Stanton Family

2012 - new year, new beginnings

2012-01-15T17:29:00.000-08:00

Well this is just sad. I had sort of forgotten about this little family/life/kids journal I had started here years back. As you can tell, I've 'forgotten' about it for a year now. How sad!! An entire year, has come and gone and although I have pictures and FB posts to look back to, I have no story of the funny things the kids have said, or did and our journeys through 2011. Note to self, do better this year. I know, I've said this before, but I really mean it this time...
So it's 2012 now. Johnners is 4 and Izzie is almost 2. I can't believe the attitude a little gal has for being 21 months old...someone should have sent me a memo about the STRONG personality type of a little girl. She is constantly cracking me up and to watch her and Johnners interact is one of my most favorite things. They are both at such a fun age. My favorite part of the day is coming home from work to hear their little feet running to the door saying 'mommy is home!!!!" and coming in for a hug :) sure fills a gals heart!! No matter how good or bad my day was, it's always better when I get home and see their little faces :)
I call them my little peanuts. For some reason that has caught on this year. Even as I type, Izzie is fighting for a spot on my lap. Ahhh, now I remember why I suck at updating this... the same reason I want to update stuff is the very reason that prevents me from it! Oh the irony. LOL.

Izzie doesn't really walk anywhere, she mostly skips. Which is sooo darling! She sort of bounces to and fro no matter what she's doing. We all LOVE to dance to the Fresh Beat Band and Izzie will say "again" about a dozen and a half times :) She is growing up fast, too fast!!!

Johnners is a climber and loves army guys, blowing up anything and everything and his KIKI. Yes, he's still addicted to his kiki... :( His bestest buddy is Sam Bone and the two of them can play for hours blowing up this and that. It's hilarious to overhear them as they play. The things they come up with and the way they talk. Ahh, it makes me miss being a kid. They really have it sooo easy :)

Here is one of my favorite pics from the summer. The two of them LOVE LOVE riding in the tractor. It's the nightly routine when I get home from work. So fun to see the enjoyment on their faces :) it's my favorite!!

Ok, wishing I had more time to do this, however.... my children call. Here's to trying to update this more often. Maybe once a month??? hmmm... that seem attainable. :) wishing the best in 2012.

Christmas at grandma and grandpa Stantons

2011-01-09T15:01:00.000-08:00

I'm just realized that the little spare time I have left, I'm using for photo books, aka. smile box. that's my excuse for new blogs...how sad. No content, just photos. Well, I'll have to live with that for the time being...however, I hope to be able to post more information soon. Izzie is now almost 9 months old and I'm realizing how stinkin fast the time goes with the second one. Soon enough she will be walking and no longer my baby!
blessings to you and yours...

Another free scrapbook by Smilebox

holidays with the kiddos

2010-12-20T15:03:00.000-08:00

This scrapbooking design personalized with Smilebox

Thankful

2010-11-24T11:20:00.000-08:00

Having an attitude of gratitude is only possible if you have faith in knowing everything will be alright in the end. I'm grateful for each and every one of you!
I can't believe how fast time flies after the second child. Everyone kept telling me it would, but true to my human nature, I had to believe it for myself. And sure enough, it's FLYING by!
Isabella is God's gift to me. I'm sure of it! She is the reason people have babies. She is cuddly, fat, smiley, and sweet as can be! She sleeps well, eats well, and 90% of the time she is giggly, smiley and wonderful! What joy she has brought to my life! My favorite thing is watching her interact with Johnners. They already have a special bond and are each others best friends. He is SO sweet with her. It just melts this little mommas heart!

Johnners is ALL boy and spends his days playing with his army tanks and blowing things up! He is a highly organized little boy. All of his toys are usually lined up in rows and he displays them ever so neatly! All other times, they are scattered all over his room, and our living room...we're working on his 'cleaning up skills'. :(
Izzie loves to sit up and play. She wants none of this 'lay on my tummy and try to crawl bs' nope. She's not having any of that! She wants to sit up and be part of the action. Since she was born she has wanted to 'control' things. When I try to feed her baby food now she reaches up her hands so SHE can hold the spoon and not me! I have to hold her hands down to feed her! Whereas Johnners couldn't get enough food - he was just a little bird with his mouth wide open!

I enjoy getting home every day so I can interact with my kids. Cuddle, play, laugh, and love on them until bed time. I never knew being a mom could be this fulfilling. It's the most amazing experience of my life. And this is coming from a person who wasn't sure she ever wanted to have kids!
I have so many things to be thankful for this year. We recently moved into a new home and were able to purchase a new vehicle! I am SOO thankful for the generosity and kindness that has been poured over us lately.

Realizing that 5 years ago at this time I was sleeping on an air mattress and living in a one bedroom apartment makes me extremely humbled and grateful for what I have today. It's amazing what 5 years can do to someone. My whole life has changed - and for the better!
Here's to kindness and thanksgiving this holiday season.
Blessings to you all :)

summer fun

2010-08-29T15:58:00.000-07:00

it's been a fun and very very busy last few months. Mommy went back to work and life has kept us on our toes! I figured this would be the easiest way to update info now and then try to catch up with the writing another time. Hah! I hope that idea actually comes to fruition. Johnners is so big now, and amazingly smart (in my opinion). He is totally obsessed with golf and most of my nights are spend across the street with him chasing golf balls up and down the open pasture. I strap Izzie in the baby carrier and we head out. He got a set of golf clubs for his birthday and he calls his driver his 'smasher' and his iron is the 'hard hitter'. He also loves to put and basically do anything that involves golf. He'll watch golf and track how the players are doing. It's totally entertaining! He even makes me be quiet before the golfer will hit on TV. Pappy is becoming his favorite simply because, well he's cool, but mainly because he's associated with everything golf! He typically wakes up every am and asks to go golfing.
He's also very wrapped up with sharks right now. He asked for a shark for his birthday and when we asked him what he wanted to do with it, he said 'eat it'. So guess what his wonderful auntie mandie got him for his bday? A shark! We brought it home and the little sucker actually made it for about 20 hours...the next morning Johnners had found the fish net and a pair of scissors. He had pulled the stool up next to the fish tank and was standing over the tank trying to get the 'shark' out and, you guessed it, cut him up so he could eat him!! I plead not guilty because I wasn't home. Mark was in the shower. Our little guy did just what he said he wanted to, we just didn't realize he was that serious! LOL.
Izzie, is a little over 4 months now and is just as precious as can be. She's so much fun and if all babies are like her, then EVERYONE should have one! She sleeps through the night and eats like a champ. She is happiest when she's in the middle of everything that's going on. She does NOT want to be set aside - 'nobody puts baby in the corner' She wants to interact with everything that's going on. She's rolling over and talking up a storm. Nothing makes sense yet, but she's sure trying to tell you something!
Time FLIES with the second child. I can't believe how fast she is growing. I am sooo blessed to have two wonderful and amazing children. I feel like the luckiest girl in the world. My life seems more 'complete' now then it has ever been. 'Lovin my life as a mommy and wife'
hope you enjoy the picture slide show. We got some cute ones of big brother Maguire (almost 5) and big sister Makenna (now 7). Sending lots of love to you!

Slideshow customized with Smilebox

welcome baby Izzie!

