Ouray, CO. and a Bad Case of PMS

I think I could actually hear all of the guys clicking the x button after reading the title. Well, don't worry fellas, it's not what you think! Last week, we took a trip to Ouray Colorado for a little family reunion. It's been a tradition in my family to go there since I was little. It's a beautiful old mining town with natural hot springs about 12 hours away. While I was excited to go, I wasn't looking forward to driving that far with a 20 month old, so I had Joel book a hotel in Gallup, NM. Let me tell you what. This place was ritzy! They actually had granite beds! I mean, I didn't actually look to see if that's what they were made of, but boy could you feel it. The air conditioner had one of those fancy dancy "nature" relaxing white noise machines built right inside! It didn't sound like anything from nature that I'd ever experienced...but it was New Mexico after all.. Perhaps in NM nature sounds like a big semi truck. So..even in all of the luxory of the "Tra vellod ge" we couldn't get any sleep because Mikayla's allergies kicked up a few notches and she couldn't stop coughing. After a few times (and hours) of driving up and down Gallup's main street we stopped at a 24 hr Walgreen's and I got Zyrtech for kid's, Mucinex for kids, Delsym, Benedryl, throat lozenge lollipop's and honey..I figured one of those oughtta work. So after we gave her Benadryl and finally got her to sleep, we woke up (why we even bothered to try and get more sleep is beyond me) and headed on our way. It was a pretty good drive from then on..even tho the last 20 miles took over an hour..here's why:

(I actually stood up thru the sun roof to get this shot)

Gramma took Mikayla to the Hot Springs and Layla had a blast!

Daddy and Mikayla at the Waterfall

That night Mikayla was up coughing again with a runny nose and puffy eyes. I was about to pack everything up and head home to go see the doctor..or go to the ER (j/k..I'm not that bad)...my baby couldn't breathe and was hacking up a lung!! That's where the bad case of PMS comes in. I am a chronic sufferer of Paranoid Mom Syndrome...I'm not proud of it, but I'd rather be safe than sorry. Luckily my mom and sister were there to tell me that it was just a cold and to give her Benedryl and Mucinex every 4 hours and she would be just fine. And oddly enough..she was! Thanks guys. After that I was able to breathe easier and enjoy the beautiful scenery and the shopping. I couldn't do any of the fun stuff like horse back riding, jeep tours, long hikes, and hot springs because I'm preggers. Ha! If you hadn't read through my insanely long post you wouldn't have gotten my little announcement. Even shopping was a little strenuous. The whole dang town is on a hill and there's no oxygen. I did manage to make it up a small (but steep) trail to a waterfall. It was gorgeous! And Joel and I drove to Telluride to check out the scenery and shops there. Fun, fun.

Here's a picture of my sister, Olivia, and Mikayla playing in the river.

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A New Tradition

We had a wonderful 4th of July this year! We had some friends over for a barbecue, watched the baseball game, then went to the park a few blocks from my house to see the fireworks (I was a little worried it would be really hot, but was pleasantly surprised when the weather was absolutely beautiful with a nice breeze). We took popsicles and icecream bars with us to the park and laid down on my favorite picnic blanket while the kids ran around in the field before the show. Mikayla loved the fireworks and kept trying to walk towards them...thinking that she would be able to reach right out and grab one. It was so nice and relaxing. We were able to sit back and reflect on what a wonderful country we live in and all the sacrifices that have been made for the life and freedom we have today.

Happy Ftaher's Day Joel!

Okay, I don't have much time, but I HAD to post this! Joel and I have a video monitor for Mikayla, and I was sitting here blogstalking while she napped. Well, she woke up a few minutes ago and for a while she was just sitting there talking to herself. Then I hear her giggle so I turn on the monitor to see what she's laughing at. Well...she had taken her blankie and wrapped her stuffed doggie in it and was giving it the biggest hug ever, just giggling and giving it loves! It was seriously the cutest thing! I love these mommy moments!!

So Much Fun!!

