So Long, California Summers

Apparently summer has ended.  I can't tell ... there's no one going back to school in our home, and the weather hasn't changed one bit.  However, local stores have not failed to remind me that fall is quickly approaching ... so let me say goodbye to our last summer in California with a few memories of our summer days.

The foremost thing that sticks out in my mind about this summer:  no oven allowed.  Being pregnant and living without air conditioning has spurred me on to try new dishes and create inventive meals that do not require heating up our whole house.  

Mark comes home from clinic and Mac nearly tackles him.  Usually he petitions for motorcycle rides around our tiny gated complex.

Lots of softball, lots of Mac yelling "Shoot it," and swinging his bat around like a golf club.

 Plenty of beach time, especially with friends.  Our favorite thing to do to escape some of the heat.  Mac wishes he could live in the water; especially at this little beach.  It is more inland, and so there are no giant waves to knock him over.  I had a hard time pulling him away; even to play on the slides and swings close by.

 We went to Angel Stadium with our whole ward.  Or a lot of them, anyway.  Mac sat in our laps throughout the entire game, which even went an extra inning.  He loved pointing out letters and players.  We sat with the Porteras and the Fritters, and could hear Tim talk politics four rows up.  All sorts of entertainment.  Also memorable:  Mac would not let baby Tessa touch me.  I began to feel a whole lot of foreboding ... 

 The fireworks after the game were particularly wonderful and scary.  Mac watched between his fingers for the first thirty seconds, and then remembered how much he liked them.  He yelled out colors and "Big one!" the rest of the show.

 We have enjoyed the local La Habra festivities, like the Citrus Fair and the Corn Festival.  Better floats in the parades, but no candy.

I know.  A little ridiculous.  At least they could've thrown corn or something.

And I quote:  "Four more years!  Four more years!"  Go Shaw family.

Love those Luhms.

 Mac discovered the wonderfulness of stuffed animals, books, and new ipod applications.  He flips through books and then holds up the pages for me to see.  He navigates that ipod as well as I do.

It has been a wonderfully humid and hot summer.  Can't say I'm not a little excited to see it go in hopes of cooler temperatures ... but I can't help but feel a slight twinge. 

Are we really moving in a few months?

A Lead on Our Future?

So far, here are our options for our future life:

A.)  Josh Gunn -- St. George, UT

• Pros: Lives in St. George (close to family), runs his business the way Mark would like to.
• Cons:  Lives in St. George (has a kajillion chiropractors already), and already shows Mark everything he knows thanks to brotherly love and similar lifestyles; Mark could learn new things elsewhere.  Also, we wouldn't plan on it being a permanent thing.

B.)  Jamie Something -- Palm Springs, CA

• Pros:  Has a great practice set up that brings in a lot of people, has a lot of character strengths that Mark could learn from.
• Cons:  Lives in Palm Springs; a dry, hot, touristy dessert that is still so very far away from everyone.  Mark doesn't think it would be so bad, except that he is sick of California.  I just really don't want to live there.  I need snow on Christmas day.

C.)  So and So (can't remember his name) -- Pocatello, ID

• Pros:  Lives in Pocatello, a small town (which we really would like) that got on Forbes' top 10 list for places to start a small business.  Also, it's an hour away from my family and from Grandma Smith.  Maybe two hours from cousins.
• Cons:  This guy is looking to sell his practice straight up ... Mark would need to buy a practice fresh out of school (we have no money) and make the whole thing run smoothly (he doesn't have much experience with business).  Plus, Mark is worried about Pocatello winters.  But he says if he can buy a huge, sweet truck and have a garage to put it in, he's okay with it.  

D.)  Something or Other - Provo, UT

• Pros:  This guy is the chiropractor for the BYU football team.  Mark is super excited about that.  His practice consists of three chiropractors, but they're looking for one more.  He believes that chiropractic really heals people, and feels that a huge part of his role as a successful chiropractor is to help new chiropractors get going so that the whole world can get adjusted if they want to.  He is willing to do the internship with Mark, make sure he has enough money to survive, and then would hire him on as a full time co-worker.  They could split the cost of running a business four ways.  Also, Provo is just about right in the middle of every single family member on both sides.
• Cons:  Growing up an Aggie, I always felt a little weird about Provo people ... but one thing California has taught me is that weird people are usually pretty awesome.  And lets be honest here, it might really just be me that's the weird one.  Also Mark has always said he wanted his own practice to run his own way, so this isn't exactly what he had in mind.  Could it be better?  Maybe.

 What should we do? 

There's still a little time to narrow it down or add new options ... but not too much.

Never Gonna Ever Get Enough Stuff

Isn't that a song?  A country song, I'm pretty sure.

Describes Mac perfectly. 

