I had to go out in the garage, and Jameson saw his skateboard. I told him he can’t bring it in the house. As he continued to walk in the house with it his reply was:

“I’m sorry, Mom, but I have to bring it in the house.”

Apparently, he does hear us when we say, “I’m sorry, but you can’t do that.”

After getting call from the post office, we learned we had a few packages waiting for us. I knew this, since one was guaranteed to be here Wednesday and it wasn’t. Kevin went to the post office and after some confusion, they sent him to the closer one. He came home empty handed only to have me explain in more detail, and send him back to the post office. Finally, the mix up was resovled, and he came home with 2 packages. While he was gone, we also received on at the house. Grandpa Judd sent something for the kids…

Jameson had to put his shirt on immediately.

Then he got to open a package from his friends in Reno…

He immediately went and got his pillow off his bed (which has Cars on it) and replaced it with his new Buzz pillow. We stick true to the story line around this place.

He then had one last present to open from Auntie Erin and Uncle Jeff (my college roommate who is awesome)

We may have to take this one apart and find the speaker. It is seriously loud, and tape over the speaker doesn’t help at all. Big Buzz, along with every other toy he got for his birthday sleeps in his bed with him every night.

Thank you to all who spoiled my child and spent even more money on shipping. We really do appreciate all you do for us.

This was the first year we were not with any family for the holiday. So we called the next best thing. Our friends, who have stepped in when family was needed but not near, came over to enjoy the holiday with us. We figured we would let Jameson open his presents first, so then the kids would have new toys to keep them occupied for the day while we finished cooking. His friends were more than willing to help him open his presents.

So Brittany, my friend, had the girls while she shopped for Jameson’s birthday and Christmas gifts. She got him Slink from his favorite movie, but that was supposed to be for Christmas since she had already got him his birthday gift. Well, Jameson came in while we were playing at their house that day and told us he was getting Slinky dog for his birthday. She asked Taylie if she told him that and her response was, “No! I just whispered it in his ear.” So from that day on, that’s all I heard from Jameson, ‘I’m getting slinky dog for my birthday.” I told Brittany she might need to rearrange the order of gifts. Wednesday, his birthday, he woke up and actually remember it was his birthday. About an hour later he told me, “Mom, we forgot my birthday.” I replied, “Why do you think we forgot your birthday?” Jameson, “Because I get slinky dog for my birthday. We forgot my birthday.” He was so disappointed. So that was the first thing opened on Thursday.

(The last picture is the pose I got when I asked him to look at me. Lovely, huh?)

And, How old are you now?

After presents, we finished cooking, and had our own little Thanksgiving dinner.

(Brittany and I are taking pictures, so we are missing from this one.)

Kevin got to figure out how to carve the turkey.

After our dinner settled, we got out the cakes. Wednesday was Jameson’s birthday, and Brittany’s was Friday. So, I had cakes for them both. A footprint cake for Jameson and a large cupcake for Brittany. I couldn’t find our lighter, and we don’t have matches, so Kevin and Dan went survival style and used a battery to light the candles. It worked, though.

Jameson was so proud of himself. He licked his candles and then dug into his cake. He didn’t eat his dinner, so this became it. Later he asked where his dinner went, meaning his cake.

He also got some cards and money from his great-grandmas and grandpas.

After a nap, Ella showed off her new boots from Grammy Brazell.

By 7:30 pm Jameson looked like this.

We had a great day!

We have hit another milestone around here. Jameson is now 3 years old.

Wednesday was his actual birthday, and this was the one day we didn’t really do anything for his birthday. He opened presents every other day during the week. We had birthday cake for dessert on Thanksgiving.

