And the last one for today...

Hello, my Love...

Last one for today.  I promise.

I am shocked that I have been able to edit and finish all of these...J is STILL sleeping!  Poor little guy.  He has had a rough couple of days, which is why I am so crazy behind on posting.  Ear infection, upper respiratory infection, fever, upset tummy...and yet, somehow he can still manage to be a stinker.  But a cute one, which makes it better!  His fever came back last night so I imagine he is sleeping off his ickies, just like his dad.  He has been asleep for almost 12 hours, and I must say that I am just a little bit jealous!  Plus, I hate when he sleeps in because I don't know what to do with myself haha...hopefully he will be feeling better when he gets up though!

He is just pitiful here...you know he isn't feeling well when he lays down like this :-(

And last night, he seemed to feeling a little better, so we played with bubbles outside for a few minutes, but he even looks like a mess here.  A tired, worn out mess...

Hopefully I can keep up better with the posting, though we have a busy rest of the week coming up!  And I am hoping to go do a Big Brother session for J before #2 makes his appearance.  We'll see about his cooperation on that idea though!

Well, my love, I am going to check on our sweet little man again and make sure his fever hasn't returned.   I wish you were here with us, but am thankful that we are where the Lord needs us to be.  We both have big jobs right now...Miss you more than words can say!

All My Love,

Jessica

Still Catching Up...

Hello again, my Love...

I am still playing catch up, but am almost there.  

I have been trying to keep J as busy as possible and let him get rid of all of his built up energy.  By the way, he has A LOT.  If our next little one is as crazy as the first, I may need committed...

We took him to a new gym where they have free play for an hour.  Oh my word, he LOVED it!  There was a trampoline, a giant swing, hockey sticks (foam, thank goodness), hula hoops, a rock climbing wall...I could go on and on. I was so sad that I didn't get a photo of him on the rings.  He can hold himself up off the ground already...what a little freak of nature!  You would have been proud.

The Smith family told us about it and we even got to go out to dinner afterwards.  By the way, if you see John, make sure you tell him I am sorry that my child put the moves on his beautiful little daughter.  Again, she was an older woman haha...He totally put his arm around her, held her hand, and then SMOOCHED her on the cheek...that's right, he kissed another girl.  I was slightly put out by this haha!  Sweet moses, he is a nut!  No photos of that, sorry...it was crazy dark out when it happened.

And here are a couple of photos from Easter...someone snuck into the photo when I was trying to get one of the baskets...Matty was super sweet and made me one too!

Do you think he was just a little excited about the Mickey Mouse cars I found???  I think he looks like Jacob here and I am very SCARED.

And I asked him to make a silly face for Daddy and instead he did this...makes your heart melt!

One more short post to go!  Love you, baby!

All My Love, 

Jessica

Daddy, we are very behind!

Hello, my Love...

Forgive me for being so behind, though I don't feel too badly about it since you haven't even been able to read the blog haha!  I am going to split it up in 3 posts for you and try not to write much (is that even possible for me????  Probably not.), so that way you can have some time to catch up.  

Just so you know, we love and miss you terribly...J was so excited to "see" you yesterday...He was asking about it the entire day, and even though he didn't sit for very long, he kept talking about it afterwards.  He misses his baseball buddy (me too, since I can barely bend over to pick up the ball...and he keeps hitting the ball directly at me, which feels awesome.).  

These are pics from a trip to the park...no one was hurt on this trip, thank goodness!  But your son did discover how to roll down the hill.  Thankfully I have stocked up on stain treaters haha!  He found a little buddy and they probably rolled for a good 15 or 20 minutes.  I have never seen him laugh so hard!

The first pic is pre-trip...Can you tell he was excited to get out of the house???

It looks like I never take him out lol...He played HARD!!!

And down the hill we go...

And this is J's war cry...he reminded me of one of the New Zealand rugby players when they shout and do their dance before the game...

And a smile for Daddy...

