First Christmas Tree

Last year we didn't get our own tree because we were out of town for three weeks, so this year Joel got to experience the tree trimming - complete with christmas music, hot chocolate and the streess of trying to get a perfect picture of this momentus event! He LOVED getting the balls out of the box and holding them "just so" by the hook and trying to put it on the branch. When we turned on the lights for the first time he said wow! and danced around in front of the tree. He still does this. He has been pretty good about not pulling the ornaments off, though he does like to walk very slowly and carefully just until the branches start to tickle. His wonder and joy makes this time so much fun! Hope you are all enjoying your Christmas tree as much as we are!

SNOW!

Here is our first big snow of the year - Joel didn't sink in all the way to the bottom but you can see on the railings how deep it really is. I took this picture on December 9th and pretty much all of this snow is still on the ground and the temperature hasn't been much above 20 since then. So this is what winter is! Joel is pretty indifferent to it, but did learn to identify when it is snowing out...he says no (snow without the "s") in a little nasaly voice and points outside.

Winter is HERE!

Well, the hot sticky summer is a distant memory as we are now living in what they are calling a "deep freeze." Boy do I miss nice, mild Oregon. :) Joel tolerates getting all bundled up, even if it's just to go check the mail downstairs, but he loves to try on our hats and dance in front of the mirror. Here is one of him in Greg's hat sitting on the coffee table...his favorite spot, currently!

Mimi's Visit

It took Joel no time at all to warm up to Mimi...it was as if she lived down the street and he saw her a couple of times a week instead of across the country and a couple of times a year! They had their own special games that they played together, and Joel began to prefer her company to mine! I'm not jealous though...it was a nice break for me and it was so special to see him having so much fun with his Mimi!

Jen's mom (Mimi is her Grandma name) came to visit last week, during Greg's fall break and we had a wonderful time. I think it was the best weather we'd had all year...fall is definitely my favorite season in Chicago. We spent a lot of time around the house playing and talking and just enjoying being together, but we also took her to some of our favorite spots (Ann Sather, Evanston, the Hair Cuttery :) ha, ha). Greg took her to the Art Institute and around downtown one day, and then we all went to Navy Pier and the Children's Museum (both a first for Joel and I) another day. It was a Chicago experience! We also celebrated Greg's birthday on the 20th - my mom cooked us a gourmet meal and we had Ann Sather cinnamon rolls for dessert! We loved having her here and miss her SO much!

The Vocabulary of a 1-year-old

Ever since returning from Long Beach, where Alia was talking up a storm, Joel's vocabulary went from about 3 words to about 25...and we are trying to teach him more every day! Here is a sample of words that he uses, and pretty much knows what they mean: mommy, daddy, Joel, more, ball, cheese, apple, hot, cold, banana (nana), up, help, egg (pronounced ghee), go, nono, shoe, sock, uh oh, yummy, fish, butterfly (ok, he only said it once but it was impressive!), hi, bye bye, Mimi (Jen's mom), cracker, book - this is all I can think of...but he can also point to his head, hair, eyes, ears, mouth, teeth, tongue, nose, hands, toes, chin, and tummy when prompted. I am amazed every day how much he can say and understand!

Apple Picking

We went down to Indiana to an orchard for apple picking. It was a PIM event, so many of our friends went, too. Joel LOVED picking the apples up off the ground and throwing them. He also decided that day that apple is not only his favorite food, but his favorite word, too!

Joel, Joel :x :x

After the wedding, Joel and I flew down to LA to spend the week (in Long Beach) with the Backlunds. Alia greeted Joel at the airport by saying Joel Joel (sounds more like doel, doel) and blowing him two little kisses. It was so cute and even though Joel was dead tired he was happy to see her (we are convinced that they remembered each other since June) and said hi to her (this was the first time he actually said the word, he usually just waves!). They were inseparable all week and it was so fun to watch them interact. We definitely miss seeing them every day, but I am so glad we got that week together! (Trish and I had a lot of fun together, too...but let's face it, the kids are much more interesting to tell about!) Here are a select few pictures from the week...


The two pictures above are from the aquarium...

A Wedding and a Reunion

Greg's twin brother Matt got married on September 17th in Sonoma California. We flew out for the weekend of festivities (Greg was the best man). There were a lot of family members that I had never met, and some that Greg had never met or hadn't seen since he was a kid! It was a beautiful and fun wedding at a winery, but we didn't get many pictures on our camera - Joel was very high maintenance so I wasn't able to do much of anything, let alone take pictures! Hopefully someone else got pictures of us all decked out...Joel was wearing a tie and was so cute!! If we ever get any I'll post them, but until then here is a picture of all the boys with their parents, and all the wives with Joan (Greg's mom). Nicole, the bride, is the second in from the right...too bad I didn't get any of her on the wedding day...she was absolutely stunning.
Greg and Matt don't look as much alike in this picture, but on the wedding day they were both in tuxes and Greg got countless hugs of contratulations from strangers! :)

Family and Friends

Here's our little family. This was taken in September for the new seminary directory.
Grandma and Grandpa Nealon came to visit in August. Joel learned to say Grandpa and loved to copy his laugh. :) Haa, haa, haa!!
This is Anja (and Joel). I babysit for her on Tuesday's and Thursday's. She is 5 months younger than Joel...those days are very busy, but fun, too!

Summer Fun

Here are a few pictures of Joel enjoying the summer...

Bye, Bye Backlunds (June 20, 2005)

It was so hard to say goodbye to our good friends the Backlunds. We shared so much this year; meals, Bible Study, new baby experiences, and lots of laughter (and some tears!!). These pictures are from a going away party we had the night before they left...Joel and Alia had a blast as usual, and Joel kept pushing Alia around in circles on this tricycle. Very cute. We miss them so much!!

First Haircut

We finally decided Joel needed a haircut. Here he is before the cutting began...

And during, he had plenty of props to keep him occupied...

And after, got a sucker! :)

Water Babies

Joel and his friends Alia and Linnea passed this hot summer afternoon with a little dip in the pool. What a chick magnet!

Joel loved chasing the ball around and throwing it out of the pool. Yes, he is wearing a hot-pink Little Mermaid swim diaper (thank you Alia) and we are all ok with that!

We're Back!

Sorry for the long absence...our computer was on the fritz and we didn't have internet access for over a month. We are finally back online and I hope to fill in the gaps on what we have been doing for the last two months!

Let him eat cake!

Joel had his own little cake (decorated by Greg) all to himself...and boy did he enjoy it!

Party Time!

We had a joint birthday party for Joel and his friend Alia Backlund (for those of you who don't know, they were born just 6 hours apart on June 17th! Joel in Portland and Alia in Chicago) Friends - adults and babies alike - gathered in our backyard for food, presents, and cake!

Joel and Alia liked looking at the dolphins from underwater!

Birthday at the Zoo

For Joel's birthday we went to the Brookfield zoo with the Backlunds. We saw the bears, went in the petting zoo, had lunch on the lawn and even saw a hippo out of the water!

Joel Turns One!

I can't believe it, but Joel is one! The first several months of his life seemed to take forever (sleepless nights can do that to a person), but looking back, we have come so far from the helpless little "bump on a log" that came to us on June 17th, 2004. He is now an active, curious, intense little bundle of energy. We are enjoying each day, and look forward seeing him grow and change in the next year.

First Edition

Welcome to the first edition of the Nealon News! We wish we had known about this when we moved away from the West coast last year - but better late than never, right?! We hope to use this site to keep you all informed of the goings-on here in Chicago, so check it often for pictures and updates.