Day 4: Dear Sarah at Sixteen...

Ah, 16. How I miss thee. Here are some things you shoul know:

1. Go buy a bikini. You will never look this good again.
2. Be nice to your friends. They will be there for a life time
3. Don't turn left on Memorial after fighting with your boyfriend. It's an accident waiting to happen.
4. Spend more time with your family without complaining. Turns out they are pretty great.
5. Perhaps study a little more. You get good grades but you could also learn something too.
6. Enjoy your extra curricular activities. You get old and no one wants I see you in a leotard anymore.
7. You will meet a pretty great guy and have a cute little girl. No worries.
8. If you get the opportunity to study abroad, TAKE IT!!
9. Goin out of state for college is a great idea.
10. Don't go camping and lie about it. You'll be in big trouble...

Day 3: Family Relationships

I know the idea is to post about my relationship with my parents, but I would rather focus on my relationship AS parents.  I love my parents.  I have an individual relationship with each of them that I wouldn't trade for the world, and each relationship is different and unique.  I hope they read this blog and see that not only do I love them for being the parents they are to me and Scott, but also for being the grandparents they are to Audrey.

My relationship as a parent is something I spend a lot of time thinking about.  Being a parent has been something Scott and I have always spoken about, even when we were first dating.  We did the typical "I'll NEVER parent like that (lie) or MY child will not do _____ (another lie), but we had not idea what we were really in for.

I can't speak for Scott, but becoming a parent in a relationship was something that was difficult for me.  I have loved Audrey more than I can ever describe from the moment I knew she was even beginning to grow, and I've never seen someone love their little girl more than Scott (I'm sure every mom feels this way, but sorry folks, I'm right... ) :)  It wasn't always kittens and butterflies though.  Scott and I had to learn to evolve in our relationship from being married and independent and married with a child.  It wasn't always smiles and hugs.  I never doubted our love but it took a lot of communication, conflict, tears, and laughter to evolve into our relationship as parents.  It's hard to find that balance of maintaining an adult identity while also spending all of your time with your tiny little human.  We were tired, anxious, and also wildly happy with our new little family.

I'm not saying we're experts.  Each day brings decisions and compromises.  What do we say when she wants sweets between meals?  How much tv does she watch?  Who watches her while the other cleans (okay, those who know us know who cleans our house...).  Who leaves work early to get home in time to make dinner, play, and snuggle?  There are times our anxieties and sleep deprivation catch up to us and we lose sight of the bigger picture, but I would say our relationship as parents is one of love, respect, and most of all laughter.  It's because of our parents that we are where we are today, and hopefully someday Audrey will say the same of us.  My hope is that my relationship as a parent is a model of love, respect, humour, and trust.

3 Legitimate Fears

Hmm... Seeing as I'm someone known for my anxiety it's going to be difficult to narrow it down to only 3!  I would say my legitimate fears depend on the day, the hour, and possibly the minute :)

Today's legitimate fears:

1. I'm afraid of driving with Scott.  We can hardly take a road trip together because I never feel like he hits the breaks soon enough.  I think he takes years off my life each time we drive through Denver.  He's much less accident prone than I am, so yes, this is ironic, but a legitimate fear none the less.

2. I'm afraid of making people angry.  I avoid it at all costs.  I hate confrontation with ANYONE but Scott, which is how I know he is my perfect match.  I'm not afraid of making him angry at all... :)  I am not afraid to stand up for what I believe in, who I am, and who I love, but I agonize over how to do it in the most friendly way. 

3. I'm afraid of sending emails to the wrong recipient.  I triple check almost every email I send to make sure it is going to the intended receiver.  I'm not talking personal emails, I'm talking emails that simply say "sure" or "okay" or "We need chicken from the store".  It's time consuming!

