CHRISTMAS 2008 - slideshow

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Well we had a great Christmas! Jordan got lots of presents from Santa and Justin got a few too! We couldn't not get Justin something because then Jordan would think Justin was a 'bad boy' since Santa hadn't brought him any presents...Mommy & Daddy got a deep freezer for Christmas that we pick up tomorrow from Sears. It is a Kenmore 14.8 cubic foot one; it holds something like 600 lbs of food...since Mom and Dad Roth contributed 1/2 the amount via gift cards for our Xmas presents, we chose to get the biggest one they had chest size (excluding the one you could actually hide bodies in)! We figure we'll be able to go down to the Butcher Boys meat shop and actually buy a 100 or so pounds of meat cheaper, which we are sure would also taste better then the grocery stores meat.

Jordan got up and went to the sliding glass door to look out the window to determine if Santa had come...I guess he thought Santa walked up to the back door to get in the house, not down our chimney! He got very nervous since he couldn't see Santa footprints and said that Santa hadn't come; not until we said are you sure that he looked at the Christmas tree to see the presents under it that he finally said 'he did come'! Jordan got SO many presents from Santa this year...he must've been a really good boy:)

We went over to our neighbor Mary Kay's house for Christmas Eve dinner and had a great meal with great friends and met some new folks as well. She was to come over to our house for Christmas dinner yesterday, but instead she fell on the ice flat on her back out in her driveway picking up her newspaper...she had to miss out on the company, but Philip took her a plate for two so she could get her first taste of fried turkey. Philip made the most wonderful and tasty dinner yesterday....I actually hadn't see Jordan eat so much in a long time, so you KNOW it was good:) He made fried turkey, mac and cheese, green bean casserole, yams (his secret recipe), and pumpkin pies. I think I'm still full 24 hours later! He made Aunt Deb's ham/cream cheese/ & onion stuffed hors' deovers too! THANKS Aunt Deb!!!!

I will follow this posting with a slide show of Xmas and the boys opening presents...We hope everyone had an enjoyable and memorable Christmas and will have a Happy New Year!

A few new pictures of the boys

Jordan's brand new big boy haircut!
Justin's big blue eyes & food on the face look...

The boys just hanging out!

WHAT A CRAZY WEEK!!!!

This week has been so screwy! First off, who new that WA got so much snow...yeah, it's been snowing here all week and today I think we got close to 6" outside! Justin has been sick (2 ear infections - 1 in each ear) so I had to leave work early on Monday, I got to go to work on Tuesday, then had to work from home on Wednesday because of the snow, today (Thursday) was a vacation day for Christmas shopping that I didn't get to do since the roads were so snowy and slick that I didn't want to leave the house (its about 23 degrees or so outside), and now Philip is stuck in Pasco, WA from an overnight business trip (Wed. to Thursday) that it was supposed to be instead he got snowed in and flights cancelled that he now won't be back until tomorrow, so with schools closed already for tomorrow, daycare is running 2 hours late that I've got to work again from home tomorrow! I'll have to post some pictures of the snow tomorrow since it's now too late and too dark...bye for tonight as this makes 3 postings!

Our little photographer...

This picture was taken by Jordan...yes, Jordan took the actual picture as this is no cropping or enhancements to the photo since I don't think I would even know how to do that! Jordan just loves the digital camera, in fact, we got him a kid friendly spiderman camera for Christmas just for this reason; the other shot he took that's out on the blog is the one of Philip and I in front of our new travel trailer we had bought. He holds the camera up, zooms it in and out, tells us to say cheese, and then takes the picture; he also then shows it to me since I'm always so leary he hasn't cut off my head or something:)

Is Santa REALLY that scary?

Jordan and Justin had their holiday party today at school and they had a visit from that special someone during this time of year....you can see that Justin all but wanted to get the hell out of dodge (he was on Santa's lap all of 20 seconds) and Jordan was more concerned with his little brother screaming then telling Santa what he wanted; though in the end Jordan did say he wanted a cat for Christmas...not that that is going to happen ever since I'm allergic to cats and we just got rid of the pups because they were lacking attention, & cats you can't just keep kenneled in the garage!

We are freezing our a--es off!

