Our Family - M.L.J.C.B.

A Day At the Beach

2012-01-22T12:18:00.000-08:00

It's been pretty chilly the last two months, but yesterday was perfect. We've been to the beach countless times, but we have so much fun that I always seem to forget to get pictures or video. So yesterday I made it my mission to get some video showing our typical beach day. My favorite parts are Chan saving his hat from Benjamin's mouth (and the look he gives him after), Benjamin's face when he touches the water for the first time, and Jessica running. I wanted to intentionally do a corny shot of the water coming and rushing over our names, but it was such a low tide that any writing wouldn't hold, so you'll see what we did which is probably even more funny. I didn't add video of another beach tradition - getting Dunkin Donuts for the ride home and Chandler falling asleep 5 minutes before we get home. As for the music, we all love Brett Dennan, especially Jessica. This is a picture she made for him back in June when she would listen to "Sydney" and "Comeback Kid" every day. What's funny is that this is a fairly good representation of what he looks like.

Rice Cereal... Finally!

2012-01-08T12:58:00.000-08:00

Benjamin has been practically begging for this day for quite some time. Solids! I've never seen a baby down baby food so well on his first feeding. My little guy is growing up!

A Little Christmas Morning Video

2011-12-25T11:44:00.000-08:00

Just a little something I put together from the video we took this morning.

December

2011-12-23T11:08:00.000-08:00

So far this month...

Michael went to Washington D.C. for work.

The kids ate fried chicken in a hotel bathtub (don't ask).

Michael went to Puerto Rico for work and couldn't find a surf shop to rent a board, despite perfect waves. Poor guy. :)

Laura turned 27!

One of the things Michael got me for my birthday was a big set of cookie cutters.

I've been practicing putting them to work.

Chandler is a big fan of my new hobby.

Since Christmas break began we've been playing at the park, going to a local (and sadly underwhelming) train museum, venturing to Disney, and exploring a nearby walking path.

Benjamin is perfecting his sitting-up skills.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Family Pictures 2011

2011-12-16T16:06:00.000-08:00

I love family pictures! Although the process itself isn't always a walk in the park (especially with 3 little monkeys), we've always had great results thanks to awesome friend photographers. I love these! Thanks Angie and Keith!

In this one we were trying to recreate a picture from when we were engaged (the picture from back then is just below). Holy cow! We definitely look older. Ha ha. Too funny!

These last few I just had to share because they are just TOO funny! This is reality in all it's glory! :)

He's showing off his muscles.

Yeah, the ground wasn't too comfy.

My favorite. :)

Christmas Card 2011

2011-12-07T06:21:00.000-08:00

I promised Laura that I'd keep it shorter than last year's. But here's a quick review of our year. We love you all!

(and you can play it in HD if you watch on YouTube - just click the YouTube button on the bottom-right of the video)

St. Augustine

2011-12-03T19:16:00.000-08:00

We had such a good time at Ponce Inlet, that we decided to go yet farther north today to check out St. Augustine, the oldest city in the United States. Little did we know, we got there just in time for the city's Christmas parade. Once we saw the bands, bikers, Tea Partiers, animal shelters, and St. Nick, we moseyed on over to the old fort. I've been to the Spanish fort in Omoa, Honduras probably a dozen times, and this fort was similar, just probably a third of the size. And since we're apparently into lighthouses now, we then drove over the local lighthouse only to find that Chandler and Benjamin would not be allowed up. Chandler was heartbroken until we convinced him that the Ponce lighthouse is not only taller, but way cooler anyway (we'll be back soon). It was again, a fun weekend.

Thanksgiving Trip to Ponce Inlet

2011-11-24T07:11:00.000-08:00

We had a blast at the Ponce Inlet Lighthouse. The kids made it up first and were quick climbing all those stairs. Here are a few highlights.

Jessica

2011-11-12T06:15:00.000-08:00

Some of Jessica's cousins answered these questions and she was excited to do the same. Here's a little about Jessica.

THREE NAMES YOU GO BY

1. Jess
2. Jessi
3. Jessica

THREE THINGS YOU ARE WEARING RIGHT NOW

1. Hello Kitty
2. I don't have anything else I'm wearing right now
3.

THREE THINGS YOU WANT VERY BADLY AT THE MOMENT

1. A Lalaloopsy Doll
2. Craft Stuff
3. A cooking kitchen

THREE PEOPLE WHO YOU HOPE WILL DO THIS

1. Sydney
2. Kate
3. Natalee

THREE THINGS YOU DID LAST NIGHT

1. Kyler came over to our house
2. Played Tarzan
3. We pretended that we were in the ocean

THREE PEOPLE YOU LAST TALKED TO ON THE PHONE

1. Daddy, when he's gone on trips
2. Grandma and Papa
3. Grandma and Grandpa

THREE THINGS YOU ARE GOING TO DO TOMORROW

1. Go to church
2. Go to singing time
3. Go to Primary

THREE OF YOUR FAVORITE DRINKS

1. Pink lemonade
2. Tickle Juice (soda)
3. Water
(4) and milk

THREE THINGS THAT MADE YOU SMILE TODAY

1. Chandler
2. Benjamin
3. Kyler (last night)

4 Months

2011-11-10T13:30:00.000-08:00

Time is zooming by and our little Benjamin is getting less and less little by the day. This boy sure lights up our home.

He's a little chunk compared to Jessica and Chandler at this age. His 0-3 month clothes are long gone and the 6-9 month stuff is fitting better and better by the day.

Length/Height - 25.5" (75th %)
Weight - 14 lbs 10 oz (50th %)
Head Circ. - 16.5" (50th%)

These are almost identical stats to Chandler... at 6 months old. Let's just hope Benjamin doesn't pass him up anytime soon.

(sorry if I'm giving anyone hives with the half-blurry picture)

Benjamin is always talking up a storm and I swear he tries to imitate what we say half the time. He rolls from back to front, but he's still working on going the other way (darn that tummy-time). Just recently he's been grabbing things and shoveling them straight to his mouth. Most of the time he gets super frustrated at those toys that are just so crazy appealing, but won't fit in his mouth quite right.

This little man is always drooling and still hasn't outgrown major spit-up issues. I had a soccer-mom friend trying to convince me that he was teething. But seeing how Chandler was toothless at a year old and Jessica wasn't much further ahead, I'm not holding my breath.

He's getting better and better overnight, occasionally giving me a full night's sleep, but more often he wants one or two feedings in there. No complaints here.

He ADORES his brother and sister. I think his favorite thing is when the two of them come over and give him lots of smiles, love, and attention. He just smiles and laughs.

We sure love our little Benja-bunnies! Our home just feels so much more complete with him around.

Dinner in France

2011-11-05T06:17:00.000-07:00

This month it was Jessica's turn to choose a place for our daddy-daughter date. When she heard there was a French section in Epcot, it was an easy choice. Because we were going somewhere "fancy," she wanted to dress the part.

Traffic was horrible, but we made it just in time for our reservation. She loved the halibut, fries, french bread, and especially the crème brûlée (just not the top, which I was happy to finish off).

(she was a little shy with strangers taking our picture)

Then we were off to explore Epcot.

You can tell we've been in Florida too long when Jessica is freezing in 67 degree weather (here in the London section). That was swimsuit and sprinkler weather back in Idaho.

Our favorite was some lemon soda from Israel.

We had lots of fun in Norway.

By Italy, it was way past bedtime. We got to Morocco and then France, completing our circle "around the world." Needless to say, she was out cold within a minute of getting in the car. But I think she had a good time with daddy and I sure love every minute I get to spend with my little girl.

Ghouls and Goals

2011-10-29T20:54:00.000-07:00

We've had a fun weekend so far.

Thursday evening we carved our pumpkin. Once the kids saw what the inside looked like, they were mostly content to sit back and observe rather than take part in the scooping and carving.

Friday night was our ward's Halloween party. Jessica and Chandler came up with their own idea for costumes this year - chickens. Well, technically Jessica wanted Chandler to be a chicken and she would be a rooster (because she knew how to say "cock-a-doodle-doo" and Chandler didn't). :) I didn't have the time or motivation to get crafty with costumes, so we grabbed matching ones from Old Navy. I think they are the cutest little chickens I've even seen!

Sadly these costumes would have fared much better in a colder climate. Poor Chandler was so sweaty. It didn't take long before they had both stripped them off. Luckily they each had BYU gear on underneath so they still looked somewhat "dressed up" and coordinated.

Saturday morning was Jessica's last soccer game of the season. We had a rough start and at first I wasn't sure whether Jessica would ever want to step on a field once the season was over. Around here kids can join a team as young as 3 years old, and many do. Jessica's 5 & 6 year old team had a lot of very experienced players and she could tell she was at the lower end of the team's talent. There was one game early on where she clung to me crying the entire time, refusing to play. I think she just felt nervous and confused as to exactly what she was supposed to be doing. Luckily the coach was great and worked with her throughout the year. Little by little she gained her confidence. She grew to love being goalie and only let in one goal the entire season.

Her last game couldn't have gone better! The coach told her just to shadow him around the field so she would know where to be. She loved the direction and when her chance came she scored a goal!! I have never seen so much joy on her face! She couldn't help but run over for a congratulatory hug after the fact.

I'm so glad she's grown to love this sport and is already wanting Spring soccer to start.

