Fun in the Arizona Sun

This past week, we took our first family vacation to Arizona. We have been going to Scottsdale every year since 1995. My grandpa especially enjoyed spending time in desert when the weather in Seattle was rainy. Grandma carries on the tradition, although its never the same without him. Every year that we go, we share the week with family members. This time, we overlapped with the Brannons but spend most of our time with Sean, Prita, Kennedy, Blake and Grandma. This trip to Arizona was even more special since we were able to bring our little guy with us. Roderick did so great on both flights. I was very proud of him.

This trip was not like past vacations. We did not lay out in the sun for endless hours trying to bring home a golden tan. Our primary focus was on the kids, even though they are much too young to remember anything we did. We spent the week lounging around the house, going to kid friendly restaurants, taking walks to Starbucks, going to an art show, and even the zoo. We had no idea that the Phoenix Zoo was so amazing! It's actually ranked 4th best zoo in the nation! We all had a blast until Roderick got his first taste of allergies, something he must have inherited from his dad (poor baby).

It wasn't all about the kids though. The boys did take an afternoon to play golf at a course up the street from Grandma's place. Prita and I got the BEST manicures and pedicures and also did some shopping with the girls. I was even able to go for a hike up Camelback one morning, something I did not get to do last year since I was pregnant. Harv went on the hike twice... and was still not sore (thanks to his weekly "hour of power"). Overall, it was a great week full of adventure, family, and fun in the sun. A big thanks to Grandma for having us!

The boys and kids at the airport waiting for the good ole Aerostar
Clearly, Roderick was excited to be there

He was all smiles most of the trip

Probably because daddy spent lots of time playing with him and Kennedy

So did Uncle Sean

Daddy gave Roderick lots of shoulder rides

And Roderick did lots of exploring. This is his classic pose when he decides to take a break from crawling

This kids had a blast playing together

Roderick loved his baths in the kitchen sink

The Aristocrat played golf by day and smoked his pipe by night

While Roderick played with spoons

And got excited about Buca Di Beppo

And lounging pool side with daddy

Roderick loves to have his picture taken

Especially when Grandma is feeding him

Or if Blake-O is entertaining him

Of course, Tinker Too's was a busy little girl too

She was always trying to get into something (or running into something)

Roderick turned 8 months old on this trip

He has gone from a baby to a little boy in no time at all

So we all agreed that the kids were old enough to enjoy the zoo

In their matching strollers Roderick was nearly stung by a bee but I think my loud F bomb scared him off (yep, the kids at the zoo learned a few new words- oops)

He calmed down rather quickly... he is a tough little boy

Who likes watching the tall giraffes

And spending time with the family

I can't wait to tell him all that we saw

And all that we did

And how even his allergies did not ruin his day... do you see that smile?

That is just one of the MANY things I love about my Little Lovin' Baby. What a good sport huh? Keep it up Roderick John. May you always be happy even when things don't go your way.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

My dad has always said, "there are two kinds of people in this world. Irish and those who wish they were." Roderick John, you are Irish my love! Happy First St. Patrick's Day! My Lucky Charm

Look who has learned to crawl
My Little Leprechaun

He loves crawling to mommy and daddy

From Sorority Sisters to Moms

This past weekend, we went to dinner at Mands and Brad's house. Kara (Butts), Randy and London also came over for a fun little BBQ. I went to WSU with both Mands and Butts and we were all Pi Phi's together. I have known these girls for over 10 years and boy have our lives changed. I love that our little guys are so close in age and that they will all grow up together. London is the oldest at 11 months, then Roderick at 7 months, and Carter also 7 months (2 days younger than Roderick). I feel so lucky to have such an amazing group of friends. I don't know where I would be without them. TTF Ladies!

Butts and London, Roderick and Mommy, Mands and Carter

Randy and London

Cute Carter

Harv and London

Butts and Roderick

Mommy and Roderick

Whoa Babies

Happy 30th Harv

I can hardly believe my man is finally in his 30's. He is almost catching up to me. Thank God Demi Moore and Cameron Diaz made being the older woman kinda cool! :-)
In this family, we love to celebrate birthdays. Harv had 3 little gatherings and has one more coming in April in Palm Desert. This will be an all boys trip where my husband, dad, and brothers will chase around the white ball on a green field...Golf. Thank God I'm not invited. I don't understand how that can be fun. BUT, I sure loved his other parties!

Last Saturday, I surprised Harv with a date night. I took him to El Guacho in Seattle and then to the movie The Blind Side. It has been a long time since we have done that. On Sunday, we met his mom, sister Amy and her boyfriend Dana at the Old Spaghetti Factory. On Monday the 8th, we invited my side of the family to Verazzanos to celebrate Harv's big day. Harv was worried about having so many people attend, as he does not like to be the center of attention. I assured him that someone in my family would take the spotlight, after all, McKenna's love to be noticed! At the end of the day, I hope we made Harv's 30th one to remember. Happy Birthday Honey!

The Aristocrat

Grandma Laura at the Old Spaghetti Factory

Our date night downtown