I know....I haven't been updating!

Okay, I admit, I have not been as up to date on my blog as I would like to be. It was a busy summer and I didn't get nearly as much accomplished as I would have liked! No traveling for us this summer, besides going up to see Charles' mom up north. But we did a lot with the kids and kept busy and as cool as possible. I can't believe I am back to school already and Nolan too! He started in Early School at Prairie. It is nice to have him there with him, especially when I get to see him at lunch time or run into him in the halls. I think he is wondering why every adult in the building knows his name!!! So far, he has loved it!

Other things to fill you in on in the Gasser household. Charles has been busy at work but even busier with the band. He went to LA this summer for a few shows and played with the Bryan Brothers. He then toured around Wisconsin and Michigan, playing at Kamplified with a bunch of other bands for different camps in the area and then headed to Colorado to play some more. The band has also released their CD nationally, we will see what their future may hold. It's all very exciting and busy---I just don't know what else to say as this is all unchartered territory to us...I'll keep you in the loop. (By the way, if you haven't seen their music video, My World, it is definitely worth watching(: They are having an official CD release party in September in Milwaukee! YAY! They also are currently #69 on the charts!!! Pretty awesome!

Jonah is HUGE! Seriously, I can only tote him around for five minutes before my arm hurts. He eats all the time and is a really happy baby (except when he is hungry and I do not have a bottle ready). He will be eight months this month (August 29th) and weighs....drum roll please....22 lbs! He is a FAST crawler and surprised us Friday night by pulling himself up to stand. A trick he has been trying to work on since he got the crawling thing down. I am pretty sure cruising isn't far behind. Nolan is a great big brother and sometimes gets a little jealous but we are working on patience (a quality his mother lacks at times). But we are working on it. I seriously cannot believe Jonah is already 8 months old---time really flew with the second baby! Before I know it, he's going to be a toddler!

And finally, the house, probably the one thing constantly on my mind! We had a rough go of it a about a month ago. We decided to put on a new roof and all hell broke loose. We also decided to put in an offer on another house--contingent on the sale of ours. Well--it was just one thing after another.....the roof was probably the easiest transaction of all of them. Charles' car died that week as well and was later deemed unfixable. We had to buy a new car and the house we liked--it appeared they were going to take our offer and then declined it at the last minute. The cherry on top was when a sudden storm ripped our front screen door off it's hinges and threw our patio umbrella to the backyard (about ten minutes after we left the house). Needless to say, I was a little panicked as money was just flying out of our wallets and we don't neccessarily have the means to have that happen. But it has all worked out and we are back to thinking positive thoughts about the house and life. (We love our new used Prius by the way!!!)

So, here are some pics! Enjoy and I PROMISE I will not be so delinquent this fall with pictures!

Spring has arrived

This will be a quick post as I am a busy girl these days!

Jonah is now four months old and is the happiest baby ever! I just put him in his crib and he falls asleep on his own!

Amazing!!!

We will see what teething brings! My sister Clare is convinced that since Jonah is so easy I will have a third...still thinking about that one Clare but I am sure you will be the first to know (after Charles of course!)

He just started rice cereal. Took him a few days to get the hang of it, but now he's all about the stuff. Can't wait to s

ee what veggies and fruits will do to him!

We also made our first trip to DQ--about six or seven blocks from the house. I think this is the first time Nolan has had a true ice cream cone. He almost ate the entire thing! I told Charles to ask for a kiddie cone next time (much smaller!!!). We realized about

half way there that Nolan usually rides in the stroller to Dairy Queen. He was a trooper the whole way there and back. The entire trip only took us an hour and fifteen minutes!!! I couldn't believe how late it was when we got home! He also just learned to peddle his trike although he refuses to go over ant hills with it (don't ask me--last year he was sticking his fingers in all the ant holes). I guess he doesn't want to wreck their houses! Happy spring everyone!

(No I did not buy this car--it's a loaner from my friend Jeanette!)

Happy spring!

Well, it is back to school for me next week. I have truly enjoyed my time off with Jonah and think I will find it hard to go back to the "real world". But honestly, I only have ten weeks and then SUMMER VACATION!!! I know, I planned my pregnancy pretty well without planning it! It will be good to get back in the routine of things for awhile. But I will miss spending time with the little ones and being a "stay at home mom". It has been fun.

Jonah is changing so much these days. Although he is a happy baby--he still gets me up about twice a night now and he has gotten in this pattern of getting up at 4 a.m. and that's pretty much it. He's ready to begin the day. His mother is not! He just learned to laugh, which makes all of us in the Gasser household laugh too. He is a lot of fun and his brother Nolan can't wait for him to be able to play! (neither can I!!!)


We also put our house up for sale. We are looking for something bigger, as we are starting to outgrow our little Cape Cod. Since I was on maternity leave, it was the perfect time to declutter and tidy up the house to try and sell it. We had an unsuccessful open house and two private showings but no bites. We have only had it on the market for about two weeks so I'm not too concerned. But it has been fun looking at other houses!!!

