Weekend Recap - Thanksgiving Edition

Ah, my first long weekend since I became “self-employed.”  It was so nice.  But, as you probably guessed, we were busy, busy, busy!!  The festivities actually started MUCH earlier than usual.  On Tuesday, I was able to volunteer at Jameson’s school.  They had a Thanksgiving program and I, along with 2 other moms, helped the kids to roll out, cut, and bake cookies for refreshments after the show.  It was so fun to see him in his element.  I swear I could sit all day and just watch him at school!

Jameson was sooooooo excited for his program.  He asked everyone he encountered if they were going to his “show” and if they said no, he would say “that’s okay, we’ll record it for you.”  Well, Papa Terry, Mama O, Cousin Alaina, Nannie Sandy, Aunt Rachel, Uncle Ben, and Aunt Becca were able to attend.  Let me just tell you, it was THE CUTEST thing that I have ever seen!!  And here it is for your viewing pleasure!!  After the program, we ate lunch at Pizza Pie Guys with Papa Terry, Mama O, and Cousin Alaina.  Then Wednesday night, Jameson attended his very first overnighter at the JCC.  Only, we weren't sure how he'd handle staying overnight (or how *I* would, for that matter!), so we opted to have him stay until 10 instead.  Then Russell and I took the chance to sneak away for dinner and a movie before picking Jameson up.  And after that, I had the AMAZING opportunity to drop off some gifts that a wonderful group of ladies and I pooled together to give to a friend whose daughter is going through some things.

Thursday, of course, was Thanksgiving.  We had a wonderful, family filled day.  Just like we have done for the past few years, we had lunch with my family (Dad’s side) and dinner with Russell’s family.  We were treated to two delicious Thanksgiving meals.  We were able to catch up with some family that we don’t get to see very often.  All with very minimal drama – pretty good for two family get-togethers!  I feel very lucky to have so many wonderful people to call my family!

Friday was a recover day.  We relaxed, watched some football and ate anything other than turkey!  Haha!

Saturday we took family pictures with my friend Amy.  This was a reschedule.  We were supposed to do them earlier, but something else came up…  :-)  Anyway, I am thrilled about them!  We had a lot of fun without any major meltdowns – pretty impressive considering we had 5 people to keep happy!  I’ll post a few pictures once our holiday letters go out!

Sunday was another lazy day – soaking up the very last day of our long weekend.  Then, on Monday stuff got real.  We submitted the last wave of paperwork to daycare licensing.  So, it’s just a matter of time before we get inspected and we’re off and running!!  Eeek!!

Weekend Recap

Although I was desperately convince myself that the runny noses around our house was just allergies, however it seems that the daycare kiddos have caught it as well, so I’m thinking we actually have a full-blown cold on our hands.  Oh well, ‘tis the season! 

Nevertheless, we foraged on in respect to our weekend activities.  Friday afternoon, we had a visit from my Aunt Judy and her granddaughters (my second cousins, once removed…I think?).  They brought some treats for the kids (like they need any more!!), we had a nice chat, and the kids had a lot of fun playing.  It was so nice to catch up!!  And most importantly, I was reminded of a few potential babysitters available to me!  Delilah had so much fun that she was convinced that we were going to “Grandma Jude’s” house the following day!!  Haha!

On Saturday, we were having dinner at Papa Terry and Grandma Onie’s house to celebrate the October birthdays - Papa Terry, Aunt Erin and Aunt Nichole.  I had been asking the kids what we should get Papa Terry for his birthday.  Their answers included: a cat, cat food, foot to eat, and “whatever he would like.”  Obviously they were very helpful.  Well Friday night, Jameson decided that Papa Terry needed a chef hat because he already has a chef book (?).  So, Saturday morning we were off to find a chef hat.  Russell had drill again this weekend, so it was a solo trip for just the kids and I.  Then we also decided stop by Vic’s to get him some popcorn because he likes it.  While we were there Delilah went crashing into some of the big popcorn tins.  Who’s shocked?  Anyone?  Anyone?  Yeah, I didn’t think so.  She was fine, but there I was with 2 wild maniacs and a baby while the man behind the counter took FOREVER to get some curling ribbon and made a pitiful attempt at tying and curling it.  Oh well, we survived!  Once all of our errands were complete, the kids napped while we made the trek to Council Bluffs.

Once we arrived at Papa Terry’s house, the kids made a beeline for the playroom.  I even had to drag Jameson out to see Papa Terry wearing his chef hat!!  Russell joined us after drill and we all enjoyed one last meal off the grill for the year!  Then it came time for cake and ice cream.  Delilah wanted so badly to help go get the cake and ice cream, but when it came time to eat it, she was not interested in it at all.  She happily played all by herself in the playroom.  Jameson, on the other hand, made sure he got his plate.  So, after we stuffed ourselves and the kids played some weird game where they were evil unicorns, it was time to go.  As we’re packing up, Delilah is suddenly upset that she didn’t get a piece of cake.  So, Grandma Onie graciously wrapped up a piece of cake for her to take home (although she snuck some on the way home!). 

Sunday was just a day to relax at home – see the aforementioned cold.  :-)

Weekend Recap

In typical Bennett fashion this weekend was another busy one!  We had lots of fun Halloween festivities planned!  The kids were chomping at the bit to wear their costumes and fortunately we had plans to attend a few events around town that required such attire!

