OHIO

Last week Sam and I made a quick last minute trip to Ohio to visit with family. My parents were already going and decided to see if Samuel could go. Apparently they did not think that they could handle him with all of the traveling etc and so asked if his "nanny" could come along as well. As it turned out I was available and able to change a couple of my appts. so off we went. It was really good to see the relatives, though it was a tiring trip. Sam was a trooper (as always )and just seemed to go with the flow. His entire schedule was turned upside down and naps were missed, but he remained in a pleasant mood.

Though I always have the camera with me, I tend to forget to take it out and capture those precious memories. No pics of the airport or the plane ride, though I must say Samuel enjoyed both! He was very interested in the man sitting beside us on the plane even though the man wanted nothing to do with Sam. Samuel would try everything he could think of to get this man's attention, but to no avail. When the man was resting his eyes, Sam would just stare at him and then wave at him. When the man took a drink from his water bottle, Samuel would take a drink from his sippy cup. He would put his water bottle in the pouch in front of him and then the sippy cup made it tto the pouch in front of us. It was pretty cute, and it kept Samuel entertained for a little bit. He thought sitting on mommy's lap got old pretty fast, but did enjoy the perks that came with it. (lots of candy treats, sips of mommy's drink from the actual cup, and lots of singing and talking.) He also thought it was pretty cool to be able to go to the row in front of him and find Pa and Ma (with more treats and actual coke from the cup!)

We arrived in Ohio to brrrr cold weather. It must have been cold to Samuel as well, as he never fought once when I put the hat upon his head! Mom and dad bought him a coat just before we left (thankfully) knowing how cold it was suppose to be.

After landing and checking into the hotel we headed over to the activities building at the church that my mom was raised in as well as Rod and myself. (Grandpa continues to go there) Samuel was greeted with quite the welcoming committee! DeAnna, Jeffery and AliAnna were very excited to see him. Samuel is not used to that kind of reception and at first was a little taken back, but I think he really started to like all of the attention!

AliAnna and Jeffery greet Sam

Here is Jeffery carrying Samuel

DeAnna and Samuel "chatting it up"

DeAnna, Samuel, and Jeffery

Everyone enjoyed playing with the balls
Samuel and my cousin Jeff
Samuel loved DeAnna... she would go wherever he wanted to go

Busy weekend

Saturday was haircut day. Sam has been looking quite "scruffy" lately so it was time yet again for another haircut. This is his 4th haircut, though his first 2 were given by me (that is when he lost his cute curls) I wasn't able to get pictures of his first "real" haircut as I had to hold him on my lap. I thought I was going to have to hold him again this time because as soon as he sat in the chair he started to cry and cling onto me. He then saw daddy sitting in the chair next to him as he was preparing for his haircut. Sam then decided he was a "big boy" and sat there as though he did it all of the time! He is pretty good and was even better once he was able to hold a comb in each hand.

After his haircut and a good nap, Sam was able to go to Joshua's 1 year birthday party. As you can see he decided he needed to be right in the middle of things when there were presents being opened. (he had a hard time at home keeping his hands off of the present we brought ha ha)

Josh was so excited about his new cell phone that he did not even notice Sam and Matthew eyeing (and later opening) the big present behind him!!

Hope you had a super birthday Josh. Thanks for letting Sam help you with your presents!

New Cell Phone

Check out the new cell phone that I am going to get once my current contract is up...

click on: CELL PHONE

Sonogram

Today was the much anticipated sonogram. It is a bittersweet time for me, I can't wait to see the baby, but I worry about what all could be wrong with the development of him. God is so good, according to the sono everything seems to be forming perfectly. Of course Kirk and I wanted to find out the gender of our precious little one. I was so convinced that he was a boy, but when the sonographer showed the area with the legs wide open for perfect viewing, I realized that "he" was a "SHE!" I looked over to Kirk and said "it's a GIRL!" then I turned to the sonographer and said right?! Yes, she confirmed it (then proceeded to tell me not to go to Vegas) The perinatologist confirmed it twice as well (I told him I needed the confirmation, otherwise this was going to be one of the pinkest/frilliest little boys around ha ha) She was quite active throughout the sono, it seems her whole body moves when she moves an arm or leg. I have a feeling we have another "high energy" child brewing! We are so excited to be a part of this exciting adventure and can't wait to see what the future holds!

न्यू Year

This year has been pretty good so far.

~I get to hang out with this sweet face every day

~The weather has been great! It has been in the mid to upper 70's since Sat! I know it won't last long, but it is nice to have some warmer days in the midst of winter. I did appreciate the cooler weather last week though, we had a fire in the fireplace several nights in a row! I love to watch the fire and hear the crack and pop of the wood.

~'Christmas' is officially gone from my house (though it is always a little sad to put it away)

~I have been able to feel little "flutters" in my belly. I am looking forward to being able to really feel the baby move. (and curious as to whether this one will flip and roll as much as Samuel did.) If only we would have known then what we know now. Samuel never really kicked much, he would, however, flip and flop all around. This was apparently a precursor to his extremely energetic self (as yes, he still flips and flops all the time ha)

~My car will be able to be fixed this week. We will take it to the shop in the am.

~Kirk has really enjoyed his Wii

~my dear friend from college (the one who is due on the same day as we are) has already been able to see her miracle (baby) on sono and knows what she is having (though she won't share until we have ours!!-no fair!)

~Only 4 more days until we get to see our sweet miracle on sono. (and take a peek at the gender)

~The unfortunate thing is that I saw gas cross the barrier- it was $3.01 today. It is mid winter... what will it cost this summer?

Happy 2008!

Hope you all had a happy new year and have been able to start 2008 right. One good thing about being pregnant... I don't have to come up with which crazy diet I have to start this week... but believe me, I will have more than enough weight to worry about come June. Then I will be the one looking at the best fad diets while all the rest of my friends will be enjoying their new swimsuit bods!! UGH

click here to see a funny ad that Kirk sent me. It just cracks me up!

Wow What a week!

This week has gone by super fast! poor Samuel was sick for the beginning. Can you say spoiled?! This was his ritual for several days. Get up, get comfy on the couch (making sure there was a blanket) and watch cartoons! He preferred to sit on our lap, but the pillows behind him were a close 2nd! He is feeling much much better now, that spark and spunk are back. (they were missed!)

My belly "popped" out! no more real clothes... bring on the paneled pants and elastic waists!

Kirk celebrated his birthday on Friday. As an added special gift for him I managed to "customize" the new mom mobile... yep, I somehow ran the side of the car into the entrance of the garage. I dented the front passenger door, the sliding passenger door as well as scratch the paint on both door handles and the door. Thanks to my dad, he was able to buff out a lot of the paint, but I took the shine away. The dents remain and will be fixed soon. My dad and Kirk were able to fix the wood on the garage entrance, now all that needs to be done is a fresh coat of paint. No, I have no excuse, I still don't really know how it happened. It was just me in the car and no, I was not on the phone~ mild TIA I suppose. Sorry, there are no pics of the damage... I don't think I want any reminders ha ha.We had a fast and furious trip to Oklahoma to spend the 23rd and Christmas eve with Kirks family. It was good to see everyone again. Samuel enjoyed uniting with his cousins from Oregon!

Kirk, Sam and I had our family Christmas on Christmas day and then enjoyed a wonderful Christmas meal at my parents' house. After Sam went down for bed, Kirk and I managed to beat my parents once again at hand and foot! I just love that game (especially when I am on the winning team ha ha!)We then had the " traditional Christmas Eve " with my parents on the 26th. It starts with Chinese food, then gift opening. After all the gifts are opened it is snack time, complete with all of the comfort food you can think of! I love family traditions don't you?!I Hope you and yours had a very Merry Christmas, and were able to spend time with family and friends. I also hope you were able to take a little time out of all the hustle and bustle to remember what the real meaning of CHRISTmas is and know that God allowed His one and only Son (Jesus) to be born so that we might all have eternal life with Him.

the newest family member

Here are the first of many many pictures of our new little one. The above picture is at 9 weeks. The next 2 are at 13 1/2 weeks. What a difference a month makes huh?! In the last picture you can actually see him putting his hand up to his mouth as if to suck his thumb!

Christmas pics

Last Thursday I was finally able to head to the studio and have Samuel's Christmas picture made (still an awful event) We walk in and all is well, we get to the "set" and boom the tears and clinging begin. He has the death grip around my neck saying "no, no, no" and shaking his head. The photographer was GREAT! did I say GREAT? I meant SUPER GREAT! She let us 'play' around the set and touch everything (only with a couple of fingers though because the rest of his body was still hanging on me) Here are a few of the many shots we got (the rest weren't quite so appealing)ha You can see that he is smiling, but his typical spark is missing!

He since came down with a cold which has turned into bronchitis. Poor little guy, he is pretty miserable. It is sad to say, but Kirk and I have both selfishly enjoyed it a little. All Samuel wants to do is sit on our laps and be held. He has not been this "still" since he was 4 months old! hopefully the antibiotics will kick in and he will be back to his usual wild-man side by the weekend!

Samuel has some exciting news

Samuel (along with his mommy and daddy) have decided to finally make our exciting announcement. Not sure if you can read the shirt clearly or not, but it says: "I'm gonna be the BIG brother" (yes, we did a little altering... had to add the gonna be) Though he looks pretty excited, he has not been officially told how his little world will soon be "rocked"
Our new addition should make his/her debut around 6-2-08. We will be 16 weeks along tomorrow. We can not wait to meet this new little miracle and are looking forward to adding to the family!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

...And the stockings were hung by the chimney with care...

It has FINALLY started to cool down a little around here. I don't know about you, but 84 degrees just does not make me think about Christmas! The tree is up and decorated (notice how high all of the ornaments are) and presents are starting to be wrapped and placed under it (so far Sam has only started to unwrap one... it just so happened to be his, I think he liked the Winnie the pooh paper) next step... work on those Christmas cards.

What has happened to my house?

What a difference a 3 minute period makes. Yep, Sam the tornado is able to completely destroy a clean, organized house in no time flat!! Simply amazing! I have nothing more to say... I must go clean up the family room yet again...

Play date

Yesterday Samuel and I had a lunch and play date with Faye and Hanna and Alison and Josh. Samuel and Hanna were all over the play land, having no fear as they ran away from us "mommys" in their own little mode of Independence. Josh was not to be left out though... he tried to keep up with the runners by zooming all around on his knees! Way to go Josh!

Here is Josh and Sam... check out Hanna in the background by the big egg.

Notice there is not a picture off all 3 of them? let's just say they did not want to cooperate... They were much too busy to sit still in a coffee mug haha!

Kirk, my Mr. Fix-it

Who knows how, who knows why... Samuel somehow managed to remove one of the rungs out of his crib. Remove, well break it off is more like it. (note where the 3rd rung should be)

Here is the temporary bed Samuel had for a couple of days... he looks thrilled huh?! I am glad Kirk fixed it right away ~ our silly little munchkin was putting his head through the hole while I was setting up his temporary bed. I would have snapped a picture of it but I was afraid he might actually get it stuck there so he was distracted instead ha ha.

