::The WEEKesLY Chronicle::

Strasburg Rail Road

2011-11-21T21:04:00.003-05:00

We've been super busy this fall with house projects and such, but we did manage to squeeze in a few fun activities including an evening ride on the railroad through the Amish countryside.

I am really crazy about this little guy!

Get ready for it....

2011-11-08T21:23:00.004-05:00

...massive photo dump of our summer part one.

4th of July festivities.

A naked Addie with Aunt Rachel get ready to light fireworks. Apparently getting a rainbow(his choice) painted on your face is serious business.

Addie's reaction to the fireworks. And yes, she gets so excited at one point that she kicks a chair over.

This picture pretty much sums up Addie's reaction to the fireworks. I just crack up every time I look at this picture. To say she was a little excited is an understatement.

Berry picking at a cottage not far from our house.

Aunt Julie came to visit this summer and we did a few things like this Amish buggy ride.

We got Brighton a tag-along-bike so we were able to do family bike rides this summer. On this particular trip we road 16 miles on our local rails-to -trails. We took a picnic lunch and it was a lot of fun. Brighton was a champ and rode the entire way. In his words: "I'm not a bike rider, I'm a bike racer!"

Fall is upon us...

2011-11-08T19:58:00.002-05:00

we decided to get out and take in the fall colors. Sorry about all the pictures of my kids, I just love every picture of them so I have a hard time editing them down.

New Camera Love

2011-09-22T13:22:00.001-04:00

We finally got a new camera! I just started playing around with it today and I am in love. I have had a really hard time blogging lately because I always like to post pictures with my blog posts but I had to take a hundred pictures on my old point-and-shoot just to get one that was not blurry. My friend is a really great photographer and she gave me some good advise on what to get. I am so excited and I think I am driving everyone crazy today with my picture taking.

The Preschooler

2011-09-15T13:03:00.002-04:00

Addie started preschool this week and she is thrilled! On Monday evening she tried to trick me into thinking is was morning already so she could go to school. I had to chuckle because when Brighton started preschool it was such a big deal to me, but on Tuesday morning when I dropped Addison off at her preschool it was no big deal. I didn't even take a picture. I realized this while she was at school so I made sure to get some pictures as soon as we got home. Here she is in her outfit that she dressed herself in. Thank heavens she didn't dress herself the way she sometimes does. Remember this! As a side note, she has eaten a bowl full of sour cream for her afternoon snack for the last three days. Silly girl.

Brighton is a Kindergartener!

2011-09-12T13:28:00.000-04:00

How did this happen? Brighton started school a couple weeks ago and he loves it. He loves riding the bus too. I was reluctant to let him ride the bus, but he insisted and it has turned out great. This boy is getting so big. He lectures me everyday and he is usually right. Addie was so jealous that Brighton got to ride the bus and go to school and she cried all morning. I finally got her to stop by painting her fingernails. She is such a girl. We have been trying to potty train Addie for a while now without much luck, but the day after Brighton started school I told her she that she could start preschool this year but they only let kids in who are potty trained(I know what you are thinking, but I swear I did not make this up). She decided that she was potty trained right then and there and she has been ever since, day and night! She starts preschool tomorrow.

I love these two so much...

2011-06-16T09:36:00.000-04:00

New York City

2011-05-24T20:35:00.001-04:00

Central Park

A couple weeks ago Jared's sister Jenessa and her husband Eddy were in NYC to celebrate Eddy's graduation (go Eddy!) so we decided to join them. We truly had the best time and the kids were troopers. Jenessa and Eddy are so fun to hang out with.....now if they just lived closer.

Jenessa and Eddy Ground Zero

Brighton is always doing funny poses.

Ummm..........

Gettysburg

2011-05-24T20:18:00.003-04:00

Jared and the kids visit with Mr. Lincoln

One of our favorite things to do is to drive to a nearby town to explore and then grab lunch at a local eatery. We are so lucky to live so close to so many cool places. A couple weekends we cruised over to Gettysburg which is about a half an hour away and did just that.

My boy in a girl's hat.

Brighton's Fifth

2011-05-23T12:45:00.002-04:00

I can't believe the boy is five! His birthday was over two months ago, but I am a little slow getting things posted lately. We had a fun but very simple party for Brighton this year. Jared went on Brighton's preschool field trip with him and kept him out of the house until Addie and I were able to get Brighton's surprise

party ready. When Jared and Bright got home, Jared hurried and hid with Addie and I before Brighton could get in the house. Then we jumped out and said, "SURPRISE!" We didn't invite anyone else over this year, but that is kind of what made it perfect.

Brighton's favorite color is "rainbow" so he was super excited when we cut into his cake. I overheard Brighton lecturing Jared about not eating all the cake while he was sleeping.

This is me trying to pretend Brighton is still a baby. And that is Brighton trying not to laugh at me.

Addie was cwanky all week because she was jealous that is was going to be Bright's birthday. Aunt Julie sent Addie some presents so that Addie would have something to open. When Addie opened her sunglasses she was so excited, and she pretty much has worn them every day since. She even tried to sleep in them.

Brighton said the day was "perfect" and "the best day ever" and it really was.

Dress Up

2011-05-16T00:04:00.000-04:00

Boys and girls are not the same. That seems like an obvious statement but it is really true. Brighton has never shown any interest in dressing himself up. The only thing he is interested in is taking his clothes off. The kid is a streaker. Seriously, he pretty much strips down to his boxers every time he walks in the door of the house. Guys! Addie on the other hand loves to get herself all dressed up. I had to laugh when she she came down the stairs dressed in this number. You can tell she is just so pleased with herself.