Saturday afternoon, we hit up trick or treating at our Hy-Vee.  We thought it would be convenient to kill two birds with one stone – we needed some groceries and the kids could get some candy.  It was not the most organized event, but the kids didn't complain.  They got some candy and their picture taken with the Great Pumpkin.  What’s not to love?? 

Later that day, we stopped by the trunk or treat event at a friend’s church.  Each car had a different theme.  The kids had so much fun going from car to car gathering a bucketful of candy!  But toward the end, Ephraim had enough and started to get fussy.  So, we all grabbed a cup of cider and some popcorn on our way out.  Then we had ourselves a little picnic in the van while I fed the baby.

Saturday evening was Nannie Sandy’s annual Halloween party.  As you might imagine, the kids were the hit of the party.  Before going, Delilah informed me that the party couldn't start without them!  They immediately found the candy dish and began gorging themselves in M&M’s.  Then Jameson proceeded to ask everyone in attendance if they knew his name.  He then told me that he introduced himself to everyone at the party.  Such a little schmoozer already!  But, then Delilah fell while trying to get off a chair and Ephraim started to get fussy.  I decided that since 2 of the 3 kiddos were crying that it was probably time to go!

Sunday morning, we got up and headed over to Wenninghoff's Farm to meet Kellie and Maddie at the pumpkin.  It was a nice little place.  We got to see some animals and we went on a hay-rack ride.  But, I think the highlight for the kids was all of the different activities they were able to do.  There were different things to climb on, slide down, or crawl through.  We went through the corn maze.  The boys took off in one direction, while the girls (plus Ephraim) went in another.  I do want to point out that directed by our fearless leader, Delilah- the girls beat the boys out of the maze!!  Haha!

We were all pretty weary after all of our adventures, so it was time to head home for a family nap!!

Happy birthday to me!

Well it has come and gone, my thirtieth birthday and the last of the holiday/birthday landmine that happens at our house between Nov-April! Despite everyone’s ribbing, I’m feeling pretty good about turning 30. Honestly, I think I went through my “crisis” at 25. At that point, I was very unhappy with where I was in life. That was what pushed me to start grad school and find a new job. But, 5 years later, I am thrilled with where I am in life. I have my Masters, 2 kids that I adore, a wonderful job that allows me to work part-time, so I can be home with my kids more, and a new business that is gaining momentum! So, as if I wasn’t spoiled enough, I got a HUGE surprise for my birthday!

First of all, Russell picked me up from work Wednesday night and took me to Target under the guise that we needed to pick up diapers for Delilah. I was, however, a little suspicious because once we got the diapers, he asked me if I wanted to look at clothes…very out of character. :-) We get to the house and the first thing I notice is my friend, Kellie’s, car parked on the street. I think what I said was “What the heck?” and all I got in response from Russell was a smirk. I walk in the door and was greeted by my friends and family. I was surprised by the number of people that came out in the middle of the week!! Amazing! Jameson immediately grabbed my hand and pulled me over to see my cake, a beautiful, VEGAN (more on this in another blog), red velvet cake done by the very talented Ashley of Sweet Bites (seriously, check her out, she is amazing!!).

As if the party wasn’t enough of a surprise, Russell tells me to look at the calendar. He had crossed off all of the activities for the next few days and wrote “Washington DC, WOOT!” across Thursday-Monday. And then informed me that we would be leaving at 6 am, the next morning. Oh, you know, like 10 hours from the time he told me… But, amazingly, he talked to my boss and got me out of work, reschedule doctor and chiropractor appointments, got my Kid-Ability class covered, and arranged childcare! Amazing! Oh, oh AND he built my garden boxes (which is all I REALLY wanted for my birthday)!!

So, off we go to DC, on about 2 hours of sleep. I got to sleep on the first leg of the flight and Russell got to sleep on both. Once we arrived at DC, we hit the ground running. We stopped and grabbed lunch at this crazy deli, that also was like a convenience store – with a wine section- and you could rent things like laptops from them…maybe? It was weird, but the food was good! Then we walked over to the Metro station and figured that out. The plan was to go to the Air and Space museum, but *someone* (hint, not me) had to use the bathroom and couldn’t wait, so we made an impromptu stop at the Pentagon. Which, in case you were wondering, is the ONLY Metro stop without a bathroom. So, we stopped at the 9/11 memorial because it was near the bathrooms. After that adventure, we did make it through the Air & Space museum. The weather was perfect and the museum was not very crowded, so we were able to look at everything at our leisure. It was just about perfect! Then we went over to this cool part of town off the East Market stop for dinner. We were looking for this Asian Fusion restaurant, but passed this Thai place on the way and decided to stop there instead. It was NOT a mistake! Dinner was delicious!!!! Then we went back to the hotel to recharge for the next day.

