July 5-8

The next morning we were up bright and early to catch our flight. That was really hard to leave Ryan. But at least I was going somewhere fun. Well the flight was about 2 hours, but let me tell you that was a very eventful two hours! Kaitlyn was really tired and ready for her morning nap, but of coarse she wouldn’t just sit there to fall asleep so I had to fight with her the whole time. Between all the fit throwing and her insistence on kicking the chair in front of me, I’m sure everyone just thought she was adorable. Then Emily started having a hard time. What now? There’s only 2 seats. So I took Emily out of her chair to hold both of them and try to calm her down. Well I instantly found the problem. A HUGE blowout. That was entertaining. Luckily there was a really nice flight attendant that let me use the galley (where they prepare the food) and helped keep Kaitlyn there while I cleaned up Emily. I didn’t have a change of clothes on me so we got to have naked baby time on the airplane. We got settled back in to our seats and I was feeding Emily and she had another messy diaper! Luckily I felt her going so I knew what was up this time. I couldn’t believe that she was full again. So this time Kaitlyn had settled down (sort of) in Emily’s car seat so I changed Emily on my lap. Let’s just say I was so glad when we finally touched down!
My Aunt Michelle came to pick us up and we spent that day and most of the next day with her and her family. She has 5 children, 4 girls and one boy, Ashley, Madison, Brianna, Brooklyn, and Adam. The kids were so much fun. Kaitlyn loved following them around and playing with them. Brianna especially took to Kaitlyn. It was really cute. The two youngest are almost twins, just a couple of months apart, and they both kept calling Kaitlyn and Emily- the baby. So they’d ask a question like where’s the baby? And I’d have to say witch one? Adam was really cute with Emily. Both of them really liked to take care of and hold her, but Adam was the one that was the most interested in it. I think all the cousins were but since they were the youngest, they were up with us before the rest of the house was. Anyway here’s a really cute picture of my cousin Adam holding Emily:

That whole day and into the evening was really hot and all the cousins and even my uncle were playing with the water outside; water balloons, water fights, the hose, buckets. Pretty much anything they could find. Kaitlyn LOVED it! She loves to play in the water. At the end of the day she was soaked and so proud of herself. Her favorite was the hose and a close second was the water balloons. She loved trying to fill this wheelbarrow with water, and trying to drink from the hose.


Aunt Michelle lives in American Fork, so she was kind of in the center of all the action. Kaitlyn, Emily, and I stopped at her house a few times, along with my Mom, Dad and brother Andrew (at separate times), my sister Julia and her husband Cody, my brothers Jace and Kurtis, and my sisters Jessica and Tiara. When my family comes to visit, they come to visit. We invade! I’m so glad that we have such wonderful family to take us in and entertain us while we visit Utah.
So the second day in Utah I was at my Aunts house and my family caught up with us. It was so fun to see everyone again. Especially Julia and Cody because they weren’t able to come up for Emily’s blessing and Ryan’s graduation like everyone else was. She has a bunch of really cute pictures on her blog HERE.
So this was the 6th of July and 7th my cousin in Provo was getting married. We went up there that afternoon. My Aunt got us all a hotel for the next 3 days. That was really nice of her. Kaitlyn loved swimming at the pool and playing with Uncle Cody. Julia and Cody are so baby hungry they couldn’t put the girls down. It was so cute. It was also really good for Kaitlyn because she was missing her daddy. Unfortunately I didn’t get ANY pictures of this weekend. I’m so mad at myself, but I was pretty stressed trying to travel with 2 babies and no husband. My cousin Kayla looked SO beautiful. I loved seeing her so happy. She really deserves to be happy and have such a wonderful eternal companion. On Friday night we had a bacheloret party (g rated of course). It was so much fun. We just got all the girls together and talked and played games and Kayla opened a few gifts. It was really a lot of fun. My cousin Lalani thought of a really fun game. The theme for the evening was Mexico because that’s where Kayla’s honeymoon was, so we pretended we went to the horse races. We all had names we picked for our horses and we competed and bet on each other with beans. It was really a lot of fun. The next day was the wedding. Since we (the girls and I, and my siblings) couldn’t go to the wedding (she had a really small sealing room) we stayed at the hotel and went swimming, and then Jules and I got to go shopping. Unfortunately we had about an hour tops to shop so it was over way to soon! That evening we went to Kayla’s reception. It was really cool. Not the traditional church gym, it was in a park and we had a bar-b-que. The food was great and it was fun to see more cousins and watch Kayla with her new husband. At the end of the evening one of my uncles who’s a science teacher got out miniature cannons he made and they shot them off with marshmallows. It was REALLY cool. They really shot like cannonballs; you couldn’t stand in front of them because it was dangerous. After that we shot off some fireworks. Kaitlyn really thought they were cool. I think those were her first, if not they were the first that she knew what was going on. My cousin Lalani, is just 6 months older than me and when we were little we used to tell everyone we were twins. Well we were both pregnant at the same time and she had a little girl only a week after I had Emily. It was so fun to see how much they look alike! I wish I had a picture, but I had left my camera at the hotel. On Sunday we stayed in Provo again and just enjoyed relaxing and playing with cousins. Kayla and her new husband came over and opened presents and played a few games with us.

