Get a Snack, It's a Long One!

We just got back from Utah yesterday. We'd originally planned on going there for just two days for Paulie's appointment at Primary Children's (actually Rockwell's appointment to be exact). Vinny also had training in Salt Lake for one day. But then Vinny's grandma died and that extended the trip a few more days. So we have a lot to update! Pay attention people!

Before we left, Paulie got a special treat! A new (well Bugsy's hand me down) front-facing car seat! This was great because we spent a ton of time in the car this last week. Pictured above, Vinny is getting the new car seat all sized up, and Paulie was thrilled when we finally started driving! On the way back from Utah, Bugsy and Paulie were so tuckered out, don't they look sweet? Karina got a very special gift just before we left. She has been holding out for a new parakeet from Aunt Becky's sister. Finally we got one. This may be the most loved bird on the planet.

We didn't spend much time with my family, but I was able to snap a few choice pictures. Joe always gets a cake for any visitors, and this was no exception. This time, my mom went easy on the bakery lady and just had her put "Etc." so funny! Bugsy and Joe had a few shin kicking contests. Bugsy thinks Joe is the toughest man in the world (little does he know that Joe wears hard plastic braces that cover his legs). I also snapped a beautiful picture of Joe just after he combed his own hair. What a handsome man! We got to spend a few hours with my nephew Jack, so drooly and cute! In the middle picture we have Joe with his mission companion (also named Joe) who has Down Syndrome. Bugsy had a great time playing with both the Joe's. It was a quick but great visit.

On Thursday Paulie, Rockwell and I headed up to Primary Children's Medical Center to meet with the eye doctor again. He has been watching Rockwell to make sure he does not begin to grow behind Paulie's eye and push it out of the socket (apparently that can happen when this type of Hemangioma is so close to the eye. We got some great news! Rockwell is not growing at all, and the doctor thinks he is done growing. We don't have to see him again until September, but we do still see the plastic surgeon at Primary Children's. I know it may sound dumb to some people, but I am just so glad that Paulie's vision will be ok. I don't really care about how it looks. We know it will go away in a few years and in the mean time the plastic surgeon will keep it in check.

The drive to and from PCMC was almost more eventful than the appointment itself. I was stuck in traffic FOREVER and was totally out of gas. As you can see from the picture, Paulie also just LOVED being in a traffic jam. The only fun part was that while I drove all over Salt Lake, very slowly, I got to show off my Cullen love!

After the appointment and Vinny's training were over we were able to visit with many of Vinny's family members. We were able to see many at the funeral, most of which we had not seen in years. Vinny's sister Jennifer and her family were in town, and Bugsy was so excited to see them I thought he was going to burst! We were able to go to the Thanksgiving Point Dino Museum with them, one of Bugsy's favorite places. We also went to Vinny's other grandma's house to have a March Birthday celebration.

While we were at the museum, both Bugsy and Karina played in the sand. Bugsy spent most of his playing time waving in front of the motion sensors at the washing station. Karina had a great time building mountains out of sand. I also snapped a great picture of Grandpa holding Hunter and David, all three with March birthdays. And Bugsy loved eating lunch with all his boy cousins. As usual, the best part of visiting Grandma was the tree swing. We had a great visit, even though it included a funeral. It was so wonderful to see so many family members and get such good news from the doctor. What a great week!