Utah or Bust!

Wait, why are we going to New Mexico. Did I forget to mention that...

Jeremiah got a job!!!!

He started work at Carpenter Law in Albuquerque, New Mexico on September 12 and loves it so far, although I don't love that he's gone from 7am-7pm (or later) every day.

On our way to New Mexico, we made a stop in Utah. Not only because 99% of our possessions were in storage there, but because we wanted to see our friends and family before we headed on south. It'd been 9 months since we moved away from Utah, and I was really missing so many people and places.

Jeremiah drove the Penske truck and we rotated the boys in and out, leaving me with two kiddos in the Trailblazer. For some reason, Aubrey was wide awake the whole way there. She was on her own little adventure and was easily entertained with snacks and toys and books. And the DVD player, my little lifesaver! Roman, though, was out like a light right after lunch. I sort of expected (hoped?) Aubrey would be the one to pass out and Roman would stay awake, he's a little more self-entertaining, but it all worked out and we survived.

This is what I saw during most of our trip. Stupid Penske. It couldn't go that fast, although when playing the alphabet game, having a "k" in the title sure helped!

During our stay in Utah, we spent a lot of time with Jeremiah's family, including his mom (we stayed with her, so of course we saw her a lot) and Steve and Melanie and their kids, Taylor and Natalie, who my kids adore. We did what's becoming something of a tradition and went to Jack and Jill's in Lehi. Usually we go bowling, but we opted for the arcade and laser tag. I LOVE laser tag, but I feel a lot better about myself if I don't look at my statistics afterwards. I always feel like I did really well and then find out that my boys fared better then I did. Sad, right? But it's so much fun.

Yes, this is the dancing game. They had no idea what they were doing but they had a blast anyway.

Don't be fooled, Aubrey has no coordination with this game. She throws the balls overhand and I'm really glad the game is not made of breakable material.

We also made some time to spend with Hayden's BFF from Utah, Will. Hayden adores Will and talks about him all the time, even though they were only BFFs for a few months before we moved to Washington. When Hayden said goodbye to Will the day we left Utah, he cried, Will cried, and I cried. It was a terrible day and I felt guilty about separating these two. Luckily they picked up right where they left off. They spend the afternoon talking about video games and cartoons and went to the park and wrestled and chased each other. It was great to see Hayden with a friend who really understood him and got along with him so well.
 

See the pained look on Will's face? They recruited other little kids and made these huge trains down the slide. For some reason Will was always on bottom and being smooshed by the others. Tough kid.

We spent some time with Kory and Ana Lee, too. She's finally starting to show her pregnancy and she looked great. We had dinner at their new condo on Sunday and I was so jealous. It was gorgeous, although next to the Boulders (for those who know what that is) but Kory and Ana Lee have some great decorations and I got the idea for this menu from her. What can I say, I love my sister in law and I sure love my baby brother!

I also got to spend some time with Christina, my sister from another mother - I know, doesn't rhyme, but you know what I mean. We took the kids to Arctic Circle and ran some errands. I always have fun with her and I can always be so honest with her about things. Stina is one of the things I miss about Utah. I certainly don't have friends like her in New Mexico (yet...maybe ever...unless she moves here? Eh???)

Unfortunately, my visits were limited. With car troubles ($1100 in repairs will put a damper on any vacation) and crazy schedules I didn't get to see Destiny, my aunt Wendy, and my dear friend Heather. I am making it a point to see all three next time we come, so girls, clear you calendar...although I'm not really sure when we'll be there next. My vacation felt incomplete and I felt a deep sadness as I left Utah knowing I hadn't seen everyone I wanted to see.

Our visit wouldn't be the same without a visit to Park City. I needed some serious retail therapy and I love their outlets, although they are usually quite busy and I hate shopping in a store where we are packed in like sardines (so why, oh why, do I put up with Black Friday every year?!). We got some great steals from Gap, Old Navy, and American Eagle.

We then met up with Steve and Melanie and their kids for the Alpine Slides. Thanks to a go-kart accident when I was younger I am not so brave when it comes to four-wheel adventures without seatbelts and airbags. So I opted out and stayed down at the end of the course with Aubrey while the Hayden rode down with Jeremiah and Roman went down with Steven. I must seriously trust these boys because they are known for their adventurous streak and they were taking my babies down with them. And apparently taking the ski lift up stop Hayden from trying to lean over to see everything there was to see. I guess he gave Melanie a bit of a panic attack :) Seeing how much fun they had I think that next time we go I will put on a brave face and go down *slowly* with Aubrey in tow.

