JCPenny Pics

Matt's grandma Faye wanted to get some photos of Sawyer before he turns a year old this October. She scheduled an appointment at JCPenny and we went there on Saturday to get them done. Most of them are action shots due to the fact that it's nearly impossible to get S. to hold still. I was exhausted afterwards from chasing after him. He wanted to crawl every which way, anywhere besides the spot where he was supposed to be sitting. Here are a few of my favorites. 

My Bubbles

There's something fishy going on around here. 

We don't want any funny business. 

You got that?

Or I'm calling the cops!

Best Buddies

It's like taking care of two kids who are having trouble learning how to share. 

Like I said,

So much to blog about and so little time. I decided that rather than do my math homework while Sawyer is napping I will put up all these photos that are dying to be posted. Beware, this will be visual overload. I'm breaking it up into increments though. First blog worthy event that is long overdue:

 My little brother (even though he's taller than me) Bryson's graduation!

Congratulations Bry on graduating high school. That's an accomplishment to be proud of since 4 years can be quite torturous, but you made it!!! Hooray! 

I remember playing Picnic Ants with you (a nice name for a game that really just meant pinching the daylights out of you), drawing fake moustaches on you while you slept and then calling you Pierre when you woke up, locking you out of the house and then when you tried to come in I'd  pretend you were the neighborhood kid Josh and tell you to go home and then you'd say "no I live here, I'm Bryson!", then telling you that when we drove to McCall there were witches that lived in the towns on the way there and made you hide on the floor of the car. I really should congratulate you for putting up with me as your sister. 

However I would like to say I possibly made up for all of that by doing things like picking out your clothes for you to wear to kindergarten so that you looked like the coolest dude out of all the the 5 year olds there, sending you packages full of cool Spongebob paraphanelia when I moved away, buying you way more presents than I ever did for Megan and consequently making her jealous because of it (sorry Megan, I like you too!), teaching you how to snowboard (even though I taught you the wrong way), and for flying all the way to Idaho from California with a wiggly baby just to see you graduate!

Can't wait to hang out with you again in a month in Australia. Let's wrestle some crocs while we're there. You can show me how it's done. 

So Much To Do,

And so little time! I've got loads of pics to blog about, a bunch of facebook messages and emails to reply to, a heap of $$$ left to fundraise for my race, oodles of math homework to complete, a batch of official transcripts to order, stacks of nursing application papers to fill out, a slew of miles to run for my marathon training and all before August 2nd. Then that night as we board our plane I can relax knowing that for 2 and half weeks we will be taking it slow and having the time of our lives in.....

First Father's Day

Sometime in May towards the first of the month I believe, I got Matt the best fathers day present ever. Approximately 24 hours later, he opened it. I just couldn't wait! I knew he was going to love it and therefore it would have been agony to wait a whole month and a half to give it to him. (I'm sure me asking him every 5 minutes if he wanted it yet probably didn't help.) I got him a new razor and shaving essentials. Doesn't sound too spectacular or original for that matter until you see what kind they were. They were from a store called The Art of Shaving. They also have a website here. He got these: 

Plus their sandalwood shaving oil, cream and after shave. I'm not sure who likes it more, him or I. I reap the benefits just as much since his face isn't prickling me every time we make out. (I wrote that just for you mom. hee hee.)

Maybe one day if he's a really good boy he'll get this stand 

Or not, since it's made of sterling silver and is $3,400. But don't worry it's on sale now for a mere price of $1,700 right now if you're interested. 

So yesterday he did not have any gifts to open, but he did have a breakfast in bed and then after church we went to the Huntington Library to explore. 

Checking out the Koi fish. 

Meandering through the forest. Just kidding, it's actually a photo Matt took of a bonsai plant. 

Marveling at all the flowers, trees, and gardens. 

Lunch break. 

 

And to conclude this father's day post I have to brag for a minute about what a great dad Matt is. Some of the many reasons he should make father of the year:

1) He changes poopy diapers. Now that should win an award right there.

2) He always knows when to take over "bed time" when I've just about had enough (we are in the midst of sleep training right now)

3) He can get Sawyer giggling like no one else can.

