la pura vida

Christmas

2012-01-08T20:37:00.000-08:00

Sunday, January 8th 2012

We know it's been forever since we've posted anything. Thanks for the nudges. About 2 weeks before Christmas, Tyler picked out a gift for my sister Carrie and was showing it to me online. He then said, "The only question is, how do we get it to her?" To which I replied, "What do you mean how do we get it to her? I thought we were going to wait to do Christmas for them until we see them in February? I guess we could ship it to her if you really wanted to." But, this is what he really had in mind.

Yet another great gift from my amazing husband, for both me and my family. We hope all of you had as an enjoyable Christmas as we did.

P.S. We apologize to all of our friends and family in California for not letting you know about our visit. We trust you know how it is when time is limited. Cheers.

Halloween Half

2011-11-10T09:55:00.000-08:00

Thursday, November 10th 2011

My legs finally seem to be healed, so I guess it's time to blog about our first Half Marathon. The race was called the Provo Halloween Half, and as the name would imply, runners wear costumes. Some funny costumes were Forrest Gump in a full blown beard, a guy in a blow up sumo suit (I was very, very sad when he passed me up), and a pacer pulling a tire behind himself with the words "The Wall" written on it. Let's just say I'm glad I didn't follow that pacing group. Personally, I think the most clever costume was the hare and the tortoise... they were a cute couple.

Well, you might be asking yourself, why on earth did they want to run a half marathon? My most honest response would probably be something like... everyone's doing it. Just kidding. I'll go ahead and make a long story short here... last Easter at a family get together Tyler's brother was talking to us about running and he somehow convinced Tyler (he'd disagree on all of this btw) to run a half marathon with him. And so I was stoked because I had been wanting to run one for a while but was afraid I couldn't. Now with Tyler on board I knew I could do it.

So we trained together and luckily the stroller kind of leveled the playing field. (Just kind of though, sweet Tyler was always so kind to lay low for me). In the end that was my favorite part about the whole thing. Two dreams came true: 1. I was running consistently again for the first time since high school. And 2. I was running with my husband. Loved it!

Come race day we were ready to go (and be done with the long weekend runs)! We met up with Brad and his kids. It was so fun racing with them, even if they all beat me. Tyler paced me for the first 9 miles and then he took off to finish strong. I just want to say, I am so proud of us! It was an awesome experience, maybe someday I'll convince Tyler we should do it again. :)

Our Times: Tyler: 1:37:48, Jen: 1:43:38

The places we've been, the things we've seen. . .

2011-10-16T12:52:00.000-07:00

We've been trying, and trying to find time to finish blogging the rest of our summer, but to no avail. In the meantime, life just keeps on ticking. So. . . we give up. I'm going to briefly re-cap what we didn't blog (so we have it for our own journaling purposes) and then we're going to move on and hopefully we can start posting about real-time life.

Other than a weekend trip to Pompeii, Rome, and Vatican City (it was a busy, but phenomenal weekend), the bulk of what we didn't blog about was England (where we spent the vast majority of our time). We aboslutely loved Cambridge. Studying there was great. As was living there. We really lucked out and we're able to rent a two-bedroom flat belonging to a young professor and his wife and toddler while they were away for the summer. It was recently built, in a great area, and had toddler accessories that made life so much easier (toys, highchair, changing table, and crib). Jen bought a used stroller and we were set (and she sold it before we left so it ended up costing practically nothing). In our spare time during the week, we loved exploring the city and colleges, jogging, grocery shopping and figuring out how to live in a foreign place. The people we met and interacted with were wonderful. We spent every weekend exploring other areas of the country (mostly in the south). We saw some truly spectacular places with oh so much history. We also were able to see a couple of outdoor Shakespeare plays, attend a classical concert inside King's chapel, and go to an outdoor concert and fireworks show on the grounds of a castle - complete with WWII plane, costumed characters, and cannons (Battle Proms). And just a recommendation, if anyone is ever in England, be sure to schedule some time to check out the amazing gardens. They may not be on all of the tourist itineraries, but they sure should be.

All in all, it was a fantastic experience and we're very glad we went. There's so much to see and learn in this huge world of ours. Some of the learning takes place according to plan. . . but so much of it happens when we put ourselves in places beyond the realm we know and comfortably call home. Perspective is an interesting thing.

Scotland

2011-09-25T20:14:00.000-07:00

Sunday, September 25th 2011

For one of our weekend trips while we were in Cambridge, we drove to Scotland with Jen’s family. It was a long drive and Jen and I had to go into London the day we left so we got a late start from Cambridge and didn’t get to Edinburgh until late at night. We spent Friday in Edinburgh, Saturday in the Highlands (morning around Loch Ness and afternoon headed down towards Glasgow), and Sunday in Glasgow so Jen’s family could fly home to the US that morning. It was the end of their trip with us and we were sad to see them go. It was sure nice having them come visit England and Scotland with us. After they left we drove down to see the Maxwell clan’s castle and we stopped to see Vindolanda and Hadrian’s wall (the northern frontier of the Roman empire) in northern England on our way back to Cambridge. We really, really liked Scotland.

Here are some pictures:

Edinburgh

Loch Ness and the Highlands

Maxwell Castle (Caerlaverock)

Vindolanda and Hadrian's Wall

Adriatic Sea

2011-08-29T19:56:00.000-07:00

Monday, August 29th 2011

Venice

Jen covered Venice in our last post, but it’s worth noting that sailing out of Venice actually ended up being much more impressive than we anticipated. It’s amazing that they can sail such a huge ship in and out of that port. As Jen mentioned in our last post, we probably had some of our best views of the city from our ship as we sailed away.

Koper, Slovenia

We were honestly a little bit bored here. It’s a nice, peaceful little city but there isn’t a whole lot to do and we didn’t go on any excursions so we just spent a few hours wandering around.

Ravenna, Italy

We again didn’t go on an excursion and just planned to spend the day at the beach. . . but it wasn’t really our kind of beach. We played in the sand for a little bit, ventured into the cold water (not very far) and then decided it was time to head back to the ship (Eliza was in dire need of a nap and we were all roasting in the sun.

Bari, Italy

We joined a group that went to explore Alberobello which is a quaint city of Trulli (see pictures, the Trulli are the building) in the country-side. It was really very enjoyable. One of those places where you probably would never plan a trip just to go there but you end up there as part of a trip going somewhere else and you’re glad that you did. It’s almost kind of real-world Disney-esque. . . or maybe something from the Shire.

Dubrovnik, Croatia

This was probably our favorite stop. It’s just beautiful. Croatia and the coastal areas around Dubrovnik are probably worth their own trip. The people we met and talked with were very friendly. It’s the first time Jen or I had ever been somewhere where a serious war has taken place that we were old enough to remember. You can still see the remains of the bombings. At the same time, the progress since the war is pretty remarkable. We went out to the country-side to have lunch at a traditional farm. They had some musicians performing and Eliza just danced and danced and danced. There was also a 10-year-old girl on the trip who adored Eliza and Eliza just couldn’t get enough of her. Jen and I really enjoyed the chance to interact with people. We also stopped to see the historic fort/city of Dubrovnik. I don’t know how to describe it other than it kind of reminded us of the Caribbean forts we’ve seen (Puerto Rico and Santo Domingo).

Dinner

We sat by an older Israeli couple each night for dinner. Their first night they sat at a table with some really loud kids and so they asked to be moved. . . and ended up at our table. We were a little worried about Eliza but she was fine at dinner and we really enjoyed the company. They had very unique world perceptions and ideas about religion, politics, etc. . . and it was nice hearing their point of view. She’s an art history professor and he’s a former Olympian (with several gold medals) who is currently working in the healthcare field (research on Polio and its after-effects). We were their captive audience each night (and they, ours).

Last Day in Italy

We rented a car in Venice and drove up and around Lake Garda. We really had a good time exploring and just stopping where we felt like stopping. It would have been nice to have a little more time but we had to catch a flight to England from the Verona airport in the late afternoon so we were pretty limited on what we could do. We ate some yummy pizza for lunch, did some hiking, and then just enjoyed the scenery as we drove along the lake and then back to the airport.

Sunsets at sea. . .

2011-08-21T20:42:00.000-07:00

Sunday, August 21st 2011

Way behind, and so much to remember, here is my (Jen) rundown of our first encounters with Italia.

Italy Day 1 {Thursday, June 28th}
Drive to Charles de Gaulle Airport. Return rental. Check in. Eliza falls on face, bites her lip. Mom gets blood on her shirt. Embarrassingly reassure onlookers that Eliza is ok. Eat one last Pan au' chocolate. Go through security. Stall smelling perfumes. Eliza grabs glass of coffee beans. Eliza falls, gets glass splinters in her fingers. Mom gets blood on her shirt. Clean Eliza in bathroom. Embarrassingly reassure onlookers that Eliza is ok. Stall playing with wind up car. Hit a few people with car. Fly. Arrive Milan Malpensa Airport. Rent car. Take pictures of marks on car. Drive. Check out Lake Maggiore. Search for food. Search for toilette. Can't find food. Can't find toilette. Sneak into hotel to go pee. Settle on gelato. Communicate using Spanish. Order from mom and pop. Mom and pop give free cone to la bella.  Admire lake. Drive back to airport. Communicate using Spanish. Eat first Italian meal at airport buffet. Pick up Kristin and Lauri. Change diaper in public. Drive to Brescia. Check into Villa Fenaroli. Sleep.

Italy Day 2 {June 29th}
Enjoy free breakfast.  Enjoy real hot cocoa. Find a laundry. Buy soap. Run laundry. Watch a lady wash clothes without soap. Talk to owner of laundry. Find out you aren't supposed to add soap. Pretend we didn't use soap. Drive to Lake Garda. Look for food. Realize restaurants take "siestas". Finally find a place. Annoy waitress who's missing "siesta". Eat. Walk around town. Look at castle. Take a dip. Shop. Gelato. Back to hotel late. Squeeze into restaurant just before closing. Annoy waiter because restauraunt should be closing. Chase Eliza around restaurant and hallways. Enjoy dinner. Eaves drop on concert outside. Enjoy rain. Sleep.

Italy Day 3 {June 30th}
Drive to Verona. Tour Arena di Verona. Casa di Giulietta. Grafitti, balcony, statue. Battle crowds. Artisan sews Eliza a paper with "Verona." Take pictures. Eat lunch. Shop. Buy a purse. Play in fountain. German boys play with Eliza. Mom asks Tyler to record. Stranger asks Tyler to take a picture. Mom and Tyler will forever resent stranger. Battle crowds. Notice purse is falling apart. Get to car garage. Find bathroom. Find no toilette in bathroom. Go pee in hole in ground. Get splashed with pee. Wash legs in sink. Drive to airport. Get tickets for bus. Ride to Venice. Go our separate ways. Lug suitcases around Venice. Arrive at Hotel Canal Grande. Take pictures of hotel. Take pictures of Venice. Look for food. Indecisive about food. Buy take out pizza. Eat pizza on canal. Enjoy sunset. Sleep.

Italy Day 4 {July 1st}
Breakfast on the canal. Walk around Venezia. Market. Get lost in Venezia. Piazza San Marco. Enjoy music. Enjoy overpriced tart. Rain. Eliza charms cellist. Pigeons. More pictures. Buy pastries. Eat pastries. Decide the French are better at pastries. Try to nurse in public. Try to get Eliza to nap in public. Wait for Kristin and Lauri. Try on masks. One last lunch with Kristin and Lauri. Say goodbye. Back to hotel. Boys playing soccer in court. Boys share ball with Eliza. Freshen up. Go out. Tyler buys a rose for Mom. Tyler buys rose for Eliza. Find gondola. Stunned at price of gondola. South African couple stunned at price of gondola. Decide to share and split. Enjoy gondola. Gondolier sings. Gondolier tries to hold Eliza. Twice. Have dinner. Get dinner on shirt. Get dinner on the floor. Enjoy Venice at dusk. Sleep.

