Time for a Run...

Ellie and I went back on the road this weekend. Instead of just going to St. George we went all the way to Orem as I ran a marathon this past weekend. However, I am getting ahead of myself. So let's start back on Tuesday afternoon...

On Tuesday afternoon I picked up Ellie from school around 2:00, so we would be able to pick up my parents from the airport around 5:30. That left us with three hours to get to the airport. Granted traffic in L.A. is horrific, but I was pretty sure it wasn't going to take us 3 hours to drive 30 miles. That could have been the case, but thankfully it wasn't. On the drive towards the airport, Ellie asked me if we were going to go through a tunnel. For some reason she loves them, and since we were driving on the 110, I thought we were. However, I had forgotten that the 110 tunnel is only for northbound traffic. That was perfectly okay, since we had lots of time. So we got off the freeway, drove around for awhile trying to get on the northbound side of the freeway. We finally did, where we drove through the tunnels, got off the freeway, and headed towards the freeway.

Once our tunnel adventure was complete we drove to Santa Monica where we walked on the beach for awhile, before I decided I wanted some food before picking up Mom and Dad. I remembered there was a Trinidadian restaurant not too far from the airport, so we headed over there. Two notable things happened. First, Ellie ate her first chicken roti, and second, she fell off a barstool after I told her to stop climbing on them. Ellie loved the first thing, but she wasn't so happy after the second one.

After eating, we drove to the airport, picked up my parents and then went to the hotel, where we would be spending the night. Ellie and Mom spent most of the evening playing together. Most of this time was spent playing hide and go seek, while Dad and I watched the Lakers-Celtics game. We went to dinner at a great Jewish deli in Santa Monica, before going back to the hotel and going to bed.

The next morning we woke-up really early, and took Mom and Dad to the airport. Then Ellie and I went to the Fenns, where I went for a short run, before we headed on the road to Utah. We got to St. George around 4:00 and Ellie and I were starving. Ellie had fallen asleep right before we got to Nevada, and I let her sleep. She woke-up just as we were on the other side of Vegas. This meant there was nothing to eat until we got to St. George. When we got to Amy's house, we ate lunch, packed stuff for the rest of the trip, showed Ellie her room, and I made some dinner for the trip. Then we went and picked up Amy and Anna and got in the car and drove to Orem.

The weather in Orem wasn't the best this weekend, but at least it wasn't hot. Ellie spent most of the weekend playing with my mom and trying to help with Anna. She learned this song at school that she loves to sing to Anna when Anna cries. I am hoping to record it one of these days. On Saturday I ran my marathon, and Ellie did the 5K with Mom, Amy and Anna. This meant she and Anna sat in the stroller while Mom and Amy took turns pushing them. I finished about 15 minutes before they did, and it was fun to see Ellie's face light up when she saw me at the finish line. She loved the race, and even told Kim afterwards that she won the race.

After the race, we all took it easy, and eventually went up to the duck pond at BYU to get some pictures taken. Ellie choose out the shirt that she wore and the dress that Anna wore, so Amy and I decided we should wear yellow as well. They turned out really well, and I can't believe how grown up Ellie looks in some of these pictures. Where have the days gone?

Sunday was a very long day. We woke-up and drove down to St. George with Mom and Dad. Amy wasn't coming all of the way to SoCal with us, so we dropped her off at her parents house. Then the 4 of us got back on the road and drove the rest of the way to Tom and Lois's house. This wouldn't have been that bad, except we had to drive from Vegas to L.A. on a Sunday afternoon and that is never fun. This meant it took about an hour longer, but Ellie was content as my mom rode with us from St. George to Brea.

So there you have it. A week with a lot of driving, but a lot of fun. Ellie and I are very excited for the summer, because we will get to see a lot of my parents, and even Ben is coming down one time to visit. It should be fun...

Sunday

A Week with Ellie in SoCal...

So I get Ellie for a week this time!!! I picked her first thing Friday morning from Kim's. We then swung down to Buena Park, by way of Brea. We got some breakfast at Starbucks, before going over to Tom and Lois's. It was "payday" since my unemployment check was in the mail. Then we went to the Fenns and Ellie played with Stan and Debbie's granddaughter Brinley. They played for most of the morning, while waiting for the rest of the grandkids to show up so we could spend the afternoon at Knott's Berry Farm.

