Mack Attack

Grandma Laura got Jack a set of cars from his favorite movie, Cars, and he was thrilled! However, we were all surprised that his favorite character, Mack, wasn't included in the set. Daddy to the rescue...he stopped by Toys 'R Us on his way home yesterday and found Mack. Jack loved Mack so much he even took him in the tub. (Most of the stickers made it through the spa day.) He played with his Mack and all of his cars last night for hours. The ultimate thrill was playing with all his cars, including Mack, while the movie played on TV! Wow! What a Friday night! Mack is pretty big, so thankfully we were able to get Jack to bed last night without it. No surprise though, he's playing with Mack again as I type. Happy boy!

Still No Baby

Thanks to everyone who has called wanting to know about Nikki's little boy...still no baby! She was due last Friday, so every day that she is late seems like an eternity. She had consistent contractions for several hours on Monday night, went to the hospital when they were 5 minutes apart, and the nurse told her to go home because she was too chipper to be in real labor!!! I advised her to be crabbier next time! HA!

Anyway, Jack and I took a trip down to Long Beach yesterday to help keep her spirits up. Grandma Laura and Auntie Kelsey joined us for lunch at the Yard House, a walk around the Long Beach Pike and ColdStone ice cream...yum! If that spicy buffalo wing sauce doesn't get that baby moving I don't know what will.

Fortunately, Nikki is still doing pretty well. Sleeping and eating OK, no horrible heartburn or swollen extremities. She looks GREAT! All belly, but otherwise not an ounce of fat on her. She is scheduled to be induced on Monday if the little guy is too stubborn to come on his own. I'll keep you all posted when there is news to tell.

P.S. Jack had SO MUCH FUN driving his new cars everywhere yesterday. He was having too much fun to nap. His shirt for the day was appropriate...Sleep is for the WEAK! Thanks for the Awesome cars Grandma!

Story Time

Thankfully, Jack loves his books. As a teacher I'd never live it down if he didn't! He loved Goodnight Gorilla so much this morning that Rob and I both had to read it to him many times. We tried The Very Hungry Caterpillar, another of his favorites, but he only wanted to hear the part where the caterpillar is eating. Butterfly? Who cares!

Go Team!

Today Jack is sporting his blue and gold Adidas sweats from our friend Jason Kapono and his UCLA t-shirt from Auntie Andria and Uncle Phil. He is an adorable little Bruin in the making! Is it football season yet?

Sponsor a Mile

I'm sure you have all heard us talk of the amazing Strong Family in Santa Barbara. Their precious baby Gwendolyn was born just a few months before Jack, perhaps that is why we feel such a connection to them. Sadly, their adorable daughter was born with SMA, the #1 genetic killer of children under the age of two. Gwendolyn just celebrated her 20th month-iversary and continues to delight and inspire her family, friends and even strangers. In addition to the MANY efforts her parents, Bill and Victoria, make to increase attention and funding for SMA, they have established the Gwendolyn Strong Foundation. They will be traveling via RV to Mississippi on June 21st and are trying to raise $50,000 to help find a cure for SMA (100% of money raised goes to their foundation). If you have not already visited their website, we encourage you to check it out. If you have not signed their petition to cure SMA...DO IT NOW!!!! It will only take 30 seconds! If you are interested in sponsoring a mile, two (or maybe ten) please do so.

Rob and I are inspired daily by the courage we see demonstrated by the Strongs. We have strived to be better parents for Jack based on the example set for us by the Strongs. They are truly amazing. We are sure you will be inspired by them too.

Click this link to sponsor their journey:
http://sponsoramile.com/

Click here to visit their website:
http://www.gwendolynstrong.com/

Click here to sign the Petition to cure SMA:
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/182/petition-to-cure-SMA

We can only imagine how our lives would be altered forever if Jack had been born with SMA. Please take the time to help the babies and children afflicted by this dreadful disease. Thanks.

Monkey, Part II

Jack loves when Daddy pushes him in his car around the backyard. So, yesterday he decided to be the Daddy and treat his little monkey buddy to some great fun. After we got Monkey safely strapped in, Jack proceeded to push him around, popping wheelies and chatting with him for quite a while. He is so cute with that darn Monkey! Not so cute, however, was when I turned my back during breakfast this morning and Jack decided to share his syrupy waffles with Monkey! After a quick sponge bath for both of them, it was back to having fun!

Monkeying Around

The only thing more adorable than Jack feeding crackers to his new sock monkey was when he first did it yesterday. You see, he was cuddling in bed with Mommy and Daddy when he decided to share his treats with his new monkey friend. However, he was trying to feed them into the red "mouth-like" thing that is the monkey's bottom! You can see in the video that the two look very similar...I understand his confusion!! Well, today he had it right and I am so delighted to see what a good friend he has become, sharing his treats.

We also went to the park today for lunch and playtime with our adorable neighbors, Junia and Eden. I can't believe I forgot the Flip video!! They were so precious playing together and sharing snacks. The girls each wanted to hold Jack's hands as we walked to the playground, and Junia was especially the doting Mommy with him while we were there. We had a great time and look forward to more playdates this summer.