home renovation

Last night, you woke up in the middle of the night, crying out.  A nasty nightmare was the culprit, and I scooped you up in my arms and held you in your dark room--a sliver of moonlight peeking in through the blinds and a blueish glow from your nightlight helping me see enough to wipe your tear stained cheeks.

Then we cuddled up in the rocking chair in the corner, you and I, with a soft yellow blanket that my grandma pieced together before she died.  And you wiggled and squirmed until you found your comfy place, sprawled across my lap, your head nuzzled close against me, your right arm dangling behind my back.  And I remembered rocking you just like this for so many nights in your infancy.  Before you could tell me about the monsters in your dreams.  When your little legs still fit in the soft circle of my arms while I held you, where now I felt your little toes curled around my calves.  And I squeezed you just a little bit tighter while I sang you lullabies and held your hand.

And I thanked Heavenly Father for my mother's heart.  That in that moment, in the middle of the night, I could long to hold you like that for an hour.  For days.  For weeks.  For months.

My Kaden Boy, I am so blessed to be your mommy.  Sometimes it is scary for me, watching you grow up.  And thinking that someday you will cry about something I can't fix, something that won't be an imaginary monster in the dark.  But I hope you will always know that I will still squeeze you close and hold your hand.

I love you so very much.

Love,
Mommy  

Kaden, with the laptop cord wrapped around his waist:  "Look, Mommy!  A space belt!"

While we were home for Christmas, Mackenzie came and got us to report that Kaden was naked in the bathtub.  Sure enough, he had stripped down to his birthday suit and was sitting in an empty tub, playing with toys.  At least he didn't start the water!

Kaden had gotten out of bed a couple of nights ago, and was banging on his door (we lock his door at night).  I went in to check on him, and he was standing there in only a diaper.  The kid had taken off his sleeper, only to realize he couldn't get it back on.  I couldn't help but laugh.  I helped him get re-dressed and tucked him back in bed.

Chad was pointing out pictures of Kaden when he was a baby that are hanging up in our stairwell.
       Chad:  Do you know who this is?
       Kaden:  Yes!
       Chad:  Who?
       Kaden:  BABY JESUS!

In fact, when seeing most pictures of babies, he automatically assumes they are Baby Jesus.  Or Noah (the baby brother of his buddy, Liam).

Anytime he sees a picture of a star he starts talking about when Baby Jesus was born.  At least he got something out of our Christmas-themed family home evening lesson.

We were in the grocery store shopping, and I was pushing Kaden in the cart.  All of a sudden, completely out of nowhere, he starts chanting, "Bacon!  Bacon!  Bacon!"  We were nowhere near bacon, so I have no clue where this thought pattern came from, but it was hilarious.

I was making Kaden lunch and asked him if he wanted honey or jelly on his peanut butter sandwich.
     Kaden:  Jelly!  It's DELICIOUS!!!!"

I have to lie down beside Kaden until he falls asleep in order for him to nap now.  It's the only way he will take a nap.  We've drawn the line and won't do this at bedtime, but it's worth it for nap time, since he becomes a demon without one during the day.  We've been cycling through some sickness at our house, and Kaden and I have been super congested.  When he took his nap the other day, he started snoring ridiculously loudly.  When he came to find me after his nap, we were cuddling together on my bed, and I did an impression of the sound he was making when he fell asleep.  He just busted out laughing.  It was like sharing a joke with a friend.  So fun.  It was the cutest moment.  Hard to explain, but I want to remember it forever.

Chad made Kaden mac and cheese for lunch one day while I was out.  Apparently, Kaden did an "impression" of me saying that mac and cheese is not for breakfast, only lunch.  We've had this conversation a few times, and apparently he wanted to make sure Daddy knew the rules, too.

All the numbers that come after ten are fourteen when Kaden counts on his own.  So funny.  We are working on it.

