My Boys

It's been a while since I've posted a cute picture of EJ hugging Forsberg. I got this photo tonight of all three of them. My heart broke a little today when Forsberg was lagging behind on our walk from the start. I'm trying hard to lose my "baby weight" so going slow isn't an option. I will be really sad when he can't accompany us on our long walks. Check out all his gray in his paws and on his face in the picture!! Thankfully, he has a lot of life still in him and still has a playful spirit.

Trains!!

It's train central here at the Newman house! Kelly gave him the Thomas tent for his birthday and the whole family has spent considerable time in it over the past few days!


We got a train table from a friend at church and then Uncle Andy gave EJ a train set for it. My mom found a train store in Lincoln and got Deluxe Roundhouse and various pieces needed to make the coolest train table around. Eric and my mom worked tirelessly to get the right combinations of tracks and to glue it down since EJ is a little "destroyer" with the tracks. Just ask Andy, he had to rebuild the tracks numerous times each day when we were in California!!



So, here's the train table with an open invitation to come play! We even made a car race track on the table for the cars Uncle Brian gave him for his birthday.



Tonight EJ put his trains to bed in the roundhouse before he went to bed himself. It's so cute!

Another cute update...EJ has started saying, "I stink" when he has a dirty diaper. Once changed, he will take his "stinky" to the trash to throw it away!

The Boys are Back!

We are all back in Lincoln and getting ready for school to start on Monday. Thankfully, the baseball team is back and in full force since the draft didn't smash us like it did last year.

Today, the baseball team did a community service project in Lincoln. They painted and landscaped the home of an elderly woman who was selected for the project by the Lincoln Paint-a-thon. EJ and I stopped by the project and got pictures with Eric and Coach A. It was fun to see all the players and meet some of the new ones. We also got to see a baby garden snake. EJ wouldn't touch it but mommy petted it for him (I've come along way in my willingness to touch reptiles)!!

The clothes in my dryer haven't been drying very well lately so I figured something was wrong with the vent. Sure enough, the vent hood had disconnected from the wall. I saw all sorts of lint sitting there so I made an appointment to have a dryer vent cleaner come out to the house to do maintenance on it Monday. In the meantime, I have laundry to do so I took the vacuum attachment and tried to clear out what I could since it's a fire hazard. The minute I turned the vacuum switch on, a dead bird was sucked into the attachment. I have no idea how it got into the vent. It was really upsetting to me but I was thankful I found it because of the major fire hazard it was. So, be sure to check your vents every-so-often to protect your house from fire.

EJ is TWO!

Happy Birthday to EJ today! We've had lots of fun celebrating with the Thomas the Train theme.

Grandma Carol threw a birthday party in San Clemente. It was fun to celebrate with everyone since we live in different cities. We also had Eric's cousin, Melissa and her new baby, Guthrie came up from San Diego and another cousin, Lauren and her husband, Kellan, came in from Pasadena for the festivities.



Here are the uncles who were all very sweet to wear their train conductor hats...even when EJ wouldn't wear his!! He was in love with his Thomas balloon, though! He rarely put it down.


Here we are with Eric's cousin, Melissa and her little Guthrie. It was so fun to get some baby snuggle time!


EJ's eyes lit up when Grandma Carol gave EJ his Thomas balloons.


Here's EJ eating his cake with the train cake topper! He scooped the cake up with the train and licked it off. It was quite funny.




Today, we flew back to Colorado where Grandma Bobbie and Grandpa John were waiting with a Thomas the Train party. My mom spent all day yesterday creating a train cake for EJ. It is incredible! She used M&Ms for the wheels and it was EJ's first time eating M&Ms. He loved them. Tonight when we were looking at the cake, we found all the wheels missing. He must have picked off all the M&Ms he could reach when we weren't looking!






While my mom made the train cake, my dad made a bean bag toss game for him. It's really cute and when I get some good pictures I'll put them on. Here they are with the cake.


Thanks to all our family and friends who made EJ's birthday special!!

The Beach

Everyone has arrived at the beach and there's been lots of fun! The weather has been perfect but the ocean water has been chilly. No complaints though...it's paradise!


Eric, Grandma and Uncle Brian buried EJ in the sand. He would sit still for a minute and then break through like the Incredible Hulk. He would grunt and show how tough he is!


Nicole and her fiance, Brian, came from Texas for the weekend. They thought it was "cold" compared to the heat and humidity they have in Austin right now. It was great to get know Brian as he will be joining the family next March.




Lots of cuddle time on the beach! When Uncle Brian arrived, EJ jumped into his arms and hugged away. Then it was time for baseball on the beach!



More beach fun with the uncles and daddy.





