Our Christmas Lights!!!

This is our Christmas light display for 2008! Happy Birthday Me! :) - Jason

Catching Up With Old Friends

Last night the four of us went to have dinner with some of my old college friends. I've been trying hard to remember how exactly I met Kim and Art but I know for sure it was because we had classes together. Nearly 10 years (yikes!) after our college graduation it's hard to remember exactly how it happened. Art is pretty sure that him and I met first, and I'm sure he's right, and then I ended up having a class with Kim the following year. After college graduation me and Kim and about 10 other girls went to Puerta Vallarta on vacation. It was so much fun! We've been in and out of contact over the years and have recently found each other again. They have two daughters, ages 2 and 4, so we have a lot in common with them!

We went to their beautiful home last night and got to finally meet the kids. Brandon was pretty shy at first but he had fallen asleep in the car and we had to wake him when we got there. It only took him about 10 minutes and then he was really enjoying himself. Elena, the 4 year old, was so cute and really played well with him. Jack felt right at home, too, and wanted to be all over the place with the kids. I was shocked that Jack even ate an entire piece of pizza!

It was fun to remember our old college days and talk about our infamous trip to Mexico. This was Jason's first time meeting them, but in typical Jason style, you couldn't tell. Jason easily adapts to any situation and he really seemed to hit it off with Art.

We can't wait to see them again! Makes me so mad that we lost contact with them to begin with, but I don't plan on letting that happen again!

Jack's 12 month well check

Jack had his appointment for his 12 month well baby check-up today. He weighed 19lbs 10oz and was 30 inches long. I believe he is in the 10% for weight and 50% for length. Dr. Wilke wasn't too worried about his weight since Brandon and cousins Carter and Brooke were all on the smaller side at this age. He got three shots (MMR, Hep A, and chicken pox) and a toe prick to test for iron levels and lead. Jack was so adorable when Dr. Wilke used her light to test his eyes, he gave her a big, cheesy smile like she was taking his picture. It was pretty funny.

IT'S JACK'S FIRST BIRTHDAY!!

One year ago today, at 12:40pm, an 8 pound 4 ounce, 20.5 inch long baby was born. We named him Jack Griffin Norred and he is one of the lights of my life. How has the time gone by so fast?

Jack likes pizza, french fries, ice cream and baby food macaroni and cheese. He loves toys that talk or sing/make music. He loves banging toys together or on tables. He just switched over from formula to whole milk and is a LOVER of chocolate milk! Jack has the craziest curly red hair and we still get lots of comments and compliments about it. He's still not walking on his own, but he can cruise furniture pretty fast. He can crawl up the stairs pretty good, too.

We went today to get Jack's one year portraits done. Igot a pretty cute Christmas card picture, too. For lunch we met up with Aunt Bliss and cousins Carter and Brooke at Chick Fil A. Brandon and Carter had a great time together. In the evening we decided to go out to dinner for Jack's birthday and got a call from my mother-in-law, Donna, saying that some of the Norred clan was in town. We ended up meeting Donna, Courtney, Natalie, Emily, Bliss, Carter and Brooke for dinner. The kids had a blast. It was fun seeing Bliss and the kids so much in one day.

All in all, Jack had a great birthday today! Thanks for coming to his party, thanks for the phone calls and emails. It means so much to have so many people remember my baby on his special day. This has been a hard birthday on mommy, and a tough week for us in general for us as a family.

Also, Abbie is not out of the woods just yet, so say a little prayer for her that she gets better soon. Brandon would be crushed if something were to happen to her. Thanks.

Brandon's Prayer

This one is for you, Pat. We love you!

Jack is 11 months old today!

Oh my ! Where has the time gone?! My sweet little daredevil is almost a year! I can't even imagine what next few months have in store for us. Today Jack got the "Most Crazy" award. I was cleaning out the pantry and had put him in his walker so he could move around while Brandon watched TV on the couch. All of a sudden, I heard a sound that confused me. I think now it was a sound of frustration from Jack, but something told me to go and check on him. I come around the kitchen to find him standing in front of the toy box, totally OUT of his walker! At first I thought maybe Brandon had helped him but soon realized that Brandon was too engrossed in his show to have done anything. My mouth just fell open and I said, "Oh, my gosh!". Jack just turned his head and gave me the biggest smile, so proud of himself! Even Brandon turned at that point and his eyes got huge and he said, "My gosh! Jack wanted to play with those toys!". I think what he did was lean all the way forward and grab ahold of the toy box and just held on and he must have kicked his walker out of his way, cause it was like 3 feet behind him! Sigh. This child has NO fear. He hasn't played in his exersaucer in months for this very reason, he's always trying to get out of it.

Jack has also taken up wrestling with his brother. Never in my wildest dreams did I think these two would be playing so physically at this young age. Jack's favorite place to play is in Brandon's room with him. Usually Brandon plays pretty well with Jack and I feel okay leaving them in there together for a few minutes at a time. I check on them frequently.

Jack is still not walking yet. He really has no desire to even try, heck he won't even stand on his own although I know he can do it and does for a few seconds if he doesn't realize what he's doing. He is getting great at cruising the furniture, though, and is quiet mobile.

Ouch!

Seriously. My bum has been achy for the last few days and I can't figure out why. Well, I couldn't figure it out until now. I've been secretly playing Wii Bowling while Jason is at work so I can get even more awesome at it than I already am (for some reason he CANNOT bowl worth a darn). I really take this too seriously. I just realized that I'm playing the dang thing with my whole body and...maybe I've pulled a muscle. I'm still better than him though, even injured!