I noticed that Kaden's beloved stuffed giraffe, Tip Top, was in need of a bath.  I mentioned this to Kaden, and he freaked out.
     Me:  But he's stinky, Kaden!  See, smell him.
     Kaden:  (Taking a whiff)  No stinky!  No stinky!  (Bringing me his stuffed elephant)  See, Mommy!  
     It's Ollie!  Ollie's stinky!

After a thirty minute battle trying to get Kaden to try his chicken and rice, he finally gagged down a bite.
    Kaden:  Mmmmmm!
    Me:  Is it good?
    Kaden:  Yes!
    Me:  How many bites do you think you can eat?
    Kaden:  10!  (Eats ten bites, counting each one.)
A lot of our food battles look just like this one.

Kaden peeks through the blinds and checks to see if it's morning before he comes out of his room every day.

We took down our Christmas decorations on Saturday afternoon, and our house feels hallow and empty.  I know I'll eventually adjust to the lack of glitter and sparkle, but right now, things seem kind of depressing.  I know a lot of people find extreme joy in getting their tinsel and evergreen garlands boxed away, but I think I could gaze at my bedazzled Christmas tree for 365 days a year and be happy.  I couldn't really, of course, because it wouldn't be as special, but it feels like it when it's time to take the tree down.  I already miss driving up to our house at night and seeing a candle glowing beneath a wreath in each window.  

Kaden practically wept when he saw us taking the ornaments off the tree.  "This is mine!"  he'd say, clutching to a red and gold one.  Or, "I need this ORN-MENT!"  Poor kid.  We saw four or five Christmas trees laying haphazardly in the street today, waiting for the garbage men to come collect them.  He kept confusedly pointing the out, while I pulled him in his wagon through the neighborhood.  It's hard to say goodbye to Christmas.

We had a great Christmas and New Year's celebration this year, and in true Katie fashion I didn't take many photographs.

For example, I wish I had photographed Kaden, Kenzie, and Tanner taking turns pulling each other in Kaden's new wagon, his favorite gift from Gigi and Poppy.  I can still see them in their hats and mittens, noses a little bit red, squealing with delight.

I wish I had a photograph of Kaden and Kenzie decorating gingerbread houses with Aunt Meredith and Uncle Adam.  A few of the blades of Kade's gumdrop grass weren't deposited in a layer of icing until he'd licked the sugar coating off, which made it extra precious.

I wish I had a photograph of every delectable treat I consumed over our holiday stay with the in laws.  Actually, I don't.  That would show just how much of a pig I am.  But oh, how tasty everything was!  I do regret not taking a photo of at least the New Year's Eve feast.  This year we had brie fondue with baguette, fresh fruit with chocolate fondue, crab and cream cheese wontons, bruschetta, cheese ball, our favorite Harry and David dip, chocolate crinkle cookies, and an assortment of other leftover Christmas desserts.  It was so amazing.  So much goodness in one meal.

I did manage to score a few  photographs.  Here's our family on Christmas Sunday right after church.  Kaden is wearing his last Christmas John-John.  At least he got one more year with smocked snowmen.

Even though Kaden's eyes are closed, I love this shot of him with his Daddy:


Santa brought Kaden an extra special treat for Christmas this year.  After he'd opened all of his other presents, he had to go on a treasure hunt to find his last gift, which was hidden in the living room.  A friend of mine gave us this train, which is motorized and can be ridden around a circular track.  Her children had enjoyed it for years.  Unfortunately, it was broken and no longer ran.  Santa took the train to his workshop and with the help of his elves, fixed it right up, so that Kaden could ride it again!  He was so excited!  Isn't Santa awesome?



Mackenzie got some watercolors for Christmas this year, and the budding artist was creating masterpieces every day.  Gigi and Poppy's refrigerator was soon plastered with them.  She wanted Kaden to paint with her so badly, but he mostly tried to drink the water meant for cleaning the brushes . . . and made a mess.




See what I mean about drinking the water? He's  totally stealing a sip in this one:


This was the first year Chad's entire family has all been together for Christmas in a long time, so it was imperative we take some family photos.  Leave it to us to pick the rainiest, coldest day to do that.  The kids weren't too thrilled.  Neither were the adults. We did manage to get a few good ones, though.  My favorites were by far the silly ones.  I love being  a part of the Reese clan.  I am so thankful for them!







