Training Wheels!

A while back my cousin gave us a hand-me-down bike with training wheels and a helmet. So, our son has had his first experience with training wheels and after 45 minutes we have decided to go back to the tricycle! My dad spent 45 minutes out there pushing James around and trying to teach him how to ride, but he was never able to grasp the idea that he was supposed to do his part...the pedals aren't there for decoration! So until he can figure out the pedals on his tricycle we will not be riding bikes! He has ruined countless footie pajamas dragging his feet while riding his tricycle and that should have been my first clue that he wasn't ready for training wheels, but he was so darn cute!We borrowed a costume this year from the Baesler family. They have 4 boys of various ages, which made them perfect. James probably had 20 costumes to choose from and we went with the pirate this year. He has always been some furry friend, but we got serious this time! James loved the hat and the vest!
This was at our wards Halloween party! We had a great time letting the kids run around and do some trunk or treating! My dad did his part in holding Logan. His costume is a little more subtle then most. Logan's onesie says "this is my costume" I figured that this would be the easiest for the both of us...plus it was only three bucks at Wal-Mart!

Logan's first girlfriend! Olivia Martin is 3 months older than Logan, but I am pretty sure he out weighs her by 5 pounds. They are so sweet together. Oh, Logan is the one on the right. She doesn't have much hair yet!

Family fun!

We are still living on Whidbey Island and as oh yet there is no move in date to Everett...so I life is still a little crazy! This last weekend we went to Leavenworth to enjoy the changing of the leaves and some good old fashion family time. We caught the 11:30 ferry and headed out on our 2 hour drive up and over the mountains and thru the woods. Of course my babies slept and did fantastic when we got out to walk around. Here are a few pictures of our fun family and other fun stuff, but no leaves...deadcameraitis.Logan and daddy on a swing in Plains, Washington. FYI: Logan was 12 pounds on his 1 month birthday...that's over 4.5 pound of weight gain yall! October's fast Sunday picture! Logan is 5 weeks, James is almost 2 1/2 and well the rest of us are 25 and 26, but that's not important.
On the ferry coming back from Leavenworth I was nursing Logan and James got a hold of daddy's Coke and was chugging it down!
James attempted to take of his diaper and couldn't get both legs off and it ended up falling down his leg...found this after he peed in my bed. Looks like he has elephantitis.
James is (almost) always willing to hold Logan and give him kisses...such a sweet set of boys I have been blessed with.

Speaking of family I also found this great quote on another friends site...

the family. we were a strange little band of characters trudging through life sharing diseases and toothpaste, coveting one another's desserts, hiding shampoo, borrowing money, locking each other out of our rooms, inflicting pain and kissing to heal it in the same instant, loving, laughing, defending, and trying to figure out the common thread that bound us all together. ~erma bombeck

Here's my baby!

Logan was 2 weeks old in this picture! He is beefing up and doing better about his days and nights! Life is great and we are learning one day at a time how to live with 2 boys! Logan is still waking up 4 times a night to eat and enjoy his one on one time with the breasturant...and James isn't missing out on the fun either. He started waking up at 5:00 am to announce he can't find his boo (pacifier) and come snuggle in with mom and dad...we only noticed today that this was becoming a trend! But he is sick so we will allow a few more days. James has started to put himself to bed and I am enjoying that little bit of freedom on his behalf. About every other night I have to lay him down, but he is actually going into his room and tucking himself in! Even when I do lay him down we used to have to fight and usually cry ourselves to sleep, but now he is staying in bed like a big boy. James has also recently rediscovered the potty. He wants to go and sit down on the toilet 3 or 4 times a day, no deposits yet, but lets give the kid a break!

Almost 2 weeks old!

Logan is almost two weeks old! I don't know how that could have gone by so fast, but it seems like he has grown too much! On Friday, the 5th, he was 7.6 lbs and on Wednesday, the 10th, he was 8.3 lbs. That means it was probably a pound of weight gain in a week! Logan has been sleeping in 2 hour stints all night and much longer during the daytime hours. He keeps me busy, but at least he has stopped spitting up with every meal. I still way over produce for one child, so he is on the verge of drowning with every meal, but we seem to keep things in check pretty well. James seems to really adore having a little one around the house. He gives him kisses and wants to hold him all the time. I have caught him 3 times carrying him, that was scary! This was taken right after he pooped on me!!! I had just gotten out of the shower and he aimed and scored!

