Snow Day!

We woke up to snow today! I was so excited to show Peyton. I knew she would love it. And she did love it! School was cancelled because the roads were just one big sheet of ice. All our neighbor kids and dogs were out in the cul-de-sac playing, so Peyton and I played outside with them for about 2 hours. She was so happy! Even Tink played for awhile. It was almost completely melted by 3pm, so it was very short lived, but so fun while it lasted!

Vegas- Week 2 - 2 1/2

Every time I go to Las Vegas, my brother's cat gives me serious allergies. Usually I'm so run-down from fighting those off that I am extra susceptible to getting sick. So I spent a lot of the last part of my trip sick- a few days of cold-type symptoms, and a cold sore (that was from stress from my mom's party). Not so much fun. After my first eventful week here, I took it easier.
Jade had a conference for New York Life in Las Vegas 3 of the days we were here (that was the whole reason we chose this particular time period for our trip). The conference was at Caesar's Palace, so we got a room there, left Peyton with my family, and stayed for 2 nights. It was really nice- Jade was able to get us a major upgrade on our room, so we had a really nice room on one of the top floors, overlooking the Bellagio fountains. It was so cool to see the fountains go off every 30 minutes. We had a great view.

Every year my family's golf club holds a member-member golf tournament in my dad's name. This year it happened to land on the days Jade was in town, so he was able to play in it. Jade played pretty well, and he and his partner ended up right in the middle of the pack. Jade loved it because it was 45 holes of golf in 2 days, plus he played 18 holes in a practice round, and the 2 days before the tournament he was able to go out and practice, too. He hasn't played that much golf since before his surgery. He was a pretty happy guy.

One day my mom and I took Peyton to the local children's museum, Leid Discovery. It was so fun to watch her run around and play. She loved the bubble station and all the musical things. Her very favorite thing was the little grocery store. She kept wanting to go back. One of the displays was about physics, so they had a human centrifuge, which was basically like one of the teacups from Disneyland. She thought that was pretty great. There was also a reclined chair, like a dentist's chair, that you could spin around in to prove some physics theory. I asked Peyton if she wanted to spin and she climbed right in. I started spinning her and she had the biggest smile on her face, so I spun her some more. After about 20 seconds I looked at her face and noticed she had that "just woken up from anesthesia" look about her. So I picked her up and she was honestly limp for a few seconds. I almost had a panic attack thinking I had hurt my child. It only lasted a couple seconds, and she was totally fine, but I really was worried there for a minute.

Because our trip included a 3-day weekend, it just so happened that all 4 of my best high school friends and I were in town, at the same time. That hasn't happened in awhile. Kelley's parents and boyfriend cooked us an awesome dinner, and we all got together and caught up. It was so good to see everyone. I forget how much I miss those girls until I get together with them.

The rest of the trip was pretty low-key. Tinky turned 4 on the 19th. Sometimes I forget we haven't had her forever. She just seems like so much a part of us. Jade left to finish his business and head back home, and we just hung out at my mom's house. Peyton went in the hot tub probably 50 times while we were there. I'm not even exaggerating. We also made a trip to the very coolest park I've ever been to. I really have never seen anything like it. It was all western-themed, with several huge play structures, different climbing structures, lots of slides, swings, and even water fountains to play in. We will definitely be going back there on our next trip!
:

:

My cousin and her husband brought their baby, Gus with them to Las Vegas. Peyton couldn't get enough of him! Surprisingly he was really patient with her. He even let her carry him around like a baby.

Jamie and Tony took Peyton on a golf cart ride to the park. They even let her drive. She thought that was amazing.

I wish I could have gotten a picture with her face. She was so very serious. Of course, she won't take pictures now, so I guess I should be happy I got this one.

Tink spent literally every free minute of her time waiting to see the cat. If my brother's door was closed, she would lay outside the door for (literally) hours, just waiting for a chance to see the cat. She was absolutely obsessed.

Tink also enjoyed laying in front of the fireplace, getting belly rubs. Tough life.

I love this last picture- my mom and Cheyanne were napping and look who snuck in between the two of them... (If you can't tell, it's Tink. She is kind of camouflaged with the blanket.)

Our View:

Surprise!

