Las Vegas 2012

We had an AMAZING trip! It was so great to just be able to spend time with one another. We sure missed Ty but I realized afterwards, our conversation wasn't all about Ty, like it sometimes is at home. Instead we talked about so many things, and had so much fun together. After we got home last night we couldn't stop talking about what a fun time we had! We will definitely be going on another trip someday!! So we took a million photos, and I honestly picked out the best ones and still was left with a ton.. I'll try to go through our trip with the photos.

I have had such a hard time with the captions with the photos so please excuse the spacing and sizing... All the captions are under the photo they go with!

Our first morning.. we ate breakfast at the Rainforest Cafe. I especially loved the fish tanks!! So tropical.

A lot of our photos are of just us with something in the background. 

We went to a 3-D movie at M&M world.. not that great.

Shopping for sunglasses because it was SO sunny out.

Our new shades!

Pretty curtain things.

We were recommended this Indian restaurant OFF the strip and off the strip it was.. 45 minutes of walking on our already aching feet. By the time we got there we could go no further. Luckily we were able to take a bus back. We go to the restaurant with 10 minutes left of the buffet and how could we not eat it when we had walked so far? So we filled up our plates... plates being plural for each of us... Next time we will check how far our destination actually is.

I REALLY wanted to go on the roller coaster on the stratosphere... It was kind of what I asked for for my birthday. We wanted to go see the flamingos at the Flamingo hotel and got there and were looking everywhere for them, and somehow ended up on the top floor of the hotel(which is only about 15 floors high), and the window was from the floor to the roof, and I was almost crawling on the floor when I got close to the window. I was kind of freaking out... then Michael asked me if I still wanted to go on the roller coaster and I said no. AS IF I thought I would have been able to do it. I was probably only half as high as the roller coaster would have been.

Pretty falls near the flamingos. 

Waiting for the Treasure Island outdoor show to start. 

A Statue of Liberty made of Jelly Bellys. The Mendenhalls always have lots for Christmas so I thought they might enjoy this!!

At the Shark Exhibit. Here is Michael amazed by the Jelly Fish. They were soo cool to watch move around.

Jelly Fish!!

Some brave guys swimming with sharks. I would neverrrr!

Yuck those windows are dirrrrty.

The best photo of us with the sharks behind. We loved the whole exhibit. Definitely glad we went.

It's crazy how close you actually are. Look at those creepy eyes!! 

On the bus on our way to Fremont Street to walk around the last night.

The 45 cents we won! We gambled $5 and won 45 cents.. That doesn't really make you want to keep gambling.. 

My precious 45 cents I won.

The New York New York rollercoaster we went on!!

In front of the lion at our hotel the MGM before we are about to head back to the airport.

We were able to go see Viva Elvis Circ Du Soleil and it was AMAZING! I don't even listen to Elvis, and this show wasn't our first choice but we both LOVED it!! I would recommend it to anyone who has the chance to see it. We also shopped a lot. There were just too many great deals to pass on.

My favorite things we did while in Vegas was:
1. The Bellagio fountains (I have seen them before about 6 years ago, and we only watched the during the day while we were there, but they are amazing.. I couldn't stop raving afterwards)
2. Circ Du Soleil
3. The rollercoaster

I was super surprised by how many people take their kids to Vegas. Babies everywhere!! And even out at 12 and 1am!! Can't you believe it...? Yes, there are family friendly things to do, but I would never take my children there! You pretty much walk through a Casino to get anywhere that is indoors, and people are drinking and smoking everywhere... We loved our trip, but saw and did pretty much everything we wanted to see and do so we probably won't ever go back unless it is with a group of people. Next time... Mexico... or really anywhere.

So if you are headed to Vegas and want any tips... let me know! We are experts now!!

