Jeff & Alison

Merry, Merry Christmas!

2011-12-20T11:36:00.000-08:00

I just wanted to post our Christmas cards this year. I had fun getting them ready to send to family and friends. I love how they turned out (except the scan is kind of fuzzy). This picture does not do Drew justice either. He is normally our funny, happy boy.

Last Friday night we hosted one fun Christmas party! I was so bummed that NONE of us got pictures--guess we were having too much fun :) We invited seven couples to our house. We had tons of food and fun. We played a game called Santa Bingo that my family had played at Thanksgiving. In the middle of the table are wrapped presents, one for each person. Then you roll dice hoping to get doubles and when you do, you get to pick a present and unwrap it. When everyone gets a present you set a timer for five minutes and if you roll doubles, you get to steal (trade) someone's present. Some of the presents are really good and some aren't very good. It was so funny! Some of the presents that weren't so fun to get were sardines and gas-x. One couple ended up with both "bad" gifts and they were so gracious. We stayed up late playing games and talking. It was definitely a night to remember. We were surprised that many of our friends had not had Martinelli's sparkling cider (a non-alcoholic, carbonated cider that is delicious!) . It is one of our family traditions and we enjoyed sharing it with them.

I've been thinking a lot about the Christmas letter we sent with our cards this year. Its funny how the second the letter goes in the mail, the letter seem outdated. I wonder if I will remember all the changes that seem to be happening right now, when I write my letter next year. This year our letter was fill-in-the-blank. Hopefully, I made it pretty easy to figure out with only about 10 words to fill in.

We hope and pray you have peace this holiday season.

Merry Christmas from our house to your!

Jeff, Alison, Jack & Drew

Thanksgiving

2011-12-07T16:08:00.001-08:00

Well, my pictures uploaded in the wrong order, but that's okay. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving this year. All of Alison's family met together in the West because Alison's brother and wife had their first baby...a little girl named Audrey. Alison's parents rented a huge house and we all stayed together. There were about 15 of us. It was so much fun! And we are all in love with little Audrey! But on Thanksgiving we played a really fun game that Alison's mom brought. It was called Turkey Bingo and we laughed the entire time. The first picture is Alison's brother wearing the reindeer antlers and the next picture is Alison's Dad.
This is little Audrey and I think it is safe to say that Uncle Jeff was a baby hog. He wanted to hold her 24-7! But he did let the rest of us have a turn.

A couple of Jeff's sisters were at college nearby so they came and stayed with us, too. We had a full house but it was lots of fun. The house we rented had a piano and the boys loved playing with their aunts! This was Aunt Lacey giving them a lesson.
Of course, Aunt Alison got to hold baby Audrey, too. She was such a sweet little thing and did so well with us passing her around so much.
The boys were just in awe of her and Jack kept asking if we could take her home. It was a wonderful trip and so much fun being together!

Halloween

2011-12-07T16:05:00.000-08:00

I think I forgot to upload pictures of Halloween. These were taken at a party with the boys' friends. Drew really wanted to look like Jack, so I let him put on makeup, too. It was a lot of fun this year. We had three parties and lots of candy and fun!

More Fall Fun...

2011-12-07T15:57:00.001-08:00

This is one of our favorite Fall and Winter Soups. It is soooo yummy!
This is Jack's good friend. They love to be together.

Its funny how much things can change in just a couple months. Jeff's hair had grown back in (he had his head shaved for a few months, just for fun, but Alison convinced him to grow it back).

Hilarious

2011-11-19T10:58:00.000-08:00

I just found this picture. It was a good attempt at trying to get a great family picture, but some how I love it! Drew was making faces at the camera and making the rest of us laugh. Happy Thanksgiving! I am so thankful for my three boys ;)

A Fast Update...Written By Alison

2011-11-19T10:44:00.000-08:00

The past few weeks have been busy. I mean really busy! November is National Adoption Month so I have been very busy with FSA (Families Supporting Adoption) and I have been taking another online education class so I can renew my teaching license in May. I still have four more credits to get done before then. Let's not forget all the holiday fun has started (Christmas shopping, family pictures, making cards, etc). I didn't have time to upload all my pictures from my professional camera so here are a few from my Iphone. I believe this first picture was a self-taken picture of Drew. He could find my phone if it was lost in Antarctica. He is growing and changing so much. He talks REALLY well and has definitely been acting like a two year old lately. But he is a really good boy.

Jack really got into Halloween this year. He was a vampire and Drew was a bat (Before and After). Jack got into character and told me that vampires don't smile for pictures.
When Drew saw how cool Jack looked he was really mad and didn't want to be bat anymore because he wanted to be a vampire. I promised I would put make up on him, too and that made him very happy.
After a trip to Costco, Jack found a nice soft place to curl up and rest :)
One afternoon, Drew was suppose to be napping and I found him "stealing" marshmallows! He looked very guilty! Sorry the pictures aren't very clear! I'll post more after our Thanksgiving fun!

Fall Pictures

2011-10-15T08:06:00.000-07:00

I bribed my friend to come take some Fall pictures of us. She had never used a professional camera before so I would try to set us up, her in position, and get everyone looking...then snap, she would try to get it. I told her I would take some of her family this weekend in return. Here are a few. We are going to try to get some better one tomorrow. And if anyone is wondering...yes, I still have a faux-hawk hairdo and love it-its just a little long in these picture!

Our adorable boys!
I'll post some bloopers later...they are always my favorite with kiddos!

Fall Fun Continues!

2011-10-04T14:07:00.000-07:00

A couple weekends ago we went with our friends Nate, Katrina, Lilia and Malachi to a Fall Apple Farm. It was sooo much fun. You can see my terrified face in this picture. We (adults) had a hilarious time pushing each other in this "hamster ball." The funny thing is that every one of us, screamed like a little girl as it went around, men not excluded.
This was digging in corn. It was really cool and the boys loved the texture playing in it.

