The Stuarts

Weekend in Tahoe

2011-02-24T19:49:00.000-08:00

Today we left Fresno, and headed up to Tahoe for a couple days. I had this week off, so we thought it would be a good trip before the baby comes to spend some time up here. My sister and her family are planning on coming up either tomorrow or Saturday. It is suppose to be really cold, but we are just planning on laying low and maybe playing in the snow a little bit.

There was a big storm that was suppose to hit today, but it held off till we got here. The weather was really nice all the way up, but tonight is when the storm is suppose to get here.

Stay tuned for some pictures once we get back on Sunday.

Oliver's New Room

2011-02-13T19:58:00.001-08:00

With June coming quickly, we knew that we needed to get the spare room cleaned out and make it Oliver's new room. We knew we wanted him in it soon, so he wouldn't think the new baby was kicking him out of his current room. The spare room was a disaster! And when I say disaster, I mean to the point where I hated even opening the door and looking inside it. There were still boxes in the closet from when we moved in over 2 years ago!

We spent all day today going through everything. Making trash piles, donate piles, and piles of stuff to sell on craigslist.

There was already a day bed that Joey's dad gave us a while back, and we knew we were going to use my old dresser, so we pretty much just needed new bedding and decorations.

We went to Target today and let Ollie pick out the bedding that he wanted. Deep down I wanted him to pick the sports bedding that he already had on his toddler bed because I had already bought some of the decorations, just never put up(which I am glad I didn't). Sure enough he picked out the same exact bedding, just in a twin size.

I am so happy with the way it turned out. All that is left to do is put up the valance that matches, but we need to get the rod for it to go on. Once that is up(hopefully by this next weekend), it will be complete!

Now I can concentrate on going through all of Oliver's old clothes. Also, we just ordered the crib(long story, Oliver's was recalled) for the baby and can't wait to get it in.

Catching up with pictures

2011-01-08T13:31:00.001-08:00

Since I haven't posted pictures in a while here are some over the last couple months or so.

Making breakfast with daddy

Matthew, Jonathan, and Ollie

Ollie and mommy at BounceU

Look what Santa brought Ollie

Making cookies

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Catching up

2010-12-26T08:29:00.001-08:00

So I know it has been forever since I posted last, but there is a very good reason for it. I am pregnant! And up until a couple weeks ago I have been exhausted!!! With working full time, getting Oliver from daycare, getting dinner ready, and then bedtime for Ollie I have had zero energy.

Right now I am 16 weeks and we just found out it's another boy! We are so excited for Ollie to have a little brother. Plus we will be able to reuse all of the stuff that we already have.

We were able to tell our families that's its another boy on Christmas Eve. It was very exciting to see all their reactions. This will make 4 grandson's on my side!

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Vacation is almost over:(

2010-09-10T08:28:00.001-07:00

Yesterday Ollie and myself packed up the car and headed up to Walnut Creek to visit my sister and her family. The past couple road trips Ollie has been a total pill in the car so we decided to get a DVD player that attaches to the back of the head rest. Let me tell you, that is the best $100 that we have spent in a long time. I got him Toy Story and a Yo Gabba Gabba DVD and I didn't hear one peep out of him the entire ride!

Today my sister's friend Jamie is coming into town and I think we are going to do a little shopping. Then later tonight they are going to a concert and Joey is coming up on the train.

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Finger painting fun!

2010-09-08T21:38:00.001-07:00

What a fun day we had today! I have been wanting to change up Oliver's room from a nursery to a big boy room. A friend of mine had her kids do this and I thought it was a great idea and I knew Ollie would love doing it.

It sure was messy, but we had a ton of fun!

I'll post pictures of his finished masterpiece as soon as I get them hung up in his room.

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Fun at the Zoo

2010-09-07T20:41:00.001-07:00

Today Ollie, my mom, and myself met Aimee and Marlee at the zoo. We got there nice and early and the weather was beautiful! Ollie had a great time with Marlee.

After the zoo we went to lunch and then dropped my mom off at home. I had a doctors appointment at 3 so my mom came over around 2:30 to watch Ollie(he was napping when I had to leave). Got home at 4 and Ollie was still sleeping! He had such a long day he was exhausted!

Not sure what we have going on tomorrow. One thing I do want to do is watch the DVD that came with the clippers that I bought a couple months ago. Ollie's hair grows so fast that I am hoping I can do a good job cutting his hair so I can start doing it on a regular basis.

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Vacation

2010-09-06T22:03:00.001-07:00

I am on vacation this weeks and it feels so nice. Today Joey had to work a half day so Ollie and I just hung around the house in the morning and didn't do much. At around 4:30 we headed over to our friend's house for a wonderful BBQ. While there Ollie found a couple girlfriends!

Ollie, Baylee, and Marlee

Tomorrow my mom, Ollie, and myself are headed to the zoo with Marlee and her mom Aimee.

While I am on vacation this week I am planning a couple things with Ollie. One BIG thing is potty training. The past couple months he has shown some interest, then this last week he went on the potty TWICE!!!

Then on Thursday me and Ollie are headed up to Walnut Creek to spend a couple days with my sister and her family. Then on Saturday Joey is going to meet us up there and we are going to spend time with his mom. Saturday night is Bob's 50th birthday party!

Since I won't be working this week I am really going to try and post everyday.

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Aunt Ally comes for a visit

2010-08-25T12:20:00.000-07:00

This past Sunday Joey's mom came to Fresno to drop Allison off to spend a couple days with us. It has been really nice having her here and able to entertain Ollie while I am trying to get things done around the house.

Monday they went to the zoo and yesterday just hung out around the house. Today Allison and Joey are taking the train back up to Walnut Creek to drop her off.

This is his muscle pose!

Funny face

At the zoo

Joey said that he LOVED the zoo! I am on vacation in a couple weeks so I am planning on taking him to the zoo and Storyland.

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Oh how times change

2010-08-13T19:36:00.000-07:00

When Ollie was younger whenever someone would get a camera out, he would give you the biggest cheesiest smiles ever. Like this...

Now, I get this..

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Oliver's 2nd Birthday Party

2010-08-02T20:53:00.000-07:00

This past Saturday we had Oliver's party at our house. It was so nice having family and close friends help celebrate his special day. Oliver loves Mickey right now so we decided to have a Mickey Mouse theme. I found that you can personalize shirts through the online Disney store and got him the cutest shirt with Mickey and his name on it.

He got some great gifts. Some of the things he got were: a fire truck puzzle that you can color on, a tricycle, a Harley Davidson big wheel, new shoes, a couple new outfits, a cookie monster doll, a helmet, cars, legos, and Rody a cool blow up horse that he can bounce on. I am sure I am missing some stuff, but as you can see he is very spoiled.

I know I have said it before, but I seriously can't believe he is going to be 2 tomorrow. Where has the time gone?

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Big boy bed...take two!

2010-07-26T21:29:00.001-07:00

A month or so ago I posted about Ollie sleeping in his "big boy" bed. Well that only lasted about a week. For some reason after a week he just didn't want to stay in it. A couple minutes after putting him to bed he would get out of bed and cry by the door. Finally after about an hour or two going in there I gave up and set up his pack n play. I knew if I just let him cry he would eventually fall asleep, but to be honest with you, I was just too exhausted from the day to deal with it. And as soon as I put him in his pack n play he would fall asleep.

Well last week when I picked him up from daycare his babysitter told me that she is transitioning to a mat during nap time and he did a great job! I knew that I needed to get him back in his big boy bed. I am happy to report that since last Wednesday he has slept in it every night, not cried, and not tried to get out!

Here is a quick picture of the big boy. I can't believe he is going to be 2 in a week! Seriously...where has the time gone?

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2010-07-21T16:12:00.001-07:00

Wow! It has been a long time since I last posted. But I have discovered a Blogpress app for the iPhone, so now it will be much more easy for me to keep everyone updated. I can also post pictures and since most of my pictures of Ollie are on my phone it makes it that much easier!

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Big Boy Bed

2010-05-02T13:57:00.001-07:00

The other day my sister sent me a link about some recent recalls on cribs. I took a look at it and sure enough Oliver's crib was on the list. It stated on the recall that since the company is out of business we can just take the crib to where we purchased it and get either a replacement crib, store credit, or a refund. I called Target(where we got the crib) and they said just to bring it in. When Joey got home from work we took it apart and headed over to Target. I couldn't remember what we paid for it, but I knew it was around $250. When we went up to customer service they said that we would be getting the full price refunded back to us! Now mind you, even though Oliver had put bite marks all over the sides, we were just going to use the same crib for our second child. I didn't think Oliver was ready for his big boy bed yet, so we looked at what they had to offer for cribs. They didn't have anything that would match with the furniture that we already had in his room.

When we got home we figured we can try him out in his bed and see how he does, and to our amazement he did great! I was worried what he would do in the morning, if he would get out or just sit in bed. The next morning when he woke up I heard him talking so I went in there and he was just sitting up in bed playing with all his stuffed animals!

So far he has slept very good at night and taken some really good naps in his new bed. We went back to Target to get him new sheets, and found some really cute sports sheets. Now I want to redo his room, but we will have to see.

Here are a couple pictures of him in his new bed, as you can see, he loves it! Now when we have our second child, he/she will not get a hammy down crib with bite marks all over it:)

Easter Sunday

2010-04-06T20:53:00.001-07:00

We had a very nice Easter weekend. My sister and her family came into town Friday evening and Oliver had a blast playing with his cousins. Saturday was spent just hanging out at home, dying eggs, and making a last minute Easter trip to Target.

