Jana's 2nd Birthday - Part 2!

Jana woke up this morning with a snotty nose to match Kara's, but was in decent spirits anyway. This was a common sight as one of the two girls was constantly getting her nose wiped.

When she got up from her nap, she soon discovered what Dada had been working on in the garage. He had been setting up her new swing that she got from GG (Great Grandma).



(Side note: Since Jana's so active, we decided we needed a playspace that allowed her some more options for being active. So we're setting up the garage with her new swing, her slide, her ride -on toys, a small sand box, and other toys that are just too big to be in the house. So far, she loves it.


Everybody arrived all at once. We had Gama, Gapa, Auntie Meg and Soon-to-be Uncle Shaun, Uncle Dave and Jenny, Uncle Ryan, Aunt Laura, cousins Tyler and Justin, Grammy, Papa, and GG. It was a full house, but it was fun.

We had so many people in our not so big house that we set up the back patio for people to hang out on. It was a beautiful day, despite being a bit chilly, and the kids had a great time running around.

We started with a little present opening (because Jana found the presents again). We all piled into the living room to watch. It was a little crowded, as you can see.

Jana had some wonderful help from Tyler (which we're all so thankful for because we could have been opening presents for days without his help) and from Justin.

She got some great new books, a Dora Lego set, a Dora playdough set, some great clothes, a new stuffed animal, and a newborn Cabbage Patch Doll (which J is trying to dress in the picture). Thanks so much everybody!

We settled in for dinner and we were pretty cozy. Jana and Tyler ate at Jana's table in the kitchen.

Then we had the "Kids Table."

Then on to the cake!

Here's my second attempt this week at making a cake. Maybe by the time Kara's birthday comes around I'll be better at the decorating part!
Blowing out the candles.
Having some cake with Gapa and Tyler.

Such a big girl!Justin even tried some ice cream, but didn't like the brain freeze.

Despite being a snotty mess, Kara was full of smiles!
She enjoyed her cuddles, as always.

Happy Birthday my sweet and wonderful girl! We love you so much!

Getting so big!

First, I have to show you this pic. I love this picture of Jana. I woke her up from her nap and was immediately overwhelmed by the smell of poo. Apparently she went down for her nap yesterday in a pull up and no pants. Well, the pull up shifted and well... to be really graphic, she pooped out the leg. It was nasty. So she went straight to the bath. After her bath, she had a hard time warming up. (We now realize it was because she was getting sick.) So she has on sweatpant capris, a long sleeve shirt and her hooded Seahawk sweatshirt. She insisted on putting on the hood. Ahhh, I love this kid!


I was in shock today of how much curl her hair is taking on. First, I'm amazed at how much and how long her hair is these days, but also I'm amazed at the curls.


She actually has real ringlets!

Jana Turns 2!

Jana's day started with breakfast. Daddy had left a box of candy hearts at her place at the table. After screaming for "Treats-es," she settled for cheerios and candy hearts for breakfast. Yuck!

We headed off to the indoor park to have some play time with the twins, Emma, and Noah.

Jana decided to push Brett around in the car since Sissy wasn't around to push.

Grammy, G.G. (Great Grandma), and Kara arrived shortly after Kara's nap and enjoyed watching Jana run around. Poor Kara woke up with a nasty cold this morning and was quite miserable - poor kid!

Jana got a special treat of a Dora doll that Emma chose just for her. (Thanks Tonya!)

The chaos continued when Gama and Gapa arrived and we all tried to sit down for some lunch. Phew! Trying to get one 3 1/2 year old, a 2 year old, two 22 month olds, one 15 month old and one 8 month old to sit down and eat lunch at one time was a bit crazy.

We arrived home and the two girls took some naps while we geared up for Jana's birthday dinner (which she refused to eat). After dinner - or after some of us ate dinner and Jana ran around screaming - Jana found her presents. Little monkey!

She found them behind the table, climbed onto the table and began unwrapping them.

We decided to do a few presents today, since Christmas took us two days, and we wanted to be able to do something OTHER than just opening presents on Saturday.

She got a "Vac-woom" which she loved pushing all around the floor and was so excited at how noisy it is.

My cute girl giving smiles to Grammy and GG.

She was a total crack up as she was fake laughing and falling forward in a fit of cheesy chuckles.
She also got a Dora rug and a digital camera.

Here's the birthday girl with her cake. (I'm not an artist, nor am I even remotely creative, so this was the best I could come up with.)
(I think I forgot to mention that Jana started asking for a Dora party for her birthday a few weeks ago, so that is what she got... and will get on Saturday for birthday round 2.)

And here Gapa is trying to show Jana how to use her very own camera (thanks Grammy). Now maybe she'll stop trying to steal ours!

All in all, Birthday part 1 was a success, minus a few temper tantrums.

I still can't believe that our little girl is 2!

Daddy's Little Helper

Dada decided to take on the adventure of wiring the surround sound system. We've had the speakers all piled on the cable box since we moved in. J started this when the girls and I were down south while I worked, but then he had to finish putting the wires through the wall and Daddy's little helper was there to assist.
Here she is helping him pull the wires through.

Such the great helper. She has the "fwashlight," better known to the rest of us as a head lamp and was ready to help. Please notice the fabulous outfit she's sporting. Yes, the t-shirt says "I don't do pink" and yes, the pants are pink. Daddy loved the irony.
Daddy working away.

We're so excited for this project to be done! Great job Daddy!

Scary day!

We had quite a scare around here yesterday. Grandma was out traveling to teach a class and hit a patch of ice. She spun and was perpendicular to the road, where she met a Ford F350. As you can see her little Jetta lost.

We are so incredibly thankful that she is okay. Staples, stitches, scrapes, bruises and seatbelt burns were the only wounds she walked away with.

