Georgia and Mommy's Trip to New Jersey!!!

Gigi and I started our adventure on Thursday night the 24th. Months ago I decided that it would be so fun to take Gigi and visit my best friend Marisa for her son's 1st birthday in June. So Bubba gave the green light and I put the trip together. I have to admit I had some severe anxiety over the trip. Gigi is not the most quiet peaceful baby. She is happy but not peaceful. She is way too curious and busy. So I was nervous for the long flight cross country. We took the red eye which wasn't too bad. Gigi slept about three of the four hour flight. The flight left on time and got us in early. Then they closed the terminal that we were in in Newark because there was some security issue with an unclaimed bag. So we hung out for about 45 minutes. Then we finally were able to go and meet Mickey! Mickey took us to Marisa's because she lives closer to the airport and as early as we were getting in it didn't make sense to drag poor Mason out of bed.
I had forgotten just how beautiful back east is. Marisa lives in a cute town with lots of trees. Here house backs to a big county park with walking paths and a play ground and streams. It was beautiful. Nothing like we have in Vegas. These following pictures are of Marisa's property. So nice. Marisa and Andrew want to tear out all the bushes and shrubs and make it all open. I love all the growth. I guess I get that from my mom.
Here is Gigi playing in the backyard. This is from the farthest corner of the backyard looking back toward the house. On Saturday we helped get ready for a big party in Mason's honor. They held a backyard bar-b-que. It was really nice and even the little drops of rain didn't ruin the nice time. Mason enjoyed his first cake and Gigi helped him eat it.
Marisa's family has two pets a cat and a dog. Gigi was fascinated by both. The dog was always around and so Gigi's curiosity wore off quick and even became a little afraid of the dog. But the cat kept a safe distance away from Gigi and so she was curiouser and curiouser. She got pretty good at saying cat without the c and making a meow noise anytime she would see the cat.
The most beautiful shadey tree in the backyard also had a fun swing that Gigi loved to take turns in. She loves swings. Especially if the person pushing her pretends that she is knocking them over when she swings close to them.
Central Park.
On Monday we went into the city. We didn't let the 70% chance of rain deter us. It was so hot in the city. But New York is one of my favorites so I didn't mind too much. We just made excuses to stop when needed to get out of the heat. We drove in with Marisa, Andrew, Me and the two babies. Then we walked a few blocks to time square. We found a deli to eat lunch in and then we went on over to FAO Schwartz. Gigi loved all the toys. I let her out of her chair for a little bit and she ran wild. She loved the toys and everything there was to look at and play with.


Time Square.
Harry Potter section. Gigi looks great as a witch.
Downstairs on the bottom floor they have tons of younger toys and puppets. It was really fun. And these awesome Sesame Street characters that are bigger than the babies.Cut shot of the Gonzalez family waiting for us while we paid for our goodies. Gigi got a new book and some candy. She is so spoiled. After the toy store we went across the street to central park. There we found a great playground where the kids swang and tried the slides and then Gigi cooled off.All the other kids were in bathing suits but not mine. She was the winner of the wet t-shirt contest. Too bad Mason isn't walking on his own yet or we would have had to soaking wet babies.

Mason I think still isn't sure what he thinks of Gigi. I think though that we has warmed up to her. He got really good at saying Georgia. That was darling. G would give him hugs and kisses and steal his toys. Poor guy he is probably happy to have his space back.




Mason is in the building. My mom and I fell in love with an Elvis costume sometime last year and we have been wanting to give it to Mason ever since. This is the more practical still adorable version. I think Mason has a future as an Elvis impersonator. All the more reason for the Gonzalez family to move to Vegas.Gigi and Mommy with her cake. We started Mason's birthday celebration on the Saturday before his actual birthday on Tuesday. There was a lot of cake eatin over those several days.
Thanks Marisa for another great time! I am sad we live so far from each other. I love you lots and look forward to our next visit.

June

I love being at home with my little lady!!! So the school year ended and it opened up almost three entire months of Mommy and Gigi time. So I have figured out some things that we can do. We don't have a set routine yet. Except that Gigi really needs to take a nap at around 11am and I don't mind either. We have gone to the gym, the park, library and accidentally stumbled upon story time, shopping (running errands), the pool and anything else that I can think of. Next week we will try the movies. At home we read stories, play with toys, look at books that teach Gigi how to read, eat food, play in the blow up pool in the back yard, run and play with the rocks in the front yard, watch cartoons and of course take long naps. Which I am skipping apparently today because I am updating my blog. So far so good. I love the activities that don't cost money because I think they are truly genuine. I introduced Gigi to Slurpee's yesterday and then we had to change her clothes. She is good at drinking from a straw but she still has to touch everything. We went to California a couple weeks ago to visit my cousin for her graduation party. It was so nice to visit family and relax for the weekend. Then on our way out of town we went to the beach which was really fun but a little chilly. Florida beaches are never this cool, ever! Unfortunately on our way out of the beach we got in a car accident and it ended up totalling our car. So my aunt and uncle drove out to the beach and picked us up. We got to spend another night in California which is always nice to have more family time and then rented a car and drove up the next day. We are still in the middle of that drama because now we'll have to buy a new car and have the hassle of the car payment which we did not have with both our other cars being payed off. Oh well! Gigi and I are headed to New Jersey tomorrow to visit Marisa and her family and to meet her little man Mason for the first time. Can' wait! I am nervous of the 5 hour flight with my little busy little lady but I have lots of supplies ready to go. Wish me luck!!!









