Merry Christmas!

Mark & I are home from the West side, and the craziness of a cross-country move begins! We will be taking down photos, art, and bookshelves tomorrow, and the packers arrive on Monday. If I don't update for a bit that's why...

The next time I write we will probably be in Ohio!

Erin.

Graduation

Mark is an official Washington State University graduate. I am so proud of him!

The day started out a bit rocky as one of the apartments on the second floor of our building had a pipe burst and flooded the apartment below them (right next to us). Luckily we only had minor damage in our kitchen, and we were able to attend the ceremony as planned.

I want to thank everyone who attended Mark's graduation party yesterday. It was great to see everyone & spend time together before we leave for Ohio.

I will post some photos and details of the graduation later this week. Mark and I are wrapping Christmas gifts and cleaning up from the party... we sure made a mess yesterday!

Erin.

Pneumonia

Yes, our little Jack *probably* has Pneumonia. I feel so bad for him! His coughing has gotten worse last couple of days, so we took him to the doctor this afternoon & Dr. Adkins heard fluid in his lungs. He is now on antibiotics for the next five days. I hope he is feeling better by the time all our company comes on Friday... I know there are some grandparents, aunts, and uncles that can't wait to play with him!

Despite being sick he is still in a good mood during the day:

... right after nap. I love his bed head!

It has been cold here (it's 2 degrees right now), so we are stuck indoors most of the time. Evan loves doing play-doh and when he's in a super feisty mood it tends to help him focus.

7 months old.

Now that Jack is sitting up well on his own, the boys are taking some baths together. Evan is a very protective big brother!

My three boys. (Evan - 3.5. Jack - 7 months.)

I can tell Jack doesn't feel good in this photo. He still smiles a lot, but he's not quite himself. I really hope the medication kicks in soon so we get our super happy guy back.

This one was taken the week of Thanksgiving at my parent's house. Evan was outside driving his race car around & Mark was under orders to take a few photos. Thanks babe... they turned out great!!

And can I tell you how excited I am about Mark's graduation on Saturday?!?

-Erin.

New Month, New House, & New Challenges

NEW MONTH

Am I the only one who can't believe it is December already? This year has gone by so fast for me. Jack is already 7 months old, Evan is learning new things everyday (he greeted me today by saying "hola mommy"; I guess he has learned something from watching Handy Manny!), and Mark is 11 days from graduating. We are less than a month away from Christmas and our move, and I have so many to-do lists going it's ridiculous.

But... I love December & Christmas, and I am determined not to let our life changes get in the way of celebrating this season. I pulled out all our Christmas/winter books today so I can read them to the kids before bed. I also ordered Evan a Playmobil police advent calendar that should be here any day (we will start it a few days late this year, but that's o.k. by me), and I have big plans to bake Christmas cookies and pumpkin bread very soon.

Mark's graduation is another event this December, and of course I have more planning to do for that. Mark wants an ice-cream cake from Dairy Queen, and I am making a few new recipes that I would like to try out before next Saturday. My parents, Mark's parents, our siblings, extended family, and friends are going to join us after the ceremony to celebrate Mark's achievements, and say goodbye at the same time. We are going to miss our family and friends so, so much.

NEW HOUSE

Our trip to Cincinnati last week was successful, and we have found a great house & we feel a little acquainted with the city. We don't have freeways here in Pullman, so the maze of on ramps, exits, connections, freeways that lead to more freeways, and merging freeways is going to be a challenge the first few months. I have gotten used to going 25 MPH everywhere :-) At least once when we are visiting our family on the West side my sister reminds me to speed up because I'm creeping along on a road that is 40 MPH, and I'm happily doing 25.

Back to the house... it was built in 1900, it's been completely remodeled, and it has a yard! That last part I am so excited about. We are going to get a sand box & a swing set, and spend a lot of time outside next summer. The boys are still sharing a room, but they have a lot more space, plus we will have a big play room for them down stairs. We also have a living room, a studio for me, and a nice master bedroom.

NEW CHALLENGES

Jack has been our little non-sleeper for the last week or so. He decided half way through our trip that he didn't like the pack 'n play, and started fighting us before nap time and bed time. He has a cough, which I think is waking him up at night, but it has gotten worse the last couple of days. I took him to the doctor yesterday, and he does have a mild cold. He also got a few shots yesterday (5 shots and one oral vaccine), so he has been really tough to get to bed tonight. I wish I could help him more. I feel so bad that he is sick and crabby, but nothing I'm doing seems to ease his discomfort. Hopefully this will work itself out and he will be back to his normal, happy self soon.

I am anticipating a somewhat sleepless night based on how many times Jack has been up already tonight (4), so I better wrap this up and go to bed. But... I can't post without showing off my two little ones:

{@ the Pacific Science Center on 11/28/09. Evan loves the car ride outside the center. It was a great way to end our trip to Seattle.}

{Another photo of Jack in his sock-monkey outfit. I can't seem to get enough of my little monkey :-)