Three It Is

Biscuits

2011-06-14T19:10:00.001-07:00

Cheeeeese!

2011-05-25T18:46:00.001-07:00

Luke has this 'cheesy' face he puts on anytime I get the camera out. It's hilarious, mainly because that is the only time he flashes this face. The other day at the doctor when she put the otoscope to her face to look at his ears, he even did it, thinking she was taking a picture. Too many pictures? Maybe. But I don't care.

Seven

2011-05-22T18:31:00.000-07:00

Jackson enjoyed turning seven!

His actual birthday fell on a Tuesday (I remember I had him on a Tuesday and here we are seven years later, falling on a Tuesday). The weekend before, he and I went to Kroger and picked out a cake mix, icing, and toppings for him to decorate his very own cake. We baked the cake together Monday night, then when he got home from school he was very excited about putting the final touches on. He requested 'teal' icing so I mixed food colorings and came up with something passable. I also decorated his room with twenty teal colored balloons for him to enjoy when he woke up Tuesday morning.

Jackson at seven is...

62 lbs, 52ish inches tall
wearing a size 7-8 pants, and 8-10 shirts
into animals, nature, geography, and beyblades
bff's with Anna, aside from some occasional bickering
very sensitive and loving
often found in a tree (he loves climbing)
a proud owner of 28 tadpoles and 2 frogs
Luke's favorite person, he really lights up when Jackson even looks at him!
a smart boy, reading well above grade level and very proficient at math and science
stubborn, clever, and determined

I know he's going to do some great things.

Table Foods

2011-04-27T19:35:00.000-07:00

The other night I decided to see how Luke would do with some more 'complex' table food. Mostly we've been doing the stage 2 jars because that is so convenient. But I know he has to learn to eat the same stuff we're eating because let's face it, I NEVER prepare 'apples and chicken' for dinner, and squash has never grazed our dinner table either. I don't know why I am giving him these jarred foods that in no way resemble what he will be eating when he joins the ranks of real-food-eaters in our family.

So we started him off on veggie burgers and tater tots. He loved them!

Florida Vacation

2011-04-06T17:10:00.000-07:00

For Jackson's Spring Break, I took him and Anna to Florida to see Grandy and Granddad. Luke and Reed stayed behind to hold down the fort. Jackson and Anna are at the perfect ages to do all sorts of fun activities, and we are not constrained by naptimes, bottles, or diapers (no offense, Luke). Grandy and Granddad showed us an awesome time! The weather was perfect, not too hot or humid, and great for being outdoors.

The kids loved playing on G & G's driveway, Anna blowed bubbles while Jackson bounced a ball off the side of the house for what seemed like HOURS. But they were just loving being outside.

A day at the beach

Watch out for the jelly fish! Jackson was so amazed by this... he is in a major animal fascination phase right now.

Couldn't help myself, I call this one, "Jackson and reeds."

Anna loved building sandcastles, complete with swimming pools, which she had to keep filling up with ocean water. That kept her very busy!

Dinner time!

Walking with Granddad

On Sunday we went to the Jax Beach Blues Festival. We ate festival food and they had a fun kids' area. Jackson said, "I had no idea that a street could be transformed into such a fun place!"
Anna at the bouncy house

Jackson in the bungee high-jump attraction

Monday was Magic Kingdom for the day! The kids' first trip to Disney-- they loved it! I however am on the fence as to whether Disney is a total scam or a wonderfully magical place. What matters is that the kids had a blast. Anna LOVED meeting the princesses and Jackson enjoyed a few rides.

However, the hotel provided a lot of fun too! The kids swam at the outdoor pool from 6:30 to 8, had pizza by the pool, then enjoyed some time in the hot tub. Anna said with excitement, "This is my FIRST time in a hot tub!" We did not roll into bed until close to 9:30 which is very late and quite a special treat for them. They also loved exploring the hotel room, watching the tv there, and jumping on the beds. Hmmmm, maybe we'll skip the theme park next time ;)

On our way out of Orlando, we hit Planet Hollywood for lunch, and the kids gave the Rocky statue a run for his money.

What a wonderful trip! I can't believe how much we did in 5 short days. Jackson and Anna are great little travelers. On the plane on the way back they both dutifully watched their dvd players while I caught a much-needed snooze. We arrived home to a happy (and crawling!) Luke. Reed had a great bonding time with him but I think he was secretly happy to go back to a full day of work today!!

Wordless Wednesday

2011-03-30T08:38:00.000-07:00

Luke, 9 months

2011-03-18T18:01:00.000-07:00

This is about the time when I start to say, "wow! time flies, where did my baby go?" The third time around, I really focused on savoring those baby moments as much as I could, but still it flew by way too fast. Luke is showing his independence more and more each day, trying out new things and seeing what works. At nine months he has mastered sitting up and rolling all around is his mode of transport. He gets up on all fours and rocks, then arms and legs go flying and he's lying on his stomach again. This does not please him. I do remember this with Jackson (but not Anna???)-- it was a very frustrating time. But I also remember it did not last long, and he was crawling before we were ready. I'm sure it won't be long now.

At nine months, Luke:

Weighs: 23 lbs, 5 oz (80th). And is: 29 1/2 inches long/tall (75th).
Sleeps 7 pm to 7 am, for the most part.
Takes a great morning nap and is hit or miss on the afternoon one.
Has four 7-8 oz bottles a day, plus a jar of food at breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Is experimenting with the puffs, but chokes on 'biter biscuits.'
Loves peek-a-boo, watching his siblings play, zerberts, and chewing on everything.
Has two really prominent teeth and five emerging ones.
Has a baby mullet, lots on top, none on the sides.
Is very smiley and giggly, loves to be tickled.
Still spits up quite a bit, and is still on prevacid daily.
Has one consistent word (not that I feel the need to mention it again)- MA MA!!!

I love this kid.

St. Patty's Day and Spring

2011-03-18T17:49:00.001-07:00

We finally had some beautiful weather! Thursday was St. Patrick's Day and I think it got close to 70 degrees. Anna has been talking about going to a St. Patty's Day party since the day after Valentine's Day. Thank goodness the moms group had one planned, and it was so much fun. She was super excited to run around the gym at the church and play with all of the other kids. We ate pizza and made a green windsock. Later that afternoon the weather was so beautiful we spent a few hours outside. Jackson and Anna enjoyed riding their scooters, practicing golf, playing hopscotch, and shooting hoops across the street. Luke was mesmerized by the grass, the wind, the clouds, and the trees. It was fun watching him explore and discover!

Even Reed took a half day off of work to go to a March Madness 'get-together.' He sat outside, drank beer, and watched basketball, a well-deserved break for him.

Ma.. Ma.. Ma.. Milestone!

2011-03-10T17:21:00.000-08:00

All afternoon and tonight Luke was saying "Ma Ma Ma!" At first I thought it was accidental, with all of his babbling. But then I realized he kept saying it over and over (with lots of encouragement of course). Reed likes to claim that Luke has been saying "Da Da" for weeks but I personally haven't seen it happen ;)

Wordless Wednesday

2011-03-09T19:41:00.001-08:00

I love Wordless Wednesday-- a picture -- without any words! Wait, I think I just broke the rules.

