Let's catch up

I finally uploaded some pictures with Tim's help, yay!!! So this is Matt the morning we moved out of our house. He was fresh out of the bathtub and ran stark naked for his car and took it for a spin. The dining room was basically emptied so he had fun zooming around in the buff.

Here's a picture from the first day of destruction. It took them a few days to get all that old stuff out of there. I went by yesterday, and the framing for the pocket door in our bathroom was ready and the skylight was in and the guy was working on the copper pipes for our sink. Woo-hoo! It's coming along nicely.

The other day Matt got to swim in Ava's little pool and they tested out new water guns. Here's Matt's post-swimming shot. Steven says that's his linebacker pose. So serious.

A few nights ago the men gathered in Tim & Pam's garage to set to work on the brakes of both our Acura and T&P's. I was amused enough by the sight to snap a picture. Aren't they adorable?

Saturday we drove out to Fredericksburg for the annual Kolb (Steven's Dad's Mom's side of the family) reunion. It was a beautiful day and the house we were at was amazing; it's a restored German farmhouse that really is incredible on the inside and out. And it sits on such gorgeous land. We enjoyed catching up with family members, and Matt loved following all the many little girls that were in attendance. Here's the big family. Thank God for name tags!

Gathering around the reunion scrapbook. There are some really humorous photos of Tim and Steven in there from when they were kids.

Sunday afternoon we headed out to Leander to celebrate Bryan's birthday (which is actually today--Happy Birthday Bryan!!!). They have the world's largest baby pool, and all the kids had a good time swimming in it. I didn't bring Matt's suit, but thankfully Sarah had an old swim diaper for him to wear. Granted, it was a couple sizes too small so his ample rear was peeking out of the sides. I couldn't stop giggling at him. And then he was running to and from the pool with Caroline and Mary Claire and laughing like mad.

Later, Bryan got in the pool and Matt suggested he wear the bucket as a hat. He will hate me for posting this picture, but he knew it would happen. They made us a delicious grilled salmon dinner and pound cake for dessert/birthday cake. It was a lovely evening! Today, we'll be enjoying dinner with Ken & Joyce before they head off to Houston tomorrow morning.

On the move again

We've relocated ourselves again...this time to Tim & Pam's house. Ken & Joyce are coming into town so we thought we'd give them their place back, and we thought T&P could use some excitement in their lives. A 2 year old and a cat can really change the dynamic of a once quiet house. Matthew is of course thrilled to be here; to have 2 more adults to play with and follow around. Matt was hot on Tim's trail this morning...I thought there for a minute Matt might go take a shower with Tim, but he diverted his attention to Pam's large box of toys. I can't thank God enough for what an easy-going, flexible child he has given us. Matthew is comfortable and at home wherever we take him. He eats and sleeps like a champ.

Moses made the trip outside of his box this time. Steven first put the cat inside the duct-taped box once again, but by the time he'd carried him from the back door to the car that was parked in the garage Moses had already poked his head through. He's no dummy. He totally busted out of the box and had free reign of the car. Matt was delighted about this fact until Moses decided to park himself directly above Matt's head at the top of his carseat and pant and howl like a dog. Matt seemed a little stressed at that point. Steven & I giggled the whole drive over.

We've checked on the house basically everyday, and things are rolling along nicely. New studs are in, and it looks like they'll be making way for the new skylight in the next day or so. Woohoo! Matt & I stopped by yesterday to gather a few more things I needed. We walked into our bedroom to find the carpenter sitting on the bathroom floor topless and sweating profusely (the a/c is of course not on) and listening to loud music while using whatever loud tool it was to remove the 50 year old mortar on the floor. Matthew immediately burst into tears and asked for his blanket and to hold me (even though I was already holding him). Apparently the sight disturbed him...not surprisingly so. It was funny though.

