Pioneer Day in Panguitch

After Vegas, we made our way north to our beloved Panguitch.  Due to some miscommunications and other things, every single person in the family bailed out on this trip last minute.  So .... although the weekend was not quite what we expected, it still turned out nice:

• Saturday being Pioneer day, we celebrated our ancestors by gobbling loads of candy at the Panguitch Parade.  The whole town is in the parade, and the visitors get entire garbage sacks full of goodies.  The initial toss of candy smacked Mac in the head, so he ran and hid until we opened the wrappers and showed him what was inside.  Then he raced around, collecting spoils throughout the rest of the parade.  (The parade goes up and down the street twice .... loads of candy.)

Waiting for it to start.

Best part of the parade:  all the farm animals.

Dadoo demonstrating proper candy-catching technique.  Mac opted for the pick-it-up-off-the-ground technique.

• We also gorged ourselves on Chris Gunn Food, and put quite a dent in the meals she had been planning to feed a significant number of individuals.
• We went on a bike ride down Red Canyon, which was gorgeous.  Mac showed us what a real melt-down looks like.  We haven't seen one like that in months, but we also haven't deprived him of naps three days in a row, let him play in the water for a bit and then wisked him away in months.  He really let us have it.

Grandma took Mac so we could have a more "enjoyable" time.  Very sweet.  Unfortunately Mark's tire exploded toward the beginning.  He tossed the bike by the road for later pick-up and ran the rest of the trail.  I think he enjoyed that though.

• We played with balls and bats in the ginormous yard, and blew old dandilions.  I miss big yards.
• We witnessed all the little improvements that have been made since we last went to Panguitch.  Chris and all her many helpers are certainly hard workers.  Too bad we don't live close enough to help very often .....
• I almost finished "Phantom of the Opera" and Mark put together a huge puzzle with his mom.  Last time they did that, we were taking care of her while she had cancer.  Odd flashback.  Sure glad all that's over.
• Went on a little four wheeler ride up to the river to throw rocks, of course.  Mac's carseat fit in the razor and Mark drove.  Sure wish I would've snapped a picture of that.
• Chris sent us off to see the last Harry Potter movie!  I may or may not have cried significantly.  I'm blaming it on pregnancy hormones and too many love-of-mothers-for-their-babies references.  Anyway, we loved it.  By far best of the movies.  Also, the theater itself was awesome.  Newly re-opened after a 25 year closure, it was adorable, small, and had an ice cream parlor in front.  Best theater ever.
• We saw REAL stars.  As in the little dipper, the milky way, and a few shooting stars.  Mmmm I have missed those.
• Watched a few classic BBC shows with Chris and Rand.  I need to brush up on my Charles Dickens.

I also cannot fail to mention that our drive home took 12 hours.  It should have taken 7.  That decided it for us; we are NEVER living in a big city EVER again.  Sorry California, you lost your chance.  We are too in love with the small town feel.

The Vegas

So, last year, the two of us forgot our anniversary. We had been gone the week before and had a lot going on .... and that all-important day slipped our minds. I even signed up to feed the missionaries that day. Haha ... oops. At least they were sister missionaries, so I could tell our love story to them and they ate it all up. I may have even pulled out our wedding book for them.

As fun as all that was, we decided we needed to make it up to ourselves this year. The Gunn family started making plans for a 24th of July get together, so we decided to leave a day earlier and go somewhere fun. And what is there to do between California and St. George?

Vegas, naturally.

So we booked a hotel with the best buffet, invited some friends, and drove off to experience the nasty neon glow of sin city. Vegas really isn't our style, but it turned out to be a fun trip.

First stop was Rio's around the world all-you-can eat buffet.  Mac's first experience.  All he wanted was ice cream.

 We ventured out to the pool, but they were closing for a concert ... which happened to shake the walls of our room for a while that night.  Anyway, though there was no time to swim, Mac and Seth made the most of the little showers.

 After checking in, we hopped on the complimentary free bus that took us across the freeway to the strip and walked our feet right off.

 First stop, Cesar's Palace -- Mark's favorite.  I love the art depicting Greek women.  Beautiful and robust ... just my style.

 This awesome giant aquarium really got Mac and Seth's attention, but the animatronic show that started on top of it scared the living day lights out of Mac.

 The Bellagio was gorgeous.  I kept looking around to see if George Clooney or Brad Pitt were stealing anything, but alas ... no Ocean's 11 in progress while we were there.

Picture made of flowers!  Awesome.

 The little guys loved the water show.  We watched it twice, then had to pry them away.

