3 year check-up

Hayden went to her 3 year check up and thought it was so much fun!  I didn't realize she'd do a hearing test, an eye exam and quiz her as much as they did.  During the eye exam they showed a series of pictures which she recognized and named and then they got to an old fashioned picture of a telephone and just stared at it!  She looked at me and said, "I don't know!"  Isn't it crazy that Hayden has never seen an old fashioned telephone and has no idea what it does?  They need to update their flashcards and get some cell phones in there!

She also didn't know whether she was a girl or a boy.  I've never taught her that one, so after the nurse quizzed her and she didn't know, I worked with her on the differences and she passed by the time the doctor asked her :)

Stats:
Height:  38.4 inches (80-90th percentile)
Weight:  31.8 lbs (50-60th percentile)

She thought she was excited to get her shot until it actually happened!  The play doctor kit shots don't hurt nearly as bad...

Happy Happy Birthday Hayden Dear

Hayden has been so excited for her birthday.  In fact she usually practices singing the Happy Birthday Song about 3 times a day.  She sings it to mom, dad, and finishes off by singing it to herself.  She usually wants everyone else to join in the singing with her! We told her that her birthday was almost here and she'd ask everyday if it was time to eat cupcakes and sing.  Since her birthday was on a Sunday this year, it kind of turned into a birthday weekend celebration.  On Saturday we took her to a show called, "Elmo Makes Music" and she loved it as you can tell by the photos!  She was so worried during intermission that the show was over.  We finally told her Elmo had to take a potty break and then she understood that the show would go on!

After the show we went to one of our favorite restaurants called Pappasitos.  Here is Hayden enjoying her favorite part of any meal:  the milk. She also loved her quesadilla filled with cheese and her birthday treat.  I thought she might get embarrassed with the staff singing to her, but she loved it and said, "again" when they finished.  

That night Paul and I wrapped all the presents and pumped up her new bike tires.  It was fun to decorate the house because we knew how excited she would be about it all.  When she woke up the next morning she went through all the decorations one by one and commented on them.  She pays attention to detail!  My kind of girl :)

She was in love with the tricycle from the moment she laid eyes on it.  She sat on it through most of the morning.

I bought a Birthday Book for her first birthday and each year I fill out a page, interview her and it has a spot to keep momentos in.  

Since we did the Elmo show this year we weren't going to do a party.  But then I thought it would seem anticlimactic to just have Paul and I sing to her.  So we invited a few families over to enjoy cupcakes and sing to Hayden.

Hayden's friend Charlie blew out the first set of candles and she thought it was hilarious.  So we relit them and she blew them out!  She loved being the center of attention and having everyone sing to her.  She also sang the song to herself!

I can't believe my baby is 3 years old!  How time flies.  I couldn't help but reflect back on where we were 3 years ago:  sleep deprived, anxious, and scared to death that we had made a terrible decision.  Now 3 years later we couldn't picture our lives without her.  We love you Hayden!

Seattle

This has been the summer of weddings for sure!  All of my favorite people decided 2012 was the time to get married!  I met my friend Nancy while at Occidental college and shared a house with her our senior year.  We became very close and I didn't want to miss her wedding.  I missed the last Oxy wedding because I just had Hayden, so it had been several years since I saw most of my friends.  To make my trip even better, my dear friend Sarah Eastman was staying with her parents for 2 months while her husband completed SOS training for the Air Force in Alabama (randomly enough, I got to see her husband Seth on Monday before I left for Seattle).  It's been over 2 years since we saw the Eastmans, way to long since they were some of our best friends while in the military.  So I got to stay with Sarah and her family during my week in Seattle.

Here is Sarah and I shopping around Kirkland.  It is right next to the water and so pretty.  Sarah is such a fun person to shop with.  Like I said, it's been over 2 years since we have been together and it was so much fun!  Don't you love those friends where you just seem to pick right up where you left off?  That's Sarah and I for sure.

