Baby Steps

Jay meets Santa :)

2008-11-24T23:12:00.003-05:00

The Halloween Party

2008-11-03T12:14:00.003-05:00

Jay wasn't the only one to have fun...HA!
Chris & I went to Battle Creek to visit Carmen & Rob and to participate in a most fabulous Halloween shindig :)
We went as the king & queen of hearts...of which I COMPLETELY DID MYSELF. Freehand.

So let me take a moment to proclaim my status of the 'shiznit'

I think they look awesome :)
The creations...

The group, minus a few people...

Carmen the slutty pregnant Nun and Rob the disgruntled employee

Ah yes...the boyz
Kissy smoochy

The aftermath...

2008-11-03T12:06:00.002-05:00

Ah Halloween...always fun because Jay just gets crazy about PUMPKINS...nothing else, just the pumpkins...he could care less about the candy. We had a great time, we trick or treated around our friend Jimmy's neighborhood and then we went to visit the doctor cuz they were having a little 'party' for the kids. I didn't think to take better pics, it was a busy evening :)

The Wubzy Pumpkin

2008-10-29T19:52:00.003-04:00

See the wonder that is...WUBZY.
;)
We (by we I mean me of course...Jay didn't want to touch the 'guts') carved a pumpkin on Monday, we have a few others to do yet before Friday, but Wubzy just about killed me...too detailed, and I had a hand cramp from the great beyond once we (again me) were done ;)

Pumpkin Patch pictures

2008-10-27T10:46:00.009-04:00

We had SO much fun on Saturday, it was a great family day :)
After church, we headed out to eat and then to the Country Mill in Charlotte...just a few miles out of Grand Ledge...and boy was it C-C-COLD.

But despite the ugly weather, the kids had a blast. Jay was just thrilled to be around pumpkins.
They fed some goats :)
Jay loved the little brown one, he had such a soft nose

We poked our heads thru some cut outs...I think mine was pretty awesome
My cutie
All three kids in the big pumpkin
Jay surrounded by pumpkins.
Jay and Hailee hanging out...it was starting to get a little sunnier at this point, but still COLD
Cutie pie again
Walking with our loot to the checkout counter
Jay and Hailee pushing the goods
Enjoying a donut and some apple cider
And of course...caramel apples. teehee
We tried to get a nice family shot, but Jay was kinda cranky

Chris refused to kiss me...said I had caramel on my nose
Getting a smooch sandwich from Nana & Papa
The awesome train!

Thanks for looking!

Jay & the speedbike

2008-10-20T10:59:00.004-04:00

We went to visit our friends Carmen and Rob in Battle Creek this weekend, and had a blast :)
Jay loved playing with them and exploring the area...but by far his favourite thing was the ride he got on Uncle Rob's bike :)

I was a little aprehensive at first, but it was ok...I trust Rob and Jay had a blast!

Getting ready for Halloween

2008-10-20T10:51:00.002-04:00

So when I asked Jay what he wanted to be for Halloween he told me 'a bat'.
I had no idea how I was gonna find a bat costume, but a friend told me that Old navy had a bat costume this year...what luck! I didn't want to make anything ;) Call me lazy

So Jay has his bat costume, and I must say he's just too freakign cute in it :)
I took a few pics of him messing around in his costume. He loves it...its fuzzy and warm, and luckily it'll just go over his normal clothes, its liek a bit fleece jacket :) So no covering up the cuteness with a big ol jacket.

He's sooo excited for Halloween, he keeps talking about costumes and pumpkins...We'll be going to visit a pumpkin patch this next weekend :)

Updates

2008-10-20T10:46:00.002-04:00

Just some cute pics of Jay hanging out in the front yard...

Total Awesomeness...no doubt about it

2008-08-09T21:26:00.003-04:00

Now featuring the undeniable awesomeness of Crazy Jay...stunt devil exraordinaire.

Getting suited up for awesomeness
Testing the track

Off we GO!

And the grande finale...

Taking a refreshing breather

Demanding Cherry because it is the ONLY thing that will do.

Ontario Science Centre

2008-07-26T19:41:00.003-04:00

So today (saturday) Jay and I went with Jon & Crystal into Toronto, we had a good day at the Science Centre...Jay is a BIG fan of museums and had a blast running through a few exhibits and testing out stuff...it was a lot of fun :)

Back in the "Homeland" again

2008-07-26T19:34:00.003-04:00

Jay and I are back in Oshawa, for a few weeks...checking up on family and just having fun together... here's a few pics from Friday afternoon, it was a beautiful warm day and a perfect day for a pool :D

Backyard Adventures!

2008-07-26T19:31:00.002-04:00

Pooltime fun.
Jay-style ;)

July thus far

2008-07-17T08:18:00.003-04:00

Just a few pics from July so far :) I'm preparing for yet another huge blogger slack off... so I'll get as updated as possible.

Jay and I went home to Oshawa in the end of June, we stayed for a good week and really had a blast, it was great to be back, we visisted with everyone and just had a lot of fun relaxing. Jay was spoiled by Oma and Opa, he got an awesome train set, a motorized Thomas and Friends set along with some extra engines...each one is battery operated, so it basically plays all by itself. Jay loves to turn each engine on and then just watch forever.
Here's a pic of my 'stinky boy' He was just not in the mood to do anything today...
Playing some games at the lake with cousin Hadley
Getting ready for the big parade...he was so excited because he was told they would be throwing candy out to the kids.
Jay and Hadley getting ready for the candy with their bags
Jay loved the firetrucks...the noise was deafening, but he was just thrilled with the flashing lights and the siren was cool too...although 90% of the time he had his hands over his ears.
Waiting for the next 'float' I thought this pic was super cute

The kids checking out the lake

SO that covers 4th of July...I'll be back with more

Birthday Videos

2008-07-16T15:02:00.006-04:00

The Birthday MADNESS (Jay turns 3)

2008-07-16T14:54:00.005-04:00

On Jay's birthday, daddy took time off of work for a fun filled JAY DAY.
Jay got to choose what we did :)

And of course, he chose his most favourite place in the world, Impression 5 Science Center...its a childrens museum and Jay is just in love with everything about it. They have the coolest things to do and Jay has a blast trying everything out. Its really hands on, which is really what makes it so cool.

