What You May Have Missed (April-September 2015)

Last April, Derek and I made a sudden decision to move to the Bay Area in pursuit of our millions (aka, doing summer sales). The sales didn't go all that great...but California was pretty awesome! Here follows a hundred pictures (approximately) illustrating our adventures on the coast.


We started with a stop in St. George to celebrate the anniversary and hang with the fam. Oh, and to celebrate National Grilled Cheese day. Which is a real thing. We Monnetts know how to party.

We made every kind of grilled cheese we could think of and then voted on our favorite. The winner? Cream cheese, sharp white cheddar, fresh tomatoes, and Tony's. 

Derek and I spent the morning in Zion and Palmer spent the morning at Nana's :)

We got to go to my nephew's baseball game while we were in town, and Palmer loved it!

This is while Palmer was learning to sit up--we surrounded him with a little buffer to minimize the head banging :)

And then we were off to San Ramon! Dalton was such a sport and drove our van for us so that Derek and Palmer and I could all ride together. That way we made WAY less stops because I was able to get Palmer bottles and snacks on the road. When we got to our apartment we were stunned! San Ramon is such a gorgeous (and wealthy) area. We were so lucky to live there. The view from our balcony was amazing!

One of our first Saturdays in town we hit up Muir Woods for a little hike. I was a little disappointed by the size of the redwoods (they get MUCH bigger the further north you go, and that's what I'm accustomed to), but it was absolutely beautiful!

After a few weeks we finally made it to the beach with some new friends from our ward! The plan was to head to Santa Cruz for a day, which turned into an afternoon, which turned into an hour in Capitola and then some ice cream and cookies at a popular place in Santa Cruz. Palmer loved the sand!...a little too much.

Poor kiddo was sooo tired! This is also when we learned that if you go to the beach in Northern California, you don't wear (or probably even bring) a swimsuit. You wear capris and sandals (so that you can walk in sand and water) and a sweatshirt. Or two. 

We were lucky enough to have a few friends join us in California--the Borens! Unfortunately they lived an hour away in Modesto, but Aubrey and Hayes came out to see us! We tried to alternate weeks and have me go out to Modesto just as often, but I think Aubrey ended up doing a lot more driving than her fair share! Either way our visits were such a blessing! Making friends in California was really hard, so it was great to know I had someone not too far away. And Palmer and Hayes always loved seeing each other! Palmer was a little too touchy-feely for Hayes's liking, but they worked it out :)

Mother's Day :)

At the beginning of May I was able to fly to Salt Lake and then drive up to Rexburg to visit Spencer and Destinee and brand-spanking-new Samantha! I was so disappointed when I realized we'd be moving away before Destinee had her baby, largely because when I had Palmer she was one of my greatest supports! She was always good for an hour or two of chatting or taking the baby so I could nap and I had so looked forward to returning the favor when the time came. I'm afraid I wasn't much help on my short trip...but I did clip Samantha's nails when Destinee was too nervous to do it. Because by this time, I was of course, a total pro at motherhood ;)

Palmer was a little nervous about our first flight :)

One of my favorite parts about our return trip was the group of fifty Asian tourists who couldn't get enough of Palmer. I'm sure his picture is everywhere in China by now. They were just in love with him! The few who could speak a little English begged to hold him. I let them, but he wasn't a fan. 

My OTHER favorite part of our return trip was the guy waiting on the other side!! Derek picked us up at the airport and we spent the day doing a little San Francisco exploring. We went to the Pier, and that ended up being all we had time for, but it was a blast!

One of our weekend trips was to the Samuel P. Taylor State Park. We went on an awesome park, then headed to Stinton Beach. It was so nice and private! Probably because it was cold and full of sandcrabs, but Derek actually liked that part.

See look, I learned how to dress for the beach!

(Sand crabs. He never got tired of digging them up!)

Another weekend at Stinton. I will never get over Palmer's sailor outfit :)

He looks just like my nephew Ezra in this picture!

Aubrey and I took a little trip to Ghirardelli Square together one week. My memories of that day include a lot of figuring out where we were supposed to nurse these boys, how they would get naps, and other basic baby needs. But we had a ton of fun (and a ton of food!)

Another plus to California apartment living: pool time!

These boys!

