As Promised...

Here are some pics as promised. Enjoy!!

TJ loves to get up close and personal with the camera, so I end up with a lot of pictures like this.

About a month ago, he decided he didn't need to use a bottle any more. Hes a big boy now. So, any time anyone near him is using a cup, he grabs it. We have to be VERY careful! He's surprisingly quick.

Here are a couple of my favs from camping.

Playing cards...

In mommy's favorite hat...

And in Grandpa's skull cap from Puerto Vallerta.

At Grandpa Gilbert's 75th birthday in July, he discovered he LOVES the grass.

On August 11, James' brother Trevor got married, so these are some pics from the wedding.

Our little family. Oh, on a side note, all of our paperwork is FINALLY in Salt Lake. After several amendments to letters b/c of things changing over the past 2 years and some additional information being requested, it looks like they've got all they need. So, now its just a matter of playing the waiting game. Keep your fingers crossed and keep us in your prayers and hopefully soon we, too, will be an eternal family!!

And my boys! Aren't they handsome. Ok, well, James looks much better when hes not making faces, but the suit helps!

On the first, we discovered what TJ really thinks of parades...

And fireworks.

We also went to the Stampede in July, where TJ got his first cowboy hat! I'm not really a country girl, but it was so cute, I couldn't resist. Its kind of gigantic on him, but it should fit really well next year.

He also got a lot of looks because hes so darn cute. In fact, my cousin volunteered to take him for the day because he was such a "chick magnet." I didn't go for it. (I wish I could figure out how to rotate these darn things. Stupid me not knowing squat about computers.)

Well, by now, you should all have your fill of TJ pictures. That pretty much sums up the majority of our summer. We also went to Moose Jaw for a few days while James was home after the wedding, but didn't really get any great pictures there. They almost all involved me in a swimsuit and thats just not something I'm willing to publish on the web! Its been a great summer and now that school is back in, maybe we'll actually get something done around the house. Here's hopin!

Going Backwards

Ok, so I thought that babies were supposed to sleep better as they got older. So why is it that my 4 1/2 month old, who has slept through the night since he was 5 weeks old and has had a very definite nap schedule, has barely slept a wink in the past week. Consequently, I'm sitting here at 4:30 in the morning waiting to see if he'll actually stay asleep this time for longer than 20 minutes. Needless to say, I'm very frustrated and less than perky. I knew the whole "best behaved baby ever" thing was too good to be true. My good little boy who used to only cry minimally when he was hungry is now crying what I have affectionately dubbed "the scream that never ends." He is so tired that he just can't be happy for longer than 15 minutes. Argh. I have no clue what has happened. I have checked for teeth (nothing), constipation (nothing), fever (nothing), uncomfortable clothes (nothing). I am considering taking him to the doctor, but for all intents and purposes he seems to be a healthy baby and I don't want to be one of those moms who runs to the doc every time her kid has a runny nose! Ok, well enough of that. In this state of mind, I'm liable to say something that may not be entirely true. I haven't posted some pics in quite a while and have had several requests to do so. So, here goes, lets all keep our fingers crossed that my computer co-operates.

He loves these keys. Actually, he loves anything he can put in his mouth!

His four month pic.

The reason I'm happy even when its 4:30 in the morning and he's screaming.

He took this pickle right out of Mom's hand the other day and chewed on it forever! He became VERY irate when I took it away.

Ok, well its just after 5 now so I think I'm safe. I'll post some more pics later today when its not so taxing on my brain!! Sleep, here I come!

101 Random Things About Me

Ok, so I've seen these around and I thought, TJ is sleeping, I've done nothing but clean all day and I'm ready to sit down. So, you can all have your fill of information about me. I mean, really, who wouldn't want to know 101 random things about me!