And then after our fun afternoon, Jay was able to pick where we would eat for his birthday dinner. He chose A&W...its his new favourite place to eat ;) I think its because the ice cream cones all come with happy faces.

We opened a few small presents when we got home, we were saving the big stuff for when Oma and Opa would arrive later that evening.

Well the next day was Saturday, and we had another fun day...Oma & Opa had come down to visit, and Nana & Poppa were here to celebrate too!

Mmmm, CAKE!
Checking out his loot
Ooooh ANOTHER Backyardigans dvd!
The awesome new trike from Oma & Opa :)

June 2008

2008-07-16T14:45:00.006-04:00

A few highlights from this month...feeding ducks, playing with the cousins...DESTROYING MY CAMERA...Kenzies birthday, Jay's birthday and various outdoor activities

And here we are at the fateful water fountain, the kids were trying to get a drink...

Do not ask HOW i managed to take this picture...I think I was in shock from the freezing water in my face...but I took a picture of the destruction

But he's super cute...evil, destructive and cute ;)

By the way, my camera kind of made a recovery...I can't zoom in or out anymore, but other than that, its working pretty good.

The best part about birthday celebrations are the cake...or in Kenzie's case, a big ol cookie :)
Jay and Hailee much prefered to paint themselves in icing ;)
Just a random pic
Jay passed out
This child can sleep through ANYTHING...I took this picture while there was 4 other children in the house screeching and playing loudly in the SAME room.

Little Video of Camping Adventure

2008-07-16T14:42:00.002-04:00

May 2008

2008-07-16T14:32:00.005-04:00

Lets start off by saying: I am a slacker...horrible bad bad slacker.

Ok, now that I've said that...Here's a few updates, we'll start with May :)

Beginning of May, I had my 10 year highschool reunion, which was neat :) It was definetely nice to see so many people that I'd not seen in many years.

Here's a few pics I was able to get Chris to snap...my camera died soon thereafter, so I've been depending on other's pics.

This month was generally decent...I mean it wasn't good nor bad in either way, just a lot of fun running around with Jay boy and having fun outside

We spent a lot of time outdoors!

Oh and Chris and Jay had a little camping adventure out in the backyard too... Jay was SO into it...putting up the tent, building the fire, and snuggling in his sleeping bag...all until it was ACTUALLY time for bed, then he got a little freaked out by all the backyard sounds and he and daddy came inside.

Various pictures from the past few months

2008-04-10T09:14:00.007-04:00

Talking Post

2008-04-10T09:03:00.002-04:00

Ok so this post will be dedicated to me running my mouth about the last 4 months.

New Years was just like any other day, you go to bed, wake up the next day and its a new number...nothing thrilling, but that's fine with me.

January was frustrating because Chris and I spent a LOT of time apart, I was back and forth to Canada a lot and while I was up there (for a 3 week stretch) I got really really sick...and since I had Jay with me I was just absolutely exhausted. So my sweet hubby took a few days off of work and came up and helped me out and then took me back to Michigan with him. Which was a HUGE blessing.

Speaking of Michigan/Canada...we're doing the limbo thing again, which is always extra exciting (not).

I am still technically living in Canada, although I visit Michigan a LOT. "Rules" state I have to leave the country every 60 days...so I can be here 'visiting' and then leave, go back to Canada, do some things and then return. Mind you I still get a panic attack whenever I get near the border. Although there's nothing I'm doing wrong, its just a trigger and I swear it'll never go away.

Immigration is slowly progressing. We have a lawyer that is helping us out with some things. Apparently when I was forced to give up my green card a few years ago, it was done unlawfully and there's a chance I'll be able to get my green card back much easier without having to pay the astronomical $1400 fees. We pray a lot cuz that'd be a HUGE relief.

I've already made the decision when this is all over I'm just going to go for American citizenship so I don't ever have to deal with this headache again.

February was decent...cold and gross as only Michigan weather can be. Our 6 year anniversary was clouded by me being horribly sick with the flu...so we celebrated it a few days later by trying out this fabulous new Japanese restaurant/habachi grill that just opened up in Lansing. Twas EXPENSIVE but soooo very good and it was a lot of fun.

March was fun, I went back to Canada for a while to deal with some issues and start the moving process...which I swear will take forever. Ah well.
Easter was enjoyable, we had a bunch of family come to visit, Aunt Melissa, Uncle Cam and Hadley from South Carolina and Grandma and Aunt Bonnie from California. Jay was thrilled to play around with everyone and since he hadn't ever met his Grandma Mortenson it was doubley special to see them together :)

Anyway...so now it is April. The weather has DRASTICALLY improved, its been gorgeous lately and Jay and I spend a lot of time outside playing. I heard a horrifying 'rumour' that the *S* word could be heading our way this weekend...and I swear if that happens I'll cry like a baby. I need sunshine, not SNOW.

Jay has been amazing every day so far, he's such a brilliant little bug. He talks all the time, he's potty training slowly, but he's doing GREAT! His new favourite thing is to play on the computer, he's pretty good at navigating his childrens sites and he also loves to play in Paint and Photoshop (chip off the ol' block).

We're going back to Canada in the beginning of May for my 10 year highschool reunion...and from there onward, it'll be mothers day, memorial day and then into June for Jay's THIRD birthday!

I'm so excited for summer...and I swear I'll keep you posted ;)

Once again, I have been SLACKING

2008-04-09T23:25:00.007-04:00

I admit I totally have SUCKED at keeping this even the slightest bit updated.
I used to be soooo good about posting almost every day and now look...almost 4 months have passed me by.
BAD BLOGGER.
Anyway, I do have a lot to say, but its 11:30 at night and I need to get some sleep in while my son allows it...so I'm gonna just leave you with some new pictures to view...these were taken this past Saturday at the Island park in GL...ENJOY

I swear I'll update tomorrow. :D

The icing on the cake...

