Happy Easter!!!

The Burson family invited us over for Easter dinner this year. We had a ton of fun! Thanks guys!!!!! :) Jeremy missed out on the fun because he has been on Oklahoma taking a class for work. The food was amazing and the company outstanding! Thanks Burson family for a fun, fun day!

Jillian is enjoying free reign over the candy bucket...thanks Uncle Tim! Jillian has never had so much candy in her entire life as she did this one day. Thankfully, all the activity and excitement helped counteract the sugar high and she slept very well that night. :)

The meaning behind this thousand yard stare is still up for debate. Some think Jillian is in a chocolate coma. Others believe she is asking for even more chocolate. Hmmm, maybe its both -in her trance, Jillian might be saying more, more, more. :)

Josh and Jillian on a scooter. Josh and Luke play so well with Jillian and she just loves them!

Luke is excited for Easter! Or maybe its the Mountain Dew!!! :)

Jillian's honorary Aunt and Uncle, Joy and Tim, how cute are they?


Gwen Burson and Jen Withrow

Wendy Delaurentis, Tina & Bob Butcher

Missouri and Illinois

After leaving Ohio, we flew to St. Louis for a week and stayed with my Grandma.

Here is my mom, in back with her mom. I am the oldest of four and the shortest, how fair is that? I am sitting on Katie's lap. Next is Allison (with the green bead necklace) and she is holding the baby, Natalie. Natalie will graduate high school this year, young thing. :)

Poor Jeremy, hanging out with my family will lead anyone to drink. :) Sorry girls, it is so true!
The Butterfly House in St. Louis was soooooo neat! There were thousands of butterflies, everywhere. They would land on you and all around you. Inside the dome was incredibly hot and humid, Jillian's hair immediately turned to curls.

Outside the House was this fun carousel. Jillian and I just had to go for a spin.

My Dad, Grandpa John, aka PaPa. We drove to Illinois to visit my dad and see Lisa (our fav photographer). On the day we left we asked Dad to watch Jillian while we packed. I came downstairs and saw Jillian sitting on the dining room table eating Girl Scout cookies from the box.......and chocolate ones at that! And yes, this was a supervised activity. :)

Ohio and Kentucky

We just got back from a huge trip to the lower 48! Now we are exhausted and are reminded why we aren't able to go home often as we would like. The first 2 weeks we spent in Ohio with Jeremy's family....and had a total blast. Here are a few pictures.


Jillian and Uncle Jake at Nanny's. We just love the action shot. Little rocket.

Nanny (Jeremy's Grandma) is holding Cousin Logan. Logan is about 5 months old and Jillian just loved him. She gave him hugs and kisses and whispered "Baby, baby" in his ear while rubbing his back.

Nanny, Krissy and Jillian....just chillin. Jillian loved Krissy (and all her toys!), every morning as soon as she woke up, Jillian would run down the hall yelling "Krissy, Krissy". Like, girl - it is time to get the playing started!

Jillian is officially two!

I love you, Nana! (Jeremy's Mom)

Cousin Kelly, Nanny, Jillian and a little bit of Nanny's fierce bodyguard Buddy the dachshund. We were there for 2 weeks and at the end of our visit Buddy would still bark at us when we came too close to Nanny. He liked Jillian though....and she loved playing with him too.

Aunt Eileen and Uncle PeeWee, aren't they cute? :) Jillian calls PeeWee on the phone, he is just so fun to talk to! :) You may not be able to tell it from this picture, but these two are card sharks! Seriously!! :)

We took a little road trip to Kentucky. We couldn't come this far and not see where the Corvettes are built and tour the museum! Jillian and I are pointing to the brick for our Alaskan Corvette Club, the bricks are right outside the museum. Earlier that morning, Jeremy toured the manufacturing plant while Jillian and I stayed at the hotel and rested. The tour walks right on the floor where the vettes are being made...so little kids are not invited. I'm sure I'll survive missing that. Hee Hee. :)

Backpack Girl

This is Jillian with Josh B., our most favorite babysitter! Josh is truly wonderful with our little girl, we are very thankful for him and we just know that we won't ever find anyone better! Josh watched Jillian one afternoon so Jeremy and I could go grab lunch with his parents, when we came home we found him carrying Little Miss around the house in his school bookbag. How cute! Josh, thanks for being so great! :)

Corvette Kid

I'm sorry it has been so long since our last post! Here is Jillian with the bear. :) When asked what the bees say, Jillian responds "Bzzzz". Horses say neigh, cows say moo, dogs go "oof". But, the bear...now that is one friendly animal for all bears say "Hi" to Jillian. :) We're not sure where she picked that up, but every time Jillian is asked what the bear says, she responds with "Hi". We think its awfully cute, but we might have to teach her "Grrrr" before she goes to school.

