Update on Timmy Jr.

This last week Timmy has hit some major developmental milestones! He started rolling over and now can roll to where he wants to go, within reason! He will see Joya's stuff across the room and roll to get there, he also does this scooting thing on his tummy where he doesn't use his legs or arms but cinches up his but and goes back down to make him move forward. It's funny to watch, but he can move with it. Timmy also can sit up for a little while on his own. I can't leave him sitting up by any means but I can sit him up and let go of him for about a half a minute before he starts toddling. He sometimes will correct himself and sit back up but most of the time he falls over, usually head first. Timmy is also a very loud baby, he loves to join conversation and will "ahhhhh" as loud as he can, he got the vocals from my side of the family!!!

Here are some new video of Timmy talking, he is an easy going baby with a great smile and he just wants to be heard and smiled at!

A Great Week but now I'm in Trouble!

This has been a great week, a few other mom and myself put on a vacation Bible School for 3-5 year old kids. The week went really well. We weren't expecting a lot of kids and we didn't get a lot but we connected with the kids that did come and connected with their moms. Joya also loved VBS, especially since it had the word "school" in it. She loves the idea of school and can't wait to go, too bad for her she has a long time before she is going to school!

This is a picture of Joya and a project that she made on the last day of VBS. She is still wearing her cross that she decorated around the house.

This last weekend we hung out at home because we knew Tim would be gone this week. We made homemade cinnamon rolls and went to the Scandinavian Festival on Saturday night. We went with some new friends and their kids, so here is a picture of our kids together!

I am now in trouble! Timmy is rolling over! I now have to put the side up on his crib, get Joya to pick up her little toys, make sure my floors are really clean, and I can't just leave him in the room alone anymore!! I left him on the floor on a play mat to put Joya down for her nap and when I came back he was off the mat and touching Joya's red barn she has out on the floor! She has the whole barn and house out because we had a play date with some good friends today. The Trimmer boys came over for the morning and we played outside the majority of the time and then came in for lunch and to play with the barn. Here are some pictures of the day. It was a great play date, the kids played so well together!! Jack and Joya didn't hit each other and Caden wasn't bossing any of the other kids around, they all played so well together!

GG and Great Grandpa NeeNee's 50th Wedding Anniversary

Last Friday we packed up and got the kids in the car at 6:45am to get down to Redding CA for my Grandparents wedding anniversary. They celebrated their 50th with several miracles to make it there. My grandpa has been in and out of the hospital with Leukemia, and having to go on and off Dialysis for his kidneys because he is Diabetic too. Anyway we were wondering if this party was going to happen at all. He is at home by the grace of God and we all got to go celebrate with them! From our family Heather and Eli were not able to come, Uncle Roger's whole family was there, the majority of Uncle Jeff's family and the majority of Uncle Steve's family came.

On Friday Tim had to work on the way down, which worked out great for me and the kids. It split the trip up so Joya could get out of her seat and run around and for Timmy to nurse and not sleep the whole day. He falls asleep whenever were in the car! It's really nice except when were traveling a distance and we would like him to sleep at night! So we stopped in Roseburg at the hospital and across the street was a Starbucks in a Alberston's, the kids and I hung out in there. Joya and I got a pastry from the bakery and I got coffee and Joya wanted some tea, Timmy got milk! The night before we left both kids came down with fevers and they still had them on the way down, so tea was a great thing for Joya to have. The next stop was Grants Pass, this was a very quick stop and Tim new it would be, so we just got out of the car while he was inside and played on the little patch of grass behind the building. Joya and I ran a lot of races from one tree to the next. Tim's last stop was going to be the longest and that was in Ashland. I had never been there before, but we dropped Tim off at the hospital and went down the street to a grade school with an awesome playground. Joya really liked the outhouse! Yep the outhouse, it had a sink and a flushing toilet in it. The weather was a little colder than I had expected so Joya had to wear my sweatshirt because I couldn't find her sweater I had packed for her. This picture is of her on the "big kid" section of the playground. She was fearless and climbed up the whole way by herself. This is of her coming down.

After the playground we went to lunch and then hit the road again. Before we even got to I-5 Joya and Timmy were asleep and they stayed asleep until we were almost to Redding. It was awesome and a good time for Tim and I to talk. On the way down we put an offer in on a house and we just heard back yesterday that they did not accept the offer and are not willing to budge from their price. Bummer for us! Well keep praying about a house!

