Kendall Family

From Ethan's point of view

2012-01-23T20:30:00.000-08:00

Today we played with playdough.

My version of our family

Ethan's version. It's a little wormy around here folks. :)

More Hiking

2012-01-23T20:25:00.000-08:00

We did another hike a few days after the Table Rock hike. This one called Roxy-Ann Peak. It is a really old volcano that overlooks the valley, and its a city park. It was a total of 3 miles and much more steep. We ended up carrying both boys all the way down. Ethan didn't care a whole lot for the steep part at the end, but the view was worth it and playing on the rocks was fun two. He swears he saw and elk, but I think it was really just a horse. I decided not to break the news to him.

This is the top facing north east and that is Mt Mcloughlin I believe in the background. A hike I may have to do soon. :)

Becca with the boys, they love her.

Coming down the back side, and a great view of Mt Mcloughlin again!

Ethan found "the most perfect stick" as he calls it. All of the sticks he finds are so perfect we have to take them home. The other day, the neighbor asked us why there are so many sticks on our front porch. Well it's Ethan's hobby!

Upper Table Rock

2012-01-15T20:31:00.000-08:00

Since Becca came to visit we decided to try out some of the local hiking. One place I have been wanting to try since we moved was Table Rock. There are two of them and we chose the shorter hike at 2.8 miles. I'm super proud of Ethan for making it the whole way! It was cold and got colder throughout the hike, and we weren't able to spend as much time on the top as I would have hoped so we will be back there again soon. It was really pretty and view was gorgeous also. Most of the pictures looks like it was about to snow though. It was cold. Liam stayed curled up in my arms all the way home, and wouldn't even go back in the hiking pack, he didn't like the cold too much.

Luggin the baby up the mountain. Go mama!

View of Table Rock on the top. Very rocky and yet flat. really pretty.

Becca sporting a new look for singles. I call it the borrow a baby and carry it up the mountain for extra exercise look :)

On the edge of the south side of Table Rock. Ethan was really nervous. It was a big drop.

I realize this is an odd photo, but it was the best view of the valley I had. I'm on the very edge of the top of table rock. It goes straight down from there.

John and more view of the Valley.

Squeak! Need I say more :)

Definitely in his element here.

Cute Boy loves being outside despite the chilly temperature.

A view of my sister lugging Liam and also a view of the top of the rock. Almost no trees, which is the opposite of the trail to get to here.

Ethan climbing down a rock on the trail. It was steep and he loves the climbing adventure.

Plane! Plane!

2012-01-08T20:17:00.000-08:00

And what do you do with a little boy who loves airplanes? Yes we went to go see real Airplanes. Locally there is a real airplane that you can play in and on. They even rent it out for birthday parties. We went on New Years Eve to play and it was closed. We were talking to the office and they decided to give us a your of a couple of hangers here. Liam was in total heaven.

This is the Airplane boy he can say( and pronounces pretty well) pontoon and seaplane, biplane, Jet, Airplane and yes propeller plane. How is that for a little boy who can't even say sorry! He knows the differences between each plane. His latest obsession is a fighter jet. He loves jets, and asks for them first thing in the morning when he wakes.

This was an old plane John is on, was a navy trainer. It's not safe to fly anymore.

Airplane boy in airplane heaven. Behind him is a biplane that gives rides in the summer. hmmmm we'll have to think about that one. :) He was loving that biplane.

Christmas Festivities

2012-01-04T21:06:00.000-08:00

We went to Harry & David's Christmas Tree lighting celebration, and there the boys got to sit on Santa's lap and have their picture taken with a real reindeer. Ethan was excited to tell Santa exactly what he wanted. (His wish list was exact and never changed for over a month.)

Then we made Gingerbread houses. Ethan loved creating and Liam loved eating. Liam says andy! andy! (Candy). Its cute.

Ethan was so excited for Christmas, and I wasn't sure if he would fall asleep, but he did, and right away. But then in the morning when we woke him (Liam woke up first and was demanding to go down so we woke up Ethan) He was thrilled and anxious! We watched the new lds.org videos about Christ's birth and then went downstairs to enjoy the morning excitement. There was only time to open stockings before we rushed off to Church and then back home again to open presents. He was anxious, but never complained. At 10:30 in the morning as we pulled up after church to go back inside for gifts, we watched one of our neighbors take their tree out to the trash. Remarkable! Gifts open and tree down by 10:30 am!!

John and Ethan at the tree lighting. Very very cold!!

The candy monster, eating candy, that's what he does while we try to make gingerbread houses.

The finished product.

Writing thank-you letters to Santa

Ethan setting the table. Yes folks that would be Ethan's way.

What's not to love about this fish face in woodland creature pjs?

Christmas Eve Jammies.

And Christmas morning. That morning hair is a regular.

This is a picture puzzle I made for my brother's family from photos of their vacation out here. I'm not a very crafty person but I love the way this one turned out.

Liam's Birthday

2011-12-17T15:59:00.000-08:00

Liam is loves airplanes so there was no question about what to get him and how to celebrate his second birthday. I strung several (like 35) airplanes from the ceiling the night before and I won't forget his eyes when he saw them when he woke up. He definitely wore out his pointer finger saying "plane! plane!"

My Sweet Birthday Boy, the above photo is when he was only a couple weeks old, and now he is 2 as you can see above that. It's been some of the hardest years, and well worth it. I love my little boys.

Birthday Presents! Ethan was very jealous.

Lovin the Airplane, that's all he care about.

Birthday Cake, made by Jodi. Looks amazing.

Two dear sweet friends! Ethan misses her so very much. He asks to see her, and draws pictures for her all the time. True friends.

Thanksgiving

2011-12-17T15:04:00.000-08:00

We made the trip back to Portland to see many of our dearly missed friends! It was great to see neighbors and friends again! I shopped my heart out on Black Friday, and we also Celebrated Liam's Birthday too.

The dinner setting

The company (and great company!!!)

Halloween

2011-12-17T14:57:00.000-08:00

Ethan had this elaborate idea of being Curious George, and he wanted daddy to be the man with the yellow hat, mom professor wiseman, and Liam was to be Hunnley. (I know I'm not spelling names right here. ) Since we moved a week prior to Halloween I opted to go a little more simple. Ethan was Buzz lightyear and Liam was the dinosaur from Toy Story, which is actually a dragon-dinosaur thing that was recycled from when Ethan was 2. Easy! I made a pumpkin pizza and for dessert we had chocolate dipped oreos that looked like bats.

We also made it to a pumpkin patch in the area. Kids loved the tractors to play on and diggers to dig in the sand!

