surprise visit!

i met and became good friends with connie in ukraine, she lives in hawaii so i haven't seen her since my wedding. she finally made it out to visit 2 weeks ago and because of a family emergency we didn't get to see her. very sad.

luckily we have skype so she could meet grant and we could see each other for a little bit. so i got on at our planned time and waited for her to call...and waited...then heard knocking on the door upstairs! of course it's not my door so after not answering she called and i lead her to our door through the back. that sneaky mother. i'll love you for ever for that one, con bon!

she made a second quick trip back to utah and i'm so glad she got to come visit. we just sat and talked for hours. grant totally loved her, although she got to meet him during a fussy teething period but he fell asleep in her arms. nice work.

the woman is super crafty. she brought me an incredible gift, i even put them up while she was here holding my babe. 

finally the library

today brittany and i took the boys to the baby lap time at the library. i've been wanting to go for awhile, i'm extremely surprised that it took so long. 

this new library opened in october and today i finally got myself a card. living here an entire year without going to the library is shocking for me. my word.

watching all the little kids was pretty hilarious, many accidents occurred, jace included. they all just ran around (into each other), dancing and clapping as the lady sang her songs. i think it's great they do that. 

before we left i found life of pi on disk because i was told it was 10x better that way. though i wouldn't know because i've never read it, i've heard several good things about it so it's time. at least before the movie comes out!

(google)

awww

he's started a little baby laugh. i love it. i can hear it right now in the other room as he plays with his daddy. the most beautiful sound in the world. why can something so small change your entire heart?

i love when i put him down after he falls asleep, i do my thing and when he wakes up he just looks around til he finds me and just stares. just lays and stares at me for awhile. then smiles and talks. all patient and cute.

he officially plays in his little bouncer whatever....for maybe 3 minutes. so cute to see him bounce on his tiny feet and wobble like a bobble head for a second til he gains control again.

stop being so awesome

i just discovered my all time favorite store. if money grew on trees i would completely redo my home with everything in this place. i just want to tell it to stop being so awesome.

urban outfitters

toys

why is it such a big deal that a baby can reach up and take something from you? and it happens so quickly, you watch him slowly start to recognize and test out his abilities and then BAM (yesterday) he reaches up with both hands and purposfully takes something out of your hand, and starts talking to it, of course. that is cause for celebration.

profile

during grant's tummy time i found myself staring at his cute little profile. normally i see all matt, it makes me laugh how identical they are.

but today i was thinking back on week 20 of my pregnancy. i remember staring at that screen, watching for that little baby profile and wondering what he will look like in 20 more weeks.

obviously he still had months of developing left to do but i can see it!
 how precious my baby is.

three

not that i need an excuse, but i was my visiting teachees birthday yesterday soooo of course i had to try something new...and delicious...

peanut butter chocolate chip cupcakes with a peanut butter frosting.  oh my dear goodness. this was so heavy and dense, so amazingly incredible, i had to give most of them away to save myself. i had 2, saved 2 for matt, and got rid of the rest!

it tasted like a cookie cupcake, when matt took his first bite that's exactly what he asked "is this a cookie cupcake?", my exact first thoughts.

i added a bit more powdered sugar to the frosting than called for because i wanted more sweet than a peanut buttery taste-but that's what this is, very peanut buttery. i also used heavy cream instead of whole milk, which i'm sure added to that heavy-ness. i'd do it the same next time! so goooood.

aaaand on the complete opposite side of things, yesterdays workout was something new. another jillian video, but oh. my. it was awesome. i'm doing everything and thinking "why isn't this harder? this is too easy" but when it ended i was sweating more than ever before. and i was shaking for about an hour after...how was it that good?

but aside from that, it was very different. it was fun and full of very new moves that you think wouldn't do much and then BAM, it's hard for me to walk today. awesome. so if you're looking for a new workout, try this one! today is going to have to be just yoga to help me recover.

i've discovered that letting grant fall asleep on his own means he'll be out much longer than had i rocked him. which makes sense, he wakes up in the same place he fell asleep in, much more comforting, and then fades back to sleep. it's a beautiful thing. because now i can actually nap if i want. and i want. right now. so good night.

thanks be to the bowers

we've got some friends getting married next month, they're headed for albuquerque so were in need of a car-sitter. matt and i were in salt lake for the day and i drove their car back while matt and the babe followed behind.

i love my sweet little boy more than my own life, but that was the very first time i've been completely alone in 3 months and it was beautiful. i was able to turn up the music and sing as loud as i wanted! i haven't done that since about half way into my pregnancy because i was worried it was too loud for my baby...

i didn't even worry, grant loves the car but after about a half hour he's done. so i knew at some point he was crying and i just pushed it out of my head. it was daddies turn.

when we got home i could hear it. such a sad piercing scream of a cry, then it was my turn. i comforted and fed my little babe. it was the hardest i've ever heard him cry and it was extremely hard to calm him down. i even started to cry because i didn't know what was wrong. i'm pretty sure his gums were hurting him...teething is a sad time.