2010-05-04T12:27:00.000-07:00

Well it's official - we have a new member of our family! :)

Introducing Isabella (Izzie) Ann Stanton

We are so excited to have a little girl as a blessing to our family.

She was born on April 14, 2010 at 8:01am via c-section and weighed 9lbs. 2oz. and was 21 1/2" long.

Johnners wasn't so sure what to think of his new baby sister when he met her. She got quite a few strange looks from him before he warmed up to her. It made us all laugh. Now he is a great big brother and even willing to share 'ki-ki' with her. If you know my son's special relationship with his favorite blankie then you would understand how big of a deal this really is!

He is always holding her, snuggling her and giving her kisses. He is in fact, a very proud BIG brother!

I now realize why I was sooo huge :) I looked like someone literally shoved a beach ball up my shirt - and I actually had a few folks ask if I was really pregnant or I had shoved a beach ball up my shirt. LOL! Sorry, I didn't add any pre-Izzie birth photos of my looking like a beach ball. No one needs to have a Kodak memory of that! :) But this is our first official picture together - she's 11 days old in this photo. First time mommy actually got dressed since she was born!

Izzie is SUCH a delight and what a sweet sweet baby! She is wonderful and I feel totally blessed to have a baby who isn't in pain from the MSPI - milk soy protein intolerance - like Johnners was. I think it really helps that I started the MSPI diet in Feb so my body was free from all milk and soy products when she arrived. She sleeps well and is barely ever fussy. In other words, she is night and day from her brother! I had such a rough time with Johnners until we figured out his MSPI intolerance (at 6 weeks) so I didn't get a chance to enjoy baby time the way some mom's do. Izzie is a total cuddle bug, smiles a lot, and is such a doll! Again, I feel so blessed that she is who she is already :) She is a good eater and already weighs 9lbs. 14oz. at two weeks old. She's my little chunk!

Fortunately I had help when I got home from the hospital - the second c-section was a bit more difficult to recover from then the first. I had a lot of pain, and still do. (Izzie will be 3 weeks tomorrow). My mom came and stayed with us for a few days and was a HUGE help! Then my sister in law came up for a few days as well and was also a wonderful help to have around! I am so blessed to be surrounded by such loving and caring, wonderful people :)

This is our precious Auntie M who came to stay with us and meet our baby Izzie!

The kids are adapting well and are so excited to have a little sister as well. Makenna is thrilled to have another female in the family and Maguire is absolutely precious with her. They both constantly want to hold, hug, and kiss her. She is one very loved little lady!

I'm on leave for 12 weeks and am learning what it's like to be a stay-at-home-mommy. I'm only two weeks in by myself and so far so good. All of the anxiety I had about the balance of activities, schedules, naps, and other 'fun' things has seemed to work out so far. Our little family is complete and we are thrilled!

I'll be posting more pics soon - and updating the blog while I have so much 'free' time on my hands :) LOL

to you Izzie - we love you and are SOOO happy you're part of our lives!

Feb - Mar

2010-03-21T16:35:00.000-07:00

Well February came and went - quite quickly :) I was all set to post a new blog and then we received some very sad news. My precious Grandma KC passed away on March 2. She had a stroke and never woke up. I guess in a way, you can be glad that there wasn't years of suffering or turmoil for her. I can rejoice that she is now dancin in heaven with her husband and reconnecting with all those that she has lost in her life. She was a woman to aspire to. I can't recall a moment where she was unaffectionate or unfriendly to me. She was always encouraging and sweet and there with a hug and multiple kisses on your cheek if you needed them or not. She was the perfect grandma, just the way they should be. Full of laughter and love and good stories about your parent that he/she would never tell you themselves. :) we all adored her and she will be dearly dearly missed. I'm glad my son had a chance to meet her, although he won't remember it. That's ok.

So we traveled down to TX to attend her funeral and say our sad goodbyes. The nice part of the trip as that 1. my sister from Japan flew all the way over to see us! 2. The weather got into the 70's 3. we got to see all our family!! It was nice, I have to admit. To sit around an outdoor fire and see familiar faces of the ones we love,and have a moment to share a hug and lots of laughs together. For that I am grateful for the visit down south.

It's now mid March (obviously) and life has yet again continued on. Funny how it does that, whether or not we want it to... We actually had a day in NE in the 60's and then the very next day - it snowed...seems like spring will never get here.

Speaking of spring, we hope to have a spring baby...I'm three and a half weeks away now and boy can I tell I'm close! My sweet husband got me a pregnancy massage the other day and she was like 'woah' you're back is a mess! My sciatic nerves go back and forth from being pinched and in major pain. In fact, my legs both went numb while I was getting the massage - note to self: that's not a good thing.

Johnners is soooo anxious for warm weather and the chance to get outside and play. He's been riding his bigwheel toy in the garage some nights when we get home just because he wants to play so badly. :( poor guy.

We're still working on the potty training and are having a little more success,but it's a lot harder than I thought it would be. I keep reminding myself that it's not like he's going to go to preschool in diapers right???

He's totally into golf and any stick or long item that he finds he's trying to hit a ball with it. He actually said to me the other day, "mommy, isn't it spring? can we go golfing yet?" My heart just melted!! THAT'S MY BOY!

He constantly cracks me and Mark up by the things he'll say, or just how goofy he'll act. He's quite entertaining if you ask me. Just reinforces that 'kids say the darnedest things' - because they totally do!

It will be interesting to see how he does with a baby around. I'm sure I'll have good stories about that as well. I can only imagine, and then I realize that what I imagine is still probably not accurate.

I'm guessing by the next time I get around to posting something on this, I'll have a new baby to boast about.

Prayers that these next 3 weeks go by quickly. Momma's body is worn out! (yes, I realize the hardest part is still ahead) BUT once you get to the hardest part all you can do is tackle it and grow from there right?

Here's to spring and a new baby girl to bless our family :)

January

2010-02-01T18:09:00.001-08:00

Well January has come and gone and I'm not going to miss it even for one second. This is officially the worst winter I've ever experienced hands down! We've had numerous times where there are 6ft drifts in front of our garage and have to have a snow plow come dig us out! Johnners doesn't really know what to think about all this snow. He's been out to play in it a few times but it's been sooooo darn cold that It's just not smart to have him out. I did get to capture a few cute pics of him enjoying the snow though...

He is speaking in full sentences and saying the cutest things. Mark and I are constantly amazed at the things coming out of his mouth. Plus he's hit that age where he repeats everything you say! That's scary for the parent... :/

Tonight was spent singing songs *twinkle twinkle and *Sunshine, and watching his favorite - Ice Age! He loves the dinosaurs!! The other things that he is obsessed with currently are guns, everything is shoot em up bang bang stuff. It's hilarious and yet very weird for me because it's a total little boy thing and having never been a little boy I don't understand the obsessions with shooting things. Good thing his dad does! The two of them are like little peas in a pod together. In fact Mark keeps him home a few days a week just to hang out with the little guy and bond. He LOVES his daddy!!

He's such a sweet little guy and the older he gets of course the more ornery he is, but he's also the same sweet boy that will wake up in the am and give me a big squeeze and kiss! He's such a cuddler and can be such an adorable little character. As I type he is standing up trying to figure out how to put on his diaper. LOL. yes, unfortunately we are still in diapers... He's great at going pee pee in the potty, but number two, FORGET ABOUT IT! He screams and throws a fit. Poor guy, we'll get it figured out soon, I hope...