While we waited for the boys to come down (it took about 45 minutes for them to reach the top, wait in line, and come back down) Aubrey went on a little train and a merry-go-round. She is getting braver, because a year ago she would cry at just the sight of one of these moving obstacles. Now she cheers and begs to go on them. My baby is growing up!

We finally said our sad goodbyes to Utah and made our way to New Mexico. I cried as I passed the familiar landmarks of Provo and Orem, cried as I passed Mapleton (goodbye Heather!), cried as I passed Spanish Fork (bye Stina!) and cried at everything I was going to miss. Part of my heart will always be in Utah, for some reason I always feel drawn to it, and I can't wait to return for a vacation soon.

I didn't think it would happen, but Aubrey fell asleep (finally!) and I had a peaceful two hours while Hayden read a book.

We stayed in Moab overnight before trekking onto New Mexico. As long as I've lived in Utah I'd never been to Moab. I didn't even get to see the famous scenery but I loved the city and we ate at a great little pizza buffet restaurant that didn't seem to mind we had tired, cranky kids.

We finally made it into New Mexico, but I suppose I should gather those photos and made a new post out of that one :)

Kind of Hiking

Knowing that we were moving shortly, Jeremiah and I decided to take the kids hiking. We changed into jeans and comfortable shoes and drove out to Point Defiance Park. We were told there were fabulous hiking trails. Unfortunately we never found those trails. How hard could it be? So instead we walked down the waterfront and through some small trails that led us to the rose gardens and the duck pond. So while I wouldn't call it "hiking" we did have a wonderful time exploring nature...and making fun of the ducks.

A man on the waterfront offered to take our family picture. Too bad he didn't know how to use my camera but if you look closely and use a magnifying glass you can kind of make out our faces. And the background is gorgeous.

Jeremiah suggested I look for photo opportunities. With my $100 camera? Sure! It turned out great. I loved this tree.

During our walk through the rose gardens there were a few weddings taking place. I'm not sure they planned on having wild children racing around playing tag. As beautiful as the gardens were, we rushed right through to the duck pond so the love birds could get back to their special day.

We saw this afro duck at the very beginning, but he must have been feeling self-concious at our remarks because he quickly swam away. We spotted him again as we were leaving and I took a paparazzi shot of him. See his afro puff?

Gone Crazy

While I never said my children were normal, I am starting to think they might be less and less so. They like to have a "circus" which I think they mean a parade, they dress up in silly attire (think underwear and pillow cases) and march around, falling over each other, and giggling hysterically. Sometimes they branch out and put on old Halloween costumes, but for some reason putting underwear on their head is mandatory.

I wonder if Hayden knows that he has Roman's underwear on his head?

Taking over Seattle {part 2}

We spent the morning at the Issaquah Farmer's Market. I love Farmer's Markets. Produce is deliciously fresh and fabulously priced. Others are there to share their craftiness and I love finding unique gifts. And I absolutely cannot pass up some fresh baked bread!

We found this truck parked inside the Farmer's Market selling lunch. It was a bit pricey, but Jeremiah was treated to this by his work earlier in the week and was raving about about delicious it was. It was quite cruel, seeing how great it smelled and we couldn't afford it. How dare he rub it in! However, I can imagine you get a lot of stares driving around in a big metal pig :)

We found what we thought were llamas. Apparently Diego has been teaching my kids a thing or do, because Roman said they were not llamas, they were alpacas. Whatever. We played tourist and got a picture with their cute little furry faces.

Uncle Steve surprised the kids with a pony ride. Even fearful Aubrey was super excited. Until the pony started to move. Not a fan.

The boys, however, are true cowboys and loved it. I think they were hoping for a galloping ride, but these ponies were spent. They barely walked at a snails pace {which was still too fast for Aubrey}. Roman kept yelling "Giddy up!"

At the Farmer's Market we picked up some multi-grain ciabatta bread, nectarines, and plums. We then went to Medina to watch the Blue Angels fly over Lake Washington. We had to park a gazillion miles away but it was a lot of fun. I had the best nectarine in the whole wide world. We tore pieces of bread and watched the Blue Angels do stunts and fly-bys that made the kids scream.

The boys convinced Josie and Nana Lafranca to take them to the beach and let them dip in their toes. The water was freezing and I was okay with them getting their feet wet.

I love this face. Cold much?

I also love how the boys shorts are rolled up Daisy Duke style.