20 Random Facts

1. I have strangely long toes and Scott has short stubby toes with hardly any nails.  We are constantly checking to see whose toes Audrey inherited.
2. I dance around my kitchen, especially around the holidays.  Now that we have wood floors I can't be stopped!
3. I despise morning breath, but love the smell of my baby's morning breath.
4. When I get stressed I crack jokes, which made giving birth an awesome experience (we had the hospital room in stitches!)
5. I hate cilantro.  I can taste it in any dish, no matter how miniscule the amount.
6. If I could live on sweets and candy, I would.  I love processed food more than anyone I know and have already let Audrey lick the bowl when making brownies and cake.
7. I love shopping and horde my extra cash so I can go on shopping sprees to treat myself throughout the year.  I was worried when I got pregnant that I would resent my kids for taking away some of my shopping budget, but I love buying clothes for Audrey more than I love buying them for myself (sorry Scott, you don't make the cut...).
8. I wish I had taken more pictures and written more down as I was pregnant.  I had great intentions, but life got in the way.
9. I'm 30, and I still don't sleep on Christmas Eve and have a reputation for making sure I get my fair share of presents.... :)
10. I love listening to music.  I have fantisies of writing a symphony but have no skills with which to complete this task...
11. I collect stationary and don't write letters.  I just love having pretty cards and paper in the house.
12. Right now I'm typing this list while watching Sesame Street and taking breaks to snuggle my one year old.
13. I was born to be a teacher.  It just makes sense to me.
14. I don't like to eat Chinese food before I fly because I'm worried my fortune in my cookie will be a bad omen.
15.My closet is organized by season and by color but my shoes are a jumbled mess.
16. I drink milk almost every day because I think it is delicious.
17.I have trouble backing out of the garage and drive on our lawn on average once a week.
18.  When I met Scott I was weirded out that we shared the same last name.  A friend of ours set us up to exchange Valentines and I was so mad because I thought that was extremely disgusting.
19. I knew I was going to marry Scott the second we started dating.
20. When I have trouble falling asleep I tap my fingers in different patterns on my pillow.  It's something I've done as long as I can remember. 

30 in 30

A friend of mine and her sister are blogging 30 different things in 30 days.  I find this concept fascinating and am hoping to complete the challenge myself.  I'm sorry to all those friends that share the three of us in common.  The beauty of these posts is I'm kind of completing this challenge as a way to document my life at 30.  When Scott and I were dating we filled out a book of questions together and learned so much about each other.  Unfortunately, we forgot the book and left it under the mattress of his college apartment (you're welcome future generations of Mizzou alumni).  I wish we hadn't done that because I would love to have documentation of our hopes and goals from our early 20's.  Scott is extremely busy and things are about to pick up for me (sob) so I can't guarantee every post, but I'm hoping we can do this together, and perhaps I'll learn a little about myself!

Here are the 30 topics:
Here are the 30 things:

1. List 20 random facts about yourself.
2. Describe 3 legitimate fears you have and explain how they became fears.
3. Describe your relationship with your parents.
4. List 10 things you would tell your 16 year-old self, if you could.
5. What are the 5 things that make you most happy right now?
6. What is the hardest thing you have ever experienced?
7. What is your dream job, and why?
8. What are 5 passions you have?
9. List 10 people who have influenced you and describe how.
10. Describe your most embarrassing moment.
11. Describe 10 pet peeves you have.
12. Describe a typical day in your current life.
13. Describe 5 weaknesses you have.
14. Describe 5 strengths you have.
15. If you were an animal, what would you be and why?
16. What are your 5 greatest accomplishments?
17. What is the thing you most wish you were great at?
18. What has been the most difficult thing you have had to forgive?
19. If you could live anywhere, where would it be and why?
20. Describe 3 significant memories from your childhood.
21. If you could have one superpower, what would it be and what would you do with it first?
22. Where do you see yourself in 5 years? 10 years? 15 years?
23. List your top 5 hobbies and why you love them.
24. Describe your family dynamic of your childhood vs. your family dynamic now.
25. If you could have dinner with anyone in history, who would it be and what would you eat?
26. What popular notion do you think the world has most wrong?
27. What is your favorite part of your body and why?
28. What is your love language?
29. What do you think people misunderstand most about you?
30. List 10 things you would hope to be remembered for.


READY...... GO!

