Happy Happy Days!

Apparently this is the Birthday blog cause we haven't posted ANYTHING since Taylor was born. A LOT has happened including moving into my "mini mansion." I call it that because despite it's lack of square footage, I love it. I especially love the garage (which keeps my house clean), working/being in the backyard and having my family in it.

May has been busy for Jeremy. The combination of him being out of town for almost a week for work and then writing a software program for an All Ages, No Holds Barred, Double Elimination Pinewood Derby Fundraising Tournament for the local Scouts, has busily made him in heaven. Couple that with early bed goers, and I found myself with lots of time to work on this little party.

So... without further ado I post pictures of Curtis' 3rd Birthday party.


That meant paper bunting galore,

Taped down roads (6 inch wide black masking tape & 1/2 inch wide yellow tape) inside and out.

Awesome party favors (homemade coloring booklet and melted racecar crayons),
Nana decorated the road cupcakes (Apparently the close up is on her camera),

And a ridiculously large 3 made from streamers.

I think perhaps I've been wanting a kids party for far too long.

We had different stations setup for the kids: A Car Wash (suds, water, bubbles and rags), Drive Thru (food table), "A Guess What My Truck is Hauling"[a touch & feel no peeky box shaped like a truck (in picture above)],

and An Auto Factory (where they mix & match the front and backs of vehicles together).

And because it was at the house Curtis was able to play with it from the moment he got up.

Highlights Of The Week

So many exciting things have been keeping this family busy, so I thought I'd just put up this weeks highlights in regards the the kiddo's.

Curtis has now graduated into his toddler bed. This picture is his first night in bed. Later on that evening I went to check on him again. As soon as I opened the door he woke up and scrambled into bed himself. He finds bedtime fascinating and fun now.

Taylor is more awake now-a-days and likes to chill out.
Curtis is very curious and gentle with Taylor. He often tries to pick her up during diaper changes or re-Binky her or himself while she is sleeping.

Not all of the family has been able to come visit Taylor but some of their friends have... Julia.

Jenny makes goood dinners by the way. Thanks!

But the best highlight of all is found in this video with a wink and a smile.

...And as a Bonus...
Video Charade: Jeremy's new calling.

Can you guess?

... that's right, the Ward's Choir Director.

Meet Taylor Lorraine!

Taylor Lorraine Sorensen was born on Thursday February 18th 2010 at 10:21 am. She weighed 8 pounds 1(.5) ounces and was just about 20 inches long. She now weighs 8 pounds 2 ounces which is pretty good for 4 days old! (I wanted to throw that in now so that people wouldn't get the wrong idea from all the past-tense.) Mother and baby are doing very well and Nana Ruth is helping us out for a few days.
Curtis is adjusting well, given a major cold and being without parents for 2 days. He has inherited "Baby David" from Stephanie's side of the family so he can help take care of a baby until he is old enough to actually help with Taylor (at least when he stops trying to poke the eyes!) Waking up throughout the night for feedings is even more fun than I remembered, but the stress level associated with the second child is SOOO much lower than the first.
All is well here, welcome to the world, Baby Taylor!

Boy, Girl or Pumpkin?

Curtis can't tell what we are expecting, but thanks to technology, ultrasounds and medical insurance we found out...It's a Girl!!!

We are so excited for our new baby to be. During the ultrasound we got to see just how cute she is. While the nurse was taking pics of her Jer and I remember thinking, "Wow you can she her face so clearly," and "look how cute she is." Only the nurse was more interested in showing us that she could take a picture of the lenses of her eyes which was not so cute. In fact, she looks a little spooky. All in the Halloween spirit I guess.

Only 19 weeks in the belly and she's already is a fan of Halloween.

Also Curtis and I went with some friends to the Pumpkin Patch out at Bates Nut Farm and picked out a pumpkin for Daddy. Here are some highlights from that trip:


Trying to round up some ponies,

Having fun on the hayride,

Picking out pumpkins,

Playing in the pumpkins,

And enjoying the whole farm experience.
This is the pumpkin we picked out for Daddy!!

One Of The Big Unknowns, Known.

Yesterday Jeremy told me that I only have 25,000 days left, to live. Although it is much longer than pregnancy it still doesn't sound like a lot of time to live. Until you put it into years. We calculated it out and I'll live to the ripe old age of 94. Depending on what I make of it, it is both comforting and daunting. So I decided to get the actual date which would be Jan 21, 2078. So if you happen to be around, I'd love it if you could make it to my funeral on approx. Jan 23rd... 2078 that is.

Rumor Has It...

And It's True. I'm Pregnant.
(The pregnancy ticker to your right proves that it is legit.)

Pregnancy has got me wondering about hibernation. And if I could hibernate like a bear all winter, assuming Curtis and Jeremy would let me. We don't need to discuss that it isn't even Fall yet.

Anyways Curtis is becoming more and more of the social butterfly at Church. After Sacrament Meeting I give up trying to keep him still and let him roam around Sunday School and Relief Society. I think it is a win-win situation; people seem to love him, I'm done with him and he doesn't ever try to talk. He likes to show people different tricks he can do like click a pen and stretch a slinky. My favorite thing that he does is walk up to the person talking in the discussion and just stare at their facial expressions and hand gestures with a blank stare on his face.
Unfortunately all of these things take place in church and so no photos and video clip are available. I guess that means you'll just have to visit us at some point.

Also want to give a Shout-Out to the Homens and Congratulate them on their pregnancy! We are so excited for the babies to be. Curtis can't wait to have another cousin! (He told me in complete sentences.)