Puffs

2011-03-06T17:17:00.000-08:00

Luke has been eating stage 2 baby food for a few months now and I read somewhere that at 9 months they can try 'finger foods.' So I bought these puffs, which are mostly made of air and dissolve quickly. He's still getting the hang of chewing (sometimes he forgets to!) but he seems to love them. Luke is just a few weeks shy of 9 months still, but I figured it couldn't hurt to try. He still has some trouble getting them from his hand to his mouth, one ended up hanging from his earlobe the other day, so we're working on that!

Reaching:

Enjoying:

So proud of himself!

Oh, did I mention how much Anna loves puffs too?

The Anna Collection

2011-02-21T19:37:00.000-08:00

With all of this wonderful weather,

we have been stuck inside ALOT. Luckily, the kids love art projects (we have been doing lots of art lately!) Today Anna and Jackson were busily creating and all of a sudden Anna held up her paper and announced, "I call this, my Anna Collection!" So glad that self-esteem is not a problem for her.

Catching Up

2011-02-20T19:13:00.001-08:00

I'm officially re-dedicating myself to my blog again. There have been lots of obstacles. Actually only just one-- ME! I couldn't think of a new name for the blog, didn't have a great picture of the three of them, and honestly felt overwhelmed at the idea of starting up again. But I found a so-so photo (hey, all three of them are IN it), came up with a passable new name, and here we go. So in the interest of playing catch up, here is where we are now...

Jackson: 6 1/2 years old, and the sweetest boy ever. Loves his mom, dad, little sister and brother. He's best friends with Anna and they play together most of the time really well. Their favorite pasttime is creating obstacle courses in the basement for "Ninja Warrior training." Forget actually playing with their toys... Jackson is doing so well in first grade, and despite complaining about going to school, he seems to really enjoy and do well in all of his subjects. Report cards have all been stellar and he's now working on an independent study project on geckos (he was given the opportunity to choose his topic). He reads chapter books, and his favorite gaming site is coolmathgames.com.

Anna: 4 years old. A little spitfire but with a sensitive side. Cries most days when her BFF Jackson leaves for school. Loves her little brother Luke (maybe a little too much sometimes??) She goes to preschool twice a week and also takes art, dance, and gymnastics on non-school days. She has some imaginary friends to keep her company while she is at home (Emma, Makenna, and Tasha). She's a girly-girl, loves her dresses, getting her nails painted, and twirling around in her tutus. Challenges her parents on most issues, but that's par for the course for a four year old princess I think.

Luke: 8 months old. Big huge green-brown eyes that get even bigger when Anna approaches. He can sit independently (and boy is the world different from this angle!) But I think it will be a while before he figures out what crawling is all about. When he's on his tummy he flails his little arms and legs while balancing on that big round tummy until he either spits up everywhere or someone picks him up. Still spitting up a lot. He has two teeth, which he got at 4 and 5 months, and is currently sprouting four more. He's not so happy about that. He loves to laugh, smile, and watch his siblings play. He's happiest being held but that's not too hard on me, he's my little bonus baby :)

Re-vamp

2011-02-20T08:25:00.000-08:00

I'm getting back into my blogging world. More to come...

Oh the pressure...

2010-07-12T16:15:00.000-07:00

Sooo, yes I need a new blog picture, and a new blog name, and I haven't blogged since before Easter, and I have a new baby so I HAVE to go in chronological order, I mean I can't just throw a post out there today about the baby when I still have Easter and Fourth of July pictures and stories to tell now can I? Screw it.

I'm really working on letting go of my perfectionism, especially right now. Life is pretty crazy. Some days I wish there was some magic patience pill I could take! The unpredictability of a newborn is hard to get used to.

Sometimes I have a great day when we are all dressed, get places on time, I can spend some quality time with each kid, we eat healthy meals, and the house stays relatively clean. This sets my expectations waaaay too high for the next day because when this does not happen again I get all bent out of shape. I know I shouldn't and like I said, I'm working on it.

Jackson and Anna are really adjusting well to having Luke around. They play together amazingly and go with the flow much better than I do. Just tonight, I got Anna in the tub and Luke starts crying. I knew he needed to be fed but Anna needed to be bathed so that she could be in bed on time. I left her in the tub to play while I fed Luke. Jackson came in and asked me what was wrong. I told him I was frustrated because I needed to bathe Anna and feed Luke and I couldn't do both at once. Jackson said, "I'll bathe Anna." So I let him. Eeek! The thing is, he was so sweet with her and did such a great job! I expected them to play around and get water everywhere but no, he was very responsible, even washed her hair. I think Anna even preferred him to me, he was probably more patient!! He really amazes me sometimes, I can't believe he's only 6.

Luke is beautiful and wonderful and I am loving cuddling him. I feel like I've been given a "bonus" kid to fall in love with all over again. He is truly a little miracle and I can't imagine life without him.

Easter was great! Colored eggs, hunted for eggs at Olander, wore cute outfits, and had brunch at the club.

Jackson made yellow belt!

Maternity pictures, early June.

Fourth of July, had friends over for swimming and bbq, painted some faces, both kids stayed up for fireworks, did the neighborhood bike parade the next day.

Luke came 6/17/10-- oops this is out of order-- oh well. 10 lbs, 2 oz, 21.5 inches long, perfect labor and delivery (thankyouepidural), and is now 3 1/2 weeks old.

Anna's Ballet Routine

2010-05-03T18:09:00.000-07:00

What are we going to call this kid?

2010-04-06T19:09:00.000-07:00

You would not believe how long it took me to come up with the title for this blog. The Goose is Jackson, I don't know why but among the strange nicknames we came up with for him, Goose stuck. It may have started as "silly goose" and of course he was silly all the time! Then when Anna came along she was so cuddly, I kept calling her my little bear. So there you go. I don't know what the new baby is going to be though! I've tried to come up with a cute animal name but nothing sounds right. Hopefully it will come about the same way Jackson's and Anna's did and it will fit him perfectly.

As far as a real name, currently Anna wants to name him Noodle and Jackson wants to name him Santa. Maybe Snoodle?

Anyway, here's a shot of him (I'm 28 weeks, woo hoo!).

This is why I won't be home schooling

2010-03-23T17:36:00.000-07:00

So I saw a cute little art project on a blog the other day. It incorporated artwork and learning letters. What could be more fun AND educational? I had visions of Anna and I working together to create cute little painted flowers and learning about the letter "F". So springy and such a fun way to learn!

I got all the supplies together and attempted to coerce Anna into helping me make this beautiful masterpiece. Well here it is (I ended up doing it all by myself)

And here is what she did.

She looked at mine and said, "nice flowers, mama," and proceeded to put the finishing touches on her masterpiece. I think we'll go to the mall tomorrow.

Travel Bug

2010-03-18T10:42:00.000-07:00

Last night Jackson and Reed were looking at the globe and talking about all of the different places. Jackson got so excited hearing about them and decided he had to make a list of the places he wants to visit. Conveniently they all fit on a post-it.

I think we'll tackle Chicago first and go from there...

St. Patty's Day rainbow cupcakes

2010-03-15T18:13:00.001-07:00

I saw these on the Family Fun website and had to try them. You use white cake mix and food coloring to create different colored layers in the cupcakes. When you cut them in half it looks like a rainbow. My little monsters almost gobbled them up before I could grab the camera and take a pic of the cool rainbow design! It was the perfect way to spend a lazy Sunday when I didn't feel like venturing out. Who wants to go to Chuck E Cheese when you can stay at home and lick cake batter off the beaters?

