bragblog.com

I'm thinking of changing my blog name to bragblog.com. I have about 100 posts I could write right now that all have to do with bragging about how awesome my kids, family and friends are! I'll spare you most of the posts and share just one of the coolest: Jackson's first big swim meet!

Jackson has been working hard swimming 4 nights a week with NHCP swim club. It's something he loves to do and just can't get enough of. This first picture is of him on the block about to take off for a 100 IM. (25 meters of Butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke, and freestyle) He is the third one in...and his form is perfect!

Jackson competed in 3 events; the 100 Freestyle, 50 Backstroke, and 100 IM. To tell you the truth, I'm not sure when this picture was taken because he took first place in every event! Can you see that 6 pack?

I love this picture because it shows Jackson's total domination. He just killed his competition! We knew he did good in his heats, but had to wait for the final results to come out to see how he did overall. We were so excited to find out that he took first not only in his heats, but also overall for his age group in all 3 events!!

I'm so proud of my big guy and all of his hard work. His times looked like this:

100 Freestyle - 1:39.85

50 Backstroke - 47.14

100 IM - 1:52.56

Toot Toot Toot

Don't mind me, I just needed to blow my own horn for a moment. I'm not usually the type, but seriously, if you made something like this, you would want to brag a little too! Check out Sadie's homemade Christmas present:

I know, pretty awesome, right?



I've been wanting to try out woodworking for quite a long time, and when I saw this website, I knew I had to make something! Ana-white.com is seriously the coolest place for novices like myself to go and get good inspiration, and instructions. Love it!!


I can't quite say how long it took because I would work at it whenever I had an extra few minutes on my hands. What could have taken me a few weekends ending up being four months. I think my friends were getting pretty sick of hearing me talk about it for that long! The hardest part was picking fabric and sewing the curtain below the sink. My friend Esther was a big help with that, and even made Sadie the cutest little apron I've ever seen! (check her out, she is pretending to take a picture)



Sadie is one happy little girl to have a kitchen of her own. I'm glad that I got to try something fun and new. Now the big question is what should I make next?

Umm, hello there

I kind of feel like it's been a while, and I need to reintroduce myself to cyber space. My name is Jamie. People call me Jamie. I'm a mom, a coke lover, and I ate an entire box of white cheddar cheez-its for lunch today. Well, that's pretty much sums it up. Now onto an update:

Christmas came and went in a flash. We had a wonderful week with the boys out of school and John off work. Life revolved around lounging, eating, sledding, friends, museums, rock climbing and all sorts of good stuff. The boys are back to school and I have Sadie all to myself! Here's a few snaps of winter break for your viewing pleasure:

Christmas!!! Both boys got DSi's, and were thrilled.

Sadie got too many things to list. I'm hoping her favorite was the kitchen that I made for her. Post of that is forthcoming!

I was a little afraid that Christmas wouldn't be as magical for Jackson this year because he now knows who Santa really is. I was wrong, a DSi is always a magical thing, no matter where it comes from!

Sadie couldn't get enough of the chocolate fondue we made on Christmas eve.

Maxers ready to dig in!

The boys showing off their muscles and new pajama pants.

This is the first outfit Sadie has ever chose and insisted on wearing! She kept saying pretty! pretty! (and she is right)

It's now a frigidly cold January and I'm so glad to get back into our regular routine! (i never thought I'd say that...I'm usually a fly by the seat of my pants kind of girl) Hopefully I'll be posting more regularly because I like to stay at home and surf the web uh, er I mean blog stalk when it's this cold and dreary. I say hopefully because of the aforementioned flying by the seat of my pants that I like to do. Happy January everyone!

Check it

The other day Jackson asked when he was going to be able to have his own blog. He thinks his life is pretty rad, and would like to share it with the world. I decided that it would be a good way for him to keep a journal. It took only seconds for him to decide on a blog name: lavaheadsblog. So if you want to check out what this little guy is up to, head on over to lavaheadsblog.blogspot.com . In a couple weeks I am going to make it private, so leave a comment and let me know if you would like to be invited to the coolest little kid blog ever. (in my biased opinion!)