It was so cold here today! In fact, over the weekend we got 3 inches of snow at our house with more to come on Wednesday...when I got up this morning to head into work, my car was reading 16 degrees. But, have no fear, the high of the day was a big whoppin' 28 degrees!!!:)

We aren't supposed to above these sub-freezing temperatures until Sunday...I figured out my Christmas presents today whilst waiting for and riding the bus; a need a good pair of winter boots and some nice warm gloves...with my current gloves/socks/shoes I still froze my a-- off!

The bus actually had tire chains on the first of the season for the ride which we could only ride in at 40MPH...this is going to be a really long winter!

It's a sad day!

We got rid of Peaches and Ike yesterday; our two pugs we've had for 8 years and 7 years respectively. They were just not getting any people attention like they used to, more so even lately since Justin came. We took them up to Redmond to the Seattle Pug Rescue's Vet...they will then be put into foster homes after exams/vaccines/& Ike to be neutered, and then be adopted.

http://www.seattlepugs.com/

The link to the non-profit org. is above...soon you will see Peaches and Ike's pictures out there once they are ready to be adopted. It was sad to leave them, but we know they'll get into homes where people will love and play with them more then they are here.

It finally happened...

I filled up my gas tank:)!!!

Yesterday was my first fill up since the ride home from Redmond on Thanksgiving day (11/27). It has been exactly two weeks...that's 1 fill up now to what would've been 4 fill ups during those two weeks I was driving back and forth to work instead of now riding the bus!

On a side note, I bought an IPOD this past week so now I don't have to talk to hope when someone sits down next to me that they don't want to make casual conversation with a stranger:)

Pictures...

Look how tall I am mom?
Happy Thanksgiving...why am I in this cage?

Jordan waiting his turn for bowling...using the Wii; of course he wants one now!

Jordan on Holly's scooter; we were at Philip's co-worker's house in Redmond on Turkey Day!

Jordan likes to pose with his brother...

Justin, do you have to watch me take a bath?

Look at all my teeth!

The boys are really starting to play together now...it is so cute to see! I guess this is why they say you've got to have two!

The wheels on the bus are STILL going round!!!

It was a full week last week riding the bus to and from work...I actually thought I could take up doing some writing/reading for school since it didn't seem to queasy on the bus, but lo and behold on Wednesday I barely made if off the bus and to my car before I threw up in the planter box outside of my car at the park and ride! SO, that means no more trying to do anything productive on the bus like catch up on school work...I'll only be able to listen to books on tape or music through my new IPOD (new 16G orange Nano) I got! It is really two fold; first so that random people don't just start talking to me (yes, this has happened on more then one occasion and I've only been riding the bus for 8 days...imagine what happens after 3 weeks; they might invite themselves over for Christmas); I figure with the ear phones on I can pretty much ignore anyone, and #2 is so that the bus ride doesn't seem so long! It's 1 hour 15 minutes into work, and 1 hour 45 minutes home...I'm out the door catching the bus in the dark and picking up the boys from daycare in the dark. The only bright side is that I filled my gas tank up in Bellevue on the way home from Thanksgiving dinner at Philip's friends house and still have 1/2 tank left; at this rate, it'll be Christmas before I have to fill up again...I'm suffering for the long ride on the bus, but banking a whole lot of extra cash! It was usually 1 hour 30 minutes home when I was driving myself anyways, so the bus just adds about 15 minutes or so each way...it works for now since the bus is free, I'm driving less then 10 miles per day in my car, and my job pays me $75 dollars a month for taking the bus on top of paying for and giving me a bus pass; common sense and frugality rule my house!!!

Looking for an escape? Not so much, I love my brother!

Justin is now standing & cruising...he walks the length of our coffee table which is about 3-5' long. In fact, two mornings ago Philip walked into his room to get him in the morning and it was the first time he was standing up in his crib 'talking'...not yelling, just basically hanging out. What has really surprised us is that last night he crawled halfway up the stairs (about 5 or so steps)! He only turned 8 months old this past Tuesday...I think big brother Jordan is the main reason Justin is doing all these things; Jordan will get on the ground and crawl and Justin will just take off following him to keep up and play with him. Now that Justin has gotten so much bigger, they are acting like brothers being able to play together! What was really funny was a couple of nights ago they were fighting over this aqua doodle drawing pad...Justin was crawling on it trying to get the water marker from Jordan; Philip and I were standing back smiling because it was the first true interaction of 'brotherly love', with MANY more to come we're sure:)

Thanksgiving went great...Jordan had lots of fun playing with Holly; I'll have to post some pics over the weekend. I'm looking to finish Christmas shopping this weekend, so we'll see how that goes!