DISCLAIMER- Jen if you are reading this, yes I noticed the icing on my kids' faces. I am somewhat of a hypocrite.

Jokes from a 5 year old

2010-02-28T15:56:00.000-08:00

Jackson has learned how to tell jokes and riddles. For a few days he was telling me the same one over and over, and I kept trying to muster a laugh but you know, it's really not funny the 35th time. So today here's what he says:

Jackson: "Mom, what has eyes but can't see?"
Me: "Um, I don't know, maybe a potato?" (the correct answer the last 34 times)
Jackson: "No, a blind guy."

I laughed for 10 minutes straight after that one. I love my clever little boy.

And a little more on the "boy" side, less on the "clever" side:

Jackson had some, errr, gas this evening and was very polite each time, saying "excuse me". Finally I asked him, "Jackson does your stomach feel okay?" He responded, "Yeah, but my nose doesn't!"

The jacuzzi, almost as cool as the beach

2010-02-25T16:26:00.000-08:00

Jackson cuddling with Grandy AFTER his bath ;)

Grandy and Granddad's jacuzzi bathtub is always the highlight of our Florida visit. The kids enjoy "swimming" in it and I can hardly get them out. We did try a joint bath the first night (which I never do at home), I thought there would be enough room. Think again, too much temptation to splash everywhere. So back to separate baths. Anna loved posing for the camera (who, Anna?) but Jackson wouldn't let me in the bathroom with the camera while he was bathing. When did he get so modest?

Playing outside-- without snowboots!

2010-02-25T16:14:00.000-08:00

Every time I visit Florida in the winter, I am still shocked to be able to walk outside without layers of winter clothing. The warmth of the sun on my skin was a glorious feeling! Most days were in the 60's and sunny, and the kiddos loved playing on Grandy and Granddad's lanai (that's Floridian for porch) and looking for the alligator in the (highly fenced in) pond next to their house. Jackson caught some lizards, played with the neighborhood kids, and even tried to go traipsing through the wildlife preserve behind the house-- before I caught him and yelled at him! Meanwhile Anna enjoyed sweeping the porch, I mean lanai, and perfecting her big wheel riding skills. I sat in a chair in the sun, relaxing.

Zoo with Grandy and Granddad

2010-02-25T15:51:00.000-08:00

We had a great trip to Florida! The weather was not HOT but it was comfortable and the sun was shining, kind of like the warmer part of Fall in Toledo. We went to the zoo the first day and had so much fun. They had different animals than our zoo, including stingrays which you could feed! Jackson and I bought ourselves a cup of dead fish for a dollar and made friends with some rays. Their stingers had been removed so it was totally safe. Still a little eerie, though. You would hold the fish sticking out between your fingers, palm down and then submerse your hand in the water and wait for one to swim by and vaccuum it from your hand with a big slurp! Quite the experience. We also rode the carousel and the zoo train (Anna's favorite part), saw some amazing snakes and alligators, and orange flamingos. It was a fun day.

Feeding the stingrays

Anna decided to just look cute instead of feeding stingrays

Petting the stingrays

Zoo train

Carousel

Snow Days

2010-02-11T18:19:00.000-08:00

I was wondering when we would get a big snowstorm. You know, the kind where they start talking about it a few days ahead of time and everyone runs to the grocery store, panicked that they will be 'snowed in' without food for weeks. Well this was it! We got around 11 inches from Tuesday morning through Wednesday. School was cancelled both days and after exhausting all possible art and craft ideas and activities, we headed outside. Jackson started to build a snow fort and Anna was all excited about a snowman but enthusiasm waned as little toes and noses started to get really cold. They had a great time playing though!

Mohawk

2010-02-11T18:13:00.001-08:00

Jackson has never let me do anything to his hair, but recently he decided he'd like to see what he looks like with a spikey hairdo. I've let his hair grow a lot since the major butcher job he got at Christmas. But tonight he was complaining that it was in his eyes. I even found him trying to use one of Anna's clippies to sweep it to the side! OH NO! Hence, the mohawk. And probably a haircut tomorrow.

Wordless Wednesday

2010-02-10T05:39:00.000-08:00

Story time

2010-02-08T05:54:00.001-08:00

Reed was sharing a book with Jackson and Anna just couldn't be left out of the action. She grabbed her own book and climbed up to find a spot just for her.

Valentines Day Cookies

2010-02-07T16:51:00.000-08:00

Jackson and Anna were invited to Grammie's house today for the annual icing of the Valentines Day cookies. Grammie bakes the cookies ahead of time, and the kids then help make the icing and decorate the cookies. Of course more icing gets on them and in them than in the cookies but that's all part of the fun!

Beautiful Blogger Award

2010-02-07T05:48:00.000-08:00

My friend Amanda at The Ring Chronicles nominated me for The Beautiful Blog Award. Thanks Amanda!

The Rules:

1. Thank the person who nominated me for this award.
2. Copy the award & place it on my blog.
3. Link to the person who nominated me for this award.
4. Share 7 interesting things about myself.
5. Nominate 7 bloggers for this award.

7 Interesting Things About Me:

1. I am a hot-weather girl. I looove summer. (This may change when I'm 9 mos pregnant in June!)

2. I was strictly a dog person until I got a cat. I love her and she will probably be the only cat I'll ever love.

3. I've always had a strong aversion to rye bread and feet. In fact I think rye bread tastes like feet.

4. My best friend is a tie between my husband and my mom (shhhh... don't tell either one!)

5. My favorite color is blue.

6. I used to be a very clean and organized person, until I had children. In fact I was known to prefer organizing my sock drawer to going outside and playing with my friends.

7. I really like to do laundry.

I'd like to nominate:

1. My friend Carolyn at Andersons in Benin

2. Selena at LL's Creations

3. Kelly at Ellie's Essentials

... and there's a fight in the basement I need to go moderate!

More later!

Cutes and funnies

2010-02-02T13:12:00.000-08:00

I just had to jot down some things the kids have said in the past few days that have made me laugh...

Last night at dinner we were talking about the food we were eating and where it came from. Thank goodness I wasn't serving mac & cheese and hot dogs! Anyway we talked about the peppers and the cucumbers and where they came from, the milk from the cows, etc. and then Jackson said "I know where the chicken comes from, turkeys!" Sometimes he's a genious, other times not so much...

Same dinner, Anna said, "Will these vegetables help my poopies?" I casually replied, "Yes, they will," trying to hide my excitement at her interest in them. She said, "Hmmmm, well, I should probably try some then."

Today in the car Anna informed me that she had to go to the bathroom. We were pretty close to home and I was pretty sure she could hold it so I told her, "just a few more minutes." Then she started chanting, "A few more minutes, vagina, a few more minutes vagina!"

Imagination Station

2010-01-31T18:46:00.001-08:00

The kids had tons of fun on Saturday at Imagination Station. They have so many hands-on activities, great for both kids. We were only there a few hours but the kids could have stayed all day!

Sledding

2010-01-10T16:30:00.000-08:00

We finally took the kids sledding today after the "big" snowstorm we had last Friday. It was probably 3-4 inches and school (for us at least) did not get cancelled so it was just enough to provide us with some entertainment. Since I am pretty sure sledding while pregnant is not a good idea, Reed came along, as did our neighbor friend Sarah. The kids had a great time, Anna went down several times by herself, screaming "Weee, weeee, weee!" Jackson went down the little hill with Anna then proceeded to find himself a steeper part of the hill so that he could go faster. He informed us it was part of his "Ninja training." Whatever!