I'm now 7 months pregnant and ready for it to be over. It's much harder with your second because when you're tired, wellll..... too bad. You've got a toddler to chase after.

I can't wait to meet our little girl and for Johnners to have a permanent play mate. Our little family will be complete and it seems sometimes that I've won the child lottery. Boy AND girl. Totally content :)

We've scheduled the c-section for April 14 so her bday will be 4/14/10. Looking forward to it. I've begun my MSPI diet again and hoping this time I won't be so miserable...we'll see how it goes.

Hopefully February goes fast...I need to see some sunshine and know that this winter won't last forever!! Here's Johnners and his very very favorite thing - KIKI!!! Oh what would we do with out KiKi "

Cheers to another month :)

2009-12-28T17:24:00.000-08:00

ok so I figure six months later I might as well try this again. Wow this has been a busy year and apparently I must make 'keeping up on my blog' part of my new years resolution. (does that make you feel better Stac?)

To recap the last six months - the word busy comes to mind. First and foremost Johnners turned two! Yes, TWO. I can't believe how big his is getting and that he's not a baby anymore...:( sad. We had his birthday party at my moms house and grandma came over as well my aunt, uncle, and sister. Marks sister and husband and mom and dad came too. It was actually a chilly day. July 31st - chilly. Who would have guessed? It didn't keep us from dippin in the pool, even if only for a few moments though.

Johnners favorite part was the cake. My mom made his cake and I asked her to make the 'healthiest' kind. So he got carrot cake, with cream cheese frosting. Eh, he only turns two once right? We got him a John Deer tractor -(of course my hubbies idea) and oh man does he love that thing!!! It was so fun to see him ride it for the first time, and still is. He'll get in the garage now and sit in it - look at me and say "mommy I wanna ride outside" ummmm yea, it's a little freezing out there now

From there it seems like fall came a minute later. Work was the busiest I've ever experienced and Mark and Johnners got to spend a LOT of time together as I was working a lot of extra hours at the office. In face they took a trip to Colorado together. Just the two boys. Mark said it was so fun to see Johnners take in the amazing landscape in Colorado. He saw lots of 'Moosas' and couldn't stop telling me how big the mountains were. They had a good time. And got snow while they were up there. (In OCT) I guess we should have taken the early snow fall in CO as a sign of what was to come for us this winter. I had a whole week with our 'precious' Oliver and my house was clean and tidy every day. That was the BEST part of my week. The worst part of my week was being without my two guys...I realized that week that I'd rather have a dirty house that I get to clean every day than not have my boys at home. This was quite the eye opener for me. I thought I would be happy as a clam with my clean house and nothing on my agenda...guess it goes to show that sometimes what you think you'll love isn't what you thought... good eye opener!

My brother got married in November and we went down to FL as a family and Johnners got to ride on an airplane for the first time. It was a trip I'll never forget...He didn't like having to sit still and in one seat for two hours at a time (each flight) and we had quite a few melt downs...another growing/learning experience as a parent. He still remembers flying and airplanes are his new fav! It's so cute. We got off our last flight coming home and both Mark and I were ready to pull our hair out - Johnners looks at us and says, "Let's do it again" we both said sure - but you'll have to do it alone!

Here's one of me and my beautiful momma!

I'm so glad we were able to be there for my brothers wedding and to get a chance to spend some time relaxing under the Florida sun! He also got to see the ocean for the first time and let me tell you he LOVED the sand, but HATED the water. In fact he would run away from the waves crashing on the sand. I laughed and laughed. I assumed that since he was my son he'd be one with the water the moment he saw it. NOT so true...but only time will tell. Here's one of the whole fam including our new sister-in-law, beautiful Sofia!! It was such a beautiful day and they were sooooo incredibly happy :)

this is Johnners and I at the reception. He was hammin it up. Surprised?

Christmas this year proved to be the most 'diffucult' Christmas I've ever had. We had more snowfall this year then I've ever seen in my life. We've run out of room to put it! There are drifts over 12 feet tall in our neighborhood. Talk about a white Christmas!

Fortunately we were able to head up to Clear Lake and spend the holiday with family. This has been my favorite year yet with Johnners for Christmas. This is the first time he understood opening presents and totally got sooooo excited when he would open a gift. Everything was 'WOOOOOOW' and 'WOOOOAAAAHHHH' or 'Ooooh Myyyy GOOOOooosh' I realize the 'magic' of Christmas is being able to experience the delight on your child's face when they open something that they get so excited about. He still doesn't get the whole "Santa" thing, but bet your bottom we'll be using that one as a behaviour encourager next year!

I turned a big number three weeks ago and I'm determined to make the 30's the best years of my life. I learned some very hard lessons in my 20's so hopefully I'll be able to use those experiences and be able to apply them to life going forward... Having another child is going to be very interesting. Can't wait to blog about her and how wonderful Johnners is as a big brother.

Johnners is speaking in complete sentences and his imagination is full of wild ideas. He loves his Kiki, Mimi, and bear and has to sleep with them nightly. The potty training thing is still in the works and yes, I'm ashamed to admit he's still in his crib :( every time we try to convert it he falls out all night long. Yet, if he sleeps in a 'big boy bed' (twin) he's totally fine. We've got things to work on and believe me I realize that all of this is just one work in progress after another. But that's ok. I'm under the impression right now that I'm up for the challenge. At least today...

Cheers to 2010 and what's to come. Wishing you all a Happy New Years!

May Fun

2009-06-02T10:09:00.000-07:00

May May where did you go?

Wow May went by fast! Work has been CRAZY and the weather is warming up so that means less time on the computer and more time outside with Johnners. He is full force right now. Talking a mile a minute and repeating everything you say. His big thing right now is when riding in the car he's constantly saying "mom - Loook!" and pointing out the window and every thing that sparks his interest. The most exciting things he sees are tractors, cranes, and big dump trucks. In fact Mark got him a shirt with dump trucks on it and when he wears it he's constantly pointing at it saying "Look!" It's too cute.

We went down to Lincoln for Mother's day and spent some time with my grandma and mom.

Here's me and auntie Mandie cheezin it up on my mom's new bench - she's so proud of her purchase!

Memorial Day Weekend

We had a really fun Memorial day this year - we went out to a friends lakehouse and played in the sand with friends. Mark took a spin on a kayak and we fished. The fish were actually so tame that they would swim right up to your feet. Johnners thought that was the best thing EVER. He would reach down and could literally touch them. It was so fun to see him giggle and squeal with delight after interacting with those fishies!
This is one of my favs - he was SO happy that day! :)

We tried to convert his crib to a big boy bed - THAT was a mistake!!! He thought it was sooo great that he could climb in and out that it would take him an hour and a half to finally fall asleep! We'd poke our heads in and he'd be riding his rocking horse or looking out the window. Geesh! Plus he fell out of his crib a few times... :( I had pillows under the crib and it's not very high off the ground. It was so cute though because the last time he fell out I rushed in there and he was sitting on the floor, he looked up at me and said, 'Uh Oh!" (This is at 4 in the morning). OH my gracious child!
So I converted his bed into a crib last night and the little guy zonked out! Maybe I was pushin my luck with the big boy bed...all in good time right?

