Finley is FINALLY a walker!

The day after we returned from our trip, Finley decided that she was going to start walking as an actual mode of transportation instead of just a trick she would do only on occasion (much encouragement and cheering required). She has been pulling herself up on furniture, climbing on anything that stands still, and taking unassisted steps for months now, but something FINALLY just clicked and now she is a bona fide walker! She went from taking a few steps to walking all over the house! When she falls down, she gets back up and continues walking rather than falling and crawling quickly to her destination to make up for lost time! It is so fun to watch little ones work so hard on something and then finally "get" it and reach the milestone they have been working toward.

Finley is 14 months old, which makes her kind of a late walker (we must just make them that way- Avery was 15 months when she finally started), but people that see her walking around are just amazed that this little "8 month old" is toddling around (this is a comment that has been made by a surprising number of people). Yes, she is on the bitty side, but to mistake her for 8 months old, really?! She is not THAT little, is she!?

Anyway...here are a couple of video clips of our new little walker girl...

What a difference a week makes... now Finley is MUCH more stable on her feet- she doesn't even fall down when her sister is running circles around her! What a BIG girl! Side note: Avery loves to dress up and now Finley wants to get in the game too! In addition to showing off her walking skills, this next clip also documents Finley's first dress up session with her big sister.

Where Dreams Come True...

We just got back from the most AMAZING trip with Paul's entire family where we did everything Disney! We flew to Orlando, Florida on Saturday, April 12 and started out with 4 days at Disney World (Animal Kingdom, Epcot Center, Hollywood Studios, and the Magic Kingdom). On Thursday, we embarked on a 3 night Disney Cruise to the Bahamas! We got off the boat early Sunday morning and flew home. It was a whirlwind, but we had so much fun! Here is a little glimpse...

Disney's Animal Kingdom

Highlights: Kilimanjaro Safaris, Dinosaur, Finding Nemo the musical, Expedition Everest, meeting Pluto, Mickey, and Minnie- Avery was really into getting autographs in her book, and of course the $8.00 Disney ponchos to keep us dry from the unexpected rain!

Disney's Hollywood Studios

Highlights: Playhouse Disney LIVE on stage, Avery getting to go out and dance with the High School Musical dancers, Voyage of the Little Mermaid, and the Beauty and the Beast production.

Epcot Center

Highlights: The World Showcase (especially the French patisserie in "France"), the shamrock covered Minnie Mouse we got Avery (our St. Patty's baby) in "Ireland", the Seas with Nemo and friends, Turtle Talk with Crush, and the fireworks display.

The Magic Kingdom

Highlights: Meeting all the princesses at the Toontown Hall of Fame, Avery getting her face painted like Cinderella, Space Mountain, Tea Cups, getting SOAKED when we were already sooooo cold on Splash Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, the Barnstormer at Goofy's Wiseacre Farm, not waiting in line for anything longer than 20 minutes, seeing all the magic through a 3 year old's eyes!Disney Cruise

Highlights: The Cast Off party, the REALLY rocky seas the first night on the ship (no one could even walk straight), the shows in the Walt Disney Theater on-board, the Pirate Party and late night buffet complete with ice sculptures, and ships made completely out of chocolate, Nassau- going to the ATLANTIS resort, the aquarium, the BEST coconut ice cream, Castaway Cay (Disney's private island)- white sand beaches, turquoise waters, sunshine, and massages in ocean front cabanas It was all so very MAGICAL, like only DISNEY can do!

I would love, love, LOVE to do this trip again when our youngest is 3- Avery was the perfect age. To her, everything was real- the princesses, the characters, the shows, the surprises. She loved it all and it was so fun to see her so excited! Finley at 1, did great for the most part , but I think it would be the MOST fun if all the kids were 3+. Regardless, we had a WONDERFUL time.

Now, it is back to the real world. I am still working on getting everyone back on California time (the time change going wasn't so bad, but coming back has been a little more difficult), trying to regain my land legs (I still- 4 days later- feel like I am moving with the boat, plane, or whatever), and getting everyone unpacked and all the laundry done! We need a vacation to recover!

The ABC's of ME

My cousin Celestia "tagged" me last week. I am usually horrible about getting these types of things done, but I thought the format of this one was kind of fun, so here you go...

A: Attached or Single- Attached... Married for almost 8 years now

B: Best Friend- My husband Paul, Gilen (whom I talk to every day- usually several times) a close 2nd, as well as several others I am fortunate enough to consider close friends (even though most of them live..sob... far away).

C: Cake or Pie- Madonna Inn Banana Nut Cake ...see HERE

D: Day of Choice- Saturday

E: Essential Items- Purpose moisturizer, frizz control product, Bare Escentuals Mineral Make-up, Infant Tylenol on hand at all times (Finley is constantly teething, or so it seems), an iron (everything looks better freshly pressed!), sunglasses, hand sanitizer, body butter from the body shop, my camera, and the list goes on... (now I have a good head start on my packing list for our trip).