Benjamin

2011-10-17T19:34:00.000-07:00

I feel like poor Benjamin is already getting 3rd child treatment with very little face-time on the blog. So here he is in all his glory. We sure love this little guy!

Benjamin is three months, 10 days old. Like Chandler, he has a pretty mellow personality and is pretty content to hang out and watch the excitement going on around him.

He is one happy little man and it isn't hard to get a laugh out of him. Not even Chandler can resist him when Benjamin gets a grin going. When Benjamin gets excited it is a full-on kick and wiggle fest. We've learned that you have to strap him in good into his bouncer chair or he will literally wiggle his way out onto the floor. It was a big surprise the first time when I turned around not sure how he got from the chair to the floor.

Benjamin loves his fingers! He's (thankfully) willing to take a binkie, but I'm positive we'd have a little thumb sucker otherwise.

Benjamin is an all-around perfect little addition to our family. I can't imagine life without his big blue eyes or the chunkiest thighs this family has ever seen. We love you Benja-bunnies!

Our Own 5000 Day Project

2011-10-09T18:40:00.000-07:00

BYUTv came out with an incredible show called the 5000 Day Project. You can check it out here. The show tracks the lives of two brothers as they grow up and face various challenges. I thought it was a great idea so it became our Sunday activity today. I interviewed both kids, asking questions ranging from "What do you want to be when you grow up?" to "What's your favorite Book of Mormon story?"

I put together a few highlights and hope you get as much of a kick out of it as we did. Hopefully in 13 years we can have a production worthy of BYUTv...or at least something the kids will want to hold onto and show their kids someday. Enjoy.

School Pictures

2011-09-30T21:02:00.000-07:00

Jessica got her school pictures today. We think she's such a beauty. And just for comparison, here am I back in Kindergarten. I'm not sorry to say that I think Jessica's way cuter!

Goofy Kids

2011-09-16T19:10:00.000-07:00

Before going to bed tonight this is what we saw...

I'm not sure how either of those are comfortable. Crazy little goofs.

And here's a few of Benjamin, who is getting to be such a cute little man.

Beaches and Blessings

2011-09-13T20:21:00.000-07:00

We've had a fun month so far! As you saw in the last post, Jessica just started soccer. Although she's one of the less experienced players on her team, she's having a good time and learning a lot.

Chandler loves the practices too because he gets to run around and play and look super cute. :)

The first weekend in the month we had family come for Benjamin's baby blessing. We were pleasantly surprised by how many people were willing and able to come all the way out for this. My parents as well as Michael's dad came. Saturday morning Michael, Jessica, Chandler, and Papa (Michael's dad) went off to play at the beach. I stayed back with Benjamin to wait for my parents and catch up with them once they arrived.

Jessica was excited to try out her new boogie board.

Chandler gave it a try too...

but decided that eating Skittles from Grandma up on the sand was more his style.

Before long he was back out in the water with Daddy while Jessica took her turn with the treats.

They finished the morning making drip castles and meeting some cool creatures.

Playing at the beach with Papa is always a good time!

The next day was Benjamin's blessing. What a lucky guy to have a Daddy and two Grandpas worthy and able to be a part of such a special thing! I'm still mad at myself for not getting some pictures of just Benjamin, but these group shots are pretty great too.

That night everyone, minus Benjamin and I, took a drive to the temple to wander the grounds. Apparently Papa is an expert creature catcher. He was able to catch several lizards at the temple and then a frog just outside our apartment. Jessica and Chandler thought it was super fun to have a real frog inside, even if it was for just a few minutes.

It was great to have everyone around for some much needed family time!

Here Comes Jessica

2011-09-06T05:47:00.000-07:00

Future BYU class of 2024 signee, Jessica Hales.

Laughing

2011-08-26T07:43:00.000-07:00

I love when you finally get some love and recognition from these little guys!

Birthdays and Babies

2011-08-23T09:45:00.000-07:00

I've kind of gotten a kick out of the comments from the last post saying that Jessica looks so excited waiting in line and all the other kids look nervous. Well here's what she really looked like before we caught her attention for the picture:

So far she is loving school, although there have been a few moments of drama and just plain tiredness from the full day (I'm still kind of annoyed by the full-day kindergarten thing).

In addition to just starting kindergarten, she just turned 5!! Michael and I decided that we'd only do a "friend party" every other year, in order to save our sanity. We were just going to celebrate as a family this year, but with the move and all the changes relating to that, we figured it might help Jessica to get to know a few of the kids better and have a special day for her. She decided on a "Pajama Party." Three of her little Primary buddies came to play games, decorate little pillows, and eat cupcakes - very low-key. But she had a blast and I'm glad we did it.

Even Chandler had a blast. :)

That evening Jessica and I have some girl time and went to a nearby mini golf place. She had a great time and has been asking to go back ever since.

Sunday (on her actual birthday) we did cake and presents. She was super excited when Michael brought out her new boogie board for the beach!

I've also realized that I haven't posted anything new about our little man for almost a month. Poor child. :) He is getting to be such a big guy and such a cutie! He had some jaundice hanging around at low levels (nothing at all dangerous), which made his eyes a little yellow, but luckily that's just about cleared out. Here's a few of our newest little man:

Kindergarten

2011-08-17T08:50:00.000-07:00

How is this possible? Jessica is in Kindergarten! I still have really mixed feelings about this, but I know she's ready and (for the most part) is loving school already. She started on Monday.

Michael was lucky enough to be in town that day and his hearing wasn't until later in the day. We both came to drop her off (along with Chan and Benjamin). She was such a little sweetheart waiting in line outside her classroom.

I just about lost it as she followed her teacher and classmates in. Michael and I had a hard time walking away. Chandler took it pretty rough too. He knew his main playmate was now gone for a good chunk of the day.

Daddys and Daughters

2011-08-08T06:49:00.000-07:00

Michael has made an effort for a few years now to take Jessica on the occasional Daddy-Daughter date. Jessica LOVES them, no matter what the activity happens to be. This time Michael just wanted to keep it simple and have time to talk with her about the upcoming school year (1 more week!). They went to the mall for ice cream. Jessica was SO excited when she got home and couldn't wait to show me this:

How cute are they!? I feel so lucky to have these two cuties in my life.

Disney World

2011-07-31T16:48:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Michael's friend from LA, Kristin, he was able to take Jessica and Chandler to Disney World yesterday. Naturally, the kids had a blast and were able to stay late thanks to coming home for dinner and naps. Michael put this little video together today.

Some random things:

When they got to the Mexican area in "It's a Small World," Jessica yells out, "Look Dad, they have a section just for California!"
Jessica caused the entire Peter Pan ride to shut down for a minute when she tried to jump back onto a ship after getting off the ride. Oops.
Jessica beat Michael's score on the Buzz Lightyear laser shooting ride.
Chandler's favorite ride was Aladin's magic carpet ride.
Jessica's favorite was Pirates and now she likes to say, "Dead men tell no tales." Oh dear.
Jessica stopped us at a seafood restaurant, but she didn't get crab legs...
They went to Hollywood Studios, Animal Kingdom, and Magic Kingdom.
Chandler has now experienced the frozen chocolate banana. And he's in love.

Grandma, round 2

2011-07-24T19:53:00.000-07:00

After Michael's fabulous mom left us, we welcomed another fabulous grandma to stay a week. The kids have had fun with so much Grandma time.

8 days

2011-07-15T10:56:00.000-07:00

Benjamin is eight days old. Wow! What a fun week its been for us. Grandma came to play and the kids have been in heaven! Here's what we've been up to...

Meeting Grandma for the first time:

Benjamin's first "real" bath (he was not a big fan):

Jessica and Chandler have been little fish all week at the pool with Grandma. Jessica loves going under, Chandler loves doing "BLAST OFF!" into Grandma's arms as well as shooting whatever he can find with his new water gun.

Mid-week Benjamin and I had a postpartum visit with my super awesome midwife Jennie. LOVE her!

Today Jessica and Chan got some new floaties. It makes Chandler a little too brave in the water. :) Michael has the afternoon free, so he came to play as well.

What a week we've had! I've been able to sleep and relax and the kiddos have had a crazy fun time!

Does it get any cuter than this!? No, it does not.

2011-07-10T06:59:00.000-07:00

Benjamin. Three days old.

And here's Chandler... same shirt, about the same age. Little twins.

Our cute crew!

2011-07-09T07:54:00.000-07:00

A few more pictures

2011-07-08T05:45:00.000-07:00

Benjamin David Hales

2011-07-07T02:03:00.000-07:00

7 Pounds, 3 Ounces, 21 Inches

Welcome to the family little guy!

An Update

2011-07-05T11:02:00.000-07:00

Just like last time, here's a throw-down of everything that's been going on since I last posted. We're still loving things, despite the increasing heat.

Father's Day - I love the M&M bow tie... too cute.

Downtown Disney... again. After giving the kids some ideas and options for our Saturday activity this was their top choice. We were a little baffled b/c last time, although it was fun, was also hot and tiring for them. But off we went, riding the ferry boat to the other side this time.

Chandler, as always, was constantly wanting something to drink. Sorry for the blur.

Florida State. We went along with Michael to a hearing he had up in Tallahassee. Before playing at the hotel pool that night, Michael took us to the Florida State football stadium. Unbelievable! I have never seen anything quite like it. Huge, but also really, really nice as stadiums go.

Bike Parade. This past Saturday our ward had a bike parade and breakfast. Jessica loved every second and I lost track of how many times she circled the route. Chandler was thrilled just to walk and wave his little flag.

