Back at it!

Well, our new camera is here! I guess I now have to get back on the blog regularly and keep everyone updated.

Samuel is continuing to amaze us. When we pulled up these pictures today we were amazed that he doesn't look like a baby anymore. He is a little boy! I don't know if mom is really ready for that yet! He is increasing his vocabulary daily. His most recent words are truck, buba (what he calls Bailey), cracker, no (a bit too soon for my liking), and Titi (what he calls Matia).


He is also into climbing on everything. He loves fruit and knows where the fruit bowl is so you can guess where I often find him! He has also learned how to come down stairs and surprisingly has a bit of fear in doing so. He is really careful and cautious of steps now. He didn't even have to fall to learn that one.

Mike has a tough week this week. Five days of teaching, four grad classes and three papers. So far three days of teaching are finished, three grad classes are done and one paper to go! I guess he will make it.

As for me, I am spending this week getting to know Jase (the little boy I nanny for). We have gone to a playgroup and a story hour at the library. He is a sweetheart and is very well behaved. It gives me hope into how Samuel may act in a year!


That's it for now!

Just another Wednesday...

Well, since we lost the camera we have not been taking any new pictures. This is a picture of Samuel and his friend Koen at the Fall Retreat. They were making crowns. Samuel was much more into eating the stickers and tasting the markers, but did actually end up with a crown when it was all said and done.

Samuel has been into drawing lately. Whenever he can get his hands on a pen, pencil or marker he starts looking for places to write. So far we have been able to catch him and get some paper. I am just waiting for the day when he finds the wall before I find him.

Well, if you haven't heard...I have a job! Yes, it was willingly sought and accepted. I actually have been trying to figure out if I want to do something more, but do not want to spend time away from Samuel, so I started looking into nanny positions. I was pretty selective on who I responded to since I felt that I wanted to use some of my teacher skills if possible. Last week I came across a part time position for a two year old boy with a bilateral hearing loss. I responded and was offered an interview right away. Long story short, I got the job. I will be watching Jase on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 8-3. This works out wonderfully with Mike's teaching schedule. Additionally, I am taking some sign language classes! I had my first one last Monday and loved it. I am really excited to see how this all turns out.

I start with Jase next Tuesday. Ironically, the boys are exactly a year apart. Samuel and Jase have met twice and have gotten along great. I am excited for Samuel to have another little boy to play with consistently. We have also been given the opportunity to go to a play group on Monday mornings. Samuel would be considered a typical language peer within the group. I am really excited about all these changes.

Oh...by the way...I will be getting paid to have fun!

Ahhhhhhh!

This is Samuel's frustration over losing the camera! Yes, that's right, we lost the camera. Actually, I lost the camera. Last we saw it, it was in the bottom basket of the stroller on Sunday morning.

Sunday morning we were meeting Jon and Annie for coffee and took Samuel in the stroller. I remember seeing it in the basket underneath and since we didn't use it... Anyway, our best guess is that when the stroller was folded up and put in the car it fell out. We realized it was missing at our next stop which was the Fremont market and Oktoberfest. We searched the car and all our bags, but it was no where to be found. We then drove back to where we were that morning and looked around where we parked and asked all the retail shops on that side of the street. No camera.

I guess this means it is time to get a new one since we can't go without a camera as our little dude continues to explore. We knew we were going to need one soon since ours had started to malfunction. Occasionally the lens wouldn't open completely and you had to wait forever in between taking pictures. We were hoping it would make it till Christmas though. Oh well. I guess life happens! Best Buy here we come!

The Monkey Continues...

If you ever doubted that he is part monkey, these should prove you wrong.

These are a few pictures from the Mars Hill Graduate School fall retreat. There was a climbing wall on the side of the cafeteria. Samuel watched Mike climb around on it for awhile and decided he wanted to try. He was actually pretty good. He was able to hold on, reach for the next and pull himself up.

I guess he is part boy, part monkey!