1. My name is actually Patricia.
2. I don't feel like a Patricia.
3. I love fruit. Anything but bannanas. (Is that how you spell bannana? I'm having a brain fart.)
4. I loved English class and seriously considered being an English major.
5. Instead I majored in costume and makeup design for theatre and film.
6. I loved every minute of it, from the 6 am rehearsals to the all night sew-a-thons!
7. I worked on the set of Touched by an Angel for a semester while I was in school. Most days, I wish I had that job again.
8. I love yoga. I do it every day, or at least try to.
9. I am a skinny person trapped in a fat person's body.
10. I played soccer growing all through university and I loved it. I really miss it.
11. I don't see the point in "going for a run". I would way rather to go the gym or an aerobics class or something.
12. I love swimming.
13. I HATE wearing a swimsuit.
14. I would shop all day every day if I could.
15. One of my dreams is to go to New York or Paris with ten thousand dollars and SHOP!!
16. I love fashion.
17. I wish I was more fashionable.
18. I still wonder if naming TJ TJ is cheesy.
19. I plan on probably living in Raymond for the majority of the rest of my life, but I don't want to.
20. I would love to live in a big city like Calgary.
21. I would hate to raise my family in the big city.
22. I knew James by two different names when I first met him.
23. When I met James, I liked his roomate WAY more than him.
24. I really miss taking voice lessons.
25. I've taught piano lessons since high school, but I'd rather teach voice.
26. I love to dance. I would take a dance class all the time if I could.
27. I'm the world's biggest klutz.
28. I still wake up at night to check if TJ is ok.
29. I am constantly worried about whether or not I will be able to raise my kids to be the kind of people I would like them to be.
30. I LOVE to organize.
31. My house is not nearly as organized as I would like it to be. I don't know that it ever will be.
32. I love to scrapbook.
33. I am a nerd. And I embrace that.
34. I love to read.
35. I read the seventh book of Harry Potter in 2 days.
36. When Harry Potter first came out (the first movie) I wanted nothing to do with it. I was NOT going to follow the fad. So, my roomate paid for me and my date so that I would go. I was hooked.
37. I really enjoy documentary films.
38. I also really enjoy foreign films.
39. I have just under one of university left until I get my degree.
40. I'm most likely not going to get my degree because I'd have to go to BYU.
41. I am a neat freak.
42. My house doesn't look like I'm a neat freak.
43. I would rather watch a movie that most tv shows.
44. I love to cook, but hardly ever do.
45. I really enjoyed high school because of the friends that I have.
46. I don't have a ton of friends, but the friends that I do have are the best that anyone could ever ask for.
47. I frequently feel like a bad person because I let my life get in the way of keeping in contact with people.
48. I am a perfectionist.
49. My perectionism drives my family crazy.
50. My clothes are color coded.
51. I regret that I didn't tell any of my friends from university why I left. I didn't really say goodbye.
52. I miss the theatre more than anything in my life.
53. I can't stand annoying people. By annoying, I mean people that make loud noises when they chew, people who don't pay attention to what is going on around them, and a few other things.
54. I think professional athletes and professional entertainers (actors, musicians, ect.) are grossly overpaid.
55. I frequently feel like the things I desire conflict with one another.
56. I am a night owl, but also a morning person.
57. Clarification - by morning person, I mean that once I love how much energy I have when I get up early. I get way more done and have more energy all day. However, I have a difficult time getting out of bed in the morning.
58. I can do fantastic hair and makeup on anybody but myself.
59. I buy outfits because I love how they look, but then feel extremely selfconscious when I'm wearing them.
60. I LOVE shoes. I have more than 20 pairs now, but when I was at university I had over 75, not including flip flops.
61. I am super excited that James has decided to be a vet. I know he'll do great.
62. I think that everyone around me has more faith in me than I do.
63. I love the mountains. I love being surrounded by trees.
64. I hate the prairies. I hate wide open spaces.
65. I've decided that I love cities because I get that "surrounded" feeling that I get in the mountains.
66. I think feet are gross but love having my toenails painted.
67. The last time my toenails weren't painted was when I was prego and that was only at the end of the pregnancy because I couldn't bend over. However, I had Amanda paint them for me.
68. I love to have parites.
69. I have almost as many gay friends as straight. Hazard of being in the theatre.
70. I have a terrible fear of bugs, mice, lizards, anything creepy and crawly. I am petrified of when TJ gets older.
71. I have never been able to tell when someone was flirting with me.
72. I love going dancing.
73. James hates it. (dancing)
74. If I could change one thing about my body, it would be my thighs.
75. I'm not sure if there are 26 more things about me that I could say.
76. I'm not as goody two shoes as people think I am.
77. I wish I hadn't gotten my tattoo.
78. I ususally forget I have a tattoo because I can't see it.
79. I miss my annual Christmas get together. I can't wait to get a house of my own that I can have parties in again.
80. I love music. Singing, playing, listening, I love it all.
81. I took saxaphone lessons while I was at university.
82. My favorite kind of music is jazz. Or maybe show tunes. Hmm, tough choice.
83. I love ice cream. Except vanilla. Unless its breyer's natural vanilla.
84. My heart breaks when TJ cries.
85. I wish that I had more financial stability to offer my family.
86. I really enjoy going to art museums.
87. I love watching football. Live is best, but tv is ok.
88. I also enjoy watching hockey and live baseball. Just don't let James know I like it.
89. I think James looks super hot in his umping gear.
90. I love wearing skirts. and heels.
91. I feel kind of schizophrenic sometimes. I am a small town-big city-housewife-careerwoman-...well, you get the idea.
92. Working at Once Upon A Bride was the best non-theatre related job I've ever had.
93. After the first two weeks, I didn't really mind working at Maple Leaf too much.
94. I used to have a really good memory. Not anymore.
95. I always wonder what people REALLY think about me.
96. I love to travel.
97. Christmas is probably my favorite time of year.
98. I could live somewhere where it never snowed and be perfectly happy. However, I'd have to come home for Christmas to see the snow then.
99. I lived in the same house my entire life growing up. My parents still live there and now, I do again for a little bit.
100. I want 6 kids. However, I don't think that will happen because James doesn't want that many.
101. I would love to be able to know who actually reads this.

Well, if you took time to read the whole thing, thank you. I'll read yours, I promise!

Summer Fun

Well, it has been quite some time since I have blogged and I'm not really sure I have such a great reason, but I have been quite busy. First and foremost, as much as I love the heat, it has made me quite lazy!! Also, my little munchkin is not as crazy about the heat as his mommy. In that, he takes after his dad. Oh well, thats life! Summer has been quite busy for us. We went to Thunder in the Valley in July and camped out at Chinook Lake for a week. James came home the weekend we were out there and got to camp with us, so that was fun. TJ loved his first camping experience. He even had his own tent in grandma and grandpa's motorhome. It was so cute. I'll post some pics soon. After that, we came home, did a lot of cleaning/sorting (although you really can't tell). Since then, life has been fairly consumed with James' brother's wedding. Fortunately, that is happening tomorrow. While it has made my life quite busy, it is nice to have James home again so soon. After the wedding, we are leaving to stay in Moose Jaw for a few days. After that, who knows! Hopefully the campsites will be open by then so that we can go camping once more before the summer ends.