Picture Catch Up

Since I have so been lacking in blogging lately, here are some pictures fromthe past little while. I actually have more that I need to put up that are from my phone (Andrew had the camera for church a lot so I didnt know where it was). But here are some from our regular camera. Most of them are just really goofy. Jack likes to help take the pictures.

Here he is at church. He was over at the clerks office with Andrew doing bishopric stuff.

Jackson and his best friend Emily. Im pretty sure she is his best friend (after us of course). He loves seeing her and almost always will choose her over me when we are visiting. They were being so cute together!

One night we were just playing around and he wanted to take pictures. This was the best one we got. Look at all those teeth! He has more trying to break through as well. I can feel the bottom side ones as well as the first molars trying to come through.

So cheesy!

Doesn't that face just melt your heart?

A moment to brag

I have to take a moment to brag about Andrew. This past week he had his first evaluation. Basically the principal comes in and watches him teach. Well, since Andrew's classroom is very different then the average classroom the principal just talked with him and asked him questions about what goes on in the classroom. That day, Andrew was telling me about it and told me that it went very well. Well, he had the follow up to the evaluation on Friday where the principal goes over his scores with him and makes comments. Andrew scored the highest he could on everything! The principal told Andrew that it would be extremely difficult for him to replace Andrew and that he really hopes he is planning on coming back for next year. He kept telling Andrew how he wished he could pay him $300,000 for the job he does because there are probably only 1% of people in the world who would be able to do the job that Andrew does! I knew Andrew did great and I knew that the district special ed supervisor loved him, but it is also good to know that the principal of the school where he works loves him and wants him back. Gotta love job security! Way to go Andrew! (I guess I should mention that Andrew is a teacher for autistic children. They are all severe autistic and can not even speak).

Thankful

Boy am I so thankful for my two boys! The past two weeks I haven't felt that great. Between every part of my body aching all the time and sleeping maybe 3-4 hours at night it has been difficult for me to do everything that I usually do during the day. Andrew is so great though. He doesn't mind if in the middle of the night I turn on the tv, take a shower, basically do whatever I need to to be able to sleep. He also has been helping so much around the house when he gets home from school.
Jackson is the best kid in the world. Holy cow! Every morning we all are up by about 6 (if Im lucky its 6:30). Seeing as how I did not sleep very well the previous night, by about 8:00 I can barely keep my eyes open. I turn on Handy Manny on disney channel and Jack watches that and plays while I doze a little (I never get into a super deep sleep, I can always hear whats going on, but it definitely helps me get through until Jacks nap). He is so good at playing by himself when needed. Actually he sometimes just chooses to play by himself. How could I not be so thankful for these two guys!

Relief

I went to the doctor yesterday and measured at 35 weeks (Im 33). What a relief this is to me. I measured 2 weeks ahead the entire time with Jack and he was 7 lbs 12 oz. My dr thinks that it is because of how high I carry. Boy am I relieved that Kenadi shouldnt be huge!

A Surprise from Andrew & Jackson

One of Jackson's favorite "toys" are my measuring cups & spoons. A while back I told Andrew that someday I want a nice stainless steel set that are just mine and I dont share with Jack (the ones I have now are just plastic ones that work just fine). Anyways, yesterday, Andrew came home and said that him and Jackson wanted to take me to go get a surprise. Andrew said that he had read reviews and that what him and Jackson wanted to get me were the best and will last a lifetime. He said that him and Jackson talked about it last night and Jackson said that they should do it. So anyways, Andrew wont tell me where we were going and I had no idea what it would be that he would get me that would last a lifetime. Well, we end up at the RiverWoods and he pulls in front of Williams-Sonoma. I still had NO idea what we would be getting at Williams-Sonoma. I love this store so told Andrew that I was going to look around (and dream of all the cool pots and pans and gadgets that I can't afford). As Im looking he picks up the set of measuring cups and measuring spoons and told me that he was buying me those. Man, was I excited! I know kind of lame to be so excited about measuring cups and spoons, but they are so pretty!! The ones we have I had got in highschool. Anyways, here are my fancy new measuring cups and spoons that Jack will not be playing with.