Monkey Boy

So you may laugh when you hear that his nickname is monkey, but you can't argue that we're right! We have watch Samuel climb on chairs, up on tables, onto the couch, but this is a first trying to get onto the counter. I am so thankful Mike showed him that all he has to do is move a chair! My life just got easier!

Puyallup Fair

Today we took Samuel to the Puyallup Fair. This is actually the second time he has gone, but since last time he was only 2 months old the memories are vague. We headed down to Puyallup this morning with Jon , Annie, Trapper and Heather. While we were there we were able to see all sorts of animals, walk through exhibit halls, eat yummy fair food and go to the draft horses show. Samuel did well and seemed to have fun. Here are a few pictures from the day!

Samuel next to one of the largest pumpkins. This one weighed 946 lbs. The winner weighed over 1000! In the hottest days of the summer they calculated it to grow about 30 pounds per day!

Samuel liked the animals, especially the goats. A few were making a ton of noise back and forth. Samuel just sat and watched them. As he got brave and started to reach out to pet we had to move away. I prefer him with 10 fingers!


Here we are wasting away our quarters playing Skeeball. No winners today!


To say the least, we were all tired by the end of the day. Samuel slept through most of the draft horse show, even with all the clapping and cheering!

Happy Birthday Beth!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Today is Beth's 35th birthday!
Congrats!
We will all be celebrating her this evening!
Hope you have a great and restful day!

Birthday Bash 2

Here are a couple more pictures from my birthday. As you can see, we all had a ton of fun.

This is cute now, but won't be in a few years!

Birthday Bash

As most of you know, I celebrated my 28th birthday this past Wednesday. Birthdays are not usually a big deal for us so I hadn't planned anything for the day and Mike had mentioned going to dinner that evening. So I wasn't expecting anything special...

Mike got up and left for work as usual. On the way, he took a quick detour and picked me up some coffee and brought it back knowing that I was already up with Samuel! Samuel and I sat around and watched the Today show and played with all his cars. Around 11- we decided to get dressed and ready for the day! After Samuel took a short nap, we played around in the living room for awhile. Samuel loves being chased and has found that the kitchen/dining room area is great for it. We chased each other around there for a good half hour before we were so tired of laughing we had to stop! In the meantime, Craig had to go out and also brought me coffee back! Everyone knows my obsession!

When Mike got home from work, he took Samuel because I had a meeting with Paul (Field Abbot from MHGS). He treated me to a triple chocolate meltdown at Applebee's! This day was only getting better. We had a great meeting and I left not expecting to see him again until Monday. Anyway, when I got home Mike wanted to head out and told me we were going to places that have been meaningful for us over the past year?!


Well, shortly after 6 we arrived at the Park Pub (bar owned by Paul--member or MHGS staff!) only to be greeted by friends. Mike (with Beth's help) had planned a surprise party at the pub for me! It was great. We had a chance to eat, let the kids run around (they have a room separate from the bar so kids are allowed), and catch up. I was surprised by the number of people that stopped by to wish me well. It was a ton of fun!

The best part...all this fun and I was still in bed by 10:30!
Yeah to birthdays!

Too Cute!

I will have a chance later to post pictures from last nights big birthday bash and tell you all about it, but for now, I had to show everyone what I just ordered from the internet...


This is what Samuel will be wearing at Aunt Angie and Uncle Caleb's wedding in four weeks! I am sure he will be stunning! When we were looking at getting him a tux, we discovered it wouldn't be cheap. To rent a tux to match the guys he had to pay the same amount they did! Crazy! We were in the bridal store trying on bridesmaid dresses and one of the sales clerks was telling us about this website where you can buy tuxs for cheap. We checked it out and found this tux and only am paying $35.00! I can probably turn around and sell it for more than that! Anyway, if you ever need it the website is
www.b-onewarehouse.com

First Trip to the Dentist

Samuel had his first visit to the dentist today. Since he has ten teeth now, we figured he better get use to going to see the dentist. We talked about it to him last night and this morning and he seemed fine going! He instantly loved the office since they had a big train table and a Lego table. He kept himself pretty occupied while I filled out paperwork. We then headed back to see the dentist.