We got to the party and we had a great time. I got to see some cousins that I haven't seen in years...like 10 or so. It was so fun to see them, the little kids are teenagers now and they had fun with Joya, which was a nice beak for me! The cousins that are my age have jobs and are very nice people! I loved reconnecting with them and talking with all the cousins about their lives and whats next for them!

Saturday we stayed at home with GG and Great Grandpa NeeNee and all of the other cousins went to Great America to ride rides with my dad and Christi. I was only a little jealous! I loved giving that time to Joya and Timmy with the Great Grandparents. Grandpa put on a puppet show for Joya and Grandma got out her story telling apron and told bible stories to Joya...she ate them up! Then Saturday night Tim and I left the kids with my mom and grandparents and we went out with my uncles and their wives. Tim had only met my uncle that lives in Southern California once at our wedding. So he had never really gotten to know them, so it was really fun for us to first of all get out and away from the babies and secondly to get out and chat with my uncles and their wives!! We also had a little time as a family to go to the Sundial Bridge in Redding. It was an awesome bridge and here are the pictures of it. There is a family picture and one of Joya near one of the cables that holds the bridge together.

Sunday we had a huge breakfast all together and then hit the road back home. We didn't end up leaving until 11ish and so the kids again fell asleep right away and we made it to Medford for lunch. Then back int he car, which Timmy was not a fan of and screamed to let us all know that. We were 20 miles south of Eugene when he really let us know that he was done being in the car! Joya joined his band wagon and we stopped in Eugene at Tim's Grandma's assisted living house. She was so surprised to see us and it was a fun stop. Joya got to run around and Timmy got to eat and everyone was happy again! We finally made it home to pick up Toby from the dog-sitters, which Toby made him earn his money...sorry Nathan! We had a fast but awesome weekend! I am so glad that Joya and Timmy got to spend some time with just the grandparents and no one else around, I have no clue if they will remember them but I will remember that they got special attention and time with them!

Joya's hair looks crazy because she had cute braids in and took them out in the car on her own...good job Joya!

Some Recent Pics!

Here is Joya practicing her kisses on Timmy this morning. She just realized how to pucker, so she is practicing as much as possible...I love it!

Last night we went in to check on Joya before we went to bed and this is how we found her! It was funny!

Timmy, Joya, our friends Jessica, Jailey, Josiah, and myself all rode the bus to the library for library time on Tuesday. The girls loved riding the bus! Josiah loved tormenting his mommy by stading up and trying to crawl under the seats and Timmy was content in his carrier on the way there but not on the way home! We had fun!

Here is Jessica and Josiah.

Joya and Jailey

Timmy in the backpack. We rode our bikes up to DQ for some icecream and this is how Timmy rides with us! He falls asleep to any motion, which is great sometimes!

Were so EXCITED that Joya has hair!! I can put piggytails in it, braid it, and I love it!

Joya, Tim and Grandpa went to Chucky Cheese one day and had a great time, here she is playing Whak-a-mole!

Joya loves to help me bake, and she got her own pan for her Birthday, so we had to put her own cinnamon rolls in her pan!

We made it, and Tim made it home!

