I've been waiting for this day for 8 months.

LOST season 5 premiers tonight!!! Those of you who watch the show are sharing in my excitement and anticipation- those that don't watch the show are probably thinking "what's the big deal?".

You have no idea. I feel sorry for you.

The 6th Picture

I saw this on a random blog that I read and thought it would be fun to start here.


Go to your documents folder (or wherever you store your photos) and go to your 6th picture folder, then go to the 6th picture in that folder and post it on your blog. Tell a story about it.

This is our dog Simon. He's a 2 year old mutt (boxer, dane, pit mix?) and about 180lbs. I was in the backyard taking some pictures of Jake and Simon was running around with a huge stick in his mouth so I tried getting some shots of him with it. However, I just wasn't fast enough and kept missing him. He has the energy of a 6 month old puppy :o) So even though I didn't get the shot I was going for, this one is kind of cool.

tagging:

1. Blog Soup

2. Kentiga

3. Cast Sugar

EDIT:
Ok, my dog does not weigh 180lbs!! That is supposed to say 80 lbs. Sorry! Thanks Todd for bringing that to my attention.

Rub-A-Dub, Dub...

...the cutest baby EVER in a tub!!

Birthday

A couple weekends ago my nephew, Cade, celebrated his 8th birthday at the Lakeside Nature Center in KC. Before the festivities began, all the kids got to walk (ok, run) around the place and see different animals and reptiles living in their natural habitats. There were rabbits and turtles and birds- oh my!! Then the kids were corralled into a large open room where they created "nature art", color pictures of animals and chilled out for a bit. After a while it was time for the animal show! We saw a rabbit,an owl, and a snake (some of the kids were brave enough to touch it!). Then we moved on to cake & ice cream and presents. I had fun so I know my nephew did too!

The birthday boy.

My sister with her two boys, Cade & Reid

Cade loves Jacob! He wants to hold him and carry him all the time :o)

The Lakeside Nature Center is located conveniently near the Kansas City Zoo. There is an actual building (a pretty cool one!) where they have lots of different kinds of animal displays, both living and not. There are several critters residing at the nature center including fish, snakes, lizards, rabbits, a HUGE turtle in a big tank and a couple friendly squirrels in an enclosed habitat. There are several bird species as well- bald eagles and owls to name a few. They also have a nature trail you can walk along that winds through a wooded area where you can observe native animals living in nature.

The center also serves as a rehabilitation place for animals native to Missouri. Animals are brought in with injuries, treated and released back into their natural habitat. If for some reason an animal can not be re-released, it becomes a permanent resident of the nature center, where people can visit and learn more about that species.

You can explore the center on your own or sign up for a wildlife program where you get a more hands-on experience with lots of different kinds of animals.

(Can you tell I liked the squirrels?)

Christmas

We had a really great Christmas this year and got lots of fun stuff! Jake wasn't too sure what was going on but he managed to pull through with very little fuss and fight. We did a little traveling, ate a lot of food and got lots of family time in. It's my favorite time of the year! We can't wait for next year when Jake will be more aware of what is happening :o)

Christmas morning with gifts from Santa

Visit with Santa (taken by Heather Cole)

Christmas with Jake's cousin Payton

A shiny new wagon from Grammy and Papa!

Good morning, son...

The other morning I heard Jake softly talking to himself in his crib as he was waking up. I had just woken up, too, so I lay there listening to him and smiling to myself. Finally I went in to get him and the sunlight streaming through the curtains into his room was so pretty! I wasn't able to capture it exactly but I tried to get close. My kid has unfortunately inherited my hair, which is fine and thin, so he has Fraggle hair right now. I think it fits him perfect though...my sweet little man.

My beautiful son, patiently waiting in his crib for me to bring in a bottle for him:

"there you are, mama! I'm starving!"

"whatcha got in your hand, mom? Is that a bottle I see?"

"well...can I have now it or what?"

"aahhhh...nothing like a bottle first thing in the morning...."

They like me! They really like me!

So remember that photo shoot I did on the Plaza with Digital Labrador? Well, I won 1st place!! (after the Grand Prize winner, so I guess technically it's 2nd place, but whatever.) I was awarded a Canon Rebel XS kit (body and kit lens) for my image. I am pretty excited!! I sold it to my friend/coworker and plan to use the money to help pay off the camera I already have. I hope to do more photo expeditions in the very near future! Maybe I can win more cool stuff!

The winning shot:

Slacker.

When I started blogging I said I was going to be really good about updating it frequently. I guess it has kind of gotten away from me lately and I've been slacking. First I got busy with work and then I was on vacation for two weeks and didn't have access to any photo editing programs. But now I'm back and joining the land of normalcy- which means my kid is in day care, I have to actually get out of bed in the mornings, we get back on our routine and I get to focus on other things besides nap time, breakfast/lunch/dinner time and bedtime. I have a lot to share with you all so bear with me as I catch myself up.

5...4...3...2....