Goodbye 2007!

I can hardly believe that 2007 is almost over! We have been blessed so much in the past year and are excited to see what happens in 2008! I haven't updated for a long time....so I'll try to hit some highlights and show a few pictures.

Christmas is definitely my favorite time of year! I love all the baking and preparing, checking the mail every day in anticipation of a Christmas card, and all the excitement. One highlight is the annual cookie exchange where several of us get together at a friends house and make dozens and dozens of cookies to share with each other....its a busy day with lots of baking and kids running around everywhere, but it is so much fun.


Jackson was much more excited about Christmas this year....I think next year will be the really fun year though. He did like opening presents and would want to play with each one he opened for awhile before he realized there were more! His first present of the year was opened on Christmas Eve - the traditional (as traditional as we can make it sound when this is only his 2nd Christmas) new pajamas! He also got his new ornament - a Dr. Seuss "Fox in Socks" ... I was having a hard time deciding what kind of ornament to buy him and knew it would either be Sesame Street, Little People, or Books, so on a whim I typed in "Dr Seuss ornament" on eBay and found one that was Fox in Socks....one of his very favorite books! He loved putting it on the tree, and then would bring the book over, sit down, and read it to the ornament. So funny.
Opening up his new PJs!

We woke up Christmas morning and had our family Christmas at our house, then went to Jon's parents for the rest of the day...the big surprise of the day was when I got Jackson up from his nap and walked into the room to discover that he had evidently been awake for awhile and had pulled all kinds of decorations & flower arrangements (pretty much anything in his reach) into the pack&play with him. As soon as he saw me, he said, "uh oh!" I think that is the most mischevious thing my laid back little guy has ever done :)

Fun present from Nana & Peeps to share with cousin Owen!

We all were struggling with colds over Christmas, and then the next day I woke up with a urinary tract infection....not fun! I was expecting to clean the house and get ready for my parents & brother to come that day, but instead I ended up spending a good part of the morning at the doctors! A few days and doses of medication later, I am feeling much better and my pee is almost back to its normal color. (Sorry if that grosses everyone out but the medicine actually made it turn bright orange). We had a great visit with my family! One of the gifts we had asked for was an air mattress for when we have lots of company...and they got us a really nice one that we decided to try out! Friday night Jon & I camped out in the living room on the air mattresses & sleeping bags and were very comfortable! When Jackson gets a little older we'll make it a family night!

I was hoping to add a lot of pictures on this, but my computer is being so slow, I may have to save most of them for another time.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas...best wishes for a Happy New Year! We made many attempts to get a family picture using the tripod and timer on my camera....here was the only one that turned out half decent!

Giving Thanks for Mousetraps....

Ugh. We returned from Thanksgiving to find mouse poop on the kitchen counter. I was sooo grossed out. Having mice in the garage is one thing, but in the kitchen...that's a whole new ballgame. I went to the basement to do laundry...more mouse poop. We're into the double digits of mice we have caught this week and hopefully nearing the end. (?) I really should have expected mice in this older house but for some reason, I just thought that wouldn't happen. Oh well - before I started to freak out too much, I did remind myself that I love my house and I'm so thankful for it....so really mice are not that huge of a deal. I keep telling myself this anyway.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving! We traveled to Maryland to see my family and had a good time with them. We were able to see family that we haven't seen since last year at this time, so that was really nice. Jackson did great and wasn't too shy, he was giving out hugs & kisses to everyone like he saw them all the time!

Here's my favorite picture of the weekend:

Jackson and Pap (my Dad)...who he calls "Ba" or "Bap"

Jon and I are looking forward to another weekend of traveling...this time just the 2 of us. We are going to visit Joelle at PBU and attempt to get some Christmas shopping done! Jackson will be spending Friday night with Nana & Peeps, and we'll be back Saturday afternoon. Then next week I plan on decorating for Christmas! Normally I would have this done by now, but we are *hopefully* getting some overhead lighting put in our living room this week so I thought I would wait until that is done. Right now our house is pretty dark so I'm excited to not be living in a cave anymore!!

MODBE Reminder!

Just a reminder that the MODBE party is at my house tomorrow (Monday) night from 630-830...its a drop in when you can kind of thing, you don't have to stay for the entire 2 hours! If you haven't heard of MODBE, it's a clothing line meant to be stylish & modest. She will bring the clothes so you can actually try them on. The stuff is very cute! I was really bad at getting out invitations, but if you read this consider yourself invited!! (And my disclaimer that I tell everyone: PLEASE don't feel pressured to buy anything...honest! I'm just doing this for fun!) Hope to see you tomorrow evening! :)

crazy week!

What a week! We have been kept pretty busy this week...MOPS shopping night Monday, youth leaders meeting Tuesday, Youth Group Wednesday, friends over last night...wow! Jackson and I actually skipped church on Wednesday because he had a little bit of a cold and I wasn't feeling 100%, so I thought it would be good if we could both go to bed early and get a good night's sleep. Jackson had other plans. Normally, he goes to bed between 8 and 830 and falls asleep immediately. Wednesday, I attempted to put him to bed at 8, but he screamed until 1230!! We gave him tylenol & he fell asleep again for 2 hours, but woke up screaming. What fun. He didn't have a fever, so I didn't know what to do. I ended up calling the Nurse Triage center to see if there was something I was missing. They said to give him a dose of Motrin and Tylenol, so we did that around 6. That knocked him out and he slept until 11. By that afternoon, the meds had worn off and the screaming began again, so I decided to take him to the doctor. I wasn't sure if I should or not, because I didn't want to waste anyone's time, but I did it for the peace of mind. The little stinker was in perfect health! So we still have no clue what was going on that night, but we all slept great last night!!!

