The Best Days

Trevor has the best schedule.  Most weeks he has been working two 12 hour shifts and then has one day with a a few hours of classes and then he is done.  One thing we have been doing with all our extra time together is getting back in shape.  I have been planning out all our meals and we have cut out processed food and the majority of our sugar.  We have both been feeling so great and loosing some of those extra pounds we accumulated during the stress of nursing school.  We have also been doing a lot more exercise.  Running, lifting weights, yoga.  It is all very fun and all but my favorite thing we have been doing is exploring our beautiful state we live in and taking lots of hikes.  It is a great way for us to disconnect from the rest of the world and spend some real quality time together as a family.  We have so many trails so close to where we live that we can sneak off a few hours before bedtime while its nice and cool and enjoy the beautiful sunsets that Arizona has to offer.  And we have also been able to do a few overnight trips to explore new places.  I have a very love/hate relationship with Arizona but I have definitely learned in our two and a half years of living here that the best way to enjoy this desert state is from high ground with these three people of mine

Trevor usually ends up carrying both our kids while hiking.  He has never complained about it.

Last weekend my kids were playing on the trail while we rested and an older woman came trucking up past us and must have not been looking where she was going because she walked up to kirra in this position and screamed and then started yelling and mumbling some kind of profanities and waving her finger at us.  I'm pretty sure she was deaf and had other disabilities but it scared Kirra bad and she was so scared that the woman might catch up to us for the rest of the hike.

All of the desert plants are blooming and it makes our hikes so colorful

Another perk of all this hiking is I don't have to wear makeup.  Unfortunately I look pretty rough most days

Knox 18 Months

Next month Knox turns 18 months.  It feels like the time has flown by and he was just my tiny squishy baby yesterday.  When I think about all the reasons I love this kid it overwhelms me to the point that I think trying to write a blog post to name them all seems impossible.

So here are just a few things we have learned about Knox in the last 18 months of his life.

1.  Knox thinks that everything is funny.  It doesn't matter what show is on T.V. he will find something he thinks is funny and start laughing uncontrollably.  We recently watched the movie penguins and although it was entertaining, Knox was who we were all watching throughout the movie just waiting to see what parts would make him laugh.  The other day we were outside and he saw a weed blowing in the wind and every time the weed would move he would laugh.  He also thinks Kirra's hair is funny and I always catch him coming up behind her playing with her curls and giggling.  I love that he already has a crazy fun sense of humor.

2.  Knox is a cuddle bug.  Kirra was never this way so I think this makes him unique.  At least unique for an 18 month old.  In the mornings when I get him out of his crib, and assuming we can find his binki immediately, he will come get in bed with me and just lay there for what seems forever.  Sometimes when I am talking on the phone he will climb up on the couch next to me and just rest his head on my shoulder.  Along with the cuddling he loves having a blanky.  If there is a blanky in the room he wants it and he doesn't want anyone else touching it.  He doesn't really have a favorite except maybe Kirra's pink princess blanket which isn't even really a blanket but both my kids love.  I love each and every cuddle I get and hope that they never stop.

3.  Knox loves music.  Specifically Taylor Swift.   More specifically "Shake it off".  We discovered about a month ago that Knox loves this song.  When it would come on he would stop whatever he was doing and get really excited and start to dance.  The other day he kept bringing me my phone and whining and I finally figured out that he wanted me to turn his song on, so I turned on "Shake it off"  he walked around the house with the phone held up to his ear, and every time it would turn off he would bring the phone back for me to turn it back on.  We also recently learned he likes the song "I love it" by Icona Pop.  It is so weird and yet so entertaining.

I didn't have a pic of him dancing but this one of him looking extremely scared rolling down a hill was pretty good too.

4. Knox loves food.  Period.  I thought he would grow out of the grocery shopping fits but he hasn't.  He still freaks out with every item we put in the cart because he can't open it and have it right then and there.  He still freaks out when someone at church has fruit snacks and he doesn't.  He knows if there is candy in the house.  Even if it is hidden.  He will come grab my hand and stand in front of the cabinet that he knows its in and grunt until and give in.  I think this is a boy thing.  We can hardly get Kirra to eat anything.