2007-12-27T10:41:00.000-05:00

We got back to Michigan around 8pm on the 26th and still had MORE presents to open up...
The look of pure excitement
Oooh! TOOLS!
Nana & Papa give Jay-boy his own tool bench
So thrilled
Jay's favouite things are the hammer and the measuring tape...he keeps measuring my butt...oy

Christmas 2007

2007-12-27T10:35:00.000-05:00

A few pics from our adventures from the day :D

Christmas Eve Stockings

2007-12-27T10:33:00.000-05:00

Before heading off to the church for the yearly tradition of the Christmas eve service, we opened up our stockings, Jay was just DYING to get his hands on his stocking, so we couldn't resist.

Mom & Dad's renewal

2007-12-27T10:29:00.000-05:00

Mom & Dad renewed their vows on December 23rd, it was so sweet...such a good little service...there were a bunch of friends and family and we had some yummy food and good company!
Welcoming everyone together
Kurt made a 'funny'
The happy couple
The Family
Chris, Jay and myself

Trimming the Tree

2007-12-10T14:18:00.000-05:00

Sunday (yesterday) the kids helped Nana trim the tree...they were SO excited to participate and you should have seen the mess ;)
Jay was just thrilled to look at all the pretty ornaments...but to touch them...WHOA, that's the best part ;)

All 3 hard at work :D
Holding his new stocking
The kids and their stockings (kenzie's says princess, hailee's says spoiled)

checking out the lights

I tried to take an artsy one...but i think i'll have to lighten it in photoshop a bit :)

Grand Ledge Christmas Parade

2007-12-10T14:09:00.000-05:00

Friday was eventful as well because Grand Ledge had their annual Christmas parade, or as Jaime and I like to call it, the cubscout and girl guide parade...cuz basically that's the only participants, but hey, the kids like the candy and its fun to see all the lights and santa at hte end in his big red fire engine :D MacKenzie, Jay and Hailee waiting for the parade to begin
Jay all decked out in his warm snow suit
Hanging out with hot chocolate and blankets
After the chaos

Loving hugs from cousin to cousin :)

Meeting Santa

2007-12-10T14:04:00.000-05:00

Ok, so I'm finally into THIS month with updates...so lets start out with Santa.

This past Thursday we went to see Santa at the Lansing mall...i love the Lansing mall because you don't have to buy their crappy pics...you can take your OWN crappy pics :D YAY!

November was generally quite boring

2007-12-10T14:00:00.000-05:00

November was pretty uneventful, but that makes for a decent relaxing experience... :D
Here are a few pics of Jay rockin' out on Guitar Hero 3...

We got a dog...and now we don't

2007-12-10T13:56:00.000-05:00

So in the beginning of October, Chris brought home a sweet little puppy, we promptly named him Dozer (Jay chose it...Bulldozer) and he was our sweet new addition... Until of course I started to break out and have trouble breathing, I was so severely allergic to him, and to top that all off, he is a small puppy and he was not going to be outside int he freezing weather, so I had to feed him and take him outside all day every day while Chris was working...it got to be too much for me, cuz I was pumping myself full of allergy meds and I just could barely function.
So we found a nice home for him...and trust me, as much as he made me ill, I will miss him, he was a sweet dog. Jay is doing quite well, he understands why we had to do what we did, but I still feel horribly miserable about having to give him up :( Maybe someday we'll be able to have a dog...but he'll have to be outdoors...I dunno :(

Anyway, so that was our baby dog for a while, from October till December we loved him.

Halloween '07

2007-12-10T13:51:00.000-05:00

This year was so freaking cold and wet...But Jay was in the zone...he would not stop, had to do every house on the street.
Then when we got home, he crashed and burned...woot for long long sleeps :D

He was supposed to be Peter Pan, but was called everything from that to Link (from Zelda) to Robin Hood...either way, he was cute :D He loved his costume...and I didn't see ANY other kids dressed as Peter Pan/Link/Robin Hood...so it was a success all around :)

too freaking long sine my last post

2007-12-10T13:45:00.000-05:00

I have serious updates to do...
here are some pics from Jon & Crystals wedding (September 30th)

...in no particular order...

Pics from the Shwa

2007-09-13T10:58:00.000-04:00

Hanging out, having some Cheerios, its a good life ;)

We had fun this evening, we had a nice walk around the block, then we met up with Aunt Marilyn, said a quick hello and then Oma, Opa, Mommy & Jay went to the park for a ton of fun

Cute pics of Opa walking with Jay :)

Some pics from the park, at dusk...they're not so great

Fun on the slide, Oma helps Jay go up...

And Opa helps him when he comes down...

Lets do it again! (and again and again...etc)

I have no idea what these things were, but Jay wanted to be on them...and Oma was scared he might fall off so she was close behind.

Okay, bye bye...its getting really dark so its time to head home :)

First Trip to the Zoo!

2007-09-13T10:34:00.000-04:00

On Labour day, Mom, Dad, Jay and myself took off for a day at the Toronto Zoo.

The day started off quite nicely, we had to wait to park waaaay out in the boonies because everyone else in the city had the same idea as we did ;)

First thing we did when we got IN the gates was rest, because the walk from the parking lot to the front was exhausting enough :) Mom and I went straight to the gift shop to get Jay a hat, because being the forgetful mother that I am...I didn't bring a hat with us

Jay was thrilled to just peer through the glass and stare at all kinds of animals, the first stop was the monkey 'cage' and although we didn't get many good pics of the animals, I wanted to make sure to get MY little animal's reactions :)

Mommy and Jay just outside one of the first cages...the only pic we have of us together that day...its all good though ;)

Jay checking out the infamous 'foot' I have pics of myself at a young age also totally interested in the same 'foot'

Pointing out the toes

Man it is HOT in the 'rainforest'

More feet to point at

Outside the elephant exhibit...It became much too hot for pants at this point

Running through a big empty log...Jay was happy to just sit in the middle where it was shady and cool...he became a road block to the other kids, and wasn't too happy when we had to go on to the next exhibit.

