Happy Easter!

It's been a quite couple of weeks - Easter was the big event which Baby J wasn't quite old enough to get into. A new dress, eggs everywhere, and chocolate (hmmm...that's a word in her vocabulary already!). Big J spent the weekend with Uncle Jeff's family and Marc came down here (plans had already been made for Jason). We just hung out all weekend and Marc "hid" some eggs for her and taught her how to find them.

We took some flowers and eggs to the cemetery where, after some convincing, J parted with the eggs so we could leave them to decorate for Daddy for spring.

I finally got up the guts to go to a "singles" dance a few weekends ago - got all dressed (make-up and hair even...so NOT like me!) and sat in the parking lot! It was at the church building where Ken & I used to go visit his deaf friends and I just couldn't get myself to go in - and didn't get very excited about the people that I saw going in anyhow. Guess it's just not time yet, at least not this week...so I'll just keep booggying with the kids although I'm not sure I'll ever get all the words to the songs from "Hairspray" like Big J has. With his new DVD we'll learn not only the words (which he's already got memorized and sings in his sleep [just ask Josh!] - and seem to float through my mind constantly) but some of the dances, too - - -Broadway, here we come!

Spring is still springing, we've dug up the dead plants in the flower beds and preplanted the vegetables in little pots. I've got visions of grandeur - haven't ever had a garden here but hope to spend a lot of time outside this spring and summer. Baby J has her new sand/water table, chalk for the sidewalk, and bubbles to keep her busy outside!

Work is great-with a recent reorganization I now have 8 additional techs that report to me, many of which I've worked with before! Things were getting kind of slow (almost boring) and the past couple of weeks I have thoroughly enjoyed being super busy - and it helps the diet, too... no time for snacking!

Off to bed now - my 5:30am wake-up call for Jazzercise comes awfully early!

Happy 2nd Birthday to Jenelle

WOW - two years old... not sure if the nickname "baby J" is going to last, might have to make it "big girl J"...but not rushing it!

We had a fun gathering on Sunday night to celebrate her big day. Of course it was after her nap and it took her awhile to figure out why everyone was here when she woke up. She warmed up and enjoyed having lots of attention, and the presents were fun-she managed to open them throghout the evening, didn't get the concept of open them all at once...when she got to that point she really slowed down. Unfortunately we didn't get any pictures of her with cake & candles that night but we got her to re-enact her birthday for us on Monday (her real birthday) and managed to get some pictures around the mostly eaten cake.

Her 2 year checkup went well at the dr's office - she is just above average sized and way above the best in cuteness! I told Jason I want to enter her in the city's baby contest this summer and he said that we shouldn't because it wouldn't be fair for the other babies, we shouldn't put her in so that the other kids would have a chance ;-)! It seems like she's decided to really start using words the past couple of weeks and seems to surprise me with a few new words every day.

And to top off the festivities she actually had success in the potty tonight! She's been "practicing" all the sounds and faces (I wonder if it would be appropriate to video tape her doing her potty routine-it is hysterical!) and last night spent 30 minutes up and down from the potty before I gave up and put her to bed. Tonight she sat down and I think it surprised her, she hopped right up and asked to get in the bath - YAY! This could be the start of something good...of course, it could last us for months or even years, but you've got to start somewhere!

Big J finished his basketball season last week, his team was in the semi-finals of the multi-city tournament when they met their match from a neighboring city. It was a great season and he enjoyed playing.

Looking forward to SPRING! Crocuses in the front yard, birds in the neighbors' trees (ours are too small), lawns being mowed and watered are all simple reminders that it's just around the corner!

Pictures

I think I might have figured out how to add pictures and text ... let's see how this goes.

Of course-the good stuff!

Can't dwell on the stuff that makes me cry... so here's the good stuff of the week in a nutshell.



Jason got himself all decked out to go to the junior high dance on Thursday-Jenelle even got him a flower (I don't know how to spell what it really is called...). It had to be from Jenelle or he might not have worn it...



I was pleasantly surprised yesterday... I had put up the "every day" flag on our flag pole the other day and when I got up yesterday I saw that it was draped over the chair. When I asked Jason why he took it down, he said "because it's your birthday"... he had managed to put up the HUGE "special occasions" flag on his own-in the wee hours of the morning. Although I had lots of fun calls, emails, visits, etc., that was the most meaningful part of the day for me!



(In case you're wondering about the flag- when Ken passed away we were give a huge flag because he had been in Guard/Reserves. Last Sept I put up my Mom's flag pole and added a placque for Ken. We fly the big flag on special occasions and have a lightweight, smaller flag for everyday patriotism)



We enjoyed a visit from Marc and Karen on Sunday afternoon-bearing gifts of fun Valentine's and we're looking forward to seeing all the Southams at dinner on Sunday. I've felt so distant, not traveling during my recover from surgery...although the fatigue is getting better!



Jenelle is loving her "Daddy" video-I put together several clips with her and Daddy onto a video tape, unfortunately it's only about 10 minutes long so I have to keep rewinding it...she DEMANDS to watch it over & over again. If anyone has any clips of Ken I'd love to try to get copies-did anyone have a video camera at the Haines reunion in 2004 when he told his hummingbird story? Jenelle needs to know that story but it's just not the same from MAMA.

(I'll try to load pictures later on...I'm sure there's a way to put them directly on the post but not sure how)

An emotional week... another one behind me.

Just when I thought things were going to get better, all of the 'lonely' holidays hit. I originally thought that once I got through all of the birthdays and major holidays from October through December that I'd just glide through the rest of the first year...NOT... didn't take into account that the major holidays are so busy and full of family that they were actually easy compared to this last week.

Feb 12 marked 6 months since Ken passed away, the 13th was the day we met in person 5 years ago, the 14th Valentine's Day and yesterday was my B-day. I've decided not to overestimate myself anymore... I don't forsee our wedding and sealing anniversaries, Mother's Day, Father's Day, or anything else being "easy". Oh, well, I'm doing ok-if you know me, you know that I don't hold in my emotions and I feel like I made it through last week ok.

Keeping in mind that this is "journaling"... not trying to bring anyone down...

Sock Hop

Slowly but not so surely I am figuring out how this blog thing works. The pictures (I have no idea where they'll be when I finish my post) are from the Sock Hop at the church on Friday night. It was a BLAST and I'm sure I over-did it - only 10 days since surgery...dr. had said not to raise my heart rate or blood pressure so I actually took it easy although witnesses might say otherwise. No harm, no foul-I feel fine and any aches & pains I had Saturday were "happy pain".

In the picture of Jenelle you have to notice her Valentine's tights and her pink Chuck Taylor high tops...one of Daddy's favorite accessories (although he never had pink ones). She was the sweetheart of the party...at least in my eyes!

I'm glad to have our Valentine's Day celebration out of the way, it could be a hard week for me. Jason has his school dance on Thursday night and I've got a mixed b-day lunch planned for Saturday...keeping busy.

It was 5 years ago this Wednesday that Ken and I met in person for the first time, he came to Colorado to go to a church Valentine's Dance that I had organized. Being single at the time I thought it would be nice to plan a romantic evening of dinner & dancing for all of the couples...little did I know that I wouldn't be very single by the time the dance rolled around! One of the songs requested at the Sock Hop on Friday was The Dance by Garth Brooks...hadn't listened to it for 20 years and was surprised at it's effect on me. "I could have missed the pain but I'd have had to miss the dance" Love You Ken!

Sock Hop