Christmas Morning

Merry Christmas!

We hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and Santa brought you everything you wanted. Jake got quite a haul! It was almost embarrassing how many presents we had under the tree. But he is just so much fun to buy for!

Jake woke us up at the usual 7 am. And went downstairs. Santa brought him a work bench and he said "WOW!" It was a hit. He loves playing with all the tools. He kind of got into unwrapping presents but was much more excited about playing with everything.

Since it was just the three of us we cooked a small turkey and had a nice family dinner. Then it was back to playing with all Jake's new toys.

Hope you all have a wonderful New Year! Be safe!

Early Christmas

Merry Christmas!

This past weekend we drove to Sandrsville to celebrate Christmas with Brian's family. We hadn't been there since May and since I won't be traveling anymore we needed to go see Jake's great grandparents. It was great fun. Jake had a wonderful time with his cousin John Payne. They ran around outside and had such fun with all Jake's new toys. He was sad to leave but he fell fast asleep before we even got out of their neighborhood.

On Monday Jake and I went to Brian's office for their annual Christmas luncheon. Jake ran up and down the halls and left little finger and nose prints on all the office windows. He loved chasing after Campbell, Cooper and Noah. He loved exploring and trying to find places to hide. He was so cute trying to work on a computer and talk on the phone. Can't wait until next year.

We are staying in Atlanta for Christmas. I can't wait for Jake to tear into all of his presents. I have had such fun buying stuff for him this year. Next year should definitely be interesting with two kids to buy for!

We hope you all have a wonderful and safe holiday!

Party Time!

I hope you are all enjoying the Holiday Season!

In the past two weeks we have had lots of holiday parties, birthdays parties and Christmas outings. I know Brian and I have enjoyed sharing the season with Jake and seeing how excited he is this year. I caught him this morning trying to take the bows off the Christmas presents under the tree. We can't wait for Christmas morning!

Last week it was time to find a Christmas tree and we met Brian at the lot and picked one right out. Of course the line was long and Jake wanted to roam so I ran around after him while he pointed out all the trees. He was very into trimming the tree. He handed all the ornaments to Daddy and watched as he placed them on the tree. So much fun to have a nice family evening around the Christmas tree.

Last weekend we drove up to Hartwell for Jake's cousins birthday party. Wow! Lots of fun was had by all! John Payne got a new John Deere tractor cart and the boys had a ball riding around the yard. I could hear Jake shrieking with delight. He loves playing with his cousin.

Friday it was time to see the big guy. I dressed Jake all up and we talked about Santa the whole way there. We waited in line and he looked very interested. As soon as he sat on Santa's knee he wailed. I guess Santa is a pretty scary guy up close. Maybe next year we will get a cute smiling picture. Oh well, at least we got to have lunch with Daddy.

Saturday we were off to Davis' 2nd birthday party. Davis got a tent and Jake had a great time playing breaking it in. I can't believe Jake's little friends are all turning two! Jake's birthday is just around the corner.

We hope you all have a wonderful and SAFE holiday!

Happy Thanksgiving

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday. My parents came down from Cincinnati to see us for Thanksgiving. We had a great time. Jake loved seeing his Grandma and Poppy. He showed them all his tricks and loved all the attention. He was very sad when they had to leave. He kept asking "Poppy?", "Grandma?"

We have lots of birthday parties coming up and a trip to Sandersville. I am sure there will be more fun pictures to come. Enjoy the holiday season.

Auburn Homecoming

Hope you are all doing well. It has been a busy fall for us. Last weekend Brian and I took Jake to his second Auburn football game. I was armed with all kinds of snacks, books, sticker books and whatever else I could fit in a bag. I suppose it was silly of us to worry he wouldn't enjoy the game. He had a great time. He sat in his seat and watched the game. He played and entertained the people around us. When he got tired he took a nap...during halftime of course. He made it through the whole game and we were so glad he enjoys going to the games as much as we do.

