Patrick's Birthday!!

Patrick had December 25th and 26th off for Christmas, and his regular days off are Sunday and Monday, so we planned to stay in Nampa through the weekend. The only problem was that Patrick had to work Saturday, his birthday. So he drove back to Hagerman (a 2 hour drive) Friday night, since the snow was supposed to start falling again early Saturday morning. He made it home, worked Saturday, and then was supposed to drive back Saturday night for a dinner and of course birthday cake. He made it about half way, but the roads were so bad that he was sliding all over the place and once even slid into the median and got stuck. Luckily, he was able to get out and make it to a town with a motel, but that meant that he didn't make it home for the birthday dinner and cake I had spent all day making for him. Needless to say, it was not the best birthday for him. I was pretty sad too, but grateful that he was okay, and we saved the dinner and cake for the next day when he was able to make it back. So here are some pictures of Patrick's belated-by-one-day birthday:

(Finally) enjoying the birthday manicotti.

Here's Patrick's cake pre-Kaiya. He thought it would be fun to teach her to stick her fingers in the frosting and lick them off.

A video of her doing so...

And the cake post Kaiya.

Even though it was postponed, we had fun celebrating Patrick's 28th birthday and only hope that next year's event goes more smoothly!

Christmas Day

Our Christmas was great (as Christmases usually are). Kaiya's still not to the wake up early-tear through presents-go crazy stage, so it was really relaxed and fun. We got her a slide (as mentioned in a previous post, she loves to slide, and now that it's winter and we can't go out, we thought she would enjoy one for inside). This is a video of her coming in to see it Christmas morning. I was hoping for an excited face, some talking, and smiles, but the video is actually sort of funny because there's none of that. You would think she had seen the thing a hundred times, but that's just how Kaiya reacts. It takes her a while to get excited. I assure you that now the slide is her favorite thing in the world.

Here's her sort of smiling once she had done it once or twice.

Kaiya got some animal crackers in her stocking and once she got those open, she was content for quite a while. It might have been her favorite present.

Here's Kaiya actually opening a present (this might have been the only one she did on her own)

And enjoying a wooden color puzzle we got her.

Patrick and I ended up getting each other the same DVD. We had purchased the Japanese version of Shall We Dance a few months ago and lost it. I guess we both thought we would like to have it again. The really funny thing was that we had wrapped them in the same paper and opened them at the same time too.

I was so excited to get this rain chain. They have them all over Japan and I loved them. Now we just need a house with a rain gutter. And to live somewhere where it rains.

This picture is funny because I tried all day to get pictures of her smiling and enjoying Christmas and was unsuccessful. A few hours later, she found the cat and couldn't stop smiling and giggling. Maybe next year we'll get her a cat.

This video is sideways (obviously. I totally forgot in the moment that I can't turn videos) but it's so cute! Kaiya got this bouncing tigger and likes to bounce along with him.

And finally, here's Kaiya wishing everyone a "Mewy Kimkink" and a goodnight too!

Christmas Eve

Patrick had to work Christmas Eve, so we didn't get to Nampa until evening. We were lucky though that we made it just before the big snow storm hit. We did actually have a little party, but I forgot to take any pictures of it. I did, however, remember the camera when we opened gifts with Meghan and Jake before they went home that night.

Here's Kaiya with a very pregnant Meghan (her baby is due February 2nd) and her husband Jake.

Kaiya enjoyed playing Santa that night. She was so funny. She wasn't interested in what was inside the gifts, just delivering them.

Grandma helped Kaiya open her present

Kaiya got two new blankets Christmas Eve. She loved them and kept laying on them and saying, "soft, soft". After the festivities were over, she layed with her blankets under the Christmas tree and told me that the tree and ornaments were, "boofull" (beautiful). So cute.

First Braids

Today was our first attempt at braiding Kaiya's hair. It's getting so long and shaggy that I've been trying to come up with new things to do with it. Hence the braids. She sat pretty still for it, better than I expected her to actually, and they stayed in pretty well until nap time. I think she looks pretty cute!

Winter Fun

We got a lot of snow over the weekend, and yesterday decided to take Kaiya out to play in it. We wanted to build a snowman, but the snow wasn't wet enough, so it didn't stick together and we weren't able to. However, we did throw snow at one another and took a few pictures.

Kaiya trying to figure out what happened to her toy and Patrick making a snowball to throw at me.

These were the icicles Patrick took off the house.

Kaiya wasn't sure about snow. After all, it's wet and cold. What's to like? After a while, she started saying, "In. Kaiya. Window." Meaning that she would rather go inside and look at the snow out the window.Just some pictures of the yard, and the 4 foot icicles hanging off the house.

The bamboo is still green, but couldn't escape the snow.

Box Canyon

We did this hike a couple of weeks ago (you might be able to tell by our lack of coats, hats, scarves, mittens, and SNOW) but I forgot to blog it until now. We had a really nice day and wanted to get out of the house. Patrick knew of this hike nearby into a really pretty canyon. I was a little skeptical about going in once we saw this sign, but after some persuading from Patrick we began our hike. It was definitely worth it. The hike was beautiful, even at this time of year, and it was really nice to get outside. Patrick packed Kaiya the whole time, and despite some minor protests she had a good time. Once we could see water that's all she cared about.
When we got to the bottom, this is what we saw. It was a beautiful waterfall and Kai was totally enchanted by it. She just sat and stared at it for a long time. It was so cute. We ate lunch at the bottom before going back up, which was much more work than going down. It was a fun day, and I wish the weather were warm enough now to do this again!

Proud Moment

Yesterday Patrick went into the nursery to get Kaiya and they were in the middle of their lesson. They were talking about Joseph Smith, and the teachers were holding up a picture of him and asking the kids who it was. None of the kids knew, and then Kaiya's little voice piped up with, "Joe-yef" (Joseph). The teachers were really impressed, since Kai is the youngest one in the class, and of course we were so proud of her! We are really amazed at how much she is already learning and comprehending. What a smart little girl!

Do I have to pay for this?

Since Kaiya was born in Japan, this is really my first experience dealing with OB visits in the US. Today we had a Dr. appointment. It's our second one. The first one with all the questions and the exam was taken care of by a PA, so this was our first time meeting one of the 5 doctors in the practice. We have to drive all the way to Twin Falls, which is about 45 minutes away. Then we sat in the waiting room for about 20 minutes. Finally, it's my turn, and the nurse weighs me and takes my blood pressure. The doctor comes in, finds the baby's heartbeat, asks if I have any questions ( I don't), then tells me to schedule to come back in 4 weeks. So we leave. An hour of driving and waiting and 5 minutes of doctor time. So we left the office, and I couldn't help but ask myself, "Do I really have to pay for this?". Next time I think I should just call and say we're still alive and feeling fine, I'll save you 5 minutes of your time. Not to mention save myself $100.

Something I Love about Kaiya...

Kaiya has this story called "There's a Wocket in my Pocket" by Dr. Seuss. It's just a silly rhyming story that we read sometimes before bed. The first few lines go something like this:

"Did you ever have a feeling there's a Zamp in the Lamp? Or a Nink in the sink?"

Whenever I read this to her, she always nods her little head in all seriousness like, "yes, I've definitely had that feeling". It's so funny and makes me laugh every time.