Summer Adventures 2012 Part 5

On our way to visit the Jackson's of Albuquerque (July 20, 2012), we stopped at Four Corners National Monument. It. Was. Awesome! I was pretty bummed out that Brent told me the actual monument is only in New Mexico and not in all four of the states since they didn't have a very good way to tell when they made the monument but it was still incredible. I kept telling Brent it was one of the coolest things we have every done. I'm SO glad we took the 30 minute detour to stop and visit (even though it was $6!) because it was worth it.

Brent and Claire in front of the entrance to the monument with the flags of all the states flying.

 This is the exact spot where the 4 corners meet.

 Claire and I at the monument.We are standing in 4 states at one time!

Brent and Claire

 A kind tourist took our picture. Brent and Claire are in different states as I am but we are standing so close. Neat!

A little FYI: In 2009, a spokesperson for the U.S. National Geodetic Survey admitted the monument is placed 1,807 feet (551 m) east of where modern surveyors would mark the point. However, he defended the accuracy of the 1875 survey, stating surveyors "nailed it" considering the primitive tools of the day. Pointing out the achievement given the conditions, he further stated, "Their ability to replicate that exact point — what they did was phenomenal, what they did was spot on." He concluded by stating that any claims of errors in the location of the monument are irrelevant. Once a survey commissioned to establish a boundary has been accepted by the involved parties, the survey markers are legally binding, regardless of any error that is later discovered.

Six Months

Holy smokes! Claire is already half a year old. I cannot believe it. There are so many things she can do right now.

At six months, Claire:

::is sitting up! We don't leave her by herself if she is sitting up, but she can usually sit up for a minute or 2 (sometimes longer if she doesn't get bored) by herself. She will even start to topple over and either put out her hands to stop herself from falling or she will use her tummy muscles to hold herself up. She is doing great!

::is all chubs. Her legs are getting to big for the Bumbo leg holes and I love it! She is growing well and I can hardly believe she used to be so small.

::loves to be on her tummy. Will will lay her on her back and more often than not she will roll quickly to her tummy. She likes to prop herself up on her arms and check out everything around her.

::is a super eater. She started eating rice cereal when she turned 5 months and loves it. She is getting really great at eating. We are going to start introducing other foods to her soon.

::should be driving next week. Joking - kind of.

::was fascinated by Henry and loved to hold his hand. She loved to look at him and just check out what he was up to. It was adorable.

::slobbers everywhere. Still.

::loves to smile at people and is a huge flirt. Lots of people tell us how beautiful she is and then she gives them a huge grin.

::is growing more and more hair. It's standing straight up, especially right after a bath. It's blonde, too! I think her eyes are going to stay blue to go with that blonde hair. We aren't sure where that came from.

::has outgrown all of her 0-3 and 3-6 month clothes. Once she hit 6 months, I think Claire decided to grow a huge amount just so she could have all new clothes. The onesies we took to New Mexico didn't even fit her when we left. I swear, she grew so quickly!

Dear Claire,
I am in awe that you have been in our lives for 6 months already. The time is flying by. I love that you are always so happy and give smiles so freely. Your smiles make everyone happy. I hope you will continue to be happy and bless other peoples lives. I know how much you have already blessed mine. I love you.
Love, Mommy

At 6 months, 7 days Claire:

::is 27 3/4 inches tall (97%)

::is 18 lbs 10 oz (87%)

::has a 17 1/4 inch head (87%)

No wonder all of Claire's pants suddenly become far too short so quickly. I love my super tall baby. 

Summer Adventures 2012 Part 4

While we were in Washington, Grandpa and Grandpa Jackson took us to a Mariner's game. Claire loves to watch baseball on TV with Brent and we thought she would have a great time at an actual game. Plus, we love us some garlic fries and had the desire to eat some. We enjoyed the game with Grandma & Grandpa Jackson, Heather, and Garett.

Summer Adventures 2012 Part 3

In June we decided to hit up Washington. Like we had a choice really. Grandparents were anxious to see Brent and I Claire. Aunties and Uncle were anxious to see Brent and I Claire. Come to think of it, I'm pretty sure everyone would have been fine without seeing us and only seeing Claire. Oh well, I'm used to being used for my adorable child. We had a wonderful time visiting family and being away from home. We even stayed an extra few days because the Grandparents were begging for Brent and I Claire to say a little longer. We are really glad we ended up staying because Brent's long time dog, Bo, had to be put down the Sunday before we left. That was an emotional day for Brent and his dad. Claire was a trooper and cheered everyone up.

(For some reason I don't have any pics with Auntie Hil, Grandpa Mark, or Grandma Kelly, but we did see all of them, too!)

We had a good time with Grandpa Peanut Butter, Gramma Jammie, and Grandpa Wilson:

 We had a good time with Great Mimi and Great Bampa:

 We had a good time with Grandpa Jackson, Grandma Jackson, and Uncle Chris:

 We had a good time celebrating Brent's birthday:

 We had a good time with our cousins, Uncle Ted and Aunt Tracy:

 We had a good time with Auntie Heather:

 We had a good time eating cereal for the first time ever:

All in all, it looks like we had a good time!

Summer Adventures 2012 Part 2

Lions, Tigers, Bears, OH MY! We went to Utah's Hogle Zoo in June with Claire. It was her very first trip to the zoo and I knooowwww that she had a blast. I'm sure she will remember this trip for years to come. :) We had a great time showing Claire all of the different animals and we loved seeing the polar bear, Rizzo, for the first time! We even got to see Rizzo eating some food. I love the zoo.

Claire and I as we started out on our adventure. This was her first time sitting in the stroller without the car seat attached. She was a big fan. 

Claire is just chillin with some giraffes.

Brent and Claire with a different giraffe. 

Rizzo the polar bear!

How do we all measure up compared to bears?

 The elephants are always one of my favorite parts of the zoo. Claire was a big fan, too.

Claire and I at the bird show. The birds flew right over our heads! I even felt one of their wings brush my hair. 

 Claire stayed awake almost the entire time at the zoo. She fell asleep on our way out. She was a champ the whole time and didn't cry at all, she just soaked it all in. 

Some kind people at the zoo offered to take our family picture by this gorilla.