Russell had contacted the office of our local Senator, Ben Nelson, for a personal tour of the Capitol on Friday. We show up and his staff started chatting with us. One guy asked what we were planning on seeing and mentioned the National Archives (pronouncing the “ch”), so that was our running joke for a while. We met the girl who was going to give us our tour (and I can’t, for the life of me, remember her name!). She took us down on the elevator and then we walked through some hallway, which was underground to a small tram (that I am kicking myself for not taking a picture of, but I thought for sure we would take it back). Anyway, that was pretty cool because most people don’t get to see the secret underground tram thingy! :-) She pretty much took us on the standard capitol tour, but she was very patient when we wanted to take our crazy pictures. We did get to see the Brumidi Corridors, is on the first floor of the Senate side of the Capitol building, which are murals painted to reflect great moments and people in United States history. The painting started in 1856 and includes depictions of Benjamin Franklin, John Fitch, Robert Fulton, and events such as the Cession of Louisiana. And apparently he’s psychic because also included is the Spirit of St. Louis, the Moon landing, and the Challenger shuttle crew. :-) After our personal tour, we headed back to the hotel…for surprise #2. Much to my surprise, Russell walked past our hotel room and knocked on the room next door, which was answered by my dear friend Danielle!! Danielle and her family (David, Briauna, and Ella) live in Maryland and came up to DC to see me for my birthday!! On Ella’s 2^nd birthday, might I add. The last time we saw them was our crazy trip to Maryland 4 years ago!!

Once we got assembled, we decided to head over to the Natural History museum. The running joke was that we were looking for the Unnatural History museum or the Super Natural History museum. We continued our series of crazy pictures (I’m going to make a separate blog post with just pictures because that will be easier). Afterwards, we were going to figure out dinner, but first we had to wait for Russell’s pre-dinner snack of a hotdog and chips. Good grief! We decided to go to the Asian Fusion restaurant, for real this time. It was delicious!! It was happy hour, so the adult all had a drink – hey, none of use had to drive!! Danielle had them bring dessert and serenade Ella ("Ellen") and I for our birthdays! David went down the street, to the liquor store to buy a bottle of wine and some Captain Morgan. Which lead to some crazy shenanigans back at the hotel involving a birthday grope, Danielle jumping from bed to bed and ringing in my birthday in Eastern AND central time zones! It was a good night! :-)

Saturday was my actual birthday. It started off slow. We had breakfast and then headed over to the Metro station and waited as Danielle and Russell coordinated my 3^rd (and 4^th) birthday surprise(s). Once everything was synchronized, my fabulous, beautiful friend, Harper, and her son Liam came all the way from New Jersey to DC to see me!! So, we braved the rain to go to the American History museum. And there we met my wonderful, adorable friend Sarah. Thanks to the internet, I’ve been friends with Sarah for years, but I’ve never had the opportunity to meet her until now!! Sarah’s brother lives in DC and she was visiting him, but she made time for me on my birthday!

We were pretty much limited to the museum due to the rain…and so was everyone else. It was packed! I did a chance to chat with my friends while browsing what I coined “the junk drawer of the Smithsonian museums” (you know, all of the stuff that they don’t know what to do with :-) ). Anyway, we took some more funny pictures. Harper and Liam had to leave around 3 because she had a drive ahead of her with a little one (which ended up being waaaaaaaaaay longer than the drive up). Thanks again Harper for making the drive, it was a WONDERFUL surprise!! Then we decided that it was time for dinner. Russell and David suggested Chipolte (which breaks my traveling rule, but that’s okay for one meal out of 10+!!). After dinner, it was Sarah’s turn to leave. Sarah, Thank you for taking time from your visit with your brother to hang out with us. I’m so glad I got to finally meet you in person!! Then we headed back to the hotel and it was time for Danielle and family to leave. :-( *S* family, thank you sooooooooooooooo much for coming out to visit me. And Bri, thanks for taking a day off of school to make the trip. We made lots of memories, to last us until we are able arrange another meeting! ;-)

Then after my whirlwind of surprises, it was just Russell and I again. It was kind of weird for it to be just the two of us after being surrounded by so many!! It was still kind of drizzling, but the rain had let up quite a bit. We agreed that we still wanted to see the White House, Lincoln Memorial, Jefferson Memorial, etc. and there was really no better time to do it than this night. So, we made the trek, in the intermittent rain, under the big umbrella that we had purchased earlier that day. This was one of my favorite moments of the entire trip. From what I remember, we saw the White House, the WWII Memorial, the Vietnam Memorial, the Lincoln Memorial, the Korean War Veterans Memorial, the FDR Memorial, and the Jefferson Memorial. Believe me, that was quite the walk!! But, it was nice to be snuggled up under the umbrella with Russell. The only disappointing thing was that the reflecting pool was drained for repairs. But, other than it was a pretty perfect evening!

Our last touristy day, we visited the Holocaust museum and Arlington. You know, the really uplifting stuff. :-) I had been to the Holocaust museum before, but Russell never had been. They had a crazy long wait, but fortunately they offer an open-ended ticket for military, State, and Government workers (something like that, anyway). And we were VERY lucky that Russell had his military ID on him!! Score! :-) It was strange because the only thing I remembered from my trip in 8^th grade was the room with the shoes and the reflecting room at the end. It’s amazing to me how differently you experience things with a little more maturity and then add parenthood to the mix. It was very moving (and disturbing). After lunch, we set out to find a vegan bakery for a DELICIOUS birthday cupcake. On our way, we discovered the Museum of Unnatural history. It was a funny little gift shop that sold things such as “unicorn tears” in order to fund a completely free, drop-in tutoring program called 826DC. Check it out, it’s pretty cool. Of course, we took a picture to send to the *S* family as this was our running joke at the Museum of Natural history. After that, we were on our way to Arlington. Amazingly enough, we made it to the Tomb of the Unknown Solider just in time for the changing of the guard. It was incredible to watch! Then we made our way over to JFK’s gravesite. After that, we walked over to the Marine Corps Memorial. And then our trip for all intents and purposes was over. I was sad to see it come to an end, but I COULD NOT wait to see my kids!!

