Tuesday, September 22, 2009
thinking...
I was in the car today, thinking about life being busy and stressful...about getting Henry to sleep (or NOT getting him to sleep, but trying to), about my desire for more freedom these days, how tiring this apartment management job is, etc....and all of a sudden I thought to myself that I am truly happy.
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
For the few in this world who haven't seen it...
There are still a couple of you who read this that aren't on Facebook, so enjoy this wonderful video of our dear little Joshy. I've never seen anything on Facebook get so many comments!! More are always appreciated :c)
Monday, April 27, 2009
Joshua!
Sorry no pictures because they are all on the back computer...but there are some good ones we've taken recently - I'll try to get some of them posted soon!
Joshua is seriously amazing...and a stinking genius. I hope that Henry doesn't feel like we're constantly comparing him to Joshua, like if Henry has perfectly normal language development, I don't want him to feel like we are disappointed in him because he isn't as extraordinary in his verbal-ness (yeah, I don't know where Joshy gets it...) as Joshua was. Anyway, I have awhile before he'll start resenting me, so I'll put that worry on the back burner for now.
So Joshua...he LOVES to sing, and he's a great singer. He can sing full songs, pretty much on key, and often with nearly all the words. He knows the whole ABC song perfectly, knows the first and second verse and chorus of "I am a Child of God," and can sing (I'm going to avoid putting more quotes cuz that's annoying) The Itsy Bitsy Spider, You are my Sunshine, The Lion Sleeps Tonight (actually I'm not sure what the actual title of that song is), Here we are Together, Albuquerque Turkey, Happy Birthday, Row Row Your Boat, Skidamarink-a-dink-a-dink (you know what I mean), Rock-a-bye Baby, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, some of Silent Night...man tons more - I'm probably forgetting some key ones, but I'm running on 4 hours of sleep, so be forgiving. One of the funniest parts of his singing talents is that he loves to change the words to the songs, and he knows he is hilarious, so he laughs at himself so much. He'll change it to, the itsy bitsy MAMA or ABCDEF DADA, or I am a child of EMMA-WEE...funny things like that.
There's no way I could even come close to listing all of his words at this point, but for some time now, he has been speaking in long full sentences, and he's really doing great with all his pronouns, tenses, etc. He'll be like, "Pees mama can you get me some mo cereal bar?" or "I don't want to push the boo button." He's also looking out for our hydration levels, often saying, "Mama, can you drink your water?" or our hunger, "Dada, eat your pizza!"
Today, I was on the phone with my supervisor, and he was climbing on his table, and I heard him say, "There is a lot going on!" I don't think I had said that yet today, but maybe. That cracked me up, though.
Several weeks ago, maybe a couple months...time is all hazy to me these days, he picked up the office phone, pushed the button that switches the ring tone, so it sounded like the phone was ringing, and said, "Minto Pawk Apawtments, this is Amanda." I laughed SO hard, and he kept it up, changing the last part each time, this is..."Joshy-wa" or "Baby Henry's Winnie Pooh" or "window" or "computoh." HILARIOUS! And he is perfectly aware that he's hilarious.
Months ago, at dinner, for some reason I said to Nathan, "whatever, chicken," about something, and Joshua was sitting there in his high chair next to us. He got a big smile on his face and said, "whatevoh chickadee!" We laughed SO much, and he said it several more times. After he'd said it several times, we were still smiling but had stopped laughing, and he said, "can we wapp again?" It was so sweet.
Also long ago, he was sitting on the floor with Grandma Palmer while she was building some towers with his blocks, and he looked at it and said, "Stonehenge!" because he remembered that the picture on the wall is of Stonehenge.
He's adjusting pretty well to having this new baby in our home, and has said some pretty hilarious things. The other day, he said, "Can Mama's tummy get big again?" I asked him if he knew why it wasn't so big anymore. He said, "Cuz Baby Henry came out." I asked if he wanted another baby - he said, "Yeah." I asked if he wanted Baby Henry AND another baby. He said, "Can Mama have ee-weven babies?" Eleven is the number he uses most often to mean a lot of something. If I ask him how many fruit snacks he wants, he either says 2 or 11. Sometimes when he counts, he counts one two fee eight nine ten ee-weven eight nine ten. Other times he gets the other numbers in there.
He can recognize and say all the letters and numbers 1-11, he knows his colors and a lot of shapes. He likes to bite a fig newton or a chip or a chicken nugget and then tell us what it now "is" such as a fig newton being a cow. I gave him a good little joke, telling him that a fig newton cow says, "moo-tun" and he thought that was pretty funny. I asked him what a crouton cow said, and he said (all on his own) "moo-tawn!" He bit a chicken nugget into a cow shape (in his mind at least) once, and said it was a "hot cow."
Oh man - ALSO, he'll be eating something...a piece of canteloupe or a little dill pickle, and he'll bite off a piece of it that looks like a door to him, and he'll tell us what is inside. Lately, Cookie Monster is inside, and he wants to eat him. So he takes Cookie Monster out, and I'll say, "run, Cookie Monster!" Joshy says, "Can I give him a hug?" all innocent. Then he gives him a hug and tells me that he just ATE HIS EYEBALLS!!! Crazy kid.
He LOVES to pretend. He talks on blocks as phones (usually to rubber ducky, talking for a bit and then telling him that he has to go to the store), brings us drinks in all sorts of things that look like cups to him, puts measuring cups and spoons in between the drawers and plays them like a piano, drives his dinner bowl as a steering wheel - it's so funny.
The other day, we were driving to Lafayette to go to Nathan's parents' house, and we drove by the library. I didn't mention it, but he pointed at said, "There is the library!" We've only gone there probably less than a dozen times, and I had no idea he paid so much attention that he'd recognize it as we went by. I don't think I paid much attention until about the time I got my driver's license!! Ok, a bit of an exaggeration...but c'mon - he's barely 2!
Another adjustment note - I asked him the other day, "Joshy, baby Henry cries a lot, huh?" and he said, "Yeah. Babies cry." Like...get used to it Mom!
I love Joshua - he is a great companion during the day...even though he does get into a lot of stuff. He's been acting out a bit more cuz he's feeling the change in my attention levels, but he is still a sweetheart and all his sweet little hugs and thank yous and hilarious things...and yes, his mischief too, get me through the day.
Joshua is seriously amazing...and a stinking genius. I hope that Henry doesn't feel like we're constantly comparing him to Joshua, like if Henry has perfectly normal language development, I don't want him to feel like we are disappointed in him because he isn't as extraordinary in his verbal-ness (yeah, I don't know where Joshy gets it...) as Joshua was. Anyway, I have awhile before he'll start resenting me, so I'll put that worry on the back burner for now.
So Joshua...he LOVES to sing, and he's a great singer. He can sing full songs, pretty much on key, and often with nearly all the words. He knows the whole ABC song perfectly, knows the first and second verse and chorus of "I am a Child of God," and can sing (I'm going to avoid putting more quotes cuz that's annoying) The Itsy Bitsy Spider, You are my Sunshine, The Lion Sleeps Tonight (actually I'm not sure what the actual title of that song is), Here we are Together, Albuquerque Turkey, Happy Birthday, Row Row Your Boat, Skidamarink-a-dink-a-dink (you know what I mean), Rock-a-bye Baby, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, some of Silent Night...man tons more - I'm probably forgetting some key ones, but I'm running on 4 hours of sleep, so be forgiving. One of the funniest parts of his singing talents is that he loves to change the words to the songs, and he knows he is hilarious, so he laughs at himself so much. He'll change it to, the itsy bitsy MAMA or ABCDEF DADA, or I am a child of EMMA-WEE...funny things like that.
There's no way I could even come close to listing all of his words at this point, but for some time now, he has been speaking in long full sentences, and he's really doing great with all his pronouns, tenses, etc. He'll be like, "Pees mama can you get me some mo cereal bar?" or "I don't want to push the boo button." He's also looking out for our hydration levels, often saying, "Mama, can you drink your water?" or our hunger, "Dada, eat your pizza!"
Today, I was on the phone with my supervisor, and he was climbing on his table, and I heard him say, "There is a lot going on!" I don't think I had said that yet today, but maybe. That cracked me up, though.