my favorite is that once the babe is fed, the oral gel is applied, cuddling has occurred, BAM he's a happy happy baby again. and i'm a happy mama.

bat baby

i thought it was very sweet of christian bale to visit the victims of aurora. what a great way to ease a bit of the pain, maybe it will help that association with batman. i think we'll always remember that though.

matt was very excited about this movie, they had tickets for saturday. amanda bought some batman masks to celebrate but of course they didn't end up wearing them. but luckily grant was able to celebrate a few days before, supporting his daddy's excitement.

little baby hands, little baby feet

grant's starting to hold his own hands now, he's very amused by himself. and it's helping him learn how to grab things easier as well, he looks down at himself holding his own hand and reaches out for something else.

he's now grown out of the newborn shoes, and has yet to fit in any others that we have for him. which is totally fine, because why do babies even wear shoes? it's just so cute!

yum

everyday is like an adventure in the kitchen, and who needs a cook book when you have pinterest? it's so great experimenting but i'm not a fan when the meal turns out not so great. like the cream cheese chicken chili...disappointing to what my mind built it up to be. but still edible.

last night i tried the slow cooker salsa chicken  and that was a different story, my word it was delicious. i'm about to have some for lunch.

but i find myself on pinterest before cooking any meal, that's where i make all my decisions. unfortunately i end up making a dessert too... then at the end of the week i go through all the recipes i've got pinned and delete the not so great ones. mom has me send the awesome ones her way, she really needs to discover the beauty of pinning.

matt has to work and is going to another bachelor party tonight, that's what happens when you live in utah. bachelor parties every weekend. so amanda, grant, and i will be celebrating the holiday without our hard working husbands. but what's the point of living in utah if you don't have pioneer day off?? come on!

so today we're going to test out this baked ziti... and probably some homemade reese's eggs because i'm craving a bit of peanut butter! that OR these red velvet brownies because i can't stop staring at them.

when the church owns the mall

had i not been huge and lugging around a ginormous belly, i would have made it to city creek much much sooner.

i've always loved gateway, but they've kicked it up a notch. city creek is 5 times gateway, bravo salt lake city.

i can just imagine the crap that has and is going down when it comes to the standards of this mall, but as for me, i think it's incredible. i'm extremely grateful for the good in this world, and for a place that holds  some sort of standards, a place where you can go to find a family friendly atmosphere.

it was pretty hot on saturday, but grant enjoyed himself. and i enjoyed myself when the nice cool breezes from the flowing air would hit me. i'm not a summer person.

amanda pointed out something incredible, one of the best things about this place is by far the nice parking garages! you feel completely safe in there 24 hours of the day. it is well lit, clean, and roomy. just like the church office garages, much safer.

this mall is all outdoors, but they are prepared for the rain and snow...with a ceiling to cover the top and ac for the hot hot days, i was very grateful.

aaand this mall holds my all time favorite store....FINALLY brought closer to us...thank you thank you

then of course there are the more prestigious retailers, bringing in some class, making salt lake a bit more upscale...

aside from the shopping, it's a really beautiful place. lots of streams, little bridges, gorgeous landscaping, with every kind of water fountain imaginable. and of course there is the incredible view of temple square that just takes your breath away when you turn the right corners.

aaaand he's out

it's so nice to watch grant playing by himself, being all independant and letting mom get things done around the house. but my favorite part is this new comfort he has to fade into sleep on his own. right in the middle of playing. plus it's adorable.

FIESTA!

second to last of the group to wed, nefi and mary finally got married! i'm sorry to say that blogger will not allow me to load the boys dance for this one, but it was epic. if we're friends, refer to facebook for that proof.

this was by far the coolest and least boring reception i have ever been to. also my first hispanic one. of course it was just gorgeous, at the sleepy ridge golf course in orem. it was a beautiful and perfect summer day with a nice cool wind, just perfect for their outdoor wedding ceremony.

mary's dad walking her down the isle

groomsmen on the right, matt's hidden in there

bridesmaids on the left

you may now kiss the bride, officially man and wife!

mr and mrs acosta

cutting the cake

la vibora de la mar (the snake of the sea) : the bride and the groom each stand on a chair and hold hands creating a bridge. then the bridesmaids, mothers, sisters, daughter, all the woman form a line, hold hands and create a "snake". they run around, under the bridge, sprinting as fast as they can trying not to break the line as the music gets faster. then they do the same for all the men. at the end of the game they throw their bouquet and garter.

throwing the garter

tossing the bouquet

el muertito (the little death) : male guests lifting the groom up over their shoulders and tossing him in the air several times.

the marachi band

the money dance: the guests offer money in exchange for a dance with the bride or the groom. they pin it to their clothes and dance until the next guest pins their money.

we're so happy for you two, you'll have a beautiful life together! mary, you were a gorgeous bride and nefi, you were so sweet and so proud to stand next to your lady. we wish you every blessing marriage brings and more! congratulations!!!