Aside from nearly dying in the shuttle on the way to the airport the next morning, our trip was pretty uneventful. It seemed to take forever, but eventually we were back in Omaha, getting picked up by Kellie. I was sooooooooooo anxious to see the kids. We got home, ditched our stuff and quickly went over to Nana Sandy’s house to pick them up. They both had just woken up from their naps. We walked in and Russell quickly grabbed Delilah from Nana. At first she didn’t know how to react. I think she even reached back out for her Nana, but once she realized who we were she broke out in a huge smile and hugged us. Jameson came down the stairs and started yelling to us once he saw us. It felt so good to be a whole family again.

I couldn’t have picked a better birthday present. I had such a wonderful time!! A GIGANTIC thank you to everyone who helped Russell pull this off and those who made it extra special. Thanks to Papa Terry, Mama O, Nana Sandy, and Papa Bruce for watching the kids. Thanks to Staci for feeding the cats. Thanks to Ashley for my awesome cake. Thanks to Danielle, David, Briauna, Ella, Harper, Liam and Sarah for visiting me. Thanks to my Mom, Ione, and Sandy for helping out with the party. Thanks to Kellie for picking us up from the airport. Thanks to Ms. Minnie and Ms. Crystal for working with Russell and letting me out of work. And thanks to everyone who attended my party and sent me messages for my birthday! I appreciate each and every one of you. (I apologize if I forgot anyone, remember I wasn’t around for the behind the scenes stuff).

Oh wait, last but certainly not least, thanks to my AMAZING husband for out doing yourself and making this birthday extra special for me. Love you!

Happy 3rd Birthday, Jameson!

Whoa, I am the mother to a 3 year old. That doesn't even seem possible. Three years ago I gave birth to one of the most adorable babies I have ever seen. After a 2 year struggle to get and stay pregnant, I wasn't fully convinced that this tiny, perfect thing was for real until I was actually able to hold him in my arms. Even when the doctors started explaining his club foot to me, I didn't care. He was here and he was all mine!

It is so much fun to watch Jameson master each developmental stage. I know I am biased, but I swear he is incredibly smart. Even when there was some concern about his speaking (or more accurately, his LACK of speaking), I just knew that he was aware of what was going on, he just chose not to speak. The problem was that the kid was AWESOME at charades. :-)

But, as warned by many of my friends and family, once he started talking, I cannot get him to stop! Now I sit back and enjoy the crazy things he says to me. I love when I can tell by what he says that his little mind is thinking about something. We also are aware more and more each day that he is absorbing way more than he is letting on. Russell showed Jameson one time that when making a fist, you should put your thumb on the outside, so not to hurt it. And then, weeks, later Jameson started explaining it to me. He also found an ice tray one day and proceeded to tell me how you make ice!

My little buddy knows the alphabet, numbers, and colors. he can spell his name, Delilah's name, Mommy and Daddy. He loves spelling other words, but still needs help. He one time called the house phone and text "Mommmmmmmm" to Russell while I was putting D down for a nap - and that's ALL he did! He knows the difference between an electric and acoustic guitar and knows how to work the pedal and amp. (Rockstar in the making??) He FINALLY pooped in the potty, which is what was holding up official potty training. Now that we've passed that hurdle, I assume he's going to ROCK that as well!

Jameson is also such a little lover. He'll give hugs and kisses all day. Whenever I hurt myself, he reassures me "You okay, Mommy." He is constantly hugging and kissing his sister (when he’s not pushing her down! Haha!) And my favorite, he'll be talking to you and will gingerly touch you on the face. If you slip up and say "shut up" he'll correct you "No, shut up is bad! We say be quiet" ...every time. :-)

He is also a little comedian. He loves making faces. He does the funniest things with his eyebrows. He likes to smack and shake his booty. He may also call you a "grey hippo" ...but, you'll have to talk to him to see what that actually sounds like.

My big boy is growing up right before our eyes. I know I’m going to blink and he’ll be graduating from high school!!

Happy 3rd Birthday, Jameson!

Whirlwind weekend!

I was so spoiled last weekend with all of the snow. You see, I'm as bad as the school kids when it comes to snow days because generally when OPS closes, so does Girls Inc. So, I'm stalking KETV.com every night when they start announcing closings. Last weekend, we got 3 snow days, making it a 5 day weekend for me! :-) So, this weekend felt extra short.

This weekend included a night with the neighbors, a superbowl party and a day trip to Kansas City. But, the most exciting event was my niece's birthday party. She had it in Shawnee Mission, Kansas at a place called Little Monkey Bizness. The kids had so much fun!! It’s this really cool place that has different types of playthings for kids. They have inflatables, towers, slides, cars, costumes…the list goes on. Someone should really open one of these in the Omaha area!! :-)

Jameson was off and running as soon as we got there. He loved to climb up and down everything and following his cousins around. It took him awhile to master it, but his favorite activity was to climb the tallest tower. And he did pretty well as long as the bigger kids weren’t rushing past him (although, they would give him a boost from time-to-time).

