Cracker Line-Up

Do any of these crackers look familiar? Are any of them the cracker who committed the crime?

Take your time....

Scott took one bite out of each of his crackers, then lined them up... and left. They were still sitting there when I went to set the table for dinner. Guess one whole cracker would have done the trick.

HO HO HO!

Scott was SO excited to go see Santa last week. We talked about it for days before hand (mommy wanted to be sure he fully understood what would be happening... sitting on lap, talking to Santa, etc etc) We got to the mall and stood in line, and as soon as we were close enough to see Santa, Scott pointed him out and kept referring to his "hat". I asked him if he wanted to go see Santa: Yea. I asked him if he wanted to sit on Santa's lap: Yea. I was gaining confidence that all would be well.

Our friend Colin was up first, and his visit with Santa was not so successful. I worried then that Scott would see Colin's reaction and be afraid himself, but he willingly (yet timidly) released his grip on me as I sat him in Santa's lap. He was in a state of shock for the first 3 minutes (which is, of course, when they took the picture) but Im just proud he isnt screaming, crying, or reaching for me. Before the visit was over, I got Scott to say that he wanted a "guck" (truck) and he reached up to point out Santa's hat. Santa humored us with a HO HO HO (been teaching Scott to say it, when asked what Santa says) and gave Scott a little booklet to hold his picture as we left. Two more of Scott's friends sat with Santa after Scott, and none of them had the success that Scott and i had. I was so proud of my chill, too cool for school, son and his nice visit with Santa...

The kid asked for a truck... a truck the kid will get!!

Jump for Joy

As stated earlier, we started Christmas about 30 minutes after our Thanksgiving Dinner Feast was eaten... we were still digesting even!!
This gift wasn't opened that day, because it was so big that it needed to be shipped straight to AZ (through friends who were kind enough to let it ride in the backseat)

Scott is in love with it, and I forsee many hours in the backyard for he and I. Good thing our December is in Arizona, so we don't have to worry about a blizzard keeping us inside!!



Thanks CiCi and Bubba, you have given the gift of endless entertainment for a toddler. Not an easy task!!

Leavin on a JetPlane

Just wanted to post this awesome story from our flight back to AZ after our TG vacation. As we boarded the plane, we had bags and a stroller that needed to be checked at the gate. The lady who was writing out our tags said "I think you guys are on a row alone, so your son will have a seat to himself. Let me check" She asked for our names and looked it up. She was mistaken, there was a lady in the seat next to me. The worker decided she would try to call the lady up and reseat her so that we could have the whole row. She called, but as she was calling, realized that the lady had already boarded. So she told US what seat was empty and said we should ask the lady to move once we boarded...
Well, the seat she wanted us to move the lady to was about 15 rows back from the seat she was in, and we didnt feel like asking that of her, so we had decided not to say anything and just deal with the 2 seats we had paid for. As we stood waiting in the breezeway to get on the plane, the airline worker who had tried to help rearrange seats before came to find us. She had found a whole row in the back of the plane that was empty and had printed us all new boarding passes so that Scott would have his own seat.
As many of you know, my lap is deteriorating fast, so a lap child on a plane isnt the most convenient thing. This kind act was the PERFECT end to our Thanksgiving vacation! Thankful for people who go out of their way to do nice things for other people! Thanks airline lady, you made our day!!!

Happy Day, Turkey!

A few of these pictures are from my trip to UT in October (the one above and the one below, to be specific), but my sister JUST posted them online, so here they are... in the post where I talk about being at CiCi and Bubba's house for Thanksgiving. See, if I hadn't told you you would never know and just assume they were all from Thanksgiving. I guess accuracy is vital to blog quality...

We were lucky enough to travel to UT for Thanksgiving by AIRPLANE!! This trip was the first time that Dude and I have flown together to UT since moving to AZ. Usually, we drive, or one drives earlier and the other flies in later (since that other is the one working til the holiday is HERE) The fact that we got to fly this time made our trip 10x better, because there wasn't a long drive involved at all! I could see the relief of stress in Dude's face and we were able to enjoy ourselves much more knowing that we didnt face a 10 hour drive to top it all off!
My cousins and grandparents came up from Vegas and St George, and we had 16 people crashing in my parents house!!! So much fun! I love that the family is growing and expanding!

