A Day In The Life...

The Big 2-1! (Ok, so just months, but you get my drift...)

2012-01-24T13:01:00.000-06:00

Oh. My. Goodness. We are nearing the terrific two's, aren't we?!? If you spent an hour with our little darling, you would understand why I am saying that! He can go from absolute sweetheart to an absolute terror in 3.5 seconds, maybe less! He can be so sweet and darling, then just turn into a total turd and do something naughty for no reason at all. While I'm racking my brain trying to figure out what his problem is, I can only chalk it up to him being {almost} two. In his mind he is already there, just ask him! When we used to ask him how old he was he would put one finger up, now he says TWO!! I think this little guy is looking forward to an upcoming birthday!!

This kid is always smiles! You can just look at him and see on his face that he is always having so much fun! Don't believe me? Here's my proof!!

This is the cute face I get to look at and be with each day... I'm convinced it can't get any better!!   With each passing day we are learning more and more words. Some of my favorites have been house (the way his mouth/lips move and it sounds when he says it is just too dang cute!), and bus (for the same reason as house). He also says things like: cereal, milk, park, play, choo-choo, wow!, treat, love you, thank you (another favorite), please, and is pretty good at saying pineapple and helicopter. He's working on octopus and Ferrari, and while he may not be even close to saying them it is sure cute to hear him try! He's starting to put words into phrases and saying things like, "More apple juice please", or "Ut-oh, it broke!". Continuing to watch the learning take place is one of my favorite things about being a mom! It's awesome that he can point to a helicopter and say the word, or that he can ask for milk and know what he's getting. And as the doctor told me at his last appointment, he really will be talking up a storm in no time!
   Another change we have had in the speech department is that he will now call me mommy instead of just mama, and it is the sweetest sound ever! He also calls Adam dad now, instead of just daddy. It's been funny to watch him make up his mind on what he wants to call us. He uses his sweet "dad" cries to get out of going to bed every night, which cracks us up! Let me explain:
   Our typical bedtime routine involves a bath, then we will go in his room and get him dressed and read a few stories (which is another way he procrastinates bedtime... adding more and more stories to the pile to read each night). After story time daddy will give him several (usually about 5) kisses, each time he tries to leave Eli will say "dad" and ask for another one. After he leaves I rock him and sing songs, then we say prayers. He generally calls dad back in for prayers, and if he doesn't for prayers he will call him in again for another kiss (see the trend here, master procrastinator!). He's such a cute and sweet boy!

This month he experienced his second big move in his short little life, and has been adjusting really well to our new house and area. He's quick at making friends, and loves to play at the park just around the corner from us. He has picked up with life right where he left off, it's been inspiring to watch! I feel like I have a lot to learn from the little guy, especially when I see him play with kids he doesn't even know. He just walks right up to them, waves and says hi, then chases them around and plays like he's known them forever. Seeing just how well he adapts makes me feel like this crazy military life won't be so hard on him. I just wish I were the same way!
Eli continues to be a great sleeper and eater. Having been in the process of moving this last month, I hated how much garbage he ended up eating... since settling he has picked right back up on eating healthy fruits, most veggies, and still prefers mom's cooking to take out! He is a champ in the sleeping department still, usually going down about 8 and sleeping 12-14 hours then taking another 3-4 hour nap during the day. I couldn't ask for a better kid, seriously!

While I could go on and on and on about how great this kid is, I don't want to paint a false picture. Are there times he frustrates me? Absolutely. Do I love him anyway? Of course. We often refer to him as a sour patch kid... he can be so sweet yet so sour at the same time! That being said, I couldn't imagine life without him in it. He has been my rock during this move that has proven to be harder than I thought it was. He's been my little buddy, my little sidekick. I'm so glad I have him to go on this journey with, makes for a fun ride! :)

Goodbye Freeboard Blvd!

2012-01-19T15:59:00.003-06:00

Being in the military requires a lot of adapting and willingness to change on many levels, the most difficult for me being the moves that take place, sometimes too frequently. After one year in our home in Pensacola, we had to say goodbye and find a new one.

While the house is just four walls, the memories that are in it have become increasingly difficult to leave behind. In the past, it never really bothered me, but now having a child I feel like I leave a piece of my heart each time we move. This may sound silly, but I think of the "events" that took place in that home in terms of my child growing up there. This is the home he would accumulate 14 more teeth and learn to walk in. The home he started saying his first words in, and transitioned from a baby to a toddler. From 9 months to 20 months a lot of changes took place for Eli, changes that happened in this house. We are going to miss it.
That said, we have found a beautiful home in Jacksonville that we love! We are excited for more memories, and whether we are here six months or six years, we are happy to have a place to call home.

Gulf Shores Zoo

2012-01-18T17:11:00.000-06:00

My friend Wendy was going to be leaving town a few days before we moved, so we wanted to get in all of the time together that we possibly could. Knowing that we needed to leave the house as much as we could to keep Eli out of the way of the movers, we took her up on an invite to go visit the Gulf Shores Zoo.

I love this little sign at the street... The Little Zoo That Could!

This was the first time we got to visit the zoo, and I am SO sad we were moving a few days later... it was AWESOME! It was really small, but almost all of the animals were happy and looked really healthy. The zoo is just one big circle, and the animals are in natural habitats so they aren't hanging out on cement. Here are a few of the animals we saw:

Right when you walk into the zoo this is what you see. From here you turn to the left and go in a big circle. These little guys were so funny to watch... they were constant motion!

Miniature deer... they are the second smallest deer in the world. Who knew?

Isn't this guy funny looking!?!

This bird was the most beautiful bird I've ever seen! It was pink and grey, although this picture doesn't do it justice, it really was beautiful!

There were several bunnies and squirrels roaming the grounds...

...and we even followed a couple of peacocks around!

When the sun hit these peacocks they were the most brilliant, beautiful colors! What fun it was having them walk around us!

While it was a smaller zoo, it really was the perfect size for kids... there was enough to see, but it wasn't overwhelming at all. There were also lots of neat places to explore, and you could feed some of the animals, it was really just a great time there! The kids really enjoyed playing on the little marry-go-round thingy (even though it was broken!), and we enjoyed a picknic lunch before heading home:

Eli kept hitching a ride with Eddie... so funny!

Of course, no trip to a zoo in Alabama/Florida would be complete without seeing the gators!! :)

All in all, we really had a fantastic time! It is a great memory we have, and I'm so glad we went! Like I said, I just wish I would've known about it before the week I was leaving! :) Thanks for the fun, Wendy!

Aviation Museum: The Final Chapter

2012-01-12T10:22:00.000-06:00

    Knowing that our time was coming to a close in Pensacola, we decided it was time to do the last few things that we've wanted to do or loved to do before heading out. This, of course, included a trip to the Aviation Museum. This time, I made it a point to stop in at the Cafe and grab lunch. The deal was made even sweeter when my great friend Wendy agreed to come along! Eli would be happy with his friends, and I would have someone to talk to! At least, that was the plan. Eli, on the other hand, made different plans for us. He was so uncooperative and naughty that day, just thinking about it makes me want to shake my head!
    The lunch was delicious, I was very impressed with the quality of food and for such a great price! Unfortunately I wasn't able to enjoy it for long before Eli decided it was time to explore. That being said, I was thankful for the opportunity to eat there before I left!
    After the quick lunch Eli and I had, we decided to go run around and look at the planes for one last time while our friends finished their lunch. It was nice having that time with just him and I, especially because he always mellows and is quiet when we are walking around there. I appreciate that, and needed a break after the rampage he was on during our lunch!
   When our friends were finished eating we met up at the playground. Since school was out, and it was a holiday weekend, it was filled with SO MANY KIDS! It was probably the craziest I have ever seen it, but then again I was always lucky to go during the morning when kids were in school. The kids, of course, loved having a place to run and play, and it was fun to get a little bit of conversation (in between chasing kids) with my friend.

I love this pic! It looks like Eli is pointing where to drive the "ship" and Eddie is so serious about his driving! ha ha!

I am thankful for the opportunity I had to live so close to such an awesome place. I know that any time I am visiting or driving through, I will have to make a stop here to relive the fun we had over the past year! Maybe as Eli grows up and gets to visit it, he will have some memories of the time we spent there. Ok, so maybe he won't, but I sure will! :)

A New Tradition?

2012-01-12T10:19:00.000-06:00

So, this year I think Adam started a new tradition for us on Christmas... that would be: Let's see who can give the other person the ugliest wrapped gift! Let me explain how this happened..
A few days before Christmas (which itself was a miracle, as Adam is usually a Christmas Eve shopper!) Adam heads out for the mall to conquer his shopping list. A few hours in (this is never a quick process!) I get a text message that says, "I'm hilarious." That can't be good! I write back, "What have you done?!?" to which he replies, "You will see. I'm hilarious!". I thought I would have to wait until Christmas to find out what this wonderful "gift" was, but instead, it was something that would be enjoyed for a few days...

As he walked through the door to the house he was SO proud of himself. He laughed so hard, and explained to me that the store he bought them from thought he was so hilarious. Oh, and all the people around him thought he was so hilarious. He thought he was hilarious. He said, "I made the day of the people working there!" What was in that UGLY wrapping was a pair of Uggs, which he hates. I've been talking about getting a pair forever, and recently told him that if we end up living in cold Washington state I will need a pair. So in his mind, why not wrap a pair of Uggs in UGLY wrapping!?! When he got to the gift wrap area he told them to make it as obnoxious and awful as they possibly could. I think they succeeded. Apparently they had to try and convince all the other customers that were wanting gift wrapping that it would look a lot better than what they were doing! Ha ha! It will be interesting to see what this turns into... perhaps a new tradition? My rebuttle wasn't as good, but I tried...

You can't quite see it here... it was a box in a box in a box, but it was a pretty bad wrapping job. I'll try to find a better picture (I know I had one on my old phone...)

I won't lie... I fear that as the years go on the pictures of our tree will be full of ugly wrapped gifts and a husband that thinks he is "Hilarious"!

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-28T23:57:00.000-06:00

I cannot believe that Christmas has came and went already... doesn't it just feel like it should be the middle of December instead of the end? I'm in denial that the movers will be at my house in mere hours, and that my Christmas stuff, soon along with all of our other belongings, is already packed up and put away. Time seems to go too quickly!

This Christmas, like many others we have had, was wonderful! I especially liked it because it fell on a Sunday, and I think there is no better way to celebrate the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ than to worship Him and learn of Him and His life on the same day. I was priviledged (ha ha) to give a talk that Sunday, the topic being about being "Home for Christmas" and the things I read and studied in preparation for the talk really helped me deal with the struggles I was having about not being around family this Christmas, and even feeling somewhat like where we were wasn't really our place anymore. I truly was thankful for the opportunity to speak, mostly because of what I was able to learn from doing so. I think that's how it always happens for me (I learn more from teaching my Young Women lessons than they probably do!).
Anyway, after Church we came home and got in some comfortable clothes, then it was time to see what Santa brought Eli.
We skyped with my family during this time, which was a lot of fun! We had lots of laughs and surprises! Eli was spoiled, and it seems his favorite items were anything soft and fuzzy! He got the hang of opening gifts pretty quick!

Taken at night after Santa made his visit... I love the soft glow of Christmas lights!

These pictures chronicle the first gift he opened... his Elmo doll! I probably should've saved this one for last, but he was super tired and I wanted to grab his attention...

See... rubbing the eyes. He was tired!

A little bit comes out...

Not quite sure what the fuzzy red thing is...

And then it was love!!

Showing everyone on Skype what it was! He loved it!