June my sister comes home and then she takes off for a YEAR in JAPAN! Don't know how I'm gonna get through that one... sad for me GREAT for her.

tootles!!

Happy Easter

2009-04-17T11:52:00.000-07:00

Hippity Hippity hop the Easter bunny came to town. And as you can tell, Johnners wasn't exactly thrilled to see him...

It actually was a great Easter and the weather even cooperated too :) I run the activities for our company and hosted an Easter Egg Hunt for over 100 kiddos this year. Fortunately Makenna and Maguire got to participate this year as well. They had fun running around and gathering up eggs.

Johnners just thought it was cool to get the eggs. UNTIL...he discovered that there was candy inside! Awww man! My poor sheltered baby. He doesn't get much candy b/c mommy won't let him have it and when he does get it - look out! He was totally obsessed on Sat. He had more sweets that day then he ever has his entire life!! So I realized two things. 1. Maybe I should gently expose him to sweets so he doesn't go hog wild when he does get it. 2.That boy LOVES sugar!!! Again, awwww man! I want him to think sugar is strawberries and peaches - yum yum. Well you can't 'protect' them forever huh? Shoot!
We went to grammys and pappys for Easter day and had a good time doing yet another Easter Egg Hunt and other fun stuff. The kids all got outfits from grandma Stanton and they all looked sooo darling. I of course was trying to get some cute pictures but I'm learning fast that little ones don't like to take a lot of pictures - oh and neither does my husband. Hence all the awesome smiles you see on their faces... :)

Even grandma Jean came over to celebrate the day with us. She got a cute new hair-do too!! I thought this moment was so precious between the two of them. :) She was telling him all about the train on the outside of this box, and he was totally eatin it up!

Happy Easter to you and your families too!!!

bath time and reflections

2009-03-23T10:58:00.000-07:00

So I'm giving Johnners a bath the other night and notice that I still have his robe (from a baby shower of mine) up on a towel rack in his bathroom. The tag says 0-9 months. Does that stop me from putting it on my little guy to see just how cute he is in a robe that's a YEAR too small for him? NOOO.... It was SOOO cute! He loved it! He was prancin around showing off how cute he was and smiling for pictures. He thought he was a stud - and so did I :) BTW thank God I put a diaper on him prior to taking this picture... think it's a bit small?

I hear mothers saying that their kids are growing up too fast and how sad it is but I haven't understood the profound meaning of that statement until recently. John will be 2 in July - 2! He's running all over the place, climbing up ladders at the park, and talking a mile a minute. When he's stinky he now looks at me and says 'stinky' then puts his hand up to his nose and says 'peee uuu'. He seems to learn a new word on a daily basis and he LOVES to read. We read books which he refers to as 'boka boka boka' and he points out all the animals and then makes their sounds. How is this possible? He was just rolling on the ground unable to walk a year ago. Now he's saying sentences and plays with the 'big kids' in the neighborhood. What? WOW!

It was a year ago in April that we moved into our new home and I can remember he was crawling all over the place so I was a total clean freak about our floors. We also had baby gates up all over the place. Now we have no gates and we've redone two of our floors simply for the maintenance and look plus the wear and tear it gets from a tot AND dog.

I'm constantly reflecting back on my life and wondering how I got to this place. What's the reason for it all and now that I'm here, what am I supposed to be doing...

Having a child has changed me in a way I never would have thought possible. He is the delight in my day the laughter I experience on a minute to minute basis. He is truly a gift and I am so thankful for him. What an honor to be a mommy. I'm sure I'm going to make a million mistakes and have already made a few bazillion - but we'll learn together and make it through. What a delight - he is my precious precious little baby boy. I never thought I could care for another the way I do for him. It's like my heart grew two sizes when he was born. :)

I love you so much my little buddy - you are the joy in me and your daddy's day :)

A special Anniversary

2009-03-12T06:14:00.000-07:00

March is a month full of fun. My parents 30th wedding anniversary was March 4th and my genius sister Amanda and I decided to plan a surprise party for them. It was a good time but mostly the fun was to see my mom so surprised and have a 'great' time :) As I get older I realize that birthdays are a big deal when you're a kid - as you age, the number you 'are' isn't so important. The big deal to me is number of anniversaries you celebrate. My parents have been through their fair share of hell with and without us 'precious' kiddos. The fact that they have remained true to their vows and have stuck by each others side is a really BIG deal. We "Americans" don't do a good enough job of recognizing that there are a lot of folks out there who do 'make it work'. We're so caught up in the latest divorce rate that we fail to look at those who are continuing to grind it in their marriage daily. Believe me, I'm the LAST person to preach about 'it's wrong to get divorced' but again, as I reflect on my life it really is a BIG deal to me that MY parents have stayed together for 30 years. I feel so fortunate to have two loving parents who choose and continue to set a positive example of marriage for me. Sure I've seen them go through good times and bad. But we all have those days/weeks/months - it's the commitment to endure through those bad days/weeks/months that speaks volumes to me. Mostly I've seen the change in my father. His focus has become less on himself and more on my mother. WOW! Now THAT'S BIG TIME:) They make a great team and now that I'm in my (ahem ahem) 'late' 20's, I've reached a new 'stage' with them. They have become my sounding board and my confidant. Two well respected and much appreciated people in my life. They are actually number 2 and 4 on my speed dial - WOW. I never thought I'd be saying that.

Cheers to you for making it this far. For continuing to be supportive and loving. Cheers to you for sticking to your commitment to each other and CHEERS to many more years together. I love you both :)

Of course, I had to toss one of the kiddo in :) My little guy cheesin' it up

fun with grandma and grandpa stanton

2009-02-24T05:48:00.000-08:00

We took a trip up to Clear Lake a few weekends ago with Johnners and Maguire. It was fun to visit with family and see Auntie 'M' and Uncle Luke as well. Johnners only had two accidents in the first few hours we were there. He cut the side of his lip and fell on his noggin. I was ready to get him a helmet by the time we left. Poor little guy. He's always getting into something! It just goes to show you can't protect them all the time.

Johnners loved to see grandpas horses! Mark said he walked right up and extended his hand - no fear. Which at first you go, Ohh that's so sweet. Then reality kicks in and you go, Oh crap - he has NO fear!!!
Here he is with grandpa - he did NOT want to take a picture so Jim was imitating his little 'fit' I thought it was cute...:)He definitely had fear when we went to the Dr. for his 18 month check up. He got on the scale and totally freaked. I had never seen anything like that from him. It was like all of a sudden he realized where he was and that the last time he was there he got a shot and he didn't like it. Well folks, he got one again. Talk about an unhappy boy! Hey, I can't blame him. I hate shots too!

We got a big bunch of snow at our home and took Johnners out to 'play' in it. I couldn't stop laughing at him. He was all bundled up in three pairs of pants, turtle neck, jackets etc. And just happy as a clam! Oliver loves the snow too.

Johnners is getting so big! As he gets older he has more words and new ways of thinking. It's fun to watch him grow and learn. I love you buddy! Your precious sweet face and big blue eyes - every inch of your little frame from the tips of your toes to the top of your hair!

