freezing easter egg hunt

Brett had his school hunt today. It was so cold... you cant tell from the photos but it was snowing. next hunt saturday. hope its warmer.

Lazy Dayz

Caleb is starting to smile when you get him at the right moment. He has about 3 times a day that he is in a perfect happy mood. But I have been unable to capture it on camera.

Well today Brett and I successfully stayed in our PJ's all day. I know that sounds horrible but since I only have 2.5 weeks left of staying at home I am taking advantage of the time off. Its going to be way too soon before I have to wake up early and go to work every day. Caleb however got dressed today. His clothing is too cute and going to be too small in no time at all. Poor justin had to work all day. Anyway Brett and I had a relaxing morning putting laundry away and playing Wii. then in the afternoon we had plans to do 2 activities and ended up getting side tracked and doing something completely different. He ended up making a patchwork house out of a box from the basement. that lead to it being a restaurant and having a menu. He called me Server Lady and ordered off the menu. Then he would say excuse me server lady where is your restroom. He also asked for the elevator. After his snack was served I told him I was having snack as well and I turned into Server who is eating snack. Anyway we had a blast with this game today.

Easter Eggs/New Toys

Brett had so much fun today playing with his friend Dani. He went down to Salt Lake for an Easter Egg Dying Play Date. It was so much fun for him. And thank you to Chris who let us run to Ikea and to grab a bite to eat while they played. I know I took advantage but man it was good to have a hot meal in silence. Okay so it was silent as we were at a sports bar but it was free of screaming kids!

Anyway Brett and Dani had such a blast making eggs, doing art projects and just playing. The sun was out and they got to go outside as well. Brett and dani are great pals who dont have to see each other every day but yet act like they havent missed a beat every time they see each other.




Dani's mommy also donated a ton of toys to Caleb for his playing desires but when we got home it was an exhausted Brett who enjoyed them......



Brett had this play date with Dani as well as a birthday party yesterday. Lets just say its been an exhausted weekend. I worry now that he is out of school that he will get bored but I must say its been as busy as ever in his world.

Caleb is doing well. He has been outside some from the party yesterday and seemed okay with it. He also got out last night. When justin came home from Reno we went out to the Timbermine to celebrate the birth of Caleb. The timermine is my all time favorite place to eat. I had prime rib and shrimp. Brett had steak (that was better than mommy makes and 12.00 for a kids meal). Justin had prime rib and crab. Topped it all off with dessert. What a nice family night! Caleb is such a good baby but we can not figure out how to get him to sleep longer than 2 hours at a time in the middle of the night. during the day its not a problem. I bought him a white noise machine, a sleep position, tried swaddeling, etc. he just doesnt like to sleep alone at night.

Snow Yuck

same dirt pile brett was digging on 2 days ago.



we are stuck inside on a snowy day.


caleb found his fingers

Checkers/Dirt Pile/Caleb Toys

Today has been a fun day with Brett. On tuesday's and thursday's Brett is home all day and now that spring break is over Justin is gone until 9 at night. He did come home for 1 hour to have dinner but other than that the 3 of us (brett, mommy and caleb) have been on our own. Its been a productive day. Part of what I did was teach Brett how to play checkers. I was surprised at how quick he caught on. I was expecting it to be more of a challenge. He still doesnt quite get the double jumping part but he totally gets the game.




Its still a bit cold outside but when the sun comes out all the kids in the neighborhood are out in the dirt pile across the street. The other day brett came in for a piece of cheese and a bowl to catch a mouse in. As he ran out the door I heard his scream. I got cheese Zach put poison on it. I had to send justin over to find out what they were talking about. It was just a concoction of stickers and something else and not real poison but you never know. Brett is always the youngest over there so there has been a few issues when its bed time for him and no one else but for the most part its so fun for him to have that to do. He came in tonight saying. That was the funnest ever. alls they do is dig holes but it keeps them happy. If someone ever builds a house there the kids would be lost and bored.



Today Caleb seemed interested in swatting at a toy. It was very cute. Hes not coordinated yet but got it a few times. Caleb has started to show us a fussy side. From about 7-11 at night he likes to eat about every hour just a little bit and then cries in between. He is dry, clean, full, and being loved but he just cant seem to figure out how to get himself to sleep. Once he finally hits la la land he does pretty good at night. He wakes up every 2-3 hours for a bottle but goes right back to sleep (knock on wood)



Jealous moment for today..... I was in Brett's room trying to unwind the strings for his blinds and he was playing on the dirt hill. I saw him fall pretty hard on a piece of cement and start crying. I found the safest quickest place to lay down Caleb and it was on a blanket with a superhero that was Brett's. When Brett got inside and saw him he said thats not fair to put him on a blanket in my room- you should have put him in his crib. I asked why and he said because he likes superheros so much and its not fair for them (the superheros) to get spit up on them from the baby because thats just gross.