Italy Day 5 {July 2nd}
Breakfast at hotel. Catch water taxi to Murano Island. See glass shaped into a vase. See glass shaped into a horse. See expensive glass. Taxi back to Piazza San Marco. Walk to hotel. Get luggage. Lug luggage across Venice. Ride people mover to cruise port. Check luggage in. Check selves in. Eat cookies. Pass security. All aboard. Check out room. Check out boat. Eat. Enjoy balcony. Eliza naps. Sail out of Venice. Get best views of Venice. Freshen up. Wrestle Eliza at dinner. Enjoy dinner. Enjoy balcony. Enjoy sunset. Sleep.

{For details on photos click on slideshow}

13 Months

2011-07-27T10:36:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, July 27th 2011

Before I (Jen) add to our travel updates I wanted to write a few things down about Eliza before I forget. Today she turns 13 months old and I just can't believe the amount of growth she has had in the last month. Before she was one we would occasionally be lenient on giving her the "wait until they are 1 year old" foods because we figured, what is so magical about 365 days? Boy, I'm starting to think there really is something magical about it. It seems overnight my baby grew into a toddler. Walking, constantly jib jabbing, thinking and acting differently... her own little person. Here are a few fun quirks/abilities:

*dancing with her booty stuck out, hips swaying side to side
*talking very enthusiastically with her pointer finger
*copying mom and dad, especially with the phone
*gets frustrated while trying to put her shoes on herself
*open mouth (thankfully not slobbery) kisses
*likes to feed mommy
*still loves mommy feeding her (any tips on weaning?)
*has learned to say: bye bye, diddy (daddy), and mamma
*however she forgets words she's already learned.... currently uses mamma for almost everything
*calls Nana mamma more then Momma mamma
*giggly, playful
*very attached to her blanket
*likes to snuggle on pillows or blankets, a signal she's ready for bed
*loves watermelon, chicken, pasta and bread, but has become somewhat picky and off and on with what foods she'll eat

and now I shall pull out the brag photos {these two collages actually have 9 pictures, click to see them all}

Birthday celebrated at Nana & Grandpa's {June 4th}

Memories from San Clemente

Just some fun pictures I took in San Clemente {5/23}

{Day 364}

We love you Eliza! Happy 13 months!

France

2011-07-11T14:08:00.000-07:00

by Tyler. little extras by Jen. (Jen: This is kind of fun… like an old couple who talk over each other while telling a story).

As far as big cities go, we really enjoyed our time in Paris. There are so many amazing things to see. We also felt very safe and enjoyed the efficient (Jen: efficient in Tyler's mind, I personally had no idea what was going on) public transportation system. We rented a small studio apartment so that we could use grocery store food to help save some time and money (Jen: and save Eliza from having to sit through more meals at restaurants). This ended up being a great idea. We loved the fresh pastas and breads that we were able to pick up and quickly prepare when we got home from site-seeing late at night. It didn’t get dark until almost 11 each night so we usually didn’t get home until around 10 or so.

Our first experiences in Paris were: 1) walking out of security at the airport without our checked bags (oops!) (Jen: See, I just follow Tyler even when I know he missed something) and having to walk back through a door that said: “No Re-entry. Violators will be prosecuted,” 2) a very grouchy shuttle driver, made all the worse by traffic, (Jen: I thanked heaven for the fact that Eliza slept the whole ride, one peep from her and I was certain he was going to kill us all) and 3) after dropping off our bags at our place we walked to a café and I decided to be brave and just order something off of the menu without really knowing what it was so I ordered Carpacio (a familiar word) and luckily the waitress said: “Do you know what that is? It is raw beef.” I quickly said no thank you and she recommended a cooked beef dish. A few moments later she brought what I tried to order to a guy sitting next to us. . . and I was sure glad I had changed my order! A raw slab of hamburger meet just doesn’t seem very appetizing, no matter what you call it. Anyway, things were off to an exciting start, but definitely mellowed out. Neither Jen nor I knew more than a few French words and we found the language to be almost completely unrecognizable as it was spoken (Jen: And vice versa.. I tried to order a pastry called "breast de Paris" and the lady totally didn't understand me. Go figure, the word "Pear-es" is unrecognizable if you are from "Pear-ee"). I could recognize written words but didn’t have a clue how to pronounce them. Luckily we found the people we interacted with to be charming and patient. Overall we found the food to be a little bit crazy (it now makes sense why you don’t see many French Restaurants in the US). . . so we mostly stuck to pizzas and pastas (I had pizza with cream and runny fried egg on it which wasn’t too bad – but that’s about the craziest thing we ate). We did love their baked goods. Especially Pain au Chocolat in all of its varieties (who knows if I’ve spelled that right). We visited a bakery at least once a day to pick up something new and yummy. (Jen: mmm…. Pain au chocolat….)

We saw many of the famous sites in Paris: Notre Dame, Saint Chappelle, Louvre, Musee de Orsay, Eifel Tower, Arch of Triumph, Champs Elysees, Champs de mars, Jardin de los Tulieres, and the Palace and Gardens of Versailles (among other things). Our favorite thing (by far) was the garden of Versailles. Jen was in seventh heaven. (Jen: Loved, loved, loved it)! We lucked out and ended up there on a Saturday when they have music playing and turn on all of the fountains. The garden really comes to life when the fountains turn on. It was truly extraordinary. We also really liked climbing the Notre Dame towers and the Eifel Tower (we climbed the stairs at the Eifel Tower to the second level which was like 700 steps the same day we climbed the hundreds of stairs at Notre Dame – we felt quite proud of ourselves). The top of the Eifel tower is extremely high and has a great view but we probably enjoyed the towers of Notre Dame better because they only let groups of 20 up at a time so you don’t feel cramped and jostled the whole time.

One of the highlights of our trip was having my sister Lauri and sister-in-law Kristin meet up with us for about 10-days. (Jen: Poor Tyler had 3 ‘wives,’ and lucky Eliza had 3 moms). It was a last minute decision and within 48-hours they planned, purchased, and left on a trip that would span three countries. Talk about adventurous. We met up with them in Paris and they were with us there, in Versailles, Normandy, Mt St Michel, Northern Italy, and Venice. They added lots of laughter, fun conversations, and smothered Eliza with love, especially during our long car rides. They packed light (one school backpack each) and did everything they could to adapt to our plans and not cause delays or deviations. It was all very impressive and we’re really, really glad they did it. The only thing that could have made it better would have been the addition of their husbands . Hopefully on some future trip.

Driving in France was much more tame than in Ireland, (Jen: except for the navigator who kept getting us lost) although there were way more cars. We pretty much avoided driving in Paris itself. We loved driving through the Normandy region and were awed by our visits to the D-day beaches. We arrived too late to visit the American Cemetery but spent (Jen: by chance) sunset atop some cliffs where a group of Army Rangers had scaled the cliffs and driven out the Germans who were bunkered down there. It’s hard to imagine the courage that it took to accomplish what was accomplished that day (Jen: THIS is the memorial beach to go to).

We also celebrated Eliza’s 1st birthday in France. It was mostly a travel day so our celebration was limited to sticking a wood coffee stirring stick into a madeline at our hotel late at night and singing Happy Birthday. Eliza loved the 4 on 1 attention, singing, and clapping. Her smile stretched from ear to ear! Between this and the delightful birthday party that Jen’s family threw for her before we left, Eliza felt very loved. In fact our whole journey she has felt very-loved. People adore her and love to smile, waive, talk to and touch, and even occasionally kiss her on the head or hands everywhere we go. And she loves it. Having mastered walking in Costa Rica and Ireland and feeling that everyone around her is as friendly as can be, she started venturing further and further away from Jen and me while we were in France. She definitely liked to stay within eye contact but she’s getting braver and soon we’ll have to seriously consider buying a leash :) . . .okay, not really but one can wish, right? (Jen: ...wait, why not really??)

Anyway, here are some pictures (Jen: They look best when you click on them to make them bigger):

Saint Chappelle

The view from the Notre Dame towers

Eliza loved playing with the pigeons in the square

On the first level of the Eifel Tower (way up there!).

Waiting for the subway

The Louvre

The star of the show. . . Eliza loved the attention she got from everyone, especially her aunts.

The palace and gardens of Versailles are incredible.

Jen was sooooooo stoked.

Luckily we figured out how to do naps in the backpack

Beaches of Normandy

US Army Rangers climbed these cliffs to drive out the entrenched Germans

Outside the beautiful chateau we stayed at in Normandy. What a find!

Mont St Michel

Happy 1-year Birthday in France!

Ireland

2011-07-01T14:20:00.000-07:00

Greetings from Venice! We’re a country behind on our updates but since I’m doing this from our hotel on the Grand Canal in Venice and don’t want to spend too much time blogging, I will probably only get to Ireland and save France for another day.

We loved Ireland! It probably ranks right up there with Costa Rica as one of our favorite places and a place that might be fun to live some-day. We avoided the major cities and spent most of our time in the more rural areas (our favorite places to travel). Here are some of our favorite things/experiences:

Listening to a couple of teenage boys sing as they played acoustic guitars just outside of Blarney Castle (and yes we kissed the stone :). After hearing those two random boys just playing for coins it no longer surprises us that such great musical talent has come out of Ireland. They were awesome!

We loved the old ruins of castles, abbeys, and churches. They were always surrounded by such beautiful green plants. And they’re everywhere. We would drive along the narrowest little roads in the middle of no-where and come across a little village with some cool old building. It’s all just a little bit magical. Even the sheep that roam around outside the ruins seem to add to the enchantment.

Driving was an adventure. Driving on the right hand side of the car, shifting with the left hand, and driving on the left side of the street were all less difficult than I anticipated. The surprise was the difference in spacial awareness on the left side of the car. . . a surprise that was greatly exacerbated by Ireland’s narrow roads. Needless to say I had a brief tire rub against a curb and bumped our rubber side mirror (no damage caused by either). After that I relied on Jen to help make sure I wasn’t too close to anything (did I mention the roads are extremely narrow). But the car was a must in order for us to explore the way we wanted to. And it actually ended up being a lot of fun. It’s the only country I’ve ever been to where it was a challenge to go fast enough to be driving at or near the speed limit (100 km/h on a two way road that barely seemed wide enough for our tiny Nissan Micra – which lived up to its name in terms of size). When buses are headed your way you just edge off the road into the bushes and let them pass.

What great people (at least those we interacted with). Obviously you can’t judge a country and its people after five short days. . . but we loved what we saw and experienced. Everyone was so friendly, there were lots of young families with kids, and we felt very safe and welcome everywhere we went. Eliza loved the attention and everyone loved giving it to her.

Church was fun and interesting. We were surprised by the huge area covered by one small branch. . . The members we interacted with, like everyone else in Ireland, were very friendly. One elderly gentleman was determined to talk to us as long as possible until we finally convinced him that we needed to leave.

Our Flights: We flew into and out of Cork (from San Jose, Costa Rica to Houston where we ran through the airport and were the last ones on the flight, and then to London where we caught a short Aer Lingus flight to Cork – we flew from Cork to Paris at the end of our time in Ireland). Eliza has been great on all of the flights, especially our trans-Atlantic flight which she basically slept through.

A brief run-down of what we saw and where we went: Blarney Castle and surrounding, Kells Priory, Kilkenny Castle, Killarney National Park, Muckross House and Gardens and Traditional Irish Farms, and we drove part of the Ring of Kelly through lakes and mountains and along the coast.

Anyway, here are some pictures:

Eliza even makes jet-lag look cute!

Very proud of her ability to walk. . .and just one happy baby in general

Kissing the stone for the gift of eloquence - it's blarney, not baloney!

Kells Priory. Eliza loved the sheep.

Jen hardly even wears her hair down. . . but she sure looks beautiful when she does.

Turns out playgrounds in Ireland are just as much fun

Funny camera angle/perspective. I look like a giant and Eliza a small person :)

For you Kim and Aaron

Spacial awareness. . .

Muckross House and Gardens

Killarney National Park

Eliza also loved the small animals at the traditional farms

What a beautiful country!

World Travels. . . again. . .

