Not So Happy Halloween

I'm not sure what it is about holidays and getting sick, but I'm starting to see a pattern. Macie woke up Halloween morning and I thought she felt really warm. Josh thought it was because the house was warm, and later she felt fine. After her nap she woke up hot again and seemed cranky. She even told me her tummy was hurting. Later in the day she seemed happy and was outside playing with the neighbors, so I assumed she was doing alright. That evening we went to my uncle's house in Eagle Hills, as is our De La Paz tradition, for lots of good food and cousins to play with. While there I noticed she was on the downhill again because she wouldn't eat dinner and just cried for about 15 minutes until she threw up. Poor Macie! Luckily she was outside and luckily Josh was holding her...ha! I felt so bad because we (more like I) was so excited to get pictures with all of her cousins in her cute costume. Also, the neighborhood goes all-out with crazy decorations, haunted houses, and awesome candy. You'd have to see it! Sadly we packed up and went home so Macie could rest and not get anyone else sick. On the 4th of July all 3 of us had an awful stomach flu that lasted for days, luckily this time it was very mild and only Macie had it.

I snapped this picture before we got in the car to go to Beto's house. My Macie is too cute! And yes, notice the un-fallish outfit. The weather here is warm and oh so nice!

This is right after the sickness incident while Josh was packing up the car. Luckily we were in the backyard where clean-up was minimal! My poor girl even had her duck feet on. What a trooper.


I needed a family picture from this year's festivities (I'm really bad at getting picts with all 3 of us). Yes, Josh had a clean shirt on for this.

See below for actual shots of our duck in action!

My Little Quacker

I'm finally posting some pictures of the cutest little duck around. Last week we went to 2 trunk-or-treats, our ward and Josh's parents' ward. Macie enjoyed following the kids around and being part of all the commotion. When we walked around to get candy I showed her how to hold up her pumpkin and say "treat." She decided that was easier than trying to say trick or treat. Anyway, after the candy was put in her pumpkin she would stare at it while I moved her along to the next car. It didn't take long for her to get the hang of it and she enjoyed the process of her pumpkin getting filled with stuff. Oddly enough, she didn't know it was candy until one lady said, "Here's some candy for the cute little ducky." At that point Macie perked right up and screamed "CANDY!" I had to calm her down and convince her to continue to put it in the pumpkin so we could continue. When we got home I went through it all and only kept 1 bag of animal crackers and chips ahoy cookies for her. She never asked for the candy again. I'm not trying to be mean, but I know kids love candy and I'm trying to keep Macie away from it for as long as possible. She does know that "candy" means something good, but I'm not sure who taught it to her or where she had some!


One of the parties had an actual "train" (barrels on wheels pulled behind a 4-wheeler) that Macie couldn't get enough of. She cried when she had to get off! I wasn't quite sure about the safety when I saw it, but I was eventually convinced and Macie wouldn't have taken no for an answer anyway. That's my girl!

This last picture is quite hilarious. Josh felt left out and was determined to get his 6'3.5" body into the barrel for a train ride. He is, after all, one really big kid. Macie spends the ride holding on as demonstrated below, and laughing while yelling "weeeeee!" the entire time.

Family Pictures

Click here to see how good we look.

Toddler Turned Terrible!

I think Macie is onto the fact that she's now closer to age 2 than 1. The terrible 2's that is. Today we had family pictures taken and I was not prepared for my sweet little Macie's mood. We took them in a gorgeous area behind the JW with grass, waterfalls, flowers, etc. At first Macie was a normal, busy, curious little girl. Very cute and cooperative. It wasn't long before the tables were turned and she was whining, crying, clingy, and refusing to smile. I was pretty surprised because that is not typical Macie behavior. I guess it's rough when you're used to doing your own thing all day and your mean parents make you do something different. Poor, poor Macie.

We should see the pictures in a week so I'll post a link then. By the way, my good friend Anna is an excellent photographer and I'm sure the pictures will be great, even if our faces might not be! She was very patient with Macie and deserves a special shout out for her hard work.

This picture was taken back in the day when my toddler was more cooperative (about 2 weeks ago.) Don't be fooled.

Something Fishy

A bit more from our trip to Genoa...

At Lake Tahoe there is a place you can go (I forgot the name of the creek) to see the salmon. It's pretty neat to see so many fish. There is an underground observer area so you can see the salmon up close and personal. Macie enjoyed trying to grab them though the glass.

Anytime new people came walked down to see the salmon they would always wave at Macie. Since she thrives on attention, she would run to the glass pointing and say "FISH!!!" Then she would laugh at herself.

What a cute family! We took this after seeing the salmon.

