Splishin' and a Splashin'

A couple of weeks ago, (August 11, 2009)

I took Jaden to the Y's Splash Park.

OH MY GOODNESS....she had a BLAST!!!

I will let the pictures speak for themselves!

My Favorite Trick-or-Treaters!

Although it was Jaden's second Halloween....this is the first one she actively participated in! Too cute...too fun!
We also had a surprise trick-or-treater stop by our house on Saturday!!! Check out the second picture!

Meet Frank....as you can see he is a "loved" little (hot) dog! He is the owner of Shane and Ashley and my first "grandpup".

Miss J Mondays

I know most people hate Mondays and look forward to Fridays. I used to be that way too....countdown to the weekends!

But now, as many of you know, Mondays are my favorite, and I just countdown to whatever exciting event is coming up.

Here is why I pick Mondays to be my favorite:

As you can see I think she likes her Mondays too!

Super Saturday....

Saturday was a day jam packed with fun!

My day started with a pancake breakfast at Eastside Park, just behind our house. It was a chilly morning, frost on the ground, but the brisk morning air was nice....and just made the hot pancakes and sausage taste even better! The event was a benefit for Vascular Disease. Mom and Dad were helping with the event so I was happy to support it....and everyone knows that Grampa Wayne makes the best pancakes!

Following breakfast it was on to the zoo! Shannon and Jaden took me as their guest for a final trip to the zoo this season. Thanks, Miss J, I had a blast. It was a beautiful fall day and the zoo is decorated for their annual fall halloween festival. The animals were very active too. The cutest thing was how Jaden pretty much lead the tour! She sure knows her way around that place. She even helped by pushing the wagon....which basically was just to hall around our stuff. Also along on the trip was Jaden's cousin-to-be, Marissa. The two girls are just too cute together.

Feeding the ducks was one of the highlights of the day.....Jaden started "quacking" before we even got to the duck pond!

After the zoo we met up with Marissa's mom, Kelly, at Pizza Hut. Just the mention of pizza had Jaden chanting "pizza, pizza" while pumping her fists in the air! That was enough to do the little girl in, it was back to their house for a little nap. Unfortunately, I wasn't one of the lucky ones to get a nap.

The third event of the day was the District Marching Band Contest at Homestead High School. I have been trying all season to get to one of Tabitha's competitions. (It brought back a lot of memories from when Shannon was in marching band. ) Tabitha, you were great....you have a great band that is going to continue to get better each year! Congrats on the Gold....good luck at Regional!

You would think that was enough for one day....heck, enough for two Saturdays, but nope....after band competition we went out for supper, glad you were able to join us, Max!

Gee....did I just have 3 meals out today?

Then we ended the night with some dominoes at Mom and Dad's. It was just before midnight when we got home so the day was definitely jammed packed with fun!

Then to finish off the weekend, Sunday Shannon, Jaden, and I made another trip to the Vera Bradley sale! We got in line at 8:40 with about 500 people in front of us. Jaden showed she was a real trooper learning the ropes of shopping. She stood, sat, played in line for an hour and half with us. Then she zipped around the place in her stroller....she caught on quickly too, she was pulling things off the table like a veteran! And a smart shopper too, she got a cell phone holder to match her Vera Bradley purse!

Phew.....that wraps up my weekend as I sit here on the couch watching Desperate Housewives. I do believe it is time to say Good Night!

Ice Cream Party & Jaden Weekend Fun...Fun...Fun!!!

It's been a busy weekend, but oh so fun!!!

We kicked off the fun time with a special Birthday Celebration for Baby Kate. (Since weekends are all about fun, sometimes we start our weekends early!)

The Layman family declared June 26 as "Go Eat Ice Cream Day" to commemorate their daughter's second birthday! People all across the country joined in the celebration!

We were honored to be a part of this rememberance. Grab a tissue and check out Krista's blog to see a slide show of the ice cream celebration. You can also meet Kate at a special family vacation.....what an adorable little girl!!!

As you can see Jaden enjoyed the ice cream day...it will be an annual celebration for us!

You can read Shannon's blog to get the complete story of our Ice Cream Celebration! And, no, she is not getting the other pictures!

Thanks, Krista, Kate's memories will live forever in everything you do!

Weekend at Gramma & Grampa's

Shannon and Mike were in a wedding this past weekend, so we had the pleasure of keeping Jaden. (Sorry we couldn't make the wedding, Dannielle.)

I picked Miss J up at 4:00 on Friday......and made the return drop on Sunday at 10 am.

Friday night was just fun time with Gramma J, gramps was working. And Jaden was having so much fun, bedtime wasn't a priority for her! She finally gave in about 10:30, but wanted to make the most of the weekend so she was up at 6:30 Saturday morning! My eyes do not open that early.....the coffee doesnt start perking until 7:30. So I had a little talk with Miss J, we compromised with cartoons in gramma's bed!

Saturday I had to work at the studio for a little bit so Jaden spent a little time with Aunt Cindy and Gramma Pat! I think she had her first lesson in scrapbooking....and from the looks of the scrapbook room it looked like flowers were her favorite thing. She had Cindy's jars of flowers lined up across the room.
After a nice nap Saturday afternoon, we went to a graduation party for Kaleb. Jaden absolutely loved being outside. They had a tent set up in the front of their house and then another behind the house. Miss J made laps from one tent to another.... tugging on anyone's hand that was willing to walk with her. She found two little girls that were willing to go wherever she wanted.

I visited with friends I hadn't seen in years....was a nie afternoon.

After all that fresh air, Jaden crashed early Saturday night and slept 12 hours!!!

You know Jaden is sleeping soundly when you see her like this!!

Sidenote: Notice she is in a big bed!! She has outgrown the Pack'n'Play and figured it wouldnt be worth buying a baby bed or toddler bed, so we made our own transition bed. We have just the mattress on the floor, no boxsprings, and using a regular bed rail. Cutest thing is, when she wakes up she stands at the bed rail like she does her crib. How long will it be before she figures out she can crawl around that bedrail and onto the floor? We are prepared for that though, we have a gate at her doorway so that she cant tumble down the stairs!

I get a text message at 7:30 Sunday morning...."you up" Shannon texts. I give her a call, shocked that she is up so early after big wedding celebration saturday night.

Shannon says, "I miss my baby!"

"Hmmmm....I thought you and Mike had ran away," I hadn't heard from either one all weekend. Of course I had to give them a hard time!

It was a fun long weekend.....and can't wait to do it again. Your room will be ready for July 12, Miss J!!

Baby Steps!

Awwwww.....how precious is this!!!

My Little Artist!

This is one of my favorite candid shots of Jaden!

As promised, I just had to share a bit of my day to day life as Gramma J! Jaden is growing up at the studio and learning the tricks of the trade as she goes. Right now she LOVES all the colors of paints! And she watches everyone else pick out their favorite colors so she figures it must be the thing to do!

As you can see, she keeps an eye on me to see how far I will let her go! Think she has me wrapped around that sweet little finger? Like I tell everyone, she isn't spoiled, just LOVED!