Rockin' out at the Bon Jovi Concert

Janis and I went with our "rockin" friend Jeannie to the Daughtry/Bon Jovi Concert on April 5th. This was our second date since having Lauren. We took a chance and went to the concert without even having tickets. We were able to purchase awesome seats at the box office just an hour before the show. Chris Daughtry's band "Daughtry" opened for Bon Jovi. I still remember when Chris (yes, I am on a first name basis with these guys) performed "Wanted Dead or Alive" by Bon Jovi on American Idol. He is my favorite contestant that has been on American Idol so far. I am so glad that he has made a name for himself and is doing so well. I love that he was the opening act for Bon Jovi. He was AMAZING!!! He is so natural on stage and is an excellent performer. He definitely got us pumped up for the main act-- Bon Jovi. I have to say that I love Bon Jovi. I think that part of it is that their songs remind me of fun times back in high school. They were my first concert--Slippery When Wet. And you can't beat the 80's hair bands... I think that they have just continued to get better with age and have evolved over the years. I will continue to buy their albums and go to their concerts as long as they keep them coming.

Here's a slideshow of our fun night out on the town...

4th of July

We had a nice 4th of July celebration. We went to the church for the awesome 4th of July shin-dig and grub-a-dub-dub. It was really fun. The music and the food were fabulous. Then, we headed over to the local high school for fireworks. There was music there as well. The fireworks show at the high school is incredible. The fireworks are set to music, and they are right there. It is amazing! We had a great time and hope everyone else had a Happy 4th as well!

Lauren's 1st Ponytail--It took me 5 minutes to do it!!!

Brotherly/Sisterly Love

Janis and Jonathan at the High School Fireworks Show

Angels Games--From Terrace Level to Nosebleed Section

We went to a couple of Angels games recently. The first game that we attended was against the Detroit Tigers. The Angels ended up coming from behind in the end and beating the Tigers. We had nice seats by Right Field. Jonathan was so excited to go see the Angels play the Tigers. He kept asking, "When are we going to the baseball game?"

This lasted for a whole MONTH!!!

Daddy and Son--I love this picture!

The kids and I; this was Lauren's 1st Baseball Game!

The Two Schnooks

Our Little Family


The next game we went to was Mormon Night. The Angels played the Atlanta Braves. Unfortunately, the Angels lost this time. Our seats for this game were way up high in the "nosebleed" section. And man, I am not kidding you...
Jonathan got a major bloody nose!
They don't call it the "nosebleed" section for nothing.
I have to say that I was torn between helping Jonathan with his nose and getting the camera out to capture this ironic moment. I know, I'm bad.

Jonathan (after the nose stopped bleeding) and Dad

Jonathan cracking open and eating peanuts for the 1st time. He did not want anything to do with the peanuts at first, but after seeing everyone around him eating them, he succumbed to peer pressure. He got pretty good at breaking open the shell and getting the peanut out.

Yum-yum!

Our Sweet Little Amish Schnook!

I realized once we got to the car that I had put on her hat backwards. DUH!

Captain Moroni aka Jonathan

For Family Home Evening tonight, we talked about Captain Moroni and the armor that protected the Nephites in battle. We talked about the various pieces of armor--the helmet, the breastplate, the loins, the shield, the sword, and the shoes. Since we don't have armor just laying around the house, we made due with what we do have...

Jonathan putting on the Armor.

I have to say this took some coaxing;

he was not excited about doing this at first.

Ready for Battle!


I was being the "Bad Guy" and shooting the fiery darts at him. Yes, I was using Buzz Lightyear's laser blaster.

He's ready to shield off my attack, or is he?
I think his helmet is covering his face now!

Jonathan got a kick out of this! He thought it was so funny that I was shooting darts at him. Hopefully, he learned something from the lesson...

Jonathan's Birthday Party!

Jonathan had his first birthday party where he invited friends. He said he wanted to go to Chuck E. Cheese for his birthday party--well, what kid wouldn't? Jonathan invited friends from church and from school. Although it was slightly stressful, I know Jonathan had a BLAST, and I think all the other kids had fun as well. Making Introductions

Pizza Time!

Treyden, Jonathan, and Joey

Kennedy, Cameron, and Bailey

Noah, Andrew, Joe, and Sarah


The Cilderman Party


Lauren and Dad--can you tell she is teething?

Jonathan and Treyden on the Roller Coaster

This was Jonathan's favorite ride; I think he rode it five or six times.

Andrew pedaling way up high!


Claire and Chuck E. sittin' in a ....


Cameron, Kennedy, and Bailey playing my game of choice.


Jonathan and Caleb playing air hockey (with a little help from Steph).


Oh look, Jonathan is on the roller coaster again! This time he's with Noah.


There's the main mouse--Chuck E. Cheese!
(Okay, Mickey is the MAIN mouse, but Chuck takes a respectable 2nd).

We had cupcakes with candles that spelled "Happy Birthday".

I just LOVE how excited and happy Jonathan looks here!!! NOT!!!

Jonathan still wanted to play games so he was not particularly excited to sit down and have cupcakes.

Man, what a mean mom I am...

All in all, I think it was a positive experience--No one got hurt or lost, and everyone seemed to have a good time.

Happy 4th Birthday Jonathan!

Yes, we are still alive...

So, this was my fear about doing this whole blog thing. I knew I was going to feel the pressure of posting. I took a rather long break, but I think I am ready to give it a go again. I have many more posts in my head; the problem is finding the time to post them on the computer. Thank you for your patience. Hopefully, I will learn to be more efficient with my time when it comes to creating posts. Can we say: Perfectionist? Yeah, I have issues...

Warning Moms--Don't try this at Home...

Jonathan goes to Open Gym on Wednesdays. He is in a gymnastics class on Saturdays, and the gym is open to kids 5 and under on Wednesdays for an hour. Jonathan has fun jumping in the pit, sliding down steep mats, and jumping on the trampoline. It is low key and gets us out of the house.

So, today we went, and Jonathan decided he wanted to do the obstacle course. He was practicing cartwheels, and he kept landing on his knees. So, I said, "Jonathan, watch me. You want to kick up high and land on your feet." I proceeded to do a cartwheel. Okay, I should have stretched beforehand because I swear I pulled a glute muscle doing a STUPID cartwheel!!! Apparently, I am not as flexible as I thought I was... Maybe Janis will massage it out for me. :P