Phew!

Well I managed to get all of the blog posts done before the boys woke up. I best sign off now as I hear Jude talking to himself on the baby monitor. Keep reading to see what new adventures 2010 brings for the Hadley Family.

Christmas 2009

I'm actually going to begin this post with Christmas Eve 2009. My parents and sister packed up an overnight bag and came down to our house early on the 24th. We spent the morning making cookies together and eating lunch. Around noon, Brian, Dad, James and I all went to see Avatar together. While it was long (around 2 and a half hours) we all enjoyed every minute of it. I love taking James to movies just so I can see his little face light up with wonder at what he's seeing on the big screen. Of course when we left, he told us he wanted a blue guy (Avatar) when he got older. We had to explain that the movie was a story and that right now, we don't know of any planets like Pandora. But we also told him that anything is possible and maybe when he is older, man will discover life on other planets. After we got home, we helped finish up the cookies and then ate yummy caldo (Mexican beef stew) for dinner. After dinner, we gave the boys a bath and got them into their Christmas pajamas. We all sat down and watched Muppets Christmas Carol together. Then we set out cookies and milk for Santa and I read the boys Twas the Night Before Christmas before tucking them in bed. After the boys were all tucked in, the adults watched A Christmas Story on TBS into the wee hours of the morning. I think I finally got in bed around midnight.

My mom and I were the first ones awake on Christmas morning. I think I was just too excited to sleep very long. This Christmas was really special for several reasons. It was Jude's first Christmas, John really understood about Santa this year, and we got to spend it with my mom. Jude woke up first and so he ate and played while we waited for James and John to get up. The boys were really patient as we waited for Poppa and Jocelyn to wake up. James helped me with the Monkey bread while we waited. Once everyone was up, we let the boys get down to business with their presents. They first ripped into their stockings finding lots of fun toys and candy. After that, they started in on their gifts from Santa. James' big gift this year was a Nintendo DS. He's been wanting one every since Cameron got one last Christmas. John's big gift was the Imaginext Batcave. He also got the Tag Junior reader. Jude received a new crib toy that plays music and some stacking rings. After all the gifts from Santa were open, we started opening gifts from family. The boys received lots of games, books, puzzles, movies, and gift cards. Brian received Beatles Rock Band and I got a new purse. We both got books and fun new games for the Wii. We really tried to clean as we went this year so nothing got lost. After we did the last final clean up, the adults ate breakfast. The kids just chowed down on candy and cookies most of the day. : ) We spent the rest of the day opening up packages and watching the piles of trash and recycling grow. The boys played upstairs with all of their new gifts for most of the day so the adults enjoyed watching some new movies downstairs. Later that afternoon, I got started on Christmas dinner. We had Cornish game hens, green bean casserole (what holiday meal is complete without the green bean casserole?), roasted potatoes and rolls. Everything was super delicious. After dinner we watched Angels and Demons before calling it a night. All in all, this was one of the best Christmases I can remember, not because of all the gifts but because of all the wonderful quality time we got to spend together as a family.

Here's a slideshow of the photos we took that morning. I'll have to download and edit the video we took Christmas morning. Hopefully I'll have it posted early next year.

Happy Birthday Gammie!!

Before I get into Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, I just wanted to say Happy Birthday to my Mom/Gammie!! It was so wonderful to actually get to celebrate with her this year. Since she had to work on her actual birthday, we met up for dinner on the 23rd at one of her favorite restaurants - Pappadeaux. We all shared a delicious meal together and then she opened her presents. Well I think James and John actually opened them. :) We are so blessed to have her and really appreciate everything she does for us and all the love she bestows on the boys. They really love her to pieces. I only managed to snap one photo at dinner. I know, bad Mommy.

From Photos for Blog

Christmas with MaMaw, Poppa Steve, Great Grandma and Great Grandpa

On Wednesday, the 23rd, we celebrated Christmas with MaMaw, Poppa Steve, Great Grandma and Great Grandpa. They arrived at our house around lunch time and we all had yummy pizza together. Brian and I were proud to show off our home addition to everyone. They were all very impressed with how it turned out. After that, we let the kids open their Christmas gifts. The boys spent the rest of the afternoon playing with their new toys and learning new card games. James and John are still sleeping with the Toy Story blankets they received and Jude loves the new teething toys and rolling monkey ball he received. Here are some photos from their visit.