Yes, we did survive Monster Mountain. Don't you think we should use this picture as our Christmas photo?
There was also a zip line swing. I also screamed like a girl.
This is adorable Lilia. She is 4 weeks younger than Jack. They are the best little friends.
It was so pretty in the pumpkin patch.

Back to our trip to see Matt, Stacy, and the kids. This is the newest addition, Carson. He is such a doll and Drew was smitten by him and wanted to keep holding him (this is a good sign for when the next baby comes :)).
More from our vacation up North to see Matt and Stacy. They were literally flying right by us (explained in the next post)! It was so fun to watch, but so noisy!

Its been a very fun Fall!!

September Fun!

2011-10-02T17:26:00.000-07:00

We started September right by taking a Labor Day Weekend Trip to see our good friends. We had a lot of fun in just two days. We took the kids to a great Science Center and outside on the water was a huge Air Show.
I think I could take Emma home with me. She was SO good to the boys and entertained them and was just so fun to be with! Matt, Stacy, Jeff and I got to go out alone and we had the best food and icecream. If you are ever in their area, you HAVE to go to Mr. G's Italian restaurant and Menchies frozen yogurt shop. They both were EXCELLENT! I've never had frozen yogurt that tasted soooo divine!
We also took another trip with our other friends to the state capital zoo. These bats were so amazing. They were so captivating (but only in a cage). I would have totally FREAKED out if out if one had been loose. They are the largest bats in the world and their wing span is about 8-10 feet!!
The kids were watching some other animals.
Drew love to watch the tv sitting on a pillow! So cute!

I am so glad I got this picture of Jack horse back riding. Tis is Miss Amy, Mr. Scott (her husband in the back) and Mr. Tyler. Jack loves to go!
Both boys have really been into dress-up lately. It is so fun to see them pretending.

Finishing Up Summer

2011-10-02T16:41:00.000-07:00

Being a big boy in his big bed was quite the challenge for us all. Drew spent about 3 weeks sleeping on the floor with his door open. He knew he would be in trouble if he came out. But isn't it cute?!

This adorable boy loves drinking his smoothies! He is growing so much lately and eating so much but he is a bean pole! Tall and skinny!

This face says, "Mom, are you really taking another picture?"

A about 6 weeks ago, we had quite the family adventure. What started out as a little wading in the water, turned into a hike, a river rapid, and a few bugs. But we got some great pictures and a great memory of it.

This was the coolest tree that had fallen over and had all kinds of moss, mushrooms and fungus growing on it.

On this adventure Drew fell while walking on this path. I was behind taking pictures so I ran to him, scooped him up and said,"Oh, Drew, your poor knees!" He screamed, slapped me in the face and said, "Not me knees, my hands!!!" It was definitely one of his worst moments and let's just say that my sympathy for him faded quickly! He's such a sweet boy normally! Gotta love toddlers!

July in Review

2011-08-04T11:25:00.000-07:00

This was one of my favorite pictures I took in July. Drew was playing with the bubble machine that Grandpa C. bought the boys while he was here. He was watching that bubble intently.
My pictures got all messed up in order. Some times blogger can be frustrating. But Jeff's mom, dad, sister Becca and Charise came for a visit during 4th of July. We had a great time! Did I mention we had NO idea that Jeff's cousin and her family live here...it was CRAZY! We have hung out with them quite a bit...I should have known that Jeff has family everywhere (I think he has about 250 first cousins).
Grandpa and Drew
Jack playing with the bubble machine.
I like this picture too. I turned the camera at a different angle and I like the way it turned out.

Back to the 4th... We thought we were getting a nice variety of fireworks but they were ALL smoke bombs :(
Jeff was the official firework liter.
Drew watched very carefully.
Jack loved the sparklesr!!!
We spent the morning in Columbus and met Jeff's family at COSI (we love that place). They were having some neat experiments outside and Jack got inside this big bubble.

Pictures of me are very rare, so even though you can't really see me, I have to show that I do participate and don't {always} stand behind the camera :) I climbed down into this submarine and helped Jack into it. It was really cool!
I also made my first pies this fourth of July and if you like Key Lime, you'll love this one!

This picture is proof that Jeff and I should NOT take those self portraits by holding the camera out as far as you can reach and snapping a picture ;) But we had fun time on this little path close to our house.
It was pretty hot and I was glad I packed some water for a drink when we found this bench.

Doesn't he look good pushing a stroller?

Family Favorite Recipes

2011-07-15T10:11:00.000-07:00

Cheers! One of our favorite healthy foods is this Fruit (and veggie-shh!) smoothie. It started out as just a fruit smoothie but Alison was determined to get more veggies into the boys' diet. So, one day she added spinach and later carrots. They loved it! You can't even taste the spinach. When friends or cousins come by during lunch or snack time, everyone wants a GREEN smoothie!

Fruit & Veggie Smoothie

Fill the blender 1/3 to 1/2 with Fresh Spinach. Add one carton light Vanilla Yogurt. Add about 1/2 cup Orange Juice and 1/2 cup Milk. Add Carrots, if desired (it makes it a bit sweeter and a little different texture). Then one Banana. Lastly, add 1-2 cups Frozen Fruit. We like just strawberries, a berry medley, and tropical blends (substitute pineapple juice for OJ). Then blend until smooth. Add more liquid if its too thick. Enjoy!

Now for something not so healthy...

KEY LIME PIE

1 Can (14 oz) Sweetened Condensed Milk
1/2 Cup Key Lime or Regular Lime Juice
1 (8 oz) cool whip (I use a little less than this)
1 package (6 oz) graham cracker pie crust
Grated Lime Peel
Green Food Coloring, until you like the color

1. Beat milk and lime juice in large bowl with electric mixer on med. speed until smooth and thickened. Fold in whipped topping.

2. Spoon lime mixture into pie crust. Cover and refrigerate about 1 hour or until set. Cover and refrigerate about 1 hour (I like to do it the night before). Garnish with grated lime juice. Refrigerate any remaining.

