tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-174594982024-03-13T10:09:20.603-05:00The Stevens FamilyChelseahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554143752763142178noreply@blogger.comBlogger233125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17459498.post-68447458283117677472010-03-13T09:03:00.000-06:002010-03-13T16:37:21.697-06:00Eagles!As an effort to get the boys some fresh air last week, I thought we'd go out and do some eagle watching. We took a drive to the Lock and Dam north of Burlington (I don't know it's number), and immediately saw our first eagle as we drove up the road to the dam. It was hanging around a deer corpse on the side of the road, and flew up and over our car as we drove down the road. It was a great "first sighting" and got the boys very excited about seeing more eagles.<br />
We were the only ones there that day, so the boys were able to run free and stretch their legs a bit. There weren't huge amounts of eagles, but it was enough for us! We had so much fun that we went back over the weekend with daddy, and even made a trip to Keokuk to see if we could have some better luck. <br />
I've been practicing with a new camera, so this was a great opportunity to try out my zoom lens. Enjoy!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyTtk7fPZnANJzt63CWcZp0zFfwYXMWKKUAko0Bv-PiPppqWK8T9w1ltXRaTAkYUG4H03kY4ia1-x5AnbHkOWGRS6kYGBca2ErTXH4dAcsmPSK7SovLTfOA9vT0kEg2VxgaZst/s1600-h/045.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyTtk7fPZnANJzt63CWcZp0zFfwYXMWKKUAko0Bv-PiPppqWK8T9w1ltXRaTAkYUG4H03kY4ia1-x5AnbHkOWGRS6kYGBca2ErTXH4dAcsmPSK7SovLTfOA9vT0kEg2VxgaZst/s400/045.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>Chelseahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554143752763142178noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17459498.post-14878935301628856182010-03-12T10:00:00.004-06:002010-03-13T16:34:36.027-06:00The House's "New Year Update"A bit later each year, but better late than never, right? A few years ago I made a giant To Do list for our house and I've tried to update it yearly to reflect what we've accomplished.<br /><p>Here is the key:</p><p><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Red: Accomplished in 2007</span><br /></p><p><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);">Blue: Accomplished in 2008</span><br /></p><p><span style="color: rgb(51, 204, 0);">Green: Accomplished in 2009</span></p><p>Black: To Do</p><p><br /></p><p>Jayden's Room - <span style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);">NOW the "Toy Room"</span><br /></p><ul><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Touch up floor paint</li><li style="color: rgb(51, 204, 0);">Install and paint quarter round and floor trim</li><li>Finish shelving <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">(this is partly done)</span><br /></li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Install dimmer switch</li><li style="color: rgb(51, 102, 255);">Blank covers for obsolete outlets</li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Install lighting in closet</li><li>Paint door</li></ul><p>Master Bedroom</p><ul style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><li>One more coat of paint on walls</li><li>Edging on ceiling</li><li>Plate covers</li><li>Finish Trim</li><li>Install Door</li><li>Install closet lights</li><li>Run cable to our room</li></ul><p>Upstairs Hallway</p><ul><li style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);">Finish patching cracks</li><li style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);">Sand</li><li>Primer and paint <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">ceilings </span>and walls</li><li style="color: rgb(51, 204, 255);">Install lighting</li><li style="color: rgb(51, 204, 255);">Switch plate covers</li><li>Paint woodwork</li><li>Install shelving</li></ul><p>Kid's Bath</p><ul style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><li>Finish Floor</li><li>Plumbing</li><li>Order faucet for tub</li><li>Sand walls</li><li>Primer and Paint walls and ceiling</li><li>Finish painting bead board</li><li>Put up trim</li><li>Put up and finish door</li><li>Install Lighting</li><li>Hang medicine cabinet</li></ul><p>Stairway</p><ul><li style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);">Sand, primer, paint walls and ceiling</li><li>Sand and varnish woodwork<span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"> (this is partly done)</span><br /></li></ul><p>Living Room</p><ul><li>Finish woodwork</li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Finish installing built in media cabinet</li><li>Finish dresser</li><li>Finish and <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">install french doors</span></li><li style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);">Touch up paint</li></ul><p>Family Room - <span style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);">This is now the Dining Room</span><br /></p><ul><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Touch up paint</li><li>Put up woodwork</li><li>Finish woodwork</li><li>Install built in bookshelves</li></ul><p>Dining Room - <span style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);">This is now the Family Room</span><br /></p><ul><li>One more coat of regular paint</li><li>Top coat paints</li><li>Woodwork</li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Switch plate covers</li><li>Door on closet</li></ul><p>Half bath</p><ul><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Put in ceiling</li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Plaster, sand, primer, and paint walls and ceiling</li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Paint bead board and woodwork</li><li><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Plate covers</span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);">(all but the lightswitch)</span><br /></li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Hang medicine cabinet</li></ul><p>Kitchen</p><ul><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Electrical</li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Plumbing</li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Drywall walls and ceiling</li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Plaster, Sand, Primer and paint walls and ceiling</li><li>Install and paint woodwork</li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Sand and varnish floor <--We painted instead </li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Install lighting</li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Install cabinets</li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Install appliances</li></ul><p>Outside</p><ul><li style="color: rgb(51, 204, 255);">Scrape paint</li><li>Primer <span style="color: rgb(51, 204, 255);">(partial!)</span><br /></li><li>Paint <span style="color: rgb(51, 204, 255);">(partial!)</span><br /></li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Begin landscaping</li><li style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Finish Bay Windows</li><li style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Porch Floor <span style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);">(partial!)</span><br /></li><li style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Straighten Porch <span style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);">(partial!)</span><br /></li></ul>Gavin's Room - <span style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);">NOW the "Boy's Bedroom"</span><br /><ul><li>Burn paint off closet door and bedroom door</li><li>Primer doors</li><li>Paint doors</li><li style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);">Fix floor</li><li style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);">Install quarter round</li><li style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);">Touch up wall<br /></li></ul><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji3-bZCXaa6DP26qElN7oSd-wPJAWwnuBwd37t6Bfd6l_JDaPmOm3gV2H17HxwaofM6k_x-LBDPklXAmAIGT2Ip6yC3FSMUOJWbB5tca3n5d9yU-QMm-6Lqu2D2r6q2WY0bLqh/s1600-h/034.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 267px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji3-bZCXaa6DP26qElN7oSd-wPJAWwnuBwd37t6Bfd6l_JDaPmOm3gV2H17HxwaofM6k_x-LBDPklXAmAIGT2Ip6yC3FSMUOJWbB5tca3n5d9yU-QMm-6Lqu2D2r6q2WY0bLqh/s400/034.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5447782483288636706" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:180%;">Here's to 2010!</span><br /></div>Chelseahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554143752763142178noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17459498.post-40346511003174358842009-10-10T07:41:00.001-05:002010-03-13T16:34:56.508-06:00Preschool Picture<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvSD3nINwUV8N1iruBoNH1QAfKwbV3UmnxmvtmCJY3LXeKYBB-jGxAUu2Xsx5xdVj3TphqZ_mLdQE4I863Gh_uGDMPV0mE4k7WW5byzD14jJsbeGC841iAtxQ398vqoEkVWule/s1600-h/001.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 327px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvSD3nINwUV8N1iruBoNH1QAfKwbV3UmnxmvtmCJY3LXeKYBB-jGxAUu2Xsx5xdVj3TphqZ_mLdQE4I863Gh_uGDMPV0mE4k7WW5byzD14jJsbeGC841iAtxQ398vqoEkVWule/s400/001.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5390950787808967474" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Jayden's Preschool Picture<br /></div>Chelseahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554143752763142178noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17459498.post-35789839889662795792009-09-10T11:07:00.002-05:002010-03-13T16:34:56.515-06:00First Day of PreschoolOn Tuesday, Jayden had his first day of preschool. He's been so excited about starting school, he was bouncing off the walls all morning. He'll be going every Tuesday, Thursday and Friday afternoon. We got out the door about a half hour early, so we took the time to get a few pictures. <br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkZi2ecJshPqMAhwcBrA5bCujegYXiPrmpNCejIUMLR7DaCY7poUsmQFehM1GmtGOIc8ej_NBIYoCl5_0CcOKm2pt_ZYOQOl8yDthmId_FmPj4MgMmF6YAi4qx8qCxSF956Pk-/s1600-h/102+%282%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkZi2ecJshPqMAhwcBrA5bCujegYXiPrmpNCejIUMLR7DaCY7poUsmQFehM1GmtGOIc8ej_NBIYoCl5_0CcOKm2pt_ZYOQOl8yDthmId_FmPj4MgMmF6YAi4qx8qCxSF956Pk-/s400/102+%282%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5379872111643109330" border="0" /></a>This picture was his idea. He wanted a picture in front of the tree like Ethan...I'm not exactly sure what that means, but I'm sure it means something. <br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiN8Yau7DzsakeBlLCpNP0aY0zR2iJ82AglFqEOw3hLHzGr8gS2z7lRfvQ8Dwmk5p0W8Q6fETIMshA2Qa5jZfALsTE4Doogn17TQv7Iw37pGg3NxLZrYC4ZxbAFXXwqY4h-b01/s1600-h/101+%282%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiN8Yau7DzsakeBlLCpNP0aY0zR2iJ82AglFqEOw3hLHzGr8gS2z7lRfvQ8Dwmk5p0W8Q6fETIMshA2Qa5jZfALsTE4Doogn17TQv7Iw37pGg3NxLZrYC4ZxbAFXXwqY4h-b01/s400/101+%282%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5379872123512836114" border="0" /></a><br />Here we are heading out the door. Notice the Rock N Roll sign he's doing with his right hand.