2011-06-18T05:49:00.000-07:00

It’s been almost two years since our travels around Latin America. We thought that trip was a once in a lifetime opportunity, and here we are in Ireland having set out on another somewhat similar adventure. By mid-August we’ll have spent time in Costa Rica, Ireland, England, France, Italy, and Scotland. The bulk of that time will be spent in Cambridge, England where I’ll be participating in a law summer study program at the university there.

We kicked off our trip with 8 days in Costa Rica with my sister’s Lauri and Celeste and their families. For future reference, it turns out that flying round trip to England costs the same with, or without, a one week stop in Costa Rica :). Lauri planned the whole trip and we were lucky enough to go along for the ride. We stayed in a somewhat rustic, ocean-front house on its own large jungle lot. On our first afternoon, just after Jen and I arrived at the house we were sitting on some rocking chairs on the patio looking out at the ocean when we saw this scene up in the trees just behind the patio:

Long story short, that’s a snake eating a bird with other birds trying to attack. We knew right away that we people were the non-native species in this environment.

The trip included a great balance of relaxation, exploration, animal, beach, pool, and surf time. Eliza LOVED spending so much time with her cousins and aunts and uncles. I don’t think she stopped smiling the whole time we were there. She also decided to start walking without holding on to things. By the time we left she would walk across the room by plotting short 5-15 step trips between objects to occasionally grab on to and reassure herself.

The thing we enjoyed most about the trip was spending time with family. We absolutely love being around both the Wynn’s and the Kennard’s and having them both to ourselves for an entire week was delightful (not to mention that it enabled Jen and I to leave Eliza and go out and surf together on several occasions). Did I mention how much Eliza loved spending so much time with her cousins?

I should also mention that Eliza was GREAT on our flights to Costa Rica and from Costa Rica to Ireland. Altogether I think we’ve spent around 21 or 22 hours on an airplane (not counting any time in the airports) and Eliza has slept and or been very calm with only a few short stretches of restlessness. The only hard part is that she’s only this calm and good on the plane while Jen holds her. Luckily Jen is super-mom and is able to hold her for the entire flights (and even with their combined body heat I think I was still the only one that was hot and stuffy). Hopefully our remaining 20 hours go as smoothly. As a side note, we’ve had to run through the Houston airport twice (both times we’ve been there) to catch our connecting international flight and both times we’ve been the last ones on the plane, boarding just minutes before the plane has taken off. Continental definitely schedules some close connection times, luckily they hold the plane for you.

For memories sake: Eliza rode a boogie board with me, twice. I think she really liked the first time, but by the second she wasn’t so sure. She’s pretty brave when it comes to playing in the ocean and pool. She also is getting better at not letting water in the face (and gasping for air) make her afraid of the water for more than a few moments. We saw all kinds of animals and insects: moths, mosquitos, bees, spiders, snakes, frogs, crabs, sloths, squirrels, monkeys, lizards, iguanas, crocodiles, macaws, etc. . . Jen got stung on the chin by a bee of some kind that was on her towel the first evening we went surfing. Her chin got HUGE over the next few days but is pretty much back to normal now. We surfed several times, one time in the pouring rain with huge wild waves which made it feel almost hurricane-ish and reminded us how little we really are. I caught a pretty big really fast, fun wave and that made it all worth it (and helped me get back to shore). Jen kind of over-extended her arm in the craziness, but luckily she ended up being okay. The last day we surfed we had great waves right by the house and I spent quite a bit of time talking to a really friendly local kid. Jen was in heaven with the wave selection that day.

Anyway, here are some other pictures of our trip:

Yum. . . sand. . .

Wynn's at Outback Jack's - quick meal turned into 3 hours :)

Look at the little baby on the momma's back.

Restaurant in Manuel Antonio with cool tile floors.

After effects of the bee sting. That's one SWOLLEN chin!

Tire swing!


Couples Night Out

Leaping Lizards

2011-05-27T18:11:00.000-07:00

As I was putting together this little video I was shocked at how much Eliza has grown in one month. She looks so much bigger to me now than she did in the photos by the pool. The swimming videos were taken on 5/11. We've been using the hot tub because the pool is freezing and the hot tub doesn't get hot unless you turn the heater on for a few hours. She has been so adventurous in the water... leaping into my arms, not caring if she gets a mouth full of water, and then quickly turning back around, wanting to do it again.

The couch dismount video was taken on 5/14. That morning she surprised us by going up to the very edge of the corner of our bed, and by grabbing the blankets, turned around and lowered herself to the ground. I hadn't realized that I was teaching her how to get off of the bed for the last few weeks. For a while now I've been bringing her to bed early in the morning to nurse. She usually wakes around 5am and so I feed her in bed and sometimes she's wide awake after. So, I lay her on her belly and slide her down the bed to play beside me while I try to get some more Zzzs. Luckily she has picked up on this, perhaps with a little too much confidence. As you can see, she doesn't quite have it down yet... and of course she didn't do it for the camera.

Eliza

2011-05-22T18:16:00.000-07:00

Eliza continues to love life. California has brought new adventures and excitement. She loves getting to spend time with all or her family down here. She loves jogging by the beach, swimming, and just enjoying the beautiful weather. She gets more and more active every day but still definitely needs and enjoys her mommy time with Jen. When I come home she greets me with smiles and laughter. Family life is GREAT! Anyway, here are some random pictures. Jen will fill in more of the details later.

Getting ready for our travels. . .

Time with Grandpa and Nana

Learning to stand up on my own. . . & Loving the attention!

Playing with Momma

Mother's Day fun with cousins at Aunt Bev's house

Four generations

Enjoying our place

Check out our Pads {Part 2}

2011-05-19T09:35:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, May 18th 2011

So, I have to admit that the nice little deal we found at the Best Western exhibited in the last post was via Priceline. So, good luck getting the honeymoon suite, as I know it's now on the top of all y'all's lists. It's definitely on the top of our list of things to do without the baby. She slept rather cozy that night between the two of us. ;)

The next morning, Saturday April 30th, we drove out to Rancho Cucamonga to stay with Ty's sister Lauri and her family. Breaking the drive up to San Clemente like this sure made it much easier for us and Eliza. In fact, it gave us the energy on Sunday to drive all the way up to Ventura and back in order to kidnap my mom for the week. You see, when we arrived on Sunday morning to our fully furnished condo I was blown away (for real this time) with how awesome our place was. I felt like a 6 year old going to Disneyland for the first time, for all day, for everyday, for a whole month. Tyler was so pleased with my pleasure, that he offered another gift on top of it all. He said he'd be willing to drive up to Ventura to get my mom if I wanted. So I selfishly called her and asked her to come for the week. Luckily she was free and wanted to. So, my mom is awesome. And my husband is awesome. And I.... am spoiled.


The living room, a little outdated, but clean and comfortable.

Nice new kitchen.

And, the views.....

From the balcony

Even from our bed

Check out our Pads {Part 1}

2011-05-19T09:31:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, May 18th 2011

Tyler is the king of online hotel shopping, and out of all of the deals and places we've been, we felt this one was worth sharing with all of you. Next time you need a romantic getaway, please do not overlook the Best Western Coral Hills in beautiful downtown, Saint George, Utah. A quaint little motel, with both an indoor and an outdoor pool, continental breakfast, and newly remodeled rooms. The honeymoon suite will blow you away with its 4 poster bed, heart shaped jacuzzi tub, and big screen box TV; complete with crystal chandeliers, purple carpet, and mirrors. Best of all, enjoy a lovely view of the Saint George Temple from your own private balcony. Now, who else can offer all of that in under $50?

Happy Easter

2011-04-24T13:10:00.000-07:00

Sunday, April 24th 2011

"Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing. These are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name." (John 20: 27&31)

Boring Baby Bragging Blog

2011-04-11T10:30:00.000-07:00

Sunday, April 10th 2011

{Just as a warning...Since the fun pictures are in the last post, this gets to be my boring baby bragging post. (If all the text doesn't give me away anyways).}

Can I just say that between 8 and 9 months is a blast? Holy cow this kid is a hoot. Maybe a month ago or more she found her tongue. When she first found it she would stick it out and grab it with her little fingers. She would, and still does, go "la la la" with an exaggerated "a," mouth wide open and tongue sticking out. It is so much fun singing "Elmo's song" with all of its "la la la's." Old McDonald is hilarious too as she tries to mimic the "E-I-E-I-O's." She at times goes about her playing, especially when she's concentrating, with her tongue stuck out, a trait she surely gets from her grandpa and great grandmother on my side.

Eliza also gets a hoot out of biting. I don't know whether I should say that is fun or not. It's really hard not to laugh at her reactions to my reactions. I get stern with her and tell her "no," which just makes her giggle and want to do it more. Eliza can also be really affectionate sometimes. She'll burrow her face into my neck with her mouth wide open, or just push her forehead against mine. Sometimes it's scary, having her lunge at me with her mouth wide open, but I never push her away because I'd like to think I can usually tell the difference between what will be cuddles and what will be mischievous nibbles. Although I sometimes honestly wonder if she thinks biting is good affection.

We've found two fun new games recently. I have a kitchen timer shaped like a strawberry. Little did my family know that when they gave it to me as a gag gift for future "time-outs," it'd prove to be a favorite toy at 9 months. I turn it on, it begins ticking, and then I hide it... sometimes all the way down the hall, or in a room. She has fun looking for it and then putting it to her ear when she finds it. Last night Tyler threw my phone across the room and then called it. She'd go, pick it up, dance to the tune, then come back to us on the couch once it stopped ringing. Back and forth she went. He called the phone over 30 times that night.

Most unfortunately, her easy car travel days seem to be over. She used to be able to travel in the car for hours on end without complaint. Now she gets bored rather quickly and wants to get out. Our drive back to California in a few weeks could be. . . interesting.

She's been crawling off her stomach now for a while... loves roaming around the house and getting into trouble. She stands up and walks along the couch and seems pretty stable on her feet, but she won't walk with someone holding her hands... she just doesn't seem interested in walking anywhere but along the couch. Occasionally she'll stand unsupported for a moment or two, looking pretty proud while she's at it.

Eliza gets really excited when daddy comes home. I'm definitely still her favorite person, but her separation anxiety seems to have faded again. She loves rough housing with daddy, dancing and singing (often in high pitched tones that can be a little unsettling), and playing with friends. In general, she's just a really fun, and happy baby. Now how many times have I bragged about that? ;)

March 2011

2011-04-10T19:26:00.000-07:00

Sunday, April 10th 2011

Just wanted to quickly say thanks to all of you for your kind and fun comments. Makes me want to continue sharing our life in this odd way. What a digital world we live in. Not in a million years did I think I'd ever be a blogger... and yet, here we are.

March 2011 Album

(Click the Album for the link)

Nobody but the Baby

2011-03-18T12:56:00.000-07:00

Friday, March 18th 2011

I laugh when I look at the progression of this blog. Once a travel log, now a full blown baby blog. I guess it's understandable that all we'd ever want to post about is our adorable baby and all of the new things we're experiencing together. But, I realize that some of you might be curious as to what else is going on in our lives. So, here is proof that life does still exist outside of the realms of baby.

Tyler is just rocking law school. He might not appreciate me sharing that with all of you, but at least I'm holding back on specifics. ;) Even though this 2nd semester has proven to be more challenging due to a number of different circumstances and what not, I am sure he'll still come out on top when all is said and done. What can I say, I'm just really, really impressed and proud of my sweetheart. A little while ago he participated in a mock trial competition. It was fun for me to go and watch the first night. Little did we know that a one night commitment would turn into four (maybe five.. can't remember) as he continued to advance and make it all the way to the semi-finals.

Speaking of mock trials, Tyler has also been involved with mentoring a 5th grader once a week, as is the rest of the law school. The law students just recently helped the class put on a mock trial of their own. Tyler said it was a lot of fun, he was really impressed at how well some of the kids did... seriously commenting that some of them could have been in the competition he was in. Tyler's mentee was a juror, so all Tyler had to do to help him prepare was keep him away from the other students... which apparently involved playing mud football.

