Arizona Trip Part 2

So I figured since I have been back from AZ for like a week that I should post about my time in the valley. For two weeks I stayed with my in laws in Queen Creek. They are awesome and I was lucky for them to let me stay at their house. I was able to visit with a lot of people while I was in the valley. I didn't get pictures with everyone but here are some of the people that I was able to see. 

Teanna is the daughter of my Show Low "parents" and we  walked around the temple and caught up while I was in the valley.

One of my oldest friend Chloe :) We have grown up together and I just adore her!

One of my best friends Ann with her adorable baby Emery (she is just a few weeks older than Clayton). I ran with Ann at MCC and we have become really close.

My best friend Sarah (isn't she beautiful? I just love her)
I went to church with her and then we went with her family to Barros  (the best pizza in the world). We were also able spend an evening at her house with her parents and each enchiladas, brownies and ice cream. YUMMY!!!!

watched my cousin Joe's MCC football game (they won) ps don't mind the crying baby in the pic ha

Jolanne and "Chuck"
I ran with these lovely ladies at MCC. They were able to go to the football game with me and we had a ton of fun.

The Balderamma sisters, Lynette, Jolanne, and Annette . I ran with Jolanne at MCC , Annette was in one of my classes at MCC and I met Lynette through them. They are probably the sweetest family you will ever meet. Annette made me enchiladas (my absolute fave) and we just visited for hours!

They adored Clayton and he adored them right back :)

Grandpa Blackburn

Went to Old Chicago with another one of my oldest friend s, Jessie.  It is delicious there in case you have never been.

one of my newest friends Caitlyn  (she married my dear friend Brendan and her and I just clicked right when we met)

lovely Allie
We met when Kyle and I were dating. She and Kyle grew up together and would always go out for ice cream. They are ice cream buddies and that's actually what we did the first time I met her. Fun stuff. :)

Kira and her daughter Zaira
Kira ran with Kyle in high school, but I actually met competing together when I ran for MCC and she ran for GCC.

Temple date with Tessa!
Her husband, Zach, watched Clayton so I could go to the temple. It was awesome!! Tessa and I have some incredible memories of being on the temple grounds together.

Alicia!
We met in one of my old singles wards. We were super close before she went on her mission to Canada. I was able to spend an afternoon with her and her recent husband! I hadn't seen her for years. :) She's fantastic!

Bahama Bucks date with Marinda
Marinda and I were on the MCC Institute Council together. We were in charge of Friday Forum lunches so we spent alot of time shopping at Costco, Smart and Final, and The Restaurant Depot. She recently returned from a mission and we went to Bahama Bucks and ate the most delicious shaved ice.

Miss Meg
Meghan's little sister plays MCC softball, so I went to one of her games and was able to see Meg and her mom. It was an awesome visit. Then we just went back to their townhouse and they loved up on baby Clayton. :)

It was a great trip and I am glad that I was able to visit with so many people. Sorry for those of you that I didn't get pictures of :/ no hating me!

On the way back to California, Clayton and I stopped in Yuma to see Kyle for a couple of hours. Oh and guess what.... I am now the owner of a Smith and Wesson 40 caliber. Can't wait for the hubby to be back so that we can go shooting. 

Five Months

The past couple of days I have been organizing Clayton's clothes: putting away the things that he has grown out of, and bringing out the bigger clothes. He has already grown so much in just this short amount of time.He is five months old!!! Can you believe it??  Everyone used to tell me, "Cherish the moments because he will grow so fast." Now I am realizing just HOW fast.

 

-constantly rolling all over the place (even when I try to change his diaper)
-trying to scoot across the floor (looks like an inch worm)
-SOOO talkative
-in love with our dog Lady: he smiles and laughs whenever she comes around or licks him
-such a flirt
-is a pro with rice cereal
-grabs EVERYTHING and puts it in his mouth
-loves jumping!!





Even though being a parent can be frustrating at times, we are so blessed to have this sweet baby boy in our lives. He is incredible (just like his daddy) and I am so very thankful to my Heavenly Father for trusting Kyle and I to be the caretakers of such a sweet spirit.

Kyle Visit!!!

Soooo Kyle is in Yuma for those of you that don't know, or for those of you that may have forgotten. Yuma is where the pilots do live firing training and Kyle is there in case something breaks. He only is at work five hours a day, Monday through Friday, and every other Saturday. He has four other roommates and he gets along really well with a couple of them. Anyways,I guess there isn't a lot to do on base but he goes to the theater a lot (the movies are $2 and sometimes they are free) and he has been to the bowling alley there too. Recently he purchased a shotgun and went out shooting with a couple of his buddies.

Clayton and I are staying in Queen Creek with my in laws for a couple of weeks and we decided to make a trip to see Kyle this past Saturday. Bryan (Kyle's dad) came with us and it was such a blast!! We got there at about noon or one and picked up Kyle from base. Heavens he is sooo gorgeous. ;) Then Bryan treated us to In N Out which is always a delicious choice. 