<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNhjq9KZCaSD4Par-iKSHzpVwadzrtO2q8JEylwfitxRhaeXhJA1CVQDGx9hUxJvtxYuMfE1sh5_1mxLU4tBVR3PVuAFLmiofZtjLUrInQrwMf1XUuzzkNtMS3GIZHeIUcFz4U/s1600-h/104+%282%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNhjq9KZCaSD4Par-iKSHzpVwadzrtO2q8JEylwfitxRhaeXhJA1CVQDGx9hUxJvtxYuMfE1sh5_1mxLU4tBVR3PVuAFLmiofZtjLUrInQrwMf1XUuzzkNtMS3GIZHeIUcFz4U/s400/104+%282%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5379872131184602242" border="0" /></a><br />In front of his new school!<br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggRchy6ox6wAkIhmpKRGFU_nrdGhirnc4TuKJ8Cprs2muJlbA8hUBc4rlhT9DIdo0TuzxYzZIos9lmPHwoKXa1qCasSF2EBU50_RuJM_2Kaf7U6FZ8R2N-590m9AfwtFtwgY6u/s1600-h/105+%282%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggRchy6ox6wAkIhmpKRGFU_nrdGhirnc4TuKJ8Cprs2muJlbA8hUBc4rlhT9DIdo0TuzxYzZIos9lmPHwoKXa1qCasSF2EBU50_RuJM_2Kaf7U6FZ8R2N-590m9AfwtFtwgY6u/s400/105+%282%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5379872143616943074" border="0" /></a><br />The teachers had name tags for all of the kids, Jayden was pretty happy to wear his. <br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfJgsyItl-f7AhDXYRZWt7aF_Tkekr6FTJisPw721DZle_PrRoBbGpghs8kwMxYOMWoxMt-TPxbkCDItwcuFqi8cwAdX9tVUCmTTqrWpTnm6CjAhVf-x-Xs_k1j_dHfDSFoPzJ/s1600-h/106+%282%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 286px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfJgsyItl-f7AhDXYRZWt7aF_Tkekr6FTJisPw721DZle_PrRoBbGpghs8kwMxYOMWoxMt-TPxbkCDItwcuFqi8cwAdX9tVUCmTTqrWpTnm6CjAhVf-x-Xs_k1j_dHfDSFoPzJ/s400/106+%282%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5379872151393598338" border="0" /></a>The minute we walked through the door, Jayden took off on his own. While the other kids were hanging on their parents legs, I was trying to keep up with Jayden. When I told him Bye, he didn't even look my way to tell me goodbye...I guess this is good?<br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">Jayden didn't give very many details on the day. When I'd ask him a question, he'd just shrug his shoulders. From what I could gather over the last couple of days, they read a book about a bird, Spongebob was on the tv somewhere, they had Goldfish Crackers for a snack, and they practiced something. He just told me that they're going to McDonalds today. So, who knows. <br />After school, we went to the doctor for his physical. Jayden is not a good kid to take to the doctor. We'll just leave it at that. <br />We finished the day with a trip to Dairy Queen, Jayden had some money from Grandma and Grandpa and decided he wanted to go for ice cream. <br />For the most part, it was a good day (if I can black the memory of the doctors office out of my memory), and he is very excited to go back. I think I've answered "Are you SO Happy I go to school now?" about 50 times since Tuesday, which just tells me that he is so happy. He has also proclamed that he can read the big chapter books because he goes to school now as he sat down to "read" the Series of Unfortunate Events.<br />So far, I think we're off to a great start!<br /></div></div>Chelseahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554143752763142178noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17459498.post-41245787703100631942009-09-09T10:54:00.006-05:002010-03-13T16:35:09.390-06:00Porch ProgressWe've come a bit farther from out previous Porch Demo post, so I thought I'd share!<br /><br /><div style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3nN6XdOJDLXUDw0xoBdjXICEpn0KxR2V5o-qeWVNZGmQ8tmc2_ZLMj9KkXT6xs0tpxzaKMbF5AGNu8j70axR0kfOplROYadxC_dYcaAL5llEWALnaY-G7DyLbqqMm3MWN2oJ4/s1600-h/001.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3nN6XdOJDLXUDw0xoBdjXICEpn0KxR2V5o-qeWVNZGmQ8tmc2_ZLMj9KkXT6xs0tpxzaKMbF5AGNu8j70axR0kfOplROYadxC_dYcaAL5llEWALnaY-G7DyLbqqMm3MWN2oJ4/s400/001.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5379545579348762354" border="0" /></a>To start with, the old footings had to be pulled out, which were huge stones. Holes were dug, and new footers were pored. From there, we had to get some new green treated lumber to rebuild the frame. (I'll say "we" a lot here, but I really haven't done anything on the porch, "we" means Josh, my mom, and my Uncle Perry)<img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-tbGy1y2vknXtaNfeA4Wohp8wK-iH_DbbQ37N04jJw2YTD5uuZ48zVhNyAk7HYkHQDf1a6eylhEswXQu28KZk0KoNw6AVqiz6EAUzo87zhdYO6MhaP_I6PGm3u3htGisQ8tgN/s400/002.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5379545570468209266" border="0" /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-tbGy1y2vknXtaNfeA4Wohp8wK-iH_DbbQ37N04jJw2YTD5uuZ48zVhNyAk7HYkHQDf1a6eylhEswXQu28KZk0KoNw6AVqiz6EAUzo87zhdYO6MhaP_I6PGm3u3htGisQ8tgN/s1600-h/002.JPG"></a><div style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;">Nice and straight!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIoNY31llcUUvMHUlzJJKvnBIxA9mF-kUnGb6kulaZWFGuXl9qoywQqRr_PdzDRZ_YtcyjiwOCqJ5lQe-DFWg2iqkBclo4UWLPezECmExPwYlHQE7-2kAg8Uc0xZWZX1PH8onB/s1600-h/011.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIoNY31llcUUvMHUlzJJKvnBIxA9mF-kUnGb6kulaZWFGuXl9qoywQqRr_PdzDRZ_YtcyjiwOCqJ5lQe-DFWg2iqkBclo4UWLPezECmExPwYlHQE7-2kAg8Uc0xZWZX1PH8onB/s400/011.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5379544184997800658" border="0" /></a><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAm-BMqGLx_fQTuJJdFl7o0Kvj_x8XVZHFkvEzcKydJGFUnLAWnyYzxV_DGbjsRT6e2iz-YZQKDoL9M6rnfqQ1iHiSmL2losYxb7UMS5z7F5-5Rm8CNKLLGlhNuXF5ct_dGgRY/s400/002+%282%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5379544989768291010" border="0" /></div><div style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;">After the new fram was built, we used some flooring that we got from my mom's building, and some from the Preservation Station to redo the floor. It is so much nicer to have a porch floor with a straight edge! Also, each peice of the porch that goes back up is stripped of the old paint, sanded, and primed before it goes up.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjep5ju0dAw1lrE6XIf_UzPZpIcePLyA0bSNcbVEuNeyHVCeTtYz5XtJxOIRVwURBGIVCJMzcWlhnZUl4jtczfCoRpJ9mbP10BbuCbarVL39SUVMHBWhL0_nDWBtlQX-xd-e8fs/s1600-h/008.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjep5ju0dAw1lrE6XIf_UzPZpIcePLyA0bSNcbVEuNeyHVCeTtYz5XtJxOIRVwURBGIVCJMzcWlhnZUl4jtczfCoRpJ9mbP10BbuCbarVL39SUVMHBWhL0_nDWBtlQX-xd-e8fs/s400/008.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5379544980606553890" border="0" /></a>The before and after of the porches arches.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0B0TUrqJDUTGNtN-RqSPrI25hRrZRWhq6gbz_RNS3M87c5uP6VswRuhdy4NL9zcqph0gqvcghtktAVP7YtoyXtPJ49pRpUaAtV8I-ikA2y-VpN4p-3T-GOL5uR4daQDul5tOz/s1600-h/034.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0B0TUrqJDUTGNtN-RqSPrI25hRrZRWhq6gbz_RNS3M87c5uP6VswRuhdy4NL9zcqph0gqvcghtktAVP7YtoyXtPJ49pRpUaAtV8I-ikA2y-VpN4p-3T-GOL5uR4daQDul5tOz/s400/034.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5379544972162423730" border="0" /></a>Yes, even the neighbor boys get put to work.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjukb4NPuzBj65H4N4WnbFeCWfjzmLSJ3bjvTgdlwUThQa8TySmoR_kj6yN0GBVdWPdQ_4YE9z7v-pJMR7UWiXJ-lQ94sWHMIRNOfTvYkhS6CQSRme9OcdocEDmpOGDgYrDaOxR/s1600-h/036.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjukb4NPuzBj65H4N4WnbFeCWfjzmLSJ3bjvTgdlwUThQa8TySmoR_kj6yN0GBVdWPdQ_4YE9z7v-pJMR7UWiXJ-lQ94sWHMIRNOfTvYkhS6CQSRme9OcdocEDmpOGDgYrDaOxR/s400/036.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5379544965340850674" border="0" /></a>Two posts down, two to go!<br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR_JPRxhIe4aq6CPfcEHqtajfZ9bXwnL0MHd-F6EqwU6HdTL7Aq4Hma0n_5vwW7us3wr8X6XKkG0qx4p6kcYglgkd4mY-o2FpYViSrHFEkhglH3xbFuwLLhKsmB6KoBGfXyxqi/s1600-h/038.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR_JPRxhIe4aq6CPfcEHqtajfZ9bXwnL0MHd-F6EqwU6HdTL7Aq4Hma0n_5vwW7us3wr8X6XKkG0qx4p6kcYglgkd4mY-o2FpYViSrHFEkhglH3xbFuwLLhKsmB6KoBGfXyxqi/s400/038.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5379544951101125410" border="0" /></a>Isn't it amazing how a how a porch that is a hundred years old can look so nice with a bit of work and some paint?<br /></div></div></div>Chelseahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554143752763142178noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17459498.post-86701480617006277412009-07-19T09:07:00.002-05:002010-03-13T16:34:56.516-06:00Cutest Lemonade Pourers in Town!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAw_I4CFLDk6X-aFa5MinHaB8KyTjGtFZlKZdcpdjaHFpA8EiOwLzvSjtS4HdF8bd484pxZT12NgF8cLjwvSXPMgRq4ImYW3nEeQQsVwD8QkIwEbwjXXfGHny9E-kGl2nGyCzJ/s1600-h/lemonade2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 309px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAw_I4CFLDk6X-aFa5MinHaB8KyTjGtFZlKZdcpdjaHFpA8EiOwLzvSjtS4HdF8bd484pxZT12NgF8cLjwvSXPMgRq4ImYW3nEeQQsVwD8QkIwEbwjXXfGHny9E-kGl2nGyCzJ/s400/lemonade2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5360173253901010338" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:180%;">Jayden and my nephew Ethan are having a Lemonade stand! Come watch the RAGBRAI teams come in from the best view in Burlington while enjoying ice cold lemonade! Saturday, July 25th!