My mom is turning 50 this year (I'm pretty sure she never reads my blog so I'm safe posting that. Otherwise she might kill me). I decided I wanted to throw her a surprise party, and one of my mom's friends was nice enough to volunteer to let us use her house for the luncheon. I knew from the beginning that my 2 biggest challenges would be (a) planning the party in Las Vegas all the way from Portland, and then while staying in the birthday girl's home keeping it all under wraps, and (b) getting my mom to her friend's house for the party. Early on we knew it would be hard to get my mom there because she doesn't like to leave Peyton (and maybe me, too) while we're in town. So I decided to be the diversion and allow my little sister and cousin to do the party set-up (this was a big exercise for me in letting go of the control- it probably did me good). So we told my mom that the party was for her friend's mother-in-law's 80th birthday party. Knowing my mom might not be all too interested in going, her friend asked her if she would be in charge of the chocolate fountain during the party. My mom wouldn't commit to it, so we pretended that her friend called me and asked me if I would go with my mom to the party. This worked. My mom was incredulous that her friend went over her head and got to me, but nonetheless it got her to the party. Here's how I know she had NO idea of what was going on: 4 days before the party, she had an acid peel on her face, knowing that Saturday-Monday she was going to be peeling like a burn victim. I tried and tried to get her out of it, but she was bent on that peel. "I told you so." So we get to her friend's house and everyone yelled "Surprise!" Her face dropped. She started shaking. At first, she planted her feet and looked like she was about to run away. The she started bawling. Thankfully people started coming over to her and hugging her, otherwise I think she might have fainted. All in all, the party turned out great. Chaz, my grandpa and aunts came in town from Utah, plus one of her oldest friends and her daughter, and we had some cousins and an uncle drive in from California. Lots of people came to celebrate her birthday, and I think she really had a great time. I think it was just what she would have wanted had she had any say in the party; an informal get-together with her closest friends and family. Totally my mom's style. It was a fun day, and I'm very glad it all worked out. My stress levels were through the roof planning this thing. I even ended up with a cold sore from it. But it was worth it.

:

:

Shocked.

Her daddy

My sison

My mom's very favorite drink is Coke, out of a glass bottle. So we set up a "Coke Bar" with Coke, Diet Coke and Sprite in glass bottles, with vanilla syrup and cherry syrup and garnishes. We also had the cutest grey striped paper straws.

I decorated the house with framed pictures of my mom throughout her life. I made her initials with French scenery.

With the help of my mom's co-interior decorating and wedding planning partner, Bootie, I had cards for guests to write notes for my mom, that now are all together in the gorgeous box that Suz gave my mom for her birthday. They read, "Gina you are special to me because..."

My siblings and I gave the birthday girl her favorite cake; Nothing Bundt Cakes' red velvet cake, her 2 favorite treats; sugar cookies from Cookies By Design and a chocolate covered strawberry bouquet from Edible Arrangements, and a bouquet of her favorite flowers; hydrangea.

Valentine's Day

We had such a fun Valentine's Day this year! Jade, Peyton, Tinky and I were all in Las Vegas together. Jade was working in the day, but Peyton and I spent the morning in the hot tub and painting Valentines for everyone. Now she's a painting-addict. My mom and I ran a bunch of errands, and bought groceries for our yummy Valentine's Day dinner- homemade Capriotti's sandwiches (For anyone who doesn't know, Capriotti's is a high-end sandwich chain that makes their sandwiches with real meat, not lunch meat. So they roast their own turkeys and make their own hams and they serve it on really good bread with really high quality ingredients. It is so good. Their most famous sandwich is the "Bobby", a turkey sandwich with homemade stuffing and cranberry sauce. Just like Thanksgiving leftovers, but you can get it year-round. Anyone who knows me knows I'm super picky, so I just have a plain turkey sandwich, but even just that is awesome.) A couple nights before, my mom and grandpa had spoiled me with my absolute favorite meal-Thanksgiving dinner. So that is what we used for our sandwiches. We bought really good artisan wheat rolls and had a sandwich bar so everyone could make their own. It was so good. Then Jade surprised me by telling me he was taking me out to dinner! I had no idea he was going to take me out. So we went to "our" place, Macaroni Grill (where we had our first date), then I took Jade out for dessert. Ever since I went to this restaurant called BJ's with my mom and her girlfriends, I had known I wanted to take Jade there, because they have a "famous" dessert that I knew he would absolutely love. It's called a Pazooki, and it's Jade's ideal dessert:a homemade chocolate chip cookie, baked a little short so it's still really gooey inside, and 2 scoops of homemade vanilla ice cream on top. Right when I had it, I knew my husband needed to try one. So after our 2nd dinner, we went to BJ's Restaurant for a Pazooki, and sure enough, Jade loved it. He said it was one of the best desserts he's ever had at a restaurant, and he didn't know why more places didn't serve desserts like that, instead of the gross desserts they usually have. After our Pazooki, we came back home and I watched the Bachelor with my mom and our friend Julie. It was good. 3 crazies and 3 normal girls. He sent home one of each. Too bad the Bachelors don't get to see footage of the girls before they make their choices. It was such a fun Valentine's Day, especially now that my littlest Valentine is old enough to kind-of "get" it. Jadebought us girls flowers, and my mom bought a Cookies by Design cookie bouquet for the girls. Jade gave Peyton a Hello Kitty lunchbox filled with 4 Hello Kitty Pez dispensers. Peyton is now obsessed with them. He gave me a box of chocolates emptied out and filled with my favorite treat- Cadbury mini eggs! And my favorite gift of all was the card from Jade- with a poem inside! He hasn't written me a poem for 5 years- since our very first Valentine's Day, when we had just started dating. I about cried reading it. Little sweetie.

