Oh BOY!

Here is my attempts with catching up and posting some photos of my little man playing in the kitchen.

He was starting to get curious with what I was doing.  He wanted to hold the camera.

It is always hard for me to get a good picture of me and Ethan.  But these are a few attempts to get some but he never smiled!

He was pushing his chair around and Ry was walking by right when I took this picture it kind of looks cool!

Ok these are a few attempts of me trying to get pictures of him in his new fall clothes but he didn't want to do it at all! Can you tell?

He didn't want me to take his binki out at all or taking pictures.  he just wasnt' in the mood!

I finally got him to calm down but I couldn't get a smile at all!  He was mad at me!

Look at those sad little eyes he knows how to melt my heart with those eyes! 

He was distracted here watching the tv. I know I am a bad mom I turn the tv on for him to calm him down.

He was starting to get mad again because I was right in front of him trying to get some pictures again.  Man this little boy can be so stubborn.

Here is a pretty decent picture but still that binki wouldnt' come out!

I love this little outfit that we bought at Kohls!  Kohls is great they have the best sales and I love going there.  We got more for him but he just didn't want me to be dressing him up and taking pictures today so maybe I can try again another day.  I need to get professional pictures of him so that we can hang them on our wall.  He is almost 18 months and we don't have any pictures of hiim on the wall.  That is horrible.

Anyways to catch up on things:

ETHAN:  He is getting so big!  I actually love this stage because he is starting to talk more and understand things.  We weighed him the other day and he weighed 25.6 pounds.  We didn't measure him though we go to the dr. next month so we will find out then.  But he is getting so big.  It is getting hard for me to haul him around the place.  He knows where his nose, ears, mouth, eyes and spikey hair are.  He also knows what his hands and feet are.  He will point to them when you ask them.  He loves reading books with mommy and daddy.  He is starting to get more and more independent he always wants to feed himself. I try to let him but he just makes such a big mess, but that is ok.  His favorite movies are Meet the Robinsons and Cars.  he will sometimes sit through the whole movie.  But that is very rare.  He loves wrestling with his daddy and playing hide and seek. If he could he would live outside.  We dont' have a yard yet so he will go out there and sit down and throw the rocks around.  He usually screams when we have to bring him in. He sleeps great at night we put him to bed at 8 and he usually wakes up at 7:45.  he only takes one nap a day and it ranges from 2 to 3 hours.  He is just so much fun I love him so much!

RYAN:  He is still working for AFLAC.  It is a little stressful but I am hoping if he sticks with it that will turn out amazing in a year or so.  We will just have to see.  He is looking for another job to work part time until AFLAC can fully support us.  He is a great daddy to Ethan, whenever Ethan hears the garage door open he runs to the door to wait for his daddy to come in.  Ryan is in the Sunday School Presidency he is going to be teaching a temple prep class starting this Sunday.  He will do great.

ASHLEY:  I have been lucky to be able to be at home with Ethan this whole summer!  It has been nice it is a lot of work and sometimes really hard but I wouldn't trade it for the world.  I like being a little homemaker.  it is fun for me to be able to have time to cook new things and try to keep the house clean which is hard when you have a one year old running all over the place.  I have been training for the half marathon but I wasn't able to get into it this year which was a bummer.  But there are other ones I am going to do!  I just got put into the Young Womens Presidency as teh 2nd counselor and I love this calling.  I couldn't have asked for a better calling and it came at the right time.  I love the girls in there they are all so great. 

That is a little bit of a catch up on what we have been doing this summer.  Summer has flown by and I can't believe that August is almost over.  I am ready for the weather to cool down a bit but I am not ready for the COLD!!! 

We are doing great and just trying to enjoy life.  I know I promise this everytime but I do want to keep in touch better on my blog so I will try It just takes so much time and it is hard to get time to do it.  But I will try!!

THE BIG RUN!!!!

I hope Mandi doesn't mind I borrowed this pictures from her facebook page because Ry and I forgot our camera!  Thanks Mandi!  These are the pictures from the Bone and Back Race!!  It was so much fun I love running in this race.  This is a picture of me and my gorgeous sister in law Mandi!!!  She is BEAUTIFUL!!!!  Our family did awesome this year we finished the 40 mile relay in 5 hours 9 minutes!  We got first place in the family division.  It was amazing.  All of us ran great and got the times that we wanted.

I think this is Ryan before his run.  I'm not sure though.  He ran great.  He is just an amazing runner, he ran leg 4 which is probably the second hardest leg in 32 min.  He also ran leg 8 and ran that one in 32 min as well.  I love watching him run because he is so good at it.  I love you sweetie!!!

This is how we support our runners we ride on the tail gate cheering them on.  I look forward to this race every year.  We all wear our orange t shirts and we are called the Orange Crush!!!

This is right after I ran leg 1.  Ryan and his Dad were just warming up running on this dirt road so I decided to follow them but I have no idea what I am doing in this picture!  They are walking casually and I am running I guess.

Here is Orange Crush after the race.  Don't we all look great!!!  I love my family!  And I love that we do this every year together.