Yesterday we played at the Rener's house. Steven had purchased two water gun type toys at Walgreens so the kids tested them out in the baby pool. They were a roaring success. We had some yummy burgers and then us ladies stayed and watched the American Idol finale while the boys later left for a midnight showing of Indiana Jones. I think I may have rolled over at whatever wee hour Steven arrived home. We are headed to a Jones family reunion on Saturday in Fredericksburg. Should be fun!

Those are Grandma's candles

I gotta admit, we've had a little bit of a crazy week. Monday morning I met with our contractor to make a few final tile selections for our bathrooms, Tuesday afternoon & evening Steven & I cleared out both bathrooms, our bedroom and the dining room to make way for the crew, Wednesday we hauled our remaining kitchen/food items and moved into Steven's folks' condo, and yesterday we got all settled in here and I did mountains of laundry. Since both of our bathrooms are being worked on at the same time we found it best to go ahead and vacate our home. It's SO nice that Steven's parents have this place in town (that's a stone's throw from our house) that we can camp out in for the alleged 4 weeks.

Matthew was excited at the prospect of coming to Grandma & Grandpa's house, but was definitely confused that they weren't here. Finally, he understood that they were in "Jacksonbill". He's loving it here; he gets to play with Grandma's toys and sleep in their bedroom and bathe in their tub and sit at their table to eat. Thus far we have him in the pack & play...I thought he might be uncomfortable in it for a 4 week period since he's getting too big for the thing, but he's slept soundly every night so far and took a 3 hour nap yesterday. I think we're going to be okay.

The cat is here with us, too. He made the trip over inside a duct-taped box. He sat next to Matt in the backseat and howled miserably the whole time while Matthew petted the box and told him, "we're almost there, Moses, it's ok." By the time we brought him inside he'd already pried his paws and nose through the opening and as Steven was attempting to cut the tape off the cat got his whole head out. And then half his body. He finally kicked off the box and commenced to checking out the place and jumping in every window.

Steven & I have been reading a lot more since we've been here. No cable, no Tivo...it's rough, huh? But there's a computer! Yay! I can't upload any photos though--at least not yet. Hopefully I'll be able to share some photos of the progress going on at our house. Matt & I stopped by late yesterday afternoon after the workers had left for the day and it's total destruction in there! Outside in a truck was all our turquoise green & pink tile retired after nearly 50 years of being in those bathrooms. It feels good. I'm proud of Steven & myself for actually going forward with this. We're the type that will dream about it for years but never pull the trigger. Well, there's no turning back now!

Mother's Day

This is my mother holding Matthew the day he was born. What a joyous day that was! I became a mother for the first time and laid eyes on my beautiful son, and my mother was well enough to be there to witness the 9 lb. beast and to offer her wisdom, support and love. She is at home with the Lord now, but I am so thankful that He allowed her to stay here long enough to see her grandson be born. I am thankful, too, for the happy, godly, loving home that I was raised in and for a mother that I desperately love and model myself after. I miss her generous smile and laugh most of all; sights and sounds that I was so used to, but they are crystal clear in my memory. All those sweet years we had together I treasure, but I know one day in God's glorious kingdom we'll have an infinite number of days to laugh together. But now that I am a mother I feel more and more connected to her (and notice many of her mannerisms in myself!) as all the stories she used to share with me about my early childhood and her early motherhood come to mind. Oh how I miss her.
Enough tears! On to some exciting and life-changing news. Caroline made a profession of faith on Easter Sunday and followed in believer's baptism yesterday. My brother was baptized on Mother's Day when he was 9. Caroline did a great job and looked like such a big girl up there! Lots of family came in town to celebrate with her, and we all had a delicious lunch out at Bryan & Sarah's after church. It was a beautiful day and the absolute perfect weather to be outside so we all took advantage. I admit I got a bit of a sunburn...especially since I was so shockingly white to begin with. Ugh. Here are the girls on the swing. Moments later, Ava loosened her grip and fell to the ground. Thankfully, Uncle Bryan was there to soften her fall. Matthew slept through most of the action. That was one sleepy boy. Mary Claire dragged out her huge box of barbies and princess dolls and mermaids out onto the porch, so Dad & Ann got roped into that. It was cute. Matt finally woke up and immediately commenced to playing in the sand box with the girls. And then it was straight to snack time.