Here's a picture from earlier in the week....He's starting to run towards the camera so it's getting more difficult to get a picture...but when I looked at this one, I couldn't believe how old he looks!! Not a little baby anymore!!

daylight savings

Daylight Savings is usually my favorite time of the year....the "fall back" one that is.... LOVE that extra hour of sleep without feeling guilty. And if you know me, you know that I love sleep and seem to require more than most other humans do or even should. So this is seriously a "holiday" I look forward to! Seems like there's always someone to make fun of who misses it and shows up somewhere an hour early. Well this year, it was us!! I had absolutely NO CLUE that last night was THE NIGHT...my chance to get an extra hour of guilt-free sleep! We got up this morning at 645, like usual on Sunday, because we go to the early service. We got totally ready, (even managed to be what we thought was a little early), drove to church, and there were about 3 cars in the parking lot. Hmmm. This confused us because we aren't supposed to go back to one service until December. So we saw a few people getting out of their cars and drove down and asked them....even though they were all on the worship team, it still never dawned on us. Finally we figured it out, and came home, which is where I am now, waiting for a few more minutes until we can go back to church! The funny thing is....I had never heard about daylight savings being this weekend, but Jon had, and just forgot about it! But it still didn't dawn on him until much later than it should have :) Well, I guess I'll have to wait until next year for that guilt-free hour of sleep!

Random side note: I'm having a MODBE clothing party Monday, November 19, from 630-830. All of you are welcome! I am a skeptic with home parties but I went to a Modbe party a few weeks ago and their clothes are amazing!! Very flattering to every body shape, modest necklines, and still very stylish! Here's a cool thing...supposedly you can even wear them before, during, and after pregnancy, and they should retain their shape! Anyway, let me know if you are interested in coming and I can give you more details!

It's been awhile...

Yes, I've been putting off blogging for awhile now! Things have been busy, but mostly, I (like Jena!) am SO SICK of dial-up! It takes FOREVER to upload pictures. And come on, most of you only read this to see the pictures of Jackson anyway, right? :)

But yeah, it has been a very busy October for us. We are beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel though, after this weekend at least. Our church missions conference was last week, which we love, but it does make it busy being at church every night. Plus Jon is on the committee, so he has even more stuff to do. We also hosted a missionary in our home, who showed up over 24 hours early without warning! A little stressful at the beginning, but it ended up being great - we know if he wouldn't have come early, we wouldn't have gotten to know him as good as we were able to, because he was really busy too!

On Saturday we went to the E-town College homecoming parade (which lasted less than 10 minutes but was still fun....if you read Jena's blog, you will know that we are a parade loving family!) Saturday evening we went to a Barn Party for our Sunday School families. Jackson had fun dressing up in his Halloween costume (a dragon), although he didn't wear the hat much. He loved to pet the rabbit and goats! He kept blinking at the rabbit, because he thinks this is what a rabbit does (he is trying to wriggle his nose but somehow closes his eyes instead). Here's 2 pictures from the Barn Party...

Tonight we have another parade to go to! This was a hit last year because we can stand right in front of Grandma & Grandpa Mohr's house and grab lots of candy - the whole town gets involved and all the kids (and many adults) are in costume.

This weekend is our youth groups annual over-nighter, so Jackson will be staying with Peeps & Nana Friday night. I am looking forward to it, but a little worried....I haven't stayed up that late in a LONG LONG time!! I will have to have an Iced Coffee IV. Well that's about it...I will try to blog a little more regularly now that we won't be quite as busy! Thanks for the reminder Kort :)

to Aunt JoJo

Happy Homecoming Weekend!

leaders trivia...

Last Wednesday at youth group, the kids were supposed to match up 3 random facts to each leader...here were mine...would you have known?
1: I was born in Arkansas.
2: I can't curl my tongue.
3: I had 5 wisdom teeth.

Jon and I were able to take a break from working on the house today and go to Hershey Park! Believe it or not, it was my first time there...pathetic after living so close for 3 1/2 years. We had free tickets though so that got us there :) We had a lot of fun spending the whole day together! Jackson stayed with Nana & Peeps (& Aunt JoJo who was home today!) We felt a little guilty because every time we told people about going to Hershey Park, they said, "Oh, Jackson will love it!" And then we had to say, "yeah...we're not taking him." I think it would have been pretty overwhelming for him this year - the zoo part he would have liked, but I couldn't see him on any of the rides. Next year he will definitely love it though, we can't wait! Speaking of Jackson, my sweet boy turned 1 1/2 this weekend!

EWWWW

Not for the squeamish...
Ever since we have moved into the new house, it's been great taking the dog out to do his thing, because the backyard is completely fenced in. We just open the door, let him out, and let him back in later. So this afternoon, I let him out and after awhile decided to let him back in. I called and whistled and he didn't come, so I decided to give him a few minutes. Then I heard him pawing at the door, so I went to open it. Luckily before I did, I saw his mouth, screamed, shut the door in his face, and ran away. Luckily #2, Jon was home, so I yelled "something's wrong with Jake! It looks like he has worms coming out of his mouth and I'm not touching him!!" Poor Jon doesn't even like dogs, but, he is the man of the house after all! Anyway Jon went to see what the problem was and I hear him yell, "OH MY GOSH!! JAKE CAUGHT A MOUSE!" The "worm" I had seen was a mouse tail!!! SOOOO glad I didn't go with my first instinct and pry his jaw open!!! So yes, evidently people weren't kidding when they said Westies were originally bred to hunt mice and rats. I just never really knew Jake had it in him. I have mixed feelings about the whole occurence...I'm still gagging and shuddering every time I think about it, but on the other hand, I now know that if there were mice in the house, Jake would be going crazy trying to catch them, so it doesn't seem like we have any at this point (I was a little paranoid because I heard scurrying one night, but Jon thinks it was a squirrel on the roof??) Also I'm realizing that it is quite evident that I'm not quite the country girl I assumed I was...who would have thought, growing up in Garrett County? Well that's the story. Congratulations, Jake, on your first kill.

finally an update!