Knott's Berry Farm was a lot of fun. There were 6 kids and 5 adults. Despite the fact it was the Friday before Memorial Day, the lines weren't too bad, and more importantly the kids had a lot of fun. It didn't help that Debbie took us all out for ice cream afternoon. The only downside to the afternoon was that none of the kids took a nap, so by the time we got home they were all little cranky. This made the actual bedtime a little difficult, but we all survived.

Saturday morning was more of the same. Ellie and Brinley playing until Brinley's parents picked her and her little brother Dylan up. Most of the time was spent playing in the sprinklers outside. Since I didn't have a swimming suit for Ellie, this meant she got to run around outside in her underwear for awhile. She seemed to enjoy that, but I hope I haven't created a new habit for her.

Once Brinley and Dylan went home with their parents, I decided to torture Ellie and take her running with me...

I have done that before and haven't ever considered it torture per se, but today I took her on a 20-mile run. How smart is that? It actually worked out pretty well. We took a ton of snacks, I rented Aladdin off iTunes and put it on my phone and away we went. About 5 miles in, Ellie was out and taking her daily nap. We ran south from Sunrise Beach 10 miles down the Huntington Beach Bike Path. The first 10 were pretty easy. I don't think I was running particularly hard, and I was enjoying the nice ocean breeze. However, when I turned around for the return trip, I learned how strong the breeze was and that it was now a headwind. Ugh...  It was hard running in wind like that, especially while pushing a jogging stroller. If you don't count the several stops, it took about 20 minutes longer to run back, then it did to run down. However, we survived, I feel pretty good, and I got my last long run in before running the Utah Valley Marathon in 2 weeks. Surprisingly this picture is at the end of our run, and we both look pretty good. Once that adventure was over, we drove back to Stan and Debbie's, ate dinner, watched the Lakers finish off the Suns, and then it was time to get Ellie ready for bed.

On Sunday we woke-up early, went to church, and then drove back down to Buena Park, where we spent a relaxing afternoon together. In otherwords just a typical Sunday for us. Monday was Memorial Day and we spent the afternoon with the Fenns. They were gracious enough to invite us to their family get together for the day. This involved going to the swimming pool where Drew and Kara live. We had a blast, although Ellie wasn't in the mood for going swimming. Instead she ran around the pool playing with Brinley and Alyssa. We had to leave early, because my cousin Jessi was in town to leave for a trip to Engalnd from LAX. She and her roommate needed a ride to the airport. So we picked them up in Brea and drove them to the airport.

Tuesday was pretty easy going as well. Ellie and I woke-up and I had to have the DVD player babysit her for a little while as I finished the latest draft of my thesis proposal (I will be so glad when that thing is completed). After that we took a nap, and then we went miniature golfing and had dinner at CPK.

The last day of our latest time together was spent at the park. Ellie played on the playground and chasing the pigeons. I am not sure what she enjoyed more... the pigeons or the playground. Whatever it was, she had a lot of fun. After that we went back to the house, took a nap and went over to Knott's Berry Farm. The lines were pretty small, and so Ellie got to ride a bunch of rides without ever having to wait in line. The night was finished by dinner at Chipotle. It is say safe to say my daughter loves beans and rice.

I won't get Ellie again until Tuesday afternoon. However, I will have her for nearly a week. We are picking up my parents at LAX on Tuesday night, taking them to the airport to fly home Wednesday morning. Then we will jump in the car and drive up to Provo that day, stopping in St. George to pick-up Amy and Anna. We are spending a few days in Provo, since I am running the Utah Valley Marathon. So until then...

Spring Program 2010...

This weekend started a little differently for Ellie and I. Her Spring Program was on Friday, which meant we didn't head up to Utah until Friday morning. Ellie's program was entertaining as it always is. This time Ellie had a speaking part, and she was very excited about the whole thing. However, when it came time for her to speak, she pulled the microphone off the stand and tried to get it back into the stand, and so she never said her line. However, she was really cute and had a fun time singing and dancing.

Once the program was over, we headed to St. George. We stopped in Primm to grab some lunch at Taco Bell. While we were waiting for order to be made, Ellie started running around with a little girl who was about her age. When it was time to go Ellie gave this little girl a big hug. It was adorable.  We finally made it St. George only to find out that Amy wasn't home. What's up with that? So Ellie called Amy and told her to come home and to bring Anna. Amy obliged, and we spent the evening watching Ghost Whisperer and eating pizza.

