A Look at 2004!

I am stealing this from Erin. Another Mommy who has inspired me to start this blog and is so funny. Thanks Erin for making me laugh the past few months and know that I am not alone in the struggles of raising a new baby boy.

1. What did you do in 2004 that you have never done before?
Hmmm - Give birth comes to mind.

2. Did you keep your new years' resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
Well I don't think I made any resolutions last year. I was too busy trying to get Jack out of me. But this year, I am going to lose those extra 25 lbs that Jack left behind.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
Yeah - Me :)

4. Did anyone close to you die?
Nope thank goodness!

5. What countries did you visit?
None.

6. What date from 2004 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
March 5th which started at midnight when I was induced and 20 hours later I pushed the Jackaroo out and 8:28 pm.

7. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Well along with pushing a 7lb 3 oz baby out of me, learning to be his mom is the biggest achievement.

8. What was your biggest failure?
Not sure if I had a big failure other than not losing all the baby weight yet.

9. Did you suffer illness or injury?
I have never been so sick so many times since I gave birth. I got pneumonia when Jack was 2 months old, bronchitus in October, numerous colds, and an icky stomach virus all within the last 10 months.

10. What was the best thing you bought?
Well this was actually a Christmas gift last year - but the Sony digital camera. Many of our friends and family will be receiving a DVD in the mail soon of a 20 min slide show - just a testament of my picture taking abilities.

11. Whose behavior merited celebration?
My husband, Jim. He is a wonderful Daddy and has put up with many of my fits this year along with Jack's fits.

12. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
Jim's ex-wife - there's a word for her and I won't use it here.

13. Where did most of your money go?
We decided to move to a new house in June and doubled our mortgage at the same time - the house is the number 1 place where our money went. Jack and trying to clothe and feed him was number 2.

14. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
After begging and begging my OB to induce me 3 weeks early, she finally said "Yes, go ahead and call the hospital for an induction." Such pretty words to my ears. Having pre-eclampsia and having been on bedrest was driving me nuts.

15. What song will always remind you of 2004?
That is a hard one, but it probably have to be Itsy Bitsy Spider. I have sang that song approximately 1,000,000,000 times give or take.

16. Compared to this time last year, are you happier or sadder?
Happier - life seems to have fallen into place very nicely.

17. Thinner or fatter?
Well I am smaller in size but I would have to say fatter. What is it about giving birth and that stupid belly won't go away. So depressing.

18. Richer or poorer?
Definitely poorer. Buying house, Jack, and going to part time at work = no money in the Jackaroo house. :(

19. What do you wish you'd done more of?
Keeping in contact with friends. I am really bad with that. Life is just too busy.

20. What do you wish you'd done less of?
Work and the drive to work - it just gets in the way of life.

21. How will you be spending Christmas?
Next year we might get together with our families somehow. It would be nice to show Jack a white Michigan Christmas.

22. Did you fall in love in 2004?
Yep the biggest love of my life - Jack

23. Any one night stands?
Yeah right - NOT

24. What was your favorite TV program?
Guiding Light (thank you Tivo) and Gilmore Girls

25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
Hate is a strong word, but I really really dislike a certain Ex-wife.

26. What was the best book you read?
Read? What is that again? I forget. Let me see, I read "What to Expect the first year" and um Bedtime Stories and Dr. Suess. Gosh I miss reading.

27. What was your greatest musical discovery?
The Itsy Bitsy Spider song and how it can calm a baby magically.

28. What did you want and get?
I wanted a healthy baby and a close family. I got both.

29. What did you want and not get?
That new living room furniture that I fell in love with but was $5000 and we bought baby furniture instead.

30. What was your favorite film of this year?
Well I didn't get to actually go to a movie this year except I-Robot when Katie was visiting and could babysit. But I have to say Shrek 2 was really good. Just saw that on dvd.

31. What did you do on your birthday?
Work :(

32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
To be about 40 lbs less and of course have a lot more money.

33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2004?
Very casual bordering on sloppy. I refuse to spend money on new clothes and buy the big sizes.

34. What kept you sane?
My husband, the March Munchkins board

35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Not sure. Maybe those who were also pregnant like Julia Roberts.

36. What political issue stirred you the most?
The election. I just don't feel that Kerry was fighting fairly.

37. Who did you miss?
My family in Michigan who missed out on Jack's birth

38. Who was the best new person you met?
Duh - Jackaroo!

39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2004:
Like Erin said - Having a baby changes every single thing and is so much harder than I thought it would be and so much more rewarding than I ever thought. I remember people saying that you have no idea what that little baby will do to you until it gets here and boy are they right! Truly an amazing experience. I never knew how much I could love a little person like I love my little Jackaroo.

40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
From the Carpenters - Close to you:

On the day you were born, the angels got together and decided to create a dream come true.

Oh Puhleez

Okay I need to do a little ranting here. We live in California and if anybody has been watching the news, it would seem that California has been swept away just like Thailand and all those poor people in Asia. But, listen to me, it is just raining, nothing more nothing less. Yes it has been a lot of rain, but it is just rain! It is not a tsunami! I lived in Seattle for 9 years, I understand rain and it is just rain. Grab an unbrella and stop bitching about it. And stop the newscasts "Storm 2004" where some stupid reporter will stand on the corner and pan the camera to show us that it is raining! These people need to get lives and look to the other side of the world to see what "Storm 2004" should be. Believe me it is not in California. Okay Rant Off.

