A December Surprise!!

Wow!!! December was a busy month!!! I promise while I am playing catch up on this blog that we did not do as much in the last 4 months! LOL!!! Anyways, December was extra special this year because we found out that I am pregnant!!! Baby number three... which just happens to be boy number three will be arriving August 28th 2015!!! WE are great at making boys!!! This little boy will be named Jordan... although we love this name; Jacob is hands down the most excited about it. So, we can't even change it if we wanted too! I think there is a part of Jacob that thinks/hopes that this little baby will be Michael Jordan.

We are so beyond thrilled to become a family of FIVE!!! Holy smokes!!! I can't believe it's actually happening!!! I can't imagine how much crazier our lives will be, but I know that it is going to be so much more fun and filled with so much love!!! I know Brayden will probably have the most adjusting to do when baby Jordan will come home, but I know he will be a great big brother. He already kisses my tummy and pulls up his shirt and says "baby". He is slightly confused obviously LOL!! Jacob talks about baby Jordan ALL the time!!! The other night he was in the bath tub and with out any prompting he looks at me and says...
"When baby Jordan is here I will ask him baby Jordan what is your name? And he will say my same is baby Jordan!"

I have found that announcing that your pregnant by baby number three poses a challenge. You can't repeat anything that you have done in the past and you kind of want to surprise your husband. So, I held my secret in for 4 whole days!!! And gave Mike his Christmas present... I video taped it.

There is something so special about announcing your pregnant!! And I always dreamed of doing a Christmas announcement! I think he was slightly happy!! Best Christmas present ever!!

Brayden's 1st Birthday

Seeing as my youngest is about to be 18 months old, I find it only fitting to blog about his first birthday :0)  We did a "small" get together.... LOL!! Yeah right! It is in Shadd tradition to have a big family party for any baby's first birthday.  It is so wonderful to think that your baby has now turned into a toddler, but I think the celebration is more for the parents reaching the milestone of  "YAY!!! You survived a year!!" Life with two has been busy, and Brayden is definitely our busy little child. It is hard to imagine life with out him. He had a blast at his party, especially with the cake eating. Mike and Debbi made another amazing basketball cake. Of course, banana flavor! Brayden LOVED it!!! Mike did a great job decorating... these boys seriously could not have gotten a better dada!!!

He only looks unhappy here because he doesn't have the cake in front of him, and he is wearing that hat. LOL!!!

It was so great that so many people came out to celebrate my little man... it was kind of like a family reunion!!!

As much as people talk about how Jacob and Brayden look exactly the same, their attitudes could not be more different. We always joke that Brayden is going to be our X-games competitor or be the one to always use the statement, "Yeah I can do that!" I have a feeling we are going to see the inside of the ER a few times with him. He just amazes me. He wants to do everything Jacob does, which makes for some interesting accidents when you have a 1 year old trying to be a 3 year old lol.

I should just do a post on Brayden's injuries, but others may not find that as funny as we do so I'll just list them... (One photo included... the cut on his eye which turned into a black eye)

                     1.  Black eye... tripping over a toy at school and hitting the edge of the cabinet.
                     2. Fat lip x2... One was from running in the house with a hoola hoop and tripping over it and banging his face into the ground. The second was hilarious (sorry Brayden, but you didn't even cry) He decided he wanted to ride down the driveway in his little car. About two pushes down he thought "hmmm if I lift my feet I can go faster!" I saw it happening and just couldn't react fast enough and he slammed his face into the parked front bumper of the Vu. It looked like a cartoon. I went to pick him up and he cried because I picked him up LOL!!
                     3. Constant scraped knees and bruises because he falls ALL the time!!!


The funniest thing about Brayden is he is super goofy, super energetic, and he never cries from getting hurt. He is one of the toughest kids I have ever seen in my life. I am so proud of him!! Some of his accomplishments over the last 18 months are...

