Part 3-Family Day!

On Wednesday of our trip, everyone else had tickets to Legoland but we thought we’d need a break from a day at the parks, so we opted to have a little family day. It started with a presentation at our condo (we got $75 gift card out of it) then a little trip down to the beach, where we had a picnic lunch. Amie was super-cute, playing with her little bucket and shovel, but it was really windy so we didn’t swim or anything. She liked playing tag with the waves on the shore until the freezing water got her. :) We walked around the harbor a bit, and then went back to the room to rest. We then headed to do a little bowling, which was pretty fun, then went to our favorite event of the day. We bought tickets to Medieval Times, a dinner show. Kids are free if they sit on your lap and eat your food. We knew it’d be a little cramped with the 4 of us, but weren’t about to spring for $60 on a seat and plate that wouldn’t be used. As they seated our section, we hung back to sit on the end just in case. Well, unfortunately there was another group with a baby and they had a carrier, so they insisted on the end, too. We ended up sitting in a row that was not intended to be used, so we had lots of room, no one was behind us (optimal for fussy-baby-standing-up-time.) They even snuck Amie a few treats for her. If you’ve never been, it’s a blast. We were rooting for the yellow knight, who did really well, but alas, did not win. Our section was by far the loudest and most enthusiastic, though, and that made it really fun. We had an excellent dinner with NO utensils and the girls were actually really good. Amie and Jeff LOVED with a capital LOVED the show. It was a great time. It was probably my favorite day of our whole trip!

What we were SUPPOSED to be doing that morning, but no luck... details to follow.

The pretty harbor outside our condo.

Amie LOVES walking by herself.

That's how windy it was!


Awww

How cute!

She just loved that bucket and shovel!

One of the best dollars I ever spent!

She had this weird aversion to walking over the tracks on the beach.

Go yellow knight!

Random hugs are our very favorite.

Clapping and cheering her little heart out! So fun!

Our hero in the joust.

For some reason, Jeff loved this sign we saw.

Part 2-Disneyland

We left Vegas and ran into HORRIBLE traffic, (Spring Break, I guess) so we ended up all getting to CA late (hours late) and no one wanted to spend more time in the car, so we just moved in and vegged.

The next 2 days we spent at Disneyland, and it was fun! I have to say that it wasn't what I was expecting. Partly because of coming from Florida where it's all bigger and better, but also partly because of my expectations. I actually went on very very very very very very few rides the entire week. It was hard for me to accept it, but I guess that's just how it goes when you have a large group and you're responsible for 2 babies. Someday! Just the same, it was fun and our girls were really very good, considering. Amie got scared on the scary Snow White ride, but otherwise enjoyed going on the things she could. She was scared of all of the characters, but liked the few that she recognized when they were at a distance. She LOVED the parades and did lots of great dancing. :) Lisie did lots of sleeping in the stroller and a little riding in the front carrier. That's about it. :)

Amelie got these sunglasses for Christmas JUST for this trip.

Cheesing it in the stroller on the hottest day there!

Tea time with the girls! (Amie, Grandma, Dayna, Hannah)

Daddy watching on the sidelines.

Dancing - a little conga arm action during the Celebrate! parade.

At Ariel's princess dinner. Yummy food (except for the mushroom soup)

Cinderella

Snow White

Scared of Minnie up close, but Minnie's really her favorite. She named her by name all by herself!


A little candid princess action.


Mom and that little baby.


It's hard to juggle 2 babies... especially when you're standing by a girl that doesn't look anything like Ariel... ha!



Not really sure about this...

Well, if I can have your cane...

Nope, No I hate it.

Fireworks... in more ways than one. Oh!

Disneyland Trip! Part 1-Vegas

Most of Jeff's family (including us) all decided to go down to SoCal for a sweet Spring Break trip. We've literally been planning for almost a year. I know this because I was not even pregnant when we decided the date and everything, and I ended up having a 2 month old on the trip! So, needless to say, we'd been looking forward to it forever-that made it almost a little sad to go on it-now it's over. :(

But it was a total blast. I tend to get carried away when telling stories, so I'm guessing the report of the trip will come in installments that become increasingly brief, and it will take at least a few days. :) Bless you faithful readers.

