Hudson update (February)

Eleven months old!!

Hudson' s first official buzz haircut (he did get a trim above the ears a couple of months ago). He was okay at first, as long as he was holding some crackers, but after a few minutes, he was tired of it!! My poor boys - all they get are buzz cuts. That's all I know how to do!

Argh, matey! Noah got this from a birthday party, and he managed to get it onto Hudson. . .



. . . and Hudson eventually managed to get it off.

This is the best picture we have of the funny scowl that Hudson has been making all this month (all the others were in the group that got deleted). This doesn't even do it justice, but at least we'll have a slightly weak example of it.

Hudson has also been nodding a lot this month, which just makes me giggle. I was so excited to get this picture of him mid-nod.

Hudson's giving great kisses lately!!

Other February goings-on

On President's Day we went to Pump it Up, where they had a room filled with an inflatable playground. The kids had a blast. . . and I love these action shots.

This month Brig and Noah played "Steamboats" quite a bit, which is some game they made up. From my perspective, it consists of emptying every basket and box in the house, then filling them up with other things from around the house, so they can go on a journey.

They had been begging to sleep in their steamboats for days, so we finally let them.

I thought for sure they would eventually get tired of trying to sleep while their knees were mushed up to their faces, but they actually fell asleep that way!!

After taking these pictures we got them back into their beds so they wouldn't wake up tomorrow with knots all over their necks and backs.

Happy Birthday Noah!

Noah had a family party this year (we alternate every year with family and friend parties). There happened to be a Cleveland Clinic Spouse Association activity the weekend before Noah's birthday, and Noah decided that's what he wanted to do for the family party. It was at the Solon Community Center, where they had pizza for lunch, and then we spent hours at the pool. A friend took this picture of us at the pool, but the lens was foggy when he took it. Can you tell how much fun we're having?? :)

On our way home we stopped at the gas station. Our van was sooo dirty from all the salt on the roads, so Chris bought a car wash. This was the first time our kids had been through a drive-through car wash. It was one the more exciting events of the day!

Noah wanted to eat at an italian restaurant for his birthday dinner, but we couldn't find one anywhere between the community center and our house, so Noah settled on Chinese. He even tried out some chinese words with the waiter (the kids have Chinese class at school).

This is how Brig used his chopsticks.

On Noah's actual birthday (Feb. 4th), we had cake and ice cream and he opened his presents. Noah is obsessed with coins, so that's what he got for his cake.

Seven years old!!

Bike - Mom, Dad, Grandma and Grandpa Marchant

Egypt figures - Brigham

Bakugan - Annie

Boys Best at Everything book - Hudson

Game and coins - Grandma and Grandpa Weight

Happy Birthday Noah! We love you!

Hudson update (January)

I hope you can appreciate this look of joy on Hudson's face. The dishwasher is his new best friend.

He is also loving the piano. If he is ever mad, he'll usually calm down if we sit him at the piano.

He learned to clap this month!

So, this is one of the rare times that Hudson is not crying and throwing himself around when I bundle him up every morning to take Annie and Noah to school (and every afternoon when we pick them up). This shot reminded me of Randy in "A Christmas Story" . . ."I can't put my arms down!"

"I can't get up!"

Hudson is starting to show a sense of humor. He noticed that he got us laughing when he babbled with a spoon in his mouth, so he kept doing it over and over.

Hudson loves balls! His face lights up like this every time he sees one.


Maybe you've noticed that there is no 10 month picture of Hudson by the big bear. That is because I somehow deleted a bunch of pictures as I was downloading them onto the computer. I'm trying really hard not be sad about it. Try to imagine on your own:

-Hudson delighting in making huge splashes in the tub
-Hudson scowling as he is trying to crawl to and grab the camera

Also . . .

Brigham doing some sweet poses with his light saber. Seriously, they were awesome - even more so because it's not very often these days that I can get him to even look at the camera. I asked him today if he would let me take more pictures of him with his light saber, and he said "NO." *Sigh* I'll keep trying.

Catching up (January)

Once again, Chris has saved the day: he fixed whatever the problem was, so now I can download pictures! Since I started the blog, I decided to do this instead of typing up the monthly family history I usually do. So, I'm just going to do a quick overview of January. Here's what we've been up to:

Noah lost a tooth! This is the third one he's lost, and he was so nice to give this one to Hudson (who got his first tooth this month!)

