Wuv.

Love.  No matter how long it's been since you've experienced the thing you love, when you experience it again you realize you never stopped loving it. People, music, art, food.  It applies to everything.  Some of the very best people I have ever known I am not able to talk with very frequently but as soon as I do, the love is still there.  Food.  I don't eat certain foods but once a year and every year I love the food just as much (pumpkin chiffon pie, I'm looking at you).  

Music.  I love music.  I have for as long as I can remember.  Certain bands I have not listened to for years.  But the other day I went through iTunes on my old laptop and found a whole mess of music that I now cannot turn off.  The Thrills, Imogen Heap, Mute Math, Mae, etc.  Love.  True Love.  It brought me back together with some wonderful tunes.  Bless you, Love.

Roses are red

Violets are blue

I have a gun

Now get in the van!

It's about time...

It's about time that I wrote a post about the last few weeks.  Pictures can come later.  For now I just need to get out there that we have successfully moved back to Provo after a wonderful 1.5 years house sitting in Salem, UT.  I can't believe it went by so quickly.  

Here's a break-down of how our moving week went.  Load trailer Mon-Wed.  Stay with Phil and Taylor Wed-Friday.  Unload trailer Friday evening.  Fly to Connecticut for Christmas on Saturday.  Basically insane.  Thank heaven for our INCREDIBLE friends and family.  We would have been lost without you.  

Once our new place is unpacked completely I'll take pictures.  Hopefully I'll have better luck decorating this apartment.  I guess it will help that I finally broke down and signed up for a Pintrest account.  I try not to get sucked in but it's strangely addictive.  Between that and Houzz I should have plenty of decorating ideas to choose from.  If only I could narrow down what my style actually is.....

Oh, Boo....

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!  

News:

-Scratch that last post about going back to school in January.  Not happening at that time but soon, I hope.  


-Isla is almost 2 and is learning/doing so much these days.  She sings a ton, can count to 4, recognizes a variety of animals, and is starting to recognize letters.  I can't believe how quickly kids learn.  She is also hilarious to watch.  My favorite moment from today was when she was shoving her stuffed monkey's face in to a cracker and ordering it to "Eat it.  EAT IT!!!!!"  

The following picture is a good representation of her personality.

She doesn't actually use a pacifier....she just likes to chew on them occasionally. 

That **** cray...

Guess who's going back to BYU in January??

2 Weeks in H-E-Double Hockey Sticks

Ok, Ok, it wasn't quite as bad as all that.  But the 2 weeks in which I traveled to, stayed in, and then left Maryland, were not as pleasure-filled as I was hoping for.  Side-note:  I'm feeding off my current cranky-ish mood while writing this so if it sounds overly blech that's why.  

Really my trip to Maryland sets the tone for the entire trip so I'll mostly just tell that story.  My ride to the airport (for whom I am really very grateful) was late picking me up.  When I got to the airport I snapped my hand in to Isla's stroller buckle, which, by the way, is very painful if you've never done it before.  I wouldn't recommend trying it out to see if I'm right.  When I got to the counter to check my bags and get my boarding pass, I was informed I needed proof of Isla's age in order to have her ride on my lap.  I was unaware of that fact and was not traveling with her birth certificate.  Thankfully when I almost started crying the woman at the counter told me I could get it for the ride home and they wouldn't charge me for an additional round-trip ticket.  I got to my gate (I should note at this point that it was a miracle I got through the lengthy security line with Isla) and discovered our flight was delayed by 1.5 hours.  I was hoping Isla would nap on the plane.  No such luck.  We had a lot of turbulence so the fasten-seat-belt-sign was illuminated most of the flight.  For anyone with a rambunctious toddler that is NOT a good thing.  There was a snarky flight-attendant who made it her personal mission on that flight to ensure my daughter was safely on my lap at all times.   In response I spent most of the latter-half of the flight crying because Isla was crying/screaming.  I couldn't even go to the bathroom to change her poopy diaper.  I had to do it on the empty seat next to me.  Happy note: There was an empty seat next to me and when I got to Maryland at least I still had all of my hair.

Another fun part of the trip was Isla's sleeping habits.  Ordinarily she is a marvelous sleeper.  I have been very richly blessed in that regard.  She goes to bed at 7 pm and wakes up at around 8am.  VERY nice.  On this trip, when I was the only parent there, she decided to not sleep past around 6:45 am.  On the first few mornings she was up before 6 am.  In Maryland.  Which meant that in Utah it was like 4 am and needless to say it was a bit early for my taste.  

All of these things notwithstanding, there were some good parts of the trip.  The jet-skis, the boat, the pool, all fun.  Seeing family, also fun.  Karaoke for Taylor's birthday, also surprisingly enjoyable.  My Mom even coerced me into singing a song by myself.  Once in a life-time that.  

Things got a lot better by the end of the 2 weeks and the flight home was wonderful.  Next time I fly by myself with a toddler I'll remember to bring a bunch of touring-Asians with me who love blonde-curly-haired babies.  They did a fabulous job entertaining her.  

To leave you now on a happy note, here's a song that makes me exceedingly glad.

How true it is

My Mom mentioned this saying to me today after I e-mailed her the above picture:

"I wish I could see kids as just sleeping and not recharging their batteries."

I've often remarked to Michael that it would be wonderful if children were the lethargic ones and as you got older and could be more productive with your time you got more and more energy.  If only!

I gotta Chrysler that seats about 20, so COME ON!

And bring your jukebox money!

I have a 19-mo. old daughter who LOVES being outside.

She also has insanely curly hair, and loves to read.