I thought I better give an update so everyone knows I still exist...I've just been quite busy!! We have spent the past several weeks painting, cleaning, packing & unpacking, and as of last saturday, are living in our new (to us) home! It still needs a lot of work...and will for a long time...we have many projects ahead of us....but we LOVE it! We have so much more room! One of the things we have loved the most is our screened-in porch...we have been eating most of our meals out there and it is so peaceful like we are in the middle of nowhere (or the middle of the jungle might be more accurate if you have seen our backyard). We have many many boxes that we still need to unpack, and yes MOPS girls, I finally am able to brush my hair after finding my hairbrush last night!!

One thing we have definitely realized over the past few weeks is how God has been watching over us! The biggest example I can think of is that a week before settlement of our new home, there was a fire in it! In the electrical box, to be more precise. Evidently the road was closed, there were 6 firetrucks & several ambulances involved. The thing is, the electrical box was going to be one of our first big projects to change since it was very out of date. Instead, the previous owner's home insurance paid it, saving us about $2000!! (And whoever estimated the cost for them estimated big and it even ended up paying for the previous owner's deductible!) Besides the saving $$, the fire happened at a perfect time. The owners were here, moving things out, and were able to smell the smoke. If they were not here, the whole house most likely would have been lost. If they were here and sleeping, their smoke detectors were broken and they may have been killed. Nothing (except the electrical box) was destroyed. God's timing is perfect!!

We have also been realizing what great friends & family we have!! Many people have helped us in the past few weeks and I might as well take a minute to mention some of them....THANK YOUS to Dawn & Selena for helping to pick paint colors, Jena for watching Jackson and packing most of my kitchen, Ryan for helping to rip down wallpaper, Carol for cleaning all my floors and bathrooms, watching Jackson, etc, Jerry for taking the chainsaw to the yard, helping to move, and keeping my veins pumped full of iced coffee, Selena & Lindsey for painting, packing, and helping on moving day, and to our fabulous movers: Scott, Josh, Pastor Jonathan, Jon H, and Clayton. I'm sure I am forgetting someone, but we really couldn't have done it without you! THANK YOU!

In Jackson news.... he is loving the house, especially his new toy room....the first time he went in, he looked around and his eyes were HUGE! Now he typically uses it as a reading room. Even with all the cool toys, he goes in, plops himself down on the floor and reads. We should have made him a library instead! He is also enjoying chasing the dog around the house and just making laps around the house in general. Now that he has been fully mobile for awhile, I find him in random places quite often....like the other day when I found him in the bathroom, swishing my keys in the toilet bowl. Lovely.

Finally, I have started an eBay store. I haven't had much time to work on it yet, but I've had some good results in the few days it's been up. I'll put a link up soon.

Ok, it is time for Steelers kickoff, must go. Before & after pics to come at some point!

peer pressure

I give in to peer pressure waaay too easily. Two friends mention that I should join Facebook, and my first thought is no way. A few days later and I have joined and also spent way too much time searching for friends to add. No one told me it would be this addicting!

I have a question for all of you who are more computer literate than I .... is there a way to know if people have updated their blogs without individually clicking on each one? That was one of the best Xanga features...you just clicked on subscriptions and whoever had updated came up. Enlighten me please.

Jackson has been sick this week... Monday night Joelle and I had quite the interesting shopping trip as Jack suddenly didn't feel well and screamed for a long long time in the mall....unfortunately, Jon & Jerry had dropped us off and were working, and Jon had my car keys. So we were stuck at the York Galleria until they were finished. When we got home I took Jack's temp and it was 102.3. Wow, who felt like the world's worst mother!!! Last night his temp was back up to 101 but today he seems to be doing much better.

Well I better go make dinner...not sure what we're having yet so I'll see what I can throw together!

Monster Truck

Last week my parents came to visit for a few days and brought Jackson a special present! Someone had given them this adorable Sesame Street Monster Truck. Thanks Pap and Grandy! So far he hasn't quite figured out how to move his feet to make the truck go, but he loves turning the steering wheel and talking on the cell phone.

We're having a great week...beautiful weather, not as hot as it has been. Jack and I "went to the beach" this morning out on our deck...he played in his pool and I read Harry Potter. Amazing that he sat and played in his pool for an hour...ever since he's started walking, he hasn't stopped! He just toddles around the house from room to room laughing. It's quite cute!

quick update

Since Joelle has accused me of having the most boring post ever, I'll at least give a quick update of what's new. 2 exciting things have recently taken place....
On Friday night, we sold our house!! We are so so so happy that it sold and now we can focus on packing & moving.
Jackson has finally decided that walking is beneficial after all! He had been taking a few steps here and there by himself, or walking pretty far holding onto something, but last night walked from our living room to our kitchen with a remote control in each hand. Eventually he even figured out that the remotes weren't really helping him, and will now walk on his own. Crawling is still his quickest mode of transportation, but I have a feeling that won't be for much longer!
Pictures to come soon...just wanted something else besides my boring list :)

100 Books

Unless you like to read, this post will not interest you in the slightest! For my fellow book-lovers, I copied this from my friend Sonya's blog. Copy & Paste on your blog....Bold the ones you've read, italicize the ones you want to read. Leave plain the ones you aren't interested in. Movies don't count. It's a great list for people like me who always want a good book (I should say "literature" because I am aways more than happy to pick up a Karen Kingsbury and think those are great books!) to read but don't know where to begin!