Popcorn/Caleb Photos

I just wanted to comment about how much Brett is like his mommy. I get told all the time how he is so much like his daddy but I finally figured out how he is like me as well. Anyway it has to do with popcorn. I love popcorn and always have. Justin has enjoyed a bowl or 2 but does not have the same passion about it as me. But Brett is like me in this instance. I took him to Alice and Wonderland on Friday (weird movie) while Justin watched Caleb. It was a perfect mommy/son date. Brett sat still the entire movie fixed to the screen eating his popcorn. Then tonight we watched the final Indiana Jones and brett ate an entire bag. Its not something to be proud of but I am happy he is taking after me as well. By the way Brett is still doing so good at home. we have had a few minor instances but no more than any other normal 4 year old kid. Brett seems happy right now and its making my life so much easier to see him happy!



Caleb has been a Weber kid so far but dont worry he wears red too.




So check out these 2 sleepy smile pictures of Brett and Caleb. Maybe I am just nuts but dont you think they look alike? There are days I think I am looking at Brett and other days I think they look nothing alike. Its hard to remember Brett as a baby.

Look Grandpa, I do cry!

Grandpa Jackson came to visit and he doesn't believe that Caleb would ever cry. He is such a calm kid when he is around. This is just proof that he does in fact cry....



I also just wanted to say what wonderful neighbors I have. We had 2 neighbors bring us dinner the week Caleb was born. Not only did they bring dinner for that night for all of us including my folks and friend who was visiting, but they also brought a lasagna for the following night, and homemade spaghetti sauce for the night after. With that we got fresh bread, dessert and fresh fruit. Oh and diapers/whips and a toy to top it off. Plus one of those nice ladies is also transporting Brett to and from preschool. Brett loves being picked up with 2 other kids. Its like riding the school bus. He is such a big boy. It was all so nice. Then another neighbor who I had asked to do letters for Caleb's wall ended up giving them to us for free plus a gift and Easter cookies. We have never been all that social with the neighbors so their generosity is amazing. I love where I live.

Here is the photo of Caleb's name on his wall. (yes I know its not 100% centered- I tried to do it without the help of my husband and his measuring stick...oops)

Too many boys

Okay so I have a headache! I have been outnumbered by boys! Today was nice because my parents come up for a visit while their recalled Toyota was fixed. While they were here the house was so quiet. Caleb was sound asleep and Brett was at school for half of it. Brett came home and was hyper but it wasnt too bad. But around 330 pm brett had a play date with his old pal from day care Samuel. Lets just say these 2 boys were so excited to see each other they still havent calmed down. It was insane. Justin was sleeping because he is sick and was working all day, Brett and Samuel were crazy hyper and Caleb was crying. Brett had the time of his life with his pal he missed but OMG!!!! About 2 hours into it they were tired enough they started to relax around each other. Headache city. Samuel is a great kid and both his parents are engineers like brett's daddy. Brett really likes that. He and Brett are two peas in a pod.






My parents came to see Caleb and brett today. Caleb barley opened his eyes for them. I snapped some shots to prove that Caleb does open his eyes. He is such a good baby (knock on wood). He sleeps only short spurts at night but goes right back to bed and he seems to have such a good temper. I am sure that will change but so far so good.




So I was calling around to see if I could get brett into spring soccer. I didnt realize that when you signed them up for fall they automatically play in spring. I was ready to fill out the paperwork and pay 50.00 but then today his coach called saying that his first game was April 10th. I didnt realize he got to play again. I guess I will find out why no one showed up to the last game afterall.

Update: The playdate was suppose to be for 2.5 hours they picked him up 5 hours later!!!!!! Brett said "yia yia/papou this morning. Samuel this afternoon and night- Its my Lucky day". The night before had been a rough one for Brett. Dad was sick and mom was tired so he watched a lot of TV and it caught up with him at bedtime when he was sent to bed an hour early with no show/routine like usual due to a toy throwing incident. So to hear he had such a good day made me happy- regardless of the headache I have.

More Caleb photos

Caleb changes daily. Some days I think he looks just like his big brother other days he totally looks different. I did catch a sleepy smile today.


Caleb eats so well he is already filling out. His clothes are a little big so its deceiving but this kid is healthy.

Brothers

Brett is such a good big brother. He loves to go and check on Caleb when he is asleep in his crib. Brett is pretty soft with him and seems very proud of him already. He calls him Caleb Wayleb. My name for him is squeaky monkey. There has only been one instance where Brett seemed jealous so far. I had put a picture of Caleb in a frame that use to contain a picture of Brett. There were 3 pictures there and 8x10, 5x7 and 4x6. I took out the 4x6 and left the 2 larger pictures. Brett noticed it the next morning and was upset the he couldnt see his picture anymore. I had to switch it back to brett! Guess I need a few new picture frames. Brett also is going that that "i dont want to snuggle phase" but if you are holding Caleb he likes to snuggle. As far as I am concerned he is the best big brother around!






A few nights ago the weather was so nice that the entire neighborhood was playing outside in the dirt pile across the street. Brett loved being out there for 2 days straight with lots of kids to dig with. Brett was by far the youngest but seemed just fine with everyone. Its suppose to be 60 this week and I cant wait. Brett has been a little cooped up with staying at home and a new baby.

