Update

The Two-Hour Flight:
Hazel did better than expected. I packed a bag full of crafts and new toys, which kept her happily occupied most of the time. And the lady at the check-in desk did us a huge favor by placing us in the bulkhead next to the ONLY empty seat in the entire plane. It was awesome to have that extra space to spread out onto. Haz happily strung pasta on pipe cleaners, squished playdough, investigated a new sticker book, and was pumped full of snacks. There was a half hour in the middle where she started to lose it, but she calmed down when she was standing on my lap looking back at all the people on the plane, as I quietly sang "Old McDonald" into her ear. Really, she was a champ. Thank goodness for direct flights, though.

The Wedding:
Scott and Caprice are now happily wed. I'm so glad I got to go. You wouldn't know it by the contents of my camera, though. I took not a darned picture of anything but Hazel. My sister Emily did take a few shots of our little family, however, and I am thoroughly pleased to have an up-to-date family photo. (Check out the header.) But anyway, it was fun to see them so completely mesmerized with each other. So cute!

Todd:
Todd was in Alabama up until the day before the wedding. He asked for a layover in Salt Lake on his flight back to Cali, and hopped off. He met us at the hotel we stayed at Friday night. (My parents live in Logan, the reception Friday night was in Payson, and events started in Salt Lake at 8:30 Saturday morning, so we booked a couple rooms at a hotel a block away from the temple and had a big family sleepover.) Hazel was [almost] as excited as me to have Todd back.

Todd caught the same flight back to San Jose that Hazel and I were on, and boggled my mind by getting Hazel to fall asleep in his arms a few minutes before we loaded the plane. Hazel napped in his arms for over half the flight, which really helped things go better.

Random:
Todd came back from Redbox a couple nights ago with "New Moon." I know I'm totally behind on this, but I've got to say it anyway. Edward's chest disgusted me. Maybe it was the stark contrast to buff, tan Jacob, but when Edward took his shirt off to step out onto the Italian plaza and reveal himself as a vampire, I recoiled at his patchy hair, his super white/gray skin, and his complete lack of muscles. How could Bella choose him over Jacob?

Random Thoughts When I Should Be in Bed

Hazel is obsessed with THIS song. (There weren't any super sweet videos on youtube, so sorry you have to bear with the American Idol footage.)Every time it plays on our iTunes playlist, she bounces around and begs me to pick her up to dance. She seriously gets stoked when she hears it. It's darn cute.

I'm gearing up for a trip to Utah for my brother Scott's wedding. I'm super excited for him and his fiancee Caprice! And it will be a blast to get together with my family, especially my sister Emily who I haven't seen in nearly a year. But I am scared of the plane ride with the monkey. Hazel's always been an awesome traveler, but last time we were on a plane she could barely walk, and now she practically does flips off the walls. Pray for me on Tuesday!

Todd's in Alabama for two weeks for more military training. I'm tired of not living with my husband. It's so old. Hazel asks where he is every day and it breaks my heart. I haven't ever sat down to crunch numbers, but he's already been gone one year out of five. Then there have been weekends every month, weeks here and there, and even a couple stretches where we've been apart months at a time. I bet we've been together about 7 out of every 10 days since we've been married. Not cool. I demand more man time!

I made ginger cookies tonight and only ate 6. I'm feeling pretty proud of myself. ;) Good luck making it through the rest of the weekend without gaining a few pounds!

I'm trying to read "The Ropemaker." It was recommended. I feel weird about it. I've had it over a week and am less than halfway through, so that's already a terrible sign. I like it when I open it, but I never want to open it. I'm debating whether or not it would be worth bringing to Utah, or even keeping. Should I just return it to the library? I have another book on the hold shelf.

Okay, time to sleep.