My 24th

Yesterday was my 24th birthday. Nothing amazing happend, but I thoroughly enjoyed the day. My Dad came over for lunch and brought me pizza! We visited together, which is something we don't get to do often enough!! Then I had to go pick up my car from the dealership. We have been having troubles with my car just shutting off while driving, so hopefully thats not a problem anymore... especially since we are driving down to Kalispell on Friday. So Ty and I went and did that, and did another car related errand. After getting home, I made dinner, and then Michael came home. He brought me a sweet card with a picture of the rollercoaster on the skyscraper in Vegas because that what I wanted my birthday present to be!! SO excited! He also brought home an M&M meats Too Tall cake! Now if you have never had their Too Tall cakes, you are missing out!! They have four different kinds but this time he brought home chocolate because we have tried most of the others, and let me tell you, it did not disappoint!! After dinner we all snuggled on the couch and Ty was being so cute and giggly. Best birthday present ever. Just being happy with my family all snuggled up! Then we went to the pet store. Ty loved the fish and we loved the birds. They have a sloth there but it was sleeping and super boring to look at... then I accidentally saw a tarantula which I was doing everything I could to avoid (i HATE spiders). Then we went home and Michael's parents came over and wished me a happy birthday with a card and a future date night- babysitting and a movie with snacks.. pretty awesome. Then Cassandra and my cousin Shikari came over and babysat Ty while Michael and I went to our friends Dusty and Kortney Orr with Jessica and Jake Robinson and Nikki Byam (one of my favorite crowds to hang out with ever)!!! Had a bachelor party with popcorn and rice pudding, and visiting, and my favorite reality TV show. I even got some cute little gifts from the girls! It was just such a nice day!! The only thing that could have made it better was seeing my mom-but she's in Arizona still. Anyways, most of you probably don't even care about how my day was, but it was just a good day for me and I really wanted to document it!

Ty boy practicing his skills. Thats right... already scored 2 points.

My two favorite people in the world!!

So cute.

Me and my boy.. We didn't really make an effort with presentation on looks today okay!

Next blog post will probably be about our trip to VEGAS!!

VACATION!!

Michael and I just booked our trip to VEGAS!!! I have been trying to convince Michael to go on a trip since I can remember. He would rather use our money to buy something like a camera, or a new motorcycle... plus we are on the fast track to paying off student loans, but I just can't help but want to travel somewhere! Not because everyone else is (okay maybe a little bit of that but it's hard not to when you see peoples photos of beaches) but also because it would be nice to see somewhere else other than flat old Southern Alberta.

Since Michael doesn't really have any paid holidays off this year (only 2 days... but next year THREE WEEKS. I can wait for that). So we decided Vegas because we could make a quick trip of it on the long weekend, and it was probably the most affordable trip for us to take. We aren't taking Ty, and we will miss him insane amounts. He will stay at my Mom's. It will be good for us to have a couple days away just us two! So our trip is Feb 17-20 (only a week and a half away)!!!!!! You have no idea how excited I am. Pretty pathetic for some of you who have travelled all over. We are staying at MGM Grand and seeing a Circ Du Soleil show(a first for us both). Any advice or tips on places to eat or see?

this and that

I've known for a very long time that Ty is not that snuggly baby I hoped for (he must take after his Dad). I always wanted a baby I could cuddle with, and couldn't wait until Ty came so I could spend afternoons on the couch with him. But after he left the newborn stage I quickly realized my hopes and dreams of cuddles were not going to be filled-at least with this child. If I ever try to lay Ty down next to me and wrap my arms around him, he acts like I am trying to squeeze the life out of him, and does everything possible to get away. This kid won't even fall asleep in his mothers arms. Nope. He just wants down to crawl, or wants to be turned around to look at what's going on around him. SO recently I realized I can trick him to cuddle with me. I give him his favorite teething toy, get all snuggled up, and let him enjoy being in his own little world while I enjoy pretending that my baby likes to cuddle up to his Mom. Win Win right??