Sunday we woke up, got ready, and headed over to church. We were not too sure how Oliver would do in church and he just did ok. My mom ended up taking all 3 boys to the library about half way through the service. After the service we had the Easter egg hunt. This was Oliver's first one, and he really got the hang of it. He pretty much knew exactly what to do.

We didn't get a lot of pictures, but here are a couple that Joey ended up getting.

Getting ready

Not too sure what to do at first

Getting the hang of it

Look Mom, there is one in there!

March of Dimes

2010-02-13T15:45:00.000-08:00

Every year I am in charge of the March of Dimes for my branch at work. I have loved being in charge of it, but especially since I became a mother. I am so blessed to have a healthy little guy, that I want all parents to be just as lucky.

This year Fresno Live(local discount card) is donating $6 for every card sold to the March of Dimes(cards only cost $12)! I have signed up with them and created my own little page on their site. If you are interested in buying one just click on the link below and it will direct you to the purchasing page. There are over 200 local companies and restaurants that accept Fresno Live, so you are sure to make your money back and then some!

http://www.fresnolive.com/idevaffiliate/idevaffiliate.php?id=132

Weekend in Tahoe

2010-01-17T19:48:00.000-08:00

This weekend Joey, Oliver, and myself went up to Tahoe with Joey's dad and step mom. They bought a cabin about a month ago so we decided to go up for the 3 day weekend.

We had a great time. Although it did start off a little rocky when Oliver got sick in the car on the way up:( We were about 10-15 minutes away from the cabin and he got sick everywhere! It wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be, but it did get all over himself, his bunny, and his blankets. As soon as we got in the house he was running all over the place, so I knew he was feeling better.

We didn't have much planned, but we knew we wanted to take Ollie sledding, and Joey had to go to a little restaurant called Izzy's. I guess he used to go there all the time, but hadn't been there in almost 15 years, so we went for lunch yesterday.

I think Ollie enjoyed the snow. He was really excited when we started to go sledding, but go tired and cold pretty quickly. He was much happier sitting in my lap watching the dogs run around.

We were planning on coming home on Monday, but there was a huge storm on it's way, so we decided to leave this afternoon. As soon as we got into Placerville it started raining really hard, so I knew we made the right decision to leave today. We were a little bummed that we had to leave early, but there are going to be many more times up there.

I took a lot more pictures, but they take so long to upload. Here are just a couple, but there are a lot more on my facebook page.

Where have I been?

2010-01-14T15:05:00.000-08:00

I started writting a new post about a week ago about our Christmas and everything else that has been going on and just couldn't finish it. We have been so busy, and I finally have some free time to put an update up.

To quickly go over Christmas, everything was very nice, but super busy. Oliver is definitely spoiled and loved very much. There was a lot of time spent with almost everyone in the family(we were unable to see Joey's brother and sister in law).

Now on to what is going on now.

The Tuesday before Christmas when I picked Oliver up from the babysitters so told me that she was going to have to stop watching Oliver:( She has 3 children of her own, and she said it is too hard scheduling his naps on when she needs to pick her kids up from school.

I was a little upset and now wondering who I was going to have watch him. When I was first looking for someone I was having a hard time. I really didn't want him in a day care center since he was only 4 months old. So I lucked out with one of my old friends sister had decided she wanted to watch someone just part time. And that is exactly what I needed. So when she said that she was going to have to stop watching him, I knew I was right back to starting the process all over.

I knew of one lady that has come into my work that watches kids, and one of my co-workers step son goes to her. She is really nice and has been running a day care out of her home for over 20 years.

I called her a couple weeks ago and got all the information, and yesterday me, Joey, and Oliver went to visit her. I really liked what I saw, and Oliver seemed pretty comfortable there. We only stayed for about 30 minutes since I was on my lunch break, but I can tell it is going to be a perfect fit! In addition, she is $13/day cheaper, so we are going to send him 3 times a week instead of 2. This will give Joey an entire day to himself to work on homework(he is starting some online classes on February 1st) or go into work for a couple hours to get stuff done.

We are going to send Oliver to Tonya's on Wednesday to see how he does, but he will officially start on February 1st. I think he will really like it there and get some really good interaction with other children.

Tomorrow we are heading to Tahoe for the long weekend and can't wait to get out of Fresno for a couple days. I will be sure to post some pictures when we get back of Oliver's first trip to the snow!

Today is a very special day

2009-12-03T21:38:00.000-08:00

The 3rd of the month has a lot of meaning in our family:

- We got married on June 3, 2006
- Exactly a year and a half later, on December 3, 2007 we found out I was pregnant
- And on August 3, 2008 Oliver was born

So today on December 3, 2009 we have been married for 3 1/2 years, we found out 2 years ago that I was pregnant, and Oliver is 16 months old today!

Today after work we took Oliver to see Santa. Me and my mom actually took him on Monday to see how he would react to him, and he did a really good job, so we decided to get his picture taken tonight. He did so good! He absolutely LOVED him. They let me take some pictures while they were taking them and they all turned out great!

For some reason I am having a hard time scanning the one that they took, but here are a couple that I took.

This past week

2009-12-01T20:52:00.001-08:00

This past week has been super busy. My sister and her family came into town last Tuesday evening for Thanksgiving and stayed until Sunday. Thanksgiving was spent between my parents house and Joey's dad's house. It works out pretty well with our families. My family eats early, usually around 4, and his family eats around 6. So after we were done at my parents we headed over to his dad's house. Joey's two step sisters were in town, so it was really nice to spend some time with them, and have them spend time with Ollie since they don't get to see him that much.

Friday Joey had to work, so me and Ollie headed over to Target later on in the day. It was not nearly as bad as I thought it was going to be. I got a couple gifts out of the way and then went over to my parents house. It was pretty much a lazy day after that. Joey got off around 4 and then after dinner and after we put the kids to bed me, Joey, and my brother-in-law met my cousin and his fiance over at Starbucks. My sister met us a little later after she got her hair cut.

That is when my cousin spilled the beans about what happened after we left my parents on Thanksgiving. My grandfather had some pretty odd things around his house. One item in particular was this statue of a naked women, just from the chest up. Last year my uncle put it up in my parents garage. Now, they have decided to start a "tradition" that every year someone different gets her. And we are now the lucky owners of her(my mom has named her nefertitty). Since we left her at my parents, my sister, brother-in-law, and mom decided to go over to our house and hang her up on our wall. Mind you, this all happened on Thursday night, and on Friday I didn't even notice it!

Needless to say we have moved her...into the downstairs bathroom!

On Saturday Joey's brother and sister-in-law were in town from down south, so we all went to dinner at Luna's in Old Town Clovis. We had not seen them for a while, so it was really nice to catch up with them.

The rest of the weekend was spend relaxing and doing our normal Sunday activities, lunch at Colorado Grill, and our weekly trip to Target. We also hung Christmas lights outside(pictures to come later).

I have also had a couple days off of work. I decided to take a weeks vacation, just to hang out with Ollie, and get all of my Christmas shopping done. It has been really nice having these past couple days off with my little man and really don't want to go back to work on Thursday:(

Family Pictures

2009-11-14T22:11:00.000-08:00

Here are some of the pictures that were taken a couple weeks ago while we were in Walnut Creek. I really like the way they turned out. He took over 150 pictures, so to say the least it was hard deciding which ones to get.

Lots to catch up on!

2009-11-08T22:23:00.000-08:00

I know I have been MIA for a while. Get ready for a lot of pictures.

Halloween weekend we headed up to Walnut Creek to see my sister and her family and then my husbands family and also to have our family pictures taken.

The family pictures turned out really good, now I just need to go pick our favorites and order them. I think I have narrowed it down, but I am going to go through all of them one more time.

Halloween evening we headed to downtown Walnut Creek to do some trick-or-treating. Joey's little sister, Allison, came along to help out with the boys.

My little dragon

Dragon and Daddy

Mommy and Dragon

Ollie the Dragon, Allison the Mardi Gras Girl, Matthew: Dash, and Jonathan: Woody

After trick-or-treating we went back to Joey's mom's house to roast marshmallows by the fire pit in the back yard.

Sunday was a pretty lazy day and just hung out around the house most of the day and then left to come back home around 6:00pm.

This past week was full of work and then Oliver's 15 month check up on Friday. Here are his stats:

Weight: 22.1lbs(20%)
Height: 30inches(25%)
Head Circumference: don't remember the number but he is in the 45%!

Friday I also met up with an old friend from high school and her little boy Vincent for lunch. It was so good to see her(it had been over 3 years) and it was so good to meet Vincent, who is so adorable!

Seriously how cute is he?!?!

Oliver loved him!

Big hugs!

Oliver sharing his seat with Vincent

Also on Friday my sister and her family came into town. This morning my sister ran in the Fresno/Clovis Half Marathon, and I ran the first leg of the full Marathon! I was definitely not ready for it, but I did finish. My work was sponsoring it, and the needed one last person, so last minute I said I would do it. Now, I have not ran since I got pregnant with Oliver, so to say the least I was way out of shape! 3 years ago I ran the Disneyland Half Marathon with no training, but running 6.5 miles this morning seamed a lot harder! But that did put me in the mood to actually start training and maybe I will run the half next year!

My cheesy boy!

2009-10-21T22:25:00.000-07:00

This is Oliver's new "cheesy" face! Whenever we get the camera out, he has this smile.

