Let Me Slow it Down For You

Jameson has started a super annoying yet ridiculously hilarious new thing.  Whenever we say no to something he requests, he repeats what he asked for slowly and loudly as if the problem might be that we didn't hear him.  Awesome.  I would catch it on video but it is completely random...I'll keep trying.  

Christmas? Really?

Just an FYI.  Costco has Christmas stuff on their shelves.  I am not sure why, but this really irks me. 

Let me finish celebrating summer people!

Why Not?

Summer arrived for a few days here in the PacNW.  Woohoo.  True to this summer's style, it was still chilly in the mornings.  So, the afternoon heat would often catch us off guard.  But, when it is hot, it's hot.  So, why not run through the sprinkler fully clothed?!?  Fun, fun, fun.

Jameson enjoying from a distance.

Brooklyn testing the water.

Loves it!

Jameson has a superb idea...

Tote lids as umbrellas!

Hope you enjoyed our week of summer!

Day with the Daly's

The crew on the beach!

After wrapping up Run for Lise at the ripe hour of 9:30 a.m. we decided that it would be a great idea to continue on to the ocean.  I mean, Puyallup is halfway to the ocean, right?!?  No?  Well, that's what we went with and we sold the Daly's with our plan.  And I am so glad we did because it really was the most beautiful day of the year.  On our way there we picked Westport over Ocean Shores because we wanted to try somewhere we hadn't been before and Brett's parents happened to be in Westport also.  Perfect!

After stopping in Aberdeen for lunch and an outfit change in the Walmart bathroom, we arrived in Westport and drove straight to Westhaven State Park.  We loaded all available strollers with supplies to keep kids fed, hydrated and entertained for the day and hit the beach.  Sigh.  It was gorgeous.  Apparently so gorgeous that we didn't even realize we were getting fried.  Lindsay and I had twin shirts on so we ended up with twin v-neck t-shirt burns.  Attractive.  Don't fret, the kids didn't get burnt.  I had the brainpower to sunscreen them but not me.  Don't ask.  Clearly I am nuts.

Literally running to the water!

Speaking of kids, they LOVED the beach.  I can't stress enough how much they loved it.  The day of preschool graduation Brooklyn asked if we could pleeeeaaaassse go on a "buh-cation" to the beach this summer.  We kept telling her we'd go...but never had the time to go.  So, you can imagine her excitement when she saw all the sand and surf.  She could not stop running and jumping up and down.  Jameson was equally excited and was literally rolling around in the sand non-stop.  Emmett was not so excited and whined most of the day but the poor baby was teething and bored.  The beach is not a hotspot for a baby.  Sooo much sand.  I cleaned sand out of orifices all week.  We met up with Brett's parents at the beach and they offered to have Brooklyn and Jameson join them for the rest of their vacation.  After double and triple checking that they were up for it, the kids were off to the hotel to swim in the pool and live it up on the beach for a few days.  Brooklyn ended up getting her "buh-cation" after all.  Thank you Corky and Lynn!

So excited!

Brett, Emmett and I dined with the Daly's at a yummy waterfront fish shack in downtown Westport and then headed back home.  It was a loooong day but so worth it.  We will return to Westport again for sure.  Thanks Daly's for joining us on our random day trip to the beach!

Brett and The Bink.

The newlyweds and Jameson.

The brave and the weanie...you decide who is who.

There's the weanie...not a big fan of cold water.

And, the brave.

Papa Corky, Brett and Bink.

Love that face!

Jumping, jumping, jumping!

Exploring the deep holes.

Run for Lise

Me, Brett and Lindsay...and the kiddos.  :)

We started today with an emotional 5K run.  We met our good friends, Lindsay and Ryan Daly, out in Puyallup to help Lindsay honor the recent passing of one of her friends.  Here is Lise's story, direct from the Uberthon website:

Lise Marie Palmer was a wife, mother, daughter, and friend.   She brought endless joy to her parents Cathy and Craig, selfless devotion to her husband and unconditional love to her sons. She was a talented athlete, a gifted runner, and had a competitive drive on and off the court.

On May 27th, Lise was 7 months pregnant and went for a jog on her vacation in Lake Chelan. A driver fell asleep at the wheel, lost control of the car, and hit and instantly killed Lise and her unborn baby, Faith. She left behind her many family members and friends, but most importantly her best-friend and husband, Ryan and her two sons Ray (age 4) and Mac (age 2). 

On August 20th, 2011 we run in Lise and Faith's honor. We run because running and fitness was Lise's passion. We run for their family. We run because Lise would run.   

http://www.uberthons.com/register/tacoma-wa/august-20-2011-run-for-lise/

Heartbreaking.  So, as you can imagine it was an emotional run.  But, we made it.  Strollers and all.  Lindsay and I finished in 35 minutes, Brett in 29 minutes.  I was just happy to finish at all after having the stomach flu all week.  Ugh.  

It was a beautiful morning and a great way to honor Lise.  You could really feel the love throughout the entire event.  We were happy to be there this year and will be sure to make it an annual family event. 

 

The Fam.

One handsome hubby!  The kids were tired...

Big Ol' Baby Emmett

Photo Outtakes

I didn't want to overwhelm you with the cuteness that is my family in the last post but here are some outtakes from E's nine month photoshoot and some pictures from the day we spent together...alone.  So fun!