Bye-Bye Allie!

My sister moved to Chicago and left Monday afternoon. We already miss her so much! She is such a wonderful person and we enjoyed having her stay with us. I think I cried everyday for the last week she was here, I am just a tad sensitive! Yesterday I cried when I couldn't complete the crossword puzzle from the paper without her help and didn't have her coffee cup to load into the dishwasher. I actually looked for it before I remembered that she wasn't here anymore. Hmmm, or maybe I was crying because I had to load the dishwasher...she always took care of that task. :) Its the little things, like our morning routine, that I will miss the most.

Allison, thanks for being my sister! We love you!!

My Buddy and Me

The other night Jillian escaped from the bathroom right before bathtime. She ran and hid in the crate with Athena. Jeremy and I had so much fun taking pictures capturing this silly moment. What a ham!

New Year, New Look

Happy New Year! For the new year I decided to make some changes to Jillian's blog. I am still thinking and playing....and having fun with all the options! Let me know what you think!

Nana, this pink theme is for you! (Hee Hee!!!)

Merry Christmas!

The Withrow family after Christmas Eve service.

Miss Jillian opening a present....or four. Thanks Nana for my camo outfit!!

Its a pink furry phone! :) Thanks Nanny!!

Aunt Allie and Jillian playing with a new toy. Thanks Dave, Peg, Kelly and Derek!

On the eve of Christmas Eve, Jillian opened her present from the Burson's. What a gorgeous dress, how did you know? Thanks guys, we love it!

Aunt Allie and a little ski bunny. Thank you all for making this Christmas so truly wonderful!

Pretzel Face

Miss Jillian loves pretzels, just like her Daddy! The front pocket on her overalls doubles as a snack carrier. :)

My Sister Allison

My sister Allison moved to Alaska this past April. She lived and worked on the Kenai over the summer and moved in with us in September. We have been having so much fun with her these past few months and we're so happy that she will be with us over Christmas! Jillian just loves her aunt...even if she doesn't look thrilled in the above photo. :) Allison will be moving to Chicago in January and we will all miss her!

Miss Jillian having a cup of milk before bed.

Hard at Play

Jillian playing in the tunnel.

Snacktime!

Trapped

Jillian likes to climb up and sit on the dining room table....this makes mommy and daddy very nervous! Especially since the table top is glass. Jeremy took this photo of Little Miss stuck mid-climb. Makes me grin every time...thought you might like it too! :)

Flu Season

Jeremy and Jillian were sick with the flu the last week in November. It was tough seeing our little baby in that state. I think I ran the steam cleaner more in 3 days than the entire time we've had the machine. The washer and dryer were going constantly. Jillian is finally getting her appetite back and is also back on her awesome 12-hour sleeping schedule at night. Life is getting better.

We are sending all of you happy, healthy thoughts! :)

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Left to Right: Jillian, Jeremy, my sister Allison, Allison's friend Erika, Josh, Luke and Joy Burson. I didn't get a great angle with the camera, focusing on the 1/2 full serving dishes....next time I'll stand on a chair.

Turkey.....we love turkey! :) I should fix one more often! I'm so thankful that Allison was here this year, she is awesome in the kitchen!!!! I'm grateful for all her help! :) She recently purchased plane tickets leaving Alaska on January 15th...she is moving to Chicago. I am missing her already!

Little Readers

Jillian and Zachary reading books together. They did this all on their own, how cute! :)

Happy Halloween!

Jillian and I dressed up as kitties this year. This was the first year for Jillian to dress up and we had fun! We're only sorry that Daddy is in Oklahoma and missed the big day! We went to Bell's (a local nursery) today and my sister Allison took our picture with what was left of their pumpkin patch. Thanks Allison!!! :)
Jillian didn't really like the pumkins and this was the only time she came close to touching one. :)


Last Saturday we were invited to a kid Halloween party. Here is a shot of all the cuties. Jillian had a blast playing with the kids and eating many yummy snacks!

Yum Yum, an apple! Jillian decorated her own mask and pumpkin...with a little help from Mama. Jillian even got to pick a prize from a bucket filled with styrofoam marshmallows....actually, more styrofoam marshmallows made it into the goody bag than actual toys.

The Sweet Spot

Nestled between Anchorage and Denali is this overlook that has the absolute best view of the mountain. On the drive home we scored a pretty decent view of Mt. McKinley, other than the little cloud cover, the mountain was visible and beautiful.