He would occasionally call for help because he still sometimes gets scared on slides, but once he figured out he could go feet-first, he was good to go!

Delilah was so happy to be climbing on everything (her new favorite pastime!). She found a slide her size and was in so excited!! :-)

She would climb on her own to the top and then stand there and try to shake the thing until someone would help her slide down.

Once our time in the play area was up, we went into the party room. The kids got to color some monkey masks and eat ice cream and cake. My kids BOTH finished their cake (Yes, Delilah ate an entire piece of cake!!). Good practice for the coming weeks, I guess.

Jameson & cousin Hannah

Happy Birthday, Alaina!

Snow!

Yum!

Weekend Update

Yet another busy weekend in the *B* household! Friday was just a normal day to relax and get ready for the weekend's festivities! On Saturday, we spent the day with Papa Terry, Mama O, Uncle Tyler, Aunt Nichole, Hannah, and Justice. We went to the train show to see THOMAS!! It was crazy. There were miniature train displays set up everywhere. Jameson was in heaven! I think he dragged Papa Terry over the entire Qwest center! After looking at a fe things, I had the great idea to jump into the line to ride Thomas, since it was to the back of the building. I had D in the stroller, so I was in the way anyway. I was in line for a 1/2 an hour, but let me tell you - it was worth every second to see the look of pure joy on Jameson's face when he went around the track the one time on Thomas.

Thank you Papa Terry and Mama O for taking us!! Then we went to lunch at Micheal's in the Old Market. It was delicious...even though I had to share half my fajitas with Delilah!!

Sunday, we were back with everyone to celebrate Hannah's 5th birthday! It just doesn't seem like she can be that old! Hannah was so proud of her cupcakes. She had to show them to me a soon as I walked into the door! The kids had fun running around and playing under the table. Once again, I had to share my dinner (pizza, this time) with Delilah. I was not sharing fast enough and she let everyone know! She even finished Jameson's piece!! Then we ate Hannah's cupcakes - which were delicious! :-) Happy birthday, Hannah!

Today is Martin Luther King, Jr. day, which is a holiday at my work. It's always a little bittersweet for me because it's the end of the holiday marathon which starts on Thanksgiving. We don't get another holiday until Memorial Day. But, luckily I have the cruise to hold me over! Until then, I can just keep wishing for snow days!! :-)

Merry Christmas from the Elves!

We had a lovely Christmas at the *B* house! Santa was good to us! The kids have been playing with their "cars" (as Jameson says). Jameson got a Cars scooter and Delilah got a Little Peoples ride-on/walker toy. After opening presents, Papa Terry and Mama O came over for breakfast. We ate some yummy food...although, D is apparently not a fan of yogurt. She does, however, LOVE bagels.

Hope your Christmas was as wonderful as ours!

Let the Christmas celebrations begin!!

We started our Christmas celebrations at Papa Terry and Mama O's house. It is so nice to have EVERYONE together. Man, our family has gotten big! :-) It was a fun day. The kids played for a while until it was time to open presents. The kids were, of course, spoiled! But, the adult we're pretty spoiled too. We are all invited to go on a Disney cruise as a family as our Christmas gift this year. I'm pretty excited for that!! So, after we opened gifts, the kids all wanted to play with their new toys. Jameson was pretty engrossed in his new Percy train set. We took out annual "elf" photo. D wasn't too impressed:

This is a stage we're going through. Delilah isn't happy unless I'm holding her. Hopefully it passes quickly... :-) We all ate pizza for lunch and hung out for a while. Well, except Russell, who was napping - shocking, I know. Although, in his defense, he only got a few hours of sleep.

After we left Lake Manawa, we headed to Lincoln to celebrate with Russell's family. Jameson was so excited to show his trains to Gigi! We had a good time with the Lincoln family. We ate too much and laughed at all of the funny things that the kids did. The most exciting thing that happened while we were in Lincoln is that Delilah took her first steps!! She has been cruising for quite a while and I knew she would venture out before too long. So, Russell and I sat and tried to coax her to walk between us and the little stinker did!! Fortunately, Russell's uncle was filming at the time, so now I just need to get a copy for that tape!! Exciting stuff happening over here!

Gingerbread House!

The kids and I (and Russell, when he's off of work) have been going to storytime at the library on Wednesdays. Last time we went, they announced that there would not be storytime today, instead they were making gingerbread houses. I thought that it sounded like so much FUN, so I quickly signed Jameson up!

I had to teach Kid-Ability in the morning, so I met Russell and the kids at the library. It worked out pretty perfectly timing-wise, as I got there just as Jameson was getting his supplies. And, as you can imagine...the 2 year old sat and picked through and decided what candy he was going to eat while Mom and Dad constructed the gingerbread house. All the while, baby D chomped away on some cereal and a pretzel rod. The important thing is that we all had fun!

