Merry Christmas!!

Christmas Card '09

We hope you are able to take time to enjoy the Christmas season and celebrate the birth of our Savior with your family and friends!

What's in a name?

After much contemplation, Matt and I reached an agreement on BabyBoy's name. His given name will be...

We'll call him by his middle name, Abel. It was a difficult decision, but I love the meaning of his name. Matthew, after his daddy, and meaning "Gift of God." Abel means "breath" and Abel was the first person in the Bible to please God after Adam and Eve fell out of His favor.

We can't wait to meet this little blessing in April!

Introducing...

...Ella Carmen

This adorable baby girl is the brand new daughter of one of my bestest friends, Sammie and her hubby, Rich! She was born via C-section today at 2:11pm weighing in at 7 pounds, 2 ounces and measruing 20 inches. Mom and Baby are both doing well! I cannot wait to meet this precious new blessing!

Weekly Wrap Up #2

This has a been a busy week.

Monday was my routine OB appointment. BabyBoy's heartbeat sounded awesome. He is growing and we're right on track. Everything looks great according to the docs!

Eli has the Little Gym on Tuesdays, and he's learning so much. He loves hanging from the bars, walking on the balance beam, and doing the group activities on the big red mat. His favorite parts are playing with balls, the parachute, and the AirTrack. It's so nice to have an outlet for the little guy's energy! On Tuesday afternoon, we all (Daddy even got off work early) went to get Jacob and take him to guitar lessons. While Jacob was at lessons, we did some quick Christmas shopping.

Wednesday was a nasty, rainy day, so Eli and I headed up the indoor playground at the mall. While we were there, we stopped by for a visit with Santa (aka Ho-ho). Eli was the only little one not crying on Santa's lap. He ran right up to him and hopped up on his lap. He sat there and stared at him. Too cute! We have a picture, but I haven't scanned it yet. I'll post it next week!

Jacob had a winter music concert at school on Thursday. He did great! His favorite parts were obvious by the big grin on his face. I'm so amazed at how big he is now. This is his last elementary school music concert!! WOW!!

Yesterday, Eli and I headed to Wilson to say a final goodbye to my grandmother's close friend and companion, Mr. Charles. He was almost 100 years old! He was a good man and we really enjoyed sharing life with him the past couple of years! He will be dearly missed.

And, finally...today is the family Christmas exchange. I can't wait! I absolutely love the holidays and the time spent with family. It's not about the gifts, but just a chance to be with those we love!

Enjoy the pictures and please forgive the quality. I'm hoping Santa brings me a camera (a Nikon Coolpix S620 or a Canon Powershot SX20 IS...or any other great camera as I am NOT a professional)! If Santa doesn't come through for me, maybe the stork will leave one when he drops off BabyBoy!

Have a blessed week!

Weekly (and a little more) WrapUp #1

So, I've been horrible at posting on the blog. Especially since I've discovered the ease and simplicity of Facebook. With that, my new goal is to post here at least once a week in the form of a weekly wrapup. Hopefully this will keep everyone up to date and document BabyBoy's journey to the world.

*I started feeling BabyBoy moving around about two weeks ago. It is one of my favorite parts of pregnancy...well, until it gets uncomfortable!

*Eli is using more two- and three-word phrases now. He's changing everyday. I love staying home with him and watching him learn and grow. Despite the impending "twos," he is a joy and we have a blast together. He's even becoming a great helper...unloading the dishwasher, loading the washer and dryer, cleaning up toys, and holding the dustpan just to name a few

*BabyBoy has been named and we will announce that name as soon as we can let the whole family know first!

*Jacob is SOO excited about Christmas break. He can't wait to spend time with his family, near and far and get some time away from school.

*Matt is adjusting to his new position at Wells Fargo. It is different and sometimes a challenge, but his work ethic is amazing and he's trying to look at the bright side. We are blessed that he is in a much more stable position within the company and layoffs are no longer an impending risk

*Our lights are up and the house is decorated for Christmas. After some initial touchy moments that could have been very bad between Eli and the tree, we've come to a "one-finger-touch" agreement and things are good

*Bonus Sweet Moment: The boys were playing around Wedndesday night when they bumped heads. Jacob said, "owww!" So, Eli leaned over and kissed his "boo-boo" on his forehead. Awwwwww! I just love those moments

So, take care this week, and we'll catch up again soon!!