Happy 15 months to Jack!

  Jack turned 15 months on the 1st. Man, he is getting old! To celebrate, first he got a new haircut! Andrew cut his hair and Jack didnt even cry! Yay for him! His hair was getting kind of long and it was coming over his ears (I cant stand that!) so Andrew sat him on a little stool in our bathroom and cut it. We were both amazed that he didnt cry and that he actually sat pretty still for him. The last time we cut his hair he was screaming bloody murder. Anyways, he is looking super handsome now.
  Also, we moved him into a toddler bed. We had set his toddler bed up about a month ago but just decided to finally make the switch. The first two nights we gently put him to bed. One of us stayed in there with him until he fell asleep. On the third night, I was too tired and figured maybe it would be better if we werent in there because we never stay in his roomwhen he is going to sleep. We put the baby gate up in his doorway so we could keep his door open and still be able to hear him, put him in his bed and let him be. Sure he cried, he usually cries when we put him to bed (I think he thinks we are partying out here, little does he know we are in bed too!), but he only cried for about 10 minutes and then was fast asleep in his little bed. The next day I decided that I would try using it for naps. We werent quite sure how he would handle taking a nap in his bed, but he actually did great. He stayed in it most of the time. It was quite funny though. I went back to his room a couple of times to tell him to get back into bed because he was playing with his toys. Well, he was being quite but I heard a kind of clicking/knocking sound. I thought maybe he was playing with teh blinds so I peeked my head around the corner and what did I see? Oh he was playing with one of his toys IN his bed. Smarty pants! He knew he was supposed to be in bed but I didnt say anything about not having toys in bed also. I wish I had had my camera because his face was priceless. When he saw that I was looking he looked over at me and gave me the hugest grin. It was like he was saying, "Hey, you didnt tell me I couldnt bring toys in so dont get mad at me!" That definitely gave me a laugh. I went in and told him that it was time to sleep and put his toy away, and sure he got a little mad but a couple minutes later he was out. We packed up the pack n play last night so it is now all about the toddler bed.
  We started potty training yesterday as well. Yesterday went pretty well. He had gone poop and pee in his little potty and had only had two accidents! Well, until Andrew came home. I dont know what happened but after Andrew came home Jack didnt want to sit on the potty and became afraid of peeing again. Yes, he gets afraid of peeing. But this morning he was back to being better and wanting to sit on the potty so thats good and he remembers the sign for "potty" so that is good as well.  We had to take him to the doctor for his 15 month check up so our schedule has been a little off, but we will start back up working on it right after his nap. I am hoping I can get him daytime trained before Kenadi gets here. Not only will that save money in diapers but also me changing diapers (probably my least favorite parent duty).
  Oh, I almost forgot, I need to give his stats from his doctors appointment. His doctor said that he is doing wonderful and that since he is growing so well he doesnt need to come back until 24 months! Wahoo! Anyways, here they are:

Weight: 23 lbs- 29%

Length: 31 inches- 47.96%

Head Circumfrence: 19 inches- 80%

So, he still isnt a very big kid, but thats alright. He is definitely growing! There arent a lot of pictures for today, but I do have two from just right now. I had put him in his room so he could take a nap. He wasnt very happy about it and just wanted to play but he is super tired. Well, he decided he didnt want to sleep in bed so he is sleeping on the floor. I actually think it is because of the super soft blue body pillow. Maybe I should try putting that on his bed.

Happy New Year!

For New Years Eve we went up to Emily's parents house with Emily & Dylan (obviously), Eric & Cynthia, and Mckay & Chelsea. We pretty much just hung out, ate lots of tasty food, and played rockband. Jack even got to stay up until 10:00. He did great staying up that late, but by that time he was starting to get a little restless and tired. Luckily we had brough his pack and play and put it in a bedroom and within a few minutes he was asleep. Unfortunately, I did not bring my camera in, even though it was in the car, so I dont have any pictures. I will need to steal some from Emily or Cynthia. I was also pretty amazed that Andrew & I were both able to stay awake the whole time! It was pretty amazing if you ask me.