KGW News Tour

2011-12-05T23:27:00.000-08:00

So yes, I tagged along with a dear friend to get a tour of the news studio from another friend from church who is a producer there. We got to meet the news anchors, watch them live (in the studio while airing the 5:00 news live) and sit in their chairs. Ethan was going through an identity crisis at this time. You'll know what I mean when you see him. This was also during the time John was living at our new location and I was still in Portland. Also another reason I decided to allow myself to be embarrassed by my child.

Buzz and Liam doing the weather.

Beach photos from August

2011-12-05T23:18:00.000-08:00

Here are a few photos I took at the beach when My brother and his family were out. The last couple are my favorite. Looking back at these photos reminds me how tired we were every night. It was a fun trip!

This photo is on a sand bar at fort Steven's Park. The water would come up very gently over the bar. as you can see.

This last photo is at Fort Steven's park. This is a really old shipwreck there. On this rather rare day there was a sand bare that appeared during the low tide, and you only had to wade through a little bit of water to get to it.

Orchestra on the River Front

2011-12-05T23:06:00.000-08:00

We have gone several years in the past to the traditional Portland Orchestra concert on the river downtown. This year was was a lot of fun as always! We loved the company of our friends, and enjoying the classical music. Including the 1812 overture with real canons and fireworks at the end.

August LIghthouses

2011-11-19T21:58:00.000-08:00

I know that every post I start with either the Title saying I'm catching up or the first line says I'm catching up. Well that hasn't changed. So yes this post goes back to August, a week of day trips to the Beach with my brother's family. This First picture is of the four older boys. I called them the fearless four. Ethan loved paling around with these guys/ They taught him more about being a boy. Ethan has been the only boy his age at church for the longest time, and hasn't had a group of boys to hang out with. He knows a lot about being the king in a castle or playing with Ken dolls, but this week taught him something new and it changed him forever.

We visited the Astoria Column. This stands on the top of a hill in Astoria. It is at the mouth of the Columbia River. You can see for miles and miles in every direction. We climbed those couple hundred steps to the top, and it's even more amazing up there.

Cape Disappointment, and sure was it a bit disappointing. Not only was it a good little hike into there, but as you can tell the State of Washington does not take that great of care of the exterior anymore. When you look online the photos of this lighthouse was amazing. I was dying to see this one, and it was a bit disappointed. There is however a coast guard station here as well. This lighthouse is located on the north side of the River and the day before we stood at the opposite point on the south side of the river at Fort Stevens on a platform right at the Jetty. It was fun to be at the points on either side of the river.

This is my brother's family at the Cape Disappointment North Head lighthouse. It is really pretty, I like architecture of this one with the tile roof.

Cape Meares is another lighthouse located a few miles from Tillamook. It isn't a well known, but very cute and tiny.

Another view of Cape Meares.

And of course we visited the Air museum in Tillamook. They had planes and helicopter cockpits to play in. talk about boy heaven.

Liam, almost big enough to reach the floor. :)

More posts to come soon. I have more from the beaches we played at during the week. Stay tuned....

Music with Grandma

2011-08-31T13:46:00.000-07:00

One morning in Idaho my sister and I went for a morning jog and when we came home grandma and Ethan were in a music lesson. Take a look! I have a few videos, but in this one Ethan's dancing just kills me. It was a little choppy for me, I hope its better for you.

Idaho

2011-08-30T23:18:00.000-07:00

It had been over 7 years since I had been home for the Preston Rodeo Days and not that much less since I had been home altogether for an extended period of time. But the boys and I made a trip this year and the kids loved it. I forgot how slow paced and care-free life can be in the summer of small isolated town. The boys loved the endless amount of grass to run on, and just plain old fun in the dirt in the country. We went swimming, ate at the Main Street Grill which is closing due to contract issues :(, played at the park went to the parade, carnival, rode bikes, met up with friends, planted flowers and went jogging which wasn't as hard with the elevation, but I couldn't get much over 3 miles or so. Here are pictures of the highlights.

Isn't he so darned cute? :)


Ethan loving french fries on the way to grandma and grandpa's house. I drove the 13 hours by myself with the boys. They did really good!!

Liam loves sweets. We went to the fat boy factory and had some ice-cream.

Candy at the Parade. Liam loved throwing it back at the floats. He didn't get that we get to keep it.

One of Ethan's favorite things about being in the country is the tractors on the road. He would shout like there was a fire at the park when he saw one because it was so cool. All the local kids probably thought he was crazy. When we returned to Oregon, he got a free library book, and what did he choose? A book about tractors in honor of seeing so many in Idaho.

Ethan loving the parade and catching candy.

This is the ride I made John go on... the first of many he will have to. He has never been on a thrill ride I found out recently. They don't sit well with my stomach anymore, but I toughed it out for him.

Give a kid lots of land and he will play all day. Yes Ethan is in his pajamas picking crab apples off the neighbor's tree and putting them in his helmet. He played hard all week. He asks regularly to go back. I've realized I'm raising country kids in the city.

Just some of the flowers, of course the boys couldn't stay out of the dirt.

Meeting up with a dear friend at Ross Park. This is the best picture I have. I didn't take enough photos at all.

4th of July and other Summer Fun times

2011-08-10T21:35:00.000-07:00

So our summer was slow to come, by that I mean weather. Portland still hasn't hit 90 degrees, and its August! To find summer I went to Idaho, and that post is coming soon. Despite the weather we are having a lot of fun amongst a lot of work. :) Both kids came down with the stomach flu right before the 4th of July and that coupled with rainy weather meant we canceled our vacation to the San Juan Islands. The 4th of July was actually the first day the kids felt good after puking and fevers. And it was one of the first sunny days! Ethan rode his bike a mile in a children's parade, and Liam sat in the stroller. Ethan loved the fireworks and Liam cried the entire way through them.

Other things we have enjoyed doing this summer is going on walks or "hikes", swimming, rough housing, playing at parks and riding bikes.

Water, there isn't anything better than playing with water! I love this picture because it shows Liam's personality. He is such a wild fun guy!


Likewise, this is also a glimpse into Ethan's personality. He is such a fun kid.

On one of our day outings with grandma Sue, we rode the Tram. The tram is a controversial ride that connects buildings of the OHSU campus. Anyone can ride it, and my kids love it. Next to it they are building a barge and we will get to come back and watch them launch it in the river. This is a bad picture, but its the best I have. Ethan hates getting his picture taken these days.


Overlook Park. We discovered this park recently in Portland. The boys love trains and this was heaven for them. There were lots of "Creaky Crankys" and other trains.

