Easter Weekend

The Hammell G-Rents visited this weekend.  They helped me out while I recuperated from LASIK eye surgery that I got on Thursday.  What an awesome weekend to have new clear eyesight.  The weather was great, PJ had a fabulous time with his G-Rents and overall the weekend was just what this family needed.
The G-Rents arrived Thursday afternoon.  Not much went on Thursday, but the G-Rents got to see PJ eat a ton of solids, talk a lot and clap!  Thursday PJ finally put together the whole clapping thing and they got to see it.
On Friday we ran errands and enjoyed PJ.  Nothing too exciting but fun to relax and laugh with family.
Saturday we headed to the zoo.  The sun was shining, the sky so clear we could see the Olympic mountains, Cascade mountains, Mt. Rainier, and Mt. Baker.  Great day to be outside and enjoy some animals.  I think Pj enjoyed watching the people at the zoo more than the animals but thats ok with us since he seemed to have fun.  G-Ma had a good time showing PJ all the little statues and letting him touch them.  We went out for sushi on Saturday night and PJ showed off his chopstick eating skills, along with his excitement for EVERYTHING around him.  He was quite the dinner entertainment.  His smiles and laughter are contagious, he had everyone at the table rolling, as well as a few other dinner patrons.
On Sunday we had church in the morning, then we soaked up some rays.  PJ got to hang out on the deck and the patio and just be outside.  He was slow to explore but once he felt comfortable he was cruising around from one end of the deck to the other.  Early afternoon, Cousin Grant joined us along with The Closes' for some delicious Easter dinner.  We spent the time catching up, sharing some good stories and just reveling in the fact that we could have our meal outside on April 8th in Seattle!
Fabulous weekend.  For all the pictures we took of the weekend follow the link.  I posted some favorites below.

PJ with Daddy

PJ walking with Momma

Big smiles with G-Ma

Hanging out on the patio step

Rosie Girl-4 months old

Aussies running, puppy watching

PJ helping Daddy blower the deck and patio

PJ exploring his Easter basket with G-Ma

-K

Good Day with the G-Rents

I am recovering from my LASIK surgery today and have G-Ma and Poppy around to keep PJ and I company! We all had a great day just enjoying each other, including the 3 pups! Below is a picture of PJ and Rosie investigating what is the cabinets together. Silly babies! The second picture is of PJ cuddling close after a nap that should have been longer...

Last Picture with Glasses

This morning I am getting LASIK eye surgery. I am so nervous for the procedure but so excited for the results. Last night PJ posed with me for one last picture with my glasses.

The Grass is Dry!

PJ got to sit in the grass for the first time this year when we experienced a delightfully un-forecasted warm sunny day! Although very content, nothing could get him to budge from the pictured position. Hopefully the dreary rain will take a long hiatus so that PJ can explore the outdoors. -R

Getting Over a Funk

We have been delinquent with our blog posts this last week.  The main reason is the weather.  Ry and I have had enough rain and it has finally affected our mood to the extreme.  I think when our plan to enjoy sunny LA last weekend turned into more rain we lost a bit of hope for ever getting Vitamin D again.  It doesn't help that PJ has had a rough week himself due to bad naps at school, fully loaded diapers every single diaper change, and 3 top teeth that have finally broken through the gum to join the lone snaggle tooth that came out a couple weeks ago.   I know lame excuses, maybe we would have gotten out of our funk sooner if we shared some cute pictures and videos earlier but we had a hard time seeing outside our own little "rough life" this past week.  
Thank goodness for good friends, less rain and some kind words from family to get us out of our funk and looking outside ourselves.
 Saturday morning we supported some good friends at a breakfast that was fund-raising for homeless teens.  The breakfast had a great speaker with an awesome perspective, who spoke to our hearts at exactly the right time. God sure knows how to slap you upside the head and remind you what is important and waking up in a warm bed at 3am due to a healthy yet unhappy baby is just not worth the funk!  To top off that great breakfast we actually saw the sun this weekend; small pockets of blue sky and rays of sunshine!  We even got to have lunch with our close friends who always remind us of our blessed lives, especially that we are blessed to have them in our lives.  Love you Amy, Tash and Jake!
So as our funk dissipated from our hearts, we were reminded that we have some awesome friends and family that support us in good times and bad.  THANK YOU!
A special thank you to my mom, Aunt Dawn, and Amanda for actually reading this blog and providing the feedback that this blog is enjoyable to you!
So with that we are on to trying this week to enjoy more of the little things and what better way to start than with these two videos...
The first video is of PJ laughing and throwing his head back with a little high pitch sound imitating his momma's laugh.  He loved that he made us laugh it was a great cycle of him laughing and then his parents laughing and on it went.  I apologize for his gross coughing.  I was going to edit the coughing out but then thought it was so hilarious that he hacks for a moment and then continues his laughing and imitating.   The second video shows his affinity for coffee mugs.

Hanging Outside

Hard to tell from this picture but it is sunny outside!  Like not raining!  This is big news in the Pacific Northwest!  Its been raining A LOT, its been gray, dark, cold, and WET for a very long time.  I am so glad we actually got to spend some time outside today.  PJ loves to be outside and hasn't gotten much of that experience in over a month.  He had a great time this afternoon standing on the deck, looking through the deck railing at Daddy weeding the garden and Momma throwing the ball for his silly puppy, Cheyenne.

PJ at 10.5 months, look at how tall he is getting

Latte Mustache

Daddy left PJ alone in the living room for about 15 seconds with a full mug of hot latte on the coffee table.  Daddy forgets how quickly PJ can move when he wants something and coffee mugs are this little boy's favorite thing, thanks to his G-Ma.  Some would expect that he would spill the drink and make a big mess, but all that practice with G-Ma's empty mug, resulted in a cute little latte mustache and a big smile to daddy who nearly had a heartache when he realized what could have happened!

Latte 'stache

PJ and X-man

We have dear friends that have a son just a month younger than PJ. It's so nice to have friends that are in a similar place in life. We see each other for dinner as regularly as possible to support each other in this fun journey. The boys are starting to play together too, which makes the visits even more fun!

School Picture

PJ got his picture taken by a professional photographer at school. They couldn't get him to smile, but I think they got some good photos none the less. Which photo would you like to see in your mailbox??

We where trying to escape the rain...

Our plan to escape the dreary rain of Seattle's winter, was a bit foiled, yet we still managed to have a great day.
We woke up this morning to pouring rain; this afternoon it totally dumped and as we sit here waiting for our flight the clouds are just finally starting to part...
We spent the morning lounging and then this afternoon we went on a Hollywood tour. We didn't get to see the nice views from the Hollywood hills, but the ride around town was a good plan as the rain just poured down. We saw lots of famous peoples' houses, expensive shops and movie locations for some of our favorite movies.

Beverly Hills sign

Jackie Chan's gate to his home

The back of a house that famous artist Gaudi designed

Fresh Prince of Bel-Air house

Family photo while on the Hollywood tour bus

PJ(he is in the Ergo, with the jacket around him) and Momma soaking wet from 10 seconds in the torrential downpour