Tyler has also been asked to serve in our church as Elders Quorom President. I'm not going to define this very percisely, but in general, the Elders Quorom is for the men who hold the Melchizedek Priesthood usually 19 years old and up until they advance to another quorum, usually due to age. (Forgive me for the loose definition). Anyhow, what that basically means, at least from my perspective, is that Tyler usually has somewhere to be every night. *just kidding* But seriously, what it means is,Tyler gives a lot of time and service to the church to help out the brethren and families. For which I am happy and grateful he does so so willingly and lovingly, and I will therefore try not to complain.

As for myself, my accomplishments aren't quite as poignant. As posted earlier, getting the floors vacuumed is a real triumph. Boy, am I a housewife or what? Anyways, for one, I'm missing my parents. They were here a week ago, and needless to say, we love it when they come. For two, what I have been finding myself doing a lot lately is babysitting. (Again, just a boring housewife).

About once a week my friend and I swap kids so we can get out and do stuff, and every once in a while Eliza's cousin Jacob will come over. It's fun having her play with other kids, and watch and learn from them. I swear she learned how to crawl from Sophie who is almost a year old.

I also have been asked to give service in our church as a counselor to the Primary President. The primary is for children ages 3-12 and they spend 2 hours on Sunday learning about Jesus and the gospel. It's a fun assignment, the best part: listening to the children sing.

As a couple, we just recently have gotten into indoor rock climbing. My favorite part about it is that I don't have to be as good as Tyler in order to enjoy it with him. We are also preparing for our exciting summer ahead. Starting in May we will be back in Southern California for a month as Tyler has an externship with his previous employers in their legal department. Then, in June we will have a fun week with some of Ty's family in Costa Rica. Pura Vida Bebe! Straight from there we head to Europe where we'll tour the UK, France and Italy, before Tyler begins his study abroad in Cambridge for 6 weeks. We are so excited, but a little nervous at the same time. Eliza seems to be a good traveler minus the sleeping in strange places part, oh and the riding in the car part, oh and sitting on the plane in one spot for countless hours part. So yeah, we'll see how it all goes.

Anyhow, that's us in a nutshell right now. We feel so blessed for all that we have, especially each other.

Copy Cat

2011-03-16T22:47:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, March 16th 2011

I've got to admit I'm on a bit of a blogging frenzy right now and I still have lots of things I want to post. Please feel free to enjoy or ignore.
The other day as I picked Eliza up out of her crib she started reaching for the light switch. I thought it would be fun for us to play with. So I flipped it on and off, and tried to help her do it too. As I was doing it I kept repeating the words "up" and "down." Don't ask me why I didn't say "on," "off" but for some reason I didn't. After a few times of me repeating this Eliza copied my "up." What's funny is it didn't appear to be a fluke, as she repeated it again and again. Who knows when she'll begin to understand the meaning, but it sure is cute either way.

I love this new stage where she is starting to copy us a little bit. Sometimes she'll copy us waving, or noises we make with our lips... my favorite is when she copies us laughing, even if she doesn't get what's funny.

Ingenuity

2011-03-15T20:13:00.000-07:00

Tuesday, March 15th 2011

Today I decided I couldn't wait another day to have the floors vacuumed. It has been weeks since it's been done and the cheerios are starting to colonize. As I was trying to figure out when and how on earth I'd accomplish my one goal for the day, a light bulb came on. I'd put Eliza in our backpack carrier so she wouldn't have to sit and cry the whole time (hence the reason it doesn't get done often). It worked like magic, and by the time I was done she was asleep. As you can see, it tends to do that to her.

Human Jungle Gym

2011-03-15T12:22:00.000-07:00

Tuesday, March 15th 2011

So my parent's came up for another week last week. As always, we enjoyed their company and as always, I was sad when they left. It seemed to really hit me hard this time how nice it is to have extra hands to simply play with Eliza. They left Saturday, and come Sunday night I was bushed. See, here's some pictures of us Saturday afternoon. I was so tired, just zonked, lying on the floor in order to appease Eliza... and here she is having a ball climbing all over me. She just has this need to crawl all over me these days, or pull on my legs if I'm standing so she can stand up too, and then once that gets old, she just wants to be held.... constantly. She is quite clingy (to me and me alone) and it is exhausting!

Mom wake up!

Hello, anyone home?

I shall drool down your neck as I pull your hair...

Or grab your eye...

Or bite your ear... whatever it takes... just wake up!!!

Note, dad was just sitting there taking pictures the whole time.

7 Months 2/7/2011

2011-02-07T20:01:00.000-08:00

January Milestones

2011-02-07T19:59:00.000-08:00

Monday, February 7th 2011

After we came home from our Christmas vacation Eliza decided to do some serious growing up. In just one month she has made leaps and bounds. Here are some fun milestones.

*SLEEP* Although being back in California was amazing, it sure was taxing.  Eliza went from waking once a night for a feeding to waking every 2 hours. Granted, it was my own fault for feeding her in bed, consequently falling asleep with her still in bed, and her therefore wanting to eat all night long as she lied beside her food source. When we got home we worked on it and she now sleeps 10 hours a night on her good days. She still has two to three hard nights a week, especially if our schedule is upside down, but I really can't complain after being a zombie for so long.

*SITTING UP*  In the early part of January she started to sit up on her own. She's taken some hard falls, but now she's pretty good at falling down gently.

*EATING FOOD* So far we've tried rice cereal, green beans, peas, carrots, spinach, mixes of all 4, oatmeal, these baby puff things, and a french fry (thanks to grandpa).  Peas seem to be the favorite so far, thank heavens not the french fry. (She also likes drinking water out of a grown up cup).

*DEXTERITY* I'm so proud of Eliza. She can pick things up with her pointer finger and thumb. It's the cutest thing ever.

*TEETH* Around mid December Eliza's two bottom front teeth appeared. Just this past week she has cut another one on the top. I hope they keep coming one or two at a time because she seems to handle it pretty well that way.

*MOBILITY* While we were at my mom's I left Eliza in the living room for a minute and came back to find that she had rolled all the way across the room. She had been rolling over for a while, but I had never seen her move that far before. Well, besides in her crib... she could move from one end to the other in her sleep, and how she did so was a mystery to us. She now can roll over on the drop of a dime. She can also pull herself up onto her knees from a sitting position while holding onto something, as well as pull herself up onto her feet for a moment before falling back down. She loves bouncing up and down, and climbing all over whoever is holding her. On a couple of occasions she has even come close to getting herself sitting up from lying down. She can move from sitting up to laying on her belly without crashing onto her face, and she can hold herself up on her hands and knees, belly and chest completely off the ground. She has been scooting for a little while now, and her biggest obstacle seems to be her right arm which stays pinned under her body, but today she confidently scooted across the whole living room without the slightest trouble.

*SOCIABILITY*   Eliza has become immensely interactive and social. She loves being around other babies and children and when we are with other people she seems to think everyone is there just to see her. When people just look at her she smiles and giggles with her whole face and body, full of excitement.  I love the fact that my baby can bring so much happiness to others just through her presence.

As you can see, Eliza is growing way too fast, but it sure is fun to witness!

P.S. After I wrote this blog in the morning, Eliza continued to surprise me with her "scooting." I might as well call it crawling because she followed me around the house all afternoon, and got her little hands on quite a few things she shouldn't have. Guess it's time to babyproof.

More Christmas photos from Grandpa

2011-02-07T08:11:00.000-08:00

Holidays

2011-01-25T20:33:00.000-08:00

Tuesday, January 25th 2011

Oh how I wish I had taken more pictures during the holidays. I really regret not having any family pictures. The world just revolves around Eliza I guess. It's a miracle I have even one picture where she isn't in it. (I love you Mom & Amy)! Christmas was great, Eliza and I got to fly out to Ventura a week before Tyler did. It was so so nice to spend time with my family and time back "home."
From Left to Right: Grandpa is reading Eliza her first "The Night Before Christmas." My mom has a picture of us sitting on our Grandpa's lap reading the same exact book. Eliza is a bit too young and the book is way too old for her to sit on Grandpa's lap just yet. Aunt Amy and Eliza surrounded by tons of gifts! Nana and Eliza just playing. Waiting outside for Santa to fly by on Christmas eve, a Ventura tradition. Grandpa helping Eliza open a gift. Eliza enjoying a stocking stuffer the best way she knows how.

Same problem with Thanksgiving. Do you really think it'd be that hard to get one nice picture with the 3 of us? Anyways... Thanksgiving was great. We went up to Wendi's (Tyler's sister). Lots of family came and we had quite the feast.
From Left to Right: I love this progression of Jacob and Eliza becoming acquainted. It's cut off here, but in the 1st picture Jacob's Uncle Ryan is holding his hand for reassurance. 2nd pic, Eliza is more interested in the photographer then Jacob. 3rd pic, eventually Jacob overcomes his bashfulness and the two get a kick out of each other. Aunt Staci loves Eliza. My 1st Thanksgiving! Eliza attacking Jacob, and he patiently taking it. He's going to be a great big brother soon!

random

2011-01-13T21:00:00.000-08:00

Thursday, January 13th 2011

In my attempts to catch up I went through all of our photos since Eliza was born. There are A LOT!!! Here are a few of my favorites.

From right to left: 10/11 @ 3 mo... At this point Eliza was trying to keep the fact that she could move a secret. But... we found her out during naps. (I love the fact that her two fingers are in her mouth too... she hardly ever sucks her thumb... just her two fingers). 10/5 @ 3mo... "I can't really sit up this is scary!" 11/28 @ 5 mo... Just a fun moment. 12/1 @ 5 mo... Alfalfa. 10/21 @ 3 mo... Daddy time. 8/25 @ 2 mo... Smallest swim diaper they make. (I really wanted to see how she liked the pool... but even though it was hot outside, the water was much too cold for her at just under 3 months old). 9/23 @ 2 mo... Mommy time.

Left: 10/9, Top: 8/28 , Bottom: 11/3

Is it the gear or the user?

2011-01-09T20:26:00.000-08:00

Sunday, January 9th 2011

I'm going to be a dork and do a few "product reviews." Partly because some of these items have fun little stories attached to them, and partly because I feel baby toys and gadgets are principally for the parent's sanity, that is, these have contributed to my sanity. Feeling that our baby would do absolutely fine without all of the bells and whistles (and both of us hating having extra stuff) Tyler and I refrained from buying much more then a car seat and a stroller. We got lucky though and accumulated stuff along the way (largely due to the generosity of others), some stuff that I don't see any use for, and some stuff that I now don't know what I would have done without.

Item #1: The Bouncy Seat. This seat was a god send in the early weeks and months of Eliza's life. I don't know if most babies are like this, but for a long while Eliza hated, and I mean hated, lying down. Even when she got old enough to grab at toys and play by herself, she hated doing so in a supine position. For a long time it seemed I couldn't get anything done without making her cry. So, after a little while I pulled out the bouncy seat we had gotten free from the people we bought our glider from. (If you'll remember, Tyler bought me a nice glider off of Craig's list). When Tyler went to pick it up, the man selling it to us gave us a practically new bouncy seat. And when he forgot to give Tyler the attachment to hang toys on, he mailed it to us on his own dime. Nice huh? Anyways, I soon came to find that Eliza liked being in the chair much better than lying down. It was great! I could put her in it and clean the house, or exercise, or even take showers. It was fun for both of us to have her sit and watch me as she learned how to grab toys.

Well, one morning, it had to be close to her 4 month birthday, I put Eliza in the seat in our bathroom so I could take a shower with her nearby. After putting her in I went into the other room to grab a few things. I got caught up in doing something else in the process, until I heard her make a funny cry that I had never heard before. In hindsight, it was a cry for help, but I was so caught up in what I was doing that I continued to work on it for maybe 20 seconds or so, until she cried out again, to which it struck me that I needed to run into the bathroom to see what was wrong. I found her doubled over in the chair her face an inch from the floor, her head resting along the metal bar of the seat. Her right leg was up above her head throwing her in a splits position. I quickly grabbed her and got her out of the seat. Her reaction was priceless, she just smiled and giggled. Well, the story gets better. I decided that the problem was that I didn't strap her in tight enough. So I synched down the buckles and hoped in the shower. A few minutes into it, I hear a loud bump. I look out the curtain, and she had bounced herself forward, apparently so hard that it made the back of the chair pull off the ground. She was once again stuck bent in half, her bum starting to pull out of the buckle such that if I left her she could wiggle herself out. I felt like such a retard. It was obvious she had gotten too big and strong to be sitting in the chair, no matter how tight I tied her in. So, the rest of my shower was spent in a hurry, as I peaked out every other second to make sure she was ok. I was sad to retire the seat that day, it had been such a big help. Which, leads me to my next item.