Ty is so busy lately. A little update:
-he is constantly pulling himself to standing on any surface he can reach the top of and he LOVES it.
-he is working on sitting when he comes down from a stand, so hopefully we can minimize the number of head bonks each day to zero... those are definitely not fun at all.
-says "Dada". We don't know if he knows what it means but it sure makes for a proud Daddy.
-is still slow moving with his eating- still only on purees, but we knew he was behind in the eating category... he always has been.
-LOVES his grandparents. Oh this little boy is sooooo loved and spoiled by his grandparents. Lucky kid.
-doesn't seem like a baby anymore... So sad... I honestly feel like he is a toddler now with his crawling, and standing.
-Ty got another tooth. That makes 3.
-growing a nice BLONDE head of hair. Not white blonde like I was but still blonde. You have no idea how happy I am to have a little blonde boy.

Our February goals are to only have pop 2 times, chips 2 times, and to eat at least 4 homecooked meals a week. I can do that right?? I'm pretty sure we eat at home most nights, but we're just going to make February super easy alright?

New Years Resolutions...

Okay I know we've been in 2012 for almost a month now, but everything was so busy when we came into 2012, that we didn't have a chance to even make our New Years Resolutions. I kept thinking about how a lot of people make plans to lose X number of pounds and how I wanted to incorporate some sort of exercise/healthy eating goals into this year. But I couldn't help but recognize I probably wouldn't be able to keep up with any huge goals... I like to take small steps.

After having Ty I knew I had to get my butt in gear and lose as much as I could before the cold hit because I sure wasn't going to work my butt of outside in the snow and wind. So I took two work out classes. One was twice a week, and another one was once a week. While I was taking these classes it seemed every day I was thinking of what I could do to work out... aquafit, yoga, running... and after 3 months I started feeling amazing! Then December came... I stopped working out and started eating lots of goodies! It was an awesome month, but I could feel the change.

Last year in February we said we weren't going to drink any pop and about 6 days before the end of the month I went to a movie and HAD to get a pop!! Michael was able to go without the whole month, but I think just knowing I wasn't suppose to made me want it all that much more!

SO Michael and I decided we are going to make small resolutions each month starting in February. Each month will consist of 2-3 small goals that get us closer to healthy eating and better exercising. Here are some examples of what I mean:

Each of these is for a whole month:

-6 slices of bread for the whole month (toast for breakfast, grilled cheese sandwich, french toast one morning-it sure adds up fast and I usually eat waaaay more than 6 pieces)
-2 30 minute workouts a week
-Veggies at every meal (we eat lots of pasta)
-Pop 2 times
-Chips 2 times (my weakness)
-Go out to eat only 4 times
-Run once a week (we'll save this until the weather improves)
-Home cooked meal 4 times a week (ALL month)


As we I gain more self control, we hope to make these small goals a bit harder as the year goes on. And maybe we will even make some of these changes permanent. I'll hopefully record what our goals are each month and then let you know how we did! That way if I fail, I'll feel silly because these are pretty do-able. If anyone has any other ideas let me know. We are up for suggestions!

Wish us luck!

Christmas Holidays 2011

We had a really great Christmas and we took a lot of photos. I think I will just describe as we go through them.

We took a trip to Cut Bank to pick up some packages we had shipped there for Christmas gifts, so here is Ty and I

 at Pizza Hut. 

And another thing in Ty's mouth! This is before Christmas at Michael's parents house. 

Bad coloring but here is Ty being read a book by his Aunt Jody-a librarian!! 

Here we are celebrating Nikki's 24th birthday!!  

At the live nativity... It was really great, but cold! This is not all of us that went. 

Ty with Dad Christmas Eve! And Ty with another toy in his mouth!!

Here is our little family Christmas morning with Ty opening his first gift!! Haha, Every single picture so far he has something in

 his mouth. I guess thats just what babies do.

Our new hats!!

It was SO nice because every past year we have done my Dads, my Moms, and Michaels  parents all on Christmas day and 

sometime even back somewhere for a dinner in the evening so this year we were able to enjoy a block of time with each family.

Here is us at my Dads house on Boxing Day playing Just Dance 3! I rrreeeeaaaallly suck at it. I try to do all the moves, yet I 

always get the lowest score.

 Oh well, what can I expect? Anyone who had ever seen me at a youth dance knows I am a terrible dancer. It was so fun to 

spend more time there this year!! 

Ty with his Grandpa Parker and Dad. He got a puppet from them and he loooves it!

