Lake Powell= Best Trip EVER!!!

This past week Rusty and I went with the Mills' to Powell (I used to nanny for them). We had a BLAST!! It was bitter sweet leaving... we missed Russ (he had to stay behind for work), but we really didn't want to leave, either. The Mills' semi-own a houseboat down there, so for a whole week it was fun in the sun posh style. :) The weather was awesome- an average of 92 degrees- and we were able to sun bathe, wake board, cliff jump, inter-tube, sight-see on the speed boat, more sun bathing and wake boarding, eat, sleep, and just PLAY!

Wake boarding was by far the funnest thing I did this week... I wish I could do this EVERY DAY!

One of our friends that went thought he would be funny and shocked us by coming out of the water like this:

...and then tried for the next two minutes to do this:

Needless to say it was HILARIOUS and his wife just rolled her eyes. He's seriously one of the funniest people I know. :)

We went on a couple of boat rides and Rusty did SO WELL! What a champ! I thought he'd be a little freaked out by all of the bumps and noises, but he LOVED it! I loved taking pictures of him throughout the trip...

My little Captain! This is by far my favorite picture from the whole trip. 

He semi-liked the water... it was a little bit colder than what he's used to, so he only got up to his tummy, but he never cried or fussed, which was good. He LOVES water!

On the ride back I changed him into dry clothes... maybe that's why he loves the water... he knows that eventually he has to get NAKED, which is by far his most favorite thing. :)

As the boat would pick up speed, he'd turn his head into me and eventually fall asleep.... definitely one of MY favorite things!

Playing cards... he's already a pro. :)

Some of the kids: Haley, Conner, Kenzie, and Dax.

More swimming...

Rusty was especially obsessed with Tyler... it was so cute! Tyler was so good with him and helped me out A LOT with him, which was really nice. You're awesome, Ty!!

All in all it was a GREAT trip and I'm so thankful for the Mills' generosity for letting us go. Gary (the dad) would take me out wake boarding by myself a few times because I had to be with Rusty, which was SO NICE. They are an amazing family and I'm so blessed to have them in my life. I love you all and thanks for Powell last week! I'm looking forward to our trip in September!!

Roll Over! Roll Over!

We are the proud parents of a little boy who has recently started to roll over from his tummy to his back! I know that every new parent is tickled to death when their kid(s) do this, and we're not excluded. When I texted Russ yesterday that Rusty had rolled over TWICE he was so bummed that he couldn't race home right then and there to see it for himself, so naturally we recorded it as SOON as he got home. :)



Once again, this kid has proved his brilliance!

So Grown Up!

I bought a play mat for Rusty the other day, not knowing if it was "age appropriate" yet, but I was amazed to see that at 2 1/2 months that he was completely mesmerized by it!

At first he wasn't able to do anything but smile and giggle at the toys on the top (especially the one that made music when you pulled on)...

 

...And then he discovered that he could hit the toys and pull on the rings...

He really just loves this and can be entertained by it for HOURS! It's so funny listening to him laugh at it, even if he's not touching anything... I've caught him a couple of times just looking at the main big toy and laughing! ha ha! Silly guy. :)

Watching him develop and grow is one of the most fascinating and satisfying things in my life. The nine months it took to get him here were MORE than worth it. Being his mom is so rewarding and I look forward to his next milestones!! What a brilliant baby!! :)

St. George Weekend

This last weekend we took a much needed mini-vacation to St. George and we had a blast! It was fun AND relaxing! I just wish we could do more of these mini-trips, but the fact that they're few and far between makes me appreciate and enjoy them even more.

We were there for two main reasons: 1) To get away and spend time together, and 2) look at condos to potentially buy one for a vacation spot/ investment property. Saturday morning we woke up and laid around our hotel for a while, and then we went SWIMMING! The weather was SO nice down there (unlike up here in Springville/Provo) and it was Rusty's first time to get in a pool. It was so fun! And he looked darn cute in his swim suit!

