The Calm Before the Storm

We had a nice two week vacation. David finished all of his Lectures and Labs! He will never have to take another course! He starts his first of four clinical rotations tomorrow. From now till next May he will be in the field learning on the job. It is an exciting chapter but also a little stressful. His rotations are in four different cities out here! Anyway... for the past two weeks we have enjoyed lots of time together, the calm before the storm. ;)

We took several trips to Springfield. We did some shopping and enjoyed the indoor play area at the mall for the kids. We checked out a new park in Springfield called Jordan Valley Park. It has a nice splash pad and water play area for the kids. It was a great way to keep cool on a hot day.

We spent some time at the park here in town. We accomplished some projects around the house. The kids played in our back yard/ dug in the dirt. We swam at our local YMCA...

We took a trip to Kansas City and attended a session at the temple. (Thanks to our amazing sister Kate for watching the kiddos and putting them down for that night!) We also got to spend a little time with our brother Robert and his lovely wife Paige and their kiddos. They were a little sick so we just had a quick picnic at the park. Another visit is in order!

Anyway, it was a marvelous calm. We thoroughly enjoyed it. But the storm has just settled in tonight. David left for his first rotation this afternoon :(... The next eight weeks will be the toughest... the following rotations should be a little easier. Life is an adventure!

Hannah Jo at 1 Year

Hannah had her doctor appointment for her 1 year check-up. She did awesome! Here are the stats:

Weight: 21 lbs. 3 oz. - in the 55th percentile (light weight)
Height: 30 in. - in the 80th percentile (tall)
Head: 18.5 in. - in the 95th percentile (big head!)

I took it upon myself to try to capture her at one year with my SLR camera (a Cannon Rebel, which I am still learning how to use). I actually got a few of her smiling! Here are some pictures:

Murphy Visit Part 4: The Final Post

We sure enjoyed having my mom and brother Pierce out for a visit. It is always wonderful to be with family. I am sure grateful for them. I am grateful for the quality time they spent with my children and the memories that were created. Here are some final pictures to document the time we had with them:

Peter joined us for a game of Ripple :)

Murphy's Visit Part 3: Discovery Center

Since we have a membership to the wonderful Discovery Center of Springfield, we decided to show it off to my mom and brother. There is so much to experience there! We spent hours there and still there were things we didn't get to show them! We all had fun though! The kids love that place! After our many adventures there, mom, Grandma Murphy, treated us to some delicious Taco Bell burritos, a great lunch to enjoy on our half hour drive home.

Just arrived!

Completing the circuit...

Pierce tried out the high wire bike!
(On the 3rd floor. We watched from the first!)

Pierce and I built a little house for the kids :)

Murphy's Visit Part 2: Swimming

We went to our YMCA for a swim with Grandma Murphy and Uncle Pierce. We are so glad they came for a visit from California. We had fun! It was so nice having Pierce there to take the kids around. They love him! My mom captured all the photos posted here. She didn't plan on getting wet but while taking a picture as Pierce flew out of the tall twister slide... she got soaked!

I ran a few miles before we swam, the water sure felt good!

A ride from Uncle Pierce :).

How my mom got soaked!

Murphy's Visit Part 1: Nauvoo

My mother and little brother Pierce (Murphy) came out here from California for a visit. Boy did we have fun. I am so grateful for them and the quality time they spent with me and my family. Our kids adore them both!

They came bearing gifts for baby Hannah's 1st birthday...

The first adventure we had with them was a 5 hour drive to Nauvoo, IL. Within the first hour of our drive little Evelyn said, "Mommy, I'm a little ouchy." I assumed she was hungry or tiered since we left at 6 in the morning. Then a few minutes later my mom looks back at her and she had vomited on herself and her car seat. Evelyn didn't even complain! I pulled over at the next exit with a gas station so we could clean her up. Poor thing... She was all better by then though :). We decided it was from motion sickness, we had driven some windy roads...

The rest of the trip went real well. Pierce was a great help in the back with the kids. I forgot to mention. He cleaned up the vomit the best he could before we stopped. What a champ!

We met up with lots of family in Nauvoo. My Aunt Joyce and all but one of her 6 kids were there along with their families and three of our Martinez cousins (Elena, Rachel, and Kristina) were there with their families. It is always wonderful to be with family. I am sure glad I am linked to each of them for eternity :).

We enjoyed a show and several of the sites in Nauvoo. I just love the wonderful feeling of Nauvoo. There is such a special, sweet spirit there. I am grateful that we can visit where the saints once lived and feel of their faith and testimonies.

The Mississippi River! 

Uncle Scott is serving his mission just up the Mississippi from where we were!

Throwing rocks in the river...

We had the privilege of staying the night in Hyrum Smith's home. It has been updated and added on to and the current owner rents it out to families visiting Historic Nauvoo. The brick part of the picture bellow is the original home! We stayed in the room on the top floor. See those top two windows, that is where we slept! I thought it was neat...

We had more adventures with the Murphy's and I will post them soon :).