You'll notice that about half the pictures in this post are of fun, California-specific adventures, and half are just pictures of Palmer. I mostly chose ones that I felt were milestones--or just really really cute. This one though, when I saw it in my photos, really squeezed my heart. It seems to capture a lot of what that summer was. Derek worked a lot--usually from 9 in the morning until at least 9 at night. I had a car most of the time, but not always gas money, so a lot of times it was just Palmer and me at home all day. There were good times and bad. And a bittersweet moment of every day was when I nursed Palmer to sleep at night. He would fall asleep in my arms and I would feel so relieved to be done with the work portion of my day--but also so sad to put my baby down and be alone for however many hours it took till Derek got home. A lot of times I would hold him for much longer than I needed to and just...not be alone. I hope that doesn't come across as too depressing. It was a hard time for me, but I just loved to feel this little boy of mine with his heavy breathing and deep sighs and know that I had a purpose.

Father's Day baked pineapple :)

Palmer's first time teething! Poor kiddo.

At the end of June I got to take a trip to St. George to see my little brother Taylor off on his mission. Palmer and I started to get really good at flying! It was so good to have the whole family together one last time before Taylor left for two years. But it was really sad to not have Derek there! Everyone missed him so much. 

Mom fail: Palmer got sunscreen in his eyes. I promise I took this picture AFTER spending at least ten minutes trying to clean his eye out. Poor baby :(

Last picture with Uncle Taylor!

And I always have to share the picture of me returning from my trip because I was always SO ready to get home to my hubby!

4th of July

Sleeping at church

 And then we were off again! But this time Derek got to come with :) We left for Salt Lake just before the 24th of July for the Allen family reunion. Our flight had crazy delays because something was wrong with the airplane. You can see the drop in our enthusiasm as time went on. Palmer was smart and escaped into a nap :) Our reunion, which Derek and I planned, was in Yellowstone. We had an amazing cabin in Island Park, and everything was just beautiful! It was fun to see how quickly Palmer warmed up to all the family. He was especially interested in anyone who shared food or read books to him :)

   

Samantha and Sam!

It was awfully windy, but the view was worth it!

And apparently on this trip, Palmer decided to grow up! Look at that boy!

The day we got back to California we headed straight for Santa Cruz for a little beach time. I have hardly any pictures of this day because I was so busy taking videos of the pod of dolphins, the sea lion, and the fifteen foot waves! It was such a crazy cool sight! 

I had to post this picture because a.) Palmer's face and b.) this was the day I met a dear friend of mine! I'd often go out to the little grassy area with Palmer on nice days (pretty much every day in San Ramon is a nice day. It's either nice enough to swim or nice enough to hang out on a blanket eating muffins). This particular day there was another mom walking around carrying a baby. She smiled at me and I made a bold decision--I said hi! Doesn't sound too bold...but I am the most socially awkward person ever, so saying hi was a big deal. I gestured for her to come sit with us and we got talking. Garima is from India, and we got to talk a lot about our different religions and experiences. I love her so much an am so grateful I met her that day! When the company Derek worked for decided they'd need us to move to a city about forty minutes away I was so disappointed because I had finally made a friend at my apartment complex. But Garima and I have stayed in contact ever since and I'm so glad we have.

This was taken on our final day with Aubrey and Hayes in California! We sure missed them after they left!

The company treated us to some tickets to an Oakland A's game. I was surprised at how stinking fun it was!! And what made it even better is that we beat the Dodgers! I may have only lived in the bay for a few months, but I basically consider myself a local now, so Oakland's my team ;)

Wait, what do you mean I'm wearing this shirt in almost every picture from last summer? You're crazy...

Palmer helping us move ;)

The new digs in Antioch!

Palmer Turned One! (a while ago)

Well hello, dear readers! I'm sure all four of you have been dying for me to tell you about the haps these days. You're probably thinking, "Remember how you wrote three posts in a row at the end of last summer and then completely stopped?" Yeah, I remember. That's what I do!

So I thought I should finally post about Palmer's birthday, since it was over half a year ago. We were at the end of a long (and unsuccessful) summer of sales and Palmer's birthday was just three days before we moved back to Utah. Money was short, time was short, and my creativity was sorely lacking. I figured I'd go all out for my baby's first birthday, but when it got down to it, living in California meant there was no one around to celebrate with! I was a little bummed, but when it turned out that my sister would be visiting I found my inspiration! As a theme I chose...San Francisco!

Gifts for a one-year-old are easy. In fact...all we gave him was this little walker/scooter. Obviously he was thrilled :)

As per our theme I planned a party at Golden Gate Park. We ended up doing the cake smash at Crissy Field though, because that view--incomparable. I made Palmer a chocolate banana cake with whipped cream frosting and a candy Golden Gate Bridge. For the rest of us there were cupcakes with cream cheese frosting, sprinkles, and candy trolly toppers :) I'll pretend like it was no big deal now...but I'm dang proud of those cake toppers. Aren't I creative??