We ate, we played games in the church (most fun ever!), we ate more, we watched football, we played the Wii (mario kart), watched Cars, started Christmas early, went shopping, saw movies, played board games and ate some more!!

If anyone in my family took more pictures of Thanksgiving than I did, send em my way... cause all Ive got are some randoms of Scott doing cute things. Such is my life!

Luckily enough, there are Francis' AND Bori's in Utah, and we were able to see them all! We spent an evening shopping for Aunt Nattie's new dog, eating nummy food (yet again) and watching a movie with Dude's sister. Had a photo shoot and played board games with Aunt TT, and still had time to eat sushi with friends! All in all, a great trip. Full of family, more family, friends and TONS of fun!

Yes, this picture is of Scott watching Elmo on the Iphone in just his diaper. He just rested his little chin on the counter and loved every second of it. What a cutie!
Everyone loved playing with Scott, teaching him new and "oh so fun" words, and chasing around the kitchen over and over. He was never unable to reach someone's finger to lead them... wherever he wanted to go. I have officially started the "post vacation detox" and we are re-learning how to not be entertained 100% of the day. Thank you Francis, Bori, McCall and Brinkerhoff Families for that gift. I can't thank you enough for spoiling my son ROTTEN!! ;)

Love and miss you all already! So thankful for family!!!

PB&J W/ A

I never thought I would see the day when Scott would sit still at a table and just eat. He always seems to have the uncontrollable desire to be RUNNING! But, having an eating buddy worked miracles. Scott and Anderson shared their apples, ate their sandwiches, and sat like two big boys just hangin out and eating their grub!

Scott is such a people person! Our playdate buddies have helped achieve that, Im certain, and I am so grateful! Scott will play with just about anyone, and is so relaxed about sharing toys and kids "in his bubble". I thank my moms group for that, and all the toddlers who steal Scott's toys and let him steal theirs back. That's what friends are for, right??

Happy Birthday Daddy

We celebrated our awesome Daddy on Nov 11, and got to shower him with love and attention (not that he isnt smothered with that every day of his life)
Scott and mommy went to daddy's work and had lunch with him, then made one of his favorite meals for dinner. Follow that up with gifts and key lime pie, and I dont think the man had a complaint! Here's... well, mommy singing Happy Birthday while Scott and Daddy look cute and blow out the candles. You have received your warning and can now mute your speakers before hitting play!

Daddy came out of the day with lots of good food in his tummy, a new headset, a new dvd collection of Dexter's Laboratory, a gift card to take his girlfriend to dinner, and some cash (that he still hasnt figured out what to buy with... would have burned a hole in mommy's pocket by now).
And, we weren't even done celebrating. Since daddy's birthday was mid-week, we had a celebration dinner with friends over the weekend, where we ate mountains of wings and had a great time! How could anyone not love this guy?! And I'M the one who claims his left ring finger... I'm totally lucky and i KNOW IT! Love you, Dude!

p.s. if anyone has ideas on how to get my son disinterested in wearing his mom's jewelry, please share... he sees me with a "pee" (pretty) on and immediately wants it on himself... never to be seen again by mommy!

Elmo vs Cars

I can't remember where he saw it first, but I think it was in the car on a roadtrip... and now he's hooked. As his mom, I could quote you the whole movie just from watching it with him. He prefers "Cars" to everything... even Elmo! (although, as you can see, it's not without the Elmo chair that he watches so intently) I got him all set up to watch one day, and even threw some popcorn into the mix this time... and he had to top it! His own additions in this picture are the bead necklace of mom's around his neck and the hat of dad's. The hat is so big that he had his neck tilted about as far as it tilts just so he could see past the brim of the hat.

