Say Uncle.

Oh man. Sometimes coming up with witty blog post titles is just too much, and I have to resort to puns and weird sayings that don't even really relate to the content. The pressure!

Anyway, we were pleased to party with Steve's younger brother Eric over his spring break, when he hopped on an airplane from Salt Lake and joined us for a week in NC. The kids were immediately his biggest fans--especially Gracie, who has loved him since she was a teeny baby--and he was super cool with them, letting Gracie read Frozen and discuss its princesses with him, leaving notes for them in the bathroom with their bathtub letters, and allowing himself to be awakened early every morning, sometimes by being poked and then giggled at multiple times. He kept music playing, ventured out with us to frozen yogurt and other kid-friendly excursions, and was just generally fun.

The Thursday of his trip we pulled Gracie out of school and drove everyone out to the Asheboro Zoo, where we scoped out the elephants, monkeys, flamingos, and giraffes, among other (less exciting, I guess, since I can't remember them) animals. Gracie's favorite exhibits were the elephants (she has a trio of stuffed ones who live on her bed) and the lemurs, who she and Charlie imitated for a few days afterward at home by hopping around with a sock tucked in her waistband like a lemur tail. :)

 Uncle Eric + elephant exhibit = happy Gracie.

We took the double stroller (the zoo is big, and we knew the kids would get tired) and Charlie enjoyed it a little too much, hopping in and out ad nauseam until we laid some ground rules.

There was a grounded helicopter at the elephant exhibit that everybody enjoyed for a while. As well as some informational literature about how (fun fact!) elephants apparently steal crops from farmers and they have to surround their crops with string dipped in pepper. (Apparently this is Charlie's standard camera face now?)

Bronze animals abounded.

We took a loaf of homemade bread, some pears, nuts, and jam and PB and made ourselves lunch partway through. We were hungry and tired and it tasted amazing and kind of nostalgic, like a field trip lunch from elementary school. :)

The next day Steve & Eric rented E a mountain bike and drove out to do some biking. They came home tired, happy, and mostly injury-free. :)

We also spent many evenings playing Sequence, and googling Bill Barrett, who (according to the box) recommends it.

We spent his last day down in Charlotte, where we mostly just hung around our hotel, went swimming in an insanely cold pool (I put one toe in but the kids enjoyed being dunked up to their necks until Steve/Eric got too cold to hold them), and watched TV.

Gracie was very, very sad when Eric had to leave. She cried. It was so sweet and so tough. We are blessed and happy in our life out here, but it is really hard sometimes to be away from our extended families. I told her we could take a picture for her to put on her wall:

Aren't they the best?

The next morning while Juliette slept Steve and the older kids slipped out early to take Eric to the CLT airport. Everybody was a little groggy, but there was no way the fan club would have let him go to the airport alone. :)

Christmas: A Retrospective

(Sorry its February.)

At our house Christmas starts the day after Thanksgiving, and always with doughnuts for breakfast. We pull out the Christmas boxes, clear off the hard surfaces, and get to decorating. Every year I get this really warm, happy feeling when I see this goofball label my dad made for my box of Christmas stuff when I was in high school:

It says: Jamie and Tyler's ornaments to take with them when they mature and move away leaving Teri and Kris alone and desolate (had to put the guilt thing in there).

(For the record they have been on lots of dates and weekend vacations since my brother and I moved out, so I think they're not quite as inconsolable as he would have us believe...)

The kids were very in to the tree this year. Gracie helped Steve unravel the lights so he could string them, and, after he'd gotten about half of them on, he stopped to make the traditional disgruntled run to Home Depot to replace the lights that we discovered only then were not working. (No matter what we do, this happens every year.) Charlie had a lot of fun hanging the ornaments, so there were some scattered around the tree by the rest of us, and then a large cluster in the lower lefthand quadrant where his congregated.

We had a couple of afternoons/evenings of Christmas movie watching (my favorites are Elf, Home Alone, and the classics: Rudolph, Santa Claus is Coming to Town, Charlie Brown, etc.). This year we tried out the Polar Express. IT WAS SO WEIRD. This will not be tacked on to Walton tradition. But the kids looked pretty cute all snuggled up to watch it.

My family came out(!!!) the Sunday before Christmas! Dad was here in May for Steve's graduation, but my mama hasn't been out since Charlie was born, and my "little" brother has never gotten to see NC, so I was obviously looking forward to their trip for weeks. First order of business (after dinner and a good nights' sleep): admire Juliette.

She got lots of love. And she really enjoyed checking out Uncle Tyler's beard--she spent a good portion of the Christmas holiday looking at him.

When Christmas Eve came Gracie was OH SO EXCITED. She put some reindeer food in a bowl out on the porch so the reindeer would be able to find our house, and of course we left Oreos out for Santa in case he was hungry. Then the kiddos were off to bed, and the rest of us watched RED 2 while we baked cinnamon rolls and finished wrapping each others' gifts.

The kids were so excited that SANTA BROUGHT BIKES!!! Charlie pushed his around for a while. (How cute is that smile?)