 (The blue at the bottom of the cake is supposed to be the ocean. Go with it.)

 Palmer was SO excited...

And, a picture of me, because this is after all, my masterpiece. The cake and the kid :)

Ok, so in reality, Palmer had absolutely no idea what to do with the cake sitting in front of him. Now, dried spaghetti on the floor, bugs, lint, all these things he eagerly shoves into his little mouth. But my cake...he was clearly dubious about. The bridge caught his attention and we got him to take a few bites, but he really hated the feeling of frosting on his fingers :)

And obviously, the cake plate was far more interesting than the cake itself.

I don't have photographical evidence of the rest of the evening because both our phones died and we had no charger, but we had so much fun! We went to Golden Gate Park and played at the playground for a few hours while we waited for our pizza to be delivered (aside: the pizza came way late, was the wrong kind, and was cold! Poor Tana and Jaron were so bummed because they'd heard raves about this place...but hey, Palmer still liked it! ;). Palmer and Desmond took turns pushing his new scooter around until dark, and then we all headed back to the hotel for the night.

And that was it! The day passed so quickly. But it was a perfect way to say farewell to our city by the bay and to capture what that summer meant to us. I love that we'll always have these memories that so epitomized that time in our lives! Yay for Palmer and yay for San Francisco :)

Read to Me

Lately Palmer and I have had a lot of reading time, thanks in large part to Nana (my mom) giving him a bunch of new books for his birthday!

I love sitting down with him on my lap and reading him a story or two. He points to the pictures and turns the page when it's time.

This past week he's also loved taking his turn reading to me. After I finish a book, he flips it back open and starts jabbering while he strokes the pages. I ate it up the first few times, but then my mind wandered to all the things I could be getting done instead of sitting there. I knew if I left him there to read on his own he would happily entertain himself for a few more minutes, and those moments of un-interrupted cleaning are rare.

But then I thought about how beautiful a thing it is to sit and listen to my son. I want him to talk to me his whole life long, knowing that I will always listen. I've often pondered how I can make sure Palmer knows I love him and am there for him, and the answer is to be there now.

Yes, he's just a baby. And I doubt that he'll remember me holding him while he reads to me. But I felt the spirit whisper to me that he will remember the feeling of being listened to if I continue to do this. And how wonderful will it be for him to one day say to himself that he cannot remember a time when I wasn't there for him.

After all, that's what this is all about. That's why I'm a stay-at-home mom. Because I am going to be there for him, from the beginning to the end. What a gift in both our lives that is.

Sunday Evening (9-20-2015)

We had another banner week. Truly one for the books. San Francisco has never been hit harder. But since I only have half my photos (Tana has the other half) and there are approximately a thousand of them to weed through before posting, you'll have to hear about all that later. For now, here's what I got:

The world is big, and beautiful, and fascinating, and fun. Exploring it is exciting. There's so much to see and do and learn about out there. I love it. 

But there's no better feeling than home. 

I've learned this year that home can be anywhere. It can be St. George, Utah, or Rexburg, Idaho, or San Ramon, California, or Antioch or Grantsville. The key component is my husband and son. 

I love my extended family. I miss my brothers and sisters and nieces and nephews and Mom and Dad. But as much as I miss them, I'd rather be on the other side of the world with Derek and Palmer than be with the rest of them without those two. 

They are my home now. We could live anywhere (don't worry, Mom, we're still going to land in St. George!), with any career path, and as long as I had them I would be home. 

How blessed am I to have that? 

Pretty darn. 

So happy Sunday, my friends (and stalkers). I hope you're enjoying your home today. 

We'll just be over here soaking up our spazziness. 

Post-Party Depression

Post-Party Depression. We've all been there, right? Family and friends come, you have a blast doing exciting things for a couple of days, and then the moment they leave you get a sinking feeling in your heart because it's over. 

We had SO much fun with Dalton and Dee Ann this week! It was perfect. Life isn't perfect, but parts of it are. When family is around...it's mostly perfect. 

On Tuesday afternoon Derek and Palmer and I drove into the city to meet Mom and Dalt at the Pier. They ended up  taking about an hour longer than we thought, so we wandered around Ghirardelli Square for a while:

Then we went down to this cute little beach called Aquatic Park Beach. It's perfect for little kids because the Bay waves are tiny compared to out on real ocean beaches, and the water is warmer since it's shallow. Derek and I didn't come prepared to get wet, but we got in a little with Palmer because it was so nice! (My "little" turned into a lot when I was crouched over pointing out a seagull to buddy boy and a slightly taller wave decided to come and make it look like I had a major accident in my jeans.) Luckily it was the warmest day we've ever experienced in San Fran, so we dried pretty quickly!