These pictures were taken with my phone, which is why they're really fuzzy. Oh well.

In between swimming, shopping, resting, and home-viewing, we also went to downtown St. George to visit some of the historic houses and the temple.

The St. George temple is GORGEOUS and it's one of our favorites. It has so much history and it's beautiful on the outside AND the inside. We love visiting this temple.

We also visited the tabernacle, which was also beautiful.

And last, but not least, we visited Brigham Young's Winter Home. It was such a cute house and it was amazing how much of his original furniture they were able to preserve. You'll notice that his house has green trim... apparently when they were building the temple they ordered white paint. Well, when they got the paint, it was green! Brigham Young obviously didn't want green paint in the temple, so he let anyone that wanted some green paint that it was free for the taking! Needless to say, there's quite a few houses with green trim to this day. :)

Rusty did AWESOME on this trip! He never cried on the long tip there or back, which was amazing, and he was such a good sport about driving around town looking at real estate. At the beginning of the trip he was mostly awake and alert and fun to dress up:

... But towards the end of the trip, he was more like this:

He continues to be such a joy to have in our family and it's hard to remember what it was like without him! Even though our trips with him aren't romantic and intimate, they're just so fun and entertaining! He makes us laugh constantly and he amazes us every day with how much he's growing and learning. We just love him! Here are a few random pictures that I thought I'd sneak in:

I HAD to include this picture!! We died laughing when we saw the outcome... what a silly, little man!

He couldn't see me, so he got sad. :(

*sigh* I just love him!!!

Rusty's Blessing Day

Our sweet, baby Rusty was blessed by Russ on Sunday, May 2. Russ gave the sweetest blessing and Rusty was a trooper! I was worried because earlier that morning he was a little fussy, but he had a short nap and woke up right before I handed him to Russ, so he was a happy baby through it all. It was a different story after he was passed around to everyone during sacrament meeting, but he was fine after I brought him home for a little mommy time. :) He's kind of fond of me. ha ha!

My cousin, Kelli, gave me the great idea of taking pictures of getting Rusty ready, which I'm so thankful for! I never would have thought of that! I just wish he was a little bit happier through the pictures...

After church we had a small luncheon with all of the family and friends that came. We counted just over 50 people that came to the blessing... we took up the first six rows of the chapel! ha ha! Thanks, to everyone who came!!

This is my side of the family that came: my cousin, Kristi, and her family, Russ and I, my mom and Rusty, my cousin, Marci (in the back), my cousin, Kelli, and her son, Gavin, my brother, Zach, my sister, Caitlin, my step-dad, John, and my Aunt Gaile. My Grandpa and Uncle Steven aren't in this one... it's hard for my Grandpa to get around these days.

All of the girls!

The Mills family- Brandon, Tyler, Gary, Russ, Rusty, me, McKenzie, Becky, and Haley. I absolutely LOVE this family! I used to nanny for this family for a few years and we're still extremely close. :)

Russ, Rusty, and I.

Me and my sweet baby.

The Russell clan! Grandpa Rusty (who Rusty is named after, obviously), Rusty, and Russ. That's a mouthful! ha ha!

Rusty loves his Grandpa Rusty! Isn't it obvious with those big eyes? ha ha!

Grandma Robin, Russ' mom. He really does love her, too, he's just choosing to be funny with those crazy eyebrows. :)

That's more like it. :)

He looks like an old man in this picture. He's still so cute, though!!

 Russ' Aunty Tammy made his outfit... I THINK it's supposed to be a short-sleeved outfit with pants, not shorts, but they're definitely shorts on him! What a big kid!

Starting to get cranky... Uh, oh!

All right.. I'm done. Sheesh! ;)

Well, okay, ALMOST done! What a sleepy baby after a really long day.

How can you not love these chubby cheeks?? I can't even begin to tell you how many kisses he got on each cheek! They're just so kissable!!

All in all, it was a successful, fun, and very memorable day. :)