Cheap Entertainment

After running some errands on Saturday, Marshall and I wanted to find something fun to do with Kate that wouldn't cost a ton. Marshall suggested we head to the mall and ride the carousel. When we first walked in Kate was in awe and kept pointing and grunting while she was watching the other kids ride. We knew it would be a hit but got hung up for a bit when we ran into an old neighbor and started chatting. I thought Kate was literally going to leap out of Marshall's arms while we were talking to her. She couldn't wait to get on that carousel!

Petting the horse

Having so much fun!

Afterwards we "rode" some of the little grocery store toys they had lining the wall. I say "rode" because we didn't put any money in. Kate was perfectly content to climb on them and pretend.

After watching her I have decided that Marshall will definitely have to be the one to teach her to drive when the time comes! I don't think my nerves can handle this little dare devil!

This pink van was definitely her favorite!

But she looked pretty darn cute in the little convertible!

We got a hot tip from Mazzy, the grandma that Marshall befriended during our outing, that the Orange Julius was giving away free smoothie samples! So of course, that was our next stop. Kate could live off smoothies! The whole outing cost us $1.50! It's amazing how it costs so much less to entertain a child than it does an adult. It's also amazing that now that we as adults, have a child, we are content to be entertained by her happiness! My how life has changed!

Bitter-sweet... but mostly just BITTER!

We decided to sell Marshall's motorcycle a few months ago. It was a super hard decision but it was time and we could no longer ignore it. Marshall LOVES his bike and riding it was one of the only hobbies he has managed to hang on to since we've been married and had Kate, but he hadn't been riding it much lately and like I said, it was just time. It was a pretty sad day when we finally cleaned it up and put it up for sale on the Internet. Here are a few pics for the archives.

Nate had it custom painted and a few other things done to it for a wedding gift to Marsh.

Marshall wanted the flaming sun because once upon a time he had named his bike "Apollo".

Here is the closest thing Marshall will get to taking Kate for a ride! These pictures were taken at the beginning of June when we first posted the ads. I can not believe how much she has changed in just a few short months!

Too bad they never got to take their father/daughter stunt team on the road! We could be rolling in it and probably would have never had to sell the bike!

After a couple months, several phone calls, and a few price adjustments, the day finally came.

:( Here Marshall is putting the back seat on so him and I could go for one last ride around the neighborhood before they came to pick it up. I think Marshall had secretly, (or maybe not so secretly), hoped it just wouldn't sell this summer and that it would turn out to be some test of faith like Abraham and Isaac... not so.

Some words of encouragement. However, there wasn't much I could do to cheer Marshall up... It was the end of an era.

A half-hearted smile after Marshall took it for one last "real" ride after he took me out for a "safe" ride. Then some nice people came and took Apollo to live on a farm where he would be ridden often and have lots of room to go fast!

In a small twist of irony, and on a brighter note... that night Isaac accidently found his first bike that Nate and Britt had been saving for a morning reveal. It was on the front porch and in all the excitement of saying goodbye to Marshall's motorcycle it was discovered.

But if he had not accidentally found it we would never have gotten this gem! Here Grandpa is showing Isaac how it is done and Isaac is giving him a boost. (not the best lighting but too good to pass up!)

Knowing that Marshall was planning to sell his bike Kate and I had a special gift in mind for Marshall's first official Father's Day...

I don't have actual pictures from when he opened his gift on Father's Day because Kate was not about to give up her hold on the camera even for the first Father's Day moment! So here are some I managed to get with her later.

We went down to the Color Me Mine in Provo and made Marshall a Motorcycle Bank! Uncle John met us there and helped me with Kate while I worked on getting it to look mostly like his bike and then Kate added her finishing touches! Just an FYI- painting ceramic with a 1 yr old is NOT an easy task!

Color Me Mine is an inside joke from when Marshall and I first met. He was trying to impress me and take me on a fun, unique date and kept suggesting that we go there to paint and play. It didn't take long for him to figure out that I was more of a dinner and a movie kind of girl. We never went there for a date and to this day we still jokingly suggest that as an option when we are having a hard time deciding where to go for a night out.

Marshall really liked it and even shed a little tear. (I think it was more for the thought of selling his bike at the time and not so much for the sentimentality of the Father's Day gift).

He is already saving for his next bike!

Loud Noises!!!!

The last couple of days have been pretty exciting around here! The builder has finally decided to replace the driveway! Although it hasn't been the best conditions for naps, I will say it has kept us pretty entertained between them.

Instead of Jack-hammering the whole driveway, they just did a little corner and then literally peeled the rest up. That's probably a good thing because the hammering was shaking the whole house and Kate kept going "boom boom boom boom".

Here is a little spot where they hammered up the walkway. You can also see how the concrete was damaged from when it wasn't done properly the first time.

Isaac was studying the whole process very intently. I'm pretty sure that if he could speak in full sentences he would be able to tell us from start to finish exactly how they did it.

Kate just thought it was fun to look out the window and see all the commotion.

Take a look at this guy! He literally looked like they had plucked him out of a mental institution and tied him to the chair. He barely moved at all... even his arms were still while he was operating the machine. It was pretty funny to watch. I wonder how many driveways he has done this summer?! He seemed pretty into his job!

A shot of what was underneath

After they pulled up the concrete they poured gravel and then left for the day.

The next day this arrived to pour our new driveway...

And so did all this eye candy.. ;)

Another shot of the HUGE crane!

Of course we couldn't pass up the opportunity to leave our mark!

Check out my fancy PJs!

Yea!!!!!!

Almost done

Three days later...It looks so much better! I think it will be worth parking on the street for two weeks, the coming and going out the basement window a few times, and the weird nap schedules!

As Promised...

More stinkin' cute pictures of our little Peanut!

Vouge

I asked Marshall to get Kate dressed one day and this was the result...

Knowing my love for matching bows with Kate's outfits, he found this green ribbon and tied it around her head. I don't know what is more impressive, the fact that he actually got her to hold still while he did it or that he tied it so the bow is facing the right direction. (the boa was Kate's addition!)