Item #2: The Bumbo. One thing I didn't mention about the bouncy seat was that it's main problem wasn't that Eliza had outgrown it in size, but that she had outgrown it in maturity. Before she had hated lying flat, now she had begun hating lying at an incline. She was getting herself in trouble by trying to sit up in the chair and thus falling, and getting stuck bent over. So, I decided maybe it was time to actually buy a baby gadget. Yes, I bought the bumbo. I was pretty excited about it because I thought it would do a good job of replacing the bouncy seat, especially since it would allow her to do what she wanted to do so badly... sit up. I was wrong. While it was cute to see her sit up before she could actually sit up, Eliza couldn't,or at least wouldn't, stay sitting straight up in it. She spent the whole time stooped over trying to reach her feet or any other object in grabbing distance. And she would get really frustrated if she was left in it too long. Over time she has become used to it and will stay in it longer, although it isn't her favorite thing to do. It is currently functioning well as a temporary high chair. Don't worry, we stay in arms reach and have the attachable table top on when we have it on the table, I learned my lesson....

So, one day I was getting ready for the day in my bathroom and I set Eliza in the bumbo on the counter so she could look in the mirror and play near me. Now, I know you aren't supposed to put the bumbo on high surfaces, but I always stood right next to her so I figured it wasn't a big deal. (I'm sure you are all thinking I'm the biggest idiot of a mother by now). Well, as I was doing my thing, Eliza saw something on the counter behind her, so she threw herself back to try to grab it, and in one fell swoop, she rolled out of the bumbo, and would have landed on the hard counter, maybe even the sink, but luckily she just landed straight into my mother adrenaline-lightening-fast arms. Again, Eliza thought it was funny, and mom learned her lesson.

Item #3: The Peltors!! You might recall in past blog entries we mentioned that we love ear plugs. Mainly because we love going to noisy places, and love being able to take Eliza with us. For instance, we found that ear plugs worked great at football games and bowling alleys, that is... until we found out that putting small objects in a baby's sensitive ear canals isn't the best idea in the world. (Anyone else noticing a pattern here? Please don't call the CPS). So, after feeling extremely, extremely terrible, and horrified that I might have given my child permanent hearing loss, we bought some Peltors. (Tyler helped me choose this specific brand because Drew Brees, Quarter Back for the New Orleans' Saints, felt they were good enough for his kid to use during the Super Bowl- NY Times). Anyways, we were able to use them at the last football game of the season, and we loved them. I mean, loved them. Eliza was so much more happy, and she sure got a lot of attention. I felt like telling all of the other parents there that they should buy them. BEST. BUY. EVER.

Item #4: The B.O.B. I said I wanted to give the B.O.B it's own post, and maybe someday I will but for now it's going to have to go down as the last, but definitely not the least, in my baby item picks. I doubt my parent's really knew what they were getting me when they bought me the BOB. Or, as experienced parents, maybe they knew exactly. I tend to be a hermit, a homebody, a loner. Whatever you want to call it, motherhood and winter have only worsened the problem. So, the stroller couldn't have come at a better time. It sits in the house as motivation to get outside, breath some fresh air, and be active... All great antidotes for the winter blues. Both Eliza and I have had a lot of fun running on the Provo trail both near home, and up the canyon a bit. Spectacular views, Utah is truly beautiful. During one particular jog Eliza was smiling, talking, and singing for the whole first 30 minutes and stopped only because she got tired and fell asleep. That's when I realized that going outside wasn't just good for me, but for her too. Finally, I've done something right with some of my baby gear! Here are some more pictures of my awesome baby, stroller, and home.

Backtracking

2011-01-09T13:38:00.000-08:00

Sunday, January 9th 2011

Top Left: Naturally everything goes in the mouth when you're 4 months old, but we were still pretty amused when Eliza decided she wanted to suck on dad's plate. Forget the yummy chimichangas, ceramic is where it's at!

Center: At this point Eliza could sit on the couch by herself for a few moments before rolling over. I was also checking to see if the hat fit yet. :)

Top Right: We enjoyed a yummy breakfast with our neighbors downstairs. Squishy was very good with Eliza, even if Eliza did pull her fur.

Bottom Left: A rare moment where Eliza is on her belly and smiling at the same time. Perhaps she was proud of herself.

Bottom Right: We were so grateful Aunt Sandy watched Eliza while Tyler and I went to the beautiful Manti Temple. Although still struggling with her stranger anxiety, you can see someone had won her over.

We Believe!

2010-12-31T16:17:00.000-08:00

Friday, December 31st 2010

Hope you all had a Merry Christmas!

Crazy Fun 2

2010-11-05T10:06:00.000-07:00

Friday, November 5th 2010

Before I could get too sad about my parent's departure, my sisters came up the very next weekend. I felt kind of bad because I didn't realize they would both be here on the same weekend. But I'm not going to lie, I selfishly enjoyed every minute of the loud, cramped quarters.... even if everyone had to sleep on top of each other and share the attention of Eliza. I have to admit, sometimes I get so wrapped up in my own little world here at home that I forget to get out and spend time with other people, so it was nice to have the house bustling with life.

My big sister and our friend Wendy made a road trip up here for a wedding. I wish I could have spent more one on one time with them, but the little bit of time we had was really nice, just to sit and talk. Aunt Amy spoiled Eliza rotten with a whole bunch of Halloween outfits and a costume. If it weren't for her, Eliza wouldn't have had a real costume for her first Halloween.

Tyler and I were just going to dress Eliza up in this mask and cape I got for free. It was kind of cute and funny because it came off of a Build A Bear, but Aunt Amy bought this adorable cat outfit.

Thanks Aunt Amy!

Aunt Lauri and her family came for BYU parent week... it's her daughter Jessica's first year at BYU! If Eliza wasn't over her stranger anxiety before they came, she definitely was after.

Eliza with her Aunt Lauri, cousins Jessika, Kaylee & Saydie, and 2nd?? cousin Brielle. P.S.... we love ear plugs!

To finish the weekend with a bang we had a bunch of the family come over for Sunday dinner. We managed to squeeze 16 people into our tiny apartment. My favorite part of living up here by far is being able to spend so much time with Tyler's family. I couldn't have married into a better group of people.

So, thanks to everyone for making the long trek up here, you are all loved and missed!

Crazy Fun Cont.

2010-11-03T12:28:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, November 3rd 2010

Just wanted to add some pictures I got from my parents from their visit.

Top : Dressed up for Gardner Village. Bottom: Sundance & Beautiful Eliza

Crazy Fun

2010-10-27T16:13:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, October 27th 2010

We've had a couple of awesome weeks here at the Albrechtsen home. Two weeks ago my parents (Jen speaking) were able to come visit us for a week. They rationalized the trip because they were meeting my dad's brother in Yosemite for the weekend. I still can't figure out how Utah was on the way home from Yosemite to Southern California, but hey, I wasn't complaining. It was so good to see them, and so nice to have them give love and attention to Eliza. Lately all she's had around in her life is her dad and I, and I think that was contributing to some serious stranger anxiety. But more than that, there's nothing like the love of grandparents!

Anyhow, although I was able to show them a few new things around Provo (particularly foods that I have come to enjoy...) my mom seemed to have more to introduce me to than I to her, such as "Rod Works" (a cute boutique), "Thanksgiving Point" (awesome, awesome gardens), and "Gardner Village" (...during Halloween... cute, but crazy busy)! We also checked out the BYU Museum of Art, the BYU bookstore, and Sundance which was beautiful this time of year! Just before they were about to leave my dad said they'd like to buy us a jogging stroller for Christmas, so we quickly headed up to REI and bought a BOB!! I am so stinkin' spoiled. I feel like the BOB alone should get it's own post. Needless to say, Eliza and I really love it and are grateful for it! So, that in a nutshell was my parent's visit, unfortunately lacking in pictures because I figure my dad was taking enough for the both of us... the trick now is to get them from him. Love you mom and dad! Thanks for coming!

Our 3 month old

2010-09-27T20:16:00.000-07:00

Monday, September 27th 2010

Today marks Eliza's 3rd month. Neither of us can believe how quickly time has gone by, and how each day she seems a little bit bigger, a little bit smarter, and a little bit more coordinated. It sure makes life bitter sweet. On one hand, it is so fun to see her learn and grow, but on the other, we just want to stop time.

Anyhow, this is probably boring to you all, but for our own record's sake, here is a little bit about Eliza Ann at 3 months:

Eliza loves to smile and talk. She especially does it the most when we sing to her. I'd have to say her favorite happy song is "The Wheels on the Bus," and her favorite comforting song is "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star."

Eliza loves the water. What kind of baby likes to get their face wiped with a wet washcloth? Ours does! She also loves showers, and even gladly lets her head fall back into the cascading water. Eliza also loves bath time, although she absolutely hates it when it's over. No matter how hot we get the bathroom, she screams until she is fully dried off and clothed.

She's getting pretty good at reaching for and grabbing small toys, blankets, my shirt, my hair, and anything else within arms reach.

Eliza seems to enjoy our walks, she pensively stares up at the sky and trees.

Naturally, she does have her moments of pure fussiness. At least once a day she has to have a bout, and it never seems to be at the same time (she likes to keep us guessing). And it seems to me that lately she has been having a hard time with strangers. It probably is just coincidental because it seems a little early, but to me it seems it has been taking her some time to warm up to people besides me and her dad holding her (when I say strangers, I mean our family... she just doesn't know them yet). That said, she did do well at the football game last weekend. On top of that, the little stinker won’t take a bottle anymore.

Eliza has become a good napper and is sleeping well at night. She takes about 5, 1 hour(ish) naps a day, and has been waking up only once in the middle of the night for a while now. Last night she slept from 10pm to 7 am for the first time! I hope we can make a habit of that. The great thing too is that for a majority of the time she doesn't cry anymore when we put her down. Those first few months of enduring her crying herself to sleep have really paid off.

Although we have yet to see what her personality is going to be like, we do know that she has been a rather happy and content baby since day one. We love her so much. Happy 3 months Eliza!

Rolling/Falling Over

2010-09-16T14:07:00.000-07:00

Thursday, September 16th 2010

At Eliza's 2 month check up the doctor asked me if she was rolling over yet, and I said no. He said, "Oh, well that doesn't happen until later anyways." It got me thinking though, how will she ever learn? I almost never lay her down on her back when she's awake because she hates it, and I try my best to do "tummy time" but that doesn't last long either. So, just as I started to make sure we spent more time on the floor (not coincidental that that started happening once we finally got our carpets cleaned and put down a new rug), Eliza rolled over! (Yesterday, Sep 15th). I was so shocked not only at the event, but my reaction to it. Who knew something so small could be so exciting! (At least for a first time parent right?) I know in the video it looks like she's falling over more than anything, and maybe she is, but she kept doing it over and over again every time I put her on her tummy... until of course daddy came home and said, "See if she can do it with her arms spread more apart." Ok, so maybe not then, but still! Way to go Eliza! We love you!

(Ignore my confusion between left and right in the video).