It's a...

We are so pleased and grateful to announce that we are expecting a healthy baby...

...BOY!!

I know it's hard to decipher exactly what you're seeing in the ultrasound photo, but it's a close up of the profile of his head. He has his little fist up by his face as well. We are so thankful for the good report and so in love with him already!

Halloween Quick Pics

Tonight we headed out as a family for some trick-or-treating fun! Matt and I were accompanied by a scarecrow and "Static Cling." Eli had an emergency costume change. He was scheduled to appear as a spider, but we discovered quickly that he treated his costume just as he does the poor daddy-long-legs that he finds in our yard...he tried to pull the legs off! So, after a quick re-do of his costume and a final stuffing of Jacob, we headed out. As we approached the first house, I talked to Eli about saying "trick or treat" and saying "thank you." Apparently during my lessons, I failed to mention that we don't get to actually go into each house we visit! We discovered his disappointment in the lack of getting-to-go-inside-each-and-every-house, with his outward disapproval. Oh, yes...my kiddo was the one who got his candy, said "thank you," then left screaming and crying because you didn't invite him in!! Following a couple of those embarrassing episodes (that were calmed only by the offer of a Smartie), Eli and Daddy headed home and Jacob and I tackled the rest of the neighborhood alone. Jacob got a bag full of candy and was happy with his loot! He had so much fun, he topped the night off by losing a tooth in a Milk Dud!

Happy Halloween!!

Pumpkin Patch

After Jacob got out of school today, I took the boys to the pumpkin patch. We enjoyed a hayride and pumpkin picking, a maze, a train ride, feeding the animals, and lots of fun! By the end, I was pooped. Of course, I believe the boys could have played for another hour! I'm always amazed at the amount of energy these guys have! When we got home, I had to head back out for a meeting, so Matt helped them carve their pumpkins. All in all, it was a busy, but fun day!

Daddy's boys!

These guys looked so cute together yesterday for Sunday afternoon football that I just had to take their picture--even though they are wearing Steelers jerseys :)

It's been awhile!!

I haven't posted in quite a long time. So, here's a quick little idea of what's been going on around here. Please excuse the list form!

* I made pierogies from scratch.




*Jacob is enjoying football! He is quite the busy fifth grader! His guitar instructor raves about his progress and is hinting that Jacob needs an electric guitar. Jacob's been hinting at that, too! The BB gun he got for his birthday is a hit and he loves target practice in our backyard.


*Eli is growing and changing every day. We're down to one nap a day now, which was quite a transition and adjustment for us all!! He's still working hard on making it through the entire church service without the caregivers having to page us out of service. Matt says he inherited that "separation anxiety" gene from him. He's loving the Little Gym classes we enrolled him in. And, as always, he is thoroughly enjoying the outdoors and sports of ANY kind! Yes, my 19 month old already loves sports!


* Baby Sloan is growing. We're at 15 weeks now. Baby is about the size of an apple! We;ll have our next ultrasound in early November and will find out Baby's gender at that time! YEAH!! Matt is adamant that this one's a girl. I'm starting to believe him (especially since he was right about Jacob and Eli)!


* Matt is starting a new position within Wells Fargo on Monday. He's excited about this position, especially since it really seems to secure his employment with Wells. It will be an adjustment for us all as his hours will be changing. I've been blessed that his hours have been 6a-3p and he's been able to occupy the boys while I cook. Beginning Monday, his hours will be 8a-5p, so we'll either be eating later, or our boys will have to work on playing together, safely, alone!


* I'm doing well. I stay busy driving here, there, and everywhere for our family! I survived helping plan and execute the Fall Festival at Jacob's school. By the end of the day, I'm exhausted which I think is a combination of chasing around a VERY active 19 month old, and being pregnant.


Well, that's about all for now! Have a great day, friends!!

Look out, LeBron!!

Recently, Eli has been really interested in dribbling balls. He's gotten quite good. Here's a video from a couple of days ago. If you count, you'll notice he dribble 4 times in a row. Well, now he's up to 6 or 7. Not too bad for an kiddo who's only 19 months old!!

