wiggle worms

Lately, whenever Leila wakes up in the morning or from a nap she's always crying. It's weird because it hasn't always been the case. Think it started when we moved into our new home. Maybe she's still getting used to it?

Well, this morning was different. She woke up happy, like she used to, and just played in her crib. Maybe it's because I left her naked doll in there so she had something to play with other than her three stuffed animals she doesn't really care for. 

I was glad for that because it's Tuesday. And on Tuesday's we go to Wiggle Worms at the library. Leila loves being front and center where all the attention is on her, or so she thinks.

She thoroughly enjoys twirling around with the scarves and shaking the maracas. I really should invest in both of these items because she can be entertained for hours, or so I'd think, and is sad when she has to put them away.

my encounter with yet another HGTV star

How could I be so lucky to run into my style icon, Emily Henderson, on a whim at my favorite consignment shop? Emily is all about shopping at antique stores, so if I were to run into her at any store in Salt Lake City it'd definitely be at Elemente.

Hands down, Emily is the most amazing stylist...ever. If I could have anyone style our home it would be her. This might sound crazy, but I have 8 episodes of her show saved on our DVR for design inspiration and follow her blog on the weekly.

We stopped in Elemente to find something pretty to fill our new home. Eric went inside first while I stayed in the car with Leila since she'd fallen asleep. As I was waiting in the car I see like 6 girls walk into the shop, I thought to myself, Eric better snatch up the good stuff before they do. 5 minutes after they walked in I got this message:

Apparently he went up to Emily and her posse of friends and the conversation went like this:
Eric: "Can I ask you a really embarrassing question?".
Emily: "Sure".
Eric: "Are you Emily Henderson?".
Emily: "Yeah. That's not embarrassing at all, its flattering".
Eric: "My wife is a really big fan of yours and she's in the car watching our sleeping baby. She would love to meet you. Can I go get her?".
Emily: "Go get her, I would love to meet her".


Wow, when Eric told me he'd spoken to her...and mentioned ME I couldn't believe he did that for me. My heart melted and if what Eric did doesn't say true love, I don't know what does. It's the little things he does that I love most.

Eric didn't text me back after I asked him if it was her and when he came running out of Elemente I knew it was Emily! He came to take over watching Leila and I told him no, we're waking the baby and we're all getting out of the car. I was so nervous to meet her and asked Eric, how do I look?

I went up to Emily, looking at a rad piece of vintage furniture with her beautiful friends surrounding her, and said "Hi Emily". So awkward.

We started jabbering and snapped a picture. She is so sweet and beautiful. We recommended she go to Green Ant and she said they were just there. Eric asked her if she was here for Sundance and she said she was here for Alt Summit - where the most popular bloggers in the country gathered over the weekend.

We went to Green Ant after and there she was again, she had contemplated getting some leather chairs and was back to buy them. We chatted some more, about her show, the furniture she was buying, how she was going to ship it, the episode we want to to style our home after, etc. Love her even more.

Here's where she talked about The Green Ant on her blog, and this episode is how I'd love to style our new home.

snowboarding

We ended 2011 in style and started it off with a bang...2 days into 2012 we went snowboarding. Eric's good buddy/coworker has been dying to have Eric show him how to ride, so he was the instructor for the day. We all know Eric's a superb teacher, I mean just look at me, I'm his successful student!

Ok, not really. I still suck at snowboarding but if we went regularly during the season instead of 2-5 times max, I'd be loads better. Probably haven't really made the hubs proud...yet. For some people, snowboarding comes more naturally. I think Eric is too nice to me and I relied on him too much in the beginning. I fell in love with him on the mountain because he was so patient. I'm sure there were times that he just wanted to push me down the mountain and say, "see ya at the bottom", but he didn't. Which he probably should have because I might have been better off. He was just so sweet, always holding my hands, helping me get off the lift, and yelling kind words of encouragement. He still does.

Six years later, I'm still waiting for the day until I get good, but that's not going to happen on its own. I need to toughen up and grow some balls when it comes to tearing it up on the mountain. Because lets face it, I'm doing everything but "tearing it up". I need to be able to hang because it's a big part of Eric's family's life. Greg owns his own snowboarding shop, Gear Swap, and Greg and Shasta started their own clothing company, Flake, For the Snow Minded. These entrepreneurs live for snowboarding and always hook us up with our gear.