Lately he is so incredibly possessive.  Everything is "Mine!" and sharing has been quite a battle for us. 

When he gets out of the tub, he tries to bring all his toys with him.

When he gets out of his crib, he tries to take all his blankets and teddy bears with him.

When he says he's finished eating and I take him out of his high chair, he immediately grabs whatever leftovers he can find to bring with him.

Am I ruining him?  Is he just a typical almost-two-year-old?  Am I going to be able to teach him how to become a kind, sharing, helpful human being?  Some days I feel like pulling my hair out...

Maybe he can tell that I've been trying to get rid of stuff lately.  We'll probably be moving at the end of the year, and with a baby on the way, I've been trying to get a jump start on gutting out our house so that there is less to move.  The other day I pulled out all the stuffed animals we have and held each one in front of him to figure out which ones he actually cared about.

He suddenly cared very much about every single one of them.

And he wanted to carry them all around for the rest of the day.

This newly found possessiveness is making me think that the arrival of Little Sister will be the best and most frustrating thing that has ever happened to him.  I won't lie, I am getting a little nervous for that whole adjustment ... but mostly I am relieved.  Bring on the forced sharing and turn taking!  Mac needs someone else to practice on besides Mommy and Daddy and his poor poor friend Seth.

Final days of the Finals Stache

Mark had a big day the other day.  He took the last finals he will ever take in his life. (Hopefully.)

He was very excited.

He wouldn't let me take a picture of his attire (probably because he knew I would put it on here ... honey!  It's for posterity.  Our kids need to know how cool you are...) but I did get his little mustache.  Otherwise, his class sent out an email asking that everyone try and combine all of the "dress up" days they had randomly had over the years ... like "Two Shoe Tuesday", "Hawaiian Shirt Thursdays", "Finals Facial Hair", "Tie Tuesday,", and who knows how many others.

Mark has a pretty sweet class. 

Mark wore his 'stache, a t-shirt and shorts, mismatching crocs, and a tie.

Congrats, Markus.  Now just two sets of boards to go, and you are DONE!

MacAlister Gunn, Man of Muscle

Mac is growing up.  He is becoming opinionated and masculine.  Today we were at Mark's gym during his lunch and Mac watched some guy lift for a bit.  Then he turned to me and said, "Ooo, big one." 

At home I hear "I strong," quite a bit, and he loves to show off his muscles and shout about them in a gravelly voice, especially if Daddoo is showing his off too.

 He even has the intimidation factor going.  When he needs to tell me something very serious, like which shoes he wants or to turn on a movie/words, he gets up in my face and looks me right in the eye.

 He loves to play dead and then jump up with a "Boo!" 

Nursery is one of the best places to be ... and he doesn't care one bit if he sees us while he's there.  He points and waves and then goes right back to what he was doing.  He has learned to fold his arms and walk reverently (which he now occasionally does at home), and I think he must have learned "No way," there.  He says it quite frequently all of the sudden and I can't figure out where that came from.

His favorite color is blue.  That and green are the only ones he can correctly name at the moment.

 Trains and cars are two of his favorite things, and when we go outside he likes to sit on our tiny grass hill and point out all the cars and trucks that drive by.  If we are very lucky, we get to see a train cross the street nearby.  When we walk down to the tracks, he enjoys drawing circles in the dirt and throwing rocks at a big wooden box.

 His favorite songs include "Happy and You Know It" (because of the "hooray" part), "Itsy Bitsy Spider", and "Ooey Gooey".  He still loves the movie "Cars".

I specifically love this picture because it looks like a perfect cheesy little school picture smile.



But don't be fooled by this little man of steel, he definitely has a soft side. 

When he sits on my lap, he arranges my arms around his waist just so.

If you play dead, he kisses you to wake you up.

Although Nana recently bought him "Finding Nemo", which he does indeed love, his favorite show is still "Little Mermaid".  It has songs and kissing, which he frequently asks us to rewind and play over and over again.

I'd say, all in all, he is a well-rounded little man.  I kind of like him.

4 Years

Four years ago today, I woke up and put on a lot of makeup. 
Ceely did my hair, and Brittany came over to film everything. 

I put my wedding dress on before I got to the temple.  Nobody said you usually do that once your there.  Jamie cried when I got in the car with Mom.

We picked up Mark from the Logan house, crammed to the limit with all sorts of Gunns.  It was hard to fit Mark in the back of our miniature car dubbed "The Mallow" with my wedding dress.  But I just remember laughing a lot.

We sat in the waiting room for a while; they couldn't find our information from our Bishop.  After all we had been through, I remember thinking they would literally have to pick us up and toss us out, because I knew we were supposed to be there.