Bright

2011-05-15T23:46:00.001-04:00

Brighton has been going to preschool five days a week this year. This week will be his last week...I can't believe how fast it has flown by. This is his school picture.

Addie

2011-05-15T23:43:00.001-04:00

Addie watching TV from the stairs after she wakes up from her nap. It really cracks me up when she does this. If you ask her to come down she says, "No, I'm ok".

Six Months in Pictures

2011-05-15T23:19:00.005-04:00

We built a house last fall and moved in a couple days before Thanksgiving. We love the new house and the kids love having their own rooms and bathroom. We have plenty of extra space and we love visitors so please come visit! (We live 2 hours from Washington DC, 3 hours from NYC, and 30 minutes from Gettysburg.)

Christmas 2010

We ripped out all of the flooring on the main level of the house and installed hardwood flooring at the end of December. It was tons of work and a huge mess for a while, but it looks really great now. I promise to post pictures of it at some point. We still have a bunch of projects going on in the house so our house constantly looks like a construction zone.

Travis and Rachel came for New Year's and this is the only picture I have to show for it.

We haven't had real snow in years since we spent our last 6 in North Carolina, so it was fun to play out in the snow. Love these kids.

Hiking in Pennsylvania.

We've been doing a lot of exploring since we moved to Pennsylvania. One day we decided to drive around and see some covered bridges in the area. Then we toured an old pretzel factory and had the yummiest lunch in Lititz at Tomato Pie. Jared often has days off mid-week so we do a lot of little day trips like that.

Jared and Brighton are twins. Seriously though, Jared dresses like Brighton whenever he gets a chance.

Travis and Rachel came for Easter and we had the best time. We really hated to see them go. We are so glad we still have family within driving distance. I wish I had taken more pictures. You can check out a better posting here.

Girls will be girls.

2010-11-04T15:36:00.001-04:00

I must have looked at Addison wrong because she started yelling at me for no reason. After letting her go on like this for a while I finally asked her, " Why are you yelling at me?" Her reply, "Because I am CWANKY!"

Count Your Blessings

2010-10-14T13:00:00.001-04:00

When upon life’s billows you are tempest tossed,
When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,
Count your many blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.

Are you ever burdened with a load of care?
Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear?
Count your many blessings, every doubt will fly,
And you will be singing as the days go by.

When you look at others with their lands and gold,
Think that Christ has promised you His wealth untold;
Count your many blessings. Wealth cannot buy
Your reward in heaven, nor your home on high.

So, amid the conflict whether great or small,
Do not be discouraged, God is over all;
Count your many blessings, angels will attend,
Help and comfort give you to your journey’s end.

My favorite part of the general Relief Society meeting was the opening hymn.

2010-09-30T08:09:00.004-04:00

For the last few nights Brighton has been scared at night, waking up, turning on all the lights, and that sort of thing. Well Zoe, being the good second mother to the children she is, has been sleeping on Brighton's bed or right next to his bed to comfort him even though she prefers to sleep on her own bed. So so sweet in and of itself. When Brighton got up this morning he said, "Zoe slept on my bed last night to protect me so I covered her up with Bitsy." (Bitsy is Brighton's blankie and most prized earthly possession) I just about lost it. Probably the sweetest thing I've ever heard.

Jim Thorpe

2010-09-24T08:00:00.003-04:00

We have been trying to check out all the areas around here so last weekend we went to a little town called Jim Thorpe. The town was once called Mauch Chunk but they changed the name. Mauch Chunk is better. Anyhow the town is tucked away in the Poconos and it is adorable.

We rode the train.

And we explored the old mansion on a hill.

You can see more pictures of the town here.

2010-09-23T00:01:00.004-04:00

Addie is 2 today.

She loves to do whatever her brother does. She follows him saying, "me too, me too."
She is adventurous and fearless.

Everyday when her nap is over she cries and I go into her room and get her. Then it takes about five minutes for her wake up fully and open her eyes, during which time she insists on laying on my chest. Torture I tell ya.

She is very careful to always use complete sentences.

She likes to take Tallulah for walks. She grabs her by the leash and says, "cummon cheeky".

This fall our house is infested with bugs that smell like cilantro and Addie loves them.  She calls them "gabuggies".

She climbs on everything!
When she get really mad at me she yells "naughty zoe!"
Her face is so cute I could stare at her all day.

She wants to do every thing herself, including snapping her carseat buckle which she is physically not capable of doing at this point, which means every time we get in and out of the car she throws a huge temper tantrum.

She loves to run around in the nude.

We love her!

Camping at Raystown Lake

2010-09-22T15:38:00.006-04:00

On Memorial Day weekend we packed up the family and went camping at Raystown Lake. So much fun!

Campfire fun.

Pretty sure Tallulah is plotting her attack on Brighton's hotdog in this one. She did end up snatching it after he dropped it on the ground.

See, I told you she got it. Doesn't she look smug?

Addie looks like a ragga-muffin.

Waiting for the fireworks over the lake to begin.

We had breakfast the next morning aboard the Proud Mary.

I noticed just now that Addie is attempting to suck the orange juice she spilled off the table. Lovely.

