The Hokes

Too Funny

2010-07-21T08:00:00.005-04:00

The other night we were sitting at the dinner table and Justin decided we needed some entertainment. Now Alex is always quite the entertainer at the dinner table-always being goofy and trying to make us laugh but this particular night her baby sister joined in on the fun. Justin had Jordyn dancing on the table which made Alex start laughing hysterically. As Jordyn is watching her big sister laugh she in turns starts giggling too which makes us both break out in laughter as well. It was too cute to see my two girls having fun together and laughing at each other. Alex absolutely loves her little sister to death and I think Jordyn shares this love as well-we always joke that Alex gets more smiles/laughs out of her than we do :). It is so much fun and such a blessing to be able to watch my two girls together and to see the love they have for each other!

Our baby is turning 3!!

2010-06-20T16:15:00.003-04:00

It's hard to believe that our baby girl is already turning 3 years old. Seems like just yesterday she was a tiny baby. Now she's such a big girl-growing up so quickly! She is a bundle of energy and a such a happy child! She brings so much fun, excitement, and joy into our lives. She is also the best big sister-she loves Jordyn so much and is always looking out for her and tending to her-such a little mother hen! This year, she has gotten into the princess thing so she wanted her 3rd birthday party to be a princess party. We did the Disney princess decorations and had a good friend make her a princess cake. We had some close friends and family over for pizza and cake and ice cream. It was a beautiful day so we got the pool out for the kids and the new slip-n-slide Alex got for her birthday. She had a blast celebrating with everyone and we now have so many new things to play with that she doesn't know where to begin! Thanks everyone for being with us and making Alex's birthday special! She (as are we) is so blessed to have such great family and friends!

New Pictures

2010-05-16T16:14:00.005-04:00

Just wanted to share a few recent pictures of the girls. They're growing so fast! Jammy and her 3 girls Alex loves to shower Jordyn with hugs and kisses! All smiles! Enjoying a beautiful night at the park Alex loves her little sister to death!
Cousins-Jordyn and Adrienne

Mother's Day

2010-05-16T15:56:00.003-04:00

My wonderful family made this a very special day for me. Alex went shopping with Justin and was so excited to give me the gifts she picked out that we had to open 1 the night before. She got me a Tinker Bell doll and accessories that she picked herself. When Justin asked her what she wanted to buy mommy the first thing she said was a doll. Funny thing was when asked what she wanted to buy for her Jammy her first response was a doll as well. So she bought a Dora figurine with accessories for Jammy. She couldn't wait to give these gifts so we could play with them. The morning of Mother's day Alex came into the bedroom with more gifts she had picked out-a blouse, earrings and necklace, and a pair of aloe socks (I think Justin just wanted me to stop putting my dry feet on him at night-haha!). She was so proud of the things she had helped her daddy pick out! We spent the day at home just enjoying the time together as a family. That evening then we went out to dinner with my parents and my brother and his family. After dinner we went back to my parents for dessert and gift giving. We were able to get a picture of Jammy with her daughter, daughter-in law, and 3 beautiful granddaughters-so special! Being a mother is truely the best gift in the entire world and I am so thankful for my wonderful family and the 2 best daughters I could ever ask for!

Growing

2010-04-18T10:25:00.006-04:00

Time goes by so quickly. It is hard to believe that today Jordyn is 1 month old already. We are enjoying watching her grow and change every day. Life is much busier with 2 children now so I'm not finding much time to blog; however, I wanted to be sure to get our most recent pictures of the girls up for everyone to see. Enjoy!!

Jordyn Alana

2010-03-28T15:26:00.003-04:00

Our new baby girl finally made her appearance on March 18, 2010. Being 2 days past due, labor had to be induced. We arrived at the hospital on Thursday afternoon around 2:00 and Jordyn Alana Hoke made her appearance at 9:53 pm. Labor went smoothly and much more quickly this time than with Alex. Jordyn is absolutely perfect-she weighed 7 lbs 11.8 oz and was 20.5 inches long. She is the spitting image of her big sister. Everyone is doing very well and Alex is loving being a big sister. We enjoyed having Justin home with us for the first week-he has now gone back to work so mommy, Alex, and Jordyn are working on getting into a routine and adjusting to the changes that a 2nd child brings. Jordyn is such a blessing and a joy-we are so thankful to have now 2 beautiful daughters!

Busy Weekend

2010-02-08T19:18:00.006-05:00

This weekend was a busy one. We had a baby shower for my sister-in-law Susan on Saturday and a Super Bowl party at Jen and Drue's house on Sunday. In the midst of our planned events for the weekend, we got dumped on with about 20 inches of snow between Friday and Saturday. Regardless of the snowstorm, our planned weekend events went on.

The baby shower was a success even though many family and friends were unable to make it in because of the snowstorm. We had to have the ladies (who were able to get there) bring their husbands so we had more people to help eat all the food. Susan had no idea until Saturday afternoon when Rob had to explain to her why they were venturing out in the snowstorm. We had a really nice time despite the small crowd. They got lots of nice things and had a nice time visiting with everyone celebrating the upcoming arrival of Baby Adrienne.

By Sunday evening the roads were pretty clear, so thankfully we were still able to go to Jen and Drue's for our Super Bowl party. As always, we had way too much food. We keep saying we're going to cut back on the amount of food we bring when we get together yet it never seems to actually happen. We had soup in bread bowls, a cheese ball, dips, fruit salad, chips, macaroni and cheese, and 3 desserts! It was a great time as always-we had fun eating way too much and enjoying good company during the game. The kiddos had fun together as usual. Mattson was quite the character in his pirate costume that he insisted on wearing all evening. As the evening went on Alex was getting sleepy so needless to say she had to keep herself awake somehow-she entertained us by dancing and singing to every commercial that had music.

On Saturday after the baby shower, we took Alex out in the snow. It was so deep that it came up to her waist. She didn't care-she had a blast anyway. She was determined to walk through it and she did however, she could only take 2-3 steps before falling. She discovered too that she likes to eat snow so she was content to plop herself down and eat the snow off her mittens.

Sesame Street Live

2010-01-13T21:43:00.004-05:00

Saturday we had the opportunity (thanks to my parents who bought us the tickets) to take Alex to see Sesame Street Live at the Giant Center in Hershey. We had a minor setback on the way there when Alex got sick all over herself and the carseat. Ended up having to take a detour to Walmart for new clothes and a new jacket. Once we got her changed and cleaned up, we were back on the road. Thankfully we left in plenty of time and were still there 1/2 hour before the show started. The show was a called "Elmo's Green Thumb" and while some of the concepts behind the storyline were slightly difficult for kids her age to understand, it was a great show and a lot of fun. There was lots of singing and dancing and of course, all her favorite characters were in it. Daddy's favorite; however, was not (Daddy likes Murry: ). It was so much fun to watch her having such a good time! Thank you Papap and Jammy for giving us the chance to go. We very much enjoyed this time as a family!

Winter Fun

2009-12-23T05:52:00.004-05:00

Alex is having a blast with the snow this year. We got a nice big snow this past weekend-about 12 inches. She is loving it! She's been out several times to play in it both at home with us and at Jammy's house with her little friend Brayden. I've always really liked the snow but I now love it even more because I see how much fun she has and how excited she gets over it.