One day, you're gonna ask him "what sound does a tractor make?" and he'll say "Moooo"

He has started calling everything a "Guck" this month... or Truck, for those of you that don't speak "Scott". He loves his dad's truck, will play with anything that has wheels as he says "guck, guck" and has shows no signs of trying to say "car" anytime soon. I think he's content with calling them trucks and arguing with me every time I correct him. The conversation goes something like this...
Scott: Guck!
Mom: No, thats a car.
Scott: Guck!
Mom: It's a car. Can you say car?
Scott: Guck!
Long pause as mom gives up...
Scott: Bloo!
Mom: No, its a red car.
Scott: Bloo!
.... you get it!

Love him!

Scotty Appleseed

I gave Scott this apple and couldn't RESIST filming him because of his method. Bite, twirl twirl twirl, bite. He was totally looking for the perfect bite each time. Mmmm, apples!

Tick Tea!!!

Or, if you don't speak "Scott-ish", Trick or Treat!! The first year trick or treating with Scott was a blast! It's amazing the things you can get a kid to say when a smartee is on the line. He learned "trick or treat" faster than he has ever learned to say anything else in his LIFE!!!

He was SUCH a good sport with his Winnie the Pooh costume, and kept his head on the whole time!! His chubby cheeks fit into the costume SO well, he fit the part to perfection!

Mommy took Scott to the ward's trunk or treat on Wednesday, but Daddy was sick. So Daddy took him out for round two on Halloween night! Neither outing lasted very long, since Scott got tired of collecting and wanted to RUN... not such a great idea on dark nights in the street. He's such a ball of energy!

Here he is with his Halloween night loot...

He didn't mess around and wanted us to open on right away!! He got a lollipop, and didn't fall asleep til far past his bedtime. Ahh, the joys of Halloween sugar rush!

First Annual Sister's Retreat

I got to spend 2 days with my wonderful sisters, just playing and eating and being goofs. I love them!!! People actually asked us more than once if we were sisters... duh! I am already looking forward to doing it again next year. I am lucky enough to be their sister, but BLESSED to be their friend! Love you girls!!!

SLC Children's museum

Picture this: an adorable toddler in the Children's museum. He is running around in excitement, discovering new and awesome things!

Splashing in water, and watching balls float down the "rivers"

And being followed by 6 adults!!!!

We had a great day out with the family, and it was totally fun for everyone to be there with Scott to play and have fun. Nana and Papa came up from St. George, and we met Ali and Adam at the Gateway Mall in SLC.

Scotty's favorites at the museum were the connecting magnets, and he sat there with Papa for a long time, putting them together and pulling them apart. Scott just loves to have all these people love him, and is a master at being center of attention! This was definitely a good practice!!

When Aunt McKenna is in Charge

Q: What is the best thing to do with a huge tub of crayon's in CiCi and Bubba's living room?

A: "what's that mom... not this? Ohhhh......"

FREE HUGS

A bunch of tough guys, at a play date, handing out free hugs. We could totally use these for embarrassment's sake later in their lives.

But for now... just too cute!

Love you, man!

Little Giant

The title of this blog is appropriate on so many levels!

Daddy got a new trimmer and was out giving it a test run. He turned around to discover that Scott had learned rather quickly how to climb the ladder and was at the top!!! He, of course, was snatched down right away and the pictures are taken with daddy close for catching... I'd say we escaped a bad fall, but the kid was all over it. He had good footing and a good grip, and was being a manly man!

The concentration is adorable!

Chalkaholic

It's messy, it's colorful (a lot of them are "boo" which adds extra bonus points), and he can draw with them WHEREVER he wants outside!! What's not to love for a messy 20 month old boy??

Too bad it wasn't on paper, or I could have sold it for millions. Maybe he's the future of sidewalk art in the city!?

Hello October, Goodbye October

It feels like Ive skipped 31 days in time! My last blog post was 9-29-09, and it is now Nov 2, 2009. What happened to Oct, you ask?! Well.... a LOT happened! So much that I didn't have time for blogging. BUT, prepare yourself, because this is the beginning of "Jessi's Blogs of October", also known as "BLOGTOBER"..... here we go!

Most recent of the gang!

