Happy birthday to Grammy!

My Mom shares a birthday with Jesus...how cool is that? She celebrated her special day while everyone else celebrated too! My Mom is incredible! She is positive, energetic and fun, always there for me, and continues to be my biggest fan (even though I don't play sports anymore)! She is the best Mom and one of my best friends. I am extremely grateful for her!

Mom, thank you for always supporting me, for being my "go to" when I need to talk, for teaching me there is something good in every situation. You have taught me so much and I know my boys will learn a lot from you too! You're the best! I hope you had a great birthday yesterday! I love you!

Camden and the boys in June

So much fun!

Grammy with chubs

Grammy and the boys in September

Mean Dean's Bday

Hey all, Jonathan here. December 15th was Big Poppy's birthday! We were able to hang out with the old man a couple weeks before the big day. Thanks Dad for all you do. Thanks for loving on Crystal and I and the boys. Much love!

Happy birthday, Dad!

Today a very special man celebrates his birthday...my Dad! I love this guy! He is so patient, encouraging, positive, supportive, and much more! I'm extremely blessed to have him in my life as a wonderful example of a loving husband and dad. I'm so thankful my own kids will be influenced by him too! He is awesome!

Dad, thank you for loving the Lord, Mom, and me so well! Your compliments, encouragement, and advice meant (and still mean) a lot to me. You're the best Dad a girl could ever want! Happy birthday! We love you!

Dad's birthday dinner last year

Camden's 3rd birthday party

Snuggling with his grandsons

Gramps and Parker in April (I think)

Salmon Days

People love their salmon here in Issaquah! There is a two day festival at the beginning of October to celebrate the return of the fish to their birth-waters. I'm serious. For us, it's a fun weekend to watch a parade, look at the booths, and visit the "field of fun" just minutes from our house.

I'm pretty sure this should be a Darigold ad!

Silly boy!

Mesmorized by the parade

Everything goes in the mouth!

Camden was super excited to ride a pony...can't you tell by his face? :) He did this last year too and loved it! Yes, that's Papa in the grey. He and GG were visiting (a separate post on that soon)

Happy boy in the car

Train ride!

Taking it all in

Wheee!

He is a jumping machine on the trampoline at My Gym, but he was a bit timid on this one for some reason.

We hit up the festival both days this year and had a great time! It was a fun way to kick off Camden's birthday celebration since it was the weekend before his big day!

G & G

Gramps and Grammy headed to the Northwest in September for Camden's 3rd birthday party. They arrived a few days before the bash and were a HUGE help (as always)! My Dad headed home to get back to work while my Mom stayed a bit longer (wish it was both, but I was thankful to have one of them). My parents are amazing! They are willing to do anything and everything! My Dad even decorated cupcakes for Camden's party--and he did a great job! I would love for them to live closer, but that's not happening, so I will treasure the times we're together! Thank you, Mom and Dad, for being awesome! I love you two!

Grammy and two handsome fellas (almost got both of them to look)!

Not even close this time, but still cute!

A pic my Mom took at the party

Gramps and chubs (chilly=red nose) at the party

Another one my Mom took...happy boy with his fro-yo (I have no idea where he gets that)

A "big boy's bike" from Gramps and Grammy!

I took my pics, I promise, but they are nowhere to be found. Ugh! There were some really cute ones of my Dad and the boys and they disappeared off of my camera. Bummer!

Baseball Birthday Party

We celebrated Camden's birthday a bit early this year (on September 17th) with a baseball themed bash! He is a huge fan of the game! It was a chilly day at the park, but we had a great time with family, friends, hot dogs, cracker jacks, licorice ropes, peanuts, a popcorn machine, and baseball and grass cupcakes--made by Mommy and Gramps--and a few other things that weren't in the "baseball food" category. The hubs and I made the mistake of putting the wrong memory card in the camera so I took six pics and it was full. Ugh! Thankfully our neighbor willingly took photos for us.

Everyone is singing "Happy birthday." The tongue comes out these days when he's not sure what to do with himself (feeling shy, upset but doesn't want to show it, etc)

Mommy and Daddy helping Camden blow out the candles

Cupcake time!

Checking out the goods

Gramps and Parker

Camden's first birthday with this little guy around!

Some friends let us borrow their popcorn machine...fun!

An attempt at getting a shot of the kids (some were missing)

My big boy!

So glad my parents were here to celebrate the birthday boy!

Gramps and Grammy with their grandsons

Bentley/Matthews family shot

Swinging!

Disclaimer first, then we'll get to the post...we need a new computer. We've needed a new one for years! Our desktop is super old and it has thousands of pictures on it from when Camden was a tiny one. Iphoto takes a long time to load so we don't even open it anymore and we haven't added any new pics since we've lived in WA (almost a year and a half). The recent pics are on Jonathan's work computer so I don't have access to them when he travels (I also can't download...upload?...any new photos). For some reason his computer does not display the images by date, they are just all mixed up. All that to say, I lose track of what I have posted about and what I haven't because pics get lost in the shuffle. It's annoying. Again, we need a new computer! Now, for the post...from August. We headed to the park near our house so Parker could swing for the first time at the end of August. He was a fan, just like his big brother.

Riding in the BOB...

...while Camden rides his balance bike

Taking it all in!

Fun!

Camden liked pushing him

Wheee!

Impromptu Interview

We were eating lunch and I just started asking Camden questions about his "favorites"...

