October

This year for Halloween, we went to multiple parties. We first went to the ward Trunk-or-Treat and then headed over to my mom's for a Penny Carnival. All the grandkids were there. All 10 of them.

I love my mom's facial expression contrasted with Maia's.

We were going back to the 50's this year.

Trunk-Or-Treat= trick-or-treating training for first timers.

One of our favorite days in October was going to the pumpkin patch, then going to CPK for lunch, and then finishing up at the mall for some window shopping.

At the mall, Maia found this car and wanted to take it home.

Maia loved sipping through a straw just as much as Joe did.

That is the cutest ghost I have ever seen.

Joe hasn't grown any taller this Fall.

August

WOW! We haven't had a normal post for so long!!! So here's a recap of the summer!

Maia and I loved the new "Pretend City" that is fairly close to our house. Maia would love an annual pass one of these days. She loves the moon sand at the "beach," loves to play in the water at the "harbor," pick strawberries and tomatoes of the vines at the "garden," and go shopping at the "store."


We also went to Jackson Hole, Wyoming for a Hulse Family Reunion. It has been over 20 years since the last reunion. YIKES! We had a great time in the mountains and loved the beautiful scenery.
Mom, Amy and I took a trip to Spain in August. We stayed in Marbella and then did some day trips to Morocco, Gibraltar, and Mijas. We had a great time staying on the beach.
On our way to Spain, we had about a 12 hour layover in NYC. I had never been to NYC so after we landed from our red-eye flight, we walked around and did a tour of NYC.
This is Maia sporting her new boots as I was trying to pack her stuff up for the Wyoming trip. I just loved this pic.

That was our August. :)

Hit the Road Mac!

I'm speechless. I'm not sure what to say. I believed so strongly in Apple iMac computers for 3 terrific weeks. Now, I'm just lonely and sad and hurt. Our brand spankin' new iMac broke so bad that we had to ship it back for another new one. It was only THREE WEEKS! Apple Care Customer Support couldn't even do anything to save it. It was toast! THREE WEEKS! THREE! We lost all our files. Glad I didn't upload any photos.

I am grateful for our hand-me-down laptop that has been through 2 of our computers already. I know I laugh when I can only create Word Perfect documents and can't open Excel files but seriously, I'm grateful for Ol' Faithful PC.

This means another delay for pictures and fun posts. In the meantime, I'll be counting my blessings.

Just DOO It!

For my birthday, back in September, my mom got me a great gift. The gift of a new hair doo! I haven't had my hair done since I was married (almost 5 years ago). So on Saturday, I got it done. I am so grateful to have my hair look good again. It really has been too long.

This is today. I can't seem to get it exactly how the hair dresser did it. The part in my hair is a little off here. Tomorrow might look better.

This picture shows how the hair dresser styled it. This is the day it was cut and colored. Sure looks better than plain hair put up in a ponytail.

This whole experience of having my hair done reminded me of a story my good friend told me:

I was walking down the street when I was accosted by a particularly dirty and shabby-looking homeless woman who asked me for a couple of dollars for dinner.

I took out my wallet, got out ten dollars and asked, 'If I give you this money, will you buy chocolate with it instead of dinner?'

'No, I had to stop eating chocolate years ago', the homeless woman told me.

'Will you use it to go shopping instead of buying food?' I asked.

'No, I don't waste time shopping,' the homeless woman said. 'I need to spend all my time trying to stay alive.'

'Will you spend this on a beauty salon instead of food?' I asked.

'Are you NUTS!' replied the homeless woman. I haven't had my hair done in 20 years!'

'Well, I said, 'I'm not going to give you the money. Instead, I'm going to take you out for dinner with my husband and me tonight.'

The homeless Woman was shocked. 'Won't your husband be furious with you for doing that? I know I'm dirty, and I probably smell pretty disgusting.'

I said, 'That's okay. It's important for him to see what a woman looks like after she has given up shopping, hair appointments, and chocolate.'

Mac and "Cheese"

We finally got a new computer!!! It's awesome! We are so grateful to have a new iMac. We absolutely love it. At first I was super unsure because I remember my days in college when I had to do a whole project on a Mac and it was so difficult for me. I was always a PC girl. Macs scared the heck out of me. Now I'm not so sure why I was so intimidated. It is by far the best computer! It is really EASY too.

I've been trying to learn how to do things little by little. Maia and I love the Photo Booth.

We're still figuring out a lot of stuff but we now know how to smile, say, "Cheese," and capture pictures of Maia on a roller coaster at 18 months, standing on my lap.

Maia starting to get the hang of putting her hands up.

Maia got a little scared on that last drop. And I have a bolt (or part of the track) through my neck.

Again...still learning.

Bubby, Bubby

I had to share a funny story. If you have ever seen the episode of Friends where Joey speaks French (found at this website:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D30U-nz_Hts

watch from 7:17 to 8:04)

you will appreciate my story.

So Maia had a diaper that was pretty full. I said, "Maia, your diaper is saggy baggy." She looked down and I said, "Maia, say saggy baggy."

She responded, "bubby, bubby."

I said, "No, say, 'saggy baggy'."

She said, "bubby, bubby."

I tried again, and said, "Maia, say saggy."

She said, "Saddy"

I said, "Say baggy."

She said, "Baddy"

"Not bad. Ok, say, saggy baggy."

"Bubby, bubby."

New Favorites

Maia has grown up to be such as sweet girl. Lately she has made it known what her new favorite things are:

TV show/movie: any Elmo dvd checked out from the library
YouTube video: Elmo's song, Muppet's Manamanah song
Food: raisins, oranges, peas (tomatoes are still a favorite of hers but she is mildly allergic to them)
Toys: my wallet, computer, and still the "hello" (aka my cell phone)
Book: "I Am Reverent When..." The ironic thing is that she has no idea how to be reverent.
Daytime activity: library story time, going to the park to swing on the swings and to go down the twisty slides all by herself, being outside, blowing bubbles, bathtime


Things that never go unnoticed:

1. If the printer is filled with paper, Maia makes sure she empties it.
2. If there are vases under the sink, she will make sure that there aren't.
3. If she has something in her hands (sippy cup, blanket, toy) when you open her car door, she will make sure to drop it at the right time so that it lands in the street. (My reflexes are getting faster)
4. If all the toys are IN the baskets, she will make sure to empty all of them, and spread out all her toys in the front room, before daddy gets home.
5. If the computer is on and the chair is pulled out, she will climb up to push all the buttons and turn the computer off.
6. If a chair isn't pushed in around the kitchen table, she will climb up to see if there is a writing utensil she can use.
7. If her tray isn't on her high chair, she will climb up and turn the light switches on and off.

Even though she creates a lot of messes and is very disruptive, she has a sweetness about her that makes everything worth it.

1. She will make sure to say "I love you" often, followed by some kisses.
2. Maia will be reverent and fold her arms for short prayers.
3. She will say "dee-doo" (thank you) when you give her something. (So polite)
4. When the phone rings, she reminds me that it's "daddy" calling.
5. When she pretends to talk on the phone, she's always talking to daddy.
6. If you're about to leave, she will get your shoes for you.
7. When it's bath time, she will go get her own towel and bring it to you.
8. If you ask her to wash her hands, she will quickly obey and run to her bathroom.
9. In the morning she wakes up calling "Mommy" from her crib.
10. She will try her best to make you laugh if you haven't been laughing for a while.

I love being Maia's mom.