Soccer

It took 13 months, it was only a matter of time....

A Bunk Bed...

Jim took on another project of building a bunk bed for Ethan when he moves into a "big-boy bed". We also plan on using it for guests before that time arrives, so with Jim not quite starting yet, he spent a couple days building it and it turned out beautiful! In Jim's words, "You can drive a truck over it by the time I am done." I believe him.

"This is for me?!?! Thanks dad, you are one great bunk bed builder! When can I start hanging from it, jumping off it, and playing Ninja Warrior on it?"

A visit from the Egglestons

Last Wednesday Amy, Nikki, and Sharon came out to see our new place. It was great having them here and giving them a tour our our home. We are excited that they are only 45 minutes away now!! They even surprised Ethan with some presents for his birthday. You are are so sweet!!! Thanks a bunch for coming out:)

Ethan opening his presents....his favorite was the tag on the swimming suit:)Showing the ladies his new toys!Amy performing physical therapy on Ethan....just kidding, they were having fun playing!:)"Nikki, how does this tool set work?"Here Ethan is the next day using the watering can that they gave him. He was helping mom water the flowers!!

Thanks again, you guys are the best!

Circle, Square, Triangle???

This is a video of Ethan playing with one of his new favorite toys. When we first brought it home, he was not sure what to do with it, but now he is getting the hang of it:)

Grandpa and Ethan TIme!

Yesterday Grandpa Biener came over and Ethan and him were able to play together all afternoon! Ethan liked clapping with grandpa and giving him high-fives:) Thanks for coming over dad, it was great to see you!

Father's Day 2008

As you all might know....Jim loves taking pictures of his feet, especially when Ethan's feet get in the picture too. When Ethan was 2 weeks old, we took a picture of Jim and Ethan's feet together and another one has not been taken since, so it was time to get a new one! Feet Picture May 2007Feet Picture June 2008

Jim, you are a great father and husband!! Thank you for all that you do!!

HAPPY FATHERS DAY TO ALL DADS (including ours!!)

"Monster"

Ethan has been nicknamed "monster" by us because he is always getting into things and is running around all over the place and that name has just stuck with him:) He doesn't seem to mind!! He had an doctors appointment the other day and had to get five shots and his blood drawn....poor guy. It was hard for mom and she was not the one getting jabbed with needles! The measurements are in:

Weight: 24.9 Pounds (75% percentile)

Height: 32 in (90% percentile)

Head: 18.3 in (50% percentile)

He is doing great and is definitely enjoying Kalamazoo. Yesterday we had a city-wide garage sale in our neighborhood and Ethan got stocked up on toys!! He got a new slide, toy box, books, puzzles, educational videos, big/small toys....he is a happy boy! I had fun too buying a few decorations for the house and getting some good deals for my brother who is moving into an apartment down the street. I love good deals!

The Sanchez's Visit!

The Sanchez family, minus Joel (good luck on boards Joel, we are thinking of you!!), came to visit us in Kalamazoo the other day!! It was great to see them and they spoiled Ethan with presents! Patty, he plays with it ALL the time, thanks for your thoughtfulness! I even like playing with the present. Their three kids are adorable and growing like crazy! Thanks for coming guys...we really appreciated it!JJ- who lost his first tooth.......congrates!!Sam...LOVED the sandbox!Cute little Mia...who enjoyed the swing and the chair:)

Thanks guys...we had lots of fun!

A Visit from Grandma Helms!

Grandma Helms came to visit the other day and Ethan had so much fun! They played all day and grandma even bought Ethan some ice cream:) Thanks for coming Mom, we love having you!

Kisses for grandma!

Getting some Ice Cream!Eating the ice cream!:)

Vacation in the Smokies

We just got back from a wonderful week long trip to the Smokey Mountains. We had so much fun and Ethan especially loved the attention and time that he spent with grandma and grandpa Jastifer!!:) We saw caves, lots of fish at the aquarium in Gatlinburg, wonderful views, but most of all we relaxed and played in the water, streams, did some hiking, grilled out great meals every night, and mom and dad even found time to read a book!! Ethan loved the cabin that we stayed in and he even learned some new tricks while we were there: He learned where his ear is, he can now climb up on picnic tables, couches, and coffee tables all by himself (not sure if the is good or bad??), and he learned that throwing things off the deck was lots of fun:) Despite the fact that he was ready to play at 5:45am EVERY morning, we had a relaxing vacation!! Our cabin for the week

Playing in the stream on a hot sunny day

The beautiful sunset from our deck When it is on the 90's....who needs clothes?!?!

Sting-rays are apparently funny to Ethan:)

Ethan and grandma checking out the fish at the Aquarium Hanging out with grandpa in the morning