Return to the Motherland Part 3: The Balloon Fiesta

Besides visiting family, the main reason for our trip was to see the Balloon Fiesta. The last time I saw any balloons was my senior year in high school, and the last time I went to the park was 11 years ago, before the current park was even built. For anyone unfamiliar with the Balloon Fiesta, it is the largest gathering of hot-air balloons in the world. There are literally thousands of balloons. It claims to be the most photographed event in the world and though that is probably impossible to prove, it is easy to believe. It is the most picturesque event I've ever seen.

It's also the only event that allows the crowd right on the field with the balloons. There is this awesome feeling of community as you walk through the crowds next to these giant wonders. It really is indescribable.

Thursday morning we went to my great uncle's house to watch the Special Shapes Rodeo (it's a special mass ascension for the unconventional shapes, though there are still quite a few traditional balloons as well). Sammy lives just a couple miles from the Balloon Fiesta Park so we packed up some hot chocolate, breakfast burritos, and hung out on his back balcony. The hill behind his house made it tough to see the balloons as they took off, but as they came toward the river and back around near the park, they passed right in front of - and in a few cases, over - us.

Making sure Tigger can see

Why are you laughing at me?

Thursday night we went to the park for the Special Shapes Glowdeo. This one's tough to explain if you're not familiar with the Balloon Fiesta. In the evening, the balloons inflate, but stay tethered. Once the sun goes down, they fire the burners all at once and the balloons light up.

It was a great night and was perfect for the kids - the weather was nice, we got to walk around and see all the awesome balloons, and there were fireworks afterwards. And we ran into my friends Christie and Gillian.

James and Zoe in front of Airabelle, the Creamland Cow

Inside the Energizer Bunny

It's really hard to get a picture of the actual glowing with a point and shoot, so we just got a short video to try and give you an idea of what it's like:

Waiting for the Fireworks

Saturday morning was the main event. We went to the park for the last mass ascension. The thing about the Balloon Fiesta is that it's early. And I mean EARLY. The first wave of balloons goes up at 7 am. So we had to get to the park and ride at 6, which meant that we left the house at 5:30 am. Yikes. Plus, it's really really really ridiculously cold.

The kids enjoyed the morning's events for about 15 minutes, then they lost it. Between the cold, and being tired and hungry, they were miserable. We toughed it out through the first wave, then headed out. But it was still gorgeous.

Airabelle Takes Flight

Return to the Motherland Part 2: Out and About

One day we headed down to Old Town. We had an appointment with a photographer to have family portraits taken. It was pouring rain when we left the house, so of course by the time we made it to Albuquerque, the weather (and the light) were perfect- that's New Mexico for you. If you go here you can see a preview of some of our shots. {Family, if you want access to all the shots, and the option to order any, let me know and I'll send you log in information as soon as I have it}

After the photo shoot, we just wandered around, found a great little place to eat, and then headed to the Rattlesnake Museum. We heard about it watching The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson and it did not disappoint. Zoe loved every second.


That evening we headed over to my parent's neighbor's house. The Gliddens have lived next door to us FOREVER and they are the nicest people in the world. Plus they have horses and dogs so the kids had a blast.

Later in the week, I took Zoe to the playground at Algodones Elementary and enjoyed seeing her run around my old stomping grounds (though none of the super-cool play structures were there when I was a kid).



That leaves only one more thing - The Balloon Fiesta! (coming soon)

Return to the Motherland Part 1: The Homestead

We left for NM on Sunday, Oct 4. We decided to take James' Civic because of gas. The ride was great - we only stopped twice and we were all relatively comfortable. My parents were both sick, which soon translated to us getting sick, but we tried to enjoy ourselves as best as we could. As a side note, the last time we were in New Mexico, Zoe was 11 months old.

We had a small birthday celebration for Owen and the kids got some great gifts. Zoe got 4 pairs of princess shoes. I don't know how she stays upright in them, but she wears them every day.