I busted Brighton piling soot on top of his head. The best part is that later that evening Addison got mad at Brighton and when she smacked him on the head a big puff of soot came out. Good times. Don't forget to pause the music on the sidebar before viewing video.

Idaho

2010-09-14T13:12:00.003-04:00

I had forgotten how beautiful Idaho is. I am embarrassed how long it has taken me to post these pictures from our trip. We went and stayed at my grandpa's cabin in Island Park and it was divine.

One good thing about having kids who wake up at 6am every morning is getting to take the canoe out and watch the sun rise with the mist over the lake.

The clearest water in the world I swear at Big Springs.

No trip to the cabin would be complete without catching crawdads with my brother Jason. Please excuse my irresponsible and reckless use of socks with sandals.

We saw this guy outside the cabin. We also saw a black bear and deer, but I wasn't quick enough with the camera.

We paddled down Big Springs with my Dad, Jason, Brighton and Audrey in one canoe, Heather, Ryan, and Rachel in another, and my Mom was a good sport and rode in a canoe with me, Addie, and Jared. Just for the record, our canoe had by far the fastest rowers.

It was perfect.

The last of the pictures from Arizona...I promise.

2010-07-23T21:13:00.027-04:00

Bright fishing with Grandpa and Uncle Jason.

After Visiting Jenessa and Eddy we headed back to my parents house for a few more days before heading out to Pennsylvania for good. Brighton went fishing with Grandpa and Uncle Jason a few times while we were there and I think it is safe to say he is now a fisherman. Also any trip to visit my parents would not be complete without going out in the boat with my Dad, so we did that one last time too.

Brighton catches a lunker

Brighton shows us how big his fish was(I told you he was a true fisherman)

My sister Heather and Bright cool off in the water

Me and my dad

Jason turned old while we were there and to celebrate his birthday we made him a worm cake you know in honor of fishing.

This picture was taken on the day before we left and it pretty much sums up how my parents felt by the time we left.

Jenessa

2010-07-09T13:27:00.006-04:00

I absolutely love this picture of Jared and his darling sisters.

After graduation we got to go to California to see Jared's sister Jenessa and her husband Eddie. We don't get to see them nearly enough and we had the best time with them. Jenessa is one of the funnest people you will ever meet and Eddie made us the most amazing Thai food. We were so glad Jared's sister Julie and his mom came too.

Jenessa plays with Brighton at the beach.

Eddie shows Brighton how to fly a kite.

What is going on here Julie?

Grammy J shows Brighton how to feed the animals.

I'm so sad the only picture of all of us together didn't turn out.

Proud

2010-07-02T14:36:00.003-04:00

Yes, it is true...Jared graduated. Someone pinch me. I am so proud.

The Duke Grads marching into the stadium. It was a million degrees that day and the old people in the audience were dropping like flies. Seriously.

Jared standing in front of the library where he spent many hours studying.

Duke Chapel

Me with the graduate in front of our rental car. A yellow Volkswagen Beetle. I felt like a high school girl.

Leaving the Devils for The Holy Spirit

One of the best parts of our trip was staying with Travis and Rachel. On Sunday afternoon Rachel surprised Jared with the most genius cake ever. She even missed her Sunday nap to make it. In case you don't get it, Duke University's mascot is the Blue Devils and the hospital Jared is now working at is call the Holy Spirit Hospital. Genius I tell ya.

Arizona

2010-07-01T14:21:00.005-04:00

I know what thoughts come to mind when you think of Arizona (barren wasteland, desert, brown...) but Jared and I were quite smitten with it. The weather was amazing the entire two months we were there and the sky is ALWAYS blue.

We went to an old gold mine.

I am wondering if I can order one of these for my house for when Brighton and Addie are naughty.
We got burgers at a little place completely wallpapered in dollar bills.

Out on Grandpa's boat.

We got to go see the Mesa Temple. What a beautiful place.

We moved....

2010-07-01T13:00:00.002-04:00

Brighton managed to find a moment of pure joy amidst the commotion of packing.

I know, Iknow. I am a slacker, but things really got crazy there for a while. Just to catch you up, in the last three months we packed up our stuff into storage, visited family in Arizona for two months, went back to NC for Jared's graduation, Jared took his boards and PASSED, went to California to visit more family, moved to Pennsylvania, and Jared started his new job. That's all. More details to come....

Jared and I went on this new Subway diet...

2010-03-26T12:26:00.003-04:00

...one where you share a sandwich at Subway, get food poisoning, spend the next 48 hours puking and pooping, sometimes at the same time, and come out of it 10 pounds lighter. Thanks Subway!

We're still alive...

2010-02-16T15:10:00.008-05:00

Jared's still alive too, he just had to work.

2010-01-11T22:36:00.002-05:00

I have been a complete slacker lately as far as the blog goes. What can I say, sometimes I am lazy. I figured I better post pictures and details of our holiday activities before it is April. Jared had time off from school so we really enjoyed ourselves for several weeks. Aunt Julie came to visit for the Christmas break so that was the icing on the cake. We did Christmas Eve at our house and Travis and Rachel came over and we ate tons of food and treats. We had Christmas dinner at their house and we ate tons of food. For New Years we went and stayed two nights at Travis and Rachel's and we ate tons of food. Are you starting to see a pattern here. Rachel is an amazing cook and I always feel like we are so pampered when we stay at their house.