Alas, the holiday season is over.  Time for reality to set in . . . and to start hitting those New Year's resolutions!

There are so many little things Kaden is doing and saying right now that I never want to forget.  Sometimes, he'll look up at me with his big, brown eyes from beneath his set of gorgeous lashes, and I'll think, I want to freeze this picture forever.  I want to wrap up this moment and carry it in my pocket until I'm old and gray and wearing orthopedic shoes.

Kaden calls his toothpaste soap.  "I need more soap!" is a frequent request when he brushes his teeth, which mostly consists of him sucking the toothpaste off of the brush.

He has been speaking in full sentences for a while, but sometimes he catches me off guard with the complexity of his speech.  We were walking on the greenway one day and stopped for his favorite activity, throwing rocks into the stream.  He threw a big rock in the water and I complimented him on what an amazing splash he had made.  "That was a big rock!" I told him.  "I wish I could find some more," he said.  Seriously.  Those were his exact words.

Kaden gives a gender and emotion to almost everything we see.  We might see a little dog walking on the side of the road and he will say, "Oh, he's happy!"  While he does his farm animal puzzle, he insists that certain animals are "Daddies" and certain ones are "Mommies."  The horse is always a Daddy horse.  He also tells us how he is feeling:  "I'm sad."  or "I'm happy."  or "I'm scared."  A couple of Sundays ago, the  nursery leader brought me Kaden during Sunday school because he was inconsolable.  I was holding him in the hall, talking to a friend of mine, when he suddenly looked at her and said, "I'm sad."  When she asked him why he was sad, he gave a prompt response, in his saddest voice:  "Nursery."

He is obsessed with the garbage truck.  I know he makes our neighborhood garbage men feel like the heroes they are every time we run outside to watch them pickup our trash.  He is always so excited!  Every time he hears a noise that sounds like  a truck, he runs to the window and starts exclaiming, "Oh! Big garbage truck!  Big garbage truck!"

I recently discovered the only danger to a toddler swallowing TUMS is potential constipation.  This was after a Sunday morning call to poison control.

I am still trying to impress the importance of manners:  please, thank you, etc.  Most of the time, I feel like I've failed in this regard.  I constantly wonder if I will always have to remind him to say these words, but sometimes he will surprise me.  Nothing melts my heart as much as an unprompted, "Oh!  Thank you, Mommy!" from my little guy.

He has known the entire alphabet for a while now, and points out letters everywhere we go.  He's gotten much better at counting!  He can count from one to ten, unless he tries to go too fast--then he tends to miss a few numbers.  He doesn't necessarily recognize numerals yet, but he can count objects one by one as he points to them.

Kaden is such a good little helper.  He wants to be right in the mix of anything we are working on or doing.  He loves helping to wash the car, rake leaves, sweep the floors, you name it!  He's a little less excited about helping to clean up all of the toys he throws all over his room during the day, but we're working on it.

He is doing much better with babysitters.  He was actually excited when one stayed with him on Friday while we went to an ugly sweater party.

He has also made some great little friends since we moved to Raleigh, and he loves playing with them.  I'm proud of him for being more social.  He has always been kind of shy and cautious around other kids, so this is a big step for him.

Kaden is in love with everything Christmas.  He is in awe of all of the Christmas lights, trees, and displays in all of the stores.  We went to the youth Christmas party and when he looked into the Young Women's president's house and saw her tree, his eyes lit up, and he said, "I see Christmas!"  It is so fun experiencing the holidays with him.  Everything is extra magical this year.  I can't wait for Christmas morning, because I think he's actually going to "get" things this year at least a little bit.

He is very observant and notices things I often miss.  He will often point out a beautiful sky or birds flying by.  The other day, he brought Chad one of his toys and started excitedly shouting that it was a clue.  After an inspection, Chad saw it indeed had a tiny, blue paw print on the tag.  Kaden had found a real life Blue's Clue!