Liam loves to tackle, and he really gets into it. He holds his own plus 10! Frequently it's Ethan who has had enough, and Liam could go all day. This is Liam's signature move, where he pretends he is riding a horse.

And yes they love each other very much. Ethan always gets more than he bargained though. :)

Nature Park

2011-06-27T21:49:00.000-07:00

Saturday morning we all woke up early and headed to the nature park on cooper mountain for a morning walk. (Ethan calls it snakes park.) On our walk was saw 1 worm, 2 lady bugs, 2 birds (heard lots), 1 mouse, dozens of very large bumble bees, spider webs, coyote poop, 10 slugs, and a mother humming bird feeding her babies in the nest. We actually tried to get a picture on the humming bird nest, but we could get close enough with our phones, since it was all we had. So cute!. John also made bird calls with the boys, and you'll see the video of that below.

Liam walked most of the way! at least 1/4 of a mile. As soon as we started going uphill he was happy to climb in the stroller.

Behind us here is the prairie where was saw the large bumble bees.

Beautiful forest.

Also this weekend I had my final concert of the season (PMCO Orchestra, now called The Portland Ensign.) Over the past few months I have been the concert-mistress for this group, even soloing with Dallin Bales (Vocalist, you can check out his albums on I-tunes, I played How can I keep from singing, and Savior Redeemer of my soul.) It has been really difficult and extremely rewarding for me at the same time. Below is a picture with one of my biggest fans Ethan. He loves coming to the concerts and since Saturday he has been pulling out his violin and singing and dancing and then bowing when he is done, and then he says "MOMMY CLAP!" Its cute. And one more thing my last concert is going to air on local TV.... so for all of you local, stay tuned I'll post when and where it airs!

And here he is, my big fan! I love this guy.

This Post wouldn't be complete without finishing the weekend, (even if I don't have any more pictures). Sunday we celebrated Father's day and my birthday which was on Father's day. (I was actually born on Father's day). Anyways it was a fun party and I am truly grateful for My father and the sacrifices he made for me and for John, and his persistent hard work for our family. Family is forever!

The color of breakfast is green

2011-06-19T14:24:00.000-07:00

The kids are thinking "What a yummy treeat!" I'm thinking, "Oh yeah, just keep drinking it, lacinato tuscan kale, spinach, tangelos and lemon are soo good for you. Drink up!" We drink this with breakfast every morning. No sugar or dairy whatsoever. And they love it and drink it all. Aren't you jealous?

Astoria

2011-05-07T00:52:00.000-07:00


My parents came to visit, a month ago for my concerts and solos (that post is coming soon :)) I took them to Astoria. I can't believe I have lived here this long and never been, It is so pretty! Ethan loved crossing the bridge, watching the Coast guard helicopter practice, and watching the big ships that come in. This first photo is of the Astoria bridge crossing the Columbia River at the mouth where it runs into the ocean. This was taken from the Astoria Column, a look out where you can see for miles and miles in all directions. In the near distance you see Cape Disappointment where the lighthouses are.

This photo is at Cape Disappointment at one of the lighthouses. This was just a really nice photo of the ocean.

This is the North head Lighthouse at Cape Disappointment. It is still in use and we couldn't go int. But it is extremely beautiful.

And of course my folks and the kiddos.

Ethan's Birthday

2011-03-20T23:05:00.000-07:00

Ethan's birthday was last month, but it can't go unnoticed just because I don't have a lot of time! So here is a little catch up on it. He had a great day overall and his most favorite present was his bike! You should have heard him when he opened the big bag that held the bike. I have never heard him so high pitched and excited before. And of course we couldn't peel him away from it!

Opening his presents. His crown came from pre-school. They get to make one on their birthday and wear it all day. It is one month later and he still wears his nearly everyday!

You should have hear him when he opened the bike.I had it wrapped in a very large plastic bag. I haven't heard him that excited in a long while. We still laugh about it. He loves his bike! Just yesterday he rode 1 mile to and from the local garden store to get seeds with daddy.

One last funny story about Ethan. The next day Ethan (all by himself) got my attention and said, "mom I'm ready and going to go to work." Going to work, is what he says because he is imitating dad who rides his bike to work every morning. I look over and Ethan is sitting on his new bike, and he had dressed himself. He wore his green crown, a nice shirt, he was even wearing his school backpack just like daddy does when he leaves for work on his bike. He even remembered his boots. But he forgot one thing. I looked at him and said "Ethan you did a really good job but I think you forgot something." "What?" he asked. I said "Well loook at yourself, what do you think your missing?" He takes a good look at himself and then realizes what he missed. "Oh my pants!" So he got off his bike and got it all straightened out he even added an accessory: a sign that said I am a Child of God from Church. Too cute, he remeberes all kinds of things, but forgot the basic pants. Someday he'll figure it out :)

This is the before When he was ready to go to work!

Cute boy who ran and put on the missing garment: his pants!

Liam walking

2011-02-20T21:10:00.000-08:00

Liam just started walking. Super cute boy.

This is what's been happening

2011-02-20T21:04:00.000-08:00

Here is a picture update of what has been happening. Still to come are Ethan's song he made up and Ethan's birthday.

Liam at one of our many doctor appointments. He has had many ear infections. Things seem to be getting better for now. He sure makes the most of it though. :)

We went hiking at Tryon Park in Portland. Its (I think) the largest park within city limits in the US. Ethan hiked 3.5 miles that day. Liam just loves being outside.

Ethan spends a lot of time building train tracks and playing with them. It doesn't last long, Godzilla (Liam) arrives and then its time to rebuild.

Ethan made this at pre-school. I just thought it was cute.

Why do kids climb in the dryer. Poor Liam regretted this!

FHE

2011-01-17T20:19:00.000-08:00

We asked Ethan what song he wanted to sing, he said Jesus Kendall and Twinkle bells. Then in the closing prayer he said please bless mommy and Daddy to go to Jesus.

Ethan's Song

2011-01-11T10:22:00.001-08:00

Ethan loves to make up words for songs or just combine songs. Yesterday Ethan sang this song "The little Jesus had a farm, E-I E-I Oh!"

Merry Christmas

2010-12-29T23:42:00.000-08:00

Every morning for the last couple of weeks Ethan would wake up and come out and ask to see the calendar. He wanted to know what day it was and how many days were left until Santa came. He was so excited for Santa to come and bring him his "big train." I wish I had pictures of Ethan when he first came out to see if Santa really came, and then to see a train all set up and ready to play with. Unfortunately there aren't many pictures overall because I was sick. I woke up that morning feeling awful and therefore didn't think of taking pictures much. All in all Ethan loved his new toys, loves opening presents finally, and Liam is game too. This year will be the year we were sick, and mommy was in bed most of the time, until Daddy got sick too, then grandma and grandpa got to take the kids and John and I stayed home feeling miserable. (I had stayed up till 1 a the night before making sure everything was perfect for Christmas. Breakfast was ready to go in the oven and everything. Next Year I'll enjoy it too!) Ethan also went to a performance of the Nutcracker and loved it. I think he is more musical than I ever thought.