Afterwards we went to a restaurant called Fire & Ice at the bottom of the Heavenly resort ski lift. It was so cool! You grab a bowl, fill it with different kinds of meat or seafood, vegetables, and other good stuff. Then you choose your sauce and take it over to a giant round grill where you watch them cook your food. It's fun entertainment and great food. I couldn't resist snapping a picture of Macie on the phone while we waited for our table. She is now starting to have real conversations on the phone. Here's an example: "Helloooo Macie. Doing?" That girl is so funny!

Come Fly With Me

The past 3 weekends have been very busy for us but so much fun! I'm going to try to catch up on our recent activities. Last weekend when we were in Genoa we went on an impromptu plane ride. After conference on Sunday we were outside playing volleyball when a young family from the ward drove up. They are building a house on my parents' street and were driving by to check the progress. The husband, Rob, used to be a flight instructor and now has a private plane. Josh was very glad to meet him because he really wants to get his pilots license. Anyway, after talking a bit my dad asked how the flight over Lake Tahoe looks, and Rob offered to take us up to see. We drove the entire 10 minutes to the Minden airport (so much closer than the hour to Reno!), parked in front of the hangar and jumped on the plane. Rob took up Josh and I and my mom and dad on his 6-seater plane. Josh jumped in front and as soon as we took off Rob had him take the controls. He had the time of his life! I, on the other hand, was scared to death with Josh at the controls. He did great and it was actually pretty neat. The flight over Lake Tahoe is absolutely gorgeous! I have to admit that having your own plane is pretty handy.

Josh the co-pilot in action before take-off.

My dad and I before take-off. My smile quickly faded once I felt the first bump in the air as we took off. That is the downfall to small planes. Really, it wasn't that bad and by the end of the flight I enjoyed it.

Laundry Helper

I was folding laundry last night when Macie came and sat down by me. As I held up a shirt to fold it she pointed and said "Daddy's." She continued naming the owner of every article of clothing I folded. I was pretty impressed that she got them all right. I think she was just making sure that I knew who's was who's. She's kind of bossy like that.

Just a Peek

Here is a sneak peek of Macie's Halloween costume. I chose not to divulge the entire outfit so it still remains somewhat of a surprise, yet you can get an idea of how irresistibly cute it is.

Surprise!

Thursday morning Josh and I were getting some things done around the house when I mentioned how this weekend would be a nice time to go out of town. Since it's General Conference weekend we didn't have too many things planned, so that afternoon we packed up the car (and Macie) and headed to my parents' house. We told my dad we were coming, but not my mom. We arrived around 11:00 pm and my dad was waiting outside. Macie had been sleeping for hours, and waking up to see Papi standing there was very exciting for her. My dad took her in the house and said, "Diane, look who I found outside!" Josh and I came walking in just after that and my mom was still frozen. She looked like a deer in the headlights, it was so funny!

We have been having a great time so far and probably won't be home until Tuesday. I've got some great pictures to post then. In the meantime, we're enjoying the colder change in weather, the gorgeous mountainside, and the wildlife. Macie missed the quail, squirrels, deer, and hawks that pass by the house. I was just here several weeks ago, and since then there were 2 black bears caught in town and a mountain lion sighting. We haven't seen any so far. Needless to say, we don't let Macie wander off by herself.

Piggies

Today was a monumental day for Macie because I finally thought I saw enough hair to try a new style. The outcome: "piggies." I had to have her hair wet so I could slick as much as I could into the ponytails. You can hardly even tell they're in from the front! They turned out quite cute, but didn't last more than 20 minutes before one was out. She won't leave them alone! When I do the ponytail on top she doesn't really bother it, but this must have felt different to her I guess. The hassle of constantly trying to put them back in and getting a smaller amount of hair each time made me realize we'll have to wait until she grows a bit more hair until we try the piggies again.

We also took Macie in for her 18 month well check today, but unfortunately the doctor doesn't prescribe anything to make hair grow faster. We did find out that Macie weighs 24 pounds (barely over the 50th percentile) and is 33 inches tall (barely above the 80th percentile). She was talking and talking the whole time, in true Macie fashion, and the doctor said he could tell she was smart (duh!) and didn't have to ask how many words she could say. I really have no idea anymore anyway. She was a great trooper when she got her shot and only cried for a second. We took her shopping afterwards to get her stocked up on a fall wardrobe. I also ran into the cutest Halloween costume at The Children's Place and had to buy it. I've been contemplating what she should be this year, and when I saw it I knew I had to get it. I'm debating whether or not I should show a picture this early and ruin the surprise. It's so cute I can hardly stand it!