Almost two...

Dane's second birthday is approaching quickly. We are looking forward to a quick trip home over Easter weekend to celebrate his birthday early with both sets of grandparents and hopefully some cousins, aunts, and uncles too!

Dane recently has taken to wearing his sunglasses while we're in the car. When I put them on him, he always comments, "Mommy, it's dark!" Of course, they come off after a couple of minutes, and then he can't put them back on himself. He gets frustrated and can't understand why I can't just turn around and help him replace his sunglasses as I'm driving down the interstate in traffic!

We had a little park date with Renee and her boys earlier this week. The weather has been awesome, and the boys had a great time. Camden slept, but we had our work cut out just keeping track of these two. The swings were great- they kept the boys "contained" for a little while so Renee and I could discuss important Mommy things!
Just listening to some tunes!

Spring is here!

Dane slows down just long enough to smell the flowers.

Daddy left yesterday morning for a quick business trip and will be back tomorrow evening. We both miss him! Dane misses all the fun he has playing with his energetic Daddy, and I miss having someone to help chase this busy little boy. (I'm not exactly lightning-quick these days!)

More pictures...

of Grampy and Grammy's visit here.

Socks

Here is a little video for Uncle Benny. Dane is finally able to wear the cute socks he got from Ben last year for his birthday, so he's got to show them off!

And I'm putting in a personal request for this year's birthday present to Dane. Another Uncle Benny CD with all new songs would be lovely. We listen to you constantly since Dane won't let me listen to anything else right now, so a little more variety would be great!! You have exactly 26 days to work on it!!

Grampy and Grammy

A wonderful week has already come and gone. We enjoyed Grampy and Grammy's visit so much! Sadly, I didn't take very many pictures. Grampy and Grammy took quite a few, but I'll let them post their own before I start stealing them! Here are just a few from our time together.

Dane with Grampy and Grammy out at Red Rock Park.

Daddy helps Dane walk the wall at Red Rock.
Riding the log flume at Buffalo Bill's.

Blowing bubbles in the backyard with Grammy.

Dane says thanks for all the fun walks to the park, playtime in the backyard, bedtime stories, and even a new sandbox! We say thanks for the baby-sitting, help with meals and laundry, and just for coming to see us! We miss you already!

Joey's growing...

...and here's the proof! Today we hit the 22 week mark. This little one is definitely already a mover! This past week, Joey had a personal 2-hour swimming lesson (or so it felt!) that kept Mommy awake during the middle of the night. We may have our hands very full with a second very active child in a few months!!

I'm still laughing...

Tonight, Mike and I were discussing Dane's propensity for tripping and falling or sometimes just stepping down off of a high point without realizing how far down he may fall. He often takes for granted that someone will just be there to catch him, and thankfully someone usually is! Mike stated, "Dane is steadfastly compliant with the law of gravity," and this really hit my funny bone. It goes down as one of my favorite quotes ever. I'm going to try to use this phrase more often to describe someone who is just a bit clumsy or accident-prone.

In other news, here are Dane's cute new headphones. They usually don't stay on real long before he decides to take them off and play with them!

Dane all dressed up in his Sunday best.

We can't wait for Grampy and Grammy's week-long visit! They arrive in 3 days!

So sweet...

My talented brother, ever the romantic, posted a beautiful song in honor of Valentine's Day. Play it for someone you love!

Mooooo

Dane has something to say to Uncle Benny who sent him this cute cow keychain in the mail Saturday. It lights up and moos when you press a little button on its head. Uncle Benny also got him a cow flashlight in December- it moos when you turn it on. Thank goodness for an uncle who keeps the house from being too quiet!

He's on fire!

Dane's baby-sitter, Sandy, loaned him this fun basketball hoop for the weekend. He and Daddy shot hoops together, and Dane seems to have the hang of things. We'll let you know when he signs his NBA contract!

Dane loves to feed biscuits to Teddy!

Swimming with Daddy

Thursday was Daddy's turn to swim with Dane during his lesson. They both had a great time!

Jumping- the best part of the class!

Baby Joey pictures

We had an appointment this morning, and little Joey seems to be doing just fine. Here are some pictures taken today. The first three are 3D images.

