Weekend Getaway

This past weekend, we headed down to Springfield to visit some family and friends. Maybe it's just the nostalgia from spending my much-loved college years there, but I just love that city. I am desperately hoping for my sister to decide to go to college there just so I have more reasons to go visit more often.

Our friends, Jeff and Missy, bought a house in Republic last year and they always willingly allow us to bombard their place with baby/toddler paraphernalia for a few days when we visit. Missy has done a super cute job of decorating their place. I am working on getting her to come up and "work her magic" on my place!

 Jackson played the role of Jeffrey's shadow all weekend.

We met up with our old (as in former) campus minister from the BSU for lunch at Chick-Fil-A. Billy was there for us in such critical times in each of our lives and even though we don't get to talk or meet up often, I am always encouraged and blessed when we do!

A picture of Billy and me at Jeff and Missy's rehearsal dinner

Of course, we spent some time with Brad and Mary (the in-laws) and the super cute nephew, Gabe. They are moving to St. Louis next month and I am pretty bummed that she didn't find a job here in KC. I love watching Brad play with Jackson. He's so good with kids (something I never would have guessed when we first met and we didn't really see eye-to-eye) and Jackson loves him.

Have you ever seen a diehard* Jayhawk fan loving on a Mizzou fan ?

*understatement

  

I know I am a bit partial, but aren't these boys just the cutest?

On Sunday, we found our way to Jordan Valley Park- probably my favorite place in Springfield. Home of possibly the most fun, impromtu nights of my college experience. I was disappointed that the fountains weren't on, but all the more of a reason to make sure that we go back soon. Jackson would just love it.

Nothing is cuter than a little boy with his daddy.

We were able to catch up with several friends, but there were still a few that we didn't get to see- which of course is a bummer. It was so nice to "get away" for the weekend, even though I am still catching up from the sleepiness that incurs from traveling with a one-year-old. Okay, so maybe we just enjoyed staying up way to late playing The Game of Things (birthday gift anyone?) and just enjoying time with friends. While I enjoyed great converation with Missy, Derek and Jeff took to watching the NASA channel for and since there was no sound, they narrated the events taking place as the astronauts prepped for a spacewalk. Apparently, that is really funny stuff. They entertained themselves for an hour (it's really best to avoid trying to understand these two when they are together).


On our way home, we discussed some places that we want to make sure we visit next time we travel south and aside from the park, they are all restaurants- does that say anything about us?

2009: A year in review

Our 2009 was a great year. There were many fun times of meeting friends for dinner, going to the movies, and playing board games- and the one awesome game of Canasta when Brad and I creamed Forrest and Mary. We enjoyed a picnic at the park over the summer and dinner on the Plaza just last month. I have made several new friendships and I've reconnected with old friends on Facebook. We took a couple trips down to Springfield to visit old friends and we traveled up to Trenton and Richmond to visit grandparents and families. But more important that all of the actual things we have gotten to do, we've been blessed to have been able to spend so much time together as a family and with our closest friends.

• We took a nice vacation to Sacramento/San Francisco, California

Derek and Jackson at the Golden Gate Bridge

• I went with my sisters to a Britney concert in April.
  

Ashley, Laura and me

We all enjoyed the concert

• We became an Aunt and Uncle on third wedding anniversary.

Holding Gabe when he was only a few days old

• We became homeowners and undertook the the challenge to flip it into an updated, livable home for our family.

The house in disarray -

after replacing the foundation, new windows were installed

• At church, Derek began playing guitar in the worship band and I began singing with the ladies ensemble.

Derek practicing with the band before the service

• We attended a Royals game, a pre-season Chiefs game, and I attended every show at Starlight theater this summer (Legally Blonde was my favorite, by far!)
  

On the way into the game with Forrest and Linda

Derek with the guys on the field before the game.

• With our Sunday School class, we participated in several service projects

We bagged and boxed over 300 pounds
of cereal at Harvester's!

We raised money and walked to support a friend in the
Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation Walk for a Cure.

• We watched Jackson grow from a teeny baby just learning how to smile to a very busy toddler smiling and laughing all throughout the day.

Jackson at three months old-
January 28th, 2009

Jackson at DeAnna Rose Farmstead
10 months old

• I enjoyed a few 'firsts' last year- eating KC BBQ, planning a baby birthday party, and parking in my very own garage parking space!

Jackson enjoying some of Arthur Bryant's BBQ

We stand now, looking ahead to what 2010 will bring us and we are a little overwhelmed with some of the big things the Lord has placed on our hearts to do. But, I stand here today to say that when we make it through this year and we reflect on what has taken place I will know that it was the Lord carrying us through because there is no way we could do it on our own. We are so excited for this coming year and I pray that we will live each day to its fullest and to know our true blessings.

A Joyful Christmas

I am always amazed at how quickly the holidays come and go. We were a little late getting in the Christmas spirit in our house because things were still so hectic from moving and finishing up our place. We didn't put up the tree on the day after Thanksgiving, and the lights didn't get put on the tree until the actual week of Christmas!

Jackson-- The Reindeer

This Christmas we had a the opportunity to learn that our holiday enjoyment is not dependent on the traditions we have, the gifts we buy, or the people we get to see. Several things were different for us this year and at first it was really hard to have a festive attitude about the season. First, we had a late start in decorating and then we decided that we wouldn't put ornaments on the tree this year to avoid fighting Jackson to keep them on the tree. We decided not to buy gifts for each other and we tried to think of things we could do or make instead of buying gifts for family. For the presents we did buy, I ended up getting online, which was very convenient and I got some great deals, but it doesn't have the same thrill of going to the store to shop. Then, the snow ruined the plans that we had for family to come visit on Christmas Eve and it was very disheartening!