5.  Knox is so so smart.  He has figured out what items he can use around the house as a stool to reach anything that we try to keep away from him.  He remembers exactly where his binkis are hidden.  I will spend all morning looking for one and as soon as I stop he will show up with it in his mouth.  He has learned a few signs and made up a few of his own so he can communicate with me.  I am always amazed at how quickly he catches on to things or picks up a new skill.  I am sure I won't be able to keep up with him pretty soon.

I also realized after writing this that Knox only does picture worthy things when he is wearing his super secret agent shirt!  I need to take my camera out more often.  Anyway that is out 18 month old cutie pie and we love him to pieces.  I hate that he is growing up so fast but I also can't wait to seen the person he becomes.

I have been had no time since Trevor graduated.  I am not complaining.  We are having fun making up for the past 2 years!  So I haven't had time to blog about all the fun we have been having.  So back track a bit.  In February we took a trip to celebrate our freedom from nursing school.  It was amazing.  It started when we drove up to Northern California and dropped our kids off at my in-laws.  I was so nervous to leave Knox for the first time so I had a little anxiety as we were leaving but that quickly disappeared about 10 minutes into the trip.  Our first stop was in a little town (I forgot the name) on our way to Bodega Bay.  We got some really delicious pizza and that was just the first bite into a weekend of glorious deliciousness.  The rest of the drive into Bodega was so beautiful.  I pretty much can say nothing bad about the trip.  Our hotel room in Bodega was so amazing.  It was huge and had a fireplace and a balcony with a view.  The hotel had bikes that we could take down to the water and we had the best time together.  We felt like we were 18 again and newly in love.  The hotel also had an infinity hot tub that looked over the bay where we watched the sunset every night we were there.  We got up really early the first morning and went crabbing which proved to be harder than it looked.  We took a loooooong walk on the beach and did some exploring.  We found huge clams and all kinds of sea life.  Just talking about it makes me want to go back so bad.  It is one of my favorite places we have ever visited.  The only downfall was that all the places to eat closed so early.  But we managed to find some of the best clam chowder and and fish and chips we have ever eaten.  I did not want to leave but we planned on being in San Francisco for valentines day so we had to say goodbye.  We drove down the coast which was so beautiful but made me super car sick.  We stopped at Muir Woods and saw the beautiful Redwoods.  Then we finally made it to our Hotel in San Fran.  It was quite the difference from Bodega.  It was super small but really nice and we had a view of Union Square.  We spent the day walking around china town and having lunch at our favorite Chinese spot, House of NanKing.  It was the Chinese new year so China town was so crowded and super fun.  Then Trevor surprised me for Valentines day with an INDONESIAN restaurant.  It was so awesome.  We got to eat yummy Indonesian food and I got to use my language for the first time in forever.  Then we went to Cheese cake factory for dessert and sat in Union Square watching some of the oddest dressed people have a valentine day dance party.  And then my love took me SHOPPING at all my favorite stores.  It was by far the best valentines day I have ever had.  The last day we were there we rented  bikes and biked pretty much the entire city.  It was an eye opener to how out of shape I am but it was so fun.  The best part of the trip was I got to rediscover my best friend.  School when you are married is hard. Add kids to the mix and its like you forget what it was ever like to just be in love.  We needed the trip so bad and I loved all the time we spent just being Trevor and Kristen again.  And now of course I want to make it happen a LOT more frequently.

There is no filter on this.  It was really this green in Bodega Bay

Bodega Bay hotel room was amazing

He caught a much bigger one but it let go at the last second

waiting for the best clam chowder

View from breakfast

Crab Benedict 

View of Union Square

Much smaller San Francisco Hotel room

The elevator in the hotel creeped me out cause it was so old but not as much as the stairs

Trip would not be complete without huge La Costa burritos

And Knox never missed me