Me and my boy being all snuggly.. Oh I just love this little guy so much!!

And now onto a little update of Ty...

-the most exciting news- he is CRAWLING!! He is so cute moving all over the living room and dining room. I can tell he loves this newfound freedom.. Now to get baby proofing this house!! 

-NOT sitting... I'm pretty sure this is suppose to come before crawling but this kid has nooo desire to sit. I try to get him to try, but he just bends in half, and goes into crawling position... He's got to learn sometime right??

-eating vegetables and fruit (he has been on rice cereal, oats, and mixed grains for a while now)! We started with veggies first and he likes sweet potato, butternut squash, and pears! He is still really into the bottle, so we are trying to get him eating less from the bottle, more from the spoon. 

-Ty LOVES books. It is sooo cute to watch him have a book read to him. He loves to hold the pages, and he looks intently on the words and pictures on the left page, then turns to the right page. It's almost like he knows what he is doing. If he is ever super fussy, a book is a great way to calm him! 

-he has started to babble a lot more. Sometimes I wonder if he is actually saying words, haha.

-Ty loves to be scared!! Anything that is a sudden noise made by Mom or Dad makes him laugh. A lot. It's so cute because we expected him to actually get scared, but he giggles! It's the cutest thing.

-Just yesterday Michael was feeding Ty and trying to get his attention by scaring him, and Ty started fake laughing. Maybe he was actually happy, but the laugh was super forced and he just kept forcing it. haha

Okay I think thats all. That took forever to finally do! We have been so busy trying to get back into a routine because Ty had so many late nights over the holidays. I wanted to do Christmas cards but we just didn't get to it... and then I said New Year cards... that didn't happen. Do people do summer cards? haha Hope all your Christmases were awesome. Happy New Year!!

6 months

I can't even believe my little boy is already six months!! I am sure any mother will understand the feelings that come with hitting this milestone age. In only another six months he will already be a year old... probably walking, and as one year passes so quickly, the next twenty will too I am sure. Life is so busy these days. Especially getting ready for Christmas and making plans with family and friends. It seems my calendar is always full and if I forget to write anything on it, I WILL forget with everything else going on. We have been busy with Christmas parties-two more this weekend.. and we are so excited for Ty's first Christmas. 

So at six months Ty is

-pretty close to crawling. he really made some progress last night(I tried to upload a video and it wouldn't let me so I will on Facebook)

-still only on the bottle. We put rice cereal in his bottle to thicken it up a bit. I try to give him rice cereal on a spoon but he still has no idea what he should be doing... We'll try again in a week or so.

-teething.. He has his two bottom teeth and I am SURE he has more teeth coming through. He has this one toy(I tried to also upload a video of it) that he is a bit obsessed with and if he has it and someone takes it away or he drops it, he has a fit!!

-loves to make noises.. specifically screaming!

-will now play in his crib when he wakes up in the morning instead of crying for me to come get him.

-love to scream when he sees other babies or younger kids. He even scared a baby and it started crying because he was screaming happily. 

We have been taking tons of photos, so I tried to narrow them down in this post, and will post lots more on Facebook. 

At a Christmas party my mom and I hosted this year! 

Ty and cousin Madison with Grandma Smith, and Aunt Becky 

Breanne, Michael, and Michael's shoulder buddy. 

Ty with Grandpa Mendenhall. So cute!!

Michael has a patient he has become close with. He made this straw broom for Michael(it's one of his patient's hobbies). And let me tell you, this thing is heavy!! And waaay better quality than you could buy anywhere. Michael is so excited to have it and that it was made for him! 

Went to Babb, Montana to get some Christmas packages... Here is Ty waiting for Dad to come back to the car.

Santa Baby!!

Cassandra is a Nanny for two little kids so we often get together with them (Becky is also a nanny but she wasn't working this day, although she did come with Madison). We made sugar cookies with them. They are so much fun!

I love this cooler weather ONLY because I get to bundle up Ty and he is just the CUTEST!!

 Ty met Santa!! I don't think he cared or even realized that he was being held by a white bearded stranger. So funny.