Christmas Prep with the Lewis Family

While Brian was driving his grandparents to Texas from Arizona, the boys and I spent the weekend with my parents and sister. On Saturday we went to their house after dropping Brian off at the airport and had a yummy breakfast. I brought over some num-nums (super delicious bran muffins) and banana bread I had made the day before. The boys and I hung out with Gammie and Poppa all day. James brought over his new castle and John brought his sing along DVD. After my sister arrived, we all piled in the car and headed to Santa's Wonderland just outside of College Station. The boys did such a wonderful job during the very long wait to get in. I think we sat in the car for almost 2 hours to drive through all the light displays. It was worth it though because both James and John LOVED it. I'm not sure if we'll go again next year. I was so glad we arrived a little bit early because by the time we left, the line was 4 times as long as when we got in it. I'd hate to hear how long those people waited to get in. Anyway, we headed into College Station to eat some dinner at the Olive Garden. Again, the boys were really well behaved considering it was 2 hours past their normal dinner time. Thankfully I had brought their pajamas with us and so I changed their clothes before getting back in the car to drive home. All of the boys fell asleep and made the transition to their beds with no problems. Sunday morning, we drove back up to Gammie and Poppa's house and spent most of the day there. The boys helped decorate their Christmas tree and I played Harry Potter Scene It with my sister. We headed home around 4:30 because Brian was due home between 5 and 6. Even though we were without Daddy, we had a wonderful weekend with my family. Here are a few photos of the boys decorating the tree.

From Photos for Blog

From Photos for Blog

Christmas with the Crew

On Friday, the 18th, we celebrated Christmas with our best friends. We had our traditional stuffed pork chops, green bean casserole, mashed potatoes and rolls. Dinner was super yummy and afterwards we all exchanged gifts. Of course it was the younger ones who were dying to rip open their presents so we let them go first. All the kids enjoyed the gifts they received and it was nice for them to have a taste of what was to come a week later. James received the Imaginext castle and John got a princess game for the Wii and a sing along DVD. Jude received a musical push toy that he loves to hit so it will play music. We had a wonderful time celebrating early with our friends since we knew we wouldn't see them on Christmas day. Here are some photos of the kids tearing into their gifts.

Class Holiday Parties

The last week of school was certainly a busy one for James and John as each of them celebrated the winter holidays with their classmates. To prepare for these wonderful parties, I made a few batches of fudge and a lot of yummy chocolate covered pretzel rods. John's Christmas program and party were on Tuesday, 12/15, in the morning. The Tuesday/Thursday classes participated in the program. John was in the chorus and sat on the benches. Ms. Sue told me how the entire time he was talking about Mary, Joseph and Baby Jesus. Some classes were angels, some were shepards, and some were sheep. It was really cute and so nice to see John up there on stage. After the program was over, the parents were invited back to the classroom for a special snack (cookies and pretzels). I stayed with John and shared his snack and learned all about his classmates and teachers. Thursday morning was James' holiday party. I got to the classroom a little early and helped the homeroom moms set everything up. The party was Olympic themed so as the kids walked in we played the Olympic theme music and gave them each a different flag to wave. Then they paraded around the room. The kids got to play a few fun games such as pass the snowball (like hot potato) and elf bingo and did two crafts - an Olympic torch and an edible snowman. Jude and I had a wonderful time spending time with James and his classmates. I always enjoy seeing him interact with the kids in his class and getting to know his friends a bit more. James had a blast delivering the pretzel rods to all 9 of the Kindergarten teachers (it was his idea to make them for everyone, not just Mrs. Moore). All in all both James and John enjoyed celebrating the holidays at their respective schools. Here's a slide show of the photos I took. Sorry the ones of John are so dark. I think it might be time to invest in a new camera.

Much needed updates

Wow, I've really fallen behind on our blog. So much has been happening these last three weeks that I just haven't had much computer time. I've decided to get up early on this last day of 2009 and update our blog with all of the activities we've been up to this later half of December so get ready for quite a few new posts.

Jude at 7 months

Wow, this month has flown by before my eyes. I really can not believe Jude is 7 months old already. I keep saying he's six months old. He's had a really good month. He's now eating four 8 oz bottles a day and two solid meals. He's been practicing his chewing a lot and is starting to eat small bites of bread whenever we go out to eat. He's going to really help me with portion control over the next few months. Anytime I sit down to eat, he stares at me with big eyes as if to say "when are you going to give me some?"

Jude has also finally made the permanent move to his crib. We kept trying to get him so sleep in there but then we'd have something happen that brought us back into bed with us. We're now back in our house and there's nothing lurking on the horizon so we've decided it's time to get him in his own room. Thankfully he's been doing really well. Most nights he sleeps the whole night but on occasion he'll wake up once or twice and need some comfort.

Jude is also doing really well with sitting up on his own. He rarely topples over anymore and will sit and play with toys for quite a while. He's also rolling over a lot and can push himself backwards when he's on his tummy. Every now and then, he'll push himself back onto his knees but he quickly plops back onto his stomach when that happens.

We're gearing up for Jude's first Christmas five days from now. We can't wait to see what he thinks of all the presents and wrapping paper. He really enjoys looking at the Christmas tree and will try to pull ornaments off if he's sat too close to the tree. We'll also be celebrating Jude's first New Year in another week. We can't wait to ring in 2010 with our little baby boy.

Of course my camera battery died before I could get a few pictures of Jude so I had to use my sister's iPhone. This is the best one I could get of him. The grin is classic Jude. I love how it makes his little chubby cheeks even more pronounced.

