Thumbs Up/ Thumbs Down 2012 #31 & 32

Up:

• After two months of being in Alabama, we are home!!! It was a long trip home, but we took plenty of time to visit family along the way. We stopped in Nacogdoches, TX to see my sister, Carey, and her family. The kids had a blast playing together. Our next stop was The Woodlands, TX where Mike's parents and sister live. We had such a good time playing and swimming! Then we headed up to Levelland to visit my parents and my Aunt Marva who came in from out of town. Our last visit was in Vega, TX where we stopped to see my cousin Kristy, Aunt Mariellen, and Uncle Jerry. We stayed at Mike's Aunt Mara's house in Denver, but unfortunately they were out of town. I feel like we made the most of our journey home and took plenty of breaks to keep the kids sane!
• This past two months we have had a blast in Alabama and it's amazing how little you need to live with. It's so easy to get caught up in wanting the latest this or that, but honestly those are not necessities. Now that we are home I've been going on a big cleaning out binge. I thought I had just done that prior to leaving when we had our garage sale, but I don't think I really purged like I  could have. 

Down:

• No trip would be complete without someone getting sick. Our last day in The Woodlands Jackson came down with a pretty high fever and basically just laid on the couch all day. We thought it was probably just a little virus. The next day we drove to Levelland. On one of our stops I finally got out the flash light and looked in Jackson's throat. Oh my gosh, it was awful, like 2 cauliflowers back there. My poor baby. We immediately took him to the ER in Lubbock (no it wasn't an emergency, but Tricare will not cover anything else without prior authorization). The doctor said it was Tonsilitis and gave him and antibiotic. Now JP is good as new!
• The Olympics are so incredibly awesome! Unfortunately we've been on the road for the first half and can't stay up super late watching when we have kiddos that get up at 5am. Women's gymnastics is my favorite and I feel like I've just been able to see highlights here and there, not the whole thing. Hopefully this week will be more conducive for watching the rest of the events.

Sorry to overload with pics, but we've covered a lot of ground these last two weeks and I'd hate to leave anything out!

Carey and Katherine cleaning out the closet to pass down a bunch of cute clothes to Kennedy!

Kennedy enjoying Katherine's play kitchen.

Peyton showing Kennedy how it's done!

Everyone's cooking now!

Enjoying some baseball outside.

Katherine using her pink bat!

Peyton showing off!

Uncle Lindy ducking so Jackson doesn't hit him instead of the ball!

Bowling in The Woodlands.

Pinkie helping the kids bowl.

Aunt Laura, Pa, and Reagan picking out a ball.

Uncle Mark with Big Boy Grant!

Kennedy loves her Daddy!

Aunt Laura with Grantness!

Jackson trying to find one that's just right!

Feeding the fish down at the waterway.

Admiring the huge catfish that came to feast!

Super blurry, but I was feeding Kennedy and trying to take the pic at the same time. Pinkie and Jackson on the Carousel at The Woodlands Mall.

Kennedy absolutely loved Molly Dog!

Disney Store!

Mike and Pa went golfing with Uncle Kirk and had a blast even though it was super hot!

Aunt Marva with Kennedy!

Mmmmm Jello!

Uncle Jerry and Kennedy playing with his cowboy hat!

Aunt Mariellen showing Jackson a vintage toy!

LaMar's Donuts in Denver. I have never seen/tasted such yummy donuts!

My Snicker's Long John. The lady at the counter asked if I wanted it filled with anything - is this heaven?! Unfortunately it was way too rich and I couldn't finish it.

Jackson decided to join Kennedy in the Pack-n-play!

Mike wanted to make a detour to Promontory, Utah to see the Golden Spike - the site that made the railroad go from coast to coast! It was pretty neat to see and they have replicas of the old steam trains that were used back in the day.

The actual site of the spike.

Favorite Thing:

As you know, I'm a bit OCD when it comes to organization. Container Store is seriously one of the best stores for us organizational freaks! While in The Woodlands Mike's Mom, Sister, and I all went to scope out things we couldn't live without. I'd been wanting these totes that are airtight and water proof for a while to do this idea I saw on Pinterest for the kids. I could spend hours in that store. A big thanks to Mike and Pa for watching all the kiddos so we could browse without distractions.

Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down 2012 #30

Up:

• I almost don't want to list this so as not to jinx everything, but Jackson is showing some signs of improvement in the eating area. He are a whole container of yogurt the other day and another day ate a whole pop tart. That is huge for him. Kennedy is really starting to eat a lot more 'people' food now and I've been trying to go over the top at telling her how good she is doing so Jackson will crave the praise and do the same. It works for some things, but now if he doesn't want it he hands it to Kennedy and says, "Kennedy will eat it...good job!" Still have a ways to go, but it feels good to see some inkling of a light at the end of the tunnel. Also, feeling very blessed that so far Kennedy eats everything!
• This was our last weekend in Alabama, so Mike and I decided to take advantage of having a babysitter close by and go on a date. I admit I really didn't want to see the Batman Movie, but when you get the opportunity to go on a date you can't be too choosy. I absolutely loved it! It is my favorite one of the entire trilogy and I'm really glad Mike convinced me to go. I will say that while watching the movie I did think about everyone in Aurora quite a bit and how scary that would be. So hard to believe that people have so much hate in their hearts that they could commit such awful crimes.
• Jackson and Kennedy are really starting to play together now; it is so cute. Jackson will read books (as best as he can remember what happens) to Kennedy and share his toys. The only time he gets really territorial is when Kennedy reaches for blankie. The cutest is when Jackson plays peek-a-boo with her; Kennedy just laughs and laughs! I look forward to many years of their laughter as they become the best of friends!

