Merry Christmas!!!

Macie's first Christmas and man it flew by. It all started with Macie's first present. Which we opened on the 23rd at home.

Christmas eve day we packed up the car, dog and all, and headed for Hurricane, UT to visit the fam. That night we made a quick visit to the family dinner/party. Macie wasn't feeling too well and we didn't want to share her cold with all the other little ones there. So after a quick bite to eat and a few hellos, we went home and put her to bed.

Christmas morning was chock full of toys and Grandma and Grandpa spoiled her of course. She got everything from clothes, to movies to dolls to learning toys, to her own little piano. We spent the next few days visiting family, eating too much and just lounging around the house.

Saying hello to uncle Tim.

Playing with great grandma and grandpa Stanworth.

We hope you all had a great holiday season. Happy New Year.

And...she's off...

Thought we would share a quick video of Macie starting to cruise around. We can't believe how fast these last 6 months have gone by.

Macie and Mama

Just a few recent pics and video.

A hunting we will go....

Last year we, along with Ben and Marie and boys, and Crystal and Evan and their girls, all applied for Christmas tree permits. We went to Payson and cut down some decent trees. Well, ok they were a little Charlie Brownish, but it was a good time. So we applied again this year for tags and the Hales joined us again to go Christmas tree hunting.



This year we drew out of Prescott National Forest. It is about a 2 hour drive, or less, from home. We headed out early Saturday morning after a quick breakfast at Sonic. The U.S. Forest Service was nice enough to give us this great detailed map. Actually I have seen 3 yr olds draw better maps than these guys do. But none the less I was an Eagle scout who had earned his Merritt badge in compasses and map reading, so I thought no problem.

By noon we had covered a couple miles on dirt roads, but saw only Arizona cacti. No pines to be found. After a stop for lunch we headed out to the "recommended cutting area" on our map. Mind you there really is no way to tell where the heck you are by this map. After 3 hours of driving all we had spotted was a few antelope and some pinon trees. Another hour drive took us over to Jerome, an old mining town on the edge of a mountain. On the way back to Prescott, we stopped in an area called potato patch which yielded only a few great photos.















After a long day with no luck we headed back to Prescott to check into the hotel and get some dinner. Sunday we went out again to look for trees. We traveled through the Lynx Lake area and Prescott National Forest which was beautiful. The leaves were finishing changing colors and the weather was just right.






After 2 hours on dirt roads and lots of short off road hikes, we finally found a couple of beautiful trees. By the time we had found them we were 20 miles out of Prescott. We hoped we could continue on the dirt road we were on and it would take us to a town that would lead to paved roads. After another hour of driving we met up with some guys on ATVs. We stopped them and asked if we were close to a town or if we should turn back. They told us we were about half way to a town called Crown King. They said it had a restaurant, bar and store there. They also told us we could get to a main highway from there. We decided that since we had come this far we might as well continue and check out Crown King. Another hour and a half on dirt roads with a top speed of 20 MPH and this is what we found:


Crown King Arizona, population 165. That is the general store in the back ground. They do have a restaurant, but it is only open until 4pm on Sundays. So we settled for hot dogs and chips from the store. The lady behind the counter told us they have about 300 homes there and 9 kids in their school. She also informed us we had about another hour on dirt roads before getting to pavement. Not something any of us wanted to hear after being on the dirt roads all day. The women in the group had waited several hours for a bathroom. Unfortunately Crown King only had public port-o-potties. They were so bad that they decided to pop a squat behind a tree several miles down the road.

Needless to say we finally made it back to the interstate. Total time in the forest: around 7 hours. Total miles covered on dirt roads: only about 70. All in all in was a great adventure and a fun time. But I think next year we are going to a "cut your own" tree farm.

Jump

Nothing much to say, just a cute video of the cutest girl in the world.

"Growing like a weed", as my grandma would say.

Wende took Macie for her 6 month check yesterday. The doctor was excited to tell her that our daughter would be soon trying to sit up. He said it was only a matter of time until she could do it on her own. Macie being the overachiever of the family has already been doing this for weeks. Thought we would share some photos.










Macie and Grandma Scholzen.






Bath time!!! Dang she's cute.

Lions, and tigers and kangaroos?....oh my!