1. The Da Vinci Code (Dan Brown)
2. Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen)
3. To Kill A Mockingbird (Harper Lee)
4. Gone With The Wind (Margaret Mitchell)
5. The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (Tolkien
6. The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring (Tolkien)
7. The Lord of the Rings: Two Towers (Tolkien)
8. Anne of Green Gables (L.M. Montgomery)
9. Outlander (Diana Gabaldon)
10. A Fine Balance (Rohinton Mistry)
11. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Rowling)
12. Angels and Demons (Dan Brown)
13. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Rowling)
14. A Prayer for Owen Meany (John Irving)
15. Memoirs of a Geisha (Arthur Golden).
16. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (Rowling)
17. Fall on Your Knees (Ann-Marie MacDonald)
18. The Stand (Stephen King)
19. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban(Rowling)
20. Jane Eyre (Charlotte Bronte)
21. The Hobbit (Tolkien)
22. The Catcher in the Rye (J.D. Salinger)
23. Little Women (Louisa May Alcott)
24. The Lovely Bones (Alice Sebold)
25 . Life of Pi (Yann Martel)
26. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (Douglas Adams)
27. Wuthering Heights (Emily Bronte)
28. The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe (C. S. Lewis)
29. East of Eden (John Steinbeck)
30. Tuesdays with Morrie (Mitch Albom)
31. Dune (Frank Herbert)
32. The Notebook (Nicholas Sparks)
33. Atlas Shrugged (Ayn Rand)
34. 1984 (Orwell)
35. The Mists of Avalon (Marion Zimmer Bradley)
36. The Pillars of the Earth (Ken Follett)
37. The Power of One (Bryce Courtenay)
38. I Know This Much is True (Wally Lamb)
39. The Red Tent (Anita Diamant)
40. The Alchemist (Paulo Coelho)
41. The Clan of the Cave Bear (Jean M. Auel)
42. The Kite Runner (Khaled Hosseini)
43. Confessions of a Shopaholic (Sophie Kinsella)
44. The Five People You Meet In Heaven (Mitch Albom)
45. Bible
46. Anna Karenina (Tolstoy)
47. The Count of Monte Cristo (Alexandre Dumas)
48. Angela’s Ashes (Frank McCourt)
49. The Grapes of Wrath (John Steinbeck)
50. She’s Come Undone (Wally Lamb)
51. The Poisonwood Bible (Barbara Kingsolver)
52. A Tale of Two Cities (Dickens)
53. Ender’s Game (Orson Scott Card)
54. Great Expectations (Dickens)
55. The Great Gatsby (Fitzgerald)
56. The Stone Angel (Margaret Laurence)
57. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Rowling)
58. The Thorn Birds (Colleen McCullough)
59. The Handmaid’s Tale (Margaret Atwood)
60. The Time Traveller’s Wife (Audrey Niffenegger)
61. Crime and Punishment (Fyodor Dostoyevsky)
62. The Fountainhead (Ayn Rand)
63. War and Peace (Tolstoy)
64. Interview With The Vampire (Anne Rice)
65. Fifth Business (Robertson Davis)
66. One Hundred Years Of Solitude (Gabriel Garcia Marquez)
67. The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants (Ann Brashares)
68. Catch-22 (Joseph Heller) **Jon's favorite!
69. Les Miserables (Hugo)
70. The Little Prince (Antoine de Saint-Exupery)
71. Bridget Jones’ Diary (Fielding)
72. Love in the Time of Cholera (Marquez)
73. Shogun (James Clavell)
74. The English Patient (Michael Ondaatje)
75. The Secret Garden (Frances Hodgson Burnett)
76. The Summer Tree (Guy Gavriel Kay)
77. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (Betty Smith)
78. The World According To Garp (John Irving)
79. The Diviners (Margaret Laurence)
80. Charlotte’s Web (E.B. White)
81. Not Wanted On The Voyage (Timothy Findley)
82. Of Mice And Men (Steinbeck)
83. Rebecca (Daphne Du Maurier) **MY FAVORITE!
84. Wizard’s First Rule (Terry Goodkind)
85. Emma (Jane Austen)
86. Watership Down(Richard Adams)
87. Brave New World (Aldous Huxley)
88. The Stone Diaries (Carol Shields)
89. Blindness (Jose Saramago)
90. Kane and Abel (Jeffrey Archer)
91. In The Skin Of A Lion (Ondaatje)
92. Lord of the Flies (Golding)
93. The Good Earth (Pearl S. Buck)
94. The Secret Life of Bees (Sue Monk Kidd)
95. The Bourne Identity (Robert Ludlum)
96. The Outsiders (S.E. Hinton)
97. White Oleander (Janet Fitch)
98. A Woman of Substance (Barbara Taylor Bradford)
99. The Celestine Prophecy (James Redfield)
100. Ulysses (James Joyce)

More Beach Pictures

Might as well post a few more beach pictures while I'm procrastinating and have a few minutes....