Toddlers Walk AND Talk

I'm amazed everyday by how much this little man grows. He is acting more and more like a toddler and I LOVE it. Since I graduated from SDSU I have continued my education with classes that both Curtis and I can enjoy. Through SDCCD, the local community college, I have been able to enjoy free classroom experiences with Curtis. This summer Curtis and I are taking Outdoor Classroom, where moms and kids age 1-2 years have 6 outdoor activities at different locations around San Diego County.

Although it takes all morning to get ready for each class and I'm ready for a break by the time I get there I think they are soo fun and worth every free penny.

This last time we got into the San Diego County Fair for free. We only stayed for three hours plus travel time but we had it jammed packed with fun.

We saw:

A Magic Show-
Curtis was more amazed by the haystacks we sat on while we ate our lunch.

A Turkey Stampede-
Where we learned about turkey's and watched them race. The blue team won.
And the Petting Zoo-
Where we talked about what sounds different animals make.

...like a pig...

...a lamb...

...and a cow.

Every time we go he learns something new. This last time.... well just watch:

That's my boy!

It's a Birthday Birthday, Birthday Graduation Celebration!!!!

If that title wasn't awesome enough wait 'til you hear about how awesome the actual celebrations were... totally awesome and perfect. In all of the celebrations of awesomeness Jeremy and I were pooped from... well without making the list too long, we will just say, Life. His parents were gracious enough to let us relax and enjoy Newport hotel style.

We had a great time with all of our festivities one of which was spent at the Orange County Swap Meet were Jeremy spent moments of his childhood.

Grandpa bought Curtis a hat with a sailboat on it,very fitting.

Curtis had a swimming marathon in the hotel pool with Grandma Sorensen. He spent a good hour in the water. Way to go guys!

Now Curtis just needs to learn how to splash water Not in his face.

Catch and Release

HOWDY Mr.- Long time no see.


I find Catch and Release a fitting title since I have quite a bit to catch up on and also the fact the my sister and I have been released from school and sent out into the wild world of work and motherhood, not to mention the fact that Julia has moved to the Mormon Mecca...sad. (Julia you will and already are missed.)

Well...Curtis is 1! And at every attempt to celebrate he has refused to fully participate. As parents we have finally said, "Let [him] eat cake." However, the only response we can get from him is a big frumpy turn of the head and a squirm to get away. After many celebratory outtings we have finally subsided to saying, "Let [Us] eat cake."

Although his first seven teeth haven't shown to be a sweet tooth, he himself is one big bundle of sweet delicious goodness. He loves smiling, waving, tilting his head and giving lip-smacks(which I interpret to be kisses). He is also very obedient, gentle, patient and introspective.

Like this film taken way after his bedtime:

New and Improved!

Here is a quick update to the last post, some good distance walking!
He was in a lot better mood after a nap and a bath!
You can hear our friend Janey in the background, she is such a cute little babe.

Also, take note of the wave that Curtis got down today. Cheers!

Also while we're waiting for the upload, here is a new recipe Stephanie tried from Blender Baby Food: Curtis loved it!

Tropical Chicken (Good for babies 8 months or older)
1 tbsp Veggie Oil
1/4 cup diced onion
6 oz. Boneless Chicken Breast, chopped
1/4 cup long-grain brown rice, rinsed
1/2 cup low-sodium chicken stock
1/2 diced peeled Mango

1. In a medium sausepan, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add onion, stir until tender (about 5 minutes). Add chicken, cook and stir until lightly browned, about 7 minutes. Stir in rinsed rice and cook for 1 additional minute. Stir in stock and mango; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer until rice is tender and chicken is no longer pink inside, about 40 minutes (I was done in 15 and needed to add more chicken stock at the end so keep an eye on it). Let cool.
2. Transfer to blender and puree on high speed to desired consistency.

Tip: Mango skin can irritate baby's skin so always peel before using.

He Walks!

So I was watching Curtis and we were in his room (it's easier because I can close the door so he can't get out, and it's the most baby-proof part of the place.) He was standing supported against his dresser and he turned around and walked all the way across the room! There was a huggies box against the wall so he was a little bit short of wall-to-wall but it was probably more than 10 steps in a row, and no falling in between! I spent the rest of the time until he went to sleep trying to catch it on camera, but he never duplicated the feat. Here are some clips of him getting close though!

Zoo Pictures Are The Coolest

Thanks to Julie's camera I've been able to post some.

And here is the craziest thing we saw that day. It was also pretty gross, but shots like this is what makes zoo pictures the coolest. (And no I'm not talking about the picture with Ashlee and me in it.)

On Saturday after Conference we had an Easter Egg Dyeing Party. It was pretty fun but I wasn't feeling well. It was a nice day so hopefully everyone had fun anyways. Conference was good but on Sunday my body needed to crash and thanks to Jeremy I was able to do so. If anyone missed some or all of these awesome and inspiring talks feel free to catch up with me by clicking here for General Conference.


Unfortunately my spring break has come to a close. I am saddened that I need to go back into my hermit school routine for another 1 month, 2 weeks and 2 days. (Let's just say 1 month). I can't believe how much I am dreading this last "month", but I know that it will be better than summer school.

So to all my fans out there I just want to say, "Hang in there." Hey, maybe you could bug Jeremy to post something sometime.

Well, here is my new favorite song by Sea Sew:

I Don't Know from ATO Records on Vimeo.

Until next time.