                 1. Walking at 10.5 months
                 2. First word was nana (for banana, which is still his favorite food. He can eat up to 3 a day)
                 3. He calls  everyone who he loves Mama.... For a long time I thought I was special, but for him it is just a term of endearment.
                 4. He eats literally anything!!! He LOVES sushi, especially unagi.
                 5. He is one of the best cuddlers out there! As rowdy and crazy as he is, he always makes times for hugs and kisses. He will just randomly stop playing and come over and just lay on top of us and give a hug. It's the best feeling in the world.
               

Our world is totally different with Brayden, but I would not change one second of it! He has made us all better as a family. I love this little dude so much!!! Happy Birthday little man... sorry this post comes so late!!
                  









 

Some of My Favorite's Birthdays!!!

So during my little break from blogging, I missed a few birthdays of people who are very near and dear to me!! And they just both happen to be born in June...my lovely nephew Everett and the best Grandma/Great Grandma in the whole world Tutu!! Both celebrated very significant birthdays this past June... Everett turned 2 and Tutu turned 90!

We'll start with Mr. Everett!!! I cannot believe this little man is 2!!! I swear it wasn't that long ago that I cut his finger clipping his nails as a tiny infant, thus becoming his favorite auntie! LOL Oh, the good times we have had Everett! Everett you have brought so much joy to our lives, especially Jacobs! He loves you so much and talks about you ALL the time!! He calls you his favorite cousin...although you are his only cousin right now, he means it very sincerely.  I must say, Everett celebrated his birthday in true toddler fashion...with Elmo and friends!! Kiki planned an awesome party in Oakland at a beautiful park! We had so much fun eating Cuban sandwiches that Matt made (totally appropriate toddler food, duh!) and Elmo cake pops that Noni made!

Next up is my favorite 90 year old on the planet...Tutu!!! Tutu is seriously one of the greatest women I know. She has always been there to support me whenever I have needed her, and she has always been able to tell me the truth, or put me in my place when I needed it. I have always said that of anyone in my family, I am the most like Tutu. I think from my personality to my toes (yes you read that right), Tutu and I are very similar... and I am so grateful for that! So for Tutu's 90th, she wanted to do a small get together at her house with just family...it's amazing how your family grows after 90 years!! It was such a wonderful party!! Seeing the entire Jacob family, and meeting Tutu's friends, or my mom's friends that she grew up with, was just so much fun! Tutu was always an amazing grandma, and to see her as a great grandma, is something more special than any words I could express.

My boys love their Tutu so much!!! Happy 90th Birthday Tutu!!

Jacob's Birthday Party

I can't believe it has almost been two months since Jacob's 2nd birthday party.  I have been so busy that I didn't even realize I didn't blog about this wonderful event until today!! Anyways, since almost everyone who reads this blog was at that party, I just want to start off saying thank you to everyone who came and a special thanks to everyone who helped! It really would not have been done without you!! Before the party, Jacob's favorite show was Jake and The Never Land Pirates.  I'm glad I did this party when I did because his interests have definitely changed. He is now all about Thomas and Bubble Guppies, which are both good shows. However, Pirates will always have a special place in my heart because it was the very first show he ever showed remote interest in.  Pirates made for a fun party theme with the decorations... 

The decorations could not have been better!!! Thanks to Tori, my mom, Debbi, Dayton, and my dad!! The house looked awesome!!! The two above pictures were my favorite!! And of course the cake tasted as good as it looked!! Tori made treasure chest party favors filled with gold coins. She made like 50 of them!! I still have some and have been eating gold coins for almost two months straight! So, thank you Tor!! We had great food, thanks to Chris and Sue!! It really could not have been a better BBQ, especially for a March party!! 

The first part of the party, the kids spent some time at our local gymnastics place just running around and making crafts. The kids had a blast!!! Jacob got so worn out that he took a two hour nap, after falling asleep on the 5 minute car ride home. 

Although I said no gifts, of course people got him gifts.  Jacob loved opening every single one of them!! He also became good friends with Logan during that time. I really think Logan is more responsible as an 8 year old than I will ever be in my life!! Jacob LOVED his new friend!!!

I love this picture of him! He could not be happier to have his cupcake!! I think we had a banana cupcake everyday for a week after this party!! He is a very special 2 year old, who astounds me every day.  I could not be more proud of him!