1. color: red

2. song: Jesus Loves Me

3. place to go: zoo

4. treat: candy cane

5. book: Thomas and Friends

6. drink: milk

7. fruit: blueberries

8. show: Mickey

9. animal: puma

10. toy: guitar

11. friend: Markus and Casey

12. food: cereal

13. sport: soccer

14. ocean animal: seahorse

15: thing to do with Parker: "get you!" (I'm holding Parker and Camden chases us and tickles him)

I wonder how many of these answers would change if I asked him tomorrow!

...three...

Camden James,
You have been three for exactly three weeks. On October 2nd I said to Daddy, "I can't believe he's going to be three. Three years ago today I was in the hospital..." I'm pretty sure I will do this every year. You are such a big boy (and you like to remind me of that)! You still talk about your "Christmas house," but not as often as you used to--"I have a turtle at my Christmas house." You continue to love music...you say, "louder please" in the car to turn up the tunes and play your guitar and drum daily (every now and then you'll mix in the piano, xylophone, and/or harmonica). Outside is where you want to be! You want to ride your scooter, balance bike, "big boy's bike" (a bday gift from Gramps and Grammy), or your fire truck. When you're not riding something, you're playing soccer, football, baseball, raquetball, golf--something that involves a ball. You love playing with the neighborhood kids, "How about we knock on ____'s door and see if he/she can play!" Jumping is a big deal these days, off the couch, on the couch, on your bed, off the stairs, the trampoline at My Gym, off the curb, etc. You are obsessed with skateboards! "How about we look at skateboards!" while in Target. You really want one and ask Daddy and me, "Will you please teach me how to ride it?" You are a little slugger! We bought you a "real" bat for your birthday and you can hit that ball! You continue to be the best big brother around! You LOVE Parker and I love watching you with him. When he goes down for a nap, you put a blanket on him, sing a song, and say, "Night-night Parky." When he wakes up, "Oh! I hear him! Let's go see him!" You want to get in his crib with him to play. You say Parker like you're from Boston and often call him Paaarky-Park! You are so great about sharing your toys and get really excited when he does new things, "Mommy, he sat up! He was laying down and now he sat up! He's learning!" You are quite the negotiator. After we tell you what we're going to do (eat dinner, get ready for bed, etc.) it's usually followed up with you saying, "How about this great idea..." or "I know what we can do..." Your suggestions often include playing for "just a little bit longer." You have an amazing memory, "This the way we go to airport," "We going to the pumpkin patch with Courtney?" (we went with her and her fam last year), etc. You say, "Hey Mommy/Daddy" approximately 426 times a day because you have so much to tell us! Sometimes it's even followed by a "look at my eyes." You are still shy at times, but are becoming more assertive. I think being around the older kids has helped. You definitely stand up for yourself more and can be Mr. Bossy at times, "You have to wait your turn," "Come over here," "Stand right here!" You love to dance, sing songs, being with your friends, stickers, Play-doh, puzzles, sports, CBS "Bible," My Gym, listening/playing music, reading books, being with your brother, helping, painting, drawing, and more! You don't quite understand the adult/kid/growing up thing. You will say, "Mommy, you can ride Thomas when you're just a little bit bigger like me and Daddy," or "Daddy, when you get little like me, then you can ride a scooter." You crack me up...every day! You have quite the personality. You are still super stubborn and rigid, but you are the sweetest! If I get lost while driving (it happens often) you say, "Don't worry, Mommy, you can do it!" (after you say, "Where we going?"). "I can do it all by myself!" and "I know how to do that!" are common phrases out of your mouth. We have three things we are working on daily and you're doing such a great job: obey the first time, be kind, have a happy heart! I could go on and on about you, buddy! You are an incredible kid! God gave us such a precious gift when you arrived 3 years and 3 weeks ago. You melt my heart when you say, "I love you, Mommy!" You are such a joy! I'm so proud of you and so proud to be your Mommy! Happy 3rd birthday, my big boy! I love you so much!
xoxo
Mommy

September 23--8 months

I thought I should squeeze this post in before he turns 9 months tomorrow!

Our sweet Parker is growing so fast! He continues to be such a happy boy and loves his big bro more and more every day! He's quite the army crawler--he's speedy! He rocks on his hands and knees, but still hasn't crawled. Parker added two more teeth (both on the top) this month (for a grand total of 4). He got his 1st (of many) mark on his forehead from a big bonk on Camden's bed. He also went in a swing for the first time and loved it! It was so great seeing my two boys swinging next to each other at the park. We found out he is a big fan of balloons after bringing them home from Camden's birthday party. He still loves balls, holds a toy in each hand and hits them together, grabs hair and holds on tight, makes the best scrunch nose face, gives awesome open-mouthed kisses, can entertain himself with pretty much anything he finds laying around, and is a splashing machine in the bath tub! He started sitting in the regular tub and he goes crazy in there! He sticks his face in the water, goes on his belly, and puts all the "squirters" in his mouth. We might have one water baby in the mix! I thought I took pics, but I can't find them anywhere. We love you, Mr. Parker!

Trying to make it up the step...and he did!

Handsome fella!

Time for the chair photo shoot...

...which means time to eat paper!

Dropping it over the side for the 27th time (he does this in the high chair too)

Where did it go?

Sweet smile

Love him!

A glimpse of the scrunch nose

A few random pics from this month...