When we got in the chair the hygienist asked if she could see his teeth. He immediately pointed to his teeth and gave her a big "ahhhhhh." It was great. The dentist came over to look and he was awesome. He leaned back on my chest and was motionless (this is amazing since we never see him still). He laid there and let them look and brush his teeth for over five minutes. I was stunned. She said they looked great and that he has about six in the process of coming in! GREAT! I guess we don't sleep for the next two weeks. They then gave him a plastic fish for being such a good boy and we headed out. I hope all our appointments always go that smoothly!

Weekend in Review

Finally, a little time to breath and blog. We had a pretty fast paced week last week, right through the weekend. Kate and Addison were here until Friday. It was so nice to have them in town. Addison and Samuel adore each other and had a ton of fun playing. I literally dropped them off at the airport on Friday and drove straight to pick up Mike and head out for the weekend.

This past weekend was the Mars Hill Graduate School community weekend. They do this each year as a marking of the new school year. It started Friday and ended Sunday night. Yes, we were tired. Friday we headed over to Bainbridge Island to the Island Lake Camp. I was in charge of the couples/families housing and some activities on Saturday, which left Mike in charge of Samuel a lot. While on the retreat we celebrated Brian's birthday. Trish, Paul, Sarah, Brian, Mike and I hung out and had yummy cake on Saturday night. It was a ton of fun and the kids slept the entire time! Sunday morning we headed back and showered to head out to convocation and the community picnic. It all went great and we had a ton of fun, but were plenty tired.

I will post pictures when I get them from friends...we forgot the camera!

Fun with Addison

Samuel and Addison had a ton of fun!

Green Lake

Today Addison and Samuel enjoyed a trip down to Green Lake. First, they got to play on the big playground with a million other kids. After exhausting that area, we headed to the water. They had a blast throwing rocks in and watching them splash. We were all a bit sandy and plenty tired by the time we hit Dick's Hamburgers for a quick lunch before we made it back for a much needed nap! Cousins are always so much fun!

Franklin Falls

Aunt Kate and Cousin Addison are in town! They came in late last night and will be here until Friday. This morning after a pancake and grape breakfast, we headed out hiking. We found a "family friendly" hike just off of I-90. It was a mile hike into Franklin Falls. Samuel rode in his backpack and Addison walked some and was carried some. Rounding the last corner heading to the fall Addison exclaimed "Wow, look at the waterfall! Cool! Awesome." She was right, it was a pretty awesome 70 foot waterfall. We found a spot on the rocks and had a short picnic lunch before letting the kids play in the water. It was a bit cold for swimming, but great for throwing rocks in and walking through. We then headed back out and only had one minor injury when Addison tripped and skinned her knee. She recovered quickly and continued exploring with Uncle Mike.

The last 20 minutes of the car ride home was a different story.
I guess we were all ready to be back at home!

Fun at the Park

This morning we also had our Mosaic first large group gathering of the 2006-2007 school year. Since I am now serving on the student leadership team for Mosaic, I planned and coordinated the event. And...it went really well!


We had lunch together at Magnuson Park in the University district. Our shelter was right next to the children's play area which was a great bonus. Mike served at the "Grill Master" and everyone brought a passing dish (which I guess is a Midwest term, but people here figured it out). We had about 37 people show up which was a mixture of staff, returning students and new students along with their spouses and children. It was a great chance to welcome some of the new families and reconnect with friends.

Samuel loved playing in the sandbox and on the swings. His friends, Roxy, Pierce and Matia were all there to play along with some new friends too. He wore himself out pretty well and is currently sound asleep attempting to recover.

Hopefully our Mosaic events will continue to go as well as today did. Keep your fingers crossed!

