Early Christmas Present

My brother, Jim, and his wife, Katie, mailed Baylee's Christmas present, since it is so big and both of us are traveling by plane for Christmas. Yesterday it was dropped on our doorstep, and when I brought it in, Baylee immediately starting ripping the paper off it. So, I went ahead and let her open it, since we leave in a couple days, anyway.
Baylee loves opening presents and was really excited about her new dollhouse. I set it up for her as soon as she had it unwrapped.Her dollhouse is a little bigger than she is. Kinda funny, but at least she can still reach everything inside. She had fun peeking over it to watch me put all the windows and everything else on.I thought this was too cute-before I had a chance to get this window on, I looked over, and there was Baylee looking through it! The roof windows are just her eye height, but harder to get a good picture of.When I finished setting it up, Baylee had a lot of fun playing with it. She's starting to get the concept a little more, but I still have to show her what to do a little. She likes to have people go down the slide and LOVES the kitty cat. She keeps wanting me to pull it back out for her to play with.

Lots of thanks to Jim and Katie for such a fun present! We are excited to see them soon and meet their baby, Luke, for the first tme! This will be the first time we've seen them since Christmas two years ago, and their first time meeting Baylee! We also get to see my cousin, Heather's, baby for the first time-Ezra was born the day after I left to come home from my mom's surprise birthday bash we threw her. Fun times ahead!

Rock-a-bye, Baylee!

Baylee is so spoiled at work, she even has her own rocking chair to sit in! Marion and Christine bribe Baylee to hang out in their office by making sure she has plenty of things to keep her entertained. She loves to go visit them! She also thinks she rules the whole office and runs around and does as she pleases.

Things I Need:

I've been really good at not shopping for myself lately, but there are a few things I am really needing. Let me know if you know of any good places for these (hopefully at a good price, too)....
1. New brown boots- My brown boots have finally bit the dust. The toes are peeling to a pink color, and the zipper on the left boot won't go down anymore, so my foot gets stuck in it. The other day the zipper pull actually popped off. So, I think they are done. I haven't been able to find a good replacement though. It's hard to find chocolate brown boots this year... Plus, I don't really go for the pointed toe deal, and I prefer a non-stiletto heel (I chase Baylee around all day, and I don't really like feeling like I'm an Amazon next to her). I like the rounded but not too rounded toe, where it's kinda almost squared a little.... I guess I'm just too picky, but hey, I'd even go for ones in the kid section if I could find a pair I like.
2. A brown belt- Mine is basically holding on by a thread. It's split down to the belt hole. I want one with the detachable belt buckle part, though, because I have my star belt buckle I like wearing on my belt.
3. A black sweater-Now that my brown boots have called it quits and it's just too cold for heels and flip flops, I've been trying to wear my black boots. The only problem is I don't have a cute black sweater to match.
4. A cute warm jacket- We are going to Utah on Friday for the holidays and I don't really have a really nice jacket. I have an old black one, but I've had it for years, and it's that snow suit type of fabric, and the collar doesn't fold over so it's rubs against my neck and drives me crazy sometimes. It's time for a new jacket. I really want one of those cute pea coat style ones.
5. New jeans- I like wearing my jeans long, so unfortunately they drag on the ground. So, now some of my pants look kinda trashed and are ripped at the bottoms. All of them except maybe one or two pairs are from before Baylee was born. So, I could really use some new cute fitting jeans.

So, if you have any suggestions for me on where to find any of these, let me know!

San-tah!

Saturday night we decided to go grab a quick bite to eat at Armadillo Willy's. We ordered our food and then found a place to sit. We weren't aware that Baylee even knew what Santa was, but apparently we were wrong. She stretched her little arm out to point at a big inflatable Santa up by the register, and was very excited to show us "San-tah!" Baylee says a few words clearly, but not a ton, so I was surprised that she said Santa so distinctly. She then walked around the half wall and up to the register to go look at him. Ben looked with her for a little bit, brought her back, and then she walked right back up. So, here comes surprise number two-Baylee has always been a mommy and daddy's girl and takes sometimes weeks or more to warm up to people enough to let them hold her. Well, she's definetly out growing that stage, because while she was looking at "San-tah!", she walked right over to an older man (and men take her the longest to warm up to) and held her hands out signaling that she wanted him to pick her up. So, he did and she was very content and showed him "San-tah!". We eventually got our food and started eating. A little into our meal, someone reached over the half wall and puts a Santa balloon right next to Baylee. We look over and its the guy that she had been showing Santa to. I guess he had run a couple stores down to Safeway and bought her a Santa balloon, and what kid doesn't love balloons? Even better, it had Santa, and two more of Baylee's favorite things on it-kitties and puppies! She was very excited about it. The man wished us a Merry Christmas, but more importantly reminded us of what Christmas is all about-giving, being kind to others and so much more.

