It Takes a Village To Raise a Child...

When I was in Alabama, Papaw Dale said something that I haven't ever really thought of before... He said " It takes a village to raise a child"  I didn't really give it much thought until now, and boy was he right... I couldn't raise these boys myself.  They have Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles, Family Friends, Teachers, Doctors, and many others that contribute to the type of person that they are going to grow up to be.  It is our responsibility, as parents, to make sure that we surround them with the best of the best, and by golly, I think that we are on the right track.  I can already see how people are impacting them, and all good I might add!

They are learning unconditional love and comfort from their Grandma Tammy, and they are always getting something special from her, and she is responsible for teaching them compassion and sincerity.  Grandpa Monty always plays with them, and has a gentle way about him.  The boys look to him for comfort when they don't normally go to men for that, but he also plays rough with them at times, which they love!   He is teaching them that men can be tough, but can also have patients and be kind hearted. 

My parents take them fishing and crabbing and are responsible for teaching them to love the great outdoors, and how to love and respect nature.  Men should always know how to fend for themselves if needed :)

There Uncles... Wow, I don't think that these boys could have better men to look up to.  Tyler teaches them humor and lets them really have fun.  He gives them an environment to be silly where they feel like they can really express themselves. Ryan is someone that is the strong silent type, and teaches them reservation and control, but also has really long legs which makes a big lap for the boys to jump into.  Mitch...Mitch is going to be the one that Makes Mama and Daddy go BROKE!  He teaches them anything and everything about sports.  He comes over and plays with them, sometimes for hours!  Blake and Luke are already overly athletic.  I see $$$ in the future for select teams.

Kyle and I teach them boundaries and kindness.  We want our boys to be strong, but to also always be kind and understanding.  We let them dig in the dirt, run around bare-foot, play with worms, but most importantly, we just let them be themselves, and if anything, I hope what they take away from us is that we will always support them in whatever makes them happy.  We will always be there to listen without judgment, and we will always love them unconditionally... hopefully that is what they come out of this crazy house with :)

There are many other wonderful people in their lives that are guiding them into wonderful little men, and although, these boys fight with each other at times, they sometimes push and shove, and they can sure cause a ruckus... they also give each other hugs, Blake tells Luke that he loves him, and knows how to say he is sorry.  They have an amazing balance between toughness and sincerity that I can thank their ENTIRE family for contributing to them.  Witout my village supporting my family, introducing them to new things, loving them, caring for them, and inspiring them, I do not think that they would be as well rounded as they are.  These boys are sure lucky, and so are we for having such a great village helping us raise our children.  I could not get through a day without them!

Thanks Papaw Dale for such a great perspective!

HOCKEY HOCKEY HOCKEY

It is no secret that my family is obsessed with hockey... We had been in the house all day because of the rain, and as soon as Kyle got home, Blake asks him to go play hockey in the garage. The man barely had time to change before he was out in the garage with the boys playing hockey while I finished up dinner, and when I went out there, this is what I found...

Kyle had made this hockey guy and a stand for him with all different places for Blake to aim and shoot. I thought it was pretty fun and creative!  Not too shabby for 20 minutes and some power tools!  Father of the year in my book :)

They all played with this guy until it was time for showers, and they had so much fun!  Blake started bawling hysterically when it was time to come in!

* just a little side note... Blake is now able to pick his own clothes, and on days where we are going places, I give him a little more guidance, but on days like today...lazy days...its all up to him.  Today, he picked pajamas to wear and the tops don't even match the bottoms, and when I asked him why he picked that, he says to me " well I like these pants and I like this shirt"  Well, I guess that's good enough for me :)

He is sliding after he shot the ball... yes, he made it!

Luke is starting to get in on the action!

I might as well get HOCKEY MOM on my license plate!

Daddy showing off his skills!!

Please excuse the mess in  my garage, we have a little remodeling/rearranging going on :)

Busy Busy Busy...

We have been out of our minds busy the last few weeks!  Birthdays, Fathers Day, Skating Lessons, Preschool shopping, and dog sitting :)  Finally starting to get the hang of all this, but my goodness gracious, we have been on the go like crazy!

Kyle turned 28... YAY, we are the same age now :) As a joke, the kids got Kyle this giant gummy bear for his birthday.  Kyle doesn't like cake, chocolate, pie, or ice cream, but the man loves his gummy bears!  I buy them at Costco, and he takes hand fulls out of the bag every day... I thought I would show these pictures to the dentist HAHA

Blake is doing really well at Ice Skating!  He cant wait to start playing hockey, but we keep telling him that he has to be really good at skating before he can be on a team... he is too young also, but next year, he will be chasing after the puck with all the other little guys!

