May 2010

We spent a lot of time at my sister's place while she recovered from knee surgery this summer. Jake worked really hard to train the cat to play like a dog... but no success. He shared his trains with the cat, threw balls for him to chase, fed him one piece of cat food at a time, but the old guy just ignored it all. So, Jake dug through my bag and found these two cans of diet Dr. Pepper and offered them as well. At that point, the cat got up and walked away to hide under the table.



A few minutes later, we noticed this. Clearly Jake realized the cat would have a hard time drinking from a can. He was so nice to prop it up for him.



I also celebrated my 28th birthday in April. Todd always makes me a carrot cake, my favorite.


This year I attempted to grow a garden in my apartment. Todd's side of the bed was sacrificed, as usual when we need more space in the bedroom. These plants ended up reaching the ceiling, growing back down to their roots and touching the ceiling again. I finally moved them to the porch where several were sacrificed to the evening winds that blow through. But, three cherry tomato plants lived along with a lot of basil. Still can't believe it.

Update on 2010

April 2010

Two weeks in Greece! These pictures are from the island Santorini. So beautiful.



My big brother Adam visited my sister and I in San Francisco for a fun sibling weekend. Jake was such a champ with all the site seeing, even in the rain.


Bridgette, Adam and I in San Francisco... We realized that a weekend like this may never happen again, at least not for a very long time, so we spent every moment we could together. Since it was such a rainy weekend we just hopped the pubs and restaurants in the city all day, and made a lot of great memories.

Update on 2010

February and March 2010:

Fort Funston - watching kite surfers, dogs, throwing rocks in the ocean, and exploring endless trails through the brush.



Golden Gate Park - biking, playgrounds, feeding ducks, and avoiding the weirdos.



Deciding which ball to throw first.

It's been a while since I posted a blog, so I just added some random pictures of things we have been doing in the past few months. And by that I mean 6 months.

This is Jake's best GQ picture. Since he is such a straight-faced kid, it's not hard to get his "model pose" going. Gotta love that famer's tan too.


Since we moved, we spend a lot of time at this new park. What a nice guy to give these girls a little rock in the car.


Last August, Todd and I spent our 6th anniversary in San Francisco, eating out, riding trolleys and checking out the views (and eating again). :)



If you ever wonder where to find me (especially on a cold or rainy day)... this is the place. Jake loves the rides at our local indoor playgrounds. Lucky for me he doesn't like it when they turn on, so I save a lot of quarters.

Bridgette's Birthday

Ahhh, I can upload pictures again. Not sure why java decided to download this time, but I am so happy. It seems like yesterday that my sister and I celebrated her birthday, but it was 6 months ago already. Not sure if it is because times seems to pass so fast these days, or if it's because the seasons never change so you don't realize what time of year it is. The leaves just started changing color and falling off the trees. Such a strange and wonderful place.

Anyway, my sister Brigette and I celebrated her birthday by taking a ferry to a small town across the bay called Tiburon. We ate lunch at a dock restaurant with a view of San Francisco. And on the way back, enjoyed a bit of the sunset. We had to take pictures facing every direction because it was just so beautiful. There is something so relaxing about being on a boat in that bay with all the sail boats and beautiful islands.

On Hold

I have no idea what is wrong with my computer (or me) but I haven't been able to upload pictures to ANYTHING in the last few months. That includes Costco.com, Facebook and this blog. Todd has been kindly spending his nights working on our computer issue and actually fixed a lot of things already (sigh of relief) and the picture issue is next. So, for now, no updates on the blog since we all know you come to see the pictures and not read my prose. Days like this I wish I had studied computers rather than communication.

Big Hug, Little Kiss, Little Hug, Big Kiss

Antoher fun playdate with Jake's friend Claire... I just couldn't resist posting these pictures. They are all unsolicited, random acts of friendship. Although, truth be told, Claire is a bit of a cougar (5 months older than Jake) and always makes the first move. :) Probably more because she is socially advanced compared to our son, who has some catching up to do.


Here is Jake sharing so well! I don't think he has figured out that his friends might take his toys and not give them back. So far, he is the king of sharing. Thank goodness.


Their favorite spot is our big memory foam chair in the living room. They crawled up there and hung out for so long. Just watching the Sprout channel and drinking juice.



Claire giving Jake "love."



Just hanging out.



The kiss. Awwweeee.

North Beach: Enough with the Plywood

I ran across a picture that I took of a sign in North Beach... and it inspired me to post another blog. I thought it was so funny... if the North Beach locals put up the sign, I say thanks to them for bringing a smile to our faces. You may have to expand the picture to see the sign above the "North Beach" graffiti. We walked by this while at the North Beach Festival in San Francisco (if you're not familiar, this is a street celebration in our "little Italy"). I thought I would post some other pics of the event while I was at it.




Walking to the festival... hiking a lot of hills.