Christmas Preparations

Christmas preparations are well underway here at the Hadley household. I've been wrapping presents anytime the older two boys aren't home and I'm finally down to the last two. We also dressed the boys up in their matching pajamas to capture a picture or two for our Christmas cards. As always, it was an adventure trying to get all three kids to look at the camera and smile. I really wish I had a camera with a faster shutter speed. There were several times they were all perfect but I had to wait for my camera to be ready to take another picture. Oh well, one day we'll invest in a digital SLR.

Last weekend, we braved the super cold weather to attend the Mustang Family Christmas Party. It was at the Farm and Ranch Club which is a covered outside venue. It was chilly when we arrived and only got colder as the sun went down. The boys took pictures with the longhorn and got to visit with Santa. We did a gift exchange and had yummy BBQ for dinner. After dinner, we waited in line for Christmas themed balloons. James got a reindeer hat and John got a candy cane. We met up with our friends, the Weatherwaxes and got the see the Broeder family for the first time in forever (they have two kiddos the same ages as James and John). After that, we decided to call it a night and head home.

I've also been working on some homemade stockings for our family. I found some really fun Christmas fabric while we were visiting Sally and Jason at the beginning of November. Now that we're back at home, I was able to break out the sewing machine and get them made. They turned out really well in my opinion. It was my first time making something completely from scratch. I made the pattern on my own and managed to piece it all together.

Alas, there are no decorations up at our house yet. Hopefully the weather will cooperate this weekend and we can get both the inside and outside decorations up. It was dreadfully cold and wet last weekend.

Here are some out takes from the Christmas card photo shoot, pictures from the Mustang Christmas party, and our new stockings.

Snow in Katy?!?!

We woke to a super cold morning last Friday. I got a text message from Kristen a bit before 7:30 telling me it was sleeting/snowing. Lovely. So I had to load up everyone in the van and drive down to the bus stop. The bus driver informed me that the kids would likely be sent home from school early. Apparently the weatherman was misinformed as to the timing of the winter storm. The snow actually started coming down hard around 11:30, not the 3:30/4:30 he mentioned during the news the night before. We had a lovely lunch at the Olive Garden with Aunt Kristen to celebrate her birthday and what a wonderful birthday present she received. Snow on her birthday for the first time since she moved to Texas from Iowa as a child. John enjoyed playing in the snow in the backyard while waiting for James to get off the bus at 2. James got to throw snowballs at Brian for a bit before we loaded up in the van and headed out to wrap the pipes at my parents' house (it was going to get down well below freezing that night). By the time we were ready to meet Will for dinner at 5, the snow had stopped falling and the sun was shining. We still had snow on our grass and roof Saturday morning and well into Saturday afternoon. James is sorely disappointed every morning when he wakes up and there's no snow. I have to keep telling him that we live in southern Texas and snow is very rare here.

Here are a couple of photos of the snow we got last Friday.

Our Home Addition Project is Complete!!!

We came home Sunday to find our house was ready for us to move back in. The cleaning crew came over the weekend and everything was in really good shape. There were just a few remaining items on the punch list but nothing the would prevent us from moving back home. Sunday and Monday were a whirlwind of cleaning, packing, unpacking, and what seemed like a never ending pile of laundry. All in all, we were only out of our house for 5 weeks. We are over the moon with the results. The bedroom and bathroom turned out exactly as we envisioned and the new carpet is AWESOME. The only thing we wish we had done is put a light in the new hallway upstairs near the game room closed. It gets really dark up there at night. Thankfully a few well placed nightlights have solved the problem. I'm having a great time decorating the new bedroom (truck theme) and bathroom (monster theme). We are all so happy to be back in our house and Brian and I are definitely happy to be done commuting to and from Copperfield each day (thanks for letting us use your house Mom and Dad!!!). Here are pictures of the final product.

Camping Trip - November 2009

While most people were out shopping on Black Friday, the Hadleys were on their way to Fredericksburg for a camping trip with Kristen, Darren, Aly, and Cameron. Kristen reserved a cabin and a tent site at the nearby KOA. This was my first time to camp somewhere other than a state park and it had it's pluses and minuses. On the plus side, this KOA had private bathrooms that each had a toilet, sink and shower. That came in real handy when it came time to give the boys a shower. On the downside, there weren't any biking trails which the kids were looking forward to. We got to the KOA around noon on Friday and set up camp. After that, we ventured into Fredericksburg and walked down Main St. We stopped in several shops and ended up eating dinner at a German restaurant before driving back to camp. Saturday morning Kristen made hobo pies for breakfast. After we all ate, we made the short drive to Enchanted Rock. Everyone but Jude and I made the climb up the rock. Jude was napping in the car. Saturday afternoon was spent napping, riding bikes, and playing on the playground. We made burgers and hot dogs for dinner and I taught the kids how to play Uno. Dessert that night was a super yummy peach cobbler Kristen and Darren picked up at the pecan store. Here are some photos from the trip, many of them taken by James.