Uncle Andy and Eric playing "catch" with EJ. My heart stopped the first time I saw it! EJ seemed to like it, though.



Ice cream with Daddy hit the spot after a busy day playing on the beach.



EJ and Mommy. When he gets to the end of his day he won't let me put him down. The beach can wear this kid out like no other!! He won't let go of his truck no matter what!


One night we were able to go to El Patio--a family favorite restaurant with everyone. Chris Knabenshue was in town working the same baseball thing as Eric so we were able to see him as well. EJ got a kick out Chris!

We're at the Beach!

This was our view of the sun setting over the ocean last night! Before we could relax and enjoy the view there was much fun to be had! Andy helped EJ swing from the branches. Andy hanging out with his mom, Grandma Carol, and Kellie. EJ finally said, "Grammy" yesterday. His favorite word continues to be "Anny" for Uncle Andy. He wakes up asking for him every morning. He was pretty shy with Kellie the first couple days but now he says, "Mon Kellie!" (Come on Kellie) when he wants to play. Enjoying some watermelon after a very messy ravioli dinner. Thankfully, Uncle Andy is great at giving EJ his bath! Upon Arriving, Uncle Andy gave EJ his birthday present, "A Race to the Docks" with Thomas the Train. It was a huge hit and they've been playing non-stop when we aren't at the beach. Andy is always ready to play and has unending energy for his nephew. This is big blessing to me as Eric is working 14 hour days recruiting at a big event in Long Beach. We'll try to get him to the beach before it's all said and done.




In this video, Andy is teaching EJ how to say his name into the fan. It was reminiscent of the Chris Farley scene in "Tommy Boy"

Happy 1st Birthday Sammi!

Today's is Sammi's 1st Birthday! Her parents, RJ & Kelly, threw an awesome party tonight! The party took place on the new deck RJ just completed. It is beautiful! He also did an awesome job on the BBQ. Here he is giving EJ a treat bag which was a big hit.



Another big hit was EJ thinking that Sammi got HIS Elmo. Here he is "rescuing" Elmo off the gift table!! He really thought it was his and he wasn't about to let Elmo stay at Sammi's house! He conducted a covert op to get Elmo and run away with him!



Once we got the Elmo situation straightened out, Sammi got her birthday cake. She even let EJ help her blow out her candle.



Sammi did a fabulous job on her cake and went straight to the bath when she finished!


Sammi didn't spend much time wearing her hat but the family dog, Rebound, didn't seem to mind it at all!



It's hard to believe that Sammi is one already! She is a precious little girl with wonderful friends and family !!

As Seen on TV

I did it! I grew something!!

This spring I learned about the Topsy Turvy for growing tomatoes. It was advertised incessantly on TV so after listening to the "ease" of growing my own tomatoes, I went to Ace Hardware and found a Topsy Turvy for my very own.

Initially, I was a concerned that I would kill my tomatoes because I'm not the best gardener but with some miracle soil and tomato fertilizer I set out to grow tomatoes. My goal came to fruition today when I plucked my first two tomatoes off the vine! I counted 25 more on the vine so the fun is just beginning.



My parents grow tomatoes every summer so I am really proud to carry that tradition on with my family. I owe a big thanks to my neighbor, Andi, who waters the TT while I'm out of town, my mom who figured out a better way to secure it to the deck and the guy at Home Depot who showed me the Miracle Grow Tomato Fertilizer.

Bon Appetite!

Time Out

I recognize that my blog is very partial to the "greatness" of EJ. While it's true that he is a great kid, today, he challenged that a bit. After getting up from his nap, he found it very hard acclimate back into our world. He refused to eat his lunch and when I finally let him down from his chair, he refused to wash his hands, which we always do. I gave him a warning and he still did not comply so I had to put him in time out.

Supernanny says they should stay in time out one minute for every year of life. So, he was in time out sitting on the couch for just under two minutes. I did exactly what supernanny tells the parents to do after the allotted time has passed. I got on his level (on my knee at the couch) and told him that he disobeyed mommy by not eating lunch and washing his hands. I asked him to tell me he was sorry so we could wash up and get to the pool to which he blinked his eyes shut and turned his head away from me with defiance. I tried to suppress my shock while informing him that he would stay in time out. He didn't seem to care. This went on three times! Even though I was beside myself, I tried to keep it together. The fourth time I approached him, I said that if he couldn't say he was sorry with words, he could hug me as an apology. After all, I was ready to get to the pool for heaven sake! I leaned in toward him and he reached for a hug, thus ending eight minutes in time out.

As I reflected on the situation, I recognized my own willful personality in my son. Discipline is a huge part of parenting and I was clearly tested today. I hope I "passed" and that Supernanny doesn't have to make an actual visit to my house in the future!