Hill Aerospace Museum

Ethan went on a field trip with his preschool to the Hill Aerospace Museum. Ethan had a great time looking at all the airplanes and spending time in the learning center.

Looking good!

Trying out the cockpit! Good thing he has his helmet on...

Ethan and his preschool buddy....

Flying on the computer...

Santa Monica Pier

Finally! After talking about it and getting Ethan all excited we finally made it to the ocean.

Ethan and Emma's first visit to the beach!

Getting our feet wet!

Ethan wasn't too sure about this... Here comes the water! Ethan freaked out to see the wave coming and turned around and marched himself right back to dry land. Maybe next time...

There he goes! There's no looking back!

Me and Emma!

"Are we done yet?" I'm sure that is what Emma is thinking!

A cool shot of under the pier... You guessed it, another brilliant picture from Scott!

Ethan was totally into the abandoned sandcastle. He knows all about sandcastles thanks to Curious George. He was so into it that he forgot to tell daddy he had to go potty and ended up having an accident. He got to ride back to the hotel in a pull up and pantless...

Playing in the sand...

I love this picture with his pants rolled up with bare feet.

Grandma, Grandma, and another Grandma!

After San Diego we headed up to Los Angeles to visit Scott's grandmas. It was great to see Grandma Shehorn and Grandma Sparling again. It was good for Ethan and Emma to see and get to know their great grandmas a little better.

Emma with Great Grandma Shehorn.... Thanks grandma for the most delicious dinner...

Emma with Grandma Newman... Carla and Wayne came down to help take care of Grandma Sparling after her surgery. We were fortunate to spend time with all of them...

Ethan posing for the camera!

Grandpa Newman and Emma

Grandpa Newman, Scott, Jennifer Newman, Great Grandma Sparling, Ethan, Me and Emma!

We had a fabulous time with family. Thanks for letting us visit!

San Diego Zoo

The zoo was so much fun. We were able to see animals that never seen before, but in a book. This wasn't my first time at the zoo, but I forgot how BIG it was.

Our first animal we wanted to see was the pandas. We picked a great week because they just introduced the new baby. So here we are trying to find our way to the pandas... I think we walked most of the zoo, without seeing much, just to get there.

Ethan is my little monkey... Still on our way to the pandas...

Finally! This the baby. So very cute!

I know what you are thinking... why do I have a picture of the pandas behinds... What I like about this picture was the little baby following the mama. It was just too cute!

By the time we walked through the rainforest area and being rained on we decided that there would be no other way to see the rest of the zoo, but to use the bus. Ethan was excited to see the elephants.

And of course the lioness...

Sea World!

Sea World was awesome! It wasn't very crowed being the off season. We got Ethan all excited by telling him we were going to the ocean and seeing the dolphins, fishes, starfish, and the lists goes one, especially if you ask Ethan. I spent a lot of time holding Emma during this trip. My arm was so dead by the end of the day I didn't think I could do it again at the zoo.
Ethan looking through an aquarium... I think it was the Beluga Whales...

Beluga Whale

This was me lugging the kids around... Emma in the carrier and Ethan in the stroller...

Looking at the animals...

Ethan navigating... He was so cute holding the map.

Shamu... Ethan was a little frightened of Shamu and the other killer whales at first, but eventually he got into the show and had a good time. I told him Shamu only eats fish, not Ethan.

Scott took some great pictures of Shamu during the show. No, we didn't get wet. Though I remember as a kid loving getting soaked.

Cheese!

Ethan was so excited to see the "tamingos" (in the words of Ethan)...

Even though it was a tough day for Emma, she did give us a few smiles!

Family Vacation!

What better time to get out of Utah then during January? We wanted to go to Southern California for some time and Scott had the week off and so we decided why not now! We've been to Texas a few time with Ethan, but I think of this as our first official family vacation. I tell people that I have wonderful memories of going on family vacations growing up, but nothing prepared me for being the parent and not the kid. It was definitely memorable, no question.

We decided to drive instead of fly... so that was an adventure all in itself... 4 long days on the road! Ethan did wonderfully... He had his Leapster and his shows to keep him occupied. The only problem he had was his refusal to use public bathrooms. He held it until I finally gave him a pull up... oh the relief of his face. Emma didn't like the car unless she was asleep. She did a lot of crying and whining. I guess that is what we get for taking a 6 month old with us.

Ethan loved the hotels. This was his first introduction to a hotel. He LOVED having his own bed. When we got to St. George the 1st night he jumped for 15 minutes straight... Unfortunately, he had to share his bed with Scott because Emma refused to sleep in the pack and play. She slept with me. Trust me, it was better that way. She got hysterical every time she woke up and found herself in the pack and play so we just gave up.

The next few posts will be focusing on our adventures in SoCal... Sea World, the zoo, and visiting the great grandmas...

Emma's 6 Month Pictures

It took us awhile, but we finally got Emma's pictures taken. Well, actually Scott took them. Scott bought a flash for his camera and a backdrop and did his first attempt at taking portraits. Yes, Emma was a guinea pig. I thought Scott did a wonderful job.

New Year Resolutions!

With a new year comes new hope. Isn't that why we make resolutions... to improve our lives in some way. So I'm setting myself up to failure, I'm making some New Year resolutions. Really, I'm hoping that I'm making goals for myself that will help me feel better about myself and become a better person.

My goals include:

• Be more healthy... yes, it is a lose weight goal, but I've been working on this already. I'm 10 lbs. off of my initial goal of losing 30 pounds. But, I want to start making healthier choices in what I eat and snack on. I have a horrible sugar tooth and I gravitate toward those types of food. I also want to start up again with exercise. I've been making excuses that I don't have enough energy or I don't know when I can fit 30 minutes in... No more excuses I need to find time and get my body in shape.
• Be more organized... I've already started this... but it will be a work in progress. I feel like I'm walking through junk everywhere I go... We have piles of toys, papers, and various other stuff laying around the house. I hope to find a place for everything and making cleaning easier. We already started by moving the office into our room and making the loft a play room for the kids. Our main floor already looks so much better.
• Make more use of my spare time.... When the kids are asleep, what do I do, I'm here on the computer... Blogging, Facebook, games... or whatever else I can find to keep me occupied. So I want to use this time to work on my goals, clean, work on scrapbooking, or even reading a good book. I know there has to be better things that I can be doing.
• Start a more established FHE with my family.... Now Ethan is getting older I realize if I want him to know more about the scriptures stories and about the gospel, I have to teach him; he can only get so much from church. I've made excuses that Scott is never home or I'm too tired... but I think it doesn't have to be a big production, just something simple to help Ethan understand more about Jesus and his church.

I think I have made enough goals for myself. I hope this will help me become a better person. Now I need to get started on these goals and get off the computer! I have laundry to fold.