<br /></span></div>Chelseahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554143752763142178noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17459498.post-1199930181248470972009-05-17T20:30:00.001-05:002010-03-12T13:58:40.290-06:00Gavin and his buddies<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-XS1V9ZimJLw_hIVPNNoF4RYQm7c2JOtK13Rdof47CwBxZ1mYkRLq32VUVMnOdydutBfwlKop2pNxvesm0isebRmjY_INSQmmf6tdb768I4JGj1FXjgpdc08ar6qt1mH0zJ5i/s1600-h/004+%283%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 286px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-XS1V9ZimJLw_hIVPNNoF4RYQm7c2JOtK13Rdof47CwBxZ1mYkRLq32VUVMnOdydutBfwlKop2pNxvesm0isebRmjY_INSQmmf6tdb768I4JGj1FXjgpdc08ar6qt1mH0zJ5i/s400/004+%283%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5336971582119156178" border="0" /></a>Gavin, Jasper and Gizmo<br /></div>Chelseahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554143752763142178noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17459498.post-41547883997832465162009-04-05T10:19:00.003-05:002010-03-13T16:37:40.738-06:00Front Porch DemoYesterday Josh, my mom, Perry and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Jayden</span> started working on our front porch. If you've been to our house you probably know that our porch was a bit, um, rough...really, it's pretty embarrassing. Luckily for us, my mom has most of the materials we need to rebuild from her building downtown that we're able to get things started right away. <br />Here is what we started with. Lovely isn't it? I mean, really, who doesn't like exposed <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">cinder blocks</span> at the front of their home to welcome their guests? Not to mentions the birds and squirrels that liked to make their home in the corner, and the "rebuilt" porch post that looked like a scratching post thanks to the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">squirrels</span> and that was pretty much rotted away. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbj-y6uAfa8Iq65h9hsPIbn7wuGXqS4VBd7nxPszNCOGLlcyIke83UwpQdFPEolaMudzh2uXyLGDh1UjWZlbrR2R3XeYgqYD2DUG_zF6s1YilsK3uIgCDoyCyZYEoZ6Bvn_C1q/s1600-h/Front+Porch+Demo+003.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbj-y6uAfa8Iq65h9hsPIbn7wuGXqS4VBd7nxPszNCOGLlcyIke83UwpQdFPEolaMudzh2uXyLGDh1UjWZlbrR2R3XeYgqYD2DUG_zF6s1YilsK3uIgCDoyCyZYEoZ6Bvn_C1q/s400/Front+Porch+Demo+003.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321230934629927874" border="0" /></a><br />Here is the other side. Not much better. The board you see laying there was a frugal attempt to keep neighbor cats out from under our porch.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbjIwQTX1UswbHNlWab9XUVK_Xbs2EZIk2wV_b4EhEJtoxc32QAUfT0hWLS2HICytcUXIt4vim0EyzM0RnTywVMj6-_d2w7b6SEoLeXsNW96RILLqwERz_TUWxyb97SKIKUjp1/s1600-h/Front+Porch+Demo+001.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbjIwQTX1UswbHNlWab9XUVK_Xbs2EZIk2wV_b4EhEJtoxc32QAUfT0hWLS2HICytcUXIt4vim0EyzM0RnTywVMj6-_d2w7b6SEoLeXsNW96RILLqwERz_TUWxyb97SKIKUjp1/s400/Front+Porch+Demo+001.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321230923910843458" border="0" /></a><br />And notice the lovely jagged floor boards edging the front of the porch. You may even notice a few boards that were <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">remnants</span> of a better time when lattice was used in place of random boards.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGuWbtOI33uk-wDlt5kmL7msFxfbbKOzuXgT2bmHVnXJ88qJQcOw16jfovWyZvSjNPJX0jJrFOMgJ_WxbllIWg4aYDf7Ujxtdav6qAy7gH0bz5eTdk4rSwA2DoABqj39V0vP2l/s1600-h/Front+Porch+Demo+005.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGuWbtOI33uk-wDlt5kmL7msFxfbbKOzuXgT2bmHVnXJ88qJQcOw16jfovWyZvSjNPJX0jJrFOMgJ_WxbllIWg4aYDf7Ujxtdav6qAy7gH0bz5eTdk4rSwA2DoABqj39V0vP2l/s400/Front+Porch+Demo+005.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321230929942092482" border="0" /></a>Here they are, getting to work. My mom had all of the two by fours at her place, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Jayden</span> jumped right in to help unload. <br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5OAoaab_43XSLozGvpMiyv5QGXHa3kvL5cuGmbwSmWYLC5IeTqMHm9WXHPqim9RfvLrnBZnbOXj2udMBOZBgggrNmP0VposzQEWcKTLjGaQFpOSzpcwdX5ftTNVBkpVkZcqK4/s1600-h/Front+Porch+Demo+010.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5OAoaab_43XSLozGvpMiyv5QGXHa3kvL5cuGmbwSmWYLC5IeTqMHm9WXHPqim9RfvLrnBZnbOXj2udMBOZBgggrNmP0VposzQEWcKTLjGaQFpOSzpcwdX5ftTNVBkpVkZcqK4/s400/Front+Porch+Demo+010.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321230944402747474" border="0" /></a>I had to show houses that afternoon, so I missed out on the fun demolition, but when I came back, the demo was DONE! The porch is braced up, no floor, the posts are off, and Josh even built these LOVELY <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">cinder block</span> steps for us until we get everything rebuilt. <br />So far, so good!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWrMdO6foOviWxrFeebBPlzBtTIwVbFpWs0FwKBdbhyphenhyphennvlKnnKz5N8ez9ZmOO4NWNCUVcTZfVH4IteHKRrkDg1QFk2sm4C8Vn1jzyqu2ShbqXox8_P3cqIjZlWUh4CVwMYfEkI/s1600-h/Front+Porch+Demo+014.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWrMdO6foOviWxrFeebBPlzBtTIwVbFpWs0FwKBdbhyphenhyphennvlKnnKz5N8ez9ZmOO4NWNCUVcTZfVH4IteHKRrkDg1QFk2sm4C8Vn1jzyqu2ShbqXox8_P3cqIjZlWUh4CVwMYfEkI/s400/Front+Porch+Demo+014.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321230945270236066" border="0" /></a>Chelseahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554143752763142178noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17459498.post-49275169062356733162009-03-10T16:00:00.004-05:002010-03-12T13:58:40.291-06:00Gavin's First Birthday PartyWe had Gavin's Birthday party on Sunday, February 22nd. I've discovered that it's much more difficult to plan a Birthday party in the winter, so we decided to keep it simple and intimate since our family is starting to get spread out a bit.<br />Our first order of business was assembling the slide that the Wilkins family got him. It will great for him to have his own appropriate sized slide when we get to play outside this summer!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMQB5UqN9YTYMLCPQF-S4eWFqbT6Web0aTgWr2c9QE3oUNrWTo0ENELdjpr04cUJYLs35cv7Fya18KclMMZKPAr0j31pHLUbfM4h5KcGCcYOq2-scWFADKKI0jqU9z3L5jIN2y/s1600-h/Gavin's+First+Birthday+012.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMQB5UqN9YTYMLCPQF-S4eWFqbT6Web0aTgWr2c9QE3oUNrWTo0ENELdjpr04cUJYLs35cv7Fya18KclMMZKPAr0j31pHLUbfM4h5KcGCcYOq2-scWFADKKI0jqU9z3L5jIN2y/s400/Gavin's+First+Birthday+012.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5311668566518231970" border="0" /></a>From there, we had cake. I worked very hard on his cake, mostly because we kept his party so low key, I still wanted him to have pictures to look back on and know that we did something special. This was my first fondant cake....and last I'm sure...unless enough time goes by that I forget how much work this type of cake is.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjOu88wZ-vGIpO0IaeAEYnVK4r5n6Iepq2A7bxu4RuQcfGO8twyELQn07yUQr7pZfc8YjVhGX2D5p6rCfAq0w6T56S13WCTT9pI7jLml12lvz563aRdFz7TwK8pkD00FYBEUgD/s1600-h/Gavin's+First+Birthday+015.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 286px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjOu88wZ-vGIpO0IaeAEYnVK4r5n6Iepq2A7bxu4RuQcfGO8twyELQn07yUQr7pZfc8YjVhGX2D5p6rCfAq0w6T56S13WCTT9pI7jLml12lvz563aRdFz7TwK8pkD00FYBEUgD/s400/Gavin's+First+Birthday+015.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5311668559596277746" border="0" /></a>The cupcake on top was meant for Gavin, but he didn't want a thing to do with it!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAlO7Q29sIhQ9Xiu4en3ETEpHjbJCeOjCClFGUx_xRbf2p350LECRpqTG2t-pe9MOSW_UuK3HRjaOjW73MEn2xoXey73mMLFHmb91iqzGokt49WWT1HJcAtaszChIVWdsvd_FR/s1600-h/Gavin's+First+Birthday+003.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 286px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAlO7Q29sIhQ9Xiu4en3ETEpHjbJCeOjCClFGUx_xRbf2p350LECRpqTG2t-pe9MOSW_UuK3HRjaOjW73MEn2xoXey73mMLFHmb91iqzGokt49WWT1HJcAtaszChIVWdsvd_FR/s400/Gavin's+First+Birthday+003.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5311668554900399794" border="0" /></a>Rather than just having cake and ice cream, I thought we'd do an ice cream sundae buffet.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjoJcrSfWR9-lBL3qtKOzzv5BBGN3Ou4YZQ5CxftwPTU6sFgKYLKMGZKX29cvIv-pF5sMPF7fwiE_tTCsKAju6oop5B1srUp0DSp34HenubBWGTgqxk7sNoF5aybhd1OH7G4bf/s1600-h/Gavin's+First+Birthday+014.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 286px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjoJcrSfWR9-lBL3qtKOzzv5BBGN3Ou4YZQ5CxftwPTU6sFgKYLKMGZKX29cvIv-pF5sMPF7fwiE_tTCsKAju6oop5B1srUp0DSp34HenubBWGTgqxk7sNoF5aybhd1OH7G4bf/s400/Gavin's+First+Birthday+014.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5311668559020807458" border="0" /></a><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/QCZJLHIRjZI&hl=en&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/QCZJLHIRjZI&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br />After not even touching his cupcake, we thought we'd give him a slice of cake. As you can see, he didn't want anything to do with this either. The weird part is, this kid has a HUGE sweet tooth. He'll scream and cry if he sees a cookie, piece of candy, or anything yummy looking. His brother did the same thing with his first Birthday cake.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF_IDVkkYp1yLpMhNYq7t2ZWjbyqIc469jx77ENXNu9FWys1yOPGl8c_botIFVa1aa3KWjEj17-twT6wr1hj_duLaO6fM2-rJThMMhQ9FCjbApowITaFlNu8K34-oolupnHDpK/s1600-h/Gavin's+First+Birthday+079.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF_IDVkkYp1yLpMhNYq7t2ZWjbyqIc469jx77ENXNu9FWys1yOPGl8c_botIFVa1aa3KWjEj17-twT6wr1hj_duLaO6fM2-rJThMMhQ9FCjbApowITaFlNu8K34-oolupnHDpK/s400/Gavin's+First+Birthday+079.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5311669374614089314" border="0" /></a>He did, however, like the ice cream toppings.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj09g7C-AikvVC1F62AQ3ZNixwUEt-eIL50lHRi7cdoKIsaCRTeD4Jw0GbOimaL668JQdXWd59KLEVNm2SFn4PVJXNxy3FFzMEGhs4IFYRXEU_Vgjj0T17ZZp5v4PCvvdRkccQ8/s1600-h/Gavin's+First+Birthday+017.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 286px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj09g7C-AikvVC1F62AQ3ZNixwUEt-eIL50lHRi7cdoKIsaCRTeD4Jw0GbOimaL668JQdXWd59KLEVNm2SFn4PVJXNxy3FFzMEGhs4IFYRXEU_Vgjj0T17ZZp5v4PCvvdRkccQ8/s400/Gavin's+First+Birthday+017.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5311669366061917634" border="0" /></a>From there, we opened presents. At this point it was past his naptime, so we had to be quick! Jayden was kind enough to help. He got lots of fun toys and great clothes!