Book Worm. I love that my kids love books. It's always fun to walk in on them "reading" to themselves. This morning I woke up to Chandler singing/reading Old MacDonald in his room. Love it!

Fourth of July! For the most part our 4th of July was pretty laid back. We drove down to the beach, but it was so ridiculously crowded (duh) that we just came home to play in the pool instead. But we finally did something we've been talking about for years... I let Michael get a new surfboard. I'm sure we'll have lots of pictures to post once it's ready in a couple weeks. That night we went and watched the local fireworks. It was fun, but we were all exhausted by the end and ready to go home to bed. Jessica said her favorite were the orange ones and Chandler (not surprisingly) liked the green ones, although in reality he was pretty scared of all of them b/c of the noise.

Baby. I wish there was more to report on this front. I'm not even 39 weeks yet, but man I feel ready. I'm sure part of that has to do with the fact that in relation to due date, Chandler would have been born last Saturday. Jessica was a week early. So I know I'm expecting/hoping for an early baby this time around too, but I should probably stop that. The longer he can get bigger and stronger the better... I guess. :) And we're still up in the air on names, so any suggestions would be just lovely.

Downtown Disney

2011-06-19T19:03:00.000-07:00

I feel like people must just hate us reading about all of these fun things we've gotten to do lately. We sure feel like we're spoiled.

Michael has been doing a lot of traveling with work lately. Luckily he's close by the rest of the month, but he had the chance to go to New Orleans this past week. For the most part he was just in court and the airport, but he got to wander around the French Quarter a little bit. At a restaurant he ordered some type of meat and they asked him if he wanted it as a po' boy. He said rather than try and figure out what they were talking about he just fessed up and told the server that he had no clue what she was talking about. :) Turns out it's a traditional Louisiana sandwich, filled with any variety of meat, usually fried. Exciting stuff. According to people we've talked to since he got back he also should have sought out pralines and beignes. Next time.

The French Quarter

We've decided to make Saturdays our field trip day. The kids have been bugging us about going to Disney World since we pulled into town, but we wanted to take some time to ask around and figure out what really is the best way to do it (season passes, black-out dates vs not, etc). We decided to start out with one of the few free things to do at Disney World - Downtown Disney. For the most part it's just a bunch of shops and restaurants, but there were a lot of other fun things too. There was a LEGO store with life-size Lego sculptures, even a huge dragon in the water.

Outside one of the shops Jessica and I posed with some princesses.

The boys found something a little more manly to pose with (Jessica had to pop in too).

Inside parents could spend $250 at the Bibbity Bobbity Boutique to have their little girls get their hair done and dress up like a princess. Yeah, we didn't do that one. :) Jessica was happy just to pose with a few things inside (she has a very long wish list now for her birthday and Christmas).

They had just a couple of simple rides for kids that we went on - a train and a carousel. Chandler was in heaven on the train. He's still pretty much obsessed with anything train-related.

The poor little guy was NOT a happy camper when he had to get off.

But a ride on the carousel helped calm him down a little.

Jessica loved it too.

We went into the Rainforest Cafe and T-Rex Cafe to look around. They had some fun displays.

Jessica is pretending to be scared of the dinosaur behind her. Chandler really was kind of scared of the dinosaurs so he and Michael went back outside for a bit.

On our drive back home it was around 100 degrees and we were melting. But it didn't take long for clouds to start gathering and by the time we were home we had a downpour and dime-sized hail. We were just happy for the quick temperature drop... and the fact that the hail didn't dent our cars. Apparently it just gets worse as hurricane season gets closer. I love thunder storms, so no complaints from me.

And that was our fun weekend. Don't hate us, just visit us. We'll play with you too.

Beach Bums

2011-06-16T19:57:00.000-07:00

I feel like we are permanently on vacation here. No complaints. :) The kids and I spend most days hanging out by the pool or just having some warm summer fun. We spent this past weekend at Cocoa Beach. Jessica is still talking about the massive surf shop nearby. She wants a boogie board and Chandler is already asking for a green surfboard (his favorite color).

Jessica is looking sad because she had just tripped and really scraped up her knees. But she insisted on going on into the shop.

Earlier this week Michael had hearings in a couple cities down south. He booked a hotel in between and we came along for the fun. I'm going to be sad once Jessica starts school and we actually have to be a little more home-bound. And I suppose this upcoming baby might change a few things. :) The beach we played at this time was in a town called Juno Beach. SO fun! They had markers all over so people knew that there were sea turtle nests in certain spots and the beach itself was COVERED in shells. Jessica was in heaven. She and I spent a good chunk of the time collecting while the boys went out and body-surfed. Chandler is quite the brave little fish when he's with Michael.

These are from the night before when we went down to look around.

We're here

2011-06-07T19:47:00.000-07:00

Wow! What a month it's been! We made it across the country in one piece and we're just about moved in. Maybe I'll post some pictures of our new place down the road, but it's pretty bland at the moment.

Since our last post...

~ Michael went to North Pole, Alaska for work and visited Santa's workshop as well as some museum he thought was really cool. The kids loved the candy canes he brought back.

~ Jessica had preschool graduation. We barely got to attend this as we drove out that night.

We have just LOVED Miss Kris and we're sad to be leaving her and all of Jessica's good preschool friends behind.

~ We packed up (thanks Adam!) and took one last picture in front of the house. I was surprised at how ok I was with leaving our first home behind.

~ We hit the road for a few hours so the next day wouldn't have to be a crazy drive. Michael's new firm was kind enough to give us lots of time off for the move itself. It meant we could keep the daily travel time to a reasonable minimum. We wanted to take a picture of ourselves at the hotels each night, but we never made it past night #1. Here that is. Goofy little cuties.

~ We discovered that Carl's Jr. is not Carl's Jr everywhere. Start heading east and all of a sudden "Hardee's" appears. Who knew?

~ The kids and I were able to take a ride up into the Gateway Arch in St. Louis. Michael had wanted to come too, but there was no parking for a big old moving truck anywhere nearby. Poor guy. It was a long wait for a pregnant lady with two restless toddlers, but I'm still glad to say we went.

(See? I was there too.)

(I think this was supposed to be a pirate face, but I'm not sure why.)

(They had a section talking about the river boats. Jessica loved pulling on the boat whistle)

~ We got to stay with Michael's sister Carly and her husband Michael in Tennessee. The kids LOVE these two and were sad to leave the next morning. We're excited that they're having a little boy just after us - hooray for cousins!

After getting to our new place things have been pretty crazy for Michael in terms of his work schedule. For the most part he'll just do hearings around this part of Florida, but the firm kind of had to fill in the blanks with him for this last week since the local stuff was already scheduled with other attorneys. He's been in Alabama, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Miami, Texas, and Louisiana just in this last week. Luckily he's back in town Thursday and will be around most of the time after that. While he was in Miami this past weekend we drove down to see him and play.

The water was crystal blue and 80 degrees. I could get used to this.

So other than daily trips to our apartment complex pool, that's what we've been up to. We're loving our new place and we're ready to welcome Michael back to it. We're also ready to welcome any other visitors that want to come and play!

Good-bye Nashunda

2011-05-15T08:16:00.000-07:00

A couple days ago we said good-bye to Nashunda, our trusty Camry. I got Nashunda from my uncle back in the summer of 2003. It was 9 years-old at the time and I thought it was old back then. I wanted a Maxima, but since I wasn't paying, I didn't have a real choice in the matter. Little did I know that this would be the best possible car and that it would serve me, as well as my future family, for another 8 years. I put an additional 81k miles on it, bringing the total to 208k miles.

Unfortunately, with the move to Florida and the new job that will require near constant driving, Nashunda just wasn't going to make it. A kid from down the street needed a car to get to school and back and his dad thought this was the perfect car for him. It was painful handing over the keys. This car got me through BYU, the trip to Zion Nat'l Park where I proposed to Laura, law school in San Diego and Idaho, and through the first two years of my career.

I just reserved an Altima in Florida that's ready for me to pick up when we get there in 2 weeks. I'll pick it up and immediately have to take it on a road-trip for some case I'll be doing in other southern states. Hopefully it'll be as good a car as Nashunda was.

Our Little Man

2011-04-30T09:05:00.000-07:00

We went in for one more ultrasound this past week so they could check a few more measurements on our little guy. I was so happy at the end when they gave us a couple 3-D pictures as well. It's amazing to already be able to see what this kiddo looks like.

Families Can Be Together Forever

2011-04-24T16:27:00.000-07:00

My big brother got married this last weekend. At the luncheon the older nieces and nephew sang "Families Can Be Together Forever." Too cute. Enjoy!

Big Changes

2011-04-18T18:13:00.000-07:00

I guess our future has finally solidified enough to announce all of the big changes coming up in our family. Really big changes.

A few weeks back the law firm Michael was working at announced some big financial strains and decided to lay off all of the salaried associates. Michael was included in the group. It was crazy, scary, and humbling, all at the same time. We have been so incredibly overwhelmed by the love, support, and generosity of friends and family. I hope all of our friends who took time out of their schedule to help us in the job search know how extremely grateful we are to them. Because of one of these great friends who was happy to pass on a resume and a recommendation, our unemployment period lasted all of 1 1/2 weeks. Whew!

