Update: April and May

Trip to the zoo on one of Aaron’s Fridays off. We made a stop by the Dog House before because we actually had cash, and it was worth the wait. I don’t know what they do, but those hot dogs are DELICIOUS. I ran a 5K in April. I hadn’t run in forever, so it was a big achievement, even if it was the slowest race I’ve run yet. Definitely not posting pictures of me running, because I look like I should go on The Biggest Loser. I know Aaron hates when I say things like that, but even he agrees that those pictures turned out very, very badly. Here’s a picture post run after I had recovered a bit. Best part of April was going on a girls’ trip to Phoenix with some of my closest friends. We all lived in Albuquerque at some point, but about half of us have moved away from the Ventana Ward. People came from California, Texas, and Washington to play. We had an amazing time. I am so blessed to be able to call all of these women my friends. Matching shirts and trips to Ikea FTW! Many preschool field trips occurred in April and May: Dions   The firestation   Mr. Walkers Popcorn Bridget had her first haircut.   Katie with Mrs. Sickenger on the last day of 2nd Grade. Paul with Mr. Nunn on the last day of kindergarten. Averi helped me make this “Welcome to summer” banner.   Paul and Katie learned how to ride their bikes without training wheels this summer. Aaron and I realized we had been extremely remiss in teaching them, and so the day after school got out Aaron spent the evening teaching them how to ride. They learned in one night! I was so impressed. It was such a wonderful feeling as a parent watching them master that skill and seeing the joy and surprise on their faces as they did it. Just as a side note: Paul has a boy’s bike. We just had him learn on the smaller one until he mastered it. He’s still a manly man. Super cute Bridget loves her babies.

Thanksgiving 2012

Because our kitchen does not easily accommodate the cooking of a large meal (I don’t think a turkey would even fit in our teeny 1980’s oven), we decided to make a trip up to Salt Lake to have Thanksgiving with our families. This is actually the first Thanksgiving we’ve eaten in Utah since we’ve moved to New Mexico, so it was a fairly momentous decision. As always, much fun was had by all. Paul and Grandpa B at a Jazz game. Playing dress up, all day, every day. And, of course, the main event. All of the food is not pictured. Yes, that is three different kinds of meat you see.   We were able to spend the weekend at Hawksridge, my parent’s townhome in Park City. It’s simply gorgeous, and with the Wolf Range and Subzero fridge, it’s the perfect place to cook a feast. They rent it out to vacationers, and it’s gotten rave reviews. If anyone is looking to spend some time up in the Park City area, you should definitely check it out. It’s simply amazing. My dad getting Bridget hooked on the bubbly. I also didn’t get pictures of the six pies: pumpkin, cranberry cream, pecan, lemon meringue, chocolate cheesecake, and strawberry. The post-Thanksgiving crash. She was out cold. There was no waking her. Watching the game with Grandpa. Grandma Connie got the kids together to make fancy gingerbread houses this year. Bridget really got into the action. Gratuitous “Baby With Rolling Pin” shot because she’s adorable.   More dressing up. I am not exaggerating when I say that this girl is in dress-ups more than she is in normal clothes. Paul’s Dracula castle. It turned out pretty cool, even if he did wind up abandoning the pictures in the book. And so the festivities ended. Even though the trip was short, it was definitely worth going up to Utah. Since our kids are getting older, the drive is a lot less difficult, and being able to load movies onto the ipad has made things even better. Thank you, technology. I love you.