Silly girl!

I just can't get over how quickly my baby is growing up. She has such a personality! I can't tell you that enough ... but, here is some photo evidence.

"Hey Mel - need some help on the Ranch?!"

After our morning bath we get all warm and cozy on Mom's bed ...

"Haven't you heard of child labor laws?"

"Hide and seek anyone?!"

"PJ's & satin kitten heels - I think it works, don't you?"

Zaida loves glasses ... she will play with them and put them on other people. This was probably the first time that she put them on herself. Does anyone see the resemblance to one of the Harry Potter characters?

Professor Trelawney!

Thanksgiving in Idaho

This Thanksgiving we went to Pocatello to my Meme & Papa's for dinner. We had the whole traditional dinner (minus the cranberries - sorry Mom!) & it was so wonderful to spend time with the fam! My favorite moment of the day had to be when Meme & Zaida were playing the piano together. I always love to hear Mem play the piano & Zaida loved it too!

I love in the video you can see Papa in the background. He sure loves the little girl. I don't know why, but this video just makes me all teary. I think it's just because everyone is so happy. I sure do love you Meme & Papa!

Thank you!

I know, I know ... I am seriously terrible at this. I need to figure out a time each day/week to just get it done! So, here are some of the things that have happened since I blogged last --- nothing. Well, okay, so a couple of things have happened.

I have a daughter who is now climbing & is commonly on top of the dining table when I turn around. She is also into everything! She can reach into every single one of our kitchen/bathroom drawers.
I also am the newest board member of the homeowners association for my neighborhood. I know it doesn't seem so exciting, but I'm excited about it. I am the new secretary - and am happy to be able to do something to hopefully make my neighborhood safe & happy. I know it sounds cheesy, but - well, I'm excited about it.

Thanksgiving came and went. And I don't think that I can easily put into words how grateful I am for my life. But I am going to try ...
Zaida - She is the best thing that has ever happened to me. She makes me wish I was a better person. She makes me wish I knew more - so I could teach her everything. She is so smart & witty. I can't believe a 17 month old girl could make me laugh as easily as she does. She is so beautiful. She is so expressive & DEFINITELY has her own opinions. I truly can't imagine life without her. Some words that describe her: dainty, feisty, funny, smart, curious, adventurous, sweet, motherly
Corey - Corey and I have been through so much together. He never complains about how tough things are for him right now (school, work, church assignments, demanding wife, etc.). He is always willing to help wherever he is needed. He truly cares for and loves his "guys". He is level-headed & keeps me grounded, but still encourages me to dream. Some words that describe him: stable, funny, unconditional, devoted, loving, conservative, athletic
Family - my family is the best! I am so lucky to have such amazing people as not only my family, but as my best friends. We have such amazing friendships with each other & it's hard to describe. We just get each other. As I get older I realize how much I resemble my parents. And, how much I have tried to become like my brother. They have so many wonderful qualities that I wasn't fortunate to get, but we all complement each other so well!
Dad is the rock of the family. Logical, but loving & tender. But, surprisingly funny - has such a quick wit. Mom is emotional & loves fiercely. Not afraid to speak her mind. Sacrifices much for the ones she loves, although she never acts like it is a sacrifice at all. Quinn is artistic & sees life in fresh and interesting ways. He is a leader & has a gift for making friends everywhere he goes (he relates to everyone). He is so funny & has a quirky sense of humor.
I also have amazing grandparents ... But, this could go on forever.
Everything else - I have been reading the Work & the Glory series and I am just so grateful for the day & age that I have been raised in. The life that the early members lived seems like such tumultuous & scary times. Amazing, but scary. Reading these books have caused me to reflect on the vast differences between my life & those of the early members of the church. And I just am so thankful. Thankful for those people I have listed above, as well as my loving friends, the great (and free) country we live in, the jobs that we have/had, my education, my membership in the church and my amazing ward family, my beautiful home, functional cars, and thanks to Corey - the existence of a savings account! :) I just have such an amazing life & am so grateful for all of you & how you have contributed to it. Thank you!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

My mom & I took Zaida over to Gardner Village earlier this week & tried to get some cute photos of her with the witches. Each year Gardner Village will dress up these witches & set them out around the grounds surrounded by pumpkins & all sorts of festive decorations. It's really cute. I just wish Zaida would have wanted to turn her back on any of them! :)

Here she is getting more brave. I think she was more comfortable because it had a fence surrounding it.

And this was her favorite part of the day - the ducks! She has NO fear ... she was walking right up to them. We were seriously nervous that they might bite her. So, of course, we would grab her and pull her back so she wasn't too close - but, that did not make Zaida happy. She was furious that we would try to separate her from the ducks. I'm telling you, she has got such the personality. She wants what she wants when she wants it. Don't get me wrong - it's so fun having a baby who has such a personality. She comes up with the funniest (& smartest) things, but I definitely have to put my agenda aside (if I had one).