Blackberries

One of the nice things about having a nature preserve in our backyard is the blackberry bushes. This morning, Mike went out to pick some blackberries for breakfast. Samuel was very interested in the new treat so we decided to let him try it. As you can see, we were at least smart enough to undress him first! He loved them. Of course, they made a horrible mess, but he had a great time and we know now he likes yet another fruit! Too say the least, he went straight into the tub!

Talk...Talk...Talk

Samuel with Nana before she had to leave.

Samuel has become quite the talker. He has developed a pretty good repertoire of signs (eat, more, please, thank-you, drink) and has continued to say more and more words. So far he has dada, mama, hi, bye-bye, car, dog (gog), this (for anything he wants), please (bus), yes (es), duck (guck). There are also a few more, but only recognizable by Mike and I. It is really cute when he really wants something because he will both sign and say please. He has also learned to change his inflection at times. It is amazing to watch his little mind work and see what he comes up with.

This is a video of him wanting to open his water bottle. When I ask him if he wants help he says yes and is shaking his head. He then signs and says please (sign is a circle on his chest). The second time I ask him to say please he pauses to pass gas then proceeds with the sign and word! Yes, he is his father's son!

Last Weekend

This past weekend we ventured back out into the wild. Since camping went so well the first time we decided to try it again. We headed back to the same campground, Gold Basin off Mountain Loop Highway. This time we went with our good friends, Jon and Annie. I have to say that this was probably one of our best camping trips. We were all so bummed be forgot the cameras.

We headed up Friday evening and spent the night setting up camp, eating dinner and hanging around the campfire. Mike and I spent a good two hours trying to get Samuel to go down for the night, but once he was down he was out. Saturday morning we enjoyed breakfast and Samuel had a nap before we headed out for a hike. We went on a pretty easy trail out to Lake Boardman. It was beautiful. Mike, Jon, Samuel and Bailey headed into the water while Annie, Montana and I sat and enjoyed the sun. Samuel loved playing with the rocks and small sticks at the waters edge. I think we could have left him there all day. After awhile we headed back. Jon, Annie, Mike and Samuel headed down to the river when we got back while I elected to rest around camp while they were gone. Saturday night dinner was fantastic and Samuel went to be very easily! Sunday we cleaned up camp then headed over to a swimming hole for a few hours. It was a bit of a challenge to get to the hole, to say the least we were all wet despite not having on swimsuits, but enjoyed sitting and relaxing.

Hopefully, we will have one more trip in us this weekend. Kate and Addison are coming up and we would love to take them out and explore. Hopefully the weather will be kind and we will be able to find a campsite over the holiday.

This is a video from our first camping trip...

Nana's Visiting

Samuel's Nana is here to visit for the few days. He of course is on his best behavior and proving mom and dad wrong right and left! Yesterday, we took Nana to one of Samuel's favorite places, the zoo. This time he actually loved the petting zoo. He chased the goats, stepped in the food dish and even kissed one on the back! He was also very interested in the lady with the poop scoop and the wheelbarrow full of it. Nice!


We also went out to dinner last night at the 5 Spot up on Queen Anne Hill. Nana and I had some fantastic fried chicken. Mike had fish and chips which must have been good because there wasn't a bite left. Samuel loved the green beans and french fries.

Sick Little Boy

Well, we had quite the weekend around here. I was gone most of the weekend at a leadership retreat for Mars Hill (I will tell more later) which left Mike home with Samuel. Little did we know he would be a sick little boy...

Thursday afternoon, Samuel woke up from his nap with a pretty high fever. We gave him Tylenol right away which seemed to help for a short time. He was also running the classic cold symptoms (runny nose, cough, clingy, whiney). Since Mike had practicum until 7:30 and I had the Leadership Retreat starting at 7:00, I took him with me until Mike was finished. Everyone noticed he wasn't himself. He laid in his stroller, drank water and drifted in and out of sleep. That night was the start of hell. We were up and down all night with him between trying to break his fever, control his cough and sooth his molars which are breaking through!