The Pooh Bear is Possessed

Okay I seriously think that Jack's new Pooh bear is possessed. The thing will walk and talk if you press his paw. He also asks for a hug and for help up if he falls over. All of which is very cute and entertaining. However, the thing will not shut up! I mean it can be laying there for like 2 hours not saying a thing and then all of a sudden out of nowhere the thing starts talking! It says "Pooh can walk" "Pooh can run" and then goes on to ask for hugs. It does this with no one around it! I am seriously thinking this Pooh is possessed or we have ghosts in the house who are having a big ole laugh at my expense. Seriously, the thing scares me now!

The possessed Pooh 

Stealing my purse already 

The favorite toys in the house 

How Many Chargers do you have?

I am beginning to think that we in the digital crazy age we live in are ruled by chargers. In the Jackaroo house we have 6 chargers that we use on a daily basis and I can think of 4 other chargers that are used on an occasional basis and probably more if I really started to think about it. The daily basis chargers are as follows:
Mommy's cell phone
Daddy's personal cell phone
Daddy's work cell phone (nicknamed "G" phone)
Cordless phone
Digital camera
Mommy's new play toy - the digital camcorder

The occasional chargers are the 2 laptops that I don't know why we have because we also have 2 desktops - go figure. We also have Daddy's (and soon to be Jack's) playtoy - the remote control truck that goes zoom zoom all over the yard. Along with the other Daddy's toy - the remote control boat that goes in the Lake and someday in the pool.

In other news, I have been trying to clean up the house for the last 2 hours. Geesh Christmas is messy. And geesh Jack's toys take up a lot of room. And what does he do after getting all those new toys? The kid plays in the tupperware cabinet in the kitchen.

We also bought a new doggie/kitty door yesterday. We have been trying to get an animal door for the past couple of years. You see in the old house we had a gigantic sliding door that no pet door on the market would fit. Now we move into thise brand new house and well we have the opposite problem! After much wrangling with the pet door ie. cutting the thing down about 3 inches, Daddy was able to put it into the sliding glass door. Well I don't know if I have ever mentioned, but I have the dumbest dog on earth living with me. She has to be taught on the proper techniques of said doggie door. We are still trying to teach.

Christmas Jack

Modeling his new work bench 

Jack and his new workbench - Just like Grandpa's!  

I don't need no sticking safety goggles! 

Laura showing Jack her new Lady Bug tent 

The aftermath 

Jack and Laura on Christmas morning 

Laura teaching Jack how to open presents 

Disneyland Christmas Eve

I hope everyone reading this had a very Merry Christmas.

The Jackaroo house had a very good Christmas this year. It started off yesterday when we went to Disneyland. Fun was had by all. Jack got to ride his very first Merry go Round. I think he had fun, but he was holding on to that pole and wasn't letting go! Daddy and Laura went on the Tower of Terror which is a bit too much terror for Mommy. The christmas decorations in the park were really beautiful. The Small world ride was lit up and very beautiful. And the fireworks at the end were spectacular. Jack just took them all in and wasn't even afraid of the big booms they made. But he was sure one tired baby because about 1 minute after the fireworks ended, he fell asleep as the rest of us tried to exit the park with about 50,000 other people at the same time. Mommy ended up carrying a very heavy sleeping baby back to the car as Daddy had to wrangle the stroller on the Tram. Fun Fun.

Jack was a really good baby and quite the little trooper during the whole day at Disneyland. He got really tired, but did manage to sleep for about 30 minutes. He did a lot better than I expected. Disneyland is very hard on a baby and for that matter it is hard on Mommy and Daddy and big sister. We were all exhausted when we finally got home.

Jackaroo's first Merry Go Round ride.  

Jack wasn't very impressed with this Santa either.  

Jack having fun on the Haunted Mansion ride 

Daddy and Jack  

The family on the Winnie The Pooh ride 

Jack and Laura - I think they had lots of Disneyland fun 

Mommy and Jack at Disneyland 

Small World lit up for Christmas 

In front of the Small World ride - all lit up for Christmas 

Jack and Daddy on Small World ride 

The After Disneyland tired baby 

The After Disneyland picture 

Merry Christmas To All

Missed Kodak Moment

Today when I was getting ready in the bathroom, I had Jack playing in the bedroom with me. He was having so much fun by opening up the dirty clothes hamper and pulling out every last piece of dirty clothes. Well I turned around and saw the funniest sight. He had my bra and somehow had looped the thing all around his head and poked his arm through the arm hole and was staring up at me as if to say "What? isn't this how you wear this thing Mommy?" I ran to get the camera, but no luck. He had dropped the bra and was crawling out of the room looking for me. I may just have to stage another "bra incident". It would be fun to have that picture to show his future wife someday and embarrass the heck out of him. I know I know, it's an evil plan, but a fun one though :)

Jackaroo Newsflash - Another new tooth. Yep thats right, Jack is now sporting two teeth. His second tooth just sort of appeared on the top. I thought that he was working on his second bottom tooth, but today Daddy found the one on top. So thats why he's been such a crab lately. Now I get it.

You can also peruse the pictures down below of the Kitchen Activities. It seems that the kitchen is the cool place to hang out these days. And along with climbing into the dishwasher, the cabinets are pretty fun places to be also. The colander has climbed to the #1 play toy in the house this week. And why did I just spend about $100 on toys again?

Showing off his newly acquired tooth