We are taking family pictures on Halloween, and I know he is going to ham it up for the camera. We are going to be up in Walnut Creek that weekend and Joey has an old friend that is a photographer up there. We have been wanting to take family pictures for so long, so we thought that this would be a great time to take them. Also, we have yet to take Oliver's 1st birthday pictures(a little late I know), and since it is Halloween, we will take a couple with him in his costume.

Oh, and tonight while I was brushing his teeth, I noticed he got one of his back upper teeth! We had no idea it even came in!

I just have to put this picture in. Joey took Oliver to the park today, and I just love this picture he got.

Boys will be boys...

2009-10-19T21:49:00.000-07:00

Oh my oh my!!! I think I have finally learned that boys will be boys!

On Saturday we were all in the back yard watching Joey BBQ and enjoying the nice night outside. Oliver was exploring the back yard, and decided that it would be fun to play in the flower beds(can you still call it a flower bed if there are not any flowers in it?). I took his shirt off and just let him run around in his diaper. That is when all the fun started!

I took my eyes off of him for 2 seconds(I know I know) and I look over at him and he has a mouth full of dirt! He thought it was so funny. I didn't have my camera outside, so I ran inside to get it. The 30 seconds that it took me to run upstairs and get the camera, I get back outside, and this is what I find!

Joey had taken him over to the other side of the yard to "wash" his hands and thought it would be fun to sit in the mud!

Oh, and it doesn't end there. About a minute later that cute little muddy hand of his went right into his mouth! Mind you this whole time, Joey was cracking up laughing!!!

I stripped him naked and gave him a bath in the kitchen sink.

I have always heard the sang "Boys will be boys", but now I truly know the meaning to it now!

Pumpkin Patch

2009-10-10T20:48:00.000-07:00

Tonight after dinner we decided to go to the pumpkin patch. There is one closer to our house off of Palm and Bullard, but we heard that the one off of First and Nees is bigger...plus it is close to Yodigity!

This was Oliver's first time to the pumpkin patch. Last year he was only 3 months old on Halloween, so it would have been kinda a waste to take him being so young.

He loved it out there! He was able to run all over the place and even tried to pick up some very large pumpkins!

Right as we were getting to leave, he met a little girl that was a month younger than him. She was so cute! They were almost the exact same size, and even kinda looked alike!

Oliver was such a great little boy today too! This morning we dropped my mom off at the train station, she was heading up to Walnut Creek to watch the boys since Katie and Eric are going down to Disneyland tomorrow. After the train station we went to Target, we drove past my grandpa's house, went to the grocery store, and then finally came home to have some lunch.

I can't believe how much he is learning everyday. Today he started to say diaper, and I have to say it is so cute to hear him say it. Also, if you tell him it is time to go to bed, he will walk right into his room and point to his crib.

Tomorrow is going to be a lazy day spent around the house. Joe has to go into work for a little bit, so that will give me time to do laundry and clean the house up a bit.

Finally new pictures

2009-09-25T20:10:00.000-07:00

The past 2 days have been very long...Oliver officially has his first cold of the season:( I noticed a runny nose the other day when I picked him up from the babysitter. I really didn't think anything of it because I thought it was just because he is teething. Well yesterday when my mom was over watching him, she noticed that he was coughing and sneezing. This morning when I got him up he looked so pitiful. His eyes were all red and his nose was running and he was coughing. I decided to stay home from work, but I had an eye doctor appointment at 9:45. So my mom came over just for a little bit so I could go to my appointment. When I got home at about 11:00 he was sleeping and slept till about 1:15. When he got up from his nap, he seemed to be in a great mood. We had lunch and then played till about 3:00 when I put him down for another nap. When he woke up later on, he looked a lot better, but was coughing a lot! I felt so bad for him. After dinner we went for a nice walk around the block, then it was time for a bath, more playing and then bed.

I put him down, and about 10 minutes later I could hear him talking like crazy. I go in there and find him laying down talking to him bunny. It was too cute.

He is now down for the night. Tomorrow we are suppose to go over to a family friends for dinner, but I think Joey is going to stay home with him.

Sorry, no new pictures:(

2009-09-20T20:20:00.000-07:00

So I know I promised new pictures, but we lost the memory card to the camera(don't worry, all of our pictures were already on the computer). We just went out today and got a new one.

New pictures of Oliver will be up by the end of the week...I promise!

I am still alive...I promise!

2009-09-15T10:12:00.000-07:00

I know, it has been over a month since my last post. Honestly though, not much has been going on, although we have been so busy during the week. With work and all, it just doesn’t seem like there are enough hours in the day. By the time I get home from getting Oliver from the babysitter I still have an hour before Joey gets home. In that time I have to figure out what to make for dinner, make it, and keep Oliver entertained. Let me tell you, that is no easy task.

At the beginning of September Joey was in Vegas for 5 days for work. This meant 5 VERY long days for me. He left on a Sunday morning and came home on Thursday morning while I was at work. Oliver was so happy to see him, and so was I!
This past Friday Joey’s mom and little sister came into town to watch Oliver for the day. I had been about 3 months since they saw him, so it was nice for him to spend the day with them. When I came home from work we went out to dinner before they headed back up to Walnut Creek. It was a short trip, but hopefully we can make it up there in the next couple weeks or so.

I can’t believe how much Oliver is learning these days. When they say kids are like sponges, they are totally right. When Joey’s sister was here she taught Oliver how to make a monkey sound, now, he walks around the house screaming like a monkey! Then on Saturday me and my mom went shopping for his Halloween costume and found the cutest dragon costume at Old Navy. I roared like a dragon, and now he does that too.

Not only is he learning so much, he is learning how to get around certain things too. For example: My mom has these decorative spoon rests hanging on the side of the island in the kitchen. For some reason all 3 boys have loved to play with them. They know they are not allowed, but do so anyways. On Sunday we were over there for dinner and Oliver walked over to the spoons and started to play with them. I told him no and he walked away. A couple minutes later I looked over and he was holding his bunny having the bunny touch the spoons! I have to admit, I though it was pretty funny, and smart on his part!

Since I am at work, there are no pictures to post, but I will try and get some up tomorrow after my birthday dinner!

Oliver's 1st Birthday

2009-08-09T10:56:00.001-07:00

Make photo slide shows at www.OneTrueMedia.com

What a day!!!

2009-08-09T09:43:00.001-07:00

Yesterday was Oliver's birthday party, it was a crazy, busy day, but so much fun at the same time. Me and Joey started early at 7:30am getting things ready. I had some last minute things to pick up like the cake and balloons, so I did that while Joey stayed home to clean while Oliver was napping. My mom and brother-in-law, and then Joey's dad, step-mom, and Papa showed up around 10:30 to get all the food over to the clubhouse. By the time 11:00 rolled around the party was in full swing. Everyone was arriving, getting some snacks, and Joey and his dad were firing up the BBQ.

There were so many people that loved Oliver there to help celebrate his big day! My sister and her family drove down from the bay area and my cousins fiance came up from Visialia, also one of my good friends, Meredith, was in town from Arizona so she came with her adorable kids, Monica(2) and Magill(2months). Other's that were there were my parents and Joey's dad, step-mom and Papa, The Harris Family(John, Kim, Mia, Portia, and Ethan, The Bird Fam(Aimee, Baylee, and Marlee, my Aunt, Uncle, and cousins, Jay and Vanessa, my friend Andrea(from work) her boyfriend, and his son.

All the kids got along so great! We had some baseball coloring pages for them, also some little soft baseballs and slinkies. The little baseballs were a big hit. As soon as some of the little ones started to get a little fussy, I pulled those out and they LOVED them, even some of the bigger kids joined in.

Oliver got some great gifts! Joey's dad and step-mom got him the cutest little ride on fire truck and fire hat. As soon as we opened it, he wanted to get on and ring the little bell. He also got a lot of super cute clothes for the winter, a ride on little car, a lawn mower, telephone, remote control car, and a bunch of other cute toys.

We ended up taking a lot of pictures, so I am working on uploading them in a slide show and will post again with all the pictures.

Now we are relaxing today with a couple errands and I just have to go back to the clubhouse to clean the floor and make sure everything is nice and neat. We had the room all day, so after the party and a much needed nap, we had my family over for some poker and visiting.

It was such a fun day, but I have 2 words for next year...Chuck E Cheese!!!!

Birthday Pictures

2009-08-04T22:33:00.000-07:00

He was not happy about getting older already!

Ollie and Daddy

He loves his new wagon so much he wanted Lenny to join him!

Chef Oliver

Not too sure about the frosting!

Happy Birthday Oliver

2009-08-03T14:28:00.001-07:00

Today, my baby is a year old! Seriously I cannot believe I have a child that is a year old, not a baby anymore, a toddler. I am sitting here at work (yes, I have to work today, it sucks, but Joey is off all week, and is getting some quality daddy and Ollie time in) going over all the things that were taking place a year ago. I had trouble sleeping last night, kind of how it is when it is my birthday, so excited that it is hard to fall asleep. I finally fell asleep at around midnight, and then woke up at 4:05am, exactly 40 minutes after I had Oliver a year before. Me and Joey actually joked about waking up at 3:25am and wishing him a Happy Birthday. My mom has always called me at 11:38am on my birthday, but there is no way I will do that for Oliver!!!

