Meet Eddie

Eddie is our oldest of two feline family members. He will be 13 years old in August. We recently found out he has a tumor on his thyroid gland, causing a disease called Hyperthyroidism. It is a pretty common disease in older cats and the tumors are usually benign. The good news is that it can be controlled with medication. The bad news is that it means more trips to the vet for sedation and blood draws for little Ed, at least until we get the correct dosage of medication figured out. The other good news is we caught it pretty early, on routine bloodwork and he is fairly asymptomatic. He's a tough old bird!

This is Ed's favorite toy, Thing 2. We call him Thing Gross.

Art Class

Aayla and I had a great time at our first Creating Together class. She painted, stamped, collaged and colored. Each week we'll do something different. I think her favorite is painting at the easel. She painted this picture for Daddy. By the way, I painted the "A", the rest is all hers!

WE MISS YOU DADDY!!

We can't wait to see you! Here's some cute videos to keep you company!

The Happy Dance

Pink

For Daddy

First Solo Swim

Aayla had her first solo swim class today. It was.... how do I put this.... interesting and a bit stressful. Overall, she did pretty good considering it was a new experience for her and with a brand new teacher. She didn't cry or fight going into the pool with a complete stranger like I expected. Instead, she kept jumping off the bench in the water, either reaching for toys or just not wanting to sit still. Amity, her new teacher, had a hard time working with the other kids because she was too busy trying to keep Aayla on the bench! About 10 minutes before the class was over, Aayla decided she was DONE with this swimming business and started whining and wanting out of the pool. Even so, I am looking forward to class next week as I know Aayla will get better each time.

We have our first art class tomorrow!

Oh Boy!

Things have been all baby shower around here lately. On Saturday, I co-hosted a shower for my good friend Angela, who is expecting a baby boy at the end of February. It was a great party with a good turnout. Aayla "helped" me make the diaper cake.

The finished product...



The beautiful mother to be, Angela, and her mom Nikki.



Congratulations and welcome to the club!

And The Winner Is.....

Aayla! She won her very first game of Candyland the other night. She crushed both of us! She almost made Daddy cry... ;)

No News is Good News...

Things have been relatively quiet around here. Aayla is finally feeling better and back to her easygoing self! Whew! It was a rough week when she was sick. She is talking more than ever and comes up with the funniest things now. She knows all the letters in her name (well, there are only 3!) except she thinks the "L" is said "ell-emm-enn", probably from the alphabet song!

We started back at swim class this week. She was a little hesitant with Jonathon, her teacher, and a little whiny, but did well overall. In two weeks, Don and I won't be going in the pool with her. My baby is all grown up... sniffle.

We also registered for our new round of classes today. We are continuing with Tumble Tots and also adding in "Creating Together", an art class. We are taking the art class on Saturday mornings so that Don can join us sometimes. In March, Aayla and I begin Preschool Exploration. Its a class that introduces the kids to the preschool environment and activities with a parent present. It's sort of like a slow introduction to preschool. I can't believe I am already talking about preschool... another sniffle.

Don leaves for Florida in about a week for work and golf. So, it'll just be the girls again. Well, that about raps it up for Jensen family news.

Hope everyone is off to a great 2009!