Christmas Getaway

At the beginning of December we made a quick getaway to Las Vegas and to St. George as of way of celebrating the end of Dan's school semester and enjoy one last time away while we are just a family of two. We had a great time spending time together (it was the first time in quite awhile where we were able to do something together other than work on Dan's homework!) and just relaxing! There are LOTS of pictures, so you are welcome to skip through them, but I wanted them all in case someday I get ambitious enough to print our blog into a book like I always say I am going to do...

We went to Vegas for our Honeymoon and I fell in LOVE with the flower garden inside the Bellagio. I had been looking forward to seeing their Christmas display so it was the first place we went to when we got into town. It's amazing to me all the hours and amount of flowers that go into each display. The theme was polar bears. They had a mama bear, papa bear, and baby bear. We made sure to get a picture of Dan by the papa bear and me by the baby bear since that is the closest we could get to getting a picture of Daphne by the baby bear.

Dan was excited to see the New York, New York Roller Coaster. He ended up not riding it, because he chose to ride the swings on the Stratosphere instead. Sorry no pictures, they charge almost 20 dollars just to get on the observation tower to watch someone ride the swings...so I just stayed back while he went. He LOVED the ride.
We also toured the Titanic Exhibit while there. I saw it as a kid when it came to Salt Lake and have always wanted to see it again. We both really enjoyed it.




The last night we were there we were able to meet up with our friends, Mike and Julia. They were on their way to Disneyland and just happened to be there the same night as us. It's sad to say, that we have been so busy that the only time we have spent with them recently is a night in Vegas when we only live about 10 minutes away from each other. It was so fun hanging out there with them and we hope one day to go on an actual vacation together! Julia wasn't too keen on pictures so this is the only proof I have that they were there:) We went to dinner with them and to the Bellagio to see the fountain show.




After a few days in Vegas, we went to St. George to visit Dan's dad and Grandma Crandall. It was nice and relaxing to visit, cook Paul dinner, and go to church at his Grandma's Assisted Living Center. The boys were able to go repelling while we were there as well. Dan hasn't been repelling with his Dad in years so they really enjoyed being able to do that together. I am glad they got some fun pictures but I don't want to even think about how safe it was since the belayer was also the photographer...

Flowrider

That night after my baby shower we went to the Flowrider for Dan to finally use his Father's Day gift. I found a deal on Groupon for him and I am pretty sure we used it the same day it expired...guess that is what happens when life gets busy with fun stuff like work and school:)

He started of laying on a board and once he caught onto the basics he tried standing up a few times. He did really good for his first time. I can't believe how hard it looked!

Baby Shower 1

I had my first baby shower this past week given by Dan's mom, his cousin from Guatemala, sisters, and the sister-in-laws. The shower was combined with my sister-in-law Cami, who is due three weeks before me. It was such a fun shower and I loved spending time with such great family. We had yummy food, played a few games, and got lots of presents. Daphne for sure is already quite spoiled:)

Heidi & Justin (hidden behind all the presents)

Kristen, Natalie, Alyssa, & Barbara

Shannon & Jennie

All the yummy food (in coordinating blue and pink colors, Cami is having a boy)

Nat's cute cupcakes

We played the game where everyone guesses the measurement of our bellies. My mother-in-law, Dolores, made me laugh the most with her guesses. Her strings for both my belly size as well as Cami's were at least double what they truely are. Fun memories:)

Cami & I learned that our bellies are exactly the same size.

Our cute diaper cakes

Matching robes

Our gifts to each other

Kamille (my soon-to-be sister in law!!!!), me, and my mom

Random Thoughts

First...for anyone that gave suggestions on baby products, thanks so much! Now I just need to decide and find some good deals!

Second...nursery is coming along slowly but surely. I found a pattern for a cute owl pillow and it started the creative juices flowing. See below for a sneak peak of the finished pillow and fabrics I am using for room colors. I am currently working on bumpers, sheet, and crib blanket. My mom has been painting an adorable mural on the wall as well. Hopefully before the baby arrives the room will be done but it is coming so fast! With the holidays coming, time is flying by.



Third... I am extremely grateful for all our wonderful family and friends. Dan's school has been a big trial this semester. It's not worth going into all the details but so many things have happened that have been extremely difficult and even often unfair. Long story short, I am so grateful for all the wonderful support we have been given. So many people have helped out with a service project he had to complete this semester which has just shown us how much Heavenly Father is aware of us by sending family and friends our way to help with even just the small things. Once again, we feel so blessed for the support system we have.

Fourth... My brother is engaged!!!!!!!!!! He has been dating Kamille, a cute girl, who grew up in the same ward as us. We have known the family for a LONG time and I am really good friends with their older daughter. Anyways, we are very excited for him and love Kamille. She is a perfect fit for him. It seems weird that my younger (and only) sibling is getting married. Part of me thinks it is so crazy how quick it all happened and that he is so young...but then I remember I was younger and got engaged quicker than he did:) All I can say, is that it doesn't take the Black's long to fall in love! Dan and I are both extremely excited for the two of them.

I think that is about it for now....until next time!

4 Posts below...

Like usual, I am playing the catch-up game, so there are 4 new blog posts below. I hope everyone had a great Halloween. We enjoyed taking a slight break from our crazy schedule for a few evenings to enjoy all the fun activities that come with Halloween!

Halloween & Some Interesting Trick-or-Treaters

We always look forward to Halloween at our house. I usually get so excited I can't help but decorate extra early. We look forward to carving pumpkins, roasting pumpkin seeds, and answer the door to trick-or-treaters. We especially love to see our primary kids from church. This year, Dan decided to dress up to answer the door as well (see below). But this year was even more exciting as we had some extra special trick-or-treaters come to our door!