Oliver is such a happy baby. We call him our little cheese ball. When we tell him to smile, he makes this cheesy smile showing his cute little teeth and scrunching his nose. He says a couple words: Dada, Mama, owsa (outside), baa (ball), and ha (Hi). We can really see his little personality coming out too. He loves to play with our cell phones and any TV remote control, but if we take it away from him, he throws a little tantrum! He also loves all types of food. I don’t think there is one food that he doesn’t like; he will eat anything that is put in front of him! He is almost waking on his own too! He will take a couple steps before falling to him bottom. But I can tell he is going to take off any day now!

His looks are changing all the time too. Sometimes I look at him and he looks exactly like Joey, then other times he looks like me, then other’s he is just Oliver.

I cannot wait to see what this year brings for us, to watch him grow and learn new things.

Happy Birthday Oliver!!! I love you will all my heart!

Where has the year gone?

2009-08-01T21:38:00.000-07:00

As Oliver's birthday approaches I have been sitting here thinking about this past year. I can't believe that in 2 days my baby is going to be a year old! It seems like yesterday we brought him home from the hospital and we had no idea what to expect. Every new parent tells you that one of the hardest things about being a new mom is the lack of sleep. Apparently Oliver is not the norm. From the first day that we brought him home till he was 8 weeks old, he would only wake up once in the night for a feeding. Then once he was 8 weeks old he practially slept through the night. We would have to go into him room once a night if he spit out his pacifire, but Joey was always so good about not making me always get up.

If being a fist time mom was not stressful enough, we decided to buy our first house when Oliver was just 4 weeks old. Then 4 days before I went back to work we moved in. We have been slowly getting things done and organized around the house, it has taken a while, but is getting finally getting done!

So as I sit here looking back on the first year, I leave you with a couple pictures.

Some pictures from this weekend

2009-07-05T15:19:00.000-07:00

Thank you Papi for installing the new fan in my room!

This was his face when he saw Big Bird and Elmo on TV

Swimming with Daddy

Love this face!!!

Happy 4th of July

2009-07-04T09:52:00.000-07:00

Hope everyone has a great 4th! We are going to be heading to my parents house in a little bit for some BBQing, swimming, and a little birthday celebration for my cousin Darren.

Yesterday we spent a good part of the evening in the pool. Oliver loved being in there and watching his cousins splash around and tried a little splashing for himself! I will be sure to post some new pictures a little later this weekend, probably tomorrow morning.

Spaghetti

2009-06-27T16:56:00.000-07:00

The other night I made spaghetti and although you can't tell from the picture, Oliver loved it. He had it all over the place, his hair, ears, up the nose, and even his diaper was stained orange! Actually the reason why he is not happy in the picture is because he ate it all and there was nothing left.

Oliver is becoming such an active little guy. All he wants to do is play and when it is time for bed he gets upset because he still wants to play. He is also a daredevil, and as I type this he is standing on some of his toys trying to get over the baby gate(don't worry, he is no where close to getting over, and I just moved the toys out of the way). He is standing all by himself and even walking with his little shopping cart that we got the other day. With all this of course, comes a lot of falls, some with some bumps and bruises:( I can't believe in a little over a month he is going to be a year old!

Busy, Busy, Busy!!!

2009-06-11T19:27:00.001-07:00

The past couple weeks have been super busy. For the past week and a half I have been on vacation, and have another week off! It is actually the rest of my FMLA leave from when I had Oliver. I did not take all of it after I had him, and have to take it before his first birthday, or I will loose it. I didn't want it to go to "waste" so I decided to take it now.

The first week I just stayed around Fresno, hanging out with my mom and did a little bit of shopping. Then came last weekend and this past week. Where do I even begin? On Friday night my sister came into town for Megan's bridal shower that was on Sunday. Saturday we had a girls night with some of Megan's friends that came into town for the shower. We went to an amazing new restaurant Elements. It was really good and have decided the next time Katie and Eric are in town we are going to all go there for dinner.

Sunday was Megan's shower and it was beautiful! It was at her aunts house and as always it was so much fun and she got some really nice gifts. At around 4 that day me, Katie, and Oliver headed up to Walnut Creek. We arrived around 6:30 and once we got the kids to bed we went out at got a late dinner. I called Joey's mom to let her know that we were in town and that I wanted to meet up with her later on Monday after she got home from work. She said she was not feeling well, but that she would give me a call.

Monday morning after Katie dropped Matthew off at school me, Katie, Jonathan, and Oliver went to Starbucks for some coffee. That is where I got the call that Joey's mom was in the hospital! Bob wanted to know if Allison could hang out with us, and of course we said yes(Matthew and Jonathan love Allison, and she is such a big help with them). Bob dropped Allison off and that is when I found out that Sheryl had kidney stones and she was in A LOT of pain. I was suppose to come back to Fresno on Wednesday, but Joey really wanted to see his mom. So I decided to come home Tuesday and tomorrow we are headed back up to Walnut Creek for the weekend. We are planning on leaving tomorrow after Joey gets off of work at 2, then we are going to go into the city on Saturday. Oliver has not experienced San Francisco yet, and it has been a while since me and Joey have been.

Pictures will come a little later...

Happy 3rd Anniversary

2009-06-02T15:33:00.000-07:00

Today is our 3rd Anniversary!!! I can't believe how fast it has gone by, and how our lives have changed in the last 3 years.

One of our 1st pictures together at Disneyland September 2001

Our Wedding Day June 3, 2006

Look how young(and skinny!!!) we both look in the first picture! The wedding picture is a little dark because of the power outage, but is my favorite picture of us from that day.

Joey took the day off today, and I am on vacation so we are spending a nice day together. I think we are going to start the day with taking Oliver to the park, then it is off to Home Depot(Joey's new favorite store) to get plants for the backyard. Joey and his dad worked so hard the other day getting all the bricks laid for the patio, and also the retaining wall bricks for the planter box area. As soon as we get the flowers planted I will post a picture. Later tonight my mom is going to come over and watch Ollie while we go out to dinner and a movie!

Ollie's First Hair Cut

2009-05-25T10:30:00.000-07:00

Yesterday me and Joey decided that it was time to get Ollie's hair cut. His hair was so out of control, always in his eyes, and you would not believe how many people thought he was a girl! We took him to this really cute kids cut place in Clovis and the girl did a great job. He looks like such a big boy now! I miss his curls, but love his new "Big Boy" hair cut.

Some new pictures from the past couple days

2009-05-16T20:19:00.000-07:00

This was the first time he pulled himself up!

So proud of himself

"I'm not doing anything"

Happy boy out with daddy!

9 Month Doctor's Visit

2009-05-15T13:43:00.000-07:00

Today we had Oliver's 9 month doctor's appointment. Since my mom watches him on Friday's I picked her up on the way to the doctor and then just dropped both of them off at her house on the way to work.

Today's visit went very well. He is still our little guy, weighing in at 16.6lbs and 26 3/4 inches(only the 5th%)!!! He didn't have any shots today, but he did get his finger pricked twice to check his iron levels. He is such a champ, didn't even flinch when the nurse pricked his finger. The results were in by the time his doctor came to check him. He told us that his iron is a little low. It didn't really surprise me, since I have always had low iron. He also stated that we would check it one more time before we left, just to make sure. After that he checked his heart beat(to which he screamed), reflexes, eyes, and ears. He said his ears look great! After having 3 ear infections I was a little worried about how they were going to look. As a baby, Joey had to have tubes put in his ears not once, but twice! So I was a little worried that he was going to have more fluid in his ears. I asked the doctor at what point we would start to talk about tubes, and he said not until he has had an ear infection for at least 3 months without going away.

He said that Oliver is progressing very well and we can start to introduce more foods, especially meats because of his low iron. I am going to go out tomorrow and get a food grinder and start feeding him the same food that me and Joey eat(I guess that means we need to be eating healthier). Since we have been so busy the past month or so, we have not been eating the best, but now that Oliver will be eating the same food, I am totally going to change our meals.

Other than the low iron the doctor said he is doing great. The second iron test also came back low, so he has perscribed vitamins that have more iron in them.

His next visit will be when he is 1 year old!!! I can't believe that my baby is going to be a year in 2 1/2 months...where has all the time gone? It seems like just yesterday we were brining him home from the hospital!

My First Wagon Ride

2009-05-12T21:58:00.000-07:00

This is what I saw when I picked up Oliver at the babysitters yesterday. He looked so cute sitting there playing with the baseball. The picture was taken with my phone so it is a little fuzzy. I think I know what Oliver is going to put on is birthday wish list!!!

2009-05-10T22:10:00.000-07:00

Getting ready for bed

Can you tell he LOVED the swings

"This is so much fun"

Getting kisses from Dudley and Molly

My First Mother's Day

2009-05-10T22:01:00.001-07:00

Today was a great day...my first Mother's Day!

It kinda started last night with going over to Joey's dad's for dinner. His step sister Melissa was coming into town to surprise her mom. Melissa lives in Tahoe and is usually always working so we hardly get to see her. The last time was at Tim's wedding in October and I can't even remember when we saw her before that, it might have been Christmas 2007!

We had a wonderful dinner after we exchanged cards and gifts. Tom and Joni got me a card with a gift card to Sal's!!! We then ate a wonderful dinner, Tri Tip and potato salad, yum! After dinner we hung out and then had cupcakes from a new little bakery called Cupcake, very good! We left at around 9 because Ollie was getting fussy and it was way past his bedtime.