(The only reason Palmer isn't grinning his head off at this particular moment is because Derek is making him hold still for a picture. It was really difficult to keep that kid out of the water!)

When Dalton and Mom finally got there we got Palmer cleaned up (TIP! We learned the coolest thing online the other day and it actually works!! To get all the sand off without a bath, rub baby powder all over and it takes it right off, leaving them soft and dry! It was AMAZINGLY effective) and headed to dinner at Joe's Crab Shack. It had a beautiful view out into the Bay which we tried to get in tha background of some pics...but it ended up just washing them out. 

After dinner we headed down to see the sea lions at the pier. It was getting dark by this time, but we caught some amazing views. 

Then we headed up the pier to window shop--or in Mom's case, actually shop (and buy us chocolates!) She bought Palmer the cutest little bear, who we named Pierre Francisco Allen...perhaps a little unoriginal, but I actually love the name Pierre for a bear :)

Here's a picture of Dalton pretending to pretend to enjoy the musical steps:

In actuality, you know he was all about those steps. 

Derek actually did a pretty good job playing heart and soul and gathered a little crowd! I only got a partial video...right when he jumped to the wrong note. 

The next day we took a little trip to Monterey. 

Monterey is the perfect beach town. We've been to Santa Cruz several times this summer because we like the beaches there, but as far as the town goes it's kind of a little too surfer guy/party girl for me. The boardwalk looks like fun if you don't have kids but...we do...so it wasn't our favorite atmosphere. But Monterey is such a cute little town with beautiful sandy beaches AND rocky shores. The shops are fun, and it's nice and clean and relaxed. Very chill, just like a beach town should be. We didn't get to go to the aquarium, but there's a really cool overlook where you can see all the birds and sea lions and seals swimming and diving for fish. We stayed there for half an hour, it was so fun! 

(Contrary to all appearances, Palmer really does love Uncle Dalton...)

We had a yummy lunch and then went window shopping. Palmer and I also did a little modeling...

In the afternoon we hit the beach. And I had probably my biggest #momfail of Palmer's life. Other than the time when he was learning to sit up and I didn't catch him in time to stop his nose from slamming into the tile and bleeding...or when he was sitting in the bumbo on the kitchen floor and fell out...or when I spanked him for biting me then spent the next two days in tears because I'm THE WORST. Anyways...he was having a blast splashing in the waves and crawling around. And I thought, hey, we're far enough back that these waves won't splash his face if I let him just sit here when they come. He was doing great so I let go of him just for a second to see what he would do. He started towards the water right as a wave came and it completely knocked him over!! It was so scary. Honestly it was probably only half a second before I was picking him up, but in that half-second he was so scared and I felt so bad. He's such a sweet kid and he only let out one little cry before popping his thumb into his mouth and cuddling up next to me, but I felt terrible. So I took him to his grandma for safe-keeping :) She was so nice to look after him so that I could get all the way in the ocean for the first time in years!! I had been looking forward to that all summer. Dalton and Derek and I had so much fun body surfing just past the break. I only almost drowned once, so all in all it was a pretty successful day! There's something so amazing about being out in the water knowing that the next wave, if you don't hit it just right, could knock you to the ocean floor and keep you spinning head over heels over and over again. It's thrilling and terrifying and truly awesome. I love the ocean. Even when I'm inhaling mouthfuls of nasty seawater. 

After the beach we grabbed a quick dinner and made the two and a half hour drive home. I think it's safe to say we wore Palmer out that day...

On Thursday we decided to have a relaxing day in Antioch. We had breakfast at the hotel, and Palmer tried his first pear. 

After breakfast we came back to the apartment and Mom napped while Dalton helped me make crepes for our lunch. In the afternoon we went swimming while Derek did some work from home and stayed with Palmer during his nap. Dalton and I played catch with a nerf football in the pool...and now my arm is killing me. Because I'm a total wimp. 

In the evening we decided that Mom needed to indulge in some red meat while she was away from Dad, so we took a half hour drive to Tracy and went to Texas Roadhouse. Palmer only ate three bites of his mac and cheese, but he was all about those lemons!

