Thanksgiving and more

It’s Monday, which means I owe all of you a new post! Thank you for waiting so patiently … I suffered little harassment ;) I hope everyone had a very Happy Thanksgiving! Ours was better than we anticipated. We’ll get to our Thanksgiving a little later though.

We have been so busy down here. My Mom and Dad and Kyle and Erin came out the weekend before last. It was so much fun. Dad wasn’t feeling well so on Saturday he slept off his sickness while Mom, Kyle, Erin, Makayla and I went on a South Beach tour. We met one of the other wives, Jessica, down there with her sister, who was also visiting, and took a land and water tour. We got to see all of the landmarks … most importantly, Miami Ink … hahaha. We also got the tour of Star Island where we saw all of the stars homes (J Lo, Shaq, Gloria Estefan, etc). There was nothing good for sale so Steve and I won’t be moving there anytime soon ;) (yeah right)! On Sunday we watched the boys lose AGAIN and then we just hung out the rest of the week. Dad was actually here on business so he had to work.

Kyle, Erin, and Makayla on the tour

Later in the week, Steve and I attended a charity event for A Child is Missing. Steve was busy shaking hands and giving autographs while I followed him around with my glass of wine, smiled, and made small talk with everyone ;) We also made a donation which won us two items in the silent auction. All in all, it was a fun evening. Makayla stayed at home with babysitters for the first time! She did so well. Another one of the guys on the team has 4 little girls. They are 4, 19 months, 1 year, and 1 month!!!! YIKES! They live in the same complex as us and have formed a gang with Makayla. They hired the sitters for the night so we took Makayla to their house.

Makayla and the girls in her new room

Jessica and I at the ACIM Event The next day the team left for an away game. Jessica came and stayed at our house while the boys were gone.

Steve’s first night back he attended another mixer for his Chaplain’s ministry foundation but I stayed home. When my parents were here they kept Makayla for 3 nights and then she had the sitter so I decided I’d better stay home with her and give her some TLC. When my parents took her it was my first time spending the night away! Steve and I were more sad than she was but it was nice sleeping so sound and not waking up at 6:30am!!!!

Steve’s cousin, Noke, flew in from Georgia to spend Thanksgiving with us. We had some of Steve’s teammates and their families over for Thanksgiving dinner. There were about 20 of us. I made my very first turkey and it was great! I cooked a 20 lb. turkey, 15 lbs. of mashed potatoes, and about 5 lbs. of stuffing. NO LEFTOVERS!!!! The rest of the meal was pot luck so everyone brought a dish. We cleared all of the furniture out of our living room and had tables and chairs delivered. Steve also has another cousin who just moved to Miami for work so he came over also with his wife and kids. Their little girl is so funny, she took this video clip of Makayla (turn up the sound). It’s short but funny.




They took the picture of my turkey so I will post it after I get their email.

Our living room before dinner ...
Our living room during dinner ...


On Black Friday Tasha and I went shopping to buy all of our Xmas decorations. The house is already completely decorated and beautiful.




Saturday, Steve and I went over to John Beck's house to watch BYU beat Utah ... boo. Steve was interviewed on a radio show before the game ... here is the link to listen (click on the link, Steve is the 3rd interview down, about 4 minutes in) ... http://mwcfootball.wordpress.com/2007/11/23/more-audio-for-the-holy-war/



Last night I had to go and get Makayla her own little tree because she insists on undecorating the big one and was going to pull it on top of her. I thought if I got a little one that she could play with she would leave the big one alone .... so far, so good. She has pulled the little one on top of her several times though. We decorate it every hour.

Caught in the act ....
Her little tree ...
The boys play Monday Night Football tonight against the Steelers so be sure to check it out. Maybe we’ll get a win. Rumor has it that the Miami police are going stop giving speeding tickets and fines; instead, they are forcing violators to buy tickets to the Dolphin games!!!!!!! Hahahaha … boo …

Here is a pic of Makayla checking her myspace!Have a great week everyone! We miss you!

Clarification ...

My post today was titled, "we're baaaaaack", but there was some confusion. I meant "we're baaaaaack" on the web, our site is up and running again. I definitely did not mean "we're baaaaack" in California. It's bitter sweet but we won't be home for the holidays this year.

Just wanted to clear that up!

Welcome back!!!