Supper Club

I just wanted to write a quick message about our wonderful Supper Club. We've been getting together with these three couples once a month for the last 5 years now. It really amazes me to see how much we've gone through together. Since we started, we have added 5 kids to the group (James was already born when we started) and have each moved to our second homes. We rotate which couple hosts dinner with the hosting couple choosing the theme for the month. The host prepares the main dish and the remaining couples each prepare a different course to complete the dinner. We have a fantastic time each and every time. We've done many different themes and have been shaking things up recently. This past month we all went on a dinner cruise in Clear Lake. The month before that was game night and before that we did a murder mystery dinner. We are so blessed to have these wonderful friends in our lives and truly look forward to seeing them each month. Here's a picture of the group and one of Brian and I.

From Photos for Blog

From Photos for Blog

Happy Thanksgiving!

I know it's a little late but I hope everyone out there had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. Ours began with a day at the pediatrician's office. Jude had his 6 month check up in the morning and then the older two had to get their second dose of the N1H1 vaccine in the afternoon. After that, we were off to Georgetown to spend some quality time with MaMaw and Poppa Steve. We arrived pretty late on Tuesday but Wednesday was full of adventure. MaMaw got us tickets to see the 101 Dalmatians musical that was playing at the Long Center in downtown Austin. It was my first trip to that theater which was really nice. They must be remodeling the Bass Concert Hall because I noticed that the Nutcracker ballet was also going to be held there this year. Anyway, the musical was a hit! James and John really enjoyed all the songs.

Thursday was also a lot of fun. Aunt Sally and Uncle Jason arrived with their two puppies - Gus and Georgia. James and John both enjoyed playing with the dogs and taking them for walks. Poppa Steve and Uncle Jason worked on putting training wheels on James' bike. After a little modification, they were on and James was off and riding his bike. Brian took him out for a ride and then later in the afternoon, I took him for a ride around the block. Thanksgiving dinner was super yummy. We had ham, stuffing, lima beans, corn, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole and rolls. Later that evening we munched on queso and different cheese dips while playing Scrabble. Sally rocked the house and beat us all by a mile. The day finally ended with the UT vs. A&M football game. While the Aggies did not get the "W", we were all very proud of how well they played against the #3 team in the nation. We're hoping to get the win next year when Colt McCoy leaves and we still have Jerrod Johnson on the roster.

Sorry I didn't get any pictures from all the activity. We were just too busy having a great time. Here are the only two photos I did take. It was Jude's first time taking a bath in the big tub. He had a great time splashing in the water and playing in the tub with James.

From Photos for Blog

From Photos for Blog

Jude is 6 Months Old!!!

They say time flies when you're having fun and boy has it been flying lately! I can't believe our little JuJu Bean is 6 months old already. Where has half a year gone?!?! Jude has been a trooper through the whole house construction process. He spends a lot of time in the car and has been really good on the long rides to and from Katy. This past month he's moved up to his convertible car seat as it gives him more room to relax. Unfortunately, it means no more infant carrier so he's been almost forced to learn how to sit up in a high chair and a shopping cart. Thankfully he has learned quickly and is a wonderful shopping companion.

He's also doing really well eating baby food. He really likes apples and peaches. He doesn't care for pears very much so I have to sneak them in with the other fruit. He's only tried sweet potatoes once and didn't seem to like them very much. I'll have to keep on trying. Unfortunately, with all the driving back and forth, he hasn't been able to have regularly scheduled meals. I'm lucky if I can give him solids once a day. My aim is once a day on Tuesday and Thursday and twice Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

Jude can now roll over front to back as well as back to front. He has also just recently mastered sitting up on his own. He'll also try to pull himself up to standing from sitting if you give him your fingers. Jude still loves his pacifier and has almost mastered getting it back into his mouth by himself. Jude is a huge "talker". I really think he likes the sound of his own voice and he only has one volume - loud. The thing I love most right now is his giggle. I don't really call it a laugh because it's not a really from the gut laugh. He loves to giggle when his brothers do silly things or when I sing funny songs to him.

Jude just got his first haircut this past weekend. His hair was getting really long and kind of shaggy so we took him in to get him cleaned up. He looks just like James did at this age. He even has blue eyes just like James, although Jude's are more blue grey while James' are more blue green. Speaking of James, Jude is now wearing 12 month sized clothes and is using all of my favorite outfits James used to wear as a baby. They are just as cute on Jude as they were on James and John.

One of the reasons I love fall and winter is all of the holidays and in my opinion, there's nothing better than a baby's first holiday. Jude celebrated his first Halloween here in Houston with our family and my parents. Next week will be Jude's first Thanksgiving and next month will be his first Christmas. I can not wait!!! Another first coming up for Jude will be his first camping trip. We will be going to Fredericksburg, TX the day after Thanksgiving to camp for two nights. Hopefully Jude will go with the flow and enjoy the time outdoors with his family and friends.

