Random thoughts...

Last night we went on a bikeride. It was super fun. I have to say that Joel's biking idea has been his best yet this Summer.:) I got a bug in my eye and mysteriously pooped on by a bird, but we still had a great time. We rode to a nearby park and found a bikepath close to it that led us over a neat little bridge. P did NOT want to leave the park, but was alas persuaded and we began our ride home. Uphill was not nearly as much fun for Joel, who was pulling P.

I could've sworn Preston was having a bad case of PMS this morning. I know it's not possible-because he's 2 and well, male of course-but man! He was crabby. He cried for various crises involving his juice cup being empty-and then because his juice glass was full-and also because I put away the bag of chicken nuggets we had just bought into the freezer and grabbed the already open one to make him lunch. His meltdown was a result of him thinking he was NOT going to get any chicken nuggets. Tragic. All of this makes me value naptime. He's still a really good napper-and when he's 7 or 8 and stops taking naps, I think I'll have a hard time with it. Ha!! I kid-really! 

The past couple nights P has been VERY affectionate. In church Wednesday night, he kept giving Grandma Sharon 'googly-eyes' and big cheesy grins. He loves her!! Then, last night-he began a hugging marathon-where he'd give Joel a big squeeze then me, then Joel, then me...This went on for about 10 minutes.:) I could say I got tired of it-but that would be a lie. I loved it!! I told Joel that when he's a teenager-he won't want anything to do with us. Basically, we need to enjoy this 'attention' while we can. After all-it makes up for the mornings he makes me endure the PMS!!

Here's my favorite pic from the hugging marathon! This is when he was playing 'My Daddy!' I like to egg him on by hugging Joel and saying 'MY Daddy'...

Monday Blues

The weekend was a blur. I hate it when Sunday night comes, and you wonder where in the world the weekend went! I'm hoping these Monday Blues are gone by tomorrow, but then again-it will be Tuesday, so that should be a definite. We had a great time with the In-Laws here, and Saturday was so fun, celebrating JoAnn's 30th Birthday!! We had a surprise-party for her, which she suspected!! Grrr! It was still fun though, and the kids all had fun playing together-as usual. My Mom made her famous double-decker, iced, chocolate-fudge cake. SO yummy!! That's the reason I was excited for the P-A-R-T-Y...oh yeah, and my sister's Birthday!!!:)

Preston with Aunt Annette:

Aunt Charity giving Preston a horsey ride!

Preston wanted to have a slumber party...didn't think that would work out!!

Vacation...so sad it's over.

It was great to get away...Nice to spend time just us again, see the sights, and enjoy being together. Our first night there was in a pretty nice hotel. We ate in the restaurant there, and then went for a drive. Pretty sure we saw a dead man...on the side of the road. A police officer was with him, shined a light in his eyes, and called it in. The man was either passed out drunk...or dead. Either way, he didn't move a bit. Didn't look good. We went for a swim in the cold hotel pool and called it a night.Friday we got up and checked out of our hotel, to drive to 'the strip'. Wow!! So much to see, we were overwhelmed with where to start. We've heard of things we should do in the area...places to go, etc. But there was SO much!! We parked our car in a casino garage and headed across the street to Ceasar's Palace. I'm convinced we could've spent the day there, seeing everything. The Forum shops were amazing (but over-priced.) We had fun looking around, and then met up with Leah and her boyfriend. We then checked into our hotel for the last 2 nights (the Sahara, what a dump!) After checking in, we went and ate at the Rainforest Cafe. What an amazing place!! Every half hour, it 'stormed' and you'd hear lightning and thunder...The ceiling looked like an amazing sky at night. That was by far my favorite place we ate!!

Saturday and Sunday were spent walking around...ALOT. I wonder how many miles we walked this weekend. Our legs were so sore! We got to go to the top of the Paris tower. What an amazing view at night!! I also enjoyed waking up in the mornings and heading out to swim and lounge by the pool. I could get used to that!!:)

Joel and I are already talking about next time we go...:) We want to go to the top of the Stratosphere, see a show, and drive out to Hoover Dam...(none of which we did this time.) I also never want to take a red-eye flight again. Just something about ending a vacation completely drained that puts a damper on the week ahead.

