Birthday Party #1

We have had a fun filled birthday weekend.  We started off the weekend on Friday with a birthday party for the boys with my moms group.  We all met at the Railroad park for the festivities.  It was a nice day, though a bit windy.  Everyone seemed to have a great time.  I am so thankful to be connected to an awesome group of women and thank them for helping make this a great day for my boys.  A thanks also goes out to my Aunt Lori and grandma (Nan) who helped set up for the party and watch the boys.  I am so thankful to have them!!

(*more pictures of the family birthday party coming soon...)

The centerpiece - our desserts

Birthday Boy #1

Birthday boy #2

Little Paulo man tasting the good eats

Ethan, dining on delectable worms

Behind: Willow, Cricket, Hannah and Paulo

The little men playing in the sand.

Nicholas, Ethan, Aidan and Rowan

Sweet girls, Julia and Paige

Rowan, waiting for the train

Cutie pie Paige waiting for the train

More train waiting

Jacob, Aidan and Paige

Jacob explaining to Paige how the big scoop works

Opening presents

All the kiddos helping

Relaxation . . . mommy style

Imagine the sound of nice, warm bath water filling up the tub.  The smell of lavender filters through the room.  The bubbles playfully fill the tub as the water turns a deep sea green as the sea foam is absorbed into the water.  The perfect magazine is waiting to be read . . .  The warm water is embracing as I slip into the tub, eager to let my aches and pains melt away.  Then "Splash!" a rubber fish finds it way into the water and is soon joined by a rubber crab.  Four little hands are fishing their way through the water trying to find them.  "Watch mommy, watch mommy!" they screech.  Cody and I tried to explain that watching mommy wouldn't be very interesting.  "Watch mommy, watch mommy!"  I sigh and give in.  When exhausted, it just seems easier than listening to them cry and throw a fit.  I attempt to read my magazine while the boys play in the water.  I glance down at my protruding belly to see a crab peering back up at me.  Apparently my belly is the Island of this sea.  Back to reading.  Then Poke!  Aidan finds it humorous to poke my nipple.  I quickly explain why this isn't funny.  While attempting to read an article to see if I could live with the the Nikon D90 versus the much more expensive Nikon D300 (like I could really afford either), Squirt!!  I am squirted with water from the fish and crab and told that they are "throwing up".  Lovely.  One more try at reading.  One sentence into the article and I see Aidan dunking his head over the side of the tub into the water.  He finds this hilarious - why wouldn't he?  I give up on the magazine.  Sit in the tub for a few more minutes while fish and crabs swim, rest and throw up on me.  Then I call in the reinforcements, afraid of how much water is actually on the bathroom floor.  Cody cleans it up, takes the boys to put on pj's and I step out the tub, dry off and feel much the same as I did before.  So much for that nice relaxing bath.  I have the thought of it and some humorous memories.

3 years ago today . . .

Three years ago today began a new chapter in our lives.  It was the day that Jacob was born.  An awesome day that seems like just yesterday.  It's so hard to believe that our first little baby is already 3!  He has filled this chapter of our lives with so much joy.  It has been amazing to witness all of his little life changes and watch what kind of little guy he is growing into.  At the age of three, Jacob is a very passionate person.  He tends to lean towards being a perfectionist and can get frustrated when things don't work exactly they way he wants them to.  From day one, he has always been one who studies and takes everything in.  Which in turn, is the reason he can figure things out so quickly.  He is very smart and loves to learn.  His hobbies now are trucks, tractors (which we call by their Bob the Builder names - which works for me because I never remember the real name) and dirt.  Jacob loves to play with Aidan, most of the time.  He is super sweet with Aidan when he gets hurt and neither of them can go to sleep without giving the other huggies and kisses.  He loves his family and is so blessed to have so many family members around that care and love for him on a daily basis.

Happy Birthday Jacob!

First, a step back in time . . .