Where has the time gone

   I just need to say, I dont know where the time has gone. For the past month or so Ive been saying I am 28 weeks. When I was at my dr appointment today I was measuring large- like 35 weeks and so I was really starting to panic thinking I was measuring 7 weeks ahead. Well, Im not measuring that far ahead. I am really 31 weeks so that isnt too bad (what a relief). Anyways, my dr thinks part of it was she was sitting up pretty high, but I go back in 2 weeks so we will see where I am at then. Anyways, realizing that I am 31 weeks means there are only 9 weeks between now and my due date. Holy Moly Cow!! I dont know where the time has gone. I am so ready to be done being pregnant, but at the same point I feel like we need more time. 2 months before she is coming. Oh man...am I old enough to have 2 kids??
   Anyways, here are some pictures that I forgot to put up. A couple weeks ago my grandma (& grandpa, but we all know that it was really grandma) sent us a package and there were tons of packing peanuts. Well, Jackson thought that this was great and went to town. He dumped the box out and was playing around. As you can see, Andrew also got in on the action.

And here are a couple pictures just because. Our son is so our son. He LOVES ice cream (and candy, cookies, brownies- basically anything with sugar in it). I love that he is able to feed himself now. It has been a grand thing.

Dancing With Pablo

So Christina's sister Bobbie wanted a video of Jackson dancing with Pablo (a doll that sings and dances that Jackson usually dances with from the TV show The Backyardigans). So I started filming him and this is what happened. Enjoy.

Basketball Video

Here is a short video of Jackson dunking his basketball.

Christmas Morning

Here are some more pictures of Jack from this morning. He was quite excited about all the candy in his stocking. He insisted on eating some first thing.

Then he realized that there were more stockings, so he decided to check Andrew's and mine out and see what he could find.

By his rocking horse that grandma and grandpa Trapp gave him. He still isnt sure about sitting on it, although that could be from his bad diaper rash that he has right now, but he loves to pet him and hear him make his noises.

Playing with his blocks from Santa.

New shirt from Mom & Dad. He wasn't too excited about opening our presents to him. Most of them were clothes- thats what happens when you're only one and can't ask for anything and have gone through a growth spurt.

Opening a present from Mom and Dad. He was definitely more excited about this one.

He then got even more excited to open presents. This is him opening his present from his Great Grandma & Great Grandpa Trapp.

I need to mention that in no way did Andrew and I help him with these next two poses.

He found the candy again.

Jackson shooting his basketball into his new basketball hoop.

Jack on Christmas Eve

This is Jack on Christmas Eve. He was playing with the plastic lid from the turkey roasting pan from Thanksgiving. He thinks its funny to press his face up against anything clear (this lid, the bathroom doors, windows, mirrors etc).

He gets so excited when he sees the Christmas tree. We dont know where he learned this from, but he always covers his mouth in surprise. We think its soo cute!

Opening his first Christmas present. It is tradition to get new pjs on Christmas Eve. We had just gotten home from looking at Christmas lights so he was a little drowsy, but he eventually woke up and was being quite silly. Hence showing us the pants on his head.

Merry Christmas

We had our Christmas cards done and ready to be sent, but they didnt get sent (yet). So Merry Christmas!

Lots of Posts

Okay, I have finally updated the blog. Since it has been so long since I have done so there are 5 posts below this one. Make sure to go down to the 5th post because thats where our fall family pictures are and they are SO good!