Audrey's Phrases

Audrey is saying the most adorable phrases and Scott and I have the best intentions of always remembering them, so this post is mostly for our family, short-term memories and all :)

"See Me"  = Pick me up
"Help You" = I don't need help
"I'm Running!" = Running Away
"I'm Jumping!" = Jumping in her crib
"Elephony" = Elephant
Parent "I love you" Audrey "You"
"I'm Poopy, my diaper"
"How are you, how are you" - Sing the "Hello" song
"Fishy Fishy" - Listen to "Bubble Toes" by Jack Johnson
"Incoherant sound" = Turn on the radio
"Pider" = Itsy Bitsy Spider
"Shoes, Tennies, Boots, Sandles" = wants to change her footwear

She is talking up a storm!  

San Diego

Well!  I had big plans to blog every day of my summer vacation with all my free time and realized that it's been since April since my last post.  Where does the time GOOOO???

We just returned from our first "family" vacation where we were the adults in charge of booking the hotels, rental cars, flights, etc.  We are so fortunate to have family that likes to visit and have visitors, this wasn't our first trip with Audrey, but it was the first trip where we were on our own without our own parents to lean on.  Talk about feeling grown up!  I had a moment before we left for vacation where I called my mom and worried we wouldn't do a good job, and she was very reassuring.  Overall I would say our vacation was a GREAT success... minus one minor LITERAL bump in the road...

"4 AM... Really?"

I was anxious the night before, as I usually am when I travel, and had a feeling something was going to be ascue.  The next morning we were up at 4 AM to catch our flight, which we left for with plenty of time, and still managed to be the last ones on the plane.  We were so late we had to run up to the ticket counter so they wouldn't close the loading dock (Picture this:  Two adults running with a 1 year old, arriving JUST before take off, with an ENORMOUS stroller to stow at the gate.  We made their top 10 travelors of the year list for sure!).

Since we made our flight with only seconds to spare I relaxed, because I was sure this was the hitch in our vacation and from here on out everything would go smoothly.

We arrived in San Diego after being awake for 7 hours and it was only 10:00 AM local time.  We gathered our bag(s)... (with a small pack mule) and loaded the bus for the rental car.  We found ourselves renting a small Chevy SUV which had surprisingly less trunk space than the Civic.  As Scott was loading the bags in the trunk with minor language violations I put Audrey in the back seat to hook up the car seat.  The hooks in this car are different than our Hondas and I ended up having to latch the car seat behind the passenger seat.  As I was latching and twisting and pulling I had Audrey in the back seat with the doors closed so she was contained.  The windows of the rental were very tinted so it was hard to see from the outside what was going on.  As I moved the car seat to the left I moved Audrey to the right where she leaned against the driver-side door looking at what was going on around her in this new location.  It wasn't obvious that I had switched Audrey and the car seat and Scott opened the door to load one last bag and BANG!  Out fell Audrey, head first, onto the pavement.  Scott and I were terrified.

Our Black-Eyed Beauty

There is a reason we are a perfect match.  My elementary school instincts are to stay calm even if things seem dire and Scott's Fight-or-Flight response is 90% flight.  He had scooped up our crying daughter, thrown her in the car seat and was ready to drive around San Diego yelling for a hospital while I was able to get everything latched, loaded and in the car.  I convinced Scott to pull over and regroup while I looked up the address for an urgent care.  We headed a couple of blocks into town and were fortunate to encounter some of the nicest urgent care staff you've ever met.

Not only were they reassuring, but after we were all cleared for a fun vacation they offered lots of info on delicious eateries and fun places to visit.  We were so relieved that Audrey was okay, although we spent the next 24 hours watching her very carefully.

Del mar Beach

Strolling with Daddy

Family on the Beach

Nacho's Taco Shop

Delicious!

By this time we were STARVING and felt like we had been awake for 24 hours.  We headed to a local taco stand recommended by a friend and engulfed ourselves in chicken nachos and roll tacos.  That evening, after we could tell that Audrey was okay (minus a developing black eye) we ventured into a beach town close to our hotel (Del Mar)  for some delicious sea food with an ocean view.  We were all exhausted, but the 1 year old with a lumpy head was by far the most pleasant to be around.