We started out with a drive to Las Vegas (We had LOTS of kids, so we needed the break.) We stayed in a condo there (without Dave's family-they booked a hotel) and immediately got to swimming. The weather was actually pretty nice, but the pools were shaded and there was a breeze so we kinda ended up freezing ourselves sick right at the beginning of the trip. We ate at Cici's Pizza that night (we don't have this in Ut) and then most of us went to Circus Circus with our kids. Our condo had a shuttle service to the Strip, so we thought it would be a bright idea to take that instead of fighting traffic. So wrong. It dropped us off at Caesar's Palace, and when we asked an employee how far to CC, he said "Oh a quarter mile, maybe a half." So we packed the kids and made the walk. Oh, was he so, so wrong! Almost 2 miles later, Amelie was asleep (and super heavy) and we arrived too tired to be very happy about it. We did play some games and all the kids left with a toy. We also got to see the acrobat show they have. We knew that there was no way we could walk back carrying kids so we tried to get ahold of people not with us. Finally Jeff answered his phone (he was sleeping back at the condo with Alisa, didn't feel well) and said he'd come pick us up. 5 min. later, I realized I had the keys to our car. We then got ahold of Davey, and bless him, he left his fam to drive us all home. Long night. In the morning, I (sort of) made homemade donuts for breakfast. (I was the sickest of them all and went back to bed after I showed them how to do it. It was NOT fun, but I was glad I was sick then instead of at Disney.)

At Arby's on the way, I got Amie something from the 50cent toy machine. What came out was large and small matching tattoos of sparkly dolphins, so we had matching pretties. She refused to let me take a picture til later when they were already gross and peeling.

Grandma Chris with all the grandkids.

Amie's favorite toy throughout-the luggage trolleys!

Swimming to sickness!

Amie's hiding in the shadows... She thought it was so cool to go play on the balcony.

Photos of the girls

We got some pictures taken of the girls a few weeks ago. (Well, technically grandma did.) These are of Lisie at about 3 or 4 weeks and Amie at 16 months.

Here are both our lovelies.Our little Lisie. This is all we got, cause she slept the whole time.


A most perfect representation of the juxtaposition that is our Amie.


My fave.
So innocent.

The Messinator

Most meals, I just give Amelie her own food to feed herself. And of course, she's eaten some very messy foods. I just don't usually let the 2 events coincide for my own sake. The other night, we finally just let her go at it. Thank goodness we took off the shirt instead of just adding the bib.

Funny Story

So, I found this posting on Craigslist for a treadmill, an ellipsoid and an ab machine all for $100, and thought sweet. I asked if he'd sell separately, he said yes but really wanted to get rid of them all. We offered the guy $70, he accepted. Sweet. So we go borrow a truck and head over. (He said we could come at noon or after 5. He texted me again asking if I could come at noon... He sent this text at 12:40... wha?)

We get there, and the guy is standing at the door, watching. He also asks right away if we have the money. (If you can tell, by now, my sketchball meter is starting to climb just a little.) Anyway, he takes us to where the machines are - outside. And yes, it's been raining here. He goes away for a second, and I hop on them to see how they work. Two are good, but the treadmill has no resistance, so if the battery doesn't come on, it's a waste. Anyway, we just load them all up... or should I say, Jeff and the guy's old mexican plumber struggle to dredge them through the mud for like 30 minutes. They are just squeezing in the ab machine, when some guy walks up and says "What's going on here?" or "Is there a problem here?" something like that. I just assumed he's making convo, but then, no, we find out these machines are all HIS. Not the guy who's trying to sell them to us. (I'm not exaggerating, it took at least a half hour just to hoist the beasts onto the truck.) The two guys start fighting, and then go off in Spanish... and Jeff and I are just standing there, whistling Dixie while we wait for them. Finally Jeff tells them he knows what they're saying and asks them to hurry up and make a decision. It seems to me, like, 3 times they come to a decision, then it just keeps going back and forth, like we aren't even standing there. Finally I said, sorry we will not be giving them 100 bucks, they can take a machine off if they want, but there's no chance for more money, so hop to. After MORE discussion about which machine he wants, we finally get it settled and he picks the heaviest one to be unloaded. I told him he'd have to get it off, and they just rip it off of there and throw it around. (The machine that he kept insisting was worth $3000, by the way. Well, not anymore, buddy.)

