Very last Christmas photos!!!

I did it!

Merry Christmas.

Waiting patiently

Another new Christmas tradition:

Pepere reads "The Gas We Pass"

The girls and their Abuelita

<3

(and their Parmesan??)

Yay!  Perfect.

(too bad it took 10 minutes to get one with Hollie's thumb out of her mouth!)

...and by that point they were leeeeaning!

So after all that, gift-opening commenced, and the camera was set down somewhere and forgotten about.  You can imagine.  Hollie had to play with each gift before opening another, so it would have taken all day had we not helped her along!  And we really didn't have all day, because that same afternoon we hopped a plane for...

...Phoenix!  Quite a change of scenery.  As we stepped off the plane, I think all three of us took a simultaneous deep breath of the cool, dry air, and our lungs cleared as the allergies we'd been battling the past five days just disappeared.

But not really.  While we were there, we would occasionally have a good cough, and say, "Sorry, I'm still getting Portland out of my chest!"  We loved Oregon, but we're just not used to all that green-ness.  

PHX kept us pretty busy, as usual.  It's still home to us in many ways, so over our four-day stay, there were a million restaurants to revisit (a few, twice - In N Out!), thousand friends to catch up with, and beautiful warm weather to enjoy, not to mention Christmas dinner, which was postponed a day just for us (thanks again Mom!) and Daniel's birthday (24 - holy moly!).  Poor guy had to make his own cake: tres leches (yummmm)! 

Okay, no more parentheses (I promise).

Unfortunately, the camera got taken out a grand total of ONE time while we were there.  I took what would have been a beautiful photo of my dad and Hollie lying outside in the hammock, but it just didn't turn out.  Sorry, Dad.  :(

So, by the end, we were ready to be home.  Hollie did great on all the flights, even, I might add, on the way home when Mr. Grinch's nasty-wastier twin sister happened to be sitting in the row in front of us.  I'm not gonna give you the whole story here.  Got a little bruise on my mama heart, and someday when I can stop kicking myself for not giving that woman a piece of my mind, then we'll be able to laugh about it.  And maybe wonder if she regrets what she said - who knows?

Sorry to end on that note!  Really, we brushed it off and we're okay :)

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In other news...we did Hollie's FIRST HAIRCUT last night and it was a beautiful success!  There are pictures, but I hear little lady waking up from her nap, so watch for those...later.

More Christmas photos

I think one more post after this one will just about "wrap up" (haha!) the Christmas photos.  If I get it done before the end of January, that's still respectable, right?

So, we had a belated birthday celebration for Daniel's mom, Abuelita, which consisted of an original song written and performed by her three sons...a complete surprise - for her!

They came up from the basement one by one...

(this is how they normally dress...I promise)
 

 Our favorite...but we're biased.  :)

Somewhat nervous (but intrigued) audience.

 

 

Solo!

The birthday girl herself!

Soliciting donations...typical!

One of them was a little more peristent!

 Afterward, as per [new] Christmas Eve tradition, the girls each opened one gift...

 

 Christmas pj's...to be worn the next morning!  Thank you Aunt Bekah :) 

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Sorry for the absence of pregnancy updates.  Over just the last few days I think I have felt a few little kicks!  I feel like since this is my second pregnancy I should remember exactly what it feels like, but at this point they are so few and far between, and nothing more than tiny nudges, so I have to wonder if they're not just gas.  I know that if it's the real thing, it won't be long before they're unmistakable.  I'll be at 18 weeks tomorrow, so it's about time!

I love the second trimester.  :)  Nausea disappeared after Christmas, and my appetite is great.  I'm a little tired, and my back hurts, and I haven't been sleeping well, but all "minor" complaints (haha...minor as in baby...is that too much of a stretch?).

We have an appointment with our OB and our first ultrasound tomorrow!  I'll be letting you know how it goes...

Christmas travels: part 2

So, more story.  I guess it was the next day, Daniel and I had to see this place called Voodoo Doughnuts that we had seen on TV, and first - make sure it exists (I always still feel a tiny bit of surprise when I finally see places in person that I had only previously seen on TV.  Isn't that weird?), and second - get some doughnuts.

