A New Car!

Jer's work car had too many miles on it, so it was time for a new one. In just over a year, he put 40,000 miles on his silver 2008 Chevy Impala. So, Jer decided he wanted something different after three Impalas in a row. He had a few different choices. He ruled out the Camry Hybrid since it has minimal trunk space. He went to the dealer and checked out the regular Camry but also decided the trunk was too little. He was also addicted to the remote start on the Impala, and the Camry wouldn't have that.

So, Jer gave up the dream of switching car models and chose to shake things up by getting the new Impala in a new and exciting color. He wanted black, but the company didn't offer black. He wanted red, but no luck there. So, after lots of research, he went with . . . a silver 2009 Chevy Impala!

Poor guy wanted a change so badly, but here are the before and after cars:

Here is his old car:

And here is his new car:

We did find one change to be excited about. Since last year's model, they did add "nubbins" on the rotary dials for the dual climate control. It is actually quite a nice change! If only they had added extra cupholders, though. . .

Evil Tobacco

I am sad! Jer and I were at the library several weeks ago and Jer checked out the 1944 Disney Film, "The Three Cabelleros". It stars Donald Duck, and looked horribly boring to me. I really doubted Jer, but Lex LOVED the show! We've renewed this DVD several times since then.

Anyway, I have had my qualms about the cigar that José Carioca, the parrot above, had in his mouth. Lex didn't seem to be noticing the cigar, so I forgot my issues. Until tonight when after watching it, Lex walked in with one of his toys hanging out of his mouth like a cigar (it was a hose from a fire truck). He was so proud of himself and really seemed to be expecting me to laugh at his creativity, but it made me so sad that we corrupted him with 1940's cartoons!

Of course, Jeremy laughed! Then he recovered by telling Lex that smoking is yucky.

New haircut for Lex

Before:After:

I took Lex yesterday for a haircut. I was so nervous afterwards since I got it cut shorter than we'd ever cut it before! Jer didn't even know we were going to get it cut. I was really hoping Jer would like it and not be sad! We both love it! Lex looks like a whole new kid, though. This morning I was a bit shocked by it when I first saw him. It is weird to be able to see his little ears -- we've never had that view before!

Fun Fridays

Most Friday nights, we like to go to Jackson's soccer games. They are in the evening, so the weather is perfect. I like to sit and chat with Paula, and Jer watches Lex while he runs around with a lot of fun kids. There are a few little girls who give Lex so much attention and he just eats it up!

I thought this was a funny story from a few weeks ago. Since Lex is the youngest by a few years, Jer is the only parent with the kids. The other parents are able to watch from a distance. This particular Friday, the little girls (ages range from 5-7) decided they wanted to steal things out of Jer's pockets. Unfortunately, they were going into his front pockets. Poor Jer didn't know what to do since he knew the little girls were just being playful, but any parent looking over and seeing a bunch of little girls reaching into a grown man's front pocket is going to be alarmed!

Jer hurried and emptied his pockets, handing over his cell phone and wallet to the little thieves. He was worried that he would lose some credit cards or something else since the kids were running around with their spoils, but he figured it was worth it to avoid getting banned from the Friday night games! Luckily nothing was lost!

Oh well, it is a small price to pay for all the fun Lex has at those games.

Update on Lex

I haven't posted about Lex's likes and dislikes lately, so here we go! Since July, he is talking so much more. We are very proud of his accomplishments. The video below is of him talking a bit. I thought his grandmothers would like to see it!

Lex has been taking a little bit of a break from his train obsession. He still loves trains, but he plays with his other toys more now. His favorite things to say are "What's That?" even if he knows what it is. He also loves to hide things and say, "Uh oh, all gone!" Then we act really concerned about what we can't find until he brings it out with a big grin and tell us, "Here it is!"

Lex is very interested in babies, too. He loves to watch them and point them out to us. There have been a few concerning times where he has thrown his Baby Elmo doll to the ground, so we will have to be careful when the new baby comes! Overall, though, he seems to be fascinated with babies and likes to imitate their cries.

Lex interacts with his baby brother by lifting my shirt up over my belly and saying, "Hi Baby!" He also sometimes nudges my belly saying, "Wake up, Baby!" Then, when he has the baby kicking back in response, he covers my belly up again and says, "Shhhhhhh!"