 That night we put Mac down, then headed down to the Casino to check out the night life.  Mark taught me a little about the different games being played, and I decided it was time to try my hand at gambling.  Never done it before.  So I sat down at a Roulette table, and laid down $5.  The dealer just looked at me all dead-pan faced and said, "You need at least 10 to make a bet."  So Mark whipped out a 10, and I now had $15 on the table.  Significantly more than I was willing to spend ... and as the game was terrifying to me, I wasn't interested in playing for long.  I just wanted money so I could go buy some ice cream. 

So I put it all on black.  Mark disagreed, he said red made more sense with the law of chance.  I don't think that law is even real, so I ignored him and kept it on black.

It landed on red.  See ya, $15.

My gambling days are through!  Ugh, how lame to just hand over your money to the scuzziest town around?  Oh well.  I can say I've done it.  And fumed over it.

We ended up getting 99 cent ice cream cones from a BK whopper lounge in the casino, watched a few people lose some serious cash, and made our escape as the free "Show in the Sky" started.  So awkward, and so lame.

The next morning we checked out and stayed at the pool till we were absolutely boiling.  The little boys did not want to leave one bit, but the rest of us were cooked by noon.  And starving.

 Thanks Rio, we had a good time.

Before we left Vegas, we had to see the MGM, where the lions were on display.

 We unknowingly timed it perfectly!  We arrived for feeding time, where all these trainers came in and threw raw ground beef on the glass so the lions licked it up right in front of you.  Mac loved them.

 Then it was time to take off for St. George. 

All in all, it was a fun trip.  Probably about as non-love inspiring as you can get for an anniversary trip, but it's better than forgetting.  Someday, when we're closer to family, we'll take off on a real romantic getaway ... someday.  But this will do for now. 

Sure do love you, Mark Spencer Gunn!  Glad I got you for forever.

Sister's Photo Shoot

I finally had my official doctor's ultrasound a bit ago, and turns out the quality of the pictures were significantly better than my beloved Costa Mesa shop ... little sister looks infinitely cuter in these little pics.

Don't you want to kiss those toes and nibble that chin?  I sure do. 

Oh, and as my doctor's English isn't so good and my Japanese is non-existant, all the info I got from this ultra sound was that everything looks good.

I'll take that.

So in celebration I began our little girl's corner of the closet ...

Sometimes, when I am particularly ornery, I go and stand in the closet and simply admire. 

Can't wait to meet you, miss!

The Summer of Softball

Our first two years of marriage, Mark and I played on 2-3 co-ed slow pitch softball teams each summer.  It was so very fun, especially as Mark was typically one of the team's MVPs and I could beam and say, "Yep, that's my man."  I remember playing first base a few games and Mark playing short stop.  Oooo the magic.  We also played in the outfield together a few times. 

I quite enjoyed that time of life.

Well, since we moved to Cali, I have been pregnant or with a baby, and so have not been able to participate in sports like I used to.  However, Mark is going strong.  He plays church softball and is currently in his second season of city league softball. 

And actually, I like going to the games.  I like watching Mark dominate (and I feel for him when he doesn't ... and for myself.  Usually a poorly played game results in a frustrated, silent Mark).  He has thrown out a respectable number of people from center field.  He also nearly took a teammate's head off throwing to home.  This poor fellow got in the way, and from my angle, it looked like the ball beaned him in the head and he started to wobble on his feet and had to sit out.  Later we learned that the ball hit the brim of his hat head-on, and knocked it back.  It actually scratched his forhead up quite a bit, and he sported some scabs for a while.  Geez, Mark.  I've also heard a few guys complaining about catching Mark's throws; it hurts their hands.  Mark has inspired a couple of man crushes, I think. 

(Too much bragging?  Apologies ... Mark will certainly roll his eyes at me a few times when he reads this.  But it's all true, not a bit of exaggeration here.)

I love talking to the other friends/girlfriends/wives.  A few of them have kids.  I've made a couple good friends on that bleacher.

Mac loves the games.  Dirt to throw, sticks to draw and hit things with, a game to watch and yell at (most commonly, "Go! Go! Go!", "Hit it!", and "Made it, yaaaay!"), people to woo, dogs to pet, bugs to inspect, lights to point at, and a plastic bat and ball of his own to push around. 

One night they were supposed to play a double header, but one game was cancelled, and after sitting on the field for 15-20 minutes with no sign of the opposing team, we decided the second game was a no-go as well.  Mark was disappointed, but trust Janae Holland to save the day!  She got some of the ladies out on the field with the guys and we all hit the ball around.  I played the pregnancy card and wasted on those worried boys.  One was coming to tag me as I ran to third and I said, "Not the stomach!" so he went for my legs and I jumped over him.  Mark played first base with Mac in one arm.  Mac loved that. 

Softball nights are good nights for our little family.

One of these days I'll play slow-pitch again, but for now, I am content to cheer for my man and schmooze with my boy.

Potty Beginnings

There it is.  Mac's very own potty.