On Opa's shoulders, a great ride because Jay got to rest his busy little legs.

Zebras!

Checking out the Cheetah cage, although you can't see them, the Cheetahs are all asleep in the shade.

The Giraffes were SO close to us, it was as if we could just reach out and touch their noses :)

Very tired...nuggie, buhbuk and all...enjoying the ride

Checking out the crazy guy on stilts...Jay LOVED this :)

Lotsa Pics

2007-09-11T10:43:00.000-04:00

Sticker Fight :)

2007-08-31T11:23:00.000-04:00

Chris is such a good patient daddy.
Jay had a few Cars stickers left from his birthday and I gave them to him so that he would be preoccupied long enough for me to clean out my scrap drawer.

Halfway through my endeavour, Chris whistled at me to look what Jay was doing, and I had to grab my camera.
Such a patient daddy, letting boy stick stuff to his face...LOL!

HA!

I think this look is good for Chris...what do you think?

Sweet pics

2007-08-31T11:21:00.000-04:00

Here are some sweet as pie pics of my dad with Jay, my parents came to visit us in early August and we spent some time up at the lake house.

The MESS

2007-08-31T11:17:00.000-04:00

Jay took to giving Jaime's wall a good coat of permanent marker...he thought the white walls needed some sprucing up.

OY.

Needless to say my child is now clean, but the walls are still begging for help, we've Magic Erasered the shit out of them :D LOL!

The scene of the crime...LOL!

This is the longest I've gone without updating...

2007-08-31T11:16:00.000-04:00

SO SORRY!
So much has gone on in the past month and a half, its been a fun summer so far, with the exception of finding out my dad has cancer, which came as a shock to everyone...totally sucks, but what can you do? I'm just frustrated cuz it seems totally unfair, but when are things like this ever fair to anyone?

Anyway...I have a pile of pics I'd love to show off, so I'll get right to that :)

Update for Mom & Dad

2007-07-09T08:23:00.000-04:00

These were done a few weeks ago when Cam & Melissa & Hadley were here, Jo took the kids to get some pictures done, here are a few of Jay...I got the first one, the rest were cute but not buyable :D
Anyway, enjoy, I'll post more later :D

Birthday Boy

2007-06-25T08:47:00.000-04:00

We had Jay's party yesterday :D
All kinds of family was there, for which I'm happy about, my mom and dad made a quick trip down, but it was worth it, even if it was just for 24 hours :D
We had a ton of fun, the cake was a hit, Jay was SPOILED ROTTEN with all his gifts, he defintely has enough cars and trains to last him a while. Little Hadley checking out the cake

Blowing out the candles with Oma

YAY!

Opening gifts

Checking out the goods

That was so much fun...we had a great day at the lake, playing around and enjoying time with the cousins...this week will be a busy week, Uncle Cam & Aunt Melissa and cousin Hadley are here all week so we're expecting a TON of fun :)

The Jeep

2007-06-25T08:41:00.000-04:00

Uncle Jon & Aunt Crystal got the coolest gift for Jay... A NEW CAR!
Well, its a mini car...but still very cool ;) Not many kids get their own car...let alone at 2 years old :D
THANK YOU UNCLE JON AND AUNT CRYSTAL :D

Beach Bum Boy

2007-06-05T18:49:00.000-04:00

Our Birthday Shots

2007-06-05T18:42:00.000-04:00

Once again we made the trip to East Lansing to have Roxanne do our pictures :)
YAY for Portrait Innovations :)

Miscellaneous Pictures

2007-06-01T10:39:00.000-04:00

Just a few pics for mom & dad to check out :)

Jay on Rick's 4 wheeler Whew that's sooo much fun (he didn't want the ride to end)

Playing Guitar Hero with dada

Rocking out!

Checking out the remains of the garage sale this past weekend

In his swimmer diaper...lol

Hanging out at the lakehouse, checking out the toys

Riding the police cruiser

Not sure what he's doing here...

My silly boy, this is what he does now when you ask him to smile... :)

Beetle Boy

2007-06-01T10:35:00.000-04:00

Jay is in love with cars...
big or little...he loves them :D
He loves to play around in Hailee and MacKenzie's power wheels vehicles, especially Hailee's little yellow bug one.

I'm thinking we need to get him one...

Sprinkler FUN!

2007-06-01T10:27:00.000-04:00

Aunt Ah-mee got a great new sprinkler for the kids last week, but only Jay was brave enough to get close enough to get sprayed.
It was a KILLER hot day too...in the high 90's so I think he was just desperate for a little cool down :)

Jay and Hailee running around in the backyard...

And chilling out with juice boxes :D

Walk for a Cure - 2007

2007-05-27T10:43:00.000-04:00

Aunt Jaime (Ah-Mee to Jay) did the walk for a cure this past weekend (the 18th thru 19th of May)
We had a blast going to support her and walk around with her
Jay was happy to ride on Papa's shoulders and the girls got their face painted :)

The kids and "ah-mee"

The Luminarias we dedicated to our grandmothers...

Oma and Grandma

Mohawk Boy

2007-05-27T10:39:00.000-04:00

My boy got a super cool haircut...

Ooooh FABULOUS :)

Because...

2007-05-27T10:31:00.000-04:00

Because my parents can't get their email attachments to open :D
These are for you mom & dad

Jay in the mud :)

Jay and Momma on the trampoline :D

Its been over a month...SLACKER

2007-05-18T22:58:00.000-04:00

I have a good excuse for not blogging, I swear.
It's been over a month, ick...and lots has happened since I updated last.
We moved, so a LOT (make that a ton) of our stuff is in storage, and although I have been taking a pile of pictures, I've not been able to upload them from the camera to my computer because:
A) no idea where the camera cable is...gotta find it first
B) my computer is in pieces...gotta put it back together :)
C) too lazy to do either of the above
Anyway, life is going ok. Jay is happy to be around Nana & Papa and loves spending time with his cousins.