I watch people ride down the mountain and they make it look so easy, I don't know why I can't do that. I thought I'd be a pro by now. Don't get me wrong, I love the sport and love it even more since Eric and I get to do it together. But snowboarding would be 10x better if I was good, or just tried harder. Too bad it's just so expensive. Everything about the sport cost you an arm and a leg, everything from your get up, to your gear, to your pass. Not. A. Cheap. Sport.

I have no idea why I just went on that random rant. Anyway, here are the pictures.

Ray falling off the lift.

Catching a bite to eat. All these idiots paid $30 on 2 burgers and fries, while we went to Subway on our way up and spent $10 on a sandwich AND goodies to eat on the lift.

It was a beautiful day but I've never seen it so dry and barren. I could see the tops of trees under the lift, dirt, even rocks. Not the best day to be on the mountain but still fun.

Nice FLAKE beanie babe.

Even though Ray pretty much sucked and fell a lot, as expected, he was stoked on the sport. Being that Eric was the pro amongst the group, we wanted him to show off his mad skills at the park. So he did. 


And here's the part where it gets dicey.


When Eric threw in a backside boardslide he got on the rail going too fast. He lost his balance coming off the rail and landed on his back, sandwiching his left arm between his back and the hill. 


We were trying to milk the time we had on the mountain since we had a babysitter (thanks Greg), but when Eric said we needed to go home I knew it was bad. I've never seen Eric get hurt, let alone be in so much pain that he wanted to leave early. The further we made it down the caynon, the more pain he was in and nearly vomited in the car. I was going to drive straight to urgent care but Eric was trying to be a tough guy and wait it out til the next day in hopes of getting better. Well, the next day came and he could hardly move his arm so I off to urgent care we went. 


The verdict: avulson fracture of the ulna. Doc said to come back in 2 weeks, if wasn't better then he'd need surgery. Luckily, it's almost 4 weeks later and his arm is doing much better. He hasn't even been back to see the doctor. He was out of commission for a while and the Gear Swap van sat in our driveway for 3 weeks waiting to be unloaded. We finally got around to unloading it last weekend. Eric's injury made him pretty much useless, don't worry he'll admit it too. 


As I'm writing this, Eric's out riding with his brother. I told him to keep is board on the ground, to stay in bounds, and out of the park. Trying to get a rise out of me, he sent me this picture:

Gymnastics

Leila is such a little ball of energy. She loves to run around but doesn't listen very well, I mean, she's 18 months so I don't expect her to but I wanted to see if I can do something about it. So I singed us up for gymnastics. Seems like the perfect mix of play and discipline. She can be active and play with kids her age while learning to listen and follow instructions at the same time (hopefully).

Last week was our trial class, lets just say she was running around all over the place and preferred to do her own thing instead of follow instructions. One mom said not to worry, it'll take about 4 times for her to figure out the routine, another mom said it took her daughter 6 months to figure it out. Wow. Ok, now I don't feel so bad.

1. The trampoline is the ONLY thing she wants to do.
2. She's not so scared of tunnels anymore and went through it for the first time in her life.
3. Chilin', trying to catch bubbles towards the end of class.
4. She gets a blue star for "being so good during class". Ha ha.

Today was day two. The beginning exercises went great and she seemed to kinda remember what to do, I saw some improvement. But when it came to the rest of the activities, she was miss independent and did her own thing. Seems like all I did today was chase after her and bring her back to the group. I debated if this class was right for her at this age because she threw a couple tantrums and screaming fits because I didn't let her do what she wanted and I don't want her to be a distraction to the other kids. But...she will learn, only good will come out of gymnastics. 

Looking forward to next week because they just added a 3rd class, which is 45 min earlier than the one we've been going to. This time works better because it won't interfere with her nap time. So far, we're the only ones signed up for it but I think the time will be a lot better for her. So close to nap time probably isn't helping in her lack of desire to cooperate. Don't think we'll be the only ones for long.

New Stomping Grounds

We're diggin' our new neighborhood. I love taking walks around the block and waving to our neighbors. Though we've only met a few, everyone seems pretty friendly. We like the diversity of old, young, and just plain weird (we have a really strange neighbor that lives a few doors down).