The day Noah lost his tooth, they also celebrated Chinese New Year at school; that's what this crown is for. Brigham, of course, wanted to wear it all the time, so they fought all night about it.

One Saturday afternoon as Annie and I were getting our hair cut, Chris took the boys sledding down Thornton hill. The snow was pretty packed down, and it was COLD, so it was more icy than snowy. But according to the boys, it was AWESOME! The sled in the picture ended up breaking because the ground was too hard.

We went down to Columbus to the temple on the 17th. On our way home Hudson was getting hungry and tired of sitting in his car seat, so I fed him chocolate animal crackers to keep him happy. This is what he looked like by the time we got home.

A few months ago, Chris and I started doing Special Days with the kids. Once a month we pick a Saturday that works, and then either Chris or I take one of the kids out to do whatever they choose for a few hours (price limit is $10). We've done things like the Science museum, dollar theater, and rock wall at Dicks. This month it was my turn to take out Annie, and she chose to go sledding, then get doughnuts at Amy Joy.

It was the perfect day to go sledding - it was snowing like crazy, but it wasn't very cold. It was so fun to just focus on Annie, and to actually go sledding myself. Good idea, Annie! We had a great time!!

Rochester, here we come!!

I mentioned before that our computer has been been trouble for us for quite awhile. Chris finally figured it out the problem, erased the whole thing, and now he has been reinstalling everything. What a smartypants I have for a husband. I was ready to throw the computer out and use some tax return money for a new one. Anyway, for that reason, I am way behind on the blog. I came down today to start catching up, but I can't figure out how to download the pictures on our born-again computer. I'm not much of a troubleshooter when it comes to computers (actually, when it comes to most things); I'll have to wait for Chris to come home. So, I'll just do this one without the pictures:

Last month we found out that we were accepted into the Urology/Oncology fellowship at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN - we are sooo excited!!!! Yes, we realize it's cold (that's what everyone says when they hear we are going there), and we are okay with that. I can take cold, as long as I can see the sun sometimes.
This whole experience has been so interesting. Chris was also offered a position at NIH in Bethesda, MD. Logically, it would make sense to go there - we'd make WAY more money and Chris would be home a lot more. Who wouldn't want that?? We went back and forth so many times, and it kept coming back to the fact that we just felt better about Mayo. For whatever reason we are meant to go there.

Lunch and a movie

Chris' parents gave our kids money for Christmas, so Chris and I were asking them what they were going to spend it on. Annie and Noah came up with a plan (they couldn't convince Brig to go in on it with them) to take us all out to lunch at Panera and to the dollar theater to see High School Musical 3.

Yummy Panera soup and bread!!

Thanks Annie and Noah. What a generous way to spend your money! We had a great time!!

I'm dreaming of a . . . practical Christmas

So I meant to post this soon after Christmas, but our computer has been on the fritz (still kind of is). So this is a little late, but here we go:

An aquaintace once said to me that her mother-in-law told her son (this aquaintance's husband) that if he ever bought his wife a practical Christmas present, he would be in trouble. As I think back to the majority of the gifts that Chris has given me, he would be in some serious hot water with this woman. I admit that when I was younger, I was much more romantic. But then I got married, had 4 kids, we've been through med school, we're in the middle of residency, and I have gradually become tight-fisted and practical over the years.
I'm not so interested in fancy, frilly trinkets to clutter up the house; what I want right now are things that will make my life with four kids and a resident-husband easier. Yes, a gold necklace might be nice. The TV does say it will capture my heart, right? Maybe so, but that necklace won't chop my onions for me. But every time I pull out my food processor I swell with gratitude and love for that man I call my husband. And yes, perhaps I would sigh with pleasure over some crystal candle holders or perfume, but that sighing would stop short as soon as I find flecks of teflon (from my old pots and pans) in our soup. But whenever I cook with my new (fleck-free) pots and pans I want to run to Chris and hug him.
You may be thinking, "Hmm, you're boring." Maybe so, but the reality for us is that since we try to stay on a budget, and we don't have a whole lot of extra money, I don't have the luxury of running out to Target and buying these sorts of things whenever I feel like it. So, it makes sense to me to ask for them for Christmas. In time, that might change, but for now, THANK YOU, CHRIS, for indulging your practical wife. I love you for it!!