home again

We arrived back safely on Wednesday night. Maggie finally seemed to end her fight with a nasty virus by week's end, hallelujah! We had a busy rest of the week and rested up today.

Here are some pictures of our time in the OC. Even though M was sick for the trip, it turned out wonderfully. I enjoyed some really good connect time with good friends over good food: dessert with Linds and new baby, Shelby Grace at Cheesecake Factory, Wahoo's with Cayla, The Yard House with Jason, and Claim Jumper with Linds, Jason, and Shelby. Aron's Aunt Dinah came for dinner on Saturday night and we enjoyed time with her. I cooked dinner for the fam and Jason on Monday night and spent the day with Dawnielle and her son, Asher, on Tuesday. Wednesday morning found us able to make a quick playdate with friends at a nearby park. The weather was *amazing*--how did we ever leave?! And everything was so *green*. If we didn't see you this time around, there is always the next! And you may notice that there are no pics of Pops and Mema (Maggie's CA grandparents) and I'm really not sure how come we didn't snap more. But never fear! They are coming to visit us in early April and we will post lots of pics of them with Maggie. As always, they were fantastic hosts and so loving and generous with us and our little girl. Thank you both for everything!

Enjoying her first bite of Del Taco
Enjoying some time away, eating Pedro's and relaxing at T-Street (below)

Mags and Aunt Dinah

Jason, one of our oldest friends, always makes it a point to hang out with us as often as he can when we are in town and we love him for it. I think he needs to move near us so he and A can hang out all the time. He is a fantastic guy!

It was awesome to see Cayla briefly, as we caught her during one of her busiest times of the year. She is on staff with Campus Crusade and is busy recruiting students for missions trips, mentoring leaders, and a host of other activities, not to mention having just hosted an 80-person shower for her soon-to-be-sister-in-law the weekend we arrived. Cayla is one of the most amazing people I know; it is always so encouraging to talk to her and see what God is doing in her life.

Cayla, M, and mama after yummy fish tacos from Wahoos

Linds, one of my oldest and closest friends. We met literally the first day I moved to CA in the summer of 1996. She and her hubby, Jason, are raising support to do missions work in Peru. They move to Nebraska next month for 12 weeks to be near his family, move to Costa Rica in August for 1 year of language school, and then are off to Peru for 2 years. Aron and I are talking about visiting them while in Peru, but other than that, I'm really not sure when I will see her in the next several years. We really tried to soak up as much time together as possible.

The Kliewers and sweet Shelby. This little girl is one of the sweetest and cutest babies I have ever seen. She nurses like a champ, sleeps well, and is just a super contented baby. What a dream!

Mags and Asher played in the sand at Doheny; it was super fun to watch them interact as they are the same age (Maggie was born on the 11th of Dec. and he on the 19th).

She LOVED the sand

I had fun burying some of her leg; she thought it was funny.

We are just missing daddy's feet to make this a complete picture. So sweet! This day with Dawnielle was one of my favorite while visiting. I loved walking down to the beach with her, playing with the kids, and catching up while they napped. Overall, it was the most relaxing and encouraging time.

Maggie is really into raisins these days; don't worry, I do supervise her! Here she is eating them at the park playdate with our friends.

Megan and her son Chase (who will be one next month). Meg and I were friends from high school youth group, lost touch, and have reconnected through blogging. She goes to church with the two girls below, whom I used to teach with. Small world! It was really fun to hang out in person, if even for short time. Chase is such a sweet boy!

Sarah and her daughter, Ivy, and son, Gabe--Sarah taught at Cornerstone 2 years with me. Her kiddos are awesome!

Laura and her twin boys, Cole and Kai. They are so polite and full of lots to say! It was fun to watch them interact with eachother. All of these ladies are such encouraging mamas; I love being around them and really enjoyed our park time, even though it was short and hard to have long, meaningful conversations. Such is life with kids! I hope we can meet up every time I'm in town, girls!

home again

We arrived back safely on Wednesday night. Maggie continues to fight this virus, but we definitely had a better day today and are going on more than 24 hours with no fever, so this is good news! She

we're here!