His other favorites was a pillow pet, some new books, and a transformers car and jet. I'm making my prediction early, but I think this kid is going to be a lot like his daddy... pretty easy to please as far as gifts!
After all of the fun, and a really great nap, we skyped more with Sitioe as well as my grandma. It was really great to get to "see" family on Christmas, even if it was miles and miles away (thank you, technology!). That night we went over to our "family's" house, the Taylors, for some delicious ham, funeral potatoes, salad, fruit, croissants and trifle for dessert! We got to open gifts and play games, but what we really enjoyed most was the good company! This family is one we consider to be part of our extended family, we have enjoyed lots and lots of fun times together, and we are all crossing our fingers and toes that we will get to do something similar next year! That night was fantastic, and there truly was no place I would've rather been! (Thank you guys!! Love you!)
While the gifts make for a fun time, and it's always fun to get surprises, I truly am thankful for the true reason we celebrate Christmas: the Savior Jesus Christ. I think of His humble birth, the spotless life He led, and His Atonement and I have no words to express my gratitude. I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas yourselves!

Bellingrath Gardens

2011-12-28T22:54:00.000-06:00

Ok, attempt #3 to catch the Christmas spirit may have been just what I needed! For a few month my friend has been talking about a beautiful place called Bellingrath Gardens, and insisting we go there during this time of year because they put out millions (literally, MILLIONS!) of lights all around their gardens/property. Because we went there at night, the best I can describe the place is that it reminded me much of the plantations we visited in New Orleans. It sits on 65 acres, and was first opened to the public in 1934. There are a couple of lakes, the estate that sits on the property as well as a few other buildings (we saw a chapel and a small museum holding their extensive collection of Boehm Porcelain, but I'm sure there are others).

The light displays were phenomenal! There were several different "themed" areas, each as interesting as the next.

The Under the Sea was cool!

We also loved this little Chinese area...

The fireworks on each side of the building would go off at different times, it was beautiful!

The Mirror Lake area was probably my favorite! Look how beautiful it all was!

Alligators!

And Flamingos, are you serious!?!

The swans were beautiful!!

And Eli loved the train!

It even had this beautiful nativity, which I was surprised there wasn't more of. I guess I'm used to Utah! :)

While we were there to look at the lights, I was amazed at how many flowers were blooming, especially because of it being winter! It was absolutely gorgeous!

We couldn't have picked a better night to go, it was fairly warm (mid 60's) and we had great company!

My sweet friend Wendy and I!

All in all, it was absolutely worth the drive (about 90 minutes each way), and it has made me want to go back during the spring/summer to see it in it's glory! I'd like to give a special thanks to the Blairs for a great night, and for helping me catch the Christmas Spirit!

Naughty or Nice? You decide...

2011-12-27T20:20:00.000-06:00

One night I was looking all around for Eli. There aren't many places in our house that he's not allowed to get into, and there really isn't many places to hide, so if he goes missing it's usually pretty easy to find him. Not this time... as I looked and looked the only thing that tipped me off as to where he was was the laughter coming from behind the Christmas Tree.

You don't see anything, right?

A closer look... are those legs?

BUSTED!

Silly cute face!!

This little boy is so naughty!!

Christmas at the Beach: Florida Style!

2011-12-27T17:50:00.001-06:00

Beings that the weather seemed to be getting warmer and warmer, rather than colder, we gathered our Utah friends and hit Johnson's Beach one last time to frolic in the white sand, pretending it was snow! I can't lie, I'm loving the warm weather, but it really just doesn't feel like Christmas! Not until we built this cute guy, that is:

This is what happens when you send a bunch of Utahans to Florida in the winter!! Isn't he cute!?! So while we can't be with the majority of our friends and family this Christmas, we wanted to wish you all a very Merry Christmas, Florida style!

Pensacola Christmas Parade

2011-12-27T17:35:00.000-06:00

Attempt #2 at helping me catch the Christmas spirit was heading down town and watching the Christmas parade. I've mentioned in the past at how it's nearly impossible to get Adam to go to a parade, so the fact that he was in on this proves one of two things: He's really trying to help me catch the Christmas spirit, or he sees the excitement on his son's face while we are there and finally understands the excitement of a parade and why we should go. Either way, we had a ton of fun and I'm glad we could make it!

You know that excitement in the face I am talking about!? Look at him, so excited to see it starting!

Wanted to be a big boy like daddy and stand and wait for it to start

Pensacola uses any excuse to throw mardi gras beads, this parade being no exception! Eli was thrilled... he collected so many! (Which to this day he wears them regularly!) He also got some candy, a moon pie, some stress balls and a t-shirt!

All the people lined up around us... I can't believe how many people were there!

Look closely at all of the beads stuck in the trees from previous parades. So funny!

Bling Bling!

One of my favorite moments while we were there was him checking out one of the huge Christmas trees they had all lit up at the Courthouse. He was in awe of how big it was!

And I especially loved this truck that was blowing out foam that looked like snow! I loved it so much, we followed it all the way to the end of the parade route and to our car!

We really had a great time together! We had some laughs (think: Pensacola high schools and what they may be like, then imagine a drill team in leotards (some fitting better than others!) dancing to the band playing "Super Bass" (maybe by Niki Maniaj (or something like that)). Oh man, I laughed so hard! I don't know... I think Adam might be coming around to this whole parade thing! :)

Birmingham Temple

2011-12-27T17:27:00.000-06:00

I had the wonderful opportunity to take a trip to the Birmingham Temple with some of my favorite ladies, and wanted to share the pictures! It is a much smaller temple than what I am used to, but it is absolutely beautiful!

Queli, Helena, and Wendy

While the time it takes to get there and back is long (we left at 6:30 AM, got home at about 9:30 that night), it was absolutely worth the trip! I am so glad we were able to do this before I left the area, and I am so thankful for these wonderful women in my life and the great examples they are to me!

It's beginning to feel a lot like Christmas?

2011-12-27T16:12:00.000-06:00

This year has been difficult for me to get in the Christmas mode. Perhaps it's the movers showing up just two days later, or maybe it's the fact that for the most of December I have been running my air conditioning and wearing shorts and t-shirts. The lack of snow definitely doesn't help! Whatever it is, I tried like mad to get out of the crazy funk! Enter our first attempt: Attending the lighting of the largest Christmas tree in Pensacola at the Lighthouse.

We were excited to go, especially because it fell on a cooler day that warranted the use of a coat and gave us a good excuse to drink hot chocolate. While the tree lighting was, shall we say, disappointing (seriously, 5 strands??) we still managed to have a lot of fun!

They played How The Grinch Stole Christmas on the side of the keeper's quarters...

And Eli got to run around and play to his hearts desire:

The ghost of Eli present? Crazy picture, right?

He also got the opportunity to visit with Santa, although he wasn't entirely thrilled!

I really enjoyed getting to see the house all decorated, they did a really good job!

Maybe it was just the fact that we got to be together as a family that made it so fun. Isn't that what Christmas is all about?

You can't see it in this picture, but he was screaming as usual! :)

Our night was capped off by the opportunity to deliver this beautiful inflatable Santa to our dear friends in need! (Sensing the sarcasm?? It was pay backs for a dirty penguin that landed in our front yard while we were in Texas... this inside joke stems back a few years!)

Isn't he presh? Ha ha!

Saying Goodbye...

2011-12-27T14:51:00.000-06:00

Goodbyes are always hard, so we've decided we're always going to opt for "See ya laters!" This time was just like every other time... tears are shed and we wonder how the time can pass so quickly!
After saying goodbye to Adam's mom and several of his cousins and aunts at his mom's house (lame, I have no pictures!), we headed over to his aunt and uncle's house to say goodbye to them and some more cousins. We had our heads on straight there, and managed to get some pictures:

Adam and Jessica

Adam and Sadie

Adam and Raven

Adam and Heaton

My brother and Raven... they developed a special bond this trip! She is a sweetheart!

Adam, Eli and Heaton. I have a feeling these boys will get in a lot of trouble together as they get older! Hopefully they won't be nearly as bad as Adam and his cousin Amanda (the beautiful mom to all of these beautiful kids) were!

Like I mentioned earlier, we met up at Dairy Queen to say our official goodbyes. No trip is complete without a trip to the Dairy Queen! I'm surprised this was the only time we ate there the whole trip!

Truth be told, the houses were so crazy, we just didn't feel like we were able to get a real one in. We were afraid that Eli was going to do what he typically does, that is- sleep through the entire goodbye and wake up with everyone gone:

So typical!

Luckily he woke up and with a little help of a brown topper (or 5!, Thanks, auntie!) he was back to being his wild and crazy self.

While we hate having to say goodbye and part, we are thankful for the time we get to spend together. The military life is hard for this reason, but it makes the time we do spend together that much more special. To our family: We love and miss you all!

Sights of a Wonderful Thanksgiving

2011-12-27T14:33:00.000-06:00

Sometimes I find it's just easier to let the pictures do the talking! Here are a few sights from Thanksgiving this year that I don't want to forget...

Top chef right here, all with a toddler on her hip!

Reading a car magazine with his boppa... Eli had to be in everyone's business!

Watching Cars 2 for the first time with Kaity... there is a good chance it could've been Elmo, but I think it was Cars.

Learning how to check resistance with an ohm meter. Cute and smart!

More Eli silliness and boppa laughing

Spoiled beyond belief from his auntie...

Rockin' one of the 3 new beanies his granny made for him on this trip! We love them!

We had such a fun time! :)

Over the course of a year...

2011-12-27T13:19:00.001-06:00

Not much has changed... these two still love each other, and it shows in every picture!!!
Last year:

This year:

I love the way my dad looks at Eli, and the smile that lights up his face in each of their pictures together! I know Eli has a special place in his heart for his Boppa! He talks about him all the time, and when we have been skyping lately he asks specifically for him. In fact, at the end of our trip to Texas, we all met at Dairy Queen to get lunch before hitting the road and when we were saying our goodbyes, Eli (being a turd!) would not give anyone kisses. He snuck one to his uncle Jeen Jeen, then gave Boppa one, too, but refused the girls. As I was buckling him in his seat and we were parting ways, he asked again for his boppa, so I got him out, took him over to their car, and he planted another kiss on his lips! He loves his boppa so much!!

Target Practice

2011-12-27T11:29:00.000-06:00

Being out on a ranch in Texas, it's pretty much common knowledge you spend your time drinking or shooting things, some people do both at the same time (I wouldn't advise this!)! Beings that I am not a drinker, we decided to opt for a little target practice for fun while we were out there!
Ok, truth be told I am in the market for some firearms, so my dad and brother decided they would help me whittle down the choices...
I started off by getting a 5 minute lesson on stance and figuring out which eye was my dominant eye.

The next five minutes was spent with me mustering up the courage to pull the trigger! Ok, so it didn't take that long, but I was a little nervous, I won't lie!

I decided this one was not for me! :) (PS Don't mind the ugly stance... this was before they realized I was left eye dominant and I was just trying to see anything at this point! No worries, a trigger was not pulled in this picture and I still have my face intact!)

And the .45 was a little much, too! But it was sure fun to shoot!

What I did learn was that I pity the fool that tries to break into my house! I didn't miss one shot! In fact, they were all pretty close! Not bad for a first timer!

Next up was Kaity... she was already pro before this so she was just doing it for fun! Doesn't she look awesome!?! Watch out future boyfriends, this girl is going to show you up in a lot of departments!!

I had fun out there getting to practice, and I am amazed that growing up in the family I did it has taken me so long to get out there and do it. I hope it is something that we can do together in the future, maybe even make it a new Thanksgiving Tradition?? We will see...