And we can't forget about the first born in the wilderness of my youth...James has been loving life on the Island! He spends most of his time with Papa, my dad, and the dog working outside. I am sure its a dream come true for any boy to play outside with grandpa and a dog!

James and Papa raking the grass in the orchard. (The shorts and goloshes are a good look, don't you think!)

Isn't it sweet that they both have their own wheel borrows!

Logan McKay Kincaid

Hey everyone, guess what? We are home! Last night we got home and took it easy, just the 3 of us (James is with my parents). Logan was born on the 3rd at 7:17 pm weighing in at 7.11 and 20 3/4 inches. He is a healthy happy baby boy. We have our first appointment today because we didn't stay the full 24 hours to make sure he isn't jaundice. Logan has been a great eater and a fantastic sleeper...slept from 10:30 -2:00 and then from 2:30 - 8:00. I kind of woke him up at the 2:00 feeding, but he was making noise and I couldn't help myself. Logan and daddy just minutes after he was born.
Logan Thursday afternoon napping.
Just before bedtime Wednesday night.
Logan's first bath! Didn't like it much, but Curtis says he gets that from him.


So a brief play by play...we checked in for our scheduled inducing at 8:00 Wednesday morning and got the antibiotics and pitocin going and then waited. I felt a few contractions, but nothing to write home about so I was convinced that they were going to send me home since I wasn't progressing past my 3 cm, but at 4:30 Dr. Andrews came in and broke my water and from there things got messy! I started feeling my contractions and by 6:30 I was in full labor. About 15 minutes before he was born they checked me and I was still only at a 5 and I was asking if there was something I could have between an epidural and nothing...they laughed and said I could do it! I pushed 3 times and out came Logan McKay in all his birthday glory!

Pot Roast Success

Yesterday I started my pot roast at 9:00 in the morning and about 10:00 that night the meat was falling apart! I have never had it fall off apart before, and when I started getting excited about it Curtis just made fun of me like he didn't know it was supposed to fall apart. It is one of my favorite meals and I have been attempting it about once a month since we've been married and I finally got it right. It was 10:00 at night so we didn't try it, so it could be gross, but we will find out about 6:00 tonight! Just thought yall should know I got it right, I think!

Yeehaw for me!

I have somewhat successfully talked my OB into inducing me on the 3rd of September for all those that are interested...that would be Wednesday. I have a lot to do before then and not much time left to do it in! I have been looking for nursing bras for the past few months and very seriously the last week and I finally bought two yesterday. I have my hospital bag packed...well almost. Some of those that are close to me have me somewhat worried that I may come home with a girl, so I wanna pick up a little girl outfit just to be on the safe side. Oh I should probably pack my tooth brush too. I have the apartment mostly packed and need to get that done before Wednesday too. I bought a full size couch yesterday at Ikea for $243, so I don't know how much more I can do since I have this thing in my way when I am lifting and carrying boxes.

Oh something else I still need to do is find this child a pediatrician...haven't done that yet either. I decided to have a pediatrician do the circumcision instead of the OB, since I have been hearing a lot of horror stories from friends, so I really gotta do that fast. Tuesday will be a long day, forgot Monday is Labor Day (wish it was my labor day).

My mom and dad set up the crib down at the beach house so that will be all ready for us when that time comes (its a good thing it is a neutral print), but I still need to get my portable crib to Lynnwood so that is ready too. I have maybe 10 meals made, but they are in my mothers freezer, so maybe I should get something into mine to take us thru Sunday. My mom is coming over Wednesday morning to take James while Curtis takes me to the hospital and when things start rolling she will drop him off with my girlfriend and assist my woosy husband. I am not sure what her plan is, but we talked about her pulling up the RV and staying a couple of days, but since we are going to be moving to the island Monday, maybe we will skip that step. I think I will have to stay in the hospital until Friday since they have a 24 hours requirement for baby before we can go home. I am ready to have this baby right now, just don't know how ready the rest of me is.

