Forgive me blogger...

Forgive me blogger, for I have sinned.  It has been 10 Months since my last entry. 

I *knew* but didn't' *know* how tiring and exhausting having 2 kids, a husband and a full time job would be.  Still, there is no excuse not to occasionally record our lives. 

Here is a recap of the last 10 months.

Aleczander Jacob

Aleczander @ 3 and 1/2 years old.

Aleczander turned 3 years old on April 1st.  He is a chatty kid who is constantly on the hunt for new words.  His favorite things in the world right now are dinosaurs and can very clearly and accurately identify a Stegosaurus, Triceratops, Stygimoloch, Brachiosaurus, T-Rex and many others (I totally had to use Google to help me spell all of those).  He spends a lot of time in his dino room playing with his action figures and also on the iPad, which he can maneuver better than any 3 year old I know.


Aleczander's Dino Room

He also loves wrestling and can ID John Cena, CM Punk, and Shemus just by their entry music (thanks to Alfred for that one). 

He has his days where he loves his sister and others when he likes to push her around and smack her hand for trying to get to one of his toy dinosaurs.   Overall, he is a loving and happy boy who is independent and curious.  He is still terrified of hair cuts and the jets in the garden tub in our bathroom.  He is fully potty trained (except for over night sometimes) and even goes standing up like a big boy.  He is a very picky eater who smell everything before he puts it in his mouth (again, thanks to Alfred for that one).  He is so funny and smart and I love spending time with him. Just don't give the kid a nap during the day because if you do, then he doesn't go to bed until 1am.  He is a night owl.

10 of the 1 million things I love about Aleczander

1. The way he repeats himself over and over until you say what he is saying to confirm that you have heard him.
2. The way he pulls his shirt off when it's time for a bath.
3. How dang cute he is when he gives a "thumbs up" and lets you know when you've done a "good job."
4. His mysterious love for Garbage Trucks and Lawn mowers.
5. How much he wants to be exactly like his daddy.
6. The way he eats the top off of cakes and cupcakes where the icing is at but leaves the rest of it alone.
7. His love for cheese.  All kinds of cheese.  You would think the kid is part mouse.
8. How he whispers "I love youp" (yes, "youp" with a "p" at the end of it).
9. The way he runs out to my car when I get home from work and yells really loud "Hi Mama" with a big smile on his face.
10. His love for technology (just like me).  

Jolie Ayana

Jolie is now around 10 and a half months old and has hit many milestones already.  She is sleeping through the night (which officially started around 7 and 1/2 months old), she crawls quickly, pulls her self up on anything and everything, can walk while she is holding on to something, plays peek-a-boo like a pro, will wave bye-bye and blow you kisses when you leave and loves to suck her thumb.  She has 6 teeth that have completely broken through and she is currently working on 2 more. 





She adores Alec and could watch and laugh at him all day.  She is mezmorized by Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Blues Clues.  Just like her brother, she loves her blankie and she lights up when she gets a hold of it. She just recently got over her first cold and ear infection, which she so generously shared with Alec and me.  She is an incredibly happy and vocal (loud) baby who will let you know when she is in the room.  I already have big plans for her first birthday and I can't wait. 

Jolie's Fairy Room

10 of the 1 million things I love about Jolie 

1. Her baby hands and the way she sucks her thumb.
2. The strawberry birthmark on her head that was once a perfect heart.
3. How happy she is when she wakes up in the morning and she just jumps up and down in her crib. 
4. The way she plays peek-a-boo with anyone and blows them kisses.
5. How she and I can carry on a conversation for 10 minutes about absolutely nothing.
6. How much she loves her daddy.
7. Her eyelashes and incredibly precious dimples.
8. How much she loves Gerber Puff snacks and how cute her hands look when she grabs them.
9. The 2 or 3 little strands of hair that are a longer than the rest of her hair on her forehead.
10. The way she lights up a room with her laughter and smile.

Lilly Butt

On July 30th, our first baby girl, Lilly, went to doggie heaven.  It was such a rough weekend and such a sad day.  I don't want to relive too many details but the long and short of it is that she got really sick with something called pancreatitis and it caused her liver to shut down and her pancreas went bad. We also found out that she had diabetes which may have been present before she got sick or it may have been caused by the pancreatitis.  Either way she was too sick and she couldn't recover so she just passed on.  We decided to have her cremated so she is in an urn on our mantel in our living room.  For days after her passing, I could have sworn I could still hear her nails running around our house or her deep snores in the bedroom at night.  Our home felt empty and too quiet for a while but we are all adjusting slowly.  If you ask Alec where Lilly is, he points up to the sky and says "Lilly in heaven.  Lilly all gone." We decided we don't want another dog until Alec is old enough to choose one on his own and help us take care of it.  I think that's a safe decision. 

10 Things I miss about Lilly

1. The sound of her snoring/snorting.
2. The way she licked us.
3. The way she kissed us when we got home.
4. How she leaned against the wall when she was lazy.
5. The sound of her nails on our floors.
6. How she forced us to promise her a "treat" before she came back inside.
7. The way she wouldn't even let a piece of food touch the floor before it disappeared into her mouth.
8. How friendly she was with absolutely everyone.
9. Her panting after being outside for only 5 minutes.
10. How excited she used to get whenever she heard the sound of her collar and leash.  

I still think about her daily.

Jessica and Alfred

I don't even really know where to start with us.  We are still madly in love and are on our way to celebrating 5 years of marriage on December 23rd.  Shortly after our 5 year anniversary, we will be starting a new life in a new state; Arizona.  Alfred's hard work and dedication has paid off and he has been given a great opportunity to become a District Manger over 7 branches in Arizona. He will be overseeing branches in the Mesa, Tuscon and Nogales areas.  This decision to move was not an easy one by any means but at some point in your life, you have to do what is best for your family and what your heart desires.  Even though it will be hard, we have been blessed beyond belief that my mother has taken us up on our offer to join us and continue to take care of Jolie and Alec for us.  Without her, I don't think this move would have been possible. Alfred has worked so hard for this opportunity and even though it pains us to leave our family and friends behind, we are thrilled to start our new adventure. We will be heading out to Arizona the beginning of December to look at some homes in the area and take a quick peek at our new life.  

I have been given a great opportunity for a new start as well.  After 5 and a half years with Learning and Development, I will be going to work for a new department within our company.  I will be working for Retail Sales directly under the Vice President of the department.  It will give me a new and fresh look at our company and exposure to some new people and initiatives that I haven't experienced before.  Although I am sad to leave my department and a little intimidated to do something new, I am excited to get started and make an impression in a new way.  

We have a lot to do before January 3rd when we move but so far we have rented our home out (THANK GOD), hired a moving company, and have started to plan Jolie's first birthday party/going away party.  That takes 3 things off of my list of 129,311 things to do!  Baby steps...

So I dedicate to using this blog to keep up with our lives in Arizona and the kids' progress.  I may not have an opportunity to make another entry until after the big move but I will try.  Until then...

10 things about Arizona I look forward to

1. Dry heat.
2. Beautiful mountains.
3. Seeing the Grand Canyon.
4. Being about a 5 hour drive away from Las Vegas.
5. Sunshine almost year round.
6. Dry heat.
7. Not becoming a Cardinals fan (Go Texans!)
8. Watching my husband be an awesome DM.
9. Learning new surroundings.
10. Dry heat (did I mention that one already?)