Here are some photos I took today of Jude sitting up.

From Photos for Blog

From Photos for Blog

House Addition Update 3

Since the last time I wrote, the painters came and painted all the walls. The trim carpenter also came and installed the doors, shelves, window sills, etc. Then the painters came back and painted all of the trim. Things are looking really good. The cabinet, marble vanity, and marble surround in the shower was also installed. Currently the tile is being installed. They are making tremendous progress each week. We're really hoping it will be all done by December 4th. The house is going to require a lot of cleaning before we can move back in. I can't wait to get back home and start decorating for Christmas. Here are some photos since the last time I posted.

James' First School Field Day

Yesterday was James' first school field day. It was originally going to be a few weeks ago but it rained too much that week. It actually rained Sunday afternoon and Monday morning so the coaches moved field day to the gym. James had a blast. The kids did several different types of relays. The first was was for the whole class. The kids had to run down to where their teachers were sitting, get some paint dabbed on their cheeks and run back to tag the next person in line. James also competed in the pumpkin roll (had to roll a pumpkin around the cone), balloon pop relay (had to run with your balloon to the teacher, sit on it while she pops it and then run back), sponge bob relay(run with a sponge over your head) and the super scooper relay (run with a ball inside this big ice cream scoop looking thing around the cone and back). I didn't get very many good photos because my camera doesn't take action shots well. I did get some class photos at the end and hopefully some good video of James competing.

James getting his face painted

From Photos for Blog

John being a ham

From Photos for Blog

James' class

From Photos for Blog

Jude's First Haircut

As with our other two, Jude was born with a full head of hair that just kept growing and growing. None of our boys ever had their hair fall out and grow back. As we get ready to have Jude's 6 month photos taken, we decided it was time to have his hair cut. We took him to the same salon as James and John - Cool Cuts 4 Kids - this past Saturday. We took him in around 6 pm when it was nice and quiet. He did a really great job. He didn't cry at all and was really quite interested in what the stylist was doing back behind him. Now that he has a bit boy hair style, we think he really looks a lot like James did at this age. Here are some before and after photos.

Getting strapped in

From Photos for Blog

All ready for my haircut

From Photos for Blog

All done. Check out my new do!

From Photos for Blog

House Addition Update 2

Things continue to progress well with the addition project. Late last week they put in the electrical, plumbing and ventilation. We asked that a few changes be made and then the house was inspected on Tuesday. The inspection went really well. Only a few minor changes were needed. After that, the drywall went up!! They drywall crew finished all the patches and floating on Monday morning. Today the painters are coming to texture the walls and ceiling. After that, they will paint and then the trim carpenter comes to put in the doors and trim late this week. Here are some recent photos. I'll post more once the walls are all painted and the trim is up.

A few milestones for Jude

Jude's reached a couple of milestones recently. First, he's found his feet and figured out what wonderful toys they are. Anytime he's on his back, he's got his feet in his hands. Second, he's moved up to a convertible car seat. I did a crude weight check on him (weighed myself and then weighed the two of us together) and found he was 20 lbs. The limit on his infant seat is 22 lbs. That coupled with all the hours we're spending in the car driving back and forth to Katy prompted us to move him up to his big boy seat. He's been doing great in it. He hardly cries and sleeps well. Finally, he's sitting up well enough to sit in a high chair! He really enjoyed sitting and eating with us at Steak 'n' Shake yesterday at lunch. His stomach and back muscles are really getting a lot stronger and he can sit up for a few seconds at a time on the floor. Here are some photos of these new milestones for Jude.

Playing with his feet

From Photos for Blog

Sitting in the high chair

From Photos for Blog

Happy Halloween!!!

We hope everyone had a great Halloween like the Hadley's did. We kicked off the festivities with pumpkin carving with Kristen and the Crouch kids. Then Saturday after dinner, we dressed the boys in their costumes and took them trick or treating. John did a wonderful job again saying trick or treat and thanking the nice people for the candy they gave him. James on the other hand was a bit impatient for people to answer their doors and as soon as he got his treat, he was off and running to the next house. Our original plan was to only take Jude around the cul d sac and then take him back to the house but we ended up carrying all 20 lbs of him around the entire hour and a half we were out. Once we got back to the house, the kids examined their loot and had a couple pieces of candy each. After that, they had a wonderful time opening the door to trick or treaters and passing out candy to the kids who came to the door. Here's a slideshow of photos from the weekend.

