lazy days...

We had a nice relaxing weekend....didn't do anything too exciting other than catching up on things. We headed to Woodbury on Saturday morning since it was raining to return various things, and check out cameras. Later we weeded the garden w/ Miss Jenna's assistance. We only lost a few actual plants, although we're not sure how well the lettuce survived her walking over it, only time will tell. We ended the night w/ a bonfire with the neighbors, which ended up being rained out (not before we all had s'mores tho!). Jenna and I made it safely inside, but the boys got a little wet.

On Sunday, even tho it was a little cool (& very windy), Andrew insisted on going in the pool. We also let him go w/o a nap, and it went surprisingly well. Last time we tried it, we ended up having him lay down to 'rest' right before supper(he slept for almost 2 hours). We broke out the finger paints too, which was interesting with Jenna. Andrew painted some pretty cool things, it's been fun to watch his drawings/paintings change over time.

Here's a video of what happens to latex balloons at our house after they stop floating:

We are heading up to Hayward this week to spend Thursday with some college friends. Last time we were up there, Andrew was 2, Mikaiya was a few months old, and the other 3 (Braenna, Emily & Jenna) weren't around. We're excited to see everyone (& meet the 2 newest ones)!

Last but not least, I just found out last week (Friday right before I left) that I get to go part time (32 hours) at work. It's something that I've wanted to do for a while, so I"m glad that they are open to it. Starting the week of July 6th I'll be working M-Th, and will have Friday's off. YAY! I'm excited that I'll be able to spend more time with the kids, and I think that Andrew's excited about it too....he keeps asking if it's Friday yet.

Jenna's 2 year check-up

We took Jenna in for her 2 year check-up today......she did awesome - no crying what so ever - which is a huge change from her last check-up (lots of crying, when ever the Dr. or nurse would look at her). This time she stepped on the 'big kid' scale, and even climbed up on the table by herself (she's a bit of a monkey at times).
Here are her stats:
Weight - 25.4 lbs (30%)
Height - 34 1/2 inches (70%)

We're not sure where she stores her 25 lbs, since she barely fits in 18 months shorts (they still fall down at times), but at least she's healthy, and happy.

She also surprised us this morning by using the potty! Yep, she told me she wanted to sit on the potty (typically she only wants to sit on the potty to get an M&M), so I took in her & sat her down. After she was situated I told said "Ok Jenna, go potty and I'll go get your M&M"....and low and behold, what did she do? She went potty! YAY! She then requested her M&M and asked about Dora. I had told her if she starts to use the potty she could get Dora underwear...we may be going shopping this weekend, we'll see.
I know that we have a long way to go, but she's the type of kid that once she decides to do something she does it, so I'm hoping that she's now decided to start using the potty.

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day! Bruce and Andrew took the boat out on Saturday for a little bit of guy time. We considered taking everyone out, but Jenna was having a rough day (she has an ear infection - diagnosed on Friday). Earlier in the day, Andrew and some of the neighbor kids 'helped' Bruce was the boat. When it was time to head out fishing Andrew grabbed his new tackle box and was ready to go. It sounds like both Andrew and Dad had a good time, and I'm sure it helped that they caught fish.
After they came home, and Andrew showed off the fish that Bruce that him keep (after asking numerous times to keep fish, Bruce let him keep 1), he asked if he could eat the fish.....so of course Bruce cleaned the fish and fried him up for Andrew. Nothing better than fresh fish as a bedtime snack (at least for those Fullerton boys!).

Jenna's 2!

Jenna turned 2 today! Since we had their party last week, today was pretty low key. She's changed a lot in the past year. She's still her outgoing, fearless self, but has really started to turn into a 'little girl' lately. She loves to play in the play kitchen and make 'food' for us, and playing with her dolls is also something that she loves. She has quite the opinion when it comes to clothes and shoes too, and will let you know when she doesn't agree with what you pick out for her! It's amazing at how much they change in 2 short years. Happy Birthday Miss Jenna!

Introducing Jenna Jean Fullerton:

Andrew & Jenna meet:

Birthday Girl:

Here's her day in pictures:

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Party Pics

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Camille, Theo & Callie arrived on Saturday for a visit and to help out with the birthday party. They were a huge help with getting things ready and also cleaned up. Of course the kids all needed to break in the pools on Saturday. Jenna isn't so sure about the pool, she likes it as long as no one splashes her, or she doesn't notice anything floating in the pool like bugs, or grass. Andrew seems to really be enjoying the pool this year which is nice.


Here are the party pics.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Everyone had a great time at the party. Amazingly with 27-28 kids there weren't any injuries, or major tantrums. All in all it was a wonderful day, with lots of fun had by everyone. Thanks to everyone who loaned us chairs, tables, and other things.

