Category Archives: us

Goodbye Commodus

Posted on December 3, 2010 by admin

Lindsey and I have some very sad news. This afternoon we put Commodus to sleep. It was by far the most difficult decision we’ve ever made together, and we’ll dearly miss our little pug. About ten months ago he injured his back and despite our attempts to help him heal, his condition deteriorated. Over the past weeks there were many tears as we tried to figure out what was best. In the end we decided there wasn’t much joy left in his daily life, and we didn’t want him to suffer. Today the vet came to our house, and we cuddled with him on his bed by the fire as he drifted off.

Commodus, you were such an incredible little dog these past 8 1/2 years. You joined our family a year before we got married, when you were just two months old. You were our first baby, quadruped though you were. We spoiled you, dressed you up in ridiculous costumes, and bought anything that had a pug on it. That first year, we took you on many adventures, to the beach, to the top of Winchester mountain, and all over Bellingham. You went boating with us and even learned how to swim. On our wedding day you were our ring bearer. Throughout the years you’ve stood by as life happened. When we started a family you cuddled with Mommy throughout both pregnancies, and when our boys came home from the hospital you were there to greet them at the door. The pitter-patter of your paws on the floor, your snoring, and soulful brown eyes that always expressed a look of deep concern will be dearly missed. This marks the end of a chapter in our lives. Although we weren’t ready to move on yet, it’s a time we’ll always have fond memories of. It’s a time we view as our youth, our 20’s, the beginning of us and our life as a family. We’ll miss you puppy.

There are SO MANY pictures. Turns out we took roughly 3,000 of our pooch. This was the least we could get it down to.

With his brothers and sisters

The bowl we picked out was way too big

At Ocean Shores

Cruisin’

Camping at Winchester (he was licking mac ‘n cheese out of the pot)

He had a taste for the Vegemite

Trying to enjoy a margarita

In the Nooksack River

Pug-o-lantern

Our ring bearer

With Cosette

With Nicole

At Lake Padden

Head of the Lake

Camping

On Lummi Island

He’s a Mac Dog

Santa’s helper

At Clayton Beach

Feeling baby kicks

“Get me out of this ridiculous hat!”

“No, not another one!”

“Now antlers?”

“I heart wood stoves”

“I think Mom’s had too many cookies”

Greeting Avery on his first day home

Pug buns

Snoozin’ in the sun

With Old Nana

Teaching Avery to roll over… it worked

On a walk

With Avery

Good times in the back yard

Overseeing the potty training

Greeting Kieron on his first day home

With his brothers

In the end Commodus spent much of his time in bed in front of the fire.

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Snow Days + Thanksgiving

Posted on November 28, 2010 by Lindsey

It snowed four inches last Monday. This was enough to close schools and keep our family at home through Wednesday. On top of that, Kieron and I were suffering from a cold which Avery had just passed on to us. We managed to get out sledding and stomping around in the snow anyway. We had snowball fights, made snow angels, and even tried to build an igloo, but the snow was too dry. Then we sipped hot chocolate, put up Christmas decorations, and watched The Grinch and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. The snow certainly put us in the holiday spirit a little early.

Fortunately, the roads cleared up just in time for Thanksgiving. Nana and Grandpa drove up to celebrate with us. We enjoyed a delicious feast, the highlight of which was Jonathan and Avery’s amazing pumpkin cheesecake!

“To the hill!”

Notice the matching hats

Avery mixing the cheesecake crust

Grandpa with his grandsons

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Around the House

Posted on November 4, 2010 by Lindsey

The boys are growing up fast. Kieron officially rolled over a few weeks ago, but he doesn’t feel compelled to do it very often. He is still not a fan of tummy time unless one of us is on our tummy in front of him. After a few minutes he’ll start to fuss, but only occasionally will he do something about it and roll onto his back. He loves to stand and jump. If I stand him up on my knees and hold his hands, he’ll jump up and down until my arms wear out. Yesterday he held onto the edge of Avery’s train table by himself for a couple of minutes (I was close by spotting him).

Meanwhile Avery’s vocabulary and personality are growing exponentially. I understand why Bill Cosby’s Kids Say the Darndest Things was popular. I often find that after a conversation with Avery, my cheeks hurt from laughing. He’s a sweetheart too, and is quick to say “I love you” or to tell Kieron “you’re so cute!” or “you’re the best little brother I ever had!”

Here’s a random collection of our favorite photos from around the house over the past month or so:

Kieron loves his jumparoo!

We took down a box in the garage full of my old Barbie things

Avery especially loved playing with the camper van and the elevator

Kieron in the tub

Love his chubby little thighs!

We took some family photos on a crisp fall day

Kieron got crabby pretty quickly, so we got some shots with just Avery

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Visit from New York

Posted on October 28, 2010 by Lindsey

Forgive us Lord, for it has been almost two months since our last blog post. Did you miss us? We’ll be retro-blogging a few entries to get caught up.

Auntie Ashleigh came out for a visit with her boyfriend, Mark, in early September. We had breakfast with them in the U District. The next day we photographed a wedding they attended as guests. Here are a few pics from breakfast:

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Balloon Ride

Posted on August 31, 2010 by Lindsey

Planner that I am, I have a bucket list, despite the fact that I am still young and in good health (knock on wood). For my 30th birthday, Jonathan’s parents helped me cross one thing off my list. They watched to boys for us, and Jonathan and I woke up at 4:00am, tanked up on coffee, and headed to Newberg, OR to catch a hot air balloon at dawn.
I have to admit, I was a little nervous watching them fill up the balloon with hot air. The basket looked awfully small, and the flame looked really big. Before long, it was all set to go, we jumped in, our pilot unhooked us from our anchor (a van) and we gently lifted off the ground. According to him, the winds were “squirrley,” but I didn’t notice – it seemed like a smooth takeoff to me. The ride was a breeze, so to speak – very peaceful and still. We drifted over the Willamette river (where we attempted a “splash and dash”), just over the tree tops, and on over farms and beautiful houses on large lots. We even saw a couple of horses in a corral get spooked by a curious deer. After our flight there was a champagne toast followed by a delicious homemade brunch. This was definitely an experience I will remember. Thanks Jenny and Bill!