Phil's Bake Shop...update

OK, on last nights posting I was misinformed on the bake goods Philip was making...here is the actual list (FYI - he's STILL in the kitchen baking)!

(2) pumpkin pies
(1) Red Velvet Cake
(1) 7-up Cake
(2) Peach Cobblers

I'll definitely be on a diet after this:)

Pictures & Milestones

Justin just pulled himself up today for the first time, in fact, it was only about 2 hours ago that he did it (see the picture below). He will be 8-months old on Tuesday...time is just flying by SO fast! It only seemed I was home on maternity leave when in fact I've been back to work for 5 months already! He has both of his bottom front teeth and his top right front tooth and now just today he poked through his top left front tooth...makes sense since last night he was up twice and very cranky. I just wish all of his teeth would come in right now so it could all be done and over with at one time; this one tooth here and there 'thing' is killing him and me:)
Jordan STILL loves his little brother to pieces. Here are some current pictures of the boys together below. We are still working on the potty training; peeing is one thing but pooping is another whole different story! I really think he's scared to poop on the potty for some reason...any suggestions from you pros out there that have gone through this already? I'm about ready to give up and put pull-ups back on him...

Justin & daddy too tired from the week...

We are going over to Philip's friend's house tomorrow in Redmond for Turkey Day! This are some of the same folks that were down here for the BBQ a couple of months back...both their families and ours live out of state, so it works out perfect in that regards that we share Thanksgiving together. In fact, Philip's in the kitchen right this minute making desserts (Red Velvet Cake now & Peach Cobbler tomorrow morning before we go)...he's just glad he doesn't have to cook the meal this year! I'll try to post some pics tomorrow from the gathering, but if not, know in advance that we had fun!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!!! - from the Jamison Family!

The wheels on the bus go round & round...

It's a short work week, but I still completed 3 round trips on a bus commuting to work from Puyallup to Bellevue...very interesting riding the bus; folks fall asleep and miss their stops, some people are smelly, and a lot are plain rude (bus drivers included)! The only good thing is that I would've filled my gas tank up on Monday morning and again tomorrow morning on my way in, but instead between the park and ride and picking up the boys from daycare I've only used a 1/8 of a tank in 3 days...at this rate (excl. weekend driving), it'll take me one month to fill up the gas tank:) That's gas savings alone of approximately $400/mo!!! We're saving the gas $ for potentially a new car when my 9 year-old vehicle with 154K miles on it 'craps out'...NOT before!

The bus ride is an additional 15/20 minutes each way, but that's a small sacrifice to make to be saving lots of $!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME...(1 day late)!

Well, I'm now 35 years old...UGH!!! It's even harder to write it down! This is the first age I can remember when I was growing up that my mom was & that was very old at the time (it STILL is very old now)! I'm struggling to be able to say I'm 35, yeah I know some of you reading this are older then me and can probably remember an age when you said my gosh I'm as old as my mom!

Anyways when I got home from work yesterday, the boys had made me a homemade birthday cake...it was yummy! They also bought me some new pajamas and sang happy birthday to me! Ironically, IT WAS MY BEST BIRTHDAY EVER!

Random Tid Bits

We got invited to Philip's co-workers house for Thanksgiving...:) That means no cooking for Philip:) These are the same people from the BBQ we had at our house just a few weeks ago. They have a 4-year old daughter named Holly who Jordan just got along with so wonderfully! It'll be nice to get out of the house for a holiday & NOT have to travel to some other state for that meal!!! Jordan has already been asking about when he gets to see Holly again.

2-weeks from today our company is moving to downtown Bellevue which means I have to learn the transit system since I'll be riding the bus back and forth to work! It's great I'll be saving $ that would've normally been spent on gas, plus making $75 a month that the company is paying us not to park on site, but it means that I'll have to rely on someone else getting me where I need to be AND on time. I'll have use of a zip car at work if I need to run errands while at the office. This is a very nice added convenience IF I can sign up in advance of needing it...seems screwy! I'll have to let you all know how it goes and how I adjust after the first couple or so weeks.