The best part of being here is the great outdoors, Jay is in love with the outdoors, playing in the yard, and definetely jumping on the trampoline (more like sitting and being bounced around on the trampoline).

Here are a few pics that Jo took this evening with HER camera...i have many more on mine, but these will have to do for now :D

Ciao!

My new favourite pics :D

2007-04-10T10:52:00.000-04:00

We got these done at the same time as Jay's easter portraits, these were a bit of a surprise for Chris...I really love them :)

Easter Photos

2007-04-05T10:47:00.000-04:00

Sweet boy

2007-03-26T12:17:00.000-04:00

I miss him so much :(

I guess its about time to update eh?

2007-03-26T12:10:00.000-04:00

Ok...lets start with a really freaking cute picture:
Jay and his cousin Kenzie...you would think these two were siblings instead of cousins, and Kenzie is the BEST big sister/cousin in the world...this child is just the most caring attentive loving girl.
She just loves to cuddle with Jay...and although Jay can be really hard to handle...she's a patient one :) I appreciate her sooo much!
So yeah...this pic is fuzzy and kinda dark, but its cute...and I love it. I need to get a better one :D
So yeah...Chris and I are apart again...boo hiss.
These pics were taken a few weeks ago when I went to visit...thus far its been rough, but I'll be going back down to see him and my boy (yes Jay is with Chris...I'm all alone ) THIS WEEKEND...so yeah :)

Happy Valentines Day

2007-02-14T12:37:00.000-05:00

Jay was busy making Valentines today ... we'll send them out late, but he had lots of fun putting stickers EVERYWHERE...even on my feet and face...I guess he thought it was an improvement ;)

Valentines - Take 2

2007-02-11T15:18:00.000-05:00

I decided to go the professional route and take Jay in to get some Valentine pics done :)
I took him to Portrait Innovations in East Lansing...and they're soooo good! The prices were fabulous :)

Anyway...so here are a few outtakes :) I ordered this one:

And this one:

Portrait Innovations

2007-02-11T14:41:00.000-05:00

Snow Days

2007-02-04T11:05:00.000-05:00

Just a little trip outside...it lasted about 10 minutes...took me about 20 minutes to get all of his gear on.

He loved the snow, loved walking in it...but touching it was another thing.

He kept tryign to pull his gloves off and he finally got one off and landed butt-first in the snow and put his little bare hand in the snow and that was the end.

No more snow...apparently Jay is not a fan...LOL!

Tweak

2007-01-31T18:51:00.000-05:00

My favourite of the first group...just tweaked in Photoshop a bit :)

Valentines Pics Take 1

2007-01-31T18:40:00.000-05:00

I attempted a few valentines pics...
Some are cute...but most need a bit more tweaking.
The flash is bad, Jay is too close to the backdrop (i hung it over his crib)...and although the subject is cute, it was angry and not wanting to participate...I took almost 50 pics...these are the most 'salvagable'

LOL

I'll be trying this again...and I'll show the results later :)

SCREEECH! I've been tagged ;)

2007-01-22T17:04:00.000-05:00

Hi,I have a pretty hectic morning ahead of me, I will get back later to post an update but Ros tagged me and here are my answers.

A - Available or Taken: Taken.
B - Best Friend: Chris
C - Cake or Pie: Oooh, tough one. I'll have to plead PIE in this case :)
D - Drink of Choice: Pepsi!
E - Essential item you use everyday: The toilet...LOL!
F - Favorite Color: Blue & Green
G - Gummy Bears or Worms: Neither...:P
H - Hometown: Oshawa, Ontario, Canada...booooring
I - Indulgence: Starbucks and makeup...LOL! (but not mixed together) oh, and Gymboree for Jay
J - January or February: February, it's my 5 year anniversary this year! WOOT!
K - Kids & Names: 1 boy, Jay
L - Life is incomplete without?: Family & Friends
M - Marriage Date: Feb 9, 2002
N - Number of Siblings: 2, me and my little bro
O - Oranges or Apples: Apples
P - Phobias or Fears: Heights and Pancakes (ewwww)
Q - Fave Quote: Jeez...
R - Reason to Smile: My son
S - Season: Fall...a nice crisp fall day is PERFECT!
T - Tag 3-4 People: I'm not doing this just cuz nobody EVER DOES IT...(you know who you are...lol)
U - Unknown fact about me: I wish I could sing
V - Vegetable you don't like: Brussel Sprouts
W - Worst Habit: I bite my fingernails and cuticles when I'm nervous and it's NASTY.
X - X-rays: Oh heck yes...everywhere...especially on my legs
Y - Your Fave Food: Italian...ANYTHING italian
Z - Zodiac Sign: Capricorn

MMmmm Noooodles

2007-01-17T12:36:00.000-05:00

Nothing like a good bowl of Bob the Builder noodles with sauce.
YUM-O

Jay has been feeding himself for quit some time now but he hasn't really been getting the hang of the fork and spoon we got him...he's played around with them and kinda figured that he can stick them in his mouth, but there's something that goes wrong between bowl and mouth, the spoon seems to flip before he gets to his face!

Well just recently he's mastered (i use that term loosely) the spoon! WOOT! FOOD! MESSY FOOD!

See how gently and masterfully I can put the food in my mouth?

Check that out...you're AMAZED!

I am so totally awesome. Now I want a cinnamon cookie Mommy!

...
And I'm going to have to go on a serious hunt for some heavy duty stain treatment!

LOL :D

What Big Shoes!

2007-01-09T14:53:00.000-05:00

A few pics of Jay stepping into Opa's shoes...what big shoes they are!

And yes, he's an absolute sight...he just got done eating a big bowl full of "Bob the Builder" Spaghetti-O's.

LOL!

Huge ol Update

2007-01-09T14:45:00.000-05:00

Wow, seriously this past little while has been bonkers crazy for our family.