Glad you're okay Grandma!

Kara's first plane ride

Saturday brought another adventure for Kara and I. With Auntie S’s baby shower being in Spokane, Kara and I took on the adventure of an airplane ride. We left our house at 6:45 am, met up with R, and headed up to the airport. Kara and I were attempting an over and back trip, so I just had a backpack and a diaper bag (and Kara, of course). So, I put Kara in the baby bjorn and the backpack on one shoulder and the diaper bag on the other and off we went.

We boarded early (so glad they still have early boarding for people with small children) and settled in. Unfortunately, someone had the seat next to us, so we scooted in to the window seat. I was more than a little nervous at having a businessman sitting next to us; while he was young, it was apparent that he didn’t have kids of his own. He opted not to change seats into an empty row, and there was no way I was going to attempt to move seats either.

Kara worked very hard to get smiles from everyone who looked at her, and had the flight attendant wrapped around her little finger. Those blue eyes and long eyelashes did a wonderful job of working everyone over who came near. Kara was amazing on the plane. No crying, no fussing, just giggles and smiles. Back into the Baby Bjorn she went as the plane touched down.

We arrived and Uncle P and Auntie S’s house for a visit before the shower started. Kara got in a quick nap while the rest of us got to hang out and watch Grandpa and Pat install the new TV.

Off to the shower we went. We had a great time celebrating Auntie S and Uncle P’s soon-to-be new addition to the family. They got some wonderful things and this baby is going to well dressed in Zags, Willamette, and OSU wear – not to mention the Seahawk and Patriots gear.

After the shower, Aunt Boo, Kara and I headed back to the airport to make our trip home. Since we were all on the same flight, we changed our seats to be together. While Kara was beyond exhausted, she was great on the flight home as well.

We arrived home in one piece – exhausted, but in one piece.

On a side note, while the trip was tiring, I have to say that it was rather nice to have a day one-on-one with Kara. With Toddler Tornado around, sometimes quality time with Kara doesn’t happen. When you spend a day mostly wearing your child, it’s hard not to feel a stronger bond with him/her. To be honest, I absolutely loved the excuse to wear Kara and cuddle with her most of the day. It was fabulous! She was so smiley and giggly on the plane and was fun to be around – even when we were waiting in the airports. She had so much fun bouncing up and down on my lap and studying all the faces of people around us. My favorite, however, was when she would giggle, bend at the waist and burry her face into me, snuggling up so closely. Ahhh! I miss it now as I type this.

I have to admit that Kara has grown into a delightful and mellow baby (as long as she’s well rested and well fed). I worried that she was going to be a fussy child at first; she wasn’t the happiest of newborns, but is so much fun now. She has such a fun personality and is so cuddly!

Between Grammy’s visit, her visit to Grammy, Papa, and Kaley, our trip to Aunt Boo’s, and the trip to Spokane, Kara has been held a lot in the last 4 weeks. It’s a bit of a challenge now that we’re home and back into the busyness of life because she still wants to be held a lot, but when I remember that not everything needs to be done now and the time that she wants to be held is limited, I enjoy having a cuddly and snuggly baby clinging to my arm.

Adventures in Snow

We had quite an adventure in the snow. On Sunday the 27th, we headed for Ashland. I was working for the Dept. of Ed. and Grandma and the girls were going to hang out with Aunt Boo for the week.

As soon as we passed the South Salem Exit, we started to notice snow on the ground. The further south we drove, the more solid the precipitation became, and soon we were driving in a winter wonderland… kind of.

The drive was slow and slushy, so we pulled off in Roseburg for a potty stop at a McDonalds… that turned into a two-hour stop. Kara was great, but Jana had a hard time with not being able to run around and be crazy. We finally got back on the road as I-5 opened again, after being closed for 2 hours due to numerous accidents. We were not able to make it to Ashland because of the snow, so we were forced to stay in a hotel in Medford, the same hotel as my colleagues.

The first night was a challenge. Neither girl wanted to go to bed, but both were extraordinarily over-tired. Jana was in her pack-n-play and I was nursing Kara before putting her down. The next thing I know I hear, “Hi Mama” and I had a little face in mine. Apparently Jana has learned how to crawl out of the pack-n-play. So, Grandma was called and we rearranged the furniture so that Jana’s pack-n-play wasn’t near anything that she could use to help her climb out. Kara cried, Jana cried, Mama almost cried. After about an hour, we managed to get everyone in bed.

Two am rolled around and Kara started crying. In an effort to keep her from waking Jana, I quickly fed her. Unfortunately, Jana woke anyway and I got the series of “see”s. “Mama, see me.” “See Gama.” “See Dada.” “See Sissy.” After much convincing, Jana went back to sleep and I was forced to nurse Kara to sleep… again. The same process happened at the 5 am feeding. Needless to say, I was starting the week very tired.

I don’t know how she did it, but Grandma managed to hang out in the hotel rooms with both girls for the day. The girls were well rested, both getting their appropriate naps, and managed to stay sane. The second night was better, as I (I know bad Mama) opted for Kara to sleep in the bathroom where I could hear her, but she wouldn’t wake Jana. With the exception of the 2 am and 5 am feedings, sleeping was a bit better, except for when Jana couldn’t sleep and joined me in my bed. When she decided to start jumping on the bed, she went back into her pack-n-play.

We were able to escape the hotel on Tuesday, and we all enjoyed a bit more space and freedom at Aunt Boo’s and Uncle Brian’s house. The next few days were quite a bit less exciting, except for my doing a 180 in the car on the way down the hill). The girls slept better, but Kara decided the 2 am feeding was here to stay, in addition to a 5 am feeding. Ugh!

We made it back into town on Thursday night and we were all so happy to be in our own beds (and own rooms!).