So shnazzy!

Our friends Matt and Meagan officially tied the knot this weekend. Matt Baker was the best man in our wedding and one of Jim's friends that I think of as my friend. We have gotten to know Meagan very well in the last few years and know that the two of them are truly meant to be. There wedding was so romantic! It was obviously winter and there was a TON of snow in Big Rapids. The had the wedding and the reception in an old victorian style home. The guest list was very small and made for a very intimate event. By the end - I felt as if we were family. I think Jim considers himself an adopted family member.

We also were able to show off Josh and his fancy suit. So irresistably cute! And he knows it. He didn't mind the clip on tie or the fact that the shirt was really tight around his neck. He just gave his little shy smile and grinned from ear to ear. I am sure that his unending audience was just feeding the fire.

Before the wedding I was determined to bring Josh into the pool. So that morning as soon as breakfast was over I got into my suit, we put some little swimmers on Josh... and off we went. Dad took pictures. He took a little bit to get used to it... but once I let him sit on the steps going into the pool... I think he realized this was a giant bathtub. He thought the little boys were pretty cool to watch as they would swim under water and pop up in a different spot. And loved splashing.

G'ma and G'pa Kirkwood drove up to Big Rapids as well as CJ, Jim's little sis, to babysit the little man for the reception. We really really enjoyed the night out dancing... and would you believe that Josh slept until 9:45am on Sunday!! That was sweet!

Oh - and it was a big time MI mites hockey tournament in Big Rapids that weekend. So we were surrounded by little boys trying to play mini-sticks which are apparently banned in most hotels these days. I verified with my folks - and this is also the case in MN. I had no idea they were so dangerous! It was funny to watch the parents too, each morning at breakfast they would talk about which teams were racking up the points and who wasn't playing fair. On most occasions the parents of opposing teams would offer tips for the next game.. but there were a few conversations that were quite the opposite. Seriously - these kids are what - 8 or 9 years old? Give me a break! Jim just kept saying - "I am not ready for this..." And I kept saying "you know we will be those parents... talking smack to the other parents." Hee hee!

As always we had a good time with family and friends in MI. Wish it were closer! :)

Now the pictures - Josh on the car ride there... he is such a good traveler! Next was our adventure in the pool. Third picture - Matt and Meagan tying the knot! Fourth Picture is Josh in the suit he got from Great G'ma Connie. Next is Josh thoroughly enjoying what we referred to as the "orphanage crib". He thought it was pretty sweet that he could climb up to standing and walk around and around the crib to see various parts of the hotel room. Notice the excitement on his face with G'ma Kirkwood. And last but not least, my new screen saver at work. I literally get laughs from everyone at work and it makes me chuckle every time I see it. Which is a wonderful thing.

PACKERS LOSE!!!!

That is really all I need to say. Finally we will get somewhat of a break from all the non stop PACKER talk. I estimate another month of recap... but then to have only one story a night devoted to the Packers until next June when they start telling us about when practices are... At the end of the game the movie on NBC was interrupted for "breaking news" about the Packer loss. They had 6 reporters out in the field ready to capture the moment. (obviously planning on the win... waaa waaa waaa...) They interviewed a few fans when they left the stadium and it just made Jim and I laugh even harder... These people were so bundled up, intoxicated, and unable to put into words how disappointed they were... add the WI accent... and you got a comedy show. I do need to clarify my dislike of Packer obsessed fans... not the Packer players/team. They are a great team and had a great season. Just gets annoying to see people literally depressed when they lose, or hear about the rise in domestic disputes after a packer loss. And it is nice to finally have a break from the top 3 stories dealing with the Packers... how Brett Favre had a burger for dinner... and that the running back has a hangnail. Waaa waaa waaa!

Besides watching a great football game... Jim and I had a fantastic weekend. He got back from Beech Island around 7pm Friday night. We lounged around and crashed early Friday night. Saturday we cleaned the house, did some laundry, and played with Josh. He is really enjoying time standing at the coffee table and going to the couch, ottoman, chair, and back to the table. He tries to pull himself up when he falls down, but just isn't able to do it without help. He is completely content and will walk along the furniture to get whatever toys he wants.

He is still at the same point with crawling. Gets up on his hands and knees and rocks... moves one hand then flattens like a pancake and starts to fuss. He has mastered the army crawl with his right arm/elbow. And is able to get to most areas of the family room by rolling. Amazing how fast he can go from one side of the room to another just rolling.