Early Christmas in Fla

2010-01-02T11:39:00.000-08:00

We went to visit Grandy and Granddad in Florida in early December since technically this was a "Toledo year" for Christmas. It was so nice to be able to celebrate the holiday with them and with Andy, Erin, James and Molly. Plus the kids were psyched to have a bonus Christmas!

The weather was interesting, 80 degrees one day then 50 and rainy the next, but still better than the 30's in Toledo. We went to the beach to play in the sand, visited Santa at the TPC Clubhouse (which Anna referred to as the North Pole- ha! Far cry!), and of course opened presents and played with the cousins.

James is just a few months younger than Anna and they played really well together. Even Jackson joined in on the fun. Little Molly is 9 months and I just can't get enough of her! She is so sweet and cute.

Happy 3rd Birthday Anna

2010-01-01T17:31:00.000-08:00

Reading with Grammy and Ryan

Anna and Ryan in their dress-ups!

Playing dollhouse with Jackson

Yippee! She turned three! The fun thing about Anna's birthday being right around Thanksgiving is that there is almost always family in town to help us celebrate. Cousins Tanner and Ryan and Uncle Scott came to Anna's party, as well as Grammy and Pop-Pop. Anna was so excited to get her dollhouse, a new backpack, lots of dress ups, Bitty Baby, and several games. She had a blast playing with her cousins. She and Ryan are finally to the age where they play together, they are adorable together.

Some highlights of 3-year-old Anna: She has a mind of her own, very independent and likes to do things her way, on her own time schedule (this has presented a challenge for potty training!) She loves princesses and anything pretty, she is such a girly-girl. She is extremely outgoing and loves everyone. We still don't know where she got this personality trait. She has lots of friends, many real, many imaginary. The imaginary ones (Lornga, Makenna, and Emerson are a few) come to her "parties" that she hosts in her room when she is supposed to be having quiet time. But her very best little friend in the world is her big brother Jax.

A special shout-out to Elle for the cool birthday shirt to coordinate with her purple petti (aka the purple monster!) She loved wearing it!

Science Museum

2010-01-01T17:20:00.000-08:00

We were so excited that the new hands-on science museum re-opened downtown. It closed for a while due to lack of funding then a levy came up in last year's election to help it re-open and it finally did this Fall. I remembering bundling up Anna in her stroller and standing outside the polling place encouraging voters to support the levy. I like to think Anna's cute smile played a part in helping the vote pass!

We went with Grammy & Pop-Pop recently and spent a few hours there. There is so much to do, the kids didn't want to leave!

Halloween

2010-01-01T17:07:00.000-08:00

Okay so October was crazy due to my impending surgery which never happened due to my unexpected pregnancy which threw me for a loop then I was hit with the morning (AKA All day) sickness which finally subsided right before the hustle and bustle of the holidays... and so here I am now. Time to play catch up...

The kids were adorable for Halloween. It is truly my favorite holiday. Love the cool crisp air, pumpkin patches, leaves falling, warm cider and donuts. I have been on a quest every year to dress the kids in costumes that "go together." Jackson usually throws a loop in my plans but I have learned to work with his ever-changing mind. This year he was set on Batman. Easy enough, Anna could be Batgirl. But when I suggested it to her, it didn't fly. So we put a twist on it and she was "Ballerina Batgirl." Love it.

Anna did Little Boo at the Zoo, and Jackson did trick or treating at O. park. Then of course they both trick or treated in the neighborhood and got lots of good loot. It was the first year Anna really got the concept of going door to door and saying "Trick or treat." It was a blast to see their excitement over it all. Grandy and Granddad were here to help us pass out candy while Reed and I took the kids around the neighborhood.

Blogger Slacker

2009-11-15T16:46:00.000-08:00

OK so I have not blogged in FOREVER and we have done all of the fun requisite Fall stuff... pumpkin patch, playing in leaves, trick or treating, Halloween activities and parties, visit from Grandy and Granddad. So maybe I will get to that next.

What I did want to write about today is a brand new UNEXPECTED change in our lives. We are expecting Baby #3 next June! Wow that seems a long way off. I went in for my disc surgery on my neck, they did a "routine" pregnancy test (anesthesia requires it) and it came back positive. So needless to say, no surgery! We are still a little in shock. With our prior history of miscarraige, we were not sure what to expect. But just last week we saw that little blob on the ultrasound and its little heart beating at 130. Amazing!

Tonight we told Jax & Anna and they were so excited. Jackson moreso than Anna, I don't think she quite understood. Her first question was, "tomorrow?" Jackson said, "Wow mom you're gonna have three kids. You're going to have to fix three breakfasts!" He is excited to tell his best friend Adam the news. We had cupcakes to celebrate, which they loved of course!

Its a good thing a pregnancy lasts 9 months. We need that time to get used to the idea, figure out where we're going to put this kid (good-bye guest bedroom!), get a new car (hello, minivan??) and buy back all the baby stuff I JUST sold in my garage sale last summer!

It's all fun and games until somebody loses an eye

2009-09-25T18:29:00.001-07:00

Ok so no one lost an eye exactly, but I seriously worry when they play so rough with each other. This has become the favorite way to play lately. Most afternoons after Jax gets home from school they like to wrestle, run around screaming, or just plain go crazy. I think he is so wound up from being good and quiet all day at school and she is so happy to have a playmate that they love going crazy together. Today only resulted in one minor injury-- Jackson's knee caught Anna's lip -- but a few tears and an ice pack later everyone was just fine.

Playhouse Disney Live!

2009-09-15T17:20:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday Playhouse Disney Live came to Toledo. We took both kids and they had a great time watching Mickey, Minnie and friends dancing and singing onstage. I wish I could have captured Anna's face when she saw Cinderella and the "Faiwy God-mudder" appear! It was a dream come true. At the end they released TONS of confetti from the ceiling, falling down like snow! They had a blast picking it up and throwing it at each other.

The $16 sword and the $20 light-up-spinny-princess thingy

Jackson Jammin

"Cindewella!"

The Playhouse Disney Crew

Confetti!

More confetti!

Throwing confetti at Daddy!

Bye Bye Nukkie

2009-09-15T16:57:00.000-07:00

Anna gave up her nuk last Thursday. We have been through some sleep struggles in the past few days so it's taken me a while to feel okay about things and post that I *think* it's been a success. The result was a few sleepless nights and apparently she has given up sleeping at naptime too, but she still stays in her bed and plays quietly so that is okay for now!

We started with a visit to the dentist to give the nuk to the puppy. They have a picture on the wall with a puppy with a pacifier in its mouth and a basket beneath that says "pacis for puppy." We had talked about this for a long time so she was aware of the process and did it happily.

Next stop was the mall to get her reward. We went to Build a Bear and she chose a monkey. She helped stuff it, put the heart in, bathed and combed it, chose a dress for it, and named it Lily. We even have a birth certificate! Lily is her bedtime buddy now, clearly not an even exchange replacement for the nuk but better than nothing. I'm proud of her for getting through the first few days, and I think it will continue to get easier each day.