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgASndUgKmd4wZYaXu813hyphenhyphen-0E89WocvftDxrCn1Syi30rv0n1bm5BJ99LzjgYZOsuHGI7e_GGYykHrV9RWieHbYVn79aowFpxCyIiQZtXoRl46IrcOpOHnMx78CKpw4iFqIQ_3/s1600-h/Gavin's+First+Birthday+030.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgASndUgKmd4wZYaXu813hyphenhyphen-0E89WocvftDxrCn1Syi30rv0n1bm5BJ99LzjgYZOsuHGI7e_GGYykHrV9RWieHbYVn79aowFpxCyIiQZtXoRl46IrcOpOHnMx78CKpw4iFqIQ_3/s400/Gavin's+First+Birthday+030.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5311668572180578274" border="0" /></a>Here he is modeling a new outfit from Nana:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtKACJ0jEqsXPEhPmBKt-uD10gI9-tOiAYUSyEV3IGeha9QJkrGGlWLWSoK1hV18JHDHXIGdEYQlI6TqeEYLL04JZJ7sshxxkOH16KHTVhVgFNZIzqzD57bJHmiuGa3XTnWy3p/s1600-h/Gavin's+First+Birthday+070.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtKACJ0jEqsXPEhPmBKt-uD10gI9-tOiAYUSyEV3IGeha9QJkrGGlWLWSoK1hV18JHDHXIGdEYQlI6TqeEYLL04JZJ7sshxxkOH16KHTVhVgFNZIzqzD57bJHmiuGa3XTnWy3p/s400/Gavin's+First+Birthday+070.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5311669370993581874" border="0" /></a>During Gavin's nap, the older boys went outside to play. They had a BLAST playing in the snow.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOklJs6Zn5bc3OkftyNOZQFu7UAi0tNBexRang5e7MYiPQINorMntVg_eVFARyqqxgJ7GRVml9WMW7tzIeBqtD2aQ-TysTm1ed73jhpugFA_23k8JSlv5g7YNMYZpn4BzoIQLL/s1600-h/Gavin's+First+Birthday+065.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOklJs6Zn5bc3OkftyNOZQFu7UAi0tNBexRang5e7MYiPQINorMntVg_eVFARyqqxgJ7GRVml9WMW7tzIeBqtD2aQ-TysTm1ed73jhpugFA_23k8JSlv5g7YNMYZpn4BzoIQLL/s400/Gavin's+First+Birthday+065.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5311669372565026626" border="0" /></a>Overall, we had a wonderful time. Thank you everyone for sharing this very special day with him!Chelseahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554143752763142178noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17459498.post-72012554757151390252009-02-23T18:50:00.003-06:002010-03-12T13:58:40.292-06:00Happy Birthday Gavin!<div style="text-align: center;">Happy Birthday, to our sweet little boy Gavin!<br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9yASCnMOIfue9TT8UZRAZTUeKPSn4zBFYIEDc5UjR9unUn1a3TjDCWdk0jAuCmOA-ku6HNoBohIimUoY6-jBCDS4LzL1M6ViPNs30d7noDFF-YePtRhrxZKMn1SBWzg3CJff-/s1600-h/Gavin's+First+Birthday+073.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 286px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9yASCnMOIfue9TT8UZRAZTUeKPSn4zBFYIEDc5UjR9unUn1a3TjDCWdk0jAuCmOA-ku6HNoBohIimUoY6-jBCDS4LzL1M6ViPNs30d7noDFF-YePtRhrxZKMn1SBWzg3CJff-/s400/Gavin's+First+Birthday+073.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306165336856450978" border="0" /></a><br /><br />A cute video of Gavin enjoying some Birthday Balloons:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/UR_kZ1sp7pI&hl=en&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/UR_kZ1sp7pI&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />I'll post a bit more info soon!Chelseahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554143752763142178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17459498.post-46386595424966636722009-02-12T06:49:00.002-06:002010-03-12T13:58:40.293-06:00First HaircutI wanted to wait until after his one year Birthday, but I got tired of constantly washing the dried in food that tangled up his hair. His hair was really pretty unruly, but I knew that once he had a haircut he would not look like a baby any more and it's hard to prepare yourself for that. So last night, we chopped the curls. We bribed him into sitting still with some Conversation Hearts, Jayden has apparently introduced these to him earlier in the day while I was on the phone. If you know Gavin, he has to constantly play with food that is in his mouth, so one heart kept him preoccupied for a couple of minutes at least.<br />Anyway, here is the before:<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOXdYrDGl-G2X3cQqPj2n_HAwPAN-3HxTVbY2nUj8f7IDbTMHeMFPQoTefIfJKThVSX5HFbzLpp4DLVFr_Ri3EA_o-xT75wq5tsw21hDu86oPx-d32OxhJcLnKL9VKktPgT3Qw/s1600-h/024.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOXdYrDGl-G2X3cQqPj2n_HAwPAN-3HxTVbY2nUj8f7IDbTMHeMFPQoTefIfJKThVSX5HFbzLpp4DLVFr_Ri3EA_o-xT75wq5tsw21hDu86oPx-d32OxhJcLnKL9VKktPgT3Qw/s400/024.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5301894257515484290" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoX9yA6VG5QlOwIMmHDk4auDnpBCh8KrGaJqcP3qMOqC5V4vCsukWoeSEfKO3lZi0-Yzw8zwn3gxPz_TOOsP2Wje_e0LYCojMf6Y3iKHqrDDoNV6JTvBS4Bzb8WAolOlyjQ1RB/s1600-h/023.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoX9yA6VG5QlOwIMmHDk4auDnpBCh8KrGaJqcP3qMOqC5V4vCsukWoeSEfKO3lZi0-Yzw8zwn3gxPz_TOOsP2Wje_e0LYCojMf6Y3iKHqrDDoNV6JTvBS4Bzb8WAolOlyjQ1RB/s400/023.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5301894254996989698" border="0" /></a><br />And here he is this morning:<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVD2qVKqFt9SMP8MPnWFV-2AijH8l25YjtCmepgInKo6iKZfj0IkWxGfcc99XmU5TH39GA87lUghc9hjxeap7htoFsoCwSdLx-Kfkw0o5FiseXNSs-5OWc_-VRHkQ0m-XB_-Vk/s1600-h/002.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVD2qVKqFt9SMP8MPnWFV-2AijH8l25YjtCmepgInKo6iKZfj0IkWxGfcc99XmU5TH39GA87lUghc9hjxeap7htoFsoCwSdLx-Kfkw0o5FiseXNSs-5OWc_-VRHkQ0m-XB_-Vk/s400/002.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5301894252102829202" border="0" /></a>Chelseahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554143752763142178noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17459498.post-62241591374673947482009-02-09T14:27:00.004-06:002010-03-13T16:36:53.513-06:00Whoops!Well, I'm slacking, and I'm sorry. I've been so busy lately working and I've had sick boys for the past week. I've had so much that I've wanted to blog about, because we've been doing some fun things (except for the sick week). This will simply be an abridged version of the last month of so.<br />Some of the fun things we've done:<br /><div style="text-align: center;">We went to the water park...when it was -20 outside.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX06e2TUlWjMRcTSv0FmivCOf8puplRXqMJmxXvT6Cqwl9-9YFbwfUDWQ01Nd5tR_I8ZC_W64tJ89yR8e6WEjUbec7n3aRxFlVm81b9mNF5lEuBe-OV-LH7C1bcPdf8iiP4ETq/s1600-h/January+2009+001+%285%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX06e2TUlWjMRcTSv0FmivCOf8puplRXqMJmxXvT6Cqwl9-9YFbwfUDWQ01Nd5tR_I8ZC_W64tJ89yR8e6WEjUbec7n3aRxFlVm81b9mNF5lEuBe-OV-LH7C1bcPdf8iiP4ETq/s400/January+2009+001+%285%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300898380027920018" border="0" /></a>We've gone roller skating<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWnUQGBVDl-6Bgasqe2OGb4OQzPoOY8JmGYpQUBXwK4mJwdoT_g6lETw-8UeBjp6HCHfPJQV7Zp403dW8KQSGUrEhiJ8xsrLC8ficHlNCY7T7rNUcHv7YblQotXhyphenhyphenfMqmaNpHg/s1600-h/January+2009+018+%282%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWnUQGBVDl-6Bgasqe2OGb4OQzPoOY8JmGYpQUBXwK4mJwdoT_g6lETw-8UeBjp6HCHfPJQV7Zp403dW8KQSGUrEhiJ8xsrLC8ficHlNCY7T7rNUcHv7YblQotXhyphenhyphenfMqmaNpHg/s400/January+2009+018+%282%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300898386323243282" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnEyT52NKTdJRpGzPUM3qawS5xhUQ_DmSYlYQIYW2v87QgTE9-SGAsSK4brNk9NddhW8Mm4Orrh0TmJgUU8OOfx2fkVAA0bxIux5lB_Kk6JILh0Bce_gQLaMs5z93n2u3MmDNo/s1600-h/SNV30244.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnEyT52NKTdJRpGzPUM3qawS5xhUQ_DmSYlYQIYW2v87QgTE9-SGAsSK4brNk9NddhW8Mm4Orrh0TmJgUU8OOfx2fkVAA0bxIux5lB_Kk6JILh0Bce_gQLaMs5z93n2u3MmDNo/s400/SNV30244.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300898392410639234" border="0" /></a><br />We've played<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw7tecs2yIPUZoB7KgPzEVVipd6_5OzKoE4UhsVtEAmY-3E_hyphenhyphen5C94To-Z6Vbt-SZy_E4dYJQTJar5OF_oIi7PqVc5LL1jm_N7Nn_xHQPjisb3l5ks93OQqRCHBlOV-g11pn15/s1600-h/January+2009+037.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw7tecs2yIPUZoB7KgPzEVVipd6_5OzKoE4UhsVtEAmY-3E_hyphenhyphen5C94To-Z6Vbt-SZy_E4dYJQTJar5OF_oIi7PqVc5LL1jm_N7Nn_xHQPjisb3l5ks93OQqRCHBlOV-g11pn15/s400/January+2009+037.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300901106889187106" border="0" /></a><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG7uhZgIiqWiB2WMZNYo94sxFgiOJEG9UlIHI_iwVwCzUhVVmq_sBeji1HyL6w7n6w3FM6_vv3QV98_Itdd13w8UblYw6f8eMWbABSAftnpdiWk1V-TYDtfPTywpBqOAkBBhfL/s1600-h/January+2009+036.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG7uhZgIiqWiB2WMZNYo94sxFgiOJEG9UlIHI_iwVwCzUhVVmq_sBeji1HyL6w7n6w3FM6_vv3QV98_Itdd13w8UblYw6f8eMWbABSAftnpdiWk1V-TYDtfPTywpBqOAkBBhfL/s400/January+2009+036.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300898383763518450" border="0" /></a><br />We've painted<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxWNvCtlEqV5u5dXI0JZ64qBmaQrrVVnxI4ZzLtYohximo4nGbDNeqA4Wo3V-UhkqZcr1Ns4zJFmtuFz_pkd18EeXDYShCxbHJhxIdBizKpBP6Z3T7lSEpUrbEtRcA5ji1SaS0/s1600-h/001+%282%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxWNvCtlEqV5u5dXI0JZ64qBmaQrrVVnxI4ZzLtYohximo4nGbDNeqA4Wo3V-UhkqZcr1Ns4zJFmtuFz_pkd18EeXDYShCxbHJhxIdBizKpBP6Z3T7lSEpUrbEtRcA5ji1SaS0/s400/001+%282%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300901144109293554" border="0" /></a><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHiFA7r0Vot4fiZEjKfJX09Y2b5AaB6wyj9xFApKgqX2LdWn01Rxpa2lI2bHg5RerETMw3LZQDejHGb5vDCYQyKVEVaZrbL_1-EdMr2iAQVYayF9Sv-gxbAaBustOXcsXqjb2z/s1600-h/018.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHiFA7r0Vot4fiZEjKfJX09Y2b5AaB6wyj9xFApKgqX2LdWn01Rxpa2lI2bHg5RerETMw3LZQDejHGb5vDCYQyKVEVaZrbL_1-EdMr2iAQVYayF9Sv-gxbAaBustOXcsXqjb2z/s400/018.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300901146483247874" border="0" /></a><br />And we've caused trouble<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt4Qgn6kKRy3PTCAza7-67XqQxiUH6_z0B6YOW5ig8ERVca35olqdEpHOaapqD6jISeK6oCk1xemoZ6itXp90KhetiJi7ZtaYeBpUNZ9Hk9W75uTeagW6Boor8ci0uxuEpSmrL/s1600-h/DSCN5150.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt4Qgn6kKRy3PTCAza7-67XqQxiUH6_z0B6YOW5ig8ERVca35olqdEpHOaapqD6jISeK6oCk1xemoZ6itXp90KhetiJi7ZtaYeBpUNZ9Hk9W75uTeagW6Boor8ci0uxuEpSmrL/s400/DSCN5150.