Our little guy is growing up! We can't believe he'll be 10 months old this week. The time sure flies by!
At his 9 month appointment he had dropped on the growth chart from 50% to about 30% for both height and weight. Ironically, I had been so concerned because he had been eating so much and I was afraid I was feeding him too much! He seems to be hungry every 3 hours for either solids or milk and can down approximately 2 jars of baby food with no problem.
James started to crawl about mid-March and crawls with his right knee and left foot. He has been getting into EVERYTHING!...and we are still trying to figure out how to best baby proof our house. What do you do about things that you just don't want to move?! He also started cutting his first bottom tooth about the end of March (about time!) and has cut his second bottom since as well. He has started to become steadier on his feet and even stood up from squatting position today...just to grab on to me as soon as he made it up. We have some friends that have little push toys and James loves them and will walk all around while pushing them. I really need to invest in one! Maybe an early birthday gift...
He is babbling all the time and we love to hear him talk to himself. We're not really sure if he is "saying" anything yet but enjoy it none the less. It is also fun to see him constantly exploring and trying to figure out new things...and old things for that matter. He has been figuring out books lately and how they work. He'll even turn some pages for me when we read instead of just wanting to slobber them all the time.
Separation anxiety has definitely set in and he really likes his mom which is unfortunate sometimes. However, he has been doing rather well considering. He usually "needs" to be in the same room as mom or someone and gets offended if you start to walk away. He also will snuggle a little more than he used to which I absolutely love!
He is such a happy boy and brings us lots of joy! (I'll have to post pictures at a later time due to the loss of them...which is another post to come).
Monday, April 19, 2010
Thursday, March 25, 2010
4 Years
On March 11, Phil and I celebrated 4 wonderful years of marriage! It is hard for us to think that we've been married already for 4 years. Yet, at the same time, it seems like, only 4 years?
I've truly enjoyed my life but I don't think I have ever been so happy as I have been these last few years. I didn't know that being married to my best friend could ever be so fun. I thought I'd write down a few things that I absolutely love about Phil.
1) He is so thoughtful. He is always asking before he leaves the house in the morning if there is anything he can do for me throughout the day. He helps me at home a lot. Last night I had to go to mutual and phil was supposed to put James to bed and then study. Instead, I came home to a clean kitchen (and a child that was soundly sleeping).
2) He makes me laugh...all the time. Most people don't know the "weird" side of phil which is truly unfortunate. It is so fun to have someone to laugh with...even when it is kind of weird!
(This is a video we took with our new camera a year ago. It gives you a little insight into the "secret/weird" Phil.)
3) He is smart. And not only that, he loves to learn. I love that he loves school!
4) He RARELY gets upset or offended. What a quality! I'm trying to be more and more like that but it is a work in progress which leads me to the next quality...
5) He is patient. He deals with my madness!...and clutteryness, and quirks, and when I'm frustrated, etc. When I do get upset, he knows how to deal with me and he patiently waits for me to calm down.
6) He loves to be a dad. It is so fun to watch him with James. When I'm getting frustrated in the evening when I'm trying to make dinner and James just needs my attention, Phil will get home, take James, and play, play, play until James is just laughing his heart out! He loves his little boy!
7) He loves me, appreciates me, and values my opinion. This really means a lot to me. It is truly wonderful to be loved.
Phil is a wonderful example to me and I appreciate him so much. I love him and look forward to many more wonderful years ahead!
To journal what we did for our anniversary:
Phil took off school on the 11th (due to my blunder in double planning the weekend). We drove down to Tucson on Wednesday night and stayed with Brian and Janette (thank you so much for the accomodations!). The next morning we drove to the Desert Museum and spent all morning and the early afternoon there. The weather was beautiful (even a little on the chilly side) and we had such a wonderful time. We went to the free flight demonstration and also to a lecture on desert animals which we really enjoyed. It was so nice to be together in the beautiful desert and to forget about our everyday responsibilities (besides being parents as James had come with us). We then drove home that afternoon, enjoying our time in the car and returned to our busy life here at home. And for some pictures:
I've truly enjoyed my life but I don't think I have ever been so happy as I have been these last few years. I didn't know that being married to my best friend could ever be so fun. I thought I'd write down a few things that I absolutely love about Phil.
