Summer Rewind

Sorry everyone for not keeping up with our Blog, we have been pretty busy this summer, so here is an overview of what we did. Jon and Brock took a day trip out to the beach. Brock had so much fun walking along, he found his shadow and someone’s sand bike to climb all over. Some of our good friends welcomed their twin boys, Micah and Mason in to their family. Brock was a little confused when we went over to meet then and there were 2 babies. Brock was following big sister Madison’s lead on being very gentle with her baby brothers. Brock has become the master of balance. On one of out trips to Ikea, we found a seahorse for Brock that he fell in love with. So we brought it home. Though he only use it the conventional way for a short time, he now loves to stand on it and ride it like a surf board. In June Ryan, my brother-in-law, married Megan. Brock was the ring bearer for their magical day. He did an amazing job, and had a blast. We took a couple trips to the Oregon Zoo. Brock loves seeing all the animals but more than that he loves the train. On out last trip to the zoo we went with our good friends Stacy and her son Finley. The boys had a wonderful time. There was even a snake to pet it the petting zoo. And yes I put my extreme phobia of snakes aside for my son so he could pet it. It is amazing what one can do for their children.We took a quick trip down to Roseburg to visit my parents Oma and Pop. We got to see the green bean teepee that Pop built for Brock. Brock also spent most of his time in his newly refurbished radio flyer wagon that I had when I was little. Brock calls it his choo choo. Brock also helped Pop dig some holes in the garden for planting seeds. We also attended the Hillsboro 4th of July Parade. Brock loved the Police bikes and the fire trucks. Papa also showed Brock how pop-it’s work and they were a huge hit. This summer Brock also got a pool. He has so much fun going down the water slide and splashing in the water. On July 25th Brock turned 2!! I can’t believe that my little baby is 2. He had 2 parties, one with friends and then one later that a small family party. His friends party turned in to a pool party because of how hot it was that day. He got a bike, stuff for his big boy bedroom, and a Cars tent. He has so much fun opening his gifts.

23 Months

It is crazy to think that in one month out little guy will be 2. He is doing and saying more every day. He giggles and himself and when Jon and I laugh. He is pretty much eating everything, in the fruits and veggies category, and lots of hotdogs (which he loves to say). He loves to play outside in the back yard and at the parks down the street. He is growing up so fast. The other morning I went in his room to get him up and he was sitting there with his sleep sack unzipped half way. I figured that it was just a fluke and that some how we did not zip it all the way the night before. Then a few days later getting up from nap time I noticed that he had done it again. So tonight we decide that it was best if we removed the front of his crib. So Brock is officially n a Big Boy bed. We went to the store and purchased a Lightning McQueen pillow case and pillow book, to make it more exciting. He loved it. It did take a little more to get him to go to bed but he went to sleep rather quickly. Here are some photos. Enjoy.

My 30th Birthday

Leading up to my birthday I was apprehensive about turning 30. It is a big number, you are no longer a “kid” and you have to own up to the fact that you are now an ADULT. Though after the fact I love being 30. I had a wonderful day and spent it with my family. That morning we went to Salem to watch Stef and Megan graduate from Corban College. It was so exciting to watch them and how happy they were. We went over to Tom and Jodi’s house after for a graduating party for Stef, and some how they put Megan and I in the hot seat as well. My amazing husband had planed to take me to dinner and would not tell me where we were going. I figured out half way that we were going to Joe’s Crab Sack. I was very excited, even with the 45 minute wait. As we were waiting for a table we were having a nice conversation, which as parent s of a toddler this rarely happens. I looked up and saw my parents. I was confused but very excited! They had driven up to have dinner with us and to spend the night. We had a wonderful dinner and lots of fun. I would have to say that this was one of my most memorable birthdays ever.

Easter

Easter this year was so much fun. On Saturday night after I was off work I came home and we colored Easter eggs. Brock got to pick what color dye the eggs went in to. Then I gave him and egg and some washable markers so he could color his own egg. He had a lot of fun.

Brock was excited to find his Easter bucket filled with fun new toys and then, has a blast finding eggs and other treats in the back yard. Then we came inside and Brock played with his eggs. I did learn that you should not get the eggs that look like balls (football, baseball, basketball, and soccer) because Brock started chucking them across the room and at us, yelling ball. Then one of them broke open and he found the chocolate in them!! His eyes were huge with excitement. So while we made breakfast he ate to much candy. After breakfast we got dressed in our very cute Easter clothes that Moma (Oma) got for him. He is looking like such a big boy. Then we went over to Nana and Papa’s house for Easter dinner and another egg hunt. We had a wonderful time eating a ham dinner with about 30 people total. Then after dinner the kido’s went on an egg hunt in the family room. It was so cute watching Brock find even the hidden eggs and he was also watching all the other kids find eggs. After a wonderful day we cam home and relaxed.

Our other children

I spend so much time talking about Brock that I felt I was ignoring our first two children. Titan and Nismo. Titan is our red and white Boston Terrier he will be 4 years old in July and is a good dog. Nismo will be 3 years old in July and is our big lug of a dog. An average Boston Terrier weighs any where from 14 to 24 pounds. Titan is 21 and pretty tall but Nismo on the other hand is 41 pounds and a solid rock. Yesterday was BEAUTIFUL!!!! So while Brock was sleeping Jon took the dogs to the dog park. In north Hillsboro there is a wonderful dog park, Hondo Dog Park it is located next to the Hillsboro Stadium. There is a large grassy area for all dogs to play in, a small grassy area for smaller dogs, and for the winter time there is a large area that is sandy so your dog does not get all muddy. They love to go to the dog park so much and we now have to spell it out when were are talking about it, because the dogs get all wound up if we say the words. Though yesterday when Jon and I were talking about it, Titan was twisting his head to the side and got very excited when we spelled it out. So I think we are going to have to figure out something else. Here are some photos of the dogs as puppies and a few we took yesterday in our back yard.

