Make New Friends

Eila has a GREAT daycare - and it’s becoming even more fun.  For the first few months, Eila received nearly undivided attention as her daycare provider had only recently opened her doors to munchkin clients.   Every now and then I get a surprise on my phone when Jamie sends an update of Eila’s day. I live for those snapshots of her life when away from home.

Eila and Jamie - our AMAZING daycare guru.

Jamie has one gorgeous little girl named Leah, who is definitely momma’s little helper.

Leah helps Eila keep her binky in place. (You’re not going crazy - I’ve posted this pic before - but it makes more sense here.)

Things are getting more crowded, now - which is just fine with Eila since she’s make cute new friends.

Baby Cassidy and Eila.  Cassidy may be younger - but she comes from a longer and leaner stock than our little Ball Babe.

And they're off...(Well, they’re at least off of their backs...)  It won’t be long now before the baby racing begins.  Is it just me or does Eila look like a SERIOUSLY old man in this picture?

Double trouble...I’m pretty sure these little ladies are discussing trade secrets and solving world hunger.  If only we could understand their solutions!

Perhaps you can translate!  Jamie caught the tail end of what was apparently quite an in-depth conversation.  They both crashed soon after - exhausted by their vocalises.  Perhaps a soprano duet is in their futures?

Opening Day!

In honor of Oma and Opa’s trip to Spring Training and of the Mariners’ Opening Day at Safeco Field...

Go Ms!

Easter 2015

Having just barely put our feet back on Northwest soil the day before Easter from our Spring Break adventures, we didn’t have much time to put together a lavish Bunny Day celebration.  I felt so blessed, though, that Oma and Opa Wilhoit were willing to drive down from Anacortes (for like the third time that week!) to share the day with us.  

Every holiday should start with a festive onesie.  

Half of the fun of having a baby girl is getting to play dress up with her - especially with Easter dresses!  This beautiful ensemble was handcrafted 10 years ago for cousin Brooklyn but it looks like its ruffles were designed just for our Eila.

Sittin’ pretty!

Oma and Opa had already sent an Easter surprise package to Eila - but we saved it so we could all open it together.

Eila enjoys her new stuffies while Zoe wonders which of them she’ll be allowed to gnaw on.

While Eila actually slept through most of lunch - she woke up to join the party just before we left the table.

It’s always more fun to wake up to visitors!

Since we’d already eaten - it was only fair that Eila got to eat lunch, too.

With full bellies - a walk through the park was just what we all needed on a gorgeous Easter Sunday afternoon.

Grandma Linda gave Eila a great ride around Puyallup.

Finally, having worked up just a bit more of an appetite - it was time to return for Easter baskets.  This basket came complete with a pretty cute Peep!

“Hey!  I’m no Easter Egg!"

"Can I have your chocolate bunny?  Look how sweet I look!"

“JUST KIDDING!”  This munchkin face reveals my true identity.  

Happy Easter!

April Fools!

Fooled you!  You thought we completely overlooked April Fools Day in Omaha, didn’t you?  Kara has created a bit of her own beast with her creative April 1st celebrations the last few years - so we worked hard to lower expectations this year...a bit.

We started by planning our tricky dinner on March 31st instead of April 1.  If we were honest, this was really because Wednesdays are already plenty busy in the Wheeler household without adding a complicated dinner...but I think it helped to keep suspicious munchkins off of our tail.

The meal started with a delicious, though perhaps a bit expected, chef salad prepared by NomiAnn.  The wheeler kiddos know much better than to complain about a yummy meal - but we sensed their tummies weren’t 100% full - so we brought out dessert

I never got a picture of our bundt “frosted” with mozzarella cheese.

Our expectations for our pizza bundt cake were low - but it actually turned out pretty well!

As if we didn’t have enough on our hands with the bundt cake caper - we needed a “real” dessert, too.  A few minutes scouring the Pinterest brought my attention to an exploding cake.  The idea is that you take a cereal box and put a balloon inside of it - tape it down to elongate it - and then cover the whole thing in Cool Whip.  The unsuspecting cake cutter-er then gets a great surprise when “kaboom!” they go to cut into the cake, the balloon pops, and give themselves a Cool Whip facial.