1) He is so thoughtful. He is always asking before he leaves the house in the morning if there is anything he can do for me throughout the day. He helps me at home a lot. Last night I had to go to mutual and phil was supposed to put James to bed and then study. Instead, I came home to a clean kitchen (and a child that was soundly sleeping).
2) He makes me laugh...all the time. Most people don't know the "weird" side of phil which is truly unfortunate. It is so fun to have someone to laugh with...even when it is kind of weird!
(This is a video we took with our new camera a year ago. It gives you a little insight into the "secret/weird" Phil.)
3) He is smart. And not only that, he loves to learn. I love that he loves school!
4) He RARELY gets upset or offended. What a quality! I'm trying to be more and more like that but it is a work in progress which leads me to the next quality...
5) He is patient. He deals with my madness!...and clutteryness, and quirks, and when I'm frustrated, etc. When I do get upset, he knows how to deal with me and he patiently waits for me to calm down.
6) He loves to be a dad. It is so fun to watch him with James. When I'm getting frustrated in the evening when I'm trying to make dinner and James just needs my attention, Phil will get home, take James, and play, play, play until James is just laughing his heart out! He loves his little boy!
7) He loves me, appreciates me, and values my opinion. This really means a lot to me. It is truly wonderful to be loved.
Phil is a wonderful example to me and I appreciate him so much. I love him and look forward to many more wonderful years ahead!
To journal what we did for our anniversary:
Phil took off school on the 11th (due to my blunder in double planning the weekend). We drove down to Tucson on Wednesday night and stayed with Brian and Janette (thank you so much for the accomodations!). The next morning we drove to the Desert Museum and spent all morning and the early afternoon there. The weather was beautiful (even a little on the chilly side) and we had such a wonderful time. We went to the free flight demonstration and also to a lecture on desert animals which we really enjoyed. It was so nice to be together in the beautiful desert and to forget about our everyday responsibilities (besides being parents as James had come with us). We then drove home that afternoon, enjoying our time in the car and returned to our busy life here at home. And for some pictures:
Monday, March 1, 2010
Ragnar Relay
I participated in the Ragnar Relay this past weekend with some friends that I knew from Tucson. It was so much fun! It was one of those experiences which in the middle of it, you are thinking "why did I do this again?" but was very rewarding afterwards. Here is my account followed by most of the pictures taken with my camera.
My team consisted of 12 people. Van #1 was: Tyler and Becky Goodrich, Camry Tucker, Dani Clark, Sam Jarvis (Spencer's brother), and Chad Ensign. Van #2: Spencer and Sharon Jarvis, Camille Degomez, Ilkka Aura (Eevi's dad), Eevi Grossarth, and me. Van #1 left early Friday morning to get to the start line in Prescott and I met my van around 7:30. We drove up to the start line to see our team begin the long journey! Because our van didn't have to begin our run for a few hours, we stopped in downtown Prescott to eat lunch in a park and then walked around town for a little bit. We then drove to exchange 6 to meet our team and begin our run. We originally were assigned a set run (I was runner 11) so although my team was just beginning and I was anticipating and excited to do my run, I didn't run until a few hours after my van started. Throughout the race we would drive half way through a leg to cheer on our current runner and then drive on to the next exchange point for the hand off. My first run which was 8.5 miles didn't start until 6:45pm on Friday which was disappointing since it was getting dark and I missed the gorgeous desert view during my run. It was also on a dirt road which the darkness didn't help. My runs just didn't "feel good" like I was hoping but I did okay and was able to run faster than my predicted 10 minute mile pace.