Our New House

Curtis and I are fixin to "buy" our first house! I say "buy" because we are doing a lease to own on a 2 year contract. The house is in the old part of Everett and sits right next to an Elementary school. I believe it was built in 1918, which makes Curtis weak in the knees to think about, so it has that craftsmen charm inside. We are in the process of remodeling and adding to the house and it looks like we won't move in until closer to October 1st. We had hopes it would be September 15th, but we will just hang out on Whidbey Island until then, so watch out Whidbey here we come!

Curtis has been busy completing the unfinished basement after hours and on weekends. When he's done it will have a guest room, 3/4 bath, a play room, theater, office and our food storage room. On the main floor he is adding about 20 feet to the back of the house with a sun room and a bigger laundry room. We are going to have a washer for Curtis and one for the family. His clothes are so yucky when he gets home, I welcome this idea! In the spring we have plans to take off the roof and add another bedroom upstairs and a master bath with a walk-in closet, oh and then Curtis wants to build a garage with a shop and a bio-diesel plant in the backyard with an apartment up top...not sure when that fits into the plan, but it will happen I know that. He is continually complaining about the price of diesel these days and making his own would be nice. I know we are busy kids, but we have big plans...plus Curtis loves it. We are really excited to get this all done and be able to move in to our first house.

38 Weeks

We are 38 weeks and counting. I had an appointment today and I asked what my chances were on being induced and she said that it depended on what my body thought...so she tentatively scheduled me to be induced on the 3rd. I would really love to have this baby before heading to the Island on the 8th, but we will see what Logan thinks, I am sure we will be a stinker and not want to come out half baked. She said that I was 2 cm dilated so that's a good start. My next appointment is on the 2nd and hopefully by then things will have progressed enough that we can get this party started.

Making Cookies

For Family Home Evening this week James and I made Snickerdoodle cookies together! James has never done so well...it almost makes me want to cry, my little baby boy is growing up so fast! It seems like just this last month he has advanced and started to understand so much more. I was shocked yesterday when I asked him to get his blue shoes he went up stairs and brought down his blue shoes. He has been so patient with us and I hope pray he will do the same with Logan!

Pump it Up!

One of our favorite things to do is go to Pump it Up! It is this great indoor blow up amusement park just a couple blocks from our house. James and Ben run around for just over an hour and then they both go home exhausted...every mothers dream come true!

James escaping from the gauntlet

Joe, Ben and James doing a one let trip down the slide

Ben and James coming out of one of the obstacle courses! And yes Ben usually does beat James.

Look just over the big white building and you will see the Provo Temple

Provo Temple

Having family that works for a Hotel chain has been really handy! While out moving family my mom and I got to stay in almost all the different Marriott's, Residence Inn was the only one we missed (thank you Nancy)! This is the view from the Provo Marriott...Its the Provo Temple! I was so excited to see it (James was just excited not to be in a car) and wished that we had just a little more time to go inside. When I left home the Seattle temple was doing some over hauling on Moroni and it felt so strange to look up and see him missing. My mom and I decided that someday when we get old we are going to visit all the temples...not sure if this is a realistic goal or not, but how amazing would that be to see all the temples and feel the that same peaceful spirit all over the world. I am so grateful for temples and that we have the opportunity to have them so near to us in this beautiful land of ours. What an am amazing blessing we have so close to us to enter into the Lords House.

Heather Marin

My very good friend Heather Marin is moving far away to Billings, Montana and yes this makes me oh so very sad. We have been FHE buddies since Curtis and I moved into this ward in January and have spent many a good nights laughing together. Although I am sad to see her leave I am happy that they are buying their own house and getting a good job. She is due exactly a month after I am and I am sad that I won't be able to hold the new little guy freshly hatched, but I am sure leaving family and friends isn't easy for her either. So, ode to Heather my friend, enjoy the drive and the move, Love Linda

PS This is from my baby shower last night, totally goofy of both of us, but especially Heather! Sorry Heather! Oh thanks for the diapers!!