Jackson & Daddy


Playing in the sand


With Aunt JoJo

Back to Reality!

After a great week at Ocean City, we are back home once again! We had a wonderful vacation but it is always nice to come back to home sweet home and be in a normal routine again. Jackson loved his time at the beach (we were a little worried when on the 1st day, he refused to put his feet in the sand). He was so good for us, even though he is currently in the midst of getting 6, yes 6, teeth. I loved relaxing on the beach and playing games almost every night with the family. Back to reality and busy life now though...yesterday we got home after a 6 hour trip (including stopping for lunch and terrible traffic), checked our messages and realized we had to go back to the mall because I had preordered Harry Potter for Jon and we only had a few hours left in order to get it 40% off. We also had a message from the movie rental place saying that we had a free rental since we haven't been there for awhile, which we also only had a few hours left to get. So, we went to the mall, then Jon dropped Jack & I off back at home and he went to pick out a movie (Stranger than Fiction with Will Ferrell....it was pretty good), and to pick our dog up at the vet where he had spent the week. Today we had Sunday School and church and then came home to straighten up for an Open House from 1-4. We were told it went well, so hopefully we'll hear an offer soon! We were sad to have to miss small group tonight....airplane rides and a BBQ!

Anyway, we have a ton of pictures from the beach, but here are just a couple since our computer is being so slow tonight....

Cleaning, Packing, Cooking...

Here's the promised picture of the new place....the hedge in front will be one of the first things to go!

It's been a busy few days, trying to clean the house so the Open House can happen on Sunday, packing for the 3 of us for the beach, and cooking my meals for the beach, all while Jackson is getting more teeth and being very Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde. Ocean City, here we come! We can't wait for this week of fun & relaxation! Not much to update on, just wanted to post a picture of the house & one of Jack (I've been feeling guilty that I haven't posted his pic lately, because I know that's why many of you read this!) It's a very random one, because I haven't taken many pictures lately but that will all change this week I'm sure.

*I just got a new cell phone #....I am with Verizon now, and am sharing minutes with family to save some money each month. I will only be using my cell phone after 9 PM and on weekends from now on, unless you are with Verizon too - then calls are free, so let me know! Thanks!

On The Market

Our townhouse is officially "on the market!" We are hoping it sells very quickly...it's already a stress trying to keep it neat enough in case someone wants to stop by and take the tour. Our vacation is next week so hopefully lots of people come through while we are gone and make great offers! Here's a picture for those of you who have never had the chance to visit us at our 1st home...and if you click here, you can see some more. We have loved living here; it was the perfect place for our family for 3 years, but we're so excited to make the move to a bigger place with a yard. The inspection last week went well...nothing huge that we weren't expecting. I did take some pictures so I can start planning paint colors, etc. for the inside - I'll have some great before & after pics eventually! I'll post a picture of the outside of the new place hopefully this week before we leave.

Please pray for this family...I have never met them, but they are college friends of one of my cousins, and for those of us living here in Lancaster county, they are local so you may have heard of them...they just lost their precious 2 year old girl after a long battle with cancer. The funeral was this morning...I can't even imagine.

SOLD!

Definitely time for an update, and there's actually something exciting to write about...we just bought a house! It has all happened so fast, it's hard to believe. We weren't even seriously looking to move yet. I had seen a house advertised that I thought was so cute, but the price was not so cute! I kept checking once in awhile and the price dropped twice, and then we decided to go look at it. Jon's uncle Fred is a realtor, which has been a HUGE blessing, because we know we can trust him! Anyway Fred took us to look at the house and we liked it right away. The next week we went back with Jon's parents and we all liked it....J & I even more than the first time. So we decided to make an offer...and then got a counteroffer...and then made a counter-counteroffer, which they accepted! We are so excited yet feeling slightly nervous & overwhelmed with everything that needs to take place in the next 2 months (settlement is August 31).
Anyway, the house....it's on Ridge Road, for those of you who live around here...the Ridge Rd off of Groff, not the other Ridge Rd or the Ridge Rd headed to Hershey (or Ridge Run, Ridgeview, Ridgeview N, etc, etc....roads tend to be a little crazily named around here). It's a Cape Cod with a little over 1/2 acre. The yard will be a ton of work....there's ivy everywhere instead of grass and fences galore (someone who lived there once used to breed dogs). The inside is nice but not my taste...lots of wallpaper and repainting that needs to be done. I'm anxious to get in and start and hoping we get a chance to do that before we actually move in. Inspection is this Thursday....should be interesting....pray everything goes well! Our townhouse should be on the market hopefully by the end of the week!
In other news, not a lot going on. Jack has had a pretty bad cold for the past several days but has been a sweetie through it. I have a terrible sore throat...might be feeling a little better today...hope its not strep. I'm trying not to go to the doctor's for a strep test because I really don't feel like paying the copay. If it lasts much longer I'll have to though.
Sorry no pictures for this post! I'll try to take some of the new house on Thursday!
***HAPPY BIRTHDAY, KARLA! Another year that I remember your b-day but forget to send a card :) Love ya!

The Latest Fashion Craze

For some reason, Jack has decided that he loves to wear swimmy diapers on his head. Everytime he finds one, he has to wear it and will cry if I try to take it off. He wore one to church last night; luckily I was able to distract him and pull it off before he went into the nursery. Not only does he like to wear one, but if he happens to find more than one, he wants them both on his head. Needless to say, he has had some pretty high swimmy diaper tower hats! It's nice....the little things that can make him happy!