Michael has been offered a position with a law firm based out of American Fork. They only do work in federal courts, so luckily we won't have to take another Bar exam (something we had been seriously considering). He'll train for about 6 weeks there in Utah, while staying in the basement apartment of an old mission buddy (again, we have SUCH amazing friends). I'll be holding up the fort here in Idaho while we try and sell our house. This is one of the few big stresses remaining - trying to sell in this market. We're optimistic, but who knows.

After his 6 weeks are up it's off to ORLANDO, FL where we'll be long-term (whatever that means in "Hales time"). We are SO excited about this fun new adventure! Warm and sunny will be a big change for us compared to the 9 months of winter we've been dealing with lately. :)

So that's our excitement. Despite the way it all came about, we're SO excited for this new chapter in our lives. And we will absolutely be taking any visitors that want to come play in our (soon to be) new hometown!

It's a...

2011-03-05T20:56:00.000-08:00

BOY!!!

First off, I was 100% sure this little man was going to be a girl - like no doubt whatsoever. This really threw me for a loop. It's not as though I'm at all disappointed, I just have to completely rearrange my perception of what this little one would be. But we are THRILLED! Well, three of us are thrilled. Jessica literally almost started crying when we told her. Poor thing. So far everything is looking great and we can't wait to meet this little guy in person!

He was sucking on his fingers the entire time. Too funny.

Don't you just love the teeny little feet?

Boy or Girl?

2011-02-23T07:55:00.000-08:00

The ultrasound is scheduled for a week from Saturday (March 5th)! So now you have lots of time to vote in our lovely poll to the right. Here's some info so you can make a nice educated guess:

~ I was much sicker this time around than I was with Chandler, but much less sick than I was with Jessica.

~ I was super tired all of the time for the first few months this time around. I was that way with Chan, not with Jessica.

~ Jessica wants a girl, Chandler wants a boy.

~ I stopped being sick about 16 weeks along. Jessica took just a little longer. With Chandler I was doing a lot better closer to 12 weeks. Now Michael will deny this and tell you that I was actually really sick with Chandler a lot more than I remember. :)

So there you go! Boy or girl? We'll find out on March 5th. And here I am at 19 weeks. Yes, that's The Jimmer van behind me. :) Seriously, is there anyone that likes these pictures of themselves? Didn't think so.

The Jimmer

2011-02-16T18:11:00.000-08:00

We've gone about a year with one car, but with another kid on the way it was time to get something a little bigger. Michael jokes that he's a true romantic because he got me a minivan for Valentine's, but I love it. My favorite part is the built-in DVD player, except it isn't a DVD player...it's a VHS player. It feels so retro that it's kind of cool. And keeping with tradition, we named the car. And out of respect for the Great One, we named it The Jimmer. Here he is.

We were going to get more pictures, but it's been snowing like crazy, so those will have to wait.

2

2011-02-10T08:49:00.000-08:00

My little Bubs turned two yesterday. As I lay next to him at bedtime, he told me that it had been a super fun day. Here's the run-down.

We started off with a pre-breakfast cookie, that luckily he didn't each much of. After dropping Jessica off at preschool, Chandler and I headed over to the library to look at their fish pond for like 45 minutes. He spent another 15 minutes stuffing every remotely interesting looking book into my bag. I think we came home with well over 15 kids' books. His favorite so far is The Little Engine That Could. Trains, of course.

After leftover chicken soup and rolls for lunch (again, his choice), he went down for his last nap with a binky. Here he is snuggling with Monkey. Yes, that's the monkey's name, and yes, Chandler named him all by himself.

Keeping up with the obsession with trains, Chandler asked for a Thomas the Train cake. I am not a cake decorator. I have no cake-shaped pan. I found some random tutorials online about shaping a cake and decorating it, but it just didn't seem like my skill level. Then I discovered Wal-Mart had cheap-o mini cakes that included, you guessed it, Thomas. Usually I think store-bought cakes are a waste of money, but it was WAY less than if I had had to go and buy a bunch of frosting tips/bags or something. So this is the year of the store cakes.

We let Chandler pick the dinner menu - hot dogs. OK, I can appreciate a good hot dog, but only under certain circumstances. Campouts, BBQed, that kind of thing. It's like 0 degrees outside people. But Michael braved the cold for his little man and dragged the grill out.

Chandler loved every bite. He ate two hot dogs, one bun, and a HUGE orange. This boy can eat when he wants to.

Michael was quite impressed with Chandler's eating skills.

Next it was present time! When Jessica turned two, she got a bag of lolly pops for her birthday and she was THRILLED! It's amazing what a couple of years can do. Chandler did quite well this year. He still only got a couple of presents from us, but they were a little nicer than lolly pops. :)

Cake time! Chandler was there when we picked up the cake and it took all of his will-power not to grab it and try to pry off the plastic cover. He was glad when the moment came.

The frosting was VERY blue and we had lots of blue fingers and faces afterward.

Yeah, the blue teeth are HOT!

And Chandler did amazingly well without a pacifier last night. I stayed with him while he fell asleep and he slept until Michael woke up around 6. No crying and screaming in the middle of the night.

I love my Chandler!

New Haircut

2011-02-10T07:38:00.000-08:00

Chandler's New Haircut:

I just love his goofy smile.

As of Lately

2011-02-06T14:22:00.000-08:00

I feel like I've been MIA from the blog for a while, but it really isn't because of anything major. In fact life has just kind of been going on as usual, without too much exciting to update about. But here's life for the past little while.

Right before Christmas I found a huge bag of random cars and trucks at a thrift store. After a great deal of sanitizing, it made an awesome Christmas present for Chandler. In the lot were two Thomas & Friends trains. Chandler is now OBSESSED with everything train-related. He carries these two trains around everywhere he goes and is not a big fan of sharing with Jessica. I'm super excited for his birthday in just a couple days where he's getting some Thomas PJs and some wooden track to go with a couple more trains. Lucky little guy.

Now that I don't spend all day curled up on the couch while the kids run wild, I've tried to get more serious about chores for these two. Jessica is relatively competent at several jobs, but it takes more creativity to help Chan feel involved. The solution? A spray bottle filled with water. He can go to town at a bunch of windows around the house and (sort of) wipe it off with a rag. He loves it.

The past week around our house can be summed up in two words: pink eye. Ugh. I hate having sick kids. Jessica's came and went within just a few days, so other than a quick call to the doctor's office, she healed on her own. Once Chandler starting getting goopy we gave him the same number of days to clear up. No luck. It spread to his second eye and was showing no signs of clearing. Off the doctor we went for some $90 eye drops. I guess I was thinking with something as common as pink eye the drops would be part of the $4 Wal-Mart Rxs. Oh well. That's what insurance is for.

So that's life at the Hales house. We're coming up on 18 weeks for this little baby. Sometime in the next couple weeks we should have our ultrasound and know which kiddo will be lucky enough to get bunk beds in the next few years (Jessica SOOO wants it to be a girl and I think this is the main reason). What say you? Boy or Girl?

A Little Sunshine in January

2011-01-16T19:21:00.000-08:00

We had such a great time last weekend! Michael's brother just came off his mission to Australia and we were so excited to welcome him back! The fact that the family was gathering in (semi)-sunny Southern California didn't hurt either.

I'm still kind of in shock that Adam is old enough to be on a mission, much less home from one. This is still how I think of Adam, the way he was when we first met. Yeah, he no longer just comes up to Michael's shoulder. :)

And this is Adam now all... grown up. Crazy! All you single girls in Rexburg better beware.

While the whole family was together we took some super cute family pictures. Talk about a good looking family, if I do say so myself! :)

Michael with his siblings and parents.

Grandma, of course, had to take the opportunity to spoil the grand-kids while they were around. Here's Jessica and Emma with their beautiful new dresses.

And it doesn't get much cuter than these two - Chandler and Tyler. Chan was is heaven all weekend, always having buddies to play with. It was quite the change from being stuck with a Mommy who has been sick on her back since end of November.

And after a long break from the ocean, Adam and Michael, along with their cousin Mason, were able to get back in the water for some (freezing!) surfing.

No Explanation Necessary

2011-01-13T07:23:00.000-08:00

July 12, 2011

Honduras Video

2011-01-01T15:38:00.000-08:00

When Laura and I went to Honduras, I took a ton of video, but because I didn't load the files to my computer properly, we could never watch or edit all the video we took. During the holidays, I had some time to look into a conversion and found one online. It was free, but added a watermark of the company's logo (I'm cheap and didn't want to pay them to take it off). So here it is. It's taken 10 months, but we finally have video of our trip! You can click on the video to watch on YouTube in HD.

Our Merry Christmas

2010-12-31T14:11:00.000-08:00

On Thursday before Christmas, we drove down to SLC to visit Grandma and Grandpa Evans. It was wonderful to see them and the kids had a blast getting presents and seeing the lights at Temple Square.

We drove back home on Christmas Eve. The kids opened their PJs from Grandma Hales, set out cookies, and were off to bed.

Christmas morning was a blast. I mostly took video, but here are a few of the pictures we got.

Da Jesus Book is Hawaiin Pigeon translation of the New Testament. Michael likes it because it's fairly close to Belizean Pigeon. His Sunday School likes it too. It's also online, but he loves having the book.

After presents we were able to get Michael's family on Skype so we could all listen in on Adam's last call home from his mission in Australia. We'll be flying to LA in a week to see him and are so excited. His other calls home have been bittersweet since we miss him so much, but this time, it was just like "Get home already!" He, of course, feels the opposite, but we don't care. Two years is a long time. And he's never even met Chandler since he was born a month after Adam left for Australia. Can't wait.

