Paper Towels & Books

The other day I gave Brody an empty paper towel roll at work and showed him how it would magnify his voice when he talked into it. He loved it! Here's a video of him playing:


Brody's attention span is gradually increasing and he's beginning to love books! Some times he'll even sit still in my lap long enough for me to read a couple of books to him! In the picture below you can see a basket to the left of Brody. That is where I put some of his books and toys at work (it's underneath my hanging files). Yesterday he got out one of the books and sat on the floor "reading" it. I was so proud :)

Runnin out of time!!!!

I've finished editing my 2006 Blog Book! Yay! Now I just have to finish the cover! I emailed many of you a few months ago asking for participation in making my cover look professional. I received some great responses, however I still need a few more. If you feel led to contribute, you can either post it in the comments section or email it to me.

Here's what the back cover looks like right now (minus last names):

This is the first published book by Staci Knowlton, however, she has already obtained a following of dedicated readers via her blog. Here's what some of her readers have to say:

"Staci Knowlton is the blogging pioneer of our family. Not only are her stories an inspiration and encouragement to us all, they bridge the hundreds of miles that separate us and make us feel right at home! "
Caleb ____, CEO, HighCampMedia.com

"I've known Staci Knowlton all her life and I can testify that she is extremely dedicated to God and her family. Staci cares about those around her and this book will give you a brief glimpse into the life of a very special family as they build a life together in a Log Cabin in the Plains. As you read each story I am sure you will find true wisdom, lots of laughs, and heart lifting memories that will brighten your day just as they did the first time I read them. Enjoy and don't be afraid to laugh out loud!"
Steve ____, Past President of the Lamplighters Storytelling League
"A rockin' and a cardin' - scritch, scratch, scritch, scratch..."

"This book is awesome! Lots of people have read it, and they like it. You should read it!"
Lauren ____, highly acclaimed author and critic of children’s stories (6 years old)

"In her tell-all debut, Staci shares the everyday life of a Christian woman juggling a career, marriage, and motherhood in the outermost barren regions of Kansas. It is the ultimate survivor story!"
Julie ____, fellow survivor

"This book will give you a fresh prospective on things that are essential for real happiness; namely, a Christ centered home, the genuine love of a husband and wife, and the joy that a baby brings a family."
Myrtle ____"GG", world traveler

"Creative, surprising and utterly refreshing! I love how Staci turns an everyday activity into an inspiring, heartwarming and sometimes hysterical tale. She also gives innovative product reviews!"
Teri ____, CoG, Mrs, WAHM, MLP

"Staci's unique manner of depicting an incident makes it come alive!!!! You feel her frustrations and share in her laughter as well as every other emotion in between! How refreshingly positive are her expressions of love and thankfulness for life, friends and family, especially the two members whom she deeply cherishes - Mike and Brody."
Nancy ____, prayer warrior

_____________________________________
It doesn't have to be lengthy...anything will work. And make up a fun title for yourself (unless you want to give me that privilege ;)

Close Call

I've lived in Tornado Alley my entire live, however, I've never seen a funnel cloud or tornado! Tonight there were tornado and thunderstorm warnings flashing across the TV from 5:00 pm on. Before long there was a major storm directly over us! Mike went outside to look at the sky because the weather man had not interrupted programming yet. The rain was coming down hard and before long there was small hail along with rain. Mike came inside, grabbed the camera, and told me "This is awesome!" I followed him outside in time to see the funnel cloud below dropping out of the sky! I hurried back inside to get Brody's stuff together in case we needed to head to the basement. Mike stayed outside to keep an eye on the sky and saw numerous funnel clouds. Some of them may have been all the way to the ground, but it was hard to tell because of the torrential rain!
As the storm was passing to our east, a beautiful double rainbow appeared in the sky!
Here's a video Mike put together of some of our storm footage.

Work Fun

Even though we don't see Wendy at work anymore...we can tell that she's been here! The other day I got to work and found a little pink Dora the Explorer chair and a little green Diego chair. RaeAnn left a note telling me that Wendy brought them in for Cheyenne and Brody! I had to show Brody what it was for.

I think at first he thought it was a giant hat! Brody proudly sitting in the new chair.

This morning Brody crawled into the front office where I couldn't see him. I looked around the corner to see what he was doing and found the below picture:
He was climbing into the bouncy seat to play with the toys hanging down from the overhead bar. RaeAnn told me that Cheyenne loved playing with the bouncy seat (even though she's too big for it now). It made me laugh that Brody found it entertaining too :)

Daddy Time

Brody had lots of Daddy Time this weekend since I was at soccer games Saturday and Sunday afternoon. I think they really enjoyed their alone time together. Every time I called they were playing...except for the time I called and Mike was changing a poopy diaper. I think Brody saved them up for Mike this weekend. I changed 1 all weekend and Mike changed 3 or 4! I don't think Mike really cared about the poopy diapers...he just enjoyed his time with his boy :)


Saturday morning it was nice and cool in our bedroom. There was a slight breeze blowing thru the window and I was getting ready to change the sheets on the bed. Mike walked into the bedroom with Brody and plopped him down on the bed. Brody thought it was funny to be on such a big bed! He started crawling around and then flinging himself on his back so he could stare up at the ceiling fan. Mike and I laid down on the bed with him and just watched him explore his new surroundings. Words can't really describe it...but it was such a sweet time for the three of us.