WSU Engineering Program/Faces of Caleb

Justin has been watching the legislative sessions very intently this year as it affects the program he works at at WSU. Its been a string of ups and downs as the bill that was first proposed got changed for the worse. Then in a last minute change they added the program to another bill regarding the Board of regents and it passed. Justin is very excited that the CEET (Technology) program at weber is going to become an EE (engineering) degree now! Justin was so passionate about this change. It is wonderful to see how happy this has made him. Here is an article in the Signpost (WSU news) about his program.

Engineering coming to WSU
New program approved after amendments to S.B. 52

By Cimaron Neugebauer

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Published: Friday, March 12, 2010

Updated: Friday, March 12, 2010

Weber State University 2001 mechanical engineering technology graduate Marc Clements now spends his spare time on a ladder fixing electrical and plumbing issues on a local condominium property after his recent layoff from Alliant Techsystems Inc. (ATK).
Clements said if WSU had an engineering program when he was attending, it would have given him more career options. Those opportunities may not have been open to him, but they will be for future graduates. WSU is now starting an engineering program after the Utah State Legislature made an amendment to S.B. 52 on Thursday, March 11, to establish an electronics-engineering program at WSU.
“There is no reason why Weber State can’t offer that program,” Clements said. “I think they have the students that are interested in doing it and I think it would be a benefit to state and a huge benefit to the students.”
Clements said a lot of employers desire a classical degree over a technical degree. He said he is staying optimistic and is busy looking for work. He had three job interviews this past week.
Administrators also think this program will benefit students and are happy to see legislation passed.
“We first proposed an engineering program to the Board of Regents in 2007 and we were really trying to meet the workforce needs in our area,” said Brad Mortensen, vice president of University Advancement.
Mortensen said Hill Air Force Base and other large employers in the aerospace sector said they would need engineering graduates in order to grow and support their workforce in the future.
WSU currently has a two-year pre-engineering program and a mechanical and manufacturing engineering technology degree, but not an actual electronics-engineering program.
“A lot of programs (at WSU) are structured more to accommodate the flexible learning needs of our students, more so than you might find at a more traditional school,” Mortensen said.
Many classes for the engineering program will be offered in the evening, or at a time that would work best with students’ schedules. Mortensen said offering classes at a flexible time is critical to reaching out to students.
“There is a huge need in our state to grow the number of engineers,” Mortensen said, “and having this kind of program that can reach out to a different population that isn’t currently being served is one way to make that pipeline bigger.”
At this time there are no details whether classes will be held at the Davis campus or on Ogden’s main campus.
Warren Hill, dean of the College of Applied Science and Technology, said it is about time WSU had a four-year engineering program.
“I was a bit incredulous,” Hill said. “I didn’t think it was going to happen.”
According to Hill, some students are bound to a geographic region and don’t have the option to travel to Salt Lake City or Logan because schools there don’t offer night classes for the program.
WSU plans to set itself apart from other schools in the state with engineering programs by scheduling many of the courses in the evening to accommodate nontraditional students.
“It is a value to students and employers,” Hill said. “This gives many more opportunities to students who want to come to Weber State but couldn’t get an engineering degree prior to this
Thursday signaled the official end of the 2010 legislative session. Other items of interest at the legislature for WSU were changes to the state budget. Originally WSU was bracing for a worst-case scenario, but Mortensen said the final cuts come as a relief over what was anticipated. Rather than a proposed 17 percent cut, the state plans to cut approximately 13-14 percent with one-time backfill money. Part of the reasoning for the smaller cut was that state revenues weren’t as bad as originally thought and the recently passed cigarette tax will add money to the base budget. This will in effect translate to lower-than-anticipated tuition hikes and help keep WSU in the original range presented of a tier-two 4-8 percent increase.
WSU also received $15 million in funding for student housing with H.B. 5. Mortensen said he was pleased with how supportive legislators were this year for WSU’s cause. The student housing project will move forward as planned with the demolition of La Sal student housing in May.
While WSU did not receive funding for the second Davis campus building project, Mortensen said at least next year there will be less players and WSU may move further up on the priority list.
“We had a lot of legislators in Weber and Davis County and even some alums step up and recognize the needs that we have been trying to make the case for,” Mortensen said. “That is always encouraging when you have those legislators willing to fight for your cause.”

Caleb loves to sleep but every once in a while you can get him to wake up and have some active time. Usually its when I am trying to put him to bed like last night he was awake from 830 - 1130. But today we actually got some good time during the day. For the most part he is really laid back and only squeaks when he is mad. He always wakes up starving.



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Still a great big brother.....


Dressing his little brother.....


Caleb sleeping.... This is all the little guy does unless its mommy's night up. (Thanks to Deb I got a full nights sleep last night!!!!)


Brett had a homework assignment to take a picture of a crazy place to read a book. His first choice was on dad's harley or on a swing but due to the harley being covered up and him being a little sick we did a few shots at home.



Brett's little brother is already looking up to him.