Several weeks ago, maybe a couple months...time is all hazy to me these days, he picked up the office phone, pushed the button that switches the ring tone, so it sounded like the phone was ringing, and said, "Minto Pawk Apawtments, this is Amanda." I laughed SO hard, and he kept it up, changing the last part each time, this is..."Joshy-wa" or "Baby Henry's Winnie Pooh" or "window" or "computoh." HILARIOUS! And he is perfectly aware that he's hilarious.
Months ago, at dinner, for some reason I said to Nathan, "whatever, chicken," about something, and Joshua was sitting there in his high chair next to us. He got a big smile on his face and said, "whatevoh chickadee!" We laughed SO much, and he said it several more times. After he'd said it several times, we were still smiling but had stopped laughing, and he said, "can we wapp again?" It was so sweet.
Also long ago, he was sitting on the floor with Grandma Palmer while she was building some towers with his blocks, and he looked at it and said, "Stonehenge!" because he remembered that the picture on the wall is of Stonehenge.
He's adjusting pretty well to having this new baby in our home, and has said some pretty hilarious things. The other day, he said, "Can Mama's tummy get big again?" I asked him if he knew why it wasn't so big anymore. He said, "Cuz Baby Henry came out." I asked if he wanted another baby - he said, "Yeah." I asked if he wanted Baby Henry AND another baby. He said, "Can Mama have ee-weven babies?" Eleven is the number he uses most often to mean a lot of something. If I ask him how many fruit snacks he wants, he either says 2 or 11. Sometimes when he counts, he counts one two fee eight nine ten ee-weven eight nine ten. Other times he gets the other numbers in there.
He can recognize and say all the letters and numbers 1-11, he knows his colors and a lot of shapes. He likes to bite a fig newton or a chip or a chicken nugget and then tell us what it now "is" such as a fig newton being a cow. I gave him a good little joke, telling him that a fig newton cow says, "moo-tun" and he thought that was pretty funny. I asked him what a crouton cow said, and he said (all on his own) "moo-tawn!" He bit a chicken nugget into a cow shape (in his mind at least) once, and said it was a "hot cow."
Oh man - ALSO, he'll be eating something...a piece of canteloupe or a little dill pickle, and he'll bite off a piece of it that looks like a door to him, and he'll tell us what is inside. Lately, Cookie Monster is inside, and he wants to eat him. So he takes Cookie Monster out, and I'll say, "run, Cookie Monster!" Joshy says, "Can I give him a hug?" all innocent. Then he gives him a hug and tells me that he just ATE HIS EYEBALLS!!! Crazy kid.
He LOVES to pretend. He talks on blocks as phones (usually to rubber ducky, talking for a bit and then telling him that he has to go to the store), brings us drinks in all sorts of things that look like cups to him, puts measuring cups and spoons in between the drawers and plays them like a piano, drives his dinner bowl as a steering wheel - it's so funny.
The other day, we were driving to Lafayette to go to Nathan's parents' house, and we drove by the library. I didn't mention it, but he pointed at said, "There is the library!" We've only gone there probably less than a dozen times, and I had no idea he paid so much attention that he'd recognize it as we went by. I don't think I paid much attention until about the time I got my driver's license!! Ok, a bit of an exaggeration...but c'mon - he's barely 2!
Another adjustment note - I asked him the other day, "Joshy, baby Henry cries a lot, huh?" and he said, "Yeah. Babies cry." Like...get used to it Mom!
I love Joshua - he is a great companion during the day...even though he does get into a lot of stuff. He's been acting out a bit more cuz he's feeling the change in my attention levels, but he is still a sweetheart and all his sweet little hugs and thank yous and hilarious things...and yes, his mischief too, get me through the day.
This blog
Back when I started this blog, my reasons were to vent and use it kind of as a journal, as well as post pictures about my little baby Joshua. He was around 8 weeks or something, I think (I don't want to go back and check right now), and I was just starting out as an apartment manager, and trying to figure out how to be a mom...all sorts of stressful and wonderful stuff. Then it became all about Joshua, and then when nearly all my blog readers were on Facebook, I pretty much stopped posting, except in big bursts of update posts. such is the way of many blogs - i admire anyone who continues to post consistently as time goes on.
Well here I am now, typing one handed while I hold baby Henry, who has taken a (probably short) break from screaming when he isn't sucking on my finger, feeling exhausted and frustrated. This little guy screams a lot - especially all night long - I think his little digestive system is giving him a lot of tummy pain - poor baby...hopefully this will pass soon as his little muscles strengthen and his system gets used to all the stuff it has to do.
I'm glad I had 6 weeks with Joshy before we were apartment managers - I probably would not have survived. Anyway...this is kind of my first week really being back, since mom was here the first week, I was "closed" and didn't do much work the second week, and emily was here last week. So I'm easing back into it - my current plan for the week is to have the closed sign up except when Nathan is home...which isn't much, but we don't have any apartments we can show right now, so being open isn't that helpful to people anyway.
My list of stuff to do is VERY short compared to what it was before emily came, when it had been building and building for weeks. There are only 14 things on the list so far this week, and i have done 6 of them already...before lunch on Monday - that's pretty good!
While having a toddler and a newborn is definitely hard in itself, i think i really could handle it ok without this job. The person putting the pressure on me, though, is me. both the owner and my supervisor have been very understanding - the owner said that the place probably wouldn't burn down if I went away for a week or two - I appreciated his support...it would be nice to go away for a week...sort of. Or maybe just take our home away for a week. That might be difficult, though.
But I can't really get away from the job, and taking a break still means dealing with all the stuff going on...like the big leak under the east building that is flooding one of the residents' apartments as we "speak". Hopefully the contractor will get here soon to tear apart her walls and floor *sigh*. These things happen. I'm just glad we've got a couple weeks before the move-outs start happening like crazy. We've got one on the 5th, I think, then the 10th, then the 21st, then two on the 31st...yikes. All those notices came during the week I was on "maternity leave".
And our home has way too many ants, even though they keep spraying.
I'll admit that when I see a blog post that is all text and no pictures, sometimes I don't read it...so if you read all of this, I'm impressed. I think I'll publish this one and then start a happy one about my amazing Joshua.
Well here I am now, typing one handed while I hold baby Henry, who has taken a (probably short) break from screaming when he isn't sucking on my finger, feeling exhausted and frustrated. This little guy screams a lot - especially all night long - I think his little digestive system is giving him a lot of tummy pain - poor baby...hopefully this will pass soon as his little muscles strengthen and his system gets used to all the stuff it has to do.
I'm glad I had 6 weeks with Joshy before we were apartment managers - I probably would not have survived. Anyway...this is kind of my first week really being back, since mom was here the first week, I was "closed" and didn't do much work the second week, and emily was here last week. So I'm easing back into it - my current plan for the week is to have the closed sign up except when Nathan is home...which isn't much, but we don't have any apartments we can show right now, so being open isn't that helpful to people anyway.
My list of stuff to do is VERY short compared to what it was before emily came, when it had been building and building for weeks. There are only 14 things on the list so far this week, and i have done 6 of them already...before lunch on Monday - that's pretty good!
While having a toddler and a newborn is definitely hard in itself, i think i really could handle it ok without this job. The person putting the pressure on me, though, is me. both the owner and my supervisor have been very understanding - the owner said that the place probably wouldn't burn down if I went away for a week or two - I appreciated his support...it would be nice to go away for a week...sort of. Or maybe just take our home away for a week. That might be difficult, though.
But I can't really get away from the job, and taking a break still means dealing with all the stuff going on...like the big leak under the east building that is flooding one of the residents' apartments as we "speak". Hopefully the contractor will get here soon to tear apart her walls and floor *sigh*. These things happen. I'm just glad we've got a couple weeks before the move-outs start happening like crazy. We've got one on the 5th, I think, then the 10th, then the 21st, then two on the 31st...yikes. All those notices came during the week I was on "maternity leave".
And our home has way too many ants, even though they keep spraying.
I'll admit that when I see a blog post that is all text and no pictures, sometimes I don't read it...so if you read all of this, I'm impressed. I think I'll publish this one and then start a happy one about my amazing Joshua.
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Here's what happens...