The best part about all of this, is that after that ridiculous and illegal interchange, after Jeff breaking his back to get it all, after spending hours cleaning and rearranging a spot for these machines in our spare room... they wouldn't fit through our small 1960 hall and doorways. So, I've got an ellipsoid that now sits in my living room, but by george, I have it and I'm using it!

Alisa

So, here goes. If you're going to brave the whole post, get a snack and settle in-I'm sure it will be a long one.

As you probably know, we were expecting to welcome our second little girl into the world early. Not only was Amelie very early, but I was dilating early as well. Jeff and I were on the ready all the time, always waiting for water to break or contractions to come. I actually started having lots of false labor after that first appointment where she told me I was at 3.5. This lasted for over 2 weeks! I even rushed home from work one day because of it, but alas... nada. Well, I went in for my regular check up on Wed., Feb 3rd at 10:30 am (with my bags in the car, as instructed.) I was at a 4+, about 80%. She then stripped my membranes... but nothing happened. Through the appointment, though, we talked about how things had been going for me, and how far I lived from the hospital. Dr. Brown just kept saying "We don't want any babies being born in cars" and with that, she called down to L&D and got me in for just about 30 minutes from then. We went and got a little lunch at Jeff's mom's and gave Amie lots of kisses before heading back to the hospital. I also got a blessing, as I was apprehensive about having a long, difficult labor since I was being induced at 38.5 weeks. (You'll see those fears were quite unfounded.)

We made it back to the hospital around 1, but between registration and other patients, I wasn't changed and settled in until about 1:30. (And I pre-registered, too! I'd hate to be in labor and check in without having done that.) My sister Mallory arrived about then, too. Dr. Brown had told me that when I got settled in, she wanted me to get the epidural right away or else I probably wouldn't have time if I got the Pitocin first. So, we waited for the anesthesiologist, and I was meanwhile not even feeling contractions or anything. He was in a C-section, and I guess they have to stay the entire time. So we waited and waited and waited and a little after 3, Dr. Brown came in and said to go ahead and start Pitocin since I'd already been there for 2 hours and wasn't even laboring. So, they induced me and she broke my water. I'm serious, the contractions came on almost immediately, and I was NOT happy. Natural childbirth was never a goal of mine! Luckily, the anesthesiologist came in right after that, and I finally got an epidural at 3:30. I don't know why, but this time it was much stronger, and I could not even move my legs - at all!

Things moved pretty quickly after that, though the whole time, things were very calm. It took me under an hour to dilate to 6, then an hour to get from 6 to 9+. Up until then, Alisa's heart rate and everything looked good. Once we got to 9+, and like, 95% effaced, it just wouldn't go that last tiny bit, and Alisa's heart rate started dropping really low during contractions. Dr. Brown came down and upon checking, realized she was facing straight up and probably couldn't move down the canal. She reached her hand up there and turned her to the side, and literally within seconds I was 10/100% and pushing. About 3 or 4 contractions and maybe 8 minutes later, Alisa was born! That was at 5:20. I didn't think I could beat Amelie's quick and easy labor, but we sure did - not even 2 hours. She was 7 pounds 10 ounces and 20 inches long. She has resemblances to Amie, but seems to look like me, actually! She's definitely a louder crier than Amie was, but doesn't cry much. We've been blessed with great babies. So far. :)

Afterward, I didn't even feel like I'd just given birth. For about a day, I felt great! Then the next few days, it got much, much worse before I started feeling better. Still, this recovery has been much kinder to me overall. Two weeks later, I'm already feeling human and going out sometimes. I'm thinking I'll be able to pick up short shifts at work starting the first of March. (Which would be nice, because I've been working up some serious cabin fever!)