I wanted to share few family recipes that the boys love to eat and that I love to make. Here are a few of my creations. First, these were our Easter Baskets. The boys loved helping making and eating them.
Jack wanted a dinosaur birthday party so I decided to make a dinosaur cake. After doing lots of research, I found a recipe that I could "tweak" enough to make it Peanut and Tree Nut Free for Jack to be able to enjoy (he has food allergies). I had to use skittles instead of M&M's and candy orange slices for the scales.

Here are some of our other favorite recipes!

Chicken Tortilla Soup

4 Chicken Breasts (can be frozen)
2-15 oz cans black beans, drained
2-15 oz cans diced tomatoes
1 Cup Salsa (your favorite, I like Pace Chunky Mild)
4 oz can chopped green chilies
14 oz can tomato sauce

Chips, cheese, sour cream

Combine all of the first set of ingredients in crock pot. Cover. Cook 6-8 hours on low. Just before serving, cut chicken into bite-sized pieces (or shred). Stir into soup. To serve, put a handful of chips in each bowl, mash, and ladle soup over chips. Top with cheese and sour cream. **If you like thicker, use a paper towel under the lid while it cooks.

My sister-in-law took this chicken tortilla recipe to a chili party and won first place!

Corn Salad

2 cans whole kernel corn, drained
2 cups grated cheddar cheese
1-2 cups mayonnaise
1 med sized bell pepper (about 1 cup)
1/2 cup red onions, chopped
1-10.5 oz bag coarsely crushed chili-cheese corn chips

Mix first 5 ingredients and chill. Stir in corn chips just before serving. I like to make it the night before and then just add the chips. This is a crowd pleaser!

BBQ Meatloaf

1 egg
3/4 cup milk
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup quick cook oats
1/2 cup chopped onion (most the time I use dehydrated)
1 t salt
1 lb ground beef

Sauce:
2/3 cup ketchup
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 t dry mustard

In bowl breakup egg and milk. Stir in cheese, oats, onions, and salt. Add beef and mix well. Shape into five loaves. Put into 9x13 (sprayed with grease) pan. Combine ketchup, brown sugar, and mustard. Spoon sauce mixture over each loaf. Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

The Last Month

2011-06-26T16:51:00.000-07:00

This pretty much describes the last month. We've got two super heroes on our hands!
Today before church I set up the tripod and my camera in hopes of getting at least one good family photo. It isn't too bad, but honestly I was hoping for better. I think my smile in this one is compensating for the lack of good pictures and I was trying to will this one to be good.
This is a great one of Jeff and me ;) I'd love that photo-shop like program where you can scroll through the faces and change them--would have been helpful in this situation.
On another note, we went to Columbus yesterday for a FSA (Families Supporting Adoption) activity and it was so much fun. You can see Jack wore himself out by 2:45pm playing with all the kids.
Last week I caught the boys rocking in the chair together and I just love this picture. They are so cute! I love these boys so much!
Two weeks ago we went to this awesome childrens garden that has a little river and waterfall that runs through it for the kids to play in. It was packed and Jack didn't really like all the sounds and water because of that, but Drew loved every moment. He was even pushing big kids out of his way (not really pushing, but he wasn't going to let them stop him!).
I wish I there had not been a shadow!!

There is a really cool standing sand box and the boys played there for a long time.
They both loved it! I think it was Jack's favorite part.
This is the start of a long story so bear with me. My parents and brother and sister-in-law all came for a visit at the end of May. We were quite the crew! No one really left the house. My mom had severely re-injured her back a few weeks before coming and was really quite unable to even stand, let alone walk anywhere because of the pain. My brother broke his foot a few days before coming and my sister-in-law was at the end of her first trimester of pregnancy (with a little girl!!!) and was throwing up and very nauseated. The boys had little runny noses but the day after they got here, I got really sick as well and actually ended up in Insta-care. I got a horrible sinus infection that went to my ear in hours (which has never happened to me before) and actually ruptured my ear drum (EEOOWW!). I have so much more sympathy for children with ear infections!!! My dad pretty much took care of all of us. One of the things he and Mark did for the boys was build them his fort made out of boxes. That is actually Aunt Alicia inside in the first picture.

We have been exploring the parks close to us and while this is a good one, it is wet a lot because so many trees cover it and it rains almost every night here.
Jack has been so brave lately and climbing up things at the park.

This is the new bedspread I bought for our new King size bed. It makes me smile! I love the colors!
These are the double doors into our bedroom.

A Slideshow of Our Lives...

2011-06-20T10:14:00.001-07:00

Customize your own free photo slideshow

More pictures

2011-06-19T17:59:00.000-07:00

April 19th was Jack's 4th birthday!! I can't believe he is four. Some days if feels like yesterday he was born. Around this time, especially, our thought are so much with his birthmother. We spend a lot of time talking to him about his birth. He really is our "first" miracle. We have been so blessed to have him in our lives. He has brought so much joy not only to us, but those around him. He is very special. There is so much I could say, but the feeling are very tender and some private. So, I'll move on. He wanted a monster truck party. It felt like we were party-ing ALL day. He woke up to a new Hot Wheels Motorcycle Trike and opened presents from Grammie and Poppa. Then we went to Drew doc appt. He is getting bigger! Then we went to McDonalds for lunch. I dropped Drew off at a friends house so he could nap while I went to Jack's preschool (only his thrird week) and took brownies to his class. I think he really liked it. Then we went to Chuck E Cheese, which was a little out of the way but I think he loved it.
He was really excited about the monster truck cake.

This was his picture at preschool.
Here are some pictures of the boys playing outside. Its been a crazy spring here.

I love this picture!! The boys love to ride their power wheels side by side.

Jack didn't want to stop for a picture.

Jack saved a worm that was in our garage after one rain storm.
We love all the space in our new house.

