Easter Eggs

Kool Aid Easter eggs are all the rage on Pinterest this year, so I thought I would give them a shot too.  Unfortunately, the Walmart here in town is super lame and didn't have a blue kool-aid.  And I am super lame too and thought I was getting the lemon-lime flavor (for the green color) when I actually got strawberry kiwi (which is red).  So our colors consisted of reds, yellows, and purples. I can't blame Walmart on that one.

My girls thought it was way fun, and I loved how it didn't stink like vinegar.

There was much concentration going on, as you can see from the tongue.

And how can an evening of decorating Easter eggs be complete without the classic game of kool-aid poker, you ask?  It can't.

Gone Fishing

The Easter Bunny was so nice this year and decided to bring Gracey and Emily each a new fishing pole.  There is a pond on the golf course that the girls like to go to for an "adventure" every now and then. They also had heard that it was stocked with fish. Ever since they'd heard that they have been begging to catch something.

Easter evening, we (all 5 of us) piled into the golf cart and we head over with nothing more than the fishing poles, the little tackle box that came with the pole, and a pair of needle nose pliers for the "just in case."

It didn't take long before the fish were biting.  Unfortunately for Gracey though, Emily was the only one to successfully catch not one, but two fish.  Both fish were able to be put back in the water safely.

Corky has never been much of a fisherman, and I haven't done much of it either since moving away from home after high school, but we managed to help our girls figure it all out.  We had a great time doing it too.

I do not know why I was compelled to bend so far over in this picture,
but in case you are curious, Emily is saying, "Word!!"

The golf course is so beautiful this time of year and the weather is just as great.  I predict lots of evenings will be spent down at the pond.

2 month well check

Janie had her 2 month check up last Thursday, and her stats came as no surprise.  

Weight: 12 lb 8 oz (90%)

Height:  23.75 inches (90%)

She also had to get 3 shots....she was pissed!  Simple as that.

2 months old - How is that possible?

Today marks Doug's...errr....Janie's 2 months mark.  It has gone by so incredibly fast and I have to say, the transition has been very smooth.  She has made it easy.

Before she was born, Corky and I were preparing ourselves for a fussy baby.  We thought there was no way, after having Gracey and Emily be pretty good babies, that we would be lucky enough to have a third.  Would you believe me if I said she is our easiest baby so far?   She pretty much goes with our family's busy flow, and from day one, only fusses when she she is hungry or needing a new diaper.

 Yes, that is how all babies are, I get that.  But rarely does Janie get so wound up that as soon as one of those needs gets taken care of, she doesn't go back to her happy and smiling self.

She is really beginning to recognize certain voices and faces.  Just yesterday I was dropping Emily off at school.  I set the car seat down in the classroom while Em's teacher and a few students came over to say hi to Janie.  There were 3 people in Janie's face, but as soon as Emily went over there and began talking, Janie cranked her head right around to see her and started grinning ear to ear.  She knew Em well and it melted my heart.  She loves both of her sisters very much, and they love her.

Some exciting things that have happened for our little person - Just tonight she gave us her first bit of giggles.  I was holding her in my arms and giving her a good bounce while at the same time making loud laughing noises.  She was all smiles to begin with, but then would react with a little laugh after each bounce.  We captured it with the video camera and it is so precious.  

Even more exciting than that is what a great sleeper Janie is.  She has been consistently sleeping 8+ hours a night for more than 2 weeks.  She gave me a few full nights before, but they were sporadic.  Even then I wasn't complaining too bad, she only would wake up one time at night.  It seemed as soon as we got back from our trip to Utah, and she was able to sleep in her own room again, she has slept like a log.  I usually nurse her between 9:30-10:30ish at night, then she wakes up again as I am sending Gracey off to school at about 7:30, sometimes a little sooner.  Gracey loves it when she wakes up in time to play for a minute.  Janie almost always wakes up happy and not too frantic to nurse right away, as long as Gracey is making funny faces at her.

We sure do love her.  She has been a true joy for us all.  Other than it taking a little more preparation to get out the door with a newborn, and me being less productive because I get caught up in lots of snuggles throughout the day, she has been a very natural adjustment to our family.

I wish time could just stand still.

Flying West - with extra baggage!

After having my mom be in town for 9 days after Janie was born, I was really sad to see her go.  As this picture shows our goodbyes, I was not the only one!

I was suddenly missing my family in St. George more than usual.  Corky, being a loving and supportive husband, said, "Let's ride this train of emotion and book some flights for Spring Break.  Hurry, before the cheapskate in you talks yourself out of it!"  I had been so weepy and emotional, and hyper-sensitive to the fact that babies grow up so darn fast, that I thought it was a great idea.  I really wanted to meet my new nephew Brooks and I wanted my family to meet Janie before she got any bigger!   I know each stage of a baby is oh-so-precious and special, but there is something about that brand-new-baby stage that you have to actually feel and snuggle in your arms to understand.

So we booked our flight and hopped on a jet plane.

As we walked down the terminal, I could hear peoples sighs of relief as we continued walking past their gate.  Once we got to our gate and waited, it was very noticeable that people were looking at our family of 5, including a newborn, and hoping we wouldn't be a disruption on their precious flight.

On Allegiant Air, unless you pay extra, it is open seating.  We always choose to go cheap and just do open seating, especially since having passengers under 12 years old we get the luxury of boarding first.  So we board the plane, me and the girls on the row with 3 seats, and Corky on the row with 2.  I passed Janie off to him to be held for a few minutes and she was quite the passenger repellent.  Finally a guy sat next to Corky because it was truly the last seat on the aircraft.  Luckily this guys was cool and was excited for his own daughter to be born soon.

I must say, all three of my kids were a dream.  My older girls watched a movie on the ipod, played with a couple of small toys, and took turns sitting by the window.  Janie was beyond well behaved.  She didn't sleep at all but was awake and alert the entire time.  After I nursed her during take off, all she wanted to do was stare at the lights.  Passengers around us I think eased up a bit when they realized how sweet her little personality was. Some grandmas were making googly eyes at her, another lady stated how she missed her sons being young, and a group of bachelors (heading to Las Vegas for a bachelor party) told us twice, that our kids are the best behaved kids they've ever seen.

This proud mom sure was relieved when it was all over, but I don't know that it could have gone any smoother.

One funny thing though.  As we were coming off the airplane, the tone of the passengers completely changed.  Those who were waiting to board the plane for the next flight were full "Oh how cute!" and "What a sweet little baby!"  I would bet a million dollars that they only could honestly say that because we weren't on their flight!  Even the people on our own flight didn't even look us in the eye until the flight was all said and done and our girls were behaved, then it was all smiles!


Some people.