This morning Joey had a great morning planned for me. We first met up with my family at my parents house, then went off for lunch, and then off to the park for Ollie's first visit and first time on the swings. He LOVED the swings. It was so cute. As soon as I put him in and started swinging him we was laughing and pumping his legs back and forth! It was getting hot, so we only stayed for about 45 minutes or so, plus Ollie needed to get down for a nap. We went back to my parents house to put him down and took a little rest ourselves. We then had a great dinner that my brother-in-law Eric made and then dessert at Yodigity! We are now home and I am trying to finish some laundry for work this week..fun fun!!!

We took an insane amount of pictures this weekend. A new post will be above with just a couple pictures from this weekend.

Look at what I got!!!

2009-05-06T21:49:00.001-07:00

We are the pround new owner of a Canon Rebel XSI. This was my Mother's Day, Joey's Father Day, and our Anniversary present to each other! We have been looking at getting a new camera for a while now, and have been doing a lot of research on it. Joey went and got it today while I was at work, and as of tonight we have taken a ton of pictures on it! So start looking for a lot more pictures of Oliver!!!

2009-05-05T21:25:00.000-07:00

This weekend with the cousins...and 9 months old!

2009-05-03T21:10:00.000-07:00

This past weekend Katie, Eric, and the boys came down for a quick visit. It was great to have all 3 boys together again. Oliver is starting to play so much more independently and for much longer periods of time. This morning when he woke up, Joey went in and brought him into our room. We looked in his mouth his first tooth it starting to break through. It is not quite out yet, but I am sure any morning now it will be.

I can't believe he is 9 months old today. In 2 weeks we go to the doctor for his 9 month visit and I can't wait to see how much he has grown!

A picture from Easter

2009-04-27T20:32:00.000-07:00

Easter Sunday with Joey's siblings.
Top Row: Lauren(Joey's sister-in-law), Tim(Joey's brother), Andy(Joey's soon to be brother-in-law), Joey.
Bottom Row: Allison(Joey's half sister, Kim(Joey's sister), me, and Oliver.

Random Pictures

2009-04-20T22:30:00.000-07:00

At Jay and Vanessa's Wedding

Crazy Hair!!!

Carrots

He loves his puppy dog!

We finally went out and bought a memory card reader and uploaded all of our pictures on our new computer. These are just a few random pictures over the last couple months.

2009-04-18T22:36:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I know I am totally slacking on getting new pictures up, so here is a picture from about 2 weeks ago that I took with the computer. Now a little of what we have been up to.

Easter was great! We went up to Walnut Creek to see Joey's mom and the rest of the family. His brother Tim and his wife Lauren came up from LA, his sister Kim and her finance Andy came in from Mountain View, and his grandparents came in from Sacramento. It was the first time since October(Tim & Lauren's wedding) that we were all together. It was great to see Ollie interact with his Aunts and Uncles(although he didn't want anyone to hold him except me).

While we were there we also got to see my sister, Eric, and the boys. Me, Joey, Katie, and Eric also got a chance to see a movie...childless!!! It was great!

Ollie had a great first Easter. We were able to get his pictures taken at The Picture People and they turned out really cute. Ollie totally knows when there is a camera on him...he is a ham!

On Friday when my mom was watching Oliver I came home for lunch and he was in a horrible mood! My mom said that he had been like that for the entire morning and she thought that he might be sick. She took him to the doctor later in the day and sure enough he has a double ear infection! Poor little guy was in so much pain! We were scheduled to walk in the March of Dimes walk, but decided not too since he was so sick. He woke up this morning and you would have had no idea he has an ear infection...he was in the best mood. So I decided to go ahead and go with him. He had such a great time and was so good.

I can't believe in 2 weeks he is going to be 9 months old! I can not wait for the next couple months as he is learning new things everyday. Right now his favorite thing to do is play peek a boo. He hides his head in my chest and then pops up with this huge smile, it is the cutest thing ever. I am already thinking of what we are going to do for his first birthday!

2009-04-05T15:44:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, me, my mom, and Ollie went to Osh Hardware to visit my dad who was working a booth for the city. They had a fire truck out there and were giving out these cute fire hats. Ollie was too cute in it, and I couldn't resist taking a picture.

New Computer

2009-04-04T23:53:00.001-07:00

The other night while I was online, I noticed some really weird program running on our laptop. I did not think anything of it so I just left it alone. The next day, Joey was off and was watching Oliver, while he was napping Joey got on the computer to check some things. I guess he noticed the program running, so when Oliver woke up he took a walk to the shopping center by our house to have the guys at "Computer Geek" check it out. Well I guess our laptop had a couple viruses. It was going to be $120 for the guy to look at it and clean everything off of it, but there was no guarantee that it would all be fixed. The laptop was almost 6 years old, so I really did not think that it was worth it. Plus we had been talking about getting a new computer anyways. Joey really wanted an Apple, so Friday night we went to the mall to check them out.

We went ahead and ended up getting a brand new iMac. It is pretty cool, still trying to get the hang of it. The key board is pretty small, so that is hard to get used to, and the mouse it a little different too. Right now we have it set up in the loft, but as soon as we get the spare bedroom organized and get a desk we will put it in there.

I still need to find the cord to our camera, until then no new pictures of the boy:(

Some new pictures of the boy

2009-03-26T21:16:00.001-07:00

So happy!

This one is a little hard to see, but he looks so cute peeking around to look at the camera!

Crazy hair

The World of Couponing!

2009-03-24T10:08:00.001-07:00

So, I have been sucked into the world of couponing!!! I have always clipped coupons here and there, but never really saw a huge savings...until now. I have been reading this blog, krazycouponlady.blogspot.com, and have learned so much, especially about Walgreens. When my sister lived in Chicago she would always tell me about the great deals she got at CVS. I was so jealous that we didn't have a CVS here in Fresno...that is until I heard about Walgreens Rebate system. At first it is a little confusing, but I am starting to get the hang of it. On last nights trip this is what I got:

4 boxes of Kellogg's Cereal
1 Pledge Fabric Sweeper
Colgate Toothpaste
Right Guard Deodorant
Axe Shampoo+Conditioner
Aveeno Baby Sunscreen

Total after coupons, rebates, and register rewards:
$2.80!!!!

Not all weeks are that good, but I am very proud of myself that I got all that for only $2.80.

This is for Kristen! House Pictures!!!

2009-03-23T20:42:00.000-07:00

So I finally have a couple house pictures(thanks to Joey's friend Eric!)

This would be our messy kitchen:)

Front of the house

Our living room. Please don't mind me, Oliver had just thrown up all over himself and his car seat and I was trying to get him undressed and ready for his bath.

I still can't find the cord for my camera that connects to the computer. We actually really need a new camera. Hopefully within the next couple months I can get the Canon Rebel XS, it is such a nice camera. Also, I just finished painting Oliver's room, all I need to do is hang some pictures and other stuff on the wall. Maybe I can find the cord by the time I have done that and post a picture of his room(it is so cute!)

My Baby is 7 Months Old!

2009-03-03T19:37:00.000-08:00

So I can't believe it...Oliver is 7 months old today! He is such a great baby. He is doing new things everyday. Here are some of the things that he has been up to:

He can waive "Hi". So far he only does this to my dad and the cats.

He can fall asleep in his crib by himself. We still sometimes rock him, but for the most part we put him down awake. Sometimes he goes right down and other times he cries for a couple minutes and then he is out.

He likes everything we have fed him so far except peas!

He loves to laugh at the cats. When ever we walk by them he cracks up at them.

He likes to play with is cousins.

He loves to ride in the car. I got him this little toy that attaches to his car seat and he plays with it all the time. It is a little frog that plays music. When you press the eyes they each play a different song. He will press one of the eyes, then right after he presses that one, he will press the other. We call it his Ollie Mix:)

He loves to go on walks with Grammy.

He is starting to crawl. Although I think he is still about a month away from fully crawling. He will get on his hands and knees and rock back and forth.

We have introduced a sippy cup to him. He is still not too sure about it though. I think I will go and get him a couple different kinds to see what works best for him.

I am sure there are a ton of more things that I am missing. And he does something new and funny every day.

(I have a really cute picture that I took with my phone. I will upload it as soon as I get home tonight)

A new video of Oliver

2009-02-28T15:28:00.000-08:00

So I have no idea where my cord is for my camera, so in the mean time you will have to do with this video that I took with my phone. It is kinda blurry, but it will do. Enjoy!

Saving Babies

2009-02-09T10:31:00.000-08:00

Every year I am in charge of the March of Dimes fundraiser at work. This year it has a more special meaning to me because I am now a mother to a beautiful healthy baby boy.

Oliver will be joining me this year for the walk which will be in April at Woodward Park. If you would like click on the banner to the right to make a donation(this is a secure and safe site).

one day... all babies will be born healthy

Finally a new picture!!

2009-02-07T19:35:00.000-08:00

Sorry it took me so long to get a new picture on here. This was Ollie this morning after breakfast and his bath, he is always in such a good mood in the mornings(he does not get that from me!).

Road Trip and Updates

2009-01-16T10:59:00.000-08:00

So, me and Oliver are off to Walnut Creek this weekend!

My aunt has been in town for a little over a week, and she is flying out of Oakland on Sunday morning, so my mom, Oliver, and myself are driving her up. My mom and aunt will stay with my sister and I will stay with Joey’s mom. We haven’t seen his mom since Thanksgiving so it is about time that we get up there. Joey has to work this weekend, so he won’t be able to come:(

Saturday we are going to have a game night at my sisters, then I will be going over to Sheryl’s house to spend the night with them. Sunday Oliver will get some much needed lovin from Nana and Aunt Allie all day. Then Monday, probably later in the day, my mom, myself, and Oliver will come back home. It will be nice to get out of Fresno for the 3-day weekend (even though the weather has been beautiful!)

