First words?

Jake has been developing quite a vocabulary over the last few months, mostly nonsensical babbling that sounds something like "goy o goy ol" but in the last few days I've wondered if he is putting some of his sounds to real verbal use. On Monday afternoon, I heard Scott's car beep as he locked it in the driveway and said to Jake, "Daddy's home!" and he got down off the couch and walked into the kitchen saying "da da da da". And as he wandered around the baby pool this afternoon holding the plastic balls from Grammy Barbara he said over and over again, "Bah! Baaah!" I'm not sure if he really knows what he is saying or if it has just been a coincidental garbling of words that I have interpreted with more meaning than they have. But there's no doubt that he understands a lot, he responds to his name and to "no" and sometimes even seems to understand requests like, "bring that to me" or "stop chewing on that please". He's a very smart kid and I think any time now, he's going to start putting things together and realize how much he can accomplish with his voice.

UFC 246 Jake vs. Kili

We all saw the first battle of the couch between Jake and Finn last week. Now that Finn has left again for Portland Jake needs someone else to wrestle with. If Henry isn't available the next best thing is Kili. Hobbes is too skittish and generally runs away before he can get near. Kili has been safe on top of the couch until recently. Now that Jake can climb without assistance onto the couch you can see what happens. As you can see the match is over almost before it began and Jake sends him packing only after a few minutes I think Jake was about to throw on the reverse naked choke but Kili got out just in time. Hopefully I can catch more of the action on film.

Colts Christmas

Christmas Eve Dinner

Christmas Eve Kate and Scott put out quite a spread. Scott made two pumpkin pies and Kate made a turkey, sausage, sage and Apple stuffing with old hot dog buns, home made cranberry-apple sauce, mashed potatoes, dinner rolls again home made, and a sweet potato dish that never made it to the table. The turkey was golden brown and beautiful and the food tasted so good. We had McGrail Sparkle to drink and all sat around the big table for the first time. It was a good time with really good food. All three boys had their Colts gear on from Grammie and Tom Tom and the outfits now have that lived in look that little boys are want to give their clothes. More pictures on Flickr.

Cousins at the Temple

We went to the Mormon church in Leiei to look at their Christmas tree setup and get out of the house. We headed up the Kamehameha past a cow watching the surf, past the horses in the ruins, and past the Polynesian McDonalds. We wandered around the visitors center undisturbed by the missionaries and enjoyed our nuggets. We got this picture of the boys infront of the fountain and had a good ride back. It was the best trip that we have taken with all three boys in the car.

UFC 245:The Battle of the Couch

Finn and Jake had a battle for the ages on the couch. Both exhibiting a great ground game and the strength of will to never give up. Jake moved up a weight class to take this fight and while he was not as strong he had the tenacity of tiger. It ended up being a draw but the audience were the real winners, leaving after having witnessed the fight of the century.

Feeling Kinda Sunday

So far we have had a nice day. The sun is out in force for the first time in what seems a long time. Scott and I took Jake and Henry to the beach after they woke up from their morning naps while Kate and Finn went to church. The little boys played int he water and sand were the most popular pair on the beach. Jake loves to smile at the ladies that walk by and he melts their heart. Earlier we played in the kiddie pool and now as the babies are joining Finn for his afternoon nap Scott and I are going to play nine holes on the Marine Base. We are taking full advantage of this nice day and Scott not being on call. He has gotten to sleep in and even take a little nap, have some tasty adult beverages, and watch 3 movies. That's the news here, no pictures on this one but I will have another post up with some pictures. Hope you day is well.

Daddy Wasn't on call last night

With some fresh supplies coming in from Christmas presents opened Daddy and Uncle James enjoyed the first night of not being on call in a long time. I think Uncle James is a bad influence on daddy.

Mang Mang Dance Party

Once or twice a day we like to have a little dance party and this one was filmed for your entertainment. I am a terrible dancer but the boys have no idea so we have fun.

Grammy and Tom Tom sent Christmas

Earlier this week we got a box from Tom, Kris, and Heather full of presents. It made a huge difference to Kate's Christmas spirit and got all of the boys really excited. Finn is sure that every wrapped present holds trucks of all kinds and sometimes just stands and stares at the tree. Jake likes to pound on the boxes until we tell him no and then comes to us shaking his head no. Henry crawls over and tries to get under the tree with the presents. Your cookie buddy Jen brought some tasty sugar cookies over so now we have the full Mcgrail Christmas Package, well almost full, we are short a number of McGrails to finish it off.

He's turning into a bit of a picky eater

Jake clearly knows what he likes and what he doesn't and has turned into a picky eater. He used to eat anything put in front of him but now he will turn his head and wrench his mouth away from food he doesn't want. We have tried to take in mind what he didn't eat before but at the same time this isn't a restaurant and dude definitely isn't starving so if he doesn't eat all his breakfast he will be OK. He does eat if he has decided he likes it and after awhile he will re-examine his dislike for something once he realizes he isn't going to get anything else.

The little saboteur

Henry has turned into a little terror now that he can crawl. At least that is what Jake would say if he could talk. Henry crawls over to Jake and Finn and tries to take what ever they have. He is slow but methodical and persistent and is starting to really piss Jake off. Tonight Jake was mildly unhappy all day and Henry kept crawling up to him and grabbing his shirt. This made Jake cry big fat tears and scrunch up his face and Henry would laugh and laugh. I moved Henry away and he always came back to where Jake was. I felt bad for Jake but getting picked on by a little dude that can't even crawl that fast is not a good sign. A couple of hip checks and Henry will stay away, at least I think he will.