After the class I'm in now is over in Dec., I'll be exactly 1/2 way through the MBA program...only 8 more classes to go:)

Philip winterized the trailer last week and we covered it on Saturday. It is now stored for the winter...we are looking forward to the spring time when we'll get to take it out and actually USE it!!! Philip IS going to Obama's inauguration in Jan09. He's already got everything reserved as he's going to do it with a trip to Hopkinsville, KY for work with a stop over in DC (Yes, it's actually cheaper doing this then flying directly to KY; don't ask me how). He's very excited, plus he gets to see our god-daughter Milixa in Quantico, VA. It's been years since we last saw her so this too will be exciting. I'll have to make sure to post some pics when he gets back.

Justin is working on popping through his top 2 teeth now...poor kid has gotten no relief from his teeth and won't for the next several months until they all pop out; and this too shall pass:) He got his 2nd part of his flu shot on Saturday and went to scream but it went so fast he actually forgot to cry:) Other then that, he's moving around like crazy and actually trying to pull himself up if you can believe that. I've got a picture of him from this weekend where he actually pulled himself up onto the 1st stair to reach Jordan's shoes on the 2nd step!

That's all for now!

Getting SO BIG & growing up TOO FAST!

Justin is now sitting up unassisted and crawling all over the place. I set him down by the kitchen and he found his way into the front room to be with his brother. He just seems so much bigger obviously then Jordan was at 7 months, but I swear he's extra long...look at the pictures below, especially the couple in his diaper. He's basically been wearing 12 month clothes since he was just about 6 months old. I can't believe in 5 months already that he'll be a one-year old toddler...

Below are pictures for your viewing pleasure of the little (well actually big) guy!

Happy Halloween...5 days late!

Better late then never! Jordan got to go out trick or treating for the first time to actually get candy...last year I was to 'pregnant sick' to go out, so this year daddy took him around the entire block to every house while I stayed home with Justin handing out candy. We didn't have but 25 kids this year whereas last year we had upwards of 50 kids, so not only do I have all of Jordan's candy in the house, I still have candy left that I didn't give out! I'm going to take a lot of into my work next week...it'll be gone in 10 minutes if its left in the kitchen:)

Below are pictures of the boys in their halloween costumes. Jordan was Ironman and Justin was a dragon. These were pictures taken at Daycare when the boys had their Halloween parties except for the one dated 10/31 showing Jordan's 'loot'. It was so funny watching Jordan pick out a piece of candy to eat...it was like he was making a life or death decision:)

Jordan and his bestest friend Wyatt!
Jordan & Megan!

Jordan's loot!
Justin & Caleb...

He's on the move!

Justin has started crawling today! It's the funniest thing to see since he's doing it in a pretty choppy fashion...Once he's up on all 4's, he pushes/inches forward across the floor. He went approximately 5 feet to get Jordan's Halloween mask because it must've looked so good:) I moved the mask and he again took off after it; this went on for about 4 different times over a 10 minute period. Of course I didn't have the video camera out, so I'll post video of him doing this tomorrow since it's now his 'new thing' to do!!!

Travel Trailer Pictures

How do you wonder in the last photo that Philip & I ended up in the picture together...? Jordan took it!!! Yup, I think he's going to be a photographer when he grows up; not bad, huh?

A few new pictures of the boys

Jordan trying to help daddy in the kitchen... but instead taking time to pose for a picture:)

Justin in 'happy' form waiting to be fed...he ALREADY loves his food!Jordan BEFORE his haircut,
Justin up on all 4's trying to get the crawling thing under control...
Jordan AFTER his haircut!

Busy Weekend...

We had a very busy weekend; Jordan and Daddy got their haircuts, we had a BBQ yesterday, AND Justin was up on all 4's rocking on his hands and knees making a very small attempt, but an attempt none the less in trying to crawl. I got a few good pictures that I need to post; I will add some tomorrow as well as the pictures of the travel trailer. (Yes, I'm still working on that:))!

Philip made an EXCELLENT southern BBQ this weekend. We had s couple of his co-workers over and their families as well as our neighbor MaryKay and our other neighbors with their daughter Samantha. The weather was wonderful! Sunny and mid-high 60's; who would've thought that I would say wonderful to 60 degree weather...We had baby back ribs, steaks, mac & cheese, homemade greens, hush puppies, and apple pies he brought back from his business trip through TN last week.