Let me just say she loved this fountain. She will try every time she goes outside to get in it.

Catching Up!

We have been pretty busy these past couple months so here are a few pictures to show you what we have been up to.

Gigi loves to swim but not look at the camera. I guess you can't win them all. I am sure there will me more of these pictures to come. This cute shot of her in her bathing suit here Great aunt bought her.
Memorial Day we headed over to Red Rock to go for a little hike. We found an "Medium" course for a little walk. For some reason we didn't think we needed water so we didn't last too long. It was fun though to hang out as a little family. Gigi like the rock climbing and being outside but she over heated first and then was ready to go and only wanted Mommy to hold her at that point.
Nana came for a quick visit. We met her down in Arizona for my aunt's 60'th birthday. It was great to see family and Mom. Only problem was the 2 hours we got stuck on the high way while there was an accident. Gigi and Nana love to do noses. It has also helped G to learn where her nose is.
Sitting on the toy box Daddy made her for her birthday.
At the race tracks! We all lasted about an hour and then were ready to move on. It was interesting but apparently you can't wear open toed shoes in the pit so we missed the tour that would've explained what was going on. Better luck next time.

In April we took Gigi to her first county fair. She loved the chickies and the pigs. She tried out a saddle, looked at a lot of scary animals, played fair games that regardless of the out come she won a prize every time and tried funnel cake for the first time. Which she decided I would like more that she did.

Easter Fun

This years Easter was really peaceful. I didn't get out of my pj's until about 3 pm. It was fabulous. At first I thought it was weird that conference and Easter Sunday would be the same this year. I missed the idea of getting dressed up and going to church to worship our Savior. I love Easter Sunday. But as I sat down for the first session of conference Sunday morning the realization came of how amazing it was to have the Prophet and other leaders of the church teach us and bring light to the gospel of Jesus Christ this Easter. I think that was even more special than if we had gone to church. Maybe even a little more reverent. I was also glad that we decided not to go to Utah for conference this year. I get so much more out of the meetings when I can listen in the comfort of my own home and with the available toys and what not to keep my little lady busy. Rather than me being out in the hall during sacrament meeting or trying desperately to keep her quiet in the chapel. She is after all her mother's daughter and exhibits more of my social characteristics than I would like sometimes.

Easter morning was also accompanied by a traditional Easter basket, nice breakfast and a break down. We ended up putting Gigi in three time outs during the day while she learned the hard way that we don't get to eat all the candy in the house. It was sad and really cute all at the same time. Gigi loved her chocolate bunny most and then moved on to her new toys. Even with the fits she was such a joy to watch. We played bubbles and Thomas the Train, ate french toast, watched conference, took naps, watched more conference, made bbq ribs and went out back to fly a kite. It was are very nice day.

Gigi's First Dodger Game

We tried to go to the Spring Training game when we were in Arizona but as I said in a previous blog it did not work out. So we then decided that we would buy tickets early and watch the boys when they came to Las Vegas for Major League Weekend. The weather here has been so nice until yesterday. The winds picked up and blew in some cold air. But that didn't deter us or the other couple thousand people that were there. We have never seen so many people at Cashman. It was really fun.

March Update

March flew by. I thought that I would get so much more done than I did. I still have a ton on my to do list and very few checks. The biggest news for us is that I resigned from coaching. It was a very difficult decision for me. I just feel like my priorities have changed. That is okay with me. I want more time with Gigi and if I keep coaching she'll be trying out for the Varsity soccer team and I will wonder where our time went. So I am very pleased with my decision. Now if I would only resign from teaching then little miss and I could be together everyday all day. I am sure she is would get tired of me. She loves day care. She goes to the nicest lady who does a great job with them. Gigi loves the kids and really likes Amy (the babysitter). She get excited to go and knows exactly where we are when we pull up.