Happy, happy birthday!!

He's the one who can always make me laugh, has an endless number of questions to ask, gives unexpected and much appreciated hugs, loves to play with his baby brother, and is becoming more and more mature everyday!

Jacob turns 10 today! I can't believe it. It seems like just yesterday he was a little boy with a bowl cut tearing through the house. Now, he's a young man with a buzz cut tearing through the house!!!

It is such a blessing to be a part of his life and be witness to the amazing things that God is doing in His child! Jacob is a joy and a most definitely a gift.

Happy Birthday, Jake! We love you!

What's going on??

Here's a quick picture review of what we've been up to recently. Please forgive my lack of posting, but this first trimester is exhausting and I'm typically in bed at 9:00pm, which seriously inhibits my blogging. Hang in there, 12 weeks is almost up and hopefully I'll get back to a peppier self!

A List...

bun in the oven

gestating

knocked up

in the family way

expecting

pea in the pod

eating for two

Now you may be asking, "What? Why the list, Jennifer?" Well friends, it's my way of letting you know that our family is growing by two feet. We are SOOOOO excited to let you know that we are expecting a baby in early April! Stay tuned for more information!!

"Who's busy like a bee?"

Me, me, me!

We've been pretty busy recently! There are lots and lots of fun and exciting things happening.

Jacob started 5th grade this year. I know, I can't believe it either! He's growing up so fast. We pray that as he goes through this school year, that he not only excels in his academics, but that he is also taking Jesus with him into the public school setting and being His light in the darkness! I know that even the smallest things--being polite and courteous, demonstrating respect in all things, being obedient--make a difference! Jacob is such a joy and I feel truly blessed to have been given the opportunity to share in his life.

This fall, Jacob has decided to play Upward flag football instead of baseball. Practices have started and he is so excited to try something new. He loves football and joins his daddy as a die-hard Steelers fan. Of course, I join my daddy and say, "GO EAGLES!!!!!!!!"

Eli has reached the 18-month milestone. He, too, is growing up quickly. We've weaned from the bottle, enrolled in gymnastics, and are attempting to move to one nap instead of two. He's into and on top of everything! I'm in awe of his vocabulary--I've lost count of the number of words he now has. It blows my mind how quickly he picks up on things. Fortunately, he seems to have inherited my sense of direction. Just yesterday, we were leaving church. Just a little background info: Eli hasn't been to church in about 3 months. He was having some severe separation anxiety and we were being called out of service every weekend. So, we decided to attend separate services while one of us stayed home with Eli to give him a little break. This weekend was his first weekend back and he made it through the entire service and had a GREAT time! Yeah!!! Okay, so remember that he hasn't gone this particular route in at least 3 months. As we made the turn to head toward the restaurants, Eli begins screaming (his favorite new volume for speaking) "ice, ice, ice, ice" Wouldn't you know it, about a half mile ahead is out favorite Dairy Queen. He's his Mema's boy!!

Just a thought:
"When I approach a child He inspires in me two sentiments: Tenderness for what he is, And respect for what he may become." ~Louis Pasteur

Hope your day is blessed!

Dougherty Family Vacation

We had a blast at Emerald Isle with my family recently. There were 15 of us in all; 7children ages 13 and under and 8 adults. The house was beautiful and so was the weather. We had so much fun playing games, splashing in the waves, digging in the sand, hitting the water park, eating yummy food, playing some competitive board games, and just relaxing together!

It was so much fun to see the wonder in Eli's eyes as he discovered the beach and the ocean for the first time. We went last summer, but he was only 6 months and really wasn't able to get around. He got around this time, for sure! He truly has no fear and we spent lots of time running after him as he was running straight out into the ocean! He took a couple spills face-first, but got up and went right back in.

The older kids had a blast in the waves and Jacob even got a really cool battle wound from wiping out on a rogue wave. Please note the the really cool battle wound wasn't really cool at first!! They also had loads of fun in the pool and hot tub.

It was a great vacation. Here are a few pictures of the fun!






P.S. My SIL, Amanda, put up a great post about our trip. You can check it out to see more pictures and read her favorite memories (many of them are my favorites, too)!

