What's Up Wednesday

Today, I’m linking up with Shay, Shaefer and Mel for What’s Up Wednesday!

What we've been eating: 

In the last week, I've had my favorite Sushi (the JA roll at Temari), a shrimp mango quesadilla from Gecko grill, and Blue Bell Ice Cream. Living close to all of my favorite foods is wonderful and dangerous!

What I'm excited about:
Arizona hiking weather! We have a lot of hikes planned this winter and I'm loving that Jack loves to hike! (David is another story so poor Spencer has to pack him!) On Saturday, we hiked the Wind Cave trail and we were a little worried that it was going to be too hard for Jack (the Alltrails app it said it's a moderate hike) but we couldn't keep up with him! He did so great and didn't complain until the last quarter of a mile on our way back down. I call that a win!




David hiked most of the way down. We bribed him with a skittle for every two minutes he walked! haha


A close up of Kate in this picture, just because she's adorable :) Kate got two naps in and didn't cry once!

 
 I love goofy gummy baby smiles!


What I'm reminiscing about:
January 2015 when we last hiked the Wind Cave trail! What happened to our babies?!

What I'm loving: 
Our little six month old! We all love Kate over here! She's crawling everywhere, she can get herself in a standing position, she's eating baby food, and still the happiest little girl!



 
 
 
 Best way to do church is in the mother's lounge! I can't get over that sweet face and toes!!!
 
What we've been up to:

•  Fall Festival in Mesa! The event was free and they had bounce houses, character greetings, and trick-or-treating. 

Nursing is the most inconvenient, convenient thing ever.

• Enjoying the perks of our Pogo passes! We get one free mini golf game a week and it's an awesome quick outing if we need to get out for an hour.

• We've been walking/biking at the Riparian Preserve!

• One morning a week, I've been dropping my kids off at my gym's child watch but don't work out. #momfessional #momhack

What I'm working on:
Still working on fixing pictures from my blog from 2013-2015 during any spare time I have. It's taking forever to fix!!!

What I'm dreading:
I love living back in my hometown, but the one thing I dread is running into acquaintances from my past. Call me a scrooge or socially awkward, but I never know if I should say hi or avoid eye contact and just pretend that I don't see them??? Last week, I found myself lifting weights next to my 6th grade Valentine so I did what anyone would do and avoided eye contact but tried to get a picture of him to send to my best friend. (Hello Michael B! I'm still just as stalkerish as I was in 6th grade!)

What I'm watching:

Poldark Season 3!!!!!

And I'm also loving this season of This Is Us!
What I'm reading:
Since I am failing at reading books lately, I tried out Overdrive to see if I'd be better at audiobooks! I listened to one book this month (Landline by Rainbow Rowell) and it was super predictable and I wouldn't recommend. Better luck next time!
What I've been listening to:
More Taylor Swift! I'm so excited for her new album!

What I'm wearing: 
Still in workout clothes :)
What I'm doing this weekend: 
All of the Halloween things!!!
What I'm looking forward to next month:
Thanksgiving and Jack's birthday!
Bonus Question: What's your favorite Thanksgiving side dish? 
Stuffing!

Fall Break Part 2

We left early last Sunday morning and got to Arizona around dinner time. James, Maddie, and Calvin were at our house waiting for us! (They came the day before we got home because were going to the Diamondbacks playoff game on Monday) Do I count as a Diamondback fan if the #1 reason I love the Dbacks is that they motivate my brother and his family to come to AZ? ;) We spent all day Sunday night and all day Monday hanging out with them, then they left early Tuesday morning. Sadly the Dbacks lost :( Since I missed my parents in AZ by 6 months, they are the closest I've ever lived to family and it's so awesome being less than a days drive from them!

Isn't he the cutest?!



We had to show them how to fish at Discovery Park, of course. It's our new favorite past time ;)
 


And we tried Mucha Lucha Taco shop. Maddie had read that their tacos were ranked in the top ten in the nation (who ranked them I couldn't tell you! ha) and they were so good! It's located less than a mile from our house so we are in trouble! haha
I'm loving that David has been wearing his helmet everywhere he goes! 

Spencer bought Jack and David bikes while we were in Utah. We had been putting off getting them bikes because it was too cold in Iowa, then too hot in Arizona, plus Jack never seemed interested! The first week David was obsessed with riding his bike and Jack wanted nothing to do with it. Jack is finally getting the hang of it and enjoying it more and it's so funny listening to David encourage his older brother. "Jack! You're getting the hang of it! Good job!" Love those boys :)

Jack's excuse on this day for not riding his bike was that if he rode his bike, then the bunny wouldn't be able to go with us ;)

On Tuesday, we went to Vertuccio Farms with friends. October Break + Toddler Tuesdays = INSANITY. Luckily, we got there early enough that they were able to do everything!


Look at that gorgeous Arizona sky!!!!

Side note: I started running with my friend, Alicia, every Wednesday morning. (She motivates me to get up ridiculously early when I'm tired and don't want to run by myself in the dark.) We always run through the Riparian Preserve and it's gorgeous!

After my run, I took the kids to a park and splash pad with a friend. Here they are at 9:30 am during "fall" break. I forget how HOT it is in Arizona in October!



On Thursday we went to the zoo with a friend. (My parents gave us POGO passes as an early Christmas gift and I'm so excited!) Our favorite part was feeding the sting rays!



On Friday we took a breather and stayed home so I could finally unpack from Sunday! When Spencer got home we went swimming at Lifetime Fitness and went to Mucha Lucha again :)
On Saturday, Spencer and I went out on a sushi date. FYI: Temari in Gilbert has my favorite roll I've ever had- jalepeno apple. Sounds weird, looks weird, but it's seriously the BEST!
 
On Sunday, we went to church, with a walk at the Riparian in the morning and a walk/bike ride/fishing trip at Discovery Park in the evening. It's still so dang hot during the day but we try to take advantage of the amazing morning and evening weather!







I LOVE the John Deere blanket that my grandma made for Kate. It will help her remember the 14 days she lived in Iowa near John Deere headquarters :)

Kate also started eating solids last week. Feeding baby food to babies is my least favorite activity.

We had a great Fall Break and now I am ready to get back into the swing of things again.
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Two random things:
I am enjoying all of the GIRL things after having two boys. I couldn't help but dress Kate up at Old Navy the other day :)

Mother-of-the-year story: David found my pepper spray that I sometimes run with (I had no idea where it was after moving to Arizona) and sprayed it all over our kitchen. I freaked out, but we got out of the kitchen and everything seemed fine... until David rubbed his face. It was pretty traumatic for all of us!

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