Christmas 2010

Each Christmas break we have a tradition of visiting our friend, "Aunt Bea," who I used to work for. She has two cats and Jonah thought all of her cat beds and toys were there for him. I just got my camera out and tried not to think about all the hair he was collecting.

Jonah loves going on walks with my Dad. And I actually got a shot of them with matching hats!

The tire swing in our neighbors front yard is probably his favorite part of their walks so they often begin and end there.

And here are some more pictures from Christmas Eve and Christmas morning. I think Jonah's favorite gift was the ball pit from Santa. :)

Bedtime

This picture is almost a year old but I love it! Our bedtime routine begins by reading 5 verses from the Book of Mormon and then having family prayer. Jonah doesn't always stay on the couch the entire time we read but he's getting better. Last night during our prayer he wanted to hold our hands for the first time. (Daddy and I always hold hands.) Jonah then gives Daddy a goodnight kiss and we go to his room to read stories. I let him choose a few books (usually 4-5) and then we sit on the couch and read. After that we turn out the light and I rock him with his head on my shoulder for a minute or two and then lay him in his crib. And even though it's not ideal, I will often give him his sippy cup with milk if he wants it. Then I say goodnight and slip out. Last night after we turned out the light and I had just started rocking him he pointed to his crib and said, "bed." So I put him in his bed. Then he said, "milk" so I gave him his milk. And then he said, "bye bye." It made me laugh. Maybe it's me who just loves to cuddle before I lay him down. :) He is becoming quite the independent toddler! Here is a more recent photo taken before church two weeks ago. He konked out on the floor about 15 minutes before we needed to leave so I dressed him and did his hair while he was asleep and just had to take a picture:

Halloween!

We had been told before that Jonah looked like a hobbit so that inspired our decision for this year's costume. Ryan actually wanted Jonah to be Gandolf the Great and for us to be hobbits but we knew Jonah would not tolerate the beard and hair necessary to pull it off. So Jonah went as Frodo. We used the fabric from an old vest that Grandma Jill had lying around to make Jonah's cape and lined it with green felt. It felt good to be behind a sewing machine and it made me wonder if I could actually get into sewing! We also took a denim vest and painted it with fabric pens to look more hobbitesque. Jill found a leaf shaped clip-on earing that we used as his vest clasp and then we bought a small chain to hold the ring, tights, and some fuzzy yarn for his hairy feet. We weren't hard core enough to die and curl his hair to really make him Frodo (I hope you know we would never do that) but we were still pleased with our adorable little hobbit. I thought of him more as Sam. Sam held the ring for a short time, right?

Here is our very happy hobbit:

We had to sew the cape and the necklace directly to the vest. He just wouldn't wear it otherwise. Here are some pictures from our trunk or treat in Castro Valley:

The cousins didn't seem that excited to see each other but I was very happy to see Merilee and Ashilene!

Look at Ashilene, the cutest Raiders cheerleader!

They did have fun in the ball pit.

There were a lot of fun games.

But Jonah just kept pointing to the ball pit.

He had a huge cup of jello.

And went back to the ball pit.

He took a short candy break.

And where did he go? Back to the ball pit!

We may have to get him a ball pit. It was a very successful event. Jonah couldn't have had more fun. But I must end with this picture. There's just something about it that cracks me up!

Friends

Jonah has made some great friends in the ward and so have I. My friend Bethany and I have been doing babysitting trades for a couple months now and it has worked out really well. I watch her daughter, Nevaeh (heaven spelled backwards), while she works a couple nights a week and she watches Jonah so I can attend art classes or work on the building for my studio trade. Nevaeh is almost one and is heavier than Jonah and almost as tall! It's been fun to see her progress from a crawler to a toddler. She has helped Jonah learn how to share better, though he still has his moments of weakness...like stealing her sippy cup.


We are very sad that they will be moving to Ohio in October but it definitely seems like the right place for their family. They will be missed!!!


The Andre's recently moved into our ward to start medical school at UC Davis and they have a daughter named Emree who is just a week apart in age from Jonah. When I ask Jonah if he wants to go see Emree he immediately grabs my hand and drags me to the door to take him at once. It's really adorable. They live just two minutes away from us so it's convenient to carpool to activities together. We have a great time with them!

Jonah's weakness with Emree is stealing her binki.

Fortunately Emree takes it pretty well.

Thank goodness for friends! We have seen Jonah improve socially through his interactions with his new friends. He is doing a lot better in nursery and we think by next week we may be able to leave him in there! (Fingers crossed) I enjoy the time with other moms too. I have learned a lot from them and appreciate their willingness to share rides, advice and time with me.

Utah trip

In April we had many good excuses to go to Utah: My sister, Christi, was graduating, as was Ryan's brother, Jeff, and Jeff and his wife Lili were having Penny's baby blessing the same weekend! So we caravanned with Ryan's family to Utah and had a splendid trip.

On our way back to California we stopped at the Salt flats and got some memorable pictures:








Yes, my husband walks on water.