...when we're all sick. My dear husband showed me this picture that he took this morning, planning to post it for all the world to see the way our home gets when we are sick and don't clean up Joshy's area for a few days. I decided that while he was in the shower, I'd get an "after" shot ready. We're still sick, though - but getting better I think. Here's the honest truth...
It really only took about 15 minutes tops to clean it all up.
You've gotta love the Joshy shot - he's sitting in his bucket of blocks, "goin potty."
Saturday, February 28, 2009
February
This video got posted on Facebook, but I know there are a few of you reading this who aren't on Facebook...and Tawnia said she was having trouble getting it to work, so here you go - enjoy!
Sunday, February 15, 2009
More like a medicine ball, but whatever
Ok, so it seems like about 700 times a day I hear people say, "oh it looks like you just have this cute BASKETBALL under your shirt," and so I wanted to take a couple pictures and see if what they are saying has any reality, or if it is a myth we can bust. Looks like this one is plausible.
I do want to point out, though, that if it is a basketball, it's a TWENTY-FIVE POUND basketball, so not as easy as that sounds.
Ok that is all with the unflattering pictures...hope you enjoy seeing my gigantic belly and "stretchy pants" :c)
Friday, February 13, 2009
Friday, February 6, 2009
Let's see what else...
Other than partying, we've been busy doing other things, too.
Ashley came to visit us soon after we got back from Washington. Joshy still had his splint on then. Joshy loves his aunt Ashley and it was a fun visit - she even helped us put together all those blocks!
Showing off some of his new Christmas pjs, and brushing his teeth with Dada.
Working hard at trying to pick out a name for his baby brother - Mama and Dada still aren't quite sure.
I think he was kind of sick this day, or just really sleepy waking up from his nap. Here's a fairly good tummy picture of me, too...but I really should post a side-shot, just to prove how gigantic I am now. That was several weeks, ago too.
I can't believe how long his hair was! I get so sad when I cut his hair short, but we really had let it get REALLY long, huh? Here, he is singing songs and playing with his Legos - two of his favorite pasttimes.
I just really like this close-up...and the studly trucker jacket.
Joshua is really getting good at Calculus.
And then I cut his hair. Someday (maybe) I'll cut it even in the front, but I suppose if the point of a haircut is to make it shorter, I accomplished that goal. Actually in this picture it does look even...that's the thing about cutting wet hair - it looks good wet, but then when it dries, it goes all over the place. Especially extra super curly hair.
For Nathan's birthday this year, we went on our first overnight away from Joshua (long overdue...he didn't really miss us). He stayed with Grandma and Grandpa Palmer, while we had dinner at Olive Garden, caught a Comedy Sportz show, spent the night in a hotel (and had some Konditerei cake I sneakily brought with us), and then went to the temple the next day before heading home. I think Nathan enjoyed it - I know I did! Here's Nathan blowing out the candle in his gelato at Olive Garden.
Joshy modeling some watches that one of our residents gave him when he broke his arm. Kinda funny, but Joshy loves them!
He was working on his chameleon skills here.
We picked up some of the 3-D glasses at Fred Meyer to watch Chuck on Monday night...we weren't very impressed with the effect, but the glasses were pretty stinking cool.
Joshua is a big fan of boxes...I'm not sure if he was looking for any leftover Cheerios, or what, but he was having a good time.
I love this picture. Nathan's best friend Jeremy got Joshua this "NPR baby" outfit back when he worked at NPR, and it almost fits. It's pretty adorable. Joshua was reading a Grandma Loves Me book with Elmo and his pelican, and modeling Dada's hat. Yikes, I just noticed my tummy is in this picture...but it's kind of hard to tell how big it is proportionally.
This was today - Joshua loves to wear these sunglasses now. One of his very first tantrums (very very long ago) was on a really bright sunny day, I tried to get him to wear these for the first time. We were out in the parking lot and he was in his stroller, and he truly screamed bloody murder until I gave up. He was terrified of them. Clearly he didn't see their fashionable nature, but now he likes to wear them around the house.
Now that pretty close to none of my maternity pants fit anymore, I'm starting to feel very envious of Joshy's incredibly comfy pj sets that he has. Maybe I could find some in my size.
Ashley came to visit us soon after we got back from Washington. Joshy still had his splint on then. Joshy loves his aunt Ashley and it was a fun visit - she even helped us put together all those blocks!
Showing off some of his new Christmas pjs, and brushing his teeth with Dada.
Working hard at trying to pick out a name for his baby brother - Mama and Dada still aren't quite sure.
I think he was kind of sick this day, or just really sleepy waking up from his nap. Here's a fairly good tummy picture of me, too...but I really should post a side-shot, just to prove how gigantic I am now. That was several weeks, ago too.
I can't believe how long his hair was! I get so sad when I cut his hair short, but we really had let it get REALLY long, huh? Here, he is singing songs and playing with his Legos - two of his favorite pasttimes.
I just really like this close-up...and the studly trucker jacket.
Joshua is really getting good at Calculus.
And then I cut his hair. Someday (maybe) I'll cut it even in the front, but I suppose if the point of a haircut is to make it shorter, I accomplished that goal. Actually in this picture it does look even...that's the thing about cutting wet hair - it looks good wet, but then when it dries, it goes all over the place. Especially extra super curly hair.
For Nathan's birthday this year, we went on our first overnight away from Joshua (long overdue...he didn't really miss us). He stayed with Grandma and Grandpa Palmer, while we had dinner at Olive Garden, caught a Comedy Sportz show, spent the night in a hotel (and had some Konditerei cake I sneakily brought with us), and then went to the temple the next day before heading home. I think Nathan enjoyed it - I know I did! Here's Nathan blowing out the candle in his gelato at Olive Garden.
Joshy modeling some watches that one of our residents gave him when he broke his arm. Kinda funny, but Joshy loves them!
He was working on his chameleon skills here.
We picked up some of the 3-D glasses at Fred Meyer to watch Chuck on Monday night...we weren't very impressed with the effect, but the glasses were pretty stinking cool.
Joshua is a big fan of boxes...I'm not sure if he was looking for any leftover Cheerios, or what, but he was having a good time.
I love this picture. Nathan's best friend Jeremy got Joshua this "NPR baby" outfit back when he worked at NPR, and it almost fits. It's pretty adorable. Joshua was reading a Grandma Loves Me book with Elmo and his pelican, and modeling Dada's hat. Yikes, I just noticed my tummy is in this picture...but it's kind of hard to tell how big it is proportionally.
This was today - Joshua loves to wear these sunglasses now. One of his very first tantrums (very very long ago) was on a really bright sunny day, I tried to get him to wear these for the first time. We were out in the parking lot and he was in his stroller, and he truly screamed bloody murder until I gave up. He was terrified of them. Clearly he didn't see their fashionable nature, but now he likes to wear them around the house.
Now that pretty close to none of my maternity pants fit anymore, I'm starting to feel very envious of Joshy's incredibly comfy pj sets that he has. Maybe I could find some in my size.On another note, after finishing this blog post, I'll have completed 28 things on my to-do list for this week. There are still 23 other things, but most of those have been on there a long time. I'm getting a bit caught up though, so that's good. I'm not sure what I'd do without to-do lists. Oh man, I REALLY need to eat now. I'll write again someday.
Party month!
Here are some pictures from the parties that were filling Joshua's social calendar in January.
Singing Happy Birthday to his Dada, getting ready to help blow out ALL those candles.
So proud of Dada for blowing them all out, and wanting to sing again.
Stuffing his chubby little cheeks with carrot cake.
Attempting to wipe off his own face...
And here are some pictures from the Elders Quorum Presidency get-together, where Joshua enjoyed playing with his friends, falling down the stairs, and eating a LOT of fruit salad.
Singing Happy Birthday to his Dada, getting ready to help blow out ALL those candles.
So proud of Dada for blowing them all out, and wanting to sing again.
Stuffing his chubby little cheeks with carrot cake.
Attempting to wipe off his own face...
And here are some pictures from the Elders Quorum Presidency get-together, where Joshua enjoyed playing with his friends, falling down the stairs, and eating a LOT of fruit salad.
Rowan was at the height of fashion with her evening-wear tutu.
Hina (actually I'm not sure if I'm spelling that correctly!) missed much of the festivities, taking a late nap, but we just had to show a picture of her in that bib. She's pretty close to the LEAST wild toddler I've ever met - and so adorable!
