Arizona - Happy Birthday to Me

I kind of love getting a present that can't be redeemed until a later date - gives me something to anticipate.  For my birthday in April, Tim bought us tickets to see U2 in Phoenix.  No only was this exciting because the band is so great to see in concert, but it meant a little getaway with Tim in the sunshine (thanks to my parents).  All of this a win in my book.

We left Friday morning and after a bumpy ride, and even bumpier landing, made it to Phoenix in time for a quick lunch at Zoe's Kitchen.  I went for the first time in Dallas in February and literally have been craving it ever since.  Tim agreed that it was fantastic.  After lunch we made a beeline for our hotel and more importantly, the pool.  For the next several hours we swam, slept, read, and basically did  a lot of nothing, all while basking in the sun.  I really could have left after just those few hours and been perfectly content.  Although, then I would have missed the main attraction....

A few years ago Tim and I went to a U2 concert in Salt Lake - one of the few times they have played here.  They put on an amazing concert and we had a great time.  I was actually a little nervous about whether or not I would like their most recent tour.  They have so many songs that I don't really know or love, and I was worried that we might end up disappointed.  I definitely did not need to worry. They did play a lot of songs that I didn't know, but they are so entertaining that it really didn't matter. And then when they got to the old stuff - they sounded as great as they ever have.  We were lucky to have Craig go with us to the concert.  He comments after were perfect, he said that he hadn't known it was on his bucket list to see U2 in concert, but that it have definitely been a bucket list kind of experience.  We walked back to our hotel and ended the night with fireworks from the Diamond Backs baseball game - the night was pretty much perfect. 

Saturday morning I took Tim for his first shopping experience at Last Chance.  It was everything you would expect it to be - crowded, messy, and kind of like a treasure hunt.  We found a few things - mostly shoes for Ruby, then decided we had had enough of the chaos and headed out to Craig and Hailey's to spend time with the family.  Roman was initially a little suspicious of us - it's been too long since we've seen him - but it didn't take too long before he was showing us his Iron Man costume and letting telling me stories of going to the library.  Sadie was much easier to win over - all it took was few trips up and down the slide and she was happy to hang with me.  After playing at the house for awhile, we all packed up to drive to the summit of South Mountain to play around in the rocks.  I knew that I succeeded in winning Roman's heart when he begged to ride in Aunt Monica's car.  Our trip to the summit was fast a furious - literally, but it was beautiful and I was glad to get a chance to see it. 

We for sure wished we would have had more time to spend time with family, but were grateful for the time we had.  The entire trip was short, but it was just what we needed, and by the time we landed in Utah, we were ready to get back home to our babies.  

Mothers Day 2015

Whenever Mother's Day comes around I feel a little bit ambivalent - I am so thrilled to finally be a mama and have my sweet babies, but I remember what a tough day it can be for some people.  This year I did feel doubly blessed though and was thrilled to have a chance to celebrate.  I have a fabulous mom who has always done her best to make my life easier and better.  And then there's Luke and Ruby.  I really couldn't have imagined having such sweet little souls to love.

My day started off with breakfast in bed, it really doesn't get any better than that.  The kids came in and were so excited for me to eat and open my presents.  I felt so loved.  The rest of the day was spent at church, napping, and dinner at my parents with all of the family.  I somehow missed out on pictures of the rest of the day but trust me, it was a good one.

Tim was super sweet and organized a present for his mom to include photos of all of his siblings.  It turned out so nice.

April 2015

April really is one of my favorite months.  The return of the sun really just makes everything feel better.  However, I'm pretty sure our timing must be a little off with the showers because we had plenty of flowers in April.  Early in April, Jami, my mom and I decided to take advantage of the beautiful weather and took the kids to the Tulip Festival at Thanksgiving Point.  We really had a great time.  Plenty of beautiful flowers and lots of space for the kids to roam.  They have a lot of activities throughout the property so everyone stayed pretty entertained.

This year Gavin and Luke had separate birthday parties which really just meant twice the celebrations.  We all had such a great time at his Baymax party.  It was especially fun to see Luke start to interact with other kids.  He really got into the games and wanted to play them over and over.

We have had plenty of cool days in April,

But as long as the sunshine is out, we love to be outside.

I had to sneak and take a picture through the window at nursery,

He looked so grown up and sweet.

Plenty of silliness during the month.

While I was in Boston, Tim and the boys decided to make our favorite German meal....schnitzel, spaetzle, rotkhol and brown gravy.  They invited Cory and Calvin over and turned it into quite the night. I'm not sure that Calvin liked it, but Calvin really doesn't like anything.  Everyone else though said it was great.  I'm just said I missed it.

The boys hung out and relaxed while Tim cooked.

Tim, the babies and Erika spent an afternoon together hanging out and celebrating - again - Luke's birthday.  Luke already thought his big sister Erika was pretty great, but her birthday presents may have put her over the top.  Batman balloon, and Spiderman balloon, pajamas and a baseball bat.  He was pretty much in heaven.  Luke is really excited when I do laundry because he knows his Spiderman jammers will be clean and ready for him to wear.  

Just another day at the office.....My boss decided it would be a great bonding/teaching activity for us to hike the "Y".  We all grumbled a little because he kept it under wraps where we were going but by the time the experience was over, I think he had accomplished his goals.  Even better, I finally hiked the "Y".  After living in Provo for over 20 years, it was a little crazy that I had never been.  

Couldn't imagine a better way to end the month than with these cuties.