Not much is going on today...just trying to clean the house and get ready for some overnight guests on Friday. Cedarville's HeartSong is coming to the area (to our church actually) for an alumni thing, and we are hosting 2 of the guys here after the concert. Not totally sure where they will both sleep yet, but we'll figure it out! Speaking of cleaning, I FINALLY have a successful bathroom cleaning story. Ever since we moved into this house, our bathtub has been stained and I can never seem to get it clean enough - I have wasted money on so many different cleaning products that have not worked! Yesterday I made a concoction that actually worked (with some elbow grease and lots of scrubbing, that is!) I was so proud of my bathtub!! This concoction will be much less expensive than other cleaning supplies and doesn't smell strong either! The secret recipe? Baking soda & powdered dishwasher detergent. Try it!

Pool Party for One

We bought Jackson his first little pool last night and set it up today. When he woke up from his 4 hour nap (with a little prodding) he had so much fun "swimming." We knew he would like it because he had so much fun swimming in Owen's pool last week! This little pool is the perfect size for our deck, since we have no yard. And during Jack's naps on hot days....I'm sure I can sit indian-style or something! (Funny picture, I know...he kept making the weirdest faces...and if you haven't noticed already, the pasty white skin definitely comes from mama!)

We bought the pool at Toys R Us last night after a yummy Chinese dinner with friends. I absolutely love going to Toys R Us and it's probably good that we have a small house, because some of the toys are so cool! I'm secretly hoping that if we have a girl someday, she will really want a play kitchen!

We also went to Pottery Barn outlet where I found some great deals! 2 matching twin size duvet covers for Jackson's room someday. I was so excited, because we shop the clearance section, and there's hardly ever 2 of anything there. I also got a shower curtain for sometime in the future, since I still like the one we have now and this one is more for a kid's bathroom. Anyway, though, Pottery Barn stuff at Walmart sale prices, gotta love it! Now I am continually checking eBay for the shams to match the duvets.

Not much else to write about, just wanted to post the latest picture of my little guy! (And a shout-out to my brother, who finally left me a comment! :) )

New York, New York!

We had a great weekend! I loved New York and can't wait to go back someday. I was definitely happy to get back to Jackson though. We missed him like crazy but knew he was in good hands! And I have to admit...it was nice being on an extended "date" with Jon, sleeping through the night without listening to a monitor, and getting to eat my food while it was still hot instead of getting Jackson fed first! (I'm not sure how much longer I could have handled it though~ we were definitely ready to get back and see him!)

We drove to PBU Saturday and our chauffer Joelle took us to the train station. (Thanks Joelle ~ it made the trip so much easier & we loved seeing you for a little bit too!) Aside from standing in the wrong line for a little bit at the train station, everything went very smoothly. We got to NYC around 2 and took a taxi to our hotel, which was right in Rockefeller Center. We walked around Rockefeller Center, did the NBC Studio Tour, and then just explored the city. (Below is me at the NBC Store with the shirt that I loved but they only had smalls...so sad).

Sunday we took the subway to the World Trade Center site, which was one of those things you can't really imagine until you are there. Unbelievable. From there, we walked around Wall Street and then tried to go to the Statue of Liberty, but there was an Autism Awareness walk going on, and we couldn't really get through the thousands of people, so we decided to go to Chinatown and Little Italy. Eating lunch in Little Italy was the best!!! Later we went to FAO Schwartz, the Disney Store, Central Park, etc. It did finally start raining (they had been calling for it all weekend) and we got soaked walking back to the hotel, but it was worth it.

Same thing Monday morning - raining but we decided to go out anyway since it was our last few hours in the city. We lucked out on the train ride back to Philly and got on an express train, which only took 1 hour instead of 1 1/2. Everything about the trip was great!

Now we are back to the real world again, but looking forward to our next vacation...Ocean City in July!

I Can't Believe I Did This...

I might as well fill you in on the title first... yesterday I had a meeting at the Bair Foundation to see about doing some contract work, so Carol came over to watch Jackson until Jon got home from work. Jack was taking his nap, so she decided to go sit out on our deck for a little bit. I took the monitor out, made sure she didn't want a drink, and then left. Little did I know, habit had set in, and immediately upon closing the deck door, I also locked it!!! 20 minutes later, at TBF, I got a phone call from Jon saying "Did you lock my mom out of the house?" It took me a minute to even think of what he could be talking about. Luckily he was already on his way home, and he rescued her just in time for Jackson to wake up! I felt (and still feel!) rather stupid, but it could have been much worse! Sorry Carol, and I'm sure Joelle is making plans to destroy me as she reads this :)

In other less embarassing news, we went to MD for the weekend to visit my family and to go to a friends surprise 30th birthday party! It was great to see some friends that I haven't been around for quite a long time! Many of them, I'm finding out, read this blog and never comment! You know who you are! We left my parents' Sunday afternoon and headed to the cabin, and then came home on Monday. Monday evening we went to Jon's parent's for a birthday celebration! I had to include this picture of one of Jon's presents...new muck boots... Jon & Jackson both loved them! Jon's actual birthday was yesterday and he turned a quarter of a century old. (Yes, I am a cradle robber).

The most exciting update...this weekend we are going to New York City! I have never been there before, and I'm so excited! A little nervous about leaving Jackson behind, but I know he will have a great time with Nana and Peeps!

One last side note...mostly for Glade people....we played Human Dutch Blitz at youth group a few weeks ago...brought back great memories of playing in the church basement!!