We love you so much!  Hope the Lord is granting you some sweet rest right now!

All My Love, 

Jessica

Mom's Little Trouble Maker...

Hello, my Love...

I think J's t-shirt says it all.  I don't even think I need to write a post.  But I will anyway...

J actually had a pretty good day yesterday, up until about 5:30...we had had a day with no accidents, great listening skills, and just pure wonderfulness from our sweet little Bubby.  This of course excludes the water in the shoes incident with Uncle Matt, which I thought was pretty funny.  But after that, our child experienced Jekyll and Hyde syndrome.  

I took him to the park to let him run off some steam.  When we got there the park was overcrowded with kids.  I don't even know why I got out of the car.  We should have kept on going to another park, but that one is his favorite, so I got out anyway.  So of course there was an Easter Egg Hunt at the Community Center.  Kids were running, eating candy, not listening to parents, yelling at other kids...my favorites were the preteen girls that couldn't have been more than 10 or 11 that were talking about the show Pretty Little Liars and running around with a stick.  After they almost hit J in the face twice and taught him how to say "Pretty Little Liars", I made them take the stick elsewhere...I also taught J how to say, "Liars are ugly,"...I hope he was listening...to me.

Porr J couldn't handle it.  He went nuts.  He wanted all of the candy.  He wouldn't wait his turn on the playground.  He drove the older kids crazy because he is a tag-a-long...After I had to discipline him for throwing the rubber chips at an entire family, he looked at me and said, "Mommy, I want to go home and take a nap."  I think that was a pretty good indication that we were done for the day.  Too bad he didn't take his nap earlier when he had the opportunity.  Could have been a totally different experience.

Bedtime was crazy too...Oh, well...tomorrow is a new day, with no mistakes in it...That is from Anne of Green Gables in case you have forgotten.  I wonder how Matty will feel when I make him watch the entire set of movies???  

Here are a couple of photos that prove J is still cute in sweet in the midst of craziness.  

J wanted to drive to the park...thanks for teaching him how to do that, by the way...

And I know that he definitely did not inherit this from me...this is you, through and through...

And this is my favorite...

What a cutie...

I love you, sweetheart.  I hope that you are resting well and ready for your busy weekend.  We miss you so much!

All My Love,

Jessica

Shaka, Baby!

Hello, my Love...

As you can see, J has been working really hard on being able to do the Shaka sign all by himself.  So when I asked him if he would take a photo for Daddy, showing how he helped mail out your first care package, he asked if he could do Shaka.  What a nut!  He wanted to share the Aloha spirit with you halfway across the world...and if he wasn't so pasty like his parents, I would swear he is part Hawaiian, since he embraces the wonderful, carefree, and funny personality that so many locals have here.  He even laughed at himself when he saw me put up the photo for this post.  Seriously, he is a nut!

J has been a challenge the past couple of days, so forgive me for not posting yesterday.  I needed a break...sweet moses, he can be a pistol.  If this is what 2 is like, then I am scared for 3!!!  And if it gets bad enough, I may make you take emergency leave because I will be on the fourth floor at Tripler, and NOT for a baby doctor appointment.  Just saying.  He has been incredibly curious and daring the past couple of days, and his little mouth is already running a mile a minute saying not so nice things.  I blame the curious and daring part on you.  As for his mouth...it must be from a distant relative.

I was thankful to hear your voice this morning!  And I was also reminded after our conversation that I needed to pray for our little one...it is funny how much different your day goes when you remember who even gave you that day to begin with.  J has been a totally different kid today, and I am beyond thankful!  Hopefully, I have been a better parent today as well.  He is still feisty, but it doesn't seem like as much of a fight today, and I am also reminded to thank the Lord for granting me an extra measure of grace and mercy.  I think knowing how the Lord loves me, even when I make mistakes, shows what kind of a parent I need to be with J.  I am trying to choose my battles, without causing him to be a mess in the middle of it...still a learning process that you and I get to experience for a long time!

