The Zoo

Jalen and I met up at the zoo with Amy, Drew, and Addison. A few other moms were there as well that we knew. Unfortunately I only have a few pictures of this zoo trip.

Jalen and Drew playing on the Safari Jeep.

Watch out - Jalen takes the wheel.

Aspen watching the baby elephant.

Happy Anniversary

Scott and I celebrated out 4th anniversary this year - what an AMAZING 4 years it has been!!!! I have the absolute most amazing husband in the world and thank God for our life together every day!

The birthday party

To celebrate Jalen's 2nd birthday we had a bbq at our house with family and neighbors. It was a great success - all the kids LOVED it, which of course makes for happy and relaxed parents. Thank you to all that came to help us celebrate!!!!

Zoe, Ethan, and Jalen on he bouncy (Jalen's gift from Mommy and Daddy)

Zoe and Jalen taking their turn.

Derek and sleepy Addison - she was such a good baby all day!

Brooke and Zoe enjoying their cake - yum!!!

Jalen got lots of stuff on wheels, which is definitely his new love. Here he is trying out his new train on Daddy.

Jalen did a great job reading the cards and opening up presents, with minimal help from us.

Jalen was also so kind to give EVERYONE a hug after opening some presents - he was feeling SO lucky to have such wonderful people help him celebrate!!! Hugs for Jamie.

Making his rounds - hugs for Steph.

Hugs for Dawn.

Mommy gets excited about cute new clothes :-)

Zoe is the sweetest thing every! She came up behind Jalen and just gave him a little love tap - SO cute!!! Funny thing is, she did the exact same thing at Jalen's b-day party last year.

Papa stayed a couple extra days to spend time with Jalen, here are a few shots of the next couple days:

Jalen and Papa showing off their matching Red Sox hats (b-day gift for J).

Daddy helping Jalen on his new bike from Nena and Bumpa.

Dinner at "On The Deck" downtown.

Papa and Jalen on the Portland Tram.

The 2-year-old Birthday Boy!!!!

We can hardly believe that two years have gone by!!!! I can vividly remember the day we brought our little guy home from the hospital and never did we imagine how much happiness he would bring into our lives. We love him more and more every day and just can't get enough of him. He is such a sweet little boy, always wanting to cuddle and be around others. Jalen has always been one to take his time with new things and new people, but we're seeing more of an adventurous and independent side to him these days, which is so fun. He has developed a fascination with anything that has wheels or moves and is also crazy about sports. His new favorite is golf - he cries if we turn it off and will sit there imitating the pros on TV (he's been working on his back swing, which ends up being a swing of the club over his shoulder after he putts). Jalen is also our little book worm - he'll get a stack of books off the shelf and read them all to himself and would listen to us read to him for hours each night if we let him. We love hearing his funny little chuckle and silly little words fill our house. One thing he says these days in reference to himself is, "Jalen funny!!" We love you SO much little man - Happy Birthday!!!!!!

Two-years-old (what a stud!)

One-year-old

New Born


Jalen's birthday started with a little treat for breakfast - waffles with berries and whip cream. He was one happy boy, eating every bite. At Jalen's birthday party last year, he put the candle out with is poor little hand, so we were extra prepared this year and started practicing with every meal - he blew out the candles like a champ all day! We had a small celebration with all of Jalen's buddies at Connor's house (who also turned two this week). The kids had tons of fun playing together and indulging in cupcakes. We later took Jalen to ice cream with our neighbors, The Hutchins.

Day at the Pool

It's been a fairly cool summer and also a very busy one, so Jalen and I haven't had too many opportunities to make it to the pool. But we couldn't resist today - It was SO hot outside and we couldn't wait to jump in. Jalen went through swim lessons this spring and gets an opportunity to swim now and then, but he was still hesitant when we first got in. However, it didn't take long for him to warm up. It's fun to see him get more and more confident - even jumping off the edge and letting go of me a few times (with his wings on). I LOVE my lazy summer days with my little man!!!!

4th of July

We started our 4th of July festivities at our neighbors Chris and Catherine's house. We then met up with the Reinkes for a parade that went through their neighborhood (which started at my school). Jalen didn't want to ride in his wagon and Drew was a little hesitant to ride his bike (both of which were decked out with red, white and blue), but we had a great time and finished the evening with a fabulous BBQ and fireworks at the Reinkes.

Quite the turn-out.

Drew strut'n his stuff on his balance bike.

Sweet Addison, happy as always!

Scott with Jalen, Derek with Drew, and Amy with Addison

Drew getting a ride from Derek

Jalen checking everything out on Daddy's shoulders.

Amy and Drew (while he was still debating whether he wanted to ride his bike)

Cooling off after a hot day in the sun.

The boys waiting for the big fireworks show.

The Grand Finale - nice work Derek!