My mom got Jack this cute outfit while we were in Portland and this was the first time he wore it. He put the hat on, ran to the mirror, and then yelled, "Mom, I think I need a mystery to solve!"

Here are some pictures from Drew's 2nd birthday. This was at my parents house and really hard because it was our last "party" together before we moved.
Drew had an Elmo party.

Jack and Poppa are great friends!

Updating our blog...Spring 2011

2011-06-19T17:22:00.000-07:00

Earlier in the week we went to Carriage Farms ( I hope that is right). It is about 20 miles away and it is a working farm. The boys (and their friends) loved it. It reminded us all of Wheeler Farm, just a lot bigger. They have a visitor's center that sells 1 cent candy and the boys loved that part, too.

This picture cracks me up because I had just read the sign to Jack so that is why he looks so cautious. He really wanted to pet that horse.
We've had a couple hot and humid days so I pulled out the little pool for the boys. They loved every minute.

It is really too bad these two pictures got in the wrong order. Look at it backwards and you can see the jump and splash Drew made as he dove into the pool.

PS: I STILL love my camera!!! Taking pictures of my kids gives me great pleasure!

Drew loved to do somersaults!

Drew has graduated to a new big boy construction bed. This was his first night in it. He loves it.

As evident by his "bed" head.
This is the day before Easter and Jack doesn't look so good even though his yummy Easter treat was tasty. Sunday morning about 4 am he woke up having a horrible asthma attack and ended up spending two days in the Children's Hospital. It was SOO Scary!!!

YUMMY!!!!

June and July

2010-07-07T14:47:00.000-07:00

I LOVE my new camera!
It catches the best moments.
Both boys LOVE this firetruck and play with it all the time!.

Did I mention that Drew pushes a chair where he wants and then turns on & off, on & off lights, or just simply gets into any trouble he can. I think Jack was 2 1/2 before he did this stuff.
And the two pictures is not a mistake, if he did it once, he did it one million times this particular day.

Currently, this little man can make me laugh with all he is doing.
Jack loves his tractor and his thumb.
We had the strangest clouds this day...my camera (that I love) took these cool pictures.

We went to visit my parents for vacation the end of July and had a great time!
My dad and Drew

Working Backwards

2010-07-05T14:49:00.000-07:00

When you have way too many pictures to post, you have to kind of "work backwards" on blogger.
We went to a Wiener Dog race and Drew wasn't too excited about it.
But you should have seen this little girl in the look alike contest...
Then Jack got to ride his first horse...
Even though you can't tell, he really loved riding the pony.
Then we went up and looked at my dad's airplane and Jack was truly in heaven. He loves Papa's plane.
And so did Drew.

Just another one of Drew's "learning experience."
And another.
On the fourth of July, Jack helped me make a salad. He called himself the chef's assistant. We had our aprons on so we didn't get any food on our church clothes.
On the way to the school.

The boys love to play at the school behind our house and we take them quite frequently. They have grown so much the fall when we took them over. I can't believe how much more brave each of them has gotten on the play ground.
It is still much easier to get pictures of Drew.

I loved this picture of Drew hugging Jeff's legs!

That is the face of a concerned Dad because his 15 month old has climbed all the way to the top...

So, here we are today at the Dinosaur Park in Ogden. It was really cool and I think the boys liked it. Mark and Alicia went with us and that was fun to spend time with them. We don't have very many weeks left together.

Mark trying to pick up a dinosaur tail.

The best family picture we got there ;)

What Happened to May?

2010-05-28T14:50:00.000-07:00

These pictures are from earlier this month.

Our friends took us to the Baby Animal's Birthday Party at Thanksgiving Point and Jack LOVED every moment of it. He loved touching the baby animals and playing with all the cool things they had going on.
This was a tractor ride and he went with Ezra (who was soooo sweet to him). I think they both loved it ;)
This baby cow just let everyone pet him.
The one picture I took when my parents were here...did I mention my mom gave me a surprise (I don't want to say it but, 30th) birthday. It was SO much fun and I was totally shocked!! Thanks Mom (and Dad).
I really thought that THREE years old was going to mean less things like this. Jeff has had to pull the pocket door OUT twice due to things "finding" their way into it. I don't even know how he got my spoon. And the funnier thing is that I walked past is twice before I realized I was walking around it.
The weather has been kind of weird here (Snow on Monday) but when it is nice we always go outside. I can't believe the school (partically our backyard) is going to be out next week. Jack will miss seeing the kids everyday.

We've Been So Busy

2010-04-30T14:51:00.000-07:00

Honestly, I don't even know where to begin. We've had a birthday every three weeks., Jack is completely potty-trained, Drew is into EVERYTHING. I've also been putting in HOURS and HOURS into putting all our THREE YEARS worth of home videos in order and I'm {hoping} to have them made into a DVD by the end of the week (but most likely I won't finish it 100% until next week).
Let's start with Drew. I have nick-named him Spider man, because I swear he can climb walks.
The only thing that Jack wanted bad enough to earn stickers for potty training was an electric toothbrush (strange, I know). But his stuffed animals have never had cleaner teeth! The rats especially liked the treatments.
The boys really don't eat a lot of sweets so this was Jack's first experience with a sucker and he LOVED that it turned his mouth, teeth, and tongue blue. He is actually sitting in front of the mirror in this picture.

We really had forgotten how much of a mess that one year old's can make. Drew is in to everything. I feel like I am constantly in a construction zone. And constantly picking up. He has also given up his binky, but along with it, went quite a few hours of sleep...ugh!

I love this picture of the boys. It was one day before church and they were playing together.

More mess!
A quiet, peaceful moment. But just a moment...
until this...he learned really fast to use the drawer as a step.
Jack LOVES these pajamas and if they are clean, he always picks them to wear.
These pictures just crack me up because you can see the same things are getting their attention at the same time and I just happened to get a picture of it.
Jack had a dinosaur birthday party! It was so much {work &} fun! It was actually quite hard to make all the necessary "peanut free" changes to the birthday cake, but I think it came out pretty similar. It was orange not pink as it kind of looks in the picture.