Justin's two bottom teeth have also popped through now; it's hard to believe he'll be 7-months old on Sunday!

Me and the boys...

are going to be all alone this week! Philip flies out this morning back to KY for work...this has become an every other month 'thing' for one week at a time. Thank goodness we have such a GREAT neighbor! I will drop off the boys later then usual at daycare and then she'll pick them up on Tuesday-Friday...she is so great since in our pinch last week with my car broke down, she was able to 'on the fly' get the boys from daycare within the 1/2 hour we called her. Thank goodness for wonderful neighbors...(she is the one in the pictures somewhere in my blog helping us to make jam)!!!

Jordan (and I) went to a birthday party yesterday for Samantha (neighbor); she turns 4-years old today! Jordan didn't play any games, he ate a cupcake, and wanted to leave by 1 hour later...I guess there was just too many people he didn't know including a bunch of other of Samantha's cousins that Jordan just wanted to leave (Justin stayed home with Daddy). He told me he had fun, but I think he was fibbing!

Justin's two bottom teeth are about pushed through now...you can see the white and feel the hard of the tooth; he's in such pain and now waking up 3-4 times a night since Friday:( However, he did SMILE for his 6 (1/2) month photos we had taken over the weekend. I'll have to see if I can't post the link so you can see him and Jordan in their costumes too! I don't know what it is about going to get pictures taken, but Jordan it seems would just as soon go to the dentist...he hates it, won't smile, and just plain drives me crazy trying to get 1 picture; at home though, it's "mommy, take my picture", "where's the camera", "CHEESE"...I guess it's just being 3 1/2 years old!

Anyways, have a great week and I'll post some pics later!

It's SUPER Jordan!!!

Make sure you have the sound on...and try not to smile:)

http://www.makemesuper.com/r.php?i=9_ad145-080322-m-Jordan

A new car now?

On Tuesday (10/14) my car broke down while I was on my way home...long story short, I was concerned that the problem to fix was going to cost more then the car is worth. The Kelley Blue Book value for the car is only about $3K for my 1999 Jeep Grand Cherokee that I bought in 2000 with 152K miles on it...knowing we just bought a travel trailer, we weren't looking to buy a new car either. Anyways, it ended up just being a loose hose the sprayed transmission fluid all over the undercarriage, front tires, and the rear end of the car. The cost for this fix is $300...YEAH, no new car!!! The hope is that it last another good year or two, then we'll revisit buying a new car...maybe a new minivan (Toyota Sienna) like my cousin has:)

So yesterday and today I'm driving a rent a car that barely fits myself with two car seats and the boys in it...thank goodness on my way home today, I'm picking up my car. Philip would have to be strapped to the roof to go anywhere with us:) I wouldn't last any longer in the Chevy Aveo; good on gas I'm guessing, bad on toting families/car seats/ and strollers!!!

Look for pictures of our travel trailer over the weekend.

6-months already!

I can't believe Justin is 6-months old already...Well actually this week Thursday (10/16) he'll be 6 1/2 months old. He had his 6-month check-up last week and weighed 17 lbs. 4 oz. and was 27 1/4" long. His pediatrician couldn't get over how long he is. He grew just over 2" since his 4-month check up which means now he's considered slender because he grew SO long!!! I wish I could say the same for me:)

At Jordan's 6-month check-up, he was 25 1/4" long and weighed 15 lbs. 8 oz. Of course he was 11 weeks early so I really have to compare Justin's 6 month stats to Jordan's 9 month stats which puts them on even ground:)

At the doctor's office Jordan knew Justin was getting shots, but he was in for a big surprise when he too got a flu shot since the office just got them in. He cried only for a minute, I think it scared him more then hurt plus he got a big tootsie pop sucker out of it so I think that definitely made up for it.

MI Vacation - Photos

Below are a few slide shows of some of the highlights of the fun the boys had in MI. Of course I've got a bunch of family photos as well, but I'll send out a seperate link for those to whomever wants to see them.

2nd Cousins are the Greatest!!!


Fishing (or at least pretending to)!


On Grandpa's Farm!