So, what I was not okay with was getting themselves completely submerged in the water, mostly because we didn't have a change of clothes for them. We had to lay out their clothes to dry in the sun and they sat around in their little underwear. Seriously, where were their parents? Oh yeah, I was busy taking pictures of their naughty behavior.

Josie holding my baby...um, I mean Amy's baby.

This is just how awesome my camera is. See those dark dots in the sky? Blue Angels. This is the best shot I could get. Don't judge. Or judge. I don't care.

And after a long day at the beach, my kids were ready for a party...with their pillows.

Taking over Seattle {Part 1}

I love it when we Jeremiah's family comes to visit, it gives us a great excuse to play tourist in Seattle and spend time with family we don't get to see that often. Steve, Melanie, Taylor, Natalie, and my mother in law, Josette, came up for a few days and we had to make the most of their visit.

One of my favorite spots in Seattle is Pike's Place Market, although I could do without the massive amount of people that seem to be strolling through the market at every minute of the day. I'm always on edge that I might lose a child (or husband!). We managed to make it through the market without purchasing anything except the best doughnuts ever (sorry House of Donuts!). We ate lunch at a park just by the market. Everyone got gyros except me, and I sure wish I had gone with the crowd. I went for bbq pork buns at this Asian restaurant and the kids and I managed a few bites before we felt sick. It was just that gross. I ended up mooching off everyone else while the kids filled up on fortune cookies :)

Aubrey and Edmund are frienemies. They love each other but don't quite get along just yet. Doesn't mean they can't play a friendly game of Follow the Leader.

The boys found a "slide" to play on with their cousin Taylor.

We took the tram from Pike's Place to the Space Needle. We were trying to blend in, but Roman made sure everyone knew we were tourists.

Two things wrong with this picture. Want to guess? Okay, I'll tell you. First of all, Aubrey is pushing her stroller. You know, the one she's supposed to be sitting in. And who put her in charge of watching my purse?

On the tram.

Jeremiah found Edmund's leash and look, it works on teens...good to know for future reference.

It also works on Hayden. Why didn't we buy one of these sooner? This is awesome!

I'm quite the photographer, I laid down on the ground to take the picture, much to the dismay of Jeremiah who was concerned about germs.

We went to the Pacific Science Center, which I have to say was a huge blast for the kids (and the kids in all of us!). The first thing we saw was this bike up in the air that you can ride. Luckily for me the boys did not meet the height and weight requirements (Hayden probably won't reach the weight requirements until he's 30) and so I didn't have to worry about my little boys out there on a bike that they could easily fall off of. It looks easy, right? It's a bit harder then you think, Josie went first (in the picture) and I was taunting her the whole time because she went so slow. But then I went and I freaked. The whole time I thought the bike was going to fall over. But of course Jeremiah didn't take a picture of me so I go on in life without pictures to prove I actually exist.

The first part of the science center is a dinosaur exhibit with moving dinosaurs and all sorts of facts.

Aubrey was less then amused. Slightly terrified would be more like it. Luckily Natalie saved the day!

The boys took their turn blasting off in a rocket. And then the girls had their turn.

Aubrey and I separated from the boys who were more interested in activities that were too advanced for her. So we found a cute little garden maze and then this awesome toddler center where she could put on dress-up clothes, go on Aubrey-size slides and climb around on blocks. I had to pull her screaming (her, not me) from the playarea when we had to move on.

We went through the butterfly exhibit and then found the boys playing chess. Or at least I think they were playing chess. I was waiting for the Queen to knock them over a la Harry Potter.

Here is Lily, my sweet niece that I dream of kidnapping because she's so stinkin' cute. She really is a great baby and Jeremiah had me watched at all times so I didn't get any crazy ideas. Although it was Hayden who got baby hungry after meeting Lily!

We had a few hours the next day to hit up the Woodland Park Zoo. We had to rush through the zoo because Jeremiah had to catch a flight to a job interview in Albuquerque (and for those who know, it went rather well because, well, he got the job!). I loved the penguins. I remember when Hayden was 2 he threw a fit at the Hogle Zoo because he wanted to swim with the penguins and there were rules against that.

We spent one afternoon up at Snoqualmie Falls, which will always hold a special place in my heart because Jeremiah proposed there. The hike down to the river was closed, but we got to take a peak at the falls.

This is Salish Lodge, right on the falls. It is super expensive to stay there, and even just eating dinner there requires a 2nd mortgage, but we hope to one day celebrate an anniversary there.

Since we couldn't go down to the river, I held my camera out as far as I could and took a picture down at the spot where Jeremiah proposed.