Great Grandpa Olson's Birthday

November 25 my great grandpa celebrated his 91st birthday. We went up to see him that day. When we got there he told us that he had three things for us to do. We ask him what they are and he looks at me and says, "I need you to change my sheets." Okay no big deal, I always change them for him. Then he looks at Andrew and says, "I need you to put in Junes picture show" (he is referring to the video that was put together for my great grandmas funeral). Thats all he says, so then we ask him what the third thing is. He says, pointing to Jackson, I need a big hug from him. For the first little bit Jackson was too busy wandering around and looking at everything like he does. But when we were getting to leave he went and gave grandpa a big hug. He put his head on his shoulder and patted his back. Here is a picture of the two of them.

Jackson and grandpa sure are becoming buddies. Since I stopped working, Jack and I try and go up at least one time during the week to see him. One week when we went up I needed to finish pruning the flowers in the backyard. I wanted to get it done before it snowed again because I knew it would never leave after that. Well, Jackson and grandpa stayed playing together. After awhile, Jack was starting to get tired and fussy so grandpa and him walked all the way to the back of the yard to come see me. It was so cute to see the two of them walking together holding hands. They came out just as I was finishing up. So I quickly finished and we all started to walk back. I was holding the rake, clippers, and pulling the garbage can so Jack was left to walk by himself with grandpa. Well, he wasnt too happy about that, so grandpa picked him up and carried him halfway back. Now, this doesnt sound like much, but my grandpa has had a really bad back for a long time and as he says, Jack is a ton of lead, and he has a big backyard. So for him to walk that far carrying Jack was quite the show of love. It was the cutest thing to see the two of them. Once he got half way and Jack had settled down, he set him down and took him by the hand and they walked the rest of the way together. It was one of the sweetest things I have ever seen. I dont know what it was, but for some reason seeing them together like that was just really touching.

Halloween For Reals

Okay, so my posts are so all out of order but at least they are up. Andrew was able to recover the halloween pictures (thank goodness, I was very disappointed in losing them). Anyways, here are pictures of Jackson eating the pumpkin and helping carve.

Halloween & Thanksgiving

Well, the Halloween pictures were inadvertently deleted so I can not show those. They were hilarious though. Jackson enjoyed carving pumpkins- well he liked to eat the pumpkin. He kept grabbing the tops and chewing on them. He would also get in and try to dig the guts out but instead of just throwing it in the bag he would taste a little bit. He was so funny to watch.
Onto Thanksgiving. As mentioned before Andrew's brother Dan and his family came down. It was so fun to see them. This was the second time since Andrew and I have been married that we have been able to spend time with them. They were living up in Alaska before moving to Idaho so thats why we did not see them. I do need to mention that I managed to make my first turkey and not undercook it or overcook it (Sharryll did help me at the end figure out when it was done). It turned out quite tasty too, if I can say that. Most of these pictures are from when we went up to Temple Square to see the lights. It was a really cold night, but it was so fun to see all the lights.   

