Fancy Pants WA DC

Apparently our Nation's Capital is a pretty big deal.

Just kidding, of course it is. It's just that interesting.

It can be educational,

exciting, and sometimes scary.

But most of all there is a great sense of unity and pride.

And of course, there are always more scary things than politics...

Here is a great shot of me. Mostly because you can't see how much wider than Brett I am. Ha. Just kidding.

Brett had to fly to D.C. to get sworn in to The Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces. I drove up there 14 hours to see him- and yes it was SO worth it. I'm so darn proud of him.

It was a great experience. First of all as a couple it was really neat to do something exciting, stay at a nice hotel (Marriott -HoLLeR WhAt!) and have a nice romantic time before little baby Marie comes. (That's right, i slipped a name).

It was really cool to meet some of the big shots in charge of the Military. I have to say I am so impressed with many of the high ranking military people I meet because of two things: 1. They are humble and gracious & 2. They make a BIG deal about their families.

Every successful high-ranking official will always come out and tell you how important their spouse is to their success and how essential their family is in balancing their life.

I'm one of the few spouses that gets to be around all the JAG students when officials talk about these issues and I am so thankful for that. I like being a part of something that is realistic about life and includes the family as intergral part of progress and accomplishment.

I'm not saying the military (or any man-made institution) is perfect, however it feels so good to know that I personally respect alot of Brett's bosses, all the way up the chain.

Sweet Baby Girl

My brother finally had his baby. Or his wife did. Her name is Beth (i think that is what they are sticking with!). She was a few days overdue but finally came into the world on April 2 at 8:45 pm.
Her Stats: 21'' -7lbs-14oz.
She was born at LDS Hospital but then Life-flighted to Inter-Mountain Hospital which was really scary. Little Beth couldn't breathe on her own, had air around her heart, and had some sort of a blood infection. She has been in their ICU ever since then but is doing better each day.
My brother says she is sweet and mild, but is not down with having a breathing tube stuck in her face and tries to pull it out. Silly girl, breathing is good for you!
I was so scared when I heard all of this, but the baby probably is totally chill and knows what she is doing. She is sooooooooooooooooooooo beautiful.
Thats right. I'm bragging.

She is the first grandchild in my family. I'm gonna spoil the crap out of her! Just kidding... sort of... my mom will do a good job with that.
Beth We Love You!

Girls Just Wanna Be Born...

Little baby girl already has a wardrobe... and a favorite Aunt. Thanks Stephanie! We woke up Easter morning to an Easter basket from Stephanie filled with some cutie clothes for our cutie baby .

We are having a girl!

I will be honest, we were really shocked when we found out. It just seems like we would have a boy first, being that we both came from families where a boy was oldest.

But this is such a fun surprise.

I can look at all the pink clothes I want now! I'm already making plans for her room. It's gonna be great.

Brett maybe feeling a little out numbered. When I asked help for a title to this post he said "PMS Central"-

Hardy har har! It's better than "Estrogen City"- that was my first option. He is really excited though. This little girl is gonna have him wrapped around her finger.

In my family this is 1 of four girls to be born just this year. I think the rates are even higher on Brett's side. Oh my.

Gulf Shores Weekend

Alabama has a coast line- and we have the pictures to prove it!

Last weekend we met up with Mike, Steph and the kiddies for a weekend at Gulf Shores State Park.

We stayed in a gorgeous 3 bedroom, 3 bath cabin (on stilts mind-you) on the water.

It WAS AWESOME!!!

I am counting this as our first REAL REAL REAL vacation.

Granted we camped out in a tent the first week of our marriage, I don't count that.

And yah, we've stayed at alot of peoples houses, but when you have nowhere else to go, it doesn't really count as a vacation.

We've earned this bragging right.



We went to Orange City and found Cotton Bayou beach. And so did the wind! Boy Howdy was it windy. But it was too beautiful to leave.

There were plenty of sea shells in the "sugar sand" beach for Jorja to collect and for Preston to dig with.

These pictures aren't a very good representation
of what a crazy time we had, or how cute the kids were, but it was so windy I dropped the camera in the sand and decided to put it away after that.

I did manage to get one of Brett challenging me to a fight though. Or something.. I don't really know what's going on here.

This is Brett practicing.

He gets a B+. His form is good, but the baby is a little to close to the rail for my taste.

Sweet Home Alabama.... (what a sellout title)

We are making friends in Alabama!

And what a wonderful place it is, that is, besides the KKK, high obesity rates, tornadoes and accents that would require a translator to understand.

Just kidding... sort of.

I actually haven't seen any KKK remnants or such. Alabama seems like a safe place. I have seen alot of Black people. And of course, since I've only lived in Utah and Idaho, more than 2 Black people is alot to me. So it's been interesting and I am feeling slightly more culturally diverse than before. ha, I know that probably sounds somehow racist, but it's just the truth.

The tornadoes are a bit frightening. There was a tornado in a town called Prattville, just a few minutes north of Montgomery (where we are).

Thankfully, we were in Atlanta with Steph so we didn't have to be worried during the storm. The tornado was an E-F3. It took down a few houses, and mostly the sides of alot of buildings, including a Wal-Mart. I guess this tornado believes in better trade practices.

Seriously though, the ruin of homes is no laughing matter. We had a few friends put on there Air Force garb and offer their help to people whose homes looked in need, however, to their surprise most people didn't want any help at all. I suppose if all my material belongings were strewn all over the street I would not be eager for strangers to sort through them.
I am hoping to leave Alabama without anymore tornado stories.

The high obesity rates of the south are suddenly understandable if you take a look a the "southerner's menu." Everything seems to be fried. And of course that includes fried green tomatoes- which are delicious.

INGREDIENTS:
4 to 6 green tomatoes
salt and pepper
cornmeal
bacon grease or vegetable oil yikes, i know! it's not everyday food for expecting mothers

PREPARATION:
Slice the tomatoes into 1/4 - 1/2-inch slices. Salt and pepper them to taste. Dip in meal and fry in hot grease or oil about 3 minutes or until golden on bottom. Gently turn and fry the other side. Serve as a side dish - delicious with breakfast! http://www.about.com/

They are good, but not good enough to crave when I leave.

These pictures are of us making friends at the Shakespearean Park.

This is me supervising the retrieval of a kitten from a tree.

These birds know how it's done in Alabama... cause it's hot even in the winter. And no, this lady did not know we were taking a picture of her.

These are for your personal enjoyment...

BUBS WINS

Everyone seems to tease us about how "unoften" we update our blog, but I would just like to point out that Bub's (brett's oldest brother) hasn't updated since september. OOOOOOOO!
I know, I called him out! And seriously, having two small children, a full time job, and a wife that has college courses totally doesn't count as an excuse. Hang your head in shame Mr. Bubs.