Fam Jam 2010

It was our 5th annual Fam Jam camping trip this year. We went to Mayfield Lake, but will probably try a warmer place maybe east of the mountains next year, so we can play in the water a little more. Brian and I went water skiing every day, but it was a little too cold for everyone else to jump in. It didn't rain, though, like every other year we've gone. It was Becki, Dallas and their dog Lady, Steve, Stef and their dog Mackenzie, my mom and Dad and their dog Sammy, Brian and I and our dog Brody, the kids and of course Dan joined us for a night because he had to work. Made for a fun weekend all together! Good laughs, good memories and good food! Can't wait for next year.

Dan made it this year too, but left before we took this picture





Ashley made sure we all had our hands up when we went under a bridge



Aunt Becki and Ashley

after a meal of carrots





He kept warm all weekend!



Gram and the kids





Aunt Becki and Uncle Dallas

Off to find some fish

Ashley with her new camping toys, a bug catcher and fishing pole

How we travel these days, Brody got demoted to middle seat. Not much room, but he makes it work

Mmmm Avocado

We chose avocado as both of the kids' first solid and neither of them liked it! Ashley shivered and gagged, but Isaiah just got mad! He did not like the texture, the taste, temperature or anything to do with it. We even tried applesauce after and he just wasn't having it. I think the key is to water down whatever their first food is and all we did was mash it up. He did take it watered down a few days later.

Before...

After

Big Sister

6 Months!

Ashley at 6 months







He's a "toe sucker" remarks the Dr. when we went in for his 6 month apointment.

Summer Fun

chatting with friends and family

helping mommy hang pictures

Sleeping in!




getting ready to go for walks to the park

picking blueberries right by our house

playing with mommy while brother sleeps

wearing matching outfits

playing in the pool in the backyard

Family Bike Ride

We took the kids on a bike ride 4th of July weekend. We had been talking about doing this, but were going to wait until Isaiah was older and could hold himself up in the trailer. Well, one of the ladies Brian works with told us they put the car seat in the trailer and both kids fit just fine. She even told us we could borrow their trailer for the summer. So, that's what we did and it worked out great. We took the Fanno Creek trail which is close to our house and great because it has a ton of parks to let Ashley get out and play. We'll be doing a lot more rides this summer exploring new places, but this was a successful first trip out with only little complaint from the older one who was a little squished!

4th of July

We had a great 4th of July this year with the kids. I was a little nervous not knowing how well they would do staying up so late, but because we went to a co-workers condo for a party we were able to put Isaiah in a room and he slept almost the whole time we were there. We decided to be in the annual Fox Hills parade his year with the kids. The parade started in my parents neighborhood about 20 years ago and I guess I was in it when we first moved there in 1990. So, in the morning we got the stroller all decorated in red, white and blue. My mom had made a tu-tu out of red, white and blue tool for Ashley and her baby so we made sure to pack that. The parade started at 4:00. I couldn't believe how many kids were in it and they even had cars and a fire truck at the end... a lot different than when it first started and about 10 kids participated. After the parade we BBQ'd with my parents at their house and then headed to Brian's co-worker's condo on the Columbia and watched the Vancouver fireworks from there. It was a great night and so much fun to have the kids with us.

Isaiah just barely fit into Ashley's baby stroller.



You can't see it very well, but Grammy made a matching tu-tu for Ashley's baby.

One tired little kiddo. She did great though and had fun playing with another little girl her age at the party.

Dinner Cruise

We went out on my parents boat for a dinner cruise on the river the other night and had a lot of fun. The kids did great. We were out for a few hours so I was impressed that we didn't get too many complaints out of either one of the kids. Isaiah got a little fussy around 5:00, but that's usually when he takes a little nap, so I put him in his car seat up front and he fell asleep for about 1/2 hour. He was a little crammed in there with his life jacket, but safety first and eventually he gave up to sleep.











His first lesson in boat driving.


Grandpa really let her drive the boat. I thought they were pretending until one quick turn to the left and we all shifted. Grandpa took over from there, but just a little more practice and Ashley will be pulling us all skiing!

Two and a half

So, Ashley is a little over two and a half, but who's counting and I certainly don't want to believe that my baby girl is growing up so fast! She is a kick in the pants. She makes me laugh every day. She calls us sweetie and honey and tells us to be quiet while she's talking on the phone. Then when she's done she tells us that we can talk now, but we have to say excuse me first! She puts her baby in a time out and says no talking. She uses her manners very well and is persistent even arguing her case to me when I tell her no. In fact I started to remind her to say no thank you instead of no (it just sounds better even if it doesn't make sense in every scenario), so when I tell her no she says "honey, say no thank you, that's not nice"! She always wants to see what we're doing in the kitchen and will either pull her steps up to the counter or want to sit on the counter. She's always asking "please can I see it" or "please can I touch it". She makes sure we say prayers before every meal no exception! She doesn't like loud noises and covers her ears when something is too loud for her. When I vacuum, she's up on the couch. She's taking one nap a day for about 1 1/2 hours and just recently potty trained at nap, so we're only down to one diaper a day for night time. She counts to 10 in Spanish and blows out the light at bed time. She is so caring, loving and busy with her babies. She makes sure they're fed, diapered, burped and entertained. She always makes sure they're involved in whatever we're doing even if it's sitting in the high chair "watching". She stuffs her purse with her cell phone, I-POD (an old one that we had around the house), and whatever else she decides is necessary for our trips out. She tells me that she's going to Albertson's to go grocery shopping and then to Target and she'll push her baby in the stroller around the house until they arrive at their destination. She's been a lot more social lately, saying "hi" to kids and asking them their names and how old they are. She remembers and pays attention to everything we say. The other day she told me that Grandpa was coming over to give her some attention. I had been telling Brian the night before that I thought maybe she needed some attention because she had been so whiney, but I didn't think she heard. Then today I was trying to sneak a granola bar in the car because I didn't want to share. She heard the crunching and asked "mommy, what do you have" "Just a mommy snack, you already had yours" "But mommy, what is it" "Nothing sweetie, just a mommy snack" "Probably carrots?" "Yeah, maybe carrots" Then she sniffs and says "I smell crackers!" I couldn't believe it, I can't even eat a granola bar without her noticing. Then when we got back from the library she saw the wrapper in my hand and said "mommy, that's not carrots!" What a riot, I had to remember that one. She asks me what time it is often through out the day and when we ask her what time it is she says "20 o'clock". Not sure where that came from. She uses the words probably, which one, and I think so numerous times throughout the day. Oh, and she wants to be right by your side at ALL times. In fact on weekends she will accidentally call Papa, Mama or Mapa because she calls after me so much when we're home wondering where I am or what I'm doing. She's my little buddy and I love her so much!

Ashley and Papa have a lot of fun together. This is the result of some creativity after getting ready for bed one night. I remember I used to do this with my shirts and pretend that I had really long hair.

Having a funny conversation with herself.

Must have those boots to water the garden!

Thanks Aunt Becki, I love my new dress!

Cheap Entertainment

I bought Ashley a spray bottle at the store thinking she would have fun spraying the fence or something. Well we gave it to her the other day and this is what she did with it. It was a riot seeing her chase Brody around.