F: Favorite Color- "happy” green (at least for the moment)

G: Gummy Bears or Worms- Gummy Bears- but they have to be Haribo Gold Bears

H: Hometown- Harrisburg, OR... population 1,500 and graduating high school class of 67!

I: Favorite Indulgence- Ben and Jerry’s Chubby Hubby ice cream with all of it's chocolate covered, peanut butter filled pretzel goodness

J: January or July- July- 4th of July is one of my FAVORITE holidays!

K: Kids- Avery (3) and Finley (1)- They are my JOY (and my headache on occasion). LOVE THEM!

L: Life is not complete without... family, good friends, and the gospel of Jesus Christ

M: Marriage Date- August 4, 2000

N: Number of Brothers and Sisters- 2 brothers, 1 sister (all younger)

O: Oranges or apples- Satsuma mandarin Oranges... a little piece of heaven, yummmm!

P: Phobia or Fears- Tragic accident or illness to friends or family (especially my girls). I am kind of a worry wort when it comes to things relating to that.

Q: Quote- "Only a life lived for others is a life worthwhile." -Albert Einstein

R: Reasons to smile- A clean house that has a few things on the wall and is FINALLY starting to feel like a home + leaving for Disney World/Disney cruise in 4 days!

S: Superman or wonder woman- Wonder woman, I guess?!

T: Tag 4 people- Gilen, April D, Kelli C, Alison F

U: Unknown Fact about me- I was Runner-up Miss Teen Oregon. This was back in the mid-nineties. I shudder to remember the hot pink dress and the big, big hair- all pictures are hidden deep in a place far, far away.

V: Vegetable- I LOVE (not all, but most) veggies. Broccoli and zucchini tie for my favorite.

W: Worst Habit- too many to list, but to name one... leaving clothes folded in baskets and not putting them away. I don't mind doing laundry, or even folding the clothes, but taking the next step and putting clothes away is one of my least favorite things to do- I don't know why it is so hard for me, but it is.

X: X-ray or ultrasound- ultrasound- I love getting ultrasounds when I am pregnant… it so exciting to get a little sneak peak of your growing baby!

Y: Your favorite food- Chips and salsa

Z: Zodiac Sign- Virgo

technologically inclined

I took Finley with me to my doctor's appointment for my ears the other day while Avery was at preschool. Finley was being a little finicky, so I gave her my "go to" distraction- my cell phone... that usually keeps her entertained for a good 5 minutes or so. She opened it up and got straight into the camera feature. She pointed the phone at this little old lady who had just sat down and said "CHEESE" clear as day. She continued to use this line on everyone in the office, since she got such a rousing response the first time. Finley is just a little sponge right now, soaking up everything she sees and hears. She is doing (or trying to do) everything that Avery does. She is also starting to say more and more words every day. She is getting closer to really walking too... I think if we had more carpet she would be off and running by now, but with the hardwood floors she is a little more cautious. She just amazes me! This age is so much fun- something new everyday!

Finley's 13 month word repertoire:

NO (a favorite of hers)

mama

dada

bye-bye

Avery (a-ree)

Bubba

DayDay

TeeTee (for Aunt Tiffany)

CHEESE

eye

nose

and a lot of babble that obviously means something to her, but no one else can quite understand yet.

The LONGEST 90 minute flight

Flying is awesome- I wouldn't drive on any long trips if I didn't have to. However, there are times when I seriously wonder if driving would have been faster and less frustrating. For example... Paul was originally supposed to fly home this evening- leave at 5 p.m. from Salt Lake, connect in L.A. and get into SLO around 8 p.m. Easy enough. Well, his conference got done (or he was done with it) ahead of schedule, so he thought he would try to get on an earlier flight. His new flight was supposed to leave Salt Lake at 11 and get in at noon. Avery was so excited- I told her that we would go get daddy at the airport as soon as I picked her up from school. She was sorely disappointed when we got a call that the flight had been delayed due to fog in San Luis- which if funny to me, because we were here looking at bright blue, beautifully clear skies?! Then I got a call that they were finally boarding. Then another call- 45 minutes later- to tell me they were sitting on the tarmack waiting while they made a repair on the plane. Yet another call to tell me they were being de-boarded and switched to another plane that had not yet arrived. Finally, (or so we thought) Paul called to let me know they were boarding the new plane and that we should head to the airport in an hour and a half or so. The time came for us to go pick him up. We got to the airport (which is VERY fortunately 2 minutes down the road from our house), got everyone out, only to find out that Paul's flight is not even listed on the arrivals board?! I was just about to go ask someone about it when Paul called- all I have to say at this point is... THANK HEAVENS for cell phones! Turns out that his plane had to make an EMERGENCY landing in Fresno due to faulty landing gear! I am just so glad I didn't know anything about it before he was safe on the ground (I am a little bit of a worry wort when it comes to things like that). He didn't know anything at that point other than they were going to try to fix the problem. I had to load the girls back in the car- with Avery screaming "NO CAR- I WANT DADDY! I WANT TO GET DADDY!" Trying to explain all of this to a 3 year old who wants her daddy is futile at best. Candy and a "show" in the car on the 2 minute drive home was the only thing that diffused the situation. Next call- the police and fire departments have to do and investigation, since it was an emergency landing- no idea how long it will take. Later... I have lost track of time at this point... Paul calls to let me know that they were now going to be put on a BUS for the 3 hour trip home. For any of you that know Paul, you can only imagine how furious he is at all of this! A trip from Utah that should have taken 90 minutes has now become a 10 hour ordeal! I know it takes 12 hours to drive (we just made that drive a few weeks ago)- that means he shaved a whole 2 hours off the trip! Or he could have just stuck with his original flight and gotten home at the same time! ARGGGGGGGGGGG! Oh well! It has been a test of patience if nothing else! Paul just called to let me know that they are almost here, so I have to get the girls in the car and FINALLY go pick up my husband- a task I have been trying to mark off my list ALL DAY!