Life in Provo

2010-09-12T13:38:00.000-07:00

Sunday, September 12th 2010

We've now been living here in Provo for one month. Kind of hard to believe because it still feels like we just got here. It's also hard to believe that I've been in law school for three weeks. . . Time flies. Since this kind of doubles as our journal, I figure it's time for an update. We've been enjoying the last little bit of summer. Jen's made several trips to the pool with Melanie and Jacob. We've been on a number of hikes, picnics, and scenic drives through the mountains. And Jen and Eliza went with me to their first BYU football game (we used ear-plugs for Eliza and luckily she slept through most of it). We definitely miss California and our friends and family there, but we're enjoying the change of scenery and adapting well. I'm loving school (even more than I thought I would). We both like our ward and look forward to getting more involved on that front. We like being so close to some of my siblings and being able to do Sunday dinner's with parents and nieces and nephews. We're excited for the unique offerings of being at BYU (devotionals, CES firesides, hearing the Prop 8 lead attorney speak, sports, performing arts, etc. . .). The weather is starting to shift towards fall and there are now orange flecks that have started to appear on the mountains, and while we look forward to the beauty of fall, I think we're both a little bit anxious for what comes after that. We're looking forward to visits from Jen's parents and a chance to see Lauri and Billy in October.

Eliza is definitely growing and maturing faster than we can believe. She's thinning out and getting much stronger. She's much more responsive to interaction and she smiles and occasionally giggles now. She's starting to reach out and grab and hold onto things. We love her and are so glad she joined our family.

Anyway, here are some pictures.

Eliza's way to hike

Hiking

Labor day trip up Cottonwood Canyon with CJ & Jackie

BYU v. Washington Football (the hat's still a bit big :)

Family Picture from Eliza's Blessing - Thanks Kim!

Daddy & Eliza just chilling in Idaho

Eliza's cute bath towel

Eliza's cute game day outfit & cougar hat

Eliza's cute swimsuit

Eliza's cute new second-hand dress

Eliza's cute momma!

Moving to Provo & The Family Reunion

2010-09-04T14:35:00.000-07:00

Saturday, September 4th 2010

Jen and I combined our move to Provo with our trip to my family reunion in Island Park, Idaho. With a lot of help from friends and family (especially Jen's Mom and family) we loaded all of our belongings into these:

And then Jen, Eliza, and I loaded up the Pilot and headed to Idaho. We broke the trip into two days, spending the night in St. George on the way. Eliza did great in the car until the last little bit. We had a great time at the reunion. It was really fun to see everyone (even if we didn't do a very good job of taking pictures).


Waiting for Old Faithful


Eliza's first trip to Old Faithful.

Aunt Lauri always finds a way to be the one to hold Eliza :)

After the reunion we took the long way down to Provo, making a loop through Hayden Valley in Yellowstone, down through the the Teton's and Jackson Hole, past Bear Lake, and finally into Utah.

Hayden Valley and the bison herd.

The Tetons

Bear Lake

We finally met all of our stuff in Provo (about a week after packing it in California) and with a lot of work and help, especially from the Watson's, we moved into our new home for the next three years.

Remodel

2010-09-01T09:59:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, September 1st 2010

Before moving, we added a bathroom and kitchenette to the bonus room over our garage. I decided to do the work myself and it was a great learning experience (not to mention a lot of fun). My brother Ladd helped me run the water supply pipes and taught me how to sweat copper pipes. My brother John helped put handles on and hang the doors on the cabinets (because I was really out of time). And I had a company come cut holes in the roof and do the wall texture. But other than that. . . I just bought a couple of "how to" books, got city permits, and went to work. Luckily Jen trusted me because I honestly have very little experience with construction and had no idea how to do what we wanted to have done. . . but I have to say, I'm really quite proud of how it all turned out.

Before

After

Pictures of Eliza

2010-08-29T15:30:00.000-07:00

Sunday, August 29th 2010

Here are some pictures of Eliza's first two months. This is just kind of a random collection. . . They're in chronological order (oldest pictures first):

Eliza loved/loves sleeping all wrapped up in her swaddler.

Eliza and her friend Grace who's a few months older.

First 4th of July. The cute outfit was a gift from her Nana.

Doesn't look like it, but she did really like this carrier.

Grandpa sure loves Eliza!

So does mommy!

Eliza and her cousin Ty.

First pony tails. Eliza had about twice as much hair on the back of her head as she did on the rest of her head.

Meeting Grandpa and Grandma Kay for the first time.

Happy in our new home.

Learning to enjoy tummy time.

Eliza and her brand new cousin Brielle.

She get's that from her daddy.

Eliza's Blessing

2010-08-29T11:24:00.000-07:00

Sunday, August 29th 2010

So we're really, really far behind in our posting and we'll probably try to get caught up over the next little while. . . but it may take some time as life is very BUSY right now (and always).

Eliza's baby blessing was August 1st. It was a very, very special occasion for all of us. . . but especially for me as her father giving her the blessing. Those who participated in the blessing were: Myself, her Grandpa Alexander, her Uncles: John, Ladd, Billy, and Dennis, her Bishop (Calvert), and our good friend Spencer Morris. We were blessed by the spirit and really felt the profound love of our Heavenly Father. We also felt very loved by all of the family and friends who came to share this special day with us. Here are a few pictures from that day:

3 Weeks Old

2010-07-19T12:28:00.000-07:00

Sunday, July 18th 2010

Today is Eliza's 3rd week. I can't believe in only one more week it will be a whole month; feels like a lifetime that's passing by way too quickly. My friend recently said to me something like, isn't motherhood the most wonderful thing in the world? And it made me think, yeah... and how did I ever think that it would be anything less? If God's greatest glory is His children, and He, in His great mercy and love has given us the ability to share in that glory, then how could it possibly not be the greatest joy we can ever experience? I am just overwhelmed when I think about how happy and full of love I am for my daughter, and how her birth has increased my love for Tyler. It's such a love that kind of scares me sometimes... to give over your heart so completely to someone, knowing that if anything ever happened to them it would just break you. But I suppose because of that complete surrender, it makes me even more grateful for the gospel, and grateful for the temple with its promises of a family that will last through the eternities.

Alright, enough of that... a few fun stuff about our little June bug. We went for a checkup Wednesday and it was confirmed that yes, I did make (and am continuing to make) a big baby. She has gained a whole pound since birth and is in the 90th percentile for both weight and length. She has had 3 nights now where she has only woken up once for a feeding. Needles to say, I am stoked. Our sister-in-law Kristen got us on a parenting book/philosophy called "Babywise" and as frustrated as I have gotten with it, I think it just might be working at helping her develop good feeding and sleeping habits. (I'm almost ready to recommend it to friends). Eliza is very happy and smiley (especially right after her naps), and is slowly starting to find her voice. We just absolutely adore the new addition to our family, and love getting to know her with each new day. Surely, this is La Pura Vida.

My how you've grown (7/19/2010)

2010-07-19T12:26:00.000-07:00

More Photos

2010-07-13T18:05:00.000-07:00

Tuesday, July 13th 2010

Tyler's niece took some professional photos for us. (At the begining of her blog she has a fun explanation of how she's Tyler's niece). Link: Tickled Pink Studios. I hope no one throws their babies out after seeing these (love ya Kim Q).

Eliza Ann Albrechtsen

2010-06-29T15:49:00.000-07:00

Tuesday, June 29th 2010

Born 6/27/2010, 8:54AM, 8lbs 11ozs. Happy and healthy as can be. Mom was amazing!

Upholstery

2010-06-09T17:51:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, June 9th 2010

Thanks to my AMAZING sister Wendi, Jen and I have an awesome upholstered rocker/glider to complete our nursery. Jen really likes this style of rocker and we just decided they were way too much brand new. . . so I picked up a used one off of Craigslist. I kind of surprised Jen with it and unfortunately the fabric covering the chair was in pretty poor condition. I thought we could just buy a slip-cover. . . but they're expensive, hard to find a good fit, and don't look great. Then I thought we could get it upholstered. . . talk about EXPENSIVE. I was just about to tear it apart and try to figure it out myself when Jen told me that she had heard that my sister Wendi had recently done some upholstery so I decided to contact her. She was willing to help, of course (Wendi is probably one of the most self-less people alive), and we decided to take the chair to her house while we were in Utah for Nathan's wedding. So not only did she and her family house us and feed us while we were up there, she also gave up a ton of her time to help us with this project. We had no idea how much of her time it would require and when I apologetically told her this, she told me that she knew how much it would require when she agreed to help and she was glad to do it (did I mention she's AWESOME). So thanks to Wendi's oversight, direction, and sewing and some intense manual labor by Jen and I, we now pretty much have a SWEET new comfortable rocker (and pillow that Wendi threw together to complete it) that will look great in the nursery.

Just FYI

2010-06-08T11:52:00.000-07:00

Tuesday, June 8th 2010

For those who may be anxious about my progress, I thought I'd let all of you know that today I went in again for a fetal stress test. Every time I go in (2x a week at this point) the nurse tells me I'm having contractions, and she tries so hard to explain what they feel like, but I just don't notice them. The way she talks, it seems she's honestly worried that I won't come in to the hospital on time because I wont know what a contraction feels like... but I'm pretty sure I'll know.
Last Friday (June 4th) we saw the doctor and I was 2 cm. and 50% effaced. As exciting as that was for the first 24 hours, the excitement eventually faded as we realized that it could still take a couple of weeks for labor to begin. Which is okay by me right now, because I haven't been able to complete my nesting. I should also mention that both our ob/gyn and our perinatologist feel rather confident that our little girl will be just fine... thanks for all of your faith, prayers and support. My love, Jen

Slideshow from Jen's Graduation

2010-06-03T19:23:00.000-07:00

Thursday, June 3rd 2010

A couple of people in my family (who weren't able to attend Jen's surprise graduation party) asked me if I would make sure they were able to watch the slideshow I made for Jen. Rather than burn multiple DVD's and send them around, I decided to post it unlisted on YouTube (at least for now). It's nearly 20 minutes so I had to break it up into 2 separate videos on YouTube, and you'll need to use these two separate links (copy and paste each into separate windows) to access it.

Part 1 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=owe2jrKW3ns

Part 2 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_MvEGgemhBg

Surprise! (Jen's Graduation Party) (6/3/2010)

2010-06-03T11:03:00.000-07:00

Latest picture of our baby (4/1/2010). . . isn't she cute!

2010-04-15T11:45:00.000-07:00

Florida

2010-04-15T11:34:00.000-07:00

Thursday, April 15th 2010

As a result of all of our traveling Jen and I ended up with some left over flight credit that was going to expire soon. With Jen's schooling and pregnancy we decided her Spring Break would be our only chance to use it. . . and after the cool winter, Jen wanted to go somewhere warm so we set off to southern Florida for 5 days. It was a really fun trip and while it probably ended up being warmer in California (it ended up being Summer weather here the week we left), it was still a lot of fun. Neither of us had even been there so we decided to spend some time in the Keys, some time in Miami, and some time in Hollywood. We really enjoyed the diversity of the people, the warm-ish weather, and the beautiful surroundings.

We got there in time to watch the sunrise.

And after a quick breakfast we headed south to the Everglades.

This fruit stand in the historic tropical redlands had a huge variety of fresh fruit (including a really unusual one called Guanabana from my mission). We got delicious fresh fruit shakes before heading off to the keys.

We spent that afternoon and the next day in the keys. We ate yummy food, went canoeing, and just enjoyed the view as we drove around.

We then spent a couple of days in/around Miami. Again we loved the food and beautiful beaches/scenes. We ate lunch crepes (and considered opening a franchise back home), speciality burgers, cuban baked goods, and Benihanas for Jen's birthday. There are some great state parks in southern Florida with awesome beaches and views . . . perfect for sunset (even on the east coast!)

The Hollywood Beach area ended up being just as beautiful as the rest. Although we did run into some things we weren't really used to when going to the beach:

1) Flags, not just for dangerous currents (red) but warning about dangerous marine life! (purple)

2) Having to walk from the car on a boardwalk over a river, past lizards and snakes, and through a jungle to get to the sand.

3) Ocean water that looks like this. . . a little more inviting than the pacific. . . but unfortunately still a little cold this time of year.

We had a fun trip. You just cant go wrong with friendly diverse people, great food, and a beautiful surrounding!