Jared and I celebrated our ten year anniversary on December 29th. I am glad to say that after 10 years I still have a crush on Jared. A big thanks to Julie for watching the kids.

Aunt Julie holds Addie.

Brighton and Audrey play trains.

Rachel and I referee as Addison checks out Phoenix.

Brighton started Sunbeams

2010-01-11T21:45:00.000-05:00

Pictures with the whole family in them!

2010-01-11T21:33:00.000-05:00

One of the many nice things about having Aunt Julie here was that she was able to get some pictures with all of us in them, which never happens since one of us is usually taking the pictures.

Some kids have a security blanket...

2010-01-11T20:15:00.019-05:00

some kids have a doll, some have a stuffed animal,

Addison has a brush!

She has been constantly trying to sneak into the bathroom to steal my brush so we finally broke down and bought her a new one of her own. Jared let her pick it out and this pink number is what she chose. She and the brush are inseparable. She even had to sleep with it one night(that was not a good idea by the way).

I got an e-mail from my mom today...

2009-12-11T12:42:00.000-05:00

I have copied and pasted that e-mail here along with the pictures she attached:

Janae & Jared,

Here are a couple of pictures of Brighton so you know we are taking good care of him.

Mom

AWESOME!

Brighton is gone for the week...

2009-12-10T22:29:00.001-05:00

...he went to see Grandma and Grandpa Andrew with my brother and his family. The house is so quiet. He won't be back for a week. In the mean time I plan to absorb as much of her cuteness as I possibly can.

To whoever invented this.....

2009-12-03T13:28:00.007-05:00

...restroom child holder thing, I would just like to say I love you.

just pictures

2009-11-09T09:36:00.007-05:00

the fireman and the princess

2009-11-08T11:03:00.010-05:00

Holloween '09

Brighton and Amy

Brighton enjoying his spoils

On the farm...take two

2009-10-22T12:56:00.014-04:00

Travis and Rachel invited us to go to Hill Ridge farm with them last week but it was raining when we got there so we tried again this week and the weather could not have been better. I think it is safe to say we all thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.

we all loved the corn hut and the gigantic tube slide

two crazy kids. hehehe

A really bad story (sorry in advance)

2009-10-16T12:14:00.001-04:00

When I was a kid my brother Travis had a gerbil (ok, so he had about 50 gerbils, no kidding, but that's not the point). Well this one gerbil had babies and the next morning when we went to check on the babies they were all gone. Every last one of them. Just the mama gerbil was left in the cage. At first we were a little confused because it was not like they could have escaped because their eyes weren't even open. Then we realized...the mama gerbil ate her babies(I told you it was a bad story). I have often wondered why that mama gerbil did what she did. Was It because they were so cute she could not resist them? Or were they driving her so crazy that she couldn't stand it? I have often felt like the mama in both of these scenerios, but I have decided it must be the first one. I swear my kids are so cute I have been contemplating gobbling them both up. Please don't call child services. I'm only joking.

I had an interesting conversation with Brighton...

2009-10-08T13:10:00.007-04:00

...it went like this:

Brighton: "I fell on my butt. You need to kiss it better."
Me: "Um, no."
Brighton then proceeds to pull his underwear down and waving his naked rear in my face says impatiently, "KISS IT, KISS IT, KISS IT!"
Brighton is a firm believer that kissing it better actually works (apparently).

***If Jared was home I would have thought he had put Brighton up to it.

Oh ya, one more funny story. Last Friday when we were at playgroup at the park, I was talking to some of the other moms and out the corner of my eye, I see Brighton standing on the edge of the playground with his pants down around his ankles, naked hinnie facing us "peeing like a big dog" (that is what he calls it when he goes outside). I was embarrassed, but I kinda thought it was funny too. Jared looked proud when I told him about it that evening.

It was a perfect day for a hike...

2009-10-05T23:47:00.010-04:00

...so we went for a hike.

This and the next post are from a week ago. I'm just a little slow ok.

Last Monday we snuck out for a quick hike with Travis and Rachel. Just trying to take in as much of this glorious weather before it's gone.

one

2009-10-05T22:57:00.022-04:00

the birthday girl.

the birthday duds.
(jared made her onesie, i made the tutu. we make a great team).

the cake.

the cousin.

the friend.
(addie and amy, or as brighton calls her "mimi").

the family.

the Phoenix.
(travis and rachel were there too, but somehow i did not get any pictures of them.)

the end.

We've had a great weekend.

2009-10-04T19:20:00.016-04:00

We woke up to a feeling of fall in the air. I just love that chilly air. We enjoyed Spiced Pumpkin waffles for breakfast( Jared is crazy for anything pumpkin). Then we headed out for our neighborhood park to enjoy our morning. We made it back just in time to be uplifted by the inspiring messages of General Conference.

I've been stalking this house for months...

2009-10-04T18:58:00.009-04:00

...so when I found out there was going to be a house tour of the Michael Coates house, I snatched up tickets months in advance. As many of you know I love architecture so when we got to tour the house yesterday I was in heaven.

photo credit: Triangle Modernist Houses

I loved the color of the window trim and the wood and rusty metal exterior. And you should see the setting, completely secluded and surrounded by trees. Ahhhh.

Soccer

2009-10-04T18:39:00.005-04:00

After twenty minutes of wrangling kids(seriously) this is the best picture we could get of Brighton's soccer team. I consider the picture a success if no one is picking their nose. You should see some of the other pictures, oh, there's nose picking. I told Jared what we should have done is taken video. That would have been good.