I'm impressed that Nathan got such a good group photo!
The Takara kids - they were so great with hanging out with all the little ones so we could enjoy our sushi and chicken - deeeelicious dinner and a good time had by all.
And on to Rowan's second birthday party. I missed a lot of it cuz I got really sick in the middle and had to go home, but they brought home a blue cupcake for me.
Hina (actually I'm not sure if I'm spelling that correctly!) missed much of the festivities, taking a late nap, but we just had to show a picture of her in that bib. She's pretty close to the LEAST wild toddler I've ever met - and so adorable!
I'm impressed that Nathan got such a good group photo!
The Takara kids - they were so great with hanging out with all the little ones so we could enjoy our sushi and chicken - deeeelicious dinner and a good time had by all.
And on to Rowan's second birthday party. I missed a lot of it cuz I got really sick in the middle and had to go home, but they brought home a blue cupcake for me.
Here's Joshy just arriving at the party, ready to dump a high chair tray of food all over the floor, climb up and down the stairs, and enjoy some games and cupcakes!
I love Hugh's face in this picture - I think he was enjoying himself, but it sure is funny.
I'm pretty sure Leia was pretty happy with things as well! I think Rowan had a happy birthday. Joshy drew her a picture and we laminated it so she can keep it forever and ever. I wonder how many of these little guys will stay around here long enough to grow up together? Not sure how long we'll be here, and Leia will probably be heading off to other adventures in the next year or so, but we'll see about everyone else!
I love Hugh's face in this picture - I think he was enjoying himself, but it sure is funny.
I'm pretty sure Leia was pretty happy with things as well! I think Rowan had a happy birthday. Joshy drew her a picture and we laminated it so she can keep it forever and ever. I wonder how many of these little guys will stay around here long enough to grow up together? Not sure how long we'll be here, and Leia will probably be heading off to other adventures in the next year or so, but we'll see about everyone else!
Monday, January 12, 2009
Christmas A La Washington
The snow did eventually melt enough for us to get ourselves up to Washington, and we were very excited to get there. We spent some time at Aunt Lynn and Uncle Mark's, seeing them and Krissy, Brett, and Chloe who were up visiting from California. Chloe is getting so big and it was fun seeing Joshua and Chloe interacting a LOT more than last time they were together. It was a ton of fun. Here, Chloe is holding her Magic Tree, and Joshua is checking out Chloe's new books!
Chloe appreciated Joshua's thorough inspection of her Christmas books, but then was rather interested in having them back.
Too bad Joshy kept making funny faces in these pictures, but he did his main duty and hid my huge belly! I think Chloe looks absolutely adorable in this picture.
While we were there, Joshua needed to cover his splint with a plastic baggie while eating, and when he was through with it, Chloe wanted to give it a try! Kris said on her blog that she has continued to enjoy bag-wearing...what a trend-setter Joshua is. He prefers eating without the bag these days, though.
Joshua spent a lot more time with the dogs and cats this trip than he has in the past, which went just fine, but he bonded most of all with "Benjamin Kitty" (formerly Phantom, formerly Benjamin Bandit the Fierce, Bobcat, and most currently and commonly known as Benjamin Bad-Kitten). Ben was incredibly tolerant of Joshua...that cat seems to have learned a good deal of patience from dealing with his best friend, who happens to be a big clumsy sheep-dog! Joshua was good with him - for the most part not pulling his tail or fur or anything...it was fun to see them together.
The highlight of ever trip to Washington is Joshy getting to spend time with Grandma and Grandpa, and I think they crammed in a LOT of fun memories. Grandma rocked Joshy to sleep at night and they made up all sorts of songs and rhymes that they'll get to share again next time we see them. In this picture, Joshy brought Grandma a "pea-ball" in a pan that he has been cooking with in his play kitchen. Mom & Dad got to keep the old kitchen set from the nursery at the church, and they got him all set up with some play food and pots and pans and he had a great time with it! Brought back a lot of happy memories for me, too!
Dorothy, Pat, Kya, and Alia (I can't remember how her name is spelled - Mom you can correct me and I'll edit it in the post) came to visit us and it was so fun seeing how much they've grown up! They are adorable and hilarious girls, and they were very kind to Joshua. He was really shy (as he often gets around beautiful girls), so he didn't show off a whole lot of his new language skills, but he had a lot of fun being with them. We took a series of pictures, and while Kya is absolutely a professional at posing for pictures, Alia made the photographer's job a bit challenging - I think I like this one the best!
Nathan is so wonderful about always taking all the pictures when we go on trips, and I often forget to include him in them! I tried to get a couple this time around...but I need to try harder. Joshua wasn't super interested in sitting still for this one. I love my boys.
You can see this little kitty in several of the other pictures, but Joshua "borrowed" him from his cousin Chloe while we were over there. They were so kind to let him come back with us temporarily. Joshy just loved this little kitty - the whole time he had a splint on, he usually wanted to be carrying around an animal with his broken arm...definitely a comfort thing. It was very sweet. Apparently, the kitty hadn't been well-fed, so Joshua took care of him. We didn't realize until right before we left (and it is just as well) that the kitty makes very loud meowing noises when you squeeze his tummy! So the white kitty stayed at Grandma's, to return to Chloe. Don't worry - Joshy hasn't mentioned anything about him, so it's all ok.
Posing in his Christmas outfit - what a stud, right?
Before we had dinner and opened Christmas presents, Grandpa got to open birthday presents! Joshua was VERY helpful, as he often is.
For those of you who read Tracy's blog, you may have read my mom's comment about Geoff's Thanksgiving meltdown regarding a subpar Stupid Jello Salad, so Mom outdid herself this time, and Geoff was chosen as the official unmolder. He left it in the hot water for quite some time, so it was a bit more ah...puddly than I remember it, but it still tasted delicious as always! Geoff had Joshy help so that he could share in the blame...er...credit!
This year's four layer Stupid Jello Salad (this is the official submission picture, Tracy). It didn't have any snow like yours...well there was perhaps some melted snow pooled around it and in the middle...but we won't give Geoff TOO hard of a time! I'm not even sure if he reads this blog - maybe we SHOULD give him a hard time.
Me, Joshy, and the white kitty, getting started on Christmas presents!
Joshy got some adorable elephants, books, clothes, and a lot of wonderful toys - here he is reading, "But not the Hippopotamus."
He got a set of those bricks that take about a million years for parents to put together, but we had a lot of fun putting them together, and Joshua likes to knock down the walls we build (and he occasionally has been building as well!) with them. This was the only gift that I especially requested, and I was pretty excited about it.
Joshy showed off his singing talents once again, singing Happy Birthday to Grandpa. I was so glad that Dad had all day off on New Years, so he got to spend a lot of time with Joshy! We had birthday apple pie...yummmmm.
Joshy enjoyed seeing his Uncle Geoffy, and will be grateful once it's a little warmer out when we can set up the awesome outdoor playhouse that Uncle Geoffy got him. I LOVE that when Joshua says, "Uncle Geoffy," it sounds nearly identical to how he says "Uncle Diapey" (as in diapers...if you weren't catching on to what as funny).
We went to visit Joshy's Nonna (my grandma) right before we headed home, and though he was pretty sleepy, he had a very good time with his new blue piggy bank, bulldozer, and getting to show off for all the nice people she wanted to introduce him to. All that being cute exhausted the poor guy, but he did great, and I'm glad we got to see her!
When we got back to Oregon, we opened a mysterious gift from Nonna, which ended up being this great gigantic fold-out fort type thing that looks like a school bus or a fire truck, depending on how you fold the flaps. Joshua loved it - that is a happy face in the picture! It takes up our whole living room, so it'll be even more fun to play with when we have more space some day, but it was pretty cool!
We had such a wonderful time up at Grandma and Grandpa's, and Joshy loves looking at the pictures from our visit over and over - he often says, "see Ramma Rampat gain?" which means Grandma and Grandpa's (when he adds an s to words, it often sounds like a t lately). I'm not sure when we'll go up there again, but we are so grateful that we had such a wonderful visit! And I'm also grateful that I got all these photos posted!
Chloe appreciated Joshua's thorough inspection of her Christmas books, but then was rather interested in having them back.
