Thank Goodness for Aunts

J's Aunt Steph came over to play with him last night. They played and played and played! J had the best time having his aunt play with all of his toys and show him all sorts of silly games.

Halloween-Past and Present

Halloween Fun

This year, J only got to wear his cute Halloween costume once and that was on Halloween night to go trick-or-treating & Trunk-or-Treat at our church. It was a fun-fiiled night of treats, seeing teachers, and spending time with friends. J loved it all!



Waiting in line at Trunk-or-Treat



J with his buddy, Gav, from MMO and church

What is that brewing???

J trick-or-treating with his neighborhood buddy, N-man

J making sure it is alright for him to take that lollipop...where does he get his sweetness from?? Dave and I never questioned if it was alright to take the candy! ;)

Random neighborhood lady who liked our little Buzz

Memory Lane

Those of you who read my blog know that I am notorious for uploading old pictures of J. I love to see how much he has grown! I also have that nostalgic side of me that really misses my little guy being a baby, yet, I love watching him go through each new stage. I am one of those moms who really likes the baby/toddler/preschool years a whole lot! Well, some of my favorite pics of J were at 11 mos. in October 2008. As I was blogging yesterday, I remembered that I had many pictures with a similar pose from two years ago. Here are a few:

11 mos.

34 months






11 mos.

34 mos.


22 mos.

34 mos.


Here's a glimpse at the different stages all three years:

He tried to eat the pumpkins the first year!

He tried to throw the pumpkins the second year!

This year, he understood the concept of picking out a pumpkin!


LOVE THIS LITTLE GUY :)




This is one of my favorite pictures in my collection over three years of J's life....

Pumpkin Patch

Today we took a trip to a local farm/pumpkin patch. All three of us agree that this was the best one we have visited. J loved the whole experience more this year than ever before. They had so much for him to do! He got to decorate a baby pumpkin out of the Pumpkin Hospital, play in the corn feed, take a hayride, run through a corn maze, feed live animals, eat snacks, and pick out a pumpkin. We think his favorite part was the hayride with decorating the pumpkin as a close second. Even better, one of his little buddies came with us. He actually lives in our neighborhood, and they really like playing together. Here are a few pics from our fun day!




J was a little unsure of the big animals. They had this HUGE bull that he quickly gave a piece of bread to, and he had no idea the donkey had moved this close to him. It was hilarious how fast he moved back when he realized it was there!

Hmm, which pumpkin do want to take home with us?

Putting their thoughts together about the pumpkins

J picks out our pumpkin!


Pumpkin Hospital




Finished! Classic J look when he is proud of himself!

Here it is Ladies and Gentlemen...the finished product...weighing in at exactly 1 lb. and named Donald. We have the birth certificate to prove it...I'm not kidding!


Always time for a little football!

Driving the tractor takes serious focus!

A Masterpiece of Our Own

J, you are growing up so fast! I can't believe that you are almost two months away from being THREE years old. Each day you bring us so much joy and love! If I could, I would keep you a little boy FOREVER. There is so much that I want to remember about you, Sweet Boy!

-You are such a snuggle bunny every night before we take you upstairs for bedtime stories.

-You love to be a happy helper and take your jobs very seriously...Miss Catherine's Bible carrier and our little garage door opener.

-You love music, especially songs with motions and the cd with your name in it...36 times!

-You love to ride in your little red cozy coupe outside.

-You want to throw and catch the ball with Daddy almost everyday. Your catching skills are quite impressive!

-You take boo-boos like a true champ!

-You love praise! We think you are our "words of affirmation" guy!

-You like to sort and match pieces. I love to watch you do these things! Thank you for letting me be your teacher!

-You love playgrounds. You climb on anything and everything. Your favorite slide is the tall, enclosed one, and sometimes you would rather slide down on your tummy.

-You like to pretend you are reading books,especially the repetitive books by Eric Carle or anything that you see with words on it. You understand the very simple concepts of reading and counting objects.

-You are a cautious boy with some things at first but rarely scared to try something.

-You work so hard at producing sounds and words correctly-something most people take for granted. You already show so much perseverance at such a young age!

-You have an amazing smile! I hope the small things in life will always continue to bring you joy!

-You show an unbelievable amount of confidence in the water. We are so proud of you and happy that you have already found a sport that you LOVE!

-You are such a sweetie to your pals, teachers, and us! God has given you an amazing sweet, gentle spirit.

First Day of School

Today was J's first day of school. It was quite different from last year. There were NO tears...from Mommy or J. However, J's willingness to pose for the camera was even shorter this year.



Mommy, I am saying "cheese"...come on, let's go!

Take a look at J a year ago on his first day of school!