Monthly Blog

I haven't been to consistent in blogging lately, kind of in a slump! Here's some of the things that have been happening lately:
Jackson's first big boy hair cut was last week! I knew it was time for a haircut when his hair could practically be put in piggytails! Here's the before picture, with the long lush curls...


And the "after" ... not the best picture of Jackson, but anyway, I think he looks so much older! Joyce did a great job!! (Incidentally, Jackson also had his first doughnut at the same time as the first haircut...and it kept him busy enough that he sat pretty still!) For the first few days, Jack wasn't quite used to his new look. He would always play with his curls when he got tired, and without them there, he didn't quite know what to do! Still today, anytime anyone says something about a haircut, he puts his hands on the back of his head.


One last picture... a few nights ago, we went out for ice cream. Jackson enjoyed sharing his vanilla baby cone with Jon...it was so sweet...after every bite Jack took, he'd offer Jon a bite. Here he is saying "all done" after finishing off his ice cream.


In other news, today is our 3rd anniversary! We weren't planning to do anything special, since we are going to NY in a few weeks, but last night Carol called and offered to keep Jack for us, so we decided to take her up on it and go out to dinner! I'm looking forward to dinner tonight at El Rodeo, one of our favorite places that we haven't been for a long long time! God has blessed us with 3 great years, and blessed me with a husband who I am realizing more and more every day, is the perfect match for me!! I am so thankful for a husband who is patient, hard-working, hilarious, kind, forgiving, and loving!

Loving the Weather!!

We are loving the nice weather we've been having here lately...today it's close to 80! Jack has been loving the outdoors...swinging in his swing that Jon hung under the deck, and going on walks in his stroller. Anway, I just wanted to post a quick picture from yesterday of Jackson having a great time in his swing! Enjoy the sunshine!

Future Chef?

Here are the latest pictures of a several times daily occurence...Jack crawling to the kitchen and taking every single one of my cookbooks off the shelf. For some reason, this is very exciting! Next to the cookbooks is the pots & pans cabinet...also a favorite. He'll be whipping up meals in no time!
I am also pleased to announce that my little guy has been sleeping MUCH better since we have borrowed Nana's sound machine. I still don't understand why it helps so much better than a humidifier, but it definitely does, unless it's a crazy coincidence. Thanks, Jen & Joyce, for insisting that I try a sound machine! Who would have thought that these friends, with 4 & 5 kids, knew some tricks about parenting?! :) Yay for sound machines, sleeping through the night, and 3 hour afternoon naps!!!

Survey

I have been tagged by Leah...

1. How old will you be in 10 months? 27
2. Do you think you'll be married by then? If not-wow, that came out of nowhere!!
3. What do you look forward to most in the next 3 months? warm weather!
4. Who was the last person you called? My parents (and still haven't gotten a call back by the way...)
5. Who was the last person to call you? Selena
6. Do you prefer to call or text? I don't love talking on the phone, but I have never texted in my life.
7. Do you have any pets? yes, a dog named Jake
8. Are your parents married/separated/divorced? married
9. When is the last time you saw your mom? Easter weekend
10. How many states have you lived in? counting college ~ 5 ~ Arkansas, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, and Ohio
11. Do you prefer shoes, socks, or bare feet? slippers
12. Are you a social person? depends
13. What was the last thing you ate? peanut butter sandwich
14. What is your favorite ice cream? Hershey's peanut butter cup
15. What is your favorite dessert? i'm not too picky when it comes to dessert. i'm not a big cake person, but pretty much anything else.
16. What kind of jelly do you like on your PB & J sandwich? raspberry
17. Do you like coffee? iced yes, regular no.
18. How many glasses of water a day do you drink on average? a lot ~ probably 6+
19. What do you drink in the morning? water
20. Would you rather sleep with someone else or alone? with Jon
21. Do you know how to play poker? yes but not well
22. Do you like to cuddle? Yes
23. Have you ever been to Canada? yes
24. Do you eat out or at home more often? At home
25. Do you know anyone with the same birthday as you? yes ~ kristin gibbs ~ last year we went to hennigan's and got a big % off our bill!
26. Do you speak any other languages? spanish, but i haven't practiced in way too long
27. Have you ever gotten stitches? Yes ~ wisdom teeth & childbirth
28. Have you ever been in an ambulance? No
29. Do you prefer an ocean or a pool? ocean to read a book by, pool for swimming
30. Do you prefer a window seat or an aisle seat? either
31. Do you know how to drive a stick shift? nope
32. What is your favorite thing to spend money on? scrapbooking supplies & clothes for jackson ~ and of course yard sales!
33. Do you wear any jewelry 24/7? yes, wedding rings
34. What is your favorite TV show? 24 and The Office
35. Can you roll your tongue? No
36. Who is the funniest person you know? I know a lot of funny people. I can narrow it down to Jon, Karla, and Selena.
37. Do you still have clothes from when you were little? my mom probably does somewhere.
38. What is the color of your bedroom walls? light blue
39. Do you shut off the water when you brush your teeth? No
40. Do you sleep with your closet doors opened or closed? usually open
41. Would you rather be attacked by a big bear or a swarm of bees? i think a bear
42. What do you dip a chicken nugget in? anything but ketchup
43. Can you change the oil on a car? No
44. Have you ever gotten a speeding ticket? nope ~ never been pulled over (i'm sure i just jinxed myself)

I'll tag Jena because I know she can't be tagged and not follow through...and i'll have a real blog with some pictures eventually.

