July 4th / VA Beach / Family Reunion

This 4th of July we had a BBQ with some friends followed by a fireworks show. This year worked out great because one of the families at dinner brought an ARSENAL of fireworks to launch in the street.



A few weeks later, we drove down to Virginia Beach to spend the day with Matt's mom and dad who were down there for some business. Gotta take advantage of some grandparents' time. Paxton loved to play in the "agua."



Just last week we got to fly out to Kansas City, MO, and drive down to Branson, MO. We had reservations about Branson, but it ended up being a nice place to spend a few days. We rode a gigantic amphibious vehicle into Table Rock Lake...



...saw the quintessential a capella group of Branson, SIX...



...and spent a day on a pontoon boat riding on tubes. Paxton did fall in love with his Aunt Lisa and constantly asked for her (which gave us some nice breaks).



Paxton loved seeing his cousins too...





It was a great chance to see the family while sweating off some pounds in the Missouri heat.

Jaxen Javier

We had a baby boy on May 12. Jaxen Javier.


Raquel's mom, "Ah-bee" according to Paxton, came to stay with us for a few weeks to alleviate some of the new baby burden for a while. She was a huge help.



Paxton has certainly taken to his new brother. They are an inseparable match.



Then Matt's parents and Raquel's sister and dad joined us for the baby blessing. We did an in-home blessing to avoid the snotty children at Church.

Easter 2011

Easter was really relaxing for us. We received packages from both sets of Grandmothers (thanks again!). Here Paxton is showing off the gel eggs that Nana Ward sent. He loves playing with these decorations and they are one of the only things that actually stick to our fridge.
Here is part of his Easter outfit. He got a new suit from me and Matt, the vest and shirt came from a set that my mom sent. This was taken after church and he really didn't want us taking pictures. We made the mistake of giving him a few gifts before hand so he just wanted to play with his pez and work on a puzzle.
My cute little bunny! Paxton was very eager to help me and Matt hide each others Easter baskets. Pax helped me find mine but when he went to help Matt he ended up taking him into his room to play and closing the door. Eventually I went down and helped Matt find his basket.
We had Uncle RyRy over for dinner. This was my first time cooking ham. I think it turned out pretty well. Matt was really helpful in getting dinner on the table and Ryan was really patient because we were running about half an hour late with the food. A nap won out over cooking any earlier!

Marine Corps Museum

Saturday we went to the National Museum of the Marine Corps. We had a lot of fun. The museum has a really nice set up and was easy to walk around to see all of the displays. We were able to go through the museum with some Marine Veterans and that was really special. Everyone loved Paxton and one individual said, "Maybe you will grow up to be a Marine!"

Here Pax was listening to a display. They had a couple stations like this with multiple phones and different people's voices you could listen to.
Paxton and I were watching a clip of the United States Marine Band. Pax was conducting the band. Some of those around us thought it was so funny they recorded him!
Pax and Dadoo coming out of a helicopter.
He had to try on the helmet!
Here is a belly shot. At the museum a lady asked me if I was having twins! Then she proceeded to tell me stories of people she knew that had had twins by surprise. Seriously. THEN we went by the grocery store on the way home, a lady gave me a lecture telling me that I should NOT be walking around. According to her I need to "go home and wait for the baby to come." Everyone has an opinion.
He is almost big enough!
This is the closest thing to a smile that we got.
Matt and I also went on a date Friday night. He treated me to steak at Mike's American Grill. It was delicious! There are two floors in the restaurant. We were lucky to be placed upstairs right at the edge in the center so we had a nice view down, of the chandelier and out the front windows. BUT the design was funny because they just had some wrought iron to stop the chairs, tables and guests from falling. Being the smooth gal that I am, I accidentally dropped my butter knife through the wrought iron when I was making room for my salad. I was so horrified at the thought of hitting someone that I could not make a sound as I watched it fall to the ground. Luckily no one was walking underneath us at the time. I can only imagine what my face looked like because our waiter kept reassuring me that it happens all the time. Haha. This was the first time we have had a babysitter put Paxton to bed and she said that he handled it pretty well. He slept through the night. Now Matt and I are trying to decide if we are going to squeeze in another date before the baby comes...

Cherry Blossom Festival

On April 1st we decided to check out the Cherry Blossom Festival. Matt had the day off of work. We drove in and got this AMAZING parking spot right in front of the Washington Memorial (free parking until 4 pm).
Paxton was really excited to walk around. I let him borrow my hat because he liked it and it looked so cute on him! He has recently learned how to put his hands in his pockets.
Matt and Paxman waving "hello"!
Touching the beautiful blossoms.
Had to squeeze in a picture with my boy.
The Washington Memorial looked stunning as we walked around the Tidal Basin.
Another father and son shot. This was about the time that Paxton lost it since it was about an hour after his usual nap time. Thankfully our stroller has a good harness and a wind cover so he eventually fell asleep.
My handsome little guy!
Matt took these pictures of the Jefferson Memorial Bldg. I think he did a great job and deserves all the credit!


As you can see it was cloudy. The sun kept peaking through. When the wind died down it was about 50 degrees so it felt nice. Sometimes that wind would pick up and get cold pretty quickly. After walking around the Tidal Basin for a while we decided to take full advantage of the free parking and our then sleeping child. We wandered over to the National Art Gallery. We really enjoyed it. Once our free parking was up at 4 pm we headed up 13th street and had dinner at Potbelly's. This was my first time in a couple years to have a meatball sandwich and it was worth all the calories! We grabbed some dessert at FroZenYo. It was DELICIOUS. This was my first time at a self-serve frozen yogurt place and I told Matt we are going back again and again... I also discovered Lou Lou boutique and I must say that I am sold on their stuff! Matt got me a new ring, blue flower. Not something I would normally go with but it is perfect for spring and Easter! It was a wonderful day in DC. Matt and I completely wore ourselves out. Luckily we wore Paxton out too because he slept like a dream all night!

Dadoo

Pax just pointed to the lady in this picture and said, "Dadoo." Typically this is his reference for me, but apparently it can be applied to our female friends in Africa as well.

Quel's projects

I have finished a few projects lately and some people have asked for pictures so here they are.
These earrings I made for the YW in my ward to reward them for working on their personal progress.
These earrings I made for myself. I don't know what is going on with the pink rosettes. I don't know if they are going to make the cut.
This is the quilt I made for Paxton. This is his new blanket on his "big boy" bed. The colors and style match the quilt set we have for the crib so it looks pretty nice together. When the new baby is a couple months old they will share a room so that is why color coordinating blankets are so important.
Playing peekaboo while I was taking photos.
This picture is from last Sunday, March 6, Paxton's first day in nursery at church. He is showing off the little thing he made. Pax was very brave and good in nursery. He has gone 2 Sundays now and stayed the whole time without any tears when we drop him off. No girlfriends yet but he is just getting warmed up! And yes he wears shoes to church but those came off in the car on the way home.