We came home in time to greet Steven when he arrived home from work and spent our evening just relaxing. I pray all you mommies out there had a lovely Mother's Day!

Big 100

Here's Matt eating his daddy's oatmeal. Ick, if you ask me but they both love it. So...Happy 100th post Casa de Jones! My how things have changed since I first started this blog last June. Our boy is growing up! Matthew is growing increasingly more independent but still likes his crib, diapers, and high chair. Well, that last one is still out of necessity since the boy pulls all kinds of antics if allowed to sit at the table. I also tried to get Matt to sit on the potty. He loves to talk about it and to watch others on the potty but when I ask him to sit on it himself he totally balks. He'll say, "I go potty like a big boy and then I no wear diapers anymore!!" but then won't try it. We're getting close though...diaper changes are a huge challenge (he HATES it) and he has begun bringing me his wipes and a clean diaper when he's got a winner in there. I think I'll be underwear shopping soon.

Our week has been pretty quiet I guess. We've been making final decisions on our bathroom remodel which is set to begin this coming Wednesday. Whoa! I'm nervous but excited. It's going to be awesome; I have full faith in the guy that's doing it. We're doing both bathrooms at the same time, so we'll be moving out of the house for a month or so. They've got some serious demo ahead of them. Steven had his own little project going yesterday...the sprayer on our kitchen sink had sprung a leak in the hose so he set out to fix it. Matt was there (and the cat, naturally) to hold or steal rather, the flashlight.

Wednesday afternoon Joy & Ava came over with intentions of going down to the pool, but apparently the pool has been drained. I hope they fill it up again soon because it is darn hot, y'all! Instead, Steven turned on the sprinkler system in hopes that the kids would run around it. They weren't too excited about that, so we went with the hose and a big bucket. It was all fun and games until Ava sprayed Matt in the face and he immediately commenced to crying. It really was funny. Then I had to hold him for awhile until he recovered. Matt wasn't the only target; Ava got her mommy good, too. I think I'll go make some cookies since here's what Matt's doing right now.

The Great Outdoors

Our weekend was nice--Steven was home, and we got to take advantage of the beautiful weather. Saturday morning, we took a sleepy Uncle Tim with us to Zilker park (when Steven called him he said, "you're going right now? At 9:00 in the morning?") and it was a tad chilly, but sunny nonetheless. Matt checked everything out and we quickly found ourselves down by the water looking for ducks to feed. Matt fed as well--we had been there for 30 min. tops and he was asking for snacks. He didn't see me pack my bag, but he knew exactly what snack items I had in there and asked for them all. He also munched on the old crackers that we threw to the ducks. Champion snacker that one is.

We headed for lunch at Shady Grove, and I was reunited with my favorite chili dog. MMMMM! Matt enjoyed it, too.

Matthew woke up soaked in sweat after his nap with a huge crease down his face. The boy was sleeping hard. Steven once again was working on some plantings in the back yard so Matt helped a little bit. Really, he was more interested in blowing bubbles, playing with his new bucket, and tasting his daddy's gatorade.

Last night Tim watched Matt for us while we went and saw Baby Mama starring Tina Fey & Amy Poehler. It was cute, but not as silly and funny ha-ha as I was expecting. There were some good lines it in though for sure.

Happy Cinco de Mayo! We're headed to a mexican restaurant this evening to do our part in celebrating.

Back Again

We made our second visit to the sno-cone stand yesterday. It was a beautiful day. We sat in the back of the wagon and slurped them down. Yum.

Steven got overly excited about his black cherry cone and froze his esophagus. Ouch.

This evening I was giving Matt a bath and he was making me all kinds of food with his empty Mr. Bubble container and cup. He said, "Here's some...turkey! Half pound, sliced on one." Someone's been paying attention to what his mommy says at the deli counter. He didn't understand my laughter. So I ate my turkey.