Snow Ball Fight

I am tired of losing to JIM in Fantasy football. He beats me 70% of the time. So I figured that maybe a scarry sendable from JIBJab.com would make it so I can win. We will see. I am going to be the champ this year. Good Luck Jim but I am going to take this one. :)

Non-Crappy Holiday eCards on JibJab

There are three pictures of Jim and Two of me.

Too Cute!

I decided to copy my cousin, Heather, and her husband, Mat, and elf our family. So here it is, for your viewing pleasure. Not quite as good as their, but I tried...
http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1402044091
Merry Christmas!

"Cheese"y Little Diva

The other day, Baylee and I were getting ready to leave work. Grandma Hall gave Baylee her sunglasses that she had left another time, and Baylee just had to have them on. We've been taking a little purse to work with us with toys for her to play in, so she had that around her shoulder. I pulled out the camera to snap a picture, and of course she wanted the camera, too. So, I got her little Disney Princess camera out. Here's the end result:
What a little diva! I can already tell she's going to give us trouble! :)
Baylee decided she wanted to take pictures of her Grandpa Hall, too. She's gotten really good at pressing the button and holding the camera up high, and her camera even has a flash and sound effects. Of course, she never forgets to tell people to say "cheese!"

Cruising the Bay

Saturday was Ben's work party in San Francisco. So, we dropped Baylee off at Ben's parent's and then Ryan and Anna drove with us to Ben and Ryan's office in Oakland. We made a quick bathroom/snack machine stop and then took Bart into San Francisco. We walked down to Pier 3 for our afternoon dinner cruise, and even got free energy drinks to give us a little boost on our little walk. The cruise was a four course dinner (kinda early dinner, since the cruise was from 3-6) and it circled San Francisco Bay.
I liked how I was able to "frame" the Golden Gate bridge through the window from our table inside the boat.
Not the greatest picture, but here's Ben, me, Anna, and Ryan, It was pretty cold outside on the boat. But, the views were great!
Ben got this picture, along with a lot more pictures, of the Golden Gate Bridge and some island. I'm not sure which one it is. It's a good picture though!

The party overall was good. Nobody drew any of our names to win some prizes, which basically all consisted of alcohol gift sets, and our lottery tickets they gave us didn't win either. I guess that makes us a bunch of losers..... But the night was still a good one and I'm glad we had Ryan and Anna there with us. That's one great benefit of Ben working with his brother. And thanks to Ben's parents for watching all the kids!

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas in Pleasanton!

Another busy weekend has come and gone. Here's a little of what we were up to:
Saturday we got all bundled up and walked downtown for a Pleasanton holiday parade with Ben's family. Yes, it was this dark at 5. And yes, it really was cold!
Garrett, Anna, Shelby, Owen, Baylee, Kathy, and Brittany. The parade wasn't too exciting unless you are into Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, and preschools. Baylee had fun waving at everyone that went by, though. We left before the parade was over....

Sunday we attempted to get some family pictures before dinner. My goal is to actually get Christmas Cards sent out this year (let me know if you want one). Let's just say Baylee wasn't wanting to cooperate. These are the best ones we got, but I kinda have a cheeseball smile from trying to get Baylee to smile. Pictures didn't work out as well as I had hoped. After we decided to call it quits, Baylee went to "help" Grandma Hall with dinner. She was happy to be sitting on the counter eating all the grapes from the fruit salad. At least we finally got a smile out of her. Meanwhile, I look drugged.Baylee actually warmed up to Ryan and let him hold her for a little while. All it took was some dessert.