I found this at a yard sale still in the box and unused.  They only wanted 5 bucks for it, so I thought, why not?  Mark has been trying to get Mac excited about the toilet for weeks already.  Though I'm not planning on our little man to be ready for underwear any time soon (with the Gunn boys' track record, it will be yeeeeears before Mac will make it through the night),  I thought it would be nice to have it around for him to get used to and start to figure out.

And yes, he has used it.  He can definitely tell us when he needs to go to the bathroom, though he only does it about once a day or less.  Then half of the time he doesn't even do anything on the toilet; he just sits there and grunts for a bit, then jumps up and says "I did it!" followed by a quick "I flush!", his favorite part.

Good work, Mac.  I won't start putting pressure on him till we're good and settled somewhere -- as we might be moving this December -- but until then I want him to learn to love that potty.

Fourth of July

Oh the benefits of being friends with the Mayor Pro-Temp.  Thank you wonderful Shaw family, for including us in your fourth of July family get-together. 

Every year our city hosts their fireworks show at the local high school, and for the second year in a row, we have been invited by one of the city's chief citizens.  Not only, might I add, did we get in for free, but we even got VIP passes to enjoy a super tasty brisket dinner backstage.  Here Mac is chewing on it:

 Here everyone is standing to catch the massive bomber plane that flew low over the field.  Pretty neat.  Mac growled at it a lot.

 The show included lots of music and Tim and other big-deal-people getting up and saying how wonderful our city is.  Of course our eyes were glued to the stage with our friends on it, but otherwise, we played Yahtzee and Catch Phrase and snacked on a lot of junk food.

Then the fireworks began.  I am so glad I caught Mac's face in this picture.  He has always loved fireworks, but they are usually fairly far away.  Apparently being right underneath them as they explode is another story.

 Mac raced back to the wagon and attempted to pull it away, but we caught up with him and convinced him to watch the fireworks from the safety of that sturdy little wagon.  (Thanks mom!)

 But eventually Daddoo (as Mac now calls him) seemed even safer, so Mac spent the duration of the show latched on to Mark, nervously picking at Mark's neck.  Eventually Mac loosened up a bit as Mark pointed out all the good colors.  Here they are seeing white:

 Here they are seeing red:

Once they were over Mac was quite bummed.  He kept hollering about the fireworks ... and I wish I could tell you exactly how he says it, but it is actually much too vulgar and I just can't put it on here.  We've been pushing him now to just call it fire.  That word comes out much better.

We love our country and all the good people that are in it.  We have been blessed in every way here; I can't imagine being anywhere else.  Thank you thank you, to all of those who have sacrificed in the past and who sacrifice today to make this place what it is.

Prepping to Certify

I have done it! 

I just attended my last birth to certify as a legitimate doula.  If you are wondering what a doula is, please go here and look on the side bar for my posts regarding doula info. 

All I need to do now is finish reading a couple books, send in all my notes and paperwork, and I am set.  Such a good feeling.  It all happened just in time too, because as my belly expands, people's faith in my abilities seems to diminish.  I'm sensing a real slow-down coming up here.  Once my belly flattens, I will have a brand new baby girl in its place.  I'm quite sure I'll need some time before I can be ready to put myself at someone's beck and call 24/7 for the 4 weeks surrounding their due date. 

So then what will the future hold?  How will I use this, how far can I take it?  If we move back to Utah, will anyone even want a doula?  Nobody around there seems to know about them.  I have no idea how often I will be able to use this new skill I have in my possession, but I am certainly glad I have it.  It is incredibly helpful for me regarding my own children, and even if I never attend another birth, I know that I have really made a difference for those brand new families I have worked for up to this point.

It is just such an honor to be able to help out during such a life-changing moment.  To see a couple work so hard together for something they care so deeply about; to watch the tears, the anger, the helplessness, the triumph, and the awe when they finally meet that little person ... there is just nothing like it.  It's the next stage of their love story, and heaven knows I love a good love story.  Cupid does some great things, but this doula business definitely feels like I am one-upping him. 

I really do hope that I'll be able to continue working as a doula throughout my life from time to time, but it isn't the number one priority for me right now.  The plan is to moderately advertise myself, help whoever needs it, and one day when my kids are older and I have the time, I'd like to volunteer at hospitals or birth centers for people who can't afford the care they'd like.

Who knows what I'll do with it.  Maybe I'll become a nurse.  Maybe I'll become an instructor.  Maybe I'll still teach high school and then do this on the side.  Maybe I'll only ever use it again for my own babies. Regardless, I'm sure glad I have it.

Little Miss

Yep, it's a girl.

Why is Mark always right?  He is 2 for 2 now.  I think this situation is an unfair one because his dad is on the other side, getting to know our kids before they come to us, and cheating by somehow whispering to Mark what each one is going to be.  I don't think I should make gender-guessing a competition any more.

