Holiday in California

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

My parents and some of my siblings took our families to Disney Land this year. Some spent the entire time there while a few of us got city passes and also went to Universal Studios , Sea World and San Diego Zoo as well as spending three days in Disney Land. This was Parker’s first trip to Southern California. It was a little rainy and cold but that resulted in shorter lines.

Parker loved Mr. Toads Wild Ride because he got to drive the car, we went on that one twice. He wasn’t a big fan of Pirates of the Carribean and the slides. He fell asleep in It’s a Small World both times. He really liked the Christmas parade and the fireworks and during the fireworks kept signing “more more”. Parker most enjoyed Toon Town and going through the character houses and even got to meet Mickey Mouse, where he promptly screamed in terror, as was the case with all characters he met.

At the San Diego Zoo , Parker got to pet sheep and goats and would bark at them like a dog, he does that with any animal he sees not just dogs. He wasn’t shy about petting the animals either. He also really liked looking in all the aquariums at Sea World. We really did have a wonderful time. Thanks Mom and Dad for putting it together.

Christmas Tree Hunt

The Saturday after Thanksgiving we stopped near Joes Valley on the way home and cut down our very own Christmas Tree. We were deciding between three and this is the one we finally chose.

New York City

Friday, November 20, 2009

Brooks and I just returned from a trip to NYC, something I have always wanted to do. Brooks had a training for work and I went along to explore the city. We went a few days early so Brooks could enjoy some of the sites too. After taking the redeye we first headed to see the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island and other sites in lower Manhattan including the NY Stock Exchange.

A highlight of the trip was when we were able to attend a temple session at the Manhattan Temple. One day we rented bikes at Central Park and rode around the entire park. It was fun to see the different sites in the park, my favorite was probably the popular Bethesda Fountain.

We were even able to squeeze in a Broadway show, Mary Poppins, which we loved. I visited Rockefeller Center, and even had a few seconds of fame on the Today Show, check out my shot of Al Roker. I also got the famous frozen hot chocolate at Serendipity and did some Christmas shopping at FAO Schwartz.
I learned the ins and outs of the subway and took in the views at the Empire State Building. The morning before we returned home I took in one last site with a walk across the Brooklyn Bridge. I had a great time. Thanks to my sister Becca and her family and my Mom and Dad for taking such great care of Parker while we were away.

Happy Halloween

Wednesday, November 11, 2009

I know I haven't posted in months. I hope to be back on track now that we are settled into our new home and I have a new computer. Here are a couple of pictures from Halloween. Parker was the cutest dinosaur on the block! He went trick or treating with his cousins and caught right on, including grabbing a bag of skittles right out of a neighbors hand. We went to about 8 houses and he scored 4 full size candy bars, you can guess who ate those. I think his favorite part was answering the door when trick or treaters came. When the doorbell would ring he would run to the door and help me pass out candy. Near the end of the evening he grabbed the bowl of candy and took it to his candy bag where he proceeded to empty the contents of the bowl into his bag. It was super cute.

Parker 12 Months

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

I know I have already done birthday entries, but I also wanted to do Parker's 12 month entry with the usual stats. Plus we got his picture taken this month too. Parker also had his 12 month checkup where he weighed in at 20lbs and 12 ounces (25th percentile), is 28 3/4 inches tall (20th percentile) and his head is in the 75th percentile. Parker started to take steps a few days before his birthday, he was standing holding on to the couch and I was sitting on the floor a few feet a way and he walked to me taking about 3 steps. Now he can walk even further, but he is still doing the walk/crawl combo with more crawling then walking. Parker likes to take the comb and comb his hair like Mom. He also likes to give Mom the phone so she will talk on it. The other day we were heading home from shopping and Parker was not thrilled to be in his carseat so I gave him my cell phone to play with (I had just been talking on it) when I looked in the mirror to check on him he had opened the phone up and it was up against his ear and he had his head tilted toward it and was just sitting there like he was having a long conversation, it was hilarious and we both started laughing. Enjoy Parker's pictures and our family picture we also had taken.

Goblin Valley

Monday, May 18, 2009

About 10 days ago (5/7), we headed to my hometown to bunk at my parents' house and then head out to Goblin Valley and Little Wild Horse canyon on Friday. Brooks' brother Mark and 3 of his children (Bryson, Lacy and Carston) were in town and came with us. It was also Parker's first time to Goblin Valley. We got some great pictures and the weather was perfect (not too hot, but sunny). So with lots of sunscreen and water we had a great time exploring and climbing. We even ran into some water in Little Wild Horse (cold water I might add). My neice and nephews were quite the climbers and made their over-cautious Aunt super nervous, I swear they are almost as crazy as Brooks. In Goblin we visited the cave and climbed to the top of the Goblins to look out on the valley.

Parker's First Birthday Party

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

This post is a bit late. Parker turned one on April 15 and we celebrated with family in the area on April 19. We had a monkey (Curious George) themed birthday party. I made Parker a Monkey Cake which he had no desire to eat. As you will see from the pictures, we were finally able to get him to taste some frosting, but no digging in or fun messy pictures for us, maybe next year. I think part of the problem was the birthday celebration was later in the day and he was a bit tired. We also had a monkey pinata and Parker's cousins had fun trying to break it. In fact it was decapitated but no candy so Brooks hung up the body for them to continuing whacking. Parker did have fun opening his gifts with help from his cousin Tessa. Enjoy the slide show. Happy Birthday Parker.