Saturday was spent going grocery shopping and just relaxing. Over the course of the last couple of weeks, we have been trying to put Ellie's room in St. George together. So Ellie and I painted some picture frames pink. Eventually we are going to have a ton of pictures hanging up on her wall. These pictures are going to be of all of Ellie's family and some of her artwork. It sounds like a great idea in my mind. We shall see if we can pull it off. Later that afternoon, we all went for a walk and one of the ladies that Amy works with saw us out for a walk, so she cornered us, so she could meet Anna for the first time. Once the walk was over, Ellie helped me make chicken stroganoff for dinner.

On Sunday we all went to the church together. It was Anna's first time and she made it through all 3 hours, so that was a win. Ellie was fantastic at church and was very excited to see her primary teacher. As soon as Sacrament was over, Ellie ran over to her and said hi. I think it caught her teacher off-guard. We all came home and took a nice Sunday afternoon nap, and then Ellie and I made white chicken chili for dinner. I love that stuff. :)

Monday was probably the most fun day for everyone. Amy's sister Donna graduates from high school later this week, so all of Amy's family except her oldest sister were in town. That afternoon we roasted hot dogs and we all hung out. Ellie had fun playing with Amy's nephew Colby. We got home really late and Ellie just went down for bed. 

We all slept in on Tuesday. Then I made some breakfast for Ellie, and then Ellie and I took care of Anna, while Amy got some rest, since we were leaving later in the afternoon. The only other thing we did that day was make some lunch, before heading back to SoCal. The drive was uneventful, but we did make two stops. First we stopped at the outlet malls in Primm to get Ellie some new clothes. Then we stopped in Saugus to drop-off some soda to my friend Kristin. I think she tears of gratitude in her eyes, when she saw me with caffeine-free, Diet Dr. Pepper. :) Then it was off to Pasadena to drop Ellie off at her Kim's. Just another weekend for Ellie and Dad!

Freezing to Death at the Beach

This weekend was a pretty relaxed weekend. Ellie and I just hung out in SoCal for the weekend. I needed to get caught up on school work, and get ready for finals. Kim had been in San Diego during the day on Friday, so she dropped off Ellie with me on her way home. We weren't feeling too energetic, so we just hung out at Stan and Debbie's and watched some television and made some dinner.

Saturday was pretty much more of the same. The only difference was we decided to go to the beach. It was pretty warm in Buena Park when we decided to go. However the beach was a completely different story. It was really breezy and quite cold. So we didn't stay too long, but Ellie had a lot of fun playing in the sand and running around.

We came home, did a little bit of shopping and we ended the day by getting ice cream. Normally this wouldn't be that big of a deal, but since Ellie had already been bathed it pretty much was. Chocolate ice cream and a freshly bathed child don't go together very well, as those of you that have seen my facebook page can attest. However, we survived and all is well.

Sunday was a pretty typical Sunday. We woke-up really early and drove the 60 miles to Saugus to go to church. Church was great, as it always is. Ellie had fun in primary and I had fun as well. Once church was over we drove home and Stan and Debbie had just gotten back from their 2-week vacation to Utah and Idaho. We helped them get stuff out of the car, before everyone took a nap. After we woke-up, Ellie and I went for a little walk, before hanging out for the rest of the night and then going to bed.

Surprise... we are back in St. George

Another weekend, another trip to St. George. This trip started off pretty close as the last trip. I had a basketball game Thursday night, but since I didn't have anyone to watch Ellie, she stayed with Kim. Immediately after the game I drove to Pasadena, picked up Ellie and it was off to St. George. However this time we didn't stop in Vegas, because we were on the road about 45 minutes earlier. This meant we ended up in St George around 3:30 in the morning.

Ellie woke up at some insane time, and I took her downstairs and turned on Toy Story. Don't you love my parenting technique? However, both of us fell asleep before the movie ended. Once we woke up and got ready for the day, Amy and Anna were both going back to sleep. So Ellie and I went out and did some shopping for Mothers Day.

After doing some grocery shopping on Saturday, Ellie and I made some white-chocolate chip, macadamia nut cookies. Apparently this was the weekend of cooking, as we made pot roast and German Chocolate cake on Sunday.