 
Oh, baby.

On the left is the Voodoo doughnut, complete with pretzel-stake through the heart.  The next one has maple icing and bacon (better than it sounds, whether you think it sounds good or bad!).  The next one, called the Old Dirty Bastard, has crushed Oreos and peanut-butter (this is my heaven).  And for Hollie, a plain cake doughnut.

But wait, there's more...

 
The biggest apple fritter I think I've ever seen.  All four other doughnuts fit in there on top of this one.

Fortunately, it took us two days to finish all this.

Next, the cousins looked out the window and got into an adorable game of hide and seek...

 Wait a sec, where's Juliet?

There she is!

Hollie says, hmmm, I'm pretty sure she was there a second ago...

Pepere, is that Juliet in there?

A-ha!

 I found you!

To be continued...

Also, fair warning - you can see the Voodoo Doughnuts website for a list of all their wild and crazy pastries, some of the names are fairly (ahem) explicit.  The O.D.B. above is relatively tame.  Just so ya know.

It was one of those vacations...

...that you need another vacation afterward to recover from.  Don't get me wrong - it was great!  Nothing beats getting those cousins together in Portland, OR with Daniel's family, and also going down to see my family in Phoenix!

But the trip had its other moments.  Allergies, pinkeye, fever, and runny eyes/nose all made an appearance.

But still, overall we were lucky.  The weather was cooperative, even at home while we were gone.  We'd had a dry winter so far in Wichita (unusual), so we were pretty sure that after nine days away, we would get back and have to dig our car out of a snowdrift in the airport parking lot (at 9:30pm).  But amazingly, it was actually raining the night we got back..that's right, warm enough at 9:30pm to be raining!  And yeah, we've been home six days now and still no snow.  I'm convinced we're going to get the whole winter's worth at once, in like, April.

I had my last week of my first trimester while we were gone, and wow, this is the best part of pregnancy!  Energy!
Appetite!
I almost forget I'm pregnant sometimes, except for this little growing belly.  Yes, I'll start taking pictures soon.

Speaking of pictures, I took quite a few, so I think I'll split them up, with stories from the trip, over several posts.

Starting from even before we left...

Lights on the house!  Didn't get put up until the night before our departure, but that's okay.

 For the sake of time, mess, and a queasy stomach, I decided to just cover things in chocolate in lieu of making cookies.  Pretzels are as far as I got.  I tried one Oreo but it didn't really work out.  These were pretty good though.  And also just pretty.  :)

I opened one gift before we left on our trip.  My new sling - a mei-tai!  It's may-tie.  I was looking for something more versatile (front/back/hip), and this is it!  Here's a link: www.meitaibaby.com.  I didn't order from this site (muy expensivo), but it gives you a good idea of what it's like.  

I opened it early because I intended to use it during our trip, especially getting through the airports, but that didn't happen.  The day before we left, Hollie squished a banana all over it.  I washed it, hung it up to dry...and there it stayed.

We have used it a few times, using the back carry in my photo, and I think Hollie likes it!

The whole Leger clan came to meet us at the airport!  Hollie insists that everyone hold hands.

     

The same day, we took the girls up to ride the tram, and got a great view of the city.  There are two trams, which people ride to get to Oregon Health Science University, which is up on a big hill.  You can also drive, but why would you when you can ride one of these? ...  

This is the other tram passing us, going the other direction.

 

Looking back up at OHSU.

 

Hello Portland!

Later the girls chilled out...

...and had a snack.

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More pictures on the way! 

Can I use the same excuse as last time?

We've been busy?

Daniel has been having a crazy time at work (he had to work this past weekend, and one day earlier this week he worked like eleven hours).

So, if I were to fill you in on life, it would be the little things like...

...Hollie's new fascination with armpits.

...Hollie's unwavering conviction that if her teeth have to get brushed at bedtime, so do Mommy's.

...Hollie chasing the ducks at the park yelling, "Quack-quack-quack!" and doing the sign for "duck" with both hands.

...Hollie moving all of her dinner from her plate to the table, smiling, and signing "all done".

