2 Months And Counting

There is only two months left until Jacob turns two. He is definitely still a growing boy as it seems like in the last week he hit another growth spurt. It is so strange to go in and get him out of bed one day and then the next day it seems like he grew a foot and gained 50 pounds. This obviously isn't the case, but sometimes I think it just hits you that he is getting bigger.

On his 22-month birthday, he almost headed to the doctor for a quick visit. Jacob has been having issues with his eczema lately and has really flared up at times. On Sunday, we actually considered calling the doctor on Monday for them to look at him. Fortunately, the issue resolved itself with some cooling off and relaxing. Today, Amy received a phone call from school because Jacob's arms and back really broke out in a rash, so Amy headed off to pick him up and take him to the doctor. By the time she got there to pick him up, the rash had gone away. The rash never bothered Jacob which was good and it was gone by the time Amy got there, so we aren't going to worry about it and just keep an eye on him. Amy did give him an oatmeal bath to help with the "itchies". Amy already talked to a pharmacist yesterday to see if there was anything they would suggest and we are pretty much doing everything we can (I also talked to a pharmacist on Sunday, but not as in depth as Amy did as the issues weren't as bad at that point).

As Jacob grows closer to his 2nd birthday, we are starting to see tantrums. Okay, so it was only one last night, but it did last a little while and we found that he definitely has a good pair of lungs. After he settled down, we did get our way as we stayed in the dining area to eat and he did eat his dinner.

Jacob is steadily getting a bigger appetite which means eating more. The bowls of cereal that we have been feeding him in the morning are now in need of either overflowing or getting bigger. The last few mornings have resulted in Jacob asking me to feed him more. Guess we will need to go with a bigger bowl...

Family & Friends Picnic For A Cure

A family picnic with a twist... Amy's mom and step dad decided to have a family picnic this year at their house once again. This time there was an added twist. In honor of family members that have had/have breast cancer, she thought it would be nice to help raise money for research of this disease. The event was well attended and had some out-of-staters as well. Amy had a fair amount of family in from Texas to partake in this event.

The day started out a little rough with some rain, but fortunately stopped by 10:00. It was just enough time for the grass to dry and allow us to get the remainder of the tents up and get everything in its place elsewhere.

For the event, Aunt Patsy made a breast cancer quilt and other items such as bible covers and wall art to be raffled off. Although it wasn't meant to be initially, I was asked to put a family video together of old family photos of Amy's mom's siblings. At the last minute, it was decided that it should be sold for a small donation.

The grand daddy event of the day was the silent auction. Amy put this together and did a fine job of finding at least one entry for that everyone would want to bid on. As most silent auctions go, the bidding started off slow. However, when it came time to close the auction, the tent was filled with onlookers waiting to see if they were going to be outbid... Some were disappointed that they weren't able to get the treasure they were hoping, but others were very happy!

With the raffle, silent auction and some large and small donations, Amy's family was able to raise $1,000 for breast cancer research at the University of Michigan. It was way more than any of us could have imagined for such an event.

As the picnic with a twist ended, so did Jacob's day... He needed a bath and loves taking a bath in grandma's sink. Fortunately, it is still big enough for Jacob to fit...

Jacob Has Settled

With Jacob's routine being shifted back to a day of school, it has taken him time to adjust. It took a couple of weeks, but he is back into his routine and is now thriving once again at school. There are still some not so good days, but it is usually when he is tired and not wanting to get up. However, by the time he gets to school and gets playing with his friends, he is all happy.

We are once again getting artwork sent home with Jacob. There is also the "car washes" and "camping" days. The car washes, we understand, is basically a bunch of sprinklers that the kids get to play in. The camping day, which we missed, was more for the bigger kids. It was a day when you were supposed to bring in your sleeping bag, tents, etc. and then they were making s'mores in the afternoon. This was right after our own camping trip, so Jacob didn't really miss anything. After all, his mother is best s'more maker!!!!

This round of school seems to be much easier than the first. We're not sure if it is because of the weather or the fact that Jacob is older. When Jacob first starting to go to school, we needed to be sure to have extra snacks and jar food for him to eat in case he didn't eat what they were having at school along with his boots, gloves, etc. for going outside. Now, we just make sure he has his sippy cup and then maybe a yogurt or pop tart or something small in case he doesn't eat enough during lunch and snacks. He sometimes has those days where he just eats and eats. It is great that for the most part that he eats whatever they put in front of him. He still isn't quite sure on the taco salad though. Some days he eats it and some days he doesn't. He has been known to be a picky eater at times...

A Celebration of Life

A day of celebration was put together for Amy's dad. He has reached the 5-year milestone after having a lung transplant. It was nice to see family and friend's gathering to acknowledge this excellent milestone.

Jacob loved spending time outside with his cousins and other kids that were there. Amy and I were able to relax a little more than normal because Jacob has reached an age where other kids are entertaining to him and doesn't need his mommy and daddy right there for him. Although, we still needed to check on him to be sure he wasn't into something that we wouldn't want him into... Kids just being kids...

No Excuses!

As you are probably already aware, there has not been any new posts in quite some time. I think this is probably a record since the blog's inception. With the return to work after being off for nine weeks, producing and editing a video and having a hard drive crash beyone repair, there hasn't been much extra time in the evening to be able to blog. However, I do intend to do better. There intent to post about the 4th of July and also a camping weekend. The posts will be shown before this as I will date them when they happened and not when they are written... So, yes we are still alive, but have been busy preparing for camping a couple of big parties that we are a part of the organizing, etc. More on those later...

A weekend of camping started off pretty well. I was able to get loaded and ready to go earlier in the day. Frankie and I headed out a little before noon for the trek northward. We were there lickety split and had everything set up and ready for company by 4!!

Where’s the company? Where’s the rest of the family? Where? Where? Where? After a number of texts and phone calls Amy and Jacob arrived around 8:15 which wasn’t too bad considering they had to deal with I-75 being closed due to a rollover accident. This was only about 45 minutes later than anticipated. Unfortunately, Amy’s mom and step dad had a few more troubles because they left a little later and had another traffic jam to deal with, but everyone got there safe and sound eventually.
The weekend was pretty laid back and relaxing as we hung out around the campsite and ventured to the beach. Although, Jacob was ready to head home as he went to bed really late and then was up early without much of a nap. Great fun was had by all.

The family loaded up and headed out for an annual picnic with some childhood neighbors. One of which, came in from North Carolina with her family. It was great to see everyone once again. We don't get to see them very often, but do keep in touch via technology. Here are a few pictures that Amy, yes Amy took as she was commanding the camera on this day.

Thanks to Jeff, Jacob was able to ride the ATV in the driver's seat while all of the older kids had to take turns. Wouldn't ya' know it! Jacob didn't want to get off of the ATV and when it was time to take a break, he followed Jeff around just waiting for the next time he got on and hit the gas pedal. Jacob loved being outdoors and running around and playing with all of the kids.