Is Jared employed this upcoming school year???

YES!!!!! After a 3rd interview with the district he wanted to teach at the most (McKinney-- where he grew up)... he got the job!! He will be teaching choir at a middle school starting this fall! We are so excited, though I secretly knew all along he would get it. I kept telling Jared that when each of the head honchos met him, they would toss the other applicants aside because he truely is just AMAZING! So if you have a middle schooler whom you'd like to have a great choir teacher, move to McKinney!!

Jared Updates:

1. Jared is currently working his bunnions off selling pest control. My brother sells with him, so he's got a sweet selling buddy to help him get through the hot, humid, and long door knocking days!

2. A couple weeks ago Jared found a marathon to run that isn't on Sunday and that is somewhat close. It's in Arkansas. Like a 6 hr. drive. Ever since, he has been training to run it. It is in November! Kailee, Allie, and I are excited to go cheer him on as we burn our calories giggling and chomping on ice cream!

3. Not only is Jared running to prepare for this marathon... but also lifting weights. I know, you're thinking... WHY? I thought the same thing...He doesn't need to... he is already buff stuff. Believe it or not, his biceps and pectoralis major muscles have gotten even BIGGER... if you can imagine. He can finally beat me at arm wrestling, lol.

4. Jared spends his free time (in the mornings) playing with Kailee and I, reading the unabridged version of Les Miserables, and playing the piano. He LOVES having a piano in the house. He practices classical pieces daily to help with his technique and plays all sorts of fun music (like the music from Mario Brothers and a piece from Lord of the Rings).

5. Jared has done ZERO sun baithing, yet still manages to have a very nice tan. It's because he is knocking doors all day. I keep telling him to put on sunscreen because I'm starting to feel like I'm married to a Lamanite.

Kailee Updates:

Kailee often runs to the fridge and says "apple." She holds it herself and always eats at least half! I'm so proud! Kailee loves to crawl up and sit on the couch. It's so cute when she crawls up and then scooches on over to lay on me. I could cuddle her all day!
Kailee's Auntie Michele got her these glasses a year ago and she finally is appreciating their value. She always brings them to me and says "pea, pea, pea" (please, please, please). She gets so excited when they're on. Sometimes she manages to put them on without help. I have found her sunglasses in the trash can twice now. She loves to throw things away. She is always bringing a toy or some clothing article of hers to the trash can and I have to tell her that we can't throw it away, lol.

Kailee still only has 4 teeth and is almost 16 months... is this normal??

She LOVES to sit in my pink chair that is out on our small patio. She also enjoys playing with sidealk chalk!
I just love this cute outfit she's wearing.

One of Kailee's favorite things to do is to take out pots and pans and get inside our cupboards. Sometimes she shuts the door and waits for me to say "where's Kailee... there she is!"
This cupboard has practically nothing in it, so she gets in here almost daily!

*Kailee's newest fascination is with birds. I tell her about birds all the time when we are on walks and one day last week she pointed at one and said "bir" really loud. It was so cute. She really does listen to her Mommy! She points at EVERY bird we see. She barks at every dog we see too!

**Kailee can match colors, but cannot say them all. She says purple, boo (blue), geen (green), has said red once, and can kindof say orange and pink. She used to say yellow, but doesn't even attempt it anymore.

***Kailee LOVES to dance now. For a while I thought maybe she had no rhythm because she would never attempt it, but now when I turn on the music, she goes to her special dancing spot and turns in circles with her arms moving too. It is pretty darn cute! That was our family home evening activity last week... DANCING! Even my brother couldn't deny she was the cutest dancing baby ever!

****Last, but not least... Kailee loves to HIDE things. She somehow got Jared's amenity card (what we use to get inside the gate, the gym, etc) and hid it. We couldn't find it for like 4 days. Jared even searched through a whole bag of trash, but to no avail. He finally found it under the door mat, lol. She also hid his wallet the other day in her toy box. She hides our keys all the time and we usually find them in one of our drawers in our bedroom. I found her missing sippy cup in our laundry basket with yucky orange juice in it last week too, lol.

*****We feel so blessed to have Kailee in our life. She brings our family so much joy. Babies truely are gifts from God. They are so precious. We hope Kailee doesn't grow up too quickly. Life wouldn't be nearly as fun without her.

Shannon Updates:

1. I enjoy the mornings when Daddy is home, though I mostly spend them preparing food. I make the guys dinner (sandwiches, etc) and put them in a cooler...for them to eat at 5ish. Since they're never home for "dinner," I make "dinner" for lunch, which we normally eat around noon before they leave. I make Kate Ballard's famous crock pot burritos weekly because they're so yummy and so easy!

2. Sometimes Kailee and I strollerblade (I rollerblade while pushing her in the stroller) alongside Daddy while he runs. There's a nice loop around the park near our house. I thought Jared would have trouble keeping up with me, but must admit I have trouble keeping up with him. I feel like a cow on skates. We always end our exercise by letting Kailee play at the park. She could swing ALL DAY if I let her.

3. Kailee normally goes down for her 2-3 hr. nap soon after Daddy leaves, which is when I often nap too. I always get to bed late waiting for Jared to get home and Kailee gets up at 7am, so I normally get 7 hrs. at night which just doesn't cut it most days. Sometimes I'll spend my nap time looking for houses online, talking to family on the phone, reading blogs, cleaning, watching a movie, reading, or sometimes showering.

4. Daddy takes the car every other day, so 3 days a week Kailee and I can go places after her nap. We either go to a different park, the library, or the grocery store. Even if it's only to buy 1 thing... we are just grateful to get out of the house. All of these places are conveniently right down the road too! On the days we're stuck at home, we normally fold laundry, color, read books, play with toys, play her matching color card game, or playing with plato. Some days we go to the pool, which she LOVES! I love Kailee's bedtime routine because she loves it. She LOVES bath time, brushing her teeth, reading her special baby night night book, saying her prayers, and snuggling her Mommy while I rock and sing to her. I hate putting her in the crib because then that leaves me bored for 2 hrs. til Daddy gets home. I usually spend my nights cleaning and talking to Jared on the phone while he drives home.

5. Oh...GOOD NEWS...I have made some friends. Not many, but I'm getting there. There's 2 girls my age in my ward. One with a newborn, and one that is pregnant who both live very close. There is playgroup once a week, which is good for me and Kailee. We actually have something to do!! It is normally at a park.

6. I have like 7 1/2 weeks left til Allie's due!! Yay! I can hardly wait to not be pregnant. I have projects I could be working on, but just don't feel up to it right now, like finishing Allie's blanket and Kailee's 1st year scrapbook. Any motivating words to encourage me??