Anyway, we're both home and doing great. She's a lovely (sleepy) addition to our family. Amelie loves her, but sometimes loves a little too hard. :) She plays with her baby dolls even more now, wrapping them up in blankets and rocking them. It is quite adorable. Jeff was blessed enough to get 2 weeks off, paid, and that has been the biggest blessing to me! He's going crazy at home, but for me, it has made this time bearable and fun. I'm not completely exhausted 24/7 like I would otherwise be. He goes back to work tomorrow, and for his sake I'm glad, but I will sure miss him being here at 2am. (I may be singing a more tired tune by next week!)

Thank you to everyone who helped with watching Amelie, bringing food and gifts. We love you all!

Waiting...
Still waiting.
Bam, there she was!
Look at her poor black feet.
Sisters meet.
"I'm not sure about this..."

She has a scrunchy face.
It's starting to hit me.
Proud daddy!
Going home outfit.
Oh my cuteness!
Little angel, finally home.

Our night with Kyle Korver

I know, I know-I just had a baby and I'm posting about basketball stars before her? I knew if I didn't do it before baby stuff, it would never happen.

For those of you not from Utah, Kyle Korver is one of the Utah Jazz. For those of you who don't watch Jazz basketball, they had been advertising this contest for a long long time-win a night with Kyle Korver. Jeff, offhandedly, sent in a text to enter the contest. Just once. And forgot about it. But of course, he won. That's his luck and everyone else's. We were pretty psyched-we aren't necessarily the world's biggest KK fans, but it'd be cool to meet him, plus it included a limo ride and swanky dinner at Devereaux Mansion. We went at the allotted time (with 24 other couples,) and the limo had taken over the first batch of people-a little more than a third of us. We actually expected lots of girls, but the vast majority were couples or 2 dudes together. We waited our turn and then the driver returned (after circling a few times-he couldn't get the super stretch in the parking lot.) We were about the cutoff to make the next group if he took the same number of people, and there were 4 couples behind us. The driver actually insisted that all of us get in this second trip. It was quite packed, and being 38.5 weeks pregnant, I didn't want to shimmy all the way in, so we asked to be last. This was a huge mistake-by the time everyone else got in, they were already grossly over-full and quite illegally packing the car. I wish I had just been firm about not wanting to get in. Jeff (and 4 other people) sat on the seat by the door and I got on his lap. Ever sat on someone's lap as a full grown adult? Not comfy. Ever done it with a full grown baby in your belly? Not possible. But I did it. I was basically sitting on the door, which was open enough for me to stick all my fingers out of, by the way.
But that was the worst, and once we were there, everything else was great. They had excellent hors d'oeuvres and drinks with a chamber orchestra, then a personal photo with Kyle. He gave me a rose and Jeff an autographed ball. Then we went down to our assigned tables and were with two other couples-an older father-daughter and a grandma-granddaughter. (I felt so bad for the granddaughter. Grandma kept telling the story over and over about how she missed a basketball game and had to run laps the next day for Kyle. She looked pretty embarassed.) Even after hors d'oeuvres, we really put it away. We had an excellent leek chowder type soup, rolls, salad, more rolls, then I had chicken wellington, Jeff filet mignon, with vegs, then they brought us apple pie with ice cream. I couldn't eat it-that's how you know I was super-pregnant. Throughout dinner, Kyle came and sat at each table just to talk for about 15 minutes. Jeff and I both agreed on 2 things-first, he's actually more attractive in person. And second, he's incredibly personable and nice. It was comfortable and entertaining to chat with him. He told us some stories about his family (like knocking out his brother's tooth in a friendly family basketball game and how all his family for like 3 generations or something all have K names) and made us like him, in a totally non-publicity kind of way.
We got instructions on how to access the photos they took, and a limo ride back to our car, and that was it. It was pretty fun and a good way to spend my last night baby-less (unbeknownst to me, that is.)

PS. I was gonna post a picture but, I hate them all so I didn't.