The Bike That a Mom's Dreams are Made Of

We only have one car and right now Seth takes it to work so the boys and I are left car-less BUT THAT'S OKAY because everything we need is in walking distance:  the beach, the park, the grocery store, the post office, the preschool that Taft will go to, the bank. Ideally, I would get everywhere a lot quicker if I rode my bike, but Lukie's still a tad small for the bike trailer. The picture above is my dream bike. I want it real bad. Found here.

Fourth of July

We had a great holiday weekend. We went up to L.A. for part of the weekend to hang out with one of Seth's best friends from college and his family. We arrived at their house Saturday morning and they had breakfast waiting for us then we all headed to the beach. We BBQ'd in the evening and then the dad's took over kid duty while the mom's had a night out at the movies. It was a great! 

Monday Seth had the day off so we were able to enjoy the Fourth of July festivities together. Our ward held a breakfast at the parade and Taft seemed to really like the parade (for the most part) but Luke got sleepy so he took a nap in the shade. They had live patriotic music going all day at the park so we spent a chunk of the day there. We ate traditional 4th of July foods for dinner...watermelon, corn on the cob, hot dogs, you know.

Taft ended up taking a really, really late nap but didn't wake up so I had to wake him for fireworks. I gave him dinner but he was doing his sleep eating thing again. When he finished he was just awake enough to tell me he wanted to go to bed. So...we missed fireworks BUT we still had a great last weekend before Seth started his 70 hour work weeks. 

Lastly, a shout out to all our military members and their families. There's a Navy base here so there was a lot of military personnel at the parade. I'm grateful for those that sacrifice and dedicate their lives to serving our country. (Go Pete!)

Luke is Six Months

Taft had been crying because he wanted to take the picture...

Luke hit his half-way-to-one year mark at the end of June. The time is flying! We love our Little Lukie and he is a very happy, very chill baby. He started solids and so far isn't opposed to any of the foods he's been given. I can't tell what he likes the most yet, he likes it all. He's still nursing, but I'm looking to end that in the near future. He hasn't had any teeth break through yet but as soon as he does...hasta la vista baby. He a good napper and really seems to value his sleep. He does wake up once to eat in the night still, but other than that he usually sleeps from 7 to 7, but sometimes until 9! If only he could convince his older brother that sleep is awesome. Luke is rolling all over the place and is getting closer to sitting on his own. He is super ticklish and has a cute belly laugh. Luke likes to watch Taft and seems to think he's funny. Taft still loves Lukie to death and is still very sweet with him. We love our boys!!

Mormon Night: Explanation

A couple people asked for clarification on what "Mormon Night" was.  Basically, Mormons (and non-Mormons too) could get discounted tickets for that night's game. Instead of "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" during the 7th inning stretch we sang "Army of Helaman". Just kidding. But really, the San Diego LDS Choir sang the National Anthem and the announcer welcomed all the Mormons. That's it. Oh and everyone got free Padres beach towels.

Mormon Night at the Padres

"According to my calculations the Padres are hitting .333 this season"

My handsome hubby

The Inseparables. 

Petco Park June 2011

Da Boyz

Our second weekend here the Padres had "Mormon Night". We went, being Mormon and all. Taft doesn't have the longest attention span in the world, but he did pretty good and Seth was great at keeping him entertained. Taft also had his "phone" which is actually a calculator. He think he talked to Nana, Gunpa, and Annie that night. We made it until the top of the 8th which I think was pretty good for us. I love baseball games because I feel like it's the All-American sport and I like I'm being patriotic when I go.  Seth has mentioned that he wants to go to as many different MLB games as he can with our boys. So far Seth and Taft have gone to a Dodgers game at Dodger Stadium in L.A., a Mariner's game at Safeco Field in Seattle, and this was Lukie's first game at Petco Park in San Diego.

Pete's Wedding

Pete and Carissa's wedding was absolutely beautiful. The day, the couple, the ceremony, everything. The got married in the Draper Temple and the weather could not have been better. The sealing was really neat and the sealer had some wonderful things to say and some inspired words that I think meant a lot to our family. After pictures and such (by the way...are the pictures not GORGEOUS?!) our families and close friends headed to lunch at Trio. It was a small gathering and it really was lovely.

There was a short program which included the Bluth tradition of a song sung to the bride and groom. Usually it's my dad and uncle, but my uncle wasn't able to make it, so a bunch of us less talented people grouped together so my dad wouldn't have to sing solo. He changed the lyrics from Crosby, Stills, and Nash's song "Our House" to "My Spouse". When Pete was young, maybe around 8-10, we took Christmas gifts to a family at the homeless shelter. The family was made up of a single mom and a few young kids. Afterwards Pete had made a comment to my dad about the family not having a dad. My dad and Pete were driving back home together when Pete thoughtfully said (as a young kid) "It would be delightful to have a spouse." That's where the inspiration for the song came from.