After our my van's first leg was completed we drove to Exchange 18 to await our teams arrival so we could start leg 2. While waiting we could pay $2 to go into an elementary school to sleep if we wanted. It was well worth the money. Although I didn't sleep well or very much, it was just nice to have a place where we could be warm, lie down and rest, and have real bathrooms and sinks to use. Unfortunately, the race took an unexpected turn at this point. Ahead of us in the race a boy was hit by a car which put a delay and a damper to the excitement of the race. Because of this, they re-routed us to exchange 24 to continue from there. That took away my van's second leg which was disappointing. I think that the relay administrators just wanted to get the race over with and so they became a little more lax which was actually nice. All of our team wanted to have an opportunity to run 3 times so we just mixed it up completely. Because of this we doubled up on some of the legs and I ended up running legs 11, 28, and 31 which totaled to about 15 miles.
My favorite leg was my last. I was actually dreading it because my quads were already so sore and it was 3.7 miles in Fountain hills which included 2 really steep hills. As I was running 5 minutes into the race, a very tall man had been keeping about the same pace as me so I started to talk with him. We stayed with each other for the rest of the leg which totally helped me complete it without hating it! In fact, I even liked it. His name was Jim and he saved me! It was really rewarding.
Overall, and looking back, it was tons of fun and completely exhausting (especially since we didn't get hardly any sleep). Thanks to my fellow teammates, our van drivers (Becky and Spencer's dads- couldn't have done it without them!), my mom and dad for watching James during the race, and to Phil for supporting me through all the training. What an experience! If an opportunity to run a relay were to arise again in the future, I think I would definitely consider.
Our team right before the race started
Tyler off to a good start
Van #2 at starting line with Ragnar shirts
Lunch in Prescott
Ilkka's first(and tough) leg with Eevi giving water
Right before my first leg
Before my leg with Spencer, Sharon and Ilkka
Eevi before her first leg
Handing off to Eevi
Eevi glad to be done with leg one
Before leg 2 with Becky, Dani, Camille, and Camry
Camille and Eevi
Running with Jim on my last leg
Glad to be done with my portion! Jim in background with his "sumo wrestler" teammate!
Ilkka posing in front of beautiful desert!
Spencer completing last leg and being welcomed by teammates!
Ilkka handing off to Sharon
Sharon handing off to Camille
Camille off to a good start
Eevi anxiously awaiting her last leg
And Eevi is off! We are almost there!
Eevi coming in to the finish line
Most of our team at finish line! Congrats to everyone! A job well done!
My team consisted of 12 people. Van #1 was: Tyler and Becky Goodrich, Camry Tucker, Dani Clark, Sam Jarvis (Spencer's brother), and Chad Ensign. Van #2: Spencer and Sharon Jarvis, Camille Degomez, Ilkka Aura (Eevi's dad), Eevi Grossarth, and me. Van #1 left early Friday morning to get to the start line in Prescott and I met my van around 7:30. We drove up to the start line to see our team begin the long journey! Because our van didn't have to begin our run for a few hours, we stopped in downtown Prescott to eat lunch in a park and then walked around town for a little bit. We then drove to exchange 6 to meet our team and begin our run. We originally were assigned a set run (I was runner 11) so although my team was just beginning and I was anticipating and excited to do my run, I didn't run until a few hours after my van started. Throughout the race we would drive half way through a leg to cheer on our current runner and then drive on to the next exchange point for the hand off. My first run which was 8.5 miles didn't start until 6:45pm on Friday which was disappointing since it was getting dark and I missed the gorgeous desert view during my run. It was also on a dirt road which the darkness didn't help. My runs just didn't "feel good" like I was hoping but I did okay and was able to run faster than my predicted 10 minute mile pace.
After our my van's first leg was completed we drove to Exchange 18 to await our teams arrival so we could start leg 2. While waiting we could pay $2 to go into an elementary school to sleep if we wanted. It was well worth the money. Although I didn't sleep well or very much, it was just nice to have a place where we could be warm, lie down and rest, and have real bathrooms and sinks to use. Unfortunately, the race took an unexpected turn at this point. Ahead of us in the race a boy was hit by a car which put a delay and a damper to the excitement of the race. Because of this, they re-routed us to exchange 24 to continue from there. That took away my van's second leg which was disappointing. I think that the relay administrators just wanted to get the race over with and so they became a little more lax which was actually nice. All of our team wanted to have an opportunity to run 3 times so we just mixed it up completely. Because of this we doubled up on some of the legs and I ended up running legs 11, 28, and 31 which totaled to about 15 miles.
