Banks family in Cancun

Oct 22, 2004—Wow!  It’s been a long time since I updated all Halle’s accomplishments.  We’ll start with the Banks family trip to Mexico.  We all flew to Mexico on Aug 16th of a week of fun in the sun. 

HHalle and Bridger were both doped up on Benadryl but it seemed to work better on Bridger than it did on Halle.  We had a whole huge bag filled with toys, treats, and books  to keep her entertained.  Rusty even brought along the laptop with a Baby Einstein DVD.  The kids did awesome on the flight and had Grandma and Grandpa to hold them when they got sick of Mom and Dad.  Kami, Brett, and Brynn met up with us in Dallas then the whole clan flew to Cancun.  We made it without and major mishaps until we arrived at the hotel.  They had mixed up our reservations and we had to go through a two day ordeal to get everything worked out, but it was worth it.  our room was beautiful.  We were 3 stories up and our suite overlooked the ocean.

But even more amazing than the view was that Halle started to crawl about the second we arrived in Mexico.  All the floors were tile and she hated scooting her little tummy across the cold floor.  It was so cute to see her try to master the arm and leg motion.  But she picked it up fast and a few hours later we had a crawler!

The kids had a great time being together and hanging out in the pool and on the beach.  Sadly, I think they preferred the pool.  Halle kept eating sand and then she would get so sad and try to get it out of her mouth, but the problem was there was still sand on her hands, so she ended up eating more.  Poor baby.  But it made for some cute pictures!  Bridger loved everything and was a handful, as usual.He had Halle get along so well.  Halle just adores him, and he will squat down to her level and “talk” to her.  She loves it. 

Grandpa Banks spent the trip bribing the kids with popsicles and he had three little friends gathered around him at all times. They were like little baby birds. Brynn was still a little shy around the family but she warmed up in the end. 

On Wed we decided to leave the resort and take in the sights.  We rented a 12-man van and off we went.  Sharon still can’t believe her little family is now big enough to fill a van.  Bridger and Brynn loved the freedom from the carseat, but Halle still had to sit in hers.  Our first stop was the Crococoon Zoo.  Halle fell asleep on the ride there so Grandma stayed in the car with her.  We got to hold baby crocodiles, pet a monkey, hold a snake, and stand about 3 feel from a full grown crocodile.  Whew!  AND, a mean deer tried to eat me.  Bridger didn’t love the crocodiles and didn’t want to let Grandpa near them.  Near the end Halle woke up so Grandma and I took her to see the monkeys.  The monkey would put its tail on the fence in hopes that you would give it food.  I put my finger on its tail to show Halle how it would grab on.  Well, the monkey squeezed a little tighter than I had anticipated and so I screamed.  This startled Halle and the monkey, who then decided to charge us.  It was on a leash and couldn’t get too near us, but it scared the poor baby to death.  She was hysterical for awhile and didn’t want anything else to do with the monkeys.

Next stop was Tulum.  It was so beautiful to see the ancient ruins right on the oceanfront.  The babies didn’t care about Tulum too much but the grown-ups loved it.

Our last stop of the day was Xel-ha.  Since we got there late in the afternoon we got a great discount!  Only $5/person.  Well all took turns tending the kids and snorkeling in the bay.  I saw my first sting ray.  It was amazing!  On the ride home all the babies crashed out—they were tired from their day adventure. 

The next day the boys decided to go golfing, so us girls and babies went to the mall.  It was pretty much a flee market, touristy place, but it was air conditioned.  Grandpa got all the kids t-shirts and maracas.  Halle’s shirt said, “Help, mom’s having a bad day, call 1-800-GRANDMA.  It was so cute. 

Our last day we got to go to an outdoor buffet complete with dancing.  The kids were fascinated by the dancers, but Halle tired of it quickly and we whisked her off to bed.  Our flight into Dallas got delayed after we had landed on the runway and we sat on the hot stuff plane for another 1/2 hour..  That did not go over well.  But we made it home safe and will always remember our Cancun adventure.

Halle 8 1/2 months

Halle is now 8 1/2 months.  Time is flying by.  This has been a big month for the little munchkin.  Her second tooth popped through, so now she has two cute chompers on the bottom.  She has also learned to scoot!  It is so cute.  Daddy was home with her one morning and all of the sudden she started scooting across the floor.  He was amazed.  She uses her little arms to pull herself across the floor.  She especially loves scooting on the kitchen floor because she can go places FAST.  She scoots over to the door stoppers and flicks them to her heart’s content.  When she is done playing she will scoot over to me and tap my foot until I pick her up.

Also this month Halle has learned to wave.  She uses her whole arm in an up and down motion.  The first time she waved was to Grandma and Grandpa Cornell when Halle and I were leaving after visiting for a few days. 

Halle had her first sleepover with Grandma and Grandpa Cornell last weekend.  Mommy and Daddy to go to stay at the Anniversary Inn in SLC and see Sarah McLaughlin in concert.  We had a great time and Halle had fun spending time with Grandma and Grandpa and and her aunts and uncles.  Grandpa taught Halle all about lights and now wherever we walk into a romm she immediately looks up and points at the light.  If you ask her, “Where’s the light?” she cranes her little head around until she can see it.  It’s so funny.  Then she will point at it with one finger and coo.

And…I graduated.

Best friends and neighbors graduating college the same day with our tiny babies.