In-Law Visit

Jared’s parents came two weeks ago and we had so much fun that it has taken me a little time to get back to blogging about it.

The came on May 30th and left June 5th.  Here are some of the fun things we did with them while they were here.

Sunday, May 30th

Mesa Temple

After church we ate, took naps/worked on lessons/read and then ate again.  Then we decided to take a little trip over to the Mesa Temple.  It really is pretty, especially at dusk when the light is more colored.

 

Here’s me with a typical scene from my life, Christian patting Vivian’s cheeks while she tries to ignore him and me trying to keep them both happy.

How does Jared always get them to be more calm?      

 

Monday, May 31

Zoo

Jared had Monday off for Memorial Day so we headed over to the zoo. Here’s their new baby zebra. so cute.  Look at those skinny legs!

Christian pretty much insisted that grandpa Gerald push him in the umbrella stroller.  He can walk, but it makes this zoo thing so much faster if he’s confined.

At the end of our trip, we stopped by the splash pad and let Christian cool off.

Here are Jared with Vivian and his parents watching Christian run around in the water.  This is a typical picture of my in-laws; always trying to hide for the camera.  I think it’s frustrating since pictures are probably how my kids will remember them best.  I guess that’s their choice.

 

Tuesday, June 1

Heard Museum and Peter Piper Pizza

We went to the Heard Museum after naps this day, and it was really fun.  They have displays on all kinds of artwork/crafts by the Native Americans past and present that have tribes here in AZ.  There is so much beautiful craftsmanship here.   It was very enjoyable to see how much Jared’s mom appreciated this museum too.   They have a very neat children’s area where  Christian loves to play and you can actually take pictures.

Here’s a picture of my MIL, Linda with Vivian.  She looks so pretty when she just smiles for the camera, I don’t know why she’s always hiding from it.

After the heard museum, we picked up Jared from work and then went to Peter Piper Pizza to get a bite and use some extra tokens we had laying around the house.

Christian on the play train.

Christian playing air hockey against Grandma Linda.

 

Thursday, June 2

Train Ride

This was my most adventurous day of their visit.  I woke up early in the morning and took the kids on a almost two-hour car ride to Cottonwood to ride the train with Gerald and Linda.

Here we are waiting at the station    

Christian once we got on the train

I’m pretty sure Vivian was wondering where her car seat was…   

Here are some of the sites… This is called lion-head rock…can you see the lion shape?

Each section had an inside and outside car so you could choose.  I mostly staid inside because of Vivian but it was pretty neat to be outside.

We ended up out in the middle of nowhere and the train sold ice cream sandwiches once we got there after a two hour ride.  Then the engine came around to the back in the old-fashioned switch-track way and we headed back to Cottonwood.  Christian started flirting with a little girl on the train and then started singing for her.  It was cute at least to us and no one on the car acted annoyed.  Jared’s parents were so proud that Christian was singing “I am a Child of God”.  We drove the long way back home after the four-hour train ride and luckily the kids fell asleep and then went straight to bed when we got home.

 

Friday, June 3

Local Park

This was our last day with Jared’s mom and dad.  We took them to the local park which was fun for Christian and then we could watch him be amused.  Christian went into the splash area and Jared’s parents watched him and Vivian while Jared and I went on a mini-date took a peddle boat around the lake/river.  It was really fun.

We had a nice time with Jared’s parents.  It was nice that they could visit.

Vivian is 5 months!

Where does the time go?  It is amazing to me that the months have flown by so quickly!  Here we are already into June and Vivian is already 5 months old.  So far, she is still everyone’s sweetheart.  She is not much of a crier though she still exerts her will.  She will smile for anyone which is really fun.

This month has been a little more difficult in the sleep department.  After all of our (five) trips since she was born, this last trip really messed up her schedule.  So I’m thinking that traveling with a 4-month old (or older) has much more impact than the first three months on an infant.  We’ve been working on getting on a better schedule but it’s been a lot more work than it was before. Once she goes to bed (at night) she will sleep for at least six hours and sometimes eight, but she is crazy hard to get to nap now.  Though skipping naps is not an option because she gets even more fussy and is absolutely impossible to get to sleep the next time you try to lay her down because she’s so overtired she’s inconsolable. 

We’ve moved on in the eating department to do more solid foods.  Christian has been the one to decide what she will have so now on top of baby cereal (rice being her favorite) she’s now had avocados and peas (because they are green, Christians favorite color and therefore his favorite foods).  Her appetite is getting larger and probably her stomach because her feedings are getting farther apart.   This is when I enjoy feeding babies more—when you don’t have to feed them all the time.

Vivian is now too big for the sink.  I know it’s weird that we’ve never bathed a baby in a baby tub but we didn’t have enough counter space for one with Christian to get one and we never thought about it with her.  So, she’s been taking sink baths.  Now that she’s outgrown the sink, she has graduated to the shower…which means that Jared gets to wash her because I’m too awkward and nervous to shower with a baby.  She doesn’t seem to mind the water that much though she looks perturbed at me for taking her picture in the shower.  This photo illustrates two reasons why I’d like to move from our apartment… the showerhead is pretty low and barely above my head and you can see how low it is for Jared.  Number two reason is there is nowhere to move in this shower…it is the smallest one that I’ve ever been in yet (you try it nine-months pregnant and you’ll really feel the walls caving in on you).

I just love watching babies grow.  It is so much fun to see how and when they gain various skills.  One baby talent that is adorable to me is how they play with their toes!

As stated in my previous post…Vivian loves to look at books.  She’s pretty serious about it too.  I love how intent her expression is in this picture as we’re reading our nightly stories.

Besides being intelligent, Vivian is getting nice and strong.  I’m sure that any day she will be sitting up.  Her tummy time is going very well.  She is spending more and more time on the floor.  Since she can roll so well and always ends up off of her small play gym, I made her a larger play mat (I have more info on my craft blog ) it coordinates with the colors of my living room so that I don’t feel like my grown-up space is being overrun by a toy store.  She seems to really like it.

One giant difference between the first and second baby is that you just can’t have as much control over some things.  Christian didn’t watch T.V. his first year but Vivian gets to watch select shows on PBS kids and Playhouse Disney with Christian a few days a week when I need to get something done and I need them (at least Christian out of my hair).  At least they are spending the time bonding.  It’s pretty cute to see how interested she can be.Christian is still absolutely loving his sister…. He is such a great help this second time of having a baby has really been a lot easier than the first.  I do sometimes feel a little sad that I don’t get to give her as much undivided attention as Christian got.  I guess it’s a trade-off because she does get attention from more people than Christian got in a way (though we don’t have Marian upstairs so it could be more even).

      I’m so pleased with my two sweethearts!  They really are the joy of my life.  I’m so grateful I get to be the mother of these sweet spirits.