After shopping Sarah took me to one of her favorite restaurants near her home in Woodinville:  Barking Frog.  It did not disappoint, it was delicious!

That night Sarah drove me closer to the city to stay with my friend Kate Baker.  We played water polo together at Occidental and we've always had a special bond.  Her husband is completing his residency for Radiology in Seattle and I was so excited to visit with her and her 2 girls.  Kate lives in an area of Seattle called Magnolia which is a great place to raise a family in the city.  I kept her up way too late Thursday night talking and then spend Friday with her until about 3pm.  I got to play with her daughters, go walking at Green Lake, go to preschool orientation and a play date at the park, followed by frozen yogurt.  It was so much fun talking to Kate and I talked her ear off the entire time we were together!

Kate and her two cute girls.  Piper is almost 3 and is so smart!  She talks so well and the baby is Tatum, she has the cutest fat rolls I have ever seen!

Around 3pm on Friday my Oxy friend Kimberly Hughey and her husband Matt came and picked me up at Kate's house, visited for a bit and then headed to the ferries.  Nancy got married on Bainbridge Island because her family has had a house there for years and years and it has held a special place in her heart.  She actually took me there when we were still in school and I'm so glad I got to see it because unfortunately it caught on fire and nothing was saved.  It was so tragic.  Nancy and her fiance had a bonfire the night before the wedding on Bainbridge.  Here is Kimberly and I:

Kimberly and Matt

 The next day I woke up and went for a run, which felt great!  It felt like I could have ran forever.  We then went exploring through the island and hung out until we picked up some more Oxy friends from the ferry. Kimberly and I hanging out at the beach.

After we picked up our friends Amanda and her husband Geoff we grabbed some lunch and had a mini celebration for Kimberly and Matt as they eloped this past year! We then headed back to the hotel to get ready for the wedding.

Her venue was right along the Puget Sound and beautiful, a bit cold, but beautiful!  Geoff, Amanda, Kimberly and Matt

3 Oxy girls:  Amanda, Kimberly and Kristine

Nancy and Matt getting married

"We did it"

Their dinner and dancing were in a great big white tent.  I was a little worried I'd be dancing alone all night, but my friends husbands weren't so keen on dancing, so that worked out perfect for me!

And who doesn't love a photo booth!  These two girls were kind enough to take pictures with me since I was solo for the wedding.  

The next morning there was a breakfast at the little club house by Nancy's old home.  It was so good to spend some quality time with her and meet her husband!  I love my Oxy friends!

Shortly after we took the ferry back to Seattle and went to Pikes Place and got lunch at The Pike Brewing Company.  I ate sooo much seafood the entire week, it was awesome!

Getting lunch at the Pike Brewing Company

After looking around a bit we dropped Amanda and Geoff off at their hotel and Kimberly and Matt took me back to Woodinville to spend the rest of my time with Sarah Eastman. Here I am with her newest little boy Emmett, it was so fun to hold a new little baby:

The next day Sarah and I took Landon and Emmett to the outlets about 30 minutes from her house.  On the way there I saw the corporate offices of Philips where Paul could potentially work someday!  We had way too much fun and found lots of cute stuff.  Here is Sarah trying to enjoy her lunch with sleeping Emmett strapped to her chest!

It was actually Landon's 3rd birthday this day, so we tried to make it a little more fun for him too!

That night was Landon's party.  It was Captain America themed and he was so excited.  P.S. Those cupcakes were AMAZING!

It was fun to meet some of Sarah's high school and college friends.  I have heard lots of stories, but this was my first time meeting them!

I feel so very fortunate to have been able to see so many close friends during this trip to Seattle. I missed Paul and Hayden so much and wished they could have come with me.  But it was so fun to reconnect with these wonderful people.  To me my relationships are what is most important in life and it was great to pick right up where I left off with all of my dear friends!

