The Smith Family

4 Years Old

2010-08-21T20:38:00.008-04:00

My baby turned 4 last week. Here are a few pictures from his party and from his 4 year pictures we took today.

Trevor's First Movie

2010-04-29T16:24:00.003-04:00

Scott and I took Trevor to see his first movie at the theatre last weekend. He had such a good time. We saw "How to Train Your Dragon." It was a very good movie. During the previews, he saw a tire explode. For the rest of the night, he said "the tire wheel is a balloon wheel" over and over. At first we didn't know what he was talking about because we didn't think any thing of the preview. I can't wait to take him again!

Sarah's Baby Shower

2010-04-26T21:57:00.007-04:00

One of my dearest friends, Sarah had her baby shower last week. Baby-Girls-Who-Haven't-Been-Named Marshall are due at the end of June. Sarah's cousin and aunt gave her a wonderful shower. Good food, great company and two blessings to celebrate. Here are some pictures...

Me, Sarah and Cheryl

CUTE Cake. The one layer was vanilla cake with strawberry buttercream filling
and the other layer was chocolate cake with espresso vanilla mocha buttercream filling

Close up of the expecting mother on the cake

Personalized candy bars

Part of the invation requested the guest bring a book to start a collection for the girls. I brought "Knuffle Bunny" the story of a little girl's first words when she can't find her favorite stuffed animal.

A very cute and simple decoration for Sarah and the girls

One of the games we played was to cut a string to the length you thought would go around Sarah and the girls. Cheryl is holding her string exactly around Sarah with nothing to spare! Great job Cheryl!

Meredith takes her turn

Sarah opening her gift from me, Cheryl and my mom. We went together to get Sarah the diaper bag she's been looking for. She also got bottles, pacifiers, and recieving blankets.

Sarah looking through Knuffle Bunny

More gifts!

Vacation!

2010-02-04T18:49:00.003-05:00

So...I'm finally on vacation. I think the last time I took a week's vacation was in April! I'm super excited to I can finally just be in my home. I think that's the worst thing about working full time. We always have something to do on the weekend becuase that's our "down time" which is never down time because we're always running from here to there. So when do I feel like I can relax? Not on week days when I get home at 6-then dinner, playtime, bath, bedtime...then I end up falling asleep watching a show I've been waiting all week to see!

I know I'm rambling. I really have 3 things to do this week:

-Enjoy the weekend in Traverse City with my cousin Sarah and my mom
-take Trevor to the Children's Museum with Cheryl
-Go through baby stuff and decide what I can part with

5 days and Counting

2010-01-27T20:21:00.002-05:00

Saturday morning --I usually wake Trevor up during the week when its time to get ready for him to go to daycare and me to work. So...I turned off my alarm the night before hoping to sleep in...and Trevor gets up 1/2 hour BEFORE I normally get up. Grrrr. So...now I'm up...its 6 AM... Why not start potty training....again...No more diapers...at all.

You can smile...I get it... I'm still questioning my sanity myself...

In all seriousness, It's going VERY well. Saturday was not the best day but by Sunday evening, we were having success. He's been very responsive and he's actually starting to "get it" and going into the bathroom himself. I'm so proud of my little guy. It took us awhile to get here- Scott and I weren't the best at being consistent-and we're definitely on our way to no more diapers!

New Year...Am I ready?

2010-01-05T21:16:00.001-05:00

Happy New Year...I think. After 3 days of sunshine to start the year and lunch with my girls...I feeling like this was going to be a great year. And I was VERY afraid that I would fall into the same patterns as years past.

Well...I haven't yet. :-) It is only the 5th, but we've had our new treadmill since Saturday and I've been on it two days in a row and I've logged 3.75 miles already. I'm very excited about my accomplishment and can't wait to do more!

My goal is to run a 5k this fall. Wish me luck! Anyone want to run with me??