He's 30 People!!!

My absolute favorite person (grown-up) in the whole wide world turns 30 years old today!! In true Mike birthday fashion, we didn't really plan anything. However, both kids got sick last night which in turn caused Mike to call in sick today. So, by default we got to spend the day together as a family!! I think Mike had the best quote ever about turning thirty today, "At four this morning I had throw up in my hands that wasn't mine and wasn't caused by drinking too much. I guess I am really thirty today!" LOL!!! In all seriousness though, him turning thirty has put a little perspective on our life...we have been together for almost half of our lives!!!  It's crazy to think that when we were 15 and 16 years old and talking about our future, that it would actually come true!!  I knew back then that he was The One I wanted to marry, have kids with, and grow old with. I can say 14 years later that I was a very smart 15 year old!! He is the perfect husband and absolute perfect daddy.  There's a quote that says, "Don't marry a man unless you'd be proud to have a son exactly like him." Well, there is a reason I have two boys... I can only hope that they grow up and treat their wife exactly how he treats me. 

 I really do love this guy!!! He makes me laugh ALL the time and lets face it, 14 years of my shinanigans he kind of deserves a medal! LOL

My favorite quality about this birthday boy is how he is as a father.  I have never met a person who after a day (a long 13 hour day) of a crying baby refusing the bottle or three days by themselves with a 3 month old, still say they want to be a stay at home parent!! He is truly an amazing dad! Our boys love him so much!!

HAPPY 30TH BIRTHDAY TO THE BEST DADDY AND HUSBAND IN THE WORLD!!

Super Bowl Weekend!!!

Every year I look forward to one of my favorite sporting events of all time... I enjoy the yelling, the betting, the food, and the all around hanging out with family. Some years I have had to work, which makes for somewhat comedy watching the game. We turn it on in an empty room (hopefully we have one), then we call into the room from the phone our work station, then we place our work station phone on speaker,and thus we have sound!!! We are rather creative!!! Anyways, I was really excited for this year because I was on maternity leave and I was guaranteed it off!!! Well, it turns out that this year was the worst year to actually watch the football game!! Since the game sucked (and the wrong team won), I am glad we watched it in good company.So there will be no more mentioning of football from hear on out...until next season that is!

Originally, we were going to have Super Bowl Sunday at our house, but a basketball tournament and a torn ACL (Shaniko) changed all that. We were happy to come and visit Pleasanton...I even drove the boys down by myself!! I think that makes me a true mother of two! We had a great weekend playing at the park, eating great food, and Mike and I actually went on a date!!!

Shaniko and Brayden had a great time hanging out...especially since they both can't move very well!

We spent a long time at Emerald Glenn Park. It was great discovering a new park with the boys...they had the best time running up and down a hill. 

I love this photo because it shows Jacob as such a kid! The best part of this picture is the memory we have of Jacob and Everett high fiving each other.  It was so funny...I hope to catch it on video one day.

Some funny things happened while Mike and I were on our date.. Jacob turned into a dog.  This is what we walked into...

It's funny because Jacob never wants to be near a dog with a cone on...he is truly terrified, so maybe he got over his fear?

Tattoos

A few weeks ago Mike went to San Francisco for the day to get his tattoos done. He always goes to this one guy in particular because he is really good at black and gray. He figured out this time that the guy has only been tattooing for 3 years!! It's amazing how some people just naturally have a gift!! Anyways, the tattoos that Mike got were Brayden's feet with name and birth date, and then a King of Swords tarot card. Many people have asked about the meaning of the tarot card and why Mike would get that...so this blog is to explain the meaning!!

First, here are Brayden's feet. We make kids with big feet, so if we have four then Mike may have to get creative on the location!! LOL

Here is the King of Swords... (It's pretty raw in this photo, and I don't think it does it justice. This tattoo looks amazing!)