As far as Ollie goes, he is getting bigger everyday! I can’t believe he is almost 6 months old. The other night he tried cereal for the first time. He was not too sure what to think of it and only lasted a couple minutes. And to be honest, I am not sure how much he actually ate as most of it got on his face! We got a really cute video of it that I will have to post later.

Everything else it going great! Things have calmed down after the holidays, and we are finally getting back into our routine.

2009-01-08T21:39:00.000-08:00

I finally figured out how to upload a video!!!

The other day when I came home from work, Joey was up in the loft playing with Oliver, when I came upstairs this is what I saw (don't mind our messy loft!)

What a Year it Has Been!

2008-12-31T09:37:00.000-08:00

I can't believe I am actually sad to see 2008 go, it has been such an amazing year!

We started the year (well, actually the very end of 2007) by finding out that I was pregnant. We couldn't have been more excited(or so we thought:). In March we found out that we were having a little boy, and in May had my beautiful baby shower hosted by our dear friends Megan and Janice.

June brought our anniversary, my dad's 60th birthday, my sister's b-day, and my nephew Matthew's 5th birthday.

July brought my sister and her family back to California and they even lived in Fresno for a while.

Then came August....the most exciting month of them all. On August 3rd Oliver made his appearance into the world. Then if we weren't busy enough with a newborn, we decided to go out and buy a house.

November brought us moving into our new house, then 4 days later I came back to work full time. We have been very lucky with who watches Oliver during the week. Monday's and Tuesday's he goes to a family friend(who he loves), Wednesday's Joey is home, then Thursday's and Friday's my mom comes over and watches him.

December hit us fast and was gone just as fast. With Christmas Eve and Christmas and trying to get the house ready we blinked and the month (and year) was already over.

I can't wait to see what 2009 brings us. We look forward to a wedding in Hawaii (yeah Megan, I am so excited!!!) and a little boy who gets bigger every day.

2008-12-15T22:52:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas from Oliver!

Tonight we went to Riverpark to get Oliver's picture taken with Santa. He did great, didn't even cry, and held on to his beard the entire time. When we walked in I saw a guy I went to high school with, he was the photographer. After he printed the pictures he slipped in a CD with all the pictures that he took!

Oliver's First Day at the Babysitter

2008-12-02T12:48:00.001-08:00

Yesterday was Oliver's first day with Kim, the babysitter. Joey dropped him off at about 8:30 and picked him up at around 5. Normally I will be picking him up, but Joey got off early so he went ahead and got him.

Kim said that he did very well. He took 2 very good naps and sat in the swing and watched her kids play. She has a 2 year old, 4 year old, and 7 year old. The 2 year old, Ethan, loves Oliver! I guess when Ethan woke up from his nap the first thing he asked his mom was, "Where is Oliver?" She also said that while she was feeding him he kept on smiling at her and making cute cooing noises. Also, when I came home from work, he was nothing but smiles.

I am so happy that he is happy there. We interviewed another lady and I was not happy at all(neither was Joey), so I was really afraid and nervous about sending him to someone. I am actually really good friends with Kim's younger sister, Meredith. I not only worked with Meredith but I also worked with her brother Jonathan, so I have known the family for a couple years.

Back to Work:(

2008-11-25T13:12:00.001-08:00

Last Wednesday was my first day back to work since having Oliver. As much as I was ready to go back, it was still hard to leave him. Although, I was not away from him all day. I went home for lunch and Joey brought him by my work. I think it is going to work out pretty good with daycare. Monday and Tuesdays he will go to the babysitter(a good friend of mine's sister will be watching him), Wednesday Joey will be home, and then on Thursdays and Fridays my mom will come over to watch him.

Yesterday when I came home for lunch I got some very exciting news...Oliver rolled over! My mom had him on his play mat doing some tummy time and he rolled from belly to back on the left side! When I got home from work he did it for me 4 times! So I ran to get the video camera to capture it on film, and of course, he didn't do it. He did the same thing this morning for Joey. I think he gets too interested in the camera to do anything else.

We moved into our house on the 15th and we are slowly getting things put away. The house is looking a little plain. We need to paint and get window treatments downstairs so once we do that it will look more warm and inviting.

Tomorrow we are having a small game night so some family and friends can see the house. Then I am off for 4 days for Thanksgiving! Joey's mom will be in town on Saturday so we will spend all day with her. I know she is not going to belive how big Oliver is now! We might even get his picture taken with Santa!

Quick Update

2008-11-11T17:50:00.000-08:00

I know it has been a while since I posted last, but I need to make this one a quick one.

We get the keys to the new house on Friday and we are SO excited!!! Right now our house is a disaster as there are boxes everywhere! The movers are going to be coming Saturday morning and hopefully we can get everything moved in one trip. All last week and all this week we have been packing up the house. Although it is hard with Oliver so we have been doing most of the packing once he goes to bed.

I got some really cute pictures of him the other morning, but the cord to the camera is packed away, so it will have to wait till we get in the new house. Oh, and AT&T can't come out till November 29th, so as of this Sunday, we will not have internet for a while. I will try and post another update before our internet gets cut off.

We Voted!

2008-11-04T10:44:00.000-08:00

This morning I got Ollie all ready to go voting for the first time.

I was thinking that there was going to be a really long line, and came prepared with a book and all, but to my surprise, there was not one person waiting in line. I walked right up, got my ballot, and voted. It was so easy I couldn't believe it.

Ollie slept through me voting, but did I got him a sticker. I forgot to take my camera, but I did take a picture as soon as we got home.

3 Months Old

2008-11-03T20:31:00.000-08:00

I can't believe today Oliver is 3 months old today. It seems like every day he is getting so big and doing new things.

He smiles a ton, coos, holds on to things like his blanket and pacifier, and is sitting up with assistance. His personality is also coming out more and more every day. Even though he currently has his first cold, he is still a happy little guy!

Oliver's First Halloween:) and first Cold:(

2008-11-01T08:30:00.001-07:00

My happy little skeleton

In his cute outfit from Megan!

Yesterday was Oliver's Halloween and the start of his first cold. Poor baby is so congested and sure enough I woke up this morning with a sore throat and sneezing like crazy.

I didn't dress Oliver up as anything this year, just some cute onesies that he got from Megan and Joey's mom. We started off the day with a doctor's appointment for myself. My mom went with us to help me with Oliver while I was in with the doctor. Then it was off to Target and then Chili's for lunch. After lunch we dropped my mom back off at home then it was nap time.

Once Joey got home from work we ate dinner then it was off to Joey's dad's for some tricker treating! We stayed there for a while, but Oliver was so tired and we still had to stop by my parents. As soon as we got home Oliver crashed and didn't wake up till 7:45!

We are now lounging at home in our pj's. I do need to get my butt up and ready for the day as we need to run some errands.

Look What We Got!!

2008-10-26T10:52:00.000-07:00

I never knew that I would get so excited over a washer and dryer.

Yesterday Joey, Oliver, and myself went to the Wholesale Appliance Depot to look at what they had and to check out their prices. Everything in the store has some sort of damage or factory defect. Joey found this one set and I couldn't see any damage. Plus I love the color. As I looked closer I noticed a little dent on the side of the dryer, but since they will be side by side you won't even see it.

We weren't going to buy right away, but this store is only open 4 days per month and the next time it is open we will already be in our house. Another thing is that they have great prices. We got both the washer and dryer for half of what we would have normally spent.

Now I just can't wait to get it in our new house!

Oliver's 2 month stats

2008-10-21T17:09:00.000-07:00

Oliver had his 2 month doctors appointment today.

Here are his stats:

Weight: 12.4 lbs-25%
Height: 23 1/4 inches-40%
Head circumference: 39.5 cm-20%

While we were there I had a ton of questions for his doctor. Everything from cradle cap to him sleeping so much to where he is developmentally. He is right on track for everything. The nurse was surprised when I told her he has been sleeping through the night since he was 8 weeks old, and that is what prompted me asking if he sleeps so much. The doctor said that as long as he is gaining weight then everything is fine.

At this visit he got 3 shots! He was such a good boy for them. He did cry a little, but only for about 15 seconds and then he started sucking on his pacifier. The doctor said that he should be fine, but if he starts to get fussy or extra sleepy that is normal. As I type this he is laying on his play mat kicking his feet like crazy and smiling at the little sun that is playing music.

Some Wedding Pictures

2008-10-19T22:08:00.001-07:00

Here are a couple pictures from Tim and Lauren's Wedding. I will post all of them on Oliver's Blog under the Wedding album.

What a Wonderful Wedding!

2008-10-19T10:25:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was Tim and Lauren's wedding, and it was beautiful!

They got married on the beach in Santa Barbara and they could not have asked for better weather. There was a slight breeze and as the son went down it got a little chilly, but not too bad.

I got a lot of really good pictures, but I am on Allison's computer, so as soon as I get home back to Fresno I will upload them.

That is all for now, time to get on the road.

Time for an Update

2008-10-15T22:57:00.000-07:00

As I sit here and type this, Oliver is asleep in his room, and Joey is asleep on the couch next to me. For the past couple hours we have been getting ready to go to Santa Barbara for Joey's brother, Tim's, wedding(Joey is the best man).

