Kevin Minnis

Well, it finally happened. Jayden turned 2 on Tuesday. Boy how time has flown. He thinks he’s such a big boy now! Over the weekend we had Jayden’s birthday party. He had a good time and was wore out by the days end. He was spoiled rotten with toys, toys and more toys. Because Jayden is always so excited about play kitchens, we decided to get him one of his own. Along with it, he received a lot of play food and accessories. He loves it to pieces and is ready to cook you up a meal when you come over. He doesn’t know yet that metal can’t go in the microwave! I think he takes after his dad because his mom is no Betty Crocker.

We decided to have something different for his birthday party this weekend. Most parents would probably get a clown or go some place cool, but we decided to have some fun with Pop and candy. You can watch the Mentos and Diet Coke video on YouTube. I think Jayden had more fun with that than he would have with a clown. haha (Or maybe it’s his parents and family that had more fun). Here are some pictures as well of the Mentos & Diet Coke fun.

On Jayden’s B-day, we took him to the Blank Park Zoo (Pictures). Although, it’s not quite like the Omaha Zoo, we still had a good time. He got to feed the goats and watch his dad get attacked by them. Probably his favorite thing was riding the train. He LOVES trains right now. Especially Thomas the Tank Engine.

We took the plunge and got Jayden and Josie’s pictures taken last Friday. It was a challenge but we managed to get a few cute poses. Some of you will be receiving copies in the mail, but you can look at them on line soon. We’ve started the fun process of painting the outside of the house. We are leaving it white but changing the trim to a reddish/burgundy/cranberry color. Right now it’s a little bright. We hope it darkens a bit when we put another coat on. We are at least getting the front done, and then we’ll worry about the rest next spring/summer.

Josie is growing like a weed and changes everyday I swear. Jayden has started to pester her a bit more, but really could care less about her. Hopefully someday he’ll stick up for her!

Let’s see. Where to begin? Life has been busy. Kim’s Mom, Pat, had surgery on her shoulder as a result of someone not cleaning up spilled water in the hall at the hospital she works at. We went down over the weekend (May 25-27th) to visit Kim’s Mom and Dad and make sure that Pat wasn’t doing anything she shouldn’t. Then we headed back home to have some fun for the rest of Memorial weekend. We took Jayden out to Big Creek State Park so he could play in the sand and water. We took Jayden to the splash park when it was in the upper 80s a week ago or so and he didn’t seem to like the water much. Instead, he liked to play in the grass and follow the fence around. Not sure what that’s all about.

In spite of Jayden graduating to his “big boy chair” and gaining another 2 pounds (not much, but at least he’s holding steady), he’s managed to gain his terrible twos attitude a bit early. This past weekend we went up to Hope and Mike’s wedding in Emmetsburg, IA. The wedding was short and sweet, but Jayden thought he should make a big deal out of it and wasn’t the quiet little boy he usually is. So, I spent half of the wedding in the atrium of the church with Jayden. Next we went to the reception for about a half an hour. Jayden proceeded to want to run around. Kim and I decided we’d just leave early and head back to Rockwell City to visit with her brothers. I guess the lesson in all this is that I don’t think we will be able to take Jayden to another wedding anytime soon. I don’t blame him any, he’s almost 2 and he had been riding in the car for about 2.5 hours.

Kim did okay on the long trip, but I think she’s paying for it now. She (and I) can’t wait to have the baby! We’re not all that excited about the birthing process or the sleepless nights, but more for the comfort of Kim and getting back to normal.

So, yeah, that’s almost all that’s happened within the last month.

This weekend has been pretty quiet. It’s been a while since we’ve just stayed around Ankeny and did very little. Friday I had off from work. It appears that Pioneer is becoming more of government than a business as we get the third Friday off in March now instead of Good Friday. Not sure what that’s all about. Oh well, at least they still give us time off.

Anyway, on to the fun stuff. I think it was the week of February 6th, 2006 that I started to grow a goatee to get ready for Broox’s mustache party that he had on March 17th. Lucky for me that my hair is leaving the top of my head so I could win the entry for longest/most hair for a mustache. Here’s a picture of me starting out. I think it’s with maybe a week’s worth of growing. Here’s a picture with my full goatee and finally, a picture with the mustache and “handle bars”. haha. The party was a blast and I’m glad that I got to go. Saturday I had to shave it off. Not because Kim wanted me (she hated the facial hair), but because it was annoying to have. The initial itching was done, but I just hated it being around my mouth. It was weird shaving it off as I felt like I was naked. Even just shaving off the middle of the goatee made my chin feel cold, but now that it’s all gone, I really feel the difference. I can actually feel the wind hitting my chin. haha. Oh yeah. And the Gillette Fusion that I won at the party works awesome!

Here’s the full set of pictures for the mustache party. Thanks for the good time Broox!

We can now breath a sigh of relief. Jayden is now walking on his own…to a certain degree. He won’t get up from sitting without grabbing on to something, but once he’s standing up, he can walk on his own if he decides to. He’s done with physical therapy for now but will be getting some shoe inserts to see if we can correct his ankle from turning in. He had his 18 month doctor visit with the a different pediatrician on Wednesday. We’re glad we switched doctors for him. The new doc is much better and takes the time to listen and actually hears what we’re telling him. Jayden’s now starting to say a few more words: Car, meaow, truck, yuck (pronounced ggaayh and also refers to the trash can), Dada, Mamma (when mad), done and maybe a few more that I can’t remember.

Let’s see what else…oh yeah. Work’s been okay. I now have an appreciation of why corporations don’t perform. I can’t complain on my end, but it sucks that the only way management sees groups better interacting is to split up people between two groups to “make” everyone get along. Pretty stupid way of trying to increase productivity if you ask me. Oh well, I guess I have a job yet.

Baby number two is coming along nicely. Kim seems to be not as tired as she was first starting out. She usually makes it till 10 instead of the normal 9:00. haha.

Merry Christmas to you all. Jayden just wanted you to know that he’s been a good boy and likes to get presents. We’ve had fun with the Wagner side, now it’s time to have some fun with the Minnis side. Hope you are all having a wonderful Christmas.

More pictures can be found in the Christmas 2005 Set