Last night we went over to Ben's parents to finish some Christmas crafts we have been trying to get done for a few weeks. Baylee hit her head probably over ten times yesterday, and I think it made her a little loopy.

Ben also got a video of her acting a little silly. She just wouldn't stop going! She's a goofball, but we love her.Some of my Christmas crafts. I helped a lot with Anna's and Kathy's, along with having some other Christmas crafts going that I can't post pictures of since they are also going to be presents for a couple of people....... Christmas is getting closer!

More Thanks!

Here are some more pictures from Thanksgiving that we got from Ben's parent's camera, including pictures from the beach:
Even though the water was really cold, Baylee loved playing in it and kept going back for more! Some of the cousins are in the background.
She was so happy Grandma Hall took her to play in the water.
Shelby, Mea, Austin, Baylee, and Kathy stopping to pose in the water. Too bad we weren't prepared with her swimming suit! Silly me, since it was cold and early, I didn't think we'd need it!

Can you tell I'm not an early morning person? Jenny, Ben's Grandma Simpson, and me (Brittany). I'm actually sitting on what we later discovered wasn't our towels. Oops!Relay races-Jenny had the adults grab the hand of a kid and run around some cones for one of the activities (I was a good supervisor of the games). Baylee's crying that her Grandma isn't paying attention to her and trying to run after her. She probably wanted back in the water.
The adults at the table for Thanksgiving dinner, minus a couple of people-I think Jenny, Andre, and Kathy, and of course Dan who was taking the picture.
Baylee loves it when Grandma Hall lets her play in her purse, and she especially loves wearing purses or diaperbags.Brittany and Ben watching someone play DDR, and waiting for either a turn or on Ben's parents to go drive home on Sunday.

Knock, Knock!

A little bit ago, I had Baylee almost asleep when I got a knock on the door. I looked out the peephole (since we were both still in pjs), and see that it's a police officer. I opened the door thinking I might be in trouble for something, maybe our dog or something else. He points to a car a little more than halfway in the road and asks me if it's mine. Oops! Ben changed the brake pads this weekend, and it had rolled down the driveway a little Saturday night also. I guess I just didn't have the emergency brake on tight enough, although it was on pretty tight. So, I walk out there, and see there are two other officers at the "scene of the crime". I didn't know you needed that much backup for a car that had rolled down the driveway! Well, I stuck Baylee in her carseat, drove up the driveway, accidentally killed the car, and put the emergency brake on as hard as I could. So, hopefully it doesn't try to run away again! I just thought it was kinda silly that someone had to call the police to tell them our car was in the road. They couldn't just knock on my door and told me themself. That's the kind of neighbors we have- if there's something they don't like or something wrong, they call someone instead of telling us themselves (like with our lawn). So, needless to say, I'm excited to move when Ben graduates in March (especially to a house with heat and air). The police officer was nice, but I try to avoid police to the best of my abilty. Lesson learned-don't let your car roll into the road. Now I'm just paranoid it's going to happen again.

Clothes, Clothes, Clothes!

