The Western United States

A few weeks ago the kids and I embarked on our tour of the western U.S. My dear friends Deb and Dave came from PA to do their own tour (3 weeks!) of the west and we accompanied them up to Idaho Falls then onto Yellowstone (with my Dad's cabin in there somewhere too).

Mesa Falls

A herd of buffalo came between us and Old Faithful. Awesome.

A little geothermal activity.

Deb has always been dubbed my "Pennsylvania Mom" and I love her dearly. She and Dave are the sweetest people you will meet. Can't wait to see you guys again!

From my dad's cabin the kids and I drove back home to Utah, picked up Nic, and drove to Vegas. We stayed in the Hilton ($50 on hotwire!) and got an upgrade on our room. Nice.

The next day we got up and drove on to San Diego, where we met our awesome friends Matt and Heather and their two kids Paxton and Lincoln. We rented a condo so we could all stay together and turns out it was right above the San Diego airport. Mason was in heaven (and we heard about it in the form of a shrill voice screaming, "BLAST OFF!!" everytime a plane took off.)


Lincoln and Sage.



The first full day we were there we went to Sea World. I hadn't been there since I was little and it was awesome. Mason really loved it.


The crew (sans Matt who was taking the picture).


We got splashed by Shamu, an event Mason is still talking about.


Mason's first "ride". He couldn't get enough.


The next day we decided to take it easy. So we went to the park...


...and to the beach. It was pretty cold, hence the good lookin' jacket/swimming suit combo.


Despite the cold Mason literally dove right in.



The third day we took on the San Diego Zoo. Another awesome day.



Mason loved the tram. He wasn't so interested in looking down on the animals, but rather he wanted to see the airplanes flying right next to us. What can I say. The kid loves ALL modes of transportation.

Mase and Pax. They had so much fun together. As did we. Thanks Matt and Heather for providing us with the best company we could ask for. We miss you guys.

From San Diego we drove to Phoenix where we were able to take in a last minute Pixies concert. Awesome. Awesome. Awesome.

Shay and Eric came along.

But the real reason we went to Arizona was to meet this little cherub. Could he be any sweeter?

My Dad gave Brighton a beautiful blessing. It was nice to meet some of Eric's family and spend some time with our own family.

Not pictured was Sagie's first time swimming (I need to steal the pics from Penni).

So after 13 days, 7 states, minimal melt downs and innumerable diaper changes we finally drove home. Well, Nic and Mason drove home. Sage and I chickened out of the 11+ hour drive and flew home. The perfect end to a perfect trip. (Nic's ending, although much longer, was pretty good too.)

For him.

Nic and I waited for 5 years to have kids. Thats a long time, but it was what worked best for us. Those 5 years were full of crazy adventures, leisurely weekends, last minute road trips, and pretty much us doing whatever we wanted to do. Don't get me wrong. We are having a whole new kind of adventure now. Its just as fun and infinately more rewarding. But I'm not going to lie. Its harder.

In the early years, despite having our whole lives to ourselves, we were always slaves to school. These past few weeks, however, I am seeing that that was especially easier pre-children (and my hat goes off to all our friends who did med school with kids). Nic has to take his physics boards on September 9th and as a result he has been MIA for the last few weeks. Its been hard on him, hard on me, hard on the kids, (and especially hard on the dog) but as any of our resident friends know, its a necessary evil. We spent the last week up in Idaho just so we could give Nic some guilt-free study time and that was fun, but we are home now and we are hoping to catch a glimpse of him here and there over the next few weeks.

Honestly, I didn't start this blog post to complain about this. It really hasn't been THAT bad. Could be worse. What I really wanted to emphasize in this post was the extent that our lives have changed since having kids. I don't know if anyone else experiences this (I would kind of think they do), but kids were a major adjustment for us. We went from leading our relatively selfish lives to dedicating our every effort and thought to our kids. We are both crazy about our kids. Even after the biggest tantrum on earth I can still look at Mason and think he is the smartest, cutest, sweetest, most awesomest boy in the galaxy. And one look into Sagie's eyes and I know that she is heaven sent and certainly the most beautiful creature to walk (or rather sit on) the earth. As most parents believe about their own, I believe we have the best kids. Sometimes, though, I think I get so caught up in this whole parenthood thing that I don't give the love and attention I should to the one who is in this crazy world of parenting with me. Does that happen to anyone else? You get so wrapped up in kids that at the end of the day you look at your spouse and think, "Oh. Hey. I know we've been around each other all day, but this is the first time I've really seen you." Terrible huh? I know its not always like that. Sometimes I am able to stop and take in the man I married. I can watch him play with the kids, my heart bursting in adoration. Or I can watch him make dinner, my heart bursting in jealousy that even though I can make the exact same dish, his is always tastier. But all too often those are just moments. All the other minutes and hours of the day I am caught up in the kids, the dog, the house, and myself. So here it is. On a public forum, over the internet, so hopefully you can read it on your blackberry on a break from the monotany of studying. Nic, you are my best friend. From the day I met you I have always been able to be myself with you. Completely myself. You are smart, handsome, funny and kind. But you know all that. Or at least you know I think that. What you may not know is how infatuated I am with you...still...after seven years. You really are the best thing that has ever happened to me. So although I know I get caught up in day to day "stuff", and therefore don't always do these feelings justice, just know that I love you forever. and ever. and ever. Happy studying sweetheart.

He's here...

...and he is beautiful. I will let Shay give all the details on her own blog, but this auntie was just too excited to not share.

Brighton Eric Harris

Ode to Sage E.

We blessed Sage on July 18th. (In our religion we have baby blessings where the baby is given their name and a blessing). Nic gave her a beautiful blessing and afterward we had the family over to a local park for a waffels. Despite a few hang ups at the park, it turned out to be a wonderful day.