:

:

Peyton, hard at work on her masterpiece.

Peyton's Valentines- she even surprised me with one she had made with her Noni when I was upstairs.

Our cute Valentines from our momma.

Jade wrote me love-notes (in Portuguese!) at Macaroni Grill

Vegas- Week 1

Well, we did another big Vegas trip this month! I'm so glad I have somewhere to go keep myself sane when my husband goes on his 2 week business trips. I feel lucky that I'm able to get down to visit so often. Vegas really does feel like a 2nd home to me. We have been doing some really fun things- partly because of Jade's Christmas present, partly because of my mom's addiction to Groupon, and partly because it's just fun to be there with my family. The first few days we were down there, my Grandpa Gene was visiting, too, so we got to spend some quality time with

him, which is always special. One night he even cooked me my (and his) favorite meal- Thanksgiving dinner. We invited my Grandpa Coy and Nilda over to dinner, and it was great to see them, too. I went to visit my girlfriend Alicia and her baby Colton, who has grown and changed so much in the 6 weeks since I saw him last. He's such a doll. My mom and I took a "sexy chair and pole dance" class at a studio (thanks to Groupon), which was so fun. Cheyanne and I took a cupcake decorating class (Groupon again). We had such a good time. It was just the 2 of us in the class, so we got lots of help from the teacher and by the end of the 3 hour class, we were getting pretty good. We took Peyton to a couple little play places to keep her entertained. We went out with a few of my mom's friends to celebrate 2 of their birthdays. We had dinner at my favorite Italian restaurant in Las Vegas

(anywhere, actually) called Buon Gusto. It's a tiny little restaurant owned by an actual Italian, where the food is to die for. Then we went to BJ's Restaurant for dessert (yummy Pazooki). When we got home (around 12:15), I was greeted by Tink! Jade had surprised me and come down 2 days early! I was so glad to see the 2 of them. On the 12th, my mom and I finally cashed in on our Christmas present from Jade- we went to go see Garth Brooks! It was so good! His voice is amazing. The show was a little different- it was just him and a mic and his guitar, no

band, no crazy stage stuff. He sang songs from his past that influenced his music. Lots of them I didn't know, but the classics I knew. He sang songs off all his albums, and brought out his wife (Trisha Yearwood) to sing the duet "In Another's Eyes". It was a really great show. Jade and I got to see our friends Eric and Maddie, who were visiting town for a little vacation. We went to dinner with them one night, and had them over for dinner on their way out of town. Jade even went and hung out with them while my mom and I were at Garth Brooks- he broke his own record by staying out past 1am!

:

:

I love sweet candid pictures. Jimmy was reading to Peyton before bedtime. She was loving it.

"Papa Gene"

My grandpa and his 3 generations of girls.

Don't we look professional?

Chey's are on the right, mine are on the left. We made 3-D baby booties, 3-D elephants, and a bunch of random designs on the tops of the cupcakes.

This was it on the stage. Pretty amazing. I wish they weren't so strict about not taking pictures during the show.

That's What I'm Doing These Days

2011 is already flying by!