House Addition Update

Since I last wrote, a lot has been going on. A huge thanks to my wonderful parents for keeping the boys for us over the weekend so we could get the house ready and to my sister for tackling the upstairs for us. All the furniture has been moved and the master closet is empty. We draped sheets over everything to help keep everything from getting too dusty. We also loaded up the car and the van with all of our day to day stuff and temporarily moved to my parents house. Monday morning at 8:30 am the first shipment of materials was dropped off at the house and at 9 am we closed on our home improvement loan. Unfortunately, it was pouring down rain so the guys couldn't start working. Thanks to perfect weather on Tuesday and Wednesday, they were able to accomplish a lot. The framing is about 99% done. The window for the new bedroom still needs to be installed but they closed up the exposed side of the house with tarps as more rain was in the forecast. Here are some pictures Brian took yesterday after the crew had finished up. Next up will be plumbing, electrical and ventilation.

Jude at 5 months

Jude is 5 months old today and is such a joy. This month he started eating solid food and moved from 6 oz bottles to 8 oz bottles. He also started rolling over front to back and is almost able to roll from back to front. He loves to play in his exersaucer and really enjoys bouncing in his Jumperoo. Jude takes two short naps each morning and usually one really long nap in the afternoon. He is so close to sitting up on his own right now. I can tell he really wants to be able to do it. I'm sure he'll master it in a week or two. Once that happens, he'll start sitting in shopping carts and high chairs in restaurants. Jude still has dark curly hair and blue grey eyes. He's still in 6-9 month clothes but will be moving up to 9-12 month once the weather makes a decides to stay cooler. Jude has also started grabbing the bottle and pulling it towards his mouth. I imagine he'll be able to hold it himself soon. Also, everything goes into his mouth these days, especially his fingers. He is a very drooly baby which is new because James and John weren't. We often have to change his outfit in the middle of the day because the front is all wet. Hopefully he'll get teeth soon and the drooling will subside.

Here are some photos of Jude today.

From Photos for Blog

From Photos for Blog

The Little Gym

The boys went to The Little Gym for the first time a few weeks ago for a birthday party. It was really cool and they both had a blast. It was basically a gymnastics gym for little kids. All the balance beams, bars, etc. were smaller and set lower to the ground. James had a great time and did everything they had in the room. John swung on the bars a bit and did the really low beam but that was about it. They both really liked the inflatable jumping mat, the parachute and the bubbles. Here are some photos we took.

James on the high beam

From Photos for Blog

John on the low beam

From Photos for Blog

Two little monkeys swinging on the uneven bars

From Photos for Blog

John doing a bear crawl

From Photos for Blog

Zoo Boo

Well I can hardly believe that the month of October is here and more than half way over now. The first Friday of the month, I took the boys to Party City to pick out their Halloween costumes. James is super excited to be Optimus Prime this year and John decided on Spiderman. They wanted to play in their costumes the moment we got home. John's is holding up well but James' costume has already required mending in several places. That's what I get for only spending $14.99 on the thing.

This past weekend we decided to hit the zoo because the weather was supposed to be (and was) fabulous and it was the first weekend of Zoo Boo. We met the Weatherwaxes at the zoo and had a wonderful time doing the activities and seeing the animals. The kids also had a great time looking at everyone else's costumes. We got there early and headed out before the really big crowds arrived. We all had a great lunch at Mission Burrito before heading home. We're so glad it has finally cooled down so we can enjoy the zoo more often. I'll post some photos and video soon.

Jude in his pumpkin outfit

From Photos for Blog

James, Kiera, and Jay on the carousel

From Photos for Blog

John and Daddy on the carousel

From Photos for Blog

Home Addition Project

Sorry there haven't been any updates in a while. We've been really busy working on an addition to the Hadley House. It all started over the summer with a Sunday dinner conversation with Kristen about how to add space to our house (we have the same floor plan). At first we didn't think about it much because we honestly don't need the space right now but seeing as how we plan to add another child to our family in the future, we really could use another bedroom and bathroom upstairs. So after much thought and soul searching, we hired an architect (who happens to live in our neighborhood and whose son is in James' class at school). We went over several ideas with him and after a few meetings, decided on a design. We're going to add a full bath over the entryway and a new bedroom over the dining room as well as a closet for the game room.

After we had the design set, we went in search of a builder. After interviewing five builders and receiving all the bids, we made our choice and signed the contract. At this point, we're in the final stages of closing on the home improvement loan. We should sign the papers and construction should begin on the 26th. I'll be sure to post before pictures and keep you updated during the construction process. Since the entire front section of our house will be under construction, we'll be relocating to my parents' house up in Copperfield until the work is completed. We've been told it would take between 4 and 6 weeks so hopefully we'll be all done and back in our house by the first week in December.

Video of Jude rolling over

Jude has been rolling over a few times each day, mainly in his crib, and when I'm not around. I was able to capture this video of him rolling from his tummy to his back this morning. Enjoy!

A day of firsts for Jude

Today was a day of firsts for Jude. It was the first time Jude rolled over from his tummy to his back. He was hanging out on his tummy in his crib and when I came back from cleaning up a messy diaper, he had rolled over on to his back. Jude also had solid food for the first time today. Unlike his brothers, Jude doesn't have any issues with the tongue thrust reflex. He had two servings, albeit very small, of rice cereal at lunch today. We'll continue with the cereal for a few more days and then move onto fruits and veggies. Here are a couple of photos of him in his high chair today.