To tell you the truth, I have never been a big zoo fan. Oh, I have fond memories being a kid and going there with my brothers and parents. But I guess as you grow older, you grow out of it. But then you have a little one of your own and you want to show them everything. Just taking them to the grocery store is awesome as they stare in amazement at all the bottles and cans on the different isles. Then you realize that this kid has never seen a bag of Lays or a box of Corn Flakes. So I guess that is what makes the zoo so fascinating as a kid. It's all new.






I had to work on Monday, but Wende and one of her friends took the kids to the Phoenix Zoo. I know you are thinking, what kind of animals are they going to have in cages in phoenix? Crips, bloods, illegal immigrants? But she said it was actually a really good zoo and they saw some stuff they didn't think they would like a giraffe and kangaroo. Unfortunately Macie was asleep during the kangaroo part. But I thought I would share some photos anyway.






On a different note today we are taking our 36th trip (and definitely not our last) to Babysrus. But not for diapers or formula or even clothes this time. Today I was watching Macie while Wende attended a friend's baby shower. I got Macie up from her morning nap and placed her on the floor with all her toys in the living room to play. I thought to my self, "good, she's happy. Now I have 5 minutes to check my e-mail". So I actually took more like 10 min and I was ten feet away and I could hear her playing. But when I stuck my head around the wall to check on her this is what I found:



Not only was she wedged between the two couches and the coffee table, she had straddled the TV stand too. So to say the least she is starting to wiggle herself all over the place. She is even up on her hands and knees:

Looks like it is baby proofing time. We are headed out to the store to buy some of those little electrical outlet protectors, cabinet locks and whatever else we get suckered into. Have a great week.

Lederhosen, Bratwurst, Prost!!!!

Phoenix is not the first place that comes to mind when you think of Oktoberfest. But, Tempe actually puts on a good time. This past weekend we headed to Tempe town lake for some brats, polka music and Boddingtons. The weather was perfect for spreading out a blanket on the grass an watching Macie learning to sit on her own.










Here is a video of Macie sitting up on her own. At least with a little help from mama.

Wende's update

I thought it about time that I post an update on Wende. Since I have been in school, she has been working full time to help support us. Recently she took a part time job at a Spa in Scottsdale doing Botox injections and Sclerotherapy (spider vein removal). The business is new, but the clientele is really starting to pick up. She really enjoys it and hopes to turn it into a full time career down the road which will give her more time at home. She would love to stay home all the time with Macie and can't imagine life without her.






Of course she still works full time at the hospital, but is eagerly awaiting Oct 1st which is the day I start my new job. Then she will go part time at the hospital working in the NICU two days a week. She loves working with the babies and is one of the most competent, hardworking nurses I know. She makes me very proud with all the praise she receives from her co-workers and parents of the newborns she takes care of. I don't know how she takes care of all those sick little ones, day in and day out. It takes a special person to work in that environment.

Not exactly steak and eggs.....

Last week Macie turned 4 months old. To celebrate Wende thinks she is ready to eat with bowls and utensils. I of course not wanting to see my little one grow up too fast, think she is still a newborn. I studied about these little ones in school and the milestones they go through. Other parents have told us about this too. Solids are supposed to be started sometime between 4-6 months. So you get a plastic spoon and some rice cereal and just feed them right? Oh no. We have to buy a high chair, plastic bibs, plastic kid bowls and small little plastic spoons. So two hours and $150 later, we leave Baby's r us armed for the first feeding. In all seriousness, it went pretty well and Macie actually enjoyed it. Matter of fact she ate more than we thought she would. Tomorrow, steak and eggs!!

I hope she likes Starbucks coffee and Pearl Jam

This past week our good friend and Macie's unofficial Godmother, Erin, left the valley of the sun for a wetter, greener climate. I can't believe she would leave all this dirt, cacti and summer temps that melt your face off, just to live by the water. Erin has been a great friend of ours since we started the PA program together over two years ago. She kept me going in school, helped me pass numerous tests I couldn't have passed on my own, and always came to visit Macie. As you can see she was always fun to go out with.

A long way from her home of Georgia, she took a job as a Physician Assistant in the Seattle area. Although we will miss her one-liners, sense of humor and good times, we can't wait to go visit her in Washington. Peace, love and coffee houses.

Stop, drop and roll baby.

Our little overachiever started rolling over a couple of weeks ago, but has really been doing it more and more this past week. She also loves her new bouncer we bought her. Thought I would share the videos. Also here are a couple of pictures I had to post. She is so dang cute!!!