This weekend Brian and I are going to the Georgia-Auburn game and Jake will be visiting with his cousin John Payne. I haven't been to a game (without Jake) in forever so I am very excited! War Eagle!

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween!!!

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday weekend. Jake has definitely enjoyed all of his Halloween festivities. On Wednesday night we went to our church for the annual Trunk or Treat. Jake went from trunk to trunk collecting candy. Of course once he was given a pack of goldfish he decided he was done and sat right down in the parking lot. It was great fun and he got to see his friends Davis (the golfer), Brendan (the football player) and Colin (the football).

Saturday night the weather did not cooperate. So Jake dressed up in his Thomas the Tank Engine outfit and helped me hand out candy to the kids. He had a great time. He was looking out the window waiting for trick or treaters. He waved to them and said "bye bye." It was very cute.

Next week we are off to Auburn for the Homecoming game. Hopefully the weather will be nice and Jake will enjoy the football game. So check back for more pictures soon! War Eagle!

Playdates, Pumpkins and a Happy Who Dey

So the past few weeks have been lots of fun. One Sunday the Bengals were on TV and won a nail-biter. They are never on TV down here so I dressed Jake up in his jersey and we watched the game. Who Dey! The next weekend Brian and I traveled to Tampa for our friends Jib and Kristin's wedding. Jake got to play with Nana and Papa the whole weekend while Brian and I were lying by the pool soaking up the sun. Such a nice getaway for us!

This weekend Brian took Jake to see his cousin John Payne in Hartwell. Saturday they all visited the pumpkin patch and took lots of pictures for me. Unfortunately Brian and John Payne ended up with a virus so the weekend was not so fun for Brian. Poor Brian. But he is feeling better today.

We have had quite a few playdates with our friends lately. Jake's friends Matty and Davis came over to visit. Jake loves to be around his friends...he especially loves chasing them around my kitchen island. But we have lots of fun on our playdates.

Halloween is just around the corner so I hope you all have a fun holiday!

Labor Day

I hope everyone had a great holiday weekend. We sure did! My parents, my sister, my brother and his girlfriend Shana all came to Atlanta for the weekend. We had a great time hanging out and playing with Jake. Jake LOVED all the attention. Unfortunately after everyone left he has been a little hard to live with.

Jake has learned to say lots of words. We were working on Papa V on the way to the airport and it came out Poppy. It was Poppy this and Poppy that. Turtle, football and all gone are new ones as well.

Jake has started his playgroup again with Davis. Today they got to ride a toy train and play with the rings and cones. Of course the group ended with bubbles. There is nothing like bubbles to a toddler. Shrieks of joy!

Football season has started and Brian missed the first game but he is going to make up for it by going to some Georgia Tech games and maybe an away game. It's finally fall and we can sit back watch some football! War Eagle!

Funfilled Weekend

I hope you have all enjoyed the summer. Jake has started going to "school" on Tuesday and Thursday. This is really just a Mom's day out program at the church around the corner from my house. Jake's first week was a little rough. He cried big tears when I left but as I rounded the corner he stopped and calmed down and had a great time playing with the other kids.

This weekend was his friend Brendan's 3rd birthday party. We went to the Atlanta Children's Museum. Which was really fun for Jake. He got to play with lots of fun stuff. He was running all over the place, Brian and I were worn out by the time it was over.

Also this weekend Uncle Johnny was in town playing the Gwinnett Braves. We got to see him both Saturday and Sunday. He actually pitched an inning on Sunday and did well. So good to see him and even better he is coming back again in 2 weeks. Oh boy!

Today Jake had his 18 month doctors appointment. He has grown almost 3 inches in 3 months. Amazing! He is growing like a weed. Learning more and more everyday.

Have a great week everyone!

Lake Lanier & Hartwell

We have had an exciting weekend. Friday, we went to Brian's work picnic up at Lake Lanier. It was loads of fun. Brian went tubing and took Jake swimming in the lake. It was a great time and so nice that the entire office got the day off to enjoy some time with family and friends.