I've had a few people ask me what online websites I've been finding cute clothes on. So, instead of just writing an email to everyone, I thought I'd just post them on here. So, here's a list of cute, more affordable clothes:
http://www.downeastbasics.com/ My mom actually works in the corporate office. They have tons of cute clothes, and even good sale items. I don't think I've ever seen anything over $35, and that would be for a dress. Super cute stuff!
http://www.charmain.mymodbe.com/web/t/Modbe2/Home.aspx?SiteID=2690&Refresh=true Modbe has some cute clothes, the only problem is you can't really shop on their homepage. So, I came across this link, it's a fashion consultant's webpage, but you can actually look at the clothes on it. I usually buy from my sister-in-law's friend, but don't have her webpage. Oh, and another great thing is that lately they've been having a Modbe Monday sale about every week where they have certain items marked down pretty cheap to clear them out.
http://www.layersclothing.com/ Layers has some good deals going on in their clearance. Last time I was in Utah we stopped at their showroom and got a ton cute shirts for under $10-$15. I haven't noticed any new items on sale lately, so maybe soon. They do still have their older clearance items, and some cute normal priced items as well.
http://www.shadeclothing.com/ Shades has a few cute things that I am waiting to go on sale. They have some really cute dresses I wish would go down in price. But, they do have a few tees/basics for cheaper right now in their clearance section, too.
http://www.jildesigns.com/ Jil Designs has some cute clothes, and everything is under $20. I got the cute Elegance skirt that I put on a previous post, for only $12. I really have liked it so far, but I've only worn it once. Very reasonable prices.
http://stores.channeladvisor.com/cutesyshoes/Store/Search.aspx?&Page=1&Sort=3&sp=0.01&ep=10.00 I came across this website the other day. Cutsey girl has some really cute shoes for under $10. I don't know how comfortable they are, but there are tons of really cute ones! They also sell clothes, but nothing that really jumped out at me and some of them were pretty pricey. But, check out the sale shoes!
http://www.jenmagazine.com/contents.php Jen magazine is an online magazine, but if you go into the fashion section in the shopping directory she has a few websites listed. If you go to the bottom, there is a list where you can select a clothing item (shirts, dresses, etc.), and it will take you onto a list of cute clothes she found on amazon. Some are more expensive, some are cheaper. If you find a good price that you like, you can go in and click on the brand and it will show you other stuff by the same brand. It looks like it might be due for an update, but there are still cute things!
http://www.classiccloseouts.com/ This is the company that sent the shirt and other skirt I got in my previous post. It's kinda a hit or miss. Some stuff is cute, some is kinda junky. But, there are good deals! Check out the Bargain Bin, too.
Well, this is the end of my list for now. I will try to find more, but we will see what happens! Let me know if anyone knows any good websites I missed! Happy shopping, and sorry to those of you I promised an emailed list to a week or two ago!

I Need Your Opinion-Would You Eat This?

So, it turns out we are going out to dinner tonight at Sweet Tomatoes with Ben's family. I guess it's a scout fundraiser thing and Anna's in scouts, so we are going to go support the scouting program. Ben has school, so he won't be coming, but Baylee and I are going. So, since I have to take a family dinner tonight, I'm going for easy. I was thinking a salad, of course, and then I was thinking I'd make a pizza. Ben and I get fresh pizza crust, then get a lettuce wrap mix kit. It has the chicken mixture that you put in the lettuce wraps and some sauce. So, instead of marinara sauce, I use the sauce that comes with it (a seasame ginger sauce) and then put the chicken mixture over top of that, then the silver noodles, and then cover it all with cheese. It's actually pretty good. For dessert, I just made some chocolate turtles, which I've taken over with me before for her birthday (I'm her v.t.). So, if someone took you this for dinner, would you be happy? Does it sound like a good dinner? Ahhhh! I get so stressed and nervous about these kinda of things! So, good idea or bad idea?

Another Reason Why Baylee Doesn't Sleep in a Crib

I'm going to sound like the worst mom ever after this, but I'll tell you all anyway.

Mondays and Wednesdays, Baylee and I go into work in the afternoon. So, today being Wednesday, we are going to work in a little bit. Baylee always takes at least one nap before we go, for about 2 1/2 or 3 hours. If she doesn't get a good nap. she's harder to deal with at work. Today she decided to wake up at 6:30, and then fell asleep for a nap at about 8:45 or 9ish, but only slept until a little after 10. So, we took a shower and got ready and then ate lunch. Then I tried for about 2 hours to get her to take a nap. She was tired, and usually it's not a problem. Today, she just didn't want to fall asleep, even though her eyes were heavy and you could tell she was tired. I tried all my tricks to try to get her to sleep, but she just wouldn't do it. So, as a last resort, I sometimes will stick her in her crib. She hates her crib, and will scream and scream until she's gags if you put her in it, and doesn't ever seem to fall asleep until its been about 2 hours or longer, and then she just sleeps for about 20 min. So, she never sleeps in her crib. She's spoiled. But, if you put her in it for a little bit and let her cry she usually wears herself out enough to fall right to sleep when you take her out. So, that was my plan. I hardly ever do this, only when I get so extremely frustrated that I don't know what else to do with her. So, I put her in her crib, walked out, and shut the door. I went into the bathroom to do my hair, and all the sudden I hear a thud. Not a loud one, but there was a thud. So, I walk into Baylee's room, and there she is lying on the floor, whimpering a little. Luckily she wasn't hurt, she was just a little in shock I think. She settled down pretty fast and she did go right to sleep, but it made me feel so bad. I don't know how she managed that one, her side rails go up to about the top of her shoulders, so it's not like it should have been an easy task for her to climb out of. Poor little Baylee! Well I learned my lesson, no more crib for her anytime soon!