Getting ready to eat

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My hands are super yummy

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It's tough being a Kindergartener

James passed out last Thursday after a long day of school. Mrs. Moore must keep him super busy all day long. He also passes out each night at bedtime.

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As promised...

Here are some new photos of Jude.

Much more content with tummy time now.

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A rare unhappy moment in the exersaucer.

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His fingers are almost always in his mouth these days.

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Jude at 4 months

Jude had his 4 month check up this morning. He's 17 lbs 11 oz and 26.5 inches long. I couldn't find James' 4 month stats so I compared with his 6 month numbers. Jude is the EXACT same size James was at 6 months. We knew he was chunky but wow, he's big. He got two shots and one oral vaccine. He cried pretty hard but calmed down quickly. He's still a super sweet baby. He still enjoys talking with us and his brothers. He loves being in his exersaucer and will chill there quite content if football is on TV. We need to pull out the Jumparoo and see how he enjoys that. I'm sure it will be a hit just like it was with James and John. He's not rolling yet but he pushes up with his hands during tummy time and pulls his legs in and gets to his side when he's laying on his back. I'm sure it won't be long before he starts rolling over. We'll probably be starting solids soon as he is definitely showing interest. He watches us when we eat and looks like he really wants a bite. It's time to get the high chair down from the attic and give it a good cleaning. He's been chewing on his fingers lately and drooling lots so I'm pretty sure teeth will be on their way soon. He still has blue grey eyes that change color depending on what he's wearing. Overall, he's a really happy baby who's content to do whatever the rest of us are doing. We're so lucky that he's just fit into our family so effortlessly. I'll post some pictures of him tomorrow.

Canadian/Alaskan Adventure

Brian and I just returned home from our 10 day Canadian/Alaskan adventure. While we definitely caught up on sleep, we're suffering from jet lag today. We took off on our adventure on the 11th with a 4+ hour flight to Vancouver, BC. Saturday we took a nice walk to Stanley Park, toured the Vancouver Aquarium and walked around downtown. Sunday morning we caught a cab down to the cruise ship terminal and boarded our home for the next 8 nights, the Celebrity Mercury. The ship was on the older side but you really couldn't tell. They've done a great job redoing the inside. Since we were going to have beautiful scenery almost the entire time, we splurged and got a suite with a nice deck.

After a relaxing day at sea, we pulled into our first port of call - Sitka, AK. We had to tender into the harbor (I don't do well with small boats so I took some Dramamine). We had pretty smooth waters so my stomach was fine. Sitka was a really nice small town. It was definitely on the cool side and it drizzled the whole time we were there. They had a beautiful Russian Orthodox church in the middle of town that we visited along with lots of shops.

We hopped back on the boat and headed off to our next destination, the Hubbard Glacier. It was SUPER cold that day and it got colder the closer we got to the ice. We were incredibly lucky. We had beautiful weather, calm seas and next to no ice in the water. We had the closest approach to the glacier any ship had all season long. We got within a quarter mile of it and boy could we tell. We sat out on the patio huddled in our sweatshirts, jackets, hats, scarves, gloves and those Snuggie blankets you see on TV. Even then I was still cold. We didn't get to see any calving (when big chunks of ice break off and splash into the water) but we did hear a lot of "white thunder" (when the ice breaks and shifts up on land).

Our next destination was the capital of Alaska - Juneau. It was another quaint town. Lots of shopping near where the ships docked. Brian and I took a walk to see another really old church and then over to the capital building. We walked around the corner and found the Governor's mansion as well. We strolled back into town and took the Mt. Roberts tram up to the top of Mt. Roberts. It was amazing to ride the tram up through these incredibly tall trees. We watched a short video about the local Native American tribes in the area and checked out the spectacular views of Juneau.

Our final stop in Alaska was in Ketchikan. Again, it was raining - quite a bit harder this time. This was the only shore excursion Brian and I signed up for. After hearing about Sally and Jason's zip lining experience on their honeymoon, we decided to give it a try. We rode up the mountain in what looked like a golf cart on serious steroids. There were points in time where the incline was so steep, I was sure we would go sliding back down the mountain. We got all suited up in our harnesses and headed out to the course. Brian and I ended up being separated because he volunteered to go first and I wasn't quite ready to take the leap. I was the last one in our group of 9. The whole thing was lots of fun. Not even the rain could ruin the outing. I'll definitely have to give it another try when it's not so wet. We didn't take any pictures or video because of the rain which was disappointing. We didn't see anything else of the town because by the time we got back to the ship, it was time for dinner. Perhaps one day we'll go back and check out Creek St. or the logger show.