Camp Jamison?

We went looking at travel trailers this weekend and ended up purchasing one:) We had been looking for the last 2-3 years but postponed it last year when we found out baby Justin was coming...over the weekend, there was a RV show at the Tacoma dome and we found one that we just fell in love with! We are taking delivery of it this coming Saturday. It is 26' and is able to be towed by Philip's current vehicle (which is paid for:)) which was are driving and determining factor on which trailer we wanted or could get! It is a 2009 model so the theory is that we'll have it for a REALLY long time.

Since we are now going into the winter season, we will be storing it up the street from our house at a storage facility that has what looks to be like a 100 or so RV's and THEN working to start booking vacations at campsites for every long holiday starting in the spring...we are now going to be that family that is never home on a holiday or long weekend during the spring or summer! I will post out some actual photos next weekend once we get it.

Jordan was really excited and actually remembered sleeping on a bunk bed in July 2007 when we rented a travel trailer to go down to Seaside, OR. Since he'll be 4 years old next April, it will be so much more fun for him!

FYI - I didn't forget to post pictures from our MI trip; I just didn't get around to it this weekend. I will definitely do so during this week before classes start again on next Monday!

We're back!

Yup, we are back from our vacation to MI (actually since Saturday)...it wasn't the greatest vacation since Grandma went to the emergency room on Saturday night about 10p (9/20) and was there through the afternoon of the 17th. She ended up having a VERY bad case of bronchitus to include having an asthma attack:(

I took Justin to a med express for a check-up on Tuesday evening since he was coughing horribly that it seemed to be hurting him when he did it and he had a really runny nose. In the end the doctor said nothing was wrong with him, albeit, my cousin Sara said the man was a 'quack'!!!:) I'd have to agree with her, but after the doctor visit Justin almost instantaneously started to get better by eating a lot of his food, sleeping, and not coughing so much. I think he just wanted to take a ride:)

Philip had to leave for a business meeting Tuesday morning (had to be at the airport by 0530) so I had to get up early and then I picked him back up at 0940 on Thursday morning from a red-eye flight back the following day (Wednesday). The meeting was to originally be a conference call but at the last minute it was determined that he really should be back at the office. The ticket from MBS airport roundtrip to Seatac cost his company $2K since it was booked last minute.

Needless to say, we didn't get a lot of extra activities planned except for to visit family:) We did however get out on dad's pontoon boat on Saturday morning/afternoon (9/20) for a fishing expedition. Justin stayed home with Grandma while Jordan, us, Grandpa, and Uncle Dave & Aunt Deb did some SERIOUS fishing...I saw more fish at my neighborhood grocery store if that tells you anything!

I will post some pictures in the coming days...it's good to be back!

Summer 2008 - it's officially over!

Summer is officially over! The weather here has turned crappy...I was able to get out with the boys over the weekend down to our little park and have some fun. Below is a slideshow capturing the final Hooh-rah of Summer 2008!



It's funny how we are flying out today to go to MI and the weather here is the usual Seattle weather (misty, grey, cold) but we are going to MI for sunny and 70's:) Lucky for us we get an extended 'summer'! With that said, I'm signing off for the next 2 weeks and will update the blog with pictures/vacation when we get back and settled back in.

Family of 4

Justin is 5 1/2 months old and is REALLY trying to sit up on his own. If he's in his car seat, he can sit up with a little assist from big brother! We had our first dinner at the kitchen table as a family of 4 on Sunday, well Justin didn't eat, he actually more or so just played but he enjoyed himself since he got to see everyone from his point of view as sharing the head of the table with Daddy:)

Who do I look like? See the poll off to the right and choose an answer!
Is this what the kitchen table looks like from the top view?

Jordan STILL just loves his brother to pieces!

Touch-A-Truck

On Saturday we all went to the Pierce County's 1st Annual Touch-A-Truck event. There were dozens of big trucks/vehicles that kids were able to climb on, honk horns, turn on lights, and sit in the drivers seat. Jordan had a ball and it helped that it was over 80 degrees and sunny (on a side note, it's still over 80 and sunny today). We were there when it opened at 10a and left at 11:30. The event went until 1p and I'm sure Jordan would've actually liked to have stayed that entire time! He had SO much fun...he was a little reluctant/shy when we first arrived but it sure didn't take long for him to get into the fun! Below is a slideshow of the fun Jordan did have.

