Christmas Eve

The family got together to have dinner, sing songs, talk, and  listen to the Christmas story.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 


 
 
 

 

We all got new pajamas.  Rachel helped pick hers out.
 

 I love the dancing princesses.
 

Rachel loved playing with the family.



She also found ample ways to entertain herself.

 



What a wonderful gift!

Rachel's First Airplane Ride/Texas Adventure

 

Baby...Check.

Car Seat...Check.
Diaper Bag...Check.
Laptop Bag...Check.
Purse...Check.
Carry-on Luggage...Check.
Already Tired Mom...Check. Check.

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

7:00am  Doug had us all safely to the airport.

7:30am We boarded the plane.

8:15am Take off.
8:25am Rachel fell asleep.
10:40am Rachel woke up.

10:55am airplane lands in Dallas.

(I was spoiled.  There were 2 open seats next to me.)

 

When I landed I found out that my sister, Melinda, and my Mom were stranded on their way to pick me up.  So, like any good supermom, I...

gathered up my checked luggage.

strapped the baby to my chest.

found the bathroom.

freed the baby long enough to change her diaper.

procured relatively quiet corner by baggage claim.

fed Rachel formula, applesauce and baby snacks.

called my husband.

kept the baby from licking the floor.
gratefully greeted my Dad when he arrived an hour later.

Rachel and I loved being with my family.  We went out to some great restaurants and shopped at the local outlet stores.  But, mostly we stayed home and hung out with the family members that came and went.  It was wonderful and relaxing.We spent time with...

Granddad South 

Grandmother South

Uncle Mike

Aunt Tessa

Mikie, Catie, Evie, and Frankie (Mike and Tessa's kids.  Frankie not pictured.)

The first night we were all together Mikie kindly shared part of his giant carrot with Rachel.  I took it away and told him that she couldn't eat it because she didn't have teeth.  He promptly stuck his finger in her mouth.  She chomped down.  Shocked, he yanked his finger free, came over to me and confused exclaimed, "You said she had no teeth.  But, she bit me!"

Aunt Melinda visited everyday.  Aunt Nan and Erika (pictured) and Sydney visited almost as often.

Uncle Gary (aka the pied piper) took Rachel on a small adventure to see the pond.

Rachel liked Arial, queen of couch climbing dogs.  Arial liked Rachel, from a distance.

Doug and I used skype every night to keep in touch and have family prayer and scriptures. Rachel missed her dad so much that she would crawl over to me, lay her head on my lap and say "dada."  At that point I would bring up skype on the laptop and call Doug so she could see him.

Meanwhile, Doug was busy at home.  He had the privilege of baptizing his niece, Hannah!

And, he took pictures at Bethany and TJ's wedding open house.

Before I was ready it was time to go home to Salt Lake and the life we left behind (May 2, 2010).  

The staff at the DFW airport security was amazing!  They had a lady there that helped me get everything in the bins for scanning.  She stayed with me until we were completely done with the diaper bag search and everything.  Then she found us a cart for all of our baggage.  It was heavenly!

Rachel and I spent a little time watching airplanes at the Dallas airport.

Then we boarded our plane.  We scored one extra seat so she could use her car seat.  She only slept for 1.5 hours so I spent the other hour or so helping her watch Baby Einstein on the laptop, entertaining her with toys and giving her baby snacks.

We had a lot of fun.  But, we were both thrilled to see Doug (dad) and to be home.

Night at the Museum

Babysitters were scarce last Friday night so Doug and I decided to take Rachel to the Museum of Ancient Life at Thanksgiving Point. The museum has an exhibit called Magnetism, Motors and the Mind. I thought that it would really speak to Doug's interests. The exhibit was unfortunately dismal. However, we were completely surprised by the museum itself. It is probably the best dinosaur museum I have ever experienced. The supersaurus was super. The woolly mammoth was mammoth. And Archelon, the King of the Sea Turtles, was king sized (16 feet, fin tip to fin tip). And, did you know their was such a thing as a Utahsaurus?


For Doug, the highlight of the museum was the erosion table. "The Erosion Table is like a large sand box fitted with water spigots that model rivers. By digging different channels participants can change rates of deposition to bury model dinosaurs and trees or to erode them out of miniature mountainsides." - Museum Website

Rachel took everything in as best she could. Six months old is a little young for paleontology. Maybe this early exposure will help her become as smart as her cousins. Matt proclaimed he was going to be a paleontologist before he began kindergarten. And we all remember the Tomb of Pencilkhamen.

Please excuse the quality of the pictures. My camera battery died so they are taken with my cellphone.