Memorial Day Weekend

We had a fun and busy weekend! Friday night my parents came to stay with the kids and Brad and I went to a really nice bed and breakfast with some friends. If any of you find yourselves in our area we highly recommend Cameo Heights Mansion It's owned and run by a couple in our ward and they do a tremendous job.

Sunday, as was mentioned in the previous post, was Jakey's birthday. So after church we had 'The Cousins' (Shelley and Jerry and their girls) over for dinner and a little family party. Jacob wanted a blue dinosaur cake so that was interesting. He also spit all over it while blowing out his candles so we grown ups stuck to the ice cream while the kids braved the blue dino spit cake. YUM!











On Monday we packed up a picnic lunch and went to a park with the kids and the dog. It was a lot of fun. The part that had Brad and I laughing was that there were two older men there with metal detectors. Every single kid at the park thought the metal detecting was the coolest thing ever. So everywhere these two guys went they had a huge group of kids following them around. They spent about 20 minutes digging at this one particular spot and then we heard Danny yelling from the crowd of watching children, "A penny! Look,they found a penny!" So that was worth their time :)


I took a few pictures 1) because we thought it was pretty funny and 2) so we could donate them to America's Most Wanted if the men involved turned out to actually be pedophiles who had concoted an elaborate "metal-detector-at-a-playground" scheme.

When we got home from the park there was a fun surprise waiting for us. Our friends gave us their sons' old bunk bed for Danny and Jacob's room and they even delivered it to our doorstep. So the rest of Brad's Memorial Day involved setting up the bunk bed in the boys room. Jacob "helped" him while the other kids and I went to see the new Narnia movie (great movie, by the way!)

The boys were as excited as we've seen them to sleep in their bunk bed last night. It was Jakey's first night in a big-boy bed so we weren't quite sure what to expect, but they did great!

Birthday Boy!

Today is Jacob's 3rd birthday! I can't believe the baby of our family is really no longer a baby.

Following the lay-out of previous birthday posts...

THE BIG DAY...
With Jacob I was induced a week prior to my due date. Even a week early Jacob weighed in at 9 pounds 9 ounces! It was a pretty easy labor/delivery, though. Brad and I felt like old pros. The nurses were amused because the other couples in the maternity ward that day were all first-time parents and apparently the stress in their rooms was palpable. Then they would come into our room and we're watching TV, laughing, etc.

JACOB'S SONG...
(read this post if you don't know what I'm referring to)
Jacob's song is "This Train Don't Stop There Anymore", by Elton John. Since Jacob is our last, we wanted a song that expressed the wrapping up of our child bearing years!

NICKNAME...
Jakey (a nickname about as original as his given name)

INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT JACOB...
Jacob is seriously the easiest, mellowest, sweetest little guy. He was a totally easy baby, contented and happy to watch all the action around him (and with four older siblings, there was always plenty of action to watch!) As a toddler he has continued to be a joy and a pleasure. His tantrums are even silent - he gets a grouchy expression on his face and folds his arms in a huff!

This is my absolute favorite baby picture of Jacob. They say a picture is worth a thousand words and this particular picture perfectly illustrates Jacob's position in the family and the way his siblings have felt about him from day one. He is adored by all of us.

Jacob loves trains, dogs and Spiderman. He loves to follow his older siblings around and play whatever they are playing. He is a pretty tough little guy - something he probably picked up during his daily wrestling matches with his older brother! Jacob's favorite activities are attending his weekly playgroup with his friends Micah and Elijah, helping his Dad with yard work and jumping on the trampoline. He is quite shy and sometimes takes a while to warm up to people, but once you've won him over he's yours forever.
Happy Birthday, Jacob! We love you!

You Gotta Try This

This website cracks me up! You can put in a picture of anybody and it will scan their face and show you a collage of your celebrity "look alikes".

Two things: 1) It totally depends on which picture you use because I put in 3 different pictures of myself and got a different list of celebrities every time! 2) You may end up with a few look alikes of the opposite gender (my sister, Lisa, evidentally looks 63% like Rudolph Valentino)

Unfortunately, I don't see a resemblance to myself in any of these ladies. And for the record, I'm way nicer than Naomi Campbell - doesn't she throw things at people? I don't do that very often.

Preschool Performance

Danny had his end-of-the-year preschool performance today. At his preschool (the one all of our kids have gone to) these performances are held quarterly and they are called "visitations", which is an odd name that has always made me think more of prison than of preschool (hopefully that's not foreshadowing where Danny's future is concerned!) Anyway...it was a cute little performance of some of the things his class has been learning this year.

Brad

I had to post this picture of Brad for his family - they will truly appreciate it! He got asked to M.C. a youth lip sync a couple of weeks ago, which gave him an excuse to go to the Goodwill and find himself a special M.C. "outfit". He created a nerdy Canadian alter ego named 'Chuck DaCanuck' and put together some stand-up-type material for in between acts. It was a fun night!

Erica's Bridal Shower!

This was a big weekend for us because the girls and I (minus a recuperating Haley, who was home watching movies with her cousin, Kyli) got to attend Erica's bridal shower in Portland! Erica is my brother Scott's awesome fiance. We feel so blessed to have her join our family!

Fathers' and Sons' Camp Out

Friday night was our stake Fathers' and Sons' Camp Out. Brad and the boys went and had a great time! Since Brad had to work Saturday morning he and the boys skipped the tent and slept in the suburban.

Here they are all tucked in for the night (nice s'mores-covered faces!) This was Jacob's first Fathers' and Sons' Camp Out and he had a lot of fun. Last year just Danny and Brad went. Danny got lost once and then over did it on junk food and threw up several times in the night, so kudos to Brad for being brave enough to give it another shot this year...and with one more son, too!

Haley's Surgery

Haley had knee surgery at Seattle Childrens' Hospital last Monday. She had been having knee pain (on-and-off) for well over a year and after her doctor ordered an MRI done he saw why. She had a knee condition (with a really long name that I won't try to correctly spell) that needed to be repaired. Everything went really well and she is feeling good (albeit a little sore). The hardest part will be that she can't put any weight on that leg for 6 weeks!
Here she is on her crutches with her good friend, Natalyn (who, in a display of solidarity, found some old crutches at her house and 'crutched' over from across the street). Natalyn has been coming over after school every day to apprise Haley on what she's missed - not academics, but the truly important things like, Who-Wronged-Whom-On-The-Playground, Who-Got-Sent-To-The-Office, Who-Has-A-Crush-On-Whom...etc. This is important as Haley was very concerned about getting (socially) behind at school.

I can't say enough about Seattle Childrens'! Most of you know that this is not our first experience with them :) They are always so great - easy to see why they are ranked one of the best childrens' hospitals in the nation.

It's Like They're All My Maids!

I love Mothers' Day. It's totally a day off, which is such a treat for me at this stage of life. This morning Brad and the kids made me breakfast in bed and when they were bringing it into my room Danny said, "Hey, it's like we're all your maids!" Exactly, Danny. You have perfectly described why I love Mothers' Day so much. 363 days of the year I feel like your maid and on my birthday and Mothers' Day - you are all my maids! Don't forget it ;)

Happy Mothers' Day!

Just a shout out to all the mothers in my life who set such great examples for me!

In particular, Happy Mothers' Day to my own mom (Joanne "Nana Jo" Williams) and my mother-in-law (Barbara "Nana 'Bawb'" Nielson). More than any other people they have shaped the mother I am and the mother I aspire to be.