Christmas was wonderful, but the day after Christmas, Jay and Chris both got sick :P

Come to find out they both had throat infections and the beginnings of Strep throat :P Yuck.

Jay ran a crazy fever for 3 days...up and down and up and down, as high as 102 and as low as 95 (weird)

Anyway, just in the past few days has life been returning to normal. Jay had his 18 month check up last Friday and he's 22 pounds, 8 ounces and 32 inches tall. He's average for both weight and height, but to me, he just seems thin...I bet it's from all the running around he does. He is one ACTIVE little dude.

We also found out that he was allergic to the antibiotics we gave him for his throat...amoxocillin.

He broke out in an ugly rash, and even though it didn't seem to bother him, he was covered from tip to toe, and he looked so awful :( Poor guy :P

We're going back to see the doctor on the 24th for his shots, because he was supposed to get them last week, but since he had that rash, the doctor wanted it to go away before he gave him the shots.

Well, I haven't really taken a lot of pictures...I do have some of Jay muching on a candy cane...he didn't want to sit still for any pictures ;)

They're not fabulous pics, but they're kinda cute...gotta love a messy face :)

Pictures to pass the time

2007-01-05T16:49:00.000-05:00

I do plan on actually posting something, but I have to have a few minutes to sit down and actually compose myself.

Here's some pics to keep you happy ;)

Christmas with Family :)

2006-12-25T11:32:00.000-05:00

We went over to Opa-Opa's place around 2, and Jay had a feast on all kinds of things, he started out with cheese, pickles, then olives... then moved to the oranges and at long last...

chocolate covered pretzels. Oh yum!

After dinner (of which Jay flung the potatoes, had a bite of squash and gagged on the turkey)

Jay placed bows on all the pretty men in our family.

Jon was most excited to get decorated :)

Opa was very patient as Jay mashed bows onto his face.

The finished product was stunning

Jay checked out everyone's stash and made sure to help everyone open their presents :)

He got a little drum from mama & dada so that he could be a rock star one day and bring in the big bucks and buy us a fishing lodge ;) LOL

Then came the barrel.

This was a bit of a tradition for our family, the last time we had done it was when Colton (now 16) was 5 years old. Now that we have a little one in the family again, we had to drag out the barrel.

The barrel is just filled with shredded paper and inside is always a present for everyone (it's always a chocolate letter) along with some cold hard cashola. Opa and Oma always knew how to shop ;) LOL

Jay loved the barrel.

He also was a very good little elf, passing out all kinds of gifts to everyone!

But playing in the paper was SO much fun too!

WHEEEEE!

Just like last year, Opa helped Jay open a bunch of stuff...they were so cute together!

The aftermath...

The only family picture we got of the day

Silly pictures with mama... He was so wound up on sugar and excitment!

Christmas Eve FUN!

2006-12-25T10:58:00.000-05:00

We did the whole Christmas thing yesterday.
Jay was so funny!
He loved the whole process...the stocking was the FIRST thing we did...he loved the books, and especially the etch a sketch. His cousin Hailee had one and he loved it.

Trust me...the 'Crabby' t-shirt was VERY appropriate.

Yay! An airplane!

Opening the good stuff with Da

And here's the good stuff...a cleaning set.

Complete with broom, mop, dust pan and sponges...

Probably the biggest hit of the day :)

Merry Christmas :)

2006-12-21T00:10:00.000-05:00

Just a few cute ones from beside the tree.
I took these yesterday evening (december 20th)

18 months old today

2006-12-20T15:39:00.000-05:00

HOLY COW.
I can't believe it's been a year and a half since my little beastie made his entrance to this world.

Craziness!

FRESH & NEW

6 MONTHS OLD:

ONE YEAR OLD:

18 MONTHS OLD:

Visiting Santa Part TWO

2006-12-20T15:36:00.000-05:00

Yesterday we took Jay to the Pickering Town Centre to visit with Santa...he was really excited at first, the display was really cool...all these moving bears and this big sparkly castle, although the excitement faded when he went up to see Santa. He kept trying to get back down and over to the Christmas tree ( a HUGE Christmas tree) beside Santa.

I had to finally sit with the two of them and just kind of lean out of the picture...you can't really tell I'm there unless you count the jean-covered knee that Jay is sitting on...LOL!

Visiting Santa Part ONE

2006-12-20T15:24:00.000-05:00

On December 8th, my mom's office had a HUGE Christmas party for all the kids and grandkids of the employees there, so of course, I brought Jay and we had a GREAT time.

There was tons of food...Jay stuffed himself with cookies and chips and juice...oy
There were some clowns, which Jay didn't like so much, but he wanted a balloon hat, so Oma sat in line and got one for him...how sweet :)
Then they waited to see Santa...Jay kept eating cookies through the line
When he finally got to see Santa, he was just kind of shocked, and although the santa was AMAZING...(they had a great santa) Jay didn't seem to be all that excited to see him, just to get back to his cookies.

And then there were fruit loops ... Jay loved the fruit loop necklaces that everyone made...although he just ate them instantly.

It was a LOT of fun!
:)

Stupid Stupid Stupid

2006-12-20T15:19:00.000-05:00

Blogger has been giving me serious issues...every time I try to post a new entry it gets lost in the abyss that is space.

I'm going to try to update because a lot has happened since the bathtub event. I have some cute pics to show off. Lets start with just a few candids of Jayboy :)

This was the first day we put up the tree (december 4) and Jay had to check it out from all angles...he loved it!