Here is a close-up shot:

When we started feeling better, my Gramma came over for dinner. She looked better than she has in years and we had a nice evening. She loved the kids and neither one of them ran shrieking away from her, though Owen seemed to be considering it.


After a bath and getting ready for bed, even Owen warmed up to her and got some snuggles in.

My parents' place is overflowing with delicious apples so we picked a few before we had to leave.


Lastly (for this post), here are some great panoramic shots of the front and back of the house:

Monkeying Around

For Owen's actual birthday we had a few neighbors/ friends over for cake. It was a quick "party" as our guests had meetings to get to and one-year-olds don't care all that much. I wanted to have it outside and had a vision of our backyard decked out in streamers and balloons, then reality hit - I couldn't get the decorations in the colors I wanted and it was so windy we couldn't go outside anyway. Oh well. Such is life.

We had a great time eating a super cute monkey cake, which I served with banana split ice cream.

For those of you interested, here is what Owen is like:

He is super tiny - the 1st percentile for weight and only the 25th for height. What he lacks in stature, however, he makes up for in tenacity. We most often compare him to a bulldozer or a wrecking ball. He just plows through everything and picks himself up as soon as he is down. The week after his birthday he started making a conscious effort to walk - instead of just a few steps here and there. I use the term "walk" loosely as it is more of a stagger. It's pretty funny/ unnerving to watch as it seems like he could fall at any moment.

He is super snuggly, but his definition of a snuggle is head butting. That kid has a majorly hard head. He is always into something and we can't leave him alone for a second. He eats EVERYTHING, even things he's not supposed to. He loves grapes and bananas and loudly exclaims "NANA" whenever he sees a banana. He can sign "more" and possibly "done" but we'll never know since, when given the choice, he always wants more. We usually just get tired of feeding him after a while.

Owen loves to clap his hands, shake his head, and laugh. He HATES being on his back and so diaper changes are still an adventure/ nightmare. He takes a pacifier for naps and bedtime and he loves to cuddle up with a blanket. We have one that we usually use, but he's not too picky.

Owen is still always happy (unless he's hungry). Now that he's one, though, he's decided to take life a bit more seriously:

We have never seen THIS face before (or since)

Chop Chop

A week ago we got back from our week-long vacation. We had a great time, but we also got very sick. I'm finally feeling recovered enough (and caught up around the house) to return to blogging. Here we go....

The weekend before Owen's birthday I gave the kids haircuts. Owen's delicious baby curls were getting a tad out of hand and he looked like a hobo. I trimmed a couple inches off the top buzzed the back and sides with clippers. Here are his before and after shots:


Since it had been nearly a year since Zoe's last haircut and she was "blessed" with my hair - which grows too fast and too thick - I chopped hers off as well:

Labor Day Weekend

Payson is a great place to be for Labor Day - it's also Golden Onion Days! Saturday we went to the Children's Fair in the morning, then came back in the evening to ride a few rides.






Monday we went to the parade (which is actually pretty impressive). Then we got sandwiches and headed up to the lake for dinner. Sadly, it was the first and only time we went up the canyon as a family this summer.

You're #1!

It's Owen's birthday! Can you believe it? We sure can't. His entrance into this world was dramatic (and fairly traumatic) and he has kept us on our toes ever since.

He loves to smile, laugh and eat. He is the biggest wiggle worm and is constantly on the go. He has been walking a lot the past few days, which makes him very proud of himself. He loves to snuggle (head butt) and give kisses (open-mouthed head butts). He eats EVERYTHING, even the things he's not supposed to. He is a button pusher - literally and otherwise. He is a screamer - for fun and otherwise (like when food is not in his mouth). We just absolutely, all-around adore our Buddy! Happy Birthday!

Now That's What I Call a Garden!

At the end of August we headed up to the gardens at Thanksgiving Point. It was $2 Tuesday and Zoe's friend Greta's birthday. It was gorgeous. The children's garden has a great fountain for the kids to play in. I was unprepared so Zoe got wet, then didn't like being in her clothes, so ran around the entire place half naked. Live and learn.

