Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day!

Before I dive into all our fun celebrations for Mother's Day this year, I want to send out a huge thank you to all the wonderful Mother's, Motherly figures, and future Mom's out there for everything you do. I have been so blessed to have so many strong, and amazing women in my life to guide me. I have to start by thanking my own mother for not only bringing me into this world, but putting her life on hold to always make sure she was giving us kids the best life she could possibly give us. She has always been there to empower us, teach us, comfort us and love us through every stage of our lives. I now also have an amazing Mother-in-law who has never missed an opportunity to make me feel loved and welcomed into my new family. I know so many women who butt heads with their Mother-in-laws and I count myself lucky to have one I love and admire so much. I couldn't leave out my best friend Sarah's amazing mother who has also never missed an opportunity to welcome me into their family. She has fed me, put a roof over my head, given me life advice and spoiled me rotten for nearly 15 years now and I wouldn't feel right considering her anything other than a mom to me as well. These 3 incredible women are just the tip of the iceberg of women who have touched my life. I have so many grandparents, aunts, cousins, siblings, friends and parents of friends who have each taught me important lessons in my life. They have each helped shape me into the woman I am today. Some of them continue to touch my life and help me improve myself as a daughter, sister, wife and friend every day. Some day I hope to follow your examples of love and selflessness to become as wonderful a mother to own children as you are to yours. Cheers to all you wonderful ladies!

Mother's Day was celebrated on Saturday for my mom this year. She had mentioned multiple times that her car was the only car in the family without a spoiler on it, and she was feeling left out. My dad had the great idea of giving her one for Mother's Day this year. Since her car is a nicer one, it took a bit of shopping to find a spoiler that would look good on her car and matched the paint. It was a tad bit on the pricier side so all of us girls went in on it together to get it for her. While my dad worked on installing the spoiler, we needed to get my mom out of the house. Kelsey and I told her we wanted to take her to lunch at the Olive Garden for Mother's Day. She couldn't say no to a free lunch, so off the three of us went leaving my dad to his work. My dad was supposed to text me when the spoiler was on, so when lunch was over and the check was paid but I still hadn't received a text, I knew we needed to stall going home. Thinking on my feet is not my forte, and the best I could do is complain that I was almost out of cat food and that we needed to make a stop at Petco for some more food before going home. My mom didn't seem very impressed, but agreed to go. Luckily it was a pet adoption weekend at the store, so there was plenty to look at while we were there! Before long Kelsey fell in love with a beautiful white cat with one blue eye and one green eye that was up for adoption. My mom said no at first but we weren't going to take her first answer as final. We noticed that she was a 9 year old cat and the only animal that was free. We began guilt tripping my mother that the only reason she would be free is if this was her last chance to find a home, or she would be put down. It's horrible I know, but it worked! She gave in enough to say that if my dad said yes, then Kelsey could get the cat. My dad didn't even understand what Kelsey was mumbling about, he just told her to get whatever she wanted. My mom couldn't back out on her word now, so Kelsey began filling out the adoption paperwork. Of course the adoption took a while and we had to browse the store to get Kelsey her own cat supplies so our trip to Petco proved to be enough time for dad to finish the spoiler. When we got home my dad pretended to go fill up his soda in my mom's car so that she would see it with the spoiler. It took my mom a few minutes to catch on, but she finally figured it out! She seemed to like her spoiler quite a bit, so I think her present was a success!



Meet Kelsey's new little angel...

Elsa!



Pets need to nerd out sometimes too!

