Check out this house

Scott and I spent a couple of hours yesterday in Hudson, WI touring this Passive House.  We met the owner and had a tour from the architect that designed this beauty.  They opened the home to the public this weekend in coordination with the 7th International Passive House Days.  It was absolutely fascinating to learn how energy conscious and eco-friendly you can be when building a house.  He even used the lumber from the trees that he removed from the property to make his walls, doors, and trim.  Inspiring!  

Our two fat cats

This is Melly and Luna.  Our longtime pals since the Colorado Springs days.  I rarely take pictures of them anymore but they are still loyal to me.  (Not so much to Dad anymore...he has no time for belly rubs and if he had it his way, he would find them a nice farm to live on.) 

This week I am armed with ice, Arnica, Biofreeze, my chiropractor, my massage therapist, and physical therapist after injuring my back last week...and these are my two companions.  Or, perhaps it is the fact that Jake is at Grandma and Grandpa's for the week so they are free to roam and relax without getting chased. 

Thank you Grandma Sue for driving down last week and helping me out...and then taking Jake home and entertaining him in addition!   I am actually able to walk today without looking like the hunch back of Notre Dame, and am hopeful that by the end of the week I'll be back in great shape!  We'll see you on Friday!

Tumbling take two

Jake's second session of tumbling is under way.  With log rolls and forward rolls mastered, he's onto bridges and cartwheels, oh my.  I haven't taken him to the class yet but Dad reported that there is an older boy in the class that Jacob thinks is pretty cool...so he follows him around.  Hooray for good role-models! 

Pumpkin fun

Trick or treat!

Ring toss

Bowling (he got a strike!)

Bean bag toss

Enjoying one of his hard earned dum-dums while checking out the pirate.  He was more interested in him than the football tattoo he was getting. 

Handy Jacob

I was upstairs last Saturday afternoon when Jacob yelled..."Mom, I'm going to the auto parts store!"  "He's not going to be able to fix it!"  Jacob apparently didn't have much faith in the task at hand.  As I come downstairs I see that Scott is attempting to fix the latch on his tail gate.  It's not that Scott isn't handy, it's just that projects usually take longer than expected.  However, in this case, along with Jacob's excellent ratcheting skills, the task was accomplished in no time.  Bravo, team! 

Jacob in the fall

Are you ready for some football?

It's not too scary if Dad goes too. 

Are we at the beach? 

Yee-haw!

Driving back to the playground after a quick potty break. 

Booty Camp

Day 1 - all smiles

The potty station (he had to set it up himself)

An example of the phrases which you have to repeat.  Constantly.  I think I heard Scott saying them in his sleep.

Poor kid - no toys to play with on the first day.  Thankfully he found this carrot (which he called his cement mixer).

End of Day 1.  Are we done yet?

Day 2.  A few more toys and his Vikings jersey.  It's going to be a good day. 

Look...it's Jacob "potty" hat! 

Really, potty training is fun if you just find stuff to put on your head. 

We've pretty much dropped off the face of the planet this past week due to our intense learning project.  Jacob's initial day of Booty Camp was this past Sunday.  It was a really long day for all three of us, but the hard work paid off.  We then had three follow up days (Monday - Wednesday) with as few distractions as possible and no major activities or trips.  I'm happy to report it is now Friday, and with the exception of a couple of accidents, he has pretty much figured out this going potty thing.  I was skeptical of this program and if I remember correctly I think Scott had to talk me out of a tantrum mid-afternoon on Sunday, but looking at the big picture I think a few days of intense training and consistency beat months of Pull ups.  (Although, we still do Pull ups at nap and nighttime).  Needless to say, I am looking forward to this becoming second nature for Jacob and not constantly talking about pee and poop or saying "Listen to you body!"  I'm also certain Jacob is not going to want me to show these pictures to any future girlfriends.  As one of my friends recently said..."Parenting isn't for wusses".