Our Year in Pictures

On the beach in Costa Rica

Hiking in Costa Rica

Feeding a friendly monkey bananas in Costa Rica

 

Sledding for the first time

Baby Dos at 20 weeks

At the Des Moines Sculpture Park

Jekyll Island, Ga.

Jekyll Island, Ga.

Checking out giraffes at the zoo

Second birthday party

Very pregnant with Baby Dos

Loving the pool

Baby Dos at 36 weeks

Enjoying a favorite summer treat

Feeding a giraffe at the zoo

Having a blast on his new swingset

Family photo six days before Baby M was born

Our new addition

Brotherly love

After riding Thomas the Tank Engine

At the Brookfield Zoo in Chicago

Happy New Year!

Merry and Bright

We had a perfectly lovely, quiet Christmas with the Jerousek side of the family, who ventured to Iowa to spend the holiday with us. This was the first Christmas in which G seemed to understand the festivities, which made it especially fun. G woke up Christmas morning asking, "Where's Santa?" He seemed a little worried that he might still be downstairs. When we assured him that Santa was back home in the North Pole, G bounced down the stairs to see if Santa delivered any cars or trains {he did}.

G checking out his stash on Christmas morning. 

M opening his first present.

Trying out new toys...

...and a new hat.

All smiles.

Dunking with his new basketball hoop.

It was warm enough to take a walk to the park, not a snowflake in sight.

It is next to impossible to get a family picture in which no one is crying or wiggling these days. Forget smiling and looking at the camera. This was as close as it gets.

 Merry Christmas and many blessings in the new year. We are counting ours.

4 Month Baby M

He weighs 13 pounds, 11 ounces (24th percentile) and measures 25.25 inches (62nd percentile). In the past month, Baby M:

• Rolled over from his front to his back.
• Is grabbing for and holding toys.
• Took his first airplane ride.
• Figured out how to suck his thumb.
• Is keeping us up A LOT at night. {Teething? Wants to spend more time with his mom and dad?}

Conversations With G, 2 Years, 7 months

A recent conversation while Baby M was napping and G was playing in the living room:

Me: What are you doing?
G: Playing with trucks.
Me: Where are the trucks going?
G: They're going to Grady's house. They're going to Grady's house. Going to Grady's house.
Me: Who's riding in the truck?
G: Ernie's riding in the truck. {Pause} I hear something. {Whispering} I hear Jamie.
Me: Jamie will be here soon.
G: Jamie will bring dinosaurs. If I'm a good boy. Jamie will bring dinosaurs.
Me: What else will you do today?
G: Eat lunch.
Me: What will you eat?
G: I eat mac 'n cheese. I eat veggies. A veggie sandwich. Where's daddy?
Me: He's at work. I think your brother is awake.
G: No.
Me: Yeah, I hear him crying. Do you want to come up with me and get him?
G: No. I play trucks.

Visit With Santa

We went to see Santa at the zoo over the weekend. G was full of energy, especially after catching a glimpse of Santa from across the room. While we waited in line, G talked about his favorite zoo animals and practiced what he would say when he saw Santa: "Please Santa, I want Cars. Please Thomas. Thank you." But when it was finally our turn, G screamed and cried hysterically. No way was he going near that guy.

But it was okay. We got to take a quick cold walk around the zoo to check out the new sea lion habitat and some of the indoor animals. As far as G was concerned, the morning was a success.