One year ago today...

2009-09-23T08:30:00.000-04:00

I just put Addie down for the night

2009-09-22T20:54:00.004-04:00

The next time I see her she will be one. I think I will cry myself to sleep tonight (I am mostly kidding). Also to make things worse, she started walking today. Yes, that's right. I know I have been telling people she probably would not walk for another couple months, but I guess I was wrong. She will only take about five or six steps before she gets scared and sits down. The upside to walking is that at least her clothes will stay cleaner(who am I kidding?) and she won't find every little tiny thing on the floor. Next time you see us, do me a favor and tell me how little my baby is.

The weather was irresistible today...

2009-09-21T21:18:00.010-04:00

...so we headed out for a picnic in our usual spot at Duke gardens. It is our own little top secret location completely surrounded by trees.

turkey croissant sandwiches and sunchips

Addie pretty much stuffed her face with sunchips the whole time.

After lunch Jared and I laid on the blanket and watched Brighton and Addie scavenge the area for treasures.

Speaking of irresistible...get a load of the cheeks on that one.

Jared has been slacking on his grooming lately and his eyebrows have really gotten out of control

We always have to feed the crazy catfish every time we go to Duke gardens. (I am secretly worried Brighton will fall in and they will devour him.) They especially enjoy corn tortillas. Who would have thought?

DUCK, DUCK....

2009-09-19T12:12:00.001-04:00

GOOSE!

Jared busted us while playing a game of duck, duck, goose in Brighton's room. Even Zoe and Tallulah like to get in on the action.

First Day of School....

2009-09-18T16:56:00.005-04:00

Jenna, Brighton, and Parker

....ok sort of. Brighton just started his first day of preschool this week. I'm doing a co-op preschool with some moms in our ward and Brighton absolutely loves it. He hasn't stopped talking about it. There are six kids in his group and hopefully I will have pictures to post of the whole group soon.

I just stumbled upon these

2009-09-09T21:03:00.008-04:00

My mom e-mailed me these old pictures a while back and I just happened upon them while on my computer last night. I thought they were fun.

My brother Jason and I on a groovy sofa.

Me in the center with brother Travis and cousin Natalie in the back of my parents green Vega.

Must have been my 4th birthday.

Me and my mom.

This is the look Addison has been sporting lately...

2009-08-31T20:50:00.003-04:00

...a snaggle tooth.

I'm a soccer mom

2009-08-29T20:55:00.010-04:00

Brighton is playing soccer this fall and his first game was today. It was hysterical, what with all the kicking the ball in the wrong goal, the crying and tantrums(not Brighton of course), thumb sucking, and everything else you could possibly imagine when a bunch of three-year-olds play soccer. The best part, Brighton actually scored...in the right goal. Trust me this is a pretty big accomplishment.

the little soccer player

Addie got to ride on Daddy's shoulders

This is how Brighton posed himself when we asked him if we could take a picture of him in his soccer uniform. He's a character that one.

pep talk

Summer is almost over...

2009-08-18T13:50:00.007-04:00

...and thank heavens it is(I never thought I would say that, but it gets really muggy here in the summer). We decided to head out for the beach and the NC Aquarium this last weekend and enjoy what's left of it.

I ate five Krispy Creme doughnuts all at one time because they just came off the conveyer belt and they were warm and melt in your mouth delicious. (I know that is no excuse, but I'm just saying). I felt yucky the rest of the day. Oh, but it was worth it.

Also as a random side note, I taught Brighton how to pee standing up at the big toilet today. Yay me. Yay Brighton.

A visit from Grandma and Grandpa Weekes

2009-08-12T22:16:00.012-04:00

Jared's parent's were in town visiting for the past 10 days and we are so glad they did. The kids had a great time with Grandma and Grandpa Weekes.

As a side note, I think we've been living in Durham too long because it appears that Brighton is doing some sort of gang sign in photo above as well as a few of the other photos I didn't post.

We had fun on the train ride at Pullen Park. Brighton even wore his train conductor hat.

Just to be fair

2009-08-12T21:31:00.004-04:00

In case you couldn't tell, my last post was a joke. I really crack myself up sometimes. Not only was that picture of Jared completely doctored, but Jared happens to be one of the top three most beautiful human beings I have ever met (it is a three way tie between Jared, Brighton, and Addison of course). I think Jared was getting a little self conscious about my last post so I thought I would post a doctored photo of myself just to make it even.

Jared has really let himself go since he started school

2009-08-04T22:27:00.004-04:00

hamburgers for dessert

2009-07-22T22:42:00.003-04:00

i recently made some hamburger cupcakes to take to travis and rachel complete with ketchup, mustard, and lettuce. i got the idea here.

too much fun.

Bath time

2009-07-22T21:58:00.004-04:00

this is the only video clip that didn't show any of Brighton's "parts".

for heather:

2009-07-15T16:51:00.005-04:00

Mmmmm blackberries

2009-07-10T22:32:00.018-04:00

We've been wanting to go blackberry picking for a while. We finally went today. If you live in the Raleigh/Durham area you must go to Lyon Farms.

The blackberries were gorgeous and so juicy.

My husband is so nice. He threw a blackberry at my head and it splattered. Don't worry I got him back, I told him the blackberry juice on the side of my face was blood and he felt really bad. Also I came this close to depantsing him while we were paying. If I had only pulled a little harder.