He has such a darling sense of humor and will frequently crack up at something he finds hilarious.  He is mischievous and will often do things with a little twinkle in his eye and a side smirk to let you know he is trying to get attention.

If he bites his lip, you better watch out, he's about to tackle you, jump on you, or otherwise attack you playfully.

He is independent to a fault.  He likes to do everything himself.  "I do it!" is a frequent exclamation around these parts.  He is also incredibly stubborn (can't imagine where he got this from . . . )  If I try to help him do something that he wants to do himself, he will re-do it anyway.  For example, if I lift him out of his car seat, he will climb back up and climb down again on his own.  Or, if I put his pants on, and he wants to do it, he will take them off and start again.  I've learned to pick my battles, and for the most part I let him do most things by himself, even though it is agonizingly slow at times.  If we know we have to actually be somewhere in the morning, we start getting dressed at least thirty minutes before we have to leave.

He is so imaginative and creative.  I love watching him play!  He is very good at self-entertaining and prefers to play by himself sometimes.  We play together, too, but sometimes he just wants to be alone.

He has learned quite a few Primary songs and can sing along with most of the words to I am a Child of God and I Love to See the Temple.  He knows the actions to The Wise Man Built His House Upon the Rock and Book of Mormon Stories and knows most of the words to those songs, too.

He still loves reading (fingers crossed that this lasts forever and ever) and insists on reading some of his stories to us from memory, which is incredibly adorable.

He is still obsessed with balls and has developed a fondness for boom ball (football).

He is 110% boy and LOVES being outside.  Running, jumping, finding water to splash in, and mud to dig in, are all his favorite activities.

Almost every night Chad and I fall asleep laughing about something cute Kaden has done during the day and talking about how thankful we are that he is a part of our family.  I don't know what we did to deserve him, but he really is a wonderful little boy.  We sure love him!

On Saturday night, Kaden threw up.  Twice.  We were casually reading a bedtime story, a Thomas the Train adventure to be exact, all curled up in the chair in the corner of his bedroom, when he lost the contents of his stomach all over himself, me, and his "soft blankie."  Oh, and the towels that I screamed for Chad to bring.  It was not pleasant, I tell you, not pleasant at all.  He had just had a bath.  His daddy quickly rushed him into another, while I laundered all of the damaged clothing and bedding and shouted praises to the heavens that the new carpet had been spared.

There had been no sign that this nasty episode was approaching.  He was fine all day, as were we.

I went to the store to stock up on Sprite and saltines, figuring it was going to be a long night for Kaden.  He slept through the night without a hint of tummy trouble.

Chad and I didn't fare so well.  We were sick all night.

We spent all day Sunday in bed, in and out of sleep, while Kaden did who knows what all over the house and watched obscene amounts of TV.  He didn't seem to mind too much every time we suggested he watch another show.  Thank goodness for Netflix and unlimited episodes of Dinosaur Train and Thomas the Train movies.

Being sick when you're a parent is so much harder than being sick as a child.  I kind of kept wishing my mom was going to come in and check on me, bring me a glass of cold Sprite, and put her hand on my forehead.  Instead, I kept telling Kaden not to jump on me, whilst I tried to get my shaking fingers to handle the remote control for the digital babysitter.  I kept remembering scenes from the film Contagion, and hoping I wasn't going to meet the fate of Kate Winslet.

We are flu free again and eating solid food--Hooray!  Let the Clorox-ing begin!  In all honesty, I am so thankful Chad and I got the worst of it, since watching Kaden be sick is pretty much the saddest thing ever.

Here's the really traumatizing part of this story:  my in-laws spent all day with us Saturday helping lay our new hardwood flooring.  All day being exposed to germs we didn't know we had while giving up their entire Saturday to HELP us.

Brucious had to call in sick to work on Monday.  Pretty sure he's never done that before.  Like ever.  Tyler also got it bad.  There is nothing worse than being the responsible party for that.