Jameson is at a really fun stage or a really awful stage. Depends what day it is, and what time of day it is. He no longer takes naps. This isn’t so fun, because he still needs one. If he falls asleep for a nap, and I said if, then he won’t fall asleep at night till after 10 pm. If he doesn’t take a nap, from about 3 pm on is no fun. But, then he goes to bed by 8 pm. He is also getting more independent. He has to do everything himself, and decide what clothes he will wear. Most of the time he wants shorts, and it is too cold right now for that, which results in a battle between us. I’ve thought about taking his shorts out of the door, but the days we aren’t going anywhere, there’s no reason he couldn’t wear his shorts. He also refuses to wear underwear. Potty training is not in our near future. He has some treats he knows he only gets if he goes potty on the toilet. There is still the full bag on top of the fridge. He points to them and can tell you what they are, but refuses to do anything about it.

I can have conversations now with him, which turns out very interesting sometimes. He also is developing his imagination. He will play for hours with his toys by himself. Sometimes he will let Ella play with his toys, but most of the time if she’s near, he gathers them up and moves. He loves swords, especially since he saw “How to Train your Dragon.” Now, everything is a sword, and he’s always killing dragons.

His favorite toys at the moment are his Toy Story figures, and still his cars. He had a birthday full of new action figures from the movie, and sleeps with them every night. He will end up getting even more for Christmas, but don’t tell him, ok. He is also loving Tinkerbell. My mom gave him some Tinkerbell items for his birthday, and now he won’t eat dinner without his Tinkerbell fork. (She only did, because I told her he would love it.)  His favorite show is Diego, with Dora in a close second. He will even sing the songs. He will sing all the time, until you ask him to. He can stay on tune pretty well, too.

He is starting to say prayers with us. At first we told him he would get a treat if he did. We’re not against bribery in this household.  But, just last night when he went to bed, he told me he needed to say his prayers. He also has to give everyone a hug and a kiss before he/they leave. The other night he had a melt down after he wasn’t able to give Kylie a kiss good-bye. When we leave he will say, “Oh, I need to give daddy a hug. And I need a kiss.”

He is about 36 pounds, bear walks every where while growling, and I’m not sure how tall he is. He is over half my size, though, so trying to make him do something he doesn’t want to do is getting tough. I get asked all the time if he is 4. He usually wears 3T, but some brands require 4T. He has a size 10-11 shoe and won’t wear anything but his Buzz Lightyear shoes that talk and light up. The only other shoes he will wear are his church shoes on Sunday. Why did I even buy him other shoes.

He is very protective of his little sister around others. He won’t let other kids touch her. He loves to carry her, which is really funny, because she is at least 20 pounds and as tall as his chest. She usually doesn’t mind, though. He will only give her a toy he doesn’t need, and usually takes toys from her if she does get them. She loves to play with him, though. Kevin will hold her and chase Jameson, and they both love it. She loves when she can get him.

Jameson knows he’s a boy and Ella is a girl, but I don’t think he knows why yet. He is very resourceful. He will push his chair into the kitchen, climb on the counter, and get into the cupboard with the cookies. He also loves to go in the garage with his dad, ride his bike, and ride his skateboard.

I could not image my life without this little terror. He definitely keeps me on my toes. Happy Birthday, my baby boy!

Throughout the week, Jameson received lots of packages. He was truly loved on his birthday by everyone.

Okay, she wasn’t in the package, but she makes a pretty dang cute present. Ella loved playing in all the packaging.

We decided to let Jameson open presents all week, that way he’d stay occupied all day with a new toy. Why not spread the love, right? He received a present from Grammy…

He knew all the sayings on the rocket within 5 minutes. He spent the rest of the day playing with his new toys and keeping them away from the big baby. She tried so hard to play with him.

Later that day, another present came in the mail from Aunt Brittney.

Later that evening, Jameson and I ran to the craft store. I needed a  few items to finish up some sewing projects. While we were out, this is the only way Dad could think of to keep Ella happy. I came home to find one huge messy girl! She loved it.

On a side note:

This poor rose didn’t make it out of the cold. But, it stuck around for a lovely picture.

Watching the snow fall. All of you in Reno may think I’m crazy, but I have missed the snowfalls Reno has. Reno had just enough snow to satisfy me, and then it would melt away. Since moving here, I have missed this. Last winter, there was no snow. There’s so many trees, I can’t even see the mountains that have snow. It never felt like winter. Even in Vegas, you can see Mt. Charleston with a snow tipped mountain.