Giving Paci to the Puppy

Picking out a "BIG" prize at the dentist office

Pushing the pedal (and covering her ears due to the noise) so help stuff Lily

Rubbing Lily's heart on her arm so that Lily can be strong like Anna

Giving Lily her bath and comb down

Anna and her new friend Lily

Riding in the car with Ethan at the mall before lunch

Anna's first day of school

2009-09-15T16:49:00.000-07:00

Sibling Love...

Posing with her backpack

Soooo excited she can't contain herself!

Anna had her first day of school last week. She is going to the same place as last spring, just one morning a week. She loves it and was so excited to see her teacher from last year. She couldn't wait for me to leave so she could get busy playing. Her BFF Ethan is in class with her, so that makes it even better.

A fighter and a dancer

2009-09-05T16:57:00.000-07:00

A front kick!

Anna playing after class, sans tights or dance shoes...

Jackson had his first Kempo Martial Arts class today, and Anna is taking a ballet/tap combo class at the same time. The best part is Moms get to sit out in the lobby watching their kids on tv screens OR hang out in the cafe and sip coffee. This has made me look forward to Saturday mornings even more!!!

The kids love their classes. Jackson earned his white belt today, by memorizing and reciting the Kempo Creed: "Only use your martial arts in class, Keep a good attitude, Never give up, and Respect yourself and others." There is actual sparring once he earns his yellow belt (a few months down the road if he sticks with this) so our next big purchase will be safety gear - yikes!

Anna loves spinning around the room in ballet and tapping her heels and toes in tap class!

He lost it!

2009-08-26T11:12:00.000-07:00

Today at approximately 1:45 as Jackson was watching Power Rangers and I was studying the backs of my eyelids, he jiggled that loose tooth out. All of a sudden I heard, "YES!" then "Can I have a napkin?" There was a little bit of blood, not much, and we almost lost the tooth in between the couch cushions but all is well now. He was excited then just sat back down to watch the rest of Power Rangers.

So I have no idea what the tooth fairy will bring him. He DOES have his batman tooth pillow ready (thanks Elle!)

This has been a big week of special events for my little guy. I'm so proud of how well he's doing at kindergarten, despite the fact that he inherited my dislike of getting up early in the morning. So we are adjusting a little but definitely getting back into the routine.

He loves his teachers and has enjoyed going each day. I have gone in with him the last two days, and he is getting the hang of putting his bag away, emptying the folder, signing in and answering the question of the day on the question board. So much responsibility! The first two days were 1/2 days, tomorrow starts the first full day. I'm just glad they have a "rest time" in the afternoon. I think he is going to need it.

First Day of School

2009-08-25T18:34:00.001-07:00

A Special first day of school breakfast...

Was enjoyed by all!

Looking cool with the backpack

The traditional first day of school picture:

Mrs. J helps him sign in

Answering the "question of the day"

Jackson says hi to his best buddy, Adam!

Looking at shells through a magnifying glass!

Hard at work on his first project (time for mom to leave now!!!)

Beauty Shop

2009-08-23T19:15:00.000-07:00

Anna's latest favorite game is styling hair. Yesterday I was her client but this morning I was too busy cleaning up breakfast dishes so she had to branch out. Fortunately for her, Jackson was right there watching Cinderella with her and he let her do his hair. Maybe it's the casts, maybe it's because he was watching Cinderella, but he totally let her do it. The boy won't let me TOUCH his hair without wincing or insisting that I've done it wrong.

Casts and Butterflies

2009-08-17T18:39:00.000-07:00

Got the casts today. Jackson thought it would be SO cool to have one red and one green. He looks like a little elf. He was pretty amazed by them. At least until we got home and he said, "Can I take my casts off now?" He started crying at lunch complaining that they itched. That has to be the worst, I don't know what to do about that. The therapist was adamant that we not stick anything down there.

We went to the Butterfly House and out to dinner to distract him a little today. He is in bed now and hopefully will sleep okay tonight, I'm sure that's not too comfy!

He gets them off next Monday and we have some fun activities planned for the week to keep his mind off them.

Meanwhile maybe his tooth will fall out...?

2009-08-05T17:07:00.000-07:00

Watching Barney's The Night Before Christmas (why are we watching this in August?). Jackson was cold so Anna lent him her blankie. Anna was scared of Santa so Jackson was "keeping her safe." This was early in the day, when they were being sweet to one another!

Quick Post

2009-08-04T13:02:00.000-07:00

I had to record this and what better place than the blog...

Today we were driving past St. Joe's Church (the church I sporadically attend and Jackson went to VBS there). I am talking to Jackson about something, Anna is talking to herself but looks up at the church with the sculpture of St. Joseph on it and goes, "Mom, is that God?"

The other day we were at the club swimming (we have swim lessons there every day for 2 weeks). We stopped to have lunch, then decided to swim a little more before we had to go home for Anna's nap. Jackson went under water and came back up and exaggeratedly goes, "Ow, ow," while holding his side. When I asked what was wrong he said, "I think I hurt my digester."

Wiggle Wiggle

2009-08-01T11:30:00.000-07:00

Jackson has a loose tooth. Yes, I know the picture doesn't really show anything other than his pure excitement over it. Good thing you can't see me though, with tears in my eyes!

I can't remember how long it is from the first wiggle to that thing coming out. I guess a lot depends on how much you wiggle it! Jackson and I have been online shopping for his tooth fairy pillow and may even commission our special seamstress friend to make him one. We'll keep you posted!

Hauptman Family Reunion

2009-07-27T17:00:00.000-07:00

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Potty Pep Rally, take one

2009-07-18T07:12:00.000-07:00

For those of you that are on FB, this is not the same video, but very similar to the one I posted there!

This is Anna's potty song, which she scripted herself. The lyrics are hard to understand but the gist of it is that when she poopies or tinkles on the toilet she gets m&m's, a sticker, and a pull up or panties. So far she is much more about singing than she is about the real act. She goes when I ask her to, but she also goes in her diaper if I forget to ask her to sit on the toilet. So I figure we are getting closer.

COUSINS!!!!!

2009-07-14T20:27:00.000-07:00

Jackson and Anna's cousins came to visit last weekend. Kelly brought Andrew (7) and Campbell (4) from Pennsylvania and Scott and Brittany brought Tanner (6) and Ryan (2) from Columbus. The kids are all so close in age and had a blast hanging out together. They had an action-packed, fun-filled couple of days.

Friday the older kids (minus Ry-Ry and Anna) hung out at Grammie and Pop Pop's house and went swimming. Then Saturday we all got together at Play-n-Bounce and Red Robin for lunch. After nap/down-time the boys all went to see the Mud Hens play while the girls hung out here for swimming and dinner. The "grown ups" barely had enough energy to meet up later and stay up way too late drinking and talking. Sunday morning started bright and early (it was really bright) at the zoo at 10 am. After a few hours there we all had to have some DOWN TIME! The Columbus crew headed back and we got together with the Delaneys for a swim at Highland Meadows on Monday before they had to head back on Tuesday.

It was so much fun seeing everyone and watching the kids play. I have many many pictures but will only upload a few...

Fourth of July

2009-07-05T17:46:00.001-07:00

Friday morning we had a swim party with friends from the moms' group. That evening we grilled out with the neighbors and watched fireworks (Anna went to bed but Jackson got to stay up to watch). And Saturday morning was the neighborhood parade. The best part of the whole weekend was Sunday morning when Anna slept until 8:15 and Jackson until after 9:00. They were really worn out.