Dinner Ideas, Anyone?

So, I was just emailed and asked to take dinner to someone in our ward who had a baby almost two weeks ago. Seeing how I've never had to take anyone dinner before and nobody brought us dinner when I had Baylee or any other time, I don't really know what to take them. We usually just have a quick reheated frozen type dinner at home since Ben gets home late, but I'm all for cooking them something. I kinda feel like I should cook an actual meal, too, since anyone can throw a frozen meal in a skillet or an oven or microwave, etc. It's just hard to know what to cook, since I don't know what they like and don't like... Also, do I take a dessert, too? Who doesn't like dessert, but if people have been taking them dinner for almost two weeks do they have tons of desserts already or left over Thanksgiving desserts? So, everyone please let me know any suggestions on what to make a family with a new baby, and a 16 month old! I need your help!

15 Adults, 11 Kids, a Dog, and Lots of Pictures

We finally returned home late last night (who knew it could take 10 1/2 hours to drive from Carlsbad-don't you love holiday traffic?) from our Thanksgiving week trip, so here are some highlights and too many pictures from our trip:

Tuesday night:

We drove down to Missy's house in Ladera Ranch after Ben got home from work on Tuesday. We slept over there for the night. Baylee was a little out of it when we got there, but was happy to see a familar face-Grandma Hall was there for the night, too!

Wednesday:Wednesday we hung out at Missy's a little in the morning, and then loaded up the kids and us and went shopping at Irvine Spectrum. It's a cute little shopping center that is complete with a ferris wheel, carousel, and ice rink. It was pretty cute, and we got some last minute gifts we needed for the fam. Afterwards, we waited for Missy's babysitter while she went to work, and then left for Carlsbad. We stopped at Jenny's and hung out and had dinner, then Kathy and I had to go brave the grocery store to get food for Thanksgiving dinner and my desserts. It was a little crazy and took us a little while to find everything, but we survived. After that I made two of my desserts that needed to sit in the fridge overnight, and then we finally made it to the hotel to crash for the night.

Thursday/Turkey Day:
Thursday was a busy day. It started out at the beach for a workout/relay races compliments of Jenny, which I unfortunately don't have pictures of, so I will have to get some from Ben's parents. Even though it was 60-something degrees in the water, Baylee had a blast getting her feet wet in the ocean and playing in the sand. She got sad when we chased the birds and they wouldn't let her get close enough to play with them. It was cute to see her have so much fun at the beach, especially since last time we took her she kinda freaked out about the sand and water.
After the beach we got cleaned up and then headed to Jenny's to make food. I got my other two pies made, and Baylee had a blast with ther cousins while I was busy: Baylee loved playing with Mike. Not her Uncle Mike, the dog Mike. Although she does like her Uncle Mike, too. Her and Mea had a blast chasing Mike (the dog Mike) around.We ate a little later than scheduled, but we were all excited for food. I had to get up a few times to cook my pies, and Baylee thought she'd steal my chair while I was gone. She loves food!Baylee and Mea had a fun time together. We dressed them matching, and I even made them matching hair clips, but they wouldn't cooperate for pictures. Later we were able to get this shot of them.After dinner and dessert, we did a little Christmas party. Since we won't see each other for Christmas, we did our present exchange on Thanksgiving. Baylee sure liked presents! She tried to help open other peoples for them, and was happy when she finally got her own.Mea had Baylee's name, and Baylee loved the cute Puddlejumper shoes she gave her! She immediatly wanted her shoes off and her new green ones on. They didn't match her outfit the best, but that didn't keep her from wearing them on the rest of the night.