Have you seen this movie lately?

Please tell me all you need is a picture to know I'm talking about a classic.  A staple of the holidays.  The original Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, in all its clay-animated glory.

Well, I've watched it three times in the last two days.  Uno.  Dos.  Tres.  In dos dias, people.  And let me go ahead and tell you, I've been slightly disturbed.

I happen to adore these films.  Santa Claus is Coming to Town is my absolute favorite.  These gems were a staple of my childhood, which is why I bought the complete collection last year after the holidays.  I scored them at Costco for an unbelievable deal, and Chad practically wept when I brought them home.  He can't stand them.  After a few viewings of the movie starring a red-nosed fawn, I'm wondering if he wasn't right.  Let's just say the plot and character development don't quite align with my warm-fuzzy childhood memories.

Case in point:  Ruldoph's dad, Donner?  Crummy dad.  Not quite a dead beat, but what a jerk.  What kind of dad is so ashamed of his kid's nose that he makes him cover it up?  As if that's not bad enough, he's also a chauvinistic pig dog.  Seriously.  Chad's actually the one who pointed that out.  When Rudolph disappears, his mom wants to go help find him; Donner throws out some huffy line about it being "man's work," and runs off and leaves her to wallow at home in misery.

As if a macho-overbearing daddy deer isn't bad enough, you should see the portrayal of Santa Claus.  Santa Claus!  The jolly old man with the big belly? Red suit?  Ho ho ho laugh?  He is the ultimate douche bag.  He's the one who tells Donner that Rudolph will never make the sleigh team with a nose that glows.  That's right!  Freaking SANTA CLAUS is crushing the hopes and dreams of his own reindeer, while simultaneously mocking their offspring.  Later in the film, after the elves try to delight him with an upbeat musical number, Santa doesn't compliment their hard work and stellar performance--no, no, no Mrs. Claus has to do that--Santa just mutters, "It needs work," and grumpily storms from the room.  Who IS this bearded impostor, I ask you?!

I'll tell you one thing:  I want to do a rewrite for the ending of this movie.  It wouldn't include Rudolph coming to the rescue with his glowing nose, that's for sure.  After his unjust treatment, the poor kid should have stuck it to the man.  "What's that, Santa?  NOW you decide the nose is great?  Well, if you think I'm going to guide your sleigh tonight, with this nose so bright, you can JUST FORGET IT!"  Yes, I think a passionate speech from Rudolph is much more in order.  That or a Quentin Tarantino blood bath.  Just kidding . . . kind of.  

Dear Cranky Librarian,

Bernice, Kaden, and I have been having a ball the last couple of days.

Today, we mixed up some pumpkin and Nutella cheesecake muffins.

I love Nutella.  Adore it.

I fell for it hard when I spent a semester living at the BYU London center.  Breakfast and dinner were provided with our tuition, but we were on our own for lunch.  This left a couple of options for the poor and cheap:  leftovers (but you had to be quick and home to score those) or peanut butter sandwiches (which could easily be deposited in a brown bag for enjoyment at any museum or park of your choice, later in the day).  PB&J got old.  Until I started putting peanut butter on one half and Nutella on the other.  And I promptly gained at least ten pounds, despite walking a bazillion miles every day.

Anyway, today, Bernice worked her magic beating eggs, flour, pumpkin puree, cinnamon and nutmeg, and Kaden worked his by saying, "No, Mommy!  No, Mommy!  I do it!" anytime I tried to add any ingredient without his assistance.

I may have let him lick the Nutella cheesecake beater to give me time to stuff the muffin tins with batter, because I thought it'd be more sanitary than letting him rub his toddler fingers all up in someone's future snack.

I wish I had a picture of his face after that endeavor.  His face was covered with Nutella goodness from his nose, to his chin, with a few choice deposits even reaching his neck.  Some decorated his pajama top (that he was still wearing at noon).  Then I had to chase him around the house to retrieve the beater before he touched anything with his hazelnut-spreaded face, hands, and clothing.  It was pretty awesome.  And I'm not being sarcastic; it really was.