Jack & Tyler
Sharryll, Dan and TylerTylerJack & Tyler

Andrew, Jack, Me, Sharryll, Tyler, Dan

New Place & Updating in General

  This is going to be a lot of writing and probably no pictures because I am on Andrew's work computer and we dont have any, but if you look at the previous post you will see all of our beautiful pictures taken by the wonderful Emily.
  At the beginning of November, we moved into a new apartment. We have enjoyed many aspects of this. First off, I no longer work. This leaves much more time for cooking and cleaning and playing with Jack. We also love having 2 bathrooms. No more having to wait to use the bathroom (not that that happened too often). Jackson loves having his own room Im pretty sure. Almost every morning after breakfast we go in there and play. Can I just say how nice it is when I wake up in the middle of the night unable to sleep in bed I can actually go out to the living room and turn on a movie or something? This past week I have done it twice and oh man, it makes me so happy that I can actually do things in the middle of the night and not just be stranded to my bedroom because otherwise I would wake up Jack.
  In Jackson updates- he is now 14 almost 15 months. He loves to read books (he will even read them to you), loves to get into the kitchen cupboards and drawers. Usually its the baking drawer and he pulls out the measuring cups, measuring spoons, whisks and spatulas. I really dont mind until I go to make something and of course the things that I need are gone. But thats alright, it keeps him happy. He has also started to enjoy helping me bake. He likes to sit on the counter watching the mixer. He is good at throwing things away- even when we dont ask him to. Sometimes, we will throw his diaper to the trash can and miss and Jackson will go and throw it away for us without us saying anything. Other times he will take his socks off and throw those away. We are still trying to teach him that keeping his socks on is beneficial- he has yet to agree with us. He loves music and dancing and playing the piano. My lovely sister Bobbie had left some toys for him when she moved to England. One is a dancing penguin from the Backyardigans (Ive never seen this show and I dont want to). The penguin is quite entertaining for Jack and he sings and dances along with him. Sometime I will put a video up of him with Pablo. There is also Elmo (even more annoying than Pablo). He dances and sings as well. As annoying as these toys are, it is too funny to take the batteries out or turn them off. He is talking more and more. Right now his favorite word is Istmas Ree (christmas tree). Right now, any tree is a Christmas Tree and he delights in letting us know. It is SO CUTE to hear him say it. He gets SO excited and his voice goes a little higher. He also can say mom (although he seems to only say this when he is upset), dad (he says this one all the time)- quick side note, we have a large collage picture frame on our bedroom floor with pictures of Andrew & I and Jackson will go and point out mom and dad for me- Jesus, ball, book. Those are pretty much is main words but he babbles like no other. If only we could understand all those other babbles. Oh he also sings- usually along with the radio in the car while dancing in his carseat- also very funny. He has also learned that if we can do it, he probably can too. This just started a couple of weeks ago. It started with the piano. He saw us open it up and one day he just went and opened it. Unfortunately, he has not forgotten how to do it either. He also learned how to wind the large snowglobe and music box so the music will play. It made Andrew and I kind of laugh because he loves to play with this large snowglobe that we have (its a winter wonderland scene) and one night we had it on the floor for him to watch and he kept pointing to it and having us wind it up so the music would play, and then instead of asking us, he did it by himself. Speaking of learning things, he just learned how to climb up on our rocker, and anything else that is low enough for him to get his leg up on. Not such a great thing because the kid has no fear. He will stand and jump and dive off of it (well he tries to dive off of it, we try to be close by to catch him). Im sure there is much more that has happened with Jack in the past couple of months that I have not blogged but at the moment I can not think of it (I'll just blame being pregnant). When I think of it, I will write about it.
Pregnancy update- I am now 29 weeks, WAHOO 11 weeks to go! We are getting excited but can't believe how fast it has gone. Everything is pretty good with this one for the most part. Except she likes to move, A LOT and she likes to sit on my siatic nerve. Not so comfortable. But thats alright, it'll be worth it in the end.
  Andrew is really enjoying his job. It definitely has its challenges but he seems very positive about it. The good news is that his supervisor asked him about coming back next year and wanting him to. Always a good thing to have some job security. He has also started a masters program. I can't remember if I had wrote about him getting a job as a basketball coach, but if I didnt he did and if I did say something he didnt take it. The practices were going to be at like 7 at night (maybe 8 I cant remember). So he decided that right now he likes to actually see Jack and I so it just isnt very possible to do both. Not to mention that he is also still in the bishopric and they usually have at least 1 night during the week that they go do something. He is still enjoying his calling in the bishopric. It definitely brings about some challenges but its fun. It will be weird to go back to a regular ward. A lot of people keep asking what I will do when Jackson is able to go into nursery (that happens in April when he is 18 months) and I have Kenadi. Honestly, Im not quite sure. We are playing that one by ear. Im guessing I will probably go every other week to the different wards but we will see what happens.
  Well, I think that that is all for now, I have to get on the other computer so that I can post about our Halloween and Thanksgiving. Dan (Andrew's brother), Sharryll & Tyler came down for Thanksgiving and we had a lot of fun and got some cute pictures of the boys. So that'll come a little later when I decide to get on the other computer.