Visitors and the end of summer

My cousin Valerie and her husband stopped in for a day or two earlier this week on their way home from their cross country vacation where they saw everything the United States of America has to offer (well at least the western half, they did the eastern half the past two summers). The day after they left Eric's sister flew in for a week visit and is with us until Tuesday. This weekend we are driving to Arkansas with a carload of stuff to meet my parents and trade for their suburban to be able to get all packed up next week. Betsy will stay with Heidi while we make the quick trip over so she doesn't have to endure too many long car rides back to back. It will be the first time we spend the night away from her and I'm a little nervous. I know everyone will do great, but still, I don't like the idea of leaving her, but it's in her interest. Eric last day of work is the 19th, then we finish packing and get home some time that weekend, and school starts for him on the 24th! I try not to think about it all or I get a little overwhelmed, but I am definitely excited to be back home and have a room and a crib for Betsy and get on a normal schedule. If I can just make it through these next two weeks I think everything will be ok...

5 months...

Betsy is a 5 month old now! Time is flying! She has mastered rolling from her back to her belly, which took her awhile. We were getting a little worried. She also sits up by herself now. She still tumbles to the side eventually, but can last for quite awhile. She's still as happy as ever and sleeps great. We're just wondering when those teeth are finally going to pop through, since she's been showing all the signs for about 2 months now. She chews on EVERYTHING like crazy and is a drool factory. She's funny to watch when she's just playing by herself with her toys, her tongue is always going crazy in her mouth rubbing her gums. So any day we expect to wake up to find a shiny white tooth poking through!

The other day I had her in her swing while I went to shower really quick and when I got out she was sitting forward in the swing playing with the buckle, like she was trying to figure out how to unsnap it! I'm not so worried about her unsnapping the buckle, but any father forward and she would have toppled out! So she's pretty much outgrown the swing and can only use it with adult supervision!

Meet the Johnsons

Earlier in the summer, the owner of the company told us to choose a week and he would come work for us so we could take a vacation. So we decided to take him up on that last week. We were supposed to go to THE Sherwood Family Reunion in Arizona, but decided it would probably be better for Betsy to get to meet Eric's family. So last Wednesday we flew out to Utah. Our flight left at 6:30am and we didn't get off work until 12am, so we decided it would just be easier to pull an all-nighter. (Easier meaning we weren't exactly packed, had loads of laundry to do, and were going to TRY to clean the apt (that didn't happen)). So after packing all night and getting showered/bathing Betsy at 4am so we wouldn't be stinky when we got there, we drove to my brother's hotel where he woke up early to drop us off at the airport. (Big thanks to Josh!)

Getting through the airport on the way to Utah wasn't too bad. We packed all three of us in one suitcase and one carry on (plus diaper bag, laptop bag, and carseat). So we got rid of the suitcase at check-in, which didn't take too long and we got to take a shortcut through security. Our itinerary showed only one layover in Phoenix, so we thought flying shouldn't be too bad. What we didn't know is that Southwest will make stops in between and as long as you don't have to deplane, it doesn't show on your itinerary. (We call these "not-layovers".) So we had a "not-layover" in El Paso on the way to Phoenix. She did REALLY well between Dallas and El Paso, but I fed her right before we landed in El Paso and after sitting in the same spot for so long and was tired she was quite fussy after take off. The flight attendant asked if we could give her a bottle or paci, but since I had just fed her and she won't take a paci the answer was no. So the solution to the problem.... the flight attendant took her! After about 10 min she was returned to us and I was able to finally get her to fall asleep in my arms. From Phoenix to SLC she was pretty good, just whimpering.

Eric's dad had gotten back from a business trip earlier in the morning and had decided to wait the extra hours so he could meet us at the gate! He immediately removed Betsy from our arms and we made our way to baggage claim. On the way there, I hear "Sarah?". I turn around and see my aunt and uncle from Arkansas getting off their airplane... talk about a small world. Eric's sister met us down at the baggage claim while his mom drove around the airport waiting for us. Our first stop in Utah was at Wal-Mart to buy the essentials we didn't see much point in packing (diapers, baby food, etc.). Then on to the house where Eric's other sister and her husband were waiting for us.

The trip was exactly what we needed. Eric and I were SO burnt out from our schedule and definitely needed a break. His parent's house is so low key and relaxed. Betsy went down for a nap almost as soon as we got there and slept 5 hours, which allowed Eric and I to get a much needed nap. The rest of the trip was spent doing very minimal. Friday we did a little shopping with Eric's brother and his wife. Saturday we went to the Oquirrh Mountain Temple tour. Sunday we went to Eric's parents' ward. Conversation on the way there was about where Betsy would spend 3rd hour: Relief Society, Elder's Quorum, or High Priest Group. Sunday night Eric's parents invited anyone who wanted to come over and see their grandbaby. It was fun to see so many people again and meet some new people. Monday was spent packing and enjoying our last day of freedom before our flight back at 6:30am Tuesday. We were trying to pull another all-nighter to get everything ready. We went through a lot of our stuff that is still in Utah and were able to pack two extra bags to bring home with us. (Big thanks to Southwest for still allowing 2 bags per person FREE!) With everything basically packed at 2:30am, I was not feeling well at all, Eric and I both hit a wall and decided to lay down for a couple hours. We woke up a couple minutes late and between waking Betsy up, feeding, and getting her ready and the last minute things it was 5:20am before we left the house. It takes 45 min to get to the airport and our flight LEFT at 6:30am and THIS time we had 3 suitcases, carry on, carseat, laptop bag and diaper bag. Thank goodness for curbside check-in and family line at security. We hurried to the gate and were able to make it!

This time I planned her bottles around take-offs and landings and got her to at least chew on the paci during the in-betweens. The flights went pretty smoothly. We had another "not-layover" in Amarillo, but Betsy did really well. We landed at 12:05pm, made it back to the apt around 1pm and Betsy and I layed down for a nap and Eric got ready and went to work (sucks to be him). Betsy took a 5 hour nap waking up at 7pm. Stayed awake until 8:30ish when she started acting tired so I put her back down. I planned on waking her up around 10pm so she would sleep through the night for me, but Eric got home around 10pm so we decided to finish a movie we had started before our trip. We fell asleep during the movie and crawled in bed around midnight. First I got a bottle ready because I was SURE I was in for an early morning. After getting up several times between 6am and 8am to check on her, Betsy finally decided to crack her eyes open at 10 min to 10am! (I REALLY love that kid.) Then at 11am she does her tired signs, so I lay her down and at this moment it is after 2pm and she is STILL asleep. You would think I've gotten a lot done with all this alone time, but I've just enjoyed sitting on my couch, watching TV, and getting showered/dressed for the day. But alas, laundry calls.