Playtime

Our Very Own Marriage Retreat

Thursday afternoon The Mekhail's decided it was time for some away time together. Not next month...not next year...right that second. George asked what I wanted to do and I of course say, "I want to go to Disneyland." So being the great husband that George is, he says, Ok...let's do it. You want Disneyland...I'll give you Disneyland. 2 hours later...we pulled it off. We were on a flight down to Orange County. Yup...we actually scored both grandma and grandpa's to watch Kingston until Sunday at such short notice!!! We are very blessed. By 10pm Thursday night we were cozied up in our hotel room in Anaheim, California ready for the days ahead! We bounced all around Disney all day Friday and all day Saturday, even had time to take a time out for an In N Out burger. OH how I miss those. Highlights?

Best Rides:

George- Toy Story in California Adventure (You got to play 5 games and compete with each other...I would like to note that I beat George literally at every game and had the best accuracy...he only won both times we went on this ride cause at the end you can shoot for points over and over again and he can shoot faster than I...boo.)

Danielle- Thunder Mountain Railroad AT NIGHT in Disneyland (nothing compares...sorry)

Worse Rides:

George- Mr. Toads Wild Ride in Disneyland (At the end of the ride you collide with a train, die and go to hell...he wasn't down with that!)

Danielle-Hollywood Tower of Terror in California Adventure (yes kids, I cried. seriously. I cried. I was terrified.)

Best Quotes of the Trip:

#1

Danielle: Oh! Tinkerbell!

George: Oh yeah...she got her own movie...good for her!

#2

George: Did you see that big black guy? He's a celebrity...

Danielle: Oh really? Who was he?

George: I don't know his name, but I know he's an actor.

(some minutes pass by)

George: Actually, now that I think about it, I remember him in a crying scene...

(Danielle rolls eyes and notices George on his phone)

Danielle: What are you doing?

George: Googling Big Black Actor + Emotional.

Best Things:

-Watching Disneyland fireworks from the balcony of our hotel room every night.

-The Disneyland Parade at night.

-Talking to a homeless man tell us about his 15 wild cats that he feeds everyday and that he really needs to find his black cat cause he's scared someone will sacrifice it at halloween.

-Ditching Space Mountain cause the wait was 60 minutes and as we were leaving an employee said we could get a magical fastpass and just let us walk on!

-Meeting Mickey Mouse and me actually feeling embarrassed as if he was an actual celebrity.

-Watching Mark Driscoll sermons each night before we fell asleep.

-Spending time as husband as wife!

Worse Thing:

-Taking really only 1 picture...yup...the one with Mickey.

BEST BEST THING....

-Coming home to Kingston and finding out he rolled over in his sleep! Grandma J says he woke up this morning on his tummy! Way to go Kingston!

Punkin' Patchin'

Saturday was such a beautiful day to take Kingston to Remlinger Farms to pick out a pumpkin for him.

Best Family Photo 2008 (Please Note: My camera died the minute we got here so these photos are courtesy of Jourdey and Leah...SO HAPPY we ran into you!)

Mommie and Daddie I want *this* one!

And one lil mixed pumpkin (half orange, half green) for our lil mixed pumpkin!

Just Cause It's Been Awhile:

I haven't blogged in awhile...there's really nothing to blog about. What? Nothing to blog about? But you have a child!? Eh...sometimes, there's still not too much to report. The Mekhail's have been super busy. I declare this super busy October. We're doing something everyday. I feel like I don't even have time to take photos. And who likes to read blogs without photos? I know, right? Maybe this would be a good blog to ask all you blog readers out there to keep our family in your prayers. We have so much going on in our lives, so many big decisions to make and going through so many changes. On a funnier note though: George and I played a CLASSIC game of "I'm Thinking Of An Animal" yesterday while Kingston was napping. One of us thinks of an animal and then the other has to ask Yes or No questions to guess the animal. (Yup, we're cool, don't be jealous). Here are the two times that is was George's turn to think of the animal....

(After about 10 questions...)
Danielle: Is is a Hippopotamus?
George: No. Oh wait...Yes....wait. No...
Danielle: Um...it's your animal?
George: Yeah it's a hippo. I couldn't remember if it was a hippopotamus or a rhinoceros. Then I remembered rhinoceros's are extinct.
Danielle: Um George...no they're not.
George: Aren't they are dinosaur...you know...rhino-saurus?
Really George?