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300901140802839906" border="0" /></a><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZm771FtnCrGZ8XPakyy7o3V9nvzyvy74VEF0OQA19UWzjH5nGV7pXDLzDONE4CZhKhqPlqdrOmR9dNoDo5845-Z8NA2tUVbEkWcMhdfjnK95_Dth0cWSAhIhsGMDq6tslqHqa/s1600-h/January+2009+001+%284%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZm771FtnCrGZ8XPakyy7o3V9nvzyvy74VEF0OQA19UWzjH5nGV7pXDLzDONE4CZhKhqPlqdrOmR9dNoDo5845-Z8NA2tUVbEkWcMhdfjnK95_Dth0cWSAhIhsGMDq6tslqHqa/s400/January+2009+001+%284%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300901134570149058" border="0" /></a>Whew! That's it for now! Back to work :)Chelseahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554143752763142178noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17459498.post-11846014877194905662009-01-26T13:28:00.002-06:002009-01-26T13:35:32.617-06:00Hey all! I've finally given my other website a facelift. I've been playing around with it all weekend, and I think it's finally starting to look the way I've been wanting it to look. <br />The idea behind that blog is basically going to be community focused. I'll keep it updated with some fun stuff that is happening in the community, some real estate, and anything else I'm inclined to write about! <br />I would love any feedback, constructive criticism is welcome! <br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.chelseastevens.com">www.chelseastevens.com</a><br /></div>Chelseahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554143752763142178noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17459498.post-42825386147005566592009-01-09T15:03:00.002-06:002010-03-13T16:36:53.515-06:00Dear God, Give Me StrengthI love my children, very very much. But some days...some days are just plain hard. Today is one of those days. It builds up slowly through the week, and then that one day hits, the one that I spend every minute after noon looking out the window for Josh's car to pull up so I can hand at least one boy off to him. I feel like I have to occassionally share these days, so someday when the kids are older and they possibly read this, they'll know what life was really like. Not just the fun things, and smiling at the camera, but the other stuff. The stuff that I'll probably block out as they get older. <br />Gavin, typically, is my easy one. I say that knowing full well that by teenage years the opposite might be true. He's pretty happy just to wonder around the house playing with odd toys, stacking boxes, and going through cabinets. Our only difficulties here is that he still doesn't sleep through the night, and we'll have those odd days that he just wants to be carried ALL day. So really, this post isn't so much about him. <br />Jayden is what you'd call a <a href="http://parenting.ivillage.com/gs/gsbehavior/0,,45pv,00.html">spirited child</a>. Depending on the stage of the phase that he's in, this can be wonderful or overwhelming. Right now, I think I'll call this the Light Bulb Stage. Any of you reading this that has been around Jayden in the last month knows exactly what I'm talking about. He is obsessed with burnt out light bulbs. He could find the light bulb on the back of the tree, a foot back that was burnt out, and he would tell everyone. The first week or so, it was kind of funny. The second week, we were all stocking up on light bulbs to give Jayden less to talk about. By now, it's just getting annoying. Some of the light sockets in our house just don't work. We can't do anything about it, we tell him this, but he does not let up. I know, that sounds harsh, but try going through Walmart with this kid, and you'll see. (He also points out broken floor tiles, broken shopping cart handles, and if he's out of the cart he is facing the shelves).<br />Jayden is a kid that is always moving, thinking, and talking. He has to see how everything works, and then ask about a million questions, or at least enough questions that he inevitably loops right back to the first question he asked. His emotions are loud, and they can go to one extreme to another in a split second. It's probably obvious, he spends a lot of time in time out. He isn't a bad kid, he just gets wrapped up into what he's doing so much that he loses sight of the rules.<br />Today, just didn't start out right. It was the day that Gavin wanted to be held to start with, which is fine some days, but today it just wasn't working. Jayden was Jayden time ten. He had a million things to ask and to say, I could hardly start one task without him asking me to do 3 or 4 other things..."Mommy, come here! Want to play a game? Look at THIS! I want more milk." <br />There were a few times that I had peace. Peace that I paid for. The first time, I was showering, and Jayden and Gavin were playing in Gavin's room with the door shut. The sounds were happy, so I left them to it as I dressed and got ready. Jayden finally came barging into my room with his super loud "Mommy, look at this!!" and then ran back into Gavin's room. I took my time. I knew it was something I wasn't going to want to see, so I delayed it. I made my way into Gavin's room, and Jayden exclaimed, "Look, EXPLOSION!!" Every single toy, rug, book off the bookshelf, and anything else that was within reach was thrown into a huge pile in the middle of Gavin's room. Jayden was thrilled, until I made him clean Gavin's room. <br />The second time, I had just made Jayden a special snack while Gavin was napping. I had just finished making a snack for Jayden, and hopped on the computer for a couple of minutes. I heard giggling coming from the kitchen, and Jayden occassionally whisper "come here Jasper." Once again, I suspected something, but I really didn't think it was anything too major. Then Jasper came running into the room with an almost empty bottle of green food coloring. I ran into the kitchen to find food coloring EVERYWHERE, on the cabinets, the floor, and Jasper. I was livid. Jayden was promptly put in time out as I scrubbed the floor, fuming, scrubbed the cabinets, still fuming, and washed Jasper. As I watched the green water wash off of Jasper and go down the drain...the laughter started. Of course, as a parent, I've learned NEVER to let a kid see you laugh, so I hid it, dismissed Jayden from time out, and looked out the window for Josh. <br />I know it wasn't a horrible day, just one of those days. One out of many many days.Chelseahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554143752763142178noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17459498.post-24330208467444433772009-01-04T20:05:00.002-06:002010-03-12T13:58:40.294-06:00Gavin's BaptismOn December 21st, Gavin was baptized at Saint John's Church. His Godparents are our good friends, Liz Toal and Steve Ballinger. It went very well, Gavin was squirmy as usual, but pretty behaved for the most part. <br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxyfkaanFVwKi5UlCJhQAF_LkrNCq5ixJn55EDe82D2aKDyEGC9N6I1iW_H8LkQtlD3tOdHUFkG6CchiVrwQC5YMzuB5DYQNx81uecAi_BnRTtPJqeE7-0qIPIPAmU99UGdQpL/s1600-h/IMG_0017.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxyfkaanFVwKi5UlCJhQAF_LkrNCq5ixJn55EDe82D2aKDyEGC9N6I1iW_H8LkQtlD3tOdHUFkG6CchiVrwQC5YMzuB5DYQNx81uecAi_BnRTtPJqeE7-0qIPIPAmU99UGdQpL/s400/IMG_0017.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5287627690210365986" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRuSuR424j7An89kKwYS5oOzd5N1cKf_Myn0WtHehL0yVNiZDzu4ZkCLsNOjEQpHfa71te2dSxCIgxjB9H7a-KkQNDaXc5YNEMROAM7r2K4Zzd1doqQI8Fz8BmzFqKlEpTtlpD/s1600-h/IMG_0022.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRuSuR424j7An89kKwYS5oOzd5N1cKf_Myn0WtHehL0yVNiZDzu4ZkCLsNOjEQpHfa71te2dSxCIgxjB9H7a-KkQNDaXc5YNEMROAM7r2K4Zzd1doqQI8Fz8BmzFqKlEpTtlpD/s400/IMG_0022.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5287627717382290818" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgelSbIhhF_PzxdfwOtE_YCxK0JfxqNHIag4H4knMW3HrQTx-l7LiEEJeasPwChhPgXmcn-igA1vUC3pf_n6dgrgeyLNF6dDDfYzG3ld_CO6e7EbXT82HKTsP0k15cYs1ZEesI/s1600-h/IMG_0031.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgelSbIhhF_PzxdfwOtE_YCxK0JfxqNHIag4H4knMW3HrQTx-l7LiEEJeasPwChhPgXmcn-igA1vUC3pf_n6dgrgeyLNF6dDDfYzG3ld_CO6e7EbXT82HKTsP0k15cYs1ZEesI/s400/IMG_0031.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5287627696807662850" border="0" /></a>Afterward, we had a few people over to our house for snacks and cake. <br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipaT3PXTBqAuMZ7oTy1-xw_p0RgPgZLElKlg0dtv03jzgpuoYXK8xFTFIvY49xOP8vFHAEhUVrGxOvPHLRT5uXEV9nK1b_vgVwW3FvcC9y8jhaqhPu7x2y4CKP_Twb9sfV1kPn/s1600-h/IMG_0033.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipaT3PXTBqAuMZ7oTy1-xw_p0RgPgZLElKlg0dtv03jzgpuoYXK8xFTFIvY49xOP8vFHAEhUVrGxOvPHLRT5uXEV9nK1b_vgVwW3FvcC9y8jhaqhPu7x2y4CKP_Twb9sfV1kPn/s400/IMG_0033.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5287627710280403266" border="0" /></a>Here he is with his Godparents getting ready to open up some presents!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgfzMdmDDozGYvoD290GzhAnJ00ytusu99Q11SUfmUspXG-ZIstTcNxAWKCnswSV-ky_cqUppZrNbH1fx_JuDGpwZc87JrrUAR8M5h2WY8FrTOzzQ_8_SaKxVhqR19nFd4CqV3/s1600-h/IMG_0039.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgfzMdmDDozGYvoD290GzhAnJ00ytusu99Q11SUfmUspXG-ZIstTcNxAWKCnswSV-ky_cqUppZrNbH1fx_JuDGpwZc87JrrUAR8M5h2WY8FrTOzzQ_8_SaKxVhqR19nFd4CqV3/s400/IMG_0039.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5287627719941316354" border="0" /></a><br />Thanks so everyone who came to celebrate his special day!Chelseahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554143752763142178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17459498.post-35584398431420320832009-01-02T07:30:00.004-06:002010-03-13T16:47:17.517-06:00New Years UpdateNew Years Eve I had really, really good intentions. My idea was to get my life in as much order as possible so I could start the new year off good. I had very symbolic thoughts going through my head as I rushed through the house trying to get all of the new toys put away, as I straightened and cleaned, and had another battle with my never ending pile of laundry. I thought, if my house is clean when I enter the new year, maybe it'll be a sign that I can keep it that way. I went to the grocery store and loaded our fridge up with fruits and veggies and good stuff, hoping this would symbolize that our fridge will always be full in the next year. Needless to say, by evening I was taking things pretty seriously. My intentions for the rest of the evening was to go out with friends, and to stay up until midnight with Josh to welcome the New Year. So we met with friends for some Mexican food, and headed down to our favorite bar, the Paddlewheel. I had a margarita, and while enjoying an evening our socializing (this seldom happens outside of our family) I started to feel horrible. Thankfully the Paddlewheel boasts the cleanest bathrooms of any bar with good reason, because I spent a good amount of time on floor...I won't go into much more detail, but I'm pretty sure it was food poisoning. So Josh dropped me off at home so he could go pick up the kids. I was in bed by 9, and vaugly remember midnight due to Gavin waking up the first of a handfull of times.