Introducing....Mrs. Bushman and Elder Black

Mrs. Bushman even came with painted toenails and "she" claims she is from Europe, hence the hairy legs.

Her purse

Elder Black showing off his loaded pockets full of missionary gear

No explanation...

Elder Black trying to give my 80's rocker hubby a "pass-along" card

As you may have guessed...Mrs. Bushman is my brother and Elder Black is Kamille. Rueben lost a bet and the consequence was this costume. She chose for him to dress up like her mom (the wig reminded her of her mom's hair) and he chose for her to dress up as him as a missionary. Let's just say....I think he got the short end of the deal!

The trick-or-treaters ended up staying long enough to enjoy dinner and play a game with us and my parents. It was fun to spend time with family and enjoy all the fun visitors that came to our door.

Haunted Gingerbread Houses

We have been trying to plan an activity with my brother for quite some time now (sad to say, it has been a few months since we have spent much time with him). So we were excited to spend some time with him and Kamille on Saturday night creating haunted gingerbread houses.

While Rueben and I were both quite focused on the houses...Kamille and Dan were more focused on how much frosting Kamille could get on Rueben's face by the end of the night. In the end, we all ended up with some (some more than others for sure)!

Rueben and Kamille's final product

Our house and my frosting "whiskers"

Dan and our house

and the back of our house...who can have a gingerbread house without honoring Dan's favorite football team, right?

Carving Pumpkins

The Friday before Halloween we were invited over to our neighbors to carve pumpkins and roast marshmallows. It was cold but lots of fun! We enjoyed taking a break for a few hours and enjoyed the company.

Dan was excited to be able to carve a Saints pumpkin this year...

Dan's pumpkin at night...

My pumpkin witch

Mine at night...

And last but not least our "baby spider pumpkin". Dan carved this one Sunday night. Our garden had issues this year and this was the only pumpkin that grew (we purchased the other two). We decided it would be our baby pumpkin since just like your baby, it isn't quite ripe yet.

At night...

Marathon 2011

Dan, Andrew (brother), Paul (Dad), and Cort (cousin) ran the Layton Marathon this year again. The morning started bright and early for the boys with a 3:30 am wake up call (yuck!). The cheerleaders/fans were lucky enough to not have to be up quite so early, which was good since the morning started off very wet and cold. Rueben (my brother), Cami (SIL), and I arrived extra early to have time to quickly paint banners for the boys and see them pass the 18 mile marker as they exited antelope island.

Spray painting on wet ground was interesting...but made for fun (and cold!) memories

Rueben and I next to my poster (and yes..."D" stands for our little girl's name. Cami and I both decided to add our kiddos into the posters. Not sure how I didn't end up with a picture of her poster...)

Dan at the 18 mile marker. They had half marathoners crossing this point at the same time as him so unfortunately my picture taking skills were lacking since I almost missed him coming! He is the one is yellow and blue with his fist in the air:)

Andrew at the 18 mile marker, giving Cami (behind the scenes) a high five

Paul at the 18 mile marker

Dan nearing the finish line (one again, bad picture...but he is on the left next to the guy in yellow)

Dan about to cross the finish line

Cort, Dan, and Andrew after the race

Proof that Cami was there as a cheerleader too

My parents came to cheer him on as well at the finish

Proof that the boys had to get up super early for the marathon! (Look closely...you can see the tag for Dan's shirt, he wore it inside out)

Picture of us with the sign

Dan and I

Eating....there was lots of that going on afterwards!

Paul, Andrew, and Dan

Overall, the boys all did great and enjoyed the experience. The training was awfully time consuming, but worth the accomplishment. I am proud of Dan and glad he got the opportunity to do something he loves. His life is extremely crazy lately with school and he deserved a day off. He came in with a time of 3:29:06, which is a 7:59 mile pace. Although, he didn't quite get the time he wanted, he still did amazing and came in 18th overall and 3rd in his age division. His goal for the next one he runs is to be under 3 hours and 20 minutes.

Help!

So I am trying to decide on several larger items that we need to purchase and/or register for soon. I am trying to decide a lot now because I am hoping to strike quite a few deals with Christmas sales this season, especially black Friday. I am also signed up for Amazon Moms which gives you free 2 day shipping and I have heard there are lots of good deals the whole month of November. Anyways, initially I signed up for a consumer report subscription but have come to realize it was not as helpful as I thought it would be...

So, I am hoping some of you out there who are experts in the kid product buying and using department might be of some help:) I want to know everything! What brands you have liked/seem most reliable and have been recalled the least, what features are a must versus just a perk, etc.

So here is a list of things I have had my mind on deciding on soon...but if you have other products you want to tell me about or that I am forgetting to consider please do so! I have only listed the big expenses I can think of...

1) Crib
2) Carseat, Stroller, or Travel System? What kinds/packages have you guys liked the most?
3) Breast Pump
4) Swing- I know there are lots of different kinds, I have been recommended a side-to-side cradle one but I am also interested in what people thing of the travel size ones or I have even seen ones that turn into a high chair?? For those that have the travel, how often did you actually take it somewhere?
5) Pack N Play- are these really necessary?

Thanks for anyone with advice to help me know which direction I want to go!

When Life Gives You Lemons...

Life sure seems have put a lot of lemons along our path lately. Some days we think we are given challenges that are more than we can handle, although deep down we know that with God nothing is impossible. I ran across this quote the other day and LOVED it. I know that I need to do better at remembering that I can't choose the lemons I receive but I sure can choose the attitude I have.

"The only way to get through life is to laugh your way through it. You either have to laugh or cry. I prefer to laugh. Crying gives me a headache." -Marjorie Pay Hinckley