Before she even got into her stocking Gracie ran to the back door to make sure the reindeer had found their snack. (They had!) Santa had also eaten his Oreos.

After she and Charlie opened their own stocking gifts (a Hello Kitty watch for her, a play camping lantern for him, as well as candy, Martinelli's apple juice, and many other goodies) she took Juliette's sock over and showed her the things Santa had brought. She got some cute baby boots, a sleeper bag, and some little ring toys, among other things.

I love the intensity in my dad's face (and the boredom on Juliette's) as he checks out the baby rings.

My "original" fam + the babe. (More Juliette admiration happening. Lucky girlie.)

Not pictured? Santa gave me a bike helmet... Because Steve & Gracie got me a BIKE!!! A brand new, really nice one that Steve found on clearance. (Since I am in charge of the budget and we run a tight ship, the fact that he found it on clearance was just as much a gift to me and I thought it was really thoughtful that he spent so much time finding a really good one for a really good price. THAT is love, right?) I was SO excited, I felt like a little kid. We even snuck (sneaked?) outside while the kids were playing so I could test it out.

Guess what else?! He found (impossibly! miraculously!) a petite one, so I actually FIT it. I can't tell you how hard it is to ride a bike built for a normal height adult when I am NOT the height of a normal adult. It is very depressing, and kind of nerve wracking (am I going to just tip over when I try to stop?!). It was incredibly comfortable and easy to ride, and lightweight, and just wonderful. My man delivered.

His gift, which he opened later, was a FitBit Force--a fancy watch that tracks your movements & sleep. He has been having a lot of fun with it. :)

After stockings and my bike, we took a present break and had a super yummy breakfast of these delicious "clone of a Cinnabon" cinnamon rolls. DELICIOUS. Totally worth the sugar/calories/everything. SO delicious.

(Can you spot your Christmas card on our wall?)

And then we dawdled comfortably through the opening of our gifts from each other and our extended families. It was really nice to be at home and watch the kiddos just relax and enjoy. (We've been traveling all but one other Christmas since we got married!) And then we got to just hang out and enjoy our presents. Bliss.

(Steve wearing his "ugly Christmas sweater" gift from my parents--he got a T-rex and I got a penguin.)

Girlie playing with bunk beds for her dollhouse and magical clip-dress princesses in her new duds. (One of her fav outfits now!) And below, practicing her scooter with Daddy.

Coloring with her crayon tower while Grandpa (GRANDPOB!! she kept calling him, and laughing) worked on clock diagrams.

The rest of the week we puttered around the house, enjoyed baby cuddles, and watched the kiddos play with their grandparents. They had many, many books read to them (and Charlie kept requesting that my mom read her book to him--a non-fiction piece about a naturalist--as well as his picture books) and Grandpa even consented to play pretend with the princesses. Uncle Tyler won their hearts by playing some My Little Pony episodes for them on his computer.

Gracie thought he was pretty cool.

We even ventured out for a visit to Old Salem (and some Teeter Thai to-go) and got a family picture--we haven't gotten one of all of us since Gracie was a baby!

It was a really lovely, restful, perfect Christmas.

Our Cup of Tea

We spent a lot of afternoons at Emily's cute apartment, but perhaps our favorite one was Tea Party day! The girlies donned wonderful, ruffly aprons and helped Emily whip up the most incredible buttery-delicious strawberry scones (of which I ate, literally, maybe 12? Possibly more...)

We talked about eating like ladies and brought out Emily's special teaset with roses on the cups, and even had rose-covered napkins.

Fruit, "tea" and scones completed our post-luncheon spread.

Our "tea" options were two yummy juices--a blueberry and a tangerine. Gracie sampled both, and preferred the blueberry "tea."

I guess this means I'd visit Ikea in every state.

So I didn't mention, because I pretty much didn't want to post on the internet that our house was empty, but Steve did an away rotation for 4 weeks of June/July in San Antonio. Rather than hang out lonely and single-parenting in North Carolina, I hopped a plane with the kids and went to stay with Steve's parents for almost three weeks. It was SO fun, and I was shocked at how quickly the time passed! I felt like I'd barely been there a week when we were boarding a plane once more, bound for home.

Part of the reason it passed so quickly was that we partied so hard! And of course, you know me, I had to go to Ikea, even on vacay. Sadly, there isn't an Ikea in every state. California, however, is abundantly stocked with them, and has at least three that I have been to. So about a week into our trip we planned a fun and busy day with Ems, and Steve's mama and I took the kids up to meet her and the little cousins at Ikea. (Steve's dad, who hates the maze-like entrapment/glory of Ikea, opted to stay home.)

We started with lunch...

I know you've seen this picture before, but I kind of love it.

Then we put these two blondies (Maverick and Charlie) in a stroller, and they got pulled over to be complimented on their good behavior, and asked if they were brothers. (They are 10 months apart, so I guess it would be possible! Yikes!) Notice Maverick, who played with that lint roller almost the entire time we were there.

