Getting caught up AGAIN! :)

I recently returned from a trip to Michigan to visit the Kerri & Cory Costley Fam, and because Carter and I were there 2 full weeks, the blog has been a little out of commission, but I'm going to attempt to get back to current right now.

First, just before Carter and I left for Michigan we decided to get out and enjoy the new fallen snow as a family. We picked a hill and later realized that this hill in particular was way to much for us to handle. Mike took Carter down 4 or 5 times and after hiking back up the "hill" Mike and Carter were pretty exhausted.

DELAYED IN DENVER

On the morning of February 6, Mike took us to the airport for a hopefully uneventful plane ride to Michigan. It did not turn out to be so. We were suppose to have one short stop in Chicago before going on to Detroit to be there in time for dinner. When we reached our gate we found out that our flight was delayed about an hour. Being in good spirits, we stayed happy and Carter found some playmates at the airport to keep him busy. Shortly after taking off, they informed us that the Chicago airport was closed due to weather and that we would be stopping in Denver to wait for clearance to head for Chicago. What was suppose to be only a short stop turned into about a 5 hour delay in Denver. Luckily the pilots were kid-friendly and spent nearly an hour between the two of them, letting Carter "fly the airplane" and mess with every control he could touch. I got nervous and checked to make sure he was okay pushing so many buttons and turning so many dials, but the pilots assured me they could fix it all. We spent the rest of our time running up and down the jet way and riding the escalators in the airport. I think we managed to fit in one Little Einsteins movie as well. Finally we left for Chicago and arrived at 10:30 Chicago time. Carter and I were both holding up pretty well until they told me there were no flights leaving the Chicago airport that night and that I was welcome to walk to the opposite end of the airport to try to get a cot before they were all taken. Pregnancy hormones - overdrive! Then it hit, uncontrollable tears. Carter, in his way of helping me cope would say "Mom...hi" every few minutes as I walked through the airport trying to decide what to do. We decided for safety and sanity to go to a Hotel where we got 4 and a half hours of sleep before I had to drag Carter out of bed while he protested "No mommy, no!" That was the worst of his complaining the entire trip. He was such a good kid and we arrived early the next morning in Detroit where Kerri, Lolo, Izzy and Ryan were all waiting for us! Good times from there.

ANN ARBOR W/ COSTLEYS

After taking a few days to recover from our day of terror, we had 2 fun filled weeks in Ann Arbor with Kerri, Cory and fam. Carter loved playing with his cousins, and on occasion when she would allow, wrestling with Lolo as seen here:

We spent many fun hours doing fun activities w/ the kids at places like Jump City (similar to The Fun Center we have here) and The Hands on Museum. Something Kerri and I didn't anticipate while planning our trip was the adjustment my "only child" son and her "little princess" would have to make to sharing. Neither had a very easy time of it and spent a fair amount of time yelling "NO!" back and forth (half the time for no reason) and taking toys from one another. By the end of the trip they were doing much better and along w/ Izzy, Carter and Ryan enjoyed a long morning at The Hands on Museum:


A "WICKED" GOOD TIME

Another highlight of our trip was Doreen's 40th Birthday bash in Chicago. Mom and Kelli flew in to Detroit where Kerri and I picked them up to head straight for Chicago to meet Do. With bad weather we were a little late getting to the airport to pick Mom and Kelli up, but once the four of us were in the car it was good times. Unfortunately (sorry Ker, must share), with all the fun conversation that was going on, Kerri made a hasty exit on the freeway and sent us on an extra hour detour. Because of terrible weather (and our little detour) it took us 7 hours to arrive in Chicago instead of the estimated 4. But, we were happy to be together and in Chicago safely. We had only endured one particularly scaring moment on the road where Kerri started breaking and we began to slide. From the back seat Mom and Kelli started in soft tones which rose to higher intensity "Careful with the...HONEY DON'T PUSH ON THE BREAKS!" My natural response in the tension was yelling back "She's okay!!!" That was short lived and we recovered quickly. So we made it to Chicago and then following the directions Kerri printed from Google, we arrived in Chicago and were anxious to get to the hotel. After I so carefully led us by her directions to our destination point we found ourselves in front of the theatre where we would be seeing Wicked. Bummer again...Ker accidentally put the address for the theatre instead of the hotel as our destination point. Luckily our hotel was only a few blocks away and we found it without too much trouble. We checked in just in time to put our bags down and go out to meet Doreen who was coming in from the airport on the train. We found her and had a giggly reunion back at the hotel where Kelli painted all of our toes to match! We spent the next morning enjoying Chicago and eating at the Cheesecake factory together before we went to see the show. And then...WOW, Wicked was amazing! Better than I even imagined. We made memories for a lifetime on that quick Chicago trip together. A big thanks to Cory who stayed in Ann Arbor with his three kids and mine (who relentlessly asked "Where's mom?"). Also a big thanks to Kerri for planning all the details that made the trip so great, and Kel and Bry for the sweet Marriott hotel stay in Chicago! Many thanks to all the husbands and families who sacrificed as well! I'll add Chicago trip pics when I get them.

ARRIVING HOME

Exactly 2 weeks later we arrived home where Mike met us at the airport. Carter was so excited to see him as these pics show. He still asks for him often when he's gone to work and just this morning, he wouldn't let me get him out of his bed because he didn't like my answer to his question of "Where's my daddy?" I talked him into letting me pick him up and after he finishes breakfast we'll call dad at work so he can tell him the usual "Miss you dad. Love you dad. Hurry home." Carter loves his daddy as you can see by the hugs and big unexpected smooch:

Mike and Carter have enjoyed their time together since we got back, especially one of Carter's favorite activities. Carter requests "Throw me dad!" and Mike does. Just recently Carter has added the side-kick which he calls superman.

So we're home and getting back into the swing of things. Mike took a couple days off work to enjoy with us and we even managed to make it to a movie together. I love date nights!


PREGNANCY UPDATE

As you can see, the bump is out. I resisted as long as I could, but I'm happy to still be as active as I am, now at 27 weeks. Another highlight of our time in Michigan was Kelli and I getting to play with Kerri on her ward team in the Stake women's basketball tournament. We spanked 'em all with Mom, Cory and kids cheering from the sidelines! It was a blast. I'm playing in a 3's volleyball tourney this Saturday as one of my last events. My loving and protective husband and father have been suggesting I stop for a while now. :)