New York!

A visit to Grandma's house was on the books months before Claire was even born. And after skyping a few times and seeing her get all teary-eyed when she saw Claire, I figured it was high time Grandma meet her great-granddaughter in person. So I booked a flight ( Delta had some awesome deals going!) and flew the 5+ hours direct to JFK.

It was love at first touch.

Grandma, who now officially goes by "Gran" to establish the difference between her and my mom, fell in love with Claire--and Claire became quite fond of her! Jonny came out as well, and of course, Claire loved hanging out with him. :)

In addition to hanging out in Hicksville, Jonny and I took Claire on a fun day trip into the big city to visit Aunt Bina and Uncle Arty. They actually live in Hoboken, N.J. but I consider it the city since their house is 2 minutes away once you emerge from the Lincoln tunnel. Plus, in order to get there, we had to drive through the heart on midtown on 37th street. Jonny and I got our full New York City experience that way.

The purpose of this trip was to introduce little Claire to her extended family. Gran, who was the most anxious of all to meet her, naturally got the most time with her. But she also got to meet our cousin Josh, his parents Aunt Bettina and Uncle George,  her aunts and uncles from my dad's side: Aunt Bina, Uncle Arty, Uncle Ico and Aunt Cindy and our cousins Matt and Jessica.

our cousin Jessica

Aunt Bettina, Uncle George and Josh

Aunt Bina, Aunt Cindy and Uncle Ico

Matt busting some PT moves on Claire

Lots of good family bonding time. :) Jonny and I got a lot of one on one time too, which was really nice since he will be leaving on his mission at the end of the summer. It was nice to be able to spend some quality time with my baby brother. We are 9 years apart, which used to be a big gap, but it's interesting how as the years pass that gap becomes smaller and smaller.

It was a great trip and I am already scheming about how I can get back in the next few months! I love my family and wish I could live closer to them. But since that can't happen right now, I guess I'll just have to keep making these fun trips out to see them!

Happy Easter!

I'm not gonna lie, I was pretty excited to get to dress Claire up in a frilly little dress for Easter Sunday. I never thought I would be one of those moms, but I am turning out to be and do more and more things that I swore I would never be or do!   

 Oh well. :)

But I also know that Easter is more than frilly dresses.

This Easter especially I feel greatly blessed and I know that because of Jesus Christ's suffering that I have been able to find peace and comfort during trials in my life.

As the prophet Alma so eloquently prophesied about the Savior:

and he will take upon him their infirmities, that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that he may know according to the flesh how to succor his people according to their infirmities. (Alma 7:12, Book of Mormon)

The Savior took upon Himself my infirmities and afflictions so that He could give me peace.

I love Easter, I love what it celebrates. I love my Savior, Jesus Christ.  I love my little family and the fact that I will be able to live with them, even after this life is over because Christ overcame death and gave us the the ability to repent, be made clean and live with God again.

I love this little girl! She is such a blessing in my life!

The Story of the Bad Gift Giver

I had a friend get married this past October. She and her fiance already had many of the traditional gidgets and gadgets that so often are bestowed on a newly married couple. So, beginning last summer, I started concocting a plan to sew her a quilt as a gift. I really have the best intentions sometimes. :) And I figured I would have plenty of time if I started in September.
Well..... things didn't exactly go according to plan. Not to justify my poor planning but the couch took way longer than it was supposed to! The original projected finish date was the end of August. I was sewing cushions clear until December. When we finally finished the couch I thought, "now, I can work on that quilt!"
Well.... I had Claire about 10 days after we finished the couch. Whew! Close call. And when I had her nothing got done. I was lucky if I even got a shower in, let along work on sewing anything.

But finally this whole take-care-of-a-baby thing became more routine and I learned how to function again. And so, today, April 6 2012, six months after my friend got married, I finally gave her her wedding gift. Maybe I should just stick to gift cards from now on. :)

It's a very small lap quilt. But she isn't very tall, so it should work. :)



The End.

Fun in the Sun!

Three weeks ago Jason and I had the chance to fly down to Florida to see my family. It was a much needed break for us from the gloomy, rainy weather up here in the great Northwest and it was a chance for my dad to finally meet Claire. We arrived the night before his birthday, February 29. His birthday is a special one so we figured we could celebrate it's actual coming this year by heading on down to the great Sunshine State!

And oh, the good times that were had! In fact, I had so much fun I decided to extend my stay another week. I figured, "why fly back to the nasty weather and skype my family from home when I can just stay here and keep enjoying the warm sunny weather and being with my family?"

Here is some of the cool stuff we did:

Hung out at the pool

Played at Siesta key, one of the most beautiful beaches I've been to!

 

Made sand castles

Walked along Downtown Disney

Had a blast at Blizzard Beach

Ate at the Olive Garden

and just enjoyed time with the family!

We also had Claire blessed while down there. It was a quiet, family thing with just Jason, Dad and Jonny blessing her in my parents' home.

And here are some more pictures of Claire, just because!

 

Claire had lots of fun in  the sun!

Blogging About a Blog

A week ago I started an exclusive exercise blog for just me and my mom. It's meant to help us get back into shape. I've named it "Time to Shape Up!" We have to document what we eat and how often we work out. We can also post out weights.

Hence, the exclusive part.

So far, so good. It actually has helped me be more aware of what I am eating and how often I work out knowing that I will have to report at the end of the day. I'm trying to lose another 10 pounds and shed some of the flabby skin that has consumed my body. Who knows? This whole blog thing just might work! I'll keep you posted.