Monday Laughs

2009-11-02T10:16:00.002-05:00

This email made me laugh today.
For whatever reason, this made me think of you, Rachel ;-)

1. Nothing sucks more than that moment during an argument when you realize you're wrong.
2. I keep some people's phone numbers in my phone just so I know not to answer when they call.
3. The only time I look forward to a red light is when I’m trying to finish a text.
4. MapQuest really needs to start their directions on #5. Pretty sure I know how to get out of my neighborhood.
5. There is a great need for sarcasm font.
6. As a driver I hate pedestrians, and as a pedestrian I hate drivers, but no matter what the mode of transportation, I always hate cyclists.
7. How the hell are you supposed to fold a fitted sheet?
8. I would rather try to carry 10 plastic grocery bags in each hand than take 2 trips to bring my groceries in.
9. I totally take back all those times I didn't want to nap when I was younger.
10. Was learning cursive really necessary?
11. "Do not machine wash or tumble dry" means I will never wash this ever.
12. I love the sense of camaraderie when an entire line of cars teams up to prevent a jerk from cutting in at the front. Stay strong, brothers!
13. While driving yesterday I saw a banana peel in the road and instinctively swerved to avoid it...thanks Mario Kart.
14. Obituaries would be a lot more interesting if they told you how the person died.
15. I find it hard to believe there are actually people who get in the shower first and THEN turn on the water.
16. Bad decisions make good stories.
17. I hate leaving my house confident and looking good and then not seeing anyone of importance the entire day. What a waste.
18. Is it just me or do high school girls get sluttier & sluttier every year?
19. You never know when it will strike, but there comes a moment at work when you've made up your mind that you just aren’t doing anything productive for the rest of the day.

Prayer Request Update-2

2009-10-09T16:35:00.002-04:00

Hello Everyone-

My last post I said that Scott's dad was not having surgery. Well, its been a whirlwind of events, and Thursday afternoon we found out that U of M hospital had an opening today for his aneurysm surgery. So...we've been in Ann Arbor today with Scott's dad. We got to the hospital at 5am for a 7:30 surgery that was supposed to take 4-5 hours. The surgery didn't start until 9:30 and at about 3:30 we found out that the surgery was successful and he was doing well. It was a difficult surgery but he came through. He will have the breathing tube overnight and we'll get to see him before we leave tonight. Scott and I are staying overnight again and we'll be able to see him awake tomorrow.

Thank you to everyone for keeping him in your thoughts and prayers. I hope I didn't miss anything...I'm sure I'll update again soon!

Love,

Scott and Jeanie

Prayer Request Update

2009-10-07T19:06:00.002-04:00

Thank you for all your prayers-there aren't words to express what it means to me knowing you're out there thinking of us and praying for us.

Scott's dad had a round of ultrasounds this morning and the doctor at U of M does not think the aneurysm is as critical as the doctor in Grand Rapids. That being said, he will need to have surgery on that within the next 30 days, but not this week.

He also had another heart cath done today to look at the blockages in his heart for the bypass surgery. This surgeon does not suggest bypass surgery at all. One blockage is completely blocked now and he feels the artery was too small to do surgery to begin with. The other blockages (heart and carotid) are under 70%-their threshold for surgery. We're still not sure why the doctor in Grand Rapids thought everything was as critical as she did, but trust this doctor and his direction for the surgeries.

Bottom line, Scott's dad will know when his surgery for the aneurysm is tomorrow and he will come home with only one surgery needed! Praise to God for looking after us the last few days and keeping out hearts and minds as calm as possible!

Prayer Request

2009-10-06T18:30:00.002-04:00

I love how blogs create a network effect with friends of friends following each other's blogs. I need all of your thoughts and prayers over the next few days.

As some of you may know, Scott's dad had surgery to unblock his carotid artery some time ago. During that surgery, his vocal cord was paralyzed and the doctors have put off his other surgeries (other carotid, triple bypass and aortic aneurysm) until it was not paralyzed anymore or until the other surgeries were necessary.

It's been long enough that the doctor's decided they wanted to go ahead and do the triple bypass surgery even though his vocal cord is still paralyzed. To prepare for this, Scott's dad started having some preliminary tests done. When the doctor's preformed these tests, they found that not only had the aneurysm grown significantly in the last year, but there is also a blood clot near it. The bypass surgery has been put off and Scott and his dad are on their way to Ann Arbor to have the aneurysm surgery this week.

