Family Trip

Let me just say: I love visiting family. Bryson, Leslie, and I just got back from our summer vacation with our family and we had a wonderful time. To start the trip Leslie and I hopped on a plane to fly out to California. Thanks to the kindness of strangers and Leslie's wonderful personality the flight went well. I was worried about flying on my own with Leslie but she was so good. When we touched down in LA my mom was there to pick us up and the party started! On our way home we stopped at In-N-Out for the California experience and then headed home to see everyone. Leslie got to meet her Great Grandma Sharon who she got her middle name from.

A Four generation picture. Great Grandmother, Grandmother, Mother and Leslie.

While in California we all went to the Getty Art Museum. It is a beautiful building with lots of amazing art in it. Here is Leslie and her Aunt Jackie. I love her scrunchy face! 

Playing with Grandpa.

Checking out the view with Grandma.

Leslie got to meet her cousins Ethan and Morgan for the first time and she loved them. They would make all sorts of crazy faces for her and they would always have her smiling. Here she is with Ethan.

And Morgan.

My Mom and I took Leslie to the park in California City to feed the ducks. It was a lot of fun. They ducks were crazy. There were tons of them and they were so loud. Leslie was fascinated with them.

After ten days in California my parents, Ethan, Morgan, Leslie and I made the drive up to Utah to meet up with Bryson and visit the rest of our family. At first we went and stayed at Stephen's house to see him, Sam and the girls.

We went to the park and here is Chasey, Morgan, Ethan, and Aubrey at the top of the slide.

Leslie going down the slide for the first time. She did't seem to really notice but we will try again. 

The park was a perfect place to take some family pictures. Here is Grandma and Grandpa with all of their grandchildren. Mazzy and Leslie were so cute together. They are only a month apart and Leslie was a little scared of Mazzy but still curious. 

"You want some?"

While we were in Utah one of my best friends, Katelyn, got married and we were able to make it to the sealing and reception. It was a beautiful wedding and we were able to see almost all of my old room mates (we missed Audj-that's a drawing of her in the picture). It was great to see all my BFFTAAE's (Best Friends for Time and All Eternity). Hillary and Amanda recently returned from missions so it has been a long time since we have been together. 

After the wedding we headed to Sandy to see all of Bryson's side of the family. Here we are with Leslie's cousins Lilly and Clark. They are so fun. Lilly is quite the little mother. She was always saying how cute Leslie is and Clark is such a rascal right now. He is hilarious.

Leslie's first swing ride. She loved it! I love how she is just chilling leaning to the side. :) 

Our friends Merritt and Chalyse with their baby Emeri. Leslie and Emeri are only nine days apart and they loved each other. They were friends instantly just like their Daddys. 

We had a barbecue with some of Bryson's old roomates. It was so wonderful to see such good friends. And we are so excited for the Watsons, Larsons, and Baumans who are all expecting a little one soon!

Here we are swimming at Grandpa Shreeve's house. Leslie loves to be in the pool. Here she is before swimming.

And after. She always wears herself out. :)

Leslie waving hi in her little chair. That chair used to be her Daddy's and she loved sitting in it. 

When we planned our trip, Aaron and his family did not think that they were going to be able to make it to Utah this summer but turns out they were able to and they surprised us! It was a wonderful surprise. The kids are getting so big! 

Since we were in Utah we had to go hiking in the beautiful mountains. Meghan got us this wonderful carrier so it was easy to bring Leslie along. 

The gang at Donut Falls.

Leslie getting her feet wet. It was cold!

Leslie and Ivy just hanging out. :)

At dinner with Stephen and Sam. Yummy.

Cousin time at Grandmas.

Before we left we made sure we got pictures of the cousins together. It was a little crazy trying to get 11 kids to look at the camera but I think they turned out well. We wish Vincent could have been there.

Grandma and the kids!

We had such a wonderful time on our trip. We are so excited to see more family this fall in Florida and can't wait to visit again next year!

Leslie's First Swim!

We took Leslie to the pool for the first time today. It has been really rainy here but the sun came out today so we went swimming. We have a pool at our apartment complex so we didn't even have to go far. We weren't sure what Leslie would think about the pool but she loved it. She liked to kick her legs and splash the water with her hands. We will definitely be spending a lot more time at the pool this summer, and we'll have to take her to the ocean soon too.

5 Months Old

Here are some pictures of Leslie recently. She is such a wonderful baby. She is getting big so fast. 

Bryson and Leslie on Father's Day. She LOVES to sleep on her Daddy. Look how chunky her legs are getting.

 Playing with her dress while sitting in the Bumbo.  She loves eating her dresses.

 She knows she's cute!

 I found her like this while she was playing and had to get a picture. 

 Learning how to use technology already. :)

A Productive Day

Today has been amazing! Last night was the third night in a row Leslie has slept in her crib and last night she didn't wake us up once! And she slept in until 9:30 this morning. I am so amazed at how big she is getting. I am so glad she is sleeping in her crib, but I will admit I miss being able to poke my head over the edge of my bed and seeing her cute face. :) She woke up in a happy mood this morning as usual. When I walked into her room she was playing and the minute she saw me she gave me the biggest smile. It was the perfect way to start a day.  Sometimes as a mom you have these grand plans to get things done and by the end of the day none of those things have been accomplished. It can get frustrating but today was just the opposite. Today I washed and folded all of our laundry, picked up around our apartment, dusted, cleaned the bathroom, cleaned the kitchen, made some muffins, made dinner, played with Leslie and wrote this blog all before Bryson came home from work! I mostly have Leslie to thank for my day. She played on her mat or in her bouncer happy as can be while I did the laundry and cleaned and she took two hour and a half naps today. What a wonderful baby! I am one happy Mom.

This is how Leslie sucks her thumb now. :) She doesn't suck it often but if she does she always has her hand open.

Gifts from Grandmas!

Leslie loves her Grandmas! She got a fun play mat that she loves from Bryson's Mom and a beautiful Sunday dress from my Mom. She loves them both. It was so cute to watch her on the mat discovering all the toys around her. She is even starting to enjoy tummy time. The dress from my Mom is her favorite outfit by far! She had so much fun on Sunday playing with the skirt. It had so many layers she could try and eat. :) Here are some pictures:

Thank you Grandmas!! We love you. And for fun here is Leslie's new favorite sleeping spot.

Happy Mother's Day!

I am so grateful for my eternal family this Mother's Day. Because of a loving Heavenly Father and his son Jesus Christ I will be able to be with them forever. I can't even begin to describe what this means to me and how happy it makes me. I am so grateful to be blessed with Bryson and our little angel, Leslie. They have helped me to begin to understand pure love. We are both also blessed to have wonderful mothers ourselves to be an example to us of loving mothers. I love my Mom so much and look to her for support and advice in all aspects of life. I have always felt her love and that love has made me who I am today. I am also so grateful to my wonderful mother-in-law for raising such a kind and loving man. She is such a wonderful and strong woman and I am so grateful to be her daughter now too. Happy Mother's Day to all the wonderful women in our lives; grandmothers, sisters, aunts, and friends. 

Peek-A-Boo