California trip Part 2- Lazy Days at the Beach

Bryson and I love the beach, and so it comes as no surprise that Davis does too. We got to enjoy a few of the fabulous beaches in the Newport area, and Davis couldn't get enough of them. He loved crawling around in the sand, and he was fearless when we took him down to the water. Bryson spent most of his time boogie boarding or body surfing, and I spent most of my time being a lazy beach bum, loving every minute of it. Of course a beach trip wouldn't be complete without some local beach food. One of my favorite things was dinner at Ruby's on the pier for yummy shakes and burgers, then a stop at Dad's bakery for Balboa Bars (amazingly sinful treats... basically an ice-cream bar dipped in chocolate, then covered in your favorite topping such as oreos, butterfingers, etc). YUM! I wish we could have stayed for another week!

Davis and I at the lookout point just down the street from our hotel


Davis sporting his new swimwear and getting ready for the beach




My little smiley guy and his dad hanging out in the sand



Me and my little munchkin


Just so cute




Learning how to boogie board


Ready to go home for the day


Getting ready for another day at the beach


He just wanted to crawl in that sand all day



I just love these sandy little feet!


Bryson and Ty checking out the waves


Bry watching from above as Ty is about to get slammed by this wave


Bryson in boogie boarding heaven



Heading out on the pier with Summer and Ty

California trip part 1- Disneyland

We just got back from our family vacation with Bryson's family. We went down to Newport Beach for a few days, but on the way there, we made a stop at Disneyland. It was a crazy day. Bryson and I left Utah after work, got to Vegas at about midnight, went to bed around 1:30am, woke up at 4:30 to drive to Dineyland, and didn't get back to the hotel until around midnight that night. Needless to say, we were exhausted afterwards, but it was a very fun day. The weather was perfect, and we hit all of the big rides (except the few that were closed). Poor Davis had a little cold, but he was a trooper and even seemed to have fun on some of the rides. He really liked the parade at the end of the day too.

One of the first and favorite rides for Davis- the carosel


Wedding hats- mickey style


Family shot in front of the castle


Davis and Aunt Summer


Davis watching the parade



So happy to be in toon town


A bunch of crazy people in goofy's car... and Summer looking HOT


Checking out the fountain with Dad


Cute group shot in front of the fountain


This IS the happiest place on earth!


My mom is the BEST!


Family pic leaving toon town

Ode to Cocoa Puffs

I need to give a little shout out to my fabulous sister and her child rearing genius. First a little background- I have been trying to get Davis to eat food for about 6 months now... any kind of food- baby food, cereal, veggies, fruit, etc, but it was not going so well. Usually the best I could do would be one or two bites before his jaw clamped shut like a medievil fortress. Well, that was until my genius sister came along to save the day. While in San Diego, Crystal said something like, "well, no wonder he's not eating yet, look at all of that boring baby food you are trying to feed him. I wouldn't want to eat that either. Give him something good like cocoa puffs, I bet he'd eat that." I laughed to myself thinking of course that wouldn't work because nothing else had, but why not give it a try? My desparation to get my child to eat was long past the point where I cared if he ate sugared cereal... as long as he would put something in his mouth. So, we did a little experiment and gave him a cocoa puff. To my surprise and delight, when he put it in his mouth, it did not come back out, and (gasp) he even reached for more! So my love affair with cocoa puffs began. He started popping those things in his mouth like an eight year old in a candy store. I really didn't care about the sugar because at least he was getting a fair share of vitamins and minerals as well. But, little did I know that his love of cocoa puffs would lead to his love for other food as well. We took baby steps... we went from cocoa puffs to trix, and from there to some biscuits and crackers....well here we are a few weeks later, and he will eat peas, brocolli, fruit, bread, just about anything I put on his plate. He still resists things I try to feed him from a spoon, but not as much as before. Anyway, thanks to Crystal and the miracle of cocoa puffs, my little guy is turning into a good little eater. So, thank you Crystal, and thank you cocoa puffs!
Here is a cute picture of Davis in the bath (which he needs more often since he is frequently covered in food these days)

San Diego Girls Trip

I got to sneak away to San Diego last week to play with the girls and the kids for a few days. It's always fun to see my mom, Crystal, and my highly entertaining niece and nephew, but this time, we had a very fun addition with Crystal's sister in law, Jessie. We had lots of laughs, like when the missionaries showed up unannounced and were greeted at the door by Crystal in her bikini and came in to see Jess dancing in the pool... good times. Though some of the most memorable moments occurred while driving around in our borrowed oldsmobile, a.k.a. "the pimp-mobile," we also had fun days at the beach, the pool, and sea world. The weather was beautiful, as always, and it felt great to finally get some sun! While we were there, we also got to celebrate John-kai's graduation from law school - woo hoo!! If you're not overloaded on pictures after this post, Crystal and Jessie have some more pictures from the trip on their blogs.

At the Cove in La Jolla


Hanging out at Sea World


Davis got to touch a sting ray


Beautiful couple! John-kai and Meg at JK's graduation lunch


Congrats to the grad


Davis' first beach experience


Elle LOVED the beach and had so much fun with her aunt Jessie


Max... not lovin it so much


I could not get this kid to look at the camera, so this is the best shot I could get with him


Three little monkeys sittin on a bed


Group hug!


cute kisses


Crystal and Jess went to see Wicked in LA and brought back these cute shirts




Davis and aunt Crystal


Max loves his grandma!


Grandma loves Davis

Spring FINALLY made it's way to Utah... sort of

I've been meaning to post some spring pictures for the past few weeks, and now that I finally am getting around to doing that... it's raining again. I don't know if it's just me, but I feel like spring came to Utah a little late this year. We had a lot of cold April days when I just wanted to get outside and play, but the weather seems to be cooperating with my plans a little better now. It finally warmed up enough that the flowers started blooming, so a few weeks ago, I went to the Thanksgiving Point gardens with some of Bryson's family. I have been wanting to go to their tulip festival for years, and I was not let down. It was a beautiful walk.

This week's pictures

Not much has been going on around here. Davis and I have been sick, so we've just been hanging out. I thought I'd post a few pictures from the past week.



My cute little froggy


This tongue is ALWAYS hanging out


Playoff season is officially upon us. Bryson is a HUGE Lakers fan, so this is mandatory attire. (It is not so popular here in Utah, but I think that makes him even more set on wearing it).


This would be Davis trying to tell you how he feels about non-Lakers fans