The King of Swords sits upon his throne of command, holding a large upward-pointing, double-edged sword in his right hand, while his left hand rests gently upon his lap. On his left Saturn finger is a ring, symbolic of power and taking his responsibilities seriously. The King wears a blue tunic, symbolic of a desire for spiritual understanding, and a purple cape, symbolic of compassion combined with intellect. The back of his throne is decorated with butterflies (transformation), crescent moons and an angel just near his left ear, positioned as if to give him subtle guidance. The sky is relatively clear with a few clouds, representing general mental clarity. The trees in the background appear motionless and reflect the stern judgement of the King. The King of Swords is a symbol of intellectual power and authority, and has the courage and intellect to accomplish all that he desires.

When Mike first told me he wanted a tarot card, my first thought was "Wow, I really have corrupted this man with my hippie ways!" Then he went on to explain to me what it meant, and I could not agree more that it really does represent Mike as a person. Anyways, I just love both these tattoos!!

Date Night

As astonished as you may be to read this blog, I will forewarn, there are no pictures of Jacob!! GASP!!! I know it seems weird to read about a date that Mike and I went on, but I feel like it's such a rare event that it was blog worthy. With only 3 weeks left until our due date (yes, I'm including Gabby and Jason in the our). We have decided to babysit each others children once a week, so the other couple can go out on a date.  It works out especially nice because I think it's actually easier to watch the two kids together than on their own.

Anyways, Mike decided for our date night that we should go to Dave and Buster's. I haven't been there in so long, that the last time, I was carded and I accidentally threw a tampon at the bouncer. (Long story, but quite hilarious!) but needless to say, ID'd and had tampons in my purse...that seems like a lifetime ago.

We had a blast playing all the games. Of course there was major competition at every game...Mike won every game except for the horse race. The game on the left of the collage was way cool!! It tested reflexes, unfortunately it required a lot of tokens, so we couldn't play that many times, but Mike took pride in beating his 8 month pregnant wife. LOL

Well here is the 37 week shot of my belly!!! It's hard to believe we are so close to the due date!!

A "Boo"tiful Night

This is a bittersweet blog to write because it will be the last of the Halloween posts.  Most of you are breathing a sigh of relief that you don't have to see anymore Elmo costumes!! (well after today). Saturday night we had our annual Halloween party at Debbi and Dayton's house. The decorations looked amazing, the food was perfect, and the costumes were spooktacular!!  Mike made some trophies for the costume contest... well we failed to get the trophies out and vote!! Therefore, I'm electing myself as the voter of all costumes (since I'm the only who writes a blog).

First Award is given to the "other" Wood Family for best costume coordination between a family.  Everett was the perfect strong man...but I have to say the lion outfit was my favorite!! Maybe because it looked so comfy.

Auntie Blam wins for the only costume that would make the kids smile!! A bunch of grapes!! She is such a teacher and all about the kids all the time!!

Hands down the most creative costume goes to my cousin Tyler. He was Elliot from ET. The fact that he even remembered the kids name from a movie we watched together when we were 5, was amazing!

I'm gonna vote Mike and I as the best couple costume. 1950's housewife and the milkman.

There's no surprise here... these two were definitely the cutest costumes there!! Granted Jacob was naked most of the night, he still wins.

Some of the Honorable Mentions were Jaybee- a mime (she actually went a whole 20 seconds without talking!!), Dayton- as a clown (I didn't get any good pictures of him otherwise he would have won the most dedicated to his costume award), Tweedy- was the walk of shame (she would have won funniest if she came in basketball shorts...the girls will get that one), My dad- was backwards man (definitely most unique).

I just love this little Elmo!! I was actually a little sad packing that costume away today.

Another successful Halloween Party night!!!

Parties and Cookies

I love October!!! Most people already know that Halloween is my favorite holiday, but Fall is definitely my favorite time of year. I feel like the month of October gets the privilege of kicking off the holiday season. The smell of pumpkin, the cold crisp nights, cuddling under a blanket, and every one's excitement for what they're going to do for the holidays. Not to mention all the parties and junk food you can eat!! This past weekend did not disappoint!! Nonni and Grandpa came to visit, so we decided to go to Jacob's daycare Halloween party. We all got to see the "projects" that he has been making and get a nice tour of the place he enjoys so much.  It was a really impressive party actually; including a pumpkin patch, face painting, haunted house, and a magic show.  Jacob dressed liked a lion (minus the head part) and Memo dressed like super woman.   As much as it may not look like it above...Memo really did have a good time.  The kids mostly played outside the whole time...