I love being a mom.

Also, there's a giant pallet of pre-finished hardwood sitting on my driveway.  Can we say DEMO TIME, anyone???

Sadie Hawkins our junior year:

Not sure what we were trying to go for in this picture, but I thought Lena's fairy wings were pretty awesome, as was Lacey's nod to the thug-life:

Girls' Camp as YCLs:

The year Lena almost died while floating down the river on a tube:

People always find it odd to hear that I am still in close contact with a lot of the friends I had in high school.  I guess that is pretty abnormal.  I attribute it to how awesome we all are.  Of course we're going to defy all odds and still love each other ten years later!

My high school reunion was this summer, and I didn't go.  This was because 1) the preparation for the event seemed mediocre at best, judging from the updates I was getting via the facebook page, 2) I had no money to make the trip out there, and 3) we came up with a way better plan B.

My friend, Emily, served an eighteen month mission for our church in Brazil, and she was still there when the reunion happened in Moses Lake.  I was talking to Callie on the phone one day, and it came up that neither of us was planning on attending our ten year reunion.  I mentioned that it would have been sad to go without Emily there, anyway.  She mentioned that she was planning on trying to make it to Emily's homecoming in October, and that we should all try to get together at some point in the coming year.  That got me thinking:  why not try to make it to Emily's homecoming, too?

I immediately called my friend, Lacey, who happens to live a few miles away from me in North Carolina, despite the fact that we initially became friends while sitting next to each other in a kindergarten classroom in Washington State (AMAZING, right?).  She also happens to have an awesome brother who works for Southwest Airlines.  He hooked us up with buddy passes, and we made plans to secretly fly to Washington without Emily knowing, while Callie made her own secret plans to drive from Utah.  Luckily for us, a few of our other friends still happen to live in the area where we grew up, so we were able to have an awesome girls' weekend once we got there.

I stayed with my Grandpa Jensen, who has just started taking piano lessons.  He's 78, and learning to play piano.  Isn't that awesome?!  HE CAN PLAY WITH TWO HANDS!  I am so proud.

My grandpa looks a lot like the old man on Pixar's UP, as evidenced by this shot.  I love his suspenders.  He never goes a day without them:

I was able to spend a lot of day time with my Grandpa over the few days I was there.  I am going to start helping him type and edit the personal history he has written, which will be a super neat experience.

Lacey, her brother, and I got into Spokane by early afternoon.  That night, we pulled off the ultimate surprise.  Here we are on Thursday night, after surprising Emily at our favorite restaurant, Inca.  Such.  Amazing.  Mexican.  Food.  Oh, the arroz con pollo . . . just thinking about it makes my mouth water.  We were all just sitting at a table, waiting for Emily to show up with her mom.  Her sister was in on it, too.  When I saw her walk in, I waved, and she waved back, but I could tell she had no idea who I was.  Then, it registered that I was there, that Lacey was there, that Callie was there, and so on.  It was awesome.

We are all laughing hysterically in this shot, because Callie and Emily's moms were having such a hard time figuring out how to work each of our cameras.



On Friday, I knew my grandpa would be working at the temple all day.  Callie, Emily, and I made the drive to Tri-Cities and did a session, which was awesome.





Afterwards, we met up with my Aunt and Uncle, who were great enough to drive from Prosser, where they live, to see me.  We feasted at Olive Garden on soup, salad, and bread sticks.  So yummy!

I loved seeing them!  They have been such a huge part of my life, and I love them to pieces. Living so far away, I don't get to see them very often, so it was nice to give each of them a big hug.