It was a VERY full day of Dinosaur things!
Jack got so many great gifts! Thank you everyone!!
He took unwrapping VERY seriously.

He had three friends come to his party and they were SO cute! I realized that there are VERY few pictures of me, so I added some that have me in them.

A picture with the birthday boy!
The Aunties!
Uncle Mark giving private golf lessons.

Drew and Mommy later in the day :)
This is the best view from my kitchen window...I love seeing all the boys playing together while I cook dinner...{bliss!}
Not sure who is winning ;)

March In Review 2

2010-03-29T14:52:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I had all the fam over to celebrate Jeff's birthday and I decided to dye Easter eggs, too. What a mess...things will have to change for next year but I was so thankful for Aunt Alicia and Aunt Becca's help. Jack had a great time!!

Mixing and stirring!
Drew had a REALLY hard day and wouldn't let anyone hold me but me. You can see he is upset in the picture so I was trying to do both! Once again, I love aunties!! They were both so much help!
Ooops! I forgot to get a picture of the end result! Next time!
Both the boys were decked out in their Easter outfit. I didn't get a picture of Jack (so sad) but I am going to take them for professional pictures in them hopefully, this week or next. But Drew looked adorable and they both wore their hats the entire 3 hours of church.
The weather is turning nice--I LOVE IT!! We go to the park a lot and Jack's favorite thing is the swing but if I let him in it first, he won't do anything else the entire time, so we swing last (for at least 20 minutes and my arm starts to hurt from pushing him).
He is getting braver with climbing on the toys and loves to go down the slide (even high ones!)

Drew finally had is first "real" haircut. He looks so handsome, I wish I had done it a little sooner. I feel like it cut a lot of red off but I think it is still strawberry-blond.
Jack has had fun helping me plan his birthday party and we got his magazine in the mail and he loved looking though it looking at birthday party things.
We went back over to Wheeler Farm and it is official: Both boys HATE sheep. They both screamed and cried when it when "baa." I guess they kind of are scary.
Jack loved looking at all the farm animals but especially loves to feed the ducks.

I am going to print this picture and frame it. I LOVE it!!

March in review

2010-03-28T14:53:00.000-07:00

This was the BEST part of the week...I went shopping and got these things (left to right) retail price was almost $400 for I only spent $35. More than 90% off...one of the best I have ever done. The first outfit is a Polo brand Jacket, shirt, and pants that turn into short-$8, Next was an Oshkosh winter coat and matching snow pants for Drew next year, wait for it...$4.99 (it was originally $85). Next the orange two zip out fleece coat for Jack, was $100, got it for $13. Then the Navy coat and snow pants for Jack (was $110) got it for $4.99. The last three are adorable pajamas that were all regularly almost $30 each but I got them for...$1.25...can you believe it. After getting all this great stuff, we'll probably end up in Southern Cali, right? Hopefully, not. But I just had to share my AWESOME day of shopping (and I LOVE SEARS end of the season sales, last week I got the boys pants for 99 cents). REALLY!!
It has been beautiful here, so we have been outside for HOURS every afternoon. This was the school playground that is right behind our house.
Both boys are LOVING to wear hats!

We have a beautiful view of the mountains from our house. I love it! Did I mention the boys both had ear infections last week after having RSV...
Then on Saturday morning, Jeff was playing basketball with some guys and some guy elbowed Jeff REALLY hard and knocked out his two front teeth (for the 3rd time)...long story but he will require all FOUR teeth to have implants (almost took all four and the other two are really damaged).
Drew wants to walk (but hold hands) all the time, so I decided to let Jack take over some of it (I'm just too busy to do it 24-7) and it has worked out nicely. He is so sweet to him.

Jack LOVES his bed and invites anyone who come to visit to see his room and sit on his bed. Lately, he has been loving on his blanket his birthmom made for him. He calls it his "special" blanket.
Drew, Drew, Drew. The results of this...
He is climbing EVERYWHERE!! The other day he was climbing my microwave stand!!
If I didn't tell you, this is Jack's crest hairdo...I told him he had dinosaur hair and he said, "no it isn't. It's my crest!" A crest is part of a dinosaur that looks like a mo-hawk. He was right again.
Playing at the school with Daddy!

Here are more pictures from Drew's birthday.
I had "crest" hair, too ;)
He loved almost every minute of it!

See...Jack wanted Aunt Becca to come to his room...I found these pictures on my camera...there were some hilarious ones, but I didn't want to embarrass them! Thanks for the good laugh, Bec!

Fourth of July Weekend

2008-07-09T07:38:00.000-07:00

Jack loves to wear anyone's sunglasses.
At Scott and Estelle's house
First fireworks...Jack was totally shocked! I love this picture!

Jack loves to give hugs!
We spend the 4th at the Hill Air Force Museum with Jeff's brother Scott and his wife Estelle. It was lots of fun.

I love to Dumpster Dive and this was a great find...along with an awesome swing and booster/high chair...I just clean them up and voila!

2008-06-28T18:34:00.000-07:00

There isn't anything better in the whole wide world than a kiss from Jack.
Aunt Anne came for a very short visit. Jack was enjoying the cold icecream.
After a long day of shopping and hang out with the girls, the drive home was just 2 minutes too long :) You gotta love a sleeping baby, or umm... toddler.

2008-06-25T18:47:00.000-07:00

On the 19th Jack was 14 months old. We have been thankful for his life and birthmother for over year. He has brought so much happiness into our lives.

Jack loves to play with his buddy Ethan.
Swimming is Jack VERY favorite thing to do :)
The other night we saw this HUGE snail slittering on our steps. Jeff and I said that it had been a long time for both of us since we saw a snail...usually slugs...but not snails.