We made it, we survived our last week without Tim!
On Monday Joya got to spend some special time with her Auntie Kaylen while my dad and Timmy and I worked out. Timmy didn't last long in the stroller, so it was on to plan "B", which was the backpack. I lifted my arms and back with big boy on my back...it was a lot harder and more challenging to keep my balance. Then I went to pick Joya up and take Timmy to his 4month doctor's appointment, it was fun to see how big he really was! He weighed in at 18lb2oz, in the 90% and he was almost 26inches which was the 95% and his head circumference was in the 70th%. I was kind of shocked that his head wasn't bigger because he has the biggest smile with the chubbiest cheeks!!! Then we went back to Nana and Papa's house where we ate lunch and Joya had a major melt down because she thought I was leaving right then and she was not ready for me to leave her with Papa, it stems from Tim being gone! I explained that I was not leaving until after she went down for a nap and that I would be back by dinner time! I had to go down to Eugene to sign all of our papers for the refinance on the Veneta house. I took Timmy with me and he was a champ! It took me a full hour to sign for me and Tim and then I had to go to the bank for a check and back to the mortgage place to drop it off. My trip to Eugene lasted longer than I thought it would, but Joya slept for almost 4 hours, so she never knew I was gone for so long!!
Tuesday we left first thing in the morning to the beach, my sister had some really good friends out from North Carolina, so they went to the beach for Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. We have an aquarium pass and met them at the aquarium, then went to lunch. Then I took the kids back to the house they were renting and put them down for a nap while Christi and her friends went to the store and played on a beach for a while. Timmy and Joya tag teamed me so I never got a nap, but I had a beautiful calming view of the ocean! Christi and her friends came back and Joya woke up, so I took Joya down to the beach while Timmy and Christi's friends stayed at the house. That was awesome because it was really windy down on the beach and I was thankful that Timmy didn't have to be down in that. Joya and I had a blast on the beach. We stayed down there for almost 2 hours, just digging holes! Yep holes! We would dig until we had water and play in that hole, build a castle next to it out of the pile of sand from the hole and then start all over again. We did take a small walk with Christi to look for neat rocks and shells. We drove home at 9 at night after having a wonderful crab dinner!!
Wednesday we had swimming and lunch plans with my mom and her teaching friends. Her teaching partner has a daughter that is turning 4 next week, anyway Joya loves her and she calls her "Baby Joya" and takes care of her. They are very cute together. Anyway we went swimming...Timmy too, and then went back to Mom's house for a potluck lunch. We came home for a nap and were supposed to have a play date with some neighbors, but they thought I said Tuesday and had already come the day before...oops! Anyway it was a good thing to have the evening free and have some down time, Joya just played with her baby Leila and was completely content with that!
Thursday we hung out at home for the morning and then we to the fair at noon to see all of the animals. We went with some friends from church and she had her third son two days after I had Timmy, so we saw them in the hospital room! Anyway she has a son who is Joya's age and her oldest is 4 but is so sweet to Joya! The mom taught 4H in California and was teaching us about all of the different types of pigs, cows, and sheep. The kids really liked the "Blue Butt Pigs", their a cross breed of Hampshire and Yorkshire pigs and yes their butt really looks blue. We stayed for a couple of hours and only lost one kid and then went home for naps and stayed around home to make dinner for everyone! That was my folks, Christi and her friends, of course Joya loved all the attention and couldn't eat anything for dinner. Joya and Timmy slept great that night!
Friday was a fast day, we were all looking forward to Daddy's return so we stayed at home and cleaned the house and then we drove down to Tim's folks house so the kids could go down for their naps. Tim's flight was supposed to get in at 3, right in the middle of nap time, but it was late. Anyway we got him, he was tired and we drove back home to have a big BBQ with all the family, it was great because all I had to do was bring our meat!
Saturday was a fun day, we spent the day as a family and were really laid back! One thing we did do was pump up the rubber raft to make sure it didn't have any holes in it for floating the river on Sunday. We floated the river with some friends from church who have a 4yr old boy and a 2.5 yr old boy. We left Timmy with my parents and Joya came with us. We had a great time. It took us an hour and half to float down, we almost missed our boat ramp to get out on, but other than that we had a blast. It was a beautiful day, not too hot, and we had great company. There were too many of us going so Steff and the kids and I were all in the boat and John and Tim were on a blow up mattress. I wish we had a picture of them, they were a sight to see! They sat on the edge with their feet down in there and just were relaxed with life jackets on. We had a great time!
We have another busy week this week with some friends coming in from Alabama and a trip to Redding CA for my grandparents 50th wedding anniversary party!!

Half way there!

