Mr & Mrs Smith

Don't get ahead of yourself, it wasn't a relaxation vacation, but it WAS a distraction vacation. I got to see the kids experience new things & people and that's what my life is about these days. I also got to rest from the balance of working from home and taming two kids on my own. And the biggest thing for me I realized is getting my mind off the job hunt.  Mr Smith "enjoyed" scout camp & interviews while we were gone. But at least he did get a break from the whines & demands of tiny tyrants. He took care of the house while we were away as well. It was spotless coming home! & the todo list was accomplished. You'd think we were ready to move yesterday. Coming home just didn't feel like home. I've been grateful for this apartment (even if I didn't always say so), but 2+ years is enough. Mr Smith missed us terribly, but I think he forgot too about some of the things to-be missed,  tears of laughter .  But lets start in the be...

The Smith family does a reunion every couple of years and this was our first! It was also our first "vacation", long drive with both the kiddos and my first time in Idaho.  Lexi has always been great in the car, but we were curious about Mr Dallin who was basically done with the car when not sleeping. He did okay though and we tried keeping him happy with tastes of applesauce. Probably would have been fine if I could have sat in the back with him. It was a 5.5 hour trip and we decided just to get a hotel to make things easier.  We drove up Friday afternoon and made it for the ice-cream social. Saturday they had a breakfast gathering in the AM, a pool party during the day and park play time in the evening. We made it late for everything lol. But Dallin got passed around and Lexi enjoyed whatever and whoever came her way. I still don't have all 7 siblings and their kids sorted out, but everyone is pretty awesome. We went to church with a cousin & stopped by to see ...

 I put off packing until the last minute because it's so daunting these days. I just didn't want to accept reality, but nonetheless we did it, traveled the distance and came back safety. Thank goodness.    I drove down listening to "The Wedding" which surprisingly made the trip go by pretty quick. Lexi fell asleep 5 minutes into the car (around 6) but we stopped around 730 when she woke and was cranky enough to get gas and let her stretch her legs. She slept off and on until around 10 when she finally crashed. We arrived around 1AM. Happily uneventful. I'll write some thoughts from the ride (it was a long ride): My marriage and family class at BYU taught me that there are three main things that couples fight over and, therefore, divorce over. And the divorce rate is at least 50%!  Finance. Sex. In-laws.  For some, maybe it is all or none, but as much as I thought our first year of marriage was a piece of cake (when they tell you it wo...

Mr Smith: "Are you getting our feet in the pictures?" Jenny: "No" *me looking up at Mr Smith* Me: "Are you standing on a rock so that you're taller than me?" Mr Smith: "Yes"     aren't I the cutest? So we went up to....the Linville area (about an hour NW of Hickory) & did a little hiking & mountain cabin staying. We wanted to catch the wrap up of the fall leaves & get away from the typical city life for a little bit. Woe is me for forgetting I get motion sickness traveling through the "mountains." But Jenny was coming to visit us (Eric's cousin from DC) & Eric's boss has a cabin that he said we were welcome to enjoy so double the incentives to smell some fresh air. It was great weather. Although I still don't have THE photo I want yet, we did take family photos thanks to Jenny. It's challenging to get the husband to tolerate a few snaps, a baby to cooperate & for my...