I Took Second!

My friend, Nan and I entered scrapbook layouts into the contest at the Scrapbook Expo in Ontario, Calif. This is the same contest I took second place in last year, with my layout of my brother Joseph's engagement photos. (He and Gina have now been married over a year.) This time, a layout of mine and a layout of Nan's made the final cut for consideration. They called my name for second place and I was so excited! Unfortunately, Nan didn't place, but she was a good sport. With a layout of Rodney and Will at the beach, I won a Quick Cutz die cut tool and a set of alphabet die cuts - worth over $200! Last year, my layout was published in an idea book. This year, I am not sure what they will do with it. However, I do know it will be on the web site, www.scrapbookexpo.com. Click on page contest and scroll down to see previous winners.

An Injury-filled Weekend

Xan and I had quite a painful weekend.

Xan is pulling himself up and climbing on everything, now. Daddy was in charge and he managed to climb on a doll-sized chair my parents have and tipped it over on himself. The slats on the chair bruised both sides of his head at once. Neat trick. Then he fell twice more and bumped his head, standing along the bars in his crib. Rodney is worried that daycare will call child protective services on him.

I attended the Scrapbook Expo in Ontario, Calif., on Saturday. During one of the classes I took, I managed to cut out a chunk of my left index finger. I did it at around 1 p.m., but I still had another class and contest results to get through. I got some supplies from the EMT at the first aid station and continued through my day. This Expo only happens once a year and I was NOT going to miss it! By 7 p.m., it still hadn't stopped bleeding, so my mother made Rodney take me to the emergency room. I tried to avoid that by going to my favorite urgent care, but, of course, it was closed. Luckily, I was the last patient at the hospital's "fast track" emergency room, so I was in and out within an hour - no kidding! No stitches, since I made quite a crater in my finger, but I did get a lovely, white, bigger-than-life bandage and a tetanus shot. I should be able to take the wrap off Monday night and just use Band-Aids from then on, the doctor said. In the meantime, I can't get my hand wet, so Rodney has been washing my hair, bathing the kids and anything else that requires getting hands wet.

Pumpkin City

It's amazing how a couple tons of sawdust can turn the mall parking lot into a pumpkin field fit for a farmer. Um ... not really, but it was good enough to keep the boys entertained for an hour! Will had a coupon for three free rides (a $7.50 value!) so we headed over, hoping Monday night wouldn't be too busy. We checked out the animals, the games and the bounce house.
Xan came eye-to-eye with a couple of white turkeys. He was just happy to be out of his car seat. He's definitely a mover!
Will didn't win the huge inflatable hammer, but they may have been for the best! I think his favorite part was either the bounce house or the giant jack-o-lantern he could crawl around in. Either way, it was an hour's worth of free fun. Hard to find here in the O.C.!

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

The Good:
1) We have signed a contract to rent a house. It's three bedrooms with a big backyard. It's about 5-10 minutes away from my parent's house (depending on how many traffic signals you hit). We move in the weekend of Nov. 10. Pictures to come soon.
2) Rodney has passed another installment of his training in the Camp Pendleton air traffic control radar room. He just has one more job to learn and it should take him about 4 months of training.

The Bad:
It's been a rough two weeks around here. Xan's teething kicked it off after giving him horrible acid poop, so bad it was burning his butt. Mylanta and A&D ointment had him feeling better within 24 hours. However, Rodney brought home a cold and shared it with the rest of us. Will has an awful cough, Xan has a runny nose and I'm fighting a headache and sore throat. Rodney took the boys to the doctor on Friday, but all they have are colds, so there is nothing we can do except treat the symptoms. Xan hasn't been sleeping well, so he's woken up the whole house at least three times every night - except for Will, who can apparently sleep through anything! Rodney and I are in need of some good sleep, though.

The Ugly:
Xan is quite the mess these days. His snot nose is awful and red, his poor lips are chapped and, since he's mastering the art of standing, he's been bumping his forehead a lot. He now has a bruise in the middle of it. Thank goodness school pictures were taken last week!

Stand in the place that you live ...

Much earlier than expected, Xan is now pulling himself into a stand on anything he can - his crib, the chair, Mom's leg, a pillow. He won't crawl yet, but he is bear walking around in circles to get at his toys, Grandma's antique jug, Mom's ribbon ...
Oh, and his second tooth has made an appearance.

MY Fish!

Xan has started getting quite upset when he can't have his way. He loves having a bath now that he can sit up in the inflatable ducky tub. However, he must have his blue Del Taco fish. Actually it is Will's blue Del Taco fish, but try telling that to Xan. He's agreeable to being soaped down and having water poured over his head, but the minute you have to take the fish away to get him out of the tub, the screaming starts! Now, every time we are in the bathroom Xan wants to take a "baa." I think it's just so he can play with the fish.