<br />Even though I may not have rang in the New Year as expected, I'm hoping that maybe it will symbolize something else. An empty stomach and lack of appetite may actually mean that I'll finally lose this stupid baby weight. If only it were so simple, right?<br /><br />On to other things New Year related. Two years ago I developed a list of everything that needed to be done on the house. I came back last year to update everything we'd done so far. Last year I highlighted everything in red that had been accomplished...really, it was pretty impressive. This year, I'll use blue. I'm not sure if there will be much blue used, but we had a baby this year, so we'll just blame it on that.<br /><br /><p>Jayden's Room<br /></p><ul><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Touch up floor paint</li><li>Install and paint quarter round and floor trim</li><li>Finish shelving <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">(this is partly done)</span><br /></li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Install dimmer switch</li><li style="color: rgb(51, 102, 255);">Blank covers for obsolete outlets</li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Install lighting in closet</li><li>Paint door</li></ul><p>Master Bedroom</p><ul style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><li>One more coat of paint on walls</li><li>Edging on ceiling</li><li>Plate covers</li><li>Finish Trim</li><li>Install Door</li><li>Install closet lights</li><li>Run cable to our room</li></ul><p>Upstairs Hallway</p><ul><li>Finish patching cracks</li><li>Sand</li><li>Primer and paint <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">ceilings </span>and walls</li><li style="color: rgb(51, 204, 255);">Install lighting</li><li style="color: rgb(51, 204, 255);">Switch plate covers</li><li>Paint woodwork</li><li>Install shelving</li></ul><p>Kid's Bath</p><ul style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><li>Finish Floor</li><li>Plumbing</li><li>Order faucet for tub</li><li>Sand walls</li><li>Primer and Paint walls and ceiling</li><li>Finish painting bead board</li><li>Put up trim</li><li>Put up and finish door</li><li>Install Lighting</li><li>Hang medicine cabinet</li></ul><p>Stairway</p><ul><li>Sand, primer, paint walls and ceiling</li><li>Sand and varnish woodwork<span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"> (this is partly done)</span><br /></li></ul><p>Living Room</p><ul><li>Finish woodwork</li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Finish installing built in media cabinet</li><li>Finish dresser</li><li>Finish and <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">install french doors</span></li><li>Touch up paint</li></ul><p>Family Room</p><ul><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Touch up paint</li><li>Put up woodwork</li><li>Finish woodwork</li><li>Install built in bookshelves</li></ul><p>Dining Room</p><ul><li>One more coat of regular paint</li><li>Top coat paints</li><li>Woodwork</li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Switch plate covers</li><li>Door on closet</li></ul><p>Half bath</p><ul><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Put in ceiling</li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Plaster, sand, primer, and paint walls and ceiling</li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Paint bead board and woodwork</li><li><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Plate covers</span> (all but the lightswitch)<br /></li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Hang medicine cabinet</li></ul><p>Kitchen</p><ul><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Electrical</li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Plumbing</li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Drywall walls and ceiling</li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Plaster, Sand, Primer and paint walls and ceiling</li><li>Install and paint woodwork</li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Sand and varnish floor <--We painted instead </li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Install lighting</li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Install cabinets</li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Install appliances</li></ul><p>Outside</p><ul><li style="color: rgb(51, 204, 255);">Scrape paint</li><li>Primer <span style="color: rgb(51, 204, 255);">(partial!)</span><br /></li><li>Paint <span style="color: rgb(51, 204, 255);">(partial!)</span><br /></li><li style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Begin landscaping</li></ul>Gavin's Room wasn't on here when I started the list, so I'll add it now. This is everything that still needs to be finished.<br /><br />Gavin's Room<br /><ul><li>Burn paint off closet door and bedroom door</li><li>Primer doors</li><li>Paint doors</li><li>Fix floor</li><li>Install quarter round</li><li>Touch up wall</li></ul><br />My big hope is that this year I'll defy the odds in Real Estate and make enough money to hire all of this work done!<br /><br /><br />ps. I'll get to the Christmas update someday. It was so overwhelming, that the thought of revisiting it is exhausting to think about.Chelseahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554143752763142178noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17459498.post-50712366186754798422008-12-19T19:03:00.004-06:002010-03-12T13:58:40.295-06:00Must be a boy thing.So, last night we were sitting having our dinner, and Gavin is babbling away. Josh looks at him and goes "Say dada?" and Gavin looks at Josh with his impish grin and goes "Dada!" I take my turn and look at Gavin and go "Say mama?" and he looks at me and says "Mama!" How cute is that? Anyway, today at lunch I attempt to see if I can get Gavin to say "Mama" again. I sit across from him and start baby talking "Gavin, can you say Mama? Maaamaaaaa?" and Jayden immediately mimics me, but with his own words. "Gavin, say poop. Poop! Can you say poop?? Gaaaaavin. Poop" I can't wait to take Gavin into public after Jayden has successfully taught him his favorite words.Chelseahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554143752763142178noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17459498.post-75406287404839447942008-12-16T09:55:00.002-06:002010-03-13T16:36:53.516-06:00It's Santa!Saturday we took the boys to see Santa. Jayden was pretty pepped up about it, and I was beginning to think that maybe this year he would get a picture with Santa (it was a no go last year). He sat with Josh as they made out his Christmas list before we left, and we stressed to him repeatedly that he didn't get presents that day, he just told Santa what he would like so Santa would know what to bring. We decided to go to Fun City, because it supports the Kiwanis club and you get a card to play the games afterward. Jayden was pretty pumped up when we got there, we all started walking towards Santa, and as soon as he got into view...Jayden immediately started walking backwards. Luckily the picture machine wasn't working and we had a good 20 minutes to warm Jayden up to Santa. Gavin on the other hand was mesmerized by Santa. He walked right up to him, and as I placed him on Santa's lap, he immediately started crying. <br />So, we didn't exactly get a Hallmark moment, but we did get both kids in the same picture with smiling with Santa. <br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDQIQQfE2b0SqxM8tDEeW0hKXawMGnfg1_aytzL2QYXoTOkrBy5hHm6iHHzVB7B2HoQpZm4BE7ouSbtg2BCSNm2XEn8Bb8871Rz6MpJQZpklF5h_Dwc-0MWFkci9o7gwGyAP0o/s1600-h/Santa20080010.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 286px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDQIQQfE2b0SqxM8tDEeW0hKXawMGnfg1_aytzL2QYXoTOkrBy5hHm6iHHzVB7B2HoQpZm4BE7ouSbtg2BCSNm2XEn8Bb8871Rz6MpJQZpklF5h_Dwc-0MWFkci9o7gwGyAP0o/s400/Santa20080010.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5280421766275754898" border="0" /></a>Chelseahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554143752763142178noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17459498.post-68080286403088808882008-12-09T20:04:00.001-06:002008-12-09T20:04:16.227-06:00Christmas Hoedown!<div style='background-color:#e9e9e9; width: 425px;'><object id='A85703' quality='high' data='http://aka.zero.jibjab.com/client/zero/ClientZero_EmbedViewer.swf?external_make_id=tGGoDgtMcWVwSLAy&service=sendables.jibjab.com&partnerID=ElfYourself' pluginspage='http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer' type='application/x-shockwave-flash' wmode='transparent' height='319' width='425'><param name='wmode' value='transparent'></param><param name='movie' value='http://aka.zero.jibjab.com/client/zero/ClientZero_EmbedViewer.swf?external_make_id=tGGoDgtMcWVwSLAy&service=sendables.jibjab.com&partnerID=ElfYourself'></param><param name='scaleMode' value='showAll'></param><param name='quality' value='high'></param><param name='allowNetworking' value='all'></param><param name='allowFullScreen' value='true' /><param name='FlashVars' value='external_make_id=tGGoDgtMcWVwSLAy&service=sendables.jibjab.com&partnerID=ElfYourself'></param><param name='allowScriptAccess' value='always'></param></object><div style='text-align:center; width:435px; margin-top:6px;'>Send your own <a href='http://www.elfyourself.com'>ElfYourself</a> <a href='http://sendables.jibjab.com/sendables'>eCards</a></div></div><img style="visibility:hidden;width:0px;height:0px;" border=0 width=0 height=0 src="http://counters.gigya.com/wildfire/IMP/CXNID=2000002.0NXC/bHQ9MTIyODg3NDU4MjMzNyZwdD*xMjI4ODc*NjIwMDM*JnA9NDE4ODEzJmQ9MjAyNjY5Jm49YmxvZ2dlciZnPTImdD*mbz*3NDlkNzJkNWY5Nzk*Zjg*ODcxNTI*ZTFhMWE2YTA5OQ==.gif" />Chelseahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554143752763142178noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17459498.post-20653525043077779042008-12-09T18:22:00.002-06:002010-03-12T13:58:40.296-06:00Gavin's One Man BandApparently Jayden isn't going to be the only loud kid in the house. Gavin has figured out how to toot the recorder, and use it as a pretty awesome drumstick too! <br />Also, you'll see that he's walking better and better. He'll be ten months on the 23rd, can you believe it?!?