Utah trip day 2

On Tuesday we all met at Thanksgiving Point to have the day time actives. The girls walked through the gardens and the boys went bowling near by. We drove from Ogden and was a little early so I treated everyone to ice cream. After we finished the ice cream we had a little more time (they call to say that they were running late) so we walked around and found a really beautiful landscaped area behind the cafe. It was nice to see all the flowers and the waterfall.

Finally the other group of girls we were meeting arrived and we went to met them at the Gardens. They had a huge man made waterfall that was breathtaking. (Someone told me that it is one of the biggest in the U.S.) Here we all are in front of it.


It was fun spending time together, enjoying the sun, flowers and all the other things there are to see. There is one spot called the Secret Garden and it had a fountain in the center of it. The girls love the water and could not resist putting their feet in.



Here I am with my cousin Lacy, we haven't seen each other in almost a year so this was a great time to catch up on everything.


Areya sure does love her Grandma Great and was taking good care of her by driving her around on the scooter because all that walking was just to much.



After the Gardens we met the boys at a park and had dinner. It was some really yummy food! Thanks to Kimmy and all those who helped cook and prepare it!

Aniela going down the slide.

Me showing off my baby and all she can do to Lacy.

(Aniela can say and/or sign about 10 words.)

Trip to Utah

On Monday we got up at 4:30 a.m., drove to the airport, got on a train which took us to the terminal, and then flew to Utah. This was the girls first time on both the train and airplane and they both loved it.

Here we are waiting to board the plane.

Areya got the window seat and Aniela thought that she should get a turn looking out so she was sitting on Areya's lap for part of the fight.

Here she is reading the safety instructions just before we took off.

As we were coming into Utah they were look out the window to see if they could see Tj & Shaylee who were picking us up at the airport. Areya said at one point that she could see them, but Aniela didn't agree.

Because I flew alone with both the girls, I had Aniela in a front pack and had all her stuff from her diaper bag in a backpack, I also had to carry Areya's booster seat because they only let you check one bag now. Good thing for me the Salt Lake Airport is not very big.

We are so happy to be here and to get to see everyone. That evening we had a BB-Q at my parent's house with all my brothers and their families, Ida and Grandma Great who is in from Tennessee. We all had a great time and it was nice to see everyone again. It should be a great week.

Areya's first hair cut

Areya has never had her hair cut, but on Thursday she decided that she wanted one. She found the scissors and went to work. She only cut a little but the part she cut was really short.







She tried to hide it from me by throwing the cut hair in to the garbage can, but when I went into the bathroom I notices the scissors on the sink and little bits of hair on the floor. When I asked her if she cut her hair she told me no, but under further inspection I noticed the spot. As you can see in the picture below, it was not that bad and I probably could have just blended it in with her hair, but I wanted her to learn some thing from this.

If you look by her chin you will see how short she cut it.

I was going to take her in to a Solon and get it fixed but I have no clue where any are, so I called my neighbor that is in my ward and she said to bring her over and she would see what she could do. She has 9 kids and cuts all their hair so she has a little bit of experience with it.





Here she is getting her first real hair cut. You can see by the hair in Lori's hand how long her hair was before, and about how short it is now.



Why did we cut it so short you ask? Well I wanted Areya to learn that if you cut your own hair then it will need to be fixed and you might not like the way it turns out. Good thing for us she looks really cute with it short and it will be much easier to take care of.

Family time

Monday
Now that Damian has some time off work to spend with us we enjoyed a little time together as a family. On Monday we got a few things done like go to the bank , post office and store, but while we were out Damian wanted to stop and get some lunch. We happened to pass a White Castle and because Damian saw it in a movie he wanted to eat there. I didn't think it was that great, I will probably never eat there again.

Tuesday
On Tuesday Damian wanted to go and eat at a place called Smoque BBQ. They are said to have some of the best BB-Q in Chicago so we gave it a try. I had the ribs and Damian had the brisket. He thought it was really good, I thought it was ok. He is happy to say that he has been there and tried it.

When we were finished we drove into down town Chicago looking for something to do. We decided to drive around and check thing out, we ended up driving along a road that was next to the lake. It took us through some really nice neighborhoods with huge houses right on the beach. Boy I sure wish we had the money to buy on of them. Oh well, what do ya do?


Just before coming home we stopped at a beach area / park and let the kids play in the water and on the toys. At first both girls were really scared of the water and did not want to go any where near it, but after a few minutes they were happy to but their feet in, pick up stones, and play in the sand.


We didn't plan to go swimming so we did not have any thing to swim in. We just let the kids play for a while and then came home. It was a really nice drive and was a great way to see the area. Now we have an idea of some nice areas to look for a house in.

