Jack's One Year Pics!!

We had Jack's one year pics done today....they turned out so cute! He did great and really had a lot of fun for the camera as usual. Take a look although I will warn you that there are a lot of pics!

Enjoying Fall In Our New Backyard!!

It was a beautiful weekend...well deserved after all the rainy and cold weather lately. We really enjoyed being outside. Unpacked a lot of stuff on Saturday thanks to the fabulous help I had! Relaxed and enjoyed the weather on Sunday. We also went to the NIU football game on Thursday night, and Jack really enjoyed it....he loved the band at halftime! We watched the second half on tv since it was past Jack's bedtime and getting pretty cold out. All and all it was a fun weekend! Had to post some pictures before I started gearing up for the the new week. Jack also got several more bday cards tanks to Papaw and Grandma C, Tata and Grandma, CJ and Bertha and the gang. He is definitely going to have fun shopping for some new things! Starting to get things settled and feel more and more like home! BTW, Jack wore a really cute outfit that says lumberjack on it that NaNa Reist and Grandma Meribeth got him. He has so many cute outfits thanks to all of his special shoppers!

Jack showing off his sweatsuit from Tata and Grandma

More fun weekend pics and bday presents!

Look at Jack open his bday gifts from NaNa and PaPa Reist....he absolutely loves his phone and his guitar...has been playing with them nonstop from when he opened them! Thanks you NaNa and PaPa Reist!

Wearing Daddy's hat with Papa Herm...

Opening a bday gift with Nana Esther...

Eating an apple with Grandma Diane...so sweet! I love these pics!

Halloween

Yes...I am crazy and brought several costumes on Ebay...3 to be exact...so I thought I would share pics of 2 of them. He was the fish on halloween...and he didn't really like either costume...just put up with them for mommy! It was a fun day! We went trick-or-treating at the Freeman's, Grandpa and Grandma Landry's and Nana and Papa Heuermann's.

Jack's Birthday!

Jack's first birthday was on Tuesday, October 27! He had a fun day although he was teething :( He loved the cake and really like unwrapping the presents even better than the presents themselves. He also enjoyed spending the day with Grandma Diane and Grandpa Jeff.

One Busy Week!

We definitely had a very busy week. Closing day on the new home was on Thursday, October 22. We were so excited to own our own house! The weekend was spent cleaning and moving our things from the temporary apartement. Movers were supposed to come on Saturday or Sunday...but it didn't quite happen that way! My mom and Jeff came to visit on Monday night to help us settle in and also celebrate Jack's birthday on Tuesday! Yes...I can't believe it...my baby boy is one! Wow...has this year flown by, and he has blessed our lives in sooo many ways. Ways that you can't even imagine before 2 become a family! Wednesday was Jack's 12 month well baby check, and he is growing up so fast. He is now 28 inches tall and weights 18 1/2 pounds! The dr. was surprised about how many words he can say. He is now drinking soy milk and eating pretty much whatever he gets his hands on. He is standing on his own but will sit down if you make a big deal of it and of course crawlin, climbin and crusin everywhere he can find trouble:) Also on Wednesday...Grandma Diane and Grandpa Jeff left with Jack in toe. We were going to South Haven for the weekend, and they offered to take him for a few days hoping that our movers would come soon. Movers finally showed up on Friday, October 30 at 1 AM in the morning...and finished moving everything in by about 3:30 AM...it was a long night to say the least....but atleast we got our stuff. We went to South Haven on Friday, and had a fun weekend. We went trick-or-treating on Saturday at the Freeman's, Grandma and Grandpa Landry's , and Nana and Papa Heuermann's. And we ended the weekend with H1N1 shots on Sunday, and a basketball exhibition at NIU! All and All, a very busy and exciting week. Here's some recent pics...but i will also post more birthday and halloween pics in upcoming posts.

Naughty and Nice!!!

Let's start with the nice. Jack gives lots of love....hugs and kisses all the time. He also loves to share. He can be a sweet, sweet boy. Mr Smiley...I would say 90 percent of the time. He makes daddy and I smile and laugh many times throughout each day. He is also getting older and wiser by the day. He is so inquisitive...which also gets to his naughty side. He has been testing his mommy for months. There is no need for me to go to the gym as I get my daily exercise just chasing after him. Give him 30 seconds alone....he will unroll the entire toliet paper roll, open the dishwasher and climb on the door, jump on the cat, find a coin to try to swallow or pull out the safety plugs and stick his fingers into the sockets. So we have quicly learned that he needs costant attention! And he is not evening walking yet. He cruises and crawls everywhere so fast that there is really no reason to walk. He has a couple of famous tricks now. Unplugging the modem, playing with the phones, and plucking keys off the laptop keyboard. Yes he does like toys and books still...just not as well as playing with everything he is not supposed to. So he definitely keeps things interesting and our house very busy. This last week has brought with it something new...temper tantrums! Yes when you tell him no...or try to force him to do something that isn't part of his agenda...screaming and tears and back arching are sure to follow. And like magic as soon as he gets his way...the smile reapears! He still loves his new daycare and is excited when I drop him off every morning. I think he really likes being the youngest and hanging out with 3 year olds all day. He gets to do fun new things like art projects, library trips, playing outside and field trips. So that is the Jack update for now....I think I can hang in there as long as the nice continues to outshine the naughty!

Jack's favorite new toys!

These videos speak for themselves.

Yes...Finally Back at Blogging and 11 Months!

I can't believe it has been 2 whole months since I last updated the blog. Well in the 2 months...so much has happened. My blogging hiatis started with a work trip to Chicago. Jack got to visit grandma diane and grandpa jeff for a whole week! Patrick came to Chicago late in the week to meet me for a long weekend. To our surprise he got a call the day before his scheduled flight asking him to interview for a coaching job in the chicago area! This is the day the hope began. So he interviewed on Friday, and he got a call on Sunday while spending the weekend in Michigan explaining he was the top candidate. He got the job offer on Monday, and our plans to move back to Illinois began! We were going to be Huskies! because Pat was now the Head Men's Tennis Coach at Northern Illinois. Everything happened so quickly and it was definitely one of the craziest times ever. Luckily Grandma Diane and Grandpa Jeff volunteered to keep jack for a couple weeks until we were able to get somewhat settled. We traveled home on Tuesday...packed all of our stuff...said good bye to BYU and to all of our friends in Utah and left on Saturday morning! A hotel was our home for the first week in Dekalb. And we found a month to month lease on a campus apartment. We finally got Jack back. We missed him dearly...but we would not have been able to do everything we had to do with him in tow. Then...onto the second set of craziness during the last couple months. We brought our first house! Over the next couple of weeks...we looked at many many houses...and finally found the perfect one. Now we just cant wait to move in. We are still waiting to find out our closing date and we are counting down the days. So those are the big things that have happened...but then there is all of the little things that come with moving too! So we have been kind of busy. And the craziness is not ending as the holiday season is now fast approaching...Not to mention our baby boy's first bday is around the corner. I get choked up as I write this. Jack has been such a blessing in our life...and we can not imagine it without him. Can't believe we have been a family of 3 for almost a whole year. Here are some recent pics! Enjoy....I promise I am back to blogging regularly. I have so many new things to share!