2009-12-16T06:04:00.005-05:00

This past Saturday Alex and I made the trip, along with Rob and Susan and my mom, to New York City. We've never been and always thought it would be neat to see the city decorated for Christmas. I have a cousin who lives in Hobokon, NJ so we drove to their house early in the morning and then my cousin Cameron and my Aunt Red took us into New York for the day. We visited Times Square, Grand Central Station, Broadway, and Rockefeller Center. We also went to see a few of the big stores decorated for the Christmas season. Macy's was really cool-they do some really neat animated decorations in their store front. My brother got to visit the Apple Store which made him happy. While he was in there, we took Alex to the biggest toy store she has ever been to in her life-FAO Schwartz. The best part for Alex, I think, was the Christmas tree. Although she was very concerned that it only had lights and no decorations. That's all she's been telling people since we got home. It was a long and tiring since we were up so early and did so much walking but we had a great time. Alex did a great job and didn't sleep all day until she zonked out on the subway ride back to NJ. We also got to visit some with my aunt and uncle and my cousin, her husband, and their little girl. Their daughter, Sydney, is 10 months old and we had never met her so it was really good to see her finally. Alex had a great time playing with "baby Syd". After a nice dinner, we finally got back on the road around 7:15 and Alex was out cold by 8:00. She was so tired from her busy day she slept the whole way home, went right to bed, and didn't get up until 10:15 the next morning. So glad we were able to do it-it was a very nice day (we just wish daddy could have been there, but it's the Christmas season in retail). Susan, Alex, and Sydney

Enjoying a nice bus ride

Waiting for the bus

On Cameron and Jeremy's rooftop deck

Birthdays

2009-12-15T21:51:00.003-05:00

A few weeks ago we went out to dinner with our good friends to celebrate Justin, Lucky, and Drue's birthdays. All of their birthdays are in November so we did one big birthday celebration. We had dinner at Montezumas and it was a great time. Jen made sure to tell our waiter that we had 3 birthday boys-needless to say they weren't too thrilled about this. They got to wear the sombreros while being sung Happy Birthday. Of course we couldn't pass up this great photo op-had to share it with everyone!

First Snowfall of the Year

2009-12-09T21:22:00.002-05:00

The first snow this year didn't amount to much but it didn't matter to Alex. She was so excited to go out and play in it. We had to go out while it was still snowing and the ground was not completely covered yet. There wasn't enough to really roll around in or build a snowman with, but she had so much just running around the yard and letting the snow hit her face! She is going to be so much fun this winter! Here's hoping we get enough snow for her to enjoy!

Decorating for Christmas

2009-12-02T21:36:00.003-05:00

Christmas is going to be so much fun this year-Alex is really getting into it! She loves all the decorations and the lights and is always talking about how pretty everything is. This past weekend we put up our tree and let her help decorate-what a blast! She could not have been more excited or more helpful! She was so excited to be decorating the tree that she could hardly contain herself. She got the ornaments out of the box one at a time and brought them over for us to help her put them on. She jumped up and down with such excitement and shouting "We're decorating the Christmas tree and it's gonna be Christmas!!". I think this was the most fun I've ever had decorating the tree. We're so glad she is enjoying all the decorations-can't wait to see what she does on Christmas.

Halloween

2009-11-15T15:03:00.002-05:00

It's a little late, but thought I should get some pictures up of Alex in her Halloween costume. She went as a mouse this year-she was too cute! She had a great time trick or treating in our neighborhood and then over to see her Uncle Bob and Aunt Sue. She loved their costumes! Mattson stopped by too so we were able to get some pictures taken with him as well.

Newest Addition

2009-10-29T06:25:00.002-04:00

Well, we just found out Alex is going to have a little sister!!! Baby Hoke is due to arrive March 16th. Here she is!!

Pumpkin Carving

2009-10-28T20:04:00.004-04:00

Our annual Halloween tradition-carving pumpkins with my family. Alex had a lot of fun this year. She was even more into it than last year. She liked sticking her hand down into the pumpkin and pulling out the seeds. She tried to use the knife to carve but needed a little help. She kept saying "This is too hard". We let her choose how she wanted to make the face. She very quickly decided she wanted circle eyes, a diamond nose, and a mouth with 2 teeth. It ended up looking kind of like a bunny but without the ears till we were done. It turned out very cute!

Bee Sting

2009-10-09T16:00:00.002-04:00

I normally post all the fun things our family is doing but this time I decided to dedicate a post to a not-so-enjoyable experience Alex had recently. Last week Justin had the day off so he and Alex decided to go to the park. While they were playing, Alex ended up getting stung by a bee right below her eye. She cried, of course, and daddy consoled her. Within a few minutes she was right back to playing. But as Justin kept looking at her get more and more red and swollen, he decided maybe they should head for home. He called the doctor to find out what to give her and then took her to Jammy's house while he ran to the store for children's benedryl. It looked pretty nasty but within a day or two, it was pretty much gone. Poor thing-now when we go to the park to play she always asks "The bee's not gonna sting me??"

Fall Activities

2009-10-08T20:56:00.005-04:00

Last Saturday my mom and I took Alex into Benders for their fall open house. Alex always loves going in there with her Jammy to see the animals (the bunny rabbits are her favorite) so we figured she would enjoy the fall activities as well. It was really nice-she was able to run through the hay maze, pick a pumpkin from the patch, dig through the hay to find a gourd, and see all the animals. She also got a free coloring page and an apple. Of course, when she got inside and saw the painted pumpkins she had to have them so we ended up buying 2 little ones for her to sit on the shelf in her bedroom. She had a blast!

Alpaca Farm

2009-09-27T14:23:00.021-04:00

Saturday morning my mom, Susan, and I took Alex to see the alpacas at a local farm here in Chambersburg. When we left the house, it was not raining but by the time we got there it was raining pretty hard. We didn't have umbrellas with us but Alex had a hood on her sweatshirt, so we decided a little rain wouldn't hurt and we ventured on. We were all soaked by the time we left, but Alex didn't care in the least. You couldn't touch them because they were pretty skittish, but it was neat just to get a close look at them and watch them. While we were there some of them were being fed, so Alex got to watch them eating-she thought that was pretty neat! They were pretty cute! Most of the pictures didn't turn out great because my lens kept getting wet and fogging up in the rain, but I got a few anyway.

Virginia Beach

2009-08-30T08:03:00.008-04:00

This month we took Alex on her first trip to the beach. We weren't sure we would be able to get a vacation in at all this summer. Between my medical placement at the hospital being 9 weeks, 3 days of teacher induction, and 2 days of inservice I didn't have a full week off all summer, but we were able to find a long weekend and so we headed to Virginia Beach from a Thursday to Monday. We had a great time-it was a much needed get-away. We spent some time on the beach but we couldn't decide if Alex liked it or not though-one day she couldn't get enough of the water and sand and the next she didn't want much to do with it. We did find a spot on the beach that had playgroung equipment, which she loved! We also took some time to do a few other sight-seeing things. We hit up the Virginia Aquarium, went to see a AAA ball game (the Norfolk Tides), and did some shopping. Alex very much enjoyed the aquarium-she even touched a snake, a hermit crab, and a stingray. She loved the interactive pieces where she was able to push buttons, put her hands in things, etc. She also had a blast cheering the ball team on at the game-this made her daddy very happy that she loved going to a baseball game so much (so much that when we got home, we had to take her to a Hagerstown Suns game). She clapped and cheered "Go Tides" and "get a hit". It was so cute! But we think Alex's favorite part of the whole trip was staying in a hotel and riding the elevator. It seemed like all she could talk about was the elevator. By day 2, she was a pro at pushing all the right buttons for us. We joke that next summer all we'd have to do for vacation is take her to a hotel in Chambersburg and get a room on the top floor so we can ride the elevator all day long-haha! All in all, a very nice family vacation and a nice time away from the craziness that has been our summer!