So my big goal for March was to loose the last 15 lbs. that I have been hating on myself. Several reasons that I would like to get rid of the extra weight include health along with appearance and the biggest reason...baby #2. No I am not pregnant but I would like to be in the next few months and I want to be as healthy this next time as I was for Gigi, even more so. So Bubba and I committed ourselves to the South Beach diet for one month. What's a month we can do that right!?! Wrong! We lasted four days. I did loose 5 lbs in those four days but that's it. So I have been disappointed with myself for that but what can you do. So I reanalyzed and decided that I would continue to eat more healthy which we did improve on and I would exercise. I love to run and do aerobic classes but I have so much trouble finding the time. So that is my new goal. A couple days a week I take the jogging stroller and jog to the babysitter and then Gigi and I job back. Then I will take an aerobic class or two. I eventually want to be back to 5 days a week. I know that will really help with my crazy health and with the unwanted lbs.

Other happenings in March: G learned how to fold her arms for the prayer. They don't stay folded the whole time but at least she is getting the point. Gigi now has 10 teeth. This month she has been cutting two big ones on the right side. One top and one bottom. She is such a trooper. This 10th bottom one has really been a beast for her. She has thrown some real fits these last couple days. I feel so sad for her. She is talking all the time and is just a really happy baby as long as those teeth don't get in her way.

We took a trip down to Arizona at the end of the month to kick off my Spring Break. That was a really nice trip. We visited cousins and aunts and uncles. And Gigi got to meet more family. We were supposed to see the Dodgers Spring Training game but luck would have it it was sold out. That was crazy. So we tried to go and see the Padres and low and behold they were sold out too. Then we went to the Zoo but it was too crowded. Apparently it was Spring Break in AZ too. So when all else fails go shopping. Gigi had her first run in with cactus too. She was walking through my Aunt and Uncles back yard when she tripped into a spiky plant and got very scratched up. But my tough little lady didn't even cry. She was too busy getting back up and exploring. On our way out of town we stopped at the Visitor Center and the Mesa Temple so Gigi could see the Cristus statue. It was of course beautiful and Gigi recognized Jesus immediately. It really was precious to see how much see new that was Jesus.

Stephen is keeping busy at work and is getting complements from colleagues. It was not the plan for Stephen to be an estimator but I am glad he found this job. He really is happy there. It keeps him busy and he loves what he is doing.

Wow!!! Our baby girl is one year old!

What a difference a year makes. Main focus is the flower in her hair. It was too cute not to dress up our little new born in a totally girly dress and ridiculous flower. Now a year later it doesn't seem as silly but I still think it is darling.

Gigi has changed so much in the last year. (Of course) It is just stunning to see this little toddler take the place of my tiny little baby.

Here are a few highlights from Georgia's first year:

Moving into her new home with Mom and Dad
Visits from almost all of her aunts, uncles (David is on a mission so I guess that can't count against either of them) and grandparents, and even some cousins
Visits to the Las Vegas Strip, California, Utah, and twice to Florida
Playing in the pool all summer
Reading books while laying next to Daddy
Reading scriptures
Listening to us sing and has started to make her own kind of singing
Favorite song still Itsy Bitsy Spider
Loves to play Pee U Stinky
Making new friends
Going to the park for walks and to play on the slide and swing
Learning to eat like a big girl (Loves green beans, peas and bananas, bread and anything we are eating that we are not sharing with her)
Gives great open mouth kisses
Crawls up stairs pretty good but not down
Rides in her car seat forward like a big girl
Started at a sitter and is really good about going
LOVES kids esp. boys
Making her Daddy the best Mr. Mom anyone could have asked for
Photo shoots!
Being a total Daddy's girl and then right at the end switching to a Momma's girl
Talking up a storm
Walking at 10 months
Learning to shake her booty any time she hears music, esp. her favorite song Boom Boom Pow, Black Eyed Peas
Learning to blow kisses on her first birthday
Coming to Mommy's soccer games and practicing her own soccer moves (she kicks the ball great)
Six Teeth

There is soo much more but I don't think I can remember right now. So here are a few more pictures of my little lady's big 1st birthday weekend:


At Mommy's soccer game in the rain. Grandpa Bill and Nana came out to help celebrate. Too bad Gigi got sick the week before with an ear infection and then the morning after my parents got to town she started throwing up. Apparently not related but we still felt bad for the little girl. She didn't stay too long just long enough to bring some good karma and help my other girls pull off a win.

Daddy made Gigi her very own toy box for her birthday. Now all he has to do is paint it and then Mommy will decorate it Gigi style. He is so good with this kind of stuff. I am a lucky girl.













She didn't quite get the opening presents concept but she did get the eating cake idea after a little help.
What a doll baby we have.
Our lives could not have been more blessed. We love this little girl and we know she loves us!!!