INTERNET!!!!

Yea, so we finally have internet. The last time I posted I was at the library and ran out of time before I could put the rest of the pictures in. So if you go to my last post I added 4 more pictures and the rest of the day's info.
We got new phones along with the internet today. So if you want my new number e-mail me or leave a message here and I'll get it to you.

Our new house and July 4

I’ve been in Utah for the past couple of weeks and then I came home in time for Ryan to leave to go and take the bar exam. It has been one CRAZY month, course when is life not crazy. Before I left I didn’t get to post what our new house looks like. So here’s a little tour of our cool house. (We’re just renting, but I love this house)
This is our front yard (we have no back yard) that Kaitlyn likes to play in.

We even have trees! This is my brother-in-law Shawn when we first got here.

My mother-in-law and Shawn both came to help us move. I don’t think we could have done it with out their help! Thanks Mom and Shawn, we love you!
The house we live in is very old. It’s one of those houses’s that has slowly been added on to, so consequently there are 4 front doors. 3 of them belong to us and the 4th is the door to go up stairs where another renter lives. Anyway if you come in right next to the garage (yes we have a garage, wahoo!) you enter into the study.


Behind the study is a work room for Ryan’s tools and projects. Next is our dinning room and kitchen. They left us this beautiful china hutch too. My favorite thing about this house is the wood work. It is so beautiful.


This is our play room and behind it is our living room. The only thing I don’t like is the horrible pink walls and drapes.


There are 2 bedrooms, one for the girls and one for me and Ryan. So until I meet some friends I can at least enjoy being in our first home.
Right across the street is the town’s grocery store. A Piggly Wiggly. Actually it’s called Dicks Piggly Wiggly and the locals call it Dicks. I think Piggly Wiggly is more fun to say. So I’m a nerd, but I was so excited about my first Piggly Wiggly buy, a gallon of milk, that I took a picture. I think it’s cute, so here’s our Piggly Wiggly Milk.

We really got blessed on the location of our house. Not only is the Piggly Wiggly across the street but Ryan’s work is 2-3 blocks away and the Library is 2 blocks away and the new playground by the elementary is maybe 5 blocks away. The week I was here before leaving to Utah I think I only drove once. It’s wonderful to be so close to everything. I’ve been really enjoying all the exercise.

Now for my awesome trip to Utah. It was so much fun, but it was sad because Ryan couldn’t come. We were leaving so he could concentrate on studying for the Bar. For those who don’t know my birthday was on July 3. I turned 23. Ryan was so sweet, he took the girls and let me sleep in along with a bunch of other things for my birthday. But I mostly count the next day as the celebration. The girls and I were flying to Utah on the 5th out of Minnesota, but our flight was at 8:30 in the morning, so we went up a day early so we could be there on time. I convinced Ryan that since we already had a hotel we should spend the whole day there. I had so much fun!!! The twin cities are pretty cool. We will have to go back when we have more time to explore. So on the 4th (HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY!!!) we drove to Minnesota (4 hours) and when we got there we went to the Minnesota Zoo and to the Mall of America. When we first got to Minnesota we were starving so we just pulled off the highway and stopped at a McDonalds. They had the coolest things there. I saw one on Rachel Ray once but it was cool to see in person. It’s like a snack machine except for DVD’s, so cool. You put in your credit card and then you choose your DVD and it’s only a dollar a day and then you return it to any one of these machines anywhere. So if you left from Dallas and flew to SLC you could check a movie out at DFW and return it in SLC. I saw some at the airport the next day. But I thought it was cool that you could do that at McDonalds’ too. I really wanted to take a picture but I felt like I would have looked too much like a hillbilly so I didn’t. I should have because it was pretty cool.

So first off was the Zoo. I have to admit that at first I was not impressed. But I was proved wrong, we had an excellent time! I loved watching Kaitlyn look at the animals. Once she got the hang of what we were doing she was hilarious. She had her pointers waiting for the next animal. It was adorable. She defiantly got her daddy’s enthusiasm for nature.


By far the coolest part of the zoo was the Dolphin show. I had never been to one before so I was so excited to see it. We got there early so we had good seats. It was so much fun! I loved watching the dolphins. What amazing animals. Kaitlyn LOVED the show too, it was almost as much fun to watch her watch the show. She has really good eyes, she saw them as soon as they came out and was very excited. She pointed and giggled and ooed and awed at all the right places. Adorable. Afterwards we wanted to let her get right up by the tank and look closer but she would not! Dolphins apparently are really cool from the stands but way too scary up close! I think she gets that from me. I don’t like to get too close to most animals (but I wasn’t scared there).

We also got to see them feed the sharks, but that wasn’t as cool. They just dropped food into the aquarium. Apparently the morning feeding is the cool one, a scuba diver gets in and talks to you too. Emily was great. This is how she was most of the time.

Just kicked back and relaxed. I got really worried about her while we were outside. It was really hot and she was just dying in her car seat. Luckily I had some ice packs with me (for her milk) and I put those on her too cool her down. She liked that.
Afterwards we went and checked into our hotel. Ryan got a great one it was really close to the airport and the Mall of America. So we rested for a little while and then off to shopping it was. I had a great time. The mall has 4 stories, a amusement park in the center, and an aquarium on the bottom floor. Plus all the stores you can think of. My Aunt Diane would be in heaven here, well most women would be. One of these years we’ll have to have the girls’ weekend there. We mostly just walked around and looked at all the stores. Kaitlyn loved all the bright lights and cool rides at the amusement park. She really wanted to go on the rides! She’s such an adventuresome girl, no fear. I love it. This is a really cool store/restaurant called the Rainforest Café.

The inside is all green and leafy with lots of cool things to look at. You feel like your walking into a real rainforest. There was also an alligator that looked real. It was pretty cool. This is in the LEGO store. They had lots of different displays all made of legos, it was pretty neat.

By the time we got to the hotel we were pretty beat. That was a fun and exciting day. We were getting ready to sleep and I kept hearing these banging noises and I asked Ryan, what is that? - It was all the fireworks. We tried to see them out of our window, but we couldn’t. That was ok though because we were so tired. What a 4th, we had a great time.

Update

Well, this is Ryan posting this blog. Christi has been in Utah for the past week and a half and hasn't been able to post because of it. I have been studying for the Wisconsin Bar Exam and am absolutely sick of it. I take it next week and will be glad when it is over. Christi is having a good time in Utah visiting with both of our families. Everyone loves the girls and Kaitlyn is just hamming it up with anyone who will give her attention. Of course, Emily is enjoying herself because she is always being held. Christi and I miss each other and it will be good to see her again when she gets back on Sunday. As for Wisconsin, I love it. We are in a quite small town and absent the boardome from Christi and the girls not being here it is a great place to live. I even joined the city band and have participated in a concert. I play the drums. I also really enjoy my law firm. Everyone here is really grounded, doesn't complain and all possess good old Midwestern values. It will be a great place to raise our family. Well that's about it for now.

no internet

So we made it! We are here in Wisconsin and I like it so far. It helps to know that we are leaving in a few days. So, since we have no money and I'm going to be gone for a month, we're not setting up the Internet until I get back. Right now I'm in our TINY public library hogging one of the 4 (yes 4) computers that have Internet. So I probably won't post again. We got everything here safe and the girls are doing great. Kaitlyn LOVES all the room in our house to run around and play in. If only she didn't have to worry about all the boxes in the way. Some day. Well we are leaving for Utah on the 5th. Can't wait to see everyone! I'll post pictures of our house and our trip to Utah when we get back.

Farewell fellow Iowans :(

So it's official, I can't deny it anymore. We're moving. Half (or more) the house is packed, we pick up and pack the truck on Tuesday and leave Wednesday morning. If you live in Iowa come help us pack up the truck, Tuesday at 6pm.
I absolutely love Iowa. I never thought I would end up here, but I love it. We are in a great stake and have met many wonderful people. I will really miss the friends that we have made here. I have grown so much and learned from yall. If I didn't get a chance to say goodbye, I'm sorry. I've been trying to avoid thinking about it. It's very scary to move to a small town with an even smaller branch. I'm going to have to learn how to met people in the community again. I can't just rely on church and my girls aren't school age yet, so we'll have to find some play groups and meet our neighbors and stuff like that. I'm sure I'll love Wisconsin after I get used to it, but for now it's scary and stressful.
I will miss you all, continue writing on your blogs (or start one if you haven't), I love to read them. I'll keep mine up too. If your ever in Wisconsin or want to come up, give us a call we love visitors!
Here's a beautiful picture of the view from our porch. This was after a huge storm that swept through here. It was 9:00 at night but very bright outside. Beautiful.

Fathers Day

So, yes I realize I'm a little late, but too bad. Here it is anyway. I have an amazing husband who is always there for me and the girls. He understands my need to socialize and go out with the girls (not my daughters, but the grownup girls) and is supportive of all I do. Even with all the stresses going on right now with a new baby, moving, and studying for the bar he still finds time to spend with me and time to play with and enjoy the girls. They absolutely adore their daddy. Ryan has always been better at getting Kaitlyn to laugh and smile then I could, and it's the same with Emily. She just beams and coos at him. He is so funny and silly, I love when he plays with the girls. Nothing is more wonderful then a Dad that loves his girls, even though we are girly girls. Here's us on our wedding day:




And Ryan with his girls (the day we brought Em home from the hospital):



I have a wonderful Father and I am so grateful for all he has taught me. I'm sure there were many times he wondered if I was listening at all, but I was. I love you dad and I'm so thankful for all you have done for me. We named Emily after my dad's mom. He is very much like his mother and Emily is just like her too. She was a very compassionate and loving woman. My dad taught me to be like her and to love others. Every time I look at Emily I think of my dad, I think they look so much alike. I hope she grows up to be like her Grandpa Wilson and her namesake, his mom. Here's a picture of Dad with Em.



I was blessed to marry into a wonderful family. I love my in-laws. I could not have asked for more. They are great. I love Dad Dalton. Ryan is just like his dad. It is a wonderful thing. Terry taught his son to be the amazing man he is now. He learned to always respect his mother and to be supportive of his wife. I wish everyone could see Ryan and his dad together. They are great, always something to laugh and joke about. I love that he knows he can tease me, and I can tease him right back. My favorite is when I catch him off guard and he doesn't know what to say. great. I don't think I've ever met someone who wants to be more like his dad then Ryan. I think that's a great compliment to Terry and the great father he is. Here's Ryan with his proud parents on graduation day:



HAPPY FATHERS DAY to the 3 wonderful fathers in my and my children's lives. We love you all so much!