Slip-Sliding Away

Cool summer nights are the perfect time to play on the slide. Owen figured out how to climb up by himself in a matter of minutes. He was so proud. I was less enthusiastic.

Enjoy these next few posts as they will be the last..... of the kids with long hair!

Farewell, Summer. We'll Miss You!

I can't believe it's Fall. I already miss Summer. It went by too quickly. We are summertime folk around here. Some of the things we've enjoyed this summer include:

Countless trips to the pool

Walks and bike rides around the neighborhood

Visiting the aquarium with friends

Veggies! We even eat them sometimes.

Bold new hair styles

Turning {cough} 26

Goodnight "kisses" (also known as open-mouthed head butts)

But that's not all - Come back to see more Summer fun in the next few days!

uhm.....?

I have two theories:

1. They used to come in a larger package and the picture was shrunk to accommodate the smaller can.
2. I got the can laced with HGH and Owen's going to be a super hero!

Last Stop: BEND

We had a great, relaxing time in Bend. We took a short trip to the river, did some shopping (no sales tax in Oregon), and celebrated Kellen's 20th birthday. Mostly we just hung around the house, and at night the fire pit, talking and catching up.


The trip home from Bend was not so pleasant. Both kids were overly tired but wouldn't sleep, making everyone miserable. At one point I yelled at Zoe, took Tigger away from her, and pretended to throw him out the window. I'm not proud of myself. A trip that should have taken us 10-12 hours took 14.5, getting us home in the middle of the night. Yikes, I am not excited to do that again any time soon. Sorry family.

But it was really great to see everyone. We miss you all so much. Sorry it took so long to getting these pictures up.

Excuse Me

Not that anyone has noticed, but I've been absent from the blogging world lately. Hopefully that will change soon. James is out of town at Doug's wedding, but next weekend I'm going to barricade myself in the office and get down to blog business. I want to get all caught up before Owen turns the big 0-1 (which is coming up way too soon!).

So, where have I been? Right here.

Are we ok? Medically we are fit as fiddles.

Then what's the deal? Well, to be honest (without actually being honest) I've been preoccupied with some stuff but I'm just not ready to share it in blog-land yet. And I might not ever. But since I didn't want to talk about it here I just didn't feel like talking about anything else.

Then, the last two weeks of August I found myself consumed with helping to plan our ward's Youth Conference. It was going to be amazing - literally. We had 15 different activities at different locations scattered around Payson and Provo that the kids were going to have to complete in teams, a la The Amazing Race. Then we would have a Guitar Hero Tournament. The next day would be a fireside, awards ceremony and slide show. We all worked so hard. I spent hours writing clues, designing a logo, then printing it out and gluing it to 140 envelopes (for the clues), picking music for a slide show, etc. It was going to be perfect.

The big day came - August 29. Almost all of our youth were there. I hadn't been able to sleep for 2 days I was so excited. Our first challenge was a ropes course at the state hospital in Provo. The weather was perfect, we were all having a blast. And then it happened.

A woman who works at the ropes course made a mistake. A boy fell 30 feet. We all watched him drop.

The bishopric advised us to try and press on, at least until we got more information. The kids were troopers, and we went on to bowling, the Bean Museum, and Frisbee Golf before stopping for lunch. As far as anyone knew, the boy was doing ok. Not great, of course, but not as bad as it could have been. He was being taken to Primary Children's Hospital for more tests.

Within a couple hours everything changed. The leaders were calling parents, asking them to come to the church. We rerouted our activites and brought all the youth there as well. The young man had more wrong with him than we initially knew about. He was in critical condition. We couldn't ask the kids to press on anymore so we cancelled the rest of the weekend's events.