Jade had his annual awards dinner for New York Life. He won 2 awards this year; Most Life Cases and the Mike Strykher award, a new award that the managing partner of the Portland office created and selected Jade for, because of his great work ethic. We got to go downtown to the Marriot on the waterfront for the awards ceremony dinner. It was pretty tasty, and always fun to get dressed up and cheer on my guy.

Jade also did a 4 week diet competition called Game On. He was on a team with Jeremy, Kristin and Marianne. They only got 3rd place as a team, but each of them did really well individually. Jade even lost 10 pounds!

Peyton is still loving ballet and gymnastics, and we actually just registered her for preschool in September! I can hardly believe it.

:

:

Peyton got a new leotard that she picked out herself. The first day she got to wear it, she asked me to polish her nails to match. How could I resist?

Some of you will remember one of Peyton's favorite past-times; the sink-bath.

At Jade's dinner.

Getting his 2nd award.

This picture makes me laugh because you can see the focus on Jade's face as he walks down the stairs. Gone is my reckless pre-surgery husband, who would walk or [gasp] even run without a second thought. Jade is always very careful of his ankles now (especially his right one). It's just as well.

:

:

:

And here are some Peyton Funnies from the last couple months:

I caught her in her crib, after waking up from a nap saying, "Hi Lace. How are you? What's up? Good. Where are you? At the party? Okay. Good. Bye." -She had her hand by her ear and was pretending to talk to Lacie on the phone.

My friend Nicole complimented me on my hair. Peyton touched her hair and said "I have hair too!" She wanted some compliments too.

We were out to dinner with our friends Bryce and Nicole. The waitress asked, "Did anyone save room for dessert?" All of us decline and Peyton yells "I do!"

"I'm awesome, mom." "Yes, you are awesome. Who told you that?" "Madeline's daddy." (One of our friends told her she was awesome when he was substituting in nursery.) Then we asked her if we were awesome. Mommy was awesome, daddy was not awesome the first time we asked, but he was the second time we asked. Tinky was awesome, too.

When counting, she sometimes counts up to the number "alerty".

She got the flu and was throwing up. I had given her a little Gatorade. A few minutes later she starts telling me, "mommy I want more gator-juice."

She was crying because I took her away from something she wasn't allowed to be playing with, and said, "You hurt my arm." "How did I hurt your arm?" "[sobs] You broke it!" (I carried her away in a cradle hold, not even by the arms.)

I was lecturing Peyton about all her messes and could tell she was losing interest. Peyton interrupts me and says "I take off me pants." Sure enough, her pants were down around her ankles. She sees me look over and starts to laugh hysterically.

Peyton J was over at our house on a playdate. Peyton said, "I love your hair, Peyton J. It's so pretty." SO cute!

"Please hit you?"

She still loves her binky. She will ask to go lay in her crib even when it's not naptime or bedtime just so she can have her binky.

"No do me hair!" - every morning when I get her ready.

She still has a mental block against the numbers 4 and 5. She goes straight from 3 to 6 every single time she counts.

Peyton and I were over at the Janeck's house one morning for a playdate. The girls kept going into the bathroom and playing, so finally Brittney told them the rule was there could only be one person in the bathroom at a time. Eventually Peyton J wandered to the bathroom again, and I could tell Peyton Coy was about to follow her. I reminded her of the rule, but Peyton J kept calling for her. She kept looking at me to see if I was watching. Eventually I reminded her again about the one person at a time rule, and so she called out to Peyton J, "You need some help, Peyton?" and of course Peyton J said "Yeah. Come help me." I couldn't believe how manipulative they were! I was honestly shocked. How did they learn that?

Peyton and I were taking a bath together, and she pointed to my nipple and siad "What's this called?" I told her it was called my nipple, on my chest. She said "Please pet it?" (That's what I've told her to ask people before petting their cats or dogs.) I was so taken aback. Later, I was reaching across the tub, and I felt a huge pinch- she had pinched my nipple! I was in shock. I couldn't stop myself from laughing, even though I knew I shouldn't be sending her the message that it was funny. But it was like she had just been waiting for the right time to pinch.

"Please hit ____________". (usually Charlotte, Lucy, Henry or Taryn. I think it's because they're the closest to her age that aren't older than her.) The funniest thing is she usually asks to hit them when they're not even around. Also once she asked me "Please hit you with a toy." Holy cow.

"You bossy mommy." "Oh, do you think I'm bossy? I'm sorry you feel that way." "You teasing me mommy." "I'm not teasing you, baby." "Daddy tease me."