Last month, I wondered if Lex was showing signs of being ready to potty train. I thought it was a bad time since I've heard that kids regress when a new baby comes, but I went and bought a new potty and some underpants for him anyway. He hated the underpants and showed me he wasn't ready yet when he went to the bathroom on the dining room table while I was in the shower. Oops! We'll try again after the baby has been here a while. I will say that I was happy it was on the table and not on the carpet. That would have been really horrible to clean up!

If you are planning a visit, it is important that you know that I cleaned and sanitized that table very well!

New TV

Waaaaaaaaaayyyy back in March, Jer heard he had won a contest at work. This wasn't the blogger contest, this was a different one. This one was based off his sales performance. Anyway, at that point, we had a choice between going to the Olympic Training Center in Coloroda for three days, getting a new video camera, or a new TV.

The trip sounded really fun, but I was newly pregnant and worried about having too much morning sickness to enjoy it. Plus, I knew they wouldn't let me do any of the fun activities since I was pregnant. In the middle of our decision making process, Jer found out he was going to Beijing so he was more excited about that. We also had the trouble of knowing what to do with Lex since this was an adults only trip.

Soooooo . . . . we chose the TV. Only trouble is, production was really backed up and we didn't get the darn TV until a few weeks ago! Through this year, we were given lots of dates that it would be there by, but they passed again and again. We thought it would never come.

So, here it is! We had to move the armoire we had in our family room into our bedroom since this tv wouldn't fit in it. We chose this stand since the tv is mounted to it and I have less worries about tipover accidents with two little boys around. I still need to do a little organizing with those cords behind it, though! I'll wait until after I am pregnant and it is easier to maneuver in tight spaces.

If ever a boy loved his Daddy . . .

. . . . It is Lex! He loves the website http://www.starfall.com/ If you have a preschooler in your life, I really recommend it! We always do the alphabet part. Anyway, Lex likes to cuddle up to the person on the computer and say, "More", until you go to this website with him and play. Jer is always so nice and stops his web surfing to make Lex happy. Here is a photo of them having fun.

35 Week Update

It is less than a month until this baby gets here! Whoo hoo! Anyway, here is an updated photo of my pregnant belly. I am starting to really feel the aches and pains of that big belly! I felt badly the other day when Lex and I were at my doctor's appointment. Lex sat down in a chair in the waiting room and let out this relieved groan. I guess he learned it by watching me! I get so tired by the end of the day!

Today someone at church (who is very nice, by the way and I hope she doesn't ever read this blog) committed the faux pas of saying, "You are HUGE!" Another woman overheard this and dropped me an e-mail tonight saying that she thinks I look great and she wanted me to know that. That was really thoughtful and sweet!

Orlando

Lex making a birdhouse
Lex LOVES tools. Whenever I have a screwdriver out, he loves to help me.
The museum had a Titanic Grand Staircase replica. Lex wasn't impressed.The view from our room. In the background you can see Mount Everest at Animal Kingdom, the Contemporary Resort, and the Epcot dome (although I can't find it in this photo right now).
The pool view from our room. They had a few slides on the other side of the pool. Lex and Jer went down there and had a great time!

So, by this blog it looks like we practically live in Orlando, doesn't it? Well, we went there again this week since Jer had to attend a conference for work. We got to stay in a fancy hotel, but my doctor asked me not to go to the Disney Parks because he was concerned about all the walking. That surprised me -- I had never heard of that restriction before! Anyway, while Jer worked hard at his conference for four days, Lex and I kept busy with other things. We went to the Orlando Science Center (which was twice as expensive as Portland's OMSI and half as fun), and let Lex run around and do his thing. We also went to IKEA, the outlet malls, and hung around the hotel.

There is good news, too!

It isn't all bad news around here. My sister had her third child, Evan, on my Dad's 55th birthday a few weeks ago. He is her biggest child, born at 9 pounds, 1 ounce. He is just so precious!

Congratulations to Sara and Tian!

Sad News

Yesterday, my Grandpa Garl Miller had a heart attack and passed away. I am very sad and this was unexpected. We saw him in July, and he seemed fine and healthy. His funeral will be in Idaho on Friday, and unfortunately, we can't make it. I am just too pregnant at this point.

