Trevor's Birthday Party

Here are some pictures from Trevor's first birthday party. He really didn't feel well, but he was a trooper and humored us by at least tasting the cake and not crying in the pictures. First birthday parties are more the parents and family anyway.

That's One Sick Baby

Poor Trevor has been so sick. He had a fever on Saturday night of 102.5 °F. Sunday was his birthday party and you could tell that he just didn't feel all that well. We gave him a chocolate cake for the first time ever and he picked at it like it was made of lima beans. Something was definitely wrong with Trevor.

Fast forward to Tuesday afternoon when we spent two hours at the doctors office trying to figure out what was going on. Trevor had been sleeping 17-20 hours a day, he was not interested in food or water, only breast milk, and he would scream when anyone other than me even looked at him. The only physcial symptom he was having was a high fever. Finally, after several tests and a shot of antibiotic, they sent us home with an appointment to come back in the morning. Trevor woke up with a rash all over his body this morning and Dr. Christopher was then able to make a diagnosis of Roseola which includes a high fever, lethargy, and a rash that breaks out all over the body once the fever subsides.

Trevor seems to be feeling at lot better tonight. He is eating more and finally starting to smile again. It has been nice to have him wanting to nurse and snuggle all the time, but I wish it hadn't been because he was sick. It sounds like he'll be back to normal really soon, which is great because he has lots of cool new toys to play with from Christmas and his birthday.

Happy Birthday Baby Trevor!

What a wonderful year it has been. I am so proud to be a mom to such a sweet boy. Enjoy this video that I made to celebrate his first year of life.

Stuck on the Roof

Today I went on the roof to do this:Because my husband has been playing too much of this:

and I was getting:

Thinking our new neighbors would think we were a:
So I climbed onto the:
via my bedroom window to do it myself!!

I didn't get very far before I noticed hot air pouring out of the open window, so I reached over and closed the window which locked it leaving only 2 inches open.

I could not reach the slider that would release the window, so I tried using the:
I had, but couldn't get it to budge.

By this time I could hear Trevor had woken up from his nap and was:
So I did what any mother would do and very carefully:
The End.

Mother of the Year...or not

It's every parents worst nightmare, you are peacefully pumping the gas, smiling and cooing at your baby every couple seconds to keep them happy while they are safely in the car out of the wind and the cold and the gas fumes. You put the nozzle back and tighten the gas cap, walk to the driver door, pull the handle and it's locked. That's right locked. The keys are right there on the seat where you left them and you have locked your child in the car.

It is a horrible feeling. I should know because today I locked Trevor in the car at the Costco gas station. Trevor is such a good boy and he just sat in the car while Darren and I entertained him by making faces through the windows. Fortunately, USAA did a great job of getting someone to come quickly and within 20 minutes they had gotten us into our car and I showered my wonderful little boy with lots of "I'm sorry" kisses.

Before & After: Bathrooms

The upstairs main bathroom was painted a funny yellow color with palm trees stenciled all over. It definitely clashed with my intended sunflower motif. So the walls got a fresh coat of paint and I spray painted the fixtures silver. It looks much better now.

Before:After:

Downstairs we have the bathroom with a sink and toilet only and I grew to like the leaves stenciled on the walls in there, but as I was trying to hang some shelves I put black marks on the wall that would not come off and there was no matchng paint in the garage to fix it with, so I was forced to re-paint. I think overall it turned out OK.

Before:

After:

New Additions

Here are two recent additions to our home...

First, a new (used) oven off craigslist. The one that came with the house has been practically dead since we moved in. This one works great and looks nicer than the one we had before.


The second addition is a 1930s Henderson Cabinet Grand piano. It is a beautiful piano and I am excited to plunk away on it because plunking is all I can do.

Parent Group Halloween Party

We had a Halloween Party at parent group today. The kids were all too excited to sit nicely for pictures, but here are a few I got. Today is also Trevor's 10 month birthday!

This is Trevor's good friend Cameron. They are 11 days apart in age.

Cameron and Mia were loving getting their picture taken, Andrew was on the verge of tears because he was wearing tights, and Trevor was hoping there was more Veggie Booty under that napkin.

By the time I finally got Trevor's attention, Andrew was still about ready to cry, and Cameron and Mia were ready to crawl away.

It was tons of fun and we even went on a little parade around the Birth Center.

Before & After: Fireplace

I'm not sure what the previous owners were thinking when they decided to paint the mantel around the fireplace maroon, but it definately clashed with the beige tile and my entertainment stand. It looks much better now that it is painted black!!