Sick and snuggley

Jake has been feeling a little sick the last couple of days. He had a temperature of 102 but was still happy and playing. He was a lot more snuggley though and enjoyed just being held. We went to breakfast on Saturday morning and he sat next to Scott and ate without squirming or trying to get into things. We knew then he must not be feeling well. He seems to be feeling a lot better today and the fever is gone.

Battle Royale

Staring contest between Jake and Henry. Intense action, neither willing to give an inch.

Oh in an upset Henry wins! These two will meet again I'm sure, what a huge win for the young rookie.

The Hustler

Jake got a ride from Scott to the local poker game and immediately started taking chips off of poor suckers. He bluffed his way to a couple big pots and finished some buffalo wings and had a couple beers. All in all a good night for hustler known around these parts as Jakey the Keiki!

Decorations

Didn't Scott do great posting things while we were gone, do you think he will get a chance to post now that we are back? He has some great pictures of Jake bluffing some suckers out of a great pot but you might never get to see those Mandy, sorry. On another note we put up moredecorations today and I thought you might want to see what we did. Here is your house at Christmas time.

Jingle Bell Dance

The Christmas Elf

Last night we got out the Christmas gear and got started on decorating the house. We had some Dean Martin Christmas tunes going and the Little elf helped out a bunch. By helped out I mean he pulled down boxes, ran away with ornaments and tried to get under Kate's feet whenever he could. He is a mischievous elf!

The Sea Thing!!

Run for your lives, it's the sea thing!!!!!!

Sunday Church

We went to church today and the boys were great in sunday school. We had a number of people ask about you but I am terrible with names so you'll have to do with out the specifics. Jake prowled the room like a tiger doing laps and playing with everything in sight. The Aunties said he was great and kept trying to hug his cousin. We had lunch at the church and came right home for naps. All three slept for about two hours giving me time to read, Scott time for WOW, and Kate a chance to nap herself. When they got up we went to the beach which you will no doubt have seen in the video above. It was a great Sunday afternoon and things are really going great. Scott, Kate and I have a dance we do with the boys getting one fed and another cleaned. We are working pretty well as a team lately, much like the triangle offense that I know you love Mandy. You know, the one the mighty Lakers run. Everyone moving together doing what needs to be done.

Lunch Time

Beefy enjoyed some Raviolis in sauce for lunch and liked it so much he decided to rub it all over his body. I can relate to that, I once had some lasagna that I, well never mind it's not important. He is doing a great job of feeding himself and gets a little frustrated when you try to feed him. He is a big boy and expects to be treated as such. He is so much more content now then he was before we left. He wanders around the house exploring his environment looking for changes. When you leave a door open or leave something he is not supposed to get to out he will find it immediately. He is sleeping in really great now as well. Most days is is sleeping until 7:30 or later and he takes really great naps. I think that being able to walk around and explore does a good job of tiring him out so he can sleep a lot better. He loves to hold things like juice cups and trucks and throw what ever he can to see what it will do. He tries to hug Henry when ever he can to but ends up knocking him over. Henry is a little skitish of Jake right now because he has less control then Finn does when Finn tries to hug him. As I am typing this he has pushed through the door and come in smiling at me and cooing. He is a great kid Mandy and he is doing really well. I know you miss him and worry about him but I hope there is some comfort in the fact that he is well loved and well taken care of.

Gone are the Grandmas

The boys are playing together again and they seem to be doing well after a time of feeling each other out. Henry can crawl now and Jake can walk so they are lot more mobile. Finn and Jake follow Kate around where ever she goes while Henry starts to crawl, then stops as everyone comes back. Kate had all of them mesmerized by a top until Finn kept touching it to stop it and Jake and Henry just wanted to sit in her lap. I wonder how these adjustments are for the boys going from Grand parent time to just one of three again. They all got some serious spoiling time from their grandmas and now they are back to vying for a limited amount of attention. I know it's good for them to work that out and have that community but the working out has to be strange for them. Henry is having some trouble getting back into this time zone and to a lesser extent so if Finn, but they are both sleeping well at night. Tonight everyone has their own space for the first time in two months so we will see what that means for sleeping. Adjustments for one and all.

Beefy Curls are getting harder

Daddy doing some light bicep work while Kate gives Henry a bath. Jake loves it when he is upside down and Scott loves the isolation workout. Sadly I can not do as many beefy curls now I could before I left. I need to get back into the Jake-Gym and get my reps in

Back in Beefy Land

We are back in the land of Beef and honey and we are super excited to be back. Jake has grown quite a bit and seeing him walk around the house like a drunken John Wayne is entertaining beyond words. He seems to have filled out nicely since we have been gone. Each of his legs are as big as Henry and Beefy curls are getting harder and harder to do. I'm looking forward to doing a little wrestling with kid after work today. Last night he lunged into my arms and hugged me tight. He is such a sweet snuggler and the benefit of all that beefiness is a one of the best hugs you can have. It's good to be back in Beefy Land, pictures and videos to come.