On Sunday, Ellie and I slept in, but I still wanted to go to church. I forgot that the ward Amy is in meets at 11, and so I was stressing to get to the 9:00 ward. We showed up a little late, but we still were there for part of the first hour. Once we got there, I realized I didn't recognize a single person there. It was then when I realized that Amy's ward meets at 11:00. Oh well, that would just mean we would be home from church by noon.

Once church ended, we went home, ate some lunch and hung out for awhile. Later in the afternoon we went over to Amy's parents' house and hung out for awhile. Her entire family that lives in St. George was there, so that was nice. It was fun to see them all fuss over Anna, who just wanted to sleep. When we got home Ellie and I cleaned up and packed for the return trip. Then I helped Amy put Anna down for the night, before I went to sleep since I had to wake up at 4:30 in the morning to drive back to SoCal.

Jessica Elizabeth gets to meet Anna Elizabeth

Well this weekend, will be one of the most memorable weekends of my life, and potentially for Ellie as well. I say potentially for Ellie, because I don't know how much of it she will remember since she is only 3-1/2. I know I don't remember anything from when I was 3-1/2, although I do remember my 4th birthday. Anyway...

The weekend started on Thursday evening for us. I picked up Ellie from school and we drove into Valencia because I had a rec league basketball game that night. However it wasn't until 8:45, so we had some time to kill. How do Ellie and Dad kill time? We go to McDonalds where Ellie can play on the playground, while Dad can do homework. This guarantees that everyone has a fun time.

After we were done with McDonald's, we went to one of the local high schools and I had my game. We won by 6 or 7 and I lit up the opposing team for 20 points and 10+ boards. I love it when a decision is made to put a 5'9" guy on me. I pretty much dominate. :)

Once the game was over, we hopped into the car and took off for Vegas. Normally we would go all the way to St. George, but we didn't get out of Valencia until 10:00, and I didn't feel like driving until 3:00 in the morning.  So we got into Vegas around 1:30 and spent the night at the Excalibur, which Ellie enjoyed because she got to stay in a castle. It took some time, but I was finally able to get Ellie back to sleep and we got about 6 hours of sleep.

The next morning, we woke up around 8:00, got Krispy Kreme doughnuts for breakfast, and then drove the 90 minutes to St. George, where we had lunch with Amy. After that it was time for me and Ellie. We woke-up after Amy got home from work. This will be her last day of work for awhile, did some grocery shopping, bought Ellie a Dora bed, and then hung out at home for the rest of the evening, before going to bed.

Saturday was pretty chill. I woke-up really early and ran 18 miles. When I got back to the house, Ellie and I made waffles, and then I took Ellie over to Jessi's house, so she could hang out with Boyd and Jessi. I love that Jessi and Boyd live in St. George, because Ellie gets to see them, but I also dislike it a little bit, because that cuts into the small amount of time I get with Ellie these days. However, Ellie loves Boyd and Jessi, and that is what really counts. Once we got Ellie, we went to the inspirational portion of the weekend. Amy, Ellie and I all went to see the Ironman race being held in St. George. Those guys are freaking insane. Seriously, why would anyone want to swim 2.4 miles, bike 112 miles and run 26.2 all in one day. I could do it today, if I wanted to. However, I am too big of a wuss. Although everytime I see it, I feel the urge to try one day. :) Anyway, after hanging around there for about an hour, it was back to the house to make tacos for dinner. Then I put Ellie down for bed, Amy and I watched a movie, and that was that.

Which leads us to the memorable portion of the weekend. Amy woke me up around 5:00 to say she was having contractions. What kind of contractions? For those of you that don't know, Amy is pregnant, or maybe I should say she was pregnant. Amy and I have known each other since February of last year. However we didn't meet until the last weekend of August. What neither of us knew at the time that we met, but have since learned, is that she was pregnant. Obviously we have had some interesting conversations when our friends and family found out, but the great thing is how supportive everyone has been. Anyway, long story short, Amy gave birth to a beautiful little girl named Anna Elizabeth Needham.

