Running in Circles

We spent a fun filled morning at the Dallas Arboretum with friends and their mamas on Tuesday. 

The weather has definitely changed and we are welcoming fall into town. I was pretty much over getting my pregnant self in a bathing suit all summer, so fall is welcomed with arms wide open in my book :)

The Arboretum is a beautiful and large outdoor garden (think Thanksgiving Point) just a few miles from our apartment. We were excited to go check out the pumpkin patch and look into getting an annual pass. 

Hazel loved exploring the hundreds and hundreds of pumpkins and chasing her little friends around. That lucky girl also got to go right into a petting zoo and got her face painted like a puppy dog! (I tried hard to steer her away from the face painting because nap time was just around the corner but she was too eager and I loved that she was being so brave, so we went for it!)

We really can't wait to go back again and take some pumpkins home! We are so glad for our fun friends and that they like to get out of the house and do new things so often too!

Our apartment complex is called, The Lakes at the Village. It has two big lakes in the middle with a mile walking trail around and lots of animals and birds. So far we have been on a walk everyday and Hazel loves seeing all the squirrels, ducks, geese, turtles, and dogs being walked around. 

*thanks to Sami Wright she mimics the squirrels eating nuts every time she sees one- it's pretty cute!*

Brice and Hazel also enjoyed a quick swim one night. It took her a few minutes to warm up to the idea of jumping into Brice's arms but then she did and wouldn't stop. 

Hazel and I spent a few hours exploring the Museum of Ancient Life and enjoying a yummy lunch at Thanksgiving Point yesterday. It sure is nice to have a sister on maternity leave who wants to meet up all the time! 

Hazel seemed to really like walking around and touching things and seeing animals that she recognized.

We booked our tickets!

We are so excited to go to Costa Rica for a week this summer with my whole family. 

We weren't sure if we'd be able to go with the cost of moving and Brice's start date but we got an AWESOME deal on flights- and when I say awesome- like seriously amazing!

 Our flights are cheaper than flying from Utah to California. 

We're flying to Costa Rica for under 500 bucks!

Thanks to Brices' skymiles and TWO trips to India.

So 99 more days! 

Our sweet babe hardly feels like a little baby anymore.I cannot believe  that she will be a one-year old next month! The birthday party planning has officially begun! 

11 months tid-bits

- Spent time on a boat for the first time with a long weekend at Lake Powell. It looks like she got my skin rather than Brice's- that baby can tan like nobody's business.

-She absolutely loves swimming, splashing and taking baths. We take a bath every night and it lasts for at least 30-40 minutes. 

- Goes to bed at 8:00 pm every night but is starting to wake up earlier- like 6:45 in the early morning!

-Loves to cuddle with dad in bed and play "I'm gonna get you"

-Walks all day, all by herself, but hates wearing shoes. 

-Goes up and down stairs before I've even noticed she's out of the room.

- Loves sitting in her high chair to eat- pasta, fruit, veggies except for zucchini. Her favorite food has got to be yogurt- she eats a 6 oz carton almost everyday.

-Hazel cut her 6th tooth jsut barely this last weekend. She now has 4 on top and 2 on the bottom

- Staring to sign "more" and "all done"

- Loves to read books and carry around "Mr. Fox." -We'll introduce Mr. Fox to you soon, don't worry :)

- Has really liked dogs from afar but has been terrified this week of the Hunter's dog, Larry.

- likes to make a mess of my hair products and toiletries.

-Hazel says "ba-bye" and waves to everyone we pass

-Can day mama and dada and papa and baba and she usually does a lot of babbling in a cute little whisper.

-Has her mom and dad wrapped around her finger :) We love her so much!

-Still wearing 6-12 month clothes with a lot of room to spare and in size 3 diapers.

- nurses about 4 times a day still but we're officially working on cutting down nursings.

-Loves munching on cheerios, blueberries, and goldfish.

We spent most of the day today hiking Mt. Timpanogos. We started at the trail head at Aspen Grove and made it up to the "Saddle" and back down in 7 hours (10 miles round trip)! 

We were so close to the summit but we had a time restraint to get home, Brice had three fresh blisters, and I think we were all satisfied with the burn in our legs! 

Maybe we'll do it again but I don't think Brice or I will volunteer anytime soon ;)

Thank you Kris for adventuring with us and a big thank you to Melanie for watching Hazel for the whole day! 

 Sunday evenings couples from our ward gather on our apartment front lawn and we chat, play games, eat treats for a few hours. It is so fun and enjoyable to be out during the summer evenings. This last Sunday Hazel played a lot with Aiden and learned how to go down the slide...kinda! 

She is getting more and more adventurous and I cannot believe she's almost a year!

I cannot believe Hazel is almost a year old already! This last month has far been the most adventurous and exciting. 

-Weight: 17 pounds (23%)

-Height: 28 inches (43%)
-Head Circumference: 17 inches (21%)

- Hazel is walking! I don't mean a few steps here and there, but full on walking. we need to get her some new shoes and then she'll be walking on the concrete outside too.

- Currently cutting her 4th tooth- the 2nd one on top

- Still goes to bed at 8:00 and wakes up between 6:40- 7:40.

-Smells like sunscreen every day because we swim a lot! She loves the pool

- Started waving goodbye and saying ba- ba at the same time.

- Hazel loves to play with older kids.

-Wearing mostly 6-12 month clothing but 3-6 month pants fit better still.

- It's getting easier to change her diaper again- for a while there she was so squirmy and it was a difficult task.

-Says "da-da", ma-ma", "pop-pop" "ba-ba", and loves to squeal and giggle

- loves to explore and open cupboards and pick grass/flowers when we're outside.

-She's starting to like the stroller again
- She loves to take all the cards out of Brice's wallet and fan them around.
- this girl loves music, being sung to,and dancing to the beat. She does a really good head-bangin.  

-Bring a smile to our faces everyday!!