Good Stuff

Two Saturdays ago we found this beauty at Target on sale for $49.99. We've been wanting a grill for some time now, so we just couldn't pass up the deal.

We planned to use it the following Monday, but we didn't realize it would take forever to put it together. Two days later it was ready to go, and Spencer grilled us up this goodness:

Healthy healthy.

We are looking forward to using it a ton this summer- so if you have any awesome marinade recipes, please send them this way! We are excited for the warmer weather to come so we can transplant it from the garage to the deck.

Did I mention that we went shopping at some outlets just outside of Niagara a few weeks ago? We got some pj's for next winter for $2 each, then Spencer found this cute winter hat for $.99 and insisted that we buy it. He didn't tell me until later that it was size 3-6 months, so I knew it wouldn't last long- especially since the weather has been getting warmer. Today when we woke up there was snow on the ground, so when Sydney and I went to run a few errands this afternoon, I welcomed the opportunity for her to wear it.

Totally worth every penny. I especially love the ear flaps.

Can you even handle this?

Niagara Day 2

On Tuesday morning we headed to "Birds of the Lost Kindgom," the world's largest bird aviary. We were greeted by a very enthusiastic Australian man who said, "Welcome to the best place in the world!" I'm thinking that was a slight overstatement, but we had a good time.

There were several side rooms (a dark one where we saw nocturnal animals, one with snakes and gross cockroaches, one with little birds that were flying all around), but the best part was this huge, bright room with lots of birds that came super close to us.

These pretty red birds were my favorite.

I took Sydney out of her car seat so she could see the birds (I thought the bright red color would catch her eye), but she was more interested in staring at my watch. Go figure.

It was really cool walking under this pretty waterfall.

The gift shop had lots of funny stuff. Naturally, I made Spencer wear this bird hat, and he wrapped the snake around Sydney (she almost started eating it about 5 seconds later, so I had to take it away pretty quickly).

They also had several attractive non-aviary related items.

When we were done with the aviary, we walked around a bit before heading home.

I couldn't pass up this touristy little photo op. As you can see, Spencer was just as enthusiastic about it.

We also stopped in this little Hershey store, and I had to talk Spencer out of spending $50 to get this treat :) Ha! I wonder if anyone actually ever buys these- I like chocolate just as much as the next girl, but a 5 lb. bar of it seems a little excessive.

I took this shot from the car window as we crossed the bridge that took us back to the U.S. Not too shabby, eh?

Niagara Falls Day 1

Our neighbors found a deal on the internet for a hotel and some extras in Niagara Falls, and they invited us to come along for a few days of spring break. We headed up Monday morning, and after some shopping in the outlets outside of Buffalo, we crossed the border to check out nature's handiwork.

First we saw the American falls,

then the famous horseshoe falls.

Becky and I pushing the kiddos while we walked along the Niagara River.

Enjoying our first bonafide family vacation.

Do you see the rainbow?

We lucked out with such nice weather in March. It was about 55 degrees, but got progressively colder as we neared the falls.

Macie really enjoyed picture time.

Sydney was such a champion in her car seat, but I think she probably appreciated being held for a little while!

Love that smirk on Sydney's face :)

We stayed at the Hilton, scoring a king-sized bed, a jacuzzi tub, a $50 dinner voucher to their fancy schmancy (aka brutally overpriced) restaurant, free breakfast buffet, and free tickets to the Bird Kingdom.

Becky and Geoff read that this was one of the top 10 most romantic places in Canada.

As you can probably imagine, our dinner voucher wasn't enough to cover two entrees, so we kept the price low by opting for soup and salad. I think we were all a little jealous at Macie's kid menu chicken tenders and fries. What's up with the kid's menu having the best options? Plus, they were a heck of a lot cheaper. Do I sound like the cheapest person on the earth or what?

I'm baffled at how this change of angle somehow made the falls look 5 times closer to us... or maybe Geoff was just magic???

After dinner we suited up for a swim. Sorry about the blurriness of these pictures, but I just had to document Sydney's first pool experience.

At first she didn't quite know what to make of it.

Then it looked like she was kind of enjoying herself.

But things started to take a turn for the worse.

Crying ensued,

Followed by a massive breakdown.

