Flying and Gracia

We left for Spain on the 22nd. Leaving Ashton was the hardest part. She had no clue what was about to happen and there was no way I could warn her of it. She's staying with a family friend and their five kids and dog. She definitely loves their house and always cries when we leave it. So far, the mom watching her has said she's doing well and is a sweetheart. She had a rough first night (whatever that means to the mom) but has been okay since. Every night, I get sad and miss her. But I know she would not have survived a week in Spain. Way too much walking and traveling for a little girl.

The plane rides were long. We flew to Montreal, where I was able to recognize a few French words from all the years I took French in school. Fortunately, most people speak English very well so we still knew what they were saying. The flight from Montreal to Barcelona was a little difficult. It was overnight so most people slept but I cannot sleep with lights and noise. Ashton has made me even more of a light sleeper than I was. I think Joseph and I got about 2-3 hours of sleep that night with the help of sleep aids.

We landed at 10am in Barcelona (3am Texas time). Since it was day, we went straight to being tourists. No rest for the weary. I learned that "non-smoking" in Europe is a little different than in the US. A non-smoking hotel room simply means it hasn't been smoked in for a while. Our first room was far from adequate, considering the fact that I'm pregnant. So they found us another room, which is smoke-free. The quality of hotels here are quite different than the US too. Our hotel, price wise, is average compared to a hotel in America. But the quality is lower. Although, Joseph keeps telling me this is one of the nicer hotels. YIKES! I'm glad we got this one!

On Friday, we visited Gracia, a part of Barcelona. We walked a lot around that area of town. Even though Joseph served his mission here, he never lived in Barcelona. He was always in other areas of the mission. So we relied a lot on maps and asking people. Every time we have to ask a question, I am grateful Joseph knows Spanish. It helps a lot. Friday night, we went to Parc Guell, a cool park/monument thingy for tourists. I'm sure there's more history behind it than that but that's all I know. It was cool. We got tapas at a restaurant for dinner and headed back to the hotel pretty late. I am definitely not used to walking 2-4 hours a day so my feet were exhausted. I could blame the baby but I think I'd be tired either way.

 

All in all, it was a great first day. Still hard to believe we're in Barcelona.

The Obligatory Pumpkin Patch Visit and County Fair

Our town's pumpkin patch leaves much to be desired. I'm not impressed but alas, it's the only option without driving an hour and a half. Thankfully, Ashton is young enough where a yard full of pumpkins is still entertaining. Not sure what we'll do in a few more years when she realizes how lame it is. We bought three pie pumpkins for a dollar each so at least I can make some pie filling from it.

We also went to the fair last week on their free admission night. I took Ashton last year and she had fun despite not going on any rides. She enjoyed it this year again. We spoiled her and took her on a pony ride, which cost 5 dollars for about 2 minutes of riding. Rip off!!! But she loved it. Considering that's all we spent at the fair, I guess it wasn't too bad.

Ashton preferred to touch the goats rather than feed them. I don't blame her. The goats were pretty greedy.

I can already see a pony on her Christmas and birthday list in a few years.

25 Weeks

We made it to 25 weeks! 12-15 weeks to go until we meet our little boy! Somehow, this pregnancy seems to go by slower than Ashton's. With her, we had a lot more to get ready like set up the crib and stuff. However, the holidays will make the next few months go faster I bet. I must confess, shopping for girls are more fun. I didn't believe it when people told me that. But now I do. There's just so many outfits I can handle with trucks, planes, dogs, etc. Thankfully, Ashton loves dogs so I think she'll be excited to dress her brother in dog outfits.

My doctor visits are going well. So far, so good for this pregnancy as far as no complications. And I have the all clear to travel so that's good since my ticket is nonrefundable. The verdict is still out on when this little guy will make his appearance. I keep having dreams that he comes super early so I'm hoping those dreams are wrong and he stays inside until January. The little boy is VERY active. Much more than Ashton was. He is constantly moving, especially at night. Here I am at 25 weeks.

And for comparison, here's me at 25 weeks with Ashton. I even wore the same shirt.

Houston Extravaganza

We did a marathon day in Houston on Saturday. We met up with another family at the temple and did a little kid swap. Then we drove to downtown Houston to visit Herrman Park and have a picnic. I love that park but traffic was terrible around it. They had some entrances blocked off for some reason so it was a little frustrating to navigate. After our picnic, we went to the Children's Museum nearby. I found a great deal on Groupon for admission that I couldn't pass up. It was pretty busy, which at times, overwhelmed Ashton. But she did very well. Some of the exhibits are way over her head but she wanted to understand them so much.