A Year and A Half & Twenty Two Weeks

2010-02-15T13:04:00.000-08:00

Monday, February 15th 2010

Tomorrow Tyler and I will have been married for a year and a half. It's crazy to think how quickly time flies and how quickly and profoundly love can grow. Each new day offers opportunities for us to lean on one another and I am just so grateful to have such an amazing person to call my own. I am so excited to see what an amazing father Tyler will be, and I know he will continue to be an amazing support as my load will become heavier as a mommy. I love watching him lean over and talk to our sweetheart, love how involved he is in the process of preparing for her, and love how he comes to every appointment with me.

I'm 22 weeks today, and my belly already feels huge. Tyler felt the baby move for the first time on Saturday. It was interesting because as his hand was on me I could no longer feel the baby from the inside, I could only feel his hand moving on the outside due to her kicks. I've been unmistakeably feeling her ever since our big ultrasound on the 29th of January (19 weeks & 4 days). I swear she gets more active after those things because when we had another one a week after that she was very active once again. I notice I feel her the most around 3 in the afternoon... I look forward to that time everyday to know she's doing alright.

The ultra sound on the 29th was so fun for Tyler and I. I gotta admit I felt a little proud when the tech announced it was a girl. Tyler still thinks it was just luck, but I know it was motherly intuition. I remember sitting on a bus in the wee hours of the morning as we were just finishing a long ride traveling in the middle of nowhere from one random city in South America to another. It was probably the first time I ever focused my thoughts on just her, and that's how it was then... on her. Not to "it," or maybe him or her... but to her... a good solid her. She's been a her (to me) ever since.

Poll

2010-01-27T08:46:00.000-08:00

Wednesday, January 27th 2010

I would like to draw attention to the little poll on the right. We go in for "the big" ultra sound this Friday, and I'm curious what you all think we'll be having!

Pregnancy Funnies

2010-01-25T23:17:00.000-08:00

Monday, January 25th 2010

19 weeks and counting. I can't believe I haven't written a thing about the pregnancy yet. Especially considering the fact that Tyler thinks I have a one track mind right now. I could go on and on about it, but I'll save you all the boredom. Just know that I'm happily pregnant and enjoying all of the little quirks that come with it. What I must share are my two funny (or I should say "guess you had to be there") pregnancy stories...

So, everyone says your equilibrium starts to change at some point... proudly I thought random clumsiness wouldn't happen to me. However, about 3 weeks ago Tyler and I decided to try and get some surfing in before I get too big. We get there, and I start putting on my suit (with much difficulty) and I start worrying that I might not fit. How embarrassing would that be? Well, luckily I did fit so we hit the waves, and I'm feeling a little awkward on my bump. Every wave I go for I'm dragging behind because I can't quite figure out how to get my weight far enough up on the board (not to mention the fact that I'm out of shape). Just when I'm about ready to throw in the towel, I catch a wave right in front of Tyler (already riding it), but as I pop up, I lose my balance and land on my butt. Somehow the wave grabs my legs and spins me around, and I find myself riding willy nilly down the wave straddling my board backwards. Meanwhile, Tyler is watching the whole thing, and as I'm ruining his ride, is encouraging me to get off the wave. But between my hysterical laughter and pure disorientation, that was a difficult task. I'd lean one way and go the opposite way my brain was telling me I should have. Eventually I rolled off, and Tyler and I laughed longer and harder than I think we ever have before.

That same week we were walking out to our truck in the dark. As we were talking, Tyler went to his door, and I went around the back of the truck to get to the passenger side. We were with some friends, and as I looked up to say goodbye to them, my foot caught the pavement and I tripped. It was the kind of trip a normal person could quickly put their feet under themselves to catch it, which is what I naturally tried to do, but the quick movement of my feet seemed to plunge my entire body forward even faster, superman style, arms straight forward, onto my face. In the split moment between us talking and me falling Tyler turned around to look at me and wondered where I had gone as I lie hiding behind the truck. I quickly popped back onto my fee, laughing and trying to blame it on the pregnancy to save my pride. As we got into the truck Tyler and I were laughing pretty hard about it (especially because I had just made fun of a friend who told me about her random tripping-on-nothing-while-pregnant story). And then, out of nowhere, as we were laughing so hard, I started to cry. And I mean real cry...not just tears from laughing so hard, and it wasn't even because it hurt, because it didn't. Now that my friends, is a true mood swing. But like I said, I'm just here, happily pregnant, and enjoying all of the little quirks that come with it.

Alexander Family Winter Vacation - Yellowstone

2010-01-12T12:03:00.001-08:00

Tuesday, January 12th 2010

Thanks to Jen's Dad's hard work and planning, we we spent our holidays in Yellowstone this year (with a brief stint in Utah). I have to admit that a week or so before the trip, when we all realized that the temperature in Yellowstone was likely to be between -10 and 20 degrees, the entire family seriously considered mutiny. . . but we all just decided to hold our tongues and go along for the ride. And we were definitely rewarded!

We spent the few days around Christmas in Salt Lake enjoying the spirit that takes over that area (especially temple square) during Christmas. CJ & Jackie were gracious hosts and provided Jen and I with unbelievable Bed & Breakfast (and then some) accommodations. We had a lot of fun both with them and with Jen's family. We also were able to have a quiet dinner with my Dad and Kay which was definitely a treat.

The day after Christmas we headed north. We spent that night in the town of West Yellowstone before being taken by a snow cat into the Old Faithful Snow Lodge the next day. It was very cold, especially for my easily frozen wife, but it was also amazingly beautiful and we frequently braved the elements for the magnificent views. The park takes on an entirely different appearance in the winter and it was a special treat.

We left the park on New Year's day and drove back to Salt Lake where Jen and I were able to attend my Mom's 70th birthday party that Dale threw for her. It was a lot of fun to see everyone and we just wish that we would have had more time to talk to everyone that was there. It wasn't nearly enough to satisfy our hunger to spend time with my family. . . but what can you do. We spent that night at my Mom's and went to breakfast with her and Dale the next morning. Again we felt very lucky with the quiet time with my parents.

Our long drive home on January 2nd was uneventful (other than the nagging headache I had the whole way). We're glad to be home and have NO plans to travel again anytime soon. It's nice to be home!

Yellowstone Trip (1/12/2010)

2010-01-12T12:03:00.000-08:00

Our Best Christmas Present (12/21/09)

2009-12-21T11:53:00.000-08:00

Home Sweet Home

2009-12-20T20:36:00.000-08:00

Sunday, December 20th 2009

Well we've been home for over 2 weeks now. And let me just say... there's no place like home. The laundry is finally finished, and most of the luggage and traveling stuff is put away. I still find myself living out of my toiletry bag, but I figure since we're taking of for a Christmas vacation with y family, what's the point in putting it all away?

We wrapped our trip up in Buenos Aires, and took a quick spontaneous trip up to Uruguay... mostly just for an extra stamp on the ole' passport. Buenos Aires had a lot of history and old buildings to check out. The place reminded us a lot of New York... kind of dirty, but a fun bustling city nonetheless. We also went to their zoo... kind of a unique because they have some animals (like beavers, and rabbits that walk on all four feet like a dog), that are loose walking around the ground for kids to feed and stuff. Also went to a fabulous tango show...
Uruguay was fun and relaxed for us. We first went to the capital, and then Colonial del Sacramento, a cute little colonial town just across the river from Buenos Aires. Anyhow... the whole trip was just awesome... a once in a lifetime experience. Some people have asked us if it's changed us... and while that's a hard question to answer, as change is such a hard thing to measure, I do know that the trip has touched me and opened my eyes... whether that changes me or not... I guess time will tell.
You know, I mentioned in an earlier entry that Iquique, Chile was the pregnant capital of the world... but as the trip continued, and even now that we're home, I'm finding I still see pregnant women eveywhere. I have three hypotheseis as to why I'm seeing so many pregnant women... 1) It's just that time of year, 2) The economy has made for some kind of baby boom year... or 3) I'm experiencing some kind of cognitive bias... like when you buy a new car and all of a sudden you see that car everywhere. With the new passenger on board, I suppose finding other pregnant women is only natural. (I'm in my 14th week by the way).
Thank you all for following us on our travels! We will try to keep this up... as I know many have expressed interest. Our love, and a Very Merry Christmas to you all!

Argentina

2009-12-20T20:10:00.000-08:00

Sunday, December 20th 2009

Just a few fun pictures up for right now. I like the two showing us as the weary travelers we were. The funny looking animal in the left hand corner is actually a rabbit. My favorite is probably the one of Michelle Obama... found in a souvenir shop at The End of The World.

Uruguay (12/20/09)

2009-12-20T20:09:00.000-08:00

Argentina

2009-11-23T10:06:00.000-08:00

Monday, November 23rd 2009

We're sitting in the southernmost city in the world which, unsurprisingly, is very cold. Argentina has been AWESOME! We fly to Buenos Aires tonight and will stay there for several days, then we'll take a few day trip into Uruguay (Colonia del Sacramento and Montevideo), and then we're headed home (hard to believe).

We crossed the Andes from Chile by bus and spent several days in the lake region of Argentina (San Martin de los Andes and Bariloche). The area is stunning (supposedly very similar to the Swiss Alps). We hiked around the lakes and into the hills and thoroughly enjoyed the natural beauty. We also found some great icecream and chocolate shops.

We took an overnight bus (17 hours) from the lakes region to Peninsula Valdez on the coast where we whale watched, saw sea lions, and strolled through a penguin colony. The whale watching was unlike any I've ever done (California and Alaska). The huge and playful Southern Right whales were jumping and splashing and would come up and nudge or swim just under the boat. It was incredible. The penguin colony was also very fun. . . they're really quite cute and seem unperturbed by the people strolling around.

From there we took another overnight bus (22 hours) from Peninsula Valdez to El Calafate which is in the south and inland up against the Andes. We stayed at an incredible place that I had booked on sky auction. It's an estancia isolated from everything, up on a hill surrounded by wind blown Patagonian plains. We went to see the Perito Moreno glacier (part of the 3rd largest icefield in the world). We were able to walk right up to it and enjoyed some isolated time on a bay just observing it in awe. We then bused to El Chalten for a night which is one of the hiking capitals of the world and home to the famous Fitz Roy and Torre mountain peaks. We hiked to a beautiful waterfall (got slightly snowed on during the trek) and up into a hill overlooking the town. Unfortunately it was too cloudy and stormy to do some of the other hikes we had hoped to do during our short stay.

And now we're in Ushuaia in the Tierra del Fuego (trust me, we're WAY down here at the gateway to Antartica). We're exciting to head back to Buenos Aires and warmer weather.

Sometimes you just gotta laugh

2009-11-21T15:09:00.000-08:00

Saturday, November 21st 2009

Tyler and I are blown away at our findings here in Argentina´s Patagonia. We are just loving life right now! This earth that God has given us is spectacular!

I thought I´d throw in a funny story today just for kicks, and for my own memory´s sake. The other day we took a tour along the Valdez peninsula to go do some whale watching. Tyler and I don´t usually care for organized tours, and this trip kind of reminded us of one reason why. There we were, in the back seat of a 15 seater van, I myself, snugly situated between Tyler and a complete stranger.. to whom I had made a miserable attempt to make polite conversation with. Anyhow... there we were, driving along an extremely dusty road in a cramped van, all bundled up because it was windy and freezing outside. All of a sudden, I got really hot, and started to feel nauseous. I tried to remain calm... took off some layers, and asked Ty to open up the window a crack. But of course he couldn´t because it was so dusty. So, he told me to trade seats with him. I thought the idea was absurd because it would trap me even further into the van. To me, getting closer to the door seemed a much better idea. He insisted that it was cooler by the window, and just as I began to gag, we switched seats. I held (it) back for a few moments, and then without thinking, threw the window open and let it all out. I was sure everyone would have noticed that I just puked out the window. The driver put his hand up, which I took as a... ´do I need to stop?´ sign, but then he leaned over to the tour guide who quickly told me that I can´t have the window open ¨because it´s dusty.¨ Now, all of this mind you, from my sudden heat stroke to the closing of the window all happened within a 20 second time span, and once Tyler and I realized that absolutely no one, including the girl next to us, had any idea of what just happened I had to laugh. Anyhow, after that I was perfectly fine...even on the boat ride. Go figure. After this though, we decided that next time we´d rent our own car since I have these tendencies to motion sickness. Good times, good times.