I rescued her shortly after this and snuggled her on the sidelines to calm her down. The water was kind of chilly, so I think that's why she didn't last very long. Since I didn't ever get to take a dip in the pool, I filled up the jacuzzi in our room with some nice warm water, and she and I hopped in with our swimsuits on. She did just fine, and even got her hair washed :)

I'm 26

It's been a 2 day celebration. Spencer has a test tomorrow and I had a RS Enrichment tonight, so we decided to have my birthday dinner yesterday.

Can't go wrong with a little takeout from the Cheesecake Factory!

When Spencer was done, he held the babe so I could eat (she was being pretty squirmy on my lap).

I asked for a shovel (yep, you read that right) and a Scentsy candle for my birthday. I knew Spencer got the shovel, but he dropped a few hints that I wasn't getting the Scentsy. That little stinker... when he got home from picking up the takeout, he also brought the candle as a surprise. Again, that happened on the 11th, but he told me he did it then since no one expects to get presents the day before their birthday.

Today was also nice. Sydney's present to me was a 2 hour morning nap, so I got to make myself a carrot cake, talk to my family, and shower before she woke up!

Nothing like decorating your own cake :)

Would you believe this started out being purple? Well, kind of a grayish purple, and I couldn't mix the red and blue to a non-depressing shade of my favorite color. I finally got sick of trying to fix it, so I just started adding in yellow and green until it turned into a color worthy of decorating a birthday cake.

I couldn't help but laugh during Spencer's comedic solo performance of "Happy Birthday to You" while he took pictures. We only had 23 candles, so after I blew them out he re-lit 3 of them and made me blow those out too.

I suppose practical gifts are a sign of getting older, but I'm really excited to use that shovel to work in my garden this year. Our flower beds are in need of some serious TLC.

Homemade CPK

California Pizza Kitchen is one of our favorite restaurants, so Spencer thought we should try to make our own version of their Tostada Pizza tonight. It was a quick and easy dinner, but oh so yummy! Doesn't it look pretty?

4 Months

Sydney had her 4 month check-up this morning. She has had a cough since last Thursday, and it turns out she has acute bronchiolitis. They told me they could still do immunizations since she didn't have a fever, but being the paranoid first-time mom that I am, I told them I'd rather wait until she's over it. Plus, I don't mind putting off the trauma of shots for another week or so. Even though she's sick, Sydney continues to be a happy little girl.


Her growth stats:

• head- 68th percentile
• length- 25 inches (80th percentile)
• weight- 12 lbs 11.1 oz (31st percentile)

So for now she's tall and skinny. The doctor told me she has big feet too, which I thought was kind of funny since that's what one of the nurses said when she was cleaning Sydney up right after she was born. (Spencer's reply was, "Hey, just like her Mom!" It's true... I have big feet. I just hope I haven't consigned her to a fate of having to search for fashionable size 10 shoes when she's older. Believe me, it's no easy task finding them amid the support heels and geriatric footwear that seems to always fill that row of the shoe stores.)

All in all, month 4 has been pretty similar to month 3. Sydney is getting better at holding onto toys and usually directs them right to her mouth if she can hold them long enough. She ALWAYS grabs onto her binky and yanks it out of her mouth, and then just tries to eat it. She definitely prefers to be held facing outward so she can look around. One of my favorite new things she started doing in the past month is rubbing her eyes when she's tired or when she's just woken up. I think it's so darling when she does it!

We also get an occasional laugh out of her:



This was right after we got home from playing games with some friends. It was FREEZING outside, hence the pink marshmallow suit :)

Last Minute Guests

On Friday I got a message from my friend Katrina, a dear college roommate that I've known since freshman year. Her family was doing a little road trip, and since they were going to be fairly close to our neck of the woods, they wanted to see if they could come visit for a night. Of course we said yes! I think it's been a good 2 years since we've seen each other, and neither of us had seen the other's baby.

Katrina, Jared, Asher

We had a good time chatting, watching American Idol, and snacking on Girl Scout cookies while Spencer studied for a test and Jared wrote a paper. Asher was such a smiley little guy and enjoyed grabbing everything he could get his hands on and eating it (I thought it was especially cute when it was Sydney's feet).

The obligatory "hooray, we got to see each other & now I need to blog about it" photo.

Unfortunately it was taken at an hour when make-up and regular clothing hadn't quite made it on my to do list. Sydney was still asleep, so she missed the photo shoot. Don't my arms seem a little empty without her?