I've been tagged :)

2006-12-20T15:12:00.000-05:00

I've been tagged by Stephanie
A - Available/Single? Married
B - Best Friend? Christopher
C - Cake or Pie? Cake of course! Cherry Chip
D - Drink Of Choice? Milk...2% white milk...boring eh?
E - Essential Item You Use Everyday? Contact Lens solution!
F - Favorite Color? Blue and lately Green is getting up there
G - Gummy Bears Or Worms? um...neither, but sour worms are awesome!
H - Home or Homesick? HOME...although I'm homesick for my old home in MI
I - Indulgence? Caramel Macchiato from Starbucks
J - January Or February? February is my anniversary...FIVE YEARS THIS YEAR!
K - Kids & Their Names? One kidlet, Jay Connor...number two may be around soon...depends ;)
L - Life Is Incomplete Without? My family
M - Marriage date? February 9
N - Number Of Siblings? One younger brother
O - Oranges Or Apples? Clementine Oranges are my favourite this season!
P - Phobias/Fears? Heights...pancakes
Q - Favorite Quote?
R - Reason to Smile? Jay Connor
S - Season? Autumn
T - Tag 3 or 4 people? Tag 3... Elisabeth , Paige & Amanda
U - Unknown Fact About Me? I'm secretly shy
V - Vegetable you don’t like? Eggplant
W - Worst Habit? Picking my cuticles. Bad bad habit. <--- that's me too!
X - X-rays You’ve Had? Many many x-rays for my leg and of course sonograms and ultrasounds for baby
Y - Your Favorite Food? ITALIAN!
Z - Zodiac Sign? Capricorn :)

Just couldn't wait.

2006-12-03T21:34:00.000-05:00

Jay wanted to take a bath so badly, that when I turned on the tap,(I figured I'd be able to go into his room and grab a towel) he took the opportunity to climb into the tub with his clothes still on.

:P

Gymnastics!

2006-11-30T15:16:00.000-05:00

I figured I've not updated in a while, but honestly I don't have a lot to say.
We went down to Michigan to visit the inlaws for Thanksgiving and had a GREAT time. I didn't want to leave, I love visiting them and it was a lot of fun to spend time with everyone. Plus, Jay was on cloud 9 the whole time, he loved playing with his cousins and his Nana & Papa.

Here are a few pics of Jay playing around with Papa & Daddy

He loved doing this, he kept crawling all over Chris to get up in the air again, we might have a bit of a daredevil gymnast on our hands :)

Family Christmas Card

2006-11-16T23:27:00.000-05:00

Attempt 1 of many...this one actually made it past the 'drawing board' stage.

What do you think?

Just waking up...

2006-11-16T23:22:00.000-05:00

When Jay first wakes up from his first nap of the day (round about 1pm), you can tell by this look he gets on his face and this little wandering he does after we let him out of his crib, that he seems a bit 'confused' and in a haze. It's kind of like there's this feeling of disorientation.

It goes a little like this:

"how did I get here?""what am I looking for?"
"shouldn't I have pants on?"
"where is my blanket?"
"is lunch ready yet?"

Christmas Portraits!

2006-11-15T17:04:00.000-05:00

We got these back today! Gorgeous perfect pictures of my beast.

Remember I said we did family pics too?
Well, I still have to scan that one in, it's pretty decent...better than I expected.

Anyway, I love these...

This last one is my personal favourite...he's so freaking cute. When we were actually taking the picture, he kept throwing the snowball across the room. He had good aim too!

Probably the cutest picture...

2006-11-10T16:14:00.000-05:00

Awww...my boys!
Forget that Jay's not smiling, Chris looks good and he's smiling ... WOW.

At the Lake

2006-11-10T16:05:00.000-05:00

We went to the playground at Lakeview Park this afternoon, and to my surprise, it was completely empty. So Jay had the whole park to himself. They have this HUGE playground that's in the shape of a pirate ship, Jay had a blast climbing all over and being chased by daddy.
This is the clock-work thing that Jay was completely entranced by, although it was kind of stuck so we couldn't move it very easily.
Running to Daddy.
Running FROM Daddy.
Lots and lots of fun!

Basket-BALL

2006-11-09T15:49:00.000-05:00

Jay boy loves this big ol' ball. We need to get him a new one, because this is now the 'outside' ball...ick.

I doubt you can see them, but there are these little wire baskets (used for bushes or something to grow in) and Jay keeps putting the big ball into them. Surprisingly enough, he gets them in most of the time and the baskets are big enough to hold them. We've found a new game!

Playing in the backyard

2006-11-09T15:34:00.000-05:00

Here's a few pics of my handsome dude after his SECOND haircut, which we did a LOT shorter (don't kill me mom!).
The backyard is sooo much fun...there is so much stuff for me to get into!

Leaves are so awesome...this one is an airplane!
Taking the walkway back to the house

Playing with Beastie

2006-11-06T17:29:00.000-05:00

Jay is a drama-queen.
He should actually get into acting, especially at this age...by the time he were 5 he'd have an Oscar.Jay: Oh, woe is me, I am sooo tired.
Jay: If I fake sleeping, they'll leave me alone and then I can follow through with my master plan

Jay: good googa-mooga...why is there ALWAYS a camera in my face
Jay: Did somebody say CHEESE?!

Family Pictures?

2006-11-06T17:22:00.000-05:00

Oh jeez.
I don't think there's anything funnier than trying to take a picture with my husband.

Chris doesn't know how to NOT be a smartass...although he's hilarious. I swear he should be a stand-up comedian or something, the things that come out of his mouth are just outrageous.

So...we got family pictures taken on Friday, we went to Sears to get some done...and of course take more pictures of my sweet baby boy.

The pictures of Jay are absolutely fabulous. He is the cutest thing ever (did you hear me...EVER.) LOL!

The family pictures, well, not so much. I mean they're okay, they're decent for public viewing but Chris and I just really don't look very great.

So, we came home...I said I wanted to try to take a few candid pics of the three of us. And since there was nobody home, I set up the timer and we took it from there.

What you see next...is what happened:
Erin: Oh crap I didn't get to the couch fast enough
Chris: I'm being forced into doing this so I'm gonna make stupid faces to annoy Erin
Jay: this is so awesome
Chris: Take two...how cheesy can I look? Jay needs to keep his head still
Erin: Why is Chris doing 'earmuffs' to Jay?
Jay: Tee hee, this is still awesome

Erin: that's it, I'm gonna wet my pants from laughing so hard
Chris: mission accomplished
Jay: WEEEEEE!

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is why you RARELY see pictures of all three of us together.
And for good reason :P

Trick or Treat!