Too bad Joshy kept making funny faces in these pictures, but he did his main duty and hid my huge belly! I think Chloe looks absolutely adorable in this picture.
While we were there, Joshua needed to cover his splint with a plastic baggie while eating, and when he was through with it, Chloe wanted to give it a try! Kris said on her blog that she has continued to enjoy bag-wearing...what a trend-setter Joshua is. He prefers eating without the bag these days, though.
Joshua spent a lot more time with the dogs and cats this trip than he has in the past, which went just fine, but he bonded most of all with "Benjamin Kitty" (formerly Phantom, formerly Benjamin Bandit the Fierce, Bobcat, and most currently and commonly known as Benjamin Bad-Kitten). Ben was incredibly tolerant of Joshua...that cat seems to have learned a good deal of patience from dealing with his best friend, who happens to be a big clumsy sheep-dog! Joshua was good with him - for the most part not pulling his tail or fur or anything...it was fun to see them together.
The highlight of ever trip to Washington is Joshy getting to spend time with Grandma and Grandpa, and I think they crammed in a LOT of fun memories. Grandma rocked Joshy to sleep at night and they made up all sorts of songs and rhymes that they'll get to share again next time we see them. In this picture, Joshy brought Grandma a "pea-ball" in a pan that he has been cooking with in his play kitchen. Mom & Dad got to keep the old kitchen set from the nursery at the church, and they got him all set up with some play food and pots and pans and he had a great time with it! Brought back a lot of happy memories for me, too!
Dorothy, Pat, Kya, and Alia (I can't remember how her name is spelled - Mom you can correct me and I'll edit it in the post) came to visit us and it was so fun seeing how much they've grown up! They are adorable and hilarious girls, and they were very kind to Joshua. He was really shy (as he often gets around beautiful girls), so he didn't show off a whole lot of his new language skills, but he had a lot of fun being with them. We took a series of pictures, and while Kya is absolutely a professional at posing for pictures, Alia made the photographer's job a bit challenging - I think I like this one the best!
Nathan is so wonderful about always taking all the pictures when we go on trips, and I often forget to include him in them! I tried to get a couple this time around...but I need to try harder. Joshua wasn't super interested in sitting still for this one. I love my boys.
You can see this little kitty in several of the other pictures, but Joshua "borrowed" him from his cousin Chloe while we were over there. They were so kind to let him come back with us temporarily. Joshy just loved this little kitty - the whole time he had a splint on, he usually wanted to be carrying around an animal with his broken arm...definitely a comfort thing. It was very sweet. Apparently, the kitty hadn't been well-fed, so Joshua took care of him. We didn't realize until right before we left (and it is just as well) that the kitty makes very loud meowing noises when you squeeze his tummy! So the white kitty stayed at Grandma's, to return to Chloe. Don't worry - Joshy hasn't mentioned anything about him, so it's all ok.
Posing in his Christmas outfit - what a stud, right?
Before we had dinner and opened Christmas presents, Grandpa got to open birthday presents! Joshua was VERY helpful, as he often is.
For those of you who read Tracy's blog, you may have read my mom's comment about Geoff's Thanksgiving meltdown regarding a subpar Stupid Jello Salad, so Mom outdid herself this time, and Geoff was chosen as the official unmolder. He left it in the hot water for quite some time, so it was a bit more ah...puddly than I remember it, but it still tasted delicious as always! Geoff had Joshy help so that he could share in the blame...er...credit!
This year's four layer Stupid Jello Salad (this is the official submission picture, Tracy). It didn't have any snow like yours...well there was perhaps some melted snow pooled around it and in the middle...but we won't give Geoff TOO hard of a time! I'm not even sure if he reads this blog - maybe we SHOULD give him a hard time.
Me, Joshy, and the white kitty, getting started on Christmas presents!
Joshy got some adorable elephants, books, clothes, and a lot of wonderful toys - here he is reading, "But not the Hippopotamus."
He got a set of those bricks that take about a million years for parents to put together, but we had a lot of fun putting them together, and Joshua likes to knock down the walls we build (and he occasionally has been building as well!) with them. This was the only gift that I especially requested, and I was pretty excited about it.
Joshy showed off his singing talents once again, singing Happy Birthday to Grandpa. I was so glad that Dad had all day off on New Years, so he got to spend a lot of time with Joshy! We had birthday apple pie...yummmmm.
Joshy enjoyed seeing his Uncle Geoffy, and will be grateful once it's a little warmer out when we can set up the awesome outdoor playhouse that Uncle Geoffy got him. I LOVE that when Joshua says, "Uncle Geoffy," it sounds nearly identical to how he says "Uncle Diapey" (as in diapers...if you weren't catching on to what as funny).
We went to visit Joshy's Nonna (my grandma) right before we headed home, and though he was pretty sleepy, he had a very good time with his new blue piggy bank, bulldozer, and getting to show off for all the nice people she wanted to introduce him to. All that being cute exhausted the poor guy, but he did great, and I'm glad we got to see her!
When we got back to Oregon, we opened a mysterious gift from Nonna, which ended up being this great gigantic fold-out fort type thing that looks like a school bus or a fire truck, depending on how you fold the flaps. Joshua loved it - that is a happy face in the picture! It takes up our whole living room, so it'll be even more fun to play with when we have more space some day, but it was pretty cool!
We had such a wonderful time up at Grandma and Grandpa's, and Joshy loves looking at the pictures from our visit over and over - he often says, "see Ramma Rampat gain?" which means Grandma and Grandpa's (when he adds an s to words, it often sounds like a t lately). I'm not sure when we'll go up there again, but we are so grateful that we had such a wonderful visit! And I'm also grateful that I got all these photos posted! 200 days!
Holy cow - I just looked at the little "baby ticker" on the side there, and saw I've been pregnant with this little critter for 200 days! Doesn't that seem like a long time? Still got a ways to go, but I'm proud of me and this quickly growing bowling ball in my tummy that is my next baby boy.
Also, thank you Tracy and Krissy for your comments on the blog (Krissy's were on Facebook) - I feel motivated to post again the rest of the pictures that are waiting. I was feeling sad to have posted about a billion times and have no comments, so thank you!!
Also, thank you Tracy and Krissy for your comments on the blog (Krissy's were on Facebook) - I feel motivated to post again the rest of the pictures that are waiting. I was feeling sad to have posted about a billion times and have no comments, so thank you!!
Thursday, January 8, 2009
A little bit between Christmases
Before we headed up to Washington, we stopped by to see Uncle Jeremy and his family - Joshy especially enjoyed going up and down the stairs at their house. We went out to lunch at Ruby Tuesday and had a good time. That's probably a pretty good picture to show off my big tummy, huh?
We celebrated Emily's birthday a little early and Joshy loved singing happy birthday!
When we got home, Joshua got to open up another Christmas present - a potty. He'd been wanting one since we watched "Elmo's Potty" on YouTube. Eric and Laurel got him a stuffed baby Cookie Monster for Christmas, so Joshy had some help trying out the potty. Joshua has yet to attempt it...we'll see when he gets interested again.
This was after church, in his little Christmas outfit...I just love this picture. Joshy so rarely falls asleep with us anymore, and I really think that when he is sleeping, he looks just like he did in those very early weeks (just a lot more hair now). Having a warm baby sleeping on you is a wonderful feeling, and it is rare with Joshy these days. I love this kid.
We celebrated Emily's birthday a little early and Joshy loved singing happy birthday!
When we got home, Joshua got to open up another Christmas present - a potty. He'd been wanting one since we watched "Elmo's Potty" on YouTube. Eric and Laurel got him a stuffed baby Cookie Monster for Christmas, so Joshy had some help trying out the potty. Joshua has yet to attempt it...we'll see when he gets interested again.
This was after church, in his little Christmas outfit...I just love this picture. Joshy so rarely falls asleep with us anymore, and I really think that when he is sleeping, he looks just like he did in those very early weeks (just a lot more hair now). Having a warm baby sleeping on you is a wonderful feeling, and it is rare with Joshy these days. I love this kid.