Saturday, we took a trip to Hartwell to see John Payne (and his parents too) and Nana and Papa. We went to lunch and afterwards there was a petting zoo. So the boys fed the goats. They were so cute. And totally worn out, they slept the entire way home.

Jake had a great time playing with his cousin...and all of his cousin's toys. He really wore that birthday hat around all night. I guess he liked it. It was such a fun weekend.

Check back soon for new pictures!

Trip to Cincinnati

Hello!

I hope you have all been enjoying the summer. We have been busy around here. After our vacation we decided to take it easy on the 4th. We played in the backyard and Brian made a great BBQ dinner. Such a fun family weekend.

The next Friday Jake and I made the drive up to Cincinnati for some much needed Grandma and Poppy time. I think everyone had a great time. I am pretty sure Jake wore them both out. We went shopping with Aunt Cindy and Sheri, went to the zoo, had an afternoon with my best friend Lisa and her kids, and spent lots of time outside playing t-ball. It's never too early for some batting practice! Poppy even babysat so Mom and I could go see the new Harry Potter movie. While it was lots of fun I know Jake was glad to be home, he missed his Daddy!

Today, Jake had his very first haircut. He was a pretty good boy. He had to sit on Brian's lap but he did well enought to get the trip to the park we promised him. So there are some pictures of the haircut and the park. Enjoy!

Beach Trip

We have just returned from our trip to St. George Island. It was beautiful and we had such a good time. We rented a house right on the beach and the house even had a pool. Both Jake and his cousin, John Payne, had a great time playing at the beach and at the pool. Jake really liked the sand. He played in it and loved all the sand toys John Payne had brought along. I was a nice relaxing week.

Jake is doing great. He is growing and growing. He loves to babble. He says all kinds of things that I am sure make perfect sense to him. His new favorite phrase is "uh oh", any time he drops something or trips and falls down he says "uh oh." It's so adorable.

Well enjoy our beach pictures. I hope you all have a wonderful 4th of July holiday weekend!

Memorial Day 2009

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday weekend. As usual Jake has been keeping us busy. He walks everywhere now. I can tell he loves the freedom. He does not want to hold anyone's hand he just wants to walk by himself. It's so fun to see him exploring the world.

A couple weeks ago Hilary and I decided to be brave and take Jake and Davis to Kangazoom. If you don't know, its a huge warehouse that has all kinds of those bouncy castles and slides. They have a smaller baby area and toddler area for kids Jake's age. Two thumbs up! Jake fell asleep in the car 2 minutes into the drive.

Hilary and I have also signed the boys up for a play group. Jake and I went last week (since the MacIsaac's were are the beach...no fair!). Jake had a ball. We sang songs and jumped around. They did puppet shows and had all kinds of stations to go through. Then they brought out the bubbles. It's amazing what some bubbles will do to a room full of kids. They were all gathered under the bubble machine shrieking (and i do mean shrieking) with joy.

We also made a trip to the doctor for Jake's 15 month visit. In true Jake fashion he went running into our room tripped and fell into a chair. Cried big tears for about 10 seconds and had a huge knot on his head when the doctor came in. Wonderful right? So, Jake has grown 3 inches in 3 months. I was shocked! Of course with that came almost 4 more pounds. SO glad he is walking and I don't have to carry 27 pounds 1.5 ounces around anymore. The doctor says he is doing great. So we are pleased to have such a wonderful healthy baby...sorry toddler!

This weekend John Payne brought his parents down to Atlanta and Nana and Papa came up and we all went to the zoo on Monday. John Payne was so excited he woke up at 7 am Monday morning and did not stop talking about going to the zoo until we were there. He was so cute. The boys had a great time seeing the animals, sharing some popcorn and riding the rides. A nice way to spend a holiday. Afterward we went to lunch and John Payne fell asleep on the table mid-chew. Obviously he had a great time.