Friday:Friday we dodged the shopping crowds and all went to Legoland. This is one of the three rides Baylee was big enough to ride (since there is no height requirement).She eventually left my lap for her daddy's lap.Here's Brant and Simon showing how we felt about Legoland. Ok, it wasn't too bad, just not the best place for littler kids. But, it was still fun...The choo choo train was our last ride for the day. Baylee decided to sleep through the storybook boat ride, but woke up just in time for the train. Missy looks pretty excited there!
After Legoland we did a girls night/boys night thing. Girls went to dinner at Panera and got frozen yogurt, and boys had lobster that Andre had caught the night before. Then the girls hung out and played DDR on the Wii and the boys had bonding time by the fire.

Saturday:
Saturday morning, Anna, Wendy, Laura and I got up for a quick trip to the outlets. After that I dragged Ben to Islands for lunch and then the mall. We had a family dinner at Buca di Beppos at 5, and then Baylee and I went back to the hotel room to crash.Baylee caught a stuffy/runny nose and didn't sleep well during our trip which also meant I didn't sleep well (which isn't a good thing for the people around me), so we had an early bedtime Saturday night.

Sunday:Yesterday we said goodbye and finally left at about 12:30 to come home. It was a long car ride! Baylee was a little out of it when we got home. But she was excited to see her pumpkins were still there and ok.

We had fun seeing everyone and spending time with Ben's family. It was a good break and a good week. We hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving and we are looking forward to Christmas!

Packed Weekend

We had a busy week, which lead into a busy weekend, and it's just continuing on. So, here's a little of what we did this weekend (besides lots of laundry):

Triple Dipper:
Baylee loves to dip her food. She will sit there and dip whatever she has, suck the dip off, and then redip it over and over until the food item that holds the dip has practically disinegrated. I try to make her eat the actual thing that she's dipping, but sometimes she just won't stop. One dip she loves that surprises me is salsa. She takes after me, definetly not Ben, with a higher tolerance for spicy things. Friday night we went to Chili's and she loved the salsa, as her clothes proved on our way out of the restaurant when we finally finished. It made quite a mess, and she screamed when we made her stop eating it.

Off to work with Daddy:Ben had to go into work on Saturday to turn everything off. So, Baylee and I went with him so he didn't get lonely. We stopped and ate some lunch and then took some yummy cupcakes to his office for dessert. I was hoping Baylee would be distacted by the pumpkin cupcake with cinnamon cream cheese frosting, or the pink velvet cupcake (my favorite), but it didn't work too well. I did get her to draw her daddy a picture, and then she mostly tried to play with everything on his desk, the phone being one of the least messy. (Oh, and notice his Dad frame I got him with a ghetto picture in it? The picture is from last time Baylee and I went with him to work)Baylee and Ben at Ben's desk. Maybe he can replace the drawn picture with this one, or another picture.

Hanging out with the Millars: After we finished at Ben's work, we went over to our friends, the Millar's, house. We went out to eat at a cute diner called Jeffrey's. Afterwards, we went to their house for a little bit. McKenzie got Baylee to play with her in her room. They were playing well, and then we heard a little squeal coming out of Baylee. Baylee and McKenzie walk around the corner and I guess Baylee didn't like that McKenzie had stuck an alien hat on her head. Too cute! McKenzie then found them hats that matched a little better, but Baylee didn't quite want to wear it.We eventually got Baylee to keep it on for a minute and got this cute picture of the two of them on the couch. It was just too funny!

Crazy Hair Sunday:Sunday, Baylee fell asleep after church and woke up with crazy hair. It was almost like a combover/fro thing going on in twenty different directions on the back of her head. We were going to dinner at Ben's parents and then back to Ben's work so he could turn everything back on. So, while Baylee and I were waiting for him to finish working on homework, I did Baylee's hair. It was actually long enough to pull into two whole pigtails (ok, almost long enough-I had to use clips in the very back and front)! I thought it was kinda cute! I did spend the rest of the day redoing them though because they kept getting all messed up and falling out. That's what happens when you have a wild kid that doesn't like to sit still.

What's up for us next? We leave tomorrow for Carlsbad for Thanksgiving Vacation! Yea! We just have a lot to do before we leave..... :(