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Christmas # 1: Oregon style
We weren't able to go up to Washington to visit my family at the time we planned, and we ended up making it to Lafayette to see Nathan's parents' a bit earlier than we'd expected. Eric, Laurel, Stevie, and Allie came up to visit again, as well as Tawnia, and Clarissa came home, so it was a VERY full house - lots of fun and noise and holiday excitement (and occasionally a bit of drama).
Joshy really does enjoy that piano - I wish we had one...someday! He can tell you what a lot of songs are now just by hearing the music, and he's quite good at singing Jingle Bells and Silent Night, as well as a bunch of non-Christmas songs. I have no doubt he'll continue to be very musical.
Joshy really does enjoy that piano - I wish we had one...someday! He can tell you what a lot of songs are now just by hearing the music, and he's quite good at singing Jingle Bells and Silent Night, as well as a bunch of non-Christmas songs. I have no doubt he'll continue to be very musical.
(Almost) everyone waiting to go out and get started on the stockings.
Joshy opening one of his stocking stuffers - number magnets to join his letter magnets on the fridge.
Joshy playing with his new blocks from Aunt Tawnia, under Allie's careful observation.
One of his newest skills - giving the "evil eye" - was perfected over Christmas dinner. Gotta love the reindeer bib.
Stevie loves Joshy, and Joshy loves Stevie, and Joshy loves that gigantic bunny from Aunt Kissa-Wa too. But he loves Stevie more.
Joshy and Allie playing with Allie's coolest Christmas present - her little doll that pees and poos in a toilet that flushes...seriously this is a hilarious toy. One night when Stevie was in the middle of getting dressed, he sat down totally naked on the little potty - that cracked me up. Joshua tried it too at some point, but he had his clothes on, and couldn't quite keep his balance. Allie's hairstyle was inspired by her little peeing and pooing doll as well. What a nice addition to their family. And Allie is wearing Joshua's shirt in this picture.
Pretty much every picture with these two in it is priceless, but I especially love this one. I hope they stay good friends as they grow up!
Sharing some goldfish.
We had a very nice Christmas - it was my very first Christmas (in 25 years!!!) not being with my family on Christmas day, so that was hard...especially not knowing quite when we'd be able to get our little car through the snow to get up to Washington, but we did have a very good time. Having all these little kids around makes Christmas special in a different way, ya know? Being the youngest generation in my extended family gave Christmases a different feeling for those several years before this next generation came along. I really love seeing Joshua enjoying the holidays.
Joshy opening one of his stocking stuffers - number magnets to join his letter magnets on the fridge.
Joshy playing with his new blocks from Aunt Tawnia, under Allie's careful observation.
One of his newest skills - giving the "evil eye" - was perfected over Christmas dinner. Gotta love the reindeer bib.
Stevie loves Joshy, and Joshy loves Stevie, and Joshy loves that gigantic bunny from Aunt Kissa-Wa too. But he loves Stevie more.
Joshy and Allie playing with Allie's coolest Christmas present - her little doll that pees and poos in a toilet that flushes...seriously this is a hilarious toy. One night when Stevie was in the middle of getting dressed, he sat down totally naked on the little potty - that cracked me up. Joshua tried it too at some point, but he had his clothes on, and couldn't quite keep his balance. Allie's hairstyle was inspired by her little peeing and pooing doll as well. What a nice addition to their family. And Allie is wearing Joshua's shirt in this picture.
Pretty much every picture with these two in it is priceless, but I especially love this one. I hope they stay good friends as they grow up!
Sharing some goldfish.
We had a very nice Christmas - it was my very first Christmas (in 25 years!!!) not being with my family on Christmas day, so that was hard...especially not knowing quite when we'd be able to get our little car through the snow to get up to Washington, but we did have a very good time. Having all these little kids around makes Christmas special in a different way, ya know? Being the youngest generation in my extended family gave Christmases a different feeling for those several years before this next generation came along. I really love seeing Joshua enjoying the holidays.Mid-December
Apparently there is a limit to the number of pictures you can put into one post...
Here is Joshua modeling the hat Nathan made me - I am pretty impressed with the snowflake pattern - this was his very first try!
Right when the crazy snow started, we were having new floors put in - our wimpy little car left us pretty stranded, so we were very grateful that we could go hang out with the Bays for much of the day while they were working on our apartment. Joshua had a blast playing in the big box full of packing peanuts with Rowan, though admittedly neither of them felt it was quite a two-person box.
I have to say that this is my all-time favorite picture of Rowan ever, and there are a lot of good ones out there! Now, I'm not quite sure if she really liked my Christmas cookies very much, but the homemade green frosting was a BIG hit.
It was so funny what a trek it was just to the next street up! What a crazy week it turned out to be...
We were putting our "office/dining room" back together, enjoying the new vinyl to replace the ratty old carpet. We really like it. More to sweep and mop, but also more to spill stuff on without worry, which REALLY outweighs the other.
Well, little did we know that the next day we'd be going to the doctor to find out that Joshua broke his little arm!!! He'd fallen off the little bench in our hallway on Monday, and it obviously hurt him a lot, so we'd called the doctor right away. They asked us a lot of questions and had us test his range of motion and grasping, etc., and they didn't think it was broken...but told us to watch and see if he was using it. Well on Tuesday it started to swell and bruise near his left wrist, so Wednesday our friend Allie was wonderful enough to take time off work and drive us all to the doctor in her 4 wheel drive vehicle. The doctor didn't think it was broken when he examined him in the office, but the x-ray proved everyone wrong. Our little guy managed to break his left radius. So they put him in a hard splint (like a partial cast wrapped with ace bandages) and sent us home. This sling was only worn for about 3 minutes total...it's not very practical to expect a toddler to wear a sling, and it wasn't necessary either.
Since Joshua wasn't allowed to get his splint wet, and we didn't have any other coat for him, he got to go outside in one of his dada's coats - I think the pictures are pretty freaking adorable. He really enjoyed looking at the snow, though it'll be more fun next time it snows when he can actually be in it a bit more.
I was laying on the floor and Joshy brought me a bunch of pillows, which I appreciated, and then he came and laid down with me...I love my little guy.
Enjoying the snow some more...
The freezing rain did some beautiful things to the trees and bushes, though some of that beauty caused a lot of power outages - ours was off four times on one of the days, but we were fortunate - many people lost power for much longer.
Joshy really enjoyed the "icicles" on the bushes.
And all this before Christmas!
Here is Joshua modeling the hat Nathan made me - I am pretty impressed with the snowflake pattern - this was his very first try!
Right when the crazy snow started, we were having new floors put in - our wimpy little car left us pretty stranded, so we were very grateful that we could go hang out with the Bays for much of the day while they were working on our apartment. Joshua had a blast playing in the big box full of packing peanuts with Rowan, though admittedly neither of them felt it was quite a two-person box.
I have to say that this is my all-time favorite picture of Rowan ever, and there are a lot of good ones out there! Now, I'm not quite sure if she really liked my Christmas cookies very much, but the homemade green frosting was a BIG hit.
It was so funny what a trek it was just to the next street up! What a crazy week it turned out to be...
We were putting our "office/dining room" back together, enjoying the new vinyl to replace the ratty old carpet. We really like it. More to sweep and mop, but also more to spill stuff on without worry, which REALLY outweighs the other.
Well, little did we know that the next day we'd be going to the doctor to find out that Joshua broke his little arm!!! He'd fallen off the little bench in our hallway on Monday, and it obviously hurt him a lot, so we'd called the doctor right away. They asked us a lot of questions and had us test his range of motion and grasping, etc., and they didn't think it was broken...but told us to watch and see if he was using it. Well on Tuesday it started to swell and bruise near his left wrist, so Wednesday our friend Allie was wonderful enough to take time off work and drive us all to the doctor in her 4 wheel drive vehicle. The doctor didn't think it was broken when he examined him in the office, but the x-ray proved everyone wrong. Our little guy managed to break his left radius. So they put him in a hard splint (like a partial cast wrapped with ace bandages) and sent us home. This sling was only worn for about 3 minutes total...it's not very practical to expect a toddler to wear a sling, and it wasn't necessary either.
Since Joshua wasn't allowed to get his splint wet, and we didn't have any other coat for him, he got to go outside in one of his dada's coats - I think the pictures are pretty freaking adorable. He really enjoyed looking at the snow, though it'll be more fun next time it snows when he can actually be in it a bit more.