So here are a few of the pictures I do have:

Christmas Eve just after baths. I went for cheesy Christmas pajamas this year.

Liam and his cute smiles enjoying a ball from his stocking.

Ethan loved being able to eat chocolate before breakfast! I know that is what I looked forward to on Christmas as a kid.

OH Liam and his wild hair. I love that it matches his personality.

My Baby is 1!

2010-11-30T22:51:00.000-08:00

I can't believe it. My little guy has turned one, yesterday. It was peaceful and quiet when Liam was born. Only John me, the delivering doctor and one nurse were in the room. He came out with a but of a scowl on his face and he cried like all babies do. Immediately he wanted to eat, and be held. For nearly 30 min John and I held our little guy before the staff took him to clean him etc... That was the very beginning, and now today one year later, he is still our sweet little guy, detailed observer, and definitely holds his own to Ethan during daily wrestle matches. I love this little guy, Happy Birthday Liam!

All three of these babies were born the same week last year. We had a combined party for the babes last Wednesday.

I made a cupcake for Liam yesterday on his birthday. We had a small family celebration for him. And yes he devoured that cupcake in just a couple minutes. I've never seen him eat like that!

Polar Express

2010-11-27T21:33:00.000-08:00

Whenever I ask Ethan what he wants for Christmas all he ever says is a big train. We see trains all over the place and he is always disappointed that he never gets to ride in one, so finally today we did. There is a railroad not far from Portland that runs a train called the Polar express. Its just like the movie/book. Ethan was just excited to be on a real big train, and the bonuses came when they served us hot chocolate and cookies. Then when we got to the "North Pole" Santa came on and gave all the kids bells. Too cute!! ON the way home I asked Ethan if he had fun and he relied saying. "Yeah. Someday I'm going to get on the big train all by "meself" and I'm going to work on it too." (He doesn't say myself, its always me-self.)

And of course here are the pictures for show and tell:

Our attempt to get a family photo. Ethan has unfortunately hit that stage where he longer cooperates during picture taking. Any suggestions?

Liam is an observer, he pays attention to everything.

I think Liam is the first kid to love Santa so young. It seems like in every kids first photo with Santa the kids is crying to get away. Not Liam. He smiled in his arms, loved the bell he got and then fussed a little when Santa gave him back to us.

Ethan was more happy to see Santa than he showed here, we just didn't get a good shot.

Thanksgiving

2010-11-27T20:19:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving is a feast at our house. It was great to expend the table for some dear friends this year as well. I must say though, that after spending two days cooking we were too tired for dishes. Maybe next year we can go out. :)

Grandpa had the fun job of entertaining the kiddos while we cooked. Ethan is showing off the temple he and Grandpa built. I believe its the new Tigard temple and Bob is the Angle Moroni.

This was the dinner gang, although Liam spent most the time on the floor eating scraps. (That's just what he does, no matter how full he is.) We had more friends over for pie, but I forgot to get pictures of them.

Time to get caught up

2010-11-10T17:49:00.000-08:00

I have so many pictures and so little time to post anymore. Here are a few pictures about what we have been doing.

In September, Ethan started preschool. He loves learning and playing, that is for sure. This picture was taken on his first day.

Playing at the park is where you will find us when we are not at home. Ethan is also learning to dress himself, picking out his own clothes. Its hard to let go and let him when he chooses things like this.

Fall Beach trip in the beginning of October. This included a 7 mile run on the beach (exhilarating!), playing in the sand, getting cozy in the house, and going to Newport where we walked on the docks, and went to the aquarium and saw Sharks.

Liam and Ethan watching the fish and sharks below at the aquarium.

Newport docks, always fun to walk around and see the otters, and boats.

Liam being silly in the tub. He is always doing things like this.

The boys playing tackle is like bread and butter. It is a daily occurrence in our home. Liam puts up a pretty good fight.

Another of Liam's adventures. He got stuck here,and screamed till I got him out. Of course I had to take a picture first.

We went to this pumpkin patch with Ethan's preschool. Shortly after we arrived I looked around to find Ethan, who had wondered about 50 feet from me, pushing a large pumpkin down the hill. As soon as it started rolling I started running after it. It was headed straight for the cars parked at the bottom of the hill. I kept thinking about all the money I would shell out if it nailed one of those cars. Curiosity surely got the best of him that day. I will never forget that moment, and never forget what it was like to push/roll that pumpkin back up the hill. Below is the picture of Ethan and that pumpkin when we had rolled it back halfway to where it started.

These two are great friends, and love going to school together.

Yet another pose of Liam getting stuck again in the same place, and yes I took a picture before I helped him out again.

Liam's love for the vacuum. There are no words for it. He chases it and once he has caught up to it, he puts his mouth all over it like he is trying to make out with it. He loves that thing.

I just love Liam's smile, so cute! We are just trying to get more chubs on him. He only weighs what Ethan weighed at 6 months.

We went cheap this year. Liam wore Ethan's first Halloween costume, the monkey. He hated it as much as Ethan did too.

Ethan busy "working." His play is truly his work. Its important and always takes presidence over everything else. Liam just can't let him do it all alone, he is a little bit of a trouble maker.

Daddy has started telling bedtime stories. The stories are all about a guy named Codyack Jack and his mule, Bucket. Ethan loves them, and asks for them nearly every night. Ethan has since started his own series about a spider who turns into superman and eats dirt and then turns back into a spider and gets caught in his own web.

Halloween pumpkins: Ethan requested the cat and "helped" daddy drill all the holes for the nose, mouth and whiskers. And of course the classic Jack-o-lantern.

Ethan and his good friend Clair at their school parties. Ethan a firefighter, definitely no shock there. He sleeps with that jacket on.

Last but not least, Liam. I love this little guy. He loves the swings at the park. I just thought this picture was cute.

Prayer

2010-09-23T10:17:00.000-07:00

Ethan's prayer at dinner last night:

"Dear Heavenly Father,

Thank you for this food, please bless it. Thank you for Ace Hardware. Thank you for Skippy...."

At that point John and I lost it.

Time to get dirty

2010-09-09T21:24:00.000-07:00

There is nothing like playing in the dirt for little boys. Ethan here is pretending to be a landscaper installing sprinklers. He came inside asking for gloves to wear, and it so happened that I had just bought a pair of winter ones yesterday.