(Animal #2)
Danielle: Is it a mammal?
George: Yes.
Danielle: Does it have fur?
George: Yes.
Danielle: Does it have 2 legs?
George: Yes.
Danielle: Is it an owl?
George: Yes.
This explains why we're married to each other. That whole question and answer session took less than 5 minutes...George clearly doesn't know how to describe animals and well...I still got it!

And on a more exciting note: Kingston had a major breakthrough last night with his rice cereal. At first, he was keeping his mouth closed so tight. He wouldn't even attempt to open cause he knew what was up. Then after a couple tries all of a sudden something like clicked in his head and he practically dove for the bowl! He couldn't get enough! George was trying to shovel a little at a time into his mouth and he would practically devour the spoon. He was so cute and we both almost cried. It was amazing to see him get the hang of something so new right before our very eyes.

If I Had To Do It All Over Again, Would I?

This is my sweet puppy, Gracie. Well...she's almost 4 years old so not so much a puppy, but she'll always be a puppy to me. 5.3 lbs. (weighed today actually!) and full of as many licks as you want! She's so cute and so much fun! Well...this sweet joy of my life became mine Christmas day I guess almost 4 years ago :) Love her to death...seriously. I didn't even realize until today. Since Kingston came into the world, she's definitely not number 1 anymore and I haven't really been neglecting her, but she definitely doesn't get all the attention she got before. Anyways, I had to take her to the vet today cause I noticed a lump on her back. 300 dollars later we walk away with a maybe,so-called "infection" (the lump) or it could possibly be some type of growth, maybe malignant? We don't know...oh...don't forget her teeth are practically falling out and she has an ear infection in BOTH ears. :( SO SAD! I was bawling on the phone with George. How could I not have noticed any of this earlier?!?! I felt like such a bad puppy parent. So she's on antibiotics for the possible "infection" and then we have two ointments I have to put on her twice a day, one for her ears and one for the lump. If the antibiotics don't work within a couple weeks, we have to talk about getting the growth removed. And since her teeth are practically falling out? We have to put her under in a couple weeks and have an actual deep cleaning and the doctor said he would just remove the growth then. So I'm driving home after hearing all this and just don't even know what to make of it. How could such a little animal become such a HUGE part of your life? I seriously don't even know what I would do if something happened to her. Seriously...if I had to do it all over again, I would rethink getting a dog. It's not the training...or the money it takes for the upkeep...it's not the annoying licks or how long she takes to go to the bathroom...it all comes down to, what in the world am I going to do if she got really sick and died? Or even got hit by a car? I think I would die. My heart hurt so much today after the doctor told me all this stuff and I got so sad. Now I'm staring at her as I'm writing this and she's cuddled on the floor in the corner of the couch looking not so great (probably from all the meds she had to take tonight!) and I feel so bad. I hope she lives forever :) And if you ask me...there's FOR SURE puppy heaven!

Talk About Feeling Out Of Place...

So...since I'm pretty much wife and mom of the year (what? you didn't hear?) I decide to try new dinner recipes every now and then so it doesn't feel like we are eating the same thing over and over again...which it does even when I throw in something new. Beside the point...so I decide to make some sort of peanut chicken dish (turned out amazing by the way). But of course, there's like 6 ingredients I've never heard of and have to travel across the world to find. Lucky for me, I live in America. We pretty much have everything here. So I make what I thought would be a short trip to THE ONE...AND ONLY...Uwajimaya!