I was laying on the floor and Joshy brought me a bunch of pillows, which I appreciated, and then he came and laid down with me...I love my little guy.
Enjoying the snow some more...
The freezing rain did some beautiful things to the trees and bushes, though some of that beauty caused a lot of power outages - ours was off four times on one of the days, but we were fortunate - many people lost power for much longer.
Joshy really enjoyed the "icicles" on the bushes.
And all this before Christmas! The beginning of December
The first two weeks of December were not extremely eventful, but Joshy did get to help celebrate Grandpa Palmer's birthday and go to a ward Christmas party.
Here is Joshua reading Reader's Digest with Grandpa.
And Joshua is ALWAYS eager for an opportunity to show off his skill at singing "Happy Birthday!"
He found a love of Legos, though we watch him carefully because he likes those little ones.
I like the perspective on this picture - kind of reminds me of Calvin and Hobbes. The story that goes along with it cracks me up...whenever Joshua takes off one of the little hats that the Lego men are wearing, he always says, "Lego man naked!" Any bare skin means naked to Joshua, so when his tummy is showing, he says he is naked. He went crazy pointing at one of the tabloid magazines at the grocery store the other day which was showing different movie stars in bathing suits who had gained weight..."Lady naked lady naked!!!"
I had just been fluffing Joshua's hair out in the mirror to the point where he kind of looked like Wolverine from the X-Men, so I had to try to quickly smooth it out for dada's surprise tooth brushing photo shoot.
It is embarassing how long this kid went without having shoes other than his little camo crocs...those have been great, but they have holes in them, so walking in bark dust or dirt turns his socks brown. Anyway, he likes his new velcro shoes because he can still take them off by himself! In this picture, he is contemplating the price tag...
Opening the first Christmas gift of the season - from Aunt Lynn and Uncle Mark - all sorts of fun paper products - thank you so much - I don't know if I thanked you for that in person at Christmas time!!! We are using it all up and greatly appreciate it. Joshua loved taking it all out of the box and putting it back in, over and over. He was especially fascinated with the Kleenex that has lotion in it...
All ready to go to the ward Christmas party - good thing he got new shoes, of course!
At the Christmas party with dada.
Keeping Santa's chair warm for him...what a cutie.
I love this picture - but how could you not?
Though he doesn't look very excited about it in the picture, Joshua did enjoy his first time sitting with Santa. We had this picture as our desktop background for awhile and Joshy got very excited about seeing Santa there. And he only cried a little!
Here is Joshua reading Reader's Digest with Grandpa.
And Joshua is ALWAYS eager for an opportunity to show off his skill at singing "Happy Birthday!"
He found a love of Legos, though we watch him carefully because he likes those little ones.
I like the perspective on this picture - kind of reminds me of Calvin and Hobbes. The story that goes along with it cracks me up...whenever Joshua takes off one of the little hats that the Lego men are wearing, he always says, "Lego man naked!" Any bare skin means naked to Joshua, so when his tummy is showing, he says he is naked. He went crazy pointing at one of the tabloid magazines at the grocery store the other day which was showing different movie stars in bathing suits who had gained weight..."Lady naked lady naked!!!"
I had just been fluffing Joshua's hair out in the mirror to the point where he kind of looked like Wolverine from the X-Men, so I had to try to quickly smooth it out for dada's surprise tooth brushing photo shoot.
It is embarassing how long this kid went without having shoes other than his little camo crocs...those have been great, but they have holes in them, so walking in bark dust or dirt turns his socks brown. Anyway, he likes his new velcro shoes because he can still take them off by himself! In this picture, he is contemplating the price tag...
Opening the first Christmas gift of the season - from Aunt Lynn and Uncle Mark - all sorts of fun paper products - thank you so much - I don't know if I thanked you for that in person at Christmas time!!! We are using it all up and greatly appreciate it. Joshua loved taking it all out of the box and putting it back in, over and over. He was especially fascinated with the Kleenex that has lotion in it...
All ready to go to the ward Christmas party - good thing he got new shoes, of course!
At the Christmas party with dada.
Keeping Santa's chair warm for him...what a cutie.
I love this picture - but how could you not?
Though he doesn't look very excited about it in the picture, Joshua did enjoy his first time sitting with Santa. We had this picture as our desktop background for awhile and Joshy got very excited about seeing Santa there. And he only cried a little!
Late November
Since the last time I posted was before Thanksgiving, I've got a lot of catching up to do! I'll just stick with lots of photos and descriptions.
Joshy getting ready to go outside - I love his raincoat.
Working on building a sweet fort with his dada.
Trying on dada's sandals.
For Family Home Evening before Thanksgiving, we made a turkey with feathers saying things we're thankful for. Joshua came up with some of them, as you can possibly tell. It was fun.
Joshua working on studying Calculus 2 so he could take dada's finals for him.
Nathan was very quick with the camera to get this one - Joshua doesn't often like bows on his head.
Joshy's friend Leia came over one night and they had a good time playing. I've got some videos to post from their adventures together!
Eric, Laurel, Stevie, and Allie came to visit Thanksgiving week, so we spent a lot of time with them. Joshy liked wearing Allie's pink hat.
All the cousins squirming on Grandma's lap!
We went up to Washington for a short Thanksgiving visit. Joshy had fun playing with his great grandma - with his school bus and new piggy bank.
Joshy enjoying his Thanksgiving feast - I think last year's Thanksgiving bib is a bit small now, but oh well.
Trying on a sheep costume for the Christmas pageant that he didn't end up getting to be in because it was postponed for weather and we weren't up there the right weekend.
Also trying on the angel wings...
Some have complained that they haven't seen any pictures of me all fat and pregnant...here's one before I got as gigantic as I am now, but I'll see if I have any decent ones from more recently. We are enjoying a delicious chocolate chip cookie in this one.
Mama and Joshy playing the piano - he's actually quite good, and he will sit there with me and play for a LONG time!
Joshy and Allie make a great team - and he especially likes that touch lamp.
Right after Thanksgiving, the Christmas decor came out of the big blue bin, and we got to work on decorating - Joshua was a big help.
Joshy getting ready to go outside - I love his raincoat.
Working on building a sweet fort with his dada.
Trying on dada's sandals.
For Family Home Evening before Thanksgiving, we made a turkey with feathers saying things we're thankful for. Joshua came up with some of them, as you can possibly tell. It was fun.
Joshua working on studying Calculus 2 so he could take dada's finals for him.
Nathan was very quick with the camera to get this one - Joshua doesn't often like bows on his head.
Joshy's friend Leia came over one night and they had a good time playing. I've got some videos to post from their adventures together!
Eric, Laurel, Stevie, and Allie came to visit Thanksgiving week, so we spent a lot of time with them. Joshy liked wearing Allie's pink hat.
All the cousins squirming on Grandma's lap!
We went up to Washington for a short Thanksgiving visit. Joshy had fun playing with his great grandma - with his school bus and new piggy bank.
Joshy enjoying his Thanksgiving feast - I think last year's Thanksgiving bib is a bit small now, but oh well.
Trying on a sheep costume for the Christmas pageant that he didn't end up getting to be in because it was postponed for weather and we weren't up there the right weekend.
Also trying on the angel wings...
Some have complained that they haven't seen any pictures of me all fat and pregnant...here's one before I got as gigantic as I am now, but I'll see if I have any decent ones from more recently. We are enjoying a delicious chocolate chip cookie in this one.
Mama and Joshy playing the piano - he's actually quite good, and he will sit there with me and play for a LONG time!
Joshy and Allie make a great team - and he especially likes that touch lamp.
Right after Thanksgiving, the Christmas decor came out of the big blue bin, and we got to work on decorating - Joshua was a big help.
Introducing baby #2
We've been calling him #2 or baby Henry for quite some time now, but I'm fairly certain Henry won't be his name...we just like to call him that. I scanned several ultrasound pictures long ago, and it's been on my list for a long time to post them, so I'll put them up here and then get some Joshy pictures up as well!
This was on August 15th...can't exactly see how cute he is. He's the white blur in the dark blur in the middle on the bottom.
Well, that's all for now - I'll post another if we have another ultrasound, but we probably won't, so you can look forward to pictures in April if he's on time!
