Messy Messy

Yum...Spaghetti! All over my face, chest and hands!

We got out the finger paints and Tyler went to town. He loved the blue. We painted with our feet and our hands. Then, we got out a bucket of water and soaked in it

On one of our weekly visits to Kidspace, Timmy, Kylie and God Mother Anne came along for some fun. Tyler wanted to ride the big boy bike with Timmy, and loved it.

Ty vs. The Love Bird

On Friday we took a half day trip to Seal Beach. While the beach was fun, it was really windy. Dave had a chance to surf with Bryan and Stu Strother. We had sand all over our bodies and in our ears. Needless to say, we did not stay real long on the beach, but we spent some time in the small town near by. While we were there we met a guy who told us all about his "love Bird". He said he would put it on Ty's shoulder for a picture. Tyler didn't even notice until the bird started to flaps its wings and squack. He got really scared and started to scream and cry. It did not hurt him, just scared him. We all laughed...I know, that is so mean, but you had to be there. Bryan Childs took this picture right before the incident.

Bye Bye Dee Dee (Ethan)!

A walk down memory lane....

The first time Ethan and Tyler met

Ty and Ethan at the San Onofre Beach on Father's Day

Friends on Elizabeth's 30th birthday.

Tyler's best friend Ethan, who he calls "Dee Dee" moved yesterday! We had a going away party on Sunday and have been doing fun things with them all week. I don't think he knows what is happening yet, but I have a feeling he will notice soon, when we don't go over to Ethan's house anymore. He moved to Seattle, WA. I am not going to lie, it was hard for me to say goodbye to Elizabeth too. We know that they are doing what they need to do, but it will be an adjustment. Chris starts his internship to complete his Ph.D in Psychology. They have become like family to us and we already miss them.

Getting ready for the going away party

After the party the boys had tub time and hung out in Ty's crib for a while. They love jumping around in there.

One last swim in the the pool together. The three amigos.

Tyler cracks me up! Yesterday, I read him his "Jesus loves Me" book and after I was done he said..."Moo..r Jesus!(more Jesus)" It was so cute! He likes to read along with the books now. That means that when we come to a word he knows he says it. His favorite thing right now is Bee's. He talks baout them all the time. It start with the "Bee and Me" book that Grandma Knight gave him. Then, he watched the Bee movie with Breana in Michigan. He also walks around and we point out the bee's to him in the gardens by our house. He loves fresh squeezed orange juice too.

He weighs about 25 lbs. now which is starting to take a toll on Mommy's back. I am trying not to carry him any more which is trick with all the stairs we have to constantly go up and down.

Tyler on Tour Part 3

Great Grandpa bought the grand kids an off-loading tricycle with wagon. Breana and Ty had a great time.

Breana really warmed up

Cousins in supporting stars and stripes

Laney wanted to be held so I put her in my homemade Mei tai.

Visit with Great Grandma and Grandpa Olson, who drove up all the way from Florida.

Sleepy heads that just got out of bed, really early in the morning. They were just too excited to see each other.

29 people + 3 days + Great food= Jackson Family Reunion

Grandma & Grandpa Jackson, Mom and Dad planned for months to make this such a special weekend for everyone. It was great to see brothers, sisters, cousins and second cousins, Uncles, Aunts and Neices and Nephews from Florida, Colorado, Kentucky, Ohio and Illinois. We had fireworks (thanks to Cousin Kevin the firefighter we were safe), lots of food and popsicles, swimming, yard games, toys to play with (including a new swingset), etc.

Knight/Aten Family reunion complete with homemade ice cream and Mario's pizza.

Knight family picture. To bad we are missing and import part of hte family...Chris, Tony and Carter.

B-ball tie picture. Thanks to Grandpa Knight for getting a custom made tie for Tyler too.

We had a nice break. Grandma and Grandpa watch Ty so we could go to the lake to Jetski and waterski. It was very relaxing.

Tyler in Grandma Knight's pool.

Swish...Grandpa Knight moved the b-ball hoop down for little T to shoot hoops. Look at his form:)

Slam dunk! He spent hours out there Playing with the b-ball.

Ready for a vacation!

We are getting ready to visit family in the midwest. We leave tomorrow and can't wait to go back to he homeland:) Although we feel this is our home now, we still feel like the midwest is home too.

These past few weeks have been a roller coaster of highs and lows. Here are a few of the things that have been going on. We had an amazing Father's day with Dave. We could not beat 80 degree weather, surfing and a bonfire at the beach. It was awesome. Tyler had a great time staying up late and playing with his best bud Ethan. Daddy enjoyed a great time surfing with best bud Bryan. We were joined by other great friends Chris and Elizabeth, Tim and Jamie. We watched the sun set over the surf and grilled out brats over an open flame. Bryan brought his mini camp stove an cooked up backed beans. Everyone else pitch in and brought something and we enjoyed a nice dinner on the beach. It was picture perfect!

We've had a playdates at the Arboretum and Kidspace. Ty got to see Jace for the first time since his baby brother was born, Sander was born. Our friends Rebecca and Chase also met up with us.

Sine then we have had some sleepless nights and drives around Pasadena at 2:00am with Tyler. He got three teeth in two days. Needless to say, he was not a happy camper and we did not want to upset the neighbor again.

We were visited by our wonderful friends Adam, Becca, Sophia and Elise Carpenter. It was such a blessing to catch up with them. We miss them tremendously and won't see them for a while. They are moving to China in August. We send them off with our blessing and prayers. We did a little photo shot with Elise and ended up getting one shot of the family at the end.

Elise Noel Carpenter- 6 months

The Carpenter Family-ready for the 4th of July

A beach piggy back ride.

Jamie, Tim, Elizabeth, Ethan, Chris, Dave and Ty at San Onofre State Beach Orange County, CA.

Jace and Ty at the Arboretum

Shelby and Ty, Jenny and Jace, Rebecca and Chase at the Arboretum fountain.

Father's Day

Tyler and I are so lucky to have such a great husband and father. Tomorrow, we will be celebrating by taking Daddy to his favorite place in So. Cal. San Onofre Beach. We will leave after Ty's nap and head down with the Waters, the Dulaney's and whoever else decides to go to San Dimas to pick up Bryan and about 1.25 hours to the beach. Once there we will surf till sunset, then relax while eating BBQ by a bonfire.
A tribute to our dad's who have both made us the people we are today! Dad we love you lots and wish you could be here to go with us. We look forward to celebrating with you in about a week. Here are a few special pictures for this father's day! Just know that all you dad's are special and we are so grateful for you in our lives! Happy Father's

Matching B-ball ties from Grandpa Knight

Ty and His buddy

Ty and Ethan's day at Eaton Canyon and photo shoot.

Assisting in a photo shoot:)

Ethan getting ready for the world cup. He will be a great soccer player like his daddy.