<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/ocRfO1G89eY&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/ocRfO1G89eY&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>Chelseahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554143752763142178noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17459498.post-74346052477267172882008-12-06T07:37:00.003-06:002010-03-13T16:36:53.517-06:00Saint Nicholas DayFirst of all, you all need to check over at <a href="http://hazelana.blogspot.com/">Hazel's Blog</a>, her parents have some wonderful news! It's a story like that that makes Christmas so much better, and reminds us all to be thankful.<br /><br />Secondly, you may or may not know that today is St. Nicholas Day. This is the actual feast day of Saint Nicholas, patron Saint of Children (among many other things). From my understanding, the Eve of St. Nicholas Day is when St. Nicholas fills the children's stocking. It's supposed to be with things that the children can share, so typically treats and candy.<br /><br />This was our mantel this morning. St. Nicholas was nice enough to put everything up on the mantel, he must have known that Jasper (our dog) is typically on the naughty list and not to be trusted with anything on floor level. <br /><span style="text-decoration: underline;"></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmA63w7vPturQQ3SRFMaMUDgF0tWla0pbh1r7aP32gwXperORsB4THmEmlfn_04OdcOkPxEsna0N9E96TpdhrAvz0Mz-UMWwltM7z5KkMMn_GGEdhHqjWnAIC1aDRmvD37utK2/s1600-h/SNV39930.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmA63w7vPturQQ3SRFMaMUDgF0tWla0pbh1r7aP32gwXperORsB4THmEmlfn_04OdcOkPxEsna0N9E96TpdhrAvz0Mz-UMWwltM7z5KkMMn_GGEdhHqjWnAIC1aDRmvD37utK2/s400/SNV39930.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5276672801006191954" border="0" /></a><br />Jayden was patient enough to let us snap a picture before they peeked into their stockings. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg648ZjCXnetw1tN8YN3Zr62VxGcGuW7H06QNN8QoxRqZPkUzOMKK4L-eHr8y1JZM0KEK9l-dphNBqJB3SJBkqX3c3_0FZqZu36xhx_ni1zU7mk5LocmQOB4Owg2txHMllouyzp/s1600-h/SNV39933.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg648ZjCXnetw1tN8YN3Zr62VxGcGuW7H06QNN8QoxRqZPkUzOMKK4L-eHr8y1JZM0KEK9l-dphNBqJB3SJBkqX3c3_0FZqZu36xhx_ni1zU7mk5LocmQOB4Owg2txHMllouyzp/s400/SNV39933.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5276672812813539666" border="0" /></a>The boys also had some gifts from Josh's parents, they got Gavin a baby Christmas CD, some cars, and some socks. Jayden recieved candy, a Cars dry erase board, playing card games, and a slinky. <br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhImofmu_XDcZRhiIldDRysoNh5ufmOtnpW_587pnQPcRfCT36V3o02J21oOrv9V_xlhag-x2EjLjgVFGVvZ9Ftrmsu1XzIfbDpp1hCSvgBndFmmF-ubkhnm7hBo71TocENN2Dm/s1600-h/SNV39944.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhImofmu_XDcZRhiIldDRysoNh5ufmOtnpW_587pnQPcRfCT36V3o02J21oOrv9V_xlhag-x2EjLjgVFGVvZ9Ftrmsu1XzIfbDpp1hCSvgBndFmmF-ubkhnm7hBo71TocENN2Dm/s400/SNV39944.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5276672836854641058" border="0" /></a><br />St. Nicholas got the boys candy, raisins, some other snacky stuff, toys, and they're yearly ornaments. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpTVPu_R5lwx7VhlTJMOzyYjtZzrOLCARPxGDl-SMRMj54pdPl1XsVgg1IqaS3BbERnU4klEt36y6nWyxl20eiKfu9_CWKfKE5raA4MvTxTbUHFVFQTv9lUKzWE3QE23t5U7hS/s1600-h/SNV39934.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpTVPu_R5lwx7VhlTJMOzyYjtZzrOLCARPxGDl-SMRMj54pdPl1XsVgg1IqaS3BbERnU4klEt36y6nWyxl20eiKfu9_CWKfKE5raA4MvTxTbUHFVFQTv9lUKzWE3QE23t5U7hS/s400/SNV39934.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5276672820012688066" border="0" /></a><br />The ornaments each year typically define the child for that year. This year, Jayden's was a John Deere Tractor, and Gavin's was an angel that says "A Gift From God" since this is his FIRST Christmas.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqlBbQyexmx3Sv_9mep74LH_m-Vc9WvxvqF1bBDgb7Yc1wm1ZsVfkuprIn1U4qPQ7YcQUqa1QWi-sm3D0YJ2LlJMvY-GcsqXyrlOLLUPMLAdLX8GqlOko-bImGJvRAFhi99hWs/s1600-h/SNV39937.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqlBbQyexmx3Sv_9mep74LH_m-Vc9WvxvqF1bBDgb7Yc1wm1ZsVfkuprIn1U4qPQ7YcQUqa1QWi-sm3D0YJ2LlJMvY-GcsqXyrlOLLUPMLAdLX8GqlOko-bImGJvRAFhi99hWs/s400/SNV39937.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5276672831771847906" border="0" /></a><br />That was all for this morning. Hopefully we'll get to see Santa today. I don't know if Jayden will sit on his lap, but maybe a taste of whats to come from this morning will help entice him. I have a pretty strong feeling that Gavin might yank Santa's beard off, but we'll see...Chelseahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554143752763142178noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17459498.post-37566952516375527502008-12-01T15:01:00.003-06:002008-12-03T19:49:51.807-06:00Hazel UpdateFor an update on baby Hazel, please go to their blog: <a href="http://hazelana.blogspot.com">http://hazelana.blogspot.com</a><br />Her mother has written a complete update on everything that has happened up until now.<br /><br />In case you didn't know, batteries are very very dangerous. The battery that Hazel swallowed was out of a remote control, but it was one of those small nickel sized batteries. Those same batteries are used in greeting cards, and can be very very dangerous around small children. All over the county children are being rushed to emergency rooms because those batteries come out, and the children swallow them. Battery acid starts leaking within the hour, and has the potential to cause a lot of damage.<br />Many of you know, Jayden LOVES those cards, and we always keep them out to play with. I'm sure this is the case in many houses. But, I'm sending out a request for no more. I can't imagine going through what Hazel's mother is going through if Jayden or Gavin were to swallow one. So, we're going to stop buying them, and would love for you to do the same. Nothing is more important than a child's safety.Chelseahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554143752763142178noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17459498.post-85017254207069909212008-11-30T09:36:00.004-06:002010-03-13T16:36:53.518-06:00Thanksgiving 2008I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving, we sure did! It was Gavin's very first Thanksgiving, and he got to celebrate it four times! How lucky are we? We had our first at Josh's parents house last Sunday.<br /><div style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;">Here is Peyton having his Thanksgiving dinner.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7VzRJwckL3c0gnfk-t7N6cPGF-no-knvS9EImRLUXQQlzCEnEHxqslWl_NflIYvRXCQmdhf6-Ur7T58dUhJK22-_5WrUejARn9atoDDgHYNJex43dYg-fhmo9IfW6dz9wqiwb/s1600-h/SNV39937.JPG"><img alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7VzRJwckL3c0gnfk-t7N6cPGF-no-knvS9EImRLUXQQlzCEnEHxqslWl_NflIYvRXCQmdhf6-Ur7T58dUhJK22-_5WrUejARn9atoDDgHYNJex43dYg-fhmo9IfW6dz9wqiwb/s400/SNV39937.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />And here is Gavin starting his first meal, he gets pretty impatient waiting for his food, so he had a roll to tide him over while his meal was fixed.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI4Co9ECPQlx3KfrXmW70-X0ljIjG5WZ0CIRUwilFKP0S2G67To4K3WTbig1iGjOoqlZK8wHYHYDcfQwYo_Tm3j04Qd8Rr96MHXyYMtedp1WWqYdV7bsrG03EaGIYV3Alz8AJq/s1600-h/SNV39939.JPG"><img alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI4Co9ECPQlx3KfrXmW70-X0ljIjG5WZ0CIRUwilFKP0S2G67To4K3WTbig1iGjOoqlZK8wHYHYDcfQwYo_Tm3j04Qd8Rr96MHXyYMtedp1WWqYdV7bsrG03EaGIYV3Alz8AJq/s400/SNV39939.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />After the meal, everyone went outside to take a ride on Papa's wagon.<br />Kimmie might hate me for this, but I think it's a pretty funny picture. Apparently she was pretty excited about the ride.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEoAGgr2phdWCnhZd77pp7gbrcMt16O7VHrkSMZnxVlygAb7BbAk3I1itJHf0mGKsfjdolFl3eSZhrZfTVC_lCgs6CEHNW4wQ6Alv2HHZYr2IW3twbEHAy9MJyqJ3-ijb_5OE9/s1600-h/SNV39942.JPG"><img alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEoAGgr2phdWCnhZd77pp7gbrcMt16O7VHrkSMZnxVlygAb7BbAk3I1itJHf0mGKsfjdolFl3eSZhrZfTVC_lCgs6CEHNW4wQ6Alv2HHZYr2IW3twbEHAy9MJyqJ3-ijb_5OE9/s400/SNV39942.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Jayden, Colin, and Taylor.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQJ2u9hjv7TwR2XqOR_cYzmQP5gwCLMqxh_sM1sR2DaFKkiyOkF2miV0xSm8LDKpyQeXHgoZHj2tSo-Y4vdR0zEj6e2WINYaGl45Z-O79NAshnqUwaZmRM_L7mfJYD-_Tij3Ta/s1600-h/SNV39941.JPG"><img alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQJ2u9hjv7TwR2XqOR_cYzmQP5gwCLMqxh_sM1sR2DaFKkiyOkF2miV0xSm8LDKpyQeXHgoZHj2tSo-Y4vdR0zEj6e2WINYaGl45Z-O79NAshnqUwaZmRM_L7mfJYD-_Tij3Ta/s400/SNV39941.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Nate playing football with Colin.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhztlWcSNb7fiHraXw3iYNEcQlxDZUzbFYi8qP6C3VRuBDXuA0JLAMLMs84m2krGxpn-bvJ_46h9WTi4CyBS-Bs-qk1uSmVDbmx5gKzCPjx_Sk-iaWd0C2prc2GYgGSJfHyUSri/s1600-h/SNV39950.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhztlWcSNb7fiHraXw3iYNEcQlxDZUzbFYi8qP6C3VRuBDXuA0JLAMLMs84m2krGxpn-bvJ_46h9WTi4CyBS-Bs-qk1uSmVDbmx5gKzCPjx_Sk-iaWd0C2prc2GYgGSJfHyUSri/s400/SNV39950.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5274478750622779234" border="0" /></a><br />The big kids even went for a ride!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWKSKl3I-b1hJnNb1lJ2iF96tEvlodgSpai7E1WTc7MgM3tQtoVC0a6c8nIfhWPAeX2hIqXjdkYcdOLeygJTUU8IiEfNMpg5ZIM7JaVy8IJ32EOUB-wLx53bi1r9tPnZekPEZO/s1600-h/SNV39949.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWKSKl3I-b1hJnNb1lJ2iF96tEvlodgSpai7E1WTc7MgM3tQtoVC0a6c8nIfhWPAeX2hIqXjdkYcdOLeygJTUU8IiEfNMpg5ZIM7JaVy8IJ32EOUB-wLx53bi1r9tPnZekPEZO/s400/SNV39949.