Oh, and the biggest news in the Gasser household these days--Nolan has tackled potty training! He decided the time was right and that was it. It took him about a good week to get a hold of it, but he's got it down pretty well and has even woke me up a couple of times at midnight to go potty! Yay! One finally gets out of diapers and...we have another kid! I'm just happy I'm not changing two anymore! Enjoy the slide show below. I may post more pics after Easter as we are getting together with the fam and having an Easter egg hunt! It should be a good time!! Happy spring and Happy Easter to you and yours--love The Gassers

The second time around the block...

I must say, the second time around the block with a baby is a little easier. You know what you're doing, you've been there before and it just seems easier. Having a three year old also in the mix does change things a little bit, but for the most part, I think we have the hang of it! Both Heidi and my mom are on my case to post some new pictures of the baby. Check below at the slide show, but before you do that--take a look at the two pictures below: One is Nolan and one is Jonah--can you guess who is who(I'll post the answer at the bottom of the page)? I think they look A LOT alike--but I am sure their personalities will be quite different. It will be interesting to see how Jonah grows and changes. Can't wait. He is already a great baby. Eats ALL THE TIME and sleeps pretty well too. I can't complain. Nolan loves being a big brother and does get the twinge of jealousy once in awhile but really is a pretty good boy these days.



Besides the new baby, things have been a little hectic. To keep me from going stir crazy, Charles and I have been decluttering the house--as we are wanting to put in on the market in spring (our goal is the beginning of April). We have a few projects to do, like paint part of the basement, but we should be able to hammer them all out by then. Most of the decluttering is done and we have a ton of stuff in storage. Looking at houses, even online has become quite fun and we are hoping to find something with a bit more space!!! (and at least a bath and a half). Another adventure begins--nothing stays boring here for long--Ali always needs a project!!

We also celebrated Nolan's birthday this past weekend, a little earlier than usual. He turns three on the 22nd but Charles is heading to California this Friday and won't be home to help celebrate it. So we decided to bump up the celebration a little. Nolan had a great birthday--he helped pick out his race car cake (in my opinion it was a pretty ugly cake, but that was his choice!). He loved his presents, especially the garage from Aunt Clare and Uncle Josh. On his actual birthday Clare and I are planning to take Nolan and Quinn to Monkey Joes (an indoor fun park with inflatables). I know Nolan will LOVE that! Pictures will come soon.

And Charles leaves for California this Friday until the 28th. He has a major show at Sunset Sessions, a venue play for tv and radio producers. They also played this venue last year, but this year they are on the main stage (Jason Mraz and Melissa Ethridge will also be playing this stage on Friday). Its a pretty big deal for Bascom Hill. They have the same time slot that the Zac Brown Band had last year--and if you watched the Grammys the Zac Brown Band won for Best New Artist this year. So maybe this time slot will have some luck attached to it! They also will be working on their music video, which stars Mr. Quin Stickler, the Bradley Brothers (tennis champs) and possibly Lou Ferigno--The Incredible Hulk (and maybe a few other stars if they are lucky). He is excited and nervous about the trip. I'll let you know how it goes.

Enjoy the pictures below. I promise to be a little better about posting more frequently! Charles just got a new camera so hopefully I will be snapping more pics as our current camera works only some of the time!



Nolan is on the left! Jonah on the right!

Meet Baby Jonah

We had an excellent Christmas and New Year's this year as we welcomed baby Jonah into the world. He was born on December 29th, 2009 at 7:54 a.m. via c-section. He was 7 lbs 2 oz. and 19 inches long and at his first doctor's appointment he was already 8 lbs 8 oz! The boy likes to EAT! Nolan has really been enjoying the big brother role and always checks to see if Jonah is awake. A few classic comments when we brought him home: "Please can I pet him?" "Aww, she is so cute" He is constantly calling Jonah a girl due to the fact that their are all girl babies at his daycare.

We spent an enjoyable Christmas Eve at Clare and Josh's and had a very quiet Christmas at home. Nolan played with his trains from Santa all day while Charles enjoyed playing the Wii, our new fun entertainment, a video game console. We didn't get out of our pajamas all day! It was great!!!

We also celebrated Charles' birthday the day before Jonah was born. Charles and I actually got one more night out before our little newbie entered the world spending time together at dinner and a movie (Nolan had to stay at my parents due to the fact we had to be at the hospital at 5:30 am on Tuesday). I don't remember much from the C section---not sure if I blocked it out or not, but poor Charles witnessed the whole surgery as the curtain covering me was a little low and he could see everything! His comment, "Good thing I watch a lot of medical shows!"

We got to come home from the hospital on New Year's Eve. It was good to be at home, on my own couch and sleeping in my own bed. Jonah is a fairly good sleeper and at the moment I am getting up about once in the middle of the night to feed him (with an 11:00 pm feeding and a 6:00 am feeding). The trick for me to solve is to not fall asleep in the rocking chair in the middle of the night! Below is a slide show of pictures of Christmas festivities and Jonah. Enjoy!