Happy Birthday Babe

2010-12-18T21:47:00.000-08:00

Yes, that is a Cold Stone ice cream cake.

Hales Family Christmas Card 2010

2010-12-13T08:24:00.000-08:00

This year we decided to keep life a little simpler and do without our regular Christmas card. Maybe we'll pick it backup next year... we'll see.

Instead, here our "Christmas video" for the year, made by Michael, with music selections by Jessica.

Merry Christmas to all of you!

Our Little Lady

2010-12-11T09:02:00.000-08:00

Jessica has been begging for years to have her ears pierced. I took her shopping at the mall the other day to get birthday and Christmas presents for mommy. We passed Claire's just as a little three year-old was getting her ears pierced. Jessica was adamant about getting in the chair right then and there, but I told her no and that she could only get it done with mommy there. She was persistent so the next day we went back and now here are the pics.

And yes, she cried a little...

What we've been up to lately...

2010-12-01T12:26:00.000-08:00

Snow Man and Snow Ball Fights

And warming up with hot chocolate after.

Dry Ice!

Preschool Presentation.

The Christmas tree! Yes, I had it up a few days before Thanksgiving, and I was super happy about it!

"Poof-it." Chandler wanted nothing to do with this. Jessica is still undecided about the whole thing.

Apparently Thanksgiving pictures are still on the camera. Another day.

Ugh

2010-11-08T15:01:00.000-08:00

Saturday:

Monday:

Halloween

2010-11-05T08:32:00.000-07:00

We had a super great, super fun Halloween. Friday night our church had a "trunk-or-treat" party. Jessica was only 2 the last time she'd been trunk-or-treating, so she had no idea what she was supposed to do. Chandler had never even been trick-or-treating before. They both figured it out really fast. Their candy haul just from that was impressive. Saturday night was the big night though. Since our city is about 30% LDS or so, it's not at all uncommon to do trick-or-treating Saturday night when Halloween falls on a Sunday. I think anyone who doesn't have a problem with Sunday trick-or-treating is just happy to have two days worth. Chandler could not believe what was happening. He's usually a pretty reserved guy, but man, pretty quick he was the first one up to each door with his bucket held out, giggling. I kept asking them if they were cold or ready to be done. Nope. We were out there over an hour. I had to drag them back inside. I actually confiscated a good chunk of their candy to use as stocking stuffers. Oh yes I did.

Family Pictures

2010-10-30T20:52:00.000-07:00

Have I mentioned that I LOVE getting family pictures taken? LOVE LOVE LOVE it! My super talented friend Ruth (ruthmechamphotography.blogspot.com) did our pictures this year and I am so happy with the results!

Happy Halloween From Chandler

2010-10-30T09:16:00.001-07:00

Careful... it's pretty spooky. :)

A True Fan

2010-10-24T12:19:00.000-07:00

Dora? No. Miley? Nope. When this girl gets to pick out a poster for her room, she wanted the Cougars.

Pumpkin Patch!

2010-10-19T13:17:00.000-07:00

Jessica's preschool class took a field trip this week to a pumpkin patch. Chandler and I tagged along for the fun.

We started with a fun stroll through the hay maze:

Chandler loved the little pumpkins...

and the rocks.

Yeah, mostly the rocks.

While Chan was busy throwing rocks, Jessica went off in search of the perfect pumpkin.

Perfect.

Next the kids piled on a mini train for a ride around the patch. Chandler is only there for the photo op. I know him well enough to know he wouldn't last two seconds on there w/o me.

While the preschoolers were off on their ride, Chandler stayed busy jumping off of a mini-ledge. This kid could be happy for hours just jumping off of street curb size ledges.

See, I was there too. It always amazes me how few pictures there are of me in existence. I guess that's what it is to be Mom.

This little photo shoot was too funny. We couldn't come close to having all the kids look at us, much less smile. Goofs. Oh, and see the little boy in the red striped shirt? That is Luke. He's the boy who's has captured Jessica's heart. Her first crush at 4 years old. Oh dear.

Jessica and Chan (and there's Luke again) :)

Even though he didn't want to ride on the train, Chandler wanted a picture with it. This is the face he makes whenever we tell him to smile. I love that boy.

Speaking of Chandler, this is him today, with Sprite and Saltines. Poor guy was up all night throwing up. He's been content today just to lie on the couch and chill.

That's my boy

2010-10-08T15:54:00.000-07:00

Yep, he's a cutie.

Family pictures next week, so be excited for that... I am. I LOVE LOVE LOVE getting family pictures taken. Pray for good weather next week. Pictures were supposed to be today, but this darn wind and rain. Ugh. Anyway, I'll post some cute ones in the coming weeks once they're all taken and edited and all. SOOO excited!

Daddy-Daughter Trip

2010-09-26T17:22:00.000-07:00

Michael got a call at the last minute from another attorney who had two spare tickets to Saturday's BYU game. Rather than try and find another ticket or get babysitters, we decided just to let Michael and Jessica make a day trip out of it.

Jessica is a total daddy's girl, so she was all for it, even if it meant a long drive. When they got to Provo they hiked the Y together. Jessica did almost the entire hike by herself. When they got to the top she asked, "Where's the Y?" Michael explained that it was the big white stuff near them. "You mean all the fake snow?" I'm still not sure she believes they were actually at the Y. They gave Chandler and I a call at the top. Chan HATES when Jessica is away, so he was sure glad to hear her voice.

After the hike down they went across campus and got Jessica a new BYU soccer t[-shirt at the bookstore. I am still in shock that Michael resisted the BYU fudge. Seriously... shocked.

After that it was off to the football game. Jessica loved all the fun and excitement, as well as the fact that she got popcorn and ice cream for dinner. Michael told her BYU won - better than the trauma that would have resulted otherwise.

(yeah, not exactly the most flattering picture.) :)

On the car ride home, just before she was about to fall asleep Jessica told Michael that "this was the best day of my life." I think it was a success.

Preschool

2010-09-08T11:36:00.000-07:00

How on Earth do I have a preschooler? When did this happen?!

Jessica started preschool this morning. I told her earlier that today was the big day. She got a nervous look on her face and said, "But Mommy, there's just one problem - I don't know how to read." Cutie. I also told her that on the first day her teacher, Miss Kris, wanted parents to come too. She tried to be nice, but told me that she would rather go alone. She is such an oldest child. She loved every second and I'm excited for her to have some time to just have fun and learn a few things too. :)

Life has been rather typical beyond that. But even typical is lots of fun and silliness with the goofs we have in this house. The other night we had some soup with beans dinner. Jessica is now fully aware that she has to eat all of her dinner if she wants any hope of a snack later on in the evening. She was trying to stomach the beans and Chandler was quick to copy her example.

They just make me smile. And here are a few others, just because they're fun.

It's Game Time

2010-09-02T11:46:00.000-07:00

It's that time again. After the crazy off-season we had, it's finally time to start college football. To kick it off, I was able to go down to Provo last night for the first Wednesday night coach's show with Greg Wrubell. It's a new show on KSL and every week Wrubell will interview Bronco, a former player, and a current player in the President's Loge there at the stadium. Tom Holmoe was the former player last night and was the perfect guest after the busy day of declaring independence in football. I made it down with a couple guys from work.

To get into the broadcast, you apply on the KSL site by writing a little statement on what BYU football means to you. I wrote about an experience I had while on my mission in Belize and was informed a couple days later that I was in for the first broadcast. Well before the broadcast began, Wrubell was up on the stand prepping when he stands up and asks if Michael Hales is in the audience yet. I said I was there and stood up while he walked over to me and told me that he loved my mission story. We talked for a few minutes about it and then he let me know that he forwarded the story to Bronco who in turn let Wrubell know how much he appreciated it. I sat down thinking that was it, but then I was surprised when, with 10 minutes left in the show, Wrubell read my entire story on-air. It's condensed quite a bit, but I'll let you hear it from Wrubell.

After the show, Mark Lyons and Tom Holmoe came and spoke to me a little about my story. We spoke for a while about Belize, independence, and future schedule. It really was just an awesome night. We got to go up to the media box at the top of the stadium box as well as see the new turf. Tom (yeah, we're on a first name basis now) talked about what a headache getting new grass in the stadium has been and that it would blow my mind if I knew how expensive it was.

We thought about waiting a bit to talk to Bronco, but he had a big crowd around him, and he had just been on air talking about how he likes to get back to his family right after work, so we decided not to bother him. Besides, we had a long drive home to worry about. Very fun trip and I was glad someone else liked my story about Brother Pollard.

Now, let's play some football.

The "Beach"

2010-08-28T11:39:00.000-07:00

This last week Michael walked to work in 37 degree weather. Yeah, fall starts a little early in Idaho. So realizing that summer is quickly ending, we decided we better get out to Rigby Lake before it's too late. We made the mistake of telling Jessica it was like a beach. She's constantly begging for us to move back to California where she can go to the beach everyday, so you can imagine her delight when she learned there was a "beach" in Idaho.

The kids had a great time and our little stunt-devil Jessica had a blast on the slide out in the lake. In fact, the first time she and Michael swam out there, she went down all by herself. Luckily she had floaties on her arms, but it scared Michael since he planned on going down with her the first time. Now to get her to stop plugging her nose...

