Tuesday, June 3, 2008

Life in Ohio

So far we are loving Ohio.... except for the Tornado watch we are under right now. Luckily, our neighbor just told us we were under a watch, which was good because we never watch the news here. So I am trying to get some blankets, food, etc in the basement just in case we have to go down there....hopefully not. We are loving it here though. It is pretty, the people are really nice, there is actually stuff to do, our ward is fantastic and we LOVE our house. The past two days, I have been attending a "mom and baby" workout class on base. I thought it would be a leisure workout, but so far they are the hardest workouts I have ever done (thanks to our drill sergeant instructor). Almost all the girls that go are AFIT (Air Force Institute of Technology) spouses, so it is a nice way to meet people. It has been nice too because Abe still has not started school yet, so we have been able to hang out. We are trying to plan some fun things for the next couple of weeks while he still has time.
Last weekend, we had Abe's friend Rob come and visit us from Virginia. It was so nice to see him and hang out. One of the days, we met Mori, Megan and Mayzee and all went to the Air Force Museum. It was really neat, but HUGE and we were not able to see everything.
Here is Adeline and Mayzee hanging out in the strollers. It is so fun that they are only about 50 minutes away from us for the summer so we can hang out!


Adeline has changed so much since we got here. She is little miss personality and we are constantly chasing after her because she is so busy. She will be walking soon!

She has decided that she is a picky eater, and she will only eat foods that she can feed herself. So let's just say that every meal is a big huge mess!

She has also learned that she can feed the dog.....

Mayzee and Adeline hanging out

The other day we took Adeline to our neighborhood park. Adeline loved it.




Across the street from our neighborhood, there is an apartment complex with a pool. You can just walk right in, so we went swimming there yesterday. Adeline is a little fish and love the water. Below this post, I posted a little video of her swimming under the water. Check it out.


If any of you are ever visiting here, or driving through, you are welcome to stay with us. Okay....back to the tornado alert....

swimming

We took Adeline swimming yesterday, which she loves. The water was FREEZING cold, so we were not able to enjoy it for very long.

Wednesday, May 21, 2008

Finally in Ohio

A lot has happened since the last time I wrote. We made our big move to Ohio and are finally here. I didn't think I would be sad to leave Santa Maria, but I was. It's weird to live in a place for 3 years, meet new friends and then leave and have to start all over.
Before we left, we were able to get a couple more games of Settlers of Catan in with our friends Chad and Carley. I don't think I have ever been so obsessed with a game. I have become pretty good friends with Carley and am going to miss her!

We also got a visit from Amanda right before we moved. It was so nice to see her and for her to be able to spend a little more time with Adeline. I really wanted to go to the Beach before we left, so that is what we did. Surprisingly, Adeline loved her feet in the sand and enjoyed it. I was so lucky that I only lived 3 1/2 hours from Sierra and Amanda and could go and visit them on the weekend if I wanted to. It is going to be hard to live so far away from family!


On our way to Ohio, we stopped in Utah for a couple of days so we could see our families. It worked out perfectly too because we were able to go to Roni's surprise birthday party. We had to drive both of our cars to Ohio, so we picked up Abe's dad in Utah to help us drive. It was so nice having an extra driver so I could tend to Adeline!

Our next stop was in Cheyenne, Wy where we stayed at Seth and Sarah's house and got to see their new little baby boy. They live on base and had such a nice house. I loved our visit there, but Sarah probably was happy to get rid of us. By this time, we had already been traveling for 3 full days in the car and Adeline's schedule was so screwed up. She about cried every hour through the night.....fun, fun.

Here is a "good" moment of Adeline in her car seat. I sat in the back with her a lot so I could try to entertain her and get her to stop screaming.

Our next stop was Omaha, Nebraska and then Nauvoo, IL. We went to the temple in Nauvoo, IL and it was so pretty. There were so many tulips that were in full bloom and the weather was just right. We sat on the grass and played with Adeline a little bit. She had a "blow out" through her pants on the grass in front of the temple, so we had to get her naked and change her diaper right there. I would post the picture that we took of her, but it would probably be inappropriate. It was pretty hilarious.