We had another day at sea after we left Alaska. The water was on the rough side but calmed down around 3 pm as we re-entered the Inside Passage. We did lots more reading and napping. We had to order lunch in because of the rough water. My stomach couldn't handle sitting upright for more than 10 minutes or so. Thankfully it was nice and calm well before dinner as it was our last formal night and lobster night. I will say that the food on the ship was fantastic and that night was no exception. At the end of dinner and before dessert, they introduced the head chefs and the folks in charge of the wait staff. They had a really nice parade around the dining room carrying Baked Alaska. Finally, just before they cut into dessert, we all got to witness a marriage proposal!! It was so incredibly sweet. Of course she said yes, and as it turns out, their table was right across from ours.

Our final port of call was Victoria, BC. All the locals on the cruise told us about the unusually warm summer they had been having and that day was no exception. The sun was out all day and it was on the warm side. It would have been wonderful had I not been in pants and a long sleeved t-shirt. I figured we were going to Canada so there wouldn't be any need for t-shirts. Boy was I wrong. Thankfully there were cool breezes and it was quite comfortable in the shade. We had a nice walk down to the old harbor, saw the Empress Hotel as well as the Parliament building, both of which were incredibly beautiful. On our walk back, we came across a really pretty courtyard with a beautiful fountain. They also had shields with the flag of each province on them flanking a beautiful water wall. We had one more nice dinner on the ship and then it was off to Seattle.

My only complaint for the whole trip would be the disembarkation process. We had asked for Express Walk off since we had a flight to catch. It wasn't well organized and there was a huge crowd of people all trying to get off the ship with their luggage at the exact same time. Thankfully we had no problems once we were off the ship. I think that was the quickest trip through immigration and customs I've ever had in all my travels. They barely glanced at my passport and didn't even look at our customs form. We hailed a taxi and were off to the airport. We were missing the boys so much, we decided to see how much it would cost to get on an earlier flight. We had originally thought it would be $150 each but when we go there it was only $50 a piece so we splurged and caught the earlier flight. We were on the ground in Houston before 6 and home before the boys went to bed. All in all, it was a great trip. We're both well rested and ready to tackle whatever lies ahead.

Here's a slide show of our trip. I haven't added captions yet. It goes in the order of our trip so hopefully you can match up the pictures to what I've described.

Visit from Poppa Mike, Mimi, and Aunt Sarah

This weekend, Poppa Mike, Mimi and Aunt Sarah came to visit us. We hadn't seen Mike and Lisa since April and we hadn't seen Sarah since our last trip to Tucson! That's just way too long between visits. We had a great time!! We had dinner at Mission Burrito and then walked around La Centerra Friday night. Then Saturday we hit the zoo for the first time in many months. It was also Jude's first trip to the zoo. He had a great time riding in his stroller, having a bottle and seeing some animals. James and John were both in bad moods and so they missed out on the rest of the days activities which included lunch at Lupe Tortilla and shopping at the Galleria. The boys and I came home, ate lunch and then they went down for naps. All in all, it was a great visit. Hopefully several months won't pass before we see them again.

With the sea lion statue

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James and Sarah in the prairie dog tunnels

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Getting ready to ride the carousel

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A video from the carousel ride

Volunteering

Now that James and John are both in school, I have the opportunity to volunteer more. The first request came from the head Kindergarten homeroom mom, Tanya. She needed volunteers to help sort out colored construction paper so I headed up to the school Thursday while John was at school to sort. I did about 15 packs of paper while I was there and then brought another 8 packs home to sort later with James. Here's a couple of pictures of our handy work. While doing this we worked on colors and what letters/sounds the words began with. James had a lot of fun being a helper for Mrs. Moore.

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Video of James reading

This week Mrs. Moore had her class working on the letter "N" and the word "the". As part of that, the kids circle the word "the" in the rhyme Hey Diddle, Diddle. James was showing it to Brian one night and he showed us how he could read the words. Here's a video of him reading it with me.

We have a Preschooler too!!

John started preschool at Child's Play Learning Center, which is located at our church, this last Tuesday. He'll go every Tuesday and Thursday from 9:15 to 2:15. Thus far he's really enjoying it. I take him potty before walking down to his classroom. He puts his lunchbox away and is off playing with the other kids. He has had no problems leaving me at all which is not a surprise. He's happy to see me when I pick him up and tells me his missed me but had a lot of fun. I really hope he makes a lot of great friends this year. Here are a couple of photos of him before heading out the door for his first day. Notice that Puppy went to school too. : )

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Busy week with the sewing machine

I was super busy this past week sewing chair covers for James' teacher and didn't have a chance to post what we've been up to. Anyway, the finished product turned out SUPER cute and Mrs. Moore LOVED them. Here are some pictures I took before giving them to her. I hope to get a picture of them actually in her classroom.

My sewing machine also got a workout the week before making quilt squares for a new quilting project. I picked up a pattern book while visiting Sally in Granbury over 4th of July weekend. Brian and I picked out the fat quarters that weekend as well and I finally got around to getting the blocks sewn two weeks ago. I'll post photos once I get the quilt top all sewn together.

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