It's been a month.

Wow - it has been a month since I have written anything down on this blog. Time really does fly. But I am not surprised. Time flew because I was having fun of course.

We just got back last night from our wonderful 2 1/2 week visit to my family. Washington greeted us and sent us off in its usual fashion: rain. Oh how it rained. I forgot that the Pacific Northwest can do that; rain for weeks straight.

We took it in stride and decided to enjoy our time relaxing, playing board games, reading new books, going to indoor playgrounds, eating and drinking each other in.

Highlights include:

-Playing our own made up version of Mexican Train Dominoes. It was addicting and even got my mom to stay up past 11. That is epic folks (Just in case you like to imagine the writer reading their blog out loud, I pronounce the "L" in folks.)

-Taking Norah to the play center in the middle of the mall and having my family report that they saw her almost rip an Elmo shirt off some poor little boy. My mom made me buy her an Elmo shirt after that. I am typically against character items for her (I don't really have a good reason why) but made an exception to make my mom happy.

-Going to the Old Country Buffet 3 times while home. This buffet is designed for old people and is for some reason frequented by not only the elderly, but by many Mexican and Asian families as well. The food is so-so, the staff are, oddly enough, incredible, the facility is clean, and it is so very Norah friendly. They have mac and cheese, chicken noodle soup, strawberry goo covered bananas and an ice cream cone station. My dad and Norah couldn't have been happier. By her third visit, she knew exactly how to navigate her way back to the ice cream, which, my dad pointed out is quite the skill seeing as she can't see above all the food bars.

-Spending time with Uncle Butt (Norah had a hard time saying 'Ben') and Auntie Melissa. They spoil her and she adores them. Simple.

-Painting pottery with my grandmother. It's a tradition.

-Having Norah really enjoy my Grandad for the same reasons I did as a kid. It was good for the soul.

-Seeing good friends. Nothing flows like a conversation founded in years of history. Heidi, Jill, Emily, Hillary, Lillian, Carissa, Katie - you cannot be replaced!

-Finally getting together with my friend Jamie and Norah's birth-week buddy Trevek. We hadn't seen each other since our toddler were tiny. Cutest pictures to come.

-Attending my friend Megan's wedding. It was epic and beautiful and you could feel the electricity in the room. So many hearts were beyond happy for this godly couple. (Sitting with the Hodges at the reception was just icing on the cake...or I guess whipped cream on the pie in this case :)

-Singing lullaby's to Norah with my mom at night.

-Having my dad bring me home a can of spray cheese.

-Watching Norah discover that the dogs are below her on the food chain and the inevitable power trip that followed.

More to come. For now I must get to bed.