures

2011-02-20T20:56:00.001-05:00

Maybe someday we will actually leave the house. But for now I feel like spring is a long way away.

We did get a couple packages in the mail this week! We LOVE packages! Abby sent Peter some stickers for Valentines day. They went crazy with them. I have stickers all over the house. Most of them end up in Brooke's mouth though.

Peter is getting to be quite possessive of his 'stuff'. It drives me bonkers. You can see from my awesome photography, the word "NO!" is captured forever in this lovely photograph...

Our second package this week was from Nana. She made these awesome sweaters for the kids.

And sent the sippy cup. Brooke REALLY was into it.

Ah. Candy.

"Is it spring yet mom???"

"We REALLY, REALLY, REALLY want to go outside!"

This is the 'gargoyle/gremlin' face Brooke likes to make. I don't really know what its for. She just thinks its funny. I do too.

I came down stairs the other day to find Peter hanging out in Brooke's saucer. He can get in it just fine. He can't quite get out...

"Yes. I am looking for something disgusting to put in my mouth. Do you have any mud? Staples? Dead bugs? Carpet fuzzies? No? Never you mind. I will find something nasty to occupy my oral cavity..."

Someday Peter will hate me for making this story public. But I thought it was pretty hilarious. We were getting ready for church this morning and he tells me he needs to go potty. Ok. No big deal. I tell him to go for it. He disappears into the bathroom. about a minute later he is hysterical. I run into the bathroom to see what was going on.
He was in the toilet. Yup. In. The. Toilet. As in, he fell in. He forgot to put his little potty seat on the toilet. Luckily, he hadn't gone in it before he decided to go for a swim.

This is what it has come to in our house. Pulling out the grocery bags. It is THAT boring around here.

Jomax even agrees!

Ready, set, GO!

"Brooke! We said 'GO!'" (Peter beats her EVERY time! I wonder why???)

The other day, Peter put on his backpack and walked out the door saying "Bye Mom! I'm going to school with Daddy!"
Too bad he forgot his pants. And he doesn't know how to drive. Otherwise I am fairly confident he would have made it to school.

Bean Burrito's. The Hays' family dinner of champions.

I really love that Brooke's personality is coming out. But I think I was unprepared for how strong of a personality it would be. Peter is so easy going. Not that Brooke isn't. She is just more adventurous. And I don't know how this is possible, but I think she might be the most stubborn one in the family. She won't go to sleep unless SHE wants it. She doesn't play with toys I give her. She finds the ones SHE wants.

Oh ya, and have you noticed the frequency of 'Jomax' lately? He goes everywhere with us. This poor monkey has seen better days. Peter carts him anywhere he goes. And the moment he is distracted, Brooke picks him up. Welcome to the family Jomax. I hope you survive the craziness.