Maybe this post is making you thankful to be away haha...

Well, my love, I am going to go read with our little munchkin.  It won't be just him and I much longer, so I am soaking it up while I can!  We love and miss you, and are praying for you daily.  Take care, baby, and try to rest if you can!

All My Love, 

Jessica

We Survived Week 1!!!

Hello, my Love...

Can you believe it has already been a week?  Your week seems to have been a bit more stressful, so maybe you do believe it...well we are thankful that it went by quickly over here and are praying that the same happens for all of you while you away!  I can handle 51 more weeks like this one.  Of course our little one hasn't arrived yet, and I am sure that my week is going to change dramatically here soon...which may turn into an ugly post, so forgive me in advance haha...

Your child was off the chain yesterday.  He did not want to listen or cooperate with anything or anyone that got in his way.  His stubbornness is clearly the result of your gene pool.  HAHA!  Yeah right!  That kid is just like me and it's scary.  You may want to hurry back in June to prevent the new, little one from developing the same traits!  Seriously though, please pray that I would be consistent with him over the next few weeks and that we would start to develop some good routines and behavior patterns...and if you have time, maybe you can ask the Lord to intercede with some Divine intervention and potty train him too...

I think he must have been missing a ton yesterday because he spoke of you often.  He even was talking and playing with his Daddy doll.  It was so sweet.  I have no idea what he was telling "you", but he was talking a mile a minute!  And for some reason, he seems to think that you are at church all day long...which is kind of true.  His new answer to, "Where is Daddy?" is "At Church in Afghanistan"...so cute!  I think it is funny that he is making that connection.  

Upon the suggestion of at least three different people this week, we are starting a Daddy Jar to help him count down the days to R & R.  Every day he gets to eat 2 m&m's and we will mark down a day on the calendar.  Thankfully he is little and won't notice if I have to add or take away a few!  We are looking for a world map too, so that I can show him where you are while you are away.  I am hoping he enjoys these things and that it will give him something to look forward to each day.  

I asked J if he could take a picture for his Daddy with his jar and he asked if he could make a silly face.  So, here is your photo of J for the day...

I think he looks just like you lol...

And my favorite part of this experience, I told J that he could have 2 pieces of candy.  So, he took out 2 pieces, counted them, and ate them.  I was checking my photo to make sure it wasn't blurry and then looked up to find this...

He had taken at least five or six extra pieces and shoved them in his mouth all at once.  How can you not laugh at that?!  What a little stinker.

J and I love and miss you so much!  Wish you were here eating banana pancakes with us!  Hope you are resting well and that you wake up refreshed for your busy day.

All My Love,

Jessica

Our Kid is a Nut!

Hello, my Love...

First, I want to say that as much as I love doing these blog posts, it is not always an easy task.  Many times when asking our little munchkin if he can smile for Daddy, I get poses like this...

I think to myself, "Is that useable???  Will he ever give me anything usable???"  Then I take a walk into the living room to find pen all over our new ottoman and I think to myself, "Oh, it's usable, baby!  This will be blackmail for all of the gray hairs you have given me since you were born!  Hope your future wife enjoy these someday!  And I really hope she likes the sucker drool protruding from your chin!"

We didn't get the "cute" photos I wanted yesterday because I forgot to take the camera in, but we did have a fun time.  We took J to see Rio, which was hilarious...as a matter of fact, you came to mind when the bad bird got hacked into pieces in the jet engines...it was awesome haha (so glad we share they same warped sense of humor)!  And we even got to have lunch with Ms. Niecey and Mr. C.  That was not so fun with J, but we were glad for the great company.  He was able to finish his day off with a nap and a sucker...I wish I was able to get a nap haha.  

It was great to get J out for a bit.  I think we wore him out!  

I also think he is a bit too serious about his sucker...

This is the other look I get when taking photos of J...the fake smile...my worst nightmare as a photographer.  Thankfully he is cute no matter what.