We will be heading out tomorrow after Joey gets off of work at around 1:30(it should take us about 4 hours to get there) The wedding is on Saturday right on the beach so it should be very nice. Joey's dad and step-mom rented a house that has a guest house behind it that we will be staying in. I can't wait to get out of Fresno with Joey and Oliver. Even though it is going to be a crazy weekend, it should be very nice. I am hoping to get to the beach to show Oliver, but I have a feeling we might not have the time.

I hope we don't forget anything. If you look at how much we are taking, you would think that we are moving!

My Monkey is 2 months Old!

2008-10-03T21:52:00.001-07:00

I can't believe my baby is 2 months old. These past 2 months have gone by so fast and I can't believe how much he has changed since he was born.

Oliver has such a funny personality. Joey and my sister can get him to make the funniest faces by just asking him to give us the zoolander faces.

This week we spent a couple days in Walnut Creek with Katie, Eric, and the boys. On Tuesday we went and saw So You Think You Can Dance in Oakland with my mother-in-law and Allison while Eric watched all 3 boys. Wednesday we headed to Milpitas to the shops at the Great Mall of the Bay Area.

For the past week Oliver has slept through the night! It is so nice to get a full nights sleep, although a part of me misses those night time feedings, he is so sweet when he falls asleep on my shoulder.

The next month is going to be very busy with the house getting done and us moved in. I will post some new house pictures soon.

STTN!!!

2008-09-28T22:14:00.000-07:00

Anyone that is a parent probably knows what those four letters stand for. If you are not a parent it stands for Sleeping Through The Night!!! And that is what Oliver did last night, at exactly 8 weeks old.

Yesterday was a very busy, but very fun day. It started out with going to Lauren's bridal shower at Pangea. Tim and Lauren's wedding is quickly approaching, in about 3 weeks. I decided last minute to bring Oliver since Joey's mom, sister, and aunt were going to be there and haven't seen him since he was 2 weeks old. We got to Pandea at about 11:30 and the bridal shower started about a half hour later. We had a very nice lunch and then Lauren started opening gifts. Joey's mom, sister, and aunt traded off holding Oliver. Even though it was hot, it was a very nice shower. We then headed to my parents to get ready for Megan and Keola's engagement party.

The engagement party started at 5:00 and was absolutely beautiful! It was held in her aunt and uncle's backyard that was just redone. Ron and Marti came down from Santa Cruz and this was their first time seeing Oliver. As soon as Marti saw Oliver she took him and I only saw him once for the rest of the night. After Marti held him Paul, Megan's cousin took over.

Since he slept most of the night I was a little worried how well he would sleep in the middle of the night. We got to my parents about 9:30, I fed him at about 10:00 and he fell asleep again. When we got home we put him straight to bed and then went to bed ourselves. This is where it gets exciting...He didn't wake up until 5:00. Still early for me, but I would consider that sleeping through the night! I fed him and he slept till 8:15.

Today was pretty much a lazy day. Mike, Janice, Matt, Megan, and Keola came over on their way to the train station to drop Matt off. They stayed and visited for about 2 hours since Matt's train was leaving at 2:10 for LA.

We took Kate, Eric, and the boys over to our house for them to see the model and to show them ours. They have done a lot to the house and it should be done in about a month. I got a lot more pictures, but it is late so I will post them tomorrow.

2008-09-25T10:01:00.000-07:00

Day at the Car Show

2008-09-20T23:29:00.000-07:00

Today was a beautiful day! We spent the day at the Cam Twisters car show at River Park. Every year they have a huge car show at the top of the parking garage. For the past couple years we have gone and today was Ollie's first car show! Mom, Ollie, and me got there at around 9:30 and found my dad and then looked for Peggy Cook to show her Ollie. There are about 200 cars or so most of them classic cars and some new ones, including my dad's 2001 corvette. At the show there are a ton of prizes that they raffle off all of the proceeds going to F.E.A.T., an autism charity.

Although I didn't win anything we still had a great time.

New Pics of the Boy!

2008-09-15T15:43:00.000-07:00

After my birthday dinner

Sleeping so peacefully

Just hanging out in my swing

"Mom, not another picture!"

New House Pictures

2008-09-14T15:02:00.001-07:00

Half way done with the siding

Stairs

Oliver in his room

Our bedroom(that red X is where the fire ladder is going to be)

In the breakfast nook looking into the kitchen

Scrapblog

2008-09-12T09:54:00.000-07:00

This is my first attempt at creating a scrapblog. Hope you all enjoy it!

1 Month Old

2008-09-03T23:04:00.000-07:00

I can't believe my little boy is already a month old! According to this picture it is very tiring turning a month.

Today we had a very exciting day. Today me and Joey went to the house and signed a ton of papers and are now under contract for our new house. I thought that we were going to go to the design center and pick out all of our upgrades, but we have to wait till next week. Joey leaves for Vegas on Sunday for work, but will be back Thursday morning so we will go then.

I uploaded some more pictures on Olivers site, check them out!

So Much to Catch Up On

2008-09-02T13:49:00.000-07:00

So I know it has been a while since I posted a update, but things have been a little crazy around here. Since Joey went back to work a couple weeks ago, I have been hanging out with my mom a lot of the time. She has come over a couple days during the week in the mornings so I have a chance to get ready for the day while she watches Oliver. He is usually good during the morning, but it seems like every time I would get out of the shower and go to put on my makeup he would start screaming! So it has been a great help for my mom to be here to watch Oliver, and plus, she loves spending time with him.

Another piece of exciting news is that me and Joey bought our first house! It is in the process of being built so it won't be ready for about 2 months, but we get to pick out any upgrades that we want. We are going to the design center tomorrow to pick everything out. We can't wait for it to be ready. After living in an apartment it is going to be so nice to have our own home to do whatever we want to it. It is 2 story, 3 bedrooms, 2 1/4 baths, plus a loft, with 1818 sq feet. And we will be in before Christmas so this year Christmas is at our house! We will be going to the home site all the time to check on the progress, so I will be posting pictures as it comes along.

That is pretty much all that has been going on here. The next couple months is going to be very crazy, with Joey going to Vegas for work on Sunday, 3 birthdays, a bridal shower, a engagement party, a wedding, and the house.

3 Weeks Old

2008-08-28T16:04:00.000-07:00

So I know this post is a little late, but this picture is from Sunday. Oliver was all ready to go to the country club to have lunch with Papi and Noni Stuart.

2 Weeks Old

2008-08-19T13:58:00.000-07:00

Joey's First Day Back to Work

2008-08-18T19:36:00.000-07:00

So today was Joey's first day back to work and my first day alone with Oliver. It was pretty uneventful. I finally got in the shower at about 11:30 with Oliver in his bouncer right outside the bathroom door. He was good the entire time I was in the shower, but got a little fussy while I was putting on my makeup. As soon as I turned on the dryer to dry my hair, he feel asleep!

At 12:30 we headed out to meet Joey for lunch and to introduce Oliver to some of his coworkers. We ended up going to Port of Subs for lunch, since I went there all the time when I was pregnant. All the girls working were so excited to meet Oliver.

We then went to the store to pick up stuff for dinner and then headed home. Oliver was so good all day. Actually, he is good all the time, he is such a laid back, easy going baby.

I just updated his site with some new pictures, check it out!

1 Week Old

2008-08-10T16:35:00.000-07:00

My Birth Story

2008-08-09T09:33:00.001-07:00

The last time I wrote a post I was talking about how we went to the hospital on Friday but only for them to send us home. Then right as we got home my contractions started to come on a lot harder and I believe while I was writing the post I was having contractions.

We stayed home all day trying to time the contractions and tried to get some rest. Throughout the day they were getting a lot stronger, but were not very consistent, they would be 5 minutes apart, then 10, then 15. I really didn't want to go to the hospital again for them to just send us home again. I called my sister around 4 or so and told her what was going on. She said that with Jonathan her contractions were very hard, but also not consistent and if she would have waited till they were 5 minutes apart she would have had him at home. So finally around 6 I told Joey that I could not wait any longer and that we had to go.

When we arrived at the hospital they did the same thing as the night before, hooked me up to all the monitors and checked me. On Friday night I was between 1.5-2cm dilated and now I was a good 3cm! She said she would come back in about an hour and see where I was and they might have me start walking to get things going. Well she ended up coming back less than a half hour later and I was 4cm and she said my water would probably break in the next couple contractions, and they did not want me to walk the halls. Sure enough about 2 contractions later my water broke. As disgusting as it was to feel that, it felt so good to have a lot of the pressure go away.

At about 10pm or so I was 6cm I could not take the pain any longer and asked for the epidural. Ohmigosh...as soon as I got that I was in heaven! About 20 minutes later I could not tell if I was having a contraction or not. I asked Joey to check the monitor and see how strong the contractions were and he said they were off the chart!

My nurse Beth came in and checked me and said that the baby was in a weird position and that she wanted me to lay on each side for a half and hour at a time to see if he would move. I had no idea if I would be able to tell when it was time to call Beth to start pushing since I had the epidural, but she said I would know. At about 2:45am I woke Joey up and told him I thought it was time to call Beth. She came in and checked me and said that his head was right there! She had me do a couple practice pushes to see how fast he would come down and as soon as I started pushing she called in another nurse and told her that she better call the doctor. The doctor came in about 10 minutes later, I pushed for about another 10 minutes and at 3:25am Oliver Joseph came into the world. I could not believe that not only was he here, but that I only pushed for 25 minutes, the nurses kept on telling me that I was such a good pusher.