Pictures...

Here are just a few pictures of the boys. Jordan just loves riding his trike and his little brother!


I leave Justin alone for a few minutes and he's already digging into Jordan's Sesame Street gamebox!
Justin hanging out on Daddy's lap!
and hanging out in his carseat ready to go!

NW Trek - last visit of the summer!

We finally made it out for our final visit before the summer ends! We went Saturday from about 12p to 4p, rode the tram to see the animals free roaming, saw all of the other animals, ate lunch at the cafe, and had some ice cream on the way out. It was a great way to end the summer! We didn't tell Jordan where we were going...we just told him to get ready and we were going to go somewhere fun. As soon as we pulled up to the main entrance he right of way yelled out that he wanted to see the animals. He knew exactly where we were at and wanted to ride the 'train' (albeit it is really a tram - 3 bus type carts hooked together with roofs and windows that are taken out for the summer).

Jordan even took pictures himself with the digital camera...the ones with the animals he took didn't come out, but the ones he took of me and daddy look perfect! He's getting bigger by the day and wants to do everything himself.

I'm attaching a slideshow of quite a few pictures of the day to include pictures of the animals and the scenery...enjoy!

NW Trek - Photo Slideshow

It's a 'Great Poop Day' Charlie Brown!

Jordan FINALLY went poop on the toilet all on his own on Saturday! I never thought I'd be so excited to see poop in the toilet...I told him to go potty; he then yells out 'Mommy, I pooped'! Yeah!!! The excitement was short-lived however as he pooped on himself yesterday while we were down at the park...this potty training thing is sure a roller coaster ride! Oh well good news/bad news but progress is obviously being made. (Sorry if TMI)!

Change of plans!

We decided to go to NW Trek this coming Saturday instead since the weather is supposed to be sunny and close to 80 degrees, if not higher. It ended up not even being 70 degrees yesterday...well below the normal averages. The sun peeked here and there, but this coming weekend should definitely be better to be outside before the rain and fall/winter gets here.

I can't believe it...Justin is 5 months old today! Time sure does fly by...he is getting so big that facing backwards in his car seat now since he's not yet 20 pounds means his legs have to be bent since he's longer then the car seat. I think we are going to have to invest in a convertible car seat now that is bigger and reclines so that he'll have more room to stretch out until he can face forward. I think he'll be taking after Jordan in the really tall and really skinny department. Jordan's in 4T shirts but only 3T pants since he needs the 3T pants for the waist but the length is a little short, not quite high-water, like his 2T pants were! In fact, I just moved Jordan out of 2T pants because the length was just about at his knees...poor little guy looked 'silly'!

It's been 1 week...

Well it's now been one full week since Jordan has been in big boy underpants. He had a couple of accidents here and there, but all in all, he's been doing very good! Well, I should say I'm talking pee pee since poo poo is an entirely different story. For whatever reason, he's not inclined to poop on the potty as much as he is to poop in his underpants, come find me, and tell me to dump his poop into the potty so he can flush the toilet. I don't understand why he can't just sit on the potty and poop directly into it. I don't know why we have to go through this entire process for 'pooping'. This whole potty training thing is so strange to me, I DEFINITELY found it easier to potty train my two pugs when they were weeks old then training my 3 year old!!! Oh well, work in progress and we are definitely mastering the day pee potty training...I can only hope and be thankful for baby steps:)

We are going to Northwest Trek tomorrow for Labor Day since it is supposed to be the nicest of the three days this weekend. I'll have to post some pictures hopefully tomorrow and let you know how it all went. Jordan doesn't know yet, so it will be a great big happy surprise for him.

On a happy note, we are approximately one weekend away from having a completely remodeled 1/2 bath. Philip cut the white baseboard today so now they just have to be painted a white that matches our existing molding and installed. The final item to finish in the bathroom is the install of crown molding. I should have pictures of this real soon to post...

Weekend Bike trip...

