Jacob's First Day of Speech At MOM's School & Grace is SICK!

Today Jacob had his first session of speech with Miss. Katie at Mom's school! It was alot of fun... so much fun for him that the rest of the evening he talked about having Miss. Katie over for a party he was having.  He even "called" her up on the phone and told me she was coming over... too cute!

A quick note about our little lady... she woke up this morning very sick.  Yesterday she spit up in the evening and I kind of dismissed it.  Well this morning about a minute after I got her out of bed she threw up BIG TIME! It was everywhere... and about 5 minutes before we suppose to leave.  She missed gymnastics and dance today just to be on the safe side.   After the morning incident she seemed fine aside from being clingy and looking a little weak.  

Morning Sickness Begins...

So as of yesterday (9.29.08) my morning sickness has officially kicked into high gear. Now instead of worrying about my dress for Tim & Cathy's wedding being to small I worry that it is too big! The last two days I haven't been able to stomach anything until around dinner time sometimes later... and I thought for a minute I might get out of this the third time around!!

Getting "Tape Measured" For Tuxedo's!!

Tim, Jon, Greg & Jacob were all measured tonight for their tuxedo's!! Jacob kept saying "Mom, when am I getting tape measured?"  It was so cute!! My heart just melted to see him trying on the little suit coat... he looks absolutely adorable (by far the cutest boy I have ever seen!).  He is so excited about his "tie" (as the miniature groom he's going to match Uncle).  I can't wait to see it... not much longer till I will!

Now... as long as we can get him down that aisle!!!

I also forgot to mention that as of Friday I found out that Jacob will be going to my school for speech instead of his original location.  He also has to only go once a week now... on Tuesdays (of course our busiest day!!)  

Telling EVERYONE!!

On 9.21.08 we told Tete & Gigi... we told them by telling them I was going to be sharing my birthday (which we all know how I love that!!)

We told Beth, Dave, Amy, Andrea & Cameron about our good news... although it didn't totally go as planned (I ordered some cute shirts online and hadn't received them... so we decided to go ahead without "THE" shirts and make one to tell them.  Grace was so cute in her "Big SISTER" shirt! (9.25.08)

Tim & Cathy were on 9.28.08 I figured they'd be onto me next weekend when I was not drinking at the bachelorette party.  Tim was floored... as usual.  

It has been so much fun savoring this pregnancy... we have been making the rounds telling everyone... most everyone at least, with Grace's hand made shirt.  

I still have to make it to a few more people... if they don't find out here.  AND last will come work. 

Another Tooth Through...

Grace shot me one of her cute little nose crinkled smiles tonight and I noticed her top right I-tooth has poked through! Poor girl has had her hand in her mouth for quite a while... and still does... which we are hoping means the other one will be coming soon!

Free Eats

Today we had our monthly free eats with the Kohl's.  Jacob & Grace had a blast, as always.  Be sure to check out the pictures (that should be up soon) that we were able to capture of all the kids with their bags of animal crackers from Uncle Bob & Aunt Ruth (their usual treat)... so cute!

Until the pictures here is a little video clip to curb your appetite, lol!

Potty Time... Continued

Well just as an updated Grace is doing so well with the potty.  Surprisingly to us she has pooped 5 times on the potty and pee'ed just about as many times.  She usually asks or sometimes we see her start to grunt and put her on.  I cannot believe how early she is showing interest... she isn't even 18 months old.  I guess that's what an older brother will do for ya!

A note about Jacob... his allergies have been so horrible this weekend. He is coughing non-stop at night and his little nose has been runny too.  We've been giving him Claritin, like our pediatrician recommended to give him some relief.  

To end on a funny note.... Grace's five favorite things (currently)

5. Food... she is constantly eating (although it doesn't show I weighed her today... 22 lbs 13 oz, pretty skinny still) she even pretends to eat with plates, cups, and spoons when she doesn't have the real thing.

4. Shoes... she knows that means she's going places or "side" aka outside!

3. Babies... she loves them!! That is the first toy she goes to (aside from Jacob's things).  She gets her baby, the stroller and then the diaper bag (with blankets and bottles).  She is so motherly!

2. Her DOG... man oh man does this girl love dogs.  Oddly enough she is very afraid of cats (just like Aunt Mandie!)

1. Saying MA... well that and BRABRA (brother).  :)  If I had a dollar for everytime I heard those words I'd be rich!!

Meeting Up With Conrad & Andrea!