The next day after the race we went to American Fork to see the blessing of our newest nephew William!  He is adorable and I love holding him.  He is starting to smile and I love seeing him smile so big.  Here are Ryan and Ethan after we had eaten lunch.  It was such a great day!

Then on Monday we went to Salt Lake and hikes Ensign Peak.  I loved doing it.  I had never done it before but once you get to the top the view is amazing.  You can tell that Ethan loved the sucker that Grandma had given him.  He screamed when I took it away from him.  He is so funny he cracks me up all of the time!

Here is the whole family on top of Ensign Peak. The reason we did this is because my in laws gave us a challenge to read the Book of Mormon by June and have daily prayer and scripture study and by the end of the challenge we would get a reward.  I am so glad that they gave us this challenge I know that it has really helped my little family do better we are definitely not perfect but I can tell when we are doing the right things that everything seems to run smoother even if you are going through trials. 

After we hiked we went to the Hoogle Zoo.  It was so much fun to take Ethan there.  The animal that I could tell the he was the most interested in was the elephant and her baby.  The baby was so cute.  I think that was my favorite animal too.  We also road the little train ride that they offer and Ethan loved that as well.  He didn't want to get off of it when it was over.  His eyes were so wide watching everything iy was so cute!

We have  been very busy this past month but it has all been worth it!  I have loved every minute of it!

Thanks family for such a great time!!!

FEELING BETTER!

So the stomach flu I think had finallly left the Jenks' household!  I am so happy!  Ethan hasn't had a problem all day long!  I think we are all over it.  It was a nasty flu and when it hit it hit really hard!  But my happy little boy is coming back YEAH!!!

I was so worried because this weekend we are doing the Bone and Back relay with all of the Jenks family and we are all hoping to do really well, an dI was nervous with this flu that it would still be there on Saturday, but I think we will be ok. 

I am so excited for this race.  This will be the third year that we have done it as a family.  For those of you who don't know about this race it is a 40 mile relay race where 8 people run it and they each run 5 miles.  Every year we have done it we have improved our times and I think we will improve this year too.  Everyone has been training really hard for it so I am anxious to see how we do.  The first year we did it we got third place in the coed division.  It was awesome. 

I am going to run the 1 leg which is the second easiest leg but I am too nervous to run any other leg.  I ran it last year as well and I am hoping to take at least 5 minutes off I hope I do.  I have been training hard and I hope that it pays off. 

I will try and remember my camera this year so I can get some good pictures and post them!  Wish us Luck!!! 

Ethan!!!

We went for a run one morning and this is what happened to Ethan while we were out there.  We didn't want to disturb him so we just put him in his room and left him in his stroller he slept like that for awhile!

Here he is being silly and trying to take a drink out of a big persons cup.  He can't quite figure it out yet and when he does try he dumps it all over himself.

I love this cheesy grin that he is giving the camera.  He is the biggest sweetheart!

Ryan decided one day that he wanted to build a fort for him and Ethan.  He used all of our chairs and blankets and couches to build it.

It was fun for me to watch him build and then enjoy it with Ethan.

Ethan finally is able to crawl inside the fort that Daddy made for him.  He loved it.

They stayed in there for awhile and the read books together and just played around in there.  Ethan didn't want to leave it.  I don't think that Ryan wanted to leave it either!:) 

I love my familly they are so much fun.  It is also fun for me to see the boy that Ethan is becoming.  He is growing so fast.  I can't believe how fast he grows.  He is such a momma's boy and I don't really mind that.  He likes for me to hold him whenever we are around a group of people or if we are just away from home.  He loves his home.
For the past week he has been sick which is sad for me and hard for me to watch.  I thought that he was finally getting over it but today while I was feeding him his oatmeal he threw up again!!  AAAHHHH!!  It is so frustrating especially since he has been doing that for a week straight. I know where he got it from and it is maddening to me because they came to my house and didn't tell me that her child was sick until they had been there for an hour and finally said yeah she has been throwing up!  I was so mad and I got even more mad when Tuesday night he started throwing up all night long!  I called her a few times to let her know I was mad. I don't think I was in in the wrong that was very irresponsible of her to bring her sick girl to our house!  Sorry I just had to vent!  What does everyone else think?  The other thing is that now my poor little nephews got it and they were all throwing up on Sunday night all through the night.
I am done with that now I just feel horrible for my little man!  I just want him to start acting his happy self again so that he doesn't feel miserable!

OHIO TRIP!!!

We stopped at Niagra Falls on our way to New York.  It was so pretty there.  I feel lucky that Ryan and I have been able to visit Niagra twice now.  They are amazing to see and I am so glad we were able to go.  I snapped a pic of Brian and Karina posing for a picture in front of the falls.

We decided to ride on the Maid of the Mist.  It was fun to get up close to the falls and get sprayed by the mist.  I really liked it.

We got the best spot on the boat.  We were on top and right in the front so we could see the falls the best.

