out of order...

the next 3 posts are out of order :O)....

I saved them and then tried to post them in the order that I wanted them to be in...but it's not working, and I've spent way too much time doing this as it is.
so just know that it is supposed to be read as (but read it however you would like):

week at a glance
moonlight run
ferry ride


cheers...

the FERRY TO ALAMEDA!!!!!

Saturday was another FANTASTIC day!


The ward planned a Ferry trip that left the SF bay, and headed to Alameda. There were so many ward members who came, and it was SOOOOOO fun to hang out with everybody. The Ferry ride was really fun, and oliver really loved it (especially because he could hang out with all of his friends). I'll keep this one short....so just enjoy the pictures



cheers! (and thanks to brooke for many of the GREAT pictures!!!)

Moonlight Run!!!!!!

MOONLIGHT RUN 10K:

So my really good friend Brooke is not only a good friend, but the BEST RUNNING partner in the world!!!!!! We've ran A LOT together since about March of 2006. We pretty much run the Dish (which is about 5 1/2 miles....including mostly torturous hills) whenever we go together. However, we finally decided to actually run a RACE together (Brooke's wonderful idea!)

The race isn't titled "MOONLIGHT RUN" for nothing! The race began at 8:15PM on Friday NIGHT!!!! It was honestly one of the FUNNEST, most ADVENTUROUS things I have embarked upon in a very long time....for like one second we both felt single and without children :O)

I rarely am out late at night because the kids go down at 7 (which I TOTALLY LOVE), but I just am not out on the TOWN much...so it was so FUN to see so many people, and so LATE at night! I feel bad because brooke may think I didn't enjoy it as much as I did (unfortunately I was really sick in an embarrassing way)....but I hope you know Brooke, I TOTALLY LOVED it and will look back on that occasion with very fond memories...If I do it again you better be there with me....she bull-dozed through the crowd and got us TONS of free stuff, free food...and even made sure that we got shirts that were a decent size....it was very funny to watch her get the goods!

It was a beautiful evening! Everybody was afraid that the moon wasn't going to show herself...but about 1 mile into the run, she came through FULL as FULL..and helped us on our way. However, if I do it again, I will definitely take a flashlight, or a head-light!!! I will also make sure my tummy is in better condition to handle the AWFUL stench that is pretty much smelt throughout the WHOLE RUN!!!!!...though it was really disgusting, it is another funny memory that will be with me forever!

I love you Brooke!

More than just a WEEK at a GLANCE!!!!

Ok folks....
I think this was one of the weirdest, busiest, funnest weeks I have had in a very Very VERY long time.


I started school on monday, as I wrote about on Tuesday......it did start out normal. However, Wednesday was when all craziness broke loose, and I guess I will start from there....excluding many details (sorry).


Ok~


WEDNESDAY Sept. 26th 2007:

unfortunately this was not a good day. This was not a good day at all. I went to school just like any regular day...only to find that a few minutes into my class a situation involving a kid in my class caused our whole school campus to be put on Lock Down. Everybody was fine, but none the less it caused me to reflect on my life as a whole...and obviously made me rethink whether or not I will continue this class.
I'm on pins and needles because I was so excited about this class. It is such great stepping stone in the direction I am heading as far as occupation goes...and I just don't want to give that up.
However...I have 2 beautiful children and a wonderful husband, and that is the most important thing to me.
I just pray that I will be able to feel of Heavenly Father's Guidance in this question, because I cannot figure all of this out on my own.


Thursday....The big Turn around!!!!

Thank Heaven for Thursday! As I woke up thursday morning I didn't want to get out of bed, let alone leave the house. I didn't want Aaron to go ANYWHERE and I just had a strong feeling that we needed to spend the day together as a Family.
I begged aar to stay home from work, and he did.
I still didn't want anybody to go anywhere, I just wanted us to be all together in our little home. Aaron however had a different idea. He thought it would be fun to get out and do a little exploring...and that is just what we did.
He biked to the Baylands, and we followed a few minutes later in the car, and we all met at our final destination, with a picnic in hand.
All I can say is the STENCH was strong, but OLIVER LOVED LOVED LOVED this place! I haven't seen him this excited in a VERY VERY long time.
There was a dock that we ate lunch on, and he just was running in circles the whole time. And do you know what I love? I love that he LOVES to make aaron and I LAUGH!!!! He does a variety of "silly" walks because he knows we will laugh our hearts out....he does this when he is so excited he can hardly stand it. I will try to get his funny walks on film one day so you can all see why it is so darn funny!
We had such a great time at the Baylands, and after our picnic we went for a walk and took in the beautiful scenery including THOUSANDS of cool birds and cool small airplanes flying over head....what more for oliver to love!
The day continued to be wonderful as it was a Barbecue for Aaron's Department at school. We all walked to campus and visited with a bunch of old and new friends...I look forward to this event every year...it is just fun to mingle with aaron's brainy friends!!!! Plus, many of them love to hang out with oliver, so that is really fun to see!
The day only got better as 7pm hit; we had a fun time putting the kids down...and then OF COURSE couldn't wait for the premiere of OFFICE to begin at 9!!!!
This ended our evening, and just finished the day off perfectly! GO PAM AND JIM!