Fun-O-Meter

2009-01-23T15:11:00.000-08:00

Sooo, now that we're almost in the end of January I thought I should update the pictures from New Years - makes sense right? Jeepers... I forgot about all the fun pictures I had from NYE. I realize that once you have kids the 'fun-o-meter' goes WAYYY down. I'm not necessarily complaining just simply stating that that 'fun-o-meter' is really low once that kiddo arrives. BUT - and yes there is a but...you find new things to trip that fun meter. Like when your little guy leans in to kiss you good night or wakes you up by whispering in your ear and kissing your face. Those are the new moments in my life that I get my 'high' from. :)

Luke and Melissa came over for a few days to spend NYE with us and also our anniversary with us. It was so fun to see them and have them visit us. We all went out to Bonefish Grill for our 2 year Anniversary dinner and it was delicious! very very yummy :)

Had good times and good cocktails - see, the fun-o-meter was UP that night :)

My precious mother watched Johnners all night on the 30th so we could go out and celebrate our anniversary! YAHOO!!

Here's Auntie 'M' with the kiddos all playin around before dinner - what fun:) Maguire has the most killer smile - he totally cracks me up - tooo stinkin cute.

My auntie Moogie knitted Johnners this adorable sweater and hat - he looked sooo stinkin adorable - Mark called him his little Thurston Howell. :)

All in all our NYE and days off from work were fun and we enjoyed the high and low moments of our little fun-o-meter :)

Enter 2009

2009-01-09T13:46:00.000-08:00

Alas the holidays have come and thankfully gone yet again. We were home (in Lincoln) this year for Christmas. My brother even came back - I haven't seen him in two years! He got to meet his nephew John for the first time. It was soo sweet. I was fortunate to get to spend a lot of time in Lincoln over the holidays. Catch up with my sister (who now lives in Portland) and see my brother (who lives in Miami). For a moment time stood still and it was just the six of us all over again. Just more 'grown up'.

I miss being that energetic kid at Christmas. You got two weeks off of school and life was vibrant and exciting. Once you grow up that luster wears off and things just become hectic and stressful. Trying to manage every ones schedules and fit into the time tables is very frustrating. I want to go back to when the holidays were just fun and family. NO stress. Don't get me wrong, it's not that there wasn't fun but just more stress then I would have wished for. Because we just got a new dog and he's not fully potty trained Mark had to go back and forth with him and the kiddos every night. It worked best for sleeping arrangements and the dog. It's sad because I didn't get to 'sleep' with my husband while we were on vacation together. I realize this is a simple stupid thing but sometimes in life it's the little things that matter.

Johnners absolutely loves being at Grammys house and honest to God my favorite thing about the holiday was the fact that my mom let me go back to bed every morning while I was staying there. She would get up and grab Johnners then they would go make Swedish pancakes together and play. I was able to sleep for an additional two or three hours!!!! HOLY LORD was that AWESOME! It was really the best of both worlds because my mom got one-on-one time with Johnny cakes and I got to sleep. Wonderful!!!

On Christmas morning there were presents upon presents for the kids. John wasn't too interested in the presents but there was one in particular that caught his eye. My mom had wrapped up her old cell phone and given it to him. He opened that thing and for the next few hours all he did was walk around and talk and talk and talk! It was so precious!! and BOY does that kid have a lot to say. He LOVES pretending to talk on the phone. If there's an actual voice on the other end he'll refuse the phone. The other night I caught him pretending to talk on the phone and there wasn't even an actual phone in his hand! TOO CUTE!

He's all over the place anymore. It's amazing how much kids understand even at this young age. He loves to read and jabber with me and Mark. He's constantly running all over the place and has taken up 'swimming' in the shower. He lays down on the shower floor and covers the drain with his tummy. Then creates about 2" of water and thinks it's the BEST! I have to pull him out! He is SUCH a water baby. I love it! He is now 17 months and I can't believe how big he is getting. He's obviously going through a growth spurt because he's eating everything in sight. I pick him up from daycare and have crackers in the car to feed him on the way home. He doesn't let me forget either. If I don't hand those suckers back there after we pull out it's immediately 'cookie mommy, cookie' - see all 'cracker' type items are cookies. I don't actually let him have 'cookies' yet... His idea of a sweet is fruit! I realize this might come back to haunt me someday but I'm willing to face that when and if it does.

Life keeps us busy and Johnners does as well. He is completely obsessed with tags - more so than ever. If he sees a tag he immediately latches on to it and begins to suck his thumb. It doesn't matter where the tag is attached. If someone is wearing a shirt with a tag - he'll grab it. Dish towels, bibs, even (God forbid I admit) underwear! - I mean of course CLEAN underwear :) It makes me laugh - better yet he makes me laugh. I am filled daily by his energy and life! Love him Love him Love him!!! :)

till next time...

2008-12-11T09:29:00.001-08:00

Soooo...

we officially have a new member of the family now. He's small, furry and VERY cute. His name is Oliver and we call him "Olly". We got him on Sunday and so far he's managed to chew up a few of Johnners toys and have several 'accidents' in our new home... Mark assures me we're going to pull up all the carpet eventually and put down my beautiful wood floors (or tile)... quite possibly in the next 4-6 months! So, I'm 'dealing' with it for now.

To be completely honest - I did NOT want the dog. We have enough balls in the air now and I didn't need another one thrown in. But alas, life doesn't always give you what you want and I continue to live that lesson OVER and OVER again. Someday it will sink in :)

He is absolutely precious and Johnners loves him bunches. He's cute and spunky and full of energy. Oliver absolutely lights up Mark's eyes and he's as happy as a 9 year old boy. So you gotta like that part...

We took the kiddos to Coco Keys over the weekend and they of course had loads of fun. It was extra special because my parents came up as well - so we all spent some quality time pretending it was really 80 degrees outside and that the water was 'really' warm and that the other thousands of people weren't really there... well, the kids enjoyed it at least.

Johnners has NO fear. He would walk right off the edge of the pool with no concern. Scares me to death - we need to insert some fear in that boy. He's was running around like he owned the place.

Makenna was a fish in the water and her and Maguire had fun going down the slides and playing with other kiddos. And Johnners loved those stinkin balls - the 'boeys' he couldn't get enough of them.

Overall is was an 'exciting' time. The kiddos were totally beat and that means they had FUN :) I'm not anticipating another trip for at least a few more months... HAH! The things you do when you have kids. Jeepers - where was the handbook about this one? I've got to reveal my Casper white body, that hasn't seen an exercise machine in Lord knows WAYY to long and prance around about a zillion other folks...wow now that's really livin!!

Happy Halloween

2008-11-06T14:33:00.000-08:00

Happy Halloween from the Stantons!Johnners was our little lion and he hated his costume. I was trying to get him to smile and it wasn't workin for him. So I began (yes I sadly admit) to bribe him.

He ate marshmallows - and not the small kind :) Yet still, in the image you see he's not a happy camper. I couldn't figure out what why it was so horrible for him. He will wear his hoodies all the time and never complains. HUH?

I wanted to get him with some pumpkins as well but he wouldn't look at mommy, he was wayyy to fascinated in "Veggie Tales" my bad, my bad. Now I know to turn the TV off first - duahhh!