Then, Callie and I dropped Emily off at her house, since she had to work, and we went on a driving tour of Moses Lake, which I'm not going to lie . . . took less than 30 minutes.  I made Callie stop the car to get a picture of me with this tumbleweed.  I couldn't believe she didn't want a photo taken with a Moses Lake tumbleweed!  She was completely uninterested, and wouldn't even get out of the car to take the picture!  She snapped this from the driver's side, out the passenger window:


This is when things took a disappointing turn.  The highlight of the entire trip was supposed to be going to our Alma mater's football game.  I had even spent some time rekindling the memory of various cheers to bust out while watching from the stands.  (Chiefs!  Don't take no UH!  JIVE!  Chiefs!  We are alive!)  I even tried to remember the fight song, but I kept getting it mixed up with the BYU fight song, and eventually gave up.  Anyway, devastation struck, when Callie and I showed up at the 6th Ward potato bar, only to have Sister Bergeson tell us that the game had been rescheduled as an away game.  In Wenatchee.  Thanks for updating the high school website, folks!  There went that!  So, we made new plans.  Which is more difficult than it may sound when you are visiting Moses Lake, Washington.  It's not the most happening spot.  We went to Shari's for dessert, then hit up the local bowling alley.  Luckily for us, it was black light bowling night!!!  Even though the parking lot was packed with cars, they were all casino customers apparently, because we were one of the only groups in the bowling alley.



I happen to loathe bowling.  I am so bad at it, that I pretty much don't even try anymore.
That's why I'm so excited about actually hitting two pins in this photo:

On Saturday, Grandpa cooked me a great breakfast and we went to the Farmer's Market together.  Can I just say that it is RIDICULOUS how cheap Honey Crisp apples are in my home state?  And they are giant beauties!  I kept trying to figure out how to get a box of them home with me.  I didn't succeed in coming up with a master plan, but I did help Grandpa lug his box of Fugi apples to the car. Grandpa gave me the extended driving tour of Moses Lake, and we stopped at the Goodrich house for a nice visit on the way home.  Callie met us there, and I could tell I was cramping Grandpa's style.  He went home, but Callie and I stayed and chatted with Brenda for hours, which is always a delight.  We even got to see our friend Elliott and meet his adorable wife, Kayla, while we were there.  That night we went to Crystals, drank sparkling cider, overdosed on lots of chocolate, talked, reminisced over old photos, and laughed until it hurt.  We also had a dance party with a little assistance from Lena's Kinect.  It was awesome.



Sunday was Emily's homecoming talk in the 8th ward, so we went and listened to her speak.  She did a beautiful job.  I am so proud of her.  I know she touched so many lives in positive ways while she was serving in Brazil.

Emily and her Mom:
Grandpa came with me.  Then we went to 6th ward together, and afterwards went to lunch at his friend Emily's house (same name, different friend).

On Sunday night we all got together one last time to say goodbye.  We pledged to make these get togethers happen at least every five years . . . but we're going to start in 2015 in North Carolina.

Lena and Crystal's awesome kids were there.  I wish we lived closer, so Kaden could be their buddy.  They have great personalities and are a lot of fun.

Here they are jumping:

Showing me some ninja skills:
Isak and Aubrey showing off their tricks:
Baby Edyn just being awesome.

We left at 3 a.m. on Monday morning.  Needless to say, we were looking hot.  I would not have wanted to be stuck in an airport for a million hours with anyone but Lacey.  I love that girl.  We got stuck in Las Vegas (the consequence of flying on a buddy pass), but we still made it home in time for Chad to go to work Tuesday morning.  Here we are, starting to show the effects of being in an airport for too long:




One of my biggest hopes for Kaden is that he chooses good friends.  I know mine have certainly played an important role in who I am today.  Having worked with adolescents for the last several years, it's become more and more apparent that who your friends are really does determine a lot.  Peers can be a tremendous influence on a teenager for good or for bad.  I was so blessed to have such wonderful friends while I was growing up.  I am still so thankful for each of them.

I am so glad I had this chance to go spend time with family and friends.  A big thanks goes to my mother-in-law who came to Raleigh and watched Kaden on Thursday and Friday, and to Chad who also had to play mommy and daddy for an entire weekend to a pretty crazy toddler.  It meant so much to me that they were willing to do that to give me an awesome weekend away.