We had a fun weekend!

True Love?

2009-06-27T06:55:00.000-07:00

Anna and Ethan

I can't wait to show them these pictures in 10 years. They are such cuties together!!

Physical Therapy

2009-06-24T18:36:00.000-07:00

Since Jackson learned to walk, he has always walked on his toes. We always thought it was "just a phase" but it never stopped. At his 5 year well visit I asked the ped about it, she tried to stretch his foot and discovered that his achilles was so tight, he doesn't even have the ability to flex his foot or walk flat-footed because he's been on his toes so long. So now we are going to physical therapy once a week to work on stretching those muscles to get him back down on his feet.

The therapist said that he is "wobbly" and that is why he toe-walks. To him, it feels more stable to walk on the toes than to walk flat-footed because his ankle joints are very loose. I had never heard of this! In some cases it self-corrects but there is a good chance he will compensate for it in another area and have knee or back problems.

So now we have exercises and stretches to do at home, and a sticker chart to reinforce. He is not a fan of the stretches, I think they are uncomfortable for him but if this doesn't work he has to wear a cast that keeps his foot in a flexed position for a few months! So that is the motivation to do these. Here are pictures of Jackson picking up toys with one foot (one of his "exercises")!

Safety City

2009-06-24T18:21:00.000-07:00

Last week Jackson went to Safety City right up at the local elementary school. It was all five days, in the mornings. He learned so much! Everything from stranger safety, to fire safety, crossing the street, gun safety, and more. It was all very practical information that I was glad to have reinforced by our local police. They got to tour the fire trucks, ride on a school bus, and even drive little miniature cars in the Safety City mock-city setup!

Jackson practices driving the street sweeper - hoping this is as close as he gets to this profession.

Anna HAD to practice with the cars when we picked up Jax on the last day.

Jackson on the fire truck!

In the classroom:

Graduation!

Haley's checkup

2009-06-16T18:59:00.000-07:00

Haley the cat had her annual checkup today. Jackson and Anna were in tow, each equipped with a baggie of pretzels to snack on while we waited for Haley's appointment. Anna kept asking to see the "other Haleys," the cats that were up for adoption at the vet clinic.

Dr. Tate was very pleased with Haley's overall health, as a 16 year old cat. I forget how old she is, she still acts like a kitten! She loves her play time and she always wants to be a part of family activities like chutes & ladders, the garage sale last weekend, and of course, nap time! Haley got her vaccines, taking them like a champ and showed the kids how NOT to cry when you get a shot.

I can't believe Haley came into my life twelve years ago, before I was even married to Reed and way before my children came on the scene. She is a good and loyal cat and we are lucky to have her!

Mom turns ... 29 again!

2009-06-04T19:06:00.000-07:00

Okay so it was my 34th birthday actually. I cannot lie - Jackson knows my age and proudly professes it to anyone who might listen. I had a nice birthday. Cake, sweet cards, and lots of hugs from my family.

Sprinkler Fun

2009-06-04T18:25:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago we had nice summer weather (where is it NOW?!) and while Jackson was at a birthday party Anna and I broke out the sprinkler! She was beyond thrilled with her blues clues sprinkler, kept running through it and shrieking in delight. It was fun to watch.

Jackson's bday

2009-06-03T19:57:00.000-07:00

So I'm a LITTLE behind (like almost a month) ... but I wanted to post about Jackson's 5th Birthday. I cannot believe he is FIVE! We had a great little party with four of his closest friends. We went to chuck e cheese, play n bounce then back home for pizza, cake, gifts and play time. He really enjoyed his day.

I'm a big girl now!

2009-06-03T19:50:00.001-07:00

Anna is growing up right before our eyes, showing so many signs of her independence. Some good, some annoying! She is very enthusiastic about the potty but still struggles to understand the concept of tell mommy "before" you have to go. She WILL sit on that thing forever and then go when she's ready... we still have some work to do there. And she has started to drink from a 'big girl cup' consistently at meal times. She is so proud of herself! And I am loving not cleaning those sippy cup valves every day! She (as any 2 year old does) insists upon doing everything herself. It is fun to watch her try so hard to do things on her own, from putting on her shoes to opening the door to go outside.

Bubbles

2009-05-18T17:45:00.001-07:00

Aunt Kelly, Uncle Paul, Andrew and Campbell sent this cool bubble set for J's birthday. Both kids loved blowing bubbles with all of the different "tools." Today was a nice spring day, and the week promises even warmer weather. It has been wonderful to be able to play outside!!

Kid Conversations

2009-04-22T16:32:00.001-07:00

Sometimes I look back on my day and laugh. Here are some highlights from today.

Me: "Anna, you're kinda bossy."
Anna: "No, Mom, I'm not Bossy, I'm ANNA!!"
Anna: "Why you laughin' mom?"

Jackson: "Mom, what does the word nervous mean?"
Me: "Um, kind of like, um, when you're sort of scared and excited all at the same time. For example sometimes I get nervous when I'm about to jump off the diving board into the pool." (At this point I am struggling with my explanation)
Jackson: "Well, does running make you nervous?"
Me: "No, of course not. Why?"
Jackson: "Well because of that one time you were running at the park and fell and got hurt really bad."
Okay this was like a year ago, I was totally embarrassed and of course he remembers it!!

You Turn Your Back For Two Minutes...

2009-04-17T17:12:00.000-07:00

So, the Easter Bunny got Jackson a Spiderman addition/subtraction workbook in hopes that maybe we could start on it this summer before kindergarten. Jax pulled it out the other day and asked me to show him how to do it. I grabbed a pencil and gave it to him but immediately Anna needed some attention. So I turn around to put in a Barney video for her and come back to this:

He figured it out all on his own and loves it. Even better, the subtraction page (which we did today) has CATS on it - his favorite! He is so proud of himself that he can do math! (I'm just a little proud too).

Coordinating Easter Outfits

2009-04-10T15:24:00.000-07:00

Don't you just love their matching outfits for dyeing Easter eggs? What can I say, I don't like stains. They had fun coloring their eggs, and I tried to bark at them as little as possible about being careful! Jackson wanted to make one black so we put all the colors together and it turned out kind of reddish brown. The bunny will hide these plus some of the little plastic ones with some sort of treat inside each!

Bragging Rights

2009-04-09T19:04:00.000-07:00

*WARNING* I am going to brag profusely about my little guy.

I went to parent/teacher conferences the other day at Jackson's preschool. First of all, I am amazed at the fact that they even have these at this age, but I do admit it's neat to find out what he does when I'm not around. I'm so impressed with everything the teachers are able to do with these kids, they really come up with some creative and innovative ways to help them learn.

So I thought about scanning the 'progress report' that they gave me and posting it, but instead, here are some highlights from his teachers.

From his 5-day morning teacher:
"Jackson continues to show curiosity in the classroom. He can identify all upper and lower case letters and the numbers 1-20. He can write his name and draw shapes from memory. He actively participates in large and small group discussions. He has learned to sign the alphabet and recognizes letter sounds. He can do dot-to-dots and mazes. He takes pride in his work and is a willing learner. He shares his creativity with his friends."