Cute little feet.

This one takes a bit of explaining, but it's a pretty cute picture once you can see it. The bright white circle to the right is baby's head from the top. Right in the middle of the picture is baby's hand with the index finger extended. Looks like somebody's already sucking a thumb!!

The last three are just profile pictures.

Just being silly!

While we were still sitting at the table this evening, Dane crawled up behind Daddy in his chair.

My goofy boys playing catch in the hallway.

Swimming

Tonight was Dane's first of six "Parent and Me" swimming lessons. Mommy got the honors of splashing and playing with Dane while Daddy took pictures and videos.

Jumping to Mommy.

Dunking under the water.

Batter Up!

We took advantage of some sunny weather Saturday afternoon at the ballpark. Daddy is trying to teach Dane how to switch hit.

So far he hasn't been successful!
Running the bases together.

Dane

I had to take this picture of Dane yesterday morning before we combed his hair. He gets the best bedhead, and this picture doesn't even quite capture it. By the way, I didn't put this shirt on him simply because his hair is so lovely! His latest thing is to say that he's "beautiful" while I'm combing his hair. This is because the baby-sitter always tells his friend Bryanna how beautiful she is while she's getting her hair combed.

A quick shot of Dane and Carter playing together the other evening. I should have taken more pictures of them. They are so fun to watch! They run around and copy each other. Dane will take off down the hall calling, "Carter, come here!" Here they are playing with Dane's favorite Thomas the Train book that plays songs. It's so popular right now that it is in our previous two posts (excluding the Joey update). We read (sing) this book every night before bedtime.

Joey update

Please don't think that I'm an ambitious, early riser based on the time of this blog post. I've actually been awake since 4 am and just couldn't sleep, so here I am wasting time on the internet. I'll probably hop back in bed soon and then be sleeping nicely about the time Dane wakes up and I need to get up and get ready for the day!

Back to Joey... Everything is progressing well. You may have noticed the tickers I added. I felt bad that Renee had to add a ticker to her page since I was so behind! My official due date is July 2 by dates, but it looks like Joey's birthday will be June 26 (scheduled c-section instead of emergency this time!). I've been able to feel baby kicking and tumbling now for the past 3 weeks or so. This is my tummy at 18 weeks pregnant.

Dane still is insistent that this is his baby sister, and even verified yesterday for me that we're going to have a baby girl. (Until then I wasn't sure if he really knew what sister meant, but I think he has the idea.) And no, Renee, this does not mean that we actually know and just aren't telling you!! More Joey pictures (ultrasound) to come next week.

Weekend in Salt Lake City

Catching up with Uncle Benny.

Meeting Sarah.
Heading out for Dane's first ski run.

Waiting in line for the lift.

Catching the chair.

Away they go! Dane thought the lift was a blast. He called it his "helicopter ride."

Zooming down the hill with Daddy.

Making a friend.

Ben and Sarah.

Mugging with Brother.

Dinner at the Rodizio Grill, a Brazilian steakhouse.

After a swim.

First tracks in the new snow before we headed for home yesterday.

Big Boy Room

A little over a week ago, we made the transition from Dane's nursery and crib that he had slept in ever since we brought him home from the hospital to his new room with a "big boy bed." He must have misunderstood me, because he calls this his new "good boy bed"!! He did pretty well and only fussed a little the first two nights at bedtime. He really seems to like his new room. His old room waits empty for little Joey's arrival.

A kiss for Daddy before bedtime.

January in Nevada

As in every place we've lived, Nevada has its ups and downs. A definite "up" is this view from my window as I eat breakfast on a January morning. I absolutely love these trees- we have two of them in our backyard.

Daddy and Dane share storytime.
Dane always insists on pushing his lawnmower into Teddy's doghouse, but he gets very upset when he can't get it turned around in such a tight space!

Daddy and Dane on Saturday. Mike's organization helped sponsor a Resolution Walk and 5k at a local park. It was a beautiful day with temps in the 60's.

Next weekend, we head to Salt Lake City to meet Benny and Sarah for some skiing/boarding. Of course, I have to stay off the slopes, but it will be nice to have a little weekend away!