Pete and Carissa each said a few things during the program. Their love for each other was very evident and very endearing. It's clear that they both have an incredible amount of respect for each other, put the other one's happiness before their own, and are truly in love.

Congrats Pete and Carissa!! We are so happy to have Carissa and Jayda a part of our family!


wedding photos by simplicity photography

What we do

Sunday evening walk on the beach

Beach time

Gotta keep this fair skinned baby in the shade, covered in sun screen, and fully covered!

The Zoo. Even though the picture doesn't show it, Taft LOVED the zoo. Every animal he would say "(Whatever animal it was) Yaaaay!!!" 

Taft learned a new trick

Intern Year: Spokane in Review

We arrived to Spokane June 11th and exactly one year to the day was the day I left Spokane. Here's what we did during our year in the Inland Northwest:

In June we celebrated Father's Day and got mystery note  and flowers from "Taft", visited Bowl and Pitcher, went to Hoopfest, went on bike rides around Lake Couer d'Alene, and camped at Glacier National Park.

In July I was at the height of my pregnancy all-day sickness. I missed 4th of July festivities but Seth and Taft went to Riverfront Park to participate. Later in July Taft and I went to Utah while Seth worked a very busy rotation. 

In August we went to Sandpoint, ID and just hung out. I think Seth was on nights during this month so we played outside a lot during the day while Seth was sleeping. 

In September our first visitors!! Gram and Pop Herway came to town! We had a great time showing them around our new town. It was too short of a visit but we still loved having them. Later in the month we went to Seattle and Vancouver, BC.

In October the Dan and Lara Herways came to visit during their kids' fall break. We love these guys.

In November it was fuh-reeeeeezzzing and it dumped tons and tons of snow. The Bluth (even Pete!!) family came to town for Thanksgiving. We loved it. 

{can't find a picture}

In December we of course celebrated Christmas, our first as our little family of three and counted down until New Year's Eve when Little Lukie arrived!! My mom came to help out with the baby. 

In January Lanx came to help with the baby and after she left, we remained hermits because of the new baby and the fact that the weather was mis-er-a-ble. That is until we went to Utah for a couple weeks only to be cut short because our little baby got sick. :(

In February we went to Driggs, ID with Seth's brothers minus Steve who's serving a mission.

In March we stayed indoors a LOT and went to the children's museum a LOT. We celebrated T-man's birthday. And stayed inside more.

In April we were ready to pull our hair out because the weather was NOT getting better. Things got better though when Tates came to visit us for her Spring Break. 

May was spent in Utah while Seth did a rotation there and Pete got hitched!

June...peace out Spokane!

Overall, we really enjoyed our year in Spokane. The people are so so nice, it's beautiful, the summer totally rocks, but the winter is loooooong. Real long. 

Family picture in front of the apartment...my eyes are closed...dang.

The Transitional Year Kiddos (Taft found something more exciting)

The Transistional Year Residents

The Spouses

P.S. This took me forever so you should leave a comment.

You guys...it's really awesome here, like reeeeaaally. This past week the song from "Annie" keeps popping in my head, the one when she firsts gets to Mr. Warbucks mansion and it's like, "I think I'm gonna like it here..."

We arrived last Wednesday and it still looks like a tornado hit our apartment but it's slowly coming together. We hadn't seen the apartment (not even pictures) before we moved in so I was really anxious to see it. Good news, it isn't a dump! It's dated but has everything we need and everything about the neighborhood is great, not the mention the beach that we can easily walk to.

I'll do my best not to rub it in your faces but right now it's still very exciting to be living here. As I was driving over the bridge from San Diego to Coronado I could see Coronado in all it's sunny, palm tree, beach loving glory and started "Woo-hoo"-ing and screaming to Luke "We LIVE here Lukie!! We live here!!" He was super pumped as well. (Taft was riding in the moving truck with Seth)

I'll update with pictures soon but for now just know we made it and we love it.

Five Months for Luke and an Update on Taft

Stats (as of yesterday)

Weight 15 lbs.  (50%)

Height 26.5" (75%)

Head 17.5 (75%)

Lukie Pookie Lukulele is five months already! He's moved up another size in clothes and is showing no signs of slowing down. He is such a smiley boy and so far has been a very easy baby. He still hasn't decided to sleep through the night without eating, but I'm hoping once he starts solids he'll be able to make the transition. He's become quite a squirmer and gets pretty far by scooting along his head, back, and bum. He always manages to get himself wedged into the corner of his crib every night. He has finally rolled onto his stomach from his back. He likes to put everything in his mouth and definitely seems like he's ready for some real food. He's as sweet as sweet can be and smells so yummy. No teeth yet but still a big drooler. Loves, loves, loves bathtime, thinks Taft is funny, and is great at going with the flow. He usually takes two good naps during the day with one cat nap sometime else during the day. 

I had to take a minute to jot down some things that we think are funny about Taft right now. 

1. When he's frustrated and trying to express something I remind him to "Use words" and sometimes he'll just say "words" instead of what he actually wants. 

