San Francisco

Just a little over a week ago Emily, Kai, Merrick, and I loaded up the car and headed to northern California for my cousin Ryan's mission farewell. My parents came down and brought Lauren with them and we were able to spend time with Launa and Curt's family. The drive was a little rough, but the farewell was awesome and it was so fun to see family.

Some of my favorite times on the trip were our "girls night" and "girls day in the city" for Em's birthday (really it was the girls plus Kai and Merrick, but they are still too little to mind). We had a great time watching the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, riding BART into San Francisco, hanging out on pier 39, and for those of us not on the HCG diet eating yummy doughnuts and saltwater taffy.

This was Merrick's first time in San Francisco and unfortunately he slept in his stroller for a good portion of it, but when he was awake he seemed to enjoy looking at all there was to see and Jenna and Lauren loved playing mommy and pushing both him and Kai in their strollers.






Overall it was a great trip, but the few things that could have made it better would have been if Jeremy would have been able to come, if we could have stayed longer, and maybe flying instead of that drive...next time.

I Want to do it Myself

My mom loves to tell this story about me from when I was about two. She was in a hurry one day and loaded me quickly into the car and drove away. I started screaming and was inconsolable as we drove down the road. Finally, she asked me why I was crying and I said "I wanted to do it myself". She pulled the car over, took me out of my seat and set me on the ground. I climbed back in and was as happy as could be after that.

Sometimes I think Merrick is going to be just like me in that he likes to do things by himself. It is common for him to reach for the spoon when I am feeding him and try to do it himself. Up to this point, however, he has been relatively unsuccessful at actually getting food into his mouth.

Last week he reached for the spoon and I was shocked to see how far he had come in learning to do it himself. While scooping out of the dish is still a little challenging, his hand-eye coordination is amazing and he finds his mouth like a little pro.

I find it hard to let go and let Merrick do things for himself because it means that my baby is growing up, but I am so proud of all the new things he is learning.

P.S. I know that the bib is on backwards. I was trying to trick him into keeping it on by putting the Velcro on the other side...it didn't really work.

Aquarium

Last week Merrick and I took at trip to the aquarium with Emily, Kai, Emily's friend Cindy and her son Braden. You are probably thinking that you did not even know that there was an aquarium in Arizona. Well the truth of the matter is that you are not missing much, yet it is all we have so we decided to give it a try.

While it was definitely not the best aquarium I have been to, Merrick was as happy as could be. He sat contently in his stroller and took it all in and when we went through the underwater tunnel he laid back and watched as sharks and stingrays swam over his head.




The one thing I can say about this trip is that there is nothing better than experiencing the world through Merrick's eyes. Here are a few of the highlights.

Oh How Time Flies

Aren't these the prettiest roses ever? Jeremy came home from work with them last night for our anniversary. I can't believe that we have been married for five years already. It truly went by in the blink of an eye.

The other day I was looking for a card to give him today and I found one that said that I was so lucky not only to have him as my husband, but to have him as my friend. Although I did not buy it (Jeremy prefers funny cards to the mushy ones), this is exactly how I feel. He is the love of my life and my best friend.

Today is also Merrick's 11 month birthday. I cannot believe the one year mark is just days away. He makes me smile everyday and I don't know what I would do without him.

I am so blessed to have these two men in my life!

The Explorer

Ever since Merrick became mobile, he has been such a little explorer. He is always interested in what is in, under, and behind.

Today's discovery...Q-tips.