 Is there anything cuter than a lion dunking?!?

I love this action photo... It was hilarious watching is little "paws" move as fast as they did.

Nonni had a great idea to decorate cookies with icing. Unfortunately we never got around to it while she was still here, but Sunday night after I came home from work, we decided to do it. Mikey, being the wonderful daddy that he is, went and bought way more decorating supplies than any 19 month old needs (He is his mother's son...lol).  We had a blast decorating and eating them! Thanks for the idea Nonni!!

He decorated two cookies, but was eating one before I got a picture of it. I know that's really surprising for everyone to hear. ;0)

It was another immediate bath night after that. And luckily with my Swiffer out of commission I hadn't cleaned the floor since the painting of pumpkins night, so our floor has a wonderful tie-die theme going on!

Apple Hill

We finally experienced the magic of Apple Hill yesterday.  It was everything that everybody said it would be. A few things that we learned that day about Apple Hill....

1. The higher elevation means much hotter!!!

2. It's a bunch of different farms...its not owned by one place.

3. It has everything from carnival like areas to apple picking to Christmas tree chopping

4. It's going to take a long time to see everything that Hill has to offer!

5. Jacob has a serious apple addiction!!

Jacob loved picking them off the tree! He would get so proud of himself...then he would try and take a bite, (Yes, out of every apple he picked).  We picked a almost a whole bag of apples and it only cost $4.00!! These apples were seriously the best apples I have ever eaten. Mike was especially proud of Jacob because he started having flashbacks of Papa's farm.

Your about to be impressed people. We packed a lunch and had a picnic at the first place we stopped. Granted Mike and I bought a corn dog and hot dog from there (which the corn dog was the best ever and there was a sauce that was absolutely amazing!!) Jacob enjoyed some crackers and hummus with a side of mac n' cheese and 'nana', in true hippie fashion. 

Speaking of food... We stopped at another place called Abel's Farm. It was basically a mini carnival, which Jacob was just too young for. However, we decided to have a dessert shmorgesborg!! Holy apple moly!! In the picture to the the left is your standard caramel apple, then to the right is an apple strudel, and then below is the apple dumpling. Mike actually ate the entire apple dumpling (I took one bite) all by himself!! We took the strudel home, which I noticed is conveniently missing from the counter this morning, so I am assuming Mike took it for lunch.  

I guess the 6th thing we learned about Apple Hill yesterday is to come hungry and get ready to eat A LOT!!!

We also visited a pumpkin patch up there, but didn't buy any.  Jacob amazes me every day... without prompting he called this one the "big pumpkin," and another one "green pumpkin."  I feel like he is getting so grown up so fast!! He obviously loved his big pumpkin!

This picture just cracks me up. Mike is actually saying to Jacob, "What are you doing?" Because Mike was trying to get him to pick another apple.  Jacob was just trying to be just like Daddy and squat like him. LOL it was so cute!!!

Fun in the Sun

This past Memorial Day was spent at lovely Auntie Blam's house. It was a great BBQ with awesome food and company.  Since Sam has a pool at her house, I thought it would be a great opportunity to pull out Jacob's brand new pool. It took us girls a few minutes to figure out how to put it together, but ultimately we got it!! It worked out so well!!! I can't wait till he really figures out how to use it!! Here are the pictures from that day... his outfit is courtesy of Tyler and Sara from Patagonia!! SPF 50 people!!! AMAZING!! I also have to give credit to Auntie Tori cause she got the sunglasses, the hat, and my bathing suit (a one piece, officially a mom now).

Sam put it the best, he looks like a little old man!! So cute!!!

He is a little too cool for school in this picture.

Normally he loves to stand, but in this pool he just wanted to sit the whole time...I guess he really is a Pisces cause he loves the water!

Glasses off in this photo...too be honest I am surprised they lasted as long as they did.