4th

2009-07-10T20:45:00.018-04:00

We had a fantastic 4th. The festivities started the night before when we had a picnic at the park with Travis and Rachel. We launched one of our rockets "Big Bertha" and lit off fireworks. The morning of the fourth, we decorated Brighton's tricycle and made our way over to be in our annual neighborhood parade.

As a random side note, the tour de France started on the 4th so I had to chuckle(secretly to myself of course) when Jared showed up wearing a bicycling cap. He's really cute. Oh ya, and what is up with the flag in the picture above.

Brighton's tricycle was decorated with red, white, and blue pipe cleaners and jingle bells dragging behind.

After the parade the firemen turned on the fire hose and all the kids ran through it. It was one of those magical childhood moments. Brighton never misses an opportunity to get soaked.

That evening we went to the Tessem's for a bbq with friends. We finished the evening by watching the Durham fireworks. It was a very satisfying day.

Jared and Clark

Take a close look at Brighton's face. That is the look of pure terror.

Phoenix William Andrew

2009-07-08T21:53:00.011-04:00

My first nephew has arrived! He is so adorable. Good job Rachel(and Travis too even though Rachel did all the work). He is only a few hours old in these pictures, but oh so cute.

And don't even get me started on how Rachel looks. Let's just say if I didn't like her so much I would probably hate her. She doesn't even have makeup on!

These two are trouble.

Weekend at the beach

2009-06-30T21:14:00.010-04:00

This weekend we decided to go to the beach since Jared has been out of town this month and we were desperately needing some family time. The weather could not have been better. Travis, Rachel, and Audrey joined us and we had a great time in the sun. I didn't get any pictures of Rachel, which I am really disappointed about because if you think a nine month pregnant woman can not look good in a bathing suit, you have obviously never seen Rachel pregnant (she is about a week away from her due date and I can hardly wait). Brighton loved getting "nailed" by the waves. It was so funny, Brighton said, "Mom, I got a nail". Addie ate about a hundred fists full of sand I am pretty sure because it is still coming out the other end if you know what I mean. A little grit never hurt anyone, right(I hope)?

Flying the kite.

The nice thing about living in Durham is that it is only a several hour drive to the ocean.

it's official

2009-06-16T22:48:00.008-04:00

Addison now wears the same size diapers as her three-year-old cousin. Nice. (don't worry Audrey, I know you only wear diapers to bed.)

Weekend recap

2009-06-16T22:06:00.010-04:00

Jared and Brighton's bike ride

Our weekend was a blast(literally). Jared has been out of town all of June at a clinical site and he only comes home on the weekends, so we've been trying to cram as much fun in as we can while he's home. Jared and Brighton built a rocket together on Saturday. I don't think I have ever seen Brighton that excited. Brighton insisted that his cousin Audrey be there for the launch so we invited Travis and Rachel over. We found a big field and set it all up. The rocket went so high we couldn't even see it at its highest point. Finally we saw it descending with it's little parachute, but the wind had blown it over to some trees on the other side of a busy road. I honestly thought there was no way that we would find it, but thirty minutes after Jared, Brighton, and Travis went into the trees to search for it they returned successful. It was quite miraculous really. The best part was watching Jared and Travis acting like ten year old boys.

Please excuse Addison's crying in the video. I tried to edit it out but I guess I am just not that talented.

Bananas

2009-06-11T17:22:00.006-04:00

I decided to try giving Addison some bananas for the first time today...she likes them(apparently).

Sleep

2009-06-09T21:16:00.002-04:00

I guess our little family has some pretty interesting sleep patterns. I have taken all of these photos in the last week.

(Jared was able to catch a quick dognap on Sunday afternoon)

(Brighton recently named all of his stuffed bears and now insists that they are all present in order for him to sleep)

(I came home from the store the other night to find this on my couch.)

I wonder what Janae did today?

2009-06-09T15:56:00.002-04:00

I know that you have been asking yourself this question all day.  So to answer your question:   I changed some diapers, watched one very cute little boy play in his sand box and thought about how nice it would be to hold him like a baby and kiss him, tried to kiss one very cute three year old boy...unsuccessfully, worked on some dresses,  later tried to hug one very cute three year old boy who became very angry with me by this time, I had to make faces and talk in funny voices in order to win my way back in into one very cute three year old boy's affections.  Ok so this post makes me sound a little creepy but I swear I'm not.  Why are little boys so unaffectionate?  It is torture.

A miracle has occured

2009-06-06T21:04:00.003-04:00

Brighton woke up this morning and decided to be potty trained. I am not kidding. He has never had any interest in being potty trained even when I tried to bribe him. I swear I've tried everything and finally I gave up, hoping he would be out of diapers by kindergarten, but this morning when he woke up he asked to use the potty and has been ever since. Let's just hope it lasts.

Our DC trip

2009-06-03T23:09:00.012-04:00

I am a little slow getting these pictures up, but we had a great trip to Washington DC during Jared's break from school. It was the first visit for both Jared and I. I can't believe we live so close but hadn't gone sooner.

It is just under a four hour drive from Durham. We stayed at a cute little cabin and rode the metro train in.

We asked Brighton what his favorite part of the trip was and he said the train. No surprise there.

We will definitely be going back.

Favorite quote of the day

2009-05-29T11:16:00.007-04:00

Brighton: "Look mom, Zoe make a playdough!"