Right after he came out they put him on me and he started crying right away. They kept him on me for a couple minutes and Joey was able to cut the cord. Then they took him off to the warming station and to get him cleaned up. This is also where they did him apgar test. He scored a 9 both times! Joey went over with him to take pictures only to find out that the batteries in our camera had died! So he got the video camera and started to take video. They finally brought him over to me about a half hour later and was able to try nursing him. To my surprise he latched on right away.

There was so much emotion going through me. I was so happy that he was here and healthy, I was exhausted even though I only pushed for 25 minutes, and I was amazed that I had actually given birth. At around 6am they moved me over to postpartum. We stayed till Monday and was released at about noon.

So far everything has been going pretty good. He sleeps a lot, eats, and poops, and that is about all. We have had a lot of visitors and today Joey's mom, little sister, and brother are coming for the weekend.

More Pictures of Oliver!

2008-08-04T20:03:00.000-07:00

Oliver is Here!

2008-08-03T12:50:00.001-07:00

Could it be this weekend....???

2008-08-02T09:46:00.000-07:00

So yesterday was suppose to be my last day of work...but I ended up not making it.

This is how our weekend has gone so far:
Friday: Woke up at about 5 having contractions. They were not that bad at first, but were getting worse. I woke Joey up at around 7 and we started timing them. They were coming about 5-10 minutes apart. I decided to call the doctor and see if they wanted me to go to the hospital or see them first. They said to come in at 10:20 to get checked out.

We packed our bags in the car just in case and head to the doctor. My nurse Carol(who I love) checked me, but said my cervix is still pretty high up, but he has dropped quite a bit. I have a regular scheduled appointment on Monday so I asked if I should still come. She said yes, but she really didn't think that I would make it to Monday, she thinks I will have him this weekend.

Since we were almost to the hospital, when we left the doctor we decided to finish pre-registering since I still had to sign a couple papers. Then it was off to get lunch and walk the mall. After walking the mall a couple times it was back home.

At about 9:00pm the contractions started back up pretty hard. We started timing them and they were lasting between 1-2 minutes and about 4-6 minutes apart. At 11:00 I told Joey that it was time to head to the hospital. We get there and get checked in and get in a room. The nurse hooked up the fetal heart rate monitor and the contraction monitor and checked me. She came in a couple minutes later and told me that she wanted to wake the baby up and get him moving, so she was going to bring me some juice. This kinda freaked me out, but I knew I was in a good place if anything happened. Then about 45 minutes later she came in and said they were going to send us home. I was devastated:( It's not like we live that close to the hospital and how was I suppose to know when it was really time to go back.

We got back home at around 2 and went straight to bed. Well, at least I tried to. The contractions were coming closer together and a lot stronger.

So now it is Saturday, and my contractions have come back off and on and not as hard as last night. In a way I really just hope that my water breaks so they can't send me home.

The Light at the end of the Tunnel

2008-07-31T10:20:00.000-07:00

There is a light at the end of the tunnel…I am not going to be pregnant forever!

This past Tuesday I had my 38 week appointment. I made no progress from the week before, but she did give me some hope. She gave me the option to strip my membranes which can cause you to go into labor within 24 hours, which so far has not worked. I was telling her that the last thing I want it to go over my due date and she stated that because I have gestational diabetes they won’t let me go past August 8th. If I have not had him by Monday the 4th, they would schedule me to be induced. So, hopefully by this time next week we will have Oliver here!

Now, the big question…is my mom going to be back from Seattle? My cousin Chris is getting married this Saturday and most of my Fresno family is going to be there. Uncle John, Aunt Sharon, Aunt Sally, Derek, and Darren all left this morning for the drive up there, and my mom leaves tomorrow morning to catch her flight in Sacramento. Also, Katie and Eric are closing on their new house on Thursday. If it goes my way (yea right) I would like to be induced on Wednesday morning, that way everyone will be in Fresno.

I will have an update here as soon as we have him and post a lot of pictures!!!

Hopefully Soon...

2008-07-23T15:41:00.001-07:00

Yesterday was my 37 week appointment and it went very well. They took my weight, blood pressure, and we heard the heartbeat. Everything is right on track. I got the results back from the Group B Strep Test and it was negative. She also did another internal and as of yesterday I was 2cm dilated and 75% effaced! She said since I made progress from last week, that it is looking really good. She said that a lot of walking will help get things moving, so last night me and Joey walked to my aunt and uncles.

Last night I woke up at about 3am having contractions. They were not too bad as I could walk and talk through them. At about 5am I woke Joey up to tell him and we started timing them. They were about 7-10 minutes apart and were lasting about 1-2 minutes. I decided that if they didn’t go away, or got stronger that we would go to the hospital at around 8. Sure enough at about 6 they stopped and I went back to sleep for about another hour. I am really hoping this means that labor will start soon, although I have heard that this could happen for another couple weeksL

My due date is in 2 weeks, 2 days and we can’t wait to meet Oliver!

Counting down the days!

2008-07-21T11:16:00.000-07:00

So, I have less than 3 weeks till my due date!!! This pregnancy has gone by very fast, up until 30 weeks. Since then it has felt like forever!

It is getting harder and harder to sleep at night (I actually have not slept in our bed in about a month). Sleeping on the couch has been much more comfortable for me, and I am not waking up Joey 4 times a night when I have to go to the bathroom. You always hear when you are pregnant to sleep now, because you will not sleep once the baby comes. Well trust me, if I could sleep now I would, but it is a little easier said then done.

My next doctor’s appointment is tomorrow, and I am really hoping she tells me that I have made progress from last week, although, I am not getting my hopes up.

A couple weeks ago we installed his car seat, and last night I started packing my hospital bag. There are a few more things that I need to put in there, but for the most part we are ready for him to get here. Half of my family is going to be in Seattle for my cousin Chris’ wedding on August 2nd, so I am hoping Oliver arrives before everyone leaves so everyone can meet him.

That is all for now, I will post another entry tomorrow after my appointment.

37 weeks 3 days

2008-07-20T10:13:00.000-07:00

I think I have dropped!

Making some Progress!

2008-07-15T12:59:00.001-07:00

Yesterday I had my 36 week doctor’s appointment and everything went great. I had the test for the Group B Test and should get the results at my next appointment. I also had an internal and I am 1cm dilated and she could feel his head! I know this really doesn’t mean much, I could be like this for another 3 weeks, but keep your fingers crossed that I will make more progress between now and next week.

Other than that everything was fine. Joey had not been to an appointment in a little over a month, so it was nice to have him there and he was able to hear the heartbeat again. Baby is still moving a lot, but I know he is running out of room in there! It seems like every time I am done eating lunch and dinner, he gets the hiccups, which is funny because he starts to squirm around. I am getting pretty big and I am sure members at work are wondering if I will have him in my cubicle! Hopefully it won’t be too much longer. I will post an updated picture either tonight or tomorrow.

35 Weeks!

2008-07-04T15:18:00.000-07:00

34 weeks

2008-06-27T14:45:00.000-07:00

Today I had my 34 week doctor’s appointment and everything is going great. The past couple nights I have had some Braxton Hicks like contractions with some slight cramping, but they have not been consistent, so my doctor said not to worry. If, I do start having more that 6 in 2 hours and they do not go away with water and rest, then I should go to the hospital.

My Gestational Diabetes has been going very well, although I am tired of eating the same thing for breakfast and lunch. My numbers have been very good and hopefully that means that I won’t have to be on insulin.

My next regular appointment is in two weeks, and then it is every week till he decides he is ready to come. I can’t believe my due date is in 6 weeks, and I will be a mom then (if not sooner). Me and Joey are so excited and can’t wait to meet our little guy!

(I will post an updated picture sometime this weekend)

Back to Work

2008-06-23T12:56:00.000-07:00

For the last week both me and Joey have been on vacation. It has been so nice to just sit at home and not have anything to do.

Monday started with a doctor’s appointment. Nothing too exciting there. Everything is going good with the baby and still measuring about a week ahead. After the appointment it was off to my parent’s house to watch the boys while my mom went to her dentist appointment.

Then Tuesday was a very exciting day for me and Joey…we put an offer in on a house! We probably won’t hear anything for a while since it is a short sale, but we are keeping our fingers crossed that the bank accepts our offer.

On Wednesday it was off to his mom’s house in Walnut Creek for the rest of the week. We really didn’t have anything planned while we were there, it was just nice to sit and catch up with his mom, step-dad, and little sister. We were going to go into San Francisco on Friday, but decided not too. On Saturday we headed on over to Mountain View to see his sister Kim and have a BBQ. The weather had been pretty hot in Walnut Creek, but by the time we got to Kim’s it was beautiful! We stayed till about 9:30 and then drove back to Walnut Creek.

On Sunday we had brunch with his mom and Allison, then it was off to pick up Katie from the Oakland Airport. With Katie and Roz in tow we drove back to Walnut Creek to drop off Roz at the pet boarding place for a couple weeks until Katie and Eric find a house. On the way out of town we looked at a open house and some model homes then it was on the road back to Fresno.

While I am glad to be back at home it would have been nice to have a couple more days to relax. This week we have Matthew’s 5th B-Day tomorrow and then a diabetes appointment on Wednesday.

32 weeks(measuring at 33 weeks)

2008-06-13T19:04:00.000-07:00