William L. Colnon

April 11, 2013

For My Grandpa

'I know we are all feeling a little bit sad,That we've lost our Grandpa, our friend, and our dadTogether we have cried an ocean of tearsAs we feel so empty and hold many fears

But Grandpa would want us to know he's in a good placeAnd that he watching us all with a smile on his faceAs we have made him so proud, as proud as can beThat he has raised such a beautiful and special family

Thinking back now I really must sayI feel lucky and privileged to have known Grandpa to this dayFor in my life, you have played a special partThe memories I will treasure and keep close to your heart

For me, I am glad my little baby he got to meetAnd for all of us, be grateful, his life is now completeTo each one of us he has loved and caredAnd a family, be thankful for the good times we shared

Although he has gone we will always be togetherAnd his spirit will live on each one of us foreverWhen you look to the sky, look for the brightest starAs that will be Grandpa looking down on us from afar

And now I would like to thank the good Lord aboveFor blessing us with our Grandpa with his kindness and loveDear God, if it is not too much fussTake extra special care of our Grandpa as he is very dear to us

Grandpa if you are listening say a prayer for us every dayBe sure to protect us and guide us on our wayWe know when God called you, you had to goBut we want you to know Grandpa we miss you and love you so.'

- Ilona Blake

I miss you so much already, Grandpa. I am at peace knowing that you can hold Grandma's hand once again. I love you more than words.  

Em

First Haircut

So I know Jake is just about 18 months, but the kid was basically bald until 12 months so it took awhile for him to need a real haircut!

Here are some pics of the event. Such a cute kids salon & boutique. He loved sitting in the airplane and watching cartoons.

My baby boy doesn't look like such a baby anymore rocking his faux hawk.

My boys

Photos are easiest to upload from my phone...finally! Jake & his brother. :)

House photos (part 1)

Some pics of the kitchen, living, dining, family rooms on main level of the new house...still a work in progress, but getting there after 2 weeks. Did I mention how much we LOVE our home! So happy.

Will get more photos of the entire house posted.... I am giving myself 4 months to do as much as I can (within reason & on budget) prior to baby boy #2's arrival!

Suburban Life is Bliss

Just wanted to capture this feeling.... I love our home. Love it.

Love the quiet, the lack of city noise, a garage, nearby grocery stores, and that this is where my family is. While Jake was napping today, and I was sitting in the quiet looking out the window at the kids across the street and just so very thankful and relaxed. Haven't felt this way in a long time. Bliss, pure bliss.

Pictures to come after all the installs, deliveries, etc this week.

Ah, Home Sweet Home

I seem to be having problems with posting my photos & videos. I don't know about anyone else but Blogger always gives me trouble (hence the reason why I often just have text posts). I will work on this as soon as I can, as I have lots of awesome pics of Jake, videos of him and some pregnancy pics of my growing belly.

Today is CLOSING DAY!

Around 4 or 5pm we take possession of our new home in Bothell, Washington. As you can tell we are counting down the hours. Look how cute it is!!!

Starting tonight thru the weekend, we have A LOT of work to do. I am a bit overwhelmed.

Terri, Steph & Zach are all coming to help us out (thank goodness). We are so grateful as it has been more than difficult trying to get this place all packed up pregnant with a toddler. I am so ready to be done & settled.

After Nick leaves work tonight, we are going to meet at 'home' to check out the place, as it's been a long time since we have been inside! While dropping off our 1st load of stuff, I will take some pics and post them so you can see the before and afters of the interior! I have big plans for my nesting/decorating over the next 4 1/2 months before baby #2 comes. A perfect project for a pregnant woman!

As for baby #2... we are already 18 weeks along. I feel the baby everyday now, which has been really fun. Proof that you forget the little things of pregnancy, because when I thought back to being pregnant, I remembered the end and feeling Jake's feet, elbows, bum, knees jab into my ribs, etc. My brain skipped right over the little fluttering while baby still has lots of room to move around. Love these little flutters. Baby seems to make his or her presence known particularly when I am carrying Jake and he is squishing my tummy. Little brother or sister is probably just trying to tell Jake that someone else is about to rock his world come August.