This was how they got back and forth between the beach and the slide. Chandler had a great time too.

The water was cold, but we'll have to go back a couple more times before we're stuck in the house all winter.

Jessica's had a fun time playing dress-up since her birthday. Here are a couple of her shots.

Jessica's Birthday Video

2010-08-22T10:38:00.001-07:00

Jessica's Fourth

2010-08-22T09:57:00.000-07:00

Jessica's birthday was yesterday. It's hard to believe that it was four years ago that I missed my first day of law school, and a third-row seat to a Padres game because Jessica decided to come a little earlier than we expected. In such a short amount of time, she's gone from this:

to this:

We started out the day with Jessica's first first trip to IHOP. I can't believe that we've never taken the kids out for breakfast before.

The nice waitress even brought her an ice-cream sunday, for breakfast! I have a feeling that she'll be asking to make this a more regular part of our mornings...

Jessica had a couple friends come over for a princess party lunch. They had a blast painting, eating, and playing dress-up.

Jessica had a great day. I just can't say enough about what a fun, energetic, and sweet girl she is. She's a great example to her little brother and he just adores her. Laura and Chandler were a little sick and had to go to bed early last night, so Jessica and I stayed up late and made a movie quickly reviewing her life. I'll add it here in a second. We love you Jessica!

This is what happens when kids are left alone.

2010-08-19T19:51:00.000-07:00

I left the kiddos downstairs while I got started on dinner. Big mistake. A few minutes later Chandler comes upstairs. This is what I saw:

That is all my foundation (makeup) covering him from head to toe. Seems like Jessica (who was also covered) felt like getting creative. His hair is CAKED! This was not a job for tearless shampoo, poor kid. I'm just still in shock that we only had a couple spots on the carpet. Goofy kids.

August So Far...

2010-08-15T18:56:00.000-07:00

I figured I better get a quick recap on here since we haven't posted for a while. We've been traveling quite a bit since my eye surgery and it's really been a fun month so far. We really got things kicked off when we flew to California for my sister's wedding. Thankfully, there's a new direct flight from Idaho Falls to LAX so that took a lot of headache out of the trip. This is already Chandler's second flight and something like Jessica's eighth. I don't think Laura flew until she was taking college recruiting trips.

I still see Carly as a little 6 year-old, so it was shocking to find out she was engaged. But Michael Byram is a great guy. The wedding was perfect and we had a great time. All the festivities were awesome. We had a dinner Friday night before the wedding and then the wedding was Saturday morning. Jessica had a blast the entire time. She was able to play with cousins, get spoiled by her grandparents, and dance essentially the entire weekend.

After the wedding we had the reception at the Westover's house. I can't imagine anyone more generous than they are, especially when I had to go over late at night to drop off supplies. It's also where Laura and I had our reception 6 years ago so it was fun getting back there. It was a busy couple of days, but I was able to get out surfing with my cousin for an hour early Saturday morning before the wedding.

We flew back Sunday and were able to get a little rest after the whirlwind weekend. We had a few days to get back into our routine before we drove to Boise last Wednesday. I had some "continuing legal education" classes to go to so the family came along. While I was in class, they were able to go to a place called Rafiki in the morning where the kids could play.

After lunch they were able to go to a water park in Boise. Unfortunately, we didn't get any pictures of the park, but it was a blast. Jessica had fun going down the "scary" slides (that she probably wasn't tall enough to go down) and body surfing in the wave pool.

After Boise, we had to take off for Salt Lake.

It was hot and the kids needed a little break so we got them push-pops. Sure it made a little mess in the car, but they were in heaven for a few moments. Once in Salt Lake, the kids were able to play with their grandparents while Laura and I went off to celebrate our sixth anniversary.

Jack Johnson was playing so we got some tickets. This was my first concert ever, unless you count Donny Osmond at Stadium of Fire when I was 14 (I don't). I actually got suckered into getting tickets to a Shakira concert in the Dominican Republic, but she got sick and canceled just as the show was set to start. Speaking of the D.R., my buddy Matt and his wife Maggie went with us.

The concert was great and I was excited that Jack played my favorite song, Go On. I was happy since it's not his most popular song, but I think anyone with a little girl who's growing up too quickly might like it. It was a great anniversary.

After driving home on Saturday, Chandler gets nervous every time we get in the car. Poor kid never knows if we're going around the block or on a trip to another state. Lucky for him, we don't have any immediate plans to go anywhere other than a possible camping trip in a couple weeks. But it was all fun and we realize just what a great couple of kids we have.

The Blind Can See

2010-07-24T09:18:00.000-07:00

Michael's wanted to get Lasik for 10 years, but his prescription never really stabilized (all that reading in school?) and plus it was just expensive. After graduation he looked into it again, but by then he had dry eyes and a prescription so high that Lasik was no longer a great option. Lucky for him, there's now a Lasik alternative for people in his position. It's call Visian ICL and the procedure involves planting a rectangular lens under the cornea just in front of the natural lens. Michael's optometrist recommended the Eye Institute of Utah.

You can see the information right there on the bottom right. He went in for the initial exams and within a couple of days, we were all back for the operation. While we were in the waiting room, we could watch video of the surgeries that were going on. I tried to keep Jessica distracted while I got video of Michael's operation, but she got a glance and I hope she's not scarred for life...

I've decided not to embed the video of Michael's surgery on this page. I will, however, include the link to the YouTube video that he uploaded, but having the image of his eye clamped open here...well, it's kind of disturbing and I realize that some of the more squeamish readers might want to read this post without having to look at that screen shot, even if they chose not to watch it. But check out the video if you can. I think it's pretty amazing when you can see the lens actually inserted under his corneal flap and then positioned into place. Again, not for everyone, but check it out if you can:

Michael's Visian ICL Procedure

It was amazing how quickly the surgery went - probably 20 minutes for both eyes. Then they had him take a nap for 2 hours which wasn't a problem with all the drugs they'd given him (he doesn't remember the surgery even though he was awake the whole time). They checked his eyes after and right away he was 20/15 in one eye and nearly 20/20 in the other. And that was it! He loves it and almost cried when we woke up the first morning and spent a few moments feeling around for his glasses before realizing that he could see the ceiling. Now he can't wait to go surfing or swimming without worrying about loosing a contact in the water.

After we were done at the Eye Institute, we went downtown to celebrate with my parents. We all went to the Garden Restaurant on top of the Joseph Smith Building and had a great time. I love these pictures we got on our way over.

Chandler loves being the little buddy.

The views were great up there and dinner was perfect.

Jessica wanted one more treat before driving all the way back to Idaho Falls. She's discovered the joys of push-pops.

Well finally, I should add a picture of Michael with his new eyes.

Haircuts

2010-07-09T22:06:00.000-07:00

I guess it was time to mix things up a little. Jessica hasn't had a cut for a long time and she just looks so dang cute with short hair. She's been begging to get a cut so I went with her and got a trim myself. Here are the before and after shots:

And yes, she did jump into her swimsuit as soon as we got home... Oh this girl!

Nothing too crazy for me - just a trim.

And Michael wanted to throw this is there since we went to Chuck-a-Rama tonight. It's his favorite place (rolling eyes). But after tonight, it's Jessica's favorite as well. It's a simple formula really - strawberry ice cream and gummy bears with no limits!

Chandler's Sprint

2010-07-09T19:40:00.000-07:00

Chandler really needs to work on his form, but he sure is a fast little monkey.

Independence Day!

2010-07-05T18:07:00.000-07:00

Last Friday night, Jessica was so excited that she just couldn't get to sleep. This was a problem because we were planning on getting her up early Saturday (you'll see why in a second). She eventually got to bed and before she knew it, we were waking her up again to start our super Saturday. We crossed the street to the church so we could have a pancake breakfast with the ward. It was a lot of fun and we were able to meet a few more people in the ward. Then by 9am we were heading over to the parade route. Even though we moved and can really see the parade anywhere we'd like, we ended up by Laura's parents' house out of habit and had a great time this year.

Last year it was really hot for the parade, but this year it was cold and windy. It was actually much better than 90 degree heat, but I felt bad for all the kids trying to sell water and Hawaiian ice along the route. Jessica had a great time and couldn't get enough of all the horses, cheer teams, and beauty pageant winners.

She was soooo happy when Ms. Idaho Falls waved to her and told her how pretty she was. She loved to talk about how the princess (she was wearing a tiara) waved RIGHT at her. It was a good time.

When the kids started getting a little cranky, a fruit snack carbo load did the trick and they lasted another half-hour or so. Then we walked over the river so we could get some lunch. Jessica got a hot dog and the rest of us had corn dogs. The $3 lemonade killed me, but we were thirsty and, hey, it's a holiday.

We got home and Jessica was in her swimsuit in a flash...just in time to help me wash the car. Jessica's sneaky and loves to get people wet though so you have to be careful.

Chandler wanted to play some ball and does his best to get that little tennis ball into the hoop, but it usually just falls behind him. Oh well, he has a blast with it and it really is fun to see him get excited.

We got the kids up early so they would hopefully take a nap. Well this is no problem for Chan since he's usually begging for naps throughout the day. Jessica on the other hand, well that takes work. But the combination of the early wake-up call and all the festivities that morning left her fairly tired. She actually took a nap, which we really needed her to do since the fireworks don't get started until after 10pm - it just stays light for long up here. We had dinner with a couple of other friends and their kids and I got to bust out my BBQ'in skills one more time. It was a good time and I wish I would have taken some pictures of the Cahoons while they were here. They were friends of ours up in Moscow and we're happy that they're ending up at a firm close by.