Pirates Game/Rob's Birthday

2009-07-21T06:27:00.005-04:00

This weekend was a very busy one but lots of fun. Saturday we left Alex with Papap and Jammy Yocum for a sleepover while we headed to Pittsburgh to watch a Pirates game with friends. We had done this last summer as well and had a blast so decided to go again this year. I'm thinking we should consider making it a tradition. The trip there was much smoother this time-no construction or traffic detours to take us off roading. We took my dad's Garmin and that got us right to where we needed to be. We had a nice dinner at a place downtown before heading into the stadium. We had great seats-perfect in fact. We had a great view of the field and of the city backdrop and during the 2 rain delays we were in just the right row that when everyone in front of us was clearing their seats, we were able to stay put and not get wet. It was fireworks night at the the ballpark so we got to enjoy those after the game. I don't get into fireworks too much anymore, but these were amazing. There's something about watching a fireworks show from PNC park with the river and city as the backdrop that make them so much more exciting.

While we were gone, Alex had a busy but fun day. She got to go to her friend Brayden's 1st birthday party in the afternoon and then to Uncle Bob and Aunt Sue's for a cookout in the evening along with a sleepover at Papap and Jammy's. They all had a great time!

Sunday, after sleeping in we spent a lazy Sunday afternoon at home. We had a large zuchinni from the neighbors so Alex helped us make bread with it. She loves to help in the kitchen these days! That evening we celebrated Rob's birthday with dinner at TGIFridays and then back to my parents house for peanut butter pie and presents. We had a really nice time with the family. Alex had a lot of fun helping her Uncle Bob open his presents and blow out the candles. She was so excited to sing to him-she loves to sing Happy Birthday!

Alex's Birthday

2009-06-22T16:53:00.005-04:00

Where do the years go? It feels like just yesterday that my baby girl was born. Today is her 2nd birthday already. We celebrated yesterday by having her grandparents, and some of her aunts, uncles, and cousins over for a small party. We cooked out on the grill and enjoyed the evening outside. She is really into Veggie tales right now, so we decided to do a Veggie tales theme. I decided to try my hand at cake decorating by making a Bob and Larry cake. My sister-in-law Susan came over Saturday to help me. It actually turned out very well (much to my suprsise) and Alex was beside herself when she saw it. She loved having everyone sing to her and blowing out her "2" candle. After cake and ice cream, she opened presents. She got a ton of really cool things including a kitchen, big wheels, slide, Elmo Live, toys, books, clothes, and a sandbox. Now the fun part is finding where to put it all! We had a great time with family celebrating this very special day. Our little girl is growing up so fast!

Memorial Day at the Lake

2009-05-26T19:20:00.005-04:00

We spent our Memorial Day weekend at Lake Anna. Alex and I went down with my parents and Rob and Susan Friday night. Justin came down Saturday evening after he got off work. We had gorgeous weather-perfect for enjoying some time on the water. It was so nice to just get away and relax-no worries, no responsibilities. We were able to spend our days at the water floating on the raft, kayaking, and riding the jet skis. Alex loved floating in the big raft and riding in the kayaks. She really wanted to ride a jet ski but unfortunately she is too little yet. She did get a chance to sit on one though for a picture. She even tried her hand at fishing and caught 3 fish-one of which was a pretty big catfish. She tried getting in the water to swim on Saturday but it was a little cold, so she wasn't a fan.
Bowling on the Wii!

Enjoying a good book Love the hat! The Wii Fit Didn't look very comfortable but he must have been. Relaxing and enjoying the warm sun. Enjoying her first kayak ride-after riding with daddy in the blue one,
she had to try the yellow one too. Her big catch-a catfish! She kept talking about how cute it was.
We all thought it was pretty ugly but she didn't agree. Taking a walk at the park before going for ice cream Her first fishing experience-she loved it. "Come on little fishies" she kept saying "Super Baby"

Fun Weekend

2009-05-17T13:56:00.005-04:00

What a fun weekend! Saturday afternoon we took Alex to Windy Knolls for their Open House. They had free samples, good sales, and a cow for the kids to try milking. Justin had to work, unfortunately, so Alex and I went with "Jammy Yocum", Uncle Bob, and Aunt Sue. She tried her hand at milking the cow-she needed some help though since her little hands weren't strong enough to make the water come out. She loved the cow-in the words of Alex the cow was "beautiful". She got a sticker and cow tail and then we headed inside for some ice cream. It was a gorgeous afternoon so we sat outside eating our ice cream and having fun running around in the yard. Alex had a blast with her Uncle Bob chasing her and throwing her up in the air. Her new thing now is to run away from you while saying "I get you" or "Better run"-her daddy taught her that. He is always chasing her around the house saying I'm gonna get you-you better run". After all that fun, we headed home for naptime. That evening we went to Papapy and Jammy Yocum's house to build a fire and roast marshmallows; however, the rain came and put a damper on those plans. So we improvised and made our smores in the microwave. After the rain stopped we were able to get outside to play; however, no fire because the wood was too wet. The ground was so wet; however, Alex did not care at all. By the time we were ready to head home; she was soaked from playing in the wet grass. So it was home for quick bath before bedtime. Sunday afternoon after church Daddy had a great idea! He decided Alex might enjoy cutting her finger jello with cookie cutters. We really only have a few and they're all Christmas shapes, but we used them anyway. She and I had a ball making jello shapes while daddy manned the camera. After we were all done, she got a spoon and spatula out and said "Alex make jello" so she stirred the empty dish pretending she was making jello. Then since she was so close to the counter, she decided it might be fun to climb up and open the cabinet drawer to see what she could find. She got several of her sippie cups out trying each one to see if there might be anyting in it-needless to say she found they were empty, but that didn't matter. She pretended anyway-Alex drink a milk" she said as she sucked on the empty cup. She is really into pretending these days-it's so much fun to watch her develop her imagination and pretend play skills.