2006-11-01T14:19:00.000-05:00

(I actually had a whole post already written and posted, but blogger ATE it.)

Anyway, here's the little dude on his first trick or treating adventure.
We left around 5:30 to Opa-Opa's house, and made our way back, stopping at a few houses.
By the time we arrived home, we were a seasoned pro at this whole trick or treating business.

:)

Check out those awesome pumpkins that mama carved ;)
On the road again!
At Opa-Opa's door
Getting to choose some candy from the bowl!
Hmmm, which one do I want?
Uncle Jon and I checkout out the stash
Aren't I the cutest Yoda ever?

The morning after

2006-11-01T14:09:00.000-05:00

Going through all the fabulous stash (of course, after mom and dad went through and took out the stuff that wasn't good for me...ahem...or that they wanted ;) LOL! WOOT! Chocolate!
I think my favourite candy bar has to be Oh Henry, I'm rarely photographed without it.
Oooooh Henry! :)

The kill...

2006-10-30T22:11:00.000-05:00

A few pre-halloween pics

2006-10-30T22:03:00.000-05:00

Hard-working Boy

2006-10-27T16:33:00.000-04:00

My kid makes me laugh!
He just got up from a LONG nap! (yay)
The very first thing he wanted to do was to go straight to his tool bench and pound in some pegs with his big plastic hammer. Lunch is all ready and waiting for him...but he has no interest in eating right now.
I went into his room and said "Hey Jayboy, would you like some lunch? There are some num-nums ready for you"
He shook his head and kept pounding in his pegs.

I'm sure he'll be hungry later, but until then...he's one hardworking man.

Jay & the Big Bouncy Ball

2006-10-19T12:47:00.000-04:00

Jay loves to play with this big oversized 'beach' ball. He throws it down the hall and plays with daddy all the time.

He's just recently began to pick it up and walk with it. It looks hilarious, because he holds it up, so all you really see is a pair of chubby legs and a BIG ball. He can't really see where he's going, but he manages quite well!

Pumpkin Patch Day

2006-10-14T16:28:00.000-04:00

This afternoon we went to Pingles to pick out some pumpkins (big one for the adults, little one for Jayboy).
It was so cold out. The wind was crazy. I was just thankful that it wasn't hailing or snowing. There weren't as many people this year as there was last year, but last year we went two days before Halloween, so it was a bit nuts :)
Jay loved it. He wanted to get down from his stroller and run around in the 'balls' (pumpkins)
They had a bunch of these murals that you could poke your head through. I remember this strawberry/corn one from when I was little.
And of course, we had to do some pumpkin pictures. He was such a good boy. He wanted to get down on the ground and play in the dirt though...
Pretty boy
I had to get a shot with me and Jay, and of course...
I insisted on getting a shot of Chris & Jay...although I really don't think either of them were in the mood at that point.

It was a great day :)

Now Jay is taking a nap because he's worn out from all the excitement :) YAY!

Take time to smell the daisies...

2006-10-09T18:31:00.000-04:00

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

I took these this afternoon while we were over at Opa-Opa's house for thanksgiving dinner. Jay loved the outdoors and he was so amazed with all the colours, the leaves and the flowers.

And this last one is on the porch...Jay wanted to sniff every flower that was in the backyard, and this was was his favourite :)

The apple doesn't fall far...

2006-10-07T12:15:00.000-04:00

...from the tree.

And the tree is SO proud :)

NEWSFLASH! Jay takes first steps!

2006-09-30T23:28:00.000-04:00

Well, I honestly have no pictures to prove it...I do have video, but I have no clue how to link that here, so you'll just have to believe me :)

After weeks of toddling one step here and there...and cruising furniture for months, Jay finally took the plunge and just waltzed his way from one end of our bedroom to the door.

I was so surprised...but it seems if you 'bribe' him with a crayon, he'll do just about anything.

So, there you have it. At 15 months old, and after so many comments about 'oh maybe he's not walking because (insert remark here)' OR 'Whats wrong with him?'...my baby is walking...and not a moment too soon, because I can see some chase-downs on the horizon :)

YAY FOR JAY!

Little Yoda

2006-09-30T23:23:00.000-04:00

Awww...I can't believe this year is Jay's SECOND Halloween...seriously, it's just crazy to think he's already this old.

Remember last year?

The cutest elephant ever?
This year, Jay is Yoda...I have been DYING to get him into this costume. I bought it a few months back and just this evening decided I should make sure it fit before it's too late and he has to dress as a ghost or something on Halloween :)

We picked up these reptile slippers at Old Navy today and although they're still a little big, I'll just put a few pairs of socks on him to make sure they dont' fall off ;)

Crayons & Colouring

2006-09-30T23:16:00.000-04:00

Jay's new favourite thing is colouring...or eating the ends off of crayons and squealing as he smooshes a colour onto the page :)

Playing in the pumpkin

2006-09-20T23:00:00.000-04:00

I got this pumpkin for Jay to go Trick or Treating with...
He loves to play with it :)

Kissy Kissy

2006-09-20T22:55:00.000-04:00

Awwwww.....

First Haircut

2006-09-06T20:53:00.000-04:00

So today was the day.
I had actually been toying with the idea of cutting Jay's hair for quite a while now...but it wasn't until last night in the bathtub while I was washing his hair, and noticing how terribly ratty and tangled it was getting that I realized...it's time for a haircut.

So, instead of dragging it out, making an appointment for next week, next month...next year, I went in to the hairdresser that next day (today) and made an appointment for when I was finished with work.

Jay was SO good.
He kept pointing at everything, and looking around, there was just so much to look at. He loved that there was a huge mirror in front of him. He was able to stare at himself, and he thought that was just fabulous.

He was so good!
Really, we only took about an inch off all over, and maybe an inch & a half at the back...it's still curly! It's just a little shorter/cleaned up.

I still have the curls...I'm thrilled. Jay looks more like a little boy than a baby anymore...which is sad, but it's a right of passage :)