Silly sounds!

This kid is too funny for words!!

Sloan Family Vacation

We just returned from vacationing with Matt's family at Lake Anna in Virginia. We had an awesome time! There were 15 of us including seven kids ranging in age from one year to 10 years old. We spent lots of time eating, talking, playing, relaxing, and catching up. We don't get to see them very often because of the distance that separates us, but being together this past week was certainly a great time!! Here are a few pictures of the fun.

Since we were already in VA we took the opportunity to meet a "bloggy friend" who lives nearby. I've been friends with Amy for about two years now, but we've never met in person. Last Saturday, we met at a restaurant with our boys (Andy, her hubby, was busy helping some of their friends move, so we missed him) and got to sit down and actually talk face to face. It was wonderful to finally meet her and spend some time together. Matt took a picture for us!

Hope you're having as much fun as we are this summer!!

PLEASE PRAY FOR STELLAN!!

Things are not looking so good for little Stellan! Please join me in prayer for him and his family as they continue to trust in the Lord!You can find out his story on the family's blog at My Charming Kids.You can find out up to the minute details at his mom's Twitter account here.

Super-saver shopping!

It's Kids Exchange time again. Believe it or not, I drove home from vacation to shop the sale--it truly saves us that much money. Since I came home alone, I shopped the sale alone for the first time. Boy, did I miss the help of my hubby!! I was able to get Eli's entire winter wardrobe, including shoes and outerwear. It's a little harder to shop for Jacob at consignment sales. Boys his age tend to be harder on clothes, so there aren't as many to choose from. I was able to snag 3 pairs of jeans, some great shirts, and a fleece for him!

Even with our wagon, it was difficult for me to haul everything without Matt. We typically shop with our stroller and a cart which is the space; so, I didn't get as many toys as usual. I did get a couple of good deals. I purchased this Bounce and Spin Zebra for $10 and a Noah's Ark for $3 (I think the amazon price is so high because the toy is now considered a collectible). I also got this garage and ramp toy for $4.

All totaled, I got 47 items for $157.

Not too bad, not too bad at all!!!

So, if you're local, you might want to check it out. Kids Exchange runs through Sunday!

Long time, no blog!

Sorry about the lack of posts recently, but we've been busy around here. Eli and I just took an impromptu trip to PA with Mema and PaPa to visit PaPa's family. It was a quick visit, but fun. We really enjoyed being able to see Aunt Linda and Erik, and Nanny. We had so much fun, we decided to bring Nanny back to Mema and PaPa's house to visit for a little while. Here are some pictures we took while we were there. Some were taken at the monument at the top of Nanny's street. The plaque says it's there to commemorate the first women's college. Other pictures were taken at a really great park near Nanny's house!





Then today, Jacob left for camp. He's gone with our church, C3 Church, to Camp KidJam. He went last year and had a great time, so he was excited about going again! Thanks to Jacob's mom's hubby's family connections (gotta love these bonus families!!) on the church staff, we got a picture of him after he arrived at camp. It looks like everything's going great on day one!!


Please join us as we pray for Jacob's time at camp. We pray he has a great time and makes friendships, but most of all that he learns more about Jesus and how to walk in the Light of Christ!

Free!

Happy 4th of July!!

Love,

the Sloans

Super Sprinkler Slideshow

We are THAT family!

The other night, we made a spur of the moment decision to head out for some yummy sno-balls. Pelican's is one of our favorite treat destinations. We loaded up the car and headed down the road. At some point I looked back to check on Eli and realized that we forgot to put shoes on him. So, I told Matt that instead of eating out sno-balls alfresco at the picnic tables and benches and having our little one run around in his bare feet, Eli and I would just wait in the car while he got the goodies! Matt asked, "Why?" My response was that I didn't want to be that family. You know the ones. With the baby running around in his bare feet. With the mom who couldn't even remember to put shoes on the baby. That family! Then, I looked at his shirt. The man I was going to send out to the sno-ball stand to represent my family was wearing this shirt.

I guess it's official. We are THAT family!

I guess deep frying is a love language around here!