Mother's Day

2009-05-11T17:06:00.004-04:00

I could not have asked for a more wonderful Mother's Day. We started the celebration with Justin's family on Saturday evening. We went to his parents and grilled steaks with Mike, Tara, John, and Kalee. It was a gorgeous night, so we spent the evening playing in the back yard. Alex had a blast with John and Kalee as she always does. We played tag and hide and seek and kicked around the soccer ball. Alex and Kalee discovered the hole where the flagpole used to be. It was filled with water from all the rain, and Alex decided this was pretty fun to play in. Could not have asked for a better evening. Even though we live close (they are all in Waynesboro) our lives are so busy that we definitely do not get to see each other enough. We treasure the times we do get to spend together though. On Sunday morning Justin woke up and cooked me breakfast in bed (eggs, toast, and coffee). He and Alex gave me gifts of a charm for my bracelet, a new book, and two new books for Alex and I to read together. We went to church and then came home for lunch. Justin made lunch as well-panini sandwiches on his panini maker. They were yummy! Then while Alex napped, Justin helped me work in the yard trimming bushes and taking out the black plastic from the flower beds to get ready for new mulch. We spent 2 hours outside-he said he thought having him help with 2 hours of yardwork was quite the Mother's day present. He decided from that he was glad this day only comes once year-haha!! After all that hard work, we went out for Chinese with my parents and Rob and Susan. Afterwards we went back to mom and dad's house for Triple Decker Chocolate Cake-delicious! We gave mom her gifts and I got as well-a hanging basket, a new piece for on my serving platter, and a beautiful picture of Alex with her handprints and a neat poem. Can't wait to find a place to hang that-she worked very hard on it. We had a great time playing outside after dessert. What a wonderful Mother's day weekend- I am so grateful for all the gifts and special things everyone did to make the day/weekend so great. Being a mother is the most wonderful blessing. I am so very thankful for my wonderful daughter, husband, and family. I love you guys!

Mowing the Grass

2009-04-19T10:14:00.003-04:00

Alex got a new today on Friday from her Pappy and Jammy Yocum. She LOVES to be outside and is never a happy camper when it's time to go in. We thought she needed some new outdoor toys this year so they surpised her Friday with this little mower. She wasn't sure about it at first because she's a little afraid of the big mower. She just kept looking at it and saying "It' ok, it's ok". We showed her how it worked and tried to get her to try it but she just kept telling us "nope". Mommy made a big deal about the bubbles coming out and how cool it was but she still was not interested in going anywhere near it. Then her little friend Matthew started playing with it and was able to get her to give it a try. "Alex try it" she said (we just love the 3rd person references). Once she tried it, she loved it. For the last couple days that is all she wants to do when we got outside-play with her new mower. By Saturday evening, the bubbles had already run out she mowed so much-now if only it actually cut the grass for us. That would make mommy and daddy very happy too!

Easter

2009-04-12T21:45:00.002-04:00

Our day began with church in the morning and then home for lunch. Kristi, Lucky, and Mattson decided to stop by on their way home so we were able to take some pictures of the two families and the kids in our Easter outfits. Look at the cute couple-they even held hands for the picture! Alex took a nap and then we headed to my parents for Easter dinner and an egg hunt. Alex wasn't too interested in hunting eggs on Tuesday when mom had her daycare egg hunt, but today she loved it. She found all 12 (with a little help of course). She found it entertaining to throw them into her basket and then run to find the next one. When she got to the garden she decided it would be great fun to take the eggs out of the basket and throw them in the dirt (needless to say we had a few broken eggs). She wasn't very happy when we made her go inside but it was too cold to stay out and play. She got some very nice goodies in her 2 baskets-candy, clothes, a lawn chair, bath soap, coloring book, a numbers puzzle, bingo daubers, and stickers-you would have thought it was Christmas again! What a great day of celebration with family and friends..

Coloring Eggs

2009-04-11T21:21:00.004-04:00

Wednesday evening we started the Easter festivities by coloring eggs at my parents house. Rob and Susan were there too. Alex got into it much more this year. She loved dropping the eggs into the cups of dye. We had to be careful though, because she would toss them in and of course, dye ended up going everywhere. Justin and I got good at catching the eggs with the spoon as they went into the cups-had to soften the blow a little. She couldn't quite understand why we had to let the eggs in for a while before we could take them out and drop another one in-she just wanted to keep dropping eggs in the cups. Can't tell you how many cracked eggs we had when we were done but Alex had fun and that's what matters. Can't wait to see what she does Sunday when it's time to hunt eggs!

Fun at the Park

2009-03-22T21:18:00.003-04:00

We got to take our first walk to Norlo park this year on Wednesday evening. It was a gorgeous evening so we put Alex in the stroller and headed to the park. We stopped so she could play a while before heading home. She decided the sandbox was a lot of fun-she was not very happy with us when we had to leave though. She was having way too much fun. She is definitely an outdoors girl who would be outside all the time if we let her. She could care less if it's cold or windy-she loves it! I'm glad it's starting to warm up now so we can spend more time outside.

Mom's Birthday

2009-03-18T20:39:00.003-04:00

Monday was my mom's birthday. We celebrated with the family by having dinner at 7 Ps and then cake and ice cream at mom and dad's house. Dinner was wonderful and so was the cake. We kind of forgot about candles so Rob, Justin, Susan, and I were searching the entire house to see if we could find any. We didn't have any luck so we came up with the next best thing-toothpicks!! Needless to say, that didn't work very well. We had to sing very very quickly so she could blow them out before they went out. Oh, well! "Jammy" (as Alex calls her) let Alex sit on her lap and help her open presents. It was funny to watch her expression every time they'd open something. Her eyes got very big and she'd say "Ohhh". She loved playing with the tissue paper out of the bags. Jammy enjoyed having a "little helper". Although mom got some a lot of very nice gifts, there was one very special gift. Flowers from Alex and "Papap". They had them delivered to mom at the house Monday afternoon. The card said "Happy Birthday Jammy! Love Papap and Alex".

Best Buddies

2009-03-18T20:14:00.003-04:00

Saturday night Alex and I headed over to Kristi and Lucky's house so that she could play with best buddy Mattson. We had a delicious dinner-crab legs and baked potatoes. Mattson and Alex gobbled up the crab-they loved it! After dinner, the kids played for the evening. Their favorite thing to do was jump around on the couch and tackle each other. At one point Mattson jumped on Alex and hollered "take down"-she laughed and laughed. They played hard for a while, took a bath (their first bath together), and then it was time to head home. They always have so much fun when they are together and are always worn out aferwards too! Alex went to bed a little after 9:00 and slept in until 9:30 Sunday morning. Thanks for a great time guys!

Family Time

2009-03-06T20:24:00.004-05:00

Finally-no more tests, papers, or classes! What a relief it is! It has been a long haul, one that for a while, I thought would never end. But I am seeing the light at the end of the tunnel now. The only thing I have left to complete is my 12 week practicum at the hospital this summer and I will graduate with my masters. I just completed my comprehensive exams this past week. Justin and Alex had to suffer through 4 weeks living with a stressed out, cranky wife/mother. They were very supportive and absolutely wonderful the entire time. It is amazing how much lighter my shoulders feel now and how much more relaxed I am. Now I finally feel like I can devote my evenings and weekends to my family instead of grad school. Tonight, was a great time together as a family (just the three of us) with no interruptions or distractions. We took a walk since it was such a gorgeous night and of course, played on the bed. This is recently become one of Alex's favorite things to do. She loves to bounce on the bed or pretend she is sleeping (it's too cute). She says "I go fweep" and then she snores-it is hilarious!

Lunchtime!

2009-02-22T14:33:00.004-05:00

Today we got home from church and I made Alex spaghettios and butter bread for lunch. She was a very hungry little girl so she inhaled her food pretty quickly. In the process; however, she made a huge mess of herself. She thought it was fun to wipe her hands in the sauce and butter and then rub them all through her hair. Then she decided to lick her plate clean ("literally"). Didn't help that I was encouraging her because I thought I could get some fun pictures. Needless to say, she went right to the bathbub when lunch was over. There is never a dull moment with a toddler in the house! We have definitely learned (me especially) to let things go and not stress over the mess-it happens and it can be cleaned up-no big deal! She was having fun, that's what matters, right??

