We got the bug...

For the past 2 weeks, the cold/flu bug has been making its way thru our family. It started with Brooke and now it has landed on me. Brooke and Jake got it much worse than I did, but we are all on the mend and hopefully the last of the coughs and runny noses will end soon. Tomorrow we are leaving for a month long stay in Alabama. Brooke has a class to take out there, so we are all going to drive out and hang out there. The drive is about 20 hours, so wish us luck! I figured i would post a few pics before we left. I don't know what kind of internet access we will have there, so it may be a while before I can post anything new.

I think I mentioned before that Brooke had joined a hockey league. He plays every monday night and Jake and I enjoy going to watch his games. Here are a few shots from his last game.

And here are a few shots of Jake going to town with his markers. He has to be in the mood for coloring, and this day he was definately in the mood!

Feburary already!??!

It is amazing to me how fast time is flying by. It seems like it was just Christmas, and now Valentines day is almost here. The numbers on my baby countdown ticker are quickly getting lower and it is hard to believe that in a short 11 weeks, the 4th member of our family will be joining us. Speaking of the baby, here is a quick update. I just had a doctors appointment today and everything is looking good. Baby's heartbeat...good, blood test...good, mamma's health...good. She is starting to move alot more and just like her big brother, she favors hanging out on the right side of my uterus and kicking my ribs on the right side. Lets hope she is as good natured as well.

So, since I have been a bit of a slacker, here are a few things that have been going on around here. Last week we got some more snow. (and as i type this, the most recent snow storm has just passed by us and there is more snow on the ground) When it snows, we don't get lots of it, but enough to have some fun. Jake wanted to go outside, so we got all bundled up and hit the back yard for some fun in the sun...and snow.

He took one lap around the back yard on his bike, and then he was done and wanted to go back inside. I think he is ready for warmer spring weather to arrive.

Brooke thinks there needs to be more pictures of me and Jake...so here ya go!

Last week, Jake was playing in the Family Room and I was getting some stuff done in the kitchen. After a while, I noticed that he was talking quite a bit, so I looked up to see what he was doing. He had his play phone up to his ear and looked like he was in the middle of a good conversation. I noticed that he was telling the person on the other line what his favorite movies were and then proceeded to agree and disagree with what they were saying. It was pretty cute. I am always amazed at how smart kids are and how much they pick up from what happens around them. I guess i better go easy on the swearing...ha, ha!

Well, that is all I have to add today. It has pretty much been business as usual around here. I am slowly ticking off things on my list of things to do before the baby gets here. Enjoy the rest of your week!

Toe Pick

Last night we went ice skating with some friends. We told Jake where we were going and what we would be doing and he was pretty pumped. He has been to a few hockey games and Brooke has recently joined a hockey league, so Jake has seen lots of skating on ice. He is a cautious kid, so I was surprised at how ready he was to try it out.

He was very cooperative while Brooke got the little skates on him and laced them all up.

Here is his first time out on the ice...all bundled up. I was amazed that he was still fearless and excited for his adventure in skating.

He finally makes contact with the ice! He was a little nervous and not quite sure what to do with his legs, but he kept at it.

By the end of our time there, he eventually (with a few breaks) made it around the rink TWO times! Way to go Jake!! He was a trooper and we all had a great time.

One of Jakes favorite parts about going to hockey games (besides eating the popcorn and nachos) is seeing the Zamboni clean the ice. He was pretty excited when there was a Zamboni off to the side of the ice rink that we could go look at. What a fun night we had!

Aloha!

We made it back from our wonderful Hawaiian vacation. It was such a fun time and I have lots of pictures to share. I'll try not to go overboard though. Here is a little synopsis of our trip...

Here is our first day on Oahu. We didn't have be on the boat until later that afternoon, so we were able to do a few things around the island. We took Jake to Waikiki beach to get his first look at the ocean.

Later that day, we drove out to the Dole Plantation. Jake befriended some peacocks and fed them fries while we ate some pineapple ice cream.

We finally made it onto the cruise ship and Jake found his favorite play spot in our room...the window.

Our first port stop was on the Big Island of Hawaii in Hilo. It was a little overcast and rainy that day, but still lots of fun. We went to see one of the volcanoes...don't worry, we didn't have to run from any rushing lava or anything.