Updates

2008-06-22T20:44:00.000-07:00

Jack is 14 months old. He seems like our "little man" more and more each day.
I read that a fun activity is to put adult socks on toddlers and let them take them off. Jack liked them on too much to take off.
Watermelon! Yummy!
Jack LOVES to wear a hat. He will leave one on forever :)
He also loves to wear my sunglasses..a *hot* item at our house lately.

Nap Head...WOW!

2008-05-20T09:06:00.001-07:00

Jack has his hair parted on the side and slicked down UNTIL...
He woke up from his nap! I couldn't resist taking pictures of his wild, wacky, after-nap hair!

Fun at the Park

2008-05-20T08:59:00.000-07:00

Play "wrestling" with Daddy
Mommy says, "Pat Daddy's head."
Mama and Me
Mama Loves!
Our Sweet Boy

Daddy's Turn...

2008-05-11T19:46:00.000-07:00

Daddy got to take me to swim lessons last Thursday. We had so much fun :)
Hi, Mom! Watch me and Dad!

Fun

2008-05-01T19:23:00.000-07:00

Jack's first swim lesson! He loved every minute of it :)

Jack loves music...he got this piano for his birthday and it was a hit!
Here is "Little Linus". He loves music and his green blanket :)

Happy 1st Birthday, Jack!!!

2008-05-01T19:18:00.000-07:00

Yee-Haw! We had a barnyard BAA-sh!

Enjoying Cake

Phew, what a party!

Family Pictures...

2008-04-22T07:46:00.001-07:00

Our great friend took some pictures of us as a family at the park we like to visit frequently. Here are a few we liked :)

Jack's Gotcha Day

2008-04-22T07:30:00.000-07:00

About a minute old
10 hours old

Above-Alison's mom and Jack

Below-Alison and Jack (Jack is about 2 weeks old)

While we naturally still love to celebrate Jack's birthday, his "Gotcha" Day is special, too. Yesterday, April 21st was officially Jack's Gotcha Day. The adoption community affectionately refers to this day as the day the child is placed in the care of the adoptive couple. Here are few of the highlights of his birth:

1. After 18 hours of Labor and not the day we thought (we assumed he would be born on the 18th--we even wrote it on the paperwork and had to change it later) Jack was finally born at 1:49 am, 9 pounds 2.6 ounces. 21 inches long.

2. About 12:30 am his lovely birthmother invited Alison to join her, her aunt and cousin into the delivery room. While Alison was completely unprepared for that experience, it was so touching. The doctor also let her cut Jack's umbilical cord.

3. The door was purposely left open during the delivery so Jeff and Alison's mom could hear everything happening. They thought it would be a while before they would be able to see Jack but literally 60 seconds after he was born, a sweet nurse took Jack and Alison to show Jeff and Alison's mom.

4. It was a bitter-sweet parting at the hospital Saturday around noon on April 21st. Our hearts were full of compassion for Jack's birthmother. Hence, this was the day we took Jack home and became his parents. It was love! We are so thankful for his life and the life of his birthmother. He is truly a gift!

It's a beautiful day to go to the park!

2008-04-13T15:06:00.001-07:00

First time down a slide!
Jack loves to swing!
Admiring the playground with Daddy. Don't you love the matching shorts!
Playing with Aunt Becca is so much fun!
Enjoying the slide with Aunt Becca

A typical day at our house...

2008-03-28T18:46:00.000-07:00

Like most other children, Jack loves to pull everything off his changing table. Especially his diapers. Today, Jeff came home in the middle of my video-taping. You can see how excited Jack gets when he sees it is "Daddy" at the door!

Jack-in-the-Box & The Best Time of Day

2008-03-28T17:37:00.000-07:00

Our first real Jack-in-the-box picture. This box came with his birthday decorations. He had so much fun playing in it :)
This is the best time of day!! I love my boys!

2008-03-26T09:02:00.000-07:00

I have really been enjoying this stage with Jack. He makes me laugh almost constantly! Take this picture for example :)
This was Easter Sunday so Jeff snapped a couple pictures of us before we went to church.

Here is another one of those funny moments. Jack loves the toilet and TP! I had just put a brand new roll on!
Last Saturday Jeff and I invited quite a crew to join us for lunch at Magleby's (its a great place for breakfast--all you can eat pancakes, the BEST french toast ever, omlets and more). This picture was of my best friend Anne, Me, and our "close-enough-to-be" roommate from Freshman year of college. Anne's sister also came, my brother and sister-in-law joined us, too. But I think Jack had the best time. He adored all the attention, food, and more food!

For the Love of Music...

2008-03-04T13:17:00.000-08:00

Our boy just LOVES music. This video was from Sunday. We turned on 'Music and the Spoken Word.' Jack stopped in his tracks, looked up at the TV and started kicking his legs to the beat of "When the Saints Go Marching In." I grabbed the camera and caught the end of it. Music makes him happy!

Where's Jack?

2008-03-04T13:11:00.001-08:00

Probably pulling off a door stopper (we've lost 3 so far) or...
eating the door stop or in our closet pulling all the shoes off the rack or...
Opening the cupboards and taking all the dishes out (all in about 5 minutes) or... fill in the blank-he's everywhere! I love his sense of adventure.

Our Cute Boy

2008-03-04T12:16:00.001-08:00

Our cute boy!
I love this picture as it captures his adorable "toothy" grin.
"All Gone!" Jack loves to eat! He really enjoyed his pasta this night!

Our Letter to You...

2008-02-27T17:51:00.000-08:00

Hi!

We are Jeff and Alison...and Jack and Drew, too! Thank you for taking the time to learn about our family. We say that our boys are both miracles! We feel blessed to have them in our lives and thought our family was complete until we all realized we were missing our family's little "pink" caboose.

We have great respect and appreciation for your desires regarding adoption. While your baby would be raised with all the love possible from us, they will also know they are loved by you. Your name will be held in the highest regard in our home, just as we have honored Jack’s birthmother. In fact, we chose a form of her name to be his middle name.

