Back Home Again...

Our trip to Arizona was absolutely beautiful! I love it out west. The mountains and the canyons and the desert- they're breath taking, really. HOWEVER...I don't know how those of you who fly often with babies do it. I really don't. Lily is the best baby, but she turned into a little devil girl on the plane! She cried for about an hour straight, and I literally wanted to die. A lovely grandmother we had gotten chatty with in the terminal even came up and asked if she could try to calm her down. AND I handed Lily over. To a stranger. That's how bad it was! I figured she couldn't go far with her. :)

Anyway, that being said, it was nice to get away and have a change of scenery. But, I'm totally behind now in getting ready for Christmas. We made a little gingerbread house tonight - one of my favorite things to do! :) But, the presents aren't all wrapped - heck, the presents aren't all bought. So, I've got to get on that!

I'm really looking forward to catching up with blogs - it's been almost two weeks! Hope all is well and that your holiday preparations are going better than mine are. Anyone else a procrastinator? :)
I'll leave you with a few of my favorite AZ pictures...and then with my new favorite of Lily in her winter hat. She's too much! :)

Phoenix, Here we come!

The sickness has finally left our house. Man, last week was rough! Lily was so miserable and by the third day of her cold, I had come down with it, too. We've finally turned a corner, though, and are all feeling healthy. I had to laugh at my husband...well, laugh a little and then smack him a little. She would get up at least twice during the night because she couldn't breathe. And in the morning he'd say, "Did she get up at all last night?" or "Wow, she slept through the night last night?" Yeah. It's that male selective hearing thing. I will give him credit, though. Once I got sick, he got up with her during the night and in the morning. Which, again, leads me to ask why he could hear her when I was sick, but couldn't when I wasn't. :)

The best news! My mom called last week. My step-dad is a professional golfer and is playing in a tournament in AZ this week. She is flying all three of us out there for a little pre-Christmas mini-vacation. I can't tell you how excited I am. I am so ready for a vacation! I love being at home with Lily more than anything, but sometimes the walls of this house make me crazy! :) And you can only walk the mall so many times. I can't wait to be in the sunshine! It's supposed to be in the high 60s out there, which will feel nearly tropical after the weather we've been having. We're going to stay in Scottsdale mostly and then spend one night up at the Grand Canyon. I've never been there before but always wanted to - I really can't wait!
Anybody been out that way and have some tips or recommendations? Also - and this is the part I am dreading! - any tips for flying with an 8 month old? I'm hoping she'll nap some of the time, but that might be wishful thinking. Also, for all you world travelers, how do you deal with the time difference, especially when it'll only be for a few days? Do we go ahead and keep her on the schedule here? Then she'll go to bed at like 5:30 out there :)
Any tips or words of wisdom are much appreciated!

Also, most importantly, I want to send out a special congrats to my good blog pal, Jess. Her little family is growing by leaps and bounds! She and her husband and baby Ava welcomed Ethan into their family last Thursday. She will have her hands full, but I know there's nothing she'd rather be busy with! :) Congrats, Jess!!

First cold :(

Lily woke up in the middle of the night SO miserable! She's got a stuffy head and a slight cough - we're seeing her pediatrician in an hour. Any advice on how to help her feel better? We're putting Vicks for babies on her chest and are considering getting one of those crib wedges to let her be a bit elevated. Any experience with those? I know she'll be fine and all that jazz, but it's the most difficult thing to see her so sad. I want my smiley girl back!

Let's see your holiday decorations!

This is my favorite time of year! I know I've said it, but this year is especially wonderful having our silly Lily in the house. We bought her a pink stocking yesterday, and I can't wait to hang it. I know many others have blogged about having such a hard time dealing with being childless around the holidays. I told my mom yesterday that I remember SO clearly this time last year having trouble wanting to attend anything even remotely festive. BUT, something about the music and the lights and people just being a bit nicer in general made me feel comforted - even while I was neck deep in my own hurt last year. I know not everyone who reads this is religious, but for me, I truly experience a feeling of closeness to God during this season. It's nice to be able to pause and take in the glory of creation and how much I know God loves us.

SO - I want to post a few pictures here of my holiday decorations (what's up so far anyway). And if you have some, I'd love to see yours! No matter what holiday you're celebrating - let's see your festivities:) Leave a comment, post them on your blog - whatever.

The first one is our fab retro aluminum Christmas tree posted specially for Melissa:) My husband is nuts for antiques and anything "retro." So, we have an aluminum tree complete with revolving color wheel. From the outside, our living room flashes red, blue, and green. It looks like we're operating some sort of disco in there. :)

Enjoy and share your pics with me! :)