He is officially truckin'

I know it has been a long time, I am slacking. No excuses.

So what is new with the Alves family?

• LJ is moving at light speed now, he looks less like Frankenstein and more like a little man.
  

• LJ had ANOTHER haircut (more like a chop job, I asked for just a little shorter and she went to town)

• Like I've said before our little boy is quite the character. He is a huge ham. His vocabulary seems to be increasing more and more each week. His favorites words are Hi (which is said to just about everyone in stores), Mama, DaDee, Oh-oh, Baba (which is for a bottle or food), and Up. ( I am so proud that $#@t was not a first)

• LJ had his 12 month Well Baby check up. He is a healthy little man, emphasis on the little. According to the charts, he is in the 25th percentile for weight and not even on the scales for height. I have to take him back in a few months to make sure his height starts to change or they will need to do some tests. I can't complain because he really was blessed with good health, but I feel horrible that he was cursed with my height. L and I always tease that LJ will have my stature and if we were to have a girl (no I am not pregnant) she would be tall and lean like L.

• L has been really busy with work, but will have the next week off. Thank goodness, he needs the break (Plus he has a huge honey-do list)

• I am doing just fine. I am counting down the days until Spring Break because my kids are driving me nuts. Best teaching story this month: One of the boys in one of my morning classes keeps whispering to the kid next to him every time I start talking. I say to him (in a joking manner, of course), "You are driving me nuts. If you do not stop talking you will tempt me to take off my shoe and throw it at your forehead." So one of the other boys in the class (mind you, this is my boy class. 26 boys and 4 girls) jokingly says, "Ms. Alves, that's racist!" I answer "I am all about equality, I can take off my other shoe and throw it at your forehead!" A few minutes pass, another boy starts talking. I tell him, "You need to be quiet, I am running out of shoes." So what do I hear underneath the breath of one of the other boys? "Use your shirt!" Can you believe it? Needless to say, we had a long talk and I know not to joke around too much with that class now.
  

• We are slowly getting stuff done in the house. L has been working like a dog trying to get things done before he leaves. He has painted the kitchen and hall. We just picked colors for the living room, so that will be done next. Our garage gym is just about complete, we have rings and another pull up bar to install. L is also working on refinishing our kitchen cabinets (our kitchen was very pink) and hopefully we will get counter tops installed.
  

• Our house will be a work in progress. There is so much to do. We have a BRIGHT red dining room that seriously scares me. Our master bedroom is a magenta and gold, which was pretty for the prior owners but not for us. Both upstairs bathroom still have flowery wallpaper, but those are last on our list of to-do's.

Everyone is doing great. I am loving the house and my little family. What more could I ask for?

Side note: I know that the above were not your typical bullet notes, but I had so many little things to say. If Ms. J were checking them at CMS, I would have to redo them (;

P.S. Happy Birthday to all our March family members and friends. Harj, Brady, Josh, Karen, Keith, and Maria. I'm sure I am leaving some one out, I am horrible.