Before Kyle left for Yuma, he and Clayton were such buddies. I didn't know how they would respond to each other since they hadn't seen each other for a few weeks. I know that isn't really long but I still wasn't sure if the baby would remember Kyle or something. Well, as soon as Kyle looked at Clayton they both just lit up! It was the cutest thing. :) Kyle just wanted to hold him and play with him. I loved it.

After In N Out we went to Walmart to get some ammo and then went out to go shooting. I am scared of shooting guns. It scares the heck out of me. I don't mind watching people shoot, but the thought of me shooting just freaks me out. Bryan had a few guns that he had brought and Kyle had his shotgun so we had a pretty good mix. We left the car on and the baby just slept in the carseat inside. I sat in there for a few minutes to make sure the guns weren't too loud or anything for him. He was crashed out though. HA!

 


 


Well, guess what..... I actually shot guns!!! Impressed?? You definitely should be. I was so nervous. Even after I shot a few times I was still nervous. Eek!!  I am quite impressed with myself.

   

I shot the 22 first and it wasn't bad at all. Then Bryan gave me the handgun to try. I didn't realize that Kyle was video taping me and I am pretty sure he had fun watching me look like an idiot.

Then Kyle gave me his shotgun and I was terrified but I did it anyways.... and again looked awful. My goodness. He gave me a big hug after I shot that one. 

Make fun of me if you want but I am still impressed that I did it at all.

It was actually a lot of fun and I will definitely do it again... but I will still get nervous I'm sure.

I know Clayton looks funny HA but it is too good of a picture of Kyle not to post

After shooting we went back to base to drop Kyle off and get gas and then head back to Queen Creek. Because I had to feed the baby and stuff we all ended up visiting in the car for a while. Kyle and I went into the store to get some snacks for me (Kyle was holding the baby of course) and someone told us that he was the cutest baby they had ever seen. :) That made us both smile.  

They just adore each other :)

I just love our little family so much :)

Even though it was a quick trip it was still a blast!! I am glad we were able to go and spend time with the hubs. :) I just love him (as if anyone had any doubts ;) ).

Arizona Trip Part 1 Winslow

A few weeks ago, Meema flew out to San Diego and spent the night at my apartment. The next morning we drove together to Arizona. The trip that was supposed to take about 8-9 hours took 12!!!! That's what I get for having a baby and a dog with me. Thank heavens for my mom because she was so much help. 

We started our trip at nine thirty ish I think. In Yuma we stopped at a gas station and let Lady (our dog) run around and use the bathroom. I fed the baby and we gassed up and continued. Kyle was working so we wouldn't have been able to see him. Then we stopped in Gila Bend because the baby was hungry again. While I was feeding the baby in the car, my Meema walked Lady around outside. Lady was getting close to a cactus so my mom pulled her back and Lady turned her face right into it. Meema had to sit and straddle Lady so we could get the stickers out. EEK! It was no fun for any of us. When we got to Phoenix I dropped my mom back at her car at the airport and she followed me to a gas station where I fed baby.... again. By this time we were all sick of being in the car and stopping and what not. I was debating staying in the valley for a bit, but figured it would be best to just finish up the trip to Winslow. I made a quick stop in Payson for some food because I hadn't actually eaten a meal that day; just goldfish and granola bars. Meema met me there and when we got baby back in the car he freaked out. He was SOOOO sick if being in the car. Eventually he fell asleep again and we all made it to Winslow safe and sound. It was a VERY long day. 

Clayton watching Lady during one of our many stops

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While staying in Winslow I had an awesome time. My Meema was soooo much help with the baby. I was able to get a few naps in while she watched the baby. She also would just take him so I could shower and do some other things. It was absolutely fantastic!

Here are pictures of some of the fun things that we were able to do during our trip to Winslow.

Watching the Winslow vs Chinle football game (of course Winslow dominated)

visit with Kayla and Amber

Had lunch at the delicious Root Beer Stand with Toni

four generations with Meema and my Grandpa Harry

My friend Kristjana was in Arizona visiting from  South Dakota. 

Every morning I took Lady and Clayton on walks. I let Lady off of the leash and she had a blast just sprinting around and exploring everything.

 Clayton and I met little Lanaya 

 Had lunch at Captain Tony's with my cousin(practically sister) Kayla 

Baby C got a lot of Grandma time

I got to visit my Show Low "parents" that I have known for six years now. I stayed at their house in 2006 during a church camp in Show Low and we have kept in touch ever since. I just adore them.

Watch my cousin Reed run in his high school cross country race :) He did awesome!!

My Aunt Virginia and the kids (missing Courtney)

Reed closing in on the finish line

My cousin Courtney turned 13!!!!

Baby C rolled from his back to his tummy for the first time!

Baby C started eating rice cereal twice a day! He loves it!!!