Just wanted to shoot a quick blog out to let you all know we made it just fine to SoCal. The plane ride may just have been her best ever and most likely due to the fact that she had a fever the entire flight. Poor thing! She slept some and mostly just sat in my lap and vegged. We took her to Urgent Care today and the verdict is a virus, which there isn't much treatment for except time. So, we wait and give Motrin when the fever returns. This trip is turning out differently than I had anticipated, but that's OK. If people still want to get together, we'll make it happen, but I have a feeling most will want to steer clear. Maybe the fever will break and she'll be totally better by tomorrow. Who knows?

We have enjoyed the weather so far and the time with family. I've been noticing how *green* everything is here. While Maggie napped this afternoon, Aron and I ate lunch overlooking T-Street in San Clemente with our Pedro's burritos (Heth, I ate some in your name!) and enjoyed driving PCH.

I will post pics and update how the rest of our week goes when we return.

PS: Happy Birthday, Laurie!

california dreamin'

Aron has business in OC Monday-Wednesday of next week, and he was able to get his company to expense my ticket (as we stay with his folks and not in a hotel), so we are flying out tomorrow morning to jump start our visit! Aron's Aunt Dinah and sister, Cari, are coming to see us, too, which we are highly anticipating. I have a few playdates lined up with mom friends and will get to hold Lindsey's newborn baby girl, Shelby! I can't wait. We'll hit up the usuals--Del Taco, Pedro's, In N Out, the beach, Golden Spoon--and hopefully, have a nice dinner out alone one night. This all came together last-minute, but we can't wait! I am working on packing as we speak.

I must admit I'm a bit nervous about the flight because we have an almost 15-month old who walks and is super active. While Maggie has been on 18 flights (with a baby/toddler you have to count each leg because each is a huge accomplishment, right!? or is that just me?!), so I feel I have alot of the basics down, but I think it'll be a challenge to keep her occupied for 3+ hours. She'll only watch a DVD for so long, but we will try this and we'll bring some books and toys and snacks. We'll walk around some with her, of course. But, how do you reason with a child this age that they cannot be mobile the entire time, they have to sit in your lap (or if you are lucky, the seat next to you), or stand in the 3-ft. wide space between your seat and the seat in front of you, to play?! I'm open for any suggestions you have (SC, esp. you as you have done intercontinental several times!). Say a quick prayer for us. :)

twice in one week

Maggie enjoyed playing in the snow once again this week! She even helped mama make her first snowman (well, iceman)!

What he looked like by 2pm...it melted just like this.

wordless wednesday

the chicagoeans may laugh, but we were giddy at the site of snowfall

lazy park afternoon

We escaped for the afternoon to Frisco Commons, a local park that offers an enclosed wooden play area, walking trails, and a pond. Maggie thoroughly enjoyed herself. I especially love the 1st shot; her laughter is so evident! I also love the one of her pointing up to the kites in the sky; she was mesmerized for a good 10 minutes.

oscars

Disappointed Johnny didn't receive his well-deserved nod, thrilled that Diablo Cody won for Best Screenplay, the Cohen brothers scored 3 wins, and "Once's" song "Falling Slowly" by Glen Harsgard and Marketa Irglova won for Best Song. You must see this movie!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XzQRuTwaFI8

And as a side note, how sweet was it that Jon Stewart gave Irglova extra time to come back to the mic when the music cut her off?!

Any favorites or dissapointments on your end?

goodbye, Elise and Laurie!

Maggie and I had so much fun last week when our good friends came to visit. Laurie was incredibly flexible and we spent the majority of our days around the house, vegging and letting the girls play. We did make a few trips to the park, ate Sprinkles cupcakes, went to Willow Bend mall for lunch and some indoor playtime, and enjoyed quick stops at Starbucks and Einstein Brothers Bagels. La and I enjoyed good conversation each night, as we ate dinner and watched some TV. I so enjoyed watching Laurie interact with Elise! She is an excellent mother, very consistent and very encouraging. Elise is super sweet and even though she and Maggie can't really play together on the same level just yet, she was kind and shared toys with her or enjoyed chasing her around the house. The girls did watch some of our favorite shows, Word World on PBS and Little Einsteins on Disney. The picture above was snapped of the two of them watching LE one night as we sat down to dinner. Maggie has even started to pat her legs, just like the do in the show's opener. It's fun to see your kids pick up things!

Came back anytime, friends! We love and miss you already.