Thanksgiving Day

We had a good Thanksgiving. Last year, Russell was still in Texas for Thanksgiving, so this year it was nice to be celebrate as an entire family this year. And this was Delilah's first Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving round 1 was at Papa Terry and Grandma Onie's. They had quite the turnout! It was nice to see some of my cousins that I don't normally get to see! The food was delicious, although I'm not sure that Jameson ate more than a roll. We kept having to tell him to sit down. It's much harder to enforce the sit down until you're done eating rule when he's at another table! :-) Jameson was pretty happy to be playing with all of the kids, although Russell had to go in the toy room at one point to make sure he wasn't picking on the girls. However, Russell ended up falling asleep. Poor guy got woken up even earlier than usual so we could make it to my Dad's house in time.

Round 2 was at Nana Sandy and Papa Bruce's house. Another delicious dinner! It was nice to see the twins, but Rachel wasn't there because she was on a trip to Cancun! (Lucky girl!!) Anyway, at this dinner Delilah tried some actual turkey (I tore it up really small for her) and she ate a sweet potato (the WHOLE thing!!). So, she got to eat a little bit of what we ate! :-)

Overall, we had a good holiday! Now it's time to watch some football!!

Sick! :-(

There has been a terrible cold making its way through our house. I'm not sure where it started, but the kids got it first. I haven't been sleeping a lot with the kids coughing themselves awake. To make matters worse, I get paranoid when Jameson starts coughing because on two occasions he's been coughing, swallows whatever he coughs up, and then throws up. So, I lie awake in bed waiting for him to get sick. Fortunately, that hasn't happened yet. But, every day this week I've drug myself to work. I consider calling in, but then I worry that tomorrow will be worse than today, so I force myself to go. Well, today I finally gave in and took the day off. It seems that I have also gotten the cold, but what sealed the deal was when Jameson, whom I've never heard say the word "black" before says it while pointing to the bags under my eyes. Thanks, Buddy. :-) The good news is that I had already taken Friday off to throw a baby shower for my friend, E. I already have everything done or enlisted the help of others, so it should be pretty low key. Looks like, I get another day to recover.

Jameson's trip to the Dentist!

Jameson had a trip to the dentist today. We go to Children's Dental Specialist. I cannot say enough about them! Jameson has been going since he was 18 months old and they have been great with him! I was a little concerned because it started off with a tantrum. Even though I had prepped him all morning about the impending trip, he had a tantrum of epic proportions when it was time to turn his movie off. But, he eventually settled down and off we went. Jameson had fun with the toys in the waiting room. He found a truck that he liked so much that he wanted to bring it back with him. But, I convinced him to leave it in the waiting room pretty easily and he happily trotted to the back room.

We entered the back room which is basically just an open exam room with about 4 chairs. There was a little guy on one of the chairs screaming as the dentist cleaned his teeth and his Mom held his legs. Jameson just kind of looked over at him and hopped up on the exam chair. He picked out his new toothbrush, put on the headphones, laid down and enjoyed the episode of Dinosaur Train. I sat up a little straighter when another Mom walked in the room with her two young kids and asked her kids if they were going to be good like "this little boy." :-)

Jameson had X-rays of his teeth for the first time. He did really well until the last one and then he started crying. Poor guy jumped down from the chair and wanted to go back out to the waiting room to play with the truck! But, I talked him into getting back in the exam chair to watch some more Dinosaur train. The dentist said his teeth look great! Jameson did such a great job that he got to pick a prize! It was really funny because this time was the first time he had definite opinions about which one he wanted! He picked a little toy car.

Weekend Recap

Friday morning I had my Weight Watchers meeting. I had to take both kids with me. The kids were well-behaved, so I'd say it was a success. :-) I have been dealing with some medical issues for the past few weeks, so WW had kind of been put to the back burner. Two weeks ago I had gained 2.6 lbs and then I skipped last weeks meeting. But, I went this week and lost 1.4, so I am just about back on track. :-)

Saturday was a busy day! D and I had a party to go to in the afternoon. We went to my friend's house. She has a son who is just a little bit younger than D. He was flirting with her and she was trying to attack him! We'll have to work on how not to come on too strong! :-) D was up cruising around and she even moved from a line of folding chairs and then reached across a gap to my leg. I think this little girl will be walking before I know it! Then we joined the boys to watch the Husker game with some other friends. Whew, that was a nail-biter! Jameson was having a good time playing with boys his age. He found a bunch of Cars toys and was in heaven! After the game, we went to the Rose Theater to see Go, Dog, Go. We met Nichole, Hannah, and Justice at the play. Jameson really got into it. He was yelling at the characters (along with all of the other kids - it was appropriate) and at one point he was dancing to the music! It was a busy day!!

Sunday morning, J and I got haircuts from my talented cousin, Jenny (thanks again!!!). No more mullet for Jameson! :-) Then, with our fresh haircuts, we went to Lincoln to visit Russell's family. Jameson was so excited to show his new Cars toy (thanks to our awesome neighbor Thomas) to Gigi. He had a lot of fun playing with Russell's cousins Michael and Katie. They played catch with him forever! Jameson also helped Gigi and Katie make dinner.

This morning we had breakfast with Nana Sandy and Papa Bruce. They wanted to see the kids before they went on their trip to London. Jameson scarfed down his pancakes, along with some of Nana and Papa's breakfasts and Delilah ordered a GIANT bowl of applesauce. She made a pretty good dent in it too! :-)

Happy Halloween!