We live in this quiet, hidden neighborhood that seems tucked away but it's also in the middle of everything. We're only a 10 minute walk or drive to anything - it's crazy.

The Murray Library is only like a 5 minute walk away and we've been there every week since we moved in. Leila's thoroughly enjoyed checking out books and reading new ones instead of the same ol' same ol'. They have a program called Wiggle Worms for kids that are too young for Story Time. So far we've only been once but Leila loves it and I've met some nice moms. Murray Park is also only a short 10 minute walk from our house. Greg and Shasta say they have the best farmers markets in the summer and I can't wait for that. It's been cold outside but we make sure to bundle up so Leila can play on the swings. When we went, there seemed to be a lot of nice moms playing with their kids. I chatted with one of the moms for a good 45 minutes, nice lady who's lived in Murray her whole life and gave me some good insight to schools and the neighborhood. Everyone says Murray has the best schools, reviews online are awesome.

But the very best thing about our new neighborhood is the fact that we live a whopping 9 minutes from Eric's work. Beats the 40-60 minute commute from Orem. Our quality of life is so much better because, well, it's kinda obvious. We get to see Eric more. He's usually home by 5:20, we have dinner, then have the rest of the night together. Nothing beats that. Nothing. 

On several occasions, I've heard/read that living closer to work and having a shorter commute (less than 30 minutes), increases your overall happiness. Makes sense and I've already seen a difference. 

Sick

For the past 3 days, Leila and I have been chilling at home in our PJ's because I caught the dreaded cold. Feels worse today, Eric had to run to the store to get me more meds because we ran out and Theraflu was the only thing that sounded like it'd do the trick. At 3:30am last night, Leila woke up screaming bloody murder. Sometimes we'll let her cry it out but this time it was different. When I went to get her I noticed she'd thrown up in her bed. She seems fine now but I hope she doesn't get whatever I've got - though, I'm throwing up. Random.

So these past few days have been lazy ones. We've been doing a lot of playing at home and I've been able to make a pretty good sized dent in my book. That's all I want to do. Hopefully I can finish it this weekend so I can rent the movie.

GNO

We celebrated Rachel's and Emily's birthdays at Blue Lemon, of course.

Rachel said she was thinking when the last time she had good, deep, girl talk. She said it was with us. We always have the best conversations. Love these girls. 

Yes, I might look like a turtle in the last picture.

Resolutions

We've been living in our house for about 2 weeks now. It's been soooo great and we're loving it. It's still a work in progress and we've been living off the bare necessities right now. We only have a couple plates and glasses out, have bare walls and rooms, upper cabinets are still in the garage, trying figure out our kitchen layout, and we're still recycling through the same 10 outfits. We have loads of boxes in the shop and the Gear Swap van is waiting to be unloaded from emptying out our storage unit but we're just happy despite the chaos. Happy to just have made it in our house before new years. Ended 2011 just right.

As we start a new year I can't help but reflect back on 2011. I must say, 2011 was a great year for us, I'm lucky to say that we didn't have many trials or heartache...it was pretty awesome and full of blessings because we're happy and healthy. Leila grew up into a little girl, we bought a house, had our 15 minutes of fame, and now I'm fortunate enough to stay at home with my little one...full time.

I don't make too many personal resolutions as I tend to break them in the first 48 hours. I always strive to be better but I want to be a little more specific this year and have something to work towards. I made one real personal resolution last year and am proud to say I kept it. It was to blog more often so I can better document our lives and Leila's growth and development. Though I didn't keep up my Project 365 goal, I still blogged more than once a month. Happy about that.

Here are some ways I'd like to "better" myself this year:

Be present: probably the #1 resolution I want to work on this year is being more present and more unplugged from technology. Technology has taken over the world and everywhere you turn it seems like someone is glued to their phone/ipad/etc. Yes, I too am guilty. With facebook, instagram, and pinterest all on my phone I feel like whenever I have a spare moment I can always kill time by browsing on my phone. It's easy to bust it out at anytime, while I'm feeding Leila, while she's playing, while I'm sitting on the toilet, before I go to bed, at a stoplight, (I don't text and drive tho!) etc. If I break all of the resolutions below, as long as I keep this one I'll be happy: when I'm with Leila, I want to be with Leila and put my phone away. I'm not unplugging myself completely. No. Could never do that.