Together we enjoy playing games, reading to the boys and each other in the evenings, and taking walks to the nearby parks. We all love music! Our home and cars are filled with every variety of music, but children’s music is playing most of the time now :) We have seen many concerts over the years; our favorite thus far has been Rascal Flatts.

The bitter-sweet miracle of adoption has touched all our families’ lives. Our hearts are tender as we imagine the decisions you are facing. We pray that you will have peace as you make the best choice for you and your child and hope that you will consider us in that process.

We look forward to hearing from you by email, phone, or letter. Click on our email and send us a note.

Fondly,

Jeff and Alison

ALL ABOUT US...

After dating almost two years, we became more serious as our love and friendship grew. We married in Portland, Oregon in April 2002. Jeff graduated from BYU in December of 2002 and in 2007 graduated from Des Moines University Medical School. Alison graduated from Utah Valley University the spring of 2003. Alison ta
ught 1st grade while Jeff attended medical school. But her desires were always to be a stay-at-home mom.

All four of us love to be with friends and family. We love music, movies, and attending community events. We usually eat at home but love to eat out once or twice a month. Some of our favorite places to eat are PF Changs, Texas Roadhouse, or any Mexican restaurant.

At least two or three times a week, Alison, Jack and Drew enjoy visiting fun places. We have family passes to the children's museum and aquarium and can spend hours at both places. We also get outside and play any chance we get! Many hours are spent outside exploring!

ALL ABOUT JEFF...

Jeff is a very fun-loving person. He grew up in a wide variety of states but calls Alaska home since he spent many summers as a child and teen working on fishing boats with his dad, uncles, and cousins. Most his family still live there. He enjoys finding new ways to make the boys laugh, singing in the shower, and playing the guitar and harmonica-at the same time! Jeff really enjoys athletics, too. He wrestled in college, but also loves football and basketball. He still finds time to exercise daily and plays basketball every Saturday morning with friends. Jeff served a mission to Spain, so he speaks fluent Spanish and uses it at any opportunity.

Jeff is the oldest of seven children. He has three sisters and three brothers. Twenty years separates Jeff from his youngest brother, so there was always someone to play with or entertain while growing up...and it is still fun to spend time with all his siblings. They all LOVE being aunts and uncles!

On Jeff's side of the family we have seen the blessings of adoption on both sides. Jeff has three cousins who are adopted and an aunt who placed her child for adoption. We feel fortunate for the opportunity to expand our family through adoption.

ALL ABOUT ALISON...

Alison grew up in Oregon and loves the Northwest. She is a creative person; she enjoys blogging, decorating the house, and changing her hair cut and color. Whenever she finds a spare moment she loves to pick up a good book and read. The last two years she served as a board member for FSA (Families Supporting Adoption); and considers herself an adoption advocate in every way. She was involved in dance, piano, tennis, and basketball while growing up and hopes to extend these hobbies to our children while helping them find their own pleasures. But above all, motherhood and parenthood has been her greatest joy.

Alison has one younger brother but there was always extended family close. Her aunts, uncles, and grandparents all live within minutes of each other. She talks to her parents daily and is excited to hopefully be very close soon.

Family is important to both of us and we hope to live even closer in the near future. We both feel strongly about the importance of our children knowing their grandparents and extended family.

ALL ABOUT THE BOYS...

Jack (4 years old) is a very smart, loving child. He adores his green satin blanket which was nicknamed "Linus" because of the way he holds it and sucks his thumb. From the moment he was born he has loved both music and water. Last summer we spend hours by the pool and anticipate many more summers spent the same way. Jack can count to twenty in English and Spanish, can tell you anything about dinosaurs and could read books all day long! Jack has brought so much happiness into our home and lives. The first two years we frequently mailed letters and pictures and had occasional phone calls with Jack's birthmom until she requested annual updates.

Drew (2 years old) is such a happy guy. Even when he is sick, you can make him laugh. We often find that he has sneaked into his brother's room and both of them are giggling uncontrollably. Drew wants more than anything to be like his big brother. He loves to crawl through our pop-up tents and tunnels chasing Jack. He is very energetic and loves to climb up anything.

We were very shocked and excited to find out Alison was pregnant when Jack was just 14 months old. After years of fertility treatment and procedures that never resulted in a birth, we had not been focusing on having a biological child for quite a while and had actually started the process to adopt again, as we felt there was another child for our family. We once again feel there is another child to join our family through adoption, and are excited to start this journey again.

The bitter-sweet miracle of adoption has touched all our families’ lives. Our hearts are tender as we imagine the decisions you are facing. We pray that you will have peace as you make the best choice for you and your child and hope that you will consider us in that process.

We look forward to hearing from you by email, phone, or letter. We can be contacted through our email at: hope2adopt@live.com or our caseworker, Kimberly, can be contacted at 614-836-2466.

With Warm Regards,
Jeff, Alison, Jack and Drew

A Peek into Our House...

2008-02-26T11:07:00.000-08:00

Make a slideshow - it's easy!

On the Move & More...

2008-02-25T09:49:00.000-08:00

After Jack crawled his very first time, he looked back and gave me this smile...it says it all :)
Our little man is starting to get into everything! Mom's make-up is so much fun.
Bring on the grub!
It was a rough nap...messy hair, unbuttoned outfit (how did that happen?!?), and missing a sock. Uncle Jacob (11 years old) thinks he looks like Peter Pan in this pictures. He kind of does :)
Jack is winning his independence. He loves to eat all by himself. I call this picture "Oatmeal a la Jacque."

Some Favorites...

2008-02-08T21:16:00.001-08:00

I love this picture. It captures Jack's adorable grin! As soon as I picked it up from being printed last week, I framed it and put it on our coffee table.
Daddy and Jack ready to go outside.
Jack was quite happy with his "new" martian pajamas.
First time pulling up.
Gotta love those cheeks! I know we do!