Before:

After:

Before & After: Tree Removal

There are two trees in our backyard that need to come out. I got several quotes ranging from $500-$2,200. Darren decided that with some help from his friends (and a new chainsaw) he could take them out himself and save $500, minus the cost of the chainsaw and feeding 5 hungry men. It worked great and now the hazardous trees are gone and there is lots of sunlight in the backyard. Now all we need is a chipper to chip up this huge mess.

A big thanks to Darin, Brian, Mark and Jamie for all their hard work today!!!!

Free Pop!!

In my family "free pop" would mean getting punched in the arm, but at Albertsons it means free soda pop. Here's the deal: buy 10 2 liter bottles of pop at 10/$10 and get $10 back via a mail-in rebate. You can choose from 7-up, Squirt, Hawaiian punch, A&W root beer and all of their diet varieties. The Albertsons in Kent even has self-addressed, stamped envelopes to save you time and postage. So hurry up and go get some free pop! **whack in the arm**

Before & After: End of the Driveway

I took advantage of the warm sunny weather today to weed and rearrange some plants at the end of our driveway. I didn't even think to take a before picture because quite honestly I didn't think this space would look picture worthy without some spring flowers, but I am pleased with how it turned out. I think I am going to spell out a new word every couple of months.

Before & After: Trevor's Room

Trevor's room was actually the first project in the house that I completed because I wanted his room to be done before we moved in. Removing the wallpaper from the walls tooks hours, but I was pleased with how it turned out. Here are the before and after pictures.

Before

After

That Face Looks Famillar

My cousin Hannah recently posted a blog about her newborn son looking like the luck dragon Falkor on the Neverending Story. (Check it out here.)

So, when Trevor was in the bathtub yesterday I noticed that he kind of looks like Spongebob Squarepants in this picture...

I Won a Cake...and Then I Ate It

On Tuesday Michelle dropped off her famous Strawberry Yogurt Cake to me because I won a contest on her blog. To win you had to describe something funny that happened to you. Michelle is a fabulous baker and the prize was one of her delicacies. Here is the story I won with.

The Fall of the Great Skirt
I was crossing the street on Montlake and Pacific in the U-District on my way into work one morning and if you know anything about that area at 8 in the morning you know that there is a lot of traffic. So, in order to get from the parking lot to the hospital you have to cross once and then wait on a little island in the middle of the street before crossing again. Well, one morning I was waiting on the island for the light to turn so that I could cross again and all of a sudden it felt really drafty and windy. When I looked down my skirt was around my ankles right in the middle of busy morning traffic. I quickly bent down, pulled up my skirt and walked as fast as I could into the hospital hoping that no one I knew saw my tush.

For my prize I chose the Strawberry Yogurt Cake because it is amazing. Once you try a cake from Michelle you become a cake snob for life. Thanks Michelle!!

Before & After: Outdoor Lighting

As I update and decorate things in the house I have been taking before and after pictures. The outdoor lighting on our house is several years old and desperately needed a makeover because what used to be brass (which I hate even when it is brand new) is now weather beathen and awful looking. Case in point...

But with just one can of silver spray paint, my home looks 10 years younger.

Stay tuned....I have been working on a lot of projects!!

At the Pumpkin Patch

We took Trevor to the Pumpkin Patch yesterday and enjoyed taking some pictures of him. To see more, go to his website here: http://trevorrhales.googlepages.com/10thmonth

It's a Bird, It's a Plane...It's just Baby Trevor

Earlier in the week I had a conservation with my Grandma about Trevor and she asked if he was pulling himself up yet and I said no. Well, not too long after that conversation I sat Trevor down in the dining room so that I could get some unpacking done and when I looked up this is what I saw...

Here was my little boy with his feet totally off the ground in the Superman flying position pulling himself up and into that bouncy chair. Not 2 minutes before he was sitting 5 feet from that bouncer calmly playing with his socks. He is growing up so fast.

It's Official...

We have purchased a house. It is 4 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, with a backyard big enough for football and gardening. We close September 24th and move on September 27th. If you want to see more pictures, you can go here: http://www.picasaweb.com/mindynhales/OurNewHouse

Here are some of my favorite parts of the house:















The bright red front door and bay window in the living room. I also love that fun window on the second level. That looks into the master bedroom.















The west side of the house has a romantic corner with jasmine growing on a trellis. It is beautiful!




















This is a picture of the new washer with matching dryer we purchased to go in the new house. Exciting!!!

The Next Michael Phelps?

The past couple of days Trevor has wanted to be on his tummy in the bath tub swimming. As soon as I put him in the tub he rolls over and starts kicking away. Notice in the video that he is not fooled by my false start cue of "go" and waits for the official Olympic buzzer sound before starting his swim. Haha! Maybe he will grow up to be the next swimming superstar.