Well, yesterday it started snowing, and today it was sticking. I’ve always thought it was pretty here, but with every tree covered in snow, I was in my own little “Winter Wonderland.” There’s still so many trees and shrubs that have leaves, plus the trees that have lost theirs, when covered in snow, it’s beautiful. See? I’m not kidding.

(This is our backyard.)

We had errands to run, and I couldn’t wait to go out and run around in it. Seriously, I don’t mind driving around in this weather or hauling my kids around in it. Our first stop was Discount Tire, who has had my tire fixed since last Thursday. That place was crazy today. I overheard there was a 10 hour wait. The guy didn’t make me wait, though. He acted like I had made an appointment, and put my tire back on for me, and put my spare back underneath. So I only ended up being there about an hour. Next, we headed to the post office. Jameson made out like a bandit. He received 2 birthday cards from great-grandma’s, 1 package from Grandma Gordon, and we all received 1 Thanksgiving card from Grandma Judd. It’s always so much fun to get mail, and not just our bills. Jameson also received a box from Grammy Brazell today. He’s a popular kid. I thought about making him wait for everything for his actual birthday, but maybe we’ll spread it out through the week, if he’s good. So, he got to open one when he got home.

Dad helped him with the tape…

And then he got to discover what was inside…

Background: My mom had asked what he wanted, and she got just that. He loves Tinkerbell and Buzz. We have even had to Redbox a few Tinkerbell movies for him. He always wants to watch her. Can you blame him? She is one hot fairy, and she’s the mechanical one. So it works.

I was looking in my cedar chest, and found my dress. I think I had my 6th or 9 month pictures taken in it. Anyway, I was so excited I looked in there. I would have been really mad if Ella was past the point of wearing it. But, it fit perfect. She wore it to church today along with a coat her Grammy bought her. She was the talk of church, and you couldn’t help but smile when you saw her. I’ll have to try and get the picture of me wearing it, but until then, here is Ella in all her cuteness.

What’s that? You can’t see her dress and need a better look? No problem.

Do you feel bad Jameson did not get in on the photoshoot? Don’t worry. He posed for a few in exchange for candy.

Oh, you want to see more of these two adorable children? Ok, if I must!

Dad made some really funny faces so these two would smile for me. Jameson didn’t have his full church get up on, so maybe we’ll have to do another photoshoot. Wouldn’t break my heart if I needed to. 🙂

Another thing that made my day… it snowed! It didn’t stick, but it’s supposed to this week. I was excited.

Literally. Ella can stand up to things, and she’s starting to surf. Kevin tried to catch her pushing the walker along.

Jameson doesn’t always like to talk on the phone, but his grandparents love talking to him. Usually, when they call, he’s too busy to talk. So, when he tells me he wants to call someone, we call them. I know he’ll actually talk to them. Today, Nov. 19th, he told me he wanted to call someone. When we distinguished who exactly he wanted to call, I dialed the number then let him push the speaker button. We put it on speaker so I can help translate the conversation. I told him, “As soon as you hear her say, “Hello”, say “Hi Grammy.” (Is that too many quotes in a quote?) Boy was she surprised when she answered and heard, “HI GRAMMY!” almost shouted into the phone. Here is what he looked like while he chatted.

After this conversation, it is clear. We have been away too long. He wants to visit Grammy on the farm after his nap.

Ella loves food. When she sees me get the can of Puffs for her, she goes nuts. Except if I get out the camera. Then she looks at me like this…

I just love her face, so I had to share it with you.

I told Jameson we needed to pick up all the toys so we could vacuum. After his little party, the carpet didn’t look so hot. He jumped right to the task. He picked everything up, and got busy. I had got tied up with Ella. I don’t remember if I was putting her to bed or what, but the next thing I know, he’s vacuuming. He got out his little vacuum, went all over the floor, and put it away. This is how I found our vacuums.

It would be really sweet if it actually worked.