When Jacob asked me if we could make donuts, my first thought was "why don't we head on over to the Dunkin' Donuts and just pick some up, instead!" But, his nine-year old persistence (which I now believe must be a superpower) had me Googling for a fast, easy donut recipe. Now, Google rarely fails me, but this time I walked away thinking that Dunkin' Donuts was sounding better and better.

The following weekend, over some poolside conversation with my S-I-L, Amanda, I mentioned the donuts that were becoming the bane of my existence and she had the answer to my troubles. "Biscuits!" she said. Biscuits??? Could it really be that easy?

Well, friends, on Thursday night Jacob and I headed into the kitchen to make the biscuit donuts and it was easy peasy! Basic steps are to get the basic Pillsbury buttermilk biscuits in the blue can (we used store brand, because we're cheap and they worked fine), peel them apart and cut out a hole. I let Jacob use a small circle fondant cutter that I happened to have in my baking drawer. Then drop them in some hot oil. Once browned, take them out and drain on a paper towel. You can top them with whatever you choose. Jacob wanted powdered sugar, but you could use a chocolate glaze or a plain glaze or sprinkles or cinnamon sugar or a flavored icing...sorry, I got carried away. Anyway, it was easy, it was fun, and they were YUM-O! Jacob liked the donut-making process so much that he suggested we open a donut shop. Good idea, except I'm not sure I want our financial situation resting in the hands of the deep-fried biscuit donut!

Anyway, here are some fun pictures of the whole process and my handsome kitchen helper!

Talkin' toddler

This blog serves so many purposes, but today I'm really using it as a journal/baby book. I want to document the expressive language that Eli has mastered. Hopefully there's at least one other reader out there who's interested in our chatty boy. Some are clear words and some are word approximations he pairs with signs. Here's the list of what he's saying or signing!

Dada
Mama (this one took forever!!)
Mema
PaPa
Brother
outside
car
all done
ball
bird
bat
snack
bubbles
cookie
cup
help
up
down
shoes
no
please
thank you
DVD
go
book
banana
apple
grapes
raisins
burger
night-night
bath
bed
baby
bye-bye
ice (for ice cream or any frozen treat)
sit
open
grass
hat
pants
nose
eyes
animal sounds for: cow, duck, horse, dog, cat, frog, sheep, pig, monkey, snake, gorilla, fish, bee, lion, rabbit

It amazes me what little minds can do. He's a little sponge and is soaking up everything going on around him. I was truly impressed the other day as we drove home from Mema's house. We were crusing down the road and I hear "ice, ice, ice, ice..." from the back seat. It took me a minute, but then I realized we had just passed our favorite Dairy Queen. Apparently we are living with more than one Smarty-pants!

Wordless Wednesday

Daddy's helper

“Man is a tool-using Animal.... Nowhere do you find him without tools; without tools he is nothing, with tools he is all.” ~Thomas Carlyle

Our oldest learned all about that "tool-using Animal" yesterday. Boy, was he psyched when his daddy came inside and asked, "Jacob, wanna use a power tool?" I've never seen him move quite so fast. So, with some trepidation I followed them outside to capture the moments on camera. This is just another one of those father-son moments that I adore watching. This is also another one of those moments that reminds me that he's not little anymore!!

Hey, Jacob! Can you slow down on this whole growing-up-business, please!! I'd greatly appreciate it! Love, Jennifer

Nothing says love like fair food!

We spent Sunday afternoon celebrating Father's Day at my parents' house. Their pool provided some great fun in the sun. After much soaking, both in the water and in the rays, we headed inside for some dinner.

Dinner conversation turned to the days of my childhood when my dad made his own pickles. They were so yummy! That brought us around to one of the best memories of my childhood-- homemade funnel cakes--and my bright idea that we continue to celebrate Father's Day by relieving that memory and having my daddy slave over some hot oil so that his family could gorge on some tasty deep-fried dough covered in sweet powdered sugar.

So, Daddy pulled out his trusty, old Pennsylvania Dutch cookbook and set to work. I was so excited and my sister and I had the opportunity to help. That in itself was a thrill to me. I'd never been allowed to help with funnel cakes as a kid, so this was a privilege I'd long looked forward to!