Advanced Screening

So I know y'all just can't wait for this years Christmas card, so I thought I'd give you a little peak at some pics from our photo session so you don't explode with anticipation. Without further ado:

Thanks again to the talented Darci Timothy for working with our crazy family and making us look fabulous!

Busy Busy

Please excuse my blogging absence. This month I've been doing a whole lot of nothing. I've felt so busy lately, but nothing really to show or blog about. Life is rolling along and with it comes laundry, car pools, dentist appointments, snow shoveling, family pictures, toilet cleaning, and more laundry.

The thing that keeps me most occupied these days is this sweet little gem. She keeps me on my toes by climbing everywhere and getting into everything. Doesn't she have a twinkle of mischievousness in her eye?

She has been busy herself mastering the art of stinky faces.

These pictures don't quite do her "stink eye" justice. She is a living legend for her eye brow furrow.

John's brother Matt visited this weekend. He can attest to all the climbing and furrowing action that goes on at our house. Unfortunately, he can also attest to us getting nothing done as well. Just ask him about the fourteen paint swatches on my master bedroom walls just waiting for someone to make a decision.

Misty water memories

Have I mentioned that my parents are slightly odd ducks? They have done some pretty funny things that gave me a childhood full of many colorful stories. See these adorable striped overall Sadie is cruising around in? Well they come with a little back story.

One time in the early eighties my Dad traveled to Nebraska to visit some of his relatives. Back in the day my Mom (big louie) would pick my Dad up at the airport when he flew. This time was no different, so we all packed into the station wagon and headed to curbside pickup. Upon arriving my Mom noticed this incredibly obnoxious man in bright red and white striped overalls. With further examination she discovered (to her horror) that this obnoxious man was her husband. Big Louie did the only thing she could do; keep on driving. We did a few loops around the terminal and she finally decided to pick him up. Pops loves to embarrass Big Louie and so he would don these overalls through the years for a few giggles from us kids. He has worn them so much that the bright red has faded to a dull pink and the behind is thread bare. I wish I had a picture to show you of how incredibly horrid these overalls were.

Fast forward 30 years or so and Pops was in Nebraska once again. He has gone many times and always offers to pick me up some beautifully striped overalls for myself, but has never actually done it. This time he searched high and low, and could only find these much smaller and much cuter pair for Sadie. The stripes live on, but look sooo much better on her!

Happy Birthday Big Louie!!

Thanks Martha

Once again Ms. Stewart, you have really outdone yourself. How do you come up with such cute and crafty ideas season after season?

This could possibly be the easiest craft I have ever made. It involves two steps, one: paint elmer's glue on a pumpkin and two: sprinkle with glitter. And Wah-Lah, you have yourself a Martha - esque halloween centerpiece.

Happy Halloween my little pretties!

ps- Matt Christensen, you are going down this Friday night. You should possibly consider not even showing up, just a thought.

And so it begins

I think it's time to reinvest in magic erasers. Sadie has discovered crayons.

It's a good thing that Sadie's so cute, otherwise she would be in big trouble!

Halloween Decor

Knowing that I don't really decorate for Halloween, Max decided to take matters into his own hands, or ears actually. Check out his new and improved ORANGE and BLACK ear molds!

When Max's ears grow a little, he has to get new ear molds so his aids will work properly. At his last audiologist appointment, Max insisted on orange and black. I was a little apprehensive, but decided to let him. Last week I stopped by the hard of hearing room at his school. It wasn't long before I figured out why Max insisted on the color scheme. Every boy at Fernbrook with hearing loss was walking around in orange and black ears. Usually Max bangs to the beat of his own drum, so this cracked me up. I guess every boy feels the need to fit in now and then.

Happy Halloween!