The BIG party

The kids birthday party was this past weekend (on Sunday) and it was a lot of fun. There were lots of friends and family to help us celebrate. The weather was beautiful on Sunday (80+, a light breeze, and lots of sun) which definitely helped! We kicked things off with a treasure hunt in the sandbox, then the kids moved on to the pools and slip-n-slide. After breaking open the pinata we were on to cake and ice cream, and of course presents!
The kids had a blast playing with all of their friends. We all spent the day at home today recovering from all the fun :) Thanks to Camille & Theo we didn't have much to clean up today, and amazingly there are only a few items that are looking for their owners.
I'll post pictures later, once I have a chance to download the camera.
Have a good week!

Andrew's Stats

We went in for Andrew's 4 year well child check this morning. Here are his stats:

Height: 42" (90%)
Weight: 40.8 lbs (85%)

This explains why we need to buy at least 1 pair of jeans to get him through the summer, and yet another pair of shoes......
He did great at his appointment. I think that Dr. Dahl was pretty amused by his non-stop talking, and constant busy-ness.

Have a great week!

Birthday festivities

Andrew had a busy birthday weekend.....we kicked it off by having the kids pictures taken on Saturday morning. Andrew did fine, but Jenna wasn't exactly happy to be there. We did get one picture of her that was okay, and one decent picture of both of them. Andrew did good and we actually had a few good shots to chose from.

After nap time, Chad, Christy, Alex and Becca arrived. The kids had fun playing, and we let Andrew pick where we went to eat. We ended up at Burger King since they have an indoor play area (much to the dismay of all the adults). The kids had fun, and burned some energy off. Since it had been raining and cold all day, they had LOTS of energy.

The girls playing:

The gang, waiting for their food:

After that we opened presents (3 of the 4 kids have June birthdays), we had cake and ice cream. When it was time for bed we agreed to let the 3 older kids sleep together, which may not have been the smartest thing to do, but they were having so much fun, we thought 'oh, why not'.... 2 hours later when they were still not sleeping, we were rethinking that decision. Eventually they did all fall asleep.

The cake:

Andrew & Mom w/ the cake:

Sleeping kids - finally! (yes they are in Andrew's closet):

Andrew checking out his new Nerf gun:

We meet up with Grandma and Grandpa Bongers on Sunday night for a birthday dinner at Old Chicago. The kids had fun opening birthday presents, and eating pizza.

Cool - a pool with a slide!

Yea a present!

Sharing Andrew's Birthday dessert:

After we got home Grandma and Grandpa Fullerton called to wish Andrew a happy birthday from the lake (they are on vacation).

Now we are starting to get ready for the big party next weekend. So far it looks like the weather is going to be good, so let's hope that the forecast doesn't change!

Happy Birthday Andrew!

It's hard to believe that 4 years ago we were just meeting Andrew for the 1st time:

He's grown a lot since then, and has turned into quite a chatter box. It's amazing to think about how much he's changed in just 4 short years.

Friday Night

Friday night we took Andrew to Toys R' Us so he could pick out his birthday present. We were very glad we decided to bring him along and let him pick it out - we would have picked the wrong size, and a completely different bike.

Here he is testing out the different size to see which one worked best:

Mom - does this one fit?

Andrew taking his bike for a test drive:

Trying out another helmet:

All check out and ready to ride it out of the store:

Here's a picture of his old bike versus his new bike:

And he's off!

Jenna's new favorite thing to do is to play in the Tahoe. She would sit in there for hours if we'd let....too bad she doesn't seem to like being in there when it's time to go somewhere! Here she is playing in the back.

Catching up....

On June 2nd (the 1st Sunday in June), we went down to my parents cabin, and hung out at the lake for the afternoon. The kids enjoyed fishing, playing in the water, and digging in the sand. Both of them were really good about wearing their life jackets on the dock. I wasn't sure how Jenna would do with that requirement, but she did great. She didn't seem to like being on the dock when all the dogs were out there (there were 6 of them), so she spent more of her time up by the cabin. She wasn't too impressed with all the wet shaking that comes along with dogs at the lake either. Andrew enjoyed throwing rocks and fishing. Grandpa had a full time job casting his bobber back out after he reeled it up. He even went out in the boat with Grandpa all by himself. Jenna helped Aunt Beth sort the sea shells that she brought back from her honeymoon - good thing she's patient!

Fishing out of Grandpa's boat (while the dogs attempted to fetch his bobber):

Andrew having fun in the water:

Jenna wondering why on earth someone would get in the water:
Jenna showing off her boating look:

Here are a few other pictures from the week:
Do you think they are up to no good?

Isn't she cute?

This is one of the outfits that Bruce brought back from Malaysia for Jenna. It finally fits. I think it may be sized wrong tho....it says it's a 12-18 month size!