We went back to the indoor bouncy place again this week and Kennedy enjoyed crawling around while brother played.

Jackson does a fabulous job with this obstacle course! 

Jackson is going down the super fast slide!

Our baby turned 9 months old this week - seriously going by way too quickly.

It will be great to get back to our baby proofed home!

My little stud wearing his aviators and my flip flops with his shark jams!

I seriously thought this was genius, Jackson put my exercise band around his neck to pretend it was a stethoscope. Then he came up to me and said he was going to give me a check-up and listen to my heart beep!

Waffle House - Jackson eating all the chocolate chips off his waffle. 

Sharing with Dad!

Jackson looked so grown up on Saturday! He got a big boy hair cut and was wearing his new (size 8.5) shoes.  Both the kiddos are getting too big too quickly.

Playing with brother!

Jackson giving Kennedy loves - precious!

Down:

• The thought of cleaning the apartment and packing everything into the car just makes me want to take a nap instead! We have purchased quite a few things that have to fit in the car on the way home. Not to mention the fact that I WILL be buying some stuff at the Container Store on our way through Houston too that also has to fit. Plus we have to have this apartment spick and span for our inspection on Friday so we get our deposit back. The hard part about cleaning is that we still have to live in the space while we are cleaning it and that is easier said than done with little ones. There is a saying on Pinterest that cleaning your house with toddlers is like brushing your teeth while eating Oreos - so true!

Favorite Thing:

 One of the best things about being in the South is the fabulous food! Sorry Idaho, but you have a long way to go to come even close to tasting as good as the South! We've taken full advantage of having so much great food accessible. We've definitely eaten out more than our share, but when we're back in our house in Idaho with very few options, I think we'll be glad we did! Some of the places we've frequented while down here are Jason's Deli, Dreamland Barbecue, Jim & Nick's Barbecue, Chick-fil-A (why they don't have these everywhere in Idaho - I do not know), Panera Bread, McCallister's, and a lot more. My favorite has to be Moe's Southwest Grill though. We used to eat there a lot when we lived in Pensacola, but they haven't had any close to where we've lived since. They offer $5.50 burritos on Monday and I'm proud to say we've been there EVERY Monday since we got to town. Today will be our last Moe's Monday :( You should check out their website and see if there is a location close to you. Get plenty of El Guapo salsa and enjoy!

Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down 2012 #29

Up:

• This week went by really fast. The kids were able to do some type of play date almost every day. Play dates are awesome because that means a good nap will always follow! It's been pretty humid here and when it's not too hot and humid to go out it's raining, so we've had to find more activities to do indoors. 

We went to the Galleria in Birmingham on Saturday and Jackson and Mike rode the train around the mall! Jackson loved it!

Then we had to ride the carousel too! He wanted to ride on the giraffe, but that was apparently the only animal that didn't move, so we switched to a horse. Jackson kept saying YeeHaw and waving to all the people in the mall!

Mike was being a good citizen and returning the scooter to the inside of the store before it rained, but I think he enjoyed it a little too much!

• While Jackson still gets sent to time-out a lot he is getting better at understanding the reasons behind why he is in trouble.  When he's finished with his 'time' in time-out, he has to tell you what he did wrong. He can now tell you every time. It makes me happy that he is learning right and wrong which actually has cut down on the number of times he goes to time-out!
• There is a regional clearance center for Dillard's here just down the road from our apartment. I can't believe I just discovered it two weeks before we are going home. At any rate I got some neat things yesterday at great prices!

I bought these things that attach to your pants when you are wearing the tall winter boots for $6(orig. $18) and these awesome knives for cutting melons and pumpkins for $8.73 each(orig. $24.95). I love a good deal!

Down:

• I missed some pretty significant events this weekend. My 10 year high school reunion was Friday and Saturday. Crazy to believe it's already been 10 years since I walked the halls of Levelland High School! The good news is that I keep up with a lot of my classmates on Facebook, so I can see how there lives have changed over the years. However, I would still loved to have seen them all in person.
• The other event was Mike and I's friend, Lisa Meyers' (now Applegate) wedding. She is seriously the sweetest person ever and I'm so happy for her. I know the celebration was an unforgettable one. All of our friends and family that went to TTU/St. E's were down for the wedding and gave Mike's sister, Laura, a big surprise 30th bday party. We missed out on all that fun too. Oh, the sacrifices we make being away from family and friends to live the military life.

Favorite Thing:

Even though summer is coming to a close soon, there is still plenty of warm weather to sport those flip flops. You can't sport flip flops without polish on your tootsies! My Mom discovered this awesome base coat that keeps the polish on your toes without chipping for a VERY LONG time! Honestly it doesn't come off, you end up having to take it off because your toenails have grown so much that there is an area that doesn't have polish. It's called Orly Bonder and is sort of pricey at $10/bottle at ULTA. It lasts a long time though so it's definitely worth it. Every time we visit my parents I always go get a pedicure from the lady my Mom goes to. It's funny because she knows exactly who we are when we walk in with our ziploc of nail polish!