Youngstown

When did life get so busy!  I used to always find time to blog regularly and I have been struggling just to keep up with the major events occurring in our lives.  Over Labor Day we decided to meet Paul's parents and 2 brothers in Youngstown, Ohio to see his youngest brother Mark play college football.  Mark is the one that just got married this summer and this is his final year of college football.  He is the starting center at Youngstown and an awesome football player.  We made the 11 hour drive to Youngstown on a Thursday and we were able to hang out with Mark and go to one of his favorite restaurants in town the MVR. Hayden warmed right up to Uncle Marko and had so much fun playing with all his blankets at his apartment.

That night his wife Kelsey flew back from Utah (at her grandmother's funeral) and Paul picked up his parents and brother Kyle from the airport.  The next day Paul's brother Russ and his 2 oldest boys also flew in.  That day we toured around the campus and went to my favorite ice cream place ever:  Handel's.  We had a Handel's close to where we lived in Indiana and we have missed it so much!

The next day was much busier!  Mark's team played University of Pittsburgh, so we drove about an hour to Pittsburgh and spent the day there until the game started.  We hung out by one of the rivers for awhile and then headed over to the Carnegie Science Center.

There were tons of fun things to do at the Carnegie Science Center, Hayden enjoyed holding a turtle...

 Playing in the aquarium

And the medical center with her 2 cousins Cooper and Ozzie

This picture is my favorite!  She was so excited to try this little ride out, but once she got on, she was a little freaked out by it and ran to me and cried after :(

Of course right when we left the Science Center it started pouring rain, just in time to head to the football stadium!  Pitt plays in the same stadium as the Steelers, it was our first time in an NFL stadium.  Here we all are during a break in the rain.

Hayden so happy to be with her cool cousins!  She was way attached to this umbrella, it was hilarious.  She treated it like a baby and fed it, gave it naps, and held it when it cried.  I guess we should have brought some more toys along for her to play with!

Paul and his brother Kyle pretty excited about being at the game

Despite the cold, rainy day, Hayden stayed toasty warm on dad's lap.  She got to wear his hat and stayed underneath a poncho.  She got so cozy that she even took a short nap during the game.  She really did a great job during the game.  I was worried that I'd be walking all over trying to keep her entertained, but she just stayed on our laps the entire time.  After every play she'd say, "what happened" and wouldn't let it go until she got an answer.  When she saw players tackle each other she'd say, "ouch, I think they need a band aid!"  It was pretty cute!  She even learned some of the cheers...

Youngstown ended up beating Pitt 31 to 17!  We were so excited to represent the winning team and to support Mark on such a big win.  Hayden was so excited to see him after the game ended.

His proud family!

After the game we tried to find someplace to eat.  This turned into a huge nightmare, but by the end we found the Hard Rock Cafe.  I haven't been to one in years so it was fun.  Two funny things about going to dinner:  1)  It was right next to a strip of night clubs.  When we were walking by the "Sexy and I Know It" song came on and Hayden kept pointing to the club and saying, "no this one, this one, eat in there!"  She wanted to go in so bad.  2)  There must have been a body building competition going on because I started to look around the restaurant and was feeling incredibly out of shape and flabby by the amount of buff people surrounding me.  It was insane how many buff people there were all around us "regular" people!

The next morning we said our goodbyes before everyone headed to church and we drove back home.  It took us a bit longer because it rained for most of the drive.  I was worried about driving 2 long days in such a short amount of time, but it really didn't seem too bad.  The route we took, took us through lots of cities so there was always something to look at.  It wasn't like the hundreds of miles you drive through nothing in the west which was nice.

Hayden was a trooper through the whole trip.  Yes, she had her moments and her meltdowns, but she slept like a champ in the hotel room and was awesome the entire drive.  This trip made me more hopeful that we can do fun trips as a family and make them successful!

We got home late Sunday night and then I prepared to leave for Seattle Wednesday!  Despite the game being right before my trip to Seattle, it was so much fun to see family and support Paul's brother.  Go Youngstown State!