Cruisin!!!

Well, we got back from our week aboard the Carnival Conquest last night. It was rough coming home to everyday life and the lack of all you can eat ice cream cones 24/7, but it is nice to be in our own bed and have Maddux in his own crib! We had so much fun with the whole family and all the kids! Vacationing is definitely a different experience with a baby....so many different aspects we hadn't thought of. Sleeping, eating, going to shows at night (or actually NOT going to shows at night), being stopped every five minutes so someone could talk to Maddux, waking the neighbors in the middle of the night when Maddux woke up crying (sorry Amb and Tye!!!) :) But then...there were all of the AMAZING things. The aforementioned never ending supply of soft serve twist cones just an elevator ride away, free sushi bar, salmon available for dinner almost every night, snorkeling in crystal clear water, swimming with Stingrays, wandering Cozumel on foot in the rain, playing with Brooklyn and Boston, being with the family, laying by the pool, yes...I could go on and on!

I didn't realize how horrible the lighting is in most of my pictures! Bummer! Also, I have very few pictures of Drew, Maddux and me together but hopefully some of my family took some and will send them my way! Here are some...

My dad and his girls...

Mom and the girls...
Grandma and Bop Bop and their Grandkids...

Sisters...
Our last night at dinner...

Maddux tanning his bod...

Daddy and Maddux swimming in the salt water pool...


That's Cozumel in the background (my hair is out of control from the wind as we were leaving the port)...


Senor Frog himself....

This was in Cozumel after walking in the rain. We are drenched...


Maddux in the window looking out at the Grand Cayman Islands. He was so sad to leave those stingrays :)

BIG stingrays. We had NO idea they were this big!!!



Daddy and Maddux on the boat after snorkeling in Grand Cayman...


Amber, Tyler, Brooklyn and Boston out snorkeling...

This crazy Jamaican guy stopped us and asked to take a picture with me and maddux when we were getting back on the ship. We didn't realize he would then ask for a tip for being in our picture!


The beach in Jamaica...

Jamaica again...the water is so clear and so blue!

My dad...ready to snorkel! :)

Drew and Maddux in our room, Maddux took many naps like this on the cruise! Drew loved it!

This is on a tour we took of Jamaica before going to the beach...

Maddux and Mommy at dinner...
The big water slide on the ship...

The family (minus the Carlsons) touring Cozumel by foot. (We were looking for cheap shops, but only found a disgusting place that smelled like rotten meat...we didn't end up shopping) :)

Bop Bop feeding Maddux an ice cream cone. It's dripping all over him...

I left Madudx downstairs with Drew while I was packing upstairs. I get a call from Drew (yes...a phone call from downstairs) saying, "You're going to want to come here, and you are probably going to want to bring the camera". This is what I found! VERY MESSY!!! (If anyone wants a box of 11 unused Gerber Biter Biscuits, we have a box up for grabs!!) :)

GO DREW!!!

K, I have to brag about my hubby for a minute...! Drew has been working his BUTT off with the goal to lose 20 pounds before we go on our cruise (this Saturday...woohoo!!!). He has lost 21 pounds!!!! We have been living on grilled chicken and grilled vegetables for dinner every night and he has done a great job sticking to his diet (even with his wife sitting next to him eating three Ben and Jerry's pints in a week's time-bad wife!!). Anyway...I am so so proud of him and how dedicated he has been, so I wanted to post some before and after pictures.

Before...
(click on the photo for the full effect)

AFTER...

Here are some of our latest Maddux pics....

this lil' bugger stung me on my run this morning. and not just on my arm or leg or someplace semi-kind. the thing flew down my shirt and down my sports bra. ouch!!!

7 months!

wow....another month has already gone by! My boy is growing up so fast!! This month has had so many "firsts". Maddux got his first tooth, first craw/army scoot, he can sit up alone for an endless period of time, and he started on fruits and rice puffs. Here are a few pics of our little guy during this month:

what's a guy to do when you want to play with TWO toys, but you only have ONE set of hands?!

FEET!!!

Swim Lessons

Maddux started swim lessons yesterday! It was...well....interesting! Maddux already loves the pool and would spend hours kicking in any water. I think these swim lessons are designed just to get babies comfortable being in the water, what did I expect for a 6 month old though, huh? Either way, he had a lot of fun! We have the lessons everyday for two weeks with Maddux's friend Parker from our ward. There are only three kiddos in the class, Parker, Zuzu and Maddux. Watch out world, they might just be swimming laps around us when they are done!

The Huish Goodbye :(

Our friends Kelly and Eric are moving to Glendale (even though it's only on the other side of the valley...with gas prices what they are...we probably won't get to see them much). So, Megan threw them a going away BBQ on Saturday. It was a lot of fun for everyone to get together. There were SO many babies/kids all in one place. It made me really excited for when they are all older and can really play with each other!
We will miss you Eric and Kelly!!

All the girls...(minus Lauren and Aubry who were out of town)
A few of the daddys....some of the kiddos...

Scootin'

Maddux is really getting this scooting/army crawl thing down. He knows that he can move to get his toys now. He is mobile. I think it's so funny to watch him because he only uses one leg to push himself!

Our little buddy!

Maddux is such a fun age right now. It's so fun to be able to interact with him and he is developing quite a little personality! I have a hard time coming to grips with the fact that he is growing so fast, but we are having an absolute blast with him!
He was totally worth the two years of tearful waiting and I am so blessed to have him and Drew!

4th of July

The 4th of July has always been my favorite holiday. I love that it's the only big summer holiday, there is no pressure of gift giving, it's a fun family day, and the entertainment is free! Well this year was one of my favorites. After my morning run Drew, Maddux and I took it easy all day. We slept, ate, watched TV, went to the pool and around 5:00 we finally got ready for the day and left the house. We went to Dick's Sporting Goods (one of Drew's very favorite stores) then we met Nate, Becca, Soren, and Sophie for dinner at Texas Roadhouse (We opted out of BBQ-ing in the 105 degree heat). Then we drove over to Tumbleweed park for the fireworks show. It was supposed to start at 9:30 and it didn't start until almost 10:00. It's NOT a nice thing to keep a VERY excited almost-three-year old waiting to see fireworks for the first time! It was so cute to watch Soren be so excited. All-in-all the show was a hit. Even the babies did great! Sophie was in awe the whole time! Maddux had a bit of a scare in the middle but recovered pretty quickly. My favorite part of the entire day was watching Maddux watch the fireworks. I probably looked at him more than I did the sky.
Drew and I agreed last night that being parents is the coolest thing EVER!

Maddux 6 month stats...

Thursday was Maddux's six month checkup. He did great considering he had to have all his six month vaccinations. (Still one of my very least favorite things). He had some pretty serious alligator tears for about 5 minutes, then he settled right down and eventually took a really long nap. What a trooper!

He weighs 16 pounds 2 ounces, which still has him in the 25th percentile.
But he is now 28 inches long which jumped him up into the 90th percentile for height!
His head circumference is 17.25 inches which is in the 50th percentile.
I still can't believe I have a six month old! I love it!