It seemed simple enough...but putting it into practice was far tricker than anticipated.

Kara troubleshoots a balloon cake that won’t stay grounded. 

In the end, we decided to embrace the awkward shape of the cake and turn it into a cute little VW Bug in honor of Sapphyr back in Puyallup.  We gave her Oreo wheels, sprinkle-y hair, big green eyes, and a chocolate chip smile.  The cake was actually almost too cute to cut into!  

ALMOST - but Papa Kay is too good a sport not to target.  The cake cutting didn’t exactly go as planned, though.  Besides some quick thinking responses to “why are there holes in the cake”, “what is this writing I can see” and “why is this cake light as a feather” Papa Kay played gamely along.  Unfortunately the video I took is far too big to post - but just imagine a wholly disappointing “pffft” sound as the VW self imploded.  Eli’s smile fell just as far until we brought out some oreo-stuffed brownies for a real dessert.  

Annika clearly enjoyed her brownie thoroughly.  

Slightly disappointed that their dreams of another whacky dinner on April 1st were not going to be fulfilled - they were certainly excited to come downstairs in the morning to find their doggie bowls had found their way out of the attic and been filled with peanut-butter cocoa puffs.

I love that Annika is the only one who insisted on eating her cereal with a spoon.

Some April Fools traditions are just too fun (read “easy”) to give up - and that’s no fooling.

Springtime in Omaha

Some people go to Disneyland, others to Hawaii...I choose to go to family - wherever they might be.  This year Eila and I exchanged the majesty of the Northwest mountains for the Midwest prairie.  With the notable exception of the fact that Adam and Zoe couldn’t come with us, it was a perfect spring vacation.

Let’ face facts - football fan or not, Eila has Husker blood running through her veins.

The trip started with the most terrifying part - a solo flight out of SeaTac with an infant in arms.  I have much to be grateful for: #1) Alaska Airlines now has a direct flight from SeaTac to Omaha #2) I have a husband who believes in the value of the extra bucks it takes to take that flight #3) Alaska Airlines is the BEST airline.  Not only are they friendly and intelligent, they made it extremely easy to fly comfortably with Eila.  Since the flight wasn’t full they put an “airport hold” on the seats next to me both coming and going so that no unsuspecting other passengers were stuck with us as we bumbled our way through the process.  Finally, I am super thankful for a wonderful little daughter who was quiet, cooperative and even sleepy on our three hour flight.

You’d be tired, too, if you’d been hanging out in the airport for hours.

Enjoying my toys and the empty seat next to Mommy.

We felt even more fortunate to arrive in Omaha to BEAUTIFUL weather!  Papa Kay picked us up from the airport after going to battle with his RAV4 tires.  You know you have an organized dad when he can get a flat tire, call AAA, and still make it to pick you up from the airport within 10 minutes of collecting your baggage.  Our first stop was, unsurprisingly, the Wheeler household.  Always willing to let me come and turn her house upside down with fun and shenanigans, there just isn’t another house in this world more filled with love and laughter.

Picking Brooklyn up from Girl Scouts in style.  True to our history, Kara and I managed to get slightly lost wandering the streets of her beautiful neighborhood as we sought out the school.  It’s a good thing my sister is the most fit mama around - I was huffing and puffing just jogging myself around the area - she barely broke a sweat pushing both of our bumpkins, too! 

Speaking of Girl Scouts, our eldest niece, Brooklyn McCall is taking after her mother in terms of organization and motivation to get fit.  With the help of her family and inspiration from her previous elementary school in St. George, Brooklyn petitioned her school to allow her to start a Mileage Club at her elementary school as a part of the completion of her Bronze Award for Girl Scouts.  Unsurprisingly, Brooklyn’s project is turning into more of a full Wheeler family event as Kara, Eli, and Annika all trek along to recess to help punch runner cards.  Talia, at my last count, was leading the runner-board with the number of laps she’s sprinting during recess each day.  Not one to be left out, Jason spends hours sitting with his wife into the wee hours of the morning laminating the rainbow of running cards.  Even Nomi Ann got in on the action by making cute little aprons that hold all of the different cards and charms for the workers.  Congratulations on the success of your program Miss Brooklyn!  You should be very proud of your accomplishments and the difference you’ve made in your school’s culture.  Keep up the great work!

Kara punches a runner’s card to show she’s completed another lap.  

Helping so many wonderful little runners made us peckish - so Kara took us out to this adorable Mediterranean family restaurant.  I love finding little hole in the wall places - not only was the lunch price right (we ate amazingly delicious, healthy food for less than what it would have cost to go to McDonalds) but the company was lots of fun, too. 

Cute like my Auntie, indeed!  Eila was good restaurant company while Annika was great restaurant entertainment :)  Lentil soup is made for wearing, right?

While I’m on the topic of little Annika - can I just take a moment to tell you all how AWESOME that little munchkin was with even littler Eila?  I think Kara was just a bit nervous to see how her youngest would react to the invasion of an even smaller creature to her home for a whole week, but Annie just accepted Eila as her own real life baby doll.  It was so fun to watch them together and imagine their years to come as they become friends.  

Putting the plug in.

Pushing the Bump around the grocery store.

 The Wheeler house has tons of fun stuff to keep a baby occupied.  Eila took her first swing ride in their backyard.

Swinging is exciting!

 She also took her first trip to the library.

Beware, libraries come with dangerous creatures.  Here Eila is being swallowed by a book loving hippo.

 Being home in Omaha for more than three days actually allowed for some extra special time to catch up with long-time friends.  Here’s Eila in Abbie Schneider’s beautiful West Omaha home.

Abbie still looks so much like the 9th grade girl I met playing flute in marching band.  It weirds me out to no end that I now TEACH those kind of students, now.

The wacky brood.  Abbie’s to gorgeous daughters were wonderful with Eila.  They shared all of their toys and showed her lots of fun new tricks.  If Eila turns out to be half as articulate and intelligent as Abbie's sweet ladies I’ll be feeling quite proud of myself. 

After hanging with the Schneiders, Eila and I headed over to NomiAnn and Papa Kay’s house.  We had fun shopping and making another crazy Aunt Callie Concotion for dinner full of veggies and quinoa.  Eli may not have been a fan of dinner, but he was was certainly interested in entertaining Eila.

Loving the Cousins

One of Omaha’s many hidden treasures was found the next day at the Joslyn Art Museum.  Kara is so good at discovering new and exciting ways to entertain her children...and those that are still children at heart.

Kara, Papa Kay, Annika, Eli, and Eila all in front of the Joslyn’s Chihuly.  See, we can find pieces of the Northwest no matter where we go!

Last November the Joslyn opened a wonderful new young artists area.  Bright and airy, it was the perfect place to spend a half hour before pre-school.

Artists at work...

Apparently Papa Kay’s fixation on peanut-headed beings extends far beyond Eila’s headband. 

Later that evening we put Papa Kay on babysitting duty while the rest of us packed a few bags to head over to West Omaha.  As you can see they certainly had a good time together.

A meeting of the minds.

After such intense conversation, we all needed to re-charge.  A stop at Cheddars was just what we needed.  Papa Kay dressed up for the occasion - please note the pink hair bow.

You can also see our stellar parenting skills in action.  Notice that Eila is being cared for at the kids table by Talia, Eli, and Brooklyn.  We paid for their services in pasta.  

The adults all played hooky the next day in order to spend some quality time together.  Naturally we decided to spend that precious time at Nebraska Furniture Mart looking for new family room sofas.

I love this picture for so many reasons.  1) It pictures Eila with her favorite Uncle Jason. 2) Uncle Jason is donning his Settlers T-shirt and 3) The painting above them both seems absolutely perfect for such a joy-filled moment.