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5274478745737180370" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: left;">Jayden helped Papa drive. Gavin was inside napping during all of the tractor rides. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCqeapAd9VAlT3XOzBRJ4L-MU21DmtwPwBJITQgqwD3ZCkORrJ1ezaOqHWfSJoBYM8utVveq0e6breQd0giHYmkQp_7y-BE6AWli9Jnj7PRuN2loYFJtTkxA9BlvZ_rIYhG4Fd/s1600-h/SNV39943.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCqeapAd9VAlT3XOzBRJ4L-MU21DmtwPwBJITQgqwD3ZCkORrJ1ezaOqHWfSJoBYM8utVveq0e6breQd0giHYmkQp_7y-BE6AWli9Jnj7PRuN2loYFJtTkxA9BlvZ_rIYhG4Fd/s400/SNV39943.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5274478742131982130" border="0" /></a>On Thanksgiving Day our little family made a nice big brunch; eggs, bacon, french toast, homemade doughnuts (thats right Jenny!), and some fruit. Jayden ended up spending the day at Nana's house and we joined him that evening for a Thanksgiving dinner with my mom and siblings. <br />On Friday my sister and I took our boys down to Warsaw Illinois to have a leftovers lunch with our Grandpa. I snapped a few pictures with my Grandpa and the boys. Gavin was being very squirmy so I had to take what I could, not the best, but better than nothing!<br /><div style="text-align: center;">Here is Grandpa with both of the boys, I honestly don't know if Gavin was laughing or crying.<br /></div></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDIgQPAmJWQgvFtd2NlEEzoBK1yt6F0lerqjZVjGd1X0arPB9aEu4gPeyyb-eUJIHQOHeK_ECTKnT6pFrw90kS9yRK7dRPhVkmngyfIka0RMatdh5H68BAY1ZliudVtJNBsaxz/s1600-h/SNV39965.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDIgQPAmJWQgvFtd2NlEEzoBK1yt6F0lerqjZVjGd1X0arPB9aEu4gPeyyb-eUJIHQOHeK_ECTKnT6pFrw90kS9yRK7dRPhVkmngyfIka0RMatdh5H68BAY1ZliudVtJNBsaxz/s400/SNV39965.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5274478767254510466" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: left;">And here he is with Gavin!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmh0HI9vTWsqgsTiion5PQ0MuHjr0NTtEZFE4Ivglm4uss94M6KEShEr6eTe68PDwJohBGhZJWX5EUBDZ-JSpM1cfhyM_MF9w69CKpi2E2DN30a3syABTxD-OgnUM6WiEcYKQw/s1600-h/SNV39964.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 286px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmh0HI9vTWsqgsTiion5PQ0MuHjr0NTtEZFE4Ivglm4uss94M6KEShEr6eTe68PDwJohBGhZJWX5EUBDZ-JSpM1cfhyM_MF9w69CKpi2E2DN30a3syABTxD-OgnUM6WiEcYKQw/s400/SNV39964.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5274478765513341074" border="0" /></a>On Saturday we went to the Quad Cities to have Thanksgiving at my cousin Hanna and her husband George's house. She did a great job! Everything was fantastic. She also thought it would be fun to go to the John Deere Pavillion, so we loaded up after lunch and headed that way. In case you didn't know, Jayden loves tractors, and at the Pavillion, you get to go on most of the tractors. He and Ethan had a blast! Plus, they had a gift store that had everything that John Deere made, TONS of toys and clothes at really good prices. Jayden got a hat and a backhoe with some Christmas money from Grandpa. <br /></div>Here is Jayden and Ethan up on one of the tractors, Jayden is trying to buckle himself in.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieQzMZfCG4lPP4ytee1msmt769ZWifWJmGQgWlUsPYtvYnvFhVDn0GxAgDU77wA0wJmdhkAVbWbbmGOur1aeT_4pA6PCQUWiQlxfqrqm0oyFqvMHsfgHYMyVk8rFngLC0NdnlR/s1600-h/SNV39977.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieQzMZfCG4lPP4ytee1msmt769ZWifWJmGQgWlUsPYtvYnvFhVDn0GxAgDU77wA0wJmdhkAVbWbbmGOur1aeT_4pA6PCQUWiQlxfqrqm0oyFqvMHsfgHYMyVk8rFngLC0NdnlR/s400/SNV39977.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5274482113346244322" border="0" /></a><br />In the huge scooop!<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzGI243j9x_rgR0pOd3WPJpdOoD3Ed6MgN-PfaLZV3SLbF3HSBdf4XE7D4b8V2_VA5AgsOJ4Atl76uBlpoj11I6Che4KAOrGVqUuT2V0IIBPAwhTeFlFOqsdxZ4jdjBbbNn9pY/s1600-h/SNV39975.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzGI243j9x_rgR0pOd3WPJpdOoD3Ed6MgN-PfaLZV3SLbF3HSBdf4XE7D4b8V2_VA5AgsOJ4Atl76uBlpoj11I6Che4KAOrGVqUuT2V0IIBPAwhTeFlFOqsdxZ4jdjBbbNn9pY/s400/SNV39975.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5274482104298741634" border="0" /></a><br />Sharing the riding lawn mower, Ethan was being a goof.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDoJ0nP3vwOMeYvDRFOzi-eO8WRv2TE_nlm5gl9L_IJsr7IxZ2pZ7X5d1p5hOz7-Fr2ywWPhAsPONC8qi6ByS3dnBtgFoGyHHo-Y23Qsiap2xVByx8NQFDjm_XcFtsGa1YsctJ/s1600-h/SNV39974.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDoJ0nP3vwOMeYvDRFOzi-eO8WRv2TE_nlm5gl9L_IJsr7IxZ2pZ7X5d1p5hOz7-Fr2ywWPhAsPONC8qi6ByS3dnBtgFoGyHHo-Y23Qsiap2xVByx8NQFDjm_XcFtsGa1YsctJ/s400/SNV39974.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5274482097648730658" border="0" /></a><br />Another goofy smile!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHJZWEUXBIeF3elQa6Y15c9m_RNqYQHlWXe6gC0_tSd-3kwBrywTKGqwMYFvXgI4ncRFUlxebziDc89FLsqSQRNpTTjqmR2nhPXWrr4feM5dhZR_OtWRmEWSavp0lgdAXToI13/s1600-h/SNV39973.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHJZWEUXBIeF3elQa6Y15c9m_RNqYQHlWXe6gC0_tSd-3kwBrywTKGqwMYFvXgI4ncRFUlxebziDc89FLsqSQRNpTTjqmR2nhPXWrr4feM5dhZR_OtWRmEWSavp0lgdAXToI13/s400/SNV39973.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5274482093723127938" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><br /><div style="text-align: center;">After all of our Thanksgivings were over, we woke up this morning to SNOW! <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1DgHsxLOUai4KTVRq6MYab1rEWNUPf3KjPC6gm0hArYTg9HiGLhkpRcCZiOHT-sB4buINvRoa8eIB23e-pioK6R1vxFRgfneY7CZiLGeK2MjUS8Jc12P6ACsxav_OZ0S_f06f/s1600-h/SNV39982.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1DgHsxLOUai4KTVRq6MYab1rEWNUPf3KjPC6gm0hArYTg9HiGLhkpRcCZiOHT-sB4buINvRoa8eIB23e-pioK6R1vxFRgfneY7CZiLGeK2MjUS8Jc12P6ACsxav_OZ0S_f06f/s400/SNV39982.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5274482117022788866" border="0" /></a></div></div></div>Chelseahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554143752763142178noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17459498.post-75904925651666502722008-11-28T09:41:00.003-06:002008-11-28T09:59:13.285-06:00Prayer RequestPlease send your thoughts and prayers to baby <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://hazelana.blogspot.com/">Hazel</a><span style="font-weight: bold;">.</span> She is in the ICU and having difficulty breathing following surgery. What was thought to be croup was actually a battery lodged in her esophagus . They've removed the battery, but the battery acid had already thinned her esophageal lining and there are now worries of that rupturing.<br />Hazel is almost exactly the same age as Gavin (four days older), and I can't possibly imagine what her parents are going through.<br />Get well soon Hazel!Chelseahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554143752763142178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17459498.post-66935002212082875552008-11-21T07:14:00.003-06:002010-03-12T13:59:50.227-06:009 Months Old!My baby boy will be 9 months old on Sunday, can you believe it!? And in addition to that, he's walking! He took his first steps when he was 7 months old, and just this week he's really been trying to walk instead of dropping to crawl. I was even able to shoot a successful video this morning without Jayden or Jasper storming through.<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/7rsc07iZSvU&hl=en&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/7rsc07iZSvU&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />How cute is that??<br />I can say it's cute now, but I know it's going to mean a lot more work here soon. He's already an ornery little guy that's discovered a super cute smile in the middle of mischief can turn a mother from scolding to laughing instantly.<br />Currently, our daily battle of mischief involves the doggie dishes. We keep the food dishes at the farthest end of the house, all this does so far is buy us more time to catch him before he gets to the dishes to dump out the water and food. I usually start with the "No no no! Gavin!" when he is about halfway there, and I'm still half a house away from catching him. The distant sound of me saying no will make him stop, sit, and look back for me every time, but as soon as he sees the smallest glimps of his mama coming, he books it with every fiber of his little being in an attempt to get to the food dish. He is smiling and laughing the entire time, until he feels both hands on him as I swoop him up, then he has a full fledged tantrum. At monotonous and annoying as this should be, I still laugh every time because he's just so diligent. And we both know, that someday I'm going to be too late and he'll be at the finish line with a mouth full of puppy food and that ornery smile on his face.<br /><br />So, as you now probably know, Gavin is happy to eat anything, but pretty much demands a sippy cup of water with every meal and will yell until he has one. He is completely off of babyfood, he just eats what we eat. His favorite foods are cheese and cold raw fruit and veggies....I think mostly becuase they feel good on his gums.<br /><br />He officially has teeth coming in. Two on the bottom, and one on top. Maybe, just MAYBE this means he'll start sleeping through the night because he'll be out of excuses not to??<br /><br /><br />Jayden and Gavin have good days and bad days. Jayden typically doesn't want to share his toys, and the only toys Gavin wants to play with are Jayden's. Besides the toys, they get along very well. If Gavin is ever crying, Jayden starts singing to Gavin or runs to grab him a toy to make him happy again. Jayden is also pretty good at watching out for Gavin if I'm busy doing something, and he isn't afraid to scoop him up under his arms to pull him away from something Gavin shouldn't be getting into.<br /><br />Overall, Gavin is the sweetest, happiest baby. Unless you're trying to do something he doesn't want to do. Such as, wipe his nose, change his diaper, dress him, put him in his car seat, get him ready to sleep, give him medicine, or snatch him away from any mischief he might be getting himself into...then, you pretty much get a full fledged tantrum until whatever is being done to him has passed. All of the other times, he's just perfect.Chelseahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554143752763142178noreply@blogger.com4