Tonight we got to meet up at the park with Andrea & Conrad.  The kids had a ton of fun... aside from Jacob taking a huge tumble off the side of the play structure (from about 4.5  feet off the ground... he cried for a bit but then got back to his goofy self).  Conrad gave Grace "hugs" and Grace gave Conrad a kiss, go figure! They had fun running, sliding, and yes...even us adults had fun!

Giving Kisses & Hugs!

Playing Together!

A cute video of Grace & Jacob walking hand & hand at the park... they have been doing this alot lately.  It melts my heart! Yeah... the arm pulling isn't that great, usually that doesn't happen! 

Busy, BUSY, Busy DAY!

Today was such a super busy day... I think my head is still spinning, but I loved every minute of it! After I dropped the kids off EARLY (I had a staff meeting at 8, and that was just too early!) Doe took the kids back to her house.  Gigi came and played with Jacob and Doe took Grace to a Parent/Tot gymnastics class (her first one).  She did the balance beam, stretches, punchy balls, somersaults and so much more! Doe said the somersaults were her favorite... she would laugh everytime she did one! I could have guessed that! She looked so precious in her new little chocolate brown and pink warm up nike outfit! Everyone had a little comment on how adorable she is!! The class is ages 18-36 months so she is by far the youngest one there... since she is really only 17 months! :)

Up next after Mom RUSHED out of school and picked up Jacob we headed to Dekeyser for a speech evaluation by Jacob's new speech pathologist, Ms. Ruth.  She was soooooo very nice and Jacob really warmed up to her.  He, of course, cried so hard the whole way there.  He kept saying "Mom, you staying with me?" (This whole nursery school thing has him a wreck!) We did some picture cards and he did SO great! He knew every single one (which really impressed Ms. Ruth, she kept commenting on how many words he has!) Then after he was finished he got to play while we chatted.  He played with trucks, cars, a pizza, and a McDonald's station with the classic drive thru window... he loved that! She talked with me about what he would be working on this year, when he'll be attending, what we need to get for him for speech at school, and we also discussed his apparent allergies.  She said the drooling, picky eating, liking small foods (or foods cut small), cough at night and how he drinks from a straw makes her think he might have allergies.  I too have thought that... she recommended that he see an allergist, so we'll be making that appointment soon.

After that we headed back to Doe's where Lady was already asleep.  Jacob went down for his nap too.  After Grace got up I took her to a Mommy & Me dance class.  I was SOOOOO excited (as I'm sure those of you who know me, and my dance background, and how PASSIONATE I am about little girls and dance would already know I would be the first one to sign my daughter up for DANCE!).  She was one of four and again was just absolutely raved about! One mom said she should be signed up for modeling (thats a rare thing for another mom to say!).  She kept inching into the dance class before it even started.  When we finally got in Grace had had my keys in the hallway and when I took them away she got very upset... so we stared off on a not so good note.  Grace did some stretching and creative dance movements.  She also got to try out a pom pom, the parachute, and bean bags.  It was fun even though she had a harder time with the structured part of this class (gymnastics was a little less structured and she could more or less do what ever she wanted... where at dance she had to go with the group, a little hard for someone her age).  The dance class was also 18-36 months, and again she was the youngest by far.  

After dance we headed back to pick up Jacob from Doe's.  I had promised him a trip to the park if he was a good boy during our busy day, so that's were we headed to next.  The kids had a good time.  It was so precious because they held hands walking into and out of the park.  It melted my heart.  They got to play with some other kids, and Mom got a work out chasing after the two of them by myself! It was a nice night for the park, hopefully we can squeeze in a few more times before the cold weather hits.  

Sorry for the lack of pictures, I had left my camera on Greg's desk while we were getting them off to update the webpage.  SO... I only was able to take some with my camera phone.  

Take my word for it... it was an AWESOME day! 

Updates...

We just got done uploading a TON of new pictures (see the side.... they are new from July 2008 up).  

We also have some new news... Grace has gone both pee and poop on the potty!!! YEAH Grace!! On Friday (9.12.08) she kept saying Poop, well I saw her start to grunt so I ran her into the bathroom and she pooped on the potty! Well that same evening I was getting her changed and when I got done she was crying and pulling at her clothes.  I was so frustrated as I could not figure out what she wanted, when I set her down she went towards the potty... saying potty the whole way there.  I sat her down on the potty and she went pee.  She is so cute when she "goes" she starts smiling and clapping for herself (she got that because Jacob & I do that to her when she goes too!!). She also loves to "wipe"... such a big girl!!