I can't give you a date when the surgery will be. He will have a series of ultrasounds tomorrow to assess the blood clot, aneurysm, carotid artery, vocal cord and bypass areas. After the ultrasounds, they will determine when he will have surgery. Our best guess is that he will not come back to Grand Rapids until after he has the surgery-Wednesday afternoon, Thursday or Friday. As soon as they have the surgery scheduled, I will be on my way to Ann Arbor too.

Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers. We know he is in good hands. I will try to keep you all updated as much as possible.

Look Who's 3!

2009-09-09T20:32:00.006-04:00

I can't wait to get our family pictures taken next weekend but I couldn't wait to get Trevor's 3 year pictures done. I went to Lansing to Portrait Innovations and I love them!!

September

2009-09-01T20:22:00.004-04:00

Ok...not that I'm happy that the summer is almost over but I do look forward to September. I like fall-the beautiful colors of the leaves as they turn, the crisp, cool night air to sleep in with the covers all the way around my neck...and my favorite thing about September...my birthday! I know, what am I 12? I can't remember the last time I was this excited though. My birthday falls on a Monday. On Saturday and Sunday, I'm going to Indiana to be with my aunts and cousins for the Popcorn Festival. We're going to spend the day together and then have a girls night on Saturday night. Sunday, my cousin Sarah is coming back to Grand Rapids with me and she's spending the night. On Monday, Sarah, my mom and I are heading to Traverse City for a wine tasting tour. As Sarah would say-we're looking forward to loads of semi-drunk fun ;-) OH I think the funniest part for anyone who knows my mom's side of the family (Sarah is the daughter of my mom's older sister) is that my mom wants to visit this shopping center in Traverse City that was once an insane asylum (The Village at Grand Traverse Commons). As silly as it sounds the website looks like its a lot of fun with lots to do! Even if it isn't, I think that will give us a lot of jokes for the time we're away! Can't wait for a weekend away with the Schultz girls!

Dinner With My Girls

2009-08-27T22:13:00.003-04:00

I just got back from dinner with my girls-Sarah and Cheryl. I absolutely love having dinner with these girls. We can meet at 6:3o and talk about everything and still have things to say at 10 when we've switched venues and we're closing down Panera. We talked about babies, tattoos, "the boat," how crazy this week was, work, drinking, tv shows we can't live without, bible studies, great books, new movies coming out....what else? Its so nice to have someone you can go out with and just forget about all your problems for a few hours. I love you girls and can't wait for our next night out!

Happy Birthday Trevor!

2009-08-17T18:11:00.003-04:00

Happy 3rd Birthday Trevor!!!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

We had a great day Saturday for your birthday Trevor! Love you lots, Mama

Happy 9th Anniversary Honey!

2009-08-05T21:39:00.003-04:00

I just want to wish a happy anniversary to my loving husband of 9 years! It seems like just yesterday in some ways-looking for our first apartment, buying our house, working through job changes and challenges. And then it seems like we've been together forever-which is a good thing! I've loved the 9 years we've been married and I look forward to many more to come!!

Trevor's Performances

2009-08-02T21:34:00.012-04:00

Cheryl and I took Trevor to the Children's museum in Grand Rapids and he's a natural pianist.

Now, when I turn on the camera he starts to sing!

Trevor's a rock star on stage at the Children's Museum in Chicago.

CU @ the Picnic

2009-08-02T15:47:00.008-04:00

Thanks to a friendly push from Renee, Sandy, Lesley and Rachel-

Welcome to the Smith Family Blog!

We spent Saturday at the Inn at the Rustic Gate in Big Rapids for my company picnic. It wasn't a rainout-the skies cleared up for us late in the afternoon.

BINGO!

Renee gives instructions for the water sponge race.

Trevor prepares for the first run.

Scott and Andy face off.

Our team didn't win, but it looks like Trevor had fun playing the game. Good thing I brought dry clothes!

Scott's all business trying to win us some Subway gift cards!

Scott and Andy winning 1st place in the water balloon toss.

2nd outfit...still wet!

The Brinks-Randy, Ethan, Coryn, and Shelli

Gary and Colton

Jan and Jordan with Madelyn

Susan with Brooklyn, Jayden and Joseph

The Timms-Charlie, Sandy and Gary

Christmas At Aunt Connie's

2008-03-03T20:27:00.001-05:00

Trevor had fun at Aunt Connie's putting the checkers in the Connect Four game and making them fall out again.