10 Things I Find Very Weird....

(this isn't totally random...see Jena's blog for more!)
1) PENNSYLVANIA ROADS ~ I am from a town in MD that has been on the Weather Channel because of so much snow, yet I never had a hard time driving in the winter until I moved to PA! Seriously, learn to plow.
2) MEN HAVING NIPPLES ~ when you think about it, why??
3) NEIGHBORS ~ our neighbors are so strange. We have the typical neighborhood cat lady, who unfortunately has been seen eating breakfast with her cats at her table. Naked. We have another neighbor who, when I took her Christmas cookies, answered the door with no pants on. And our newest neighbor is often seen wearing a trench coat & cowboy hat, juggling bowling pins in the parking lot. I think I'll book him for Jackson's next birthday.
4) KEITH RICHARDS ~ I recently read an article that this guy (from the Rolling Stones) actually snorted the ashes of his father. That's really weird.
5) GAME SHOW CONTESTANTS & HOSTS ~ really the most annoying people on Earth. Where do they find these people?
6) THIS WEATHER ~ 6+ inches of snow in my hometown of Accident, MD over Easter weekend (ok not all on the ground at once, it melted in between blizzards...but still, it snowed all weekend)....a place so remote, even global warming hasn't gotten there.
7) GRAPES IN A MICROWAVE ~ they spark. Kids, don't try this at home.
8) GG ~ My grandma still smokes, wearing an oxygen mask, even after she's already blown herself up once. I love her so much, but that is a little weird.
9) A FRIEND (who shall remain anonymous) ~ the way she puts her pants on: right foot in, left foot in, socks, then shoes, THEN pulls the pants up the rest of the way.
10) SLEEP-TALKING ~ Wow, the stories I could tell about this one. I think all of the Mohr's talk in their sleep. I also remember once at Rosedale when Karla screamed in her sleep. That was scary.

We are having another fun weekend here in Maryland ~ we'll be leaving in an hour or so for home. This week begins NHL Playoffs and the Penguins are in for the first time since 2001! Gotta love it!

Happy Easter, everyone! He is Risen!!

More Pictures...

A few more of the promised pictures from last weekend...
First, Jackson trying to steal GG's oxygen mask!! They were having fun playing peek-a-boo! The second pic with Jackson & my dad is so sweet. Jack was Pap's boy all weekend ~ and now we'll be back very soon for Easter!
Yesterday Jon & I had the opportunity to go to a CORE training for youth workers. We had a really good time ~ my old supervisor from Bair was there, and I haven't seen her for ages, so that was fun. And then I got to play the Mennonite game....I saw some people with YES training shirts, so I talked to them and of course they all knew Jacki and Val. (Cue "It's a Small World After All").
My blog assignment from Jena is to list 10 things I think are weird...but I haven't thought of them yet. I promise they are coming, Jena!

All Partied Out!

Now that we are back home, Jackson's birthday parties are all complete! We had a great time in Maryland over the weekend!! We got to see family, eat yummy food, and Jack loved all the attention from Grandy and Pap! The hardest part about weekend visits is that we never get to see everyone we'd like to. It's impossible! Hopefully this summer when I go back for a week or so I'll get to reconnect with a lot of friends.

One friend I was lucky enough to see was Hannah ~ who has been my friend since 3rd grade!! She was the first friend I made when we moved to MD, and we went all the way through school together, including one year at Bible College! Hannah and her husband Chris moved back to Indiana with their girls, Lydia (4) and Miriam (11 months), so we definitely don't get to see each other enough! We got to meet up at her parents house and it was so great to see them. As we changed our babies diapers together, we laughed and remembered how we used to do that with our dolls! We've really grown up!! Love you Hannah!

I have more pictures to post, but as usual, our computer is extremely slow. I'll put them up another time!

Our One Year Old!

Jackson wasn't in the best of moods yesterday, but we had already made the appointment to get his one year pictures taken. He did pretty well in-between the screaming and crawling away from the camera! Here's a few of our favorites ~ a little hard to see, but I think Picture People is preventing me from getting them any bigger. The one to the left is what we picked to give out to people ~ notice how he curves his fat little foot ~ this is what he does when he doesn't want to put shoes on and it makes it impossible!

This next one I LOVE because it is so "Jackson," but you can't see his face too well. Jack looooves to read books, just like his mommy & daddy! I have several memorized from repeatedly reading them to him throughout the day. If I don't feel like chasing him up the stairs (which is something I also do repeatedly throughout the day), I just open a book and start reading, and he comes crawling over as fast as he can!

I wish this last one was bigger ~ it reminds me exactly of Jon's baby pictures! I've been hearing that he's starting to look more like me, but in this picture, he is definitely his daddy!

We made it to MD after a busy day ~ Bible Study this morning where we celebrated both Jackson and Selena's birthday's, and then home to eat lunch and pack! It rained most of the way here and we were glad to finally get to my parent's house, where Jackson is already soaking up all the extra attention!



Happy Birthday, my One Year Old!!

Making the switch...

I have finally made the switch from xanga...we'll see how it goes!
We celebrated Jackson's 1st birthday with Jon's family in the midst of Friday's snowstorm! Jack loved his balloons, new presents, and of course the cake! He wasn't quite sure what to do with it...he ate it so daintily (if that's a word) taking only one fingerful at a time. His face tells a different story though!
We can't wait to travel to MD this weekend for a birthday party with my family!
It's so hard to believe my little guy is already almost a year old (3/22)! Sometimes I look at him and realize that he really isn't a baby anymore! He is doing new things every day and has such a sweet, laid-back personality. We are so blessed!!