This has been an unfortunate season for the Dolphins. Since I will be updating on Mondays, I will probably include a bit from Steve’s Sunday game so I thought I would update you on the season thus far.
Pre-Season
8/11 Jaguars 18-17 W
8/16 @Chiefs 11-10 W
8/25 Buccaneers 28-31 L (it’s all down hill from here)
8/30 @Saints 0-7 L
Regular Season
9/9 @Redskins 13-16 L
9/16 Cowboys 20-37 L
9/23 @Jets 28-31 L
9/30 Raiders 17-35 L
10/7 @Texans 19-22 L
10/14 @Browns 31-41 L
10/21 Patriots 28-49 L
10/28 Giants 10-13 L (played in London)
11/11 Bills 10-13 L
11/18 @Eagles 17-7 L
11/26 @Steelers 8:30pm EST (Monday Night Football)
12/2 Jets 1:00pm EST
12/9 @Bills 1:00pm EST
12/16 Ravens 1:00pm EST
12/23 @Patriots 1:00pm EST
12/30 Bengals 1:00pm EST

And to put a smile on everyone’s face here are some pix:

Steve Fifita #60

Halloween 2007

Makayla was a skunk! She is too cute!


Day at the Beach

I am happy to say the weather has finally changed around here and it is beautiful! The humidty and high temps have left Florida … hopefully until at least march!

Here we go again ...

Happy 4th of July!!!!

I'm not sure if anyone is even checking this blog anymore but we made it home! Finally! We actually got home on the 27th but have been adjusting and getting used to being back in the states. On our way home Makayla and I met my mom in New York for a few days and then the three of us flew home together. New York was so fun! We are just sitting around the house now relaxing. Steve is home for a few weeks and then he moves back to Miami for camp. Hopefully Makayla and I will be moving there too after the season gets started. We will keep our fingers crossed.

As for the blog, I will not be posting regularly now that we are home. I think if we move to Miami I will restart the blog to keep everyone up to date but most of my readers are local so it is pointless for me to continue right now. Sorry for those of you who are not local. I will be sure to notify all of you if the blogging continues or restarts. Hopefully the blog will continue after the summer with our little family finally relocating to the southern east coast. ;)

Until then, have a fabulous (and safe) summer!!!!!

Love,

Heidi, Steve, and Makayla

Baaaawllll

Makayla said her first word, "ball"! Except she says, "baaaawlllll" ... now everything is a ball! She is getting so big!



This is an old picture because everything is packed so I can't put new pix up!

We're going to the World Bowl!!!!!!!!

To those of you who may have thought we were supposed to be home last night, that was a false alarm. Makayla and I were going to come home yesterday but since Steve won his last game and is going to play in the world bowl we are staying now. Also, after we leave here, Makayla and I are meeting my Mom in New York and staying there for a few days to finish our very looooong trip! We are so excited! We will be so busy this week. There is a whole event schedule for all of us. I think tonight we have dinner with the mayor ... so now we have to go shopping for new stuff to wear. We can't be photographed at these events in the same outfit twice ... it's rough being a celebrity's wife ... hahahaha!

We'll be home soon enough. Miss you all!

All better ...

Goodness! It has been quite a week. On Saturday Makayla woke from her nap with 103.8 fever. I used IBuprofen and cool washcloths to keep her fever down but it kept coming back through Monday night. Then, Tuesday morning she woke up and her temperature was 96! A contact we have out here took us to a local pediatrician and translated everything for me. After describing all of Makayla's symptoms the Dr. asked if Makayla had a rash and I said no. Within minutes of the Dr. taking off her shirt to examine her, a rash spread across her body ... it was bizarre! The Dr. said, "Oh, there it is. She is healed now". Apparently she had the "3 day fever" which ends in a rash and means she is healed. It is some weird German Disease and only babies under 3 can get it and once they do they are immune for life. The Dr. said if her fever comes back in the next few days though to bring her back because she could have German Measles ... fabulous ... she hasn't had her MMR vaccine yet so hopefully she just had that "3 day fever" thing. Today her temp. is back to normal and she seems to be cured. We need to get out of this place!!!!!!!!!! Meanwhile, I had some nasty flu bug as well ... basically, it was good times all around. Did I mention we lost ... boo ...

Here is a pic to cheer everyone up!

Hangin in there ...

We haven't forgotten about all of you but Makayla and I have been sooooo sick!!!!! Posts will be coming your way soon!

Love,
Heidi, Makayla, and Steve

All by ourselves .....

Again, people have come and gone. Ella Grace and her mommy left this morning *tear*. Here are some pictures from her birthday party last night.

