3 Years

Yesterday we celebrated Jacob's 3rd birthday! When he got up in the morning, I asked him what he wanted for breakfast. He told me he wanted pancakes. So here he is, the birthday boy and his birthday pancakes!The weather was great for Jacob's third birthday and he and Levi decided to have a game of soccer before his party. (We are now in the phase of 'great' smiles from a 3 year old!)

In the evening, we had grandparents over for a little party with ice cream cake. Jacob had a great time opening his presents and playing with all of his new things. Unfortunately, he opened his favorite present first, so we had to do a lot of coaxing to get him to open other things.

Levi got Jacob some giant blocks to build things with.

G&G Jones gave Jacob a scooter. It's nice that we have room for him to practice riding it inside the house so maybe next year when it's nice outside he'll be a pro at riding it.

G&G Smith wanted something that was a little more inter-active so they got him a little ball throwing/catching game. Jacob loves to throw balls so this was a hit too.

Brad wanted to get Jacob a fire engine. It came complete with a firefighter and Jacob has been in love! He even took the whole truck to bed with him last night. I'm not sure how comfortable it is to sleep with a fire engine, but Jacob wasn't complaining!

Jacob, showing his version of "3"!

The cake. I thought about decorating a cake like so many awesome mothers do. I even borrowed a Lightning McQueen cake pan. Then when I read the directions and saw how much work it was going to be, Brad and I opted for easy and store bought! Props to all you moms out there who take the time to make and decorate awesome cakes for your kids.

A little about Jacob:
Jacob is such a funny kid to have around. He loves to dance and sing. His favorite music is rock/pop music. He loves 'Say Hey (I Love You)' by Michael Franti, 'Clumsy' by Fergie, and 'I Got A Feeling' by Black-Eyed Peas to name a few. He doesn't like John Denver or Norah Jones at all. He definitely knows what kind of music is HIS music.

He has a thing with carrying around his keys and his wallet. The thing is, they are fake. But he carries one in each hand everywhere he goes. Before he gets into his car seat, he has to put them in the cup holder. Before he eats dinner, he has to put them on the table. When we're going to a store he will often ask me to hold his keys and his wallet and will then 'hand' them to me. Also, when we're getting ready to leave, if he's forgotten his keys and his wallet, he will go back inside for them. One day we were at the park and he fell down. When I saw him on the ground, both of his little fists were still balled up instead of with them open to catch his fall. I just had to assume he still had ahold of his precious keys and wallet!

He loves having Levi as a little brother and loves making him laugh. Jacob has always enjoyed an audience and it's nice to have a built-in one with his little brother.

Jacob, we love you and are so glad you're ours. You make us smile and laugh at many of your antics. Whenever I am unhappy, Jacob will come over to me and smile really big and say, "You happy Mommy?" He thinks he smile is all I would need to make me happy. Luckily, most of the time this works. Love you little Bud!

6 Months!

On the 7th Levi turned 6 months old! I can't believe how quickly these past six months have gone. Levi is now fully sitting up on his own and enjoys playing with Jacob. He learned to roll from his back to his tummy at about 5 1/2 months old.The first time he did it, of course, was in his bed. Why do kids do that? They don't really want to be on their tummies, but they turn onto them in their beds when they can't be helped. Oh well, he's getting pretty good at rolling both ways so he can usually get himself back onto his back if he wants to.

I took Levi for his six month check up on the 12th. He weighed 15 lb. 6 oz, which is the 15th % and was 26 inches long, the 40th %. He's lost a little bit in his percentiles, but we're still very happy with his growth.

He started fruits and vegetables just a few days before he turned 6 months. He actually enjoys them for the most part. The worst part about them is that Levi is still spitting up. He doesn't do it quite as much as he used to, but it seems I'm always trying to get an orange stain out of my carpet (why are all baby foods orange in color?). We figure when Levi's finally done spitting up, we'll have to get the carpets cleaned :)

Levi is still doing great at sleeping at night. Most nights he sleeps between 9-12 hours without waking. He goes to be at 8:00 every night. He loves to have a routine for bedtime and when it's 8:00, he just conks out. It's kind of nice to have one kid who likes to sleep :)

Levi loves to play in the bathtub with Jacob and just giggles at all of Jacob's silly noises. He is really good about playing with Jacob, since Jacob often ends up beating on him somehow. Thankfully we have avoided any major beat up issues and there haven't been any black eyes or bloody noses as a result of the two of them playing together. One of their favorite games is to play horsey with Jacob being the horse. Brad holds Levi on top of Jacob while they ride around the house. Jacob laughs and Levi just giggles the whole time!


Levi, we're so thankful you came to our family and that you're growing so well and are a healthy, happy boy!

Vacuum Help

So I'm trying to keep my house clean, right? I'm mid stride in vacuuming my bedroom and the vacuum stops. I think maybe I've pulled the cord out of the plug. Nope, still plugged in. Maybe the power in the house went off. Nope radio and lights still working. Maybe my cord hit the on/off switch at the bottom of the vacuum. I try turning it back on. Nope, nothing! My vacuum is dead.

So, now I have the great honor of purchasing a new one! I'm kind of excited to get a nice vacuum. Here are the two I've heard are great:


The Dyson Or the 8 lb. Oreck

Do any of you have one of these and what would your pick be (and why)? I'd like any help I can get as I want a new (and nice) vacuum soon!