Friday morning, after very little sleep, he headed downtown with me for the retreat. Mike took a half day and picked him up so he could come home and rest. He seemed in much better spirits in the morning, but still was fighting the fever, runny nose and cough. By this point he was also very picky about what he would eat which were blueberries only! Mike controlled his fever all day and finally got him down for bed late that evening. He was up and down again all night.

Saturday morning he woke up and didn't have a fever! It has disappeared as quickly as it had come on. He still was fighting his runny nose and cough but seemed to be on the up swing. He spent most of the day down and out. Lots of sitting on dad's lap watching cartoons. Saturday evening we spent three and a half hours awake with him until I finally put him in the car and drove around for an half hour to get him too sleep. To say the least Mike and I were running on empty as Sunday morning came.

We figured we had battled the hard part and how it was just getting back to normal. That was until he woke up for his nap with a rash all over his stomach, back, neck, and face. Mike quickly gave him Benedryl in case it was an allergic reaction. I got home shortly after lunch and called the nurse hotline at the Children's Hospital. The nurse spent a ton of time with me and diagnosed him with a viral infection. There is nothing we can really do but wait it out! Great!

So, Samuel has the viral infection called roseola. There is really no way we could have prevented it and really no way to treat it. The rash will probably continue for another day or so then he should be on the upswing. In the meantime he gets Benedryl and hydrocortisone cream to control the itching and cough medicine at night so he and we can sleep. He is drinking plenty of fluids and is staying hydrated. From talking with others, I guess it is a pretty common childhood illness that has to take its course. Oh! The joys of parenthood!

13 Months

Samuel is officially 13 months old. Hard to believe. We finally got around to taking him into the doctor for his first year appointment. As we all know, he is perfect!

Here is the latest...
Height: 32 3/4 inches (97 percentile)
Weight: 24 pounds 6 ounces (60 percentile)
Words: Dada, Mama, Hi, Bye, Dog, Car, This
Signs: More, Please, Eat, Thank-you, Drink (sometimes)
Teeth: 8 complete, 1 molar almost done, 1 molar just starting
The doctor said he looked great and appeared to be hitting all his milestones perfectly. I guess we will keep him!

Here is a picture of Samuel watching the garbage truck. He is fascinated with cars and loves to point them out to us. Whenever he hears the garbage truck he stands at the window and cannot be distracted for at least 10 minutes! Maybe he will be a garbage man?!

Camping

Last weekend, we ventured out to Gold Basin Campground in the Mt. Baker Snoqualmie National Forest for Samuel's first camping experience. We arrived Friday afternoon and had a chance to set up camp. We were joined by a few friends of ours and ended up occupying two campsites right next to each other. Friday evening we sat around the campfire, made smores and chatted.


Saturday all the guys went on a hike up Mt. Pilchuck. I guess the hike was pretty strenuous, but the views were beautiful. The girls had the joy of sitting around camp and trying to occupy four children while keeping them away from the hot fire! Not fun! Next time the guys will be on kid duty and the girls will get five hours to play. Saturday night we enjoyed a great dinner then everyone but us decided to leave for the night.


Sunday morning, Mike and I got up, had breakfast and packed up camp. We then went to the Big Four Ice Caves. It was a pretty easy mile into the caves. They were awesome. Samuel loved walking around and picking up rocks. He wasn't so excited about the snow though.



Overall it was a great weekend. We were all a bit tired coming home and enjoyed a good night’s sleep back in our bed. Samuel seemed to love camping, especially the dirt! I guess we will be planning a few more weekends soon! I will post more pictures on the website as soon as I get them all uploaded!

Barney!

Samuel doesn't slow down for much, but Barney has stopped him in his tracks. The other day he watched part of Elmo's World then found a car to occupy him. When Barney came on he quickly set the car down and planted himself in front of the TV. He watched for a good 15 minutes before he got bored and moved on. It's like he knows how much daddy dislikes Barney!