90th Birthday Celebration

2009-02-03T22:03:00.004-05:00

Last night we went with my family to visit my Grandma Yocum. It was her 90th birthday so we took her cake and ice cream. She is in assisted living facility and while we don't see her often, it's always nice to visit when we can. We had a great time with the family celebrating this special day. Grandma got a ton of cards from family and friends from all over. I think she really enjoyed all the birthday wishes she received. She had her cards all set up on display for everyone to see. Alex had a good time running around Grandma's room as she usually does. I'm so glad we got to spend the time with her. Alex enjoyed the icing from the cake. She just helped herself. She was nice enough though to share with her Uncle Rob.

Super Bowl Party

2009-02-03T21:17:00.005-05:00

This year we watched the Super Bowl at Jen and Drue's house. They have the projector in the basement so we got to watch the big game on the big screen. Most of us there were Steelers fans, but even the ones who weren't were very good sports about it. We had a great time watching the game while the kids ran around and played together. Alex wasn't sure what to make of all the screaming and Aunt Kristi's jumping up and down. At one point, she actually burst into tears. Justin said it was because Aunt Kristi is scary! :=) As always we had way too much food-pretty much every time we get together all we do is eat!! What else is there to do, right? Justin and I left at halftime to get Alex to bed and watched the rest of the game at home.

Alex enjoying her new table

2009-01-10T11:42:00.002-05:00

Alex loves her new art table; however, she has now discovered a new use for the bin underneath. She decided to crawl in it and have a seat. Guess she thought it looked pretty comfy. Justin and I were over at the computer and when I turned around, there she was just chillin down in her bin of coloring stuff. Since then she has discovered that she can stand in it and bounce. She likes to stand inside of it and dance to her music. Never a dull moment with a toddler in the house!!

Visit with Friends

2009-01-10T10:51:00.004-05:00

Over the holiday break, we were blessed to have our good friends Brittany and Frank come to visit for a few days. Brit and I went to college together at Kutztown and the last time we saw her was July 2007 right after Alex was born. So this was a real treat. She lives in Northern PA about 3 hours away so we don't get to see each other often (obviously); however, we always have a great time when we do get together. This visit she brought her new boyfriend Frank for us to meet. We loved him right away and had a great time with both of them. Saturday while Alex napped at her pappy and grandma's house, we got the chance to take them over to Wilson College for a game of disc golf. Frank is very into it and is quite good; while the rest of us are novices. We had a blast regardless of how poorly we have may have done. They stayed over that night and we had a great time playing games and just hanging out. After church the next morning, they had to take off for home to get ready to go back to work Monday morning. What a great time we had-they are great friends and we were blessed to share that time with them. Maybe next visit won't be so far off!

Christmas

2008-12-26T19:16:00.006-05:00

We had a wonderful holiday with our family and friends. Alex was a blast this Christmas-she was really into the decorations and opening her presents. She did tire of unwrapping after a while, though, so mommy and daddy had to finish for her. She got a ton of really cool gifts from everyone-we are so blessed! We started our celebration with Justin's family on Sunday and then were with my family Christmas Eve and Christmas day. My Aunt Judy and Sandy were up from Virginia so we got to spend time with them and we also went to Providence Place to visit my grandmother for a little while in the afternoon. It was a very enjoyable holiday spent with all those people who are so special to us! We hope everyone else had a great holiday as well!

Alex making her cookie monster face

Mom with her new reindeer candle holder Sandy and Dad (in the background) Aunt Judy
Alex and her cousin Nate having a conversation while sitting in the windowsill

Rob and Susan

Alex with her new baby doll in her new rocking chair-she was so excited

Her new art table. She loves to color and now she has a place just for that.

Cheesy face!!

She loves Papap's choo-choo train

Steve, Sheri, and the kids
John and Kalee
Reading with Papap and Grandma

Preparing for Christmas

2008-12-22T21:16:00.002-05:00

We decided this year Alex might enjoy helping make sugar cookies. We tried getting her to help cut the dough out with the cookie cutters; however, she was not remotely interested in that. She did, though, enjoy the decorating part (especially the icing). We gave her the tub of icing just to see what she would do. She started by just sticking her fingers in it but quickly decided that was taking way too long so she picked up the tub and put it right to her mouth. She also thought shaking the colored sugar onto the cookies was pretty cool! You can tell which cookies Alex decorated because you can't see the icing through the all the sugar! What a blast! It's so much fun to be able to do these things with her now as she getting a little older. We even took her to see Santa which we thought might not go over well. She suprised us though. As soon as she saw him she was yelling "Hi Santa" and she had no problems sitting on his lap. As we walked away, she just kept calling "Bye" "Bye Santa". She did great!

Good Times!

2008-12-19T20:59:00.007-05:00

This past Tuesday evening we went out for a nice dinner to celebrate Christmas with our good friends-Jen and Drue, Kristi, Lucky, and Mattson. Sean was supposed to come but ended up staying home because of not so nice weather conditions. It was a yucky night out-freezing rain and sleet. But we had a great time regardless. We made reservations for the Orchards for our own little private room in the back of restuarant. That way the kids could get down and play, walk around without disturbing anyone. When we first got there, Alex just cried and cried for whatever reason (we have no clue). Justin and I thought for a while there, we were going to have to leave because she wasn't going to make it through a long dinner. But as soon as Mattson got there, she cheered right up. "Mattsy" (as she calls him) saved the day!! We had a very nice dinner and only one more instance of crying. When the waiter brought the fried cheese (it has a special name but I can't recall what it is) and lit it on fire, she was not a fan!! But we got her calmed down eventually. The kids had a great time playing and coloring. They exchanged their gifts with each other and had fun with their new toys/books while we enjoyed some drinks, good food, and each other's wonderful company! It was a nice night and a great way to celebrate the holiday with close friends. We could not ask for a better group of friends-we love you guys!

Someone did not want to sit for a picture! She wanted down to play with her buddy Mattsy!

Look at that smile!

Jen and Drue

Alex loved her new Seasame Street coloring book!

Mattson opening his new Scooby Doo book. He loves Scoob!

Alex thought it would be fun to tackle "Mattsy" These two are so funny when they get together. They love each other to pieces!

Kristi and Lucky Mama and her baby girl! (even though she is quickly becoming a big girl). She's growing way too fast!

New Pictures

2008-12-06T11:12:00.005-05:00

Not a whole lot to write currently but I wanted to at least get some pictures up for everyone to see. Life is busy, as usual. I have one week in at my new job and so far it's going well. Although I do miss everyone at the Center. I just finished my last grad class this week-yeah!! Justin is busy at work right now with it being the holiday season. At home, we're having fun getting ready for Christmas-shopping, baking cookies, decorating and just enjoying our time together as a family. Alex is loving having the tree and all the snowmen up. She is always walking around hugging and kissing the tree/snowmen decorations and saying "nice tree" or "nice snow".