Friday...sugar cookies and "The MOONLIGHT RUN":

Friday was another very good day. It was pretty cold and rainy so oliver, me and eliza started out just chillin inside. We played a lot of fun games, and Oliver was really behaving nicely for his mom!
The afternoon consisted of a walk to the library to return some movies...and then after that is when the REAL fun began!!!!
We got home just in time for aaron to return home from work....
We chose Friday to be our "sweet night" so we thought it would be fun to let oliver use his cookie cutter skills on REAL cookie dough (he usually just uses them on play-doh)...so we made SCRUMPTIOUS sugar cookies and let oliver help as much as possible. He helped roll them, cut out shapes, chose the color of the frosting (blue) and helped frost them...it was funny because after a while of cutting the shapes out, he lost patience in that and insisted on putting the "scraps" on the pan...so we let him do what he wanted, and those were the ones that he would be able to frost and eat!!!!
It was very fun, and of course VERY MESSY!!!!

And though this was GREAT fun....there was even MORE fun to be had...

BORING....

I know I know...it's been too long since I have last written a post, but this PRESSURE is killing me :O)

I am super tired, but I do have some "stuff" to say....but no pictures this time (boring I know...)

OK:


1. TWO's COMPANY
SOOOO~ starting last Thursday...Sept. 20Th, little eliza began sleeping through the night (7pm-7am)!!!! Awesome eh??? The coolest part of it all is that she is now in mr. oliver's room!!!! They are sharing a room together and it is very fun!!!!
We've already started a ritual of story time on "sisters" blanket before they hit the sack!!! It is really really fun!!! Oliver is really diggin books lately, so I can finally have fun reading an actual story instead of just pointing out objects that he can identify!!!!! He especially loves "TRAIN" books....there is one called "train song" or something, and we call the little boy in all of the pictures "OLIVER"....so he is very excited about that!!!!

3. "Desensitize"
I started school Yesterday, and it is going to be pretty intense. Not to mention, I am really questioning whether this field is right for me. Many of my close friends and family know I have a really sensitive mind...anything wrong with anybody...or something going wrong (or even the possibility of either of those) floods my whole body with anxiety and fear, and sadness.....I'm not being sarcastic, I am actually very serious, and very nervous and wondering if this is reallly where I am supposed to be. My only prayer is that my weaknesses can become strengths and this will actually end up being just where I am supposed to be....
My instructor keeps using the word "desensitize" and it really bothers me...it's just not something I can even grasp right now. I pray that I can do this, because as of right here and right now...I'm really not sure.

4. Cucumbers and Almonds...but what about GRAPES!!!
This might be a NO BRAINER for many of you...but I was really astonished today when I realized that Cucumbers really do smell like those body sprays say...you know "cucumber-melon" and such....they reallllly smell like cucumbers...we had cucumbers today, fresh ones...and they smelled just like those body sprays!!!!
AND...Almonds taste just like the almond extract does!!!! I just had no idea! I mean it sounds obvious, but so many times when it comes to grape, strawberry, cherry..the man-made smells, and the man-made candies or what not...DO NOT TASTE OR SMELL LIKE the real deal!...so there you go!...I am amazed :O)

5. Pears, cottage cheese and almonds!
So...some of you know that I am a weirdo when it comes to putting foods together. I love to try interesting combinations...and most of the time they work!!!!...for me anyway :O)
Today for lunch I had a bowl of cottage cheese with sliced pears mixed in....then I sprinkled almonds on top...just to see how it tasted!!!! YOU HAVE GOT TO TRY THIS!!!!! It really was so good...and if you don't believe me...just ask oliver, he pretty much ate half of my dish, and was begging for more!!! This is when I realized that almond extract tastes just like REAL FRESH ALMONDS...except the almonds are much better for you!