Since then, we've just been trying to cope. The boy is doing better and will most likely heal, though it will be an arduous process. The kids who were there are amazing. They have come closer together to support each other and the boy's family, while extending forgiveness to the woman who made the mistake. Life is going on. There is an article about it here, but they got a few facst wrong; most importantly that the woman was distracted by the kids. Our kids were very well behaved and we had a relatively small group (about 30 people). This was a freak accident and no blame should be placed on the kids. It should not have happened, but it did and now we're handling it as best as we can.

Anyway, I just wanted to fill people in (if there's anyone left who reads this) on what's been going on. One more week and I should have things up and running around here.

5 Years...Already?

James here...

This week Desta and I celebrate our first half decade of marriage...a.k.a. the best five years of my life.

I love you so much Desta. Thank you for making life so wonderful. I promise I'll return the favor someday.

Our Oregon Trail

This is the penultimate vacation post - Hooray!

Yes, this post is all about our trip from California to Oregon. It deserves it's own post because:

1. The drive took just as long as expected
2. The kids were the best on this leg of the trip - no puking and only minimal screaming
3. Beautiful scenery
4. In-N-Out (yes, we plan our vacations around these)

So here we go -

First we had to say goodbye to Papa and Grammy K. And of course Lucky.

We stopped in Redding for lunch. It was our third time visiting this In-N-Out and we only had to make one u-turn without having to stop and ask for directions (note: The Redding In-N-Out is hidden really well and we usually have to drive back and forth for quite a while before we eventually give up and ask someone). Yes, we took pictures eating our lunch. Many, many pictures. We are those kind of people.


In Oregon, we stopped at a logging museum. It was the perfect spot to stretch. For the first time I felt like we were on vacation and not just on a trip to see the family.

"Hi Tractor!"

Please Keep Off Equipment

A Rare Family Photo

Next stop - Bend!

JoAnne & Co.

We didn't get to see James' sister, Joanne, or her son Tre until a couple days before we had to leave because they had been in Tennessee. We tried to make the most of the time we got with them.

The only 2 grandsons on the Gillice side

Tre gives Owen a trumpet lesson

3 children + 1 bucket of choke-ables = endless fun

Who needs cousins when there is a cat around?

JoAnne teaches Zoe some sweet dance moves

Take Me To the River

I have a confession to make: in nearly five years of marriage to a Nevada City Boy, I've never been to the river. Well, maybe once, but it was spring time and much too cold to swim. So, technically I was a Yuba River virgin. Not anymore! On Tuesday, the 7th, we met up with some friends at Bridgeport. The weather was perfect and I was amazed at how wonderful and clear the water is. Owen fell asleep after a while and stayed asleep nearly the whole time, and with Grammy K there to watch the little ones, James and I had fun in the deeper water.

Before heading home, we checked out the covered bridge - for those of you who might not know, it's the longest single span wood arch bridge, and was built in 1862. Pretty neat.

Tuesday night we got together with the Greens, the Counihans, and the Biggs - the girls went out for dessert while the guys stayed home and watched the kids. You'd think since it had been over two years since we had seen some of these people someone would have thought to snap a picture. You would be wrong. Oh well, next time.

Wednesday night we met up with the Greens for an evening swim at the 49 Bridge. It was a bit cooler and the kids were getting tired, but it was nice to hang out in the water one more time (Plus we had Port Of Subs for dinner!). Of course, instead of taking pictures with old friends, the only picture we got was the old bridge.

"I'm Thwee!"

When it came time for Zoe's birthday, we had a nice family dinner. During the day we all saw Up, then we made awesome kabobs with this fabulous marinade (if you haven't tried it, you should). Then we had cake, ice cream, and presents. As far as Zoe's birthday celebrations go, I would definitely put it in the Top 3.

California AND Bust!

A quick note on the car ride to California - it was not that great (I would say it was awful, but the trip home will get that title). Zoe was an angel and kept herself entertained, but Owen was not a happy camper. It took us 12 hours to get out there and we didn't leave until 3 in the afternoon. Both kids threw up - Owen gagging himself on a fry and Zoe got carsick when we turned on the portable DVD player we had brought. Luckily, we were just passing a rest stop and were able to go in the exit. Unfortunately it was a nasty one, didn't have any paper towels, and the sink was the kind you have to push a button with one hand the entire time you want water to come out of the faucet. So for the majority of the trip we were pretty stinky. And we got to spend our first day on vacation hosing down Zoe's carseat and doing laundry.