Grandpa was a man's man. He was great with horses and he was an amazing hunter. I was really proud earlier this year when I heard he went to a special place to hunt buffalo and took down the buffalo with one shot. I don't think he even had to get out of the vehicle to do this! My dad was going to go in November to witness a repeat performance. I am sure they would have had a great time.

The picture above was taken in July of 2006 when Lex was six months old.

Animal Kingdom

In addition to going to Magic Kingdom (see post below), we also went to Disney Studios and Jer and Lex went to Epcot while I rested in the hotel. I don't have any photos fron Disney Studios, but Lex quite enjoyed the Playhouse Disney show there and cried when everyone left.

We went to Animal Kingdom and finally caught the Nemo Musical. We always miss it, so it was good to finally catch it. It is a 40 minute show, so I was quite impressed that it kept Lex's attention for that long. We also went to the dinosar dig area and let Lex run around a bit. That boy loves to jump!

Labor Day Disney -- Magic Kingdom

We went to Disney World for Labor Day weekend. It was surprisingly not crowded. I guess most people were gearing up to go back to school and unable to make it. We had a great time. Lex LOVED the carousel. We were on our way to It's a Small World and Jer and I hadn't really noticed the carousel as we passed it. Lex sure did. He stood up in his stroller and would have jumped out of it while it was moving if he had to! Since there was not a long line, we were able to ride it four times in a row. It was fun to see him enjoy something so much. We also spent a long time on the train that day.

We finally did make it to It's a Small World, and Lex did like it. The fuzzy almost black photo above was taken in Mickey's Philharmagic. Lex wore his 3D glasses for the first time ever. He always really enjoys this show, but I think wearing the glasses made it even cooler for him!

I was so nervous for Lex to go on the Barnstormer roller coaster. He is now 36 inches, so he is okay to go on it, but I wasn't sure if he would be too scared. Jer went on it with him since pregnant people aren't allowed on it. Lex seemed to do well on it! Notice the binky in this photo. Lex's acid reflux has been acting up lately, and I thought sucking on a binky would help, so we gave it to him for a few days. Don't worry, he isn't an addict again. He hasn't had it in days, and he doesn't miss it at all.

We went back later that night for the Spectramagic Parade. Jer thought the first guys going through the parade were super creepy, so of course he took photos of them! Lex really enjoyed this parade. I've never been a parade person, but I am glad he liked it!

Luggage is so fun!

Jer was getting ready to go to Orlando for a few days this week for work, and Lex decided to help him by getting into his suitcase. Lex loved being wheeled around the room while peeking his head out of the suitcase!

Jer is back from China (wayyyyy belated)

Inside one of the watchtowers at The Great Wall of China. You have to climb instead of walk.
Right after this photo I got bit by this mosquito with tiger stripes. Good thing I didn't get the Yellow Fever shot, right?
I had to pay these two dudes 2 bucks for posing with them.
Take me down to the Forbidden City where the grass is green...
Members of the Redeem/Dream Team. Dwight Howard is in the white tank top.

Authentic Terracotta Warriors that I saw.
Beach Volleyball meets China's youth.
Beach Volleyball was a very fun event that was fast paced and full of action. There was even a DJ and game show type announcer.
Our next kid's hairstyle inspiration.
Inappropriate statues that I had to get a picture of.

My humble abode for a week.
My humble commode for a week
My first experience of the Olympics was walking back and forth on this sidewalk waiting for the ceremonies to begin. It was hotter than infierno there and I was constantly coralled with thousands of others, mostly Chinese along this sidewalk. Here are the fireworks outside The Bird's Nest from my vantage point. It was chaotic and I bolted back for the subway once 25 or so military cargo trucks pulled up and out poured hundreds of soldiers that started putting on riot gear.
The exterior of my hotel. It was about 40 minutes to get to the Olympic Green.
My first meal in China was KFC. (It was right next to the hotel) It was not finger licking good!

My mom has been wondering when I would update this blog. I've been bad, I know. Anyway, Jer has been back for weeks now, and he had a fantastic time in China! He commented on a photos above. He also had the opportunity to be one of those goofballs in the background of the Today Show. The quality is bad since I recorded it on the old tv in our bedroom, but you can see it on the video clip below. Jer is wearing a red shirt.

Jer went to many events while in Beijing including Beach Volleyball, Women's Gymnastics, Women's Basketball, Judo, Handball, Tennis (he saw Venus), and Soccer. He also got to see the Great Wall.