Be grateful: Back in the day when I started my positive psychology internship in college I wanted to start a gratitude journal. My favorite professor/mentor did so and encouraged me to too. I have yet to do so. This is the year. I know it will make me happy to see the good things in my life.

Be smart: I enjoy reading but don't make it a priority. Now that I'm a stay at home mom I feel like my brain has collapsed and has turned into a big blob of nothingness. I need to keep it working and thinking. I'll start by making the time to read more often. Goal: hope to read at least 6 books this year, 7 including the Book of Mormon from front to cover. First on my list is The Help, which I am currently reading and received as a Christmas gift. Suggestions for 2-6 are greatly appreciated.

Be active: I want to be fit..for myself, for my husband, for the summer, for the marathon we want to run this year, and especially before I get pregnant with baby #2. I don't want to completely let myself go and have that much more to tone up after my second child so that's a huge motivation for me since we want to get pregnant sometime this year. The holidays are over, it's time to set the treats aside and start working out at least 2-3x a week. Even if it's just walking around the block with Leila. Since running is pretty much the only way I can workout with Leila, I want to have a goal of running a marathon this year. Eric and I will do this together. I need something look forward to and working towards running a marathon is the perfect thing.

Be healthy: More home cooked meals. Less processed food. More organic stuff. Meatless nights. Eating out less. More greens. Enough said.

Be organized: Get my house in order and my days together. I like routine, Leila and I are going to find something that works so we have something to look forward to each week - you might not get it, but I do.

These are my personal resolutions, Eric and I have set some as a couple and I'm going to type them up andhang them on our fridge. We're excited for a newer, better year. Here's to 2012.

The Morning Of

After a late night of wrapping presents, we were so excited to wake up and see how Leila would react to opening gifts in the morning. Though we didn't buy her many gifts (she doesn't need very much), I'm grateful that we were able to afford to buy her a few little toys to get her excited. It's kinda hard to teach a little one the true meaning of Christmas.

I wasn't sure if she'd be excited, overwhelmed, or not really interested. Once Greg and Shasta arrived, we had our traditional Christmas breakfast; pull apart rolls. With happy bellies, we let the unwrapping begin. The fam loved being able to witness Leila on Christmas morning, because next year we'll be having Christmas morning in our first home just the three of us. Our goal was to be in our home by Christmas, but I think it worked out better this way. 

I was surprised that Leila didn't try to get into all the gifts once she woke up (there weren't that many under the tree before she went to bed). I guess after a couple days of telling her, "don't touch" she was no longer tempted. 

Once we started opening the gifts, she got so excited. Beyond excited. She kept clapping her hands and loved playing with her new toys. After opening only 2-3 gifts, I thought that was enough and a little too much overload for her. But it was Christmas morning and she had gifts from grandparents and Aunt Natalie to open so we let her continue on.

Lately, Leila loves having a "shawl" wrapped around her - pretty much a blanket with a chip clip that holds it on. Since we're leaving Grandma's nest soon, Grandma bought her a new blanket and clip to call her own. Now she's ready to go shopping with her new purse.

This popper/pusher thing is what we bought Leila yesterday...but Grandma had the very same toy from Eric's childhood in the basement. Score. So we wrapped it up as if it was new, this one's cooler anyway. And daddy played with it as a kid so it means that much more.

Leila woke up tired, and after opening only a few gifts, she was ready for a nap. So we resumed after she was well rested. You can see her face getting tired and worn out.

After nap time we resumed and opened a gift from her abuelito's. A shopping cart complete with cardboard boxes so she can go "shopping". She loved it.

Daddy's turn. Our budget for eachother was $10. So we were forced to be creative. I made Eric some things for his office at work and for his home office. Two mouse pads because I couldn't decide on one, and two pen holders. One with the bark and one without because, again, I couldn't decide. I can't take all the credit for the awesome pen holder, Mike cut the wood for me and helped me with the whole thing. He cut and sanded, and I drilled all the holes.

Helping Uncle Greg with the clean up.

Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas!