A Little Bit of Life

Hi again, family. I'm back once again from the dearth.

So, we moved! We're in our house, we're unpacked, and things are starting to feel like home. (Although Blake felt immediately at home the second he drove both cars into the garage. Hooray for cars no longer taking on hail damage!) The walls are so big and our picture frames so little that decorating is proving to be a bit of a challenge. All of that will come in time, and when the budget is ready for it. :)

We had the extreme pleasure of having Mom Hull and Brynn come out to visit. Mom and I talked each other's ears off for 4 days straight to make up for all of the kitchen chats we've been missing out on for the last 6 months. (Yes, friends! We've been in Texas for half a year!) Brynn was the absolute best baby charmer of the world. Seriously, she and Eliza were two peas in a pod and even me, Blake, and Grandma would get the cold shoulder from Eliza--she just wanted Brynn! I tell you what, Utah people... Keep Brynn on your sights for potential babysitters. I seriously did almost nothing by means of baby care while Brynn was here--diapers, baths, dressing, nighttime routines, putting down for naps, feeding... Brynn is seriously one impressive babysitter! During naps, we took it easy watching chick flicks, making cookies and popcorn, and we enjoyed one heck of a party over at Uncle Kevin and Aunt Alene's. You guys were WONDERFUL company, Mom and Brynn! Honestly, come back ANY time!

Right when I got home from taking Mom and Brynn to the airport, I got hit with pinkeye and a pretty severe cold. The pinkeye cleared up with antibiotic eyedrops. The cold still has not, and has grown in intensity. I finally got on an antibiotic hoping that it's a sinus or respiratory infection that will clear up with some meds, but if not, I guess I'll just have to tough it out.  I'm on Day 12 so far, and if the cold doesn't kill me, the cabin fever might. :) Blake and Liza picked up the cold, too, but haven't been hit as hard as I have been. Eliza knows how to handle illness: sleep 16-17 hours a day. (She's been sleeping in an hour or two and consistently taking 3-hour naps, only to sign to me a few hours later that she's tired and ready for bed. Incredible!)

Blake got a new calling:  Ward Executive Secretary. Just a few days in and I can already tell this will be an incredibly busy and rewarding experience for him. I'm grateful for the opportunities we have to learn and grow in the church. And it's a wonderful thing to be needed here in Texas.

Miss Eliza is doing quite well. She sprouted some molars in the back so she can now shovel her food in at even greater speeds, which she enjoys. :) Her particular favorites right now are banana bread, cheerios (always!), pizza, and crackers. That list was tough to make because she just sort of eats everything without question. (I know that's not fair, Mom and Dad. I suppose I'll have to endure karma with one of my other children.) She also loves brushing her teeth--months into it and it's still a thrill every morning.

Eliza loves swimming which is convenient because that's about all that's remotely fun to do outside in Texas summer heat, or so we've heard. June has actually been incredibly mild--we think it's hot, but compared to what it normally is, we've gotten lucky! July is right around the corner though, so we'll see what it and August have to offer. I have a feeling swimming will become a daily ritual for me and Eliza.

Eliza is also loving her books - her current favorite is Over in the Meadow. She also loves expressing herself verbally and through sign language. It's amazing to me how much she knows! She loves to communicate, which is a total thrill to me because I'm the same way. Someday sooner than I know the little babbles with recognizable words will turn into full run-on sentences that never stop. I'm loving every stage.

Some recent pictures:

"Organizing" the tupperware. One of her favorite pastimes. She's been sad that I won't let her help with unloading the dishwasher/organizing tupperware since she's been sick.

This face is in response to one of the following directives:
"Eliza, can you show me the happy face?"
"Say cheese!"
"Show me your teeth."
She cracks us up and keeps us smiling.

Helping Daddy wash the car.

Swimming - this was her first swim back at our old apartment.

We've got more pictures on Blake's phone--I'll see if I can figure out how to get them on here. Until then, stay healthy, be happy, and embrace your own daily enterprise!

Brief Update

I have been neglecting the blog, which has been a pity because our life has been fraught with adventure and enterprise over the last little bit. Without further adieu, a much needed update:   [Sorry no pictures... they'll come later!]

We are the proud owners of a 2009 Toyota Sienna! Minivan for the win! I never imagined I could like a minivan so much and enjoy driving it, but I do. She's a great little machine and we're glad she's joined our family. Now all we need to do is fill 'er up with 5 more kids...

More visitors. Beth and Mom Briggs came to visit as soon as tax season was over, which means Eliza had possibly the best week of her entire life. During tax season, I worked hard on brainwashing Eliza into knowing Beth's name and recognizing her picture, because Eliza proved to be such a balm to Beth's poor over-worked soul. We'd call her up and I'd say, "Liza, can you say 'Beth'?"  "Beh. BEH! BEH!!" It's the cutest thing ever. Anyway, Eliza's wildest dreams came true when she woke up one morning and sitting on a queen mattress in the living room next to her toys were two of her favorite people ever: Aunt 'Beh' and Grandma.

Last Friday, I got a call from Blake at work: "Do we have any plans tonight?" Not particularly. Why? "Good! Dad Hull is passing through DFW on the way home from a business trip and his connecting flight to Utah got cancelled." Woohoo! Spontaneous visitors! I felt bad that Dad didn't get to be home in his own bed after a long business trip, but as he said, "If you have to be stranded somewhere, it's pretty great to get stranded where your kids are." We called the Taylors (our Texas family) to be our last-minute babysitters for Eliza, and we picked up Dad and went out to eat together. It was so fun! And I didn't even cry when Blake took him back to his hotel, which I feel like is a sign of progress for me. :)

And now, drum roll please.......

WE'RE CLOSING ON A HOUSE THIS AFTERNOON. It's official, friends! We're in our last few days of apartment living! We found a house we love that's in our ward boundaries and close to Blake's work and we're actually going to do it! Home-buying has been an interesting, foreign, and sometimes stressful experience, but it has certainly been a wild ride worth taking. Hooray for equity instead of torching a rent check every month!

The Perfect Stage

My mom has always said that I was "born with everything but the stage." (Which I'm sure sometimes drove my parents nuts growing up. But I haven't turned out too bad, right?)  Well, some might assume that I threw away my theatrical potential by becoming a stay-at-home mom. Little do they know that I have the best stage and best audience I could ever possibly hope for.

The stage? My kitchen floor.  The audience? Eliza.

That's right, folks. This is a public confession that I sing and dance and perform like a complete goon on a regular basis with zero inhibitions and zero adherence to socially accepted norms. (Is there group therapy for this sort of thing?) Eliza is the recipient of my spontaneous productions daily, and honestly, she gets to witness some of my finest work.

I didn't realize how extreme I was until today, when I saw Eliza's face during one of my folk dance performances to this song from Tangled. I tell you, it was a look of stunned amazement. As if to say, "Wow, Mom! That's really... unique. I've lived here for a whole year and I haven't seen anyone act the way you're acting right now. [Wait for it... here's my favorite part.] How should I feel about it?" 

Isn't that great! No preconceived notions of what a talented performance is. It is absolutely the best! And I use that blank slate quality to my advantage...

So I finish my Kingdom Dance with my hands up thrown up in the air on the final note and a beaming smile. Eliza, completely flabbergasted, is looking at me like, "Uhh... What is the cause of this behavior. Am I in trouble? How should I react to this?"

Well, Lizie... Let me tell you how to react. I clapped my hands twice and excitedly said, "Clap, clap!" 

Just that fast and she erupts into enthusiastic applause and an ear-to-ear cheesy grin. No judgment. Just 100% emphatic and genuine support. How could I possibly ask for a better audience??

Bottom line:   we have fun together. I see wonderful theatrical productions in our future together. 

Best Man Ever

Blake had an overnight training for scouts last night. Can I just say, I hate going to bed when he's not home. It's no fun...

I know what you're thinking. (I'm looking at YOU, Dad Briggs.) And that's not what I was referring to. Although, what you were thinking also happens to be true. Moving on.

As we were saying goodnight via text, I said, "Sleep well, Blake! No baby to keep you up tonight." Here was his response:

"I'd rather be home with my family and get up with a baby at night than be away from the family and sleep with no interruptions."

The cool thing is, Blake doesn't say stuff like that just to make his wife swoon. He's a man of no pretense; he says that because he means it. 

Which means I'm a very, very lucky woman.

A moment from the dating days - July 2011

~Breaking News~

This just in! So proud of our little girl!

Visitors

Our laptop was out for the count for several weeks so I was functioning solely on the tablet. Now that the laptop is back in working order, I hope to get back into posting more regularly.

Headline in the news:  Visitors! Mom and Dad Briggs came out the last week of March and Kyndal came the first week of April. GLOR-I-OUS. Both weeks have been so much fun! I still need to work on being better at taking pictures, but we've just had a grand old time having people out here to Texas. If you'd like to come, let us know and we'll find a date on the calendar!

Highlights from Mom and Dad being here:

• Texas Motor Speedway. Dad will be back later to capitalize on the opportunity to drive a race car at speeds well over 120. You too, can experience the thrill for a mere $100. Or, if you'd rather, you can have a veteran race car driver drive you around the track at speeds over $150. Now there's something I could go for. Save your pennies, folks.
• Touring BNSF. We met up with Blake for lunch and then took a tour of BNSF. We got to go inside a fancy-pants rail car that they've turned into conference rooms for VIPs. Pretty neat!
• A photo shoot for Eliza at Target. Still didn't capture the essence of Eliza, but there were definitely some cute ones! Pictures coming soon.
• Simply coexisting. Just being together is priceless. That was certainly my favorite part and Eliza's favorite part. Eliza started crying as we dropped them off at the airport and it about ripped my heart out. It took her several days to get over it, and I told Mom that the next time they come, they need to overstay their welcome so I can cope with them leaving. :)

Highlights of Kyndal being here:

• I have two words for you:  GIRL. CHAT. Seriously, guys don't know what they're missing! That's got to be one of my top 10 favorite things of being a girl, made even more so by chatting with sisters. :)
• Conference in Sherman with Aunt Shirlene, Uncle Alan, and Reese. Getting together with family is the best. Delicious lunch, games, and words from the prophets. Makes for a great Sunday.
• Trying new recipes together. Overnight Baked Strawberry and Cream French Toast with Strawberry Syrup. Tasty, but the better part was making it together while Blake was at priesthood session. 
• Venturing to Wat Buddharatanaram, a big Buddhist temple in our area. We didn't get to see any ceremonies or rituals and have a chance to practice all of the Buddhist etiquette that we researched, but we saw some monks and the buildings were really neat.
• Playing with Eliza. Eliza pretty much adores Kyndal now. It made me so happy that Kyndal got to see the magic that I witness (and try to capture and share) all the time. Eliza's cute little babble, the way she reacts to an offer to read stories or go on adventures or put on her shoes... So much fun.
• Meeting up with Blake for lunch. Kyndal will probably get me in trouble for posting this to the world, but the cashier at Five Guys was totally hitting on her. Time to start cleaning the shotgun, Dad...
• The Hobbit 1 and 2. Waiting for #3 is going to be a killer!

Thanks for coming, guys. "Let's not wait till the next family reunion!"

Maintenance: Zero Fun Sir

I love where we live. We've really been impressed with our apartment complex and management and I would recommend them to anyone. The only thing I might change is I might have the maintenance guys take some people skills classes. Their maintenance skills are top notch, but they're just a little... gruff. They aren't creepers, but I feel the same kind of uncomfortable that I might feel in the presence of a drill sergeant. "Zero fun sir."

Anyhow,  the maintenance guys came today to fix our toilet. I made sure the apartment looked respectable to avoid any feelings of, "Shoot! Should have picked up before the drill sergeants arrived for inspection." They came,  took care of the problem with impressive speed and efficiency,  and went on their less-than-merry way.

I go into the bathroom to see the new and improved toilet, only to find pads strewn across the floor along with curlers and some other post-pregnancy unmentionables.

The poor maintenance guys. Guess I should have done a second sweep of the apartment once Eliza was down for a nap.