Here is Ryan and I standing by the falls.  We walked up some stairs after the boat ride to get another closer look at the amazing falls.

We arrived in New York and we went to the Hill Cumorah!  This was also our second time being there.  I really do feel grateful that we have been able to go here and see the amazing sights here.

Here is Ryan, Shane, and Ash hiking up to the top of the hill.  I love Ash's face in this picture!

Since none of us had kids with us we were able to make a temple trip to the Palmyra Temple.  It was so much fun because you have to have an appointment to go the temple and we all got there and it was our whole family and one other couple through the whole session.  I loved that!

Here we are in front of the temple.  This temple is beautiful.  You can see the Sacred Grove from the temple.

Here we all our going on a tour through the Joseph Smith farm.  This is also our second time being here as well.  But I just can't get over how wonderful the spirit is here at this place.  I love seeing the places that the prophet lived. 

Here Ryan and his Dad and Brian are in the frame house on the Smith farm.  I also like going inside those cabins and seeing the wonderful work that those early pioneers did.

This pic is of Ethan and Carson this is right before Kristy dropped us off at the airport.  Ethan was asleep when he left I felt bad that I couldn't give him a huge hug and kiss before we left.  But it was probably better that he was asleep.

Ryan and I went to Ohio this past week because Ry's brother Shane graduated from Dental School!!  It was so much fun.  Ethan stayed in Boise with my sister Kristy and I was so thankful that she was willing to watch him!  It was extremely hard for me to leave him but he did awesome!  I know that today he is wondering where his cousin Carson is and Sadie!  He is probably bored with just mom here. 

We had so much fun on this trip.  I loved spending time with my family.  We arrived in Ohio on Saturday May 15 and Shane's graduation was on Sunday.  I loved going to his graduation. 

Then on Monday we went to New York.  It was a 5 hour drive to get to where we were staying.  We stayed in the same house we stayed at two years ago.  The Seneca Lake house.  It was beautiful.  We did all of the church sites and I loved being refreshed again on everything that happened there.  My favorite part was probably the Sacred Grove.  The spirit that is felt there is wonderful.  Ry and I just walked around and sat down and just pondered everything that happened there. 

We stayed in New York until Thursday and headed back to Cleveland.  The next few days we just relaxed and enjoyed each others company. 

I am so glad that we were able to do this trip.  Thank you so much Shane and Ash for your hospitality.  I can't wait to see you guys again in just a couple of weeks.  We had so much fun laughing, going on runs, and just hanging out.  I can't wait to get together again and just laugh and laugh some more.

I am glad to be home and be with my baby boy again.  I missed him so much.  But this trip was a very needed trip and I am glad it came when it did. 

I love my family and everything that they do for us!!  Love you guys!!!

My LIttle Man!!

I know this post has a ton of pictures but I had to post them!

This is usually what happens when I get home from work.  Ethan falls asleep in the car and I bring him into the house and he sleeps on the couch for awhile. 

He loves playing with ping pong balls.  He will bring them into the kitchen and throw them onto the floor and watch them bounce around then chase them around the kitchen.

He loves this stuffed dog.  I have told Ryan that we need a dog for Eth but this will do for now since we don't have a yard yet, but he calls this dog Daizy because to him every dog is called Daizy!  I love this little boy!

Here he is getting ready to come into the kitchen to throw the ping pong balls around.  He cracks me up!

I don't know if he liked me doing this or not.  I couldn't get him to smile.  Silly boy.  He would smile after the picture was taken.

I love watching him walk around.  He is getting so big I can't believe how fast time flies with this boy.  He also loves to carry around his burp clothes they are his comfort.  He will tuck them under his neck when he is getting tired. 

I was trying to get him to smile but he didn't want me to take pictures of him he wanted to play with the camera/

Here he is trying to get closer to the camera so he could take pictures.  Look at the tongue he is really concentrating on getting it!

There is a little smile!  I love his chubby cheeks!  I kiss them all the time.

Here we are just hanging out in the morning.  We just like to relax in the morning in our pajamas.  I love his face in this picture.

This little boy is much fun.  He is a lot of work and into everything now but I wouldn't trade it for the world.  I can't believe how rewarding and exhausting being a mom can be.  I know that Mother's Day was on Sunday but I just wanted to say that I am so grateful for my Mom.  She is the most amazing woman in the world.  I am so lucky that I have her as an example to me as the mom that I want to be.  I hope that I can be like my Mom!  I love you Mom!  Thank you for all the hard work you did for me.  You are the greatest!

Also I am so happy that I have such a wonderful husband and son.  They are so good to me.  My husband was so nice on Mother's Day.  We were in Boise over the weekend and he went shopping with me all day on Saturday for Mother's Day.  I know he probably would rather be doing something else but he didn't complain. 

We also ran a 5k race in Boise it was the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure there were 16,000 people running in it.  Ryan was so nice to push Ethan for me so that I could try and run fast.  But it was impossible at the beginning because of how many people were running in it.  I had to walk like the first 4 min.  But I was able to finish it in 24 min. It was so much fun though.