Tim has been gone for a whole week, and will be gone until next Friday, so we are half way there. This week has been great! Joya has been fantastic and Timmy has been sleeping great, which makes me a happy and patient mommy!
Monday we stayed at home for the morning and played at the pool in the afternoon. Then I went to a new class I'm taking called a "mystery quilt class" and then went to workout, my mom watched the kids for me. I love the new class and am very excited to make the quilt. That night Timmy slept until 5 am and then went right back to sleep until 9. It was awesome!
Tuesday we went to the library and then to meet our MOPs friends at Central Park. Joya loves a little girl named Audry, but Joya calls her "Aud-th-ry", its very cute. I took the kids on a run and ended at the pool again! Then Joya and Timmy came with me to a planning meeting I had with three other ladies. We are planning a VBS type week for a low income area of Corvallis. I have planned for two days of the week and took on a little more than I thought I would but its ok and I am excited to put it on. That night Timmy again slept all night until 6 and then was up for 2 hours and then took a hour and a half nap.
Wednesday I took Joya and Timmy to the park and on a walk down by the river, we ended at Nana and Papa's house and played there a little while. I also mowed the lawn with Timmy on my back in the backpack, and Joya playing in the back yard. It went great until Joya swung the see saw and didn't watch it come back and hit her in the face...poor girl she has a nice fat lip now! I got to work out that night too, while Nana watched the kids. We thought Timmy would take a bottle from Nana, because he took a bottle once or twice before, but he wasn't going to have it! Nana called me and I had to come back a little earlier than planned. It was fine though. Timmy slept from 9 to about 1 and then cried until 2:30 when I finally gave in and nursed him.
Thursday we went grocery shopping in the morning, Joya was a great help. She put apples and nectarines in plastic baggies for me and held a box of cake mix through out the whole store. We also picked out new peepee and poopy treats for her...she needs a little more motivation to come in from outside playing to use the potty! We then went for a run and ended at Tia's house. the Kropaniki's are here visiting Christi from North Carolina. Deb said she was meeting Christi for lunch and asked if we wanted to come, so we went with Deb to have lunch with Chrsiti in Lebanon. We had a good time and both kids were tired and took great naps when we got home!
Timmy slept until 6 am again that night, again it was wonderful!!
Friday we woke up and hung around here for the morning, playing outside and watering all of Daddy's plants. Then I went and had a chiropractor appointment and Deb watched Joya for me, I took Timmy with me. While I was out and about the doctor's office called and told me that my insurance had dropped Timmy Jr. So I had to call and straighten all of that out and fax a copy of his birth certificate to them...as if the hospital bills weren't enough proof that he was born! We then went out to the Gradin's Arabian horse farm. We had a blast feeding and watching all of the horses and sheep. Joya also got to ride on little Gradin's (their grandson) four wheeler. We came back took a nice nap and then went for a bike ride after dinner. The day flew by! Timmy slept until 4 am and then was up for an hour and went back down until 8.
Today is Saturday and we went to Home Depo to get a sprinkler head that I ran over with the lawn mower, then we went to the Saturday market. In the car on the way there Joya asked me, "mom, whats there?" I told her there were fruits and vegetables and fun crafts. She asked if there was salad there, I said yes salad makings. Then she asked if Saturday was there. I started laughing and said that Saturday was the day of the week that the market is on, that they can't sell Saturday! I thought it was very cute!!
Tim will be home next Friday and I hope this next week goes by just as fast as this last week went!!

Last Weekend

Last weekend was the first time I left Timmy Jr. for a long time. We had a couple of busy days. It started with Tim taking Fri. off and spending the day with us because he left Sunday morning for two full weeks of training in Boston. So we spent Friday with him, not doing anything special, but it was just nice to have a family day knowing he is going to be gone a long time! Friday night was a horrible night with Timmy Jr. waking up every hour and by the morning I was exhausted!! So Tim gave me a nap in the morning and I woke up to the lovely tantrum of Joya Mae! Who knows what set her off this time, but she was screaming at my door and I woke up with a head ache! Tim had to pack for two weeks in two bags, which is challenging for a guy who's clothes are huge! I can do all my laundry for the week in one load, but it takes 2-3 loads for his clothes because they are so big. Anyway he got everything packed up and we went down to Eugene. We had lunch with Tim's folks and then left the kids with them while we went out to the Veneta house to clean it and get it ready for the next renters. I really like this next family that's moving in, they are moving from Idaho and seem like genuine people. On a side note, its hard renting out your house, its a true leap of faith in that family for them to keep the house in the condition I would keep it in!! Anyway we were out there for almost 3 hours doing yard work and I cleaned out the fish tank, which took me an hour, and washed all the base boards and walls...you never know how dirty something is until you start cleaning! Anyway then we went back to the In-Laws house to clean up for Tim's High School Reunion. We had a great time, it was fun to see everyone, and I would post pictures but Tim took the camera to Boston with him, so I will post them later! It was amazing to me how many people never left Eugene, are still single, and are very similar to how they were in high school.
Anyway we got home at 11ish and Tim had to fly out the next morning at 5am. It was a short night of sleep, we woke up at 3:50, and Tim woke everyone in the house up with showering and he dropped everything he had in his hands!!haha We got him off and Joya couldn't go back to sleep, so she was up from 5:30 on and so was I!
We are now on our own with out Tim until the 31st! It's a long time with out daddy, but we will manage. Joya misses him, she is mad at him for leaving and won't talk to him on the phone. I'm working on that everyday! We also thought we would be able to see each other over the web cam's but Tim is going to school from the time we wake up until after the kids nap time and then he goes to dinner and then to study sessions, he has very long intense days. But I hope that on Saturday or Sunday we can get the web cam's going and Joya will have a better attitude towards her daddy being gone!! I'm sure it doesn't make Tim feel good!

Here is a picture of Tim at training. He is working on a shoulder