Jackson and cousin Gabe- Christmas Day

We had a lesson to learn from Charlie Brown- Christmas isn't about having the nicest tree in town and it isn't about checking off your holiday checklist of traditions. We had such a great holiday and we were able to find great blessings in the simplicity. The idea to organize my mom's pictures was to save money, but it turned out to be such a neat experience to go through and find pictures I'd never seen of my parents in elementary school through college and to remember some of the things I did as a child. Similarly, we were scanning some of Linda's old pictures so she could have digital copies, but again we had fun looking at the pictures as we scanned. Derek got up early on Christmas morning to cook me breakfast and we enjoyed some nice time together before Jackson woke up and it was such a wonderful thought. And even though most of Jackson's presents were hand-me-down toys, it was so much fun seeing him open the presents and be excited about wrapping paper tubes instead of his toys!! And even though it was disappointing that my extended family couldn't come down on Christmas Eve, it was SO nice to tackle some of those things on my to-do list that had just been ignored for awhile. And instead, we had an impromptu celebration with friends and family watching Die Hard while it blizzarded outside. We had a fantastic time celebrating Christmas day with both of our families, playing games and enjoying the company of others.

Our family- Christmas 2009

It's no surprise to me that our most blessed Christmas was the one that might seem to be the crummiest. I pray that even in abundance our family will still appreciate the little things find joy in the simple blessings of Christmas. My grandma has had this quote from in her house for as long as I can ever remember and it has taken me 25 years to truly understand: Most folks are as happy as they make up their minds to be- Abraham Lincoln.

Jackson and Grandpa reading the Christmas Story-
one of my favorite memories from this year


Jackson with his new toy cell phone

Videos and Pictures

I still couldn't find what I needed to upload pictures from my camera to my computer, so I just went out and bought one! And-- my new one is pink! :)

Here is video of Jackson and me playing with his baseball toy.

Here is a video of Jackson crawling.

It is kind of a long video, but along with the army crawl and climbing, it has some "Classic Jackson" in it. First, the crossed ankles. Unless his toes are in his mouth or he is standing up, his ankles are crossed. Second, you can hear him pant like a dog. He gets this from his Grandpa who pants back at him. Third, is standing up and bouncing. If someone would let him balance on them, he'd stand and bounce forever and ever. Sometimes, it is exhausting. And Fourth, is the babbling. This kid has a lot to say sometimes!!

Here are a few recent pictures:

Here is Jackson with my Grandma Trickel. This is a great picture!

And here Jackson is so excited to meet his cousin Gabe

Jackson is enjoying one of the best joys of summer-- Strawberry Icecream!

Jackson celebrates the 4th of July

Click here for more pictures. And remember, the newest pictures are at the end of the album.

It's July... already?!?

Jackson has grown in leaps and bounds this past month. He is now crawling, pulling up, and feeding himself! He started saying Da-da right around Father's Day- perfect timing! In fact, Jackson has turned in to quite a Daddy's boy. When Derek is home, he wants to be with him and he doesn't want much to do with me!

A couple of months ago, I wrote about a time Jackson got into the cookie container and was most excited to find napkins and didn't even touch the cookies. Well, he found a cookie and managed to eat the whole thing, while smashing chocolate chips into the carpet and all over his new, white shirt. I'll be sure to add a picture once I find the cord to upload them to my computer. He was a MESS! But, he was happy.

Jackson has been swimming several times and he still loves splashing and kicking in the water. We went to a Royals game in the middle of June. We lost, but seeing the new stadium was cool. Plus, I got a really cute, pink (with rhinestones) Royals hat.

Our 3rd Anniversary was June 10th and to celebrate, Jackson's little cousin was born. Jackson was pretty intrigued by little baby Gabe when we went down to visit. He loves looking at babies and older kids. It's so crazy to think back to the time when Jackson was brand new and teeny-tiny. It wasn't even that long ago and now he is a babbling, crawling, busy little man!

One weekend in June, Jackson spent the night with my mom while Derek I went down to the lake with friends. My mom loves having Jackson spend the night and Derek and I had wonderful conversation on the drive. It was such an amazing weekend. It was relaxing and fun, despite being achy for a week from skiing.

At the end of May, we put an offer on a house in Belton and the contract was accepted in the beginning of June. This house is in dire need of TLC, but we are very excited about having a house of our own! We got an excelent deal on the house. It was a HUD foreclosure and has some pretty big issues to fix, but it's all do-able. We will close on the 17th of July, but we won't be able to move in right away. There is just too much to do. I am hoping that everything will be finished by October, but we definitely plan on moving in as soon as its liveable. Some of the work to be done: removing mold (which has gotten worse since we bid on the house), fix the crack in foundation, new siding, major plumbing work, grouding all electrical outlets, new cabinet doors, new widows... just to name a few. Call if you are extra eager to help! :)

We had a wonderful 4th of July weekend. On Friday, we went to my parents and Derek's parents joined us that evening. We had a good time all hanging out together. It is SUCH a blessing to have our families close by and that they not only get along, but enjoy the others company. Derek and I were FINALLY able to go Transformers on Saturday. I swear we were the last to see it. Pretty good, thought I still like the first one better. Saturday evening, we grilled at Derek's parent's place and ended up watching the neighbors fireworks from the roof-- it's a great view up there! We finished out the weekend over at a friends house on Sunday evening. Fellowship with friends is such an enjoyable time!!