On to more pleasant subjects - WE LOVE GRASS VALLEY! Friday night (the 3rd) we went to a great BBQ with so many of our friends. Thank you to the Greens for planning it and thank you to the DeMartinis for hosting. Of course we didn't take one single picture.

On the 4th (Bill's birthday) we got up and went to the parade. It was hot, we stood around for hours, and then we didn't even get any candy (because none was thrown). Sheesh! James and I aren't parade people to begin with, so I think we've sworn them off for a while now. Oh well. Zoe enjoyed it and Owen didn't complain too much. Then we went home, rested up, and hit the fairgrounds for Bill's birthday celebration and fireworks. We hit up treat street for dinner and got a great spot to watch the fireworks. I couldn't believe how well the kids did on such little rest. It must have been all that cake and fried food - works every time.

Sunday we went to the good ole Nevada City ward. I can't overstate how wonderful all the people are there. I always feel like I'm coming home, and I've only attended the ward a few times.

Still to come - Zoe's birthday, trips to the river, more missed picture opportunities, and getting down with Aunt JoAnne. And the trip to Oregon.

Long Story Short

We're home! We arrived back in Payson at 1:30 am on Wednesday. What a trip. I'm going to start editing and posting pictures soon, but for now here's a brief recap of the trip:

• 5 states
• 34.5 hours of driving
• 2 incidents involving puke
• 3 grandparents
• 2 great-grandparents
• 2 aunts
• 2 great aunts
• 4 cousins
• 9 dogs
• 3 birthdays
• 3 trips to two rivers
• 1 huge box of vintage Transformers
  
• In-n-out, Sums Mongolian BBQ, and Port of Subs
• 288 pictures
• 2 worn out children
• 2 VERY worn out parents
• 13 days worth of memories!

Pictures will be up as soon as I can get to them. There are some gems!

36 Months (and counting)

Zoe is 3 today! Can you believe it? We certainly can't. We love this wonderful little girl more and more each day. She is getting to be such a big kid. We are so blessed to have her in our home. Here are just a "few" pictures of her over the years.

Random Acts

Things have been great around here. The weather cooperated just long enough to finish swim lessons and squeeze in one awesome trip to the pool. It was at capacity so we had to wait for people to leave before we got in, but when we did we had a great time. Zoe cried when it was time to leave. Owen was crying too, but that had more to do with being hungry and not getting a nap.

James was out of town for work last week. The kids were really great for me and we all stayed alive and happy. Emphasis on alive.

In other news, Owen mastered crawling on his knees and on Sunday he climbed up the stairs by himself. Unfortunately, what goes up must come down. He only fell down one step before I caught him, but he got a pretty good bump on his cute little head (to add to his ever-growing collection of contusions).

Well, that is it for us. Nothing big, but we are enjoying life and looking forward to seeing our family and friends in California. It's been far too long since we've been out there.

CSI: Mommies

Friday afternoon, as Zoe and I sat on the front steps painting each others' toenails, a white mustang parked in front of our house and out popped a man with a gun. And a badge.

As he hurried across our lawn, he told us, "I shouldn't be here too long. I'm just going to try and arrest your neighbors."

My reply:

"Please do."

The Backstory:

About a month ago James and I noticed our neighbors attracting unwelcome attention. There were cars and "suspicious" looking people coming in and out of the house all day long.

Now, for nearly three and a half years we lived a mere stone's throw away from a cul-de-sac affectionately nicknamed "Felon Circle" so James and I can spot shady behavior with the best of them. We knew something fishy was going on.

I started sharing my theories with some neighbors across the street (since they could get a better look at the goings on) and though I think at first I was regarded as paranoid, soon my views were shared.