Here is my beautiful Japanese doll! A co-worker of my dad's gave her the gorgeous little kimono when Zaida was born. I thought this would be the perfect outfit for Halloween. I had a hard time getting a happy smiley picture of Zaida (those dang Japanese!), but here are a couple of cute shots of her in her outfit.

I hope everyone had a fun & safe Halloween!

Big Girl

Zaida is getting so big. She will feed herself more and more lately. She actually does a pretty good job of getting most of it into her mouth, too. She's now crawling up onto the couch & chairs by herself ... sometimes she even climbs up on to the table!

Lately she has been putting on ANY shoes that she finds. And she will get super frustrated if she can't walk normally in them too. Corey's shoes are a little tough to maneuver in though.
It won't be too long before she will be asking for a car, will it?!

Happy Birthday Corey!

Corey's birthday was a couple of weeks ago. Boy time flies! ... especially when you are as old as Corey! Ha, ha ... just kidding bubba! Hope you had a great birthday. We love you!We went to Asian Star - YUM! Even Zaida was excited to eat!

Football & Pickles

We went to the Utah-Weber State game & had a good time. We were right next to the band & Zaida LOVED it. She had the best of everything --- 1) Quinn, 2) Football, 3) Music, 4) Friends (Jack!), & 5) Pickles! She is such a funny little girl. I can't believe how quickly she is growing up. She's such a joy - and it doesn't hurt that she is a Utah fan! :)

Pocatello with Mem & Papa

Last month we went to Pocatello to visit Papa (he's been in the hospital rehab for his leg). Zaida & Meme had a lot of fun hanging out together. First Mem's necklace, then her glasses & lastly her phone. After we visited Papa we went back to their new home - and it was really nice. I sure hope they like it there!

Playing with Addi

Bree & Addi were in from Cali for a couple of weeks. I think the girls got along a lot better. Not that they didn't get along before, but now they are able to play together more. Here are a couple of shots of them ... I love the one where Addi is holding Zaida's drink for her. Addi sure loves Zaida. Whenever Zaida is upset Addi will try to give her hugs & smooth her hair and ask if she is okay. Zaida loves Addi too ... she will always watch her & try to imitate the things that Addi does. It'll be fun to see how their relationship grows over time. It was sure fun to hang out with you gals!

Children's Museum

We went to the Children's Museum the other week - and it was full of all of my favorites ....

TONS of BALLS!

HITTING STUFF ... and it makes MUSIC!
WATER!
UNCLE QUINNEY!
Mom's favorite too ... playing so hard that I fall asleep on the way to the car! :)

It's amazing ...

... what a difference one year makes! Here is Zaida one year ago ...

Now she is running around & being the silly little rambunctious girl that she is!

Go Utes!

Two weeks ago we went to the Utah football game. Zaida loved it! I think all the sounds, people, and of course the footballs. I think that was really Zaida's first word (besides mama & dada) ... she says it like a southern lady though. In fact this is a cute story ... I was holding * rocking her to get her back to sleep last night. Her eyes were closed and she had this peaceful little sleepy face on, then she said "baowl", smiled & went back to sleep. She even dreams about balls, I guess! She's silly!

Anyway, back to my Utah football excursion. I was again pleasantly surprised that Zaida was so interested in the game. She really just sat on one of our laps the whole time. She's awesome! Here are a couple favorite photos ...

We're #1!

Sundance

The other weekend Corey and I got a little cabin fever ... so we needed to get out of the house. We decided to take a drive through Alpine Loop. We love the Alpine Loop, it's so calm and pretty. It's a nice little escape, without going too far from home. We stopped to get some KFC on the way up and then just sat out at one of the tables at Sundance and ate. While we ate Zaida was walking around, she's just so silly! She was being really goofy and animated that night ... I'll show you some of her funny pics!

No chicken for me thanks!

Eating mandarin oranges on the go ... she would basically just walk past Corey with her mouth open. She would stall for maybe about .5 seconds, so he had to be quick to get them in her mouth.

Some of my favorite things ...

... MaWhe's fruit tray & my cute squeaky sandals!
... my blankie! ... being outside. And I love walking with my Papa Cliffy!
... feeding Paxton!
... reading books, especially if MaWhe shows them to me.

Gipsy Kings

Quinn got us AWESOME tickets to the Gipsy Kings concert at Deer Valley. It's really blurry, but this is a picture from our seats. We were on the 4th row! I was a little nervous that Zaida wasn't going to make it through a concert. I was seriously geared up to have to go walk around with her the majority of the time. BUT, Zaida LOVED it! She just sat on one of our laps and just stared. All the lights, the drums, the crazy people. I had such a great time, and I am so glad Zaida enjoyed it also. Thanks for inviting us Quinney!

P.S. this is another little sweater I made. It's pretty fancy - has lacy edging & rhinestone buttons. (I can't believe we are in sweater weather already!)

Bad Idea

The other day I had the bright idea to give Zaida a new treat in the car. She loves the strawberry Pocky's --- she will eat the strawberry yogurt stuff from around the stick and leave the biscuit clean to promptly throw away. Well, I had the genius idea to try the other flavor - chocolate. Here are the brilliant results!