We had a fun-filled weekend! Russell was in Texas for Halloween last year for Navy training, so this year was extra special. We started off our Halloween celebration on Saturday at Papa Terry and Grandma Onie's house. Aunt Erin, Uncle Tyler, Aunt Nichole, Hannah and Justice were all there. We had lunch and celebrated the October birthdays (Papa Terry, Aunt Erin, and Aunt Nichole). Afterwards, the kids got into their costumes and trick-or-treated through the house. Everyone went into a bedroom or the bathroom. Nichole and I took the kids around to knock on the doors to get their treats. It was really cute!

Then on Sunday we, of course, took the kids trick-or-treating. Graham Cracker (Grandma Debby) came over to hand out candy so that we could all go together as a family. I took Jameson last year, so this was actually his second year trick-or-treating, but we only went around the circle and up and down the street that our circle is off of - so maybe 10 houses total. This year we went around basically a whole block plus our circle. Jameson was in a weird mood. He woke up from his nap quiet. He was happy to be dressed up as Brobee, but didn't want us to take any pictures taken and he was pretty serious when he went up to the doors. I think the highlight of his night was when Spiderman answered one of the doors. He saw him when we were walking up to the house and he yelled and started running! I think overall he had a good time. And he's been asking to eat candy constantly since we got home. :-)

Now, about their costumes. Unless you have a kid about preschool-age, you probably don't have a clue who they are dressed as. Jameson was dressed as Brobee and Delilah was Foofa from the show Yo Gabba Gabba. It's one of Jameson's favorite shows! Here are the few pictures we were able to take:

More changes around the *B* household!

This weekend Russell switched to the overnight shift. It should be feasible since I work part-time. He can sleep until lunch time, when I need to get ready for work. This way, we are not dependent on everyone to watch our kids and we're not driving them all over Omaha. Also, Jameson will have consistency so that we can work on potty-training soon. Russell is excited because he can watch football. So, overall we felt that it was in the best interest of everyone. Plus, we may actually get someone to watch the kids so we could have a date night once in a while!! :-)

So far, he's worked 3 nights. The first night went smoothly and the morning was pretty easy. But, Monday night was a little more difficult. Jameson was dead set on not sleeping in his bed. He laid in bed crying "Mom's bed" forever and he came downstairs a couple of times. I was so worried that he was going to wake Delilah up! I think he finally fell asleep around 10 or 11. Then he woke up around 2 am crying!! This really won't be that big of an issue, but I had to teach a class in the morning.

Last night was somewhere in the middle. He didn't want to go to bed (last night, he thought he was going to sleep on the couch!). But once I got him upstairs, he stayed in bed all night and didn't wake up until 7:30. For the record, on all three nights, D was the perfect sleeper that she usually is. :-)

This weekend we finally took the leap and got rid of cable. We've been talking about it forever, but postponed it for one reason or another. We decided to do it because the only thing we really watch that can't be watched online were the shows on HBO. And currently the shows we watch on HBO are on hiatus until summer 2011. It really doesn't make sense to pay $70-80 a month for "free" HBO. So, cable got the boot and we signed up for Netflix instead. We will evaluate getting cable back when our shows start up again. Or, maybe we'll just crash a friend's house that has cable (Hi Kellie!!).

This weekend the kids had the opportunity to see two sets of grandparents. Papa Terry and Grandma Onie ("Mama O") stopped over for a visit. Jameson had to show them just about every single toy of his. He also would run over to the door and point out Mama O's car. Delilah showed off her crawling skills. She also showed us that she could duck her head so she could crawl under the coffee table!

On Sunday, we all went over to Papa Bruce and Nana Sandy's ("Nanny") house. We visited for a while and then we ate dinner. The kids are growing up. Jameson sat in a booster seat so that Delilah can now sit in the highchair - which is the highchair Russell used when he was a baby. Jameson had to show Daddy where he now naps when he's over there (in Uncle Ben's room - which was Russell's bed before that). Delilah was again showing off her crawling skills. In fact, she tried to crawl OVER Nana Sandy!!

To round out visits with the local grandparents, Graham Cracker came over Wednesday night to watch the kids. But, she didn't actually SEE the kids. Russell's crew went out after work on Wednesday because that was the last day they were all working. I wanted to go as well, so my Mom came over and "watched the kids" so that I could go. The kids were already in bed and, thankfully, stayed there for her until we got home!

Oops, this got long! I'll try to be better about updating more frequently!

Jameson - 2.5 years

I know a lot of the blog is focused on Delilah. It is so fun to chronicle all of her milestones month to month. I wish I had thought to start this blog when Jameson was a baby! So, as my little man turns 2.5 today, I think it is only fair to have a post dedicated to only him. :-)

Jameson is developing by leaps and bounds these days. It is so fun to hear him put together a few ideas. In the past, we were just thrilled to hear him say the word "shoes." But now he will say "shoes on" or "shoes off." He tells me when things are up or down. His newest obsession is the movie Cars. Lately, he's been telling me about the red car or the blue car. This morning he told me several times "Mommy up, Daddy nigh-nigh." Oh and the other day he crawled in my lap and said "I wuv you, Mom." Aww, that's the best!