A few of us put in calls to dispatch, recorded license plate numbers, and generally kept our eyes open.

The result was the scene on our lawn as previously described. The two men staying at the house next door (whether they are actually renting is yet unknown) are fugitives with a warrant out for their arrest. The police missed them this time, but I'm hoping they catch them soon. The detective gave us his cell phone number so we can call if either of these gentlemen show their faces again.

Our case isn't quite closed, but at least it's in the hands of professionals (along with some semi-automatic weapons). I hope no one takes for granted the safety of the area you live in. If you're not watching closely, it can be gone before you know it was even threatened. Even in "Zion."

Now when I sit outside, chatting up my neighbor, watching the kids run up and down the sidewalk I can smile as I think, "Not only am I having a great time - I'm fighting crime as well!"

Clip Show

Girls Camp was this week and though I only got to go for one afternoon/evening, I had a blast and came home smelling like a camp fire. I'm feeling lazy today so here are some things I've been meaning to share:

1. Tomorrow (Saturday the 13th) is the LAST episode of Pushing Daisies that will ever air on TV. So sad. Here's a clip from a previous show:



2. I saw the preview for Where the Wild Things Are a while back, but was recently reminded that I wanted to share it with all of you when the song came on my iPod a few days ago. Growing up, I was never a huge fan of the book, but this clip sold me on the movie. I hope the rest of the film lives up to my high expectations. (Sorry I can't embed the video, just click on the link to see the video)

3. I have to admit that I watched the MTV movie awards to see this next preview. Then I got on Youtube the next day and watched it no less than 5 more times. As cheesy as the first movie was, this one looks like it could be good. I don't want to get my hopes up, but things look promising.

That Time of the Year...

Swimsuit season is upon us. Last year I was in a maternity suit, and my suit from two years ago was not looking so flattering, so I decided to treat myself to a new suit this year. I had heard a lot of good things about Modbe, Shade, and Layers and in previous years had liked their selection. This year, I wasn't too ecstatic. Not that they are grotesque or anything, but for the prices they charge, I wanted to absolutely LOVE my suit. Then I stumbled upon Lime Ricki and this little gem:

I love it love it love it! The top is super long and seems to be triple-lined. It is cute beyond belief and I love wearing it. As an added bonus, it was much cheaper than the other sites I had been checking. I am so happy with it, I just had to give the company a plug. They're in the process of restocking a lot of their styles so check them out!

Srawberry Fields Forever

We've already picked about 100 times more than we got last year and we are loving it!

Owen + Patio + Shovel =

As stated earlier, we spend a lot of time outside. Owen even loves to be outside and makes a break for it any time a door is open. Seriously. He will sit in the grass and chew on shovels to his endless delight.

The last two weeks hasn't been just fun and games for this guy, though. He's had two bottom front teeth break through, he started babbling - dadada, nanana, yayaya, and the occasional mamama - he can push himself into a sitting position and he is starting to pull himself to stand. Then we'll really be in for it!

Giving Boredom the Finger!

OK, I'm nearly caught up, but I just can't do the daily posts anymore. Between playgroup on Tuesdays and Thursdays, craft/story time on Wednesdays at the library, trying to find time to go to the POOL, swimming lessons (starting in 2 weeks), and the regular household duties, I just can't devote enough time to editing photos for a daily post. So I'm going to attempt every other day. June is quickly filling up with things to do and places to go and July will probably be even busier, so I can't afford to get any further behind.

Today I'd just like to leave you all with a short lesson: be careful when attempting to photograph the end result of crafting.


For more practical (and hilarious) lessons in crafting, visit my friend Kiora's blog. It's funny because it's true.

We {HEART}.... Rain

The weather has been amazing lately so Zoe has taken to living in her swimming suit. We play outside every day and there is usually water involved - sprinklers, buckets, wading pools, etc. One afternoon we had a blast in a nice warm rain storm. Is there anything more perfectly entertaining than a puddle?

We {HEART}.... Tennis Balls

Enough said.