Here is our first day on Maui. Jake wasn't a big fan of playing on the beach. As long as mom or dad was holding him, he was fine.

This is more Jakes style of spending a day at the beach. Sitting on a mat, on the sand, with a few toys to play with....far away from the water.

In Kona, we got a convertible PT Cruiser as our rental car. Brooke wasn't too thrilled about the PT Cruiser part, but i thought the convertible was awesome!

Our first day on Kawai, we took a drive to see the "Grand Canyon of the Pacific". It was absolutely beautiful!

At one of the viewpoints, Jake managed to find some chicken to chase. They also got their fill of pineapple and crackers.

Our second day on Kuwai was only a half day, so we did some shopping and explored around the Marriott resort near the ship.

The next day, we were back in Oahu. Our flight didn't leave until later that evening, so we went out to the Polynesian Cultural Center for the day. We got a stroller for Jake, but he ended up pushing it more than he sat in it.

The whole trip was such a fun time. We enjoyed being able to spend some time with all of Brooke's family and with each other. On Christmas Eve, we took a red eye flight back to Portland and surprised my family on Christmas day. Jake had a blast with all his cousins and was constantly asking for "the kids". We got back to Albuquerque on the 29th and life is starting to get back to normal. Brooke didn't have to go back to work until today, so we were able spend some more time together. Now the next thing we are looking forward to is when the baby is born. Time sure is flying by fast!

MORE snow!!!

I would have never guessed that we would be on our third snowfall of the year! We woke up Friday morning to see about an inch of snow on the ground. It kept snowing off and on throughout the day. Jake wanted to go outside to play in the snow, but it was short lived. We went out for about 5 minutes, then he was ready to come in. Here are some pictures from our playtime in the snow.

Christmas preparations

I can't believe Christmas is in 11 days...how time has been flying by. I have been trying to get all my Christmas shopping and other odds and ends done before we leave for our trip on Sunday. I had a few packages that needed to be mailed, so Wednesday morning, i was getting them ready to take to the post office. Jake decided he wanted to help....make a mess.

After we got back from the post office and our errands, Jake went down for a much needed nap and I started making some candy to give to friends. I was able to get most of it done before he woke up and when he did wake up, he was more than willing to be a taste tester. Here he is with a piece of carmel.

Jake always enjoys looking at the pictures I take of him RIGHT after i take them. So, he is pointing in this one because he wanted me to show him the picture i had just taken.

The rest of the evening was spent cleaning up from the candy making and trying to finish up our Christmas cards. After Jake went to bed, Brooke and I finished watching the newest Pirates of the Caribbean. It took us 3 nights to watch the whole thing and at the end of it all, we were pretty disappointed. Definitely not one we will buy! All in all, it was a busy, but good day.

This is such a wonderful time of year. I hope everyone enjoys the time they get to spend with their families and that you have a wonderful Christmas!

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The Hanson's have some Norwegian heritage and for Thanksgiving, it is a tradition to make lefse (a potato flat bread). Well, Brooke loves the stuff and every year at Thanksgiving time, he always misses his lefse. This year, his sister overnighted some to him and he was loving it! Then, his mom was nice enough to buy us all the tools we needed to make our own lefse (Thanks Tomi!!). Tuesday night we made the potato mixture and Wednesday night we added the flour and cooked em up. It was fun to do and they tasted really good! We look forward to making lefse for all our future Thanksgivings (and probably a few other times during the year).

While we were slaving away in the kitchen, Jake was watching The Grinch and dipping a spoon into some ranch, or as he calls it "dippy, dippy". I think The Grinch is his favorite Christmas show this season.

rock climbing

On Saturday we decided to do a little rock climbing. There is an outdoor rec. center on base and they have a rock gym there. One of Brooke's friends from work met us there with his brother, and they were the only other ones there. It was nice to have the place all to ourselves. Jake's favorite part was jumping around on all the mats they had on the floor. He also pumped some iron while we were there. After our fun time there, we spent the rest of the day searching for a new bed for Jake. He has been slumming it with his mattress on the floor for the past 5 or 6 months...poor guy!