Christmas 2007

2008-02-07T12:17:00.000-08:00

We were able to spend Christmas 2007 with Alison's family in Oregon. We had such a great time.
Christmas Morning!!!
Alison's Dad, Jack, and Jack's special blanket that goes everywhere with him.
This is Jack enjoying some of his presents later in the day.
Jack and G.G. (Great-Grandma) playing together later in the week.

A BLESSED Day!

2007-11-30T17:50:00.000-08:00

These are picture taken at the church after Jack was blessed.
Jack has brought so much joy into our lives.
We are so thankful for the miracle of adoption.

Celebrating...Together Forever!

2007-11-30T17:43:00.000-08:00

We were able to be sealed together forever as a family in the Salt Lake Temple on November 3, 2007.
It was the most amazing experience to be in the temple together.
Jeff's Dad, Jeff, and Jack
All of Jack's aunts who were in attendance (missing Aunt Charise).
Over 20 family and friends flew in to celebrate becoming a legal and eternal family!

Finalization!

2007-11-30T17:40:00.001-08:00

On November 2, 2007 Jack's adoption was finalized.
It was a wonderful experience. The Judge even wanted to hold him for the pictures.
Everyone who was in attendance.

Jack's Adoption Story

2007-10-06T16:07:00.000-07:00

Jack’s adoption story is unique because of the open relationship we shared with his birthmother, {A}, before and directly after his birth. While we are grateful for her willingness to share her experiences with us, we realize and understand that you may have different desires regarding adoption.

Jack’s Adoption Story

On December 13, 2006 we were sitting in the airport on our way to Alaska to spend Christmas with Jeff’s family when we got a call from our adoption facilitator. She told us that we had been chosen to be parents and that our birthmother, {A} wanted to talk to us as soon as possible. We quickly called her and knew immediately that she was our angel! We didn’t have long to talk then, but promised to call as soon as we could. We spent the next two weeks talking for hours on the phone.

On January 3, 2007 we met {A} for the first time in a Subway Restaurant located inside a Wal-mart. It was a wonderful first meeting and she quickly invited us to go with her to her ultrasound that day. Together, the three of us, learned that WE would be having a BOY!. We spent the next three months getting to know each other better through, email, phone calls, and visits.

Jack was born on April 19, 2007 (after 18 ½ hours of labor). {A} graciously invited Alison into the delivery room while Jack was born. It is hard to express our gratitude not only for Jack, but for the experiences {A} allowed us to share with her.

It had been 23 months since we started the process for adoption. Two years prior, we eagerly started the paperwork and finished it in record time (10 days). After over a year with many situations but without any success, we looked to an adoption facilitator for help.

On July 5, 2006 we mailed our paperwork and adoption profiles to “An Angel Above Adoption.” {A} received our profile, a few days before December 13th.

Since the placement of Jack in our home, we mail pictures and letters to {A} and have occasional phone calls.

Jack and Mommy

2007-09-20T18:36:00.000-07:00

We match!

Some favorite pictures over the last month

2007-09-20T18:29:00.001-07:00

Jeff and Jack playing together.
Jack enjoying prunes for the first time.

We got caught! Sometimes the best things are just a little cat nap on Sunday together :)

Some favorite pictures of Jack over the last month

2007-09-20T18:24:00.001-07:00

I love this picture because Jack spent most of his fourth month putting things in his mouth :D
Smile, Beautiful Boy!

Jack resently found a new love for his cold teether. One day, he put it on his head.
Learning to roll over!

Stop and Smell (or, um...Eat) the Roses!

2007-09-20T18:21:00.000-07:00

Jack LOVE to be outside. We have been trying to be outside as much as possible before Fall arrives.
Yummy!

Jack's Four Month Pictures

2007-08-30T12:35:00.001-07:00

Jack really wasn't in the mood for pictures, but we got some cute ones anyway. He is our angel!

Jack's Four Month Pictures-More

2007-08-30T12:32:00.001-07:00

At Jack's four month check up he weighed 19 pounds and 6 ounces. He really is a cute chunk!

The Best Thing In the World is a Baby's Smile :)

2007-08-14T18:12:00.001-07:00

Jack was quite happy when he accomplished kicking his left flip-flop off.

Feeding the Ducks...And Geese!

2007-08-14T17:51:00.000-07:00

After doing a little research about our city, I discovered this great park. It is an understatement when I say I was excited to find out it is only four blocks from our home. Teasing, I have told my friends and family, "if you can't find me the rest of the summer, I am at the park."
Together, Jeff, Jack and I spend the morning at the Park. I saved some bread for the ducks and geese. There were literally hundreds of birds. When they saw us coming up to the pond, they jumped out of the water and came running towards us. Jack just adored watching us feed the ducks and geese. He kicked his legs , smiled, and made "happy" noises in excitement!
And Jeff wasn't afraid to feed them by hand. We all thoroughly enjoyed it!
The geese came a'runnin too! Right up to the fence.
I love to take pictures! Someday I would enjoy taking a photography class (even if it is only a community class for a couple weeks).

Inseparable

2007-08-01T11:56:00.000-07:00

Jack and Mommy are inseparable (well, that is until Daddy comes home from working at the hospital).
Jack loves to be with Daddy.

Swimming!!!

2007-07-15T16:28:00.000-07:00

This was Jack's first time swimming!! We had so much fun! After an hour of playing in the pool with Mommy and Daddy, Jack fell asleep in less than a minute!!

Fourth of July!

2007-07-06T09:27:00.000-07:00

Anytime there is someone to take a picture of all three of us, we jump on the occasion! We titled this picture Red, White, & Blue!!

Our First Family Pictures

2007-06-28T09:14:00.000-07:00

This is Jack's 2 month pictures. I wonder if it will always be my favorite.
He was such a good little "picture" boy.

These are some of the best things in life. We feel so blessed by the presence of Jack in our lives. The second pictures is my favorite because I think it captures how we feel! We're just in awe!