That's about it for us. We don't have much on the agenda for the summer other than a beach trip in June. Hope you all enjoy the summer weather!

Zoo Days

Well we have been busy little bees lately. Hilary and I took Davis and Jake for our very first zoo outing. It was so great. If you have a zoo near where you live it is such a great way to spend a day. The boys loved it. We saw all the animals and had a fun lunch. They seemed to enjoy it and of course we bought them cute stuff in the gift shop! I can't wait to go again!

Jake is a growing boy! I weighed him today and I think he is around 26.5 pounds. Yikes! Good thing he is walking now. He loves walking everywhere. He pays absolutely no attention to what I am saying he just walks where he wants to go. Exploring his environment I guess. He gets so excited his feet can't always keep up with him. It's so cute.

He has had lots of time with his friends lately. Jake and Davis made a fun game of chasing each other around the couch. I wish I would have gotten the video camera out for that! They were both squealing with delight when one would catch the other. Matty also came over and we shared a babysitter and got to go to a BBQ to toast Adam and Layce who were married April 4th at the beach. It was great to have a night of just adults. When we got home the sitter had taken a cute picture of the boys because Leslie and I had both put them in the same monkey pajamas. Ha! What cutie pies!

My Aunt Linda was in town this week and she took us to dinner and then came over. Jake put on a show of course. He pulled out his favorite toys and showed her all of his tricks. It was great to see her! Come back soon Aunt Linda!

So that's about it. I hope all you mother's out there have a fantastic weekend!

More Walking and a Lot of Baseball

Hope you are all doing well. Jake has been a busy little guy lately. Last weekend we ventured up to the outlet malls and bought Jake lots of new summer clothes. Just in time too since this weekend it hit 90 degrees! After shopping Jake helped Payton celebrate her first birthday. At least for a little while before he fell asleep. We had a great time catching up with friends.

Unfortunately Monday brought a trip to the doctor. Jake's first ever "sick" visit. He was grabbing his ears and was not sleeping well and the doctor confirmed two ear infections. Poor little guy. But we got some antibiotics and Jake was off and running. Well maybe not running but he loves walking. He just laughs and is so proud of himself. He wants to run but his feet just can't keep up. It is so cute to see how determined he is to walk. Today Brian taught him to get up when he falls with out grabbing on to something so I have a feeling he will be running very soon.

Thursday night Jake went to his very first baseball game. Uncle Johnny's team (Charlotte Knights) was in town playing the Gwinnett Braves. Jake isn't really in to sitting still so we did a lot of walking around the stadium. Saturday night Johnny pitched and the MacIsaacs, Berrys and Fingers all came to root him on. It was a great time and we were glad so many people came. Jake conked out around the 7th inning so we had to leave a little early to take him home. But Johnny did get the win so it was a great evening.

Hope you all have a great week and enjoy the sunshine!

Happy Easter

I hope you have all had a nice holiday. We traveled to Sandersville this weekend to see Brian's family. Jake was especially excited to see his cousin John Payne.

We had a great weekend hanging around the house and Brian even got to play his favorite game...cornhole. Of course he had to stomach the red and black bean bags (Joe is a big Georgia fan). Sunday Jake had his first easter egg hunt. He found a few eggs then plopped down to see what was inside. Then he figured it was more fun to play with the empty eggs so John Payne took his candy off his hands for him.

Jake is walking much more these days. He stands himself up and off he goes until he falls and then he just crawls off. It is really cute. But day by day he is getting more and more steady on his feet. Before I know it he will be running all over the place.

Now we are looking forward to our neighborhood pool opening and in June our trip to the beach. It can't come soon enough!

Spring is Here!

I hope you all have had a great couple of weeks. We have definitely been enjoying the sunshine. We have had such nice weather Jake is able to go outside and play now. He loves it outside. He constantly wanders to the door and reaches for the doorknob.

We have had lots of playdates with friends and Jake's friend Matty turned one. He had a fun birthday party and Jake was all over that place. He had a great time and totally crashed as soon as he got home.