Makayla Standing ... all by herself ....

Makayla and Daddy looking crazy ...

Ella Grace in all her glory ...

Happy Birthday Ella Grace!!!!!!!

We have been busy doing a whole lot of nothing! Makayla and Ella Grace woke up the other morning with 103.6 fevers!!! Her mom and I assumed they had the same thing so we let them play.
Also, last week while Steve was gone I tried to keep Makayla on schedule and get her eating more so she starts sleeping better. I found this German baby cereal that is supposed to make your baby sleep all night and I will be buying it in bulk to take back to the states. The girls here joke that it’s just ground Tylenol PM … I say whatever works ;)
If she wakes now it’s usually only once and after she’s been asleep for at least six or seven hours; of course now that we have this down to a routine it’s almost time to travel home and start this vicious cycle all over again. Anyway, Steve and I have had fun taking pictures of her while she is knocked out. Steve has become quite the photographer ;)
We’ve all been reading a lot too …
Other than that there has not been too much excitement. Today is Ella Grace’s 1st birthday so we’re having a party tonight and then Ella Grace and her Mommy leave tomorrow morning. They weren’t able to change their ticket like the airline promised so they have to leave on their original departure date … drama … boo! We’re sad. The team leaves tomorrow too for Hamburg but Erin, Makayla and I are going to stay here.

Oh, I guess there has been some BIG news … like, 8lbs 14oz of big news!!!! Last Saturday Steve’s brother’s wife, Winona Fatfita, finally exploded and a beautiful baby boy was born … Dash Havili Fifita. Congrats! We can’t wait to meet you!!!!!!

Special Post for the Fifita Ladies

Hi girls! I know you miss me sooooo much! Any update on Winnona Fatfita? Is she in labor yet or is that poor little boy still trapped?

beautiful crazy baby- 7 lbs.
big momma - 393 lbs.
watching Nona try to fit into clothes when I get home ... priceless

Muah-ah-ah-ah

At least you other two aren't in the running for Fifita heavyweight at the moment.
As for me, I'm still the skinniest Fifita ... just lost another 5 lbs.

This silly wabbit is on a roll!

Miss you girls!

Makayla says, "Me miss you, Me love you, My Mommy so skinny"

I just crack myself up over here!!!! And unfortunately no pix for a couple days. The boys are coming home which means no computer for a few and the camera batteries are charging.

Let us know about that baby though!

BFFs

The team left this morning for Berlin and Makayla and I decided to stay home, too much traveling for us lately. Berlin is one of the farthest games the team has to travel to so we’re going to stay here and watch the game at a bar … yes; I take my baby to bars ;)
Makayla has a new friend. Her name is Ella Grace and she is exactly 2 months older than Makayla. They have been playing the past couple days and it is too cute to watch them together. Makayla has also stood on her own a couple more times and she walks along the furniture very quickly. In fact, this morning, Makayla tested her skills in the high chair while I was getting her breakfast. We were in the breakfast room and she has a plain wooden, restaurant style high chair (with no belt) … she stood in it and did a front flip off on to the floor (it was very acrobatic). I just about had a heart attack. I dropped the food and flew through the room screaming a four letter word and still didn’t make it in time. I thought she broke her neck for sure. She was fine. If anything I thought she’s learned not to stand in her chair anymore but she was up for round two within about 5 minutes. Anyway, some of the other girls stayed home with us so we are just going to be hanging out in Frankfurt this weekend. Makayla is just the social butterfly, if we leave our door open she’ll leave (quickly) and crawl down to someone else’s room and go in if the door is open or she’ll knock … it’s so funny. She has made a playground of this hotel!

Here are some cute pix of Makayla and her new friend Ella Grace ...

... and here is Makayla Streaking through the halls ...

Jet Setters ...