2. He now loves Toy Story and will hop on the back of the stroller while I'm pushing Luke and say "Buzz Ah-errr!" (Buzz Lightyear)

3. His prayers are the best. He usual recounts the days activities: "Dank you play Lukie. Dank you Barney. Dank you play outside. Dank you birpday cake." 

4. Whenever he gets hurt he asks me to "kiss it betterrrr" and if you get hurt he'll ask you if you want him to "kiss it betterrrr". 

5. He still talks to Luke in a super high, sweet voice. 

6. Sometimes Seth will pretend Taft is a baby and Taft will become totally still, won't say a word, and acts what I guess he thinks a baby acts like-still and quiet.

7. He met his newest cousin Jayda (7 years old) when my brother got married last month and he talks about her on a very regular basis saying: "Jayda funny" which is code for he likes someone. 

8. Taft watched Finding Nemo somewhat recently and has become obsessed with finding him. Seth took Taft on a run the other day and Taft was stretching out his arm out of the stroller yelling, "Nehmo! Nehmo!" He asks me on a regular basis where "Nehmo" is.

9. He has a great imagination and can entertain himself very easily. One of his favorite things to do is pretend talk to people on the phone. His regulars as of late have been Nana, Annie (my parents neighbor), Jayda, Carissa (my brothers wife).

You kind of have to be there with all of these, but I didn't want to forget them.

Folklife Performers

So the majority of the performers look like they're from the late 19th, early 20th century, have been traveling the country on the railroad, are homeless, haven't showered in years, and probably don't own a toothbrush but they sure are talented.

I am so curious about this group of boys...where do they live? Who are their parents? How did they all meet? Do they all live in forest together? They remind me of Peter Pan's Lost Boys but grown up a little. Notice the guy in the back blowing into the jug. I think it's nice they made up an instrument for him.





These guys were my favorite. Seth thinks the girl playing the bucket and string looks like Robin Hood. Her biceps were insane!




Now this one....just watch. I love it.

Five Years Later and Folk Life is Still Living

Memorial Day weekend five years ago, Seth and I took our first vacation together as a dating couple. Kind of a big deal, because on vacations is when you find out if you like the person more or you realize they bug the living daylights out of you. Lucky for us we decided we liked each other more.

We were going to Seth's BFF's wedding in Seattle. We drove in Seth's little Corolla (which we still have and will probably have until it dies) with me in the front, Seth's roommate Jason Kim in the back, along with a former roommate and mission pal Ryan Simmons, and an ex-girlfriend* of Seth's (another story).

Jason Kim, Seth and Me, Seattle 2006

We stayed at Ryan Simmons' parents UH-MAZING home on Bainbridge Island. We had clam chowda on the pier, toured Seattle, got free food at PF Changs, went to Jerry's wedding, and stumbled upon a huge hippie/gypsy punk/woodland creature music festival called Folk Life.

Ryan's parents backyard on Bainbridge Island

This groovy guy asked me to folk dance. I did.

The day of Jerry and Jen's wedding (this is Folklife, not the wedding) hence Seth's tux.

My favorite picture of the trip. (That's Ryan in the sweater)

Fast forward to Memorial Day weekend 2011. It was Friday afternoon and as far as I was concerned Seth and I were going to go on date to a restaurant we'd been meaning to try and our friends were going to watch our boys that night. It was mid-afternoon Friday and Seth told me that a couple we know wanted to stop by and say goodbye since we're moving shortly. Seth went downstairs to let them into our apartment. When Seth came back to our apartment with the couple, it wasn't the couple but MY PARENTS! I was shocked and confused. The my mom said, "We're here to watch Taft while you guys take a weekend trip!" I looked at Seth in total disbelief because we never do surprises like this, but it was true. Seth had arranged for my parents to come watch Taft while Luke, Seth, and I went to Seattle for a 5 year anniversary celebration of that trip while we were dating. I couldn't believe my parents had driven 11 hours to come watch Taft and I couldn't believe Seth pulled this off without me knowing a single bit of it!

We took off late Friday afternoon. We rolled into Seattle and opted out of clam chowder this time and instead had some VERT tasty Japanese in what looked to be a questionable hole-in-the-wall restaurant, but it was SO GOOD. We took the ferry to Bainbridge to stay at the same place we stayed 5 year prior and got settled for the night. Saturday we took the ferry back to Seattle and spent the day at the Folklife Festival. The people watching at this event is THE best. The musicians are extremely talented and it's just a fun thing to be a part of.

The ferry to Bainbridge

Performers

A brick of fries

Bainbridge

We finished the evening having the same meal we did 5 years prior as well (at PF Changs) but this time it wasn't free. Darn.

It was so great to have a little weekend with my permanent boyfriend (and Lukie too). I told him this surprised earned A LOT of points that will last quite a while for him. :)

*Seth would probably dispute this claim that she was a "girlfriend" but they did date for a bit.

P.S. The only thing that would have made this trip better was is I was 20 lbs lighter like I was 5 years ago.