The big news is Jake has taken his first steps. He has been walking along couches, tables, cabinets (anything really) but he hasn't let go. We were in Sandesrville this weekend and playing in the yard and he just walked to his juice. We even got some of his steps on video. He is so unsteady its really cute. I uploaded a video of him walking. Go to the Baby video tab and see his first steps.

We are looking forward to the pool opening in our neighborhood and the summer starting. He loves his little friends and they all have such fun together. Hopefully we will have lots of playdates and park fun! We are also getting a zoo pass so we will definitely be spending time with the animals! Can't wait!

Have a great week!

Snow/Sunny Days

Well March has definitely been an interesting month. We started March with a snowstorm. We were sitting in church and the big fat snowflakes were just pouring down. It was beautiful, but of course that had everyone down here in the South freaking out. Needless to say grocery stores were packed and schools were cancelled on Monday. So that meant Jake's friend Matty didn't have to go to school so he came to visit us. The boys had a ball playing together...they even tossed a ball back and forth.

Of course down here in the South we have some crazy weather...snowed one weekend and was in the 70's the next. Go figure. So we had a great sunny weekend playing outside with Jake. He loves the cornhole set. He kept putting the bean bags in the holes. It was really cute. I can't wait for the weather to really start being nice enough to play outside everyday. He loves it.

Jake started swimming again. He LOVED it! He was literally shrieking with delight. He, of course, was so excited he forgot everything he had learned previously but he had such a fun time! We are looking forward to our neighborhood pool opening.

He also has some new teeth coming in. His two front teeth are trying their hardest to push through...poor little Jake is not liking it one bit! But the tooth pain has not slowed his eating habits. Good grief! He will eat anything, chicken nuggets, green beans and grapes are his new favorites. We just gave him his first pancake today. He kind of spit it out and then realized his mistake and popped it back in. Mmmmm!

On a sad note my grandmother passed away Monday. She was truly a great lady. She will definitely be missed and remembered by everyone that knew her. I flew out to NY for the funeral and had to leave Jake for 3 days. It is so wonderful to have friends that really come through in your time of need. So thank you so much to Leslie and Hilary for watching Jake for us. I know he had a great time playing with his buddies Brendan and Davis.

Jake is ONE!

Well Jake is officially one. We had his birthday party on Saturday and we had a great turn out. Almost all of our family and friends were able to come and help us celebrate Jake's very first birthday. It was so much fun. Thank you to everyone who came. Jake had a ball.

Jake didn't really get into his cupcake at his party but since he has enjoyed the leftovers. He wolfs down a cupcake in like a minute. He definitely takes after his mommy in that respect.

We went to the doctor on Monday and Jake is up to 29 inches long and 23 pounds 9 ounces. He also got some shots and we pretty mad about that for a while. Poor little guy. The doctor says he is doing great.

This weekend we are doing nothing! We have been busy busy busy the last few weekends and are looking forward to spending a little quality time together at home. Hope you all have a great week and enjoy the new pictures.

Poughkeepsie NY

I hope you all had a very Happy Valentine's Day. Brian, Jake and I spent our holiday in Poughkeepsie, NY visiting my grandma. We survived Jake's first plane ride. Jake did great! He was practically and angel on both flights. He even slept for about an hour! He made friends with the passengers behind us by sticking his little hands through the seats. Luckily they had as much fun as he did. We had such fun in Poughkeepsie visiting my grandma. Brian had never been to Poughkeepsie so he got to see the sites. It was so great to see her and catch up with my Aunt Linda and her husband and kids. Jake especially loved my cousin Molly. She was great and followed Jake everywhere he crawled. It was definitely a nice break for me and Jake had a great time too!

Jake has two new teeth these days. He is also standing like a champ. One of these days he will take those fateful first steps and then life as we know it is over! After lots of practice Brian has finally gotten Jake to throw his arms up when he hears "Touchdown!" He also holds up one finger when you say "how old are you?" or "one." It really is too cute. So you will see lots of pictures of touchdown and one.