The last 90 days.

Since resigning from Razorfish nearly 3 months ago, there has been a whirlwind of activity in the Montgomery family. My last day at Razorfish was December 14th. December 7th we found out we were pregnant with baby #2! Super thrilling and overwhelming and exciting all at the same time. And the timing is definitely God's, just perfect.

This pregnancy has been very different from Jake's. I was sick for about 4 weeks vs. 8-10 weeks. What a relief. I am not sure how I would have handled the day to day if it lasted any longer than it did. I am super tired, but my energy returned like overnight at week 14. I felt like I had narcolepsy for 3 months. Thank goodness that's over, because Jake sure doesn't care if mommy is tired. We are go, go, go. Now 17 weeks along, I am feeling great.

Jake is 17 months next week and busy walking, climbing and running (if he feels daring enough) everywhere and on everything. I can't turn my back for 2 seconds. The townhouse we are renting here in Seattle isn't childproofed, so we are VERY excited to move into our new home next weekend and lock the cabinets, put the gates up and remove all hazards so he can have some freedom.

He is a chatty Cathy, and picking up something new each day. I am loving being home with him and getting to see his development and excitement to explore & learn. We try to do one fun activity (music class, the park, Gymboree, Children's Museum, Stroller Strides, etc) a day as part of our new schedule. It seems to be working out for his social interaction and mine. This kid has some serious personality... it's so much fun to see him ham it up. Today we were driving to Stroller Strides, I can't remember what song came one the radio, but it was a jazzy tune. Jake obviously liked it. I looked back and he was fist pumping (right arm only) in the backseat smiling at me while we drove. The perfect moment. Love this kid.

Some other favorite words & actions of his:

- Lyla (probably his best friend... obsessed with her). Btw, all dogs are Lyla's
- Bus (he points them out to me in the car rides or on walks)
- Ball
- Please
- Mama
- Dada
- Bubble
- Hi
- Bye Bye
- Shoe (my 1st word too)
- Clenching his fists and grunting when you say 'show me frustrated' (see video in next post)
- Leaning in for kisses & hugs
- Fist Pumping (one arm only) to music in the car
- Dancing (this kid loves music... definitely his father's child)
- After he has a sip of his water or milk, he does a big 'aaaaah' like how refreshing. Hilarious
- "Knucks" to mom and dad
- Laughing, like full belly laughs. I could listen to him laugh for hours....

The last 3 months have also been a whirlwind of real estate activity. We sold our 1st home together in Portland after just 7 days on the market! Whoop! And then, quickly got a taste for the competitiveness in the Seattle market. Houses go and up down in 24 - 48 hours, no joke. Multiple bids, cash offers, you name it -it's an aggressive game. We lost out on a couple of homes before we found THE ONE. We competed with 9 (yes, 9) other offers after just 36 hours of the listing going live. We went in guns ablazing... we had to have this house. It was perfect for our growing family - great school district, perfect location for Nick's commute, cute neighborhood, awesome floor plan and almost brand new (only been lived in for 10 months). In the 11th hour, the Sellers accepted our offer. We close on March 14th... it can't come soon enough!

So for the last few weeks, I have been packing and purging during Jake's naps trying to get us ready to move for what I'd like to think is the last time in a LOOOOOONG time. This the 1st time I have had to pack myself (spoiled, I know) in the last few moves. It's been good and bad. Good because I will know where everything is. Bad because it's a lot of work, when I'd kill to just sit down and chill. However, there is a major difference in moving 15 miles vs. 2000. We are almost there though, and very excited.

After Jake was born, here are the goals that Nick and I set for ourselves and our family:

- Get back to the West Coast, near family and friends (check)
- Nick to find a job that he was passionate & excited about, something he loved (check)
- Emily to stay home (check)
- Sell our house in Portland (check)
- Buy a house and settle in Seattle (check)
- Grow our family (in progress)

I am feeling so proud of us for laying out our plan for our life together and for our family. I am so excited to see what else is in store for us. As for now, loving the journey and feeling so blessed for all that we have. Love my husband, my son, my growing baby, my life.

em