I think Jared has been teaching Addison to say Dada behind my back

2009-04-29T07:59:00.006-04:00

Yes folks it's true...regardless of the fact that I have been trying to teach Addie how to say mama for months she has started saying dada. How do you like that for gratitude?

kakapillar

2009-04-27T20:32:00.008-04:00

Brighton has a new best friend.
He gets so excited every time he finds one. He has been spending a lot of time playing in his sand box lately and on this particular day he was lucky enough to find two caterpillars. He was very disappointed the next morning when he could not find them where he had left them the day before. Can I just tell you that we adore this little boy.

She's getting so big

2009-04-22T12:31:00.003-04:00

Best of both

2009-04-19T21:13:00.008-04:00

Lately, Brighton's two favorite things to do are pushing Addie around the house in the stroller(which incidentally is awesome because it keeps both of my children happy for hours, don't worry he is careful with her) and riding his bike around the house. The other night he decided to combine the two by rigging the stroller to be a trailer behind his bike. He came riding into the kitchen towing his little sister behind him. He was so proud of himself.

Zoo Trip

2009-04-19T20:37:00.023-04:00

On Thursday Brighton, Addison, and I had a lovely day at the Asheboro Zoo with some friends from the ward.

I think Brighton's favorite thing was building a shelter out of sticks in the kids zone.

I'm not quite sure if this is normal...

2009-04-08T21:24:00.005-04:00

I came into the kitchen to find that Brighton had perfectly lined up all the tuna cans on the grid pattern of our kitchen floor.

All Aboard!

2009-03-31T21:52:00.012-04:00

Brighton is obsessed with trains. Seriously obsessed. So Brighton was in heaven when we took him to the train museum the day before his birthday. We even got to go on a train ride!
The best part of the train ride was when Brighton start saying loudly "Jesus loves me. Jesus loves me." Then he said, "Look, Jesus rides the train." I looked where he was pointing and sure enough, there he was. Brighton seemed a little disappointed that "Jesus" didn't pay any attention to him. It was actually very sweet that Brighton was so excited to see Jesus. We spent the rest of our visit to the museum trying to get a good picture of him. And the poor man pictured below spent the rest of his visit to the museum trying to avoid us.

This is what three years old looks like

2009-03-31T21:35:00.012-04:00

This was the first year Brighton understood that it was his birthday and boy did he feel special.

Travis, Rachel, and Audrey joined us for our "Madagascar"
themed party complete with a Marty the zebra cake and Alex the lion cake and monkeys swinging from vines.

Brighton pretty much lost interest in everything else when he opened his new train.

This kid makes me laugh

2009-03-29T15:34:00.005-04:00

pickin'up the ladies.

2009-03-02T22:08:00.007-05:00

We went out for dinner tonight. Toward the end of our meal Brighton said: "oh, look two pretty girls" Jared and I looked at each other a little shocked and confused. We started looking around the restaurant for who he could be talking about. We saw two older women, maybe I thought. Then Brighton said pointing, "the two pretty girls ober dere (translation: over there). The girl in red dress." Sure enough there were two little girls sitting a few tables away. One of them was wearing a red dress. Jared asked him if he wanted to say hi in a joking voice. Brighton quickly got down from his seat and ran over to the two girls and appearently turned on the charm because he had them both smiling and laughing. Jared had to go get him. Meanwhile I almost wet myself from laughing so hard. Once he was back at our table I asked Brighton what he said to the girls, he said in a cool voice, "Oh, I just said hi". He's two! Where do they learn this stuff? Luckily Jared had his camera phone and was able to capture the true essence of the moment. I couldn't help but notice a look of pride on Jared's face.

Tallulah decided to try her hand (or tongue) at hair styling

2009-03-01T15:50:00.007-05:00

Tallulah is now booking appointments to style hair. She doesn't cut hair (since she does not have apposable thumbs), but she can style your hair for you as long as you choose a slicked style. Here is a sample of her work.

Tallulah works quite quickly too. One moment Addison had perfectly fuzzy baby hair. I looked away for a second and when I looked at her again she had a stylish slick spot down the middle. Tallulah was standing next to her looking quite satisfied with her work.

Just a few moments in paradise

2009-02-26T13:33:00.003-05:00

I've been feeling really sorry for myself today.  I woke up sick this morning and to make things worse, Addison refused to take a nap.  Funny how that works.  All it took was for me to look at my life from the other side of this camera to realize how lovely my life is (even when I feel less than lovely).

Sometimes I wish I was a dog

2009-02-26T13:26:00.002-05:00

This is what our dogs do all day.

Trains

2009-02-16T12:11:00.008-05:00

So Brighton happens to be obsessed with trains. I know obsessed is a strong word, but it is very fitting in this case. Brighton rode a train (I know it is not a real train but don't tell him) for the first time at the science museum the other day. I think his face says it all. That is what childhood is all about. Thanks Amy for the pictures.

We recently discovered that Addison is a baby porpoise

2009-02-10T17:10:00.013-05:00

Make sure you push pause on the music over there----> where it says "tunes" so you can hear her.

Tried to take some pictures of the kids today

2009-01-29T15:24:00.011-05:00

I had to use some help from photoshop. Addison whizzed on my blanket. I love them.

What do you do when your husband is out of town all month?

