BANFF DAY 2

I know it's been over a month since our Banff getaway, but I'm still determined to blog about every second of that dreamy trip. So here's day 2! (There's probably 3 hours worth of picture scrolling, so be forewarned...) :

We started the day off with a short hike and amazing view of Peyto Lake. That turquoise blue water we saw everywhere never ceased to take our breath away. In combination with the mountains, it's just such a uniquely beautiful place. Seriously where else can you see this in the world?

We decided to hike a little further up and explore the woods, which is one of my favorite things ever. Getting lost in a big forest and being surrounded by trees and fresh mountain air for miles and miles on end. We stopped to take a few photos of our little fox because, well, how could we not?!

After about 15 minutes of hiking deep into the woods, I suddenly got this extreme fear that we would run into a bear. They are everywhere in the Banff mountains, so there's always a risk anywhere you go. With me being pregnant and having the most precious little boy in the world, I was on extra high alert and just couldn't BEAR the thought of anything happening to my perfect little family. (pun intended)

So I made us turn around immediately and I was convinced the rest of the way that a bear would jump out at us and attack us. I was pretty scared, and relieved when we made it back to the main tourist site. Who knows what would have happened if we would have kept venturing on?? Maybe there really was a bear around and my mama instincts were kicking in? I guess we'll never know. I'm just grateful my little family is safe and sound.

Ps: Have I mentioned how adored this little boy is? People couldn't stop making comments and taking pictures of him. It was so funny. Some even asked for pictures with him.

After that little adventure we went and had lunch at beautiful lake we passed while driving. There are seriously endless lakes and places to explore, and I feel like we should have spent a full week there. It was FREEZING and so windy, probably not the best day for a picnic, but we bundled up and did it anyway. We had our camera on the wrong setting and didn't know it so these aren't the best...and I kinda couldn't stop taking pics of this little boy. He was so cute playing with rocks, and would pick them up and study them. I could watch him explore all day. As adults we don't notice simple things like rocks, but to Kai they are so interesting and new. He always reminds me of the simple beauties in life.

This little boy's love for dogs runs deep. 

After that we went home and rested for bit, then got ready to go out and explore the city area of Banff. We walked along the cutest little strip of tourist shops and restaurants. It was so beautiful with the surrounding mountains, we couldn't get enough of them! They're just so dang grand. Definitely on a whole other level than Utah mountains (sorry Utah I still love you).

Moose everywhere and on everything!

After shopping for a while our noses led us to a Japanese restaurant with ramen, and our mouths started watering in excitement. We hadn't had real Japanese ramen since living in Japan a year ago, so you can imagine our joy in finding it here, in Canada of all places. Of course they were booked for the next hour, so we came back later more excited than ever. It turned out that the ramen wasn't the best, but my don-buri (meat and rice bowl) was decent. 

Deciding which ramen to order...tough choice!

We ended up choosing Shoyu (soy sauce) ramen, as always

Like the true born-in-Tokyo baby that he is, he chooses chop sticks over forks. That's my little 1/8th Japanese baby!

What a perfect day in Banff! I never wanted it to end. It was probably one of the most fun days we've had as a family together.

TEETHBRUSHIN

So lately Kai has the cutest/kinda painful habit of biting Kolby and I. We'll be laying on the couch, and he'll come up and start biting our knees or feet. He thinks it's the funniest thing when we pull away and say OW!

but gosh dang it I love this little guy, biting habits and all.

Speaking of teeth, I want Kai to start getting in the habit of brushing his teeth morning and night!

We just received a toothbrush and toothpaste from Nuby, and we love it! I'm trying to get Kai in the habit of brushing his teeth, even though he still only has 4 top teeth and 2 bottom teeth. Oral hygiene as always been extremely important to me, and I want to make sure and pass that on to Kai. This has become one of my favorite morning routines with him, because we brush our teeth together and obviously everything is more fun with a mini version of yourself :)

This toothpaste is perfect for new little brushers because it's fluoride-free and non-toxic, so when he swallows it I don't have to stress. Because let's be honest, what toddler isn't gonna try to  swallow toothpaste? It actually has a yummy fruity flavor so Kai loves brushing his teeth now. The toothbrush is small and perfect for his little hands, and the bristles are soft so it's not too hard on his gums.

Thanks Nuby for helping us start good habits young! Here's to pearly whites and hopefully a cavity-free babe!

You can buy this toothbrush and toothpaste for only 5.99 here

Thanks Nuby!

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HALLOWEEN & THE LAST BITS OF FALL

I can't believe fall is pretty much over! Now it's onto Thanksgiving and Christmas...which I can't think about because it's just too crazy. Kolby is one of those people who wants to start playing Christmas music the day after Halloween and I'm all like noooooo! I can not hear or do Christmasy stuff until after Thanksgiving.