I didn't have the pictures loaded earlier today when I posted about the big boy underpants, but on Saturday we all went bike riding...Philip pulling Justin and Jordan in a bike trailer and me trying to keep up on my own. It was sunny and high 70's, but it definitely felt warmer since there was no wind. Philip and I hadn't been bike riding since I think like two years ago since I was pregnant last year...The bikes were dusty and needed air in the tires, but after Philip readied the bikes and the trailer, and loaded them into the truck we drove out to Sumner (about 10 miles away) to the Foothills Bike trail which is approximately a total of 30 miles of biking trails...we accomplished at max. on this trip 2 of it!!! Maybe we can try 3 or 4 miles the next time. Jordan was actually the first to complain that he wanted to go home, but he was also the first one who we couldn't get there fast enough to ride. Below are a couple of pictures of the day to include a couple of very clear and close shots of Mount Rainier since it is only about 35 or so miles away. The cement trails in the Mt. Rainier pictures are actually the bike trails which we stopped for a break to take the picture since it was such a clear day.

http://www.co.pierce.wa.us/pc/abtus/ourorg/parks/Foothill-trailhds.html

BIG BOY UNDERPANTS!!!

Yup, we did it...this weekend (well actually yesterday to be exact) we put Jordan in big boy underpants (he picked out the Hulk, Diego, and Spiderman). We figure it's 'do or die' and that like his friends in daycare that he'll take to going on the potty because he sees his other friends wearing them and going. He had one minor accident yesterday, but other then that he used the potty all day!!! And we even had a play date yesterday afternoon for about an hour and a half and he actually used their potty twice while we were over there...! I reminded him to go on the every 1/2 hour just until we get a system going and he starts going by himself without reminders:) Jordan's a "clean freak" and hates to be dirty so peeing on himself should hopefully do the trick to let him know that he doesn't like it and should go to the potty.

I'll let you all know how his first week at school (daycare) with his big boy underpants on went later this week.

Send us your 'good' potty vibes...

Promotion!

I was promoted at work 2 weeks ago...yeah, I know you thought I would've told you all sooner then this, but I guess it's just not important in the scheme of things!

Anyways my new job title is Program Manager-Revenue Accounting. I'm still in my same group/dept., but my job duties have changed from being a month end accountant, balance sheet recons, and journal entries to actually working on the projects the impact revenue and cash accounting. Since you still need to understand the accounting side, it's a perfect match for me in that I get out of the month end rut and move into working to get new/updated initiatives implemented and worked into our group. I basically am creating a new set of skills related to program management.

Until they hire someone to replace me, I'm basically working two jobs; split each month between my old role and my new role. I'm excited and totally looking forward to my new role and the new set of challenges it will bring!

Just checking in...

It's been over a week since I last blogged and not much has been going on...Philip is traveling this week for work in KY so I'm maintaining the homefront! I have admiration for the single parents who do this day in and day out; I couldn't imagine doing this all by myself everyday! One week here and there is enough for me:)

We are STILL working on the potty training. Jordan did decide to start going potty randomly on his own here and there; I suggest he go potty, he says 'no', then goes potty later on. I mean does he have to fight me every step of the way...I'm at my wits end trying to figure out how to get him on board with at least being fully day-trained on the potty. I know nightime training will take longer, but I mean 'C'mon'!

The bathroom remodel is 90% complete (YEAH!). We (who am I kidding, I mean Philip) just have to replace the wood baseboards to the white ones and then put crown moulding up. All of the fixtures have been installed and the painting is done. I should be able to get pictures once completed in the near short team; I'm hoping in a week or two. I know Philip would like me to stop 'hounding' him every weekend:)!!! Jordan even got in on the action trying help daddy finish!



Justin is getting bigger by the day...He just LOVES his big brother to pieces. In fact, you can see from the pictures below that Jordan just loves him too! I took a couple of them seperately as well because someone reminded me that when #2 comes along, you don't see them so much individually in pictures as you do when #1 was by themself. You always now take pictures of the two of them together, so I've consciously made the effort to ensure I get Justin by hisself in pictures as well!




Last week I was washing dishes and I heard Jordan 'reading' a story; he does this a lot now. He now tells stories by reading books just like we read to him before bed and like daycare reads to him at school. He always starts his stories out with 'once upon a time' so when I heard this, I turned around and below is what I saw... Jordan reading his dinosaur book to his little brother; even holding up the book to show him the pictures as he told the story. It was so cute I ran to grab the camera to capture the moment...our camera is never very far away!



Well take care this week and I'll blog again soon!