Who wants to do it with me?

This would be so awesome. It is expensive, so I guess I will be saving for awhile. I think it is really great that these types of classes are offered! Looks like a lot of fun. :)

Memorial Day Picnic

Every year Charles family has a picnic at the park. It is one of the few times (or only) per year that we all get to see each other. This was our first one. I loved meeting so many wonderful new people! The food is delicious. I mean, seriously, if you have never had kalua pig (I hadn't)go and try some...now. SO GOOD!

We stopped at Rose Hills Memorial Park before going to the picnic. It was nice to spend time cleaning off the stones and remembering those who have passed on. I was able to tell Charles about my side of the family and showed Ella the marker of my great Grandmother after who I am named.

Hope you had a marvelous Memorial day and were able to remember those who have served our country!

Stake Fair

The church in our area puts on an incredible fair every year. There are pony rides, train rides, inflatable jump houses, slides, a slip and slide, and a fair swing ride. Needless to say it is a popular event. There are hot dogs and chili, chips, cotton candy, snow cones, and popcorn. Did I mention all this is FREE! Yep, pretty awesome. Ella LOVED it. She wanted to stay forever.


This was right before the horse got spooked and jumped around taking off. Yep. Exciting...

Even though Ella had talked about going to the fair and riding the pony for the last 24 hours she was a bit nervous to actually do anything when we arrived. I was really proud of her for overcoming her fear and trying everything.

This is my favorite picture of the day.

Utah May 2012

I am pretty late in posting this seeing as we have been back for a few weeks. What can I say about Utah. It is beautiful, not as crowded as LA, gas was a dollar cheaper than LA, and the air smells nice. (at least by my parents house) It is also a LONG way from my house. The drive wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Ella is an excellent traveler. She loves to look out the window and see what we are passing by. She sleeps and for the most part entertains herself. Ella and I have made this trek at least four times since we moved here. I like to think that I am really getting good at preparing. I put snacks in individual baggies so I can hand them back as she asks for them. At each stop I refill both our water bottles and re organize her stuff. We have a pretty good system. down. I am assuming that will all change as soon as baby brother arrives. :)
Going to Utah is so refreshing for me. This is the view from my parents front door...

Breath taking!

They have all sorts of hikes that start from their neighborhood and go into the hills. I love walking around and hearing birds, kids, and the wind in the trees. When we walk around our "neighborhood" all we hear are cars and sirens. I couldn't get enough of the fresh air smells. Plus it is spring so everything was in bloom!

Ella had a lot of fun helping Grandma and Grandpa in the garden, especially with watering! :)

One of my favorite outings was to Temple Square. It has been a year since Ella last went. I was amazed at how much she could understand about the pioneers and the Temple. We looked at the statue of the pioneers pulling a handcart. I asked her is she would be able to fit everythign in her room in the handcart. She looked at it, thought for a moment and said..."no". I then told her that the pioneers could only take waht fit in the handcart. I told her they didnt have a lot of toys if any and they had to pull the hand cart for a long time. She understood that would be very difficult.

When we got to the Temple she was SO excited. As soon as she saw the temple she started singing "I Love to see the Temple" She wanted to go inside so I explained she had to wait till she was 12 to be able to go in. She kept sasying how beautiful the brides were and how she was also going to get married in the temple. It was a sweet moment for me to see her reverence e and respect for the temple at her young age.

We also went to the church history museum. She remembered that she could "fish" and couldn't wait to do it again!

I love to see my siblings. Elizabeth has an awesome new job so I went to visit her at work. She is so beautiful!

We also were able to see Jacob but for some reason I don't have any pictures (sorry Jacob) It was a fantastic trip. Cant wait to see my Mom and Elizabeth again in a few weeks!

Surprise!

This week has been full of them. Luckily the surprises are good ones which I am springing on others. Here is one for you...

We are having a baby!

I am in my eighteenth week. The baby is due October 17. And yes, we are SO very excited to be welcoming this little tyke into our home!!

but wait... there's more :)

I have been having a lot of fun telling everyone. I was the only one who went to the ultrasound so I got to tell Charles. :) I may do it this way for each baby, its fun. I bought a little star wars shirt and wrapped it up with the ultra sound pictures. I had him first guess form the pictures what the gender was, then I let him see the shirt. He is REALLY happy to be having a son. We then explained to Ella that she was going to have a brother! (She still thinks
she is getting a brother and a sister...)

The next day I made strawberry lemon cupcakes and filled them with a green lemon curd. We brought them over to my in-laws and let them discover the secret inside. It was fun to see the expressions.

I then traveled to Utah and sprung the news (of the gender) on my parents and (the news of both the pregnancy and gender) grandparents. I should probably explain at this point that our parents and family knew I was pregnant. No one knew the gender till last weekend. We are just now announcing to all friends and extended family.

I loved this announcement because it was so candid. I was taking a family photo and said to Ella, "say, I am having a baby brother!" It took a second and then this...

My brother Jacob came home tonight and so I gave him the box pictured above.

As you can see I have had way to much fun with this. So, there you have it... Surprise!

Overheard

As I put on my earrings...

Ella: Hey mom could I listen to your earrings?

I never thought about it like that...