We have been playing a lot outside, and I have managed to get both the boys on the same nap-time schedule!  VICTORY is mine!  I have about an hour and a half to myself everyday to fold laundry without someone pulling down my piles, and I usually get dinner started and today, I am blogging!!   We have really been taking advantage of this nice weather also, and letting those little buggers run out their energy as much as possible!!! 

Blake washing "his" car, daddy washing Mama's car, and Luke eating bubbles!!

Eating Soap!!

This is what I step over/around everyday in the kitchen!

Someone discovered ICE...Can't keep him out of it now!

They have their sweet moments!!!  

AND....We picked a preschool for Blake.  He will start at Cabin Kids in Buckley with Mrs. Barb in September... I absolutely loved meeting with them and I love the curriculum, and the setting.  I know Blake is going to learn so much there, and he is going to have so much fun!    Oh dear... my baby is starting preschool!  Where has the time gone??  I sure hope they are ready for this little guy!!!

Movie Night With Blake

Tonight, we thought we would do something a little special with Blake... so we had a movie night with just him!  We put Luke to bed at normal time and then let Blake stay up late and we watched Fox and the Hound, and ate junk food, and just had a good time.  Sometimes I think that we forget to spend special time with each one individually, and I think that this is something that we should be doing more often :)

Started off with root-beer floats!!

Then popcorn!  It has always been a Jump family tradition to add candy to popcorn, and it is one that I will definitely pass along!!!

Then for our Movie... Funny thing is that Blake kept calling it Fox and the Ham??  I don't know where this child comes up with these things :)

And I tried to get a cute little picture, but this is all that would happen... Pretty much sums up the night :)

HAPPY FRIDAY!!

Happy Birthday Luke!

Our little man just turned one, and oh my goodness, what a year it has been!  This also celebrates a year of being a stay at home mommy too, so it is really neat to look back and see how we have all grown in the last year.

 Luke was such a relaxed birth on a pretty spring day... then a bomb went off! HAHA  I love this boy, but he is sure busy!  Started crawling around 5 months, walked at 9 1/2 Months and hasn't ever slowed down!  I love watching him run around outside... to him it is like FREEDOM!  He can run and run until he cant run anymore, or until he finds something to put in his mouth.  I think a little bit of everything has made its way into Luke's mouth, always fished out by me squeezing his cheeks together and swiping my finger through his mouth, which he then bites!  You would think that I could stay one step in front of him, but not this little one, he is sure sneaky!  Besides rocks, sand, dirt and grass... rabbit poop, bird seed, dog food and a dead fly have also graced his tasty pallet!   That is just what I know of... who knows what has actually made it past me!

Luke is the perfect addition to this family of ours... he keeps up with Blake, and I keep telling Blake that he needs to be nice to Luke because you guys are best friends HAHA... Not to mention that Luke is going to be a lot bigger then Blake with a completely different build! Its going to be like Kyle and his younger brothers... The oldest (Kyle) is AROUND 5'7 and both the younger brothers are over 6 foot!

This little man is also very sweet!  He loves to roll all over Lucy, and he gives her kisses!  He runs to us like his britches are on fire, and jumps into our arms with the sweetest smile, and him and Blake will play together and just laugh and laugh!  It is fun to see them play NICELY together :)   He has this stuffed rabbit that he just became really attached too... neither Blake or Luke ever took to a binky, blanket or a stuffed animal until now...he carries that bunny around EVERYWHERE!!!  Its funny to see this rough and tough little boy with this cute little bunny :)

It has been a crazy year, and I don't think that I will ever know what I am really doing, but we have survived it, and we are happy!  Happy Birthday Luke!  We all love you so much!

My memorable visit with Aunt Dawn :)

Last week Tammy and I got on an airplane to have a visit with my sweet Aunt Dawn, and what a valuable trip it was... full of love, laughter, tears and hugs... it was the most memorable trip I have ever taken, and I will be back for sure!

We arrived in Pensacola, Florida on Sunday at 2:30 and Dale (Dawn's Brother) picked us up.  He took us on this amazing scenic tour of the Alabama coast, and all the farmland that they have.  I am sure that we sounded like Idiots asking all these "touristy" type questions, but he humored us just the same, and let me tell you, Alabama is absolutely STUNNING!  Beautiful white sandy beaches, sweet bay side boardwalks, horse farms, Pecan orchards, Cotton fields, and so many other things... Here is Downtown Fairhope... just minutes from Mama Lou's. There is a beautiful pier and shopping there, and an art district that would put Seattle to shame!




