Training Day 1

     On Wednesday Samantha was looking online and noticed that the Oregon State Police were taking applications. It also happened to be the last day to file the application. If my (Joshua) application gets excepted I will be going in for the testing stage at the beginning of March. So this gives me about a month to train myself physically and mentally.
     I have not done a serious workout since I was in high school. I know that I used to be in good shape when I had gym classes. When I graduated I lost the opportunity to have the access to that free gym and scheduled classes. So I worked for the three or so years before getting married. When Samantha and I got married I decided to see how long it would take me to run 2 miles.
     It was 2009 when I ran those 2 miles, and I did it in about 15 minutes. To pass the physical part of the OSP testing, a person at my age, which is 25, has to be able to run 2 miles in 16 minutes, do 40 push-ups in 2 minutes, and 50 sit-ups in 2 minutes. Easier said than done right? Well, maybe for someone who is in good shape and lives a little healthier lifestyle than I.

I am about 5'9, 230 lbs. and very much out of shape

DAY 1 of TRAINING: I ran 2 miles in 22:06 minutes

I did 22 push-ups in 1:15 minutes (before I could do no more)

and sadly I did 10 sit-ups in 0:30 seconds (before I could do no more)

Colden is Such a Talker!

So I haven't posted in forever, and a lot has happened. Hopefully, I will be able to get caught up, but for now, I want to make a list of Colden's vocabulary. I have been telling myself to do this for weeks now, so I am finally doing it! We started signing with Colden when we was around 4 months. We didn't do a lot, just made sure when we talked to him about stuff we signed as much as we could. I didn't really think it was going to be as cool as it has been. I am so glad we did it! At first he would just look at us and laugh, but when he was around 9/10 months he did he first sign, and said his first word. The sign was Dog, and the word was "Ca" which was his version of Copper. Since then he has taken off! He has learned some signs faster then we can learn them to teach him more. It is really funny now, because he tries to make his own signs for words he is saying. So here is the list, and hopefully I don't forget any!!! Some things don't sound exactly how they are spelled, but just imagine what these words sound like coming out of a 13 month old mouth! I will put a big "S" by words he signs also!

Copper "Ca" S
Treat S
Sit
Sit down
poop S (even let's us know when has done so, by saying it, and signing it!)
bat
deer S
Thank you
please S
more S
all done S
all gone S
this
bite S
eat S
cheese S
shoes
socks S
Water S
stop
kitty S
car
honk
ball S
banana S
apple S
Milk S
eyes S(he made up his own sign for this)
bath
play S
Dad S
Josh
Dinosaur S
Llama S
Go
Out
Baby S (this is my favorite! He is so cute!)
toys
friend S
Hat S
Brush teeth S
wash S (for washing hands)
Fish S
Sleep S
 Ya or Yes
Uh oh
Bye(with a wave)
Hey
Spider
Ouch
Hot S
I think that is all of them, but he adds new words everyday! He is such a funny kid and we love him so much!     I will do my best to get all updated and keep it updated! I hope everyone is having a great Fall!!

Is it Summer Yet?

For a few days we got a glimpse of what summer (hopefully) has in store for us! So being the summer lovers that we are...we took advantage of it! Nothing like a nice trip to a park, and a dip in a pool, a very small pool, but a pool none the less! Grandma, Grandpa, Aunt Jordan, Aunt Alex, Copper, and cousin Braden were all there to enjoy the day with us too! It was nice to hang around outside. It made me really excited for camping! It made me even more excited to take Colden camping! I just know he is going to love it as much as we do! 

 Colden enjoying the shade.

 Can't be a good practice day for summer, without getting our feet dirty!

 The water was a little chilly for sitting in, but Colden loved splashing around.

No pre-summer day is complete without some cute little cheeks!

After our little glimpse of warmness, it got cloudy and cold again. Summer isn't to far away...

Down on the Farm!

Living in Oregon is such a blessing! One of the greatest aspects of our green state, is the proximity we have to farms! Buaman's isn't exactly the closest, but I knew they have farm animals to pet, and feed, and they have a great selection of plants and flowers, plus a nice place to walk around. Jordan and my mom came up for a few days, and we were able to take a trip up there. Best part...Josh had the day off, so he got to come too! Josh getting to be there for some of Colden's firsts was awesome!

No better way to start off an adventure! Nap with Llama!

 Rooster! This guy was pretty loud! We walked with him from the courtyard area, all the way to the barn! 

 Jordan got to show off her farm girl side!

 Some pretty flowers!!

 guinea hen! Josh said these ladies are pretty loud, but this one seemed pretty chill.

Colden loves animals! This was a cute little baby goat. He was so interested in them. Every thing just seemed

 Sheep!!!

I was really nervous about his little fingers being so close to animals with big sharp teeth! But, Josh was there, and the animals were all very gentle. You could tell they were used to little kids. Colden came home with all of his fingers!

  Of course have to clean our hands after we play with barn animals! Colden also loves water, so this was fun for him too!

 Colden takes his tractor rides very seriously! Just kidding, he was laughing and having  good time! Sometimes he just feels like he needs his serious look.

On top of some tires! He wasn't so sure about this, but seemed to like the view. 

Colden is so amazing to me. He loves to look at things, and touch them! I love seeing the world through his eyes. I never realized how awesome having a little boy would be! He is always so excited for new stuff. Taking him to see the animals, and hear them was really neat. He makes us laugh everyday! I can't wait to see what he brings to our family next! Here's to our next adventure!