Merry Christmas!

Christmas was great.....especially watching Jake enjoy it! We had dinner with the DeMichiel/Schafer crew and then Christmas Day with everyone! Jake's favorite new toys were definitely the tool bench and blender.




Brotherly competition never goes away....no matter how old they are!

So many tools, so little time!

there's the "cheese" face again

Cousins :)

I LOVE my cousin!

Sitting on Santa's Lap

Well, no child's photo album would be complete without the traditional "screaming on Santa's lap" picture, right? This was Jake's year to complete the task! As you can see by the picture, he was NOT happy. As soon as he hopped down off of Santa's lap, we asked him to give Santa a candy cane and with a huge smile, he proceeded to "help" Santa and hand him no less than a dozen candy canes from the basket.

Whistler/Seattle Trip

We just returned from Seattle and Whistler.....BRRRRR!!!! We were visiting the Darlington/Wallace crew in Seattle and then all of us drove up to Whistler to meet up with the Bedford family! We were pleasantly surprised that we survived the 5.5 hour car trip (each way!) with 3 kids and 4 adults in the car......we brought lots of junk food to keep us distracted!! The temperature was below zero, which is just TOOO cold! It's truly amazing that Jake's drool didn't freeze right on his chin! In Seattle, we went to the Boeing museum (Brian was in heaven), the Pike Place Market to watch some fish get tossed around, and the most fun was probably decorating cookies at Kathy's house. Jake even frosted a few and ate his weight equivalent in sprinkles! It was great visiting with our friends who we don't get to see very often.....we miss you guys already!

Jake's going to be a BIG BROTHER!

It's official....Jake's going to be a big brother! We are expecting baby #2 in early June. Can't wait!!!!!!

Cute pics from the month....

Very happy that Daddy set up his train....choo choo!

Daddy NEVER puts his shoes away...and now he can claim it's because Jake likes to play in them!

Giving Bailey a hug....Bailey would have run away, but Jake has a pretty good hold on him this time!

I swear this kid gets goofier each day.....this hat cracks me up....he looks like he belongs in the Alps!

CHEESE!!!

Jake has just started this goofy face when you ask him to smile for the camera.......it makes us giggle!

Happy Thanksgiving

We had a nice Thanksgiving....we have sooo much to be thankful for! Spent a relaxing day together and then had a great meal with the whole family at Mom and Peter's house. Jake even got a piano lesson from Great Grandad!

Happy Halloween!

What a fun Halloween! Jake enjoyed knocking on the doors and putting treats in his basket, but mostly he enjoyed seeing all of the other kids in their costumes.....we've decided to keep his kangaroo costume handy and put it on him when he's grumpy....it sure seems to cheer him up! He did get his first M&M's and let's just say that he is definitely MY son.....he couldn't get enough!

The Pumpkin Patch

We had fun today at the pumpkin patch....Jake kept us entertained, as usual ;) He tried to lift the BIG pumpkins on his own (Mom, does this sound familiar??)......and would make a grunting sound as if he were lifting something heavy...."huugghh". Next year he'll probably be lugging around a wagon full of pumpkins all on his own!

First Haircut!

Even though Jake STILL only has "peach fuzz" for hair, some of those fuzzies were getting awfully long......soooo, it was time for his first trim. We distracted him with raisins and he cooperated pretty well. You can't even tell that anything was done, but it's evened up a bit....and of course, those FEW trimmed hairs are stowed safely in a ziploc bag for his baby book ;)

Some recent favorites

Jake and Bailey...best buds!




Goofy kid...insisted on wearing PJ's, socks, and sandals....one fell off, but he refused to take the other one off!





Hat, safety goggles, and PJ's.....he gets his fashion sense from Daddy!




Daddy teaching him some important skills!

Playing Outside

Mommy practicing with her new camera lens at the park :)

Weekend at the Cabin with Papa and Tutu!

We enjoyed a beautiful weekend up at the cabin....Jake played in the lake and went on a boat with daddy. He practiced his "dives" in the pool.....this boy has no fear!! He does 1, 2, 3....JUMP! We had a great time...he is at such a fun age!

See how I can HOP!

Tutu bought Jake this kangaroo costume for Halloween....we had to try it on him and let him practice his "hopping".....he's a pro!