I would go into my more detail, but this blog is about the adventures that Ellie and I have together. So I will keep it about that. If you want to know more details, just ask. So on that note, one of the great things about today is that Ellie got to hold a newborn. Of course, she doesn't understand all of that, and kept telling the nurses that she was holding her sister. It was precious, especially when she sang to Anna. She also told everyone what she was to teach Anna (i.e. how to cross the street, how not to kick Ellie, how to draw, etc.).  I am so glad she was with me this weekend. As a result of this, I am skipping school Monday, and will bring Amy and Anna home, before Ellie and I take off at an insanely early hour on Tuesday.

So there you go... a very memorable weekend for the Dad and Ellie. I am not quite sure how we will top that, but I am sure we will.

Going to the Zoo and Hangin' with Kaylee

Ellie and I hung out in SoCal this week. I have a ton going on with school, so Kim watched her through Saturday morning. We met at Noah's and ate a little bit of breakfast. Actually Kim and Ellie at breakfast. I was still feeling the effects of my 16-mile run from earlier in the morning, and food didn't sound good. Instead I watch Ellie run around the little patio area, and learned that Ellie will tell people that big dogs aren't, in fact, dog, but they are bears. People aren't really sure what to say when a little girl tells them that their dog is a bear.

After breakfast, Ellie and I headed off to the zoo. She really wanted to see a giraffe, so we went and saw the giraffe. For some reason only 1 of them was out when we were there, but one is better than none. So saw most of the animals, and Ellie played at the playground for awhile, before we headed up to Santa Clarita. We got up there and were going to go to Subway for lunch, but Ellie had just fallen asleep, so we hung out in the car for about an hour while she slept. Once she woke-up we went to Subway and had lunch.

Next stop for the day was the playground. Ellie had an absolute blast. I still can't believe how social she is. Almost immediately she went up to this little girl who was digging a hole in the sand and Ellie asked if she could help. The little girl said yes and they spent the next 30 minutes digging a hole in the sand. How fun is that? She also ended up playing with a little boy for awhile. They kicked a soccer ball back and forth as well as chased each other all over the place. It was fun to see her have so much fun.

Finally, we went over to my friends Mike and Jaimee's house. They were nice enough to let us crash there for Saturday and Sunday night. Ellie was excited all day to go there, because she wanted to play with their 2-year old daughter Kaylee. I think Ellie thinks she is Kaylee's oldest daughter. That night Mike and Jaimee invited some of other friends over and we had a game night, with 8 kids in the house (Ellie and Kaylee and 6 others). Once that was over, it was bedtime.

Sunday was pretty typical. We woke-up, got ready for church, came home and took a nap. The cutest thing of the weekend was after Sacrament Meeting was over. As soon as it was over, Ellie grabbed Kaylee's hand and walked her to the nursery. Ellie dropped her off, and told Kaylee she would pick her up after nursery was over. Then Ellie proceeded to go to her class. Once church was over, Ellie was anxious to go pick up Kaylee from the nursery, which we did. After that was accomplished, we went back to Mike and Jaimee's for a nap.

Once the nap was over, Ellie, Tyler (Kaylee's older brother) and I made cookies, before heading over to Jaimee's parents house for dinner. Dinner was great. This was the 2nd time Ellie and I have had Sunday dinner with their family. It was a lot of fun. Jaimee's parents are great, as her youngest brother and his wife. Ellie and Kaylee had a blast playing with Kaylee's cousin on the trampoline.

Once dinner was over, it was back to Mike and Jaimee's where we got all the kids ready for bed. Before bed, they all watched an episode of Curious George. Then Ellie fought me for a few minutes, but she finally went to bed, and that was our weekend. All in all it was a great weekend. However, before I forget there are two other things I want to say.

First... last week at church Ellie decided to sing the hymns. This is great, but it was hilarious. Obviously, she doesn't know the words to the hymns, nor does she know the tune. However, that didn't stop her. She was singing at the top of her lungs, and she was singing about all sorts of things. It was so funny, that Amy had to step outside into the foyer because she was laughing so much.

Second, and perhaps more importantly to me. I am so thankful for my friends. I have been extremely blessed to be surrounded by such great people. The last 18 months have been difficult to say the least. Having such a great family and Amy has helped so much. However, my friends are nearly as important in where I am at. They have been such a support, and they have helped so much. So to Mike, Jaimee, Ryan, Megan, Royce, Kristen and Tammy and everyone else... thanks. I don't know where I would be without you guys...