Bears

Giraffes

Strolling through the Parking Lot

Welcome to the Zoo!

They were about to cut off photo opps with this fine Koala bear, but Audrey won them over by saying "Bye-Bye, bear" over and over again.

Elephony

The next morning, after an early nap, we headed to the zoo.  It was a beautiful day for the zoo - overcast, 70 degrees, humid, but not too humid - where Audrey enjoyed seeing the bears, the giraffes, and the elephants.  She just amazes me with all the wonder in her little eyes.  She would search and search the exhibits and just light up when she finally found the animals.  She growled at the bears and SQUEALED when she saw the giraffes.  The entire drive to the zoo was filled with elephant sounds so we found a little stuffed elephant for her to carry around (Elephony, as Audrey says).

Pizza and a Little Ear Rubbing

Whoah!

"French Fries"

A Little Cotton Candy Dessert

Mission Beach

That morning there happened to be an expose in the newspaper about the best pizza joints in the country and one of them listed was in San Diego, so we dined well that night at Lefty's pizza. Following our dinner we drove to Mission beach where we did some people watching and stumbled upon a carousel.  Scott and I each wanted a turn to ride with Audrey so we purchased some tickets and hopped on.  After her two turns Audrey was a little disappointed to find we were out of tickets.  "Up and down?  More?"  She said as we headed to the car.

Running Along the Bluff

Our Little Cookie Monster

Happy 4th!

Family Pic

Our third day of vacation was the 4th of July. Scott and I had a difference of opinion how we should spend this holiday - Scott wanted to be in the middle of the festivities and I wanted to lay low.  Since I'm training for a half marathon this was a day where I needed to get a run in, so after a run along some bluffs to the coast we decided the time limitations made it more difficult to get into downtown and decided to have a nice fancy dinner by the ocean and see if we could catch some fireworks at the San Diego State Fair.

Our dinner was delicious.  We weren't sure exactly how to find the best spot for fireworks so we set about driving around our little coastal city.  After a while we decided to park at Starbucks and see what we could see from there.  Once the show began we realized we would have a better view up the street.  Since it was such a small town, and everyone was at the fair grounds, we parked ourselves in the street median and had a direct shot of some great fire works.  It was such a fantastic sight!  The next morning I saw in the USA Today that the downtown fireworks had malfunctioned and had all erupted within 16 seconds.  I continuously reminded Scott of how much better "MY" plan had worked out :)

Sand Castles

Ferry to Coronado Island

"Marching"

Our last full day of vacation my friend from high school drove down from LA and we headed to Coronado Island.  I should mention at this point that our entire trip had been over cast, 60 degrees, windy, and chilly.  Each day I had packed layers, just in case the sun came out and it was warm enough to venture into the ocean, but since we were planning on taking a ferry to Coronado, I decided to pack light.  This was, OF COURSE, the day the sun decided to shine and the temperatures were on the rise.  Even though we had no swim suits that didn't stop us from enjoying the ocean. Again, it's a good thing Audrey is little so she wasn't embarrassed that we stripped her down in public.  She was so excited to get into the water.  She doesn't have a timid bone in her body.  She just ran right in squealing, marching, and kicking up the water.  At one point she got knocked over face first, where a typcial response would be to cry and be shaken up - Audrey's response?  WHOAH!

Chasing some Birds...

We had a blast on the beach, even without our swim wear. Katie had thought ahead and brought towels, and we had some beach toys in the stroller, so it was a win-win! Leaving the beach was the only time I've heard Audrey cry that she wasn't ready to go "Sand, Water, Beach" she kept repeating.  We couldn't help but laugh at what the yuppies around us must have thought of our little scenario - our half naked, black eyed daughter running around splashing and getting covered in sand :)

We had such a wonderful vacation and wouldn't have had the opportunity without a birthday gift from my parents.  It was a family vacation we will never forget, and for that I'm so thankful.  Now we are safely back on our own home turf, the black eyes are healing, and we've rested up from all of our adventures.

Phew!