Jameson is turning into quite the comedian. He loves to put on a show for an audience. He now has a dance he does when he eats that I think is hilarious!! He will sing for us. He likes to make faces. He can get D to laugh like no one else. He loves to be tickled, even though it usually ends with "Shop [stop] Mommy" or "Shop Daddy."

Jameson is quickly becoming less and less a toddler, and more a little boy. He is so independent! The other day, I learned that if I don't get downstairs fast enough he will get his bowl out of his cupboard, get the cereal out of the pantry, fill the bowl, and put the cereal away - I did pour the milk for him. :-) He is also turning into a little monkey. I learned tonight that he can climb up onto the bathroom counter by himself! He is growing up right before our eyes!!

Jameson 2.5 year appt

Jameson had a doctors appointment on Monday. We got to see Dr. Zimmerman because she is back from her maternity leave!! I'm not sure if this is a normal appointment or to track his talking (or lack there of). We've been working on sentences the last few weeks. Instead of just "wa-wa, please" or "car, please" or whatever he's asking for, I've been working "I want wa-wa, please." And it seems that he's figured it out!

So, back to his appointment. This was the second time that I braved taking both kids on my own. We got there on time, which was a feat in and of itself. Once we checked in, Jameson immediately bypassed the TV and ran over to the books (saying "Book! Book!"), I was so proud! The nursed called us back pretty much right away (which is amazing on a Monday morning!). The nurse weighed and measured him. They now weigh him on the big scale and measure him against the wall. They did this at his 2 year appointment, but it still surprises me that he's such a big boy! He weighed 29.6 lbs and was 35 inches tall.

The nurse took us to the room. She asks some questions and then leaves. Then I start filling out the packet they gave me. I had to ask him to practice a few of the skills. I learned that he can repeat two random numbers out of order (like two, five). I also learned that the next skill we need to work on is fine motor drawing skills. :-) While I'm completing the questionnaire, Jameson is playing around the room. He is opening and closing every drawer. He then decides that he wants to be up on the exam table. So he starts saying "Help me up, please." Yay! So, I included that as an example of a sentence!

So Dr. Zimmerman comes in and starts checking Jameson's eyes, ears, throat, stomach, etc. Everything looks normal. She asks about his last and next appointments for his foot. She commented that there is still some curvature to the foot (I told her that Dr. Sheehan said he will likely always have that) but that he has the range of movement to put it back to normal (which is most important). She then went through and scored the questionnaire. Now, keep in mind that Jameson was below average on the last assessment and she's been threatening to recommend early intervention for probably a year now. She would set a goal and deadline for Jameson and he would just barely meet that goal. So, she went through and said that Jameson is now above average in communication. Did you hear me??? ABOVE AVERAGE!!!!! You have no idea what a relief that was to hear! :-) Really, the only area he was a little low on was the fine motor skills (drawing), but she said that was still in the normal range! Yay!

And, as if that wasn't good enough to hear... Jameson was showing off all of his skills. He counted, said his colors, did some animal noises, and spelled his name. And she said to Jameson "Your mommy is running things like a pre-school." That was quite the stroke to the ego. :-) So, all in all, it was a positive experience. However, I was told that they reformulated one of the immunizations that Jameson had previously received to include 6 new strains, so he will need a booster. But, I scheduled that for the same time as his flu shot, so hopefully that won't be too traumatic.

While we're on the subject of Jameson, there is some big news in our house. On bath night, I generally ask Jameson if he wants to sit on the potty. He usually sits on it, pretends to push something out, hops off and gets in the tub. On Sunday, he sat on the toilet and immediately started peeing. I started cheering so loudly that Russell (who happened to be home) came in to see what the commotion was about. We made a big deal about it and have been talking about it ever since. Well, tonight was bath night again, so of course I asked if he wanted to try to go potty before getting into the bath. And, again, he peed right away!! He was so proud of himself for being like Mommy and Daddy! We're not going to officially try potty training until Russell switches shifts. We think that will be easier because he'll be on a much more regular schedule rather than spending one day here, two days there, one day somewhere else... But, yay Jameson!!!!

Weekend Recap

Friday was a typical day. I went to Weight Watchers. I'm down another 1.6lbs. Woo hoo! So that means I'm down nearly 24 lbs! I went to work, came home, and hung out with the kids until bedtime.

Saturday, the kids had a photoshoot with our neighbor, Staci. The kids are going to be famous models, but there will be another post about that in the future. But, to tide you over, here's a teaser:

This picture was Staci's vision. We had Russell hopping around the garage (even though he didn't feel good and he was listening to the Husker game before work) to make D smile. After the photoshoot, we went to the zoo for a baby shower. This was monumental because it's the first time I've taken both kids to the zoo by myself. Kellie and Jon were also there. Jon and his friend (the father-to-be) took Jameson and a couple of other kids around the zoo while the ladies participated in the baby shower. Afterward, we wandered around the zoo for Maddie's first trip to the zoo. Poor Jameson got a bug in his eye on the way to the cat house! But we wandered around a bit before it was time to leave. And we even ran into an old friend from Ames (who now lives in Omaha) on the way out!

Sunday was another quiet day. We stayed at the house. Tonight was bath night. Delilah is getting crazy in the bath tub!! I give them a bath together. I put the baby bath in big bath tub. Tonight, D was leaning over edge of the her bathtub to grab toys from the big bath! She is getting so strong!