November 15, 2005

November 15, 2006

November 15, 2007

November 15, 2008

We started off Jacob's 3rd birthday with a yummy breakfast of donuts and one little present.  The funny thing was that when we asked Jacob if he wanted to open his present, his response was "No, eat more donuts."  Cody finally had to open it for him.  But he liked it when he saw it!  Then for a yummy dinner, we went to Peter Piper Pizza for a few games and some good eats.  Finally we ended the night back at home with the grandparents for more presents and some yummy cupcakes.  All in all, it was a fun day.

Happy Halloween!!!

We had another fun Halloween last night.  As you can see, both of the boys went as Tigger.  This was not the intended costume for either of them.  However, on Wednesday, when I went to try their costumes on (Aidan was going to be the puppy Jacob was last year and Jacob was going to be Bob the Builder) Jacob wanted to be a puppy just like Aidan.  No Bob the Builder.  Not at all.  SO, I went on a puppy costume hunt.  No luck.  But, did find these two Tigger costume, in the correct sizes, for only $5 a piece!!  Both boys were happy and excited.  And I was beside myself over the price, so awesome!  So all was well for Halloween.  We did the usual pattern - Farmor and Gramps, Grammie and Papas, Nan's and then Aunt Lori and Uncle Les'.  The boys had fun at each house.  Thanks for all of the loot!

Oh yeah, the first thing Aidan said when I walked into his bedroom this morning was "candy?"  I guess when you don't get candy very often, it is a treat.  :-)

At Home Before Trick or Treating

Two cute Tigger's lovin' each other

All ready to go.

Pumpin' some pumpkin iron

No idea what he's thinking, maybe pumpkin golfing?

At Gramps and Farmor's

At the neighbors, Mr. and Mrs. Gibsons

Daddy and Tigger #2

At Grammie and Papa's

Ringing the doorbell - Jacob is very proud of himself, now that he is tall enough to reach it on his own.

At Nan's House

At Aunt Lori and Uncle Les'

This is Jacob being shy when their neighbor Gary came over.

Annual Pumpkin Carving

We had a lot of fun carving our pumpkins again this year at Grammie and Papas house last Sunday.  Aunt Riss, Uncle Doug and Rosco were there and so was Uncle Travis.  Great-Nan joined us too!  Aidan was a bit more interested in it than Jacob, which is the reason I have a few more pictures of Aidan than of Jacob.  (It's not favoritism :-)  )  As usual, I didn't do a great job at getting pictures of everybody . . . sorry!  And, in great "it's time for a bunch of pictures" fashion, at least one of the boys has a large bruise right smack dab in the middle of his forehead.  Earlier that day Aidan bumped his head and the bump seemed to get redder and redder as the day went on.  Oh well . . .

BIG Congratulations to . . .

CODY!!!

On Friday, Cody accepted a promotion offer at his current employer, the University of Phoenix. He is now an Associate Director of Centralized Admissions.  I am so proud of him and excited for him.  He has done such an awesome job at supporting his family and making it possible for me to stay home with the boys.  We are SO blessed!  Way to go Cody!!

Opinions Please

Thank you all for your encouraging words in regards to these photos.  I've made a few changes on the photos and was hoping to get your thoughts-your thoughts and opinions do help me learn!  I've posted 4 photos, 2 of each.  The first one is the new one and the 2nd is the original photo I posted.  

On this photo I desaturated the color instead of going all black and white.  I also blurred the background so you can't see the creases in the fabric as much.

Original posted, black and white except for the color in Aidan's eyes.

The main difference in this photo is the blurred background.  I did crop it slightly differently and played with the black and white levels as well as the brightness and contrast.  Not a huge difference.

My Big Belly

If you are interested in seeing some pictures of the belly, please go to my photography blog (Ang's Photos).  I did a photo shoot of myself for our class and felt that they fit better on that blog.  Plus, l am self conscience and fewer people look at that blog. :-)  Despite that, I would love to hear what people think.