4) Did I mention he changes poopy diapers?!

5) He knows exactly when Sawyer's tummy hurts from gas and always has some trick up his sleeve on how to get his gas bubbles out. (Sawyer has got to be the gassiest baby around)

6) Has taken many a car ride late at night to get the little man to sleep even though he has to get  up early to work the next day.

7) Takes us on family outings on the weekend.

8) Should get some extra credit in the dad category for having every single one of his shirts spit up on when Sawyer was a newborn. 

Thanks for being such an incredible father Matt to our little soybee. 

There’s no other father I’d rather have had,
Than the one I was born to and got to call “Dad”.
Now let me begin with this poem I’ve rehearsed,
His name is (drumroll please) David Albert the first.

My pop’s super intelligent with patents galore,
A college education he always stands for.
Which is why when I went back to get a degree,
My dad was behind me one hundred percenty.
His name is found listed under Webster’s “Good guy”
For he is someone on whom all can rely.
He has lots of fans, and not just his own kids,
If he was at auction there’d be millions of bids.
But no can have him as their dad besides me,
(except maybe Ben, Megan and Bryson Marie)

Dad’s the king of to do lists, and getting chores done
His motto is always “finish what you’ve begun”.
And “if it’s worth doing at all, it’s worth doing right”,
Those exact words he’s been known to recite.
Yet another saying of his, lest I forget,
“Work hard, play hard” was his other duet.
Once chores were done and checked off the board,
We’d always do something fun as reward.
Like hiking or swimming, perhaps a hot spring,
To this day when we visit, our swimsuits we bring.

So not to brag or anything, but this I must say
My dad is the BEST (not to sound too cliche).
He’s always up for adventure, an excellent trait,
Since his job has him travel out of country and state.
He’s quite the globe trotter and to just name a few
India, Germany, and Peru he’s been to.
In fact I just realized where you are for the summer,
Is a whole day ahead which is really a bummer.
That means in Australia you’ll read this too late,
But the meaning’s the same

Summertime and the Livin's Easy

Yesterday was exactly how a summer Saturday should be, sunny,  in the 70's and spent near the beach.  I left at 6 a.m. to get to the Ventura beach by 7 to run with my TNT teammates. Ran 4 miles with them and headed home. Once I got back we started loading up our mountain bikes that we had spent Friday evening cleaning and sprucing up since they'd be left dejected outside in the rain, wind and sun for so long. Had big plans of taking S. on a bike ride in our new trailer, even bought him an infant helmet that morning, only to discover the our bike rack (that we had used on our prior vehicles) definitely does not work with our new and only car. Shucks. So we went with plan B which was to still head to where we planned on going and just walk around. Our destination? Manhattan Beach. We discovered it when my friend Amanda took these family photos there after Sawyer was born. Best beach around hands down. Beautiful, clean, places to shop, places to eat, lots of interesting people to look at. Oh yeah and did I mention there is a Cafe Rio there? 

Check out Sawyer.

 Looks like my excitement for their pork barbacoa salad makes him just as happy. 

Played near a fountain on the walk down to the pier. I think S. stood out amongst all the other finely dressed kids because he seriously looked like a ragamuffin. Mismatched clothes (due to a diaper blow out in the car seat on the way down. He is becoming notorious for that) Stained shirt from getting his lunch all over his front after ripping his bib off while eating. Sticky hands and a sticky face that were all calling for a much needed bath or a dip in the ocean.  

After the fountain we strolled along the path reserved for walking. Originally if the bike plan had been successful we would have been riding along the bikes only path, but there was so much bike traffic on it I ended up being glad we'd gone with plan B. No need for Sawyer's first bike trailer experience to involve a collision. 

The stroller was to hard to push in the sand so Matt stayed up on the pier and took pictures of us down below as I introduced S. to the ocean. 

Sawyer meet the ocean.

 It's a little chilly now, but you and I are going to have so much fun splashing around in there when you get older. And yes Nemo and baby Baluga both call it home. 

It actually wasn't as cold as I had anticipated and if only I had packed our swimmies we would have been going all the way in. 

