no more school...

it is official today, it's the last day of school for littleman and as i reflect back.....i am so happy and so very sad! he had the very best time this year and grew so much, both physically and socially. i feel as though i dropped off my baby in august and were given back a little man! i know everyone says to enjoy it b/c it goes by so fast, and that is SO very true! as i am writing this, i am fighting back tears. jackson's class and, especially, his wonderful teachers made the year amazing. we were blessed to have him where he is and for all that he has learned....thank you ms. susan, ms. rachel and ms. patti for teaching and loving jackson so very much!!
ahh..if only i could freeze time right now and live in this moment always.


jackson and his 2's teachers...ms.susan and ms. rachel


playing at the end of year splash party at school


jackson and his very best friend cole-man shooting water rocket

rain, rain go away

it has been raining here in florida for what seems like forever...i mean, are we in seattle? i do not know how anyone lives on the pacific northwest.....we have beeen trying to make the best of the time by coloring, playing every indoor game thought of and a bit too much tube time. we are soooo looking forward to seeing mr.sun very soon! in the mean time..this is a snipit of what we look like these days......not so fun

jackson with his interesting get up of diaper, t-shirt and rain-boots, aka fireboots

olivia in between one of many nappy times

....a blazin good time

upon jackson's request for a firetruck themed 3rd birthday...i searched the internet and found that we could rent one for the party.....boy, was that the best thing ever!! the vintage firetruck was a hit with all the children and made for a very fun and easy party for me.....the kids got to play inside, pull all the knobs and buttons, spray water from the hose, wear the gear and take a very cool ride on it....it was the best time for all and so worth the $$...highly recommend. jackson had a ball and has been asking when fireman jaime will be bringing the firetruck back again...oh no!


the whole gang of kids

the best thing ever...a pull apart cup-cake

cole-man, jackson and wesley getting ready for the ride


jackson could have made a day of shooting the hose

say cheese

learning all about what a fireman wears and what the job is like

Happy 3rd Birthday Jackson

i cannot believe another year has passed and MY littleman is 3!! we celebrated this wonderful day with just our immediate family...a nice dinner, play and cake. jackson had a ball all day.... school celebrations, singing to him at chapel..just plain, good fun.
Happy Birthday to you, my love...may you have more laughter, happiness and fun to come. you bring us joy for every minute we share with you!!
xox
Mommy, Daddy and sissy

birthday cake....

in an attempt to conserve $$, i decided i would try this cool recipe that i found thru a friend for Jackson's 3rd birthday dinner....the idea and pics seemed easy, so here i went in my version.....it is called a rainbow cake; it got the name from, well, exactly what you think. it was extremely fun to make, but in the end, my icing was to heavy for the lightweight cake and thus it fell.....not completely. I did manage to salvage enough for jackson and the family. despite its appearance, it was yummy and worth the time.

doctor, doctor

yesterday was jackson's 3 year checkup and to make things easier on myself (or so i thought, sigh), i also took olivia at the same time for her 4mos ckup......a bit chaotic, but thank goodness nathan met us there to help manage the moment. without him, i don't think i would have come out with any info!! The kids both did great and got perfect scores.
Jackson continues to be our mr. long and lean and it only took him turning three to hit the 30lb mark!!!! he is in the 75th% for height and had increased to 40th% in weight. he "performed" well for Dr. Hardman and by the end of the appt., had her cracking up.
Olivia is also making wonderful strides in growth and is at or above where she should be for her developmental age, yay!! a far cry from where we started 6 1/2 weeks early. she grew 3 3/4" and gained 3lbs in 7 weeks!!! we were hoping to leave on a happy note, but littlemiss had to get 4 shots and one oral vaccination, ughh...once home though, jackson helped olivia make her booboos better with a little tlc......

Happy Mother's Day

this mother's was the best!! nathan got littleman up and he ran straight into our room, jumped on the bed, shouted "happy mommy day" and gave me the biggest squeeze.....it was a wonderful way to start the day. This was my first mother's day as a mom of two and it was double the fun and love. the kids gave me such sweet treats, as did nathan to remind me how much they love all that we, as mother's, do. we enjoyed a wonderful brunch with all the family at the Brick in avondale followed by just us going to the park for play before all of us napped. the afternoon was relaxing and slow and finished perfectly by jackson whispering to me, "happy day again, mommy, i had the best time with you"!! The day was wonderful and as i write this tonight, i am reminded of how very blessed i am...for the life nathan gave me and the joy the kids bring to everything every day!!! being a mother has been the most fulfilling job yet. thank you jackson, olivia and nathan for giving me a very wonderful day. i love you all, xox.

family fun

.....it is officially summer fun here in jville!! we spent most of the weekend having a ton of family time and sun fun. saturday, jackson, olivia, nathan and i enjoyed time in kiki's backyard with family....what could be better than listening to the giggles and squeals of four kids having the best time outside. yes, i did say four kids.....that means olivia is official. she sported her very first bathing suit, and quite proudly (unlike mommy)! she was too adorable. she was not so sure about the water though, but i bet by the end of summer she will hang better with the other kids. it was so nice to relax for a little while and enjoy the moment for what it is...fleeting and so special. jackson has grown up so much since this time last year...and although i am loving where we are, i still miss the littleman he was. it was a great day though...what could be better...water fun, pools, icies, giggles and many happy faces (on the kids and parents)!

ice-pop licking fun

somehow the rolls and dimples make it look even cuter (unlike when mommy sports hers, ugh!)

fishy kisses- jackson about to turn 3

two smith fishies

not so sure about the cold water on the fanny

swimming beauty

the three smith amigos

4 fabulous months!!

well, little miss has officially given us joy in our lives for 4 months.......it seems like yesterday, that she was born and now she is about to sit up on her own and is chatting up a storm. i decided to have a little impromptu photo session with her to celebrate the day....my has she changed and grown.....our little princess....thank you, olivia for all the smiles you have given us!!

fun with friends

we have had quite a few fun filled days..... the weekend was spent with lots of family time and fun with some good friends....

we had the budds fam over for a sunday afternoon cookout and boy did the kids and adults have fun. good food, lots of fun in the sun and great laughs. then on monday, leslie invited us to join her and the boys and a couple others to the zoo....this would be our very first outing with just mommy and the two kiddo's. i must admit, i was very nervous about it....but the day went very smooth and ended great. jackson had a blast with all the boys and olivia was the princess who slept the whole time. other than some very tired legs, the day was perfect.


jackson, drew and john michael...the three amigos


the boys checking out the "dragon"

the gang of boys and Christie feeding the stingrays

Olivia posing for the camera 3mos, 3weeks


slip and slide fun

this is all little miss can do during the cookout

olivia budds, jackson and brady

jackson and his other olivia

baby chachi

congratulations to our very dear friends, Maren and Shawn, for welcoming into the world their first born. baby wil"liam" was born on April 27th. not to worry guys, i do not think we will ever forget his b-day! (wink). may he bring you much joy and good times to come. xox

7 year itch

on April 27th, nathan and I celebrated our 7 year anniversary....but since we had a very full and long weekend we chose to celebrate it the weekend later. we enjoyed a very nice evening out just the two of us. it was very much needed...it reminded us why we started to begin with. I love you nathan, always. thank you for the beautiful life we have to share.