6. Ice cream....or sorbet?
Ok...so here's the thing. Aaron and I are really health conscious these days (thanks to many reasons and many people...so thank you, and you know who you are)...therefore we don't eat much sugar, but we do have a "sweet night". This privileges us to have one really BAD treat for the week!!! Last weekend we went out for our first date without the kids...and WE WENT TO COLDSTONE!!!!! the problem is this!!! I wanted something really refreshing, and there was this really "yummy" tasting sorbet/smoothie something or other as one of the ice cream options. I tasted it....loved it....then continued to tell the man behind the counter that I would like that...with Brownies (of course) mixed in.
He was very confused and went on to say that it was not meant for that...it was to only put in smoothies....I wasn't about to listen to him because I thought I knew what I was doing.....
but apparently, he knew EXACTLY what he was talking about.
I began to eat the delectable looking dessert, only to find that minutes after I had ordered, the sorbet/smoothie thing had curdled, and bubbled and just did not look or taste right. It was very sour, and really did a number tummy...
I was very disappointed as it was my one night of shame for the week...I picked out the brownies because how dare I waste those...but even those were badly ruined (if you can imagine)....
It all worked out in the end because aar couldn't finish his.. so I got the last of his REAL ICE CREAM IN A REAL CONE!!!!... I will never make this mistake again!!!!

Well...I think that is all for now. I am officially exhausted and ready to SLEEP!!!! The problem though, is that even though eliza is sleeping through the night....I almost sleep worse now because before, I was expecting to wake up and feed her, now I am just waiting and worrying for this wonderful new routine to fail....man that stinks!
Anyway...I hope to sleep better tonight!

SLY and good night
joni ann

Thank YOU Saver's!!!!!

...(I may sound like a broken record to some of you...but for others, you have not heard about my "fun find" of the week)....so here you have it:

Ok...So, some people get grossed out by shopping at "used" stores.....But I think they are so GREAT!!!! Thanks to a good friend who told me about Saver's, I got some fun/NICE kids clothes, including Halloween Costumes for SUPER DUPER CHEAP!!! You've just got to give them a good washing when you get them home...and they're ready to GO :O)
We love "suits" (that is what we call the pj's that are just one piece)...so I got 3 for Oliver (one of which was the plane suit you see in all of the pictures), because he was in desperate need of night clothes, and each one cost $0.99-$1.99....I also got those cute jeans for eliza, and those were just as cheap.
When it gets closer to Halloween, I will show you oliver an eliza's Halloween costumes!!! Oliver is a FROG...and it is very CUTE...and very clean (thank you very much :O).
So thank you Saver's....

Week At a Glance...Slideshow Edition!!!!!!

Week at a Glance...

Hello Again....
Welll, I think I've decided to mainly stick to a weekly post, unless something Spectacular happens that I just can't wait to write...
Thus, I will call it "week at a glance"...this title has a very sentimental meaning as it was what my junior English teacher had us do EVERY week...week after week after week....
To this day, when I make my weekly "to do" list, it is entitled "week at a glance" instead of my to do's....how's that for some useless information!!!
Anyway.....
We had a pretty good week this week...oliver is a bit "trickier" now that he wants to have as much control as humanly possible. So that is a very interesting thing to work around.
But other than that we had a lot of fun!
Eliza had her first swing experience out on the playground!!!! She wasn't super thrilled with it all, but I think she'll get used to it. Oliver wasn't sure what to think either, so he kind of was pushing her side to side, front to back....but not very Gentley (so we'll have to figure that one out :O).
Eliza also turned 3 months old this week, and is getting pretty fancy with her tummy moves!!! She's not rolling over yet, but she still has a few days if she wants to keep up with oliver's timing...However, I wouldn't mind if she just toned it down a bit. Oliver pretty much walked out of the womb on his own, so it would be nice if eliza wanted to be a little more....layed back :O)
Due to the fact that oliver really likes to be in control these days...I have found that he does best sometimes if he is contained to some degree (in his room is all I mean :O). For those of you who don't know him, he just won't sit still (I guess that's kids for ya)...but for me, it has been nice to just let him play in his room for a while by himself....a little quiet time for he and mommy both. We don't do this too often, but he seems to enjoy playing by himself....so I don't feel too bad about it. Anyway, the other day I went up to find that he had emptied all of the brand New wipes that we had just put in the container....and put them ever so neatly ALLL OVER his crib. He is very proud of the things he does, so if you can imagine he was elated to show me his wonderful masterpiece....from what I understand....he was "cleaning" the crib and all of his blankets/pillow..and his stuffed animals. Pretty clever eh?
As far as Aaron and I...nothing too exciting happened this week.
Aar started back with tutoring, so now he is riding his bike to and from work, to tutoring, and also to scouts.... to say the least, he's lost quite a bit of weight!!!!
I am starting school at the end of the month, and will be taking an Emergency Response class, which will ultimately finish in 3 quarters giving me an EMT certificate...so I am VERY VERY VERY excited about that!!! This class is not a requirement for the nursing program, but my brain is starting to lose juice, so I am mainly doing it for the practical purposes and also to help keep me fresh for when I do eventually get into nursing school...which hopefully won't be too long. The next lotto is in November.....so wish me luck!
Well folks....
I think that is it for this week!!!! I'll post some pictures...so Cheers, and ENJOY!!!!
SLY,
joni ann