She loves cuddles

My mom's best Vanna White impersonation

Mom, Dad and the new spoiler

Mom posing with all her girls

That night my friend Chelsea and her family wanted to go out to a Karaoke Bar. Against my Mother's wishes, we brought Rachel along as well. I know, great Mother's Day gift, taking Rachel to her first bar! In my defense, it's not like she was going to drink, just sing! We all met at Chelsea's house before heading to a bar none of us had been to before on the East side. I don't remember the name of the place but it was crowded! It was a really odd atmosphere as well, like we weren't exactly welcome there and the same 3-4 people kept getting up to sing boring songs. We stayed long enough for someone in our group to get a turn, which took about an hour, before deciding to jet. Instead we went to Cheers to You, a bar we had been to a couple times before. It was instantly better. We had a more relaxed atmosphere with friendlier people and better music. Rachel, Bob and I didn't do much singing but we cheered on Chelsea, Garrett, Brittney, Jeff, Lindsay and Ian as each of them did! Someone Jeff knew met us there as well, I think it was his brother but it may have just been a friend of his. Chelsea's family was determined that Rachel hit it off with him despite me telling them about her boyfriend Mac. They did end up getting them to play pool with each other, but not much else. Everyone had a lot of fun!



My handsome hubby and I

Rachel and her Pool date

Busted!

Sunday was Mother's Day so Bob and I had planned on getting up early to make his mom breakfast in bed, but neither of us thought to set an alarm.... Needless to say, she got up and went to church before we woke up so we missed our opportunity. Bob made his infamous "crack waffles" anyway, and we ate them for lunch instead!

*We call them crack waffles because they are so delicious that they are "as addictive as crack", not because there is anything in them that shouldn't be....

After lunch we gave Marcie her Mother's Day card, a jazz shirt and some new pajama pants. She seemed to love everything since she insisted on trying everything on right away and wore them the rest of the day! She kept thanking me for picking out the best presents for her all the time, so I had to let her know that Bob actually did the shopping this year. She seemed really impressed! Bob also got me a U of U shirt and some new fluffy slippers as a Mother's Day gift. We don't have kids yet, so he really didn't need to get me anything. Maybe he is just practising for the future? Or he is just really impressed with my mothering skills to all our little fur babies! That night Bob slaved away in the kitchen making the most delicious Chicken Parmesan I have ever had, for his mom. Everyone enjoyed the food so much we stuffed ourselves completed full before we could even start on the garlic bread! All in all I think it was a great Mother's Day!

A Week with an 18 Month Old

Just to make something clear: I'm a sucker for my best friend Chelsea's baby Benton. He may not be my nephew by blood, but I take my title as honorary Aunt very seriously! So when Chelsea mentioned that she would like to take an adult only vacation with her husband, I jumped at the opportunity to play with Benton for the week. Her family teased that I didn't know what I was getting into, taking on an 18 month old plus Chelsea's house and new puppy, but I didn't care. I was determined. Luckily for me, Bob was on board too! That means for the last week we have been "playing house" and getting to experience what parenthood is really like or at least as close as you can get without having a kid of your own... My conclusion? I LOVE it!

*WARNING* This post is long!

Sunday afternoon, Bob and I went to Chelsea's to begin our duties as baby-sitter/house-sitter/dog-sitter. Benton was still napping so Chelsea went over her expectations for us. Garrett teased her about worrying too much, and asked her if she thought we needed a lesson in diaper changing before they left. She did go over a lot of info that Bob and I already knew from watching Benny in the past, but I doubt I could leave my baby for 6 days without doing the exact same thing... or worse! Finally they woke Benton up, said their goodbyes, and then it was just the three of us. Luckily Benton is easily the happiest baby I have ever been around, and one of the best behaved as well! We gave Benton some dinner before packing him and the puppy up to head to the park. We played until Benton started looking and feeling a little too cold for our liking so we headed home.






































































Once there, Benton spent some time showing off his books and toys before settling in to play a game of "Watch Bob shoot a rubber bracelet at the ceiling, then take it back to him so he can do it again." Finally he started acting a little tired so we changed him into his jammies and laid him down in bed at around 7:30 PM.