This was on August 15th...can't exactly see how cute he is. He's the white blur in the dark blur in the middle on the bottom.
This was August 27th, when they were trying to get a more exact date - I was frustrated because my calculations said he was due about a week earlier than their calculations. At this point, I'm not minding so much having one extra week to prepare!
Then the much-anticipated ultrasound to determine the sex. This was November 25th - here's his cute little foot. We were actually pretty shocked that the baby is a boy. We'd been hoping for a boy, but were pretty convinced it was a girl!
With Joshy, they did the cool 3-D pictures, one of which looked a lot like him...but the ultrasound tech lady was in a hurry (our appointment was about an hour late...so they were rushed to catch up), so we just got the regular kind of pictures. I do like this picture a lot, though, because he is smiling!
Well, that's all for now - I'll post another if we have another ultrasound, but we probably won't, so you can look forward to pictures in April if he's on time!
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
A meat treat and dancing with the...?
Yesterday was a big milestone for Joshua - he was having a rather adventurous day in terms of trying new foods (he hasn't had one of those in a loooooong time), and finally ate meat that wasn't the gross Gerber baby food meat sticks. That is all he's ever been willing to eat that is meat. Anyway, he had a chicken nugget and really liked it. Not the healthiest of meats, but it's a start! He also tried a bite of my little mini cheese wheel (those little red ones covered in wax) and didn't like it, a bit of mashed potatoes (not a big fan of those either), and a bite of my Twinkie (loved it!).
And then today, he was dancing around in circles on his blue play mat holding Pooh in his arms...it was adorable - he had a huge grin on his face and I so wanted to catch the moment on film, but it just didn't quite happen - sorry. I guess you could call that a toddler version of dancing with the stars, right?
I love this baby. I'm trying out making meatloaf for the first time tonight. I decided it is high time to expand the number of things I can cook...starting with meats. Oh man I haven't posted pictures in awhile - gotta do that, huh? Oh and I updated a few of the items below to add a few more I hadn't given myself before. I think I've done 50 of the 99 things, but I didn't recount after I added some and I don't really want to...so it might not be 50.
And then today, he was dancing around in circles on his blue play mat holding Pooh in his arms...it was adorable - he had a huge grin on his face and I so wanted to catch the moment on film, but it just didn't quite happen - sorry. I guess you could call that a toddler version of dancing with the stars, right?
I love this baby. I'm trying out making meatloaf for the first time tonight. I decided it is high time to expand the number of things I can cook...starting with meats. Oh man I haven't posted pictures in awhile - gotta do that, huh? Oh and I updated a few of the items below to add a few more I hadn't given myself before. I think I've done 50 of the 99 things, but I didn't recount after I added some and I don't really want to...so it might not be 50.
Monday, November 17, 2008
What have I done?
Again, I don't usually do these kind of things, but again, I saw that Trina had posted it on the sisters blog, and again, I liked it! I learned a lot about Trina - maybe you'll learn a lot about me!
Of these 99 things, the ones in bold are ones I've done:
1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band *Nope...
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity *I think you'd have to define that...by my standards, no I haven't given more than I could afford
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis *Don't want to!
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped *NEVER want to!
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea *I love watching lightning storms, but I definitely don't want to at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch *Probably I have...I'm not thinking of anything specific, though...does learning how to write bubble letters count?
15. Adopted a child *Maybe someday...
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables *I've never had my own garden, but I want to grow veggies someday!
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked *Yikes - don't plan on it!
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb *I don't think I have...I've held goats...
26. Gone skinny dipping *After I was married, though...
27. Run a Marathon *I'm not a big fan of running...
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice *Maybe someday
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person *I'd like to!
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community *I definitely want to!
36. Taught yourself a new language *I learned some French, but certainly didn't teach myself
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt *Want to!
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant *Hmmm...
44. Visited Africa *I'd love to someday
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance *I've ridden in the front seat while Nathan was transported
47. Had your portrait painted *That'd be cool
48. Gone deep sea fishing *NO THANK YOU!
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China *That'd be awesome
57. Started a business *Probably won't do that
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen *I think I sang Christmas carols at a soup kitchen once when I was 15 or so, but didn't serve
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies *I never made it past Brownies, and I don't think they sold cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma *Never have been able to cuz as soon as I weighed enough, I was on medication that means I can't
65. Gone sky diving *I think I want to...
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp *I want to go to the Holocaust museum in DC, but probably not visit an actual concentration camp
67. Bounced a check *I've been overdrawn on my debit card, but not bounced an actual check
68. Flown in a helicopter *No desire to do this...I've seen too many helicopters blow up in the movies
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar *Yuck.
72. Pieced a quilt *I've helped tie quilts and have contributed a piece to a quilt, but never actually done the work of piecing it together
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades *Maybe someday
75. Been fired from a job *hopefully never!
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London *We saw the changing of the guards at the Tower of London, rather than at Buckingham Palace...and another changing of the guards in Rome, which was cool.
77. Broken a bone *Well I think I've broken my pinkie toe a time or two
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle *No desire at all
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person *Definitely want to!
80. Published a book *Probably never will
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car *Someday...
83. Walked in Jerusalem *That would be amazing
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating *Haven't done this...maybe I will someday
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life *At least I don't think so...
90. Sat on a jury *I'm sure I will sometime soon
91. Met someone famous *I can't think of anyone
92. Joined a book club *Hopefully this year I will!
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person *I'd like to!
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake *Have NO desire to do that
97. Been involved in a law suit *No desire there either
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
Well this is definitely helpful for helping me work on my list of things I'd like to do before I die!
Of these 99 things, the ones in bold are ones I've done:
1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band *Nope...
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity *I think you'd have to define that...by my standards, no I haven't given more than I could afford
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis *Don't want to!
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped *NEVER want to!
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea *I love watching lightning storms, but I definitely don't want to at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch *Probably I have...I'm not thinking of anything specific, though...does learning how to write bubble letters count?
15. Adopted a child *Maybe someday...
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables *I've never had my own garden, but I want to grow veggies someday!
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked *Yikes - don't plan on it!
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb *I don't think I have...I've held goats...
26. Gone skinny dipping *After I was married, though...
27. Run a Marathon *I'm not a big fan of running...
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice *Maybe someday
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person *I'd like to!
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community *I definitely want to!
36. Taught yourself a new language *I learned some French, but certainly didn't teach myself
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt *Want to!
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant *Hmmm...
44. Visited Africa *I'd love to someday
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance *I've ridden in the front seat while Nathan was transported
47. Had your portrait painted *That'd be cool
48. Gone deep sea fishing *NO THANK YOU!
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China *That'd be awesome
57. Started a business *Probably won't do that
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen *I think I sang Christmas carols at a soup kitchen once when I was 15 or so, but didn't serve
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies *I never made it past Brownies, and I don't think they sold cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma *Never have been able to cuz as soon as I weighed enough, I was on medication that means I can't
65. Gone sky diving *I think I want to...
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp *I want to go to the Holocaust museum in DC, but probably not visit an actual concentration camp
67. Bounced a check *I've been overdrawn on my debit card, but not bounced an actual check
68. Flown in a helicopter *No desire to do this...I've seen too many helicopters blow up in the movies
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar *Yuck.
72. Pieced a quilt *I've helped tie quilts and have contributed a piece to a quilt, but never actually done the work of piecing it together
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades *Maybe someday
75. Been fired from a job *hopefully never!
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London *We saw the changing of the guards at the Tower of London, rather than at Buckingham Palace...and another changing of the guards in Rome, which was cool.
77. Broken a bone *Well I think I've broken my pinkie toe a time or two
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle *No desire at all
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person *Definitely want to!
80. Published a book *Probably never will
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car *Someday...
83. Walked in Jerusalem *That would be amazing
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating *Haven't done this...maybe I will someday
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life *At least I don't think so...
90. Sat on a jury *I'm sure I will sometime soon
91. Met someone famous *I can't think of anyone
92. Joined a book club *Hopefully this year I will!
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person *I'd like to!
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake *Have NO desire to do that
97. Been involved in a law suit *No desire there either
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
Well this is definitely helpful for helping me work on my list of things I'd like to do before I die!
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