I hate goodbyes

...my heart beats fast, my stomach ties in knots, I can't eat, I can't sleep, and I just can't focus on anything else. I think I can trace this phenomenon back to my days of bouncing back and forth between mom's house and dad's house (which my brothers and I did for the majority of my growing up years). It was always so difficult to say goodbye... I dreaded it. I was usually fine once we were out the door and on our way- just the leading up to and the actual act of saying goodbye caused me such terrible angst. In the past few days I had to say goodbye to my sister who had been visiting for spring break and then to Paul as he left for 4 short days to go to an appraisal conference in Utah. I found that I still react the same way leading up to a goodbye... in both situations I couldn't sleep the night before, I lost my appetite, I was walking around in a daze all day, my stomach was in knots, and my heart raced. Once they were each out of sight, I was ok. I understand if it were going to be a long separation, but all this over a quick little trip? I really am ok with Paul away- we are managing just fine (with the exception of the 5 o'clock witching hour- the girls are ready for a new face about that time every day and right now there isn't one walking through the door at 6. But, shortly after the melt down is bedtime- then I can breathe and we are good again.). So, apparently my anxiety is over the actual act of saying goodbye and not necessarily the separation. Does anyone else react this way, or am I just crazy!?

At the Drive-In

Last night we went to the drive-in for the first time with the girls.

We saw Horton Hears a Who.

Very cute movie! Avery loved it, but I think she enjoyed bundling up in the back of the car with blankets and pillows even more. She was so excited! Finley, on the other hand, just wanted to move, climb, and crawl, around. That made it a little hard for the rest of us to enjoy the show, but we still had fun! I had to remind Paul that we go to the drive-in for the experience- for the nostalgia of it all, and NOT for intense movie watching.

It is a pretty cool thing we have here- drive-in theaters are a dying breed! My sister Tiffany, her friend Beth, and brother Robert all came with us too- none of them had ever been to a drive-in! So, it was a first almost everyone in our party (Paul and I were the only exceptions)! The first one I ever went to was in the Bay Area years ago. It is gone now- in its place is a huge shopping complex and a megaplex theater with stadium seating. I guess that has been the fate of most drive-ins. I can only hope we will be able to enjoy the one here for a long time to come!

Strawberry Season!

I got my first strawberries of the season last night at farmer's market!

They are oh so very yummy! We ate them with whipped cream last night and made smoothies with them this morning! I am in heaven!

A local strawberry farmer told me this trick for making your berries last longer.... AND IT WORKS! I thought I would share! That way, you can take advantage of the price break you get when you buy a half or even a whole flat and not worry about them going bad before you can eat them all!

So here you go.... (start with fresh, UNWASHED berries)

Enjoy!

Kelly McCaleb Photos

So, these are just a FEW of my favorites from our shoot with my dear friend Kelly McCaleb while we were up in Utah. I love, love, LOVE her natural, casual, comfortable style- nothing is ever stiff or too "posed". She lives in the Salt Lake Valley and does photo shoots (and other amazing crafty things too) up there, so contact her (through her blog) if you live there or are going to be up there visiting. She is awesome! I am also trying to get her to come down (or over?) to SLO for a visit over the summer and I MIGHT be able to get her to do some photo shoots while she is here- just imagine what she could do at the beach! Let me know if you are interested and I will start a list! If I can entice her with a little work (+ little play+ a LOT of relaxing at the beach), she will HAVE to come, and that would make me happy!

Easter Weekend Fun

We had a busy, but FUN weekend!

Egg Hunt at church on Saturday

An 80 degree afternoon at the beach!

(yet another reason to LOVE San Luis Obispo in the spring)

Easter Morning

(a little rushed with 9 a.m. church,

but there was still PLENTY of time for excessive candy consumption!

It was also a special treat to have daddy home- NO early meetings today!)

Sunday afternoon...
I just had to get a few photos of the girls in their adorable Easter dresses!






The Easter Bunny, dyeing eggs, candy, baskets, and pretty new dresses are all wonderful and fun things we associate with this special holiday, but THE BREAD OF LIFE is a great new video that really helped our family remember the REAL reason we celebrate Easter! Watch. Enjoy!

Happy Easter!