catching up-part 3

april
marcus started learning how to use chopsticks in april. his skill level with them is pretty comparable to a fork, and he has more fun. (thanks deanna for the sticks!)

april brought simon into our lives. while attempting to encourage him to be born, we went to the museum of flight and malls to walk. i figured the more i walked around, the more likely he'd be born on time or early like marcus. he proved me wrong.

and just to prove that i am not a total whimp, this is how awfully huge i was a week before simon was born.

as kevin's post below says, when simon was ready, he came out in a hurry. the only photos we have of him from the 1st hour or so after he was born are on our cell phone, there was no time to get the camera from the car.

grandma and auntie deanna came to our rescue by taking care of marcus, and us, for a while after simon was born. thank you!

catching up-part 2

february

marcus turned 2 on the 3rd. we had a curious george themed birthday party at grandma nakashima's house. he enjoyed playing with the balloons much more than opening presents. aunt amanda and steve came up for the big day too. marcus was very excited to have amanda around!

february also brought marcus' first caucus experience (and ours too). he became a crazy obama supporter. in fact, the other day he told me "Barack Obama is coming to our house...for dinner!" i do not lie, he honestly said that without any prompting.

the newly engaged uncle aaron and soon to be aunt susan came for a visit over president's day weekend.

we went to snoqualmie falls with them. it was one of those beautiful winter days. aaron and susan introduced me to boulee macaroons while visiting, delicious!

march

marcus and kevin colored easter eggs in march. marcus didn't quite understand that eggs are fragile...as he found the eggs in the basement, he chucked them in his basket. good thing they were cooked. marcus worked on his art skills. typically he doesn't like to get his hands messy, but he does make an exception when it involves paint.

catching up-part 1

so, obviously, it's been a very long time since we posted anything. i blame it mostly on the fact that i was pregnant and generally in a bad mood. kevin actually worked on an update a week ago but when he tried to preview what it would look like on the blog, it disappeared. i will make no promises, but i am going to attempt to blog at least once a month.

here's a brief summary of what we've been up to since the last posting:

november
we took a long weekend trip to folsom to visit grandpa jeff and grandma judy. during this trip, marcus discovered that he loved cats...well, really, tormenting cats. he also discovered tents and flashlights.

us at the folsom zoo
marcus cornering a cat

grandpa jeff, marcus, and kevin...marcus comes by his silliness honestly

december

we spent christmas in washington. grandpa larry and grandma vicki came for a visit a couple weeks before. marcus entertained them and was rewarded with toys, he's pretty smart.

we went to the tri-cities for christmas day festivities with the cousins. marcus had a great time following logan everywhere. he and landon even managed to enjoy each other a bit.

january

marcus moved into a toddler bed to start preparing for the invasion of his little brother. we figured that we should get him out of the crib a few months before simon was born just in case it was difficult. fortunately he took to the toddler bed quickly, though he did enjoy some late night/early morning wanderings until we got smart and put up a gate in front of his door. just the threat of the gate being closed was enough to keep him in bed. marcus is a wild sleeper, and likes to bring buddies (or "the entourage" as we call it) to bed with him. here are some photos to prove it:

nice use of the belly to hold the book...and yes, we do have a heater, marcus is just silly