Then we finally got to the house to see Dawn, and I was so anxious that I could hardly sit still, but when we got there, Mama Lou and Papa Dale welcomed us with Open arms!  Then I got the hug and kiss that I traveled 3000 miles for!  Dawn gives the best hugs, and even though she was in some pain, she gave me the best hug ever!  Over the next day and a half, we had some very valuable conversations about marriage, children, and life... She gave me so many things to think about, and so much insight... I don't know how you can pack everything that you want/need to know from Dawn in 48 hours, but I think that we did a pretty good job :) Sometimes we just sat in silence, other times we laughed really hard, and I herd that cackle laugh that Dawn is notorious for, and we also cried.. really hard sometimes, and we hugged each other. All of us were together... Tammy, Mama Lou, Dawn and myself... it felt as if I was in the company of my family and best friends.  This was the most Valuable Trip I have ever taken.

As for Alabama... well lets just say that saying "sweet home Alabama" is an understatement!  I have NEVER been in a place where people are so welcoming... and I am not just talking about Dawn's family... I am talking about the people at the airport, people on the boardwalk, and even people at the Publix Market!  Everywhere I went, I felt welcomed, cared about, and I felt like I belonged there.  Fairhope is a place where people smile at you for no reason, where they open doors for you and call you Miss Jesica... this is starting to become redundant, I know, but I LOVE ALABAMA!  At night, when everything calmed down, I went outside on there wrap around porch, sat in the porch swing, and I called Kyle to catch up on the boys and to see how everything was going... it was so peaceful... so serene and HELLO, I was in the deep south and sittin on a front porch swing...I get why they do that now!  When we drove through Alabama  that is one of the first thing that we noticed - Everyone has a rocking chairs or swings on their porch.  It is sure a great way to live, I will tell you that!

Mama Lou and Dale are AMAZING!  I don't think that anyone could take care of Dawn the way that they do.  Mama Lou is so caring and attends to Dawn in such a sweet manor, and Dale is always there for his little girl.  I had some really amazing talks with both of them while I was there, and I loved hearing their stories and listening to them talk... who doesn't love a southern accent?   But I didn't just love the sound of their voices, they are both such great story tellers!  Dale told us about how they opened Mama Lou's Restaurant, and about all the unions in Alabama,  and we also had a pretty good talk about church and gun control HAHA  Glad we were both on the same page about that one :)

I am convinced that I would have made a pretty amazing southern belle, and that somehow I was born in the wrong state... I guess there is still time to move there and submerge myself in the southern ways...right?  Well if I never get to live there, I will definitely be back to visit!  Also, we ate some shrimp poboy's and fried blue crab claws that were out of this world!  That by itself is a good enough reason to drop everything and move there!

So in 48 hours in Alabama, I was able to see the one woman who throughout my life, has always been there for me, and I got just a taste of her southern roots.  The small bit that I saw was enough to make me see why she needs to be there... Alabama is the best place for her, and I am so blessed that I was able to be there to see her in person one last time... to feel her, to hear her and to really enjoy her.  Dawn is determined to fight for this last summer to spend with her family and her sweet boys, and by gosh, you know Dawn... she is going to get it!

Thank you to Mama Lou and Dale for all of their southern hospitality, and to Tammy for accompanying me.  I don't know if I could have emotionally made it though that weekend without her.  I have been thinking of a way to do something here that symbolizes my trip, and while in Alabama, Mama Lou took us to this HUGE white Magnolia Tree... I have never seen and smelled something so wonderful.  I looked into it, and if you do it right, you can grow them here... I think that I am going to plant a Magnolia tree here in my yard to always remember my time with Dawn and her family in the sweet state of Alabama.



This is Lou and Dale's home... Absolutely stunning!!! (I stole this picture from Tanners Facebook...Thanks Tanner!!)





Beautiful Magnolia Trees!!

YAY for a GREAT check-up

Our biggest little man is getting to be so grown up.  When we used to do these cardiologist appointments, it was so hard on both me and Kyle.  It was a chaotic fiasco of both of us doing whatever we could to keep his attention and to keep him still... we would pull everything we could think of out of the diaper bad, pull up every app on our phones and pretty much give him anything that he wanted in order to get though this day of testing, and this year... it was like we had a different child.  He talked to the nurses, laid still, smiled, and even laughed.  Kyle and I were both amazed, and it is crazy what a difference a year can make.  

All tests came back GREAT!  His heart looks just like it is supposed to, and is developing at the right pace. Blake's arteries will always be a little more narrow then average because they were stretched and re-positioned  but nothing serious or dangerous.  He is cleared for an and ALL activities.. sports, sky diving and bungee jumping :)   Right now, we are just really excited that we have a happy, healthy and energetic little man!  

We LOVE you Booger Butt!!!

Ready for his appointment!

ECO

Ultrasound

Messing around while waiting for Dr Kim

Eating a cookie on the way home!

Exhausted!