New Discovery

2008-11-22T13:29:00.004-05:00

Wednesday evening Alex discovered a new adventure. We were downstairs-she was playing and Justin and I were doing laundry. Next thing we know she comes running over and climbs right up in the laundry basket. She thought this was hilarious so for 10 minutes or so, she climbed in the laundry, rolled around, crawled back and did it all over again. Needless to say, it made it difficult to get the laundry folded but she was having a blast. Justin and I just thought she was too funny so we watched and snapped a few shots to share with you! Enjoy! (especially the one of her with underwear on her head-that was daddy's doing)

Justin's Birthday

2008-11-19T18:45:00.004-05:00

Monday evening we celebrated Justin's birthday with my family. We had a nice dinner at Hoss's and then everyone came back to our house for cake and presents. We tried a new recipe this year-a lemon cake. It was very tasty! Justin got lots of nice things but the best part was just getting to spend time with the family. Alex had a favorite present-she loved the Mets hat daddy got. She has a thing for hats-she loves putting them on and taking them off daddy's head over and over and over again. Tuesday evening (which was Justins' actual birthday) our good friends Kristi, Lucky, Jen, Drue, and Sean came over for pizza. That was Justin's request-worked for me because I didn't have to cook anything. We had a great time celebrating with them as well. Mattson and Alex always have a good time together too. Mattson was so excited to get to play with "baby Alex's" toys and sit in her chair. He told his mommy he was going to take "baby Alex's" chair with him to Miss Gina's (that's his babysitter)-haha! We had a great time with everyone-both family and friends! Thank you everyone for making Justin's day special!

Our first Trick or Treat Night

2008-11-01T11:14:00.005-04:00

We decided to take Alex out this year for trick or treating. We didn't go too many places. We made our first stop at my parents and Justin parents were there as well. Then we headed to a couple neighbors (Brian and Kelly and Phil and Brandi's house) before heading to Rob and Susan's house. Mom and I made a cute little candy corn costume, although I should say mom did most of it. She is the seamstress in the family-not me! It was adorable and everyone loved seeing Alex in it. She wasn't a big fan of the hat so that didn't last very long and everywhere we went she just made herself at home playing and having a good time. It was hard to keep her still for pictures, but we got a few! She loved sticking her hands into the baskets and taking pieces of candy that she can't really eat anyway (guess mommy and daddy will get to eat that). Grandma and Pappy and Uncle Rob and Aunt Susan were prepared with goldfish crackers for her.

Carving Pumpkins

2008-10-29T20:50:00.007-04:00

Sorry everyone that it's been a while since I updated this. We haven't had a whole lot going on other than just the normal business that is our life. Tonight we got to take some time and go to my parents house to carve pumpkins with the family. Rob and Susan were there as well as the three of us. My mom loves to do this every year, even though, not everyone else is as enthusiastic about it as her. We always have a good time though, and she tells us now we have to keep up the tradition for Alex. Speaking of our little wild child, she had a great time running around while we carved. We tried to get her to stick her hand inside the pumpkin but she was not a fan of that. She did like sitting on the table with them though and taking the lid off and on. She even gave the pumpkin and said "aww, nice". They turned out great as always! We're looking forward to taking Alex out in her candy corn costume Friday so we'll definitely have pictures of that to share soon too!

Family Birthday Celebration

2008-10-11T19:29:00.003-04:00

Today Alex and I went with Justin's parents up to Steve and Sheri's new place for a birthday celebration. We try to get everyone together to celebrate birthdays every couple months. Unfortunately Justin could not get off work today so he couldn't go and Mike, Tara, and the kids ended up not being able to join us either but the rest of us got together for the day. We celebrated Steve and Nate's birthdays (Justin's brother and his little boy). We had a great time. We don't get to see them that often, so it's always nice when we can get together. This was the first time we got to see their new place-it's a great place for them (lots more room for their big family). Alex and her cousin Nate (who just turned 2) had a blast together. It was so nice to see them playing and having fun. They chased each other all over the house all day long-they were laughing and having a great time! I tried getting some good shots of them but they were moving so quick that it was hard. I did get a few though not the best. Alex was so tired by the time we got in the car to leave, she crashed on the car ride home.

Friends!

2008-10-03T21:40:00.004-04:00

Here are some current pictures of Alex. The other little baby in the pictures is Brayden (the new little one my mom is watching a few days a week). At first she wasn't sure what to think of him, but I think she's warming up to him now. It will be nice for her when he gets a little bigger and can play a little more. She has a blast at Grandma's! She loves the other kids so much, but I think Matthew is her favorite playmate. She gets so excited to see them all in the morning when I drop her off, that she doesn't even notice when I leave- I guess it's a good thing. She is in excellent hands and always has a fun day. Grandma reads a story with her every day and does a project. Her bin of crafts is already filling up fast. We always have lots to hang on the fridge. She is really getting into coloring these days, thanks to Grandma. She loves it so much that she gets mad when you put the crayons away. We are so thankful she can spend her days at Grandma's house while we work!
Alex's favorite thing to do is read-she loves her books!

Special Time with Grandma and Uncle Rob

2008-09-22T20:48:00.003-04:00

My mom decided that she wanted to do something special with Alex last Friday. She has been watching another little baby just a couple days a week and she felt bad taking attention away from Alex (her pride and joy). Alex does well when Brayden is around, except when he cries and Grandma has to pick him up then she's not sure what to do. So Grandma decided that she and Alex were going to have some special quality time together. She took her to Benders to see the animals and Uncle Rob was off work so he met them there too. Alex had a blast looking at and petting all the animals-there were bunnies, horses, and donkeys. I think Uncle Rob and Grandma had a good time too. Who says you have to spend a bunch of money to go to the zoo or the aquarium? She's content with Benders and Petsmart!

Wedding

2008-09-21T20:55:00.003-04:00

This weekend we traveled to New Jersey with my parents and Rob and Susan to go to my cousin's wedding. We left Saturday morning and came home this afternoon. The wedding was beautiful (as was Jacalyn) and the reception was very nice. We had a great time visiting my dad's side of the family. We don't get the chance to see each other very often but when we do get together, we always have a great time. They are a lot of fun! This morning some of us got the chance to go out for breakfast before we had to get back on the road. This was a nice opportunity to spend some quality time together since it's very hard to do that during the hustle and bustle of the wedding day. Alex was a trooper-Saturday was a very long day for her, but she did great! She has a blast on the dance floor-she ran around in circles and danced her heart out! A couple of my cousin's kids (Conner and Jordyn) thought she was so funny-they loved running around while she chased after them!

Sunday Football

2008-09-14T20:44:00.004-04:00

This afternoon after church we got together with our good friends to enjoy a little Sunday afternoon football and of course some food too (or should I say, tons of food). Every time we get together all we do is eat, I think. We sure know how to eat-that's for sure. We had a great time watching the game and just hanging out together. Mattson and Alex spent most of their afternoon chasing each other around in circles-they love to do that when they go to Aunt Jen and Uncle Drue's house. We are so thankful for great friends and that we get the chance every week to spend time together. Thanks for a great time guys!

Prayer Request

2008-09-06T20:24:00.002-04:00

I am posting this to ask everyone who sees it, please pray for little Zayin. Zayin is the nephew of our good friends, Doug and Cressa. He is currently in the hospital in Allentown suffering from a skin disorder called Steven Johnson's. He and the family have had a tough week but things and still have a long road ahead of them. Zayin is stable but in critical condition and they say the recovery will be a very long process. If you care to read more about him, you can access his blog through my Friends link. Just click on his name and it will take you to a blog that was set up to keep friends and family updated on his condition. Right now both Zayin and his family need your prayers-thanks!