Anyways, I'm still clinging to fall as much as I can, and decided that posting our Halloween pics and a few pumpkin pics would help me with the post-fall blues. Have I mentioned how much I love Halloween? I really don't know why but I just love getting all dressed up and putting a fun costume together. Kolby hates Halloween, probably because he's a warm fuzzy Christmas person and Halloween isn't exactly warm and fuzzy.

So anyways, a week before Halloween I was sitting browsing through Pinterest and looking for costume ideas when I came across the cutest little Oompa Loompa. Then my mom mentioned she had a purple blazer that my brother had worn a previous year for Halloween, so BOOM, costume found. Willy Wonka and Oompa Loompas it is!

My mom made the Oompa Loompa costumes (she just found white pants and the thrift store and added white strips of fabric as suspenders), and I found the green wig on amazon and just had to get it. I found the big tan bow tie Kolby wore at the thrift store. The only things I wasn't able to find were the brown top hat and cane that Willy Wonka has...so that was sad, but the costume still turned out decent. We printed out labels for the Wonka Bars and taped them on a Hershey's bar. Oh and then the day before Halloween I found the most perfect purple blazer at the thrift store, just my size, and I couldn't just leave it there! So I decided to be Willy Wonka the second night :)

I put white eye shadow above his eyebrows and dusted our faces with orange bronzer that I had in my make-up bag, though face paint would have looked better. (My method saved $$$ though :)

For those of you who want to do this costume in the future...yeah don't use green jello to dye hair. It was so grainy and just didn't work, as you can see in the pictures. We took a washable crayola green marker and that worked much better. Also, Kai looks like a girl with pigtails in some of these photos, since the Jello made his hair so wild. He is too cute. My 25 week pregnant belly looked kinda funny in the costume but whatevvs.

Kai was the cutest oompa loompa in the history of ever. See for yourself...

PS almost all of these are from Kolby's company Halloween party and they had the most perfect waterfall and bridge there that reminded me of the chocolate waterfall and candy bridges in the Willy Wonka movie.

Looks like Mrs. Wonka is expecting...

Ps believe it or not, Kolby actually said he thought the wig was very cute and that I could definitely pull off short hair.  Who woulda thought? Not gonna lie, I'm slightly tempted to chop all my hair off. 

So that pretty much sums up our Halloween.

Here's a few Kai-among-the-pumpkins pictures I took that I obviously can't not post...

MY 14 MONTH OLD

Ohhhh this little boy though.

Just when I think he could not possibly get any cuter, he does.

Kolby and I were staring at him and oogling over him like we do 24/7, and I said "If I could have seen all the little boys in the entire world, I know without a doubt I would have chosen him. I just know it." (Of course I started crying at that point, thanks pregnancy hormones.)
And honestly, I believe I did choose him, because he is everything I dreamed of and more. I literally couldn't dream up a more perfect little boy.

So this 14 month old of mine...

he's got the sweetest little soul, and shares toys with everyone. He never grabs things away from others. If he has something in his hand and I say "give it to so and so," he does every time.

he's pretty dang obedient. When we tell him to stop doing something, he usually does. Except hitting the TV screen. Still working on that one!

he loves his milk more than anything. The other day I put him down for a nap and came in to find him with his arm curled around his milk, like it was a stuffed animal. So funny.

his favorite song ever is Head Shoulders Knees and Toes. We sing it and he tries pointing to things and it's dang cute. He can show me where his ears and tummy are.

whenever he hears a song, whether it's on tv, someone singing to him, or from a toy, he flaps his arms and tries to dance

says "dada" all day long. Still haven't heard him say "mama" yet!

in public places, walks as far away as possible from us, never looks back to see if we are there, and won't hold our hands. He's so independent!

wants to do everything himself. Feed himself, brush his own teeth, etc.

still loves books more than any other toy

very picky eater, and his favorites are grilled cheese, applesauce, and mama's homemade butternut squash or sweet potato puree. (both of which I sneak chicken and carrots in since this boy refuses all veggies and meat!)

loves to be told "good job!" and will do anything to hear it. The lengths he goes to impress us are pretty dang cute.

last but not least, that hair. That beautiful thick long hair. We still refuse to cut it.

Also, Kai loves these bath toys made by Nuby. They come in a 10 pack, and they squirt water when you squeeze them, which he finds pretty fascinating. They make bath time more colorful and fun, which makes my life easier :) Kai even loves to carry them around as toys when he's not in the tub. I can also teach him some of the water animals. I love when I say "Where's the duck?" and he picks up the duck. There's something so satisfying about teaching him new things, and these bath toys are great for that. You can buy them here

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