A Day in Dallas

2011-12-26T23:27:00.000-06:00

While we were in Texas for Thanksgiving, we took a day to head into Dallas. That city is so big, every time we go there I only see a small portion of it, and we usually do the same thing: Eat Benihana's for lunch and go shopping, then eat at Riscky's BBQ for dinner. This time around we basically did the same thing, we just added in a couple of extra stops.
Our first stop was the Dallas LDS Temple. None of us had ever been here before, and it was absolutely beautiful! Unfortunately, my dad got all of the good pictures while I was inside shopping at the distribution center and we haven't shared pic's yet, so you'll just have to believe me! It was definitely different from any other temple I have ever been to!

Eli, of course, was a big fan of the water fountain! He loved running around outside and watching the squirrels play.

After the temple we headed to Benihana's for lunch. We don't have one here in Pensacola, so we are usually craving it by the time we get to any other city that does. This one was super cool- you entered over a huge bridge that went over a big pond full of fish. Eli was in love just watching the fish swim around... let's say for the sanity of everyone he spent the majority of the meal outside where he was happy! As always, the meal was delicious!

Our next stop was the Galleria Mall- one of my favorites I've ever been to! To say it is huge would be an understatement! Eli was entertained by the escalators while his mom got to shop! I think I got a pretty good deal there! :)

Doesn't Adam look so thrilled to be going down the escalator for the billionth time! :)

After shopping we headed to the Ft. Worth Stockyards. This was the first time in all the years I've been going to Texas that I've ever heard about this place! It was SO neat, and I've added it to my bucket list (staying in a hotel down there and enjoying the festivities!). Twice a day on most days they have a cattle drive down the main street, and I hear during rodeo season it is amazing and so much fun! The streets are lined with cute little shops, museums and restaurants. It's a cool vibe, and definitely a place I will go back to again, hopefully multiple times.

Where I will stay one day... :)

The screaming family picture... this is becoming a regular thing around here! Ha ha!

We love Nolan Ryan!

A day in Dallas wouldn't be complete without a stop at Riscky's BBQ for dinner! We stumbled upon this place the year before, and ever since then have been craving it! It really is THAT good! :) The atmosphere (in the smaller ones) is cool and the people are always friendly. We are definitely fans!
I'm thankful for the fun we were able to have that day, and for the memories made. I'm glad we added a couple of new spots to our trip, and hope to go back again soon!

Rockin' the Skates...

2011-12-25T13:46:00.000-06:00

While we were in Texas we were invited to a birthday party for one of Eli's second cousins. She had rented out the entire Decatur roller rink and gave us all an opportunity to flash back a good 20 (or MORE) years, and try to recapture our youth while trying not to make a fool of ourselves for the youngsters to see! Let me tell you, it was SO MUCH FUN!!!

What was especially awesome was who all put on a pair of skates... It was Kaity, Lizz, Adam and I, as well as two very special guests you wouldn't have thought... Eli and his Sitioe decided to join us on the ~~warped~~ floor and skate around a few times!
Seeing Eli in a pair of size 7 skates was quite possibly the cutest thing I have ever seen! I was so proud of him, he did SO good out there staying up and did not hit the ground one time. Ok, so maybe he had a little help, but he was awesome out there and had so much fun being a big boy and part of the big kid crowd!

I was also proud of his Sitioe for not falling down either! We will leave out the part that she was hugging the wall the whole time (Ha ha, just kidding!) and just say that we are SO proud of her for even being brave enough to strap on a pair of skates and join us out there!

This picture cracks me up... it was taken after I made a comment about the skate rink needing a pole after watching my sister skating around... the laughter on her face makes me smile! :)

I think Adam was the most surprising person with the whole experience! From the moment he heard about it he was SO EXCITED to go! That completely surprised me, as he normally doesn't get so excited over much! He had a blast out there, showing off his skating skills! I must say, he did pretty good!

Holding hands, because if one of us were to go down we both were going down!!

Lizz honed in on her 1990 skills and was a rock star on that floor! Well, some would call it a rock star, others maybe more of a p... never mind. She had us all laughing, and of course Kaity was embarrassed!

Kaity rocked it on the skates, too! She had a couple of falls that left her with bruises in interesting places (I've learned not to wear jeans with embellished butts while skating!), but I think she had a pretty good time!

It was so much fun, a memory I will have forever, I'm sure! I'm so glad we got to go and spend time with Adam's cousins and family, and that Eli had an opportunity to play with some of his cousins, too!

So Much To Be Thankful For!

2011-12-21T13:36:00.000-06:00

This year we had a WONDERFUL Thanksgiving! We were so blessed to spend an entire week with our whole family in Texas, and it couldn't have been better! Not only were we all together, we were able to see many of Adam's relatives, some that I had never met up until now!
While in Texas we were able to take some family pictures of the whole gang together! I am so glad we had this opportunity, and will look back on these pictures for a very long time and be thankful we did them! Here are some of my favorites, in no particular order!

Isn't Kaity beautiful! I can't believe how grown up she is now!

The only thing that would keep Eli happy was smacking his dad's head and pulling his hair! Crazy boy!

2 of my favorites!

He was trying to be sweet...

My mom and dad... I miss them every day!

Love this one! There is a kiss mark on his cheek and dirt on his knees... so typical!

Siblings. Love them!

One of Eli's crazy faces!

My big bro. I love him!

Adam and his mom, Becca. We love her! I love this picture so much!

This is probably one of my favorites from the whole shoot!

I will definitely blog more about what we did in Texas, I just really wanted to share these pictures! I thank Heavenly Father each day for blessing me with my family! There is a quote I found on Pinterest (LOVE that place!) that says, "Insanity runs in my family. It practically gallops!" While that may be true, I love these people more than anything! :)

Our Future: The P3 Orion

2011-12-20T20:34:00.000-06:00

After months of difficult training, and what felt like forever of waiting, we finally learned our fate of which aircraft Adam would be assigned to. I would like to introduce you to the P3 Orion. A four engine, turbo prop aircraft that is used as basically a spy plane. The technical term is something like "anti-submarine and maritime surveillance aircraft". From what I've heard by a trusted source, it's the "hidden gem of the Navy". That might be just one's opinion, but I know it is right for our family, and I'm excited to be part of the P3 family!

The little circle things on the bottom are part of the anti-submarine stuff... they drop things out of them in flight. You'll see more in pictures below.

At the air show we went to, Eli and I were able to tour a P3 and talk with the crew and get a pretty good feel for what Adam's job was going to be. Here is the place he will call home for the first few years:

Eli sitting in his daddy's chair...

As he advances in rank and gets more experience, he will move over to this seat, that does more tactical stuff versus the navigational stuff. I hear it's a couple years or so after winging, but who knows.

Either way, he's got a pretty comfy seat, a fun little window to look out, and enough leg room and space to get up and walk around. I know he's pretty excited about that, as flights in the smaller aircraft gets to be pretty uncomfortable. Here's some pictures of the rest of his space:

Looking into the cockpit

Part of the anti-submarine equipment

All the gear here is what Adam would put on in case of an emergency on his plane. I won't lie, the fact that it has four props brings a lot of comfort to me!

Our next adventure will be an upcoming move to Jacksonville, Florida (about 6 hours east of Pensacola) to finish out training. After 6 months or so he will be winged, and flight school will officially be complete. It's nice to see an end at the tunnel, as I know he is so ready to be done with school! After that point we will learn if we are staying in Jacksonville, or if we will be stationed in the other areas: Whidbey Island, Washington or Hawaii. Not a bad gig! When he completes his training he will be going back to the "real" navy, being assigned to a squadron and getting back into the lovely time of deployments. While I don't look forward to that time, I know it's in our horizon and I just have to deal with it. Deployments for him will be much different than they were when he was on a ship. The aircraft is so big they cannot land on carriers, so he will get to stay in hotel rooms and live it up all over the world! What an exciting and fun opportunity for him! It also means that each day we can skype, and I can even travel to meet him in certain places! Again- not a bad gig! We are excited for our new adventure to come, and look forward to the experiences and opportunities we are going to have!

November: The month of Aviation!

2011-12-19T12:54:00.000-06:00

The first half of November could be summed up with one word: Aviation! From Blue Angels practices, to Adam finishing the last of his flights and allowing him to graduate from this part of flight school, to a wonderful two day air show... it's safe to say that planes were a big part of this month for us!

Probably my favorite picture of all time! He was sitting on Fat Albert watching the practice. As you can see, it turned out much better than the ones below (bad colors). I love it!

Knowing that the Blue Angels season was coming to a close, and that a move could possibly be upon us, Eli and I went to as many of the practices we could. When I think of Pensacola, my mind will forever be etched with the sound of FA-18 hornets screaming over our heads at an amazing speed! Here are a few pictures taken from the practices:

At the end of the Blue Angels season they have a huge air show that spans over two days, including a night show, to celebrate the "homecoming" of the blues. This year things were bumped up a notch, as the entire area was celebrating the centennial of Naval Aviation!

The festivities were top notch, and we had so much fun over both of the days watching stunts being performed, people jumping out of planes and parachuting in, words being written in the sky, aircraft of all types scattered along the ramp (where the planes are typically parked), we even got to experience our first (of now many!) sonic booms! With my husband being part of the VT-10 squadron (training squadron), we were invited to a party for the night air show and allowed to watch the show from the second floor of the building, giving us a birds eye view of the amazingness going on! We were surrounded by some great friends, really good food, and had an incredible show going on... it was amazing! They did a "wall of fire", and we got to watch an FA-18 light up the sky with fire coming out the back from the jet fumes (I'm assuming that's what you would call it!). It was topped off with an incredible firework show that was really well done! Can't get any better than that!!

As you can see, Eli was pretty wiped out after it all!

The second day of the show Eli and I went by ourselves because Adam was flying his last official flight in a T-6! It was an exciting day for us all! I was amazed at the stunts we saw going on, and even more amazed to find out the person flying the plane (not sure what it was) was a 60+ year old woman! She was incredible, doing things that I KNOW a plane shouldn't be doing and making it look graceful! That was the best part of the show, I think! They also had some reenactments of fighter jets coming by and blowing things up. It sounds kinda bad now that I say it, but it was really pretty cool. Unfortunately, I didn't get a ton of pictures because I was chasing after the crazy boy!

Eli and I had fun looking at all the static displays. We got to tour one in particular that we were excited to see... a P3 Orion which we have since found out will be the plane Adam is assigned to.

Hello, big boy!

It was awesome to get up close and personal with the plane and see what Adam's future (at that point it was only a maybe...) may have been. We enjoyed seeing all the different aircraft, and were glad to be a part of one more show before moving.

The show ended the best way it could: The Blue Angels took to the sky for one last flight before the close of the season.

As I watched the planes zoom past, I would be lying if I said I didn't have tears running down my cheeks. I love watching them, and I know Eli does too, and the thought of not being here when they come back in the spring was hard for me. The day was something I looked forward to, but also dreaded, as I knew it would signify the close of our time here in Pensacola, and I'm not sure that I'm ready for that. Pensacola really is a great place to be if you love aviation, and when you have the best friends in the world it makes it even better! :)

Halloween Festivities!

2011-12-18T22:40:00.001-06:00

Remember how we are pretending it's still October? Yeah, we are, so roll with it for one more post!

This Halloween proved to be a really fun one for us! With Halloween parties (I hosted 2, went to 2 more), trunk-or-treats, Boo at the Zoo, as well as the big day itself, it's safe to say we were candied and partied out for awhile! Eli was a blast through it all!

Aarrrrrr, mateys!

One of the parties we attended was for Adam's work. We got there on time and was the only family there until we left 45 minutes later. Sad for us, but not so sad for Eli, as he was loaded up with candy and had his way with all of the games! Here are a few pictures from that day:

He could rearrange things to his liking...