And the girlies (Gracie and her cousin, who she calls "my Adelaide") were corralled in a cart together, eating Altoids from Mimi's purse (that's grandma's name) and slowly being surrounded by pillows, kitchen items, and toys.

Gracie took a while to warm up to the Altoids.

I picked up a few things for home, sad that I could only take things that would fit in our suitcase. Someday maybe we will live close to an Ikea again. I know, my life goals are weird.

After a successful shopping trip, we headed back to Mimi's house for naps and snacks and playing with toys and a little bit of bickering when sharing became problematic. And then it was off to the Santa Cruz Boardwalk!

The girls were in heaven holding hands with Mimi and Grandpa, and riding on the rides for hours.

Grandpa Curt made this fabulous video of them. I LOVE Gracie's hair whipping in the wind as they swing around in that little race car!







And at the end of the evening, Emily and I left the kiddos with their grandparents and we sneaked away to ride an old fashioned roller coaster. We held hands and squealed like teenage girls on the dips, which were perfectly constructed to make your stomach drop every time.

Which is pretty much all a girl could ask for, isn't it?

Flagstaff

The day after Steve's STEP 2 board test we loaded up the kids and headed for the Greensboro airport to endure the 7 hour trip (about 5 hours of flying and 2 hours of being in airports) to Flagstaff for a little meetup vacation with my parents. That flight has now become the-flight-we-don't-speak-of (suffice it to say, we were "that family" with the screaming kid) but the rest of the vacation made up for it in spades.

We met up with my parents the following day (after a trip to the Nordstrom's super outlet, Last Chance, where I scored 3 pairs of $60+ shoes for $12.50 each, and where Steve literally said, "This is like something out of Dante's Inferno" which, if you haven't read it or at least seen the illustrations, is a bad thing--he doesn't like massive groups of crazily shopping women...).

Gracie was SO excited to see Grandpa and Tutu, and when we told her we would be staying in the same hotel as them... well. She about died with excitement. We checked into our rooms and the kids scurried back and forth across the hall to check out our suite (really, really LOVE staying in a suite--better sleep for everyone!) and Grandpa and Tutu's room.

Thursday morning we packed up the minivan (we rented the best minivan... I can't even tell you. But I will probably tell you in a minute.) and headed out for the Grand Canyon! Steve and I have both been before, but never together, so it was fun to be there as a family. Though Gracie struck some awesome poses...

...she was mostly at a loss for as to why all the grown-ups wanted to look at a giant hole. And then again, from another angle. And then through binoculars. But she was happy to be placated with sips of water from our water bottles and snacks of Teddy Grahams, which grandma had so cleverly brought along.

Don't we look cute at the Grand Canyon? I think it makes me look taller.

After several more looks at the canyon we ate at a little restaurant in the park, where a gaggle of tourist Asian girls gathered around our table to take pictures of blond blue-eyed Charlie with his mouth full of banana and to pinch Gracie's cheeks. Then one of the girls came back with some more friends. And then she came back with some different friends. And they took more pictures, and said "So cute, so cute!" but not much else in English. And then they cornered my dad and Gracie in the gift shop and said it some more. I'm pretty sure my kids are famous in China now.

When we loaded back in to our super sweet Chrysler Town and Country Touring minivan, with its doors (and trunk!) that opened AND closed at the click of a button, its included rear view backup camera, its DVD player (which saved our LIVES--we played a Redboxed DVD of the Muppet movie at LEAST three times), its unprecedented number of cup holders, its seats that folded down into the floor so we could put suitcases in there, and its driver seat where you could actually adjust not only the seat and steering wheel but also the pedals (so I could actually DRIVE it), and its separate front and rear AC units (can you tell Steve and I were totally geeking-out-in-love with this car?), we were all exhausted. Charlie even fell asleep...

And so did my mom. Caught you, Mom!

As you can see, my forehead also had a good time. And Gracie LOVED watching a DVD WITH Grandpa. Can you see the smile on her face?! So cute.

The next day we did a little mini-trip to Walnut Creek Canyon, where we hiked around and actually got to go inside some Indian dwellings built right into the cliffside. It was a beautiful day, and Gracie had a blast playing house inside the dwellings--she invited us over for "playdates" inside to "watch movies" and wanted to  guess which room was for the Daddy and which was for the baby.

For our last night in town we wandered around adorable downtown Flagstaff, including a stop at this candy store where Steve's baby sister Jessica worked for about a month when she lived here. (We may have also gotten me a caramel apple while we were there...)

And then we had my favorite meal of the trip my life: Diablo Burger. It was a locally raised, free-range beef burger with the most delicious cheeses and toppings and it was blissful. My mouth is watering just typing about it. I really didn't want to talk during the meal, I was enjoying it so much. And they served it with these gorgeous and addictively yummy rosemary fries... Oh my word. Just look at it!

I wanted to eat it forever.

We picked up some Benadryl for the flight home and made our way back across the country the next day. The kiddos miss their grandparents and all the pool time they got (and Dad, when Charlie saw me typing this and adding your picture he said "BAHPAH!!!")--definitely a favorite family memory. :)