2009-01-29T12:13:00.007-05:00

wear your pj's all day. listen to girlie music. wear his clothes. let the doggies sleep in the bed at night. (now the bed has essence of dog, nice.) let brighton leave his toys out. what's the point? he's just going to pull them out in the morning. talk to zoe and tallulah because there is no one else to talk to. make one really yummy meal and eat it for every meal until it runs out. i've eaten lasagne three times a day for the last three days. crank up the music and dance around the house with brighton and addison. miss him horribly.

if you are wondering why i don't post more pictures of brighton...

2009-01-26T19:19:00.010-05:00

...that's why!

Christmas 2008

2009-01-26T18:45:00.016-05:00

This post is way overdue. I know. I'm a procrastinator. We spent this Christmas at a beach house on the Outer Banks with the Andrew clan. It was so much fun to be with everyone.

Brighton and Audrey loved riding on the ferry to Ocracoke Island.

I can't think of a better way to spend Christmas.

2009-01-06T23:36:00.006-05:00

I swear she tries to be cute.

I have one word for all mothers: BUMBO

2009-01-05T12:10:00.008-05:00

I just got Addison a Bumbo seat today alla craigslist. GENIUS. For all of you who do not know what a Bumbo is, it is a seat that enables babies to sit upright all by themselves. Within a minute of of being placed in the Bumbo seat, Addison was giggling for the first time. And a few minutes later Brighton had his little face pressed up close to Addison's face talking to her (have I mentioned that up to this point Brighton has not acknowledged her existance?) as if somehow now that she can sit up she is worth paying attention to. Later he even placed two of his little cars in each of her hands. The funniest part is the prideful look Addison has on her face the whole time she is sitting up in it.

Fifteen Wonderful Years

2009-01-02T00:49:00.025-05:00

I am one of the luckiest guys in the world. Seriously. I have known my best friend, who just happens to be my wife, for half of my life!! Has it really been fifteen years since I joined my high school cross country team because some cute girl in my Biology class (who thought she was smarter than me) said she ran cross country? I didn't even like to run!! But I stuck it out...even joined the track team which is far worse than cross country (whose bright idea was it to run two miles around a little circle anyway?). And I'm glad I did. Not only did I learn to enjoy running (somewhat--as a last resort--like when all the tires on my 3 bikes are flat and I don't have a spare tube or patch kit), but I met my best friend, who actually is a lot smarter than me. Please enjoy a little nostalgia, the picture quality may not be the greatest (we even knew each other BEFORE the advent of digital cameras...wow!) but the memories are priceless to me.

From the cross country runs through the Tetons...

...to the groovy high school dances.

From the engagement photos...

...to the wedding photos.

From the tops of the mountains...

...to the valleys below.

I will ALWAYS love my best friend.

Is it just me...

2008-12-13T23:36:00.009-05:00

...or is it funny how Christmas time gives you a free pass to listen to all kinds of dorky music--no questions asked? Don't get me wrong, I love Christmas music just as much as anyone else, but every year I just can't help but chuckle as I crank up the volume and sing along to Wham's Last Christmas (which incidentally is one of my top five favorite Christmas songs, don't mock) every time it comes on the radio. I am serious, in December I will listen to any type of music as long as it mentions Christmas.

This post is a little late.

2008-12-13T23:10:00.014-05:00

This is how our Thanksgiving Day started.
When I was preheating the oven there was a buzzing sound.  I opened the oven to find a fire.  When the fire went out so did the bottom oven element.  And of course it is Thanksgiving so we can't get a new one.  So I ended up broiling everything including the turkey.  I put a cookie sheet on the top rack to deflect the heat away from the top of the food.  It was actually quite delish.
This is what we ate.

This is what the girls ate.  They never get canned food so it was a treat.

A few little known facts about Jared

2008-12-07T21:13:00.010-05:00

He loves to listen to Delilah on the radio. He knows all the words to the songs in the movie Annie. For some unexplained reason our dog Zoe is madly in love with him. (I'm keeping an eye on you Zoe.) He is obsessed with anything pumpkin flavored. He always smells good. Well, almost always. One of his favorite TV shows is Judge Milian's People's Court. (I just don't get it.) He hardly ever gets mad. He loves bikes. Okay maybe that is a well known fact. When you think he is listening intently to what you are saying, he is actually analyzing how easy it it would be to get an IV into your veins. Happy Birthday Jared!

Just Like Heaven

2008-12-02T16:48:00.011-05:00

A little angel lives with us.

Top 10 Reasons We Love Brighton

2008-11-22T12:12:00.031-05:00

#10 He can pull off this look. (peeing your pants is the cooooolest!)

#9 When he falls face first into a huge hole Zoe dug in the yard, instead of crying like a normal two year old, he says, "Oh man!"

#8 He has an uncanny resemblance to a shaggy dog. And you know how much we love dogs!

#7 He loves his sissies.

#6 He says "sp" instead of "f".....for example:
"I hurt my spinger"
"Look at the spish"
"Daddy sparted"
You get the picture.

#5 He lines up his toys in every windowsill and ledge in our house.

#4 He teaches us patience.

#3 His parents are super cool.

#2 He is a big helper. (here he is cleaning up the dog food Tallulah spilled with toilet paper he dragged all the way from the bathroom)

And the #1 reason we love Brighton is...Just look at him. Do we really need any reasons?

Just got Brighton down for a nap...

2008-11-19T13:49:00.010-05:00

timeto

snuggle
with
my
girls!