Rather than pick a duck, he was able to go fishing!

These stuffed dudes freaked him out a bit... I don't blame him, they got to me, too!

He was also able to cheat at the games, ensuring he wins the most prizes!

Our ward's Trunk-or-Treat turned out to be a blast! Our Primary President did an awesome job, and I think everyone had a really great time. It's always nice when your small ward has such a great turn out, too! We loved the time we got to spend with our great friends, although none of us will claim this guy:

Ok, so maybe ONE person would...

And another would actually talk to him!

Eli did what he does best, found his friend Eddie. These two are the cutest!

When it finally got dark, we all assembled outside to do what we came for- get more candy! I tried to spookify the back of my car, and handed out candy while Eli and his daddy went around and gathered some.

We are in Florida, thus the skeleton flamingos!

Eli didn't seem to have much interest in the trunk or treat... instead he thought playing in the wood chips by himself would be more fun! My crazy kid!!

Luckily Eddie came and saved the day, offering to throw wood chips right along with him and making my son not seem like such a loner! :)

The night ended and we packed up to head home. Before leaving we attempted to get a family photo by the car, but only ended up with a screaming baby (this is the first of MANY family pictures we have taken like this! We just have to laugh now!).

With the way Eli acted at the Trunk or Treat, we were worried he wasn't going to enjoy Trick or Treating much this year, but boy did he prove us wrong!! We loaded up his little car, met up with some friends, and hit the pavement hard for some yummy candy!

Our first stop...

Our neighborhood was AWESOME! They really get into it, with many houses decorated and the people handing out candy in costume. One set of neighbors teamed up and one house was the "scary" house, while the other had a man dressed as a granny. When the scary kids would come over to try and spook everyone, the granny ran after them and yelled and hit them with his/her purse! It was too funny! Eli made out like a bandit, full sized candy bars and all!
That was only half of the fun, the other half came when we went home to pass out candy. Eli was pretty excited to get to help- and the fact that we let him have a sucker put him on cloud nine!

Adam, in an attempt to get through all of our candy as quickly as possible, told each kid that they could have one piece unless they sang a song, they could have an entire handful. I was surprised at how many didn't take him up on the offer! One kid, probably about 10 and heavy set, was torn. When he was with the group of girls at the door he wouldn't sing, but they second they left he broke out into "Baby, baby, baby Ooooh!" Al la Justin Bieber style! It was the cutest thing I've ever seen! We also had this Napolian Dynomite group come through that did an awesome job singing, still only taking one piece of candy!

We seriously had so much fun this year, and I can imagine it will only get better and better as Eli grows up! He was so wiped out at the end of the night, I couldn't resist taking this picture of him!

I know I am late, but I hope everyone had a very happy Halloween! I know we did! :)

Foley Train Station

2011-12-18T22:40:00.000-06:00

Here we are again, with another post about the bucket list! Seems I am doing a real fine job at knocking things off of it! This one happened earlier in the fall, but I can't help myself and feel like I still need to blog about it because it was so fun and I don't want to forget it.
In a cute small town about 45 minutes away they have a little train depot, and my friend Wendy and I decided it was a perfect place to take two little boys. Little did we know how much we would enjoy it ourselves!

The boys were able to play on a full sized train when we first got there. Mom's were a little nervous (lots of sharp edges, tall places to fall from and two boys pushing to get around to see everything will do that to you!) but we had a ton of fun!

After we explored a bit, we went into an area that they have a huge city with model trains going around it. I've never understood the love some people have for model trains, but after seeing this I could totally understand why they get into it! This city had everything- a fire station that had a fire truck pull out of it's station and drive to a house that was on fire. It had a drive in movie, with a movie playing on the screen. It had a drive-in restaurant that had carhops that would come out to the cars. It had working stop lights, cars driving around the roads, a circus and power plants, it was so neat! The boys were entertained from the trains going round and round, which was perfect because it allowed us to try and take in every detail!

The last part we took the boys outside for a ride around the town square on a little train. The "conductor" was super sweet and nice and friendly, making us laugh several times during the short ride.

The whole place was just friendly and fun, and I am glad we had the chance to check it out!

Another Check...

2011-12-18T21:26:00.000-06:00

...off the Pensacola Bucket list!
Well, my time here in Pensacola is winding down, as is my bucket list. Thankfully the last few things I have left will be accomplished in the next two weeks. While I have done some pretty exciting and amazing things, this might be one of my favorites so far! During most of the Blue Angles practice shows, as well as some of their air shows, the Pensacola Lighthouse allows you to pay extra and view it from the top of the lighthouse. They claim it is "the best seat in the house", and you can trust me when I say it did not disappoint!

In late October a miracle happened! My husband had the morning off (during this phase of training we never knew from day to day what his schedule would be until the afternoon/evening before- annoying, right!?), and there happened to be an opening in the lighthouse schedule which never happens, as it is usually booked up weeks in advance. The night before I was all over it, I reserved my spot online and I was SO EXCITED to be going! The next morning I show up bright and early, hand them my confirmation number and they tell me that I'm not on the schedule. My heart sank, I know I clicked on the right day, I was positive I did. They were telling me the date would be a week later, and I knew my husband would be out of town at that point and wouldn't be able to make it. The lady checked and said they had one open spot, but there was an extra volunteer that day who took it so there wouldn't be enough space for me up there. I was so sad, and as I was just waiting around to see if by some miracle I could go up, something amazing happened! A woman started on her way to the top, only to be brought back down by her fear of heights. I felt so sorry for her, but couldn't contain my happiness! It was a win for her, as she was able to have her money refunded, which normally wouldn't have happened. I climbed those 177 steps so fast, my legs burned for days! But I made it to the top, and had an incredible view for the show!

I vowed that day that I wasn't going to spend my time up there watching the show through my lens, as I have hundreds of pictures of them. Instead I would just take it all in and enjoy the beauty and the awesomeness around me. I'm so glad I did, as the memory will forever be etched in my brain!
*these pictures are from my phone, more pictures may one day show up on this post if I ever get them off my broken computer*

I Am A Runner- My First Race!

2011-12-18T21:09:00.000-06:00

For several years I have enjoyed running, but I have never considered myself very good at it. I wasn't able to go very long without having to stop and walk, and did some sort of a combo run/walk thing for a very long time. After my heart surgery, that changed somewhat. I could go for longer distances, but still found myself having to stop and take a walking break throughout the run. That always frustrated me, but I never thought I could get better. That was, until this past summer. I was determined, no matter how hot it was or how tired I felt, I was going to learn how to run, and do so without stopping. I used the Couch to 5K app on my phone, and started with baby steps. I remember the first day that I ran for an entire 20 minutes without stopping, I felt like I was on top of the world! That time has steadily increased, to where I feel I can run as long as I want, the only thing limiting me now is the time or if my baby is unhappy. For the first time in my life, I consider myself a runner. While my definition of "a runner" may be very different from others (do I ever see myself doing a marathon? Most likely not), I classify myself as one- and to prove it I did my first 5K this fall!
October 22nd I laced up my shoes for The Great Pumpkin Race in a historic district of Pensacola.

The weather was much colder than I hoped it would be (42 degrees!), and a few unexpected hills were included in the run (note to self: Map out future runs before signing up so you know what you're getting yourself into!), but I went, I ran, and I finished.

I set a goal for myself of 35 minutes- slow, but I'm not running for speed. I finished the race in a total time of 30:39 and placed 13th in my age group, and 258 (out of 775) overall. I am proud of myself. I accomplished something I set out to do and have long wanted to do, and I did better than I could've ever imagined.

As time progresses, I hope to keep up with my running and continue at it. I hope in a year I can run another 5K and do better. I hope I can do more distance. I hope my child can watch me do it and grow to have a love for running as well. But as for now, I am happy to call myself a runner. After all the time, it feels so good!

Witches Night Out

2011-12-18T18:39:00.000-06:00

Ok, let's forget for a moment that it's a week before Christmas, and let's make believe we are still only into October... can we? Ok, great!
The last year in Pensacola has been great, and I have been fortunate to meet and become friends with some really incredible people. You know the type you can get together with and just have loads of fun, sans drama or backbiting? I like that type!! Each year at home my family has their annual Halloween Party, and I'll admit I get a little homesick during those times, but this year I decided to get my awesome friends together and have an awesome Halloween party myself! Let me tell you, I don't think I've ever had so much fun with such a great group of girls!

The first part of the night we meet at my house for dinner, drinks and treats. Here's a glimpse of what we ate:

All of the girls dressed in their witchiest best, and looked SO CUTE!!

We played a "wink murder" game, where each person was given a slip of paper that told them they were either the murderer or how they would die. The "killer" would slyly (or not so slyly in our case! Ha ha... I didn't know I picked someone who wasn't the best at winking, pair that with some HUGE false lashes, made for a difficult time (Sorry, Anna!!)) wink at a person, and they would have 5 minutes to "die" by however it said on their cards.

You try winking with these bad boys on!!! :)

The first one was PERFECT... my friend Queli (hi Quel!) was to die by choking, and everyone just got their food and was sitting around the table to eat when she started choking to death! I literally thought she was really choking to death, it was that believable!

She started the night off right, and everyone followed suit with the dying. We had a death by laughing, death by a swarm of bees, death by tickling, death by drowning, and death by dancing.

I was too busy laughing so hard that I didn't get any pictures or videos of the actual death, just the end result! :) The girls all acted out their parts so well, there was no way to choose just one winner!!After the dinner and fun we posed for some pictures. I seriously love these girls, they made the night so much fun!!

The second half of our night we went over to the Pensacola lighthouse for a haunted night tour. There is a lot of stories about it being haunted, and everyone you ask has a different opinion, but we just thought it would be a fun Halloween thing to do... little did I know what we would be in for!
My attitude in going was that I just thought it would be cool to see the area at night from the top, I had no expectations or desire for "ghostly" encounters. We made our way to the top and saw the most incredible moonrise I have ever seen! The moon was full and it was a burning orange color, it was so neat, and no picture I took could do it justice! I was glad we got there when we did, any earlier or later we would've missed the whole thing and that was one of the neatest parts!

Us at the top

Of course, no trip to the Lighthouse is complete without posing for pictures on the way down!

The second part of the tour was of the house and keepers quarters. This is where all the strangeness went down! We started upstairs where you look at some bedrooms. Stories were told of the people who lived in the lighthouse throughout the years, and some who still live there (ha ha ha). I'm a believer in spirits and things, and I don't discount their presence, but I am skeptical at some of the stories I hear. Anyway, as we were walking down the stairs, my friend Queli was the last one coming down when she swears she heard a whistle. She made her way down the stairs where the rest of us were and told me about it. She then told me to take a picture and see if anything/anyone was in it. I did that, saw nothing. Here's what it looked like:

As we were standing in this hallway, looking into the parlor and hearing more stories, I had my camera around my neck and turned on, but my hands were nowhere near it. All of a sudden my camera made a noise I've never heard before, but it was similar to the noise it makes when it goes off, just with a weirdness at the end. My friend told me to hurry and snap another picture, to which we saw nothing.