 

We didn't hear a peep out of him until 8:30 the next morning! When he woke up, he was in a great mood! He ate his breakfast without a fuss, then we changed him into some clean clothes before starting play time. Bob wasn't so sure about showering and getting ready for work at Chelsea's house so we packed Benny up in the car and continued playtime back at our house. After Bob headed to work, Benton and I had to head to Sprint to take care of some phone business. This was the first time I have taken a toddler out on errands by myself. It was a success! The first store I stopped at had to print me a new receipt for a phone case I had paid for but not received yet. It took a while and Benton was getting too heavy to hold so I put him on the ground. He started to walk away but I told him to stay by me so he settled for quietly playing at my feet with my car keys. The hardest it got was when he threw my keys a couple feet away, but as soon as I told him to bring them back and not throw things, he did. Then it was off to the second Sprint store to pick up my phone case. By this time it was past Benton's nap time so he was dosing off in the car, and I had to wake him up to go into the store. This time he wouldn't let me put him down, he would just look at me with his arms reached up asking to be picked back up so I had to hold him the whole time but he was just as quiet and happy as ever. Finally I made it back to his house to feed him lunch and put him down for a nap. When he woke up again we were running a little late to head back to my house so my in-laws could watch him while Bob and I were at work, so it was a quick snack and then hopping in the car! I got home just in time to get him settled in before heading to work. While he was fine seeing me leave, I was still feeling pretty guilty about leaving him there. I think I might have attachment issues!

Benny's new favorite game
Bob lifting him over the tall grass to
the cement pavers...





I got home from work at about 12:30. By this time, Bob had Benton tucked in and sound asleep for hours, but I heard a little rustling from the room and had to use it as an excuse to go give him goodnight hugs and kisses and tuck him in again. The next morning he was a little bit fussier about breakfast but still finished it just fine. Then it was out to the back yard to play with the dog and Uncle Bob before he had to leave for work. After Bob left, Benton and I had more play time and watched some Mickey Mouse clubhouse before lunch time. After Benton finished lunch, I let him chase the dog back and forth through the kitchen while I ate my lunch. I had Benny's teddy grahams by me in case he wanted to eat more so when he came over to the table reaching for the food I handed him one. This sent him into the first tantrum I've seen of his. Apparently the correct answer was supposed to be giving him some of the food I was eating! He threw himself on the floor and started crying. Luckily he was able to pull himself together in about 30 seconds, but I did decide that it was obviously nap time for someone. After his nap it was another quick snack before loading up the car to take Benton to my parents house to be watched. Benton was pretty happy following the cats around and showing off his toys to my mom so I thought it was safe to make my exit like I had the day before. Unfortunately as soon as he heard the Family room door open and saw me leaving, Benton's face dropped and he started the saddest crying I've ever seen. I couldn't help but go back in and comfort him. He ran into my arms and gave me the biggest hug. I felt so guilty and sad leaving him! I may have shed a couple tears and decided that if it's at all possible I WILL be a stay at home mom. I couldn't do that with my own kids, especially every day!

On Wednesday I had organized a fun play date for Benton and my friend Brya's nephew Collin. Benton was having a blast at the park... At least until a daycare full of kids showed up. That's when Bob and I very quickly discovered that Benny doesn't share well with other kids. If any of the kids touched something he wanted to play with or had been playing with, the tantrums began! There were many, many time outs and walks away from the playground to calm him down. Luckily the day care didn't stay long and Benton was much better at sharing with Collin. We had a lot more fun after that! After giving his new friend Collin a hug goodbye, it was off to Subway for lunch and home for a nap. Benton was exhausted from all the fun, so he slept for several hours. Finally I decided it was time for him to wake up, or he wouldn't sleep that night. He was so cuddly with me when I woke him up, I couldn't help but stand there snuggling him for a while. That brief moment made every tantrum that morning worth it! Finally I took him downstairs for a snack before getting his bath ready. Benton and I had too much fun playing with all the bath toys, we lost track of time. The next thing I knew my alarm to leave for work was going off! I had to holler at Bob to come up to the bathroom and finish Benton's bath so I could rush off to work. Thanks to losing track of time, an unexpected school zone and a lot of red lights, I was late to work. Just one more reason I shouldn't be a working parent! I would always be late because I would lose track of time getting my kids ready!

















