But every once in awhile, J is super sweet and gives me a genuine look through the lens...

And I am reminded of how much you and I have to be thankful for.

Love you so much and hope you are resting well!  Looking forward to hearing from you soon!

All My Love,

Jessica

Ice Cream Makes Everything Better...

Hello, my Love!

Yesterday was a busy day...J and I got up really early to make a meal for a family (the poor mama has cancer that spread throughout her entire body, so please pray for the W family if you are reading this).  After we delivered the meal, we took Ms. Jennifer to the Thai truck, which was heavenly.  I think that we will have many more Thai truck lunch dates while you boys are away!  The owner was awesome, as usual, and even came over to play with J with a pretend sword...though J seemed less than enthused, after having just woken up from his nap.  Chicken nuggets made it better, so no worries.  And then we ran some errands.

Since we weren't really hungry, we decided to have ice cream for dinner.  I would love to say that I did this for Josiah's benefit, but I am pregnant and everyone would know that it is a lie.  BUT, he did have fun and actually ate his entire bowl of sprinkled cake batter ice cream, so I don't feel too bad about it!  He was hamming it up for the camera while we were there, so those are the photos we are sharing today.

I am really excited for today's photos and hope they turn out cute.  We have some fun stuff planned for this afternoon, that I hope he enjoys.  We shall see!  

J seems to be developing into a pattern, so before bed last night, he came and crawled on my lap, and said, "I miss my Daddy.  Do you, Mommy?"  It will break my heart every time, I am sure...but I think you would be proud that I didn't cry and was able to sit there and talk about what you are doing with him.  We looked at photos of you yesterday and I think I am going to start a skittle countdown jar with him too.  I don't think a map is quite within his understanding yet (especially if he has his mom's geography skills), but we may try to keep one of those up as well, so that he can see where the army has taken us.  

By the way, I do miss you terribly.  I love you so much and can't wait for you to return!

We love you and hope that the Lord continues to grant you strength and encouragement as you hit the ground running.  Praying for you, baby!

All My Love,

Jessica

Oh, Daddy, we are in trouble...

Hello, my Love...

You missed a significant moment in your child's life yesterday...he met his first love.  Just like his Daddy, she is an older woman too.  And can I also tell you that your child is a FAST mover.  We may need to take this to the Lord in prayer haha!

Yesterday we went out with friends to Cholo's and J met a new friend, Miss R.  I should have known when they started fighting like a little, old, married couple at the table, over some toys, that they were meant to be more than friends.  When our lunch came out and we peeked over at them, I realized that your child had grabbed Miss R and was holding her hand at the table.  Sweet moses, we are in for it!

We took them for ice cream afterward and the little stinkers were holding hands again.  Miss R informed her mommy that J was her new friend and that he needed to be her boyfriend too.  We were dying laughing...these kids are only 2!  How funny it was to see them interacting with each other.  They even played footsie in the car, though it turned into a kicking match because your child was being a bit too overbearing for Miss R's taste.  

It sounded like some other couple I know...I love you and I know I am the overbearing one!

So, here is a picture of your future daughter in law holding hands with our crazy boy...She is gorgeous and sassy, and has great parents!  I love her already!

Parenting gets more awesome every day!  Wish you were here, baby, but we are so glad that you made it safely.  Love and hugs to you...

All My Love,

Jessica

Wish you were here...

All in all, yesterday was pretty uneventful.  I felt icky.  J was a homebody.  And Matty can't stand the mess anymore, so I kept catching him cleaning haha...I think you may have jumped out of your skin if you had sat around with us!

Let's see, what did you miss?  I really enjoyed when J threw the box of dryer sheets into the washer while I finished up six loads of laundry.  There is nothing better than wet cardboard all over the floor!  He peed on a pile of clothes upstairs, which by the way, was next to the toilet, all the while trying to eat toothpaste.  He tried a cucumber, told me he loved it, then 4 seconds later when he realized that there was skin on it, promptly asked if he could spit it into my hand because, "I don't like it mommy."  I don't know, maybe wet, soggy cucumber trumps the wet cardboard...Ahh, the joys of parenting.