Seafood Party

2008-09-01T22:04:00.003-04:00

Sunday evening we got together with a group of friends at Jen and Drue's house for a seafood feast. We always look for crab legs to go on special and then we take advantage of the great deal! There were 12 of us that gathered for 20 pounds of crab and 6 pounds of shrimp plus tons of other food. We had no problems eating the seafoood and a lot of the other stuff had a pretty big dent in too. It was a gorgeous night so we hung out outside while the kids (Alex and Mattson) played and the dogs chased each other around. It was so nice as always to spend time with good friends and enjoy good food. Thanks Jen and Drue for hosting-we got next time!

I didn't have my camera with me Sunday but when I get some pictures from Jen, I'll put them up. I know she got some great shots as always!

House Projects

2008-08-30T22:23:00.004-04:00

We have been very busy over the last couple weeks. We had wallpaper in our hallway, dining room, and kitchen that we had lived with for 4 years and were finally tired of. So over the course of the last 2 weeks we have torn all the wallpaper down and painted those three rooms. We even ended up painting the cabinets but not intentionally. I decided to touch up a few spots that were chipping and it ended up being the wrong paint-just a shade off! So in the process we ended up having to repaint the cabinets too. We also got new dining room furniture. It's been a busy and tiring couple of weeks but it looks so nice and it's finally done! It's almost like a completely different house. If I get some pictures taken soon, I'll post them for you all to see what that part of the house looks like now.

In the midst of our work, we did take a break on Monday night to go to a Pirates game with friends. We had a great time even though the Pirates got slaughtered by the Cubs (Jen was thrilled!). I'll try to get the pictures from that up soon too!

PNC Park is a gorgeous stadium! The view of the river and the city from inside the park is tremendous. It was so neat to see at night!

Family Cookout

2008-08-18T15:14:00.006-04:00

This past Sunday we went to my Aunt Judy's for a cookout. My grandfather and Janet were up from Florida visiting so Aunt Judy planned a family get together so everyone could see them. There were lots of people there-our immediate family, Aunt Sharon and Landy's family, Uncle David and Carrie, and the kids, Aunt Judy and Sandy, and Pap and Janet. It was a beautiful day so we enjoyed the weather and the company. We had an excellent meal and dessert too, of course. This was the first time Alex really got a chance to play with her two cousins-Tayla and Aspyn (my cousin Whitney's girls). They had a great time together! The hot tub was open so we decided to put Alex in with my cousins-Jesse, Nick, and Katie. She had a blast floating in the water with them. It was so nice to be with everyone since it seems it's such a rare occurence anymore. Everyone's lives are so busy and we are so spread out but it's nice to find time every so often to share memories together.

Trip to the Pittsburgh Zoo

2008-08-18T14:17:00.005-04:00

Well, it's been a while since I last updated this so here it goes. Last Monday night Alex and I went with my mom and dad to Pittsburgh for a few days. Dad and I were going to a conference for work so mom and Alex hung out with my Aunt Sharon. On Tuesday while we were sitting in a conference all day (trying to have fun) mom and Aunt Sharon took Alex to the Pittsburgh Zoo. This was her first trip to the zoo and they said she had a blast. She enjoyed seeing all the animals (the fish were her favorite); however, she really had a great time watching all the kids there running around. I think they all had a great time! And of course, her grandma had to buy her a souvineir sweatshirt. Alex discovered this wooden dog that she absolutely fell in love with. She insisted on carrying it around even though it was way too heavy. It kept pulling her down but she picked it up and kept on going. She was even giving it kisses.

We had a really nice time visiting with Aunt Sharon and Landy and the conference was worth the trip too.

Swimming

2008-08-04T09:23:00.003-04:00

Our neighbor up the street has an in-ground pool that Alex loves to go to. Now that I'm done with my clinical work and am home we have more time to go. She and I went Friday morning and then we went with daddy, Uncle Rob, and Aunt Susan on Saturday evening. She had a great time splashing and playing in the water. She loves to be held on her belly so she can kick her legs and swing her arms. I think we will need to think about signing her up for swim lessons since she loves the water so much. After swimming Saturday evening we all came back to our house and hung out for a while. It was a nice evening. Alex always enjoys spending time with Rob and Susan-she thinks they are a lot of fun!

Anniversary Celebration

2008-07-28T16:13:00.003-04:00

Justin and I celebrated our 5 year anniversary this past Saturday July 26th. It is so hard to believe that we've been married that long already! Alex had a sleepover with her Pappy and Grandma Yocum while we had a nice night away. We drove down to Baltimore and stayed in a cute little Bed and Breakfast in Fells Point just up from the Inner Harbor. It was a cute little town with little shops and restuarants. We spent Friday evening just walking around enjoying the scenery and had a great seafood dinner at Bo Brooks crabhouse. I had blue crabs-it was so neat-they just cover your table with brown paper and then dump the crabs on the table. You get a mallet and knife and just go to town cracking the crabs. They were delicious-it's been so long since I had done that. Justin had never seen anything like that so he was very entertained watching me. He had a hard shelled crab stuffed with a crab cake and deep fried. It looked good too! Saturday we enjoyed walking around Inner Harbor before heading home to Alex! Here are some pictures-although I didn't do very well at taking many.

We had a nice view from the roof our of B&B and right across the street was where they filmed "Homicide-Life on the Streets".

Great Weekend!

2008-07-21T15:24:00.005-04:00

I had a really nice weekend at home with family and friends. After celebrating Rob's birthday, Alex and I enjoyed a nice Saturday at home while Justin worked. We had a great time playing-especially in the pool. It was a hot one!

Saturday night we got together with friends-Marty and Hope, Jason and Angie, and Doug and Cressa. We had dinner and then played a competitive game of mini-golf. It was guys against girls and the guys won (I have to admit) but it was a close game. Jason and Marty had a great time entertaining Alex after dinner-they are quite the characters so she, of course, thinks they are so funny!!

Sunday after church we had lunch at Dilly's with our good friends-Kristi, Lucky, Mattson, and Sean. Unfortunately I forgot to take any pictures at lunch but we had a really nice time together. We've missed spending as much time with them this summer since I've been away all week but hopefully here in a couple weeks we'll have more time. Jen and Drue would have been with us too but they went to York for the day-we missed you guys!

Rob's Birthday

2008-07-21T14:36:00.004-04:00

Friday was my brother's birthday so we celebrated with the family-mom, dad, grandma, Rob, and Susan. We had a nice dinner at Norland Pub (they have amazing crab cakes) and then went back to my parents for peanut butter pie (per Rob's request-he didn't want cake) and presents. Susan's dad and stepmom, Dale and Deb, joined us for dessert as well. We had a nice time together as always. I didn't take a ton of pictures but here a few pretty good ones.

First Steps

2008-07-13T20:32:00.002-04:00

Well, the moment we've been waiting for finally arrived. Alex took her first steps this past Thursday (July 10th). She has been so close for a few weeks now and I was so worried that she would take those first steps while I was away at West Chester. However, she held out and waited until I was home. I got home around 5:00 Thursday evening and about 5:30 or so she took 2 steps toward me. I was the only one here (Justin was working) so it was really special! I was so glad she waited for me to get home. I couldn't have asked for a better homecoming! Since then she has been quickly progressing to now taking up to 5 steps and it's coming a little more easily each time. She gets so excited and so do we! Unfortunately I don't have any pictures to add to this post but wanted to share this exciting monumental step in Alex's life with everyone. Now mommy and daddy better watch out-our little girl will be on the move even more now than ever before.