Overall we had a great Halloween - it was beautiful outside and I walked Johnny cakes all over so he could get some candy. I acually allowed him to have a few M&M's!! that's a BIG deal!! The poor kid doesn't have a CLUE what candy realy is. heeeheeee. I'll get away with it as log as i can :)

Blessings to all :)

Happy Halloween - from Smilebox :)

2008-10-30T08:43:00.000-07:00

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

can i tell you how much i love this site!!! ok - well it's ALOT!

Playin' with Dad

2008-10-21T13:40:00.000-07:00

So this was too cute to NOT capture last night. John loves to throw rocks right now... wierd I know. But alas, he's a boy and I guess they like to do that sort of thing. So he was throwing the rock with Mark and then Mark would pick up the rock and put it in his pocket. Once he figured out that he could reach in his pocket and get the rock - OHHH BABY was he excited.Once he figured out that he could reach in his pocket and get the rock - OHHH BABY was he excited. He always does this "ahhhhh" thing. It's adorable. Sort of like a baby braveheart roar. So I quick reached for my camera and started snapping away.

He's full of words now, every morning it's "ouuusiiiide" and "cookie" as soon as you get him out of his crib. He also says and does sign language for "more". He's all about "daddy" and we're still working on the mommy thing. This picture is too precious for my words. His little punkin face staring into the last few minutes of sunlight for the day - ahhh :)

This is our massive pumpkin on our front porch. Notice the top fell off, someone was 'trying' to pick it up and it BROKE! ooopps :)

Pumpkin Patch Fun

2008-10-14T14:44:00.000-07:00

VALA'S PUNKIN PATCH!

So we went to Vala's Pumpkin Patch over the weekend and although the kiddos loved it. It was very 'dirty' and when we checked in there were 'feeding cups' I couldn't figure out what they were for so I asked and they said it was for the 'animals'. My mouth dropped open, animals??? Yikes! They had camels, goats, pigs, and other 'animals'. I was totally overwhelmed! So after we spend a few hours at our company's campsite and then we walked around this HUGE outdoor park full of the goodness of 'nature'. Like I said, the kiddos loved it. I thought it was 'very' interesting. And don't intend to go back. :) Although something tells me I'm going to have to someday. Oh saddness.
Here are some pictures of Makenna and Johnners climbing around on the pumpkins and a cute pic of Makenna and Maguire inside the Pumpkin Moon. Poor Maguire was barely tall enough to see through.

While we were at the campsite John found a bucket of water and before I could grab him he was COVERED in water.

You can see from the pictures that he LOVED getting wet.

Boy does that kid love water. I immediately had to change his clothes.

I think it was the highlight of his day. He was squealing with delight and I just had to look at him and laugh. He got a GOOD bath that night. :)

There's Mommy's punkin in his "Mommy loves me" outfit. Precious baby boy :) I love you

2008-10-10T14:19:00.000-07:00

Make a Smilebox greeting

Playin' peek a boo with mommy

2008-10-02T15:20:00.000-07:00

So Johnners loves loves loves to play peek a boo. LOOK at all those teeth!!!

He's constantly closing and opening doors or looking through the kitchen table chairs and trying to hide. I have some glass 'pretties' in the corner and he KNOWS they are off limits - so he will sneak over to them and get really close until I catch him then he tries to 'hide' and play peek a boo all over again. It's a circle that we do almost nightly! On this particular evening he was playing peek a boo and then he ate dinner. Well he ate and was SUCH a mess that I literally threw him in the sink. Tada - and what do you know, he stinkin' LOVED it. That kid and water - match made in heaven.

(at least he thinks so :)
So here's our beloved Johnny cakes in the sink and loving life. Notice he has the spray part in his hand because that's his FAVORITE part. It's like a sprinkler inside!!! ohhhhhhhh :)

cute ones

2008-10-01T15:43:00.000-07:00

Nothing is more precious then this little punkin' face. He sure loves that wagon. He loves it when I pull it back and forth, fast and then really slow. It makes him giggle and giggle. Mommy loves it too! Anything for that smile. I always count to three and after he hears 2 he gets a HUGE smile. Grandma Stanton helped me get a few of these snap shots. One of us had to man the wagon while the other snapped the photo. It was well worth the effort. WE LOVE OUR GRANDMA STANTON!
Makenna was being soo adorable with Johnners. She was reading him a story after they ate lunch. The moment was too precious to not snap a shot. He LOVES his big sissie! She is so wonderful with him. I love seeing their relationship grow :)
We planted a tree in our front yard and John wanted to help - OF COURSE! So he sat in the wagon and of course Mommy had to go grab the camera!! hahahaha
I love to play dress-up with Makenna and Maguire. I know you are all surprised :) This photo was too cute. Mark was mad because Maguire was in a Cinderella costume but hey! Boys are allowed to have fun too right??
good times with the kiddos. Look at those smiles :)

Playin' at the Park

2008-10-01T15:34:00.000-07:00

We took all the kiddos back to the park a few weekends ago and while Makenna and Maguire were playing by the pond with daddy I got a few snapshots of our Johners exploring. It's so fun to see things from his perspective. As you can see, he wouldn't even look my direction. There was WAY too much stuff to check out. He was up in a 'tree house' and thinking he was BIG TIME!
I love the picture of the tires. I continued to try and get him to look at me through the tires but he was not cooperating! alas - he's a year old - what should I expect right??
Look at that face! Maybe it's a mom thing but he's stinkin' adorable if you ask me :)
His favorite thing is to push his brother and sister in the wagon. It's better then riding. At home he will pile all of his toys inside the wagon and the pull or push it aound the driveway over and over again. Look at him - he's pretty proud of his 'muscles' :) hehehe.
It was a fun day at the park for everyone - including mommy because all I had to do was play with the kiddos and take pictures. Nothing yucky this time. YEAAA!

Football time with Dad

2008-10-01T15:01:00.000-07:00

Watching Football with Daddy!

He wasn't content sitting on the ground or even on Marks lap so he wanted to sit behind his head and beat on it. It was so dang cute.

You can tell Mark loves the camera! hehehehe

John then tried to 'wrestle' with Mark. They were laughing and having so much fun. I had to grab my camera and snap the precious fun moments!

Here's the two totally ZONED in on the BIG RED! Go HUSKERS!!!

Two peas in a pod. My guys - God I love them!!!

Johnny at Daycare

2008-09-24T10:27:00.000-07:00

DAYCARE FUN!

I lost my cord to the camera so I haven't had a chance to do many posts lately. Besides the fact that is has been CRAZY at work. These are some photos of Johnners at daycare. He's with a gal who we love and he adores her. (what more can you ask for as a parent?) It goes to show that God will take care of you no matter what happens in life. When one door closes another one opens. Enjoy. He's one happy little guy :)

He loves to play in the rubbermaid bins and he'll dance anytime he hears the 'veggie tails' music in the background. I realize it's a shocker to all that he's remotely animated :) hheeeehehee.

Again with the wheels - he loves those darn things. Any time he can get his hands on one he's super excited about it!!

Just another fun day at daycare. He usually wants to stay and play when I go to pick him up. Hey, I can't blambe him - I'd want to stay and play too!! :)

Baby John

2008-09-12T12:34:00.000-07:00

We had a long Labor Day vacation down in Lincoln and it was great to see family! My dad celebrated his 60th Birthday with a big blowout party. We had a blast! Mom arranged to have some pictures taken on Saturday am since so many folks came down for the shin dig. it was wonderful to see everyone and share some fun times together.