From his 2-day afternoon (enrichment) teacher:
"Jackson demonstrates self direction and independence. He has a higher level of thinking, observing objects with curiosity, persistence and flexibility. He is performing addition and subtraction on the computer and is learning to write letters and words. He is very independent when working on the computer and can move from one activity to another. Jackson's strength is his creativity and his cognitive skills. I love his ability to plan how he wants to make something before he makes it."

And from ME... I am amazed at how much he has grown in the past year. He still has occasional 'emotional' issues but he is in much better control of himself than he was just a year ago. He is eager to learn, like a little sponge. He has been randomly recognizing words and has shown lots of interest in learning to read. I will definitely concur with his teachers on the creativity thing, his imagination is immense! He still loves to draw and create, and enjoys directing Anna in his pretend play.

Every day I struggle to come up with the right answers to all of the questions he asks me! Usually one-word answers don't suffice, he wants full explanations. My BS-ing skills are clearly not up to par!

This is definitely the fun part of my job :)

Dress Up

2009-04-03T10:25:00.000-07:00

Anna has been obsessed with dressing up ever since we went to Avery & Sadie's house for a playdate and they had LOTS of dress-ups. Our kind neighbors 'donated' a few of the items you see here for Anna's dress up trunk, the others were great deals from OUAC and ebay. Most are too big which is good, we'll get our mileage out of them. Today Anna wanted to do a fashion show to model all of her princess/ballerina gear. Jackson also participated, with his belt made out of yarn. (Nicole I'm stealing your idea of blogging about my little girl's first dress up, thanks!)
Pink flapper girl dress

Jackson and his belt...

Purple tinkerbell (way too big, but lots of fun with wings and a headband!)

Blue Cinderella (with signature ladybug tee underneath, coordinates so well)

Yellow ballerina (one of Anna's favorites!)

Spa Day

2009-03-29T11:01:00.000-07:00

Well maybe 'Spa Morning' or 'Spa 15 minute distraction.' I was trying to distract Anna from something she was whining about and when I asked her if she wanted me to paint her nails she said excitedly, "Just like Grandy?" LOL! I showed her how to hold very still for me to paint them then how to blow on them to dry. A little polish ended up on her lip, oops. Then she sat very patiently and watched Strawberry Shortcake while they dried some more. She is so proud of her new glamour girl look!

FLORIDA

2009-03-27T12:22:00.000-07:00

Why did the turtle cross the road? We don't know but we almost hit it with our car. This was right out in front of Grandy & Granddad's house. A "Florida Snapping Turtle" was headed from the pond to the woods to lay her eggs. That's what Grandy told us anyway.

The beach! The weather was beautiful, close to 80 degrees and the kids loved playing in the sand. The water was a little cold so they didn't go in too far.

Jackson and Anna found the hammock on G & G's porch. They had a fun time pushing each other, and of course I had to try it out too!!

In the evenings when it got cooler, the kids played on the driveway with all of G & G's outside toys. Even cousin James came over to play with us.

Funnies!

2009-03-13T14:59:00.000-07:00

OK I am figuring out downloading my pictures from my outdated camera to my new computer ... that is still in progress. I will upload Florida pics soon.

This afternoon Anna was saying some funny things, I just had to write about them.

Reed: "Anna, you need a new diaper."
Anna: "I know that's right!" (a line from Madagascar 2 that some McDonalds toy repeats over and over!)

Jackson: "Anna, does the blue doll get to come to the tea party?"
Anna: "No, she's not tough."

LOL.

Zasson and Zanna

2009-02-14T11:13:00.000-08:00

Okay so I should probably start with an explanation of the title. Anna has trouble pronouncing her "J"'s so she calls him "Zasson." He reasoned that she then should be called "Zanna." Whatever.

In the midst of our crazy winter weather we have been inside a lot so coming up with something new to play is a daily adventure. Lots of times they do what I call 'rough housing' which inevitably ends up with someone crying. I hear myself sounding like my mom ALOT! "You know one of you is going to get hurt that way." Then cries abound five minutes later and I'm saying "I told you not to play like that with your brother, you're GOING to get hurt every time!" I guess rough play is a necessary part of childhood because I can remember how much fun it was when I was a kid :)

So of course I don't have photos of that... it's not always pretty. Instead some of my latest shots capture them being so cute together, 'reading' a book or playing with Jackson's magnets. The magnets are normally off-limits to Anna so she was excited to have a chance to build with her big brother.

First Day of School

2009-01-24T10:26:00.001-08:00

Anna had her first day of school on Friday. She is going to a local church one day a week for two and a half hours in the morning. I was pretty nervous about how she'd do but she loved it! She was so proud of herself that she goes to school "just like Jackson." It was touch and go for a few minutes when I left her the first day - she was in TEARS and SCREAMING at the top of her lungs. Needless to say I broke down too (but at least I waited until I was back in the car). But her teachers said the crying only lasted a few minutes and then she did very well the rest of the morning. The kids made tracings of their entire body on butcher paper, and then colored them in. Anna did a great job. She told me they did circle time, had a snack and drank from a big girl cup, and later on she played babies. I'm so proud of her.

Here's her traditional "first day of school" picture:

Fun in the snow

2009-01-11T16:38:00.000-08:00

We got lots of snow over the weekend so we had to go out and enjoy it. I swear there is a strategy to dressing myself and the kids to go play in the snow. First I do Anna b/c she is so excited to wear her snow suit and see her flashing boots, she entertains herself while I struggle with Jackson. Jackson wants to go outside, but he also wants to simultaneously play with his batcave while I am trying to put on his gear. Not productive. Of course I get bundled up last because if not I would be pouring sweat by the time I got them dressed and ready. It's a miracle we made it out the door.

Anna

Jackson's packs a snowball!

Anna fell over and couldn't get up. Then got very impatient with me because I took a picture before I helped her up.

Anna laid down in the snow and Reed covered her up with the snow he was shoveling off the driveway. Dude, it's not like sand you know! It's COLD!

This is not staged, I promise. They were cuddling on the couch like this after we came inside. Too cute.

Christmas

2008-12-29T16:14:00.000-08:00

Christmas this year was a whirlwind and I will post pics of the kids opening gifts, etc... sometime! We spent 5 days in Fla with Grandy, Granddad, Aunt Erin, Uncle Andy and little James. James and Anna (a month apart in age) loved playing together and fine-tuned their "sharing skills." We all loved spending time together outside, enjoying the weather and even going to the beach. My battery died before I could get pics of the kids frolicking in the water! But frolick they did! Jackson and Grandy built some cool sandcastles while Anna rearranged all the sand on the beach.

Jackson got all sorts of things to "build" with- magnetix, legos, tinker toys, lincoln logs, plus lots of evil villain figures to go in his new Bat Cave. He is set. Anna got lots of accessories for her babies- diapers, bottles, a diaper bag, and even a high chair. Plus some cute clothes and a few fun Elmo books and toys. These kids made out pretty well! They were so thrilled with opening gifts on Christmas day. Jackson was impressed that the reindeer ate all of their food and Santa polished off the brownies and milk and even left a note! He set quite a precedent this year that he is going to have to follow up on in the coming years (thanks MOM!)
Ho Ho HO!