Gordon Family Reunion

We had such a great time at the Gordon Family Reunion today... the kids had so many little ones to play with (10 kids under the age of 4).  The food was so delicious and the company was wonderful! It is so nice to get everyone together, it's just too bad we can't do it more often.  The weather wasn't the greatest, but, between the basement and the living room the kids had so much to keep them busy.  Be sure to check out the pictures, they are linked on the side!! 

A HUGE TUMBLE & Cam Visits!

After nap today we headed outside just like we always do.... however I got stopped talking to our neighbor and out of the corner of my eye I saw Grace falling from the front porch (only one step, but it was CEMENT).  Our little drama queen laid their motionless crying her little heart out. When I picked her up she just laid so still on me, still CRYING! Our neighbor said she got her nose good, but I didn't realize how good until I took a look at her... YIKES!!!! Check out that poor nose... (and yes... that is her doll's bottle, she decided she would feed her baby then herself, silly girl!)

We brightened her day a little when Cam came over... we were going to watch him for the night! He even got to drive Jacob's corvette!! Jacob said they went to Home Depot to get 

wood and milk... look at how cute they look together!!

The next stop was the potty for Grace... yes... the POTTY! She has been telling us "Poop" when she is going "poop" and when she is near the potty.  We were a little late in getting her there but she still decided she needed to wipe.  (Notice the TP between her legs) She was so cute & tiny looking sitting on that big old potty!  

After while we took Cam home... and tucked him in for the night.  Grace even got to take a little rest in his swing... she looks so funny in it!! What a goof!!!

That poor little nose... I just can't help but feel so badly for her! 

Today we also signed "Grace" up for a Mommy & Me Dance class (:) yes that is me grinning from ear to ear!!! AND Doe also decided to sign her up for a Parent/Tot gymnastics class (called the Little Joeys)... she is going to just love that!!! The Dance class is Tuesday Evenings and the gymnastics is Tuesday mornings (Doe will be going with her). I'm so happy she is finally able to have a turn at doing something special!!

On a side note... we welcome with love... Addison, Alyssa, Trevor & Kendelle.  The King Quads!!! 

Nursery School!

Well today was Jacob's first official day of nusery school!! Gramma Doe & Bets were able to both be there with him!! Gigi was so wonderful to come and watch Grace so that they could both be there for Jacob on this special day! He started out very rough (with lots of tears, "DOE, Me pome with you's, and crying) but then he pulled it together enough to make a "Little Turtle", play on the playground with Victoria (our little ladies man), sing, play, read, and even use the "Little Turtle" potty! He had a good day with Mrs. Lee & Mrs. White. When Doe went back to get him Mrs. Lee told her he went in waves with his tears and he decided he didn't want to paint his hands today... from there he told her "Maybe next time Mrs. Lee". He said good-bye and was on his merry way! We are ALL hoping that Wednesday goes better with alot less tears. Doe said the day wiped her right out... she even shed a few tears herself!! (If you would have heard the audio from the video she took so Mommy could see her boy at school, you would have cried too!) I'm actually kind of glad I wasn't there to experience it... I would have been a mess!!

Jacob on his way out (you can see his eyes are still a little red) with Mrs. Lee.

I also wanted to ask everyone to please keep my cousin Jenn, her husband Mike and their four precious babies in your thoughts and prayers tomorrow. She is scheduled to have them tomorrow... we are all so anxiously awaiting their arrival and the NAMES! :)

Gracie is 17 MONTHS OLD!!

