NBA Jimmermania

We didnt get enough of Jimmer last season at BYU so we got to see him at a Sacramento vs. DC Wizards NBA game. We went with a bunch of friends, the kids got to eat cotton candy, stay up late, and we had a great time.

Las Vegas

This weekend I met my mom and Aunt Jess in Las Vegas for 2 days of abundant sun. It was so refreshing to see my mom and watch her play with Elsie. We stayed at Ravella, a luxury resort outside of town with a lake and white sand beach. The swanky place  felt like a Tuscan get away. 

The entire time I was there I hadn't gambled until the last day Elsie wanted to play on this machine.  I  put in a single dollar and immediately won $2.50.  Then I got busted for including my baby in my gambling exploits so I had to cash out.  We bought gummy life savers with our prize money.

Elsie counting the winnings

Here's our plush resort.  For lunch we ate outside at an authentic Italian cafe by the water and ordered a tasty kalamata olive, prosciutto, and artichoke pizza.

It was great to hang out with my aunt Jess, she's super.

My cousin Brandon is on his mission in Las Vegas. We meet up with him for lunch. He seemed really happy, motivated and off to a great start.

kid quotes

My Papa Mark is half human and half doctor (talking to his friend) 

Mom, I love you more than gold, more than weapons.

That snack was so good, it turned us into food zombies

Hey, do you wanna see a free`basketball show? You don't even need debit or credit.

Elsie doesn't have any easy quotables, but she's been great (and really cute) at reciting stories and books in her 18 month old vocabulary. She also like to describe things in terms of 'bubbles!' shiny floors, waterfalls, anything that is sparkly. . .

She loves to make a grand entrance to a room by putting her hands up and yelling"back!!"
She can play hide and seek for hours. And her new favorite songs are head-shoulders-knees-and-toes and Sunbeam (she loves the jumping part). She'll ask for one more over and over.

Zoo kids

We told Liam that he may be going to a Spanish immersion school next year. In reply he told us that when he gets big he wants to go to ninja school instead.

Brady got a new suit and started teaching his first class as a full fledged (non-TA) instructor.  One of his colleagues even overheard one of his students in a cafe talking about how cool he is. The word is out and he's off to a good start.

 Fresh flowers in the dead of winter are energizing.  Brady and Liam surprised me with these blue hydrangeas on a cold wintry day this week.   One of my favorite things about summer is babying my finicky blue hydrangea  blossoms.

Liam got a few dollars from his grandpa Richard in Alaska and used it to buy a Darth Vadar tin full of lollipops.

 Cardboard boxes are timeless. I'm not sure why sleeping in a cardboard box gets such a bad rap. :)

Christmas Break

This Christmas break was stellar. We indulged on hot tubbing, well crafted food, and lots of lazy days.  The kids enjoyed walks with Nana to visit the neighbors goats and their cousin Molly's 2 year old birthday. Brady wrote a management symposium paper while I read frivolous magazines. 

Elsie is wandering around the house yelling "Nana! . . . Papa!" We miss them.

We even walked to our gate and exchanged a few words with Lord of the Rings' Viggo Mortensen at the SLC airport. (He was just as stoic and gracious as he is on all his movies, just a little taller.)

As much as we love the novelty of D.C., it was also great to be in cushy Utah. It's nice to be in a place where women run without pepper spray and where I don't stand out as the only white person at the grocery store. 

Losing, finding, losing, finding.

Every year as the cold winter weather comes, I ritually  gain 5-10 lbs. I get lax about exercise. I eat bowl after bowl of my mother -in-laws Christmas Eve clam chowder. I spend a little too much time inside, and inevitably it happens. 

Then the snow melts, my running mileage increases, the hot weather pushes me towards salads and fruit platters.  My mother, in mom-like fashion, reveals I'm "too skinny'', and one day I look in the mirror and discover my pants are too loose, and the 5-10 lbs are gone. It works on schedule year, after year, after year.

This year those extra pounds won't personally offend me. In fact, they're expected guests.  I'll use my New years resolution on something good- like learning Spanish or practicing the piano.
After all, the only one who really notices is my favorite pair of jeans. And luckily, they can't talk.