Right before heading back to the river for the fireworks show, Jessica wanted to show off her sparkler skills.

We had some warm coals going so we had one more snack. The kids were in heaven, but it left Chan completely worn out. He fell asleep before the firework show so Jessica and I ended up going together. We were late, but found a good parking spot and watched the firework show from the bridge. It was so worth it just to see Jessica's face light up with every firework. I had to carry her back to the car and as we were walking she whispered in my ear that today was one of the best days of her life. I think going to Disneyland last summer in still holds the #1 spot, but it she had such a fun time and I'm glad I got to experience it with her.

And yes, I feel like a slacker for not having a video to post here.

Utah and Slurpees

2010-06-29T12:18:00.000-07:00

We went down to Sandy, Utah this last Friday to go to the reception of one of my roommates, Nolan. He ended up marrying the sister of another roommate so it was fun to see all the guys there. We were all roommates back when Laura and I started dating so she had fun seeing the guys too. Nolan's in the Navy and one awesome guy.

It's a funny story how I met these guys, all of whom are from Texas. Back in 98' I went to a cross country camp at BYU and Spencer (far right) also went that week. We ended up in the same apartment at Helaman Halls and ended up hanging out for the rest of the week (except for when he was dusting me on the long runs). I guess you could say our friendship was sealed when he saved my life. As part of the camp we hiked to the Emerald Lakes there up Provo Canyon. Well we were tough guys and decided we were going to run the whole time. On the way down, I wasn't watching where I was going and by the time I turned to look where I was running, I was heading off a 200 foot cliff. I tried to stay on the trail, but momentum was pushing me off the ledge. I had a split second to look around and saw a bush 20 or 30 feet below. I was going off the cliff either way so I decided to launch myself toward that bush as it was the only thing that could keep me from meeting a rather gruesome end. Spencer, who was behind me thought I'd committed suicide until he got to the ledge and found me down there hanging on for my life. He climbed down and pulled me up.

The next year we were both in Provo going to school and he was living off campus with these other guys. I ended up hanging out with them when I needed to get off campus and then I moved in after my mission. Needless to say, these are top-notch guys and I'm glad they let a Californian into their posse.

After the reception we went to Herriman so I could get my eyes checked out by a mission buddy who has a practice there. He was nice to stay late for us and I've never had a better eye exam. Then we were off to Provo where we got an awesome deal on a hotel with a pool - our little fish Jessica was in heaven. We spent Saturday showing the kids around BYU and other places that we love in Provo. I put together a little video of our events around BYU:

Saturday afternoon we went to Salt Lake to spend time with Laura's parents and then have dinner with them and her sister Karen and Karen's husband Jake. We went to Tucano's and loved it. Jessica got into it and ended up eating one of those little packets of butter as dessert.

It's been super hot since we got back. To save money on A/C we just moved our bedrooms to the downstairs. The kids were hot from helping so we got out the blender and made Whispy Willies, a mission Slurpee creation from Belize. It uses a lot of sugar and boy did it excite Chandler. I wish I would have had the Rebel handy so I could get some HD video, but the iPhone was luckily in my pocket so I could get his spontaneous tribute to Napoleon Dynamite.

Adios Honduras

2010-06-25T05:10:00.000-07:00

Unfortunately, it looks like Honduras will be eliminated from the World Cup today. It's hard to be sad though since they were really just happy to be there. So to pay tribute, we got Chandler all dressed up in his Honduran jersey and had a little family soccer night.

The good news of course is that the U.S. team is still in and if you missed the extra time goal by Landon Donovan against Algeria, you really should check it out. We're not huge soccer fans, but that was awesome. Go U.S.A.!

Family Visits and Chocolate Covered Raisins

2010-06-20T08:19:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, Michael's parents and sister came to visit for a weekend. It was fun having family come stay and see the new place, and the kids had so much fun getting spoiled for a couple days.

Michael's dad helped us get a few repairs done around the the house and then did a little planning for Carly's wedding in August. She'll be getting married in LA so we're looking forward to that and maybe Michael can even squeeze in a short surf session while we're there.

Chandler loves these PJs. They were his uncle Adam's when he was a baby and Michael even remembers Adam wearing these. Now 'Elder Hales' is serving a mission in Australia - time flies.

And finally, here are some pictures of the kids' favorite time of the day, snack time. Chandler gets so excited about chocolate covered raisins that he just gets goofy.

Swim Class

2010-06-12T11:11:00.000-07:00

Jessica has been enjoying her "pike" swim class this week. She blows bubbles, puts her ears in the water, and gets dragged around the pool by her instructors.

On her way in

Giving a wink to the camera (or avoiding all the water getting in her face)

One week done!

Fish and BBQ, But Don't Barbeque the Fish!

2010-06-06T09:25:00.000-07:00

Jessica's wanted a pet for some time now. We're not fond of cats (plus Laura's allergic) and a dog is more of a commitment than we're willing to make at the moment. So we took Jessica over to the pet store to look at fish. Of all the small fish in the store, Jessica had her mind set on the 13-cent goldfish. She even made the guy in the fish department there take out and put back in three fish until she got just the one she wanted out of the tank. After loading up on a tank, rocks, a fake plant, and the probably unnecessary water conditioner, we were on our way home. Jessica named the fish Nina (a female version of Nemo according to Jessica) and we often find her over talking to Nina letting her know that she's safe and that we love her.

And a side note, Laura got this swimsuit for Jessica last week and she's worn it every day since. We seriously can't get her to wear clothes most of the time and even when we go check on her at night, we'll find she's changed into the swimsuit. She tells me she wants me to teach her to surf next summer after she learns how to swim this summer. Swim lessons start tomorrow so she's been practicing blowing bubbles in the bath.

After we got Nina comfortable in her new home, it was time to fire up the grill. Laura let me get a new grill and we've been enjoying it this last week. Unfortunately, while I have an awesome grill, my BBQ accessories are not quite up to par. This is my pansy spatula that doesn't really flip burgers well.

I told Jessica it would be the perfect size for flipping a fish on the grill, but she quickly let me know that goldfish are not for barbecuing! With that settled, Chandler came out and wanted to see what was going on.

It's been a fun weekend. As far as house projects go, this week we got gutters, new motion lights out back, and new door locks for the front door. We've enjoyed, at least so far, finding little things to work on with the house. Just to finish this post, I'll add some pictures of the kids we've taken this week.

Jessica's Dance Recital

2010-05-23T16:38:00.000-07:00

Jessica had the recital for her tumbling class on Saturday. She's loved her class and the great Miss Nancy. She made such a cute little puppy dog. She's the one of the farthest right at the start of the video.

We are so proud of all the work she put in. Hopefully she'll have as much fun with swimming this summer.

Homeowners!

2010-05-18T18:24:00.000-07:00

We are happy to announce that we are HOMEOWNERS!!! Obviously this has been a rather crazy and busy last month or so - hence the lack of updates. Thanks to the housing market being in its current state, we were able to get a much different house than we had imagined. We LOVE LOVE LOVE it! Let me show you around: :)

Entry/living room

Our fireplace, that I LOVE!

Dining area

Kitchen

Master Bedroom

Master Bathroom

Jessica's bedroom

Chandler's bedroom

Upstairs bathroom

Now let's go downstairs...

Cute little cutouts under the stairs - the kids love this place.

Here's what under the stairs - The "restaurant".

The first part of the basement we turned into a play area.

The other half of the basement - family area.

Basement bathroom

Our downstairs office/craft room (I feel so spoiled!)

Guest room (don't worry, the red/purple combo will not be around for long - any ideas on paint color? We're thinking chocolate brown, but we're open to ideas, all over the house actually).

Back yard

We are SO happy here and it just feels like home! If any of you want pictures of the front, just send me an email. I'd rather not put then up here since we're a public blog.

Also, I'll be sending out our new contact info in the next couple of days. If you don't get it, and want it, let me know.

Soon...

2010-05-02T09:31:00.000-07:00

Wow. This is not like me to take this long between posts. All I can promise is - soon. I swear I'll have a big post coming up. We've just been really busy lately with some big changes. So stayed tuned. :)

Jessica's Future Husband

2010-03-14T10:23:00.000-07:00

My friend Angela, from back in our San Diego days, made a cute little post about (ok, partially about) how Jessica and her cute little guy were going to get married some day. This has been in the works since they were first born. They are destined. Sorry to all you other guys out there, Jessica is betrothed.

Play date at Jessica's

Easter party (with Sadie)

Holding hands after a trip to the zoo.

They're so happy to see each other!

Balboa park (with Peterson)

And here they are today.

While we were in S. California a few weeks back the kids and I made a trip down to S.D. for a V-Day party with friends.

Won't these pictures look so cute on the wedding reception slideshow? I think so too.

Honduras!

2010-03-07T21:16:00.000-08:00

We'd been talking about it for over 5 years - I even had an empty passport that was 5 years old... we needed to go visit Michael's mission in Honduras. The opportunity came mid-February. Wow! What an experience (Vacation? No. Experience? Yes.).

Our beautiful plane.

We spent our first night in Santa Rosa and wandered around the shops that evening.