Is a saturday spent down by the beach complete without an ice cream treat? I propose it is not. Lucky for us there the cutest little ice cream parlor on our way back to the car. All three of us enjoyed our yummy snacks immensely. 

Some more than others. I was just giving S. little bits of my ice cream, that is until the sneaky little devil laid into it when I wasn't looking. After that I was done. I'll pass on a slobber covered ice cream sandwhich. 

I don't think he felt bad about it in the least. In fact he looks downright proud of his dessert thieving skills. 

The Latest Happenings

Since back in sunny California Sawyer has been busy:

Swinging by the beach,

Swimming with Nana Carol,

Showing dad his kick, kick, kicks,

Being a hydrophilic stinkbug,

Expending all his energy (for once),

Unsuccessfully trying to hunt down Nana Carol's cat Sam,

Riding in his brand new bike trailer that we got for a super great price,

and taking it for a spin with Dad.

Effective, but Gross

 Poor little S. has a runny nose. I could hear it this morning when he was sleeping, that gurgling throaty noise that has got be one of the most disgusting noises ever. I was worried he was getting a cold, but I think it's just teething or allergies. Either way I can't complain seeing how he is over 8 months old and has yet to have gotten sick. As the day progressed his nose was running so much I was beginning to think it was training for a marathon too!

Tried using tissues. Didn't work. Tried using that sucky bulb and it's sucks alright, as in definitely doesn't work. I'm am so not of a fan of runny noses (who is really?), but I can't stand when I see a kid with one traveling down to his lips. Eeeeew. All I can think about his all the germs he is spreading around every time he wipes at it with his hands and all the things that become snot covered in his path. Ugh. I'm gagging just thinking about it. Desperate to find something that would help Sawyer be able to breathe I found something utterly amazing on line! I HAD to share about this magical apparatus. Normally you have to order it on line, since very few places carry it, but luckily a Whole Foods nearby had them.

Jumped in the car. Sawyer screamed the whole way. Ran into the store carrying him on my hip. Where is it? Where is it? Jackpot! They had them in stock. Paid $16.99 for the main product and $2.99 for refills. Would have cost the same on line with shipping. Ran back out to the car, strapped him in carseat and proceeded to use the product. This is how it works:

You stick the tip of the blue thingamajiggy at their nostril and the red thing goes in your mouth. Then you suck. Grossed out yet? I was too. But there's a blocker in there that keeps anything from going into your mouth. And guess what?! S. could breathe!! Relief at last. He then slept the whole way home.

Soooooooo worth the money. I'd have to say, the effectiveness definitely outweighs the ick factor. But as the reading rainbow kids say, don't take my word for it! You can read other reviews here

Dear Idaho,

Thank you for welcoming back a long lost native like myself over the weekend + my son Sawyer who has been dying to sink his two bottom teeth into a true Idaho potato. While I was a bit perturbed by your abundant rainfall the whole time we were there, we still had a very enjoyable week thanks to highlights and events such as:

Admiring precious metals attached to Uncle Bryson's teeth. 

Drinking more than our fair share of fry sauce since it sadly doesn't exist in California. 

Playing with relatives.

And playing with friends. 

Pounding out some melodious tunes. 

Watching the rain fall and fall and fall some more. 

And then basking in the lone ray of sunshine that broke through the layer of clouds for one beautiful split second. 

Playing keep away with Grandpa D.

Discovering the trick to telling great ghost stories. 

 Selecting a delicious beverage of choice that would make daddy at home very proud. 

Paying Goody's a visit and enjoying the world's best milkshakes. 

Being loved up by Grandma M. 24/7

Eating lots of food with lots of family.

 (and celebrating Bryson's graduation which will have a post dedicated solely to that)

Having more fun than should be allowed and becoming overly tired because of it. 

Followed by gloriously long naps in the middle of the day.

Thanks for showing us a great time land of the gems. We'll definitely be back only next time we'll be exploring Coeur D'alene. Until then, take care of your Appaloosa's, Mountain Bluebirds, wild huckleberries and of course all our family and friends that live within your borders. 

Forever an Idaho girl at heart, 

Kristen