True Boy

2010-08-24T17:32:00.000-07:00

Photo update

2010-07-24T23:14:00.000-07:00

Ethan


Liam

So Some of the photos won't rotate. I uploaded them wrong. I'll fix them later. But here are a few of the new photos of the kiddos. Hope you enjoy!

The Boys

2010-07-19T23:04:00.000-07:00

I just love these guys. Ethan is so good to Liam. And Ethan has wild Hair... :)

Ghost buster

2010-05-17T22:14:00.000-07:00

He thought he was creating a "bi-cume" or "leaf blower," But to John and I he was a ghost buster.

Too little to drive?

2010-05-17T22:07:00.000-07:00

He sure mimicks everything we do. I took Liam into the house and I came to tell Ethan his time playing in the car was up, and this is what I found.

Tulip

2010-05-17T22:01:00.000-07:00

This is really outdated but I love the tulip festival. I used to go every year with Great Grandma Janie. Tulips were among her most favorite flowers. Whenever I see a tulip I'll always think of her.
My parents were in town and it was fun to share the event with them this year.

brothers

2010-05-17T21:53:00.000-07:00

I can't get over Liam's face here. Maybe he likes it, maybe he doesn't....

Temple

2010-04-11T20:33:00.000-07:00

Sunday mornings are always very difficult at our house. It is hard to feel like we have had a productive day when you spend all morning waiting to go to church at 1:00. which then my kids miss their naps and a good day goes bad. Today we tried to make something more of today, and decided to take the kids out to the temple and walk around.

I absolutely love this photo because it shows what kind of a relationship John has with Ethan. Ethan thinks the world of his daddy. All day I hear daddy this.. and daddy that. John is so patient and loving with him. He takes time to point out all the small things in life, things I never take the time to do. Ethan truly looks up to him and wants to be just like him.

This photo demonstrates how I have felt this past couple of months. I love my little guys and making sure they have what they need is what I do. Motherhood is so rewarding in a way I never thought possible.

Ethan is a very caring big brother. He loves to hug, hold and kiss him. Its as if they have known each other for a very long time.

Liam is a careful, serious baby. He embraces the gentle tough of his daddy, and you can tell he can't wait to be playing around with Ethan.

Oh Ethan, he tried to be reverent!

Potty trained

2010-03-25T12:07:00.000-07:00

While Ethan was in the bathroom doing his duty, I heard a song that went like this:"I made a poop, I made a big big poop, I made a big big poop, I make a big poop with Daddy!"

(Daddy was a work if you need to know, he just loves to sing songs all day long about whatever is coming to his head, or whatever he is doing.) And potty training is going Fabulous!

Ethan

2010-03-12T09:09:00.000-08:00

Most days he looks like daddy. Today in this picture,I think he looks like me.

Its been a while

2010-02-01T14:13:00.000-08:00

I was just looking at the date I last posted. Its been a long time and I have a lot to catch up on.... So hopefully over the next few days I can. Here are just some recent pictures. This one of Liam by himself is his 9 week photo.He now weighs 12 lbs!

Liam and Ethan

2009-12-06T22:59:00.000-08:00

Ethan loves Liam. He loves to give him kisses and point out matching body parts, i.e. nose, mouth, chin, etc.. There are no words to describe how much I love these two guys. They are so precious and priceless.

Liam Thomas Kendall

2009-12-01T19:04:00.000-08:00

Meet the newest Kendall, baby Liam. Liam came into our lives early Sunday morning at 6:20 am. He was 19.5 inches long and weighed 6lbs 15 oz. Mommy and baby are both doing very well. Ethan loves his new baby brother and asks about him all the time. Like he will say, what is baby brother doing? Eating? OK, bye. Here are a few pictures of Liam to share with you. Some were taken minutes after birth others later that day.

Viking Rocker?

2009-10-29T21:23:00.000-07:00

I have absolutely no clue why Ethan always pairs this viking hat with the guitar but he does. To play the guitar he must have the hat, to play with the hat usually means the guitar is there also. And the rocker moves? Well That is purely from John. We have been trying to catch this on video for quite some time, and finally did tonight.

Ethan's monumental step

2009-10-25T18:12:00.000-07:00

Today Ethan enjoyed licking the batter off the beater for the first time. Nothing better than a brownie mix to be his first. Now he is going to start asking for taste tests every time we cook!

Gleneden Beach

2009-10-19T20:31:00.000-07:00

Weekends spent at the beach are some of the best weekends we could ask for. There is something about watching the waves come in and crash on the shore that just makes you feel at peace. There wasn't a lot of activities planned, mostly just games, hanging out at of course shopping at the Tangier outlets. But mostly its the time away from normal life to enjoy each other and rejuvenate.

Our little guy enjoying the outdoors

The family

Only 6 weeks left!!!

My guys playing in the sand

Shoot some hoops

2009-09-28T12:45:00.000-07:00

Ethan loves to play ball, and particularly basketball. Recently we started a munchkin sports class where he gets to play ball to his heart's content. Today's class focused primarily on basketball. He did not want to go when it was time, he just wants to play "bouncey ball hoops". He learned how to dribble the ball with one hand. The instructor asked me if we were a basketball family. I laughed and said we don't know hardly anything about sports in our home, he just loves to play ball and does all day every day.

Over due

2009-09-27T20:44:00.000-07:00

I know its about time to post again. We have been really busy with life, including an impromptu trip to Utah. I just wanted to catch up with this video of Ethan jumping in a pool. We spent most of the summer in the water and playing outside. Ethan has no fear when it comes to water. He takes off and never looks back.

Point and Shoot

2009-08-19T20:39:00.000-07:00

Potty training is going well, Ethan has a good aim. He just doesn't like to wait until he gets to the toilet, I guess its not as much fun.

Vocal Recital

2009-07-25T16:12:00.000-07:00

Ever since Ethan was a tiny tot I have been singing to him the song "I Am A Child of God." This has been part of his bedtime routine. About a month ago we discovered that he knew it by heart. Now he sings it all by himself about 50 times a day. Ok not that much, but a lot. Every time we get in the car he sings to pass the time, and this has been the #1 hit on the Ethan Kendall station. Take a look if you like.

Beating the heat

2009-07-23T22:27:00.000-07:00

This squirrel has been perched here every day its been really hot. He lives in the attic above where he is sprawled out. He hangs his legs down and looks so exhausted from the heat. We just thought it was pretty funny.