This weekend is Jake's first birthday party. I know I have said it before but I can't believe it has been a year already! He has truly been a blessing in our lives. Lots of our family and friends are coming this weekend to help celebrate Jake's birthday...and Brian's too since Jake's party is on Brian's actual birthday! We can't wait! I know it's going to be lots of fun!

Hope you all have a great week!

Trip to Sandersville

I hope everyone is doing well. We have been great. We have been very busy these days. Jake's friend Davis moved closer (yeah!) to us so Jake went over to help Davis pack. I got some cute pictures of the two of them "helping." A couple days later Davis came over for a play date. So fun!

Jake is still pulling up on everything and loves to look outside. I know he can't wait for it to get warm outside so he can be free. Needless to say we have little hand prints on all the windows at knee level. Brian has taught Jake to hold up one finger. So we constantly ask him how old he is going to be and he puts up that little finger. It's so cute. I cannot believe in two weeks he will be one! Time really flies.

This past weekend we went to Sandersville and Jake got to spend lots of time with John Payne. Oh goodness they are already a handful. It was great fun and Jake got lots of attention from everyone. He loved it!

This weekend we are taking our first flight with Jake. We are going to Poughkeepsie NY to see my grandma. I hope Brian and I have the patience to get through a 2 hour flight with him. He is never still so I don't know how this is going to work out. Oh well, hopefully we won't bother the other passengers too much.

Hope you all have a great week and Happy Valentine's Day!

Cincinnati Trip

Jake is all over the place these days. He is pulling up and cruising around. He hasn't taken that first step yet but its just a matter of time. He can stand by himself until he wants to move and then he falls over. But he is definitely on his way. Maybe before his first birthday which is rapidly approaching. I can't believe he will be one!

Jake had a playdate with his friend Payton last week. We went to her new house and played with all her toys. There are a few pictures of them.

Tuesday Jake and I set off for Cincinnati. Jake got his first glimpse of snow. Well from the inside of the car anyway. There were lots of snow flurries on the way up to Ohio. He was pretty much an angel in the car until the last 20 minutes or so. I would say I was pretty lucky!

We went to Cincinnati to see my brother be inducted into the Milford High School Hall of Fame. Last year he was inducted to his college (Kent State) Hall of Fame and we missed it because I was like 9 1/2 months pregnant. So I was very happy to be able to go to this ceremony and get to see Johnny before he ships off to Arizona for spring training. For those of you who don't know we are no longer Pittsburgh Pirate fans...now we root for the White Sox!

Anyway, lots of his friends and family were at the induction ceremony. It was lots of fun but way past Jake's bedtime. He made it through the ceremony...clapping for his Uncle when then announced his name but afterwards he had to go home to bed! He did enjoy a few minutes of a basketball game. He kept throwing up his hands for a touchdown. Very cute! He also stared at the cheerleaders for about 5 mintues. Boys will be boys.

I guess that is it for us. Happy Birthday to Aunt Lyndsay! Hope you all have a great week.

A New Year

Happy 2009 everyone!

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season. Now the new year has set in and I am getting back into the swing of things. I didn't take a lot of pictures but I wanted to get a few new ones up. We have been busy with playdates and lunches and lots of shopping trips.

Jake is into everything. He is all over the place, pulling up on the couch, the table, even doors and windows. I think walking is in the not too distant future. I can't believe he will be one next month! Yikes!

His appetite has definitely expanded. He loves all foods (except maybe the green beans Mommy insists on feeding him). I would say this week yogurt and cheese are his favorite things. I tried a scrambled egg and he wanted nothing to do with it. Maybe if I put some cheese in it he will like it.

Next week Jake and I are traveling to Cincinnati to see Uncle Johnny inducted into the Milford High School Hall of Fame. So we get to see Grandma and Poppy...and maybe even some snow!