First attempt at standing and conquering a toy!

On the go!  See that determined look in his eye?

LOVES to tackle Brett.

Again, pure determination in those blues.

Bink and Stink felt left out.

This is a normal moment in the Krache household.

Brett was trying to help me get Emmett to hold still for pics.

Not so successful.

Things got crazy.

Which resulted in tears.

 Highchair photoshoot = many faces of Emmett.

Scrunchface.

Happy scrunchface.

Snortingface.

Upper lip tuck face.  He does this ALL the time. So attractive.

Cute profile.

Deep in thought.

9 Months

As you can see, Emmett no longer tolerates my photoshoots.

Big Baby Emmett celebrated his nine month birthday on the 16th and I was real emotional.  In the last month he has gone from gigantic helpless infant to gigantic mobile monster.  He's no toddler, he's just a ferocious mobile machine.  He no longer likes to cuddle.  Sigh.  He grew out of his swing and does not like his jumper anymore.  Instead, he sets his sights on an object and will literally destroy anything in his path to get said object.  Lucky for us, he is the friendliest monster you'll ever meet.  He still loves to laugh (I'll never get tired of saying that) and has added an adorable scrunch face and snort to his happy face.  Could he be more perfect?  I think not.

Scrunchface.

He has a total of three teeth.  His bottom two front teeth came in and then...a top fang?  I mean really?  A fang?  Where did this come from?  Well, it's there now.  I think it is technically called an incisor but to be honest, I am too lazy to look it up.  I keep checking to make sure it's not his front tooth with a HUGE gap.  That would be one heck of a dental bill.  So, hopefully his front teeth will join soon and calm my fears.

Teeth!

In the last month he progressed from random yoga poses to hopping on his knees to cammando crawling to real crawling and now standing.  So, if the progression continues he is going to be walking in no time.  Well, if I have anything to do with it I will delay it as long as possible.  I'd love to keep him "small" like Bonsai kittens (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bonsai_Kitten) or Chinese foot binding.  Totally normal I am sure.  As he grows we keep giving away our baby stuff cause we are done.  I know we are done because of the picture below.  We don't have the sanity for more kids.  But, it pulls at my heart strings a little that Baby Emmett is growing so fast and won't be a baby for much longer.  Big sigh.  Wipe tears.  Move on.

Chaos.  Pure chaos.

Okay, the stats.  I know you have all been waiting patiently through my emotional rant.  We switched pediatricians and met Dr. Low for the first time and loved her.  So much better than our old office/doctor.  Thanks for the recommendation Maureen!  Emmett weighed in at 26.8 lbs. is 31.5 inches long and his head circumference is 19 inches.  So that is 99% for weight, 100% for height and 99% for head circumference.  You heard it here, he is back on the charts!  Yay for baby Emmett.  He is normal?  Okay, not normal but at least he has a percentage.  No shots this time around but shockingly he's anemic.  Say what?  I think it was because he had the stomach flu the day before (yep, the stomach flu visited our entire family AGAIN) or maybe it was because he hates green veggies.  So, we have been better about giving him little bites of everything we eat but he chokes on everything just like Big Bro Jameson.  Frustrating and scary.  Luckily he seems to be getting better at "chewing" with his three teeth each passing day.  :)

As you can see, he "chewed" my awesome sign on both corners.

So, this month, through tears, I would like to tell all new Moms, heck all Moms out there, to kiss your kids, hug your kids and tell your kids you love them as frequently as possible.  And, take as many pictures of your kids as possible.  I am sure it is because Emmett is our last but these things have hit home lately.  Especially pictures.  I take a lot of pictures but this month specifically I kept telling myself to record Emmett's yoga poses on camera and low and behold...he no longer does it and I didn't get it on video.  So, I took it as a lesson to slow down and when I think to do something, just do it!  Even if Brooklyn is yelling from the bathroom and Jameson has climbed up the wall, just stop and take a video of Emmett.  There you go, a self lecture.

Does this diaper make my butt look big?

Happy nine month birthday my big, blonde, blue-eyed, beautiful baby Emmett!        

We Are Family

First of all, I would appreciate it if you would sing the title of this post and the rest of the song it belongs too.  Then, it will be stuck in your heads too!  Yay!

Second of all, this is another segment of the longest vacation post ever.  But, I promise you, it is the last.  Whew.  On Saturday we headed to a mini-family reunion on Brett's Mom's side of the family.  We all met up at a park right on the water out in Hood Canal.  In Hood Canal?  On Hood Canal?  I don't know.  Someone correct me if they care to. 

It was a blast!  We met lots of cousins, second cousins, great uncles, aunts, etc.  The kids had a blast running around in the park, collecting oysters on the beach, walking out on the dock and eating.  Man they love hot dogs.  Jameson also loves chocolate and snuck some at every opportunity.  He already knows how to work over strangers with those big blues and somehow ended with a belly full of chocolate treats.  Emmett was exhausted and took a nap, wait for it, in my arms.  Awww.  It had been long while since he let me cuddle him.   

So excited!

Such a proud Pops.

Digging.  Does it get any better?

Look Mom, I can eat grass!

Lunch time - check out Bink's face.  Awesome.

Cutiepatootie.

Thanks to Uncle Mike for hosting!