P had a great time with his Grandparents! We're so greatful he was in good hands. He keeps talking about Sharon going bye-bye...He really misses her! I think we're all sad vacation is over.:)

Vegas, baby!:)

Ok, Vegas-here we come! NWA adjusted our flight schedule so that we would arrive in Las Vegas 2 hours later than original, so Joel called and talked to them today, and now we get to fly out on the 4th (instead of the 5th) at no extra charge! VERY impressed with Northwest Airlines. They get 2 thumbs up. I'm busy doing laundry and trying to get things together for myself and P, who will be staying with Grandpa and Grandma Wiese! I'm nervous about being away from him for 4 nights!! But, I know he's in good hands. Mom said she bought a boys' potty-training book to read to him. Well, that's GREAT! If she can accomplish that while we're gone, she definitely gets extra credit!! Actually, maybe we should just stay away an extra week or two...

We're so excited to take a trip together! The last time Joel and I traveled was to Denver, Colorado and I was 6 months pregnant. It was a GREAT trip though, and we knew it would be our last for a while. I'm excited for Vegas, it seems like there is so much to do there! It looks like our hotel the first night will be close to Hoover Dam and there are SO many outlet malls in the area, deep breath, and there is the Las Vegas Speedway where you can eat lunch in the crew pit and DRIVE a racecar!! Ok, that part sounds so fun to me, but would probably cost a small fortune. Also a must is the M&M's store. A whole store, devoted to M&M's candy, gear, etc! Who knew?!

I'll post pictures and a trip "review" when we return. Thankfully, I'll be taking pictures in style, because Joel surprised me with a new digital camera of my very own!! I think he's glad I'll stop using his, ha! Here's the first picture I took with new said camera. Viva Las Vegas!

Wonderful Water Weekend

The weekend went too fast, as usual! We were finally able to go to the Water Park on Sunday. It was a little breezy, but Preston didn't seem to mind. He had a blast in the water, with Daddy! He is normally 'afraid' of the toddler play area and doesn't want anything to do with it. In fact, last time I was there with Mom, the ONLY place P would play was the motion ocean. Well this time was different, and P was pretty much a FISH! He played and loved the spouting water and did NOT want to get out! Every time I got close he would CLING to Daddy and insist on staying in. I thought he looked too cold and should cuddle in a towel for a while, but NO way!!:) It was a fun time, even though we weren't there for that long. Maybe we'll go back on the 4th? That may be a little crazy though.

Preston, lounging-on a rare moment OUT of the pool!

Bless You

Sometimes I miss that cuddly baby stage, where P would just nap on me and cuddle! Soo fun. But, then I'm reminded that the older they get, the more it gets entertaining, with PERSONALITY kicking in, big time!...Wherever he is, if P hears me sneeze, he runs in saying, 'Bless you Mommy, Bless you!' Sometimes it's just nice to be noticed.:-) 

We had the In-Law's here for the weekend. P had so much fun showing Aunt Charity all his toys. She's 6. It sounds weird to say he has a 6-year-old Aunt, but she is loving her role! She is Aunt to 3 toddlers, and is a little mother to them!! I should've gotten some pictures of them to post, but it was such a busy weekend, I didn't even think of it, until they had left!

We've been enjoying riding bikes! Since we've been married, Joel's wanted us to ride bikes together. So, 4 1/2 years later, we got ourselves some bikes! Of course now we need the pull-behind carrier, for P. He loves it! The first time I took him for a ride, I didn't hear a PEEP out of him the whole way, until the very end. I went down a steep curb and he came down it and said, 'Whoa!' from behind...That's the only thing I heard out of him the entire ride. Now he points at the bikes in the garage and says, 'Fun bike!' Yep, he knows. When Joel's Dad was here, he took him and his brothers riding out to Lake Cunningham. I'm going to ride out there one of these days, too. But haven't made it that far yet. When I go, I'm gonna make sure Joel's pulling P, because those hills are killer with him riding behind!:)

Summer Fun

We had a busy week last week with VBS every morning. Bible school was a Summer tradition for us growing up, so I'm glad for the chance to be a part of one again. This was Preston's first year of VBS, and being in a classroom setting for Bible school. I think he really enjoyed his time with the kids and for the most part really liked the puppets and songs everyday...when he wasn't too busy trying to run from me.:) All in all it was a fun time and while he was in class with his buddies, I got to help out with the Juniors, (4th through 6th grade.) WOW! They are such a smart bunch!! Do you know you know the show, "Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?" Well, I know I'm not...but being around these kids showed me exactly how smart they are...and the fact that I am not! The theme this year was dinosaurs, so Preston got to take home an inflatable dinosaur! JUST what we needed.

We're looking forward to celebrating Father's Day...hopefully with a trip to the Fremont waterpark.:) Tonight we're having friends over for dinner, so it seems it will be a very fun weekend. Next weekend Joel's family will be coming!! They haven't made it out since last August, so it will be neat to have them here again.

Here's a picture of Preston from church last Sunday. LOOKS innocent enough, doesn't he?:)