Kirk has gotten a lot of practice using his Ultimate glue lately and being just down right handy. As I was putting up the CHRISTmas tree, it started to lean, I thought I could just adjust it, but as I moved it all of the sudden there was a crack and a snap and then a squeal (that was from me) I had completely broken the tree stand. No, this was not the first time the tree stand had been broken and repaired, but this time it was pretty much unrepairable. UGH! now what was I suppose to do? I was so looking forward to getting out the tree and the lights and all that goes with it. My wonderful, wonderful husband quietly gets up, puts on a pair of shoes and goes out to the garage. Upon further investigation on my part I find out that he left (in the middle of a football game mind you) in order to create a new Christmas tree stand for me!! YEAH! Thanks honey!!

parent prayer

Dear heavenly Father, make me a better parent.Teach me to understand my children,to listen patiently to what they have to say,and to answer all their questions kindly.Keep me from interrupting them or contradicting them.Make me as courteous to them as I would have them be to me.
Forbid that I should ever laugh at their mistakes,or resort to shame or ridicule when they displease me.May I never punish them for my own selfish satisfaction or to show my power.
Let me not tempt my child to lie or steal.And guide me hour by hour that I may demonstrate by all I say and do that honesty produces happiness.
Reduce, I pray, the meanness in me.And when I am out of sorts,help me, oh Lord, to hold my tongue.
May I ever be mindful that my children are children and I should not expect of them the judgement of adults.Let me not rob them of the opportunity to wait on themselves and to make decisions.
Bless me with the bigness to grant them all their reasonable requests,and the courage to deny them privileges I know will do them harm.
Make me fair and just and kind. And fit me, oh Lord,to be loved and respected and imitated by my children.
Amen

Yeah for Friends

Yesterday Samuel and Hanna had a great day of play together. Faye (Hanna's mommy) and I are swapping out a few days so that we can do Christmas shopping alone (somehow seems to go by a lot quicker and a lot less stressful that way ha)

Here they are sharing goldfish

(yes Al, that is an "OU" shirt he is wearing!!)

They had a great time throwing balls around the entryway (then soon at each other) Right now Samuel LOVES his balls and I think eventually he got tired of "sharing" them. I found him hiding his balls behind the pillow on the couch whenever Hanna wasn't looking. Unfortunately, he did not see me go in behind him and throw the balls back out hee hee.We all went on a walk around the neighborhood in Samuel's cool wagon (He got this for Christmas last year from his Uncle Rod and Aunt Kelly... He LOVES going out for walks in it!)
Though no walk is perfect unless you bring a stack of Lego blocks with you!

We had a fun filled day, and I understand Faye was very successful as well! Now that is what I would call a win - win situation!!

The Perfect new TOY?!

Though he is nowhere near ready to use it, we decided to start introducing Samuel to the next exciting milestone~ POTTY TRAINING. Kirk and I wanted to make it sound interesting and like a lot of fun. We apparently did a great job, as he is very fascinated. He really enjoys sitting on it though he has not "used" it yet. He likes it so much that he feels it needs to go everywhere with him (instead of staying in the bathroom)He loves the lid on it, constantly opening and closing it (he even tries to close it while he is perched upon the throne)

Here he is enjoying the nice cushy seat... guess it makes a great hat?!

Really?! must he place his new potty on the couch?! Thankfully it is still clean and new

Happy Halloween

Who is the cutest Horse EVER?! why Samuel of course!!! who else?



For Halloween Samuel went to the fall festival at our church. He was still a little small to understand what all was going on, but he enjoyed watching it and taking it all in. He got to meet a cow, a lama and feed the goats (Kirk had a hard time trying to explain that the food was for the animals and not for Sam to eat!)

He did not enjoy the hood of the costume, so these are the only pics I got with it on!!

Pumpkin Patch

What a busy week thus far! We have not been home all week long, but Samuel has taken it all in stride. He is so good to go with the flow! (sometimes he pays me back for it later, but while it is occurring he handles it well.)

Tues we went to the Arboretum with Faye and Hanna and Alison and Josh. We had a nice time. It was an absolutely gorgeous day, couldn't have asked for better weather. Sam and Hanna enjoyed running all around the pumpkins while Josh was as good as gold posing on the patch for his Mom!




Once he was all through with the pumpkins, he decided he needed to climb the tree.He enjoyed hugging the goats and the woolly sheep. Apparently the kids had a good time, both he and Hanna actually fell asleep on the ride home!