My favorite leg was my last. I was actually dreading it because my quads were already so sore and it was 3.7 miles in Fountain hills which included 2 really steep hills. As I was running 5 minutes into the race, a very tall man had been keeping about the same pace as me so I started to talk with him. We stayed with each other for the rest of the leg which totally helped me complete it without hating it! In fact, I even liked it. His name was Jim and he saved me! It was really rewarding.
Overall, and looking back, it was tons of fun and completely exhausting (especially since we didn't get hardly any sleep). Thanks to my fellow teammates, our van drivers (Becky and Spencer's dads- couldn't have done it without them!), my mom and dad for watching James during the race, and to Phil for supporting me through all the training. What an experience! If an opportunity to run a relay were to arise again in the future, I think I would definitely consider.
Our team right before the race started
Tyler off to a good start
Van #2 at starting line with Ragnar shirts
Lunch in Prescott
Ilkka's first(and tough) leg with Eevi giving water
Right before my first leg
Before my leg with Spencer, Sharon and Ilkka
Eevi before her first leg
Handing off to Eevi
Eevi glad to be done with leg one
Before leg 2 with Becky, Dani, Camille, and Camry
Camille and Eevi
Running with Jim on my last leg
Glad to be done with my portion! Jim in background with his "sumo wrestler" teammate!
Ilkka posing in front of beautiful desert!
Spencer completing last leg and being welcomed by teammates!
Ilkka handing off to Sharon
Sharon handing off to Camille
Camille off to a good start
Eevi anxiously awaiting her last leg
And Eevi is off! We are almost there!
Eevi coming in to the finish line
Most of our team at finish line! Congrats to everyone! A job well done!
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
New Accomplishments
The last weekend of January I accomplished something I never thought I would ever do...I ran my first half marathon. I actually used to never have any desire to reach this goal but here I am.
Phil's sister, Janette, wrote and said there was a 1/2 marathon going on in Queen Creek. I have been training for the Ragnar Relay and so this race sort of fit into my training schedule.
As for a report on the race:
It was a lot harder than I was expecting. However, I didn't die...which is good. I felt pretty good throughout the whole race but the last couple of miles I was starting to get really tired. It didn't help that I didn't know the route. We would make a turn and I'd think "What!? This is taking me further away from my final destination! I want to go the other way! When is it going to end?" Janette asked me towards the end if I wanted to stop for water. I decided I just wanted to finish and be done. We were able to kick up our pace towards the end and then sprint to the finish line. My calves cramped up right after the race and my quads were a little sore for a few days after but not too bad. I now get to focus on my next race which I think will be easier but harder at the same time. Ragnar, here I come!
7 1/2 months
I've been terrible with keeping a record of James' growth and development. Hopefully he'll forgive me when he gets older!
Little James is the apple of our eyes! We sure love him. At his 6 month appointment his stats were:
wt: 16 lbs, 8oz (49%)
ht: 26.5in (49%)
head cir.: 17.5 (51%)
In the last month he has mastered sitting up and has gotten much more daring when reaching for things. He's taken a few tumbles which is just the beginning of many. He is becoming quite the roller and is beginning to show signs of crawling. He'll get in crawling position and then start to cry because he doesn't know what to do from there. He has become a little more vocal in his gibberish language and has started to imitate more. His latest thing is scrunching his nose and breathing in and out really fast while sticking his tongue out of his smiling lips...he is quite the multi-tasker!
He started sleeping through the night again quite well in mid-December and although it hasn't been as good as the first time, mom is quite happy. He has even started going down for naps this past week without having to be rocked! Some of our favorite things about him (just to name a few):
-His laughs and giggles
-When holding him in cradle position, he sometimes strokes your face with his hand
-He LOVES being around other kids...it makes him very happy
-How content he is
-Seeing him first thing in the morning and after naps...he's all smiles
-He loves paper and all electronics (including phone, camera, keyboard, etc.)
-His "Buddha" belly
He is a very happy baby and he brings us lots of joy!
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Time Flies!