A couple days after we arrived to Ohio, my mom flew out to help us paint. We honestly painted about every day that she was here until midnight. Our house looks so much better now and I love the colors we painted. They are a lot better than red, forest green, lime green, yellow, orange/brown, etc. Abe has almost finished our new flooring too, so our house is looking different. I will have to post pictures when we are done. The week my mom was here went so fast and I already miss her!


We are pretty much settled in and Adeline is a lot happier now. Since we arrived here two weeks ago, she has learned to wave, clap and taken her first steps. She is growing up so fast!

As far as me making our blog private, I am still deciding. Family members and friends don't all have google accounts, so it may be more of a headache. I will let you know if I do!

Saturday, May 3, 2008

GOING PRIVATE!!

I have been meaning to go private for awhile, but keep putting it off. I would love all of you who read this blog to have access, so please email me at nicolesbarker@gmail.com (or leave a comment with your email) so I can invite you. If my husband or I know you in ANY way (even if you are a friend of a friend), we would be happy to invite you.

Thursday, April 24, 2008

Frosting....sorry!

So I have had some requests for the frosting I used on the cookies. I totally forgot to mention it on my last post. The frosting recipe I use is just pretty basic. I use it for cakes too. Here it is!

Cake/ Cookie Frosting
*
Powdered sugar
butter/margarine
vanilla
milk

-pour powdered sugar into bowl. Add some butter. Add approximately 1 tsp. vanilla. slowly add some milk while mixing with an electric mixer. Do not add too much milk or frosting will be runny.

Wednesday, April 23, 2008

This Week....

It's been awhile since my last post and life has been a little bit crazy. First of all, Adeline has been pretty sick. She had a fever for four days, so I finally took her to the doctor just to find out she had a horrible ear infection. She also has a runny nose and a cough. Not to make it worse or anything, but 2 days ago her entire body had a horrible rash all over it that just kept getting worse. Yesterday we went to the doctor again, and found out that she is allergic to the antibiotic they put her on. Her rash is gone now, she is just still miserable....oh, I also think she is teething.....fun huh?! This week we have also been trying to prepare for our move since the packers are coming this Monday. I can't believe it is almost here!! Today, tomorrow and Friday I told my friend I would watch her little 23 month old since her day care provider is not available this week. Today was my first day taking care of her. She was actually pretty good and we had a good time, BUT Let's just say that I would NOT recommend having two kids right on top of each other. It is HARD!!

OK, here are a couple of pictures from this week.


Tonight I made Sugar Cookies. Tomorrow night is Abe's last MBA class since we are moving, so he suggested I make cookies. Remember when our mom's would make us cupcakes or something to take to class for our birthdays?? It seems kind of like that:) Haha. The recipe is actually my Great-Grandma's recipe and they are GOOD. My mom called me today and told me she is not doing too well and may not make it....so another reason to make them.

Here is the recipe for all you Bakers:
GREAT GRANDMA ANDERSON'S SUGAR COOKIES
3 C. Flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
2 sticks butter
1 C. sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla

Mix the first 3 ingredients in a bowl. Cut the butter in as for pie crust. Mix the last 3 ingredients in a bowl and then add to the flour/butter mixture. Roll out and cut. Bake 350 degrees for 10 minutes. Let cool then frost with icing. ENJOY!

Saturday, April 12, 2008

Palm Springs

This past week I decided to drive to Palm Springs and spend time with my Grandma Smart, my parents, my sister Sierra and my niece Johanna. It was so fun seeing the babies play together. Jojo was always giving Adeline hugs and they even held hands when they were in their car seats. The trip would have been completed if Amanda was there. She had to work though and we missed her! We spent most of the time playing the game, Settlers of Catan....the best game ever. I would say that we are all a little obsessed.

When we arrived, Great-Grandma Smart picked Adeline a flower and she was very excited!

I bought this little floating thing for Addie so she could float in the water. Kind of a cool contraption. The only problem was that she would get so excited that she would submerge her face under the water. When she gets a little bigger it may be a bit more useful.



Here is cute little Jojo walking on the cover of the pool

Sierra and Jojo

Grandpa and Nana Smart with both the babies. Sooo Happy. I guess they are already having withdrawals.

Jojo had this little car and Adeline LOVED it. We pushed them around the condo in the car with Adeline sitting on Jojo's lap. It was so cute:)

I didn't take this picture in Palm Springs, but I just love it so much and had to post it.