Standing

Brody really loves standing up right now. He tries to pull up on things...but he hasn't really mastered pulling up on anything but our hands yet. He thinks the coffee table is full of fun because of the number of coasters that are on it! Here are a few pictures of him standing up at the coffee table gumming a coaster.

Random

I wonder if Brody's ever going to get teeth? He's 8 months old and I still don't see any signs of teeth. Mom told me that she's never met anyone that NEVER had teeth...so I'm guessing that he'll get some...some day.

I know I've said this before...but I think Brody has Mike's temperature sensor. He's been waking up during the night the past few nights. We couldn't figure out why! I think I've figured it out. I think he's been hot! Last night I put him in a onesie (rather than a sleeper) and we opened the window and turned on the fan in his room. It was 64 degrees in his room this morning. He wasn't under any blankets and was sleeping like a baby (this saying still makes me laugh...it probably makes anyone laugh who's ever had a baby!)

Mike is not going to be coming over here to workout with me anymore :( With gas prices going up again, we figured that we spend and extra $60/month for him to drive the truck over here 3 days a week! Instead he's going to go to the gym that's right under his office ;) I think Garet (his partner in Central KS Outfitters) is going to workout with him. I'm going to start lifting with Tina. I'm sad that we won't get to see each other in the mornings...but $720 a year seems like a big savings.

Prom

A month or so ago I was bragging on myself for losing all the baby weight. For fun I had tried on some formals from college and was surprised when I fit in my High School Prom dress! Shauna requested pictures...so here they are.

I didn't have any pictures of me by myself where I was standing up...and I didn't think to look at my HS pictures before I had Mike take a picture of me...but you still get the idea. Of course I don't look the same...I was 10 years younger!!!! Here's a picture of me and Juli Beth.
This is the picture Mike took on Sunday. My hair was only partly done, I didn't have any make up on, and I forgot to take off my sports watch! What can I say. I was hurrying to get the picture taken while Brody was still happy :)

Bitter Biscuit

Soccer was cancelled again this past Saturday! This is what it looked like outside on Saturday morning. We got 4-6 inches of snow...but it was soooooo wet and heavy. The sun came out and it was melted away by Saturday afternoon. Now we just have a muddy mess...and a destroyed wheat crop for the farmers. The wheat crop looked excellent just a few weeks ago. Now it is laying flat and brown in the fields. Our prayers are with all our farmer friends.
Mike and I decided to give Brody a Bitter Biscuit (they're like a condensed graham cracker) on Saturday. He really wanted to eat with us...so this was a good solution to get him to stop whining. We learned a very important lesson. These should ONLY be eaten in the high chair! He was a mess! After he finished it we had to strip him down and take him straight to the bath. While Mike gave him a bath, I cleaned the exersauser!

We must have worn Brody out on Saturday. He fell asleep nursing before bed and didn't even wake up when Mike took him out of my arms and took him upstairs! Sleeping babies are so hard to let go of!!!

Crawling to Mama

This is a video of Brody crawling to me and saying "Mama" while he's crawling. He can also go from a crawl back to sitting upright! Enjoy :)

Reunion

April 28th-29th is Homecoming weekend at Pleasant Ridge! The exciting part is the youth group reunions on Saturday night. Since I graduated with a high school class of over 850 people, I doubt I'll ever go to a high school reunion. All of my friends were in the youth group...so a youth group reunion just sounds like so much more fun! I thought I'd post the info on here in case there are people that read this that I don't have emails for.

Youth Group Reunion - April 28th from 6-8 pm (come-and-go)

at Pleasant Ridge church of Christ

There will be finger foods there (not a full dinner).

Be sure to pass along this info to other former PR youth groupies so that we have a good turnout! To see what the youth group is up to today...check out PR's youth group website!

In other news....we're in the 4-6 inch range for amount of predicted snow by Saturday! Crazy! Maybe this soccer season should just be cancelled!

Sunday lunch

Easter Sunday we went to Mike's grandma's for lunch. Jim, Nancy, and Grandma K were excited to see Brody and his new tricks ;)

Four generations Brody playing with one of his stacking cups in Grandpa's lap.
Crawling to his toys.
Grammy reading Brody a book.
Getting ready to stand up with Mommy.

Easter Morning

I was very proud of myself on Sunday morning. Dad & Mom left an Easter present for Brody when they were here at the beginning of March. It has been sitting on our kitchen counter begging to be opened for a month! There were many times where I thought about peeking underneath the tissue paper to see what the present was...but I resisted. I was proud of myself for making it to Easter morning without peeking! lol Here's a series of pictures of Brody opening the present.

