Funny kid

A few nights ago I went in to check on Zuri while she was sleeping and this is what I found:

It was so funny I had to get a picture.  What is even more funny is the fact that when I tried to put her leg down, she put it right back up--without waking up!

Dad's quick visit

My dad surprised us this week with a visit.  Well, I guess J knew about it beforehand, but I only heard about it Thursday.  Dad was helping Jori move out here to Utah and spent Friday night with us.  Jori will be staying with us for a few days until she can move into her new apartment.  Dad left earlier today.  Quick trip, but it was nice to see him.

Zuri was pretty funny.  She wanted to spend all her time with my dad.  She kept getting toys and giving them to him and then getting on his lap.  They also went for a walk together where Dad showed her all the fascinating trees and plants around our apartment.  She loved it!  I grabbed my camera for a couple cute shots!

Calling

Sometimes you do get the calling you want.

A few weeks ago we were waiting for Sunday School to begin and J mentioned that he would like to be a Sunday school teacher.  He loves to teach.  The Sunday school president (who, ironically, happened to be in our last ward with us) came into the room not long after that and J mentioned that he didn't have a calling yet--and said that he would be available to teach.

Not too long after that, J got a calling--Sunday school teacher!  Lol, the word was passed on! ;-)  Today was his first Sunday teaching.  He definitely enjoys teaching, he gets into his lessons; I think that is what makes him such a great teacher--he is passionate about the gospel.  It is fun to watch him.

As for me, being in the Relief Society Presidency is both easier and harder than I expected.  I never realized there were so many meetings!  I also have to reach out to the other sisters more than I realized I would.  It is strange to see some of them looking up to me--I feel so inadequate.  I see some of the sisters performing such service for one another.  It is refreshing.  We are all struggling to some degree and it breaks my heart to know what some of the women are going through.  It is easier in the sense that I am not always in the forefront--I have had to teach, and I will be conducting next month, but for the most part, I can be in the background--which is where I prefer to be.

Too Cute!

Yesterday we were out and about running errands.  J had to stop by his work to pick up something and while Zuri and I were waiting in the car, she was playing with the play glasses you see above.  She got those from a birthday party last year and it is one of the toys we keep in the car for her.  She was being so cute with the glasses that I couldn't help but snap a few pictures!  These two are my favorite!

Buford, Georgia

 

We have our apartment all lined up!  We will be living in the basement apartment of a ward member in Buford, Georgia, which is on the outskirts of Atlanta .  Here is a picture of the house!

We found out that the Atlanta temple is currently undergoing reconstruction right now and will be out of commission the duration of our stay.  The closest temples are in Birmingham, Alabama and Columbus, South Carolina.  Looks like we will have a couple more places to visit!  We are already planning a trip to Florida and Joshua has researched on the closest beaches.  We are excited for the upcoming adventure!

Tantrums

 

Zuri has become a master at tantrums these days.  She even has a spot where she goes to throw her tantrum.  It is the back wall in the kitchen between the fridge and the counter.  Heaven forbid if you disturb her there!  She will get even more upset!  In the picture above, although you can't see it, she is throwing a tantrum.  I can't remember the reason behind the tantrum in the picture, but we were in the living room when it started.  She will run and put herself in the corner, even facing away from us.  If it weren't so obnoxious (her tantrums, I mean), it would be funny.  I guess it's nice that she has a self-imposed time-out, right?

Welcome to the terrible two's....early....

Modeling

Zuri is growing up so quickly!  She is really into modeling these days.  When we go out shopping, we always wipe the shopping cart handles and kid seat before placing Zuri into the shopping cart.  For Christmas Zuri got a doll stroller to push around.  A couple weeks ago I had given Zuri a wipe to play with, and she proceeded to wipe the handle of the stroller with the wipe!  I laughed so hard.  A few days later we were eating dinner and had a napkin near her at the table.  She would pick up the napkin, wipe her mouth, get a drink from the sippy cup, wipe her mouth, and eat something.  She repeated the process several times.  Whoever taught her to be neat and tidy?  Lol.  After dinner we always rinse her hands and face off at in the kitchen sink, well, she now goes straight to the hand towel and dries her hands.  She wants to do everything herself--it is so fun to watch as she grows into this little independent person!

Her favorite time is bath time.  All we have to do is say the word "bath" and she is racing up the stairs.  She has also become a social butterfly.  If there are other kids in the area, J and I become non-existent.  Tonight was a perfect example.  We had a wedding reception to attend but it was for adults only, so we had a baby-sitter all lined up for Zuri.  This morning the sitter called to let us know that she wouldn't be able to watch Zuri due to illness in the house.  Our neighbor was kind enough to watch her for us, even though they had plans this evening--they were able to push them back a bit.  Anyhow, we dropped Zuri off and she went right inside (she had already caught sight of the kids) without a fuss.  When we went to pick her up, she was excited to see us, showing us all the nifty toys they had, but she didn't want to leave.  Funny kid.

On another note, all you who know me, know that I am not an expert in the culinary field.  I detested cooking growing up, and still don't have a fondness for it now.  At work Schelley brought in little mini cheesecakes which were oh-so delightful.  One of my other coworkers asked for the recipe, and when I heard how easy (*ahem, I mean difficult ;-) ) they are, I got the recipe as well and have been itching to try them.  We had Sunday dinner at the Lucero's last week and I offered to bring the dessert.  I made the cheesecakes and Josh made homemade mint chocolate chip ice cream.  They both turned out heavenly.  I even took a picture of my masterpiece!

Zuri got to spend some time bonding with her great-grandpa Lucero.  He was her favorite person of the night, even eclipsing her Auntie Shawnie (whom she preferred over me all night--she loves her Auntie Shawnie).

 

By the end of the night, Zuri was worn out and fell asleep within minutes of getting into the car.  Precious moments!