Rubber Boots

I remember as a kid I had rubber boots, and I loved them. They were very practical for where I grew up, but here in town Rubber Boots are not so practical. Though my son LOVES and I mean loves his rubber boots. We got them last week when we took a trip down to Roseburg to visit Oma and Grandpa. There house has lots of mud and puddles, a child’s favorite thing at this age. So my mom suggested that we get some so we would not ruin his other shoes. I showed Brock his boots and he went crazy, boot, boots, boot, boots. Is all he would say, he wore them from the time he got up till the time he went to bed, even with his PJ’s on. Even now that we are back home he loves these boots and even when he is sick he still has to sport the boots. So here are some photos of Brock and his boots.

March

I cant believe that March is almost over, time is flying by way to fast. This month was filled with lots of fun things. Brock is starting to talk so much more. He has tons of words that he uses daily and he also has his own language of chatter. He loves to stand and climb on anything he can. On Wednesday we flipped his car seat around and he is now forward facing. He was so excited that day. He was pointing out so many things that day, trucks, birds, trees, and even an airplane. We even took a short trip down to my parents house to visit Oma and Grandpa. He had so much fun with the wagon and the new swing that Oma purchased and that Grandpa put up for him. We also had a play date with Grayson on Thursday, they had so much playing and sharing snacks.He had so much fun that he hardly slept while we were there, but thankfully he slept from Roseburg all the way to Salem. He was very excited to see his dada and doggies when we got home.

(there are a ton of pictures on this one)

Bucket Head’s and the Zoo

Ok so I am a little behind with posting. At the end of February we took a wonderful day trip to the Zoo. Brock is now seeing the animals and is even able to say some of their names. We even got to see the baby elephant. We had a blast and look forward to going more this summer.

Here are some funny photos of Jon and Brock playing with his bucket that Dara gave him with his baby shower gift. He loves playing, sitting in, and carrying it around. Thanks Dara!! We have also started the per-potty training stages of life. For the most part Brock is doing very well with it all. He has even gone potty in his potty chair a half a dozen times. We did hit a bump in the road for some reason and Brock decided for about a week that he wanted nothing to do with his potty chair. Thankfully we have since passed that and he is starting to get more use to the idea of being a BIG boy!!

Our Trip to Sweden

Ha Ha, just kidding. On Saturday Jon wanted to go to the Golf show that was going on at the convention center, so we got up early and headed out. It was actually pretty interesting seeing all the stuff that they had and all the stuff they were giving away was pretty amazing. After the Golf show we were trying to decide what to do. It was to cold to go to the zoo, so we decided to take a trip to Ikea. Brock and I went last year with Nana and was amazed, but Jon had never been. It is a pretty amazing store, but be prepared to spend at least 3 + hours there the first time you go. Brock did very well and even got a few new toys for being such a wonderful boy. Later that day I took Titan and Nismo to the dog park that is over by the Hillsboro Stadium, and boy did they have fun. There were tons of dogs for them to run around and play with. It was a wonderful day.

Superbowl

This year for the superbowl we went over to our good friends the Marteney’s. They are some of our best friends and we love hanging out with them. They have a daughter, Madison who is 7 months older than Brock. They love to play together, so during the superbowl they had tons of fun. Madison was showing Brock who to use pegged blocks and then Brock showed Madison how to climb on to the table. Madison even learned Brocks middle name that day, after hearing mommy say “Brock Thomas no please” many times that day, she repeated it a few times, “Brock Thomas”. I thought it was very cute. We love hanging out with them and look forward to spending time with their growing family. That night when we were trying to get the dogs to go in to their kennel Titan decided that he was going to sit on Brock’s couch and stay there. It was quite amusing.

Some fun random photos of Brock

The New Year

Ok so it is almost the end of January and I have only done one post. I am sorry to all of you on not keeping up. So here it goes.

This last month has been crazy. Brock is growing up to be such a big boy!! We graduated from our highchair to a booster seat. He has figured out how to ride our dump truck around with out someone pushing him, though he still loves to be pushed around on it. He figured out how to stack his blocks. He met 2 cousins a few weeks ago when we went to Spokane for a friends wedding. He had tons of fun playing with Forest (who is 3 ½) and was very gentle with Eliot (who is 3 ½ months old). Got his first set of super hero PJ’s. Went to his first wedding, and did pretty good. Though I did have to get up and leave with him because he was saying “Hi” to everyone that was there. Had tons of fun at the reception playing with the limes and a chair. Oh and I would have to say my favorite is the climbing. He is climbing of every thing, the oven, the side table, the chairs, the book case that has his toys in it, pretty much anything that he can. He is so much fun and so very busy. I am looking forward to the next fun thing he figures out.

Fourths

Well I must join in on the 4th Folder, 4th Photo. Though mine is more the 4th folder, 4th folder, and then 4th photos. I arrange all our photos by category and then by date.

So this is a photo of Brock sitting at the table in his Big Boy seat. The night before we got him a booster seat and took his high chair to the garage. I was not sure how he would adjust to the Big Boy chair. Every morning when I make him breakfast just before I am finished I tell him " Brock go to your chair" Well this morning he went to where his high chair use to be, and looked at me with utter confusion. Put both hands up and said, "huuu?" I showed him where his new Big Boy chair was and he got a HUGE smile on his face and then tried to climb up in to it.

He loves sitting at the table with us and he even bows his head now when we pray.

Children are such a blessing and it melts my heart every day when Brock does something new or funny.