Good Friends

2008-07-08T06:58:00.005-04:00

Our good friends, Jeff and Peg, are in from Ohio visiting this week. They got to my parents late last Thursday night and then headed to Lake Anna the next day with mom and dad and got back Saturday night. We spent the day Sunday with them before I had to leave again for clinic. It was a really nice day. We always have a great time with them. Now this week while I'm away mom and Peg are taking care of Alex and having a blast. Monday they took her shopping and so I was told "Alex found some cute outfits she just had to have". They also had a great time enjoying Alex's new pool!

July 4th

2008-07-05T12:01:00.002-04:00

It was really good to come home Thursday. My first week of clinicals went pretty well but it was hard being away from home. I was so glad to see Justin and Alex Thursday evening. Friday the 4th we went to a Hoke family reunion. It was a nice day and we had a great time visiting with the family. They have a huge slide at the park so we tried taking Alex on it-she was pretty much indifferent to it. She also tried the swings for the first time-she laughed coming forward but on the way back she had a look of fear in her eyes. She was trooper! She also enjoyed all the picnic foods-we think she probably ate a little too much and had a slight belly ache that evening but that's ok. She had a great time! That evening after we got back Kristi, Lucky, and Mattson came over to hang out. They brought chocolate cake that was wonderful and the kids had a great time playing together!

Leaving for Clinicals

2008-06-30T03:56:00.001-04:00

Well, today is the day. I leave this morning (very early as you can tell by early this post is being written). I have to be in West Chester at 8:00 this morning to start my 5 week clinical rotation on campus for my graduate program. I will leave early every Monday morning and be home Thursday evening. I'm not looking forward to being away from my baby and Justin but we'll get through it. It's only 5 weeks-I can do anything for that long. I will be staying in a hotel with 3 other girls and working in the campus speech clinic from 8 to 2 each day. My posts and pictures will probably be few and far between over the next 5 weeks but I'll try to keep everyone posted as much as I can. Maybe I can even get Justin on here while I'm gone too-we'll see!

Birthday Celebration

2008-06-28T11:53:00.004-04:00

Well, this was a week of birthdays. After having Alex's big party on Sunday, we also celebrated my birthday on Wednesday evening (which was actually Tuesday) with the family-mom, dad, Rob, Susan, Grandma, and Aunt Joan. We had a nice dinner at Red Lobster and then came back to our house for ice cream cake and presents. We had a great time celebrating with everyone as always. Alex was hamming it up as usual so here are some pictures of us but mainly her! :-)

Birthday Bash!

2008-06-25T16:41:00.007-04:00

Sunday we had a party to celebrate Alex's first birthday with our family and closest friends. We had 37 people here and it was a great time! We had lunch and enjoyed the beautiful day. Alex opened her presents-well not really. She didn't really understand things so Justin and I opened while she crawled around and every once in a while showed some interest in something. She got a lot of really nice things-tons of clothes, toys, videos, books, and swimming pools. Her uncle Rob and Aunt Susan got her a wading pool and Rob got in it with her. She had a blast and has been in it every day since. She loves it so much that she gets very upset when it's time to get out. We had an Elmo cake that our friend Debbie Guyer made. Alex had her own which she initially was very careful with but eventually dug right in and had it everywhere. It was a perfect celebration. Thank you everyone for coming and joining in the day with us. We can hardly believe our little girl is 1 year old already!

The big day!

2008-06-21T21:33:00.002-04:00

Well, tomorrow Alex will be one year old! It's hard to believe how fast this past year has gone. We are so blessed to have such a beautiful daughter. We have loved every minute of watching her grow and learn this year. Tomorrow we'll have all of our close friends and family over for a big birthday celebration-we were very busy today getting ready. My brother and sister in law (Rob and Susan) stopped by with a special surprise tonight. Rob made a slideshow of Alex's first year. It was so special-I cried through the whole thing. We'll have it playing tomorrow at the party. And if I can figure out how to load it on this page, I will so you can all enjoy it too!

Alexandra

2008-06-20T14:30:00.003-04:00

Just thought you might want to see a few updated pictures of our little cutie! She loves her new sunglasses that Grandma got her! And she is really into this little game-we say "How big is Alex?" and she throws her hands up in the air and grins from ear to ear.

Hard at Work!

2008-06-20T14:14:00.003-04:00

So Wednesday afternoon Kristi calls and invites me over to go for a walk and then have dinner. She said she wanted to cook me dinner since Justin was working that night. Then she proceeds to tell me that she wants Jen and I to help her rip down wallpaper in their bathroom. Ulterior motive for inviting me to dinner, maybe?? Anyway, we got there and it was pouring down rain, so we forgot the walk and just got to work on the bathroom. Lucky was a little surprised when he got home and found a mess in his house. So we ended up working all evening but took a much needed break for some crab legs and green bean casserole. It was an enjoyable night even if we were working our butts off. Lucky and Drue entertained the kids for us.

Playing with Friends!

2008-06-16T14:16:00.004-04:00

Today we had Shelley and Dillon over for a play date. Kristi and Mattson punked out on us but we had a lot of fun anyway. Alex and Dillon played for a while and then we went to eat lunch at Big Oak. Alex loves it when little friends come over to play. We'll have to do it again sometime and maybe Kristi and Mattson will join the fun!

Father's Day!!

2008-06-16T13:47:00.004-04:00

We had a really nice Father's day. We spent it with my family-out to eat at the Italian Village and then back to my brother's place for cake and presents. Alex gave her daddy and Pappy Yocum some very nice gifts. It was great to be with the family to celebrate Justin's first official Father's day together.

Bath Time

2008-06-13T15:43:00.003-04:00

Alex loves her bath time. She has so much fun splashing in the water. She is into hugging her toys and stuffed animals these days. Here she is hugging her little ducky. She even says "quack quack" when you ask her what ducky says (or at least something close to that)-it's so adorable!!!

Friends!

2008-06-12T21:00:00.003-04:00

Today our friends Kristi and Jen came over with Mattson. Kristi went for a pedicure while Jen and I watched Mattson and Alex play. They always have so much fun together. We enjoyed lunch together out in the beautiful sun before the kids had to go down for their naps! It was a fun day!

Hershey Park!!

2008-06-12T21:00:00.002-04:00

On Wednesday (my first day of summer vacation) we left Alex with Grandma and Pappy Yocum and had a day of fun at Hershey Park wih the couples-Jason and Ang, Marty and Hope, and Doug and Cressa. The weather was perfect and we had a great time. We hit up a lot of the roller coasters (and we even got Ang on a few-she loved it!) and then went to cool off at the water park. We had tons of fun but by the time we got home at 9:00 we were all exhausted!

Isn't this cool?!?!

2008-06-10T22:17:00.000-04:00

Ok, Becca...here is your first official post. See how easy this is??? I really think you are going to enjoy using this. Just a couple minutes on here...and all your friends will be up to date on Alex. :)