I'm an Auntie

Damian's brother Adrian and his wife had there baby today. They had a girl and named her Julia. They induced her a few weeks early due to her heart beat being irregular.
This is Damian's first niece/nephew born on his side of the family. They are so excited to welcome her into their family.

Here is Adrian the proud Tata with his little girl. Congrats to both of you on the sweet little bundle of joy! May she have great, healthy and a wonderful life. I know she will be loved and we are very excited to meet her in August when we come to visit.

Swim Lessons

Today was our first day of swim lessons. They are every Saturday at 11:00 a.m. and go until August 9th. Areya is in one class and Aniela and I are in the Swim babies class.

Areya had been begging me for weeks and weeks to go swimming so she was way excited to finally get into the water. She had so much fun and did a great job. She wasn't even scared to put her face in the water to blow bubbles. Aniela on the other hand screamed her little head off. This was probably due to the fact that she has not been feeling well. She has had a runny nose and is cutting a tooth so she was not really in the mood for swimming. By the end of the lesson she was a bit happier but is still not feeling the best. When we got home she crashed. I feel so bad for her, poor little thing. Hopefully by next week she will be better and will enjoy it more.

Great News!

Damian has accepted a full time position at the airport. So that means he will have 2 days off a week and will not be working at the car lot. I am so happy that he will be able to spend more time with me and the girls.
His schedule kind of sucks but we are dealing with that. He works 12:00 to 8:30 p.m. Wednesday - Sunday. He did not get to pick his shift but hopefully he will be able to bid for a better one soon. I hate that he gets home so late. If I want to eat as a family then I have to keep the girls up a bit later, with is hard on everyone. I guess you have to take the good with the bad and I should just be happy to have him home 2 days a week.

Tag your it!

This is a fun new tag. Here is what you are suppose to do: list what you were doing 10 years ago, 5 years ago, 5 months ago, 5 things on your "to do list", 5 snacks that you enjoy, 5 things you would do if suddenly you were a billionaire, 5 places you have lived, 5 things people may not know about you and then tag 5 people. Tag your it!

10 years ago: I was working at Lagoon as a ride operator in area 3.

5 years ago: I was working at Lagoon in the Rides Office and was a few short months away from having my first child.


5 months ago: I was packing up my house in Clearfield and getting ready to move to Illinois.

5 thing on my "to do" list: 1. Pack for our trip to Utah 2. Unpack the boxes in my living room. 3.Get the girls signed up for summer programs. 4. Find and buy a house. 5. Give the dog a bath.

5 Snacks: 1. Fruit 2. Chips and dip. 3. Butter popcorn. 4. Chocolate 5. PB&J's

5 things I would do if I were a billionaire: 1. Build the house of my dreams. 2. Take everyone on a really great vacation. 3. Buy a vacation home in Poland. 4. Put money away for my children. 5. Pay off my families debt and houses.


5 Paces I have lived: 1. Ogden, Utah 2. Provo, Utah 3. Clearfield, Utah 4. North Ogden, Utah 5. Arlington Heights, Illinois

5 Things people may not know bout me: 1. I don't have a middle name. 2. I was bit by a tiger. 3. I rode a camel. 4. I've been to Alaska and Hawaii. 5. I worked at Lagoon for 10 years.

5 people I tag: 1. Brandi 2. Tj & Shaylee 3. Ivy 4. Traci 5. Anyone who wants to give it a try.

Bubbles .........

O Bubbles O

O Bubbles O

O Bubbles O

O Bubbles O

O Bubbles O

We decided to blow a few bubbles. Aniela wanted to have her own so I filled up an empty bottle with water. She had tons of fun and never knew the difference.

Another trip to the aquarium

Since we got a membership the the Aquarium we try to take a trip there every week or two. It has been awhile so I thought it was time to go. There is really a lot to see. You could spend several hours there and not see it all. Here is a giant eel.


Areya really, really wanted to get her face painted so this time I let her. She got a sea tortes.


I think the dolphins are their favorite thing to see there. Both of the girls were so excited to them jump and do tricks.


If you look up in the right hand corner of this picture you can see the fish the girls are looking at. It was about the same size as Aniela.


Here they are at the end of the day. Tired and ready to go home. Well at least I was.

Damian's Day Off

Between his two jobs Damian was working 7 days a week. Now he finally has one day off a week. So we spent the whole day getting a few things done. We went to Ikea to get Damian a computer desk because his broke on the way over from Utah. We got our bikes out, filled the tires, and installed a child seat.

Aniela was a little scared at first but after she went for a ride she loved it!

We got her a helmet but could not find one to fit and baby so it was a bit big. If any one knows where you can get a infant helmet please let me know.

Unfortunately by the time we got every thing done it was to dark to go for a real bike ride. We only got to ride around the parking lot. Hopefully the weather will be nice on Monday so we can finally go for that bike ride.