LDS Living Magazine and FHE

Darren and I have set some new family goals, one of which is to have FHE every Monday night. We really want to make sure that weekly Family Home Evening is in place as Trevor grows up so that it will be a righteous tradition for our family. But, having FHE and coming up with a lesson is easier said then done, until I subscribed to LDS Living's Email Magazine. Each day of the week they send you an email about different gospel topics. Monday's email always includes a FHE lesson complete with a scripture, thought, song, object lesson, story, activity, and a recipe for a dessert. It makes FHE completely foolproof and some of the recipes have been really tasty. I download the .pdf file for each lesson and save it to my computer for future use.

Another huge help to our FHE has been the Interactive Church Music Player found here: http://www.lds.org/churchmusic/. In case you aren't familiar with it let me explain. This website has the sheet music for any song in the hymn book or children's songbook. You can print out the sheet music for a family member to play on the piano, or if you are like us and do not play piano, the website will play it for you, with or without words. Having the piano playing in the background not only helps us sing the correct tune, it helps us feel less embarrassed singing aloud.

I feel so blessed to live in a time where the internet is available and I am grateful for the ways in which it helps us gather information and share it with others. You can subscribe to LDS Living's Email Magazine by going here: http://www.ldsliving.com/ldsmagazine.asp. Take a minute to subscribe and make a goal to have FHE every Monday night. I know that your family will grow closer together and you will be blessed for your efforts.

Giving Kisses

On Saturday we had a BBQ at my dad's house and took the babies swimming. My nephew Devin is almost 10 months old and loves to give kisses. Here are some pictures of him giving Trevor kisses. Trevor was moving around so much that Devin missed the first time, so for the next kiss he held his head still so he could give a good one. Haha!

Rafting the Cedar River

Many of you know that Darren and his best friend Darin (it is confusing, and it gets worse as they are both engineers too!) have been taking raft guide training this summer. They are having a blast and in his excitement Darren purchased a 12' raft from a co-worker and for the 4th of July we all (Trevor included) rafted the Cedar River. The complete story is on my website...Check it out!

ABC's of My Life

A--attached or single? Attached
B--best friend? Oh how I need frequent doses of Laura Jex
C--cake or pie? Cake , but it has to be moist yummy cake like Michelle makes
D--day of choice? Friday – that is the one might of the week Darren is usually home
E--essential item? Gum…I’m addicted
F--favorite color? Yellow
G--gummy bears or worms? Bears
H--hometown? Ballard or Burien
I--indulgence(s)? When Trevor is napping I read a whole lot more than my husband thinks I do.
J--january or july? January - it's my birthday month!!
K--kids? I love Baby Trevor
L--life is incomplete without: Chocolate
M--marriage date? August 9th, 2003 (We are coming up on 5 years!)
N--number of siblings? 1 sister, 1 brother
O--oranges or apples? Tough call…I like both a lot
P--phobias or fears? I’m still a little bit afraid of the dark. Hearing Trevor is the ONLY thing that gets me out of bed at night.
Q--quotes? “Sister Ignatius taught me in Sunday School that "in the beginning there was light," but to me, it was always an incomplete sentence, which God should have known to amend: in the beginning God created light...to read by.”-Lorna Landvik from "Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons"
R--reason to smile? Darren and Trevor
S--season of choice? Spring
T--tag 5 friends: Laura, Kate, Charise, Hannah, and Noelle (If they have time they are all very busy ladies!)
U--unknown fact about me? I used to have constant double vision, but now it only happens when I get tired.
V--very favorite stores? Are eBay and craigslist considered stores??
W--worst habit? I take over telling a story that my husband has started…he hates it when I do that.
X--x-ray or ultrasound? Ultrasound because you can turn your head at look at the screen (even though I can never tell what they are looking at).
Y--your favorite food? I am a carnivore…I like steak.
Z-- zodiac sign: Aquarius

Trevor is 6 Months Old!

Everyone has always told me that babies grow up so fast and it is true. I can't believe that our little boy is already 6 months old. He is learning and developing so much every day I am amazed. Just in this last month he has started eating solid foods, found his screaming voice, and discovered his toes. He has started sleeping 6 hours stretches at night and last night he even slept 8 hours straight in his crib. What a joy and blessing he is to our family.

Watch out Frank Sinatra...there's a new old blue eyes in town.

He's getting so strong. Not too much longer before he'll be crawlling all over the place.

(Check out his website for more pictures: http://trevorrhales.googlepages.com/)