After that part of the tour was finished *and I had the daylights scared out of me with some goofing off*, we were waiting to go to the keeper's quarters about 15 steps up the tower, We were all waiting in the same hallway that my camera went wonkey, just at a different end, when my friend Queli was leaning against a door that led to the basement that is under renovations so no one could go down there... well, as she was leaning against the door we all heard a big BANG, as if someone had pounded it with their fist! She, being the person who scared me to death 3 minutes earlier, now had the daylights scared out of her by something that was not like you or I (We confirmed with the workers that no one was in fact downstairs)! She moved, we all commented about the wierdness of it when all of a sudden my camera does the wonkey thing again. I quickly snap a picture, to find nothing. At least not yet. After we were done with the tour, we were in my friends car when she asked to see some pictures from an event I had earlier in the week. As we were going through my pictures at BOTH the times my camera went off we found these:

Why had I not thought to look BACK at the pictures after it happened was beyond me, but I assure you that both times it happened my hands were no where near my camera and I did not take those pictures! There were a few other experiences I had in the Keepers Quarters, cool breezes mostly, that lead me to believe the lighthouse is in fact haunted. Everyone can form their own opinion about it, but as for me- I am a believer!!
The Lighthouse Tour was the perfect way to cap off one of the best parties I've ever had. The company was wonderful, food good, and we had SO MUCH FUN! It will forever go down as one of the best Halloween memories I have! I hope to continue the tradition as the years go on!

20 Month Fun

2011-12-18T17:30:00.001-06:00

Wow, my son is officially closer to being two than he is to one... I know, I know, it's been that way for a couple of months already, I just can't believe the news yet! :)

Ok, while I am somewhat in denial, there are other things that make me acutely aware of just how close to two he is! Temper tantrums? They are starting! We've only had one good one to date, and all I could do was laugh at him! But boy is he dramatic! On our last vacation to Jacksonville he showed us just how "big" he has become by learning to climb out of his Pack-and-Play each night. Oh joy! Not only that, he was also able to open the door at the hotel (which had no lock or sliding lock thingy) so he could escape whenever he felt it was a good idea. He's been acting very "grown up" these days!

At 20 months he is 25 pounds and 34 inches... exactly have my size! He wears mostly 18 month clothes still, but continues to be at the awkward stage where 18 months is too small and 24 mos/2T is too big. He wears a size 6 shoe, and has graduated to a size 5 diaper!
   He's made some pretty good strides, moving more and more into the independent toddler category. He is very talkative, and is pretty good at telling you what he wants. Things I hear on a regular basis that come to mind are: juice (which I've discovered is just a drink in general), "more please" which happens generally anytime we run out of whatever we are feeding him. Sometimes he will randomly come up and say it, at which it becomes a fun little guessing game as to what it is that he is wanting more of. He has discovered the word AND meaning "No!". While he can sometimes use it in a good way (ex: Answering no to a question I asked him), he is VERY good at letting us know when he's upset with something we've done or said ("No, no no no no!"). My favorite is when I say something like, "Should we go get ready for bed?" to which he replies a big fat "NO!". Oh yes, the joys of a toddler! While he's loving no, he still goes through his "Yeah" phases each day. We enjoy that time, as you could imagine. He's also mastered the word (and meaning) "out"! It usually comes when he is in his crib and we are just getting in there, or when we are in the car and we stop at our destination and he wants to get out the second we put the car into park! Other things he's really good at saying *some are repeats here... just thinking off the top of my head* is fish, book, car, jet, good night, amen (at all the right times! although, it sounds more like me-men), mama and daddy, cat, cow, banana, please, cookie, peach, y'all, hi and bye, ouchie, What's that?, cheese, wow!, ball, baby, beach, bath, Elmo, and most recently Baby Jesus and Santa. He is sure to inform us when things are hot or "brrrrr". Or when things stink, he says "Seeeeeeew!" and crinkles his nose and shakes his head. Each day it seems he adds a new word to his vocabulary, and Adam and I both agree that once he picks up on talking it will be very difficult to make him stop!
    He can also say and point to most of his body parts, including: hair, ear, eyes, nose, teeth, chin, shoulders (can't say just yet), nipple (yeah, don't ask!!), belly, knees, legs (can't say, either), feet and toes. Adam works with him all the time on this, and it's so funny to hear them go back and forth. And the nipple thing- I'll just tell you he is pretty good at Houdini-ing out of one arm of his shirt and he will pull it down and point to his tiny nipple and say exactly what it is. Strange kid! :)
   I mentioned earlier that he's very good at saying Elmo. This kid is IN LOVE with the red furry creature!! He doesn't love Sesame Street really, but put in Elmo in Grouchland and he is a happy camper! While I'm not a huge fan of my son staring at a TV all day (no, he doesn't, but you know what I mean!), sometimes it is nice that he is now interested in it! It made our road trips go very smooth, and I assume it will do the same for our upcoming move. We've also got our favorite Elmo books, games, and furry red slippers. I'm pretty sure that when Santa pays our house a visit this year there will be a few Elmo surprises in there for Eli!

Eli continues to be a great traveler, a true blessing! In 3 weeks time we put 5,000 miles on my car, and this kid did it with very few complaints or melt downs! That is a lot of time for an adult to spend in a car, let alone a toddler! He did such a great job, and we are so thankful he's so good in this department as there is a lot of it in our future!
We were able to visit with our entire family for Thanksgiving in Texas, and Eli sure loved being the center of attention! He wowed his captive audience with his funny faces and many of his tricks. He can jump super high, run really fast, and make anyone smile and laugh. He's good at being a goof ball! I hope his funny personality will make him lots of friends quickly when we move from place to place.

He continues to be a lover of anything outdoorsy and fun. We have been blessed with good weather the last few weeks in Florida (we're talking 70's people! Shorts and shirts for us!) so he has been able to still get in a lot of playing time outside. In fact, the pictures taken for this post... they were taken December 16th... not bad, right?! He loves a little "car" thing we have for him where he sits in and we push it from behind- he insists on multiple walks a day in that thing. His most recently love with that car and being outside is when it gets dark and we get to go around the neighborhood and look at all the Christmas lights and decorations in it. That is his best time of day!
He still is napping pretty good- he sleeps about 12-14 hours a night and will take one really good nap (3-4 hours) a day. I am SO blessed in this department! The few times we have been without a nap, or when he goes a few days of not getting good sleep (hello, vacations!) he gets pretty cranky and tough to handle, but once he gets his sleep back in him he becomes the happy baby we know and love!

This little boy continues to bring so much joy and love to our family! Adam and I recently had an awesome date day that we were able to spend some time together without the little guy, and we both laughed at how you constantly think about your child, even when you are able to have time away from them. Watching him grow and develop has been so fun, and I consider myself lucky I get to do so. 20 months ago, I sure didn't know what I was in for! Nor did I believe I could ever love someone the way I do him! :)

Seawall Runs

2011-12-18T15:40:00.000-06:00

Earlier this year I was introduced to a little area on base that has become my slice of heaven... I'm talking about the seawall. Every place I live I try to find my "happy place"... a place I can go to relax and just take it all in. Each city I've lived in it always revolves around water in some way or another, so it was no surprise that I would fall in love with the area! All it took was a simple invite to go running with someone who was basically a stranger to me at the time, and I couldn't be happier that I went, as it has provided hours of happiness for Eli and I, as well as some others we introduced the place to.

The reason I go there is fairly simple: to log a good run. I know if I'm there I will put in my best effort and run hard, and being out in the open with so much to see and to take in makes the time pass so quickly. I have logged several miles on that path, and have relieved a lot of stress out there. To some that doesn't seem like fun, but to me it is amazing. There is always something to see out there, whether it be as simple as boats in the water or airplanes in the sky. If you're lucky you can catch some dolphins playing out there, and we've seen more than enough jelly fish to last a lifetime (they were so bad this year!). We love to watch the fish jump and the birds dive into the water. We also have fun watching the crabs scurry along the sand, disappearing into their holes.
Here are some pictures of the jellies that were EVERYWHERE this year!

I try to always reward Eli for being so good by letting him play on the beach afterwards. It's a win/win!

Eli and his BFF Eddie

I am going to miss this place when I am gone, and will think of it often until I find my next happy place!

Sending him off with a bang!

2011-12-12T22:46:00.000-06:00

The last day my dad was in town I had something SUPER exciting and fun in store for him! I know someone that is on the Blue Angels team, and when you have an "in", they allow you to come watch the practice from their hangar and bleachers, and afterwards you get to meet the pilots and crew and get pictures taken, yada yada yada. I've wanted to do it for some time, but hate asking favors of people so I never did. That all changed when my dad was here, as I knew he would LOVE the experience! Let me tell you, it did not disappoint!
Part of the thrill of being there so early is that you get to watch them prepare the planes for take-off. These men busted their butts to get things ready in a speedy manner, and it was so cool to watch them do the pre-flight inspections.

My favorite thing about being up close and personal is that we were able to see the personalities of the pilots. For example, they come out looking all macho and cool (Umm, because they are!),

and they stand in formation for a second, still looking cool. As each pilot walks to his respective plane he does a perfect left turn (left face, maybe?),

This goes on one by one (and you will notice how they walk in perfect unison... it's incredible how smooth they are!)

and when it got down to the last two guys, the funniest thing happened:

Shoulder bump because the CO can't see us!

Ok, peace out! See you in the sky!

Last one in...

My dad caught the entire thing on film so perfectly, it was such a funny thing to see because they have this professional air about them, but when you see that happen you can't help but laugh and realize that they might be some pretty cool guys who like to have fun, too! Anyway... next we watched them get strapped in and ready to go... like I said before, the crew doing it worked at such an impressively quick pace, they were a lot of fun to watch!

Then the fun part... taxing to the runway and preparing for takeoff.

Once the practice began I could see my dad struggling with the same thing I always do... do I watch the show through my camera and get as many shots as possible, or do I watch it with my eyes and keep the memories in my head. He managed to do both pretty well, I think, and took some really great shots!

They were short a pilot... his wife was off having a baby or something (remind me: I need to have words with her! ha ha, totally kidding!) so we didn't get to see any of the cool solo tricks, but I think my dad was still pretty impressed! Another "perk" of being where we were, is that we were able to watch one of the planes come in and land and take off (all within about 2 minutes tops) because he had blown a tire. When the guys got the call on the radio he was coming in, they SPRINTED (and I mean, ran as fast as they could!) to the back up plane (they always have one on hand at shows) and prepared it for him to come back in and switch it then take off right away. It was impressive to get to see that happen, as I didn't even know that it was a somewhat regular occurrence.

Watching the practice was a thrill for my dad, I could just see it! Getting the VIP treatment was pretty cool, too! We walked away with yearbooks, posters, stickers... all sorts of goodies! Eli was even offered a pair of official Blue Angel ear protectors to wear, to which he refused. This kid doesn't even know how lucky he is! ha ha! As much as he loves watching jets, he found a puddle to jump in and that's what he did the majority of the time we were out there! Silly boy!

Best seat in the house!

They guy who we were with only has 3 girls and was surprised at the difference between his kids and Eli. He said he was all boy, for sure! That white shirt didn't live to see another day after this experience! He had mud EVERYWHERE!

Once the practice was over and they taxied back, we were able to meet with the pilots and a few more crew members that came out, and get a picture taken with them. It was such a cool experience, a real treat! I was really impressed at how genuinely kind each of them we spoke with were. Not only are these men insanely talented, they are kind too.

Check us out! Don't we look cool!! Ha ha!

After the practice we still had a couple hours until we needed to head to the airport so we made one more quick stop to the only place he hadn't been... the Pensacola Lighthouse. Luckily, Adam had just finished up with work as we were heading that direction so we sent Eli with daddy so we could both climb to the top and enjoy ourselves (no kids allowed under a certain age/height).

My dad was impressed with the view from the top... how could you not be!?! With all things aviation on one side, and nothing but white sand and beautiful water on the other- it's a breathtaking sight for sure!

