An Early Valentine's Date

On Saturday John and I went on a fabulous date on a Murder Mystery Dinner Train. It was my brother and sister-in-law's Wedding Anniversary, so we went with them to celebrate along with my parents, grandparents, aunt and uncle, and sister-in-law's parents. We had such a great time. It was fun to get dressed up (and wear a bridesmaid dress I thought I would never be able to wear again), and enjoy the five-course meal that was served.

However, the best part of the night was definitely the entertainment. The Murder Myster was Hilarious!! They asked for a volunteer actor from each table to participate in the Murder Mystery, so of course John was our actor. He played the disgruntled ex-boyfriend, Tyrone Powers. He was absolutely hilarious, and got a round of applause after he delivered his first line. Everyone on the train was laughing so hard at John after every line that he had. The lines weren't all that funny, but John was just so hilarious in the way that he delivered them (any of you who know John, will know that he does not get embarrased, and therefore doesn't hold back). John ended up winning best actor at the end of the night. He also had the director of the train come up to him and thank him, saying that they prayed for people like him to be on the train. It was such a fun night, and one that I am not likely to forget anytime soon.

Our table with my aunt and uncle




My award-winning husband

A Muddy Afternoon

On Saturday, we had a nice break from the winter weather, and took advantage of the sunny afternoon by spending some time with Makenna outside. Of course with the sun and warmer weather comes the mud from the melting snow. Makenna didn't seem to mind though, so we let her get as muddy as she wanted.




In school news, the decision keeps getting harder. We found out that John was accepted to two more schools, which is great, but now we have two more schools to consider in making our decision. Right now the decision seems to be between the University of Texas, BYU, and Indiana University. I'll definitely post as soon as the decision is made.

It's Official

We're heading back to school in the fall. And although we are not exactly sure where we will end up yet, we are sure that we will be going somewhere.

John applied to 6 different schools, and so far we have heard back from 3 of them, and he has been accepted to all of them! A few weeks ago, we found out that John had been accepted to the business school (McCombs) at the University of Texas in Austin (go Longhorns!), and today we found out that he was accepted to BYU's b school (Marriott) as well. (He was also accepted to the University of Nebraska, and although it would be nice to be able to stay close to my family, it was more of a backup school, so is out of the picture.)

I am torn on where I want to go. On the one hand, I absolutely loved my experience at BYU, and I think I would like to go back. It is familiar to me, and way cheaper than Texas. Plus, I know there would be lots of other young moms to hang out with. But, most of my fond memories of BYU are tied with my experiences of being on Folk dance, and meeting and falling in love with John. Would it ruin my perfect memories to go back and not officially be a part of BYU, just be on the sideline?? The jury is still out on that one.

On the other hand, I think it would be really fun to live in Austin, and explore a new city. I also think that I would enjoy the warmer weather. But, unlike BYU, I'm sure that I will be one of only a select group of moms, and John and I would be further in debt than we would be if we went to BYU.

Luckily since we are still waiting to hear back from 3 more schools, we don't have to make any decisions right now. I guess I should just be grateful that he has been accepted to multiple schools, and we will have a choice to make.

New Words

Makenna is almost 14 months old now, and has been starting to learn some new words. Her current vocabulary consists of the following:

Mom - She literally says mom, and not ma ma

Dad - Same things with dad, it is not da da, but dad

Muh - (More) She says this ALL of the time

Men - (Amen) Makenna learned to say this while we were in Colorado for Christmas. She now says it everytime we say a family prayer. She has also learned to fold her arms. (Well she actually just clasps her hands together, but it is pretty cute.) She starts doing it as soon as she notices me setting the table for dinner.

Boo - She says this while playing peek-a-boo games with us

Bup - (Dog) I really don't know where this one came from, but this is what she called Dallas in Colorado. Sometimes it sounds more like dog, but most of the time it is just bup.

Ba - Bath

Moo - This is really the only animal noise she can make so far

Makenna is also doing a lot of other really fun things. She mimicks everything that John and I do, and she loves to help with chores like laundry (she puts the clothes in the washer and the dryer), unloading the dishwasher (she will bring everything to me), and picking up (as long as we make it a game). She will pretty much follow any instructions that I give her (except when I tell her to stop doing something that she wants to do). It is amazing how much more she understands than I give her credit for. She also loves to dance and kick her legs, which is quite hysterical to watch. Makenna seems too grown up to be my little baby anymore, which is sad, but she still loves to snuggle and gives the best hugs and kisses, so I'm happy.

Christmas in Colorado

This year, we spent Christmas in Colorado with John's family. I was a little nervous about the eight hour drive, but Makenna did fairly well, and it was well worth the trip. We had a great time hanging out with John's parents and 3 younger brothers. Makenna loved all of the attention she got from her uncles and grandparents, and also enjoyed chasing around their dog Dallas. Personally, I enjoyed the pre-Christmas shopping, all of my mother-in-law's cooking, getting pedicures with my mother-in-law (we hope to make this a new tradition), reading books 3 and 4 in the Twilight series (LOVED them), and being able to spend time with all of the family. Thank you guys for letting us spend our Christmas with you!

I did a REALLY bad job taking pictures on the trip, but here are a few:

Makenna with John and her uncle Mike.


Makenna with a shopping cart that she stole from Grandma CeCe's Preschool.


Playing at the preschool with John and uncle Dan.


Makenna trying to take off her cute t-shirt that she got from her Grandma and Grandpa. It says "Property of the Pawlowski Family".


And of course Dallas, the family's dog.

Merry Christmas!

I just wanted to wish everyone a Very Merry Christmas! (Also wanted to say thanks for the separation anxiety comments; they were very helpful. Makenna and I both did very well during our time apart, and it was great to have some Husband and Wife time.)

Separation Anxiety

Is it normal for first-time moms to have separation anxiety?

John and I are scheduled to leave later on this afternoon to visit a school several hours away, and will be gone overnight. This will be my first night being away from Makenna since she was born. I feel like I should be ready and excited to have a little bit of a break, but I can't help but be nervous and anxious about leaving her. Makenna will be staying with my mom while we are gone, and although I know that Makenna loves my mom, and I trust her (my mom) 100%, I can't help but worry about whether she will be able to sleep okay in a strange house and bed, if she will eat okay, whether or not she will think that we have abandoned her, etc...

I know that I will enjoy being able to spend some alone time with John, and I just hope that I can relax enough not to ruin it. Is this normal, or am I just ridiculous?