Wow has time gone by! For the sake of time I'm going to report on Thanksgiving weekend.
We did our second annual LeSueur Turkey Trot at John and Becca's house. So fun! Becca clocked out a 4.5 mile course which was beautiful! We had a lot more people join us this year and I hope that this tradition continues. Unfortunately, I realized that I didn't take any pictures until it was all over.
We had Thanksgiving dinner at my parents with some friends of my parents and my Uncle Darwin and his family. Dinner was wonderful as always and then we got to have some fun games. We did the chicken launch...pretty awesome! and then played croquet which lasted forever! Later that night all of my siblings except Ray and his family (they were in Utah with Amanda's family) help my parents put up all of their Christmas stuff which was followed by some fun visiting. I love holidays...especially the ones that mean you get to hang out with family!
That Saturday we took family pictures at the Cardon's, went to the Leslie reunion and then watched the UA/ASU game (in Tivo (spelling?) which we finished in like 1 1/2 hours). Glad that the UA won!!! Phil and I were by ourselves watching it without any ASU fans to give a hard time to. It was still fun.
And that sums it up in a nutshell! We sure have a lot to be grateful for!
Hot game of croquet
Chicken Launching...lovin' those bloomers Phil!
Picture day
We did our second annual LeSueur Turkey Trot at John and Becca's house. So fun! Becca clocked out a 4.5 mile course which was beautiful! We had a lot more people join us this year and I hope that this tradition continues. Unfortunately, I realized that I didn't take any pictures until it was all over.
We had Thanksgiving dinner at my parents with some friends of my parents and my Uncle Darwin and his family. Dinner was wonderful as always and then we got to have some fun games. We did the chicken launch...pretty awesome! and then played croquet which lasted forever! Later that night all of my siblings except Ray and his family (they were in Utah with Amanda's family) help my parents put up all of their Christmas stuff which was followed by some fun visiting. I love holidays...especially the ones that mean you get to hang out with family!
That Saturday we took family pictures at the Cardon's, went to the Leslie reunion and then watched the UA/ASU game (in Tivo (spelling?) which we finished in like 1 1/2 hours). Glad that the UA won!!! Phil and I were by ourselves watching it without any ASU fans to give a hard time to. It was still fun.
And that sums it up in a nutshell! We sure have a lot to be grateful for!
Hot game of croquet
Chicken Launching...lovin' those bloomers Phil!
Picture day
Monday, October 19, 2009
Music in the Making
Last weekend I had a life changing event. We bought our first piano(well...it was actually a graduation gift...thank you so much mom)! Why is it life changing? Our home can now be full of music and hopefully our kids will learn how to play the thing!
I had seen the ad on craigslist and Phil and I went and saw it. It was a nice looking piano and the tone was quite nice but the pedal kind of bugged me a little bit. I told the guy how I honestly felt about it and told him that we were still going to look around. A week or two passed by and I hadn't looked for any other pianos in the meantime when I received an email from him again saying that the piano was still available and that he was willing to negotiate on price. I emailed him back asking if he'd be willing to drop the price $150 and he said it was ours. Phil went and picked it up and we've used it almost every day since we got it. The more I play it, the more I fall in love with it. I guess I'm just going to have to get used to the pedal. The other downside is that the keys don't have a cover so I guess I'll have to get used to kids plunking on it all the time! What better way to get them to learn to love music, right? :)
I had seen the ad on craigslist and Phil and I went and saw it. It was a nice looking piano and the tone was quite nice but the pedal kind of bugged me a little bit. I told the guy how I honestly felt about it and told him that we were still going to look around. A week or two passed by and I hadn't looked for any other pianos in the meantime when I received an email from him again saying that the piano was still available and that he was willing to negotiate on price. I emailed him back asking if he'd be willing to drop the price $150 and he said it was ours. Phil went and picked it up and we've used it almost every day since we got it. The more I play it, the more I fall in love with it. I guess I'm just going to have to get used to the pedal. The other downside is that the keys don't have a cover so I guess I'll have to get used to kids plunking on it all the time! What better way to get them to learn to love music, right? :)
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