Oh...and he started lining up his cars like Matty did when he was little.  He already hates being messy, so I am wondering if this should be a cause for concern.

I think it is starting to sink in that you will be gone for awhile.  He didn't ask where you were yesterday, but did want to know when you were coming home.  I told him I wanted to know the same thing...Just kidding.  I am hoping Skype works or at least some kind of communication to make things as consistent as we can for him.  He misses you.  We all miss you!

We took a quick pic outside, though some loser forget to turn down her ISO from the indoor shots the night before, so again it is REALLY fuzzy.  My goal is to get a good photo today while we are out with friends!  

We miss you so much and can't wait to see you!  

All of My Love,

Jessica

Is it April 2012 yet???

Oh, how we miss you!

We survived the first 36 hours, though I am beyond tired and hoping that your children will be kind enough to let me get a little bit of sleep tonight.  I wish you could have seen J when I put him to bed.  We ran him ragged today and there was hardly even a fight.  He hugged me, sang half of "Three Little Birds", then told me that he loved me.  He fell asleep in my arms.  

Your little boy misses you terribly.  He couldn't even make it through the story video tonight without crying and went upstairs to see if you were there.  I am hoping that it will sink in for him soon, and am praying to help him understand what is happening.  So glad that our Savior knows better than I do what to say and I know He will give me the words when I need them!

Here are the first photos, and I am a bit ashamed haha...it was dark when we took them, so they are a bit, okay, really fuzzy.  Thankfully, I know you don't care!  

This photo makes me laugh because he is making the same pouty face that I do...I am sure you will be able to verify that this is true and I am pretty sure that he is protesting what is about to happen!  Still, so sweet and cute.  And it makes me love you even more!

To fill some time, I tried to do something new with Josiah and let him paint for the first time...sweet moses, what was I thinking?!?!?!   The kid is a mess...and I am still finding paint lol.  He painted for you and Miss Kate, and was SOOOOO excited and proud of himself when he was finished.  Just so you know, your photo had his little handprints on it, but you can't tell anymore.  When I am feeling a bit braver, we will give it another shot!

And this photo is from today.  We had a mommy son movie date and watched Veggie Tales while eating Jiffy Pop Popcorn, which he found pretty entertaining while cooking on the grill.  He is such a ham!  And I am proud to say that I think that Veggie Tales is a hit...so maybe we can eliminate, "KACHOW!"

We miss you terribly, but the Lord has been so reassuring that it's going to be okay and go by quickly!  Our family has been covered in prayer, by so many people, all over creation, and I am eternally grateful. We know you have an important job to do and pray that you do it well to bring the Lord the glory and honor He deserves.  You are amazing and wonderful, and I can't wait to see you soon.

All of My Love, 

Jessica

  

We miss you already...

This blog is for the best daddy the boys and I will ever know.

Even though you will be far away soon, I want to make sure you know how much you are loved and missed back home.  I want you to know that you are still a huge part of our lives, even when we can't see you.  And most importantly, I want you to know that I appreciate the sacrifices you are making and the love you have for your soldiers.  You are a blessing to not only your growing family, but hundreds of families and service members.

I can't believe that it is here already.  I can't believe that we have been on active duty for almost an entire year...and I really can't believe that you knocked me up again and are abandoning diaper duty...go ahead and smile because you know you will miss my sarcasm!

My goal is to have a photo of our boy(s), put up every day, so that you can watch his (their) progress over the next year.  I don't want you to miss a thing, so we are documenting this crazy journey...the good, the bad, and the ugly!  This should be fun and quite the challenge...and a little something to keep my mind occupied.

I love you more than you could know.  I hope you know that, and I hope this blog will help bless your day while you are away...

Praying for you now and always...for strength, encouragement, and perseverance over the next year.

All of my love,

Jessica