Urban or Rural

2009-07-14T22:45:00.000-07:00

Oregon has a unique law called the Urban growth boundary. This means that developments and new houses have to be within this boundary. This law protects farms. As a result you can be in the country and still be only minutes from downtown. Today Ethan and I went berry picking on a farm, and we were only about 20 minutes from downtown. Across the street (I'm no pic) is city like housing where the houses are all crammed in next to each other, due to the Urban growth boundary.

We had a lot of fun picking berries. Ethan was a good sport, most of the time He really just wanted to throw sticks and ride his scooter. But he hung in there. Enjoy the picks!

4th of July

2009-07-12T21:40:00.000-07:00

I know I am a little late, but better late than never. We had a wonderful 4th of July. The weather was great, Ethan was in a great mood all day and things just seemed to go smoothly. We started in the morning with a big pancake breakfast, and then we headed of to Lake Oswego for the Children's parade. As you can see in the pictures Ethan loved riding his scooter in it. He rode almost the entire route. After lunch and naps we had a BBQ and then headed to Tigard High for fireworks. We were right across the street from where they lit them. Ethan wasn't scared at all like I thought he would be. He was fascinated and cuddled with his teddy bear the whole time. The next morning Ethan woke up and asked for more fireworks in his room. He begged daddy to turn the lights off and light them off in his bedroom.

ABC and 123

2009-05-16T10:14:00.000-07:00

Ethan has recently learned how to say all of his ABC's he still gets pretty camera shy and so we had to help him, but normally he just walks around the house singing the song.

Ethan also counts to 20, but its been hard to catch him on video since he really wants to see what I am doing with the camera. He focuses for a few seconds and then he runs over to me because he wants to see the video, but he only gets part way done counting. So here is what we have.

MUSIC TIME

2009-04-06T20:29:00.000-07:00

Ethan had his first music lesson today with Grandma Gray. As many of you know he has always loved the piano, singing and listening to music. This made Ethan's days to have Grandma play with him! As you watch the videos you can tell that he is trying hard to play the right notes. Thanks Grandma!

Veggies

2009-03-20T17:43:00.001-07:00

When Ethan started eating solids I only fed him veggies hoping that he would always like to eat them. Unfortunately that has not been the case. The only veggies he will consistently eat are fresh tomatoes or these spinach raviolis. So i have been trying to find ways to sneak healthy veggies in his food. He loves pancakes and waffles so today I baked a sweet potatoe and mashed it up into the pancake batter. I tasted one and you can't tell a difference except its a little thick so I think I'll put a little less whole wheat flour in next time. Ethan loved these and they are becoming a regular in our home!

P.S. don't mind the messiness of the cooking job, I can't cook very good. who cares anyways, it all just gets eaten anyways!

Birthday boy

2009-02-15T19:48:00.000-08:00

This weekend we celebrated Ethan's second Birthday. His birthday was actually last Monday, but due to the fact that I got my wisdom teeth out last week we decided to postpone the celebration. It worked out that Valentine's Day became the day. We went to a Burger King in the area that has a really big (and clean!) play area. Ethan enjoyed hanging out with friends and family, and eating tons of ice-cream cake. His cake as you will see is Thomas the train cake, It is really blue, and made a mess going in.... and coming out in case you were wondering.

WOW! Its been a while

2009-02-11T22:16:00.000-08:00

I can't believe how long its been since I last posted on my blog. So much has happened! Christmas was exciting with the snow and with a trip to the ER Christmas Eve for Ethan. He woke up with croup from his nap and our doctor insisted we go. It took us 45 min to and hour to get there with the snow and ice. Of course we all survived and now we are all healthy.
Last week I got my wisdom teeth removed and have been doing A LOT of laying around. I watched tons of movies and slept.
This week we are trying to get back to a "normal" life. And things can only go uphill from here.
Here are a couple of pictures from our latest outing at a park.

Snow in Portland?

2008-12-21T15:49:00.000-08:00

I thought we moved here to Portland so we wouldn't have to deal crazy amounts of snow. well I was wrong. We got hit with what the media is calling the "Arctic Blast". The first few pictures of Ethan are from earlier in the week. The last few are from last night around 10:00 pm. Yesterday it snowed all day, and this is what it left. Today it is going back and forth between snowing and raining. Thus there is a thin layer of ice all over everything. We are just grateful we still have heat!!

Twas father who carved the turk..."

2008-11-27T21:19:00.000-08:00

The Holiday Season is all about traditions. Some of my favorite Thanksgiving traditions are 1: Watching grandpa carve the turkey, 2: The smell of so much great food and making it from scratch with your family. 3: The spirit of the holiday. To give thanks for those who founded America. What a blessing it is to live in America and to be free!

Pumpkin Patch

2008-10-31T22:45:00.000-07:00

We recently went to a pumpkin patch. While there wasn't much a of a good pumpkin selection, Ethan enjoyed the boat ride out and the train ride in. He liked it so much that he would lay on the bottom of the boat and get as close to the water as he could. I ended up taking him back later in the week thinking he would enjoy it just as much as the firs time.... wrong.

Talents

2008-10-07T21:10:00.000-07:00

I've always wondered how parents could recognize talents or personality traits in their kids. It seems so young to determine a child as a dancer or a musician. Since Ethan has come into our lives I understand what other parents are talking about. Ethan has two strong interests right now. The first one is throwing balls. He loves it, and is really good at it. Saturday night Ethan even watched a baseball game with great grandma Janie for 30 minutes or more without becoming bored at all. Today Ethan and I walked to the park. He spent more time watching the tennis players play, than going down the slide or swinging.

As you will see in this video, Ethan's second talent or interest is music. In church his favorite thing is to open the hymn book and beat his hands. During one of the choir numbers of general conference this weekend, Ethan took a children's book and opened it like choir music and conducted the choir! This video shows his love at the piano. He plays it so gently and seems to be so interested.

Chicago

2008-10-06T22:27:00.000-07:00

We recently (ok like 2 weeks ago) returned from a trip to Chicago. We stayed with some dear friends and had a bunch of fun. I think my favorite part was how well Ethan got along with Ben and Beth's daughter Genevieve.

Millennium Park is in downtown Chicago. The face changes in the background and at one point the mouth opens and water comes out.

Ethan and Genevieve enjoying playing in the water.

This is also Millennium Park, at the bean looking thing. It was really cool.

I just liked this one

This is the toad that Ethan touched and that Genevieve nearly kissed.

A day with Rosanna

John's mosquito bite

This is a park outside of Chicago, that was mostly under water due to Hurricane Ike. We were mostly bummed out about it because all the barbeque's were completely under water. We were hungry and had no way to cook our food and so Ben had to go to the nearest town to buy one. Nonetheless Ethan and Genevieve had a good time playing football.

how precious is this!!!