As many of you know, I joined a playgroup when I moved to Arizona. Scott was only 3 months old, and all of the other babies in the playgroup are his age or younger. It has been SO fun to watch these babies grow from babies to the little kids I saw today chasing each other around a house, sharing toys and talking away at each other!

Left to Right: Amy and Anderson, Candice and Colin, Daphne and Ryland, Bri and Gracie, Me and Scott, Melissa and Devin, Deni and Roman, and Janae and Rylan. (Val and AJ missing)

Besides the social aspect of this experience for Scott (which is HUGE. He is such a friendly happy kid... and I chalk a lot of that up to his association with so many other babies), I have been SO blessed to know and learn and share my life with the ladies you see in this picture! The group has grown and shrunk, and shifted over time (and we are missing one current mom in this pic) but I have made lasting friendships and am SO GRATEFUL for these women in my life!

How time flies!

My baby is 18 months old (well, a few weeks ago officially...) At his Dr appt, he weighed in at 31 lbs and measured 35 inches tall. For the first time in Scott history, his percentile of height was higher than his percentile of weight. And you can see it! He is a head over all the kids in our playgroup, and looks the same age as the 3 year olds in Nursery at church!

Speaking of... the most exciting thing about Scott turning 18 months was that he is now old enough to attend nursery. This gives mommy and daddy the freedom to attend their classes and fulfill their callings. Scott has a bad history with the daycare in the gym, so I was worried that he would have the same reaction to nursery. Not so much... first time I dropped him off, he barely looked back, and when I returned to pick him up, they were coloring and blowing bubbles... and he didn't want to leave! I am so grateful that the transition seems to have been an easy one for him. He is such a fun kid that all of the leaders in nursery rant and rave about how awesome he is every time we see them. He was an instant favorite!

We went to the park today with a friend, and had some 18 month pictures taken. The trouble with the park is this: Scott LOVES it, but when he plays, he doesn't smile... he CONCENTRATES! He is his daddy's son. So, these smiles were well deserved and the result of hard work on mommy and Erica's part! Thanks to Erica for her willingness to spend some time following this busy man around with a camera!!

A few more fun things about Scott at 18 months. Not only does he walk, he RUNS and is FAST. He can dribble a full sized soccer ball and spends as much time as possible in the backyard running around and being a boy. He is proving more every day that he is not a baby, but a little boy. He loves DIRT and DOGS and CARS and has a wide variety of animal noises that not even mommy can adequately make!

The dr. was impressed with Scott's ability to comprehend directions and the things that I say to him. I swear, the kid speaks perfect english in his head... just isn't quite to the sentence stage of speaking yet. He DOES, however, get his point across very well. Yea, no, peeese (with his head tilted to the side and a big grin... who could resist), thank you, Sam, ball, hat, toast... the list goes on and on!! He is one smart cookie!

My favorite thing about Scott is how loving he is. He gives hugs, kisses and loves freely and abundantly, and they best place to be at these times is IN HIS WAY!! Because when he gets the urge to love, it can sometimes be the first thing he hits. Targets of his affection have included the dog, his mom and dad, strangers, playdate buddies, the couch, his blanket... anything nearby! He blows kisses to airplane's in the sky. So the next time you are flying over Mesa AZ... Scott sends his love, literally!

We love our little Skunk, and can't imagine a happier life than the one we are blessed to have... with HIM in it!!

I scream, you scream...

We all scream for ICE CREAM!!! For our family night this week, we went to the park and out for ice cream. No park pictures cause it was getting dark, and he was MOVING the whole time, so every picture attempt is fuzzy. He DID love it tho, and could have sat in that swing all night! We stopped and watched some guys playing basketball on the courts, and Scott was ENTHRALLED!! He wanted to be out there bouncing and shooting and playing right along side them... not sure these big tough guys would have been as thrilled as Scott about that!

Anyways, on to the ice cream! Scott got his first ice cream cone ever (side note: he HAS had ice cream before, but is usually sharing with mommy, and this time he got his own) and was SO EXCITED when we handed it to him!!