Moving

What a busy few weeks we have had. July started out with my entire family in town and 2 weeks of sleepless nights with them. Then we had a Kincaid family reunion and wedding from the 24th - 27th. When we got home I unpacked, did laundry, cleaned my carpets and did most of my cleaning that I had been neglecting the month of July. On the 29th while dropping my mom off to the ferry found out that an extra driver would be needed to move my eldest sister...so I came home repacked the same suitcases and left the morning of the 30th and drove to Boise. Thursday we made it to Orem to pick up my little brother and his wife. Friday we drove to Phelan, California only to arrive at 11:00 at night, so cleaning and packing didn't start until Saturday. On Saturday we left Phelan for our 6 hour drive at 8:00 at night and with car trouble made it to Cedar City, Utah, at 3:00 in the morning. Sunday morning we got up and got ready for Church only to get into the cars and find out we still had car problems...so we prayed, gassed up and hit the road to finish out the last leg of the trip to Orem (which took us an extra few hours) and started unpacking again.

Sigh...what a busy last few couple of weeks we have had. Since this brings us all to today; we are unpacking and organizing and will say our good byes tonight and then head back to the hotel and take off tomorrow morning early and drive as far as we can since I have my baby shower Wednesday evening at 7:00. Guess I should make it to my own shower, eh? So the next time you see James and I we will have a few more wrinkles and puffy eyes, but we will be home and happy with our adventures. But I have learned that moving a family of 7 is easier said then done, but I am sure our move coming up will have the same amount of craziness since we plan to move the end of this month beginning of next and I am due September 8th! Life is good!

Rolling down the hill (kinda)

Last night we went to the Aquasocks game (local minor league baseball team) and we sat up on the hill so that James could run around and enjoy himself while we watched the game. Let me tell you I have no idea what the score was when we left because that kid is so entertaining. He has never seen anyone roll down a grassy hill and he never did figure it out, but the entire concept was very new and exciting to him. James mostly just pushed himself up the hill and then would run up the hill and jump down it. There was a little girl there that was probably 4, but he was putting on the moves! He did his old man proud!

Life Preservers!

We just got back from the Kincaid family reunion and it is always so nice to get together with family especially since one of Curtis' sisters got married Saturday! We had the reunion in Moses Lake, about 3 hours from our house, and the weather was perfect for all we had planned which was great for all the kids that went swimming. James never really got comfortable enough to get all the way in but he sure enjoyed the ladder! I really like the preserver I got for him too. I got it from Target and it has an inflatable core. The sides unzip to reveal little things you blow up, zip it back up and he floats great. Another added detail is that it is so compact when your not using it! Genius!

Chocolate Ice Cream

Chocolate ice cream in the hands of a 2 year old makes a huge mess and I am spreading the news! After taking family pictures, at the Kincaid Family Reunion, Curtis' eldest brother bought us some ice cream and his kids all did really well, didn't get a drop on them and he's got a 3 & a 5 year old. James makes everything that could be a mess, a mess...not ever to be out done!

What you can't see is that his lap is completely covered in ice cream and that the cone was thrown on the floor! How do kids know exactly how long your wingspan is? There was ice cream on everything! Long live car trips and 2 year olds!

Another appointment

I had my 33 week check up on Monday and I am closer to being on track. I measured 34 cm and I gained no weight!!!! Yeehaw! I feel great! I am sure I will be singing a different tune tonight after all this hard work, but even after carpet cleaning and cleaning I feel great! I must say though I am really excited for September to roll around, won't complain much when that comes either!

With the Grandparents

James loves spending the day with Mama & Papa and I can't even express how nice it is to get some deep cleaning done around the house while he is gone. So today while I was scrapbooking, cleaning my carpets and scrubbing my kitchen floor this is what James was up to...

James started out the day picking raspberries with Mama, I am sure they weren't all ripe, but the kid loves his berries and I am sure Mama appreciated the extra help!
Lunch time with Papa and Kayla, Papa's new dog, in the bed of the truck. When I checked in at 1:30 he was outside with Papa, no shoes on, playing in the wood pile and shoveling the wood chips and saw dust. What a happy boy! I am so blessed to have family so close to me that are always willing to help! Thanks mom & dad! Love you.

12 hours of continuous SLEEP!