A favorite street in San Francisco off Broadway. So steep the sidewalk is a series of steps.



The two-faced comedian.



Playing in Washington Park.


Fun street vendors where we almost got ripped off by the Sham-Wow people. Why is it that I want those things so bad? Oh yeah, I have a 1 year old. :)



Touring a beautiful cathedral, that I can't remember the name of.



Show dogs that Jake went nuts for. Of course, only his mother (or father) could see the excitement in his face, but I know he loved it.


Chalk art... very cool.

Never Too Young for Love

Jake LOVES Claire Harmsen, his first girlfriend... at least that is what we joke about. They are so funny together. He pulls her hair and she let's him know how upset it makes her. Pretty cute. But they also play together pretty well. Claire's mom Kim and I have served in the Young Women's together since they were born, so Jake knows Claire better than any other friend. Claire is 5 months older than him, but Jake's not afraid of an older woman, apparently. He gets very excited every time we see her. These pictures were taken at Claire's house in July.

Girls Weekends Are Underrated

In April I visited my good friend and college roommate, Sarah Ringer, in Las Vegas to have a girls weekend before she had her baby (which is now here... welcome to the world Brooklyn!)We were missing Katie Shaw, the other roommate in our trio, but she was finishing finals in Provo :(.

The trip ended up being more like therapy. First of all, it is rejuvenating to the soul to spend several days with a long-time girlfriend, the kind that you can talk to about anything... and even if you don't talk for a year, it feels like yesterday when you get together.

Second, we spent a good 8 hours in a beautiful spa... need I say more?

Third, I slept well for three nights straight. (Jake and Todd were visiting his family in Seattle). Ahhhhh...

and Fourth, we went to see Jersey Boys and the Chris Angel show in Vegas. It was fantastic entertainment. Chris Angel was a little bizarre, though. We described it as a circus gone bad... but really cool at the same time. I honestly saw him disappear... I know it's all magic and tricks and stuff, but I don't know HOW he does it.

Dinner with Sarah and her husband Nate.




And these robes were heated! So nice. The one downfall was that I ordered a deep tissue massage and was deeply disappointed! It was the worst massage I'd ever had. It was at noon, so maybe my therapist was tired and hungry... and deaf when I explained what I wanted. I have had Swedish massages that were better than that one. It's a well known fact that I like my massages to practically be painful, so next time I get a deep tissue I think I am going to ask for a male therapist.

Adventures in Idaho II

THIS is the valley I grew up in. It is beautiful in spring, hot in the summers, colorful and crisp in the fall and mildly cold in the winter. It is the perfect place in terms of weather and the view from Lewiston Hill is pretty all year round. You'll notice the windy road in the bottom front of the picture. That is Old Lewiston Hill... a series of hairpin turns that Lewis Clark State College athletes are often forced to run for training. That alone would prevent me from trying out.

It is also the place where the Snake and Clearwater rivers join and continue on to the ocean along the Oregon coast. The water is always glass and there are a ton of beaches to swim at. You can fish right off the main road along the rocks of the river and no one has to pay to park. I'm not a fisher, but hey, it is a selling point for some people. There are about 30,000 ppl living on the left side of the river (Idaho) and 20,000 living on the ride side of the river (Washington). Yep, you're looking at the border, folks.


This was just a beautiful sunset as I was driving down one of the canyon roads.Couldn't help but take a picture.

My mom took Jake and two of my little sisters, Malissa and Hope, to swim at the country club near their house. It was 6pm and still warm enough to swim. Jake wasn't so sure of the water, but it was as start. Notice his amazing farmer's tan. Love it.

My youngest sister Hope (just turned 8 this week) is in the far left top corner in the tube. My mom, Jennifer, is holding Jake right next to her.


Pictured: My mom, Jennifer, with Jake at her piano.



Learning to climb stairs for the first time at my dad's house. I was paranoid when I saw him try and rushed over there to stop him. But my dad does a good job at telling me to relax and let Jake try and fail. So I sat there and watched my baby, who just barely learned to walk, try to step his clubby foot up onto a cement block surrounded by chunky gravel, holding on to a folding chair for support. And amazingly, he did it. Over and over and over. He fell a few times, but he just laughed (while I winced). He was so happy, and I was happy that my dad taught me to let my children fail once in a while. Jake doesn't always need me, or want me, to save him. Even though I want him to:).


Jake found all sorts of new and interesting "tools" in my dad's shop. Including this window cleaner. He swept the garage... and then the driveway. My dad loves to rebuild engines and all my "all boy" little boy wanted to do was touch everything big, greasy and loud.

Playing with Cousin Alec, Ben's boy. Serious boy time.


Running through the sprinklers. I was shocked when he just walked right through the edge of the water. He moved closer and closer to the center each time and eventually stood there above the center with water splashing in his face, so happy. It'll be a long time before he gets to run through a sprinkler again, so I let him party in the water.