After dinner we all came to the apartment to say our goodbyes. My family is too good, because I miss them every time they leave!! Even though we'll be moving in with them in less than two weeks, my heart was sad to see them go. Derek prescribed a foot rub and an episode of Hogan's Heroes to lift my mood before bed, and it totally worked. Thank heavens for husbands! 

And thank heavens I only had one day of no partying. As we speak I am about ten minutes away from meeting Tana in the city! So I'm off to paint the town--hope you have a wonderful weekend!! 

(Disclaimer: I just want to say that I'm not trying to make light of postpartum depression in the slightest. I didn't truly experience PPD with Palmer, but what I did experience in the first six weeks of his life emotionally was scary, and the hardest thing I've ever been through. I can't imagine the hurt that comes with postpartum depression, and my heart goes out to anyone and everyone dealing with it.)

Let's Get This Party Started!

Today marks the beginning of the end of summer celebration! 

But first...look at my cute little family at the pool yesterday:

I love these guys!!

So anyways...today we are picking up Derek's mom and younger brother Dalton from the airport! Have I mentioned how much I love the Allens? Like, seriously...I need everyone to know that I couldn't possibly have married into a better family. For those who don't know, Derek has eight siblings (beating me by one! dang it). They are some of my best friends in the world! Someday I'll tell you all about each one of them, but since Dally is coming today, I'll just confess that he's my favorite ;) 

And my parents-in-law??? Guys. They're so so amazing. I have felt 100% a part of this family since before Derek and I were even married. I CANNOT wait to see my second mom. 

Which brings me to an announcement... we're moving in with the Allens in two weeks! Ok, so I know that for most people, moving in with the in-laws would be dreaded. But not for me. It helps to know that we'll kind of have our own space in their ginormous house. And to know that it's only until New Year's. But truly, I am so excited to be with them! Not only will Palmer get to finally see his grandparents more, all four of Derek's older siblings also live in Grantsville...his younger sister lives in Provo...and his two younger brothers live in Salt Lake! The only person not around is the baby of the family, Hannah, because she's serving a mission in Ohio. (P.S. I miss you Han Banan! Like crazy). But basically it's going to be one big non-stop Allen party, and I can't wait! 

PLUS...guess who else lives in Salt Lake? My older siblings Spencer and Tana and their families! This will be the first time since I left for school three years ago that I am this close to any of my family!

So we're celebrating the end of a crazy California summer first with a visit from Mom and Dalton...and then the very day they leave, my sister Tana and her little family will arrive in San Francisco! You best believe we're going to be seeing sights and hitting beaches for ten days! 

Pretty much...my life is awesome. You'll hear all about it later this week! And then watch for an update on what I've been doing all summer...complete with an overload of Palmer pictures :) 

Labor Day

It's Labor Day!! Did you sleep in? Are you off to the lake/beach?!

I didn't sleep in. Because...Palmer. 

Bless that little tyke, he got up at 6:57 this morning. The kid has no concept of weekends or holidays, except the occasional Sunday when he decides to snooze an extra two hours and make us late for church. 😳🙈

We're also not hitting the beach today, due to the van needing a $2500 repair (😭) and the car being out of gas and us being poor. Plus, Derek totally has to work today! Such is the summer sales life. 

But guess what was awesome about this morning? Derek let me take a bath in complete peace, and I sat in there for half an hour cyber-stalking my internet pal MaLyn! 

Here's the story...I actually don't even know her, you guys. This is going to be embarrassing because I'm revealing my creeper tendencies! But I became Facebook friends with her when I joined her awesome group Mom Club. This group is full of so many amazing moms with diverse backgrounds, religious beliefs, etcetera. I have come to love so many of these women as they share their heartaches, joys, and plain old ridiculous mom-life experiences. There is such a sense of camaraderie between mothers because we all know what it's like to turn our hearts and lives over to a tiny human. Anyway, MaLyn is the administrator of this group and is always posting fun challenges for us and encouraging us to make the most of life, but also to be real about what we go through each day. Her blog centers on "real life mom life", and reading it over the past month or two has been so inspiring to me! She makes me want to blog for reals, and talk about the good, the bad, and the STINKY of life as a parent. 

So there you have it. My obsession with online stalking has been exposed. MaLyn is probably off to the police station to get a cyber-restraining order as we speak, but before she does let me direct you to her blog so you can join in the fun. Head on over to malynlogic.com. You'll love it, I promise!

P.S. Don't worry about us not going to the lake--we're definitely hitting up the apartment complex pool this afternoon, because my California tan is sadly nonexistent. And what's the point of even being in California without getting tan?🏊🏼 Happy Labor Day, friends!