Ever since we got back from Puerto Rico James has not slept through the night and putting him down for bed has been terrible, but we may have figured it out. A few months ago we decided no more pacifier, but gave up after over a week of multiple hours of crying before falling asleep on the floor in front of the door. Then we figured it just isn't dark enough, so I put foil over his windows so he would know it was night time and not wake up at 5:00 in the morning. After that we tried a little night light with 2 pacifiers, but still he would fall asleep in front of the door and cry himself to sleep. We may have figured him out (knock on wood), so he has 2 pacifiers and I leave a lamp on. No tears and he falls asleep in his own bed. I talk about this like it has been going on for weeks, but last night we put him down about 9:00 (we had company over) and it is 9:08 and I just heard his little war cry! That is 12 hours of continuous sleep for James! I wish I could say the same for me, but I don't 12 hours in on my schedule for the next couple years!

Baby

They say this is a baby at 32 weeks...I am 33, but this picture was way better then the example they showed for 33! My friend Jenny says that after 30 weeks they are all cute, but before then too much hasn't developed and they tend to still look alienish! (She's an RN in a NICU.)

How many?

I have an appointment coming up, but does anyone know how many contractions your allowed to have before you have to go in and worry about it? Was it 5 or 6 contractions per hour? Been 4 to 5, but I haven't actually laid down, but sitting watching Extreme Home Makeover isn't power lifting.

4th of July fun!

It was so much fun to have my entire family here for a couple of weeks. We stayed up late together and had lots of fun dinners at the beach! James really loved having a few extra playmates around and we got great sleep because of it! All the grand kids got along so well...mostly but when you range kids from 10 to 2-2 year olds you can't expect good times all the time!

Peter (9), Claire (4), James (2), Amy (2), Stuart (7) & Kristin (10)

Amy
I am sure Amy & James has digested more sand then most kids.
It was sad to see everyone leave, but now that everyone lives in Utah it will make visits to see everyone that much easier. We will be back together again when Nancy gets married this winter in Salt Lake and those will be some good times. Hopefully I am back to being me by that point and not so much Logan and me!

Backyard swimming pools!

This past 2 weeks we have been blessed to have all my family together. It was especially fun for James, who is usually an only child. He will have a hard next couple of days being a single child again. His little buddy, Ben, will enjoy James being home again, so that will help a lot.This is James with Emily's 4 year old daughter Claire with 2 year daughter Amy dancing in the background. Emily's family had come by to pick raspberries and blueberries before heading south early the next day and the little ones enjoyed the berries, but while no one was watching they all ended up wet! Made for 3 happy kids!
Claire being silly
Claire and Amy dancing....James isn't a dancer.

Baby Business

I had my 31 week appointment on the 7th and I have been feeling great, but my doctor seems to think that things are getting a little large and in charge up front and that the chances of being induced are pretty high. Here's the deal, I am 31 weeks pregnant and I am measuring as if I was 34 weeks pregnant and I lost weight for this weigh in, so its baby growing and not me. My next appointment is in 2 weeks and if Logan keeps growing so much I am going to have to have ultrasounds at all of my appointments to monitor his weight! Crazy kid. I keep praying that he will be healthy and strong, I didn't realize that I was so faithful! I delivered James at 42 weeks but I only measured 34 and he was 9.1 pounds. I hate to think of what this kid will come up with! Life is exciting and full of surprises!

More catch up!

This is our newest thing. We put him down at night in his bed and he falls asleep in front of the door. Its a good thing we have 2 doors to his room, or else that's where he would sleep all night! James has been starting to have opinions as to what he wears the last few months and this day he wanted to wear a tie and since those have to be dry cleaned we compromised and went with suspenders. Its a good look on him and look how proud he looks. He wore those suspenders all day long and hasn't wanted to wear them since!

This last weekend we went to my cousins Graduation party and his daughter's 2nd Birthday party and all my Aunts and Uncles were there! It has been a long time since they have been together and it was good to see them all well and in good health.
Linda, Al, Kimber and my dad, Larry
And their spouses! What a good looking bunch of people! Doesn't my mom look great?

Catch up!

Here is kind of what A & D looks like in hair. Modeling for us today is Ben and James...

I guess to be fair you should know that not all of this is A & D, my son is constantly leaking from his orfacies! Its a good mixture of snot, drool and A & D!

James playing at the Edmond's Beach. It was a cloudy day so the picture is really dark but you can still see the ferry and the mountains in the background! Sometimes we forget how lucky we are to live in this area!