Saturday night Jim and I had a true "date night". We had one of the girls from daycare come and watch Josh. It is so nice to have them come because they already know him well and he loves to see them when they arrive. So - back to our date night. We went out to the Melting Pot for dinner... it took 2 hours but we enjoyed relaxing, eating, and drinking some awesome wine. Then we went to see the new National Treasure movie. It was pretty darn good. We were going to go out for drinks and meet up with friends... but they were stuck at a holiday party and so we just went back home. Josh was apparently a good boy although had a tough time going to sleep. But he did sleep through the rest of the night.

Date Nights. Highly recommend them. It was nice to have "adult" conversation that of course had some to do with Josh but a lot was reminscing about the last 5 years we have known each other. Wow time flies! We are quickly approaching our 2 year anniversary.. CRAZY how much has changed.

A visit to MN...

I was definitely homesick and needing to get a visit in with my family. This weekend Jim was going to be leaving for Beech Island, SC and I figured it was as good a time as any to make the trip. Jim helped me pack up on Thursday night and I was on my way... just Josh and I. The trip went smoothly and I had some really good conversations with friends... i used my new Blue Tooth that Jimbo got me for X-mas. That thing is awesome.

We got to my parents place around 10:30pm. We didn't stay up too late and thankfully Josh went down without even a peep! Friday we hung out with my mom at home. My cousin Lisa stopped by for lunch and spent the afternoon catching up. That night the boys (minus Josh) all went to the Gopher hockey game and Shannon, my mom, Josh, and I went shopping and to dinner. Josh was a real trooper. That night he went to bed again without a peep. We stayed up until the boys got there and played dominoes. I don't thing we were playing correctly so I am going to have to get the "real" rules from my friend Elaine. But it was fun anyway.

Saturday, my cousin Kristy stopped by with the boys to hang out. They are getting SO BIG! It was fun to see them interact with Josh and think that eventually Josh will be that big... That afternoon we had an early dinner with the family before my little brother Jack's big game. It was a GREAT hockey game. Jack plays for Hill Murray and they played against the High School I went to - Mahtomedi. Jack scored in the first minute... so awesome. By the end of the game I think had had 2 assists and the one goal. Not bad at all! Plus they won - although I was torn with it being my old stomping grounds. :)

Sunday we went to church and then had breakfast at home. Josh and I made the trip home that afternoon. I had a soccer game late Sunday night and had my friends the Spindlers come adn watch Josh for me at the game. He was very intrigued by all the running. I was amazed at how he sorta followed the ball - although that is where most of the ladies were running, so he could have just been following them. Ha ha!

Quick run down of the pictures... the first one Josh is proudly wearing his "Tippy Cup Champ" onesie... picture two is him doing his FAVORITE thing - standing all by himself against some furniture... my dad (pappy) is playing peek-a-boo which Josh thought was hilarious. Obviously the third picture is the same situation - just a close up of our little man - seriously his look changes from week to week! And the last picture is of him cuddling with the pink pig in the guest room at my parents. Not sure what he finds so hilarious about the pig... but he giggled and giggled whenever we brought it close to him. It helped keep him occupied when we were chaning diapers... which is a huge ordeal now since he loves to roll...

It was a good weekend... now onto a single parent week!

HaPpY nEw YeAr!!

So New Years Eve we spent home with some friends. We had sent out an email well before Christmas and had a few people interested. By the time we left for MI, we had close to 40 people responding with either yes or maybe. I 'dislike' the response maybe. Not that I haven't been one of them. But we bought tons of alcohol, food, and party favors. 15 people did show up ready and willing to ring in 2008 - which truly was way better than 40. We played guitar hero (thanks to the Spindlers for bringing it over), pictionary, beer pong, and pool. It was a good time. I had my fair share of mixed beverages. Oh - and it was a cocktail type party - so we got all dressed up! Which was fun too.

Josh was perfect. He went down about 8:30 pm easily and was out until 7:30 am the next day. Granted mom and dad didn't get to bed until 3am, but it could have been way worse. Oh - I guess it did get worse. I eagerly got up with him at 7:30 am and played with him. By about 9am my head started pounding and tummy was a rumbling... thankfully he was ready for a nap so I got one too. But not long enough. :) Why did I insist on slamming from the boot?? Or having champagned at every "midnight" toast across the U.S??? It was definitely fun that night... ah well!!!

Happy New Year Everyone!!!