Do you remember the time when you could just sit and have an actual, uninterupted conversation with friends? When you could just go to the movies whenever you felt like it and eating out wasn't an aerobics class? Well, Joel and I have friend's who are still in that phase of their marriage (not for long!!). I feel so incredibly lucky that they are still willing to hang out with us, even tho I can't seem to do the simplest of things- like finish a sentence- before I have to go chase after Mikayla. We got to spend Saturday evening with them and Mikayla had a blast! We went to the San Tan mall and she got to play in the splash pad. She was scared of all the other children at first, but got into it soon enough.

I swear, I don't keep her locked up in the basement all day...we do go out and she lOvES the park. It just so happens that one of her parents is albino and the other is a polar bear.

Then if that wasn't enough fun for one little girl to have, Monday for part of our family night we went to Target and we finally got her her own toot toot!! (for all of you that don't speak "Mikayla" that means car...or really anything with wheels). She was so excited she couldn't even wait for us to get it out of the box before climbing on!

The box said it was good up to 3yrs old...but she already looks too big! We tried to take off the green thing, but she wasn't having any of that and threw a fit. It also has an attachment that goes on the back so we can push her along when we go on walks (that would have been nice a couple of months ago..hmm..oh-well)

Too late to knock on wood...

Well...apparently, fate doesn't like to be tempted. I got worse. Then Thursday night as I lay in bed hacking up a lung (I didn't care, I was still determined to go and my bags were packed), I heard Mikayla cough. I thought she was all better...but I guess not. It was at that point that I sighed and admitted defeat. I wasn't about to take my sick baby to smokey old Vegas. So, Joel got to spend the weekend gambling (for charity...mostly), going to Blue Man, eating at famous restaurants, going to the Las Vegas Temple, and staying at Caesar's Palace. And then to top it off he went golfing this morning. Man, life's rough for the poor guy, huh? Well, one of these days I'll get a break. I'll keep you posted on that, but I doubt you'll still be reading this in 2011 when I go to Ireland.

So, last night I was laying in bed, wondering what my husband would think when he woke up in the morning to find me next to him with a wad of tissue stuck up my nose. Sure, sure...I guess it might be better than the alternative, but I decided that I would attempt- undoubtedly without success- to blow my nose one more time and get rid of it. No need to tempt the poor boy, we wouldn't want him to be late for work (wink, wink). Then my mind wandered to this weekend (Yes, I did want to go to sleep, but it's incredibly hard to go to sleep when it feels as if someone's trying to blow up a helium ballooon inside your head). We're going to Vegas for a conference and we get to stay at Caesar's Palace!! A once in a life time, used to laugh at the idea of us being able to stay there, always wanted to, experience...and I'm sick. What the?! No...this is definitely not allowed, someone didn't read the rule book and now I have to pay the price. I guess it deosn't matter anyways, I will be better by Friday..no, no, I'll go one step further. I'll be all better by Thursday! HA! Take that fate. I have to. We're going to see The Blue Man Group on Friday night- my mom is watching Mikayla for us. I've been trying to use the Jedi Force to get her to ask if Mikayla can spend the night, but unfortunately I never quite got the knack of it. I wouldn't even know what the force was if it wasn't for an old friend forcing me to watch Star Wars, and quite frankly, I'm still not sure. I think it might be a bit much to ask my mom anyhow...Mikayla's only 18 months. Plus, I'm not sure that I could leave her alone. You see, unlike her mom, she has perfected the use of the Force. I'd probably show up on my mom's doorstep at 2:30 am with a bottle not knowing how or why I was there.
"You will make me a bottle even tho I'm already 18 months"
"You want to pick me up"
She's a pro.

Anywho..if anybody has any ideas on how to get better, please let me know!! Thanks!

Celebrity Morph by MyHeritage

MyHeritage: Celebrity Morph - Geneology - Family tree charts

We had a wonderful time at Disneyland this past week. Mikayla was a dream while traveling, she didn't cry at all. She went to sleep right away everynight, and took her nap without fussing in the slightlest. It was so fun to see her face light up when she saw Minnie mouse (aka "Mimmie"), went on the rides (she loved the winnie the pooh ride), and while we watched the parade.

On Wednesday we met my sister, Olivia (she was down there vacationing in Palm Springs), at mine and Joel's favorite beach: Huntington. Mikayla was scared of the water at first, but she had a lot of fun playing in the sand.