I honestly don't know how the time is going by sooooo fast! Grace is now the same age as Jacob was when I had her! HOW did that happen??? She is getting to be such a big girl and each day her personality gets cuter and cuter. She is such a happy girl (Gigi says she reminds her of my Mom, always a happy baby)... she loves smiling, making her "scrunchy face" (she closes her eyes, scrunches her nose and smiles), and she is also becoming quite the model. Whenever I get the camera out she says "cheese", smiles and sometimes even flips her hair back... SO cute!
There are some things that really bring back memories of Jacob with her. She now goes to our storage room downstairs and wants in... we keep snacks down there and I remember Jacob doing the same thing as he was looking for food. She also likes to give 5, and take Abby on walks around the house (poor dog!). These little things are all things Jacob did too!
Grace is really into babies, strollers, bibs, blankets, bottles, and anything baby! She also enjoys putting the big coins into her fisher price pig bank. Her other favorites are real phones and keys. She could walk around holding all of those ALL day long... that and she loves turning things into purses (shirts, shorts, whatever... she just puts in the crook of her arm and VOILA!)
Our little girl is such a good eater... she will eat almost anything... and ALOT of it! Although she loves eating, when she's done... lookout! She starts flinging things all over and she makes quite the mess. Spaghetti, pizza, juicy fruit, yuck... they are all over. We joke she has to stay in the kitchen up north since there is tile.... no carpet eating for her!
Grace has had such a nice summer. She loves to be outside, and doesn't like it one bit if someone goes outside without her! She had a blast playing on the beach this year... and looked so adorable in her little bathing suits.
Grace has started to sign for milk... that and more continue to be her two sings that she does often. She is walking like a champ now... she started and never turned back. She still loves to push things around while walking too especially strollers! She is going quite fast and never really seemed to have an issue with shoes (I know Jacob had a hard time getting use to walking in them... it would trip him up occasionally).
There is one thing that just cracks me up... I still can't comprehend how totally different Jacob & Grace are. Grace is the complete opposite of Jacob... I don't think they could be any more different. The weird thing is they look alot alike! (At least most think so).
She has become EXTREMELY attached to me... she calls for "Ma" all the time. Some days its very tiring that she really only wants me... but I'm also blessed. I try to spend as much time as possible with them... although I know it is good for them to be with other people I think there main bond should be with Greg & I. Today while I was at work I was speaking with my classroom aide and she began to tell me how lucky I was in working part time... she said when her kids were young (they are now teenagers) she only was able to spend 2-3 hours a day with them. She said she has never let herself forget how much she missed out on. I never want to feel that way, nor do I want to let my kids feel that way. That is why when I'm not working I try to be there as much as possible with them... because when I don't (besides missing them like crazy) I feel like I'm not doing the job that I set out to do... be MOM. Sorry to ramble... but I guess I'm just a little sentimental this week since it was my first week back and it was rough...that and my baby turned 17 months old!!!!!!

My Poor Boy...

Our poor boy has been having a terrible time of it with his allergies.  His nose has been runny and he has been having a very dry cough that gets really bad at night.  I'm almost convinced that he may have allergy induced asthma.  I'm going to have to remember to make mention of it at his next doctors appointment.  Since he did have excema as a baby and was also a preemie this is a good possibility.  Hopefully he'll get better soon... in time to start school on Monday! 

I couldn't help but take a picture of him the other night STILL sleeping in the  pack n' play at the cottage.  He is over the "legal load" yet he still sleeps in it and has NEVER attempted to climb out.  Why ruin a good thing, right??? Anywho... here is an adorable picture of him sleeping amongst all of his beloved animals.  Lets see we have dog (the favorite and the dog he got for his first birthday from Bets & Pa), yellow dog (from Tete), maya (from Bets), cheetah (from the zoo), kitty (pound kitty that was MOMMY'S), scruffy (pound puppy that was UNCLES), squirrel (from Bets), Braeden (the baby that was for GRACE for her birthday from Andy & Andrea), 2 bunnies (from Tete), a blanket and his dog pillow (from Aunt Jenn!) WHEW... yup... him & ALL that in one small pack and play! 

Jacob's First Day of Nursery School!!

Well Jacob had his first day at nursery school today! He was able to meet his teacher and explore the room while Mom filled out paperwork, took pictures, took video, and listened to his teacher explain EVERYTHING! :)  Jacob was so excited about all the toys especially the train track, the vacuum, and the baby area.  We got to find where his cubby is (he is a red balloon, the AM class color/shape) and then later showed it to Doe all by himself! We even checked out the bathroom, gross motor room, and playground.  His teacher Mrs. Lee & her aide seem so nice.  I'm very excited about his year... he seemed to be much better about being there with all of the other children (there will be 19 in his class).  In his class they will be going on field trips as well as having on-site field trips... I could just go on and on about how positive of an experience this is going to be for Jacob! I've heard nothing but wonderful things about this school.... and I'm thrilled he'll be going there! YEAH! On a side note... in his class there seems to be a run on "J" names.  There is a Jade, a Jace, a and 3 Jacob's!! The funny thing is in my 5 years of teaching I've only ever had one Jacob!  Oh well... He was pretty excited that there were going to be more "Jay-pubs".  

Gramma Bets watched Grace so we could just focus on Jacob... she also bought Jacob the cutest little outfit, "Time for School Mouse" book, and the neatest little pencils!! Of course Grace didn't go unnoticed either... she got an outfit and an adorable headband! I can't wait to put it on her!