When it came time to finally pack him up and head towards the airport, I had a mix of emotions. I had THE BEST TIME EVER with him, and was so happy to have him with us, and I was SO sad to see him go, Eli too, but I kept telling myself I couldn't be sad because a week ago I didn't even know what I was in for! I needed to just be happy for the time we had together, and trust me- I am. Even now, three months later, I still stand in awe of the big surprise! I think about him leaving and tear up (ok, I'm an emotional wreck! Ha!) I think about how Eli woke up the next day and laid on the floor by the closed bathroom door and said "Boppa! Boppa!" and pointed under the door as if he was in there and would be coming out. It killed me driving away at the airport and hearing my poor baby cry for him, but it touches me to know that Eli has such a love for him at such a young age. My dad is someone who we love so much and miss all the time, and having him here with us was the greatest time we have ever had! We love you , boppa! Come and visit us any time!!

Flight Line Trolley Tour and Battleship Memorial Park

2011-12-12T00:35:00.000-06:00

After the couple days of rest, we hit day 5 hard and managed to pack our day full of everything we could! Our first stop was the trolley tour that takes you to the hangar behind the Aviation Museum, as well as around to the aircraft they have parked by the flight line. The tour guide was friendly, but somewhat opinionated, and said a couple of things that didn't sit well with my dad about the role that the B-17 played in WWII. Beings that my dad has studied all there is about the subject, I'd say he's able to call someone out on their misinformation, but he's not the type to do so. Other than that minor detail, it was neat to see the "behind the scenes" (if you will) of restoring the aircraft, and hear the different stories behind each plane that was out there. Unfortunately, my attention was limited because Eli was trying to dive out of the trolley window, but what I heard I was impressed by. I wish I could recall everything that was said about the planes, and hope to go back one of these days before I move to really listen and take in the stories.

After the tour we ran inside the Museum to the Cubi Bar Cafe so my dad could show us a picture he had been talking about since his trip there a couple days earlier.

That is a Navy plane creeping up and scaring an Air Force Plane... my dad liked it! :)

The Cafe is really awesome. Everything in the place was brought over from a famous Cubi Point Officers Club that was frequented by many military members in the Philippines. It was famous for a "plaque bar" where transiting squadrons retired old plaques and commissioned new ones to commemorate each WestPac tour (deployments). In 1992 the base was closed, thus closing the Cubi Club, and everything from the original Club, plaques, chairs and all, were shipped to the museum. In 1996 the museum was being renovated and they had changed the entrance (the original being where the Cafe is now) and they were looking for something to do with that area, rather than just have all of the cleaning supplies stored there, and they decided to bring back the Cubi Club, and the plaques were placed on the walls just as they were when the Cubi Club had closed. Pretty neat, right? I'm sure to many of the men that went through that place so many years ago, seeing it brought back to life has to be amazing, and would open the floodgates of memories! Another reason I love the museum so much... so cool! It also happens to serve some of the most delicious cookies ever, so if you find yourself in the area and looking for a treat- I highly recommend them!
After the tour we decided to grab some of the delicious cookies and hit the road towards Mobile, Alabama. In the Mobile Bay sits the Battleship Memorial Park, home to the USS Alabama (an old battle ship), the USS Drum (a submarine), an aircraft museum, as well as various memorials. This was something that had long been on my bucket list, and I was so excited to have the chance to go with my dad! Having Eli with us made things a little complicated, mostly because of the many stairs involved and a rambunctious child that wants to run and climb on everything, but we really had a great time!

The ship is HUGE. Technically, it's half as long as the Empire State Building is tall. It weighs more than 44,500 tons, and is 194 feet tall (taller than a 20 story building!). We spent so much time on her, exploring every thing we could and I am CONVINCED we didn't even see half of what there was to see! Some of our favorite spaces, in no particular order, would be:

The dental "office"... I'm a dental nerd no matter what!

Printing press... reminds me of my grandpa.

The Machine Shop

The Galley

More of the Galley

More Galley... dishes.

The galley was interesting to me, because I can only compare it to the galley on Adam's old ship (the USS Princeton, much SMALLER) and in comparison it was HUGE! It would have to be, though... The cooks had to prepare more than 7,500 meals a day, over 50,000 a week, and more than 2.5 million meals a year, ALL IN THE MIDDLE OF THE OCEAN! I throw a fit trying to figure out three meals a day, seven days a week with several grocery stores around me. Perspective? When I think of what really goes into running an operation this big (feeding all the men alone is a huge operation. let alone thinking about laundry, doctors, berthing (sleeping quarters), what it takes to operate a ship, and fighting a WAR! Gives me so much more respect for what the military does on a daily basis... I doubt I could even grasp the complexity of it!
Ok, enough of that! While the restored areas were cool, some of the neater areas, in my opinion, were the ones that were a little more weathered, showing the true signs of age and making me really respect the vessel for it's role in Naval history.

Probably the absolute coolest part was something that we just so happened to stumble upon. It was a hidden area, that of course Mr. Detail Oriented (my dad) would find, and we had to crawl under where the big guns were then up into a tiny opening until we climbed into what seemed like the control room for the guns! What we found in there was incredible!! I'll let the pictures do the talking:

Do you see how high up here I am, mom? Cool!

He couldn't get up the stairs fast enough!

The battleship was a neat thing to explore, but little did I know the other neat things we would be seeing this day! After getting off the Battleship, we headed towards the small Aviation Museum they had on the property. (I say it's small, but I'm comparing it to the one we have in Pensacola that is huge!) There were some pretty impressive aircraft there! One was the Lockheed A-12, a reconnaissance aircraft built for the CIA as an ultimate spy plane. It initially flew in 1962 and could fly at speeds over Mach 3 (or 3 times the speed of sound... 2,035 MPH at over 30,000 miles... can you say fast?) I've seen two others in my lifetime, one in New York and one in San Diego, and the older I am the more I can really respect the aircraft for what it is and what it is capable of doing. Just look at the thing... isn't it incredible! Pictures can't even do this thing justice!!

A few of the other aircraft we liked:

After visiting the planes, we went to tour the USS Drum. I was pretty excited, this was my first time being anywhere near a submarine!

The whole time I was in there, I was trying to imagine myself living on that thing in such tight quarters, submerged for several days on end, without being able to see the light of day. No thanks! Some cool facts about her: She is the oldest submarine on display in the world! The crew consisted on 7 officers and 65 enlisted men. She could travel at about 20 knots, and had a maximum diving depth of 400 feet. What was really impressive was they way they designed the thing to get maximum use out of the space. Every nook and cranny had something, and I could imagine there wouldn't be much space for personal items (I had to laugh at this, having a flashback to when Adam deployed and watching him carry on his computer, play station, clothes, boom boxes, and a million other things!). One thing in particular that was a little scary was the berthing area that was right next to where they stowed the bombs!

Imagine having to sleep next ton one of those things! I doubt it would make for a good nights sleep! Once again, I'm going to let the pictures do the talking, as there are no words to explain how awesome it was!

Captain E, driving the sub!

Aren't all of those dials and levers and shiny things just every kids dream!?! Eli was in heaven playing with everything, and I was tired of chasing him so I just let him! I figured since the thing was docked on dry land, chances are he couldn't hurt anything! Ha ha!

Our adventures didn't end there for the day. On the way out of the park we made a quick stop at the memorial area. It was very well done, and nice to see a tribute for the many men and women who paid the ultimate price and sacrificed there all for the freedoms we enjoy on a regular basis!

And as if this wasn't the neatest day, there was one more surprise the Memorial Park had in store for us... my first ever live viewing of an ALLIGATOR in the wild! Holy scary, this thing stalked us I swear!!

Creepy, right?!?

The day finished on a high note- I took my dad to the famous (in this area) Lambert's Cafe... home of the throwed rolls! (No, seriously... they throw rolls at you when you are sitting at your table!). My dad really enjoyed it, and I was thankful for the opportunity to take him!

First time at a beach on the Gulf Coast...

2011-12-11T20:03:00.000-06:00

The 4th day my dad was here was pretty low key. We got up and went to church together, came home and relaxed, and later in the day decided to head over to Johnson's Beach so he could see the beautiful place we talk about so much.

Truly, a trip to the gulf coast wouldn't be complete without a trip to the beach, and beings that he had never been, we had to make it there at some point. Unfortunately, we went later on in the day and the sun was going down, but he and Eli enjoyed the time they got to spend there.

As you can see, we played until it was too dark to be out there. Eli had a blast because we hadn't been for awhile (too many jelly fish this summer!), and I think boppa was pretty impressed and had fun, too. I'm glad we made it out there before he had to go home.

Day 3 of Adventures with Boppa...

2011-12-11T19:44:00.000-06:00

The third day my dad was in town we weren't able to do much together until later that night because I already had some obligations that I couldn't get out of. Ok, so I had a boating trip with the youth that day, but I was in charge of the food and drinks, and I didn't want to dump it on someone last minute, so I kept the plans. This gave my dad an awesome opportunity to go to the Naval Aviation Museum on his own and look at every last inch of it, without anyone telling him where to be or what to see. To say he was in heaven would be an understatement! Looking through his pictures has been a lot of fun, it's amazing the different perspectives people have on the same things! He is SO detail oriented, and snapped pictures of things like the welding, or the nuts and bolts on a plane. He used my camera, and all of the photos were uploaded to my computer and I have had the best time looking through them and seeing things from his perspective.
Examples... My dad's pictures:

VS My type of picture:

See what I mean?!?
That night, once we were all back together, we grabbed dinner and came home to watch the great University of Utah vs BYU rivalry game! And let me tell you, it was great!! Well, that is, if you are a Utah fan!! With the conference changes made this season, the game fell a couple months earlier than it normally does and at first I hated that, but being that we won (oh did we win!) I've decided it's not so bad because we have an extra few months of bragging rights. :) That might not always work in our favor, but for now I'll roll with it!
Getting to spend time with my dad and have him around was seriously so awesome. I don't think I'll ever forget it!

Jam Packed Fun!

2011-11-30T01:03:00.000-06:00

*This post is a follow up to one that was three posts down about the surprise of my life when my dad showed up on my doorstep one day. I typed the post up several days ago and forgot to change the date when I posted it so it is showing up later on, in case anyone is wondering how my dad mysteriously landed in Pensacola!*

The next day that my dad was here, we woke up and really had nothing planned. We just decided to head out and see where the day would take us! Looking back, I'm shocked by how much exploring we were able to do in such a short period of time! The first stop this day was the T.T. Wentworth Museum in downtown Pensacola.

I had never been here, and had only heard things about the play area but not the museum itself, so I really didn't know what I was getting us into, but it did not disappoint! The museum is in the old courthouse building and is made up of several different pieces from T.T. Wentworth's personal collection, as well as many artifacts from the early days of Pensacola. His personal items had us scratching our heads a time or two, but the early artifacts were very cool! Here are some of my favorite things I saw:

Leather Soles to Shoes, Circa 1540's

An old apothecary case

Clothes and a small Bible from the Civil War Era

An old toothbrush made out of ivory.

There really was SO many different types of things to see there that it would be major overload for me to try and add all of the pictures! He did have a few personal items that T.T. Wentworth collected that were more "commercial" and pretty cool:

He had an entire room full of coca cola products!

You know I love baseball!

A size 37 shoe that belonged to a man that was 8 feet and 9.5 inches!!

A petrified cat they found between the walls during a remodel- eew! :)

Eli hung in there pretty good and was rewarded with a trip to the play area they have indoors! It was a neat little area, with different "themed" areas for the kids to play in... such as a ship, a house, the woods, general store, tree house, etc. It's a great place to let kids run free and use their imagination! Other than Eli, there were just two older boys in there so he pretty much was able to have his run of the place. I think now that he's getting a little bigger he might enjoy it even more, and I won't have to worry so much about him climbing onto things and getting hurt.

You want to see what I mean about climbing:

My child climbs on EVERYTHING!!!