Then today Sage had her 2 month appointment. This girl is already a real " go getter". She has made this evident by almost doubling her birth weight in her first two months of life. Way to go Sagey!

Weight 13 lbs 15 oz. (95 %tile)

Height 23 1/2 inches (95 %tile)

Head 15 1/2 inches (50 %tile)

I think the last month and a half has treated her pretty well...

We love you baby girl!

Crazy Summer

This summer has been crazy. Its been busy, its been life changing, its been crazy. I was thinking about it today and there have been only 2 weekends since before Sage was born that we haven't either had family here, or been somewhere with family. After the events that have happened this summer, though, I couldn't be more grateful for that. Here is a quick recap of our summer so far...

Nic's family has been down to SLC several times in the last few months for a variety of reasons. We have loved spending time with them. One of the weekends they came down we decided to head to the Gateway during the Sidewalk Chalk festival. There was music, art, and of course the splash pad. Mason loves the splash pad.

Nic and Mason admiring the sidewalk art from afar.


This is what Sage did most of the time.


The splash pad was crazy busy, but the kids had a blast.


And nothing ends the day like a little ice cream.


During one of those weekend visits to SLC, Ali and Chase decided to move their wedding date up from July 23rd to June 26th. This resulted in a mad rush to finish planning the wedding and all the things that goes with it. My hat goes off to Victoria and Ali for making it happen. As for us, it meant a couple of crazy days and a nearly 2 week visit to Idaho Falls.

Nic's sister Lindsey and I threw Ali a bridal shower 2 days before her wedding. We didn't have much time to plan it, but I think it turned out really well. Lindsey is super creative and that coupled with some of Ali's friends made for a fun evening.

Grandpa Hall took Mason out in his "race car" while the women decended upon my mom's house (where we held the shower). Yes I let my child ride in the car like this and yes you can/should call child protective services on me.


Cute Lindsey


Cute Ali.

Friday night, before the wedding, my mom was playing with her band at the country club. So we headed out to support her and eat some good food.

Sage just hanging out listening to Grandma rock out.

Saturday was the wedding. Everything about it was beautiful. The ceremony, the luncheon, everything. I have very tender memories of Nic and his siblings as they spoke about Ali at the luncheon. It was really wonderful.

Note that we only have one child pictured in this photo. The other one was too interested in some bugs that were out of the range of the lens. Oh well.

Oh- did I mention that we had also planned Shay's baby shower on the 26th of June? Well...we did. So I left the luncheon early and drove to Idaho Falls (the wedding was in Rexburg) for Shay's baby shower. My mom and Shayna did an awesome job planning it.

Other than some morbid pictures of the fondant baby cake topper, this is the only picture I got. Minus my mom, its all the girls.

After the baby shower was the wedding reception. One word: beautiful.

I love this picture of Mason. Such a studly little guy.

Okay, so after the bridal shower-band performance-wedding-luncheon-baby shower-wedding reception-all in 72 hours weekend, we had a few days to relax before our family reunion. As I was going through pictures to post on here of the reunion I found that I didn't really want to post any of them. I can't even really look at them. They were all, obviously, taken before the accident, but they still take me back to that day. I don't need extra help reliving that day. I did find one though that I want to keep.

My dad and Penni with my kids (and a diet coke).

After coming back from the reunion, I ended up staying a few extra days in Idaho Falls. Nic was on call at home and I wasn't really in the state of mind to be alone. So we stayed and took Mason to the zoo.

Finally after almost 2 weeks we returned home where we resumed life.

We took another trip to the splash pad (after seeing Toy Story 3) with Camille, Paul and Jackson.

Mason took 2 weeks of swimming lessons (and this is the only picture I got).

We went to the farmer's market.

And we again had family visit for Sage's blessing. Post to come.

So thats it. Summer so far. Like I said, life changing in so many ways. During it all, however, we have been surrounded by those we love and who love us. I will always have some very tender memories of this summer. From the birth of my own baby girl, to Ali's wedding, to the events surrounding Max's death, there is so much to learn from and be grateful for. And the summer isn't over yet.

Seven years...

...and not even itchy.

Happy Anniversary sweetheart. I love you.

I know that I have been severely neglecting this blog lately, and I do have a lot of things I want to blog about (i.e. family trips, our growing little Sage, etc. etc.). However, I don't feel that its proper (nor can I bring myself to do it) to write about all these happenings without first mentioning my cousin's little family and the tragedy they have had to face. Their son Max passed away following a boating accident at our family reunion a week and a half ago. Needless to say this has shaken everyone who was present (and countless others) to the core. A moment doesn't pass when I don't think about Max and his family. I pray for them constantly and ask you to remember them in your thoughts and prayers also. Ryan, Leanne, and the entire family have shown incredible strength through such a horrific time and I admire them more than words can express. Visit their blog to see an example of what I mean harrisbeachbums.blogspot.com.

Our entire family has been talking a lot lately about what we have learned from this, and I have spent a lot of time pondering this very question. It seems that everyone has gathered bits of life changing knowledge following such a terrible incident, and I think that will be a part of Max's legacy. As for me, I have learned to never take things for granted and do my best to enjoy every moment of my children's life. This may sound cliche but you really never do know when life might be cut short and, as Leanne put it in her letter, I want to "drink" in as much of my children as I can. I've also learned a valuable lesson in our Heavenly Father's timing and his overall plan for us. After much thought and prayer and I can now say that I have no doubt that this was Max's time. And all I can say to that is that he must be one special little boy to only have to spend such a short amount of time on earth. I am so grateful for a Heavenly Father who loves us and is mindful of us. My prayers continue to go out to all my family, especially to Ryan, Leanne and their families. Love you all. Thank you for being examples beyond measure to me.