After school Doe & I took Jacob to Red Robin for lunch and then Jacob & Doe went "dress" shopping with me! I'm going to a wedding on Friday and had nothing to wear... but luckily Jacob found me a perfect black dress! We also got a little sidetracked and Jacob ended up with a WIGGLES big red car (courtesy of Doe) and Grace got ANOTHER halloween costume! 

Check back for our tons of pictures from school soon... its just too late for that tonight!

Mommy's First REAL Day Back & Wiggles Dancers!

Today was my first "official" day back and it was one of my hardest yet. Surprisingly Jacob did great... it was Grace that had a harder time leaving me. She was gripped so tight to my shirt and cried so hard! I hated it!! I don't care what anyone says it just isn't fun leaving your kids!
While I was gone Jacob got to go to Doe's Ford luncheon (where the "ladies" raved at how well behaved he is!) and Grace got to stay with Gigi. She has started to say Gigi (on 9.1.08) and Tete now (9.2.08). When I got home I was so happy to see the kids... they seemed pretty excited to see me too!
After supper Doe & I ran to Kohl's as I'm desperately searching for an outfit for a wedding I'm going to on Friday. Anyways... when I got home I came home to see Greg, Jacob & Grace dancing to the wiggles! It was so cute... I immediately got my camera out. The one downfall of this video is you can hear me singing... WhOoPs!!!! I sometimes get really into those wiggles tunes!! lol... As you'll see Jacob is really into the BIG RED CAR too! I just love these little dancers... also listen to Grace as she notices that I'm home... "MA".

Tomorrow my baby starts nursery school... I'm so excited for him yet sad he is growing up so fast. He is just changing so much, I can't believe how fast it is all happening. Wish us luck, we'll post back soon on his first day!

Jacob's FOOD!!

Jacob's two most recent food's of choice are corn & peanut butter toast! This boy eats corn like it's going out of style!! He has been eating about 3-4 ears a day.  His other favorite is peanut butter on english muffin bread! What a crazy boy... he sure does love his favorites!!

Our Last SUMMER Weekend... IN CASEVILLE!

We had an awesome long weekend in Caseville. Doe, the kids & I went up on Thursday.... and Daddy came up on Thursday evening after work (he took Friday off!). Because Greg wouldn't be up till a little later on Thursday we decided to head out to Bad Axe for a little shopping. The kids were so good there (as usual.... even during our LONG excursions!). Gigi & Tete came up as did Uncle Tim & Aunt Cathy. We were able to go swimming at the pool in Port Austin, watch Uncle & Aunt Cathy fish, have a bonfire, Uncle caught a turtle for Jacob (the turtle was named by Jacob... SCHNOOKIE), enjoy our special peach cookies, have Jacob's POTTY PARTY complete with an M&M cake made by Tete, go canoeing (Jacob, Tracy, Greg, Cathy & Tim), enjoy the Ruffino's company on Sunday, and see Uncle Tom!! Aside from doing our fall jobs it was a very nice weekend. The weather was ABSOLUTELY perfect.

The "Junior Baker" in his adorable little chef's apron & hat from Tete for his POTTY PARTY! Tete had promised him an M&M cake after he was going on the potty with no diapers well it was suppose to happen on our vacation but since she was sick we decided to postpone it till everyone was back at the cottage!
Jacob with his M&M cake... look at his excitement!! Our little slice of watermelon!! (She got so many compliments this summer on this particular suit... even strangers on the beach loved it!)

"SCHNOOKIE"... I call Jacob & Grace Schnookems sometimes and I think thats how Jacob named his turtle... he would look at him and say "aww... he's so cute". Must be true about a face only a mother could love!Jacob in the canoe... he loved it. He sat so still and even helped me ore. The funny part was he was excited to go.... then when we got there he said he didn't want to go! The man handed him a small ore and then in he went! We saw 3 turtles and a few logs that Jacob thought were dinosaurs! We canoed out to the beach... then walked around, had a drink, took pictures & skipped some stones.

Greg, Jacob & Tim on our canoe trip!
Doe & Jacob showing me their sad faces at our end of the summer bonfire!! We are all so sad to see summer go!And these two faces are why I always have such a hard time going back to work!!

On a side bar... Grace gave up her pacifier during the day this weekend!! Starting on Sunday she only had it at nap and bedtime!! YEAH GRACE!!