After we left the museum we took a stroll through downtown Pensacola. The area around the museum has some archaeological sights where they have uncovered different buildings and such, so we checked those out as well. It really was during this time that I discovered such a love for this town, and really started to appreciate it and it's rich heritage. It was founded in 1559! That's crazy!

Eli is an archaeologist himself... he discovered a place that once had hair!! Ha ha, I crack myself up! (Sorry, dad... I had to! You know we only pick on you because we love you! :)

After hanging out downtown for awhile we decided to head over to Pensacola beach for lunch and more exploring.

Strangely enough, this was the first time since moving back to the area that I had been out that way! (There are many other beaches much closer to my house, and Pensacola beach is more of the touristy place to go, as opposed to just a day at the beach, imo) Having a fish lover with me, we went to a really cool place on the beach called Flounders. It has a really great vibe, and it sits literally on the beach so Eli had some awesome entertainment while we ate! Win, win I'd say!

After lunch we decided to head over to Fort Pickins and explore that while we were out there. This was another first for me!

As you recall, we recently explored Ft. Barrancas, so it was fresh in our mind, and I was really excited to be able to see the "other" side. This fort was built between 1829-1834 and was used until 1947 when missiles, airplanes and bombs really came into war use. There were over 21.5 million bricks used, and it was built by skilled African-American slaves under extreme conditions. I've survived 4 summers in this nasty humidity and I think that was bad, they also had to deal with yellow fever, heat exhaustion, etc. I couldn't even imagine the conditions! While the fort was one of four built to protect the US Navy Yard from foreign invaders, ironically it's only battle was the Civil War when the country was at war with itself!

The first thing you notice when you pull up to the fort is a corner of the fort that is completely missing. On June 20, 1899 there was a fire that started in warehouse areas that eventually reached a black powder magazine that contained about 8,000 pounds of powder! You can imagine what an explosion like that would've been like! They said that debris was showered over 1.5 miles, and even reached Fort Barrancas across the waterway! Surprisingly only two people died in that explosion!

From far away

Closer

Extreme Closeup

The biggest difference I noticed, other than certain structural differences, was how much more weathered and deteriorated this Fort is compared to Fort Barrancas. I assume that it being on an island that has taken a beating from storms and hurricanes year after year is primarily to blame. That being said, it had fared much better than many homes and hotels that were located on that same strip of land when Hurricane Ivan rolled through town, so that should say something about the solid construction! In fact, the engineering behind the build was quite amazing! They used a reverse arch method so the weight of the fort would be supported on sand, spreading the weight of the fort out so it would minimize settling. I know that wasn't anything new, and is one of the oldest designs out there, but the fact it is still standing is proof that it works. Here are some pictures that will help explain it better:

Showing the double arch on this one...

Which continues on with all of them, it's just that the others are covered with sand so you can't tell. Impressive!

Other things I noticed was that there were a lot more "small" spaces I guess. They had tiny halls that would lead to even tinier spaces. I won't lie, it sorta creeped me out!Ok, that was until I learned that they were mine chambers! They had a tunnel system that led to three chambers, each could hold about 1,000 pounds of gunpowder. Not only could it transport things, it was also a defense against any enemies that could've tried to gain the top of the walls, as they could just blow the mines up as a last resort of defense.

Here I'm just going to let the pictures do the talking...

The cannon you see in the pictures of us holding Eli is the largest smooth bore cannon ever to be used by the US Army. It was installed in 1868 but was never used in combat. The barrel alone weighs 50,000 pounds, and it has a range of about 3 miles. The tracks it is on allows it to pivot so it can be fired in any direction. With a 300-400 pound ball flying at me through that thing, I would hate to be on the receiving end!
The second area of the fort was built later on as the needs to protect the area changed. They used up almost have of the parade ground (the center of the fort where troops would live and train) to build a battery in 1898. In this area they converted to rifled cannons instead of the smooth bore cannon pictured above.

The top of Battery Pensacola from the fort

From the top of the Battery looking towards Fort Barrancas

I think one of the neatest things in this area was the system the used to bring ammunition up and down. Let me show you with pictures (because they do so much better at explaining than I do!)...

Looking at the shaft they would go into...

Looking down it... a little pulley system.

And as you can imagine, Eli was in heaven exploring the area! I felt like I was fighting fire ants off both of us the whole time, but it didn't seem to bother him at all! He's cool like that! :)

Look, ma! A rock!

Me death-gripping him at this point because there was a huge drop to my side! Talk about mom anxiety to it's max!

That night I had a scrapbooking class, so my dad dropped me off and took Eli home, and the boys all hung out for the night. What a jam packed day it was, but SO much fun! It was so awesome having him here to explore cool things with us! Not only did I get to cross things off the bucket list, I got to do it with one of my favorite people in the world!
I have to finish this post with this cool picture my dad took of the Pensacola Lighthouse from where we were... nice shot, dad!

Last time in the "teens"... 19 months!

2011-11-29T08:14:00.000-06:00

This child of mine! What a riot he is! I can't believe how much it seems he has grown just in the last month. Physically, yes, but mentally as well! I've noticed some nice changes... he is more into actually playing with his toys, rather than pulling them ALL out and making a HUGE mess. This is probably my most favorite change in him in the last month, as it helps keep my house in a much more orderly manner. That's not to say it's in any way close to being clean when he's awake, but it doesn't look like a bomb has exploded, so we're improving! :)

He is quite the chatter box! He's starting to put things together into smaller sentences, and actually make sense! The other day Adam and I were talking about how cold it was outside and he piped in, "Yeah, it'sa burrr". We just looked at each other like, "did you just hear that, also?". He's very good at communicating his needs, and I LOVE that.

He still insists on shoes being worn as often as possible... only now it's not just his shoes, he wants us to be wearing ours as well. The funny thing associated with shoes, or feet in general, is when we take shoes off or if we aren't wearing any, either he will make you smell his and say "ssseeewwwww", or he will do that to us. Yesterday I was sitting at my desk and he walked over, grabbed my foot out of nowhere and said it. I cracked up! Smelling feet and making funny faces and noises are often what get him happy at any given moment, and will make him forget a fit he may be having. It has saved teeth brushing time at our house, so I am thankful for that!

He continues to be obsessed with all things jets, planes, cars, trucks, etc. A few days ago a fire truck pulled up to our house and we were outside playing- they were checking the fire hydrant and Eli was in awe! The firemen were so sweet and got out of the truck and walked over to him, took his hand and carried him over to the truck and put him in there, letting him do what he wanted, touched what he wanted, etc. This kid always has the coolest things happen to him! It ended with the lights and sirens blaring, and in invite to the fire station (cookies are in the fireman's future!)... we're going to take them up on that soon! In the mean time, anytime Eli sees a fire truck he gets SO excited! :)

When he bumps his head or stubs his toe or does something that kinda hurts him for a second he goes "oooooo". It's adorable. It's sad, but it's adorable.
He is newly obsessed with dogs. When we're in the house and he hears one barking he will point it out (over and over and over again). He loves when we run into dogs on our walks, especially friendly ones!

He is still in love with books, and we read and read and read all day! He has also developed a new love for Elmo in Grouchland. A friend of ours (Hi, Quel!) gave it to him for his birthday, and in a desperate attempt to clean out my scrapbook room with him in there with me I popped it in... it was like magic on my little TV! He watched for a good 15 minutes solid, and even allowed me to use the bathroom alone!!! (TMI? Welcome to the life of a stay at home mom!) He doesn't care much about Sesame Street, but Elmo in Grouchland is pretty cool!

He is quite sneaky! In flight suits there is a pocket on the leg, by the boot, and many people use that to put their cover (hat) in whenever they are inside (or in certain areas around the flightline where they could be a hazard (fly off and get into the intake of the plane, for example). Anyway, Adam is one that keeps his cover there and every single day, without fail, when he walks through the door he will be talking to me and Eli will sneak by and grab his cover and put it on. Adam never feels it and it cracks us up! Well, recently we were at the last Blue Angels practice before the end of the season and Eli was running around like a crazy person and I was paying more attention to the show than to him (mom of the year!) and I turn around and he's got someone's cover on his head! I was mortified! The hard part was finding who it belonged to, as many students will come over to watch it (it's right by their building), but luckily this time there weren't many and we returned it to its rightful owner. The guy was really cool about it, and was shocked that he didn't even notice! I was a little embarrassed, but mostly just had to laugh about it. His dad thought it was pretty funny, too! Sneaky boy!

This little kid is SUCH a mama's boy! He's getting some serious attachment issues, which I may be over-exaggerating because I know it could be much worse, but sometimes it's hard to know he's going to be upset when I'm not around, even if it's with his own dad. I'm hoping a vacation with the family will help that ease up, as it did while I was in Utah over the summer, but only time will tell. For now I will just be thankful that he loves me so much! :)

This little guy just keeps getting funnier and crazier and more hilarious every day! He keeps us busy, running (not walking) everywhere, and is a little ball of energy, and we love him SO STINKIN MUCH!! I swear when I think it can't get any better... it does!
*Picture disclosure: These pictures were taken on base for FREE, and while I am extremely grateful they did that, it just reinforced my hatred towards "posed" studio pictures. Never again! Oh, and it also taught me to always dress as if I'm going to be getting my pictures taken... part of the attachment issue is that he would not let me put him down to take these pictures, hence the reason I am with him in one of them (the others were the last few taken when he FINALLY warmed up and would smile!) Luckily I had been to a baby shower that morning so I looked half decent, but oh my could you imagine what it could've been! Ha!*

Neglect

2011-11-29T01:03:00.000-06:00

Dear Blog,
Sorry I have neglected you lately. My life has been full of wonderful things, and I can't wait to share it with you! Unfortunately, it is a crazy time for me so I'm not sure how quickly I'll be around these parts, but I hope to catch up sooner rather than later, because I have SO MUCH to talk about! :)
Hope to see you soon!

Me

The Surprise of My Life! {Which resulted in a tour of my husband's work... finally!}

2011-11-10T21:08:00.029-06:00

I have gotten so behind on blogging, I can't even stand it! I do have a good excuse though, my computer decided it was time to end it's ~~short~~ life, so the motherboard gave out on us and I have been patiently (or not so patiently, depends on who you ask!) waiting for our new one to be built and shipped so I can catch up! Good news is, it's here and set up. Bad news is: I went on vacation and added another list of fun things to blog about and I feel that much more behind. Oh well, there has seriously been so many awesome things going on to not blog about, so once again I am going to make that attempt now to catch up. My goal this time is to say on it... we will see how that goes!
    A couple of months ago (see, I told you it was bad!) Eli, Adam and I got the surprise of our lives! Looking back on it now, I still can't believe it happened but I'm so glad it did! What was it you ask?? Well, let's just say on September 15th when I woke up and planned my day, it didn't involve finding my dad at my doorstep somewhere around 3:00 that afternoon!!! Here's how the story went down...
   The women of my family all planned a trip to California for a week, and my dad had been wanting to come out and visit us in Pensacola for awhile but we just never sat down to schedule anything. I had been taunting him with pictures of the Blue Angels practicing for several weeks, saying things like "wish you could be here!"... little did I know he had planned a trip out here and was able to keep it a complete surprise from us, which itself is shocking, but the fact that no one budged on it was even more crazy to me! Looking back, I should've seen the signs. Things like him saying "I'm working on it" to my requests to have him come visit, or the way my dear friend (and his accomplice... she gave him a ride to our house- thanks again Barb!!) was so quick to drive all the way to my house to deliver some cricut cartridges I had asked to borrow. Not that she wouldn't have done it anyway, but how quickly that happened was amazing! :) The real sign should've been my sister and the endless phone calls and pestering that day. "What are you doing?" "Where are you going?" etc... the kicker was the time she called when he was on his way to my house (I, of course, had no clue he was on his way!) when she asked what we were doing and I said we were running a quick errand and she flipped- giving me 50 questions:
Lizz: "Isn't Barb on her way over?
Me: "Yeah, we're going to be quick"
Lizz: "Shouldn't you just wait and go after she comes?"
Me: "We're not going that far"
That conversation continued on and was probably the most BORING conversation we have ever had. So painfully boring, in fact, I made up a complete LIE (she knows this!) to get off the phone with her. I told her we were driving on base so I had to hang up... even if that were the case (we weren't in fact on base), Adam was driving and she knew that so I totally could've talked to her!   Anyway, we do our errand, rush to the house and when we pull up my friend is in her car, and I see a man turn away. I didn't look very close, and just assumed it was her husband and paid it no attention. We pull into the garage, I unload Eli and start walking towards Barb and there is my dad, looking us right in the face. To this day I still can't believe it! I was so shocked, I didn't even know what to do! Instead of running to him and hugging him and passing him Eli, which I should've done, I ran to the driver side of the car, grabbed Adam out and said, "Oh my gosh! Look who is here! My dad is here!"   It was the craziest and coolest moment of my life! I guess when you don't associate a person with a particular place, or expect them to be there, it takes you off guard when they are there unexpectedly. At least that is the case with me! It was the best surprise I could've ever had! I don't think anything could ever top it!!!
     Once the shock wore off a bit (like I said before, I don't think to this day- two months later- it really has yet!) we jumped in the car and were off to show him all of the things we've wanted to show him, starting with Adam's work. Apparently it takes my dad coming into town to get a tour of where my husband has been training for the last several months, but I'm glad we got the opportunity to do so!

