Goodbye, Maxima

I am sad to announce that our Maxima sold today. We were only able to ship one car to Germany, so we sent our smaller, newer Honda Civic. I am a person who gets really attached to things that I love, so I feel the need pay tribute as we say farewell to an old friend.

Aaron bought this car just before he left BYU for Maryland. He had it while we were dating and engaged. It was the car that was decorated at our wedding reception, and that we took on our honeymoon. It was the car we brought our baby home from the hospital in. It was the car we took on all our road trips. We were planning to keep it until it's death before this move came up.

I LOVED this car, and was so sad to see it go (yes, I just about cried when the buyers drove it away). It was so comfortable to ride in, even in the back seat. It was amazingly spacious in the cab and in the trunk. It was a 6-cylinder, and Aaron loved that pick-up-and-go capability.

My consolation is that it went to a good home. The buyer was a kid, just recently returned from a mission and planning to start college. He and his dad were really nice people, and I know they will love the car.

Goodbye, Maxima. Now I just have to talk Aaron into buying me another Maxima when we return to the states.

(No, I am not so sentimental that I took all these inside photos. They were for our Craigs List posting. But honestly, I'm glad to have them. :) )

Another Birthday

I like birthdays, but I hate turning another year older. My uncle told me once that as you get older, time goes by faster because each year is a smaller percentage of your total life. For me it's been true, and I don't like it. And now I'm 26.

Aaron surprised me with this flower delivery on my birthday. He always picks the nicest colors and the nicest arrangements, and in great variety. I love the flowers he chooses, and they are extra special when he is away.

The best part of my birthday was when Jack and I stopped at Baskin Robbins after his doctor's appointment. I had a coupon for a free cone. I sat Jack on a chair next to me, and we ate the ice cream together, each taking a lick. That time was so precious. I love being a mom. Jack was and is my best birthday present.

Jack's First Birthday

Jack turned 1 today!

We wish Aaron could have been here to celebrate. Aaron got to talk to the birthday boy on the phone, and when Jack heard Aaron's voice, he said, "Da! Da!" I never knew if he knew what that meant, but now I think he does. It nearly brought tears to my eyes seeing this little boy holding the phone to his ear and the look on his face as he listened to his dad's voice. I wished I could have captured it on camera. We miss you, Aaron!

Last month in New York we had a combined early birthday party for Jack and Grandma Kay. Thanks everyone for making a big deal of it, and thanks Uncle Aleks for the great photos. This was Jack's first experience eating refined sugar!

I wanted to make a photo video of Jack's first year because I loved the one Jessica made of the twins. However, I don't have my computer here which means I have none of my old photos. And then I realized, this entire blog represents Jack's first year, as I started it when he was born. This blog is Jack's life.

Our beautiful boy, age 1 day.

A Peek Across the Pond

Here is our car with its new German tags!

(I still can't believe that car went by boat across the ocean. Our furniture and everything else is close behind.)

Great-Grandma & Grandpa White Come to Visit

Idaho Falls Zoo

This is Jack's Great-Grandma Higgs, and she LOVES the zoo.

These are my grandparents and their 1981 Datsun. They bought it new, and it is still in perfect condition. We will always have memories of Grandpa and Grandma and the little orange car. There may be a struggle when they die -- we all want it!

Fishing Day Trip

(L) Aaron, me, my brother Jaxon; (R) Aaron and my dad

Aaron fishing

4-Wheeling Day Trip

(L) Discussing politics; (R) me with Jack and my niece, Elsie

At the top of the mountain: (L-R) Aaron, me, Brittany (Jaxon's fiance), Jaxon (my brother), Jaimie (my sister), Brian (Jaimie's husband)

(L) an old miner's cabin; (R) on the 4-wheeler with Aaron driving

God Bless America

This long transition and being homeless has been a little rough on Jack. He has been unusually whiny, and cried anytime an unfamiliar family member tried to hold him. Here we tried to take a festive picture of the grandkids, and he had another break-down. Hopefully he'll get used to things here at my parents' house soon because we won't have a real home for at least another month.

In any case, I was very happy that we got to spend the 4th of July in the USA this year, just days before Aaron flies to Germany. Here we are watching Jack's first fireworks.

Fifty Nifty United States

Growing up my family took a lot of road trips across the country, and my dad kept track of what states we had and hadn't been to. When Jack was born I decided to keep a list for him. Now that Jack has completed 2 car trips across the country, at age 1 his total is 24 states plus D.C. Here is the break-down:

Touring in our area: Maryland, D.C., Pennsylvania, New York, Delaware, Virginia, West Virginia, New Jersey
Trip across country at age 4 months: Idaho, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina
Trip across country at age 11 months: Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Wyoming

Jack does amazingly well sitting in his car seat for 3+ full days. He's a pro at these long trips now. At age 1, he has already seen half of the United States. It's also weird to think that I have been to half of the 50 states just in the past year. (That's unusual.)

As for me, my total is up to 49 states after our trip across last fall. The one state I have not been to is.....Wisconsin. People always think it's Alaska, but it's Wisconsin. Part of me never wants to go to Wisconsin because I don't think anyone would believe me that I'd been to all 50 states. On the other hand, it would be cool to think that I had. My parents and siblings are all up to at least 45 states, as we took most of those trips together.

Next we start on countries!

A few photos from our past week:

Treman Falls, my favorite gorge in Ithaca

In Grandpa Bill's pool

The graves of Jack's great-grandparents in Bath, NY

The graves of President Herbert Hoover and his wife in West Branch, Iowa