I think the dog loved him as much
as he loved the dog

On Thursday afternoon my nephews Robert and Russell, and my niece Mimi were doing their end of the school year Spanish performance. I wanted to be a good Aunt by being there and cheering them on but with Benton, that meant moving up his schedule. I woke up early and got ready while Benny was still in bed. Then I got him up, fed and dressed early. I immediately started play time so that he would get worn out faster and take a nap earlier. When it was time to leave I packed his snack in the diaper bag and moved him from his nap in the crib to a nap in the car as we drove to the kids school. Once there I found my way to the rest of the family and gave Benton his snack while the other classes were performing. Benton was putting on a show the entire time. Fresh from his nap, he was in a great mood. He kept flirting with another little girl his age in the audience and sharing his snacks with her while helping himself to her snacks. He showed off all his stuff to the family, attempted to dance along with the other kids and had a blast bouncing on my knees. After the show was over I said hi to Robert, Mimi and Russell and told all of them how great they did. While they had to go back to class after their performances, the rest of the family wanted ice cream. I'm never one to turn down ice cream so Benton and I headed to Arctic Circle with everyone else. I think Benny enjoyed his ice cream more than I did! Unfortunately I had to go straight to work, so I loaded Benny and all his stuff up in my in-laws mini van and I went off to work.

The next day Benton accompanied me to another big family event. This time it was my cousin Jacob's wedding. Jacob is one of the only cousins in my age range, and far nicer to me than some of my other extended family members so it was important to me to be there and support his new life with his new wife Kate. That meant another early morning getting ready while Benny was asleep and again waking him up to get him ready in time. Everything was running smoothly until we got to the Oquirrh Mountain Temple where the wedding was taking place. While we were sitting in the waiting room, Benny was being his normal adorable self, showing off to all the other people waiting until he decided it would be a fun game to steal every one's shoes. It started with shoes women had taken off to be more comfortable, and then evolved into stealing shoes right off of people's feet. Perfect strangers too. I tried to distract him with toys, but he wouldn't be deterred. The only thing he found more entertaining was throwing toys at people. When I wouldn't let him play with the shoes or throw his toys anymore, the tantrums began. Luckily the wedding party came out before too long. Benny went back to being happy when we got to go outside and wander around. He loved my Uncle Garry from the second he saw him. I had to watch closely because the two of them would wander off hand in hand and if my back was turned I wouldn't know where Benny went! The entertainment wasn't long enough though. Soon Jacob and Kate were making their grand debut as a married couple and Benny was being ignored. He began running in front of the doors, and I had to grab him so he wouldn't be hit by the door or ruin the pictures and that's when all hell broke loose! He was so mad I wouldn't let him play he broke into the longest most extreme tantrum I had seen all week. This tantrum had him trying to throw himself from my arms, and screaming at the top of his lungs for a good 15 minutes. I had to walk away to try and calm him down. Then during pictures and all the congratulating of the couple I had to sit by the fountain which was the only place Benny was calm. If I tried to take him anywhere else, it was instant melt down again!



























 

Despite the morning from hell, I wanted to go to the luncheon so I packed Benny in the car and we headed to the church. Luckily it seemed Benny's bad behavior was because he was tired. I didn't even have him belted into his car seat before he was out! Once at the church I lugged the entire car seat inside so Benny could continue napping. He slept through nearly the entire luncheon. He finally woke up toward the end in just enough time for me to get him some of the food for lunch and to play with Amy's twins in the nursery. Once again Benny was his happy well-behaved self and I could show off what a sweet baby he is! Before I knew it, it was time to drop Benny off with my in-laws and head to work. As excited to sleep in my own bed as I was, I knew I wasn't ready for Benny's parents to come home. Ready or not, his parents came home that night and it was back to life as I knew by the time I got off work that night.

To thank Marcie, and Wayne for watching Benton while we were at work all week, Bob and I took them to dinner at one of our favorite restaurants, La Hacienda. The atmosphere was great with live music and a musician serenading us at our table, the food was better and the company was superb! Then it was time to thank Bob for playing house all week so I took him to see Godzilla, which he had been so excited about. It was a fairly average action/sci-fi movie. Good enough to keep us entertained the whole time, but not one that I picture us seeing again.  I'm so lucky I have such a wonderful husband who is so willing to drop everything to help my family and friends!