Child Labor

2008-12-14T17:02:00.001-08:00

Okay so I can't ever get them to pick up their toys, or even help ME pick up their toys but this morning I discovered these kids are really into cleaning! I was wiping down Anna's high chair with a disinfecting wipe and she wanted it. I gave her a baby wipe to use instead and she proceeded to "help" me. Jackson joined in on the fun and those kids were busy for 45 minutes cleaning every surface downstairs. We only ran into issues when Jackson attempted to clean the couch cushions and the breakable ornaments on the tree. But he was easily redirected. I actually sat down, had my coffee, and read the paper while they slaved away! I loved that they were so entertained!

Playin'

2008-12-14T16:56:00.001-08:00

A few pictures from being stuck inside all weekend...
Upside down Anna:

Jackson and Dad watching football. (Ignore Jackson's sweatshirt, I got it at OUAC for $3. Couldn't pass it up).

Taking a break from playing to sit in her dolls' cradle and watch a little Barney.

Anna demands to wear her "ballerina" skirt so that she can dance. Although here, she is crawling through the tunnel!?

Santa visit

2008-12-14T16:50:00.000-08:00

We visited Santa and Mrs. Claus the other day. Both kids were very excited to go, and practicing what they were going to say to Santa. It was a different story when we got there. Anna was terrified of Santa and Jackson wanted ME to tell Santa what he wanted! Well after awhile they both warmed up, all it took was for Santa to mention Elmo to Anna and the tears magically stopped! And Jackson finally gave him a big hug good-bye before we left.

"Awkward!"

Anna still keeps the big man in the red suit at arm's length:

Hugs goodbye!

How lovely are your plastic branches

2008-12-10T17:19:00.000-08:00

Jackson is busy unfolding the limbs.

Between sips from her cup, Anna lends a hand:

"Lie down in front of the tree, kids!" ... Um, not what I had in mind...

Much better

We got our tree up, finally! Our outdoor lights are still only halfway up, and the inside of our house is getting there... I figure I'll have it all done by the time we leave for Florida! The kids loved "helping" assemble our fake tree. We put it in the front room this year so that it could be seen from the window. Jackson was very disturbed by this, wondering how Santa would find the tree if he comes down the chimney in the family room! I told him I was sure Santa would look until he found the tree.

Anna is two!

2008-12-07T19:30:00.000-08:00

Anna turned two the day after Thanksgiving. Poor girl, her birthday is just NOT at a convenient time! We semi-celebrated at Maumee Bay with the family and then she had a little playdate/party with a couple of her friends. It was all about Elmo -- one of her current favorites.

Anna at two is amazing and to be honest, she cracks me up! She loves her little dolls, "babies," she calls them all. She talks to them, asks them questions, feeds them, puts them to bed. If she is doing something noteworthy -- like jumping off a step stool -- she says "Watch me, baby!" and positions her babies so that they can see her. With the holidays coming up she is all about Santa Claus and has found pictures in our photo albums of Santa. She talks to the pictures and tells Santa what she wants for Christmas (babies of course). We are working on encouraging her to use her manners, she is very demanding at times and forgets her pleases and thank-you's. She is really good about saying "Skoo-please," (translated: "excuse me please") when she wants to get past someone or something. As has been the case since she was a baby, no one can make that girl laugh like her brother. And she doesn't just laugh, it's more like a guffaw! Very contagious. Anna is a happy girl, always smiling and curious. It is so much fun to watch her growing into a little person with her very own distinct personality!

Thanksgiving at Maumee Bay

2008-11-29T15:42:00.000-08:00

My best attempt at getting a pic of all four of them together:

Reed and Jackson on the playground ... BRRR!

Setting the table with the fine china:

Jackson tells Tanner a secret!

Goofing around with Pop Pop

Anna and Grammie

"Top Chefs" Jackson and Tanner

Ryan shares with Anna, feeding her a snack.

We celebrated Thanksgiving this year by renting a cottage at Maumee Bay State Park. We were joined by Grammy and Pop Pop, and Scott, Brittany, Tanner and Ryan. The kids had a blast playing together, doing crafts and swimming in the indoor pool. Even Scott and Reed shared a friendly (?) game of ping pong. We ate our Thanksgiving dinner in our cozy little cottage and relaxed the rest of the time.

Gobble Gobble!

2008-11-24T10:00:00.000-08:00

(Jackson is in back row, second from the right)
Jackson's class had a Thanksgiving party for us today. The kids sang some songs and then we ate a traditional Thanksgiving meal, just like the Pilgrims. Although I'm sure the pilgrims had bigger chairs to sit in! I tried to upload a video but to no avail. It is really cute, Jackson sings VERY loudly. Mrs. Beth said, "Jackson is our most enthusiastic singer!" Um yeah.

It's snowing!

2008-11-24T09:55:00.000-08:00

Our first snow was a few weeks ago and it was such a beautiful surprise, I had to snap a photo. Not much stuck, but that will change soon I'm sure!

Anna is geared up for the winter!

Jackson The Artist

2008-11-24T09:48:00.000-08:00

Jackson loves to create. From a very young age he has always asked to do art projects. He enjoys working with playdough, paint, markers and crayons, scissors, glue, and hole punches. My scrapbooking tools are getting more attention from him than they ever did from me! Currently his favorite medium is markers and paper, and he loves to draw "evil villains" with multiple limbs, heads, etc.
So proud of his masterpiece:

Sesame Street Live

2008-11-15T10:35:00.000-08:00

Today Anna and I went to see Sesame Street Live. She loved it! We had great seats, there was lots of music and she had a fun time dancing and clapping. She got to wear her Elmo outfit that the talented Elle made for her. I don't know who was more excited about the outfit, Anna or me!

I took some pictures but the ones of the characters didn't turn out so well. I kept trying different things with my camera to get better shots, then I realized I am acting as though these people dressed up in muppet costumes are celebrities! I decided we can just buy some Sesame Street stickers and it will be about the same.

It was a fun morning and it wore her out, she is taking a nice nap now, hopefully having sweet Elmo dreams.

Trick or Treat

2008-11-01T15:45:00.000-07:00

It seemed like Halloween lasted all month! Jackson and Anna had lots of opportunities to wear their costumes... a Halloween party with friends, Little Boo at the Zoo, the Halloween party at the club, Jackson's school party, and finally trick-or-treating.

Jackson was Super Jackson, which is a combination of all of the super heroes. He wore his Batman cape, Spiderman shirt, Iron Man helmet, Green Lantern ring, and Flash boots. Trust me, I didn't know all of these accessories existed until I had to do an all-out Google search to find them because there was NO WAY I was going to buy the entire costumes. Anna went as Super Girl, complete with cape and matching glittery shoes. They both loved their costumes, and I had fun putting them together, especially with a lot help from my friend Elle who sews beautifully!

Posing on the putting green:

Super Jackson!

All the neighborhood friends ready for trick or treat:

Who gets to pull the wagon?

Sarah teaches Anna how to trick-or-treat. Meanwhile Jackson is 3 houses ahead of us!

Reed's cool pumpkins:

Haircut, Haircut!

2008-10-30T09:52:00.000-07:00

It was time, Anna's mullet was getting pretty bad. We went to my salon because Wendy is the only person I trust with my hair, so the same definitely goes for Anna. Anna was so excited to get her hair cut because she had seen Jackson do it several times and wants to be just like her big bro. She kept saying "haircut, haircut" the whole time. She did well sitting still and Wendy did this cute razor-cut bob on her. After it was finished Anna thanked Wendy over and over!

Before:

And After: