Eight Years Together

Eight years ago, I married this weirdo... Best decision ever. We couldn't get a babysitter for the actual date, so we went out on Saturday instead.  Here are the 8 reasons why I love this man more today than I did 8 years ago as well as what we did for our date night.

We went to a nice-ish restaurant called The Sparkling.  It was all high end food but really reasonable prices.  We decided to go all out and started with Bacon-wrapped Date and Meatballs.   The first bite wasn't amazing, and then it was beyond amazing!

1.He keeps getting better and better looking.  (Look at the man, I'm not making this up.  It's not fair!)

For the entree I decided on the Tempura Shrimp and Mushroom Pasta.  Amazing.  Brent went with the Pesto Sausage Pasta.  His was really good but I still preferred mine.  The waiter suggested we get some grilled french bread to accompany our pasta and he was right.  It was perfectly grilled and flavored.

This was my dream, mainly that I had a dream about it.  Three desserts!  Creme Brulee, Cheesecake and Flourless Chocolate Cake. This was one of the best ideas I have had in a while.  They were all delicious but the chocolate cake was so dense and rich that we couldn't finish it.

2. He is extremely motivated.  He'll get ideas and start projects without me knowing.  When he finally does get around to telling me I'm usually blown away with everything he has accomplished. 

After gorging ourselves on really delicious food, we went to the next romantic location, Chuck-e-cheese, for some friendly competition.

3. The boy is goofy.  It takes a lot of convincing to get him to actually smile in a photograph because he usually sticks out his tongue or makes a weird face.  I love that he is goofy because it helps keep us young.  We might still be young now but the mortgage, two kids, career, bills and everything else have made us grow up a lot, but Brent's goofiness will keep us young for years to come.

We go to chuck-e-cheese for three machines.  The football one, skiball, and basketball. This of course become our tri-athlon.

4.Brent is up for anything at any time.  I can say that I want to go hiking at midnight  and he'll go put on his shoes.  It is this attribute that give us so many wonderful memories and experiences.

I actually rock the football game.  You have two minutes to score points.  I won 2 out of the 4 games, and I had the high score of the night.

5. Brent is the Best Dad.  He comes home from a high stress job and immediately starts playing with the girls.  He takes breaks from work to walk us into the gym so he can see the girls during the day.  He plans adventures to take Harper (and one day London) on, he wants to be involved in every aspect, he wants them to know how much he loves them and he is super thoughtful.  I am pretty lucky, but so are Harper and London. 

I am TERRIBLE at basket ball.  Brent won 3 out of 4 games BUT I did get the high score of the night by 3 points.

6. Brent loves Adventure.  He has a 17 page list of places he wants to go and things he wants to see. Travelling together is amazing because I get to tag along for the ride.  As long as I manage getting to the location, Brent handles the rest.  I love him for it.

Ski-ball is usually pretty close, with me edging Brent out a good amount of the time. I had one unbelievable game, but the machine wasn't working right so my score wasn't recorded correctly (Brent and I agree on this point,) but we did agree that I did come home with 2 out of 3 wins and the high score for the night.

7. Brent is a really good man.  He is helpful, kind, supportive and an all around good guy.  I've yet to meet someone who doesn't like him.

Brent gave me the win for the night... he then went on for twenty minutes about how the basketball game didn't get all his points (it did, I was watching).  

8. Brent is the best husband. He'll run out and get me a burger at 9 pm (he usually wants one too), give me a night off, give me a back rub when my neck hurts, put up with my moodiness, text me all day everyday because I miss him and he will follow me around while I am on the phone despite the fact that he has to hear the same stories over and over again.  We say "I love you" a ridiculous amount and work hard to make sure we will always be best friends.

I married up for sure.  Brent was the best decision I ever made.  I can honestly say I would take him with me everywhere if I could.  My life is just better when he is around.  Our date was a little unconventional.  As we left Chuck-a-cheese the attendant said "Just you two?  Oh ya, you were the only two that came in without kids."  Yes girl, we were and it was a perfect time!

Harper turns Two!!!

Can you believe this little girl is TWO!?!?!?  I feel like she is still so little... but with the attitude of a teenager. She is so funny, independent, hammy and adventurous and we are so glad she is apart of our family.

I have to admit, I am a lame mom.  I love birthdays but I have no idea what to do for a two year old, so we didn't really do anything...

We bought a cake and for some reason Harper decided not to use the fork..  It took us 4-5 bites before we were able to remind her that she knows how to use a fork.

 After cake with mom and dad it was presents.  The dress she is wearing is from Grandma Huntley, who sent her present a little early.  I left the room for one minute and Harper already had the present open before I got back.  Christmas will be interesting for sure!

 This was her favorite part of the day.  

 Harper wanted to open each present and play with it.  She loves the legos that Grandma Forsberg sent.  Harper took a month to really get used to building with them, but she is now known to carry a lego ice cream cone with her everywhere.

 Mom and Dad purchased her some dress up clothes and a track for cars.  

 This girl blows me away. She is a girlie tom boy food monster, who loves reading, doesn't care for tv and is addicted to her binki (probably because she only gets it at bed time).  London makes her happier than mom and dad ever will and she will wave and say hello to anything that scares her. She doesn't take any guff and is still learning to share and be gentle. 

In short, we love this girl more than anything and we can't be happier with who she is becoming!

Cabo Day Four: Parasailing and Relaxing

Brent and I love adventure.  We'll try most anything once and parasailing has been on both our lists for a while. Once again, thanks to the timeshare presentation we didn't pay for this at all (that 1.5 hours saved us over $400)

Brent was holding Harper as he was getting on the boat and tripped.  He cut up his ankle but they were both okay.  Harper was a little more timid because of it.

Since we had the kids, we went one at a time. I went first.

Brent and I both noted that it isn't really an adrenaline pumping activity.  It is actually really relaxing.

At some point, though, you look down and realize you would die on impact if something broke... That was a little scary but overall it was totally worth it.

Back at the hotel we were going to eat lunch in our room (hence the naked baby) but it was being cleaned.  We opted for the stairs instead.

Nap time was a fight.  We ran Harper and London hard so they always crashed, it just took some time.

After naps was the pool.  

Isn't London the best?!

This little boy and Harper started playing catch.  They were SO cute together.

Until he eventually tried to hold her hand and she RAN for the hills.  It took him a good 30 minutes to regain her trust.  He ended up splashing her which convinced her he was a fun little boy to play with.

This little baby is going to be such a fun little girl.

I'm actually afraid she is going to have more spunk and energy than Harper... help me now.

Maybe it would be better if you just pray for me.

I think we have pretty cute kids

Even when they are not thrilled with what is going on.

Another one for the books. Brent and I were both sad it was our last night, but we realized the kids missed their routines and melt downs were occurring more and more frequently.

It was time to head home.

Cabo Day Three: Dolphins and City Center

Along with a boat ride we also got two tickets to the Dolphin Experience.  In this adventure, you get in the water,pet and play with Dolphins, but you do not ride them. The benefit to this is we could take Harper in the water.  So at 9:00 am Harper and I met our aquatic friends.

Harper thought it was okay but she really didn't love it.

Halfway through she just wanted to sit on the side.  

Brent wasn't really excited about it at all and because Harper didn't really care for it we almost left. We stuck it out instead.

Harper had a complete change of heart and round two was full of laughter, giggles and demands for more dolphin time!

She even gave the dolphin a kiss all on her own.

Brent was skeptical all round but he ended up enjoying himself.

Aren't they the best?

Harper managed to blow out her diaper which means she got a cool new shirt!

That evening we decided to hit up downtown San Jose. It is a cute little square full of art galleries and tourist shops.

Brent picked out this doll and I wasn't sure Harper would like it... I was wrong!  She continues to play with today.  I think she loves that I have London and she has her baby.

This church is in the main square.  It took a while for our family to grow but it has exploded!

Brent enjoys taking other pictures which means we all get to relax while he is working away.

I think London will travel the world, she just looks like a natural.

Harper is such an adventurer.  She is happiest when she is somewhere new.

Harper and I were killing some time learning about fountains.  She is so adorable!

Another great day down and we still had one more full day of fun.  I kept waiting for something miserable to happen but it just didn't.  Family vacations are the best!

** Please note: there was nothing overly miserable, but plenty of frustrating moments**

Seaside: Aquarium and Carnival

After A fun relaxing night in Seaside, we hit the ground running.  Brent took Harper on a walk.  Notice her little backpack?  We got it for the plane ride and she wouldn't let go of it.  I currently have it hidden because she still wants to take it EVERYWHERE with her.

Looking over the Ocean!  What a beautiful sight.

After a quick walk along the ocean we went along the boardwalk.  In Seaside there is a main strip that has all the little shops and other attractions.  On attraction was a merry-go-round.  It cost two dollars to ride and was so worth it.

We think this is our nephew Hunter, but it kinda doesn't look like him. So it is either Hunter or some random kid we don't know... Sorry Maren!

If London was sitting on her own I would have taken her on, but she is our little baby for a reason!

Look at that girl!

She rode it again with Dad and was much more adventurous.

After the Carousel we all went to the Aquarium.  Grandma is helping London feed the seals.

And preventing Harper from jumping in after them.

Harper LOVED Braden and he did a great job of being nice to her. 

Poking something soft and squishy?  Sure, she pokes London every day, so why not?

Harper was getting antsy long before the other kids, so we walked back down the main drag to the bumper cars.  I know she is two , but she is pretty brave.

Brent kept some good space between the other cars... Harper wasn't having it!

She wanted to be in on the action.

When the others caught up to us we decided to try the Tilt-a-whirl.

Braden, Austin and Brody

Audrey and Jack Jack watching the action

Maren and Brent attempted to take Hunter and Harper.  This did not go well.  Neither one really enjoyed the experience and therefore it was a tense three minutes.

They did try and keep the cart from spinning since that made it worse, but it was a happy time when it was finally over.

Brody didn't quite enjoy the experience either.

Maren felt like she missed out, so she took the older boys again.

Tilt-a-whirl fun cam to an end and bumper cars were next!

Harper just had to steer.

She loved every minute of it...

Grandpa and Hunter hitting the tracks.

Harper did not want them to go "unbumped"

Grandpa making sure Austin and Audrey knew who was boss.

You can tell the adults were having just as much fun as the kids.  It will be a sad day when all the kids are tall enough to ride by themselves.  It was a really successful day at the beach.  Cousin time is the BEST TIME!