1st...removed all of the wipes

2nd...put them ever so neatly all over his crib!!!!

3rd...mommy insisting he put every last one AWAY!!!! :O)

FUNNNN....her very first SWING experience!!!!

Lovin the tummy!!!

A Walk Down Memory Lane...FIRST attempt at a "SLIDESHOW"

WE'RE BACK!!!!

Well...
I finally started a blog a few weeks ago...then decided not to do it....then decided to do it....
But here we are, and hopefully we're here to stay!!!!
Enjoy our site, and hopefully this will help keep family and friends informed of our going on's. This way I do not have to send ridiculous emails that take hours to read!!!!
Now you can just come and enjoy our pictures and what we have to say, if and when you want...and if you don't want...it'll be YOUR secret :O)...and everybody is entitled to atleast that ;o) CHEERS...and ENJOY!!!!!

my oh my...eliza you sure are pretty!!!

I know I know....

I'm a little biased in my opinion, but I really just think eliza is such a beautiful little girl, her smile melts me, and it is SO FUN to watch her grow and grow...before we know it, she'll be as big as her big brother...and her big brother will be even bigger...AAAH :O)

She had herself a nice little bath tonight, and afterwards she just sparkled! She loves baths, and she is so happy afterward...

I feel so blessed to have oliver and eliza...And Aaron as their Daddy, and my husband. They are just a beautiful bunch, and a Beautiful gift from our Heavenly Father.

Oliver and the "BIG-TAR"...

Oliver is very funny these days...
He says many funny things, so I just thought I'd write down some of the funniest ones and give you a little glimpse into oliver's world!!!! Gosh He's Cute!!!

"BIG-TAR" = Guitar
Aaron gets the guitar out once in a while, and when he does oliver very clearly and confidently calls it a big-tar...and also associates the big-tar with BONO!!! We love U2..especially BONO and the EDGE at our house, so Oliver is very adamant that anything to do with a guitar has to do with BONO!!!!

"BONE-HAT" = This Old Man: Nick knack patty whack give the dog a bone...
Oliver loves the book "This Old man"... and because in "This old man" you give the dog a bone...and all of the men wear silly hats...He puts the two together~thus he is always asking to read "bone hat".

"duh-tuh-tuh's" = motorcycle/helicopter (they're pretty much interchangeable)

"pa-pack" = daddy's backpack

"meet" = blanket

"ma-moo" = banana or belly button...we have no idea why he insists that this is how you say banana or belly button~but it sure is funny!

"ba-po" = peanut butter

"Faphet" = Prophet...kids are really amazing~ oliver always knows which books or pictures have "faphet's" on them, and he is always pointing them out to me. He usually see's Gordon B. Hinckley or Spencer W. Kimball.

"Dina-horse" = Dinosaur

"Bar-cute" = Barbeque ...and he says it over and over and over and over.... :O)

"Geek-a-Boo" = Peek-a-Boo!!!!...Funny eh?

Labor Day FUNNNN!!!!

We had a great Labor Day weekend and celebrated with a bunch of our friends!!! We went to the Beach and had a reallllly great time body-boarding (until the underwater sea life freaked me out and I had to get out of the water before some viscious animal ate my leg or something....)We also had fun flying one of aaron's infamous kites...adults don't seem to think it's as cool as the younger bunch...so aaron was flocked with little ones wanting to help him fly his kite. It was VERY cute.It was eliza's first time at the beach, and she did really well!!! She sat in the jogger pretty much the whole time either sleeping, or just hangin out!