When my family came up for our big Thomas family reunion, they decided they just couldn't wait another week to find out what their second little grandbaby would be.  So off to Costa Mesa we went, where for a measly $25, you get 10-15 minutes of oogling your tiny one on the screen. 

It took drinking orange juice, walking, touching my toes, coughing, rolling from side to side, and finally telling jokes (to get me to laugh) to get a split-second glimpse of what our baby is.  And to respect all her efforts to be so very modest, I just can't put the telling photo up on the internet.  But here is a lovely profile:

 Two cute miniature feet:

 And a head shot, with her little arm up on her face.  She kept rubbing her face with her arms while we were watching.  Despite the creepiness that these black-and-white ultra-sounds give off, I did end up thinking she was pretty precious.  I wish I had a picture of her legs.  They looked like frog legs and she kept crossing her ankles.

 When we first found out, I won't lie, my initial reaction was nervousness.  I have a boy.  I know how to raise him ... at least up to the age he is now.  I have everything for him.  It just felt simpler to have a little brother to goof around with Mac, especially when they're around 13 or so and the adoring adults in my family have other smaller ones to spend their time on.  Family reunions might get boring.  A boy just made sense, right?

Mark's first reaction was, "Of course she is." 

Mac was running in circles and eating a banana.  Not sure how he felt about it.

But then Mom, Rachel and I went shopping and all my nervousness about girl things washed away.  Girls are so fun to buy things for.  When I came home with the giant bags, I think that was the first time Mark experienced any apprehention about it all.  Oh, except for the day he came home from his gynocology class and had learned about teen pregnancy.  "If this is a girl, I need to go get some of my dad's guns," he said.

Welp, we are excited of course to have our baby girl coming to us.  Right now Belen (call her Bel) and Elsa are our top two names, but we haven't nailed it down yet.  I know I know, plenty of time, but we knew Mac's name before he ever existed, so this feels odd to me.

And my body must be reacting to Mac's constant use of my growing abdomen for a trampoline/landing pad/punching bag, because I have been gaining weight and it is all going to my trunk.  My waist disappeared.  Now there's a substantial amount of cushion protecting my baby girl, and I really can't complain too much about it.

I feel her little wiggles all the time, and last night, Mark felt them!  I'm thinking it has a lot to do with his experienced chiropractor-ness; after all, if he can put a finger on my back and feel that something is 1/64" to the right, then why can't he feel our little lady through all my chub and muscle and guts?  Pretty sure it was a solid month or so later on that anyone besides me could feel Mac's acrobatics.

We are excited to meet her this Thanksgiving!

My Little Monster

Having an almost two year old is so very fun. 

I'm being serious!

 We get to wrestle.  A lot.  We find tossed food in all sorts of interesting places.  Bubbles, drawing, and Cars are all a must.  Old dandilions are magical and hunting them down will entertain for hours.

 I get to really re-think my use of the English language.  Right now, "Teek-oo" (thank you) means "Give me that."  Yes, he says it as he rips something out of your hands.  "Seh-nuh" (see ya) means "Come here."  That's because we say that to him when we're leaving and trying to get him to follow us.  He says "Yay" and claps when he wants us to approve something he has done, and yells "Stuck!"  When he needs help getting on/off/out of something.  "Ah-neh!" (amen) is the best part of a prayer and should be said loudly, no matter where you are.

 He's getting a serious opinion on things.  He loves his blue Sunday shirts and never wants to take them off.  He also hates putting on and taking off shoes, unless you mention going outside or finding your toes.  He thinks the marks that too-tight shoes leave on his feet are "Woods!" (words) and that makes the shoe-removal more exciting.  He wants cheese, not cucumbers.  He wants berries, not broccoli.  He even picked the bean sprouts out of the chow mein we had the other night. 
He also loves to make faces.  He makes this ornery face almost every morning and then laughs histerically right afterwards.  He does a very good scary version of this, where his head faces the table and then slowly he looks toward you and you can only see the tops of his eyes ... creepy, but he finds it hilarious.

Crazy how a few months ago he was a sweet little lump in my arms, and now he's attempting to become a person already!  Hopefully we can get this opinionated little man headed in the right direction.

Oh, and my favorite thing he does right now?

Kisses.  Lots of kisses.

A Real Live Girls' Night

Who doesn't love a night out with the girls to talk about boys, family, kissing, and play Pretty Pretty Princess? 

Well it's been quite some time since I've experienced one of those nights, and thanks to my awesome friends and some crappy events surrounding one of their birthdays, we decided such an evening was well over-due.

And it's going to become a tradition.  A much bigger one; we need more ladies in on this.

Anyone have any other fun ideas for a monthly girls night?

Don't you want to join?