All in all it was a good trip, even if the hurricane ruined one day at the park, and John had an allergic reaction to a mosquito bite and had to see a doctor. It was tons of fun!

Addison Mai

2008-09-16T12:06:00.000-07:00

This is Addison Mai Millet, the newest member of the Gray family. She came into the world last week, Sunday September 7th. Congratulations Sarah and Jon!!!! She is adorable.

To anyone who was wondering, she looks just like my sister.

Tribute to Pelle

2008-09-15T13:03:00.000-07:00

Pelle came into our lives December 26 2005. That fall John started begging for a fish, particularly a beta fish. I have never cared for them. I tried to ignore John's wish, and it didn't work. He started painting pictures of fish. So I decided that year for Christmas I would go ahead and buy him a fish. I got a cool vase from Pier Imports so it wouldn't look so tacky and put rocks in it and a plant. I cut a paper fish and put it inside. Then the day after Christmas John went and picked out the perfect fish.

He was beautiful Dark crimson red. John named him Pelle after a soccer player from Brasil. He lived with us in Rexburg Idaho for the remaing of our time there. When we moved to Portland he traveled by way of a quart jar in our drink holder of our car. When I was pregnant I was home a lone with Pelle most of the time. I would sit at the bar counter at John's parents house and talk to Pelle and try to teach him tricks like how to eat the food particle from my finger by jumping out of the water. He was patient with me when I interrupted a training session to run to the bathroom and puke my guts out from the pregnant nausea.

When Ethan was born Pelle watched Ethan grow from the big glass vase on the counter. I don't think that Ethan paid much attention to him, but we know Pelle watched.

The other day John came home from work and noticed that Pelle wasn't looking so hot. John took him out of the vase and we watched him closely from another jar. He died a few hours later. We laid Pelle to rest under the only flowering bush in our complex. I never would have thought I could develop feelings for a little fish, but over the last 3 years I did. We will miss you pelle! Hopefully fish heaven will treat you well.

Love Always,
Mary, John and Ethan

Ethan's Tricks

2008-09-08T21:05:00.001-07:00

Ethan is full of tricks. We have been able to catch a few on video. Check him out!

In this video Ethan shows off his mad throwing or pitching skills.

Etan shows off some hopping skills he is developing. I think he thinks he is really doing it too.

I can't get enough of his awkward dancing. He takes after his daddy thats for sure!

Cowboy?

2008-08-26T14:03:00.000-07:00

I know its been FOREVER since I have posted. I have about 5 or six things to post over the next few days.
Today I was folding laundry with Ethan. We all know how that goes, you fold something and he takes off with it a makes a big mess with clean laundry. Thats why I usually do it in th evenings. My sister, Becca, had the bright idea to put johns dress socks on Ethan. And so we did. He was also playing with my belt. As a "garnish" I added the hat. And this is what our little cowboy looks like now.

Summer Family photos

2008-06-25T22:10:00.000-07:00

We have spent a couple of Sunday afternoons at a nearby park taking family photos. Which one do you like?

The PIrate Park

2008-06-23T11:31:00.000-07:00

Last week a friend showed me where the pirate park is. Its a neat park that is shaped like a ship and has a big sandbox for digging. So we took Ethan there again yesterday to get some wiggles out. He actually likes the slides there. I have never been able to get him to play on the playground equipment by our house. I think the big kids on it scare him. This park was more young kid friendly.

Many Faces of My Sister

2008-06-18T13:10:00.000-07:00

My dear sweet sister has a little problem. Whenever there is a camera in the same room as her she cannot resist the urge to take photos with it. Its some kind of sweet revenge or addiction that she has. Most of the time she takes pictures of her feet. Once in a while its a tiolet seat. Another common photo is her face making funny faces. I don't think that she ever means any harm. So this post is mostly for my family who know exactly what I am talking about. Dear Becca I think you had this coming!!!!!

The Oregon Coast

2008-05-31T15:09:00.000-07:00

We love going to the coast. There is something very relaxing about watching the water come in, and go out. This time was fun to take Ethan outside and play in the sand. He enjoyed throwing his ball in the holes John dug for him. Most of all he loves to chase dogs. He can barely walk in the sand and running is out of the question for him. Here we see the a dog in the far distance and then Ethan getting more from the the dog than what he thought was coming.

2008-05-05T20:59:00.001-07:00

Multnomah Falls

2008-04-29T09:05:00.000-07:00

Recently we bought a hiking backpack and finally we got to use it this weekend. With all the rain we have been getting, it was so wonderful to see the sun finally! Ethan loved hiking to the top of Multnomah Falls. When we got to the top he loved looking over the edge, which made me a little nervous. He is so fearless and would probably jump off the top had we let him. We plan to make this a regular activity this summer since Ethan enjoyed it so much.

While we were there, there was a group trying to repel down the front of the waterfall. Crazy! The never got it to happen while we were there. If you look close you might see the line.

2008-03-25T10:31:00.000-07:00

John and I have been spending our FHE nights reading Love and Logic. Its a parenting book, an alternative method to the traditional spanking. Meanwhile we heard about this method of talking it out with your children in the car. So, thank you Rosanna for this wonderful new method of parenting. John and I are looking forward to these days.

The bike

2008-03-06T21:33:00.000-08:00

So for Ethan's first birthday Grandma and Grandpa Kendall gave Ethan a bike. At first He didn't care much for sitting on it. He wasn't used to the feel of it. But once he caught on to the fact that he can go places on it things have changed. From the time he wakes up in the morning to the time he goes down at night Ethan wants to be outside on his bike. He sits on his bike and waits and whines to go outside. As long as he is outside he doesn't care.

Ethan's first hiarcut

2008-02-24T21:10:00.000-08:00

I have to admit that I always thought it was cheesy how sentimental moms can be over silly things in a childs development. Now that I am a mommy everything has changed. We cut Ethan's hair this last week and I mourned over it. It was so hard to see his long curly hair go away. Of course I kept a lock, the long part in the fron that lately has been getting into his eyes. Seeing his hair change made me realize how much he is growing up and how much I miss him being that cute cudly infant.

Trip to Utah

2008-02-24T20:19:00.000-08:00

We recently went to Utah because my sister Becca aka "The Squeak" came home from her mission. It was so nice to see her again. We missed her so much!! We also realized how much we miss the sunshine here in Portland. It was sunny, not warm, but very sunny the whole trip. The morning we drove back to the airport one of the most beautiful things in nature occured. Its the hoarfrost that occurs. The trees were astounding. Here are some pictures of it.