It didn't take him long to dig in, and was offering bites and sharing with mommy and daddy. Take it from me, an ice cream cone from an 18 month old tastes more like spit than ice cream... delectable! ;)

He ended up being a little freaked out because as he licked, the ice cream went right off the backside of his cone, and his hand was too cold and sticky for his liking... but that doesn't change the fact that it tasted DELISH!!

The pictures just weren't cutting it, so we had to whip out the video. He was using his tongue "just like mommy had taught him" and it was so funny to watch. He is ever entertaining and the joy and love of our lives!

Precious Moments

Sam is probably the world's best dog (this is ignoring the fact that he sheds and peed on my floor yesterday... those are exceptions) He is by FAR the coolest dog, and is SO good with my rowdy little boy. In fact, Scott and I went to visit family, and daddy reported that Sam didn't know what to do with himself! Scott and Sam usually chase each other around the living room, Scott tortures Sam with toys, and Sam nudges Scott in the side and knocks him clean over!!
Scott loves to sit on Sam. If I could get Sam to walk with Scott like this, I would have my Halloween costumes already picked and made. A Cowboy and his horse, a knight and his noble steed!!

Luckily for me I had my iphone, unluckily for you my iphone isn't that great... especially when taking fast motion shots of a wiggly kid! But check out the love!!!! Sam, just sits there and takes it while Scott straddles (and often bounces). I'd let him do that too if I was gonna get the kissing and loves that Sam gets! Two best buddies... I love it!! There really is nothing like a little boy and his doggy!

And the Blue Team Scores AGAIN!!

Announcing: The upcoming arrival of Baby Boy Bori #2!! I am due Feb 15, and so far, everything with the baby is on track and healthy!! Scott doesn't understand the fact that he will be a big brother, nor does he get that somehow theres a baby in mommy's tummy... but he DOES understand what a baby is, and has been playing with a baby that we got him for "practice" ever since I found out. He sees and points out babies everywhere! He went on a playdate to a house with a baby, and when I arrived to pick him up, he was standing next to the baby's head on the mom's lap and petting her head and watching everything. He seems enthralled by all babies, now let's just hope that excitement translates over well when its HIS mommy giving all her attention to a little baby!!

I didn't think this was too inappropriate to put on the internet, since most people wouldn't know what they were seeing if not for the arrow and word "boy". But there you have it... the proof!!

I was SO excited to see that this ultrasound place did the 4d pictures! Even when Scott was born, you had to pay lots of extra money at a fancy place in a mall to get these kind of pics! I wasn't ever into paying that money for a picture of my baby looking like an alien, but when handed a copy of my alien baby photo, I love it!! He just looks so cozy and alien-esque in there!! Love him already!!!

Here's big brother Scott! Aunt Ali bought him this shirt, and it was really funny when he wore it and I wasn't really showing yet, because people looked at us kind of weird. Anyways, I love the shirt, and I hope it still fits him enough to wear in February! Fingers Crossed!!

Signing off, The soon to be VERY outnumbered mom of 2 little boys, one big boy, and one hairy boy!!

Jumpin on the Bandwagon!

Daddy fixed the wheels on Scott's wagon, and we re-broke it in in our backyard (now full of grass instead of the stickers that put the wagon out of commission in the first place). After Scott's first ride, Daddy decided it was his turn by now, since he was so tired, and they switched places. Scott just giggles and laughs and thinks that his dad, the john deere wagon (which he uses the gator sign for... must be the green) and the whole thing was just the best!! Can't wait for cooler weather and more wagon rides!

Shake your Groove thing!

The boy has cuban in his blood... I can't claim any part of the cuteness you are about to witness (except for the chunk, I have something to do with those cute calves!)


Scott was playing peek-a-boo through the windows with his dad in the backseat, but I did catch some of his dancing as well... and lets just say that the butt shaking action just HAD to be shared with the world!!

No need to call for backup!

This super duper police car was a super garage sale find, and happens to be one of Scott's favorite things in the world! Its missing a few stickers, but apparantly 18 month old boys don't quite care about that kind of thing! Every morning after breakfast, and then a few times during the day and AS SOON as he sees his dad's eyes in the evening, Scott is pointing out the back door and signing "car". He LOVES to play outside in his car!!