After the museum, we made our stop at Sam's Club and we got our traditional ice cream treat. Ashton had a blast all day and was very happy! Hooray for a happy toddler! Then, we got home just in time for the BYU game, which she loved too. Of course, she had to miss the majority of the game. Oh well!

I was a bad mom and didn't take any pictures. So thankfully the other mom did. They're besties.

Can always find her playing in water.

National Night Out

As a recreation major, I really put effort into planning fun recreational activities for our family. Fortunately, at our stage of life/parenting, the park counts! But we still like to find community events to attend.

Tuesday night was apparently "National Night Out." This saddens me that we need a special night to remind families of the importance of getting out. However, it was fun! We went to the event at the next town over because their festivities sounded cooler than our town's. The city had all types of emergency vehicles out for the kids to walk through and explore. They also had a few adoptable dogs from the humane society, which Ashton loved. She begged to see a black dog before we went so I was happy they had a black dog for her to pet. They had yummy hot dogs, cheetos, and lemonade, which are some of Ashton's favorites. She got a cool balloon and a whistle that she blows all day now. It was a great night to get out and the park didn't have too many mosquitoes either.

Got a special bag of goodies on the ambulance

Where she thought "Molly's car seat" was

Thrilled to sit in a big chair with a cool seatbelt

Story Time

We ventured out a little and tried the story time activity at Chick-Fil-A in town last week. Apparently, they host a monthly story time for children under five. I don't like their breakfast items so we didn't buy anything but it was still fun to go. They gave Ashton free ice cream at 9:45am so I feel it's a great activity. She even shared with me! Ashton enjoyed coloring, making a craft with glue, and playing in the playground area. I like their playground because the steps are short enough for her to climb. The one at McDonalds is taller and she gets frustrated easily there.

Ashton-isms

Ashton has said some pretty funny things lately. Here are a few that I remembered to write down.

She came home from the park with Joseph tonight and told me that she talked to the "squitos" (mosquitoes). I asked her what she told them and she mumbled something. Hopefully she told them to go away and stop biting.

At the national night out activity we went to (post coming), she sat in the back of a pick up truck meant for emergency rescue. They had a wide space between the two front seats with a big console, just like my mom's truck. Ashton pointed to that area and said, "Molly's car seat." Molly is my mom's dog and Molly often sits on the console in their truck. She remembered that from Wisconsin.

After nap, Ashton will ask to go on a walk for Daddy. I have to tell her everyday that he is still at work. One day, she replied, "Daddy at a meeting on the phone." She was probably right.

We were driving one day and she randomly told me, "I want to be in the circus." I had no clue how she knew what a circus was. At dinner that night, I asked Joe to see if they had read about one in a bedtime story. He said no. I asked Ashton how she knew about a circus. Her response: "Daniel and Margaret." It dawned on me that several days earlier she had watched an episode of Daniel Tiger that includes them pretending to have a circus with baby Margaret. I asked her what she wants to do at a circus and she started dancing. I hope her aspirations change over the years!

Funny girl!

General Conference and Birthday Weekend

We had a wonderful conference weekend! We went to the beach Saturday morning before conference started. It was a little cold but Ashton loved building a castle in the sand. Ashton enjoyed listening to the choirs sing and always asked for more singing.

For my birthday, we had some friends over for cake and ice cream Sunday night. The cake didn't turn out the best. I tried to make a funfetti cake from scratch, which was fine. But I used a 6 inch pan and the middle of the cake took much longer to bake than the outer part. This meant that part of it was overdone and the middle was barely done. Oh well. Ashton picked the color of the frosting. Yellow. I tried to persuade against it but that's what she wanted. Of course, she assumed my birthday was her birthday and blew out my candles.

Monday morning, I woke up to Ashton telling Joseph that she wanted to open my presents. Ashton helped wrap them the night before so she knew what they were for the most part. As she is handing me a gift, she is also telling me what it is. How kind! She enjoyed opening my presents.

Her self-portrait that morning

We took advantage of some free birthday treats. Ashton and I went to Panera Bread for breakfast, which just opened in town, and had a yummy (and free) cinnamon roll. For lunch that day, we met up with a friend and her son at Chick-fil-a. That way, the kids could play and the adults could have a conversation with minimal interruptions. That night, we went out to eat again with Joseph and Ashton did very well at the restaurant. Now, Ashton asks for "restaurants" all the time. Her gift to me was taking a long nap and being happy for the majority of the day. I think there was only one meltdown when she wanted to pet our neighbor's dog.

My visiting teacher stopped by to drop off a yummy cupcake and a freezer meal.

Random picture- a friend made this for Ashton's birthday. She likes it.