Murphys, CA birthday/Easter roadtrip

Last Friday morning we decided were weren't going to work or daycare but in honor of my birthday and Easter we were going on a road trip! We drove up over HWY 88 and arrived in Murphys, CA, which is a historic old Irish mining town. Today it is a fun little town lined with shops, restaurants, bakeries, bed & breakfasts and MANY wine tasting rooms (it's in some prime wine country). Very quaint. We had a great time strolling the street (literally strolling with Jax in the stroller!) and being tourists. After a little inquiry and research we found out there is a little Catholic church just a few blocks up the road from our hotel. So Sunday morning (Easter Sunday) we put Jax in the stroller and made our way up to St. Patrick's Church. It was a stereotypical little white church up on a hill--very cool. It was so packed that Justin and I were in different pews and many people were standing outside the back door. The weekend was wonderful. What better way to enter into my 30's than with my two boys on a fun weekend road trip! Yes, as much as I tried to avoid it I have left my 20's behind me and have entered into the next decade.......hopefully with some grace.

Mini Bun-bun

Justin had a stuffed animal rabbit as a kid that he called "Bun-bun". From the stories I am told, Justin and Bun-bun were best buds and did most things together. Justin even gave him a mohawk! So for Easter this year Jax his his very own mini Bun-bun! When he gets a little older we can get him a bigger Bun-bun.

Father-Son Harley trip

In celebration of Justin's Dad's birthday a Father-Son Harley trip was taken to Death Valley. Justin road all the way to Vegas and then the Father-Son duo cruised through Death Valley for the weekend. In total, Justin road 1,200 miles!! It was a long-awaited, talked about, dreamed about trip. I do believe a good time was had by all!

Spring Strolling

This past weekend, Justin was on vacation with his Dad (post on that will be forthcoming), so Jax and I had some time to ourselves. Luckily the weather was just beautiful, so we put our 4 wheels to the sidewalk and started strolling! We walked to neighbors houses, to Starbucks, to the grocery store and to a few garage sales. Jax seems to love his front-facing stroller and you very rarely hear a peep from him while strolling. :o) Happy Spring!

Father (to be) Andy

My cousin, Andy, has been heading down the route of becoming a Catholic priest for a few years now. He kept telling the family that there were no guarantees, but he was happy doing the schooling for the time being. Well, most recently it came time to decide one way or the other because the last 5 years of studies they are sent to a different school to finish the theology studies. We found out that Andy is being sent to the Pontifical North American College in ROME! This was his picture in the Pittsburgh Catholic newspaper. I do believe this is one of the first times he has been allowed/required to wear the collar. How exciting!?!

Congrats, Andy!! We love you!!

Sitter

And we have a sitter! Jax is starting to sit up as of the last week.

But he is also cutting teeth.......................so not cool.

Birdy met Bunny

While out to dinner Friday night, a certain famous Bunny stopped by for a visit! Jax wasn't too sure about the big bunny, but found him rather interesting.

Growth Chair @ 6 months

Early birthday gift

As an early birthday gift, Justin and my friend, Sarah, surprised me with a day at the Atlantis spa in Reno. How wonderful!?! Everything about it was fantastic. Sarah picked me up pretty early and we stopped at Starbucks for yummy drinks, then talked all the way to Reno. We were escorted into the spa, given flip-flops, a fluffy robe and given the tour of the 2 saunas, 1 warm relaxation room, 1 sea-salt waterfall room, the hot tub/experimental shower room (that was funny) and the main swimming pool. We were free to come and go from all those rooms as we pleased--after our 1 hour facial! I've never had a facial before, but you can believe I'll have another one!! Sarah and I had a great time talking and laughing all day long. The locker room also had the best showers ever; complete with fancy shampoo, conditioner, shaving cream, sugar scrubs, razors, brushes/combs, hair dryers, hairspray, moose....oh you name it--anything you needed, it was there! Except lip balm....

Jax hung out with his Daddy while I was away. And by the looks of it, they had a good time!

Thank you, Justin & Sarah!!

Jax's baptism

The other 2 days we spent in PA were full of preparing for and holding Jax's baptism and the party that followed. Mammie Sharon let her creative juices flow in decorating the garage as a party room in order to hold all the family and friends coming to meet Jax. Even though Jax was low on sleep and mostly refused to eat on Sunday, he was just an angel for his baptism. Somehow he knew all those people were there to see him and he didn't want to miss any of it by sleeping or eating! What a little party animal!?!

My brother, Rob and wife, Melissa served (are serving) as Jax's Godparents. Thanks Rob & Melissa, we love you!