Johnny cakes was of course the center of attention. He's such a goof. He knows how to ham it up for the camera now. He is just so much fun. I find myself watching him all the time. It's so fun to see him interact with others or to play with something new. He's all over the place! This is a good one of my and my mommy - plus check out the look on Johnners' face. He's 'tough' HAHAH!

His favorite still is WATER! Anything that has to do with water. He will find a hose and follow it to the house and try to turn the nob so water will come out. He has to splash in every puddle he finds, and any water fountain or faint drip becomes an immediate entertainment for him. You literally have to pull him away and all the while he's crying. It's too funny. TOTALLY my kid :)

I love this one of my and my SISTERS!! Auntie Mandie and Auntie Beth. The bestest two sisters and Aunties ever!! :) (no offense to all of my WONDERFUL Aunties :))

MY Aunties came and visited our new house before they left the big state of Nebraska :) It was so wonderful to see them because they both live in California and we don't get to see much of each other - it was their first time seeing our little Johnny as well - I think they like him :)

Overall it was a wondeful time and I was SOOOOO glad to see my family. I love and miss you all sooo much. XOXO :) I love you my pops!

The Craw Clan :)

weekend fun pics

2008-08-25T06:55:00.000-07:00

me and my wagon... :)

we had quite the weekend. It was fun to have a chance to be at home and hang out as a family. John gets more precious daily to me.

We went out to Shramm(?) Park on Sunday afternoon and let Johnners roam around. He saw geese for the first time and of course he wanted to walk up and hug on them - they weren't to interested in that one... we took his new red wagon (thanks to Grammie) and toted him all over. He LOVES that wagon. There was a park out there and a nature center. The park had an 'old fashioned slide' so we took Johnners down the slide a few times. He loved it!!! When we would try to walk away he would cry and point back to it. Made me laugh over and over again.

It was more 'yucky' then I'm used to but I was willing to put up with it for the sake of the 'family' time :). Hopefully this isn't the beginning of Abbie - Nature girl... I don't think I could handle that.

He was cold because we had had yet another 'sprinkler run in'. I found a Halloween costume we got last year and decided to put it on him so he would be warm. He was wayyy to stinkin' cute in his little Monkey costume that was two sizes too big. Ah, who cares :) It was cute.

He wouldn't smile for me b/c it was late and he was now warm and tired. So I had to get a side shot - of course he's suckin that thumb. He's gonna suck that bad boy right off!

Sprinkler Time

2008-08-22T07:35:00.000-07:00

It makes me laugh - when Johnny sees water, he's immediately drawn to it. We had the sprinkler going last night in our backyard and good ol' Johnny Cakes couldn't resist the temptation to go play in it! I had to grab the camera and take some photos so here's the play by play...

Once he touches the water and realizes it's wet and cold his totaly in! Notice it's hitting him in the face and he seems completely unfazed by this...
now he's in the middle of the whole sprinkler and completely soaking wet - but you see a glimpse of a huge smile huh??
Now that we are completely soaked it's time to run up to mommy and the safe 'dry' place.
Kids - he's too funny!! This is the WARM bath after the COLD shower outside - he literallly sits in the bath until all the water is gone and then still tries to hide from me when I'm reaching for him with the towel - we've got a WATER BABY on our hands :) Gotta love him

cutie pie

2008-08-15T14:13:00.000-07:00

Johnny Cakes - LOVIN YOU!! Peek a boo - he loves to hide behind our drapes and peek out after we call his name - it is absolutely precious!

It's been a rougher week then I wish me or John would have had to of had... I needed something to smile about so here are a few pictures of my little guy hammin' it up for the camera. These were all taken - LAST WEEK - there haven't been many smiles this week for our little Johnners. We start a new daycare on Monday and we pray that it will be what Mark and I have been looking for, for our little one. It is so hard to choose a provider for your child. My heart has been breaking all week - I am literally counting the minutes until I can go pick him up from the center that we have him in now. He's had a pretty traumatic week. alas - life continues on and we grow from pain. I'm sure somewhere in this experience we've learned a few things and have also grown in ways we may not understand now.

Love you all - thanks for all of your prayers for my little guy and a new daycare provider for him.

thoughts for the day...

2008-08-08T10:11:00.000-07:00

it's amazing how life works sometimes. I've learned things are not always as they seem and it's totally depressing to realize that. I am grateful for the tough lessons my life has taught me but I wish I didn't have to learn them the hard way. It makes it difficult to not be a bitter negative person. The hard lessons are the ones that hurt the most. Isn't there a threshold level of pain that you reach where you are immune to have any more? Apparently not.

Why is it that it takes dramatic events to connect people? The ones who are the closest to you should always be around, yet that is not a true model.

Life has it's interesting ways of chewing you up and then spitting you out again. I always try to tell others that the most beautiful flowers come from being fertilized. And what is the best fertilizer? POOP. Somehow it makes you feel a little better.

Who would think that something as simple as poop could become so complicated to do? Anymore when my son stinks up his pants instead of thinking "oh great, another poopy diaper" I think - "Thank you God that my son CAN poop". I am grateful that his system works :) Now there's a new way of looking at a stinky situation huh?

The specialist wants to do surgery. Take out his adenoids and put tubes in his ears. In my opinion that's a lot for an infant. Gotta pray on that one...

Looks like mom will be comin' home on Monday if all continues to go well. That poor woman. Yet she would NEVER say "poor me". She is the strongest woman I have ever had the privilege to know in my life. She is the glue that holds our entire family together. When we almost lost her each of us went through our own personal hell. When she went back to the hospital, some waaaay to familiar feelings and thoughts came back. She's going to be alright. I firmly believe that - I have to. We haven't gotten enough time yet. God, I'm asking for at least another 20 - 30 years. Am I pushing it to ask for that? I want my son to grow up and know his grammy. To have that relationship means the world to me for him.

My mom is beautiful from every angle you look at her. She oozes it! Everyone that knows her would testify to that.

I love you mom and appreciate you, and who you are, every day. We shouldn't wait until someone has passed away to say all the good things about them. We should tell the people we love that we love them daily.

I've learned...That it's those small daily happenings that make life so spectacular.

People come into your life for a reason, a season or a lifetime. When you know which one it is, you will know what to do for that person.. When someone is in your life for a REASON, it is usually to meet a need you have expressed. They have come to assist you through a difficulty, to provide you with guidance and support, to aid you physically, emotionally or spiritually They may seem like a godsend and they are. They are there for the reason you need them to be. Then, without any wrongdoing on your part or at an inconvenient time, this person will say or do something to bring the relationship to an end. Sometimes they die. Sometimes they walk away! Sometimes they act up and force you to take a stand. What we must realize is that our need has been met, our desire fulfilled, their work is done. The prayer you sent up has been answered and now it is time to move on.

Some people come into your life for a SEASON, because your turn has come to share, grow or learn. They bring you an experience of peace or make you laugh. They may teach you something you have never done. They usually give you an unbelievable amount of joy. Believe it, it is real. But only for a season.

LIFETIME relationships teach you lifetime lessons, things you must build upon in order to have a solid emotional foundation. Your job is to accept the lesson, love the person and put what you have learned to use in all other relationships and areas of your life. It is said that love is blind but friendship is clairvoyant.

