Two Anniversaries

At the end of June we went to Las Vegas for a family reunion celebrating the 65th wedding anniversary of Justin's paternal grandparents. We drove up early Friday morning. Caden did great for the most part. Once we arrived, we stopped to say hello to the grandparents. Grandma has Alzheimer's and didn't remember Justin, let alone me. Apparently she spends most of her time watching TV. I told Justin if I ever get that way he better not plant me in front of the TV all day! I expect being read to, having visitors, and engaging in conversation that I'll forget and repeat the next day.

Anyway, after that we went to a sushi/Asian buffet. I accidentally chose a spicy sushi roll. My whole insides were on fire! I do not do spicy. The rest of the food was good though. After eating we shopped around the outlet mall the restaurant was at. Justin found the basketball shoes he wanted on clearance. We also got these really cool towels that get cold when you shake them--perfect for golfing and working out.
The hotel we stayed at was nice, but the neighbors were not. They were getting drunk in preparation for the Electric Daisy rave. Thankfully they were gone at night and didn't disturb us. I hate weekends in Vegas!

(Justin and I both forgot our cameras for this special occasion, so all photos are from other family members.)

Saturday was the reunion at the clubhouse where the grandparents live. It was all decked out Hawaiian style with prints of old photos of Grandma and Grandpa on the tables for us to take home. We started with Julie (cousin) taking photos of all the families. Nearly two hours later we got to eat great Hawaiian/Asian food. Caden loved all the attention his Auntie Keilani was giving him. After eating, Hawaiian singers put on a concert for everyone, opening with Grandpa singing and dancing to his favorite Hawaiian song, "Manuela Boy." Caden actually fell asleep, to the envy of all the other mothers of babies. Next was a short talent show, singing to Grandma and Grandpa and eating cake (which Grandpa cut with a sword), and saying goodbye. I finally met all the Nishimoto relatives and new babies. It was a long but fun day. The next morning we left for home. Caden did not do so well. He didn't sleep well at the hotel either.

Justin's family stayed at our home for another week. (A while ago when I wrote about our move, I shared that Justin's father came out before the reunion to help Justin's brother and his wife move and ended up helping us move to our new one too. He then drove up with Adam and Kirsten to the reunion, and the whole family drove back down.) The boys golfed a lot while the girls shopped. I finished unpacking quickly thanks to Justin's dad. It was during this time that Caden got sick with his double ear infections. It was a crazy month!

At the end of July was our fourth wedding anniversary (long way before we catch up to the grandparents!). Justin finally agreed with me that it has felt like longer (he always takes it negatively when I say that just to annoy me). Justin had school that day, so we went for a late lunch at a nice Italian place and then saw Harry Potter in IMAX 3D (wrote about that here). Although we agreed no gifts, Justin got me a surprise. When I woke up and opened my drawer, I saw a new (expensive) hair straightener. He had used the rest of his tournament prize money to buy it for me. How sweet! I admit it is nice having a good straightener again.

A couple days later we went bowling as a family since we ran out of time on our anniversary. Caden had fun watching us. Justin won all but one game and got a million strikes. I'm terrible! But I did get one turkey. Afterward we tried out a new Korean place. I didn't care for it, but Justin did.

I was hoping to go on a cruise for our fifth anniversary, but the way finances are and will be going, that ain't happening. So who knows what next year will bring!

Teeth

What is up with America's obsession with teeth? We act like we're horses being scrutinized by potential buyers. First it was getting them straightened with braces. Now it's getting them whitened. I've neither had braces nor whitened my teeth. And I don't wish to. I think my teeth are just fine, as uneven or yellow as they may be. And Justin thought so too. After all, it was my smile that caught his attention in the ward "menu."

Besides, what really matters is that you still have teeth and take care of them with basic dental hygeine--simple and inexpensive--for health purposes.

Little Houdini

Caden thinks he is Houdini, master magician and contortionist. Just a few examples:

*A few days ago he crawled in the small wedge between the couch and the wall and then cried when he got stuck in the middle. I had to move the couch to get him.

*In fact, he loves to squeeze between or under any tight place, such as chairs pushed in beneath the table or underneath his highchair, and insists he can fit. He is a persistent little fellow. But he has a hard time getting out of such places.

*He has figured out all my tricks. He can get out of the Bumbo, even with a cloth diaper on. He gets into the kitchen by pushing the car seat or exersaucer out of the way or climbing underneath the exersaucer. We just got a hand-me-down baby gate but haven't put it up yet (it needs to be bolted to the wall).

*He mastered a new trick on Saturday: putting the balls into the round holes on his dragon toy. He loves it!

*He discovered he can sit up in his infant bathtub. I still use it because it's easier to clean than our tub and because Caden refuses to put his head back for me to rinse his hair and then cries when the water and shampoo get in his face. But getting him to recline in the little tub is a challenge now. And he wants to stay and play; he gets mad when I take him out right away. So I guess I need to make bath time earlier so he has time to play!

Published

Several months ago I wrote four articles on modesty and submitted them to the online LDS fashion magazine Jen Magazine. I never heard back from Jen, the creator, so I posted the articles on my Mormon Light blog and deleted the Word documents. Then a couple weeks ago I got an email from her saying she wanted to publish all four articles! And I would get paid 5 cents a word.

This is the first time my work has been published! And paid for! I am so excited. To read the first article she posted on the site, go here.

Toddler

"Cheese face"

Caden can walk! He officially took two steps on Independence Day. How suiting. Since then he's slowly built up his courage and is now able to walk all around the house. And last Thursday evening he stood up without holding onto or pushing off of anything. Caden looks so funny when he toddles around. He's still a bit unbalanced, making him look drunk, and he puts his arms up in the air, like a chimp. He thinks he's so big and bad now that he can walk and loves when we cheer him on or chase him. He hates shoes (the photo was taken while he was upset, but once he saw the camera he smiled).

Another silly thing he likes to do is the yoga position downward dog, but with his head touching the ground. He is just so cute! And mischievous. Wednesday he took off his diaper.

Caden is a little Narcissus. He loves the mirror. If he wasn't banging on it, he was just sitting there gazing at himself and laughing once I caught him doing it. It calms him down when he's crying too. We had to move it (who knows when Justin will put it up) because it fell on him one day. Caden also enjoys shutting doors and putting his toys in his drawers. He's obsessed with his toes. When he's on the potty or just randomly sitting down he'll stare at them while wiggling them around. He inherited playing with his tongue from Justin's mom. They both stick it out slightly and bite on it when concentrating. Speaking of biting, his four top two teeth are coming in. It's been a nightmare. Caden's hair is getting long and curly. He looks less like a baby each day. Something random: he always smells like applesauce, even if he didn't eat any.

Every night we put away the toys before bed while singing the "Clean Up" song. Caden joins in with "ee-nuh." I'm not sure if he associates it with actually tidying up because he says it sometimes when he sees his toys during the day. Can I count them as his first words? I think he knows Dad(a) too, but he makes that sound for other things as well.

Caden still spends most of the night in bed with us. And let me tell ya, this guy is a little gymnast in his sleep! He ends up sideways, upside down, or on his side arching his back and head into a C. We are working on getting him back in his crib because we can't stand being pushed and kicked and rolled on anymore!

One more month and my baby will be one years old. I cry if I dwell on it.