The next day we were off to Ocotepeque - the city that was one of the main reasons for the trip. Michael was there for 9 months of his mission. One of the families there, the Rosas, were a family away from home for Michael. He baptized the father, Manuel, the last day of his mission. What an incredible experience to finally meet the family I'd heard so much about.

Michael, Laura, Marina, and Manuel.

The first day we were with them we crossed over into Guatemala. It was lunch at Pollo Campero and then some time to wander around the marketplace.

We also went to see the "Black Jesus." Not even kidding. It's a shrine built in one of the churches there. The statue of Christ has turned black over the years due to all of the smoke from candles - I mean, due to a miracle. ;)

This next picture is one of Michael's favorites. Marina is trying to offer Michael some candy from a street vendor. Michael is trying everything he can think of to tell her that there is no way he's eating Guatemalan candy from off the streets. Too funny.

This little girl, Nazareth, is Manuel and Marina's granddaughter. She was the CUTEST thing and helped me not miss my two munchkins quite so much. She and her mom, Karen, joined us on our Guatemalan adventure.

That evening, back in Ocotepeque, we went with Marina to visit some other families Michael knew while he was there.

The Nino Family

Hermana Thelma and Family

The Garcia Family

Everyone was so incredibly gracious to me despite my total lack of Spanish. I definitely have a new goal. Anyone have advice on the best way to learn a foreign language?

Dinner that night at the Rosa's was pretty traditional as Honduran food goes - Tortillas, refried beans, scrambled eggs, fried plantains, hard salty cheese and crema (kind of like sour cream).

Another Honduran food experience? Drinking from a bag. It's quite the challenge to learn how to hold the bag tight enough that you don't drop it but not so tight that the straw is closed up. :)

Marina. I love this woman!

The next morning we were off with Manuel to El Salvador (Ocotepeque borders both Guatemala and El Salvador). He is the BEST to have around. I have never met someone with so many connections. We go into foreign countries and he's saying hi to everyone we pass, by name. Crazy. He even talked the border patrol person out of charging us to cross the border, so long as we "found him on our way back through." Pretty cool - we were illegal immigrants in El Salvador for like 45 minutes. :) Granted, Michael and I probably would have preferred to spend the $6 and get the stamps in our passport.

The main reason (well, only reason) to go into El Salvador? Pupusas. Basically stuffed tortillas. Yum.

This picture is one of my favorites - Michael and Manuel.

It was an emotional goodbye when we left Ocotepeque, especially not knowing whether we would ever be back. The road out of the city goes over a "cloud mountain." This picture doesn't really do it justice. It was crazy cloudy to the extent that it was hard to see where we were heading.

This happened a lot on our trip - we'd slow down to go over/around a massive pot hole and a group of kids would run over and beg for money. It was good for me to realize just how incredibly blessed I am. I wish we could have done more than give them some money and whatever food we had laying around.

We drove that day to the town near Copan Ruins. We checked into our hotel and did some shopping.

We found a random little restaurant in the town for dinner. Michael had a baleada (flour tortilla stuffed with refried beans, eggs, and crema) and I had... the same thing as the night before. :) It wasn't quite what I ordered, but it was good, so no complaints.

Michael with a banana soda.

His baleada.

My beans, eggs, crema, plantains, sausage, and avocado.

The next morning we went on a guided horse ride. It was gorgeous! We were sore for a few days, but it was worth it. Our guide took us up into a little village where we were immediately surrounded by a group of children trying to sell corn husk dolls. We bought one for Jessica.

The view. Don't you love Michael's hat? :)

Michael and Chepe, our guide.

That afternoon we went to the Copan Ruins (Mayan ruins).

On our way out of town Michael slammed on the brakes and says, "There was the coolest bridge back there and we have to go and get pictures!" I couldn't believe my eyes.

This bridge was in use! Along came a man from the other side crossing over. Michael talked to him afterwards and he was telling us how nice it was to take a bath in the river. Classic.

The only "vacationy" aspect to our trip was our plan to go to the beach city of Tela. It's on the Caribbean and usually has crystal clear super warm water. Too bad we had to come the day it was POURING rain. It was unreal. So that meant that it was freezing and the water was nasty from all of the run-off into the ocean. So much for that idea.

After a night in Tela, we drove back to San Pedro Sula, where we had flown in. We ate at Baleada's Express for lunch. There's not a lot of variety it terms of food in Honduras, just a few different ways to organize it. :)

There's a huge marketplace in San Pedro where we got the majority of our souvenirs that afternoon.

Our hotel overlooked the central park, so it was fun looking down that evening over the city. The hat again - don't you love it? Oh, and the week without shaving? :)

The next day we walked around the central park. There was still a lot of evidence of the political drama from a few months back.

We flew home that afternoon.

Wow! What an adventure! I'm so glad I finally had the chance to see the place that was, and still is, such a big influence in Michael's life.

Cute little kiddos

2010-03-02T10:19:00.000-08:00

I just had to share some of the cute pictures of our kiddos from the past month. They are sure getting big. Sorry for the picture overload. :)

An early birthday

2010-02-04T08:55:00.000-08:00

It's hard to believe that Chandler is coming up on a year already. Wow. Since we'll be out of town for his actual birthday (9th) we decided to throw a mini party. It was just our family but it was loads of fun!

Chandler's blue cupcakes

He's not sure what's happening, but he likes it.

Watching the candle as we sang.

Jessica "helped" blow it out.

"Hmmm... what is this?"

"This is more like it!"

I think he liked it. :)

After a quick birthday bath, it was present time.

When Jessica turned 1, she got almost this exact walker. But next thing we knew she was trying to push EVERYTHING around (coffee table, chairs...), so we took it back. We gave it another shot this year with Chandler. Poor kid kept going a little crazy and banging his face into it. But despite the pictures, he loves the little thing.

And you all thought he didn't cry... :)

12 months later.

2010-01-30T20:13:00.000-08:00

I was trying to do a little bit of a redo of the first picture. It didn't work so well. :)

2010-01-23T20:44:00.000-08:00

OK, it's about time for an update I suppose. Nothing big to report, but here's a run-down of the last few weeks.

We decided to do a little bit more (a very little bit more) for New Years this year. We watched Ratatouille as a family over on the big screen at Michael's office. Chandler spent the entire time trying to skoot across the table so he could snatch the remote. We let Jessica stay up until 9pm when we watched a YouTube clip of the ball dropping in 2008 (it'll be sad once she realizes the difference). :) We rang in the "new year" with party horns.

We've had a lot of snow this winter, but it's also been FREEZING. Because of the cold we've stayed inside a lot. At the start of the year we had a few warmer days so we went outside to have some fun in the snow.

The first Sunday of the new year was a big one for Jessica. She is now in Sunbeams at church (3yr old class) rather than nursery. She's lucky to have two AMAZING teachers and she loves ever minute of it. Here she is before her first day.

I also teach little kids at church. I'm over the 4 year olds. They are a cute little group. I have a set of twins and two kids out of a set of quads (the other two are in different classes due to developmental differences). I also have a few other cute kids (only one of which is in the picture).

And here are a few pictures of Chan. Can you believe he's almost a year old!? I can't. Maybe that's just because he STILL doesn't have any teeth. Goofy kid. :)

He's so proud of himself being up at the table instead of in his high chair. And yes, he is seriously always smiling like this.

And I saved the best for last. Jessica has personality... I'm not sure how else to explain it. :)

Christmas!

2009-12-31T14:41:00.000-08:00

Christmas Eve and Christmas were busy for our family. We started a new Christmas Eve tradition and made tamales for dinner. Michael was busy all day with the preparations. Yum!

The evening of Christmas Eve Jessica watched the new Christmas movie Prep and Landing (ABC - it's too funny) with her Uncle Jon, we went to the temple visitors center and listened to a presentation about the Savior, made cookies for Santa, and read the Christmas story.

We finished off Christmas Eve by opening our PJs from Grandma and Papa Hales - Thanks! Who doesn't LOVE getting new pajamas?!

Christmas morning began with the stockings. Jessica had a ridiculous haul just from that. It's too easy to find fun things for that girl. Chandler was thrilled with his new binkies. :)

Opening the rest of the presents...

The favorite toy of the day had to be Chandler's remote control airplane from G&G Hales. Jessica also loved making a crazy amount of noise on her new recorder. Don't you just love her face in the bottom left picture? That is pure Jessica. :)

And in case we missed you, here was our Christmas card for the year. Merry Christmas!

P.S. If you didn't receive a card from us in the mail feel free to send me an email (laurageese@gmail.com) with your address for next year. There's a good chance I didn't have an up to date address for you.

December so far...

2009-12-30T13:59:00.000-08:00

Here's a run-down of what we've been up to this month:

We discovered open gym at the local rec center.

Jessica wrote a letter to Santa asking for "musical instruments." Well, she told me what to write and she decorated it with stickers and drawings about naughty monsters. Silly kid.

We made Christmas cookies.

Jessica and Michael got down with their bad selves. :)

I had a b-day (25!).
FYI - The New Moon poster was a gag gift. I like the books; the movies... not as much.

Chandler got into his Mommy's magazines, just like another little baby a few years back.

Chandler mastered the art of crawling... sort of.

Christmas post to come soon...

He's Crawling (Kind Of)

2009-12-20T20:55:00.000-08:00

I took Chan with me to teach the Deacons today and ended up setting him down to play while I expounded on the mysteries of womanhood. To my surprise, he got down and started crawling military-style over to me. Looks like our little guy is finally going to be mobile.