...Hollie bringing me her cup to hold while she drinks out of it.

...Our new hole in the basement ceiling.  The ceiling (which we put up ourselves just a few months ago) was sagging a little, so rather than wait a few years until it's sagging a lot and there's furniture and stuff in there, Daniel decided to just fix it now...by removing a big ol' chunk, installing reinforcements, and putting it back up.

A work in progress

...The new Panda Express, the first in Wichita, will be opening right near our house.  That's one of those places we miss from Arizona.  Bye-bye, healthy eating.  :(

...Hollie's growing vocabulary.  She says doggie really well, and she sometimes calls me Mommy (which came out of the blue...I didn't teach her that!), and also
    shoes - shoosh
    juice - 'oosh
    snack - 'nack
    cheese - random consonant followed by -eesh
No sentences yet.  And she still just babbles a lot.   Even with all the new words she's learning I still only understand about 2% of what she says. 

...Hollie tempting fate and raising Mommy's heart rate by learning to jump on her bed. 

...Mommy-daughter dance parties.

...Hollie laying a diaper out on the floor, sitting on it, and trying to put it on herself.

...Hollie pulling her arm into the sleeve of her long-sleeved shirt and saying "Uh-oh!"

...Hollie locking the bathroom door from the inside.  She wasn't inside herself (thank goodness), which makes it all the more baffling because that door swings inward, so she had to pull it closed from the outside.  Never would have thought she could do that.  Then the next day she does it again with her bedroom door.

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I think there may have been one or two things in there that didn't have to do with her.  That's good, right?

Not to mention, we just got back from a trip to see my family in Phoenix for our ASU homecoming game, and also Halloween!

Daniel and I were in the ASU marching band (that's how we met! Cue: awww), so along with 100 or so other band alums we participated in the pregame show alongside the current band.  Always a good time.  Getting free tickets to the game doesn't hurt either, even if they are nose-bleeds and we're technically "on the clock" and have to play occasionally throughout the game.

Hollie-bear tagged along to the rehearsal...

She's checking out my mellophone (Daniel played trombone).

Also, as I mentioned, Halloween!  Hollie was a ballerina.  It was the only thing we could do without buying anything (even though I ended up buying some ballet shoes) and also because she loves wearing this tutu that she got from Daniel's parents for her birthday (eight-ish months ago?  Can't believe it still fits), so we didn't have to worry about her taking it off.

Unfortunately I didn't get any good pictures except these, of her eating dinner and faithful old Duke waiting patiently for the inevitable fistfuls of broccoli to come down at his feet.   

I do have some other great photos that I've taken since we've been back, but this post has gotten too long already, so I'll get those up later.  Hopefully this week.

Happy Friday-eve!

I just had to create a new label for "Spontaneity"

...because this is getting out of hand.  We took another road trip this weekend!

We drove up to Omaha to see our alma mater, Arizona State, in the opening round of the college baseball world series.

Five hour drive!  Easy peasy.  The little bear did great.  Here she is during our stop for lunch on the way up.  She is sitting in a booster seat, instead of a high chair!  She got a kick out of it.  And look at those baby blues!

Hellooooo, weather delay!

Long story short, the game, which was scheduled for that evening, was postponed due to the weather until the next morning.  We decided to stay, partly because we had spent a little extra money on nicer seats (in the shade), and partly because this is the last chance we would get to watch a game in historic Rosenblatt Stadium!

So, the game went great (for us, but unfortunately, not for the team).  Hollie and I took walks around the concourse when she got antsy (and got tired of playing with Dada's hat).

  

We made a quite meal of these shoestring french fries.  

I love ballpark food, but in smaller doses, I think, from now on.

We passed this place on the way out- a little sports memorabilia shop/museum that Daniel had heard about.  Apparently the owner likes to give beer to anyone who comes in.  We didn't stop to see if it was true.

And finally, on the way home, we had to stop at our new-old favorite: Steak n Shake.  They're pretty good.  Not the best burgers we've ever had, but for some reason we always stop when we see one on the road.  Tradition, I guess.

We are falling in love with these little weekend family getaways.  I can't wait for the next one...