The bride's dressing room looked like something out of Jane Austen's Pemberly from Pride and Prejudice.  That's when I realized you were supposed to put your wedding dress on there. I wished I had; only because I wanted to spend more time in that ornate room.  Another lady was there waiting for her daughter to come out.  She and my mom tried not to cry as they talked about us. 

I came out of the dressing room and Mark was waiting at the end of a long, blank hallway.  I remember wondering if it was okay to run in the temple.

We waited in a side room while they filled our sealing room with family and friends.  I asked Mark why he was marrying me.  He said I had great legs, among other things.

I wish I could remember what the sealer said.  I can't.  I remember I liked holding Mark's hand.  I remember feeling like we fit very well.  I remember Aunt Lori's black and white dress; she was sitting across from me.  I remember seeing a few people cry, but I only remember feeling like I wanted to jump up and down.

I remember kissing Mark over the alter, and being conscious of everyone watching us, because I knew he was.  I remember being excited to kiss him without everyone there.

When we came out of the temple, countless new nieces and nephews ran right at us and bounced off my dress.  I loved that.  They thought I was a princess.  Mark was adorable with them.  Very Prince Charming-ish.  I felt very glad I married him.

Grandpa Johnson came out of nowhere and hugged me.  I couldn't believe he was there; he hadn't been to Utah in years ... maybe since Jake was born.  I wish I had had more time to talk to him.

Pictures were random and hurried.  I could tell Mark was tired of them.  I still thought it was fun.  Jamie came everywhere with us and arranged my train and helped with my flowers.  She was still teary-eyed.

At the luncheon, Mark tried to run away from me when everyone started clinking their glasses.  I grabbed him and layed one on him.  I decided that every once in a while throughout our eternity, I would force him to do things he thought were awkward.  I felt like he needed me.

Our reception was green and beautiful.  Kids were running around everywhere.  I loved it.  Taylor and Natalie colored in the little coloring books I made for the nieces and nephews.

By the end of our reception, I thought my face might fall off from smiling so much at all the wonderful people who came to wish us well.  I remember looking at Mark and realizing I hadn't said much of anything substantial to him all day, besides our little talk in the temple.  I was glad we were leaving on a honeymoon immediately and would have a whole week to ourselves.

Mark had to talk to a lot of people he did not know, a lot of which told him he'd better take care of me, or else.  He did a great job.

I had never wanted a line to begin with.  Just a party.  It formed anyway.  Oooh us Utah Mormons are sure stuck in our ways.  After it disappeared, Mark went to test out the chocolate fountain.  The keeper of the fountain, dubbed the "Chocolate Nazi", told him he couldn't have any or he would spill on his tux.  When she wasn't looking, he took some.  It spilled on his tux.

As we drove away from our reception on the scooter, Nickole and Tiera followed us and took pictures.  I hoped they wouldn't follow us all the way to our apartment.  They didn't.

Josh got the "most awkward brother" award for the day as he had to pick us up from our apartment and take us to our car, which was still at Von's Park.  He was supposed to bring the whole car, but instead just brought the keys.  It was a funny drive.  I tried not to laugh.  Mark and Josh were both silent.

Mark told me I was "very pretty", and he started that statement with a "wow".

Today, four years later, I woke up to Mark kissing my forehead and saying good bye as he left for his morning shift at the school gym.  I promptly went back to sleep.

Mac and I both slept in; when we woke up Mark was already coming home.  Mac jumped up and down when he saw Mark walk in his room.

I made Mac some eggs; Mark made Mac some oatmeal and yogurt.  We watched Mickey Mouse clubhouse.

We toured Birth Centers and talked about childbirth, doctors, and the body's abilities to do things itself.  Mac talked about snacks, water, and elmo.

Mac tried to jump in a fountain, I told Mark to grab him.  Mark just watched Mac and said, "You're going to put your mother into labor."

We ate at JoJo's Pizza .... something I've been craving for months.  Mark said he couldn't be any happier.  I felt that way too.  Mac got a sticky thing from the 25 cent machine.  He ran around and flipped it, yelling "Circles!" and "Got you!"  I think he was happy too.

And now my boys are sleeping, and little miss is wriggling around inside of me.  It seems like we just got married, and yet it's hard to remember some of the details of life before my own little family.  I remember having some big adventures planned (including being a princess at Disneyland and studying abroad) before I met Mark.  It seemed like anyone could have a family, but I wanted to do something unique.

A handsome man in an Olive Garden uniform made me decide I would rather do all those adventurous things with him, or not at all.  And you know what?  There's a reason why most people try to have families.  There's a depth, a trueness, a happiness, and a completeness here that just can't be found anywhere else.

And with a family, the adventures do not stop, and are all the sweeter for having THE someones of your life to do them with. I have loved my adventures so far, and can't wait to see what the rest of forever brings.

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.