Helping Dad

This weekend we got to spend lots of time together and outside. It was so funny to see how much Ethan loves to be like his dad and help out. He didn't want to be left out of anything. He was a big help with washing the car. Though I think he ate more soap then actually made it to the car. And in the second picture you can see that he managed to dump a large amount of soap down the front of his pants.
He had his lawnmower out when it was time to cut the grass. He walked around saying "mow, mow, mow" the whole time.
And he even managed to give dad a few pointers on his form. He's been known to put a few books on Abe's back to give him a little extra weight. What a sweetheart!

Our Little Ladies Man

I know we have told you about Ethan and all the girls he adores but I finally have some pictures to back it up. The other night one of our friends brought their daughter over so we could babysit her for the evening. They are only two weeks apart in age and play together all the time. Ethan decided when I told him to share the lion that Emma was riding on that I meant he should get on too. He was totally content to hold on to her and ride too. She was not a fan of this and gave him a push off pretty soon after. They made up later when he gave her a sweet little hug.

So as you all know yesterday was my birthday, my 25th birthday for the 5th time. thanks for the well wishes. Abe was very excited to give me my presents so we had decided that I would open them before work on my birthday. So the night before I was awoken to Abe jumping out of the bed. I looked at the clock and it was 12:05AM. I thought maybe he was just that excited to give me my presents. I asked him what was wrong and he said very clearly "Quick, get out of bed, its not stable!" So I was totally confused. I asked him again and he told me the same thing. Since he has been known to mutter things in his sleep I asked him if he was awake. He was totally annoyed with the question and said "Yes I'm awake. You have to get out of the bed." So I finally did. Abe was looking at the bed and I asked him what he was going to do about it. He told me to get back in bed to test it out. I didn't think it was very chivalrious for making me see if it was going to fall. Then he just got back into bed and didn't say a thing. Of course I laid awake for a while because I started to convince myself that maybe it did feel a little shaky. In the morning I asked Abe why he had thought the bed was unstable. He just looked at me and said he had no idea what I was talking about. So I guess he was asleep after all. All he remembers is that he was having some dream about something being unstable. So I guess I'll have to come up with a better way to decide if Abe is awake or asleep when he says strange things in his sleep.

I want to wish Meredith a very happy birthday. She is turning 25 again this year. Isn't it amazing how when we got married she was the same age. That is one great thing about her she never gets any older :). So everyone wish Meredith a happy birthday. Love you baby

Summer Fun

The weather here has been great so we have finally been able to enjoy the outdoors again. We took Ethan out for the first time in our canoe and we all had such a fun time. Ethan just needed a fishing pole to complete his look. For such a little guy he was great in the boat. He loved looking at all the birds and trees as we paddled through this lake at the state park near our house. I just wish I could have gotten some pictures of him in the boat but I wasn't brave enough to bring the camera out on the water just yet. Maybe next time.

On Friday I took Ethan to a park at a nearby river and as soon as Ethan saw it he kept saying "wa wa" which means water to him. He didn't stop saying it over and over again until I let him get out of the stroller to put his feet in the water. I think he has inherited his father's persistence. It's fun that he can finally get his point across for most things he wants. It makes life so much easier when we know why he is crying. Though when he is repeating the same phrase over and over again because you aren't giving him what he wants I think it was quite nice when he couldn't say anything at all. ~Meredith

Our Spotted Leopard

So the other day we were getting ready to leave for a trip to North Carolina and I noticed a few spots on Ethan's legs. I didn't think much of it because we had been playing outside a lot lately and I just assumed he had gotten bitten by a bug or something. Right before we left I went to change his diaper and took off his pants and he was covered in spots. I took him to the doctor and they said it was an allergic reaction to penicillin. Thankfully he wasn't miserable but they looked awful. The pictures here are from Saturday and they looked even worse on Sunday when we went to church. We went back to our old ward and everyone just starred at his poor spots. Of course Sunday was the day that it spread to his face so there was no way to hide them. I assumed that everyone who looked at us was thinking what kind of a stupid mother would bring her child with chicken pox to church. Needless to say the other moms kept their children very far away. Of course Monday morning most of the spots were gone, just in time to finish our trip.

By the way, I added a picture of Ethan and his nightlight to the post below.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ABE!

Would everyone like to guess how old Abe is today? Yes Abe has hit the big 30! Since he gets to celebrate his birthday today with a big test we let him have his cake last night. Ethan and I still love him even if he is old. So everyone wish him a happy birthday. Love you Abe.

Night lights

Last Saturday (the 5th) one of the clubs at school sponsored a 5K race to raise money for the American Cancer Society. So I decided it would be fun to run in it. I have been running on a regular basis because there is a pretty flat running/walking path between our building and Tech's football stadium. I have never been a fast runner but I do ok. There are however several really fast runners in my class that decided to run it also. In an attempt to keep my pride I thought it would be good idea to run and push Ethan. I know that you are looking at the picture thinking that it doesn't look to bad. Well only the beginning and end were paved (it started and ended in the same spot) the rest of the course was running through fields. The best part about it was that it was also full of hills. They weren't long hills but they were very steep. Oh and did I mention that it had been raining the week leading up to the race so it was also slick and muddy. Ethan did great until we got to the 2 1/2 mile mark and he wanted out of the stroller. At that point I am sure his teeth had almost rattled out of his head from the bumpy ride. All of that being said I finished in 30 minutes.

Now onto another story. I wish that I had a picture of this and maybe we can take one and add it later. Lately when Ethan is asked what mommy or daddy says he replies "no no no" which is very cute and funny. I am pretty sure that most kids go through this phase. The best part of this is that he has a night light in his room that he loves to pull out of the socket and play with. We however don't like him pulling it out and playing with it and tell him not to. Meredith was in our bedroom getting ready yesterday morning while Ethan played. Then she hears Ethan say "no no no" and then giggle. So she walks out of our room and there is Ethan standing with the night light. He then giggles and again runs into the guest room. What a character.