Jen´s Take on Chile

2009-11-11T14:58:00.000-08:00

Wednesday, November 11th 2009

My turn to do the writing again. How Tyler gets the fun picture part, and me this.. I don´t know. But here goes Chile...

After having rode in on bus from Peru to Chile we stayed a day in a northern beach town and then flew to Santiago. From there we drove to Valparaiso, and it felt like we were driving through Southern California with its rolling hills covered in sage brush and the like. Then, upon traveling even further north towards Viña Del Mar, we felt like we were in Coastal Northern California with its high-cliff ocean breaks and evergreens. The country seems to have many similar landscapes and climates as our home, which has been quite enjoyable and good for any home sickness. I must admit, the first ocean breeze in Iquique was reviving as I´ve been feeling like a fish out of water.

Chile has also proven to be much colder than it typically is this time of year, and we feel quite unprepared. There is nothing I hate more than being cold, but the beauty of it all has made up for it... we´ll see how we do in glacier territory.

If I were to choose three things that stuck out to me about Chileans, it would be their love for ice cream, their unabashed public display of affection, and their men´s own take on the mullet. Physical observances aside, we have felt a genuine hospitality here, and have enjoyed the people we´ve been meeting along the way. We spent an hour in our hostel living room the other night just chatting with the owner (well, Tyler chatted at least), and its momens like that that really mean something.

To those who haven´t gotten enough info yet.. .here are my observations of the different cities we visited along the way...

*From Peru to Chile: There has to be no better way of traveling through hundreds of miles of desert than on a comfortable bus. The beauty of the moonscape captured us.

*Iquique: I have determined this to be the pregnant capital of the world, we saw about 12 laden women in less than three hours... in one town.

*Valparaiso: An over rated version of what Tyler calls the ¨dirty part of Long Beach.¨ Still, colorful and unique in its own way.

*Vina Del Mar: Quite the find with a gorgeous ocean view hotel, and our first coin laundry!!

*Olmue: If Iquique is the pregnant capital of the world, than this place has to be the tarantula capital. On a lovely hike we spotted about 12 of these huge spiders, most of them right on our path, and a few standing on their hind legs in attempts to make us even more scared then we already were.

*Santiago: The happening city where we visited interesting museums, saw some beautiful architecture, and caught a beautiful symphony with a choir.

*Pucon: Oh if i could put it in words! Such a magnificent break from all of our city visits. Some of the most beautiful countryside I have ever seen, and the snow covered volcanoes were astounding.

Thanks for reading! I try my best to make it somewhat entertaining!

Chile from north to south. . . (11/10/09)

2009-11-10T16:14:00.000-08:00

Comments

2009-11-08T07:13:00.000-08:00

Sunday, November 8th 2009

Due to the many requests we have decided to try out alowing comments on our blog. Hopefully I did it right!

Cusco & The Sacred Valley of the Incas

2009-10-26T13:53:00.000-07:00

Monday, October 26th 2009

Jen and I decided it was time for me to write an update since I haven´t contributed much to the blog for a while. . . If this is too long, just skim it and scan the pictures and you’ll get a fair enough idea of how we’re doing.

We’re currently wrapping up our 12 day trip to Cusco and the Sacred Valley, culminating with our visit to Machu Picchu yesterday. We had to change plans slightly along the way which has resulted in a much slower paced trip (which is probably better for us anyway). We spent our first four days in Cusco getting acclimatized to the altitude since we came from sea level in the Caribbean (Cusco is over 11,000 ft). Luckily we had a really nice hotel for our first few days thanks to Skyauction.com. It was built on the foundations of an ancient Incan building and previously had housed Francisco Pizarro in the 1500’s. It was really beautiful and helped us adjust. We then moved to Hostal Resbalosa which was a hike up a steep street (walking street of stone steps), had a tiny bed for the two of us, and was very loud at night. . . but had great views of the plaza from the roof and a very friendly family who ran it. We explored Cusco taking in many art museums, historic buildings, and an Andean cultural music and dance show. We also explored the nearby ruins of Saqsuyhuaman with the help of an informative guide named Diana. Our last day in Cusco we were able to attend church and it was nice to see how well established the church is there.

After church on Sunday we headed off to Pisac in the Sacred Valley in a Taxi driven by a very friendly guy named Larry. Larry and his family have lived in Pisac for a very long time so he filled us in on Incan legends during the 45 minute drive to our Hostal – Luz y Paz (Light & Peace). My lasting memories of the hostal will be Jen’s comment on arrival of: ¨Hippies are so funny,¨ and my unfortunate bout with something I ingested that I shouldn´t have. Luckily my memories of Pisac will be much fonder. Being fairly ambitious, Jen and I decided to hike to and from the Pisac ruins (each way = 3 miles, 1500 feet elevation climb) rather than take a taxi. It was a great experience and while we were definitely exhausted by the end, we loved the hike up through the incredible terraces to the ruins high above the town of Pisac. It also gave us a greater understanding of the type of journey that some people from the Andean communities deal with on an almost daily basis to get to markets and things. What a hardy people!

After our stay at the Hostal in Pisac, we were lucky to score an incredible deal on a great hotel in another town in the Sacred Valley called Urubamba. This place was originally built as a monastery in the 1600´s, later converted into an hacienda, and finally a hotel in the early 1980´s. It had beautiful grounds and was very peaceful and relaxing. From here we took day trips to the Salt Mines of Maras and the ruins of Moray. The Salt Mines have been in use since the days of the Inca’s and ownership has been passed down through families for many generations. Each family usually owns 10-15 of the small mines and they work them themselves. The ruins of Moray were also awe inspiring even though their exact purpose is unknown (rituals, environmental art, agricultural experimentation???). Our taxi driver this day (Mariano) was also very friendly and informative and the drive was beautiful. The sky & mountains are HUGE!

The next day we spent the morning exploring the ruins of Ollantaytambo where the Inca´s successfully defeated the Spanish to defend the rebel Manco Inca after retreating here from defeat at Saqsayhuaman (the success was short lived). Made of huge perfectly cut stones and like the other ruins, this site is massive and covers the mountains. It was also interesting to see Incan plumbing/running water systems.

After exploring the ruins of Ollantaytambo, we boarded our train for the town of Machu Picchu (Agues Calientes) where we spent our first night in a hostal and then spent two nights in another sweet hotel that I lucked upon on Skyauction. The hotel is built in 12 acres of cloud forests with tons of birds, butterflies, orchids, etc… We were again glad to have a nice place to stay and recoup after exploring the ruins of Machu Picchu because once again we were very ambitious and hiked up to two separate peaks (Waynapicchu and Intipunku [the sun gate]) each an elevation climb of around 1200 feet and each covering probably a couple of miles. The Machu Picchu ruins are even more impressive than the rest because they were never identified and ransacked by the Spanish. It’s a very mythical and beautiful setting and the Inca’s profound reverence for the mountains is very evident. It’s a remarkable history. . . especially given the fact that the Incan empire only lasted a few hundred years which is just a speck of time in the lengthy history of the Andean cultures. Their history is very, very strongly intertwined in the culture of Peru.

Okay, this is getting really long. . . We´re headed to Arequipa tomorrow (the White City dating back to Spanish Colonial days). We hope to see the Monastery of Santa Catalina (built in 1500’s and opened to public in 1970’s) and Juanita the 600-year-old frozen Incan maiden before we leave Peru for Chile. We’re still having a blast.

10/26/09

2009-10-26T13:41:00.000-07:00

10/26/09

2009-10-26T13:40:00.000-07:00

MMM.... CUY

2009-10-26T11:17:00.000-07:00

Monday, October 26th 2009

About a week ago Tyler and I were sitting in a cute little restaurant in the heart of Cusco. Labeled as a ¨Find¨ in our handy dandy Frommer´s traveling companion book, the author recommended the Peruvian delicacy Cuy, (known to most of you as Guinea Pig). Debating on what form of Guinea Pig we would like to eat, we decided the meal prepared for four people would be cheaper than each of us ordering our own. (Why we didn´t think to share one, I´ll never understand).

When Tyler placed the order, our waitor´s reaction was a bit unexpected. A huge grin crossed his face as he began to describe what it was we were in for. I don´t know if he was more excited at the thought of such a favorite meal, or to see two stupid gringos order it. He rambled off all of the special meats and things included in the dish... all I caught was Guinea Pig, Alpaca and cheese. He raved that the meal is enjoyed only once a year by locals... think of it as Thanksgiving if you will. But, throughout all of this, he seemed to keep insisting that the meal is intended for four people, that it was a lot of food, and very very special, so special that it needed to be ordered a day in advance. At this point I was beginning to feel like we weren´t special enough for it... like the least we could do was find two other people to share it with. A little intimidated, we went ahead and placed the order, although we were probably less sold on it at the end of all of his soliciting than we were before.

Chiriuchu: Cuy, Alpaca, Hen, Sausage, Cheese, Seaweed, Caviar, a Peruvian Corn Tortilla, and Toasted Corn Kernals. (Corpus Christi Festivity)

Believe it or not, neither of us got sick after this. The corn kernals were probably the favorite piece of the meal, the seaweed wasn't so bad, and only Tyler dared to eat the pink sausage (he was repulsed after his first bite). And the Cuy? Let's just say it didn't taste like chicken. It had a very strong, almost musky taste to it. The worst part of it was tearing what little meat there was off of the bone because it was attached to the spine and as you can see... the foot... and it was just a bit nauseating. But once we got past that part, we felt we were able to eat an acceptable amount of it. Well... we hoped we weren't being offensive. In the end we packaged up one plate to take to the owner of our hostel, and let the waitor take the other home. He was so excited and grateful. We chalk the whole thing up as a good experience.

( I was havnig trouble posting picutres, here's a link instead: Viewer Discretion Advised )

Bound to Happen Sometime

2009-10-21T10:09:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, October 21st 2009

Well, it has finally happened. After 19 days on this trip and 7 days spent in Costa Rica in August, one of us has officially gotten sick; making a total record of 26 days spent in Latin America without an upset stomach. It was an awful night, our bed was tiny and the stray dogs were incessantly barking. Every two hours Tyler had to get up and make the awful decision on whether to sit on the toilet or lean over it. I felt so terrible for him. Finally by morning, after it seemed like there was nothing left to dispose of, he (and therefore me too) was able to sleep for three hours straight. Thank heaven we brought some antibiotics for this! The next night (last night) we slept a lot better than we have the last 4 nights or so, (due to having stayed in extremely noisy hostals) and today we are slowly getting back on our feet. While Peru is still exciting and beautiful, I must admit the harshness of the impoverished state is beginning to wear on us a bit.

Life´s Good

2009-10-15T18:14:00.000-07:00

Thursday, October 15th 2009

I´m surprised at how fun it´s been for me looking through our pictures from the last 2 weeks. If I were someone else looking at them I´d sure think to myself, ¨gee... it sure looks like they´re having fun¨

Our first resort in the Dominican Republic had a jacuzzi tub on the back porch. This was the most use it got.

Tribute to Dominican Pasolas

Tyler and I have found that traveling can be much more fun with friends. We also noticed we were much more likely to take pictures. (Notice I didn´t post any from Puerto Rico, where we were before this). Tyler´s old mission companion CJ and his wife Jackie joined us in the D.R. The boys enjoyed reliving the good old days, and Jackie and I enjoyed the stories (and perhaps appreciated them a little more). The picture is of their old apartment (we think we scared the current occupant who was sitting outside). The D.R. Temple was beautiful plus it was fun to see the Mission Training Center right next door to it.

A Haitian woman got ahold of my head.

Bueno

2009-10-14T19:57:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, October 14th 2009

I just thought I´d make a quick post to let everyone know we´re doing great here in South America. We thoroughly enjoyed our time in Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic, and have some fun pictures to post, soon...
Currently we´re just trying to acclimatize to Cusco, Peru, some 11,000 feet high. We had an all night flight with a long lay over in Miami, and then to top it off we missed our connection from Lima to Cusco. But we´re here now, and excited to be in this richly historic place. Our love!