"You mean this is my present? If I'd had know that....I'd have opened this weeks ago!""This bag sure tastes good!"
"I'm supposed to pull this out?!?"
"Oh!! There's something in there besides yellow paper!!!"
"It's a book..."
"to chew on!"
"I think the bag tastes better."
"Thank you Daddy Steve and Namaw!!!"

After church on Sunday we rushed home to change clothes and feed Brody before heading to Great-Grandma Knowlton's house for lunch (pictures of that to come). When we left for church, we shut our bedroom door so that Remington wouldn't go in there and sleep on our new comforter. We were in total shock at what we found when we got home. Our "perfect" lab...the dog that's never been fed table food...and who never begs for food...had left a mess of plastic in our living room. Upon closer investigation we found that the plastic was the remains of 3 zip loc bags (previously containing 2 waffles and 2 biscuits) and a bread sack (previously containing an entire loaf of bread). Mike tells me that it's all Trevor (the yorkie's) fault. He said that Trevor convinces Remy to get the food off the counter, they eat it together, and then Remington takes the blame because Trevor knows that we know he can't reach food on the kitchen counter!!! We didn't feed them Sunday night. We figured that 2 full size waffles, 2 biscuits, and an ENTIRE loaf of bread was more than enough food for the day! If we'd left the bedroom door open during church, there might have been some dog hair on our bed...but at least we would've had bread for lunches yesterday!

Crawling

Brody has been doing the army crawl (or the worm) for a few weeks now. On Friday he suddenly figured out how to do a "real" crawl. It's amazing how he can all of the sudden realize that it's easier to get somewhere if you alternate moving your arms. Here are some pictures of him from Saturday morning. He was playing in the living room but decided it looked more fun in the kitchen where we were :)

"It's easier to crawl when you stick your tongue out!"
Notice his nice bed head :)
"What is that? It kinda looks like another baby!?"

Easter Snow

I don't know if I've ever seen snow around Easter. Dad & Mom may remember if I have...but I don't. I was shocked on Thursday afternoon when it started snowing (just like the weatherman said it would)! We ended up with a couple inches of the white stuff!!! It didn't stick to the roads, but it looked beautiful across the fields!

Here's a video of me and Brody watching the snow fall:

Snotty Dreams

Brody has still had a little bit of a runny nose lately. Yesterday I got him up from a nap at work and his whole face was wet with the snot! Guess he was rubbing his nose...then rubbing his eyes and getting the snot all over the rest of his face. I tried to take a picture of it, but it's hard to see. You can kinda see it shining in the pictures below. As you can tell...it hasn't really affected his mood. He's still been pretty happy :)


Yesterday we had another big surprise! We got several inches of snow!!! I'll post pictures and a video later today or tomorrow.

This morning Mike came into the gym a little late. I told him I'd already lifted and done cardio. I pointed out that I'd been at the gym since 4:30 am (it was 6:30 am when he showed up). He said he'd been up since 4:50 am. When I asked what he was doing he just started laughing. He said that he'd been dreaming about rain water collection systems and decided to get up and do some research on them (why? I'm not sure?!). Then he excitedly told me that "This Old House" was on at 5:00 and 5:30 am! He doesn't have to work today and loved the fact that he was able to spend time drinking his coffee, watching "This Old House", and researching rain water collection systems. And I thought I had weird dreams!!!

Playtime

RaeAnn & Cheyenne get to work at 1:00 pm...and Brody and I get off work at 1:00 pm. Usually when RaeAnn gets to work I'll talk to her for a little while and let Brody and Cheyenne have some playtime. Yesterday RaeAnn came in early to tan, so they got an extra long playtime :) Here are some pictures of Brody and Cheyenne playing with the stacking cups that Brody got Cheyenne for her birthday this past Monday.

Movin' Forward

Brody has been scooting forward for a few weeks now. Last night he actually moved his arms in a crawling motion a few times! Here's a video of him movin' forward :)

Rainy Weekend

I left my laptop at work on Friday. Mike's Macbook just confuses me....so I didn't even try to post this weekend. Here's a rundown of our weekend.

It started raining Friday around 4:00 pm. It rained until around 11:00 am on Saturday...so soccer was cancelled. We headed to Hutch after Brody ate lunch. We stopped, of course, at Taco Bueno for lunch and then headed to Lowes and Wal-Mart. For the past year I've been carrying a roll of film around with me that needed to be developed. It was from 2003! It was the last roll of film in my SLR camera. We got a digital camera and I never finished the last roll in the SLR camera! When we decided to sell the old camera I finally got the roll of film out of it. I'd been wondering what was on it and finally took it to Wal-Mart to get developed. Much to my dismay...all the pics were fuzzy. We could tell that it was pictures from when Malachi (Ben & Julie's son) was a baby...but that's it. I'm so glad that Mike converted me to the digital camera!

Sunday after church, Mike went back to Hutch to get lawnmower parts and break pads for the Hyundai. Brody and I played and then I stained the fireplace and linen closet while he napped. When he woke up from his nap he got to ride in the backpack while Mike mowed! There's a chance of rain again tonight and Mike wanted to get the jungle mowed before it rains again! We've had so much rain lately that the yard looked like Cousin It!