He first took us to the hangar, and the second my dad walked through the gates he was in aircraft heaven.

We got to tour his command, and see the place where all the "cool" kids hang out (if you've ever been around flight students, you would understand what I mean!). The favorite stop we made was the area that holds their gear: helmets, g-suits, etc. We got to meet with the guys that run the place, making sure my husband is fitted in the correct stuff and well taken care of. These men were some of the kindest I have ever met, very sweet towards Eli, and enjoyed telling stories of all the patches they are collecting on their walls. We left after promising to bring in a patch from my grandpa's squadron- which reminds me, I still need to do that!

Once back outside we had to do the standard picture by the T-6 (after much wailing and gnashing of teeth on my husband's part... it was so cliche' he hated it! Ha ha! We obviously see who won that battle!)

And of course, if there is one little puddle in the area my son will be the one that finds it. Proof:

After the hangar and a tour of VT-10 (my husband's training squadron), we were off to the Aviation Museum for just a few minutes before they closed for the day. We wanted to give my dad a quick glimpse into what he was to expect, and finally let him see what I have been talking about so much.

After the museum we grabbed a bite to eat then went back to my house. I know my dad must've been exhausted because his plane left super early that morning, but he was such a trooper! He didn't complain one bit about us just dragging him right back out the door, or Eli wanting all of his attention, so I know he was probably pretty happy to have us call it an early night. Little did he (or I) know, the adventures that awaited him over the next few days! One thing I can still remember as clear as if it were going on right now was the feeling of shock that he was here with us! Adam and I, as we were laying in bed that night, both said "Isn't it crazy to think dad is sleeping in our house right now!!" What a crazy and wonderful surprise!!

An attitude of Gratitude...

2011-11-01T23:41:00.003-05:00

I love this time of year- the interwebs buzzing with all the things people are grateful for. I'm hopping on that bandwagon because I need to... for myself more than anything. This post started out long, but I'm on a laptop and miraculously deleted an entire post, so this one's going to be short and sweet.

My three faves... 1 year ago outside Dallas Stadium.

    Today, November 1, 2011 I am grateful for the wonderful men in my life. It's too hard to narrow down just one, because I love them and am grateful for them for many reasons. First is my husband, Adam. I am thankful he is so supportive of all I do, and encouraging. I am thankful he provides for our family so I can stay home and play with my lBFF (little best friend forever) Eli. I am thankful he puts up with my craziness, and my mood swings which seem to be happening way too often lately (stressed, much?). I am thankful for the man he is and the father he is. Eli and I are both very lucky.
    I am also thankful for Eli. He is such a bright spot in my life. I love his kisses that are becoming more and more frequent and darling, I am thankful for those especially at random moments. I am thankful that he allows me to see the world through a child's eyes, and is teaching me so much. I am thankful for his patience with me. I am thankful he chose me to be his mom. I love him with my whole heart.
   Third I am thankful for my dad. He's taught me a lot about patience and perseverance. He's been an example to me in so many ways, but also an example to Adam on what makes up a good dad. I love him and miss him each day, and am so thankful to be blessed with such a great father!
Lastly, I am thankful for the many other men in my life. My brother, grandfathers, uncles, cousins, and friends. So many of you are willing to do anything for us, and that means a lot to me. I am thankful for the way each person has individually touched my life, and for the relationships we have.

Happy Halloween (in 2 pictures or less...)

2011-11-01T19:23:00.000-05:00

We hope you had a SpOoKtaCuLaR Halloween!

Look for an exciting post ~~two years from now~~ when we are back in business on our new computer (sad day when the other decided to die... my laptop is not trustworthy to upload pictures to, so that's why there has been no blogging). Hope you all had a happy and safe Halloween! This one was one of our best!

The History of Aviation through my eyes...

2011-10-28T15:34:00.000-05:00

My grandpa passed away ten years ago. I can't even believe it has been that long already, and would be lying if I said I didn't think about him and miss him on a very regular basis. He was a great man. Kind. Soft. Warm. Funny. Pleasant. Did I mention he was kind? In my experience with him, I can't ever recall him being short tempered with anyone or saying anything negative (I'm sure he did, but I honestly cannot remember a time this happened!). Unfortunately it wasn't until after his passing that we learned more about his time as a bombardier during WWII, and the many missions he flew and heroic acts he performed.

My grandpa... 2nd from the Right- he was SO handsome! :)

Grandpa is 2nd from the left, back row.

The B-17 "Railroader" my grandpa flew to Germany in April 1944

My grandpa and some serious "hotties"! Back in Rapid City, SD where he trained for a while.

He was a recipient of the Distinguished Flying Cross because he unloaded and entire load of bombs on his plane using a screwdriver while standing on a plank that was about the size of a 2x4. Incredible and extremely heroic. Perhaps the lack of knowledge I had growing up about his time in the service is what spawns my deep curiosity and respect for all things military related. That, coupled with a recent conversation with a stranger, has really inspired me to learn more about the aircraft and the men and women who have served our country over the years. Luckily, I live in the perfect place to do so!
With the Naval Aviation Museum less than 10 minutes from my house, I would hate myself if I didn't take the opportunity to learn more about the history I am so fascinated by. In the past I have always been in awe over the aircraft, and I feel I have always had a respect for it, but I don't think I have ever taken the time to really know the history and stories behind each one of them. The amazing thing about this museum is that it is FULL of rich aviation history, and I have made it a point this summer to learn more about each one of them. Over the course of what will probably be several blogs, I am going to share what I have learned. I'm doing this because it is not only fascinating, but I find it important and it's something I don't want to ever forget.
This day in particular, Eli and I had a little picnic outside under the jet that he loves so much... I snapped a few pictures that I just have to share...

Cheesy face smile

His feet were too small for one size of shoes, but to big for the other. This picture cracks me up!

The aircraft that really caught my eye this trip is called the "Skyraider" and was flown during Vietnam off the air craft carrier USS Coral Sea. On December 26, 1967, Lieutenant (JG) Bruce Marcus launched from the carrier for a daytime armed reconnaissance mission over north Vietnam. He was over his target when he was met with heavy antiaircraft fire from below, and he sustained several blows to his aircraft. One of those blows took out his canopy (windshield, basically), and once he landed back on the carrier they found that his propeller had been hit as well. The closer picture below shows that blow he took to the prop, as well as the section of the canopy that was removed when he returned back to the carrier. Amazing that he could land that thing, much less make it back to the carrier.

The second aircraft that really caught my eye was the TV-2. I assume it was the polished aluminum that caught my eye, and I had more respect for it knowing the time it takes to make it look good (watching my dad spend several hours doing it on a Duesenburg will give you some serious respect for the craft!). What I really liked was the description they had about the aircraft. The TV-2 was a trainer aircraft, which typically means it is not in the most beautiful conditions, so it said when the flight students in the early 1950's would come to be trained on it they "felt that they had arrived when they checked out in the spit-and-polished TV-2". Now, I'm a newbie in the aviation side of the Navy, but I could only IMAGINE what these men were thinking when they saw such a sharp plane!

The third aircraft we really took a liking to that trip is called George. It's a Japanese plane used in WWII, technically it was called Shiden Kai, but the Americans would use boy and girl names to easily identify the aircraft, so that's how the name George came about. What is really neat about this aircraft is that nearly all of the components are original, so you can see the "love" that went into the aircraft (dents, patches, etc). What you can also see is a .50 caliber bullet hole in the front section of the right wing- proof of it's days in combat!
This aircraft was part of a squadron full of very experienced, top notch pilots. They referred to it as "The Squadron of Experts" and it was commanded by Captain Minoru Genda who was the mastermind behind the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

The reason we have it today is because it was one of 145 Japanese aircraft seized by the Allies at the end of WWII and returned on board an escort carrier to the United States for evaluation. The kicker is that on the rear left portion of the aircraft there is a poem etched into metal in Japanese script that reads, "Though my life may end over the South Pacific Ocean, my thoughts turn to the many springs gone by and those yet to come". I get goosebumps thinking of the pilot that was likely the person to put that on there, and what he was thinking when he did.

Next one up on the cool list that day was the world's first operational Jet Fighter! This aircraft paved the way for all of the other "cool" ones around it!

A few more of our favorites: The Goodyear FG "Corsair" that was in production longer than any other US Fighter of WWII. This one in particular could be used for both carrier-based and land-based Navy and Marine Corps Squadrons, and played a very integral part in the war.

We also liked the duck:

Eli looking up at it... cool!

And this cool helicopter:

It was such a great day of exploring... Eli was an ANGEL, and just sat in his stroller for a good hour and let me really get to look at and study the planes I wanted to see. Anyone who knows my busy bodied boy, knows that doesn't happen ever. To reward him I let him play in the play area and let him pretend he was a Blue Angel... maybe someday kid.

I think he was pretty happy with his reward for being so good! :)

I wish I could put into words the way I really feel about these planes and the history behind them. My dad and I were talking about it, and he said it perfect when he said something to the effect of "It's so sad that people just kinda walk by the plans, look at them and think "that's cool", and keep walking. They have no idea how significant that plane was in history!" I know I've been one of "those people", which is why I am doing as much as I possibly can now to really know about these planes. When I see them I can't help but think of the service men and women whose lives were directly impacted by these aircraft in some form or another. And the families who sacrificed while they were out flying the missions. I often wish I could sit back with people like my grandpa and just listen to the stories, and thank them for what they have done to protect my freedom and serve our country. These aircraft in this museum is the reason we are free today, and I want share the stories with people in hopes maybe it will spark some interest, or at the very least make people appreciate them and see them as more than just a plane in a museum.

Oh So Eli...

2011-10-24T21:52:00.000-05:00

We are at an awkward stage where clothes are either too big or too small, his hair is getting long and unruly, even though I trim it all the time, and most of the time he is covered in dirt... but the truth is, I wouldn't have it any other way. He is such a fun, energetic, excited, happy, smart kid. I love him dearly.

*Pictures taken September 2011*