Right Now

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Dancing with friends to some good gospel in Central Park.

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City kids enjoying a bit of fall farm life. Loving it!

Birthday Girl!

Happy Birthday Isabella!

So many photos, so little time!  A random sampling of Isabella's first four years.

Isabella is the most amazing, wonderful girl.  In the past couple of months I feel like she has really blossomed (or finally outgrown those hair raising 2's and 3's).  She is a delight to converse with, teach, play with and learn from.

Her imagination is out of this world!  I love listening to her play on her own.  At least once a day she creates her own world with various people and they do all sorts of things.

She loves to help out and consistently asks how she can help.  Sometimes she will even says things like, "I'll stay here with Oliver and make sure he is safe while you go down stairs to do laundry."

******
Well, now both kids are up and needing their momma, so maybe I'll get a chance to post more about Isabella soon.

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We made it!!! Now, how to get off the plane with two sleeping kids....

Kennewick with Cousins

We fly back home to NYC tomorrow night on a red eye. (Jetblue only
does red eye flights from Sacramento to JFK...as if you were still
questioning my sanity.)

I plan to download and post tons of photos from my Nikon soon. But we
will see if that really happens.

More important things on my return home schedule:
--give tons of hugs and kisses to Brian
--get back on decent sleeping/eating schedule
--Isabella's birthday (oct 7) and party (oct 16)
--start a homeschool preschool for Isabella
--enjoy the beautiful fall days in Central Park

For now, just sharing this photo of the kids playing with cousins,
Silas and Gillian, in Kennewick, WA. It looks like Isabella is posing
as a boat model...cracks me up!

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Riding on one my brother's many toys. We went for a swim in the chilly
lake and Isabella jumped right in. Awesome times!

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Getting ready to board in Seattle. Headed to Sacramento. Only 1 week
left of our jet pass and trying to decide where to go for the last few
days.

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Amazed at the beauty of the desert on our drive through Red Rock
Canyon in Nevada.

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Made it to (not, made out at :0)) the top of Squaw Peak.

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Back on BYU campus after almost a decade; where Brian and I fell in
love. Good times!

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One of the reasons I love the Long Beach airport is the outdoor
boarding...and it's so tiny you can't ever get lost.

Jetting to Salt Lake City with a plane full of kids. (unlike SFO to
LGB, when we were the only kids...and everyone knew it...so loud!)

Oh, Oliver!

He turns 15 months old today!!! Freak out!

He loves:
Milk
Learning new signs
Grapes
Anything Isabella has
Acting like a gorilla
Giving kisses
Cuddling with Mama
Dancing with Daddy
Brushing his teeth
Charming all who make eye contact with him
Flexing his muscles
Throwing food
Being tickled

+++++++++++++++

About a week ago he took his first steps for my good friend, Shelley.
Now he'll take a step or two every day, but not as much as he did for
her. Silly boy!

He is more of a handful every day as he becomes his own strong-willed,
determined little man. But, oh how I love him more each moment as I
learn and understand (hopefully) who he is and who he will become. He
constantly charms me with his contagious smile. Each night as I rock
him before bed he rests his head on my shoulder, whispers sweet babble
talk in my ear and kisses me gently on the cheek. Then he blows a loud
raspberry on my neck and we both laugh hysterically. "Oh, Oliver!"

My little maestro:

Cousin Love

I can't sleep, so I figure I'll post a bit via my phone. One of the
main goals for my month long all-you-can-jet trip is to visit some of
the most amazing people in my life.

These two gorgeous gals are my amazing nieces: Emma & Mary. Mary
(holding Oliver) leaves in a few hours to start her life's biggest
adventure (so far) at BYU Hawaii. (I believe she is currently out
partying with friends right now. Crazy girl!)

The age gap between Mary and me is about the same as between Isabella
and Mary. As I watch Isabella completely adore and mimic her older
cousins I wonder if I had a similar influence on my nieces at that
age. As a young auntie I loved doting on my cute, little nieces. But
one of the unknown consequences of going away to school was that they
grew up too fast while I was away. Studying, boys, friends, work, etc.
quickly replaced my playtime time with these girls. My relationship
was never quite as strong as a result.

Isabella loves these girls with as much passion as a little (almost)
four year old can possess. At night as Isabella prepares to fall
asleep we talk about what good things she is going to dream about.
Frequently she quietly whispers, "Mary and Emma."

We will miss Mary!!! But we are so excited for her and this big new
adventure! I am sure she will handle the challenges that inevitably
come with the grace and charm she has developed over the last few
years of growing up.

And I hope we can visit her soon! Because, you know, Isabella needs
some cousin bonding time...in Hawaii.

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Enjoying a perfect morning at a quiet playground. Hoping to get as
many wiggles out as possible before embarking on our month long
jetting adventures tomorrow morning.