Back again …
Paris was awesome! Our trip was off to a rocky start and full of some drama but it was awesome none the less. Tuesday night we took the 8 hour night train from Frankfurt to Paris. We were in a 6 passenger room with couchettes (bunk beds). Makayla was freaked out in the little room with the stacked beds and Mom decided she would rather just sit up in a seat because she was feeling claustrophobic. So, we found an empty cabin with seats and slept there for the night. Mom got to sit up and Makayla was happy with plenty of room for the two of us to lie across the seats. We arrived in Paris at 7am and went to a Taxi to direct them to our hotel, we had booked on hotels.com the day before, and the driver said this hotel did not exist in Paris. Fabulous. We went back into the train station and after an hour we figured out our hotel was in a suburb of Paris. Another train ride and 30 euro taxi later, we made it to our hotel. We stayed at a Marriot Resort in the Parisian countryside and we had a 2 bedroom villa, it was beautiful! The Marriot was about 40 minutes from Paris and right next to Disneyland Paris. The four of us got two day public transportation passes and mastered how to use those quickly so the distance to the hotel ended up not being a problem. After we all cleaned up we headed to the city.
On our first day we ate at a café and then toured the Notre Dame Cathedral and the Louvre. For dinner we went to the Disney Village by our hotel; it was just like Downtown Disney. On our second and last day we went to the Tour de Eiffel, Arc de Triumph, and walked the Champs de Elysse (I probably didn’t spell that right) before catching our train back. Then more drama ensued. At the train station I wanted to clean up Makayla to get her ready for the long night (wash her face, hands, and feet, change her diaper, put on her jammies) … well, the bathroom attendant wouldn’t let us past the toilet to the sink. She asked why we needed the sink and when we told her she looked disgusted and said, “No! We do not “wash” the baby in here”. She wouldn’t let us change her clothes or diaper or anything! Bitch! It was so funny too because Mom and I both had to go to the bathroom so bad but we held it until we boarded the train because we didn’t want to give that lady any of our money or service (FYI, in Europe you have to pay to use the bathroom sometimes). We showed her ;) Anyway, that was just the beginning. Sorry this is such a long post … I’m venting.
Now it was time to board the train. Dad went to the couchette and fell asleep while mom and I found an empty cabin again. Two men joined us after a few minutes and began to explain how they oversold the train and the couchettes they paid for were non existent. We got the Train Manager and arranged to give the two men our couchettes we weren’t going to use if they Train Manager would allow us to have the cabin to ourselves for the night … everything worked out fine. At about 3am the train stopped at the border and the French crew got off while the German crew took over. A German man stormed into our cabin yelling at us to wake up and get out. Apparently the cabin we were in was for the Train manager only. We explained our arrangement and after the German man screamed at the French man he came back and said he didn’t care and that the three of us couldn’t sit in his cabin. To make this long story short, Mom, Makayla, and I ended up laying the rest of the 4 hour ride on the floor of the bike storage compartment of the train while the German Train Manager came and went from his empty cabin. What an ass! People were very mad the next morning when they realized he made us ride like stowaways. We were just happy to be home. Drama aside though, Paris was awesome. I’ve enjoyed Paris and Rome much more the second time around. I have a picture of us laying on the floor but mom and I only had her phone and had to use that so it will be a while before I can post that picture. Here are some others from our trip though …

Friday we relaxed, Saturday we went to the game … and WON … woo hoo, and Sunday Mom and Dad went home L Steve, Makayla and I are just relaxing now and catching up on some much needed sleep.

Makayla says thanks Aunty Bape for the clothes but they got sent home cause they were waaaaaaay too big! So sorry no pix in those outfits!

Here are some pictures for your viewing pleasure ....

She even mastered the public transportation ...


One lucky baby ... no wonder she's so happy!

Makayla in Louis Vuitton, "Grandpa I want this one"

Self explanatory ...

Hi Everyone!

So excited to be at the Eiffel Tower

Can you see her mohawk? Too cute!

The princess with Grandma and Grandpa in the backyard ...

Backyard of our villa

Aquarium at Rainforest Cafe

Damn Paparazzi ...

The fam in Heidelberg

We lost her ...

"

Sorry for the delay ...

Okay, I’m back … but I’m gonna make this quick …
So, Steve turned 25 on the 16th and then my parents flew in two days later. We’ve been busy going around Germany and hanging out. Saturday we took a boat cruise up the Rhein River. Sunday we went to Steve’s game. Today we took the train and went to Heidelberg to tour the castle and tonight we leave on a night train to go to Paris for two days … phew.
Makayla didn’t remember mom and dad at first but has warmed up to them quickly. Our time here is going by so quickly.
Makayla stood all by herself tonight!!!!!!!!!!! She just stood up on the bed and let go of the pillow and was balancing for a while. Mom, Steve, and I were all there to witness it. She is going to walk so soon … but she still has no teeth.
It will be a few days before another post because we are busy being world travelers.

This picture is just for Noah from Uncle Veni. When we were in Rome we saw this huge Spiderman 3 poster and Uncle Veni had to take a picture for his little boy …

Here are some other pix …