Our shopping adventures complete, we returned home for some more play time.  Imagine our surprise when, after dinner, we found Eila looking like this.

Considering I’d put her down with just her Binky in her Bumbo - the mountain of toys was a great mystery until we saw this.  

My favorite part is when Annika gives Eila the blank and then takes her Binky.  It’s about time Eila learned that life is about give and take.

Unfortunately, even the most adventurous Spring Breaks must eventually come to an end.  NomiAnn and Papa Kay helped Eila and I make our way through the airport.  

Matching in pink

Whispering words of wisdom from one generation to the next.

Apparently Papa Kay whispered the perfect magic words to Eila in order to make her another wonderful travel companion.  

Another sleepy flight.

And here we’ve come full circle.  Eager to see her dad and sister, Eila soon became wide awake and enjoyed her empty seat.  The new turtle toy was compliments of her cousins and has already taken up residence atop her car seat.  

Thank you again, Omaha family, for welcoming us so warmly.  We can’t wait to return the favor.

The Aunts Come Marching In!

We've had our suspicions - but now it’s confirmed.  We shouldn’t be surprised - but it really is true.  If  you live out of the way and you want people to come and visit just have a baby.

We were first blessed by a visit from a perfect trifecta of Aunt-dom.  Three of Papa Kay’s sisters, Aunt Sharon, Aunt Pat, and Aunt Anne stopped by Puyallup as a part of their “Aunts on Parade” route.  They started in Oregon and were working their way around the Northwest visiting family.  Considering my father has eight brothers and sisters - and ours was the smallest family of all - there are bound to be familial relations nearby no matter where you go in the area.

From Left to Right: Aunt Anne (Dad’s baby sister)
Aunt Sharon (The eldest sister- holding the Bump)
Aunt Pat (Dad’s caretaker when he was Eila’s age) 

Everyone loves a baby!

Aunt Pat regaled us all with stories of Papa Kay when he was a babe - and then further treated us with a delicious dinner out.  Thank you so much for making the effort to come and see us in our little home.  We hope you’ll bring your giggling tour back our direction again soon!

A few days later brought us all to St. Patrick’s Day.  The music department at Aylen JH had a concert that evening - and since Adam is an integral part of our concert routine, we asked his Aunt Lanette and Uncle Ted to come down to Puyallup from Enumclaw to stay with Eila.  As you can see - she really gave her Auntie Aunt a run for her money by crying nearly the whole time!  We were so grateful for their help and patience - we hope to try again soon with less mewling from our Bump.

The patience of an angel - Eila has a thing or two to learn about entertaining guests in her home. 

Exhausted at last, Lanette and Ted helped put Eila in the holiday spirit.  What a little sprout!

Finally, my Aunt Janet came to visit for a few days just in time for Spring Break.  It was great timing as I was just finishing up for a whole week and Adam was still in between terms of grad school.  Having spent the previous week with her sister in Oregon, we were thrilled that the weather cleared up enough to enjoy some time outside.  We treated Aunt Janet to a fancy (ha!) Friday night meal of Teriyaki Chicken (a recommendation from NomiAnn) and then a leisurely Saturday with a walk in downtown Tacoma.

The Ruston Way waterfront is always a lovely place to chat and get in a bit of exercise.

Cuddle time in an adorable outfit sent by the Wells for Christmas.

While Aunt Janet’s visit was quite a whirlwind, it was awesome to share with her a piece of our heaven on the other coast.  We adore spending time with her family in the East each summer, so it’s high time we had a chance to return the favor.

Consider this an open invitation to ALL of our Aunts (and Uncles, cousins, grandparents, and friends for that matter) to come one by one, two by two, or any other combination of numbers to enjoy all the best that Puyallup has to offer.  We would love to welcome you any time!

Happy Pi Day!

Happy Pi Day!

Pi = 3.1415 on 3/14/15.

Eila Kay = 4 months old on 3/14/15.