My goodness time flies!!!!

2008-02-11T23:18:00.000-08:00

We this past weekend was Ethan's first birthday. While I am sure he ahs no clue what is going on he definitly enjoyed tasting the cake and icecream and lets not forget the vacuum. I know, our precious child is in love with our vacuum and so what id we get him, his own personal cleaning tool that sings a song as follows: 'I'm going to vacuum all day long, do dah do dah..."
And joining him in party was Ehtn's grandparents and great-grandma and the Dan and Adrian. Clair and Ethan got to play together for the first time.

Wacky hair baby

2008-01-13T21:22:00.000-08:00

Ethan's hair is getting really long and we are thinking of cutting it shortly after his first birthday. Until then it is long curls. I feel sorry for him when he is older since they are hard to manage, but for now they are cute. And still no teeth, ugh.

My dear sweet Husband

2008-01-13T20:55:00.000-08:00

If John knew that I was posting pictures of his hairy face on my blog he would probably oppose it. But since he is well occupied right now, I can do what I want. First I hope to never see this much facial hair on him again. I don't like coming in contact with him. Ethan however, enjoyed its ticklish effects on him. So this is my hairy husband that I have had to live with over the past few weeks and I am proud to say that it is GONE! I'm hoping it never really returns again, but you never know....

Rainbow Rob

2008-01-04T23:18:00.000-08:00

For Christmas John received this book full of color and a cute design. Ethan has shown consistent interest in this book. Even one time playing with it for about 20 min. straight. I think its cute that our little bucko loves the book. I hope this means he will ike to read!

White Christmas!!!

2007-12-30T23:33:00.000-08:00

Its not very ofter we get snow here in Portland and less often it sticks anf even less often on Christmas. This year it snowed as we were unwrapping gifts at John's parents house. There is a forrest behind their house and felt as though we were in the woods in a cabin. I'm not one for cold weather but this year I really missed the early snowfalls when the snow is wet and fluffly. Its calming unlike other weather patterns and this time it reminded me of that. Here are some pictures from our abulous holiday and the snowfall.

Sandstrom Christmas Party

2007-12-22T18:23:00.000-08:00

Every Year John's work has a Christmas party including a white elephant gift exchange. The owner of the company traditionally gives a white elephant. this year John and I were lucky enough to get it. It was really fun and we will definitly go every year.

Baby in the Sink

2007-12-02T20:47:00.000-08:00

John originally was helping me get Ethan ready for a bath when we noticed how much Ethan fell in love with seeing himself in the mirror. He just giggled and laughed at himself. So John sat him in the sink and he continued to be content and play with his image in the glass.

The Oregon Coast

2007-12-02T20:33:00.000-08:00

The Coast is one of the most beautiful places to be. There is something relaxing and calming about watcing the waves crash on shore and the sand being washed back. John and I can't stop taking pictures of the caost when we go. I have posted a few of our favorite ones.

Time Flies!

2007-12-02T20:02:00.000-08:00

I can't belelive how fast time goes lately. Where do I begin? Thanksgiving weekend was wonderfully relaxing. We spent a couple days on the coast in Arch Cape. This was the first time we have been there with Ethan when there was little or no wind on the beach. Ethan enjoyed it much better this time as a result. He normally screams his head off until somebody takes him back inside. But this time he enjoyed the walks and sand and of course putting rocks in his mouth.
John's cousind who recently moved to Seattle came down to Portland for the weekend. Ethan awed at what their son who is 2 and 1/2 could do. Since the trip Ethan has pushed toys around the living room floor as if they were toy trucks, taking after their son.

Daddy's Boy

2007-11-03T09:28:00.000-07:00

Ethan is at that age where he hates dressing and undressing. On this particular day Ethan was in no mood for pajamas when his daddy showed up at the glass door to "save" him. Everytime daddy comes home Ethan Speed crawls to the door to be the first one to greet his Daddy. It just so happened that John stayed outside to fix his bike and that was even more torture for the little guy. Anxious to greet and get attention from Dad, Ethan pulled himself up on the glass.

Important to note: The rash on his body is due to the virus he is overcoming. Thankgoodnes its not another food allergy!

Freightful Halloween

2007-10-31T11:49:00.000-07:00

For Halloween we had chosen a cute Monkey costume for Ethan. He decided to add special affects by getting sick with a runny nose and an ear infection. Saurday night was our ward party and we lasted only about 15 min due to his fussiness. Poor guy!

The "Non-Toy, Toy"

2007-10-25T19:21:00.000-07:00

In order to convince Ethan to hold still while changing his diaper on the changing table he has to play with what we call a "non-toy toy." In other words its something that is clearly not a toy to you and I but to Ethan it is fair game. Since the "non-toy toy" has never before been played with by him it gets the best of his curiosity. Here is a classic example of what I am talking about. Only this time Ethan is talking to it too.

The talkative child

2007-10-25T09:05:00.000-07:00

At night John and I often lay in bed and talk about how cute our little Ethan is. Nearly everything he does, even if he isn't supposed too. He is just so darn adorable. I was talking on the phone yesterday and heard Ethan talking too. I looked over and found him up in the kneeling position, using a toy to sustain his balance, he was talking and talking and talking.

Mommy loves her baby!

2007-10-25T09:01:00.000-07:00

Yes Yes I am!!!!!

Powerwashing

2007-10-19T08:55:00.000-07:00

John and I recently got ourselves into a project this last week, and of course it turned out to be much bigger than anticipated. WE took three hours shifts in the project, and by the end of our "shifts" we were each covered in mud and moss and water. We didn't think to see as much of a difference as we did, but its exciting to see the cahnge. I included pictures before and after.

The Swing

2007-10-16T17:40:00.001-07:00

I was on a walk the other day with a friend when we stopped at the park for her 3 year old to play in the park. I decided to put ethan in the swing and see what he was going to do. I was unsure because he never seemed to really like the one we had at home (infant swing). As it turns out he absolutly loved it. I haven't seen anything make him giggle that much for such a long time.

Fall Photos with Ethan

2007-10-11T20:07:00.000-07:00

I've enjoyed looking at Mike and Katie's blog and Jessica's that I decided to start one myself. So I'll start with photos from when we moved here to Spring Park, at a park across the street. John borrowed a camera from work and we were able to get a number of pictures that we will be printing for our wall.

We are enjoying our new apartment and I like having more to do. Really its all about no rent, and so we can't complain. We painted our living room and dining room walls and the place feels like home. One last thing to say about these photos is that you'll see why I got a membership to a gym (Thank you Katie!!). Hopefully things will get thinner in time. I love the classes and I am wondering why I never did this sooner.