Thank you for being a part of my life, whether you were a reason, a season or a lifetime.

Life isn't about the moments but the moments that take our breath away.

and in the end - the love you take is equal to the love you make.

some fun ones

2008-08-05T15:35:00.000-07:00

Here he is about 6 months old - gotta love the monkey hat. This picture is taken of him when he's about two months old. How precious is that little punkin face!
This was in May - Look at those cheeks - we know where he gets those :)
This is baby John and Pappy John. Just haning out on the swing in thier backyard.
I love his hair in this picture - he's so cute I could eat him up!

THE PARTY!

2008-08-05T09:10:00.000-07:00

It was like he knew it was his birthday party!

He had some friends over to play with and had tonz of presents and cake to boot! He tried the cake and definitely thought it was YUMMY!
He got the cake all over!! It was in his hair and ears, along with the floor.

He was SUGARED OUT!
As we opened gifts he read some cards with mommy.
Overall we had a great birthday party. He was jivin' all over the place. Dancin around and stuttin' his stuff. He is totally comfortable being the center of attention. HUH? I wonder where he gets that!! :) It was a wonderful day filled with family and friends. I couldn't have asked for more. Happy Birthday my little Johnny Cakes - i love you :)

Today is my FIRST Birthday!

2008-07-31T07:18:00.000-07:00

Today is my FIRST BIRTHDAY!!

Look out world here I come!
Ohhhh - what are you doing here?

I can't beleive a year ago today was one of the most horriffic and wonderful days of my life. It's amazing to see how much he has grown in such a short time. Hard to beleive it's been a year already. He's walking all over the place and totally loves to play with cars. He makes the little vvrrrmmmm noise when he 'drives' the cars back and forth on the carpet. He's climbing up and down the stairs and says momma, dadda, and baby. Mark pulled into the driveway a few nights ago and Johnny pointed to the car and said DAAAD! I almost fell over. He's getting so big and smart :) Everyday I love him more and he is constantly making me laugh. He and I have a lot of tickle time together. He also loves to play Hide and seek! He will go into his room and close the door. I'll stand in the hallway and say, "where's johnny" and you can hear him giggling behind the door. I'll slowly open the door and peek behind it and sure enough he's there with a HUGE grin on his face and squealing with delight! It's one of the most precious things in the world!
I swear he knew it was his birthday today because he was up at 5:43 this am and just smiling and cooing to himself in his crib. He was all fired up to go for the day! Mommy gave him a bottle and got him back down but it wasn't for long...
We have his birthday party on Saturday. We are excited. It should be fun to see all of our friends and family.
where does the time go!
My hope for you my precious boy is that you grow up to be a kind man. An honest, caring, fair, genuine, sweet natured, a replica of the awesome men before you. Your great grandpa Swanson and your namesake pappy spike :) as well as your wonderul grandpa Jim. Whom you share the same initials with. I'll love you forever, I'll like you for always, as long as I'm living, my baby you'll be!
I love you my little Johnny cakes!

Mommy I'm eatin' corn!

2008-07-24T09:35:00.000-07:00

Go Huskers!! - look at my little guy go!

He LOVES corn on the cob - literally.

Grammy gave him a bit and now he LOVES it.

The whole thing was just TOO cute to not take a picture of.

My little Husker :)

He's so proud of himself - lovin' him!!

Lincoln East Class of 98

2008-07-21T15:18:00.001-07:00

Hah - I got a better picture from Suzie so I had to update :)

GOOD TIMES GOOD TIMES!

High School Reunion Class of 98

2008-07-21T14:55:00.000-07:00

Holy smokes, I can't believe I've been out of High School for 10 years! It's crazy to think it's been that long and although the lives of my classmates have changed, they are still the same person they were in High School just with a family or so more life under their belt now. I always thought that our High School reunion would be this HUGE deal and came to find out on Friday night that there wasn't a HUGE deal at all. It was fun to see everyone and catch up with some past faces. It was High School just trasported 10 years forward. I think there is a lot more drama and nervousness then there needs to be. I was impressed by some and wierded out by others. To each his own right? Believe me I'm the LAST to judge. I've been through enough in my life and have had enough judgement passed upon me that it's the last thing I want to do to others. My hope and wish for all is that they are happy, they find contentment and can believe in who they are and what they do. Sounds cheesy, but when you break it down that's honest to God what my hope for my former classmates is.

I got to get some pics of my girls - these are those that haven't lost touch. Those that have been there when things have been rough. We've shared the good, bad and ugly together yet still appreciate the frienships we have with each other. Through baby showers and weddings it's been a fun ride. I hope it's one that doesn't end anytime soon :)

These are the girls of course there are some smiley faces missing, but for who was able to be there and celebrate it was a fantastic time! I appreicate any time we can let go of the "grown up responsibilites in life" and just be 'girls' together!

Thanks for a great time - here's to 10 more!

Daddy and Me

2008-07-16T12:01:00.000-07:00

We were out to dinner last night and I couldn't help but take some cute pictures of my boys! Thier interactions are always so cute. John is really growing up - I am constantly amazed that just a year ago he was still a bun in the oven! And now he's 'walking' or at least making a really good attempt at it!

where does the time go :)

Pool Time

2008-07-14T14:49:00.000-07:00

We went swimming this weekend and boy did our little Johnny Cakes love it! He loves to splash and get his toes wet. These pictures of him swimming at Grammy's house. We've only waited our entire lives for a pool - now the grandkid(s) get to grow up with a pool. There's nothing better then lounging in the pool :) Mom's favorite!

His faces are so cute - he's always squinting because it's so bright outside and he absolutely refuses to wear his little shades that we got him in Clear Lake. So there are lots of squinty pictures - but they're still cute!

Johnners is taking all sorts of steps now and getting awfully big! He's only 18 days away from his FIRST BIRTHDAY! It's hard to believe I was so fat and pregnant last year at this time. Thank God time moves on. He is our precious little guy and I am blessed daily to be able to gaze upon his little punkin face.

HAIR

2008-07-10T14:14:00.000-07:00

I had to add these pictures - John had just got out of the bathtub and daddy dried his hair. These are some of my favorite pictures of my little guy. He's all blonde hair (like his momma) and big blue eyes! He's our little stud :)

Speed Racer

2008-07-08T08:18:00.000-07:00

Johnners absolutely loves to 'drive' he is fascinated with cars and wheels. I'm sure a highlight for him was being able to hold the steering wheel on the boat! Of course we were parked and there was no chance of danger :) We spent the afternoon at on the lake, around the lake, and in the lake. Luke and Melissa were there as well - we soaked up some sun and enjoyed the cool Clear Lake water. The weather was absolutely beautiful the entire time we were there. I love how John doesn't just want to steer the wheel but also plays with the buttons and keys while he's 'driving'. I think i'm in trouble... :)

Johnners for the Fourth of July

2008-07-08T07:44:00.000-07:00

Hello!

I'm super excited to be able to share photos and fun times with my friends and family

via my new blog!

This was Johnners first 4th of July and we were pretty excited for him to get down and dirty at the lake (of course down and dirty in a 'clean' way). Mom doesn't like to get dirty :) I was constantly cleaning him off! He had a blast. He ate a few handfulls of sand and soaked up some glorious sunshine!

We rode some rides and he had a few naps along the fun/sun filled days.