This police radio is used most often to call Bubba, he holds it to his ear and says "BUUUUBAAA!" and then jabbers away at him, telling him the latest police adventure, im sure!

Puppy Love

It has been brought to my attention, once again, that I am a blog slacker. So, here is the beginning of a long line of new pics and posts. A few weeks ago we had our friend Anderson over to play for a while. It is so fun to see the kids starting to interact with each other, and actually PLAY at playdates! Anderson liked to carry his lunch bag around, and would often gather that, his shoes and would walk to the front door, turn around and wave... Scott, in seeing this, would do nothing more than see him to the door. He followed him, and waved goodbye! They were so cute, and I just love that they are starting to play together and interact!

Sam was THRILLED with the extra friend around, and Scott and Anderson gave Sam the exact attention he was wanting. They sat and pet him, cuddled him, and then would stand up and run around so that he could chase and play with them. It was a good time for all three boys!!!

Child Labor

I'll have you know that he is not being tortured, whipped, or starved (obviously) til the work is done. He just sees his daddy doing it, and follows along. Now what I really need is a play vacuum that really sucks, literally... THAT is some smart toy making if you ask me! ;)


Scott and I just returned from visiting Grammy, Grampy, Aunt "Key", Uncle Mike, Aunt Jenny and cousin Alyssa in Florida. Pictures will come!!

Breakfast of Champions

I was given a recipe to make for a baby shower, and when I tasted it, I thought I should share it with the world. It was delish!! Please understand that in order to share this recipe, I had to post pictures that did NOT have Scott in them, I hope you will understand! It is called Baked Stuffed French Toast: here it is.

12 slices bakery bread (I used french bread, and it was nummy)
2 cups milk
1/3 cup maple syrup
2-8 oz cream cheese
12 eggs
Blueberries
cinnamon

Spray 9x13 pan with nonstick spray.
Remove crust from bread. Cube (this was the hardest part of it being french bread, but I sliced it then removed the crust. The helped) Place 1/2 in pan. Cube cream cheese. Place in pan. Add blueberries. Add rest of bread. Mix eggs, milk, syrup and cinnamon (to taste). Pour mixture over bread. Cover and refrigerate over night. Bake uncovered for 45 minutes at 375.

Now... the best part of this meal. The homemade syrup. The french toast dish itself wasnt very sweet, but this buttermilk syrup recipe really made the dish. You could also top it with maple syrup if you want.

Buttermilk Syrup

1 cube butter
1/2 cup buttermilk
3/4 c sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla

Melt butter in saucepan. Add buttermilk and sugar and bring mixture to a boil. Remove from heat and add baking soda and vanilla. Serve immediately or keeps in fridge for 2 weeks, and reheat before serving.

As you can see, it was a hit! The only negative feedback I got was that each bite was different because my cubes of bread and cheese were big. Maybe I'll make them smaller next time, but I thought it was perfect. Try it, love it, let me know what you think!

An Oldie but a Goodie...

A few months ago (June, to be exact... probably the 24th or 25th, for record keeping purposes, I guess) Bubba came to visit, and we went to the outdoor mall nearby for some Grimaldi's Pizza and splash pad splashing. The best part of the night wasnt the crispy delicious pizza, or the fact that the splash pad closed 20 minutes before we arrived, but the fact that they pump music on the walkways outside the stores, and Scott was walking, not being strollered. Check out his sweet moves!!

A Note: This was 2 months ago, his skills in the art of dancing are evolving and progressing, and he's currently in line for the next season of So You Think You Can Dance. Vote for Scott!!

Doing Flips

Mommy reluctantly shared her snack with me today, and it was the BEST THING I EVER ATE!! Yogurt covered pretzel, mmmmm...

Would you like a taste?

If it doesn't get all over the place, it doesnt belong in your face!

MmmMmMMmmm

Chocolate Kisses- $1 each. This could make mommy rich!! Who doesnt want to kiss that face?!