Wild and Crazy

I was taking pictures of all three "boys" for a scrapbook layout I want to do. My Dad had his light diffusing gear out, so I took advantage of it. I had origianlly sat Xan in the big, white "tent" since he fit so well and the light inside was so good. Will just had to have a turn. To get some good pictures of him, I had to bargain, allowing him to take some "funny face" pictures in return for some more serious ones. Here's one of the more amusing shots.

Arrrrgh, Matey!

Capt. Will Guthrie and his first mate Xan are oh-so-ready for Xan's first Halloween. Will has wanted to be pirate for quite some time, so I made sure he'd be decked out in style. Since Will's baby puppy costume is still in storage, we had to come up with another plan for him. I had really wanted to find a little parrot costume, but there was none to be found. I mentioned that I might just cut up some little pants or something and make him a pirate, too, but Grandma Nancy went surfing on the web to find this cute outfit. They made quite a splash at Picture People. Will is looking forward to wearing his costume to preschool for the Halloween parade. I don't think he's realized yet that there will be trick-or-treating to do that night, too!

Half a Year Old!

Xan turned six months old on Sunday and has had a number of milestones the past few days. He not only sits up by himself, but he can roll into a sitting position from his tummy. His doctor said he doesn't think he has seen a 6 month old do that before. Leave it to my son to break the mold! At his checkup, Xan weighed in at 18 lbs., 9 oz. and is 29.5 inches long. He is above 97% for height and at about 65-70 % for weight. Xan also holds his own bottle and has cut his first tooth, which has made for some nasty and painful diarrhea for the little man.

And Now We Go Live To ...

I'm proud to announce the launch of my professional cooperating site, www.jessicaguthrie.com! My good friend, Raina, designed exactly what I wanted - a simple, clean site that would (hopefully) convince people that I can assist them with their different creative and marketing needs. Feel free to browse the site - there is even a commercial to view on the portfolio page!

Bathtime!

Xan loves taking baths. But we have to watch where we put the soap and rinse water because he'll kick it over as he splashes around in his little tub. He's a bit spastic, well, all the time, but when he's wriggling around in the tub it can get a little messy for Mommy.

In Good Company

The boys (all three) and I headed to Hidden Valley park in Irvine Sunday for the NRPI company picnic. It was a great time, especially for the kids. We met up with Nan's family, so Will and Frannie bounced like crazy in the two bounce houses. They had plenty of kiddie rides, including rotating swings (Frannie loved them, but Will refused to go on - even when Nan said she would put him on a plane to Illinois if he went) lady bug mini coaster, a maze, canoes with daddy and Frannie's big sister Marli and so much more. Rodney and I played HORSE. I lost, of course. The company had a raffle for the adults, games and prizes for the kids and even goodie bags! By the time it was all over, Will was asking if he could take a nap.

80's Ladies

April, Michi, Nan and I had a great time at the 80's crop at Angels Scrapbook Garden. Nan and Michi won first and second places in the costume contest and won fun croppy kits. Only the four of us dressed up - the rest of the croppers were more ... dull. Anyway, we each had our own scrapbook-themed cutoff t-shirt: Nan was Madonna-esqe with embellishment Girl written on it. April had a Bangle-themed shirt with Crop Like an Egyptian. Michi wore Prince with Purple GrosgRAIN Ribbon. And I proudly displayed Wierd Al Yankovich with Crop It on it. We were cropping until about 1:30 a.m. and I am still recovering! Guess I'm getting old.

And here are a few more apple picking pics.

Apple/Raspberry/Pumpkin Picking

Oh, yes, the family tradition continues. We made our annual pilgrimage to Oak Glen, near Yucaipa, Calif., to pick apples, raspberries and pumpkins. I think we started going up there around 1988, only missing two or three years. It always makes for great scrapbooking (or blog) photos, if nothing else! Xan enjoyed being carried around in the "baby backpack," taking cat naps when he could. Will had a great time showing 3-year-old family friend Christopher Reitan the art of stomping and throwing apples. Rodney enjoyed the whole trip (not really), especially since he hadn't been on the annual trip since I had been pregnant with Will. I had fun drinking the fresh cider. Others in attendance: My mom and dad, my grandma Ginia, my brother, Joe, and his wife, Gina, her sister Katie, Christopher's parents, Sean and April (who I've known since we were kids - our dads have been friends since high school), and fellow Marine wife Michi. We managed to get lost on the freeway, fought crowds for parking spaces and had overtired kids, but it will all be forgotten by next year when we make the trek again ...