I apologize that there is no picture of the final products, but they looked so good, that my mind was not in that "you-must-get-the-photo" blog mode, but rather in that "you-must-eat-the-funnel-cake" mode. I hope you all understand!

Happy Father's Day!

These are the wonderful fathers in my life. Pictured here are my father-in-law, who plays a mean game of Scattergories and raised my hubby (for which he should receive some award or prize); my Daddy who has believed in me and encouraged me for these past 31 years, and my hubby, who is an outstanding Daddy to our boys. These men have been such a blessing in my life and I just wanted to take a moment to say THANKS! FOR! EVERYTHING!! I love you all more than words can say!

Although these men are awesome earthly fathers, I have another Father, a Heavenly Father. He knows everything about me and yet He still loves me. He created me and I am fearfully and wonderfully made in His image. He loves me with an everlasting love simply because I am His child. He's my Provider, my Encourager, my Healer, my Comforter, my Strength, my Peace, and my Hope. My God is an incredible Father and on this Father's Day, if you don't know Him as your Father, please take some time to get to know him. Click here to learn more about Him and His love for you!

Happy Father's Day!

Upside down

"What if I should fall right through the center of the earth... oh, and come out the other side, where people walk upside down."

~Alice in Wonderland

Growing Up!

As of today, we are officially the proud parents of a 5th grader. Jacob finished up his fourth grade year yesterday. He excelled again on his report card and should be extremely proud of himself. We certainly are!

Matt and I were reminiscing recently over Jacob. Although I didn't birth him (thankfully, since he was a giant baby at birth, like Eli) I've known him since he was 2 1/2. He's come a long way! It's such a privilege to watch him grow and mature into a young man. Although he's not a fan of school--SIDEBAR: a teacher asked him once what his favorite thing about school was; his answer, "getting out"--he gets his work done and does it well. He's a smart cookie! I also just love witnessing the time Matt takes to teach him how to treat ladies with respect and act like a gentleman. And, I love even more when Jacob remembers those lessons and acts on them without reminders. He's growing up to be such a courteous and honorable young man, and it makes me proud to be his "bonus" mom (p.s. that links up to a great website I recently found about stepfamilies...I'm loving reading it)!

So, congratulations Jacob on a job well-done and welcome to the fifth grade! We love you!

BTW, isn't he handsome!?!

Week Wrap-up

We had a pretty busy week. So I thought I'd take a minute to fill you all in on what's been going on here! It always amazes me to see how many people have stopped by just to see what we've been up to! We love comments, so let us know you're reading.

Please pardon the list format. It's Saturday, so I've turned on my weekend brain and creative writing just doesn't seem to be happening today!

1. Eli had some great fun the baby pool in our front yard!

2. Jacob had his baseball championship tournament. As I said in a previous post, they won on Monday night, but on Tuesday night, they lost to the regular season champs. Matt went to Tuesday's game and said the boys rallied hard, and were tied for a while, but just didn't pull it out in the end. Jacob played great and nabbed the game-tying RBIs.

3. Eli and I planted some veggies in wheat straw bales in the backyard. According to my dad, this should work just fine to grow our tomatoes and peppers. I can't wait to see (and eat) our yield! Gardening with a 15 month old proved to be challenging and fun. He's a super little helper!

4. Jacob and I tried to head out to pick strawberries after school on Thursday. He's really been wanting to go, but we've been so busy with baseball, birthdays, and other commitments, that it's been hard to find the time. Unfortunately the weather took a turn for the worse and it rained cats and dogs. We tried to wait it out, but it didn't seem to want to stop, so we sucked it up and paid for a bucket picked by the farmers. Once we got home, Jacob helped me bake a pound cake and for dessert we topped it with fresh strawberries and whipped cream! Yummy!

5. I enjoyed a really sweet moment with a baby boy who is usually too busy to cuddle. He woke early from his nap and spent some quality time in my arms! What a precious time!

6. Only 3 more school days left until summer! Jacob (and I) are SOOOOOO excited! It will be great to have both my boys home together this summer. They've become such great buddies. Recently, Jacob has been trying to teach Eli to catch and has shown some success--I just can't seem to catch it on camera. I love to watch them together!

HAPPY WEEKEND!!!