I know right? What the heck? I've driven by it...I've heard of it...I know of a friend who shops here often...but me? Go here? *PICTURE* Young girl, blonde hair, blue eyes, my pink notepad with my shopping list on it with my Kate Spade wristlet and holding my pink blackberry phone...and if you know me at all? I'm a mac and cheese kinda gal, always fine right where I am, scared to go into unknown places, sometimes get lost in Safeway? But here I am, standing in the middle of a Japanese market...all I see are things written in a different language...I'm walking so slow so I make sure I don't pass what I need...in the meantime, being trampled on by who I'm assuming "the regulars" who stare me down cause apparently I'm standing in their way and clearly look lost and out of place (I was literally mauled by a chick who was really passionately after some....thing? I don't even know what it was...but she really bum rushed me and shoved like 10 of whatever it was into a plastic bag as fast as Lightning McQueen...sheesh). After several minutes...I call George. "Scuse me? George? I need you..." George claims he couldn't help me. He would claim that. Although, he did offer to speak to one of the Asian workers at the store for me...yeah that's right. He wanted me to hand my phone off to a worker so he could ask them where I could find my ingredients. Like I'm not embarrassed enough. So I say I just gotta go and spent the rest of the time going UP and DOWN the aisles like 10 times until I thought I had everything. Then I came across these:

Yup...chicken feet. PEACE OUT! But then, I was so scared to go to the check out counter. THEN I remembered, "Oh yeah...I'm still in Bellevue, WA...I'm ok...they'll take the American dollar."

Check Up

*SPOTTED* The King at Eastside Family Medical Clinic for his 4th month check up. Stats are as follows:

-Weight: 13lbs. 14oz. (50%)

-Length: 26 in. (75%)

-Head: 42 cm. (50%)

We still have a growing boy on our hands...woohoo! Still long and skinny! He also got 4 more shots, poor guy. He wasn't having any part of this check up either. He must have known the shots were comin' the whole time. Despite Kingston's stuffy and runny nose, sneezing and cough...he's still perfectly healthy! I had a few concerns to discuss with the doctor, turns out...all normal. Of course. Doc says he sees no teeth coming in yet, he looks great and he'll see him back at 6 months. We're supposed to still keep at it with the rice cereal once a day...eventually he'll get the hang of it...then about a week before his 6 month check up, try out green veggies! JUMP BACK. I know. Time is flying by...

And on top of his growing eating habits, we think he's accomplishing so much everywhere else too...(no...no...not walking:)) He LOVES to be standing...even more than sitting. He's become such a squirmer, sometimes you don't even know what he wants to do. Doesn't want to lay down, doesn't want to sit, doesn't want to stand...I think he just wants to get movin' in life and is frustrated cause he can't. Well Kingston...MAYBE if you would appreciate tummy time a little more you can get a little stronger and get going, but nooooooo. Doesn't know how to roll over yet either, but sometimes he gets really close! He loves to shove his whole hand in his mouth...drools like crazy...actually, he'll pretty much attempt to put anything in his mouth if it's in front of him. He likes it when I blow on his tummy and tickle him when I change his diaper. He's laughing more and more. George throws him up in the air...I panic...George does it again...I panic. Kingston loves the mirror...holds his head up very well...sticks his tongue out alot...still coo's, caw's, and squeel's. Sometime's we'll even be driving and he'll be talking away in the backseat. So cute. He moves his arms and legs ALOT and bats at his toys...most importantly we mastered our sleep problem! It's true...I think it was the fact that we were swaddling him incorrectly for the past 3 months. We have this special swaddling blanket called the Miracle Blanket and up until about 3 weeks ago we've been using it wrong! Ha! I was talking to a fellow mom who was telling me about how she used it and I was like, "Uhhhhhh, that is clearly not how we've been doing it." So that night, George and I tried it...THE RIGHT WAY and what do you know...we're sleeping through the night again. Hasn't woken up ONCE since we changed our method. Ok...poor choice of words...he does wake up:) But after about 10-11 hours of night sleep. He goes to bed around 7:30/8pm and wakes up about 6:30/7am So, note to self: Read the directions of how to use your swaddling blanket. It really does make all the difference in the world :)

Scrabble

George and I actually finished our first game of scrabble...EVER. Don't worry...I won.

4 Months

Can you believe it...we made it another month! Kingston turned 4 months today!!! He has his official 4 month check up on Monday so I'll have a more detailed blog after his appointment, but I did just want to mention the actual day :) AND! In honor of his special day...we tried out rice cereal...Go Kingston! Don't worry...I captured the entire 5 second event...

Hey Mom!

Uh...what the heck is that?!?!

Yeah, you're making me real nervous...

No seriously...don't come any closer...

Aw man...the ole "airplane" trick...I fall for it everytime...

Sick. Dawg.

Please. Don't ever feed me that again.